Fairytale Fate: The Legend Begins

♚ C H A P T E R • T W E N T Y - S E V E N ♚

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"I've had victories and I've had losses. and I've learned that it's the losses that require us to be brave." - King Arthur
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Bailey lightly kissed Tristan's forehead before pouring a fistful of dirt over his lifeless body. She used a pocketknife to carve an intricate design into the wooden plank beside him. A tree stood in the center of branches and roots that curled around it and connected to one another, creating a never-ending cycle.

"I can hear horses in the distance," Robin warned. "Bailey, we need to go."

With a quivering lip, Bailey wiped the tears from her face with her dirty hands and said her final goodbyes to Tristan. "There will be justice for you," Bailey whispered in a shaky voice before tracing the tree design with her finger. "A vita ad mortem, pacem invenies." She spoke a soft "I love you" before burying her face in Robin's chest.

Robin slowly led her to the horses, helping her onto one of them as Aura took the reins.

Their steeds quickly fled the fiery town, eager to be free of the ashy, polluted air. As they rode, Bailey wrapped her arms around Aura, sobbing into her shoulder. As the sun went down, Bailey's eyes finally dried and she fell into a light slumber until they found suitable spot for camp.

That night Bailey didn't join them around the fire, instead opting to sit by herself in the moonlight.

Each night that followed as they traveled to the Crystian palace, Bailey woke in a cold sweat from a nightmare, and each night, she would sharpen her sword by the campfire, her eyes trained on the flickering flames. She hardly spoke a word as her three friends theorized ways to obtain the Letters of Destiny, her mind numbed by the pain.

"Hey, Bailey," Aura cautiously approached her friend on their third night of travel. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

Bailey shook her head but cleared her throat before Aura could walk away. "I'm sorry. I know that stakes are high, and I need to focus."

Aura's eyebrows furrowed as she placed a hand on Bailey's shoulder. "No, don't worry about it. You should take all the time you need to grieve."

The brunette nodded, her neutral expression morphing into a sorrowful one before she let out a soft sob.

"Bailes..." Aura trailed off in a whisper, pulling Bailey into a tight embrace and petting her head.

"How am I supposed to tell my mother that her youngest child is dead? I couldn't find my father's body, that should give me hope—but it doesn't. What if Hunter brought him to Onyx and she killed him right on the spot?"

Aura pulled away and looked into Bailey's eyes. "We will find your father, alright?" She held out her pinky finger. "I promise."

A small smile that didn't reach her eyes formed on Bailey's lips as she half-heartedly twisted her smallest finger with Aura's.

Carolyn watched them from a distance, her knees tucked to her chest. Her posture straightened as Robin sat next to her. "How can someone do that—and to a little kid?"

Robin shrugged. "Some people are just purely evil at heart. That's why we've gotta keep going."

"I don't think I know how to keep going at this point," Carolyn stated bluntly with a sigh, her eyes meeting Robin's. "How many more people are Onyx and her minions gonna kill? How many more innocent children?" Carolyn looked down as her voice broke through her last words.