Wrapped up in Vlila’s coils was a weary Lili, before an audience of the same malforms she’d hurt with Authority.

“What shall we do with her?” asked Vlila.

“Eat her!” yelled the toothy malform of Grendel Pack.

“Eat her!” yelled one of the Cerberus Pack malforms.

The Widow Mantis paused just long enough to reach a consensus in their hivemind, then they all nodded.

Lili scoffed as the temple echoed with shrieks and cheers.

The Ogre Queen slammed her fist on the floor. “ORDER.”

Everyone quieted down, though some of Cerberus Pack were still licking their lips or drooling.

“ALL OF US HAVE BEEN HURT BY LILI’S TYRANNY,” said the Ogre Queen. “BUT THERE IS ONE OF US SHE HURT DEEPER THAN ANY OF US.” The Ogre Queen pointed to Thyssa. “FOR TWO YEARS, LILI ABUSED HER POWER TO RULE MY DAUGHTER’S FATE.” She turned her terrible gaze to Lili. “NOW, LILI, MY DAUGHTER SHALL RULE YOUR FATE.”

Shrieks and cheers again.

“Kill her, Thyssa!”

“Let me eat her?”

“Make it slow.”

Thyssa approached Lili, who wasn’t bothering to struggle. After years of respecting her, fearing her, it was surreal to see her so…powerless.

She cleared her throat. “Do you have anything to say to us?”

Lili looked at her, eyes cold. “Everything I did, I did for a better world. What you did took that world away. You are the wrongdoer here. And you can’t even see it, can you?”

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

Thyssa didn’t dignify her with a response.

“Judge me all you like,” continued Lili. “Crush everyone who stands in your way. Take a bite out of the whole world! But don’t use brute force and call it justice.”

Thyssa sniffed. “Isn’t that what you did?”

Cheers. More suggestions on how to deal with Lili, mostly various modes of culinary preparation.

“I wanted peace!” yelled Lili. “And you destroyed that, like you destroy everything that doesn't give you what you want.”

“No. You wanted power. You wanted everything to go your way, and the moment it didn’t, you threw away everything you believed in.”

“How eloquent,” said Lili. “I may have failed to correct your nature, but I succeeded at making you sound sensitive and thoughtful. Now, how will you slaughter me? Will you burn me alive? Throw me off the mountain? Smash me into the wall! I’m breathless with anticipation.”

“Is that all you have to say?”

“Well, I wouldn’t want to keep you from your bloodlust. Why delay the inevitable? What’s the point in reasoning with a stone? You want me dead. You want me to suffer. Will you deny it?”

“No.”

“Then get it over with already. Just kill me and be done with it.”

Thyssa looked at Lili’s face, stoic even in her final moments, shining with superiority and contempt.

“You lost!” spat Thyssa. “You don’t get to tell me what to do anymore.” She looked at Vlila. “Let her down.”

“Alive or dead?” asked Vlila.

“Alive.”

Vlila gently let down Lili, who looked at Thyssa, waiting for judgment.

“Go,” said Thyssa.

“And, let me guess,” said Lili. “I get to be hunted, just as you were hunted.”

Thyssa’s voice was still and cold. “You get to be free, just as I am free.”

Lili scoffed. “I’m to believe that? After you admitted you were going to kill me?”

“I said I wanted to. I choose not to.”

“You sure this is a good idea?” asked the toothy malform.

“What could she do?” asked Thyssa. “I threw away the stones, and you ate what was left of the Stormwatch.” She grinned to her Pack. “She’s powerless.”

“She’s still good meat,” said one of Cerberus Pack.

“MY DAUGHTER HAS MADE HER DECISION,” said the Ogre Queen. “LILI WILL LEAVE.” She turned to Lili, showing all her teeth as sharp as swords. “UNLESS YOU WANT A SECOND OPINION.”

Lili walked to the door. Then she stopped. She looked back at Thyssa. Her face was softer, hate and contempt transformed back into her scientific curiosity. Her drive to understand the world, to ask a thousand questions. And yet, she had just one.

“Why?”

Thyssa gave Lili a predator’s smile. “Just to make you wrong.”

Lili looked disappointed. “How silly.”

“Humans can be pretty silly,” said Thyssa. “That’s half the fun. You’ve given me a wonderful gift…and now the Fountain can give that gift to anyone. Human, malform…we can be whatever we choose to be. I chose to be human. It’s pretty terrific. You should try it sometime.”