Queen vs. ‘Parents’
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Eydis watched, deadpan, as the absurdity unfolded before her. Cleo, her mother, speared a piece of calamari and held it out playfully. "Say aaah," she chirped, turning towards Anthony.
Anthony's face flushed crimson. "Cleo, darling, not in front of the kid." His voice dripped with a mix of affection and utter mortification.
Eydis, the Queen of Shadows trapped in an awkward eighteen-year-old's body, swallowed the sarcastic retort that burned on her tongue. Subtlety, it seemed, was her new, unwelcome superpower.
"Nonsense," Cleo countered, her smile unwavering. “Eydis is used to it, aren’t you, sweetie?”
Eydis fought back a groan. Playing the part of their daughter was proving more difficult than navigating a court filled with vipers. With a sigh that spoke volumes, she picked up a small knife and meticulously spread butter on a piece of bread. Just as she was about to take a bite, her mother's eyes widened like a startled owl's.
What now? Mistake number one. Cleo's gaze shimmered with what could only be described as a suspiciously tearful glint.
"Eydis! You've matured so much!" Cleo declared, her voice thick with (hopefully fake) sentiment. "Back in the day, you couldn't tell a butter knife from a steak knife!”
Who knew teenage Eydis was such a barbarian? Eydis winced internally. Cleo, it seemed, packed a sharper wit than anticipated. Eydis shook her head, schooling her features into a picture of teenage nonchalance.
"Guess some things rub off on you at this fancy Academy," Eydis replied, hoping it sounded appropriately commoner-ish.
"Oh, sweetie, I couldn't be prouder!" Cleo beamed, reaching over to squeeze Eydis's hand. Eydis stifled a flinch. Public displays of affection were so very un-Queenly. "Mommy and Daddy are just... well, we're blue-collar folks, you see. It's hard to believe we raised someone so extraordinary."
Eydis didn't know what ‘blue-collar’ meant, but she understood the sentiment. “Extraordinary.” Eydis echoed. There were definitely parts of the original Eydis's life she didn't understand.
Sure, she had intelligence, which landed her a scholarship amongst the Talented students. However, these students were the bottom rung of the social ladder here. Talent didn't equate to success. It was all about being Gifted with supernatural abilities or Elite with powerful parents who secured their futures after graduation.
Being Talented and on scholarship made things worse for the original Eydis. Limited resources and a low social standing were likely targets for bullies.
Yet she persisted.
"Maybe if we were..." Anthony sighed, "more well-off, you could have had more opportunities. We barely scraped by to get you textbooks, let alone new clothes. Maybe that's why..."
Eydis interrupted with a shrug, "Bullies always find something to pick on, no matter what you wear." Taking a bite of her bread, she tried to deflect the conversation.
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"But you, my darling, are flawless," Cleo declared with genuine maternal pride.
Eydis almost choked on her bread. "Speaking of flaws," she cleared her throat, the corners of her lips twitched, a traitorous smile threatening to erupt despite herself. "How do I get rid of these… pimples?"
Cleo blinked, then burst into laughter. "Honey, did you hear that? Our little Eydis finally cares about her looks!"
Anthony's brow furrowed. "Honey, are you interested in someone? A boy?"
Eydis felt a pang of irritation. "A simple inquiry, Father," she retorted, a touch too quickly. Maybe a tad too sharply, too. "One devoid of hidden agendas, for once."
Her second mistake.
Anthony's shoulders slumped. "You always called me Dad. Just worried about losing you, that's all."
Eydis groaned and buried her face in her hands.
This.
Was.
Torture. Dealing with normal, emotional parents was proving to be the ultimate test. Surely, this soul-crushing lunch couldn't go on any longer?
Perhaps, just perhaps, a well-timed amnesia episode wasn't such a bad thing after all.
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The oak door shuddered, splintering a shard of wood that lodged itself in Thomas's trembling hand. He slumped against its remains, chest heaving, each rasping breath a desperate fight for air.
"Tiffany, please," he rasped. "I need more time..."
Tiffany stood before him, her once-bright blue eyes now crackled with a malevolent energy. Tendrils of purple smoke, like skeletal fingers, pulsed around her fingertips, mirroring the ones that held Thomas suspended an inch off the ground, choking the life out of him.
"Time for what, Father? Time for what?" she sneered. "Another lesson in how useless you are? I used to fear you. Funny, isn't it? How things change."
The smoke tightened its grip, stealing the air from his lungs in a slow, agonising squeeze.
"Please, Tiffany," he choked out. "The Academy… they won't accept you back now. Not like this."
A humourless chuckle escaped Tiffany's lips. "Come on, Father," she purred. "Gifted ones like me are rare, valuable, you know that! Your money and influence will ensure my return to the Academy. You will make this happen." Her eyes narrowed. "I have unfinished business to attend to."
Shame contorted Thomas's face. "I'll call your uncle. He has influence, connections..."
Tiffany scoffed. "Pathetic. As expected." The smoke constricted further. "Then summon Senator Blackwood," she spat. "And hurry it up! My patience is wearing thinner than this smoke.”
"Eydis. Amanda. Jillian. You'll all pay for what you did."
A manic laugh erupted from her throat. It was a sound filled with a promise of terrifying retribution.
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Professor Indigo Crane emerged from his black Rolls Royce. He adjusted his fedora, its brim shielding his eyes from Alchymia City's neon lights. Reaching his destination, he punched in a hidden sequence on a keypad embedded in the building's facade. The steel groaned and a secret elevator platform hummed to life, whisking him skyward.
He stepped onto the rooftop, the wind whipping at his cashmere coat. Above, suspended like a monstrous, pulsating eyeball, was The Eye. It dwarfed the surrounding skyscrapers, easily the size of a stadium. Its crimson veins bulged; its iris seemed to dart back and forth, scanning the cityscape with unnerving sentience.
A shiver ran down Indigo's spine. He'd only ever glimpsed grainy footage of this phenomenon before. Now, witnessing it firsthand, it was… fascinating.
"Professor, get in!" The pilot's voice crackled over the helicopter's intercom, barely audible above the whir of the rotors.
Indigo scrambled into the cockpit. The helicopter took off, lifting steadily towards the monstrosity in the sky. Adrenaline surged through him as they drew closer, pushing the limits of their safe zone.
"Can we get any closer?" Indigo shouted above the din.
"Negative!" The pilot barked. "They said there's a protective field around it. Anything that gets too close… doesn't come back."
Indigo fumbled with his high-definition camera. He instructed the pilot to maintain a safe distance, circling the anomaly as he feverishly captured every detail.
A sense of unease pierced his chest. Had it always been this colour? He swore it had been a vibrant pink when it first appeared. Now, a darker shade bloomed on the eye's surface.
There was a story here, and Professor Indigo Crane was determined to get to the bottom of it.