Nychta - The Bloodrose Kingdom

Chapter 21 - The Raven of the Jester

“And now, these are the paintings of our former queens,” Eudora said, fixing the large ribbon on top of her brunette head. She was quite of a mature age, and yet, she seemed more vain than most of the contestants along with me.

Her hands point through each queens in the grand hallway, their numbers uncountable. They were lined horizontally, the paintings having a similar style of refined darkness and royalty. The walls were lined with gold, having a swirling white pattern going through a rhythm of swirls and hoops. It reflected off the bright chandeliers at the ceiling, which was painted with dark skies filled with stars and purple clouds.

I recognized some of them. Of course, in the nearest side by us was Queen Diana of the Ice, the latest claim of the Queen’s Curse. Her hair was painted to be a sharp blue, spiky but still fixed in a regal manner. Her head was looking at her right, chin raised proudly. She was wearing a blue and icy gown, its sleeves decorated with blue beads. She was sparkling, but in an icy and cool way.

At that picture, I instantly imagined a powerful woman capable of destroying her way. I never listened much to the stories of the people and the guards back in Silverfang about the Divination, only listening to the result at the end. When she was announced, I instantly knew that we were going to suffer the same way as every day, her name not ringing anything in my ears to make me think of a nice and generous queen.

I tried hard to imagine myself as one, but my image lately was so far from it.

At the side of the painting was Zyme of the Plants, her main power basically from her name itself. Plants were always an underrated power in the queendom, with fire-users always capable of destroying them. However, Queen Zyme in particular, from what I’ve heard, infused a special type of magic to make her plants element-resistent, leading to her win.

She was supporting her chin with her hand, her elbow on top of a table. She had long, unfixed hair, just the way she liked it. She was smiling, her eyes having a green and evil glint in it. Her background was filled with vines and green plants, her frame having the same theme.

Looking at the frames, I begin to wonder more about their capabilities. Truly, there was nobody that can best them during the actual Divination, given their victory over the other powerful girls. They took the seat after the crowd cheered for them, after blood spilled in their hands, which finally gave them the crown.

But exactly after one year? All after five queens?

The Queen’s Curse killed all of them, even though they seemed powerful and almighty as everyone here in the room. If months of training and intense challenges was done to pick the best out of them, and it only took one day for them to die mysteriously, then what was our insurance that we will even come out alive if ever we get crowned?

I looked at the surroundings, each of the girls looking at the paintings. Margaret of the River was brushing her nose after sneezing. Her green hair was in a disarray, curly strands all over her head. She was looking at Rufia of the River, their powers basically identical. She was looking as if testing if she will suit the same frame, given that she was basically the same woman. Rufia also came from Aquamearn, and both of them had the same green hair. Only that, Rufia had more of a sense of fashion, rather than untidy and uncaring Margaret.

By my left was Judith of the Frost, her arms still crossed, still pissed from her earlier encounter with Eudora. Adelaide of the Woods was now talking to her. By now, they already gained a new friend, none other than Hilda of the Knives. They were discussing about something quite serious, their voices hushed.

I rolled my eyes. b***h meets b***h.

But as I turned to my right, I suddenly lightly bump into small creature. It was of a smoothly combed gray hair and pale white skin. Lucia.

“Whoops,” she says, her head bumping to my breast. I immediately back off.

“Hey,” I say again, my tone normal. I looked at her blue eyes.

“I was just wondering, has there even been a queen with a power like mine?” she says, her tone innocent. She was still searching around the room, ocean eyes looking for a painting that shared a similar trait with her.

I followed her gaze, looking around the room. I thought of how this would look like a painting, a child-like girl with the same age as me both searching the room, black and white meeting. It wasn’t just her power that intimidated me. It also wasn’t just the lack of social skills. It was her innocence, her lack of evil thoughts that I can never afford for myself. I’ve seen too much already to be someone like her.

“I don’t think so. You are the first of your power that I’ve seen. I-I haven’t seen any white gem yet, except for yours,” I say, my gaze focusing on the paintings.

She suddenly smiles as she looks back at me.

“Weirdly enough, I have the same thought about you,” she says. Both of us giggles at the thought.

“You impressed me too, by the way,” I say, returning the compliment she gave me earlier. It was true, for the doves and the intense ray of light and warmth she made me feel gave me an idea of what my darkness should be. I wasn’t to be one of the ancestors of Bloodrose. I wasn’t to be power-hungry and a chaos bringer. I was to be the warm darkness, the darkness that assured every one of peace and calm.

“Thank you,” she says. She suddenly showed her palm, earlier hidden underneath the ruffles of her

white gown. In an instant, she made a tiny dove come out of her hand, with it flapping its way towards me. I smiled at the dove, which was spreading light everywhere around it.

It flied towards me, going to my nose. When it finally met my skin, it comically pecked, with me only feeling a warm sensation on my nose. It disappeared after, leaving trails of light.

“I wonder if I can do the same,” I say. She looks at my eyes.

“Don’t worry. You basically just take your palm out, and think of a dove,” she says, her hand getting my wrist. She takes my hand, and opens it.

“Dove?” I ask, my head angling a bit. Her lips circle as she realizes her mistake.

“Oh, sorry. I meant a bird... or in your case, a raven,” she said as she smiles. I laugh in reply.

My palm now faced the ceiling. I willed my concentration, trying to find whatever ability I can use to do the raven.

What is this? A grumpy voice replied, the black gem.

I’m just trying to make a raven appear, I reply.

I heard a snort inside my head.

Teach me how, I pleaded, Lucia expectantly looking at me.

I am not made to be a jester’s trick, Machiavellian. I will not put up with such childish tricks, such-

I cut her voice from my head, an ability I didn’t knew I was capable of doing. Now she was rambling.

I smiled at Lucia, who only smiled back in return, still expectant. Why did I even sign up for this?

I thought about the things I was capable of doing. Making claws out of my hands? Check. Calling for wings for me to fly in the arena? Check. Making my fist capable of crushing a guard’s neck if only I put more force into it? Check.

But ravens coming out of my palm? I didn’t think of that.

But I let myself try. Whenever I did my power, I always tapped for that switch inside my mind. That switch somewhere deep inside my brain, only needing a little bit of wanting from me for it to obey.

I flipped the switch.

In an instant, a dark and circular void comes out from the middle of the void. Lucia wowed at the scene.

And then to fully fulfill my act, I poured my power into it.

But it was too much, it seems.

Now, floods of hundreds of huge ravens now came out from it, with me not being able to control it. Lucia backed away, shocked and surprised to see too many.

I tried to pocket my hand instead, with it vibrating intensely as more of the birds came out from it. But it was to no avail, with most of them only flying underneath my gown and slipping through to fly inside the hallway.

Some of the girls were now starting to notice, Thea of the Thunder now gawking at the ravens flying. Millicent of the War chopped her hands in the air, trying to catch the dark-made ravens. The ones she hit instantly fell down on the floor, black blood coming out of it. And then they vanished, as if it never existed in the first place.

But there was still so much coming out of my hands.

Help! I told the dark gem, my voice pleading and trying to call her desperately. But it also seemed to have the same power as mine, being able to shut each other out. I cursed loudly.

Now the whole room looked at the ravens flying around the room. And I instantly knew that one thing was about to happen: chaos.

The ravens flew around like bugs eagerly meeting live flesh. Even with all the mess, I was still proud of my own creations, with them pecking Adelaide, Hilda, and Judith specifically. Adelaide’s hands was now covered in roots, while Judith’s hand released small shards of ice, blindly aiming it around the room. Hilda was only dodging, carefully knowing the art of it like every Serpent does.

As I saw the blur around me, I closed my eyes and willed everything to stop. I desperately still called for the Black Gem’s voice inside me, but it still shut me out. I willed for that switch, willed for that infinite tap of power to stop flowing, as I heard thunder and water and ice flying all around the hall.

I instantly knew that it stopped when the high pitched screaming and sounds of heels clicking finally halted. When I opened my eyes, the hallway was still pristine as ever, the girls still pausing while on their fighting stances.

Matilda was now half-girl and half-robot, her fists exploding mid-air as it hit nothing. Millicent had just recovered from rolling on the floor, her acrobatic skills at demonstration. Alice of the Cards now brought out her deck, readying to attack the ravens.

I looked guiltily at them, my lip biting. Some of them instantly fixed their gowns, while some looked slowly and angrily at me, finally returning back to their positions earlier. If I didn’t cause the whole thing, I might have seen this as comedic and entertaining. Unfortunately, it seems that both words fit myself instead.

Lucia at my side was smiling and giggling, entertained by the whole thing. Light had its own sense of humor, it seems.

But as I looked at the crowd, now returning back to its normal talks and observations, I saw one stand out in particular.

Rosetta. Her pink hair was neatly arranged, perfectly framing her now innocent looking face. Truly, her charms changed every time I saw her.

But instead of becoming irritated, her head was just angled to the left, curious eyes looking at me. I wondered about what she was thinking.

But as I looked to her right, my heart immediately sank. It was Eudora, her left eyebrow raised at me. There was no damage to the room, or any holes, but she still seemed pissed. I looked at the ground instead, my pride hurt.