2237 Monsters (Part 1)

The two battling creatures had white eyes and opened maws, long black claws pointed at each other, and their fight took most of the painting. Between them, in a small cone of light, there was the blurred figure of a child crying.

The title of the painting was "Monsters".

Solus had seen enough of her father's works to know that there was no trace of the usual joy and enthusiasm that he put in his brushstrokes. All she could feel was shame, pain, and remorse.

Even the size of the picture spoke volumes of Threin's feelings. The painting was something he wanted to hide forever but that he had kept as a reminder instead.

"That's-"

Solus' eyes rolled up and she fell back as violent emotions swallowed her. Silverwing screamed at her, but Solus couldn't hear her godmother anymore. The bright white stones of the gallery disappeared, replaced by a familiar place.

Solus was back being a small Elphyn Menadion and she was standing in the living room of her home. She knew to be a little over five years old because she felt small, insignificant, and most of all, guilty.

Unlike the memories that she had regained up to that point, there was no laughter or quiet. The young Elphyn wasn't being clueless or adorable while messing with her parents' life.

She was frozen in a corner of the room, biting her lips and clenching her small hands to not make a peep. Her parents were arguing, yelling things that hurt the other as much as they hurt Elphyn.

Ripha and Threin were throwing at each other's face every single mistake they had made, every grudge they had kept over their marriage, and it was all Elphyn's fault. They were fighting because of her.

'What the heck is going on? No one ever mentioned this to me and I'm pretty sure that my parents loved me and each other. What can I have possibly-' Solus didn't share the memories of her old self and could only see the events as they unfolded in front of her.

Yet she also remembered Silverwing's words back in Jiera.

'Aunt Loka told me that Mom Awakened me when I was around six years old and here I am about five and a half years. They are fighting because of me. They are fighting about my Awakening!'

"What do you want me to do, you egotistical jerk?" Ripha said after she was done recriminating the past. "Epphy is already five years old and she already has a bright yellow mana core. Do you know how rare that is?"

"I want you to wait, you maniac! Epphy is just five years old." Threin's fury matched Menadion's. He knew that she might have wiped the floor with him with one finger but he didn't care. "She's too young to make a decision that will change her life forever."

"Too young?" Ripha replied with a scoff. "Once she gets the green core, Awakening her will cause her great pain, she might even die. Don't get me started about what might happen if we wait until the cyan.

"This is the perfect moment to Awaken Epphy. Her core is still weak and if we do it now, her body will have the time it needs to adapt to the mana flow and make the later breakthroughs safer.

"I'm thinking solely about her well-being whereas you are thinking solely about yourself, as usual!"

"How dare you call me egotistical?" Threin snarled and waved his finger right under his wife's nose. "You are the one who wants to endanger our daughter's life for your own agenda.

"You know that I always refused to be Awakened because I don't care about living a long life nor about your Council's shenanigans. I only wanted a happy life for us, it's you who always wanted to drag me into your crazy world!

"This is just the perfect opportunity to bind Epphy and me to you for 100 years. You are not doing this for us but for yourself. It's you who only cares about her own happiness!"

Menadion took a step back as if Threin had just slapped her. Her expression was both hurt and confused, but it lasted only for one instant. Then, her fury returned stronger than ever.

"No one is forcing you to do anything. Epphy wants to learn magic from me, Awakening is her choice. If you don't like it, you can remain a regular human. You have my blessing. Happy now?"

"Her choice? Tell me another!" Threin laughed dryly in her face. "You have brainwashed Epphy with your magic babble for years and the little time she got to spend with her mother was always in your damn Forge.

"Of course she wants to be Awakened, but it's not a choice so much as a desperate call for attention."

"How can you even say that?" Once again, his words hurt not because they were true but because they expressed out loud Ripha's own fears.

"I can because you are giving both of us an ultimatum." Threin replied. "Just like Epphy has to choose whether to keep spending time with her mother or get cut off from your life, I have to choose between my daughter and my humanity.

"If Epphy Awakens, she's bound to lose control of her powers for a while and without magic of my own, just staying near to her would be dangerous to me. Once she masters her powers, things will get even worse.

"She'll Warp and fly around, using spells to do anything whereas I can't even prepare myself a cup of tea. The same magic that would bond Epphy to you would cut me off from her life since I couldn't share any interest with her."

"Then Awaken, dammit!" Ripha slammed her fist on the nearest wall, making the house tremble.

"Yeah, right. So you would have a servant instead of a husband and an apprentice instead of a daughter. If I Awaken, this will be our last argument because your word will be our law.

"Wouldn't it be amazing for the First Control-Freak of the Flames? The people in her life would finally behave like the tools in her Forge, mindlessly obeying her every command!" Threin said.

"You are a hypocrite and you know it!" Ripha lashed out, pointing at her husband. "You had nothing against magic when it prepared our meals, kept our house clean, and ensured our safety.

"Magic is the reason we have such a nice house and we don't have to worry about money. Or are you so delusional that you think that we could afford freedom and all of this with your measly earnings as a painter?

"I won't let you clip our daughter's wings just because you are scared nor will I let Epphy give up on her dreams just to coddle your feelings. If you don't like it here, that's the door.

"This is my house. You can go back to your place and die in a few years like the idiot you are!"

"You'd love that you- Not now, Epphy. The adults are talking." Threin felt his pants tugged and glared at the small child, his face twisted in an angry grimace.