Empress Renée was confused. She furrowed her eyebrows and waited for an explanation from the Mystery Miracle Worker. However, she didn't get one.
"I thought we had already established that I won't give you the key," she said.
"Yes, and then I figured, 'what if she didn't need the key?'" the Miracle Worker replied. "You see, Empress, I know of an entrance into the Cataras Springs where you don't need a key. You can enter from beneath the island in which the garden is located."
Renée processed these words. "I still need the key to know how much time I have left."
"How does the key show you?" asked the Miracle Worker. She held out her hand to receive the key.
The Mystery Miracle Worker removed two copper cups from her cupboard and set them on the counter. Meanwhile, the mysterious man took a seat in front of the fireplace and never removed his hood to show his face."You knew I was here all along," he said. "And here I thought you would be surprised to see me again.""The only thing that surprises me is that you stayed for so long," replied the Miracle Worker. "I thought you would surely leave after I convinced my last clients to stay. You must really want what you came for.""Indeed, I do.""So, what is it?" the Miracle Worker asked, turning to face him. "My instructions failed you?""You remember everything, don't
Rein couldn't find any sign of Renée as she made her way to Carnific, so she decided to wait until the empress arrived inside the Cataras Springs. She landed in a tree on the island after about three hours of non-stop flight and scanned the jungle-life around her to make sure she was in the right place before she set the seagull free.Rein opened a hidden hatch in the tree, jumped inside, and slid a long distance deep into the island. It had been a while since she last visited the Cataras Springs, so this dark tumble into the underground made her nerves a bit flustered. She soared out of an uprooted tree root and safely caught herself in the air. She glanced around to verify her location and then flew toward a small mushroom town deep in the garden. There, she approached a specific lavender mushroom home next to a sparkling blue stream and she knocked on the tiny wooden doo
Not long after Ravan had left Roznova, the Mystery Miracle Worker packed a small bag of food for herself and a couple of oddly shaped, multi-colored, glass bottles. She wrapped the bottles in a thick, soft cloth and tightly packed them in her satchel to make sure that they were kept safe. Then she put on her large-brimmed hat, threw a gray shawl over her shoulders, and turned to her king cobra who was perched in his tree."Are you ready, Stephocra?""I couldn't be more ready, Miss," Stephocra replied as he slithered up her arm.The Miracle Worker put out all the lights in her lair and raced to a dinghy she kept some distance from the beach, her burgundy skirts catching and tearing on foliage along the way. She had covered the boat with damp moss to hide it from any visit
The garden of the Cataras Springs was the most beautiful wonder on Xyntriav at its time. Specks of gold light floated about the brightly-colored trees and bushes. Mossy vines draped the silverstone walls and bright, colorful bubbles served themselves as rocks beside the shimmering rivers and streams. The sweet smell of lotus, lilies, lilac, and lavender was so strong that the visitors could taste it. And though the Springs were located underground, there still seemed to be a light blue moonlight present to illuminate everything in this enclosure."Me eyes have never beheld such a sight," murmured Captain Tzatara."Aye," agreed Yacomé with his jaw dropped.There was one visible waterfall right beside the entrance which poured into the same body of water through whi
Back at the Obsidian Palace beneath the Aquamarine Ocean, Empress Renée had picked up a mussel shell and stormed into a garderobe for privacy before speaking with anyone. She required immediate answers before she could face any seafolk. There she urinated on the underside of the shell and set it aside for a minute to process. She paced dramatically in the tiny chamber, anxiously waiting for the time to pass quicker."Change color," she growled at the shell. "Change,change!"Nothing happened to the color of the shell. Once the minute was up, the empress bashed and punched the walls of the garderobe. The Mystery Miracle Worker's theory had been proven accurate, at least in Renée's case."Curse you!" Ren&
Three hundred years had passed and there were new rulers to the kingdoms on land and the empire under the sea. Gerardo had left his mark on the hearts of the seapeople and his name had gone down into history on land and throughout the five oceans. Gerardo's only child, a son he and Mira named Jaskaran, became emperor after he married a naiad named Renée. Renée was infertile, so she and Jaskaran adopted a mermaid and named her Nadia. After a ceremony to make her heir, Nadia became the only heir to the throne. It was not long after that Nadia became deathly ill and Renée refused to leave her child's bedside. A couple more months passed, and the miracle worker whom the emperor and empress hired said that Nadia was getting better and should be healthy again in a year, but when Renée looked at her daughter, she didn't believe the miracle worker and remained hopeless.
The day was only hitting its peak at the Obsidian Palace where Emperor Jaskaran and his two advisors held a meeting in the grand drawing room. They sat at a round, polished stone table with another naiad and a merman with a shark's tail. The dim light of the glowfish chandelier above them left dramatic shadows on their faces as they feasted on their luncheon and discussed matters light-heartedly. The meeting seemed to be going very well for the emperor and his advisors until a booming voice jolted the smooth current surrounding them."I require a word with His Majesty!Immediately."Jaskaran paused for a moment to eye who had dared interrupted them. When he recognized it was his wife, he breathed a heavy sigh and addressed his guests. "I apologize for this. Please wait outside, we shouldn't be long."
Unfortunately, Rein had not yet recovered from her regrettable episode three hundred years ago when the infamous Emperor Mentir tore her wings off her back. Ever since, she had been eating the petals of the burdania flower to keep alive as pixies cannot live without wings for the most part. To further Rein's misfortune, this flower was native to the Maja Forest and when she had left this forest the first time, she had not done so on good terms. Returning without wings was humiliating, and making amends was painful. Interestingly enough, even after spending another three hundred years in the forest, not all hard feelings had been amended and Rein was anxious for this opportunity to leave again.Throughout these years, Rein spent much of her time perfecting her hunting, running, climbing, and jumping skills. She now looked about the age of a twenty-year-old with a black design devel