Blood and Light

by Rue Volley

  I turned around, suddenly holding the blades like it was a snake in my hand. I had the urge to drop them and run. Sam had a curious look on her face, I didn't know what it meant, but I didn't like it.

  “Yes, I see it Josh… I would of never believed it, but I'm looking right at it.”

  I went into panic mode... My voice went up an octave, “Okay…if someone doesn't start talking English to me, I'm chucking these as far away from me as possible!”

  Sam moved forward quickly… “No honey, listen…we all have a color.”

  I looked like a deer in headlights I'm sure. “Uh huh…Josh said mine is blue. Blue isn't a color, but it's mine… Would someone tell me why I have the rainbow going on here…? I mean are they going to explode or something?”

  Josh flashed to my side. “No Rue, listen...when we draw energy, our color swirls on our skin and it transfers to the blades... The blades become an extension of us, part of us… Normally it glows white with one distinct color, your base color as a protector, but you…well, you just transferred every color, individually.” He got really close to my blades and looked… “And they are not mixing, they are distinct. I've never seen it before, it does not happen.”

  208

  “Okay, so not only do I have a base color that does not exist, I drink blood, and I have every color in my blades now?”

  He stopped looking at the blades and looked at me.

  “Yep…looks that way.”

  I lowered the blades to my sides. “Oh…that's just awesome… Anything else…?

  What…? Next week I stop the earth"s rotation… ? Or no, maybe I'll just blow something up, with my mind.”

  Sam started laughing and then everyone did. I had a “three year old throwing a fit” going on… I knew it but God… Why can't I even be normal among the not normal?

  I sighed… “Could you just show me how to do something with these…? I am standing here, in what I could only guess is leather… I mean it's leather right?”

  I turned to Sam and she had her hand over her mouth, hiding a smile.

  Johnathan stepped towards me. “You look amazing Rue.”

  I put my hand out, pointing a blade at him... “Not now.” I drudged on, “I have these glowing knifes in my hands…”

  Josh interjected laughing, “Blades Rue… They are blades.” I rolled my eyes.

  “Okay...BLADES… Wow, ya know, I don't even know what I am doing. I flashed out here, which by the way is not a normal thing to be able to do and I felt really good about it… I thought „Rue, you can do this"....” I pointed at Johnathan…

  “I bit him today... BIT HIM… What the hell is that all about?”

  Josh stepped toward me. “You bit him?”

  I pointed my blade at him… “Bit him…that's what I said, I grabbed his arm and just took a bite and I loved it. Why the hell would I love that...? You know...” I pointed my other blade to the rock I jumped from. “I jumped twenty feet down here. Just JUMPED… Didn't even twist my ankle… I never even ran track, my parents never even got me a bike…! I am not athletic at all!”

  I stopped and took a breath. Suddenly they all burst into laughter, Kai rolled to the ground and Sam kicked at him, trying to look like she might be on my side.

  She leaned down holding her stomach… “Get up you ass,” she whispered.

  I gripped my blades and started walking away. I had, had it…I was going back to the house… I was going to walk, not flash through the woods scaring all the chipmunks and racoons, take off this white jumpsuit and read a book…

  Normal, very, very normal. Yes…

  Josh flashed to me… He was still laughing, but he was starting to get it under control. “Rue…please stay, I will show you something.” I walked a few more feet and he got in front of me.

  He lowered his voice, so only I could hear him, “Listen Rue…yes you can move really fast. Your base color is blue, it's not what we would ever expect, but it is who you are, and those blades in your hand are important to you surviving.” He stepped closer to me and I could feel the heat coming off of his body. “You have handled so much, in such a short period of time, with the grace and acceptance that is only consistent with your lineage as a protector of heaven and earth. I would be honored if you would allow me to show you how to use Grace Valon"s blades, that you have rightfully inherited”

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  I stepped back. “Wow, you could of just said, „I'm an ass Rue, I didn't realize that all this stuff is just seventeen miles past crazy… I'm sorry for forgetting that you are just a girl, who a year and a half ago was going to the library and getting good grades in school… trying to pick a college. Or better yet just one please…

  just a please could you try this"?” I said.

  He grinned at me. “You are amazing, Rue Volley.”

  “I'm glad somebody thinks so…because I don't know Josh…”

  I turned around and could see that Johnathan was looking at the two of us, no longer laughing.

  “Okay…fine…show me something Josh.” We walked back to the clearing and he placed himself across from me and pulled his blades from the hidden compartments on his back.

  “Okay Rue, hold your blades out to your side.”

  I pulled them out and turned them sideways. He looked at my hands. “Well, I would of told you to turn your wrists, but you already did.”

  “Just felt like what I should do.”

  He started to crouch down. “Well it is. You hold your blades at an angle, makes every strike more deadly. Now I am going to strike at you… I won't hurt you, I'll do it slowly, so you can counter.”

  He stood up lifting his blades in an x and started to bring them back down.

  I brought mine back up in an x and knocked one out of hand. Josh stared at his blade on the ground and then back to me.

  “How did you know the counter move?”

  “I have no idea Josh...just lucky I guess?”

  “Okay…” He bent over and picked it up, he swung around quicker, bringing the blade up over his head, coming down over me. I lifted one blade up and blocked that one while I flipped my other blade in my hand and hit him in the ribs with the butt of it. He let out a grunt and grabbed his side, stumbling back from me. I immediately apologized.

  “Oh my God Josh… I'm sorry…seemed like what I should do…”

  I looked to Sam and she had a huge smile on her face, Kai gave me the

  “rock n roll” sign with his fingers. I half grinned and shrugged my shoulders… I had no idea how this was happening.

  Josh spit on the ground and steadied himself. I put one blade in front of me and one at an angle at my side, I had my feet a part, slightly crouching. He lowered his head and took a lower position, with his blades at his side.

  “I think you have been trained already Rue.”

  “I have not but...”

  I was cut off when Josh flashed at me, slicing his blades down at a right angle. I spun around and brought my right hand up, stabbing at him as he moved out of my way. He raised his left hand and I dropped sweeping my leg, knocking him to the ground and brought my blade up to his neck. He laid there grinning at me, his chest rising and falling quickly. I stood up and looked at Sam.

  “You just kicked his ass Rue…” she said. She looked at Kai, “Now that's foreplay you idiot.”

  “I…I don't even know how I did that!” I whispered.

  210

  Josh pushed himself up off of the ground and put his blades away.

  “I think we have a warrior here and didn't even know it.”

  I lifted my blades up and stared at them. “I didn't know I could use these… It felt like they just moved on their own Josh.”

  “You have been imprinted Rue… Your parents have trained you well.”

  “When exactly did they train me…? I don't ever remember having a blade put in my hand.”

  “They must have transferred their knowledge to you…it's memory Rue,” Josh said.

  I put my bl
ades away. “I don't remember ever doing this before.” I turned my back to him and the sky rumbled, lightning cracked so loudly it shook the ground under our feet. I felt a vibration in my hands and I pulled my blades out again, they were glowing brightly, colors swirling violently and I turned quickly to see Josh flashing towards me, blades drawn. “Get down Rue!” he screamed. I dropped to the ground, thinking that this was yet another test of my abilities and he jumped over me. Right above me I saw a flash of light hit him and he flew backwards, hitting a tree rolling to the side and laid motionless.

  I looked to Sam and she pulled her blades, flashing to the left, slashing at this blur of a figure. I screamed out Josh's name and I felt hands wrap around my waist, dragging me upward. I looked to see Johnathan's face, we took a step and I dropped to the ground, Johnathan had been thrown from me. I heard a female voice scream, “Bind!” and Kai, Sam, and Johnathan dropped to the ground, groaning.

  I had to blink a couple of times… I was trying to get my bearings, if I could just understand what was happening…just for a moment… I felt a kick to my side, it forced the air out of my lungs and I slid across the ground, almost knocking into Josh"s body. The rain started to pour down and I pushed myself up on my knees… The rain ran down my face and I had to focus to see who this attacker was. I pushed myself up to see a girl, with her blades drawn, she had a pretty face…dressed in white, just like me. I had my blades at my side and I called out to her.

  “Who are you…? And what the hell are you doing?”

  She stood there with hate in her eyes. Finally she spoke.

  “My name is Mikah… I have come to offer you life, instead of death, Rue Valon.”

  I gripped my blades and continued. “My name is Rue Volley… I think you have the wrong girl… ”

  “You are not the daughter of Grace Valon?”

  “Yes…my mother"s name is Grace...Grace Volley.”

  “Whatever name you chose for yourself Rue, you must atone for the fallen.”

  “What…? What fallen?” I said to her.

  “I have found you and…” she waved her blades at everyone on the ground.

  “These traitors you consider friends, now you will come with me to answer to the council.”

  I looked to everyone I cared about, motionless on the ground. “I can't do that...

  Sorry, we kinda do everything together.”

  She turned her head and started to grin. Maybe that wasn't such a good idea.

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  “You are no match for me Rue Volley, I can assure you of that.”

  I pushed myself up and squared my shoulders. “Listen, today is not the day… I'm in a pissy mood here.”

  The rain was starting to come down in big drops and I shook my head to get the hair out of my face.

  She cocked her head to the side… “Once I kill you, I will kill everyone here… You can count on it.”

  “I told you, I'm not in a good mood…as one girl to another, you should know what I mean.”

  “Your „mood" does not concern me… The fact that I lost fellow protectors, at your hand, does.” she replied.

  “Ohh…you have to be kidding me…! I didn't kill anyone you know, I've never killed anybody.”

  She started to pace back and forth. “You did not assist Grace and William in their escape from Valon, in turn, causing the demise of some of my brethren?”

  “Listen…I'll admit it...! I hit a rabbit when I learned how to drive and I still have nightmares…! It was on EASTER…how messed up is that? All those kids waking up to a dead bunny in the street. I couldn't even stop, it just rolled head over butt, in my rear view… I'm going to hell for that I'm sure…but I have never killed anyone or anything else, I swear.”

  “Shut up!” she yelled at me.

  She crouched down and I whispered, “Oh crap.”

  She came flashing at me and I brought my blades down, blocking her stabs. She cried out and kicked me in the back, knocking me into the muddy ground. I jumped up faster then I knew I could and turned, just in time to cross my blades. She was thrusting one blade at my chest and I pushed her off of me yelling out, “Listen...I'm sorry, I shouldn't of told you that… Obviously rabbits are a soft spot for you…I get it!”

  She flashed to the right and spun, with her arms extended. I leaned backward and slammed my back against the ground. I pulled back up, just as quick and sliced my blade upward, cutting into her arm. She cried out and backed away quickly. She reached down and wiped her hand across the cut, looking at the blood on her hand. She placed her fingers in her mouth and closed her eyes.

  “I didn't mean to cut you…I swear,” I said, hoping she would believe me. She opened them and I could see that her pupils had changed to bright red.

  “You are trained very well, I see you planned to distract me with your foolish talk,”

  she said.

  I footed myself better, knowing she would come again. I tried to reason with her.

  “No…I just talk a lot…sorry. Listen just calm down…”

  She rushed towards me and slashed her blades sideways. She was chanting in Latin... I felt the blade cut through my skin, on the top of my right leg.

  I dropped to one knee and grabbed at it. It felt like fire had just burned my flesh. I raised my head and she was grinning.

  “What are you smiling about?” I yelled at her.

  “You are not what I expected,” she replied.

  212

  “What did you expect, you crazy bitch?”

  She started to circle me. “I don't take pleasure in killing my own kind…but you are not really a protector are you?”

  “I am…just found out… So could you give me a break here?”

  She laughed out loud, “You are an abomination…a cruel joke. I don't know why Sophia thinks any differently.”

  I pushed myself up, the pain in my leg starting to fade.

  “You don't play very nice do you Mikah... Someone bully you as a child?”

  She stopped circling me. “I don't know what you mean, Rue Volley.”

  “You know…treat you like crap, steal your toys...? Or maybe your just grumpy all the time.”

  “I'm tired of you...it's time to end this,” she said.

  “Ohhhh, okay awesome. Listen I don't even know you,” I yelled at her.

  She lowered her blades to her side and came at me so fast, if I blinked I would of missed it. I gripped my blades and brought them up at an angle, slicing across her chest. She screamed and fell to the side of me. Josh started to move, he raised his head and I looked at him, while I knelt over her.

  Turning my head I looked into her eyes… “I am not a joke and you are not going to kill me or my family.”

  I went to stab my blade into her chest and she rolled to the side in a flash, knocking me on my back in the process… She flashed on top of me, pinning my arms to the ground with her knees and raised her blade above her head. I closed my eyes…this is it…awesome. I knew that damn rabbit would come back to haunt me. I heard her scream and felt her pulled off of me.

  I opened my eyes, only to see her on her knees in front of him. Josh thrust his blade into her chest and twisted it. She screamed out… He stood up and a bright flash came from his palms, hitting her in the chest… She slumped to the ground. I tried to push myself up and slipped in the mud, “Josh…! You killed her!”

  I screamed. He turned to me, his pupils glowing red… “That I did Rue,” he said, with no expression on his face.

  Theodore flashed up in a panic. He moved in a blur, to each one of us, but Josh had released everyone from Mikah"s binding. I sat on the ground, with my blades gripped in my hands. The rain was washing over me and I could see a stream of blood coming from the wound she had given me on my leg. I watched it swirl into the mud and wiped the back of my hand across my face pushing my hair out of my eyes.

  Johnathan had scrambled to me, almost falling in the mud. He kept asking me over and over if I was okay…but I had just watched someon
e die, right in front of me and I wasn't really bothered by it… My thoughts went to why she was here, how she was here and why I was the one she wanted dead…no good. Me not responding to him, must have put him in panic mode, because he picked me up, cradling me against his chest... I leaned my head against him, realizing that the burning in my leg had returned and was slowly getting worse by the second.

  Theodore flashed to us… “Put her down, Johnathan,” he said.

  Johnathan protested with a sigh, but did what he said.

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  Theodore leaned over me, inspecting my leg. I winced when he touched it. “Oh dear,” he muttered.

  I pulled myself up on my elbows. “What?” I asked him.

  “You seem to have been injured quite nicely… You have been poisoned by the blade.”

  “Poisoned...? Awesome,” I grunted and fell back onto the mud.

  “Josh...pick her up and get her to the house… I have to get this fixed right away, before she passes out.”

  I looked up at Theodore and Josh… “I am not going to passss…” and I was gone.

  ******

  I woke up on the kitchen table. I blinked a few times and turned my head towards the sound of bubbling on the stove. “What is happening?” I muttered. I felt a squeeze on my hand and looked to see Johnathan holding it.

  “Johnathan…what is going on?” I asked.

  Johnathan got pushed out of the way and Josh leaned over me.

  “Listen…you have poison in your blood, from the cut on your leg and now we have to draw it out.”

  “What...? Well...just wave your hand over it Josh.”

  He grinned and gripped my hand. “I'm sorry…it's not that easy.”

  He leaned in to my ear, “I need for you to be brave.”

  “That sounds like a prelude to a really bad thing, Josh!” I said nervously.

  Theodore turned around, with a blade glowing white in his hand…it was dripping with what looked like mercury from a thermometer.

  “Okay…listen, I am not cool with whatever it is you guys think you have to do here... Just get some rubbing alcohol and a band aide okay?” I said, as I stared at the blade in Theodore's hand.