The polished stone floors of Avalon’s administrative wing gleamed under magical light as Sela strode forward, her silver eyes fixed on Elder Rosewood’s office door at the end of the hall. Eyia walked beside her, seemingly without a care in the world when Sela wanted to puke.
Yet, when she spoke, there was a frown in her tone.
“I am uncertain if confronting an Elder without preparation is the wisest course,” Eyia remarked. “Though Jin has directed us to this path, and I acknowledge she possesses insight beyond what she typically reveals… That in itself is troubling to me. Jin has been…odd, as of recent, but I also must admit to potential bias.”
Sela’s fingers traced the small crystalline artifact in her pocket—evidence recovered from beneath Honeydew. She typically kept a recording crystal on her so she could revisit any unexpected events later. This, however, was not the type of conversation she anticipated revisiting.
“I don’t really care what the relationship between you two is. That being said, Jin may act uncaring, but she clearly directed you to join me here for a reason. I saw how she spoke with you…there is something more to her than she lets others see. It speaks volumes that she broke character in front of me…for you.”
A subtle softening appeared in Eyia’s blue eyes. “Yes, Jin carries burdens few understand, which I include myself in. Her relationship with the Dragon Mother is,” she paused, searching for the right words, “complex beyond logical comprehension—”
The Valkyrie slowed, finding her elbow and averting her gaze. “Perhaps that is something I should not have said. I merely do not comprehend why she bears such pain alone, lying to herself and masking it with indifference. It is most puzzling when there are sisters who can support her.”
Not really having a response to that or even understanding the scope of what the blonde was touching on, Sela marked it as just her trying to vocally work through her emotions. Now, if Jin had sisters—other dragon Founders—in the area, then that would be a very concerning topic, but she didn’t think that was what the valkyrie was getting at.
Since following Jin’s cryptic guidance, she’d certainly found the dragon’s decisions puzzling, though. The fallen Unseelie Queen and Odin’s daughter, united by a shared purpose…to find the truth? The end result was a lot murkier than she wanted to admit.
The Heart of Honeydew had revealed chambers that defied everything Sela had been taught about her kingdom’s history—murals depicting unfamiliar ancestors, symbols that contradicted royal records, and that mysterious teleportation gate with fae Founder magic.
“We stand before a door that leads to truth or deception. At least, for me,” Sela murmured. “I still don’t know how you fit into this equation. I am no longer certain I can tell the difference between fantasy and reality after what Sora did to me… Sometimes…”
She trailed off, trying not to get trapped by the horrific memories of her past that also felt too real. The Darkness certainly knew how to dig at her.
Thankfully, the blonde seemed perceptive and didn’t push her.
Not long after that, they paused before the ornate door emblazoned with Rosewood’s sigil—a tree whose branches formed an intricate weave of protective runes. Sela raised her hand to knock, the purification seed in her chest pulsing gently, causing her to pause.
“What troubles you?” Eyia asked, focusing on her frozen hand.
Sela’s wings shifted restlessly beneath their bindings. “I have carried the weight of my crimes for centuries—the corruption of my kingdom, the betrayal of my parents. But now I wonder…how did a fragment of Honeydew survive? The Heart’s defenses were deactivated by my own hand. It should have been impossible, yet…I was able to reactivate it myself—feel it myself.”
Eyia’s fingers curled into a fist, her expression becoming more serious, reading between the lines of what she was implying shockingly well. “That is a terrible question to have—one’s own past and identity. You believe your memories may not be truthful?”
Thanks for voicing what I didn’t want to say, Sela internally grumbled.
“I’m not sure,” Sela hesitated, the thoughts almost too disturbing to voice, “but I cannot ignore what I’ve seen. I believe someone or something may have altered what I remember. And if that is true, what else about my past might be false? Now…that is terrifying.”
With that disquieting thought hanging between them, Sela knocked firmly on the door. Three precise raps that echoed in the empty corridor.
For several long moments, silence was the only response. Then, without a sound, the door swung open.
Elder Rosewood sat behind her desk, her ageless face a mask of calm authority. Her eyes held the wisdom of centuries and the strictness of watching unruly fae generation after generation try to evade her rules.
“The former Unseelie Queen and the strange valkyrie who is friends with Lady Sora,” she said smoothly, her gaze shifting between them. “What an unexpected partnership. Please, enter.”
As they stepped inside, Sela immediately noted details her trained eyes couldn’t miss—activated silence wards, truth-dampening charms, and subtle memory-alteration runes embedded in the ceiling’s decorative patterns. This was a room designed to keep secrets.
“I won’t play games or insult your intelligence. You know why we are here,” Sela stated, placing one of the artifacts they’d used to record her activities on Rosewood’s desk.
Rosewood’s expression didn’t change, but her aura flickered briefly with recognition and concern as the display activated, showing what she’d observed.
“A recording trinket? Ah, details from your lost kingdom? I fail to see why this requires my attention during such a busy time. Jin’s tournament—”
“I said I wouldn’t insult your intelligence, Elder, please do not insult mine. This isn’t the history my parents taught me,” Sela interrupted. “And in chambers that predate Honeydew’s founding, no less. Chambers your own records claim do not exist. I’ve checked the library since accepting the teaching position here and there is nothing like this involving the fae Founders.”
Eyia stepped forward, her blue eyes intensifying. “The gate you see possesses a magical resonance that speaks of Founder origin.”
Thankful to have some backup, even if the blonde didn’t quite know everything, Sela filled in the blanks. “It is connected to what Jin called a nexus point beneath Honeydew—one of many scattered throughout Avalon, she claimed. This is bigger than simply Avalon if a dragon Founder is giving me this information.”
Rosewood’s fingers tightened almost imperceptibly on her desk. “I see. She was the one who put you on this path, hmm?” She sighed, a sound like wind through ancient branches. “That’s unfortunate and concerning. And what exactly do you hope to learn from me? It seems Jin has all the answers.”
Sela’s vision narrowed. “Jin put me on this path to confront you, Elder. I want answers about my kingdom, and I believe I am owed that much since you hauled it all the way to your academy,” Sela bluntly stated. “A feat I’m still trying to wrap my head around.
“How did a fragment of it survive when I personally ensured the Heart of Honeydew was deactivated? Why do the murals beneath my palace depict a history I was never taught? And why,” her voice hardened, “did I see a vision of you discussing these chambers when I activated the Heart?”
Now that caused a flicker of genuine discomfort crossed Rosewood’s face. “A vision of me discussing it, you say? Troubling. I can see why you might be agitated but I would caution you from delving into those darker emotions that could cause a resurgence of—”
“I’m perfectly in control, Elder,” Sela stated, unable to keep the venom from her tone. “Trying to redirect the conversation only furthers my suspicions. Why is the Grand Chamberlain absent? And for such incredibly important guests as multiple Founders being at the Academy. Why haven’t the High Queen or High King made a public appearance in over two weeks? You must admit that things do look…skewed.”
Rosewood’s fingers tightened. “Sela, surely you understand that some matters are restricted for the safety of all within Avalon…including your own.”
“Safety or control?” Eyia inquired, her tone carrying a deeper understanding than her straightforward words suggested. “My Sister is worried about your ‘punishment’ with her friend Ember, the fire fairy. She acts strangely.”
“A good point,” Sela continued, bouncing off the warrior’s question. “I’ve also heard rumors about those who change spontaneously upon receiving your punishment. Also, Jin spoke of a vast hypnotic false history woven throughout Avalon and Earth. I do not believe she speaks falsehoods in this matter. Are you accusing her of attempting to weave dissent within Avalon?”
The woman’s lips tightened, elf ears rising slightly, which was all Sela needed to know—the elder wasn’t accustomed to being questioned, it seemed.
“No, you wouldn’t make those accusations. Your assurances of restricted knowledge ring hollow,” Sela added. “When the evidence beneath my kingdom suggests deliberate deception and I have a vision implicating you already knew that.”
Silence stretched between them, heavy with unspoken truths. Finally, Rosewood streamed out a long breath, taking one look at Eyia, distrust lining her face. Still, she stood and walked to a seemingly solid wall. With a gesture, it dissolved, revealing a hidden chamber beyond.
“If this is what it has come to… Follow me,” she said quietly. “There are some things better shown than told.”
Inside the chamber stood a massive crystal, within which images flowed like liquid memories. Rosewood approached it, her hand hovering over its surface.
“What you are about to see is known only to a select few within Avalon,” she warned, her tone more resigned than threatening. “The Grand Chancellor, myself, and the High Queen and King.”
The crystal flared to life, projecting an image of a fire fairy, moving with calculated grace as she floated through the crowd. Soon, Sora came into view, and the fairy paused, changing cadence on a dime to be more energetic and adding a bright smile before engaging the surprised fox. This was live.
“Ember? And here I thought we were going to discuss something more pressing,” Sela dully chided, sharp eyes darting to the elf.
Eyia was seemingly enraptured, though. “That—that was not the fire fairy that my sister cares for. The cadence is off—the way she flies… It speaks of experience and age.”
“Give me time, Sela,” Rosewood whispered, watching them both carefully. “No, that is not Ember, Eyia. That is Firefly… Ember’s mother.”
Sela’s gaze darted back to the fairy, vision narrowing further. “So that’s it, hmm? A possession. You’re trying to influence Sora, so you give her a mystery to solve…by making her suspicious of you? That’s bold.”
Rosewood’s jaw tightened, her fingers rising to press down on the artifact as her dark eyes seethed. “Think more critically, Sela. I know I am a perfect patsey to place frustration on. You mistake acceptance as a plan I had no part in… And not a possession, an exchange,” she corrected, “and not the first of its kind.
“When Ember was brought to me for discipline after her…incident with Sora, her mother arrived shortly after, demanding to see her daughter alone. A plot I only recently discovered and perpetrated not by the High Queen or High King, but by some…other faction. Rules are rules, and such magic is not against policy. It is not the place of educators to intervene in…family matters.”
Stolen novel; please report.
“What is she saying, Sela?” Eyia asked, nose wrinkling at her word dance around the subject. “What did Ember’s mother do to her daughter? Mind control? Is this a fae plot to attack my sister?!” she asked, the atmosphere cooling dramatically.
Sela clasped her hands at her front, sighing and glancing at the orb. “This is you stalling my inquiry by diverting us…as compelling of a diversion as it is. No, Eyia, what she is saying is that Firefly transferred her Intelligence into her daughter’s body, sending Ember’s into her own for safekeeping, likely putting it into a deep sleep…
“Consciousness is different from Intelligence,” she articulated. “If it were merely mind control, then it would be easily detectable by Sora’s natural magic and spiritual gifts. What she calls ‘aura’ would have been astronomically different. However, this method is far more subtle… She hijacked her daughter’s spirit and body, meaning her spiritual frequency would be only slightly disrupted.”
Her focus drifted back to the elder. “That being said, that type of magic is something not even I could have done at the height of my Darkness-infused power. It’s something that would require magic on a level that…”
She paused, hands tightening around each other before saying it. “It would require magic on the level of the High Queen and High King.”
“This is an abomination,” Eyia stated flatly, her hands tightening into fists at her sides. “This is like that horror movie Jin took me to see where a mother steals her daughter’s youth to live her school of high days again. To steal one’s child’s form—but not for pleasure but to invade that sacred trust Ember gained with my sister.”
“I’m not sure how it was done, but I know only Firefly was in that room with her daughter. Also, when I reported my findings to the Grand Chamberlain, she stated that she was aware of it, and the High Queen told her to let it slide,” Rosewood cut in, her tone indicating she had anticipated this reaction. “I was told to sweep it under the rug…making me the villain.”
Sela felt cold shock spread through her, the image of the perfect queen she’d idolized as a child cracking, despite her weary mind telling her to be cautious of anything this woman said.
“That…doesn’t mean she authorized it. It means she is aware of it, and that is if the Grand Chamberlain even told the High Queen about it at all. Why would she permit such a thing? She knows Lady Mia would have seen this coming… Yet, she did not stop it,” Sela muttered, countering her own point.
“Which means it is allowed. At least, that is a thread I have trouble swallowing. Yes, I am very strict with following rules, but I do care for the students under my care.”
Eyia’s frosty eyes widened, a memory seemingly sharpening in her mind. She stepped forward, cutting off whatever Rosewood was about to say next.
“My sister approached the Grand Chancellor,” she stated firmly, her gaze boring into Rosewood. “After Ember began behaving strangely. Sora specifically asked her to investigate this matter.” Her voice cooled the room several degrees. “Yet you claim the Chancellor already knew. She assured Sora she would look into it, as if it were new information.”
Rosewood’s expression faltered for just a moment—a crack in her carefully maintained facade.
Sela raised a hand, her silver eyes keeping close track of the elder. “Let’s not forget that none of this could be the truth at all, Eyia. We fae can be crafty, even when we believe we are in the right, we justify the wrong. This entire display could be manufactured.” She gestured toward the crystal. “All of this could be true, yet twisted to serve your angle—you’ve admitted as much about the nature of Avalon’s history.”
“Perceptive,” Rosewood said after a pause, she moved to her desk to fold her hands on the wood. “You’re correct, of course. There are many things I do not agree with, but I am a believer in hierarchy. I do not understand every detail, nor must I. Order must be maintained, even if that order is built on necessary deceptions and…hard decisions.”
Something in her tone sent a chill down Sela’s spine. The atmosphere in the room had subtly shifted, the magical wards along the walls pulsing with increased activity.
“You still haven’t answered my original question,” Sela pressed, instinctively positioning herself so she could move quickly if needed. “About Honeydew. About the nexus point beneath it. About why Jin would lead me to you.”
Rosewood’s smile was thin and entirely without warmth as she stared not at them, but at a trapezoid crystal resting atop a velvet cloth on her desk. “Why did the High Queen use Sora’s magic to return you to Avalon… Isn’t that strange?”
“You refuse to answer the question?” Eyia challenged.
“Hmm. There are so many questions left unanswered…but always orders to follow.” Her gaze lifted, locking on Sela’s, deep scrutiny in them. “Perhaps I shouldn’t say this, but what I do know is that your homeland was never transported to Avalon Academy, Sela—at least not to my knowledge.”
“What?” Sela’s wings strained against their bindings, heart rate increasing. “Are you saying…this is Honeydew? Avalon Academy was built on my old kingdom?”
The woman gave a tired shrug. “It was here from the moment I was brought into this conspiracy, so take that how you will,” Rosewood continued, rising slowly from her chair. “Long before you ever set foot back in Avalon as an instructor, I’ve been pouring over many of these mysteries in private. I wasn’t told I shouldn’t. And maybe that was planned. At least, from what I was told, Sela, there is only one real threat to the foundation of our reality. Not the Founders. Not the royalty or Foundation…or even The Darkness. No. The real threat is…you.”
The statement hung in the air between them, heavy and poisonous. Sela fought to keep her expression neutral despite the disorienting implications. “Hah. Classic. I’m the villain. And who told you that?” she asked, keeping her voice steady with effort.
Rosewood’s eyes gleamed with something akin to pity. “Who? Why, it was your bright and glorious role model—High Queen Titania herself.” She stepped around her desk, moving with a fluid grace that belied her age. “She was quite specific, you know. ‘For everything to be made right, she—meaning you—must die twice.’ I suppose you had to be in Avalon for that to happen. It’s lucky for us that Sora was able to make that happen.”
Before Sela could process these words, Rosewood’s finger lightly pressed on the crystal she’d been eyeing. The office’s defensive wards flared to life, sealing the exit with barriers of shimmering magic.
“I truly am sorry about this,” Rosewood said, withdrawing an object that pulsed with sick, familiar energy. “But hierarchy must be maintained and followed, even if I do not know the purpose. I sincerely hope I am in the wrong.”
Sela lurched back, tripping and falling to her back—a jagged crystal nearly black with corruption, tendrils of The Darkness swirling within its depths. The mere sight of it made the purification seed in Sela’s chest burn painfully.
“I need only touch you with this,” Rosewood whispered, her voice no longer that of a stern administrator but something ancient and cold. “One touch, and the seed within you that Sora wove will be snuffed out. You’ll destroy yourself from within—far cleaner than what you did to your precious kingdom.”
“Eyia, move!” Sela shouted, attempting to weave a defensive spell but the shock reverberating through her aching chest left her nearly defenseless as Rosewood thrust the corrupted crystal forward. “Huh?”
A ray of rainbow light cut between them, frigid ice creeping along the ground and forcing the surprised elder back as she threw it in her direction. A flash of blinding light struck it with the afterimage of silver light, causing it to clatter against the wall.
The valkyrie’s word held steel as Rosewood’s attention fixated on the blonde, not expecting this swift of a reaction. “You are her senior instructor…yet you seek to slay your own when she is given to your care? Honor is worth more than any order from authority, and you have none. If you seek my companion’s life, you must contend with me first.”
“Eyia,” Sela choked, “she’s an Elder—she could destroy this whole academy if she—”
“Irrelevant,” the valkyrie interrupted, the rainbow light around her spreading as Rosewood cast a defensive ward, only to take another step back. “Mother, I ask for your veiling arms. Please grant me your blessing.”
Rosewood summoned a staff into her hands. “This is reality warping? No, something else… What kind of magic bypasses—”
The diamond at Eyia’s throat flashed with blinding intensity and Sela felt the impossible as everything went monochrome. In that split second, she knew—time and space had stopped, and a new reality was being woven. Eyia was drawing them into the necklace.
Jin’s words at the Hell Amphitheater returned, and everything she’d heard since clicked into place. Eyia can’t use her real powers without alerting hostile Founders… She’s taking us into her own realm to keep her spiritual energy from leaking out where other Founders can notice…
The pain in her chest redoubled, but this prick was warm instead of cold as she recalled the dragon’s smirk and eye-rolling. You knew Rosewood would try to kill me and use something connected to The Darkness to do it… So you sent Eyia to protect me? Why… First Sora, then Titania, Mary’s careful words, and now Jin and Eyia… Why protect me?
Reality split along an invisible seam, and from the rift emerged a weapon that should not have existed in this realm—a crystal sword of such perfect clarity that it seemed to be made of solidified light.
Eyia moved with blinding speed, her body flickering with opalescent light as she drew upon her Primordial heritage. “You dare attack a friend of Odin’s daughter?!” Her voice resonated with power that made the very foundations of the building tremble. “And so brazenly. Do you believe me honorless?”
Rosewood didn’t respond with words. Instead, her form seemed to shift, bark-like skin hardening into something more like armor. The corruption crystal shot back to her hand, pulsing again and sending targeted streams of Darkness directly at Sela.
“Skj?ldungar, warriors of King Hrólf Kraki, attend!” Eyia commanded, her voice no longer her own but a chorus of warrior women across time and space.
Spectral figures materialized around them—armored women with fierce expressions and weapons drawn. They moved with perfect coordination, surrounding Sela in a protective formation.
“Get her to safety,” Eyia ordered, even as she launched herself at Rosewood with the crystal sword leading her charge.
“You cannot interfere!” Rosewood snarled, the corruption crystal pulsing with increasing desperation. “This goes beyond your petty concerns of friendship and loyalty. This is about the survival of—”
Her words were cut short as Eyia’s sword met the crystal. Light and Darkness clashed in a detonation of pure force, sending both combatants staggering backward.
The spectral warriors didn’t hesitate. They surrounded Sela, their ethereal hands grasping her arms and shoulders. The seed in her chest pulsed in time with Eyia’s necklace, fighting against the tendrils of Darkness that had begun to wrap around her consciousness.
“I can't leave her!” Sela protested, struggling against their grip as she watched Eyia engage Rosewood in a flurry of attacks too fast for the eye to follow, yet, somehow she was pushing the elder back, despite her tricks.
“She fights for you,” one of the spectral women whispered, her voice like the distant clash of shields. “Honor her choice.”
The diamond at Eyia’s throat flashed again, and the world around Sela blurred. The last thing she saw was Eyia, surrounded by a nimbus of crackling energy and ice, driving Rosewood back with relentless precision.
Then everything shifted.
The transition was instantaneous and disorienting. One moment, Sela was in the disintegrating office, fighting against spectral Valkyries; the next, she found herself sprawled on a smooth wooden deck, gasping for breath.
She pushed herself up on trembling arms, blinking as her vision adjusted to the sudden change in light. Around her stretched a vast expanse of impossibly clear water, reflecting a sky filled with unfamiliar constellations. And beneath her—
The deck belonged to an enormous ship, its hull fashioned from materials that gleamed like mother-of-pearl. Every surface was carved with intricate runes and patterns that pulsed with gentle light. The vessel was massive—a floating kingdom rather than a mere boat—yet eerily empty.
The architecture blended seamlessly with the natural world, combining what she had to assume were elegant Asgardian design with an organic fluidity that spoke of one goddess’ influence that she’d read stories of in Earth’s mythology—Freyja’s influence.
Flowers bloomed from cracks in the polished wood, their petals never wilting. Fountains of crystal-clear water bubbled from seemingly nowhere, their soft music the only sound besides Sela’s ragged breathing.
“Eyia,” Sela whispered, struggling to her feet. “Where are you? What have you done?”
But only the gentle lapping of water against the ship’s hull answered her. The spectral warriors had vanished, leaving her alone in this pristine, impossible place—a vessel designed for millions that sailed without a single soul to command it.
Sela staggered to the ship’s railing, staring out at the endless sea, spotting what looked to be whole galaxies swirling within its depths. The purification seed in her chest pulsed steadily, having driven back the corruption Rosewood had tried to trigger, but her mind whirled with unanswered questions.
Honeydew had always been there. She was considered a threat to reality itself. The High Queen—her childhood idol—had ordered her death, supposedly. And now Eyia was fighting a fae elder on her behalf—a woman she hardly even knew. Someone who was an enemy of Sora not that long ago.
“For everything to be made right, she must die twice,” Sela repeated softly, the words taking on new and terrible meaning. “Is that really referring to me…or someone else?”
Behind her, she heard the distant rumble of a detonation, feeling the massive magical ripple of a destructive nature spell—Eyia was here, somewhere, battling Rosewood.
Pressing a hand against her chest, she puffed out a long breath and regained her senses, steeling herself. If Eyia’s on Jin’s level when not holding back, then even Rosewood would be out of her depth…so why did Eyia feel so concerned that she sent me away? What is Rosewood hiding? Who is she really taking orders from if she’s so stuck on hierarchy…
Hands trembling against the railing, tears fell from her eyes into the cosmic ocean. Pain erupting in her chest, but not from The Darkness—she’d been alone for so long, numb for so long, had to be the strongest and smartest for so long.
Why did you come into my life and give me all these…gifts, Sora? For the first time since my parents, she looked back at the celestial boat where Eyia battled a woman who wanted to kill her, people are fighting for me. How can I possibly deserve this?
She felt a shiver run down her spine as the memory of warm arms wrapped around her—her mother’s.
Sela, how can you possibly think you don’t deserve this? Do not believe the lies. You are loved.
Knees buckling, she held onto the railing for support as she could no longer hold back the tears, and the former Unseelie Queen wept.
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