25 Vengeance shall be fine

"Contessa, you don't have to answer that." Zion interjected. "And she who shall remain nameless, RUDE. It's completely uncouth to just materialize and ask personal questions. Whoever taught you manners? Also, Contessa likes Fairy blood more than you love your family so unless you have a need to be vampire food, you should probably go back to being unseen and unheard."

In any other circumstance Contessa would have found a fairy appearing out of nowhere to be peculiar, but she was currently in the company of Zion, and magical creatures or occurrences spontaneously happening around the lich only happened on days ending in 'y'. While it was true that fairies possessed some of the most delicious blood of any creature in Contessa's expert opinion, she wasn't particularly interested in draining this fairy of blood at this very moment. Like a lioness relaxing on the Serengeti, Contessa felt fully sated. The blood Zion had given her was the utmost delicious. The dimension the artificial blood was from took great pains to not just replicate nutrient content, but improve upon flavor. The blood drinks were carefully aged in various climate controlled settings that included things arcane things like full moon light, diamond willow barrels and bottled lightning to enhance the magical flavors. Some fermentations even made the synthetic blood have effervescence.

Contessa was very pleased with the gifts from Zion, but this was nothing new. Zion might demand a lot, but the lich was always fair. Of course this ran equal with any exchange, so while help would be repaid with favor, betrayal would be met with vengeance.

Contessa had always assumed that the conflict between Oberon and Zion was as simple as Zion told it. It was a habit of the lich to not really talk about their former lives. In general, Zion was often less than forthcoming. It was to the point that it was interesting. Contessa could never really anticipate what the lich was up to, never knew fully what the lich was feeling, and always wondered what the lich was thinking. But it was obvious the lich always was up to something, and every something seemed to be part of another something, like a spider's web. It was bewitching to watch. Zion, who lived in a realm where they had to hide their magic; Zion, who exists because of magic so powerful it defied nature, who bewitches just as a matter of their existence, who resurrected and enslaved a god, this very same Zion was on the run from someone who once saved their life. What kind of thing could have torn them apart, and what kind of thing would possess Zion to not immediately take vengeance for such a betrayal?

Being undead for so long lends a vampire to boredom. Learning could often get tedious when one couldn't use magic and knowing as much as time teaches made most creatures unbearably predictable to Contessa. Zion, however, was her favorite soap opera.

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"I know why you called me here." Oberon had walked into the vacant courtyard, the 6 moons had aligned and struck the mirror array illuminating the garden in an eerie purple light.

"Have you come to your senses then?" Baldyre asked as the spirits powered by the moon began to gather drawn by the lights that cast a circle.

"I never lost them. I know you don't understand.." Oberon couldn't finish because he was interrupted.

"Do you know nothing?" Baldrye yelled.

"I know her a lot better than you do." Oberon interjected.

"I know you think because she's half elf this will make some sort of difference, but even elves have strong affinity for the elements." Baldyre was both frantic and furious.

"And fairies don't?" Oberon said calmly.

"It's not the same. Sprites are elementals. They are the magic of earth, metal, water, wood and in her case fire in its purest form. Do you know what fire does?" Baldyre's voice was terse as he talked through his teeth.

"It illuminates our way helping us to see and discern, it warms us, entertains us.." Oberon was interrupted yet again.

"It burns, fire burns. It's no discriminator of what or WHO it burns either. This is why you can't get close to a fire. It WILL consume you." Baldyre's form started to get translucent.

"I understand where your heart is, but please listen because I am not you. Most people seem to see earth as the nurturer of life, but if the earth facilitates life, fire starts it. The whole universe began with fire.." Oberon couldn't seem to finish a thought without Baldyre interrupting.

"And that's how it will end.." This time Baldyre was interrupted.

"If you think it's fate why are you trying to change it and if you don't think it's fate why are you against me trying?" Oberon said as he watched Baldyre become still more translucent.

"Beron, I have known you since you were conceived. I watched you closely as you grew and developed. I chose you first because you are clever and showed great magical promise, I chose you second because you seemed to command the humility and the fortitude to bear those gifts. I have been around since the first Fae, but I only chose you. Don't throw these things to the fire like it's your funeral pyre. Don't marry her." Baldyr's tears fell like drops of black smoke from his eyes.

"Knowing me so long you should trust yourself in being assured of who I am. I've never been one to tempt fate, but I will always test it." Oberon placed his hand on top of a crystal that moved the mirror array casting the moonlight from a circle to a pentacle. The spirits that had gathered around could not enter, but their numbers had exponentially increased as more and more spirits drew to the light like moth to fire.

Baldyr and Oberon stood in the center as the crystal began to absorb the moonlight from the six points of the array. Baldyr started to look less translucent. He floated closer to Oberon "Yes was umbart I nauta me ana tye."

"Then it should only be fate that breaks us apart." Oberon said as he turned off the array after the crystal had fully charged. The spirits that had congregated attracted to the light aggressively went after the crystal. As the flood of them attempted to descend they were quickly repelled by a powerful light reflected from the mirror gate.