I shook my head. "I-I don't understand. Is this some cruel joke?"

My parents looked at each other with a saddened expression. "I'm afraid not. According to the curse, you will die on your next birthday. However, we believe you can prevent it. We don't know much yet as to why or how but we fear Mortema might rise again in the very near future, and this time, with a burning passion for revenge."

This was taking it farther than I expected. Just a few months ago, I was attending the worst school on this entire planet, a place that gave me no hope for humanity. Yet, in less than an hour, I was introduced to a world where Greek Hall doesn't exist and magic did; a world shining with endless possibilities for people like me. Of course, it sounded way too good to be true; every wish comes with a price, and the price I had to pay was that curse.

I cocked my head to the side. "What? Is she some kind of psychopath or something?'

Dad let out a dry laugh. "Psychopath doesn't even come close to describing who that monster is."

A thought suddenly hit me. "Dad, how did you know I was cursed? Is it because of the-"

"Yes, the mark. The second I saw it, we knew you've been branded."

Mortema had only resurrected twice in the past century. Accyording to the family legend, she only came back when a girl of pure Mesineux blood reached the tender age of 18; the age when the curse would be actively put into place. With her ressurection came the mark, which was a tell-tale sign that the girl has been branded. Initially, my parents weren't sure whether that information was true or not, but after a second look at my arm, it was affirmative; I was branded.

As she had only been revived twice after her defeat, I quickly came to the conclusion that her resurrection must have meant the death of two due to the curse. But then another thought hit me.

"Dad, does that mean that our family has only birthed two girls ever since the battle between Jenni and Mortema?"

He gave a slight nod in response.

"That's impossible. It's been about a hundred years!"

Dad told me, for as long as he could remember, the Mesineux family had always been male dominant. Before the battle, the birth rates of females were already drastically low; after the curse was enacted, the chances of giving birth to a girl was a miracle even. According to him, the our family name was one of the oldest Elucaen family in all the nations, dating back generations and generations. Because the birth rates for men were higher than girls, our line had been one of the purest as well. Before the curse, legend had it that once a female was born, they either bring a blessing to all, or suffer a curse for all. I knew that the blessing was impossible at this point, but I couldn't help but wonder if the same fate will apply to me as well.

"That is precisely why, when you were born, we were scared out of our wits. A girl with Mesineux blood hasn't been born for the past fifty years, and even then, rumors started rising on how the curse ultimately took the girl's life. We didn't want history to repeat itself, which was why we decided to make that decision. Since we're having this conversation, you can guess our plan failed."

That decision referred to their intention of cutting me off from anything that had to do with the Elucaen world: no exposure to Elucae, to its inhabitants, its nations, nothing. Nothing that could give any notions but the life I was born to live, even at the risk of cutting off contact with both sides of the family. For me. To save me.

Tears started clouding my eyes. "Mom, dad..."

Mom then reached across and rubbed my shoulders affectionately. "Oh sweetie...we thought that if we cut off all contact with our Elucaen selves and start over in the human world, then the curse wouldn't affect you in any way. Our plan was to wait until you reach your eighteenth birthday and past the curse date before revealing all of this, but unfortunately it did."

"The second you showed us the mark, we knew. We knew our plan failed, and the only person that could give us more information was my father," Dad added, "I know this is a lot to take in, but we want to tell you that we're always going to be here for you. Your mother and I will do whatever it takes to find a way to break this curse, because if there's one thing that your grandfather taught me, it's that nothing is impossible."

"Does anyone know specifically where this Mortema person is right now?"

"We're not sure, but we believe that as the branded girl reaches closer to the curse date, Mortema would get stronger every time; your grandfather told us that she was too weak to cause any destructive harm the last time she resurrected, but this time, things might be different."

"Different...how?"

Dad flashed me a smile that didn't quite meet his eyes. "Don't worry about it, just focus on getting stronger now, okay? We were wrong for segregating you from the rest of the Elucaen world, and I promise I shall pay the price for it, but your mother and I don't want you to suffer as a result of our mistakes."

"It's okay, Dad. You didn't know this would happen. But I'm curious about something; if the government knew about Mortema and the 'threat' she brings, why didn't they do anything to stop it? Or to destroy her once and for all?"

"Like I said, she was too weak to bestow serious harm. Even so, no one knew her true location when she resurrects; trust me, there has been numerous search parties in the past. The only way they knew it was her was due to that purple-eyed skull mark appearing outside the homes of civilians and throughout the Anglian nation. That was her sign, that she was coming. But we didn't know it would be this soon."

"Does the government know about my mark? Or aware of the curse in general?"

"Yes, as far as I'm aware, only the Anglian government, and your future headmaster, knows about the curse. Of course, the Anglian officials had been knowing about it ever since it was put into place. Because the battle took place mainly in Anglia, it is their job now to take care of it. If I tell you we decided to send you to school in Anglia just because we felt like it, we would be lying. The nation would be packed with security and the strongest Elucaens on the lookout for Mortema, therefore providing you with the safest environment there is."

"I don't mean to be pessimistic but, how can I possibly, at 17, break a curse that has never been broken before?"

Dad cupped my hand in his. "Well, after talking it over with your grandparents, we decided that in order to give you your best fighting chance, you must learn how to channel your Elucae. This is precisely the reason why we wish to send you to Clarines High; the headmaster there can ensure your safety for the time being while you can start learning how to use your elemental magic as well. We know seven months is not a lot, especially since you missed the first three years of prep, but a little chance is better than no chance at all. Do you understand?"

I looked into his eyes, frantically searching for the sign that everything was going to be okay, and as I saw the warmness reflected in his hazel orbs, I gave a deep sigh of relief. My parents had always sacrificed so much for Lucas and I, and this time, I was determined to return the favor.

"Mom, Dad, I don't know why this is happening, or more specifically why it has to happen to me , but I do know that I'm thankful for everything, and no matter what, I will try my best in everything I do in order to beat this stupid curse," I promised.

I knew it was going to be hard, keeping that promise, but what other choices did I have?

Dad smiled at me proudly, and I would have given anything to see that again."That's my girl. Besides, Clarines High is one of the safest Elucaen Preparatory schools in the entire world, so I have no doubt it would be a good experience for you."

Mom chimed in. "We'll give you some time to think and tell your friends, well Ara, about your upcoming departure. I'll drop by your room later to give you more details regarding your flight, school, and other crucial things you may need to know."

My parents still didn't know about mine and Ara's falling out, but at this point, telling Ara about Clarines was the last thing on my agenda. Before I could register what happened, I felt a searing pain shot up my left forearm, bringing along with it the constant reminder of the dreaded mark. I looked around the vacant parlor to see if there was any purple-eyed skulls in place, but thankfully, there wasn't.

Dad told me the city marks only appeared for a few days, then they disappeared as quick as they came. The girl branded would be alive, then as the marks started to disintegrate, so did their life force. But it was different this time. I wasn't supposed to be branded this early, but I did. It could only mean one thing: she was getting stronger, and she wasn't going anywhere.