54— A little dose of dramatism

Lily stared at the creature still floating in the air for some seconds because she was damn well frozen in shock. She used the few seconds to process the fact that she had transformed into something that she knew was clearly not of kayaan blood, it was wild, untrained and unrestrained. It scared her.
"Lily," the being breathed again in a whimsical voice that made the hair on Lily's neck stand. It was both soothing and commanding.
Lily stumbled back again as the being moved forward a little. She stared at it in utter disbelief and fear, both emotions quite foreign to her who was known to be fearless.
"What are you?" She questioned and the being just smiled. It possessed the most beautiful face Lily had ever lain eyes on.
High cheekbones, a dimpled chin and cheeks, a small but straight nose and cherry red lips. The only thing Lily could not make out was the colour of its deep eyes. It was constantly flickering and was as entrancing as it was when looking through a kaleidoscope.
"I am a spirit, Lily," it said this fact like it was sad but accepting of it.
"What chat were you speaking of? How is it even possible that I'm seeing you?" She accusingly asked, straing up at the spirit who now stopped floating and settled on the ground with exceptional and remarkable grace.
"If you would just calm down, I will explain everything. It's the reason I'm here, sent by the moon goddess herself." The spirit stated, calmly staring at Lily with her kaleidoscopic eyes, radiating deadly calmness that somehow infected Lily.
Lily took a deep breath and found her heart slowing down, her breaths were coming in longer puffs and the shaking she was suffering from had resided.
"I'm calm," she slowly said and the spirit gave her a levelly gaze before nodding.
"Good," it approvingly said, gliding to Lily's left where a flat rock big enough and flat enough for someone to sit on comfortably stood at least two feet from the ground.
"Please sit, we have a lot to talk about like I earlier said and I'm sure you have a lot of questions," the spirit said, motioning for her to sit on the flat surface.
Slowly, she walked over to the rock and sat down under the watch of the spirit who now rose a few feet into the air and crossed her legs in a way Lily had seen Baba Mbari do before. He'd called it a meditating pose but seeing this spirit do it put her strangely at ease.
"Lily, do you know who you are?" The spirit softly asked, tilting it's head in a reassuring way. Lily found the question stupid but strangely, could not answer it.
"I... I'm the commander of the kayaans, in charge of keeping them safe and protecting their boundaries," Lily said with a confidence she did not feel. How could she? She had morphed into something wild in the very presence of the priestess and now, she had no idea what awaited her when she returned.
The spirit nodded it's head but something told Lily that she was aware of Lily's thought even though she didn't voice it.
"That is true," it slowly began, " but that is also not who you are." It said and Lily found a frown working its way onto her face. What did she mean it wasn't true? It was what she was.
"It is," she argued, ignoring the fact that's she'd transformed into an werewolf few moments ago. That was better left unsaid.
"You know it's not, seeing that you transformed into something few moments ago," the spirit quoted, confirming Lily's thoughts that this spirit was reading her mind.
"I don't know how I did that, alright? It just happened," she weakly said, reality already poking her in the guts. The spirit shook its head.
"No, Lily, it didn't. It's all part of your destiny, who you are." It gravely said, stunning Lily. Her destiny?
"What do you mean?" She slowly asked, mind in turmoil. If she transforming into an werewolf was her destiny, where did she belong to?
"You were given to the people you have grown to love and care for, the people you know as the kayaans when you were a little baby," the spirit explained.
" They were promised by the moon goddess that they would receive a savior of the oppressed, a shining light to protect them and rule them. It was a prophecy they held on to and then, the goddess gave them the savior when the time was right," the spirit explained, giving her a look that connected the dots.
"Me?" Lily incredulously asked and the spirit nodded.
"Yes, you, Lily. You're the child of Glory. It is your destiny," the spirit softly said and Lily almost reeled back in shock. She? Of all people, why her? She didn't understand.
"It's a lot to take in but it is who you are, your identity and that's not something you can run from," the spirit solemnly said. Lily knew she had to steel her nerves and listen attentively like the goddess would want her to do but she was finding it hard to process all the facts.
"I know. What am I to do?" She asked, her head was till spinning but this was something she had to do.
"Good, Lily." The spirit said and moved forward a little.
"Your destiny has made you the child of Glory, the one who will liberate everyone from all sort of oppression and rule the kingdoms of the supernaturals as the head." She said, stunning Lily again but she said nothing.
"You are to help the werewolves because they are in grave danger. They need your help, Lily," the spirit said and Lily nodded, even though she was having difficulty understanding all these.
"Also, the vampire prince, the one you know as Nicolas will also need your help. I'm afraid he has lost his way and pursues dreams that are not only bizarre but won't help anyone. You have to help him, Lily," the spirit said, giving her a kind smile. Nicolas, the spirit had said. Why did Nicolas need help?
"Why does he need help and how can I help him?" She asked but the spirit just smiled and continued its slow upward journey, climbing high and high until Lily had to get up to crane her neck to see it.
"In time, you will understand, my dear child, you will understand and know soon enough." It said.
" What about my people? What happens to them?!" She shouted, not believing the spirit was going to leave her with no real answers.
"They still accept you, Lily. You are everything they want and had wished for. You are no different, child of Glory." The spirit said, giving her one last smile before disappearing into nothing, leaving Lily breathless and in wonder.
****
Nicolas strode across the courtyard and entered the palace, all the while his mind pinned on one thing. He'd done something bad, something even his father in all his malevolence would not have done. He was evil, he thought as he ventured into the palace, his feet set in one destination and his heart filled with the need to overthrow.
He was evil, yes he acknowledged that but all these were all useful. It was a necessi evil, one that had to happen so he could prove something right, show his father that he was not the useless son he thought he was. He would be king and then, his father would realize he was worthy.
He walked down the corridor that led to the king's chambers, passing a ceiling to floor mirror as he did so and he paused, backtracking in order to look at the stranger he saw in the clear glass.
There he was, dressed in Royal robes, already looking like a king, his mouth set in a thin line but this wasn't what caught his attention. He stepped closer and looked at his eyes. His former clear but cold grey eyes were no longer the way he knew then to be because they were filled with something foreign, something he had never possessed. They were filled with madness, he identified. Filled with a wicked glint that resembled the one in his father's own.
He was no longer the Nicolas he knew.
The screams from outside the palace were subsiding into wails of grief and anger, or rather that was what he thought.
He forcefully opened the doors of the king's chambers and walked into the dim litted room that smelled like some sort of medicine. He wasn't sure what it was.
The king was seated in his bed, facing the window, his expression was one of utter tranquility like he wasn't even in this world or aware of the screams of his women.
Was this what being blind did? Closing the outer eyes in order to peer into the inner mind, unreachable by those who possessed something as powerful but ordinary as sight?
"King of the Werewolves," Nicolas called out, breaking the trance that tightly bound the king. To show he was aware of someone else's presence, the king craned his neck to face Nicolas exactly where he was standing. It was a little creepy but Nicolas didn't let that deter him.
"I have come to take your throne since you're so inept at keeping it. I'm more suitable at running this kingdom," Nicolas said, stepping closer to the man who had not uttered a single word and had done nothing except stare.
"So, step down or be killed," he said, drawing his sword and pointing it to the man who just nodded like he was being told a story.
"What makes you think you're any better at ruling this kingdom than I am?" The king asked, voice low but very sure of himself. It annoyed Nicolas.
"I am far better and I do not need your opinion to know if I am a good king or not," Nicolas spat, moving forward to place his sword at the man's throat.
"You have two options. Surrender or die," he repeated.
" Very well," the king said in a defeated tone, feeling his way to get up from the bed and standing tall before Nicolas.
"But know this, you won't be ruler for long. No one will be because that position is reserved for someone far greater and better than you," the king said, stunning Nicolas for a second.
"What do you mean?" He prodded, pushing his sword closer to the blind king's face but the king just shook his head.
"Time shall tell, going prince. Enjoy the throne," he said and Nicolas, grunting in anger motioned for the two vampire guards outside the chambers to take the man away.
"What are we to do with him?" One of the guards asked and Nicolas glared at him.
"Lock him up," he simply said and the guard nodded, leading the man away from the chambers. Everything was coming to place gradually.
Nicolas nodded when the door closed and looked around the chambers which were now his. As he surveyed the poorly furnished chambers, he thought of Laura and wondered what she was doing now, not that he cared.
Was she watching the horrible scene that he himself had walked away from? Or had she been taken by one of his men, her royalty forgotten? He grimanced. He didn't love her, hell he didn't even like her but he hoped his men realized that the princess, no, she was a queen now, he ruefully thought. He hoped his men realized that the queen was off limits, despite the dislike he had towards her, she was part of this newly formed household, not by choice but it is what it is.
She'd probably been escorted inside and was now crying at her failed leadership. She was never ever really a leader to begin with, it never suited her and to be honest if she were to be in his shoes instead of himself, she wouldn't have been able to conquer half of what he had just conquered, she was a mess for a princess but she was better suited for what she was now, a necessary inconvenience and It was good, he decided, looking out the very window the last king had looked out of as if he still had his sight, she should weep because her life was going to miserable from now on.