101 Aether

Still bound on the floor, General Rowan turned his head to the side to see who's the delusional man brave enough to point a blade at him. It took the general a while to recognize the man who seemed as tall as him. "Aether?", General Rowan uttered with his widened eyes.

"I thought you have completely forgotten me, Row. It would be a total heartbreak… friend", Aether said in his raspy voice. Aether was supposed to be the next general of all warriors, being the greatest knight during his prime. However, when the war first came out, Rowan found a loophole to steal the most aimed and highest position of command in the kingdom. While in a quest for invasion in Caluso, Rowan turned his back on his friend, cut Aether's arm off leaving him for dead in the snow mountain. Surviving the brink of death, Aether remained hidden from the palace's plain sight waiting for his chance to get his glory back.

"I'm growing impatient, General. So I thought, I should have more friends", Queen Isavelle uttered as she continue sipping her tea.

"Give me time, I'll give you everything you need", the General said as he remain defenseless on the floor.

"Maybe not.", Queen Isavelle wiped the sides of her luscious mouth with a piece of white cottony serviette.

"We have a deal!", General Rowan gritted his teeth as the blade deepen on the back of his head. "I dug you from that mountain! Don't make me regret that", he said. General Rowan have always thought it is a great risk to wake and work with the deceptive ruler of the travelers. Hence, he foresees all to bow before him for the great warrior that he is.

"Not anymore, General", Queen Isavelle said. Then she looked fixedly on Aether's dark eyes. "Aether", she called his name as Aether's lips widened with an ominous smile like they already had a mutual understanding even without enough words.

In a snap, Rowan hardened his grip on his claymore and swung it toward his former friend who was standing right behind him. Aether jumped, missing Rowan's blade. Then, he didn't missed the chance to impale the general with his improvise glaive. Marked by extreme anger, he stabbed the general on the back multiple times until Rowan shuffled off his mortal coil. He grunted in madness as he thrust the general's flesh, releasing all the bottled up rage that he kept for years.

General Rowan's claymore dropped on the floor with blood spilled everywhere, painting the room bright red. Aether stopped at his heart's content with blood all over him, catching his breath.

"Thank you, Aether. Or Should I call you General now?", Queen Isavelle said as he pick Rowan's claymore up and handed it to Aether. "Everyone is so reliable, too bad the General couldn't meet my needs", she said as Aether kneel at her foot. "Celeste located my stone in the Holy Land… tracks my soul travelers in all corners of any kingdom… make me look like the Queen…. and here you are Aether, removing all the unecessary thorns in my way", she said as she pat her henchman's head.

"Clean up the floors for me. Throw all the bloody garbage", Queen Isavelle ordered Celeste as she walk towards the mirror. Just when she was about to walk away, she caught a glimpse of Yereah's reflection on the glass. The priestess' eyes showed that she have seen and heard everything.

"Ahh… Just in time for my dessert", Queen Isavelle said as she turn around. "Bring her to me", she ordered her mad henchman who immediately obliged.

Yereah gasped in fear. Her knees trembled as she try to escape the chancery which was a witness of dark secrets. On his feet, Aether hurriedly ran after the priestess. With just a few strides, he was able to grab Yereah by her arm, squirming in panic.

"Please… please.. don't hurt me!!", Yereah pleaded for her life as Aether drag her back across the room. Then, he delivered the young priestess on her knees to the Queen.

"Of course not. Who said I would hurt you?", Queen Isavelle looked straight into Yereah's weeping eyes as the priestess beg the queen with her hands together. "Witches are amazing. You have the power to deceive our eyes with such beauty", Queen Isavelle said as Yereah's skin wrinkled and her hair turned grey. The wind blew harder through the windows, that it put out the light of the red candle on the tea table. As the flame on the red candle disappear, the Queen changed to a slender man with pale skin, high bridge nose and long fingers.

"I… swear.. I won't tell anyone!!", Yereah continued to implore with her overflowing tears.

"Shhh… I know, I know..", Queen Isavelle in a man's physique said in a low voice tone as he held Yereah's hands helping her to stand up. Then, he stared into the priestess' eyes as he hush her fears. Moments later, the man suck the life out of Yereah's mouth until her eyes turn black as a coal.

Turning his eyes away, Aether couldn't watch how monstrous the ruler of Caluso is. Celeste then lighted the red candle on the table that swiftly gave the man a divine beauty of the Queen. "Ahhh.. It's so much easier now to do everything in this body.", Queen Isavelle said as she release the soulless body of Yereah. "You are to take this witch's place, Celeste.", she said.

"Thank you, Ruler Argus", Celeste replied with a bow.

"Your first duty is to work with Callaghan to remove all the apotropaic wall protection of every room in this palace", Queen Isavelle ordered. "His Majesty has been staying in his chambers all the time, I barely see him", she said. "Be on your toes. Callaghan is quite clever", the queen warned knowing Lord Callaghan hates travelers to the core.

"Aye, sire", Celeste bowed at the queen's command.

"Would you like me to kill them all now?", Aether asked.

"No Aether, Not yet", Queen Isavelle said. "We're not strong enough. If you do that, we will all end up dead. And all the hardships that we have gone through, will be for nothing", she explained.

After being frozen for years, Argus' powers have weakened. Soul traveling make him bleed, and his healing magic have depleted. When he found Tris and Gaius in Aelmere using Celeste's dark magic, he found hope to become stronger like he have always been. However, fate has been tricky for him, that Tris slipped through his fingers. Only a celestial can help him restore his powers. Gladly, he found out that the child of Tris is a desdendant of great power that he seek.

"Apologies, sire", Aether said as he knelth on the Queen's feet.

"Keep things in line, and always watch your backs. I will bring back our eminence once we succeed", she spoke with conviction as if no man can stop her. "The witches will cut loose from this kingdom's exploitation, my soul travelers will have a world of our own apart from that snow Prison, and you Aether, you shall lead a kingdom that's rightfully yours", she said.

"Then I shall follow", Aether said as he offer his claymore to the person who paved way to redeem his honor.

"Find Tris' daughter, and get the Traveler's stone", the queen ordered with a sinister smile. "And, would you like to do some more stabbing?", she asked as she start ripping her gown.