The first thing Mirela noticed that day was the sky.
It stretched endlessly above her, a wash of blue dotted with wisps of white clouds, soft and delicate. She titled her head back, her stormy-grey eyes wide with curiosity as she took in the expanse she had never known beyond the high, grim walls of the detention center. For twenty-four years, the only sky she has ever known were a small patch framed by iron bars that she could only see through the branches of the tree that blocked her window when it leaves died during the winter—barely enough to call a sky at all.
"Beautiful isn't it?"
Mirela didn't respond immediately. Her gaze remained fixed upwards. The corners of her lips quirked faintly, because that was just stating the obvious.
"It's brighter than I imagined," she said, her voice calm and lowered as she finally glanced away. "Though, not as beautiful as your eyes, Officer Liandor."
The elf officer standing beside her studied her with a neutral expression. Tall, with pupil-less eyes and hair the color of pale ash, Officer Liander carried an air of authority that could silence a room. Though, in a sense, that air around her brought the kind of warmth a child would feel towards their family for Mirela. There was just so much familiarity being surrounded by people like her.
"Either that's your idea of humor, or you have yet to see many beautiful things," Officer Liander said closing her eyes for a moment before opening them again.
She wore the dark green uniform of the Bureau, with a silver badge of her rank pinned to her chest. Despite her commanding demeanor, her tone was gentler, "There are a lot of things brighter and more beautiful beyond what you ever known, General. The trick is learning how to live with it."
The title struck her like a blade, sharp and cutting. General. The title still carried a heavy weight of armies, victories, and bloodshed that were not her own. It made her body feel a strange chill of exhilaration.
"Is that so?" Mirela hummed as she leaned into the palm of her hand. There wasn't much warmth in it, Mirela probably wouldn't have mind staying within the detention center, because she definitely didn't want to leave. "Also, General? Do I deserve such a title that Almier himself earned?"
Liandor raised an eyebrow, noticing the facade painting Mirela's face. She had been cautioned about Mirela Da'Zarian, the sixth reincarnation of the infamous war criminal, Almier Raziad, from the Ashen Era. The girl had a reputation—quiet, and unnervingly composed, though it seem more like people rarely spoke to her.
From the few years she known Mirela, she learned that the girl was not Almier in mind or body. It seems being so in spirit was realized to also be just as untrue. That much had been clear when the Supreme Tribunal overturned her punishment. Yet...it was something about the soul of Almier that always left even the bravest of officers uneasy. Even Liander couldn't shake that from her subconscious.
"You've been given a chance," Liander said, as she pulled a set of documents from her satchel. "Of course, not everyone agrees with it, but the law is the law. You're free, Mirela. For the first time since your birth, your life is yours to live. But..." she placed the papers on the small bench next to them as she tapped the Bureau crest at the top of the folder. "Even that freedom comes with conditions."
Mirela didn't bother picking up the documents as she stared at Liander. "The restriction sigil," Mirela murmured touching it faintly on the back of her neck. "It feels like Mage Baren's magic."
Liander slowly nodded. "He wanted to personally ensure it was strong enough and placed properly. Unfortunately, it took four reincarnations for Almier powers to become dormant enough for it to hold."
Mirela hummed in curiosity of how much power did Almier hold. "What kind of person was Almier Raziad?"
Liander narrowed her eyes, "Careful with the things you ask, child. Even I must admit, the Council has bias fueled by their fear of your soul, Almier's soul."
"Noted," Mirela said, she stared off again.
"He had a wife," she answered as she looked down at paperwork. "Almier was a mage, so he still had a sense of humanity. He was also boastful and cocky, and honestly you're the reincarnation that looks the most like him."
"Really?" Mirela hummed. "I imagined he was the brooding, quiet blond type."
Liander changed the subject with a flat tone, "The sigil suppressed your magic entirely. If you attempt to access, even subconsciously, then it will react. The more you push, the worse the feedback. Think of it like a leash, the harder you pull, the tighter it gets until you finally choke."
"Scary," Mirela whispered, her fingers lingered on the mark before she dropped her hand back into her lap.
"It's indefinite, not permanent, but it is necessary. Prove to the courts, council, and society that you are not Almier. And I promise if we can so much as get the discussion through the court's doors, it'll be a win for your complete freedom," Liander assured her as she grabbed Mirela's hands.
"Prove that I'm not him?" Mirela repeated, she pulled her hand away from Liander as she sighed. "If being Mirela isn't enough, then nothing will be enough to convince them that I never destroyed half of the Seelie court and took the lives thousands of mages."
Liander smiled as she sighed, "Being Mirela is enough. You're the reason the Reincarnation Fairness Act was implemented in the first place. Just no violence, magic, or contact with Almier's allies"
For a long time, Mirela didn't say anything. Then her gaze drifted back to the sky as she gave a small nod, more out of acknowledgment than agreement.
"Do you understand, General?" Liander asked to get her attention again.
"Understood," Mirela muttered.
Liander exhaled deciding to take that as compliance with the terms. She picked up the folder of documents and handed them directly to Mirela.
"Congratulations," Liander said as she held out her hand to shake with Mirela and Mirela just stared at her hand. "you're a free woman and citizen of Vahket."
Liander pulled the young Unseelie into a hug. She pressed her head against her chest as she caressed her hair, and Mirela wrapped her hand around her arm as she buried her face against Liander's shoulder.
"Be careful" Liander muttered.
***
"What is that?" Mirela asked, as she caught a glimpse of a crowd near the prison's entrance. They were crowded with cameras in hand behind the barred windows.
Liander's eyes followed where Mirela's gaze shifted. Her expression remained neutral, though a subtle tightening of her jaw before she sighed and answered.
"That," Liander began, "is the eyes of society. You're officially free, and that comes with its own kind of spectacle. Unfortunately."
"Unfortunately." Mirela repeated softly.
Mirela didn't move, though her eyes narrowed slightly at the reporters and camera already flashing in her direction as they spotted her through the window. The sight made her stomach churn with confusion. Did they fear Almier or saw what was left of him as a display? Even outside of prison, will her life no longer be her own?
"Why?" Mirela faced Liander as she moved away from the window.
Liander thought for a moment, before she answered. "The world doesn't understand what you been through or quite what you are now. Mirela or Almier. And frankly, that comes with fear and oddly curiosity. Your being alone carries a weight—that is legacy of destruction."
"Genocides, Crimes Against Humanity. Almier was not a good guy, and worse yet his soul, his powers that was responsible continue to live on," Liander said seriously.
Mirela elongated ears twitched. Maybe there was some sense in the fear of Almier. She doesn't think it would have made sense to place that sin on her, even if she and Almier shared the same body.
"So, you have to understand the perspective of why you will be watched closely even when outside."
The young Unseelie's eyes flickered back to the crowd. The sharp, intrusive flashes of their cameras made her head spin—it was unforgiving and glaringly bright.
"Can I not avoid them?" she asked Liander.
"You could, but the media will manage to follow you," Liander said. "Or you can face them now and hold your head high, because eventually they will find you."
Mirela hummed in disagreement with having to go to those people.
"Listen, some people will treat you like a hero. Others will treat you like a monster. Find those who will see you as you," Liander advised her. "And it won't be easy."
Eventually, Mirela stepped outside with Liander from the narrow hallway and into the wider expansion of the prison's front yard. The sunlight was warm and stronger than from the window...too bright. For some reason, it felt...wrong, to be free.
Ahead of them, the prison gate opened. Instead of the open air, it was the crowd.
Reporters. Cameras. Security. A mess of bodies and flashing lights gathered in front of her.
"Mirela Da'Zarian! How do you justify your freedom after everything Almier did?
"You speak of two different names, because we are two different people," she answered him in the microphone.
"Are you truly not Almier in disguise. Prove it to us," another reporter bombarded us. "Prove you are nothing like your predecessor."
Mirela chuckled, to disguise her discomfort, "Is simply being the sixth reincarnation and not Almier not enough?"
There were too many cameras. Too many microphones. Too many mouths calling Almier's name. Anything to overwhelm her, but she knew she had to remain calm. No matter what...she had to stay calm.
Liander stood beside her attempting to shield her. "I wasn't expecting this many," she muttered to Mirela.
"It fine," Mirela said, her head swimming as she scanned the crowd for an exit. It wasn't the attention she wanted, but this was the price of freedom everyone should want, right?
That's when she spotted a tall figure moving through the crowd. Her breathe involuntary hitched as she glimpse at his gray hair braided down across his chest. Mage Baron. The man who implanted his magic in that sigil the day it was branded into her. She had not seen him in years, since she was sixteen actually. And she was just as uneasy about him as she were now.
The mage's presence was overwhelming—a tower of dark robes and sheer power that seemed to ripple through the air with every step. He made his way toward them, and they parted before him like waves breaking against the shore. His expression was calm but intense. His blue eyes were sharp, locked onto Mirela with a barely concealed bitterness.
"Let her through," he demanded in a booming voice that gained the crowd's obedience. She wasn't sure it was just his presence or the sigil, but her muscle tensed like a chain was wrapped around her body when he spoke.
Liander bristled slightly, and Mirela noticed it. Seems everyone also feared Mage Baron, more than they feared her. For some reason, she was seen as the villain though.
"Come, child," he commanded. Like a trance, her body immediately obeyed and it startled her as she couldn't stop her own body from walking to his extended hand.
"What is this?" She muttered to herself. This wasn't what she was told would happen with the sigil. Having someone else make her body submit in prison wasn't enough?
She finally stopped when her forehead grazed against his finger and he contoured his fingers around her face and lightly lifted her chin. When she looked up at him sound was no longer existent, the crowd was silent, and the flashed ceased. His blue eyes were all consuming of her attention while they glared at her with disdain.
"General Almier Raziad," he simply said then he quickly dropped his hand to his side.
"Mage Baron," Mirela said, though she was afraid her voice would tremble repeating his name.
Without a word, he turned around and she fell into long strides behind him and the crowd did not move to follow.
When they reach the end of the crowd, she saw a reinforced truck, large and black. She was led to the open door inside, with a guard already inside, and when she got in another sat on her other side. Mage Baron sat in the seat that face her, and he crossed his legs over the other.
The truck pulled off from the entrance before the crowd moved again. She wondered if this was a result of Mage Baron's magic. Liander stood there, her head still lowered, is Mage Baron really someone who should be fear this much.
"He's really powerful," she thought to herself as she looked at the crowd then she direct her attention back to Mage Baron.
"I didn't get to tell Officer Liander goodbye," she muttered.
"She's your probation officer. You'll see plenty of her," Mage Baron replied calmly.
"The Council must be having a slow day today," she muttered, wondering why he was even there chaperoning her outside of prison.
"No, they're quite busy," he crossed his arms over his chest as he sighed.
"You may have walked free, Almier, but we know what you are," Mage Baron said, his voice low. "And I ensure you never do the same as you've done before."
Mirela's finger twitched by her side. The weight of the sigil was so heavy right now that she struggled to tap her fingertips in anxiety.
"Tell me," she said, her voice calm, as she leaned a little forward with a smirk. "What am I, Mage Baron? Outside of an Old Seelie's vindication?"
Mage Baron moved in so closely and quickly, his tall frame engulfing her under his shadow within in the confined space.
"You're General Almier Raziad. Through and through," he whispered against her ear. "Your soul, his signature..."
His fingers trailed against the wings that were shrunken and dormant underneath her shirt. She winced as he pressed against her shoulder blade harshly. "...his wings."
Mirela narrowed her eyes, this wasn't the first time he mentioned wings with such possession in his eyes. He wants them, for some reason, he desires them.
Mirela leaned forward. "My wings, Old Seelie Mage?"
Suddenly, he grabbed the back of her neck causing her to let out a small gasp as she tried to pull back. The guards beside them stared, but they didn't do anything as he squeezed against the sigil on the back of her neck.
"Watch your tongue," Mage Baron demanded then he chuckled at her expression, "How cute. Fear. And Almier Raziad's face."
"I'm not him," she groaned, then she tried to punch him but it felt like invisible restraints were attached to her wrist. She lifted her finger and weakly wrapped it around his wrist in an attempt. Mage Baron smirked as he softened his grip, but it felt just as cold and piercing.
"You're still Almier," he said, his words like venom dripping from his lips. "You always will be. Your soul is the same—cruel, manipulative, and stained with the blood of the Seelie Courts, humans, and elves."
She glanced away from him and he said, "Even you're aware of that. What was the name they gave you, Mirela?"
He laughed aloud after saying her name.
"Do you really believe that?" Mirela asked, her finger tightening around his wrist. "I mean you really believe, I , Mirela, am responsible for all he had done?"
Mage Baron's mouth tightened. "I know what it's like to be hunted by Almier. To be nothing but the shadow of someone else's crimes." His tone dropped, almost a whisper, but the words were meant for her alone. "I've seen the reports. The scars you've left on this world, and they never heal. I can see it in you—your every move, your every breath is a reminder of who you used to be."
"No—who you are." he said.
"Mirela, Almier, you're one in the same," he said. "And I will not let what you did happen again."
Mirela said nothing for a while, before he back away. His fingers tips lingered under her throat before he pulled his hand away and straightened up his attire.
"And what does that mean for me now," she asked quietly.
Mage Baron's eye hardened. "That means you're dangerous and I guarantee the sigil will keep you in check. I will keep you in check, because I don't trust you."
Mirela's lips curled into the faintest smile, but it didn't reach her eyes. "You don't have to trust me, Seelie Mage," she said softly. "I didn't ask for it."
"Watch me as long as you want. Until your eyes roll to the back of your head and bleed even. It won't change who I am. And I am only Mirela Da'Zarian." she continued.
His eyes lingering towards the sigil for a moment longer. He seemed to weigh her words before he nodded curtly.
"Regardless, the world will never forget Almier. And neither will I."