Ayvah's POV:
For the first time in so many days, so many years was I surprised enough to lose my bearings for a moment. I was yet to decide if the surprise was pleasant enough to warrant the slip up.
"Gather around one and all,
Dark knights and fair maidens all,
Hear this ancient tale reborn,
Of elves, Fae and the fire-born.
Of mighty kingdoms long since blown to ash,
Of ancient queens with swords as their only sash.
Hear the drums and mighty trumpet singing the war beat,
Witness hearts ensconced in such cold and heat,
A tale of hatred,love and emotions galore,
Of nightmares given flesh from folklore.
This is where truths blur and lies shine,
Where love sighs and hatred dines.
Each side of the same scarred coin,
Each breath on the same keel anoin,
Where myths become reality,
Where the only truth is partiality.
A lie older than time,
A truth just as serpentine.
Come, Gather around one and all,
Dark knights and fair maidens all,
Hear this ancient tale reborn,
Of elves, Fae and the fire-born."
Cressida snapped the book shut and let out a content sigh and said in that dreamy voice of hers which she often got after reading a book, "Such enticing words, pieced together so beautifully, if only reality could be spun on the spindle of fiction, if only it could all come true, if only....."
I could only nod my head in agreement, too drained to get into an argument with her this early in the day, especially when she was in such a mood and her eyes had that gleam which challenged any one to dare disagree with her.
It seemed that her romanticism was limited to books, the blood around her did not seem to bother her in the least.
But truth be told, the prettily spun words did not matter to me, had stopped mattering a long time ago. Not much mattered to me these days, nothing seemed good enough when all I wanted could be brought to me with the snap of a finger. I had told her as much the first time those many weeks ago, which now seemed like so many days, so many moments away. Her reaction was not a pretty one despite her romanticism of almost everything. Needless to say I had no interest in revisiting the ensuing argument.
Her smile seemed so soft, so innocent. If only she knew what was going on my mind. If only she knew.....
And then that soft smile of hers transformed into something more, something so sinister that it should have been a subject of nightmares, which had been the subject of many nightmares.The smirk on Cressida's face would send even the best of men cowering, and yet it was not the smirk which was so terrifyingly beautiful, it was the transformation that caused me to remember of another time, when it was..... No I couldn't, wouldn't let myself wonder, wouldn't let myself delve deeper into that never ending abyss, stomping out the flicker of hope that dared to rear its head. It simply wasn't possible.
"Ayvah, Ayvah, Ayvah, the book reminds me of something, some beautiful fairytale drenched in blood. Who's blood? Yours? Mine? Cohen, you tell me was it yours brother?" Her voice subtly stressed out the last word, each syllable she uttered had an exotic touch to it, the smirk never wavering, while the gleam in her eyes turning it sultry, sheer amusement visible in those orbs, all a reminder of it. And so the hope reared its head once more, higher than ever before, and so I allowed it to echo through every pore of mine, let it flow freely.
"Cressida? Is it true? Are you-" That was all that Cohen could say before Cressida's voice echoed in our minds, " Can you please keep your mouth shut! Cohen how I wished you had some intelligence to go along with your brute strength, but as I am stuck with you- her sigh echoed through our psyche as she continued, I have to make do with whatever I have. Well Ayvah I think it would be better to leave as the Kïvæh Stûçåm are circling about, waiting for us to slip up. And you guys can fuss over me when we are safe. I mean our level of safe. Oh! And I love you too, I mean I don't want you to feel left out." I somehow knew that the last sentence was aimed at me, and I couldn't help but let a soft smile from blooming on my face, before it all went to hell. For the Kïvæh Stûçåm. Well they shouldn't have been so gullible and clumsy.
Whatever
The journey back was uneventful, other than the pathetic attempt made by the Kïvæh Stûçåm, it seemed that the others were completely unaware about our identity. Even those grey-skinned demons seemed to not recognize us, attacking us simply because of the book in our hands, which was perfectly fine by me.
The book was a mere excuse, it's contents already imprinted in my mind. After all it was my personal diary. The fact that they had forgotten about me, yet treated this book as a treasure was hilarious at its best. Even after so many decades, they still needed me, even if it was in the form of a mere book.
"It's been years since we last came upon it, I wonder how that human got it. It's no wonder that they stooped as low as they did, if mere humans can get their hands on their prized possessions." Although she didn't laugh out loud, it was apparent that she found the situation hilarious, which was so typical of her. It's been 13 years since she had last uttered the word, human with such contempt, yet for all the bitterness it oozed out, it was comforting to hear her speak. I was cruelty reincarnate for some people, yet when it came to Cressida, it was my true personality which showed, no mask could hold my emotions at bay as I flung myself at her, hugging her, the true her after so long.
Tears dripped down my eyes, yet I couldn't find it in me to try and control it, not when her tears mingled with mine, not when she was hugging me back with equal ferocity, not when even Cohen had tears leaking down his eyes. Words couldn't express the sheer joy of that moment, and so I let our bond snap into place once more, the only way in which I knew how to express myself.
As soon as it formed, the memories of our first meeting came rushing back, all the memories of another time.
From the time before:
"Princess, the time has come. They need your help. The shadows are gathering again. The assassin's creed are strengthening their ties and-"
I wasn't interested in her ramblings so I turned towards her, the illusion which I had created breaking.
I saw the fear in her eyes the moment she realised who was standing before her, and that their spies were wrong, very wrong for I was not about to be stopped, definitely not by a princess,who didn't even know how to wield a sword. Oh! And the fact that I was a girl and not a wizard must have shocked her as well.
I watched as her mouth parted in horror as the features of her beloved princess melted to reveal my face, and I simply watched as the light left her eyes as she struggled to wrap her mind about the fact that her people were doomed.
And then I began my work once more, morphing the shadows to my will, spinning more illusions as I once more became someone I was not, as I wore the face of the maid who tried to warn her princess, as I became one with my enemies, one of their most trusted pawns.
I hid my smirk behind the mask of meekness and morphed my lethal grace into the clumsy shuffle of a servant girl, all the while watching her body melt into nothingness.
I turned, just in time to see the princess enter her chamber, all the while lost in her bubble, not even noticing the tang of death in her room.
"Princess, the time has come."
Also there is an edit which I would love to share but it's only available on Wattpad (and it's free)
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My URL is LucyQueenOriginal21
And the book is named Shadows
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