Fan Fiction ❯ Night Duchess ❯ Visions ( Chapter 1 )

Night Duchess

Issue 1: Visions

Introduction: Imagine you had the power to see things that happened 1700 years ago and things that will happen 1700 years later. If you could see a person's past when you touched them, be it good or bad, what will you do? And if you were to meet an ancestor that had the same powers, would you believe that you could defend the night of all evil?

1248-Russia

{Scene: Outside Emperor Vladimir's castle. It is night. Aleksandra is holding her Uncle's hand. Vladimir is stout man with black chin length hair pulled back in a tight ponytail and has brown eyes. )

Young Aleksandra (shuddering): " I'm afraid of the night."

Vladimir: (takes his medallion off his neck) "Here, take this. It kept me from being afraid of the night". (He hands it to her)

Young Aleksandra (shaking her head and holding her hand out in protest) "Oh, Uncle Vladimir, I can't take this. You've had it for years."

Vladimir: "No, I want you to have it."

Young Aleksandra: "But what about Igor? I thought you would hand it down to him?"

Vladimir: "Igor will take the throne and you will take this. Go on now. It's magical. You deserve it more."

Young Aleksandra: "I do? Magical? How?"

Vladimir: "Look, do you see the words?"

{Aleksandra holds the medallion close to her face as she reads the medallion. Four words are in a circle around a wolf. She reads the words aloud}

Young Aleksandra: "Mind, Spirit, Heart and Body. But what is the wolf for?"

Vladimir: "I have often wondered that myself."

Young Aleksandra: "Uncle Vladimir--Where, where did you get this?"

Vladimir: (smiling) "Can you keep a secret, child?"

Young Aleksandra:" Oh yes, yes!"

Vladimir: "It was a given to me, by an owl."

Young Aleksandra: (confused) An owl? How did the owl get it?

Vladimir: "The owl had a broken wing. I took care of it when I was but a boy and it gave me the medallion. I'm not sure it was a real owl at all. It must've been magical itself."

Young Aleksandra: "Do you still see the owl, Uncle Vladimir?"

Vladimir: "Sometimes at night, I think I can hear it. Shh. Do you hear an owl cooing?"

{Young Aleksandra strains to hear an owl. Indeed, there is an owl in the midst, cooing as it's flying in the night sky.}

Young Aleksandra: "I suppose I don't have to be afraid of the night after all." (She looks at the medallion and puts it around her neck)

1260-Russia

{When Aleksandra became a young woman, she came to visit her uncle Vladimir with her parents again. Noon.}

Vladimir (holding out gifts): "Welcome, dear girl. These are for you."

Aleksandra (laughing): "Uncle Vladimir…thank you!"

Igor: "Good to see you again, cousin." {He did not have his father's bulk, but he was tall, like his mother, who had passed on. He was well-built with a strong face, light brown hair, shoulder length and tied back loosely with a ribbon near the end of his ponytail.}

(Aleksandra kisses Igor's cheek.)

Aleksandra: "Likewise, Igor."

{While the family eats, Aleksandra sees Aleksei, her childhood sweetheart and Igor's best friend. She is wearing a blue velvet dress and hair red hair is tied into a braid over her right shoulder. Her parents did want her to have any relationship with the boy because he was a servant boy and not royalty. Vladimir was the only one who supported their relationship.}

Aleksandra (longingly): "Aleksei"

Aleksei (filling her glass): "You look beautiful, Duchess Aleksandra."

Alekandra (smiling): "Why, thank you, Aleksei. You look handsome as well."

{Shura's parents groan and eye the boy warily. Igor tries not to lose his appetite.}

Igor (thinking): 'There they go again…'

Vladimir (standing): "Oh, Alesei, dear boy, I have some things to discuss with Alesandra's parents and our other guests here. Why don't you take my niece out for a walk? I don't want you to be bored with our grown up talk. Go and have some fun. Enjoy yourselves."

Aleksandra's mother (angry): "Vladimir--what do you think you are doing?"

Vladimir: "Dear sister…look at them…they're in love."

{Alesandra smiles and hugs her uncle)

Aleksandra: "Oh, why thank you, Uncle Vladimir."

Igor: "May I go too, Father?"

Vladimir: "No Son. You will take my place when I leave this world so you must stay."

Aleksei (giggling): "Don't worry, cousin, I will get some special flowers for you! (She kisses his forehead)

Igor: "Special flowers, thank you."

{Aleksandra and Aleksei leave the castle far out into the forest. They are out for some time.}

Aleksei (running his hand through his blackish-blue hair): "Poor Igor. I don't think he looks forward to becoming the new emperor."

Aleskandra: "He is. He's always wanted to be emperor. He just doesn't like to listen to the boring conferences."

Aleksei: "I can't blame him. Your uncle has been very kind to me."

Aleksandra: "My uncle is kind to everyone."

Aleksei (looking around the wilderness): "Brings back memories, doesn't it? This place. When I first met you."

Aleksandra: "Yes. I fell down and began to cry. Then you heard me crying, helped me up and brushed the dirt of my dress."

Alesei (holding out a flower) "And I gave you one of these. We were just children then, Aleksandra."

Aleksandra: "Indeed we were."

{Aleksandra and Aleksei lean in to kiss each other. Right before they do, bad images appear in Aleksandra's mind. She sees an image of her family and friends being killed. The visions are so vivid; she can even hear the deafening screams. Her eyes snap open and she backs up with her hands on her head.}

Aleksandra: No. NO! (She shakes her head violently.)

Aleksei: Shura! What's wrong?

(Overwhelmed, she falls to her knees.)

Aleksandra: "Something is happening at the castle!"

Aleksei: "What?" (He shakes her.)

Aleksandra: "We must get back, before it's too late!"

Aleksei: "I don't understand. Too late for what?"

Aleksandra: "Just trust me!"

(Aleksandra gets to her feet and grabs Aleksei's hand. They make haste to the castle to find it in ruins and her uncle Vladimir and parents are hanging on a tree. Igor is nowhere near the tree. They stay away from the castle in case the enemy was still nearby.)

Aleksei: "A massacre!"

(Aleksandra ran to the tree to get her parents and uncle down but Aleksei grabbed her arm)

Aleksandra: "Let me go, Aleksei!"

Aleksei: "No, Aleksandra. It's not safe. The enemy could still be here. Go to the nearest village and don't stop until you get there!"

Aleksandra: "But what about you?"

Aleksei: "I will search for survivors. Find out who did this. I have to find Igor!"

Aleksandra: "It's too dangerous! I'm not leaving without you!"

Aleksei (his hand on her shoulders): "Go. Please. Don't worry about me. Hurry now and don't let anyone see you."

Aleksandra (nodding): "Yes, I'll go but be careful! I don't know what I'd do if I lost you."

(They embrace and Aleksandra runs off in the direction of the nearest village. She hears someone shout.)

Guard: "It's the duchess! Get her!"

(Aleksandra runs faster and zig-zags around trees to lose the guards perusing her. She doesn't know that she is being watched by something other than the enemy guards. Yellow human eyes are seen in the bushes and as the guards get closer to her, something jumps from the bushes and tackles them. Aleksandra turns but she sees nothing there. She only hears the sounds of the guards screaming in pain. There was a monster or something in the woods and Aleksandra wishes that she hadn't left her home. She keeps running away and whoever the killer is, stands up over the dead guards. They have slashes over their bodies and their killer is a woman with yellow eyes, gray-white wavy soft hair with specks of black that fell past her shoulders. The attire she wears is a long white dress decorated with feathers. Her mouth is small and so is her nose. She has a very slender build. She looks in the direction Aleksandra is running then looks at her arm, where there is a scratch. It stops bleeding and the wound is fully healed.)

2060-Russia

{Scene: Sasha Romanov's bedroom. An owl flew by her window. She sits up, screaming. She is drenched in a cold sweat.}

Sasha (panting): "No…run…just run…"

(Sasha looks around her bedroom and sighs.)

Sasha: "It was just a dream. But it was so real. It's the same dream. I wish I knew what it was about." (She paused and thought for a moment.)

Sasha (thinking): 'That girl in my dream. It always ends the same. She's always running away from something and that woman always looks at her. Who are they?'

{Sasha grabs something around her neck. A medallion. A shiny, golden medallion with four words surrounding a wolf: Mind, Spirit, Heart and Body. She gets out of bed and becomes dressed in her school uniform, a light blue shirt and dark blue tie, dark blue knee socks and a dark red skirt and vest. She brushes her blah shoulder brown hair and pulled it up in a ponytail. She put on her glasses. Taking her shoes, she walked down the stairs to breakfast. A plate of eggs and bacon waited for her with a glass of orange juice. Her father has already left for work.}

Sasha: "Thanks, Mom."

Sasha's mother: "You're welcome, dear."

{But Sasha is not hungry. She sits down in front of her breakfast and pick at it. However, she forces herself to eat it.)

Sasha (thinking): 'I can't go to school. Everyone is so mean to me, just because I'm different, of all the weird things that happen to me. Well, it's not my fault! I'm not a freak…am I?'

Sasha: "Mom…I really don't like school. Can I be transferred at another school maybe?"

Sasha's mother: "Why?"

Sasha: "You know everyone picks on me."

Sasha's mother: "Oh, sweetie, everyone gets picked on. That's part of going to school. Just ignore the remarks. Besides, even if you did start going to another school, people would tease you anyway."

Sasha (thinking): 'She's right…no matter where I go, people will still treat me like an outcast.'

Sasha's mother: "Sasha, you're going to be late. Better hurry."

{Sasha groans, takes her school belongings and leaves. She walks to the bus stop, alone. Waits, alone, sat on the bus, alone, got off, alone and went to her classroom, alone. She sat in the back row, alone.}

{She feels someone brush past her. It is Victor Demensky, one of the most popular guys in school and perhaps the cruelest jerk alive. He always dressed to look like a punk, his hair spiky and his shirt tucked out. She saw his past and it wasn't pretty. She saw him be mean to his parents and little sister. He cussed people out. She saw him cheat on tests and get in fights. She found out that he was quite popular with the girls and doing it behind his girlfriend's back. It was a wonder he wasn't in jail for the things he had done.}

Sasha (shivering): 'He's so creepy…I don't know why everyone thinks he's popular.'

Victor (backing up and brushing himself off): "Ew, I touched the freak!"

{Sasha's left hand tightens on the corner of her desk. She wasn't going to stand this anymore. She could only take so much. She stands up and looks at Viktor with a challenging face, with her hands on behind her on her desk.}

Viktor: "Oh…did I hurt your feelings? Are you going to cry now?"

Sasha: "No. And if I'm a freak, Viktor, you're a creep! I know all the things you've done and you can't hide. You just wait."

Victor: "Oh, yeah, is that a threat? What're you going to do about it?" (He mimics a little kids' voice and his gang-members laugh) "Tattle on me to the teacher? Run home to your mommy?" (He slaps her and that sets something off in her, as if he had cornered a wild animal. She squeezes the corners of her desk so hard, they break off. Her arm muscles bulge and veins in her arms and neck start pulsating. She closes her eyes and when she opens them again, they are a hazy white. Strange green psychic energy radiates from her. The classmates are stunned and frightened. }

Student 1: "Look! Oh, my gosh! How did she do that?"

Student 2: "Way to go, Viktor, you made her mad!"

{Some of the other students back off but Viktor held his ground.}

Victor: "What? Are you afraid of the freak? She can't do anything!"

{Sasha's eyes start flashing and her jaw clenches. An animal-like growl escapes her mouth. She lashes out at Viktor and scratches him across the face. He cries out in pain and surprise as she tackles him to the ground.}

Sasha: "Oh…I'll show you what I can do!"

{The other students are shocked. They don't' know what to do. They're afraid to touch Sasha. She begins to choke him.}

Sasha: "You can't hide, Viktor. Sooner or later everyone will know about all the burglaries, the robberies, the arsons. I know you've been cheating on Zoya! You filth! You--you monster! And you dare call me a freak? Look in the mirror!"

Zoya: "Viktor, how could you?"

Viktor: "She's lying!"

Sasha: "Oh, go ahead and keep lying. Soon the truth will come out." {She punches him.}

Viktor: "Someone, get her off of me!"

{The teacher arrives on the scene.}

Teacher: "What is going on here?"

Student 1: "She attacked him!"

{Fillip, someone from Viktor's gang speaks up. He is the hound-dog in the gang. He goes along with everything Viktor does, thinking if he did it, it had to be cool.}

Fillip: "He provoked her, sir. It wasn't her fault."

Viktor: "Quiet, Fillip! She's crazy!"

Teacher: "Put him down! Enough!" {He grabs her and tries to pull her off of Viktor. He finds it difficult. She was thrashing around like a wild animal. Her hold on Viktor was almost inhuman. Finally, he was able to pull her off of him but she still thrashed around like a shark.}

Sasha: "Let me go! He needs to be taught a lesson!"

{Sasha sees her teacher's past as he restrained her. It was sad. He lost his brother in the war. His father left him and his mother. She saw what happened today, her teacher stopped by at the cemetery to see his brother's grave.}

Teacher: "Aleksandra, calm down!"

Sasha: "My name's Sasha!"

Fillip: "Sasha…how did you know those things about Viktor? Everything you said was true."

Viktor: "Shut up, Fillip! None of it was true!"

Fillip: "But I was there when--"

Viktor: "I said shut up!"

Sasha: "Sorry, Viktor, but I had to each you a lesson." {She begins to relax. All eyes are on her. She looks around, panting.} "Sorry, everyone…sorry you had to see that…."

{Exhausted, Sasha collapses}

To Be Continued. Copyright by Haley Dale