ACT 8 - THE SEVEN SYMBOLS

1017:

It was a quiet starry night as the royal couple stayed on top of the towers, Sophia opened her eyes in shock while watching the state of her husband as he hugged his legs and buried his face in his arms, he let a long sigh and said with a sad voice "hey Sophia...., do you think that... I ruined her future?", leaving his wife... in complete surprise...

Sophia kept looking at him in confusion and said with in disbelieve "h-... huh...? w-what are you talking about...?", drake kept looking at the ground with an empty face and said with a tired voice "I think that.... I was the cause of all of this..., I overworked her little body through that hard training...., without taking her into consideration".

Sophia kept watching the empty smile on drake's face as he continued with a tired frustrated tone "hehe..., can you believe that... sometimes I get exhausted..., so... you can think how someone like Sara would feel...", Sophia clenched her teeth and said with an angry tone "what are you talking about...?".

But, she noticed the dead expression on her husband's face and continued angrily "It's... no one's fault, I... I mean nobody knew that Sara of all people..., is the one with a weak heart... so..., stop blaming yourself..., please...".

Drake smiled in pain while looking at his hands and said with a frustrated voice "but... that doesn't change the fact... that I was acting just like him..., I wanted to make her stronger, no matter what was the cost..., I wanted her to live like a queen... and to never depend on anyone, even me...",

Suddenly, he clenched his arms in frustration as he continued "but all I did was... drag her through the same hell that I went through..., the hell... that I... swore to never make anyone else experience it, ever again....", Sophia grabbed his hand with saying with a broken voice "please..., drake... stop thinking like this.... I...",

Drake just smiled and said with a broken voice "isn't it ironic..., I'm the one who tried to save everyone from that hell..., just to throw my own daughter in it..., how... pathetic...", Sophia kept squinting her eyes while feeling the tears, forcing their way through..., and suddenly... she was surprised by drake... standing up and leaving her by her own...

Sophia stayed silent for bit, and suddenly... she lifted her face up..., she gazed at the sky with a teary face and said with a broken voice "god, please help my daughter, Because... I can't take it anymore..." as she continued crying...

From that night onward..., it began..., drake couldn't look at his own daughter anymore, because everytime he looks at her, he sees all of Sara's future shattering in front of him because of his selfish acts..., it's from that night that Sophia had to watch her daughter suffer from her illness... alone....

One day, while in her room, Sara looked at her mother for a bit and asked "mama, it's been so long since I've seen papa..., I asked Emma... but she said that he was busy..., (Sara smiles) I'm sure that when papa finishes his job, he will be the first to come!!!", Sophia just hugs her daughter without saying anything.... She started tearing up leaving Sara in confusion...

Sara's health just kept on getting worse by time, tp the point where Elizabeth decided that it's bad for Sara and for drake to stay in the same castle, so she decided to take her grandchild to a different place to calm down, to be closer from her for her experiments and research...., and just for things to calm down..., that's why... they were in the quiet lands of Switzerland...

- Back to present:

Sophia helped drake stand up, he looked at his mother with a surprised face and asked "how..., how did you know, mother?", she put a serious face while saying "this sickness, even though we didn't knew anything about it..., I had a feeling... that I saw it before".

This left them in surprise as drake and Sebastian kept looking at their mother, Sebastian took the cigar out and said "it... can't be...?", just for Elizabeth to nod her head in agreement she continued:

Elizabeth: I had the same suspicion..., dear Sebastian..., but... i wasn't sure so I had to research it,

Elizabeth looked at the papers in Maria's hands and said: and after a deep investigation, I... indeed... was right, it was similar to the illness you suffered from at the same age as Sara...

Drake opened his eyes: you've told me about it..., you said... that it was nothing but a normal flue...

Elizabeth let a frustrated sigh as she continued: indeed..., your sickness only lasted for couple days, and was nowhere near as intense as what Sara had to put up with for the past three years..., we spent months trying to track down it origin, until we finally succeeded.... 3 months ago...

Drake: 3 months-..., then why didn't you tell us by then? We could've help with anything...

Elizabeth: it was because... we didn't believe that the symbols, the source of our power would be a weakness in its own... and would be ruthless toward its own holder...

Sebastian took his his cigar out of his mouth and said with frustrated voice: there still something I can't get, if it's the same sickness, then why is Sara still suffering? why is she's getting weaker? Aren't those symbols handed by the older generation, then... Why was it that only Sara and drake were the only one affected by this illness...?!

Elizabeth put a serious face and said: it's simply because.... No king other than drake and Sara was able to harness the true power of all the symbols..., in other words, Sara and drake are the only kings who can use all the symbols, and all of them at once....

Drake put a surprised face: huh...?

Elizabeth received an old book by Maria, she opened a page in the middle and showed a golden arc that had seven circles on it and said: well..., as you know... the symbols are the past and the future of this kingdom..., the previous kings harnessed these symbols' true power and lead us to a new era..., an era... where vampires are on the same level as the great celestials of these realms....

Drake and the others kept watching with open eyes as Elizabeth pointed at the circles and continued: the seven symbols are the flag of this kingdom...., and the true form of vampire's power in all of its glory...

There was seven circles each with a specific symbol inside, the 1st called "symbol of strength" had a dragon inside, while the 2nd circle had a symbol of a shield, the 3rd was called "the symbol of wisdom", the 4th "symbol of family", the 5th "symbol of the nine worlds", the 6th "symbol of the unknowable", and lastly... the 7th "symbol of healing",

Drake kept looking at his mother with a frustrated face and said: you know that he was able to use the first symbol....

Elizabeth: no my dear son, he was a naturally strong vampire..., "your father" was the holder of the legendary 5th symbol, and he use it to its fullest potential, but he wasn't able to use the other symbols..., and unlike your father, you can use all the symbols at once at to their full potential, but.... An act like this come with a cost...

Sophia asked with a worried voice: what cost?

Elizabeth looked at Maria and nodded her head..., They looked at the assistant as she was to start explaining:

Maria brought a large paper that had a lot of graphs and said : An act like using all the symbols, or even just having them, will put a huge strain on the vampire's corps... that only the strongest, the mightiest and the most intensely trained bodies can handle,

She pointed at the arc with seven symbols and said with a serious voice: and this strain becomes bigger..., the greater the power is, in drake's case the six symbols at once, but... in Sara's case they are seven, and one of which is "the symbol of healing".

Maria put the huge paper out and looked at them with a serious face: it's the most important symbol, and the one with the greatest effect, it was so important it was talked about in myths and legends across multiple realms, civilization, and species... because it's the symbol that represents a cure...

She let a frustrated sigh and said: it's the symbol that will free all vampires from one of the most lethal weaknesses ever known..., this legendary symbol added to the other demanding emblems... all functioning at the same time puts a strain on Sara, far more than her body can handle..., and if it's continues like this... Sara will die...