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Neopia is barely a year
old. It is Ancient Neopia, a place very different from the Neopia we know and
love now. Faeries, who caused Neopia to lose its innocence in a devastating war,
have locked themselves up in their clouded palace, fearing to cause more harm.
The Aishan Wars, and other similar, smaller ones, have taken place, splitting
up the strict packs and scattering pets across Neopia.
Iolanthe, the Uber Light Faerie, watched the world below
her with a grieving heart.
"It is so fair…" she whispered. "Why did Fyora
abandon it? Why should we not repair Neopia now? We can heal it quicker than
it can heal itself."
Her pale fingers sought out her staff. It was
a long length of pale white wood, planed smooth, topped with a white-yellow
jewel. She clasped it firmly, feeling her magic fill it. She touched its tip
to her feet, raised it horizontally above her head and brought it down to rest
on the floor, shrouding her body in light, With her magic veil now intact, Iolanthe
swiftly departed from Faerieland. She looked over her shoulder at the crystal
palace, resting on its beautiful clouds.
"You are wrong, Fyora. You shall see what I
can do for Neopia."
As her bare feet touched the ravaged Neopian
soil, she bit her lip and blinked away tears. Despite all the battle scars and
destruction, Neopia was still movingly beautiful: a triumph through such adversity.
She planted her staff on the ground and delicate flowers began to bloom around
its base. Iolanthe knew the Faeries could repair this land: so why not do it?
She summoned her magic, swinging her staff in
wide arcs. Laughter sounded briefly in the air. The grass grew lush and thick
and far off Pteri began to sing. Sunlight shone strongly onto the land and small
butterflies fluttered around her head. Iolanthe smiled to see the changes and
carried on…
***
Fyora looked down sadly upon the prone figure of the Uber Dark Faerie, Riana.
She pushed a lock of purple hair off the pale face gently.
"Will she recover?"
The Uber Water Faerie sighed.
"I don't know… the imbalance in magic is causing
her to be come incredibly weak. Other Dark Faeries have also been severely effected,
falling ill. Somewhere, a lot of Light magic is being used."
She glanced over at Fyora questioningly. Fyora
inwardly sighed. The crown of the Faerie Queen was still relatively new on her
head and she was wearied by the responsibility that came with it.
"I shall have to see to it," she said.
The Uber Water Faerie inclined her head gracefully
and returned to caring for her patient.
Fyora looked at Riana's face thoughtfully. She
had to think of a way of limiting the power of her Uber Faeries' magic in order
to keep Neopia balanced. She already winced to think what damage this overuse
of Light magic was doing. She smiled down at the unconscious Faerie and left
the medical wing. Stalking through the many corridors of the Faerie palace,
she spoke aloud.
"I will do this. Elesse entrusted Neopia to
my care and Neopia's Faeries to my command. I will not fail Neopia again. Even
Light magic can and will cause harm and I resolved to let Neopia heal itself,
without Faerie intervention. If we put too much magic in, we risk everything."
She jutted out her chin and flung open the doors
to her chambers.
"I AM THE FAERIE QUEEN!"
The doors clattered loudly as her shout echoed
throughout her spacious rooms. She strode over to a small stand and pulled off
the cloth covering. A polished orb stood on top of it. Its shiny surface was
covered in an accurate map of Neopia, currently reflecting the room's warm lights.
Slowly, as Fyora concentrated, images began to shimmer on it, showing her what
was happening below. Fyora gasped.
"Why, Iolanthe? Why?"
***
"Because the light is so beautiful," the Faerie said, letting sparkles of
magic free to glimmer in her fair hair, delicately entrapped in its strands.
She reached down to caress a small Kacheek, staring up at her in wonder.
"See, little pet? The magic is beautiful and
good and pure. Fyora is wrong to stop us using it. How selfish of her to lock
it all up in the clouds! Everyone should see the light."
The Kacheek smiled up at the Faerie, totally
enamoured.
***
Fyora shook her head.
"No, Iolanthe. This cannot continue."
A pitifully weak cry came from the cradle in
the corner of the room. Fyora hurried to it, stroking the infant inside. She
caressed the long black hair and the tiny Dark Faerie wings, watching the child
whimper in pain.
"Darkian…"
Fyora's eyes flashed.
"You are harming even the innocent, Iolanthe!
I will stop this now!"
She kissed the babe's forehead and placed him
back down tenderly. Running through the palace, she spread her wings and dived
downwards to Neopia.
***
Far, far below, Iolanthe looked up dreamily.
"No, Fyora. You cannot stop the light. I am
doing only good."
The Uber Light Faerie watched a tiny speck appear
in the sky, hurtling down towards her.
"The light can bring only good."
She drew back her hand, summoning a massive
ball of light. Fyora was close now, her purple hair streaming over her shoulders,
her features rigid with anger.
Iolanthe smiled and threw the light straight
into Fyora's face.
The watching Kacheek screamed in horror, shielding
his eyes from the explosion of light. Iolanthe laughed sweetly. Now, the light
would rule. Fyora was no more. Far above, Faeries recoiled from the tremendous
use of magic, clutching their heads.
"Poor Fyora. She never really saw the light,"
Iolanthe mused.
"But I did."
The voice came from the light. A silhouette
could be seen against the burning magic, outlined in a wispy purple aura. The
figure flew forward, its features resolving themselves into that of Fyora. Her
voice was hard and cold, every line of her body radiating pure anger. Very slowly,
she landed next to Iolanthe. She looked majestic, power flaring from her body.
Iolanthe's arrogance dissolved, her knees buckling under her.
Fyora, trembling with anger, very slowly drew
back her hand and slapped the Uber Faerie, hard.
"That was for being so foolish," she seethed
between clenched teeth.
Iolanthe said nothing, her brain working frantically,
freezing up.
"There has always been a flaw in Uber Faeries.
They are picked on power alone. And that power can prove incredibly destructive.
No magic is good or evil: it is how it is used that defines its nature. Iolanthe,
I am sending you from Neopia."
Iolanthe's face blanched and she struggled to
stay upright.
"You endangered all of Neopia: you have no right
to continue to stay under its protection."
Fyora clenched her fists.
"I can see this will happen again and again.
Power games. I cannot prevent it. But I will not let such power run freely here
again. Hear me, all you Faeries!"
And with that, Fyora banished Iolanthe from
Neopia forever.
***
Later that day, the Faerie Queen was back in her palace, regarding six stones
laid out on the polished floor. They were clear, totally devoid of colour and
utterly transparent. Ossae, they were known as. One had come from the depths
of a volcano; one from the very bottom of the ocean; one from the highest mountain;
one from the loamy earth. Another had been taken from the sun; the last had
fallen from the moon. Each ossa was capable of holding powerful magic, a property
they were valued for.
Fyora picked up a final stone, one that had
been taken from the home planet of the Faeries. This one had a grey mist in
its centre: Elesse, the spirit Faerie, who guided them all. She breathed deeply,
imbuing her own power into the ossa. When she reopened her eyes, she saw the
gem now glowed purple. Arranging the other stones in a circle around it, she
called to her Uber Faeries.
All suddenly appeared next to her, their curiosity
piqued. The new Uber Light Faerie was even more excited, her fingers twitching.
"Take an ossa," said Fyora.
Without hesitation, they all picked one up.
"Pour some of your power into it. A little is
enough."
Each Faerie concentrated and the ossae clutched
in their fists began to glow with the magic. Fyora reclaimed each stone, placing
it back into the circle. Earth, the warm green of living things. Fire, a vibrant
red-orange. Water, a deep blue. Air, a pale, misty white-blue. Dark, a shadowy
purple-black. Fyora lifted the last ossa off the new Uber Light Faerie, watching
it pulse a warm white-yellow. She eased it into the last place in the circle.
"And now, it is done. The power of the Uber
Faeries are restricted. Neopia will be kept in perfect balance."
She straightened up, ready to perform the magic
to send the ossae to the centre of Neopia and gasped. The air above the stones
was twinkling different colours, the colours of all the Elements.
"The Faerie of Faeries," she whispered.
The sacrifice done by that Faerie had saved
Neopia and they'd bestowed on her that honorary title. It seemed she still looked
after the land she loved.
Fyora smiled and bowed.
"For you, then. I am looking after Neopia, as
you wished."
She moved her hands briefly and the ossae disappeared
from the hall. She felt them settle at the centre of Neopia, deep in the middle
of a huge cavern.
"The Elemental Stones will balance our magic,
if we are careful. Remember, as diverse and different as we all are, we do this
all for Neopia."
Fyora smiled… and her Uber Faeries smiled back.
For now, they were with her. They would turn
against her, be banished, change as the seasons turned. Many sets would pass
through her hands… but she would touch them all, and Neopia would be touched
in turn. For what would Neopia be, without its Faeries?
The End
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