Acabi Dreams

IVY Ivy walked for what felt like hours. The fog was never-ending. She looked back, and stifling darkness met her; she had no choice but to keep going. Just when she was about to drop from exhaustion, she saw a faint light in the distance. Her spirit perked up, and she quickened her steps. Perhaps she could finally get help. Upon reaching the light, she saw it was a small campfire. The clearing was empty, and there was no one in sight. Ivy cautiously walked towards the fire. Her tense muscles relaxed as heat permeated through her frozen body, warming her up. It had gotten unbelievably cold during her walk, and her spells were not working. She wasn't sure how much time passed when she heard the rustling of leaves. She immediately left the fire, merging back into the oppressive darkness. A man walked into the light. He had long hair that fell on his shoulders, he was tall and dressed plainly. What caught her breath was not his face, for he was indeed handsome, but his eyes. A beautiful shade of violet. Just like hers. Although his eyes were darker. And those dark eyes surveyed his surroundings with impatience and confusion. Another man walked into the clearing. He looked younger than the first and more delicate. They seemed to know each other because the second turned to the first and asked, "Where the hell are we?" The first man didn't reply; instead, he walked to the fire. Soon, another person walked in, this time Ivy knew who it was. Aria. She had a confused look which turned fearful when she saw the two men. Ivy hesitated for a second, then walked out. All three turned to her; she could see Aria visibly relax. The first man walked towards Aria, towering over her small frame. Well, she wasn't exactly small, but the man was too tall. Aria stepped back, and the stranger got closer. His eyes reminded her of someone, but her frazzled nerves did not give her much room for consideration. Imagine her shock waking up to find the hut empty. She was so scared. Had the witch betrayed her? But when she walked out into the seemingly endless darkness, she knew something was seriously wrong. The stranger frowned, "Why are you here?" Aria's lips twitched; she wanted to know that too. She cast a wary glance at Ivy. Did the witch bring her here? She wondered. She had a good feeling about Ivy, but she couldn't rule out the possibility that they've been betrayed. But when she looked into the girl's scared and confused eyes, she knew she was innocent. "Why are you here?" The man repeated. Aria snapped to face the handsome bother. "I'm here because I want to be, what's it to you!" Although Aria had a weakness for good-looking faces, something about the guy instinctively made her want to snap. "Awoooo" A piercing howl broke the relative calm. Subconsciously, Aria clung to the safest person; by the time she realized it, she was in the stranger's arms. Ares blinked, looking down at Aria in his embrace. She had never gotten so close to him, especially now in his true form. His heart thumped just as she released him like she had been electrocuted and stepped out of reach. The howl rang again, and this time it was closer. A great shadow suddenly loomed above them. It was a silver wolf. It flew above their heads, causing the girls to scream. Garsam held in a scream that threatened to escape. Since entering this godforsaken place, she couldn't speak to Scar, so she felt utterly alone. On the great wolf rode a slender figure. Like the wolf, she was abnormally large, like a giant...like a deity. She slid down from the wolf; the ground trembled when her feet touched the ground, and pale silver flowers grew where her feet touched. Her hair was half silver, half midnight black and danced around her like they were alive. Her silver eyes surveyed them with a smile. "My Children" she cooed. Her voice was soft and lilting, Aria felt herself draw closer. "My Acabi, oh my Children of Hope" Ares frowned at the familiar name. Vel had mentioned something or the other about it, but he rarely took him seriously. While he was contemplating the woman—for sure she is a deity, walked towards Aria and Ivy, leaving silver flowers in her wake. "Well, this is a first," She said looking them over. Aria finally snapped out of her fascination "Who the hell are you and why did you force me here!?" The deity's eyes widened comically "Force you? I would never. I merely called, and you all answered" Ares stepped forward, blocking Aria from the deity's view "And why have you called us?" The deity tsked "A thousand years and a blank memory, and you're still overprotective of her...and a prick too" Ares didn't so much as twitch in reaction to her words; instead, Aria stepped out from behind him. "You have a lot of explaining to do," Aria said. Ivy silently watched at the side. The deity hadn't really even looked at her. Perhaps her being here was a mistake. She shuffled uncomfortably and briefly contemplated walking back into the darkness till she finds a way out. "A little bundle of darkness," the deity said. Ivy was lost in thoughts when she looked up to see everyone's eyes on her she realized she had been spoken to. Ivy pointed at her nose "M-me?" "Isis" the deity called. The giant wolf in the sky shrunk into a large hound. Its silver coat became a stark white. The wolf circled the deity; she patted its head and as she did so her body shrunk till she was only slightly taller than Ares. "Sit down my children and I'll fill you in on your new Burdens" Garsam, Ivy, and Aria sat around the fire. Ares stubbornly stood behind Aria. The deity rolled her eyes at him and began "I am Selena" The three seated gasped but otherwise remained silent. Selena continued solemnly "It was a millennium ago when the world was in turmoil. My creations of the night fought each other for dominion, wolves and witches, those were the dark ages. The quest for supremacy drove them to my brother Hades, the keeper of evil. And he helped them, he helped them all, he fed them dark essence that empowered them but corrupted their core and stole their souls turning them into a living dead, into ferals. "I knew something was to be done. So I created you. From a mother's tears and hope I crafted you all, Acabi, my most perfect creations, my warriors. And you brought peace to the land, when your burden was gone you returned to Vhail to wander till you were needed again. You have been reincarnated nine times, this is your tenth and final" "Ai and Ipne the warrior guards and Ur the messenger, you three are my most perfect creations. Now I need you again, a sleeping demon has been enticed, an evil long dead is leaving Hades' embrace and it is your burden to stop it!"