Shatter Me - A KotLC Story

Lost

Talia backed away from her father's quivering body. She could feel the pain and confusion flowing out of him like a whirlwind. Her breath caught in her throat as she almost choked on the emotions. Her chest tightened and it felt like her heart was trapped in a death grip.
She could feel the intense fear billowing off her father. What had she done?

She inched forward, reaching for his sweaty cheek. Touching it, she stumbled back, panting. An explosion of emotions spun through her mind. It felt... wrong, like something in his mind off.

She gasped when the pieces clicked. She'd cracked her father's sanity. She had no idea she could do that. She stood and stared at her father with wide eyes. Then her eyes narrowed into a glare. Her father didn't deserve her pity. He didn't deserve her guilt. She spun on her heels and bolted out the door. She couldn't stay there anymore.
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Talia finally stopped, unable to run any farther. She was in the middle of a forest, with no idea where she was going or what she would do.
She leaned against the tree, trying to catch her breath.

Everything from the last few years swirled through her mind in an endless stream of grief and pain until she broke into tears and sank to the ground. Sobbing into her arms, she tried to push the memories away, tangling the emotions into a giant knot and shoving them down into her abdomen. That helped a little.
Something rustled among the trees and Talia jumped to her feet.

"Who's there?" She scanned the tree line.

A cloaked figure emerged from the trees, brushing invisible dirt off the white-eye emblazoned on the shoulder of the cloak. "I hope to be a friend." The woman's voice was smooth and melodic. She tossed back her hood, revealing her cascading blonde hair and light blue eyes. Her skin was smooth. "My name is Gisela."

Talia opened her mouth to introduce herself, but stopped when she realized, she didn't know this woman. "I'm..." She thought for a moment. "Neurosis."

Gisela raised an eyebrow. "What an interesting name. I wonder, how did you get it?"

Talia looked away. "I... I'm..." There was no use hiding it. Soon, everyone would know. "I'm an Empath."

Gisela's brow scrunched.

"And..." Talia continued. "An Inflictor."

Gisela looked intrigued, even happy. "Well, that's quite a gift. Have you ever considered using it to help our world."

That caught Talia's attention. "You really think I could."

Gisela grinned. "Of course. You can do anything you set your mind to." She offered Talia her hand.

Talia took it and let Gisela drag her to her feet.
Gisela had a sly smirk on her face as the two disappeared into the forest.