Chapter 3

"Spirit of Pain and Piety, I summon thee, fill thy power in me, show my enemy true pain, turn me in a great Enchantress, Give me thy power, Algea!"

The celebrations lasted into the early morning, towards dawn was when it began to die down. The Queen stood on her balcony, her long, black hair in silky waves cascading down her back. She wore a light, cream colored silk robe, holding a steaming mug of coffee in her hand. Avalia didn't turn when she heard someone approach, but already knew who it was. Prince Kouen walked and stood next to her, looking out over the island.

"It is a beautiful view." He stated, almost in awe on how beautiful the sunrise was on the horizon.

"Isn't it?" She agreed, a warm smile gracing her lips. She felt awkward standing next to the Kou Prince. She had killed one of his subjects in cold blood not hours ago. She had reason enough, but still, she felt a bit off speaking to him as if it didn't happen. Kouen seemed to be interested now in what she had done with the idiot boy.

"That prisoner from Kou. Where is he?" He asked, turning to her. The Immortal Queen did not turn. She continued to stare at her city before inhaling deeply, answering him.

"Buried in the cemetery." Why were those words so hard for her to say? Was it because she regretted killing the boy? Not particularly, no. Was it because she didn't want the Prince to be upset with her? It seemed so. She was suddenly irritated with herself, she had lived for so long without needing the approval of others, especially men, why was she so desperate for it now? Kouen chuckled lightly, turning back towards the city.

"I could start a war over that." He said, glancing at her. The Queen just rolled her eyes.

"You're welcome to do so. You know what the outcome will be." She said with confidence, which annoyed Kouen a bit.

"Your city and people would be dead." Kouen said, a frown on his face.

"As would you be. And your siblings, your Mother, your people. Most likely not your Magi, that's a territory I don't wish to enter. But in that battle, it doesn't matter how many times you stab, slice, or break me, I will heal and be whole. I always win, Prince Kouen. I thought you knew that." Avalia said almost smugly. He was silent for a moment. It irritated him, knowing she was right. He could drive a sword through her now, and the only thing that would happen is her robe would be ruined. That and she would surely kill him. She was invincible, and everyone knew that. The Queen looked over at her visitor and could nearly see the wheels turning in his head. He was coming up with something, no doubt. She was amused by his silence, as that means he knew she was right but did not want to admit it. She loved the stubbornness of strong men.

"But, wouldn't you kill any assassin sent to murder you? Despite where they came from?" She asked. That seemed to snap him out of his trance. He nodded slowly before answering.

"Yes, I would. So, I suppose I can't be that upset." Avalia nodded in agreement, watching her citizens cleaning up the mess from the night before.

"There seemed to be a theme last night, another reason to celebrate besides the treaty. What was it?" Kouen asked as he watched the citizens as well. She grins.

"This day 12 years ago, I captured Algea. We call this day Nuit de le Capture." The Queen explains. He nods, his question answered. As she turned to walk back inside, she saw her daughter, Mia, run into the room. Her eyes were wide, but she cleared her throat, trying to act calm.

"Forgive me, Prince Kouen. May I borrow Her Majesty for a moment?" Mia asks, her tone polite and calm, but the panic was just barely there. Kouen nods, his own brother Koumei then at the door. The Queen nods her head and walks off with her daughter.

"Mia, what is this about?" She asks after they leave the room. Her adopted daughter's face was red, and she looked very much so embarrassed.

"Kia and I were instructed to entertain King Sinbad last night at the feast. We rolled dice to figure out who would do it and I lost so I had to. I did as I was told but I drank more than I thought and…" The oldest twin did not finish, looking down. Walking around the corner with his attendants, the infamous Lady Killer King appeared, yawning slightly, still looking a bit drunk. It then clicked into place what the Princess was trying to tell Avalia, and her eyes slowly began to widen. Sinbad stopped and looked at the two, his attendants doing the same. Mia opened her mouth to defend the King, but she knew better. Once her Mother had made up her mind, it was not easy to change it.

"Good morning, Your Majesty." Sinbad said, sounding a little guilty. His smaller Household member, who, as Avalia recalled, was named Ja'far, looked at his King then back to Avalia, his face showing more and more worry.

"What did you do?" Ja'far hissed at his Master, who looked away.

"Yes, King Sinbad, what did you do? Rather, who did you do?" The Queen stepped closer towards him, to which he puts his hands up.

"Mother, please, it was not King Sinbad's fault!" Mia insisted, her hand wrapping around Avalia's arm. The Immortal Woman merely continued to stare at Sinbad, who looked between her and her daughter several times. Unable to contain herself anymore, Avalia burst into laughter, confusing everyone around her.

"I'm only messing with you, Sin. My daughters are old enough to make their own choices." Everyone around them seemed to sigh a breath of relief at the same time. However, she steps towards him, just about in his face.

"If she falls…ill, I expect you to take full responsibility." She whispered. He nodded hesitantly.

"I don't mean to bother you so early, Your Majesty, but may we hear some of these stories of the older times?" Kouha, the younger Ren brother asked, his tone sickly sweet. Out of the corner of her eyes, she was able to see brother of his older brothers send glares his way.

"Of course. Let's have something to eat, and I would be more than happy to share those stories with you." Walking away from the Lady Killer and the Ren Brothers, her hand brushes Kouen's ever so slightly, her hips swaying almost dangerously as she walked towards the stairs. What a tease this woman was, Kouen thought, following quickly after her. After a quick meal, the Immortal Woman began her stories with how she became Immortal. The group watched her in fascination. She then began onto how she captured her Djinn. Mia and Kia, who sat by Sinbad, looked over at their Mother in surprise. This was a story they had never heard before, as this was the story of how their only Aunt was killed.

"My sister was cursed, very similar to me. However, while I cannot age or be harmed, she simply didn't age. At the time, we didn't know that. We both thought were we just immortal in the way we would never age. Her and I ventured into this dungeon in hopes one of us would capture it. In our parent's name, Rein, we would create a country and monarchy to honor them. We were not the only ones who entered. Towards the end, in the Djinn room, we encountered the men who entered as well. They were…bastards, to stay the least." The Queen could feel tears beginning to form in her eyes, and blinked a couple of times to make them go away.

"They forced my baby sister to watch them do…vile, horrific, simply disgusting things to me." There was a collective gasp. Mia and Kia looked at their Mother in horror. She was violated so horribly, and she never told them? Surely it wasn't because she didn't trust them. The Queen, who had been silent for a few moments, cleared her throat.

"Then they made me watch as they slowly killed her. I will always remember the look in her eyes when the light left them." Avalia trailed off a little, looking off into the distance. She sighed heavily.

"They attempted to do the same thing to me. It did kill me, essentially. It took roughly 20 seconds after I died to come back. Algea had appeared and was doing what Djinns do, you all know. You can imagine the look on their faces when the girl they thought they just killed in standing, ready to fight. Algea seemed to like that, as he is the Djinn of Pain." She giggled a little.

"I was covered in blood. I was cut up, for a few minutes and sitting in a pool of blood that wasn't just mine. I didn't take her body from the Dungeon. She was buried with those men." The Queen sniffles a little, her eyes filled with tears. A sad smile graces her lips.

"There's a monument behind the cemetery for her. I had a statue made. I always figured if it came down to me or my sister, Algea would pick her. So, her statue is her in what I would imagine to be her Djinn Equip." The group looked at her in almost horror after she finished her story.

"It was not always grand. Being immortal is something I never wish upon anyone. I will continue to live on, and those around me will die." That darkened the mood even more.

"Live for the moment. That's my advice." When she stands, she's confused on why everyone is looking at her strangely.

"What?" She asked.

"Avalia, you just told everyone here 2 great stories then closed it with how you were raped and watched your sister die." Sinbad said quietly.

"And what's your point? What's that saying…oh right, shit happens." She said simply.

"I am fine. If I wasn't, it would be obvious." Avalia added. Everyone seemed to calm down a bit, relieved. The rest of the day seemed to fly by, followed by another celebration. Tipsy and happy, the Queen walked the halls of her newly finished palace. She gasped out in surprised when a man, a rather large man, pushed her against the wall. Blinded by alcohol, the Queen struggled. When the hands felt better than she imagined, she felt herself moan out. The lips of man assaulted her neck and Avalia soon began to realize who had her pinned against the wall. Her growing attraction for this man made it so she wasn't angry at all, only angry that it was progressing slower than she wanted. His large hands pinned hers above her head, his lips still leaving kisses and bites along her neck and jaw. She tried to hold it in, but she couldn't, moaning out once again.

"Kouen!"