Aiathl
SPOILER VERSION
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Author's notes for the spoiler version: This is everything I've written so far. Since I write in chunks and then link the chunks together, this'll skip around a lot. There'll be a lot of cliffhangers, and also a lot of spoilers (duh). So if you don't like spoilers and cliffhangers don't read further.
Chunks will be separated by a double line, like this:
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The chunks are already in the order they will be in the finished work, unless I change my mind (which is unlikely, as I've got all the timeline figured out, and it's so complex that one small change would affect most of it...)
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Author's notes:
Just a few things before you go on. First, this is not the finished work, nor is it the definitive version. It'll probably have some spelling and grammar errors, especially because English is not my mother tongue.
Secondly, don't worry if you find terms you don't know. They are words from the elvish language I made up; their explanation will be found in the story itself, no farther than three or four paragraphs. If there isn't, look in the glossary.
Another thing: if you absolutely can't stand gay people, you'd better stop reading here. Don't complain to me, you've been warned.
Here are various signs used for speech throughout the story:
"..." normal speech
'...' thought
/.../ element speech / mental transmission
That said, enjoy!
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She was sitting by the river, letting her eyes wander, and was thinking. Already a year had passed from the day she had discovered her powers and her destiny. She was Aiathl. And she was the heir of the woman that bore the same name and was now dying, in the palace. She felt her powers become stronger as the minutes passed, and suddenly she realized that only the old Aiathl was still alive. This meant that the others were now fully in possess of their powers, and new rulers of the land.
Chiara, Bianca, Iris, Stella... they had been her friends, and she knew them well, or so she thought at the time. She closed her eyes, crying silently, remembering Chiara's earnest blue eyes, her sweet smile, her warm voice, her promise of loving her forever...
"Hey, little one!" a cold voice said.
Aiathl dried her eyes with her arm, getting up. "What is it, Chiara?" she said, not turning around, trying to keep her voice steady and unwavering.
"Turn around when you talk to me!" the cold voice commanded. "And be respectful! I'm not Chiara now, I'm Hraine, one of the rulers of this land. So address me properly!"
Aiathl clenched her fists. "You're right" she whispered. "You're not the Chiara I knew, not anymore." She turned around, looking defiantly in Hraine's eyes. "What do you want from me, Hraine?"
Hraine's bearing changed as she looked at Aiathl. "You... you were crying?" she whispered.
Aiathl averted her eyes. "That's none of your business" she said, again on the verge of tears.
"You were crying because of me, weren't you?" Hraine whispered, doing her best to keep her voice calm.
Aiathl turned away, shaking. "That's none of your business, I said. What do you want from me?" she asked, her voice pained.
Hraine swallowed a few times, to get rid of the dryness in her mouth, then spoke, her voice cold again. "The old Aiathl wants to see you before she dies. Why, it escapes me. You're just a little worthless thing."
Aiathl tightened her jaw. "To think that, just one year ago, for you I was the most important person in the world..." She didn't wait for Hraine's reply and ran away, crying again.
Hraine watched her disappear in the distance, also crying, her heart aching as she remembered...
* * *
Aiathl knelt upon entering the old queen's room. "You had called me, my queen?"
A low chuckle came from the bed. "Old habits never wear off, hmmm?" a gentle voice whispered. "You don't need to kneel... you are the queen now."
"And yet I wish I wasn't" Aiathl whispered painfully, not getting up. "Oh, tharna, what am I to do? Why is everyone so power-hungry? Why does everyone despise me just because they think I have no power? They say that I had no right to be taught by you, they say that I'm not worth anything... even Chiara shuns me, now that she's Hraine. And if I revealed myself, it would only make things worse... I would end up being surrounded by hypocrites, never knowing if someone really loves me or if it's just a façade." She closed her eyes, crying. "I thought Chiara loved me... I was happy, until she started asking if I had any power... saying that we couldn't be together if I wasn't an elf..."
The old Aiathl gathered what little strength she had left and pulled the crying girl in a hug. "One day they'll understand, I'm sure of it."
Aiathl returned the hug, feeling that the old queen didn't have much time left. "Thank you, tharna... I mean it. You've been for me the mother I'd never had... I'll miss you." She suddenly came to a decision. "I'll let them find me. They can't rule without me, so they'll have to search for me. Hopefully, when they do find me, they'll have learnt the lesson..."
The old Aiathl smiled. "You're wise, lathie" she whispered. "You'll be a good queen." This said, she vanished.
Aiathl dried her eyes, rising, and went on the balcony outside the room. She wrapped the old queen's crown - now her crown - in a piece of cloth, hiding it in her robes. She could feel the others would soon arrive, and she didn't want them to see it. It had changed in such a way that it would be clear that it now belonged to her. Of course, they would marvel a little when they couldn't find it, but would assume it was for the lack of a queen who could bear it. She started weeping again, thinking about all she had lost in becoming the queen. Her tharna, her love, her friends...
"Little one."
Aiathl didn't even turn around. "Leave me alone for a minute, will you, Hraine?"
"How dare you address her that way, you worthless thing?" a new voice spoke.
"You were once my friend, Arasthli" Aiathl replied, her voice choked. "You were once Stella, even if you deny it now. In the name of that old friendship, leave me alone. I'm weeping for my tharna."
"You... you..." another voice gasped, outraged. "The queen was not your mother! How dare you consider her so?"
"Seiltha" Aiathl whispered, still not turning around. "You too were once my friend... back when you were still called Bianca, you would have known. You should remember the queen always called me her lathie... her daughter..."
Hraine looked at Aiathl for a moment, then turned to the others. "Let's go."
"But Hraine!" Arasthli protested. "You can't be serious!"
Hraine's voice was low and controlled. "You question my orders, Arasthli?"
Before Arasthli could answer, a fourth voice spoke softly. "You still love her, don't you, Hraine?"
Hraine stiffened. "Galaith..."
Aiathl laughed, a short, bitter laugh. "You are deeply mistaken, Iris" she said. "She hates me. If she loved me, she wouldn't make me suffer like this."
Hraine clenched her fists and took a deep breath. "Go" she said to the others. "I'll arrive in a moment."
Arasthli started to object again, but Seiltha interrupted her. "Let's go" she said. "Aster is right, we were once her friends. The least we can do for her is leaving her alone now." Without another word, she turned and left the balcony. After a moment of hesitation, Galaith and Arasthli followed her, leaving Hraine alone with Aiathl.
"Hraine..." Aiathl whispered painfully. "Chiara... why did you stay?"
Hraine sighed, and tenderly embraced Aiathl from behind. "Because Galaith was right" she whispered back. "I still love you... I never stopped loving you, not even for a moment."
Aiathl's voice was shaking. "And that's why you treated me like shit for a whole year? That's why you broke your promise to me? That's why you've made my life a living hell?"
Hraine tightened the embrace and buried her face in Aiathl's hair, crying. "Aster... I know there are no excuses for what I've done to you. I know you probably hate me right now... it's all my fault, I should have known better... I was so stupid... I wanted you to hate me, so I could forget my love for you. You know as well as I do that we could never be happy together... I'll live so much longer than you, never aging... while you... you're human, not elf..." she let Aiathl go, smiling sadly. "I'll never stop loving you... I just wanted you to know that." She turned to leave the balcony, but stopped short when she heard Aiathl's voice. "I'm glad you didn't change, after all."
"What do you mean?" Hraine whispered incredulously, turning around.
Aiathl was standing there, smiling. "I never stopped loving you, either" she said tenderly. "No matter how bad I felt, I could never bring myself to hate you..." With that, she ran in Hraine's arms and kissed her.
Hraine closed her eyes and returned the kiss, tightly embracing Aiathl. When they finally broke apart, slightly out of breath, they both were smiling widely, and Hraine was crying in joy. "Thank you..." she whispered.
Aiathl just smiled and kissed her again, a short, sweet kiss that promised a lot more. "The others are waiting for you. You'd better go."
"I wish I could stay with you forever" Hraine whispered.
"Well, you could begin by taking me to Earth with you" Aiathl grinned.
Hraine looked at her in surprise. "How did you know?"
Aiathl chuckled. "It's pretty obvious. You need Aiathl to rule, but you couldn't find her here, so Earth is the only other place where she could be."
Hraine nodded. "It's strange, though... everyone thought you would become the new Aiathl..."
Aiathl felt the strong impulse to tell her that she really was the new Aiathl, but held it back. They had to find her without any help. "Will you take me with you?" she asked.
Hraine smiled. "Of course I will!" she said warmly. "I'm not about to leave you behind again."
Aiathl smiled in return, kissing her. "Now go."
Hraine kissed her in return. "See you later, Aster" she whispered, then jumped on the railing and opened her wings, taking off. She soon vanished in the distance.
The wind whispered impatiently in Aiathl's ear. /Well, are you coming or not?/ Aiathl chuckled. "I'm coming, friends" she whispered. The call of the land was urgent, and she had ignored it long enough. She took off her shoes, then, with the grace and ease of a cat, jumped down from the balcony. As soon as her naked feet touched the ground, she was invaded by a swirl of sensations. She could feel everything... all the world was in her, and she was in all the world. The past Aiathl had told her about this, but she wasn't in the least prepared to what happened next. Light swirled around her, and a thin golden ring appeared on her right ring finger. /This is the Ring of Light/ she heard the elements whisper. /It's the sign of our friendship./
"The Ring of Light?" she asked aloud. She knew about it from the legends, of course. It was a wondrous ring the first Aiathl had forged to force the elementals to obey her. When she had died, the Ring had disappeared.
"Why are you giving this to me?"
/In your hands, it will be safe. We know you will use it right./
Aiathl felt tears coming to her eyes. "Thank you for trusting me" she whispered, smiling. "Thank you, friends."
"Aster!" Hraine called. "Come, we're leaving!"
Aiathl turned, smiling. "I'm ready!" She ran to the portal where the others were waiting for her, still barefoot.
Seiltha looked at her quizzically. "What happened to your shoes?"
Aiathl shrugged. "I like running barefoot."
Seiltha said nothing, but Aiathl caught her thought. 'She's human, and yet she's more elf than any of us will ever be...'
Aiathl blinked in surprise as she shared, for an instant, Seiltha's feelings: pain, sadness, loneliness... she instinctively reached out with her mind, touching Seiltha's... /Don't worry, you're not alone, you'll never be alone.../ When she realized what she was doing, she immediately withdrew her thoughts. 'I hope she hasn't recognized me...'
Seiltha said nothing, and her expression didn't change, but now she was smiling inside. /Whoever you are... thank you.../
Aiathl caught the thought, and smiled. /You're welcome./ "Well" she said aloud "shall we go?"
Arasthli frowned and slapped her. "Do not presume you can be friendly with us, worthless little human" she spat venomously. "We'll go when and if we decide."
Hraine paled in rage. "Don't you dare slap her again, Arasthli" she hissed. "She may not be an elf, but she deserves to be respected anyway."
"Deserves to be respected?" Arasthli retorted. "Are you out of your mind? She's just a human!"
"And you are a liar" Aiathl spat. "You're nothing more than a liar, and I would be ashamed if you were my queen."
An incredulous silence followed her words. Even the elements stilled, waiting breathlessly for what would happen next.
Arasthli took a step towards Aiathl, fists clenched. "How dare you--"
"How dare I tell the truth?" Aiathl interrupted her. "You were my friend, and you abandoned me. You had promised to always be my friend, and you broke your promise."
"So what?" Arasthli replied. "Promises made to humans don't count, so--"
"Enough of it" Hraine interrupted. "I don't care what you think, as long as she stays with us you will respect her. Alright?"
"No" Aiathl spoke. "If they want to respect me, they'll do it. If they don't want to, don't force them. Whatever they do, I don't care. They're not my friends anymore, so I couldn't care less about what they think or say about me."

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Elena was running through the trees of the park, enjoying the wind that slapped her face. It was the closest she could get to her dream of flying... of somehow gaining wings and being able to fly away from this world that seemed to hate her. She wondered what had she done to be hated like that... her parents had abandoned her when she still was a baby, and she had lived half of her life in an orphanage, waiting in vain to be adopted, to find a family that would love her... she had grown up alone, solitary and introverted, without a single friend... when she finally had been adopted, she had been happy, thinking that things would change... she was wrong. Sure, her adoptive parents loved her, and she was grateful for that, but the other kids still avoided her... "The silver-eyed witch", they called her, and whenever she tried to approach them they'd scream "Stay away from us! Don't curse us!" and run away. Things didn't change when they grew up, either. Sure, they didn't call her "witch" anymore, but they had other, subtler ways of making her feel bad... like asking her about her real parents, and why had they abandoned her...
She was so lost in her own thoughts that she didn't notice the girl in front of her until the last minute, and ran right into her. She slowly got up, muttering a curse and grimacing as she realized she had hurt her knee.
"Are you alright?" a concerned voice asked.
"Yeah, well, sort of" she grimaced in pain again, not looking up. "I'm sorry I ran into you. I wasn't looking where I was going."
"That's alright, I wasn't looking where I was going either... are you sure you're not hurt?"
Elena nodded. "It's nothing serious. In a few days, it will be just another bruise." She finally looked up from her injured knee, to see who this girl was.
Silver eyes met silver eyes, and each girl saw a mirror of herself in the other. Elena, bewildered, stared at this stranger who had her same eyes. Her long, dark blond hair was loose, and reached past her knees; she was very tall and thin, and the confidence with which she carried herself clearly showed that she was no ordinary girl.
The girl smiled. "I had never met someone else with silver eyes before. What's your name, if you don't mind my asking?"
"Elena. What's yours?" Elena felt strangely at ease around this girl, and answered immediately, in spite of the fact that she usually was very suspicious around strangers.
"Aster."
Elena blinked. "Aster? What a weird name..."
Aiathl - it was her, in fact - chuckled lightly. "You aren't the first to tell me that. It means "star" in Ancient Greek... my mother - my adoptive mother, I never knew my real one - chose it, because of my eyes... they look like stars, she said."

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...when she noticed Hraine staring at her. "What's wrong?"
"Why didn't you tell me?" Hraine's voice was pained. "Didn't you trust me enough?"
Aiathl stared back at her. "What do you mean?"
Hraine smiled bitterly, then dropped on one knee. "What are your orders, my queen?" she asked, her tone cold and formal.
"How did you know?"
"That doesn't matter now. Why didn't you tell me?"
"Chiara..."
"Why?" Hraine hid her face in her hands, crying.
Aiathl bit her lip and knelt near Hraine. She moved in to embrace her, but Hraine pushed her away violently.
Aiathl looked at her sadly, then stood. "Very well" she said, bitterly. "Here are your orders. I'm going back to the hotel. If the others ask you, tell them that I wasn't feeling well and I preferred to go back. Do NOT tell them who I am."
Hraine bowed her head in acknowledgement. "It will be done. Anything else?"
Aiathl hesitated. "Just-- try to understand me. And forgive me, if you can."
Hraine looked up in surprise, but Aiathl was already gone.
* * *
It was already evening when Hraine and the others returned to the hotel. Their search had obviously yielded no results, and they were all looking forward to dinner. Seiltha went up the stairs and knocked on Aiathl's door. "Are you coming to dinner or not?"
"I'm not hungry" Aiathl answered from inside, her voice wavering.
Seiltha blinked. "Is something wrong?"
"Like you care about me" Aiathl retorted desperately.
"I do care about you" Seiltha answered gently, surprising even herself. "I've never stopped caring about you." She had never really thought about it, but as she said it she realized it was the truth. "What's wrong?"
There was a long pause. "I can't tell you" Aiathl finally answered. "But... thank you."
Seiltha smiled. "Anytime, my friend." And she meant it.
She went back down the stairs and into the dining room, where the others were waiting for her, already seated at their table.
"Is she coming?" Galaith inquired.
Seiltha shook her head. "She said she isn't hungry. I think something has happened to her... I've never heard her sounding so distraught."
Hraine clenched the table cloth in her hands. "I'm not hungry, either" she said, standing. "I'm going to sleep. Good night."
The others looked at her, surprised. "Good night" they returned, though belatedly, as Hraine had already ran out of the room.
* * *
Hraine silently entered Aiathl's room. Aiathl was sleeping, and one look at her tear-streaked face was enough for Hraine to know that she had cried herself to sleep. "Why didn't you tell me?" Hraine whispered, near tears herself. "No matter how hard I try, I can't understand... Why didn't you tell me?" She knelt at the side of Aiathl's bed, crying. "I love you, and I know you love me too... then why can't I understand?" She shut her eyes tightly. "The only way I can find out is by reading your mind... but if I read your mind I'll die afterwards... because you're so much more powerful than me... but" she opened her eyes again, defiantly "I'll die to find out, if necessary. Because I love you, and I want to understand you... even if it costs me my life." She leaned over and gently kissed the sleeping Aiathl on the lips. "Farewell" she murmured softly. "Farewell... I'll love you always."
* * *
Aiathl awoke with a start and found Hraine lying in her lap, unmoving. She took one look at Hraine's white face and clenched hands and immediately knew what had happened. 'Psychic shock... she must have read my mind.' Tears filled her eyes. 'She was ready to die for me?' She immediately entered Hraine's mind and started healing the psychic wounds. 'I hope it's not too late...' She healed the last wound, then opened her eyes, trembling.
Colour slowly returned to Hraine's face. She visibly tightened her eyes, as if trying to dispel a large headache, then opened them.
Aiathl buried her face in her hands and started crying. Hraine stared at her, somewhat astonished. "Aster... why are you crying?"
Aiathl sobbed. "I... I nearly killed you..." she managed to choke out. "I was so stupid... forgive me..."
"I can't forgive you" Hraine said. "I can't forgive you... because there is nothing you have done that needs forgiving." Hraine took Aiathl's hands in hers and kissed her warmly. "It wasn't your fault... if it was anyone's fault, it was completely mine. I should've understood... I am the stupid one. And yet, I would do it again... I love you so much... I would gladly die, if it was for you. And I promise... I promise I'll never leave you again. I'll be always by your side."

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Aiathl suddenly whirled around. "Who's there?"
From behind a tree, a young woman came out. She was obviously not human: she had slightly pointed ears, light green skin, forest green hair and silver eyes that sparkled in the moonlight.
"A sylph..." Aiathl wondered. "What are you doing here?"
The sylph smiled sadly. "You look just like him..."
"Like who?" Aiathl asked in confusion.
"Your father..."
Aiathl paled. "You knew my father?"
A silver tear rolled down the sylph's cheek. "I killed him..." she whispered painfully. "I killed him..." She suddenly ran away, disappearing between the trees.
Aiathl stared at the trees where the sylph had disappeared. "It can't be..." she whispered. "It can't be..."
Elena couldn't believe what she had just seen. "What was that? It said it... killed your father..." she turned to look at Aiathl, and noticed she was silently crying. "Aster? What... what's wrong?"
"That was... that sylph was... she was... she is my mother..."
"Your mother? You mean you... aren't human?"
Aiathl smiled sadly. "No, I'm not human." She laughed bitterly. "You're afraid of me, aren't you?"
Elena hesitated a little before speaking. "...no. No, I'm not. You're my friend... that's the only thing I care about, even if you're not human."
Aiathl's silver eyes sparkled in the moonlight as she turned to look at Elena. "Really?"
Elena smiled. "Really."
Aiathl smiled in relief. "Thank you... you don't know how much that means to me. Too many people have already abandoned me because I was different from what they thought I was... thank you."
Elena gently hugged her. "You're welcome" she whispered.
Aiathl hugged her back. "At this point, I think you'll need a few explanations... might as well tell you my whole story, while I'm at it..." Together, the two friends sat on a bench, and Aiathl started her tale. "I had never known who my parents were until today... sure, I had thought about it, but I could have never guessed my mother was a sylph. But if I think about it now, it all makes sense..." She looked up, staring at the stars as she continued. "Sylphs are spirits of the trees. They spend their time taking care of their tree, and they can't abandon it for long, or else the tree will die, and the sylph will be cursed with eternal life. Probably my mother fell in love with a human, and while she was with him, her tree died. When she realized this, she took refuge in the arms of her lover... my father... but the kiss of a cursed sylph is poisonous, and she didn't know it... so he died in her arms. My mother was pregnant with me... when I was born, she couldn't bear to look at me, because I reminded her of her lost love... so she left me in a place where she was sure someone would have found me, and taken care of me...
"I was found by Aiathl, the most powerful among the five queens of the elves. She sort of adopted me... I spent a lot of time in the palace, and she took care of me as if I was her daughter."
"Wait a second, you're losing me. What exactly are elves?"
"Well... it's sort of complicated to explain. You could consider elves a 'subrace' of humans, since they are born in human families and are normal humans until fifteen.
"Elves are almost all female... when they turn fifteen, they gain magic powers, their elfish name and access to the Arialtha... that's the Elves' kingdom, which is in a parallel dimension to that of the Earth. For the following ten years, they live a sort of double life, sharing their time between the Arialtha and the Earth... the only exception are the five queens, who have to leave Earth forever as soon as they have gained full possession of their powers, because they are needed on the Arialtha. All the other elves can stay on Earth until they are twentyfive, then they have to leave."
"Why?" Elena asked, confused. "Couldn't just they go to the Arialtha when they are needed, and stay on Earth the rest of the time?"
Aiathl shook her head. "Elves have a much longer life span than humans. They live about three hundred years, and they permanently stop aging at twentyfive. It isn't normal, by human standards... so elves cannot stay.
"Anyway, I grew up with four other girls, who were also orphans that had been 'adopted' by an elf. We became good friends, and" Aiathl blushed slightly "I fell in love with one of them... when I told her, she said she was in love with me as well, and we started going out.
"Meanwhile, the day of our fifteenth birthday came. As they discovered they were the new queens, my friends turned cold and proud. Even my girlfriend, when she discovered that she was Hraine, the second in power among the five queens, abandoned me. I had discovered I was Aiathl, but I didn't tell anybody... I wanted to see if my friends really cared for me, and if they would still be my friends even if they thought I wasn't an elf. I thought they would. Guess what, I was wrong." She smiled bitterly. "A year passed, and as our powers got stronger, the old queens weakened, and at last died. I was Aiathl, the supreme queen, but I had lost everything else.
"I was desperate, as you can imagine. I didn't know what to do... sure, if I told everyone that I was Aiathl, I would get my friends back... but I was too afraid it would be only hypocrisy.
"I was on the palace balcony, crying for everything I had lost, when Hraine came to me. She told me she loved me, she had never stopped loving me... but she was keeping me at a distance because she thought we could never be happy together, because I was a human..." Aiathl smiled at the memory. "Not everything was lost, after all... Hraine still loved me, and no matter how much I had suffered because of her, I still loved her as well.
"We made up, even though she still didn't know I was Aiathl. I didn't tell her, because I was afraid she'd tell the others, and I wanted to regain their friendship without telling them who I was.
"We all came here, on Earth, to search for me" she chuckled slightly, then turned serious. "Of course, the others didn't take me into consideration, so they couldn't guess I was Aiathl, but Hraine did. She confronted me, accusing me of not trusting her, and we quarrelled. She didn't want anything to do with me, anymore. I was distraught. I went directly back to the hotel we were staying at, locked myself in my room and cried, until I fell asleep.
"When Hraine learned of this, she was shocked. She couldn't understand why I hadn't told her who I was, but she couldn't bear to make me suffer. So she decided to try and read my mind, to understand my reasons. She didn't care that she would die from the psychic shock she would receive because of my power... she was ready to die for me."
Elena paled. "She didn't die, did she?"
Aiathl shook her head. "No, she didn't. I healed her psychic wounds just in time. When I saw that she was alright, I broke into tears... I asked her to forgive me for being so stupid... for nearly killing her... and she said that she couldn't forgive me... because there was nothing to be forgiven. She said that it wasn't my fault... that she had done it gladly and would do it again, if needs be. And she promised she would never leave me again." She smiled. "Well, that's about it. I still have to regain the friendship of two of the other queens, but at least things are looking bright again..." She stood and stretched. "Tell me, Elena" she asked suddenly. "What is your biggest dream?"
Elena looked at her, surprised. "Why do you ask?"
Aiathl grinned. "Come here, close your eyes and hold tight to me."
Elena didn't move. "Why should I do that?"
Aiathl' silver eyes stared her down. "Do you trust me, or not?" She said it almost jokingly, but there was a vein of sadness in her voice, and Elena noticed that.
"Alright" she said, getting up and doing as she was asked. "Now what?"
Aiathl grinned, opened her wings and took off. Elena felt the wind slapping her face, like it did when she ran... what was happening?
"You're heavy, you know that?" Aiathl grunted from above her.
Elena opened her eyes, and found herself soaring through the night sky, carried by Aiathl. "What..."
Aiathl chuckled. "You wanted to fly, didn't you? There you go." She was holding Elena tightly, careful not to let her fall. "So, what does it feel like to achieve your dream?"
Elena laughed, in sheer happiness. "It feels wonderful!"

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"Why did you cut the telepathic link?"
Elena was standing completely still, her back turned to Aiathl. "Go away."
Aiathl took a step towards Elena, incredulous. "What?"
"I said, go away."
"What?" Aiathl still couldn't believe her sister's words. "You can't want to..."
"Go away, damnit!" Elena screamed, then she fell to her knees, sobbing. "Just... go away..."
Aiathl was instantly by her side. "Lien... what's wrong?" She put a hand on her sister's shoulder, but drew back immediately, horrified by the premonition she received. Fire... an evil smile... searing pain through her body...
Elena sobbed. "Lien... go away... please... do it for me..."
"Why?" Aiathl barely could speak.
"A'iathl is awakening" came the horrifying reply. "I'm too weak to hold her back. The only thing I can do is..." Elena shook her head. "Go away ... I don't want to hurt you..."
Aiathl shook her head, fiercely. "No. I won't leave you alone."
Elena stood, determination shining in her silver eyes. "I don't want you to see this... leave."
Aiathl shook her head again. "I won't."
Elena bit her lip. "Very well then. Have it you way." She slowly walked to the edge of the ravine, then half-turned to look at Aiathl again.
"No, don't try to stop me. It has to be done. You know as well as I do that A'iathl can't be allowed to awaken."
Aiathl's eyes filled with tears as she realized what her sister had in mind. "No" she said, desperately. "There has to be another way, there must be..."
Elena shook her head. "Not even you can stop her now. And you'd be the first person she'd kill if she awakened... and I don't want to see you die. Go back to your world of light... you are needed there. I am not." She smiled sadly. "Farewell, lien..." With that, she jumped down.

/Too late, stupid human./

There was a flash of darkness, and A'iathl flew out of the ravine, landing in front of Aiathl. Her eyes, once silver, were now pitch- black, as were her wings and the black stones set in her silver crown. An evil smile slowly crept over her lips as she looked at Aiathl.

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[Here's a summary of what happens between the previous and the next chunk. I usually wouldn't do it, but there are some things you need to know to understand the next chunk.
Aiathl runs away from A'iathl. A'iathl destroys a whole city, killing all the inhabitants. Arasthli accuses Aiathl of being a selfish girl, a coward who didn't have the guts to kill A'iathl when she could, just because she was her sister. Aiathl goes to fight A'iathl, alone. An attack from A'iathl hits her full force.]
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When the smoke from the explosion cleared, Aiathl was laying on the ground, unmoving. Her breathing was ragged, one of her wings was broken, and she was bleeding heavily from several wounds. Still, she managed to choke out: "Lien... I'm sorry... I can't... I can't kill you..."
A'iathl prepared to deliver the final blow, but a sudden ache in her heart made her stop. What...?

/Lien.../

A'iathl brought her hand to her cheek, and was surprised to find it wet. Tears...?

/Lien.../

Tears? For whom?

/Lien.../

A'iathl looked again at the unmoving form of Aiathl. Only the irregular heaving of her chest showed that she was still alive.

/Lien.../

A'iathl stopped trying to fight back the tears. 'Oh, God... what have I done?' She ran to Aiathl's side. "Aiathl..." She bit her lip. "Aster ... lien..."
Aiathl's eyes slowly opened, and she smiled weakly. "I'm glad... you're back... lien." she said, forcing the words out. Then, she fainted.

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[Again, a summary of what happens before the next chunk. A'iathl realizes that Aiathl is dying. She tries to think of a way to save her. She remembers one time when Aiathl had cast a healing spell on her, to heal a bad cut. She thinks she remembers the words of the spell, but she's afraid that they might be wrong and that the spell might harm Aiathl instead of healing her. Finally, she decides to try anyway. She succeeds in casting the spell and in healing Aiathl, but she faints afterwards, because casting a healing spell has sapped her energies. When Aiathl awakens, she notices that A'iathl is near death, because almost all of her energies have been sapped. She heals her as best as she can, then brings her to the palace in the Arialtha. A'iathl remains unconscious for seven days.]
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Arasthli entered the room to check on A'iathl. 'I wish she'd just die... she's caused enough trouble as it is.'
"I heard that."
Arasthli looked up in shock, and found A'iathl staring at her. Her black eyes showed no hint of any feeling, and, when she spoke again, her voice was just as emotionless. "I want to speak with Aiathl. Alone."
Arasthli shivered. "Y-yes" she stuttered. She then ran out of the room, slamming the door shut behind her.
* * *
"But what if she attempts to kill you again?"
"Don't be idiotic. She's my sister, she'd never hurt me."
"She tried it before."
"And then she nearly killed herself to heal me."
"I don't care. She should be killed while she's still weak. She just awakened today, and she's already able to read minds! Who knows what she'll do tomorrow!"
"Arasthli, that's enough. Even I could hear your thought, and I was on the other side of the palace at the moment. Now leave. You're not helping at all with your comments on my sister."
"What can I do if I hate her?" Arasthli muttered.
"You could at least keep your hate to yourself" Aiathl said severely.
"Leave."
"But..."
"Now. This is an order, Arasthli. Don't make me force you."
Arasthli's voice was bitter. "Yes, my queen." The sound of her footsteps disappeared down the corridor.
Aiathl entered the room, closing the door behind herself, and sighed. "I apologize for her rudeness. She really is a kind girl, once you've gotten past her protectiveness for me."
"I suppose I got off on the wrong foot with her" A'iathl muttered.
"It wasn't your fault, you know."
A'iathl buried her face in her hands. "Tell that to Arasthli" she sighed.
Aiathl sat on A'iathl's bed and hugged her tightly. "Don't worry, lien... everything will work out."
A'iathl pushed her away. "Don't call me that" she whispered hoarsely. "I'm not your sister anymore."
"Why do you say that?"
A'iathl lowered her eyes. "I remember you... I remember your name, the fact that you're my twin, but nothing else. My memories were wiped when I awakened. I can remember fragments of them, but nothing clear enough..." She paused, shuddering. "I believe that's why we Ari'a are 'evil'... we don't remember anything, we're empty inside, there's only darkness around us..." She turned away from Aiathl. "Let me go, I'm no longer the sister you knew."
Aiathl put a hand on her sister's shoulder. "Just trust me" she whispered. "Everything will be alright." She closed her eyes and focused on her power, creating a link between her mind and A'iathl's. /What do you remember of me, lien?/
A'iathl hesitated. /I remember your name... I remember when we first met... when you healed my wound... nothing else./
/Enough of a starting point/ Aiathl whispered. She reached out with her mind, pushing the memory block away from her sister's mind, and felt it dissolve in a million of light sparks.
A'iathl gasped as all her memories came back to her in a flash. /Oh.../ The temporary link Aiathl had created disappeared, replaced by the strong link they had between them before A'iathl had awakened. A'iathl felt once again the strong, comforting presence of her sister near her.
/Welcome to the light, lien./