Forever Destined To The Silver Shadow

Celestia's POV: 

"Theo, are you serious?" I yelled out in anger. "Do you have any idea how much it hurts when your father says terrible things about you?"

He got bleak after that, and I regretted saying that out loud. His father had abandoned him even before he was born. I should have watched my words! 

"Celestia, it's fine," Theo said. "I am over that already, and I expected you to be in that state too. I guess that I made a mistake by giving that scroll in front of everyone in the court."

I sighed and looked at the portrait that was hanging on the wall next to me. They were the portraits of the deceased Mage warriors. Below the portrait, the cause of the death of each Mage warrior was carved in the stone. 

"Celestia," Theo said and brought me back to the present. "Why does your father's opinion matter this much to you? You know that he is not a righteous person either."

"I know, but… still he is my father," I mumbled while I was looking at the warrior Edgar Lierman. He had died twenty years ago in the battle against the shadow creatures that happened at the edge of the Celestial realm. 

Theo stood beside me, and he eyed the portrait. "My love," he called me out. "Have you ever heard of the great warrior Edgar Lierman before?"

I shook my head at his question. He is a great warrior?! But no one has mentioned him to me before. 

"A vicious battle took place in the barrier twenty years ago," Theo began to explain. "The Shadow creatures almost won that day, and they were about to break off the barrier. But this Mage warrior over here didn't let that happen. He crossed the border and stalled the Demons for a while. That gave time to King Oberon to fix the barrier. After the barrier was fixed, the Shadow creatures were not able to get in. They were defeated. But unfortunately, Edgar didn't make it. He sacrificed his life in the battle and gave victory to the light forces."

I was so much impressed by the story of Edgar. Not everyone will sacrifice their life for others' welfare. "But why am I not aware of the story of such a great warrior?"

"Because Oberon never gave any credit to Edgar just because he was a Mage," Theo snapped. "But the Lowlanders honor Edgar for the sacrifice he made till now."

So that is why I have not heard about this warrior before. Now that I think of it, my father has never glorified any warrior who was not a Fae! 

"So tell me, Celestia. Are you feeling remorse because of the hypocrite Oberon?"

His question made sense to me. My father only cares about the Highlanders. Even in the scroll, he had written about how everyone in the Highlanders is in grave danger.

"Exactly, Celestia," Theo said after reading my thoughts. "And he is blaming you for breaking vows, but why did he make you take those vows in the first place? Oberon was aware that you are meant to be the Queen of the Celestial realm. But he didn't want to give up his throne to you. That's why he tricked you and made you promise that you will always be a Maiden Warrior."

All these facts about my father were too overwhelming to hear! It isn't easy to see someone suddenly in a wicked way when you grew up idolizing that person.

"Okay," I shrugged off. "I am not going to feel guilty anymore. But still, I want my father to rule the Highlands. I don't want to meddle in his way because I still respect him as he raised me and made me a warrior."

Theo finally smiled at me. "You don't have to worry about that, Celestia. I gave up my ambition of taking over the Highlands a long time ago. And we are the rulers of the Lowlands now, so we will be able to help these people!"

"That is good," I retorted. "When my Father comes here tomorrow, will you please give him back his crown and release the Fathomless warriors? Because I want to maintain peace with him, and I am still guilty of stealing his crown."

His face got pale a little. "My love, I am afraid that I can't make the decision of releasing the prisoners on my own. I would have to ask the opinion of the Mages on this."

I didn't expect this answer from him. "But you are the King! Why would you need the opinion of others?"

Theo gave me an uncomfortable glare. "I am their King, but they are not my slaves. I can't enforce my opinion on them!"

"So the Mages want the Fathomless warriors to remain locked up in the dungeon? What do they have against them? The Fathomless warriors have occasionally battled along with the Mages in the past. Those warriors were not partial to anyone."

Theo pressed his back to the wall and quietly listened to everything I said. By his gesture, I was able to comprehend that he is not going to acknowledge my statements.

"My sweetness, do you remember what your father had written in the scroll? He is going to negotiate with us. And the Mages who have been ignored and humiliated for this long are very much looking forward to it."

So for Mages, it is a matter of satisfying their resentment. But they don't have to do this. Only by forgiving our opponents can we get peace. Whatever! I can't interfere in their affairs. My father can bargain with them and release the warriors.

"Okay," I sighed. "What about the crown?" 

"I am not going to lie to you," he paused. "I am not very excited about giving the crown back to him. Becoming the King of the Celestial Realm was my biggest desire. But I am going to give the crown back to Oberon for your sake, Celestia. And I don't want to lose you again over my past ambitions as you are my biggest desire now."

For a moment, I felt terrible for stopping Theo from realizing his dream.. But this is for the best! The unrest in this realm will stop when Father Oberon gets back his crown.