Maximus remained unmoved. "She will have no reason to question. I have trained her well. She trusts me, and she knows nothing of what we have done."
Mother Lina took a deep breath, her eyes filled with both anger and sorrow. "Maximus, do you truly think she would forgive us if she learned the truth? She's bound to discover her frozen core eventually. And when that day comes, she won't simply accept your reasoning."
"I did what was necessary for the safety of the realms," Maximus replied, his voice low and unyielding. "Mazikeen embodies a power that no one—neither the seven lords of our realms nor even the gods—can fully understand. It is a dangerous force, one that could tip the balance of our world if mishandled. I cannot teach her something that I do not fully comprehend myself. The best course of action was to lock away her spiritual core and guide her toward cultivating her lesser powers. It is the only way to keep her, and the realms, safe."
Mother Lina looked away, struggling to contain the wave of emotions crashing over her. "Safe? Or in control, Maximus?" she murmured, almost to herself. "Sometimes I wonder if this is about protecting the realms or about keeping her under your control?."
Maximus's gaze hardened, but he held his silence, letting her words hang in the air between them. He knew that Mother Lina had a deep affection for Mazikeen, she had practically raised her, filling the role of a mother figure when Mazikeen's own mother was absent. Her concerns were not unfounded, but Maximus could not afford to indulge her sentiments. He had a duty, one that went beyond personal feelings.
"Maximus," Lina said, her voice trembling with emotion, "this is dangerous. I feel it in my bones. Mazikeen won't return from the Mountains of Truth the same as she left. If she discovers the truth about her core, about us, there will be no going back."
Maximus turned away from her, resuming his gaze over the tranquil garden. "You worry too much, Lina. Mazikeen will follow her path, as she always has. She has no reason to question me."
Mother Lina's shoulders sagged, defeated but not convinced. She felt her love for Mazikeen pressing on her heart, mingling with her growing sense of guilt. "Maximus, I have never questioned you before. But this time, I can't shake the feeling that you're making a grave mistake, and..."
Maximus turned back to her, his gaze icy. "Leave, Lina. Your doubts are clouding your judgment."
Mother Lina's eyes filled with a deep sadness, a grief she had been suppressing for years. She shook her head slowly. "I don't feel right about this, Maximus. I have watched over Mazikeen as if she were my own daughter. I have loved her, cared for her, and taught her. And if things do not go as you have planned, if she learns of your betrayal...then know this, I will stand by her side. No matter what."
Maximus's jaw clenched, a flicker of anger crossing his face. But he said nothing, his silence as cold and hard as stone. Mother Lina, her heart heavy, turned and left him, her steps slow and weighed down by her conflicting emotions. She had a lot to worry about
She made her way back to her chambers, her mind swirling with memories of Mazikeen's childhood, the bright and curious girl who had once clung to her for comfort and guidance. She had done her best to be a source of love and stability for Mazikeen, to shield her from the harsher truths of the world. But now, she felt like she had failed.
Once inside her chambers, she locked the door behind her and leaned against it, the guilt pressing down on her like a physical weight. She could still remember the day Maximus had first come to her with his plan, explaining that Mazikeen's spiritual core would need to be sealed to prevent her powers from becoming too dangerous. At the time, she had agreed, convinced that it was the only way to keep Mazikeen safe.
FLASH BACK
Mother Lina had just returned from a battle to meet a troubled realm, she had just been gone for three days and when she returned everywhere seemed dazed, she slowly came down from her royal horse, being one of the seven lords of the heavenly realms, she was bound to any assignment.
Fairy Chloe was just two hundred years old, she ran past mother Lina who held her little arm and smiled at her
"Hello little one" she greeted smiling at Chloe
"Hello Mother Lina" Chloe replied
"Can you tell me why the realm is this tensed?"
"My mother said that Lord Lucien kept a very big secret from the realm which was discovered by the heavenly Lord's and his being punished for it" Chloe replied innocently. Mother Lina's heart sank, she knew what his big secret was, he was having an affair with a demoness named Morrigan and she was no ordinary demoness, she was the Demons queen. The first female to rule the demons realms. They did not only have an affair but married secretly, panic spread across her face and she jumped on her horse and quickly rode to the punishment hall, as soon as she got there, Lord Lucien dropped down dead, she cried in pain, they were best friends and she had known about his affair with the demon and so do Maximus.
"No ooo!" She cried but no one cared about her tears, she moved closer to Lucien and held his head on her thighs, he was still breathing
"Protect my child" he whispered with his last breath and gave up the ghost. The guards took her away with tears streaming down her cheeks and carried away Lord Lucien's dead body.
At that time Morrigan was in labor, she had been tortured mercilessly by the heavenly guards which put her into early labor and now the Lord's were going to kill her. There was no way Mother Lina was going to let that happen, she located the cell where Morrigan was held captive and broke in, and there was Morrigan struggling on her own to give birth to her child, Mother Lina being skilled with child birth supported her with her spiritual powers and forth came the cry of a baby girl. Morrigan though weak, carried her baby and kissed her forehead, she called her "Mazikeen," took out her necklace and placed it around Mazikeen's neck, she placed her index finger on her head filling her with powers that not even mother Lina can describe.