Fae Conundrum

[Flamebird]

Her throat burned from the endless weeping. Tears fell, yet the energy to do anything else had been relinquished. It was dark now. The sun had set, leaving the faint moon glow over the courtyard. There was no breeze to be felt. It seemed as if nature itself bowed it’s head over the weight this girl carried. In the fetal position, broken and unkempt, the neanderthal hybrid could have rotted in her despair, just another dead pile of dust in these forgotten ruins.

Her stomach rolled in hunger, her scratched throat begged for relief. Yet, in her exhaustion she could of cared less. Her breaths were long and weak. So fatigued, she struggled to even breathe fully. She was drained in every way. Broken down…

~ ~ ~

*Clang!*

Two swords collided, sunlight bathing them in light, glowing across their battlefield. It was within the morning. The sun barely peaked above the sea as they fought atop the cliff. White pebbles and stones tumbled down as Felicity fought a bandit at the edge. The woman grunted, her falchion blade slicing through the air as Felicity stepped back, guarding with her arming sword. She felt the ground slowly destabilizing as they fought. Nervousness grew in her chest as the sound of loosening stones grew faster. She anxiously parried and blocked her opponent’s sword, growling in frustration.

The bandit then made a tricky move. She parried, extending her spare hand to grab Felicity’s throat. The child started to choke. Her sword slipped from her hands, wallowing as it slammed into the loose rocks.

The bandit gritted her teeth, “Living is for the birds, am I right? Join them!”

Felicity’s chest exploded in fear. Death by being pushed off a cliff? It seemed terrible, the long way down. The burglar dropped her weapon, using her other hand to slowly tip her over. The redhead dare not fight the steadily smirking mistress. She could just let go in a second. Her upper body felt nothing but the seaside’s wind nipping at her, begging her to leap into it. Maybe, if the little flame was lucky, she could grow wings like a bird and fly.

Yet, in the horrifically slow process of letting go, the woman was yanked back, dragging Felicity with her. She fell against the bandit, then cried out when she heard the familiar sound of a blade penetrating flesh. Her eyes widened as she looked down, seeing that the sword missed her, barely, but stabbed her opponent in the gut. Liquid red dripped against the white stones of the cliff. They painted the blank sheet of paper crimson, for suffering. The blade was ripped out again, viciously. The body fell, revealing Ayleth in her place. Behind Ayleth, a stream of bodies flowed. She had obviously faced far more opponents than her, and she stabbed Felicity’s agitator like a knife through butter. Atop the cliff, the girl’s hair flowed in the wind, the waves of it hissing in the barren landscape. Holding the bloodied blade, Ayleth looked, well… scared.

For a brief second, Felicity saw genuine panic and concern. She saw emotion, emotional attachment. For a brief moment, Felicity saw Ashla.

Yet, that moment passed in a flash, like straw in a fire.

The woman wiped the blade, smearing scarlet on her stained pants. She put the blade in her sheath, turning. Already, Ayleth’s regular mannerisms returned. Her lowered, dead eyes. That ever present, small frown. The emotionless features, cold blooded attitude. Self righteous, stubborn, unwilling to yield to anything. The mud elf’s dark side, Ayleth, overshadowed Ashla’s side once again.

Desperate, absolutely desperate to see Ashla again. Felicity spoke, “Th-thanks, master-“

She was stopped when, without warning, Ayleth violently turned around. She threw her arm, imposing, authoritative, cruel. Her eyes were wide, ice forming, in slits of pure ruthlessness. Her teeth gritted, body tense. “-If you were not so pathetic and weak, you would never have needed saving!”

Well, that stung. Felicity would have taken a step back, maybe more, yet the cliff overhead still threatened to swallow her in a falling death. The wind howled, causing goosebumps to form on the fifteen year old’s skin. She bit her lip, taking Aytleth’s next onslaught of vicious words.

“I thought I was training you better! To be strong!” She lowered her arms, the worst of her rage gone. She scoffed, spat, and turned around again, “I guess you have not learned everything, despite my best efforts. You must be useless.”

Tears welded up in the redhead’s eyes as Ayleth brought her judgement upon her, damaging her. Each word felt like a stab with a knife. The tense, apathetic tone punctured like snake fangs, trickling venom into the veins.

“You imbecile! You untalented runt! Insignificant!” Her voice was low and imposing. She sighed, shoulders down, “You are nothing but a burden. I have no idea what I ever saw in you…”

She stormed off, walking in heavy strides. Kicking one of the dead bodies aside as she walked, she left Felicity in hopeless shambles.

She was a burden.

She was weak.

She was insignificant.

She was useless.

~ ~ ~

… How long did she lay here?

In the fetal position, she drifted in and out of uncomfortable sleep. Energy slowly filled again, tiny drop by tiny drop. Her appendages were numb, weak. She stared blankly at a deformed, eroded pillar across from her. Her hair was in her face, her eyes drooped in a lifeless, tired expression.

She continued to rest, well into nighttime. The Dheathian night was cooler. In fact, the girl shivered. Yet, she did not move. She felt unable to. She lay her head upon the hard, frigid stone floor.

She stayed like this for hours. Her energy slowly dripped back.

The chilly nighttime winds rustled the leaves of the great, sage tree. One three tipped leaf fell right in front of her. Dazed and heartbroken, the now numbed girl blinked. Despite appearing uninterested. The girl pulled her drowsy, heavy head in the direction of the tree. Then – she felt it.

That feeling. Again! In yet another happenstance, she felt this odd… Prickling? Energy? Energy…

Confused, curious, she pulled herself to her hands. Her arms straight, holding her top half up, she watched the tree. Well, nothing seemed that unusual about it. – It was here, however, that she realized something. Every single thing she felt was associated with one, common thing. The high quality sectors of Dheathian were cooled with magic. The ice on the roof also was magic. Now, a tidbit of lore flew through her head. The Ancients were known to grow their trees into remarkable sizes, thanks to some form of magic. For no way could a tree naturally grow that humongous.

Her mouth gaped, “No way…”

The magical affinities of her neanderthal kin circled around her head. It all made so much sense! Since she and Nevin found medications to relieve the negative side affects of her Berserk Rage, her own magical affinity did not need to obsess over keeping her dark power functional, keeping her alive. It was within that moment that Felicity gasped, pushing herself to her knees. Was it possible?

Her heart still ached deeply, her body still exasperated. Thus, her movements were slowed. She dragged herself towards the trunk of the ginormous tree, never completely standing once. As she crawled closer, the connection felt stronger, better. Now, sitting on her knees, her face was so near to the tree. She only had to extend her hand and touch the tree. Her old optimism started to surprisingly surface as she took a deep breath, then let it out Soothing her anxious chest with these deep, calm, breaths, she maintained focus.

Concentrate, you can do this!

The half breed closed her eyes, reaching out. Her extended hand touched the aged, rough outer layer. The sound of pieces of brown, gruff crust falling could be heard as she pressed her hand against the base of the tree.