Dragoned in Half

Girl on Fire-Julia

  As I stare into the tiny flame the old ladies words keep playing in my mind "A soul is much like a flame. It does not exist to simply be. It must be fed and nourished so that a flame becomes a fire. However, precaution is needed to handle such a thing. In one's control it can create such beauty and flow abundantly. Although, when out of control it can become the greatest distraction that will destroy everything in its path" As I recite them once more I blow out a breath heavily.
 
  I know that this place is supposed to be Morbius' soul but the only thing in it that I can compare to him is the darkness. Why would someone like him even need any light at all with that kind of evil living inside them? Even as I ask myself the question, I know that something feels wrong about it. I would chalk it up to the mate bond but I cant deny that a part of me doesn't believe that he is evil. Well, it doesn't want to believe it. Then it hits me. I have to feed the flame.
 
  I look around the darkened room for something to feed into the fire but come up empty. I could use the broken bricks around the fire place but I doubt that they would burn. I rub my arms over the fabric of the doctors jacket that I wear and contemplate getting naked in this place. I guess I could think of it as a metaphorical place. I shake my head at the very idea of being naked inside the head of Morbius but get to it. Nothing else here is flammable and this is the only thing that made sense. So I take off the jacket and throw it into the flame.
 
  The fire engulfs the fabric quickly but I notice that the flame barely glows as the last pieces of it disappear. I shout in frustration that the one idea I had didn't work. I just want to get out of here and back to Jefferson. I didn't even ask for this in the first place. I would actually have rather burned myself alive rather than forcefully be mated to Morbius. He would probably be happy to see me that way. The very thought has me chuckling out loud until a new idea hits me.
 
  I think about the way that the flame felt earlier. For some reason it felt familiar to me. It was as if I was supposed to touch it. The warmth of it seemed so inviting. As I think on it, I remember the old lady mentioning control. Having control of fire itself could mean it creates beauty or destruction. Since nothing else in this place is flammable, I'm guessing that it would be destruction that I would create if I were to touch it like I want. With no other ideas in mind I stick my fingers into the flame and wait for something to happen.
 
  As I touch the flame its almost as if it dances across my skin. A chuckle leaves my lips as it tickles a bit. I wiggle my fingers as I test the fire against my skin. It should be hot. I should want to snatch my fingers away but yet I feel as if it isn't enough. With a curious huff I stick my whole hand into the flame and hold my breath. I feel the fire move over my skin once more but this time its like a tight grip. The fire roars to life as it wraps around my wrist and in fear I try to pull it away.
 
  As it starts to heat I fight to get away with a scream but it wont release the hold that it has on me. When the pain gets unbearable a blood curdling scream leaves my lip as images start to play in mind. I watch as I see a young version of my mate as he wakes up in a metal room. He beats against the walls and doors as he tries to find a way out. I see the man from earlier who looks healthier in these visions as he guides Morbius through the rooms. Tears run down my face as I continuously scream from the pain.
 
  I feel as if the fire is spreading over my blood in a harsh torrent as I watch them beat the boy. I see him in a room full of men as they use weapons against him as he tries to fight back. I see him comforted by a woman as she tends to his wounds. I watch him get beaten for her actions as one who showed him kindness. I watch as the man from earlier hands the boy a knife as they look at her. I sob as the man takes the boy with knife in hand and slits the woman's throat as he cries. I watch as he is beaten for his tears until they stop.
 
  They force him to take the pain as they hurt him over and over. I see him as he grows. I watch his eyes as he time he is forced to kill the light in them dies. I see as he loses hope. I see as he loses his faith. I watch as every ounce of innocence in him is killed piece by piece until there is nothing left. Then there is a change. There is a female prisoner that he goes to visit often. I watch for the first time as he smiles with her. When she is sentenced to death I can see the pain in his eyes as he takes her away from the facility to carry out the action.
 
  I scream as the pain spreads to everywhere now. My throat is so roar from my screams that I can make no more sounds as silent tears leak down my eyes. I watch when he releases her. I watch how the man grows and slowly taking lives over time. I watch as he starts to help while pretending to be for the masses. I watch as some of the light comes back into his eyes. I watch as he notices me in the back of a van for the first time and the light flares.
 
  I sob at the final memory as I am finally released from the torment. As the flame and pain finally disappears from my body, I curl into a ball on the floor as I cry. My heart shreds as I recall all that I have seen and now know. For the first time I see that Morbius is not evil after all. I have now seen the broken man for exactly who he is.
 
  Something is draped over my shoulders as my sobs finally quiet. From all the pain left in my body, I can hardly move or lift my head. There is only one question that runs through my mind as I ponder everything that I have learned. "Why?" I croak.
 
  "You are the very opposite of him my child. You are bright and pure. So full of innocence and love which he has never known. You are his guide and his gift out of the darkness. A man like him, he needed no redemption. A man like him needed nothing but faith in humanity and the strength of kin" She says quietly as I listen.
 
  As she speaks a cooling sensation goes over my skin and slowly I start to feel relief. Tears still pour down my cheeks as feel the pressure of all of this. How can I help a man to carry such a burden? How can I be with someone so broken who has done so much wrong? For the lives that he has taken there is no redemption to be found. For the life that he was forced into there is no where that he could go where his past would not hunt him.
 
  "What do I do now?" I ask her.
 
  "Now child, you must choose your own path. Neither choice will be easy but only you can accept the burden of the path that you choose to take" She states.
 
  I lift myself up off the floor gently as she helps to guide me to my feet. There are so many reasons as to why I should refuse the bond. After all that I have seen from the death and destruction he has caused in the world, I know that I have already decided. I have decided to accept Jefferson because he is a good man. If I were to refuse the bond with his brother, then it means that his life is lost too. All of our lives are. However, if I were to accept this bond with Morbius, I would get time with Jefferson and Morbius......well he would get the time to show me who he truly is.
 
  Knowing my decision I step away from the woman as she holds my hand. I release it slowly as I go back over to the fireplace that now blazes. With a deep breath to fortify myself for the pain that I now will come, I place my hand back into the flame. As it envelopes me this time however, there is no pain. As it dances across the flesh of my skin I laugh. The amber color turns away from its shades of red as a pure yellow glow takes its place. As I am finally covered I look at the old woman one last time who wears a proud smile on her face. With more confidence than I feel, I finally respond to her statement.
 
  "I'm ready" The flame moves at my words and I feel as it burrows into me warming place that I had no idea had chilled. I feel the anger of its wait and happiness at the union as emotions not of my own filter through my mind. Feeling our newly formed bond, I close my eyes and settle into the new peace that I hope to find in my bond.