Soon, morning came, but I barely slept. Scarlette, however, slept like a log again. If only she knew how envious I was of her.
I spent the night tossing and turning, my mind a storm of restless thoughts. Judorah's plans circled like a vulture, but nothing concrete came to me. Maybe deep down, I knew I wouldn't find answers—not from her, not from anyone. The rumors I had spread had worked... perhaps too well. So well that they drew Queen Judorah to me. Yet, there was a sliver of solace in knowing she was afraid of Scarlette.
Scarlette, it seemed, wasn't afraid of Judorah at all. Maybe the Queen of Hearts and Ruin's reputation was truly terrifying—that older powerful fairies like Judorah trembled before her.
But why did I remember her legend? Was I really that powerful too?
I had no clue.
I stared out the window, my gaze lost in the endless night sky. The kingdom that once glittered with golden light now lay beneath a blanket of heavy, thunderous clouds, casting a shadow over its former brilliance. The lights that had once bathed the streets flickered weakly, their glow dimming in the ominous haze.
What was happening?
The air outside was thick with dark magic—a presence so heavy it felt like it had been conjured by a hundred Dark Fairies at once. My stomach turned as I looked out in disbelief. At the heart of the city stood a massive poison apple tree, its gargantuan vines creeping out like dark tendrils, snatching citizens from the streets, suffocating them in their iron grip.
Scarlette. Where was she?
Panic surged through me, and I bolted through the house, calling her name in frantic desperation.
"Scarlette!" I shouted. No answer.
Then, I saw it. There, in the center of the tree, Scarlette was bound, her body ensnared by thick vines that held her helplessly to the trunk. Her mouth was gagged, the tendrils cutting into her skin.
"Oh, Veravos..." A voice echoed from outside, slithering through the air. "Come out and play."
There she stood—Queen Judorah, flanked by her army of Dark Fairies, their dark magic pulsing like a heartbeat, feeding into the tree. The power was overwhelming, suffocating the very air around me. Breathing felt like a struggle, as though the weight of their magic was pressing down on me, crushing me.
"Yes, Veravos," Judorah purred, her voice thick with sickening pleasure. "We've swallowed the light here. And with your power, we can do so much more. You can still join us, before it's too late. Do the practical thing. Join the winning side."
I froze in the doorway, my heart pounding in my chest, the world spinning around me. My thoughts scrambled, but one thing was clear: I wasn't ready for this.
"Here's the deal," Judorah continued, her smile sharp as a blade, as if she could cut through me with just her words. "Give me the Baltimorean Emerald and the Scroll, and I'll let the town live... and yes, Scarlette too."
"What is this magic? What is this tree?" I demanded, my voice trembling despite my best efforts to sound steady.
"This?" Judorah's smile widened, a cruel gleam in her eyes. "This is the Tree of Regrets, of course. It feeds off the regrets of its victims. Who knew Light Fairies could have so many regrets under their charade? And who knew the Queen of Hearts and Ruin had the most?"
The words hung in the air, thick with their venom. Of course Scarlette had regrets. She had shared her story with me. She had been a victim of circumstance—torn between duty and desire, trapped in a world where every choice seemed to come at a cost. She had wanted redemption.
The Tree of Regrets.
Crap. Things were getting serious.
A surge of anger shot through me, my blood boiling at the sight of Scarlette's helpless form. I wouldn't let them hurt her—not like this. But was I in a position to negotiate?
Then I felt it—dark tendrils wrapping around me, pulling me forward.
Crap.
"Eat shit and die, Judorah!" I shouted, my voice edged with defiance, though my insides screamed to run.
Judorah's eyes flashed with fury. She clenched her fists, and the tendrils constricted, their grip brutal and unyielding. Scarlette let out a muffled sound, struggling against the restraints, but the vines held fast.
"Where is the Emerald and the Scroll?" Judorah hissed, her voice like a blade scraping against stone.
I gritted my teeth against the crushing pressure. "The scroll? Oh, that thing? I used it to wrap chili and threw it away."
Her sharp features twisted in confusion. "What is a chili?"
I smirked despite the pain. "A plant so diabolical that your cursed fruit tree doesn't even compare."
Judorah's scowl deepened, her patience thinning. The tendrils yanked me forward, so close I could see the flicker of anger in her soulless eyes. "Veravos, whatever game you're playing—"
I didn't let her finish. With a final, desperate wrench, I tore a tendril off my arm, reached into my pocket, and shoved something straight into her mouth.
A chili.
Yes, I'd saved one from my cooking earlier, stuffing it into my pocket without much thought. A decision that, as it turned out, had impeccable timing.
Judorah recoiled instantly. "What is this?!" she sneered, her face contorting in disgust. Then it hit her. Her eyes widened in sheer horror as the fiery burn ignited on her tongue.
For a terrifying second, I thought she might lash out and tear me apart on the spot. But instead—
"I need water!" she shrieked, clawing at her throat.
Before I could revel in my small victory, the tendrils coiled tight around me once more—then, with a violent snap, flung me through the air. The world blurred, streaks of colour and light spinning around me.
I was free.
But something even more terrifying occurred. The tree suddenly began to wither, its massive limbs retracting as the townsfolk, who had been ensnared by its vines, dropped from its grasp.
With a surge of my dark powers, I managed to cushion their fall, sending them gently back to the ground. The air was filled with horrified screams from the Dark Fairies gathered at the base of the tree, but something far worse was happening.
"What's happening?" Queen Judorah yelled, her voice edged with panic.
"Your Majesty, it seems the tree is no longer bound to you." one of the Dark Fairies turned to her, his voice trembling.
"The tree is bound to the one with the darkest potential for evil", said another Dark Fairy.
"What are you talking about? I am the one with the darkest potential! I will bring eternal night! I am the harbinger of doom!" Judorah yelled angrily as she tried to control the tree, desperately flailing her arms but to no avail.
"It seems that you are no longer the one with the darkest potential—she is," the Dark Fairy minion pointed toward the center of the tree.
Of course. The legendary Tree of Regret is tethered to the one with the greatest potential for darkness.
Scarlette.
She stood at the center of it all, her body pulsing with dark energy. The Mistress of Chaos was absorbing everything—the darkness from the fairies, from the tree, from the very world around her. As she did, the poison apple tree behind her withered and cracked. What had once been a towering symbol of evil now seemed to decay before my eyes.
Scarlette's eyes glowed a deep, menacing black, and a red mist swirled around her, her form hovering slightly above the ground.
"I have many regrets," she bellowed, her voice carrying the weight of the void itself. "And my greatest regret was never truly embracing the darkness and chaos."
Her hair, streaked with purple, levitated around her like a storm, swirling red and black mists rippling from the ground in dangerous tendrils. She moved with terrifying speed—faster than anything I had ever seen. Like a ghost, she darted behind the Dark Fairies one by one.
Without hesitation, she reached into their chests, her fingers like claws, pulling their hearts free. Dark orbs of crimson light pulsed around her, and with a single, crushing squeeze, their hearts shattered into dust. Their bodies crumbled to the earth with a final, silent gasp.
The Dark Fairies fell, their once-immense power vanishing into the wind.
Judorah stood frozen, her face twisted in shock. She tried to run, panic flooding every movement, but it was too late.
"I figured," Scarlette continued, her voice filled with manic glee, "I've done so many evil things... I have been betrayed by my own kind, ostracized by those who were afraid of me, forced into a box and forgotten. But maybe I do not need redemption. Maybe I was the monster they saw all along. My role isn't just to serve darkness. Maybe it's to rewrite it into boundless chaos."
Her laughter rang out hauntingly, disturbing in its unsettling joy.
And with that, I realized it. Scarlette had gone off the rails. Completely.
Judorah scrambled toward me, trembling, her eyes wide with fear. "Please, I miscalculated. I thought I would still have control," she begged, her voice cracking. "I'll give you anything... I'll tell you where the Light Guardian is. Just don't let her get me."
I didn't flinch as I pushed her aside. She scrambled away, her footsteps fading as she fled into the distance.
It didn't matter that Scarlette had just effortlessly torn through more than ten Dark Fairies. She was still my Scarlette. The one I couldn't abandon.
"Scarlette, stop this! This isn't you!" I shouted, my voice raw with desperation. But she didn't even flinch. She simply turned her gaze to me, her eyes gleaming with dark intent.
"Veravos, come. Join me," she called, her voice soft but laced with dark conviction. "We can rewrite this world together. I see it now. We don't need emeralds, scrolls, or Light Guardians. All we need is to rewrite what the world views as darkness. Black and white will all turn to grey. Come, just you and me. Together."
I stood there, frozen. Her words swirled around me like poisonous fog. The temptation to join her was almost unbearable. For a moment, I almost believed her. It sounded so simple—so perfect. The burden of centuries of regret, of waiting for an answer, lifted in that one moment. Everything I had longed for was within my grasp. The darkness called to me, and for a heartbeat, it felt like everything I'd done, everything I was, led me here—to this moment, this choice.
But then my eyes caught something else.
Judorah slipped away, dragging a man—gagged and bound—into Lumera's house. The Light Guardian. It had to be him—light magic spilled faintly from his hands, unmistakable.
I cursed under my breath. The Emerald and the Scroll were still inside. Queen Judorah was going to force the Light Guardian to warp reality according to her will.
I was torn.
Do I save Scarlette or do I take that one chance to change reality for myself—or stop Queen Judorah at the same time?
Then I saw it. Scarlette was lost in the darkness, truly. I saw it in her eyes—the power was consuming her. She was beyond reason now. I could see the familiar spark of who she once was, buried beneath an avalanche of shadow. Her laughter, once something I cherished, now felt cold and twisted.
But how could I choose? How could I leave her behind, knowing that if I did, I might never see her again? Scarlette was truly one of a kind. In all these centuries, I never knew someone could ever mean so much to me.
Yet, I was left to choose between Scarlette and saving the world—or, you know, writing my own reality.
If I stayed, the world would fall into endless night. If I left, I might lose her forever.
The weight of the decision crushed me, suffocating my thoughts.
I took a step toward her. My heart raced in my chest, my mind warring with my every instinct. The darkness surged within me, urging me to join her, to embrace it all. She had already given in, why couldn't I?
I took her hand, and the darkness twisted around us, squeezing the breath from my lungs. I couldn't let go. I couldn't lose her. What if this is it? What if I fail her? I can't let her fall into this darkness, but the cost... it's too high...
Then it hit me. I would do anything—everything—for Scarlette. The world could rot for all I cared. I am a Dark Fairy. I am not a nice person.
If my world did not have Scarlette, then there was no point, too.
It certainly would not matter if it could be rewritten or not.
Without further hesitation, I reached for her hand. She smiled, her eyes gleaming with the belief that I was going to join her. Her grin widened, her heart swelling with anticipation.
I closed my eyes for a moment, feeling the weight of everything I had just abandoned. My soul was no longer bound by the choices I had once made. It was bound by something deeper.
And as I gripped her hand, I knew—without a doubt—I had chosen her. Forever.
"Scarlette, my dark lotus, please forgive me," I whispered, my voice choked with emotion.
I placed my trembling hands on her face, and for one fleeting moment, I saw the girl behind those olive eyes and scarlet hair—the first Love Fairy, betrayed, locked away, and cast out, misunderstood by all. I didn't see evil. I saw someone who, just like me, had been broken. I refused to let her sink into darkness.
I tightened my grip on her face, pulling the darkness within her toward me. The power surged through me, and I felt every ounce of her pain, her torment. My heart broke for her. This wasn't who she was, but it was who she had become.
"Veravos… stop. You're hurting me" she pleaded, her voice barely audible, trembling with every word. But I ignored her—each word stoked my resolve to protect her, even if it hurt me, even if it tore me apart.
"You are lacerating the darkness from within me… please stop…" She begged. But I was not listening.
The darkness flooded me, each tendril of shadow filling my veins, suffocating me. It was too much, but I had to hold it. I couldn't let it consume her. It would not take her, not while I could still fight.
For a moment, Scarlette gasped, her eyes locking with mine. Remorse flickered in them like a dying ember, but I couldn't let it stop me. There was no time.
"Run!" I screamed, but my voice was lost in the crushing force of the darkness closing in. The darkness from her and from the entire town. I couldn't tell if she heard me, couldn't tell if she would make it out in time.
"Be free," I called again, my voice raw, my heart breaking in two.
Tears streamed down Scarlette's face, her eyes filled with sorrow as she turned and ran toward Lumera's house. My heart followed her, and in that fleeting moment, I knew it was worth it. She would be safe.
She would get her wish. Her redemption.
And I? I am just the villain. I do not get happy endings.
And then the world around me fractured. The beam of darkness wrapped around me, smothering all light. A tornado of shadows pulled me into its suffocating depths, and Judorah—screaming in terror—was dragged into it with me.
Her body slammed against the ground, her breath catching in a pitiful gasp.
"Veravos?" Judorah's voice was faint, filled with pure terror.
Puny. Tiny. Pathetic Judorah.
"Hello, Judorah. Yes, you have every right to be afraid. Welcome to your eternal nightmare," I laughed, the sound bitter and cruel.
I pulled her into the abyss with me, her desperate cries swallowed by the swirling darkness.
The last thing I remember was the suffocating weight of it—the crushing void overtaking everything—until there was nothing left. The darkness claimed me, and I fell, lost to it.
As the darkness seeped into the deepest recesses of my soul, I had one singular desire: to erase the light. All of it. It was worth every cost, every consequence that followed.
I am Veravos the destroyer.