Maledictus Renascentis

Chapter 4: révolution de l'esprit

With the return of the entity she had accidentally summoned all those years ago, the one that transformed her into a hideous monster, her memories had returned. How she had survived her 'self sacrifice' was a mystery, a mystery that the Princess of Dryl was determined to solve.

"You said the Spell of Obtainment turns you into a magical parasite, right?" Entrapta asked, looking up from her scans.

"It does." She replied with a small nod, testing the barriers of the containment spell with her bandaged hand. The magic cracked a bit, the barrier bending slightly with her power. The part of her that was Shadow Weaver told her to break out, that it would be as easy as breathing, what with Castaspella's imperfect casting, but she decided against it. It would be wiser to find out what would happen to her if they kept her there. The one good thing about the containment rune was that not only did it keep her inside, it kept everything else out, including the entity that wanted her dead.

"Well, according to these readings- wow, this is amazing! Hordak, are you seeing this?" Entrapta brought her 'lab partner' over, dragging him with her hair. Why the leader of the Horde was allowed to walk free and she wasn't was a mystery to her. "It looks like the remnants of the Spell that were connected to you used the wave of magic from the Heart of Etheria to rebuild your body at a molecular level! I've never seen anything like this! If we could find a way to redo this process, then Etherians could hypothetically become immortal!"

"Not quite." She replied with a mirthless chuckle. "The Spell of Obtainment is dangerous. It almost killed me, when I performed it. At the very least, it will corrupt the caster's mind irreperably."

"Scratch that idea." Entrapta said, directing for Hordak to cross out that line on her notes.

"Also, it has a tendency to summon an eight-eyed entity from another dimension that turns you into a hideous monster, if it doesn't kill you outright."

"You mean the thing that's been attacking Mystacor?" Entrapta asked, pulling up her visor in interest.

"Yes, exactly." LightShadow sighed exasperatedly. "That thing. Have there been any more attacks since I was put in here?"

"It's been devouring everything!" Entrapta said. "The Princesses are using their Runestone powers to try to keep it at bay, but every day, it seems to eat at least two or three people."

"I have to kill it." LightShadow whispered, reality dawning on her. "I started this, so it is my fate to finish it."

"You think you could kill that thing?" Entrapta looked up from her work. "I mean, the princesses haven't been able to contain it, and you're nowhere near a princess in terms of power."

"No, I can't kill it, the way I am now." She formulated a plan. "I need to go back to where it all started. The Spell of Obtainment."

"Are you insane?" Castaspella burst in. "No, why am I even asking that question? Obviously, you are. Like hell I would let you cast that again. You could destroy everything that we've worked for."

"It is the only way. Cast the spell to lure it in, and kill the entity before it can devour me and everyone else."

"I'm not letting you gain any more power than you already have." Castaspella crossed her arms.

"I know. That's why I was going to ask you to be there with me. I do not want to be drawn into my old ways. I would rather you kill me than have me repeat my past mistakes."

"The only reason I'm agreeing to this plan is because we have no other choice." The Head Sorceress crossed her arms. "I still think you're crazy."

"I'm glad that you see reason." She winced as she put pressure on her injured arm, rising to her feet. "It will be dangerous, as the eclipse has already passed, and the moons will be out of alignment. Are you willing to take that risk?"