Astoria was silent the whole time, closely watching the moving images floating above Keya's hands. She was thankful that the elf had this kind of spell. It really helped her get a better sense of what led to Nexi and her sibling's parents' deaths, as well as the animosity between them. She stared at the image of the orc standing next to Morvin and Naida, completely disgusted at its appearance.
"We were going to be generous and not kill you at all," it said, "but I guess you do not plan on being obedient."
With that, one orc rushed towards Nexi's mother. She pushed her daughter to the side, and falling to the other side of the road, the daughter watched as her mother conjured a spell she had never seen her cast before.
"Magniulus Elementindo!"
Her mother yelled out, and an irregular, indigo-coloured ray of sparks rose from her hands. She faced the sparks towards the oncoming orc, causing the orc to float upside down. It hissed in anger, causing the other orcs to target her. The orc holding the queen let go of her and ran to attack Nexi's mother. Seizing the opportunity, the queen cast a spell that untied her children and Keya. The elf ran towards Nexi, grabbing her hand, and running to Morvin and Naida's side.
"Puriorgio Contageum," the queen said.
This caused a crimson blaze of particles to hit three orcs floating upside down, thus shrinking them. When Keya tried to conjure a spell to escape with the children, two orcs surrounded her.
"Where do you think you are going with our possession, pretty elf?" one orc asked, a snarl on his grotesque-looking face.
Nexi's mother cast another spell to turn the two orcs surrounding Keya and the children upside down. The queen shrunk those orcs, and the elf quickly cast a spell that targeted those orcs. Placing both her hands on the ground, a simple, green blaze of sparks erupted from them, causing vines to come out of the earth and bind the shrunken orcs.
They shrieked in pain as they began to be mercilessly crushed by the vines. She quickly let her vines wrap the other shrunken orcs. Although Nexi's mother's magic power was not as powerful as the queens, thanks to their teamwork, all the orcs had been turned upside down, shrunk, and bound by the vines. The queen ran to her children and hugged them. They cried and trembled in her arms.
"It's okay, my children," she cooed, softly rubbing their backs.
Nexi ran to her mother and cried even more since the orcs wanted to take her with them. The sight of those creatures scared her so much that she was trembling in her mother's embrace. The queen walked to one of the orcs and stooped to its height.
"Avotum Vexeo," she uttered.
A blue blast of small waves emerged from her right hand. She glared at the orc.
"You better tell me who sent you."
The orc wiggled, trying to escape from the queen. She clicked her tongue in irritation.
"This spell drains the life of whoever is targeted," she explained, the small waves becoming bigger, "You. Better. Speak. Up."
The orc snarled. Infuriated, the queen blasted it with her waves. The orc shrieked, piercing the air with its scream. Getting up, the queen walked to another orc, but it also refused to speak. The same thing occurred repeatedly; the orcs refused to reveal who sent them, and the queen drained their life.
When she went to the last orc, she was fuming. Morvin and Naida watched their mother in silence, Keya standing by their side. Nexi and her mother watched the queen crouched to the orc's level. The queen released a long sigh and cleared her throat.
"I'm guessing you also don't intend to tell me," she said, staring intensely into the orc's deep red eyes.
The orc gulped, beads of sweat running down its face. He was afraid of dying, but knowing that there was no escaping his current situation, he began to speak.
"It doesn't matter who sent us," it growled, "you are no match for him."
"Him?" the queen asked.
The orc began to laugh hysterically. Everyone watched silently as the queen placed her hand on the orc, draining its life. Red blood stained the ground. Naida hugged her brother, burying her face in his chest due to the brutality she had witnessed. Her brother stroked her hair, calming her down, although he was also horrified and occasionally trembled.
When the orc's life force was drained, she stood up, dusting some dirt off her dress. As she began to walk towards her children, a small stave of exclusive brass struck her back and immediately vanished. Since it came at such an unbelievable speed, she had no time to shield herself. She cried out in pain and fell to the ground.
"Mother!" Naida yelled, running to her mother's side.
"Mother. No," she breathed out.
Morvin crouched next to his sister, holding his mother's hands. She touched the spot where the stave had struck her mother and, to her horror, felt warm blood trickle down her mother's back.