Chapter 11 – Pain

"Felicia!" Astronomia screamed when she looked at her right side, where there was the less mist. Her big sister was still standing up, had her eyes wide opened, but was… frozen!

The room was dark, there was not light anymore, except the moon which was being seen through the window, but Astronomia clearly saw all the ice which was covering the walls and the floor.

"Elenne!" She heard her father scream from the other side of the room. This scream made her go out of her shock. Despite the mist, she ran, only following his voice. "Elenne! Answer me, Elenne!"

When she finally was able to catch up to him, she looked down. The body of her mother was lying on her father's arms. She had her eyes wide opened. She had her mouth wide opened.

"Mother!" Astronomia screamed, kneeled down in front of Andrea. All the hopes she had disappeared in a minute when she saw the wound on her stomach, which wasn't bloody, but was impressive. Too impressive.

The queen wasn't alive. Her mother died in a couple of seconds.

"That can be possible…" The princess whispered, putting her hands against her mouth, tears running down her tanned cheeks. "Tell me it's just a dream father… Please…" She cried, while her father had fallen too deeply into shock to reply.

"Father!"

"Who in the hell did that…" He muttered, anger overpowering the sadness he was feeling. His queen, his wife, his love had been killed. The one who killed her had to pay. He quickly stood up and screamed like he never did. "Who the hell did that to my Elenne?! SHOW YOURSELF AND FACE ME IF YOU DARE, YOU ROTTEN BASTARD!"

Never in her life had Astronomia seen her father in such a state of anger. The power which was released after his yell was so important that all the mist caused by the cold air disappeared. The situation was worse than they imagined.

All the people who were in the ball room; it wasn't only Felicia, but also the dancers, the violinists, the royal families, and Leo who were imprisoned into ice!

"Oh dear lord…" Astronomia muttered to herself.

"Who the hell dared doing that…?" Andrea cringed and clenched his fists with anger.

"Me." They heard footsteps on the ice, accompanied with a cold laugh. A silhouette went out from the darkness. It was a man, a tall man, with a tan skin and the darkest eyes Astronomia ever saw in her life. A crow was resting on his bare shoulder, while lightening was seen and heard all around him.

"Who the hell are you?!" Andrea asked angrily, while Astronomia stood up beside him.

"Who cares?" The man said with a blood-curdling smirk which made her shiver. "You'll forget this soon anyway. By the way, you have a very beautiful daughter here, King Andrea."

"You…!" She clenched her fists in turn. "How dared you do this to my mother?! How did you…!"

"Astronomia." He muttered to himself while taking a step towards them. Protectively, Andrea placed his daughter behind him and took his sword in his hands. "I heard that you were one of the most powerful wizards of the universe. And I can confirm it: just one person is dead after my attack. All the others survived."

What does he mean? Aren't the others dead too?

"Astronomia." His father whispered to her. "The others are not dead. You unconsciously saw the attack come, I don't know when, but you did. So, you released your power before you knew it. The ice which had been created here is only a barrier of protection. They are okay."

Astronomia sighed in relief. She trusted her father. "Thanks goodness."

But at this moment, something still bothered her. She didn't know she was that powerful. She didn't even know that her magic power could release itself unless she wanted to. It was scary.

"That's true, your highness Andrea." The man said, taking another step towards them. He still had the same derisive smirk on his face. "You have a very powerful daughter. But, as the most powerful wizard today, I can't let her be alive any longer. After all, this is my reputation of being the most powerful. Not hers."

"I know who he is." Andrea sighed. "His name is Gaël. He possesses two mains powers: lightening and fire. He is known for having killed many people and attacked many villages without any reasons. He just lives for destroying."

"That's true again, your highness." Gaël laughed. "You have more knowledge than I thought."

"Shut up!" The King yelled. "I won't let you touch one hair on my daughter's head. If you try-"

"Do you think I leaved you any choice?" After licking his lips, he lifted his arm up and threw a flash of lightning toward the King.

"Stand back Astronomia!"

She gasped. This was too much. Seeing her father being attacked like this was too much. She was sure, at this moment, that that was the same spell that killed her mother.

He killed my mother.

"DON'T DARE TOUCHING MY FATHER!" She screamed and, unconsciously, threw her arms up in the air.

"Stars number 6, 7, and 8: Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto! I'm calling you!" She proclaimed. The floor all around her started to glow. Some stars appeared and created a sort of shield between Andrea and the attack. When both magic touched, Astronomia started to lose strength: it was only a single spell, but his lighting was too powerful for her. Andrea tried to help her with his sword, but it was useless: he was soon thrown away.

But she resisted. It took her all the power she had to resist his spell. When he finally gave up on his it, Astronomia fell on her knees, panting hard.

He is too powerful…!

Gaël fell on a deep and terrifying laugh. "Oh god, you managed to stop my spell! That's enormous! Unbelievable." He walked towards the exhausted princess. "Astronomia, who possesses the power of astronomies." He whispered. "You managed to win my respect. That's pretty unusual, I'd admit it." He turned around her slowly as she glared at him. "But, that doesn't mean that you're safe. That's quite the contrary." He lifted his hand right above her head. "Right now, little impertinent, you can say goodbye to this world." A flash of lightning mixed with fire appeared under his hand. She knew it was the end: she didn't have enough strength to make a single move. She just closed her eyes and sighed.

"Goodbye, Astronomia."

She didn't feel any pain. She didn't feel anything at all. After hearing the noise of a sword, everything was quick. She didn't realise anything, except the fact that she wasn't on her knees anymore, that someone was holding her under his arm, and that she was drinking something.

Astronomia opened her eyes and saw that she was on her father's arms!

"Father?" Looking around, what she saw was unbelievable: Gaël was standing up, frozen like the other people in the room!

"What happ-" She quickly cut off when she heard her father moaning in pain. She sat up and laid him softly on the floor. Astronomia took a good look at him: his legs were starting to be frozen too!

"Father!"

"Astronomia, listen to me…" The King moaned in pain. "I used my sword to protect you earlier. I threw it between your head and his hand. It was enough to send back his spell on him and, because I touched your magic with my sword earlier, it still had a hint of it on it. That's why he is frozen. A mix between his magic and yours was enough to freeze him like the others. But there will be consequences: In a hundred years, a virus will be released: it is a way for him, even frozen, to remind us that he is still alive, and that his magic is accumulated without limits, and that he will release himself alone. And now I'm freezing because you touched me with the fear that I would die."

Astronomia gasped. With only a hint of her magic, she was really able to freeze a so powerful wizard like Gaël? And to freeze her father only because she wanted to protect him?

"Now, listen carefully." She heard her father groan again under her. "Astronomia, I made you drink something. This something is a potion I always had with me. It makes the person who drinks it a new-born again."

The princess's eyes widened. Taking a look at her hands, she saw that they were glowing. And she quickly realized that her father's body was almost completely frozen.

"Astronomia." He sighed, finally smiling. "Now that everyone is safe and will be for the next years, you have to know something. I used this spell because I have faith in you, and I know that no matter what happens, you'll remember us in a hundred years, and you'll come back to save us, with a new family, and with new friends."

"Father!" Astronomia cried. That couldn't be possible! She didn't want to abandon them!

"It's okay sweetheart." The ice had captured his body until his waist at this moment. "I know that a new family will find you, will raise you, and will make you happy. I know that. So now, you don't have to worry. You'll just have to live your life like it will come in front of you. And, remember…"

"Father, no! I don't want to abandon you! I don't want to leave you!" Astronomia cried louder.

He took his daughter by her shoulders and threw her on a magic gate that she didn't realised had been created. "We love you, Astronomia. You'll always be Elenne and my pride and our joy."

Astronomia lifted her arms up as she disappeared into the portal deeper and deeper. She couldn't believe it. His father sacrificed himself for her.

"FATHER!" She screamed with her whole voice before being lost into unconsciousness.

1rst March 1984

"Nassima, didn't you hear something?"

"Mmmh? You think?"

The woman pushed aside the ivy which was blocking the way to a valley surrounded by rocks. When she made a step onto it, she was completely amazed: it looked like heaven. Flowers were all over the lawns, even over the rocks. The lawn was a shining green, and the flowers were in soft colours.

On the centre of all this was lying a little baby wrapped into a small blanket.

The baby was crying, and Nassima walked towards him. She took him on her arms and stared gently.

"She is a girl." She sighed. "A human girl."

"Really?" Her mother asked. Nassima nodded. "She might be hungry."

"Why don't we take her to the village?"

"Are you crazy? If Diala finds her…"

"I don't care about her state of mind, Nassima. I won't let a small baby die because of anger because of her!"

Nassima nodded again and followed her mother, the baby still on her arms.

Once in the eyes and after making her eat, the baby was now laughing as Nassima was tickling her.

"Do you think her parents abandoned her?"

"I think. She might be three month olds. Not more. She wouldn't get lost by herself."

"She is cute. I don't understand how you can abandon a cutie like this. Do you think we should search for her parents?"

"If they abandoned her, they won't take her back if we find them." Nassima's mother sat on a chair in front of her daughter. She then asked her something surprising. "Why don't we keep her?"

"WHAT?" Nassima quickly stood up, taking her of not throwing the baby away. "Are you crazy, mum? Keeping a human in the village? Do you think King Eyal will accept it?"

"He will." She smiled. "He likes human as much as we do."

"But, what about Diala?"

"I don't care about her."

Nassima sat again and stared at the laughing baby in her arms. "I thought you wanted a little sister."

"Maybe, but…" She finally gave up. "Okay."

"Do you know how we could call her?"

"Flora?"

"What?"

"Nature was all around her when we found her, remember? It was like she was able to create nature and to talk to them. It was like her only presence was making the nature feel joyful. Flora will be a perfect name for her."

Flora was gasping. She remembered everything. The 10th of March 1914, Astronomia had been caught into the portal for seventy years, until she was a complete new-born again. When the portal opened again, she was left on a desert valley where everything was destroyed. But her presence made nature come back to life. There was no Astronomia anymore. There was Flora.

Flora was the one who carried everyone's hope to live.

Flora was the one who could save everyone.

Flora was Astronomia.

"I don't want to…" She muttered again and again.

"I can't stay here any longer…"

Flora stood up and was about to open the door of her room, but realized that Michelle might still be on the kitchen. She had to find another way to get out of the house. Looking all around her, she saw the solution.

The window.

She quickly slipped on a pair of shoes, before opening her window and jumping out. The clear sky was at this moment full of clouds. The rain was pouring down and the thunder was one of the most impressive and noisy she even heard.

But she didn't care. She had to run away from here.

She took all the strength she had to jump above the gate of the village and run on the forest. It was dark, it was silent, it was scary, but she didn't pay attention and only followed her instinct.

Until she heard running footsteps behind her. As she didn't stop running, she turned her head: she saw a silhouette with an impressive stature running after her. Someone was chasing after her.

He's too fast!

It was too dark for her to identify him. But Flora didn't want to give up. So, she just tried to run faster. But it was useless: she understood it when she heard the man's foot stepping on a puddle right behind her and felt him grab her by the waist. The man forced her to kneel on the ground and took her by the shoulder, while Flora was desperately trying to push him away and was ordering him to let her go.

"Calm down! It's just me!"

At this moment, Flora recognized his voice. The voice that always gave her shivers. The voice that always made her relaxed in every kind of situation.

Helia's voice.

"Flora calm down." Helia said, still holding her shoulders from behind her and keeping her back against his chest. "I know everything."

Flora put her head in her hands. She was crying so hardly that it was impossible for her to make a phrase fully. "I-It is not possibl-"

"I remember my whole dream." He whispered in her ear. "I know everything. And I know that you can't save them by yourself, Flora."

It was like she didn't listen to him. "B-but t-they have been f-frozen for an h-hundred y-year now… because of m-me… T-the virus appeared b-because of m-my mistake… What happened t-to Bloom was m-my fau-"

"Stop saying such stupid things!" Helia said firmly, nearly screaming, as he made her look at him by slowly shaking her. Rain was dripping all over their bodies and their clothes were clinging to them. "None of this is your fault Flora. You just wanted to save your family and your people! What in this is a mistake? Nothing." His facial expression was rude, but as the same time convincing. "Now listen to me. You can't save them by yourself. You have to stay here and think about a way to save them. Your father said he had faith in you: and you will save him. But you will not save them alone."

Flora was lost in his words. "Everyone is counting on you: your family, your friends, your people, and even Bloom and Sky. You are everyone's only hope from today. You have to be strong, Flora. For everyone you love."

It was too much at this moment. His words were too much. She had been restraining herself from expressing what she felt since what she felt like eternity. But at this moment, she couldn't hold back any longer. She threw herself in his arms.

"I am not strong!"She screamed as Helia held her closer to him. "I am not strong Helia! I'm a not strong at all! I'm the weakest thing ever!"

She was yelling; evacuating the sadness she accumulated for a too long time as her tears mixed with the rain, while she specialist was gritting his teethes as an indescribable hatred was burning deeply inside of him.

Here we are! :)

I hope you liked this chapter. I had been thinking about it for almost three months before I started the fic. I'm glad I finally posted it! The next chapter will be a romantic one, a little shorter, but romantic!

Reviews? :D