Chapter 80 – The Flower That Blooms

Selena’s eyes narrowed, her voice cold. “And that’s when you landed near me.”

Makara nodded, his voice quiet. “Yes, that’s when I landed near you. Have you been listening to me at all? Well, everything that happened after…, you know the rest.”

The weight of the story hung heavy in the air as Selena processed what she’d heard, while they finally reached the centre of the maze. A massive dome loomed before them. Selena recognised the dome where Princess Thyra was talking about her brothers.

The child gardener gestured over the dome’s doors, her small figure silhouetted against the glowing light spilling from inside. She signalled Selena and Makara to enter the dome. Selena and Makara hesitated momentarily, exchanging glances before stepping inside behind her, but the chaos and shockwaves in the distance made them move inside the dome.

A single flower, a blue rose in on the walls of the dome and nothing else. Even though a single flower inside the dome, the air was thick with a mix of floral fragrance. Above them, the dome’s ceiling shimmered like the night sky, filled with constellations that shifted and danced.

At the centre of the garden, a circular platform, its surface polished to a mirror-like sheen and carved with a rose with a stem on it. The child gardener approached it with slow, deliberate steps. The child gardener stopped before the platform and turned to face them, her expression serene. Then, without warning, her small body began to morph.

Vines sprouted from her skin, intertwining and twisting as her form dissolved into an intricate weave of greenery. Selena took an instinctive step back, raising her spear defensively, while Makara’s eyes narrowed. The vines slithered up the platform, wrapping around its base with purpose.

“What is she doing?” Selena asked, her voice edged with unease.

Makara didn’t answer, his focus locked on the transformation.

The platform began to rise, carried upward by the writhing vines. It ascended slowly, the vines coiling tighter around it like serpents claiming their prey. At its apex, a single flower began to bloom—a massive rose, its petals pale white streaked with faint veins of blue.

As the rose fully unfurled, a crystalline structure emerged from its centre. It gleamed under the sunlight, its surface smooth and flawless like a frozen lake with pale dark blue in colour. Selena and Makara stepped closer, their breath catching as they saw what lay within.

Encased within the crystal was a young girl, no more than fifteen years old, hunched inward, knees tucked tightly to her chest like a baby in her mother’s womb. Her delicate features were serene, her dark blue hair flowing around her like a silken river. Though youthful, her resemblance to Princess Thyra was undeniable.

Selena’s heart clenched as she stared at the figure. “It can’t be,” she whispered. “Princess Thyra?”

Before they could process what they were seeing, a voice echoed through the dome. It was unmistakably Princess Thyra’s voice.

“The girl inside the crystal is the true Princess Thyra,” the voice said, its tone heavy with emotion.

Selena and Makara froze, their minds racing.

“She came here to save the kingdom,” the voice continued, “but the journey drained her life. On the brink of death, her power acted on its own and protected her. It sealed her within this crystal, and it created this sanctuary, me and everything you see here.”

Makara’s jaw tightened. “You’re saying… you’re not the real Thyra?”

“I am her shadow,” the voice admitted, its sorrow evident.

The revelation left them stunned. The being they had been fighting and chasing was not the true Princess Thyra but a creation of the curse.

“Princess Selena,” the voice said, turning its attention to her. “The favour I asked is that you have the power to break the seal. Your royal blood can release her from the crystal. She has the power to stop your colleague.”

Selena’s grip on her spear tightened as doubt clawed at her mind. “How can I trust you?” she demanded. “What if this is another trick? Another trap?”

Before the voice could respond, the ground beneath them trembled. A powerful tremor surged through the ground as the false Thyra was fighting Shawn. When she said she would hold him off, she appeared in a whirlwind of petals and vines. Her expression was resolute as she turned to face the approaching Shawn, his monstrous form emanating an aura of unbridled power.

The false Thyra launched herself toward Shawn, spinning in a blur of roses and vines. Shawn raised his massive sword with a single, fluid motion, blocking her assault effortlessly. The force of the clash sent shockwaves rippling through the dome, shaking its very foundation.

The false Thyra staggered but quickly recovered. She raised her hands that summoned a huge group of vines that erupted from the ground, surging toward Shawn with lethal intent. He swung his sword in wide arcs, cutting through the vines. The fragments fell around him, lifeless and severed.

Makara gritted his teeth. “She’s buying us time, Selena. We need to act.”

Selena’s heart pounded as she heard the battle sounds. The false Thyra summoned massive rose petals, their edges sharp as blades. They spun around her before launching toward Shawn like projectiles. But Shawn’s sword moved with terrifying precision, deflecting each attack with ease, that landed on the ground to him.

The dome echoed with the sounds of battle—steel against magic, roars of power against the defiant cries of the false Thyra. Shawn’s advance was relentless. Every step he took exuded dominance, his movements calculated and unstoppable.

Selena turned back to the crystal, doubt still lingering in her mind. “What if this is a trap?”

“It’s not,” Makara said firmly, his voice cutting through her hesitation. “Look at her. Look at the girl inside the crystal. You can feel it too, can’t you? That’s her. That’s the real princess Thyra.”

Selena’s gaze shifted to the girl within the crystal. The longer she stared, the more certain she became. There was an undeniable presence about the figure.

Meanwhile, the false Thyra was growing desperate. She summoned monstrous flowers, their gaping maws snapping as they lunged at Shawn. But Shawn was unstoppable. He swung his sword with devastating force, cutting through the flowers or smashing them into the ground. His cloak swirled around him like a living shadow, absorbing the remnants of the destroyed flowers.

The false Thyra was in disbelief at the power Shawn held, and in her desperate attempts to stop him, she used her ace power and raised her arms, and roses bloomed from her body, scattering across the battlefield. Their potent fragrance filled the air, thick and cloying, designed to disorient her opponent. But Shawn was unfazed. He swung his sword, sending a powerful slash wave that dispersed the scent and struck the false Thyra with devastating force.

The impact sent her flying across the dome, crashing into the ground near the crystal. At the same time, Selena took a deep breath, her resolve solidifying. She raised her spear, its blade gleaming. With a swift motion, she cut her palm, letting her blood flow freely. The crimson droplets welling up before spilling onto the crystal.

The moment the blood touched its surface, the crystal began to crack. A blinding light erupted from within, accompanied by a deafening explosion that sent Selena and Makara flying to opposite sides of the dome. The force of the blast left them dazed, and from inside the broken crystal, the figure was revealed. The real Princess Thyra’s body fell off onto the ground, while the fake Thyra crashed into the dome. After the dust settled inside the dome, both Princess Thyra and fake Thyra lay face to face upside down to each other. The fake Thyra raised her trembling hand, cradling the real Princess Thyra’s face, who lay in front of her.

“You can wake up now,” the false Thyra whispered, a faint smile gracing her lips. Her body began to wither like the dried-up vines as she faded into nothingness, as the real Princess Thyra slowly opened her eyes.