The Borrower and the Fairy Prince

Chapter 43: Well That's Not Ideal

CW: Corruption (not the corruption curse, just the dark magic slowly killing Ignis)

Ignis stumbled along, his head pounding as he fell against a tree trunk. He felt sick, the dark magic eating at him. His wings were almost completely black now, only blue at the roots, and his eyes were black.

The dark magic was killing him. He needed to find some way to stop it. He racked his brain for anything that he's read about dark magic, he knew there was a way. Not every fairy that used dark magic was killed by it, they found ways. Though in the end they were executed, Ignis was sure to avoid letting that happen.

Thanks to learning the corruption curse, his touch was poisonous. Anyone who has half a brain will want to avoid him. Almost nothing can heal it.

Unfortunately that little rat had healed somehow. Ignis didn't know how he knew, but he felt the moment his curse was removed. Somehow someone removed it, and it's possible that the prince's guard had survived. It was a frustrating thought to say the least.

Ignis had risked everything to make sure the borrower died, so all of his effort had been for nothing. No, he couldn't allow that. He couldn't allow the borrower to live. Every second he breathed was a mockery to Ignis, it taunted him with how futile his plan had been from the start.

The elder stood up, continuing to walk. He had to come up with a plan to get the borrower alone, there's no way he'll beat two people in a fight in his condition. He wondered if he could even beat the borrower with how he is.

His magic was low, he could barely move plants anymore. The dark magic had replaced most of his nature magic, there was no getting it back.

Actually, Ignis wondered... if the dark magic could consume his nature magic, wouldn't it be possible for the dark magic to amplify what is left? If he mixed the two magics, he could be more powerful.

He turned to the bush next to him and reached out to it. Instead of focusing on his nature magic, he focused on his dark magic and closed his hand into a fist. It was slow at first, leaves turning brown and withering off.

He growled as his head started to hurt more, his eyes burning. It felt like fire started to crack down his cheeks, dark veins starting to form right under his eyes. It was hell, but he knew it was working so he didn't stop.

He twisted his fist. All at once, the bush turned black and every branch twisted till they were straight, twisted spikes. The pain stopped instantly as something broke in Ignis as his wings finally turned completely black. The dark veins under his eyes sizzled, though it didn't hurt him. His magic had been mixed, and he no longer felt sick! He's never felt more powerful.

~~~

"Where are we heading to?" the king asked, following two of the fairies that had been sent out to find Ignis.

Both prince's, Virgil, and Janus were there when the two fairies burst into the throne room with news of something the king must see. Roman had recognized the two as the same ones who were sent on look out just a few hours before.

"We think we might have found something related to Ignis," one of the fairies said, she had lilac wings and wind magic.

"It's a horrible sight," the other one shuddered. He has light green wings and is a nature fairy. He looked more shaken up than his partner, hugging himself.

Virgil stiffened, not knowing what to expect. Did Ignis find another victim for the corruption curse? Or is it something else? What if it's worse?

He flinched when he felt a hand on him, looking up to see Roman. The prince gave him a sad smile, and Virgil huffed. Though, he still took Roman's hand in his own. He squeezed it and felt Roman squeeze his back.

Janus kept an eye out for any signs of Ignis. So far, everything seemed normal. However as they walked closer to a tree, he noticed something black and spikey sticking out from behind it.

"It's over here," one of the guards said, walking towards whatever it was.

As they came closer, Janus was able to see that the black and spikey thing used to be a bush. Before he could take it all in, Remus stumbled back.

Janus looked back and took his hand, but the prince kept his eyes glued to what had been a normal bush. The black branches seemed to have twisted into dark spikes, dead leaves drained of all life laid below, and the tree next to it seemed to have turned black on its side.

"What happened to it?" Remus growled out.

"Remus?" the king softly asked.

The prince hesitantly walked closer, only to be stopped by the other nature fairy. The fairy shook his head and said, "Don't touch it. It... it'll hurt."

"It's sick!" Remus told him. "Can't you feel it? It needs to be healed!"

"I already tried, it won't work. It's... infected with dark magic."

"Ignis did this?" the king asked, scowling at the plant. "Why would he? He's a nature fairy! How could he hurt any plant!"

"He's corrupted by dark magic," the other fairy explained. "We believe he no longer has any sympathy for plants, or anything else for that matter. It seems he mixed his magic with dark magic, and this is the result."

"This is horrible," Roman said. He was no nature fairy, but he could feel the dark magic coming off of the deformed bush. "Is there anything we can do about it?"

The king took a deep breath and answered, "I'm unsure about it at the moment. I will call an emergency meeting with the council. Until we come to a decision, all of you are to tell no one of this, I don't want the colony to panic. Ignis has become even more dangerous."

Roman felt Virgil squeeze his hand twice. That was a signal they came up with should either want to go somewhere private, a system Emile had helped them make. The prince looked over to see Virgil was frowning, staring ahead with a dull look in his eyes as his ears drooped low.

He squeezed the borrower's hand and said, "We understand, we won't tell anyone. If that is all, Virgil and I will take our leave."