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Magical Evil: Part Five


by sapphirekira

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Brightvale was in its element that morning. There was happiness in the air, Neopets reading books, spinning the Wheel of Knowledge and more, with sunshine was radiating from the sky, lighting up the city. Clearly, none of Alarisca’s plans had been totally put in place yet.

     There was one difference. The guards outside Brightvale Castle looked nothing like the usual servants inside. They weren’t wearing green and gold outfits, either – they had robes of black. Rosalene looked at Libby and Duke Memphis hesitantly, and then walked up to the door. The guards gave Duke Memphis a glance, and then blocked the gate.

     “What’s wrong?” Rosalene asked fearfully.

     “None of you are allowed in there,” one of the guards said – a ferocious-looking Gelert. He glared at them.

     Duke Memphis frowned. “Why?”

     “By order of the Royal Sorceress,” another said.

     “What about the King?” Libby argued. She reached for Rosalene’s tiara. “See, this is Rosalene, his daughter. And Duke Memphis, his old friend. King Hagan invited us here,” she invented. “I don’t care what the new Royal Sorceress said – she’s not King Hagan and we want to see King Hagan.”

     There were a few moments of silence. Finally, the guards nodded, stepping aside to allow the trio inside.

     “Don’t say we didn’t warn you,” the Gelert snapped. Rosalene ignored him, and entered the castle.

     As she opened the door, she saw what she normally did when she was allowed outside her room – servants, ambassadors and messengers, donning green and gold uniforms, walking around. Alarisca was nowhere in sight, and nor was King Hagan. Rosalene breathed out in relief. Nothing major had happened yet. Hoping no-one would take notice of her, she pushed the door and ventured inside with her companions.

     She was wrong. The moment a servant saw her, he stopped dead in the hallway and stared, jaw dropped. This was followed by similar reactions, as everyone around her tried to comprehend the sight of a Princess who they’d thought was gone.

     “Rosalene! Why are you here?”

     Rosalene looked up, and smiled. “Narum!”

     “Hello, Princess. What’s happened? Who are they?” He looked briefly at Memphis and Libby, then turned back to the Cybunny. “Rosalene, so much has happened in a short space of time, even if few know it. It’s all really complicated, and I don’t know what to do. The sorceress at the banquet has somehow gained the deep liking of your father. He’s appointed her his Royal Sorceress, and this morning an ‘accident’ was supposed to have happened to you. There’s been so much confusion created here that no-one dares ask questions.”

     “Where are King Hagan and Alarisca?” Libby asked slowly.

     “They’re in the throne room together. Do you want to see them?”

     Rosalene knew her anticipation and fear were shared by Libby and Memphis. On one hand, this was what they’d come to do, but on the other hand, they knew this was going to be dangerous and difficult. Finally, she heard Libby say next to her, “Yes.”

     “Well, follow me please.”

     They followed after him, all of them wondering what they were about to meet. Narum shooed away everyone that was trying to approach them, and they got to the throne room quickly. He swallowed when they were next to it, and hurried away.

     Her heart beating fast, Rosalene opened the door...

     “So, you’ve come.”

     Alarisca was standing in front of them, smirking. King Hagan was nowhere to be seen.

     “Ally!” Memphis gasped. “What happened to you? What have you done?”

     Memphis was right. Alarisca was no longer a Yellow Acara, but one that was entirely dark in colour. She had long, black hair, grey eyes, and resembled a Darigan Neopet. She was dressed in a robe that Rosalene recognised as her mother’s.

     Alarisca raised her eyebrows. “Is that me you’re calling Ally? My name’s Alarisca, and who in the world are you?”

     Memphis gasped. “Ally... you don’t mean...”

     “Stop calling me that! And no, I don’t have any idea who you are.”

     “Well, Alarisca,” Rosalene said slowly, “I have a question to ask you, if you don’t mind.”

     “A question for me, huh? I don’t like being questioned about my plots and plans, if that’s what you’re going to ask.”

     “No, nothing like that! It’s a very simple question!”

     “What else could I expect from Brightvale’s simplest girl? Fine, ask. But... whatever, just get on with it! I have more important things to do.”

     Rosalene nodded and inquired, “So, who are you?”

     Silence greeted her.

     “Are you that stupid?” Alarisca snapped. “I’m Alarisca.”

     “That’s not what I meant. Beyond your name. Where have you come from? Why are you a sorceress? Why are you against us?”

     The Acara’s eyes flickered. “Wh-what? Why are you asking? I... I don’t know.”

     “Alarisca, listen to me!” Duke Memphis pleaded, recovering from his shock. “You are not an evil sorceress. At least, you aren’t meant to be. Can you... can you remember anything that happened three weeks ago?”

     Alarisca’s eyes narrowed, and she shook her head. “No. As a matter of fact, I can’t. All I know is... I came here last night, with plans to overthrow Hagan. I threatened Rosalene, and bewitched Hagan... and...”

     “You can’t remember anything before that?” Libby asked.

     Alarisca shook her head, and to everyone’s surprise, tears started falling from her eyes.

     “Oh, Ally...” Memphis hurried over to her. “Sweetie, don’t cry...” He held her tightly. Alarisca fell into his arms. There was a troubled expression on her face. Suddenly, she fell onto the ground.

     She had fainted.

     Against her better judgement, Rosalene ran over to help carry Alarisca. As she touched her, an incredible thing happened. All the dark, black and cold colours staining her fur fell away from her body. Her long hair shortened until it was at her shoulder, and it was now a crimson colour. She was suddenly a great deal shorter. Everything about her seemed to have changed.

     Gradually, her eyes opened. They were a soft brown now.

     Alarisca looked up at Duke Memphis, who smiled brightly. She reached for his hand.

     “I had the strangest dream,” she said. She turned her eyes away from her guardian, and saw Rosalene and Libby. Her jaw dropped. She gazed around the Brightvale Castle Throne Room.

     “No... what.... it wasn’t a dream! How could I have...” She sobbed into Memphis’ arms.

     “It’s OK,” Rosalene said hurriedly. “Are you alright?”

     “I’m fine. Are you? I can’t believe I did all that. I’m so sorry. How did it...?”

     “It wasn’t your fault,” said Libby gently. “You need to calm down and rest.”

     Alarisca gave her a watery smile, and slowly stood up.

     Moments later, she froze. Her body seemed to explode with light. Memphis gasped and stepped away.

     Electricity was burning from Alarisca’s skin. Her magic exploded from her in a sudden rush. It surrounded her for a few seconds, then sped away and hit the nearest Neopet.

     Rosalene.

     ***

     “Will she be alright?”

     “Yeah, she’ll be fine. Injured, certainly, but not too bad. I think the shock made her go unconscious, but she’s just sleeping right now. She’ll wake up later – sometime soon, I think.”

     “So no lasting injuries?”

     “Nope. It was a strange thing that happened, though. She seemed to have much better defence against magic than any other Neopet I’ve ever met. Mind you, I rarely treat magical injuries.”

     “Thank you, doctor. It’s good to know she’s OK.”

     Rosalene opened her eyes, little by little. The world around her was blurry. She closed her eyes, then opened them again.”

     “ROSALENE! You’re awake, you’re awake!”

     The Cybunny found herself suddenly being tackled by a lump of blue fur. She blinked again. “Libby?”

     “Yes, it’s me? We were so worried about you! You’re OK now, aren’t you?”

     “I’m alright. Where’s everyone else?”

     Rosalene slowly sat up in bed. She was back in her bed. Standing there, beside her, smiling, were five familiar faces – Duke Memphis, Narum, Libby, Alarisca and... King Hagan.

     As she met her father’s eyes, she frowned, but Alarisca leaned in and whispered, “It’s alright. I think the magic I used on him before is still partly there. He’s changed a lot.”

     At these words, Rosalene grinned and nodded. “So what exactly happened?”

     “Well, Ally’s magic had to go,” Memphis explained. “It somehow exploded from her, and you were the closest, so it went for you. The doctor, who just left, said that there was no lasting harm done, and that the magic wouldn’t affect you. It was just the shock of it.”

     “I’m really sorry about all the trouble I caused,” Alarisca said in a guilty voice.

     “Don’t worry about it, Ally.”

     The Acara smiled at the use of her nickname.

     “Well... you need to rest,” Libby said. She looked around her. “I guess we should all leave now.”

     The four nodded, and promptly exited her room. Rosalene didn’t really want them to go, but she let them. She did feel tired, and slept.

     ***

     Much had changed a year later. Narum had been appointed Hagan’s chief advisor, and he actually made most of the decisions and did most of the ruling to keep Brightvale in peace. Hagan, still pursuing knowledge, sat in his throne room all day, waiting for a Neopet with a new piece of information for him.

     Alarisca went back to her home in Meridell, and continued her normal life.

     Libby, Pancho and their mother moved to Duke Memphis’ palace, where they could be happy without needing to worry about money. Libby had also been painted Rainbow.

     Finally, Rosalene had moved away from Brightvale, and lived in her own little cottage along the River Merval – the bordering river of Meridell and Brightvale. She was now no longer the shy, quiet, withdrawn little girl, but a strong ten-year-old.

     Brightvale, at last, was in peace, with better ruling, and a protection against the magical evil which would not bother them again.

The End

 
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Other Episodes


» Magical Evil: Part One
» Magical Evil: Part Two
» Magical Evil: Part Three
» Magical Evil: Part Four



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