CLAUDE POV
I stood in the hall watching the portraits that were in front of me. One was of me with Amara and Athanasia, and other right beside that was of Diana. I never thought I'd see a day where I'd accept her death and come to deal with my pain.
It was only possible because of my daughters.
The two lives that you saved by sacrificing yours, Diana. I hope me doing all this would finally help you rest in peace.
Suddenly the doors opened and a maid ran in.
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty! Something terrible has happened! It's the Princesses!"
My eyes went wide and before I knew I was running towards the garden where their tea party was. Athanasia, Amara, what...
My heart nearly came to a stop as I saw the large swirling mana storm in front, that was made by Athanasia's and Amara's mana. The strong and thick mana was forcing everyone back.
My daughters! They're are in there, they're inside that place, they're in danger!
"No... Amara! Athanasia!" I ran towards the mana storm but someone gripped my arm.
"Your Majesty, there's no use. Please don't go there! There's a barrier around the storm." Felix shouted and I glared at him.
"Felix, let go!" I shouted as I tried to snatch my hand back but he gripped it tightly.
"No, Your Majesty it's too dangerous!"
"My daughters are in there, let go!" I snatched my hand and ran towards the mana storm but before I could even go anywhere close a strong mana barrier pushed me back.
I used my mana to break through it but the intricately and the multi-layered mana barrier was impossible to break. It was Amara's mana. Why would she cast a barrier around the storm?!
Was she conscious?
"Amara!" I shouted as I continued trying to break the mana barrier but it didn't budge.
Why can't I break this barrier?!
"Athanasia!"
Just then my body chilled as I heard a scream from inside, a bloodcurdling and bone-chilling scream that made my knees weak.
"Amara..." It was her scream.
It was in that moment that I saw it. I saw her half way in mid-air and Athanasia was floating before her unconscious.
Amara's hands were outstretched in the air as she kept coughing out blood yet, it seemed like she was doing something. My eyes widened as I saw her controlling Athanasia's mana and somehow moulding it into control. She was slowly sending the mana into Athanasia's body to not create any disturbance in her body. She was doing all that while being in the extreme pain because her own mana was forcing itself into her body.
I could only hear her screaming and growling and shouting, it was as if she was fighting and I couldn't do anything as I recalled that one time years ago when she'd done the similar thing.
She'd risked her life and pushed through her mana limit to save her sister. She'd been doing that for all these years, she'd been ignoring her pain to see me and her sister happy. And now she was dying for us as well.
Why? Why are you like this? Why are you throwing your life away for us?
Just then I heard her screeching loudly.
"I don't care, Athy and Dad should live happily!"
My eyes widened and just then Athanasia floated out as if being carried by an invisible angel. I saw as she was slowly brought down, I stretched my arms and caught her, her mana was securely flowing in her body.
Felix rushed beside me and I lifted my head to look at Amara, hoping she would come out too.
I felt the splashes of her warm blood over my face and looked at Amara through the storm and she turned to look at me with blood flowing down her chin and a small smile on her face.
"Ara?!" I shouted as I tried to once again break the barrier but it was still there as if she had created it just so that I couldn't get inside there.
"Thank you for everything, Dad. You... were the best Dad I had." I heard her voice in my head, I couldn't help but see Diana. It was as if she was leaving me all over again.
No! I can't let it happen again!
"Ara?!" I shouted as I used every bit of my mana to break through the barrier but I couldn't, the only thing I could do was hear her pain filled screams before they stopped as well.
Is she gone? Did she leave me as well?
The mana storm stopped and I saw Ara falling from high up in the air, I ran ahead as the barrier disappeared with the storm and caught Ara in my arms and saw her pale face streaked with blood.
"Ara? Ara?!" I shouted but she wouldn't open her eyes.
I fell to my knees as I felt the tears of despair once again showing up. Why was I so powerless? I couldn't even protect the ones whom I loved.
I couldn't protect Diana, I couldn't even keep my family together, and now... I even lost my child.
I placed her down on my lap and suddenly my eyes widened as I saw her mana flowing within her body, the amount was completely overwhelming yet, it was flowing in a perfectly tamed way.
How was this possible? That means she...
"Felix, get the doctors!"
I shouted as I picked up Ara and looked at Felix who was holding up Athanasia.
We shifted them in their rooms and the doctors did their best to look at them.
"We-We don't know what to do, Your Majesty."
"The mana flow is completely fine, we can't figure out why the Princesses are like this."
I was tempted to rip their heads right that instant but I just left Felix to deal with it while I sat beside my daughters.
Diana... ever since you left me, I thought... I shouldn't live... I even used black magic to ease the pain but then... Seven years ago, suddenly you appeared in my dream again saying that our child freed me from those black shackles.
This child.
I looked down at Ara who lay completely still and too pale. This child who always looked sickly and was light, who looked like me and who stood up against me like you did. The one who dared to look me in the eye and refuse something. The child who hid her fears and fought for the one whom she loved. The one who chose to sacrifice her own life for the life of the ones she loved... Just like you.
"Will I lose them all over again, Diana?" I whispered as I felt the tears running down my face.
Forgive me, I was lacking as a father.
ATHANASIA POV.
I felt as if I was in a deep winter sleep.
My heart feels empty.
As if a large hole has been pierced through it.
I feel as if I have lost something.
What could it be?
Something that was precious to me.
It feels as if something was stolen from me.
I opened my eyes and found Dad looking at me with wide eyes.
"Athanasia?" He breathed and I looked at him.
"Dad..."
He hugged me tightly.
"Thank God, you're finally awake!" I could feel his body trembling as he held me it was as if he was crying.
"Athanasia." His voice broke and I knew, he was crying.
"I'm sorry... I couldn't protect you or..."
Or?
Ara? Ara, where's-
"Ara?" I asked and he slowly pulled back away from me and looked at me with tired eyes. His face looked quite pale and haggard, it was like he hadn't slept in days.
"Dad... where's Ara?" I asked and he sighed.
"Dad!" I shouted as I clutched his robe.
He didn't meet my gaze but scooped me up from the bed and carried me out of my room towards another room.
He walked inside and placed me down on the edge of the bed beside Ara. She was lying still looking as if she was completely withered. It was as if she was...
Her face looked completely white and her chest was barely moving, I touched her hand which was too cold unlike the warm touch that I used to feel when she used to touch my face.
"Ara...?" I called but she didn't wake.
"Ara, wake up!" I shouted but she didn't move.
"Ara, you said you'd be by my side always... You said you'll always protect me and love me!" I shouted as I looked at her and then gasped as I recalled the words she said before I lost consciousness.
"Athy? I love you... You were the little butterfly from my song, Athy. And just know, that, I always have and always will love you. Even if I'm alive or not."
"You knew that was going to happen." I whispered as I stared at Ara's face.
"You knew something like that was going to happen." I spoke.
"What are you saying, Athanasia?" Dad asked.
"You knew... you purposely... that's why you were behaving like that... you knew something like that was going to happen... you had prepared to die when you came to that tea party!" I shouted as I gripped her shirt.
"How could you! How could you do this to me?! You said you loved me but how could you do this?!"
"She did this... purposely...? Then that barrier!" I heard Dad gasp and I looked at him.
"What barrier?"
Dad told me everything that had happened at the garden the mana explosion the storm that was blowing and how he'd tried to help us but there was a barrier which restricted his or anyone's entry. A very strong barrier made with Ara's mana.
He told me how Ara had managed to tame my mana and sent it to my body in a way that it would be in harmony within me so that it wouldn't run around my body like it did when something like this happened years ago. She did all of that while she was suffering from the excruciating pain herself. She was trying to protect me by literally throwing her life away.
"I hate you, Ara." I cried as I gripped her shirt.
"I hate you!"
"How could you leave me like this? Why did you always have to be like this? I understand you love me, but why did you have to risk yourself like this for me?!"
"You... You always stood up before me with that strong face. You were never scared of anything, you're never scared of death so... How could you lie still like this?" Dad spoke as he sat on her other side.
"Ara, get up. You hate to see me crying, right? I'm crying, Ara. It hurts, Ara! Please wake up and hold me!" I cried as I held her hand.
Dad seemed like he was about to cry as well, "Get up, Ara. I'll do anything you want, you want to play around, I'll let you do that. I won't give you any work, I'll let you hang out with anyone you want, I'll let you sleep anywhere you want... j-just wake up."
"Ara, someone hurt me! Ara, you said you'd kill anyone who'd make me cry, right? Please get up!"
I couldn't help but cry as she won't move, my only sister, my only anchor, my protector, the only thing that belonged to me in this world!
The only one who would stand up beside me and tell me she was right there and the only one who would hold my hand. The only one who would dare to stare in the face of death for me.
My only sister.
If there really is any God then, please listen to my prayers! Please, please, please, don't take my Ara away! I need her! Please...
"Ugh..." I heard a groaning sound and suddenly my eyes widened, I looked at Dad and then at Ara whose eyelids were crinkled as she was turning her head.
"Ara?!" I and Dad shouted.
Ara slowly lifted her hand and gripped her head grimacing as she groaned loudly.
"Does your head hurt? Dad-"
"Felix, get the doctors!" Daddy shouted and I looked at Ara who was muttering something under her breath.
"Ara?" I called her and she groaned again.
"The hell..." She muttered as she pushed herself up in a sitting position.
"Careful." Dad tried to hold her but she pushed his hands away as she gripped her head with one hand.
"Ara?"
"Shut up." She growled making me flinch.
"Ara?"
"I told you to shut up, didn't I?" I suddenly felt the strong pressure and the mana crackled between us.
"Huh?" I saw her eyes for the first time, seeing the completely different expression on her face.
It terrified me.
"Are you fucking kidding me?" She smirked as she reached out and the mana circle appeared again making her chuckle darkly.
She... didn't seem like Ara.
"Ara, what's wrong with you?" She turned her head to look at Daddy.
"Ara... a-are you still feeling sick?" I asked and she ran her hand through her hair before looking at me, her expression devoid of any warmth.
"Who are you?"
"Huh?"
***
Hello everyone,
How are you guys?
Well, neither of my characters are fine at this moment but...
Anyways, I know I said the twist is soon to come and it's in next chapter. I hope you don't get too much confused as the mystery of one person's life is about to come forth.
So, please keep on voting and commenting. I really enjoy reading your comments.
Besides, how did you find this chapter?
Also, where are you guys from? I thought I'd just ask some random question at the end of every chapter from now on. It's a timeless quest so, anyone can comment at any time in future as well.
Have a great day!