The Prodigies: The Return of Equinox

Chapter Forty-Eight: Ordered - Seed

It was late in the night when Voleria returned to the inn and later still when Ellondra returned. Voleria had slept a while, but Ellondra was awake the entire time. She had bags under her eyes, and the bruises on her face had begun to enlarge. She had more on her arms and whatnot, but she didn't care about those, not really. She had wandered around the trade town all through the night and thought of what Voleria said.

When she returned she woke up Celesta who had rigged a spell to detect movement. Ellondra apologized for waking her and about everything. Celesta dismissed her and continued to sleep after she waved away anything Ellondra tried to say. Ellondra didn't really like that, but she wouldn't pay much mind right now. She was just tired.

That night Ellondra dreamt of a large field filled and littered with bodies. Death hung in the air thick and unwavering. There was no wind, and the only living person left was Celesta. She carried a thin sword made for puncturing armor, and wore sparse plate with leather. Blood came down her forehead and a crown sat perfectly upon her head, as though it had grown from her skull. Ellondra was sitting in a large throne made of a single piece of ivory. She wore white furs over full plate armor, and by her side was a thick, heavy, black sword. She touched her head to check for a crown, but there was nothing except her own head. She made a move to stand, but found herself awake in the morning.

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Ellondra groaned as she lifted herself upright on her bed. Her body hurt all over, but it wasn't a new pain. She had felt like this at times when she and Fox would spar and take it a little too far. After a few moments she realized that she was the only one left in the room, but from what she could tell it was still the morning. As she stood up she checked herself for any broken bones. She sighed with relief as nothing felt serious; She was glad that she didn't need Mel to heal her.

At this thought, Ellondra's train of thought veered off the rails, slid down a 90% grade for a 1000 feet, hit the bottom and exploded. Mel could heal her. With magic. Magic that shouldn't work on her. Magic that she should be resistant to. She quickly quieted down her thoughts. She had decided that this wasn't information that Celesta should know about, not that it would be able to help her. It must be friendly magic, or consented magic that works. She dismissed the idea and started to pack what little she had lying around.

When Ellondra walked out of the inn she found everybody waiting for her in the wagon.

"Come on!" said Seilan. As Ellondra hurriedly shuffled over to put her bag in the wagon she made eye contact with Celesta. She hadn't noticed how sharp her eyes were, the piercing light blue was like an ice whose coldness had no equal. She felt a familiar fear run down her spine, but pushed through anyways. Maybe that was the answer she was looking for.

After quite a few miles of travel Ellondra finally spoke up and tried to apologize to Celesta again. Celesta only acknowledged her with a look. She said nothing in return, but nodded slightly. Ellondra decided that she would need a nap.

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The dream came back, but it was just a bit different from before. Ellondra stood tall over a beaten and battered Celesta. The thin sword she had before was a few meters away and was broken. Her own sword was still a solid chunk of black metal. Celesta was kneeled down over a block where she rested her head. Celesta faced Ellondra with a look that roamed between defeat and loathing. Her crown no longer sat on her head, but sat upside-down next to the wooden block. Celesta had been brought low, and dirt caked her appearance while Ellondra was clean and without mark. She raised her sword without wanting to and almost brought it down before waking up again.

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"What's wrong?" asked Celesta. A tone of indifference betraying the meaning of the question.

"Nothing. Bad dream."

"I have a talisman for that."

"Talisman?"

"It's like an always active magic that lies dormant until certain conditions are met. Most of the time they activate when there's enough energy around them."

"But what about this dream one?"

"It gathers any energy you give off, and it prevents bad dreams by using that gained energy to give you a gentle nudge to some more tolerable things."

"Oh, well that sounds pretty nice, but I don't know if it'll work on me."

"Try it, here." Celesta dug into one of her bags and brought out a small blue and black rock that hung on a simple string necklace. "It's something I made a long time ago, but I don't really have a use for it anymore."

"Why are you doing this?" asked Ellondra. Celesta cocked her head a bit in response to the question. She looked down, and then at the rock.

"I think that maybe I've been a little too hostile. Consider this a small gesture towards peace. From one Queen to another. After all, once this is all over, I don't know if I want to keep fighting against people who were fighting with me. I think that it's maybe time for me to stop making enemies." Celesta made eye contact with Ellondra once again, but it wasn't the same as before. The color hadn't changed, but the feeling had. It wasn't an ice, but rather a gentle clear sky.

Celesta noticed a change as well. The light purple from before held mystery, unknown danger, and lost identity. They now held a peaceful, but firm feeling; a strong future of peace that benefitted all involved lived in her eyes.

The Queen of the Magi and the Queen of Hevania, two Prodigies, two peoples, two women, both focused on the lives of those they are responsible for.