Amaranta – Captive of Elf’s King

Copper captivity

Someone horned jumped into the door of the Dark Hall. Is it from the kingdom of medea Shai? Suddenly is it a spy? Amaranta went after it. Gloomy doors with bas-reliefs in the form of dragons led her in another throne hall. Why is the second? The throne in it is only one, made of black onyx. It does not look like the ownership of the elves. And why near the throne is a huge copper boiler.

It immediately attracted the attention of Amaranta. It is very unusual. This is a work of art! What great elven masters have worked on it? Along the walls of the boiler, elegantly forged patterns, engraving and whole bas-reliefs from fabulous persons stretched. For some reason, no one-piece image of the figures was not. Only faces. Some larger, some smaller, but everyone merges into one mythical composition. As if the whole bestiary was placed on the walls of the boiler. Persons have horns, wings, tentacles and tails, like animals. But the individuals themselves are partially human or elven! Only someone has several pairs of eyes or several mouths. Nevertheless, they are all beautiful, although they scare a little. They seem sleeping.

Amaranta went around the boiler, trying not to approach. She heard of the lamias, about Manticors, about the fairies with dragon bodies. What kind of creatures belong to copper faces?

Her train clinched for something that someone's claws emerged between the slabs of the floor and grasped it. Amarantae hardly managed to free it. These are all jokes of evil spirits living between floor blocks, ceilings and walls. But usually they are sailing in human castles, and not in magical.

“Look at us!” called someone. The voice was attractive, though hissing.

Amaranta looked around. Who could call her in a blank room? Unless some joker-elf was attached to the crossbar under the ceiling or at the top of the columns.

“Here!” Already several voices called it. They accurately proceeded from the center of the hall, as if from the inside of the boiler.

Amaranta frowned. The black throne is empty. There is no soul around. So who is calling?

It seems that the boiler boiled from the inside by itself. Brown jets, similar to the blood of the animal, flowed across the edge and the copper surface of them with hiss absorbed. You might think that the flashes of a boiling albeit or even a whole behack. The bas-reliefs on the walls of the boiler were truly magnificent. It seems that they are living and smirking, envying a new sacrifice, which is destined to cook in the boiler.

“Come to us!” called a voice from the boiler. Probably fiery spirits inhabit into it.

Red couples walked from the boiler. In his clubs it seemed that the sinister copper persons open their mouths and lick.

“Go closer!”

Amaranta made one step forward, although the risk was great. Even from the proximity of the boiler you feel like in the furnace, and the one who calls her clearly wants her to trust him.

“Greetings!” A big face in the center, framed by a dozen twisted horns at once, crouched. The composition of people around it for some reason began to seem rounded dance.

“Do you want to become one of us?”

How tempting sounded voice! So people are tightened to the sect. Persons wanted her to join them. But how? Hooked in the boiler, as a victim?

“Do you suggest that I also become a brilliant bas-relief on the wall of the boiler?”

“Sunny!” The face laughed. Horned, ominous and beautiful it for some reason inspired the memories of the legendary goddess Danu. And it really looks like an image on the wall in the forest.

"We have power," it explained. “You are the queen of rainbow elves. I am the queen of boiling lava. You are weaker, I'm stronger. Dagda made me strong. But not you! Want to settle injustice? Your weakness can be fixed, but only until he sees. The strong queen is to him for nothing. Take care of a gentle nicer. This is a pleasure for him, but not for you. Would you like to become strong?”

“How?”

“The same as we!”

“I.e?”

“Touch me!”

Amaranta spent a finger on the speaking face. It was hot, like a blacksmith horn. Surprisingly, copper was not melted, unless she is magical. The face at first smiled good-naturedly and immediately bit her for the finger before the blood.

“What for?” Amaranta closed the wound, but blood still flowed abundantly, irrigated dresses.

All bas-reliefs on the boiler came to ecstasy from her smell.

“Innocent blood! Such pleasure! But the innocence interferes to you, as we once. In order to gain power, you need to go through t*****e and your own ignition.”

“I do not understand! "Amaranta backed up, but a long steel sting emerged from the discontinued copper mouth and walked her hand without giving away from the boiler. It was so hot that Amaranta screamed.

“Until you burn, as we do not become a powerful magical creature. We will make you a favor. Dagda has long been holding us hungry.

The sting pulled her closer to the boiler. A moment, and she will fall into it. There's boiling water! She welds alive.

“Let me!”

But the divine face did not react on her screams.

:I will build a sacrifice after the burning, we will press and at the same time will repulse Dagda, turning his toy in his own rival,” copper faces said.

They are all living and malicious! Amaranta understood too late. Kindness leads to trouble. In the magical country there were so many joys and miracles that she did not recognize the danger. It was necessary to remember the Medea of ​​Shai and understand that the magic is not always good.

“Are you goddess Danu? He overthrow you and for it you want to burn me?”

The horned deity did not answer, but the other faces picked up the choir.

“Just as he burned us!”

 Amaranth resisted, but there was not enough strength. Steel sting consisted of her blood. And the drops of her blood, entering the mouths ​​of copper faces, only strengthened their hunger. Another minute and she will be in the boiler where she burns.

“The best sacrifice for all times for our tribe!” the choir of persons triumphed. Their whisper also resembled the hiss of the fiery lava inside the boiler. And this is not alone, but a solid fire.

“What did I do to you?”

“Not you! Dagda!”

And it means to pay for it, because she is his beloved! Amaranta feverishly thought about what to do, but suddenly the sting was released. It fell itself. A beautiful horned face was crossed, having done quite scary. Amaranta escaped. Dagda stood nearby. This he did something to burn the steel tongue.

Persons raised a whole riot, envy him, but could not break out from the copper captivity. They had to calm down. The fiery lava evaporates somewhere in just a moment. The boiler was empty, and large precious stones fell out of it. One size with a human head remained lying at the bottom.

"The boiler is useful, but dangerous," Dagda grabbed her on her waist and pulled away.

The scattering of precious stones with multi-colored rain lay down to Amaranta. They were terribly even to touch, although it is a huge wealth. The king of Aluar has not in the treasury so much jewels, and here some boiler gave them for one admission, but at first he needed to drink someone's blood. Her blood! Amaranta could not count the cuts left on her hand from steel sting.

"The cleaner is the blood, the more treasures it produces," Dagda said. His appearance was unusually severe. "Let's go, I will find than you to heal. These wounds are dangerous. They will contact them if you do nothing.”

He nodded to the faces that the impression of the living was no longer produced.

“It seemed to me that they were alive? Is it because of the lava in the boiler arises the effect that they move and laugh?”

“They fell asleep!” The king of the elves said gloomily. “For a while, but not forever.”

“Who are they all?”

“My former friends!” on the tone it was clear that the recognition was his effort.

So the monster in a dream did not lie to her. And she thought that in front of her some special kind of magical creatures from a living metal. He even remembered the triggers of alchemists in which those allegedly can produce gold and precious stones through scientific experiments, and not magic. This boiler, as discharged, turned out to be specifically gloomy magic.

“Why have they become such? Did you do with them or someone else?”

“It made war!” Briefly cut out Dagda. “Therefore, I am against wars! Therefore, a union was concluded with Angus and Medea Shai. When we fight for the land or power, even our beloved becomes our enemies. And not avoid mutual injuries. I could not kill them. Let them live here! Inside the boiler!”

Over the boiler, as it has called, flew a tiny pixie with pink wings. Something from the inside grabbed it and pulled inside. It did not even have time to squeak, but the boiler for a moment hissed. Copper faces sleepily licked themselves. Amaranta looked inside. The tiny pink fairy did not remain, but at the bottom was a little corundum.

“Take it!” suggested Dagda. “Medea Shai adores good quality corundum. To replace it with you, she will do everything.’

“Why do I need to force it with something or attract?”

"Otherwise, she, as Danu once attacks you," he nodded to the central face with many horns.

So it really was that the goddess, about which so many rumors. The strongest government of the magical world! And here's what Dagd turned it! In the copper horned face on the magic boiler! Obviously, smaller faces are her retinue.

"You knew how many dangers would wait for the beloved of the king of the elves and still kidn*pped me.”

“I could not resist! "Duga pulled her tightly to himself, as if he was afraid to lose inevitably. – “And to protect you, I will have to cross through your principles. That is, to fight again.”

“Caprice worth it?” said Amaranta.

"The love was worth it," he looked uncompromisingly. The sinister faces on the boiler were jerked, but they did not put themselves. They knew the price of love and friendship, but sometimes exceptions occur. Otherwise, the Red and White Fairy would still steal in heaven, and did not embark on the pits of Roses where the dispute did not dare.