~ Power ~

Chapter 8 - Round Two

Lena escorted Freya from the cage back to the house she had woken up in. Freya refused to even look at Lena’s shadow. She loathed her and what she had made her do. All she wanted to do was curl up in a ball and cry herself to sleep. She was dirty and her hair was knotted, Freya couldn’t think of many things she would have liked more than a warm bath at that point, except for regaining possession of Smokey and seeing Ken-Lee again. Her thoughts lingered on him for a moment or two. She wondered where he was, what his business in Lerant had been, and whether he had any idea what had happened to her. She wished he would come and save her, but she was beginning to realise that if she was going to leave Lerant alive, she was probably going to have to save herself.

When they reached the house Lena jerked open the door and gave Freya a crooked smile, which Freya couldn’t see as she was still looking at the ground. Lena grabbed her head and twisted it to face her. ‘You did well today. Tomorrow you will fight again, but for now you may rest or strategise, whatever you like.’ Lena signalled towards the door and Freya trudged inside. Lena began to close the door, but before it had shut completely she said, ‘Oh, that reminds me. I’m going to need to take those stones from you dear. Just in case you, you know, burn down the house or something.’

Freya just stared at the door for a few moments. ‘Quickly dear, I don’t have all day!’ Freya removed the stones from her bra and held them in her hands. She wondered just how strong Lena was. Was she strong enough to withstand a fireball? Freya recalled the burning cellar incident and the answer to her question became apparent. If only she knew what power Lena’s necklace possessed. If she knew that, she would at least know what she was up against. But until that time, she felt at a severe disadvantage. She surrendered the stones with a sigh and Lena locked the door.

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Freya dreamt she was a hawk; a magnificent, golden hawk with a smooth platinum beak. She soared up above the world without a care in the world. She drifted from one thermal to the next, rejoicing as the cold wind ruffled her feathers. A glint of something caught her eye and she dipped down to investigate. As she descended, the sparkling became more pronounced. She landed on the ground nearby and stretched her talons before stalking over to the point of interest. But even when she got nearer to the glinting object she could not make it out. All of a sudden, hundreds of iron bars began to rise from the earth around her. They rose up high into the air and began to twist around each other and join together. Freya pushed off from the ground and tried to escape, but it was too late, she was trapped. She began to feel like she was falling. She looked down at her wings, but they were gone, she was human again. She plummeted helplessly towards the ground.

Freya awoke with a start. Her heart was beating furiously. She examined her arms and swished them slowly through the air. How magnificent it would be, she thought, to be able to fly like that! Freya lay back down again and tried to get comfortable, but before she could she heard an ear-piercing scream a little way off from the house she was imprisoned in. She heard a whimper and then Lena’s familiar voice saying, ‘Follow me, you stupid thing. Yes, over here, through that door.’ The door was opened again and a girl about the same age as Freya entered. The door was shut and locked behind her.

‘Hello?’ she said nervously.

Freya got to her feet and ventured over to the door. ‘Hello,’ Freya said, her eyes adjusting to the light.

‘Freya?’ the new girl said.

As Freya’s eyes adjusted she recognised the girl. Her named was Wendy, she had lived down the street from her in the years before she had left home. They had been good friends; they had often played in the stream together or collected firewood for their fathers.