Chapter 48: Chapter 48
“Th-Thorne? A Thorne?” Alder gasped in surprise when his eyes met Madonna’s resentful ones. When the bright flash of anger and despise hit him from Madonna’s eyes was when he gulped down the fear that was slowly forming inside him.
Devil! The Thorne kin had a daughter?!
“Orla dear,” Alder tumbled towards Orla “Dear, your good friend does not have a daughter. I’m afraid Madonna is an imposter.” Alder spoke with desperacy as he hurried to Orla. He was just hoping, hoping for Orla to confirm him of his accusation.
He just wanted to know that Madonna was indeed not a Thorne.
“But I am, Alder. I am a Thorne, daughter and sister of people you slaughtered so cruelly.” Madonna responded in a casual manner as she took slow steps towards the quivering Alder.
Is he afraid of death? Nay, but he was instead scared of staying alive at the Thorne’s mercy. He could the fire that lit the eyes of the young witch. Those eyes silently promised him a hell on the mortal land.
Without thinking much, Alder waved his hand around summoning his warriors to shield him and fight the approaching disaster. The warriors and Lords with Alder’s support who were just standing there and watching the opera reacted and moved forward but one glare from Madonna froze them from moving any further.
The people over there knew of the power Thorne has and supported by Lucius, they would certainly be dead so they made no move to shield Alder anymore.
“All right. How about I take the chance of narrating a tale? Before I make your remaining life a living hell, I wish to what exactly is going on.” Fina stepped beside Madonna and held her hand affectionately.
Fina’s gaze caught Madonna’s and when got a nod from her, Fina got a small nod from Orla as well.
“Long ago, many years back, there was a man, a Lord who was a very caring and charming man. He was not just a great Lord but he was as well a good husband and father. Such a good man, isn’t he?” Fina posed.
“But it all changed one day. For no apparent reason, the caring person had changed. He got greedy for power and started killing to secure the prowess he wanted. There was no one who could stand between him and his desire. On the way to fulfill his motive, he went as far to offend many powerful people and ruined much more than he should have. He made people for himself; he got stronger day after day until one day he was completely consumed by the darkness.” Fina continued with a deep scowl forming on her face.
Seeing how it was affecting her, Lucius stood beside Fina and wrapped an arm around her shoulder in an affectionate brotherly way. Madonna felt a lump forming in her throat when reminisces of the troubles her kin, Fina and herself went through all because of Alder.
Madonna knew how suffocated Fina’s life had been in the name of her safety. How she wished for freedom every other moment; how she always wanted to explore the world outside the woods; how she wished to live with a family of her own, she knew everything.
When Lucius saw Fina in trance of her own sad reminisces, he took it upon himself to continue. This was it, he knew it. Lucius knew it was just the matter of showing the mirror of harsh reality to Alder and end the lives of remaining insignificant warriors so they could finally rest in peace.
All the while the major obstacle in their mission was Noll, but now that he was already dead, they have no more reasons to be guarded.
“The man, in the sightlessness of having more and more power for himself, he had not just killed and tormented others but also forced women to carry his offspring who were destined to have a dark soul like his. That was how Noll came into existence. He forced himself on a lowly nymph and when she finally gave him a son, he killed her so he could have all the privileges on the son.” Lucius snickered.
Noll, was although conceived by a mere insignificant nymph, he was fathered by Alder who has the dark prowess filled inside him. Taking after Alder, Noll was a great danger with a dark soul he possessed. It would be no argument if Noll proved to be a spawn of devil if not dealt with caution.
It was not an easy task for Lucius and Madonna to deal with him indeed. When their chamber was shielded by a herb that constricts Witches and Warlocks, they understood that it must be a person with knowledge on vegetation for having such great amount of herb which was usually rare to find.
And all the while, the person they were looking for before ending Alder’s reign; walked to them himself so they had to play the game of helplessness to lure him and let his guards down.
How silly of Alder to think a mere herb would constrict them?!
How foolish!
With Noll’s dark soul, just like Alys’s, an ultimate power shall be a great destruction to all the realms and clans and to think that Alder had very cleverly concealed Noll from the world was worth loud applause. If it wasn’t for the doubt Fina had risen, then they wouldn’t have thought of a possibility that Alder might have another child.
“With a dark mind and heart the son had just like his father, he just worked how his father wanted him to, creating chaos around. It seemed like there was no stopping the man at all. With his esteemed powers and prowess he got more and more influential but like the saying goes, ‘Every dark can be shed by a single ray’, the man suddenly started his powers. He thought he was clever enough to stow his powers in many sources but still his enemy was one step ahead.” Fina spoke as took the reins of narration from Lucius with a huff.
Madonna who was mostly silent the whole time was closely observing the changes in Alder. His expressions, the way he scowled when he was being narrated and the way he sneered at them when Noll was mentioned; she observed everything so she could fill her enraged heart with a little satisfaction of his subtle sufferings.
“You have no knowledge of what the said man can do if he made his mind, son. You wouldn’t want to have me as your enemy if you are a wise one.” Alder threatened. He took a heavy footstep towards the trio but was stumbled back by the crows Queen.
“Ah but we do. We do have knowledge of what evil you can do. We have every ounce of knowledge on your past, present and your future. Anyway, you chose greed over love and family so we had to choose peace over a man who resembles my father.” Lucius couldn’t ask for more when he was rewarded by a feeble effort of hitting him.
Lucius nearly snickered at the weak childish attack. To say he was amused and furious at the same time was an understatement. He was utterly disdained by Alder. He could not hate someone as much as he does Alder.
“You thought we wouldn’t know, don’t you? We know who you are and how you came into existence.” Madonna gritted.
“Fina, you don’t know how the man with name Alder came into existence, do you? Let me tell you; one dark moon night when Lord Alder was away with the realm work, he was attacked by a group of much powerful rogue demons and was burnt alive. But unexpectedly, it was a dark moon night when all the minor clans from hell come out to feed. It was the evil fire from the hell and the creatures from hell who accidently poured life into the ashes of Lord Alder making him a person with no soul.” This time it was Orla who finally chose to spoke startling Alder.
Alder’s eyes widened at the change in Orla’s demeanor. No it can’t be. Not her too. Alder couldn’t believe Orla was also against him. He couldn’t believe she was also a part of them who wanted his demise.
Good Devil, he loved her sincerely!
“You too?” Came out as a mere whisper as the little energy left his body. He felt absolutely defeated seeing the only person he chose to trust blindly turned out to be against him.
“You too? Alder dear, I was the one who was behind everything that happened to you all these following years. It was me who chose to runaway so I can end you, it was me who went everywhere that has your magic to perish it. It was me who intentionally made Knox kill Alys. It was me who saved Madonna and Fina from you and raised them. It all started by me.” Orla answered haughtily as the despise and anger she was controlling from all the time was clearly heard in her confession.
“The moment Alys was born, I knew she had a dark soul and you are not what you were like. Why do you think Alys was looking for me? To unlock her sealed powers? Nay, I made her desperately look for me so I can end her.”
Orla did not mask her anger or her tears as she felt the pain of having killed her own blood and flesh for the wellbeing of others.
She felt like she was burning in the Hell’s fire!
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