Free Savior by Laury Falter Page B

ventured.
    “You don’t think The Sevens would limit themselves to just our world, do you? They want both, they want all of it.”
    Every one of us was taken aback. Brushing the hair from her forehead, she allowed us time to understand. I could tell this was a motion that meant she was desperate.
    When no one spoke, she emphasized her point by stating, “Our world was just their training ground….”
    It seemed like everything in the room went still. I couldn't even decipher if anyone was breathing. We were, instead, silently coming to terms with the reality of what my mother was saying, of what The Sevens had been doing all along:
    Preparing to take control over everyone, over everything.
    My mother didn’t stop there, though. She informed us of the full scope of their plan, drilling in the fear she'd already planted in us. “The Sevens aren’t like us. They don’t have the kind of power we do. Their abilities are different. So when they witnessed what we were capable of, they saw an opportunity. They created scenarios, situations in which our world became threatened…the European Witch Hunts being just one of them. Then they emerged, seemingly out of nowhere, and made us believe they put an end to the danger, essentially protecting us, when they were the instigators all along. However, that didn’t matter. The damage was done. They gained the influence they needed, and when they felt it was being threatened, they devised other scenarios to remind us that they are our protectors.”
    “Like the Salem Witch Trials…?” asked Spencer, the most well-read among us.
    “Exactly. But that wasn’t the end of their efforts to manipulate us. Along the way, they created structure in our world, a hierarchy, convincing us it was for our own evolution, our own good. But the truth is loose structure leads to lack of control. They developed our world to enhance their authority over us, and we let them .
    “As they did this, progressively, over centuries, they harnessed our power, learned to use it; and they developed a highly-lethal military. They did this with a single purpose in mind…complete and absolute domination.”
    Finally, I came to terms with why my mother was so stern with me, with everyone, in fact. She had lived in a reality far different from us; she lived with the truth.
    Having survived alongside The Sevens for so long, that fear now consumed her. More than anyone, she was aware of what they are capable of and what motivates them, what drives them. And now she had shared it with us.
    I couldn’t begin to imagine what she witnessed in their presence. Now her child was leaving and entering the battle zone where our enemies still lingered, and she was frantic to prevent it.
    While stepping up to her, I placed my hands on her arms and gazing at her. Then I explained the details that she hadn’t yet taken into account. “You’ve done all you can to prepare me for this moment. This is it; the war you mentioned is already started. It’s here. We’ve been at war, we just didn’t know it. And I am now the fighter you taught me to be…but I’d much rather be fighting the Vires and not you. You’ve done enough. It’s my turn. Let me fight now, the best way I know how."
    I'd never known my mother to back down to anyone or anything…she doesn't give up easily. Because of it, she was unwilling to respond.
    “You knew this would happen at some point. You have to let me go.”
    Time passed and she still wasn't saying anything.  
    “Isabella,” said Jameson, using my mother’s first name to convince her that what he would say next was genuine. “I’ll keep her safe. I’ll give my life if I need to.”
    My mother pursed her lips, trying to contain the emotion surging through her. It took an unconscionable amount of time before she eventually eked out a reply. It wasn’t one I expected, but it was indisputably in my mother’s style. “Just keep him away from her,” she rotated her head toward Theleo