Familiar Fire

Chapter Eight

Aurora could feel her head swirling. Like the past she remembered and the present were becoming mixed together. She didn't know where or when she was, simply fading in and out of memories, all out of sequence.

"Amara, you have to get away from here!" Aurora heard her father's voice. "I'll stall them, you and the kids run." Aurora was able to see her parents. She was able to see the fear in their eyes as cruel sounds drew closer. Her mother didn't argue, she knew she had to protect her children, even if it meant her and her husband's lives. She gave him a quick kiss before running to the house. As she grabbed the doorknob, a knight grabbed her. She screamed and fought against their grasp but she couldn't get away. Her husband tried to run over to her but was stopped as well. Three knights marched out of the small house, each one holding one of the children. The sound of splashing could be heard inside the house. It wasn't until Aurora saw the knight inside holding a match that she realized this was the flashback she had a few days ago. This was the night that her parents were killed.

Aurora watched as her younger self screamed and cried, trying to break away from the knight holding her. They had placed cuffs over both of her hands, preventing her from using magic. A knife was pressed against her throat but she didn't care. She wanted to help her family. Even though she was only nine, she still felt like she could do something to help. The knight holding her pulled her further and further from her family until she couldn't see them anymore, just the smoke that erupted from their home. The knight loosened his grip and Aurora took it as her chance to escape. She hit the knight as hard as she could in the nose with her elbow and ran towards her family. When she got there, she wished she hadn't. Her childhood home was ablaze, and the only thing fighting against the roaring flames was the blood of her parents. They both lay motionless on the burning front porch, large puddles of blood coming from the both of them. She could see that they were holding hands. Aurora fell to her knees and cried. She could hear her brother and sister crying as well.

When the knight she had freed herself from before recaptured her, she didn't even bother to fight against him. The nine-year-old had lost any hope that she once had. The knights tied up the siblings and placed them on the back of a cart that was pulled by a horse.

"Your parents' deaths are your fault, sweet Aurora. If you simply turned yourself into the king, he wouldn't have sent us to kill them. He didn't want their bloodshed. He just wanted you and your gift. The three siblings continued to cry in silence.

"Hand them over." Aurora focused on the source of the voice. Her younger self didn't recognize the person but to the Aurora watching the flashback, they looked just like Meliodas, just with black hair and black eyes. She could see the hope in the siblings' eyes, but she was also able to see as it disappeared when the man killed the six knights effortlessly. Young Aurora stared at him in terror.

"What are you?"

"A demon. The name is Zeldris. Don't mind me if I just-" The demon hit the children over the heads. Not hard enough to cause serious damage but enough to knock them all out. He grabbed them and flew through the air.

He landed outside of the castle in the demon realm. He brought the siblings to one of the wings, this one dedicated solely to science experiments. He handed off the siblings to the demons inside.

"Make sure to separate them. They can't know that the others are alive." Aurora watched in horror. She knew her past was dark but she had no idea it was this dark. She watched as her siblings were carried away. The young Aurora lay motionless as she was strapped down to a table. When she came to, she was shaking, both from fear and from the cold.

"Welcome to your new life, Aurora." The young girl squirmed, trying to free herself from the restraints. "You can either embrace it or hide from it, I'm afraid the latter is much more painful...for you." The demon said with a smirk.