My eyes fixated on her soft red locks that lay wet upon her own blood. I knelt before my beloved maid's decapitated head. My fingers trembled hard as I touched her face down to her neck. I trailed my hands on the details of the sapphire necklace as I looked at Vivian's half-open eyes.
The sides of my eyes darkened as they shook nonstop—no, it was my whole body that was quivering. Everything around me was being painfully loud. I could not feel anything but the throbbing of my own head.
My ears were ringing, my throat hurt so badly. I had the desperate urge to scream, but not a sound wanted to come out.
This is my entire fault. If only I didn't force them to attend. If only I had allowed them to stay in their quarters. If only this banquet never happened. Then no one would have died.
A large shadow slowly crept nearer. As I lifted my gaze, a pair of glowing white eyes was looking at me.
I stared at the creature, cold sweat trickling down on my back. Its luminous white hollow of a mouth twisted into a sinister smile the longer we made eye contact.
The shadow monster barred its sharp claws above me. Is this going to be how I die for the second time?
My mother's lovely smile flashed through my mind. No, I can't die. Not like this. But my feet contain no strength, I can't move my body. I have to run-
A blaze of fire knocked out the shadow creature just as it was about to pounce.
Someone gripped my shoulder tightly and shook me out of my trance. "Snap out of it!"
An image of a boy with shoulder-length blue hair gradually came into focus. "Shit, Calla. Breathe!"
I blinked several times before releasing my lungs. "L-Lavi…"
My eyes heated up. But Lavi's were full of determination.
"You can cry later when we're done saving your father and the others."
"W-what…"
"Stand up! We have to fight. Even your ugly Everbeast is doing its job."
As Lavi helped me stand up, I looked around me and found everyone I came here with fighting neck and neck with the monsters.
Erion was thrown into a table but he quickly regained his footing.
"You'll pay for that!" The prince with ebony hair shouted as he rammed his sword into the shadow creature's stomach.
But the monster didn't even flinch even with a sword lodged into its body. It smiled cheekily in a way that sent chills on my nape.
Then Erion smirked. His sword glowed into a dark violet mixed with crackling… lightning?
Light wove its way through the creature's body, making them burst into fading black dusts in the air.
"That is why I always tell you to never lose focus while in the middle of fighting." said Prince Alistair as he thrust his sword towards another shadow creature.
The moment it struck the monster, his weapon produced a golden light inside it. The shadow creature shrieked as it curled its long claws in pain before disappearing into nothingness.
My heart stopped when I saw a flying monster looming above the golden-haired prince. "Look out-"
A pearly white beam of light shot the monster down, it crashed just in front of Prince Alistair. I traced where it came from and saw Shire, his tails waved proudly.
"How?"
"Listen." Lavi turned to me. "Remember when we told you that a spirit guide shares the owner's power?"
I nodded.
"Did you see what your Everbeast did? It came from you. He already has a small fraction of your power. What you can do, Shire can."
The inside of my chest pounded restlessly. "Then, that means…?"
Lavi nodded in approval. "Think you can do it?"
"Yes."
"Then follow my lead."
"Wait, where's Sein-"
Lavi rolled his hazel eyes. "I told him to gather all the remaining survivors to safety while we distract those monsters. Now, let's go."
Before following him, I crouched down and took the necklace from Vivian's neck and swept her eyes closed in the process. Remembering the saying that the Flos people's souls return to heaven when they die, I muttered my final words to my maid.
"Thank you for everything. Please rest in solitude on my mother's gardens."
Lavi was holding my arm as we joined into the array with the two brothers, Shire giving support and watching out for their backs.
The wizard beside me summoned magic circles on each hand. Arrows of ice and fire materialized before him, shooting down the monsters that were about to dive towards us.
Lavi was onto summoning magic again. Wasting no moment further, I beckoned the power of the Pure Light inside me. My heart swelled with warmth as I drew out a hand. I willed the ball of light hovering above my palm to attack the shadow creature that crawled past dead bodies, seemingly looking for more prey.
The light on my hand shot out in laser-like form through the space between me and the monster. I repeated the process again and again. Shire jumped on my shoulder and took care of my back.
The fizzing sound of the lightning from Erion's sword, the golden light from Prince Alistair, Lavi's elemental magic attacks and my light beams swarmed across the banquet hall.
"Why are there so many of them?" Erion grunted from behind me.
"They keep coming from that hole on the roof." said Prince Alistair while huffing and puffing.
"Where did these bitches… come from, anyway? You think someone here... destroyed their nest or something?" Lavi was panting for air.
"I haven't read about any animal like this." I said as I took a step backwards.
Many of them were already drawing closer to me.
When I took another step back, I bumped into someone else.
I looked behind and found that the four of us were now cramped into tight space. Did we… just hit into each other's backs? As our gazes landed at one another, our eyes grew wide. Shire hissed continuously from my shoulder.
"We're fucking surrounded!" shouted Lavi.
I quickly faced back towards the monsters who kept trudging closer, wearing their horrific smiles. I drew my hands at the ready, shooting a beam of light at every shadow creature that came close.
"If only we can make a huge ball of light to kill all of them instantly." Prince Alistair said.
"Wait…" Erion was mumbling something. "That's it, a huge ball of light!"
"Oh great, didn't know you were a parrot now." said Lavi.
"No dumbass, what I mean is that time when Calla summoned too much perithia."
All of our head turned to the black-haired prince. His onyx eyes were shrouded with happiness.
"Good, so you turn into a genius in a life and death situation." Prince Alistair mused.
"Do it, Calla. We'll cover for you." Lavi said while taking a step in front.
The three of them formed a circle around me.
I started to raise my arms to the sky. Calming myself, I focused on heeding the roses from outside. I pleaded them to provide me their perithia.
After a moment, streaks of glowing gold threads started to weave their way above my hands.
"Don't overdo it or you'll faint like last time." warned Lavi.
"Then how am I supposed to make it explode?" I asked, remembering that the reason my ball of aether blew up was because I called in a three month's worth of it.
"I don't know. You figure it out."
I am totally going to smack his head after this.
When I felt like it was big enough, I willed my hands to wave over the perithia, spinning it into aether.
"You have to hurry, Calla." said Prince Alistair.
"I'm on it."
I closed my eyes, feeling stupid about the only idea I had to make this ball of light burst.
'Explode!' I commanded.
'Blow up!'
'Burst!'
'Explode!'
'Blow up!'
I groaned. "Explode, you son of a bitch!"
Then a bright wave of light invaded the surroundings.