• Prologue

    Five Years Earlier

    The soft drizzle of rain ran smoothly down the window pain. Dark stormy clouds swirled overhead, and the low roll of thunder threatened of worse things to come. The ten-year-old girl sat there in a small wooden chair staring out the window with blind eyes. Her hip length silvery blond hair hung limp and carelessly down the back of the chair, down her shoulders and across her face. She was not crying but the long stains down her cheeks indicated that she had, many times before.
    She could hear everything that was going on down stairs. She could hear her parents once again raised voices probably arguing over the same thing that they have been for the last month or so sense she had been returned to them after having been kidnapped for about five years. In addition, in the time that she had been back, this sad little girl had not uttered a single word. She did not even get close to looking her parents in the faces or any one’s for that matter. The young girl was completely sunk into a depression that had stolen her voice away.
    Out side, through the rain stained glass she saw a cloaked figure walking briskly up the path to the house. A small part of her recognized the way that the man held himself and the way he walked, but she could not pin it down. The tall slim man paused shortly in full view of the second floor window and looked up at the young girl as though he knew that he was being watched; then he continued on, up the porch steps towards the front door.
    The doorbell rang, and a hush ran through the veins of the house, thus her parents argument was shortly placed on hold to answer the door. She took all of this in but almost as soon as she did, she discarded all of it as useless. That being so she almost fell out of her chair and lost her composer when there was a knocking at her bedroom door, the strange man barged in along with both of her parents.
    The girl’s mom did not hang around long after the door was opened, nearly sprinting down the stairs as though she could not get away fast enough.
    “Well here she is. In addition, thank you again for coming in to talk to her. Her mother and I just do not know what to do with her. Anything that you can say or do for her to get her out of this is much appreciated. Her mother and I are at our wits end. We just,” he said shaking his head, “don’t know what else to do with her.” The small girl’s father gave a momentary, uneasy smile then walked out of the room. The man took one good look around the room then went and knelt down beside her chair.
    “Hey Ariel, it’s me Aaron. Do you remember; I rescued you from the A.P.S.S.” This was said with a calm kindness and yet there was not any response from the girl called Ariel, or any sign that she had heard. Aaron sighed; he figured that she was listening but ignoring him because she did not want to. “I’ve come to offer you a place at my school called Nebula Academy. It’s a special school for kids like you, Powerless.” Still Aaron could not see any reaction coming from the little girl before him.
    Kneeling down before her and taking her hands in his Aaron was in a position in which Ariel did not have a choice but to look in to his eyes enabling him to see into her mind so he could know what she was thinking. Normally he would respect ones privacy but this was in Ariel’s best interest.
    “You’ll be so much happier with your own kind other than being holed away in a bed room surrounded by humans.” Aaron focused in on Ariel’s hazel eyes strolling right in the front door of her mind without any resistance. Then the unspoken thoughts of her mind without any resistance. Then the unspoken thoughts of her mind without any resistance. Then the unspoken thoughts slammed in to him, as though they were screamed.
    (I can never be happy, no matter where I am!) Aaron could almost literally feel Ariel’s mind shrink away when she sensed that he had heard it. He allowed her eyes to drift away from his. Aaron wasn’t too worried about it because it wasn’t necessary for him to remain in her mind the entire time to accomplish what he was aiming for, and what was in the end needed for every one especially for weather she knew it or not.
    “Ok so even if you can’t be happy; you’ve got to realize that it’s a great place to nurture and better control your talents as a Powerless. It can’t be healthy to be bottling it all up within yourself because you can’t control it.” As soon as he said this, he realized that it was a grave mistake to have said it. Aaron could sense the power welling up with in Ariel. He had just struck an extremely sensitive cord with her.
    Ariel twisted her head sharply to look at Aaron, catching him completely off guard and looked directly into his eyes, while simmotaniesly striking out with her mind, as a snake would with its’ prey. Ariel drew his mind in to her own. (You do not know anything. You just think you do because you are older; but you do not get it. I am in complete control of my abilities.) Her mind did not have to scream it, the power behind the girl’s thoughts was enough Ariel finally released his mind and retreated into the quiet solace of her mind.
    Aaron was left in shock. It was not often that he misreads situations or people. Though the fact is, is that he should have known well especially with this one. However, if it wasn’t the fear of her power that was deterring her from accepting the offer of a place at his school, then what?
    “Ahh!! Of course,” Aaron gasped. “How could I not have thought about that be for. That’s why she doesn’t want to come.” He looked back up at her from where he was kneeling on the floor. Ariel was staring back at him unafraid, probably for the first time in a long time. It was as though she knew that he knew what was really bothering her. She did not know how he knew but he knew but he knew and that was enough for her. She seemed almost relieved that he was not trying to use her for his own ends, but to help her because he cared.
    “I’m sorry that I assumed wrong be for, I shouldn’t have.” Aaron said compassionately. “But you know as well as I that as long as you remain here there will always be a risk that long as you remain here there will always be a risk that as long as you remain here there will always be a risk that they’ll return to take you back and punish you by killing any one that you’re close to. Though if you were to come with me you can not only protect yourself, but everyone else as well.”Aaron could see in her body features that he had struck the right nerve with her.
    Aaron held out his muscular hand, giving Ariel away to except his offer without having to say anything. She contemplated his offer of a place at his school.
    It was then that Aaron noticed that there was a change in her demeanor. Not much of one but enough of one to get her to look him in the eye. She tentatively looked down at his open hand; back up into Aaron’s eyes. She sighed looking back down at his hand. Slowly she lifted her tiny hand and placed it in his.
    Aaron compassionately helped Ariel to her feet with slight smile pone his face. The corners of her mouth twitched with a faint smile as well. This warmed Aaron’s heart more than she excepting a place at his school did. “Ok,” he said clasping her hand in both of his. “Why don’t we gather up what you’ll need and would like to have with you, and we’ll get going.”
    Licking her lips with a nerves tension Ariel nodded. She will do as Aaron suggests. After all, he had saved her life, and now he was giving her the chance to save many more. It was the least that she was going to do not that she knew it of course.