The Queen Must Remember

Part 5: The Garden's prisoners are breaking out...

"Orpheus..." I began fearfully.

The flowers had tiny pike fangs in rows on thier bold petals, thier long stigmas snuffling about the air like snouts on tentacles.
I backed away, fearful of them, the dark Fae edged closer,

"Yes, I see them too... Stay behind me." He muttered.
I had no weaponry, I had no memory to access any powers, I felt so helpless as I hid behind Orpheus, who snarled and growled at the monstrous flowers I once tended to, once treated with utmost care and love...

The solidifying mist erupted from the Fae before me, unleashing upon our predators, tearing them apart with lethal force.
Vile slime spurted from the plants' wounds, pooling around our feet.

I saw a deer in the massacre, though it was staggering as it walked, it's eyes milky white and it's jaw hanging on by a thread of gum and skin...
It growled and screeched, leaping forth towards us... Aiming it's sharp hooves at me-

Orpheus slammed himself against me, narrowly missing a collision with the creature, who slammed into the cage bars behind us.
My heart pounded so violently in my chest I thought it was about to burst through my ribcage and flee from the scene like the coward I desperately wanted to be at this moment... I was petrified.
Our elbows sunk into the dead plant slime, slowing our movement. Before I could rise, I heard a stretching sound. I turned my head to see the vines of the birdcage begin to slither from their habitation towards us.

"Oh shit..." Hissed Orpheus, who ripped his arms out of the sludge to rise, it oozed from his clothing as he heaved me to my feet,
"We need to leave before-"
A vine coiled around his neck and yanked him backwards. I screamed for him,

"Run!" He ordered, "I'll be fine just run!"
The vines wrapped tighter around his neck, his magic began dimming so quickly-

My eyes scoured to area; the plants were beginning to heal themselves without the dark Fae's magic battling them, slowly rising, the vines were splitting, camping out at the cage whilst sending more out to my direction. I pulled my feet from the sludge and fled from the Garden's centre.

My eyes caught sight of some small Gozlugs, thier usually soft fur now dagger-like spikes as they pursued me, though I easily outran them due to thier lack of swiftness.
But then I found the pixies; six of them.
They were elongating... Thier usually small and frail bodies became twice the size of me, eyes white and thier elegant figures now showed bulbous bellys that hung over thier crotches.
I began running again, heading to my small house I only slept in; knowing my gardening tools I kept there would at least give me a chance of lasting in this garden...

I threw myself through the doorway, slamming the door. The pixies were throwing themselves at the door, causing it to shudder violently.
I found my gardening tools, taking my pliers and garden scissors and hastily attaching them to my side. I grabbed my only sickle and climbed out through the opposite side of the house through the window.

The shrieks of the pixies emitted from my house; I had got out just in time for them to break in. The entire garden was morphing into dangerous monsters to stop me from escaping-
I tripped on the stones, cutting my hands as I fell, my skin skimming across my sickle.
I gritted my teeth, continuing to plow through the mounds of upturned roots and mounds of sludge.
Before I knew it, i was at the birdcage; Orpheus was strung up by vines like a puppet, fixed to the bars of the cage. If I stared long enough, I could see the vines tightening around him, slithering over one another like patient snakes.

They were using Orpheus as bait, intending to lure me into a trap, I couldn't reach him upfront or the vines would catch me too.
I calculated for a moment, eyeing the vines securing him to the bars above the ground, they were rooted at the cage's rim. Quietly, I crawled through the slime to reach the rim.
When I did, I began sawing the vines with my sickle. They stopped tightening around the dark Fae above me, frozen.
I severed the next vine and Orpheus's bindings became limp, leaving him hanging over me terrifyingly, dangling like a loose apple.
Summing up all my courage, I gripped onto the vines, pulling myself up and climbing to his level.
Orpheus was unmoving, save for his wheezing chest as he was strangled by the vine around his neck. He looked like he was trying to breathe, but the vine through his teeth stifled any hope. Fearfully, I squeezed my sickle under his living collar- the blade slicing his skin only slightly- and snapped it.
After temporarily loosing my balance, I cut his living gag and held his face in my bloodied hand, lifting his limp face to meet my eyes, "Orpheus? Wake up! Wake up you stupid idiot!" I pleaded desperately, slapping his face in anticipation of any awakening.
All of a sudden, he burst to life, gasping for air, coughing and retching. My heart tightened in relief.
His eyes were heavy, reduced to slits, "Took you long enough... Thought you wouldn't come back..." He panted, wincing as I continued cutting the vines away.

"Of course I did- how else could you protect me if you're stuck up here?" I jested, trying to make the situation more positive, he huffed a laugh. His arm was now free, so he tried pulling at his bindings too.
Before I could finish, Orpheus's eyes suddenly widened, "Behind you-"

Long, spindly hands ripped me out of his reach. It was the pixies. I screamed and writhed in thier grip but they didn't flinch, lifting my legs above the slime and dragging me away.
Orpheus managed to lift his free arm to send a bolt of his magic flying into the the heads of three and ricocheted off into two more, causing them to drop me.
I grabbed my pliers and plunged them straight into the last pixie's eye before it could react, digging it deep inside until they stopped moving.
Tense, I turned around slowly, covered in my blood, Orpheus's blood, the pixie's and the monstrous plants' blood.
So much blood.
Orpheus was standing in front of me now, swaying slightly and covered in red gashes and bruising from the tight vines. How he'd unbound himself so quickly without my help, I didn't care.
Before I could talk, my legs buckled and I fell into his arms, sobbing.
He shushed me, "It's okay, I'm here now... Thanks to you..."

I felt him lift me up, then I then heard a beating of wings... But Orpheus had no wings-

I opened my eyes; we were flying.
With misted, black wings of foggy magic, Orpheus rose higher and higher into the sky, out of reach of the creatures below us, I knew I wouldn't see this Garden again... I never wanted to,

"I must reach the sky's limit to release us, but I must warn you we will be in reality- a completely new environment... And I will probably look different than I do here." Warned Orpheus carefully.

I looked up at him, my eyes locking into his, our bodies sticky with blood, mud and sludge,

"Quite frankly, anything looks better than us at the moment... Get us out of here, bird boy." I replied, he nodded,
"Alright Queenie." He mocked.

"You don't get to call me names."

He raised a brow, "And you do?"

"Who's the Queen here?" I argued, smirking.
He rolled his eyes, "You... I guess."

I lifted a hand to mockingly pat his head, "Good, now get us to the real world."

He obeyed, flying us higher. Looking down at the Garden, I could see the monsters shrieking at us to return, enraged at their failure to contain us, this would be the last time I saw it...
Then, I saw a bright light, Orpheus held a hand over my eyes to shield me as it engulfed us...

We were free...

**

Well at least that was a positive note...

Anyways, Rhae and Orpheus have left the Garden, so now I shall narrate thier journey in third person. This was a very quick chapter with a lot of action in it, I hope you enjoy the next as it is coming very soon!

JestersRoses X