The Primordial Saga: A Faerie's Woe

     “Take off your shoes and leave the Faerie on the couch,” Sophie instructed as she opened the creaky door to her house. “It’ll take around an hour for me to complete the potion.”

     Brynn lowered the Faerie onto the worn and sunken couch, then glanced around the bare shack. “What do I do in the meantime? Do you need any help?”

     The witch gave her a sidelong look. “I don’t need someone with no knowledge of potions to help me mess up my work.” She strode over to a floating shelf and picked out a book, shoving it into Brynn’s hands. “There. Busy yourself with this and don’t disturb me.”

     Brynn settled down on an old armchair beside the couch once Sophie got started on the potion. As she flipped through the pages, she immersed herself in the many myths and legends that surrounded Neovia. It was so interesting that she finished reading the thick tome within the hour. Afraid to bother the witch again, she returned it to the shelf and then took a better look around the shack.

     Other than a large cupboard that stood next to the shelves and a side table on which laid a set of tarnished keys, the room was almost empty save for one corner, where Sophie was busy brewing her concoction. A multitude of ingredients hung on the wall behind her, most of them unknown to Brynn, but she had no interest in finding out what those grotesque-looking items were. Sophie paid her no heed as the Kougra watched the golden yellow liquid simmer in the cauldron, gagging slightly at the stench of rotten cheese emanating from it.

     "Alright, I'm done," the Ixi announced as she ladled some of the potions into a flask. Just as she was about to tip the contents into Illuma's slightly agape mouth, the Faerie suddenly woke up with a start.

     "Where am I?" Illuma asked groggily.

     "We're in Sophie's home right now," Brynn replied, then proceeded to explain briefly how Illuma had lost consciousness during their escape from Balthazar and how the witch came to rescue them.

     "Mind you, I was just preventing trouble from happening around my swamp. Who said I was helping you?"

     "Hmm, whatever your intention was, you still saved us either way," Brynn stated matter-of-factly.

     "Hmph," Sophie huffed before trying to feed the medicine to Illuma again, but the Faerie pursed her lips and immediately got up into a sitting position, swatting the air with her hands in an attempt to disperse the foul smell. "Drink this. It'll help you regain your strength," the witch said.

     “Thanks, but—” Illuma's eyes moved around awkwardly to avoid eye contact. "You didn't have to. I just needed some rest. I think I'll be fine."

     The Ixi waited for a moment before shoving the flask into Brynn's hand with a smile that was obviously forced. "I see, good to know that. Now that it's sorted, I would prefer some solitude. I think you know the way out."

     "But Illuma hasn't—" Brynn began, but Sophie just gestured at the door.

     "Out. Now!"

     She wanted to comment on her brash attitude but inhaled and exhaled deeply to control herself. This wasn’t worth an argument when there were more important things to do, so she turned to Illuma and beckoned for her to follow. “Let’s go.”

     As they walked out of the shack, Illuma advised Brynn not to keep anything against Sophie. "Living their whole life alone in the Haunted Woods is bound to make them bitter. I think I understand her a little, what with having lived most of my life in isolation as well," she said mournfully.

     Brynn just gave her a weak smile as her mind spontaneously wavered to another Ixi whom she knew and how annoying he could be at times, but she didn't say anything and just continued to walk. After how their encounters with Balthazar and Sophie went, she was almost certain nothing unfavourable would happen anymore today, but she soon realized how wrong she was.

     Illuma seemed to be afraid of flying, something that Brynn thought was second nature to all Faeries, and also seemed to have difficulty walking because of the sprain from earlier. Brynn had to slow down and take frequent breaks so that the Faerie could rest and recover.

     "Why didn't you just take the potion Sophie brewed for you?" the Kougra finally asked. "You sure don't seem as fine as you said."

     Illuma's gaze dropped to the ground. "To be honest, I didn't want to because it just felt… wrong."

     "Wrong how?" the Kougra raised a brow, confused.

     "For us bottled Faeries, help is more like… like a bargain," Illuma said softly. "Someone frees us and we bless them in return. In fact, that's the only reason they go out of their way to help us. Without the incentive of a blessing, we would likely never taste freedom."

     Brynn couldn't help but feel bad for Illuma. The poor Faerie had faced so much suffering that she'd lost her faith in everyone. She placed a hand on Illuma's shoulder. "I'm sorry."

     "Thanks Brynn." Illuma's gentle smile clearly hid a lot of pain. "But you don't need to be sorry for me though. I've learned to live life as it is."

     Brynn didn't think it was wise to dig into the Faerie's wounds further by asking more questions, so she stayed silent for the rest of the journey. With another few breaks in between, it was evening by the time they arrived at the Faerie Queen's castle.

     "That took unexpectedly long, Captain Brynn," Fyora remarked when the two entered the throne room and presented themselves before her. "Was there trouble along the way?"

     Brynn kneeled down on one knee. "My apologies, Your Majesty. There was some trouble along the way but I've managed to retrieve Illuma, as per your orders."

     Illuma stepped forward and bowed slightly. "At your service, Your Majesty."

     Fyora smiled warmly. "It's good to see that you're doing well."

     Illuma just nodded unsurely, which made Brynn feel even worse. After all that she'd learned about the Faerie, that sentence would've felt more like an insult than a compliment.

     "I require your assistance on a very sensitive issue," Fyora continued. "I sense a great danger is stirring up, one that Neopia has never seen before, and I'm worried that more concerning problems will arise if we don't deal with it now."

     Illuma raised her head and looked warily at the Faerie Queen. "No offence, my Queen, but you think I, a lowly Faerie who can't even escape the clutches of a mere Lupe hunter, can be of any help with such a threat?"

     "Yes,” Fyora answered. “In fact, you play a very important part in it. I believe you already know about the Primordials?"

     Illuma gasped, her shock visible on her face. "Oh no! Did something happen to them?"

     "Um, sorry to interrupt," Brynn said, raising a finger, "but what exactly is that?"

     "The Primordials were the First to Exist. Beings of raw elemental magic as old as time itself," Illuma explained briefly.

     Fyora struck her staff on the ground, which started emanating a magical mist that formed into images as she narrated. "Back when there was no life on the planet, the Primordials reigned supreme. Nobody knows about their origins. Some speculated that they were born out of the natural magic of Neopia, while others argue that they were rather the source of it. Either way, these entities were one and the same with the forces of nature: Fire, Water, Air, Earth, Light and Darkness. As such, they have no sapience, no sense of morality. They run on instincts that are largely destructive, which is why the earliest Faeries sealed them into artefacts that kept their magical essence in control so that life could flourish on Neopia."

     She waited for a moment for the images to dissipate, then continued. "It wasn't a concern until Taelia reached out a few days back, suspecting that the seal at Terror Mountain was acting up. It seems that whatever magical imbalance occurred that caused the wraiths to be released when we were petrified by Xandra also caused the magic of the artefacts to get weakened. We need to locate the other seals and fortify their magic. However, the exact details are lost to time." She looked at Illuma. "That's what we need your help with."

     "My help?" Illuma blinked. "But how could I be of any help? I'm not even that good at magic."

     "It's not your magic, but your knowledge," Fyora said. "You're the descendant of the most powerful Light Faerie who ever existed in Neopia, the one who helped seal the Primordials. The secret of the artefacts resides within your lineage. We just want you to help with finding them."

     Illuma rubbed her arm as she stared at a spot on the floor, ruminating on the Queen’s words. After a few moments of silence, the Light Faerie kept her gaze lowered as she voiced out her decision. “So, after all these years, it took a world-ending threat of the largest scale for you to finally care about a bottled Faerie?" She turned to Brynn with a weak smile. "Told you, nobody helps us without an incentive."

     "That's not right!" Brynn exclaimed, stepping forward. "There are still people who help others without any selfish reasons—"

     "Like you?"

     The Light Faerie's accusation made Brynn falter.

     "Don't get me wrong, Brynn, you're a good Neopian. But the only reason you saved me was because the Queen asked you to." Illuma then turned to Fyora. "And as we can see, you have your own reason for that. Not exactly selfish, but you saved me because you needed me, not because it was the right thing to do. Now, if I help you avert this threat, then what? Back to living in a bottle for me? Forget me, what about the other Faeries like me who are trapped in Balthazar's shack for who knows how long and never received any help from their own Queen? How can I even trust you?"

To be continued…