Bolts, Swords, and Marigold Flowers

No one except my husband, Warren, knew that my mother was an elf, and my father was human. He always said, “Warren and Evelyn would prosper, no matter what.” It was cute. Eight years ago when I gave birth to Serena, I wanted to make sure she was more in touch with her elven ancestry, so we moved to Cinderwood. I stayed at home teaching Serena about the world and using my knowledge of the Earth around us to help tend to the sick. The beautiful, green village of Cinderwood was created as a reservation for elves just outside the city of Avalon near the edge of the land, where The King sits in his castle overlooking Lorelai Lake. The elves that were supposed to live in Cinderwood preferred living in the forest adjacent to it. Therefore, this village became a community of those who supported the diversity of the world or just hated King Elias. I moved to Cinderwood for both reasons.

When my husband decided to serve The King, I supported his valor and passion. Warren loved seeing the world in expeditions for King Elias, and I was just happy to see him happy. With her father exploring the world, my focus was on making sure our daughter Serena grew up to be the best version of herself. She was always excited to help me nurse the sick and she loved going into the forest with her elven friends to collect herbs for my medicines. Serena died doing that, as collateral damage in a dispute between The King and the Dobhar people.

There were rumors that Dobhar families wanted access to the lake for religious purposes, but King Elias didn’t want any non-human creatures in the lake near his castle. One year ago exactly today, the Dobhar were on their way to Avalon to come up with a diplomatic solution. The Cinderwood villagers welcomed the Dobhar diplomats with food and water. Afterwards, Avalon knights decided to storm through Cinderwood, yelling obscenities to everyone within earshot. It wasn’t long until arrows started to fly and swords began to swing.

I remember hearing the commotion outside and looking out the window to see Avalon warriors kick in doors, senselessly raiding and hurting villagers. Dobhar warriors tried to hold their own, but were also trying to help protect Cinderwood. I screamed out Serena’s name within the house and heard no response from her. I left my home and made haste towards the woods, and I quickly found Serena hiding behind a tree stump. She was crying until I picked her up and carried her. As soon as she was in my arms, I looked to the trees and saw elves coming from the woods to fight the Avalon madmen. I quickly made my way back to my home with Serena in my arms.

As soon as I reached my home, explosions rang through the air and I felt the heat of fire around me. Shielding Serena’s eyes, I made it into my house and quickly slammed the door behind me. As I set her down and began to lock the door, I told her to lead the patients into the basement. I turn around to see Serena falling to the ground with an arrow in her chest and blood pooling around her. I quickly dropped to my knees, my heart dropping with them, I tried to stop the bleeding but I was too late. Her eyes were barely open, but I could tell she was looking at my hands frantically scrambling on her wound. I could hear her whisper, “It’s okay, mama. I’ll be okay, mama.” Anything else she wanted to say could not make a sound, as her eyes were beginning to close.

My entire body was shaking, my tears were hitting the floor, and I just screamed her name over and over again, hoping she would just come back to me somehow. Her last breath made her fist slowly open, revealing a small, golden marigold flower. She died picking up herbs to help her mother, who in turn, could not save her. My blood was rushing through my veins and I heard the floor creaking ahead of me. My two patients stood there, hats in hand, looking down at their feet, feeling almost as helpless as me.

The door behind me swung open and I saw an Avalon warrior bust into my home and shoot a crossbow bolt at one of my patients. I quickly stood up and tried to wrestle the weapon out his hands with tears clouding my vision. He pushed me back and took off his helmet with a grin on his face saying, “Ah yes! Warren’s little whore!”

The Avalon warrior raised his leg and pushed me to the back of the room with a kick, where I fell to the floor, next to my dying patient and his shaken friend. He began to remove his armor as if to taunt and threaten me. As soon as the warrior stepped beside Serena’s body, the flower fell out of her hand with a gust of wind and I began to lose my temper. I charged at him and he laughed as he pushed me back again, “Avalon is not good enough for you, is it?” The warrior yelled “Cinderwood is a cesspool, a pile of bodies waiting to happen!”

As the warrior steps closer, my remaining patient steps in his way with a sword behind his back, hilt facing me. I could see blood seeping through his bandages, his legs were weak, and I knew what he wanted. I grabbed the sword right before the warrior bashed his head with a helmet and tossed him aside. As the Avalon warrior drew his weapon to kill my patient, I quickly stepped forward and plunged my blade into his chest. His sword dropped to the ground and I gripped my blade and twisted it around. The Avalon warrior began to cough and groan, bleeding through his clothes. My foot pushed him on the ground as he weakly tried to push my foot away from his chest. I grabbed the blade one more time and pulled it out of his chest and into his neck. I stood next to his body staring at Serena’s blood creeping closer to me. My mind replayed her last whispers as I fell to my knees in defeat.

That was one year ago, and since then, King Elias has covered the whole thing up. He announced that Cinderwood was attacked by the Dobhar people and that the Avalon knights quickly killed them in retaliation. The King made no mention of the elves, knowing that it would start a war he could not win. Most importantly, he made no effort to help the people of Cinderwood. My daughter died that day and he never even made a single apology. The villagers of Cinderwood made a point to clean up and move on, but how could I move on from my daughter dying in my hands? I wrote to Warren a day after it happened, but I never heard back from him. It’s been a year and I’ve been by myself, with my own anger and loss, and King Elias doesn’t care.

Tonight, he will feel what I felt that day. I have been scouting the castle for almost a year, and I know where to find him. Today there is a small feast to celebrate the christening of Princess Ana. I will have to climb into Ana’s room from the window facing the water. Afterwards, I will sneak my way into his quarters, hide under his bed until I can jump out, and plunge my blade into his chest. With the moon starting to shine upon me, sitting on the ledge near the window, all I can think of is how I lost Serena to this selfish, ignorant bastard.

As I hear the trumpets inside announce the arrival of the first guests, I get up and hug the wall, slowly walking towards the window. Before I enter, I pause, taking a deep breath, trying to shake my nerves off. I quietly crouch, sneaking into the candle-lit room with my hand on my dagger’s hilt. As soon as I stand, I look around and see a petrified young woman. Ana is still in her room, and she is clutching her own fist, too scared to scream. My heart begins to race and my hands act quicker than I can think, throwing the dagger into her chest. My eyes widen with my realization of what I’ve just done, I race over to push the dagger deeper into her heart, and cover her mouth.

Soon, Ana’s breath weakens and her light blue dress begins to turn red. I slowly shift my hand from her mouth to her back, laying her down onto the floorboards. I can hear her shallow breaths and small whimpers as her hands fall to the floor and her eyes begin to roll back. As her hand opens, I see what she was holding and I feel my heart drop. All of my tears begin to rush to my eyes, I feel my face growing warm, and I stare at her bloody palm releasing a marigold flower. This marigold looks exactly the same as the one in Serena’s hand, and I begin to hear my daughter’s last words in my head.

As I grab the flower, holding it to my chest, I hear the door open behind me. I want to react, but all I can do is remove my blade from her chest and hold it in my hand. My body is frozen in place, and I feel a quiet shock in the room followed by a scream. King Elias is behind me staring at a stranger kneeling over his daughter’s body, both of us with blood on our hands, “Ana!” He exclaims, “You murdered my Ana!”

I turn around and see Elias with an archer near him, shocked at the scene I’m standing in. The King snatches the crossbow out of his guard’s hands, I quickly turn to his daughter’s corpse but all I see is Serena on the floor. I feel a bolt pierce my left shoulder and my hand drops the flower. I use my other hand to quickly scramble for the flower and I try to place it back in her hand.

My memories race through me, memories of Serena and I cooking and laughing together. I become numb as I start to feel how I have disappointed my daughter by taking a life that did not deserve to be taken. Serena was taught to value life, not take it. My hand finally places the flower back into her hand but before I can take my hand away, another bolt pierces between my shoulder blades. I hear the cries of King Elias, cries of sorrow and anger; familiar cries.

My body hits the floor, facing Ana, but all I can see is Serena. My hand is holding hers as it clutches the marigold flower one last time. I feel my breath tremble and begin to fade. I start to lose feeling in my body as I lay on the floor. My vision becomes cloudy and I feel my lungs pushing and pushing until finally they can push no more. My eyes are fixed on the bloody marigold flower as they close. I feel a cold air fill my body, as if I were to start freezing from the inside out. I hope Serena never felt this way, as if she was alone and cold. She deserved better than what she got. I deserve this.