After a little while of walking,
the road becomes lost as the surrounding environment is mostly destroyed with
the flames of battle still burning.
“This must be where those
Crystallis got their creatures,” Rosalia says to herself.
Because the Crystallis is known
for violence and upsetting nature, both they and the Flos have developed their
own spell that calms nature around them, so they can battle. This spell only
covers the area of battle and takes a lot of energy to produce.
“This is probably why the
Crystallis couldn’t produce another spell to protect themselves. Even if they could,
the creatures of the forest weren’t giving them any opportunities to act
anyways. You see, Rhodes? You have to respect nature otherwise it will turn on
you.”
Further into the destruction,
Rosalia finds a team of healers who are repairing the forest with their magic.
One of the forest healers approaches
Rosalia and says, “Excuse me, miss. You should hurry along in a different
direction. It only gets more dangerous from here.”
“I know that, but my baby boy has
been afflicted with a spell that can only be healed at the springs.”
“That’s terrible, and you’ve been
traveling on your own?”
“Yes, I have.”
“…I guess there’s no getting around
it then. Lupin, send out a messenger bird to let them know this woman is coming
with her child.”
“Alright.”
The doll conjures a dove made of light
after speaking into his hand. The dove flies away in the direction of Rosalia’s
destination.
“Thank you for your help,” Rosalia
says.
“Don’t mention it. Just make sure
that little one gets the healing he needs. I’m sure it’s been hard for you just
getting this far. If the army near the springs can spare any troops, they
should be meeting you halfway.”
Once they say their goodbyes,
Rosalia keeps walking. The forest looks better as she journeys forward, but not
by much. Crystal grass and foliage are growing at a fast rate because of the
healing spell of the healers though it seems like something is wrong. The newly
grown vegetation appears to know it was killed as it violently sways back and forth
as if it wants to be reborn faster so it can obtain its revenge. Rosalia eventually
meets up with a small group of Flos soldiers.
One of them says, “You’re the
mother we’ve been looking for. It’s an honor to meet a woman who will risk her
life and skin for her son.”
“Thank you for coming out to escort
me. It’s been rough.”
“I can imagine. Let’s hurry along
then. The fighting near the spring has calmed down for the past couple days so
you should be able to bring your boy there with no trouble.”
The band of soldiers escort Rosalia
with her in the center to guard her against attacks from all possible directions.
A soldier asks her, “What’s your name?”
“Rosalia.”
“Hmmm. That name sounds familiar.”
“A guy in the town close to here
said the same.”
“It’s a rare, but memorable name.”
“That’s because of a woman by the name
of Rosalia was one of the reasons this war started,” another soldier
interjects.
“Now I remember why that name is so
memorable.”
Feeling awkward, Rosalia says, “But
I’m not that Rosalia.”
“I wish I knew which Rosalia was
that one so I could ask her what she was thinking. I’m not mad at her because I
know that her action was only the straw that broke the camel’s back and nothing
incredibly important on its own. Marriages between Flos and Crystallis aren’t
as rare as they seem.”
“Still, she should’ve known better,”
another soldier comments.
“It should’ve been a more private marriage.”
“How could it have been when she married
royalty?”
“What happened to the husband anyway?”
“He was supposed to be hiding out
with Rosalia, but I’ve heard that the Crystallis sent a group of its most
powerful warriors to kill them and the word going around is that the husband is
dead, but a number of people who were hiding out with him are alive including
his wife and their child.”
Some of the soldiers start becoming
suspicious of Rosalia and start looking at her funny.
She says, “But I’m not who you’re
thinking about.”
A soldier says, “There’s no way
this Rosalia is the one we’re thinking about. This Rosalia cares so much for
her child while the other one was selfish. Do you really think that a peasant who
wanted to marry royalty would risk her life this way?”
“That Rosalia is probably hiding
herself with her husband’s riches ten feet under,” another soldier adds.
This relieves the tension in the
group as Rosalia quietly breathes a sigh of relief.
“Hey, I don’t remember the forest
being this big when we first passed through here.”
“Yeah, you’re right. Be on your
guard.”
The soldiers unsheathe their weapons
as they move slower while paying attention to everything in their surroundings.
A large tree then falls on them to separate the group before fighting against
the group to further separate them and push them into the incoming hordes of fauna
and vegetation. The group gets separated further as the creatures of the forest
break the group apart to make them easier to shatter.
The black bull from before comes to
rescue of Rosalia as it charges through swarms of creatures. It gives Rosalia
enough room to breathe. Since the black bull is dangerous, the forest uses its connection
to the creature to try to bring it under its control. The bull’s mental
strength is weak, but it doesn’t give in to the forest’s influence, however, it
can’t completely control itself, so it smashes everything around it in the
hopes that Rosalia won’t be one of them. Unfortunately, Rosalia is hit while using
the bull’s rampage as a chance to escape. She is hit into a tree but manages to
get away from it before it can shatter her.
Rosalia is surrounded by fauna and vegetation
while she is heavily injured. She is trying to heal herself, but she can’t do
it fast enough to the point where she can run fast or leap into the air. The
forest appears to be livid because it was burned and torn down. Singing looks
like it won’t help this time, so she grips Rhodes and covers him as much as
possible as a single fauna approaches her with its blade-like arm out ready to
strike.
The anticipation of it kills her,
so she brings her head up in time for the fauna’s blade to enter her missing
eye. Since a doll’s shell is mostly empty with the only thing in it being its
core, she feels no pain.
Rosalia says, “Shatter me, but spare
my son. Please, save his life when I am dead.”
The fauna pulls back its blade
again then brings its blade down on Rosalia’s neck but only makes a small crack
on her neck. This supreme act of true love calms down the forest and it gives
Rosalia respect that few dolls have. The creatures and fauna bow to her and
let her walk away. Despite walking away with her life, she’s still injured and
is slowing healing herself. Rhodes senses his mother’s injuries and cries for
her.
“Don’t worry about me, my little
prince. I’ll be fine.”
He continues to cry.
“Shhh.
Don’t be upset
I am here
Don’t be afraid
I’ll always be with you
Look at me and see my smile
I am telling the truth
You can always trust me
We’ll always be together
No matter the distance
No matter what happens
Even in death, even when I’m gone
We’ll always be together
Your weakness means nothing to me
You’re stronger than the tallest
mountains
Braver than the mightiest heroes
No matter what happens, I will always
love you
We’ll always be together
No matter the distance
No matter what happens
Even in death, even when I’m gone
We’ll always be together
I may not always be next to you
You may not always feel my presence
But our bond is permanent
Nothing can break it
I’m always here
I’m always with you
Forever and ever
Just look in your heart
And you will see me, always with
you”
Rhodes has fallen asleep with a
smile on his face. Rosalia smiles as well as she’s finally healed herself
enough to numb the pain as she continues on to her destination.
The song that inspired this song/poem is You'll be in my Heart by Phil Collins. Another classic song, but this time from a Disney movie (Tarzan). My mom used to love singing this song to me as a child and will probably do it again if she hears it and I'm nearby.
No comments:
Post a Comment