Page 72 of Celestia, Year Four

When the blast hit me, I was covered in a bubble of darkness. It wasn't like in the Dark World where I felt confident being in the pitch dark. It was bone trembling cold, and the heavy feeling that weighed on my body and mind was almost torturous itself.

"You are wise to protect those pathetic men. Their minds would shatter in just a few minutes. Just like yours will."

I slowly stood, gritting my teeth as I fought the increased level of gravity that wanted to keep me down. "You know… for a what? 300? 400-year-old man, you sure are cocky."

"You won't be talking smack for long. See, I'm a very patient individual, and even with that silly tainted potion, it did very little to bring me down as you'd predicted. All of you underestimated my power, which only makes me laugh." Martz chuckled and shook his head.

"Now. Give up the crown so I can be on my way. I'll make sure you die a quick death and will spare you the shame I'd bring to your life if I allowed you to live."

"Still cocky… and talking shit," I mumbled, finally standing up straight.

"First off, I don't have the crown you speak of. If you caught on to the potions, I would have assumed you would have caught on to that by now. Guess you aren't very smart in the 'using your brain' department. As for dying, I have a familiar and seven lovers to return to. Not missing out on wine and cake because of some old man who can't let go and die."

I took a few breaths and grinned. "Second of all, it's about time you let it sink into that thick skull of yours that today will be the last day you remain alive. I may be delusional, but Mother Nature wouldn't let us lose."

Martz began to laugh cynically.

"Mother Nature wouldn't let you all lose? Mother Nature is a snake! She favors the creations she makes that do her bidding and praise her like some god. You worship a being who can control whether your dimension lives or crumbles, and yet you put your hopes and dreams in a being who sits and watches her children perish? I've lived centuries where shifters just like you beg to be saved, and I've killed them with my bare hands."

The weight of gravity doubled, and I cursed as I fell to my hands and knees. I bit my lip and held off a scream, my mind feeling like it was going to explode while I struggled to breathe.

"Do you not think I know who you are, Sia..."

I couldn't answer, and he returned to his laughing fit. I could hear his approaching footsteps, each step that sank into the rich brown soil could be heard through the ringing in my ears.

Martz's feet reached my line of vision and he knelt on one knee, his hand lifting my head up to meet his pure black eyes.

"Did you believe I'd bow down to you again? When I had to witness your funeral and deal with all the townspeople mourning your death, I had to try not to laugh. How pleasing it was to realize that all our plans had worked, and with it, your pathetic men one by one, killing themselves because their sweet beloved was dead."

I growled, feeling the light within me want to fight back, but it was being overpowered by the darkness, and only brought satisfaction to Martz's eyes as he noticed my struggle.

"You all talk about how light is better than darkness. That it conquers all and will come out victorious no matter what. That is all bullshit."

His grin was now borderline crazy, and he sighed.

"Poor Lucian. To put his hope in you was a sad mistake. To believe the reincarnation of his beloved Queen would be able to save this universe was foolish. He could have joined me. Be on the same page in letting life run its course. You believe shifters of various races can live in harmony? You think peace out rules power? Fights happen because one shifter proves to the competitor and fellow peers, that they are worthy of their praise and fellowship."

He shook his head and gave me a sad smile.

"To be a Queen, you must be powerful. To gain power, you must work endlessly because anyone can take your throne. Mother Nature, your apparent savior, chose a child to be Queen. A rainbow unicorn she'd created to adapt to all types of your dying blessed race, and yet here you are, down on your knees because of me."

His hand left my chin and went for my throat, lifting me with ease. I glared at him as my throat began to constrict from his hold, but a scream escaped me when something speared through my chest.

"When Lucian's dark tendrils went through your body over and over again, it must have been painful." He smirked at my wide eyes and continued. "You think I didn't see what was going on? Hear what Charlotte and your adorable dads were planning? I see everything, child. The darkness hides patiently to strike its prey down. It could take months or years, but if it leads to this moment of satisfaction… it's so worth it."

Another scream escaped me when I felt something go through my stomach.

"Did you know I was the reason Charlotte couldn't bear a child?" he whispered and walked around me. I couldn't answer, another item going through me, but this time I held back my cries of agony. Gritting my teeth and shutting my eyes, Icontinued to endure blow after blow, and when I started to cough up blood, that was when I noticed what was piercing me was like thick threads of a spider web.

My blood slowly escaped my body, dripping and bleeding into the black threads that pierced and held me up.

"I wonder, if I left you barely breathing, would those men still want you? Or love you? A shifter who can't bear one of her own. Wouldn't that be sad, Sia? To die before you could enjoy what you've wanted the most and now, after being reincarnated again, losing that same privilege. Oh, the joy it would bring me to see how shattered your heart would be. To watch your men leave your side. A Queen who can't produce an heir is useless. Might as well allow someone like me to continue to do my job and let the people decide their fate. Only the strongest shifters may survive the plague of darkness upon us, and sadly, that isn't you, Sia."

"Stop calling… me… Sia," I muttered, struggling to breathe as the crippling pain tried to consume me. "It's Celestia."

"It doesn't matter, Ce.le.stia. No one will remember you after I kill you. That name will be forbidden after I drag it through the dirt and wrap those fools’ minds with lies they easily fall for. You will be nothing and will succumb to the darkness I've poisoned you with. You have already failed."

A loud sound came from my left side, like something hitting against a wall and shattering. Martz laughed.

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