Chapter 20

Once again they were dragged to Silphe's office. The princess sat on her desk with a resound gleam in her eye. There were no surprises this time. No magical interferences. The three humans still stood by the wall, their eyes glazed and unfocused. The fire fae still sat on his chaise, dimmer than before. A thicker silver choker sat around his neck. He was being punished. Maiko's words came back to her. Silphe had an obsession with Remi. Almost Remi. He even acted like him too. Though it seemed that remaining quiet and thoughtful was not something that could've been forced upon him. Almost but not there. He had his squinted eyes, his broad nose, his multiple silver hoops down his ears, his ebony black skin, and even his stunning cheekbones. Everything else was wrong. His eyebrows too sharp and finely shaped, lips too thick and wide, his jaw too sharp and angular, his hair was just as coily but it was black, faded on the sides and had orange red tips, and his body was too lean and slightly shorter. He was too pretty with no rough edges. He was too manly without the innocence of a fading baby face. Too elegant. Too perfectly shaped. Not Remi.

Maybe that's what bothered Silphe. Living in a world where perfections are expected, it must be boring seeing an ethereal beauty that matches everyone else's. Meeting Remi must've been a breath of fresh air. That must be what she wanted. Fresh air.

A different fae replaced Ria as punisher. This one wore a grey tunic with gold star constellations around the hem and a loose pair of pants. Shimmering thin leaf shaped gossamer wings anxiously flitted behind him. He had a sword tied around his hip.

"Let's try this again." Silphe's voice rang out.

"Tell me more about Remi."

"I told you everything." Mbilu stepped back.

"No you didn't."

"What more do you want?"

"I want personal intimate details." A cough came from the fire fae. His eyes were wide open with fear. Anything Mbilu told her, she'd force the fire fae to do. Already his style changed from the previous day. He dressed similarly to Remi today. He wore a thin shirt which revealed the top of his chest, small silver chains around his neck, torn ripped jeans and sneakers.

" That's just weird. Why would you want that?" Sari scrunched their face up in disgust.

"Knowledge is power, is it not?" Silphe grinned.

"What use would personal details be to you?" Mbilu snapped.

"Stop vexing me and start talking."

"Girl, tell her the things." Sari poked her shoulder.

Mbilu kept her mouth shut. The fire fae on the chaise shook his head at her. Silphe would turn him into Remi even if it broke him. She couldn't let that happen. Silphe rolled her eyes. She snapped her fingers and Ria's replacement stepped forward. Mbilu's lips went dry. Maybe she should just tell Silphe everything. The new punisher wouldn't hurt her, he'd hurt Sari. But so much damage would be done if she slipped up once. Sari would only suffer temporarily but the fire fae is imprisoned up here. She didn't know how long Silphe planned on keeping him but he wasn't leaving anytime soon. Sari would get hurt. She couldn't let them get hurt. She opened her mouth to speak. It was too late the punisher had raised his hand to hurt Sari. A boom shook the room as the punisher slammed into Silphe's portrait. A blue bubble surrounded Sari. It worked. A hopeful laugh escaped her lips before she thought about it. It actually worked. Sari grabbed her arm and shook it.

"What did you do?" The princess turned around. The punisher laid on the ground. Green welts appearing on his hand and climbing up his arm.

"What did you do!?!" Silphe marched to Sari. She grabbed her by the shirt and tossed her across the room. Her steel eyes pinned themselves to Mbilu. Her afro puff turning black, lightning skipping in between it. She raised her arm and pointed it at her. Mbilu barely had time to jump before a white electric line struck her. Silphe screamed. Thunder erupted in the room. The three humans stood by the wall, immovable and uncaring. No thoughts of their own. They just stood and existed. Silphe throw random bolts of lightning at her direction. She did her best to dodge them all. A few came close to her but they bounced off of her. Remi's wards were protecting her. Green welts bubbled on Silphe's skin. The smell of lightning, charred hair and something acrid filled the room.

"WHY!? WHY!? WHY YOU!?" She yelled over and over again. The room shook. Lightning zapped parts of the room. Mbilu, Sari and the fire fae moved about the room, trying not to get struck. This must be what a magical tantrum looked like. She thought to herself. That day she saw Remi. He must've been reeling it in. He must've been trying to be as human as he possibly could.

"Why does he want you!? What can you possibly give him that no one else does!?"

"Maybe she's not a spoilt brat with entitlement issues." Sari mumbled from behind an overturned chair.

"Sari stop." Mbilu shushed her.

"He was mine! He was supposed to be mine! He loved me!" Lightning struck the walls. She wasn't obsessed with him. Silphe was heartbroken. He broke her heart. She crumbled to the floor. She stared up at the ceiling. Her guise falling away. Her afro deflated into thinly held curls, her hips and chest went smaller, her height shrunk. Her plunging bustier and leather pencil skirt were replaced with a georgette gold tent dress decorated with silver spirals and patterns all over it. A gasp from the fire fae told her he'd never seen this before. This must be her true form. This must be what she looked like. She wanted to give Silphe a hug but horror at what she'd done stopped her. Her features. Silphe stole her features. She tried to be her. To bring him back. She thought if she'd changed herself to look like Mbilu then Remi would love her again.

"I did everything. I was perfect. Everything he wanted. But he chose a human. A human over me." She mumbled to herself. Mbilu crawled over to the fire fae. He looked at Silphe across the room. He held no hint of remorse or empathy for her. There was nothing but resentment and anger in his eyes. Mbilu tapped him on the shoulder. He remotely turned to her. Nothing in his eyes except the swirling lava within him.

"How do I remove your collar?" She whispered to him. His eyes widened and he tilted his head. He took in the carnage around him and turned around. He pointed to a button at the back of the collar. No fae is allowed to tamper with it except the one who created it. The loophole should work for Mbilu. A push through clip was used to secure it. The collar was ice cold to the touch. She had to rub her hands to fight off the biting cold. The fire fae held her wrists, sending warmth to her fingers while she unclipped the collar. She caught the collar before it fell. The fire fae turned to her and showed his wrists. Two more to go. He held her wrists as she took off icy bangles. When the last one was free, a burning heat as if a fire had been lit directly in front of her radiated off him. Cracks appeared in his skin showing off lines of a fiery red and orange lava flowing beneath, the tips of his hair glowed like embers, black fresh cut stubble appeared across his jaw and his eyes burned brighter before. He bowed before her.

"I, Karael Asystasia, am indebted to you. How do I repay my debt?"

"Any chance you can get us to the human world?"

"Not in my jurisdiction. I myself should not even be here."

"Could I call on you anytime I want?"

"All you have to do is say my name to an open flame."

"Thank you. Please leave before she comes to."

"Your lover's wards are powerful but don't rely on them only. A loophole can always be found."

"You don't have to tell me twice."

Karael opened the window and jumped out. Silphe remained kneeling on the floor. Unaware that her prisoner had escaped. Mbilu crawled over to Sari. They sat on the floor leaning against the wall. The punisher had awoken by now. His entire body trembled with anger. The edges of his wings tore, mended and tore again. A constant pattern of it trying to heal. The green welts still plagued is body like horrible acne. He clutched the hilt of his sword. His beady black eyes focused on Sari's neck. The necklace had fallen out of its hiding place. It sat on her chest in broad daylight. He stalked towards her. Mbilu shifted in front of her friend. There's only so much that the necklace could protect them from. She didn't doubt the power inside the necklace. But at the end of the day it was a charm that could be broken. Remi's wards on the other hand didn't seem to have a weakness. She would use herself as a barrier until they could leave. Scuffed black boots came into view. Her eyes turned upwards to the punisher. His hand on the hilt of his thin long sword with jagged edges. His gossamer wings fluttered behind him like a irritated fly. Glowing blue starry eyes glared down at her. His lips twisted in disgust. She was nothing but a nuisance to him. He stepped forward to grab her. A weak sound from the princess stopped him. He turned with such quickness. She snapped her finger. Two of her servants rushed to her and helped her up. The electric charge in the air was soon replaced with a constant chill.

Goosebumps formed all over Mbilu. The chill reminded her that she still wore the thin blouse and summer jacket she had on campus a few days ago. Silphe stumbled her way up. Her body swayed a bit. A heavy breathing come from behind her curtain of hair. Her arms jutted out from her hair, swiped over the top of her head and pushed her hair from her face. Mbilu held in a shocked gasp. Silphe truly stole her features for Remi. She had round upturned eyes, a small button nose, wide thin lips, arched brows and a round heart face. Her true face. She walked backwards until she bumped into her desk. She sat on the edge. A servant rushed over with a tray carrying crystal glasses with swirling metallic liquid apple juice. Her hand clenched around the glass as she sipped the juice like it was her life line. Her hands shook around the glass making her spill. Juice dribbled down her chin. The glass clinker against the metal tray. Her wild silver eyes darted around the room. Her chest quickly taking in air. Her hands stroking the bracelet on her wrists decorated with little bells. She reached out a hand to the punisher. He stepped forward and took her hand. She pulled him towards her and made him crouch to her level. Her eyes closed when she whispered to him. His eyes widened and so did the sickening grin on his face. He bowed to her when she was done and left the room. Silphe used her back hand to wipe the dribble on her chin. She got off the table, frowned at the open window and walked to the secret door behind her portrait. It was just Mbilu, Sari and the servants left behind. This was their chance. She could get more information out of the servants. She stood and went to the littlest one. A boy with golden bronze skin and wavy black hair stood lined up against the wall. She crouched to him.

"Hi there. I'm Mbilu and you are?"

He blinked multiple times as if he couldn't believe someone spoke to him. "Pedro." he weakly replied.

"Hello Pedro. How did you get here?"

He shook his head. "I don't remember. Too long."

"Do you want to go home?" His eyes went wide. His ivory skin went white as snow. Goosebumps formed in his skin.

He shook his head at her. Despair in his broken brown eyes. "I can't. They're everywhere."

The portrait swung open. Sari hissed sharply. Mbilu quickly moved to her friend. Sari softly shook their head. They couldn't get through to the other human. Silphe entered in a sheer silver blouse and black sailor pants. Her wild curly mane is now controlled and held back by a golden tiara decorated with light blue butterflies. She wore a matching ring and earrings. Her entire demeanour changed. Her back stood straight, that arrogant smirk back on her face, a twisted gleam in her now shadow grey eyes and a resolved air around her. This was the calm before the storm. Silphe was ready to strike. A weak flutter in her stomach and a loss of breath. Mbilu intertwined her hand with Sari's. Silphe most likely found a loophole and a way to break Remi's protection spells. The necklace would go down first. Charms can be broken through overloading. All she had to do was to keep filling the necklace with magic against it and it would break.

That's if Silphe could bear the consequences that came with the backlash. Of course she doesn't have to be the one to suffer the consequences. There are more than enough fae in her court for her to order around. What would she do next? The office door opened. The punisher walked into the room with Ria in tow. A sharp intake of breath next to her. Sari felt the same way about the woman being in the room. Her presence changed the atmosphere in the room. Her hair on the back of the neck rose. A shiver slid down her spine. Though covered in bruises and leaves served as bandages, Ria was still a charged storm near a power station.

"Ria dear, I'm glad that you're here."

"Glad to be here." Ria bowed her head. She gave a wicked grin to Mbilu and Sari. Goosebumps formed on Mbilu's arms. Ria was going to break them.

Silphe turned fully to the duo. "Now to get the party started."