The Dread Knight's Rage

Lioaraeth had always been told she was a fast flier. It was a compliment she took rather immense pride in when she was a young girl.

No one had ever beaten her.

And in just a single morning, she was pushed to her very limits by three very egotistical and vain horses.

The only reason they hadn’t beaten her by at least six miles was that they had no idea where they were going. She was certain that the ride back home would not be so good for her ego.

"Unbelievable... Bested by three animals...!"

Mercy, Scorn, and Trauma normally would have reacted rather negatively to being called animals, but their egos were already more than satiated after their victories.

’Slow fairy.’

’Very slow fairy.’

’Her wings are like lead.’

The horses congregated together to snicker. Meanwhile, their riders had already climbed off their backs to analyze the miraculous location they had travelled to.

Deep within the fae realm, roughly four hours away from the fae queen’s crystal spire, there was an isolated waterfall at the end of a gorge brimming with greenery.

At a dead end, a waterfall rushed down into a river that led back out the way they had come.

Several pixies and smaller woodland creatures gathered around the sacred space.

Dakota kneeled and held out her hand, allowing the creatures to come to her of their own volition.

"What exactly is this place...?"

"It’s a holy site." Lioraeth lifted herself off the ground and tried to regain some semblance of dignity. "It is here where those of royal blood compete to prove themselves worthy of ascending to the throne. I once competed against my sisters here, and beat them soundly... fugly bitches."

For some reason, Yari and Giselle found themselves glancing at each other. They then shrugged before going back to listening.

"Past the waterfall, you’ll find a whirlpool waiting for each of you. Once you jump inside, you’ll be transported into a place called the Gilded Grounds. It is there that your trial shall take place."

"And this trial is...?" At some point, Dakota had become absolutely covered in animals and pixies.

"Well, it would hardly be surprising if I told you what to expect." The fae queen folded her arms.

All three of the horsemen stared at her in complete unamusement.

"...Go fight some stuff and complete some puzzles."

Solomon and Nila swiftly turned on their heels and began walking toward the waterfall. Dakota shrugged off her new friends gently before she ran to join them.

Lioraeth almost couldn’t believe their attitudes.

"...Isn’t there anything else you want to know??"

Nila suddenly turned back. " Is this trial thing going to take all day??"

"I-It shouldn’t, but that depends on y-"

"Curses!"

As Liorath watched the horsemen disappear behind the waterfall, she couldn’t help but think that they were the strangest collection of siblings the five realms had ever seen.

"How did Eir’Vael know to make this place the site of a trial for them?" Jiaoying was just as mesmerized by the location they were in as anyone.

"He didn’t." Giselle rolled her eyes as she pointed to Lioraeth.

"This one couldn’t stop bragging about how she wasn’t duped by the grounds ’special effect’. Eir’Vael made a joke about how they doubted such a place would work on them, and then they seemed to get a little spark in that beautiful head."

"And what’s the part that wouldn’t work on them again?"

Lioraeth explained the context of the trial that she believed would truly test the horsemen’s mastery over Clarity. Jiaoying had a hard time hiding her surprise.

"Well, that... Yes, I believe that should work quite well, actually." She nodded. "But how are they to move onto the second stage after-"

"Must we really spend our time here pondering over these matters when the day before us is so beautiful??"

Yari suddenly grabbed Jiaoying by the hand and began pulling her away. "If you will both excuse us, I have not seen my love for quite some time now, and I would very much like to spend a private moment with her if you do not mind."

Jiaoying’s face turned slightly red. This wasn’t exactly how she had planned to have their first date, but she scarcely knew of anywhere that was more beautiful than this place. Yari’s company made it all the better.

"Ooh! Do you mind if I tag along??" Giselle skipped behind them.

"Yes!" Yari barked.

"Great! The more the merrier, as I always say!"

"You fucking-"

Jiaoying listened with her jaw agape as Yari’s beautiful lips spouted forth a string of obscenities the likes of which she had never even imagined before.

That was perhaps the first day she realized just how head over heels she really was.

-

When the horsemen passed from underneath the waterfall, they were all donning their armor.

Nila unsurprisingly led the charge, jumping headfirst into the swirling portal at their feet.

Being embraced by the cold depths was only uncomfortable for a mere moment before the horsemen hit solid ground hard enough to rattle their bodies.

Nila had perhaps been broken upon landing. She giggled like a madwoman as she rolled along the ground. "That was so fun! Let’s do it again!"

As Solomon and Dakota picked their heads up off the ground, they stared at their sister as if she had genuinely lost her mind.

Only to remember moments later that she had always been just a bit out of the ordinary...

The group got to their feet shortly after arriving.

With a thought, Solomon summoned his weapons around him, inspiring an awe-struck look from Dakota before she endeavored to do the same.

Torches spontaneously lit up to illuminate the dark space. The siblings could finally see that they had ended up inside a cave platform.

A rocky path forward seemed to lead deeper into the cavern, with fewer and fewer torches to light their way with every step.

Solomon summoned his mask onto his face as he stepped forward. He didn’t have to give his sisters a single word to follow him; after all of their time together, everyone naturally knew their roles and protocols for dangerous situations.

It should have been easy. Something that required no thought.

But Solomon only got to take two steps before Nila said something that made his blood freeze.

"Sister... Please do not be alarmed, but... Why are there two of you?"