CHAPTER XLIII
"The Crown of Darkness, The Hand That Chose Me"
Celeste's POV
The sun had begun to drown slowly, sinking beneath the golden horizon like a secret being pulled into silence.
Its last rays softened, scattering across the sky like fading whispers, while the silver mist of the moon began to bloom above. A hush fell over everything — the kind that only exists in the breath between day and night.
And then, the moment came.
The seven Queens, each holding a garland of enchanted flowers, began to walk toward me — one step at a time, petals glowing gently in their hands. My heart beat faster with every step they took. My breath grew shorter. This was it — the final choice.
But before any garland could be placed… she arrived.
> Not Vorgath.
Not Caelum.
But Mother Fairy.
She appeared like light breaking through shadow — her presence wrapping the palace in a divine fragrance and warm, golden glow. Every wing in the room paused mid-flutter. Every breath caught.
The Queens immediately turned toward her, instinctively moving closer, drawn by the ancient magic that surrounded her.
Queen Luna was the first to speak, her voice low and uncertain.
> "I tried to stop her…" she said, eyes distant, "But I don't think she can be stopped anymore."
Those words pierced straight through me.
My chest tightened. My heartbeat pounded.
> Is she coming? Is Vorgath truly coming here — now?
Queen Sunaria, her voice steadier, placed a calming hand on Luna's shoulder.
> "Let her come. Perhaps it's time. Her new path… is calling her."
And as they spoke, something impossible began to happen.
> The garland in my mother's hands — the one meant for the chosen — began to lift into the air on its own.
A wind rose from nowhere, gentle at first, then fierce. The petals twirled like dancers, spinning from my mother's grasp and floating… directly into mine.
> The magic had started.
The sky above, just moments ago painted with soft moonlight, was now consumed by thick, black clouds. A chilling wind swept through the land, carrying with it an energy that wasn't just dark — it was powerful… ancient… unforgiving.
Fairies began to panic.
Small winged creatures darted through the air in terror, crashing into flowers and vines as they tried to flee. The trees bent as if in warning, their leaves trembling like frightened children.
> Something had entered our world.
Something we had no control over.
And in that moment — through the swirling wind, the flickering torches, and the scattering fairies…
> Vorgath stepped forward.
But it wasn't just Fairy.
It was a force draped in royal black and cruel confidence, cloaked in storm and silence.
> It was Vorgath… in her truest form.
She didn't hesitate.
She walked through the chaos like she was born from it — slow, steady, dangerous. And when she stopped, it was directly in front of me.
The world around us seemed to vanish.
No more sound. No more fluttering wings. No more warnings.
Just her… and me.
> She took my hand — her fingers cold, firm, unshaking.
And without a word, she took the garland from my grasp… and placed it around her neck.
My breath caught in my throat, but I didn't move.
> I let her do it.
The seven Queens said nothing. The Kings didn't breathe. Even Mother Fairy simply watched, her face unreadable — like she knew this moment had always been written.
And then — Vorgath reached up.
With the same boldness, the same recklessness she always carried in her eyes, she touched the crown resting on my head — the silver-gold crown of the Queen of Light.
> And threw it to the ground.
The sound of it crashing against the marble echoed through the entire palace like a slap across history.
Gasps filled the air — but I remained still.
Then, she reached into her own cloak… and pulled out another crown.
Black as obsidian. Sharp as a blade. A crown made of shadowed stars and forgotten rage.
> She placed it gently on my head.
> And I let her.
Not because I was weak.
But because in that moment… it felt like truth.
She took my hand again, pulling me forward, leading me through the stunned crowd, through the storm of gasping hearts and wide eyes — all the way to my mother.
My mother — Queen Elyon — who stood frozen, her hand still open where the garland had once been.
Vorgath reached her.
And with no ceremony, no gentleness… only cold finality… she grabbed my mother's hand.
> Placed mine into hers.
> And then placed her own hand over ours.
Three hands. Three stories. Three fates colliding.
A vow unspoken.
> "This is it," her silence seemed to say. "She is mine now."
And I… didn't run.
Didn't resist.
Because deep down, I knew — this wasn't the beginning of a marriage.
> This was the beginning of a war.
A war of hearts. A war of magic. A war of love… and everything it might destroy.
"The Vows of Silence, The Binding of Shadows"
Celeste's POV
The wind had died.
Not stilled… died.
As if nature itself had held its breath — not in anticipation, but in dread.
The palace hall, once adorned with dancing fairies and glowing flowers, now stood frozen. The light of the enchanted chandeliers flickered uncertainly, dimmed by a darkness that pulsed through the air like the rhythm of a heart about to break.
> And in the center of it all — stood Vorgath.
Clad in black silk that moved like smoke and shadow, with eyes that burned not with love, but possession.
And I — I stood in front of her.
Wrapped in white, trembling not from fear, but from the storm inside me.
The war between what I wanted and what I should do.
A makeshift altar had been formed from broken marble.
The sacred vines that once crowned our realm had twisted themselves into thorns.
> This was not a wedding.
This was a claiming.
And everyone knew it — but no one dared to speak.
The Queens stood to the side, helpless.
My mother, frozen in disbelief, her hands shaking.
Flash and Chiko were being held back by vines conjured by Vorgath's dark magic — their wings fluttering violently, wanting to save me but unable to reach.
> And I… said nothing.
Because part of me — the part I hated most — had always belonged to her.
Even in this.
> "Do you, Celeste, Queen of the Seven Skies," Fairy's voice rang through the silence like a vow soaked in venom, "take me, Vorgath — your shadow, your storm — as your eternal consort?"
My throat closed.
The magical bond shimmered between us, invisible but heavy — a thread of power, of fate, of unspoken history. I felt the pull tightening, demanding an answer.
> I didn't say yes.
I didn't say no.
> But my silence… was enough.
Because in Fairyland, silence under magical oath was consent.
The moment the last beat of time passed, Vorgath stepped forward, her cold hands lifting the obsidian crown she had forged herself — a crown made of shattered stars and demon ash — and placed it once again on my head.
My silver crown lay forgotten on the floor behind us, broken.
> "You are mine now," she whispered against my skin.
"And I will never let you go."
Then, she pressed her lips to my forehead — not gently, not sweetly — but with a force that felt like a seal, a spell, a sentence.
A kiss that didn't ask.
A kiss that claimed.
The dark magic swirled around us, binding our auras together, linking our fates. I felt it crawling over my skin, wrapping around my soul.
> The Binding Vows had been completed.
We were married — not in love…
But in power.
> And I could feel it…
Somewhere deep inside her — beneath the curse, beneath the anger, beneath the centuries of pain — there was still that girl who once reached for me with trembling fingers.
But she was buried.
And now…
> I was buried with her.
To be continued...