Not Your Damsel in Distress

8

Isolde was annoyed like she was every time the meeting was held. The representors of different areas of the city were gathered in the meeting hall by the long table. Each one of them got the chance to speak and tell the queens, who were sitting on the head of the table, about the problems their area faced and the requests they had for it. Elora tried to help, but Isolde shut her down most of the time, especially when improving certain things or helping people didn't benefit her directly.

"The water supply is low," said the representative of the farmers in the north. "The crops don't get enough of it to thrive. The harvest will not be good this year if we don't get it."

"Maybe we could try transporting the water from the west where the floods are going on right now," said Elora, looking at her wife.

"How would we do that?" she asked with annoyed tone in her voice.

"We could transfer it," said one of the wizards that were by the table. "With the right kind of magic it would be less than a week."

Isolde wrinkled her nose. "I don't like it."

"But people will starve," said Elora quietly, almost as if she was afraid to talk.

"Will it affect the castle?"

"No..."

"Then I don't care. What I do care about on the other hand is mining. Aren't those who would be used for transferring the water used in mines?"

Elora sighed. "Mines could wait..."

"The traders cannot."

"How about we use half of them in mine and half on water?" asked one of the fairies by the table.

"We could do that," agreed Isolde. "But double their working hours." The hall filled with grunts and whispered, which annoyed Isolde even more. "Take it or leave it!" she yelled and the entire hall went quiet in a second.

"Do we have anything else to talk about?" asked Elora.

A fairy raised her hand. "Your Majesty, if I may: us, faiers, are sick of the regulations that were bestowed upon us. We have restrictions to regulate every aspect of our lives. We were forbidden to do our rituals..."

"Yes, they were disturbing the magic in the forest," said Isolde.

"No, according to what we were told," said another fairy and stood up. "We were encouraged to embrace some new rituals..." before the fairy could finish she was struck with a blast of power from Isolde and she melted in a matter of seconds. Where she stood was a puddle of greyish liquid. The same liquid goonkers were made of.

Isolde stood up. "The meeting is over. Someone clean this up and bring me the cloth."

When everyone left the room, Elora looked at Isolde. "Why don't you want to help them?"

"Because I want goods for me. I didn't go through all of those years of humiliation and fighting and... everything that I will now help others! No one helped me when I needed it," said Isolde casually and sat up on the table. "Has there been any news of Charlene?"

"No, nothing," said Elora and shook her head. "I hope she is alright."

"I do too," said Isolde. "We wouldn't want her to be missing a limb on her wedding portrait, would we?"

"She is my daughter. I will not let you force her into marriage against her will."

"She is my daughter, too," said Isolde and smirked. "I can arrange a marriage for her if I want to."

"And I can cancel it."

Isolde smiled sweetly, "Honey, you wouldn't dare," and she walked out of the room.