Dark Queen: The Cybelline Prophecies

Epilogue - Miri - Part 1 of 3

Neither spoke for a moment and only enjoyed the ale.

"My lord, the last time I saw you, you had saved my entire family, as you had promised." The old school teacher began tentatively, "You saved my daughter's happiness."  

The young immortal lowered his eyes to the mug and said nothing.

Luther looked at the mysterious young man uneasily and began again, "But this time it is different." 

The brows on the young face knitted slightly, "She has said yes?" 

Luther grinned with a tiny hint of pride, "Miri is like her mother, she said she would choose the man she wants to marry and she did. I'm lucky to have a daughter with such good taste." 

"What kind of man is she marrying?" 

"A teacher in my school, they met when Miri came to visit me. I don't think that boy has looked at anyone properly after he met her." Luther shook his head, "He has very little ambition though, he tells me that he does not wish to become a powerful minister or even a local official." 

Luther's smile was conflicted as he poured more ale for the guest and himself, "As a father I could find no better candidate. He will make the perfect husband."

"But?" the younger man inquired, curious. 

Luther took a sip, "As a scholar, I see his prodigious talent and want to see him helping his nation. He has the potential to become the prime minister. Yet he refuses to take the national civil service exams." 

"The tallest tree in the forest draws the strongest winds" The young man in black quoted, "Miri would not want that. " 

The name slipped from his mouth naturally, as if he had been saying it for his whole life. Luther looked at the man and wondered for the millionth time just why did this powerful being decide to help him and his family. In the moments of their direst threat, he descended into their lives. As the king's minister Luther was powerless to stop the old man from trying to marry his daughter. But this young immortal appeared and promised that no such thing would happen. 

The next thing he knew, the old king was dead and he and his family were free to go. 

"If he can make her happy, then that is all I needed to know." The ageless youth stood, "If he can not..." The obvious threat lingered in the air. 

The man tapped his ring three times, and thirty giant chests of gold, silver, jewels, silks, and all manner of treasures appeared out of nowhere and into the room.

"This is a small gift for her." He told them simply. With three taps of his ring, the gold and splendor disappeared  back into the ring. "Give this ring to her. Tell her to never take it off, and if it need be, it can save her life." He hesitated and then said, "Say nothing about me." 

With that, the man disappeared on the spot. They would never see him again.

A being like him does not walk among mortals often. But today, he traversed among the gaudy signs of life, relishing the idea that for a moment, he shared the same space with her.

In the middle of it all, she suddenly appeared. 

She was as beautiful as the first time he had seen her all those years ago. But he had been a fool back then.

He followed her throughout the city, staying hidden and untraceable. He scolded himself for being so greedy, for wanting to see her one more time. 

The woman he had loved had been dead for three hundred years. This reincarnation was not the Miri  he knew, she did not have Miri's memories, she had never met him, never loved him, and never hated him.  

She was a different her.

But longing was a potent, powerful poison. Try as he might, he could not stop his feet from following her, his eyes searching hungrily in the crowd for her shadow. 

He walked past a few thugs who had been following the beautiful Miri with their lecherous eyes. 

"Can you believe that little delectable thing is going to go to that poor scholar. What a waste." One of their voice filled his ears. He stopped and listened to their words. 

"I say we kidnap her. Tonight." The other one muttered as he drank liquor, the liquid dribbling down his ugly face and onto the blotched and oily cloth. 

"But her father..." 

"Is a school teacher. He has no power. No more connections. Besides, my brother's friend's sister's son's friend's cousin is a guard for the minister here. I'm sure we can get away with it." 

Cold, violent rage filled the immortal's heart, anger he did not know he had been capable of since she had died coursed through him.  He glanced the five drunks, his fingers closing tightly into fists.

"...Then I say we do it. "Emboldened by drink they got up, "She's heading towards the Lavender Gardens. We'll grab her there." They quickly made their way towards the direction Miri left. 

The immortal followed them silently, until they walked to a quiet part of the city.  Once they were out of the earshot of the noisy city streets, their talk became bolder. "I can't wait to see the face of the old frog when he realizes that the daughter he so prizes is ruined. She'll have to marry one of us!" 

The immortal's eyes glittered with rage. Swiftly he threw out a spell that created a barrier between them and the world. To anyone who was walking on the street, it seemed that they had suddenly vanished.

The five were laughing and walking until they all ran into the barrier. With loud roars of pain they all fell back, their foreheads a mess of black, blue, and red. 

"What the hell?" The largest and drunkest of the men roared, spittle flying into the street. 

They turned around to see a veiled figure standing behind them. 

"Who the devil are you?"

"Who else has ever talked about Miri the way you do." The immortal asked quietly. "Tell me." 

Power wove around the thugs like thin spider webs made of steel. They cut into their flesh causing more pain these ogres had ever suffered. 

One by one they screamed out the names of all they remembered and begged for mercy. 

But mercy never came. The thin spider webs sank deeper and deeper into their flesh until they became piles of flesh and bones, each piece no bigger than a finger nail. 

The man in black waved a hand and their bodies burned instantly. He took away the magical protection and walked away, leaving only five smudges of life on the earth that quickly disappeared under the feet of unknowing passer byes.

He called out "Jinnis, Gora, Kyrin". Three figures appeared in front of him, all knelt before their master, as he continued. "You heard the names clearly. I want you to find the people who may hurt her. Investigate. If what these they said was true, then those people must die."  With a nod, they were gone. 

A few days later the city was a buzz with another rumor, nearly ten men had disappeared. They were from all walks of life, rich, poor, old and young. All were gone suddenly as if they had never existed, one of them was even the son of the minister who was in charge of the city. A huge investigation was ordered but no one knew who did it to this day. 

Jasreth walked on, following the woman he knew and would never come to know.