by K. L. Morton
"I will fight to the death to protect her Eviann, you have already stolen so much from me, and you will not take my daughter as well!" Lucille's eyes were locked on the Empress.
"I am hurt Lucianna that you would not want your daughter to meet her Aunt." The Empress had a new calm about her. She showed no emotion. Emma stood with her mouth hung opened and Aarion looked to his father to see if this new revelation was true, but just met a confused stare. At that moment, beams of light started to break through the dark swirling mire that engulfed the Ora. Aarion and his family all felt a surge of power fill their bodies. They looked to Trinny, her blonde hair billowed out from behind her and her whole body was shimmering with a pearlescent light. Her eyes were now full amber gold, no flecks or even pupils were showing.
"The Ora, it's regaining its power. Form a shield!" King Toron called out. The King, Aarion and Parisa formed a massive combined shield that reached out around the pond area and over the Ora; none of the dark army could get through. The Empress lifted her hands in fury, her eyes and hair turned black and her face shadowed like the blackness was rippling from under her skin. She let out shots of dark arrows toward the newly formed Ora shield. Just as the arrows were about to hit, a huge flaming wind came from the side of the shield and blew them off course, the wind directed the deadly arrows into the army of dark creatures that were trying to break their way through the shield. The Empress looked down to see Micah and Nina side by side, their powers combined.
"You, you should be rotting in my prison!" There was no sweetness in her voice anymore, the air around her pulsated with her anger.
"And you should be suffering a slow painful death." Nina was forming a huge fireball in her hand.
"You stupid girl, fire will not harm me, I have the Fire Ring of Cassis." She spat out her words toward Nina who was ready to make her attack.
"Yes, but their combined power can do some damage. Please Eviann, there must be some good left in you, you don't have to do this." Lucille stood looking up at the Empress with pleading in her eyes.
"Ha! You were always the caring one Lucianna, always wanting to make sure everyone was happy. But when it came to me you could not allow me to have what I wanted, what made me happy. Do not pity me sister, in the end, I will get all I want and you cannot stand in my way. Maybe tonight you got the upper hand, but next time we meet, there will be no mercy and nothing will be able to hold me back."
"Now!" Toron yelled the order and the shield formed into a ball, Nina and Micah merged their powers with the glowing sphere and it shot out toward the Empress. The dark cloud beneath her whirled up around the Empress, and as the Orb hit there was a burst of light. The clouds dispersed and the Dark Empress was gone. Her dark followers made for a hasty exit when they knew their Empress did not protect them. Fae warriors headed after the retreating army to take out as many as they could in their enemy’s time of weakness.
"Did we get her?" Nina asked excitedly
"No. We cannot trust that she has been defeated. I would say she has gone to re-organize and that we will see her again in the very near future." King Toron had a mixed look of relief and worry on his face. Aarion turned to see if Trinny was safe. She was still lost in using her powers to heal the Ora, he looked up in time to see the last of the Shadowdust being drawn out, and the poison was gone. Trinny's arms fell to her sides and her body went limp, Aarion moved just fast enough to catch her before she hit the ground. A flood of dirt and water came pouring down around everyone. Aarion held Trinny up out of the water and gently moved her hair from her face.
"Trinny!" His voice sounded distant to her and his face was blurry.
"Did we do it?" She whispered, exhaustion filling her every fiber.
"You did it Trinny, you saved the Ora." He smiled at her; she loved it when he smiled like that.
"Trinny!" Lucille knelt down next to Trinny and cupped her cheek in her hand. Trinny could see faces appearing over her, Emma, Garus and Morthos, she smiled, and then everything went black.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
“Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end.
But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.”
-Sir Winston Churchill
Trinny's mouth felt dry, and her body ached all over. She opened her eyes slowly and found herself looking through large glass windows. Stars filled the black sky. She could feel clean crisp sheets between her feet as she moved her legs and the soft rustle of a feather pillow beneath her head.
"Mrs. Gaia, she's waking!" Emma had been taking turns with Lucille watching over Trinny. She had spent the hours at her bedside reading books on Fairies and other magical creatures.
"Em, where am I?" Trinny's voice was extremely croaky.
"You're home Trin. We're home." Trinny could see how happy her pretty brown-eyed friend looked to see her. She sat up slowly and took a sip of water from the glass Emma held out to her.
"Aarion?"
"He left yesterday, he didn't want to though, he wanted to wait to make sure you were okay, he was pretty worried." Emma sat on the bed next to Trinny.
"How long have I been out, and how did we get home?"
"Nearly three days." Lucille said from the doorway. "I had Aarion and Morthos bring you back here after you collapsed, they carried you the whole way.
"Your mum had to stop them from bringing an army of Fae warriors through the portal to protect you. Imagine all this coming out on the six o'clock news. 'Teenager saves world from evil power hungry mystical Empress!'" Emma smirked at Trinny who was smiling back at her over dramatic friend.
"The last thing I remember is the Ora being attacked by those Stealth things and the sky lit up with flames.... Did I see you on a flying horse?" Trinny was looking at her mum in an unbelieving stare.
"Yes, you did. Do you remember when we were on our way to Taeith and I left you on the boat so I could catch up with some old friends?" Both Trinny and Emma nodded. "They are Dragus, a type of Pegasus, beautiful black creatures, very noble. When in battle their wings ignite in flames, the Stealth hate fire. The Pegasus your father saved the day we met, it was their King, he has always remained indented to your father, I only had to tell them that his only daughter needed help and they were there."
"And that's how she rescued Micah and Nina." Emma had been dying to tell Trinny the great news.
"What? You found them?" Trinny was so excited, she had been worried about Nina and Micah more than she had let on to anyone, and she had felt guilty that she hadn't been able to help them.
"When I was on the river with the other Nixies holding back more of the Empress's dark army, one of the Elves that had been sent to track the missing Elementals managed to find me. I took the Dragus to the Empress lair and got them back in time to hold her off destroying the Ora while you were still healing it. I am so proud of you!" Lucille sat next to Trinny and kissed her on the forehead.
"Where are they now?" Trinny asked, hoping that she could see them.
"Nina stayed in Taeith, she is being trained by Morthos in the art of ancient Fairon weaponry, she said she wants to have a few back up skills to compliment her Elemental gifts. Don't know if I would have chosen Morthos as my trainer though." Emma said in a slightly annoyed tone, Trinny could tell there was a little more to Emma’s attitude with Morthos than she was letting on.
"Micah had to make sure his business was running fine in Chicago, but he will be here tomorrow sometime, he said he had important news for us. I didn't get to speak with him after the battle as we took you back here straight away, I didn't want you any where near Eviann while you were so weak."
"Mum? Why do you call her Eviann and everyone else calls her the Dark Empress?" Trinny had been waiting to ask her mother since before the battle, she sensed there was some connection between them.
"I'll go make us some coffee." Emma said, feeling the need to leave the mother-daughter talk alone.
Lucille took a deep breath and looked out toward the star lit sky, the sou
nd of crashing ocean waves was soothing to her.
"I love the water, I couldn't bear to live away from it, that's why your father and I chose this place. He knew it was where I could feel more at home. A Nixie is strongest in or near water. It gave me strength to keep going when your father was killed, but it was you who gave me the will to keep living. I didn't feel I could ever go home again as I had caused so much pain."
"You explained that to me, about you and dad, forbidden love and protecting me, but who is Eviann?"
"I didn't tell you everything. You see, not only was our love forbidden, it was envied. I told you my sister knew about James and I. She only kept it a secret because she had fallen in love with James. She had already been jealous of me as I was to inherit the crown after our mother, being the first born, and James was just something else I had that she wanted." Lucille took a deep breath and looked back at Trinny. "I was meant to meet your father in our usual place as we did each week, but my mother had needed me to take her place at a council meeting with the Elves. I asked my sister to go and let him know I could not come, she was more than happy to do it. James was waiting when she arrived, but instead of giving him the message, she tried to seduce him, saying that she was the one for him and not me, that they should run off together. James let her down as gently as he knew how, telling her that it was I he loved, and that he looked upon her as a sister. It sent her into a rage, she even tried to freeze him in her anger, but he was to powerful for her, which only enraged her even more. She told him that she would make him love her, and that I would never have him, he tried to reason with her but it was like something had snapped inside her."
"What happened?" Trinny was still trying to comprehend what this had to do with everything.
"My sister had always been more interested in studying the darker side of our worlds magic, she spent hours reading over ancient scrolls, and during that time she had obtained knowledge that should never have been known to her. She had learnt about Klania, the old magic, and a Klania Verite, a dark crystal that could grant the bearer a wish. She spent weeks sourcing where the crystal was, she had made allies of the dark Elves who lived near the North Mountains, they worshiped the ground she walked on, and did anything she asked. They tracked down the crystal for her. When she obtained it, she made a wish that James would love her and not me, and that she would have full control over him. But there was an ancient rule that she did not know about when using the power of the Verite. Wishes could only be made from a pure heart, and only made to benefit others, it could not be used for selfish gain. A heart with bad intentions could only draw power from the dark side of the crystal. When she found it did not work, she was furious, she broke the Verite, smashing it on a rock and cutting her hand, but slithers of the crystal entered her blood stream. It poisoned what goodness was left in her heart. Somehow she had new powers, control over the shadows and dark things in our world, her wish had been twisted. The evil that resides in our realm adored her, making her their Empress. Her thirst for power and control grew stronger, like an addiction. She was no longer happy to be just a Nixie princess, she wanted to rule our entire realm, and she wanted your father at her side."
"Eviann is the Dark Empress? She is your sister?" Trinny was amazed; she couldn't believe that her mother could be related to someone so evil.
"Yes. And all of this is my fault. If I had just followed the rules of our realm to not mix with another race, if I had not spoken to your father that day, the Fae realm would be safe and the realm of Cassis would still be here. She destroyed it all because of your father and I." Tears were streaming down Lucille’s face, Trinny could see the guilt her mother had been living with all these years.
"Mum! This is not your fault; you could never have known she was going to go that far. You followed your heart. Love is not a sin. She followed her desire to have something that was never meant to be hers and envy lead her down a dark path that was her choice, and hers alone. You can't live with regret like this." Trinny held her mothers hand, wishing she could take away her pain.
"Your father would be so proud of you. He always knew you were a born leader, a true princess. He said you would outshine us all. He was right. I want you to know that we never regretted having you; you are the best thing that ever happened to your father and I. You are a gift, the one true blessing that came from our love." Lucille wiped her tears and smiled lovingly at her daughter. Trinny held her mum in silence for a long time.
"Coffee's ready." Emma called from the bottom of the stairs.
"This will be interesting, I don't think Emma even knows how to boil a kettle let alone use an espresso machine." Trinny gave her mum a kiss on the cheek and got slowly out of bed. "I'm starving, got any strawberry cheesecake down there?"
"I can't believe I have just told you that your auntie is an evil Empress and is out to destroy us all and you can only think of cake.” Lucille was smirking at Trinny.
"Well, a girls gotta get her strength up if she's going to go kick some Empress bootie!" Lucille laughed and helped her daughter down the stairs.
"He's here!" Trinny had been watching out all morning for Micah, she couldn't wait to get to know the man that was her fathers close friend. She was devastated when Werewolves took him just after they met. Lucille had closed the cafe for a couple of days so Trinny could recoup without disturbances. Emma had not left Trinny's side, making sure her friend had everything she needed. Lucille could sense that Emma was hugely protective of Trinny, and the real reason she had basically moved in was because she was worried that something would come and try take Trinny away. Not that Emma’s parents had minded, as they were traveling a lot at this time of year.
"Lucianna and Trinity Gaia, it is wonderful to see you safe and well. Hello Emma, great to see you too!" Emma waved back at Micah and set off to make coffee. Lucille had been training her all morning after tasting the dreadful latte she had made them the night before.
"Micah, so good to see you. Trinny had been dying to meet you in friendlier circumstances." Lucille gestured for Micah to sit at a table.
"And I. It is an honor to meet such an extraordinary young woman." Micah smiled at Trinny.
"My mum said you were a charmer." Trinny grinned back at Micah and sat at the large Jarrah table.
"I trust you are feeling a lot better Trinny? It was an immense amount of power you had to use to heal the Ora, it was astonishing to watch."
"I'm feeling great thanks, I don't remember that much, but have been filled in on a lot since." She looked at her mother who was giving her a discerning smile.
"You said you had important news Micah?" Lucille asked with great interest.
"Yes. I wanted to tell you sooner Lucianna, but you left so quickly after the battle and I could only share this in person."
"What is it Micah?" Lucille looked concerned.
"When Nina and I were in the Dark Empress cells, there were other prisoners, an Elf that was killed helping us to escape and one other...We tried to get him out, but there was nothing we could do." Regret covered Micah’s face.
"Who Micah? Who was the other captive?" Micah took Lucille’s hands and looked in her eyes.
"Jerriq!"
Trinny had only ever seen her mother look this way once before, it was when she was told her husband had been killed in a mining accident, crushed beneath twenty ton of rock. Lucille did not take a breath or even blink.
"Mum? Are you all right? Who is Jerriq?" Trinny could not get a word from her mother. Concern filled her amber eyes. "Micah? What's wrong?"
"Jerriq is James. Jerriq.... is your father."
It had been three weeks since Trinny had last seen Aarion, he filled her thoughts twenty four seven. She would talk with Emma for hours about their adventure in the Fae realm, it all seemed like a dream now. Some days she wondered if it really was. Her mother had not coped well with the news that her husband was alive and that her own sister had set up his death and kept him captive for the past three years. Lucille had spent
a lot of time traveling to Taeith trying to get news of Jerriq. It was hard for Trinny to think of her father with a different name at first, but she was getting use to it. Her mother had found out that King Toron had sent an Army of Fairon Warriors to the Dark Empress lair to free her father, but they found only empty tunnels and cells, it was deserted. Elf trackers had been sent out to find where the Empress was hiding, they suspected it was in the North Mountains where most of the dark creatures of the realm resided. King Toron promised he would send word when he knew anything, but Lucille was determined to help in anyway possible. The Nixie Queen had her people searching all the waterways of three different realms trying to get information to help her daughter.
Trinny had taken her scooter out for a ride along the coastline; the sun had started its decline towards the oceans edge. She stopped to look out over one of the many beautiful white beaches along the West Coast. Taking off her helmet she closed her eyes as the salty sea breeze blew through her long blonde sun kissed hair. For an hour she watched the sun go down, the beautiful hues of pinks and reds filled the sky, it relaxed her.
"Beautiful!" Trinny was startled by the voice behind her, but she didn't have to look to know who it was. "The sunsets quite pretty as well." Trinny blushed at Aarion as he stood staring at her.
"How...how did you know I was here?" She asked trying to cover up her embarrassment at his compliment.
"Your mother said you had made a habit of riding along the coast in the afternoons, and with a little help from the Keitha it was easy." He held up the dark red smooth stone that had helped him track her down all those weeks ago.
"You walked here?" She asked.
"Emma dropped me not far from here, she said this was your favorite spot to watch the sun go down. She knows you well."
Trinny nodded in agreement.
"What are you wearing?" Trinny had noticed that Aarion had on long denim shorts and a black 'Linkin Park' t-shirt that hugged his tone physic.