Chapter 26

Chapter 26

          Gwendolyn slammed the door shut behind her before storming across the room over to where Varkus was now slop covered and sitting in a bucket, struggling to stand up.  Gwen rose her hands violently as new roots from the dead tree punctured through the floor and straight through every other level of the Crognard and Varkus’s lair.  She gripped onto Varkus’s shirt once again before ramming him against the walls.  Varkus winced slightly at the impact against the wall, but still keeps his eyes locked on Gwen, that is, until she started screaming at him.

“What kind of queen do you think I am Varkus? How could you possibly be so stupid to think that I would kiss the enemy of my homeland! You deserve nothing more than punishment Varkus! Nothing but punishment, disrespect, and hatred you filthy, arrogant, excuse for a human!” Gwendolyn yelled as she shot more roots up through all layers of the lair, causing the walls to crack.

          Varkus remained paralyzed in utter shock after Gwen’s outburst while she threw him to the ground and stormed out of the room, breaking the door open with her foot. 

“Oh, and Varkus, I will never fall for you,” Gwen mumbled before leaving the lair.  Varkus sighed, rubbing the back of his head.

“That queen doesn’t deserve me anyway! And besides, I don’t even like her!” Varkus said with a howling tone in his voice.  Shortly after, another man entered the room dressed just like Varkus but without the cape.  His hair was a tad shorter than Varkus’s and a bit lighter, more along the lines of a gray color.  He had eyes of a deep violet color with gray surrounding the pupil.  The man walked over to Varkus and crossed his arms, glaring intensely at him before shortly going into a laughing fit.

“Hah! Dude that girl totally showed you!” the man laughed, placing his hands on his knees for support as he laughed harder.

“Shut up Kroy!” Varkus yelled at the man.

“Aw, c’mon cut your brother some slack,” Kroy replied with a smirk upon his less grim face.

“What makes you think I’d cut you some slack?” Varkus asked, rubbing a hand over his face.

“Well, you are my older brother by a year, so I’d expect you to have the slightest bit of pity for your baby brother…,” Kroy sighed, faking a pouty lip and looking down at the floor.  Varkus grumbled something under his breath before standing up straighter and looking down at Kroy.

“Fine.  What do you want this time, Kroy?” Varkus sighed again, but deeper this time.

“The pendant,” Kroy replied before stepping out of the room.

Chapter 25

Chapter 25

          As Annabelle waited for Nixie to get back to health, with the queen she had just received a very important letter.

“Your Majesty, you have received a very important letter,” Marissa stated as she walked into the queen’s bedroom with a letter in her hand.

“Whose it from?” Gwen asked sitting up from her chair.

“Annabelle…,” Marissa replied as her voice trailed off.  Gwen’s face became grim as she stood up and gently took the note from Marissa and reading it silently to herself.

“Oh no….,” Gwen gasped, putting her hand over her mouth and handing the letter back to Marissa.

“Marissa, I need to go, make sure everyone gets inside now.  The Crognards have crossed the border,” Gwen demanded before storming out of her room and began traveling deep into the woods.

          Gwen traveled for three hours before reaching the border.  Without a word Gwen stormed past the Hobgoblin guards, who had fallen asleep, and slammed the vines in front of her into the rotten tree stump.  She picked up her pace into a brisk walk as she continued to shove her way past every Crognard who dared to attack her, her head held high.  She reached a dead, rotten, musky tree stump with a jagged top as the tree had fallen, and thorns surrounding the entrance.  Gwen shoved the Crognard guards into the thorn bush as she clomped her way up to the king’s bedroom before she pounded on the door.

“Varkus! Open this rotted heap of trash before I tear it down myself this instant!” Gwendolyn hollered, her voice cracking from the blazing anger in which she spoke.

“Well, well, well, look who has made an appearance, miss Gwendolyn herself,” Varkus cackled from behind the door before opening it and coming face to face with the furious queen, not one bit of joy on her face to be seen. 

“How dare you attack Nocotee? After all these years you still can’t leave us alone!” Gwen yelled, shaking the walls as Varkus remained still as a statue while stroking his beard with his right hand.

“Oh, darling, you just don’t get it do you?” Varkus asked, his voice devious.

“Shut up,” Gwen snapped.

“Ooh! She’s feisty!” Varkus exclaimed in an overly sarcastic girly toned voice while making big hand gestures.

“So help me Varkus, if you even dare send another one of your fowl Crognards into Nocotee there will be one less person in this room…and it won’t be me.,” Gwendolyn said with a low stern voice as she grabbed Varkus by the front of his shirt, yanking him down to her level until they were eye to eye.  Varkus gave a smirk before he gently placed his hand under Gwen’s chin and slowly moved closer to her lips.  Gwen loosened her grip on Varkus’s shirt collar, then….slap! Gwendolyn slapped her hand onto the side of Varkus’s face so powerful that he is thrown across the room into a bucket of stagnant swamp water.