The Return of Destiny - Part 9

      But why are we wasting time and energy on something that is wrong? What will happen to our families, our lives, our future?

     Merlin's face had paled at those reflections. As for Sheyn, he was a little uncomfortable, as well as visibly surprised at those words that were intended to be sensible. With a trembling voice, he replied:

     - Friend, all this time, I was just following you... you. I thought you thought this was okay. I believed that Kadriya mattered to you.

     - I care a lot! But no more than the rest of Neopia.

     - Ehh... she's supposed to create a new world, right? And it will be a better place for everyone. It's going to be tough at first, obviously, but we'll get used to it.

     - Sheyn, are you kidding me? A world of black magic, repression and Dark Faeries and evil creatures with a free hand to do whatever they want... What good can there be in all that?

     - Well, it will be an egalitarian world...

     The Gelert could not continue speaking. His voice was cracking. Merlin, on the other hand, grew stronger with each sentence. And finally, he spoke the words that would act as the final blow:

     "Such a world could never exist, for the simple reason that many people... are not good, Sheyn." And these people deserve a punishment, a sentence, not a reward. Kadriya... is a faerie who is neither good nor bad. She has suffered a lot, I know, but her ideas will only lead Neopia to destruction.

     At that point, the Gelert interrupted, furious and confused:

     - So why the Chia did you help her do all this? Arguably, the only bad guy here is you, Wizard!

     - Because...!

     Terrified, the Wocky did nothing but stammer. The words weren't coming out of his mouth, and the Neopet panicked. Why had he done all this? Why had he helped the faerie so blindly, knowing she was doing something wrong but ignoring it at the same time?

     He had no answer. He only knew that the damage had already been done. As for Sheyn, he had done nothing but support his best friend's cause.

     ***

      "Why?" The shadow Draik whispered from hundreds of miles away.

     Crouched in her cave, young Oridel did nothing but gobble one plum after another. He was dressed in dirty rags; his white hair was tangled and his black body was very untidy. But that didn't matter to him.

     In his soft voice, softened by the sweet fruit juices, he hummed something like this:

     "The Kadriya girl wants to break the world and build a new one for herself. A better place, made of clouds and fruit candy. A place that she fervently imagines, but that will never be a reality.

     Because the Kadriya girl has done nothing but lie. His young servant, with snowy fur and cobalt eyes, has been enchanted with the crude magic of two haunted eyes. His fierce amber-eyed friend has done nothing but follow his beloved companion. And everyone follows the faerie. All haunted.

     An eye as blue as the sky, and another as green as the forests. Heaven and earth reunited in a cursed look, of the girl Kadriya the impostor.

     But the reign of that look will not last long, because another pair of eyes, more noble, clear and sincere, will destroy that blinking. And they will close the green eye for the rest of the millennia.

     “The fate of the celestial eye... is known only by time."

     Oridel finished his song and muttered to himself:

     - Friend Kadriya, I know you put a spell on me to obey you years ago. But the spell was broken when you were defeated, and even so, I still felt tied to you. That is because the bond of friendship that we achieved will never be broken. I have been your only true friend, and I will be forever. Even at the cost of my voice, of my song... of your lies.

     I'm afraid the Wocky you tricked into your ally has already recovered from the spell. The shield you placed over him to protect him, nullified your own magic, my friend. Lies never last forever. In the end, all that remains is love and truth.

     Someday, we will meet again, my dear Kadriya. And we will talk about life, circumstances... and Destiny.

     ***

     It is a pity that Kadriya did not hear any of those beautiful words. The faerie was so focused and entertained with the fight, that she was not paying attention to anything else. Her two-colour eyes actually resembled diamonds more than just body parts.

     The army was exhausted, almost defeated. Night was beginning to fall on the Island, and progress was nil. Hagan and Skarl no longer knew how to manage the few remaining troops. Lord Darigan, injured by a sharp rock that had brushed past him, had no choice but to remain on the ground casting curses.

     Fyora was the only leader remaining in the sky, her pink body sparkling brightly every time she approached the green silhouette of the Dark Faerie. A little tired of this situation, Kadriya focused solely on Fyora, with the purpose of taking her down. There was practically no one else left in the sky, except for the two faeries.

     - Give it up, Fyora! - Kadriya exclaimed- You are going to fall, literally. I’ll give you the option to go down to the ground right now calmly, and avoid the pain. Or else, you will regret it.

     The Queen of the faeries stood tall in the sky, spreading her great wings and displaying a heroic bearing:

     - The only thing I could regret in these circumstances, is not to finish you right now!

     And suddenly, she lunged at the Dark Faerie, knowing that her defences were weakened.

     But Kadriya did not reactivate her shield. She allowed her opponent to approach her for the first time, and with a cold laugh, she launched herself to face Fyora.

     From the ground, the two points (green and pink) collided in the air, separated and came back together, generating rays that were fired in all directions.

     "Fyora, stop!" Lord Darigan managed to shout with what little strength he had left. "You can't win!"

     "My Lord, please rest, you are injured..." whispered a nurse Aisha with a frowning face.

     - No! You are going to lose! We're going to lose her! - the Korbat moaned hopelessly- Don't you understand? If Fyora loses, that Dark Faerie will have the right to the throne of Faerieland. All the other faeries will be forced to obey her. It will be a disaster!

     A white glow lit up the entire Island at that moment. Lord Darigan's whitish features were enhanced by that blinding, unstoppable glow. By the time everything returned to normal, almost all the stars were shining in the night sky. But amidst the constellations, only one point rose triumphantly.

     - FYORA!

     Very late. The Faerie Queen had fallen. The pink dot had faded, and she was lying on the ground, defeated and unconscious.

     - I knew it! What did I tell you? I WON! - Kadriya exclaimed with an amplified voice that would resonate with force throughout the Island- Nobody anymore, NOBODY is a match for me! No Neopet or faerie is stronger than Fyora! And look at her now: on the ground, defeated and pathetic! No one can beat me!

     - You're wrong.

     A second voice, also amplified, was heard. It was a masculine voice, serene as the night. But the confidence in the tone made the faerie hesitate.

     - Who dares to interrupt me...?

     - Be quiet. -said the mysterious voice- You are arrogant and you will pay dearly for that, Kadriya. It's true: in Neopia, there are no longer any Neopets or faeries stronger than you. However, Neopia is not just that. Neopia is an entirely magical world, and much more wonderful and beautiful than your limited and dark mind is capable of perceiving. In Neopia, there are many different forces. You are making use of one of them: the magic of the Lung of the Forest. But there are others, and those millennial forces are plotting against you. The Heart of the Mountain and the magic of the Three Guardians are with me. Dare to challenge me to a battle, and we'll see who wins.

     A point, this time red, lit up in the sky, fifty meters from the faerie. Kadriya stared in horror at the bearer of that voice: it was the Xweetok that had defeated her years before. His entire body glowed in a scarlet glow, and his red eyes shot him intimidating glances from a distance.

     "Come on, attack me!" Cried the Xweetok.

     Kadriya doubted. But he quickly realised that, in truth... he had no other choice.

     And the battle resumed.

     ***

     Meanwhile, the Wocky and the Gelert, possessing a minuscule amount of magic that Kadriya had given them to protect them, had managed to lower the seat to the ground. Once they were a few feet above the ground, they jumped up and into the jungle.

     After they had covered a good distance, they sat and gazed at the red and green dots blazing in the sky.

     "Who do you think is going to win?" Sheyn asked after a long silence.

     "Kadriya," Merlin replied sadly.

     - And who do you want to win?

     - The Xweetok.

     - That Xweetok has a name, it's called Fawse.

     The two Neopets were startled when they heard a mysterious voice behind them. Turning around, they could make out a Neopet hidden among the foliage, presumably an Ixi.

     - You two are Merlin and Sheyn, right? The allies of the faerie.

     Merlin, overwhelmed, was about to answer "Yes". But Sheyn was ahead of him, telling the plain truth:

     - No. The faerie bewitched us and forced us to obey her. She has a strange and horrible magic in her eyes, something that prompts you to heed her. But no more, the spell was broken. Although, it is true that we call ourselves as you said.

     - You, Sheyn. -Ixi assured himself, pointing to the Gelert- And you... Merlin, isn't it?

     The Wocky did nothing but nod slightly.

     - Very well. The fact that the spell is broken greatly simplifies things.

     "How do you know our names?" Merlin whispered.

     - Hey, I heard them when the faerie introduced them this afternoon. - lied the Ixi, who actually knew their names due to the magic of Aska's tear, which she kept locked in her right fist.

     As for the long greyish lock, it was firmly knotted around the neck of the Ixi.

     - What you must do now is decide. Would you rather stay here like cowards, then have to flee for the rest of your lives to avoid being recognised? Or, maybe you prefer to help my brother Fawse defeat that tyrant and remain in history as heroes?

     The two Neopets exchanged a look and nodded. Osorium smiled at them helplessly. It is that, that look, he had already exchanged many times with his own brother.

     - We will go with you, and we will help in whatever way we can. Sheyn asserted in a deep voice.

     In response, the Ixi took them both by the arm and dragged them to a clearing in the jungle from which the hard battle could be seen very clearly.

     "You are not brothers, are you?" Asked them suddenly.

     Merlin stared at the Ixi in sheer surprise.

     - I do not answer.

     "Ah, well... You seem so," the Ixi just said.

     In the sky, Kadriya and Fawse moved as through a vast ocean, the stars acting as lights that guided and confused them in the vastness. The faerie launched her attacks, always confident that victory would be imminent. But the Neopet dodged anything threatening, and flew to collide with the maleficent faerie. Every time the two bodies touched; a gigantic white light was produced that blinded all the islanders. And from the ground, Nisha the striped Xweetok, watched the fight stunned, convinced that she knew that Xweetok. Indeed, they were, but so many years had passed without seeing each other that it seemed impossible for them to meet again under those circumstances. Has it never happened to you? Seeing a childhood friend again after years of absence. I do, and I assure you that it is a purely magical and disconcerting sensation.

     Kadriya, meanwhile, was furious. She didn't understand why that Neopet's magic was comparable to her own. But still, she was smiling with her wicked mouth.

     At a time when both separated, the faerie took the opportunity to shout:

     - You can't win this time! It does not matter what you do! Because you are alone, with your "millennial forces". -the faerie said those last words with a mocking accent- I, besides that, I have two allies who will be with me until the end, and they are...

     - NO MORE, KADRIYA!

     After that scream, everything was silent. Merlin had never screamed like that in his life. The faerie barely had time to contemplate in the distance her two "allies" who, raising their hands in the air, were launching attacks at her. Beside her, the Ixi stared at Kadriya, a gaze the young woman had never seen directed her way. It was a look of compassion, something the faerie had never been given.

     Merlin and Sheyn's attack was not very strong, however, the faerie was hurt in the soul. Tears began to roll down her pale cheeks, and for the first time in a long time they weren't tears of fury, but of grief.

     "You can't buy friends, Kadriya," Fawse told him from a distance, always shrouded in his reddish glow. "I'm not alone." I have real friends and family. Instead, you have no one.

     "That's because everyone abandoned me," Kadriya murmured, lowering her head. "Everyone stopped loving me when I became a Dark Faerie." When I was an air faerie, I had it all.

     - Then you will be again.

     Fyora's voice, followed by its respective pink glow, broke into the conversation. The faerie Queen had recovered, and she was willing to end the matter once and for all.

     A red and pink lightning came together to envelop Kadriya in a light so great that for the faerie the night had become day. And it was in the midst of that terrible luminosity, when the faerie heard a sweet voice in the depths of his being:

     "Friend, I am here"

     "Oridel, Oridel. You never leave me."

     The faerie barely had time to utter those words, when a discharge of energy clouded her thoughts and her entire being. Kadriya's body was mutating, breaking to be reborn in the form of something new... or rather, something old. Because of the transformation of the faerie, it was actually a throwback to her old air faerie form: her original and perfect form.

     The black wings became translucent, the fragments of blackness fell like opaque ashes and formed huge clouds that disturbed the sky. The night black dress fell apart until it was reduced to a light white tulle that covered the entire body of the faerie, which lost its pallor to regain its healthy appearance. The shoes would simply fall off and disappear, as would the long, unnecessary gloves.

     But the most noticeable change was undoubtedly on Kadriya's face: the curly black hair would turn silver and luminous, as straight as the prairies of the Meridell fields. The hard, fierce features softened into the tender little face of a helpless girl. And when she opened her eyes, they had returned to their celestial splendour. The green aura separated from them, and would vanish upon coming into contact with the magic of the Heart of the Mountain and the Queen of the Faeries of Neopia. The cursed necklace exploded into hundreds of pieces.

     At that point, Fawse and Fyora stopped. The spell had ended, leaving behind a weak maiden, who, closing her eyes, dropped through the air. To the surprise of all onlookers, there was a sudden orange explosion in the sky, and from it a Draik would emerge that would fly to catch the sweet Kadriya just in time.

     The Draik gave Fawse and Osorium a smiling look, who returned the gesture. Yes, the faerie would be fine in the company of that Neopet. So, without saying more, Oridel withdrew into another fire-like glow.

     And with that disappearance, peace would return to the Island. All the islanders, after a few seconds of perplexity, joined their voices to sing and celebrate the incredible victory. The armies put aside their tiredness to scream and laugh with happiness, even Lord Darigan was smiling more than satisfied. It would have been a nice touch for Hagan and Skarl to hug or something, but hey... that's asking too much.

     Exhausted, Merlin and Sheyn did nothing but lie on the fragrant earth and gaze up at the sky, relieved to know that it was finally over. Osorium and Nisha, from their respective places, gave Fawse a grateful look, who along with Fyora, did nothing more than bow in the air to receive the thanks of the entire Island.

     But in the midst of all that hubbub and joy, something happened. Something... disturbing. Unexpectedly, everything went still, time stopped. The islanders were petrified in one position, and in the sky, Fawse and Fyora were standing still like two broken clocks.

     In the midst of all that stillness, three figures made their appearance in the sky, a short distance from the Neopet and the faerie. You guessed it? They were neither more nor less than the Three Guardians, reunited at last. Sagittis, the Bronze Guardian, with his eternal brown cloak and his hourglass in his arms. Eskein, the Guardian of Gold, in his billowing white robe and his mask that glowed in the peaceful darkness. And finally, the most powerful and mysterious of the Guardians: Brunzelo, the mystical Silver Guardian. Dressed in an extremely long blue and silver robe, adorned with countless precious stones, as well as an elegant white cape draped over his shoulders, he looked like a figure from a faerie tale. His very white body matched his long snowy hair and his eyes… they couldn't be seen. The Hissi was bandaged with a white handkerchief, which made it difficult to see his eyes.

     - It's time to reboot. Brunzelo muttered with a faint smile.

     "It's time to repair," Eskein added with a charming expression.

     - It is time of time. Sagittis finished in a soft voice.

     The spell of the Three Guardians was carried out, and one of the most important forces of Neopia achieved its secret ends. And the recoil spread throughout Neopia. The memories of the faerie Kadriya were erased, this time permanently from all the memories and all the archives of the world. Time would rewind in its footsteps, until the night when a young Grey Wocky walked calmly through a nocturnal Neopia. This time, the Neopet would never be disturbed on its walk. This time, all of Neopia would have synchronised their energy to correct the story of something that should never have happened. And so, ending their impeccable work, the Three Guardians disappeared in the quiet of the night, as the only bearers of the incredible memories. Some vague legends would remain in Neopia's history, but only that; rumours.

     However, a very important change had occurred. On the Mystery Island, in the thick of the jungle, a faerie had her residence. It was a funny thing: no islander remembered ever seeing her, but overnight, they got used to her presence. It was a charming air faerie, as beautiful and smiling as it is rarely seen today. She almost always walked along the beaches accompanied by a very pretty Draik shadow, with long white hair that contrasted with the black of her skin and the orange of her eyes. The two young women used to walk to a certain point, point to a place in the sky, and laugh. When the villagers asked them what they were pointing to, they simply said "the clouds."

     Kadriya and Oridel knew what had happened, but they kept the secret. Why disturb the new existence, the happiness and the eternal tranquillity of knowing that all is well, and that in Neopia, there is no greater evil than magic and wonder without limits?

     END.