The Last Fairy Tale (30 page)

“Well…this
is
 precious,” the man said. “Turns out the imp is quite the valiant prince after all. Too bad. It’s too late for him, I’m afraid. I only care about the princess.” The force grabbed Locke and flung him at the stone wall once more.

 Olivia screamed and gasped for breath. She couldn’t think of any way to help. After all they had been through together and all the help Locke had given her, she was unable to help him at all. She was useless.

 “I’m still waiting for your answer,” the Grimoire said. He pulled Olivia right up to his face. “I could get rid of you right now. Or, I could torment you for an eternity. Or, you could just take my offer.”

 Olivia stared into the man’s dark green eyes. In them, she saw a normal young man, not a Lich King. She saw that he once knew reason and had good intentions, but all that and more had been lost to the thousands of years spent seeking power. As she stared into his eyes, she realized that she wanted to help him, but she could see no way to do it. He had gone too far and could never be pulled back to reality.

 “Well?” the man asked.

 “Stop doing this…you monster…” came Locke’s broken voice. He had crawled back to Olivia, his shattered legs dragging behind him. Olivia looked down at him, sobbing. “She’ll never join you. She has something you’ll never have...” He gasped for air. “A heart…”

 “Seriously,” the man said, eyeing Locke. “Don’t you know when to stop?” The man waved his arm as if swatting away a pest, causing Locke to be hurled once again toward the stone wall.

“Locke!” Olivia cried. Her entire body shook with heaving sobs. The man began to shake her, but she didn’t care. “
Locke
!”

 Suddenly the sound of Locke’s violin filled the hall, and everything else went silent. After a moment, Olivia recognized the song. It was the one he had composed for her when he first laid eyes on her in the Elder Forest. It was captivating, soothing, and heart-rending, all at the same time.

 Olivia wept as she turned her gaze toward Locke. She already knew what she would find, but she wanted to see him one last time. He was lying in a crumpled heap next to the wall, his violin precariously perched on his injured shoulder. He looked up at her as he played, tears welling in his eyes and a pained smile on his face. Then, with the last of his energy, he let the bow fall and held his hand up weakly, pointing his thumb into the air.

 Locke’s hand fell limply by his side. Olivia wailed loudly and called out for him, but he didn’t move. Memories of their time together in Aeldyn flooded into her mind. The happiness he had shown her and the many things he had taught her about life were bitterly comforting, making her weep harder. She wished for nothing more than the destruction of the one who had harmed Locke.

 “What a pest,” the man said. “Now, come to your senses and… and…”

 He hesitated as Olivia’s eyes rolled back in her head. She struggled for another moment and then went limp. He let her drop to the floor.

 “Useless…” he sighed, turning to his throne. “So much potential, wasted. Oh, well. Whatever.”

 Suddenly, a piercing light filled the hall. The man turned and shielded his eyes, looking down at Olivia, whose body was glowing brightly. She rose slowly into the air, but not by his will. The light coming from her body grew brighter by the second. Around Olivia, the form of a massive beast took shape. Her arms and legs became as thick as tree trunks and were covered in gleaming white scales. Great white wings sprouted from her back and unfurled themselves. An armored tail shot along her spine and down the length of the hall, and her face twisted itself into a fanged snout.

 Olivia had lost control and was latching onto her last bit of consciousness. She knew only one thing: the man before her was to be destroyed. She opened her piercing blue eyes and, with the last of her will, seized the man with a taloned hand and launched into the air.

* * * * *

 Olivia’s group held back the last of the troops inside the walls of the fortress as Thunc pulled the doors shut behind them. Haunches had walked a little ways ahead of the group and was leaning down to pick something up.

 “Doesn’t this belong to Oliver?” he shouted, holding up a small, white-haired doll.

 “It must have taken her to that building up there!” shouted Kai-Tu, pointing past Haunches toward the hall at the other end of the town. “We have to go!”

 “Indeed! We must make paste!” exclaimed Haunches.

 Grimwitch and Gauntlet hopped about anxiously, motioning for the others to start moving toward the black hall atop the hill ahead.

 “Must hurry!” said Grimwitch.

 “Must get to Olivia!” Gauntlet added.

 “Aye, aye, we’re comin’!” said Bren, who was breathing heavily and clutching one arm near the shoulder. “Just had to catch me breath!”

 “Oh, dear, I do hope Olivia and Locke are alright,” Holli said nervously.

 “We’ll find out soon enough, my dear,” replied Rufus, taking her hand.

 “Right, everyone, let’s–” began Jin, but he was interrupted by a loud rumbling. The ground beneath them began to quake, and everyone stared in horror as the roof of the black hall burst and a lustrous white beast flew into the air. In the beast’s claws was a man dressed all in black, writhing and shouting in fear.

 The beast flapped its massive white wings and roared violently, shaking the earth. Then, tossing the man into the air, the beast opened its mouth and unleashed a blinding light into the man’s chest. Before everyone’s eyes, the Grimoire was incinerated and purged from existence, leaving only small flecks of light to float away on the wind.

 The beast’s brilliant white body began to fade away, revealing a small white-haired girl wearing the tattered remnants of a purple dress at its center. Everyone gasped as Olivia Wickworth fell to the ground, landing inside the ruins of the black hall. Kili gave a small muffled squeak and flew quickly toward the hall. The others followed close behind, crying Olivia’s name as tears streamed down their faces.

Chapter Eighteen

The Truth

 “Olivia,” a familiar deep and raspy voice said. It sounded ancient and dusty, as if coming from old pipes. “Olivia…”

 A white light suddenly filled Olivia’s mind. Her ears were ringing. The ringing turned from an unpleasant shrill sound to loud, distorted notes strung together between rhythmic drum beats. She was frightened for a moment, but then the sound became enjoyable. She then remembered similar music from the Lich King’s hall and winced. After a moment, she remembered who she was, in part because of the voice that continued to call her name. A black fog began to fill the whiteness. It took shape and revealed a black, hollow-eyed goat and smiled.

 “Ah, Olivia, I feared you would not make it, child. But, here you are!” Ink exclaimed, laughing a low, wheezy laugh. “You are a curious creature, indeed!”

 Olivia didn’t respond. She didn’t know whether she was dead or alive or whether she would be able to speak to Ink. She couldn’t feel anything.

 “They say my brother got rather unfortunately involved with the Lich King,” Ink said. “I would not doubt his curiosity got the best of him. No matter, because you saved him, and I thank you most profusely for that.”

 A sudden twinge shot through Olivia’s head. She could feel her eyes and soon her mouth. The feeling was returning to her body, and it was painful.

 “They also say a magnificent white beast cleansed the evil from Aeldyn,” Ink said, chuckling. “I knew you had it in you, child.”

 Pain shot through Olivia’s entire body. She screamed, but no sound came from her mouth. Her head was spinning. She heard the sound of running water and people crying, when suddenly her eyes snapped open.

 Olivia was lying on a pile of blankets on the grassy mound under the Great Fairy Tree. Worried faces stared down at her, eyes red from crying. She recognized them as her eyes focused. Bren, Jin, Kai-Tu, Rufus, Holli, Grimwitch, Gauntlet, Thunc, Kili, and Haunches all smiled as she came back into consciousness.

 “Oh, Olivia, we thought you weren’t gonna make it,” cried Bren, wiping his eyes with one hand. The other hand was hanging in a sling across his big beard.

 “Everyone, please stand back and give her some air,” Rufus said. “Olivia, I am so pleased that you are back with us. You were injured quite badly. Nearly every bone in your body, broken… There is also some peculiar scarring.”

 That explained the horrible pain she was in. Olivia closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and immediately stopped. Searing heat coursed through her ribs.

 “Just take it easy, Olivia,” Jin said. “Rufus and Holli have been tending to you ever since we left the fortress. Even they were unsure if you’d make it, but here you are! We are all…so glad!” His voice broke and he began to cry.

 “The Wickworth very strong!” said Thunc. “Thunc knew she would make it.”

 “They’ve mended nearly every bone, Olivia,” Kai-Tu said. “I’ve been helping to ease the pain. Are you feeling any better?”

 Olivia hurt so badly that she knew she wouldn’t be able to answer. She figured that, without Kai-Tu’s help, the pain would be unbearable. Besides, the last thing she wanted to do was discourage him; he was finally doing something he loved. She opened her eyes and looked at him. Then, as slightly as she could, she nodded.

 “That’s good. Just try to rest, okay?” Kai-Tu added.

 Olivia looked around at the group one last time. The memories of what happened were beginning to return to her. She looked around for Locke, but didn’t see him. She then remembered why Locke wasn’t there. She closed her eyes and warm tears rolled down her cheeks as she silently cried herself back to sleep.

* * * * *

 When Olivia awoke again, she felt much better. She opened her eyes and saw that she was still on the mound under the Great Fairy Tree. She wondered how long she had been sleeping. She took a deep breath, glad that she could breathe without the pain.

 “I see that you are regaining your strength, my child,” said a soft voice next to her. It was the Great Fairy, although from the sound of it, he was having much difficulty speaking.

 Olivia turned her head in his direction. Sitting on a small stool of grass, the Great Fairy smiled down at her, his face stiff and his smile slight. His entire body seemed rigid, the root-like arms and legs hanging limply from it, like a plant that had gone for too long without water.

 “Great Fairy, what’s wrong?” Olivia asked after she finally found her voice.

 “Nothing is wrong, Olivia,” he answered. “Nothing shall ever be wrong again, thanks to you.”

 “But…” Olivia protested, trying to sit up. Moving caused pain, but it was possible.

 “No, no, Olivia,” Rufus said from behind her. “You need to stay still as much as possible, at least for another few hours.”

 Olivia turned and saw that everyone was still there. Even the kami had arrived, standing eerily behind the others. Ink and his brother Dust floated around above everyone. She noticed that another gnome had joined them, too. He stood beside Holli as she hugged him lovingly.

 “Olivia, I would like to tell you one last tale. One that may answer some questions you likely have,” the Great Fairy said.

 Olivia respectfully nodded at him.

 “I told you of your history before you left on your journey,” he said. “I told you of the human born without a fairy and of the Separation. You learned that a human had been discovered in the northeast, and that I was the last of my kind.” He paused and took in a deep, shaky breath. “All these things lead to one final question: Who was the Grimoire?”

 Olivia stared up at the Great Fairy and listened intently. She had wondered who the Lich King was, but she had never found the time to ask.

 “He was my human, Olivia,” the Great Fairy said. His voice was becoming weaker and his body stiffer. “Long ago, during the Separation, he was unable to leave me. His love for me was too great, and he did not believe in life without a fairy. He foresaw the doom that humans would bring upon themselves after severing the bonds with their fairies. He saw that they would lose their knowledge of the world and their understanding of morals and consequences. And so, he slipped through the Door, unnoticed.”

 Everyone except Ink and the kami seemed to be taken aback by the Great Fairy’s words. Some gasped, while others shifted about nervously. Olivia was also stunned, but she wanted to know the rest, so she kept silent.

 “In the chaos of the immigration, however, we became separated from one another,” the Great Fairy continued. “I searched for him for years, Olivia, and I’m sure he did the same. Alas, when I finally found him, it was too late. He had already tapped into the forbidden magics and learned how to prolong his own life by stealing the life from other beings. Our weakened, though existent, bond kept me alive, as well.

“He explained to me that he had done it in order to continue his search for me. When I told him that it was wrong to do such a thing, the truth came out. He was afraid of living a life in Aeldyn as its only human and feared the scorn of the other creatures. He became obsessed with finding ways to peer into the old world and prolong his life even further. He believed that one day, he would show others into the world through the Door, allowing humans to live among fairies and other magical creatures again. But he was driven mad over time as he watched your world and its civilizations prosper. I tried for many,
many
 years to convince him that what he was doing was wrong. Eventually, he threatened to sever our tie. I knew then that there was nothing more I could do. So, I fled to the tree from whence I came and hid from the world, hoping that one day he would come to his senses and stop his madness. But that day never came.