The Elven Queen

CHAPTER 23

RAYDIA’S POV

Two weeks passed by seamlessly, I stuck to the Little Elf relentlessly despite her many efforts to shake me off, I even went so far as to come hunting with her, partially because the mana in the forest had a slight tendency to mutate creatures, the beast out here were a different breed

LITERALLY

I can't have the little elf dying on me, surprisingly she was very calm for a woman in uncharted waters, I didn’t know what drove her to be so relentless as to risk her life for answers

Except, I did know

I followed her everywhere, I thought she would be up in arms at the idea of a Faye at her heel 24/7 but even if my presence annoyed her she never showed it, she responded to every question I asked her, listened intently to everything I said, even my non-sensical rambling, laughed when she found it funny and even asked questions, she was the perfect student, studious and a fast learner, I unconsciously began to look forward to our daily lessons

Ever since the first night when I snuck into her room to probed her brain for answers, I came back almost every night to peer into her mind again, it was an accident, I stayed for too long in her mind sifting through her memories that I got heavily depleted it tired me out, and for the first time in a long time I fell asleep, lulled by the sound of her thoughts

At first it was to better understand her, her fighting techniques, her spell castings, her strengths her weaknesses, how she processed, how much she knew what she knew, and each time I would fall asleep by her aside, but then the more I looked, the more I wanted to know, what were her hobbies? Her favorite colors? Her favorite food? Whether or not she had any allergies? what were her greatest memories?

Fencing, Violet, Roasted Crustaors with a nut puree, no allergies, and going butterfly hunting with her dad. I told myself this was all to fool her, so I would have things to talk about, so I could manipulate her, but one day I made roasted crustaors and her face lit up like the night sky, her smile plagued me for days, I was just surprised that she could make such an expressions that’s all, I kept her around because she was useful, that’s why I tolerated all her impertinence

But what I don't understand was why did I protect her? Four days ago, even after swearing I wasn’t going to pry into her head anymore, I found myself walking towards her room, I told myself it was to make sure she wasn’t trying to run away, She was a special sample, the perfect sample I needed her alive, that's all, but then why? why was I unable to suppress the boiling rage I felt when I found one of the new Faye who came for the ritual gripping on her door knob, I slowly Walk behind him

‘What are you doing?’

I asked him telepathically, ever since the little elf started refining her core, her internal mana flow had gotten much better, much more sensitive, making her less susceptible to enchantments, the spell I used on the Luna sphere had less effect on her, I couldn’t risk waking her up, she needs her sleep, she gets very fickle when she hasn't had a good night's sleep

he jumped, slightly shocked by my voice suddenly assaulting his head, he should be scared, slithering around her room this late at night, sickening

'Hello Raydia, you gave me quit a fright' his slimy voice in my head made me want to vomit, he's lucky I didn't give him a bloody nose

‘What are you doing here?’ I am in no mood for this, the sleaze on his face repulsed me

‘Well, with the morbien’s days being numbered I thought I would give her a few pleasant memories at least, a night to remember at least’

‘Did she ask you for that?’ I found the idea highly unlikely

'Oh, I don’t think she’d mind’, he might be right, I’m sure to any other creature he would be considered very attractive but for a Faye, I found him rather average, I wasn’t surprised nor could I blame him for his perverse thoughts, The little elf was a marvel to look at and with how we’ve been treating morbiens so far, this was to be expected, the words hypocrisy ringing in my ear did nothing to deter me, the Faye had always been like this to morbiens, defiling them in every sense of the word before casting them aside, I know it, I've witnessed it, my actions probably encouraged, so why? the image of this sickening man's hands on my little elf brought forth rage I never knew I had inside me, rage I hadn't felt in a long time

In two steps I closed the distance between us, with the grace of a dancer I pivot on my heel spinning on the tip of my right foot raising my left leg with the force of my spin I connect it to the side of his neck, knocking him to the ground with a thud, my leg never leaving his neck

So now he is on the ground, pinned under my foot

‘Listen to me because I will only say this once, make sure to regale this to your comrades, you will all stay away from her, she is valuable, the key to this entire operation, she is not here for your amusement, so if I see you so much as breath in her general direction, I will torture you, slowly, painfully, you will beg me for the sweet release of death, do you understand?’

He gave a frantic nod, I raise my foot and he scampered off, I crack the door open slightly and peek my head into the room to make sure she was still sleeping, she was, I close the door and rest my head on its frame breathing a sigh of relief, Then the confusion set in, why did I do it?

I still don’t know, I’m still contemplating it now

On the branch of this tree

“Could you stop that, I’m trying to focus” I didn’t realize I had been absent mindedly tracing her tattoos, when did p

I pick up this habit?

“Why” I asked more to myself than her

"You can see I’m trying to meditate Raydia”

“You should take a break, you’ve been doing so well” I genuinely meant it, or maybe I just wanted her to stop

“You’ve said the same thing for the past 5 days, I only get better because I mediate, now do you mind?”

“Why do you have so many tattoos on your back, is it to cover your scars?” What kind of queen has so many injuries? What good are those shadows of hers anyway if she still gets injured?

“Yes, it’s a Sylphorren custom to cover one’s scars with a tattoo, it isn’t mandatory, it’s just a choice” it’s a dumb one

“Why do you have so many?”

“It’s an honor”

“To be covered in scars?!!”

“Yes!! they are proof that you have been restored, surely, the cracks are where the light enters you” I know that quote, her mother said it to her

“I don’t think I’ve ever met someone this happy to be covered in scars”

“Then you’ve clearly never met a moon elf” of course I have, she truly is just like her, it makes me feel even more guilty, I look up to see her wince away

“Is the sun too much for you?”

“What?” I raise my hand and instruct the tree to cover us

“How do you do that? Use magic without words, I looked through every book I could find in that library but none of them spoke on how you evoke spells without incantation” so she had thought that far, at such a young age, she sees to question the logic behind the flow to mana, in a few years she would have achieved so much more, yet here I am, the hand that’s severing that future

“You’re asking the wrong questions, you should be wondering why YOU need incantations, I’m sure you noticed how different races, say the spell in their own languages, It’s the same words, but spoken differently, have you ever tried saying a spell in a different language? Did it have the same effect?”

“I never tried”

“Of course not, it wouldn’t have felt right now would it?, you have no connection to those words, the magic you evoke comes from the words you give power to, we Faye have that same connection but with nature itself, the purest form of mana, most of the trees you see were probably planted by a Faye” I can’t believe we are having this discussion and she understands so much

“Is that why you care so much about the plants and the trees?”

“Some more than others, Do you know that these plants are alive? They live, they breathe, they grow, they remember?”

“I came across something like that in a book in the library, common speculations that because plants have life forces, they were alive, but it was disproven, in fact they called the very idea insane” of course those bullock wouldn’t understand anything!!!

“How would they know?!! They never planted, cared for or nurtured a tree, they could never feel the steady rhythm as it breathed, the life it buzzed it, they could never hear or feel it, they know NOTHING!!” I got heated, I’ve been doing this for centuries, you’d think I’d have a better grasp on my emotions, I scared her

“I’m sorry” Child, please don’t apologize to me

“Would you believe me if I told you, that I planted this tree?”

“Wouldn’t that make you older than 2 centuries, Raydia?” a truly clever child you are, Little elf

“Teehee, you are a smart cookie, I knew I couldn’t pull a fast one on you” I out the mask back on it, this is for the best “Now come on let’s go back inside, I’m feeling a little cold” I faked a shiver

She packs her books, the books I chose for her, the books about the origins of runes, hoping to give her some form or compensation, and I latch on to her and start talking animatedly, I know she blocks me out sometimes but she still makes an effort to understand the bare bone of the conversation, what a sweet child

“Greetings” Grundal

“Hello Grundal” I answer

“I see she’s still here” I see he still choses to defy me

“Yes she is” I shoot back at him, he turns to her and they talk about core purification

He turns back to me “Gaizen will be returning soon” he says out loud so she could hear us, for some reason those words dug a hole in my stomach

'He’s downstairs' he whispers into my mind and I feel a cold sweat form under my clothes

“Let’s go” I drag the little elf away

“kjisy haurg be ruu da” There’s still time

“I think he’s not done talking to you” I must be truly heartless to crave your forgiveness that way that I do

“Ignore him” was my only response as I dragged her towards her room in silence, too deep in thought

“So how do you feel about flowers?” I am truly deplorable, those words out her mouth nearly brought me to tears, with one sentence she pulled me out of the pit forming in my mind, her eyes gleaming, was she trying to make me feel better?

Little elf, your heart is too pure to house a sinner like me, and yet I craved that blinding light

“WHICH KIND?!!!” I feel my lips curve into a genuine smile, I’ve been having a lot of those lately

After taking Eztli to her room I knew what I had to do, I revised my words ceaselessly till I pushed open the lounge room door

"Welcome back, Gaizen"