The Hidden Girl

Prologue

Clouds are black with soot.

            The sky has turned orange with flames.

            Rivers, red with blood.

            This is what the kingdom of Sahara has come to. War has broken out and everywhere people are dying. Isabella stands in the middle of it all, powerless to do anything about it. She stares at that fire that consumes her home and the men shrouded in black who are killing her people.

How could this have happened? How did I let this happen to my kingdom?

            The cries of the citizens become a symphony of the night. Their screams play like broken record in Izzy's head, the same tune over and over again. Crushing her palms to her ears, she tries to block out the haunting melody. She pushes her ears against her head with all of her might, begging and pleading for it to stop. Her screams blend with those of her people as she falls to her knees, sobbing.

Make it stop! Somebody please make it stop!

            Clenching her teeth, Izzy claws at the ground as the horrific sounds intensify. A searing pain attacks her chest causing her to fall over. Shivering, she tries to get to her knees but her body his weak. Her limbs are like jelly, fragile and easily penetrable. Isabella closes her eyes against the white hot pain and wishes for a swift death.

            Suddenly, all sound stops. Silence passes over the land, quieting the screams of a dying populace, the roar of angry fires, and the moans of a crumbling castle. A whimsical laugh replaces the horrendous tune. The music grows louder as the source gets closer until it floats directly above her.

            Slowly, Izzy opens her eyes and stares at the seemingly familiar woman before her. Glossy red hair wraps around her shoulders and glows like angelic halo. Her skin is like porcelain, smooth and without blemish. But it's her eyes are that are the most familiar, shining a brilliant blue in the evening light. The woman stands tall against the burned scenery and offers Izzy a blindingly bright smile. The pain in her chest slowly fades as realization hits her like a freight train.

            "Aunt Neamh?" Isabella asks tentatively. The newly made queen nods her head once and helps her niece to her feet. "Why are you here?"

            Neamh gestures to the ugly scene before them and frowns at the disaster that has become her brother's country. She looks at the young girl with sad eyes.

            "How do I fix it?" Izzy asks, looking up expectantly at her aunt.

            The queen doesn't say a word, only places her palm on the princess' head and closes her eyes. The vision plays like a movie in Izzy's head. She sees herself on a battlefield swinging her sword vigorously with vengeance in her eyes. She plows through the enemy without breaking a sweat and charges into the castle where a woman shrouded in black awaits. The two engage in a fierce battle of swords and magic until the woman falls to the floor with her blood coating Izzy's blade.

            Isabella is shoved back into reality with a tingling jolt. She looks up at her aunt only to find that woman had gone. In her place a song is carried on the wind.

            The death of one opens the gate

Unleashes the darkness and seals their fate

            Seasons change, they come and go

Only the Chosen Ones will know

            To stop the evil that continues to spread

Who turns the sky black and makes rivers run red

            A queen must die for time to go on

But not without a loss

            And a heart forever torn.