Domino

After that horrible incident, James quickly retreated back to his room and locked the door. He wouldn't even allow his parents or Daphne in, so they just left him alone. They figured that this was something that James needed to figure out on his own.

"At least I've gained a few new unexpected allies, however it doesn't change what I've said and done. What am I becoming?" wondered James as he held his head.

"Sounds to me like you're in quite the dilemma" said Saladin.

Looking up in shock, James saw his teacher standing near the locked door.

"Let me guess, you used magic? You could have at least knocked" said James.

"Even if I did, you still wouldn't have let me in. I......heard of your troubles" said Saladin.

"Well you won't have to worry about that anymore because this is the last time I'm going out there to fight" said James.

"Come now, the James that I trained wouldn't say that" said Saladin.

"Master.....you weren't there, you may have heard of it but you didn't actually see it. I'm dangerous, I've always known it.....because of my abilities" said James.

"So then, do you believe that you are the chosen one? The one that was spoken of in legends? The savior that the world needs?" asked Saladin.

"How.....can I know?" asked James.

"I can tell you what I believe, I believe that you will bring balance to everything and everyone in this world and save them from the clutches of darkness. I have trained you since you were young, you have become stronger and wiser than beyond anything I could have ever imagined" said Saladin.

".......And the fairies, do I stay and hurt them or allow things to go on as they are now?" asked James.

"Neither.......remember your training James, you will know what to do" said Saladin as he vanished.

Once again, James was left alone with his own thoughts. Looking at the time, it was already 10 pm. He quickly showered and immediately went to bed.

Next day

Next morning, James immediately apologized to his family for the way he's been behaving. Although in all honesty, they understood what he was going through....especially Daphne. They knew that James was going to snap eventually, with everything that has happened to him.

The path of a hero is always filled with challenges and doubts. In this case, there was plenty of it.

"I'm sorry James, if I had known I never would have agreed to take the mission" said Daphne.

"Don't blame yourself Daphne, you weren't the one that did it. If anything, the responsibility is mine" said James as he walked away.

"Oritel...." said Mariam.

"I know.......I have heard rumors, but I didn't think it was this bad. Its out of control.....I have failed him as a father" said Oritel.

"Even if you had known, nothing could have been done. Lets just hope that things will get better" said Mariam.

As James walked outside, he sat at a nearby bench in the royal garden.

"What is my purpose? That's the main question.....isn't it? For me, that is one of life's great questions. However.....its a question without an answer, just what am I supposed to do?" wondered James.

Daphne quietly watched her brother from a distance, she knew that no words would have an effect on him at the moment.

Sometimes, Daphne wished she could understand what it was that James was feeling. In part, it was because James was a little hard to read at times. Also because.......he was right, however much she claimed that she understood what he was going through....in reality she knew nothing at all....and she hated that.

Daphne knew that this was a time of darkness but for someone like her.....it was an opportunity. After becoming the guardian for her world, so many tasks were suddenly put upon her. It was all so sudden, so many expectations and so many praises. As a fairy, Daphne knew the benefits and risks but she still continued her duty. Which was basically the main reason why fairies were put as the number one priority, they had it hard....unlike others.

But this was different, right now there was someone right in front of her who was unlike the others. Someone who was......just as powerful, capable, wise and kind. But who would actually see it? Daphne sometimes wished....she could put herself in James's position, but that was clearly impossible. Fairies have a hard time....but the person in front of her.....had it harder than anyone else....including other warriors.

Right now, there is a grand celebration being held at the council chamber located in the main city of magix. Only important people, trusted people and most importantly.....fairies are welcomed there. Daphne herself had received an invitation and she had accepted it. But now she wasn't so sure if this was the right thing to do or not.

At that moment, she saw James getting up. After that, he approached her.

"You might want to get moving, otherwise you'll miss the event" said James.

"Yeah, I should. But......" said Daphne.

James then placed a hand on Daphne's shoulder.

"Daphne, do this for yourself.....not me. They asked for your presence....and you can't let them down now. Not after everything you did, do this....for me Daphne" said James.

"............Fine, but I still think you should come with me" said Daphne.

"Ha, I don't have an invitation Daphne, don't forget that. What do you want me to do? Sneak in?" asked James as he impersonated that scene.

This made Daphne laugh as she saw her brother's failed acting performance.

"Take care of yourself James" said Daphne.

"You too Daphne, someone like you......can make for a valuable target. You know what I mean....in addition to being our guardian fairy....you are the crowned princess and a keeper of the dragon flame" warned James.

Nodding, Daphne went back to her room in order to change for the event. As that happened, James also headed back to his room. Upon arriving there, he quickly installed the latest version of the television he won in a raffle. He may not be there with Daphne in person, but whoever said that he couldn't see the event himself?

Council chamber

The grand celebration was indeed grand, it lived up to its name. Among the attendees, there were high generals, esteemed VIP's and the party organizers. Most importantly, attending the event were all of the guardian fairies. Every single one of them were there. You can be sure that they were drawing the most attention to themselves. Not only were their dresses grand, they were all very beautiful and you practically feel their power rolling off of them.

Many people were asking them for a dance, which they happily complied to. Daphne herself was getting swamped with dance requests but she politely turned them all down. Soon she spotted three familiar faces.

"Daphne, glad you could make it" said Liliana.

"Yeah, I'm here. This is quite the party" said Daphne.

"Yeah, its alright. These people won't leave me alone though, I'm pretty sure they only want to get to know me better because I'm royalty and rich" said Axel.

"They can't all be that bad" said Daphne.

"There were some that were genuine and I was really tempted by them. By the way, how is he doing?" asked Mistelia.

".......Exactly as you would think, he's still down. He still blames himself for that incident" said Daphne.

"I can tell you right now that those same fairies are here right as well" said Axel as she looked to the side.

"Guess it was a good thing he didn't come after all" said Daphne.

"Quite frankly, I don't blame him for acting the way he did. I myself can't say anything, its a wonder that he can still forgive me and even see me as a person at all" said Liliana.

"That's just who he is, still.....he should be here" said Daphne.

Domino

"Man I should be there, just look at all that food" thought James.

Currently James was watching the event via his new television set, he could see all the people that were attending. However, James could also see the fairies that he.....did things with and it immediately brought back bad memories. Guess it was a good thing that he wasn't attending this event after all.

Suddenly the alarm went off and James immediately viewed the threat. He soon had wide eyes when he saw the report.

"This can't be right, the council chamber is heavily guarded. No one can break into it, unless....the enemy is already within" thought James.

He immediately tried to contact Daphne but James couldn't get a signal through.

"That building must be emitting a different communication channel, how am I supposed to warn everyone there now?" wondered James.

James wondered if he should consider sneaking into the building unnoticed, however he soon reasoned with himself that the building was crawling with highly trained generals and powerful guardian fairies. They would be fine......until he thought of Daphne.

"Alright......looks like I will be sneaking into the building after all" thought James.

He was soon at the airport and he immediately commandeered a jet. Using it, James flew to the capital city of magix.

Upon arrival, James could see the place. As expected, it was heavily guarded. No way was anyone breaking in. Hopefully James was sneaky and stealthy enough to get in unnoticed.

He was soon at the foot of the building and he immediately jumped up onto the rooftop. Looking down, James could already see guards in the area he was previously at. After running through the rooftop door, he jumped into the air vents as he saw more guards coming his way. James then recollected on the enemy he was supposed to find while continuing his journey.

"Cafar, he is wanted in over 20 realms. Along with that, he has a small army. He's adapt at both close and long ranged combat. He's got a reputation as a highly trained fairy killer. Of course, he was no match for the guardian fairies but things may be different this time" thought James.

Soon James saw light coming from beneath him, he could see what looked like the control room. There was a security guard in there, sipping his coffee.

Quietly unscrewing the screws, James gently pushed the grate open. He then saw the security guard leaving the area, seeing that as his chance James jumped down. He then looked at the monitors, he now had access to every camera in the building. After looking around using said cameras, James found someone that was hiding behind a pillar. The person soon turned around and James could see facial features that matched Cafar's description.

"No doubt about it, its him. Now for the next part.....boy I sure hope I don't get into trouble for this" thought James as he reached for the microphone.

Meanwhile, Daphne was enjoying herself greatly. As she looked around, she could see many guys flirting with the fairies. It was to be expected, just like them....she too was the main event. It wasn't everyday that fairies get to party and the commoners were using this opportunity to get to know them better.

Then suddenly, the audio machines started whirling to life and Daphne had a big shock.

"Attention everyone, this is prince James of Domino. I'm......sure that most of you......especially the fairies have heard a lot about me during these last couple of days. Some of you were even the victims of my.....anger, I won't try and make excuses for what I did. But now, I think its time that all of you became aware of something. In this building, right now.......there is a dangerous criminal by the name of Cafar....also known as the fairy killer......he could be standing right next to you.....and you won't even know it" said James.

At that moment, everyone started looking around.

"If we allow him to continue standing around, Cafar will be able to kill dozens of fairies and people tonight. Unless we stop him........I know....most of you especially the fairies wouldn't listen to me. I'm nothing special.....I don't get new powers.....I'm not like the fairies....so I won't try to be like them. But at least hear me out, I know I'm asking a lot.....the price of freedom is high. It always has been.....but its a price that I'm willing to pay.....in order to keep you all safe....and if I'm the only one then so be it. However......I'm willing to bet that I'm not the only one that feels the same way" said James.

Suddenly to James's surprise, he could see the guardian fairies, the ones that James had attacked raising their fists into the air. They were suddenly cheering, then one by one each of the fairies began doing the same thing until the whole room was cheering. At that moment James realized something, despite their differences....it doesn't change what he and the others do. They save lives....so now it was time to do their duty.

"I can see Cafar, he's on the move. You, the high general standing near the east door, stop him!" shouted James.

James soon saw the high general stopping a huge man from leaving, it also wasn't long until a fight broke out. Cafar's army soon came out of hiding and they were soon firing at everyone. The fairies immediately raised their magical shields to defend the people, after that they immediately fired their spells on the army.

Once that was done, all of the fairies immediately transformed and a huge fight soon broke out.

"Guess I better get in there too" thought James as he ran for the door.

While the fairies dealt with Cafar's army, the high generals were dealing with Cafar himself. Despite their skill, Cafar's sheer height was making it difficult for the high generals to subdue him. It wasn't long until all of the high generals were swept into a wall and they were soon unconscious.

As the fairies continued fighting, Cafar's army was soon dealt with. However, they were unprepared for an attack coming from Cafar himself.

Cafar clapped his hands together and soon a sonic wave was formed. It was so strong that the fairies were all pushed onto the floor in pain. Looking up, they could see Cafar staring at them with authority and they all looked at him in fear.

"That prince James got one thing right, I do kill fairies for a living. I'm just like him, I'm nothing special and that irritates me. You girls get everything don't you, you......magical princesses! Starting today, that's all about to change" said Cafar as he raised his arms into the air.

The fairies all tried to get back up but Cafar's attack really dealt a number on them, way more than what they had anticipated. As they braced themselves for the attack to come, it never came. They could suddenly hear Cafar crying out in pain.

Upon opening their eyes, they could see a boy kicking Cafar away. All of the fairies minus Daphne were surprised by what they saw.

"Ha! I take it that you're prince James?" asked Cafar.

"Yep and you are Cafar. This will be the last time you'll take away another life. I'm afraid I must request for your surrender" said James.

All of the fairies were soon watching the event that was happening right in front of them. Time for them to find out if this boy can back up his talk earlier

End of chapter