Chapter 3

"I told her she couldn't marry that boy. He is marked by the River god. He is a vessel" Marina, Fiona's mother fumed as she followed the sorceress to take their seats.

"Marina, but your daughter is also marked. This should be a union of the marked" the witch laughed at her.

"Srithi, you knew my daughter was marked by a beast not a god" she argued.

Fiona wiped the tears that was trickling down her eyes. She remembered how she had fought with her mother to allow her marry Pike and she just didn't approve.

"By the beast or by the god, marks are marks and the marked are the marked" Srithi continued laughing.

"Am I now a laughing stock?" Marina asked angrily. "It isn't your fault, my friend. It is Fiona's. That girl has been rebellious since she made her way out of my womb" she moaned sadly.

"Marina!!" Srithi yelled suddenly to catch her attention.

Marina shivered in fear and Srithi started laughing again.

"Are you here to tell me how painful it is to bear a child because I have none?" she stood up and pointed a finger at her face. "Don't do that" she threatened her, sat down back and started laughing.

"Is she a maniac? I mean who laughs dryly like this?" Pike seemed disgruntled.

"Shhhh. Keep quiet" the Sage warned him.

"What do you want, Marina? You know there is nothing I can not do for you" Srithi laughed with sarcasm.

"I want my daughter back" Marina said softly.

"What do you mean by back?" Srithi seemed not to understand.

"She has eloped with Pike" she retorted loudly.

"Of course, that is why you are so embittered" Srithi stood up again. "I will do that, for you" she chuckled.

Fiona moved closer to Pike and hugged him. She was weak. She didn't want to see any of this anymore.

"I hate her. I hate my mother. I don't want to see her again" she sobbed.

"Can we just go back?" Pike turned to the Sage.

"Go back without finding out what happened?" the Sage shook her head. "If you want the solution, we need to know the cause" she explained.

Srithi raised up a lock for Marina to see.

"Pike or whatever you called him will send your daughter back to you before you know it" she said quietly.

"Thanks, my friend" Marina smiled.

"There is something called the curse of Lacus" Srithi laughed again.

"No, it is not. It is not" Pike chanted with his eyes closed.

The Sage covered his mouth with her hand to hear the rest of Marina's and Srithi's conversation.

"That's it, Pike. There is no way out of this. I am cursed" Fiona started crying.

"Will you just shut up and let us hear her out?" the Sage reprimanded both of them.

"Lacus is a god to some people not me. I am a god. I call this the curse of Srithi" she made a strange noise before changing it into laughter.

"I do not want you to curse her. I want her to come back to me" Marina pointed out.

"Do not worry, my friend. She will come back with immediate effect" she held the smith lock close to her mouth and mumbled.

She hit the lock to fasten it.

"Done" she said loudly.

"Just like that?" Marina seemed astonished.

"Pike will never love her again" she affirmed and placed the lock on a rocky mound. She rubbed it while mumbling. The lock disappeared into the rock.

"I will always love you" Pike whispered in Fiona's ear.

"That's good" Marina sighed.

"And no man, I repeat, no man will ever love her again" Srithi laughed.

"What do you mean no man will love her again?" Marina asked in confusion.

"I mean what I mean, she will always be with you because no man will ever love her again. I have locked her womanhood and hid it inside this rock" she slammed the rock hard.

"That is not what I asked you to do" Marina shook her head in disagreement. "You have destroyed her. Unlock it" she requested.

"Unlock what?" Srithi smirked.

"The lock!!" Marina yelled angrily.

"Unlock it yourself" she murmured to her.

"Bring it out then" Marina stood up to her.

"My good friend. It is a pity that I won't be having time for your drama. There is a place I have to be, right now" Srithi laughed and disappeared.

Marina put both her hands on her head and started crying. She walked out afterwards.

"You said there is a way out if it isn't the curse of Lacus and fortunately in an unfortunate way, it is the curse of Srithi" Pike chuckled.

"She put it in a rock, Pike. It is over" Fiona cried.

"It isn't" the Sage walked toward the rocky mound. "Today is your lucky day,I will bring it out and unlock it" she asserted.

She placed her hands on the rock and started chanting.

Srithi came into the cave. She stared directly at Fiona.

Fiona was scared. She cowered and rushed into Pike's arms.

"Do not worry, she can't see us" Pike convinced her but Srithi was still staring dead at both of them. "I thought you said she can't see us" Pike panted.

"She can't. And will you let me concentrate on bringing this out" the Sage replied furiously.

Fiona and Pike heaved a sigh of relief as Srithi walked past them. It seemed she was staring at something else.

"I told you she can't see you" the Sage reaffirmed.

"That was very scary" Fiona moaned.

Srithi circled back and stood right in front of the Sage. She stared straight into her eyes.

"Are you sure she can't see us?" Pike seemed wary with the way they kept getting in her line of sight.

"It is not possible, we are not in the same realm except...." the Sage breathed heavily.

"Except what?" Pike kept gasping repeatedly while Fiona remained frozen.

The Sage waved her hand in front of Srithi's eyes. She didn't bat her eyelids.

"She can't see us, there is no way she could" the Sage chuckled.

"Hello sister, I heard they call you the Sage now" Srithi was obviously speaking to the Sage.

Fiona nearly had her heart leapt out of her mouth. Pike was dumbfounded.

"Can you really see us?" the Sage opened her mouth wide.