- Selia!
The doors of the throne room opened with a resounding crash, a nun in a denim jacket ran to meet Queen Audiselia who was receiving some ambassadors who had come to sign an armistice with the kingdom of the Fairy Forest.
Raising her eyes towards this unknown person, the queen was pleasantly surprised to see her before suddenly changing her emotion and displaying the greatest and most violent anger.
- Elena!" cried Sawyer.
The fairy ruler of Sylvania silenced her bodyguard and walked down the steps to her throne.
- Ambassadors, you can go... very quickly!
- But we're not done!" one of them intervened.
- The treaties have been scratched, the rest is just formalities, mundanities and mockery so I will beg you to leave before I have to find an excuse to justify your untimely death to your leaders, so... get out!
Seeing the anger in the monarch's eyes, the ambassadors took to their heels and fled the throne room.
- Guards! Surround the intruder!" ordered Audisélia.
The guards complied and surrounded the nun in the denim jacket with their blades and spears.
Audisélia drew the sword that was embedded in the throne with electric magnetism and planted it in the ground.
- You haven't gotten fat since the last time we saw each other?
- We eat way too much caloric food at church, I've already told them to change the diet," the nun joked, "but on a more serious note, you might want to tell those weaklings not to point their toys in my direction before I break them without paying attention.
"Toys?", "Who does this human trash think he is?" said the guards.
- Try it if you dare," the queen challenged her.
Surrounded by the guards who were leading her with their weapons, the nun raised her arms and shifted her torso to the right.
The guards attacked the intruder without warning, this one dodged agilely the attack of her opponents and made one of them stumble on the blades of her opponents cutting her nostrils, took her spear followed by a roll to face all the guards.
The queen looked around the room and saw more witnesses from outside the kingdom and her family, she couldn't let the jewel of her bodyguard be destroyed by a human.
Audiselia was far too arrogant on this one. No being of this kingdom could defeat the one who was nicknamed "Death".
- Stop!" ordered the queen-fairy, "I'll take care of this dirty human.
- Really? "Dirty human?" the nun exclaimed, "do you have that much resentment towards me?
- I have no idea what you're talking about, kid," Audisélia retorted.
The queen pulled the sword from the ground and pointed it at her.
- I think you forgot who the older of the two of us is, age conversion or not?
The one who was nicknamed "Death" conjured up a long orange scythe whose consistency or inconsistency could not be guessed.
- As queen, I do not have to take into account these archaic codes, she rebuked.
Audisélia executed gestures with her right hand making appear blue luminous circles around her, from these circles came out lightnings which dashed on the nun who deflected them by turning her scythe.
- The "Magic of the Glyphs"? Have you improved, princess?
- I just told you that I am a queen, Elena!
The queen dashed towards the intruder, armed with the sword of the Worthy Ancestral Kings of Sylvania. Elena stopped playing the majorette with her weapon and accompanied Audisélia in her step.
The impact of their weapons created a crack in the ground and made them push each other back.
Audisélia passed behind Elena at the speed of lightning to strike her a blow of sword in the shoulder, the nun stopped her with the handle of her scythe and wanted to make her move back with a kick, but the fairy of royal blood made a salto and found herself on the top of the handle of the nun. And as the latter tried to hit her, the queen jumped from her weapon and flew above her before attacking her in a dive several times.
Elena countered each of her offensives with ease, for a seasoned observer like Sawyer, it was very clear that neither of them were fighting hard, especially the human. The queen although she was obviously angry, was forcing herself to fight her, she had no desire to do so but she could not ignore the humiliation that Elena had inflicted on her when they were younger...
She was going to tear it down...
The queen saw a crack in her defense and placed herself in front of her to thrust her blade into her chest. Elena saw her approaching at lightning speed, she could have very well cut her in two with a single blow of her scythe, dodged her attack or shattered her skull with an elbow, but no. She made her favorite weapon disappear and took the sword blow with full force, she slowed down the speed of penetration of the weapon by putting her hands on it except that instead of entering her chest, it pierced her heart.
Surprised by the success of her blow, the nun grabbed the sword and cracked it with her own strength before giving up.
A trickle of blood trickled down the edge of her lips, arms flailing, she stood up and looked at her best friend.
- I beg you, Audiselia... Save him..., she cried.
Taken of a boundless madness, the queen had not noticed the change of trajectory of her attack. It is with the words of her sweetheart that she recovered her sight and discovered the sword of her predecessors planted in the heart of Elena.
- ELENA!" cried Audisélia, letting go of the handle of the sword, "why didn't you attack me?
- You know very well that you are incapable of killing me and that I am incapable of attacking you..., answered the human in the nun's habit, in spite of the grain of madness that I perceive in your glance every time my eyes meet yours...
- You still need to be treated even if you are immortal, said the worried queen.
- I really don't have time for this...
- To whom?
- My son..., she sighed.
The queen was stunned, she stood up and moved away from Elena.
- That's good..., I guess... you managed to have a... kiddo....
Audisélia could not hide her sadness, her mouth covered by her hand, tears running down her face.
Even Sawyer didn't know what to say to this announcement, yet he knew that it was impossible for her to have a child. But then why would she lie?
- This is...
- That's not what I think, is it?" interrupted the distraught queen, "is that what you're going to tell me?
- But what is...
- That's twice you've stabbed me in the back," she said, slapping her chest, "twice! This time, I will not forgive you! This time, I will not let pass another affront.
- It's obvious that the first time you forgave me, she ironically spat out blood.
She grabbed the blade stuck in her and pulled it out with her bare hand before throwing it at the feet of the ruler of the fairy kingdom of Sylvania.
The nun approached with a firm step towards her friend, friend who followed the step. Audisélia was ready to fight with Elena, even if they had to come to the hands. However, against all expectation, the nun threw herself to the feet of the monarch who fixed her, amazed, in front of her incredible act.
- What are you doing?
- Audisélia Vanguard second of the name, queen of the kingdom of the Forest of the Fairies of Sylvania, I find myself at your feet to beg you to save my son!
What sin had she committed?
The queen was aware of the dogmas that govern Christianity and knew that she had no right to do this.
- Uh... Lena... you don't have to do that..., says Audisélia confused.
- Yes! Elena retorted, it is the only way for you to understand my despair.
Elena, a woman who had become the bride of Christ, who had given her life to her Lord, was on her knees before someone other than God. The self-sacrifice she showed, even going so far as to sin before her god for her offspring, debased the queen-fairy.
- I... I can't... I can't grant your request...," stammered Audisélia.
- Instead, say you don't want to.
- YES! I do not have indeed and absolutely not the desire! she ends up confessing spitting all her hatred in front of this child of which she did not even know the face nor the name, you really believe that twelve years after you are gone, I am going to "save" this dirty kid who is yours whereas I hate it of all my being by its simple evocation for its simple existence? she says with a hatred which was almost palpable.
- But it has nothing to do with our history," the nun defended herself.
- I don't give a damn, Elena, the queen shouted, violently shaking her wings and creating huge gusts of wind in the room.
She couldn't even control herself anymore, her role as queen, as betrayed friend... Everything was mixed up in her head. She was close to breaking up.
Seeing that she was facing a wall, the nun admitted defeat, she picked up the sword of the queen and got up thanks to her help, she gave it to her, but Audisélia didn't do anything to take it back, so Elena planted it in the ground, cleaned her dress and went away holding the gaping wound she had in her chest.
She stopped at the double doors and addressed her ex-friend.
- I don't blame you, you know...
- T...
- SINCERLY! cut her off, you know this kid, he looks like you, I would have liked you to meet him, I am sure that you would have understood him and you could have saved him...
- Elena... If I see this child, I will kill him as soon as I meet his eyes, the queen swore.
- I see...," nodded the nun, "but I don't think so.
- Right?
The nun turned and glared at Audiselia, her eyes frightened the queen and her guards. Elena's irises had turned golden yellow, the fairy and her friend remembered her eyes, the queen trembled with her whole body, to the point of chattering her teeth inside her mouth.
- Destiny will not allow it...
Then the nun left the throne room.
A few seconds after he left, she collapsed on the ground, caressing his shoulder, close to tears. She was terrified by his eyes, which were foreign to her but which she had already perceived on the day of her treachery. Sawyer touched her chest and abdomen with an expression of pain.
Gritting her teeth, the queen yelled for everyone to leave, guards as well as maids and attendants.
- GET OUT!
Lightning bolts came out of her body, turning crimson, she stood up and walked towards the ambassadors who were stubbornly staying.
- Stop, Audiselia!" shouted Sawyer.
Lightning struck randomly around the room and destroyed everything in its path.
Sawyer pulled a hypodermic blowgun from one of his metal pockets and fired an arrow into the queen's neck as it was written on the found cards... However, a bolt of lightning disintegrated the arrow.
He was taken by surprise, if he did not intervene, she was going to become uncontrollable, then he ran towards her and threw himself on her, surrounded her with his arms and sang the Lullaby to her, undergoing at the same time the anger of the queen who unleashed it through the lightning that she projected.
If he couldn't calm her down, there would be no coming to his senses, he would be forced to...
Suddenly, Audisélia slowed down her race until she stopped completely, the electric tension of her body decreased until she no longer produced purple lightning, and finally, stopped producing it completely.
With her head down, she let her tears spread on the floor.
- Why can't I tell her that I love her? I always have to boast and do anything as always...
- That's okay, let me take care of the rest.
Sawyer called maids and guards to take care of the queen and take her to her room, he ordered that all members outside the queen's family, including courtiers, be caught and made to forget about these latest events, and then throw out the ambassadors.
He had to catch up with Elena.
Leaving the kingdom and the protective forest of the White Deer without much trouble, she arrived at a white sandy beach. If she had time, she would take the boy to a similar place where there could be a little more light, because going to the beach in the eternal night with flashlights was frankly not interesting.
As she was about to make her way back, she heard someone call out her name, she turned and received a vial, and received it even though she had one eye closed. This vial was full of fairy dust.
- Are you going straight away after making a mess of the castle?" asked Sawyer on a white horse.
- I don't really have time to stay, I have a kid waiting for me far from here, the nun replied with a smile.
- Is this marmot in question really from your womb?
- What do you think? Big dummy.
Sawyer groans with relief.
- It's not very proper to rejoice in the misfortune of others, my dear Sawyer.
- With you, I don't care about propriety.
- Surprising from you, she said while spreading fairy dust on her palm, she is well the princess?
- She almost brought the kingdom to ruin, otherwise she rests in her room.
- Nothing new under the sun.
Sawyer got off his horse and approached his friend, his tone much more serious than at first.
- Elena, Audisélia... since the day you left and almost killed us, she hasn't stopped researching the legend of the hero, if you saw the state of her room, it's a mess without a name, indecent for a queen, leaves everywhere, a board plastered with thumbtacks, sometimes she would have sleepless nights and I'd find her with red eyes and huge bags under her eyes... Just to be able to free you from this curse that is hampering you.
- Tell him to stop. For her sake.
- I tried! But she doesn't want to. She's stubborn," he lamented, "you don't know how worried she is about you.
- That's not what she showed me.
- Stop it, said the bodyguard, you know very well that these are not his real feelings.
Elena scratched her head, confused, then made a mouth noise showing that she could not deny the obvious.
- I know it! she grumbled, I see it with my kid already that he does not want to speak any more. But she really has to stop snooping, I don't want the Nemesis to show up here again. We were already lucky last time!
- But...
- And I know how much she would have wanted to be the fairy of the legend, but she is not the reincarnation, and so much the better! I don't want her to die because of this curse...
- That would satisfy her however to die with you, I imagine..., he said with an acid laugh.
- Would that satisfy you?
Sawyer smiled tightly and looked away, shaking his head.
- The question does not arise.
- In what sense?" asked Elena, "is this irony or are you being a little snotty?
- Elena...
- Ok, ok, ok, I stop but you should tell him, advised him by laughing Elena.
- She already has someone in her heart...
- Who? Is he better looking than you?
- Are you serious?
- Well, yes.
- Forget it, Sawyer huffed, take this horse, you'll get home faster.
He gave the reins of the horse to his friend.
- Ah! I was wondering why you came to me with a horse.
The nun climbed onto the horse and sighed with relief that she didn't have to walk to Novillios.
- How did you get here on foot again?
- I have trained a Roller Scorpion. Sorry, I don't have Seb'is at my command and I don't have your powers.
Sawyer gasped at this revelation.
A roller scorpion? Is she fucking with me?
- More and more, you," he finally said.
Elena laughs.
- Have a good ride," he said, slapping the horse's backside, "and sorry I can't help you.
- It is nothing, I understand, declared the nun, just take care of my bride, laughed Elena.
She is completely unaware of Selia's feelings..., thought the guard dejectedly.
He flew back to the castle to take care of Princess Audiselia for the umpteenth time. But a strange feeling ran through the fairy's body when he felt a strange wind coming from the direction where Elena had left. He had the impression that it was the last time he would see her...
But that was impossible, nothing in this world could kill her except the creature they had "defeated" in the Great Embrace.
The Nemesis had died before her eyes, so why was the scythe warrior so determined to flee this phantom enemy. And why was she carrying a scythe, hadn't he entrusted her with her dead father's sword?
She alone knew the truth of what she called her "curse".