MENSA, IOLITE

Three days before the attack on Iolite

As soon as the word “Shatter” was chanted, the earth within the runic symbol quaked. The walls of her house began to crack, and crumble, tore itself apart, crumbling downwards. The automaton couldn’t escape from its fate, sinking down to a few feet below. Gloria felt the skin of her feet tear and a rock dig into her leg. Blood seeped through the cracks of the rocks.

Still, she resisted the urge to heal herself. It’s not life threatening. Gloria released a sigh of relief. Her feet, however, remained trapped between the large rocks. Removing it without magic might be life threatening.

“Helpless and powerless,” Krystol sneered, “If you stand by my side, I can grant you power beyond your imagination.”

“Why would I ever wish for that?” Gloria asked, gritting her teeth.

At the corner of her right eye, Gloria’s eyes caught a glimpse of a small pearl-like object gleaming in between the pile of rubble. Gloria’s heart raced as she realized what was within her grasp. The Orb of Direction, Beads of Enchantments, and Fan of Illusion, together in one place. Beside her inventions, there was a flare she kept in between the cupboard in times like these. All of those within arm’s reach. She just needed to be free from the rubble that pulled her down.

“Power is dominance, a way to rule over the weak and you have none of it. Imagine what you could have accomplished.”

“Power, like my parents? Before Lucia waged the war against demons, my parents left the people of Iolite to the demons and struggled. They protect the people only of interest to them! Then they banished humans from Iolite. Do you know how many humans were senselessly murdered?”

Gloria’s voice became louder, “I detest power. I detest authority. And most of all, I detest oppressive people like you. You ignore the weak and helpless.”

Krystol walked towards Gloria, placing his hand under her chin, and lifting it slightly. “Keep whining, but only those with power get to choose.”

His hand grabbed harder, and his nails pierced through her skin. Gloria held in her scream from the pain. Her gaze was unwavering. But she couldn’t help but smell the faint whiff of iron. A blood red liquid trickled down her neck.

“Go on, use your magic to heal yourself. I am sure you can do that much, right?” Krystol asked.

Gloria’s eyes blazed with fury, her rage only intensifying. It was as if the previous light-hearted Gloria was gone, consumed by the fire of her wrath. Every muscle in her body was tense, focusing her magical energy in her fists, ready to lash out at the slightest provocation. The air around them crackled with magical energy as she prepared to strike.

Krystol’s lip curled into a sneer as he gazed upon Gloria’s determined expression. “You still cling to the foolish hope that you can defeat me.” He let out a wicked chuckle, savouring the opportunity to showcase his power. “Go on, amuse me!”

Her hand crackled with lightning energy as she lunged forward to grab Krystol’s arm. But he swiftly dodged out of the way, with the other still fused with lightning energy. Her enemy remained just out of reach.

“Ah, look at you struggle. It is satisfying, no doubt. Keep it up,” Krystol said, a sly smirk playing on his lips.

Gloria gritted her teeth as she examined the sharp rock protruding from her foot. Blood trickled down her leg, but she refused to show any sign of weakness. If she were to yank out her feet, blood would gush out and she will die of blood loss. With a wave of her hand, she conjured a blade made of pure magic, slicing the rock from her flesh. The pain was excruciating, but she suppressed a scream, determined not to give Krystol the satisfaction of seeing her break.

With her overwhelmed, there were only two options left for her. Well, one if she excluded self-destruction.

With the system heavily protected under layers and layers of magical security she spent developing, there was only one way for others to access her system. Which was through her. Even a perfect illusion or alteration spells would not work, because she didn’t make it to recognize her appearance. The Pier Pressure system only recognized her soul, which was unique and cannot be duplicated. If the spell did not kill him, then she had to kill herself.

Gloria was not prepared for death. No one ever was.

She needed him to be distracted for a split second. She will then use a flare to signal the royal capital. Gloria continued to reassure herself.

Using her wings, she used her remaining strength to run straight to her artifacts, hand reaching out to hold it. Krystol noticed her movements and ran towards her. Gloria only prayed that she would make it on time.

Her fingertips barely reached the handle of the Fan of Illusions. Seeing that Krystol was near her, she immediately waved the fan around, blowing a small gust on his face. The winds started to weave and formed into little shapes of wonder and joy. Krystol’s footsteps came to a stop, his gaze wandered to a distance, looking far and beyond.

Gloria’s heart raced as her hand went deeper into the gaps between the pile of rubble, her fingers grasping at every object in her path. Her breathing grew ragged as she searched for the flare, her mind consumed with thoughts of defeat. If only she was strong like Lucia, she could easily deflect his attacks. She could defeat Krystol. If she was not soft hearted, she could help her brother. She wouldn’t have moved out of the palace. Father and mother would be proud of her.

Frustration and despair coursed through her veins as tears streamed down her face, blurring her vision. She can’t find the flare.

“Aw, poor thing. I was wondering what you wanted to do. Were you looking for this? I’ll let you have it if you join me.” Krystol asked, holding up a red cylindrical tube with the royal emblem on it. He twirled it around and let go of it.

He watched in amusement as Gloria let out a gasp, reaching out to her flare that never came to be. “Oh, it just slipped.”

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

In that moment, Gloria’s fury was a force to be reckoned with, like a tempest uprooting an entire village. Had he not mocked her enough? If power was what she was lacking, then she would attain it. No matter the cost. “I wish I had enough power to defeat you.”

A sudden burst of energy pulsed through the air from her. A brand of egotism symbol was imprinted across her right shoulder. Fairies were never meant to wish for themselves. If they ever do, their life force penalty may go up to double, or even triple. For this wish itself, she felt that her life force was stripped by 100, no… 300 years. Almost half of her entire lifespan. How strong was he? She thought to herself.

Gloria counted her remaining lifespan. She had about 200 years left to live.

Her previous wounds healed up quickly. The rock pierced deeply in her leg was pushed out. She released a heat wave, pushing the rocks away from her and creating a crate. The control panel for Pier Pressure would be enough. She had laced the entire room with tungsten underground. Not only that, but multiple locks were also in place, magical and physical, to avoid any unwanted guests.

“Enough power was never enough, Gloria. If you were going to use that wish anyway, you should have commanded me to step aside. Use the power of your filthy gods to bend my will.”

Gloria clenched her teeth tight, almost snarling. He was tricking her. If she ever did that, there would be consequences. No Gods would be willing to give up so much power for a wish. But she felt powerful. So many things became a possibility.

“Denial was always the first step towards acceptance,” Krystol said, putting his hand out. “The offer still stands, my dear lady.”

“Hmm, let’s see. Why don’t you take this as an answer?” Gloria replied. Both raced to recite their incantations, pulling out elemental force from the surroundings. Gloria summoned a fire concentrated into a beam piercing through his left shoulder, but he leaned to the right, dodging that fatal blow. She charged towards Krystol holding a shard of ice on her other hand, while Krystol summoned a compact crystal on his palm.

The collision of their magic sent a powerful shockwave through the air, causing the ground to tremble beneath them. Gloria and Krystol were evenly matched, their spells shattering upon impact. Gloria summoned a wall of flames, only for it to be extinguished by Krystol’s waves of water. But Gloria didn’t falter, raising her left hand and crushing three Beads of Enchantments with ice energy. Using ice energy, she crushed the beads.

While fighting, Gloria felt as excited as she was when she invented. This was dangerously addictive. Her heart won’t stop pounding with adrenaline. Was this how Lucia felt all this while? Anything was possible. Gloria flicked her wrist on her left hand, propelling the ice shard from her fingertips.

A thrill of excitement coursed through her veins as she conjured an ice cage surrounding him. After a deep breath, ice wraiths emerged from within the cage. Despite being caged and surrounded by ice monsters, Krystol’s grin didn’t fade from this.

“Power is addictive, isn’t it?” Krystol taunted.

From thin air, he summoned a sky-blue sword with wings enwrapping the hilt with an embedded amulet glowing at the edge. Gloria glanced at the sword. It was indeed a beautiful sword, but she had to get the flare back. She reached out her hand deep into where the flare dropped into and imagined the flare.

“Come to me!” she commanded. The flare shot straight into her hand. Without any delay, she flew to the sky and dispatched it up into the sky.

Krystol was trapped in an ice cage, but he wasn’t startled or worried in the slightest. He took a step forward, pointing his sword towards one of the five ice wraiths. Krystol’s sword dance was graceful, slicing through the cores of the ice wraiths. All Gloria saw was a flash of purple light, as the ice wraith crumbled, followed by the disintegration of the ice cage.

As the flare soared towards the sky, Gloria’s heart was filled with both hope and fear. It was her last resort. Krystol was still on the ground. There’s no way he could make it. But as the flare reached its peak, a sudden jolt of horror seized her. Krystol appeared out of nowhere, his hand outstretched to grab the flare. She watched in dismay as he effortlessly caught it, snuffing out its light with a casual flick of his wrist.

Gloria’s heart sank as the flare shattered into pieces. “No…” she whispered. Could she run away now? She looked up at Krystol, his feet landing on the ground as gracefully as a feather amidst the rubble. Gloria knew that elves couldn’t fly, but their mastery of magic made them a formidable force.

“I still value your skills, Gloria. I will have you over on my side one way or another.”

“What are you going to do once you have conquered the entire continent?” she asked calmly, standing firm on her two feet.

“I am going to strip the weak of their delusions. Show them who they truly are. They will be forced to confront their weaknesses and emerge from the ashes as stronger beings. And I will be at the ruling over all of them.”

“Reborn as demons?”

“Gloria, we all have a demon in us. You would be surprised to know that among the three siblings, Lucia’s demon was the largest.” Krystol said.

“What have you done to Lucia?” Gloria shouted, her voice filled with anger and frustration.

Krystol’s self-satisfying smile grew wider as he spoke, “Oh, you haven’t heard the news. She’s cursed by me and will be dead by tomorrow.”

Gloria’s eyes narrowed, anger and disbelief bubbling inside her. “You’re lying!” she spat. Her sister couldn’t be gone, not like this. She knew what she had to do. Deep within the royal chambers of Iolite, there was a box that held soul stones, each linked to the vitality of a royal family member. She would find Lucia’s and see for herself.

Krystol lifted his hand, summoning a long array of vines. They raced each other to Gloria, wrapping around her feet.

She watched as the flames burned the vines and then kicked her feet off the ground, turning her back to Krystol. With thoughts, praying only for Lucia’s safety. Gloria never used this spell before, nor she was sure of its side effects. But now, she must run as far as her wings could take her. With a deep breath, she chanted, “Blink.”

Her pocket dagger was at the ready. Slitting her palm, she watched as the blood was absorbed into the spell, and she vanished into thin air, reappearing a few feet away. The sensation was disorienting, but she knew she had to keep going. Blinking again and again, she fled as far as her wings could take her, running towards the royal capital and praying that Krystol wouldn’t catch up to her.

Amidst the lofty heights of Mensa’s mountains, Gloria soared through the air with her wings, hoping to outmaneuver Krystol’s deadly vines. But despite her speed and agility, she could feel his ominous presence looming closer and closer, like a dark cloud descending upon her. The jagged peaks of the mountains offered no shelter or cover from his relentless pursuit. With each passing moment, Gloria’s heart jolted in fear, knowing that one mistake could cost her everything.

Her left ankle was suddenly ensnared by a writhing vine, yanking her downward with surprising force. Gloria tried to call forth her flames with a spell, but her voice caught in her throat, stopped by Krystol’s spell. The vines tightened around her leg, and she was jerked backwards across the ground, helpless in Krystol’s grasp.

“I would have killed you, but it’s a shame that I need you alive, Gloria.” Krystol said. As he approached her, the vines tightened its grip on the fairy, growing around her hands and feet.

While struggling, he leaped in front of her with a dagger in his hand. He sliced the throat of the fairy, but the dagger didn’t injure her. It went through her. The fairy coughed multiple times, then realized. Her voice was as good as gone. Only a few wheezes.

“Sacrificing all those years, but you can’t use your voice anymore. What a waste.”

Gloria’s hands were tightly bound with the thick vines, her wrists lightly bruised from the struggling against them. Her wrists wriggled around for a room of freedom, but the vines only tightened, burning through her skin. As of now, she can’t even scream for help.

He saw her eyes moisten. If her country falls, it was because she invented the supply system. She was too weak. Her mother was right. She was right all along. Her tears didn’t even make him flinch. Krystol could have offered his sympathy, but he had no right. Like his spells, his heart hardened, crystallized with time. A typical strategy used in the Divine war. Corrupt the weakest link, then conquer the country.

Dragging the fairy, Krystol went towards the control panel of the Pier Pressure system.