Now within the confines of the village of Parcel, the carriage made it's way through the dimly lit snow covered dirt streets. From within the interior of the cabin, the High Matriarch ground her heels into the rug covered floor. "How dare that... that man, not know his place!" she spat venemously. The High Matriarch's face was a mask of calm and order, but her body language belied her true feelings on the worth of the low borne and magicless. She continued self-ministering on how she would make the guard suffer for his indignation under the guise of tranquility. "Oh yes, he will pay dearly for this."

  The carriage slowed and came again to a full halt outside a group of well-lit buildings. A crowd of expectant people filled the area as a den of murmuring voices could be heard on all sides. The door to the cabin slid open and Marrick the guard, stood before her expectantly. "We have arrived at the village counsil's office." The High Matriarch regarded Marrick as if he had said something wrong. "Is there no wise woman here boy?" the matriach questioned. "Yes ma'am, but she's been here for quite sometime and if the crowd is still here, then i can only assume she has yet to conclude her business." Their coversation was cut off by the sound of a woman screaming, and before she stopped another started. A wordless confirmation passed between Marrick and the High Matriarch. (Mother's grace, couldn't this town's woman's circle this more secretive! With is many people outside it's a wonder if they haven't been gossiping like the men folk tend to do,) thought the High Matriarch. Sighing internally, the matriarch reached forward, resting her hand on the doorway of the cabin as she balanced her way down the tiny staircase leading to the ground. The carriage driver had climbed down and joined Marrick beside the cabin door, both men had extended their hands to help her, but she shunned the assistance. "Im not so old, that I can't climb down by myself." The two men accepted her statement without further prodding, and upon reaching the ground the High Matriarch took in a deep breadth, drawing herself up to her height took a step foward and said, "Alright boys, no sense delaying this any further; there is much work to do, let's get to it.

  Inside the counsil's office, a buzz of different actions were taking place. Order's for water, and washrags, people scurrying left and right; and in the center of it all five beds, two on one side and three on the other. Perfectly spaced, five women laid atop; panting, grunting, and screaming at different intervals. A man stood beside each woman, coaxing and supportive; holding their hands. With all the activity going on, no one noticed the woman who had come in and begun looking around the room; taking in the situation. Slowly the people in the building began to take notice of her pressence. One after the next the staff stopped working and began to whisper about the woman in fine attire; the likes of whick hadn't been seen sine the women on the beds arrived to the town several months previous. The closest woman looked around at her peers and then took a step forward, "Uh...ma'am, is there something that we can help you with."

"Well at least one of you has some backbone,"" replied the High Matriarch.

"...uh excuse me" responded the woman, taken aback by the aggressive, snappy tone of the woman before her.

"Don't worry yourself with anything more than telling me where I can locate what this quaint little village, considers a wise woman."

Everyone in the room seemed shocked at being spoken too in this manner; everyone except a small woman who was sitting at the back of the room, who had begun giggling.

"Well I guess you must be the High Matriarch, swoopin in to take credit for all the hard work" The woman finished checking the status of the women she was attending and then stood and turned around, her hair long since greyed and pulled back into a thick braid that ran the length of her back. Neither smiling nor showing signs of anger or annoyance, she slowly made her way across the room. Slow and measured, the older woman covered the distance from the back of the room till she stood arms length from the other woman. Neither woman said a word, standing there with a crowd around them as they measured each other completely. The sounds of the women in labor, faded into the background as the staff focused their attention on the battle before them, and yet something colossally important was taking place in the room. Staff members began shifting their feet, some even back away from the two women by primal instinct. Whatever was about to occur; they wanted nothing to do with it, and only wanted to come out the other side unscathed.

After some time had passed and the shifting of feet could no longer keep her knees from feeling the discomfort of her body position, the High Matriarch could take no more, and finally broke the silence. "Are the members women's counsil, usually this rude?" Taking in the words, without letting their meaning effect her, the wise woman looked up at the slightly taller woman. "Out here on the edge of the empire, a woman learns to be many things, Child! Maybe if you stay long enough, you''ll learn this skill. The utterance of that word, threatened to shatter the tranquill mask of serenity the High Matriarch had adopted. "So you think me, a child?" The response was meant as more a statement than a question, maybe if she had known the wise woman better; she would have known to avoid leaving these kinds of openings. "Well lets see," began the Wise Woman. " A young child, ignorant in ways of life in Parcel, has stumbled her way through the darkness, in a snowstorm mind you, to our quaint as you called it, little town having brought unknown amounts of threats that normally don't show up around these parts, with her high and mighty attitude as if she believes herself royalty bringing attention to us, then the fact that five pregnant women have been sent to us to pamper until they give birth, and now on the night that everything is supposed to end and our lives can return to normal; she stomp into my delivery area acting as I and my staff owe her something; please tell me if i've managed to miss something, Child."

  The two women stood toe to toe staring each other down. The onlookers, wide-eyed and dumbfounded, no one moved, no one spoke. Whay occurred next equally continued to take every by surprise; the placid fake smiles that each women wore, became real. The High Matriarch shook her head, " I worried that with a villiage this far on the outskirts of the Empresses domain the women might lack the spine to help raise the saviors properly." At hearing this the wise woman smirked, "Well as you can see, may not have the abundance of power that you do my lady, but we would never give up our seat of authority." Both ladies chuckled openly, the atmosphere in the room softened visibly an everyone sighed and relaxed. "Allow me to formally introduce myself; I am third of azure seat, High Matriarch Velanna Tene'bris; and I am honored to meet you." For the first time since meeting, the wise woman was taken aback. Sure, she expected a High Matriarch, but not one this high up, not one with this much authority. Of the Ten Coloured Houses she only thought a tenth seat, or at most a ninth seat would show up, but a third, and of the Azure house. "Well now, I guess the honouris all mine, my name is Agathe Noelus, thank you High Matriarch Velanna for traveling the long distance to be with us on this most amazing night.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

With the introductions finished two women fell in sync, dolling out orders for supplies and visiting with each patient one at a time. Neither woman showed themselves to be lacking in preparations, but it was the High Matriarch whom truly surprised everyone, Velanna asked short quick fire questions about how long the women had been in labor and then checked each woman's birthing canal by hand, to make sure things were moving along. One of the women was having difficulty dialation, and some had worried if the child would not makit before the mother tired. Without hesitating, Velanna instructed the woman to take a deep breath while Velanna assumed a straight back posture from with a chair she had come to be seated in, within seconds her hand began to glow as she closed her eyes and began to chant; those who had the gift strong enough within them, watched as the mana coalesced, gathering around and within her hands. Agathe looked on in curiosity, she had heard the women of the Ten Houses had strange methods of using magic, but having never the village to travel; she had never actually seen it for herself, she understood the words but not how these simple words made her capable of things Agathe herself had never imagined. Velanna slid hand beneath the sheet protecting the woman's modesty, the woman took an audible deep breath, as Velanna restructure her body to further open her birth canal. Afterwards Velanna and Agathe retreated to the center of the room between all five women. "Alright let's begin" , said Velanna. "Agathe, you know all the staff personally I want you to choose on woman to stay per bed, then dismiss everyone else." Agathe nodded, she assumed that velanna believed there to be too many helpers, truthfully she believed the same, but when she was alone she was not going to turn away any extra help she could get. After selecting the best from the helpers she'd had over the years, she dismissed everyone to the front of the room; she didn't order them to vacate the building; only to stay out of the way lest they obstruct those who would be helping with the delivery. Once everyone had take their position, Agathe instructed the women to begin pushing. The final phase had begun, labored breathing and pained grunts and screams created a chorus of noise that could be heard throughout the building as well as outside. As the minutes ticked away, the worry continued to increase until... "Lady Agathe, this woman is beginning to crown, it's time." The Wise Woman rushed to the woman's side, taking over coaching her through the labor process. While Velanna the High Matriarch stayed in the center monitoring the progress of the other four women. "Alright young one, you have come a long way and I know you are tired, I need one more big push out of you and this will all be over, are you ready?" Agathe was exceptional at calming and inspiring people. The young woman braced herself, took deep breaths and set her mind to the task at hand before nodding in ascent to wise woman. "Alright together 3... 2... 1, PUSH!" The young woman took the deepest breath, she'd ever taken in her life; stretching the limits of her lungs until they began to ache as she began to bear down and push. Staring completely forward, eys bulging, neck veins popping; she felt the edges of her body give way to an indescribable sensation as a new life came into the world. She grunted and screamed as the baby exited her body, falling back into the arms of her husband, as she watched the wise woman lift the tiny being up and swaddle it in a blanket. Agathe smiled down at the child, turning towards the mother to deliver the good news, "It's a girl!"

  With three simple words spoken, strength was renewed throughout the other four women. Pushing intensified, as each woman sought to bring the next chosen one... the next savior... the next girl, into the world. These women had been chose by the Goddess to perform a task of such importance, above all the other women in the world. When all the women stopped becoming pregnant and stopped having children, just as the prophcy said, five women would give birth to five young girls who would beat back the darkness. and save the world. One by one, each woman entered the final phase and gave birth to a beautiful baby girl; until there was only one left. "High Matriarch," the women attending called out. "hurry quickly something isn't going right." Velanna covered the distance to the woman's bedside instantly, she ordered the woman to explain the situation. Although the woman's body was ready, no child came. As Velanna listened carefully her sense worry grew. The fear was too much time had passed and the baby witin had stopped moving. Placeing her hands on top of the young woman's belly, Velanna quickly began chanting; probing the young womans body, looking for some sign that the child inside was still alive. Minutes passed but nothing changed, alongside the chanting that could be heard from the High Matriarch, people began clasping their hands together; praying to the heavens for mercy. The High Matriarch drained her mana using one spell after the next, the prophecy spoke of five children being and in Velanna's mind, heart, and soul five children would born, NO MATTER THE COST! Five more minutes passed and nothing happened. Velanna looked up, her mask of calm shattered, what would happen if they lost one of the saviors. A voice broke through her train of thought, Velanna looked up to see the tears in the eyes of the woman she was helping, with exhaustion evident in her face; she reached out and took the High Matriarch's hand. "Please help," the words spoken by the told Velanna, do whatever must be done. Velanna and Agathe stared into each other's eyes for but a second, though they instantly understood what the other was thinking. "Brace yourself child!" The words came Agathe, she dard not explain what they were planning, it was only ever attempted should the mother die during labor and then only on animals. Agathe spared the man with the young woman a look that conveyed to him, hold the woman tightly. Agathe, with one hand on the woman's chest and the other on her forehead began channeling her magic into the young girl's body, bracing what she and numbing her for what was to come. Velanna was situated lower, now seated on the bed with her hands on top of the woman's knees. Velanna spared on last gaze into the young woman's eyes, and she looked down and began chanting. The young woman gritted her teeth and pulled the man close, he was her rock now; no where run or hide, she closed her eyes and focused on her breathing. The other women in the room began to cry, their nerve shattered as the screaming began. The other men came to help keep the young woman from thrashing around too much, but what more could they have hoped to do; her hips were being steadily pulled apart, and they doubted that they themselves would have faired any better. Velanna kept chanting as she looked down, she thought to herself that nothing on a human body was meant to stretch that far without tearing, and yet here they were performing an act that would be considered cruel and ungoddiessly in any other situation. Velanna almost lost her train of thought the moment she finally saw the babies legs, in on decisive move she grabbed the baby by the foot and pulled, rolled out onto the bedsheets, one of Agathe's assistants picked the baby up and swaddled the child while Velanna and Agathe worked to mend the young woman's body back to normal. With the job done, all five babies had been delivered, Velanna slumped forward equally as exhausted as the mothers. A smile on her face, Velanna looked up to see a quizzical expression on the assistants face. Looking back over her shoulder just in time as the assistant began handing her the baby; a look of horror in her eyes. "Is my baby, alive?" The yong woman asked. Velanna adjusted the child in her arms as she saw the issue with her own eyes. Did she do this, was this some unknown side-effect of the spells she had cast coming together, this wasn't what was promised. The woman kept ask questions, and the man had even joined in demanding for answers. Velanna put up her mask of tranquility, it would not do to become emotional at this time. This woman had endured so much this night and now her problems were only going to get worse. Velanna carried the child over, placing the baby in the mother's arms, "I'm sorry, It's a boy."