THE BEING

Carnage.

It was everywhere.

The Being stood perched on the hilltop overlooking Cretea. She delighted in the screams from the humans and faeries in the several villages that were in flames. She could hear cries of children, smell the rotten flesh, and feel the power that ran beneath her veins.

Her corrupted sisterhood soared through the skies, lifting men off of the ground and dropping them onto the pavement. She could hear her creations laugh as they stabbed the males, having their fun before focusing on the real task.

Once The Being defended from the hilltop, her dark magic dragged along the ground, coating the dirt beneath her feet. The magic crawled to the dead men, seeping through their skin, bringing them back to life once more, but at the mercy of the most powerful fae that corrupted them.

Bring me the leaders of this island. The Being commanded to them.

All followed without hesitation.

The creatures stampeded to the sizable home of Miriam and Drakon, surrounding the premises and breaking through. She could feel the pure magic being used inside, knowing that they were trying to gain more time, but it was no use.

Moments later, a man and a woman were being dragged by their necks.

The corrupted sisterhood landed behind their leader, watching as Miriam and Drakon struggled to get out of the hold they were put in, but the creatures were too strong. They both looked around their island, seeing the destruction that The Being had caused.

And once they looked up at her...

"You," Miriam breathed, recognizing her face.

The Being smiled, "Me." She said, her voice low.

"How did you find this place? No one knows about our home!" Miriam yells.

The Being scoffs, "You're right. No one knows that you are alive, except for the High Lord and High Lady of the Night Court. It was difficult to get information about you, but eventually, I found what I was looking for." She tells them.

"How did you get past our enchantments?" Drakon asks.

"My dark magic penetrates it. Your pure magic doesn't stand a chance against mine. In reality, all it took was a touch, and your wards were broken. Isn't that magnificent?" She reveals to them.

"Why would you do this? How could you? Do you understand what you have done? You have killed many of our people, including innocent children!" Drakon yells at her.

The Being nods, "How disappointing, isn't it? But I believe that it was the only way you both would give me what I came here for." She says.

Miriam shakes her head, "What do you want?" She asks, tears streaking down her dirt-stained face.

"Where is the Cauldron?" She asks, her yellow eyes gleaming.

Miriam and Drakon immediately still at the question.

After a moment, Drakon speaks, "Why do you seek it? Are you going to bring down chaos as Hybern did? Are you going to use it to destroy Prythian and take it for yourself?" He yelled, his breathing heavy.

"Yes." The Being says.

Again, silence overtakes them.

She starts to walk around the injured couple, admiring her creations that stand around them. She could see the emptiness in their eyes, sense their despair, and delight in their fear.

She had felt the same once.

She was once powerless, filled with sadness and loneliness that she didn't know how to handle. She had held a weight inside of herself that she didn't know how to get rid of it. She seeked that sense of comfort from others who never could understand her pain.

There was only one person who did.

The Being tucked a strand of hair behind one of her creation's ears, "Prythian is meant to be ruled by one sole individual; a powerful one. The Cauldron must be beside them because it created all things, including them. Hybern wanted to rule Prythian and turn it into what he wanted it to be. I, however, want to purify it, to dispose of the courts and unify it.

"Time is running short for Prythian. The Cauldron must be in my grasp. So, tell me where it is, and your lives, and those who survived my attack, will be spared. If not, I strike one of you dead. You decide." She finishes.

Drakon spits down at her feet, "Fuck you and your ideals. You will never gain Prythian. That is a promise I will keep. You may have slaughtered a number of our people and corrupted them, but you will never win. There will be someone to stop you." He says to her.

The Being squats down to him, "Then I guess I will have to slaughter them too." She says before putting a hand around his neck. Her dark magic slowly starts to corrupt him. Drakon struggles to breathe as it takes hold of him. Miriam begs for him to be released.

The Being turns to the woman, "Tell me where the Cauldron is. If you refuse, he becomes one of my creations and this island will burn into ashes. Your people will be no more and there will be no one to protect you." She says, tightening her hold.

Miriam looks at her husband, who shakes his head.

"You were separated once, Miriam. Don't let that happen again. You fought for peace and you won. If you tell me where the Cauldron is, you will still have your peace. I don't care about your island. I only care about Prythian." The Being says to her.

Miriam swallows, "What will you do to them? What have they done to you? The cycle of violence must end. What you are doing will not bring peace, it will bring chaos. If you awake the Cauldron and abuse it, you will open worlds and rain destruction upon all of us." She tells her.

The Being nods, "What I do with the Cauldron is none of your concern. I will make sure that none of its power touches you. I ask one last time, Miriam. Where is the fucking Cauldron?" She asks, strengthening her dark magic.

Miriam sobs, "It's in the stone church, stored in an underground bunker." She reveals.

Immediately, the corrupted sisterhood heads into the skies. The Being lets go of her hold on the male, standing up, and turning away from them.

The woman scrambles to her husband, "I'm sorry, Drakon." She sobs, holding him tightly.

"It's alright, my love." He croaks, planting a kiss on her head.

The Being looks out to the ocean beyond, seeing the moon reflecting in the waves. She had sacrificed so much to get to where she was now. She had healed her wounds with anger and sadness, giving into the darkness.

The choices that she had to make weren't easy, but to her, they were necessary. She had to accomplish her goal. It was too late to give up now, especially after everything she had done.

"Will you leave us alone? Will we be spared?" Miriam asks from behind.

The Being looks to the side, "You have my word." She says.

As she advances to the church, she could see that the corrupted sisterhood has already torn it apart, revealing the hidden underground passageway that was underneath it.

Delphine approaches her, "The Cauldron is there, my lady. Would you like for us to retrieve it for you?" She asks.

With a single nod, the sisterhood scrambles.

The Being could feel the energy from the Cauldron calling to her, begging her to go towards it, to touch it once more. It had given her this gift of darkness and destruction, but in truth, she was afraid of this metal pot, knowing that it could take it away from her in an instant.

As the sisterhood raised it up from the ground, she felt shivers creep down her spine.

It was the first time she had been afraid in years.

"What shall we do with it, my lady?" Aiko asks.

The Being continues to stare at the silent Cauldron, wondering what would happen if she awoke it once more. But it wasn't time yet.

Prythian only had days left.

"Take it to one of the boats. We sail back tonight." She tells them, "After we wake the Cauldron, Prythian will be at my mercy."