Elmira Sielstone: The Empress

Twenty-Eight

“Becca, wake up.” Alexis entered the room of Rebecca in the Palace to make sure that they will go down the great hall of the Palace as his birthday celebration will already start within minutes.

He was already wearing his Royal Prince attire, a black suit with gold buttons and gold designs, paired with a black slacks.

But to his surprise, Rebecca was still lying on her bed, sleeping soundly. She opened up her eyes when she heard Alexis’ voice and as he was tapping on her shoulders, waking her up.

She flashed a smile before she helped herself to sit on her bed, as Alexis watched her.

“I’m sorry.” She started. “I’m not feeling so well today. And I’m afraid I couldn’t come with you to your Party.” She flashed a disappointed smile in her face as she was really looking forward to this very special day of Alexis, but she just couldn't come as she was feeling so ill.

“Is it really that bad?” He asked, staring at her with his worried stare.

She nodded. “I had tried to stand up earlier to force myself to attend your Party, but… I just fell on the floor.” She said. “But don’t worry. I’ll be fine. I think I just need some more rest.” She added, assuring him that she’s just fine.

“You need to go now. Your Party will start in five minutes. They’re waiting for you.” She said, flashing a reassuring smile in her face.

Alexis was still hesitating to leave her alone, as she was sick. But he knows that as a Prince, he needed to attend and show himself through the people waiting for him.

“Are you sure, you’ll be fine?” She nodded again, as an answer.

“I will notify the Hospital Wing to look after you. I’ll just show myself up there, and will come back here fast. Alright?”

Rebecca smiled at him, and nodded. Alexis came near her and kissed her forehead, before leaving her room with a heavy heart.

She laid again on her bed and shut her eyes closed to rest.

“How are you feeling?” She suddenly heard Elmira talking inside her head as she closed her eyes.

“My body’s feeling so heavy.” She said through her mind as she knew that Elmira could hear her.

“Drink the water on your bedside table. It’ll help you a lot.” She said.

Rebecca opened up her eyes and looked on her right side where her bedside table is. There was a glass of water on top of it,a s Elmira had told.

“What’s in there? And when did you put it here?”

“It’s something that can help you regain your strength. And I just transported that there right after Alexis closed the door, without going there. Just drink that, so you can attend his party.”

She managed to sit again, and grabbed the glass beside her and drank everything from it as Elmira had told her.

“It will take effect within five minutes. Just wait, and… I’m sorry.”

“Sorry for what?” She tried to ask her as she doesn’t have any idea why Elmira was sorry, but Elmira didn’t answer back.

Like what Elmira had said, after minutes, it took effect in her body and she slowly felt her body becoming okay again. She can already feel her strength, and her body’s already not feeling so heavy. She stood up fast, and ran through her bathroom to prepare herself so she could attend Alexis' birthday Party.

***

At the grand hall, everyone from the Palace has been so busy, going around the Palace, preparing another set of drinks and food, as they didn’t expect to have so many Hazzles attend the Party.

They have only invited the Rulers and their families of each cluster, as they had considered the current situation in Harzenia. Crymph was still facing a crisis and yet to recover from the explosion, Tarfelli is still fighting from the disease that no one knows, except Elmira. But they were all in the Palace, attending the Party that the Palace didn’t even prepare so well for.

Jack and Eliza with Smith and Redina were just watching the crowd on top of the staircase, when Alexis marched towards them.

“What’s happening?” He asked them, but he didn’t even wait for them to respond as he had seen the amount of crowd down the open space of the Palace. They couldn’t even fit inside the Grand hall at the right side of the Palace as it was already full with Hazzles.

“I thought, we’ll just be having a simple party.” He said with confusion and disbelief.

“We also thought so.” The Queen said, without glancing at him.

“I think it’s because of what they have felt this midnight.” Rebecca joined them, and Alexis shifted his gaze towards her as he was surprised with her sudden appearance.

“I thought you can’t come.”

“Someone gave me a drink, so I can attend your party.” She said, staring below them, at the crowd they didn’t even expect to see on this day.

They were all in their Royal attires, excluding Rebecca as she is not part of the Royal Family, but she made sure that she’s presentable and wore a sky-blue gown that extends on the floor.

“But, isn’t she coming?” Rebecca asked, as she couldn’t see Elmira with them.

“She won’t be here. But that’s better than showing up through this whole crowd after what had happened earlier. ” The Queen said.

“What do we do with these Hazzles then?” Redina asked them as they were still up there, looking down.

“We’ll go as planned Ma.” The King answered him.

But not long after, everyone was storming inside the Palace from outside. They got alerted as there's a lot more Hazzles outside that hadn't even entered the Palace yet, but they all came rushing inside. There were loud noises inside the Palace as the crowd were talking at the same time.

“It’s raining outside.” Smith said that Jack and Elizabeth had looked towards him with their questioning gazes.

“Along with very strong lightning and thunder.” Rebecca added.

The strong lightning can be seen inside the Palace, even though it was so bright inside. The thunder was echoing all over the place, leaving many screaming in fear and shocked.

“What’s happening?” Alexis looked at them as they were still glancing with Smith, and all were looking so disturbed by the sudden rain.

“Elmira.” Elizabeth suddenly voiced out, not answering Alexis.

“Come on. Ma, hold tight to PaSmith. I’ll teleport us there.” Jack said, as she held Elizabeth in her hands. Smith held Redina through her palm and Jack grabbed Smith in his wrist and vanished in front of the two.

“Wait- where are you going? What’s happening?” Alexis couldn’t even know what they were thinking, and where they’re going as they just suddenly disappeared without saying anything.

“I think they’re going to see Elmira. Come on.” She held his hands and flashed a genuine smile in her face as she stared at him.

Alexis couldn’t argue more when Rebecca teleported them both in front of Elmira’s room in the Palace. Everyone was there, standing outside her room, while Jack was knocking so hard at the door that he could even break it with how much force he’s exerting from knocking.

He suddenly stopped as the door opened up, but they were stock outside the room, and they all couldn’t move as they were so surprised by a voice who was crying so loud.

“Savvy, please! Closed the door. Please.” It was Elmira. They were astounded by her voice, cracking up, as she was crying, shouting and pleading for Savvy to close the door.

“I’m sorry. But they at least needed to know.” He said. He opened up the door wide, and glanced towards them.

He bowed in front of them to give respect, as he was still respecting them as the Royalties of the land, and stood straight after.

“Please enter fast. No one must hear her this way.” He said. They were all hesitating to enter as they were hurting from the way Elmira shouts. She was in so much pain and it is so obvious with the way she yells.

“W-what’s happening?” The Queen asked him as soon as they entered the room. He quickly locked the door after they all got inside to keep the noise locked in the room. They had protected the room as Elmira couldn’t even put up her barriers as she wasn’t feeling any better since they had left her room earlier.

“We can’t say it to you, but we think she needs you.”

They were all watching her, twisting in pain on her bed, crying out loud, calling names that no one knows except the three Gemus inside her room.

“Sid. Please. Get them out of here!” Now, she was pleading to Sid, who couldn’t even look at her. He was just looking away, avoiding her gaze.

“I’m sorry.” He said.

Redina sat on her bed and got her wrist to cure her and help her lessen the pain she was feeling.

“No. Stop!” She shoved her hands to stop her from curing her, as she doesn’t want her to do that for her.

Elizabeth was already crying, as she was hurting, and it is very painful for her to see her daughter lying on her bed, crying and in so much pain.

“Let us just go, Era. We’ll fix it for you.” Sinn said again for the nth time as they were all so frustrated and couldn’t even do something to mend the pain she was feeling right now.

The rain was still pouring so hard outside along with the lightning and thunder, as Elmira constantly screamed in pain.

“NO!” Elmira shouted towards him that echoed across her room. It made them all shut, as they were all looking at her.

“You won’t ever get out of this room, Sinn. Not anyone from the three of you.” She shut her eyes and closed her fists as she tried to conceal the pain he was feeling, but she always failed to do so. She couldn’t even use her Qaraths properly as she was losing strength. What she feels right now, was way more painful than when they tried to take fifteen Gemus to reach their limit and get them back to Emerald in just a day.

The three Gemus kept on trying to go out of her room to get back to the Academy, but all of their attempts weren’t successful as Elmira was trying to contain them in the room with her. She doesn’t want them to risk their lives just to stop what was happening inside the Academy. And she knew very well that they won’t even succeed on what they are planning as Loisselle has gone so strong that she didn’t even notice that she entered the Academy.

“But you can’t stay like that!” Sinn shouted back at her. He didn’t even mind the Hazzles inside the room that were watching and listening, he just wanted to help Elmira, and nothing matters the most to him other than her.

“Then I’ll go and fix it myself.” She said as she tried to stand up from her bed.

“Are you crazy?”

“Era, that’s mad.” Savvy didn’t shout, just like what the other two did. They were all acting up, shouting towards each other like they were just the four of them inside the room.

“Yes I am.” She said, looking at Sinn with blazing anger in her eyes. “I will do it myself as you’re constantly insisting on going there.”

She removed her blanket covering her, and attempted to stand but she failed.

“We won’t let you.” Sinn got back at her, yelling again at her as they witnessed how she couldn’t have any strength to stand on her feet.

“ Then shut up!” She fell on the floor after yelling back at him as she was just sitting on the edge of her bed, in front of her Gemus on the left side.

“Era!” Savvy rushed towards her and helped her sit on the floor, but she couldn’t even sit straight, as she totally lost her balance and her strength to even sit.

“Liam. Ash. Jin. Fur. Kit. Vin. Chad. Ley. Tim. Win.”

“What. What is she saying?” The King asked them as they couldn’t even do anything for her.

“Those are names of all the Gemus that had reached their limits.” Sid answered him, as Sinn was trying to cover up his ears so he couldn’t hear Elmira, he already faced his back towards her so he couldn't see how she was suffering. She even barely said the names with sound, but she needed to say it, no matter what happened.

“How the heck did she know all their names?” Alexis couldn’t stay still as he was being so curious now about what was happening.

The party hadn't started yet but the Hazzles down on the grounds were patiently waiting as they were still hoping to see the person that they had felt the presence of, earlier at midnight.

“It’s just normal for her to know every Gemus’ name, and every Hazzles’ name, as she created us all. She’s the Empress of Emerald if you didn’t understand what she had tried to say earlier.” Sid explained again. Looking directly at him in disgust, as he didn’t even understand what Elmira was trying to tell them. She had already said every hint possible, but he still didn’t even conclude that Elmira is their Empress.

“Olive. Ben. Hid. Nix. Zac. Kiel. Hans. Yiel.”

“At this rate. They had probably killed everyone in the Academy.” Savvy said, sighing.

“What do you mean?” Alexis asked, looking at him.

“You know it, Hazzle. Stop pretending that you don’t.” Savvy directed towards him.

“They’re getting their Qaraths…” He said. “And once they have reached their limit that she had given each Gemus, it will be directed towards her. All the Qaraths that they have collected will come back to her body. And she was already suffering with that ever since she arrived back from Glith, but no one knows about her hardships except Smith.”

“She had clearly told us not to say it to her Family in the land, as she wouldn’t want you to worry about her. But I think you at least needed to know this, as you can still help her.”

“How. How can we help her?” They were all desperate to help her, except for Alexis that doesn’t even care even if she'll die right now, in front of them all.

“Stop.” Elmira suddenly said to stop Savvy from saying another thing. She had shut her mouth and closed his mind so he couldn’t tell anything anymore.

“Get out of this room.” She said, once again as she closed her eyes.

“Get out of this room, if you still want to remember what he had just told you.” She said, as she tries to pretend that she’s already not suffering from pain.

“NOW.” Sid bowed towards them before he guided them out of her room. They were all hesitating to leave her except Alexis who had left fast even after Elmira had finished her words.

Sid closed the door behind him after they all had left.

Elmira forced herself to stand up, refusing to receive any help from the three, and came back to her bed.

She glared at them, once she was already on her bed.

“This day, Savvy…” She said as she glared at him. “You have broken my trust.”