War of the Heart

Sabrina

All this time, Sabrina had tried to stay out of anything that could corrupt her. She'd tried to be a passive presence that went along with what the spirits and the Chèr thought was right. That wasn't possible anymore.

So, when Akwokwe denied them access to the king the next morning, she straight out asked whether the princess would prefer the end of the world. Merari hugged her and kissed her cheek in the thrill of it all.

They met him in their sitting room. It was difficult to start the conversation because maids kept coming in on his sister's orders, bringing him food and coffee.

'Please tell my sister I'm fine,' said Sutoku. He didn't look fine. His eyebags seemed to be the size of his actual eyes.

The servant tensed up and hurried out. Before another could come, Merari blocked the door with a stool.

'Is this about Medea? I'm afraid her trial has been pushed back because her legal representative has gone missing. And so has the judge. And members of the jury...' He rubbed a weary hand over his cheeks and eyes.

Realisation struck. 'They haven't left because of you.'

Sutoku glanced up. His frown made it perfectly clear he didn't believe her.

'What the heck, you were blaming yourself?' said Merari. 'You're going to be a great king Sutoku, trust me. Although you're going to have a rough start.' She nodded at the Chèr to start explaining.

'This would actually be easier with Medea. There are gaps in my memory... She destroyed quite a few.'

'Fine, then I'll do it,' grumbled Merari. 'Up until now, Tiresias has been possessed by a destruction spirit that wanted an Eseterrian. Kaya went feral and attacked her, now the spirits are pissed at each other so Detruienn is trying to crumble the kingdom and end the world.'

Sutoku pinched himself. Tiredly, he sighed. 'You're telling me, there's a sixth spirit whose essentially at war with us?'

'Exactly,' said Merari. 'She killed the Eseterrians, the old Chèr and your father. She also framed Medea and was pro-war because... destruction.'

Sutoku buried his head in his hands. The Chèr unhelpfully handed him a slip.

'Could you sign that so that Medea can be brought out of her cell?'

Waiting for the Voire, Sabrina wished she had the power to heal minds. Sutoku struggled to stay upright and the courtier's smile on his face was incredibly forced. Merari awkwardly patted his shoulder, but no-one else offered him any sympathy.

The past week had scarred Medea just as much. Her normally glossy hair was a tangled mess. Her dress was torn and her nails jagged and dirty. Any trace of rosiness was gone. Her youth had been traded for the look of a malnourished thirty year old.

She raised her gaze to meet the Chèr's. 'Welcome back, Tiresias. What review would you give possession?'

Before Sutoku could question her, Emilee hissed, 'Why didn't you tell us? You may have been innocent, but you could have spared us.'

'You think I enjoyed keeping all this to myself? But it was easier to keep the future fully in my hands that way and I had everything sorted out.'

'It wasn't your call to make!'

'Says the one who played host to a destruction spirit for three months.'

'Couldn't you have just got the original Eseterrians to help her get her Eseterrian?' Arcane wearily suggested.

'Ellux said Gadeden told her Eseterrian not to...' Emilee explained.

'The original Eseterrians were too caught up in tradition by then. The only option was for them to die. I had it all figured out, but then... Gadeden was so stuck up she decided she'd screw that up for everyone. She didn't mind ruining the future though because she figured I could fix that. And then Detruienn, who I'd been helping all along screwed me over while the future was still settling and now I have no clue what's coming.' The accusation weighed heavy in her voice. 'I'm assuming the future that occurred involved Kaya trying to murder her and being aided by Toutelé.'