I believe everyone has a story. I don't mean some happily-ever-after Cinderella fairytale fantasy where life problems can be solved by a mere wish-upon-a-star, I mean real-life scenarios with really traumatic tragedies where the bad guys really want to kill you, and you just… got to survive. Make no mistake, for some, according to fate, the story may be a fortunate one filled with bright golden rays of sunshine, or a utopia of never-ending showers of blessings. For others, however, it is a dark gothic tale of horrors, a remorseless Hades of excruciating pain and anguish, with tragedies of broken relationships, and the constant reoccurring scars of shattered dreams that plague your troubled soul, and you utterly languish in what seems to be a never-ending loop of misery, with no hope for the brighter side.
My name is Natasha Magus and my story began four years ago in the capital city of Bucharest, Romania, when I witnessed my entire family get brutally massacred by a certain group of bloodthirsty religious fanatics; an event that took my life through a dark turn that utterly changed its course.
It was a dark stormy October night, and I was just ten years old. My mother, Maria Magus, had just been wrongly accused of meddling in the dark arts, and also falsely proven by a series of equivocal trials and witnesses, to be a witch. This meant the city was no longer safe for us. We had just one night till the final verdict was executed, which would nonetheless result in every one of us being sentenced to a lifelong jail term at the pernicious underground penitentiary of Russia. My father, Victor Magus, fueled by his unrelenting desire to protect us at all costs, devised a plan for us to flee the city as quickly as possible that night, before dawn drew near.
As we were packing with such haste and urgency that night, a few necessities like snacks and extra sweaters we could use during our uncanny journey, there came a sudden knock on the door that suddenly ushered in an eerie atmosphere. The entire house immediately became so quiet, that one could almost hear the sound of a pin when it dropped. Down to my four-year-old brother, Dominic, we were all on high alert. Since we weren't expecting anyone that night, there were only two possibilities; either the jury had decided not to wait till the next morning, or it was just some random visitor.
"Who could that be?" whispered mother to father.
"Shh…" he replied, his index finger crossing his pursed lips as he stealthily tiptoed towards the door and quietly peered through the peephole, his every movement carefully measured that if I hadn't already known him all my life I would have argued he was a trained spy.
As he returned his gaze, we immediately noticed an odd sudden change in his facial expression and entire body movement. First, he was frozen for a moment, like someone who had just encountered some kind of spine-chilling otherworldly presence, the look in his eyes was unexplainable, like something out of a horror picture. I was in extreme puzzlement myself, as I'd never in my life seen him in such an extremely fidgety and hysterical state. He quickly blocked the door with the two wooden cross-beams. We had become really scared and panicky at this point. Mpppother asked him what he saw, but he gave no response, just the wide horror-struck stare in his eyes as he furiously fumbled through the drawers. He soon found what he was searching for; his shotgun and a red-butted revolver. He began loading the weapons. At that point, I was the most frightened I'd ever been before. We had no clue who was knocking furiously at our front door, but seeing what Father was doing, we needed no soothsayer to explain that there was big trouble. Mother couldn't bear the suspense anymore, so she immediately approached him where he was and demanded he tell her what was going on at that instance.
"Maria, we have no time for explanations," he said to her in Romanian. "It isn't the government out there," he added, "it's, it's the reapers." His voice trembled at that last part.
Immediately, Mother's eyes further widened in intensified horror, almost depicting a hint of disbelief, like she had a considerable idea what he meant, though confused still. Though I had no idea what he meant, I sensed from Mother's reaction, that he meant the people at our door were even far worse than the government.
"Here," he said, handing her the loaded revolver. "Hurry, go with the children through the back door, head northwards towards the city square," he instructed.
"Victor… you know I can't," replied Mother, handing back the gun.
"Just take it," he insisted, "in case".
"And what about you?" she asked him.
"I'll stay here and try to buy us some time," he said, "Wait for me in the city square the moment you get there".
"No Victor, I'm not leaving you here," Mother insisted, in refusal to his plan.
"Maria, listen to me," he pleaded, "this is our only way of protecting these kids, protecting you."
"But what about you?" Mother asked with tears already forming in both her eyes, "Who would protect you then?"
"Maria, this isn't about me, it's about keeping our family safe at all costs," he explained.
"But not at your expense," mother cut in. "You don't deserve this, Victor, I should be the one staying, not you," she persuaded.
Right now, the hinges of the door had started crackling and the metal hooks that held the two wooden crossbeams were gradually pulling out of the wall due to the intense pressure from the outside.
"Maria, time is not on our side," said father to her in Romanian, with a clear sense of urgency in his whisper. "This isn't your burden to bear, and you don't deserve this either," he added.
"Oh but I do, don't I?" she lamented, "I knew all along that a day like this was inevitable, that I'd be putting my babies in danger."
Consoling her in a tight embrace, he said, "Do not weep, my dear, stay strong, for I have faith this is not how our story ends".
With tears flowing down her face, mother finally nodded in agreement with the plan. It was at this moment that I began to understand clearly what was about to take place right before my eyes, and momentarily then, I lost all manner of potency to summon even the smallest ounce of emotion. I just stood there, numb, with the idea that I might just be witnessing my last moment with someone I had always relied upon and looked up to my whole life; my father. Father was going to stay behind to buy us more time while we escaped, and also make sure we weren't pursued by the killers by pretending to have been the only one present there. He was willing to risk his life for us.
"Are you going to die, father?" I finally asked the hard question in my typical low-toned voice.
"Natasha," he called out to me with his hands on both my shoulders, "It pains me that I cannot tell you what fate shall be, but I need you to stay strong for your mother and brother."
He continued, "There's a light in your heart, child, promise me that no matter what happens you won't let it get suppressed by the darkness."
A drop of tears finally escaped my eyelids as I nodded in agreement. Father dried the tears off my face, then he took off his silver chain and wore it around my neck. At this moment, I could finally conclude that this wasn't just see you later, but in fact, a final goodbye.
"Maria," he called out to my mother as we turned to leave, "If I tarry so long while you wait in the square, you must go on without me," he said, with flames of doggedness in his eyes.
There was no more time for further sentiment. My mother took Dominic and headed towards the backdoor, while I grabbed the small brown backpack containing our supplies and raced along. Immediately after we had passed through the door, we heard a loud rumbling sound from the living room. Mother quickly slammed the door shut, gripping us tightly close to her in the rain. After a while, we started hearing violent noises and gunshots. The killers had finally broken into the house, and we're now exchanging gunshots with Father. It was now a literal firestorm in our living room.
Mother led the way as we hurried along the lawn towards the picket fence at the south edge of the garden. We were only halfway through when we spotted, or should I say, were spotted by a couple of armed people all covered in strange red and black matching outfits with black cloaks over their heads. As they advanced towards us while attempting to alert the others, Mother immediately drew out a revolver from the left sleeve of her gown and aimed it at them before they could reach for their weapons. I was quite impressed by how quickly and smoothly she drew and cocked the gun, like something out of an action movie.
"Stay back!" ordered Mother, "Do not come any closer, or I swear to God, I will shoot!"
I didn't even notice she had taken the gun with her after she refused to take it. Now at the moment, it seemed like our last hope of escape was in the little gun within Mother's firm grip. Slowly and methodically, the killers both put their hands away from their weapons and raised them slightly above their shoulders. Seeing the look in Mother's eyes, they didn't need a soothsayer to be told that she meant every syllable that proceeded from her mouth. I just stood there behind her with Dom, as my heart hammered so hard and fast within my chest.
The one in front started laughing.
"How ironic your choice of defense for a witch," he said.
"Magic was meant to heal the world, not hurt it," mother answered.
"So pathetic," he replied, "It's a shame this wouldn't be as challenging as we anticipated."
"Yeah. You might want to look around, by the way," said the other one, with a wicked grin.
We turned around and immediately realized that three more people in the same attire were standing about five feet from us with two loaded weapons aimed right at us; one was an assault rifle, and the other was a crossbow. One of the three stepped towards us, the unarmed amongst the three.
"Stay back!" Mother warned, pointing the gun at him.
He paused immediately. Slowly and majestically, he took off his cloak, revealing his face. He was a bald, chiseled-faced, middle-aged man with a dark and partly gray ruffled mustache and several scars around his face, but his most sinister facial detail was the inverted triangle mark etched on his forehead. I was simply frightened to the bones at the mere sight of the death stare in his bloodshot eyes.
"Why are you here?!" mother demanded, "What do you people want from us?!"
"Maria Esperanza Morales! Daughter of Santos Morales!" He called her by her full name.
"My name is Elias, son of Ivar. Thou have been tried by the dark order and found guilty. You are a witch, an offspring of utter abomination, and a solitary propagator of all things vile!" he said, "Tonight, ye shall be punished for thy sins by the unholy flames of everlasting Pandemonium, along with thy filthy seeds". His middle English revealed he was quoting some kind of ancient religious text.
"I have done nothing wrong!" Mother replied shortly, "I've never harmed a soul, or performed any act deserving of a death sentence, unlike you, who have unfailingly and remorselessly haunted down and massacred the innocent."
While we stood there defenseless with loaded weapons aimed at us from both sides and surrounded like prey about to be devoured, suddenly, salvation found us most ironically. A very loud and abrupt explosion from the house immediately knocked them all out like bowling pins, keeping them in a stunned state just momentarily, but enough for Mother to help us to our feet and through the already wrecked fence.
"Run Natasha, hurry!!" I barely heard Mother say, with my ears still ringing from the loud bang.
The rain was getting heavier, mother led the way through the dark lonely street with Dom in her arms and me right by her side, struggling to keep up. I didn't see the revolver with her anymore, probably, she had lost it during the explosion. Shortly, we began to hear the firing of gunshots with fast-paced footfalls. Apparently, the killers had soon recovered themselves and were now on the chase, fueled by the rage of their bloodlust. It was indeed the race of our lives. We were both running on raw instinct and adrenaline, tirelessly pressing forward and not minding the flights of bullets and arrows that continuously swooshed past our ears. However, it wasn't long till I noticed Mother was starting to slow down. As I turned back to look at her, I was so frightened by the very sight I saw down to my marrows. Mother was covered in blood, she was hit by not just a single arrow but two, two wicked arrowheads penetrating right through her back. I was mad with dread.
"Mother!" I cried out in a panicky voice and wide horror-struck eyes. "You've been hit mother!" I exclaimed.
Mother put Dom down and handed him to me.
"Oh no…w… what do we do? How do I help?" I was so frantic, I couldn't stop. She was in so much pain I could literally feel it.
"Natasha," she grunted, "Take your brother, run as fast as you can, and don't look back."
For the moment, I couldn't process the very words she had just said.
"What do you mean, mother?" I muttered in puzzlement, but then she gave me that sober look and that was all I needed to know what was about to play out right before my eyes. I was devastated.
"Come on, I need to slow them down," she persuaded.
"No, no, no… Mother, we're not going without you!" I pleaded, "they'll kill you." I began weeping uncontrollably while I begged and cried my fragile heart out.
"Natasha, listen to me, I can't go any further, I'm only going to slow us down," she explained. "You have to go on without me, child. Save yourself and protect your brother, and let me slow them down."
"No Mother, I can't lose you," I pleaded as I wept, "We…we can find you a doctor and…and then we can go on those adventures together and even pursue the American dream just like you promised, mother, just please don't…" I was saying a lot of things at the same time, almost on the verge of losing my mind. It was at this very moment I noticed something really strange and somewhat paranormal in the atmosphere. First, I discovered the gunshots had stopped about a couple of minutes ago or so, then there was complete silence everywhere. I couldn't hear or feel the stormy downpour anymore. It looked as though time had stopped, and I think it actually did, because I soon found several teardrops from my eyes suspended in midair right in front of me, and then the falling raindrops also, like tiny diamond crystals. A cold chill swiftly ran down my spine.
"What is happening?" I asked her in a jittery whisper, overly mystified by the surrounding sights.
"Look at me, child," she said with her palm on the side of my face, "It wasn't the plan to part ways this way; nevertheless, fate had it be. You have to understand that this is the only way, Natasha."
"But we can't do without you, I can't do without you," I replied, as I wondered why she seemed so unbothered about what was happening.
"Natasha, my sweet angel, I believe in you," she said, "You're going to go on that adventure and chase that dream, and you won't be alone because we will always be right here," she pointed at my heart.
Soon I noticed that the raindrops were now slowly descending as like gravity was gradually coming back on them.
"No, the time breach," mother muttered; she sounded worried, and she had a sudden look of urgency in her eyes.
"What?" I muttered.
"There is no more time, child," she said, "You must hurry now before they get closer, take your brother, run as fast as you can, and don't look back till you've reached the city square."
At this point, the rate at which the droplets fell was steadily increasing to normal. I could even see the killers approaching in slow motion. I knew we had no choice. Mother was soaking wet in her own blood, so even if she came, she obviously wasn't going to make it. Unable to hold my tears, I reached out and hugged Mother tight with Dominic for a quick five seconds, which seemed almost like an eternity. Then, immediately, I took Dom by the arm, and we headed off as fast as we could without looking back, just as Mother had instructed.
As we ran, I noticed that the faster we went, the quicker time unfroze, and before we knew it, everything was all back to normal; the heavy downpour and the gunshots. While we ran, I thought about Father, still hoping he was still alive, as it hadn't been confirmed he was dead, just the uproar of gunshots from the house and the explosion. I believed he might be still alive, and I prayed that was true. I noticed that the killers were getting closer to us, and it was because Dom wasn't running fast enough. I carried him at once in order to rely wholly on my quick legs.
Soon we were in the city square. The plan was to lose them in the crowd and then find where to hide till they were gone. Finding help was not an option, as the people were just at the dawn of enlightenment, too security cautious and exorbitantly self-absorbed to the extent of bluntly shying away from lending a helping hand when it is most genuinely needed. I stopped by the sidewalk to check if they were still on us, but there wasn't any sign of them. I began to scan through the crowd to see where they were, but I still couldn't find them anywhere. I became worried, since I felt that not being able to see those who were after us made us more vulnerable. I just had this scary thought that they were close by watching us like predators stalking prey. I felt a slight tug on my dress, it was Dominic.
"Where are we going?" he asked.
"Don't worry about that brother, just stay close to me, please," I told him. I could sense the worry and confusion in his eyes. This was his first time uttering a word since we departed the house.
As I took a quick turn to the left, I immediately caught sight of bright red fabrics amidst the crowd, not so far from us. It was them, it was the killers. They were earnestly searching all around for us, not knowing we were standing just a few distances nearby. I quickly took Dom in my arms and began to move forward steadily along the walkway, cautiously hiding behind other passersby while consistently looking over my shoulder at intervals in order not to lose sight of them. I turned to peek at them again when I noticed I had locked eyes with one of them. At that instance, I felt a nameless dread engulf me. I immediately doubled my steps to almost the rate of my throbbing heart, and then to a run. I didn't look back again, but I knew that they were in pursuit.