Yet another revelation nearly bowed her over, making her feel sick to her stomach. If Auguste was her brother-if they shared a parent-that meant that Raqiza…Her eyes narrowed at the woman, she wanted to spit in the face of Raqiza’s pity. Some mother she had been. In that moment, even if it was just in her mind-Tilda denounced the woman as her mother, blood be damned.<br/><br/>Grasping Auguste’s hand, she looked up to his face. Odd as it may have seemed, knowing he was kin to her did nothing to diminish her feelings towards him. It was upon her to save him, to save both of them. “We have to run.” As she stared into his eyes, Tilda hoped he would understand. They would have to go into the woods. Even if it meant risking the Dark One and His domain, Tilda didn’t know how she knew but she could just feel in her gut that she wasn’t yet strong enough to defeat The Overlord. In the woods they could be out of his grasp, out of the reach of his powers. There, she could find her strength.<br/><br/>Breathing slowly, she dropped Auguste’s hands and flicked her eyes to the right, towards the stables. They would take a horse, and then flee Vasaille. It had to be done. She drew in another deep breath, only to feel it knocked out of her by the weight of something slamming into her chest. It caused her to stumble backwards and she fell to her knees, palms flat on the hard ground as her head swam with voices.<br/><br/>“Where will you run? It is only darkness beyond these borders. Stay with us.”<br/>And then another joining the chorus, this one softer, hissing, evil.<br/>“Yes, stay with us. This is where you belong. You are safe here. Don’t go.”<br/>The voices joined together as one, deep and trembling yet low and hissing at the same time, mingled with a chorus of other voices she could not recognize, all echoing the same words. “Stay with us, stay with us, stay with us.”<br/><br/>Clasping her hands over her ears, Tilda tried futilely to drown the words out. They grated against her, making her feel like she was dying, or going mad. Clenching her eyes shut, she shook her head forcefully. No, she would not give into what they asked. She would not stay here. Finally, she screamed. The sound was loud, louder than she realized she was capable of, so loud that the windows shattered, raining glass down around them.<br/><br/>As the glass fell, the ground beneath them began to tremble as another crack of thunder rent the air with its electric current, bringing bright barbs of lightning down around them, striking off the soldiers weapons and armor, piercing them through. Before she truly knew what she was doing, Tilda stood from the ground, grasping Auguste’s hand tightly, and hauling him out of the front of the manor house, dodging the lighting as she pulled him towards the stables and towards escape.