At The Heart of Tale Kingdoms (COMPLETED)

25.1 ELIA

The Stator's sister felt herself crumble, every emotion felt like a blade of ice piercing her chest. She opened her mouth to breath or cry but she could do none. The First just watched her even when she was chocking for air. Suddenly, she fell, through the sheets of time as everything rushed to her.

Elia closed her eyes and saw herself walking through the dark grand halls of Stata. Everything around her was as dark as her hair. She saw the formless, green and grey forms hovering around her as the figure of her commander, Ion told her where to launch the next attack and terror with her Marhem army. Everything was hazy and the scene faulty but Elia knew who she was.

She saw Cquirath, the red skies shinning above a heap of dead slaves, too starved to work so were left for dead under the unforgiving sun. She saw the colorless men being disrobed and bitten, barred and slashed, humiliated and beheaded as a spectacle of torture.

She heard the Marhem's ringing laughter in the dark lands. The carcass of animals lied decomposing. They had murdered the pride of the Darkese like sport. Slaves of all nations were forced to mine the precious stones of the dark lands to satisfy Ion's greed for riches. A greed she too had no trouble pleasing.

Elia glimpsed the Aseti men being thrown into the sea as Storan witches claimed they were too weak to fight or work the land. Their books and scripts were burnt and drowned.

She saw the wind stop in the Forgotten sea, the women and men of Caisther loosing hope and choosing to take their lives. She saw everything, even the Predanx watching her watch Erdunia succumbing and collapsing to darkness. In all the cruelty, she, the queen had felt joy, everything cruel brought her an overwhelming euphoria. She wanted the visions to stop but the events kept coming back.

The sun was about to set by the time the visions and memories withered down. Elia crawled on the ground weeping. The first pulled her to him and she couldn't find the strength to resist.

"How could I have been so cruel? I was the disgusting queen. Nine would hate me. Everyone would hate me. They could never forgive me" She spoke between sobs.

"It wasn't you. It was the Marhem, they controlled you." He answered rubbing her hair.

"Then how could I be so weak, to let them turn me into the devil. I should have stopped them"

"Then they could but no longer, it's time you show them your strength, your resilience, Evo." The first comforted. Elia tried to crawl away from his hold.

"Don't call me that. I am no longer her. That was another life, I am not who she was." The first pulled her, making her sit upright.

"You are who she was and is. It's a second chance to redeem yourself, to redeem ourselves."

"How could we. I led the Marhem. I basked, bathed and leapt in evil. You should have killed me for good. How could you give me another life. All that horror I just witnessed could repeat itself. Why want me back?" The First head fell to his hands grabbing his temples as if holding it in place.

"Because I loved you and you loved me. Our love was and will be great. I want to give us another chance." Elia moved away from him. That old love he was talking about was no longer there. The burden that remained was the cruelty. The first stood, raising her with him.

"We have to go to the Sycvoriss," Elia shook her head, trembling.

"We can't, you have to kill me, Nevis." The first shook her again.

"I can't, we only had three lives and this is our last. We won't come back again. This isn't some sort of constant reincarnation"

"Three lives?" Elia paused, trying to search for the right words. "You don't understand Nevis, the only thing good and innocent about Evo was you, the love she had for you. And that love... its.... everything else in Evo was vicious, brutal and inhumane. If the Marhem find me, there will be nothing in me strong enough to resist them. You are risking too much." The First paced back forth, turning his back to her as he hissed in anger. The son of god looked more disheveled.

"We have no other choice. Death is not the answer. We have to go to the dark lands and unbound you from the Marhem. The Predanx have convinced the dark child to free Storan from its curse. But she might also release those bound to the sea. Their army won't be enough. The Marhem will try to find you."

Elia staggered, panic stricken and frightened.

"I won't be able to stop them."

"Yes, you will. The Forgotten sea and the dark lands are hard places for them to find you. The darkese aren't Storan witches, they are mastered sorcerers, their lands are guarded with strong spells. The Marhem are not as strong without their leader."

"Would that be enough?" she asked him. The first held her face and tried to kiss her but Elia flinched away.

"Our love is still pure, use that to shield you," he whispered. Elia moved away from his touch bringing a distance between them.

"We need to leave before Nine returns. No one should know who we are or where we go. Light is waiting with our supplies on the ranges. We can both ride on Blood and meet him. I can conceal us till then." Elia looked at him in disbelief.

"You will use sorcery. I thought it was forbidden among the Yth-Ird." Elia asked as The First tried to rush her to the wall of holes.

"I am Nevis, I was never born in Yth."

"Then where are you from?" Elia inquired, confused.

"The dark lands."

"But you're colorless."

"Yes, the colorless are not only born in this caldera or Storan, you should know this. Nevis was born in the dark lands and lived there. Only in this life was I born in Storan and taken to Yth."

"I don't understand." Elia said as she stopped walking "You are The First, isn't that supposed to mean something. Isn't your first duty to Yth-Ird and their ways?"

"I was named after The First to take up his post when he passes. Technically I am the second First. The ways of Yth do not bound me. I do what needs to be done."

"What happens if I refuse to go to the Sycvoriss. What if the Predanx truly succeed in annihilating the Marhem." Elia asked.

"That is unlikely, the ones at sea are too many and slow to rise. It will be too late before they find out what they have done. If you stay here, Evo, Yth-Ird will try to get rid of you." Elia's mind froze.

"They were planning to kill me? Do they know who I am? All this time?" her voice was shaking.

"Some do. They would have already if it wasn't for Nine. He has protected your identity, lying of your true nature or just failing to see it.." The first started walking again down the green field but Elia stopped him.

"I don't think I can make this expedition with you. I am not Evo, I am Elia Ron. I don't know how to put this but If I am to survive this journey, It is Nine who I should leave with, not you. I love another."

Elia felt the time stop. The first only looked at her, his face not that of disappointment but unexpected confirmation. He chuckled then turned it to a full laughter.

"Twin potion, Two hundred and twenty-nine versus The First." He said laughing at the sky. "The Irony of this."

"What are you laughing about?" Elia asked not finding any humor.

"It doesn't matter. Let's find Nine, we'll all go. At the end, you will know which man truly loves you for who you are."