The Duke's Unwanted Wife

“Your majesty, your attention is urgently needed in the Grand Hall,” the dwarf said, bowing. The tall lady facing the window slowly turned around. She was perhaps the most beautiful and regal woman the world had ever seen with her ebony skin and her flowing curly white hair. The tears that fell from her eyes made one feel a sense of responsibility as if to protect her. She wiped the tears away slowly, sniffing.    

    

“Your majesty…..”    

    

“Lead the way, Cedar,” she said in the most hypnotizing voice. The dwarf bowed as she walked past him in her flowing purple gown. A crown of gold and the finest jewels sat on her head. As she walked past other people, they lowered their heads in reference. The door to the Grand Hall was opened by two iron knights and she walked in. The heads of the others seated on the high chairs were also bowed as she made her way to the golden throne in the room.    

    

“You may rise,” she said when she was comfortably sat.    

    

“Your majesty, if I may, please rescind your order for all gods to withdraw from the human world. If the human world loses magic, I would lose my powers, the same as many other gods. Please reconsider, your majesty!”    

    

“Uriel, have you forgotten that I am the goddess of Destiny? I quite literally have the ability to see the future. Rescinding my order is not on the table.”    

    

“Your majesty, you told us that your ability is not infallable. The future can be changed through minute actions as weak as the flap of a butterfly’s wings.”    

    

“Thriton, sometimes, the future that you can see is better than the future you cannot. Destiny must not be toyed with. I will entertain no other arguments on this matter. If there is any other thing you wish to discuss with me, then I will listen to your complaints.”    

    

Everything went dark from there. When the light finally came back, it was in a totally gory scene. The beautiful woman was laying in a pool of her own golden blood, singing a song. It was in a language the world couldn’t possibly conceive with such strong magic that it could change the world order.    

    

Her eyes slowly fluttered shut as the sound of glass breaking grew louder than the sounds of her singing. Suddenly, it all went silent. Like a statue, her body broke into several pieces, all flying in the wind like dust. Thunder rumbled and the world experienced a great disturbance. Within the midst of this disturbance, a child was being born in a great household. In another lesser household, another child was being born. In a somewhat great household, a child was being conceived. The threads of destiny that used to be plain the world, suddenly disappeared, the world order slowly turning to chaos.    

    

~PRESENT~    

    

Natalia’s eyes snapped open. She blinked her eyes rapidly. She felt surrounded by something warm and comfortable. It was a familiar feeling that she had definitely experienced recently. When she looked around, she saw she was lying on the body of a large blue wolf, protecting her in his torso. They were laying on an even larger bed which was definitely in her bedroom.    

    

"It had to take me almost dying for me to see you again? You're very cruel, Marvis," she mumbled, touching his ears. His ears flicked and his eyes slowly opened. Being assessed by his eyes, she could see something akin to relief in his eyes.    

    

"I'm hurt, sister. You didn't even realize I was in the room too," Sebastian suddenly said. She turned her head and saw him too and beside him was Amaika. Tears dropped from Amaika's eyes as they looked at Natalia.    

    

"I'm sorry. How long was I out for?"    

    

"Three days. What happened?"    

    

"I……don't know. Did something happen when I was asleep?"    

    

"Yes. We saw these huge flashes of lightning that definitely came from Ducroft. We have yet to receive any news but Amaika said it was a sign of someone ascending. Nobody has ascended in thousands of years. We don't know what's going to happen so all trade has been suspended at home and movement is restricted. Most importantly, the leaders of all the nations in the continent are calling for a meeting with the Kingdom of Ducroft. It's going to happen on North Pawal Island."    

    

"The neutral territory? Has there been any response from Ducroft?"    

    

"None whatsoever. I heard something also happened to the Royal Consort during the ascension. All of this is irrelevant for now. You should rest more. I'll call in some servants as soon as you get rid of your mutt."    

    

"Don't call him a mutt. How long as he been like this?"    

    

"He randomly ran in two days ago and wouldn't leave your side after arbitrarily transforming. He growled at everyone that came close and I was considering taking his head off," Sebastian said, truly annoyed. It wasn't easy to piss him off, especially when something was done without bad intentions but Marvis was denying Natalia the proper care she needed while 'guarding' her like that.    

    

"He's marked you as his own. As a part of his pack, he is more than obligated to protect you till his last breath. Werewolves in particular are fiercely loyal to their families and would go to any lengths to keep them alive and protected. This trait of theirs can be a blessing and a curse. Now that he sees you're safe, you can tell him to leave. I can see his intelligence is not with him in this premature form," Amaika explained.    

    

"Premature?" Sebastian asked, surprised.    

    

"You didn't honestly think that this was the size of a fully grown wolf, did you?"    

    

Natalia was finally able to get them all out of the room. She sighed, taking a deep breath.    

    

"Madaline" she called. In the past, it was an almost instantaneous response. However, several minutes passed and there was no response. Natalia feared the worst and sighed, taking the bell that Sebastian dropped for her to call the servants. It was enchanted so they could hear it from wherever they were.    

    

"Honestly, the ease of access from the heavenly court to earth is quite troubling. I couldn't even believe my eyes, that's why I made it back late. You didn't really think I wouldn't answer your call, did you, Natalia?" A childlike voice said from behind her. Even though she took on a human like form, her pointed ears, her eyes and manner of speech all pointed to the fact that she was Madaline.    

    

"Of course not. You are speaking with the human tongue and you look like a child. Is this what godhood does?"    

    

"I could speak with the human tongue quite fine. You kept talking to me in the Fae language so I couldn't stop myself. As for this form, it's the simplest form I can take right now to control my powers. It's been quite…. challenging ascending, especially since I found out the truth.".    

    

"What truth?"    

    

"Natalia, I….I can't tell you right away. I haven't gotten my memories back yet and the heavenly court is the mess I imagined it to be. I won't stop answering your call so don't stop calling me and don't stop trying to ascend. When you do, it would finally make sense, especially the reason why you lived this life again."    

    

"What are you talking about?"    

    

"I have to leave now. I can't leave Leilin alone for too long. Rest assured, I am always present when you need me."    

    

"Madaline!"    

    

She was gone like she was never there. In fact, Natalia thought she imagined her presence there. She sighed, ringing the bell. The servants entered the room almost immediately, taking care of her. When she was presentable, they were back in her room again, Marvis in his human form and Princess Temara joining them.    

    

"I'm so glad you're safe, Lady Natalia. I called for a priest from Ducroft and the empire. The Empire turned down my request but the church of Ducroft said the Saintess wasn't feeling too well so our request was denied again."    

    

It couldn't possibly be a coincidence. All three of them had collapsed at the same time. Madaline knew something about it but she wasn't saying anything. There was nothing Natalia could do about it just yet.    

    

"Thank you for your care, your highness. I am feeling better now and I can assure you this is a rare occurrence."    

    

"I want you to treasure your body well, Lady Natalia."    

    

"It's what I keep telling her. Look how worried everyone is about you….don't glare at me, you know I'm right!"    

    

"Don't yell at her, Lord Adamantine. She's still very weak."    

    

"I'm reprimanding my younger sister, your highness. I am still angry that she faked her death and made an arduous journey like that without asking for my help. I was worried she had finally died this time."    

    

"I understand. The bond you have is really envious. I will check up on you from time to time, Lady Natalia. Don't worry, I'll make a suitable excuse for you to the other ladies."    

    

"Thank you, your highness."