Fan Fiction ❯ Night Duchess ❯ From the Inside ( Chapter 4 )

Night Duchess Issue 4

From the Inside

1260-Russia

Rustam: "Night…Duchess?"

Shura/Night Duchess: "Yes. I am the Night Duchess, protector and keeper of the night." {She smiles and looks at her medallion.} "This is quite useful. Now…let's head back. It has been a long night."

Rustam: "Very well."

{The Night Duchess and Rustam leave the fortress with the children and right behind them, the fortress disappears.}

Night Duchess: "It's gone. It was an illusion!"

Rustam: "Almost as if it wasn't even there."

{Night Duchess narrowed her eyes.}

Night Duchess (thinking) 'When he does return, I'll be ready.'

{They come back to the tavern and Nina stands to welcome them. She gasps and steps back when she sees Shura.}

Nina: "Shura! Oh my, you've got a cut on your face! And your hair…"

Night Duchess: "If you ask me, I think I look better this way."

{Night Duchess walks past Nina and Nina watches her leave, confused. Nina approaches Rustam.}

Nina: "Rustam, what happened?"

Rustam: "She'll be all right."

Nina: "She looks different."

Rustam: "I know. She insists that she is the Night Duchess, a warrior of the night."

Nina: "I think the cloak possessed her mind."

Rustam: "No. It may be more than just the cloak."

Nina: "What?"

Rustam: "I am not sure. Perhaps the medallion and scythe. It is almost like that it brought out her inner self."

Nina: "I just hope that she won't be like this all the time."

Rustam: "No, perhaps just the night."

{Night Duchess comes up the stairs and to her room. She catches a glimpse in the mirror and smiles.}

Night Duchess: "So, you've been inside me the whole time and finally decided to come out?"

Woman's voice: "You just now needed her, Night Duchess."

Night Duchess: "I keep hearing you. Show yourself! Who are you and what do you want?"

Flutter. Flutter. Flutter.

{An owl flies to her window and hovers in front of it. It becomes larger and pushes in front of the closed window. Night Duchess hurries to lock it and the owl, surrouned in a glowing aura, sits on the floor. The wings become slender arms and the talons become a woman's toes. The owl changed into a woman before Night Duchess's eyes. She wears a white feathery dress, has yellow owl-like eyes, small mouth and nose. Her hair is soft and slightly curly, white with specks of black like the coat of her owl form.}

Woman: "A pleasure to meet you, finally."

Night Duchess: "How did you do that? Who are you? What are you?"

{The woman stretches her right arm to the side and rotates it, it pops slightly. Then she touches the medallion on her neck.}

Night Duchess: "Wait…your arm…"

Woman: "There was a point where I was unable to move it, until your uncle found me, cold and near to death, in his eyes anyway. He took me in before I had to wait to heal myself."

Night Duchess: "You're the owl? That gave my uncle this?" {She clutches the medallion.}

Woman: "It used to belong to me. But for your uncle's kindness, I gave it to him. I am somewhat immortal. I can feel pain and get injuries, but I heal faster than mortals. This medallion is my life force, if it were to fall in the wrong hands, I shall die."

Night Duchess: "If you need it back to live then---"

Woman: "No. It is safe with you. Keep it. My sister and I will survive without the scythe and medallion."

Night Duchess: "Sister? There's another one like you? Where is she?"

Woman: "Yes. We are the last of our kind. We're not just animals or humans, but something like goddesses. We have the power to heal quickly, immense strength… just as the power in the scythe and medallion. I can change into an owl at will, and my sister, a wolf."

Night Duchess: "What shall I do with the medallion?"

Woman: "You are still a mortal, even with the powers from these items, before you die, pass them along to your children from generation to generation. They will become Night Duchesses themselves as well. My sister and I will be their advisors. Kudram is our worst enemy. He's been after us for ages."

Night Duchess: "Kudram?"

Woman: "Yes, he is an evil monster. We were able to conceal him into a cave but then an innocent soul stumbled upon it. Kudram took over his body."

Night Duchess: "You mean Gennadiy."

Woman: "He will come back. You may have stopped him for now, but he will find another body, one suitable to fulfill his every word and he will become his true form. Should that happen, he should be unstoppable."

Night Duchess: "I will stop him for good."

Woman: "If you won't, then your descendants will.

Night Duchess: "My descendants will continue to fight this mad demon?"

Woman: I have said what needed to be said. Use your talismans wisely. Good luck." {She turns for the window.}

Night Duchess: "Wait! Who are you?"

Woman: {Back still facing Night Duchess} "I am Avis."

{She opens the window, changes into an owl and flies out into the night. Night Duchess comes to the window and watches Avis fly away. Night Duchess smiles, walks to the mirror and wipes the cut on her cheek. It heals. She looks surprised and then she runs her hand through her hair. It grows back to its usual length. She removes the cloak and she is magically wearing her old clothes. In an instant, she returns back to Shura.}

Shura: "I'm my old self again…how dull." {sighs} "At least no one will know that Shura is the Night Duchess."

One Weak Later

{The Emperor's castle is rebuilt and the remaining perished are buried. Everything is restored. Shura is knealing in front of the tree where her parents and uncle she had found hanging from, where their graves are. She puts a flower at the bottom of the tree and holds back her tears. She clutches the medallion around her neck.}

Shura {thinking} 'I will not let you down. No one will threaten our home again. Not when Night Duchess is around.'

{Rustam comes up behind her and touches her shoulder.}

Rustam: "I thought I'd find you here. What is it? What are you thinking?"

ShuraL "I was just thinking of my family. If only I've gotten to them sooner. What good is being able to see the future if I can't do anything to stop it?"

Rustam: "Don't blame yourself, Duchess. You did what you could."

{Shura sighs and stands up. She looks Rustam over, as if seeing him in a new light. His hair is black hair and it falls down between his shoulder blades and bangs that pierced his eyes. He has blue-violet eyes, slightly arched eyebrows, high cheekbones and a well-rounded chin. His muscles are rippling and he is strong enough to perhaps break steel. Her cousin was well built, but that was different. Igor was her cousin. Shura catches herself blushing and clears her throat.}

Shura: "Thank you, Rustam. I just wish that I could be a good empress of Russia. My cousin was so looking forward to becoming emperor. I cannot meet up to his standards. I'm not sure if I can do this. I just hope that I do not anger them." {She glances at the family ring Igor had given her and ponders.} 'Igor, why did you have to leave me this burden?'

Rustam: "I'm sure you will do just fine. Just believe in yourself, Duchess. Good luck. Now, it is time for me to go. I just came to say goodbye."

Shura: "Leaving? Where would you go?"

Rustam: "Wherever the road takes me." {He turns and mounts his horse. Shura walks up to him.}

Shura "Must you go?"

{She puts her hand on his leg and saw the road he was about to take. It was lonely, maybe a bit adventurous, but lonely just the same and dangerous. If she were to let him leave, he'd surely die in a day or two. She pictures him being robbed by masked men and even though Rustam was a skilled warrior, the would kill them steal his horse and she'll never see him again. She couldn't let him go. If he stayed, she saw the future he had for him. It was happy and she saw something, she wasn't sure what, it was a bit of a blur, but she got a good feeling of it. All she sees was Rustam and herself together, happy, sitting in a lush green meadow with Shadow.

Shura: "You cannot go. Don't leave me, Rustam. I've lost everyone important to me. You can't leave too."

Rustam "Duchess…I am a wandering warrior, I don't belong here. I belong…out there. So does Shadow." {He nods to his pet and he whimpers, leaning against Shura.}

Shura: "I understand you've been traveling all your life, searching for the best place to stay. You don't have to look anymore, Rustam."

Rustam: "I have to go."

Shura: "You can stay here and rule by my side, you can be emperor."

Rustam: "Become Emperor?"

Shura: "Yes, please say you will stay. If you do then you will never be lonely again. You will die in a day or two out there; I saw it when I touched you. You cannot leave me like this, Rustam. Please. You mean so much to me."

{Rustam remembers Igor's words: "I don't know who you are, soldier, but watch over my cousin." Rustam sighs in frustration.}

Rustam: "Your cousin told me something before he died. He wanted me to watch over you."

Shura: "Igor wanted you to look out for me."

Rustam: "He feared that your Aleksei was already dead and knew he was close to death himself."

Shura: "Then you must stay. Please, Rustam. Don't go! I couldn't bear it if I lost you!"

Rustam: "If it means that much to you, duchess, then I'll stay."

Shura: "You will?"

{Rustam dismounts and wipes a tear away from her eye. Then he plants his palms on her shoulders.}

Rustam: "Yes. I'll stay for you."

Shura: "Rustam!" {She throws her arms around his neck. He lifts up her chin and they kiss.}

Russia 2060

{Sasha pulls her pajama top over her head and sits down on the edge of her bed before getting underneath the covers. She went over the days' events.}

Sasha {thinking} 'What happened to me? What made me attack Viktor other than he's just a jerk? I don't remember it. But why? What's come over me? And why was Fillip being nice to me all of a sudden? Was he really being nice or did he just want to know how I knew those things about Viktor?'

{She shudders and hugs herself. The wind blows her window open. She lets out a gasp and hurries to close it again.}

Sasha: "Creepy…" {She looks down at her medallion and remembers something from her dream.} "My medallion. It's the same as in my dream. That girl--is wearing it! Maybe…"

{She goes to her bed and gets in, claps her hands and the lights go out. She falls asleep just as an owl flies by her window and up to the rooftop. The owl lands and changes into Avis. There is already a woman there, taller than Avis with long legs and arms and a lanky, but stealthy build. She has long, claw like fingernails. She has straight, coarse, layered brown hair with a white tuft on the left top of her head and another white streak near the end of her hair. She has cold, piercing blue eyes, a pointed, sharp nose and thin lips. When she opened her mouth to speak, her canines were long and sharp, like that of a vampire's and so were the rest of her teeth.

Woman: "I've been waiting, for you, sister."

Avis: "I know, sister."

Woman: "So, this girl is Shura's descendant. Does she know?"

Avis: "No. She doesn't know where she got the medallion. She was adopted as a young child."

Woman: "Kudram is getting stronger. I can feel it. This girl will need to fight him when he shows his ugly face."

Avis: "All is well, Rema. She will know her true identity."

Rema: "Then we shall tell her."

Avis: "No, sister! I have a better idea. We should send someone else to teach her."

Rema: "Who? She is the only descendant. She holds the power in her hand but she doesn't even know it."

Avis: "Shura. We will bring her back to life."

Rema: "How? She's been dead for centuries."

Avis: "There is a way. She'll awaken when she hears our voice. We must try. Then when the time is right, we will show ourselves to Sasha and she will destroy Kudram forever."

Rema: "Are you sure this girl can do it? All of Shura's descendants were unsuccessful."

Avis: "Rema, have you forgotten about the 45th Night Duchess? Olga?"

Rema: "Oh yes…I remember that one. Back in the eighteen hundreds. That was an interesting era."

Avis: "Yes. We helped Olga seal him under the earth. In the forest. He's been buried there ever since and the Night Duchesses after her fought hoodlums and troublemakers. They prevented people from getting to that spot."

Rema: "You've forgotten something, Avis."

Avis: "What's that, sister?"

{Rema walked to the edge of the rooftop and pointed to the mountains.}

Rema: "Things have changed in the past, sister. People here are busy living, building new houses, parking lots and these new things they call 'shopping malls.' It will be just a matter of time until they dig up the rest of the forest and build a shopping mall or a dance club there and Kudram will be freed. When he is, he will seek havoc on this new world. People are different now than they were then and he will not have any trouble finding a new host."

{Avis looks out to the mountains. There is a lot of construction out in the distance and many lights and fast cars. She sighs and nods.}

Avis: "Yes. Time is running out. I hope Sasha is ready for her destiny."

To Be Continued. Copyright by Haley Dale