Chapter 66

But it was becoming harder and harder to achieve her goal and get what she needed. Mostly because of the white winged angel. He had the ability to completely alter her entire plan. If he succeeded in marking the fairy then the unspeaking form would forever be lost in the world of nothingness. So she had to make sure that the marking never happened, not before she got what she needed from her. 

" It's only a matter of time, soon you shall wake, " she gently whispered to the form before her. Her face creased with lines of tenderness and genuine affection.

The fire had been an unsuccessful attempt at getting someone to feed off of. And now she was close to becoming powerless, but she would find her next unfortunate victim soon, she always did. But before then she had to devise a good plan to get what she needed from the fairy. And she needed it to be soon, because she was hungry for power. And her power lied in the unspeaking form, and his power lied in the fairy. It was a sort of cycle. Only one thing was needed in order to complete it, and she needed it urgently. A butterfly flew into the darkness of the cave that was set in the heart of the forgotten forest. The same one every other being feared to explore due to the romours and whispers about the ugly shadows that lurked within. But she was as comfortable there as she was anywhere else. 

She narrowed her gaze at the gentle creature, then she smiled wickedly and watched as it fell to the cold ground. Dead. Even at her weakest she still had control..And she hungered for more, a lot more. 

                     💮🌼💮🌼💮🌼

That afternoon, Flame sat in the garden with Idah . There were two warriors in very close proximity, both trying to pretend they weren't there to watch over her when it was so clear that they were.She picked a rose and held it in her hand, sitting down on the grass and wondering when Nuriel would be back. He had gone to check on any damages that might have occurred as a result of the fire. 

She recalled the events of that morning and smiled to herself like a stupid fool. Only eight of the council members had joined them for breakfast, the others had been busy doing more urgent things. But it had still been fun, they were quite a lively bunch. And she now had an idea of what it was like to be part of an actual family. Which she assumed they were, they didn't ignore her or try to pretend she wasn't there, rather they involved her in their talks and their inside jokes. Idah was busy narrating a story about the latest scandal in town. Something about a blacksmith's son getting his brother's mate pregnant. And she was listening for the most part, Idah turned out to be quite the character. Not at all the quiet and timid girl she had initially presumed her to be.

A short while later, she heard someone approach and turned to find that it was Sheila. She immediately stood, a welcoming smile on her face. 

" Hey there," she greeted.

" I hope you fare well Flame. I came by to drop the rest of your gowns as well as this week's vegetables for the Triecan and thought I might say hello. "

Flame drew her in for a hug when she would have curtsied instead. She really did not like it when anyone did that. Sheila then seemed to notice Idah's presence and she seemed happily shocked. 

" Holy Aurelia! Mother told me she heard you got work here but I refused to believe her until I saw it with my own two eyes!" Sheila commented and Idah giggled.

" Well you can believe it alright!" 

The two clearly knew each other and Flame wasn't the least surprised. They said they had been neighbours all their lives and their families were close allies, making them naturally close friends. 

And since Flame wanted to be a proper hostess to one of the only two female friends she had, she invited Sheila for tea, or whichever beverage was famous in that kingdom. 

There was something amiss though, she had no clue what it was but there was something. She just hoped that whatever it was, it wouldn't cause any harm to any of the beings in the kingdom. The last thing those people needed was more tragedy.

And as the three of them drank this sweet herbal concoction that was not in fact tea, along with even tastier snacks, the memory of the red haired female came back to her. 

And the more she thought about it, the more she realized that she ought to tell someone about it. Because it had to mean something, there was no way it could just be nothing.

And she felt like if she kept it to herself, she would eventually come to regret it. It was an almost compulsion to tell someone, as if a part of her was advising her, a part she felt she had to obey.

The two females with her noticed the change in her demeanor and asked her whether she was okay. Idah was under strict instructions to seek help in the event that Flame '. zoned out ' again. 

She licked her dry lips and leaned against the wood of her chair, then she sighed and crossed her arms. 

" Can I ask you something? "

" Certainly, anything you might wish. " Sheila said and Idah nodded her acceptance as well. Flame thought about the best way to phrase her remark..or her question, or whatever it was she wanted to say. And she was having difficulties doing so.

" Promise you won't think I'm crazy, okay?" 

" We would never!"

" Certainly not! "

The two females said, giving Flame a little more confidence. Then she leaned closer to them since those two warriors were still in the room and she didn't want them to hear what she had to ask. 

" Have any of you by any chance ever heard of or seen a female with like really red hair?"

She raised her brows inquisitively, then she watched as the faces of the two females fell. They turned to each other, then slowly looked at Flame. And she saw horror on the females faces. Horror and fear and disbelief. 

Idah asked her why she wanted to know.

" Well, it's just that recently I've been seeing visions-" she sighed defeatedly, " Not really visions perse, but more like flashes, and each time it's always the same red haired lady in them. And I'm always filled with.." she shuddered as she recalled exactly how she always felt. " I always feel terrified. It's like this crazy next lever kind of fear.."

The looks on both Sheila and Idah's faces had her going silent. They clearly knew something she didn't. And she asked them what it was.

" We're not sure. I mean, there are chances this is all one large misunderstanding and we're overreacting and throwing things--" 

" Sheila! Out with it already!" 

They turned to each other one last time. Then Idah asked if she had told Nuriel about it. She shook her head, and the only thing the girls said was, " Well you need to tell him everything you just told us. As soon as you possibly can. "

" Why?!" she insisted. And yet again, her status as the queen helped her out since they were obligated to tell her whatever she wished to know. 

" We only know of one female with red hair likely to evoke such darkness. " A period of silence where Flame impatiently waited for them to go on. 

" Her name was Phoenix, also known as the goddess of destruction..."

Flame's heart began to pound. 

                     🌼💮🌼💮🌼💮

The council room was suddenly encased in an icy silence. All the angels stared at her with surreal unblinking eyes. Each one of the eleven of them. Rehan and Bastian were absent due to reasons unknown to her. She had just shared the news about Phoenix with them, or the female who might have been Phoenix, and now she awaited to hear what they would say. Nuriel had been completely confused after he arrived and the first thing Flame did was ask him to call a council meeting. But he had done so regardless, and now he was stunned into silence. She looked around the table, at each one of the angels seated there with a mixture of complex emotions passing across their magnificent faces. 

" Well, won't any of you say anything?" the question was addressed to all of them, but she looked at Aziel and Kael when she asked. The fact that even they seemed speechless was what worried her all the more. 

" Did you know about this?" Victor asked Nuriel and he shook his head. Seeming just as shocked if not more. 

" I'm hearing it all for the first time as well. " He turned to Flame with a reprimanding look, silently asking her how she could have failed to mention that earlier. Most likely because she had told them she suspected that was the reason she kept passing out. Since each time she saw the female she always fell short of breath.