She would trade all the spells in the world if it meant she could tell a lie.
✥✥✥✥✥
Merle of Thorne is An Anthology of short stories made from prompts under the Fantasmical Contest 2023.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
✥✥✥✥✥
Horns and Halos don't fit well.
And Merle could see the reason staring back at her in the face.
Only a few hours prior, she had been counting crystals of sugar and planning her escape from the horrid creature that had subjected her to her weakness.
That was until she was almost done and at the 3493rd crystal when the monster swiped away the few crystals left, and she glared at it from her place on her knees.
She had asked bitterly, "Why did you clear it now? Is it time for you to kill me?"
It sneered at her before it said, "No." Then it frowned and tilted its head at her before it finally said, "How do you even know an angel?"
And that was how she found herself, roped into a scheme to save the world. In more accurate terms, to save humans.
She was en route to save the same creatures who had made fun of her.
She knew there was a cost when the angel intervened to spare her from the fate the monster had planned for her.
After all, what else was to be expected from a celestial being that only worked according to the command its creator gave it?
In exchange for her newly bought freedom, she had to embark on a journey with the angel to The Court of Silvers. Why?
Dia de las Brujas.
The Day of The Witches was a festival in Spain occurring on the same day as Halloween.
The angel told her of a plot by witches to use this day to come out of their pocket realms and slaughter humans. They had to stop this.
At first, she questioned, "Why me? What can I possibly do to help?"
"You are Fae. That's the reason," the angel said. Its wings were wider than she had ever seen and shone whiter than snow. It stood grander than her, and she had to crane her neck every time she looked at it.
Just when she was about to ask if it would be only the two of them, there was a rip in the floor beneath them; heat and crimson smoke poured out as the rip widened before another creature crawled out. This one was unlike the angel that stood beside her.
It had horns for halos, and instead of white wings, its own were black as night.
Its aura of doom and destruction and its fiery, terrifying eyes were in stark contrast to the angel's calm aura.
Maybe that was the only reason they couldn't get along.
"All you do is sit up there and eat cherries and almonds," the demon, Clisthert, said.
"There are other fruits than those two." The angel Kafziel's voice was cool to Merle's ears and soothed every nerve, yet that was the same reason it unnerved her.
"Ha! How arrogant, yet we were the ones that were banished."
"It is simple, we banished you for your misdeeds that made you unworthy of the heavenly abode."
"Unworthy! How dare you call us unworthy!"
"It is the truth."
"If we are unworthy, why did you call on us for help?"
"We didn't do so. The Divine commanded you and you could not refuse."
"Could not! Didn't He give us free will? Where is the free will now?"
Kafziel was about to retort, but Merle had to jump in. They had been standing where Clisthert emerged from and hadn't moved since.
"That is enough!" she shrieked and the two beings turned to her as if now realising she was there.
"How are we supposed to reach this Court of Silvers if we stand here with you two bickering at each other? Kafziel, why do you need to do this?" she asked.
"You don't need to know my reasons."
"Okay. And you, Clisthert, why?"
Clisthert scoffed. "If he isn't going to disclose his reason, then I won't."
"Fine then. We shall stand here as you both argue. Even better, I'll join in. It seems so much fun standing here in the dark and the middle of the forest shouting at each other and complaining about almonds, cherries, and worthiness.
"While we do that, those witches you mention Kafziel will keep planning, and we might just be here when they carry out their schemes. How does that sound to both of you?" she asked rhetorically before letting out an annoyed sigh.
The distant croak of frogs and the rustle of trees filled the surrounding space.
"If we want to do this, then we have to do it together. We can't work together if all we do is shout at each other."
Merle's little speech seemed to have set the beings' eyes back on the task as they set out in silence, resuming their search for The Court of Silvers.
They finally located an entrance in the wee hours of the following morning thanks to Kafziel, who knew the path and guided them.
After being granted access, they had to wait for two hours before they could see the court.
"Today, we have granted you permission to speak to the Court of Silvers. The trio of the angel, Kafziel, the demon, Clisthert and the fae folk, Merle of Thorne. What is it you seek to ask?"
It was Kafziel who spoke.
"We have come seeking your alliance to assist us in putting a stop to the plot of the witches to slaughter humans on the-"
"We know of this plot," the person who sat at the centre of the table droned with a bored expression. "But you have to get a certain witch to back out from the attack. Only then will we join your alliance."
"Who is she?" Merle asked.
"Xiomara Guerrera Bardales"
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
