Oceanum Collis

•Chapter 46• The Betrayal

"What are you doing here?" Serena asked. Valeria stepped closer to them. "I could ask you the same thing," she said. "Valeria, we have been searching for you. The others are probably still looking for you." Serena tells her sternly. Valeria's blue siren eyes were focused on the she-elf. She seemed angry with her. "You should be dead." She whispered. Serena glared at her friend. "What do you mean?" She asked. Suddenly, Orlando pushed her behind him. The young man furrowed his eyebrows as he was starting to piece everything together.
"It was you," he said. The two girls looked at him. "What?" Serena said. He turned his head towards the mermaid. He stepped closer to her. "She sold us out. She told him what we were up to. That's why he knew we were here." Orlando pointed out. Valeria had a slight smirk planted on her lips. "Clever boy." She said quietly.  Orlando turned around to look at Serena again. "That's why he tried to kill you." He added. Serena looked at the mermaid. "You wanted me dead." She filled in. Valeria nodded and hummed in response. Orlando walked back towards Serena. He placed his hands on her arms in a comforting way. But Serena pushed his hands away as she continued to look at Valeria with a look that grew angrier by the second. "You wanted to kill me." She said. "I wanted to kill you years ago." She started, "And yet, here you stand. Alive." Valeria replied. The elven princess started to get closer to the mermaid. "Well then why didn't you?" Serena asked in a challenging tone. The mermaid glanced at her hands and arrogantly checked her nails. 

"You know me, Serena. I don't like to get my hands dirty." She explained. "So you asked him for help," Serena said quietly. It was almost a whisper. "Humans are, indeed, useless," Valeria spoke. She shot a deadly glare at Serena. "Not to mention that you're part human as well." She continued. Serena looked at her friend with a worried look in her eyes.
"What happened to you? I thought you were on our side." Serena started. You could hear a slight tremble in her voice. No matter how tough she appeared, she felt heartbroken by the betrayal of her oldest, and closest, friend. Orlando looked around to check if the guards were getting closer. They must be still searching for them. "No, no," Valeria said. There were now only two inches between the two girls. Valeria tilted her head slightly as she pressed her finger on Serena's collar bone. "I was on your side. I was until you betrayed me." Her voice was harsh and cold just like her mother's. Orlando reached out to grab Serena's hand. "We have to leave, now." He tells her.
The footsteps of the guards were approaching. And they would come in large groups. They let them escape once, but never again. This time they would get to them. "This is about Asher," Serena spoke quietly. "Well, aren't you a clever girl? Were you two the top of your class or something?" Valeria taunted them. Serena bit down on her bottom lip. "Serena we need to leave," Orlando repeated. Her hand trailed down and she grabbed Serena's hand. "Val-" Serena started. "I've seen the way he looks at you." Valeria pointed out. Serena looked down at her feet. "And I would give anything for him to look at me that way." She added. The she-elf was frightened by what was coming next. She could feel the grip on her hand becoming tighter. But within a few seconds, Valeria's grip loosened again. Serena looked into her friend's eyes. "But he looks at you. And I want him to look at you." She said. Serena furrowed her eyebrows.
"What? You mean that?" She asked. Valeria nodded and smiled. "I want you both to be happy." She tells him. "So what you said in the forest. That meant nothing?" Serena questioned. "You betrayed me!" Valeria tells her. Serena took a step back while she shook her head. "No," she said in a breathy voice. She inhaled deeply. "You tried to kill me," She said calmly. Orlando's ears picked up the sound of a blade being pulled from its holster. He glanced down to see Serena pulling out her sword. "After everything I've done for you!" She screamed. The she-elf jumped up and swung her sword at the mermaid.

In the distance, guards were approaching. Erix had ordered all of the royal guards to chance down and return Orlando and Serena. The emperor was making his way into his chamber. He was holding onto the stone he had stolen from the mirror. When he pushed open the door he immediately rushed over to his desk. He pulled out the piece of paper that had the magical words written on them. The words that would bring back the love of his life. The spell that could bring back those who passed. He whispered the words. The stone lit up in his hands.
He stood there waiting for a few seconds in silence. "Erix?" He heard behind him. He turned around to see a ghostly-looking Rachel standing behind her. "Where are you going?" The young man questioned. The girl in front of him licked her lips and looked at him with dreamy eyes. "Darling?" He said. The girl was slightly shorter than him. Her hair was a dirty blonde color, almost brown, and her eyes were bright blue. She pulled Erix along with her behind some buildings. "Why won't you tell me where we're going?" The young Erix questioned. The girl continued to walk into a small alleyway. Erix followed her, keeping their fingers locked. Suddenly, she stopped. Erix frowned at her as she let go of his hand.
She kneeled and pushed some of the rocks aside from the wall, revealing a small gap. "Come on, let's go." She whispered. Erix shook his head. "We're not allowed to go beyond the wall," he said. The girl rolled her eyes and groaned. "Fine, I'll go without you." She said. Before she could squeeze herself through, Erix protectively grabbed her and pulled her back. "No, don't do that it's not safe," he tells her. The blonde girl turned her head to look at him. "You're scared, aren't you?" She questioned. Erix didn't answer her question. "Aw, don't worry, I'll protect you." She teased him. "It's cute that you want to protect me, but you're like a foot shorter than me and-" he started. The girl rolled her eyes again. "You're just scared. Come on, let's go." She said. Erix pulled her back once again.
This time, he turned them around so he was standing in front of the small gap so she could no longer escape. "It's not safe out there. We are not sneaking out." He tells her. The girl groaned in response. "Hey," Erix started. He gently grabbed her chin between his fingers. "Promise me." He ordered. Although she appeared to be a ghost at first, her skin slowly turned normal. Her eyes became blue again and her hair dirty blonde.
"What happened?" Rachel asked. The emperor just stood there, his eyes opened wide. The love of his life had just returned to him. He stepped closer to her. "Oh my god."