The Return of Destiny

     "You see, dear Sheyn, my life, properly speaking, passed a few decades ago." Back then, I was not me, but my other self...

     "To begin with, I will tell you that my name is a word that in the language of the faeries, means: Destiny. Something that undoubtedly ruined my life, Sheyn.”

     I used to be an air faerie. Yes, from the air. I was blonde and had two cute and naive blue eyes with which I looked innocently at the world, not really seeing it. Without noticing hatred, sadness, evil... nothing. I used to have two large, translucent wings, through which the sunlight and the colours of Faerieland passed. I was studying at the Faerie Academy, I was number one, in fact. I had many friends, I went shopping with them, I blessed Neopets, I took care of several Petpets, I led a happy and quiet life... anyway.

     One day, I went on an excursion to the land of Shenkuu with my best friends. I was overjoyed, poor fool. I was a fool, Sheyn. That night, I wore a kimono white as spring clouds and strolled through the streets lit by paper lanterns. But the joy would end soon, Sheyn, it would end soon.

     That miserable night, I separated from my companions and entered a dark alley, as dark as my wings today. There, a yellow–eyed Krawk appeared to me and gave me a beautiful necklace with a huge green stone. Delighted, silly of me, I accepted the gift. And the mysterious Krawk simply disappeared with a whisper from his Enchanted Forest outfit.

     The world ended when the necklace touched my skin. I felt an enormous pain, but so giant dear Sheyn, that it seemed to me that my whole being was twisting. My skin grew dull, my wings turned the colour of starless night. My hair curled up and my eyes turned green. Green and then blue. And in the end, blue and green.

     In that moment, Sheyn, in that moment I could see everything clearly. I looked around me... and I saw only evil and rot... And I set out to destroy all of that, Sheyn. Disgusted and enraged, I wanted to put an end to all that evil. I wanted... to create a new world. A happy Neopia, free of all that plague that plagued it so much.

     But a group of faeries rallied to end me, end my necessary destruction. Do you see, Sheyn? They were all against me, even the ones I thought were my friends. I tried to talk to the queen at the time, Atsibra, to have her mercy. But they... they just destroyed my necklace, my pride and my strength, and threw me to the ground.

     There I cried, a lot. But they didn't listen to me. To punish me for what I had considered wrong, Atsibra locked me in a world invaded by whiteness, to which neither the Sun nor laughter nor hope could reach. Also, the queen cast a spell so that everyone except her would forget me. Everyone... forgot about me, that there had ever been a faerie named Kadriya.

     One day, a shadow Draik named Oridel released me from that wall-less prison and brought me back to life. She did a lot for me, she made me strong again. She fed me a dark earth fruit to begin with. And then, she cast a spell that paralyzed all of Neopia in one night, and filled it with shadows and darkness. Those Shadows sucked the energy from the Neopians and delivered it to me. But when I was still not fully recovered, I was attacked again by a group of very powerful Neopets, Sheyn. They defeated me by taking advantage of my weakness, and also Oridel. And at that moment, a shadow curse was activated, causing... causing me to be forgotten again. Everything happened again. Even Oridel completely forgot about me. And I returned to whiteness, to fog, to oblivion and to sleep."

     – My victors, currently do not know anything about me, since they have also forgotten me. What I need to know is if you two are with me. Will you help me to be strong again? “Asked Kadriya.”

     Sheyn and Merlin looked at each other. Adventure, circumstances, and conviction prevented them from answering anything other than:

     – Yes.

     – You do well. So, I formally declare you my vassals and friends, and I promise you the highest positions in my future new hierarchy. In my new world...

     (At that time, Xandra's blow to the faeries had not yet occurred, so the idea of the "new world" was still novel.)

     – To become strong, I need to feed myself on specific things. Darigan plums and Neopian energy, to be precise, my friends. I have contacted Oridel, and convinced her to bring me my precious fruits. But...

     "How do you plan to feed on Neopian energy?" Sheyn asked.

     – Last time, Oridel cast a huge and terrible spell, which covered Neopia in shadows. But that spell gave me away. In addition, it generated a discomfort in Neopia, in the form of cold and rain, which also indicated my existence to my victors. So now I need a spell that is not noticeable. Something that is absorbing energy, even that of the inhabitants of the Forest, slowly and without causing further damage.

     "How?" Sheyn kept asking.

     – My dear, don't worry about it. I will teach you. Actually, the most worrying thing now is another matter... the last few times, I was defeated because I did not have enough energy to win. Neopian energy will help me, yes, but not too much. Therefore, I must go in search of what will give me true strength... the stone of the necklace that gave me my new life.

     "You mean the necklace that Krawk gave you?" Merlin asked in amazement.

     – Yes. When they beat me, the stone caught fire in my neck, but it was a green fire that did not hurt and barely heated. Before sending me to the white world, Atsibra took the necklace from me and tucked it into one of the folds of her dress, so that I lost sight of it. I'm absolutely sure that necklace turned into a magical artefact, a very powerful one. If I could just put it on, or just touch her stone... I think I would become the strongest faerie of all.

     "But how are you sure that necklace was not destroyed?" Merlin asked.

     – Because it is impossible to destroy such a magical artefact. The necklace exists, I know it. But... the magic it possesses is withering black magic. Probably only I can use its power, because I was the person chosen by that Krawk to use it. He intended to destroy me by giving it to me, but without realizing it, he gave me the key that would make me the most powerful faerie of all. The real problem is that only the ancient queen of the faeries, Atsibra, should know the whereabouts of the necklace. So, I have to find her... and "convince" her to tell me where it is. And you, believe me, you will help me a lot, my friends.

     The story must have been interrupted at that point by a sudden tapping on the ceiling of the room. Kadriya stood very still in her place, expectant. Sheyn and Merlin had time to exchange another worried look before a large hole opened in the ceiling, and dozens upon dozens of glowing purple fruits rained down through it.

     – Oridel, Oridel, it's wonderful! Thank you, friend! – exclaimed the faerie.

     – Don't worry, it was fun.

     Oridel's voice did not come from the ceiling, as the Wocky and Gelert realized, but echoed inside their heads. And as soon as she said those words, she fell silent, never to speak again.

     Kadriya took one of the plums and stroked it tenderly before biting into it voraciously.

     – The first step is now complete. I have a sufficient supply of my first meal here, my friends. The next thing I have to do is instruct you, pass on my knowledge, so that you are able to provide me with my next food...

      ***

     Unknowingly, Kadriya had made something wrong. During the last battle, four Neopets fought against her. Two very strong Xweetoks, an Ixi and a Uni, who defeated her. But... not all of them forgot the Mist Faerie.

     Fawse, the fiery Xweetok who had sent Kadriya to the world of The Three for the second time, wrote the entire story of the faerie never to forget it. And the truth is that he never forgot her. He is currently the only Neopet who remembers Kadriya in all of Neopia. However, this fact will become relevant later.

      ***

     In Faerieland, Atsibra, the queen who preceded Fyora, had her residence. In the highest cloud (the same as the Queen's Palace), there is another palace, inhabited by the faerie queens who for various reasons decided to abandon their reign and their powers, but remain in their native country. Atsibra was one of them.

     Faerie nights are always filled with stars and sweet smells of flavor bubbles, colognes and old book pages. Atsibra was at that time a faerie of light with a solemn bearing and a stern look, but still conserving the strong and aristocratic beauty that always distinguished her from other faeries. That night, she was half asleep in her room in the Palace of the Ancients, totally ignorant of the visit she would receive next.

     Kadriya, her energies renewed after the abundant food, appeared in Faerieland, something that any moderately strong faerie can do. Of course, a grey faerie couldn't do it, for example. Adorable in her long black dress, the dark faerie advanced through the decorated streets of the city, very calm, since she knew that no one except Atsibra would recognize her.

     And he was not wrong. The path to the highest cloud was smooth and uncomplicated. But once she had reached it, she ran into two guardian fire faeries. However, Kadriya continued to advance with a smile painted on her lips.

     ***

     In Merlin's bedroom (which continued with an opening in the ceiling), both the Gelert and the Wocky laid on the floor, completely vanished. What happened was that they had become for the moment the second food of the dark faerie. Merlin opened his eyes for a few seconds, aware of his terrible weakness. But still in that state, he outlined a calm smile and whispered:

     – Will be worth it.

     And with one last blink of her pale eyes, he fainted into slumber.

     ***

     Both fire faeries were asleep, as were the two Neopets of the Forest. Kadriya felt much stronger, and capable of stealing energy even from the Snowager himself. Very sure of herself, the faerie became intangible as air and entered the massive door without difficulty. The former queen was not difficult to locate, guided by her fiendish witch's intuition.

     Atsibra, meanwhile, was fast asleep, dressed in an elegant white dress (these faeries today even dress up to sleep as if they were going to a party...). Her enemy had crossed all the corridors and precincts that separated her from her revenge, all of them adorned with paintings and sculptures of heroic faeries. "Someday, I'll be in those paintings," she kept repeating to herself.

     Arriving in the room she was looking for; she went through the door and recovered her normal form to allow Atsibra to be aware of her presence.

     "My friend!" Kadriya exclaimed before throwing herself at Atsibra.

     The light faerie barely had time to open her eyes before the dark faerie's deadly embrace surrounded her.

     "What... are you doing here?" Asked the terrified ex–queen.

     – I just came to say hello, friend. And to ask you a question. The necklace you stole from me decades ago, I need it. I appreciate you keeping it for me all this time, but WHERE IS IT?

     The last two words were a high–pitched scream that tore the ears and lucidity of the faerie of light, which fell into sleep.

     ***

     Sailing through an infinite sea... caressing the heavenly clouds... feeling the blowing of the wind... floating in the sunlight... perceiving the greenish light of something malevolent... something that clouds the light, obscures the Sunshine and dulls the senses... the necklace... the necklace...

     –THE NECKLACE!

     ***

     Kadriya opened her eyes. She had looked into Atsibra's mind, and now she knew where the jewel she had been searching so frantically was.

     – The Lost Desert... I'm going there. They beat me twice, but we'll see what awaits me.

     To be continued…