Dycathion

Killian's head was killing him.

There were flashes of light. A smile that he couldn't forget. His head hurt then it felt as if something was yanking his heart out of his chest.

There was someone who ran past him, he looked at the stream of flame red hair and the laughter that stuck his heart like a bell. He ran after her, not knowing why he did so. He wanted to desperately see her face.

The pain in head was excruciating. He found that the girl had ran out of his reach. Out of his grasp. She was lost.

What was going on? He opened his eyes and stared at the familiar flower pattern. Orange and gold. He frowned, he was in his rooms at the palace.

A girl stood in by the window, she came forward as he got up. The sunlight glinting in her red hair, "Are you alright?"

She was a tall, lithe beauty with red hair and green eyes. There seemed to be a kind look on her face as she knelt beside his bed, concern lining her visage.

She offered him some water. Killian looked at the proffered cup and then took it after a moment.

"Where are my men." Killian asked.

"I don't know." The girl said after a while "I only saw you, lying in a pool of blood in the road. At first I was so scared, I didn't know what to do." She smiled at him, "But you were breathing, and I was happy to help."

"Who are you?"

"Eugenia, a Lady of Palicia. I was on my way to the Dycathion capital when I found you." Eugenia said as she took the cup and poured more water, "You were covered in wounds when they brought you back. They said that the City of Light has fallen. All of your soldiers who had gone with you had died."

Killian could not remember what had happened.

"How long have I been asleep?" Killian asked with a cold frown.

Eugienia was stunned by the cold beauty, she swallowed and stuttered, "Two weeks."

Killian nodded, "You may go."

Eugenia frowned, "You were a lot nicer to me the last few days. You held my hand and asked me not to go." There were tears in her eyes, "I suppose you have no use for me anymore. I suppose when you promised me that you would love me, that was just an empty promise."

She turned and ran out, leaving a confused and annoyed Killian.

Killian stared after the red hair for a moment, feeling as if his head was about to split open. Something wanted to come out. Then...as if some salve had been administered on his mind, he forgot.

Killian called for his men. A few lords came in, he looked at them, "Tell me exactly what happened?"

They looked at each other, "My lord, we don't know. All that we can confirm is that Evans and Jacen are missing, you men that you took to the City of Light. No one returned except you. We can't find a trace of them. And..."

The warrior paused before continuing, "The Lady of Light is dead."

Killian stood up, "What?" He looked at them coldly, "How did it happen?"

The lord swallowed hard, "They say that there is a fae uprising."

Killian's eyes were icy, "That will not do. I need to get to the bottom of this. We are going to the city of Light. Now."

---

Kingdom of Londaros

Miri sat in the garden she had made with her power. She looked towards the direction her parents had gone and sighed once more. Wondering if she had made the right decision, though the look of understanding in Myrai and slight rage in Ithos eyes made her feel ever sadder.

The snow had stopped falling a few days ago, and the the earth was returning to its bright visage. She looked at the anachronistic tree in her beautiful yard and smiled, "Somehow, your brightest moment is when winter dies and spring awakens."

She hummed a song she had heard a little earlier,

So from lonely branch the foolish bloom did fall To love a river who cared naught And give and give and give her all Only to watch the river flow away, all their love forgot.



"I know this." Jasreth entered the garden, "It isn't the happiest poem."

"It's called the river and the bloom" Miri answered dreamily, "I didn't understand it when I was little. There's a question in that poem that I couldn't understand no matter how hard I thought about it."

"And what was that?" Jasreth asked as he sat next to her.

"Do you know what is the saddest kind of goodbye?" Miri asked him

"When someone dies." Jasreth answered and thought back to the people in his life.

Miri said nothing. She just looked out into the beautiful garden she had designed. It was her place of peace she told him. She had moved into the palace a few days after Ithos, Myrai and her brothers had left. She felt it was a lonely place and so she started gardening.

"Are you sad, my love?" Jasreth came behind her and gently clasped her in his arms, taking care not to move his injured shoulder, "Do you regret saving me again?"

Miri thought back to that moment when she had asked him out to say goodbye. In the middle of that, assassins had come for Jasreth. Miri had helped him fight the assassin off, but he had been injured. So, Miri decided to stay.

Miri felt his breath on her ear and blushed, "No. I'm glad that I was able to save you from the assassin. I couldn't leave you like this, my parents and brothers understood."

She looked at him seriously, "When you are healed, I must leave." Jasreth merely smiled but said nothing.

Jasreth took her hand, "Thank you." Miri smiled and then brightened, "Did you know that I had never seen snow until now?"

Jasreth laughed, "No."

"Well, I lived in the south. So, it was never this cold." She stood up and walked towards a fruit tree, full of bring beautiful red fruit, "I just planted this, won't you try it? It's my favorite. I never thought that anything could bloom during winter."

In her hand was a bright red berry. He took her hand and guided the berry to his mouth. The cold fragrance and sweetness was a heady mixture. She grinned at him with approval, "It tastes like the coming of spring in the dying winter, doesn't it?"

Jasreth could nod, he felt as if all the scheming and plotting faded in that moment. For only she existed in his vision, her bright smile, hand holding out the precious gift. Offering him her all.

He knew in that moment, it was all worth it. She was his, and would be his, body, soul. Everything.

He held the fruit in his palm as he left the little house that she lived and returned to the cold palace where he lived.

There he opened the door to reveal three advisors. They bowed respectfully.

"Have you found it?" Jasreth said as he set the fruit on the table.

One of them came forward, "Yes my lord, the druids indeed have the world tree branch in their possession."

Jasreth smiled coldly, "How is it that the fae had the secret to immortality but never managed to use it?"

"My lord, getting it would be a problem. Right now, the fae are growing stronger. We have heard that the hidden kingdom of fae have reappeared. They have all gathered in the CIty of Light. Now it is a stronghold."

Jasreth looked at the red fruit on the table, 'We will break in at all costs. I will become the first immortal king of this earth."

He looked at his advisors, "What have you done with Killian's men."

"They are locked away securely. We have made sure that they will not be a distraction in your plans, great prince." The Advisors bowed.

Jasreth smiled, yes. Only when he became the most powerful, feared, and eternal king would he sleep safe in his bed. He thought of Miri and steeled his heart, she would always be by his side. She would never leave. He would never give her the chance.

Two of the advisors left, and one remained. Jasreth looked at the man coolly, "What?"

The advisor was scared, this prince was more ruthless than he let on with his gentlemanly facade. He took a deep breath, "My lord, there are rumors."

Jasreth raised an eyebrow, "Spit it out."

"My lord, the men are worried that you are too attached to the fae Miri. She is integral to you plans. But you must not let her sway you." The Advisor continued, "You have done so much to confirm her powers, even going so far to get wounded in that fake assassination attempt. You already have her heart. Why do you visit her so often?"

"You seem to be after my affairs." Jasreth said, touching the dagger at his belt. The advisor shook his head vehemently, "My lord, you go every day. Sometimes twice a day. That time could be spent planning our attack. You can not be swayed by a woman."

Jasreth's lips curled in a cruel smile, "A woman? Sway me? She is mine for amusement. Go tell the men that I am able to sacrifice anything." He looked down at the advisor, "Anyone for the good of my country. But," He voice grew harsh, "What is mine will always be mine. She is mine and she can never escape. I rule her and not the other way around."

The advisor looked down, "But my lord, our spies say that she is the daughter of a powerful druid. What if she tries to kill you, knowing what you have in store for her family?"

Jasreth grew pensive, he looked at the fruit on the table, "She's already under my spell. She left her family for me, she has chosen a side. As a reward, she will be my queen. No matter what happens, she will be by my side forever."

-----

Somewhere

"Well, death has been a very weird experience." Thought Cybelline as she stood on a hill, overlooking what seemed to be a vast network of rivers and ponds.

"Is this where I get my own duck pond?" She asked aloud, "Because I think it's past time that I get some kind of reward for dying so many times. If this was a video game, I'm expecting that I only have one life left. And for that one, I want my duck pond and my retirement."

A face flashed in her mind, but she forced herself not to think about him. What was done was done, but it was hard to stop her heart from hurting. Instead she focused on the conundrum in front of her.

She walked down the hill and looked at the grand plains and the networks of rivers and waterfalls. Where was she, where did she need to go? What the hell was this place?

Looking up, she saw that there was no suns, moons or stars. This was just a land fill with earth and water. It was very much like the land in her ring before she had started.

She walked for a day before she saw a strange sight. A woman in bright green robes was knee deep in the water, planting a sapling into the pond that had grown out of the network of rivers.

She turned at the sound of Cybelline' approach, and smiled, "Oh good. You're here. I've been waiting."

Cybelline blinked, "Grandma?"

The woman laughed, "Not truly, I took a form that you would be most comfortable with." Saying that, her form changed until Myrai stood. And then once more to someone that Cybelline did not want to think about

Cybelline turned her head, "I'm not comfortable with that one."

The being frowned, "You did just save his life and by extension, the entire world. You should feel proud."

"Sure." Cybelline said, "But if you had me choose between my dead grandma and the man I love but can't have, then you're really making me very comfortable."

"Like what?" The being asked. Cybelline thought for a moment, "How about a duck?"

The being paused and then slowly, almost grudgingly, transformed into a duck.

Cybelline smiled and sat down, "Hello, my name is Cybelline. Can you tell me what the hell is going on?"

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Author's notes:

How is everyone today? The new normal is definitely hard, and I hope that you are having a good day. And even if it's not, tomorrow will be better. You got this, you and your family got this. Take care of yourself, and it's hard, but this will pass. Thank you all for reading my stories, I hope for a moment, I can take you away from this world and show you another. There is so much left to this story and so much joy that I hope to bring to you in this time of difficulty.

Thank you all, for being here for me as well. The reads, the votes, the comments are helping my mood so much. I want to make sure that I can be there for you as well. Again, to everyone who reads this, thank you. You are loved, appreciated, and adored.

Rin