Lune climbed out of the pool, leaving a blood trail behind her. The vine-like umbilical cord was still attached to her son. She pressed on his chest, turned him over, and beat on his back, but nothing happened.
“Nooooooooooooooooooooo! My babyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!” Lune sobbed, her heart-wrenching cries echoing in the air.
Blair and Jinx wrapped their wings around Lune, swaying back and forth, nature humming to send her baby’s spirit off to the ancestors. I left them alone, returning back to the basement. The curse must’ve turned my heart cold against a lot of things because I felt no empathy for Lune’s pain. That air-headed bitch thought it was my fault for what Hoax did to me.
“It’s your fault your child didn’t make it. Bitch, should’ve kept her legs closed,” I said aloud, the bitterness spilling from my lips. I dove back into the basement's pond, curling up in afetal position at the bottom, letting my wings cradle me. My last thoughts were of War before I drifted off…
My black rose dress dragged across the pink and yellow roses as I ventured deeper into the forest of Charmden—a place now unrecognizable from its former self. This hidden part of the woods was surrounded by cascading waterfalls, their music harmonizing with the air thick with white, rabbit-sized moths. Their psychedelic wings shimmered as they circled the ancient trees, casting kaleidoscopic shadows on the mossy ground.
I stopped at the tallest waterfall in Charmden, water thundering down into a deep lake below. Neon-colored fish darted at the bottom, their scales glowing like jewels in the moonlight. Suddenly, a man rose from beneath the water, droplets sliding down his muscular back marked with forest-green gears. His broad shoulders glistened, and his locs hung like ropes. When he turned, I caught a glimpse of his chiseled jawline, the intricate markings tracing his beautiful, handsome face. It was him—the wizard who possessed Cashaun.
I was ready to step into the lake to join him, but another figure emerged from the depths. She was naked, her skin deep and rich, the color of pinecone. Horns adorned with fresh flowers crowned her head. Jealousy twisted my stomach as I watched my ancestor from the painting, Clover, wrap herarms around War. He turned to face her, smiling down with a warmth in his eyes that was no longer there.
“Azarion, I want to carry your child,” she said, her hands gliding over his chest.
“You want a life I can’t give you. You know my purpose in this land, and it is not to live that kind of life. I’m a warrior, born from beneath Charmden’s roots. My only purpose is to protect this realm—and you,” he replied, his voice deep and resolute.
“Why am I always chasing you? I constantly give myself to you, and you reject it,” Clover argued, her voice trembling.
“I told you when you seduced me what it would be. I’m a warrior first… lover at night. And the things you do to make me envious—like laying in Hoax’s bed. You invited the elves here, claiming they’d make great warriors, but they can barely conjure a sword. Opening our world to those creatures was a mistake!” he snapped.
Clover recoiled. “You destroyed their realm when you defeated the ogres in their forest! It was the least we could do since they were innocent. Azarion, you left their world lifeless. As for Hoax, he sees me in ways you don’t. He sees me as a delicate being. You treat me like a warrior with a pussy! He’s passionate, attentive—but my heart wants you. I’m begging you to love me back,” she pleaded, tears brimming in her eyes.
Azarion looked away, jaw clenched. “I loved you too, Clover. But you betrayed me when you opened your legs for another man to spite me. You should be lucky I don’t have both your heads roasting on a firestick. I gave you your magic, created your wand from my own blood, and you fucked a man Idisapprove of—right in our spot! I was abstinent before you laid eyes on me. I was focused! My chest aches when I see you with Hoax, but you know what will happen to me if I fail Charmden. If I get too distracted by you and your antics and it unbalances my energy, this body will perish. Charmden is the master of all of us. It can take away the gifts it gave me. If you cared about me, you wouldn’t do anything to ruin me.”
Clover slapped him, leaving three long scratches across his face. His gears spun, churning the water into a spiraling sinkhole. “Fuck Charmden! I’m going to marry Hoax then, and start a family with him. You might be the grand wizard of this forest, but not even your power or strength can match what I’m going to do to you! I hope my happiness with another man weakens you, and then you’ll perish!” Clover seethed.
“Your games will be the cause of your death,” Azarion warned, his voice cold.
“Then we’ll just die together. If I can’t have you, you don’t deserve to live!” Clover spat back.
“Head back to your village and let me enjoy my swim,” he dismissed her, turning away.
She spat on him, the glob landing on his chest before she flew off into the night. No wonder she and Hoax clicked—those assholes had the same entitled hearts, selfish, wicked pieces of shit!
Azarion’s eyes burned red, flames flickering in their depths. “If Charmden takes away my position because of you, I’m coming back to destroy everything!” he roared before diving beneath the water.
I stepped forward, desperate to join him in the lake, but an unseen force yanked me back. “Let go of meeee!” I screamed as the world spun around me…
I was pulled from the bottom of the pond, water blurring my vision as I surfaced. I felt a pair of familiar arms around me. “I missed you so much,” Sin’s voice whispered.
I wiped my eyes, blinking until I could see him—Sin, his face bruised and shadowed. “Listen, Lune ratted you out to my father’s most trusted men. They are here to get you. Jinx and Blair are being restrained with swords against their necks, so don’t go up there and startle them. They think I’m on their side. I only came here to save you, but we need to get out of here—right now,” he whispered.
“What…what happened?” I asked, still disoriented from the dream.
“We need to leave…now!” Sin insisted.
He pulled a crystal from his knapsack and tossed it into the pond. As it struck the water, a ripple of blue light spread outward, and a swirling portal shined open above the surface. “Sin, we can’t leave them and I’m not going to Charmden,” I said.
“We’re not going there. Trust me, but we need to leave!” he gritted, pulling me toward the bridge of light.
“I can’t leave my friends!” I whispered back.
“Forget them. I don’t want my father taking you. I know a realm where we can hide until it’s over,” Sin said.
“Sin, I can’t leave my friends. Fuck Hoax—I think it’s time you stop running from him. You’re the only one who can get close. You can kill him.”
“I tried, but it didn’t go as planned. I’m sorry about Lune. I didn’t mean for it to get out of hand, but at least that’s over and her son can’t come between us,” he replied, gently touching my cheek.
