Nightmares from the past

Isabella point of view

"ISABELLA! YOU HAVE TO RUN AWAY NOW!" I heard my mom scream as she burst open the wooden doors to my room. At first I was shocked and taken aback by the fact that my mom just blew down my door and barged in without knocking, usually she is always calm and collected but right now she was anything but calm and collected--she was in a state of sheer panic.

In an instant, I could discern the urgency in her voice, I understood it had to do with the chaos that has been emanating through the floorboards of our coven. I have been awake in silence for some time now, hearing the ruckus and commotion that exuded from outside the four corners of my room walls. Screams, cries and wails were erupting from the place I grew up to call my home. Voices I could identify were in pain.

"Mom, what's going on?" I stood up in my little white silky dress, with my eyebrows knit in profound confusion. It was late at night and it was mind bogglingly odd to be awakened by the sounds of screams and cries. I couldn't understand what was going on.

"We are under attack!" she told me in haste, her eyes were closed shut and her soft blond hair was plaited in a warrior sequence that went all the way to her waist. Although all I could hear from my mother was hushed mumblings, but it seemed like she was whispering some kind of spell to herself, I could notice the candle's flames were burning higher as an effect of her magic. This made me all the more worried. What in the hell was really going on?

"Take this!" she boomed loudly getting all my attention. She shoved into my hands the crested cover of our family grimoire, I read the ancient writings on the cover of it 'The book of dark shadows'...

'BLOOD IS THE KEY'

Another uproar erupted from outside making me tremble in fear, as I clung tightly to the book I held in my arms, in desperate search for any form of comfort it could provide me with, but I was met with nothing but a cold relief.

"Mom, Wha- what's happening? Who dares to attack us? mom?" I demanded, wanting to be fully debriefed about what was going on but all I got from my mom was a knowing look and sorrowful eyes.

It was then realized I had the answers to my questions all along. We were attacked by our own blood. We were attacked by my aunt Delilah, the renegade witch of the Black Rose coven.

I heard my mom and some elders discussing about it just yesterday, that her arrival would only bring havoc and problems to our coven but I wasn't aware it would be this terrible.

But another question sparked at the back of my mind, how was a single witch able to cause so much turmoil and damage to an entire coven of powerful witches? It was simply unheard of.

The Black Rose coven were great warriors and even greater witches. My mom always told me tales about how we were tasked and given great powers by the witches goddess Hecate, to fight against evil. It was the job of our coven to protect the mundane world from any unearthly threat.

"We don't have much time dear. Your aunt Delilah will soon come after me and then she will come for you. You need to run away now!" My mother smiled faintly, crouching down on her knees so she could look into my eyes. Her oceanic blue eyes reflected my own, holding a lot of tears and regret.

"Where is dad?" My mom looked at me, her expression filled with sadness.

"Where is aunt Maggie and Primá Diego?" I asked worried about my little cousin Diego. I hope he was safe, I can't possibly go and leave all of them behind.

"No! I'm not going to leave you and everyone behind. Let me stay back and fight. I have been practicing my spells and magic just like you taught me. You said I would become the greatest witch the world has ever seen, remember? Trust me mom, I'm good now, believe me." I muttered, as I could feel my mom trembling. A single teardrop fell from her eyes. It was scary seeing my own mother like this. She was a strong woman and a powerful witch, she always concealed her fears and emotions so seeing her this way was really strange and even more scary.

She placed her cold and blood stained hands on my cheek. It was her own blood. I had realized just then that she was wounded and bleeding from her right arm.

"Yes. That's my little firecracker with the heart of a warrior and a bravery that surpasses that of a mighty lion. But no my beautiful Bella, you can't stay. You have to run and you have to continue running forever because your aunt Delilah won't be the only one coming for you, they will come after you too. They all will come after you" her glassy eyes gave a searching look.

I didn't understand a single word that she had said. Why would they be coming after me? And who is 'they'?

Oh dear goddess, I am so confused right now. My mom then closed her eyes shut as she started reciting a chant I had heard a dozen times before. These were the chants you would only hear at special ceremonies. This was the spell used in a witch's transfer of magic ritual. For generations to generations ancestral magic of a lineage is transferred to the next head of that lineage to carry on the mantle, but this wasn't supposed to happen to me, not right now. I saw a glowing blue light reflecting from underneath my mum's skin. It was her Han, the symbol of her ancestral powers. It traveled from her neck to the hands she placed on my cheek and then I felt a little tingle and felt more power than before. Her eyes were now open again.

"I wish I could be there to watch you grow up. I wish I could be there to protect you and watch you fall in love, get married, have your own kids and become the truly exceptional woman that you are bound to become, but everything is happening so fast now. I guess this is just our fate." She sniffled, wiping the tears from her eyes, before looking back at me.

"You need to always remember that your dad and I will always love you no matter what and even if I'm gone I'm always going to be with you. Always I promise. Everything you do I will always be there watching you." Her eyes were glassy, her face a bit reddened as she sobbed. I wanted to cry too but the tears just won't fall.

I didn't care whatever Fate or destiny said or had already made plans for. I couldn't lose her, I won't lose her. Screw Fate and all its plans. We all are in charge of our fates.

"There's not much time. Take this" she took off her crystal black onyx pendant shaped like a crystal with four sharp pointy edges, locking it around my neck tightly. My mom never took this off for as long as I could remember, she always told me how delicate it was and how in the wrong hands it could bring total chaos to the world. So why was she giving this thing to me? I wasn't ready for any of this, at least not now.

"Isabella, listen to me! You must never take this off, ever. You must protect this pendant just like I have done and our ancestors before us. Your aunt will be looking for this so you must protect it at all cost. If your aunt finds this all hell will break loose the world will end if this gets into her hands. Do you understand?!" She asked firmly although my mind was in a haze and I couldn't understand anything that was going on. I couldn't even get past the world ending all because of a pendant, all I did was shake my little head to confirm.

"Yes mom! I promise I will protect it just like you did." my voice cracked as I spoke but I steadied it. Suddenly the screamings began to die down as the sounds of shoes knocking on the hard floor grew nearer. I could hear a lady's voice humming an indiscriminately familiar lullaby, it sounded like Mockingbird and immediately I knew who it was.

Aunt Delilah.

"You have to go now, Bella! Don't look back sweetie." Mommy said pushing me away.

"Remember you are to trust no one, except for the man with the butterfly tattoo. He is the one destined for you by the moon goddess Herself, Isabella. He will help and protect you with his life in the end. When your paths finally cross you must recognize him for he will protect you with his life and without him you won't be able to fulfill your destiny." I couldn't understand a single word she was saying.

A guy with a butterfly tattoo would protect me? Whoever he was then why wasn't he here to protect me now when I needed him?

What destiny is she talking about? My mom always spoke in strange cryptic riddles that were always hard to understand. After all she was gifted with the power of foresight, she could see into the future. She placed me gently underneath the fireplace and all I did was stare at her with a wide mouth.

"Promise me you will always keep running and stay safe." I hesitated to answer looking at the door. The steps were getting closer. "Promise me!" My mom yelled, commanding my full attention.

"I promise." I blabbered. Was this going to be my final goodbye to my mom? I bitterly hoped that all this was just a bad dream, an extremely terrifying nightmare that I would soon wake up from but sadly I never did. This was very much real and it would only get worse from here. The doors were suddenly blown away from its hinges making me and my mom jump in fear as we both looked back. Her eyes widened and there was only one word written all over them--Fear.

"I had a feeling that I would find both mother and daughter together here. You both just missed the party down stairs. It was a blast." aunt Delilah said with the most sinister smile I had ever seen in my life. She was wearing her usual long and dark gown with her black hair messy with a streak of white hair left to trail off aimlessly on her face, the white streak in her hair was a new look, I definitely hadn't seen it yesterday when she returned back home. And her face was almost completely covered in bright red blood that wasn't hers. It belonged to all the innocent lives she had claimed and all the coven members she slayed.

"Oh sister, what have you done?" Mom chided apologetically, as she quickly sprung to her feet, blocking my view, I wondered if she intentionally didn't want me to witness what was about to unfold. I heard aunt Delilah laugh out loud like a crazed maniac. She had black chaos magic radiating off her.

"Oh sister, don't act so utterly shocked about all this. I know you must have known this would happen the moment the renegade witch returned. Surely you must have had one of those silly little witchy visions of yours. I'm willing to even bet that you knew that this day was bound to happen the moment our sweet mummy dearest chose you instead of me. Oh then you all laughed that I was broken, that I was weak, that I was a monster. I hoped I lived up to mommy's expectations though." My mom didn't say a single word. I could see aunt Delilah roam the room as if she was looking for something.

"I'm also willing to bet that you know how all this is going to end. You know you're going to lose in a fight against your big sister." Mom walked forward a bit, giving me a much better view.

"Delilah you should know that although the battle may be lost now, but the raging war that is yet to come isn't over yet." my mom countered causing aunt Delilah to chuckle a bit, then she locked her fiery gaze with mine causing me to shriek.

"Oh Little Bella" aunt Delilah called out for me in a sweet and almost innocent voice that made my stomach turn inside out. I knew she was just filled with darkness. I hated her because she was the reason for all that was happening. She was the reason I lost everything.

"Won't you get over here and say hello to your favorite big auntie" her red lips smiled at me with her crimson stained hands wide open waiting for me.

"Leave Isabella out of this. The one you want is me." mom growled furiously, while aunt Delilah chucked out a laugh. She was insane.

"It's all about the child Amelia. I'm sure you know by now that I need her and pretty soon every monster from every corner of this crazy world would hunt her too. When the whole world realizes that this little girl's blood holds all the keys to the universe, everyone would want her, even the devil himself. So I think she is better off with her aunt. I will keep her safe." She grinned wickedly.

"I will never let you have her, over my dead body." Mom sounded very furious now and this never happened but aunt Delilah just chuckled.

"You really say that as though you could stop me but you and I know that you can't compare with my powers. Just to be warned, your husband and our little sister Magareth tried to stop me from getting here and all they got was their tiny heart beating out of their chest." she had an evil smirk on while she continued laughing like a mad witch.

Dad was dead and poor aunt Maggie was dead too, I just heard aunt Delilah say they both died trying to protect me.

No! How could she do this? How could she kill them? She was a monster. I felt all sorts of pain but I wouldn't be able to shed a tear. I just hoped Diego was fine or did she kill him too like she did to his mom, aunt Maggie.

"You sick monster! I never wanted to believe it but mom and dad were right back then, you are a monster!" mom screamed sending out a surge of magical energy blast aiming at aunt Delilah but it was completely dismissed by a mere flick of her wrist. Mom shot another blast, then another and another then several more but each of them were shut down by a wave of aunt Delilah's hand.

"Meh, meh! Your attacks are pitiful sister." Aunt Delilah scorned with evil in her eyes.

"How is this possible?" My mom stole the words right out of my very own mouth. Her words matched the pace of my exact thoughts as if she was reading them from a script in my head. Although I was still a child, I have never heard or seen someone with this much power before and judging by the shocked look on my mom's face neither had she. This made me worry about what was going to happen next.

"Haven't you heard the rumors sister, I'm no longer an ordinary witch anymore... I have embraced the chaos. Now, it's my turn." Delilah smiled, in a bat of an eye my mom was tossed around all over the room like a rag doll that weighed as much as nothing. She was finally dropped hard to the floor.

"Mom!" I screamed as my mother laid there on the floor covered in blood. Her own blood. She looked at me dead in the eyes, shaking her head to stop me from reaching out to her.

"It's such a shame Amelia, that I have to do this in front of your daughter," Delilah said, approaching my mom, taking out a bloody knife from behind her. "Now I truly look like a monster for this."

"No.... No..... No..... STOP IT PLEASE!!!" I screamed at her, begging for it all to stop but it didn't. The terrible film just kept playing on and on and on.

"Don't worry too much sister. I'll bring up Isabella like the child I could never have." aunt Delilah smirk was knocked right off her face immediately with a hard blow. My mom had her thrown hard against the ceiling.

"I will never let you touch my daughter!" My mom yelled, as she rushed up to me. I could see how bad she struggled with every move she made. She was still weak and badly wounded.

"Estero kereva mastos de uno Riveraz incendia le mundo!" Mom yelled the spell over and over again with everything she had. The room started to shake as the ground began to quake. Strong wind blew around the room making it seem like there was a little tornado inside the room. Dust and ash that laid with me in the fireplace began to spin making the room seem hazy. The crazy wind made everything in my room spin around the air.

My mom gave me one last smile as I could read the words 'I love you' from her badly chapped lips, I smiled back whispering an 'I love you' back to her but my smile was cut too short when I saw aunt Delilah appear from behind placing a knife before mom's throat and slicing it open. Blood flowed down her neck as she gobbled to breathe. The wind grew only stronger and then I heard aunt Delilah scream "NO!".

I stared as my mom laid there with eyes wide open as she stared at me with a smile on her face. It was then a single teardrop rolled down my cheek. I felt pain and anger as I let out a devastating scream.

My visions became clouded and I could feel myself drifting away. That is when my eyes jolted open and I could hear the sound of my heavy breathing.

"Where the hell am I?"

***AUTHOR NOTE***

Told ya it's gonna make sense later. That's the history between Isabella and Her aunt Delilah.

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Soundtrack: Too Sweet by Hozier