He shouldnt have teased his sister
by Jasmine monica
A precocious boy annoys his sister and her reaction is completely too far on her innocent brother

chapter 1

Richard was startled by his sister Rose storming into the house in rage. She stamped up the steps and flew into er bedroom. He stood outside snickering at he heard his sister scream in rage. A few things were threw into the wall. She sounded seriously pissed about something.

The fifteen year old opened the door to see her sister sitting on her bed, huffing in rage. “Whats up sis,” He said mockingly with a boyish smirk.

Rose grunted, “You just don't know how hard it all is to be taken seriously at ANYTHING being a girl.” She said in exasperated rage. “I spent nearly 30 minutes trying to explain to my professor today that I wanted to be on the project. It gets extra credits to maintain my 4.0. I talk about how I have been doing and that I fully understood the concept. I can program nearly anything into the mainframe. And then guess what?” She demanded.

“He fell asleep,” Richard offered, “Or what, he wants to sleep with you?” Then he added mischievously, “Maybe you should.”

She yelled, “I noticed the whole time I was talking he didn't hear anything. His eyes were HERE” She pointed to her cleavage. “The entire time. Do you know how frustrating it is.”

He shook his head. “NO,” He smirked again. “But we don't have those, you do. Why do you wear those types of tops.”

“We like them,” Rose told him. “They are comfortable and we should be able to talk to people and not be thought of as a pair of breasts.” She screamed. “Richard, my face is up here. You are all the same. You have no idea what it would like. Try to imagine if you were a girl, and couldn't get anyone to take you seriously. Everyone staring at your chest or your ass any time you try to be taken seriously. How would you like it.”

“I would love it SIS,” He said mockingly. “Girls have it so easy. All you worry about is your clothes, fashion or whose going out with who. You look pretty and people will give you anything. You have great assets, use them and you will get far in life.”

Her face turned red, “Get out!”

Richard turned and headed out. “Is it your time of the month, sis, why are you so angry.” He snickered as he heard a scream of rage as he shut the door.

She sat there wondering how she was going to get her brother back. He was such a condescending asshole. She couldn't turn him into a girl. That was far beyond her abilities at present. That took immense power to do. But she knew who did have that type of power. How ever, there was little chance she would agree to such a thing on her arrogant 15 year old brother over a sibling rivalry. She would think its all stupid.

So she wondered how she could get that woman to agree to do this. She had to hate him and think he deserved such a life if she was to ever agree. Well, Rose smirked. She was very protective of her daughter Crystal. Very protective. An evil cruel idea started forming in her mind. Something twisted, it would end up destroying her brother. He would learn his lesson indeed. She got her book out and started looking for the proper spell and the potions it would require and she had it all in her room.

She mixed the potion right, and poured it into a pot. She waited until it was all ready and prepared and then poured it into a glass. Only, no one could see it except for her. The glass appeared empty.

She walked out into the kitchen. Her brother Richard was watching the television. She walked to him, “Richard, I'm sorry. I am sorry for being mad at you. Its not your fault. Here, take a soda from me.”

He took the sodacan and got a glass from the kitchen. He sat there and filled the glass and started drinking as she smirked. Perfect, Rose thought.

“This is good. Lets watch some television together.”

They sat together as he started dozing off on her. He woke up about twenty minutes later seeing her face. He rubbed his eyes. “What happened?” He asked with a glassy look in his eyes. He was almost totally under her control now.

“You fell asleep as always. Come to my room and I will help you.” He stood up as if in some sort of daze and followed here to her bedroom. He sat on her bed as she read though the book again. Then she started talking in some sort of incomprehensible language. It sounded like some chant that started speaking directly to his mind. He began repeating the words with her. At this moment, he wasn't even aware of what was going on.

Later that night, he walked out of the house and headed down the street. He saw crystal leaving her friends place. Her friends were with her as she turned seeing Richard approaching. They were good friends, they all hung out with his sister regularly. “Hi, Richard.” Crystal quipped.

Crystal had a slight thing for Richard for as long as she can remember. “Crystal, want to hang out.” He offered and she went with him. “Where did you have in mind. My parents are out for the night. Want to eat something. I have a lot.”

They went into her mothers place and she turned on some music. They talked into the evening. Then something happened when eight PM came. She was in the kitchen getting some more chips when he approached. “Richard,” She said with a smile.

Richard grabbed Crystal and pushed her down. She started struggling as he held her down. She started screaming. He started hitting her until she gave up.

About an hour later, Richard walked out of the house as she was bruised and crying. She ran into her bedroom to call her mother. She came home quickly and examined her daughter. Sarafine was enraged. “Who did this?”

“Richard, Roses little brother. We decided to hang out and then he did this. We were having a good time.”

Her face turned sullen. “That bastard will pay.”

“Are we going to call the police,” Crystal asked.

Sarafine shook her head, “No, I have a better idea.” They both smiled despite the agony Crystal was enduring. It would be good to see him like that.

Sarafine called a meeting of all of her friends and Rose was invited too. Rose knew she had to attend.

They had entered a cellar of an old house that belonged to Sarafines family. Rose looked around at many of the other older women. “Lets get right to the point,” Sarafine said sternly. “My daughter has been raped by Roses brother Richard. It all happened last night. She was beaten and I don't know if she will recover. I intend to punish Richard Personally. Does anyone have any objections.” She glared at Rose daring her to protest or protect her brother.

“Richard,” Rose said. “I never known him to attack girls like that. Hes a little sexist and demeaning to women. Are you sure, Sarafine.”

“Yes,” Sarafine said with an air of finality. “I looked into her mind. Her condition is clear. This is your brother.”

“Then do what you must,” She bowed at Sarafine. “I agree he needs a lesson.”

“Than bring him here,” Sarafine commanded. “Don't let him go to school this morning. Take him right here for me.”

She turned to walk out. Her brother would probably be preparing for school in a few hours. She would be ready to escort him. Not that it usually happened, but he wouldn't mind and would be easy to convince him to ditch and hang out with her or his friends. So she waited until he woke up for the day. He showered and ate. He got his books and supplied and started heading out when Rose interrupted him.

Richard looked down at her beside him. “Rose?” He inquired.

“I wanted to walk with you today. I had an idea.” Rose inquired as they walked out.

“Yes, what?” Richard asked.

“Lets ditch today and have some fun.” She smiled mischievously.

“Great, where did you want to go.” Richard asked.

“I know where this really old house is. Lets start there. I bet we can have a lot of fun there.” Rose offered and they agreed and headed down there.

Richard saw the old house in the middle of a field. It looked like an enormous manor. It seemed to be kept up and occupied. :Sis, are you are sure about this.”

She nodded and pulled him along. They entered the house only to be confronted with a very large tall imposing, and seemingly very angry woman dressed in solid intimidating black form fitting dress. Richard looked over at his sister, “Yeah, this was a great idea, thanks a lot.”

Sarafine sneered and grabbed Richards arm. “Follow me Richard.” And violently pulled him along into a large room into the corner of the house. There he saw other imposing women. Rose stood with the women, and there was Crystal with some bruises on her face. She looked very distraught and almost fearful seeing him. Now, he was starting to feel very afraid.

“Whats going on,” Richard asked meekly.

He was in the center of a semicircle. “Richard,” The older woman said. “I am Sarafine. Crystal is my daughter. She has accused you of beating and raping her last night. And from what I see, I am convinced you attacked her.”

What,” He said in disbelief.

“You were with her last night?” Sarafine demanded.

“Yes, we hung out. But Maam,” he pleaded. “She came on to me. She wanted it. She told me she wanted to have sex.”

Crystal shouted, “I never said that, you pig.”

Then suddenly Sarafine got angry. “Silence,” She shouted at Richard and threw her hand out. Some powerful force sent him flying back into the stone wall with a sickening thud. He cried out in pain and he was trapped on the wall. The powerful waves of intense pressure kept him pressed tightly into the wall. “You will not speak. You have no defense. We know you did it, and we know she didn't want you to have sexual contact with her. You are guilty. And the decision is unanimous. We agree.”

Every one of the women, including his sister all agreed.

Sarafine released her hold and he fell to the ground. He stood up to face this powerful angry woman who seemed totally unwilling to hear him.

“Our decision is, you will live the rest of your life as a girl.” Then she held out her hand and he felt the energy flow from her fingertips and enter into him. He began to change. He shrank from his six foot frame down. He kept shrinking until he appeared around five foot tall. His chest expanded, and kept expanding and growing into two large round mounds. His skin softened. His face softened from its hard angular form into a softer rounder more female face. His hair grew. And then he cried out as he felt a stabbing pain between his legs. It was done.

“The sentence has been carried out. You are now a girl. All who knew you were a boy no longer knows it, except for the people here. As a member of the school board, I will have your high school records changed. Now, throw him in a cell.”

He was tossed into one of the cages in the cellar. Totally bewildered, confused and afraid. And absolutely positive he never raped anyone. He just had to prove it.

He shouldn't have teased his sister

by Jasmine Monica

Richard a considers his live and how he will life from that point. And he resolves himself to solving what happened, and proving himself innocent

chapter 2

Richard sat alone on his bed in the darkened cell long into the night. There was little chance of any sleep after what the fifteen year old boy had just endured. Most boys may have been totally destroyed by the suddenness of the change forced upon their them. This one didn't. It left him with a resolve to figure it all out. So he sat there deeply contemplating in his darkened moon lit cell long into the night.

Richard thought that his sister and his relationship was fine. He thought she loved him. A little brother and sister teasing wasn't a bad thing, was it? It was to be expected. As he thought of the things he said, and the pranks he pulled on her over the years, his feelings on it all began to change. He begun realizing it went far beyond simply being a teenage boy asshole. Some of the things he said were incredibly cruel and very condescending, and it was relentless. If he was his sister and the roles were reversed. If he was subjected to that daily, on such a relentless consistency, he may have also built up a seething resentment and would consider doing something this extreme to get even. Well, if it was possible he would make up with his sister, but there was a far more important thing to deal with. Somehow she had did this. This is what caused him to rape another girl. That was inexcusable and he had to get to the bottom of it.

This woman, Sarafine was so enraged that she refused to listen to a word he said, not that he could blame her at the moment. He had no idea what her further intentions were in keeping him here. But he didn't want to leave things as they were. There must be a way to prove he didn't do this.

Then he thought of the final thing. That he was changed, and apparently this was how he would live the rest of his life. He stood up and examined this new form he had. His face was stunning. It had the soft roundish feminine edges in his jaws, large eyes, smallish chin. Only, his faces soft edges had a much softer sensuality to it than most other girls. That must have been intentional. He looked at his arms and shoulders. As a boy, he had massive broad masculine shoulders bursting with strength. That strength was due to years of intensive workouts. They now lacked that size and strength. His shoulders were narrow and his arms and biceps were soft and almost pencil thin. His skin was soft and delicate.

Then his hands went to his chest and he thought to himself, ‘Dayum’ These were huge. These must be the largest in his high school class now. The other girls would be really jealous, and it was be difficult to deal with all of the boys wanting his attention. Yes, this would be a new life that would take a lot to adapt to.

Then he heard the key enter a lock and the door swung open. There was Sarafine and her friend. His sister wasn't there. He figured she would want to see this most of all.

Sarafine, a older woman somewhere in her late 40s perhaps early 50s. She wasn't an unappealing woman by any standard. She looked large, imposing powerful and beautiful. He really saw nothing wrong with her at all. She was enraged at an attack on her daughter. Why shouldn't she be?

She spoke in a powerful regal tone, “I am releasing you now, Richard. We have a few things to discuss, But first, No one will remember you as a boy. I spent the night changing your records to being female. The name you chose can be filled in an instant once you decide on one. Now, we just need to go over what you really need to know as a member of the female sex. First, do your best not to be in public places alone, be cautious of males offering favors or rides. Third, be aware that you are now weaker and many boys who want your attention are stronger and may have less than noble intentions on you. Just like you did. I will expect you to keep going to school. And your family knows that they have two daughters all along.”

He held up his hand, “Can I ask you something,”

“Be quick about it,” She said icily.

“My family, Maam. Please don't let them think they had two daughters all along. Leave them thinking it was just as it is. They rarely notice me anyway. I am curious if they even notice me now. They ignore me, and dot over my sister at every chance.”

She nodded. “What name do you want?” She asked.

“I always liked the name, Veronica.” Richard said.

“That's a beautiful name. It is done. The final thing you need to be concerned with is your time.”

He gave a foggy look. “Huh, Time.”

“Yes, your time. Its something all women and girls need to know. If we go unprepared , we have major yucky problems for the rest of the day. We are left asking another girl for help and that can be embarrassing. And she is snickering the whole time at an unprepared girl that wasn't ready for its arrival. Your date is the 17. 17 of every month, and the next 4 days at least, if you are lucky. Remember that, or it will remember you.”

Now go home and prepare for school. Lets see if your parents even notice.”

It was still dark so Sarafine had her friend Mrs. Fawna walk him home. She explained some further things he would need to concern himself with. They had a brief discussion about pads, liners, tampons and things she needed to prepare. That was going to be the in three weeks. It was still dark when he entered his parents home and went up to his bedroom. Fawna left. Her place was across the street.

He looked at the filth and his room stank. This wouldn't do, he thought but that wasn't important now. His sister Rose must be out, perhaps she ditched, and was just going to hang out with her friends. So he went into his sisters bedroom and looked around.

He saw the stuff she cut up to make the potion. Then he saw the book opened and laid out. He was unable to read it. The words were completely incomprehensible.

He logged onto his sisters computer and saw a lot of his sisters work and her interests and her friends. None of that was relevant. He looked around and found the downloads and recordings off of her webcam. There it was. Her computers cam recorded her making the stuff and learning the spell. She liked to record her accomplishments for future use. He put it on his cloud drive and another on one of his flash drives.

It was about that time when the sky began brightening. The Sun would begin rising very soon so he needed to prepare for his parents waking up. He needed to prepare for morning and then he wondered on what he could wear now. He had nothing he could wear with his body. Everything he owned was for a large framed boy. He would have to go to his sisters bedroom to find anything appropriate.

First, he rushed into the bathroom. His mother briefly saw and said ,“Hi Richard, Did you have a good time my son.” She said absently as they crossed paths. She must not had even looked up. His heart sank. They didn't even realize he was not their son anymore. They were too involved with their own life to see their son. A tear fell from his eye as he jumped into the shower.

Then he wrapped a towel around himself and made it to his sisters bedroom to select something to wear for the day. He opened her closet and found her jeans, the various dresses and her tops. He was bewildered by the choices a girl had at clothing. He didn't know. He selected a pair of hip hugger jeans and a loose fitting low neckline top. Then he opened her drawers to select the intimates and found a nice soft pair of regular pink panties and a matching plain white bra. And he proceeded to dress himself as a girl. He noticed the bra was extremely uncomfortably, painfully tight. He was much more endowed than his sister. His sister was a B, he found out just now. He must at least be a D. His breasts were spilling out of the tiny B cup. Lets see if his parents notice a thing. He would bet money they noticed nothing at all. He didn't think they would even look up. Even his voice change probably wouldn't prompt a reaction.

He went down and said “Hi Mom.”

“Good morning Richard. Your food is on the table and we are already late. I have an early morning class.” Obliviously she replied to Richard as he sat down to eat.

His parents sat across from him totally in discussion with eachother about work matters, his mother studying to be an RN, She discussed her classes at Nursing school and his father a manager at the plant. Richard was across from them wearing his pink low cut neck line with cleavage spilling out, his long hair and face. And they seemed totally oblivious. He felt like he had been punched. He knew they didn't care about him, but this was extreme. They didn't care for him at all. A tear fell from his eyes at the rejection. How could they not notice. His parents finished and. He wanted to cry

They left without another word. Now, he decided to figure this out. He did know his father kept other cameras around for security. One was in the Living room making sure the maids didn't take anything. He went there and found exactly what he was looking for. He put that on the thumb drive and set it all up on the main television. He was going to ditch again, and went across the street to have a talk with Mrs Fawna.

She opened the door with a scowl, “Aren't you supposed to be in school little girl.” She said mockingly.

“I apologize, Mrs Fawna, but this is very important and you must see it.” He held up his flash drive for her to see.

“Very well, lets go see what you have got, that you think is so important for me.” Mrs. Fawna says as if she isn't convinced. She is at least willing to see. It was more than he hoped for.

So Mrs. Fawna led him into her home and found her office. She took the drive and inserted it into a port. The files were found and showed on the screen and she clicked on one. The Video started and he saw that she was taking this serious. A fearsome scow spread across her face. He almost felt her cold rage.

‘Did the room just get colder,’ He trembled. She stood up taking the drive out and said in an air of finality, “Lets go.” She led Richard into his own house and headed directly to Roses bedroom. And there, she saw it clearly. The book, the spells, the orbs and herbs she mixed up for him. A look of horror spread across her face as she turned to Richard with the most sorrowful look he could imagine. She gasp in despair, “Oh no.” She said looking at him. “Richard, I am so sorry.” She pulled him into a tight embrace. “We will make this right.”

She got on her cell and called Sarafine. “Sarafine,” She said seriously. “You need to get here at once. Listen to me, this is something you must see.”

Sarafine was pulling into the driveway within minutes. Fawna was there and led her into the living room where they sat watching the video of her making the potion. Then they watched another video of Rose giving it to Richard who seemed oblivious to what was going on. Then they watched another video where Rose taught him the words, and enchanting him to do her bidding. The spell was right there on the book she left open.

He watched as a terrifying look of sullen rage sank into Sarafines face. He thought she was frightening before, this was a whole new level. The room was definitely colder. He saw the windows freeze over with superchilled frost. The room darkened as frost appeared on the desk and the chairs.

She looked at Fawna and said in harsh threatening tone “Find Rose Now, lets meet at my place within the hour.

Fawna left and Sarafines features softened considerably. Her features turned into that of a totally loving and sympathetic mother, and eyes full of regret. “I will address you as Richard since its obvious I was very wrong. I made a snap judgment and assumed you were guilty. I'm sorry, . Let me look into your mind now. I should have done it at the start, I assumed you were guilty.”

She saw that he was very sorry for everything, and that he was confused and didn't know what was going on. He was unable to control any of his actions. She also saw the depressing loneliness he felt in life, his parents alienation of him and the pain that they didn't even notice a change. “You were right, I am so sorry for this, lets go make this right and punish the one who really did this to us.”

Then she quipped to herself as they drove to her own place. “I can’t believe Rose would do this. She would have my daughter violently attacked and raped simply because she was angry at you. She did this over a sibling feud I will teach her.”

They made it to her old house, Rose and Fawna followed. Rose immediately knew she was in deep shit. She saw the look of sullen rage in Sarafines eyes glaring directly at her. She also saw Sarafine holding Richard behind her possessively like a mother protecting a child.

She approached and Rose stepped back in fright. She shouted angry, “You had my daughter violently attacked and raped over a silly feud with your brother. I cant believe you, you bitch. You destroyed her life over your rivalry with your brother. You will pay for this.” She shouted with such power that Rose flew back.

Rose cried out in pain and saw there trembling in terror.

“Your punishment,” Sarafine said. “will be to be made into a dog of your own sex. You will be your parents dog and see how they care for you. You will retain your memories of your former life as a girl. You will still be you in mind, only you will be in the body of a dog. You will be your parents pet. If ever a time comes when your brother forgives you, I may reconsider.”

She cast the enchantments and Rose shrank and grew four legs and hair. Then they kicked the dog out.

Her face softened in a sympathetic motherly look. “Richard, I have done a horrible thing to your life. I will change you back. And then I will give you two gifts, what ever you desire. But first, how were your parents this morning?”

He started weeping. “They didn't even know.” He wiped a years out of his eyes. “I sat there eating in front of them. They never even noticed that I was a girl. They discussed their business, and left. My first request is don’t change me back. I can like this form you gave me.”

She nodded but warned, “If I don't change you, then this may stick. If its what you want, so what else do you want?” Sarafine asked.

Richard thought for a second on how to discuss his feelings. “There are several reasons and a big one that I don’t want to change. My sister thought this would destroy me. I want to show that it wont. There is nothing bad about being female. The second reason is more complicated. I admired girls all my life, I loved how they lived. I felt so apart from it not being able to share in it, that it made me into an asshole. That and my parents alienation from my life. And I couldn't even tell him what I wanted. This is what I want.” He said in a tone of finality.

“Very well,” Sarafine said. “And what else,”

“I want to be your daughter,” Richard pleaded. “You be my mother, protect and love me as someone should treat a child. I need that.”

She went to Fawna to discuss it for a few minutes. Then she turned back toward Richard, “I will. Now you are already late for school, Veronica.”

Chapter 3
Veronica is trying to make her way in life after being unjustly transformed after a cruel plot by her sister.

Veronica was almost happy now. She has lived with her adopted mother, Sarafine for two weeks now. It had been an enjoyable and bonding experience. She had felt loved as she never felt before. Sarafine actually cared for her and took the time to learn about her daughter, find out what she liked and didn't like. Sarafine spent time with Veronica and made sure she was safe. These were things that Veronica was very unaccustomed too. Her parents seemed to care less about her.

There was one thing that Veronica didn't consider when she demanded to be adopted by Sarafina after her transformation and wrongful punishment. That one thing she forgot to consider was Crystal's feelings in this.

Crystal had been the girl that Veronica had assaulted when she used to be a boy. The boy had violently raped her one night. Richard was under an evil spell, and he was unable to control his actions. Sarafine found out that his sister was part of the witches trained by Sarafine enchanted her brother and caused it, so he would be hated by Sarafine.

So, Crystal and Sarafine knew Richard wasn't responsible for it. He didn't really do it at all. And he was now Veronica, a beautiful, feminine, and very caring girl. But Crystal was still unsettled and afraid because Richard or veronica, it is the person that assaulted her that night. She felt fearful in Veronica's presence. She knew it was wrong, but those violent memories and feelings don’t go away. She was violently raped.

Veronica did what she could to give Crystal space and not interfere with her life. She approached Crystal that first night and slowly explained that she didn't take Crystals feelings into consideration, and she was sorry. She would never approach or be around Crystal. She would wait and hope someday they could become sisters. Veronica didn't know how long that would take, but given the violent attack and rape, Veronica figured that it was possible that it may never happen. Crystal had been very traumatized, so Veronica was mostly on her own at these times

Having lived most of his life as a boy put him at a significant disadvantage when it came to associating with the other girls as a girl. Veronica woke up earlier than Crystal, so she wouldn't encounter the other girl during her morning routine. She showered and struggled to get herself dressed. Even the tops were different somehow.

She went back into her room to dress and do her face.

Veronica struggled to make her face right. She tried to put an even coat of moisturizer and powder-like foundation on her face. Then she tried her best to do the blush. She really struggled with her eyes, the eyeliner, mascara, and eyeshadow. She didn't want to overdo it, but the first few times made her look like a clown with black eyes. She always struggled with this

Then she struggled to get all of the tangles from her hair, and she figured she was just about right. She went down the kitchen to make herself some breakfast when she saw Crystal standing there, shaking her head sadly.

“Veronica, what is this?” Crystal asked.

Veronica shrugged,” Excuse me, Did I do something, I am sorry.” Veronica was afraid she had upset Crystal.

Crystal approached Veronica and pointed to her hair. “Your hair is a tangled mess, it looks stupid, your eyes are mismatched, and whatever foundation you used is totally wrong. And lets not even mention what you have on. No wonder you are struggling to associate with the other girls. Let's see what we can do.”

Crystal took Veronica back into the bedroom, and she wiped the makeup off and spent some time showing Veronica how to work with her hair to get the tangles out and make it look smooth. She even used the curling iron to give her hair some real volume. Then Crystal smiled, “There, you see. It's much better.”

Veronica was stunned to see the improvement. Her hair actually shinned, and she loved the soft curls at the bottom. “I love it!” Veronica smiled. “Crystal, how are you doing.”

“It's still tough. But my sister needs some major help. I can't keep being afraid. We have to work through this together as sisters. So now, let's work on your face. Remember, you are in high school. Don't overdo it, you aren't on a runway, so less is better. There are times to really put it on, like on a date or to go out on a girl's night. But not for classes. Let me show you how to do it.”

Veronica watched as she used a tiny bit of liquid foundation and rubbed in an even coat, and then she applied some blush, and a faint hint of lip gloss was put on her lips.

Then veronica watched as Crystal the pencil around the corners of her eyes. Crystal said, “We don't have a lot of time, so I will just use some mascara, but I'm going to have to show you how to style your eyelashes correctly. That takes a little time. And we will also have to work on your hands and nails. I think we will invite some of my friends and have a mani party. You need some real work done, girl.”

Crystal looked in Veronica's closet and picked out some nice skinny jeans and a simple top. “Here, now you will look like a high school girl instead of a secretary going to the office. Now go eat and wait for me.”

Veronica went down the steps to eat, and Crystal came down a few minutes after. She sat down to eat some of the Eggs Vernocia made for her.

“It's still a struggle to accept you, Veronica, but I decided I have to try. I know what happened wasn't your fault, and I'm not blaming you. It's unfair to treat you how I was. It didn't make anything easier for me to avoid you. We are both victims, and I need to make an effort to accept you as my adopted sister. I will help you adapt to life. Anyway,.” Crystal smiled at her. “Damn, you need it. I watched you at school last week, and it was just sad. You still approach the girls in a boy way, we have to work on how you interact with the girls, you put them off, and they are starting to avoid you. Except for Ivy and Mary. Avoid them. They are a cliq, and they are bad news that they have set their sights on you. They are setting you up.

And I am worried about Tabi. Her mother is a witch, and she knows about you. I don't know what her angle is trying to be your friend, but she also has a nasty attitude. Stick with me.

Crystal took Veronica out. Crystal's friend Michelle had her car and gave them a ride to school.

Crystal stuck by Veronica's side as they walked in and were immediately approached by Ivy and her friend Mary. Crystal watched as the two went to Veronica and put their hands in her hair, saying, “Oooh look at her hair, and her face is so pretty. You are doing better.”

Crystal interrupted and pushed the girls away. She gave the two girls a stern look and said, “Back off,”

Ivy gave her a nasty look and walked away.

Veronica was confused, and Crystal said, “Those weren't complements. You know, like guys be dicks and such. They were mocking you. We call them cunts. They don't want to be your friend. Michelle is a real friend, Let me show you some other real friends. This is Karen and Amy. I have known Karen since I was young. She will stick by us, and Amy is wonderful. We will also have to work on how you talk to other girls. It's going to be very rough.

Veronica went to her classes for the day. Crystal had her own lessons to attend, and they weren't the same. Crystal was a year older than Veronica. She noticed that as a boy, she wasn't an excellent student at all. Richard tried but he wasn’t a good student.

Veronica listened intently to the lessons and took notes, she was a very good student and got along well with the teachers. She wondered why this was.

Veronica went out and met Crystal, who was waiting, and they went to the cafeteria to eat. Crystal took her sister to her group of friends and told her just to watch how the girls interacted with echother and do her best.

The girls chose their own table and sat down to start eating. Veronica did her best to watch how the girls talked to each other. She noted the difference in how they interacted vs. boys. Boys are much more teasing to each other in a friendly way, but it is usually a competition to better each other and be dominant. Girls stay on an even level, and don't try to one-up each other. They are much more friendly to each other as friends and supportive. There is playful banter and some mocking, but its really good-natured and never insulting to establish dominance.

One of the girls looked at Veronica and said, “Veronica, you are welcome here, there's no need to be shy. I am Teresa, I was in your morning English class, join our conversion, how was your day.”

Veronica also noted that the girls encourage conversation with each other and are supportive. When one looks troubled or shy, the girls gather around her to pull her out instead of exiling her as a boys group would to a boy who doesn't fit in. Veronica told her, “My day has well well, thank you, Teresa, how was yours.”

“Mine sucks, I am so bad at it. Except for that, I was okay. I am so happy to see you finally getting out of your shell. I wondered about you.”

They had a good discussion, and Crystal was impressed. Veronica was learning. Then they went to the rest of their classes. Things went well until Tabi confronted her with her friend Riley.

Tabi had a cruel look in her eyes as she approached Veronica. Luckily, her friend Crystal was right beside her holding her hand, telling her to stay strong.

“So,” Tabi said sternly. “You have finally decided to get social and try to fit in. Your failed attempts were amusing last week. Especially when you got so desperate Wednesday when you wore that tiny top, showed your straps on your shoulders, and had half of your bra hanging out for attention. You got attention all right. From the boys.” Tabi laughed loudly. Crystal was getting angry and told her to shut up. Tabi didn't even hear.

“It's hard for a boy isn't it, Richard,” Tabi said. “Yes, I know. How can anyone not know? Crystal, you had no sister until a week ago. Oh, I know almost everyone thinks Veronica was your shy sister all your life. But it doesn't work on a fellow witch. I know. And about three weeks ago, Your mother and her friend take Richard into your house, and he's not seen from again, and now we have this girl Veronica. I wonder who she could be?” Tabi said sarcastically. “It's such a mystery.”

Crystal stormed forward. “So what's your point, because stating the obvious is boring. Anyway, what can you do, go tell everyone Veronica is really a boy?” Crystal laughed. “Who would buy that?”

Then Tabi pointed to her friend Riley. “Riley is a boy. Ryan thought I would want to date him. No way, now he's my sissy girl.”

Riley almost cried. “I just want to be turned back. Stop teasing me.”

Tabi shouted, “Oh, shut up.”

Then Tabi looked hatefully at Veronica. “I could turn you into a boy again.”

Crystal looked serious. She didn't doubt it. It took a lot of effort, and no one but the most powerful could even attempt a gender transformation. The risks were enormous. But seeing a depressed and desperate Riley beside her in tears meant that Tabi was very powerful and very cruel. Her threat was obviously serious.

“Why would you want to do that?” Crystal asked.

“Because we don't need some pervert sick boy trying to interact with girls. He's not a girl, It's so obvious. I can't let you put all of your friends in danger.”

“You're a hypocrite. Isn't that what you are doing with Riley.” Crystal demanded.

“None of my friends are fooled by Riley. They know he's a sissy boy. Yes he has the body of a girl, and they know he can't really be a girl. And they know he isn't, it’s funny to see him try. But we also see he hates it and is always asking me to turn him back.”

Luckily, Crystals Mother Sarafine was there to pick them up from school. She sensed trouble and walked in to see Tabi there. Her eyes narrowed and she said, “Tabi, I think its time for you leave now.”

She simply giggled hatefully and walked away.

Sarafine decided they needed to have a long discussion with her children after their encounter with Tabi. She was at a loss herself.

Crystal began, “How is this even possible?” She inquired. “How could she transform Veronica herself?”

“A full gender transformation is one of the most difficult things. That's why I had a group with me when I did you, Veronica. I could have done it myself. I have decades of experience with witchcraft. But the risks are extremely high. Everything has to be exactly precise during the transformation. If I lost focus for a split microsecond. If I made even the tiniest error, The risks are I could have ended up with a corpse, or something so badly aligned that it could have been a painful life, or something slowly dying. Do you have any idea how many parts there are in a human body that have to operate with other parts smoothly to function at all? I had to transform your body, all of your parts, to your very genetic structure itself. We were very successful.”

Veronica smiled. “And I am happy with the results, thank you, Mother.”

“But Tabi and her family are very different. It took me decades to develop this level of power and control. But her family are much more powerful witches. You can't even imagine their power. It's terrifying. And they tend to be very bigoted and cruel. What she did to Ryan was monstrous. I fear there's little we can do for him. But we will protect Veronica.”

Then Sarafina finally decided, “And its time to start teaching Veronica how she can protect herself. This may surprise you Crystal, but Veronica is also magically inclined. One of the results of a magical transformation is that once a body is touched and transformed by Magic, it inherits it. Veronica can be taught to use it, and now that Tabi has set her sights on Veronica, we must.”

Crystal didn't know about that. “I agree, and I'm glad she has the ability. Veronica, this won't be easy.”

Then Veronica said in a tired tone, “Nothing is ever easy as a girl.” Then she held her stomach and said, “ow.”

Crystal looked concerned, “What is wrong, Veronica?”

“I have some stomach pains. It comes and goes at unexpected times.” Veronica said, unconcerned.

Then she stood up, and the two saw it. Veronica was embarrassed. Crystal and Sarafine gave eachother a knowing look and nodded. Crystal kindly took Veronica's hand and took her to clean up. Then she asked, “Do you have any supplies?”

Veronica asked, “Like what?”

Crystal wasn't sure if Veronica was being obtuse or not. She swings her hand and hit Veronica on the back of her head. “Like Tampons silly, you are leaking. We warned you weeks ago about this, I guess you weren't listening. And I assume that means you don't have any. I will give you some here, and please tell me you know how to use them?”

Veronica saw the flow and the mess it had created on her clothes. She shook her head.

“Boys?” Crystal said in a tone. She opened the tampon and showed her how to insert it to stop the flow. Then she warned, “You better make sure you have enough for the day. This one will fill up, and it will require another one. We will stop by the store, and you can get your own. Believe me you will need them.”

“Thanks, Ow,” Veronica said acidly and she held her stomach

Crystal gave her a look, “Don't get nasty on me. I am trying to help you, Veronica. But,” Then her look softened. “I know its difficult to not snap at people at these times. Boys simply don't understand. Even the nice boys who try to understand cant. This is a side of life you never knew.” Then Crystal gave her a big hug. “Let's get you some clean clothes and throw these into the wash. And we need to go shopping.”

Crystal found Veronica some clean clothes to put on and quickly threw the jeans and pantys in the wash.

“I can't believe you never got yourself a box of tampons, how could you not be ready for this?” Crystal gave her a smirk.

He shouldn't have teased his sister

By Jasmine Monica

Chapter 4
Veronica deals with forgetting her time of the month and learns her lesson. And then she has a conversation with her mother Sarafine

Crystal threw Veronica’s soiled clothes in the wash and handed her some new clothes.

Veronica replaced her tampon and put the clean clothing on and then they went out to get a box of supplies to handle her unexpected incident earlier this day.

Crystal was still slightly frustrated but she also felt giggly. Most of the teasing was good natured. Veronica felt really stupid.

She remembered the long talk she had with her Mother Sarafine after her transformation and the other talk about how to deal with periods. Veronica remembered the talk but forgot to do anything about it. Crystal smirked and then said as they drove to the local store, “I am sorry for what I said about you still being a boy. You aren't a boy at all Veronica. This happens to many girls who dealt with periods for years. It also happens to many girls their first time, so don't feel stupid.” Crystal pulled Veronica into a tight sisterly embrace. Then she smirked, “But don’t think I won't keep teasing you about it. That’s a big sister's job.”

Veronica lightly elbowed Crystal in the ribs and then dove in for a tickle attack.

The two sisters made it to a local Walgreens and Veronica walked into the feminine care aisle and saw an entire aisle full of various pads and tampons. She felt slightly bewildered now. Then she began laughing to herself as Crystal looked and started giggling too.

Veronica said sarcastically. “This is a shopping trip I would never have guessed I would need six months ago. Finding myself a box of tampons.” Veronica giggled some more and started trying to find the right type.

Crystal guided her sister to the ones labeled for a heavy flow and something more discreet instead of the bulky pads. But she suggested the bulky pads just in case. She said with a twinkle in her eye and a smirk. “A girl never can be too prepared and remember the consequences if you aren't prepared. We don't want to have to wash too many of your jeans tonight.”

“You’re really asking for it,” Veronica replied with her own smirk. “Just wait until we get home.”

The two girls giggled down the aisle as they reached the cashier. Veronica smiled sweetly at the young male cashier and winked at him as she paid. Then she went on her way out.

They made it back home. Veronica still felt silly for ignoring the warning about her period.

She sat in her room when she heard Sarafine returning. Veronica had to replace her tampon another time and the occasional pains were getting very annoying. She waited a little while until her new mother came in.

Sarafine looked down at Veronica and said, “I was told you wished to speak to me about Victoria?” She said kindly.

“Yes,” Veronica replied hesitantly. “I think it's all my fault.”

Sarafine shook her head, “You must not blame yourself. You didn't cause any of this, Veronica. You aren't responsible.”

“You don't know what I did to her. I teased and taunted her relentlessly, every day about her girl's life. I mocked girls I was very cruel. I think I did cause this. I am so afraid now.” Veronica stated firmly. “If you want to punish me, I deserve it.”

“No,” Sarafine stated even more firmly. “You didn't cause this. I am aware you teased her a lot. But she could have got revenge in many other ways than causing you to rape my daughter. Let me tell you what she could have done to get even. She could have caused to you have an uncontrollable desire to go to school totally dressed as a girl. Maybe not even a girl, perhaps just halfway to make it clear you are still a guy, just trying to look girlish. Or, she could have given you the desire to dress very gayish and go find the hunkest gay guy in school and throw yourself at him, begging to be his bottom boy. You see, Veronica. There are many other things she could have done that would have been so embarrassing to you. She could have done all of those things, but instead she gave you the desire to go rape a girl. She could have given you the desire to go gay, or make a big sissy or transvestite out of yourself. Or she could have even given you the desire to come to me and beg to be made into a girl.”

Veronica laughed. “Knowing me now, if she had given me the desire to become a girl, I would have really done it and loved it. But I see what you mean now. What she did was unforgivable. I still feel guilty.”

“That means you know what you did and you have a strong character. That’s why I agreed to adopt you Veronica.” Sarafine said.

“Can I ask you to help her then, not turn her back, but make sure she is safe and not being abused?” Veronica pleaded.

“I will.” Sarafine agreed.

“And make sure she doesn’t get bred either. I don't know how she would handle that.”

“Okay, I will do that too. Now, Veronica it's time to get started training you. Are you ready for that?”

Veronica braced herself, “Yes. I think I am ready.”

“Since you are being threatened by another witch, you will need to learn how to defend yourself from magic attacks,” Sarafine said to Veronica. “Mental barriers and defending against attacks is one of the most essential and it's the basics of unlocking your abilities. Typically, your first lessons wouldn’t even involve training. We would spend the first few months reading ancient text and learning the pattern of the stars and the flow of the energy though the universe. However we don't have time for all of that so I need to rush it and teach you how to defend yourself against magical attacks. So first prepare yourself.”

Veronica stood in the center of the room and prepared for whatever came.”

“I am going to invade your mind. The feeling will be like a violation. It will also be painful. You must block me,” advised Sarafine. “Create a mental shield around your thoughts. To do that, think of a shield surrounding your mind. Block your thoughts, focus your energy around your body and create a shield around your mind to stop me. Focus and concentrate. It will be difficult at first but it will get easier. Do you understand, Veronica?”

Veronica focused her thoughts and reached out. She felt the energy flowing around her body. She reached out and captured it and did her best to think of a shield around her mind. She did her best to hold it there as she saw Sarafine reach for her own energy and prepare her attack.

Sarafine's attack came and Veronica held her focus and concentrated. Her shield held as Veronica felt Sarafine's attack. It felt very uncomfortable as her mind probe encountered her shield. The shield held firm and blocked Sarafine's attack. Veronica focused hard on her shield and it continued to block Sarafine's attack but then her focus began to fail and her shield collapsed. Veronica cried out in pain as Sarafine's mental probe penetrated her mind. It felt like the worst violation possible as Sarafine began stealing Veronica’s thoughts.

The invasion suddenly ceased. “That was better than most people's first attempts to block a mind probe. Most beginners can only hold their shield for a second or two for the first time. You held it nearly ten seconds. That's impressive and I have never given you any lessons before. That's even better. So how did it feel?”

“I felt the attack and I felt my barrier repel your attack at first. It stopped you when I was able to keep my focus on the shield and blocking you. Then my focus failed and it hurt.” Veronica said.

“It's supposed to hurt,” Sarafine said. “It's an attack and that’s how you know you are being attacked by another witch. Experienced witches learn to focus our senses to those around us so we aren’t attacked unexpectedly. I saw how you felt my attack coming and sensed the signs. You are a natural. Now let's try again. And we will progress to more complicated attacks.”

“Is there a way to stop Tabitha if she tries to turn me back into a boy?”

“Yes,” Sarafine said firmly. “But it's complicated and may be far beyond what I can teach you over a weekend. We will work on defending against basic attacks and move from there.”

Veronica felt Sarafine prepare to attack her a second time and prepared her own defense. The attack came and Veronica raised her shield to repel the invasion. It felt much stronger this time and she found she could focus her energy much better. The shield held for nearly thirty seconds before the stress became too much for her. Her mind faltered and the shield collapsed. Sarafine invaded her mind once again and then stopped.

“That was much better. Holding a shield and repelling attacks is a skill that must be practiced and learned. It is stressful on the mind. You must practice the skill and develop it. Experienced witches have the mental strength to hold the shield and deflect attacks for hours. Attacks take much more energy. Relax and we will try again later."

by Jasmine Monica

Chapter 5
Veronica is training to use magic and learns some very important things about its use and limitations. And she has an appointment to see a doctor as she learns more about living as a teenage girls and bonding with her friends.

Veronica had been grilled hard for the past week, and she had learned so much about how Magic works. She trained hard with her sister Christine and her adopted mother, Sarafine, and was amazed at the skills they had acquired.

Then Sarafine began teaching her the ancient language during the night after training with magic. The language can control it. She had learned some of the basics of the language by the end of the week, but she had a long way to go. Veronica had learned some of the major common sounds and words and their symbols. She was going to start learning how to put them together in sentences soon.

But Veronica was given a break tonight. Christine was going to have her friends over for a sleepover and a makeover party. This was mainly for Veronica's benefit. They were going to show her about makeup and help make her over.

Christine looked over at her new sister and said slyly, “This is one of the vital parts of being a girl. We are going to teach you tonight, and we are also going to help you with your nail care. That's another vital part of being a girl.”

Then Christine sat down and held her new little sister and held her close. She said, “I am impressed and a little frightened now. You have progressed so far in your training. I saw no new witch go from nothing to being able to shoot fire from your hands in a week. It won't be long at this pace before you have nothing to fear from Tabitha. Your skills are almost at what some students are at six months to a year. I don't understand?”

Sarafine's voice was heard from the corner of the room. “This is the risk of transforming someone. Veronica's body was created by magic. It was totally infused with the energy during its creation. Including her mind. So it's natural. It understands the mechanics of the energy and its use is natural.

"But Veronica, I need to warn you. I sensed you using the dark energy during your training. It is much more powerful, almost limitless, but it comes from a dark dimension. It is dark energy and it is corrupting and evil.

"When you sense its power, avoid it. Use the cosmic energy we feel around us. It is the force the brings life into the universe and becomes the lifeblood of the universe. It creates stars and planets. That’s what we use. Dark Witches, like Tabitha's family, use the dark energy, and that’s why such a young girl has the power to enslave a boy and transform him against his will. The use of that energy has also given her no morality at all. So please avoid that power.”

Veronica looked down in shame. She was proud of what she was able to achieve, but that pride existed no longer. “I am sorry, mother. I won't use that power anymore.”

“Don’t feel ashamed,” Sarafine said to her new daughter. “We never warned you about it before. You didn’t know. I didn’t think I would have to teach you about that so soon. But when you started shooting fire during our sparring sessions, I knew it was time.

Veronica was confused, “I saw you shooting fire at me. What makes shooting fire so wrong?”

“It's not just that,” Sarafine explained slowly. “It's that you achieved it so soon. I felt the dark energy flowing through you when you did that. It takes much more training and focus to achieve it the right way. That's how we all learned it. So please, don't use the dark energy. I know it's there and its very powerful and seductive. It's a very potent energy to use. It's also very corrupting.”

“I promise, mother,” Veronica responded and pulled the woman in a tight hug.

“And now,” Sarafine said with a smile. “I have scheduled you for a special appointment this afternoon. There's nothing to worry about. It's the same woman your sister Christina and I see every few months. I scheduled this for you to make sure that we did everything correctly with you. If she catches anything, then we will know and can fix it. I doubt it,” Sarafine said, “But it's better to make absolutely sure.”

Christine ran in and gave her sister a big hug and whispered in her ear, “This is another thing every girl has to go through. She is very understanding, especially to girls who just had their first visit.”

Veronica groaned out loud, having an idea what this was all about as she prepared herself for this and getting into the car with Sarafine. Christine said she was arranging things for tonight with their friends.

Sarafine parked in front of the doctor's office, and they got out and walked in. Of course, it was what Veronica thought it was. It was an OB-GYN doctor. Just as she suspected, and they went in. Sarafine went to the counter and got everything taken care of and got her signed in. Then they sat down and Veronica asked, “Is this really necessary?”

Sarafine said harshly, “Absolutely. I do it, your older sister does it, you have to do it too. We must make sure you are healthy. And, “ Then Sarafine lowered her voice and whispered in her ear, “You were the one who insisted on remaining a girl. This was your choice. You could have turned back into a boy. I offered and you insisted. This is one of the things girls must do. So just go with this. She is very kind and understanding. She is one of the best or I wouldn’t send my girls to her. Just go with it, and it will be over.”

They sat there, and the door opened, and another girl walked out. They called another girl in, and they sat there for a few more minutes. Veronica was very nervous. She thought, what if she was a boy inside going through this. It would be a very embarrassing experience. It would probably be embarrassing enough as a girl, but it was a common thing for girls.

Then Sarafine said, “I asked for everything to make sure you are healthy. That's including an internal pelvic exam. They usually don't do those until the girl is in her twenties. But since you just became a girl a month ago. I asked them to examine you.”

And in about another twenty minutes, that girl left, and Veronica was called in. She stood up and followed the nurse into the office. Her weight was taken, then they got her vitals, and the nurse took her heartrate and did all of the usual.

Then the nurse left, and the Doctor came in soon after. The woman sat down beside her, trying to ease her. Then she began asking some very embarrassing questions. She asked when Veronica's last period was and she answered about a week ago, and it was embarrassing.

The doctor asked, “Why?”

Her face turned red, and she answered, “I wasn't really prepared. It was my first and I had no idea.”

“That happens,” The Doctor said kindly. “Was there a lot of pain,”

“No,” Veronica said. “Just the cramps here. It didn’t hurt a lot. It was just annoying.”

“Did you bleed heavy or light,” The Doctor asked.

Veronica didn't have a clue, “I don’t really know.”

Sarafine answered, “It was very heavy. She soaked through a thick tampon in about a half hour. But she didn’t seem to be in any more pain than usual. “

“Veronica, are you sexually active?”

Veronica said, “No, of course not.”

“It's okay, I just had to ask. Now let's get you ready for the breast exam. Please put on this robe, and we can begin.”

Veronica took off her clothes in a private area behind the curtains and put on her loose fitting hospital robe and came out. The doctor led her into another room and had her take her breasts out.

The Doctor took a few minutes pressing around the breast tissue looking for abnormalities. She said after the exam, “It all looks good. Now step up to this machine, and I will show you what to do.

The machine looked very frightening and uninviting. Sarafine held her hand and she walked up to the machine. The Doctor told her to put her breast on the plate. Veronica did and the top part was moved down to squeeze her breast down, and she stood there as it was x rayed. It was about one of the most uncomfortable feelings, and she had to perform the same thing with the other breast. It was squeezed into the machine and x rayed. The doctor examined the photos and said it looked fine.

And then Veronica was led into another exam room with a strange chair and she was sat down in it. Her feet were spread into stirrups. Veronica was wrong about the mammogram being the most uncomfortable feelings. The doctor came back in and examined her. After several long minutes of the doctor sticking her fingers in her and feeling her belly and even using a speculum in her and taking some fluid from the walls of her cervix, it was finally done, and she was able to get dressed again. The doctor said she did fine, and everything felt right. And then she got to leave.

Sarafine then said as they got back into the car, “You did fine Veronica. Your sister goes though that, and so do I. It’s all part of being a girl, and we found out you are a very healthy teenage girl. We did a good job, and I couldn’t be happier. I think your sister Christine has some plans for you this afternoon. Something about a sleepover and a makeover party. They all want to teach Christine's little sister about makeup and how to manage your appearance as a girl. Isn’t that exciting?”

They got back home Veronica gushed, looking at Christine with a wide smile and ran into her arms thanking her.

Christine smiled and said, “Veronica, you are such a GIRL. Calm down sis.”

She backed away, saying, “Sorry for the excitement. It just seems too exciting. And I need help with the makeup.”

“We are also going to do each others' nails,” Said Christine. “You are going to learn how to care for your nails too. So get ready. Our friends Michelle, Amy, Karen and Teresa are coming within the hour. Then we plan on heading toward the Salon.”

Veronica squealed with joy and ran up to get dressed. Christine shook her head at her little sister's antics. She was becoming such a girlie girl. It was impossible to think of this girl as the boy Richard that attacked her.

Veronica ran up to her bedroom to get dressed. She found a very cute purple miniskirt and a matching loose fitting top. She finished the look with a cute pair of two-inch heels and ran back down to see her sister getting herself ready to visit the salon.

When Veronica came back down all ready to go, she saw her friends Michelle, Amy, Teresa, and Karen there ready to visit the salon.

The teenagers went to Teresa's car and got in. They drove off to a popular salon that they liked. Veronica wasn't sure about this at all. She had never gone to a salon and didn't know what to expect. She didn't know about girl's hairstyles at all. Teresa had called ahead of time, so when they arrived at the very feminine looking salon, the stylist were expecting them, and they were taken to their seats when the teens walked in.

Veronica was with a young female blonde stylist and the young woman asked what she wanted.

Veronica had no idea what she preferred as she squeezed her lips together. “I really don't know about styles. Until a month ago, I was living as a boy. What would you suggest?”

The young woman took that statement with ease. She responded, “I have done several trans customers so this is nothing new. Your transition looks beautiful, Veronica. Do you want more curls in your hair, or do you want to be straight, or how about some waves? Do you want any highlights or a different color?”

Veronica thought for a few seconds and then said, “I want some more curls in my hair. I like the color, but can you put some pink highlights in my hair?”

The stylist said very friendly, “I think I can do that. Let me get the curling iron and some rollers to put in your hair and we can get started.

Veronica sat still as the stylist took long strips and applied the pink highlights in her hair and then took parts of her hair and rolled them tight into the hair rollers. That took about a half hour and she soon found herself sitting under a dryer chair, heating her curls up to stay in place.

After another hour, the dryer was removed and the stylist removed the rollers from her hair. Veronica looked in the mirror and smiled at the new pink curls her hair had. Veronica gushed at the new look as Victoria rolled her eyes and said, “Veronica is such a girl now. It's amazing.” And the two sisters hugged and paid the salon.

And then the girls prepared for a night giving each other makeovers and teaching Veronica about makeup.

By Jasmine Monica

Chapter 6

Veronica learns how to deal with her new group of friends as well as how to interact as a girl during her first sleepover.

Veronica was thinking of everything that had happened over the past month. It had all been very enlightening and actually fun. Then she thought of the dark times when she was Richard. Nothing of that phase of her life was fun. The memories were dark and she had been depressed and hateful. She hated being a boy so much and became a major asshole because of it.

But she was not a boy. She wasn't a boy in any way. After everything she had experienced now, there was really no way she could ever be accepted as a boy. Had she been a boy then these experiences would be extremely humiliating and mortifying. Having her period, experiencing everything that goes with her cycles, and then her Ob-Gyn appointment. Richard would have died from embarrassment. Luckily, there was never really a Richard at all.

Veronica had experienced them all with the grace and acceptance of any girl. The period was embarrassing but not because of the period itself. It was just that she was very unprepared for its arrival. She ignored the warnings and it crept up on her and hit her. It was very messy and embarrassing. But it happens to many girls and it happened to her. Luckily, she had a very kind and helpful sister who took her to the store to get the proper supplies to deal with it. And she would never be unprepared again. She was going to be fully prepared for the seventeenth of every month from now on. But it wasn't any more embarrassing for her than it was for any other girl.

Her appointments for womens health were very uncomfortable but not totally mortifying. It was something every girl must experience. This was the life she chose and her new mother had offered to change her back but Veronica wanted to remain. She couldn't imagine going back to the depressing life of a boy. She loved this life now.

What led to this transformation was traumatic and horrifying. She had done something terrible and she had used all of her insight and knowledge to get to the bottom of it all. She eventually solved it and found out she was bewitched by her sister into doing what she had been accused of. She uncovered it and Saraphine was royally pissed. Her sister was being punished for it and her relationship with Saraphine and her daughter was absolved. Veronica couldn't be a happier girl now. And now she was preparing for her first girls' sleepover and makeover party. What fun.

They went back home and she saw Teresa and Michelle start working on her sister, Crystal's, face and Veronica watched trying to understand what the girls were going with the various items of makeup that she didn't entirely understand yet. Teresa carefully explained things to her.

Teresa started by explaining about the foundation she was using and how to determine the best for a specific skin type. She continued by explaining about lip gloss and blush.

“But, Veronica. Just because you are a girl doesn't mean you have to wear makeup at all,” Michelle explained. “I usually don't and some girls don't bother at all. You don't have to wear makeup if you don't want to. Many very active or athletic girls don't bother with makeup that much. If you don't want to bother with it then it's fine.”

Crystal pointed out, “But my sister wants to be a very girly girl. She loves makeup and hair and wants to be good at it. But I have not really taught her and that's why we are here.”

Veronica smiled and agreed, “Yes, I need to learn about makeup. And no one has had the time to teach me about it.” Veronica frowned as the other girls gathered around her to help show her.

This was another thing she loved about being a girl vs being a boy. A group of boys are always trying to establish dominance over the group. A group of girls are equal and help each other out when one is in need or unhappy. A group of boys wouldn’t care about someone's problems and, if a boy didn’t fit in, he faced being cut out of the group. Girls would never do that to a friend. Girls rallied around the girl to help her as they were doing for Veronica now.

There were the girl cliques that acted like boys but that was different. Those relationships didn't rely on a bond or friendship. Veronica had always hated the macho dominance bullshit that existed in a group of boys. And she had never fit in that well with them. She loved this so much better and resolved to learn how to interact as a friend in a group of girls.

Amy and Karen gathered around Veronica, helping her understand the different types of makeup while they did her face. Veronica got the full treatment and they began by removing the small hairs on her face and doing her eyebrows. They plucked her eyebrows at an intense and determined pace. She did her best to stay still and considered how mortified Richard would have been to be here having this done. Then she remembered Richard was her, he would have adored it. He would have loved to have a couple of girls doing his face like this. He hated being a boy so much.

It was already explained but Amy went into further detail about the foundation and moisturizer she was using to help smooth her skin for the foundation. Then she explained about the different colors and types like a liquid or powder foundation and why. Veronica understood and helped choose the right liquid foundation to use and the right color for her skin type. She was amazed at the difference.

Amy explained that she shouldn't go through this much effort unless there was an occasion to do so. Like a night out or a date with a special boy she wanted to impress. They explained that some girls insisted on looking their best even for regular classes and that was silly in their opinion. Veronica happened to agree.

Then they started on the lipsticks and lip glosses and the different colors or types and what they all mean. There were a bewildering number of colors and types of lipsticks and lip glosses. But Veronica figured she understood most of it.

She found the eye makeup to be the most difficult. Eye shadow, mascara and eyeliner, and working on the eye lashes to even them. That was even more bewildering as they started off with a simple pencil eyeliner to mark the edges of her eyes and then worked on her lashes.

Amy showed Veronica how to first use an eyelash curler. Veronica learned how to hold it and curl her eyelashes and then they proceeded to the mascara and she learned how to apply that and then she learned how about that.

When her face was done, she smiled one of the biggest and warming smiles of joy Veronica ever saw. Then she removed the makeup and tried to do it herself. The girls helped her when needed but it took several tries to get close to what Amy could do.

Then Veronica was expected to apply her new-found knowledge to doing Amy's face with Karen's guidance. Her face didn't need as much work as Veronica's. Amy took care of her face well and Veronica went slowly, making sure to ask plenty of questions before she finally decided on a color or type of foundation and Amy was very satisfied with the results. Then Veronica and Amy did Karen's face.

By that time, Crystal had finished with her group and they watched Veronica do Karen’s makeup and Crystal was surprised that she was doing a reasonable job on Karen’s face. Her little sister was a very fast learner and she was very eager to learn these things.

Crystal didn't care much about makeup or the feminine side of life. She liked learning her magic and being powerful. She also liked sports and was very good at softball. It seemed her little sister was going the other way and was diving into femininity headfirst and enjoying it.

Veronica was going to be a very girlie girl. Amy would enjoy that. Most of her other friends were sports fanatics. Michelle and Crystal liked competing with the boys. Teresa liked martial arts and was close to achieving a master level rank at it. She had studied Goju ryu and shotokan since she was little and had around fifteen years of study. She really enjoyed competing with boys and beating them. She was very good at it too. That interested Veronica too and she would soon want to ask Teresa for help. But she had only been a real girl for about a month now. She was a very girlie girl but she didn’t want to be a helpless girl either.

Veronica had learned a little about caring for her hair from her older sister and now it was time to learn about her nails. The girls switched the groups up and Amy moved to Victoria's group and Teresa moved to Veronica's group. Veronica could see Teresa's ripped muscles and how she moved spoke of some extreme skill. That wasn't to say she wasn’t feminine. Teresa was still feminine and very attractive. And she wore more makeup than most other girls and it seemed to be an odd combination of femininity and strength.

This was another area that Veronica felt she needed some major work on. She knew nothing about her nails and they had not really changed since she was Richard. Her nails were unkempt, uneven and very rough. Much like any other boys and she felt ashamed at their condition. Some girls made it a point and it hurt. Hopefully, that would be taken care of today and the girls started on Veronica first since she needed the most work.

Teresa and Karen started showing Veronica how to begin and smooth out the nail first and clip any part of the skin that was in the way. Make sure the nail is shiny and polished first before they try to decorate it and then Teresa asked Veronica what she would like.

Veronica wanted a hot pink sparkly type nails and Victoria rolled her eyes, and thought, of course that's what she would want: pink. They went to work on her nails while the other two started on Veronica's toenails and she wanted the same look on the toes.

They polished and buffed her nails and clipped them to be even and then applied the color and the glitter to Veronica's nails. Veronica paid close attention and did her part when it was the other girl's turn. She helped with Amy, Teresa, Karen, and her own sister.

This was all a very good day. Then the girls curled up on the sofa and watched a romantic movie while starting to fall asleep.

Teresa snuggled into Veronica, starting to fall asleep when Veronica asked, “Teresa, I heard you are a teacher in Karate, is that true?”

Teresa shook her head no. “No. Karate is Japanese. That’s Shotokan. I am an instructor in Goju Ryu. That's Okinawan. It's much more serious and designed for self-defense and combat than Shotokan. Shotokan is an art that they changed over the decades. Why do you ask?”

“I would like you to teach me,” Veronica said with a smile.

Teresa woke up suddenly and stared at Veronica in shock, “Really? You Veronica? I wouldn’t think you would be interested.”

Veronica giggled girlishly and she rolled her eyes again and said, “Why not? Because I like makeup, hair and nails so much? I like my heels and being feminine. I can still want to be strong and confident and fight with boys.” Then she gave a sly sideways smile and said, “Even super girlie girls should know how to defend herself. I don't want to be helpless.”

Teresa laughed and said, “Sure, I will give you the number and address to the place and we can start any time. You are also learning witchcraft, aren’t you?”

“Yes, how did you know?”

“Because,” Teresa said. “Your mother and sister taught me. This is going to be great. Come by any time and you can start learning.”

Then Teresa and Veronica started to slowly drift off in the night.

Veronica woke up early enough to start making the girls pancakes and eggs for breakfast. She ran into the bathroom to do her morning rituals and then she went to the kitchen. She was going to make the girls cupcakes later in the day. Veronica made sure she had the supplies.

But for now, she was mixing pancake mix and pouring it in a pan to fry. She was making sure to make enough for four hungry teenage girls. She was cracking and frying eggs in another pan when the girls began to wake up.

Victoria woke up and looked at her younger sister making them all breakfast. “Sis, what inspired you to do all of this?”

Veronica shrugged, “I wanted to. You have all been so nice to me. Could we bake a cake later?”

“Bake a cake,” Victoria said doubtfully. “I don't know how.”

Veronica smiled warmly and said, “I will show you how. How about a thick chocolate cake?” The girls seemed excited by that and ran into the bathroom to prepare for the day.

They ate breakfast with Veronica and thanked her for making it and then they were off for the morning. Amy, Karen, Teresa and Victoria went out for a long morning run. They usually ran several miles in the morning to keep their fitness up. Few of the girls could go as hard as Teresa could. She could for for many long miles and typically ran from five to ten. She went three miles with the girls and barely worked up a sweat. Veronica decided to go with them this morning and she barely made it half way with the other girls. It was a start and they started headed back. The girls showered and rested.

Then shortly before Noon, Veronica was covered in dough and sugar from making cake for the girls. She also decided to make cookies for her new friends. The other girls decided to get behind the counter and help her and they were all making a large chocolate cake and cutting out cookies and putting them on a pan.

That was when Veronica told Victoria a secret. As they were putting the thick cake in the Oven and pulling out a pan of cooked cookies. Veronica said, “Veronica, I really want to tell you something and I hope that you aren't mad. Michelle saw me and she was going to tell you. Friday afternoon I went to the gym to watch the cheerleaders practice. They are missing one cheerleader that got hurt. So they are holding tryouts next weekend and I put my name on the list to try out for the competition squad.”

“WHAT!” Crystal said, picturing her sister as a cheerleader and wondering how she was going to handle that type of attention. “Please tell me you aren't serious,” Veronica gave her sister a hard unwavering look.

“I am serious. It really looks exciting.”

Victoria shook her head and said, “Oh my god. This is going to be very embarrassing.”

By Jasmine Monica
Veronica discusses her decision to try out for cheerleading and explains why. She startes training and then takes a test and learns about the history of the witches.
Chapter 7

“I really want to be a cheerleader,” Veronica told Crystal. “I know you want to look like a tough girl who looks down on that. There's even a debate about if cheerleading is really a sport at all. You are all tough sports girls. So, having a sister on the cheerleading squad would reflect on you, but I am not you. It is a serious and dynamic sport that I have always wanted to be a part of. Please understand, I really want to be on the squad. It looks so exciting.”

Crystal nodded, understanding her sister's thinking, and said, “Only if you make it on the competition squad. Otherwise, you are just there cheering on the boys during games. And the odds of a first time tryout making it on that level is slim.”

“If that's what I have to do, then I will do it,” Veronica told her sister. “I hope I can get myself ready and be part of the competition squad. But it is what always I wanted to do. Even when I was a boy, I would watch the cheerleaders practice, and I would go to the game and watch them. I would make it a point to go to the various competitions and watch our school compete. It was odd and many people thought it was just a boy's horny sexual attraction to the cheerleaders. The usual, but it wasn’t. When I was watching them, I was picturing myself as a girl, wearing the outfit and doing the routines with them.”

Crystal shook her head and said in a pained voice, “No wonder you were so closed off and miserable as a boy.”

Christine and Michelle sat there facing Veronica. Teresa was with them. Veronica felt the pressure to back out, but she wouldn’t. Michelle saw her put her name on the paper for the upcoming cheer tryouts. They had seen her watching the varsity squad training and she was practicing their cheerleading routines. This was something she wanted so bad.

“I have a week to practice, and with what Teresa will be teaching me during her classes will help," Veronica told them. "I think I have a chance. I know it will be embarrassing. But please sis, I really want to do this.”

Veronica was really jumping into the girlie girl thing big time with this. She wanted to be one of the cheerleaders. Crystal was on the softball team with Michelle. Teresa taught martial arts, but that wasn’t a school sport. Karen was on the basketball team. And Veronica wanted to be a cheerleader. Of course, she wanted to try out for the competition squad, which was on a whole new level and could be as intense and grueling as basketball.

Crystal looked at her little sister and nodded, “Okay, fine. I will support you, but you better be damn ready for tryouts. My friend Kimberly was a cheerleader for a year. Perhaps she can help you. I will give you a call. Cheerleading and Martial arts. And witchcraft. You will be very busy.”

“Don't I know it,” Veronica giggled. “But I am strong, and I can do this.” Both sisters gave each other a tight hug. Veronica said, “and now I think it's about time to go. Teresa offered to take me to her Dojo for a first introductory lesson.”

Veronica ran to her room to find something comfortable to wear when she was working out. She chose a loose pair of shorts and a top and ran out again. Veronica and Teresa walked out as Crystal waved and told them she would see them later.

Teresa drove them to the Dojo she trained in and went into the of back the instructor's area to get herself dressed. She told Veronica to stretch and get herself ready.

Teresa walked out a few minutes later wearing her instructor's uniform and a red and white belt with her name etched in red thread and many stripes down one side. She looked fearsome and stood facing Veronica.

“Are you ready, Veronica,” Teresa asked. “Did you stretch and warm up your muscles?”

Veronica nodded, and Teresa said, “Okay, So the first thing you need to learn is your foot positioning and the proper stance for the foundation. I can teach you fancy kicks, punches, strikes, and blocks, but without the proper weight distribution and stance, the rest will fall apart. Your foot positioning and weight distribution is the foundation for everything else. So let's get started.’

Teresa spread her feet and belt her legs a bit and told Veronica, “This is a neutral stance, or as we tend to call it, a guard stance. It's the basic stance we use for just about everything. It allows you to move back, forward, pivot from an attack, or attack if you wish. This is where everything else will flow from. So get into this position, Veronica, and I will show you some of the basic footwork we do. Spread your feet and distribute your weight fifty-fifty. Bend your knees so you can move around. You don’t want to be stuck in one position.”

“Now shuffle forward, this is to attack an opponent. Watch.” Teresa shuffled forward and her hand flashed out toward Veronica's face. It would have been a devastating blow if she intended it to be. But she was just demonstrating the reasoning behind the moving forward move. “See, then shuffle back, if your opponent is attacking you, and you quickly evade his attack.”

Then Teresa called someone in. A larger man walked in, wearing sweat pants and a tight workout top. “This is our instructor. He is Mr. Thompson. We will demonstrate some of the footwork for you, and we can match it later once you see it in motion.”

Thompson squared off with Teresa, and they got in their guard stance. Thompson moved forward aggressively and Teresa quickly shuffled back. Teresa moved forward and Thompson quickly shuffled back. They repeated that a few times, and Veronica got the general idea. Then Teresa said, “I will demonstrate a few evasion moves to quickly move away and gain position. So observe.”

They squared off again, and Thompson moved forward and threw a quick strike at Teresa. Teresa quickly pivoted away with her back foot and threw a solid blow to his midsection. “See how that works? I didn't move back, I moved to his side to gain an unexpected advantage. You use this against aggressive hotheads or people who like to rush. Now watch.”

Thompson threw another strike from the other side, making Teresa have to quickly pivot the other way to avoid it, and she threw her own sweeping move at Thompson. Veronica got the general idea of those moves.

Thompson, having helped Teresa demonstrate the general footwork drills, retired back to his office and let Veronica practice some of it herself. Veronica and Teresa squared off and practiced the drill for another ten to fifteen minutes until she began to get reasonably proficient with the footwork drill.

Once her footwork was good, they worked on a few simple strikes. Teresa demonstrated a simple midsection and face punch. “The idea is to rotate your foot and your hip to drive in your entire body to the punch. You notice how boxers move their shoulders and leg into a rear hand punch that usually results in serious damage to the other or a knockout. That's what we are going for here. Watch.” Then Teresa demonstrated the proper cross punch that sent the bag flying back. The punch was much more powerful than a girl her size looked like she should be able to have.

Then Veronica worked on that for a few minutes, and the large fifty-pound bag was barely moving from Veronica's punch. She lost her temper and concentrated and gathered some energy into her hand and struck out. The bag nearly flew off its chain, and Teresa was mad. “Veronica, don't cheat and use your craft to enhance your strength. It will come with practice. Your strength will increase. Please don’t expect to be as strong as me in a few hours of practice.”

Then they worked on a few simple kicking moves and Veronica was very worn out by that time.

Then they sat down recovering when Veronica said, “this is very different from when I did this as Richard.”

Teresa wanted to know if Veronica had done anything in the past.

Veronica shrugged and said, “I trained when I was a boy. It was a different art called Brazilian jujitsu.”

Teresa laughed, “that's what many males want to do. It is a grappling art, and I like fighting those guys. They have to move in and grab me, and it makes it so easy to keep them away and knock them down before they can get a hold on me. Of course, the more experience they have, the harder and faster their moves are. And more difficult to stop them from grabbing me.”

“It is just so different as a girl. I got to a green belt in it and everything seems to be lost," Veronica said sadly. "My muscles have transformed. My entire body is different. I have to start from square one now. I trained as a boy to stop bullies. They tended to target me until I got strong enough. But now, I think they will target me for different reasons than when I was a boy. I need to be able to stop them.”

Teresa nodded to her, “Good, go in the dressing rooms and shower and come back. I will have a uniform for you, and we can discuss your classes and schedule.”

Veronica showered and put on a clean set of clothes and walked out where she saw Teresa’s instructor sitting with her. They were waiting for Veronica to finish.

The man said, “you looked good, Veronica. We would welcome you here and since you are Teresa’s friendand have helped her, we will offer you training at no charge. Just come in and take it seriously. And please, don’t lose your temper. I think you will progress rapidly. Here is a list of our beginner courses. It looks like you should progress through them soon enough.”

Then Teresa drove her back to her place where Crystal was waiting, and Veronica just collapsed in exhaustion.

Veronica knew that her mother was planning something big, so she had to get ready for it. She already heard her inviting Lady Fawna and her other witches here for something. She suspected it was some sort of test, but she couldn’t figure out what it was for. She had only a few weeks of training at the most.

She rested and feel asleep, unexpectedly. She was jolted awake by her sister, shaking her and telling her to wake up. Veronica groaned in soreness as she was being shaken and woke. Her sore muscles screamed as she got out of bed.

Crystal was excited, “wake up sleepyhead! They are waiting for you in the training room. We are getting prepared for your big day. Get ready and come on sis.”

What infernal thing were they preparing for, Veronica thought sourly. She got out of bed and dressed in a hurry and ran down the steps to the training room to see her mother there with Lady Fawna and the other leading witches standing around the room. Veronica never felt more intimidated than she did at that moment. She felt like leaving.

Seraphine must have seen Veronica's fear and stepped forward to say, “Calm down. You are not in trouble. We are here to test your abilities to be made an apprentice witch. Such a thing is unprecedented after a few weeks of training. Your sister had to work hard, and we started her training at eight years old, and she was ready for the test by fourteen. That was also unprecedented. And she is preparing for the test to become a fully certified witch. But she swears you are you more than ready for the Apprentice test."

Veronica gave Crystal a doubtful look of fear and she just nodded and smiled at her.

Saraphine said calmly, “We will give you tasks to perform and see if you can perform them. Each one will get progressively more difficult. Then you will have a safe duel with one of us under our observation. A safe duel is more difficult, but Crystal swears you can do it. A safe duel is that you perform your defense and attacks, with extreme control, so they are executed but do not hit your opponent to cause harm. That's one of the most difficult things to do. Your sister says you can do it and I believe her. We will see and feel each move and attack and calculate the damage it would do if you had fully executed it. So, are you ready?”

Veronica nodded and hoped she didn't make a fool of herself.

Seraphine nodded and said, “Your first task is to read this story to us. Read from the ancient book to us and tell us its story.”

The story had to do with the origin of their order. She started reading, and it seemed to be a very emotional and painful story about an ancient prince named Serren, who was transformed into a princess by his sister Pattenia so she could claim the throne from him.

Prince Serren was embittered and abused by Pattenia as she ruled. Serren suffered the pain and humiliation of countless injustices and he eventually got his revenge upon the ancient Goddess and his sister. Eventually, all of the witches who executed the plan were slain and the new glorious new age of freedom they had planned with his transformation never took place.

He rounded up the witches and tried them in a horrible inquisition. Many of the witches were burnt at the stake. Instead of their new golden age of freedom, they got more of the rule of the men into the late middle ages into the renaissance.

Veronica wondered if this story was real at all. She thought that most of the story must be Myth. It took about a half-hour to read, but she had no trouble understanding the ancient language it was written in. Then Seraphine told Veronica to read it in the ancient language, which she did nearly perfectly. None of her word usage or pronunciation was wrong in any way. She passed that with flying colors. The reading was probably the easy part.

“Now, I want you to repair this dress.” Seraphine said.

Veronica looked at an old dress that seemed so worn out. It was faded from time and some of its material was so old it had laces and threads unraveled and hanging out in many places. It was almost ready to totally fall apart. But this was no problem.

The question was whether to repair it all in a modern way or try to keep it as original as possible and only repair it using methods and materials used in the time of the dress. The dress looked like it was from the sixteenth century. It sort of looked like an old English Tudor gown. She decided to repair it using only methods and materials used in its time.

Veronica pictured the dress and the method to be used to repair it. She pictured the thread appearing in the worn or tore parts and weaving itself to fill in the holes and tear spots. The spots are filling and repairing. Then Veronica cast the proper spell carefully and watched the threads appear and began slowly filling in the holes with the original and proper material used in the day. The results were amazing and, within an hour, the dress was totally repaired.

Seraphine and Fawna looked amazed and shocked. Seraphine said, “That was very impressive, Veronica. Most teenagers don’t really care about the method and just command the dress to be repaired, not caring about the proper material or method used. It just repairs to them. You took the time to use the proper method and material and colors of the time the dress was created. And kept it as original as possible. This is very impressive. Your sister was very right. You are more than ready for this test. Now, it's time for the real challenges. Now, command this dress to change colors, and to appear on you.”

Veronica brought the picture to her mind. She envisioned the bright blue dress being a deep burgundy red. Every thread in the dress being red. Then she cast the spell and the dress’s color changed from blue into a deep burgundy reddish color. That wasn't the end of the challenge. She had to have the dress on her. She pictured herself wearing the dress. There were several ways to do it. She could transform the gown she was wearing into that dress, but then it really wouldn’t be that dress then. That wasn’t the instruction. So, she pictured the dress she was wearing being removed and replaced by the red dress. That was how to do it, and she cast the proper spell. Suddenly the two dresses replaced each other, and she had the red dress on.

Seraphine said, “Veronica, do you see the fifteen candles on the wall. I want you to light each of them at once with a brilliant blue flame. And make it so that they never can burn out. Also,” Seraphine said as an afterthought. “Keep the temperature of the room the same.”

A blue flame burnt at thousands of degrees. Fifteen of those would raise the temp of the room quite a lot. She saw each candle and lit each of them at once time. They suddenly erupted with brilliant blue flames burning at three to five thousand degrees. They had their own source so they wouldn't use up the wax in the candle. Each of them had a tiny spark of hydrogen fusion in the flames. She made sure to cast another spell that those candles would not affect the temperature of the rest of the room.

“Now,” Seraphine told her, “Copy the candles and send them all through the wall and into the other room. Make them land in the center of the floor in a circle.

Veronica recreated each of the fifteen candles and lit them with the same blue flames. Then she sent them into the far wall, and they all floated through the wall and landed in a circle in the other room.

“You have done very well,” Seraphine said. “And now we have the final part of the test. You will face Lady Fawna in a witchs' duel. I was going to have you face my daughter as I was confident that she could handle and protect herself if things went too far. But I am not so sure now, and I think we need someone who has far more experience than my daughter to face you. Lady Fawna, please face off with my daughter Veronica.”

This was a very odd thing. Usually, they had someone around the child's age and experience to face off during a test. They never had someone with vastly more experience and power to face a child. That was unheard of. And made the test very unfair.

Lady Fawna went to the center of the room and faced Veronica. She whispered, “Don’t worry, Veronica. The fact that she wants me to face you instead of Crystal means you already passed. What happens here hardly matters anymore. You have done exceptionally well.”

The two ladies bowed and got into position. Both ladies levitated into the air. Lady Fawna floated upon a cloud of fire. Veronica levitated on a cloud of dark electrical energy and both ladies circled the room, facing each other. Fawna attacked, first sending a weak torrent of fire racing toward Veronica.

Veronica simply held out her hand and put up a shield to absorb the fire. It would have died before hitting her but she absorbed it anyway. Then Veronica fired off a huge torrent of electrical energy shooting toward Fawna. She held up her hand to absorb the blast as it died off before hitting her.

Seraphine beamed with pride. She said, “You didn’t absorb enough and much of it would have torn into you if Veronica was serious. Fawna, stop holding back. There is a good reason I chose you instead of my daughter Crystal to face Veronica. She is a child, but don't underestimate her, or she will defeat you without question. You were already struck with that blast. Take her seriously now.”

Fawna got seriously and sent a hail of glass shards and ice crystals racing toward Veronica. Veronica simply put up a fire cloud to block the attack and it was dissolved in the hot firestorm she created and then sent back at Fawna. Fawna tried to block it and, when she did, another attack of thick ice shards went racing lower into Fawna's legs.

Neither attack actually impacted, but the hot firestorm required much of Fawna's energy to block. The ice shards would have torn off Fawna's legs. Seraphine declared Veronica the victor and both ladies lowered onto the ground.

“Follow us, Veronica,” and the witches stood up and went into the other room. Seraphine instructed Veronica to stand in the center of the circle of candles. The other witches sat outside the circle facing her.

Seraphine said, “I had Fawna face you because I saw your power from the first second. I knew you would pass without question. But I doubted your ability to control yourself, which is why I had a more experienced woman facing you during the duel. I figured if you got out of control that she could handle you. Obviously, I was wrong on both accounts. Had you got out of control, I doubt she could have handled you, but there was no need. You controlled your attacks, and nothing was lethal.

"Veronica, you are extremely impressive and you are a very good example of what can happen when we abuse our power and do stupid things. My daughter was raped, and I wrongly assumed you had done it. I made a stupid snap judgment and ignored your absolute confusion about events and punished you.

"We are lucky that it was exactly what you wanted, and it all ended well. But it could have easily ended up being very bad and we could have had a worse problem then. Someone of such power as yourself being angry and vindictive. Our power is extreme and real. We must be very careful with it and use it only when needed. Or else we face Disaster.

"Veronica, you have passed and are now an apprentice witch. You will become a full witch very soon. You have the right to wear this amulet of power. It is the symbol of our ancient order and a symbol of our Goddess.”

“Our Goddess?” Veronica said questioningly.

“Yes, but she is gone. Killed long ago. We can still honor her even if she made some disastrous mistakes.”

Then they went to the far end of the room, and they all sat down. Seraphine then said, “It is time you learn the history and the origin of our order. Are you ready? It is a long story.”

Veronica sat down and prepared. There were so many questions she still had. “Yes, I believe so. I would love to hear it, mother.”

“Good,” Seraphine said. “Our order is ancient. Its origins start around the beginning of time itself. Or at least the first women. Our order is called the Hekatin. And it started around the time of the first witches in a nation we call the Kingdom of the Shattered Isles. We know what they are now. Everyone knows but we will discuss their history and organ of the Hekatin. Its time can be divided into three long ages. The Hekatin came from the first age. That is the time of the Goddess Progenita and the rule of women. That ended, and the Second age was the rule of men over women, and we are into the third age now. So let's talk about the first age in which our order comes from. That was the age of the Matriarchy and the rule of the Hekatin over men.

"The Hekatin thought it was a glorious time of peace and unity. But that was a lie. It was a time of darkness and brutality. We ruled over men with an iron fist and they were helpless and had no control over the course of their lives. It was the time of the Hekatin Kings and the rule of women. We thought that men were immature and could not control their anger. They were taught that men were like children and unfit to hold power. Men were powerless. Century after century of that time and men's anger rose with each one. They were bought and sold like chattel. Until they finally struck out in what we called the great war.

"Men took control of the three most powerful families, Denae, Malnae, and Fawnae, yes, like Lady Fawnae. She is a member of that ancient family. They united, they assassinated the last of the Hekatin Kings and started a long bloody war. Temple after temple fell to them. They wiped out the witches during each conquest and eventually won. The last temple fell, the great witches moon, which was a symbol of the order, and the Goddess fell. The Witch Moon vanished from the sky, and then we entered the rule of man.

"Women were denied all positions of power. We were now treated as chattel. Worship of the Goddess was declared illegal. Witch Hunters hunted for the descendants and members of the last royal family of the witch kings. Then they hunted for the remaining witches. It was a time of Darkness under their male God called Maxis.

"Women were even denied an education at first. For the first three hundred years of the Rule of Maxis, women couldn't even read. We were illiterate. It was eventually decided that educated wives were much better, so we learned domestic skills. That was the beginning of the end of the rule of Man.

"It lasted a few more hundred years but, around eight hundred years after the fall, the witch moon suddenly appeared back in the sky again. It was supposed to be a glorious time. But they did something horrible which destroyed them all. They hatched a plot to retake control. They arranged the death of the final Denae, King Gerrick. His son Serren was set to become King. He was ready, but he was very young. Text says he was sixteen and slightly immature as all teenagers tend to be. He had an older sister named Pattenia. She was a year older. Serren was a strong, and he was bred to be a warrior. He was the greatest warrior in the kingdom.

"But Pattenia was angry at her life and at the restrictions under the rule of Man. His sister Pattenia was a year older, and she thought she should be the rightful king. She was a Hekatin, as was Serren's mother, Aanya. The witches hatched an insidious plot to change the sex of Serren and remove him from the line of succession. A young woman named Actonia, she was a very powerful young witch who found out that the Goddess had chosen Pattenia to become the King, found a way to make it happen by turning Serren into a girl. She convinced Pattenia to agree.

"Serren would be the little sister of Pattenia, who would become the rightful king. The plot was formed, and it was done on the day Serren was supposed to be coronated as the King. Serren was turned into a girl in front of the entire Kingdom and renamed Serrenina. He was betrayed by his own family. He was angry but helpless.

"But they didn’t know what we know that when you change someone though magic, it infuses in them. The spell was called the blessing. It's supposed to bless the person and not hurt them. They abused magic, and the spell. The Goddess inspired it and she was wrong.

"Well, Pattenia was crowned and she ruled. She was a good ruler, but she was still horribly abusive to her little brother. He was mistreated, humiliated after having lost everything.

"Pattenia withdrew the restrictions on women and she instituted the rule of women once again. She freed the women and made worship of the Goddess the legal religion of the country. People celebrated in the streets all night long. She dispossessed every male in the kingdom when she ruled that only the eldest girl can inherent the family's land and titles. Then she prepared to go to war against a few families that had rebelled against her.

"Her brother Serren was hurt by that most of all. He was supposed to be a warrior, but he was forced to watch his arrogant sister don armor, pants, and hold his sword to go to war and lead their army. All while he was trapped in the body of a helpless teenage girl.

"He swore vengeance against her, and when someone is that angry, it may be wise to take it seriously. No one did. He started learning witchcraft to find a way to restore his manhood. He begged Pattenia to help him and offered to even renounce the crown if she would. She refused and lied to him before she marched off to war.

"He studied witchcraft and progressed faster than anyone thought possible. Much like you Veronica. Well Pattenia won the war and retook a few cities, she had yet to retake the islands the rebels held. She returned in victory and mocked Serrenina for her weakness.

"Then he suddenly became pregnant. It was a disastrous thing for a boy like him. It was a devastating blow. His sister continued to mock him, he studied and did his best to find a way. He even attacked the King's chief witch and adviser. He never gave up wanting the crown back no matter what, and he swore to retake it and destroy them. The witches were frightened by this point in time. Serren had been molested by a group of boys, abused, belittled mocked ignored, and then made pregnant.

His pregnancy was considered a miracle from the Goddess, but it was really a spell cast by Actonia and Pattenia to do this to him. She had got pregnant and transferred it to Serren though a powerful spell. She reveled at the changes overtaking her arrogant little brother and loved his suffering. He married the woman he loved, she was a beautiful woman named Nemeria. But he still wanted the crown. Serren retrained his mind and body for combat. He was the best fighter in the Kingdom as a boy. Serren was unrivaled but he lost all of that during his transformation and found himself as helpless as any other teenage girl. He solved that by relentlessly retraining himself to fight again. So when Prett tried to attack him once again, Serren was able to fight back and defeat him. He killed Prett during the second brutal assault. He trained to fight for one reason, to reclaim the crown that was stolen from him. It was a single minded devotion to one single goal.

"Pattenia should have known better. Serren suffered it all and had beautiful twins he fell in love with. Pattenia became more hateful and she won the war. She tortured citizens of the rebel isles and she massacred their army after they surrendered. She committed many atrocities on the men there as she reimposed her rule over them.

Serren loved being a mother and loved his children. Pattenia was able to quicky end the war and return to watch Serren give birth to his children. Pattenia was upset at how much he adored the kids and wanted to raise them. She went to claim the children as her own and Serrens power had grown. He prevented her from taking his children and nearly killed her and the men she sent to claim the kids. But the Goddess had prevented Serren from killing Pattenia. That was the spark that made him hate the Goddess even more and he went into action.

"Serren was still very embittered and hateful. He was powerful enough he formed his own plot and left the isles to learn under the elves. He vanished from the Shattered Isles for nearly a year, training under the elves masters to learn the hidden secrets of Magic that no human knows. The Evles were under the assumption that Serren was interested in restoring their sacred alliance between the two races. They had a sacred alliance during the first age that was broken by the men. The Elves have a matriarchy and that made the humans matriarchy attractive. The elves formed a close alliance with the humans. Men broke it when they seized control. They thought that Serren as a woman would restore it. He learned their secrets of magic over the next year and returned very powerful. But he betrayed the elves and had no interest in an alliance. Serren broke his word and returned to the shattered isles ready to reclaim his crown.”

"Then he formed his own alliance of three of the Sey Families. Onsey, Ansey and his new family, Malney. They united and formed their own nation. War overtook the isles again. Only this war was led by her own deposed brother and an alliance of the three most powerful families in the region. This was sure to be a larger and longer war.

"Then Serren started an inquisition on the witches. Witches were rounded up and tortured. He removed women from all positions of authority and re-instituted the rule of Man once again. He refused to even admit he was a woman. He was a man no matter what was done to him. Women were persecuted under his rule and he proved his brilliance by defeating his sister in every engagement.

"The witches were killed, as he overtook the capital and hunted the witches. They fled the Shattered Isles, and the new age dawned. Serren forced the witches to transform him into a man so he could reclaim his life and rule as a man. This wasnt what the Hekatin would have wanted at all. Their time of freedom lasted only a few years at most. It was still a brutal rule of Man. Witches were hunted across the world. We were illegal. Serren even put the Goddess herself on trial and had her killed. It was found that the Goddess was Maxis and Progenita. She was both, and at times, she felt like a woman and women ruled, at other times she felt male and man ruled. She wanted to institute a new age of equality, not rule by women again. She saw how that turned out.

"But Serren had suffered too much to care what the Goddess wanted and felt terribly deceived. So Serren and his new witches cast a powerful summoning spell on the Goddess that brought her to Trial. She was trapped in a cage, unable to leave.

"During Progenita's trial, he made the point that he was a follower of Maxis, many were, and that was exactly what the Goddess had taught them. One of the charges was betraying her own followers and deception. She was found guilty of that big time. She condemned her followers for doing exactly what she and her religion under Maxis taught them. Then he asked her if he could have been taught differently. And why she never encouraged his family to teach him differently so he could be helpful to them and support his sister. But he was treated as something that needed to be removed and ignored. When he was a very kind and friendly kid who dearly loved his family.

"Serren was angry. He felt like nothing but a meaningless sacrifice and he was doing exactly what Maxis had taught him to do. He said he felt doomed from the day he was born. Serren and his new friends learned a new set of very powerful spells. Another spell was to bind the Goddess into human form. She was suddenly a human girl and then she was burnt at the stake.

"And we entered the new age we called the renaissance. Men still ruled with an iron fistand women were ignored. We had few rights. Some women ruled nations during that time, but it was still the rule of Man. Women had little say over their lives under the great queens like Ekaterina, Queen Elizabeth and those like them. Slowly, the rule of man faded in the nineteenth century. But even today, here are some places where women have no rights at all. It could have been different. Still, some of the Hekatin think Serren was wrong, but they were wrong. Had they done things different, History may have gone very differently.

Then, Veronica read a final exert in the book about the history of the shattered isles that seemed to be written by the hand of Serren himself after he reclaimed the crown and declared victory. It was a very angry passage that talked about how he was betrayed by his family. How they all pretended to love him for so many years but were planing to betray and destroy his very life. How his mother must have hated having a son and never loved him at all. Then he questioned whether women were even capable of the feeling of love.

Veronica shook her lead at the level of hatred this boy must have felt. But the women of his family betrayed him and caused him more pain than she could ever imagine.

She knew that her mothers story about the Shattered Isles was a warning of what can happen when they abuse their power. She had to make sure she never abused her power and when she saw power being abused, to speak up and defend the helpless. She needed to help Riley.

Veronica confronts Tabi and helps Riley recover.
Chapter 8

Veronica's thoughts drifted back to the long story she had read as she laid in her bed. Her mother swore the story was true. She got another book on the origin of the Hekatin and read another book about the ancient shattered isles. She didn't doubt it was true anymore.

Veronica laid there thinking about herself, a former boy made a girl through magic. How could she doubt anything else after this? It was much like the character Prince Serren, who was turned into a girl by his cruel sister in a monstrous act of betrayal. They paid for it and that was the moral of the story to her. His sister Pattenia paid for it most of all. Everything that happened to Serren as a girl was inflicted on her in revenge. He watched her get raped. She was tortured for months and executed in front of everyone in a horrifying sadistic way.

They had to be very careful with how they used the power that they have been granted and make sure what they do is moral and just. They made a horrible mistake thousands of years ago, hoping it would work, and that they would be able to come out into the light as free women. They paid for their brutal act and, in a way, the Hekatin are still paying for it to this day. The descendants of that order still aren’t free. They are forced to practice their art and their religion in secret. Fearful of what people would think if they found people with such power. And, Veronica thought they deserved it.

She had read another book this night about Prince Serren's life before the transformation. He was totally boy. It must have been torture to him. His family did it to him. It was such a horrifying betrayal. Yes, the witches did deserve what they got. Serren really got the last laugh. And he still is nearly a thousand years later. That tale was a good warning of what can happen when they misuse their power.

Then she thought of Riley. Riley was a boy she met shortly after she was transformed herself. Riley was a boy cruelly transformed by another very powerful witch, just to torment and humiliate him. Veronica would not feel so intimidated by meeting Tabi anymore. She now had the confidence and training that she felt she had nothing to fear from her anymore. Perhaps she could help Riley. He did not deserve to be treated like he was. These were the type of witches everyone was afraid of and what put them in this situation to begin with.

Then Veronica slowly drifted off to sleep, wondering about Riley. And how she was going to help that tormented boy. Unlike Veronica, Riley hated this life.

Veronica woke up early the next morning and prepared for high school. She ran into the bathroom and showered and dressed like any other teenage girl. She applied what she knew about makeup and hygiene and made up her face and hair. She applied just enough makeup, and she didn't overdo it like she might for a date. She was just going to high school classes, and then she ran down the steps to make some eggs. She saw her mother at the stove, making them their eggs and smiling.

Veronica started eating and asked her mother,” Mother, is there a way to help Riley?”

Seraphine shook her head side to side as she was making Crystal's plate. “It would be very difficult, Veronica. We have to know exactly what was done and how to reverse it or we may do more harm than good. And since everyone around Riley, her family and friends accept her as a girl born that way, we must assume they cast a wide spell on everyone around her as I did for you, Veronica. To turn her back into a boy now would be very jarring and shocking for everyone. It may bring down repercussions. I would suggest you don’t even try it, Veronica. There’s a lot we need to find out first before we even dare attempt it.”

Crystal came down a little later and ate, and Crystal drove them both to school.

Veronica went to her usual classes for the morning. She went to English in the morning and then to her history class. During history, they were discussing the middle ages, and she briefly wondered if she could visit the Shattered Isles. But she seriously doubted as a witch that they would be welcome there. The witches fled it for a reason. It might be very dangerous to visit Then Veronica had algebra and went to lunch.

Her friends were occupying a table with her sister Crystal. And she saw the boy Riley at a table by himself. Riley saw Veronica approaching him from the side, and she sat down beside him and smiled warmly.

Riley looked frightened and said,” I know you are one of them. Are you just here to mock me too?”

“No,” Said Veronica. “I am here to be your friend and help you. Don't you remember me from my first day?”

Riley nodded. “Yes, Veronica. Tabi said you were a boy before you were changed into a girl like I was. But I also see you are a witch from that amulet you are wearing.”

“I won't make fun of you, Riley. I want to know more about you and help you.”

Then Tabi aggressively moved toward Veronica and said, “So what are you doing with my sissy?” She said.

Veronica turned and stood up, facing Tabi. Tabi saw and smiled, “Oh, it's you, the other sissy pretending to be a real girl. What is your interest in Riley? ‘HE’ is Mine.”

Then Tabi looked down and saw the silver amulet Veronica was wearing and lost some of the color in her face. She whispered, “Goddess, how is this possible after not even a month. An apprentice witch, second class, it took me years to reach just third class. I won't reach second until about another year. This can't be real.”

Veronica stepped forward. Her friends finally noticed the conflict that was about to happen. Veronica said, “Yes, I have been training, and I am not afraid of you anymore. You will leave Riley alone now, won't you? She is Mine, you just want to torment the poor girl.”

Tabi stood there without fear, facing Veronica, saying, “With all of these people around. And I doubt that amulet you have on. It's impossible to reach that level in a month. It took me my lifetime to reach level three apprentice.”

Veronica flashed a malicious smile and stepped forward, pulling her right arm back. Then she drove a solid punch into Tabi's midsection, activating her power at the last minute, putting much more power into the strike than was possible. Tabi doubled over in pain, and Veronica violented shoved her back. Tabi stumbled backward and fell into a bunch of chairs, collapsed in pain as she cried out.

Veronica had a wicked look in her eyes. There was no warmth or mercy. It was a cruel look. “All of the pain people like you caused. What you did to this poor boy Ryan. I wish I could help him. People like you are evil. You caused our misfortune. You must pay.”

Veronica looked at Tabi's neckline and envisioned a tight band around her neck. The band started tightening around Tabi's neck, and she began choking and gagging. The kids nearby screamed at seeing Tabi choking. They guessed she had some food in her windpipe. Tabi's face started turning blue. She couldn’t get any air. She was gagging and choking helplessly.

Crystal stepped beside her sister and laid a comforting hand on her shoulder and said softly, “Veronica, stop. You proved your point. Please don't kill Tabi.”

That shocked Veronica into reality and she suddenly stopped killing Tabi at the last moment, and she gasped and sucked in air.

“You will leave Riley alone for now on. He is my boy, and we will respect him. You leave him alone.” then Veronica penetrated Tabi’s mind and said directly to her, “If I find you tormenting her again, I will finish what I started.”

Then Veronica took Riley's hand and led her to the table with her friends, and they sat and ate.

A teacher saw the fight and pulled Veronica away and escorted her and Tabi into the office.

The teacher took Tabi into the office first but didn't get much from her. Tabi told her what she already saw in the fight. Veronica was the aggressor and attacked Tabi and knocked her down. She was dismissed, and then she called in Veronica.

Veronica walked into the officer, sure she was in big trouble. The teacher asked, “So tell me what happened. I saw much of it, but I want it from your point of view. I saw you attack Tabi.”

“I was just sitting there talking with my new friend Riley when Tabi came at us. She had been bullying and demeaning my friend Riley. She thinks Riley is hers to do with as she pleases. I was defending my friend and telling her to back off. I ended up having to knock her down to make my point. I don’t like how she was treating Riley.”

There had been complaints about Tabi but nothing that could be acted on. She suspected that Tabi was a bully. The principal said, “While I agree with you on that and I can commend you for standing up for your friend, I still can't condone fighting. Students need to report these bullies so we can deal with them.”

“Yes, because it is so effective when we report bullies. It does so much to report them. Right,” Veronica said, dripping with sarcasm. “You are so effective in dealing with bullying.”

“We may be more effective if you students weren't so afraid to report them to us,” Said the Principal.

“When we do, the bully gets some punishment but just comes back angry and takes it out on his victim, and nothing changes. Perhaps if there were harsher penalties for bullying, it might do some good. But I think my way protected Riley much better. I doubt she will come at Riley again.”

“She may come at you, and her family may come at you too,” The Principal pointed out.

“If they do, I will have to teach them a lesson. I am not afraid,” Veronica said confidently.

“I see why you attacked Tabi, But I can't accept this type of behavior. I have to suspend you for a day, Veronica.” The Principal told Veronica.

“I understand, and I expected it.” Then she was dismissed. Tabi had also been suspended for a day.

She went out and saw Riley, and Riley said,”Thank you for helping me with Tabi. I don't know how I will deal with mom. She likes Tabi.”

“My mother could be here to take you when the school lets out. You could stay with us,” Then Veronica smiled sweetly. “I would appreciate that, Ryan. You really are cute as a guy.” Then she kissed Riley's cheek, and Riley blushed and agreed to spend the night with them. Riley had a few more classes, and Crystal was there and said she would protect Riley.

Seraphine came by about ten minutes later and they left. Veronica was afraid and figured she was going to be in big trouble. On the way home, Seraphine asked, “So you got in a fight with Tabi and attacked her?”

Veronica looked down, ashamed and afraid, “Yes. She was picking on Riley.”

“And you are still here and Tabi ended up on the ground. We were right to promote you to an apprentice. Good job, Veronica. Let's go for ice cream.”

“What?” Veronica said, confused that she wasn’t in trouble.

“You got into it with a sadistic bully like Tabi. Who ruined a boy's life and took pleasure in continuing to torment that boy. And you defended that boy. You thought I would disapprove of what you did,” Seraphine pointed out. “I do not disapprove at all. Veronica, I approve. But I have a feeling that Tabi will continue to come at you now. But I like what you did.”

They went to get Veronica an oversized ice cream cone, and they were on their way home. Seraphine said, “I won't punish you while you are at home. We get more time to work on your witchcraft. You are part of the Hekatin.”

Veronica ate her huge ice cream cone and thinking of her new responsibility as being part of the Hekatin. She had to defend them and make sure they stood for the ideals they espoused. They failed when it came to Serren and paid for it with their lives.

They went home and made their way to the training area in the basement. In no time, she was focusing and defending herself against Seraphine's attack.

After several long hours of training and practicing, she was lying down tired. Seraphine said, “Veronica you are a perfect example of the point I am making. Be careful who you abuse or mistreat. You have trained for under a month and you can hold your own against me and have a chance of defeating me. You defeated Lady Fawna. All in under a month.

"You are a lot like Serren in that respect. She was changed against her will and humiliated and demeaned beyond all reason. And when she started reading about the Hekatin, she became fearsome. She became extremely powerful within mere months of taking classes with the witches. She was able to hold her own against her mother, who was very a very powerful witch herself. She defeated Actonia, who was also a very powerful witch. My point is just to be careful, you never know how strong someone can eventually be. The Hekatin who changed Serren weren't, and Tabi wasn’t careful when she started picking a fight with you. Riley could become a very powerful witch if he wanted to be.”

“Mother, when I was studying about the old Hekatin during the time of Serren, something confused me. They talked about a beautiful land to the north that was the home of the witches and the final ruling family during the first age. It was called Guenefer. Guenefer was Pattenia's closest allies. But we didn’t hear much about them during Serren's rule and never again. What happened to Guennefer? They sheltered the witches and had one of the greatest libraries of the Hekatin ever.”

Seraphine looked sad. “They were utterly destroyed. They actively supported and helped Pattenia during her reign. Serren destroyed them all when he claimed the crown. Serren reclaimed his manhood, he was turned into a man and took control. He defeated his sister.

"He took control of the army and gathered his fleet and led them all to Guenefer. They knew they were in big trouble then. Serren's army landed on Guenefer and they killed and burnt everything. The nobles and people were rounded up and slaughtered. The cities were burnt to the ground. He destroyed and burnt their secret library, he burnt all of the witches. It was like Carthage and Rome. Even today, all that’s left is charred bodies, graves and burnt cities. Then his witch hunters started rounding up witches wherever they were in his country. We ended up having to flee the Shattered Isles. And I think we deserved it. But Serren killed every man woman and child who supported the Hekatin.”

“How is the Shattered Isles today, are they still a country?” Veronica asked.

Seraphine said, “Yes, but they are hidden. But they are a nightmare. It is extremely sexist and brutal. They still have the strict and unquestioned rule of man over women. Women are persecuted and have no power. It's to such an extent that they make Saudi Arabia look progressive, even with their guardianship laws over women.

"The Shattered Isles is a nightmare. And they still have an absolute monarchy. And only men can hold any position of power. Their witch hunters still hold power over society. Don’t even consider trying to visit the Shattered Isles. Some men have, and they were horrified. They are a modernized country. They have power plants and airports, a modern military with firearms and tanks. But they still hunt witches and liberalized women. And they are burnt at the stake.”

Then Seraphine looked at her new daughter and said, “And now I hear that you are trying out for the cheerleading squad.”

“Yes, I would love it,” Veronica replied.

Seraphine laughed. “That is great. I don’t know how we will handle that. But after today, punching Tabi out, no one can say you are a weak girl. A girlie girl does not have to be weak. Kimberly will be coming to help you soon. She is eager to help you train for the squad.”

Veronica actually stood up and bounced on her toes with joys squealing, “Ohmygod, A real cheerleader wants to help me prepare for the tryouts.” She squealed so loud. Her smile was so huge as she bounced on her toes.

Seraphine just rolled her eyes and considered what an injustice it was that this so obvious girl was born as a boy. How much torture that must have been for her.

“You have about another hour until Kimberly shows up.” Seraphine told her.

“I forgot to tell you that I invited Riley to stay with us. Her mother sees nothing wrong with the way Tabi treats her, and they are close friends. She needs someone to care and protect her.” Veronica pleaded with her mother to understand.

“That was very kind of you. Since you have taken the responsibility, her protection and helping her is up to you. I will do what I can to find out all that I can so we can restore her masculinity. I will accept her in my house, but I won't have a boy in your room with you. Especially one you are obviously interested in.” Seraphine flashed a sly smile, letting Veronica know that she knew what was behind all of this. “I saw you kiss him.”

Veronica’s face turned crimson with embarrassment as Seraphine laughed and told her to go get some rest and get dressed for Kimberly.

She sat down and began reading a little about Pattenia's life before she seized the crown from her little brother. Pattenia seemed very harsh and cruel to her when she heard how she treated her little brother and the things she did.

Veronica was surprised about how upset and sad Pattenia's life was before it all. She was the older and stronger of the two, she was a little smarter and mature than her brother. But she was so angry that she could never be considered for the crown the way things were then, just because she was a girl. There was that, and her little brother's treatment of her, and the marriage she was being forced into.

Her reign was very brief and violent. Seizing the crown and calling off her contracted marriage sparked a war with that family. Then her little sister forms alliances against her and sparks a full-scale civil war. Her brother proved he could lead, and he was the stronger of the two.

After reading about Pattenia's depressing childhood under the rule of men for about a half hour, it was time to prepare for her first training session for cheerleading. Kimberly was arriving shortly, and she had to prepare.

Veronica went to her bedroom and found some athletic training clothes. She put on a pair of pink leggings and a sports bra, and loose fitting white and pink workout top and a headband. She tied her hair in a ponytail using a hairband and went out to loosen up.

She started with some simple stretches and running to warm up. Then she practiced some of the basic cheerleading routines that the freshmen practice. That was what she was doing when Kimberly came out to meet her. She stood there watching Veronica go through several of the freshmen squad's basic cheers and then proceed to some of the more advanced routines for the Varsity squad. Kimberly had a basic idea of Veronica's skills by then and stepped in to help correct some of her mistakes and help with her timing.

Kimberly stopped Veronica and said, “I am impressed, Veronica. Usually, first-time tryouts hardly know any of the cheers. You know most of the freshmen squad's cheers and the Varsity squads.

"But you chose to try out for the competition squad. Of course, to be on that squad, you will also be expected to cheer on the varsity squad too. That's a given. But you are lucky that the cheerleaders decided to hold tryouts and invited anyone who wanted to try out come. Usually, they promote a girl from the Varsity squad to the competition squad. You would have to be on the Varsity squad for at least a year before they even consider you for the competition squad.

"It is likely that a girl from there will be accepted. But, there is a still chance that you might make it. And if you want to be considered, then you had better be exceptional. The competition squad is the elite of the elite. And we have a week. You are lucky you know many of the basic cheers but that won't help you get on the competition squad. We need to train with stunts and flying. That's what they do. You will also have to work on your timing with the moves, as that is vital. So, let's start, can you do a slow cartwheel?”

Veronica got into position and tried to do a slow cartwheel, and she lost her balance and fell over.

“That's okay, can you do a very fast cartwheel?”

That was simpler, but she almost over-rotated and missed before her legs flipped over to her hands and fell. She was unsteady when she rose back up. Then she was asked to do a walk over, one hand cartwheel with her legs together. She tried it and barely succeeded.

Kimberly knew they had a lot of work to do and said, “Well, if you want to even have a chance at this, I think we better train every day, from two and a half hours to three.”

“You were a cheerleader for the high school?” Veronica asked.

“Yes,” Kimberly replied. “And now I cheer for Florida state. We went to the state competition four years in a row. We placed three of those times and went to the nationals. Now let's start practicing the cartwheels. You have to learn how to time them with the others in the squad. The timing must be precise, or you will lose your squad points. You need to be able to perform a cartwheel with the precise timing, slow or fast, depending on the routine you are performing.”

Then Kimberly performed a slow cartwheel and then sped it up, and she showed Veronica how to keep her balance while performing a slow, deliberate cartwheel. And they worked on that until Veronica learned to perform it reasonably well without tumbling over.

Veronica was far from ready, but at least she could follow instructions and learn quickly. When she had arrived, Kimberly didn’t think there was a snowball's chance in hell of preparing Veronica for tryouts on a competition squad in a week. Kimberly thought that now, there was a slim chance she could be ready for it and maybe even be accepted.

Veronica paid attention to the specific details of her instructions and followed them reasonably well. And she learned very fast. There was indeed a chance of pulling this off. Kimberly was encouraged. There was still a long way to go and they would need every minute they had training to do it. So they began to quicken the pace of the cartwheels to medium speed and then fast speed.

Once she had all of the speeds in hand, they began trying to put them together with other routines performing together in sync with each other in a two-person routine. Then they began working on a walkover and a handstand.

Kimberly felt that they had accomplished a lot in their two-and-a-half-hour practice and would be there tomorrow at the same time. Veronica had learned a lot in that time and was well on her way to mastering the basics. Kimberly was walking out while Veronica was still practicing the walk overs using one hand. Yes, Veronica was dedicated. There was a good chance. But the competition for a place on the competition squad was going to be fierce. And there would be many very experienced cheerleaders trying out for the one spot. Veronica was going to have to work hard and prove her dedication to it to have a chance at it.

Kimberly had worked and taught Veronica much in their two and a half hour session. She watched Veronica continue to practice what she had been taught. Kimberly turned and left after assuring Veronica that she would be here the same time tomorrow.

Veronica continued to work another half of an hour practicing and she was getting good at the single-handed walk over with both legs together, and then she decided to call it a day. She rushed to the shower to clean up and prepare for Ryan's arrival. She wanted to look her best for him. She showered and did her hair and spent some time on her face before deciding that her look was good for him. She had looked into his mind and found out what he liked.

The cupcakes she was baking were done and Veronica went to the oven and pulled out a pan of thick chocolate cupcakes to let them cool off before Ryan arrived.

Seraphine saw her daughter all made up and pretty pulling a pan of cupcakes out of the oven. She looked at her daughter and said, “Wow, Veronica, you went all out. That red miniskirt, that flattering lacy low-cut blouse, those low heels and you are baking a pan of cupcakes. Your hair, you must have spent some time with the curling iron and your face, your eyes and lashes. It looks like you are preparing for a hot boy. What is this about? Is this for Riley?”

“RYAN!” Veronica said pointedly. “Mom, HIS name is RYAN!” She said in a stern tone.

“Don’t take that tone with me, Veronica.” Seraphine admonished. “But her name is Riley now.”

“But you know what happened to HIM, and he didn't want any of it. He isn't like me and this is a nightmare for him. Let's give him love and respect, please. Don't humiliate him anymore than he already has been. I know it may be difficult to refer to someone with that body and form as a boy. But Ryan is a boy inside all of that. So please understand.”

It was clear that Veronica had more than a casual interest in this boy and she told Veronica to sit down beside her.

Veronica obeyed, and Seraphine then said, “Veronica, I know what happened to him was horrible. I understand that he is all boy inside all of that. Ryan is a suffering and tormented boy. I absolutely will not mistreat him. But referring to him as a boy in public will attract unwanted attention and make things more uncomfortable for him in the long run. We can do it your way in private, here between us, and I will call him Ryan. But, Veronica, before you do all of this, you may want to have a talk with him and find out what he prefers himself.”

Then Seraphine gave Veronica a sly knowing look of a mother who isn’t fooled. “And you may want to find out if he is into you in any way before you take it too far and just get embarrassed or hurt.

“I found out what kind of girls he likes. I think there's a good chance of this working. I know he likes me. And I found out what he likes.”

Veronica went to check to see if the cupcakes were done inside, and she was satisfied. Then she started putting a thick coat of chocolate icing on the top.

“He likes Chocolate.”

Seraphine laughed and commented, “Then you two have that in common. You are both crazy for chocolate. But listen. If you two are going to pursue a romantic relationship, then we will have to have a long talk about limits. But do you want him to live here? What about his family and his mother?”

“Mother, listen,” Veronica said. “His mother was behind his transformation. She wanted a daughter and not a son. She set him up with Tabi and pushed him into it all. Knowing that he would be transformed by them. She betrayed her own son.”

Seraphine got that frightening look in her eyes. It was that same look she got when she found out that Veronica’s own sister Rose had bewitched Richard and caused him to savagely attack her daughter. Even now, Crystal occasionally had traumatic nightmares and needed to be comforted.

“He can stay here as long as he has to, and if his family has a problem with it, they can go fuck themselves. I will do everything I can to help Ryan reclaim his sex.”

Ryan walked in with Crystal a few minutes later and greeted Veronica. Crystal saw the cupcakes that Veronica had made and rolled her eyes once again. She was doing that a lot lately, but her little sister's antics were very amusing lately. Especially out seeing how she was acting around Ryan. This was too much and she struggled to not burst out in a giggle fit.

Seraphine welcomed Ryan to her family and said he could stay here as long as he wanted. And if his family came for him, they would have to deal with her and a report to the council about what they did to their son. That would be enough.”

Veronica started acting very feminine and smiling at Ryan as she offered him some cupcakes, and they sat at the table facing each other eating the chocolate cupcakes she had just baked for them.

She smiled at him, and they started talking. Ryan was slightly uncomfortable and said, “Um, Veronica, look at me. I can't be a boy.”

“Sure you can,” Veronica said as she sat beside him. “Beneath all of that, you are all boy inside, and I have seen it. That’s what I see when I look at you and you are a very attractive boy in my eyes.

Seraphine and Crystal watched the two teens interact, and it was almost unwatchable. Veronica was acting so girlie and feminine for Ryan. The way she looked at him, her occasional touches and fluttering her eyes. She was really putting it on that it was hard for Crystal to not giggle at it all. The two rolled their eyes and left.

“She is really into him,” Seraphine said. “I really didn’t expect this at all. But look at Ryan, he's clearly into her too.”

“How can any boy resist that kind of affection she is giving him,” Crystal asked as they left the room to stop from bursting into laughter. “But I see he likes her too. But she saved him, and I saw sis knock Tabi on her ass for him.”

Seraphine shook her head and said, “I am going to have to have a very long talk with those two.

Later that night, the two were curled up on the sofa watching a romantic movie in each other's arms. Veronica was slipping into sleep with her head on her boy's shoulder. It was strange being held by such a feminine body, but she knew in her mind that this was a strong boy, and he would be a boy again. So, she could get past the uncomfortable feeling. But laying her head on his shoulder and holding him tightly, the soft and slim shoulder and the swell of his soft breast where there should be the feeling of a strong chest was slightly distracting to her. She started falling asleep and stood up. She told Ryan she had to go to sleep now. He could sleep on the sofa until they could find a better place for him today there.

Veronica went to her own bedroom and curled up on her pillow. She fell asleep almost before her head hit her pillow.

Then she started having a very strange dream. She saw people from Georgia to Tennesee having mass rallies under the symbol of Maxis. She saw the Maxis priests in their scarlet robes and hoods standing near the rallies, controlling the crowds. Massive numbers of people raising their fists shouting, “Maxis. MAXIS.” And the priests marching down the streets like some military.

Their rally's grew each year. Politicians were giving bombastic political speeches with the symbol of Maxis behind them. People screaming and cheering. Then she saw those states holding meetings together and forming an alliance. Then they started hunting for the witches that fled to America.

There was the image of their great King Serren behind the speaker. Serren had been dead for about five hundred years at this point. He was still known as one of the greatest kings of the Shattered Isles and saved the country from the witches. He was beloved by his people.

There were new laws passed restricting the freedom of women. And then in her dream, she saw vast American armies marching under the symbol of Maxis clashing with federal troops. It had become a full-scale war on American soil. Then her vision saw the skyline of New York and she saw a brilliant eye smiting blinding flash of light that enveloped everything. Then the light dimmed and coalesced into a massive ball of fire in the center of the city that incinerated miles. The massive white hot fireball coalesced into a huge cloud rising above the city as a line of fire and heat radiated out from the center wiping out the rest of New York.

She woke up trembling and remembering the dream. She wondered how this was possible. There was no way. If vast numbers of Americans in the south were falling under the religion of Maxis, wouldn’t that be in the news. Wouldn’t people know? How could such a vast new movement be hidden? Those few hundred people from the Westboro Baptist church made the news. And they were total fools no one cared about. But, if people were turning to the Religion of Maxis here, that would be no laughing matter. This was something that would be very serious. That religion was a religion that demanded action. But there was no way this was happening. But Veronica was still trembling in fear from that dream.

She considered running to her boy to be held, but he would not understand at all. Veronica ran to her mother's bedroom, trembling and shaking in fear. She woke Seraphine up and said in a shaky voice, “Mother, we need to talk.”

Seraphine wiped her eyes clear and said, “Yes, indeed we do. But can't your ass chewing wait until later in the morning please.”

Veronicas future comes more clear as she talks with the other witches about her dream

Chapter 9

Seraphine looked up into her daughter's terribly frightened face. The room was still very dark, and it was not even three a.m. yet. Seraphine was waking up from a deep sleep. But the terror she felt coming from her daughter and her trembling told her that this was something serious. At least to her daughter.

“Veronica, tell me what has frightened you so much?" She had no clue. She hoped it wasn't something having to do with Riley or Tabi.

“I,” Veronica shuddered trying to find her voice, “I, I had a terrifying dream and woke up nearly screaming. I am very afraid.”

That woke Seraphine up the rest of the way. When a witch had a dream like that, it was best to be very serious about it. It isn't something to dismiss out of hand.

“Okay,” Seraphine said seriously. There was no mocking or kidding in her voice about a dream. Seraphine was calm and very seriously considering this. “Tell me about this dream. Be as specific as you can. Tell me everything you saw in your dream.”

Veronica started explaining her dream using as much detail as possible. She saw a mask of horror overtake her mother as she started explaining how she had seen the Rallies for Maxis in many southern cities and the marches she saw. Then she started explaining the priests she saw in her dreams patrolling American cities and the new laws that they had passed against women. Then she saw the arrests of witches and other witches being tortured, charged for treason against the state and being hung, drawn, and quartered. Then she told her mother of the alliance between those states and the war that followed.”

She half expected her mother to laugh at the ridiculousness of it all. Yet Seraphine was taking it very seriously. She looked at Veronica in horror. “You aren't laughing at me,” Veronica said.

“This is hardly a laughing matter, Veronica,” replied Seraphine. “You are a witch now, and a witch like you having a vision like this that scared you out of your mind isn't something we should laugh at. This isn't something we should dismiss. To dismiss something like this would be a major folly. This is something the fates wanted you to be aware of. I admit it seems silly and almost unbelievable. But knowing what we know about the religion of Maxis, this isn't something that is impossible in any way. We had better take this very seriously.”

“But the priests of Maxis were holding these meetings in the United States and it grew to the extent I saw in my dreams where they can pass laws and take control. This is something that we would have known about isn't it? The news would have covered them if this was happening," Veronica pleaded, hoping this was true.

“Not if they were very secretive about how much their power grew,” Seraphine pointed out. “Remember how powerful the Hekatin grew by Serren's time that they could attack him and take control of the entire kingdom when they were illegal. Don’t totally discount that this is something very real and could be happening right under everyone's nose. And no one will know anything about it until it's too late to stop them. You were given this vision. It is best we consider it.”

“So what should I do?” Veronica asked.

Seraphine looked at her daughter and replied, “Nothing for now. Just be aware. But you are a teenager and just learning how to live as a girl. That is what you should do for now. I will look into this. I have contacts and I will look into this possibility and what we can do about it. I know you were given this dream, so the fates must have something for you in mind. Things will become more clear in time and you will be ready to face it when it comes. Whatever that is. For now, be a teenager, have fun, and learn. You want to be part of the cheer squad and annoy your jock sister, who doesn’t understand. Do that. I will see what can be done. Now, go back to sleep. It's not even three in the morning yet. Let's get some sleep, and I will look into this tomorrow. We will contact the other witches tomorrow morning.”

Veronica went back to her bedroom and curled up, trying to sleep. It took a few more hours, but she eventually fell asleep.

She awoke around 10 in the morning. She was suspended from school and Crystal and Riley had already awoken hours ago and gone to school. She hoped Riley would be okay. Tabi was also suspended but she would know if Tabis friends tried any of their horse shit on Riley.

She dressed and went out to run a few miles around the block. She had formed a path to run around the block to build her body and stamina.

The witches were all there by the time she returned to the house. She had to rush to the bathroom for a shower and get herself cleaned up.

Then she was hungry and ate a little. Seraphine's friends were all ready to hear about her dream by the time she was finished.

Veronica stood there, nervous, in front of many of the older witches like Lady Fawna, Celestia, and the others that were there. She was shaking under the gaze of these older and wiser witches.

Seraphine stood up and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder and said, “Calm down and tell them what you saw in your dream last night. You did well in explaining it to me. You can do this and none of them will be harsh. Just explain what you saw.”

Veronica slowly explained what she saw using the most detail she could. And she saw their reactions as her story went on explaining from the rallies and the torture of the witches to the war. She saw utter shock, disbelief, and horror.

Lady Fawna said after her tale was over, “I would love to dismiss this as a child's nightmare. But I can see I would be an utter fool to do so. I think this is serious and we need to consider it.”

Celestia said, “Even now, eight hundred years later, Serren's mad hand is still trying to kill us across an entire continent and an ocean. We should have seen this. He's trying to expose us and it seems like it would work. Serren was such a monster.”

Veronica spoke up, “Yes, but consider what he suffered at their hands. I can understand.”

Celestia spoke up harshly, belittling Veronica's defense of Serren, “He personally had his sister raped, and watched it. Then he personally tortured and disemboweled his own SISTER. He forced Pattenia to watch as he raped Actonia and tortured her. He had many of the other Hekatin witches tortured and charged with treason against the crown. How can you defend that child? He had Pattenia tortured for months before her execution. He raped Actonia. He participated in it personally beating Actonia and his own sister on the rack and the wheel. Then as a mockery of mercy, he personally hung his sister, then had her drawn and quartered. And took pleasure in it. After making her watch Actonia’s execution. How can you defend this sadism?”

Veronica bristled and stood her ground, “I am not. But I am considering what they did to him to encourage it. What his sister did to him.”

“She didn’t have him murdered or even tortured. She hardly laid a hand on him.”

“She was the king,” Veronica responded. “She didn’t have to. She did have him beaten.”

“Only so he would allow them to dress him once he was transformed. He fought them." Celestia shouted.

“Yes, of course he would. So would I if someone did that to me. But it was torture for him. Serren was a boy that was transformed and immediately expected to change and live that way. That was the worst torture imaginable. Every day of that existence for Serren was torture to him. It destroyed his entire life and it was all so much humiliation and pain. He lost everything. The Hekatin worked hard to turn such a loving and compassionate boy into the monster he was. I say they all deserved what they got. That bitch sister reminded me of my own sister Rose. I still love her. But Rose was a sadist.”

Seraphine spoke up to stop the argument. “I agree with my daughter on this. The Hekatin went way too far and created the monster he turned out to be. Had they acted differently, then things would have turned out better. But the Hekatin had vengeance in mind and piled it all on an innocent boy who knew nothing of what they were living under. And they treated it as it was all his doing. Of course, he will be very bitter and enraged. So would I and so would any of you. And now, I see why Veronica was given this vision. The fates have something in mind for her to do, and to stand up to you, Celestia, we can see she has the conviction and strength to do it. Once we find out whatever that is.”

One of the other witches spoke, “This is a serious matter we need to look into. It will require all of us to find out what is going on in the south and what, if anything we can do about it, before it is too late.”

“What are we supposed to do?” asked Veronica. “Go disrupt those rally’s and expose yourself to them? That's what they are doing anyway. Exposing us and stirring up fear at witches. And it looks like they are being successful.”

Veronica was taking this very seriously. It showed a maturity beyond her age. Seraphine said, ”Veronica, we will find out what must be done. We will find out what is going on and how we can deal with it. These are things we must figure out. Now, don't you have Kimberly coming soon to work on your cheerleading? That's what you wanted to do. You leave this to us and we will let you know if we need you to help us.”

Veronica smiled and ran up the steps to prepare for her session with Kimberly.

Celestia asked after Veronica left, “She does have a part in this or she wouldn't have received the vision. There is something she must do. We need to figure out what that is. But it really worries me. I think I have a feeling about what that may be.”

Seraphine rose her eyebrow and asked, “What?”

“What if she has to go to the Shattered Isles to deal with this problem? What if her mission is over there?”

None of them wanted to even consider such a dangerous mission. Going to the Kingdom of the Shattered Isles was a highly dangerous thing.

Seraphine said, “Let's hope not. But if so, she will have a lot to learn first just in order tobe able integrate with their culture first. And be able to defend herself to accomplish whatever the fates have set for her.

Celestia then said what they were all thinking. “If that is what she will have to do, we have to prepare her. There's a lot she will have to learn and much to prepare for. She will learn how to integrate with their male-dominated culture under the religion of Maxis. And we all know what that means. She will have to give up her independent spirit and learn to be submissive to male authority in the extreme.

"She will also have to learn about their history and religion. She will have to learn about Serren, their first “great king”. How he built his religion around him as the prophet of Maxis. He is almost elevated to godhood in the religion of Maxis. How they idolize him and his statues. She will have to learn about the religion of Maxis and the Book of Serren. She will have to be accompanied by a man, preferably she will have to get married beforehand and will have to learn what is expected of her as a wife under the religion of Maxis and their culture. That probably means she will be expected to get married in the religion by a priest of Maxis.

"If this is where it's all going, she has a lot to learn and prepare for. Their very life will depend on it if she is to actually travel to the Shattered Isles. She will also have to learn their language. Their kings have prevented their language from progressing since the year one thousand. They speak a very early form of English. Let's pray this isn’t where it's going.”

But Seraphine had a bad feeling that was exactly where this was headed.

Veronica had rushed up the steps and headed toward her bedroom to find her workout clothes. She found a pair of her blue shorts with her light pink leggings and a matching sports bra and a workout top.

She tied her hair back and then went outside to warm herself up before Kimberly arrived. Veronica had warmed up and was working on the one-handed walkovers by the time Kimberly came through the door.

The walkovers Veronica was practicing was getting better as Kimberly watched. She offered a few more pointers and performed it for Veronica. She was improving and the two worked on that a few more minutes before Kimberly changed it up.

Kimberly asked, “Can you do somersaults?”

Veronica could do them as a boy. She wasn't sure if she could do the same thing as a girl. She tried a few and almost made it on her feet at the end.

So they started practicing somersaults and how to spring up properly, and tucking her feet and hands as she performs the flip. Veronica took her advice and her somersaults improved so that within a half-hour to an hour, she was able to perform an almost flawless forward somersault. She worked on the backward somersaults and was soon able to do it both ways.

They spent the next hour trying to put together a routine and performing them together like a halftime show or something. Kimberly was impressed with Veronica's dedication and her creativity in helping her put together an exciting routine to perform together. They would walk to opposite ends of the yard and perform their routine together. They faced each other and walked over and somersaulted at each other ending in a cartwheel where they came within a handspan from each other and ended in the opposite place.

They performed the routine in various ways for the last half hour of practice and had got each other very tired and sweaty. Kimberly smiled and said, “Veronica, you have a good chance at making it. If you keep progressing like this, you will be equal to anyone on the varsity squad by the end of the week. But you aren’t there yet. You are getting very close though. We will work on more advanced routines tomorrow. Now get some rest. You look tired.”

Kimberly walked back to her car and drove away as Veronica headed toward the shower. Afterward, Veronica curled up in bed and drifted off for a short nap before Ryan would come back from school. And she had another very frightening dream.

This one didn't seem to be as much of a warning, as it was showing her fragments of Serren's life before his traumatic transformation. Then she was shown his transformation on the most important day of his young life. In front of everyone a group of witches transformed him into a teenage girl, shorter and younger than his sister, her sister claimed his crown and boasted in front of everyone about the lack of a male heir and that she was the rightful heir then.

Veronica saw the betrayal and pain in his face as Pattenia was crowned and then apologized, telling him that she had no choice. She had to do this. He said she didn't, and Veronica saw the pain in his eyes slowly turn to hatred. Then he was removed, one of the elder witches told the guards to take the princess to her room. Then Veronica saw flashes of the next year as he was in pain, suffering a life he hated.

He was deprived of everything he loved in life, his birthright, his joys, and his destiny as a warrior was stripped and then he was humiliated. He was assaulted by boys, he was molested, guys went after him trying to force him into a marriage. Then he became pregnant and gave birth to twins. He married a woman he loved and she became his husband.

He turned to hatred and then she watched as he gathered allies and went to war. He was turned into a man again and fought for his birthright and plunged the Shattered Isles into a civil war. Then the scene turned to his last battle as he besieged the capital of Denaerk.

King Pattenia saw the way things were going and she knew there was no way to defend the capital anymore. She still had a significant force to defend the capital with. But it was still no match for Serren’s Army and there could be no victory here. Especially when Serren flew in and landed in front of the palace riding on top of a huge massive black beast. It looked like Serren had acquired a massive black dragon. He was that powerful by now and threatened to burn down the capital if she didn’t surrender. Pattenia swallowed her pride and surrendered the capital to Serren. She knelt and surrendered to her little brother. He forced his sister to follow him and his generals and priests into the throne room where he forced her to surrender her father’s sword, and the crown to him. The high priests proclaimed him the King of the Shattered Isles by divine right, and the head of the Danae family. Pattenia and her witches were seized and Serren ordered them taken to the dungeon for treason against the crown and blasphemy against god. Serren looked at the throne, it was his throne now. He was finally the King of the Shattered Isles. It was his divine right yet the women did their best to deprive him of it, as well as to deprive him of his dignity and manhood. They had failed in the end and he was going to make them pay dearly for what they had inflicted on him, as well as every other man in the Kingdom. He had a lot of scores to settle and it was time to begin to settle one of them as he watched his sister, and his mother be dragged out and taken down into the dungeon.

Serren sat on his throne and ordered his guards to find Stone, and Rose Bucket and bring them to his throne room. He sat there and waited. The women were found and forced into his presence. Veronica saw that those two women knew they were in very serious trouble now by the terror in their eyes. She almost felt bad for the women as Serren glared down at them with eyes full of rage and hate now that he could finally unleash on them for what they did.

Serren looked at Stone and asked her, “Tell me Stone. If a girl does not want to wear a corset and heavy gown, does she have that right in your eyes to refuse to be dressed as she is told?”

Stone knew where this was going but her reasoning was trapped. She replied in a shaky voice, “I would think so in my personal view but I was following the King’s orders.”

“Don’t give me that, bitch,” Serren yelled out loud. “It was more than simple orders. You enjoyed dressing me by force. You enjoyed demeaning and humiliating me. I saw the joy in your eyes, as well as in your daughter’s as you invaded my room morning after morning. You beat me into submission, and then you dressed me after you had me defeated and secured. I was helpless. Is this the treatment you would give any girl, do you believe a girl should be treated that way?”

She refused to answer. “Yours was a special case. We had to do this to you to avoid you regaining the crown. But you did it anyway.”

“You beat and humiliated me day after day. You treated me with such disregard to my own wishes as a girl. Such treatment that you don’t believe should be inflicted on any girl. You betrayed your sex, and the crown. You are clearly guilty of treason. Both of you are. You both deserve to be punished. And I have the perfect punishment for you. Since you were so angry at me for sleeping with your daughter Bucket. I will do it again right in front of your eyes and punish her. Then she will die right in front of your eyes and you will bury your daughter. You will live with the knowledge of where your cruelty and brutality on me lead to.”

Serren stepped down from his throne and approached Rose as she cringed and tried to get away from his lust. He slapped her hard and she fell down. Serren descended on her and ripped her grown from her body and undid her corset. He went down on her, seized her, pinned her down on the floor of the throne room and violently penetrated her. Stone was forced to watch Serren violently rape her daughter in front of her. She was helpless to stop it. The first time he had slept with her could be considered a rape. She consented, but it was more out of fear of refusing the crown prince than her own desires. Serren didn't know the difference. But this was a violent rape against her will. She was screaming and Stone just watched through her own tears. Serren climaxed in Rose and stood up and looked down with a dark seething anger. Then he began striking her as she curled on the floor in agony and shame. Serren kicked her in the body and on her legs, arms and her back. He was beating Rose in front of her mother.

Stone knew there was no hope. Rose would die this day and there was nothing she could do to prevent it. Serren said it was her fault, it was her doing by the way she treated and abused him day after day. But this was Serren’s own doing and he was torturing Stone’s Daughter. Serren finally had enough and took his sword Justice and drove it through Rose’s stomach. She bled out and died slowly. Serren watched with pleasure. He didn't hate Rose that much. It angered him that she preferred him as a girl than a man. But he had formed a sisterhood bond with her as a girl. It still wasn’t what he was supposed to be. This was more to hurt Stone than having to do with Rose. This is the price that Stone must pay and Serren went up to the cruel woman and stood face to face with the broken woman. He said, “This is the price you must pay for the crimes you committed on me. Your cruelty had a steep cost and you have just paid it. I hope what you did to me was worth the cost. If not, then perhaps you should have really thought that perhaps brutalizing and abusing the crown prince may eventually have a cost that you wouldl be required to pay. But you never did and now your daughter is dead because of it. So, Stone, want to try me now?” Serren faced her and prepared for action. Stone did nothing but stare at him blankly. She was broken. She knew that he was now a very powerful King. He had led his forces into battle against Pattenias army and had won victory after victory against her army. He had killed many of her soldiers and eventually won the entire war. She stood no chance against him now.

Serren laughed bitterly and sneered to Stone’s face, “I guess you only use force on someone when you are sure you can overpower them. You are good at abusing and beating helpless teenage girls.” Stone was seized and thrown out of the Throne room. She would not be executed. Serren thought it was crueler to let her live the rest of her life after seeing her daughter raped, tortured and killed in front of her eyes. Serren was right.

Serren called for a meeting of the Lords and administrators and he had Falconette and Pattenia summoned to observe. Serren entered the council chamber and sat at the head. The other Lords were there waiting for Serren to begin the meeting. Pattenia was brought in wearing chains around her wrists and legs. Falconette was brought in after her, and she observed Pattenia’s shame and Serren’s cruelty. There appeared to be some bruises around Pattenia’s face. She was completely defeated and demoralized. And both women now knew that whatever was going to happen here was not good at all. Sitting near Serren was the new leader of the church of Maxis, which Serren had renamed the Church of Serren. He began the meeting. “As of this moment, I name myself the head of the church of Maxis, as it is now, the church of Serren. I name myself God. I am your God-King. Does anyone disagree?”

Of course none of the lords that stood by Serren during the war would dare oppose him now. Pattenia observed that there was fanatical loyalty to Serren during the war against her. And their soldiers often took direct orders from Serren. They were more loyal to Serren than their own houses. The Lords wouldn't dare turn on Serren now. They knew it would be their head. He looked at the Lords as they all approved. “Good, the motion passes. I am your Divine King. For my next motion, the crown will pass to the eldest male heir once again. Women must never get the crown again. And all property will be inherited by the eldest male heir.”

Pattenia and Falconette saw that Serren was reversing all of her progress in this glorious instant in his life. It was what he was waiting for. The motion passed of course, every lord agreed. “Good. The Shattered Isles belongs to men once again. For my next motion.” He gave Pattenia and Falconette a knowing wolfish cruel smile. “All of the previous edicts prohibiting worship of the Goddess will be reinstated. Worship of the Goddess and Witchcraft are now crimes against the crown. It is treason to either worship the Goddess or practice Witchcraft. The witch-hunters will hunt for them. But they will be turned over to civil authority for punishment. And the punishment will be to be hung, drawn, and quartered.”

Pattenia had expected this, she knew this moment was coming. Witches would be hunted again, and tortured. Worship of the Goddess would be illegal once again. This was Serren’s vengeance and he was becoming a tyrant. The motion passed, of course it would.

Then Serren said, “Contracted marriages are legal again. And as of now, every woman in a position of power in the Shattered Isles is to be removed and arrested. She is to be tried for treason against the crown.”

Pattenia watched in despair as those two final motions were passed. Women were now deprived of all civil rights and power across the Shattered Isles.

Serren made one final declaration. “I can’t make this a legal motion. But it is my strong recommendation. One I will enforce in my family shortly. As of now, the eldest child of a family must never be a girl, or daughter ever again. We saw what they can do, I suffered under my sister’s cruelty and madness for over a fucking year when she felt just because she was the eldest, she was the rightful heir to the crown. She had me tormented, humiliated, raped and abused relentlessly. I can’t order you all to, but if for any of you your eldest is a daughter, you should have her killed and from this moment on, you all should never allow a girl to be your eldest child. If a girl should be born first, you should kill her at birth. I can’t order you how you should run your families, after all, they are your families . But, I will kill my daughter Blaze very shortly. I know that for some of you your eldest child is daughter. Be aware of their treachery. We all know now that girls have no loyalty to their family, and no love in their hearts. They are filled with evil and can never be trusted again. Protect your son’s claim to your titles.”

The Lords all agreed and would be making plans to kill their eldest daughters if they were the first-born. Pattenia was completely horrified by this cruel declaration. Her little brother was becoming a monstrous tyrant now. She understood the reasoning behind it, and she had had a part in it, how she treated her little brother and then sister once she got the crown. It was a total betrayal in his eyes that would never be forgiven. For that others were going to be punished and measures were going to be taken to prevent it from ever happening again. From this moment on, girls would never have hope. The boys would be the eldest and their future would be secured. The girls didnt have a future. Serren’s dark age was dawning and it was going to be an age of horror.

Veronica watched Serren arrest Pattenia after he seized her crown back. She was shackled and taken to the dungeon. He visited her that night as he walked down with a triumphant smirk and boasted how her rule and the women’s liberation only lasted two years before things were put the way they had been before.

Serren glared at his sister with the darkest most hateful look that Veronica had ever seen in anyone’s eyes. It was as if Serren had been consumed and dominated by darkness by that time. It was a horrifying expression. What could have happened to him to be this hateful? His mother Aanya had been watching from another cell. Serren eyed his sister Pattenia and approached her cell from the outside, wearing his new crown and royal robes. Even though he had lived the past few years as a woman, he had turned into a dominant man. Serren locked eyes with his sister as she refused to wither under his hateful gaze. She knew that pain was coming. She knew her brother’s cruel nature. He said, “Pattenia, I was a better woman than you, and I was a better man than you. I am better at everything. As a woman, and a princess, I was beloved and popular. The women adored me in ways they never saw you. You seized the crown from me two years ago in one of the most traumatic and humiliating experiences of my entire life. You turned me into a girl and made me your little sister. Then you boasted there was no longer a male heir and stole my crown.”

Pattenia wanted to argue that the crown was hers, it had been prophesied and it should belong to the eldest and whoever was worthier. But she knew it was no use to argue with her victorious brother now. He had clearly won. So she just continued to listen to him. He defeated her and claimed the crown. There was nothing to be done now.

“And your revolution was intended to free the women. You wanted to make it so women could live the life that they wanted to live. You lifted the restrictions on women, ,h,and you proved the point that women could fight. You fought and many women fought under you. So, it was clear I could have fought beside you just like any other female did. But you refused to allow me to fight. You restricted and oppressed me no different than the men did. You belittled and mocked me just like Maxis’ priests did once I was a woman. You stole my birthright and my sex, then you stole my future and my ambitions. I was born to be a warrior, I was raised for it, I was bred and trained my entire life for it. Once you stole that, I had nothing left. You took everything. So I want to ask you, dearest sister,” he sneered the word and curled his lip as he snarled, “Why couldn’t I have fought with you and why couldn’t you had made it possible? Stealing my destiny was one of the cruelest thing you did to me. I had little ambition for the crown at first, but once you started persecuting and oppressing me. I knew I had to regain the crown.”

“We knew what you would do,” Pattenia said to her angry brother. You wouldn’t fight for me. You would rally support against me and that’s exactly what you did. We had to make sure people wouldn’t rally to you against me. But I should have known that you would do anything to undermine my efforts. You wouldn’t just settle with things as they were and see why I had to do what I did. You were always the entitled arrogant little brother who would do anything to take what he believed was his birthright.”

Serren shook his head, “No,” he said firmly, “had you given me respect and the freedom you gave the other women and allowed us to stand by each others side, I would have accepted you being king and been proud of it. But you gave me no respect. You bullied, humiliated, and abused me. You made me have to fight for my respect and my rights. Then I had to regain the life that I lost because of you. Your hatred of me pushed me to do what I did. It’s all your doing.”

“Now, I want to know something else. You claim to respect our father and everything but your rule undermined everything he stood for. You even took part in his assassination so you could claim the crown.”

Pattenia spoke up because this was going too far. “I had nothing to do with our father’s death. It hurt me just as much as it hurt you. As for my rule, It was what I was destined to do so the women would be free finally.”

That was as far as she got before the cell doors were flung open and he had a knife. Serren violently grabbed his sisters face and pried her mouth open. He pulled her tongue out and held the knife on it. He snarled in rage, “Don’t you dare lie. You wanted him to die. You and Actonia arranged it together so you could claim the crown. You didn’t love him at all. You were happy he died so you could rule as King. If you dare tell another lie to me, I will cut your tongue out and silence you for the rest of your life.”

That was the way he saw things and anything else was a lie. She had not participated in the plot. She knew nothing of the plot to kill her father. She was hurt by it and she personally attacked Actonia when her father died and she found out that Actonia had played a part in arranging it. But none of that mattered to Serren and he refused to believe the truth. Not that she could blame him. His father was killed in a horrifying way. When he was supposed to be crowned, his sister claimed it and made him a girl. In his mind, she was happy it all happened and arranged it that way. Nothing could convince him otherwise. In his mind, anything else was a lie.

Serren snarled in rage, “How do you think it felt to me watching you take my life, and my clothes. You wearing my clothes and training to fight while I was trapped in corsets and gowns unable to do the things I loved and was bred for. It was torture.”

“It was torture for me too,” Pattenia retorted. “I was my father’s daughter just like you, but I was prevented from doing the things I wanted to do so much. You and him both forbid me from even touching a sword. I proved to you all that I could do it, and I was also good at it.” Pattenia said proudly.

“But so was I,” Serren snapped. “I was also his son and it was a life I was meant for. Not even your goddess or you could stop me. I conquered you all and put you back In your place.”

Then the scenes she was shown got much worse. Serren walked down with a couple of other men and confronted Pattenia as she was locked in a cell. The cell was unlocked and her shackles were taken off. Serren violently struck Pattenia across the face several times and she collapsed bleeding from the mouth and her nose was smashed in.

Serren snarled at her, “I suffered every pain a woman suffers in life. I suffered being assaulted, raped, I became pregnant, I was deprived of everything. And you never suffered those things as a woman yet you decided I needed to experience them. But you didn’t, until now. These men will help you experience what I experienced because of you.”

Pattenia screamed as the men approached her and ripped her clothes off. They both took turns holding her down, molesting her, and then raping her. Serren watched with a smirk on his face as he watched his sister get raped before his very eyes. They finished and left as she curled up crying. Serren pulled her up to her feet and struck her across the face again. He yelled, “You had me beaten and tortured." Then he kicked her in the ribs. “I know the beatings weren’t that much. But the life you subjected me to was agony and a torture worse than you can ever experience. But I will try."

He kicked her in the stomach a few times as she cried out. “You stole my life." He struck her on the face.

“You stole my destiny and my crown." He pulled her by the hair and smashed her face in again.

“You stole everything from me. Then I was assaulted and raped by Prett. You imprisoned him, but then you let him out to rape me again." Then he violently kicked her in the ribs.

“I had to,” she groaned. “His family demanded it, and he was a nobleman whose family I depended on for their loyalty. I had no choice.”

“You were King! You had choices, and you knew he would attack me again." Serren yelled at her as he kicked her across the jaw. “And when we said what you did was evil. You mocked me saying I was exaggerating. And then he raped me and tried to kill you. Nothing that ever happened to you can't even begin to approach what I suffered. I was made pregnant and repeatedly raped. Now you will experience it all.”

Then he pulled Pattenia up and slammed her against the wall.

“So now, you will experience it all. You will never hold a sword again. Every woman who was given a position of authority is considered a traitor to the crown. The rule of Man will rise again. And you will die slowly.”

Pattenia spit blood before she said, “Serren, you are a sadistic monster. I never did any of this to you. You are cruel and I was right to do what I did. We were right to deny you the crown.”

Serren laughed cruelly. “You calling me cruel after what you did to me is laughable. You haven't suffered half of what I suffered but I will do my best. I can't deny you your sex, like you did to me. But you hate your sex anyway. You wanted the life of a man and talked about how you suffered. While I was destroyed, lost everything and was then raped and impregnated against my will. You were cruel to me. You deserve all of this you bitch.”

“I may have,” Pattenia groaned, “but your orders extend far past me. You are subjugating every woman in the kingdom to what they feared the most. You have betrayed them all and reimposed a cruel system over them all because of me. And you are having all of the Hekatin persecuted, hunted, and killed. I freed the women and gave us religious freedom. I banned forced marriages. You are putting it all back and persecuting the women. You are killing people. You are far crueler, Serren.”

“After what you all did with your freedom, I cannot allow you all to rule again. They must pay," Serren said.

She was placed back in her cell and she was forced to watch Serren rape and torture her friend Actonia. Serren tore Actonia's clothes off and raped her. Then he violently beat her and threw her back in her cell.

A few more men walked in and he ordered Pattenia to be tied to the rack. He watched sadistically as she was stretched. Her joints were torn and destroyed. She was put on the breaking wheel the next day and tortured. Then he cut pieces of her flesh off.

He had tortured Pattenia and watched her being destroyed before his eyes. He had personally raped Actonia and brought that arrogant girl down just like she did to him. It was so delicious in his mind. All of these arrogant hateful women that enjoyed watching his total destruction as a woman were now suffering what they had inflicted on him. He turned his gaze on his desperate and horrified mother. She watched her son’s savagery. She watched him rape Actonia and order his own sister’s rape. But she wasn't surprised. She knew in his mind that they deserved it after everything that he endured at their hands and that he blamed them for it all. It wasn’t like that was the culture they had spend the last thousand years creating for women and he just lived part of it. No. In his mind, it was all their doing to punish him. Nothing could convince him otherwise. He glared at his mother and said to her, “Every time you said you loved me or showed me any motherly affection, it was a lie. You must have hated me all along, and planning to destroy your only son, this entire time. But what about Dad? Was there there ever a time when you really loved your husband, or did you just resent him and his son all your life.”

She wasn't sure what to say then. He would refuse to believe the truth and just get enraged at anything she said in protest. But she had to try, no matter how silly it would sound to his ears. “I loved him a great deal Serren. He was my beloved husband. Although I didn't always agreed with him.”

He snorted rudely, “Of course you didn't. You were a worshiper of the Goddess of female empowerment right under his nose all of those years. You believed in, and devoted your entire life to undermining everything he believed in all of those years. I don’t know how you can say you loved him at all. All of those years, you were looking toward his death. Some love. I really wonder if women are even capable of the feeling of love. I loved you and loved my sister all of those years and I paid for my naivety and weakness with everything I was. It’s a mistake I won’t ever make again. I know we can’t trust women now. They are treacherous, women have no honor or bond to their family the way men do. Women are by nature, untrustworthy. Thanks for teaching me that mother.”

“How could you have ever even thought you ever loved me, your son when you were planning to do what you did to me all of those years? You never loved me at all. You caused me more pain than any mother ever did to her son. There is no way you ever loved me.”

There was nothing that Aanya could say to that. It was the lesson Serren had learned and he continued, “This is the lesson all future generations of boys will be taught. They will be warned of women's unfeeling cruelty. Mothers will not be entrusted with the care and education of their sons. We will know better than to trust mothers at all with any responsibility for their sons. We will know they just want to betray and crush their son’s will. Future boys will be spared the pain that I was forced to endure at your hands. We will know of women's treachery and their lack of any loyalty to their family, or any bond with their children. Thanks, Mother. I learned my lesson well and it will echo for thousands of years. We will know that women aren’t emotionally capable of love.”

The relentless torture continued into the next month day by day. Serren enjoyed it well. There was one curious thing about it all. It was that Serren’s great army was not disbanded. They continued to camp outside of the City and train daily. Finally, weeks after Serren seized the crown and restored his right. He called his Generals and assembled the army and went out to meet them, and to explain why they had not been released from service yet even thought the War was apparently over. Serren stood before his great army that totally dwarfed the army that Pattenia had led during her reign. Serren made sure that Pattenia, Aanya, especially Actonia and the other head witches were there to witness this. He demanded it. He stood before his army and rose his voice, “I understand there are many questions and those questions will be answered now. Our war is not over yet, we have one more great mission before we can establish peace and begin rebuilding our country. There is yet one more enemy we must deal with before peace is to be established. There is still an enemy that threatens the peace, stability and survival of our great nation. The cursed Island of Guenefer. They have long harbored witches from our authorities. They host the headquarters of the Hekatin and encourage witches’ leadership. They have secretly protected the final heir of the Keiblie family, the final Hekatin king’s direct heir from our justice. That is Actonia that they used as a weapon to strike the heart of our great kingdom and establish the Rule of Women over us. It nearly succeeded and would have if not for my great strength and my divine destiny. And now the time for justice has come.” Serren roared. “Our time for Revenge. For all that I suffered at their hands is to be repaid. Our fleet is ready. We will board the ships and go to the Island of Guenefer and land. This will be our final battle. We will destroy everything and everyone on Guenefer. Nothing will be left standing, and nothing will be left alive on that cursed and traitorous island. They will be destroyed for all time. They will never again be a threat to the stability and survival of our kingdom. This won’t be for conquest. This mission will be for sterilization and extermination. Every man, woman, and child will be destroyed. And then we will have peace.”

Despite everything that Pattenia and Actonia had suffered. The daily tortures and rape they endured. This was still a horrible shock and the two women wept. This was something they had not expected. Serren was planing for the total destruction of the island of Guenefer. The witches power would be destroyed for all time and would never be a threat to the Kingdom again. The army loaded their ships and set off for their mission of extermination. And it would be successful. The witches that had escaped, fled the Shattered Islands and resettled in Europe. Few made it out alive.

Once the mission was successful, Serren finally disbanded his army and released the soldiers from service. Serren continued to rape and torture Actonia. Then Veronica watched Pattenia's final day as she was dragged by a horse to her execution site. She was hung on a ladder. Then she was disemboweled in front of everyone. Serren personally cut her open and pulled out her intestines. Then he cut her head off and hacked off her limbs. She was hung, drawn and quartered.

The purpose of this all came clear as she watched Serren order the witches to be hunted. They already were, but he saw the witches flee the Shattered Isles as his power solidified. Then she watched as Serren created a cult around his power. Giant statues went up as he was celebrated and almost deified in the Shattered Isles. Then he ordered all witches who left the Isles to be hunted.

Many witches fled to Europe but the Catholic Church ramped up its inquisition. They were no longer safe in Europe, and many witches then fled to the United States. Serren had died but they continued to worship and hail him as a hero in the Shattered Isles. Stories of how he rose above his sister and suffered the life of a woman were told through the ages. He saved them all from the darkness.

A future king started sending priests to the United States and they formed a plot. The religion of Maxis started to take hold in the south. Secret airports were set up. Secret churches as well. And now it was starting to really pay off. And now she knew where some of these airports were, and how she could get into the Shattered Isles. She saw herself in the arms of Ryan. Ryan would be a large and strong man by this time. He would have to become a man and she knew there had to be a way to restore what he lost at the hands of Tabi.

It was getting close to the time when he was going to return from school.

Ryan returned and walked through the front door with Crystal. Veronica saw her boy come through the door and she ran full speed into his arms and pulled him into an intimate embrace as she passionately kissed him. Her mouth went to his and they kissed.

She struggled but did her best to enjoy being in Ryan’s embrace. But it was weird and more than uncomfortable for her. He had to be restored. It was difficult to be in his embrace and yet feeling his soft feminine body embrace her own. His soft breasts pressing against hers. His breasts were a full cup size larger than her own. His wide hips and thighs brushing against hers. His soft hands around her body and his feminine face and lips kissing hers.

It was difficult for Veronica but she knew he was a boy inside. But the intimacy with him was difficult since he had a woman’s body. She just had to tell herself that he was a boy and would become a boy again. Being intimate with him was difficult but she could handle it, knowing he was a boy. But there was something she had to deal with and said, “Ryan, can we have a talk about this, please? I do think we need to talk.”

Ryan accepted and they went to the kitchen and sat down. “What do you want to talk about, Veronica?”

“We need to talk about our relationship. I want to know your feelings about it and if you are okay with it,” Veronica said. “I feel a deep attraction to you as a boy, Ryan, but I know I pushed this on you and I want to make sure you are okay with it. I don't want you to feel pressured or forced just because of my strength and that I saved you from Tabi. So please, tell me how you feel?”

“Veronica,” said Ryan, looking longingly into her eyes. “I am so thankful you helped me. And,” He reached out and pulled her into his slim arms. She again felt his curvy feminine body against her owns and she fought her true feelings, reminded herself that he was a boy. She melted into him.

“I know you love me, and I also love you. I am happy that you accept me like this. I want to be with you Veronica." Then he kissed her. “I can sense your feelings in my arms, and you are fighting those feelings of discomfort in my arms. I know its hard. My boobs are bigger than yours." Riley giggled. “My lips, my face, and hips. I know you aren't into girls. I know we can get past this and I will be the boy that you deserve.”

“I just love you, Ryan," and she returned his kisses, still feeling his large breasts pressing against her body.

Then Seraphine walked in, saying to the two horny teens. “Now that that’s taken care of, we need to seriously talk about this relationship, you two.”

The two hormone-driven teens sat beside each other looking at Seraphine. Veronica had expected something like this. She knew that her mother was very concerned with her developing relationship with Ryan.

“First, we need to know how Ryan feels about this. So Ryan, are you comfortable with my daughter Veronica and are you okay with a relationship with her?”

“Yes,” Ryan admitted. “I was surprised when she began her romantic advances on me so soon. But I think I like her. I can accept being in a romantic relationship with her. I just don’t really know about her feelings. I know she feels uncomfortable being intimate with me because of my female body. But I am also uncomfortable with it. The thing is that I simply don't know if I can ever be what she wants me to be for her. I don't know if I can ever be a man for her in this relationship. And if this can't be reversed then I don't know if we have a future together." Ryan looked very sad admitting that.

“Ryan, listen to me,” Seraphine looked into Ryan's desperate eyes. “You will be a man again. I know we can reverse this. We are getting close to being able to change you back. You can be Veronica's man. I know we can do it." Seraphine smiled as he smiled back.

Then her friendly look turned serious and she said coolly, “That being said, now I have to figure out how to handle two hormone-driven teens living under the same roof now. Especially since one of them is my daughter. I will be keeping a close eye on you two now. You hugging and kissing is acceptable. But that better be it. No sleeping in the same room. And your clothes will stay on when you are together. Is that clear?”

They both said yes it was very clear.

“And you won't be alone in the same bedroom. I will be watching you and so will Crystal. She will be helping me keep an eye on you two. She also knows the rules I am setting here. And finally, Veronica, you are getting very aggressive towards Ryan. You better cool it and make sure he is comfortable with your advances. You are pursuing a relationship with a boy who has the body of a girl. If you are the one pursuing this then you better know what you are getting into and get yourself comfortable being intimate with someone who has a girl's body. You are the one who made the advances. So don’t be hurtful.

The King of the Shattered Isles prepares for a meeting with the American President as he also prepares for Hostilities. Veronica continues to learn more about Magic as she tries to set up her new life, as powers outside of her control turn her to something far more dangerous.

He shouldn’t had teased his sister

By Jasmine Monica

Chapter 10

He was chosen by God and ruled by divine right, King Turaun stood by his ancient throne and marveled at his accomplishments during his long reign. He drew the royal sword, Revenge, an enchanted sword of power, and held it high. It’s strange undamageable metal glinting in the sun. It's jewels on its pommel and hilt shimmered with the power within them. No one was ever able to examine it, or find what metal Serren used to forge the sword. Legends in the Book of Serren said he got the metal from the abyss. Then he walked to the side and examined his ancient sword, Justice. It was just a regular sword, but it had struck down the last Hekatin King during the first age. It was already an ancient sword by the time it was given to King Serren and taken away a week later. That was his father’s sword and precious to him. He was their first god King and he had written the book of Serren. King Turaun ruled by the consent of their God King, Serren, and Maxis. It was now time for a council of war.

He stood outside of the council chambers wearing his scarlet red royal robes and the insignia of the Shattered Isles and his family crest, the war hawk. He stormed into the chambers to meet his leading military generals to discuss the latest events overtaking the Shattered Isles. He sat down at the head and looked at the chairmen of his joint chiefs for his combined military forces. He asked, “Is the Serren ready for deployment and action yet?”

“Yes, your majesty. The Serren has finished its shakedown and is fully armed. It is ready when you call on it. It is fully crewed and ready for action,” answered Lord Ampar Ansey.

“Good,” replied Turaun. “That will be our flagship when I board it to depart for our visit to the United States. I will be meeting their new president for an official state visit. We will discuss the troubles we have been having, and I hope they are willing to be reasonable.”

The Chairman looked at their king with a face full of doubt. His eyes narrowed, and he asked, ”Will you be able to be reasonable in the presence of a female head of state. Can you treat her with respect?”

“I don't know,” Turaun admitted, “but it doesn't really matter. I seriously doubt she will be respectful to our nation. She knows how our nation runs and I seriously doubt she will be reasonable to our requests at all. After all, all we want is our criminals back to face justice. I doubt she will be willing to help us find them and extradite them. Including my daughter.”

“But your daughter, Tabitha, was charged with treason against the crown and plotting against her younger brother,” the Chairman pointed out. “Those are serious charges.”

“Except she was charged with witchcraft, teaching it to other girls, and worship of the Goddess Progenita. Their president is bound to ask what the charges were and I doubt they will understand the seriousness of the charges or the history of it all. How it nearly destroyed our nation, and what it did to our first divine King Serren and his struggle against it to reclaim his birthright. And, of course, my daughter is bound to explain that, and how she was always treated as the first-born daughter. How we rarely ever tolerate an older sister anymore, As they are usually killed at birth to ensure the boy is always older and the girl has no claim. I had mercy on her, but she will explain how she was always held under suspicion and controlled. Their president will surely take issue to that. And will refuse our request.”

“So what will we do then,” their chairmen inquired.

“At that point, there is nothing else to do. Them harboring a traitor, who plotted against the crown. There is only one option left. That is an act of war just like when Afghanistan harbored terrorists against the United States and their reaction. We will blockade their ports and open fire. Harboring a traitor that plotted against her own brother, against me, and against the nation. Keeping my daughter, Tabitha Denae, leaves us only one option left. We will go to war against the United States. Is our new weapon ready to test?”

“Yes,” replied Ampar. “But where shall we test it? A weapon of such power, at one hundred percent charge as you requested. Where can we fire it?”

Turaun shrugged. “On Guenefer, where else? We don’t want to deploy our battleships without first testing their main weapons first. Prepare the test as soon as possible.”

“Yes,” replied the chairmen, “your Majesty.”

“Good. Tell me when it's all ready and I will board our new flagship to observe the results. Remember, I want a full-power test of our new weapon. I intend to use it on the United States if they refuse to be reasonable. If they refuse, that will be an act of war.”

Then Turaun walked down the enormous archway wall that they called the hall of the Kings and walked outside. He turned toward the massive palace. It had changed a lot since the time of Serren nearly a thousand years ago. It had been reconstructed and enlarged during the nineteenth century. It had been modified for plumbing and electricity. And it had been massively enlarged. Even so,, the rooms Serren and Pattenia stayed in during their lifetimes were still there. Some of the original palace remained. But there were new rooms and hallways. The palace at Versailles encompassed over three square miles and this palace was easily twice as large.

Then Turaun turned to look out at the courtyard and his eyes looked at the enormous gold towering statue of their first great King Serren. The enormous statue stood over two hundred feet in the air, raising his sword high. Turaun walked over to stand before it and knelt submissively to bow his head in respect.

This was the greatest and strongest of all kings. He wrote the book of Serren for them all to follow for all time. That book outlined his status in this new religion and its rules for society. Serren suffered horrors that would crush most men. Few men could ever live through the sheer torture and suffering the witches had inflicted on him. He was turned into a woman against his will and forced to live as a woman. He submitted for a time because of the sudden change and his lack of strength.

The witches took control and began implementing the rule of women as his evil sister stole his crown. Serren was stronger than anyone ever thought, and he rose above them and conquered them. He reclaimed his manhood,his crown, and his life. He suffered the life of a woman and in the end, reclaimed his life.

This would have destroyed the hopes of most men, Turaun didn't know if he could have survived such horror. He would probably have chosen to end it all. Serren persevered and conquered them. He was stronger than any other king in history and that was why this statue was here as a remembrance of his manhood and his strength. And to serve as a warning to never trust women.

Women have a treacherous nature that must always be controlled. Women were underestimated in his lifetime and Serren had suffered because of men's lack of awareness of what the women were doing. They must never make that mistake again. Men's lack of control, their lack of foresight, and taking things for granted nearly destroyed the entire country. They must always be aware of women's treacherous nature. Women have no honor, no loyalty to their family or their country. They must never be free. The control must always be strictly maintained over them. Especially women in their own family. He thanked King Serren, their god-king for that lesson.

He wondered if Serren was really as strong and powerful as the legends claimed. Questioning such things was blasphemy. But the legends said that he had conquered a real divine god. They still worship him in the religion of Maxis. Many of those rules are still there.

Legend claims he had conquered and destroyed Maxis. He put the God on trial in an inquisition. He trapped the God and tried him. He found out that Maxis and Progenita were one and the same.

The God and the Goddess.

Maxis had been playing games with his followers and he had chosen to destroy Maxis and impose the Goddess rule, the rule of women. He turned his back on the followers of Maxis. He destroyed his Maxis statues, and the temples, and gave power to the women to conquer the followers of Maxis.

Serren rose above the God and put the God on trial. Serren was so powerful that he removed the God's power and divinity and made her a regular human woman. Then Serren killed her. Turaun wondered if any of that was true. It was in the religion and the stories so it had to be true. Serren took the God's place, and he was named the God-King.

But recently much had gone wrong with Turaun's reign. First, he found out that his daughter Tabitha was plotting against the crown, and her own brother Prince Bismark. He was only fourteen. But Tabitha was planning to turn him into a girl and take the crown after dealing with Turaun. He also found that she had many allies and was teaching a group of girls magic. This was all so clearly treason it could not be ignored.

Tabitha was arrested and tried. Then she escaped and made it to the United States with the witches she had trained. And now, he had discovered that his eldest son Bismark had actually requested it all. He had approached Tabitha and asked her if there was a way to become a girl. Bismark did not want to be King and did not want to be a man. He wanted Tabitha to make him into a girl.

Turaun was disgusted. He refused to believe it. This had to be Tabitha's witchcraft that perverted and bewitched his son. But now he wondered what to do. He briefly considered naming Tabitha his heir since she was clearly stronger than her brother. Perhaps she could become a man and rule. But no, she did not have a man's spirit. She was a woman and had a woman's spirit. Naming her the heir was unthinkable. So that left him with his youngest son, Otto, who was only nine years old now. He was their only hope, or he would have to find another heir to adopt.

He blamed Tabitha for this perversion. Turaun tried to convince Bismark to fight this spell and be masculine. But it didn't work, he would not fight his nature and instead became more feminine. It was so disgusting. He could not be the heir now. So it was left to his youngest son Otto and remained a lesson for him and every other familiy to not ever let the eldest be a daughter. There was a reason why Serren wrote that rule. He suffered under Pattenia’s rule and was betrayed, the same way Bismark was betrayed by Tabitha. He would never believe that Bismark had approached Tabitha to be turned into a girl. That was impossible. Tabitha had to have done something to cause this. His son Bismark could never willingly want to be turned into a girl. Turaun refused to believe that was even a possibility.

In the middle of Turaun's disappointment and thinking of what all went wrong, a young ensign approached respectfully and said, “My Lord, the test is ready. The Serren is ready for you to board. The battleships King Gerrick and Runtick are ready to be tested. They are in position to fire on Guenefer."

A number of their capital ships were named after martyrs from the restoration war Pattenia launched against the true believers to restore the goddess and the rule of women.

A large helicopter had landed with the seal of the King of the Shattered Isles. Turaun boarded and it took off into the sky. The helicopter turned toward the open sea and took them many miles away where he saw the Shattered Isles fleet ready for their test.

The battleships were in position to fire their full power blasts. And in the center of it was the newly commissioned enormous super carrier, the King Serren. The helicopter landed on the deck of the Serren and he stepped off once it landed. His guards escorted him to the flight tower of the Serren, where he was able to observe the battleships sitting a few hundred feet away. Their enormous rail guns were fully charged and ready for Turaun to give the order to open fire.

Turaun looked at the fleet admiral and issued one command. “Begin the test. Runtick fires its weapons first. Then let's see what the Gerrick can do with its larger guns."

Turaun focused his energy and reached out to the future to see how everything would turn out. His foresight activated and he saw no forthcoming danger on the testing of the new weaponsing.

Unlike the first generations of male kings under Maxis when the rule of Man was being established thousands of years ago, that ended with Serren being humiliated and deposed. This generation of kings was highly trained in dark Magic. They did not dismiss prophecies or underestimate the witches in any way. They were highly trained from the time they could walk in all aspects of Magic. They were taught the history and to take prophecies and the witches very seriously. They did not dismiss the prophecies or the threat as children’s fairytales. That’s what King Gerrick had done and his son paid for it with everything he had. Including his very future.

Gerrick was thought through history as a fool who had sacrificed his son's future. He was the final king of the rule of man until Serren's reforms. No future King or Prince would ever be so unprepared and blindsided as Serren was. He wasn't taught the prophecies facing him and his family so he had come to dismiss the Goddess and anything related to her as fairy tales and not to be taken seriously. Turaun and his line would never do that. That’s why they were doing this now. He sensed the threat that the witches in the United States posed to the stability of his country. He was resolved to deal with it.

He called out to his generals, “Start with the firing tests. Open fire General.”

He saw the enormous new battleships that exceeded a hundred thousand tons charging up their main batteries to open fire. Their huge double barrels were raising in banks of two. The larger strategic weapons behind the smaller ones in front. He wanted the strategic weapons to fire first. The battleships charged the weapons to full power and then opened fire.

The results of the main batteries firing at a hundred percent charge were unexpected. However, the eye splitting brilliant flash of light from the firings was fully expected. The power they were charged at coupled with the incredible speed the projectiles fired at produced a blinding eye smiting flash of light, much like a comet entering the atmosphere.

The projectiles fired at speeds many times the speed of sound. Turaun was told that the projectiles were launched at nearly seven hundred miles per second. The speed of a comet.

The impact was almost instantaneous. He hardly could see the projectile reaching its highest attitude and then plunging down at its target. The blinding light and fire trailing were all they could see before the final impact on Guenefer. The result was devastating. They watched an enormous white-hot fireball rising nearly a hundred thousand feet above the devastated Island and the blast racing outward. The blast must have been hotter than the sun. Guenefer was almost over the horizon, but they felt the flash of heat from the fireball and it rose threateningly above them as if they were next to the blast. He wondered if anything was safe from this. Perhaps he should have ordered a fifty percent test instead of full power.

The fireball died off and left a blackened, charred surface. Whatever remained of the devastation from the invasion nearly a thousand years ago and burning the cities and people was wiped away in an instant. What was left was a blackened surface and an enormous impact crater miles across.

Then the ships prepared for the battle test. The Shattered Isles had built up a mock American fleet with two massive fleet carriers of the Nimitz class surrounded by a dozen modern destroyers and cruisers. The power of this fleet should be able to easily handle two Shattered Isles battleships. One would think. Turaun laughed.

First, the carriers and cruisers launched dozens of anti-ship missiles that were easily intercepted and taken out before they got anywhere near the battleships. Then he needed to see how the ships handled carrier airstrikes. So they launched dozens of mock remote-controlled F18s to strafe and fire on the battleships. The air groups were knocked out of the air with little trouble and whatever hit the battleships did little to no damage at all.

Then the battleships opened fire with their tactical weapons. The smaller forward batteries targeted the carrier battlegroup. All of the ships and destroyers were targeted at once and he saw the batteries open fire in rapid succession with their supercharged projectiles. The fleet didn't survive. He saw the projectiles impact the enormous carriers and drill a huge hole right through the center of it. The carriers point defense weapons had no hope of ever intercepting the super speed projectiles that plunged down as fast as a comet. Every ship was totally destroyed.

The test was a resounding success. It was an awesome display of power. It was now time to prepare to visit the United States president and see if she will cooperate with the Shattered Isles. And perhaps see if he can talk his son Bismark out of wanting to become a woman.

Veronica had finished her cheerleading session that morning with Kimberly. She was really worn out that day. They had practiced for over three hours working on increasingly complicated routines to prepare for her tryouts that weekend.

After taking her shower, she went to the kitchen where she baked her new boyfriend a yummy lasagna with some meatballs. Her family ate it together as she sat by her boyfriend, eating and cuddling with him at the same time. Then they spent the few final hours of the day snuggled on the sofa watching some action movie that Riley really liked.

Riley had not become feminine at all, even though the body he was now forced to live in was all female. He was still all-male inside and it came out whenever he was free from Tabi's control. Without Tabi forcing him to live as a girl, Ryan was allowed to come out and show how masculine he really was. All they needed to do now was find out how to turn him back into the boy that he was meant to be.

It was after nine when both of the teens were in each other’s arms that there was a knock on the door. Her mother, Seraphine, went to the front door grumbling at whoever dared knock at their door at such an hour in the night when they were preparing to go to bed.

She opened the door and suddenly took a defensive posture as soon as she saw who was there. She said in a voice full of hostility. “Tabi, Millicent , what do you two think you are doing at my door, especially at this unholy hour?”

Tabi's mother Millicent answered for them, “We are here to help and my daughter Tabi is here to apologize and help in any way she can. Tabi is also here to explain some things.” Then she narrowed her eyes at her daughter Tabi and said, ”Aren't you, my daughter?”

Her daughter looked intimidated and answered softly, “Yes, Mother. I am sorry for what I did, but…”

Seraphine interrupted, “Thank you for your apology, but your help is not needed here, or welcome, and you two can leave.”

Millicent retorted, “Actually, Seraphine. Tabi will be a lot of help. She transformed Ryan, and she can help you all transform him back into a boy. She will be a lot of help, and she has a lot to explain to you. If you can, listen to her. What she has to tell you is vital. There is so much you really don’t know about my daughter.”

Seraphine did not budge. She demanded, “Okay, like what does she have to say, what about her is so important?”

Millicent replied, “First, Tabi is not my actual daughter. I adopted her once she came to this country. Her family and her witches were well adapted to the dark arts of Magic and I did my best to help her stop using it. I adopted her as a young teen, not much older than thirteen. Second, her real name is Tabitha Denae. The first-born child, and daughter to Turaun Denae of the Shattered Isles. Condemned to death for treason against the crown. She was sentenced to be hung, drawn and quartered as a traitor. And I think you know who I really am. So may we enter and have a very long and serious conversation. And my daughter has a great many things to apologize for, and to explain.”

Seraphine's mouth hung open for nearly a minute, trying to process all that she had been told. She felt the truth of what Millicent had just explained. There was no sign of deception. She moved aside and said, “Fine, let's go to the living room and have a long discussion.”

They walked into the living room to see Ryan and Veronica in each other's arms tightly embracing each other. Tabi said, “I can see you two are getting to know each other very well. That is sweet.”

Both teens glared at Tabi, wondering what she was doing here.

Tabi looked at Ryan and then glanced shamefully at her mother and said softly, “Ryan. I am sorry for what I did. I was angry at how things turned out. I needed to know if the spell would really work or not. But it was wrong to do what I did and to treat you the way I did.”

Veronica spoke up, “It's women like you that got us in the situation we are in now. There's really no excuse for what you did or forgiveness. I think Ryan and I have heard enough.”

Seraphine snapped, “Veronica, Ryan, stay here. This is important, and Tabi has offered to help. She really is sorry and knows she was wrong. That is a start. Now, Tabitha, you can now tell us what you came to tell us.”

“Millicent is not my real mother,” Tabi said to them. “My real mother is Nemeria Denae. My father is Turaun Denae and my real name is Tabitha Denae, their firstborn child.”

Tabi let that hang for a few long seconds as the two other teens just stared speechlessly. Then Tabi continued, “Me being the firstborn is really not that common anymore. Since the first king of the new age, King Serren Denae and after his sister's betrayal and seizure of the crown, they stopped allowing first-born daughters to live. We are usually killed shortly after birth to prevent anything like what happened to Serren ever again. No girl would have any rightful claim to the crown. The boy was always the eldest. To make his point, King Serren publicly executed his own infant daughter, Blaze. His son Gerrick was the legal heir. And I am the firstborn daughter in more than a thousand years. My father had mercy on me and he has regretted it ever since. He says I was a mistake.” Tabi wiped some tears from her face as she choked back a sob.

“Killing first-born girls has become very common in the Shattered Isles among the nobility and the royalty like my family. Infanticide has been the way for more than a thousand years. Life for girls of the royal family was always very harsh and restrictive. I needed express and written permission to be able to go anywhere at all. Even if I wanted to go out with my friends. And I was closely watched and controlled no matter where I went. I was always watched by my father's people or by the authorities of the state, which is the inquisition and police. At any sign of hint of disloyalty or a plot, I would be taken in by the inquisition and ruthlessly questioned. They have been taught that girls are by nature, treacherous and we are not capable of having loyalty to our family, or even love them. That’s how it was for regular second or third born girls. I was a first-born girl so it was much worse on me. It was assumed I would betray my brother, and they just waited for the slightest hint of a plot. Then I was arrested, tried, and convicted of treason. I was to be tortured, then hung, drawn, and quartered.”

Veronica had to ask, “What did you plan on doing to your younger brother?”

It was like she assumed Tabi was guilty of whatever she was accused of. “As a female, witchcraft is my birthright. I was studying witchcraft and teaching other girls in the Kingdom. I became very powerful and we planned on turning my brother Bismark into a girl. But it isn't as you think. My father thinks everything is my doing. Every misfortune his family suffered is because of me. I would never hurt my brother Bismark. Never.” Tabi shouted loudly.

“In fact, he found out about me studying witchcraft and came to me. He wants to be turned into a girl. He begged us to help him. Out of all of us, he is suffering the worse. He has no ambitions to rule. He wanted me to rule and wear the crown. Well, our plot was exposed and we were all arrested and tried. Bismark tried to defend us at great cost. He humiliated our family by revealing his desire to be changed. I was blamed for bewitching him. So, we were convicted. We barely made it out of the Shattered Isles alive. My father is still punishing my brother for his decision. We need to help him. I think you can help us get into the Shattered Isles and help my brother Bismark. But first, Ryan has to become a man, and you two can go under his protection and guardianship. And that means you two will have to marry.

Veronica looked stressed. Marrying Ryan didn’t seem that bad to her. But going to the Shattered Isles to help a persecuted prince seemed like a lot. What could they do for him anyway?

“Can we transform Ryan back?” Veronica asked, hopeful.

“I believe that I can,” Millicent answered for them. “I think I know the spell that my daughter used and reversing it is easy. And I think I know how she got everyone to believe Ryan was born as a girl. Reversing that will be easy too. I will show you all how.”

“How can you know all of this,” Veronica asked Millicent doubtfully. “And how did your daughter do this?”

“Tabi is part of my curse,” replied Millicent. Tabi looked hurt, but Millicent just glared at her. “Having such a girl that gives so little thought to who she hurts or what she does. I have been cursed in various ways for so long. As to how I know. I think in your heart, Veronica, you know who I really am." Millicent gave Veronica a knowing look.

Veronica didn't want to admit it. It seemed too silly at first. But she knew. “Progenita. But how is that possible? I thought Serren killed you more than a thousand years ago.”

“He did. I was hung, drawn, and quartered by him. But I just keep coming back. But part of the curse he put on me is that I am always born to suffer. Each of my lives has been full of suffering. Like my first rebirth. I found myself at Lindisfarne. I was there in the ninth century when the Norsemen raiders landed there and killed them all. I was there, and so was Pattenia. We were both taken and made to be wives. Whether we liked it or not. I had many daughters with my husband. One of them would go on to marry a prince and rule a place called Normandy. My other daughter would lead her people to lay siege to Paris.

"In my life after that, I was a native somewhere in the Caribbean when Columbus landed there. I got to see my people enslaved and wiped out within a generation. It was a total genocide. Then, I would be on the Trail of Tears. Around a century later, I would be a native in the Congo when the Belgian king took over and enslaved us all to get rubber from the rubber trees.

"You see, lives of suffering. My life before this one, I was Jewish somewhere in Berlin in the twenties. I got to see the rise of the NSDAP under Adolph Hitler. I survived the riots. I survived Kristallnacht. I survived being rounded up and taken to Dachau. But I did not survive Auschwitz. And now I have a daughter that's so arrogant that she threatens to expose us all with her arrogance and inflicted unimaginable pain on an innocent boy.”

After going into such tragic and heavy subjects, Millicent just watched the family trying to take it all in. She smiled and said, “Ryan, you will like this part. In one of my lives, I was even made a boy. A few of my former followers of the Hekatin were practicing nearby and had decided to transform me. I finally got to experience what it was like, and it was hell. It was such a tragic and horrible transformation, and I got to experience what it was like for a boy. So I learned. I hadn’t entirely understand why Serren was so angry and why he was so unable to accept the transformation that was good for everyone in the country until then. I was angered at why he couldn’t understand that it was needed. I am sorry. He was so hurt and angry in the end that he knew he was doing something horrible, but he just didn’t care anymore. He wanted to inflict pain that would resonate for centuries.”

“Millicent,” Veronica then asked, “How did Serren do this to you, and how did he even put you on trial in the first place and do what he did?”

“Serren was so hurt and angered by what was taken away from him that he had totally embraced the Dark and forbidden arts of witchcraft. The part that even Tabi is afraid to embrace because we know it has a serious cost and usually requires one to give a part or all of themselves to use. I understand that they have used the Dark Arts a lot and are well accustomed to it. But even Tabi is afraid to use it too much and there are areas that they are afraid to go, or it will consume their soul. Serren embraced the Dark Arts and was totally consumed by the Darkness that came with its use. The power was great, but it can cost a person everything. It gave him the power to even overpower gods, he domesticated one of the most powerful dragons on the planet.

"Even I couldn’t stand against that power. He killed my dragon, Kursar, and took a more powerful dragon from the abyss and made it his own. He knew what it could cost him, but by then, he didn’t care. But this is part of the problem. The curse lasts forever. He would be consumed by the darkness and be its servant for ever. He will be pulled into the Abyss and enslaved for all time. And so would all of his heirs. That’s why Bismark fears it and doesn’t want it. He does not want to be consumed by the darkness and taken into the Abyss for all time. Veronica, you can break this curse. You and Ryan can save them, and maybe you could even save Serren from the fate.”

“How did he put you on trial and condemn you, I am really interested in how he accomplished that?” Veronica asked.

“He totally embraced the Darkness. Then he actually set the trial up and even invited the King and a majority of the Hekatin’s leaders to observe. He found ways to bind Gods like me and set it up. Then he summoned me to the place he had prepared. I was shocked and didn't even know he had such powers. I was compelled to arrive there against my will. I found myself in a circle and then I was bound with powerful chains that were locked around me. I could not escape them and then a cage was dropped over me. Their bars seemed cursed and enchanted. They began draining my power and I found myself helpless. Serren stood there triumphantly smirking. The Hekatin like Actonia, Pattenia, Aanya and Falconette were horrified but they realized there was nothing they could do. Serren and his priests were totally in control of the inquisition. Then they began asking me very awkward questions that condemned me. You see Veronica,. by then, I had told Serren my biggest secret in hopes that he would understand and help me make peace in the world. It enraged him beyond all reason. I had told him that I was both Maxis and Progenita. I was both male and female and I wanted him to help me unite both sides.

"Even a God can know confusion. But he was enraged at me and thought it was unfair that I had make him suffer for my confusion. It was not fair and he put me on trial for betraying his people. His first set of questions condemned and destroyed me in most people's eyes. He asked what he did wrong as a child and if I was following Maxis exactly as the religion dictates or if I was wrong. I had to confirm that he made no mistakes. Then he made it clear that I was Maxis. He then asked if any of his followers were violating the religion and I had to say no. And then that I had betrayed them for no reason and turned my favor to the Hekatin and Progenita to effect the downfall of the rule of Men and the followers of Maxis. That was a betrayal. Then we talked about the first age and how the women had done nothing wrong according to how I had taught them when I turned my back on them to create Maxis and the rule of Men. It was very clear that I was the source of the world's confusion and I had betrayed my followers who were doing nothing more than what I had taught them. I was found guilty and Serren removed my power and made me human. Then he publicly executed me in front of my horrified followers. It was an example of his power and a symbol of a new age. It would be his age.”

Millicent continued,”Pattenia's trial was even worse than mine. She broke down when Serren cruelly accused her of not even loving her father for how she ruled. Her reign stood for everything he was against. He accused her of plotting against him, betraying her father, and being part of the conspiracy to kill her father. He made it seem like she hated her father and couldn’t wait for him to die so she could rule and betray everything he stood for. Pattenia broke down. But she had been repeatedly tortured and raped by that point. Serren was brilliant.”

Ryan asked her, “So what exactly are we supposed to do now?”

“Your task will be very difficult for you, but you must do it. Veronica will be under your guardianship and rule. You must accept it there. And she will have help. You must make it to Denaerk and contact the Prince Bismark. And you must transform him into a girl. He wants it, that’s his dream just like yours, Veronica. It will save him.”

Veronica shrugged and laughed, “Sounds so easy. We just go and transform a highly guarded prince, and then what, die?”

“Veronica, you are one of the most powerful witches in this generation. That was fated. And you will have a lot of help. If you do it right, they will not be able to punish you for it. But this will be the hard part. Protecting yourselves and taking control of the Kingdom. That will be Bismark's job. He is still to be their Queen. He just doesn’t want to rule from the darkness and brutality. He really doesn’t want it at all. But he will have to. He is the only one.”

“I thought I was,” complained Tabi. “What about me?”

Millicent looked at her sadly. “I am sorry, Tabitha. But you aren't the one here. Your conduct here has shown you really don't have the morality and strength to rule justly. Bismark does. He is trans there and is enduring it all and still hoping for the best when all hope seems lost. He hopes you will rescue him. And if you show you can learn, then you can stand beside him and help him. But He…She is still to wear the crown and lead them into a new age. If you can give up your petty vindictiveness and spite, and stand by Bismark, then you can be part of it. The question is, can you?”

Veronica shook her head sadly and said, “Oh my god. I just wanted to be a normal girl and be a cheerleader and do the things with my new friends that all girls do. Now I must go to one of the most dangerous parts of the world and rescue a princess. That's just great!”

“You can be a normal girl after this. After this is done, you can go back to your life, and Bismark and her sister Tabitha will be handling things in the Shattered Isles.”

Veronica laughed bitterly, “Sure,” She said sarcastically. “After that, I am so sure we can go back to a normal life.”

“Well,” Millicent laughed, “You may be heroes to the Shattered Isles and held in high regard by their royal family, and the savior of the Hekatin. But how you live your lives will still be up to you.."

He shouldn't have teased his sister chapter 11

by Jasmine Monica
The Americans figure out how to deal with the crises
Chapter 11

Madam President Shannon Marshal was wondering what she should do at the moment. She had been informed an hour ago that an emissary from the Kingdom of the Shattered Isles wanted to speak to her about their upcoming meeting with their head of state Turium. They were all going to expect answers very soon. She knew what they wanted and she wasn't sure if she could do what they would demand. From the tone of their demands and what she had been told of their King, she had a feeling that refusing their demands would lead their two states into war. The Shattered Isles would consider a refusal an act of war and respond accordingly. A huge fleet from the Shattered Isles was sailing toward them, so it was obvious that they were expecting a refusal. Turaun was expecting a war.

The President was sitting at a large conference table with the rest of her advisers and cabinet. The chairman of her joint chiefs, General Raymond King. One of their first five star flag officers since the second world war along with ther Secretary of Defense, Madam Halow, and the Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Nancy Ambar. They were all desperately trying to find answers to this problem that would not lead their nations into a war.

Most nations daring to threaten war would be laughed at unless they were a nation like the Russian republic, or the Peoples Republic of China. This was a large island chain in the pacific, somewhat like the United Kingdom. But they had a massive fleet with very advanced tech that was roughly a generation ahead of anything the United States had. This was nothing to dismiss out of hand. Raymond King had told her that this fleet could cause them damage and it seemed likely that they would blockade their ports. The United States had not been under a naval blockade since the war of 1812. She was at a loss here.

Nancy spoke up in the silence. “Madam President Being that your your campaign was based on respecting civil liberties and that as an American President you are duty-bound to uphold such liberties, I think you only have one available response. We know what their king wants. Their ambassador strongly hinted at it. They want the return of their citizens to face punishment in their homeland. These people came here and asked for legal asylum. Their reason was religious persecution and their Princess Tabitha and many others are sentenced to death there. We cannot, in good conscience, return them. To do that would not only betray everything you claimed to stand for but everything you represent. And we know how their nation operates. Our ambassador to their nation has stated repeatedly that living among them is a nightmare. He said it was the hardest post he ever served in.”

They needed to know more so Marshal looked at her Ambassador to the Shattered Isles and asked, “You have lived in Denaerk for years now. What can you tell us about their society and their nation?”

“Their country is a nightmare,” said the United States ambassador to the Shattered Isles. He had lived there at the United States Embassy for several years. “I have prepared a few videos for you all to watch. I was allowed to record a few of their rallies and ceremonies before I left to report to you.”

He looked up at the screen on the wall and pressed a button on his remote and the image of a huge rally appeared on the screen. There were tens of thousands of uniformed soldiers arranged in enormous military columns in the center of some massive stadium. They were standing in front of a huge gleaming statue of Serren in his full armor, holding his new sword, Revenge, high in the air and wearing his crown. He was immortalized there for all time. Standing under the statue on the raised platform overlooking the soldiers was their King Turaun, wearing his military uniform and holding the same enchanted dark sword.

The Ambassador spoke, “This is a military rally I was allowed to observe before I left. It is chilling and you may have trouble understanding them so I will translate for you.

"First, every soldier and officer knelt in submission and prayed to the statue of Serren, their first Divine King of the Shattered Isles. Then they all started singing and saluted their King Turaun."

The Ambassador used a laser pointer to indicate, “That is their national anthem and see their flags of the War Hawk flying in the air. The War Hawk is the symbol of the house of Denae. I hate that Anthem and I heard it every morning. Hear how aggressive and militaristic it is and it also speaks about men being honorable and holding power forever. It also speaks about the glory of King Serren and the downfall of Pattenia and the rule of women. It's a terrible song but they love it and sing it before every rally. And hear this other song they sing. It's just as aggressive and militaristic. This is an ancient song from the age of Maxis that they love to sing about the everlasting glory of Man and the soldier. Now listen to Turaun. I will help you understand.”

King Turaun started giving an aggressive and bombastic speak. It was incomprehensible to most of the people in the room so the Ambassador helped translate. He spoke of his glory as the King and his divine right. Then his upcoming meeting with the American president and the witches that lived there. How they may have got control over society and the government if they weren't careful of the witches' deception. But now, the religion of Maxis was spreading in some American states. Then he hoped the woman president would be reasonable to him but they doubted it because no woman can reason and that's why he had called for a mobilization of the army and that they were preparing for war against the United States. And the soldiers must prepare for victory.” On the film, the soldiers cheered and chanted the name of their King.

President Marshal spoke up, “Why can't I understand him? I thought they spoke English in the Shattered Isles.”

“They do,” The Ambassador replied. “But they speak a very early dialect of the language that is incomprehensible to modern English speakers. It's more Saxon than English as we know it.”

Then they watched Turaun rile up the soldiers more and more with his talk of victory and the danger of the witches living in America. Including his villainous daughter Tabitha who ran away.

“Their country is a medieval nightmare. Especially for women. They revealed themselves to the world about a generation ago and it was a big shock to them. We didn't even know about the Shattered Isles before that. They had isolated themselves much like Japan did after their civil war.

"Serren lost the crown to his sister and fought a brutal civil war to regain the crown. Then he clamped down on womens' freedom and persecuted their witches. They fled the country and then he shut the country off from the rest of the world.

"They only recently opened their borders and made contact with the other nations and their attempts were almost comical. Like watch this video of their emissaries in the UK trying to establish diplomatic contact with them not even knowing what country they are in. You see them dressed as they are twenty years ago going into Morpeth asking to see the King of Northumbria.” He laughed.

They all laughed at the image on the screen of them walking in dressed as knights and such, asking to see the King of Northhumbria. They all laughed.

“Those people were almost institutionalized. Same result when they went into Tamworth asking to talk with the King of Mercia. Those first attempts were a disaster and almost got their emissaries institutionalized for mental illness. That is until they realized these people were real diplomats from some medieval nation that didn't realize those early English kingdoms had unified and called themselves the United Kingdom now.

"But they didn't make that disastrous mistake again. They sent out people to research and study the new nations of the world after that and made successful diplomatic contact with many Asian and European nations after that. Still, most of the world was horrified by the arrival of this new nation on the world stage and how they treated their citizens. Especially their women. But this new nation was exceptionally powerful and cannot be ignored.”

He cast his eyes down in sadness. “Living there among them has been a nightmare. But someone must do it. But that is one of the most horrible countries I have ever had to represent the United States diplomatic interests in. Women are savagely oppressed in that country. They call it the Rule of Man and it's no joke. Women have no rights.

"In Saudi Arabia, they are treated as Minors and need a guardian to speak for them and give them permission to do almost anything. The Shattered Isles makes that look progressive. In this country, they can't even go out without a man escorting them. They are treated like mindless animals. And a woman is executed almost daily for some reason there. They can't speak for themselves and any attempt to be an individual can get them in big trouble with the inquisition. And they hunt witches relentlessly.

"They believe in witches and fear them and it goes to their first King Serren which we will get to shortly. That is one crazy story. But they have witch hunters and an inquisition. It is their firm belief, started by Serren, that women are cruel and their nature is treachery. They believe they can't trust women at all. Women must be controlled or killed. Men hold all positions of authority. Not women. Women are forbidden to hold any power. Even the mother has no say in anything. Trying to speak out can be dangerous.”

He let that hang in the air and then continued,” They have a very strict religious theocracy and their society is very militarized. You see the statues of their first great King Serren and they pray to it. They study from the Book of Serren. They also have a religion of Maxis. They used to worship him but he has been superseded by King Serren who defeated Maxis and placed himself as the head of the religion and declared himself a God and a divine King. They pray to him and ask for his favor in battle.”

The president said, “That is about what I expected. So tell me about Serren.”

Their ambassador played a video on the screen where a great number of solders were kneeling and praying to a statue of Serren and asking for his blessing for an upcoming battle. That was before they departed on their fleet heading toward the American east coast.

“Serren is their God King. He was their first king in the new age. The Story says a bunch of witches including members of his own family, his own sister and mother turned him into a girl on the day he was supposed to be coronated as their new King at sixteen years old. And they treated him very cruelly.

"He was beaten, humiliated, he suffered the life of a woman and they forced it on him. He was given no time to adjust, then he was abused by males, molested, assaulted and raped. Then his sister used witchcraft to impregnate him. He suffered a pregnancy and gave birth to twins.

"He started studying witchcraft and became a very powerful witch himself/herself and eventually got found allies. Then he returned to being a man and waged war and won. Then he began savagely oppressing the women and killing all of the witches. He lived from 1263 to 1347. He died during the black death in the fourteenth century. He was a mighty ruler and a great warrior from what we can see.”

The president was very distressed at the news so far. Then she said, “I see your point. But I am afraid that we may have to do as this nation asks to maintain friendly diplomatic relations with them. Now, bring in their ambassador and let's talk with him.”

A guard opened the door to the conference room and let the ambassador to the Shattered Isles enter. Few of them were shocked by this man's appearance. He walked in wearing medieval black robes of a priest. At least his sword was taken by the Secret Service but he clearly had a scabbard for the sword. It was empty. He walked in and sat down across from the female president.

The American Ambassador spoke up, “Madam President. Do you see that insignia of the flame on his robe? And that medallion he's wearing around his neck and that symbol on his arm.”

She nodded.

“He is a witch hunter and a high-level member of the Inquisition. And that symbol means he has murdered women with his own hand. He has killed witches.

The President turned to the newcomer and asked, “Why has your country sent a witch hunter of the inquisition as a diplomat to speak with me?”

The man looked up with an arrogant sneer and snapped, ”My King needed to be sure that none of you were part of that infernal order of witches we call the Hekatin. You never know with women.” He smirked at the President and the other females in the room. “They cannot be trusted at all. But, luckily that infernal order has not compromised the executive branch but it is only a matter of time. I am happy to report that it has not happened yet.”

The President frowned, “The Hekatin, what is that?” She asked trying to be reasonable to this arrogant man.

“The Hekatin are an ancient order of female witches that nearly destroyed our entire nation. They tried to take over and destroy everything we stand for,” The Ambassador sneered arrogantly. “Those women chose to destroy an innocent boy who never laid a hand on any of them and crushed his spirit and his life. They were evil just every woman was and that’s why we can't allow women in power in our country to have power. The men in your country should follow our example.

“And if any of us were members of this Hekatin?” inquired the President.

He frowned. “Then any negotiations would be no use and the results would be very unpleasant.” He said darkly. “But none of you are Hekatin. But since you are still women, my king has a feeling that you will be unreasonable as women usually are.”

“Can you explain why you have nearly five hundred heavy warships headed toward both of our coastlines,” the President asked threateningly. “Some may consider this a hostile act.”

“Because your country is ruled by women,” the Shattered Isles ambassador snapped. “The ships are prepared for that. We seriously doubt women are capable of being reasonable so they are headed toward your coastline.”

“We are very capable of being reasonable,” The present replied. “What is it you want so badly?” The American President inquired.

The ambassador smirked arrogently and reached into his leather briefcase he was holding and pulled out some papers. He looked across the table and said, “You are the director of intelligence. You are the head of the Centrel Intelligence Agency, from what I am told by our intelligence.”

The man across from the Ambassador nodded, “Yes that is my position here.”

“Good,” The Ambassador smirked knowingly. The smirk sent chills down everyone in the room. It was a ruthless knowing smirk. “I have been given this information by our Security administration of the Shattered Isles. My king has instructed me to give you this information.” The Ambassador handed the stack of papers to the man across from him.

The man read the first paper and the room saw him suddenly lose all color in his face. He was shocked. He didnt know that many details of specific operations happening. But he knew enough to be horrified. He sudddenly asked, “These are names of our opretives within the Shattered Isles. I assume all of those names are people we have operating within the Shattered Isles. How did you come by this information?” He assumed one of them was selling out the other agents. “Who gave you this?”

“No one,” The Ambassador replied with a chilling smile. “We have our ways. As you can see, those are the names of each and every agent you have operating within my country. Every one. And you have no traitors selling out his other agents. We have strict security and we can tell who is supposed to be there, and who isn’t. Who is not where hes supposed to be, we can tell these things and we have our ways. We also know other nations have agents spying on our operations. We are about to clean house as you say.” He smiled an evil cruel smile.

“Will you at least give us time to withdraw them,” The Secretary pleaded.

“I have a better proposal. If we can reach a deal, then your agents can remain there and alive. Only if we can reach a deal. And then, we may give them something more. Perhaps we will allow one of your agents to have a big break in his case and find out some of our really secured military projects and stumble on vital information and documents. If we can reach a deal. If not, we will make an example of them all.”

The President demanded, “Okay, so what is it you want?”

“We demand the return of the Princess Tabitha Denae, and her other accomplices. Those women fled to your country and requested asylum in your country. They are traitors and highly dangerous people. We need them returned so they can face justice.”

“In the interests of maintaining friendly diplomatic relations. I will grant your request. You only had to ask. If you consider it this important to your nation, we will grant your request to return your criminals. You can tell your king that.”

Their ambassador smiled warmly and nodded, “I am glad we were able to resolve this issue without hostilities. We had not been expecting that. I will be happy to inform my King that your country is willing to help us.

He stood up and nodded.

This had been very unexpected. Women were usually so unreasonable and unwilling to compromise. Especially when they get power, they tend to be very unreasonable and it leads to chaos. But sometimes, some women in power can be reasonable. Especially those that had been trained and are submissive. This woman may be one of those women who are naturally submissive to male authority. He thought to himself as he left to inform Turaun this great news.

@@@

Tabitha and Veronica were sitting beside each other with Ryan on Veronica’s other side. Lady Fawna and Seraphine was sitting across from them with Tabi's Mother Millicent with them. Millicent began the discussion. “We called you here because we have a very serious problem. A crisis has occurred and we need to accelerate our plan.”

Veronica and Tabi looked alarmed. “Accelerate how much? “

“Now, actually,” Millicent replied with a very serious look. “Our president has totally conceded with the King of the Shattered Isles to return the Hekatin, and you Tabi, to face judgment there. We need to move now as authorities will be coming for you. We need to change Ryan to a man today and prepare you all for your mission to the Shattered Isles.”

The teens looked very alarmed. Tabi asked, ”How could the president do that? She totally conceded to their King. I was assured we were safe here. How could this happen?”

It was Seraphine that replied this time. “The President was backed into a corner. She had no choice and was bound by their treaty and international agreements and law. Like when American criminals go overseas, we have various extradition treaties with other nations that they are bound by that treaty to return them here for trial. We had the same treaty with those nations to return their criminals whether we like it or not.

"We have a treaty of friendship and cooperation with the Shattered Isles and that includes extradition of criminals. The President was bound by that agreement if she wanted to maintain diplomatic relations with them, and not war. Their ambassador made it very clear that they were very prepared to go to war over this. They want you badly Tabi. We must move right now. Veronica?”

Veronica looked up.

“You have been studying the Book of Serren haven’t you?”

She nodded with distaste in her mouth. “Yes, I read it all. I learned their religion. I know what I will have to do. Ryan also read it and knows his part.”

“Good, and you read the history of the Shattered Isles and all about their religion, culture and history. So you two will know what's expected. When we restore Ryan’s masculinity, you two will have to get married.”

“If this works,” Millicent boldly said, “then you will be helping correct a horrible mistake that I made around eight hundred years ago. And there's even a possibility you can prevent it from ever happening. But that will be more difficult.” Millicent said looking at Veronica. “You have been given immense power for a reason, Veronica. And this is a great chance to make a huge difference in the entire world. Tabitha will be with you along with her accomplices.”

“Can you tell me what you mean when you say I can correct a mistake you made and maybe prevent it from ever happening?” Veronica asked.

Millicent braced herself and replied,”There are two things you could do here. First, you, Tabi, and her friends could go to the Shattered Isles and help her little brother Bismark become the girl he wants to be. And save him from a horrible fate. And then help her other brother Otto avoid that fate.

"Then Turuan would have no blood heirs. His family would face destruction then. It wouldn't save the Isles or overthrow the regime. You would have to confront Turuan and rescue him from his fate which would be harder but doable with your power Veronica.

"That's one of the things you could do. And the other thing you could do, and I would help you do it, is to go back in time eight hundred years and rescue Serren from his fate to prevent him from ever being changed and abused.

"That would require going to the date of Serren's birth and convince Aanya to teach him about the Goddess and to value women so he can be his sister's ally instead of her enemy. And then convince Gerrick to allow it to happen and help him. You would have to stay there for decades for this mission to help guide them and his sister to help and respect Serren.

"And for that, I would also have to teach you how to shield yourself from my power. I was a very powerful goddess back then and I wouldn’t be happy with you in that time. Your first mission would be to rescue Serren from his curse in Hel, and the Goddess of Death Hela. So that he can be reborn.

"We have spoken about the missions and decided you should do them all. First, rescue the Royal Family from the curse and help Bismark and Otto. That would break the curse for this time. Then go rescue Serren and his sister so they can be reborn again and then try to stop the curse from ever happening. I think you can accomplish them both. And if you do, I will give you the greatest gift you ever wanted. You will be born as a girl and experience a girl's childhood as she grows up. It's what you have always wanted.”

Veronica smiled with pure joy. But she wondered if she would be able to do what these women and the fallen goddess set for her. Could she go to Hel itself, confront the Goddess of Death, and rescue Serren and Pattenia from their eternal curse and prevent another brutal dark age that existed to the current day?

Millicent sensed exactly what Veronica was thinking and was afraid of.

"I know that the world considers that age the start of the end of the middle ages and the beginning of the renaissance, or the age of enlightenment. But it was still a very brutal age of warfare, cruelty, death, and that women had little to no say in the course of their lives.

"Yes, there were some women rulers of nations at the time. But their rule hung on a spider's silk. Elizabeth faced many challenges to her rule and she could have relations with men. But she could never marry. If she married, then a man would take control of her life and her power.

"There was Ekaterina of Russia and her rule was challenged and stood on a spider's silk too. She had her husband killed and took control of the nation. And even then, she was often challenged by her sexist son Paul who challenged and criticized her rule and opposed a woman ruling. She had to be very careful with him and often excluded him from any power and went through great effort to make sure he was away from power. He still took power after her death even though she chose his son Alexander to succeed her. It was still a dark time for women, and for many people.

"This is why you need to succeed Veronica. This is Serren's mad legacy. Veronica, you know everything you need to succeed. You are the only one who can do this. It is up to you to prevent this dark age from happening.”

Veronica thought for a second and commented sadly, “I read about Pattenia in the history of the Shattered Isles. It seems that the golden age of women that she had planned on creating turned into her nightmare and Serren's Dark Age.”

Millicent nodded in acknowledgement. “That was my mistake and Pattenia's own doing. She could not give up her resentment of her treatment by Serren and the other men ignoring and belittling her. And the fact that he was chosen and not her. And her wanting a reign of women in general caused such a violent backlash against her.

"Serren's rage at what he lost and what happened to him caused such a violent reaction and hatred in him that he devoted his life to undermining everything she stood for and to destroy it forever. He succeeded and I should have seen his internal strength. He was bred and born for greatness and leadership. It could not be denied and he refused to be denied. And anyone who tried to would become his enemy and he was bound to win in the end. He could either be great, or the worst evil. He was largely a monster of our own creation and we can prevent that.

"That is your task now Veronica and, to do it, you must overcome me in my time and teach me a lesson I won't forget. So, can you do what you must, including what you need to do in order to even enter the Shattered Isles?”

Veronica looked down sadly knowingly, and said, “Yes, it will be difficult. But it must be done and I will have to totally demean myself.”

Then Millicent looked at Ryan and asked him, “Can you do what you must as a man, for Veronica and yourself to enter the Shattered Isles?”

Ryan looked down in shame and replied, “Yes, but I really don't want to treat Veronica like that. I know it's needed. But Veronica, if I do this to you, I will hate myself. I doubt I would even want to be a man anymore after acting like that to you. Do you think you could accept me as a woman?”

“Ryan, you are a man and you have proven it by how you act,” Veronica pointed out. “You hate being a woman. How can you consider this now?”

“It’s a feeling I have.” Ryan replied, “So could you?”

Veronica looked into Ryan's sad eyes and embraced him. “Yes, I love you Ryan. It will take getting used to your female body if that’s what you chose in the end, but I can accept it.”

Then Millicent said boldly, “Good, so now, let's turn Ryan into the man he was meant to be. If he chooses to return to a woman, we can do that after this mission. But Ryan, really consider what you will be asking. You have been miserable as a woman. I doubt you will be happy and you have nothing to be ashamed of now. You will be doing what is necessary in order to keep her safe. You will have nothing to be ashamed of. And Veronica knows it. It won't be a reflect on your character as a man in any way. Now, stand before me and prepare to become a man again.”

Ryan stood up in front of the women dreading this now. It had been all he could think about for months and had looked forward to being returned to a man. But not now, knowing what was going to be expected of him after reading a husband's duties in the Book of Serren. All he could feel now was dread. He couldn't imagine ever treating a woman like that. Even a cruel woman like Tabi. No woman deserved that and any man that would, was lower than scum in his mind. And now he was expected to do it, and the fate of the entire world depended on him acting like a misogynistic asshole. He wasn’t looking forward to this at all as Millicent put her hand on Richards chest and began chanting the spell to restore his manhood.

Millicent may have been a defeated Goddess that lost her powers. She was human but she was still an exceptionally powerful witch of the Hekatin. Ryan felt the tingling feeling as the witches' energy entered his body. The tingling spread through his body and he felt himself change. He felt his vocal cords strengthen and his voice deepen, that was the first thing he felt as his entire body distorted. His large breasts shrank into his chest and his skin thickened. His bone structure strengthened. His breasts shrank into his chest and his chest became layers of muscle. His shoulders widened. The soft curves of his face straightened into the hard angular lines of a man's jaw and face. His hips shrank and his entire body’s soft structure grew into layers of hard muscle. It was what he had hoped for since this had been done to him. He still felt the dread of what he was now expected to do with this new strength. Richard was a young man once again and he felt he should be delighted. But he was not.

He could have the life that he wanted now. He had his life and his very identity back. What much of the Hekatin and the Goddess didn't realize for regular humans and men is that much of their identity as a person is in their sex that they are. It's the same for women too. That is the core of their identity as a person. And when that was stripped from them, their identity and everything that they are was taken from them.

It must have been so much worse for Serren and Ryan wondered if any of them could begin to understand. Serren was the crown prince and meant to be king. He had trained and studied his entire life to be a leader and the greatest warrior in the entire Kingdom. So when he was changed into a girl and made the princess and Pattenia's little sister. His entire identity, his future, and life were stripped from him in an instant and he was left was nothing. Add to that, Pattenia took great delight in throwing everything he lost right into his face as she took his future for herself and left him with nothing but seething anger and rage. It was no wonder he lashed out the way he did. He wondered if the Goddess could begin to understand that.

Millicent looked into Ryan's eyes as if she sensed his thoughts about Serren and she replied, “I didn’t understand it then. But I understand it now. Much of what you thought was a total mystery back then and I could not understand his point of view or why he was so hurt and enraged at us. I was angered by his refusal and his hatred at us. I understand it all now. And this is what we must prevent from ever happening. I won't understand it when you come to interrupt my plans. I will be upset at these people coming in to change my plans. I won't understand why, but you must make me understand it as you protect Serren, and help him become the man he should be and help his sister know that she is loved and valued and respected. This will all be on you and Veronica and Tabitha. I hope that you can do it.

Veronica nodded that she could do what was expected of her. Then Millicent and Seraphine talked among themselves and then cast a very large and powerful spell. Millicent looked at Ryan and said, “Now people will know you are male again and accept you. They will think that the time you weren't here was you wanting to experience life as a woman. But now you are back and they will accept you.”

Normally Ryan would have disapproved of this choice. It would be humiliating having people think that the time Ryan wasn’t around was him wanting to live as a woman. He wouldn’t want them thinking that about him but now he didn’t care. That was a good choice in case he chose to return to that life after all of this.

Millicent looked at the two teens holding each others hands and said, “We now need to make plans for you to travel to the Shattered Isles. First, you two will need to get married by a priest from the Church of Serren, that way it will be accepted by their government. I know its uncommon for people your age to marry unless it's in a nation like this. But the situation demands you two must be bound together so Veronica will be safe there. Do you understand Ryan? And what you must do?”

He nodded sadly. “Yes, and I am really not looking forward to treating the girl I love that way. I know the situation demands it, and her safety will depend on me doing my part. And marrying her in the Church of Serren. I will do it for her.” How stupid did that sound? Ryan would marry her in the Church of Serren, dominate her, control her life in the way of the religion all for her. It sounded really stupid to Ryan's ears. But it was true. This was all for her. And he hated this.

Ryan wondered how Serren got so much power that he was able to bind and destroy a Goddess. Then replace her and make the religion centered around him. These were things that he doubted even these very powerful witches could even attempt.

Veronica saw Ryan's thoughts and replied. “Serren, then Serrenina, was so angered and hurt by what was done to her that she gave little thought to herself anymore. She wanted power and dominion over everything by then. She started studying and doing the Dark and forbidden arts. The very dangerous and forbidden arts with things we should never even consider.

"Serrenina summoned Death itself. She made a deal with Death in return for power. Serrenina called on the Goddess of Death, Hela from Hel. She made a deal for the power to bind and destroy the Goddess Progegnina. She didn’t care if that power would curse her with an eternity of subservience in Hel.

"So Serrenina spent months learning everything she could from Hela. She returned as the most powerful witch ever. She took control of the Malneys that she was then a member of after marrying their daughter and becoming her wife. She lost her last name and became a Malney. She took control of the Malneys by threatening their Lord, her father in law, by saying that if he didn't surrender control and abdicate for her, that he was going to have an accident like Gerrick did. Lord Malney said that even if that did happen, his elder daughter would take control then not her. Serrenina smiled at him and said what happened to Serren when he expected to inherit his father's position and title could happen to the Lord Daughter Jewel. Serrenina would seize power from her and take control by force but she will take power one way or another. It can be a humiliating and violent seizure of power that will destroy Jewel and she will be humiliated and suffer, or he can give it to her.

"The Lord agreed and he abdicated and gave Serrenina control of the house of Malney. Serren then reinstated the rule of Man on the Malneys land. Women were evicted from their positions of power, they were subjucated. The witches were killed or expelled and Serrenina reinstated the Church of Maxis and their witch hunters. Serrenina made an alliance with Onseys house and the defeated Anseys. She spent months helping the Anseys raise another formidable army and they allied and went to war against the Kingdom, with Serrenina leading them. We know the rest. Serrenina regained his manhood, waged total war, he was brilliant, powerful and unbeatable on the field and defeated Pattenia.”

Veronica let that all sink in and then she told her boyfriend Ryan, “Ryan, we will have to go to Hel, and see Hela herself to rescue Serren and Pattenia. If we want to change history and prevent that catastrophe from ever happening.”

“How can we ever even think of confronting Hela?” Ryan demanded loudly.

“Well,” Veronica said smiling to Millicent. “Once we help Bismark, Otto, and Turaun to break the curse on his family, Hela's hold on them will be weakened. Then she may be more willing to work with us. If not, we may have to do things the hard way but be aware she is a very powerful Goddess. Hela is the goddess of Death. She taught Serren how to subjugate and destroy Progenina.”

Millicent then asked, “What about Actonia. She is also trapped there serving for an eternity.”

“She stays,” Veronica snapped harshly. “She caused the whole catastrophe. She was the brains and the inspiration behind the whole plot to transform Serren and give the crown to Pattenia. It's her doing. She caused it; we don’t want her messing it up again. She stays in Hel and pays for what she did while we will try to make a better world.”

Millicent frowned. She wanted to protest that she was the inspiration behind it all then, Actonia was just doing Progegnina's will. But she knew Veronica was headstrong and had made up her mind. And Actonia was really eager to do it all. She relished in Serren's suffering and humiliation and did nothing to help him cope.

Perhaps Veronica was right. Without Actonia egging Pattenia on, Veronica could help the siblings learn to value and love each other. That would take a lifetime and they would have to arrive there on the day of Serren's birth to make sure he was raised right this time. He would have to be taught to respect and value women and to bond with his strong and adventurous sister. He would have to make sure Pattenia knew she was loved and valued. So that she wouldn’t grow up resenting and hating Serren.

Veronica looked down and then said softly, “Ryan, I have a feeling we will be spending decades in the thirteenth century. But first, let's prepare for a trip to the Shattered Isles today and we need to get married. My mother Serephine knows a priest from the church of Serren that can marry us.”

He shouldn't have teased his sister chapter 12

By Jasmine Monica
They settle a few last minute issues and prepare to travel to the Shattered Isles
Pattenia and Serren settle some issues on their own
Chapter 12

Seraphine watched the two teens in front of her. They held each other's hands, and she could see the love in their eyes went deep. This was still going to be an incredibly difficult thing for them both.

She said to them, “I know you aren't looking forward to this at all. Ryan is going to hate this, and so will you, Veronica. A marriage in the Church of Serren is very strict. First off, it's done in the customs and language of the Shattered Isles. I know both of you have studied early English and you know the language well. You better brush up on it because that’s how the priest conducts the marriage. And then, the honor and OBEY part is very serious in the church of Serren. You, Veronica pledge yourself to Serren and swear to obey him and be under his guidance and protection for the rest of your life. He will swear to guide you and protect you. There’s more, but that is the basic concept. And since this is a mutual marriage, you both will speak your part and make your vows. They are very much from the middle ages and came from the second age. If this wasn't a mutual marriage...”

Veronica asked, interrupting her mother, ”How could it not be?”

“The church of Serren does contract marriages where the wife may not agree, but her disagreement doesn’t matter, the priest marries her to the man and bonds them anyway. It's a custom from the middle ages that they still do today. That's what Pattenia was facing and why she was so desperate to do what she did. Laws here prohibit such marriages and they aren’t legally binding in any way. But the people who do this are in the culture of the Shattered Isles and that binds them anyway. And since you two are planning to travel to the Shattered Isles, this marriage and the bond will be binding to you two. This will be serious, but you are going there to change the culture. Now, have you thought about how you are going to accomplish this?"

Veronica thought for a second and said, “Well, once we get there, the first thing we are going to have to do is to make contact with the young prince Bismark and find out what he really wants. Tabitha said she still has some people within the palace and they can help get the Prince out so we can contact him. I think it will be simple after that if what Tabitha says about him is true and he wants to be transformed into a girl.”

Seraphine spoke up and interjected, “But Bismark has been removed from the line of succession anyway so transforming him won't really matter. Turaun has made his youngest son Otto his heir. Just like when Serren was transformed and most people then agreed that he could not inherit the crown as the younger sister.”

Veronica smiled cruelly. “I think it will be easy to handle Otto. Just like Bismark fears his fate as King. I think Otto will understand once we explain the curse and being stuck in Hel serving the Goddess of Death. I think he will reject being the heir then and want no part of it. The only problem then will be dealing with Turaun. There are a few things we can do. We can use threats to get him to comply with us. Threaten him with having an accident and be removed. Or we can try to reason with him and see if he wants to break Serren's curse and start a new age or continue with it which will result in him being condemned in Hel for all time with his children and future descendants, suffering eternal torment and suffering under Hela's cruelty for all time. Or, he can break the curse. If he doesn’t see reason, then we can always do it the hard way. Do you think there's a chance your father can be reasonable, Tabitha?”

“There's a chance,” Tabitha said hopefully. “My father isn’t stupid. If we are united. Even my mother, Nemeria, supports me in this. If we all confront him together to try to get him to see what will eventually be his fate and what his children fear. Him and his children being condemned in Hel for all time. Serving and suffering under the Goddess of Death, not being dead but not being alive either. He may finally see it and help us. I just don’t know.

"The problem is Serren and his madness. He is a god to them. His words and the culture he designed with his own will is unquestionable. But Turaun was the first king in centuries to dare question it. He refused to kill me at birth because he loved me so much. And he has questions about Serren. I think there is a good chance we can get him to see reason.”

“But what about his opinion of the Hekatin?” Asked Veronica.

Tabitha replied, “He hates them. But the problem is that their conduct and what they did is nothing to really be proud of. Most men rightfully fear the Hekatin's agenda after they revealed their hand on Serren. Men don't want to be powerless under them any more than we want to be powerless under the priests. They are two sides of the same damn issue and we must change that. There must be equality and unity. And we have to get the men to see that we are a new breed of Hekatin that has no intention of subjugating the men under our fist.”

“That was my intention,“ said Millicent. “I wanted equality between the two sides. I wanted an age where men and women were equal. But the Hekatin's zeal for a rule of women and Pattenia's first few edicts really ruined it. Men saw her order that only women could inherit and that the crown would go to the eldest girl. They saw that and the Hekatin starting to form a rule of women over them. They resisted as soon as Serren started to rally them against her. My age of equality never happened. But the problem was the priests. We had to first destroy them and we needed the Hekatin to destroy their power over society first. Unfortunately, the men saw that as the rule of women being re-established, and it never got the time to be reformed. Maybe we can do it right this time.”

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Serren stood there proudly in his bedroom next to his bed. Serren, the powerful self-titled God of War, the first divine king of the Shattered Isles, worshiped and revered by his people. The conqueror of the Shattered Isles and the destroyer of the Hekatin and their rule of women proudly stood there next to his bed. It was an ironic image, he stood there wearing his elaborate lacy pink Gown and crushed in his tight constricting corset. His very ample cleavage was threatening to spill out of his gown's very low neckline. Perched on his bright red heels. And he was having trouble controlling the leakage from between his legs after having bent over his bed for the past hour until his husband finished with him. His very large and powerful husband, Thor.

Serren turned and passionately kissed his husband on the lips and slipped his tongue in his husband's mouth, tasting him. Serren loved his husband. Hela thought this would be suffering beyond his imagination, but it wasn’t in any way. It was thought that such a strong man being turned into a woman and a wife would be humiliation and suffering, but Hela didn't really understand Serren's contradiction at all.

Serren, as a child nearly a thousand years ago, had been a man's man. He was suddenly turned into a girl at sixteen in one of the most traumatic and horrifying ways possible. It became a living nightmare he was unable to escape from. His sister turned him into a girl and then proceeded to humiliate and abuse him. She took his life, and everything from him and left him with nothing. Serren was able to find some sort of peace and joy as a woman. He adapted better than anyone could have thought possible. But his sister's cruelty prevented him from being completely happy as a girl. Her cruelty and abuse made any real happiness impossible and he simply could not allow it to continue. Serren fought Pattenia and regained his manhood and proved to her that he was a force to be reckoned with. He showed Pattenia that what she did was a tragic mistake. He thought he had just cursed himself with his deal with Hela. He didn’t know he had cursed his entire family and all of his future children to service here. The Goddess Progenita had great plans for Serren as the princess. But Serren did not know that. All he knew was the suffering that had been inflicted on him and the agony of losing everything in an instant. And the agony of being trapped in a life he wasn't meant for.

Hela had thought that turning him into a girl would be a crushing humiliation but it was really a blessing. Serren adored being a woman, and he loved his husband Thor. And now, after almost a thousand years, there was hope to break this curse.

The latest king of the Shattered Isles was beginning to question the way things were. He was not totally brainwashed by the dogma of the religion. His son Bismark did not want to rule the Shattered Isles and wanted to become a woman. Bismark reminded him of himself at that age. The only thing is he was not afraid to reveal his nature. Bismark had approached his sister and begged her to turn him into a girl. Turaun was going to get a bigger shock from his youngest son Otto. And his daughter and her friends were about to give him the shock of his life. It was going to be fun.

He knew this all had to happen. Turaun needed to allow this change to occur. Serren had to turn against them now. Turaun did not know what he was starting. Sure, his nation was generations more advanced than the rest of the world and his power was immense. He was leading his nation into war and he would likely destroy the United States Navy. The Shattered Isles was an island nation with over a thousand years of experience in war at sea. Their fleet was very powerful and they would likely devastate American military and strategic assets. But that would leave the United States with only one option left and they would do it. The U S would then unleash its nuclear arsenal on the Shattered Isles. The Isles had anti-missile defenses but not enough. And once the U. S. did that, other nations would respond, and it would be a global disaster. Turaun needed to be replaced. The entire society he created needed to fall. Serren now knew he had made a mistake, and he needed to help correct it.

But Serren also knew that Veronica and her friends wanted to rescue him. There was no need for that, but it had to be done for the good of everyone. Perhaps a second chance is what he needed. But, after everything was done, Serren would want to return to his husband. But maybe then he wouldn't be stuck in Hel.

A curious smell in the air caught Serren's attention. It was an unpleasant smell he knew very well. It was the smell of rotting flesh. It was an overpowering sickening smell that filled his entire bedroom. He looked up to see her. She was a horrifying and sickening sight. Hela appeared in his bedroom, smirking as best as she could. The rotting flesh was hanging from her arms as she stood there. Pieces of flesh hung from her body, and her legs were so thin they were skeletons. The rotting flesh on her face was so thin that her face was a skull. This was Hela, the Goddess of Death, and she was much more powerful than Progenita. Serren made the deal with her to imprison and kill Progenita. He made the deal to accept a curse on himself and he had killed Progenita.

The Goddess laughed, “I can sense you have hope that this curse can be lifted from you, little girl.”

“Yes,” Serren said with a smirk. “Veronica can do this. And Bismark won't use the power you have granted to my family at all. He won't end up cursed. No matter what, this curse will be broken, and you will have little choice but to release me when Veronica comes. Haven't you had enough frustration with me anyway? Nothing you did hurt me.”

Hela laughed at Serren. “After being such a glorious and mighty man and self-titled God of war. Coming here and becoming a woman was a shock that took years for you to accept. You suffered a lot and gave me so much delight. And then making you marry Thor and become his wife. That also took a lot for you to accept. Being deflowered by your husband that first night was great. I saw it crush your masculine pride, and he did it over and over and you had no choice. Don't tell me you didn’t suffer. It took you years.”

Serren shook his head. “No, only a few months at most to accept Thor as my husband. And now, for over eight hundred years of pleasure and delight as his beloved wife. Even if the curse is lifted, I will still stand by his side.”

“But Veronica wants to change everything,” Hela pointed out. “She will make me release you in your own time period for a second chance. And there will be a catch when I do. You will be a clean slate, just as you were the first time and you won't know Thor, or this curse. Or the results. You will be reborn as an infant with no knowledge of this. And we will see how it goes.”

“With Veronica there overseeing the events,” Serren smirked wider.

“Except she will have to contend with the society and your arrogant father. Her chances will be slim.” Hela returned Serren's smirk, certain that Veronica would fail in her mission.

“I think that my feminine nature will be stronger this time. And my beloved Thor will be waiting for me. There is much to look forward to.”

Hela laughed bitterly and replied sardonically, “Yes, I didn’t know you had such a strong feminine nature when I cursed you. You made it all into a blessing. I can understand your sister's frustration in how you turned everything she did into a blessing. She turned you into a girl, and you excelled at it and became very happy and popular. You were much stronger as a girl than a boy. Then you became pregnant and you felt so much joy instead of bitterness and humiliation. But her treatment was what ruined it, and she got to enjoy that. Until you rebelled. She has not been happy here at all.”

Serren laughed, “Yes, married to Runtick for 800 years. Being his wife. She deserves it. I have one request if this is going to happen, Hela.”

She looked at him with her shrunken eyes and asked, “What is it?”

“If I am to be reborn and try again. Make me into the most beautiful woman in the entire Kingdom.”

“I will contact the Goddess of beauty, Freyja. But, Progenita did go through a lot of effort to recraft you into a stunningly beautiful woman. You want to be even more beautiful?”

“Yes,” Serren said confidently. “I want my beauty to be unequaled.”

Thor spoke up at this point, "I will make it happen. You will be prettier and wiser than even the Goddess Freyja is. Even Hela fears her power.”

Thor saw a brilliant smile on Serren's face and felt like laughing. His feelings had grown for Serren over the years. Serren was precious. He knew that Serren would fall for him, and that's why he agreed to Hela's request that he take Serren as his bride. He knew Serren had a feminine spirit and was even able to see it. He knew this would happen, and Hela didn't. She was very shocked by Serren's acceptance of this marriage. Hela was actually pissed, and it was only Thor’s protection that made sure that Hela didn't destroy Serren. They were married and Serren was under his protection now. Hela just had to deal with it and not harm Serren anymore.

Serren was still a very powerful woman. Her spirit was unconquerable. By contrast, Pattenia's spirit was very weak. She was spiteful, cruel, and very malicious. Progenita made a disastrous error in making Pattenia her vessel and King. She wasn’t fit to be king and it caused Serren horrible suffering. The big problem then was what was done to him didn't need to be done at all. It was a horrible injustice on him and made him feel like a sacrifice. His sister Pattenia even said so. She said to Actonia the night before his transformation, “If he needs to make a sacrifice for the women of the Shattered isles, then he will make that sacrifice.”

That meant his feelings didn’t matter. He was irrelevant, just something to move out of the way. He didn’t matter, his feelings and dreams were irrelevant. He was nothing but a human sacrifice, and that pissed him off. No one really cared about him or his feelings. And they paid more than they could ever have guessed for that injustice and cruelty. If there was to be a second chance, things would have to be done very differently.

Veronica and Tabitha, and the witches she personally trained were now preparing to travel to the Shattered Isles to make those changes to the country, and confront the King. Serren knew they were headed into danger. He turned toward his husband Thor and pleaded, “Please, my beloved husband. Protect them and make sure they are successful. And make sure that Turaun sees reason.”

He kissed Serren deeply and replied, “I will, my love. I know how important this is to you.” And Thor vanished. She already missed him. He knelt and prayed that his husband was successful. Then he prayed to Freyja to make him beautiful for Thor.

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Pattenia sat in her room alone wearing a tight constricting corset and a heavy elaborate pink lacy gown. Two of Serren’s women came into her bedroom early and dressed her according to his desire. She knew this was revenge for the women she sent to dress him day after day, giving him no say in how he was dressed. So she sat there stiff from the corset and humiliated. She now knew that the way she had treated Serren was very wrong.

Her memories went back to the time when she first seized the crown of the Shattered Isles from her brother and the pride she felt at her new found power and how she wielded it. She remembered those first glorious months she wore the crown and how hurt her brother was at the loss of his entire life. He hated her then and wanted to murder her. But she had done some great things. Within the day, she held a council and declared the worship of Progenita the state religion. She lifted all of the edicts that forbid the worship of the Goddess. Preventing worship of the Goddess became a crime against the crown. That was resisted but her force of will pushed it through despite all of the objections. Then she declared that the crown will go to the eldest female. She remembered the celebrations went through the night. The Hekatin celebrated and the bells tolled for their new found freedom and it was all her doing. Then she declared contracted marriages to be illegal. She worked hard to make things better for everyone and to start a new golden age for the people. She enjoyed making things better for the people she now ruled. There was resistance and she fought a minor rebellion from the family that she had been contracted to wed into. And she won that war. She brought women into the army and made great progress. But it was only to last a little over a year.

During that time, her brother’s anger grew, and turned into a rage at what he had lost,wanting it all back. He felt cheated. He told her that she stole his crown. He took control of his new family through intimidation and force. Then Serren forced the Hekatin to restore his manhood. He retrained himself to fight and became twice as good as he was before.He then formed an alliance with his new family, the Malnaes, and brought in the Onseys and the Anseys. He spent a little over a year reforming the Ansey army after their defeat by Pattenia and started a war. The Shattered Isles went into a civil war and Pattenia did her best to defeat Serren. Serren exterminated her witches in those lands and restored the rule of man over women.

Pattenia quickly found out that Serren was a great military commander. Engagement after engagement, he defeated the armies she sent. He was always several steps ahead of her and knew her army’s weak spots and exploited them. He defeated her even when he was vastly outnumbered and she thought she had her brother’s forces in a trap. But in reality she had been the one that really marched into his trap and came back totally defeated. Even when she tried her trick with the Griffins and huge War Hawks like she did in her war on Ansey’s Isle, did not work. Serren had trained his forces to counter them and the Griffins and Hawks were killed. After the warh he hunted them all down and hunted them all to extinction.

That is when she knew that Serren was fighting a war with no mercy. He exterminated entire cities and burnt them down. Like when he landed on Wensey’s Isle. Wensey was the first family to rally to her after she seized the crown. Serren invaded and exterminated every member of the Wensey family and burnt their castles and cities. The leading members of the House were all executed. She watched as Baldic and his sons and daughters were all hung, drawn and quartered. He didn’t treat the Fawnaes much better. The Denaes were mostly lost when she had seized the power and turned Serren into a girl. Pattenia was all that was left and no one wanted to marry her and surrender their family name to her. He hunted down every last member of the Denae family and killed them. She lived long enough to watch Serren undo all of her progress and destroy her legacy. She was totally vilified while Serren was honored and celebrated through the land as their liberator. He was the savior and the conqueror of the Hekatin. He saved them from the witches and solved that problem for all time. But, Serren had committed a genocide by then. He exterminated all first born girls, and killed much of the Hekatin.

But out of everyone, Pattenia figured that Serren’s wife, Nemeria suffered the worst. Serren considered her marrying him as his husband to be a betrayal of his love. She forced him into it. During his pregnancy, he didn’t really have the will to fight it and went along with it then. He delivered his twins and fought for his life back. He restored his manhood and began beating her into submission and restored his status as her husband. Then he declared the rule of man again and took control. Then Serren declared that first born girls of every noble family must die. Making an example with hiseldest daughter Blaze. He killed that infant girl in front of Nemeria.

Pattenia knew she had done wrong when she started abusing Serren over and over and having him humiliated and abused. His anger grew and grew and he refused to forgive her.

The big issue was that she didn’t see how Serren had become a powerful member of the Hekatin. He had come to believe and love the Goddess Progegita. He became a very devoted believer of the Goddess and saw her mission to free the women. He did understand it all. He was very loyal and loved her, and agreed with her mission at first. The sad thing was it didn’t mean anything to her. Pattenia didn’t care. She had a lifetime of resentment and hatred toward her brother and didn’t care about his transformation. She wanted to see him humiliated, and to suffer as she had suffered. So his devotion and love turned to hate and he became a monster devoted to undoing all of her progress. He took control and restored the rule of man just to spite her. He knew he was wrong but he didn’t care either.

Pattenia would have liked to enjoy that Serren was again turned into a girl here, and forced to live as a girl. Then to top off the humiliation, Hela had forced him into a marriage with a strong powerful man. But Serren seemed to adapt to it, and even enjoy the life. Serren fell in love with the man he married. But he still hated her with a passion and did everything possible to make her life here a misery.

Pattenia had hoped that she would finally be forgiven after eight hundred years. But she had not been. She knew that her little brother Serren still harbored intense anger at her after this much time. The pain of what she had inflicted on him did not go away. She had been trapped in a loveless, crushing marriage with Runtick for this long, never getting easier. She was married to him when she arrived here in Hel with the Goddess of Death conducting the wedding. That was to be her punishment and eternal torment. It seemed fitting to Serren, and this wedding was what prompted her to rebel and execute the plot to change her little brother and seize the crown from him. He seemed to think she hated him for being a boy, but that wasn't it. So, trapping her in the same marriage was her eternal punishment. Serren was happy with it.

His fate was to be a girl and she saw him a few times in the eight hundred years they’ve been in Hel. Strangely, he seemed very happy, and he was even happier with his enormous husband, Thor. How could Serren be happy as a girl when he was so miserable while he was living as a girl, and how could he ever adapt to having a husband over him? It was totally mystifying to her. But, Serren seemed to have a talent for turning a curse into a blessing.

She should not have been surprised that a spell called the Blessing would end well and make him happy. And she had been told he would be happy as a mother, so why was she so shocked and surprised and resolved to take it away from him?

Now, after eight hundred years, it was not a surprise at all. She knew why he was so angry and was willing to do anything to strike back at her in any way possible. Even to the extent of doing what he did with such joy. It was not a surprise anymore.

Once three of the powerful noble families rebelled under Serren's leadership and inspiration, she knew everything was lost. She had been warned before the change that if that situation wasn’t avoided it would then turn into a nightmare. All of their lives were in danger. It was inevitable in hindsight. Being under the women's power was the men's worst fear, and everything appeared to be leading in that direction, and all they needed was a spark to strike. Serren provided the rallying cry and it happened. They went through great effort to avoid that. It was thought that dressing Serren as a girl and forcing him to live that life would turn the men against him. Instead, it only inspired them. Serren used it to inspire resistance. Then it happened and the rest was lost. Serren killed the Hekatin witches and restored the rule of man over them. Pattenia should have known that with Serren's strength, this would never work. No matter what they did, Serren would hate it and use everything he had to undermine and destroy them.

Serren seemed to blame her, their mother, and the entire Hekatin, for every injustice and abuse he had endured from then on. He blamed her for his rape at the hands of Prett and his friends, even though she had nothing to do with it. It didn’t matter. He blamed her for it, saying that if she had not turned him into a weak, helpless girl, it wouldn’t have happened. He blamed her for all of the pretty comments and how everyone dismissed him from then on because he was only a girl. He blamed her for the second assault he suffered at the hands of Prett when he was released. He blamed her for everything.

Then he blamed the women and sought to conquer them and destroy Pattenia’s progress. Territory after territory fell to Serren’s rule of man. City after city fell. The families that stood with Pattenia fell too. His march was unstoppable and temple after temple also fell to Serren’s army. Then he killed the Goddess herself. The witch moon vanished from the sky and the Hekatin witch’s spirits fell. They knew they would be destroyed and there was nothing to stop it now. Their liberation was very short lived and only a few of them knew this was their doing.

His rage and anger could not be understated in any way. His anger was immense, as was his response. Later, she asked him why he was so cruel to them, and his answer was stunning. He only wanted them to see his strength, and that it was wrong to sideline him. He also wanted them to know they had made a mistake, and it was going to cost them all a lot.

But now things appeared to be happening that might undo it all. There was a second chance coming and she would welcome it. Only this time, she would stand by her brother against them. Serren was right. The Hekatin was evil and needed to be destroyed. She would not join them this time. She would not blame her brother for her life. They must stand together this time.

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Seraphine had found the right priest to marry them, and the two lovers had filed their paperwork in the church to be accepted as members. Veronica had taken the test to show that she knew about the religion and the Book of Serren. She had gone through the introduction ceremony and pledged to obey the religion and follow the priests, and Serren in the Book. Ryan followed her and pledged to do his part, and they were now ready for their wedding.

None of it was a surprise to Veronica. She had studied the hateful book. She knew what was going to be expected of her and her life. She was going to have to forget about being a powerful woman and learn to be submissive and follow Ryan's lead on things and obey his word as if it were a command. She also knew he was going to hate it and may not ever want to be a man after this. She hoped he did want to continue being a man. Ryan was a good man.

She looked into Ryan's brilliant brown eyes in the shadow of the darkened room. They had a few minutes alone together before the wedding. She knew Ryan had serious doubts about this and said to him, looking into his eyes. “Ryan, I know this will be very difficult for you.”

Ryan looked at her with a serious expression. “And for you too. You will be surrendering everything to me, Veronica. I hate having to do this to the one I love. How can anyone consider this love is beyond me. They are scum.”

“I know,” confirmed Veronica. “But we have to do this. It is the only way, and then we will be able to stop it. But first, we need to be accepted as part of their society. A horrible injustice and a tragic mistake occurred eight hundred years ago. This is the only way to correct it. Ryan, you need to be strong enough. The priest will sense any doubt you have. We must profess our love, accept our obligations, and the mark of Serren on your hand. We will be bound for all time. I love you, Ryan.”

They held each other and Ryan knew she loved him. Veronica embraced Ryan as they held each other tight. It was about time to begin and walk into the chamber with the priest and his assistance to be wed to each other. Veronica knew she loved Ryan so much. Ryan was bewildered by the events in the past few weeks. He went from a changed and persecuted girl to being rescued and then engaged to one of the most powerful witches of this generation. How was this possible?

The two walked into a massive darkened chamber lit only by candlelight. It really looked like an ancient church from the thirteenth century. They stood in the center of a large circle with the priest in front of them. He wore the darkened robe of a priest from the church of Serren. There were images of Serren on the colored stained glass and a large statue of Maxis standing over them. Pattenia tried to destroy the religion, but she failed in the end when Serren rescued them and then appointed himself as their god.

The priest began the ceremony with Veronica, of course. They had to make sure she fully understood this marriage and was agreeing to it. That was more vital than anything else at the moment. He assumed the man would be all for this. Normally, the womans concent to the marriage was vital in the United States. But not the way they were going to perform the marriage using magic. It still helped in some cases if she was willing. He spoke to her in his natural language, hoping that she would understand.

So, he looked at Veronica and asked her if she fully read and understood a wife's duty as outlined in the gospel of Serren.

Veronica agreed, “Yes, I have, Sir. I consent to this wedding.”

“Do you understand that you will be placing your life, your body, and your soul under your husband's guidance and his protection? This is no small commitment. He will be your guide, your protector, and your master. You will submit to his guidance in your life and devote yourself to his happiness. Is this understood and agreed to?”

“Yes, sir, I agree. I love Ryan.” She looked into Ryan's eyes to make sure he was staying strong for this. It would be terrible if he backed out of it now. “We intend to make a life in the Shattered Isles after our wedding.”

“That is good,” replied the priest. “I wish more of you would stay here and spread the word and our culture in the US to fight the defilement of the sexes here. But it is your choice.”

“So, you will devote yourself to your husband's happiness and his life. You will love him and remain by his side. You will fulfill your duty as his wife. You will never displease him or refuse or argue with him. He will become your guardian and your master, to guard you against your feminine sinful and treacherous womanly nature. You will also guard yourself against that.”

“Yes, I do.” She replied strongly.

Then he turned to Ryan and he braced himself for the nonsense he needed to agree on. That's how he saw all of this male domination. The priest said in early English, the language of the Shattered Isles, “You, Ryan, will love your wife, Veronica, and remain by her side. You will be her master, and protector for her life. You will remain vigilant of her sinful nature and guard her against sin, her natural female treachery, and evil. You will be firm and loving toward her, even if she is naturally incapable of really loving you in return. It is just a woman's nature.”

“Yes, I will.” He replied in the language of the Shattered Isles.

With both parties in agreement, the priest ignited the circle they were standing in and he started chanting in early English. The flames rose as the two teens pressed their palms together and gazed into each others' eyes. The priest spoke of this sacred commitment they were making to each other and chanting a spell. Then he marked the husband and the wife with runes of their commitment of marriage to bond them for life. Then Veronica was marked on her heart with an obedience rune and Ryan as the master of the marriage. The flames rose higher and higher. It got hotter in the circle until it was almost unbearable as the priest kept chanting. The heat seared the runes into the teens. Veronica could handle the pain, but Ryan seemed to start complaining and then screaming out in pain from the heart of the flames of the circle. It was really painful.

Then the flames were sucked into the two teens as a sign of their marriage and the ceremony was done. The priest told them where they could get a visa and permission to enter the Shattered Isles. And where an embassy was.

The experience was truly traumatizing to Ryan. He was a regular mortal until a few months ago and didn't understand or comprehend what had just happened. They walked out of the church a newlywed couple and got in the car. Ryan turned to his new wife and demanded harshly, “Why didn't you warn me about that. We were enveloped with FLAMES. I was on fire and it hurt, Veronica. I know it had to be done, but you could have warned me that was what a witch wedding consisted of.” He nearly snarled.

Veronica looked over at her new husband and replied,” No, that is not a typical witch wedding at all. This is a wedding in a church of Serren that bonds the wife to the husband's authority for life. We don’t typically do that at all. This bonded me to you, and I am almost compelled to obey your will. We don’t do it that way at all.”

Ryan felt really sick. He never wanted to do anything like that to her. Ryan started hating these people for pushing him into this. He turned to look into Veronica's eyes. His eyes were inflamed, and he said with a tight jaw, “These people need to be destroyed, and I am so glad to be a part of it. Let's get this done. But, Veronica, is there a way to undo this?”

“Yes, I think my will is strong enough that I can resist. And we can undo it when the time comes. Now, all we need to do is find the Shattered Isles consulate and make arrangements to emigrate. Then link with the witches there and make plans to turn the young Prince Bismark.”

Ryan groaned and said sarcastically, “You make it sound so easy.”

Veronica giggled and said sardonically, “I never said it would be easy. But it is doable if we do it right. It will be mostly up to the other witches and me. And I will have to go to Hel alone. You can't go there. That will be my job alone. I have to rescue them.

Veronica parked at another house to pick up the other witches Tabi had trained. The witches that fled the Shattered Isles with her when her plot was discovered by the Authorities. Tabi was there and they all packed into the car. Tabi was their leader, then Michelle, Julie, Arcadia, and Vankia piled into the large luxury car.

It was then that Veronica wondered if this would really work. Her mother Seraphine said it would. The identities of the witches would not be discovered when they filed for travel and immigration to the Shattered Isles. Seraphine had got them all new identities, except for Veronica but she was unknown, and Ryan couldn't be helped. She had already got him his identification. He was the weakest link among them all.

Veronica wondered how the Shattered Isles authorities would react to his six months of dressing and living as a woman and then reverting back. From what she had heard, the Shattered Isles had a little problem with transsexuals. If a man wanted to become a woman among them, fine. But then they would have to live that life, including the restrictions and life chosen for them. The priests would allow it but wonder why any man would subject himself to such a life. But it was done. And a man that had chosen to live that life and revert back after deciding it wasn’t for him would be a plus in the priests' view.

Tabitha and the other witches were strong. Their link to the Hekatin would not be discovered. Tabitha was Mary now, and her being the Royal Princess would not be discovered. Seraphine was confident of it. That included the numbers that were tattooed on the outside of the girls' arms. Those numbers signified the girls were condemned to death. Those numbers were removed by the Hekatin here. And they had been taught to suppress their power deep within them so the witch hunters could not detect them.

They all went through the formal introduction, and many of the girls laughed and were impressed with Ryan's marriage to Veronica and thought it was slightly funny. They all oohed and made other embarrassing gestures at first. They were all headed toward the Shattered Isles consulate in New York. It would be a long drive for Veronica.

So, after the initial discussions and some playful comments about the marriage, many of the girls started falling asleep or listening to music on their headsets.

About halfway to New York City, Veronica heard Ryan giggle lightly at a thought he had. Veronica looked over, while keeping her eyes on the road. She asked, “What is so funny, Ryan?”

“Just a thought I had about Serren. It’s slightly embarrassing for them all and it is something that I read but is rarely talked about. It was his transformation to a woman and how he was treated by the priests who loved and supported him as a man. That part is not really talked about that much, but it is funny to me.”

Veronica laughed. “It is a big black mark on the priests. It showed their stupidity. But that part was a big part of the witch's plan and supposed to be a lesson to Serren. The priests saw Serren's change as a sign from above that he was unworthy and did not have Maxis' blessing. He did, but the priests didn’t know. And then, they all turned their back on him. For instance, days later, he was able to escape his royal escort and flee to the Temple of Maxis and beg for help. There was no help to be had from them. They treated him as a girl, which was the witch's plan. He was seen as a helpless girl and subject to that treatment. He was alone and helpless. The priests mocked him, belittled and even threatened him. They would not help him. It was stupid, none of them knew what was coming from Pattenia and no one would help them either. Pattenia destroyed their power and ran them from their temples. Serren would finish the job when he retook his power. The lesson the witches hoped he would get, weren’t understood and made no sense to him. Pattenia was in control and started the reign of women. It was supposed to be a liberation but it wasn’t for Serren. The lesson fell flat and just angered Serren. It was embarrassing all around. But it did seal the priests' fate. He took control of the church, reformed it around his divinity and power. The old priests were executed with the Hekatin. They are no laughing matter now. The priests are powerful and vicious. Be aware of them, and don’t underestimate them,” Veronica warned the girls, and Ryan. “That would be a fatal error.”

@@@

Veronica had finally made it to New York City in her car full of teenage girls and her new husband, Ryan. They found the Shattered Isles consulate and pulled into the parking lot. The girls had woken up and prepared themselves for a very unpleasant time. Vankia felt a small giggle threaten to escape her lips as she thought of the irony of this mission. But it was no laughing matter in any way. They had barely escaped the Shattered Isles alive. They had been captured, marked with numbers that signified they were sentenced to death. They had been imprisoned in a horrible concentration camp that was basically an extermination camp for the condemned to die. They had been tortured and brutalized. They escaped and fled the country and made it to the United States with luck and a lot of skill. Now they were committing a deception to return to the Shattered Isles. Vankia wondered if they were all sane to try something so crazy.

Veronica knew what they all must be thinking, and they seemed to look to her as their leader. Even Tabitha was doing it who at first hated Veronica was doing it now. She had come to respect the girl. Veronica said to her new girls, “This is going to be dangerous if we succeed. We are going there to rescue a persecuted child and help the young prince find his way. We are going to try to overthrow the entire regime and we must succeed. A catastrophe happened eight hundred years ago due to stupidity and arrogance which resulted in future generations of girls being condemned to misery and death. It must be corrected, and it has fallen to us to try it. Be aware of what we are going into, we must be mad to try such a dangerous thing at our age, but we are the only ones. Remember now, we are not witches. Don’t even think of our abilities. They don’t exist, take off our jewels and our pendants, and everything that marks us as a member of the Hekatin. They are bound to have witch hunters in there. They can't do anything to us here, but they can deny us entry, or let us enter and blunder into a trap. Either outcome would mean we have failed. The women there as well as future generations of women are relying on us to succeed. So, let's go free them.”

Veronica wondered how inspirational her speech was to the girls looking up to her. They all seemed riveted to her every word and seemed to be inspired by it. Veronica figured it was good. They were all inspired to do something incredibly stupid.

Veronica had called in ahead of time and made an appointment and explained what they wanted. It was about time so everything should be ready. The people there should be waiting for them. The girls all followed Veronica around the corner of the building and entered the large glass doors to the Consulate of the Shattered Isles. It was a very secure place and Veronica saw the imposing armed guards dressed in black suits and wearing Kevlar. Then she saw the robed witch hunters dressed in their robes with the insignias and badges on their chest. Everyone in the building looked at the newcomers with extreme suspicion. A group of American girls coming into the consulate of the Shattered Isles was bound to arouse a lot of suspicions. The Witch Hunters wouldn't take their eyes off the group of very suspicious looking girls who just entered the building. The girls made sure their abilities were suppressed deep within them. They approached an official in the front desk where Ryan handed her ID to the man and explained that they had an appointment.

It was all confirmed, and they waited until a very official-looking man left his office in the back and came to the group of girls. He introduced himself as a member of the state department of the Shattered Isles and immigration. He led the girls to his office and sat behind his desk. He also had the look of extreme suspicion. He asked for Veronica's papers and she handed him the papers that she had filled out, along with the papers that were given to her by the priest that married her to Ryan. Ryan handed his papers over and the one the priest gave him.

The man looked at them with an extremely critical eye and seemed to frown in the end. “I can find nothing wrong with any of this. Actually, you come highly recommended by a very high-ranking priest from the Church of Serren. I know him, and I respect him very much. And he explained what you said to him Veronica. You wanted to live a more simple life, with strong traditional values of what a woman's life should really be. You want to be valued, loved, and protected by your man in a society that respects those very traditional values. That's what the priest said you said to him. If it's true, I can understand and respect it also. Veronica, please explain in your own words why you want to give up this life, and emigrate to the Shattered Isles and live as part of that society.

Veronica looked at the man and said, “I don't feel like I have much here. I am living in a society that says I am equal and strong as a man and try to take away what it means to be a woman. I feel like I am living a false life here and I can't handle it. I have married Ryan in the church of Serren and I want to be respected by a society that has those traditional values and has not been corrupted by modern values. Can you understand, sir,” she said very submissively and respectfully. She felt like she was going to choke on the words she just said.

The man said that he understood and agreed with her. Then he dismissed the other girls and kept Ryan and Veronica there and subjected her to an intensive question and answer session in the language of the Shattered Isles. She passed and so did Ryan.

Then they were subjected to a very intimidating question and answer session with a powerful high-ranking inquisitor from the church of Serren. It was a grueling two-hour season. The man from the state department questioned all of the girls, then they had to face the inquisitor. They all passed in the end. Their documents were approved and they were given IDs from the Shattered Isles and approved for immigration to the Shattered Isles.

They slept overnight and the following day went to LaGuardia Airport where they boarded a Shattered Isles Airways flight going to Denaerk City.

After finding their seats they sat and getting ready for the long twelve hour flight to somewhere in the Mediterranean.

She saw the robed Inquisitor watching everyone. That must be security for the airline. He watched Veronica occasionally but kept watching everyone else. He didn’t sleep during the flight at all. The engines roared to life and they taxied onto the runway and then flew into the skies. She watched as they left behind them the United States on their way toward their destination.

He Shouldn't have teased his sister

By Jasmine Monica

Chapter 13
Serren and Pattenia prepare for battle to become free
Note from the Author. This chapter deals with a lot of old Norse Mythology. And I am using the mythology of the old Norse Gods of as was written of them in the stories. Not the Avengers MCU. Loki is not Thor’s brother. He is Odin’s brother. Hela is not Thor’s older sister. She is Loki’s daughter.

Serren stood in his bedroom, looking up at his husband who towered over him by nearly two feet. Hela had done a good job feminizing Serren. His husband had just issued him another test and said, “I was told that someday, you would be able to wield this. I know that you will be able to do so when the time is right. Events are coming to a head and Veronica and her girls are under Freyja's protection. But we will need you as well. So don't be afraid, we know you can do this and you will finally be able to defeat Hela.”

Serren looked down at Mjolnir, waiting for him to try to pick it up. Serren abandoned his fear and convinced himself that Mjolnir would allow him to wield it now. He reached down and wrapped his fingers around the handle. As he felt Mjolnir's power fill him, Serren lifted the hammer up and held it out before him. Its intense power filled him and the weapon felt like an extension of his will. Serren swung the hammer around, feeling its power. He threw the hammer across the room, watching as it flew out and returned to his hand. Serren was finally able to wield Mjolnir.

He smiled at his husband Thor and Thor smiled in return and kissed Serren deeply. Thor said with a wolfish smile, “Let's go kick Hela’s ass and get some revenge for what she did to us. I know that despite everything, you have not suffered from her cruelty. Turning you into a girl was a blessing that you enjoyed, and marrying me was a dream come true that you came to love. But it was a curse on me, by linking me to you in Hel. She launched a war on Asgard and I was unable to defend my family. Being your husband meant I was stuck with you here and part of her family, so I could not take part in that war. She killed my father and brothers. Now her father, Loki, is sitting on the throne of my father. Let's get our revenge.”

Serren was shocked when the Valkyrie and the goddess Freyja appeared beside Thor, ready to attack Hela. Serren held Mjolnir in his hand ready to march out and confront the Goddess of Death. But Serren wasn't quite ready yet. He stood there, holding Mjolnir in his hand. He lifted the powerful Hammer up and looked at the ancient weapon of war. It was forged in the core of a giant star. They took the metal from the heart of the star and forged it into one of the universe's most powerful weapons. And it could only be wielded by whom it considered worthy of it. His husband said he had seen that he would be deemed worthy of it someday. Serren highly doubted it, but his husband kept testing him century after century while being stuck in Hel for the atrocities he had committed in his life. And now, Mjolnir had deemed him worthy, and he held the weapon in his hand.

How was this even possible? He looked at the weapon doubtfully and then gave his husband a look of disbelief and asked, “How could I possibly be considered worthy of wielding this? Me, the monster I had become, being condemned here by the goddess of Death for what I had done? How can I be worthy? After exterminating every man woman and child on the Iles of Guenefer. Destroying every building and sowing the fields with salt so they would never support life again? Killing every witch and member of the Hekatin, including their entire families. Declaring that the firstborn girl of every noble family had to die. And now this weapon considers me worthy? How in the name of your father Odin am I worthy? Me, who raped countless women, tortured women, disembowel my own sister, and beheaded her. Am I worthy?“ Serren asked.

His husband smiled, “Yes, and despite all of that? 800 years later, it knows you know you were very wrong and want to help stop it now. You want to make it better and free those women now. That makes you very worthy. And Mjolnir wants to help you overthrow the regime and free those women. You are now worthy, and now is the time.”

“How can I possibly unmake any of that right now? It's already done, and I killed millions,” Serren questioned.

“By stopping it now," Thor replied patiently. "Freeing the women that are being imprisoned and condemned to death now. You can overthrow that cruel regime and free them. That would go a long way, and we have ideas on how you can stop it from ever happening. Especially with Mjolnir. You are now worthy, and you are not the man that did all of this.”

Serren giggled, “I am not that man now. I am not a man at all.”

He felt the power of Mjolnir flowing through him, and he learned of its various powers. It could control lightning and thunder, but it had many other abilities he could use. There were a few things he still wanted to do before he broke the curse. Serren caused Mjolnir to vanish in his hand and said to his husband, “I will confront and defeat Hela, but first, there's a few people I want to see before I free us. I want to see Actonia and then visit my sister Pattenia.”

“Serren,” his husband Thor warned, but Serren refused to listen and marched down the hallway of the dark tower they had been imprisoned in for the past eight hundred years. Serren could not be stopped now that he wielded Mjolnir. He marched down the hallway and turned to Actonia's room and entered without warning.

Actonia looked up from her bed with fear in her eyes, seeing Serren burst into her room. This was never a good thing. Serren usually came in to torment, abuse, or cause her more suffering in some way. Even as a woman, Serren made her suffer countless times. He even managed to rape her, wearing some sort of thing that allowed him to penetrate her as a woman. Then he got the worse idea and got Hela's help to do it. Serren brought in corpses. Reanimated, living corpses that Hela gave life to. The living corpses came in and Serren watched them rape her countless times century after century. That gave Serren great joy to watch. And she saw in his eyes, that his anger at her had not diminished.

“Welcome to my room, Serren. I don't see those living corpses anymore. I guess they aren't here for me, so what are you going to do, beat me, torment me in some way? What do you want to do?”

“I want to beat you Actonia, I enjoyed your intense suffering so much after what you did to me. I still have not forgiven you,” Serren snarled. “It is all your doing. You destroyed my life and led me to suffer unimaginable agony. I lost everything because of you.”

“Yes, you did,” Actonia replied. “But we were trying to free people’s lives from suffering and meaninglessness, and you refused to understand. You just responded with selfish rage and then tortured and raped me and continued to inflict suffering on me in the afterlife. You ripped out my intestines and beheaded me. It's clear you were stronger than me then and I was helpless. That was made clear that day you entered my chambers and confronted me to force me to give you the spell to restore your manhood. I felt your power then as you lashed out at me. I couldn't handle you then and you kept growing stronger and stronger. Even here, you are stronger than any other witch and I sense an immense power in you now. You can do anything you want and I can't stop you. So get it over with and do what you want.”

Suddenly, Mjolnir became visible in his hand as Serren approached Actonia.

“Now I understand this power I feel from you, that makes sense. I don’t know how you were deemed worthy to wield such power. But it has always been your way.”

Serren smiled a wolfish, sadistic smile and said, “I won't beat you now. I have figured the perfect suffering for you. I am about to defeat Hela and free us. I will free the women of the Shattered Isles and overthrow that regime I built 800 years ago. And it's possible we will be reborn for a second chance. Only this time, you will find you are useless, and no one will care what you have to say. You will find yourself sidelined and ignored as my sister and I do what must be done. I won't torment her, I will love and cherish my sister as she does what she must, and I will stand by her side, as my king and sovereign, and love her as a little sister. You will find there is no use for you anywhere.”

Actonia burst out laughing at that. “Serren, you are forgetting one vital thing. To be reborn, which is possible with the right gods by your side. Which, I have no doubt you have them. But still, you will be reborn as a baby with no knowledge of any of this. And you will again be raised and compelled to believe and belong to the religion of Maxis. You will belittle your sister, you will torment her and she will grow up helpless watching you get everything she wanted, while she is ignored. She will grow up to resent and hate you. You won't know any of this and it will just happen again as it happened before.”

“No, it won't, not this time,” Serren snapped with a smirk. “I will have help to guide me the right way this time. It won't happen as it happened before. A woman is coming who will help me learn how to respect and cherish women. Father and Mother will try to raise me in the religion of Maxis. They will fail this time. Your tricks and turning my sister to torment and abuse me will go nowhere. She will love me and listen to me. You will be sidelined and ignored.” Serren laughed a sadistic condescending laugh as he left the room and shut the door.

Serren made his way to Pattenia's quarters and entered to see his sister standing there defeated. She looked up at her brother with defeated, sorrowful eyes full of centuries of pain. “You come to gloat again, dear brother.”

He just smiled a knowing smile at her that just made her more angry.

“We all suffered here while you enjoyed your time. And it was you who murdered us,” Pattenia roared with rage. “We were only following the prophecy to free the women of the Isles. You responded with rage and reimposed that cruel system over us all. Then you raped the witches. You broke many of them on the breaking wheel. Or you had them hung, drawn and quartered. You cut me open and ripped out my intestines as I was screaming. Then you beheaded me. And you enjoyed it all. You killed everyone on Guenefer and passed a law to order the killing of every firstborn girl of every noble family. You personally killed your infant daughter, and you try to claim any moral high ground over me for just turning you into a girl and trying to free the women?”

“Yes,” Serren responded. “I think you have the high ground over me. But you made me suffer a lot and I was not a bad kid in any way. I was only believing in what I was taught and trained to believe in. Then I found that what I was taught was all wrong. And because of some prophecy, it meant that I was not to have a future. I was made to suffer for it. Everything was taken from me, for no fault of my own. Then I was tormented and abused by you and you scratch your head and wonder why I was so upset?”

“I understand it now but still. We were trying to do what was right.”

“Pattenia, you were very wrong. You were not doing what was right. You were very cruel to me. What you all did was sadistic and monstrous. You became drunk on your power and made yourself into a tyrant. You said it was the will of the Goddess and you are right. But that only condemns the Goddess and means she is cruel.”

Pattenia shook her head. “I was not a tyrant, Serren. I freed the people and brought equality. I didn't kill many people at all. You became the tyrant once you regained the crown.

“Why does the Goddess keep getting wrongly vilified. We all followed her because she was a great and wonderful Goddess. I supported her and wanted to restore her. We did what we had to, in order to be free. What the priests did to us all was so wrong and cruel. We were in the right wanting to restore the Goddess.”

Serren's face turned a dark shade of red, he still hated the Goddess. “She deserved it. It was so easy to turn the people against you because they all saw what you did to me on that day. You turned on your own family, your brother, and betrayed him in the cruelest possible way. They saw you betray your family and demean and destroy your own brother and then talk about loyalty to the lords.

"It was so easy to use what you did to make an example of your nature and make them distrust and turn on you. Your own actions made it so easy to vilify you. And it was the will of the Goddess. That's a stain on her. Her will was to destroy an innocent boy's life, crush and demean and destroy him. It was her will for you to turn and crush your own brother.

"After what I suffered because of her, and so many other men, I say she was very rightly vilified. Also, with the way she and her people treated the men in the first age, she was very rightly vilified then. The men were right to fear her return, especially considering what you did when you were restoring her.

"It was so easy to raise a rebellion against you. What you all did was so wrong and so cruel, it justified the fears of so many men. You didn't like how you were treated under them and Maxis. You vilified Maxis just like the men vilified Progenita. But the men didn't like how you all treated them either. We will start an age without Gods. Progenita will not like us messing with her plans then. But we will be shielded from her power this time. We will prove we don’t need corrupt gods leading us. This will be an age where we forge our own path.”

Serren smiled at her. It was a warm friendly smile that Pattenia rarely saw from him anymore.

Pattenia got serious and said, “There is one thing I really need to know, Serren.” She was looking intently at her little sister. “So please, give me an honest answer. It seems you are willing to be honest, so please tell me. Why did you unleash your anger at the women in general when you regained the crown? You lived as a woman for years by then and you fully understood what I was trying to do. You admitted that the system was wrong, and you turned to support me then. So you know you were wrong when you reimposed the rule of man. And your wrath on the witches was even crueler. You have to know that a vast majority of the women and girls you killed during your witch hunts were totally innocent. They weren't witches at all. But an accusation or a vague suspicion was all that was required and the judgment from the inquisition was made before the trial. So many of them were doomed from the start. If one was found guilty, every girl in the family was killed. Serren, why did you do that?”

“I didn't care about right or wrong at that point. I was raped multiple times. I found the women didn't really care and they preferred me as a woman than as a man. That's why they befriended me and many didn't want me to regain my manhood. So I got angry at you all. They were why I suffered. And one of the things you said to Actonia stuck with me. When she was teaching you magic and how to transform me. When you transformed that huge buck to show it could be done. You didn't want her to transform your horse. You cared more about your horse than your brother. But when she said it would take 12 women to transform me, you asked why. You said I was sealed by Magic and it would take many women to overcome me. But she said there were many women in the Kingdom.”

“That was all private. You weren't there,” Pattenia commented. “How can you possibly have known all of that?”

“I knew everything,” Serren replied. “So when she said that. It solidified it to me that the women hated me and wanted me to suffer. So I returned the favor tenfold." Serren smirked. “I know I was wrong and I know it now. We have to do something for the king's son Bismark. Unlike me, he wants to be a girl.”

“I think you enjoyed being a girl too,” Pattenia said to Serren. “But you didn’t want to be mocked and you didn’t want to lose what you had. We were wrong to do that.”

Then Pattenia looked at Serren seriously. Then she asked what she had been wanting to ask for so long. “Were you happy with what happened? Were you proud of what you did?”

Actonia had came to Pattenia’s side. She smiled and asked, “I am curious about that too. You had become a follower of Progenita and female empowerment to only turn against us all and have us all killed. Tell us Serenina, are you proud of what you did then?”

Even Freyja and the Valkyries were silent waiting for an answer.

Serren looked up with a serious look on his face and smiled softly. “Yes indeed, I was very pleased with the results. I was very proud of what I did. I was so happy for centuries after it all. I overcame all of the obstacles put in my way. I stopped you after everything you did. I created a legacy that was unbreakable and lasted until now. I even overcame a goddess that was against me. I showed you all that you made a horrible mistake by mistreating and abusing me. I was not to be ignored and I was not to be denied. I got what was taken from me and I punished those that abused me. I secured men’s position in society and it was unbreakable. There were to be no more females with any claim to power. They would forever be living in their brother’s shadow. What happened to me would never happen to any boy ever again. I was very pleased with it all. I proved I was meant to be more than a sacrifice in which to build progress. I was meant for more. Century after Century, I saw kings rise in my place and carry out my legacy. I helped guide them. After about five hundred years or so, I realized how wrong it all was but I was helpless to do anything about it. I made an alliance with death to get my revenge. I sold my soul to death herself for the power to overcome and kill Progenita. I know I was wrong now. And I have the power to correct it all.”

Then Serren smiled and said, ”You were supposed to be King and turn me into a girl. But because of how I was raised, I would not understand. You were supposed to help and guide me to understand why it was all necessary. You didn’t. You mocked me, threw it all in my face and abused me. You failed, Pattenia. You betrayed the prophecy and paid for it. But I am sorry for what I did.”

Pattenia looked down in shame and responded, “I am sorry too.”

Serren kept smiling and said, “We are being given a second chance at it all and we will do it right. It was your destiny to become King over me. We will do it right this time.”

Pattenia looked upset and said, “You have such a glorious legacy Serren. You don’t deserve it. But you are remembered and nearly worshiped for what you did. You are known as the savior of the Shattered Isles and worshiped as their God. They all seek your guidance and sing songs about your achievements. When you were their enslaver and killed millions of them.”

Then Pattenia added, “I am reviled and hated. I am known only for your abuse and your rape. Tales are told of how I caused you to become pregnant with my children, then trying to take the children away from you after you delivered them. That’s what I am remembered for, changing you, and your abuse. I am known for disempowering the men. Your rape, your humiliation. I helped restore the Goddess, I empowered the women and rebuilt many of the temples but I am not known for that. I should be known for more.”

“You are remembered for what you did in the Hekatin and restoring the Goddess.” Serren smiled.

“Yes after you reviled her.” Pattenia commented sarcastically.

Then Serren leaped at his sister and embraced her tightly. “I still love you. I will love you this time. I will help you become the best you can be. I will teach you everything you need to know to become a strong and noble King. I will serve by your side strengthening your rule and defending you. It is your destiny, my King.” Serren knelt at his sister's feet and bowed his head. Then he gripped her hand and looked up into her eyes. “We will change the world together. I will make sure of it this time. You will be the greatest King of the Shattered Isles. And we will destroy our enemies. My sister and My King. You will lead us to greatness.”

Pattenia saw Mjolnir in her brother's hand and the entire Valkyrie Corps behind her brother, all of the women were armed. Her brother's husband stood beside him. Everything had turned out good for her brother, despite being trapped here and cursed. It was her brother's way and he had a way of making the best out of any situation.

Pattenia had realized that, in all of this time, that her brother stood by her side at first and pledged loyalty to her. But he began to resent and hate her as time passed. It wasn't until she started having him punished and humiliated that he began hating her. When she tried to sideline him from everything and push him into the life of a meaningless maiden princess, only being a pretty face and nothing more. That's when he began to fight and she should have known he was born for greatness, she could not take it away without consequences. Future generations consider what happened to be a total catastrophe and they are right. She did become a monstrous tyrant and made her brother into the same thing.

Then Serren looked at his sister Pattenia and said, “Okay, I am going to confront Hela and free us. Then we will see if we can help the people that are now headed toward the Shattered Isles to start a revolution. They are headed into great danger and will need help."

Serren marched at the head of the Valkyries, holding his husband's hand as they marched down the hall with a very determined look in their eyes. Thor was the angriest of them all. Hela had killed his entire family and put Loki on the throne of Asgard.

As the small army marched down the hallways preparing to do battle with the Goddess of Death, Serren suddenly halted his progress looking at a young boy standing in his way. The boy couldn’t be older than fifteen. And out of all of them, this boy had suffered the worst in his life. He was transformed into a girl by his step-sister, Gawin, who wanted to be queen instead of letting him become the King of their Kingdom. His name was Baldur and he had become a great warrior that had protected his people before his step-sister's betrayal. Gawin cared nothing for Baldur and arranged a marriage with a foreign King that violated and humiliated him on their wedding night.

He did get his revenge when he arranged a coup against Gawin and exiled her. He eventually killed Gawin but he remained Khan's wife and settled for it. Khan was nicer to him, perhaps being afraid of finding a knife in his back. He didn’t suffer in death at all. Hela and Freyja both agreed he suffered more than enough in his life. But he still wanted to live the life he had been denied. He did have chances to kill the Khan but he figured it was not worth the risk.

Serren knew it and looked down at the boy. “I will make sure you get to be the King of your Kingdom. Gawin will remain here paying for what she did to so many men in her Kingdom. But, Baldur, there’s something you must do.”

The boy looked up with hopeful eyes.

“You must free the women of your Kingdom. That’s what Gawin wanted to do. You must become their savior. End those forced marriages where the woman gets no say. You didn’t like having no say in your wedding arrangements, did you Baldur?”

The boy shook his head. “Not at all. Few women really do and the men found out how terrible it was. I will help them all this time.”

“Good,” Serren smiled, “Then prepare to do what must be done. First, we have to confront the Goddess of Death.”

“What about me,” asked Gawin. “Don’t I get another chance?”

“No,” Serren scoffed. Even Freyja agreed. “You are getting what you deserve here. You forced your step-brother into an unwanted cruel marriage to a domineering man and enjoyed his suffering. You were a monster Gawin. You were a sadist and you will stay here.”

“Why does Pattenia get another chance?” Gawin asked.

“Because she had great intentions and was just mislead. But she didn't torment her brother or ruin his life like you did. He was able to find happiness as a woman and marry who he chose. You were just sadistic. Pattenia ended the contracted marriages. She did serve the women while you served yourself, Gawin.”

Thor looked at his wife and nodded with a sad smile and said, “It is now time to take care of Loki's daughter. Let's go,” he said firmly and Mjolnir appeared in Serren's hand.

Serren's expression became very serious and determined as he agreed, “Good, Lets go deal with the Bitch.”

He turned to lead the group out of the room and down the halls. Freyja was beside him, Thor was on the other side, and the entire Valkyrie corps was following them to deal with Hela's power.

Serren turned to his beloved sister and offered his hand, “Join us Pattenia. I know you want to.”

She backed away and shook her head. “I think this is your area, Serren. I can’t deal with this.”

He prodded, “Oh come with us dear sister. You want to fight and that's one of the big reasons you deposed me at first. You wanted the sword and you wanted a life of fighting, war and combat. Join us in this fight.”

His smile was warm, sincere and he refused to leave his sister behind anymore.

But she knew this was beyond her. “Serren, I won't be hurt. You are going to fight a God. Hela the Goddess of death. You are leading gods here. I have nothing to offer in this fight. Fighting Gods is way beyond me. You free us. Mjolnir chose you. For some reason.”

By Jasmine Monica

chapter one of three

This is a prequel to the Prophet and replaces the first chapter. I am not sure what to do with it

“Please, Serrenina, will you consider being there tomorrow morning to wave Pattenia off. Please? Be there tonight for her?”

Serrenina was really getting tired of all of this. She ground her teeth and glared at Aanya. “There's no way I will be there. Unless you all decide to physically force me to be there and if you do that, I won't support her. I guarantee you will get a very ugly scene. I can't support that bitch, and I refuse to be there when they march off to war. I will be in the library where I always am.”

“Please try to be civil. I know you are hurting, but Pattenia is still your sister. You two need to support each other, don't let your resentment make you this bitter. I also need you there.”

Serrenina glared at her mother with the most profound look of hate. “You have no right to ask anything of me, Aanya. You lost that right when you all turned on me and did this. You lost your son Serren. You didn't have any daughter named Serrenina. NO girl came out of you after Pattenia. You lost the right to have any say in my life when you decided your son was a sacrifice to build progress on. Maybe legally, the lords and king will, but in my eyes, you have no right to have any say in my life. I am nothing to you, and you are nothing to me. You may go because your presence is just pissing me off.”

Then Serrenina added, “If you really love your son, you can easily prove it, and I’m ready right now.” Serren spread her arms. “Restore my masculinity right now. I am ready.”

She shook her head in despair. “You know I cant. Pattenia would not approve. You have to give it time.”

“Why does she get to dictate my entire life to me, you can restore me if you want to.,” Serren replied. “but I figured you wouldn't. You just proved you never loved Serren at all. I had enough of your nonsense. Just leave me alone.”

Aanya wept as she slowly walked out. Her son had let his bitterness consume him.

Pattenia rode out on her horse and gave a great speech. Aanya was standing there all alone. Pattenia sat on her horse with her gleaming armor on her chest. The crown on her head shimmered in the sunlight. Pattenia wore her crown proudly. She had a vicious scar that ran from her right eye down her face thats he earned in one of her first campaign. She wore it proudly. She looked every bit the hardened warrior now. She gave a great speech to her troops about riding off to war and the duties of the great houses. Serrenina could not bare to see it. Seeing this would only hurt Serrenina more and show her what she lost. Serrenina was unable to bear the pain anymore, so she sat at the library reading and studying. She was hoping that she would get his revenge someday. That's the only thing she wanted any more was Revenge.

Princess Serrenina has sat at a dusty table reading a very worn leather book long into the night. She had a stack of other books beside her reading using only the candlelight. The room was locked and forbidden to everyone but the highest level of the hekatin. Serrenina didn't care. She considered the title of the princess to be high enough to enter anywhere she pleased. She hoped no one would come in and challenge her interpretation of the word forbidden. Serrenina figured no one was awake at this time would decide to enter into the forbidden part of the girl's conservatory to see if anyone was in there. The door remained locked and bolted. The door looked exactly as it looked before, so she figured she was safe to continue her studies.

She was furiously reading into the fourth hour, and she had achieved nothing. These books didn't go back far enough in time to be of any help. But Serrenina felt she was getting close to what she wanted. The book she was reading right now went so far back in time that it was telling her about the establishment of the first queen's reign. When Danis began to establish her rule over the Kingdom. This was somewhere around two thousand years ago. She wanted to go farther than that.

Serrenina had heard about a queen before that. There was a goddess of such enormous power that her speech made the entire world tremble. She spoke with such force, her words shook the world. Even Danis feared her power. The Hekatin was so afraid the first queen that they refuse to talk about her. Only a few even know her name, and her name was forbidden. That only helped Serrenina. Serrenina needed to learn more about this. Sense the Hekatin did not care for her, and they simply want to use her as a voiceless pawn in their power play. No one cared how this horror affected her life. Serrenina had devoted herself to learning more about this mysterious dark ruler they all fear. Perhaps Serrenina can make them fear her.

These books she is reading now were so ancient they weren't even written in the language of the great Isles. They were not written in any language spoke these days.

She found better books about an hour later. This book was written in the language of the Goddess Danis, and it was written during her reign on the planet. Serrenina had learned a little so far. But what she learned was not what she wanted at all.

Finally, she found something. The passage of the book speaks of another language that is totally unknown today. The passage said the evil queen's followers spoke a language that shook the world. These people are immune to the power of Danis. And there was a war to destroy the armies of the evil queen and their followers.

Then in the middle of the page, Serrenina saw several entire paragraphs of these ancient symbols. The following passages spoke of this spell and what it did. Serrenina learned that Danis sent some of her priestesses to learn this language and this powerful spell. Then she cast the curse on the evil queen's army. It was a spell to curse the entire nation and their army to disaster. Serrenina carefully studied this spell and wrote it all down on a piece of parchment. There were a few more symbols on other pages and more about the war against the evil queen.

She went through the other books until near the last ancient book she picked up had some ancient spells on them. They were spells that few of the hekatin ever had. One was a transportation spell. The spell will take you anywhere you want to go as long as you have these unique ruby crystals. She had a few of those, but they had to be enchanted with the transportation power. That was easy enough, and she copied those down.

And by now, the celebration was long over, and the sun was going to rise at any time, and her handmaidens would be arriving very soon. Serrenina may as well try the transportation spell now instead of trying to sneak back. Of course, that was easy enough with the cloaking spells she knew that made her appear as a shadow to anyone looking. But why not try transportation for once.

Serrenina enchanted the rubies she held and transported herself back into her bedroom.

She sat in her desk and stared at the new symbols she copied. They were totally incomprehensible. But there was something about them that they did look totally evil. The symbols looked like they were pulsing with evil dark energy. Serrenina smiled wickedly. This was how she would reclaim her life. She still knew how to pronounce them, but she was going to have to learn more about them. How ever, Serrenina began practicing the new language and the curse. She could feel the power building up within her as she practices the spell.

She had lived this hell for over a year now. It was clear the Hekatin never intended to restore her manhood. She would remain a voiceless, powerless princess for the rest of her life. And this was unacceptable. The other women may be liberated by this move. But, she didn't like being a sacrifice for the progress she was unable to share in. So this was a horrible deal. And it made her very angry.

Serrenina had practiced the phrase enough and decided to try to speak parts of it together. So she spoke, “Agsh Natch Rugth nazgth.”

The room seemed to tremble, the floor shook. It was as if the very air around her trembled with the force of those words.

She practiced other parts of the phrases for the next few hours. She felt she was confident enough now to actually to cast the spell. She just needed the right time to do it. The army was going to be doomed.

Then the door opened, and her favorite person Stone came through smiling and telling her it was time to get ready. Serrenina muttered a few words from the Goddess, and the pages she wrote vanished from sight.

Serrenina smiled and muttered. “I am getting closer everyday sister. Enjoy your reign, it will end. And I will destroy you.”

Then Serrenina smiled darkly to Stone and asked, “Have you considered what you will do if I become the queen.”

Stone said, very confidently. “That isn't likely to happen as long as your sister is here.”

“Sure it is!” Serrenina said sinisterly. “I was the chosen heir, and she seized it from me. I could seize it back, but I think she will end up giving it to me by her own free will.” A wicked evil smile spread across her face.”

Stone swore she would have to have a talk with Pattenia when she returned from her campaign. Serrenina would have to be put back in her place. The bitch was getting way too arrogant, and it frightened her.

Serrenina said nothing else as she was tightly cossetted, and a bulky flowing gown draped over her. Stone left silently. Serrenina muttered the language, and the corset loosened.

Then Serrenina, tired of the corset all together decided to remove it. Serrenina muttered in the ancient language that made it all fall off. She put her gown back on and then decided to make an appearance at the celebration this morning.

Serrenina found the grand celebration and stood by her mother and a few other girls waiting. Loud trumpets blared at the King Pattenia, and her captains marched past in their shining armor followed by endless columns of armored knights and pikemen behind them. The main army was waiting outside of the gates. She waved to her people as she rode past in her gleaming armor that seemed to have its own soft glow.

Aanya groaned as she figured this was not good news in the least. She sensed that Serrenina had a plan to make a scene. And she was right.

Serrenina stepped forward in front of the King's horse. It was one of the greatest signs of disrespect. She muttered a spell that caused the horse to stop in fright.

Serrenina looked up at his sister wearing her gleaming armor across her chest and her metal gauntletes that glinted in the sun. She looked enveious at the crown she proudly wore on her head and she really hated that scar that ran down from her eye. Her eyes burnt with pure poisonous hate and she was really going to enjoy this.

Then Serrenina shouted loudly, “Pattenina, my sister, who Stole my birthright by an act of sinister betrayal and destroyed an innocent boy. By your act of cruelty, you showed you care not for your family and are disloyal. Thereby you are declared unworthy by me. I demand you surrender your crown to me now, or face the consequences.”

Pattenia was enraged that her sister dare make such a humiliating and infuriating scene. “I have proven I am very worthy, You will need to get used to the fact that I am King. Now step aside, or I will have you removed.”

“Pattenia, you bring this on yourself.” Then she gathered her energy and shouted as loud as possible in the ancient language of the evil queen. “Ashgth Nazgthu Zruthg Asght Nazrth Urmuzth Nazth Riquightzzth Ash Nazthz. Zurtm”

As she spoke the powerful language, the ground seemed to rumble beneath their feet, and angry storm clouds roiled overhead. The soldiers nearly fell as the ground trembled violently beneath their feet. They covered their heads at deafening thunder-roared overhead. and lightning struck closeby. The very air seemed to tremble around them from the force of Serrenina's speech. The atmosphere darkened, and the shaking got worse.

Then Serrenina was finished. Then it sounded like an explosion that sent a powerful shockwave radiating outwards from Serrenina that shot out. It seemed to have an effect on everyone. Everyone was terrorfied

Serrenina shouted, “You have brought this on yourself with your treason and cruelty. I have cursed your reign, your army, and the entire nation. Your crops will fail this year. Your army will be defeated. Your Kingdom is doomed, and the only way to save it is to step down and hand me the crown. You will return with much more than that scare now.

Pattenia and the rest of the shoulders were horrified beyond measure. They had little doubt Serrenina had done exactly what she said. They felt the power of that curse and its shockwave it sent across the Kingdom. Pattenia said, stunned, “Serrenina, oh my god, what have you done to us? You would curse our army, and our entire country, kill thousands only a silly feud with me, just to make me fail? How could you be so selfish? You prove once again, you are totally unworthy.”

“I was worthy. You are the one that turned on your own family, not me. I loved you. I was the chosen successor, not you. You destroyed my very life and took everything. It isn't me who's selfish, it's you who sacrificed thousands just to stop a marriage. One I would have saved you from anyway. It was Aanya who suggested that I keep the contract on. Talk to her.”

Pattenia glared at Aanya feeling for the first time that she may have been used. “Mother?” She said with a tone of betrayal. Then her look twisted into a sinister glare and said through her teeth, “We will talk much more on this when we return, Mother. You can be sure of that.” She spat hatefully and then turned to look at Serrenina.

She always felt like her relationship with her brother was a competition which he usually always won at. In battling for their parens affection or the things they liked. Everything seemed to be a competition and she refused to let him win. Pattenia swore “I won't let you stop this campaign. We will march on to victory.”

serrenina then said, “It will be very short. And disastrous. I hope you don't return alive. I will make sure there's a place for you in fathers crypt.” Serrenina smiled evilly and bared her teeth as Pattenia marched on.

Serrenina watched the army march on, and then she decided to continue her studies. She decided to cast a cloaking spell around herself and snuck back into the girl's conservatory.

Serrenina entered the conservatory and walked right past the girls who never noticed she was there. She avoided the more experienced teachers that may have seen though her shadow spell.

She went into the back and walked right through the locked doors and went into the back. Serrenina went passed the library and made it into the older section of the school. Serrenina read every book there was that mattered to her. Then Serrenina decided to look into the storage area.

That area has some older spells that she already knew. She looked through some of the ancient items.

Serrenina guessed that few had been in this area for years. There was another room in the back.

Serrenina faced a solid was that it was designed to make it look like this was the end of the school. Serrenina saw through the illusion and approached. She muttered a spell, but nothing happened. Then she saw a symbol on the wall. It was one of the ancient symbols she recognized. Serrenina prepared herself and finally spoke. “Agsh Nazth Rusgth.”

The words came out with such force that the ground trembled. The entire school rattled on its foundation. The clouds gathered overhead and thundered at the power of Serrenina’s words, and the wall separated for her. She walked through, and the wall shut. Serrenina smiled.

Serrenina cast a light spell to see around her. It looked like an ancient vault. Serrenina had trouble seeing in the black darkened room. The musk smell invaded her nostrils and made her want to sneeze. She forced her way passed thick layers of cobwebs that got tangled in her long hair. Serrenina guessed no one entered here in more than four thousand years.

The items here were amazing. She found a full page of parchment with many of those ancient symbols on them. She had no idea what they meant. She rolled up the parchment and put it in her dress. There were some clay tablets with other symbols on them.

Then Serrenina found a gold bracelet that was covered in the same symbols she had been reading about. She slipped the bracelet up her wrist. A sudden awareness filled her mind as she found that she could now read these ancient symbols.

There were many books lined on the walls written in the ancient language of the first queen. She took a few of them down and put them in her bag. She looked at the cover, and to her amazement, she could totally read it. The cover spoke to her mind in dawning comprehension. It was Lilith. She was the first queen. The bracelet she had on was Liliths. She found a necklace that seemed to have a powerful amulet with some other powerful symbols on it.

And finally, in the very back, she found two heavy gauntlets that were adorned with some sort of rubies. She put those in her bag and decided it was time to go.

Serrenina activated her spell and transported herself back to her bedroom.

And she laid out one of the books that appeared to be the most important. And with her bracelet and the amulet, she could read it. The realization was stunning. The meanings of those ancient symbols and runs that filled the pages seemed to speak to her mind. Comprehension was immediate, and she memories every bit of it all. Every symbol had a meaning. This language was the language of real power. This seemed much greater than the power of the Goddess Danis. They didn't stand a chance here.

It seemed that the Goddess Lilith was the queen. She was the first woman of creation. Her power was much greater than Danis, and in any fair contest, she would win hands down. But, there was a conspiracy against her, and some of her own priests gave Danis the curse spell that cursed her army. Her armies were defeated, and Lilith fell. Danis rose in her place.

Serrenina also found the locations of some of the major ancient temples spread across the isles. The followers of Danis destroyed many of them and built her temples on top of Liliths. One of the major repositories of her knowledge is within the ancient temple of Gutherland up in the north. That is presently where the vast library is that Actonia found the spell that turned him a year ago. Under their temple is Liliths locked away. That should be easy to get too.

And within that temple is a great repository of knowledge of Liliths other temples across the great Isles. Serrenina can also find the location of many of her great cities and fortresses. She also wanted to find the site of her great main temple on a hidden isle that can not be found.

She spent the rest of the time learning the meaning of each of the symbols. Serrenina also found where it all came from. This was the language of Edon.

She put on one of the ruby gauntlets, and it activated a dark power within him. It connected with his pendant on her neck, and the result was amazing.

She could actually make those runes himself now.

One of the Runes was for strength. Serrenina made that rune and placed it on her chest to give her added strength. The result was enormous, and she felt she could easily overpower anyone now. Another Rune was for Speed and agility. There was another one for insight. There was a rune for almost everything. Every single one was in her mind. And, she had the speech. She now needed the tools.

The door opened, and Stone came through with a few guards, and they demanded that Serrenina follow them. She wasn't quite ready to meet falconette yet, and Serrenina said firmly, “No, I don't feel like it yet. Go tell her I refuse. Now you can go.”

That was unacceptable, but it was going to have to be acceptable. It wasn't, and one of the larger guards approached Serrenina to take her by force. Serrenina simply ripped herself from the guard's grip and threw the man hard against the wall. The man went flying, and he crashed hard into the wall.

Stone and the other man were stunned. Then Serrenina spoke. The words came out with such a deafening force. The sky thundered, they all held their ears as the sound was a massive roar. The entire palace trembled.

Stone felt fear and pain.

Then the roar ceased, and the sky lit up. Serrenina spoke her language. “You have stolen my entire life, beaten me, you are a true sadist, Stone. My sister is a monster. And this would have been acceptable without the force, if all of you had allowed me to live as a girl my way, without the humiliation. If I had been assured that I would be loved and respected. Perhaps even given a position of power beside my sister. But that was unacceptable. The freedom all of you received was not for me. And I cant accept that. I didn't get to enjoy any of the liberation. I was oppressed and humiliated and beaten. So sorry. So you go tell my sadistic Sister that I will be seeing her very soon. And I will expect the crown, or I will destroy this entire Kingdom.”

Now, Stone had little doubt that the threat was real. Serrenina suddenly vanished from sight.

Serreninas power grows and as she plots to try to regain a life that was stolen from her. She embraces the darkness

Serrenina suddenly materialized in the shadows behind the great Library of Guntherland. She looked up to admire one of the greatest libraries in the entire great isles. This was where Actonia learned how to destroy Serren years ago. Serrenina made her way to the grand steps leading into the front door of the great library. She stood in front of the main doors staring at countless long shelves of books of every kind. He briefly wondered how long Actonia studied before she finally found the gender transformation spell hidden among these countless books. Serrenina cast a spell and looked back in time and saw Actonia going though the spell section for weeks before she found the book with the spell she needed. Then Serrenina saw Actonia’s smile of appreciation as she found the secret she needed to destroy Serren, and put his sister on the throne. Serrenina swore beneath her breath Actonia was going to pay for it with the person she considered the most precious in her life.

This was one of the most extensive libraries in the entire isles. There were spells of every kind here and the great history. None of these spells appealed to Serrenina at the moment. She was tired of playing the pitiful power of the Hekatin. She wanted so much more, and it was beneath her feet. She walked to the back of the library and into the large storerooms and offices at the end of the library. Then she found an old doorway leading down to the lower levels of the enormous complex.

Serrenina down the ancient steps of the temple strolling down the darkened staircase lit only by a flickering candle. She started feeling very damp down there, and her long dress began sticking to her. Serrenina went passed the locked door and found the forbidden part. Even these powerful spells in the forbidden part written only in the ancient language didn’t appeal to her anymore.

She went all the way to the back until she found the remains of the wall to Lilith's temple. It was blocked by an ancient symbol only known to Serrenina. She felt such pride that she may be the only person in the entire great isles that knew this ancient language. It was thousands of years older than the language of the Goddess.

Serrenina spoke the language of Lilith, and the ancient wall parted for him, revealing another large stone staircase leading down into the darkness. Serrenina walked down, and the wall closed behind her. She followed the steps down. The stairs seemed to go down forever, and Serrenina wondered how far down she was going because it seemed like she had gone almost half of a mile down below the surface. Serrenina finally found her way blocked by a large wall and another symbol. Serrenina spoke the ancient word OPEN, and the wall parted. Serrenina walked through the opening that led into an enormous, massive chamber. This place looked like no one has stepped foot into it in thousands of years. It was filled with dust and thick layers of cobwebs and muck. No one has entered this place since Liliths fall to Danis.

This was an enormous library of knowledge covering all of Lilith's reign and what she did. There were entire sections on the ancient language of Lilith and of the dark energy that control it. This library was massive, and Serrenina could spend months here learning everything she could about Lilith and her power. There were spells here that she never imagined. Serrenina began gathering all of the books on the language she could find and started reading it. By now, Serrenina was able to absorb knowledge incredibly rapid pace. She could almost touch a book in the ancient language and adsorb its knowledge.

Serrenina has adsorbed every book on the ancient language of Lilith and the spells they used. Serrenina had learned of the almost unlimited power all of the language. Then she began reading about the locations of the various temples and ancient cities of Liliths followers. She found the sites of the magnificent ancient temples around that were full of weapons and even more powerful spells. Serrenina found the location of the grand temple of Lilith. It was the place where she ruled over the planet. It was her main palace and where her most potent weapons were kept. It was her main altar and where she needed to go to open the world to her. This was the location of the Hidden isles.

Then Serrenina began looking through the various crystals and items that were kept here. There was some blackened liquid. Serrenina found it was purified Lilith's elixir that she could only use within the temple of Lilith after she prepared herself.

Then Serrenina learned about how to open the world to her and what Serrenina needed to do to call Lilith to help her. She will die if she tried to ingest the liquid now.

There was a sword of power in the ancient temple city close to the present capital of Denaerk. Serrenina had visited the ancient ruins of the abandoned city and often played there with her friends when she was male. She wondered what was underground but could never open the door, it didn't even look like it was a door. It was just a block of cement.

Serrenina found out everything that she could find here and went back up to the surface of Guthenlands enormous library. She began looking through some of the hekatins books in the library, and she found the book actonia found with the gender transformation spell. She was going to have her revenge.

It was now time for a little vengeance against the Hekatin. Serrenina stood on top of the staircase, looking down at the people. Serrenina yelled loudly, “My name is Serrenina Denae. I am the royal princess of the Kingdom of Mercia. I used to be the Crown Prince Serren of Merica, and I was supposed to become the King. It was stolen from me by the Hekatin, who turned me into this powerless princess. My future and my birthright was stolen. Do any of you think this is an acceptable way to treat someone?”

Serrenina saw that some of the men were looking up, the women were more dismissive of her predicament of being turned into a female. They are female and see nothing wrong with it. But Serrenina had an answer for that. “I figure many of you don't really care about the sorrow of a pampered prince losing his birthright. But do you really think it's acceptable to turn a boy into a girl and force him into a life he can't handle just to get power from him? How can he live in such an imposed life after training a lifetime for something different? I was the greatest warrior and fighter in the land. I was the fastest the strongest, I was trained for the role of leading troops and leading all of you when it was stolen. I have no place now, my future is gone. How would you like to see this happen to any of your sons? How about yours, Lady Marge, would you like to see some of those witches turn your son Ansan just because they don’t like his privilege of being male? Do you think it's acceptable to do this?”

She was starting to see the rage in their eyes at the injustice and suffering they inflicted on him.

“If you don't, it doesn’t matter. The hekatin does feel this is acceptable. I know great progress has been made, but it been made at my life's expense. Should a child have to pay the price for progress? Was my life an acceptable price, my entire future, I would have gladly made this progress myself if anyone bothered to ask me, but my only fault was I was born male, and they didn't like me. Is it okay to do this to a boy you don't like? Could it be any of your sons? I was turned to intimidate all of the men in the kingdom who would dare oppose my sadistic sister, who loves my suffering. She hates me, she hates you?”

One of the men stood up and demanded, “So what are we supposed to do?”

Serrenina rose her fist in the air. “Attack the temple, drag the hekatin out, and present them here to me now? Defend your families, defend your sons. Capture the witches and burn their temple!”

The crowd of 10s of thousands rushed toward the temple and totally overwhelmed the women and drug them out of the temple. The witches watched helplessly as their temple was torched.

They looked up with their hands tied, trying to make out who was standing over them. “I am Princess Serrenina. You bitches know me well. I was Prince Seren, the boy your group destroyed so my sister could get my crown, humiliate me, have me beaten, imprisoned, and my life shattered. I am about to repay that favor

one of the women yelled, “None of us are responsible for that, Princess, and they did what they had to so we can have progress and freedom from the priests.”

“If this is how you do it, then you don't deserve your freedom. You deserve to burn. Kill them all,” Serrenina yelled. “Defend your sons, defend your families from these sadists. Make sure they can't hurt your sons or your families. See what they did to me, I was an innocent, loving boy who wouldn’t have hurt them. If they feel nothing for my suffering, who knows what these cruel sadists will do to you.”

Serrenina smiled as the witches were torn apart. Then she turned and set fire to the great library full of corrupted spells. “I am burning their library, so the corrupted spells of witchcraft will be lost forever.

And it was now time to even a score. Serrenina had found the location of the family she really wanted to meet. She ran as fast as possible to the outskirts of the great city.

It was the home of Antonia's family. She entered and saw the girl's father and mother there, and their fourteen-year-old son was playing outside.

Serrenina captured the boy easy. She was so strong that when she approached. The boy Jeric tried to defend himself as Serenina violently pulled the boy's arm. He fought, thinking he could easily overpower a girl. He was so wrong when he was quickly overwhelmed and forced down. The boy's father came out running and yelling when he was struck down hard.

The older man collapsed.
His mother knelt, pleading for their life.

Serrenina thundered to the parents. “I am Princess Serrenina. I am the girl who your daughter wanted to be changed. I was Prince Serren. Your daughter and your sister,” Serrenina looked at the boy kneeling in pain. “felt needed to be changed into a girl. It was her main idea, she instigated the sadistic and cruel plot. I want you to tell your daughter that I am now repaying the great gift she so lovingly bestowed on me, on the life of your son, and her beloved brother. Witness destruction of your son's life.”

Then serrenina began speaking the ancient language of Lilith. She spoke the gender transformation spell that was much more powerful than the one they cast on Serren. They felt the ground shake at the power of the words being spoken. They blasted out of Serrenina's mouth. The clouds darkened and lightning strike closeby with a deafening roar. The Boy Jeric began transforming before their eyes. His mother screamed in desperate fury. The defeated father just watched and cried. Then their son Jeric was a teenage girl kneeling before them weeping uncontrollably. His mother looked disbelieving at the incredibly huge breasts jutting out from the former boy's chest. His delicate face and eyes, his shoulders were more narrow. He looked like a girl, he was a girl now. Serrenina laughed cruelly, “Just wait until his monthly cycles start. Better prepare him for that mother. I know I wasn't prepared for it at all. It was devastating."

His mother spoke up softly. "No girl really is ready for them, Serrenina. Its just a fact of a girls life. Its what we all have to deal with."

"I wasn't a girl." Serrenina said harshly. "I was a boy, turned into this. You cant even begin to imagine the effect it had on me. It crushed me. It made me seriously want to die! You cant even imagine how horrible it was, a boy having monthly cycles."

"No," Mother said softly. "I cant even try to imagine. It must have been the worst horror imaginable. But, it wasn't Jerics fault and there's no reason to take your rage out on an innocent boy and subject him to this horror. None of this is his fault."

"I don't care," Serrenina said harshly. "His sister did this. And none of her frustrations and oppression in life was my fault either. Yet, I was made to pay the price and made a sacrifice. She didn't care, no one cared how it devastated my life. So, your son will pay the price for what your daughter did to me. And tell your daughter that Serrenina did this. The favor has been repaid.”

Now Serrenina had more things to do and she knew where she needed to go immediately. She activated her transportation and found the location of Liliths. capital.

xxxxxxx
Serrenina felt her power of the dark forces growing. Her abilities in this power grew so rapidly. It had been less than a month since she started this quest, and she felt her powers grow to such a ridiculous extent that by now, she was indisputably the most powerful person on the entire planet. She felt she could singlehandedly take on hekatin as the whole. But she could still be overwhelmed by the hekatin and the king's conventional forces. She still had to operate in secret for a while longer.

Serrenina activated her transportation crystals and found the location of the ruined city about twenty miles from the capital. It was Lilith's ancient capital city. She opened a portal to it and transported herself in front.

There she stood facing the ruins of an ancient capital of Lilith. Its huge ruined marble structures and fallen blocks an pillars. He used to love playing there as a young boy. Serrenina walked toward it now, knowing exactly where she was going to go. She approached the enormous ruined temple of Lilith. Its colossal stone pillars have fallen thousands of years ago and laid in ruins across the road. She stood next to the enormous blocks of what was once a grand temple. It was night, and the enormous moon was shining its light down. Serrenina glared up hatefully at the eye.

She remembered about a year ago when it first appeared in the sky and the happiness of her sister and mother seeing it. She joked that the eye in the center looked like a nipple.

She knew it was an eye, and she glared up with as much venomous hate as she could muster. Glaring up with her eyes blazing with total hate. “You bitch. You brought me down and sent me into this living hell. I could have accepted life as a woman if your followers were willing to accept me and invite me in instead of shutting me out. You made this life unbearable, and now your followers will pay the price. You will never be restored to this planet. My Goddess will, and you will watch her dark reign rise and take hold. I hope you enjoy the show Danis. You worked hard to make this possible. The sad thing that I used to love you, and I loved your religion and the Goddess. I was your loyal servant once I found out. But your hate and your follower's maliciousness drove me out.”

Then she spoke the ancient language of Lilith, and the ground shook again. He screamed the dark power into the sky. “Your reign will fall.” She thundered in the ancient language. Thunder rumbled across the sky as storm clouds appeared.

Then the stone opened, and she saw a staircase leading down into the bowls of the ancient temple. Serrenina walked down. This must-have went farther than the one in Guntherland. Serrenina walked down and saw it was just an ancient dusty hallway leading somewhere she didn't know. She fought her way through thick cobwebs that got stuck in her hair and across her face. She turned and explored the ancient hallways and explored some rooms. Then she saw some ancient crypts of some of the ancient priestess of Lilith. She read some of the books. Serrenina explored some more and came into an ancient armory.

She saw exactly what she wanted in the very back of the armory. She saw an enormous sword pulsing with the dark energy of Lilith's power. The pummel was a snakes head, and it had various gems around the hilt and the guard of the sword. It was a very feminine looking sword that few men would even consider handling. The problem wasn't that. The problem was that the sword was blocked in a guarded chamber. The sword was floating above a pillar of fire, and there were wicked looking spikes pointing inward, looking like they were ready to destroy anything that dares stick its hand in there.

And there seemed to be a pulsing field blocking anyone from even trying. Lucky, she saw an altar that Serrenina guessed what it was for.

Serrenina also saw a full suit of armor held up within that area, ready for someone. It too, looked decidedly feminine. The armor actually looked ridiculously feminine to Serreninas eyes. It looked silly next to the armor that Pattenia wore to battle. This armor looked expressly tailored for the woman's form. It was narrow in the waist and expanded up to the chest. There were two distinct gemmed cones for the breasts. It looked like it was less meant to guard or protect the breasts than to put them on display to say, I have breasts. The entire breastplate was jewed; it had very feminine markings, and designs etched and laced around the plate. It would look silly, but she noticed that the pretty gems were pulsing with power meant to enhance the armor. She saw the matching shoulder plates and gauntlets seemed just as feminine. The Faulds and the greaves matched the rest. And Serrenina meant to wear it if she were allowed to.

She saw a mirror and some orb nearby. Serrenina knew what this was. She knelt on a blackened platform in front of the sphere and put her hands on it. Serrenina spoke in the ancient language of Lilith. “My name is Serrenina, princess of the Kingdom of Mercia, and I have submitted myself to your guidance and your rule, my Goddess Lilith. I am your servant.”

Serrenina knelt and bowed her head in submission. Then a ghostly image of a powerful dark woman coalesced in front of her, and it solidified into matter. The woman looked down at the submission Serrenina in approval.

“Rise, my servant princess Serrenina. I have watched your growth. You have pleased me very much, and I am proud of your progress. I await your appearance at my temple. Take my sword, and you may wear my armor. Take them and execute my justice.”

Serrenina rose and took the feminine, dark sword. The power channeling through the sword was immense. It was more power than she ever felt before. This was Lilith's sword, and Serrenina fell in love with the sword, and she felt a deep longing to be loved by this Goddess. She bowed her head, “Thank you, my Goddess Lilith. I will come to your temple very soon, and I will have what you need. Will you restore my sex?”

“Yes,” replied Lilith. “You will become the greatest and most powerful man in the world. The world will tremble under your feet. It will be yours.”

Serrenina smiled. “I will love you.”

Lilith embraced Serrenina and gave her a deep sensual kiss. “You have a man's soul. It is so sad they couldn’t appreciate and love you as I do. They rejected your love, they will receive your hate. I will be awaiting you, my king Serren.”

She buckled her scabbard for her sword onto the belt. She spoke to the Goddess for a few more hours. The Goddess gave her so much more insight into what all happened and why. The Goddess Lilith granted her so much more power and even had the ability now to see into the past and the future.

Serrenina donned the female armor on herself, and it seemed to magically reform itself to her own curves. Including making room for her rather large breasts, the witches cursed her with.

Serrenina felt the dark energy pulsing through her entire body now. The gems enhanced her to an almost godly extent now. She felt she could take on Maxis himself if he ever showed himself. Serrenina knelt and began meditating on the future. She saw the events of the past and her other mother and sister plotting with the other witches to destroy her. Serrenina became extremely enraged when she heard Celestia said, “Pattenia, you must be very hard on your sister. She must be forced to live as a woman. Everyone must see her as your little sister. They must understand she will never be a man again.”

Serrenina raged in the ancient language. She stood up and left the ancient catacombs of the ruined city and made her way to the surface. She stood up proudly and said in the ancient language that thundered across the sky. “My name is Princess Serrenina. I have become the spirit of Vengence, and I will destroy you.” And it had come time for a little payback.

Serrenina stood out in the open and transported herself back in the capital. She was standing right in front of the girl's conservatory, ready to have a long and serious talk with Celestia herself. And she saw that inhuman woman walking directly toward her in the moonlight.

Serrenina approached the other woman and thundered, “Greetings, Professor Celestia. I have heard that you wish to have a talk with me, and I am ready.”

Celestia's approached faltered and stopped. “Princess Serrenina, is that you?” She said in disbelief. “Are you playing dress-up or something, trying to look like your sister in that stupid armor you are wearing, what is that?” Celestia said, laughing as she approached to examine Serrenina's armor.

Celestia stood right in front of Serrenina, looking at the very feminine armor serrenina had on. “Oh my Goddess, you look stupid. How can you wear something like that serrenina, you don't look like a warrior at all. Have you ever seen any woman wear such a thing, did any of the women marching with your sister have anything that rediculous on.”

Serrenina said with an air of confidence. “No. No one has worn anything like this is over four thousand years. I am the first woman to wear this since my Goddess’s fall. Look at it, and take a very close look at it.”

Celestia frowned in confusion and looked at the markings on the armor, and the beautiful gems that adorned the armor caught her eye. She first mistook those gems as just silly feminine decoration. But they were not. Celestia took a close look at the gems and saw the power they drew and channeled though out the armor for its wearer. Now Celestia knew this just wasn't a silly suit of armor. She gasps in horror, “Oh no, Serrenina, where did you get this?”

“I found it in the catacombs of the ancient capital of Edon to the west. I spoke to the queen herself, and she personally granted permission for me to take it, and she handed me this sword.”

The older woman frowned even more profound, seeing the danger
right in front of her. This one-woman had the power to bring down the entire Kingdom. “Serrenina, why, why have you done this? I accepted you and praised you as a prodigy for the Goddess. You seemed to committed and devoted to our cause. I was so impressed, and I defended you, and now you do this.”

Celestia's voice rose. “You humiliated your sister during her grand march. Stoping the precession. Then you spoke the evil tongue that had not been heard in over four thousand years. I noticed that tongue. I know many things you don't think I know. I studied the reign of Lilith. She was a monster. How could you consider submitting to her and doing this?”

“When I made progress with your Goddess and devoted myself to her. No one cared, and it gained me nothing in the end. Then I realized she even hated me. She disposed of me like I was trash on the day of my coronation in which she gave it to my sister and committed me to this horror of a life. Everyone belittles me, I couldn't do the things I wanted, my life was controlled. You and all of your group humiliated me beyond anything. What was supposed to be a liberation was made into a living horror. While I watched the women gain freedom, I gained nothing. I had no power over my life. It seemed you all wanted me to live on the old restrictions imposed on women before my sister's revolution. It was all unacceptable, Celestia, so I studied to find a way to get revenge and bring this regime down. Since you all hate me. Since my sister hates me and will treat me as her enemy. I will become her sworn enemy, and I will make you all fear me. This is what you all wanted, wasn't it?” Serrenina smirked evilly.

Celestia had to admit that Serrenina had a point. Having no power over her life was unbearable, especially for a prince that had all of the power he wanted over his life to suddenly be placed in the position of a princess having every move watched and controlled. And seeing every other woman being liberated except for her must have been unbearable.

Then Serrenina added. Lilith promised to love and help me. It's much more than I ever got from any of you who treated me as if I was unwanted, and just someone in your way to destroy on your way to power. Do you want to know what the worst part of this is, that part of this that really pisses me off?”

“Is it that you were turned into a girl on what was supposed to be your day?” Celestia added, guessing that really wasn't it.

“No. The worst part of it is that no one ever told me about any of this. I was educated from the time I was very young in the religion of the War god and male domination of women. I was taught that women were weak and needed to be dominated and controlled. All of that nonsense was drilled into me since I was four years old. And you all knew that way was living on borrowed time. You knew this was coming, and it would have to end. I wasn't a horrible boy. I was just following what I was taught, and you all saw my change in thinking and how I adopted the Goddess Danis. I wasn't thick-headed. But my mother allowed me to be taught this nonsense, knowing that when the time came, I couldn't be allowed to ascend in the place of my father. You knew my future would have to be taken away. And that my education and my upbringing would demand it. And that I would have no clue why it was happening. That's the most horrible part of this. I was led by the nose right into it.”

Serrenina let that sink in as Celestia admired Serrenina's insight. Then Serrenina said, “What if I was taught the way my sister was taught. If I was taught the right way. If I was taught the way of the goddess and the value of women. Perhaps when you all saw the prophesies beginning to take place, if you all took me aside and began preparing and educating me. So when the time came to take action, that I would be prepared to do what was needed. Perhaps I would know my sister was the prophecy, and I would have willingly stepped aside to let her take her place. Or perhaps, I could still be king, and we could be together facing down the war priests, and I could declare the liberation of the Hekatin and let my sister initiate the restoration of the goddess. All of this could have happened. But no. Heres what really happened.”

“You must be very harsh on your little sister?” said Serrenina. “The entire Kingdom must see Serrenina as a young woman and your little sister. She must be an example for everyone who would oppose your reign, Pattenia.” Those were your exact words during your great meeting last year when you plotted your treason.”

“How do you know that?” Celestia demanded.

“Can't you see what I'm wearing, this armor, these marks, and who I have devoted myself to now. Get the point, Celestia. I have been bestowed many gifts from my new mistress. The gift of foresight, seeing the past, I see everything. I feel so much power right now that I think I could take on your Goddess myself.”

Celestia began guessing that what Serrenina was boasting was not an idle boast.

All of the sudden funeral bells began tolling throughout the city. They were funeral bells signing disaster. Celestia's face became a mask of horror. “Pattenia, no!”

Serrenina laughed. “She's alive, I could not be that lucky Professor. We all know I have been cursed since I was born. Cursed for being born male. Curse to a life of betrayal, despair, and horror beyond all imagination. Thanks to you, your corrupt Goddess and life itself. Cursed to watch my sister get everything destined for me. And I wouldn't mind if I had been left something to look forward to, but you all left me nothing in this deal except despair and sorrow. So let's go see how many people died in this campaign. And it's only the beginning. I can't wait to tell Actonia of her little brother Jeric. Or should I say her sister Jerica? It's going to be so sweet.”

A hideously evil cackle escaped from Serrenina's mouth that rose the hairs on Celestia's neck. Serrenina had become a monster.

This is the conclusion of this tale. Serren gets restored, he has his revenge against the witches and shows himself to be just as cruel.
And he has a few surprises at the end

With the funeral bells tolling in the distance and Serrenina preparing to meet her sister. Celestia figured that Serrenina wanted to make some grand statement, and she was absolutely correct. Except it wasn't one that Celestia thought.

Suddenly Serrenina's face twisted into a mask of total fury. She hardened, and Serrenina's eyes hardened into something so hateful and so cruel, it frightened Celestia to her very core. Celestia saw the darkness coursing through Serrenina's body. Her voice mocked, imitating Celestia's as the big meeting at the Chapel. “You must be very harsh on your sister Pattenia. She must be forced to live as a young woman and as your younger sister.”

Then suddenly, Celestia was blinded by a vicious blow across her face. Celestia's vision threatened to blackout as her head rocked to the side. Her knees weakened from the force of the blow. It hit the side of her head with crushing force. It was so vicious she heads a shockwave of air shoot out from the power of the blow. Celestia cried out in pain.

“I told you long ago that I would have my revenge. I was serious Professor Celestia, and that time has come now. There's nothing you can do. So its time for a little payback.” Serrenina lifted Celestia in the air and threw her against a tree in the distance. Celestia hit the tree with a sicking force and collapsed into the dirt. Serrenina was upon her and struck her hard across the face. The blow was thunderous as the impact was heard hundreds of feet away. Serrenina began kicking Celestia in the ribs and stomach. Celestia was receiving a brutal beating.

The older woman cried out in agony as one of her ribs cracked. Then Serrenina struck Celestia across the face. She picked Celestia up and threw her down hard. The impact cratered the ground beneath her. Serreinina picked her up again with her power and propelled her across the yard into the wall of the conservatory. She flew into the wall hard and cried out.

Serrenina picked her up again and threw her into the wall a few more times.

By now, Celestia was critically hurt. She had numerous broken bones, her jaw was shattered, Her arm was fractured. Celestia probably had internal bleeding.

Serrenina knelt down and spoke viciously, “Lets now go see our girl king.” Serreninas face was still twisted into something cruel and evil.

Serrenina carried a critically injured and bleeding Celestia down the street and turned toward the grand road leading toward the gates. She saw the King and her horse returning with what was left of her shattered army. It was a great scene that sent delight running through Serrenina. She was confronted with a truly demoralized army. The ranks of the swordsmen and the pikemen that followed the various generals and captains that left on the march weeks ago were decimated. Where there were thousands of soldiers and man at arms, there were now dozens if even that.

Many of Pattenias great lords like Duke Wensae and Lord Turin were dead and being carried back in wagons. Their bloodied bodies laid in their broken armor.

Luckily, Serrenina saw Asyrn riding beside Pattenia with her friend Actonia. They were still alive.

She smiled wickedly. Pattenia saw her sister walked down the street, headed toward her, carrying someone else. Pattenia was totally defeated. She knew she led her army into a disaster. Serrenina smiled evilly.

Actonia, with all of your power, you couldn't help your King avoid this disaster. You being her prime confidant and all, and being the inspiration and force leading her to be King in the first place?”

Actonia replied acidly. “Something has been clouding my vision. I think you know that this shroud of darkness fallen across the land. My vision isn't very helpfully anymore.”

“Considering how you used it, you don't deserve the gift actonia. You are a sadist. And a monster that derives pleasure from inflicting pain.”

Serreninas eyes locked with Asyrn. “You traitor. I can't believe you entered a relationship with Pattenia after you knew what she did with me, or that you would even follow her. Some friend you are.”

“She is my King. I know she was wrong, but I must be loyal.” Replied Asyrn. “And she isn't that bad.”

Serrenina snorted loudly. Then smiled, and she said a few phrases in the ancient language, and the entire army felt the ground rumble beneath their feet. Asyrn's eyes turned glassy, and he mindlessly walked toward Serrenina and stood by her side.

Pattenia knew she was helpless to stop this. She simply pleaded, “Please, Serrenina, release Asyrn.”

“No,” Serrenina replied coldly. “Asyrn is mine. He will be punished for his disloyalty and violation of our friendship. You have lost, Pattenia. As you deserve to lose. There is nothing you can do now. Your army is defeated, your friends have died. There is no escape, your kingdom will die under your leadership.” Serrenina laughed cruelly.

She said, “I can't believe you, Serrenina. You would really destroy your own nation and your army, just to ruin my reign. You are really this serious that you care more about what you think you think you are entitled to, than the welfare of your people and your nation?” Pattenia said helplessly, knowing that she couldn't fight this power. She got off her horse and knelt toward her sister. “Fine, I surrender, you can have the crown and reign as Queen. I give up.”

“I no longer care about your crown, you can keep it,” Serrenina said bitterly. “I just want you to know who beat you. I have a gift for you, Pattenia. Here, take your professor, she will need to be healed after the savage beating I gave her. I think I gave her internal bleeding.”

Serrenina cruelly dropped a critically injured Professor Celestia on the road in front of Pattenia.

Pattenia gasp in horror. “You are such a monster, Serrernina..” Pattenia looked at the battered and broke face of Celestia. Blood was still pouring from her face.

Serrenina shrugged. “She deserved it. Have you forgot what she did to me, look at what she did to my body, she got off easy. You will heal her, you or her will never heal me. I am deformed and humiliated. None of you care that I am a man forced to live in a woman's body. Trapped in this form. Condemned to be ignored and demeaned. While you take all of the power and glory, and left nothing for me but being pretty and wearing gowns and corsets. Go fuck yourself.”

“But we didn't cause you pain,” Pattenia pointed out.

“This is worse than any physical pain you could have ever inflicted. I was trained to deal with pain, and I handled a lot of it. What you did was far worse and far more devastating than any beating. And there were beatings. Did you forget what you commanded Stone to do if I resisted the forced dressings every morning at dawn, and those cramps no boy should ever deal with?”

Then Serrenina looked up and saw Pattenia's closest friend, her prime confidant, the seer Hekatin Actonia. Her face was a mask of horror, seeing what Serrenina had become. She had been silent, just observing the exchange in horror. Serrenina looked eyes with the other woman. “And it was you who inspired this entire horror, Actonia. This is your doing. If it weren't for you, Pattenia would never have worn my crown, and this would never have happened.”

“Your reign would have ended within months, Serren.” Actonia decided to use Serrenina's original name. “You were so young and unready. The lords wouldn't have tolerated you for long. That is certain.”

“Perhaps,” Serrenina admitted. “I was very young and unready. But I had Pattenia who was intelligent, I had a mother who had years of learning and experience. It's not like they couldn't have advised and helped me prepare. But no, none of you accepted that you simply wanted to destroy me and leave me with nothing. I know it had more to do with your precious prophecy than me being unready, or you all could have helped me. But, Pattenia's reign is ending very shortly too.”

“That's only because you are making it happen, or else it would be great. Pattenia would be a very successful King.” Actonia pointed out.

“I can't allow her to be successful after what she did and what you did. You committed a horror upon my life. What you did was cruel and unbelievably sadistic. You two are monsters. I am simply a monster of your creation. And Actonia, I have a gift for you, you will need to help her.” Serrenina smiled the most sadistic wicked smile. It sent chills down Actonias neck.

But she was confused, Actonia said, “What are you talking about?”

“Your sister.” Serrenina smiled cruelly. “You now have a sister named Jerrica. She doesn't really know how to live as a girl and will need her older sister more than ever. I found your family, and I returned the precious, glorious gift you so thoughtfully bestowed on me. Now your sister is enjoying the gift.”

All of the blood drained from Antonia's face. She turned ashen. “Serrenina no, please, We did what we did for good, for progress and to help people. You are just being cruel.”

Serrenina waved her hand and spoke a few words of the Ancient language, and suddenly her younger brother Jerric materialized in front of Serrenina in the form of a fourteen-year-old slim girl. She looked up, surprised, and shocked to be here. She saw Actonia standing in front of her on a horse.

Jerrica's expression turned to pure hate. “This is your fault, Actonia. Serrenina told me what you did, and it led to this. I hope you are happy.”

Serrenina laughed, “She will need your love and your guidance Actonia. But considering how you all treated me and received so much pleasure from my agony, I seriously doubt your poor brother will receive much help or compassion from you, Actonia. You are a psychotic monster.”

Her look softened as she saw the pain and agony in Jerrics eyes. Actonia softly held her sobbing brother, promising to help her thought it. Jerrica was still
furious.

“So, what do you want, Serrenina?” Pattenia demanded.

“Nothing now. I demanded my freedom from you. But I have that already without your consent. Your consent has become immaterial. I wanted a place by your side, leading soldiers under your banner. I no longer want that, All I want now is to see your kingdom fail under your leadership. I only have one demand. Assemble all of the hekatins leaders and meet me at the courtyard tonight. I will make a final demonstration of my power and bring your kingdom down.”

Pattenia saw Asyrn behind Serrenina totally under her power. She knew it was useless, but she begged, “Please release Asyrn.”

Serrenina said, “No. He is mine.”

Then Serrenina turned and to find her beloved Nemeria. Serrenina sensed Nemeria sobbing silently behind her.

Numeria looked afraid at the powerful woman swaggering in a full suit of armor. Her “Is it really you, Serrenina?” Nemeria asked, sadly.

“Yes,” Serrenina replied proudly. “I am no longer the helpless little girl they wanted me to be for them. I have become so much more.” Serrenina thundered across the skies.

Numeria said,” Asyrn, I am so happy to see you by Serrenina's side.”

The man did not respond. Then Nemeria mentioned, “Serrenina, I heard terrible things about you.”

“I am sure you have,” Serrenina said seriously. “But that is what they say, and they omit their own dees, and deeds you personally witnessed.” Serreninas' eyebrow rose. “We have to go now.”

Serrenina took out the glowing rubies and spoke the ancient language that shook the palace on its entire foundation. A portal opened. Serrenina took Asyrn and Numeria's hand, and lead them through the portal to the other side. The portal vanished.

xxxxxxx

Pattenia did what she could for her defeated army, which she took most of the blame for. She had Celestia's battered body taken to the Hekatin temple. Lady Fawna and Actonia said she would live. They began the difficult process of restoring her. It may take weeks.

Then Pattenia had to confront her mother. She stormed into the palace with her guards and found Aanya sitting in the Drawing room of the palace. Pattenia waved the guards away

She looked at her mother. “So tell me about you advising Serren to maintain my marriage contract with Runteck. Please tell me it isn't true.” Pattenia demanded loudly.

“It is true,” Aanya replied sternly. “But that was after he had already decided to keep it. But I will admit he was very conflicted, and he wanted to. Serren was young, and let the lords bully him into maintaining the contact. He decided to let them.”

Pattenia was pissed. “He was only sixteen. I did this because I thought he wanted to keep it on me just for spite. I didn't know!” Pattenia thundered. “Had I known he was trying to find a way to get me out of it, and he was being threatened and bullied, and advised by his own mother to keep the contract on me. I may have decided to do something else. You betrayed me!” Pattenia stormed up to Aanya and slapped the woman hard, sending her flying from her chair.

“We could have helped him at that time. It was up to us, and he would listen. But instead, we betrayed him, and no wonder he's so pissed off he is willing to destroy the entire nation just to destroy me. Look what we did to an innocent boy whose only sin was he was too weak to stand up to the lords at his time of grief. And then betrayed and destroyed by his own family. As his sister watches in sadistic pleasure. Yeah, I can see his point now. Its a little late, but I thought he wanted to see me suffer.”

Aanya shook her head. “Pattenia, he loved you more than anything. He hated caving to the lords. He didn't know what to do, and he felt so lost. He wanted to save you from it. It was really you who turned on him. We did what we did to save the country. I told you months ago when he was in his coma that I feared we made a mistake. You dismissed it then. How do you feel about it now?” Aanya was rubbing her cheek.

“I feel that I hate you.” Pattenia turned and stormed out.

xxxxxxx

Numeria asked, “Where are we?”

“The grand temple of Lilith, her ancient capital on an island that doesn't exist. This was her home four thousand years ago. We are here to restore it and restore her.”

Serrenina had released Asyrn from her power, and he was free. He was looking around in fear. Asyrn imprisoned him. A cage appeared around him, locking him in.

Then Serrenina knelt at the altar and spoke in the ancient language. “My goddess Lilith. I am here to restore you to this world and make your reign a reality. I am your first servant of the new order, and I beg you.”

Then serrenina lit her torches. They blazed brightly over her temple. An enormous fireball ignited above the ruined dome that lit the skies for miles away. A darkened cloud appeared overhead shooting lightening down.

There was a pit ready for its first. Serrenina spoke, “I have the sacrifice for you of that which I love the most. To you, my queen Lilith, I commit my love to you.”

Asyrn looked in horror as Serrenina backed Nemeria toward the corner of the sacrifice pit. Serrenina callously pulled her sword and beheaded Nemeria. Serrenina watched emotionlessly as the headless body of her former fiance fell into the pit. It ignited in blue flames and incinerated Nemeria's body. Then an awesome roar filled the skies above the island. Serrenina took the blacked bottle of Liliths Elixer, which now appeared in a glowing crystallized liquid. Serrenina opened the bottle and drank it. She felt a great power flowing through him suddenly ignited.

Serrenina knelt toward the altar as the image of Lilith coalesced on the altar as a pillar of white-hot flame and turned into the image of an imposing mighty woman wearing a crown.

Serrenina had a plan. She always had a plan. She had no intention of actually submitting to Lilith. She simply wanted Lilith's power. She had placed many black crystals around the altar and linked them all to her. When Lilith appeared. The gems all activated and began drawing all of the power they needed from Lilith and fed it all to Serrenina.

Lilith suddenly felt the power draining. She shrieked in betrayal as her form collapsed on the altar. She was screaming in pain. She looked at Serrenina in horror. She felt weakened and fell to the ground. Serrenina cruelly walked up and took Lilith’s crown and placed it on her head. “I am the queen of Edom now. I claim this world as my own. I am the goddess.” Then she took Lilith’s sword and drove it into Lilith’s stomach. It ignited and vaporized the weakened goddess. She exploded.

Then serrenina began growing. This move was meaningless by now, but the image of the tiny feminine beauty began enlarging. Her slim muscles bulged out into powerful biceps. Her forearms grew. Her large breasts shrank behind a layer of pure muscle. Her hips narrowed, and her legs enlarged. Serreninas thighs enlarged and developed around a powerful layer of muscle. Her face grew, her slim narrow jawline enlarged and straightened. Serren had returned. She spoke in a dominant male tone, “I am God.”

Serren Denae expanded his mind, searching for the mind of his sister and found her far away in Denark, sitting on her Stolen throne. He spoke, “Sister, Pattenia, I have been restored. I have grown and claimed Lilith’s throne as my own. This world is mine, I am your God!” Serren thundered as the sky shook.

“This is my example.” Serren maintained the mind lock as he released a cowering Asyrn. He cruelly asked, “Do you still love me, Asyrn. Are you in love.” His face wore a cruel sneer

There was no reply as now the restored Serren violently struck Asyrn across the face. The force of the blow connected with a violent thunderclap that sent a shockwave of air racing away. Asyrn collapsed in pain, Serren rushed up and kicked Asyrn in the stomach. Asyrn cried out in pain. Serren hammer struck Asyrn across the back. Asyrn cried out in pain. Then in a rapid succession of strikes, struck Asyrn across the face, back and ribs. He has collapsed and felt blood spilling from his mouth. Asyrn cried helplessly as his former friend beat him.

“Serren, stop, Please.” Serren cruelly struck him across the face again. Then he pulled Asyrns arm out and slammed a fist across the man's elbow.

“You Traitor.” Serren roared. “You saw what that bitch did to me. Yet you fell in love with her, you made love to her. You pledged your love to Pattenia and served her in the army marching and fighting under her banner, knowing how she treated me. I thought we were friends, and you betrayed me.”

Then Serren lost control and began pounding on Asyrns face and chest.

Pattenia saw it all when Serren locked minds with her. She saw every torturous blow. Serren was torturing Asyrn just to hurt her. She cried out and began sobbing. Serren was a monster now. She began crying for her love.

Asyrn was beyond even resisting. Then Serren looked cruelly at the bloodied form of his friend. “You can hardly move, friend. But Your pain has not even begun yet. You will beg me to kill you before I am finished.”

Then Serren took out a white-hot rod of iron and drove it into Asyrn's left foot. Asyrn began screaming in agony as the metal melted his foot. The skin melted off and began disintegrating his entire foot. The inhuman shrieks of agony coming from Asyrn's mouth were terrifying. Serren twisted the rod of iron stuck into Asyrns foot. Then Serren took another white hot rod and stuck it into Asyrns shoulder blade. Then another into his kneecap.

Asyrn was shrieking wildly, as his entire body trembled and shook, begging for the pain to stop. Serren was torturing Asyrn for more than two hours. Pattenia saw it all when finally in a moment of Mercy, Serren cruelly snapped Asyrn's neck and threw his body into the sacrifice pit.

Pattenia had collapsed, crying. Few of those around her knew what was going on, but actonia knew. She saw the visions of Serren torturing asyrn. It affected her, too, and she looked up at her king. She was holding her brother close to her. Actonia said to Pattenia, “Your brother has been restored, and he has become a monster.”

Serren had a few more scores to settle before his point was made. His first score was going to be with Pattenias friend Danala who was so eager to help Pattenia with her sadistic coup during Serren’s coronation.

He knew where Danalas family lived and simply vanished and appeared next to their manner in the capital. Danala went to school with Pattenia.

Serren simply walked into the house and saw Daniela's older brother sitting there with his father and mother. He approached, and they all seemed afraid now.

Danala's brother Opar. Looked large and very handsome. He wanted to be a fighter like Serren was. Serren said,” I have a gift for you, Opar. Come here.”

The young man said no and stayed where he was in the drawing-room with his father. Serren motioned with his finger and pulled the young man forward against his will.

“Opar, This is the same gift I was so fortunate to receive from your sister when she so lovingly bestowed on me. Its time to even the score and see how she likes having an older sister instead of an older brother.”

Danala wildly ran into the house screaming, “stop, please.”

Serren turned and sneered, “Why would you have a problem with this?” He asked sarcastically. “After what you did to me for my sister.”

“Opar had nothing to do with that. Why would you hurt him?” Danala shouted

“Hurt him,” Serren inquired with a smile. “Like you hurt me, I thought it just made him stronger. Isn't that what you said about me.”

“Does it matter?” Serren shouted. “I never hurt you or my sis either. Did that matter?” Serren challenged. “Yet none of you had a problem wrecking my entire life. So its time to return the favor to someone you love most. And I would hardly think you would see it as wrong after what you cruelly did. So watch the destruction of your brothers life Danala.”

Then Serren grabbed Opar. Serren no longer needed the ancient language to do things anymore. Serren held the power within him to do anything he wanted. To Danala's total horror, she witnessed her older brother, who marched with her to war, suddenly transform into a young woman. His face softened, his chest expanded into two large soft breasts, his entire body transformed.

Danala cried out, “Opar, NO!!!”

Nothing could stop the sadistic transformation that was occurring right in front of her and her parents.

“I am Prince Serren. I was the princess that your daughter and her friends transformed, you knew me as the princess. Her cruelty had a cost, and that cost had just been called in. And Opar paid the price. You have your sister to thank for that.”

Then Serren walked out as they all wept in horror.

Next was Lady Fawna, one of the other teachers at the women's conservatory who so lovingly transformed him on that fateful day.

Serren appeared right in front of the door and walked in, as usual, to see Lady Fawna sitting on a love seat with her husband Ansery. She stood up, knowing who it was and what Serren could do.

Lady Fawna figured she was dead, “So I guess you will kill me now, Right Serrenina, over what I did.”

Serren smiled a sadistic, cruel smile. “Oh no, Lady Fawna. Of course not. There are much worse things than dying. So much worse, I know. I would rather have died than suffer the horror you all inflicted on me. You will live knowing your sadism has cost the ones you love. Manly. Your husband Ansery. You will watch him die.”

Serren approached when Lady Fawna tried to stop her but was cast aside like nothing.

Then Serren struck her husband across the face countless times. Ansery cried out in agony as Serren viciously beat him to death.

The countless blows rained down across his chest, arms back, and his face. Lady Fawna watched helplessly as Serren held her husband's face tightly and then violently plunged his
fingers into the man's eye sockets. Serren cruelly drove his fingers directly into the man's eyes, bursting them. Her husband wildly shrieked out in pain. He screeched inhumanly as his eyes were pierced into his head.

The beatings continued into the night until her husband finally breathed his final breath.

Lady Fawna was broken. She couldn't stop herself crying.

Serren glared at the broken woman. “Your debt has been paid. Are you proud of what you have done? You were all so proud of your accomplishments. Destroying a boy for no reason. Watching his suffering as you all make your great progress and your freedom as a boy's future was ripped away from him, and you all watch in delight at his suffering, by your hands. Didn't any of you guess that boy would want revenge? Or did you think he would never get the chance? How stupid of you. Of course, he would get the chance sometime in the future. Now your husband is dead. It's your doing.”

Then Serren said very sternly, “All of the twelve conspirators except for my sister has paid a price for their treason against the crown. The final lesson is coming up. I expect you all to be there in the courtyard of the palace the morning after tomorrow. I will be ready to deliver my final message to you all, and to punish.”

Then Serren vanished from sight as Lady Fawna wept over the body of her dead husband.

Lady Fawna now had to prepare her dead husband's funeral. Lady Celestia was beaten badly. Fawna heard that Serren murdered Celestia's sister and her entire family before savagely beating her.

Actonia's younger brother had been sadistically turned into a girl, and so had Danala's older brother. Pattenias lover Asyrn had been tortured to death. Serren had become a savage monster. She wondered absently if this was a monster of their own creation.

Xxxxx

Serrren had Transported himself high up into the mountain. This was the location of Pattenia's first campaign to release the Goddess. This was where Pattenia got her first big scar across her face and nearly lost her friend Actonia when she was stabbed by a poisoned sword. Each campaign had failed but got a little closer. The Door had been opened, and the Dragon was freed during their first mission. Serren entered the enormous chambers of the ruined temple. It was largely empty now. Pattenia had killed all of the war priests that were here.

He simply walked through the chamber and entered into the other one and kept going deeper until he found the area where the Goddess was imprisoned. It was now time to release this bitch. It wouldn't be hard for a god to break the bonds imprisoning Danis. He pulled his sword and ignited his power, channeling it down the blade and struck the floor with vicious force. The impact sent a shockwave blasts out, smashing the entire temple.

The Goddess was finally released. The witches heard her voice and knew what had happened. It should have been a glorious fulfillment of their prophecy, but they had a sickening feeling about what was about to occur.

Serren gained control over the Goddess and forced her down to her knees. Serren tightly gripped the Goddess's shoulderblade and dug his fingers painfully into her. He bared his teeth and snarled, “You arent going anywhere, you bitch. What makes you think you or your sadistic followers deserve any sort of glorious restoration.”

She spoke, “I know you are suffering, Prince Serren,” She said in her beautiful voice. “None of this was supposed to happen. What was supposed to great was turned into a living horror for you. Your sister was unable to release her anger at the injustice of her life, and the way you treated her. Your education failed you. Lady Celestia was unable to stop hating to see your progress under her. I am sorry for the failure, and if you let me, I will help you.”

“Yes, you will help me. But first,” Then the darkness flowed through Sarran as the Goddess cried out. Serren was painfully draining her power and pulling it all into him. “I will need this, I will leave you enough to help me, but you can't be trusted with too much power. I saw what you did with it, my life was destroyed by your power. Thank you very much for that.”

Then he had enough power and said, “Now let's make my final demonstration to the witches. You know what I want.”

“You want to have this pain taken away.” The Goddess said firmly, looking up with her beautiful, loving eyes. It affected Serren. This was such a beautiful creature that was so loving. How could her followers be so cruel? Serren saw the anger in her eyes and the love she had for him. The Goddess knew his plan.

“Yes, so let's go.” Then Serren transported himself into the courtyard where all of the witches, the twelve conspirators were waiting.

They saw their beautiful Goddess entirely under Serrens power, being held captive. That was enough of a demonstration to show them that Serren was so far beyond their ability to control.

Serren roared, holding Lilith's sword in his hand and wearing Liliths black crown upon his head. It would almost look comical for such a towering manly man to have such a beautiful feminine sword, and wearing such a feminine crown on his head. But no one was laughing. This was a nightmare. “Like you are now carrying the sword that struck this bitch down seven hundred years ago. I carry a sword very capable of striking her down now, and this time it will destroy her for all time. I and I should. Your Goddess in her cruelty and sadism deserves it. After what you have all done to me. You deserve it.”

Pattenia stepped forward. “If only you had tried to understand what we were doing. I understand your anger, but you never understood. You just got angry.”

The Goddess spoke for Serren. “You know who betrayed you, Pattenia. That person is standing right next to you.” The Goddess looked directly into Aanya's eyes. “You betrayed both of your children. Pattenia, Your brother understood completely. It was you who failed, Pattenia. You were my vessel, but you refused to see the progress your brother made under my guidance. He studied my history and my religion. He made enormous progress, but you couldn't give up your envy and hatred of your brother to see it. You ruined all of his progress with your vendetta and sadistic pleasure at seeing his suffering. You saw everything he did as a threat to you when he loved you. Pattenia, you have failed, and you ruined my restoration. Serren's reaction, while cruel, is the natural result of what you did to him. You all failed me!” She thundered in rage at them.

The goddess condemnation affected them all.

“I told you Pattenia that I used to love you with all of my heart. I was angry at the way you usurped power and took my coronation and humiliated me. I got over it very quickly and saw what a great King you were for the people. I told you I was proud of you, and I loved you then. And over the following months, my pride grew with your success. I only wish I could have shared in it and served by your side to help in the restoration. I had become a full convert and a powerful witch. I loved you Goddess.” He looked down at the kneeling Goddess.

“But your cruelty never ceased Pattenia. You all saw my success as a threat and did horrible things to me. My love for you turned to hate. I had to make you all pay. It was clear you would never accept me. You never even loved me. I had to destroy you. You had to pay for what you did, so we are here. And I will.”

Then he looked at the Goddess and said, “I will need your help to do this. I want this pain to go away. I want to relive a life where they will never hurt me. So I wonder how I can do that.”

Serren thought and then glared at Pattenia and said. “I could relive our life as her older brother, and Pattenia as my younger sister. Turning me, female would do no good. I would still be the rightful heir. You would just have to watch me get the crown.” Serren smiled viciously.

Then he thought some more and said, “No. In that situation, you would probably just kill me and take the crown. With Pattenia being the only surviving heir. She would get it, and I would be dead.”

Celestia said to him, “We couldn’t go that far. I doubt anyone would follow her if they saw her murder her brother in cold blood.”

“Hey, you may as well have, by turning me into a girl in front of them all. And remember, you were all there in full control, threatening anyone who dared oppose your reign of terror. You terrorized them into submission. They weren't going to follow you until you made your point and your threat. I bet the same result would occur with my death. Knowing how cruel and power-hungry you all are, I wouldn't put it past all of you to kill me in that situation. After all, you killed our father. So that won't work. Let me think.”

They tried to protest, Pattenia shouted, “We had noth...” Then she began choking as Serren tightened his fist, and a power tightened around her windpipe. Pattenia collapsed choking. Then He released his grip, and she inhaled loudly.

“You will not tell lies. You all did murder my father. You all knew what he was walking into. None of you warned him of the danger. It's just like you murdered him, you wanted it to happen and let it happen so there would be a power struggle for the throne, I would lose, and you could destroy me.” Serren said to them and continued thinking.

Serren thought some more and then said, “How about this. I can be your Pattenia. Make me the older sister, and Pattenia live as the younger brother. So when the time comes, I get to change you. I will get to wreck your entire life and your dreams. I will hold total power over you after you get to live sixteen years of male freedom. I will get to make it end and sadistically enjoying your torment in your new life as I finally get freedom.”

Pattenia snicked. And smirked knowingly. “Sure. But do you think you will endure the first sixteen years of your life as the older sister? I personally experienced it. If you thought a year of that life was unbearable, having every move, you make watched, and strictly controlled. Not being able to go where you want, or hang out with your friends. Or even date, and not being able to go out when you want if you want to go hunting or fight with your dad and brother, you cant. And having a brother tease you relentlessly like you did to me. Could you handle sixteen years of that? And don't forget your beloved fiance Runtek you will be betrothed to. Could you handle that? You couldn't handle a year of that life Serren before you broke.”

Serren decided to point out, “But that would be my entire life from birth. I would be raised that way. Not living in total freedom for sixteen years as a boy to have it all ripped from me in an instant. Then having a totally new life forced on me. And my break had to do with that, and your relentless torment. It was much worse than my teasing. I was an ass, but I was your teenage brother. I could really do nothing to you. And I didn't really hate you. I was just being the average teenage asshole, nothing more than that. But I am sorry for the harsh things I said to you then. But after you took the throne from me, You were my king, you held total power over my very life, and your royal orders restricting my life was much crueler than anything I did to you. What you did to me was just sadistic spite. And Pattenia, no one ever laid a finger on you that entire time. You had me forcefully corseted and beaten when I resisted. You were ten times as cruel. But you may be right”

Serren thought for a few seconds. “In that situation, you probably would find a way to regain the throne. You have shown you have no family loyalty. You hunger for power and if I turned you and took your throne. You would have little hesitation to cause as much problems as possible to regain the throne. When you did it to me, Pattenia, I realized you were a good ruler, I felt pride in your accomplishments and I told you weeks after your coronation that I was loyal to your throne, I loved you. I never had any intention of raising any type of revolt. I didn't want to divide the Kingdom. But you kept making it very clear you didn't care how I felt and you intended to make life as difficult as possible on me, and you hated me. That hurt most of all. So in this situation, you would fight me and do anything possible. The only thing I could do to stop you is a princes in the tower situation.” Serren glared hatefully at Pattenia and replied, “Or the princess in the Tower.” Serren bared his teeth.

Pattenia looked confused and asked Aanya, “What is that?”

“Don't you study history, Pattenia?” Serren demanded.

Aanya answered, “About a hundred and fifty years ago, there were two princes about twelve and thirteen years old. Their father was king and suddenly died. Leaving two princes and a power hungry uncle that was appointed as the regnant. He had the two princes captured and imprisoned in the tower for about a year. Then they mysteriously vanished and its one of the biggest mysteries. What happened to them and how did they die. Most think it was the uncle, but no one really knows.”

“Thats what I would have to do and I dont want to be that cruel Pattenia. So let me think?”

Serren thought harder. And then he had it. “I found it. There will be no power struggle at all. Bring my father back so he can raise me, and we will be safe, send us far away from the royal family. Make us just an influential family far away. That way, none of us is the heir, no reason to destroy me at all. It would get you nothing. My father won't have to die,
I will live in peace, inheriting my family's land and titles. No one would want to kill my father, and we would live in peace. I would have my father's love. It would be great. That’s what I want, but wait, and send my sister far away from me. I don’t want to see her anymore. I want a new sister who loves me and enjoys her life as a woman. And let me remember all of my lessons, so I will be able to help her.”

Then Serren thought of what to do with Pattenia, and he had the most sadistic demand. He glared at her and snarled in pure venomous hatred, saying through his teeth. “Send her to hell. Far away from my family. Make her raised by a religiously fanatic family of mars. Multiple brothers who will torment her. Even her mother favors the brothers and the male domination religion. Her independent spirit will never stand a chance to rise. Make them harsh and incredibly cruel to her. Her spirit will break, be shattered, and never be seen again.” The look in Serrens eyes was one of frightening evil.

Pattenia cried, “Serren no, please, how can you do this.”

“I am repaying a favor you bestowed on me. You hated me and sent me to hell, I am repaying your favor. Goddess, that's what I want.”

“I will grant your wish.” She said in a voice full of sorrow. “But your father won't be the same one. I will be returning him from the dead. He won't be what you remember. Are you sure this is what you want.”

“Yes, and the family that replaces me. Make them great, and make the brother so awesome and powerful, they can never abuse him. They wouldn't want to, he will love you so much. If you can, give him your bloodline, make him your beloved son. I want to see you rise again Goddess. Just not at the expense of my very life. I don't want your rise to mean I have to suffer in despair. That's all that I ask.”

The Goddess linked hands, and she looked into Serrens eyes. “Okay.” They both ignited their power. Serren fed all of the power he had into the Goddess and allowed her to alter time itself. Serren vanished in an enormous explosion that destroyed everything. The fire expanded to consume everything.

Xxxxxx

Emily wondered about her younger brother Serren. There was something about him that she could not figure out, no matter how hard she tried. He was boyish in many ways.

She had been eating at the table with her father he Duke Gerric, when little Serren came gliding into the room. It was the way he smoothly glided into the room so delicately in the way she was taught to walk in school with the book training. He glided in holding his head level, taking each mincing step and sat down just as smoothly. Then he made a motion with his hand brushing some nonexistent hair from his face as he turned to smile boyishly at her. She shook her head wondering

“How was school, sis?” He asked smiling

“We had a good time, Serren. Did you go today?” Emily inquired.

He shook his head. “No, I can't stand school. I just hate it. They teach such stupid stuff I simply can't stomach.” Serren shook his head.

Emily wondered why he was so against learning when her brother was so intelligent. He should go to school more and care about his books and reading. But Emily just didn't understand what his problem was.

Then Aanya came in to eat. She glided in and sat down beside Gerric, and plat of food was placed in front of her.

Serren tightened up, and she saw the flash of hatred suddenly appear in his eyes. His jaw tightened as he glared at her. Then he said, through his clenched teeth. “I have to go, Our new company just made me lose my appetite.”

Serren stood up just as gracefully and glided outside. Emily found it was no use trying to talk to him about Mother. He refused to listen at all.

Emily came out soon after Serren stormed out so suddenly, and he smiled, loving his sister.

Then he said eagerly. “Sis, how about you go back and take that stupid corset off, please. Can we play outside? Please!” The boy begged, and she gave in and ran back inside and had her handmaidens remove her corset and put on a pair of britches.

Serren had a suit of armor waiting and helped her into a shiny breastplate and some gauntlets and boots. Then to Emily's surprise, he took some dark dye and marked it down from her left eye and down her cheek. Serren said, “That is your battlescare. You are the fiercest warrior in the entire Kingdom.” Serren smiled so lovingly. Then he handed her a fake sword he made.

To finish the look, he placed a fake childish like crown on her head and looked at her so admiringly. Then he took his fake sword, and the two children went at it.

Again Emily was so confused. Wouldnt most boys want to pretend to be king in their games and be the scared ones. She got more confused every day, but she loved him so much and enjoyed making him so happy.

But Emily was tired of it and stopped after about an hour. “Serren, this is dirty, and I am sweaty. I have to stop and clean off. I am happy to play with you, but let's do something else.”

Oddly, Serren enjoyed doing some of the feminine activities with her, too, and he even knitted with her. She wondered when on the great isles he learned to knit.

Serren unexpectedly said to her, “Have you thought about the witches?”

Emily was annoyed again. “There are no such thing, serren. Please get real!”

“I am real. Let's make a deal, Emily, and if I can prove to you witches are real, then you must let me teach you to become a witch.”

Emily enjoyed a challenge and said, “Fine, prove to me witches are real.”

Serren gave her a mischievous childlike grin. “your proof is coming up. I am a witch.”

"How can you be a witch?" Emily asked in disbelief. "Even if they were real, arent they women?"

Serren smirked. "Yes, and maybe some day I will tell you about the time as a girl. Are you ready for your proof" Serren asked.

Then he said a few phrases in an incomprehensible language of the Goddess and Emily saw the golden powerful run though his entire body. It went though his arms and down to his fingertips sparking. His hair lit up and sparkled in the golden energy. Serren smiled

"Are you ready to learn, Emily?"

Note from the author

I will replace the Revised Chapter one with one continuing the story of the Child Serren as he relives his life with a loving sister who he helps and bonds with. And has chosen to teach the arts of the Hekatin to

by jasmine Monica
Princess Serinina leaves her home for ever to make a new life in a new land that she does not know
Chapter 1

Princess Serinina had been very unhappy for over a year now. Patinea, Serinina's older sister noticed that it wasn't a little matter. Serinina had been suck in a massive depression for the better part of a year now. The wars were long over, and she should be happy by now.

Her advisers, like Actonia, assured her that Serinina would be happy once things were settled. But nothing turned out the way it should. Patinia failed in her wars. Serinina did everything to undermine her, including giving her enemies the plans of her attacks and when they were taking place. Serinina betrayed the kingdom and enjoyed watching her sisters defeat. Her army was routed and returned in battered. Serinina smiled as her sister was enraged. Serenina didn't care. Everything had gone so wrong since she was transformed against her will.

The first thing that went wrong was that she was captured and abused. She was already pregnant, and Serinina freaked out about that. Then there was the mistaken advice to try to find her a husband, but that went so wrong. Serenina ended the pregnancy herself and ran off. She should have known that a transformed man could never handle any of this.

And all of this was six months ago. The Goddess tried to help her. Serenina was promised power equal to what Patinia stole from her on that horrific day, and she turned it down flat. Nothing could please Serenina. She was promised to be restored as a man, but after everything that happened, Serenina had no male pride left and knew she would find life as a restored male hard.

They all prayed for Serenina. There wasn't much left here for her. Everything reminded her of the pain and suffering of a life that was stolen from her more than a year ago.

Serinina was sleeping this night. She slept day and night, nothing really appealed to her. The moons golden rays filled the room, and it was a great sight for everyone else. But she hated it most of it.

Her sister told her of some of the dreams she had from the Goddess and showed her great things when she was young. Her dreams showed her as a powerful warrior and as the King. They also showed her Serinina happy with a child. . Serinina's dreams were more disturbing.

Serinina was dressed in some sort of sharp blue suit. She wore dark blue pants and some kind of overcoat and a matching tie. Serinina wore rolls of colorful ribbons pinned on her right breast and some shiny stars on her shoulder as she marched toward a doorway that led underground. Serinina spoke sharply to the guards holding some sort of weapon. “I have received orders directly from the chiefs.” Serinina handed the guards a piece of paper. They read it and let her in. Serenina marched past them with her people and went down a long flight of steps. It leads to a cubicle room. She pushed some lightened buttons, and the room closed and began going down deep into the ground.

The metal doors parted, and Serenina marched in with intent and purpose. Serinina met another man facing her with some same sort of suit. The man said, “What are our orders, General Denae?”

“We have orders to launch on targets in Europe. Here they are?”

Serinina handed the man some papers and the man read it. His face twisted in alarm. But they were orders. “We have to authenticate these.” Said the man as he went into his private office with his officers. They pulled out some keys and opened a metal box on the wall, and took out some cards. They broke them and pulled out some paper. Then they began reading the codes. “Zulu, Tango, Alpha, Foxtrot, Charlie Zulu, Delta, Sierra, foxtrot, Tango, Bravo, Bravo, Hotel Kilo, Charlie, Alpha.”

His officers read the code and then replied, “The Message is authentic.”

The other man agreed. Then he got on the microphone. “Everyone,” The officer shouted. “Set Condition for strategic missile launch. Target Package 1sq5a. Eastern and northern European capitals and military installations. This is not a drill. Spin up missiles one through fifty. Be ready to launch in five minutes. The release of nuclear weapons has been ordered.”

His officer repeated the orders, and the men went through their duties.

Serinina went to the launching room, where she activated her power to control everyone. She said her spells in the language of the Goddess. The woman glowed as the men did their duties now controlled by Serinina.

They relayed orders to each other. Each man took out his key and inserted them into each of the panel's keyholes. They relayed orders to eachother, and each turned their keys simultaneously. The panels lit up and were ready for orders. Each controller pushed their buttons to activate the missiles and insert their targets and the times for detonation and the routs they were to take to their target. Then they activated each silo and prepared the minutemen rockets.

Then they waited for orders. Serinina issued them, “Launch each missile.”

So the men launched each missile. They pushed one, and relayed, “Missle one launched.”
“Missile two launched.”
“Missile three launched.”

Until there were no more. Serenina heard the roar from deep within the control room. The whole place rattled with the roar of the rocket's boosters ignited and sent them high into the air.

Far away, in the Cheyenne mountain where the strategic forces were controlled. The Chiefs and the generals were shocked when alarms sounded throughout the entire complex. They looked up at the enlarged screen, keeping track of the nation's strategic forces. They started showing active silos and their trajectories. There were missile launches all over the nation. The chairmen of the joint chiefs shouted, “Who authorized this!”

“No one did.” The secretary of defense replied. “This is not authorized, Did any of you order a launch.”

They all replied no. “Then what is happening?” He shouted in panic.

But no one had a clue what had happened. They stared at the screen in horror as the entire nation's strategic missiles were launched from New Mexico to Montana. There were missiles everywhere.

The farmers from Montana nearby looked up in horror as the rockets were fired over their heads and sped off into the sky. They were watching the end of the world. Within minutes, they got their response from the other side of the globe. The Chairman said in horror, “The Russians and Chinese have responded with their arsenal. They will impact our cities within thirty minutes.

The warheads descended on New York within thirty minutes as they watched a brilliant flash of light thousands of feet above New York City form into an enormous white-hot fireball that rose twenty thousand feet into the air. It was a ten megaton thermal nuclear blast that wiped the entire city out. More fell on every major city on the east coast to the central united states.

Serinina woke up in a panic. Her breathing was rapid as she looked around. These dreams made no sense to her. Who wore uniforms like that? Serenina went from being the greatest warrior in the entire kingdom able to defeat anyone to nothing but a powerless pretty princess with no voice, as her elder sister took over everything. Ever since that tragic day of horror, Serenina had been filled with hatred and sadness.

Her life had been filled with so much sorrow for so long she didn't know how to go on. There was one final thing she could do to escape this world. It would become the one single greatest feat of magic that had been ever executed by a mortal person. It would take every bit of her training and power to perform, but it was worth it.

Then her foresight alerted her to intruders to her place. She had found and occupied a cottage way out far into the thick woods where no one would ever bother her. She doubted anyone could have found her except for those like her. And those people knew not to bother her. At least she thought they knew better.

Serenina found her combat blade that was specially forged for her by the greatest family of assassins that ever existed in the great isles. It was forged by the best bladesmiths after they trained her, and she mastered the art of the blade. That was when the matriarch of the family adopted her as her daughter and personally trained her. She realized that women can fight after that, and she had mastered the art of fighting.

Her foresight warned her. Serenina knew who was coming now. It was her sister, her guards, her mother and the witch actonia. They were coming to plead for her help once more.

There was a knock on her door. At least her sister, the monarch, and King of the land had the courtesy to knock first. Patinia was learning.

Serenina opened the door and warned, with her knife ready, “Only you and the witches, any more come in, and I will kill them where they stand!”

Patinia knew it was no idle boast. Serenina had killed her guard and a portion of her army in battle before, only with her knife. She turned and waved the guards to remain outside, and Patinia, Actonia, and her mother came through the door.

“Get this over with, bore me with your feeble pleading and get the hell out of my place,” Serenina said, very bored.

“Please,” Patinia pleaded. “We need your help. I am planing one final push to retake the final fortress, defeat the purgatorists, and restore the Goddess. We need your help. We know it will fail without you.”

“Of course it will,” Serenina agreed. “I made them as powerful as they are. I trained them, ai helped them fortify their positions. I showed them your plan of attack. They know everything you do. You will never defeat them, Patinia. All thanks to me.”

“But,” Patinia pleaded, “I can't believe you would turn on us like that. You studied, and you know what the costs are. How could you do this!”

“It was easy,” Serenina looked into her sister's eyes. “Your cruelty and malice drove me to turn on you. You hated me first. I enjoyed fighting on their side and routing your entire army. You didn't want me fighting with you, so I fought against you.”

“I am so ashamed of you,” Aanya said to her. “You turn on your own people like this.”

“You took her side,” Serenina pointed to Patinia. “You didn't support me at all. You turned me down and lied to me every chance you got Mother, so don't be so ashamed. I know how you felt about your son Serin. You hated me. YOU get no more say in my life. You destroyed me, so I am returning the favor. You will never see your Goddess restored. Actonia, this is all your doing. You, the hekatin, and you witches malice and cruelty caused me to do this to you. And I am proud. Do you see your Goddess being restored, Actonia?”

“No,” Actonia finally admitted. “Not without you. I know you are angry, but you know we are fighting for a better world.”

“Yes, I know how cruel the priests have been. But I don't care. You were equally as cruel to me.” Serinina pointed out. “You stole my life, my name, and my sex. You were so harsh in trying to force me into a life of powerlessness. You could have worked with me as the King, and I would have gladly helped you. You could have turned me and still helped me instead of your cruelty. But you didn't. This is the result of everything you did. It makes me so happy,” Serenina said with a smile. “I have succeeded. And actonia,”

“Yes,” the girl replied.

“You know what is coming,” Serenina said darkly. “I see it, and I know you see it. Patinias reign is about to end. There's no stopping it. Had you allowed me to rule and strengthen our forces, we could have repelled them. Your kingdom is plagued by repeated defeats. Disastrous campaigns. There is no stopping them now. You see them crashing onto our shores, Patinia no longer has the forces to stop them. They will overrun the entire Kingdom and crush what she has left. You will never restore the Goddess. They will reinstitute the rule of man. Many of you will be killed and enslaved. You know it, don't you, Actonia.:

Actonia looked up sharply. “Yes, but you also see it?”

“Yes, indeed. It gives me so much pleasure.” Replied Serenina.”

Patinia was desperate, “Whose coming, what do they want?”

“Some people in many boats. I don’t know who they are. But they are ruthless. They are cruel men lead by a warlord.” Actonia replied.

“They are the Saxons.” Serenina. “There's no stopping the invasion. They will wipe you all out and establish their kingdom over yours. Except for you, Patinia. You will face a fate far worse than the one that terrified you. Marriage to Runteck and being his wife, and a mother will seem like a dream. You will be made into a prostitute and a slave girl. Just a breeder, nothing more. And all of the witches will be burnt. A new religion is coming.”

Aanya then asked, “And what will happen to you?” She asked arrogantly.

“I will be leaving.”

Serinina sang a few lines very loudly. Then she danced in a figure-eight pattern, and a brilliant portal opened. It was a ring of blue fire circling around a portal of darkness. None of them had ever seen power like this before.

Serenina said, “All I know is that this will take me to some distant future where I don't have to see your faces anymore. You made my life into a horror. Nothing can undo what you did to me. So, Bye. I am gone.”

Serenina walked through the portal and vanished. The portal collapsed in a massive blastwave that shot out and knocked the women across the room and blew the door off. It nearly caused the entire structure to collapse.

Xxxxx

Everything flashed, and then Serinina found herself standing on the hard paved ground next to some enormous tall buildings. Serinina looked up at the massive structures beside her and wondered briefly if they were defensive fortifications since they were so massive and imposing. But they didn't appear to be defensive towers. The enormous structures looked like they were made of darkened glass.

Serinina was surrounded by thousands of people walking all around her. These people looked very different than she was. She was still wearing her corset and her elaborate royal gown. Serenina was even wearing her humiliating princess tiara that her sister condescendingly gave her during his coronation. The people were walking all around. Serenina saw that there was a solid paved pathway beside her. She watched these strange looking metal things with windows speeding along that path beside her. Those things seemed to have people inside of them.

Something else caught Serenina's attention as she stood there, trying to make some sense of things. Serenina was a woman, of course, that was nothing new. She had been a woman for years at this point. The issue was that she no longer felt conflicted or abused by being a woman. Serinina walked down the pavement that everyone else was using with her. The people keep looking at her in a very strange way. Serinina understood why. She looked very different than the rest of these people. Serinina was draped with a heavy flowing royal gown and a corset while the rest of the people seemed to be dressed much more casual. They wore pants and some sort of loose-fitting top. Some of the women seemed to wear something more formal, but nothing like she had on. She was attracting attention. None of the women wore a corset, it seemed. The women wore another form of undergarment, holding their bust in place. Some of the women openly displayed the thin straps holding It in place over their shoulders.

But there was one extremely fact about this new reality that Serinina sent herself to that sent chills down her spine. It made her tremble in fear. She wondered how she could even function in this world. That fact was that she was utterly unable to comprehend a word anyone was saying. Serenina approached people, but she could not understand what they said. And the people she approached were unable to comprehend what she was saying. These people were speaking a totally different language. Some words seemed vaguely similar to what she knew, but there weren't many. And even those words seemed to be spoken so differently that she wondered what it was.
An official-looking man wearing a uniform with some insignia on his chest approached her, nearly shouting some order at her. This man seemed to have some sort of weapon strapped to his belt

The man shouted at Serenina, but she was unable to understand what the man was saying. Serinina tried to respond, but she received an equally confused look on the man's face. The language had changed in whatever time this was.

Another official appeared at Serinina's side, and they led her inside one of those metal things. They sped away at an impossible speed. They were speeding faster than the fastest horses could ever go.

Serinina was taken in front of a large imposing building. The officials that detained her led her into the building. She saw that were many uniformed men, and also women there doing the same duty. The officials tried to question Serinina, but it got nowhere. Sarinina couldn’t understand what they were saying, and they couldn't understand her. It was incomprehensible to her.

The officials spoke among themselves as she watched.

One of the men seemed to understand some of her words, and he told the others. “This girl speaks a much older form of our language. This dialect hasn't been spoken since the middle ages. Let me try to talk to her.”

The man approached Sarinina and sat down. He did his best to appear very friendly. He said in a rough attempt to speak her language. “Hello. My name is Officer Matthews of the London PD. May I ask what your name is.”

It wasn't perfect by any means. Some of his words were so badly mispronounced, but it was close enough that she could understand it. What was Serinina going to say? Was she could to say that she was a princess of a kingdom that no longer existed? Tell this officer that she was sent into the future? Serinina just told him her name, “My name is Serinina.”

“Why are you speaking that language,” Officer Matthews inquired.

Well, now she may have to reveal some uncomfortable facts that may reveal where or when she was front. Serinina replied, “This is the language we speak. We speak this where I am front. What is London?”

“London is this city. Where do you come from?” Officer Matthews asked.

“I came from Denaerk. It was so different.”

He thought Denaerk was all from ancient myths. But as the officer looked at this refined young girl wearing some sort of royal gown and a corset, and that crown. Mathews seemed to think it was serious. Perhaps something strange was going on here. He asked the girl, “How old are you?”

“I am Fifteen?” Serinina replied innocently.

Matthews didn't want to see what would happen to this teenager in the child welfare system when she hardly even able to speak their language. If what Serinina told him was true, and he suspected it was true. Serinina lived in a culture over a thousand years ago. How she got here was irrelevant. Matthews felt responsible for Serinina now and took her hand. “I will help you in this new world. Let me sign out, and we can go to my place. You can see my son. He is a great boy. I will help you get caught up, and I will find someone to teach you our language.”

Matthews filed some paperwork with his attorney to get the process started to become Sarrinina's guardian, and they went back to his place.

Then Matthews asked, “I notice that blade you have hidden inside of your belt. No one will hurt you.”

“It is a special blade that was given to me by a family I trained with,” Serinina replied. “It is a precious heirloom.

They sat at the kitchen table, and Matthews explained, “This is what we would call a dining room. There is also a kitchen and a stove. I think I understand where you are from Serinina. Denaerk existed over a thousand years ago. I can guess you are from there. So can you tell me about yourself? I will understand anything.” Matthews said.

Serinina looked at him and understood that this man would believe her. There was something strange about him. Serinina then said, “My name is Princess Serinina. My life and my crown were stolen by my cruel elder sister, and I was the heir. She tried to force me into a life where I was abused and ignored.”

Comprehension dawned on Matthews as his eyes widened. He nearly shouted, “Oh my god, this can't be true. I thought that was legend too. So you are the boy princess Sereinina who had his crown stolen by his elder sister, and was turned into a girl.”

All of the blood drained from Serininas face. A tear rolled down her cheek. “How can you know about that? I wanted to escape that.”

“You have escaped,” Matthews replied. “But I am a shoulder and read many of the texts from our ancient kingdoms, and much of it is thought to be myths. It seems that some of those stories are true. Let me show you.”

Matthews went to one of his bookshelves and took an old book out and laid it on the table. The book seemed to be written in the language she spoke. Matthews said, “This is a book from roughly about fifty years after the Saxons landed. It is written in old English and explains some of what happened to your family.”

The title was humiliating enough. It was titled, “The tale of the boy princess and her adventures as Serinina.”

Her face turned purple. She read through the first page, and it said, “By Patinia.” She tightened her fist as she learned what her sister wrote about her roughly fifty years after she left. Much of it was true, and Patinia was being honest in this book. Patinia also seemed to have some sorrow over what she did. She admits that she was very cruel. But Serinina didn't need her life's story reread to her. So she skipped to the end where she saw to her amazement. There were a few pages written in an even older language.

This ancient text was written in the language of the Goddess Prognita. No one knew what this meant, but the publishers making modern versions were under instructions to include this incomprehensible part in the end. This seemed to be in Patinia's own handwriting. It had been copied down through the ages, but it looked clear enough.

“I hope you will read this sometime in the future, my brother. As you know, I don't know this language, and I have had extensive help from the Professor to help me write this. I want you to know that I am sorry. Prince Serin. I have forbidden your name out of cruelty. I will use it one last time in hopes you will someday read this. I apologize for everything. I was wrong. What was supposed to be a great liberation turned into a nightmare for you. You were right to deny us our liberation after what I did. We could have worked together. The Saxons came months after you left. We had nothing left to fight them with. They Saxons overran everything. They took us as slaves. I, the King of the land, was reduced to a sex slave. He didn't even want me as a wife. I was made into a prostitute as you said he would. This must make you very happy.”

serinina smiled.

“I have no idea how many men have had laying with me. I have delivered dozens of children and had them all taken from me. I guess it serves me right after what I did. I should have loved and guided my new sister. But I was cruel. Power and a spiteful vengeance filled my heart after a lifetime of having no voice or control over my life. Suddenly getting it all and seeing you placed as a princess that I lived. I enjoyed it too much, but it filled you with righteous anger that you were right to unleash. Now, none of that matters. Our kingdom is in ruins, our people are slaughtered and enslaved. Our palace was burnt. Bucket was forced into a marriage, actonia was burnt. Celestia was burnt, the rule of men was reestablished.”

“To my beloved brother, I am very sorry for this, Serin.” Serinina's eyes misted up.

What Sarinina kept studying about what happened after she left. The Goddess was never restored in her time. It seemed that not long after she left, the nation was subjected to various invasions from the Jutes, Saxons and then the Anglos came and established their kingdoms. Eventually, the great isles would become the United Kingdom

Chapter 2

The forcibly transformed medieval boy princess struggles to adjust to life in our time
She has been adopted by a loving family and struggles to learn modern english and adjust to life as a modern girl

Matthew had just spent the last two hours doing his best to teach Serinina a new language. His frustration had just about reached his limit.

Sereinina was struggling, and he could tell she was doing her best. They made some progress, but he realized he was no teacher. This was not his specialty. He had almost no patience with teaching, which was why he had chosen to be a cop and not a school teacher. But he couldn't be too hard on himself. The fact that Serinina had made some progress to learning modern English was something. She learned to understand and speak some basic words and sentences. She was probably at a two to three-year-olds language skills, which was better than nothing. But this was more of a statement to Serininas brilliance than his ability at teaching kids.

Matthew knew he would have to hire a tutor for her. He could not teach a medieval girl modern english on his own. And there would be much more that needed to be done. Serinina needed to dress more appropriately. She would no longer need to wear that stupid corset. People would think Serinina just came from a Renaissance fair. Matthew made a call to the only woman he knew that could handle this. Then Matthew figured this woman would be shocked.

He made a brief call to his friend Sharon and asked her and her daughter Aethel to help. They studied the occult and spoke Serininas language within their clan. They may be able to help her, and Aethel goes to public school so they should be able to help her.

That was the moment he returned to the living room and saw Serinina doing some drills with her wicked looking jewel ten-inch adorned blade. He smiled wickedly and got a stupid idea.

But Matthew did have a brain and picked out two dull practice blades and handed one of them to Serinina and asked, “Do you want to try me?”

Matthew had spent some time in the special forces when he was younger, so he figured there was a slight chance he could hold his own against her. Maybe.

Serinina took one of the practice blades and squared off against Matthew, saying, “Sure, I would love to.”

Matthew got into a combat stance holding the blade close to his body the way he was taught in the service.

Then he said to Serinina, “You're going to kick my ass; aren’t you?” Matthew didn't care if she kicked his ass. He wouldn't feel emasculated by being defeated badly by a fifteen-year-old girl that had as extensive combat training as she had. There was no shame in this at all.

Serinina smiled sweetly to him, “It’s likely. No one in my old world could beat me in the blade. I was the best there was, and that's why the assassins forged me this blade with their finest metal they had, as a family heirloom to keep. I almost single handily routed my sister's entire army with the blade.”

Matthew laughed and said, “I don’t stand a chance.” He shook his head in wonder.

He lunged at her trying to get to her neck. Serinina effortlessly parred the swing and redirected his lung directly into the ground. He was thrown over and found himself on his back, staring up into her smiling face as she held her blade to his throat.

“That was very stupid,” Matthew laughed. No more wild lunges. Wild lunges were only for use against inexperienced fighters that didn’t know how to counter them. Lunges could quickly end a fight if they had no experience against it. Serinina clearly had experience. He just wanted to see how good Serinina was. Matthew had his answer.

Matthew held back this time. He executed carefully controlled strikes that would not be as easy to redirect. This was how to fight a trained fighter. Serinina held back, waiting for an opening, but Matthew was not going to give her any opportunities to exploit this time.

Then Serinina felt tired of playing with her victim and went in with an impossibly quick series of feints. Matthew was bewildered and didn't know what had happened. Serrinina shot in faking a series of strikes to his face and chest. Then she grabbed his wrist, and Matthew cried out in pain as she twisted and locked his arm. Serinina backed away, holding Matthews's blade in her hand, smiling at him.

Matthew held his injured wrists and cursed loudly. “What in the hell did you do?”

“I disarmed your knife.” Serinina looked afraid, “I am sorry. I didn't mean to be so rough, are you alright?”

Matthew held his wrist, “I think it's just sprained a little. I thought I was doing well against you, and you just chose the time to end it. Damn you are good, I am alright Serinina. How did you do that?”

“My training was extensive,” Serinina replied. “I had years of training with the most lethal assassins in the entire world. I had a single-minded goal to kill my sister all that time. How do you think I defeated an entire army of swordsmen and pikemen my sister sent. But please don’t feel bad.” The girl pleaded.

“I don’t, I was just shocked at how quickly you did that. I figured I was holding my own, and you just chose the time to end it. I knew I didn’t stand a chance in hell against you. Perhaps you can teach me how you did that.”

“I would be happy to.” Serinina smiled so sweetly. “I am happy I found you.”

Then the door opened, and a young boy walked in. Serinina heard Matthew shout, “Hi Adam. Welcome back.”

Serinina looked at the boy who seemed to be no older than ten. The boy looked a lot like she looked at ten. Matthew looked at the girl and said, “That is my son Adam. He just turned ten, and he does not know your language.”

The small boy with dark hair walked up to Serinina and smiled such a sweet boyish smile. “Dad told me that you are my new big sis. Welcome, what is her name again, Dad?” He asked, unsure, “I forgot.”

“Her name is Serinina.”

“Hi, Serinina.” Adam quipped.

Serinina looked down at this small defenseless boy and suddenly felt a strong protective instinct kick in. She felt a powerful and uncontrollable need to protect and love this young child. She was the older sister now, and it was her job to protect and love her younger brother. It wasn't her job to exploit him or use him for some end. She could never feel envy for the boy's relationship with his father. That was just a natural thing for a father to feel more close with his son than his daughter, and she could never feel envy or hatred over that fact. She knew in her heart that Matthew would also love and protect her.

Ghostly memories of Patinia filled her memories. Her elder sister's cruel look of envy and hatred as she glared down at him wearing his crown, now suddenly having achieved everything she ever wanted at his expense. Then her loud shout to the crowd, “There is no longer a male heir. Serin is now female, and she is my younger sister. I am the rightful heir.”

Then Serinina remembered all of the times she mocked and mistreated her. All of the cruelty and humiliation patinia inflicted on her after turning HIM female and mocking her for being her new sex. This was something she would never do to this boy. She was going to make sure she was the greatest older sister this boy could ever want.

Serinina struggled with the modern language and said poorly to the young boy looking up at her, “Thank you, Adam.” It was now her job to protect him and make sure nothing would ever hurt this boy. Serinina reached out and wrapped her arms around Adam. She pulled the boy tightly into her embrace. “You are my new little brother. I love you, Adam.” She whispered into his ear.

The boy struggled in the sudden unexpected tight embrace from this strange older girl. The girl whispered in his ear that she loved him. He felt the truth to that statement. Serinina let him go and knelt down to his face and took his hand. She said in his language, “I will protect you.” Her eyes showed him that she was serious. She did feel so much love toward him.“From what,” The boy replied, unsure.

Serinina looked at Matthew and said in old English, “Tell Adam its an older siblings job to protect and love the younger.”

Matthew laughed, knowing where this sudden protectiveness was coming from. He turned to his son and replied, “Serinina feels it's her job to protect you because she is the older sister.”

The boy shrugged. This was weird. “Um, thanks, sis.” Then he went to his room and laid on his bed.

“Did I scare him?” Serinina asked.

“Maybe just a little. But Adam is brilliant and loving, and I think he will be glad he has such a protective older sister,” replied Matthew. “I understand this is coming from the way your Patinea treated you. But you don’t have to answer for that.”

“I’m not answering for that,” Serinina replied. “I simply want to protect my new family. I will do my duty.”

Matthew laughed. But he understood that in this girl's royal family, the duty to family was critical. It was above any other personal concern. Which was what led to what happened to Serin. It was felt that Serin failed his duty, and they wanted to punish him and make sure his failure didn't affect them. Serin failed in nothing. He was just young and facing the death of his father, and the sudden realization that the entire weight of the Kingdom now laid on his shoulders. His family should have rallied to help him cope with it. But they betrayed him. Matthew replied, “You are a child, your only duty is to learn all you can and be a good kid. It's my job to protect Adam. I am glad you are feeling the way you do. But that’s my duty. And unlike your dad Gerik. I will fulfill my duty to my son and my duty to you.”

Serinina unexpectedly leaped into Matthews's arms.

Matthew embraced Seriina and felt slightly disturbed by this girl's overly emotional reactions to the slightest show of affection. But then he remembered how this girl was treated by her own family and how starved she must have felt for any affection at all. So this wasn't so disturbing after all. Serinina really needed someone to show that they cared for her.

“serinina,
I need to tell you something. And don't worry, there's nothing bad, so don't get alarmed.” Matthew carefully explained.

Serinina looked up at Matthew and replied, “Okay. I won't get alarmed. What?”

“I realized how bad I am at teaching,” He explained. “This morning, when I was trying to teach you English. So, I found some people that I think can help you must better than I could. They are teachers, but they are also something more.” Matthew explained and waited for her to understand.

“More, what are they?” Serinina inquired, feeling so confused.

“Well,” Matthew said, trying to find the right words in her language and his to explain. “Not to put it lightly. I may as well say it. This is a mother and daughter. And they come from a clan of witches. They call themselves witches. But they really aren't. They study many of the old world arts, and they call themselves Wiccans, and they come from a large family that they tend to call themselves gypsies too. But these are two witches.”

Serinina smiled a little. “There are witches here too? How are they treated?”

“They are much different than they were in your world,” Matthew explained. “We accept them. Their worship isn't illegal. They aren't hunted. And to be truthful, most people don't even believe they have any power at all.”

Serinina scoffed. “That's not much different. We didn't believe in them either unless you were in the Hekatin. I grew up as a boy thinking all of those stories and prophecies were children's tales. That came back to bite me.” She said sarcastically. “The stories were true. And they changed me. So most people don't believe in them, but they aren't hunted, and their worship isn't illegal. What do they really do?”

“Not much really,” Matthew replied. “They read cards, tell us our future, and it's all so vague. Most people laugh at what Wiccans say they can do. But they know your language, and they say they know about your world. They want to keep the old world alive. But, I think facing someone like you, you may think they are just a joke. Please don't offend them.”

“DO you believe I am a witch?” Serinina asked, hopefully.

“I don't know,” Matthew said. “Your story says you are, can you explain that part.”

“I am a very powerful witch,” Serinina said. “I started studying with the Hekatin three or so months after my transformation into a girl. I started studying after the prompting of one of the male wizards of the war god mars. I was asking him to transform me back, but he said body transformations were way beyond what they could do. My only hope was to become a witch and study the Hekatin. So I did, and I found I had a skill for it all. I advanced very rapidly in the arts, and I became a master at it. My power far exceeded even the most powerful witches.”

“And what could you do?” Matthew inquired, wondering.

“A lot of things. For starters, I opened a portal from the sixth century to now and went through. I escaped the invasions and the witch hunters of the Saxons. And I can do so much more. Do you want to see?”

“Sure,” Matthew replied. Really wondering what this girl could do.

Serinina focused, and she still felt the power of the goddess in this world. She was still entombed. Serinina focused and reached for the power. Then she sang a phrase in the ancient language of the goddess and showed Matthew. Her golden power flowed through her body from her hair, which sparkled and snapped in the air down her arms to her fingertips. Her entire body surged with immense power. Then serinina reached out and pushed out. A blast of wind hit Matthew and knocked him back. Then Serinina sang some more, and a cup of water appeared in her hands, and she drank. Serinina shut the power down and waited.

Matthew watched. He was so stunned. “I doubt any Wiccans can do that.” He said sarcastically. He smirked. “But that's so cool, Serinina.

It was sad that much of the arts of the old world have been lost. “And that's only a fraction of what I can do. This can make me stronger and faster than any man. This is why my sister as King could wear heavy armor and handle a huge two-handed great sword at seventeen and eighteen, and fight with the army. Otherwise, there wasn’t much of a chance. It really hurt me when she did that and mocked me for not being able to handle that sword she took from me. I had not studied yet. I didn’t study until she went on her campaign against the Ansley's. She was so cruel to me.” Serinina felt a tear run down her cheek.

There was a knock at the door and Matthews's eyebrow questioning at Serinina, and he said, “One of those duties are coming up. Let's go meet your guests.”

Matthew led Serinina to the door, and he opened it. An older woman and a younger girl that was about Serininas age were revealed as the door was opened.

These women looked very different from the others he had seen in this society. The older woman wore a traditional flowing gown, much like she was dressed in, and she had a corset on. Her hair was seriously done, and her face wore a heavy coat of makeup to make her look stern and authoritative. The attention this older woman paid to detail was something rare. The younger girl didn't have a corset on, but her hair was styled and curled and had the same look in her face.

Matthew introduced the ladies in her language, “Serinina, this is Sharon and her daughter Aethel. They are what we call mystics in the old world arts. The religion they follow is mostly dead in today's world. But they do what they can to keep it alive.”

Serinina saw that the older woman was wearing a gold pendant on Sharon's neck. The pendent had some script in the language of the goddess. Serinina's eyebrow rose in excitement. She said, “The Hekatin exists in this time?”

The woman asked, confused, “What is she talking about?”

“You are Hekatin,” Serinina explained, hoping they understood. “Our goddess Prognita, You wear her pendant on your neck. Prognita is her name in her language.”

Sharon looked more confused than ever. “I don’t know what she is talking about. This is the pendant of our family, and we really don’t know what these symbols mean. And I never heard of the Hekatin.”

Serinina looked very sad. These were pretenders, and they had no clue about the goddess, or the religion they are espousing. But perhaps that was a starting point. At least they knew her language exists. “my adopted father says you can help me adapt to live in today's world?”

“Yes,” Matthew replied. “These know your language, and they know ours, they will help you adapt. They know your ancient arts so I guessed they could help you.”

Serinina looked doubtful. They didn’t know anything about the ancient arts. The women just liked to think they did. Perhaps she could teach Sharon the real arts. Serinina smiled. “Good, I know I need help.”

Aethel was holding a large bag of clothes. “These clothes are for you, Serinina. Let's get you out of that corset and gown and get you dressed like this century teenager, and then we can go shopping to get you new clothes. Follow me, show me your bedroom.”

Serinina led Aethel into her bedroom. Aethel began unlacing the heavy gown and helped her take it off. Then she began unlacing tight corset. Aethel said as she unlaced Serininas corset. “Your dad told me you came from a different time when women wore shit like this. So I am not surprised. I can't believe you all wore this.”

“It was the rules, we were forced to wear this,” Serinina said sadly. “We had no choice. Some women refused if they were powerful enough to get away with it. But they had to be powerful enough that no one dared question them. My sister, who took the crown. The rest of us were laced in these crushing corsets and gowns we could hardly move in.”

“You don’t have to wear this anymore. Here are some clothes for you to wear. Just choose what you want to put on.”

Serinina took the clothes out of the bag and examined them all. There were jean skirts, tight-fitting jeans, tops and T-shirts, and various undergarments that were alien to Serinina. Almost everything was foreign to her.

She held up a tiny pair of cotton panties and asked, “What is this?”

“Those are underwear, you silly,” Aethel replied with a smile. “I know you are used to these thick bloomers, or you wear nothing at all. But this is what we wear today.”

Then Serinina darkened into an embarrassing shade of red. “They are pretty, but we often wear those thick bloomers, so we don't get messy. What do you do in today's world when you get your monthly visit from the red queen.”

Aethel took a small package from her purse held it up for Serinina. “then we use these.” Aethel held it up and gave it to Serinina. “So we don’t have to worry about it. I know you are used to those huge rags you had to use. We have advanced. Is it your time now?”

Serinina shook her head, “Should be another week, but I didn't understand why you wear stuff so tight. Even when Patinea started wearing pants, she had to watch it. How do those tiny things work.”

Aethel showed Serinina the small packaged applicator and unwrapped it and showed her a small cylindrical tube. “This is called a tampon. It is very absorbent, and this is what we use today. You see, we just insert it into us, and it absorbs the flow. We have to replace it every hour or every few hours, depending on how heavy it is that day. You can get them at any store. I will show you." And Aethel demonstrated how to use the tampon and Serinina understood. Then Aethel asked, "So how did you deal with it in your time?"

Serinina made a face. It was such a horror at first she tried to forget. "It was a devastating thing that I wasn't prepared for at all."

Athel knew but didn't want to reveal what she knew. She simply nodded and replied, "I can imagine how it was for you."

Serinina didnt know how to reply to that. She began to suspect that Aethel knew. But she continued, "We simply put blood moss in our underwear to adsorb it all. Then I was shown how to put some spices or herbs in a satchel and put in between my cleavage to mask the odor."

Aethel made a face, "You put Moss in your underwear?"

"Yes, thats how we dealt with it."

Now let's find something for you to put on.”

Serinina held a sexy white lacy pushup bra and figured how to put it on. She struggled to hook the back in. “These feels so much different than the corset, but I still feel its support.” Serinina chose a pair of hip-hugging skinny jeans and a colorful teeshirt.

Serinina finished her new look with a pair of two-inch pink pumps and walked down the steps to meet her father.

He giggled and said, “You no longer look like you came from the sixth century.”

Sharon said,” Let's get the sixth centuries teenager this centuries wardrobe. I will pay for her. Let's show her what a mall is.”

Sharon took the two younger girls into her car, and they took off to the nearest mall.

Aethel was too curious for her nature and just had to ask. “Serinina. I am very interested. Were you really a boy?” She just didn’t believe it at all.

“How could I be a boy? Who told you that? Did Matthew tell you,” Serinina couldn’t believe he would betray her like that?

Aethel shook her head, “No, he just said you were from another time. He told us your name, and we know stuff from the old world. We know the name Serinina. It is very famous, and that was the name of the famous and powerful boy princess. And since you are here, I want to know, were you a boy that was changed into a girl?”

Why did this keep coming up? Serinina was starting to get very frustrated. And there was the fact that Aethel seemed very fascinated by the possibility that she used to be a boy that was forced and transformed against his will. “Yes,” Serinina admitted. “I used to be a boy. Does this amuse you, Aethel? I thought you were going to help me, not mock me.” She said acidly.

“Yes, I will help you, Serinina,” Athel replied defensively. “I want us to be friends. It does amuse me.” Aethel admitted. “And I don't know how such a thing can be possible. Mother, can you imagine a witch having such a power?”

Sharon replied, “No, never. These witches were dealing with powers far beyond anything we can ever imagine. I don't see how it is possible at all.”

“You don't even know the ancient language,” Serinina told them. “You don't even know the name of the goddess even if you are wearing it on your neck. This lack of knowledge is something we are going to have to fix, and I am just the girl to do it.”

“We would welcome your help,” Sharon told Serinina. “We have a small school in our clan where we help and teach younger kids in the art of witchcraft.”

“You,” Sarinina said doubtfully. “You, actually….have a school…...to teach witchcraft.” Serinina couldn't keep the smile off her face.

“Yes, to teach the girls in our clan.”

Serinina began laughing uncontrollably. “You all have a school, oh my goddess this is funny. Id love to see what Falconet would think if she could see what you all teach, what do you teach them?”

Sharon started to feel insulted by Sderininas laughing. “Cards, tarot, astrology, and some of the mind things we do like to predict the future for people, or things like that.”

Serinina got control of herself. “I am sorry this is just so funny. Have any of you heard of the ritual of feminine power?”

“No, what is that,” both women asked.

“Oh my goddess, prognita save me. I really have my work cut out for me now. I went to school to learn witchcraft. It was a fight to get in. They still wanted to think of me as a boy when I wasn’t. The ritual was always the first step. Then we had to learn about the power that flowed around. We learned about the starts, their names, and the constellations. It was mind-numbingly boring, but we had to learn it because that's where the power flowed from. Then we learned about the goddess, the language she gave us, and all of that. Once we get done at this mall you talk about, we will go back, and I will show you what real power is. And then you can get started helping me learn about our culture. And I will try to teach you about the old ways.”

Then Aethel said, “And I want you to tell me all about how you were a boy and what all happened.”

“No,” Serinina replied. “Please, I really don't want to think about it. Aethel, many girls, enjoyed what happened to me. It was so amusing to them, and fascinating that a boy could be forced to live their life and suffer what they suffered.”

“Suffer,” Aethel replied doubtfully, “How is this suffering?”

Sharon spoke up, “Aethel, you read Patineas book and didn't you read the part where she describes the culture she was raised in. The priests, the hunters, the laws, and restrictions imposed on women in that time? Did you miss it all?”

“And did you forget me saying we were forced to wear that corset, there were many restrictions, and we were punished if we violated them. Well, not me, I lived as a boy in that culture, I was changed, and Patinea took control and destroyed all of those old laws. But she still had them placed on me after I was changed by royal decree. Those were no longer laws for every girl as those decrees were only for me, to show me what how they lived. The girls loved it.”

“Serinina,” Aethel said sadly, “It does not amuse me. Your story made me very sad,but I am curious about it all. Patinea made me very angry when she described what she did to you. She must have also felt her sex was suffering. But even in those harsh conditions, I really doubt many females felt their sex was a suffering. Sure, you did. She did her best to write some parts from your point of view, and you were very sad. I simply want to know, and I don't want to insult you.”

“Thank you,” Serinnia replied. Then they pulled into a large mall and got out of the car. Sharon told the two teens, “Let's go to Khols, Serinina should be able to find some things there, and then we can go to the more exclusive places. You will see what we mean.”

“What kinds of girl are you? And we will find the clothes for you.” Sharon asked Serinina.

A tear ran down her face as she whimpered. “No one ever asked me that before. I was simply told what kind of girl I was to be and forced into it. I was to be a quiet, submissive girl living in my big sister's shadow, always submissive and no threat.”

Sharon laughed, “That was her big mistake. No one can tell a girl how to live. Force and intimidation can only work so far, but we want to find our own way. When she tried to make you into the most harmless submissive girl she could, she was abusing you. She should have known that was a mistake, and it would backfire in her face just like when you and your father tried to force her into a role she hated. Women need the freedom to find our own way, so do you want pretty skirts and dresses or jeans?”

serinina headed for the pretty dresses and giggled. “I like dresses now. Let's go find some gorgeous dresses. But why are some of them so tight?”

“We like to show our curves these days,” Aethel replied. “It's not illegal anymore, and there are no hunters. Are those what you want to wear?”

“Yeah, can I try some of them on?”

They got Serinina measured and found the appropriate size of dress for her. She wanted a very tight body-hugging dress, and she went into the dressing room. Aethel helped her into the dress and walked out. Sharon agreed, and Serinina went in to remove it.

The Sharon said, “You can have it. Now let's find some better clothes for every day, and for school. That is a gown you wear for like a date, or a party.”

Serinina found some regular skirts girls wore and some hip-hugging jeans and put them in. She got some nice tops to wear.

Then Serinina was measured for a bra. Sharon knew Serinina was going to be big. Even the descriptions in the book described how difficult it was carrying that extra weight. The breasts were so large they burst through his boy's top during the initial transformation. And many parts of her book described her difficulty adapting to having such enormous breasts.

And Serinina standing there, they knew she was huge. The woman took Serinina into a private cubicle and had her remove her top. Then she began measuring her. It was no surprise when the woman said, “Serinina is a thirty-two f.”

It was going to be difficult finding bras in that size. Many stores carried sizes A through D. Two D if they were lucky.

But Serinina was lucky that day, there were a few bras for that size. There weren't many, and none of the really sexy pushup bras girls liked to wear. Serinina was very sad about that.

But they loaded the cart with undergarments and then found the shoes.

They had about got Serinina a full wardrobe for a modern girl. Serinina even insisted on a pair of five-inch stilettoes.

The women loaded the trunk and drove off. “There shouldn't be anyone at our place right now, let's take Serinina there so she can show us what she can really do.”

Serinina agreed, but she was still doubtful if she could pull any of this off. Sharon took them to a small house outside of the town, and it was mostly empty now.

Serinina went into the small empty building. “The girls usually come in the morning. I am still doubtful about all of this Serinina.”

“Okay,” Serinina replied and started signing a chant in the language of the goddess. Aethel and Sharon watched as the golden power began flowing through the girl. Her hair sparked as the energy flowed through her to her fingertips. Then Serinina walked outside and blew a tree over with a massive blast of wind she sent out of her hand. Then she made it rain for a few brief minutes.

Sharon said sarcastically, “With this kind of power, I have little doubt a group of women together could fully transform a boy. Serinina, I am so sorry they felt it was acceptable. This is why those men feared such power returning to the world. And they were proven right to fear it. I am not sure if this power belongs to this world Serinina. It destroyed your life, are you really sure you want to reintroduce it into today's world.”

Chapter 3

Serinina was back home wearing her pants and top again. She had just remembered that she had not been allowed to wear pants in over a thousand years. Since the humiliating and traumatic coronation that her sister stole from her, and from then on, forced her to wear dresses. She had not been allowed pants. This was the first time she wore pants again.

But her mind was consumed by the magic debate now. She told Sharon that she did indeed want to reintroduce magic into this world. Serinina disagreed with Sharon that this power didn't belong in the world. But there had to be some way to even the score. If only one sex had this power, it tilted society too much in that direction and made the other side helpless and angry. Serinina felt it

Serinina wanted men also to have the power, and then she thought of Adam. Was such a thing possible? This was something that she was going to have to find out. She didn’t want to frighten the boy in any way, and she swore she would never hurt him. And she also vowed never to use him. She also wanted to ensure that no one would ever use him, and Serinina has personal experience with women who were so vindictive and hateful with magic that they had no qualms over destroying an innocent boy. If she was going to reintroduce real magic to the world, she wanted to ensure the men she loved were protected. She had to see if there was any way she could grant a boy this power first.

Then there was another thing to consider. This was a feminine power, and only by strengthening Serininas connection to her femininity allowed her to unleash the power. She had to totally surrender her masculinity to use the power. The boys who were granted this power had to use their femininity to unlock it. This was unacceptable. She wanted to see Adam grow up to be a strong man. He shouldn't have to surrender it to be granted the power to protect himself. But now she had a problem. That was the way this power worked. She was now thinking of trying to alter the very nature of this magic itself so a boy could unleash it without surrendering his masculinity. How was this possible? Was it even possible

Then Serinina determined that if this were not possible, she would not reintroduce magic into today's society. Serinina would refuse to teach it unless she could teach it to boys.

This would require a lot of study on her part. And since she could no longer visit the great Library of Guanether anymore. Serinina had to think about what she already knew, and she was lucky she had such an impressive memory.

So Serinina spent the better part of the evening just going though what she already knew about the nature of this power. There had to be a way to do what she wanted. But then she began to form an idea in her head. She needed many people to help her with this, so Serinina started to make her plans.

Xxxxxxx

Aanya had been called to Patineas office this morning while she was preparing for the day. SO she got herself dressed and was waiting outside of the King's personal office. She was remembering all of the times she had done this with her husband, Gerric, long ago.

Then she started remembering how this had all happened. None of this was supposed to happen this time. But first, Patinea had killed her adoptive family and allied with the darkness to retake the throne. Edwyn was on the throne. Serin was supposed to be his ally to repel the attack, but Serin now returned to Serinina had turned at the last moment and took her army to Patinea. It must have really angered her, but the last thing Serinina wanted to do was ally with her sister. And that was a sight to behold as the two marched on the capital.

But the one person Serinina hated more than her sister at the time was the Goddess herself. Edwyn was the son of the Goddess, and that was who she blamed for the destruction of her entire life. She swore never to see the Goddess ever be restored. So the two sisters allied and marched on the capital together under Lilith. They destroyed Edwyn's army and Serinina, installed Patinea as the King once again. Serinina had an ace to pull, and she turned on Lilith now that Lilith was no longer of any use. Serinina used her power and battled Lilith, and finally destroyed her once and for all. Beings of Liliths power cant really be destroyed, but she was sent back to her own realm.

Patinea had returned to the religion of the Goddess much to Serinina's anger. Aanya was there to hear Serininas very stern warning to Patinea not to wast her forces on the priests. Serinina said the Goddess must never be released to the land, and she would never allow it. Patinea was always so headstrong and refused to listen. She took her army up to the mountain to try to retake the final fortress of the priests.

And they were all shocked to see Serinina there alone, outside of the refortified walls adorned in glorious shimmering armor that rivaled Patineas armor and holding a giant massive sword in her hand. Serinina wasn't there as her sister's ally now. She was there to fight for the priests and how she accomplished that was beyond Aanyas understanding. Serinina was wearing a cruel bloodlust expression on her face. But it was amazing and horrifying to see Serinina there singlehandedly destroying what was left of the royal army. And to their horror, Serinnia flew the flag of Denae on top of the final fortress. The symbol of her family and the last King. And the final heir to the family. The sun hawk flying over the fortress, and she was there as a woman totally destroying Patinea's army. None of Patinea's army got close to her. Her stricks were so lightning fast. And she used her power to throw or crush anyone else. The army was destroyed and forced to retreat.

And now here they stood. The kingdom's army was broken.

The door opened, and Aanya was summoned in, and Aanya walked through to see a defeated and crushed Patinea.

She signed, ” Mother, what am I supposed to do now? I even have Actonia. But she is no use without her power. I have no money, no resources to raise another army. And we know what is coming.”

Actonia, without her power, wasn't of much use. But she said, strained and defeated. “I saw so many visions at that time. I could hardly comprehend many of them, but we knew it was along shot, but it was the only one at the time. But transforming Serin was a long shot, and there were only a few outcomes in which she could be happy as a girl. She was unhappy in most of them. And she was this angry in some of them, and it turned into a disaster in which she would do anything to destroy us. That's the one that happened. I didn't know it at the time, but we weren't supposed to force and hurt her. She was supposed to find her own way, and she would find her way to us. Serin was a good soul who always wanted to do what was right. But forcing and crushing her the way we did, turned her against us, and against the Goddess. We were never supposed to do that. But in that outcome, she was still seen to be happy in the end, but we would have been different. The Goddess had a great reward for Serin, but not so much for us for what we did. What we were supposed to do was work together with Serin to restore the Goddess. I didn’t know that Serin's assistance was vital to restore the Goddess. That's something I never knew. I always saw the final son and heir of the Denae throne as our enemy we had to crush, so he was never a threat. That was our big mistake.”

Then suddenly, Aanya began thrashing around her chair, and gagging. Patinea thought Serinina was gone. But it seemed that whenever people started choking out of no where, Serinina was there causing it. She found that out fast when all of her guards died one day. Serin returning to Serinina was a political statement to her that day. She had returned to darkness, this was a life imposed on her against her will. And this was what she was going to be to spite and destroy the goddess/ the form the Goddess gave her was the form she was going to use to spite, and defeat the Goddess.

Xxxxx

Serinina had found the answer and decided to make contact once more with her sister and her family though time. Serinina had given Patinea the orb and the gems she could use to make contact whenever it was needed. So she placed another orb in front of her and chanted the spell in the ancient language and focused her mind on the orb, and it made contact with the other orb from before the invasion. She felt Patinea talking with her mother, Aanya in the king's office. So then Serinina focused on Aanya's presence, and created a ring around her mother's throat and tightened her fist. She felt Aanya choking wildly. Then she made her presence known and created a projection of her enlarged face above the Desk. Serinina had her princess crown over her head. She spoke to them, “Send Aanya out. I have no interest in a woman who felt so little concern for the welfare of her son; she was willing to sacrifice him. Get her out of my sight now!”

The choking ceased, and Aanya was ushered out in tears.

Then Serinina mocked, “I can see you have trouble arent you. I warned you against sending what remained of your army to that fortress. You refused to listen. You have no options left. This is the end.”

“So are you here to mock us,” Patinea said in anger.

“A little. We could have worked together, that's how it was supposed to be, wasn't it Actonia?” Serinina said.

“Yes, none of us knew it, but that's how it was supposed to be. I know what we were meant to do, and I am so sorry for what we did.” Actonia said sadly. “We betrayed our own ideals in turning you and then abusing you. None of us knew that you would turn to us if we let you find your own way. It never occurred to us, but we betrayed the Goddess and our ideals in abusing you as a woman. Serinina, did you know
that the Goddess had an enormous reward in store for you for your loyalty, if you remained with us even after all of our abuse? Do you have any idea what she was going to bestow on you?”

“No,” Serinina stated. “And I don't care either. She did this to me and expected me to be happy. I don't know how you ever saw me happy as a woman after everything you all did. How could I ever have been happy after all of the abuse and suffering you inflicted. Actonia, that's so stupid. The Goddess cursed me, and cursed my entire life.”

“No, she didn't,” Actonia said firmly. “That was us, not the Goddess. Turning you was the will of the Goddess, but you could have been happy if it wasn't for our anger we inflicted on you. We should never have done that, and then you would have found your way to happiness. You still could have, but it was much less likely after what we did. But, Patinea was still going to be King. But it wasn't going to mean much after the Goddess was restored, and her new order began being implemented across the world. And that was going to be your duty. You were going to be in charge of the efforts to restore the goddess rule across the world. Something like the emperor. Even Patinea was going to have to kneel toward you. I bet you didn't know that did ya. I saw it. But you turned on her, ensuring she was never going to rise. And you left us at a critical point. You still could have helped and resisted the Saxons. But you abandoned us. Now we have no hope. Why have you contacted us?”

“I plan on restoring the Goddess. I have gathered supporters, and I will be in charge.”

“Are you serious,” Actonia inquired doubtfully.

“Yes, I still feel her presence after over a thousand years. But, I need some information, and I think it is possible. Can boys have the power of the Goddess?”

“I don't see how,” Actonia replied.

“I believe they can, and I think I have found a way and not what I did with your brother, or as myself as Serin using my feminine side. I believe a man can do it using his masculinity. In the beginning, I found that the Goddess had male followers and men in high positions. But they were betrayed by the female followers who forced the men out and subjugated them. All that resulted in was the Goddess turning on her followers, seeing the uprising and revolt that followed. And that was what was you were trying to do, and it doomed the first followers of the Goddess. The Goddess could not be restored in your time. None of you really believed in her ways of equality and justice. You were all unworthy. Especially you Actonia with your cruelty and brutality. And you Patinea, was more worthy in that you allowed men to serve in positions of power. But you brutalized me.”

Patinea was in tears, “I am sorry, Serinina, I know how wrong I was to do it now.”

“Its all too late for you. Your fate is sealed.”

“Where is my brother Jerric?” Actonia asked.

“I had him sent here so he would not be killed in the invasion. I think he's one of the sons of the gypsies. I will continue his training if I can find a way to train regular boys without requiring them to unleash their feminine force. And I think it's possible. Can you show me how to summon the Goddess, Actonia, please? I need to know.”

“That is very difficult, but here is what you need.” Then Actonia explained what kinds of stones and gems he needed and the spells to link them. Then how to purify the ground he was going to summon the Goddess on and the spell required to summon the Goddess.

“Thank you, Actonia. And I am still not sorry. None of you have any idea how bad you hurt me. I am not sorry at all.

The Actonia asked right before Serinina was going to cut contact, “I had one other reoccurring vision before you took my power. I had a vision of your image on walls and posters, and people were calling you the new Iron Lady. And you were wearing armor in those posters raising your fist. People there seemed to love you, and you were in some sort of election. They called you the Iron Lady. But what does that mean?”

Serinina shook her head, “I have no clue. But I have plans to make here. Thanks for helping me.”

That talk was useful, Serinina thought to herself. She still planned to unleash a lot of her anger at the goddess and demand answers once and for all. And the Goddess knew that Serinina was her final hope to be released.
Serinina made a few calls and then went into the living room where her father was sitting on his sofa.

Serinina approached and got Matthews's attention. “Can we talk for a few?” She asked

Matthew looked over at her. “Sure, I sense you are having a serious problem. Is it anything I can help you with?”

“No, but I want to tell you about it when the time is right. It is about the magic, and this is a big issue. Would you mind if I worked with Adam on it?”

Matthew got defensive, “Adam, why on him?”

“Its just something I want to know if it's possible. I don't even know if it's possible. I won't hurt him, I promise, I simply want to know.” Serinina pleaded. Matthew agreed and called the boy in.

Adam came walking into the living room, wondering why his father called him. He saw his adapted sister standing then and asked, “What did you want?”

“Serinina had something she wants to ask you. Do you mind?” Matthew asked his son.

The boy shrugged. “Sure, no problem. What's up?” He looked up at his older sister that he still wasn't sure about.

She had learned a lot more about the language they spoke here. Sharon was amazed at how quickly Serinina could pick things up. Serinina looked at Adam and said in his language, “Adam, there's something I need to know. And I want you to know something about me. Your dad said it's okay, and I will never hurt you. But, I am a witch.”

Adam laughed, “Witches aren't real.”

Serinina looked into Adams's eyes. She reached out with her mind to connect with his. She said nothing. Her mind locked with his, and she said into his mind, “Do you want to bet.”

Matthew heard nothing. Adam heard her speak directly into his mind, and he screamed in fear. He clung to his father when Serinina spoke more softly, “Please don't be afraid of me, Adam. I dearly love you, and I will never hurt you. This is simply the power that I have. I wanted you know. Please don't be afraid.”

Adam approached Serinina and said in his mind, “It was just a shock. Can you hear my thoughts too?”

Serinina roared, “Yes, I can. It's cool, isn't it.”

Then she looked at Matthew and said, “I have learned what I can. And I can bestow the gift to Adam. He doesn't have it, but I think I can, if it's okay with you, Matthew.”

Adam smiled at the thought of having this. Matthew was more hesitant. And he asked, “Why would you want to bestow it on Adam, what is this all about?”

“You know my history, you read it all.” Serinina pointed out. “And its dangerous for only one sex to have this. It makes the other sex helpless and angry. If I am going to reintroduce this power to this world after over a thousand years. I also want to teach boys to use it. Or I will refuse. I don't want boys like Adam to be helpless against girls who have it. I want boys to be able to defend themselves.”

“that makes sense. Okay, I will let you,” Matthew replied. “Adam, will you accept it?”

Adam shrugged. “Of course, thanks. What do I have to do.”

Serinina said, “Nothing really. It's up to me. So let me connect with you again.” Serinina knelt down to Adams's level and put her hands on both sides of the boy's face. She looked deeply into his eyes as she reached out with her mind to connect with his.

She said into Adams's mind, “Relax, I promise I will never hurt you. I am going to bestow a great gift to you. You only have to let me.”

“Okay,” The boy said with his mind. Serinina reached deeply into Adams's mind and saw everything. She saw his memories, she saw the love he was starting to form for Serinina. She saw the functions in his brain that controlled his thoughts, his movements, his memories, and his functions. Then she saw the space reserved for the spark that girls usually had. She focused on him hard and forced into that area within the back of his mind and began forming that spark in Adams's mind. It was a brilliant charge that she bestowed into his mind that created his connection with the Goddess in which she could channel her power into him. It was only the beginning. The rest would be up to him and her to teach him how. He cried out as the charge formed in his brain, allowing him to connect with the Goddess.He knew what it was and accepted it.

Matthew was concerned as Adam cried out in pain when Adam said gently, “Don't worry, she is only giving me this thing. I am accepting it, and it was a little painful having something put in my head.

“It is done,” Serinina said, amazed that she was able to bestow such a gift on anyone. But the problem was it was a feminine spark reserved for females. That was the only thing she knew. But once she learned more, she could help reform it into a male spark a boy could use. But she needed to have a talk with the Goddess for that. “Adam now has the power, and I can begin teaching him, but there is still a problem, and I want to have a big meeting for that. So I want you, Matthew, Adam, and I told Sharon we will be coming, and I want to see all of the Wiccan and their children. This is something I need to tell them all. And I need to get there.”

Matthew got them ready, and his children got into the car. They took off for Sharon's place. She owned a large manor built on in an area of twenty acres of forest and land. Serinina knew she was going to have to be strong in this.

She knew what she needed now as Matthew pulled his car into the driveway of Sharon's place and parked off to the side.

Serinina saw the families of the clan gathering and wondering why Sharon called them all there. But Serinina went into the forest to gather what she needed. She found the gems and the stones that she needed for the incantation she was going to do and then spent a few extra minutes purifying the stones and enchanting them with the power of the Goddess.

It was about time, so she went to the open field where the families were beginning to gather, and she selected an area and started the ritual.

The families saw her place the strange stones in a sort of circle around the chosen area. Then she knelt down and placed some of the other stones in and began chanting softly to purify the area of all corruption and evil. The people were wondering what she was really doing. They had no clue.

Then they were shocked when she began chanting louder in the ancient language, and they saw the stones glow and link with eachother to create a boundary around them for the Goddess to arrive when she was ready. It all connected directly to the spirit of the Goddess Prognita.

Everything was ready to begin. Calling the Goddess was for later. She needed to start this meeting that she called. So Serinina faced the people that had arrived. Jerric's new family had arrived. Serinina spoke, “Jerric, how are you doing in this time?” She spoke modern English now.

The boy's eyes rose and met Serinina. “I am doing well, thanks for asking Serinina. I can see you are still in a leadership position here. You were born for it. I was wondering how you were doing.”

Serinina held out her hand and asked, “Can you come to me, Jerric. I would like you to be with me when I speak to them. I have something important that I need to tell them.”

Jerric walked toward Serinina. They were roughly the same age, but Jerric was still very small and effeminate for a boy of fifteen. She whispered in Jerric's ear, “I am so sorry for what I did. I know I can never take it back.”

“It is alright,” Jerric replied. “I am still a boy, even if I am a small boy with some female attributes. It was all because of my sister. It was torture for her watching me grow in my power that she could no longer touch. And she met a fitting end, so I hear. I am glad you had me leave.”

Serinina turned to the crowd and spoke loudly. “Sharon and I had a major disagreement. I am a mighty witch, and so is Jerric under my personal instruction. And after I displayed my power, Sharon told me that the power did not belong in this world. I disagreed and planned on teaching this skill to children in your school. I went home that night and began planning on how to achieve that to make a new generation of real hekatin. But the more I considered it, the more I saw I would be creating a problem. And that problem is that this power I have is one only females can use.”

Serinina waited, and then said, “And I know you are thinking of Jerric here. Isn't he a boy. Well, he was a boy, much like I was. He was transformed by evil, and I had him transformed back. But the feminine power remained and allowed him to use it, if he was willing to connect with his feminine spirit. He was, and he is a powerful witch. But this is the core of my problem.”

The crowd just waited for Serinina to get to the point. Most of them knew about Serinina being the boy princess. “The problem is that I can only teach girls. This power only works with girls or feminine guys who have no hesitation in connecting with their feminine side to channel the power of our Goddess Prognita. And I am not willing to only give this power to girls. It will distort society and make boys helpless against it. The way it made me helpless against the power of the witches who wanted to destroy the innocent boy Serin was. So I am unwilling to create a new generation of witches if I cant empower boys the same way.”

Sharon said, “This was what I meant, and do you have a plan to solve it?”

But Jerric's new mother, Cynthia, asked him,” And since you claim to have this power, can you show us any of it?” She asked in a voice full of doubt.

Serinina sweetly smiled and said, “I was hoping someone would ask it. I think it would be more effective if Jerric here shows his power. It is an apparent and warm day today. It isn't supposed to rain at all. Jerric, can you please give us some rain. And all of you are going to wish you bought an umbrella.”

This was simple. Sharon braced herself. She saw this before. Jerric called on the power of the Goddess, and they all saw him chanting in an incomprehensible language and dancing around in a circle. They saw the golden power begin flowing through his body. His hair brilliantly glowed, and his fingertips snapped as the energy flowed through him. His chanting and singing rose louder and louder. He danced faster, and dark clouds rolled in overhead. The sun was blocked, and then it began pouring rain down on them. It was a downpour. Some of the people cursed as they got soaked, but the point was made.

Then Serrinina did the same, only she did it very differently, and the temperature dropped, and the rain turned to ice and then snow. The snow began gathering upon the ground until Serrinina stopped it all and let the clouds dissipate, and the temperature rose to what it should be.

She looked out at the families that gathered, who were now very afraid and stunned at the display of power they had just witnessed. This was very real.

“This is the power we are dealing with. It is very real and very dangerous. And I am unwilling to teach it unless I can teach it equally to boys and girls. I am a symbol of what can happen if only one sex possesses this power, and the other sex doesn’t. They are helpless, and one sex can become tyrannical and abusive, and they can't be stopped. So I have a solution, I think, and I hope. I made this area to call upon the Goddess herself. I will summon the Goddess Prognita herself for her advice and her aid.”

Then Serinina said, “Everyone kneel, as I summon our Goddess.”

Serinina spoke loudly in the same incomprehensible language calling upon the Goddess to make her appearance to them. The stones glowed white-hot as the ground within the stones solidified, and strange symbols appeared on the newly formed stone. The air within the stones shimmered, and its temperature rose as the form of a magnificent woman suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Serinina knelt and bowed her head respectfully.

The Goddess sneered at Serinina. She spoke with hateful contempt. “How dare you kneel and pretend to be respectful after what you did to me! Why do you even pretend to respect me when I know how you really feel and what you really intend.”

“Fine, let's dispense with appearances then.” Serinina rose and stood there proudly. “I will show you how much I respect you, Prognita. And I have not one thing to defend. I did what I felt was right, and it was the right action. I am ashamed of nothing I did.”

“You let yourself get so consumed with your anger at your treatment. It is so sad that you did that Serinina when you could have been so much more, and you could have saved your people. It was you who condemned them to slavery and death, only to spite me when we could have worked together to strengthen them and resist the invasion. You condemned me and condemned them all. You do have a lot to answer for.”

“It was you who condemned me,” Serinina replied. “You destroyed me and cursed me with this body, and I was abused and mistreated by your followers. I know that abuse may not have been your plan.”

“It wasn't, that was a violation of the plan,” Prognita replied, trying to look at him softer and more reasonable. Her compassion flowed out, but Serinina was unwilling to compromise.

“That doesn't matter. Transforming me was part of your plan to regain power. In doing so, you made me helpless against a group you knew had a lot of rage at people like me. They were just waiting to unleash it all at the only one they could. I was the heir of the last King that oppressed and persecuted them. Even if I was the innocent fifteen-year-old that had nothing to do with any of it. They couldn't wait to humiliate and abuse me. And you had to know that was going to be the very likely result of what you did. Especially after the awesome display of your victory after my transformation and my sister's coronation. Don’t tell me you didn't know all of that was going to happen, and you are the one responsible for my abuse. You made it possible.”

Serinina was screaming in rage at that point. Everyone present saw the unbridled rage. “I was going to bestow an enormous world-changing reward on you for what you suffered at their hands. And those that abused you were going to get nothing except the reward of kneeling at your feet. They were going to be at your mercy.”

“I didn't care,” Serinina screamed. “I didn't. After what you did to me, they still got their reward of enormous unchecked power to abuse and hurt me. And you wouldn't have allowed me to get any revenge on them once I held the power. She was still your vessel and still going to remain the King regardless of what position you bestowed on me. They all finally got what they deserved, and so did you, Prognia.” Serinina smiled cruelly. “I hope you enjoyed the nearly two thousand years trapped in your tomb. If you had bestowed this power on me at birth and given me the visions instead of Patinea, and wanted me to be the one restore you, then I wouldn't have been hurt. But you made an error. And I had to punish you all for it. I couldn't let you all succeed.”

“That's how you felt. But what do you want now?” The Goddess demanded, knowing any more discussion was useless.

“I need a favor, or you can remain there for eternity. I will refuse to teach anyone this power, or restore you.”

“What?” Demanded Prognita.

“I want you to bestow this power on boys so I can equally teach boys as
well as girls. I don't want, and I won't accept only girls having this power.” Serinina demanded.

The Goddess laughed. “Boys do have this power. It is just something that many don't know. And it was hidden, but it is really there. Serinina, There were many powerful male wizards and sorcerors at the beginning of my reign. Men held much power as well as women. It was harmony. But a few power-hungry women wanted to turn it all into a matriarchy and oppress the men. They found secrets to remove the men, without my consent or knowledge and began brutally oppressing the men. They spread the idea that men were all babies that needed to be controlled. As a result, I greatly weakened them and saw what was to come. When the men revolted and began the great war. They were brutal against the hekatin, but they had a right to be very angry, and I saw that they were. I let what happen, happen. But I knew a time would come when I would restore my position, and I had plans to ensure the women never got abusive again.”

Serinina snorted rudely, “No, you didn't, they were just as abusive.”

The Goddess had the high ground this time. “No, they were actually treating men and women very equally under Patinea. Did you not see how many male administrators and the men in the army and such, male commanders and lords. Did you miss all of that Serinina, I know you were being oppressed, but the people were happy. You turned your back on them all and watched them get enslaved. Your sister was actually a great ruler. Had you two worked together, you could have succeeded, but you refused to work with her, and she refused to allow you to work with her.”

“Turning me into a girl was your mistake. I could have worked with you as a man. But, Since you say boys also have this power, show me how to unlock it in boys and teach them. I need this knowledge.”

Prognita called Adam up. The small dark-haired boy walked up to Serinina and the Goddess and looked up at them.

“Adam, I am going to fix you.”

Then the Goddess turned to Serinina and almost laughed, “That was a good try, but Adam does not need the feminine light in his head. You had the power all along, but Serinina does not have the knowledge to teach boys. Of course, none of that was in the Hekatins knowledge at all. It was not something they were interested in.”

The Goddess gently removed the spark that Serinina mistakenly bestowed on him. Then she proceeded to give Serinina the knowledge of how to work with boys to develop their masculine power. Serinina was amazed and angered that none of this was ever taught to her.

Then the Goddess looked at Serinina and said, “You are now the leader of these people Serinina. And you would be wise to know you are held to the same standard. The leader is held responsible for the conduct of the people under her. Just as I was, and as you hold me accountable. You remember that.

chapter 4
Serinina is given much to consider in her new life and is forced to consider the things she has already did
By Jasmine Monica

Serninina was not happy at all as she laid in her bed that night. She had met the witches of the modern time, and they were more of a joke compared to what she was used to. She met the hekatin and the followers of the Goddess of her time, and those witches held real power. They were fearsome, sadistic, and they the Hekatin weren't a joke in any way. Those witches had totally crushed the innocent boy that he used to be, in front of everyone and were proud of what they had achieved in transforming a boy into a girl and forcing him to live the life of a young girl.

And this was inspired by the Goddess herself. The Goddess that she had pledged to follow and teach about. Now, she was not inclined to do that at all. Serrenina still held a deep seated hatred for the Goddess. She never got over it. In her mind, this goddess prognita was a malicious and dark force that deserved to remain intombed for all time. And that was where prognita was going to remain. Serinina had decided she was going to teach magic, but not of the Goddess. The Goddess deserved her fate for what she did to innocent Serin.

She looked into the darkness of the room that morning, she focused her thoughts and connected with her power and projected her thoughts out toward the Goddess. “You inspired and led the destruction of my entire life so long ago, Danis prognita, you were proud of my destruction and when my sadistic sister was crowned in my place, after transforming me into a girl. You crushed me and destroyed my life. I will never free you from your tomb. You will remain intombed for all time. You deserve your fate.”

She said with the utmost conviction. And Serinina smiled sadistically into the darkness as she felt the wrath of the Goddess and her anger. The entire room rattled violently as the Goddess screamed helplessly into the darkness. Serninna laughed an evil, cruel laugh. “Enjoy your fate, you bitch.”

The house shook even more violently. But Serinina didn't care. She laid back in her bed and wondered about her future and what she wanted. She had school in the morning. Her mind was filled with many thoughts about her ambitions and her course in her life. In her mind, there was only one course that she really wanted.

She said into the darkness of her room, “I will be the greatest queen ever. I will be a queen that this country has never known before. They will love me.”

The darkened room was filled with an uncontrollable and condescending female laughter. The laughter went on and on, and it pissed Serrenina off. She shouted, “Will you shut up, what are you laughing at, Goddess.”

She continued to laugh, uncontrollably. She tried to say, “What you said is so funny, I can't control it. Sorry, but I can't help...” Then she continued to erupt into laughter. Finally, she slowly regained control of herself and looked at Serrenina, she was pissed. Serinina was seething. “Well.”

“Let's look at what you said. You, Serenina, who thought it was a good idea to suddenly inject yourself into modern-day London, today. Said you will be their great queen that they had never known. Um, Hello, Dumbass. Serinina, England has a queen now that they love dearly. I know you don't really know the history of this country now. But they are very accustomed to having beloved and mighty queens. You will really be nothing new if you achieve the crown. They have one now, Elisabeth the third. She has a son that she is preparing to gain the crown after her, unless you are successful in seizing it from him, and destroying his future, much like what happened to you, Serinina. And now let's look at their past queens. From Queen Mary Tutor,”

Sernininas mind was filled with images of her reign and her final beheading at the hands of Elisabeth.

“To Queen Mary of Scotland. And her beheading by the same queen, to Queen Elisabeth.” Sereininas mind was filled with images of Elisabeth and her leading her troops to resist the Spanish armadas landing in 1587.

“To queen Victoria in the 1800s. “And the Goddess filled Serininas mind with images of her reign from her coronation in 1817 as a young teenage girl to her 70-year reign ending in 1900.

“So you think you will be something new, not really Serinina. You will be just another beloved queen. Following the example, your sister set during the prehistory of the country. The queen they never knew. One of the greatest warrior kings ever. That was what was so funny.”

Serinina saw her point, but she was still very offended. “Don't you think I could do it?”

“Sure,” The Goddess agreed. “You are very powerful and have a way with people. With words, you have a skill of gathering and rallying support, you could claim the crown of England. I see that being very achievable for you. And you would be destroying the present royal family and a future king whose future is to be the King of England. I also see you could restore the power of the monarchy.”

Serininas mind was filled with images of her coronation and the destruction of the present royal family. Then images of her rallying the British parliament for bills to restore the power of the monarchy so Serinina can be its sole ruler. And the parliament and the house of lords passing those measures. The public rallying and shouting her name in pride.

“You could achieve it, Sereinina. But there is a reason I didn't support you back during your old life, why your sister had to take the crown. You are very rash, You act without thinking, and you have no idea what you will be setting yourself up for if you follow that path now.”

“You need to think about this. We all saw how exhausting and unhappy you were in your old life when the lords and administrators were trying to prepare you for the role of the King in your life. You hated those boring tedious administrative details that you had to do. Those monotonous administrative tasks exhausted you. You ran to your family telling them about how you hated those details. and you said that girls were so lucky they didn't have to deal with the frustration of those tasks. Your sister was offended and took the challenge. She took the crown and we saw that she exelled at the administrative tasks. She loved them and learned to streamline those tasks to make everyones life better. She was a great leader. Patinea was beloved and respected by her people, while they saw your frustration with those tasks.”

Serinina became enraged and the goddess saw Serininas rage boiling over. She shouted with trembling rage, “I could have done it then, and I can do it now, but no one gave me a chance. And dont you dare praise my evil sadistic sister. She isnt even human. She is a monster that was only pretending to be human. But she is an evil creature that dirived pleasure from my pain.” Then Serinina struck out and lashed at the goddess. She cried out in agony as Serinina raged, “This is why I wont even have you restored, and why I couldnt allow you to be restored in my life. You supported this evil. You caused the total destruction of my life. That was evil, and you are evil.”

The Goddess cried out and then retorted. “Your sister excelled at those tedious tasks that you hated. and we saw she could do it, while you didnt do them. I know you want to think your sister was an evil and cruel King, but she wasn't. She was a very noble and just king, but she saw your nature and your rashness, and we had to do everything to prevent you from ruling. It was harsh to you, but the people needed a just leader. The cruel one was you, Serin.”

Serinina was very angry now and she was about to explode in rage. “My sister was a monster, Goddess. You were all cruel to me. That can never be justified. I would have made a great king. If you ever supported me.”

The Goddess laughed and then she said, “Lets take a long look at everything that you did, Serinina. NO matter how painful it is. You need to as they say today, pull your head out of your ass. We knew you were rash and impulsive and not fit to be King. Your sister was more mature, smarter and stronger and I led her to become the King over you. And what did you do over what you felt was such a horrific injustice? You did everything you could to undermine her rule, and destroy the people. First, you go to Lilith, you give her her power back, and cause her to rise. Then, you curse your own nation and the people to starvation and doom. Just to see your sister's rule fail. No other reason than that.”

The Goddess shrugged and glared at Serinina. “The people suffered greatly for no other reason than you being able to claim your sister failed. Then you start a horrible war and inflict more suffering on your nation only to spite your sister. Then once things are restored and a new family placed on the throne to spare you the suffering in a new life, what did you do Serinina?” The Goddess asked harshly.

Serinina looked down at the floor. “You were still filled with rage. You had a new loving sister, but Patinea went to King Edwin to restore the Goddess, you lead your army against them and slaughter the present royal family. You set Patinea back on the throne only to watch her fail as she tries to restore the Goddess against your warning. You lent your support the purgatorists, the sworn enemy of the people of your kingdom. You did that to restore their dark rule again. You crushed your kingdom's entire army, knowing the priests never had the numbers or the power to restore their rule. But you didn't care Serinina. You just wanted to destroy your sister and that's all. You knew that by doing that, you were causing the final downfall of your kingdom and they would no longer have the forces to resist the coming invasion. You led your people to their destruction and enslavement at the hands of the Saxons. And even now, the image of your palace being burnt and your sister being enslaved by King Cedric in Wessex. Made into his mistress and sex slave to bear children and have them taken from her filled you with sadistic delight, Serinina. I see you smiling at your sister's sadistic and cruel fate. You said your sister was cruel, but Serinina, you were cruel. You became a monster. And you want to think you were worthy and good to become your peoples King after that? Its time that you really face what kind of person you are. And that is vital now if you want to claim the crown today. What will become of its present family, and how will you deal with the people today?” The Goddess asked.

“I know what I did, and I am still not sorry. I was a good kid back then. I didn't deserve the horror that was inflicted on me. I loved my sister so much, it was her that hated me beyond all reason. I meant it when I told her I loved her that night. But her cruelty never ceased. I am not sorry for a thing I did.” Serinina said harshly.

Everyone saw the conviction and determination in Serininas eyes. The Goddess wanted to weep. But she did know that the woman he became was not Serininas doing. That woman was forged by the suffering that was inflicted on her. Serin could have become a great king.

“So let's think about what you will face if you become the Sole leader today. If you thought the administrative details were a nightmare back then, you have no clue.” The Goddess laughed.

“Today, let's look at one of the biggest issues facing the UK today. Around forty, nine percent of the people want to remain in the European Union, while around fifty percent want to leave. How will you deal with that nightmare? It's causing the present leaders such a headache right now that few really know how to solve it. And if you choose to leave, how? Will you simply abruptly abandoned all of the treaties and agreements with its member nations and tell them to go fuck themselves. Or will you affect a more gradual withdrawal from the Union? And what of the people that will oppose it? And what of the Irish rebels. Those same people that your sister faught in her day, when the area was called Ansays Isles and were under the Queen of Ansay and her son runtec. Will you invade and try to force them back into the UK, or accept the inedpenance of Southern Ireland. And what of Iceland, what you called Geunafar back then. The worshipers of the goddess. How will you deal with them. And theres so much more.”

Serinina smiled then. So Ansays were still not incorporated into the UK. They remained independent despite everything. Serinina would have been happy to recognize a family's withdrawal from the Kingdom.

“Do you now see what you will be facing, and that's only the beginning. What about the vast markets you will no longer have access to? What will you do, try to seize it by force? Thats, why I didn't, support you then, you were a very forceful and impulsive person. And liked to solve issues with military force. Think of the nightmarish image I gave you on your final day in your old homeland. Of you firing the ICBMs and starting a world war. That's the future I see if you become the sole leader of the UK today. And you have another concern now, you have a younger brother that has boyish ambitions just like you did at Serin. He won't want to live in the shadow of his overbearing elder sister, just like you didn't want to. Think of what he wants?”

“That was vastly different,” Serinina snarled at the Goddess. “I was only a year younger than Patinea. And she was a full and born as a girl. I was raised to become the King in my father's image, not her. She stole it all from me and turned me into a girl and called me a princess. I would never even consider doing that to Adam. I will fully support his ambitions.”

The Goddess looked hard at Serinina. “I am not so sure of that. And neither are you. If you embark on this course, Serinina. You will need to consider his life. You may end up seeing him as a rival to your claim, much like your sister saw you. He may be able to get support to unseat you, or you may simply fear that he may. You also need to consider why you would want to do this at all. And cause such suffering to the people. The destruction of their government that they know only to fulfill the ambitions that you feel was unjustly stolen from you during your old life. How selfish is that you and Sarinina want to claim you are a just person.

“You may be correct, but I am what you made me, Goddess.” Serinina snarled into the darkness. “You caused it when my family could have helped me. I still loved and clung to them at that time. I was only sixteen. For all of that, you have nothing but yourselves to blame for it all. I only did what I had to in order to reclaim my life and my respect. And I did that. I am proud of what I achieved. And in any way. Whatever I chose for my future, you will never escape your tomb Goddess. You will spend the rest of eternity trapped and entombed in your grave. You will never escape. Now get out of my face.”

Serininas features ignited as the power ran through her body. She lashed out at the Goddess image, and the Goddess cried out in agony and vanished.

Princess in a new world

By Jasmine Monica
King Patinea faces her destiny and the consequences for what she did to her brother
Chapter 5

Patinea had spent the final few hours sitting in her own private office in her palace. It was her own office and her own throne for a few more hours, at least. She had received reports of an impossible number of ships on the horizon descending on their shores. The Saxons had arrived in a fleet of thousands of ships.

In their greater days, they may have had the forces to resist this invasion, but they didn't have the army or the numbers anymore. Their army was crushed by her own vindictive sister months ago. She drafted and conscripted as many as possible. However, it was still nowhere near enough to resist the tens of thousands of veteran Saxon troops crashing on their shores. This was the final hour of her kingdom. It was the end

Patinea now knew she had a horrible mistake stealing the crown from her brother. In doing so, it seemed right at the time, but she did it in such a horrific, cruel way that it was bound to inspire much resentment and hate from her brother. There was going to be no peace after that, and no way to rectify their relationship at all. Her brother hated her with everything that he was from that point on. And that hatred grew into something horrible and evil. Her brother now sister spent every minute of her life plotting revenge and the downfall of her regime, and there was no way to stop it short of imprisoning her or killing her. Serinina made sure that she was too powerful and too supported to get rid of by that time she made her intentions clear. She had become a potent witch with many supporters behind her.

Sitting in her office, she now felt nothing but sorrow for what she did when she used to feel pride at finally wearing the crown and ruling the kingdom as a girl. But, she didn't feel pride now. She felt sorrow, sadness, and fear for what was coming, and she didn't blame her sister for what she did to her. Her sister was the victim of a horrific and cruel plot to destroy a young boy's life. A time when his family should have supported and rallied behind him, they all turned on him and destroyed him. He only returned the favor ten fold. And now, they were all about to be slaughtered or enslaved.

It was time to go out and make a last stand against Cedric the great, the Saxon king that was about to land on their shores.

They had a few more hours, so Patinea decided to take one final tour of her palace while it remained hers for the time being.

Patinea walked up the steps to her brother's old bedroom, and there wasn't much left. She made sure none of his old clothes were ever available to him anymore once they decided to force him to live a girl's life. She now realized how wrong they were to try to do that. It was a disgusting violation of his very life, ontop of what they already did to him.

But the room was stripped bare, and there was nothing left except for his old bed and some of his old weed stuffed in the counter. He practically lived on it after the change, it was probably the only way he could cope with the destruction of his life was to remain high.

So Patinea left Sarin's old bedroom and went into her own bedroom. There was still a lot there, but few things remained from her teenage years as the reigning princess under Sarin. But she went to the back in her art studio, and there was still a lot of her old work there.

One of the her paintings caught her eyes. There were others that she painted at sixteen and seventeen years old. Her standing on a field of battle holding a sword, there were a few of those, or of her as a pirate holding a sword. She wanted to live that life so bad that she did anything to break free of the confines of the life of a princess. She seized the crown with both hands to take that life she wanted to live and forced her brother into her old life she hated. She should have known all along that would be a disaster. It had only two possible endings. His suicide, or him breaking free, destroying them to live the life he wanted. That included killing her, which he came close to doing, but this was a much better ending for him. This would be much more satisfying for him to see her enslaved to a powerful king.

Patinea stood in front of the final painting she made on the days prior to her coronation as the King. This was a majestic painting of a grand and restored temple to the Goddess that she had intended to start building once her reign was secure, and the wars were over. This was never to be built, and the goddess religion was never going to be restored. The Goddess was never going to be freed.

Her brother made sure that her reign ended in failure and disaster. How could this have happened? Why.

She heard footsteps approach from behind. Her mother said in a voice dripping with sorrow. “Looking at your past are you, Patinea. I agree, there's a lot of sadness. I see you never got to rescue your sister like you thought you would. She became so powerful no one had to rescue her, she nearly killed everyone else.”

“Yeah,” Patinea said sardonically. “how could we have made such a mistake. I know we were wrong to do this.”

“We should have never listened to falconette and Celestia. They were full of hatred and wanted to see the reigning crown prince destroyed. We all should have known that plan would backfire. Sarin, like you, was his father's son just like you were his daughter. Born and raised, and had the same ambitions and unconquerable spirit. You proved it to your brother in an excruciating way. But that should have been it, then we should have guided him in his new life with love and compassion of a family.”

“It took long along, but you finally realized your error,” A loud, commanding voice was heard behind them. Aanya turned and saw the Goddess standing there in all of her glory. It was an image, not actually her.

“You all fucked it up so badly that it's unimaginable. Sarin could have been happy as a girl. That future could have really happened if patinea didn't take every chance she had to mock, torment, and belittle her constancy. And force her into a life of meaninglessness and powerlessness. She had the same personality as you and you should have known she would refuse to live that life and accept your constant torment Patinea. Your abuse filled her with such rage. And a very justifiable rage that I can't blame her for hating me and hating you. You all ruined this in such a spectacular way and condemned me to remain in this tomb. Your brother said I won't be restored, and he's refusing to even try in his time. Not that I can blame him, this is all on you two. I hope you are so proud, Patinea. You were so proud of what you achieved. Are you happy now?”

“No,” Patinea looked down at the ground. “I know we were wrong, and there's no correcting it now. There's nothing I can do to change a thing now. I am sorry, Goddess.”

“It's too late to be sorry. As Caesar said centuries ago, the die is already cast. What's going to happen will happen. Your kingdom will be conquered. Your fate will be worse than death. And so will your descendants, many more generations of your boys and girls, will be raised as slaves Patinea. If you had respected and loved your little sister, you two could have been an unconquerable force, and the kingdom would have remained stable and powerful. But no, you had to abuse your sister and unleash your bitterness you built up at him for so long. You were unable to let your resentment go. And he did what he had to. But I worry about your sister now, she still so filled with such hate that I don’t know what she will do. But whatever she will do, there's no way that world can stop her. She wants to become their queen, but I see her doing it in such a horrific way that her regime will look much like a fascist police state under your sister's iron fist. I see many possible futures like that. Its all thanks to you. But before she even begins to embark on something like that, she has to grow and learn in this world. And she will encounter your descendant. And I see her destroying that young girl's very life. She is the spitting image of you, and a very accomplished athlete on a team. Your sister will see her in school, she is very innocent but with the same forceful personality. It will enrage Sarinina, and I see her tormenting that girl, and having her repeatedly abused and violated by the worst boys. And no one will be able to stop it because of the power Sarinina wields.

“How are my descendants there?” Asked Patinea.

The Goddess laughed. “As you will see, you will have many daughters and sons over the next few decades. Not of your own will, and you will never see them. But you will have them, and they will all be enslaved. And that line will lead into the modern day where Sarinina now lives. I hope Sarinina can get her rage under control. But it's all thanks to you, Patinea. So give yourself a hand, you deserve all of the credit. You sadistic bitch.”

Then the Goddess vanished from sight, and they were standing there alone, looking at a painting of a glorious new temple to the Goddess that would never be built now. The golden age she had planned would never occur now. There was no hope, and Patinea realized she had no one else to blame but herself for the disaster that was going to befall them. And it was time to face their destiny now, and for the final time as a free woman, and as the King of her people. She looked at her mother with pain and sorrow in her eyes. “Its time for me to arm myself and meet my army for a final time, and to do what we can to resist the invasion. We know there is no hope, but we have to try to fight them.”

Patinea marched down the steps and went into her armory, where her people stripped off the clothes she was wearing and suited her up in her military uniform and the armor plate of a warrior. She strapped her sword justice on her belt for a final time.

Even seeing that cursed sword brought her shame. It was supposed to be her brother's sword, passed from her father to her brother. It was the sword that she stole from him on transforming him to her little sister and then mocking her lack of strength for no longer being able even to pull the sword out. She wasn't much stronger than he was as a girl, but her armors magical ability gave her much enhanced strength to wield and fight with the sword. There was little reason she couldn't have allowed her sister to confront her with. But she wanted to humiliate and sideline Serinina. And she realized how cruel it was all and why her sister felt she had to fight her. Her own family had become her enemy, and by that, the entire kingdom she ruled.

She felt no pride wearing this armor and marching down to meet her army. She used to feel such male pride and swaggered around like a man wearing a knights armor and a sword. She felt no pride now after realizing what it cost her, and what it all resulted in. She considered what she was going to say and determined on the truth being the best course now. She was going to admit her mistake, and what led to this final moment and inspired them to fight on for their freedom.

She rode her horse out to the edge and standing in front of her army. It was a pitiful shadow of the army she once led that numbers in the tens of thousands of heavy swordmen pikemen archers and heavy cavalry and scouts. The army she marched out of the city with to wage war against the rebellious Ansay's upon her seizing the crown from her brother. She defeated them, and Ansay's army routed and fled from her.

Now, sitting here on her horse looking at what was left of the noble houses armys standings in formation in front of her. The Malnae's, Wensay's, and Fawnae's army is what was left. When there were tens of thousands of solider's stretching out for miles, there were now a few hundred at most. It was a pitiful shadow of what they were once. They all knew they were fighting a losing battle, and there was indeed no hope of victory now.

“I thank you all for coming to my aid one final time. You are what is left of our great army. Thank you for your house's support. Malnaes, Fawnae Wensays and the Denae. Thank you for your loyalty in this time of need. I admit that I made a horrible mistake in the way I dealt with my brother and taking his crown. The mistake led to the fracturing of our family, and his rebellion against me that was mostly successful in destroying our houses, and the great armys we led. My sister destroyed us, and provoking her rebellion and her rage was my mistake when I should have loved and cared for her. I treated her cruelly. This is my fault, and I'm sorry for leading us to this. But what is done has been done and we can't go back. We all know that this is the end. There is no hope for a victory beyond this point. The Saxons will land on that shore, they will march on us, and we don't have the forces to even hope for a victory anymore. They will defeat us, and we will be occupied and destroyed. So we have a choice to surrender, lay down our arms and hope for mercy from the Saxon's”

The army was filled with a bitter laugh that let her know what they thought of that option. She happened to agree.

“Or we can fight to the last man and woman and make them pay for the victory with as much blood as we can possibly draw and show them that we can still be a formidable force against them. So what will we choose?” Patinea demanded

And the pitiful army in front of her raised their swords and shouted fight.

“We fight to the end!” Patinea shouted, wishing her brother was here, perhaps he could have pulled off a victory here, but if he were still here and willing, then he would have never fought them in the first place. It was not to be.

“They will land within the hour,” Patinea shouted. “We will rush them before they are able to get their army organized and ready to advance upon us. We won't allow them that luxury. We will rush their forces while they are still landing and organizing their forces into formation. We will strike before they are ready and hope that is enough to stop them.” She knew it wouldn't be, and they would be overwhelmed. But it was all that was left.

So they all stood along the shore, watching the Saxon ships sail closer and closer within the hour. They reached the shore and anchored. Then the heavily armored Saxons rushed out with their swords drawn yelling in their germanic language.

Patinea and her lords shouted, “Attack” And they drew their swords for one final time and rushed the Saxon forces as they were departing their ships. They never got the chance to get into battle formations before Patineas forces reached them and attacked. The attack was as successful as possible. The damage of their attack far outweighed the meager forces they had, and they killed thousands upon thousands of the Saxons before they were able to organize a response. But it was nowhere near enough.

Patinea destroyed entire Saxon battalions up to their leading lords but they had many more battallions and army landing and there was no way to get to them all before they organized a response. The wings of the landings swung onto Patineas army and attacked from the sides and from behind as they were pushing forward. Patineas battle lords and her army were finally overwhelmed. The great houses lords fell for a final time, they were slaughtered. Patinea was knocked out and drug onto the shore where she finally woke with a headache and bleeding from the blow to her head. She was no longer wearing the crown and her hands were chained. She looked up.

“So you are the Girl King Patinea.” Said the man in an icy tone. “You were brave but you knew there was no chance you could beat my army. I am King Cedric of Wessex. Your army is defeated, and you and a few lords are all that are left. Your army is crushed, you, lord Fawnae are all that is left.”

“How did you know me,” Patinea asked, wondering.

“I met Serinina before embarking. She went to me months ago and told me all about your kingdom, what happened to her, and she gave me the funds, gold and motivation to land here. And she told me about you, King Patinea and we agreed on your fate. You will become my breeding slave. That's it. You will be a prostitute for my army. Breeding boys and girls to populate the land with more slaves. That's all. That's what Serinina wanted, and I agreed.”

She was a hostage to the Saxons marching onto the great palace that was their home. She watched as the Saxons rushed in, slaughtering everyone that was in there. They burnt the entire palace to the grown. Patinea wept as her home was burnt and crumbled to the ground.

Then Their King shouted, “We have a list of the remaining witches. Get them and burn them. Falconette, Lady Fawnae, Actonia. Danala, Celestia, find them all and everyone else that is in the girl's school. Kill them all. The rule of man has been reestablished.”

By now, Patinea wasn't surprised that the Saxons had the names and identities of all of the witches and to kill them all. This was her sisters doing also. All of the witches were rounded up, and they were set on fire. The women's screams would haunt her until the end of her days.

The Saxons set up crude huts to live in, and she was locked in one of them. King Cedric himself came into her prison and began stripping off his clothes. She cried knowing what was about to happen and she said under her breath, “Serin, you bastard. Is this what you really wanted to happen to me.”

And she closed her eyes as the hulking Saxon king descended on her pinning her arms over her head. She could not fight this, and she knew that this was going to happen over and over and over for the rest of her life. There was nothing she could do to stop the repeated violations. Then she remembered that Serinina had also been violated in the same way. Something had made her pregnant against her will. She knew her brother was very vengeful and angry. This was her final revenge.

Then she got to watch the formation of the Kingdom of Wessex under its brutal King Cedric. All while a few of the other Saxon Lords visited her during the day and she knew she was going to be pregnant by the end of the week.

Young Serrin was nine years old standing in front of his sister with his sparkling hair and the power of the Goddess going up and down his arms making brilliant sparks at the end of his fingers. He's said a few phrases in the language of the Goddess and made a bright pinkish flash of light in the center of the room that radiated outwards with various beautiful designs.

Then he stood there smiling at his sister Emily. She was unable to speak for a brief few seconds as she just watched. She didn't believe in witches or the Goddess. Serin had very decidedly proven her very wrong. He stood there with a triumphant look on his face. “You lose, Emily. I win, and that means you must let me train you to become a witch.”

She grumbled, “Fine! But how did you know how to do that?”

Serrin was very reluctant to answer that. “I told you I was a witch. I have learned the Art of the Hekatin. I studied it all very extensively, and I am very qualified to teach you. Everything, Emily, and I will be very proud to teach you. I felt bad from withholding this from you. Emily, as a female being connected to our Goddess Prognita and her power is your birthright. I shouldn't, but my background of living as a girl and all. I still feel the connection with the Goddess, and the experience must have given me a very feminine soul. But the connection and its power also belong to you, and you need to learn to utilize it.”

Emily still didn't entirely understand when her brother said he used to be female. But it was hard to argue the point when she saw the things he did and the things he knew. It was to debate it when she watched his gestures when he moved. It was still very difficult to believe.

So Serin took his sister Emily into his bedroom, and he began teaching her. Serin took out a big sheet of old parchment and put it on the stand and began drawing star charts. Then Serin began teaching her about the various constellations in the sky and their locations. He taught Emily their importance and their abilities and how the power flows around them and the directions they move.

He saw Emily's eyes roll in boredom and he felt like laughing. Serin remembered that was much his same reaction too. Total boredom, but the lessons had to start somewhere, and they started at the beginning. Where this power comes from and what exactly it is. It's not exciting stuff, that will come later. He told her, “Yeah,” Serin said in a sardonic voice, “This is very exciting stuff, isn't it.” He laughed out loud at her. “I remember that was my look on my face. I was nearly bord out of my mind. But this is the beginning, and we have to get through where this power comes from. Even if it's boring as hell.”

At about an hour into Serins instructions, he felt Emily had a firm grasp on the basics, and she was about ready. Then he wrote a few symbols on another piece of parchment. She looked at it and wondered if it was real. He explained that this was the language of the Goddess, and these symbols and words are how to utilize and control the power. It was what turned him into a girl, it was the power they could wield. Serin slowly wrote down the symbols and helped her sound them out.”

“Emily, this is something we all needed to do and believe it or not. I went through this. This is called the ritual of feminine force. Its what every witch must do on her first day. Those words I just helped you with say this. “

I am a powerful female. I will be a strong woman. I am Ferocious. I will be a leader. I will be a leader and refuse to submit to men. I will become the embodiment of feminine power and a follower of the will of the Goddess.”

Emily looked smirking and also a hint of disbelief. “You really said that?”

Serin braced himself, looked right into her eyes hard, and said firmly. “Yes, indeed and I am not ashamed to admit it. Even now, as a boy, I feel no shame in saying those lines and helping you achieve all that you can. So let's work on it.”

“Wait, I won't go any further until you give me some answers. First, I know how you feel about witches. I heard you say the most hateful things about them. And when I didn't believe they were real, I didn't care. Now that you showed me they are real, and now your story of being a girl carried a little more weight. Now I need to know why you want me to be a witch?”

That was an excellent question. It needed some explaining. “It is something I need to seriously work on. Not all witches are horrible sadists. Just the ones I encountered, and I encountered them because they had an agenda. There are tens of thousands of witches across the entire kingdom. And I think if I teach you that you will be a very good witch. You won't abuse your power. And you will care for me. Does this make sense?”

“Yes,” Emily admitted.

“And I want you to be a witch because it is your birthright as a female. I was wrong to forbid it for you. I should have encouraged it all along. I am correcting my mistake myself. So can we continue?”

Emily nodded, and they continued working on the phrases of the ancient language and their proper pronunciation. They worked on that for about another hour.

“Okay, the language session is over. Now we have to work on unlocking this power. You must connect with the power of the Goddess. Your connection is there. Some call it a spark, and every girl feels it within her mind. Have you ever felt it?” Serin asked Emily

She nodded. “At times, it's hard to describe, but I never understood it. It felt weird.”

“Yes, imagine how a boy feels. You can connect with it when you are in an almost trance state, You totally surrender your control to the Goddess and let her will be your guide. It will empower you, make you faster and stronger than any man. So let's work on how to do that, and then we can do the ritual.”

Emily began working on getting her mind into a trance state where she felt the will of the Goddess. That wasn't very difficult, and she begins chanting those phrases.

Serin chanted them with her, and they linked hands and began dancing and circling each other. Their chants rose in volume. She saw Serins power began coursing through his arms and into his face and hair. Soon, Emily's was flowing too. It was wonderful.

Aanya heard it all when Serin started teaching Emily about the stars and stood outside his door in total bewilderment that he would actually do this. Then she slightly giggled to herself as she wondered if her son knew what he was unlocking and what shit he was getting himself into. But if he insisted on opening this door, then he would have to face the consequences.

Then she saw her son working on Emily with the language and the first phrases to the ritual of feminine power. He was going for it. Then he heard Serins explanation on why he felt this was important, and he was correct. Aanya was impressed. Then they did it, and Aanya was totally floored that he had unlocked Emily's power. It was done, and now he had totally altered Emily's course, and there were going to be consequences.

They had finished, and Serin was totally ecstatic jumping around squealing like a girl, congratulating Emily and telling her how great it was.

She had a bewildered look on her face looking at her brother bouncing and squealing.

That was when Annya decided to make her appearance known and walked in with her two young children playing. She narrowed her eyes at her son, who tightened and returned her glare with twice the venom. It was pure hate that ran very deep in Serin.

She brushed it off, “Stow it, Serrin. I saw what you did, and I am impressed. And I doubt you know what you stepped into. You activated Emily's full potential. I was willing to let it go when you demanded that Emily not be taught. Not every girl has to be a witch. I was sad, but if that was what you wished. Then you changed, and you did this. Now it's done, and now we must act. Now, Emily must go to the Hekatin to begin her formal instructions. No arguing, this is required.”

Serin shouted, “Absolutely not. You know my skills, you were there, and you saw it, you felt it. You know I am more than qualified to teach her everything. There is no need for her to go to them.”

“No,” Aanya said firmly. “You have your skills, and they are extremely impressive. But, you have no background in teaching, and these teachers have decades of experience. They are much more qualified, and she also needs experience with other witches her age. You opened the door, and now we must do this.”

“I don't want her to learn from those monsters that have no morality and feel its perfectly acceptable to play with people's lives as if their power gives them no accountability. No, I will teach her how to be moral and compassionate.” Serin shouted.

Again Aanya shook her head. “Son, not all of them are like that, and she will be taught how to be moral and control her power.”

Serin snorted. “Speak for yourself, Aanya. Just like you were good right, and didn't feel it was acceptable to change your son for the greater good as if he was nothing but a sacrifice to build progress on. You and Pattinia, and all of those teachers. Yeah, whatever.”

Emily glared at Aanya. “No.” She said in a hauntingly pained voice. “Mother, you didn't, why in the name of the great isles would you, to Serrin, your own son? How could you!”

“We have all learned a lot from the disaster. And yes, Emily, but that isn't important now. We won't go into it because of Serrin's wishes. But now that he has done this, it is imperative we get you the proper instruction. This is required.”

Serrin thought for a second and then said, “Fine, and I will also go with her. I will be there in class with her.”

Aanya laughed. “As a student, you won't be able to control what she is taught. And I would think the beginners are far beyond your skill level. But if you insist. And Sarin, you know what will also be required of you if you want to go to a girls school to study witchcraft. You will need to look like them, are you ready to put yourself through that again.”

He looked lovingly at Emily and said, “Yes, for my love of my sister. I will do anything to protect her. Even wear a corset and gown again.” Serrin's face was red with fury. It was like he was forced to surrender. Emily almost saw Serin was in tears.

They went to Emily's bedroom, and then Serin thought for a few seconds. Then he muttered a spell, and she saw Serrin's body transform into the form of a tiny busty girl. Emily saw the long golden hair spilling down across Serrin's back, and his face was almost the perfect image of femininity.

Aanya said, “Really, that again? And isn't that form a little inappropriate for a nine-year-old?”

“Just as inappropriate for a sixteen-year-old boy.” He shot back acidly. “But I assume you're right. I won't go back to this, absolutely NOT!” Serrin thundered and then muttered the spell, and he transformed into the image of a tall, short-haired strong athletic girl with a slight scar on her eye.

Emily looked at it in recognition.

Aanya looked up into the sky as if calling someone to save her. Then Serrin looked like he was about to cry. He shouted, “Oh, hell no.”

Emily saw the pain this was inflicting on Serrin, and she decided to act. She stepped up to Serrin and shouted, “Serin, as your older sister, stop this now. Go back to a boy and stop turning into a girl. You are not a girl, and I won't have you going out as a girl. There is no need for you to be a girl. No reason at all.”

Aanya protested, “But its a girl school. He cant be a boy there.”

“Like hell, he cants!” Emily said, furiously. “Sure, he can. And, he won't be going to the normal girl's classes. From what I saw, he already had those. He will be going to the special classes with me. Those are for witches, and if he has the power, then they will have no choice but to accept him. Especially if he is as powerful as he says he is. They will have to accept him.”

Aanya pointed out, “That's the other problem. If he shows how powerful he really is. Then those novice classes are inappropriate. They will move him up with the teenagers. Or, maybe even beyond that. He's ready for the trials, and they may put him through the instructions on the four ways of the Goddess. After that, there's no more instruction needed. He's a formalized witch and takes his place in society as a full member of the hekatin. He won't be with you.”

Then Sarin asked, “what if my path is to teach. I can teach her class.” He smiled.

Aanya shook her head, “Even with your skills, I doubt they would allow a nine-year-old teacher.”

“Why not? I may be vastly more powerful than some of those teachers. I bet I could teach them. That's what I will do. I am sure they will let me at least help out teaching the beginners.”

Aanya figured that it may be acceptable. Even if it was pushing the boundaries.

Emily said, “Ok. You And Serin. One of these days you will really need to fully tell me what happened, and why they made you a girl.”

His body tightened. “Maybe someday. But it's very painful. I just don't know.”

Emily pulled him into a tight hug. “When you are ready. I am here for you.” She kissed him on the cheek. “And I won't let anyone hurt you ever again.” She glared at Aanya.

Now all of her children hated her. Emily was looking at her as if she was some poisonous snake. She noticed how Emily was standing in front of Sarin.

Aanya still had things to do. This was her job, after all. “I have no intention of hurting Sarin anymore. But now you must get ready. I will need to take you to the office and tell them to expect you two tomorrow. So let's get the carriage ready.”

Sarin refused, “No, Aanya. I will take my sister, and I will handle the introductions. We can do this without you.”

“An eleven-year-old and a nine-year-old boy going to the office of the High Hekatin to tell them you are attending. All by yourselves, don't you think the Duchess and one of the highest levels of the order will make a better impact?”

“Sure,” Sarin agreed nasty. “You will. Considering the impact you all had on my life and all you did. I don't want any more of that thank you very much.” He pointed out. Then added in a tone dripping with sarcasm. “And you did such a wonderful job with Patenia. Such a great job.” He smiled. “I think I as the Marquess will make such as much of an impact, and considering my skills, I will make just as much of an impact as you. They won't have any choice but to accept and help me. So, let's go, Emily.” He took the hand of his elder sister, and they went to prepare the driver to take them to the girl's conservatory in town.

The carriage was loaded up, and the driver took them into town.

Sarin was so surprised at the changes his father made when he came back. It was a long process, and he had to make sure his position was secure enough to do what he wanted.

One of the biggest things that stuck out to Sarin as he went into town was the total lack of the war priests and their enforcers of the inquisition. The witch hunters weren't anywhere. Sarin and Emily were safe, the witches and the Hekatin were safe in his Dukedom here. This was one of the only places they were totally free to practice their faith and openly observe the Goddess. It was one of Gerrik's first acts were to relieve all of the restrictions on the Hekatin. They celebrated for days. Sarrin didn't entirely agree then, but he went along with it. They didn't need those priests with their flame insignia on their cloak, watching everyone with a cruel eye. They were almost useless anyway if he remembered things right. They didn't stop the Hekatin from getting to him at all. The hekatin operated right under their nose and planned his destruction. The priests could do nothing about it but watch as their order was totally destroyed.

Now, Gerrik ordered the priests not to hunt the witches. The Priest's power over society here was removed, and preventing the Hekatin from practicing their faith was a crime here. It was against the law of the Kingdom, and Richard disapproved. But considering this was one of the most powerful Dukdoms in the entire country, and they had a military that rivaled that in the capital. And their massive, imposing fortresses defended the place. Richard had little choice but to agree if he wanted Gerriks continued support. So the witches were free, and it was good because he wanted Emily to be a powerful witch.

The carriage stopped in front of the girl's conservatory, which doubled as a chapel for the Goddess. The two children got out and made their way into the school. They suspected that the Primary Vakia was probably there planing the week's lessons in her little office.

They knocked and entered the little office where they saw Vakia planning the lessons for the week. She looked up slightly annoyed. “marquess Sarrin and Emily, my what are you doing here tonight?”

Vakia was a very young slim woman sitting at her desk. Serin didn't think she was older than twenty-five, but he heard she was very impressive. She was a well built and slim young woman sitting there with brunette hair. Sarin, almost though she looked like an older version of Serinina looked if she was allowed to reach adulthood. Vakia was beautiful.

“I needed to talk to you, Professor Vakia. And this is very unusual, but it is required now. I need Emily to attend classes for the hekatin.”

In any other place, the young Marquess of a powerful Duke talking openly about the witches would be alarming. But it was not very alarming now. She still didn't think the children believed in them. She heard that Emily refused to believe they existed. Her eyebrow rose questioningly. Does Emily? “

The girl smiled. “Yes, my brother helped me unlock it. We went through the ritual of feminine force, he showed me how.” Emily said with such pride in her brother.

The young woman almost fell from her seat. Hearing that a girl's brother led her through the ritual. Sarin almost felt sorry for the young woman. Her surprises weren't anywhere near finished yet.

Sarin said, “Yes, Indeed. I know it all.”

“You are full of yourself, we often get so tired of male hubris young man. What can you possibly know about feminine force.”

“I know everything about it, professor. I have done it.” He said forcefully. “Whatever male hubris I had was destroyed long ago. I worked hard to get where I am now, and I earned the right to have a little hubris now. I am also a witch, and I have studied it all, and learned.”

Then he slowly explained the ritual, its phrases, and how he led Emily through it. Then to her surprise, the children linked hands and loudly repeated a few phrases in the language of the Goddess. Both children were glowing with the power of the Goddess. Their hair sparkled and crackled as the energy ran through their bodies to their fingertips. Sarin smiled and explained. “I really don't know how I have this. But, my experience as a girl must have stuck when I learned the arts as a girl. So now I demand the right to study here, and prepare for the instruction and trials of the four ways. I am ready.”

The young woman looked up as if to plead the Goddess to rescue her from this. Then looked at them and threw up her hands. “Fine, Emily will attend classes tomorrow. And We will give you some specialized tests to see where you are, young man. If you are where you say, you will pass, and we will be able to prepare you for the trials. Your mother will have to approve, of course.”

His face turned red.

Note from the author.

This is the only chapter of the revision I will rewrite. The rest are as I want them to be so dont worry. Now I will continue the story from chapter 6

Aanyas tries to make up with her embittered son and makes some further arrangments with Vakia for his future
Serin has a tough talk with his father

“You already have my approval!” Annya shouted as she entered Vakia's office. “You have my permission to teach both of my children and do whatever you feel is necessary.”

They all saw Sarin's features tighten, and his eyes glared at her. She said softly. “I have done enough to hold you back. That is at an end.”

He refused to respond. Vakia didn't understand their history and said to him, “Sarin, you should be happy she has given her consent. You are just being rude.”

Sarin said to Aanya, eyes still flaring. “You have a very long way to go, Aanya, if you ever want me to give you another chance. In fact, you have so far to go I doubt it's possible ever to reach the point where I will ever trust you again.” His voice was trembling.

Vakia looked at Sarin, “How can you talk like that to her?”

Aanya said, “It's okay, Sarin, Emily, why don't you go back home and play some more. I need to have a brief word with the professor here. I like to talk alone if you don't mind. There are some things that she really needs to know about you if she is going to teach you. I think you know what I mean.” Her eyebrow rose

He glared at Aanya. “If that's what you want to talk about, shouldn't I also be here?” He held Emily's hand as she squeezed in reassurance.

“Yeah sure,” Aanya said. “We can send Emily alone, unless you want her to be here for that. But I am not sure you are ready to talk about it all. If you are, then you are more than welcome to stay here for it.”

Aanya had a point. “No, I don't think I am ready to relive it all yet. Let's go play knights and Kings again, Emily.” Sarin said with a smile. “King Emily is so great. Let's have some fun.” He pulled her hand and led her out.

Vakia was more confused. “He wants her to be the King in their game, most boys would want to be that, and he defend the lady or something. You have a strange son.”

Aanya laughed, “You have no idea. And that's what we need to talk about. There are some things you seriously need to know about Sarin. This will take a very long time, so let's get settled. It all started when the great moon appeared in the skys, some years from now.”

“Huh?”

Aanya shushed her, “Just bear with me and don't interrupt.” and she continued the story talking about her son, talking about the moon, the plotting, the transformation, and its effects, how they treated Sarin and his other sister Patinia.

It took many hours to get through it all, and Aanya started noticing a look of rage overcome Vakia. Her soft eyes turned very hard and then very dark.

It was quite an unbelievable story, but she saw the boy use magic and he was very advanced. So she was willing to believe he had been sixteen and seventeen-year-old prodigy of the Goddess is another life. To escape the pain, he made a deal with her to relive his childhood again and be sent back. Only something went wrong, and he still has the pain and sorrow. She saw the look in Sarin's eye. She didn't understand It at first, but now she totally understood.

Aanya was uncomfortable with the hateful look in Vakias eyes as she looked at her.

Vakia spoke very slow and deliberate. Her voice was tense and full of anger. “Never in my life have I wanted to kill someone so much as I do right now. It is taking all of my self-control to restrain myself, Aanya. So you all chose to do all of that, instead of trying to teach your son what was required, after withholding the knowledge from him, all his life. I can understand that at first. His father was a devoted supporter of the the wargod. But once you saw the prophecies being fulfilled and knowing what was coming. He was your son, you knew what was coming. You should have taken the risk to help him. You should have been his supporter. If I were there, I would have stood up for him and prevented the plot. I would have personally taken him aside, informed him of the plotting, and taught him what he needed to do. You betrayed your son, and now you lost him.”

“I know,” Was all Aanya said.

Vakia asked, “Have any of you wondered why a woman so young is in charge of this entire school, and the Hekatin here? I am barely out of my teens.”

Aanya shrugged, “I figured there was a reason.”

“I am in charge of women a generation older than me. And while most schools have women much older than me in charge, I am here with all of this power. That's because I am a prodigy. I am much smarter and more powerful than many other women. And I know some potent spells that I can cast. One of them is one I never had to cast before. And I figured there was never going to be a reason ever to have to use it. Until now.” Vakia said, glaring at Aanya. She was speechless.

“This spell is so powerful. I have learned how to totally sever a woman's connection with the Goddess and remove her power. I never understood why such a power would exist. I figured it would never be needed. Now I understand.” Vakia staring into Aanya's eyes.

She saw the fear in Aanya's eyes, and she laughed. “No, I'm not going to use it on you. You deserve it, but no. It looks like you are really trying to make it better with your son. I think you know what you did was so wrong. But it doesn't matter anymore. Your son hates you, he cants trust you. In fact, I think he's afraid of you.”

“I just don't know what to do, and now Emily doesn't feel any better about me. I saw the way she looks at me.” Aanya said in helplessness.

“Don't try to make me feel bad about you, Aanya,” Vakia admonished. “You earned it all. But I think I have a solution to this. Your son is hurting, Aanya. I saw the look in his eyes. He is still in deep pain over this. Despite him really being over twenty. What you all did to him stoped much of his emotional development at around fifteen. He stopped, and he wants to relive it. He still has the mind of a teenager, and he seemed to have regressed to the stage his body is at. But I still see that haunted pained looked in his eyes. And the way he dots over his sister is so sweet. He's clearly trying to be better than he was, and he's doing a good job of it.”

“Yes, that impresses me too. I love it.” Aanya agreed.

“But,” Vakia said sternly. “It's not right. He should just be happy as a boy. There's one thing to love and dot over your beloved sister as he does. And then there's overcompensating. He's overcompensating big time and sacrificing himself for it. She may love it, but still, making her his King, come on. I heard your part about Pattenia with the crown, scared during her battle and all. I bet he puts a scar on her.”

“Yes, he does,” Aanya said. “It's so sweet.”

Vakia shook her head. “No, it's weird and very troubling. He's so conflicted and confused. It was clear he still loved his sister to the end, and that maybe what this is about. But he shouldn't try to make Emily into a copy of that. How does she feel?”

“Emily hates it,” Aanya admitted. “She gets dirty and sweaty in that armor but loves the smiles it brings to her brother. She wants to protect him so much after she heard what I did. But she is about as far from Patinia as she can get. She doesn't want to wear armor and hold a sword in battle.”

“He is so conflicted, and he's in pain,” Vakia said. “So I have a solution. Give them to me, I will care for them and I will love them. I don't have that painful history, he can trust me and I will give him the love he so badly needs. I know you are trying Aanya, but you will fail. He can't trust you, and he fears you. You cant raise him anymore.”

“But, you are barely older than he is?” Aanya pointed out.

“Yes, but I can still do a much better job, and I can get him to trust me. I can raise him and help him with his skills. I can also help Emily if you let me be their mother.” Vakia replied. “I will make sure he still has his birthright as the Duke here. I won't take anything from him. You need to consider it.”

“If he agrees,” Aanya answered. “We will need to talk to him” Then she stood up and walked out.

Vakya had never been as conflicted and confused as she was right now. That was such a crazy story, but she believed it because of what she saw of Sarin, his eyes, and his magic. And she had a sense when someone was telling the truth.

There was also the part of his hubris, and he said to her, “Whatever male hubris I had was destroyed long ago.” That sentence confused her. But it now made so much sense. This was why she was here so so much frightening power. It was clear the Hekatin could overstep their bounds and do horrifying things with their ability. They needed someone with the power to restrain them. It was clear if they kept overstepping their bounds and became a force for terror that they may inspire an uprising like they did during the first usurpation hundreds of years ago when they were overthrown, and their temples were destroyed. She felt the pieces coming into place for the prophecy. And that's why she was here to prepare her part of it. Sarin and Emily had a place in it. Why else would there be a boy with such enormous power? But he needed some love and guidance. Annya failed him by a considerable margin. That was so sad because she was so wise and powerful herself. She really should have known better.

Vakia was so frustrated now.

Xxxxxx

Aanya was prepared for almost anything when she returned home, or so she thought. But she was not ready for this. Her daughter Emily was dressed up in armor again wearing a childish like crown made of parchment designed by Sarin to look like the crown Richard wore in the capital. She had her helmet on and the scar that Sarin made for her. That wasn't usual at all.

What made her stumble was seeing Sarin in a brilliant blue gown, and he must be wearing one of Emily's corsets considering how much his waist was clenched. And how ramrod straight his posture was. He must have even had Emily's handmaidens do his face and hair a little. His lips were reddish, and he must have some blush painted on his cheeks. He walked more gracefully than usual, kneeling toward his ‘king’ and addressing her as Her Majesty and bowing his head. She had a read sword in her hand.

Then he quickly turned and shot something out from his hands. An enormous concussion of air blasted out, knocking over anything in their path, and then he shot a few more saying he was protecting his King. Then he jumped at her and wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace. She held him tight

And then she said, “Sarin, I am tired and dirty. Let's go inside.”

They went inside, and Emily had her armor removed and finally able to cool off. Sarin kept his corset and gown on a little longer when Aanya walked in and asked her children to sit down.

“Sarin,” Aanya said, questioning.

“I was being the lady,” Sarin said, shrugging. “You should like that, after all?” He said, accusingly at her. “remember what you did.”

“Yes, and I know I was wrong.”

“Yes, I also know that,” Sarin said bitterly. “and I am glad that you stood up for me in there. That's a first,” He said in disbelief.

“that's what we need to discuss, and now you have a major decision to make. You will be attending school with Emily. You won't be in her class, they will be giving you a separate set of tests to evaluate your level. And they expect to begin specialized courses to prepare you for the four ways and the trials. You won't have to go wearing that, Sarin, and we suggest against it. There is no need, they know you are a boy, and Vakia has said she will accept you as a boy.”

Emily spoke up, “I won't let you go in my clothes Sarin. It would be stupid if you went to school in a dress. I am okay during our playtime, but I don't like you being the maiden for me to rescue. But it's sweet.”

Aanya said sarcastically, “that's what Vakia meant in overcompensating. She is really worried about you now.”

“I guess you told her everything,” Sarin asked.

“Yes, and she wasn't happy with me at all.” Aanya admitted looking at him. “and she has a suggestion for you two after hearing it all. Vakia suggested that you live with her, and she will care for you all like a mother. It won't affect you eventually becoming the Duke here, or anything like that. But she knows of our history and is very concerned about you Sarin. She wants to help you. You have to decide whether or not you want to go with her.”

Sarin thought for a few brief seconds and then asked about Emily, “What will happen to her?”

“The offer includes her. Vakia also wants Emily to live with her. After I explained everything, it occurred to her that you two hate me, You Sarin really hates me. You don't trust me at all, and you may even fear me.”

‘Yes,” Sarin replied in a strained voice. “Those memories don't go away. Your power, your cruelty, and the way you handled it all. I am afraid of you.”

“And that doesn't do well for a parental relationship. Vakia is right. This cant work.” Aanya admitted with tears.

Sarin looked at Emily and asked, “What should I do?”

“I think we should at least try it. We cant trust Aanya, and you need to get away. If Vakia wants us, then we should let her. I want to go.” Emily said, smiling warmly.

“What about Dad?” Sarin asked. “The Duke Gerrik Denae. Won't he have something to say about his children moving in with another mother?”

“I will handle that, and you know he goes along with what I say. He's really changed and takes my advice seriously. He's concerned about you.” Aanya assured him.

“Okay, Emily, let's go when she offers. But first, I want to have a serious talk with my father. A very long talk with him, so tell him tonight I want to meet him in his office, and I will get some answers from him.”

“Shouldn't you dress in something more appropriate to have a serious man to man with your dad?” Aanya inquired.

“Nope,” Sarin said. “He had a lot to do with me ending up this way, let him face it with his own eyes while he's alive to see Serinina for real.” Sarin smiled, “And perhaps put some pretty ribbons in my hair. Emily, want to go knit something first?”

And the two children were off. Emily said, “So you want to rub your experience in his face.”

“Yes. Dad deserves to see what he caused. And I want to know why he did it all.”

“He probably didn't know any better!” Emily offered as they ran to her bedroom.

“Yes, and he needs to answer for that too. He was the King. He should have known better. He was the man in charge of the religions, restrictions on the hekatin. The wargods. If he didn't know, why didn't he know? There's no excuse.”

Brother and sister sat in her bedroom and picked two needles up and began knitting yarn. She kept her eye on Sarin as he began his task as if it was natural. He weaved the two strands of yarn together effortlessly and had several rolls going in no time.

It was like it was the most natural task for him. He looked up, still knitting, and had several more rolls. “Does this look strange?”

“Yes, sort of,” Emily admitted. “But, I understand.”

“Do you think I shouldn't knit with my sister because most men consider this beneath their station in life?” Sarin asked.

“No,” Emily replied. “If you like it, then keep doing it. I play King and sword fight with you when you ask.”

“But you hate it,” Sarin offered. “You do that only for my enjoyment. I actually enjoy knitting, especially with you. By the way, do you like that top I made for you?”

“Yes, it's beautiful,” Emily said. “I don't know how you made those designs in the gown. But it's my favorite.”

“But that's my big question. I enjoy it, should I not enjoy it because it's not considered a manly thing to do? Sew and knit clothing?”

Emily shook her head. “Not at all. You and I will change many people's perceptions of life.” She smiled.

“When I swordfight with you. It isn't all play. I am trying to show you stuff that I think you will need. You haven't beaten me yet, but I think you will beat me in time. You are picking it up fast. You almost disarmed me the last time.” Sarin complimented her.

“Yeah,” Emily replied acidly. “I am tired of you disarming me all the time. I wanted to repay you for that. At least I tried.”

“You will,” Sarin said. “I hoped you would enjoy it more. I have a feeling we will both need to be very tough. You will have to become a great fighter. I will need to rely on you more, and you will need to rely on me. I think you know what we will be facing, and this is why I'm pushing you.”

Emily leaped toward him and whispered in his ear, “I am glad you are doing it. I understand, and I will always be there for you.” Then she hugged him.

The door opened, and their father's servant came in. Gerald said, “Your father is in his office waiting for you, milady.” He smirked as Emily giggled.

He knew Gerald was kidding, and Sarin stood up and followed him. Gerald opened the door, and Sarin walked through. The man shut the door behind him as Sarin found a seat and sat down. Gerric noticed he smoothed his gown before he sat and brushed the hair from his face.

It almost looked like Sarin was throwing his femininity and experiences right into his face to be hurtful.

Gerric started the conversation. “I assume you have finally decided to confront me and ask me some questions about my past decisions?” He let that hang.

“Yes, my biggest question is, why weren't you aware of any of it?” Sarin asked harshly.

“Any of what?” Gerric inquired. “Be specific in your questions, son. Do you mean the prophecy, or your mother, what?”

“The prophesy and the witches. The Hekatins moon that appeared that you casually dismissed a giant shining moon in our sky as a children's tale, it staring you right in the face. How could you not know what any of it meant? You, King Gerric Danea, who had the responsibility of repressing the entire Hekatin and in charge of the priests? How did you not know?”

“I have no excuses,” Gerric replied. “I was a fool. I never knew, I was never taught these things, but that didn't mean I couldn't have educated myself. I was a fool, and it cost me my life and cost you so much more. Watching your suffering at their hands was almost more painful than what I was enduring in death. There's no excuse, I was the man in charge, and I failed. It cost us everything. Being dead taught me many things, and you can see, I am putting them to good use. I have made friends with the Hekatin here. You hated me at first for that, but I can see you got over that.” Gerric said sardonically with a twinkle in his eye.

Sarin laughed, “Not entirely, but I'm working on it.”

“I don't mind how you are dressed,” gerric said. “If that's how you want to dress, you don't have to hide it from us.”

“I am glad to hear it. I am still mad that you didn't know, and no one bothered to teach me any of these things. I am mad at you and mad at mom for the choices you both made that resulted in this. I can't ever forgive any of you.”

“I don't deserve it. I saw your suffering and your wrath. It was most entertaining. And such a shocking conclusion. The deal you made with Prognita. And your betrayal of Lilith. I must warn you, she is pissed.”

“I thought I killed her?” Sarin said.

Gerric shook his head sadly. “Oh, no.” He said hauntingly. “You hurt her, but she is too powerful for that. Lilith will return, and she will want her vengeance. She is in contact with Pattenia. Shes also pissed. They will be coming for you.”

Sarin's face twisted in terror. “So, what can I do?”

“Luckily, you had your other request for your replacement to be so powerful no one can beat him. We have the prophet you requested. He will have just the power to destroy her. Good thinking. I wonder about that family. Their fathers almost a clone of my arrogance. Only this time, he has his son to deal with. That's going to be so funny. The King's son is the son of Prognita and Gabriel. He better watch out.” Gerric busted out laughing.”

Sarin joined him. He had to admit he liked this father much better. Then Sarin said, “I will miss you. But I simply can't stay here, I can hardly stand mother, and I know she's trying hard. But there's just too much pain. Even Aanya agrees this isn't working. The Primary of the Hekatin here has offered me to move in, and she care for me. Emily and I have agreed. She will personally train me.”

Gerric seemed to take it better than Sarin thought he would. He replied. “Good. Perhaps she can do a better job than I did.”

“I guess I should prepare. I hear that Vakia will be arriving with her carriage shortly. I will miss you.” Sarin stood up, and they shook hands.

“Good luck Serinina.

Xxxx

Vakia arrived a few hours later in a large carriage. Sarin's servants helped him load some of the stuff into the back of Vakia's carriage. They loaded trunks of clothes and some of his stuff he liked. They packed Emily's stuff. The children sat with vakia, and they took off to her manor on the outskirts of town.

Vakia already had their bedrooms set up near the top, and her servants loaded the children's trunks in their separate bedrooms. It had been a long night, and they ended up sitting in the drawing room with Vakia.

“Welcome to your new home, children. I hope everything will be well. Sarin, your mother told me everything.” Their eyes met, and Sarin saw there was a lot of sorrow in Vakias eyes. “I can't believe any servant of the Goddess would be so cruel. But, power does corrupt. That's what we really need to guard against. Or we will have the same situation we did hundreds of years ago. I think that's why you are here and why I am here. We need to guard against the Hekatin being corrupt and brutal. Emily, I hear your brother is teaching you some great stuff.”

Emily nodded, “Yes. I didn't appreciate it at first. But I think I will need to learn to fight like a boy.”

“We may all be required to get physical in the future. I will prepare for us. Sarin, I will personally take charge of your training. You will be prepared to face the four ways, and the official trials. Your mother told me you want to be a teacher there?”

“Yes, if it is possible.” Sarin offered. “Mom said you will never let a nine-year-old teacher. I guess it's hard to blame them. I won't be much older than the beginners.”

“If you want, Then I will let you. Sure, it's not normal, but it's also not normal for a nine-year-old to be anywhere near ready to face the trials. But it's not normal for a boy to have a strong connection with the Goddess either, or normal for a nine-year-old to really be in his twenties. None of this is normal, But we do it anyway. The children will learn from you if you show you can teach them. You can be great.”

Then she hugged her new children, and Vakia said, “We had a long day and will have a long day tomorrow. Especially you Sarin. I feel so privileged to have you here. Your sister should feel so privileged. You will make me so happy. Now let's get some sleep.

The Prophet

By Jasmine Monica

Edwyn from birth to six months old and we go though his incredibly rapid development and his relationship with his sister Victoria
We get to witness the amazing feats he can do

For the most part, Edwyn could have been considered the perfect baby. He rarely cried out or gave her much trouble. He went to bed for her, and he seemed content to be put in his crib. He rarely actually slept in the manger. He usually slept snuggled into Ann's arms.

She began to notice those strange things almost immediately, and they made her concerned. Most babies cry at least time times. Edwyn didn't. Ann also noticed his rapid growth and unusual strength he possessed.

Ann was holding Edwyn close to her body nursing her baby. She felt his lips suckling the nourishing milk from her. It was one of the most content feelings when he suddenly finished. She saw his loving eyes look up and a mischievous smile. Edwyn giggled lovingly, and she felt his tiny hand reach for her wrist and pulled her shiny gold bracelet from her wrist, and he threw it on the floor. Edwyn looked up and giggled some more.

Then Ann felt Edwyn reach for her chest and grasped her delicate gold necklace and tore it from him and threw that down and giggled.

Ann shouted, “No, Edwyn, Don't.”

Edwyn knew that he had upset his mother and burst into tears, crying. Tears rolled from the baby's face at hearing his mother's disapproval. Ann held her son in closer, comforting him. “Don't take stuff like that.”

Edwyn looked up with his tearful eyes, and she almost thought he understood.

She took his hand into hers, amazed at the strength this one-week-old baby had. No one knew it, but he was going to have to be strong to withstand what they had in store for him later in life. This Edwyn would not helplessly let them destroy him.

Edwyn weighed almost as much as a two-month-old by the second week. She noticed his extra weight when she was nursing him, and then she felt something uncomfortable as he was suckling on her. Something very unwelcome. Then she cried out loud. “Ow, Ow, Edwyn what.”

Ann yanked the baby from her breast, still hurting, and then she saw what was driving into her tender nipple. Edwyn was starting to grow teeth. How was this possible at two weeks? He wasn't finished and kept trying to get to her breast. She looked down, “Edwyn, do not bite. That hurts.”

His eyes looked like they understood, and she brought his head toward her breast. He locked his lips and began suckling, and Edwyn didn't bite her anymore. Again, Ann felt icy chills run down her back. What was going on with her son?

There were few more incidents of Edwyn biting into her, but nothing very serious. Some were playful, which she handled.

Ann watched the three-week-old Edwyn sitting alone on the floor playing with some large sticks. He giggled as he beat the sticks together, making a clanking sound. He swung them at her, and Ann quickly admonished him, “Don't hit people, Edwyn. NO!”

Edwyn looked up, and tears rolled down his eyes as he sniffled. “Edwyn, I am not mad, I don't want you to hit people with sticks. DO you understand?”

Ann looked as if he did and continued swinging the sticks around and playing. Ann saw that he was entirely able to sit up and hold his back off the floor by two weeks going into three.

Ann had fun watching her son Edwyn sitting on the floor, swinging the sticks she gave him around. He was busy hitting them on a pillow she laid there for him. He looked across the room and saw the sofa looking inviting. Edwyn leaned back and pushed himself forward. Then he reached back and scooted himself forward again. Ann watched her four-week-old baby scooting across the floor to get to the sofa. It wasn't easy getting there, but Edwyn had made it scooting his butt across the floor and then began banging on the couch, giggling as happy as he could be.

Ann picked her baby up in her arms and still not getting used to the weight. She felt like she was carrying a three-month-old in her arms instead of a one-month-old. His strikes were getting very strong by this time. He never struck her again once she told him never to hit people.

Ann saw him strike the sicks together and other things. They almost looked like the strikes of a one-year-old.

Ann had to keep up with Edwyn's mobility now and struggled to keep him from areas he wasn't supposed to be in. Her maids watched him from time to time and told Ann about his unusual abilities at such a young age.

Stone stared at Ann after a night of watching Edwyn alone. She approached Ann with her eyes wide open. “I swear he can understand what I'm saying. And did you know he can reach out and hold a pair of sticks, He picked up a small child sword? I don't know about your son Ann.”

Ann looked up and shook her head, “Me either. He must be blessed.”

The next big thing happened by the seventh week. Stone was watching Edwyn again so Ann and Richard could go out for the night. She watched Edwyn scoot himself next to a small table stand next to a chair. Stone watched Edwyn reach up to the table and push his entire body up to a standing position. He let go and stood there wobbling and struggling to stay standing.

Stone watched the display of a seven-week-old child standing on his own for a very short time. He plopped back down on his butt and looked across the room at Stone. Edwyn smiled and giggled.

Stone looked in awe, “How is this possible!”

Edwyn reached out and pulled himself back up to his feet again. He stood there looking around and plopped back down. Edwyn scooted himself next to her and looked up. Stone swore that he almost saw some sort of resentment or fear looking into her face. He reached up to her knee and pulled himself up to his feet. He looked up into her face, and she swore he examined her face.

Edwyn reached up to try to touch her cheek. Stone reached down to hold Edwyn. Edwyn looked up as Stone held him close. Then Edwyn began struggling in her arms and cried out as if Edwyn was afraid of her. Stone let him down, and he rapid scooted away as if he was scared of her. Stone shook her head, wondering why Edwyn looked frightened by her.

Stone also hear that Edwyn often screamed in terror during some nights.

It was a few days later when Stone was sitting with Ann in the drawing-room watching Two-year-old Victoria playing with some of her paintings when Edwyn was next to a small table and pushed himself up to his feet again. Ann clapped in happyness, seeing her son do this.

Then he turned toward the two women sitting together on the sofa. Edwyn lurched a foot forward. Suddenly he lurched another foot in front of the last one. Edwyn was walking. Stone stared at it slack-jawed in amazement. Edwyn lurched another foot forward and fell back. He leaned forward on his hands and began crawling toward them. Edwyn pushed himself up toward his mother, and she reached down to pick the boy up. He pulled himself as tight as he could, looking over at Stone with fear in his eyes.

Then Edwyn reached his hand back and slapped at Stone. He slapped at her again. The blows didn't hurt, but Stone noticed that the strikes were stronger than any two-month-old infant should have ever been able to do.

Ann looked at her baby in anger and shouted, “Edwyn, stop hitting Stone.”

Edwyn looked into his mother's eyes with a sad look that almost seemed like betrayal. And he began crying and hiding his face into his mother's body.

Stone just had to leave. Edwyn wouldn't stop crying and trying to hit her. Ann wondered what it was about Stone that set Edwyn off so much.

She put Edwyn on the floor, and he crawled over to Victoria and tried to play with her paintbrushes.

Victoria looked down, annoyed at the tiny boy interrupting her playtime, only to see a sweet baby boy cooing at her and handing her the brushes to paint with. The boy stood up and pointed at the board for her to paint. She began painting a picture of a thorny red rose, and Edwyn clapped and giggled. He got another color for her to paint with, and she tried to paint an animal for him.

Edwyn tried to paint a picture, and it didn’t work out very well. It looked somewhat like Victoria, but the lines were uneven, and the face was distorted. He was eight weeks going on nine if a few days. Edwyn had tried very hard at it.

Ann watched Edwyn and Victoria play together for a few more hours before it was time for Victoria to take a nap. She laid down in her bed. Edwyn curled up with her and snuggled as Victoria fell asleep. Edwyn didn't sleep much, but he looked charming, and content snuggled up to his sister. His sweet face glowed with a look of bliss as he snuggled to his older sister's side. This was such love. Ann really thought she had the perfect child right now.

Edwyn worked hard at walking, and his skills progressed, and his strength increased. He was soon running around with his sister, and they were playing around as any toddlers were. For some odd reason, Victoria enjoyed putting her dresses on Edwyn, and they didn't quite fit the twelve weeks old. The fit was close enough. It was adorable.

The two toddlers were running around and playing the pillows in the nursery room, and Stone was trying to clean up the mess they left over. Edwyn had one of Victoria's dresses on, and they were having lots of fun jumping into the pillows and running around. Stones back was turned.

Ann was in another room trying to read when she suddenly heard the sound of someone tumbling down the steps hard. The thumps raddled the house. Stone and Ann went dashing toward the steps full speed. Ann was crying for Edwyn, she was desperately screaming his name because Victoria usually stayed in a shut room. She didn't try to open the door, and she stayed away from the stairs.

She ran down the steps expecting to see an unconscious infant. The boy looked up with his sweet eyes and looked confused, wondering why she was so frantic. He stood up and lifted his arms for her to pick him up.

Ann carefully inspected his head and Edwyn's body. Edwyn was unharmed. This was another thing that sent chills running down her spine. And this was only the beginning.

It was a few weeks later that the big thing happened. Edwyn was wearing one of Victoria's purple dresses, and Victoria was playing with her painting set. They each had their own painting boards. Edwyn was fourteen weeks, and Victoria was a little over two.

Edwyn was fully concentrating on what he was painting. He had an image in his head, and he was doing his best to emulate what he saw. Victoria was trying to paint a horse.

Stone and Ann were watching their children paint together, and it was so cute. Edwyn had finished. He turned to his mother waving and pointing to get her attention. Ann walked over to see what Edwyn had done. Then the hairs stood up on the back of her next as she just stared, totally stunned and afraid.

She called out, “Stone, Please, come here,” She said as her breath was short, and her words came out in frightened shuddered.

Stone walked over to see what Edwyn had done, and they just stared. The image was childlike. The lines were distorted because of a fourteen-week olds, coordination isn't the best, even if he is at a two-year-old level. It's still not the best. But the image was clear enough. It was an uneven box with a few lines through the center and two lines going up at the corners at a 90-degree angle. It was clear enough. It was the symbol of the Goddess in the ancient language.

Then Edwyn drew another, it was as distorted as the previous one. It was the symbol of love.

“What in the world,” ann said, “Are you seeing what I am seeing?”

“We all see it.” Stone asked.

“But he is a boy,” Ann said as Edwyn was pulling Victoria over to get her to see it, and he gave her a brush to try to make the same design. Edwyn didn't understand that Victoria simply couldn't comprehend it. She wanted to make it, but it didn't compute in her head, and she continued to make her horse.

The two women laughed. “She will learn soon enough.”

“We must not let my husband ever see what he did. This puts him in great danger Stone. If any of the men ever see what he is making.” Ann said seriously. “They may kill him. We must do everything we can to hide this.”

Stone said. “Men are stupid, they will just see a chicken.”

Edwyn turned and gave Stone a nasty look. Then he pouted. Stone just laughed. “I didn’t mean you, sweetie.”

He gave her a withering look and turned to make another symbol. The message was clear before, but it was made more clear now. The symbol he made was the symbol of hate.

Then Edwyn, still wearing the dress, walked toward Stone and climbed up on her lap. The little child looked right into Stones's eyes and laid his face next to her chest. He put his hands on her cheeks. Suddenly Stones's mind was flooded with horrifying visions. She was a little older, and she seemed to be beating on a stunningly beautiful teenage girl and trying to dress her as a girl. This girl did look like she was a princess.

Stone walked into a locked room, and the young woman stood up with her eyes filled with terror. Stone was holding up a pink laced corset. The young woman reacted in horror when Stone said mockingly, “Its time to get dressed, Serinina.”

The young woman cried out, “Don't call me that, I am prince Serin, not Serinina.”

Stone laughed, “I am sorry, Milady. your sister The King Patinia ordered us not to call you that. You are a woman now, and your name is Serinina. That's how we must address you, and we can also discipline you if you resist. We are to get you dressed, and that's final.

It was a struggle, but Stone was a large, powerful woman, and the girl Serinina didn't stand a chance. Stone beat the girl into submission. Stone hulled off and punched Serenina in the stomach, and Serenina doubled over as Rose tied the girls hands around her best post. Then Stone gripped Serinina's nipple and twisted it painfully. Serinina cried out, and they struggled to lace the corset up and then drapped the crying woman in a flowing white gown.

She wasn't sure if little Edwyn fully comprehended the images he saw in his mind. These images clearly wernt of any future he would live. This girl had a different name but it was still clear that this girl was a recently transformed boy. And he had a sister named Patinia. This wasnt edwyn. But Edwyn glared at Stone with intense hate.

But what was clear was that these images seem to indicate that somehow they would turn this boy into a woman some times in the future, and Stone would abuse this boy named Sarin. Stone looked at the child and said, “I would never do anything like that to you or any boy.”

Her words were not in the least convincing to Edwyn. The look of distrust and fury continued.

Stone figured from then on that she needed to stay away from this family. She couldn't watch Edwyn anymore. Her presence seemed to traumatize Edwyn, and she saw that Edwynn hated her with a passion.

She didn't explain to Ann why she simply didn't feel comfortable there anymore, Stone simply said she couldn't help her watch the children. Ann found another woman to help her watch her children.

Occasionally, Lady Celestia was happy to help. Luckily it was perfect for them all. Ann really wanted Celestia's opinion on what was going on, so the older woman was delighted to come over and observe Ann's young son.

Edwyn was happy wearing his sister's yellow dress this time. Unluckily Victoria had to go out this way. He really wanted to wear her dresses and cried when he couldn't. He was standing in front of a board wearing her yellow dress.

“Lady Celestia, I really don't know what to think about any of this. You wouldn't believe this child is a little under twenty weeks old. Almost four months, he's walking and running and climbing. He's been walking for little under six weeks. And that's just the start of it. Edwyn also pains. This is what I need you to see.”

Edwyn knew what Ann expected him to do. He consecrated on the symbol in his head and used all of the motor skills he had to make this symbol right this time. It frustrated him that he didn't. Edwyn did his best to paint the two symbols he loved the most and looked at the two older women for their approval.

Ann knew it already and looked in appreciation. Celestia was stunned as she looked at it.

“You know what you are seeing. Remember, this is a nineteen-week old boy that painted the symbol of the Goddess in the ancient language, and the symbol of love. You are the leader of the Hekatin order of witches that worship the Goddess. You teach young girls this. What do you make of this coming from a nineteen-week old boy.”

“I have no clue,” Celestia said. “This is amazing. This is actually world-shattering. Your son must have an intense connection with the Goddess. I bet he sees her in his dreams. This must mean something, but what it means exactly will have to wait until he's older. One thing is obvious, we must do our best to keep this a secret.”

“I know,” Ann said gravely. “I wish he didn't have to attend lessons with the boys at the temple of Mars. That will put him in great danger. I wish there were a way to keep him in that yellow dress and send him to school with his sister.”

“You know that is not possible. Richard would never allow that,” Celestia said. “But if his connection to the Goddess is as deep as we suspect, then the lessons at the boy's school won't have much of an effect. At least we can hope so. This is momentous, Ann. Praise the Goddess.”

Ann agreed, but she feared for her son more than ever.

Victoria and Edwyn seemed almost inseparable at times. Victoria really seemed to enjoy putting Edwyn in her dresses, and Edwyn didn't seem to mind in the least. They ran around and played together all the time they could. Ann loved it, but she knew that a time would come soon when Victoria had to begin her formal education, and it would crush Edwyn that he would be unable to play with his sister.

The momentous events in Edwyn's life never ceased. The next one came in about another few months. Edwyn painted more and more and seemed to refine his skills that he had passed Victoria within four months

He still seemed to be the typical boy and climbed everything he could. He was wearing Victoria's blue gown and climbing on one of the bookcases. Ann turned her back, and Edwyn seemed to fall back, and he tumbled out of the window and fell down a three-story tower. Edwyn crashed into the hard rocks below. Ann screamed as loud as she could and went flying down two flights of steps. Guards were there looking at Edwyn when she approached. Edwyn was totally unharmed, and he didn’t understand why anyone was upset. He giggled and was plying with the guards. He stood up and walked toward his mother smiling and giggling like any toddler.

It seemed that not only had he a close connection with the Goddess. Edwyn seemed immune to harm. She picked her miracle child up in her arms and took him back after swearing the guards to secrecy.

They had to tell Richard his father, the King. Richard brushed it off that he must be the child of mars.

Edwyn had grown into a beautiful child by six months old. He and his sister kept playing and running around like giggling toddlers. He looked so natural and pretty wearing her dress that he even took to wearing bows in her hair as Victoria did. The two were roughly the same size even if Edwyn had outpaced Victorias learning by six months, and her physical skills in painting and writing. Edwyn was as pretty as any of the girls she saw. He entered into Victorias groups as one of the girls seamlessly.

The next event was the biggest of them all. Edwyn learned to stop flying out of windows for the time being. He began trying looking for books by six months. He mostly looked for the pictures. She got him a few children's picture books, but he hated them.

He went into his mother's bedroom to look at her old books. She tried to stop him, but he was fast, and he knew enough not to damage her old books. Ann watched him take down her old books, confident that he couldn't comprehend the images or the words. Ann was wrong.

He flipped through the pages looking for images he liked. He stopped at one and looked over toward Ann. To her stunned silence, he pointed to the image of the Goddess and said a word. “Mommy.”

Ann picked her son up and held him close. He has spoken his first word by six months old. “I am your mommy.” Anne smiled.

Edwyn pointed to the picture again and said firmly, “my Mommy.”

“I am your mommy, Edwyn. That is not your mommy.”

He pointed to the image of the Goddess. “Mommy.”

It would explain a great many things if that were true. But how was it possible.

Authors note, I wish I could find a different title, this title probably turns many people who who may actually be interested in it

By Jasmine Monica
Sarin completes the witches trials and becomes teacher. The Goddess gives him an important task to to help a boy he hurt

It took months of intensive work to prepare Sarin for the trials. He first had to master the ritual of the four ways of the Goddess. Sarin blew though the first two like they were nothing to him.

That was when Vakia began to have a very unwelcome and unfamiliar suspicion. And she didn't like the conclusion she reached. She began to have an extreme suspicion that Sarin, this little nine-year-old boy going on ten, soon was a much stronger witch than she was. Vakia was a prodigy and one of the youngest women ever to have passed the trials and become a formalized witch, and then be appointed as the head of a school and a leader for the Hakatin in this area. Now she encountered a boy who made her feel weak. She began feeling anger and envy that night as she worked to prepare him for the third part.

Then Vakia admonished herself and told herself to get over it. It wasn't the boy's fault in any way. If this boy was stronger than her, then it was the will of the Goddess. Get over her envy and work to help this tortured boy. He needed her help, and she was required to provide it. This boy had this power for a reason. Whatever reason that is, it meant she had to help him instead of hating him. He had enough people hating him. She pushed the envy out of her mind and continued with the instructions and training for the third and fourth ways. These were much more difficult and intensive.

Sarin was less prepared for that, and each of these parts took weeks of his effort. He still overcame them with help from her to train his mind to focus. Much of the problem here was his young mind had trouble maintaining the focus required. Being nine, even if his real age was around twenty now. His body and mind were at Nine, and his nine-year-old mind kept wondering and losing his focus. He eventually mastered that and went on to the fourth way. He had to maintain his concentration for nearly an hour as Vakia and others did their best to distract him. Sarin had to maintain his state of mind for his connection with the Goddess. He had to visualize her in his mind and maintain his lock.

Sarin eventually succeeded, and he was now ready for the full trial.

All of the teachers were there, Vakia, the older teacher Pama was there to encourage him, Jen and Maya were all there. And it was time to begin. The women started chanting to help him get in the state he was required. He surrendered his control and let his mind go blank. He chanted with them, and his mind surrendered to the Goddess.

The point of this was to surrender total control to such a degree, he became a vessel for the Goddess to use, and to fill with her power. Only then could a witch consider herself a genuine member. His mind fell, and it went blank. He saw the Goddess in his mind

His mind kept descending to the lower levels of consciousness, totally surrendering control to the Goddess. His lips were muttering different powerful spells, under the guidance of the Goddess herself.

Then he was there. This was his trial. He saw the Goddess before him. It was a beautiful and glorious sight. She looked like she loved him as she reached out and touched his face in his mind. She lovingly caressed his face like a mother. He felt the affection he needed.

Then she spoke to him. “Sarin. I am sorry that your life has been filled with such pain. You could have reached this point sooner if you followed the path I set for you. But you stoped the path and followed the darkness and altered the fates of everyone in the world. I had a major reward for you for the first time, if you followed the path I set for you there. You have disappointed me, but you followed the path here, and you have proven yourself to be even more devoted to me. But, you have a job, sarin. There is a young lady in school here that you know. Her brother was touched by your dark power. That altered his fate for all time, and He maintained the sex you gave him. But he remembers the transformation and what you did. You must return him to a male. That is your job, and it won't be easy. His fate was sealed by dark powers and will require many women to help him. Like it took multiple women to break through your protection when you were protected by the war god. You changed that man's fate and must help him recover it.”

Sarin replied in his mind, “You required no one to change me back when my fate was changed, and even you didn't care.”

“I cared,” Replied the Goddess. “Your change was supposed to be done in a much different way. They were cruel to you, and you may have been changed back. Such things would have been up to you.”

“I got pregnant, and then I was going to be put in a marriage. I was going to be a bride. How could I have been changed back by you after that? I had to do it myself.” Sarin said hotly.

“You could have, and I was going to help you after the injustices imposed on you, but you went to the darkness and changed everyones. So it's your job to help those. Actonia's brother is suffering. Her sister sees it, but she doesn't understand why. You must reveal the reason and help her brother.”

“If I tell her,” Sarin replied. “She will hate me.”

“Yes,” replied the Goddess. “But she will understand. Having seen the suffering of her brother and why the girl is her sister. Trapped in a boy's spirit. She will be thankful. And here is how you must help her brother.”

Sarin received precise instructions on how to overcome the dark powers sealing Actonia's fate and what he must do. He agreed. Then She said, “You will receive further challenges because of what you unleashed. It is your job to protect the people. You will receive those instructions later.”

Then the Goddess broke the contact with Sarin, and he was left completely bewildered. The women were so happy he had passed the final test. Sarin was now an official witch and ready for his place. He was also prepared for his challenge.

Now he knew what he had to do. Vakia gave him a big hug. Then he sat down with the other bewildered women who just witnessed a nine-year-old boy pass the witch trials.

Vakia said to Serin, “Now you are an official witch. Congratulations. And you want to be a teacher at the school. You are entitled to it. You will be with Pamia. She is the teacher for the five to eight-year-olds beginning witchcraft.”

“But Emily is eleven. I wanted to help her.” Serin protested.

“They are older than you Sarin. Those are the intermediate, 10s we call them. I know you are more than qualified, but we will see how you first do with the fives first. Then perhaps we can try to see if you can get the respect of girls older than you.”

“I understand,” Sarin said. “So who teaches then tens?”

“That is May,” Vakiya replied.

“May, you teach my Emily?”

May, a dark-haired older woman nodded. “Yes, and she is doing great. You and Vakia are doing miracles with her. “

“Do you have a girl named Actonia there?” Serin inquired, raising her eyebrow.

“Yes,” Mary replied. “That girl is brilliant. She sees things, and she advances very quickly. Why are you asking about her?”

“The Goddess said something about her. Does she have a sister with her?” Serin asked.

May shook her head. “No, Jerica isn't taking courses with the hekatin. She is in the regular girl's classes, but she isn't progressing at all. There's something very wrong with her, and we cant help her. Many of us have tried. I Jerica said to one of the girls that she is really a boy.”

“She is a boy,” Serin replied. “And we have to help Jerric return as a boy. He was changed by potent dark magic. It will require many of us to break through the darkness and help Jerric return as a boy. That's what the Goddess told me I must do.”

The four older teachers just stared at him for several very long seconds. It was so unnervingly quiet you could hear a pin drop. May said, “If he really is a boy, that would explain so much. Poor boy. If this is what the Goddess told you, then it must be true, and that is your duty assigned to you by the Goddes. It comes to you to help that poor boy. You need a plan.”

“Yes, We must find enough girls willing to help him. The Goddess said it would require many girls to break through the seal the darkness trapped him in. And I must talk with Actonia first. She is a seer, and she will know who will be willing to help us.”

They understood, and then Serin worked with May into the evening over the lesson plans for the following week. May told him where they were and what they were working on. Then she told Serin what the plans were for the next week. Since they were five to seven-year-olds, they were still studying the fundamentals of the Goddess and magic. They were on some of the language skills. Then Serin was given a list of the girls in the class and their names and skillsets they were working on. There would be a new girl that week that needed to do the ritual of feminine power. She was going to allow Serin to lead that for the girl near the end of the class.

Then the women left once everything was settled, and he continued to look at the list of the students he would be working on. Then he went laid in his new bed, getting ready to sleep.

Xxxxx
Serin woke up in the morning, and he still half-expected Stone and Bucket to storm in like they did the first morning to corset him one way or the other. That fear was hard to get rid of.

But there was no Stone, and he got dressed generally as a boy usually did. But since he was at a girls school with many girls, he did try to look more neutral, so he chose a more feminine top with some ruffles down the buttons and lace along the collar. He did his hair and then powdered his face and his lips, and he was about ready to go to school with Vakia. Her eyes rose as she saw his appearance but shrugged. They rode in the carriage together with his sister, and they arrived on schedule.

It was still
close to a half-hour before classes began. Emily got to watch as May instructed Serin on his duties and made sure he knew all of the girl's names and their skills they were working on.

Then May made sure Sarin knew what the lesson plans were. They had to get through the basic skills for the morning like language and the grace portion before they got into the witchcraft. But the fives witchcraft was first before the older girls came in for their class.

Serin was ready, and the girls began arriving. Emily was sent to her class with the ten to twelve-year-olds. And everything began. Serin felt very out of place here.

The teacher may introduce him. “Girls, I have a new assistant teacher. Everyone welcome Serin Denae as the assistant teacher.”

There were whispers, “but he’s a boy.” from several of the girls. Or “How can he teach us.”

May took control, “Girls, if he couldn't help you, then we wouldn't let a boy be here. He is very smart, and he will be my assistant. So welcome Sarin Denae.”

The girls snickered but welcomed him. “Welcome, Serin Danae.”

He smiled back, “Thanks. I will be the Assistant teacher from now on. So let's get started.”

This wasn't even witchcraft yet. They were just going through some basic language skills and touching on the history of queen Danis Pronita and her great accomplishments to society. Sarin kept a sharp eye on the various girls doing his best to remember each of their names. He went to help when he saw a girl who was having difficulty with the subject.

Sarin never made a mistake with the girl's names and went to help. May was extremely impressed with the very caring and compassionate leadership style that immediately endured the girls to him. She saw the hesitation the girls had with him in the beginning melt away into acceptance and even trust.

May was shocked when some of the girls asked for Serin to help her instead of asking for her. Serin had a style that endured him to them, and they liked him a lot. He was always there when he was needed.

Sarin spent a few extra minutes after class helping a group of girls understand the vowels and their place in forming words after class and asked the girls to do some extra work that night to help them understand, and he promised to check it in the morning.

Then he dismissed him. May was staring at him, trying to understand that he gave some of the girls extra work, and they gladly accepted and promised to do it for him. Even she had trouble doing that.

Then they were going to lead the girls in feminine grace. This was going to be interesting, Sarin thought acidly to himself. How would the girls accept this? Well, he was going to have to demean his masculinity once more and help teach girls some of the feminine graces and show them he could do it. How fun was this going to be?

Some of the same girls were here for this class, but there were a few older girls that had started late. Much like he did at sixteen. The class began as usual, but there was a little more disbelief and more snickering when May introduced him as the assistant teacher. They snickered uncontrollably, responding. “Hello, Serin Denae.” May silenced them, and they began the lessons with walking gracefully as a girl.

Serin did what he could to help teach the girls. There was a lot of disbelief that a boy could help a girl in this area, so he was required to demonstrate that he could do it. Serin walked effortlessly across the floor with three books on his head. He demonstrated how to keep the shoulders and head level as he glided across the floor. Then sitting, standing, the motions, and methods. Some of the girls kept snickering but more of the girls were willing to allow him to guide them through it after that.

So he was attentive in helping and instructing the girls how to glide across the floor, keeping the head level with the body. One of the girls near the end asked, “How do you know this?”

He looked at the girl that looked like she was ten. He said, “I used to be a girl Centhia. I was turned into a girl. So I went to these classes, and I studied. I learned everything girls learned.”

Centhia seemed to accept that. The class was dismissed, and they went on their way. It was now time for the Chapel, and all of the girls went into the chapel and sat down as Vakia began that portion of the day. She lead a sermon. It seemed all of the girls were here from ages five on up to sixteen. Even Actonia was there in the middle roll sitting beside Emily.

Then Vakia called up sarin to the front and included him in her sermon for the day. “As many of you know,” Vakia said. “The will of Prognita is unknowable. We don't know what she intends, we just accept her will and let her be our guide. Many of you accept me because its the will of our Goddess. I am not much older than some of you. Yet I am one of the youngest women to ever pass the trials of the four ways. I have been appointed as the primary of this school. I am the high hekatin leader for this area. I have proven myself superior in skills than many women in their middle ages. This is the will. By the same measure, the Goddess has saw fit to grant this boy extraordinary abilities. He feels the will of the Goddess. He is the youngest child to ever pass the trials, and he is a boy. But this is the will of the Goddess. We must accept and guide him.”

He saw that many of the girls were surprised. There were some mutterings and even some snickering. But many of the girls accepted him. He saw Actonia watching him with a wary eye. It was as if she was trying to figure out who he was. He saw a flicker of recognition in her eyes, but she still couldn't figure out who he was.

Serin smiled softly to Actonia and nodded. She still couldn't figure it out. He remembered in the other life he felt a strong sexual attraction to Actonia and made a deal with some of his friends that he could seduce her, and if he failed, then he would dress as a girl for them. It was silly and really backfired when he was dressed and did become a girl. He felt that attraction before he realized what a monster Actonia really was. This wasn't that Actonia. She was still a child here and would find things wold go very different here. With the Prophet being the King's son, she would find that she couldn't turn him, and there would be no need to. She may even find that suggestion such a thing to Edwyn's sister would get her into big trouble. There won't be much need for her skills here, but would she become the same sadists that would do anything she felt was necessary no matter who she hurt in the process? Would she have no feelings for the suffering of a boy who was turned against his will? Serin guessed that her own brother's suffering may have an effect on that.

Vakia's sermon ended, and they were dismissed, and then It was time for the younger children to begin the Hekatin courses. Most of the girls knew him by now and were willing to accept him. Most of the girls even liked him by now. Serin was still introduced as the assistant teacher. Since this was the special classes for the Hekatin, May had to add additional information.

“We Welcome Serin Denae as the assistant. He just graduated from the trials and is a full witch. Our primary has introduced him personally over the past months and helped him pass the trials. We are very privileged to have someone of his ability to help us here, so everyone welcome Serin Denae.”

The girls welcomed him, and they all began. This was his specialty and what he enjoyed the most. They all began with the basics and progressed from there to the symbols and the language of the Goddess herself. He went around helping the girls with the symbols and what they all meant. The girls seemed to enjoy it

And then they proceeded to casting some of the basic spells. It was stranger to help the girls here, but he understood and helped the girls focus their power by showing them how to do it. Many times, it required him to demonstrate it himself. Many of the girls were shocked to see the power of the Goddess within him. Even though they were told, he passed the trials. It was still a different thing to see him actually doing it. He was endured to all of the girls, and they formed a special bond with him.

Then he helped an eight-year-old do the ritual of feminine force. May watched as he guided the girl though the phrases and helped her through the entire process. None of the girls snickered to hear him repeating the phrases and guiding her through it. It was actually impressive. Then class dismissed, and Serin personally congratulated the girl and cheered her on as she left.

Now Serin faced the teacher May, and they both knew it was time for the hard part. The two walked out to meet their primary Vakia. The three went to the class Emily was leaving, and they saw Actonia there waiting as if she knew.

Sarin decided to take charge and walked up to Actonia. He still felt the ghost of the anger at what she did in a previous life. He told himself to stow it this time and approached. “Hello Actonia,” Sarin said to her. “My name is Sarin Denae, and we need to have a word with you.”

The eleven-year-old girl nodded and followed them to the office. “This has to do with my sister Jerica doesn't it?”

“Yes, I may be able to help her.” the four filed into Vakia’s office and sat down. They all looked at Sarin to begin. He didn't know how difficult all of this was going to be. He was going to have to confess to Actonia and not get angry.

“I have been instructed to help your Sister, Jerica. I feel that I may be the only one who can help her.” Sarin started off.

“She needs it. Jerica keeps insisting that she is really a boy and that a witch turned him. But I remember her being my younger sister all my life.” Actonia said. “I don't know why she isn't happy being a girl.”

“Jerica is right,” Sarin said flatly. “She was turned
against her will. You may need some explanation, so I will show you.” Sarin stood up and approached Actonia. “You are a seer and see things. I also know much of your abilities are done by physical touch, so here, take my hand and look into my past, and my future.” sarin took Actonia's hand.

The girl's mind was flooded with confusing and horrific images. They all began with Actonia talking to Pattenia about turning him, the pressure she applied. Actonia meeting Aanya at the very beginning and talking about Pattenia being the vessel, and she had to be strong. The images proceeded to the great meeting where she talked to Pattenia about how he would be happy as a girl and how it would make her strong. The images went to the meeting in the stable and where they went out to the woods and turned a buck together. Then to the coronation where Sarin was horrifically changed against his will and went on to Sarin's abuse and depression in that life. All the way to his deal with Lilith and his vengeance in changing her younger brother Jeric. Then how everything went back, except for Jeric, who with back as a young girl.”

“So those dreams are you, You are that boy?” Actonia said. “It explains so much. Jerrica really is a boy, and this is revenge against me.”

“Yes,” Sarin said. It was the first vakia, and May heard of this horrific plan. But they maintained their silence. “It was. I was so helpless and abused. I turned cruel, but you were also very cruel, Actonia. It all has a cost. But the Goddess told me to help your brother be restored, and she told me the way. We will need many girls to break through the dark power, imprisoning your brother in this form. Since you are the seer, you can find those girls that we need. Can you see them in your mind?”

Actonia looked into her visions and started seeing the images of the girls they needed. “Yes, I think I do. We only needed twelve women to change you, but this is even stronger power, and we will need twenty-five girls. We will also need Celestia to help. Your mother, Aanya as we did the first time.”

They started making plans, and she would gather the girls in the coming weeks. Sarin needed to travel to the capital. Actonia stood up and said sadly, “Sarin, I am sorry. I think it was wrong to do what we did.”

“I would have done what was required if anyone ever told me it was required. I wish someone taught me what it was all about. I am also sorry for taking my vengeance out on your brother. Let's make plans to restore his manhood.”

Note from the Author. I am not rewriting this entire story. I am simply adding some chapters in some areas to help further explain a few of the plot points and help with the continuity from the Lilith Messenger part that I wrote.
Much of this story will remain the same
But I will write another chapter five for Sarin helping Jerric with Actonias help and his going to the capital to finally confront Celestia

By Jasmine Monica

Sarin gets his instructions from the Goddess and begins to make the arrangements to carry them out. Emily gets too curious and forces the entire story from Sarin. She has a friend with her that helps out with the story.
and Sarin has some difficulties with the assignment

Emily had become so curious about Sarin's time as a girl that she Demanded that Sarin tell her. He knew that he had put the story off for too long and made the preparations. Sarin knew that Vakia had been told the story by his mother. He wanted Vakia there for his support that night. He expected Vakia to be sitting with his sister Emily. What he did not expect was to see her with Actonia when he entered the drawing-room, ready to finally tell her about his time being a girl.

Emily saw seething anger flash in Sarin's eyes when he saw Actonia sitting there. Emily spoke,” Actonia was part of the story, and she wanted to be here to explain her role in the story, Sarin. Vakia allowed it.”

He was still furious.

Actonia said to them, “Sarin activated my memories of those times. Everything Sarin is going to tell you is the truth. But I want to start from my point of view first?”

Sarin nodded to her. “Go Ahead.” Sarin knew whatever Actonia was going to say would probably be demeaning and humiliating to him.

“My part in this began when the Moon first appeared. I had to figure out a plan of action. I knew we couldn't have another male on the throne, so I began looking through all of the spell books to find a way to give Patenia an edge to get the crown. I found it after weeks of searching, and then I made my way to the Capital. I found Patenia in school with her friends and the teachers. I made friends with them all, but Patenia was more difficult. She didn't like me. The teacher liked me and knew why I was there. I spoke briefly to Patenia, and she didn't like me at all. It took a long time for her to warm up to like me. They were so suspicious of me. Her friend Dalala kept wondering if I was harassing her. But I knew she was the fulfillment of the prophecies from the first minute I touched her. I saw her as the King under our three moons. I saw such a great vision, and many of us wanted it to come true so much. We would have done anything to anyone. We have been living under such dark times. Vakia, you simply can't understand what it is like for us to live in areas without a friendly Duke overseeing it. We live in fear for our lives every day. We can be burnt at the stake if we are discovered. You have it great here.”

Vakia snorted rudely. “I do know what that is like. But, I still believe in protecting the innocent. Had I been there I would have stood by him and against all of you. I don't believe in human sacrifices, and neither does our Goddess. That is why your brother is suffering, Actonia. So please don't justify the horror you committed on Sarin and just tell us the events from your point of view, and then we will hear Sarin.”

“I knew it was Patinia from the first second. I saw her future as the King. So I informed Lady Celestia, and we gathered in a small flower shop that doubled as a worship for the Goddess. Celestia snuck in during a vicious rainstorm in which all of the purgatarists were out watching everyone. Aanya was already there waiting when Celestia made her way in. I informed them that Patenia was meant to be King. She was the Vessel of the Goddess And that I had a plan, but Patenia had to be strong to be able to do what was required. We met at school, and I dropped the idea a few times. She was intrigued and giggled at the sight of seeing you in gowns and such. But she turned them down every time. It seemed so cruel to her.”

“What?” Sarin said, so confused. “She seemed to happy I was made a girl, and so eager to keep forcing it on me. and so very cruel, I can't believe she was ever against it.”

“She was so against it,” Actonia stated. “ and loved you,” Actonia said.

“Where did that love go?” Sarin asked nearly in tears. “She enjoyed my suffering and my torment and hurt me so much. I wonder what changed?”

“Probably finally having power over you. And years of pent up anger at Patinea's role in the family and you teasing her. She got to unleash. And we had all agreed that we had to be very harsh on you to force you to live as a young woman. What finally convinced her was...”

“I know, the marriage with Runtek. Yes, I know.” Sarin said. “After father died, and I was backed into a corner and threatened with war, I was not ready for such pressure. I agreed, but I think I would have stopped the marriage. But Patenia knew, and I told her, so that convinced her to take the crown from me and make me a girl. I still have night terrors of it all. Her yelling so proudly with so much emotion. “There is no longer a male heir to the throne. Sarin is female and my younger sister. That makes me the rightful heir.” I have nightmares of her voice, mocking me.”

“And she was so cruel to me. Her cruelty was relentless.” Sarin said, sobbing in tears.

Actonia really didn't expect any of this. She had to ask, “Sarin Can you explain it to me? I don't understand why you think we were so cruel to you. We didn't beat you, we didn't have you physically abused. You weren't tortured. You weren't put on the rack or lashed. We didn't tear your skin off. You were just made to live life as a girl. You had your freedom to go places, meet people, have associations. We didn't keep you imprisoned that entire time. What was so cruel about it? That was how we all lived. And we endured. We did enjoy it, but it wasn't that cruel.”

“You were all desperate enough to destroy my life to end it all,” Sarin snarled through his tightened jaw. “You know it was a cruel life. Don't play that with me. You know many of you were unhappy. But you are a girl, you are all girls. I know it sounds sexist, but I'm not.”

Actonia snorted when Vakia spoke up. “I can personally vouch that Sarin does not have a sexist bone in his body. I saw him interacting with the girls. He was wonderful and very caring. Many of those girls he helped fell in love with his style. You should have seen him. He helped them do everything from the grace courses, personally instructing and demonstrating it himself, to the ritual of feminine force. He is not sexist. He is making a point about the differences between what boys and girls want in life. And he does have a point. So go on, Sarin. Tell her why it was so cruel.”

“You are a girl and like it or not. The corset, gown, makeup, and all of that is what appeals to many girls. We don't force it on you. Men don't force that look on you. You all do it yourself. And even You Actonia, you want to look pretty. But you want more in life than that, Patenia wanted much more and looking pretty didn't appeal to her. But, she doesn't speak for the millions of girls in the world that do want to look little and sexy, and have those clothes. Going out, fighting, getting dirty, being in danger isn't what appeals to many girls. That's a life boys aspire to. When you took that away from me, and made me into a girl and then forced me into the life of a traditional girl who does only aspire to look pretty and host parties. That was the cruelest thing you could have done to me. And it made it worse watching you all aspire to everything you wanted while denying it to me. You and your friends went out with Patinia on her war campaigns, forcing me to stay there. It was so cruel. It was unbearable. It was worse than the beatings and torture. I would have preferred that. I was trained to handle that. But taking away everything I wanted. That was just cruel spite for it happening to her, but she was a girl. It's different.”

Vakia spoke up, “stealing his dreams was one of the cruelest things you all could have possibly done, Actonia. That was a horror. And it's hypocritical to throw what he said about girls not fighting in his face after you made him a weak girl, but all of you girls went out and fought. Proving it all wrong, but you forbid him. Cant, you see how totally sadistic and cruel it was? Actonia, how would you like someone forcing you to remain isolated and controlled? If you are going to operate under the assumption that being a girl makes you stronger and such, then you should have proven it to him by letting him find his own way in life. But you acted like hypocrtics and sadist.”

Then vakia added, “Those men that say girls can't fight aren't entirely wrong either. Could eighteen-year-old patinia have fought well without that magical armor that enhanced her speed and strength, could she had fought with that heavy armor and handled that sword as well as her younger brother did?”

Actonia admitted, “No.”

“Our bodies aren't built to handle that life, Actonia. We are physically weaker. There's a reason men go out to war, not women. Some women can handle it, but even those women often find that even the weakest men can outmatch them on the field. That's why you made Sarin into a girl, and he found the life he wanted was no longer suited for him. That added to his agony and unhappiness. It was so cruel.”

Emily spoke up, “What Sarin said is so right. He makes me fight with him, but I don't enjoy it one bit. I see why Sarin thinks I need to be strong, and I gladly do it for him. Now I know why he feels he needs people protecting him. So you turned him into a girl just so he couldn't become King? But how did another girl become the King?”

Sarin spoke up. “It's like us. I was Patinia's younger brother. The law says the male child gets the throne. I was male, and even though she was older, I was the heir. When she turned me, female, there was no male heir, and it went to the eldest girl. Her. And there was also that they had performed such a display of power, and were all there intimidating and daring anyone to oppose them. It was also a show of force to terrorize the people into obedience. It made their point that their regime was a regime of terror and intimidation. It wasn't by the consent of the people, and it showed that by the repeated attacks on the palace and the rebellions, they kept having
to put down.”

Actonia knew that's what he wanted to think. “We only had that one major rebellion, and that was from the Ansley's. It had less to do with the people's unhappiness as her wanting to be the first female queen. That's why she pushed so hard for her child to marry into the royal family. And the only attacks on the palace were from the priests. They weren't general attacks by the people. The people were thrilled under Patina's rule. But I do understand your point, Sarin. I admit that we were very wrong. I still say we were right to set Patinia up for the throne. You were not ready yet. And we had the prophecy to follow. But we handled it so wrong. We shouldn't have forced you into a life you hated. We should have helped you find the life you wanted and made you a big part of it all.”

“Yes, that was the most painful of all. Actonia,” Sarin said. “I repeatedly told you all that I was loyal. I told my sister I didn't have to be King. I respected and loved her. I was loyal to her. There was no reason to fear me fighting. I wouldn't have fought her. Had anyone tried to rally to me against her, I would have shut them down fast. I would have informed on them, and fought them with my sister. I wanted a place on my sister's side. I told her I loved her. She hated me, she didn't want me to have any place in the new order. She sidelined me, ignored me, and forced me into a powerless life whose only role was to look pretty for her. That was the cruelest thing of all. That's why I did what I did to her, and I'm still not sorry. It makes me happy.”

Vakia glared at Actonia and said, gritting her teeth. “I don't think you understand why Sarin felt what was done was so cruel. I think you need a lesson on what it is like to suddenly lose everything that makes you unique in the world.

Serin had his strength and the training that he worked on all of his life. And lost it all in a second. You have never had to live the traditional life of a girl that you all so willingly forced on Sarin. You never had to endure that because We are witches. We are granted powers that raise us above other women, so we don't have those fears most women live under. So you don't know why those rules exist. You never had to deal with it. We can rise above them, most women cant. How could Pattinia fight without the magic enhancing her?” Vakia laughed. “That's why not many women are warriors. You have given extreme powers that allow you to go where you please, you had no restrictions on you growing up because you never needed them.”

“Actonia, you are so powerful that no one had to worry about you. You always went where you pleased. You had become so powerful as sixteen that the High leader of the Hekatin and the professor at the school often deferred to your judgment. You walked with her as an equal. You even become the chief Adviser to the King. Your power is that extreme. So what if it is all of a sudden taken from you? What kind of life will you live if all you have is stolen from you?

Actonia tried to think about it, but it was such a horror she couldn't even try to imagine it. “I can't even imagine such a thing.”

Vakia grinned at her. It was a wicked chilling grin. “I can do that to you, and I think you badly need a lesson on what it is like to suddenly lose everything that makes you special. Something you worked on all of your life. I know you are only twelve, but it's good you learn it now, so you know what it's like. You will know how cruel it is. We will help your brother, and then I will give you your lesson.”

Then Vakia said, “So, we will go to the capital. Take your brother and the girls we need. And we will see Celestia at the capital.”

Serin tightened. "I have been wanting to see that bitch for so long. I know I gave her a beating, but she forgot it, and that was someone else. It wasn't Sarin. I want to talk to her.”

“She is a different woman,” Actonia said. “Celestia doesn't even know what she did. She won't have many answers.”

“Can you restore her memories of that time?” Serin asked.

“Yes, but do you want her back?” Actonia inquired.

“She is the same, if the situation presents itself, then we will see her do the same thing. It won't, but she would. You may as well restore her memory, so I can talk to her about it. I really want some answers. Like, why did she hate me so much? What did I do to make them want to be so unbelievably cruel to me? Why did she hate me? What did I do?”

“Sarin, you did nothing,” Actonia admitted. “You teased your sister, relentlessly. That made her very spiteful, and she loved throwing all of that teasing back in your face when you were the younger girl instead of, the stronger brother. But that doesn't justify it at all. She should have been the bigger person and let you learn your lesson. But that doesn't explain why the rest of us were so cruel to you. You never did a thing to me, Fawna, Celestia, or the rest of us. Danala liked you. The thing was that you were the heir. That's it. There's no other reason Sarin. We had to prevent you from getting the crown. You getting the crown was such a threat, we felt we had to totally destroy any chance you had of regaining the crown. We felt is you did, we would be killed. We felt if we failed, we would be killed.”

“I may have in the beginning after you did what you did, but not after a few months when I learned all about your religion and the Goddess. I loved her, I loved you all then. There was no longer any threat. As I said, I wouldn't have tolerated it. I kept telling you that. You refused to listen. I would love one chance to do it over, as the prince, and learn it all before that event and prove to you I could have done it. You wouldn't listen and continue your plot. I would have to round you all up that night, and then I get the crown. By the time my rule is established and firm, I release you, and you see the priests all arrested. They no longer are a threat, and your religion is free. And then we can begin the campaign to restore the Goddess. If I was taught about it, I could have done it. I would love to have not been turned into a girl. I know that experience helped me and has endured me to those girls so much. But it's still an experience I could do without.”

“You would lose so much,” Actonia said.

“Yes, I know,” Sarin admitted sadly. “But that experience is still such a horror. I can never really be a man like this. Emily sees it, don't you, Emily?”

“Yeah, You are young, but I don't see you becoming a manly type man. You have so many feminine ways. They have been ingrained in you.”

“I am more feminine than I am masculine. Thank you for that actonia,” Sarin said acidly. “But we have to plan. Actonia, you know the girls we need, so contact them and ask them to help us. We will meet tonight and make our way to the capital. Id really like to see Edwyn.”

“Edwyn is a little younger than four right now. I don't know what you want to talk about. Actually, I think meeting you will be a shock he may not be able to handle. Edwyn has many of your memories that he can't comprehend. He actually thinks they are his at times. Switching places with him has given him some of your experiences. He confronted stone, thinking that Stone was abusing him.”

“So we won't meet Edwyn yet. Let's get through our classes and prepare for our trip tonight.”

Actonia stayed with Emily that night and they slept.

Their sleep was restless, considering all that they needed to do. Then Serin woke up and got himself bathed and dressed. He had to go talk to his mother and then get ready for school.

Edwyn got his carriage ready and traveled back to the Dukes Manor in town, and his mother had been told to be ready to meet him.

Aanya wasn't sure she was ready to see her son yet. She heard all that he had accomplished in the past few months. Sarin's carriage stopped in front of the Manor and he saw Aanya standing up on the steps in front of the large doors ready for him. He got out and walked up the flight of steps to meet his mother once more.

“It's still hard,” Sarin admitted.

“I know,” Aanya said softly.

“But, we need your help. I did the trial, and I passed. I have been made a full member of the Hekatin, and a teacher at the school. I teach the five-year-olds and various ages in the witchcraft classes. I need your help.” Sarin said. “The Goddess has assigned a difficult me a difficult task during the trial. So I need your help.”

xxxxxx

“What do I need to help you with?” Aanya asked.

“There's a boy that I hurt during my time with Lilith. I changed him the way I was changed. I did it for vengeance against Actonia. The boy was her brother. I wanted her to feel the pain of someone close to her. I have to change him back.”

Aanya was horrified. She knew her son had been ruthless, but she feared she had nothing to say about this matter. Anything she said about the sheer cruelty of changing that boy could be thrown right back into her face. Even though, the reasons for the actions had vastly different motives. Aanya turning him was supposed to save his life from assassination, and to help a better person become the King to do good across the Kingdom. It had good motivations, even if it ended up hurting him. Sarin changing Actonia's brother was just revenge. It was cruel spite with no good motives. But she feared Sarin would refuse to see that and simply think they hated him, and that's why they did what they did. It would be hard to blame him for thinking that either. They were all so cruel to him.

So all actonia said was, “What am I supposed to do for that boy?”

“We need many powerful women,” Sarin said. “It required twelve women to change me because I was sealed by Mars, and it took many women to break through that to change me. Jerrica is sealed by Lilith, and it will take a great number of women to break through that. And you are one of them. We also need some women in the capital. Celestia, Fawna, and Danala are also chosen. So we must be ready to go to the capital tonight. Can you be ready?”

Sarin saw the sun starting to peak out. It would be dawn soon. Aanya confirmed, “Yes, I will be ready.”

“Good, I must prepare for my classes. I will meet you tonight, Mother.” Sarin said, and the word hurt him.

He went back into the carriage and went to the girl's school. He met Met May in the classroom and began working out the lesson plans for the day. They were just about the same as the previous day. And they would see if they could build on any of it, or if they had to keep working on the basic language skills and the letters. They were presently on the vowels and how they worked to form the words. Serin thought they may be able to begin full sentences. May was less hopeful. Sarin had confidence in the girls.

As he and May worked on the plans for the day, He began to realize the injustice of all of this. These girls were taught these things, but they were also taught the religion of the Goddess. That topic was snuck in many of their lessons.

The boys were taught different things. And it wasn't really fair, but that's not what really bothered Sarin. He knew it was an injustice that put girls at a disadvantage.

But what Sarin wasn't taught put him at such a massive disadvantage against his sister that it totally blindsided him in such a horrific way. Magic was real, there was a prophecy, and he couldn't ascend to the throne. Not only that, he had to be destroyed, so he couldn't even be considered a threat to her. That was the stakes, and no one taught him. Boys weren't taught about the Goddess, and that destroyed him. This was something that was going to have to be corrected. He wanted Prince Sarin to be educated about the Goddess at a young age. There had to be a way to prepare him if he was the prince so he wouldn't be blindsided by Pattenia and the witches. He could blindside them. The only thing was that if he started learning and knew what they planned, he may consider them the enemy that had to be destroyed.

The girls were so happy to see him when they arrived. He heard squeals and cheers as they ran to him. He greeted them with such a huge smile on his face, and he was all too happy when class began. They started working on the letters again and how they are put together. They worked on the sound each letter made and its name in the alphabet. They worked on that for about fifteen minutes and moved on to the vowels and why they are needed. What were silent vowels? Then they began working on forming full words. Most girls got that by now, they were able to build on yesterday's progress and began working on complete sentences. Sarin would write out sentences on a large sheet of parchment and had the girls read them. Most of them could do it. There were some that were struggling, and Sarin helped them through it, and they were able to read the sentence by the end of the class. May found herself sidelined as Sarin stood in front, leading most of the course. She was amazed at how the girls were able to trust him so much.

The girl that was having trouble with the vowels last class had done her extra work writing them down twenty times. He looked at the paper and passed her. She was so happy that she now knew it.

Then Sarin went to the class for more feminine graces. That class moved from simple walking and sitting, to how a girl presents herself. Hand motions when talking, when moving around. How to hold their head and how to talk to people. They worked on how to speak to men vs. how to talk to other women and how to present themselves. The class worked on a simple greeting, and Sarin went up and greeted one of the girls in a formal, feminine way. It looked so silly for Sarin to greet another girl as a lady, then curtsy by the knee and bow her head. Some girls snickered, and they worked on that. Then they worked on how to greet other men. That had different expectations.

Sarin thought it was so silly that they had different expectations for greeting.

Then the class moved on to graces at the table, and some of that was even worse. It looked even more demeaning for a boy to demonstrate feminine grace at a dinner table. But he did it, and the girls followed. Sarin got a little frustrated with this. It wasn't so much that he had to sit there and demonstrate it. What frustrated him was that he was expected to impart this to a new generation of girls that would be expected to do this, when they shouldn't. Girls shouldn't have to do this. They shouldn't have any different expectations when sitting at the dinner table than boys. They should be able to fill their mouths like boys, slouch, and put their elbows on the table. Why shouldn't they? This was stupid.

Class ended, and Sarin dismissed them. May confronted Sarin and asked, “I see your strain. Do you feel teaching this is beneath you?”

Sarin shook his head. “No. I feel it is beneath them. Does it bother you to teach this to girls? Teach them these expectations that we will place on them and expect them to follow these? Boys aren't held to this at all. Boys can slouch, boys can totally fill their mouths with food. They aren't expected tog reet people any differently. Why do we have to teach girls to?”

So that was his frustration. “I agree, and it is stupid, but that is our society. In a way, girls are held to much higher standards. Some like to say, because we are better and stronger. And much of these standards aren't imposed by men. Its other women that came up with this and expect these things. Most men could not care less how a girl greets them, or if she violates a social grace. It will be the girls that make a deal of it.”

Sarin looked down and said, “Yeah. I wasn't getting mad that I had to do that for the girls. I felt like I was betraying the girls by teaching them to do those things. I had been taught all of this when I was a girl. Those lessons destroyed any masculine pride I had. It showed me a new side of life that I was unaware of and helped me realize my mistakes. I had grown and learned from my experience. But now I feel that I am just reinforcing my previous attitude on those girls. I don't like it.”

“We are all expected to teach the girls these things,” May said to him. “You aren't reinforcing your old attitudes on them. That you realize its injustice is a good thing. Perhaps you can show that to the girls, too, and help them understand while you are teaching them. I will show you how I do it. There's just one little thing that I ask of you.”

Sarin looked up, “What,”

“That you quit showing off all of your feminine graces. I saw how you overdid the books and the table manners flawlessly. You didn't need to go that far.” May smirked and had a twinkle in her eye. Then the two started laughing.

“That's the princess part of me. I was expected to do it all flawlessly. Princess Serinina had very high standards to keep.”

They went through a few more of the classes until Sarin made it to his favorite one to teach. He got to teach the Hekatin courses to those chosen few girls. This was such an honor, and he felt so much pride being able to stand there as a boy and teach these girls. This was much more useful than the feminine grace courses. He began to wonder if there was a way to combine this with the grace courses so he wouldn't feel like he was betraying the girls.

Serin believed in feminine power and was able to say those lines with pride while helping the girls, then he teaches the girl that they have to do these particular graces that almost demean what it means to be female. He hated that. Now he was wondering if he had a chance to avoid being a girl if he would take it. He wouldn't be able to stand here with such pride and instruct these girls without his experience. Sarin began to feel so conflicted

Actonia came in near the end with her brother Jeric and selected four girls from the class and asked them to stay as the rest of the girls left. She many girls and women with her already.

The girls she selected stood there as Actonia told them that they were needed. “We have a special task to accomplish. My sister is really a boy, and we need to turn him back. So we need the help of many girls to combine their power to help Jeric return. That is why you are here. Do you agree to help me restore my beloved brother to his actual sex?”

With Serin there encouraging
them. The girls all agreed. Then Actonia told them. “We will need more powerful witches. We need to travel to the capital tonight. Will you agree to go with us?”

The girls also agreed, so they all got into two large carriages, and Serin, his sister Emily, Actonia, and Vakiya and Aanya all filed into another large carriage, and they started off toward the capital.

The trip was very long. Serin watched outside for some time as they went down the road and through the city gates and off into the wilderness. He watched as they went past the first imposing fortress that defended the way to the dukedoms center of their government and went on as the troops waved to them from the majestic towers. Then they went on into the arid wilderness of their desert lands.

Then they met the next smaller fortress that defended the borders of their land. Those fortresses alone contained a garrison of two thousand troops.

They had been traveling for more than twelve hours at that point and had stopped multiple times for the girls to get a break.

Aanya had become very concerned with her son at this time. She saw the fierce look on his face, and it only turned harder as time went on. She could tell that Serin was having a complicated problem with this. And it was making him furious.

Then out of nowhere, Serin demanded, “Aanya,” Sarin had reverted back to addressing his mother by her name instead of the title mother. “Did you ever love me at all?”

“Yes, my son,” Aanya replied with a pained expression as his question struck at her heart. “I know what we did was difficult, but we did what we did out of love for you. It was the only thing we could do to protect you.”

“Nothing you did protect me.” Sarin replied. “It only made me helpless against those who wanted to kill me. It nearly cost me my life. You did what you did for your religion, and for Patinia. Not out of love for me. So please be honest and just say you had no love for me. Or you would have struggled to protect me from those who wanted to hurt me. You would have sought to educate me on the matter instead of ripping everything from me. And we had Actonia, you could have demanded answers from her. Like who was going to kill me, when would it happen, and how so we would know how to counter it. I bet if she saw someone killing Pat she would have acted to counter it instead of just removing her from her position as they did me. So don't give me that. It's clear you had no love for your son, or you would have protected your son, instead of destroying him.”

vakia said, “Sarin is right. If you really loved him, you would have protected from, and helped him instead of crushing him.”

Then Sarin said, “None of you ever had any intention of restoring my manhood, did you? If you all had your way, I would have lived the rest of my life as a woman. You all lied to me. I know you could have restored me, but you couldn't because you wanted Patinia to be the King, not me. You wanted me to suffer.”

“There was a lot to consider. People wanting to hurt Patinia, and your child you were carrying, but you ended that. We couldn't restore you.”

“Huh,” said Sarin. “I was a boy that was pregnant. That was devastating. Even the Goddess seemed happy with what happened. So, can anyone answer why I should give a rats ass about Actonias brothers suffering or why I should restore him when none of you would have ever restored me? Just one reason?”

Actonia begged, “He was innocent. He never did a thing to hurt anyone, especially you. Why would you not want him restored, especially after knowing what he is going through.”

“I was innocent too. It didn't matter to any of you. My suffering was irrelevant. Especially to you, Actonia, who was the inspiration for the entire thing. To quote you, “I think being female is better. He must be strong, and if he isn't strong, then this will make him stronger.” Sarin smiled evilly.

Those were Actonia's exact words to Patinia to justify the horror they were about to inflict on his life.

Antonia's face lost all of the blood as she went ashen. “You won't do it, will you?” Actonia said. “Even though its a command from the Goddess herself.”

“She didn't care about me,” Sarin quipped. “Why should I care what the Goddess commands. I may do it, but I'm having serious reservations about this.”

“You have devoted yourself to the Goddess as a member of the Hekatin. You must obey her.”

“No, I don't,” sarin said firmly. “I will do what I feel is right. I won't do this unless someone can give me a good reason, and I doubt any of you here can give me any reason to give a damn what any of you say. Not Aanya, not you, Actonia, Perhaps Vakia, since she has been the only one aside from Emily to give a shit about me. So Vakia, can you think of a reason?”

“I know how you feel,” Vakia said softly. “you want to hurt them so much the way they hurt you. But you are hurting an innocent boy. You were an innocent boy, and you feel justified. But you are becoming just as cold and sadistic as those you hate. Please don't let this hated consume you Sarin. You are a great boy, and many of those girls have endured themselves to you in little over a day. They love your sweet nature and how you care. Don't become this person who doesn't care, please.”

“Okay fine, but don't think I'm forgetting about you, Actonia.” Sarin said bitterly.

“I haven't even done anything to you. I am only eleven your ass.” actonia said.

“Yes, you have. You were sixteen before you were eleven. I have one more question for you. Why did you keep addressing her as my prince, and my lord, using male titles when you were all about female empowerment? That doesn't make sense, especially when you said being female was stronger.”

“Seems I was right,” Actonia said. “You were made female and accepted your femininity, and you proved you were stronger than Patinia. Much much stronger. Making you female was our big mistake.”

“No,” Sarin said. “Making me female and then abusing me because I was female was your big mistake.”

They saw Sarin's features soften some but not that much. They all knew that Sarin was going to unleash holy hell once he was in the capital and would confront Celestia. Sarin was getting so angry.

The Carriage made its way into the capital, and two large carriages stopped in front of Celestia's small cottage. The girls all filed out and stretched their limbs. Aanya, Sarin, Actonia, and her brother Jeric as well as Vakia, all went into Celestia's small cottage house.

She was sitting at her small table, sipping tea. She had been made aware that they were coming to ask for a request.

She looked at the little boy that she had been informed had been the youngest child ever, and a boy to pass the witches trials. She stood up and smiled, “I am impressed, young man. What you have achieved is so impressive. I just don't know what to say.”

Sarin glared at her with the most profound look of hate. Celestia didn't back down from the dark glare. She was an imposing woman herself and held her ground. “I don't know what your problem is, a young man. But this is unacceptable.”

“Knowing you the way I do, this is very acceptable.” Sarin countered. “I know you. I know what you did to me. I know you don't know yet. But let me help you with that.”

Then Sarin said a few words in the language of the Goddess, and her power flowed through his entire body in a way it rarely ever did before to anyone else. This boy's power was immense. He locked his mind with hers in a way she wasn't ready to accept. She tried to fight it, but she couldn't resist his power. Suddenly Celestia felt very small and weak.

Sarin found her hidden memories of the unknown past. Then he unlocked her past, and it came flooding through her. She saw everything from the planning stages, her history with Actonia, the planning the coup, teaching Sarin as a girl and how cruel she was to him, and how dismissive she was of his feelings as they destroyed his entire life.

Celestia backed away. “Oh my god, so that's why you are so angry. But I did what I did because it was the will of the Goddess. We had to change you, young man. So much was at stake.”

“Yeah,” Sarin said acidly. “it's not like anyone could have just, oh I don't know, explain it to me. Or even after you changed me, you didn't have to be so cruel. You all could have helped me find my own way instead of forcing me to the sidelines and ignoring me. Patinia, you must force Serenina to live as a young woman and your little sister. Force serenina. Yeah, was that the will of the Goddess, or was it your sadistic pleasure to see the crown prince destroyed and publicly demeaned in front of everyone. Even months later, after her rule had been made very secure. You all never intended to restore me. You were just cruel, Celestia.”

Celestia replied, “I seem to remember a savage beating you gave me to, young man. You showed you were equally as cruel.

“thanks to you. But I guess it's not right to take it all out on a young man who did nothing, or I would be no better than you. We need to restore Actonia's brother Jerrica. That was the command from the Goddess herself. We need your help, and lady Fawna and even Alama.”

Celestia agreed, “Okay, let's go to the girl's conservatory, and I will get the women you need to help this young man. Go on over there.”

Serin gathered all of the girls back into the carriages and traveled over to the girl's conservatory. They did so under the ever so watchful eyes of the vile purgatorists and their flame insignia on their cloaks.

The girls filed into the girl's conservatory and waited until Celestia returned with lady Fawna and Danala. They had been told what they were going to do.

Sarin worked with the women on the spell they were going to use. It didn't sound right at all, but Sarin insisted that it was right. Celestia seriously doubted it.

But they had little choice
as they got Jerica in the middle and started chanting the spell. Then they held their finger up and began feeding their energy into Sarin, and he touched the young girl Jerica. Nothing happened except they saw his features mature as a woman. And it seemed the seal trapping him as a woman strengthened.

Then Sarin suddenly shouted, “I refuse to restore you Jerica. You will never be a man again. You have Actonia to think for your suffering. I refuse to obey a goddess that gave so little consideration to my feelings.

Then Vakia and Celestia started chanting a spell and sent it at Sarin, who easily brushed it away with a flick of his finger. Then suddenly, all of the women were flung back into the wall.

Sarin stood there with his energy shimmering around his body. He smiled wickedly and rose his hand up.

The energy shimmered around Actonia, and Celestia lifting them up into the air. Rings seemed to surround their throat. Then Sarin tightens his hand into a fist.

Actonia and Celestia began gagging violently in the air as their throats constricted. They were unable to gasp for air. They choked and spit dreweled down their faces. The women were dying.

Sarin laughed

Vakia found herself so helpless now. This boy had totally immobalized every girl in the room. She was unable to feel the goddess’s power. She was as helpless as the rest. Vakia tried to call on the Goddess’s power, but she was unable to reach it. Sarin had did something to everyone in the room.

Actonia and Celestia were still withering and gagging as Sarin held them both up in the air.

Sarin makes his decision on what to do with the women that hurt him and how to deal with Actonias brother Jerric
Chapter 5 part 2

Sarin felt his dark rage boiling within him as he held the two females in the air. Their bodies were violently withering in the air, and their gaggings as they choked desperate to get air. But they were unable to as Sarin tightened the rings around the female's necks. It gave him so much satisfaction that these cruel female's lives were in his hands after they held so much power over him for so long. Sarin enjoyed this so much. His face wore a mask of rage as he tightened his fist. It was just a little longer.

Sarin looked down at the girls he had just violently flung into the far wall. The look in Wenna and Lily's eyes told him that he was taking this way too far. Lily and Wenna were his students. The girls were eight and nine, and he personally taught those girls. They eagerly came to class to see him every day. They loved the way he taught them, and they smiled at him. Wenna ran up and hugged him before class. And now the two girls' eyes showed fear and condemnation of him. Wenna was afraid, and the way she rubbed her elbow showed that she was also hurt. Lily was crying. Sarin knew he had taken this too far, and he had to stop.

Sarin opened his hand, and the force constricting Actonia, and Celestia's throats ceased. Then he lowered his arms, and the two women dropped to the ground hard with an audible thud. They began gasping big gulps of air.

Sarin rushed wildly to the girls. He flung into the wall. He knelt to them caringly and started with Wenna. He examined her arm. She was holding protectively. He checked her ribs and ran his fingers around her ribcage and her arms. He checked her legs, and she seemed okay. He looked in the girl's fearful eyes and said caringly, “I am so sorry Wenna, It looks like you are fine, your arm is just bruised. I am sorry for what I did.”

Wenna nodded. “that girl is bad. I understand Sarin.”

Then Sarin went to Lily and began running his fingers around her ribcage and up her arms feeling for injuries. He looked into Lily's eyes softly and said, “are you afraid of me?” Sarin's face showed extreme concern, and he looked like he was almost ready to cry for what he did.

“A little. But I know Actonia hurt you.” Sarin carefully went to each girl and checked them for injuries. Luckily there were no injuries. Lady Fawna was among the girls he flung into the wall. She said arrogantly. “Do you think we will forget what you did, young man. You flung us all hard into that wall. You can't excuse that.”

Sarin had finished his examination and replied with the arrogant, proud voice he had used for so long, “Shouldn't you address me as PRINCESS." He looked down at Lady Fawna, holding that powerful female pose of an offended royal princess. Looking down. The girls giggled, not understanding this. They thought it was funny.

Then Sarin added, "I don't feel I have anything to justify to you. You have to justify your actions to me, Lady Fawna. I didn't forget what you did.”

“We did what we had to. There was a lot at stake, and I have nothing to justify. Turning you into a girl saved everyone. But you flung all of us into that wall, and it hurt.”

“What you did to me hurt me far more,” Sarin thundered. “It destroyed the rest of my life. I will never be the same.” Luckily, the change in the time made her forget her husband.

Jenna was another one of his students. The girl looked up and whimpered, “I thought you said that being a girl helped you so much, and you were proud of it.” She seemed very sad to hear that Sarin felt hurt by it.

“My experience as a girl did help me in many ways,” Sarin admitted, looked warmly into Jenna's eyes. “It opened my eyes to what many girls have to accept in their lives. The experience made me a lot stronger and smarter, and I learned that many boys are very dumb and uncaring to girls. But, I was not meant to be a girl. I hated it. I am a boy, and turning me into a girl nearly destroyed me. I had to become stronger, but I shouldn't have had to Jenna. It was misery because I am not a girl, and I didn't like the life I was forced into. Jenna, you have an older brother. I think his name is Alex. Do you love him?”

Jenna nodded. “He is a great older brother. I love him so much. He takes care of me and protects me. He is great.” She said with love filling her eyes.

“Could he be turned into a girl? Do you think he could accept that, and be put in corsets, and deal with the things girls deal with?”

“No, he isn't a girl, and it would hurt him. He likes boy stuff, not girl stuff. I wouldn't let anyone force him to.” Jenna said with fire in her eyes.

“So if Actonia and Celestia cast a spell to make him into a girl, and Lady Fawna here told you all to be harsh and force him to live as a girl, and to wear corsets, and look pretty and host tea parties and other events girls do. Do you think he could ever be happy in that life?”

“No,” Jenna said, getting madder. “I would never let them, and I would hate them for hurting my brother.” It was clear that Alex was a wonderful older brother. That was the type of brother he should have been, but he also remembered Patinias independent and antagonistic nature provoked his anger so much, and he enjoyed taunting her. Sarin shouldn't have. But he simply didn't know that her attitude was acceptable. He was raised to believe her approach was wrong, and she had to be forced to accept her place in life. That when the roles were turned, and she tried to force him to accept his position that she imposed on him was equally wrong and very hypocritical. Jenna's love for her brother affected him.

“That's what those girls did to me, Jenna. They turned me into a girl, and they were very cruel to me. They made my experience much worse than it had to be. They teased me. They forced me to dress as a girl and live a girl's life after they turned me. It was a horror that I may never recover from.” Sarin saw dark, seething hate in Jenna's eyes.

Sarin rose his voice, “I know Lily has a little brother who is six. He is a wonderful boy. How would you feel about him being turned into a girl?”

Lily was just as protective. “Never. Why would you be so mean, Actonia! Sarin is a great boy who didn't deserve it.”

“You just can't understand, but you will in about five years,” Actonia stated.

Then Sarin rose his voice, “I don't know many of you girls here. I only know Lily, Wenna, and Jenna. But I can guess many of you also have brothers, maybe uncles or dads, or cousins, boys you care deeply for and would protect. Am I right?

Many of them shook their head yes and rose their hands.

Then Sarin added, “I know we boys can be annoying at times. Some times we simply don’t understand what you all go through. Not all boys have a strong feminine side as I do. Do we deserve to be treated cruelly just for being male?” Sarin asked them.

Every girl shouted, “No!”

“How would you feel about a powerful witch asking you to turn your brother into a girl to help him understand your life better,” Sarin asked them. “Should they be turned?”

Most of the girls agreed with Sarin and shouted No very loudly. There were some that probably had annoying or antagonistic brothers and thought about it. Sarin saw a cruel smirk on one of the girl's faces. But as she thought more, she agreed with Sarin and shouted, “No. He doesn't deserve it.

Celestia knew what Sarin was now doing, and she was unable to do a thing to stop him. He had already got the girls to agree with him on this. Every girl looked hatefully at her.

“Actonia convinced my sister at the time, Not Emily, to turn me into a girl, because they hated me. Actonia and my other sister in that world wanted to do something more than girls were allowed to do. Those girls were angry at being stuck in a girl's life when they wanted to live like boys and do boy things. I have no problem with girls wanting to fight and stuff. I was taught it was wrong then. But is that a reason to hurt a boy the way they hurt me? Was it right to turn me into a girl just because they were angry at being girls, and wanted me to feel what it was like?”

Many of the girls shouted no.

“You all may envy the freedom your brothers are given in life. And I agree that the way girls are treated is very wrong. I agree we must change things so girls can have more freedom.” Sarin shouted to the girls. “But would any of you want to force your life on your brother as revenge for what you all go through as girls?”

None of the girls agreed with that. They loved their brothers so much. Sarin saw many of the girl's eyes flash with such a protective look when they thought of anyone hurting their brothers.

“Do you think it would be right to turn your beloved brother into a girl, beat him, humiliate him, take everything he loves in life, force him into a corset and gown and watch him cry even if it made your life better as a result?” Sarin asked the girls.

Most of the girls agreed with Sarin and shouted no. They couldn't imagine hurting their brothers like that. But some of the other older girls had second thoughts and smiled. They questioned that if it helped them, then perhaps it was right. All of the other girls came down hard, shouting no in the older girls' faces. They were condemned, “How could you consider something so selfish to force a boy to be a girl just to help you.” And in the end, even those girls admitted it was wrong. Sarin noted their names and their faces for the future.

“My sister in that world was a witch, and I wasn't. I didn't even know witches were real. I didn't know about the Goddess and this power. My sister hated the life she had and wanted much more. She wanted real power life. The power that I had was what she wanted and felt cheated because girls couldn't have that power. So she took my life and forced me to be a little girl. I was so hurt and so afraid. I could do nothing against their witchcraft. And then she stole my power and my authority, she wielded it against me to make my life a misery. Is this the way a witch should treat people? Do you think having that power means you can do these things to boys' lives?”

None of the girls agreed with it. Some of the girls showed anger. They all shouted a resounding NO!

“That is why I am so angry. And this was what Actonia did to me when she turned me into a girl. They hurt me a lot. What they did to me was horrible and still affects me. I am still glad I got to experience it, but they didn't have to treat me so bad. I think they should answer for it. And so they will.”

Sarin turned to Actonia, who was now very afraid and hurt. “You had no sympathy for what I went through. You are right, and it did make me stronger. But what if it killed me? What if I wasn't strong enough to handle your cruelty? What if, instead of enduring and getting smarter, what if my family had my funeral after what you did, right after my fathers? I seriously considered leaping out of my window many times. It was a struggle not to. Especially after my monthly cycles started. And you all teased me because of it. My sister Patinia was relentlessly cruel. And you told her to be harsh to me.”

Most of the girls there knew about the cycles and dealt with them. The others that had not reached that age still knew what the older girls dealt with. And they knew what a loving boy Sarin was. And to hear that Actonia and Celestia turned Sarin into a girl and then he started having the same Cycles. When he did, Actonia and Celestia teased and mocked him, for it was over the line. How could they be so cruel to another girl? That is something they were taught was way out of line. A girl is supposed to have compassion to another girl at that time. Every girl goes through it. It's part of the life. They glared at Actonia and Celestia with the darkest hate burning in their eyes.

Actonia weakly added, “He teased us for it?”

That really did it. Multiple girls roared in female rage. “SARIN WAS A BOY, AND WE KNOW BOYS DONT UNDERSTAND. BUT WHEN YOU TURNED HIM. THEN TEASED HIM FOR BEING A GIRL AND THAT HIS GIRLS BODY WORKS LIKE A GIRLS WAS TOO CRUEL. HOW DARE YOU TEASE ANOTHER GIRL ON HER PERIOD!”

“And it got worse,” Sarin said darkly. “Their cruelty and teasing never stopped. And then I got pregnant. I don't know how, it's still a mystery. Some times, I think they used witchcraft to make me lay with a man. I don't remember what happened at all. I just know I started feeling the symptoms of pregnancy. Imagine how any of your brothers would deal with that! I wanted to die so much after that. I had to end that pregnancy, and I found a way. And Actonia and my sister wanted to force me to marry another man.”

The girls started screaming, and now they understood why Sarin lashed out so harshly.

“There has to be a price, and I found one. Actonia, you will never feel the Goddess in you again. You ripped what I loved from me. I will return the favor.”

Actonia shouted, no. Vakia was going to do it, but could Sarin also do it? He had shown he was so powerful, she shouldn't doubt it.

The power of the Goddess began flowing though Sarin so brightly that It hurt their eyes. He approached a trembling Actonia and touched her. His power flowed into her, and she cried out in pain as his power found the source of her spark, her connection with the Goddess within her mind.

Sarin felt his power reach out and crushed her spark into nothing. Her connection with the Goddess was severed. She cried out in pain as her spark was crushed in an instant. Actonia collapsed.

Then he turned to Celestia. “I should give you the same treatment, but I won't. Just know you have Edwyn to deal with, and he will grow up to hate you. And these girls will see what you are like. I think that will be enough.

Then Sarin turned to Jerrica with a look of sadness. “I never intended not to turn you back Jerric. I simply wanted to make my point. I am sorry for all you suffered from my revenge. I was wrong.”

“How can you turn me back after what you did to them?” Jerrica asked in a trembling voice.

“We don't need them.” Sarin said with a warm smile.

Sarin recited the words to his own spell and touched Jerric's hand with his own. The power flowed into Jerric. He felt the tingling sensation flowing all the way through his body. Then he started growing larger. His small lyth form grew larger. His arms strengthened. His legs grew out and bulged. His chest grew, his face turned. He still looked his age. He didn't grow out too much. Jerric was still only nine. But he was now a boy.

“If you ever want anything, just ask me. And your sister will never be able to hurt anyone again. She will probably need you to protect her. She will be unable to use the power of the Goddess ever again. Everything that made her unique among the girls and able to be safe is gone. She will experience life as any other girl. It will be such a struggle.” Sarin laughed cruelly.

There wasn't a girl in the room that didn't laugh along with Sarin. Celestia was horrified. How could Sarin had acted so cruelly, nearly killing them, and he was still able to endure himself to the girls the way he did.

She shook her head in sorrow. Sarin was born to be a leader. It was his destiny, and it was a horror to try to stop it. Even the Goddess saw that and provided the path for him.

Sarin apologized to his girls even more. They all forgave him.

Mary was an older girl that still attended one of his classes. She walked up and stood in front of him. “You scared me, Sarin. But they scare me even more. I would never treat a boy the way they do. I know some boys can be cruel, but not all of them. What were you like as a boy then.”

“I was very different. I was raised since I was very young in the ways of War, and the god of Mars. I used girls and was very horny as a boy. You know dumb boys like that.” Sarin laughed as the girl giggled. “Yeah, some boys.”

“But, I never hurt a girl. I was still a very nice and caring boy. As you know, now. If I was a cruel boy, then I couldn't have ever been the boy I am now. I didn't deserve what happened to me.”

Mary added. “If you were a cruel, spiteful boy, then that would have made you hate us all. You would have killed them without a second thought. You are a wonderful boy Sarin. I am sorry that there are cruel girls too. We need to watch out for them.” Sarin hugged her tightly.

Then he turned to the few older girls that were in his class and said brightly. “I think its time to head home. You all got school in the morning. And you still have the stuff to do before tomorrow. Write each vowel twenty times, and their names. And use them in words. I will be expecting them.”

then Sarin thought for a few brief seconds and added. “I think I will be adding additional lessons in our courses. I will begin teaching you all the ancient symbols of the Goddess and her language.” Sarin smiled as the girls seemed very happy with it.

Vakia replied, “We can't do that, Sarin. It's too risky.”

“Yes, we can do it.” Sarin said with a twinkle in his eye.

Chapter 6
Edwyn has some serious questions for his mother about live, her religion and her devotion to him
and he makes a big mistake

Richard had spent a few hours that he could spare to spend some time with his son Edwyn this day. It was a few precious hours he could spare from the affairs of state that demand almost every waking minute he had.

Richard sword fought with his son and wrestled. He was amazed at the skills and strength of his seven-month-old boy. He watched him climb a wall almost totally on his own and sprint across the field with the soldiers. He picked up a sword, and they fought around and played with some of the other nobles boys. The only real issue Richard had was that his son insisted on wearing his sister's midnight blue gown and a boy tied In his hair. But Edwyn was only six months old, so it wasn't a big issue for the time. He would put a stop to all of this soon enough. Edwyn would become the greatest warrior for Mars that the world had ever seen, Richard thought with pride. Richard would see to it when the time came to begin his son's formal training. He would stop the dress-wearing and playing with his sister all of the time.

Ann couldn't have been prouder of her boy if she tried to be. There were times she felt overwhelmed, and she had got used to that feeling within the first week of her son's life, and that feeling never faded. It seemed when she got used to something, another world changing thing happened. She was certain that Edwyn was meant to change the world.

At the moment, Edwyn was in his sister's room wearing a flowing pink gown with a boy, and one of her pink tiaras on his head and they seemed to be talking some. Victoria had learned to speak a few years ago, and they were discussing horses and nature. Edwyn had learned to put some phrases together.

Ann had been in the other room dusting off the table when suddenly Victoria yelled loudly, “Moom, something is wrong, Edwyn is being weird, Moom.” Ann went to see what the issue was.

He was only eight months old at this time, and he was talking to Victoria, but his word sounded wrong. Actually, it was nearly incomprehensible gibberish, and Victoria was losing her patience and yelled, “Edwyn talk right. What are you saying!”

He repeated the phrase a few more times when it finally dawned on her. It was another impossible thing. She knelt down to Edwyn's level and looked at him, “Speak our language Edwyn, We know you love Victoria. I love her too. She doesn't know that language yet, but we will teach her when the time comes.”

“He is telling you he loves you, Victoria, in the language of the Goddess,” Ann said firmly. “You will be learning that language when the time comes.”

Then Victoria asked, annoyed, “Is Edwyn special, like those other weird kids.”

Ann said, “Edwyn is very special but not in the insulting way you are suggesting Victoria. He's faster and stronger than any kid years older than he is, he knows the language of the Goddess some time. None of know how these things are happening. There must be a reason, all we can do now is love him as much as he loves us.”

Edwyn said to Victoria, “I love you.” The two siblings hugged tightly. Then he turned toward Ann, and he said almost sadly, “I am a boy.”

“Yes, Edwyn.” Ann agreed, “why does that make you sad.”

“Withes are girls.” Replied Edwyn. “For the Goddess. But not a girl. Does she love me the same? Do you love me?”

Ann saw the conflict in him. “Edwyn, the Goddess loves boys and girls the same. She gives us different roles, but we are the same. And I love you both the same. You are just different.”

He seemed to go through all of that in his head then he turned to Victoria and smiled sweetly. “You will be the best witch in the world, Viki.”

Victoria was almost upset, but no one had even begun telling her about the religion, the Goddess, and witches except some of the bad stuff her father said. “I won't be a witch!” She yelled and almost cried. Edwyn looked very upset at his sisters change, and he wondered what he said that set her off.

Ann pulled Victoria into her arms. “Edwyn said nothing wrong, Viki. Witches aren't bad, and there's nothing wrong with them. We will make you the best witch.”

“I want to be a witch,” Edwyn said sadly. “But I'm a boy.” Edwyn said, very sadly.

“You don't have to be a witch Edwyn, you can be a man and still be good.”

Edwyn looked very confused. Ann saw that what she said did little to resolve the conflict within the boy's mind.

Edwyn kept talking about how he wanted to be a witch and thought he needed to be. And that being a boy made him very sad. Over a month later, Ann figured she had to resolve this conflict once and for all within her son. She invited her friend Celestia to help her resolve this issue within her son.

Both women were sitting in the drawing-room one morning after Richard took off.

Celestia had been appraised of the conflict within Edwyn, and she saw Edwyn using the language when he had trouble finding the proper word to use. That issue had largely been resolved.

Celestia shook her head after remembering the encounter she had with another boy witch. But that one had a very unpleasant history with her. She hoped that Edwyn wouldn't hate her, but she figured he would. Sarin told her that Edwyn had a connection with his memories and knew what she did. She figured this was not going to be pleasant.

Ann sat Edwyn down and asked him, “Edwyn, why do you want to be a witch?”

Ann saw Edwyn's mind racing, and then Edwyn replied, “I want you to love me.”

“I do love you, whether you are a witch or not.” Ann tried to assure the boy.

“But I am a boy, so how can you love me?” Edwyn whimpered sadly.

“Because You are my son, and I love you, Edwyn. Why would you think I wouldn't love you because you are a boy?” Ann asked her son.

“The Goddess wants girls to be strong. Not boys. I am a boy, but I want you to love me.” Edwyn said to her.

“The Goddess wants girls to control their lives,” Ann explained, looking down at her troubled son. “But that doesn't mean she doesn't love you, and it doesn't mean I don't love you, Edwyn.”

Celestia spoke up, “It's about equality, boys are in control and treat us mean, Edwyn. But we don't hate you.”

He gave her a withering glare. That glare told her all she needed to know. They have never met before, but this boy hated her with a seething passion. That look in the boy's eye told her that Edwyn knew all about her and had Sarin's visions. The question was did he understand any of what he was seeing. Edwyn asked the big question. “Do you wish I was a girl?”

“No, of course not,” Ann said to Edwyn.

“Would you love me more if I was a girl?” Edwyn said with an accusing tone in his tiny voice.

“No, of course not, Edwyn, why would you think such a thing,” Ann Answered, sternly.

Then he asked Celestia, “Do you wish I was a girl?”

Celestia shook her head.

Edwyn looked like he didn't believe it for a second.

“Mommy, do you want to make me into a girl?” Edwyn asked.

“No, and I don't know how we could make you a girl.” Ann said. “Edwyn, we love you if you are a boy or a girl. I love you all the same.”

Edwyn nearly cried. “I want you all to love me, but I think you don't. I see when I'm older, that you turn me into a girl, and you are very mean to me.” He whimpered and tears rolled down his face. Edwyn looked at Celestia. He turned to Ann, “you love me much more when I am a girl.”

Both women were bewildered. “Edwyn, where is this coming from?” Ann demanded. Celestia knew exactly where this was coming from. Only Edwyn had mistaken the visions he was seeing as Celestia doing this to him instead of Sarin. Of course, he never met Sarin in his life, and these visions were confusing to such a small boy. So how could he know this was another boy that She did these things to? He thought this was Celestia turning him. And how could she explain what he was really seeing?

“I see that you didn't love me as a boy, you had to turn me into a girl to love me. Why don't you love me because I am a boy?”

Ann said firmly, “Edwyn, we will never turn you into a girl. We love you as a boy. I don't know what is making you think these things, but they are bad. Understand I love you as a boy, Edwyn.”

Edwyn looked at Celestia waiting, and she said the same thing.

Edwyn was not convinced. “I see you both turning me into a girl when I am older. I see it happening later. You loved me more as a girl. Celestia is bad. She is very mean to me. You both wanted to make me a girl.”

“Edwyn is having visions of the future, Ann,” Celestia said, looking at her. Then Celestia lowered her head into Ann and said quietly. “He is seeing visions of another boy's future. This is a boy I just met and he is the one that I changed in his future. Some how, these two boys' minds have become linked, and Edwyn is seeing into this boy's future, and his past. Edwyn thinks I will do these things to him. I won't, and I won't turn Sarin either.”

“Why would I do something like that,” Then she turned down to Edwyn, “I won't ever do it to you. I love you so much, Edwyn.”

“I will make you love me as a boy, I don't want to be a girl, mommy. That would be so bad.”

“I won't ever do that,” Ann said, kissing his head.

“I will make sure you don't,” Edwyn said sweetly. “I will make you love me so much you would never want to hurt me.” And he held his mother so tightly. He turned to glare at Celestia.

Edwyn's little mind was in turmoil at the moment. He kept seeing these horrific visions of these women, turning him into a girl sometime in the distant future. He saw them treating him very cruelly, and no one really loved him. The only one that showed him any compassion during that was Ann, but even her kindness and love only went so far then. It didn't mean she didn't agree with it. He also saw a girl that he could only assume was Victoria treating him very cruelly. Except she was much larger, and so strong, and she also had some scar on her eye. This girl wore a crown. He could only guess this was Victoria

These visions were very clear in his mind. Edwyn knew they were visions of the future. He was much bigger than he was now. Why would they all turn on him so bad? All Edwyn could figure was that he must have done something horrible to hurt them all. Anyway, Edwyn knew it wasn't nice to blame them for things they didn't do yet, and they couldn't answer for things that would happen later. There was no way to resolve her questions. Ann asked him. All Edwyn could do was make sure they kept loving him, and if he had to wear dresses and be pretty for them, then he would keep doing that. He hoped they wouldn't change him into a girl later. Then there was the question of the Goddess. She loved him, so why would she do this to him? She was his actual mother

There were so many questions and no answers, it bewildered Edwyn, and he was only nine months old. He needed to learn more

What had happened to stop his mother and sister from loving him?

Two months later, Edwyn was over eleven months old now Ann's mind was still in a torrent of conflict when she awoke to see her young son sitting at the table in her room, holding one of her very old books of witchcraft. She got up and took the book from him. Ann said very sternly, “Edwyn, I told you not to touch my books. You aren't to touch them without my permission, do you understand?”

Edwyn began sniffling, knowing he had done wrong. He said, holding back tears, “I am very sorry, Mother. Please. I just want to look at them.”

She put the book out for him. “Let's look at it together. What were you looking at.”

Edwyn opened it to one of the main chapters and pointed.

There were no pictures there. Ann asked, “Edwyn, what are you looking at?”

He pointed to the words. “I am trying to understand it. I can't!” Edwyn said, frustrated. “I want to learn more, can you help me read?” Edwyn pleaded.

This was amazing. An eleven-month-old asking his mother to teach him to read. He had about mastered the language and could hold his own in most adult conversations the way Victoria only wished she could at three. Now he was wanting her to teach him to read her books. Ann laughed, “Son, I think these are too advanced for you. Let's find something simpler to learn to read first. We will work up.”

Ann found one of Victoria's beginner reading books that she was studying in school, and they began working with the letters and sounds. Edwyn picked it up rather quickly, and by the end of the lesson, he was able to sound out some of the basic words. They worked on the letters for a few more hours. Ann was going to find an experienced tutor to help teach Edwyn to read. Wouldnt she be shocked she was being hired to teach an eleven-month-old infant to read. Ann burst out laughing

This was going to be fun.

So Ann spent the next few days sending out inquiries for private reading tutors and found one of the best. The woman traveled to the city and met Ann. They went to the palace and sat down. Ann was holding Edwyn when the woman introduced herself. She never imagined she was being hired to teach that tiny boy that Ann was holding.

“Lady Cynthia, I am Queen Ann, and we met. Can you tell me a little bit about your experience.”

Cynthia went over her experience as a teacher and all of her students she had from teaching the various lords children to other monarchs kids. She had experience teaching all ages. “So you want to hire me to teach your kid. I can't imagine I am to teach the one you are holding. I can only assume you want me to help Victoria. What is she having trouble with.”

This was going to be funny, Ann said silently to herself. “She is perfect for her age range. No, I want you to teach Edwyn how to read.”

Cynthia looked insulted. “This is no joke, Ann. Be serious, he's nine months old.”

Ann put a children's reading book on the table and had Edwyn start slowly sounding the words and letters out. He spoke rather fluently for someone in their teens.

Cynthia seriously questioned her sanity, seeing an eleven-month-old began reading. Some of the words were correct, and he was struggling. If he was this advanced, then perhaps it was doable. Cynthia threw up her hands in defeat. “Okay then,” She said exasperated, “I’m being hired to teach an eleven-month-old infant to read.”

Ann laughed. “I taught him to walk at two months. So when can we get started?”

“As soon as I am ready. Let me get my stuff in one of the rooms, and we can get started.”

Cynthia took over one of the guest rooms in the palace, and Edwyn walked in. They got started. Cynthia was stunned at the progress Edwyn made with her. He was able to read full pages by the end of the lesson. Edwyn still made some errors, but the errors were less as time passed.

Cynthia sat there with Ann a week later, discussing the lessons. Annette said, “I don’t understand any of this. I can't imagine how you feel. But, my problem is that with Edwyn’s very rapid progress, we will pass these children's books within the month.”

Ann smiled, “Then we move on. He wanted to read this.” Ann put one of her large books on the table. “Edwyn was trying to read this.”

“He will probably get there within two months at this pace. Maybe three.”

Then Cynthia got to another serious question. “Does the fact that he wears that dress bother you, Ann?”

“It does a little,” Ann Cynthia. “He misses his sister now that she has started school. He loves wearing her dresses. They will have so much fun when she comes back this afternoon. They used to play all day long.”

“His father won't accept him wearing dresses much long,” Cynthia warned.

“I know, And Edwyn will be so upset. I think he will be okay.

Victoria came home a few hours after that discussion, and Edwy ran into her arms and gave her a big hug.

Edwyn and Victoria were prepared to play in the playroom some more, but first, He patiently let Victoria fix his pink hair bow, and Edwyn helped her with her bow in her hair. Then they began running around and playing the pillows in the room. Edwy was having fun leaping into the pile of pillows, and Victoria followed.

Edwyn and Victoria soon wore themselves out, and they were cuddled with each other. Edwyn sighed and said silently, “Why couldn't I have been a girl so they wouldn't stop loving me.”

Edwyn was confident that his family would stop loving him when he got older. He saw it all.

Edwyn was finally able to begin reading Ann's full-sized books around four months later, and he quickly began devouring them as fast as he could. He woke up in the morning and hit her full volumes of the history of their nation, the history of witchcraft and the Goddess, he even read about magic. Much of it was very interesting, and some of it was sad. He kept playing with his sister every afternoon when she came home, and he read at a furious pace. Ann began to wonder how he would do in his formal education.

One of Edwyn's big questions had been answered about a month ago. Edwyn took several more months to devour the rest of her library she had.

Edwyn was now almost two years old. His sister Victoria had already begun school. He walked in on his mother sitting at the dining table, and he looked up. Ann thought that Edwyn was about the size of a four to five-year-old now. “I know why you will have to turn me into a girl now, and I know why you will start hating me?” Edwyn said. “But, you never need to because I won't do anything against you all.”

“Edwyn I hoped that we would resolve this issue, I will never hate you. I will never turn you into a girl. Please, understand that.” Ann said, frustrated now.

“You are a witch,” Edwyn said. “You are devoted to the Goddess. So am I, but there's still that fact. There's also the fact that I am also the heir and a descendant of the first king that struck down the Goddess seven hundred years ago. He waged a war that almost exterminated your people and burnt all of the temples. Me being male will become a big problem for you all in the future, and you will want to turn me.” Edwyn said seriously. He had a distraught look in his eyes. “I would never turn on you people. I am as devoted to it all as you are. I will be devoted to my sister, victoria. I hope you understand that.”

Ann still couldn't quite grasp how her two-year-old son talked like an adult now. He fully understood these complicated subjects and devoured her library. “That was wasn't your doing, and we will never blame you for it. And we won't hate you for being that man's descendant. So is Victoria.”

“But she is a girl and will be a great witch. I will be a man.” Edwyn pointed out. “I will be a good man and a man that's devoted to the Goddess. I will defend your people and liberate your religion. Or Victoria will, and I will be behind her when she does.”

“I know you will, Edwyn.” Ann held her boy. Then he looked up.

Edwyn asked, “If I was a normal boy, who didn't know this stuff, and I was educated by the priests of Mars and believed all of their teachings about killing witches and male rule. You would feel less hesitation in hating me and wanting to turn me into a girl, wouldn't you?”

that was a difficult question, but Ann said, “Of course not, Edwyn.”

“I'm not so sure then,” Edwyn replied. “Luckily for us, that's not the case now.”

Then Edwyn added acidly, “I still think if that was the case that you could have still worked with me to teach me what I needed to know, so you wouldn't have had to destroy the boy.”

“Edwyn, That isn't the case now. I wish I knew what your visions keep showing you, but I can only assume that we made a huge mistake if we did that.”

Edwyn had been a perfect child for the past two years. He had endured his sister going to school and staying alone with his mother and her friends. He learned to satisfy himself and hitting his mother's books. He went outside and learned more.

But some times every child makes a horrible mistake and Edwyn was no exception. He was about to make the biggest mistake he had made up to this time. It would be unforgivable and have consequences he never imagined. His error would be inexcusable even if he had the best intentions.

He was alone with his almost-four-year-old sister Victoria. He knew what she was capable of, and he wanted to help her so much. They had been talking and playing around for a half of an hour when suddenly Edwyn had an idea.

“I have been studying a lot about the witches, and I read that every girl has a spark somewhere in her mind,” Edwyn told Victoria.

“A what?” Victoria said with a foggy look.

“A spark in her mind somewhere around the back. Some girls can physically feel its presence while most girls only feel it within her mind. I was wondering if you ever felt the spark yet?”

“No,” Victoria said. “I know its there, but I can't touch it yet. Mom and I talked about it, and I will soon learn.”

A mischievous smirk spread across his face. “It's called the ritual of feminine force. That's the ritual they do to unleash it.”

“Edwyn, why are you learning all of this?” Victoria asked, annoyed. “You are a boy, and you aren't supposed to know all of this about feminine ways. You aren't even supposed to care.”

“I do care. I want you to be a great witch, the greatest ever. Do you want to be powerful?”

“Yes,” Victoria replied. “But mom says I have to wait.”

“You shouldn't have to,” Edwyn said, smirking some more. “You have it there, and I think I can show you how. Let's do it, it is your right, Victoria. You are a girl, and this is your right.”

Then Victoria asked, “How can you help me?”

“I know the ritual, and I know the words. Do you want to do it?” Edwyn asked, hoping.

“Sure,” Victoria shrugged. She guessed he was just fooling her, or he thought he knew. She was curious, regardless.

So Edwyn slowly repeated the phrases to the ritual and led her through each one. They focused on some of the difficult parts working on the proper pronunciation and inflections of the words. They finally worked through it. Then Victoria asked what it meant.

They worked through the meaning. It was vital for Victoria to know what she was saying, it only worked if the one repeating the phrases was serious.

“It says, I am ferocious, I am powerful, I refuse to submit to men. I am a leader, I am a powerful female, and I will follow the will of the goddess. I am the will be the embodiment of feminine power I was meant to be.” Edwyn said. “Or something like that. Are you ready to do it, let's activate your spark and make you a true witch.”

They ran through the ritual a few times. Then Edwyn said, “You must be serious with it. Really reach into yourself, say those phrases with meaning, and grab your power.”

It started softly at first as Edwyn and her were dancing to the tune of the phrases. They were making a circle like pattern. The intensity of their chanting increased with each circle they made around each other, chanting, and dancing. Getting stronger and louder each time. Victoria was enjoying this so much. And she felt the spark within her growing. It was right there, begging her. It was an enormous reservoir of power, of light wanting and begging her. Then it came, and she became one with the power.

Her entire body erupted with the golden power coursing and running through her body. Her fingertips sparked, her hair blazed and poped with the power. It was beautiful, and Edwyn was so happy. They chanted and sung louder and louder.

Ann heard it all and became very alarmed. She listened to the phrases her children were singing and knew precisely what it was. She went running down the steps to see her children dancing and chanting the ritual of feminine power. This was totally unacceptable. Her daughter was glowing from the power. She yelled, “Stop.”

Her power had sparked on Edwyn and set the pink gown he was wearing on fire. Ann called out louder, “All of you stop this instant.”

The two children stopped, and Edwyn noticed his dress was on fire. Ann put it out, and then they knew she was furious.

“You aren't supposed to do this without an adult witch's supervision. You could have really been hurt. And its a mother's dream to see her daughter do the ritual. You cheated me out of that, Edwyn. We have these things in place for the girl's protection. You don't know all of this. There's a reason we have these rules in place. How dare you!” Ann scolded her son.

He looked distraught and began crying. “I am sorry, mother. I wanted to help Victoria so much. She deserves to be the greatest witch of all.”

Ann replied, “But you aren't a witch or a teacher. You can't guide her on her journey. That's the professors and the teachers at the school's job. You could have got her hurt. Now she knows this power, but she has no instructions on how to control it. We are supposed to prepare the girls with those instructions first. Edwyn, this was very irresponsible. We will discuss this later, now go to your room!” Ann yelled as Edwyn went wailing into his room.

Now it was vital to get Victoria into the school.

Something extraordinary was happening to Edwyn as he was singing with Victoria. She felt hers. He swore there was something within him to preparing itself. He was only two, but he felt something, and his hair was starting to spark like Victoria’s. He was a boy, so this shouldn't be possible. How did he have the feminine power? Perhaps Edwyn was just imagining, and his connection to his sister. That's all it was

Wasn’t it?

Edwyns mother learns how to handle her sons abilities and his connection with his sister. Edwyns father intervenes and he begins school

Edwyn wondered if he had really felt the spark within him or not. Was it just the intensity of the situation that caused it? He didn't know. Then Edwyn shrugged. He was fooling himself. He knew what he felt. There was no question. Edwyn had the spark, he thought it, and it was there. He also had the power, and that only meant he also had the power. The witches would have to figure out how to handle a boy that had the power. He was still very young, and there was time. He had messed up and hurt his mother. He saw the fury and disappointment written all over her face as she scolded him. He really made his mother mad. Edwyn wept into his pillow, wondering how he could fix this.

Ann went into Edwyn's room and sat on the edge of the bed as her son was crying uncontrollably into his pillow. Ann lifted him up and held the boy close. “Edwyn, I am sorry,” Ann said.

“I shouldn't have yelled at you like that. I know you are only trying to do what is best for Victoria. I forgive you for what you did.”

Edwyn kept weeping, but it slowed down eventually. “You do?” Edwyn pleaded

“Yes, I know why you did it, and I never imagined that you could do what you did with her. If I thought you could or would, I would have explained it more. What you did was inconceivable.” She felt very safe using that big word with her two-year-old. “Even if you were a few years older than you are now, what you did would have been unthinkable. A boy guiding his sister though the ritual of feminine force. That you are two years old.” Then Ann threw her hands up in the air. “I should know by now that doing the impossible is your specialty. It's what you do. So, what you did for her was great, and I thank you for it.”

Edwyn held her tight. “I wanted to help her be the best.”

“I know,” Ann replied. “You love her so much. You want her to be the strongest and the greatest. She is fortunate to have someone like you as her brother that will push her to her limits. So do it, Edwyn. I will get her into school, and she will receive her formal instructions. And you will do all you can to push her further. Keep those teachers on their toes.” Ann giggled. “They all need it.”

Edwyn smiled. “I will. She will lead the witches. Do you think she could become the queen, instead of me?”

“Anything's possible, but why would you give that up for her?” Ann inquired, wondering.

“I am not sure why. I just feel that I have a different path. Victoria's path is helping people here. I feel I will be called elsewhere. That’s why I want her to become the strongest.”

“Then that’s what we will do. We are so privileged to have you, Edwyn. I can't imagine the things you will do.”

She felt so overwhelmed that night as she lay in bed with her husband. She was overwhelmed with worry and concern for her son. Things were okay for him now, but he was only two. How would he deal with being sent to school with the boys when his feminine adventures would be forced to end, and he enters life as a boy? He begins training for life as a boy to become a man. Ann knew he had a path set for him, and he was so strong in his convictions that the men wouldn't be able to deter him. So there would be trouble then. She doubted they could actually hurt him. He fell from a three-story tall tower and was unhurt. There was going to be conflict, but change always brought conflict. If they wanted to go at her son, bring it on. He would bring the priests to their knees.

She looked over at the sleeping husband next to her and smiled a dark smile. “You have no clue what's coming your way.” She said to herself.

Edwyn wanted to be happy that day and knew he had a huge job in front of him. His mother gave him her full approval to help his sister rise to her full potential. He had to push her hard. He had the knowledge, so now he had to impart them to his sister. How was he going to that? Edwyn needed a plan, and he had to start small.

There were a few things that really bugged Edwyn right now. Those things were his sister. In his visions, his sister was more of a joke to the witches. She wasn't very good at the art at all. She was pathetic. She didn't like the feminine side of life in any way. His visions showed Victoria as a scared battle lord in armor holding a sword. His sister seemed more that way here. He wondered if his mission to make his sister into a great powerful witch was doomed. Perhaps that was his job. He saw himself clinging to the feminine side of life while his sister only resented it.

Edwyn was so lost right now. He had to see her limitations and if she could grasp the art of magic and power. Edwyn really hoped that she could.

All Edwyn could do was his best. He went to sleep that night, wondering if he could help his sister become the greatest and the most powerful witch. He dreamed of her being a great witch that the entire Hekatin order would respect and admire.

Edwyn woke up before his sister went off to school. He put one of her white dresses on and met her on the way out the door. He told her goodbye. His sister left with her best friend to go to school, and he was left there, wondering how he could help her. So he set up some lesson plans and resolved to find out how much of the ancient language she knew, and he would proceed from there to some basic spells.

Then Edwyn went to his mother and asked for her help. What better support to get than one of the highest level witches of the Hekatin order. He asked innocently, “Mother, I think I need your help here. I may have gotten myself more involved than I can handle.”

“Edwyn, what is your problem?”

“Trying to teach Victoria magic. I know the art and how it works. I know everything about the language and its history. My problem is how to teach it to Victoria, and whether she can handle it.” Edwyn said, looking very overwhelmed.

“I am sure Victoria can handle it,” Ann replied, wondering why Edwyn was unsure she could handle the pressure. ”Just start simple and move from there to more advanced areas. Not everyone learns as quick as you.” Ann said, trying to get her son to understand that.

“That was my plan. But I am afraid I will fail. I know, I will try my hardest. But let me explain. I have visions of Victoria's future, and it isn’t Magic. Victoria is a warrior holding a great sword. Wearing armor, battle scars on her face, in my visions. Victoria would be a great warrior. But the problem was that she was a terrible witch in these visions. She doesn’t know it much at all. She's almost a joke to the Hekatin, she was a witch, but not a good one. That may not be her destiny. And it makes me sad because I want her to be a mighty witch.”

Ann tried to understand. “I see what you are saying,” Ann said very soberly. This was an unwelcome revelation. How could Victoria reject this? But maybe with your help and your insight, you can change her destiny. You have the will and your love for your sister, so all we can do is try. You changed us, we were going to do something monstrous. Let's see what we can do.”

Edwyn agreed this was his plan, after all. He had to try and see if he could change her nature.

He saw his sister in her gleaming armor, people clapping as she rode past them in her gleaming armor, her sturdy leather, knights gauntlets holding a sword as she rode past a loving people cheering her and her troops on. She even had a battle scar down her face from her eye down to her chin. She didn't reject the witch's arts. She just didn't devote herself to it because she had more masculine pursuits like fighting. That didn't bother Edwyn at all.

What bothered him was that in this reality, how it affected him. Seeing Victoria win all of that fame and everlasting glory in battle physically hurt him in this world. It caused him such depression and despair because, in this reality, it was violently stolen from him. He was entrapped in a feminine life that he hated. It was a life that he was ill-suited for because, like her, his life was supposed to be devoted to battle, and he trained hard to achieve it. Only to see it ripped from him and watch Victoria live his life. Edwyn suspected that he made it impossible to do now, Edwyn was so strong and powerful by two who knows what he can accomplish by ten. Edwyn didn't mind if she wanted that path here, but he suspected his sister would need more, and she needed to unleash her feminine force. There were some people that badly needed her to be able to control them. His sister had to be able to control the Hekatin. They were an evil force in this world that badly needed to be restrained. Edwyn saw it in Celestia and Lady Fawn, and a few others. He saw it even in his mother's eyes. If he was unable to do this, then he would have to have other options. He was laying his hopes on his sister.

So how could he help his sister? He felt he seriously needed to do this. There were other threats his sister would face, threats to her and her family.

Then it hit him like a tsunami. They could start some basic physical training. Like running, jumping, and some basic fighting. Victoria was almost five, and he was two. But something fun could be put in. Edwyn smiled, then she may be more willing to let him teach her the feminine arts of witchcraft. The other problem was that she was meant to become the King, and that held little appeal to him.

He didn't feel the least bit threatened by her achieving her goals here. He knew his position was not in danger in any way. Her success would help him. Edwyn saw the first reality, and her victory in war and politics came at the expense of his life and his goals. That was something that brought her great pleasure to steal his life from him and live the life meant for him right in his face. So he suspected that the powers that be made his destiny so powerful that her success wouldn't come at his expense this time. They would need to work together. Edwyn suspected something nasty was coming. This was something horrible

Edwyn had spent most of the day trying to find a way to help his sister learn what he felt she had to, and it took this long for him to find the answer. So he gathered the books and papers and developed the lesson plans.

They sat down, and Edwyn said firmly. “I knew you wanted this. I think you will need to be very strong. I will teach you this, but I also want to help you become a mighty witch and learn spells. I know you will like that less, but I think it's very important for you to learn.”

Ann saw what he was doing and walked in to give her input. “I agree, Victoria. You will need to be strong, so please take these lessons seriously and become a powerful witch. You will also need these skills.”

It was all so boring, just a bunch of reading the ancient text and trying to understand it all. It was old books and learning about stars. It wasn't all fun. Victoria saw it was necessary and said, “Yes, I will try, Edwyn. And thank you.”

Edwyn flew into his sister's arms and gave her the biggest hug. “I love you so much.”

Victoria gave him a sly smile, “And you did all of that in that flowing gown, how?”

“I just did.”

Then both children burst out giggling. Danala began giggling too and said, “You are a pretty girl Edwyn.”

Edwyn giggled back. “I think we will have to find some clothing more appropriate for physical training. You can wear some of my pants, Victoria.”

Then they went outside, and Edwyn led Victoria with some basic jumping exercises with him leading. They ran through a basic course and jumping over some logs and blocks Ann placed on the course. Then they went swinging on a rope to the other side. Victoria was having fun and getting tired. Then Edwyn led her through some strength training exercises of lifting rocks, and they finished the session with some basic sword fighting. That was more fun than anything really practical. They don't even teach the four-year-old boys anything like that yet.

Then Edwyn led Victoria into his mother's rooms and took a few of her heavy old books down. Edwyn asked Victoria, “How much of the old language have you been taught?”

Victoria shook her head, “Hardly any at all. Some of the girls know more than I do.” The little girl frowned. “It's so hard, Edwyn. I just can't do it.”

Edwyn smiled, “I think you can do it. I know it's really difficult, and learning a new language isn't as exciting as fighting. IT has its own power. And Victoria, I want to tell you that I think this is the most important thing for you. I want you to become fearsome when you are older. I think you will need to become a fearsome witch. You become a fearsome warrior. But the real power is the witches. You must get powerful enough to have a voice in them. Or they will just use you. So please try for me.”

Victoria agreed to try. So Edwyn wrote down a half dozen old symbols on the paper. Ann carefully explained what each of the symbols meant and the sound they represented. Edwyn slowly tried to explain how to change it to make another word come together.

Edwyn saw the slowly dawning comprehension within his sister's eyes as she began understanding. Near the end of the lesson, Edwyn saw his sister began to put together her own words and simple phrases.

Then they started working on some simple spell casting. It was something Victoria had not got to yet. Things went much more smoothly with Ann supervising the lesson and adding input when required. Ann smiled near the end when Victoria heated a bowl of water to boiling point on her own. Then she conjured a snake. Edwyn clapped with pride.

Ann smirked and said that he thinks that with Edwyn helping her, she may be put in the advanced class with the six to eight-year-olds pretty soon.

Little over two years had passed. Victoria's rapid progress annoyed the teachers, but they knew there was nothing to be done about it. She soon progressed by past the four-year-olds within a month, and she was moved into the class with the older six to eight-year-old girls. She continued to make rapid progress with Edwyn and Ann giving her additional intensive training at home, and it paid off big time. She learned the ancient language by five, and many girls saw her physical skills increase rapidly. Not that she was a small girl in any way. That was her area, but it became even more apparent with Edwyn helping her get stronger. Her family did everything to hold her physical skills back in the original timeline.

By six, she was almost at the end of the six to eight-year-olds and could start casting some impressive spells and was helping the younger girls in her class. She was ready to be moved up to the eight to twelve-year-olds.

Edwyn was four years old and ready to begin his formal training. Then his father summoned him.

Edwyn wore a dark purple gown this day, and he was hoping to have some fun with his sister Victoria when she returned. It didn't turn out that way, though. His father had decided to make an unannounced visit and had him summoned to his office. Two of the guards found him in his mother's bedroom and took him to his father, who was sitting there waiting. His mother Ann was also standing there waiting silently. He saw that his mother looked sad.

Edwyn stood there innocently, wondering why his father wanted him. He was smart enough to guess what that was.

“You will be started your education very soon, Edwyn, so we need to discuss some things and make some rules.”

Edwyn spoke up, “It's the dresses, isn't it?”

“Yes, I have let it go on because you were so young. I watched my son wear his sister's gowns for two years now. It is time for it to stop.” Richard stated. “You are a boy, and you must start dressing and acting like a boy. I will no longer allow you to wear your sister's dresses. Is that understood?” Richard knew he could speak to his son like any other adult.

“I understand.” Edwyn wondered if it was too much power for a king to be able to determine how someone must dress. Richard was also his father, but this was still a king's command. His guards were bound to obey it. Edwyn then asked,” And if you or someone else commanded that I be dressed and trained to be a young woman, would that have to be obeyed?”

“Why in the five isles would anyone command that?” Richard asked, very confused.

Edwyn shrugged, “I don't know, I am just curious.” It made total sense to Edwyn now. “If a vindictive king who had a grudge against me ascended to the throne in my place and wanted to humiliate me, that might be a way.”

Richard stretched his neck, trying to figure this out. “You will be the heir, Edwyn. There's nothing to worry about.”

“Of course not,” Edwyn agreed. “I won't wear those dresses anymore.” He intended to continue wearing them when he was able. They couldn't stop him from wearing what he wanted. At least not all the time.

“You will be starting your education very soon. I have informed the priests at the temple to expect you, and they will be teaching you all about how to be a boy and become a man.”

‘Oh great,’ Edwyn thought sourly. ‘I will be learning their nonsense. This will be fun.’ “I can't wait, Father. When will I be going,” ‘to be bored out of my mind.’ He thought the last part to himself.

“Monday, tomorrow actually,” Richard said, smiling. “Now I have more people to meet. Don't let your mom put you in any more dresses.”

Ann took his hand and headed out. “Okay, I won't let her.”

He whispered, “Yes, indeed, I will when we can get away with it.” Edwyn smiled, walking back to his mother's bedroom.

He dreaded this. Edwyn had little hope that he would learn anything from those fools in the temple.

His mother took his gown off and redid his hair to be more like a boy, and she put him in a pair of dark boys' pants and a button shirt. Edwyn frowned sadly.

Then he shrugged, “This had to happen sooner or later. But we will continue to have fun when time allows it, mother. I will keep helping my sister. I am so proud of her, and I hope we can keep having our sister's time.

“I will see to it that your sister will still have time for you to help her. She is so grateful to you. You still must understand that Your sister will have her own friends and things to do rather than hang out with a boy, Edwyn. She has got some of her friends and social life. But we will make time for you, Edwyn. She needs it.”

Then Ann added, “She has been wearing a corset. She will have to get used to it.”

“Yes, I wonder what those are like,” Edwy said. He hated that girls were required to wear those stupid things. From what he saw of the one his sister would be wearing, a girl couldn’t bend or move much in them. There was little reason to have to wear them. He still wondered what it was like wearing such a feminine garment.

Edwyn snuck into his sister's room and held the thick boned corset in his hand. She had several of them in her wardrobe. He shivered a little remembering Stone entering his bedroom holding one, fully intending to beat him and put him in it, and how he resisted everything only to find himself in it. That was an event that was possible in around twelve years from now. It was in his visions.

He put his sister's corset down and went back into his bedroom again. Edwyn didn't know why such things brought such anger in him. He felt his rage simmering by now.

The next morning, Ann dressed him for school. He wore a pair of black pants and a regular blue button shirt and a pair of shows. He was walked to the temple to begin his formal education as a boy.

He walked up the long flight of steps up to the boy's temple where the primary was there waiting. He called himself Apollo for some reason and led the boy into the younger kids' classroom. There were a bunch of boys sitting on the benches waiting for the day to begin. They ranged from four years old up to seven years.

Several priests came in. Apollo walked in with his scarlet robe and his purple sash around his waist.

“Welcome to the boy's temple, where we will give you the lessons you need to become a strong boy and a fearsome strong warrior in the future. My name is Apollo. I am the primary here at this temple and the representative to the monarch. Brother Gey Chation here will be your primary teacher, and his assistant Montford. If you have any more questions, you may direct your questions to them.

Then Apollo turned and walked out of the room where Gey took over. Edwyn was immediately alarmed and pissed when Gey began his lessons.

“You are boys,” The priest began. Edwyn considered thanking him for informing him of that. As if he didn't know. What great information to have. He was a boy.

“As boys, you are expected to be strong, dominant, and you must rule. You were made stronger and smarter than girls. Girls must obey. That is their rule, you must rule and dominate girls. They can't be trusted, and they don't have the ability to lead. We are the leaders. Girls must obey and be submissive and obey. If they are defiant and refuse, we must teach them or punish them. You have to have the strength to inflict pain when needed.”

Edwyn immediately tuned off to this idiot. He knew his mother was powerful. His sister was very strong and would become stronger. Then he looked forward to the day these men would kneel at his sister's feet, or else. She would destroy their religion. But he also knew his sister had a cruel streak to her. Some of those women weren't all that different from these fools, teaching him that he had to be strong enough to inflict pain on a defiant girl.

Then his mind wandered back to the time he tried to teach his sister magic. What a disaster that was. He was lucky he was fireproof, or he may have burnt himself bad. She caught him on fire. He was admonished bad that day.

He was so sad that he displeased his mother so much. He promised never to do anything that stupid again. His sister had needed a crash course on how to control her abilities, and those lessons didn't normally begin until around six. She was that age now and well into becoming a great witch. She would bring these fools to their knees.

After the long and tedious instruction, they started the physical training a boy would require. Edwyn excelled far above any of the other boys. The boys began some basic strength training. They got down on the ground to do pushups. Some boys could barely put out 10 of them, and Edwyn pumped out twenty and kept going.

The priests took the boys out to a basic obstacle course and showed them what was required to complete it. There was a lot of running, climbing, swinging, and then they had to use their hands to swing themselves across the bars and get on a hanging net.

Few of the boys could even get close to completing it. The more athletic boys got halfway and fell. Edwyn completed it, and the priests realized that he might have to be moved into the older boys' class.

Then the boys were run through a few basic physical combat courses, and this was where Edwyn paid attention. None of the material he had read covered this. He watched the priests run though some basic attacks, blocks, and parries. Then the boys paired up, and Edwyn was paired with a boy named Piet, who was a little heavier and who looked stronger. Piet appeared to be around five, going on six in a few months. Edwyn was still four. He knew that he had to be very careful, or this boy might not survive.

Even at this young age, the boy was an aggressive brute and one of the more athletic boys who completed half of the course and flaunted how strong he was. He had missed Edwyn's performance on the obstacle course. So he said confidently, “let's see how you can handle an attack sissy.”

Then the boy threw a series of heavy punches and swings at Edwyn's body and head. Edwyn blocked and dodged some of them, but many connected and hit his face. The blows caused no damage. If Peit Expected Edwyn to cringe or cry, he was wrong. Edwyn looked up eagerly saying, “That wasn't good, come at me again, I can handle this.

The look on Piets face becomes one of uncertainty. He had expected to dominate this smaller boy and make him afraid, and that had not happened. His attacks intensified.

Edwyn remembered the priest's instructions on blocks and how to avoid attacks. Piet intensified his attacks, and fewer of the blows connected. Edwyn moved his hands to intercept the attacks or move them safely out of the way. He moved his head when required or stepped away. After a few more times, he had it, and nothing the larger boy did come close to touching him.

Then Edwyn said confidently, “I got it, it's your turn now.”

The larger boy said arrogantly, “Go for it.”

The next second, he was on the ground holding his head, seeing lights flashing in his eyes, wondering where that came from. Edwyn admonished himself that he had to be careful. “Sorry, Piet. I will go slower, but you have to know how to handle attacks.”

Edwyn threw a slower series of blows that Piet only halfway blocked. He tried to instruct Piet on how to properly do that, but it only pissed the boy off. He concluded he was talking to a dumb wall and gave up trying to help this idiot and just focused on learning the drills.

Piet lost his temper at Edwyn around the middle of the instructions on dealing with rushes, and he grabbed Edwyn's legs and threw him down hard and began pounding on his face. Edwyn easily rolled the boy over and struck his temple. Piet was out cold. Edwyn didn't lose his temper, he meant to knock the other boy out. It was Piet that lost his temper and violently attacked him. Apollo saw it and congratulated him for handing the other idiot so well. Piet was punished

And that was the final lesson for the day. Apollo told the boys never to let rage determine what you will do. Keep calm and never lose your focus, or you will do something stupid and lose. In combat, that can kill you.

Then the boys were sent to learn some basic academics. The first was reading and spelling for the afternoon. Edwyn had learned all of this when he was just under a year old. He noticed that few of the boys had a clue. This was their first lesson as the priest wrote the letters on the board and explained each letter and their sounds. Then he put some short words together for the boys.

The boy next to him was having a lot of trouble, and Edwyn helped the boy understand the difference in the sounds and how they are put together. This boy was more teachable. He found his name was John.

Their final lessons were in math, and they went through some fundamental addition problems. This was another area Edwyn had mastered. Edwyn was working on variables and factoring equations by now. That kind of math was giving him a headache. But Edwyn sat here going through two plus three, and things like that.

John was having trouble with it, and Edwyn showed him that two, then another three, and how to add it by using marks on the paper and counting them. Then you get five. Edwyn helped him with another problem, three plus four. He helped John figure that out as well.

The lesson ended with some subtraction, and they were finally dismissed. Edwyn went to check on Piet, and found that he was fine. There was no lasting damage to the boy's head. He just learned not to lose control.

There were some marks on his back from the lashing the priests gave him for being a moron. Edwyn felt that was unnecessary. Being knocked out was enough, but these priests were brutal. Ann was there to walk him home. He took her hand, and they went home.

Ann asked him how it went, but she suspected that her son might not have found much to enjoy.

“It was stupid,” Edwyn said. “Really stupid. I don't believe any of it. I want to go to school with Sis. They tell me I have to dominate and control girls. I won't do it.”

Ann nodded sadly. “That's what boys are taught. I know it's stupid.”

Then Edwyn looked up as his sister came in. He figured it was now time. Richard was still out, and he ran into his sister's room and picked out a dress to put on. Victoria helped him lace the back. “How were your lessons, Viki.”

She looked bored and explained that they went through some waving patterns on clothes, then knitting and then grace, walking with a book on her head and then feminine mannerisms. Then they finally got to chapel to pray to the Goddess. The only class she liked was painting.

That frustrated Edwyn. “I will teach you some of what they taught me. But first, I want to ask you and mom a favor.”

Ann rose her eyebrow. “What favor.”

“Help me with the ritual of feminine force. I think I feel the spark.”

Victoria laughed. “You helped me, why do you need help if you have it.”

“Because I am having trouble. I am a boy, remember.”

Ann helped explain about what his state needed to be, but she sincerely didn't believe he had it.

Victoria helped him through the phrases that he had taught her. But the teachers at her school had explained it better and what the proper inflections needed to be.

Then they started singing the phrases about feminine power. “I am a powerful female. I will be a strong woman. I will be a leader and refuse to submit to men.” These were things that no boy would dare say in his right mind. Edwyn was singing it with a smile, wearing a white dress, and lace around his bust. Ann shook her head, thinking that the ritual had not worked when it happened.

Edwyn's hair began to spark, and the golden power of the Goddess began running down his arms and snapping at his fingertips. His entire body glowed with her power. Both children stopped, and Ann and Victoria just stared at the four-year-old boy.

Victoria did not entirely believe what was before her eyes. Victoria did, however and both children stood before her holding hands. Then Edwyn said firmly. “I want to go to school with my sister and learn witchcraft. You know we have no choice, I must learn.”

Ann couldn't help but start laughing at this. Both of her children looked at her as if she had gone mad. But Ann knew this was a dangerous situation, but she also saw such great humor in this.

Ann decided to explain. “Think about this for a second. The Hekatin wants to regain control. They know they must, and their only chance is the power they have that men can't counter in any way. We all know boys don't have that power. The priests have their ways to nullify the witch's power with some charms and such, but it only goes so far. Men lack that power they have the weapons and physical strength. But witches have magic. We have our plans to liberate ourselves. But the witches want to force it and subjugate society to their will. I partly agree because I see the men's brutality and the need to temper it even if just a little, and we want to control our lives and not be afraid. The only advantage witches have is the power. Now, they will meet a boy who has the same power. They will be afraid and horrified. Much like the priests if they knew you had it. You are the son of the Goddess. They don't know it, but they will find you are their only hope. A boy who loves the Goddess as much as they do and wants to see women freed. The Goddess has a scene of humor.” Ann smiled. “They will have to accept you. If they don't, they will never get free.”

Edwyn laughed. “I see the humor in that.”

Ann gathered her things and said, “Let's go see Professor Celestia and tell her about her new boy pupil. I think we can arrange for you to go to the school a few times a week.” She took her children's hands and walked outside and headed toward the girl's school. She couldn't wait to see Celestia's face. Neither could Edwyn, and he hated the woman. He knew what a sadistic horrible woman she was. He hated Celestia with a passion. She was the leader of the plot that had originally transformed or abused him. Another mysterious girl around Victoria's age at the time, seventeen to eighteen, was the instigator of the entire thing, and even Celestia deferred to her at times, but Celestia held the power and moved it all forward. These events would not take place now, but Edwyn knew they would if he wasn't here with his plan. He also knew Celestia was not to be trusted. She was a horrible person.

Celestia would be at her place by now, so Ann got her kids in her personal carriage and told her driver where to take them. They got in their seats beside Ann, and the driver got the horses moving. They went down the streets and headed toward the other side of the town out near the country where Celestia's little cottage was waiting.

They knocked and were invited inside, where Celestia was enjoying some of her wine.

Celestia greeted Ann and was wondering why she decided to make a visit with her two little children.

Ann knew this was going to be a big shock. “Lady Celestia. I have some news that I am not sure how you are going to take. But the situation requires it. I feel that I must admit my son Edwyn into your school a few times a week at your discretion. It is not so much a matter a wanting to, but we need to.”

Celestia just thought to herself that she didn't need any more surprises. She has had enough surprises boys who had the power. Her last encounter with Sarin was enough. She nearly died. “Ann, Edwyn is a boy.? But, tell me what has happened?”

“Edwyn has the power. I saw it, We just performed the ritual of feminine power with him. He has it, just like his sister.”

Celestia was simply speechless and a she also looked afraid. Ann looked at Edwyn and nodded, “Please show her?”

Edwyn muttered a few silent phrases, and his power flashed and glowed through his body. His hair shimmered and sparkled. Celestia looked frightened now. Another boy with the power, and he has a link to Sarin and knows about her. “This is just great,” Celestia said acidly. “And what are we supposed to do with this?”

Ann started explaining some of the events in the boy's life from when he was a week old to his first steps at three weeks. Then Edwyn saying the Goddess was his mother.

Edwyn affirmed, “She is, I see her in my visions and in my dreams. She loves me so much. How else can a boy have this power? But I am so afraid now. I had my first classes at the boy's temple, and I hate it. I hate those people. I hated their lessons on how to treat women. I want to bring them to their knees.” Edwyn said with such ferocity, it surprised Celestia.

Then he looked at Celestia with the same ferocity. “I also know you hate boys. You hate us for how we treat you. Not that I can really blame you, but know most boys don't have the insight or intelligence I have. Most don't have the defenses, so when they are taken to school and taught the nonsense, I was taught. The boys at four have no choice but to believe every word and start adapting to it. You shouldn't hate us, Celestia. You shouldn't hate me.”

“I don't hate you, and I don't hate boys, Edwyn,” Celestia said unconvincingly. “I will admit I am resentful at boys, and I have some feelings. I will work on that.” She didn't want to mention her encounter with Sarin. But she knew that many people here had begun to hate her. Perhaps a boy with this strong of a connection to the goddess can be a great help.

Edwyn replied, “Thank you, and I will do what I can to help you with that. I don't want to hate you either.”

Celestia turned her eyes to Ann. “Okay, I accept Edwyn. So it's up to you, how will you get him to the school. That parts up to you and which days.”

“I am the queen,” Ann said. “We must be sneaky. He likes wearing his sister's dresses. So perhaps he can go with you and your friend Danala, and he can just be another girl. Will, you do that, Victoria,”

She knew how important it was. “Yes, I think we would love it.”

“No one must know he's a boy,” Ann said. “If he is exposed, then all is lost. Richard would be furious, and there would be no mercy on any of us for betraying him. So you and Danala help Edwyn fit in as a girl. Will you help him?”

Victoria held Edwyn's hand. “Yes.”

Ann looked to Celestia again, “Wednesday and Friday. Will that be acceptable to you, Celestia?”

Celestia nodded, and it was agreed.

Ann got her children back in the queen's carriage and took them back to the palace.

This was only the beginning. Edwyn wanted to help Celestia increase the girl's studies. They should learn more than knitting.

But first, he had to continue his lessons with his sister, and he would get to teach her some of the physical training they put him through.

His sister changed clothes from the heavy-boned corset she had to wear and replaced her gown with a pair of shorts. Edwyn led her into the big drawing-room.

“Let me teach you some of the stuff they taught me. The priests call these blocks Victoria,” He smiled and asked Victoria to start swinging and punching him. She knew this was harmless, and she threw some strikes at him, and Edwyn carefully showed her how to intercept them, or move the blows out of the way.

Victoria was impressed. Then Edwyn threw some very slow strikes at Victoria's head and watched her learn to block them, cover her head, or parry them the way Edwyn taught her. She had learned it well by the end of the lesson, and then Edwyn put her thought a series of powerful blows to learn that. Victoria enjoyed learning how to throw a strong punch or chopping motion to his neck. Edwyn increased his power and speed, and by this time, Victoria could handle it. She easily blocked Edwards blows.

Victoria was winded by the end and had learned a lot. She threw herself into Edwyn's arms by the end, but it wasn't over yet. It was now time to learn more witchcraft. Victoria groaned, but she realized how vital it was to learn it by now.

Edwyn had decided to show her why he felt it was so crucial for her to become a powerful witch.

“Viki, I am going to show you one of my biggest secrets. It is not my strength or how fast I learn or how strong I am. Those are just some side effects of who I really am. I have a connection with the Goddess, and I can see things. I want to show you some of the things that I saw that may have happened.”

Edwyn approached a hesitant Victoria, and he firmly took her hand in his. Edwyn focused his mind and felt Victoria's mind. He made a connection and sent her his visions of her future.

Some of them were great, showing her as a battle-hardened warrior with a scar. Her holding the sword and wearing a gleaming crown with people loving her. He felt her smile.

Then he showed her some of the things that happened with him. She saw the cruel transformation and her gloating about there no longer being a male heir, and how Edwyn is now her little sister. She saw how sadistic and ruthless she was to him and how she enjoyed his suffering to such an extent. She saw the pain and depression it inflicted on him. Victoria was horrified.

It all ended, and she shouted, “I could never have treated you that way, Edwyn. How could this have happened.”

“I think events in that time required them. But you had become so angry and so cruel. That's why I am doing this.”

Victoria said in disbelief. “Is this why you want to dress up and be my little sister. You want me to love you more?”

“It started that way, but I enjoy our time together so much,” Edwyn admitted. “I enjoy it. I want you to be strong. It's the Hekatin. They are cruel. They pushed you to do that. They wanted you to be cruel to me, so I couldn't threaten you. You need to grow powerful enough to control them. They are out of control, Victoria. This is why I want you to be so strong.”

Victoria took Edwyn's hand firmly. With a determined look in her eye, she said, “Let's do it. I will protect you, Edwyn, no one will never hurt you.” she embraced her brother.

He wasn't that worried about himself as the other people they would wield power over.

Edwyn prepares to go to school with his sister and he realizes some of the serious injustices that girls endure and resolves to help them

Edwyns's mother and his older sister prepared him for school. He didn't have to worry about wearing a corset as his older sister did. There wasn't any reason to put a four-year-old in it yet. He still had on some feminine lacy undergarments and a clencher and a long flowing blue gown. His sister chose some cute shoes for him and some stockings. Ann did his hair and put some lacy pink bows in his hair. Edwyn thought that Victoria was having way too much fun dressing her brother up.

But now he thought about it, Edwyn wore such a huge smile because he was also having way more fun than any boy should have being dressed up by his sister and her best friend, Danala. So they were even, this was the day he had been waiting for and wanted to do for so long. Edwyn couldn't believe it was finally happening.

Edwyn looked feminine and he looked ready to head out with the girls. Edwyn approached his mother and asked, “Can you put a spell on me to make everyone who sees me think I am an actual girl and not Edwyn?"

Ann thought about it and agreed. She called on her power and did as Edwyn asked. Not much changed at all, but he hoped no one would recognize him as Edwyn. He seemed to be at ease and so feminine with the girls that he doubted he would be caught. Edwyn didn't want to take chances and have it get back to his father that he was wearing girl's clothes against his will or they would all be in trouble.

Victoria led them out, and they headed toward the girl's school.

Celestia welcomed Erlina to school and noticed there was a spell on her that caused anyone who saw her to accept her as a girl without question and not to think of Edwyn. That was smart of Ann. The only reason that she was able to recognize Erlina as Edwyn was because she was also a powerful witch.

Celestia led the girls to their seats and welcomed Erlina, introducing her to the teacher this morning. The teacher was May.

The lessons began and Edwyn listened with fascination about the first Queen of the world, The Goddess Danis, and all of the innovations she brought the people like domestication of animals irrigation, aqueducts, and many other things.

He knew most of it, but it was still fascinating to hear.

Edwyn spoke up. “Those are the innovations of Danis?”

May smiled and went on with her lessons about the first queen. But Edwyn sensed a problem. He asked, “Excuse me. Why are you saying Danis was the first queen?”

May frowned, “Because she is. She was our first queen and our Goddess. I know these are things. Didn't they teach you this?”

Edwyn continue. “I thought Lilith was the first Queen.”

Few talked about that dark time in history. Now that Edwyn brought it up, they had to address that horrible issue. “Technically, you are right, Erlina. But she wasn't so much of a queen as a plague on the world. She enslaved its people for her delight and enjoyed causing suffering. In fact, most of the things men blame Danis for can be attributed to Lilith. She was the Pesteltia and men like to blame the Goddess. We pray Lilith never returns. Danis struck her down and brought in a golden age of innovation and peace.” May frowned at Edwyn for bringing up that horrible subject.

One of the other little girls seemed to have a problem with the innovations and what they did for the people. She tried to get help in explaining, but the teacher was busy with another girl.

Edwyn sidled up to the girl and explained what irrigation did and what the domestication of animals did to help. The girl finally understood and introduced herself as June. Erlina introduced herself and told June to ask her if she had any more trouble. May's shadow appeared over Edwyn and she looked down with a puzzled look and asked June, “Is Erlina harassing you, June?”

“No,” June replied. “Erlina was helping me understand what irrigation was. I was confused and this she helped me.”

May corrected herself and apologized. “Thanks for helping out, Erlina. I am supposed to do that, but it was very kind of you to help out.”

“I love to help when I feel needed,” Edwyn smiled sweetly. “I already read about all of this. I enjoy hearing you teach it. There were just some things I was unclear about, like why Danis is considered our first queen. I read a few chapters about Lilith, but I didn't understand much about her and none of the books went into what she was like. Thanks for helping me, and I didn't mean any disrespect. I just didn't understand.”

May nodded, “I would be happy to get into the subject more if we have time later. I have to get back to our lesson.

Then the girls went to their next class, which was feminine grace. Edwyn was put through the paces of how to walk and move like a girl. His first lesson was how to walk across the room with several books stacked on his head. She had to keep her body level and glide across the room. The books fell off his head.

The teacher, Jennifer, put the books back and showed Edwyn how to keep his shoulders and head level and tried again. He failed the next time and he listened intently to the teacher again. The girls gave Edwyn helpful advice. He finally achieved it the final time and almost cheered with the girls. He walked all the way across the classroom and back.

The next lesson was sitting in his long gown. They went through sitting, standing, posture and even facial expressions and talking to people.

Edwyn's frustration level increased with all of these lessons. Why was being a girl so difficult? Why were all of these expectations put on girls? Why so much pressure?

It was stupid. Girls shouldn't have to deal with all of this! They were expected to walk a certain way, and talk to people, and sit a certain way.

What was the point? He knew the girls could learn such things.

Then they went to the chapel services where Lady Celestia led the services. Many of the girls took this part of the day very seriously as they bowed their heads and listened to Celestia's religious sermon talking about the Goddess Danis and her eventual restoration. She told about what a great time it would be and that their fear and persecution would end.

Then Celestia got a little vicious in her sermon, talking about what they wanted to do to those people, and that it would be their day of wrath when the men would be brought low and subjugated. Edwyn looked at her, eyes narrowed. Celestia saw Erlina's expression and corrected herself. She knew being admonished by the son of the Goddess wasn't something to take lightly. Celestia said that love was their religion; it was about and not vengeance. They may want to subject men to the fear, but they must also have mercy. Edwyn thought darkly if the Hekatin wanted vengeance, he had just the lady for them.

Then they all bowed their heads again after Celestia's frightening sermon and prayed. Even Edwyn prayed, “In the name of the Goddess Danis, We beseech you to liberate our people. Liberate your beloved followers. Return to us, we pray. I beseech you to help us.”

There was one big thing about the Goddess that really bothered him. He wanted to know more about it, but he felt that talking to these people wouldn't get him anywhere. The more he read about that war hundreds of years ago and what they did to the followers of the Goddess and the temples, the more he actually sympathized with them. The witches vilified them. They felt that the Goddess was wrongly vilified.

But, the first king in that time, who struck down the Goddess and began the war, was a slave. He was sold to the temple as a young child and enslaved and was supposed to be kept a virgin. He didn't want that life, and he revolted, and struck the Goddess down and launched a nasty war.

Apparently, many were dissatisfied with the life imposed on them by the Goddess and her people. It sounded more like a slave revolt. They may have gone too far and nearly committed genocide, but being slaves will breed much resentment and rage. People want control over their lives.

The women around Edwyn spoke like they had no control, but many of them did control their lives. They were teachers here, they taught children, and they lived as they pleased. These women were powerful and respected. It confused Edwyn. They had more controls placed over them than they wanted, but they were still influential and respected women. They were not slaves. The controls over their lives were wrong, but it seemed to be a feminine lifestyle that didn't bother many women at all. The corset and gown thing appeared to be a thing that many women would do whether or not it was actually required. He saw that many women used the tiny waist as a status symbol and do it all on their own. No man forced that on them. It was the girls that pressured each other.

Edwyn approached Celestia after the chapel service and whispered, “Remember, it isn't all men who are doing this to you all. It's only some, and you have many men on your side awaiting the Goddess' restoration. It's the priests in their temple. I have to wonder if you all would be just as bad as they are if you were all in charge. I sense a lot of frightening rage within many of you. The same rage they felt that prompted their war. Please work on it. I would hate for us to fail because you can't control your rage.”

Edwyn walked away, hoping he made her think about it.

Edwyn was assigned to the secret courses at the end of the day, in which only a select number of girls were ever accepted. He followed Victoria and her Friend Danala into the Hekatin course for witchcraft.

Many of the friends he had made during the day like June and Marg couldn't follow him there. He found a seat, and they all began.

The teacher, May again, said to the class, “We have a new girl here. Let's welcome Erlina here. I heard she already did the ritual of feminine force with her own family last night. So we can avoid that, let's welcome her as a fellow witch.”

Everyone clapped and cheered for her. It was unusual for a girl to do that with her family. But most families don't have a high member of the order as their mother.

As May began talking about star charts in the sky and the various consolations and the flow of the energy, Edwyn noticed that some of the girls were looking at him occasionally. A girl in the row in front of him kept turning back and looking at him. He was supposed to appear as any other little girl. This girl seemed older than his sister. He would guess this girl must be around ten and kept turning to look at him.

Around the part when May got to talking about the flow of the Energy of the Goddess around the stars and the moons, the girl whispered, “Why do you have a spell distorting your appearance? You have nothing to fear here, it's distracting, please stop it.”

May, forgetting the lesson, agreed and did something with her hand, causing the spell to be lifted. Erlina was instantly revealed to be Edwyn in his natural boyish form. The girl in front of him narrowed her eyes. “I know you. You are Edwyn, the prince. My mother is your aunt, and I have seen you around the palace. What are you doing here?”

Victoria stood up and approached, “He is Erlina here, he has the spark, we did the ritual with him. He is as good of a witch and a girl as any of you. We will accept HER here, is that understood,” Victoria's eyes narrowed at the other girl. “Do you have a problem with Erlina, Rachael?”

Rachael was a few years older and taller than Victoria, but she backed down from Victoria's ferocity. Then Victoria sat beside her brother.

May said to the class, “Victoria is correct. I forgot that he was a boy, but he has the power, and we must teach him. We will accept Erlina here in class, and we will be respectful.”

Rachael didn't seem happy, but she had little other choice at the moment. She asked, “How can a boy have the power?”

Victoria stood up and walked to the front of the class. “Erlina, I think these doubters need to see it for themselves.”

Edwyn smiled and walked toward his sister and stood in front of everyone. He focused his mind and activated the power within him. The girls watched in surprise, seeing the boy with the power of the Goddess flowing through him. His hair sparkled, and it raced down to his fingertips and up to his head. Even Rachael looked frightened.

“If a boy is meant to be a witch, then we must accept and help him on his path. He dresses as any of you, so there's little reason to fear him. He loves our Goddess as much as any of you.”

Edwyn added, “Yes, I love her. We will be free when our time comes.”

Then Edwyn went back to his seat, and the lessons finished. May approached Edwyn as the class let out, and she apologized. “I forgot you weren't a girl. You fit in so well that I thought you were just being silly. I will make sure every girl knows the importance of keeping this secret. Many of them probably do, and I hope you can forgive me.”

Edwyn hugged her. “Yes, I do. I am so naturally girlish it's easy to forget. I think it would be wise to put a spell on me again so I can make it home safely.”

“That would be wise. Do you remember what your mother used?”

Edwyn repeated it, and the woman put the enchantment on him again. The illusion of a natural girl reasserted itself. Edwyn decided to ask, “Why don't you teach any of the girl's stuff like Math, numbers, geometry, or things like that?”

“We aren't allowed to,” May replied.

Edwyn frowned in confusion. “You also aren't allowed to teach about the goddess, but you don't let that stop you from doing that.”

“It is just too risky. We only teach a selected number of girls about that.”

Edwyn thought for a second and then told her, “Meet me at the palace in a few hours. I think I can solve this.”

Then Edwyn went to his sister and asked her and Danala, “Can you get your friends and have them come with us to the palace in a few hours. I want to help them.”

Victoria frowned, but she agreed. If her brother wanted to do something, then it was usually good. So Victoria acceded.

Edwyn made it back to the palace with his sister and Danala. Sadly, his feminine adventures would have to end for the day. He took the gown off and put a pair of pants and a button shirt back on. It was fun being a girl at the school. Many of the girls liked him. There were a few that didn’t. That made Edwyn a little sad. He could be as good of a girl as any of them could.

His mother took him back in her carriage, and he talked about his plan during the ride back. “I asked Victoria and her friend Danala to invite a number of her friends over this evening. We need to find a secret place, and I want us to start teaching them more subjects like the boys are learning. Can we do that, Mother?”

It could be done, Ann thought. “I think I can find a place but are you sure about this, Edwyn?”

“Yes,” The small boy said firmly. “I invited some of the teachers over to help us start the classes. They need to learn more. Mother. It really sucks.”

She continued to worry about her son's uncontrollable need to help people.

The teachers May and Marg showed up about an hour later, and he stood with them, holding his mother's hand. The teachers wondered why he invited them here.

“I invited some of the girls to come later. We need to increase what we teach the girls. I also go to school at the boy's temple, and we learn many advanced topics that women are not allowed to. I know much of what is being taught already and working on the rest. That's not important right now. What I want us to do is teach the girls the same things the boys learn. We need to do it secretly, so that the men don't know. I found a few secret locations in the woods where none of the men go. I think it will work if you help me.”

the women looked at each other, and then May suddenly said, “Sure, what did you say you are studying?”

“I do it myself, but I'm trying to learn advanced mathematics. It's giving me a headache.” Replied Edwyn.

“I can help you with that. Just because the boys forbid it, doesn't mean we don't actually learn it. I think your plan will help many of the girls.”

Ann was in charge and she carefully explained the plan. The girls started arriving with their mothers, and the teachers gathered the kids together and assigned them into groups. Then they loaded up into several large carriages and started off to the secret schoolhouses Edwyn had found hidden in the woods. Edwyn maintained how this had to be a secret, so he couldn't explain what they were doing yet.

They finally made it, and Ann stood in front of the kids and separated them from the five and six-year-olds, to the seven and eight-year-olds, and so on. Then she explained that they intended to start a secret school to teach girls better subjects. “We are all qualified to teach your girls anything. My son Edwyn inspired all of this. He went to the boy's temple and was so frustrated at the girls not learning the stuff they teach boys. He demanded we began this. We must not tell the fathers or uncles any of this. It has to be a secret. We set up the classrooms, so let's get started.”

The girls went to the old houses that had been converted to a small school. The girls were led to their classrooms and found their spots. The teachers began their forbidden lessons teaching the girls basic arithmetic and numbers. Edwyn walked around the younger girls helping them any time they had trouble understanding the problems. May watched in amazement at Edwyn's patience and his ability to teach the girls. His compassion and the way he helped whenever any girl needed help touched her heart. She couldn't get over that Edwyn himself wasn't much older than the girls he was helping. Even if he looked like an eight-year-old by now.

He helped whenever he was needed. There were a few times when the teacher called Edwyn up to the front to try to explain a problem she was having trouble explaining. She did that when she was trying to explain subtraction problems and the concept that instead of adding numbers, numbers were being taken away. Edwyn slowly explained that and used some small bricks to visualize what was going on. There were five bricks, and we subtract two. Two small blocks were removed, how many were left. Most of the girls understood that.

Then the girls were led out and put through some basic physical exercises and strength training.

The day was finally over, and the girls were loaded up on the carriages to be returned. Celestia stopped Edwyn when he was getting ready to leave. He approached the two teachers.

Celestia said, ”I felt I had to thank you for all of this effort you put. I can't thank you enough. I feel the need to help you with some of your problems.”

Edwyn said, shocked, “My problems?”

“You mentioned getting a headache with more advanced mathematics. Let's work on that.”

Celestia started writing equations on a board and explained they were called polynomials and how they all worked and how to factor each of them to find the value.

Edwyn slowly began to comprehend how to solve them.

Edwyn finished his session with Celestia, and he thanked her. Edwyn tightly embraced her. “Thank you, Lady Celestia. I hope we can be friends.”

She assured him that she would support him. Edwyn wasn't so sure, but he hoped that she was real. Edwyn nuzzled his head into her shoulder in a tight loving embrace.

“I want us to be friends, Celestia. I want to help you.” Celestia held the boy tightly. He looked up into her eyes. “Don't turn on me.”

Celestia still never understood why he thought she would end up hating him. Edwyn decided to help her understand what he was talking about.

Edwyn backed up, giving her some space. He said, “I want to show you something. Please don't be afraid of this Lady Celestia. I don't want to frighten you. I want to show you what I see in your future. This is a possible future that is no longer likely. But it's a future that could have happened.”

Celestia knew that Edwyn now had the sight. He was a seer and she knew several potent witches and mystics that had the ability. Edwyn took her hand and shared his mind with hers.

Celestia saw what he saw. Her mind was flooded with a load of very confusing and horrific images of a possible future. She didn't look that different than she did now, but she saw her with a group of other witches transforming a large teenage boy during some grand ceremony. It was a coronation. This boy was supposed to become king. He was changed, and she crowned his sister instead. Except this didn't really look like Edwyn's sister at all. This didn't look like Edwyn or any possible future Edwyn at this age. Celestia was very cruel to this boy, and it seemed that all of the witches took pleasure in demeaning and humiliating this boy. Even Celestia herself was very cruel to him.

Celestia could not see herself treating a boy this way. One thing did strike her in all of this. This boy was not really Edwyn, and in those visions, she saw the lost moon appearing in the sky at night. That was what promoted all of this. They couldn't allow a boy to get the crown in this future. This future that would no longer happen. Edwyn had seen to it.

The visions in his mind ended, and Celestia said, “Who was that boy?”

“I think he is me in the future. Or it was to be me.” Edwyn said.

Celestia shook her head doubtfully. “No, it's not you. And in that future, I hear them speak another name, and call him Serrenina. Or Nina. Someone yelled out the name Serin. Anyway, there's no way you can ever turn into that hulking boy. Even with your rapid growth, I don't see you bulking up that way. You look very slim and almost beautiful. You have a feminine beauty to you as a boy, Edwyn, and you really don't mind dresses. I don't think you would have the reaction to being turned as this boy did. He is not you, but the lesson you wanted to teach me is clear that I would be very cruel to that boy, who was apparently the crown prince of this country. I don't think it's our future or ever was our future. I think this is another reality and another family that I did this to.”

Celestia let that sink in, then she asked, “So what are you Edwyn, if you have visions into an alternate reality?”

“I am the son of the Goddess,” Edwyn said.

“You must be more than just the son. You also have a lot of her power. It looks like in a twist of fate, she made you so powerful that we can not abuse you like we did this other. That must have displeased her, so she sent you.”

She smiled down at him. “Let's go home now. I will be here to teach the girls tomorrow. Let's mark this day as the first day to a new future.”

The two loaded themselves onto a carriage and set off.

Sarin had an encounter with Actonia and Edwyn progresses and finally learns why he is here

Sarin simply could not believe how little time passed before Actonia became desperate. It wasn't more than six short months before she came begging.

It wasn't only that. Sarin came back to Vakia's place after a rough day teaching to relax to find Actonia standing in the Dining room with his mother, Aanya. He groaned out loud, having a feeling what this was all about, and it better not b.

Sarin glared and said in a dark voice, “This better not be what I think it's going to be. If it is, you better turn around and leave right now, Actonia. And especially you, Aanya. You better leave for your own safety. I will really be mad if you are here to try to get me to help restore Actonia. After not having raised a voice in my favor all of that time. Never spoke out for me, but you will for her? If that's the case, I will be very angry. This is your chance, turn, and walk out now!”

The room was getting notably chilly. Aanya spoke, “Actonia is a member of the Hekatin. You severed her power, and that was a horrific violation. You have no idea what that is like for a witch and a girl. You took away so much of what made her herself. You stole everything, her identity as a witch, her abilities she worked on all of her life, her strength. What is she supposed to do now? Please, restore her?”Aanya pleaded.

The room got very chilly. Frost covered everything, and then a layer of ice formed over the windows and the surfaces of the Dining room.

“You don't think I understand what losing everything is like? Did you not see me lose my manhood, my strength, everything that made me serin and become a boy princess for your prophecy? You don't consider that losing everything, my very identity? And you never once rose your voice in my defense, and you were never going to restore me? And you want me to restore Actonia?”

“Yes, she is suffering so much. You have no clue.” Aanya stupidly kept saying.

“I understand perfectly. Actonia did the exact same thing to me. Actonia did you misunderstand what I said you will never feel the power of the goddess again. I meant every word. I will never restore you. Do you not understand those words? Are they difficult for you?”

“Please, Sarin, Please, I am helpless.” Actonia pleaded.

“I was just as helpless. I was raped because of what you all did. I was unable to fight, stop men from attacking me. I know exactly what it was like. And you did it to me. And just like you did it to me, I'm returning the favor. This is your life, get used to it. I won't restore you. Now just leave.”

Aanya said, “We aren't leaving until you restore Actonia. She needs her abilities!” Aanya stated.

“No, she doesn't. She's not even human. Actonias a monster that only looks human. But she is a hideous sadistic monster.”

Sarin looked cruelly at his mother. He said with a smirk. “When I restored Jerric, I felt it within him, and I gave Actonias abilities and her spark to him. He will be a mighty witch. I am about ready to begin training him.” Sarin smirked sadistically. “Imagin you watching your brother get your life, your power, and your abilities and live that life, while you are left with nothing but to stand on the sidelines and watch as he gets your dream.”

Sarin laughed sadistically. “That's so sweet.”

“But, I will consider restoring your power Actonia if you can do something for me.” Sarin inquired.

“Please, anything.”

“Restore me as I was meant to be. The Sarin you remember. And then restore my birthright as King Danae. Just like my father. If you can do that, then I will restore you.”

Actonia screamed. “No, You know I cant.”

“You took it away. If you could return it, then we would have a deal. But you can't, so I can't. Now get lost!” Sarin said coldly. The room was now below zero.

“I told you we won't leave,” Aanya said harshly.

“I warned you.” Sarin said even more coldly as he glared at his mother. His power began flowing through his body as he approached with a cruel glare in his eyes. His mother withered back in fear as he approached. Then he locked his mind with hers with an evil smirk. She wanted to cry out ,but found she no longer had any control of her body.

Sarin felt everything. He saw her bright and powerful spark within her mind. It would be easy to destroy. He saw her entire life. Then he felt her motor functions, all of her brain functions. He could shut everything down right now. He could render Aanya unable to walk or talk anymore if he wanted to. And he seriously felt like it.

He heard Vakia cry out in fear, “Sarin, NO, Stop it right now. Break off with Aanya.”

Sarin broke off his contact and looked at Vakia. “Why?”

“Because you are losing control. Let me do it.” Vakia smiled evilly, and she approached Aanya with a cruel glare. She locked her mind with Aanyas and found the spark she had. Aanya furiously worked to smother it. Aanya cried out in pain as she felt her spark and her connection smothered into almost nothing. Vakia wasn't quite as powerful as Sarin and couldn't utterly destroy it, or take it as Sarin did. But she would be extremely diminished for the time being.

Vakia broke her connection off, and Aanya collapsed.

Actonia said under her breath. “You two are the monsters.”

Vakia replied. “No, we hunt the monsters and punish them. What you all did was wrong. You destroyed a nice boy's entire life. You misused your gifts and are no longer worthy of them. Now get the hell out of my house before I kick both of your asses.”

The two ran out.
xx

Sarin had learned a lot during the intervening years since his fateful encounter with Celestia and Actonia.

He had learned a lot and developed a close relationship with many of the girls he had taught. Sarin was now thirteen years old and had been promoted to the main teacher of a classroom with the intermediate students. May saw his incredible talent and agreed that he should be promoted to the main teacher of that classroom. She continued to teach the five to seven-year-olds. Sarin taught the eight to twelve-year-olds. His old girls were sad to see him leave, but they would be in that class with him soon enough. He was just as effective at enduring himself to those girls as he was with the five-year-olds. They loved his attentive and soft teaching style that he adapted for each of his girls he taught.

But he still hated it. He hated this culture and hated what he had to teach these girls. He hated the position they found themselves in, and he hated what the boys were taught even worse stuff. The boys were taught a lot of junk that would eventually doom them when the time came, and it was coming faster than ever. It was the same junk he was taught that led him by the nose into a total disaster on his life. What he was taught made him totally ill-suited to become the King. He now understood that. But it was what he was taught from age five. There was nothing he could have done about it. The culture and his parents let him be educated in the war god's ways, so when the great prophecies began fulfilling themselves, he was no longer suited to become the King, and measures had to be taken to destroy him. It wasn't fair in the least. Sarin was so enraged and felt so royally screwed by society, by the gods and by fate itself. Why had this been allowed to happen when the result was so foretold. And why had he been given a family that was so callous about what they had to do to him? He had such an ambitious and cruel sister. She was fated to be King, but did she have to be so cruel to him? Could his mother and sister get him out of that culture before the coronation and explain to him what was up, so he knew what had to be done
No, they led him by the nose right into the corset, and the beatings. Sarin still felt so much anger at it all.

Sarin's power had grown since then, and he never had another incident since his encounter with Celestia.

He met Actonia a few more times, and she had become so depressed. Sarin felt no pity for her. She had lost everything, just like he had lost everything. His only response was, “It sucks having your entire life stolen from you, doesn't it? But I thought girls were stronger, cant you handle it?”

Sarin fought hard to reforge a life after what they did to him, and he was mostly successful. Sarin made himself into a great teacher and an even better witch. His strength never returned. He never got the imposing size and strength he once had. But he felt stronger than he ever was before. Even the most powerful witches deffer to him. And the girls he teachers love him.

He was standing in front of a large sheet of parchment after having written several symbols on them. He was teaching language skills this afternoon.

Some of the new girls were confused and asked, “What is that? I thought we were learning our language.

Sarin smiled. “This is, its another language that many of you girls should know. These are the symbols of our goddess Prognita.”

There were a few of the girls that knew him from the advanced hekatin class. But most didn't and blinked in confusion. One of the girls said, “But you are a boy?”

The other girls giggled at such a silly response until Sarin narrowed his eyes. “Now Now, she doesn't know I teach those classes too. She doesn't even attend those classes, so how is she supposed to know we have a boy witch and at a teacher in the Hekatin. But I think every girl should be a member. Every girl can do it if they are encouraged to.” Sarin smiled warmly. “So let's begin. This is the symbol for enlightenment. And this is the symbol for wisdom. And this is the symbol for love. And this glorious symbol.”

Sarin made another large symbol in the center of the paper. “Is the symbol for Prognita herself. She is our goddess. I want you to each write those symbols down and learn them.”

Sarin waited for a few seconds and then continued, “Now let's
get into our own language we use every day. We will learn some more advanced words and how to spell them. Let's begin with the word Gratitude and knowledge. Notice how they are spelled.”

xxxxxxx

Edwyn was now almost nine years old. Four Five years had passed since he started the training program for the girls. He had been going to the boy's school all this time, and he made incredibly rapid progress there. Edwyn at nine was training and learning with the sixteen and seventeen-year-olds. He really didn't need to go there at all. His education surpassed even the highest level teachers, and there was no one in the entire nation who could even compete with him on a physical level.

Edwyn's progress as a male witch also as rapid. He took the official Heketanian trials at eight years old when most witches wouldn't even think of it until well into their teen years to adulthood. Victoria was very envious, and she wanted to try it, but she was nowhere near ready. It's actually dangerous to try it when they aren't prepared. Edyn assured her that she would be prepared before any of her classmates. At the pace Victoria was progressing, Edwyn guessed she would be ready by Eleven to twelve. Victoria has accepted that there was something about her brother that made him special.

Edwyn was very strong, Not that anyone could see that by looking at him. Edwyn, at almost nine, looked more like a thirteen to fourteen-year-old boy. Edwyn appeared to most people as an underdeveloped girl with thin narrow shoulders and a slim waist. His skin appeared very delicate, and his facial features made him look very feminine. His eyes looked rather large for a boy's, and his cheeks and jaw were shortened and made his face look like a girl's. He didn't know why he was fated to look the way he did, and it bothered him. It didn't bother him that much. He was more concerned with why he was so superior and smarter than anyone. He wanted to know

He was the strongest witch in the Hekatin that even Celestia herself admitted she stood no chance against him, and if he wanted control over them, Edwyn only had to ask, and there was no question everyone would support him. Edwyn wouldn't even consider it.

Edwyn still attended the girl's school regularly with his sister. When he was seven years old, Lady Fawna informed him that he was attending classes with the thirteen-year-olds to Sixteen. He looked mature enough that he was required to wear a corset like the other girls. He protested and hated that thing, but he had to agree, or not go. Danala and Victoria would lace it up, and his sister looked like she enjoyed that too much. Edwyn endured it to go to classes with the girls, even if he was no longer in the class with his sister. She was with the ten-year-olds.

Edwyn was headed home from the boy's temple this day, and he walked his way home. He was trusted to make his own way now. His parents knew he would make it, and there was no question. Most boys knew his speed and his strength. But there were always those few boys who seem to want to cause a problem. Piet had to learn it the hard way more than once, but the lesson was painfully made. He stayed away from Edwyn.

Edwyn had just started back to the palace when a group of four boys confronted him. Edwyn tried to ignore them and continue on his way. They really meant nothing, and as Sam tried to call him names. Sam was irrelevant to him, and he went on his way.

Edwyn was going to ignore them until Sam’s two friends, Ampar and Buff got in his way as he entered a narrow street.

Sam blocked his retreat. Edwyn was just going to push his way past them and move on, but it seemed the boys really wanted to fight him.

“I can't even believe you are a boy,” Buff sneered. “How can you even call yourself a boy looking like that?” Edwyn regretted putting the pink lace in his hair now.

Edwyn shrugged. “I am a boy, but does it really matter if I am a boy or a girl?”

Sam laughed, “The sissy doesn't even care if he is a boy or not, and I heard he lets his sister put him in her corsets, and her gowns when she takes him out.” They all laughed

Sam approached with his fists tightened and demanded, “Why do you let her do that to you?” He demanded. “Don’t you know that makes you weak like a girl. You must be strong like a warrior. Like a man.”

Edwyn mentioned, “Girls can be strong too. There are many girl fighters, and some girls are stronger than boys. I bet my sister is stronger than any of you.”

They all laughed. “Your sister is a girl. She is weak Erlina. You sissy, how can you be so stupid to think any girl is stronger than a boy.”

Edwyn suddenly got pissed. “Do you want to know what it's like to be a girl,” Edwyn demanded with his face reddening.

Sam laughed, “How can you do that, you Sissy?”

Before any of the boys could react, Edwyn was suddenly in Sams's face with a furious look in his eyes. Edwyn wrapped his hand around Sams's forearm and began painfully squeezing. Sam cried out in pain as they heard the bones in his forearm crack. Sam screamed and when Buff tried to approach Edwyn from behind. Buff was knocked back into the wall and collapsed in a heap. Edwyn kept squeezing Sams's forearm, and he screamed in pain. Another bone in Sams's forearm cracked.

“You are weaker than any girl I know, Sam. I bet most girls could handle this pain, and they wouldn't be screaming like you are. But this is what it is like to be a girl. You live knowing that most boys are physically stronger than you are. And you can do nothing against them if they want to cause you problems. You are helpless against them, just like you are now helpless against me. I can do anything I want, and you can do nothing to stop me. This is what many girls feel like every day. Yet, they bravely go out, they hold their head high and go about their day facing this world. They don't cry like you are. I bet you couldn't even handle wearing a corset, Sam. You really are a wimp.”

Edwyn picked Sam up in the air and dropped him hard on the pavement. All of the boys ran, and Edwyn went back to the palace, frustrated.

Edwyn's sister had returned about an hour before he came running through the door. He ran to his sister and told her about his fight. The fights troubled her, but victoria laughed when he told her about what he said about girls and Sam in a corset. She had to agree, and her admiration grew more for her brother.

Victoria turned from being frustrated by her brother to admiring him. She more admired him. Victoria continued to feel the frustration that no matter what she accomplished, he always did much more. Edwyn became the leader in anything he took part in. Edwyn never pushed her to the sidelines, no matter what. He did his best to make her a central part of what ever they were doing. But this day, he seemed more frustrated than usual and wanted her to go out with him.

Edwyn really felt like going out today and took her hand, “Victoria, I need to go out to our spot, and I would love to take you with me. Can you go?”

Victoria nodded, “Sure, I would love to. Are you going to put a dress on to go out or not?”

“Yes, indeed, I was going to as soon as I was ready. I want to wear this pink one.”

He began disrobing when Victoria held out a corset and said, “You need to wear one of these too.”

Edwyn frowned but figured he may as well and allowed her to tightly lace the corsets sides, and Victoria draped the dress over him and fastened its back.

Then they headed out when Ann shouted, “Where are you two going?”

“I need to go to our spot. I will be back tonight. I will make sure Sis is okay, so don't worry.”

Ann knew she never had to worry when Edwyn was with her.

The two children rushed out the door, and Edwyn picked Victoria up in his arms, having trouble bending enough to take her. “I want to get there fast,” Edwyn said with a twinkle in his cute eyes.

Then Edwyn blasted out at blinding speed. Edwyn could run faster than any horse could run. He just about flew his feet were going to fast. The speed threatened to rip his dress, but they made it to his spot in under an hour. It was hundreds of miles away into the desert.

They stood in the middle of a hot arid desert part of the Isles. This spot was just outside of the ancient temple city that had been long abandoned for thousands of years. Edwyn built a small cottage for them to play in and stash some of their stuff. Edwyn had built a pit to make a fire in. Edwyn had stashed many of his books in that cottage he built by hand.

Edwyn shook his head. “I think you know why I wanted to come out here today. The reason is the same thing that bothers you. Why am I like this? Why am I am stronger than any of the adults? I bested my dad at sword fighting countless times, he doesn’t even try anymore to fight with me anymore. I defeated the best sword fighters in the entire isles, and I don’t even put any effort into it anymore. I realized I was faster and stronger than many of the older boys at the temple when I was four. They considered training me for the 16s competition this year. I refused because it wasn’t even fair to include me. I could have beat them all at six. It's no contest now. What's the point? I turned them down.”

Edwyn looked more frustrated than ever. “My witch studies are the same. You saw it, and I saw how I made you mad passing the Hekatanian trials at the beginning of this year. I didn't even do the four ways trials first. Lady Celestia even offered me her position as the leader. It's going to be your position. And that’s not even the most of it. My education is the same. I am one of the smartest people in the entire isles. I know things no one else can even imagine. I know the ancient language, and I know some other languages. You saw these symbols I play with. Mom doesn’t know. I don’t know. I can put some things together. They have a power to them, and
if I use them, they impart their power to me.”

He took a rod of some sort of unknown iron. He made a symbol on himself, and the symbol glowed. “I figure this one is for strength. This other one is for speed, there are others that have their own. Where do they come from?”

Victoria was lost. “My abilities as a witch only scratch the surface of my full potential. I feel a massive power within me. It's so massive, I feel if I unleash it, that it could break the world. I have no idea what any of this is. Why am I like this?”

Now Victoria felt bad for ever being so envious of him. It was hard not to be, but this power made him feel so lost.”

His questions were about to be answered. Both children heard an awesome roar blast across the sky. The very air around them trembled uncontrollably. Victoria held her ears as the explosion came closer. Edwyn looked up and saw something descending toward them. It looked like a massive ball of brilliant fire falling at them. He pulled Victoria out of the way and sheltered her from the blast when it came crashing down near them. There was an enormous, massive woman that plowed into the ground and created a gigantic crater in the ground. The crater was burning white-hot.

This was unlike any woman he had ever seen. The woman was nearly twenty feet tall. Her proportions were right for a woman. She had large hips, narrow frame, and breasts, but that was in proportion to the rest of her stunning body. Her skin shimmered in the sunlight, and it seemed to emit its own heavenly glow. Her skin's texture was more like crystal that looked impregnable. Her eyes glowed white. Her entire body had an etherial heavenly hew to it. She turned toward Endyn and spoke. Nothing came out of her mouth. Both children heard it in their minds when the woman spoke.

“My name is Gabriel.” The woman said to them. “I had hoped I could talk to Edwyn alone, but since he insists on including you in this, then you will be part of it. So welcome Victoria, and I am glad you are so supportive of your brother. I greatly feared that you would become a hated rival of your brothers that he would simply have to succeed over your failure. I am glad that hasn't happened.”

Victoria spoke, “I support my brother in everything, Gabriel.”

“I know you all have many questions. I will provide all of your answers. As you know, Edwyn's mother is the Goddess Prognita. And I have given Edwyn my power and ability. The powers of the Goddess are only the beginning of his abilities. Edwyn is limitless and part of the ethereals. You must not ever compare what you can do to his. There s no reason to Victoria. Edwyn is immortal.”

“So what you are saying is my brother is a god?” Victoria said, almost laughing.

“Yes, in your way of thinking, yes,” Gabriel said.

She said acidly, “Wish someone told me earlier. Then I wouldn’t have even tried to keep up with Edwyn.”

“There’s your envy again. Edwyn has helped you grow past anyone else your age.” Gabriel pointed out. “He tirelessly works to make sure you are the best you can be. You have exceeded everyone’s expectations. We are all so proud of you, Victoria. He has given you what you need to succeed.”

Victoria saw their point. But Edwyn also said, “I wish someone told me that too. So, do you want to tell us why you have given me this power, and what my purpose is?”

“With your arrival Edwyn. There are also a great number of people across this world with my bloodline. They are no where near as powerful as you. But they are more powerful than anyone else. You are to guide them and defend the world from evil forces. That’s for your future. For the time being, you must learn to utilize your power, and focus it. I have given you the material in the cottage nearby. You and Victoria must study. And Yes, I have given Victoria the same power, and she will also have to study. This will take years, You are only nine and Victoria is ten.”

Then Gabriel also spoke of another urgent matter. “You have another objective. Edwyn is linked to the memories and experiences of another boy. The Boy is Seren. He was brutally abused by his family and many other people. Your memories are linked to the boy, and you know what happened to him. He needs help controlling his rage. He is doing well, but he is facing a threat that he can not fight alone. He has released Lilith, and his sister Patenia has allied with her. Their power is going, and you will have to face them soon. That's why it's important you must grow as strong as you can be. You must also help Serin”

xxxxxxxxx

Antonia's brother had ridden out to Sarin's family's Manor early in the morning. He was told that Sarin really wanted to see him and offer him some help.

He made it early in the afternoon after Sarin's daily classes had ended, and he entered into the girl's conservatory. They ended up standing at the end of the chapel.

Now Sarin wondered how he was going to break it to Jerric that he was a witch. This was more difficult than he thought it would be.

Perhaps telling Jerric bluntly was the best path. “Jerric I don't know how to tell you this. I turned you into a girl in another life. Somehow you weren't reborn as a boy in this life. You were born as a girl and grew up as a very conflicted girl, that was really a boy. I inflicted that on you, and I was wrong. I have apologized and offered you any assistance you need. That's why I am here.”

“Thank you. I blame my sister for it all. I don't blame you. You did what you did out of anger at the way she used you. And in doing so, I found that she cares little for me. But what did you want me here for?”

Sarin grinned. “This is the most wonderful thing. I hope you can appreciate the irony. But in living as a girl, you have adopted most of the girl's skills.”

Jerric snorted. “Speak for yourself, Sarin. You can hardly be considered male at all. Your feminine skills are so refined and delicate. Not that it's bad, but where are you going with this?”

“I was not talking about our physical mannerisms and etiquette. I meant something more,” Sarin said though his teeth.

“I meant witchcraft. Your sister was a very powerful witch who did horrible things with it. I took it away. When I transformed you, I felt you had the power within you too. And in turning you back, I had taken your sister's skills and imparted them all to you. You are going to be a very powerful Seer and a potent witch. Twice as powerful as she ever was. Do you see the irony here? Your sister is female and has lost her power, while her brother is going to be much stronger than her. And this is actonia who was all about thinking girls were stronger and better. Now has to look up at her brother for protection, and watch him become a fearsome witch if he wants to. So the question is, do you want to?”

“Me,” Jerric said. “A witch, a member of the Hekatin? Will they accept a boy like me?”

“You bet your ass,” A female voice said from behind them. The two boys turned to see Vakia approaching from behind. “We accepted Serin with no problem. He's a teacher here. He will teach you if you want to.”

Jerric thought for a second and then shrugged. “Since I have the abilities, I may as well. So what do I have to do first?”

“Lets first learn a few phrases, and then I will lead you through the ritual of feminine force.”

Jerric shouted, “THE WHAT!!!!

Sarin laughed. “Yeah, I know, but that's part of it. And you have it since you were female. Much of it lingers within you.

“Okay.

The Prophet

By Jasmine Monica

Serin receives an offer much like the one that Patinea recieved many years ago that allowed her to take the crown from him. Serin makes a major decision that affects the course of everyones life and Edwyn forsees a conflict and prepares

Serin had been getting increasingly unhappy lately. It seemed the only thing he enjoyed were the classes he taught with the girls. But there was one thing that kept bothering him, and that was why did the Goddess that he loved to think he should have become a girl, and she gave him no choice in the matter. To restore his sex, he had to take matters into his own hands and ally with a much greater and darker power, and in restoring himself, he destroyed the goddess restoration.

That's how clear it was that his beloved family had never intended on restoring his sex. And it was clear that this was the will of Prognita, and that is the Goddess that he chose to serve. The more he thought about it in the past few months the more it angered him. Why had the Goddess not wanted him to be male? Why did the Goddess believe he should be female? If this was the case then why wasn't he born female, or why didn't he at least have a female spirit to go with the body

Being female was agony and suffering for his male mind that he did anything to escape. The Goddess and the Hekatin never intended to restore him, so he was forced to embrace the darkness to regain his masculinity. Even now, as a boy, he knew the femininity in his spirit remained and exhibited itself in his refined movements and his speech patterns that endured him more to girls than to boys. He felt so cursed by the Goddess at times, and his anger at it grew

There were times when he considered giving up and simply making himself female for ever.

A hawk had just flown through his window this night and delivered an envelope. There was a name on it, from Asiria from the Hashmasions. He never heard of them in his life.

He bent down and took a deep breath and opened it up and took out the thick sheet of parchment and read it.

“My mighty Princess Serinina. I am Asiria and the mistress of a group of warriors. If you want to reclaim your life and be more than a feminine slave to the Goddess teaching her subjects, or living as a princess in the shadow of the false king, or your sister's shadow whose only job is to be pretty, or perhaps a wife. You can join my group, and we will retain you to be the greatest fighter and warrior that has ever lived. You will win glory like you never thought possible. I will be riding to your place tonight. You have until then to make your decision. We train the most elite female warriors ever. And we are offering you that training.”

He had stayed home this day, and it was lucky for him. He didn't feel like going over to the school to teach this day. Serin really felt like taking this offer, but to do it, he would have to be female.

And that was no problem since his experience gave him such a powerful female spirit. This woman Asira would be showing up within a few hours. So Serin did it. He reached for his feminine energy within his body and chanted the spell of the Goddess that transformed him into Serinina. Of course, this was an age-appropriate Serinina that was only twelve. She didn't have the enormous breasts, and she also wasn't quite as large as the other Serinina that her sister transformed at fifteen. But Serin felt this was going to be what this body would grow up to become. And something told him that he was going to have to retrain for combat because it was coming whether he liked it or not. And his fate would require him to fight. A war was coming very soon, and he wanted to be ready for the fight that was coming. Serin removed his corset and simply wore the dress that he had on already and waited for his other mother Vakia, to arrive. Vakia was out this morning, and Asiria was going to be here later today to get him if he wanted. Serin fully intended to go with the woman.

Serin simply sat at their kitchen table waiting and going through all of his horrific memories of the darker times when he was fully under his sister's thumb and unable to do a thing to stop her from abusing him. He let all of the hate flow through him that afternoon until he heard Vakias carriage pulling up, and she got out.

He heard her steps approaching the front door, and she came, though. Vakia was disheartened to see Serinina sitting at the table waiting instead of the boy Serin. She knew something was wrong and went to sit beside him.

“Tell me what is going on with you, Please Serin. Why are you in the form of a woman now?”

Vakia also felt the wrath coming from the boy.

Sarin took out the mysterious letter and laid it in front of Vakia and let her read it.

Then Sarin stated, “This is the form that the Goddess wanted me in regardless of my feelings on the matter. She wanted to see me humiliated and powerless against those who were going to hurt me. They all thought that giving me this form was going to make me powerless.”

Sarin said though his teeth, his entire body tense and seething with rage. She knew this was big trouble. “Sarin, the Goddess never wanted you to be powerless and abused. That was all your cruel sisters doing, and her supporters. They were betraying the Goddess when they chose to do that. It was not the Goddess will. And you know that!”

“Do I?” Sarin replied. “The Goddess wanted my sister to ascend to the throne instead of me. Prognita sent my sister the visions of me as a happy woman with a child, Prognita also sent Actonia the same visions showing I was going to be happy as a woman for the rest of my life. Prognita also sent my sister as well as Actonia the visions of Patinea as a glorious king instead of me, all I got in those visions was a child. So how can you say this was not the will of Prognita?”

“We don't know if any of them are telling the truth, or even the whole truth. But perhaps if they weren't so cruel and humiliating to you, in trying to force you into it all, that you could have been happy as a woman. We will never know because they tried to use force and humiliation on you, and there's no way any woman can be happy with her life under that. They should have known better. The Goddess did. So how can you blame her for this?” Vakia tried to reason with Sarin.

“Because it was still her will to turn me when I was perfectly happy as a man. She pushed them to change me, all while knowing those women have built up a seething resentment and hate of me. Turning me, and placing my sister as king over me made me totally helpless against a powerful group of women who wanted to humiliate and hurt me. My entire life was taken away, and I was trapped in a helpless humiliating life under the power of vindictive cruel women. That was indeed the will of the Goddess. She felt I should be turned into a girl whether or not I liked it. My personal feelings were totally immaterial. So I will be a woman, here I am.”

“But you are a woman full of hate, Sarin,” Vakia said. “It sounds like you are doing this to spite Prognita. Why are you considering going with this woman for?”

“The Goddess, my sister, and the entire leadership of the Hekatin thought, making me a woman would make me weak and allow them to control me. So they could force me into the shadows and have no power. That I could not fight. I want to prove them otherwise. The Goddess cursed me with this female form, thinking I would be unable to fight. I know women who do fight, and that's what I want.”

“Your form is anything but weak, that plan blew up in your sister's face.” Vakia pointed out. “You were bestowed with immense power in this form. You may be the most powerful witch in the entire isles. Even I fear what you can do, Sarin. You aren't weak in any way.”

“My body is too weak, and I stood in my sister's shadow. Her body was so powerful and imposing that I felt so little next to her in her military uniform and her scars. Now I know that women can be deadly fighters. I will go train with them, and then I will return and show Patinea what a true warrior is.” Sarin replied

Vakia felt so helpless. She saw that this day would come. Sarin would seek to retrain his mind and body for combat. Combat and leadership seemed to be his destiny. She had known that Sarin blamed Prognita for everything. He never gave up his anger at what happened. He wanted vengeance.

Another carriage pulled up to the Manor, and two large, well-armed fearsome-looking women wearing padded leather armor walked through her door. The smaller woman looked at Sarin's female form and nodded approvingly. The two sat down across from Sarin and Vakia. The smaller woman said, “Princess Serinina. My name is Asirah, and I lead the order of Hashashians. There aren't many that know about us, but those that do know not to bother us. Even the mightest kings learned to fear us. And we are here to offer you our training.”

Sarin smiled. Vakia said sarcastically. “I heard of your order of assassins. King Gerik's great grandfather was going to lead a campaign against your hidden fortress in the mountains until he found a dagger through a letter stuck though the bed beside his pillow. You can get into anywhere and kill anyone. But please, Sarin think about this? You really don't have to fight to be strong. You don't have to win glory in battle to have your name repeated though the ages. You have so much love and respect here among me, your pupils, and the leadership of the hekatin. Your power will grow until even the greatest kings will have to follow your advice. Why would you want to give that up?”

“Because,” Sarin snarled. “This is the will of the Goddess that stole my sex, my name, and even my future and humiliated me. I don't want that life, I want the life I was promised before she stole it?”

Asiria said softly, “And that's what we are offering. But Sarinina, you don't have to be a girl to do this. Our order is female, but there is a male order of assassins that we can take you to.”

“Oh,” Replied Sarin. “But I had training as a male and anyway,”

“Even as male,” Asiria
pointed out, looking at Sarin. “You have much to learn about combat. I know you were among the best warriors as prince Sarin. But you were no match for us. You could beat three to five men at your best. We can teach you how to defeat an entire army by yourself. You and I watched your sister Patinea fight. You used brut strength and armor. We will show you how to use speed, stealth, and skill to make yourself invulnerable.”

That sounded impossible. “The Goddess forced me to be female, So this is what I will be for her, Serinina will become her greatest enemy” Sarin wore a face full of hatred and vengeance. He snarled with rage, “Serinina will be her greatest nightmare. Serinina will ensure she never is restored to the land. She will spend eternity in her tomb, helpless and defeated by her own creation.”

Serinina turned and walked out with Amiria and her daughter. The two girls loaded onto the hashashins carriage and started off on the long trip ahead.

Emily and Vakia looked at eachother in total helplessness. “I loved my brother so much,” Emily said, wiping the tears from her eyes. “The girls fell in love with Sarin. We did our best to help him. What has happened, Vakia?” Tears were flowing down the little girl's face.

“Sarin wants to be strong without the Goddess’s power. He feels so betrayed and hurt by Prognita, he wants to fight her, and all of her followers. And he senses the time coming when she will try to rise, Sarin does not want to be helpless this time around. And he hates the Goddess Prognia.”

Serinina had sat on her seat, feeling happy to be there. They had ridden a little more than a half-hour when the younger girl move up beside her. She introduced herself, “I am Asiria's daughter Aethelfled. Welcome to our order Serinina.”

“Thanks,” replied Serinina.

“I need to tell you a few things before we proceed. This is your chance to leave. If you wish, just tell us, and we will stop and let you go back. We won't let you leave alive once we are there. I hope that you understand that.”

Serinina laughed bitterly.

“I am serious. If you cant, make it, or if you try to flee, then we will have to kill you, Serinina. Our order and our location must remain secret from everyone.” Aethelfled said seriously. Serinina still laughed as if she didn't take it seriously.

“We will have to train you harder than anyone ever trained before. You must forget everything that you thought you knew, Princess Serinina. You will be trained in a far more lethal art of fighting, and you will have to be studying all of the Hekatins prophesies, their religion, the Goddess, and it all. I know you think you studied it all, but you have from within their classes to be indoctrinated. We will teach you the real history and what caused their downfall. And training to fight, and a new style of magic. And if you fail, then we may have to kill you.”

Serinina laughed bitterly, “As if anyone could if you tried.”

Asirah shouted, “Stop, I think Serinina needs a demonstration of what we can really do and why our name is feared by even the most powerful kings.”

The carriage stopped, and the two females left the carriage, followed by Serinina. Then Aethelfled said seriously, “Serinina, I am going to attack you. And you defend yourself, or you may get hurt.”

Serinina didn't take it seriously as Athelfled charged at her, and before Serinina could even prepare, she was on her back as the impact drove her breath from her lungs, and Aaethelfled was ontop of her and struck her face hard. “If I was serious, you would be dead now. At least try to make this a challenge.”

Serinina shouted, “Look at me, Damn it. I can't do a thing in this form. I am tiny, all of my training was for nothing. I have no strength, I wasn't allowed to even train like my sister. I can't do anything in this.”

“That's where we come in, but at least try to repel my next attack, or you may get hurt even more.” And Aethelfled charged at her again and flew up fifteen feet into the air.

Serinina cast a spell calling on a gust of wind to blow her away. But nothing seemed to affect her, Serinina shot a projection at her trying to repel her attack. Aethelfled simply knocked it away with her hand and fell on Serinina again. It really hurt her. “See, we are immune to the power of the Goddess. It was part of our training and our ability. So do you doubt our threat anymore?”

serinina groaned in pain, “No, but how did you do that, are you using the powers of the war god Maxis, or Mars?”

They helped Serinina up and healed her bruises. Then both girls laughed, “No, they are all fools. We will teach you the source of our magic, but you must decide now, do you wish to continue this course, or walk away?”

Serinina braced herself and shouted. Her voice trembling with emotion, “I will stay this course. And if I can't make it, then I would rather die than fail. I will become the greatest warrior in the entire world. And I will kill my Patinea. I have seen her reclaiming the Crown in Denaerk. I see her killing Edwyn and his family with the power of Lilith.”

“We see that too.” Replied Asiria. “That is why we are going to train you so hard. Twice or Three times as hard as anyone else. And when you think you had enough, you haven't even begun yet. And none of us doubt you can handle it. So let's go.”

They got back into the carriage and begun riding out again. Asirah said as they started their journey again. “You will also have to learn to control your rage. It will only get you so far, but it will cloud your judgment and make you act like an idiot. You will have to learn to control it, and keep your rage under control. You must be like ice. Cold, emotionless, like a true warrior. Or you will die.”

“I can do that,” Serinina replied through her grit teeth. “It's hard after everything. The Hekatin thought, making me a small girl like this, would make me weak and easy for them to control. Many of them thought it was funny and amusing.”

“I can see that,” Replied Aethelfled.

“I will teach them otherwise.” Serinina simply stated evenly. There was no emotion in her words at all. It was a simple flat statement. It was no scream of fanatical rage. It wasn't yelled in white-hot passion. It was a simple icy cold statement of determination. It was about as dangerous as you could get. It left Asiria with no doubt that Serinina was going to succeed.

“I will reclaim my crown over the entire royal family's corpses. And then I will kill all of the witches.”

“Have you returned to the War God,” Inquired Aethelfled hoping Serinina has not.

“No, I am tired of Gods and Goddess controlling our destiny. I will end the age of Gods and Goddess once and for all. We will be in charge of our life, not some deity who can change our life at a whim.

Serinina fell asleep after several long hours of riding.

Aethelfled turned to her mother and asked in a tone full of worry, “Are you sure training this girl is really a good idea, Mother, Killing all of the witches, are you serious?”

“Yes, my daughter,” replied Asirah. “She has been abused and mistreated. Training her is our destiny. She is vital. And she won't kill the witches. She will find out she won't have to kill them all. She was their only hope. The Hekatin are fools who sealed their own doom by mistreating her. You will see. The Hekatin will die, but not by Serinina's hands. Now lets just rest. We have a lot to do.”

xxxx

There were many things that simply did not make sense anymore to Edwyn at that moment. He knew that Serin wanted to be placed outside of the royal family so he would no longer be subjected to the stress and possible betrayals that resulted from being the heir, or someone closely related to them. So the Goddess placed him as far away from the center of power as possible. He was a Dukes son on a far off island, but the Dukedom was still immensely powerful, and the continued stability of the Kingdom relied on them.

How ever, Edwyn had got the news that Serin has betrayed the Goddess and allied himself against her. He swore to destroy the supporters of the Goddess and devote himself to never seeing her restored again. This was tragic news and it meant a war was coming. On top of that, Serin's estranged sister Patinea was gaining power in her devotion to the false Goddess Lilith, and she was also coming for his throne very soon. She had begun gathering an army.

None of this made any sense. Edwyn thought that Patinea was en extremely devoted follower of the Goddess and was the one that led the attempt for the first restoration campaign that failed. But her loyalty was dubious at best. She wanted power over any loyalty to a goddess. It was just the Goddess was the path to power, and when the Goddess was forced to turn on her, then she no longer had any use to remain loyal.

How ever, Edwyn thought that Serin was one of the most devout boys in the religion of the Goddess. He had a chance to destroy her, but he didn't. He had become so devoted and loyal that he was assigned a teaching position at a hekatin academy knew that Serin had gone through a lot. He understood that Sarin had gone through what can be considered torture for the sake of the Goddess. But Sarin was strong, and he thought Sarin understood. Apparently not. He still harbors his anger and pain, and that drove him to betray the Goddess. He saw what was coming, and none of it was good. His family's chances of survival against Patinea and Sarin's forces combined were remote at best, especially with Lilith supporting them. None of this was good at all. It all meant that Edwyn had to increase their training and their preparation on the double, and he was nowhere near ready.

Edwyn had taken his sister Victoria out here every single day for long hours of studying the ancient texts. He studies the language of Heaven itself and had devoted entire days to studying it. He helped his sister with the Hekatin arts when he was available, but she had studied under a master of the Hekatin. Falconet was kind enough to come all the way out here and give Victoria her personal instruction. But he still sensed defeat against the forces of Sarin and Patinea coming for his family. So while his sister Victoria was working with the Hekatin to increase her witchcraft skills, he was working on other things.

He had spent the past few months intently studying the symbols and runes from the heavens themselves. Gabriel was kind enough to offer her help when he was having trouble making some of them for himself. But there was one goal in mind for Edwyn at that time. He needed weapons to fight this evil with, and he had none. Of course, steal was almost everywhere, so it would be easy for the boy to make his own if that's what he really wanted. But Edwyn didn't want just any swords. He needed a special type of sword that could fight and withstand the power of heaven, and its fire to fight great evil. And there was only a specific type of metal for that, and it was only found high in the mountain tops. There was only one way for him to get there, so he needed to increase his skills for that. Edwyn needed to do one thing for this all. He had learned how to call down the fire, but that was only part of the plan. Edwyn felt the power from within that far surpassed the witch's feminine spark he felt within him. But he needed to release it.

His sister Victoria watched closely as Gabriel gave him instructions that he needed. Reach from within him, feel his power, and focus it. It will come when he reaches down. So Edwyn took off at a blinding speed and leaped up high into the air. He felt the air get colder and thinner as he went up into the clouds, and he struggled to maintain it. He felt the power within, and he reached down, he focused his mind and tried to touch it. He wanted to channel it, but it wasn't there yet. The buildings were tiny now at this hight, but he began falling. The gravity took hold and began pulling him down.

Edwyn desperately tried to reach for his power, but he kept failing to draw from it. The ground was racing up to him, and he felt the massive impact. He plunged into the ground at a blinding speed. Edwyn was unhurt, but he cursed. His impact had created a crater, and the shockwave from his impact knocked his sister back. Edwyn needed to go faster and higher to achieve this.

So Edwyn prepared and shot out at an even faster speed than before. He let himself go over twice the distance to build up more speed before he lurched himself high into the sky. Victoria gasped as he shot up into the air.

Edwyn felt the air thinning and the ground leaving him at a rapid pace. The air got a lot colder, and then it got darker, and he began to see the world curve into a round ball. He had no idea how high he was, but there was almost no air up here. Then he tried to reach for the power and struggled to maintain the contact with the power within him.

Then suddenly, Edwyn erupted as the power he reached for was finally achieved and channeled through every fiber of his body. Enormous wings sprouted from his back and spread out in a glorious display, and he was flying all on his own. He turned his body and struggled to fly on his own. He explored the world around him as he learned how to fly.

He descended into the thicker air and turned around and flew over the majestic palace. The place now seemed to be a place of pain and suffering. He could not forget how Serin had lost his future in that place and was trapped in his bedroom while his sister Patenia took power and his future. She enjoyed it all while he was trapped in a life of misery and powerlessness. It was great for her, but she was a brutal and cruel tyrant that abused her brother with her newfound power. Edwyn hated that palace and sincerely wanted to burn the entire thing down. He planned to hand the crown to his own sister on his own, but it didn't affect him at all as he had a higher allegiance and a reason for being. It would not make him powerless, and his sister had no grudge to destroy him with her power. The same could not be said of Sarin when it happened. But now it was time to get what he wanted.

So he turned his body around and flew toward the mountain range in the distance. Edwyn also realized he could fly at any speed he desired. So while the mountain range was nearly a thousand miles away, he increased his speed to many times the speed of sound and was there within minutes.

Then he saw the enormous temple of Mars guarded and controlled by the priests. This was one of the main temples of the priests, and it was time for them to end.

Edwyn hovered over the temple of the priests and yelled in a very commanding tone. “Blasphemies, idolators, your reign of terror over the planet is over. God commands your destruction.”

Then Edwyn called upon the power of heaven and rained white-hot heavenly fire over the entire temple. Every single priest within the temple was burnt alive. There was nothing left with the fire many thousands of degrees finished its job. The fire was hotter than the core of the sun. Then Edwyn found the metal that he was looking for deep within the ground. It was one of the purest veins of ore he had ever seen. He knocked a deep hole in the ground and got as much as he needed and then returned to his sister.

Now, Edwyn needed to build a forge to begin work on the weapons he needed to fight with.

Xxx

“I miss Emily,” Sarinina said sadly. “And I think I heard her cry when I left. But its too late now.” Said Sarin as he sat alone in a study.

“Yes, it's too late.” Asirah agreed. “Its time to begin. We are all here, and its time to introduce ourselves. We are the Hashashins. A group of elite female warriors and assassins. We are the most lethal. We have descended from the Goddess’s personal guard from her reign, and we are all that's left aside from one final hidden noble family that escaped the genocide. I am the final descended of its captain. Amadia here was the general of the forces of the Goddess. We saw the disaster that was to come. It was caused by the Goddess herself, and the people who placed themselves in charge against her will and lead by brutality and corruption. They caused their own downfall, but much of the Hekatin blame the men, the men they were persecuting. The Hekatin are fools and causing their own downfall again.” Asirah sadly said.

“Yes, I suspected so.”

“Sarinina, its time to learn about your prophecy, and this alone will reveal the stupidity of the Hekatin. Let's study this book. It details the prophesy that the Hekatin were relying on when they changed you. I know you mastered the language, can you tell me the title of this book?”

“Prophesies of the future and tales.” Sarin read.

Amirah nodded and then opened the book and found the part that she wanted him to read.

Sarinina made a face, “The Prophesy of the Boy Princess. So this is a prophecy that caused my change?”

“Yes,” Asirah replied, look at the part. “So let's start reading it and tell me what you think.”

Sarinina read the pages and found himself getting increasingly confused and angry. “So they were going to change a prince into a princess so his sister can take control. It was meant to happen all along?” Sarin yelled.

“No,” Asirah said sadly. “This wasn't. Read it. Look at the language and the tone,
read the entire prophecy. Yes, a boy was going to be changed, but that's all they read, read on about what happens to the boy, and what he becomes. And the eventual outcomes from the change. Doesn't it read more like a warning to them to not do this?”

Sarinina read it and agreed, “Yes, its almost what happened to me.”

“It sounds like it is warning the hekatin against it. The boy will be angry, he won't accept it and be happy. He will destroy them, or the Goddess herself will reward him if he was to go to her for help against them. And it says the hekatin will kneel before the boy princess. He will rule over them. They must have missed that part. The Hekatin are idiots.”

“So what about the priests,” Sarinina asked. “They seem even dumber. How could they have won?”

“Because they had strong and wise leaders,” Asirah replied. “But like everything else, time made them forget and become incompetent. Think about it?” Asirah laughed. “They let the Hekatin grow strong right under their nose. They had you under their protection, to crown, and allowed the Hakatin to surround you, and change you into a princess right in front of them and they messed it all up. Their only answer to stop it was to try to kill a young girl as if that would change anything. When you escaped your sister and fled to their temple for help, did they help you in any way?”

“No,” Sarinina replied sadly. “They threatened me and ridiculed me as a girl questioning and pleading for help. As if they couldn't help me.”

“Yes,” Asirah said, looking into Sarinina’s eyes. “They had you in their grasp, desperate and willing to do anything. The betrayed crown prince right there and they sent you away with a lie. They could have used you to regain power if they had any brains. You could have been a rallying cry against Pateinea that would have inspired many to join you, but they didn't. They threatened you, and insulted you. The Priests are even stupider than the Hekatin, and that's hard to do. They are both architects of their own destruction.

Serinina finally gets a real family that cares for her and she is given a chance to fulfill her destiny. Just not in the way she thought.

What Serinina had just learned from reading some of the ancient scriptures of the Hekatinian chronicles and earlier scriptures from the Goddess Danis was stunning.

But it still meant little to her. Serinina still knew that what happened to her was the will of the Goddess and that the Goddess had named her own sister Patinea as her vessel requiring Serinina to be removed as the heir. It was the will of the Goddess to destroy her masculinity and make her a girl.

The teacher Aethelfled was looking at her from across the table in a soft, sympathetic way, hoping she would understand. “So you see, the Hekatin have gone corrupt and are still corrupt. What they do is not always the will of the Goddess. Often, they act against the will of the Goddess, what they do is their own will. But people have unfairly blamed the Goddess.

Serinina was boiling mad now. The women saw her features tense up. Her fists tightened into balls, and they almost saw her features darken. Her eyes narrowed frighteningly.

“You may try to spare that horrible vicious bitch the blame, but it's not working for me,” Serinina said between her teeth. Her eyes were blazing.

“It was the Goddess that gave my sister and Actonia the visions of me as a girl. It was the Goddess that told them that I may be happy as a girl, and it was that they were relying on when they transformed me against my will. It was the Goddess that made my sister her vessel requiring me to be destroyed, so my horrible, sadistic sister could ascend, and make me helpless under her power. This horrible plot was indeed the will of the Goddess. Any attempt to spare the Goddess the blame for my life's destruction is a lie. The Goddess is to blame.” Serinina nearly shouted in rage.

“I can see that,” Asiria said sadly. “Not all things are the will of the Goddess. But it seems a mistake was made here.”

“Mother,” Aethelfled said sternly. “We know the Goddess is not infallible. She was struck down, and she allowed the Hekatin to become brutal and corrupt under her leadership in instituting a brutal matriarchy that totally disempowered men. And she was blindsided and killed by one of her male slaves that begun a brutal revolt. So I wouldn't doubt that this stupid plan was indeed the will of that idiot bimbo Danis. She was trying to convince people that Sarin would be happy with what was done to him, and he would cooperate. It was a very long shot that should have never been considered. We know there is no way Sarin would have ever been happy with the transformation. You and I know, but this spell is considered a blessing, and the changing to female is considered an elevation in status by these people. And in a way it is in it gave Sarin access to powers he never considered possible. And the Goddess even bestowed other powers that are stunning to the Hekatin, and they never knew possible. The Goddess was counting on that to satisfy Sarin.”

“I know, but it doesn't. These powers are difficult, and it took me a very long time to learn and get accustomed. And I had to endure much suffering along the way. And it isn't a life that I wanted,” Serinina said to them.

“I want to be a warrior and a fighter, and it's what I was meant to be. That's the life that I want. They changed my sex, my body, and my name. But I still have the same desires, the same as my sister. It didn't change me, I still want to be a warrior. Not a witch. I also want to be a powerful King. My future was stolen, and they tried to force me to change. But I refuse to change. My desires are my desires. That's what I want. I will be happy with nothing less.”

“This is also something they should have counted on,” Aethelfled said to her mother. “The Goddess seriously misjudged Serin's conviction. I want to help Serin reclaim his life, do you, Mom?”

Ashiria thought for a few long seconds and then nodded. “Yes, the Goddess made a horrifying error, and it should be no surprise to me. She is an idiot ever to think this could have worked. Serin is not Devinia. She isn't the Boy Devin who loved the change so much, went to the Goddess, and asked for the change so she could claim the crown. It was done by Devins's request and his permission. It was forced on Serin to deny him the crown, and destroy his future. How can anyone think Serin would ever be happy with it? It changed a loving and compassionate boy into a very bitter and hate-filled woman. I will help you, Serin. But it won't be easy. We will train you very hard. And when you are exhausted and want to stop, we will push you harder, and you better not use magic. We want to train your body, strengthen your shoulders, your legs, and your entire body. And you will want to rest, we won't let you. You will get very strong if you can handle it.”

Serinina smiled, “Thanks, that's exactly what I want.”

“You will have such skills that you would make the old Serin jealous. Now get a good night's sleep. You will wake before dawn, and we will make you run, and then, you will build up your arms and shoulders.”

They ended the session with the typical warrior salute. They held each other's arms at elbow length and nodded. Then Aethelfled showed Serinina to her private room, and she nearly collapsed in her bed and slept.

Asiriah burst in, waking Serinina up before sunrise. It was barely five in the morning and they forced her to run along the walls of the ancient fortress. The sun was not even up yet, and it was pitch black outside. But it was time to get started, and Serinina remembered doing many training sessions as a boy before sunrise. That's how it worked if one was serious, and she was very serious with getting her body in shape and training to fight. She refused to allow a goddess, her sister, or anyone to force her to change her life's path. She was going to be a warrior as a boy or a girl, or she would rather die. If the Goddess feared her power and wanted to change her, then the Goddess was cruel, and she was in for a very rude surprise.

So Serinina threw her dress on, and she began feeling the unwelcome cramps that come with womanhood. She shouted out a very vulgar curse at the Goddess. She made sure that her underwear was adequately padded with moss and then ran outside in the pitch black with Aethelfled following behind her. And then they began their running around the walls of the enormous ancient temple that the order of women refitted as a fortress for their order. The cramps she felt kept slowing her down. Still, she powered through her training and refused to allow her usual feminine cramps and the occasional pain to stop her. But, she was sorry for all of the times she made mocked women for these cramps when she was a boy. She was such an insensitive and ignorant boy. But, Serin was only sixteen, and that goes with age. She didn't deserve what happened to her. If she did deserve it, many other boys were much more deserving of what happened than Serin.

Serinina only made it halfway around the walls of the fortress before she was totally exhausted and out of gas. She nearly collapsed in exhaustion when Aethelfled laughed, “You are only halfway girl, keep going. Try to make at least it one entire lap. Do you think your sister Patinea stopped from exhaustion, or did she power through her training? Think of what she took from you and what was supposed to be your future. She led her troops to fight the Ansays. She took Rook's rock, not you. She won the loyalty of the army, not you. It was all stolen from you, and this is how you win it back. Prove you can be a girl and fight. Prove you can be better than her. Prove you are stronger and kick her ass now get up and run. This is the only way. Even as a boy, you knew that stamina was the key.”

“I know,” Serinina gasps in exhaustion and stands up and forced herself to continue past the point of her exhaustion. “I am very out of shape, they forced me in the corset and refused to allow me to train. Very hypocritical of a woman and a regime that was supposed to be for female empowerment. Turn me into a woman and force me into the life they wanted me in.”

“That's why we invited you here. Patinea has betrayed her sex. So has the Goddess. Keep running Serinina and let your anger drive you.”

She ran two complete laps before she stopped and was about ready to begin a third lap. Serinina was an overachiever. But Aethelfled told her to stop and said it was time for breakfast now. She needed more fuel if she was going to continue her physical training so the two young women went up to the main temple where other girls and adult women were seated around the table, and food was being placed in front of them.

Asiria inquired, “How did Serinina's morning run go?”

“It was very rough,” Aethelfled replied.

Serinina piped in, “I had no idea how out of shape I was. But, I was forbidden any physical training by my sister who did it herself. I was forced into a constricting corset every day and only allowed the most menial tasks. They were even hesitant to allow me to take part in Hekatinian courses, but Falconette realized how hypocritical and wrong it would be to forbid me from that. Make me a woman and then forbid me from something that is exclusively only for women was a bit too far for her. But it was a fight. I am now exhausted.”

Serinina took in a mouthful of eggs and asked for more. More was given to her. “I did two entire laps around the walls and was going to do three.”

“We want you to be able to do ten by the end of training. Now we will begin your strength training in the afternoon. You will be made into an elite warrior by the end of your training. I only wish is that you don't seek vengeance for what was done to you. Only justice and victory over your abusers.”

“I think I must have revenge. I need to destroy the Goddess and all of her followers. They brought it on themselves.”

“Yes, they did,” Aethelfled agreed, and the other women around the table nodded.

Asiria shouted to Serinina, “Serinina, princess of the Golden Isles. I have invited Queen, Penthesilea, and her daughter Cassandra. Penthesilia queen of the Amazons to observe your training. She has expressed great interest in your progress here.”

The noble woman nodded. She was sitting beside Asiria wearing a flowing white embroidered gown. She wore a slim crown on her head and nodded. “Yes indeed, Serinina. I have much sympathy for you and if you prove worthy in your training here. I will extend my hand to you. We will invite you to extend your training with us. I may even adopt you into my family and be Cassandra's sister. Since your family rejected and abused you. Would you like that?”

Serinina frowned. She would be made another princess then. But only being a princess there didn't seem quite as insulting and demeaning. Of course, her sister felt the title of princess was so demeaning she hated it. Bestowing the title on Serinina was meant to demean and insult her. It was meant as an insult and to destroy her life, which it did. She had to fight for any sort of respect. But being made a princess of an elite world-renounced group of women warriors didn't seem in the least bit insulting. It actually sounded very fearsome, and a wicked smile spread across Serinina's face. She bowed her head, “I would be very honored to be adopted by you, Queen Penthesilea. I would be proud to be a princess of the Amazons.”

Then Serinina wondered what her sister Patinea would think if she knew that her sister was being adopted by an Amazon queen and being made into their princess. And then being accepted and trained to be an Amazon warrior. Her, the former Prince Serin who often and very proudly mocked women warriors and said multiple times that girls can never fight. Her, was now being adopted by the Amazons. What would Patinea think? Serinina thought that Patinea would be afraid, but also think it would be endlessly amusing and probably laugh at the irony of it all. Serin thought it was very ironic.

“Then you need to continue your training here and prove you are strong enough. I think you are, Serinina,” Penthesilea said to Serinina. “I can see such a strength already. You proved you are strong enough to be a woman and have suffered your transformation and abuse by those that were supposed to help you. And you are still here, and that proves you are much stronger than Patinea. When the Hashashins have taught you all that they can, and then I will take you to our Island and continue your training. I will wait that time. And then I will ask a favor of you to repay all of our effort.”

“I would do anything you ask, my queen,” Serinina replied.

“We are at war,” replied the Queen. “With the Greeks. Agamemnon and Ajax want to invade our island and destroy us. He threatened my daughter Cassandra and our client city of Troy. Would you help defend us?”

“Yes,” Replied Serinina. “If you help and train me, and love me as a daughter. I will do anything for you, Penthesilia. My family has rejected me.” Then Serinina nearly broke down and sobbed. “They hated Serin so much and destroyed him. She tried to embrace me as a daughter. But after what she did and clearly showed her favor to her daughter Patinea. I was unable to accept her affections anymore. I felt rejected and hated. Her affections seemed very insincere and actually insulting after what she did to her son. If you are willing to embrace me, I will do anything that you ask.”

Penthesilia sensed the conviction of Serinina and the truth of her words. The strong woman stood up and circled the table until she stood behind Serinina and laid a comforting hand on the young woman's shoulder. Serinina was going on eleven years old, and yet she had gone through so much and was now uncontrollably weeping. It was heart-wrenching that her own family did this to her. Penthesilia was like a loving mother, currently doing her best to comfort Serinina.

Serinina stood and turned to face the imposing motherly woman who right now felt so much more of a mother than Aanya ever did. Penthesilia put her hand lovingly and stroked the younger woman's cheek and looked deep into Serininas eyes. “Let me into your mind, Serinina. I want to see your life.”

Serinina opened herself and embraced the older woman tightly.

Penthesilia experienced all of Serinina's life from her times as an arrogant and self-centered teenaged boy to his abrupt transformation into Serinina and the abuse she suffered at the hands of her own family when they supposedly blessed her with femininity. To the alienation and sidelining and humiliation she endured at the theft of her entire life and the wars fought by her sister Patinea and throwing all she achieved in her face. Then to Serinina's bitterness but her pride and support, she felt to her sister and the understanding she also felt at her sister's frustration as a woman.

All of it hurt Penthesilia and shocked her. She backed away, breaking the mental contact with the young woman. “Oh my god, Serinina. It's all so painful, but it makes so much sense. You are indeed stronger than anyone even thought you could be. You endured it all, and yet you still loved and supported your family. What none of them ever knew and what I think you didn't even know was that you did have the spirit of a strong girl inside of you. That's what made you act like such an arrogant and insensitive boy. But you secretly understood, and you desired it. It's what made you so strong during your abuse, and you continued to support Patinea even if she hated you. Only a girl has that kind of strength. And that kind of understanding and compassion. It was all overlooked and used to abuse you, but you had the strength of a girl to endure. I will adopt you, Serinina if you are willing to accept.”

Serinina smiled through her years. “Yes, I do.”

“I can only do this if the Goddess consents and accepts you,” Penthelesia said to her.

Serinina frowned and almost became enraged when the older woman held up her hand and said, “Not that hateful bitch. This is another Goddess.”

Then the doors to the temple opened, and a large woman dressed in heavy leather armor and a bow slung over her shoulder walked in with supreme confidence.

Penthesilea and her daughter Cassandra knelt and bowed their heads. “Athena. Our Goddess. We were just discussing you.”

“I know,” Replied Athena, in a voice that radiated across the room. “Serinina, I have had my eye on you for so long. I never approved of what happened to you. My brother and I have wanted to help for so long. I think my brother has a crush on you.” She said with a slight girlish giggle. “He loved strong women like you. So, let me have a look at you, Serinina.”

Then Athena did the same thing as the other woman except she looked deep into Serinina's life, and all of her possible futures. “Her path was never going to be an easy one. But only a woman as strong as you could have endured what was fated for you long before you were ever born, and you were chosen to suffer for the sins others did and things that you were never responsible for. It's such a horrible injustice. Queen Penthesilia, I consent to making this woman your daughter. She will be a very powerful warrior. She will be a great sister to Cassandra, and you two will be unmatched. Like you and Patinea should have been if she didn't reject you. Two strong sister warriors facing the Greeks. But Queen, I must inform you. The Greeks will be besieging your client city of Troy within the year. We need to accelerate her training. We can't wait until Asiria gets finished. You need to take her now and begin training her as an amazon. She will be needed at Troy. Only Serinina can save Troy. Or they will fall, and you will die Penthesilia, and your daughter Cassandra will be enslaved by Agamemnon. You need to adopt her today, and set sail within the week.” Then Athena vanished from sight.

Penthesilea was shocked. She shrugged, “Okay, We will have the adoption today. You go train with Athelfled and my daughter Cassandra will help you as I prepare for the ceremony to officially adopt you Serinina. And I will inform your fleet to prepare for our arrival. The trip to our island will be rough and take weeks. Our triremes are docked at Rook's rock. So, you go while I prepare.”

So Serinina went with the two older girls and began a day's worth of strength training while her future mother prepared things for her adoption. And she sent orders to her fleet docked in Fawnae land to prepare to depart for the Mediterranean.

It wasn't easy for Serinina at all. She set to build a massive, imposing wall. She spent the afternoon mixing concrete and making massive blocks and then lifting them. She carried them to a partially built wall. She mixed the cement and the mix to set the massive block in and then repeated the process endlessly. It was grueling work meant to enhance her shoulders and her biceps. They began burning almost immediately. Living as a pretty and voiceless princess, wearing a corset and doing nothing physical for over a year made sure she had no strength at all. So this was nearly torture for her arms.

Serinina suffered, smiled, and knew she was building her arms up so she could become a warrior despite her sister's restrictions, which no longer applied. Her arms were building strength so she could wield a sword and fight. And perhaps kill her sister.

It had almost got dark late in the afternoon and going on evening when her physical training ended, and Asiria approached her, setting the final massive brick into a new wall. She felt like she wanted to collapse, but her will refused to allow her to collapse. Serinina wasn't sure how much longer she could do this.

Asiria met them and spoke, “We are ready for you in the temple. Good work Serinina. I knew that you would refuse to give in. This is what you need. If you think we are rough, you have no idea what the Amazons will put you through. But you are strong enough. Even their Goddess agrees. So let's go.”

Serinina followed the women into their enormous temple to Prognita where Athena waited, with the Queen and her assembled advisers waiting for their newest daughter Serinina. She was let to the assembled group of women led by their amazon queen Penthesilia wearing her royal robes. The rest of the Amazon's were dressed as warriors and wearing thick leather armor.

Serinina was led up the steps and standing in front of her new mother, who was beaming with pride.

The Queen shouted, “We are here to accept Serinina Denae as my daughter. She has proven herself worthy to be adopted by the Amazons. Goddess Athena has given her consent. Serinina, do you consent?”

Few had ever bothered to ask her consent for anything in her life. They always just ordered her or put her where they wanted her. Serinina smiled and said loudly, “I consent and accept. Queen Penthesilea. I will make you proud.”

Penthesilia placed a slim pink crown on the young woman's head and said, “by this action, I make you my own daughter. I adopt Serinina as my daughter and princess of the Amazons.”

Athena approached Serinina and touched her head, and marked her. “You will be a great princess, Serinina. You have already proven your conviction and your unconquerable strength. You have also proven your nobility and great level of compassion and insight that women possess that far exceeds your sister. They misjudged you to a massive extent. We will love and guide you as a family should.”

Then Asiria felt sadness that Serinina would be leaving them so soon, but it must happen.

Their Queen then said, “Good, let's have dinner now. And you need to get your sleep. We will be traveling to Rook's rock early in the morning to meet our fleet docked there. And then we will be sailing for nearly a month.

The women ate well, and Serinina noticed that these women weren't obsessed with their weight or having a slim waist. They ate like men and ate a lot. Of course, these women lived a very physical life of combat, training, and warfare. Whereas the women in the golden isles didn't do much physical tasks. So they ate very little to make sure they remained very slim. Serinina was forced into that life in order to compete and be accepted by the women as a woman they could trust. That no longer mattered.

Then Serinina settled in for her sleep for the last night here. She had no idea what the future held for her. She heard a lot about her being required to defend a place called Troy and save those people. She had no idea what or where that was.

Serinina didn't get that much sleep that night. It seemed that no sooner had she fallen asleep, that Cassandra walked in and told her it was time to go. Serinina dressed and walked out to meet her new mother and her Queen. Serinina saw hundreds of amazon warriors assembled along with the Queens personal guard. She saw hundreds of assembled and armored Amazon hoplite warriors wearing heavy metal armor on their chests and their arms. The women were carrying a large round metal shield and a long spear. They also had a short gladius sword. Serinina also saw dozens of bows women guarded by the hoplites. They assembled into formation with the queen, her daughter Cassandra and Serinina in the center of the formation guarded by the queens personal guard. Then their military troops leading the way and they marched out in long columns. This was the life meant for Serinina and she finally felt like she meant something.

Penthesilia said, “Be aware. We will be going through Denae land, and into Fawnae land to reach where our ships are docked. We may be attacked if they try to recapture their princess that they abused. Watch for any approaches.”

The march was long and hard and Serininas feet began aching by the second hour. She didn't know it until now but these long marches were very boring after the second hour and the long hours marching became very monotonous.

But there was some action by the second days march when one of the leaders shouted that a patrol was approaching. Serinina saw that the patrols were wearing the crest of Denae. These were Gerriks troops. The troops sprung into action and their training must be impressive. Then their shields locked into position in one swift motion they slammed down and held their spears above the shield watching the patrol wearily ready for action. They assembled into formation almost effortlessly as one unit. They all assembled into a phalanx with their rolls of spears and shields locked into place.

The captain of the Denae patrol shouted, “Lower your weapons, please.”

Cassandra pulled her spear back and let it fly. The spear arched over the troops and ended up in the patrol captains chest. Cassandra shouted, “Come and get them!”

The Captain fell dead. Another officer marched up and this man looked more powerful. He shouted, “I am Lord Baldic Wensae. We are here to help escort you.

Serinina stepped forward and shouted, “You are a traitor and we don't need your escort. Especially from someone whose character is so low you will support and serve the sister of someone she stole the crown from. We don’t need you here and I don't want your patrol here.

The phalanx moved into position to attack as the bows women stood further back with their bows trained on the Denae patrol. The troops began moving back and retreating from the Amazons and the confrontation ended.

Serinina's mind went back to her sister's war, where she marched her troops across this land to reach Rook's Rock and besiege it. She was successful and they lived mostly like this. They were marching in formation with their Queen. She wasn't a soldier, but it was close. They camped for the night and stopped for food. This was how she wanted to live. She wanted this life, and this freedom, much like her sister wanted it so bad. They camped and ate much like men ripping meet off and stuffing it in their mouth. She was indeed her father's daughter, and this was the life she longed for that was almost stolen from her. They were going to pay.

Then they were on the march again, and it took nearly a week of hard marching to finally make it to their port town. They were allowed to enter as diplomatic dignitaries. The Queen's guards were very protective of Serinina, but the Fawnae guards didn't know her so there were no hostilities as they marched up to the docks to board the ships.

And Serinina was stunned. There was an enormous ship, unlike any ship she had ever seen before. This was a massive ship they were boarding. It was much larger than any ship she had ever seen before. This was no ship built in the Golden Isles. It was an enormous ship 100s of meters long, and it was extremely tall and had one enormous tall sail. It seemed to have a metal ram in the front. The ship set sail and left the port to meet their fleet of similar ships awaiting them and then they all set sail in formation.

Then Serinina saw 100s of enormous wooden oars aligned in three massive rows on each side of the ships poke out and they began rowing at the beat of a drum.

Everyone on the ship was a woman. Women manned the oars, and it was all crewed by women, and led by a woman commander.

Serrinnia was also assigned an oar and she sat in the wooden seat and pulled the enormous oar back and pushed the ship forward along with 100s of other women on three decks. She was on a massive Greek-styled trireme manning an oar.

Her Queen said this trip would take nearly a month and give her a lot of time to increase her physical training as an oarsman on a trireme.

The Prophet

Chapter 12
Serinina endures the hardships of life onboard a trireme and part of the crew during her voyage to her new homeland
Then she begins her training to become a warrior

It seemed that no sooner had Serin been assigned to the higher deck oars, than they were being attacked by the Denae Navy blockade. Several of the large sailing ships blocked their way, trying to force them back.

Serinina had gotten the hang of rowing her massive oar and pushing it forward at the beat of the drum and pulling it back. And now their captain had ordered ramming speed, and the drum began beating much, much faster, and Serin was working at a furious pace.

The bowwomen stood on the top deck and lit their arrows, ready to unleash on the attacking ships.

All of the oarswomen began pushing the massive oars forward and pulling them back as quickly as possible. They were all working at a furious pace now, and most of the women were able to do it. It didn’t tax their bodies at all. But Serinina’s upper body was burning and sore from doing this for just over ten minutes, and now they were going into battle. Their captain had ordered them to ram the ships trying to blockade them in the harbor. Other ships of the Amazon fleet were doing the same thing, and she saw the women on the decks pulling their bows.

The bowwomen unleashed a horrifying fury of arrows that descended on the enemy fleet with devastating effect killing their crewmen and setting the ships on fire. Then their iron ram tore into the other ship. That impact was even worse, the entire ship trembled with vicious force. Then their commander told them to reverse their course and pull them out of the enemy ship. Serinina did as she was commanded, and all of the other women reversed the ship's course and pulled their ram out of the other ship. The other ship began listing to the side and going into the water. Other amazon ships had done the same, and the enemy fleet was sinking. Their Queen ordered them to continue out into the sea and continue their previous course. It would take them nearly a month to get to the Amazon island.

Everything was very dull and monotonous onboard these huge oared ships and very routine. Except for the occasional sea storms they sailed through. And, unlike the large ocean-going vessels built by her homeland that were large and strong that were designed to survive the storms, Serinina didn’t think these ships were built to withstand the storms. They had many open spaces below decks for the large oars and for keeping the air circulated for the rowers. And they were built very close to the water unlike the large sailing ships that had very high level decks to protect them from the waves and the storms. So, she was petrified when they went through the first storm, and she got very, very wet. The huge waves washed over the decks like nothing, and she was seated at her station rowing the trireme. The waves washed through the hole and drenched her. She was shivering from the cold and from fear. Wave after wave slammed into the ship, washing over the decks, but no one was lost. The ship didn't even begin to list or flounder at all. One of the other women rowing behind her kept praying to Athena, and Serinina figured that the Goddess was probably looking after them.

The Queen saying that this was probably Poseidon taking revenge against them or Hera.

A massive bolt of lightning struck the mast of the ship. The captain let out a very profane curse at Zeus, and other women cursed at him. The bolt did no damage, and Penthesilea shouted, “You will have to do better than that!” Then she cursed, “Fucking idiot Zeus.”

The massive storm ended quick enough, and their monotonous routines returned to normal. They had finally entered the Mediterranean Sea. That was when she was approached by the Captain and their Queen Penthesilea. The Queen started the discussion, during her break from rowing, and while she was busy scrubbing the deck clean from the seawater. “We have decided to assign you to some new duties. You will still row for four to five hours, and I see massive improvements in your arms from it. You are very impressive now, and you are able to row much faster and with much less difficulty.”

“Thank you, mother,” Serinina said, smiling warmly.

“We have another woman that is willing to teach you our language. And you will need to know Greek. So, you will be learning our language during this voyage, and then hopefully, you will be ready for Latin. Few speak English there. So do you understand, Serinina?”

“Yes,” replied Serinina. “Most of what these women say is very incomprehensible. I am lucky the woman that's usually behind me knows my language, and we have spoken enough. I was worried.”

“She will be the one helping you,” replied Penthesilea.

Serinina's turned into a huge smile. “Julia is going to teach me Greek?”

“Yes,” said Penthesilea. “She has offered, and she is waiting for you below deck in the captain's quarters. She is ready to begin your first lessons.”

“Thank you, mother,” shouted Serinina and ran down to the cabin and saw Julia there ready to start teaching her Greek, and they began their first lesson. She started teaching Serinina the alphabet for Greek and what the various symbols meant and how they work together. Serinina was lucky she still had a very sharp memory and never forgot anything. She thanked Zakister for that bit of assistance. The other part probably had to do with the blessing that was bestowed on her as part of the horrible gender transformation spell. In addition to changing a person's sex, it also bestowed enormous power on the person. It was meant to bless a person that wanted it, and help them. It was misused on Serinina to destroy her life. But it was still meant to bless the person, and that blessing is what helped her survive and learn so fast. She had mastered the basic characters and their sound by the end of the first hour, and then they had other duties to attend to.

Everything else was a monotonous daily routine from her hours of rowing to scrubbing the decks, to eating with the rest of the crew, and then sleeping with the rest of the crew. Cassandra and her shared a spot below decks and spent some of the time getting to know each other.

Cassandra was fascinated to learn that Serinina lived most of her life as a boy before she was transformed. She was so intrigued she wanted to know what his life was like as a boy, and Serinina was brutally honest and admitted.

“Cassandra, I was an asshole,” Serinina admitted in English, which Cassandra knew. “I was arrogant and very self-centered. I ruthlessly and cruelly teased my sister. I knew that she hated the very restrictive life that was imposed on women by the priests in our land. I didn’t think girls could fight, and I knew she wanted the life of a warrior so bad. I cruelly teased and taunted her daily. But I loved her so much, and I knew what I was doing was wrong. I couldn’t help it. I am sorry for everything I did, but I don't think I deserved what happened.”

“No,” Cassandra replied. “You didn’t. What they did was wrong and very dangerous. It empowered you when they transformed you and allowed you to do everything you are now doing. Your sister stealing your life was a horrible mistake that won't turn out well for her. She will find she is unsuited for the life of a warrior if she wants to do it in a male way. You are learning to be a warrior the right way, and it will give you so much more power over her when you two meet again. She will find herself at a massive disadvantage.”

“Sister,” Serinina asked, “Tell me about Troy?”

“Troy is our client state, something like one of our vassals, and we protect them. I am also a princess of Troy, but my father, Priam has disowned me for going to the Amazons. He is very sexist, much like your father Gerrik was. He wanted me to marry Agamemnon, and I refused. He was going to force me when I fled to my mother's homeland. But he still knows he needs our protection. He was going to send his other daughter Helena to marry one of the Greeks. And that's going to lead to a war when she flees him. I don't know when men will ever learn that it’s wrong to marry us off like they try to.”

“My father died, and I was about to do the same thing to my own sister. I knew it was wrong,” Serinina admitted. “But the lords were threatening war, I was young and didn’t know how to get out of it and wasn't quite ready to start my new kingdom on the warpath. My sister took my crown and led them into a war. And I really don’t blame her for that. I admit she was more suited for the crown than I was. No.” Serinina admitted. “She liberated the women and suppressed the sadistic priests. She did what was right and what I knew was right but didn’t have the courage to do yet. What I blame her for is how she treated me. She was very cruel to my family, and all agreed and conspired to treat me very cruelly. Then I was raped by one of the nobles, I became pregnant, and then she tried to marry me off to one of the sons of the nobles. The same son that she was arranged to be wed to.”

Cassandra laughed bitterly and then said, “What an idiot. She took the crown claiming to free the women. Then she acts no better than a usual man in the role and treats the women of her family the same way. No Serinina, you are more suited for the crown than she is. You only had to mature, and you didn't have the time. That's why we adopted you, we know your strength and your wisdom. You admit you were wrong, she can't and won't. That's a man. And we know you have the strength of a woman.”

Serinina wondered why such a strange comment didn't bother her in the least now. She has the strength of a woman, while her sister was like a man. It all fit, and didn't seem insulting to her at all. And felt like it should be an insult. But, the statement brought a smile to Serinina’s face. “I am as strong as a woman.” And the two sisters embraced each other.

The voyage to the Amazons island took another three long boring weeks. The sisters bonded together so tightly during those weeks. They bonded so much tighter than her and Patinea ever bonded. And some of the things Serinina revealed about her life as a boy disgusted and angered Cassandra, Cassandra understood and didn't blame Sarinina for what she did. Cassandra simply dismissed it, saying, “You only did it because you had to. You mistreated women because you had to embrace the male lifestyle, but you knew what you were doing was wrong. And it did disgust you, but you were hiding your true self Serinina and did it well. That wasn’t the real Serinina. This is, and I am proud to call her my sister.”

Cassandra and Serinina stood at the bow, watching the enormous, majestic island of the Amazons loom closer as the fleet approached and entered into the harbor and dock.

Xxx

The Goddess Prognita had never been so afraid and angry in her long and glorious life. She had just regained her powers over a year ago and set these amazing events into motion with the visions to Patinea, who she made the vessel of her spirit. But since then, everything went as wrong as it possibly could, and now she doubted that she would ever be released from her tomb. She knew that everything was a long shot in this society. Turning the prince female and hoping he would be happy was a very long shot. But it was reasonable that he could adapt to the life and find happiness. But events conspired against it in the most horrific way. First, the women she relied on to help him learn his mistakes were so vindictive and cruel to him that there was no way the plan could succeed. Their treatment of the crown prince was so unnecessarily harsh that it inspired such a rage from the crown prince that he did everything he possibly could to undermine his sister and destroy the entire plan no matter how just it was to free the women of the land. He didn’t care, and why should he. Then he blamed her and blamed all of her followers.

On top of it all, he couldn’t stop wanting the life he lost. He would not settle for anything less than the life of a warrior. Even as a woman, that's all he wanted. He wanted war, fighting, and as a man or a woman, that's all he wanted. So, she watched helplessly as the prince totally destroyed her people and crushed his sister. Then he had her enslaved and raised one of the darkest evils in the land and enjoyed watching Lilith reign her destruction and death on the land. Then the prince restored himself, sought a vicious and cruel vengeance against her people, and freed her for only a moment to reset time to spare him the suffering of being a prince. He condemned her for punishing him for things he was not responsible for. But even in his new life, happiness evaded him, and he was still furious. She watched Patinea overcome her cruel brothers to take control of her family, and she was going to claim the crown very soon. She saw that Edwyn would be happy, and even Victoria would accept it. Patinea was the rightful heir.

But she also saw this would lead to a total disaster. It would enrage Serinina beyond all reason and sent him to total war against the kingdom. And she saw what Serinina was doing now. She was headed to the Amazons island to become a battle hardened warrior. She would emerge victorious and with many nations behind her. Serinina would direct the might of her new kingdom at her old homeland, and even Patinea's might could never withstand the might of the Greek states' army. They would all end up kneeling to Serinina, and she would become much more powerful than her sister ever could.

The Goddess said in sorrow, watching everything be destroyed, “Patinea, why couldn’t you be the great and noble king you were meant to be. You were so cruel, this is all your doing, and you have no idea how much you will pay for it. And I will never get out of this tomb.”

Everyone had disappointed her, and they were responsible for the disaster that was about to befall the Golden Isles. And, even she knew she was very responsible for what was about to happen. She had inspired Serin's transformation that he still regarded as a curse. It was that event that led to his abuse by everyone else's hands, and it was her that inspired it all. And now, Serinina was about to subjugate them all and likely murder her. And she doubted that she would ever rise again after this. This time, she would really die.

Xxx

Serinina was very thankful for disembarking from the trireme that had been her home for almost a full month. It had been a very difficult voyage, and she never thought a storm could possibly scare her so much. She felt thankful to be alive, and the boredom of it all was even worse. But, the endless rowing did wonders for her upper body, and she now felt almost as strong as she was when she used to be a boy.

Penthesilea led her warriors and advisers off the ship, and they led the way into one of their grand temples to their Goddess Athena to finally celebrate the end of her voyage and her succeeding in her objective on her trip to the Golden Isles.

Serinina followed her new mother to the temple holding her beloved sister's hand. She was amazed at the people assembled outside of the doors and the flood of people within the enormous temple. There must have been tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of people. Penthesilea led them to a raised platform just outside of the enormous temple to their Goddess Athena. They stood just underneath a huge golden statue of Athena full with her shimmering gold armor and her Owl symbol on her helmet, holding her magical shield and her spear she often fought with. She met Athena, and this was a goddess she felt she would love forever. This was a great, a noble, and very kind goddess, unlike Prognita, who was cruel and wicked.

Then Athena manifested herself beside the Queen Penthesilea and herself wearing her brilliant golden breastplate and holding her shield with the symbol of the Gorgon on it. She looked down at Serinina with love in her eyes.

The Queen said in an enhanced, awesome voice so everyone could hear her. “My mission to the golden Isles was successful. I contacted their witches, and I can confirm they are an evil force in this world. I made contact with their female warriors; they call the hashashins who were holding and protecting the deposed princess Serinina. I was successful in rescuing the suffering princess, and I brought her here. She is eager to begin her life as an amazon warrior.

Athena gave her consent and her recommendation to adopt Serinina into Penthesilea’s family. “She is now my daughter, and I am her mother.”

Serinina stood in front of them, all holding the hand of Athena. She raised her fist in the sky, and all of the women cheered for her.

“Serinina was abused and mistreated by her own sister and her family in her homeland when she was denied the crown. She suffered abuse, rape, a forced marriage to a man she didn't know, and having her entire life stolen from her. We will show her how to be a warrior and earn the respect she deserves as a girl. This is my great daughter Princess Serinina, the princess of the Amazons.”

Everyone cheered and clapped for their new princess, who was holding the hand of Athena and Cassandra in the other hand.

“Princess Serinina is my heir to be the queen of the Amazons, That is the will of Athena.” Shouted Penthesilea.

Serinina looked up sharply and asked, “What about your Daughter Cassandra? Isn't she older?”

“Yes,” Replied Penthesilea. “But she will be the Queen of Troy in the name of her father and mother. I adopted her, but I adopted you, and Athena favors you here. You will prove very worthy of being my successor. This is the will of Athena.

She looked up at Athena, glowing beside her. “Thank you, Athena.” Said Serinina. At least one goddess felt she was worthy of a crown and wouldn't deny her. She just hoped that her older sister Cassandra wouldn't feel resentment or anger at this.

Athena said kindly, “She won't,” Athena smiled softly. “She loves you, and she has her own crown and will rely on you to defend her claim to it. Her brother Paris is conspiring with Agamemnon to steal it all from her. And now, you need to decide what you want to do. You said you want to be a warrior, but we have several classes of warriors. You, as the princess, will be the leader, of course. But what training do you want?”

“I figured I would be trained for all positions, but I want to be in the Phalanx!” Shouted Serinina.

Her mother nodded, “I will contact Alexina, and you will start training for the Phalanx tomorrow.”

Serinina was led to a massive dining hall, much like what was in her old homeland that all of the lords dined at after her father's funeral days before everything was stolen from her. She vowed again to get revenge for everything they did to her.

Many of the women lords met them at the vast dining hall, and she was introduced to all of the ladies that were heads of the great houses of the Amazons. She had no trouble remembering all of their names, all of their houses and their family's, husbands and children they had, and where their lands were. Apparently, the Amazon island is a massive chain of islands, with this being the largest called Themescura and the smaller island below them called Lesbos. There was another large group of islands. Serinina was talking to lady Hippolyta at the moment and her daughter Dianna

The lady Hippolyta was having trouble understanding her story right now. She asked with her jaw open in total disbelief, and she could tell the lady's blood was close to boiling.

“So, let me understand this. Your sister, the king Patinea,” Asked Hippolyta with a bitter taste in her mouth, nearly spitting it out. “Deposed you for being a boy. So she could institute a matriarchy in the name of their Goddess Prognita. To liberate the women, and their witches so they can live free lives. And be free from the reign and rules of men. Do I have it right so far?”

“Yes,” Serinina agreed.

“So then she has you forced to dress in corsets and very restrictive feminine garments that prevented you from moving around freely. You aren’t allowed to fight by her royal decree. You are sexually assaulted, and she casually brushed it off as if it was nothing. Then she tried to force you to carry the child, and then tried to force you into an unwanted marriage with a man? Is this also correct?” asked Lady Hippolyta with her face turning into an angry red hue.

“Yes, that's also all true,” Replied Serinina, and all of the women lords were extremely angry.

“No wonder that bitch calls herself King. You had an excuse for being the way you were, being a male, not her. It all gave the lie to her agenda all along. You are now free to choose your path here, Serinina, and we will be proud to follow you when the time comes. I’d love to land an army on that bitch’s kingdom. She betrayed the women, and I can't believe this is the will of a goddess that claims she is for women's empowerment. She clearly is not.”

“No she isn’t,” Said Athena beside Serinina. “She just says she is. She is a corrupt and deceitful goddess that just does whatever she wants. But all of Serinina's suffering taught her valuable lessons, and she has grown and learned from it. She will seriously free the women of her homeland. After liberating and insuring the survival of Troy and their women. But make no mistake. Serinina has a reckoning in her homeland, and when she does, we will support her. She will have the Spartans and Athenians behind her after they kneel to her. And I will bring the power of Olympus against their Goddess.

“Now, it’s time to go to sleep. Serinina, you have a long day tomorrow. You spent a month building up your body and rowing our trireme. Now it’s time to put it all together. You will begin training with the spear, shield, and join the hoplites. You will be a warrior. You will also train with the bow later and then the horse. Now go on.”

“Mother,” Serinina said. “First, I want to know if you really think I can make a good warrior. Look at my body. I am much smaller than the other girls. Look at Cassandra standing nearly a foot taller than me.”

“She’s also a year older.” Confirmed her mother.

“But you know what kind of woman I will be. Athena told you what they transformed me into and what I will be at sixteen. I won't grow much taller, and my chest will really grow out big time. How can I fight with this body? Do you really think I can make a great warrior?”

Athena said, “Absolutely. It will be more difficult for you, but since when did you let that stop you. You proved you were the greatest witch of them all against all of the odds against you. And we have large-busted women here that make awesome warriors. I will introduce you to some of them tomorrow. They will train you. One of them is the captain of the Phalanxes. She wears special chest armor to provide extra room upstairs, but she is a very fearsome warrior. Your lack of size can be overcome with your speed and determination. Serinina, you can be much greater than your sister, and you will prove you are the best, you are the strongest and smartest. That's why you are Penthesilea’s heir. That's why I recommended it and why you will win.”

This gave her much more confidence, and her sister Cassandra led her to her own bedroom right next to Cassandra’s. There wasn't much but a simple bed and some of her clothes were there, and her armor and weapons in another closet and some books to study. Serinina had learned Greek very well during her long voyage to this paradise and she settled in to sleep. Serinina guessed that she would begin her training before sunrise so she better gets some sleep.

Unluckily, she didn’t get that much sleep. She had some nightmares over about Patinea’s cruel treatment and her horrifying transformation. Her mind kept drifting to those dark times in her life when her sister stole everything from her and then loudly gloated, “There is no longer a male heir to the crown. I am the rightful heir.” She woke up swearing around four in the morning and said bitterly, “You will find you are the heir to death sister, and it will be me who delivers it to you.”

Serinina decided to get an early start to the day, so she bathed and dressed herself in a simple white flowing gown and exited her bedroom to have a very early morning run. There were girls already out and running the course and some other higher trained women on the field training in various weapons and even some women donning bronze armor and preparing for hoplite training. She guessed she would be with those women later, and she took off running with the other girls.

Cassandra joined her, and they were running the course around a section of the temple. The run wasn't quite as grueling as it was her first time she tried to run around the massive fortress in her homeland when she barely made it a fourth of the way around before she was ready to collapse in exhaustion. She ran the entire course without breaking a sweat. She started her second round when Cassandra and Julia caught up with her complimenting her on her progress, and she was ready for a third lap in no time. She ran a total of six laps around before her legs began burning and her chest giving in. She forced herself to finish the sixth lap and went for a seventh and eighth-lap before she finally stopped. Cassandra and Julia weren't ready to stop, and they ran a total of twelve laps around and told Serinina she had a way to go until she was ready.

By that time, the priestess’s of their temple were ready for the religious services, and the girls found a seat at the grand temple to Athena and their mother goddess Gaia.

Their priestesses led services to worship their Goddess. They told some of the stories of their Goddess’s exploits and how she was born inside of Zeus's head and that she restrains Zeus' anger at times. Athena is one of their wisest and most intelligent goddesses, and she is also a warrior in battle that even Aries fears to confront.

Then the girls were given some work to do on their own, and Serinina was told to remain there for another hour. She was given some specialized instruction by the priestesses. Penthesilea was there and told Serinina that she had instructed the priestesses to teach her about their religion. She was the daughter of the queen, and she had to know everything and be able to instruct others. Serinina was to become a priestess of Athena, just like Penthesilea was. Just like Cassandra. The princesses were required to become priestesses in their own right, so Serinina remained at the temple for another hour learning about Athena and reading some of her ancient stories about Olympus. It was odd, but Athena's brother was Aries, and they have a loving relationship. But her father is the typical arrogant male that throws his weight and power around without care.

Then she ate breakfast with the priestesses and was sent to the field to begin hoplite training. Her queen Penthesilea was not wrong about the girl that was in charge of the Hoplite training.

Serinina was standing there on the field with dozens of other girls waiting for the commander, and some of the girls had already begun the formations when the commander walked up to them all.

This girl seemed to be around twenty to twenty five, but she was petite compared to the other amazon women she had seen. This girl was built a lot like Serenina after they transformed Serin at sixteen. She was very small and petite, and very beautiful. Her face was flawless, and she had long golden hair hanging down her back. And her chest was enormous, much like Serinina's. Perhaps a little larger than her. And she didn’t seem like a warrior at all. At least if you only looked at her stunning body. But, Serinina saw the look in her eyes, and her body looked solid. Her arms were huge, and the muscles in her shoulders and arms were like steel. She had a hard-chiseled look on her face that spoke of her extreme confidence and her fierce nature if anyone dared to piss her off. Serinina was determined that wasn’t going to be her. She wanted to train to be a warrior. She could think of no one better than this woman to do it. She stood in front of them, and the warrior's eyes met Serinina's, and she gave a slight nod and shouted, “I am Alexina, for our new arrivals. I have trained in the infantry for most of my life. I began training at six years old and began the formal training at nine. This is my area, I train infantry for the Phalanx. That is what makes up the main force for our military. Many of the higher Amazons look down on the hoplites. Many of them want to be bowwomen or calvary. And they are necessary, but they can't do much without the Phalanx.”

Her eyes met Serinina's again and smiled. “I am pleased that some of the most recent noble women recognize that and volunteered for the Phalanx. Thank you, Serinina. Can you tell us why you wanted to be part of the Phalanx.”

Serinina wondered if she should tell Alexina her true reason for desiring this. And she figured the answer was yes. “I heard that the Phalanx was the best, and I heard of the Spartans at Thermopile, and the Marathon and how undefeatable they were, and I wanted to be part of it all.”

Alexina smiled again. “The Spartans are great warriors, and there's no doubting that. There's only one who is greater than they are, and that's us. But you should not desire to be part of them. They look down on women, and they have a ruthless society, and they rely much on slave labor.”

Serinina almost snorted. It was sort of hypocritical for such people as these to criticize anyone else of having a slave class. Considering they had a slave caste of castrated men working for them. But Serinina let it slide. However, the Amazons' society didn't seem all that different from the Spartan society here. They looked like two sides of the same idea here.

Much like the two competing stupid religions in her own homeland. They had the male dominant religion of Maxis and the priests that held power for over seven hundred years that believed women were inferior and too emotional to lead. The priests of Maxis had oppressed women for all of that time, and women lived powerless and voiceless under them. She saw the resentment and hate building in the women until they were finally free to unleash it all on Serin.

And then there was the religion of the Goddess Prognita, and their witches called the Hekatin. They believed men were too emotional and childlike to lead, and they wanted to make a strict women-controlled society, and men would live powerless and led by strong, powerful women. It was all so stupid. If the Hekatin succeeded in their goal. Men would only stand for it for perhaps a few hundred years if even that until there was another violent revolt like the last one. And then they would take revenge again. It was all so stupid there.

In the Spartan society, they did have a slave class. They brutally repressed what they called the Helots. But, men and women were largely equal in the society. They didn’t persecute the women. Female citizens got the same training as men and held equal power in society. Boys went through a brutal warrior training they called the Agorge.

Girls went through their own physical education to train them to fight and be warriors too. Spartan women could be as vicious as spartan men.

But the military education here put all of that to shame.

Since Serinina was the crown princess here and was going to be considered a military leader in any unit she is in now. She was put in the front ranks of the Phalanx with other women on either side of her. Alexina said to them, “Formations!”

All of the women went as one unit and assumed their position in formation. Then they rose their bronze shields and held their spear ready.

“This is our formation. Hold your shield high. It is your protection, and the protection of the woman on the left, lock your shields as one, you move as one formation. And you fight as one formation. Your formation protects the women behind you. You are all the key to our safety and victory in battle. Serinina, hold your shield higher. You are on the front lines, and you must protect yourself and the girl next to you. She also protects you with her shield. Hold them high. And notice your spear does not have a tip. There's a reason. Hold your line firm. And now.”

Alexina looked across the field and shouted, “They are ready, Attack!”

And thousands of women rushed in with their shields and short swords and rushed into the Phalanx line, shoving them back. Alexina said, “Hold firm, don't let yourself break. Hold your line.”

The Phalanx held firm, and Serinina did her best to hold her shield out, but she finally broke, and that allowed the line to be penetrated, and they all fell.

Serinina was strong, but she needed more training. Alexina narrowed her eyes at Serinina, and she looked down. That allowed Alexina to glare at her and shouted, “Serinina, you are their leader. Never look down in shame. They need to look at you for inspiration and leadership. And this is why you are here. We will train you, fail here so you can learn and not fail in battle. Get back into formation. Let's try again, hold your line firm Serinina. Don't fall back, don’t falter. You are Princess Serinina, and a warrior leader, and our crown princess. Hold your line and get into formation NOW!”

Serinina ran into formation and held her shield high and waited for the attack. She held longer this time, but she still eventually fell back from the pressure of the assault allowing the phalanx to fall.

She kept failing until about the fifth time, and she learned how to handle the pressure and not let herself fall back. And this time, they were finally able to begin Phalanx combat. They held their line and then waited for the command. Then they all shoved their shields into their enemy as one unit and then struck them down. Then they all locked their shields into formation again as one. And they kept repeating that over and over. Serinina got the hang of it, and they drilled long into the day. It would take many long months until she felt she may be ready to actually employ it. Serinina was aware that they were training her for combat very soon, and she would be doing this for real. She would probably be facing the Spartans at Troy.

Xxx

The road Patinea had was very rough. It was only her internal strength and the love of the Goddess Prognita that allowed her to prevail. And she was still the powerful vessel of the imprisoned Goddess. She was the bringer of the prophecy of the restoration of the Goddess.

It was her faith that allowed her to prevail against her horrible abusive family. She survived the repeated beatings from her brothers and finally destroyed them. She endured years of beatings but now they are gone, and she is still here. And it was her strength that allowed her to gain control over the duchy and claim leadership of the family and the loyalty of the army. And now she was about to fulfill the prophecy. The royal family claimed they were going to accept her and name her the heir. Her mother Anya was here and they were about to go to the capital and claim what was rightfully hers. Edwyn had told her that they would be happy. Even Princess Victoria said she would be honored to follow the vessel of the Goddess and they were just about to go. When she heard a voice from the back.

Patinea and Anya turned their head and saw an enormous, beautiful woman wearing shimmering bronze armor and a shield with the image of a head filled with snakes on it. She was holding an enormous bronze spear and glaring at her with eyes burning with pure hate.

Patinea didn’t really believe all she had heard about her sister Serinina. None of it made any sense to her. But there was this powerful warrior woman and she had no idea who this woman was. “Who the hell are you?”

“My name is Athena, I am the Goddess helping and leading your sister. All you have heard about her is the truth. She has left the Isles and she is training to be an elite woman warrior and the princess of them all. She is training with other women she respects and loves.”

Patinea couldn’t help but burst out laughing at it all. It was almost too funny. Her sexist brother Serin now a princess in a group of warrior women leading them. How was this possible for a boy who often said women can't fight? How could these women possibly accept, such an asshole?

“Her attitude is totally female now, and she is different than she was as a boy. She knows she was wrong. But you don’t know you were wrong Patinea. If you do what you are planning, then it will enrage Serin. She will return a hero, and a battle hardened seasoned veteran warrior and leader of tens of thousands of elite warriors from many nations, and they will come here and seize control. It will be a fight you won't win.”

“What do you mean I won't be able to defeat my sister's army if they dare land here? I defeated the Ansays.”

“They were easy and stupid and you didn’t really even face them. No, they abandoned the field. When Serinina comes, she will be the queen of Amazons, of Sparta, Thebes, and Athens. And you will never win against all of them. You have no clue how powerful a spartan army really is. And I won't even mention your sister's husband. If you piss him off then he will burn this entire nation down.”

This was even more unbelievable. Serin's husband?”

“My brother, Aries. He has a crush on Serinina and she will fall for him. She will even have his child.”

"What!" Patinea said sharply. "She refused to carry the goddess's child and even forced it to be terminated but she will carry Aries child?"

"Yes," Confirmed Athena. "Aries will love her and wait for her to be ready, unlike your goddess. And your goddess is the one who wrecked his life as a boy and stole everything from him. Why would Serinina do anything for that horrible bitch?”

By Jasmine Monica

Serinina's training progressed through the year, and she learned many amazing things. Her favorite was still the Phalanx, but she acquired training with the bow and excelled so well at that, that she received her own specially designed bow for her added strength and accuracy. This was a bow made by Dianna herself and required extreme strength to pull the string back and could send an arrow out of sight and still hit the target.

Her skills and speed had become such that she figured at this point that Serin would not stand a chance against her now. She could humiliate and crush Serin and make him her bitch now. Serin would not know what hit him, but Serin had suffered so much at the hands of vindictive women wanting to make him suffer for no other reason than he was male. His attitude helped their case, but there were so many men more sexist than Serin was and more deserving of a hard lesson. He was singled out for his father and his life.

But there was one lesson that confirmed to Serinina that she was a female inside and out more than any other. That was her religious studies with the priestesses of Athena. It was about a month after she had arrived, and she was progressing with her studies on the life of Athena when they began diving deeper into the religion and a girl's skills and abilities.

The priestess looked at her that night and said, “There is an ability that all females possess and can use if they are properly trained. It will allow us to stay in contact and support each other regardless of where we are. We can communicate, see each other, and help each other. That is part of the sisterhood of the Amazon's. This skill will allow you to stay in contact with us, and you can even contact an untrained girl if you know her.”

“Can we use this for boys too?” Serinina asked.

“No,” replied the priestess. “Only girls possess this. Only our minds are so attuned that such contact across great distances is possible. Boy's minds cannot do this.”

She wondered why, but she decided she would test this and see if she could contact a boy.

“First,” the priestess instructed. “You need to be in a dream state, or near it, and you must learn to control your mind in that state.”

That part was easy. It was one of the ways Serinina learned to contact other Hekatin and even communicate with the Goddess. It was part of what they called the three ways.

“It only works when you are asleep, or nearly in a trance-like state where your mind is totally relaxed. Then you focus on the minds around you, and you can find the minds of girls around you. You can communicate, see her, she can see you, and this is how we help each other over great distances like on campaigns or traveling. I stayed in contact with the queen even when she took her fleet to the Golden Isles to find you.”

“I would love to find Emily. I miss my sister so much that I wish she could have come with me. I also worry about her.”

The priestess looked, “Yes, you will be able to contact your friends and female relatives there once you have received enough training. Even your sister Emily.”

“I hope I can see her again. I should have found her before I left,” said Serinina. “I feel so bad for leaving her like I did, but I couldn’t have seen her again. At least not now. I left the entire nation and went to another part of the world. I heard her crying before I left. We had such a connection and a weird one at that.”

The priestess smiled warmly. “I know you trained her to fight totally correcting your former attitude you held with your former sister. You helped make her strong, and she will be alright, and that's thanks to you, Serinina. Your experience helped you in so many ways. It made you a much more understanding and compassionate boy,” replied the priestess. “But you are still a better girl. Now let's begin the instruction. Clear your mind and let it slide to sleep. And I will communicate with your mind.”

The priestess was stunned by Serinina's abilities. She let her mind go and was quickly able to find her, and it was her that first contacted the priestess smiling and greeting her.

The event was so stunning that the priestess was unable to maintain her focus. It broke, and she looked at Serinina, totally stunned.

Serinina shrugged and said into the priestess mind, “I really don't know why this is such a shock. After all, I thought you had investigated my past and knew I have had extensive instruction in witchcraft, and controlling my mind. Going into a trance to communicate with other minds was a big part of the training, and I had to contact the Goddess herself and maintain that contact for an extensive period of time to pass.”

“Okay, showoff,” Replied the priestess with a hint of anger into Serinina's mind. “Let's see what you can do then. Can you find mother somewhere on this island?”

Serinina reached out and quickly found the queen. “Yes, I see her, she is with Cassandra. They are talking about me.”

“Find Hippolyta and her daughter Dianna then?” Challenged the priestess.

They had gone back to their own land. Serinina reached out to all of the islands and tried to focus on the area she figured was Hippolyta's lands and found her mind in her own palace, and Dianna was asleep.

“I found them near Lesbos. Hippolyta is in her palace, and her daughter is asleep. Let me see if I can find Emily and Aanya.”

“I don't think you should try to go that far yet.”

But Serinina refused to listen and stretched her mind way out past the Mediterranean. She forced her mind out into mainland Europe and across it to the Golden Isles. It was rough, but eventually, she found her old family in Fawnae land in their palace. But something wasn't right at all. Of course, Emily was not in the palace anymore. She was adopted by Vakia, and Vakia was her mother now. Aanya had totally abandoned Gerrik and the palace. She had left and had found her own daughter Patinea and Patinea had survived in her new family. Her brothers were long dead, the family was gone, and Patinea was all that was left. Then Aanya was there, and they were preparing an expedition to Denaerk and to reclaim the crown. How was this possible?

The priest had maintained contact with Serinina to see what she was doing or if she needed help. The priestess saw trouble when Serinina was able to extend her mind across Europe and find her former family and then contact Patinea. She felt Serinina's anger when she understood what was going on and what Patinea had done, and then what Patinea was planning.

Serinina returned back to their temple and looked across. Then she shrugged and said, “This is unexpected. But if I can break my deal and get myself involved in it all, then why can't Patinea. I should have expected that a will as strong as Patinea would find a way to break out of it all and get back to her palace. This should be no surprise to me. But I'm still going to kick her ass. Getting the control to retake the throne will take a while, and then getting the forces to restore Prognita will also take time. If she does, then we will kill Prognita.”

“Yes, we will,” replied the Priestess.

Her training went on as expected, and her skills progressed to the point that by the time she was almost fourteen, Serinina had become an extremely lethal warrior and someone that everyone looked up to and respected. She had become a leader of the Phalanxes, and that was her main assignment. Serinina was now a general. She felt it was very odd but also very appropriate.

Making a thirteen-year-old a general in charge of troops would be unthinkable in her old homeland. Hell, even a sixteen-year-old that had trained for years, wasn’t really considered ready for the rigors of war, and even though Asnyr was placed in charge of a group of friends, he was kept away from the action.

Girls matured faster, and they had spent a year preparing her for everything she was going to face. This was the way of the Amazon's, and they usually got their first taste of battle around twelve to thirteen.

She stood there in the great temple to Athena with the priestess, not really knowing what to expect now. She had a feeling that they were about to be sent into war within days. The Priestess said out loud, "You know we are getting ready for war. Our queen has been in chambers with the various generals and military leaders for days now, getting them ready and assembling the troops that will go out. You know what is going on, don't you?”

“Yes, we are headed for Troy soon,” replied Serinina, and she wasn't going to be sidelined just for being a girl this time. She was the princess, and she was going to be front and center of it all. She was frightened all the same.

“But Our queen has a surprise for you, and she has told me to hold you here until she arrives. She knows you will love it. Penthesilea will be here very shortly.”

Serinina nodded and waited. The wait wasn't long. But it was the most unexpected thing. Her mother, Queen Penthesilea, came through the enormous double doors of Athena's temple, holding the hand of a young girl that was just a little older than herself. Serinina almost fainted when she saw the face of the young woman holding the queen's hand and walking through. That young woman was always a very theatrical girl. The girl was wearing the royal robes of the house of Denae and a makeshift crown that the King usually wore that was a copy of the one Patinea wore after she seized it from Serin and holding a large two-handed longsword and a fake cut on her face. She was smiling widely.

Serinina leaped into the young woman's arms so girlike squealing, “Emily!!! I missed you so much!”

Emily wrapped her arms around Serinina, and the two young women held each other and Serinina felt tears. She was so happy. Then they got serious, “Emily, Mother, how did you get her?”

“She has been here for over seven months training. Serinina, we aren’t stupid. We spoke to many girls that knew you before we made the decision to accept you. We spoke to Emily about you and found out that you were well adapted as a girl, even as a boy that she knew. You were selfless. You gave yourself to her. You trained her very well and made sure she never got lazy. You pushed her harder than yourself and it all showed. Emily was a very skilled warrior when she arrived and was able to disarm many of our experienced warriors. Much to their embarrassment.”

Emily laughed and said sarcastically, “I wonder who taught me so many disarms. It pissed me off when he kept doing it and he taught me those moves. It was all of that and more that showed me he was a girl inside. I could see it, even if he struggled to hide it. He endeared himself to the girls so much, he was so understanding to his students that they would do anything for him and the way he was with me. He made sure I was the best I could be. Those are all qualities of a girl, and those are qualities that his other sister does not possess. So the queen was ready to accept you. And she made arrangements to bring me here to train.”

This was too much for Serinina, and she moved back and sat down looking at Emily. “You knew that I was a girl inside?” Serinina asked doubtfully. “How? I wasn’t a girl with you.”

Emily giggled softly. “Yes, you were, but you simply didn’t know it. But you were so unlike any other boy in the attention you devoted to me and all of the other girls. You struggled with the things you had to teach the little girls and you hated it. Serinina, there were so many signs, and I knew the day would come. And I liked it all. I enjoyed being the King for you and fighting with you.”

Penthesilea asked, “Serinina, do you want Emily to be the rightful heir?”

Emily nearly shouted, “No way! And don’t even consider it Serinina. You may be my younger sister, but you are stronger, much stronger, and fitter. You will make a wonderful queen, and I will follow you anywhere. Don't make me kick your ass!”

That settled it, and Serinina said, “No, she wouldn't stand for it anyway. Emily underestimates her strength. She is a very strong young woman, and you will make a great leader. Who you make the heir is your choice, Mother. You won't be wrong with Emily. She would make a great queen.”

Emily was starting to get angry. “You are meant to be our leader Serinina now you stop it right now. You have suffered so much and you are still here fighting. You were meant to be the King of the Golden Isles and you will be. You were meant to be the queen of the Amazon's because of your strength and your intelligence. And so many other reasons not least, it is Athena's will. And that you are so selfless you would give it up for your love of me really shows it over all. But Serinina, you must be willing to stand up and take what is yours. I will follow you, And I will be proud to do it.”

Penthesilea said, “Serinina, I made you the heir, and you are still the heir. I simply asked to know what you think. But Athena made it clear that it is you. That is the will of the Goddess. Your sister loves you and will follow you, even if she is older, and that is the sign of her love and her strength. It is a strength that Patinea does not possess. She is jealous and spiteful and that is not the quality of a good female. She saw that you possess the qualities of a powerful female even when you denied it.”

Emily spoke up, “I knew it even when he told me about his life as the crown prince Serin. He was so selfless. Even if he did taunt her a lot. Some of his descriptions told me of his true nature that he was hiding and came out after his brutal transformation. He stuck by her and never acted against her. Just like he did for me. That's why I am so proud of you.”

“But, what about….”

Emily spoke up again, “You stuck with Patinea until you couldn’t anymore. After that, no one can really blame you for finally taking action. Trying to force you into a marriage, yeah, all bets were off then.”

“We are going to war,” Penthesilea said. “I will be assigning Emily to your battalion. She will be fighting with you Serinina. Now let's go to the chambers. They are expecting us.”

But here, Serinina was at thirteen and made a general and was about to be sent into action, and she knew this was going to be hell. Serinina and Emily followed the queen to the council chambers, where she was holding a council of war. There were many generals assembled around the table looking at a map and talking about the Greek's declaration of war against Troy.

Penthesilea said, “Their King Agamemnon has assembled thousands of warships that are sailing right now to land and besiege Troy. The time has come to respond. Agamemnon has assembled the Greek states around him. Athens has given troops and ships, Thebes is behind him, Sparta, Syracuse, Corinth, and Argos are behind him. They will have around a hundred thousand soldiers. Achilles and Ajax are with him”

So the situation was desperate, and this was going to be total war. Nothing in her homeland could even approach what she was going to face here.

“Our first job is clear. We must protect the civilians and get them to safety. Cassandra, you will take three thousand troops I assign to you and land at Anatolia and go east. You see those cities there. You are to go to each of them and evacuate those people and escort them to Troy.”

Then her mother looked at Serinina and said, “Serinina, I am assigning you, two thousand troops. You will land there and go north. You are to evacuate all of those small towns there and escort the people to safety within the walls of Troy. I will take more troops up north and evacuate those towns. Serinina, your job is vital. You are to protect those civilians within those towns and get them safe. You and your troops are all that stands between them and death. You are to protect them. Do you understand?”

This was massive. Serinina looked up at her mother and said, “Yes, I understand and won't let you down.”

She suddenly felt an enormous responsibility and weight on her shoulders. This was enormous, and her mother was entrusting her to do this. This was so much different from her sister's conflict with Ansays. There was no vital protection of civilians there. All Patinea did there was occupy a rebel town with no resistance and bring them back into the Kingdom. She hardly fought anyone, and she slaughtered a bunch of helpless priests at a temple and released a dragon.

But here, Serinina was given troops and entrusted to protect unarmed towns full of people from raiders. She was going to be the only one standing between those civilians and their death. Her job was to defend and protect helpless civilians that were going to be sure to be targeted and killed. This was so much more than what her sister did. If Serinina failed, defenseless civilians were going to die. She could not allow herself to fail. This was what over a year of intensive training led to. Serinina looked severe and confident.

There was no question that she was now ready.

“Good,” replied the Queen Penthesilea “Our ships are assembled in the harbor. Their crews are being loaded, the troops are marching so let's go. We have no time to lose, Agamemnon and his troops are already sailing for Troy. We need to get going now to protect the people and get to Troy before they die.”

Serinina armed herself for war and donned her bronze armor and her shield and marched out to meet her troops, and Alexina and the Phalanx. There were thousands of them and a contingent of heavy calvary and bowwomen there ready. These were the troops being assigned to her command. Serinina was the leader and their general. She got a serious look on her face and said loudly, “Let's go to the harbor and board our ship. March.” And Serinina got into the front of the formation and they marched two by two down to the harbor. They were going to war and she briefly wished her sister was here. She was a very strong and competent commander, and she wondered what she would do here, but she had not trained here. She was also selfish and would probably sacrifice the people for victory.

Amazon's didn’t sacrifice civilians.

The harbor was a little over a day's march from the palace. Serinina met Emily assembled with the troops ready to march out. She was riding a big warhorse joined with the rest of the heavy cavalry. Apparently, Emily was part of the cavalry. Serinina assembled her troops into marching formation, and they began marching toward the coast, and she saw her sister's and mother's troops marching their way alongside her down to the harbor

They all occasionally stopped for rest and to eat during the day, but it wasn’t that long of a march. The harbors were only a day away from the capital, and Serinina began feeling very fulfilled. This was what she had wanted all her life, and now she was getting it. She had a feeling that this was going to be a brutal and desperate fight. The Greeks had over a hundred thousand troops. This was going to be brutal. She doubted that the Golden Isles if all of the great family's troops were combined, and a few years of conscription of everyone possible that they could get a force of a hundred thousand. They all combined for Patinea, and there were less than thirty thousand at the most that marched for Rooks Rock.

Their forces made it down to the harbor town. Serinina saw the enormous triremes being loaded with supplies, and their crews were busy loading all of the arms and provisions for the crew and soldiers that were marching onboard.

Penthesilea told them that they had to wait until the ships were ready for them. This could be the better part of a day waiting. Serinina didn't know it, but an enormous army was being loaded onboard to defend Troy. Serinina and Cassandra were only assigned a small fraction of the forces to protect the unarmed towns and get the civilians to safety. The rest were headed for Troy. Finally, they were ordered to board the triremes and set sail for Anatolia. Serinina was no longer an oarswoman. She was a general and commander of the Phalanx, and her armor wore insignia of a ranking general. Emily was appointed the leader of the cavalry. Serinina was a flag officer marching with her troops to war. The fleet set sail to Anatolia. This voyage would take under a week. They only had to cross a small part of the Mediterranean and land at Anatolia and then march for the towns to evacuate the civilians.

Serinina had found herself falling for a mysterious older boy during her final weeks of training with the Amazon's. This mysterious boy spent nights talking with her in her bedroom late at nights. She could tell he was extremely strong and brilliant, but she had no idea who he was. She could also see that he was a master at war, strategy, and tactics. They would talk long into the night and often avoiding sleep until she could not stay awake anymore. Serinina learned much from this mysterious older boy that spent so much time with her, and she would cuddle with him in bed until she went to sleep.

They would talk about her life as a princess under Patinea, and she found out that he had been watching her and he knew how strong she was. There was one fight she had with him when she found out that this boy was watching her during that time the crown was seized from her and she raged as to why didn't he help her. He simply responded that he knew she didn't need his help. She needed to do this quest on her own and that she would overcome them all. Then they fell asleep in each other's arms, but she still didn't know who this boy was. She knew she must keep this relationship a secret, but she often saw him watching her during her training.

Emily spent much time in Serinina’s private quarters onboard the trireme during their voyage, and they spoke a lot about what happened after she left. But she expected it and had spoken to Penthesilea’ s agents weeks before Serinina made her decision to leave. They also told Emily that she was going to also leave when the time was right.

And somehow Serinina’s boy had got onboard the ship during the loading and was there in her quarters again holding her. But this was more than a romantic meeting. He was here to warn her.

Emily was with Serinina talking like sisters when the boy walked in unexpectedly. Emily smirked and said, “Serinina you never said you had a boyfriend! How sweet. And who is this boy you are smiling at.”

Serinina shrugged. “He says he is Otto.” Serinina snorted as if she didn’t believe it. But she could see that whatever ‘Otto’ wanted was something severe. This wasn’t going to be a romantic encounter. She looked over to Emily and asked, “Can we have some privacy, please? I think, um ‘Otto’ wants to talk to me alone.”

Emily giggled and said, “Okay, lovebirds.” And she walked out to find Cassandra.

“Serinina, I need to tell you that your mother has made a bad mistake. By the time your ships reach shore and begin disembarking the troops, the Greeks will have already landed their troops. A massive contingent of their troops under Ajax will be heading north to the towns you are supposed to protect. Your meager forces won't be anywhere near enough, and you won't be able to hold your ground. Your position will be overrun and defeated. You must request more troops.”

Serinina’s face twisted with fear now. He never gave her bad advice. This boy had become one of her most trusted advisers, and there was something else she couldn't understand about her feelings toward this strong boy. He was always correct, so she didn't question him as she gazed longingly into his eyes. “Okay, how many more troops do you think I will need. I have been assigned about one thousand hoplites, five hundred horsewomen, and five hundred bowwomen.”

“At least twice that many,” replied the boy. “I'd ask for twice that many. You will be facing a huge number of soldiers. Tens of thousands, probably as many as thirty coming for you. She sent you to the most populated and important undefended towns of the north. You will need many more troops to defend the people and escort them to safety.”

She turned to walk out, but then she suddenly stopped and turned back to the mysterious and very handsome boy. Serinina's face twisted and turned very serious and hard. She approached the boy until she was standing mere feet from him and stood there.

“Otto,” She said in disbelief. “Do you really expect me to believe you are just some boy?”

“Excuse me,” he replied.

“You are not Otto. And you are no one from the Golden Isles. I think I know who you are. I am not stupid,” Serinina thundered. “So let's talk about something else, and I want serious answers. Are you ready?”

“Yes,” The boy replied, very unsure.

“You said we are very likely to win this war and save Troy. And that I will likely become the queen of Sparta. That's what you said to me?”

“Yes,” The boy replied. “You and your mother will crush a vast majority of the Spartan troops they send. It will be a huge portion of their troops, so they won't have much left to oppose you when you land on their shores. Where are you going with this?”

Serinina chuckled. “Such knowledge and insight for just some boy I met.” Serinina giggled girlishly. “But, let me ask you. Do you agree with the Spartan society and how they treat their defeated civilizations? Making them a serving class with no civil rights or protection.”

“No,” He replied. “But what can I do about it?”

“As queen, I could. I could free the Helots. Couldn't I?”

“Yes, but how would the Spartan's react then?” The boy inquired.

“They would probably be pissed, but I defeated them. So, the Spartan's would have no choice unless they want another defeat by my hands. But, do you think this is something that is realistic, or is there something else I am not considering.”

“No, you can, and it is something they need. What the Spartan's do is stupid, and it will end up destroying them. They know it's dangerous to have a huge class of people with no rights. Eventually, they will rise up, and it would be the end of Sparta. You can help preserve them and reform their society. But, its odd hearing a princess of the Amazon's caring about another society having a slave servant class with no rights, look at what they do.”

Serinina's face turned upward in a huge wicked smile. “Not hypocritical at all. I will also be the queen of the Amazon's. I can free the men here too when the time comes.”

“That will be more difficult. Those men are castrated so they won't resist as much.” The boy pointed out.

“You are forgetting something,” Serinina said to the boy. “I am also a mighty witch. My homeland had no idea how powerful I was. Even the Amazon's don’t fully understand. I can turn them back into men. The Amazon's don’t know my true power.”

“Neither do you,” The boy said. “You had absorbed much of Lilith's power. You are about as close to being an actual goddess as a human can really be.”

“Thank you, Lord Ares,” Serinina said with a knowing smirk. “I am not stupid, and I have known who you are for some time.”

“And you are okay with it,” He replied doubtfully.

“If I wasn’t, I would have sent you away. But going into war, it's good to have the God of War on my side. And I think I love you.”

Then the two embraced. “Now I need to speak to my mother about your advice.

Serinina nodded and made her assessments and ran to the upper deck to talk to her mother, Penthesilea. Serinina saw her standing there talking to the ship's captain about what to do if they met the Spartan fleet and got her mother's attention and then said, “Mother. I have got some new information. The Greek fleet already offloaded their troops and are now headed toward the towns. I have learned that I will need many more troops to accomplish my objective.”

Penthesilea frowned, but her daughter has not been wrong before. If she says she does not have enough troops, then she does not have enough troops. Serinina was brilliant,
and her mother trusted her. Penthesilea nodded and asked, “How many more do you need? Just tell me, and you will have it.”

“I will need at least six thousand more troops. Four thousand more hoplites for a total of six thousand. One thousand more bowwomen and one thousand more calvary. That should be enough. I am told that I will be encountering over thirty thousand Greeks and mainly spartan troops under Ajax.”

“Are you sure that will be enough?”

“Yes, we are Amazon's. Eight thousand will be enough,” replied Serinina.

Penthesilea nodded. “Then you will have them. I will give you the second battalion and the first. They will be offloaded under your command. And then you will march north, and you have a list of the towns you need to evacuate. Study the maps on the way and make plans with your commanders. It will be just under a week.”

So Serinina spent the rest of the voyage with Aries talking about their war plans and snuggling with each other. Emily felt somewhat left out and jealous.

Few war plans ever survive the first meeting with reality, and this one was no different. Serinina disembarked from her trireme, and her many thousands of troops walked down onto the beach with her, and they assembled into marching formations. Then they went down to the north to evacuate and defend the civilian population. And everything went to hell.

They could tell something was horribly wrong as they began approaching the first large town within days of landing. There was nothing except smoke rising in the air. There were no people meeting them. There were no children playing. There was nothing but silence and their boots marching on the ground approaching the town.

The town had been burned to the ground, and the dead were everywhere. All they could see was death and black flies that fed on the bodies. The stench in the air was nauseating to even the most hardened warrior. They were too late. The Greeks had already landed and sacked the town. Strangely, there was a lack of young female bodies among the corpses, and Serinina got a sickening feeling in her stomach. This was a horror beyond her worst nightmares. The stench filled the air, and she had to continuously swat flys from her face as she moved into the town.

She shouted, “Emily, take our phalanx and search each home for any survivors and be careful for an ambush. Let's move.”

Emily acknowledged her orders with a nod, even though she and her soldiers would rather deal with the monsters who had done this horrific thing.

Serinina and Emily took their forces and carefully searched the ruins for any survivors that the Greeks may have missed.

They found no survivors. They searched the ash that was still filled with the stench of rotting corpses and the air filled with buzzing flies. Some of the body's starting to stink, but some of the burnt homes were empty. They did find the path to the to the temple littered with bodies along the way. Oddly, they found many corpses of the men and young children, but there were few women to be found. That frightened Serinina more than anything else she had found. She was warned of the brutality of the Spartan's, and she felt she was prepared for a horror like this. She still felt like she wasn't. She kept feeling the urge to vomit from the stench and the horror she was witnessing.

Nothing at all prepared her for the final horror in the main temple in the center of the town. The temple was burnt. And they saw it beside the what was once a beautiful temple. The Greeks probably used the people to build a huge ditch alongside of the temple. And that ditch they were now standing over was filled with thousands of rotting bodies of the citizens of this town. Apparently, they led everything to this area and slaughtered everyone and tossed them into the shallow ditch. They found no survivors, and Serinina wanted to cry. This was her first taste of war, and this was a massacre. She reached out with her senses and found no survivors at all. But what she did find alarmed her and she knew that they must move to save the people in the next town.

Serinina shouted to her troops, “Assemble. We must hurry. The Greeks are in the next town now, and we can stop them and free their prisoners if we meet them before they leave again. Assemble and move out NOW!”

Her troops moved into marching columns, and they moved out of town as fast as possible. Serinina knew they had to move faster so she ignited her power, and it flowed through her. Serinina's body glowed with the power, and she cast a spell on her forces, and they moved faster than humanly possible. Her force raced to the next town at a blinding pace

Then just before they reached the town, Serinina ordered her force to stop. Everyone halted, and she called the commanders to her and they stood there.

“I sense that the Greeks are expecting us. They have their forces prepared to surprise and trap us in a pincer when we arrive. We won't allow that to happen. The third and fourth Calvary will remain just behind us, ready to attack and break us out. I will disguise you, so they won't see you hanging back. We will be the main force, I will also disguise the first and second phalanxes, and you will be on the wings of our advance ready to entrap the Spartan's in our pincer, and the bows will be on the sides ready to rain on them. And then we will destroy them and save what is left of the town. Does everyone understand?

Her commanders confirmed their readiness to follow her plan. Serinina was preparing to do to the Spartan's what they did to the Persians at the Marathon in entrapping the attacking force in their own pincer move strengthening the wings of their phalanx and letting the enemy move in.

Serinina ignited her power once again and cloaked her Calvary forces and her additional phalanx. The cavalry, bowwomen and additional phalanx vanished from sight. Serinina stood there on the front line with her phalanx. Alexina was right beside her, and they led the phalanx forward. The Amazon’s columns marched up to the town in front of them and they began already hearing the desperate screams of the villagers pleading as they were being cut down. Serinina ordered them to increase their pace to try to rescue them.

But she knew what they were going up against, and it frightened her. She knew the Spartan forces knew they were now approaching. She saw the hidden scouts, that watched the Amazon's approach. She saw the scouts rush forward to report their advance, and she knew that the Spartan's had overwhelming numbers. She also knew the Spartan's were going to die. Troy was a protectorate of the Amazon's. Sparta had made a mistake making war on these people now.

They marched up the road and then saw the spartan phalanx in formation ready for them. The spartan shields and their rolls of spears aiming right at them. There were thousands of Spartan's blocking their advance, ready for battle.

And just as the Amazon women moved into their battle formations, and began locking their shields and getting their spears ready. They saw another spartan phalanx move in behind them. It was just as she predicted and exactly what she prepared for. Serinina smiled a wolfish smirk and said to her fellow sisters in formation with her, “This is what we trained for. We know how Spartan's fight, and we know their weakness. We have trained to fight spartan phalanxes and know how to fight them. Use our discipline and our training, and the Spartan's will pay for what they did. We will crush them!” Serinina shouted and her forces moved into formation as one disciplined unit.

The Spartan's looked at the assembled women with doubt. And they saw the young thirteen-year-old short girl in the front issuing orders to her troops. The young girl was dressed as the phalanx general, and this was just unbelievable. It was almost as unbelievable as these women aiming spears and ready for battle against these battle-hardened powerful men. It was like a joke.

But the joke wouldn't last. Things were about to become very serious for the assembled Spartan's. Suddenly, a massive force seemed to materialize right behind the Spartan's second force blocking the Amazon's retreat. Suddenly there was an enormous force of thousands of heavy cavalry right behind the Spartan's phalanx. They were cut down before they had a chance to respond. Their spears were aimed the wrong way, and the Amazon's cavalry rode into the phalanx from behind with a vicious yell. They never stood a chance.

And now all that was left was the enormous spartan force blocking their advance into the town. They knew that half of their forces were cut down before they could do anything, but they still had over ten thousand facing the amazon women. The spartan's were still confident of victory. They still had what they thought was an overwhelming advantage. The Amazon's cavalry surprised them once, but they were not going to be surprised again. This time, the Amazon's cavalry was going to have to charge against the spears of the Phalanx. They couldn't flank the spartan's or get behind them this time.

But then suddenly, two enormous columns of Amazonian hoplites materialized on the Amazon's wings and moved into battle formation. Then the archers assembled behind the new forces. The Spartan's didn't understand what was really going on here, and the Amazon's advanced. It was a massacre. The Amazon's center was rather weak as they stood there, taking the brunt of the Spartan's attack and holding their ground, waiting for the wings to overwhelm the Spartan's flanks. That's where Serinina put the additional forces at and where their positions were the strongest at. The Spartan's flanks were weak and strong in their center.

So the Amazon's wings overwhelmed the spartan flanks and crushed them. Then they turned on the spartan center, and Serinina knew it was time and ordered her forces to advance into the spartan center. Serinina's strength and speed was unnatural and she was enveloped in a bloodlust against the Spartan's and moved in. She cut down dozens of Spartan's at a time.

Ten thousand Spartan’s were cut down within the hour, and the battle was over. Serinina had killed hundreds of Spartan's, and then they moved into the town and rescued everyone they could find. The Spartan leader was caught with his bodyguards. The guards were cut down and all that was left was Ajax himself. Or as he was called by the Greeks, Ajax the great. Serinina wasn't sure what made this brutal rapist so great. The Amazon's wanted to rip him apart, but Serinina had a better idea, and her mouth twisted up in a cruel and sadistic smile as she glared at Ajax, who showed no fear at all. He knew he was about to die, and he was going to face his end like a warrior. He would probably be pleading for mercy if he knew what was about to happen.

“Ajax, you sadistic pig. You think you are about to die, and you plan on facing it like a brave hero. I have no intention of killing you. I think a sadistic, cruel man like you needs a harsh lesson on what we face as women. I have just the thing for you, and if you can endure it, you will see that the rewards will be enormous. But I seriously doubt you have the strength to face life as a woman.”

Ajax looked at this small woman gloating in front of him and talking about life as a woman. There were rumors that this small woman was actually a prince. He didn't believe it until he started seeing enormous forces materialize out of thin air. And now she was talking about making him live as a woman, and he began to take this threat very seriously. “Please, just kill me and claim your victory, I beg you, don't make me a woman!” Ajax begged.

But the cruel smile on Serinina’s face told him that was exactly what she intended. He knelt and screamed as he watched the features of this woman began glowing. Some mysterious power began coursing through her body. Her fingers snapped. Her hair lit up as if on fire and crackled as the power ran through her body. She began chanting in an incomprehensible language and touched him on the arm. The power entered into Ajax, and he felt his entire body tingle.

Then he began to shrink, and Ajax cried out in a very high pitched feminine voice as he began to shrink. His chest expanded and grew into two soft round mounds. His hips widened, and his skin and face softened. He cried out in pain as his internal organs transformed, and his external sex organs shrank and transformed inside of him. That was one of the most painful aspects of the transformation. Ajax was blessed. If only he could take advantage of it.

Then Serinina boasted, “You are now a woman, Ajax. And we will give you a choice. You can return to the forces moving in to besiege Troy and see how your fellow Greeks treat you now.” Serinina laughed bitterly. “Or, we will give you shelter and help you adjust to your new life. The choice is yours.”

Her fellow Amazon's protested that this arrogant hateful man was unworthy of such a gift, but Serinina held firm. They would offer this girl protection and the help she would need. She had a feeling.

Ajax knew what he would face if he returned to the Greeks. He would probably be raped and beaten.

They rounded up the remaining Greeks looting the town and rescued the civilians. There were still many thousands of civilians left, and the people were gathered and ready to be escorted out. There was one problem, and Serinina faced Ajax and demanded, “Where are the women you took from the last town? Where did you take them?”

Ajax tried to resist, but he eventually said, “They are being taken to the landing area to be taken to Sparta.”

“How big is the force escorting them?” Serinina demanded in a harsh tone, and Ajax responded that the force was weak, only a few dozen at most.

Serinina had slaughtered close to thirty thousand this day. It was a significant portion of the total forces the Greeks landed. It was almost all the Spartan's forces they had here. They were almost finished as a power among the Greeks now.

She turned to Alexina and said, “You are in charge of the forces now, there should be no more resistance. Take these people into the next few towns and get the people to safety. Then take them to Troy. I will go with Emily and rescue the women being taken to Sparta. Now go.

Serinina got on a large warhorse with her sister Emily and rode out to intercept the final Spartan's holding women captive. They rode out at full speed to rescue the hostages. They headed for the Anatolian coastline as fast as they could possibly ride. Serinina felt her bloodlust filling her as she rode, seeing red and wanting the blood of the Spartan's.

The ride took several hours, and they caught up with the few dozen remaining Spartan's escorting the hundreds of bond women. Serinina yelled as they rode into the Spartan's before they could prepare. They were ruthlessly cut down, and it was over too quickly. Serinina still felt her bloodlust.

It was all over, and Serinina informed the women that they were now free, and they were to be escorted to their people and headed for the safety of Troy. They pretty much figured that, but they didn’t expect to be rescued by the Amazon's.

Their main force had already evacuated the remaining villages and were headed for Troy by the time Serinina caught up with them, and they were all marching for Troy now. That was several days away.

During the march to Troy, Emily kept smirking as she watched her sister Serinina meet with a handsome boy. The boy and Serinina had long discussions with each other. Emily could tell that Serinina was utterly captivated with this handsome boy. Emily could see her infatuations herself. The boy was extremely handsome. The boy even kissed Serinina once. Emily knew that her sister would not follow the same sex lesbian traditions of the Amazon's. Serinina would love a boy, and this was the last thing Emily ever expected Serinina to do. She knew Serinina's history and never figured her sister would ever fall for a boy

Troy was more than Serinina was ever expecting when they arrived. They approached the enormous, massive gleaming walls of the capital city. This was an enormous city, and its defenses looked impervious to any direct assault. Serinina almost felt jealous. Serinina thought that the enormous citadels of her homeland were great. She thought the defenses of her capital city of Denaerk were impressive. Troy put them all to shame. Any direct assault on this would be useless. She looked warily at the countless men and women holding their bows ready aimed directly at them as they escorted the civilians toward the main gatehouse. Its walls must be over fifty feet high, she guessed that they may approach eighty to a hundred and the towers even higher.

The massive double steel doors began parting as an army marched forward approaching them. She saw Paris in the center leading them. He had a disturbed frown and looked very unhappy. Cassandra had just arrived with her group of civilians, and Penthesilea was beside Serinina with her group. Cassandra leaped from her horse and ran toward her brother Paris and the two siblings embraced each other tightly. She asked, “What is wrong, Brother?”

He had a disturbed, unhappy look and said softly, “we can't find Helena anywhere. She was sent away weeks ago for her wedding. She is gone, no one can find her, and our father has forbidden any rescue of her. It is up to the Greeks to reclaim her, but they think we are hiding her in the city, and even Father suspects I am up to something. Don't expect to be too welcome here with your Amazon's. Father knows he has no choice here, but he won't be friendly to you all at all. I think he is conspiring with Agamemnon to undermine us all. I am so worried about Helena.”

Serinina saw tears forming in the young man's eyes. For someone so large and powerful, it looked strange. She even saw the shadow of what was once Serin in this young man's features. They marched through the gates, and they shut behind the large group. The guards barred the doors and braced them in preparation for an attack.

Then the King Priam approached with Hector greeting them all. He approached the queen Penthesilea and asked, “You rescued all of the civilians from the neighboring towns. But now I ask you,” He shouted angrily, “How in the name of Zeus are we supposed to feed all of these people? We barely have enough for ourselves to last a year, forget another twenty thousand. And in case you don’t know,”

He led the queen up the large steps into a tower and led them up. He pointed out to a mass of Greek warships. “We are under blockade. No supplies are coming in. What are we supposed to do?”

Serinina smiled, “We will destroy them and the Amazon's will send in more supplies. Right mother?”

She smiled. They knew that the Amazon's fleet was unequaled in the world. “And then, I will find Helena for you. Not that you care, but we will rescue her.”

Hector and Priam were going to be major problems here. Penthesilea then said to Serinina, “It may be time for Cassandra to assume the throne. We will have to deal with Priam very soon.

Cassandra agreed and she was ready, but not if Hector had anything to say about it.

Ares had told Serinina not to trust Hector or Priam. Poor Ajax had never been more afraid in her life as the angry amazon queen approached.

She demanded, “Serinina I told you to rescue the civilians not put them in chains. What is this.” She thundered as she approached the bond woman. Then she saw the young woman's face and put a hand on the girl's cheek. She began turning red and shouted, “Serinina, what the hell is this? What in the name of Hades are we supposed to do with a feminized Ajax, don’t think for a second we will protect this barbarian who made countless women suffer.”

Ares and his sister Athena approached the queen. Serinina said, “Ajax can be helped. I have been told by Athena. He was a horrible man but he can be better. If you remember, I wasn’t that much different.”

“But you never physically or sexually abused women. You didn’t enslave them to your will. You were an ass but that was it, Serinina. You were nothing like Ajax.”

Athena spoke up, “He has much more than Serinina to repay. And he will as a woman and will. Penthesilea, trust your adopted daughter here and help and protect Ajax.”

Penthesilea still wasn’t happy but if this was the will of Athena and her brother then that was it. No more discussion was allowed. Ajax would be protected and helped by the Amazon's and Serinina took responsibility for the new woman. Serinina was lost here. She figured that whatever anger she felt at her transformation, multiply it by a hundred and this may reach the level of anger Ajax felt. Perhaps she should have killed Ajax.

By

Serininas adventure continues. She prepares her expedition to Sparta, fights the Greek blockade of Troy and faces intrigue in the Palace. On top of it all her relationship with Aries developed.

Actonia had become very confused. This was around the sixth year of misery since her power was taken away from her. She had prayed continuously for her power to be returned and begged the Goddess to intervene with no results. She knew the Goddess was helpless, but she hoped.

She had started receiving some strange visions and dreams that were confusing to her. Actonia knew that this was punishment for what she had done, but she felt that her goal was a good one and that she was justified in doing anything necessary in order to achieve that. The priests of this nation needed to be struck down and their power over the lives of the women had to be removed by any means. Even if it meant destroying a single boy's life, it was justified. These men had slaughtered tens of thousands of innocent women and held the rest of them in terror of their lives. They had imposed incredibly harsh rules on them that deprived every woman of the freedom they desired. Therefore, one selfish, entitled boy was a suitable sacrifice. At least Actonia thought so.

Stopping the war priests and instituting a second reign of women was a glorious thing for her and she took all of the needed steps to make it happen. She remembered everything from that time.

She remembered how resistant Patinea was at first. Patinea’s resistance changed after the death of her father, and facing a marriage that her brother was refusing to stop. Facing a bleak future with a husband she didn’t love and being a mother to children from this man. That sent her into action, and it started off well. It really started off better than she ever hoped it could. Patinea took charge, her brother was unmanned and deprived of the crown, and Patinea began her reign.

Patinea was crowned in place of her brother and began her rule. She proved her strength when she struck down the priest's power and freed the Hekatin. Patinea made it a crime to prevent anyone from worshipping the Goddess. Her brother began his reluctant life as a princess deprived of all power. He was so hurt when he realized the scope of the plot, where even his own mother was on Patinea’s side in this. He was alone. He was furious at first, but he soon began to adapt better than any of them could have hoped for. The problem was he wanted much more than what was given to him and he longed for the life of a warrior. He wanted a voice in this new regime and that was something none of them could risk. In addition, his sister kept mocking and teasing him.

That’s where things began to go horribly wrong. Serin realized that, no matter how well he adapted, his sister was never going to give him anything. So, he began to study and plot. He quickly got more power than any of them ever thought possible. Actonia was shocked and horrified by his growing power and it didn’t make any sense to them. The witches were also very alarmed by Serin’s growing power. They didn’t understand the spell that they cast on him at all. There was a reason the spell was called ‘THE BLESSING', but none of them knew.

The spell was meant to be a blessing to be bestowed on a person of merit and it conferred immense power upon that person. Being female was considered a gift. Whomever The Blessing was bestowed on, was not to be ignored or mistreated. They didn’t know that, and that, was a great mistake. But then, because of her rage, Serin’s sought more and more power for herself and began studying the dark arts of the dark goddesses that had rained destruction on the land in the past. She gave herself to Lilith and began a war against them. This was a horror beyond their worst nightmares

Serin overcame their armies and got her revenge against them all. Then she revealed she no longer wanted the crown. She wanted them all to suffer under the false king as she cursed them to doom. But to their surprise, Serin freed their Goddess only to seek her help in reliving his life where he would be free from the suffering that was inflicted on him as the crown prince for no good reason. And the Goddess reset their lives, and he was able to relive his life from infancy far from the capital.

But life is so strange. He was reborn and raised in Geunafar where Actonia lived. And they met in school, and Serin restored her memory. Serin was as powerful as he was before and quickly became a very popular boy witch that taught girls in witchcraft. In Actonia’s new life, she had a little sister that suffered terribly. Her sister Jerica maintained that she was really a boy and it made no sense at all. It made no sense until Serin restored her memory.

As a boy, Serin was still immensely powerful. He was the youngest witch to pass the Hekatinian trials and be confirmed as a full witch. He was the first boy aside from Prince Edwyn to be allowed to train as a Hekatin. Serin was confirmed and employed as a teacher, and Actonia found Serin to be very effeminate and compassionate. His female students dearly loved him.

Serin was still very embittered by the events of his previous life. Serin did one of the cruelest things imaginable. He restored her brother's manhood and began training that boy to be a witch. And then, Serin took away her abilities totally destroying her power. Actonia was forced to live her life with none of the abilities she had become accustomed to. Watching at the same time, her brother grow into a very formidable witch, enjoying the life and power she once had. This was unbearable. Actonia prayed for the return of her power, and it had been six long years of suffering.

Her power had not returned, she had received no visions of the future. She was useless, at least until recently. Within the last few weeks, Actonia had been receiving visions, which were incomprehensible until now. She understood now, that the visions she was receiving were of Serinina. But these were visions of horror beyond all imagination.

It was so strange. Serinina was dressed in thick shining armor holding a golden shield and a long spear along with her fellow soldiers who were all female, just like her. She was walking along a path littered with dead bodies, swatting flies from her face and gagging at the stench of death in the air. Serinina had apparently entered a town that had been massacred.

Actonia’s next dream was of Serinina in a massive battle. This was a huge battle against tens of thousands of seasoned troops. Serinina was at the front line, along with her troops battling and stabbing large armored men across from them. They were in a desperate battle against tens of thousands. And Actonia had thought the battle Patinea fought in Ansays Harbor was a battle. That was nothing compared to this. And then Serinina rushed in and slew dozens of the soldiers in her bloodlust. It was most impressive. There were several things that made this very difficult for Actonia.

First, Serinina seemed like she was in a unit comprised of all women, as a woman, and they accepted Serinina as their leader. She was leading very competent and strong women into battle. This was a person that mocked female warriors and was now fighting alongside them. And they were fighting against men. Apparently, Serinina was fighting for a matriarchy against men. How odd was that? And Serinina was fighting as a woman. It almost brought a giggle to Actonia, thinking about the irony of it all.

And then she received a vision of Serinina leading her army here, after being crowned the queen of these female warriors. If any of them really thought Actonia would have a problem with female warriors landing, conquering the men and instituting a matriarchy here, they had another thing coming. One thing was exciting here, so Actonia began studying about the warriors that called themselves the Amazons. Their brutality against men made even the worst times of the Hekatin and the reign of women look very kind by comparison. But still, she saw Serinina instituting a reign of terror across the Golden Isles. Brutally punishing the families that betrayed her, slaughtering their sons, and taking their daughters to the Amazon's. There was little any of them could do to stop it

Actonia knew that Serinina was still enraged and embittered by how she was treated. Now, after all this time, Actonia thought she knew what went wrong with their grand plan. Their plan moved smoothly at first and had such great promise and it had a chance to work. Even Serinina followed it as expected, but it went wrong with them. They mistreated Serin horribly. That shouldn't have happened. Serin needed a lesson and he received it and learned to be better.

It was so unexpected when Serin turned to them and became a nearly fanatical follower of the Goddess. He turned to love the Goddess with all of his heart and actually enjoy being female. Unknown to her, Serinina realized her mistake and had personally apologized to the girls she had mistreated. Those girls became her friends, and they followed Serinina. They became her supporters as she became a very powerful witch. None of them knew this.

But Patinea saw this as a threat to herself and became very jealous and angry at how Serinina could get people to support her. The women that were supposed to support Patinea were supporting her brother, who she would never see as anything but her brother in her eyes. It brought out the cruel side to Patinea and then Serin was abused. When Serin got pregnant, they assumed he was raped.

It was when Patinea arranged a marriage for her brother that he began to fight back. This was unacceptable and Serinina ended up destroying them all. That's how it went so wrong, and Actonia realized that what they did was so bad. He was happy as a woman, and he was able to grow and learn from his errors, but it made no difference because of how they treated him. That was wrong. Now, they would pay the price.

Xxxxx

It was now time for some clear answers and Serinina was going to damn well get them. It was her first night in Troy and she was sure it was going to be a long day tomorrow. They had things to do and the first on their agenda was to find Helena and break the Spartan blockade. Then she was sure she was going to have to solve this problem and find out what was going on in this kingdom. Whether they had to depose Priam or not. And if that was going to happen, how to go by doing it.

But that was for tomorrow. Now, she had to deal with pushing off Aries's affections. Serinina simply wasn't in the mood right now. She held her hand out and said, “Aries, stop. I do not want to cuddle right now. We need to talk, and I want you to be honest. No one has really been honest with me. Can you be brutally honest?”

The boy stopped, he looked up with his eyes and locked with hers. Serinina could see this was no young boy. Those hard eyes were the eyes of Aries. She said, “And I am not buying this form you present yourself in. But I guess a god can appear in any form he or she wishes.”

“Fine,” replied Aries, and the man grew into a massive hulking armored man that was over twice her size now. And the massive black armored plate had spikes and horns growing out of it. It was frightening and imposing, although not for Serinina. Aries said, “Is this better?”

Serinina nodded. “Yes, now, can you answer me?”

“Yes, I can be honest. But,” replied Aries “what answers do you want?”

“You said that the Gods and you have had your eye on me for a while. So, for how long?”

“Since you were the eight or nine-year-old Prince Serin teasing your older sister Patinea in the palace, training for war, and beginning your formal education at the Maxis temple with the war priests. We all knew what was going to happen in years later.”

Serinina figured. “So why was it allowed to happen, why didn’t Maxis stop it?”

Aries snorted. “Maxis couldn’t even stop the Goddess from destroying his huge statue of himself.He couldnt protect you. He tried to protect you and thats why it required a dozen women combining their power to overwhelm the protection he placed on you. But Maxis is a fallen god. His actions and his teachings were so harsh and unforgiving. And hes very sexist against females that he inspired such resistance and hatred of his religion. He was unable to prevent the Goddess from regaining her power and when that happened, the game was up as they say. A much more powerful force had entered into his world that he could not stop. His religion began to fall and when you changed, and prognita reasserted her will on the world. His religion fell completely and it will happen again, but you are likely to make all of their religions fall.”

“And now I assume you are going to ask why I didn’t prevent what happened to you, am I right?” Aries had a knowing smile.

“Now that you ask it,” replied Serinina harshly. “Why?”

Aries took a deep breath, not that a god needs to breathe. “Because you needed a lesson. You were on the wrong path at the time. Not that any of it was your fault, really. It was the culture and what Maxis taught, the war priests, and how you were taught to treat women. But you still needed a harsh lesson and one you learned well and are better off for. Now, look at what you have become, and none of this would have happened if I prevented your transformation. Now, Serinina, you are great and very worthy of the power you will wield. Now your homeland needs a lesson that you will give to them. The only person that has grown in any of this is you. Serinina, you should be thankful.”

“I am thankful,” replied Serinina. “I am happy as a woman. I still don’t like how they treated me and that's my problem. That is why I am still furious. They tried to stop me from doing anything meaningful. I couldn’t do male things because I wasn’t male, even if it was made available for girls, and my sister was doing those things at the time. And they tried to forbid me from doing activities exclusively for females. It was so frustrating.”

Aries laughed bitterly again. “Yeah, I know. It was very entertaining seeing how you handled those bitches,” Aries said sardonically. “They didn’t want to let you fight, so you ended up fighting them. They tried to forbid you from studying to become a Hekatin and that was so interesting. You really put Falconette in her place. The witches didn’t understand that when they made you female, that you were then female. They still wanted to regard you as male even when you began accepting your sex. It was so funny, but I know it was frustrating for you. Falconette, telling you that you weren’t really a woman. You surprised them all and really put them in their place. I loved how you got in Falconette’s face and glared at her, and told her, 'I am told that I am to be crushed into corsets and draped into gowns because I am a woman. I do not stand to inherit my father's crown because I am a woman, but when I try to do something open only to women, I am told that I am a man?' Then she gave her feeble answer, and you told her you were a princess and that you were going to attend classes with the Hekatin. So she caved, and you began studying, and excelling at it better than anyone could ever conceive. They didn’t think you could really do it at all. They figured if you ever did that, it would take years, not weeks and months. You surprised and horrified them all. But only I, knew what you really wanted, and you will get your crown back, and you will rule them with an iron fist.”

“Now, Aries, let me ask you one more question. You are a male war god and proud of his masculinity and such. How can you approve of me and this?”

Aries snorted rudely. “I am not sexist. What you were taught of war gods and such is very wrong. You don’t know my sisters, do you? Athena and Dianna. How can I possibly ever think women shouldn't be warriors? That would be idiotic. I love strong female warriors. In some ways, they can be better than the male warriors in that they usually have more to overcome. My sister is always fighting with my father. He is as sexist as they come, and I have seen you, yes you, kicking his ass.”

Serinina was shocked and wondered how that was possible. But then she remembered the power she had absorbed. “Me?”

“I told you that even you don’t understand your full power. When you do?” Then Aries flashed a wide smile. “Even us gods won't be able to stop you.”

“Could I kill Prognita?” Serinina asked.

“Oh yeah, the only question is how would you want to do it.”

“I want to make a big demonstration of it to demoralize the Hekatin and signify their defeat. But, I mean, could I kill her forever in such a way she is dead. And will never rise again.”

Aries laughed bitterly. “When the first male kings destroyed her and claimed the crown, they did it with a spell and they knew it was only temporary. But you aren’t human anymore. A god can kill another god. When you realize the true extent of your power, you will be able to kill the Goddess for all time. She will never rise again. You will have to destroy her physical form and her ethereal form, and that's the difficult part, but as a goddess, that's something you will have to learn to achieve after you kill her physical form.”

“Can you teach me?”

“Yes, Some times Serinina, I think you were given the spirit of my sister Enyo. There's a reason you are so full of anger and bloodlust.”

Serinina had got so tired she began rubbing her eyes and laid in her bed. She invited Aries, “Let's cuddle now.”

The large man moved in to lay beside Serinina and they held each other tightly. It might seem wrong, but Serinina was really in her twenties by now in the body of a thirteen-year-old girl. And if you consider the spirit of the Goddess that Serinina possessed, she maybe thousands of years old. Aries said that she had the spirit of Enyo. Was that possible? Well, Patinea had the spirit of Prognita. So why not?

That would be so fascinating if it was true.

Xxxxx

Serinina had another matter to deal with, and this was a point where she was really lost. She got herself in this by thinking she could handle it. She had transformed Ajax into a woman and she could feel the seething rage that emanated from Ajax. She could not abuse Ajax. That would be stupid. Serinina would not make the mistake that her sister made in abusing and ignoring someone whom she had bestowed the Blessing upon. The Blessing was meant to enhance and empower someone in a female life. Abusing her would be the most horrible mistake. Serinina was going to have to be careful and compassionate and make sure that she helped this girl all she could. She must never be harsh or cruel to Ajax. She was going to have to use every bit of compassion and understanding she possibly had.

“I know that you hate me now” Serinina said softly.

“You have no idea,” Ajax said seething. “I would rip off your head if I could. But that's why you did this to me, wasn’t it? You want me powerless to endure and suffer humiliation. You call this a blessing, but this is a horror. Of course, as a woman, you don’t understand, and you can never understand what it's like for a man facing this life.”

Serinina laughed a bitter, harsh laugh. She flashed a knowing smile and sat beside Ajax. “Actually, you are wrong. I was born with the name Serin. I was a sixteen-year-old boy, and my horrible sister did this to me to take my power and the crown that I was supposed to get. She took everything. I understand this more than you know, Ajax. But I made the best of it all.”

Ajax laughed. “If that is true, then you were never male at all. A male cannot accept this in any way. He would fight it, and rather die than to submit to a woman's life. You disgraced yourself and your father by accepting this life.” He said arrogantly though his teeth.

“Perhaps I wasn't ever really a boy. I didn’t want to die, but I wanted revenge, and I live to see the day I overcome my sister and reclaim what is mine, and to punish those responsible. I guess that's what you also want, isn’t it?”

“I don’t see how I can possibly overcome you all,” Ajax replied. “You all crushed my army and cursed me with this. You may have made yourself into a formidable woman. You will have revenge against your sister, but what about my life now? It's all over.”

Serinina nodded her understanding of Ajax's anger and pain.

“I gave you a chance that you don’t deserve after all of the pain that you caused. All of the women you raped and enslaved. All of those lives you destroyed for your sadistic pleasure, Ajax. You do deserve to die, but I had mercy on you and I hope that I have not made a mistake. Although I fear that I have,” Serinina said.

“But I hope you can take advantage of the gift I granted you, and I will do everything to help you. I cannot abuse you the way my sister abused me. That would be foolish because it would inflame your rage against me. Specially since the one this gift is bestowed on can have immense power. If you can learn your lesson and become better for it, I will do everything that I can to help you learn and grow beyond what you would have. And I will restore your masculinity if you desire it. I promise you, Ajax. I am not like my sister, and I am not doing this to hurt you. You will not be abused and I won't abuse you because of your perceived weakness as a woman. You are a girl now, and you are entitled to all that comes with it in the Amazons. I am here to help you Ajax, and I pray to the Goddess that you understand and trust me. I know you won't now, but perhaps in time.”

Ajax was stunned now. He had expected for Serinina to humiliate and demean him as a woman every chance she got, but she was telling him that she would not treat him differently than she would any other woman.

“Ajax, it would be stupid to turn you into a woman like me, and then humiliate you for being a woman. That's what was done to me, and they will pay for it so much. I want you to learn a lesson as a woman. Others may humiliate you, but I will protect and help you deal with life as a woman. No one will hurt you,” Serinina told him, and he felt so much better now.

“And now, Ajax, we have a major, a very major, problem that you can help me with. Do you love Sparta?”

“What kind of question is that?” Ajax asked in her new high pitched teakettle like voice now. “I was born and raised there. Of course, I love Sparta. And I know they will be in big trouble now.”

“And we can help prevent their fall if we move fast. I destroyed a huge portion of the Spartan forces. That is about all Sparta had, except for their naval forces, but that doesn’t amount to much. But it may be enough to maintain control if we move them back to Sparta. But you know what will happen and that may not even be enough.”

Ajax spat, “Of course not. Those few thousand troops won't be able to restore control once word spreads that almost our total military was destroyed. The Helots will rise up and it will be the end. The naval troops will be hard pressed to stop it. I don’t see what we can possibly do.”

“I respect Sparta also,” Serinina said. “I think they are the best of the Greeks. Athens has a corrupt and self-serving society and they tend to look down on women in ways Sparta doesn’t. I have a plan that can save Sparta and end up with them in charge of all the Greek states. But it will require sacrifice and compromise in ways that the Spartan military will find unbearable and humiliating. But it is the only way and if you work with me, we can regain control and put Sparta in charge of all of the Greeks. Then we can end this war.”

Ajax was very doubtful about this, but he was interested. “Okay, you have me interested, what is this great plan of yours?”

“First, we must regain control. You will need to back me up as their King. We must get the naval forces to stand down, I would hate to destroy them. I will need to take control of Sparta, they will need to accept me as their sovereign Queen. But that's just the beginning and I think that part will be easy.”

Ajax wasn't so sure what was easy, but she did destroy the Spartan’s army. They would have little choice but to accept Serinina as their ruler, but what could Ajax do?

“You can,” Serinina continued, “let them know who I am, and what I can do. You and your wife as the former King submitting to me will be an undeniable example of my power.”

Ajax looked down in humiliation. “You intend on telling them who I am and using me as an example of my people's defeat! And you said you won't humiliate me as a woman!” He yelled in anger.

“No, I won't,” replied Serinina. “I am not using your newfound femininity to humiliate or degrade you. I will elevate you. I am using your defeat by my hands to humiliate you. But it is only a humiliation if you see it that way. This is the only way to save Sparta. Unless you want to see events play out as they will. The Helots will rise, and defeat the remaining Spartan forces there once they realize there won't be any backup coming from the war. Then, once the other Greek states realize the Spartan weakness, they will march in with their armies and conquer Sparta. I would hate to see that happen. So, they need me, and I will preserve Sparta. Once we do that, then comes the hard part. Sparta must free the Helots, all of them. Make them official free citizens of Sparta. They will be in charge of agriculture and farming. Sparta conquered the prime farmland of Greece. You will still be in control of it and, with a powerful new class of merchants in charge of it, you will be the most powerful Greek state, or they won't get any food from Sparta.”

“But, how do you think they will treat us after centuries of being a slave class with no rights,” Ajax asked.

“Angry, of course, but they will quickly realize they need the Spartan military for protection, and you two will have to learn to live together as equals. There will be resentment and anger, but they will have to learn to get over it. Especially when you make them free and allow the Helots to be employed by the military. Make some of them Spartan soldiers. Sparta will rule Greece.” Serinina smiled.

“You mean, you will!” Ajax pointed out. “If your plan works. But there is little reason for the rest of Greece to submit to Sparta when they have such powerful armies here.”

“That's where we come in to defend you if the other Greek powers turn hostile on you.”

“We will be no more than an Amazonian vassal state!” Ajax pointed out. “Under you, our great Queen.”

“Yes, but I will lead Sparta to greatness like they have never known before. Sparta will be a powerhouse leading the Greeks and you will be able to easily rebuild the Spartan army. And then?”

Ajax knew where this was going. “Then take the Golden Isles for you. Yes, I know that's your endgame, Serinina. You are power-hungry. But first, what are we going to do with the Spartan navy blockading your harbor and then with Hector conspiring with Agamemnon and Achilles.”

“That's where our navy comes in,” Serinina quipped with a smirk. “Only, we won't want to destroy the Spartan navy. We will board them, and we will do our best to not use lethal force and hope they see the writing on the wall when they are overwhelmed. I am sure a few of your big ships will have to be made examples of, and I may have to be a big showoff and display the full extent of my power. Then, prove your identity and see how much they respect you and I will help to make sure that they do respect their King Ajax."

This was something that Ajax wasn't sure was possible anymore. His wife, Archippe, was respected as the Queen of the Spartans and Archippe held power while he was gone. Even when he was there, Archippe held power roughly equal to his own. They respected each other a great deal and Ajax wondered how she would react to this. Ajax felt a slight giggle escape as he considered it. Archippe loved him and she stood by him, but he didn’t know why, now that he thought of her in a different way. She hated how he treated the lower-class women. Archippe often got into vicious arguments over how he treated some women, but she dismissed it in the end as it was his nature. But he knew she disagreed.

So, when Archippe eventually found out what had happened to her mighty husband Ajax, he guessed that Archippe would say he deserved this just like Serinina did, and she would hope he learned from it. But Archippe would want him back and Serinina said she would restore his manhood if he learned his lesson. So there was hope.

But he still wondered if the majority of his society and the military could respect him like this and he was afraid that the answer was a 'Hell No!'. Even if he could prove his identity and that part would be easy, his commanders and soldiers would reject him now. He wasn’t Ajax now. He was a conquered woman that had been defeated in battle and had submitted. In such a situation, the action he was supposed to take was clear. 'Come home with your shield or carried on top of it'. He had submitted to the enemy in defeat and was changed. This would be considered the greatest shame. That shame may even be transferred to his wife, Archippe.

He wondered if Serinina’s plan would work and he hoped it would, but it would be a vicious struggle. Spartan society would have to be dragged kicking and screaming along the way. It would be for its own good, as Ajax now understood. It was on an unsustainable course that was about to end now.

But the warrior caste would never accept the Helots being free and having to respect and pay them for their work, especially if they started to rise to become a powerful merchant class. This would have to be done at the point of the sword. It would have to be forced upon Spartan society.

He knew what was done to the conquered societies was very wrong. Ajax had played with the idea of freeing the Helots, but he knew if he ever took that action that he would have a widespread rebellion of the warrior caste who would assassinate him or depose him.

But, now that the Spartans had been defeated and another caste of warriors were about to land on the shores of Sparta, this dream was achievable. Ajax smiled and Serinina saw it.

Ajax said, “You will be a great queen Serinina. We will learn that we are lucky to have someone like you to guide us. I am loyal to you, milady.” And Ajax bowed his head. “I will help you in any way that I can.”

Many may wonder why Ajax had become so loyal and friendly to Serinina. It may seem unbelievable, and perhaps even Archippe may feel shamed by his willing submission to the woman who did this to him and his army. He should be seething with rage and be looking at the first chance to drive a knife through the girl's heart. But he could see that Serinina had a good heart. She was a very kind and compassionate young woman. He had hated what she did to him until she brought Ajax here and explained her reasons and what she expected. Then she stood up for him against her Queen, who wanted him executed on the spot. Serinina faced the older woman's wrath and took responsibility for his protection and guidance.

And then, to his surprise, Serinina understood what was going to happen in Sparta, and told him that she respected his homeland enough to want to preserve it. And Serinina had a bold plan. That confirmed it all to him. This was a noble and powerful woman who was worthy of his respect.

Ajax was going to follow this young woman's leadership and do anything he could help her succeed. Then he wondered how this would look to his warriors and his wife, Archippe. It would look very shameful and strange. But this young woman was so much more than she appeared to be. She appeared to be a young thirteen-year-old, almost fourteen-year-old teenager. It almost looked comical with her all suited up in battle armor. But it was no joke when he saw her leading from the front and fighting. Serinina was fierce and powerful and her leadership skills and the loyalty she inspired were unequaled. Serinina was great and he resolved to do everything he could to be worthy of her respect and the gift she bestowed on him. It may seem like a curse to many, but this was a precious second chance that he was not going to pass up.

He watched as Serinina sat down and closed her eyes. He knew to remain silent and observe. It looked like Serinina almost fell asleep there. Then something reached out and it almost felt like a physical touch. He repressed a girlish shriek of fear, but it was Serinina’s mind. Then he saw her in his mind smiling in satisfaction.

She said to his mind, “I didn’t know if this was really possible with you, Ajax. This mind to mind contact is only possible between females. I think I can do it with boys, but it would have to be done differently because male's minds are different. I can see you are really trying to take advantage of the gift I have offered. And I am impressed, Ajax. I figured this was a stupid thing that I did that you would fight it at every turn and that I might end up simply having to kill you.”

“It started that way. I admit that I was seething with rage at first. But I saw you protect me from the others and you explained what you wanted. I figured when you first did this that you would want to hurt me and have me humiliated or violated as a woman out of revenge for what I did to so many other women. But you showed your intentions and your character to be greater than mine. I will not let you down. Your efforts won't be wasted.”

Serinina’s smile spread wider in appreciation.

She said, “Good, now remain silent while I contact the others to prepare for battle. I must contact our navy commanders and make preparations.” And then the contact with Serinina was lost.

Serinina spent the next several minutes carefully coordinating with the Amazonian fleet commanders and their troops onboard. They were shocked when the newly crowned princess made contact with them. Still, they had been told by the Queen that Serinina was given command of the military preparations and movements, so they were to follow her commands. They were not too surprised that what she told them was very sound and had a high possibility of successfully breaking the blockade of Troy. And then they were shocked to be informed that Serinina and a new girl she was training were coming onboard the flagship. It was an enormous quadrireme, specially built for the Queen herself and for the admiral to control the fleet.

Serinina had made all of the preparations and given her fleet the battle plans to break the blockade of Troy. All that was left to do was to execute the plan. She went out of her bedroom and found Ajax and Cassandra talking about the recent events at Troy and their suspicions about Hector. Priam favored Hector as his successor for the Crown. He believed in male inheritance, not female. Serinina knew a lot about that and it caused her so much trouble.

She approached the two teens and said, “Everything is ready, Ajax.”

He looked up and said softly, “Princess, perhaps when I am like this, I think you should call me Pryyha instead.” He looked fearful and added, “Since I look like this, Cassandra suggests that I should be referred to as another female here. It was weird for her calling me Ajax and she hates Ajax.”

Serinina looked at Cassandra and nodded. “When my sister Patinea transformed me into her little sister, she immediately had my name changed. I couldn’t even keep my name, she took it away. I was referred to as Serinina by her royal decree. It was illegal to call me Serin. It was considered a crime against the Kingdom. I had to accept the facts that I had lost my name and my title and even my sex. And no one cared, she was King, and that was how it was to be. It was painful to have to endure all the changes, without being anything I could do against her power.”

"Ajax, you still identify as Ajax and I won't force that to change. I said I won't abuse or mistreat you and I was serious about that. I won't force you to change your identity. You are Ajax, not Pryyha. That's the name you had all your life and what you were born as. Cassandra, please don't demean him in this way. We can help Ajax become a better man without forcing him to change his entire identity. This is simply a lesson he needs to learn about how we live life and what we must endure as females.”

“Then perhaps, Ajax should have a female identity while he is female with us,” suggested Cassandra.

Serinina thought it over and turned toward Ajax and replied, “Only if you want it, Ajax. Don’t feel pressured to change it. If you agree and if you really desire to be named Pryyha, then I will agree to it. I don’t want to steal your identity or your past, as was done to me. But remember, we need you to retake command and the respect of your people. But while you are here with us, if you want to be, you can be Pryyha.”

Ajax thought about it, and it all seemed very useless now. He wouldn’t be spending much time here anyway. They were to break the blockade, defeat his fleet, and then take command of what was left. Then they were going to Sparta for Serinina to take command. Where he would still be Ajax, in a female form. This was going to be embarrassing and humiliating.

He shook his head at Cassandra and said, “I would love to see how good of a female I could be among you all here. But I have a different path with Serinina and I must be Ajax. It will be difficult and probably very embarrassing, but It is necessary.”

Cassandra looked disappointed, but she accepted it. “Then perhaps once it's all over we can have Pryyha here with us. I want to see what kind of girl she is.” Cassandra smiled widely.

Ajax returned her affectionate smile, “Me too, but I have a feeling that Sparta will need me. I don’t know what sex I will be. All of this depends on if I learn what you and Serinina want me to learn. Cassandra, I am sorry for what I did to you all, and I hope I can apologize to Helena. Please find her.”

“Mother is setting up an expedition to find her. She thinks she knows where she hides. Helena will be found and returned safely, and she will marry who she chooses. So don’t worry.”

Ajax looked into Cassandra's eyes and nearly cried. “I hope you can forgive me for the way I treated you. I am so sorry for what I did.”

She still looked furious. “Ajax did those things, and I don’t know if I can ever forgive him. Some things stay with us for the rest of our lives. Don’t they Serinina? You of all people know this. There's some things that go way past any ability to move on or forgive. Your family did that, and Ajax did that with me and I don’t think I can ever forgive him. Pryyha isn’t responsible if you can accept her, but not Ajax. Not ever.” Cassandra said fiercely.

“So think of that, Ajax,” she nearly snarled. “Whether you want to be Pryyha or Ajax for your life. That will determine our relationship or if I can ever accept you as a friend.

Cassandra glared daggers into Serinina’s eyes as she spat, "No matter what he learns or what kind of man he becomes, if he chooses that, I can't accept him after what he did to me. It may seem harsh, but that's how I feel. What you did those nights haunt my dreams and make me afraid. That is how I feel.” Her tone was probably the most venomous Serinina had ever heard her sister use, and Serinina had to concede. “I understand, Sister. He will be better in how he treats women from now on. If he learns the lesson, I am trying to teach him, and I think he's starting to. But he will also learn that some of the women he's hurt won't care how he has changed. They were too hurt to accept an apology. All he can do is be better and make sure he does not hurt any other women. Some wounds go too deep, Cassandra,”

“Yes,” Cassandra replied, looking up sharply.

Serinina continued, “I understand that some hurt goes too deep. It's just sad that sometimes those wounds can be inflicted by other women as well as men. Most of my suffering was inflicted by the hands of vindictive women when I was an innocent boy.”

“I never said there weren’t women just like Ajax,” Cassandra quipped. “We all know there are. And I also didn’t say I wasn’t glad you are going through all of this effort to reform Ajax. It is too late for me, but for all of the women he would have hurt in the future, perhaps some of the women who will accept his forgiveness and form a bond with him makes it worth it. I am unable to accept it, Ajax. I do hope you are strong enough to learn the lesson that Serinina is trying to teach you."

Cassandra looked away for a moment and then said, "Mother is calling for me, we are about to ride out to find Helena.” Cassandra turned and walked away

Serinina took Ajax’s hand and led him toward one of the towers and they walked up the nearly three hundred foot tall tower. It took them almost an hour to make the climb. It was not a strain for Serinina, but it was grueling for Ajax, who had been in good condition for a man. His newly transformed body was not trained for this and he was almost ready to collapse by the time they reached the top.

Serinina smiled to herself. if Ajax thought his life had become rough. But lucky for him, Serinina found a way to prevent Ajax’s new body from humiliating him too much. Serinina felt that Ajax could not endure too much of what a female life entailed. Unlike Ajax, Serinina received a full education on what living life as a female really meant. That including the really messy and humiliating times. That had nearly destroyed her. Ajax would not have to suffer all of that. He would not have to find the proper padding to protect his clothing from the grotesque and humiliating flow that every woman experienced. Serinina had mercy. No one had had mercy on Serinina.

She looked out at the blockading Spartan and Athenian ships. By far, the Athenian ships were the dominant naval force blockading them. They had a much larger fleet, but if they could take out the Spartan navy or turn them, then the Athenians would have no choice but to retreat or face destruction. Serinina looked out past the blockading Greek fleet and saw her navy out past the Greek ships blockading them in, ready to strike whenever they receive the order. Then she looked up at Ajax and smiled, “So are we ready to go?”

Ajax frowned, “Go where?”

“To our ship. The admiral's Quinquereme is right there out past the blockade. Let's go.” Serinina took Ajax's hand and she leaped up into the air dragging a terrified Ajax with her as she sailed hundreds of feet into the air. Serinina went up into the air above the blockading Greek ships, shimmering with her energy directing and empowering her leap. Then she directed her descent onto the enormous Quinquereme flagship of the Amazons.

She pulled Ajax with her as they landed on the main deck in front of the armored female admiral waiting for them. She stepped back as she did not expect this. She thought that the princess would take a fast ship and sail around the blockade to meet them. She should have known the princess and her hubris. Serinina was such a showoff. The older woman rolled her eyes and shook her head in frustration. Then she begged Athena to spare her before facing the princess.

As ordered, a massive number of small Amazonian troop transports full of Amazonian warriors snuck around the Greek fleet and boarded the huge flagship. This was the army she was going to use to board and disable the Spartan fleet.

Serinina looked formidable and ready to face whatever she had to. “Appolonia, you know the plan.” Then, she faced the crew and her assembled captains and commanders of the squadrons and spoke loudly, “Our main target in that large decorated Trireme in the center of the Spartan fleet. Our main job is to capture that ship and its commander. We must disable or capture the ships in the way and any ship that tries to interfere and prevent it. You can destroy them if you must, but try to capture the ships intact and the crew alive. I know we may have to make examples of some of them but capture as many of them as you can. Destroy any other ship that isn’t Spartan. Is everyone clear?”

The women let out a war yell in confirmation of their readiness. Serinina wished she had never doubted a woman's ability to fight. Her experience with the Amazons proved that was so wrong. The women departed to their ships and relayed the orders to their individual crews. The massive Amazonian fleet assembled into attack formation and surged forward into the Spartan fleet. They had a long way to go before they reached the Spartan commander.

The Amazonian ships assembled into battle formations. The ships all aligned in a large V formation with other ships behind them and surged forward to meet the Spartan fleet. Their female rowers were working at a furious pace pushing the ships forward as fast as possible. The bowwomen moved toward the bow of the ships in large rolls on the decks, ready to unleash a storm of arrows. The Amazon bowwomen were the best in the world, and each of them had a specially built bow that no man could pull. Serinina moved in with them, holding her specially built bow. It was made by the great huntress Dianna herself. Her bow was so strong and enchanted that not even any amazon could work Serinina’s bow. They were all ready for battle.

The Spartan commanders saw the Amazons ships assemble into formation for their attack. The Spartan ships surged forward to intercept the attacking fleet and defend their commander.

Serinina knew this was going to be a brutal fight and she resolved to spare as many of the Spartan's as possible. She knew that if they turned the Spartans to their side that the blockade would be broken. The Athenians would be forced to withdraw.

The lead Spartan ship was approaching to attack. It was now time to strike. The ships were still more than five hundred feet apart and closing. It was time and Serinina yelled, “Now.” And the bowwomen unleashed a hail of arrows upon the Spartan ships. Each arrow was deadly accurate and rained down on the Spartan defenders. Some of them struck and killed the Spartan, but most of them landed on the shoulders, arms, or legs disabling each of them. Thousands of Spartans were knocked out of the fight from the debilitating strikes. They lay on the decks screaming and the Amazonian’s continued firing at a furious pace. This was the result of the Amazon's bowwomen’s rigorous and intense training. They drew the bow and fired at such a rapid pace that it looked like a blur. It was like the sky was raining arrows continuously. Serinina’s firing was so fast, that the eye couldn’t possibly see her movements. Her pace was so unnaturally fast, that by the time an Amazonian woman shot an arrow, she had already fired five. The continued rain of arrows proved devastating for the defenders of the Spartan ships.

Serinina knew it was time to intensify the attack, and it was almost time for the boarding action to take place. She had forbidden ramming attacks unless absolutely necessary. Serinina lurched herself high into the air. She somersaulted and landed gracefully on the Spartan galley.

The remaining Spartans surged on her from all sides and she defended herself. Serinina was like a blur on the Spartan deck. Serinina had slain more than half of the Spartan defenders by the time it finally met the Amazonian ship. The Amazons crashed alongside the Spartan ship and smashed through the huge oars on each side. The Spartan ship was dead in the water when the Amazonian ships laid gangplanks on either side of the ship and boarded. The remaining Spartans were overwhelmed, and they surrendered. Then they moved on to the next ship and that is what they did. Each Spartan ship they engaged was quickly disabled and overwhelmed with as few causalities as possible until they finally reached the Spartan commander's ship.

A large part of the Spartan fleet was already disabled and had surrendered by the time the commander's ship was surrounded and boarded from all sides. The huge Spartan force stationed onboard the ship was overwhelmed and disarmed by Serinina before they knew what hit them.

The commander was knocked down with a spear at his throat. Ajax had boarded and was beside Serinina now as they held the Spartan commander prisoner. Serinina ordered him to surrender his ship and fleet, and he was refusing.

This was going to be the very embarrassing part for Ajax. It was his time to act now. He stormed forward with his adult female body putting as much authority as possible to his posture and roared, “As your King and your lord, I order you to surrender yourself, and order your fleet to lay down their arms now. We are defeated, and it would be a waste of lives and resources to fight on, only to die. There is so much more than our honor at stake now.”

“My King,” he spat out at the woman glaring at him. “Sure, my King,” he laughed. “Who are you.”

“I am Ajax, you fool. Don’t you remember me? I sure remember promoting you to commander of our fleet three years ago. I remember the ceremony and those sexy Helot girls we had to celebrate with. Sue and Hecata, I think their names were. I wasn’t really in the mood and you chose the more exotic one from Egypt and she barely survived her night with you. And I granted you this ship you had specially ordered from our shipbuilders. Then our first battle with the Byzantines trying to invade Italy and reform their empire. I remember you crushed those more advanced ships.” Ajax stood over the defeated Commander and shouted, “I am Ajax The Great. You will respect my authority or die like a dog!”

“How can this be possible,” he said in disbelief and terror.

“Serinina is very powerful, and she could demonstrate it on you if you require proof,” Ajax smirked evilly. Serinina let her energy flow, and the Commander shrieked in fear.

He begged, “No, please. I will do as you command, my lord.” Then he stood up and gave the proper orders. “Surrender; the fleet surrenders. Fly the flag and relay the orders, our fleet surrenders.”

The surrender flag was flown on the Spartan’s mast and the rest of the Spartan fleet saw it. Their colors were lowered and replaced with the surrender flag. And now, Sparta was out of the war and began to withdraw.

As the Spartan fleet began to be rearmed by the Amazons, the rest of the Greek states slowly saw the war turn against them. Being outmatched on the sea, the other Greek states saw they were unable to maintain an effective blockade and withdrew. The blockade was broken, and now the Amazons were able to supply Troy. Serinina had won.

“And now, let's meet in Troy. We have much to discuss as we repair the Spartan fleet and rebuild the crews. Commander, we must sail for Sparta as fast as possible to regain control.”

The Amazons celebrated their victory and the break of the blockade as they watched an enormous Greek army assemble and form in front of the gates. The Trojans and Amazons laughed at the pathetic display. They knew any direct attack on the walls was suicide, but the war engines the Greeks were building showed that they did intend to attack the walls.

While the great celebration feast was going on and the lords and ladies were feasting and drinking, Penthesilia was standing alone in another room. She often stayed out of the drinking and celebrating, especially now that she was preparing an expedition to rescue Helena of Troy.

Her daughter walked in with an extremely troubled look on her face. “Mother, I need to talk with you,” said Cassandra. “Seriously, it's about my adopted sister Serinina.”

Penthesilia turned to see a very serious and upset Cassandra. “What is the problem with Serinina,” asked the Queen.

“I am very worried about her and the future. I hoped with our sisterhood and companionship that she would change, but she hasn't. She is still so angry. It really frightens me.”

“Has she done anything to you, Cassandra,” Penthesilia demanded.

“No, never to me,” Replied Cassandra. “She is very sweet toward me and the other women here. She is very kind and so full of compassion. But they all seem to follow her without question. She has some very unnatural ability to rally and get support. That really worries me. That, and the anger that I always feel seething just beneath the surface, I am so afraid.”

“Cassandra,” Penthesilia demanded. “If she has not directed any of this anger at you or anyone else here, then what is your problem? Tell me about your fear!”

“You made her your heir,” Cassandra replied.

“Yes, she deserves it, you will have your crown here at Troy. We will have to fight for it, but we will win. The Greeks are slowly being defeated. Serinina’s brilliance already knocked Sparta out of the fight. The rest will follow. Making Serinina the queen of the Amazons is the will of Athena and Aries. This is without a question, so what is your point?”

“You and I both know what she intends,” Cassandra nearly shouted. “Don’t you see it? That's why simply knocking the Spartans out of this war isn’t enough. She saved as many of them as possible and she's preparing to take them back to Sparta and claim their crown. That won't be enough, she will march into the other Greek cities one by one and make them submit. And then you know what she will do with it all. I will have my crown, but it will be under Serinina.”

“Cassandra,” Penthesilia said harshly, “Serinina is the strongest. You trained beside her. She is the strongest, and you saw her fighting the Spartan's and survive. She killed hundreds of them single handedly before any of the reinforcements arrived. She is the strongest here. She is even stronger and faster than Dianna. And we never thought that was possible. Dianna is the daughter of Zeus!”

Cassandra snorted condescendingly. “Fucking Zeus. There are dozens of sons and daughters of Zeus spread around the world from that horny pig. Yeah, she's strong, but so what?”

Penthesilia laughed. “Dear Cassandra, you really don't understand. No, Zeus didn’t seduce Hippolyta or impregnate her. No. Her daughter Dianna was specially created out of thin air for Hippolyta and given the strength of Zeus himself. And Serinina is stronger and more powerful than Dianna. Serinina is prophesied to defeat the Gods of Olympus.

"Serinina defeated another dark Goddess named Lilith. In defeating her, she absorbed much of her power. Serinina also defeated the Goddess Danis Prognita. Once Serinina realizes the power she can claim, she will be nearly unstoppable. She is angry, but rightfully so because she was abused and her birthright stolen from her. We have protected yours here and Hector won't get it.”

“Mother, I don’t think you realize what I am worried about. Serinina is so power hungry and vengeful. You know that sooner or later, she will direct everything right at her former homeland. I am worried about what she will do to the people there and to her sister Patinea. She is so angry and she has some very cruel plans for that woman.”

Penthesilea smiled darkly. “They deserve it after what they did to her. As for her cruel sister, I say good. Cassandra, do you realize how devoted Ajax has become to Serinina only days after she cruelly transformed and humiliated him? Have you seen that?”

“Yes,” admitted Cassandra, “that's what I was talking about how she can get people to support her.”

“That's because we all see she is so kind and thoughtful. She has a great soul. She transformed Ajax, but she explained why. Then she protected him and promised to treat him right and never humiliate and abuse him. She promised him much if he can endure as female and learn from his mistakes. That endeared Ajax to Serinina, and they have allied themselves to save his homeland.”

"She has proven herself to Ajax. These are things Patinea never did for Serinina. Patinea never transformed Serin for any lesson and she always intended to demean and humiliate Serinina as her little sister. When Serinina learned of all the wrongs he did, and the evils of their priests, he came to understand why Patinea did it and he turned to her side in the struggle. But Patinea didn’t care and she continued to abuse and belittle her sister. She acted like a man in charge and attempted to force her sister into an unwanted marriage.”

"I am with Serinina here. Those people need a lesson, and you should stand by your sister on this. They were so wrong. I will be proud when our armies crash onto the beaches of the Golden Isles. But we have a long time until then. You stand by your sister and help her in any way you can. Please don’t try to betray her like Patinea did. She has the firm support of all of the Lords here. It would be so stupid and would not end up as it did in the Golden Isles. They will turn on you if you try to seize her crown.”

“I would never even consider that,” Cassandra said firmly.

“You better not, bitch!” A loud voice said from the door as Emily walked in with a furious look on her face. “Serinina is angry, and she is right to be angry. I am also angry. There is a reckoning. It is prophecy, and the Goddess fully supports Serinina here. And she is in love with Lord Aries. Cassandra, please don’t be a fool. If you betray Serinina like her other family did, I swear I will kill you!”

The Prophet

Serininas begins to reveal her grand plan to contront her sister and reclaim what was taken from her. Some have serious questions about her plan

This was the moment that fulfilled Serinina’s life. This was what she had been waiting many long years for. Serinina had been subjected to so much suffering when her crown was stolen from her many years ago. Serinina had survived and she had finally achieved her destiny. She was about to be crowned, but not in the way she had ever envisioned.

This was a totally unprecedented event. It was as unprecedented as when Patinea was crowned in her homeland. Few people were prepared to crown a female as their sovereign leader, and new protocols had to be developed to crown a girl. It was felt it was inappropriate for men to dress and prepare a girl. Women were brought from Sparta to assist her. One of those women was Ajax's own wife, Archippe who was the present Queen of Sparta.

Crowning a new queen of Sparta that would hold sovereignty over Sparta in place of a king was unprecedented. The King was usually chosen by a few powerful houses and approved by the warrior caste. The warrior caste mostly destroyed now.

Archippe wanted a brief word with Serinina before they began. So Serinina stood there alone in her bedroom for several long minutes, dreading what was coming. The door to her bedroom opened and a breathtaking woman glided in with such grace that she felt she could never move that way. And she had extensive classes in feminine grace. Her face almost glowed from the beauty she possessed and long golden locks of braided hair fell down her back. She was very tall and stood towering two feet over Serinina, of course Serinina was just about fourteen now. She still doubted she would ever reach six feet tall. Even Patinea was not that tall as she stood a little under six feet tall. Serinina was cursed to be small and petite and they wondered why she regarded this as a curse on her life rather than a blessing. That's why Serinina silently swore once again to murder the Goddess for what she did to her.

The stunning woman was draped in an elaborate chiton that hung loosely over one shoulder. It was held to her by a golden braided rope tied just under her breasts and crisscrossed them in the middle. A beautiful gold-laced cloak they called a himation covered her chiton. Serinina felt a little intimidated but did her best not to show it. The woman didn’t look angry or upset in any way. Serinina thought that Archippe would be outraged.

“I had a long discussion with my, um, I guess I should still call him my husband, Ajax. We talked about what you did to him and why, and all of that. I was going to be angry at you, but he begged me to hold my temper. He said he is not angry anymore. He agreed with what you did and I do admit that he has made a lot of progress. His attitude is so much better. So I am not angry at you at all Serinina. Ajax understands why you did it and he feels he is better for it. I agree he is better for it. And now we face this defining moment in our nation. We will crown a Queen in place of a King. I couldn’t be happier.”

Serinina blinked in shock and her jaw nearly dropped as Archippe giggled at her surprise. “Don’t look so shocked, my Queen,” Archippe giggled. “We may breed strong women like me and train us to fight and stand equal to our men. We still have a long way to go toward true equality and what my husband could get away with shows that. Ajax deserved what you did, and even he sees that now.”

Then she turned her glare fully on Serinina and spoke in an iron tone. “And you should also see what was done to you is something you needed and deserved. And it has caused you to grow and mature in the way you did. That the women who did this didn’t curse you. It empowered and helped you grow and they did what they had to for you to see the injustice they lived under. Just like you did to Ajax.”

“I do see that,” Serinina admitted. “but unlike my motive, teaching me the injustice the women lived under wasn’t the witch's motive. They simply wanted to humiliate and ridicule me. They wanted me to be weak. I never abused your husband. Teaching him was my motive, and he understands. Proof of that is how he begged you not to be angry or lash out at me. My sister and her witches were cruel to me and I cannot regard what they did as anything but a curse. I did grow, and I did learn a lesson, but it made no difference to them. They didn’t care about me in any way. I was just something for them to destroy and walk over on their path. That’s why I am angry. There was very little difference from the way Patinea acted and the Ajax that you married. She even forcefully seduced and forced men into relationships with her. I loved one of those men she stole. She flaunted that relationship in my face. And then she resolved to get rid of me by forcing me into an unwanted marriage after I was raped. Do you now understand, Archippe.”

The larger woman lurched forward and tightly embraced Serinina. “I am so sorry for what you suffered. There are many vicious women in the world. I am proud to be part of your redemption. Let's get this started.”

Ajax had taught the women how to prepare Serinina for the coronation ceremony that was being prepared at the Temple to Athena. This was going to be a more informal ceremony. They were going to have a grand and very formal ceremony at the magnificent temple of Ares in Sparta in full view of the Nobles and warrior caste.

Serinina was quickly disrobed of her Amazonian attire and quickly dressed as a spartan noblewoman. Archippe and her friend draped a loose-fitting chiton over her body. It hung on one of her shoulders. Then they had to make Serinina look like one of their warrior caste and that meant putting her in the usual spartan armor. They had no armor that would fit the form of a woman. Ares himself helped with that. He brought custom designed bronze armor made at a forge in Olympus and blessed by Hera and Athena. Serinina was jealous of the armor the witches made for Patinea that glowed with the power of the Goddess. She was now being fitted with armor made and blessed by the hand of Ares himself. Most of the women there considered Ares her fiance. A glowing bronze breastplate was strapped on Serinina’s chest that gave enough room on top for her very ample assets. Her breastplate shimmered with the sheer power of Olympus itself. Hera had embedded it with her power. Serinina lifted her legs as the women slid the armored boots on her feet with the bronze shin guards and, finally, the usual spartan helmet with the brilliant red plums on the top. She now looked like a seasoned spartan warrior. A large bronze shield with the spartan Lacedaemon symbol and a large bronze spear finished the look.

Serinina felt the raw electrical energy flowing through her body. She felt that she could fire off a devastating bolt of lightning. She felt so powerful, that she could go to her homeland and take out every single Hekatin with a single blast of her lightning. Still, the Hekatin deserved to suffer much more than a quick death. She wanted to watch the Hekatin all burning alive while tied to a stake. Then she may resurrect them just to do it over again. Serinina heard that the Romans had fed traitors to animals in their arenas during their distant past. Serinina may revive that practice to employ on the Hekatin. That would be very fun to witness. She has also heard about a much more sadistic and painful method of execution they called crucifixion. Serinina didn’t know what it was exactly, but she heard it was one of the most painful methods of execution. Serinina was going to find out what it was. What she had heard was that it involved nails driven through the victim's hands. Thinking of driving nails through the hands of Falconette, Fawnae and Actonia brought a smile to her face. Then doing it to all of the Hekatin. Then every noble that betrayed her and their sons sold into slavery.

Ares, Ajax, and his wife Archippe reentered the room where she stood alone. Ajax turned to Serinina and said, “Serinina, you will be crowned in my place, but we need to discuss something vital about the politics of Sparta. There are some things about the politics of Sparta you need to be aware of. This is vital, okay, Serinina?”

“Yes,” she replied unsure, “What do I need to know?”

“I am only one of two the Kings of Sparta,” Ajax informed Serinina. “I am a King of the Agaid house. There is another king of Sparta that rules alongside me. This is so power isn’t held by only one person. I must rule with another king from the Eurypontid house. The other King's name is Demaratus. I have ruled alongside him, and that is how it has always worked. My wife ruled in my name during my absence, so in essence, she co-ruled with Demaratus.”

Archippe said sourly, “And he has suddenly turned into such a sexist ass lately.” She spate out rudely.

“Demaratus says women are too emotional to rule. He told me to my face that females are not fit to rule because we are too emotionally driven to be rational. He has never been like that before.”

Serinina's eyes widened with a knowing smirk. One of her thinly arched eyebrows rose. “That’s what he says,” Serinina replied. “Hmm, I am glad we will be meeting this guy then. He really sounds like someone that I know. Someone who seriously needs an ass-kicking by a woman.” Someone who had already got his ass kicked by a woman. If this was who she thought he was. His ruse failed at the Golden Isles, and now he's trying it in Sparta.

“Demaratus was informed that I was abdicating following my armies defeat. We informed him that you were going to be crowned in my place. He still thinks he will retain his crown and rule with you. He said something about women being weak, and how he will be able to control them. My wife tried to inform him that you were going to be Sparta’s sole ruler. Still, he disagreed and said something about women being unfit. I know you were never one to follow tradition, so I needed to apprise you that he will be a problem. And there may be a fight. When we arrive with our loyal warriors, he won't have much power or be able to oppose you with what he has left and, facing a Helot uprising. But, we will see how serious he is.”

Ares spoke up, “I seriously doubt that Demaratus will be much trouble. He will see it when we arrive and I really don’t see him wanting to fight it out. If he does, I will tell him to stand down, I really doubt he will dare stand against me and Olympus. If he does, he will not be supported by any of the warrior caste, and he will stand alone. They will likely depose him then. Serinina, there won't be a fight when you arrive on the shores of Sparta. You will be the sole ruler of Sparta, and then all of Greece.”

Ares did not seem not to know who Demaaratus really was, for the moment and Serinina simply laughed. “Lord Ares, I think this man isn't who he says he is, and I think this will mean some trouble” she pointed out. “This Demaratus sounds very much like an asshole I used to follow in my homeland. I do doubt he will be too much trouble for you and me to handle. I am sure he will want to fight to retain his position. I will only be too happy to show him the fight he wants, and take the crown from him.”

Ares considered everything and had the feeling that Serinina knew more than she was revealing for the moment. He gave her a knowing smile and then got the same suspicion himself. “If this is who we think it is, this is just too funny.” Then Ares began laughing. He showed a wicked grin and said, “This is going to be fun. But, Serinina, I think there is something you want, something has been on your mind.”

Serinina looked into Ares's eyes and said, “I want to ask you after my crowning. But, you know what it is, before I ask, what will you say?”

“I will say Yes,” Ares replied.

Serinina was told that it was time to begin the ceremony. She was led down the ancient cobblestone street and into the Grand Temple of Athena. She was led to the raised podium and stood there with Penthesilia and her daughter Princess Cassandra.

Serinina began suffering from traumatic flashbacks from the previous devastating coronation at Denaerk. She remembered standing there on the platform before the temple of Maxis, the witches were there, with her sister Patinea and his mother Aanya, along with many other women who prevented his crowning by transforming him into a girl. The witches transformed the boy and gave the crown to his elder sister. He began feeling the entire event in horrifying flashbacks.

Serinina began trembling, but Ares reassured her that it could not happen now. She would get the crown of Sparta, and anyone who stood in her way would be crushed. Even after being reassured, she still had weaker flashbacks as she looked out at a sea of Spartan warriors and nobles. The Spartans were accompanied by a larger sea of Amazonian warriors and their nobles. Dianna had walked up to them to oversee the crowning of a spartan queen. Serinina stood there proudly wearing her spartan armor and the customary red cape and her plumed spartan helmet.

Ajax, his wife Archippe and more of the spartan noblewomen that assisted in Serinina’s preparation were there for this coronation.

One of the priests of the Temple of Ares was brought here to lead the coronation of Serinina. Serinina was still having weaker flashbacks as Serin when Patinea muttered something in the language of Prognita and touched his shoulder. Serin thought it was a gesture of support for him, but then an unpleasant tingling spread through his entire body. Serin suddenly found himself unable to speak through the feeling of being transformed. Then he felt pain and collapsed.

Serinina began trembling as she remembered the horrifying event. Ares calmed her again and reminded her that everyone here supported her now. She was going to get the crown of Sparta and there was nothing to fear. Serinina forced herself to calm down.

Ares’s Warpriest approached the platform and loudly announced, “We are here on this momentous event for our great State of Sparta. We should all be proud to be witness to this great event in our nation. Serinina Denae The Great, is here to accept the crown of Sacred Sparta.” He shouted to the sea of warriors who raised their spears with a great spartan warrior yell.

The Warpriest held a golden spear and an elaborately decorated spartan helmet encrusted with brilliant colorful plumes on the ridge and inscribed on its top. This was the helmet of the King. The King didn’t actually get a crown in Sparta. She would get one sooner or later. Her ordinary warrior's helmet was lifted off her head. The warpriest of Ares said with emotion and pride, “I crown Serinina Denae, the sole Queen of Sacred Sparta! By divine judgment of Ares and Athena, Serinina Denae is the sole Queen of Sparta, ruler of our country, and leader of the house of Agaid and Eurypontid. All hail our Queen Serenina Denae.” He lifted his fist in the air.

All of the warriors at once shouted, “Haua.” And raised their spears. Serinina heard a great deafening shout, “Long live our queen, Serinina Denae.”

She lifted her golden spear in the air and brilliant bolts of lightning struck across the sky with a deafening thunderclap. Then several rained down on Serinina, electrifying her. Blinding blue-white flashes coursed through her body. It looked frightening as she stood there unharmed as she held her fists in the air. She clearly did carry the authority of Olympus itself this day.

“Then she shouted, Haua.” Trying to imitate a typical spartan warrior cry. Ajax just rolled his eyes and muttered to her, “Um no, please, that was embarrassing.” She couldn’t imitate a spartan war cry with her high pitched girlish teakettle like voice that the Goddess cursed her with. In her anger, an even larger and more massive bolt struck from the sky, and she silently said, “I will destroy you, Prognita.”

“Under my leadership, I will preserve Sparta and make you the greatest state in the Greek nation. We will rule the Greeks as one mighty nation. We will march into Athens, then Argos, then Syracuse, Corinth and Rhodes. They will all kneel before the might of Sparta! One united Greek nation will be the power that makes Europe tremble. Even the mighty King Clovis of the Franks will kneel before us. This marks the beginning of a new era.”

The spartan warriors yelled again in unison. Cassandra began seeing the real Serinina and silently sent a vile curse toward Patinea for creating this. She had a feeling that this would not end with simply uniting Greece under her. She suspected that Serinina had greater ambitions in Europe. Or else, how would she safely transport an army of tens of thousands to her homeland on unstable and really not seaworthy triremes that would take a month.

Then, Serinina turned toward Ares and decided it was time. “Lord Ares, will you take my hand in marriage and be my beloved husband.” She looked into the mighty lord's eyes, hopefully.

“Yes, my love,” He replied. “but, not while we unite Greece. I know you are older and much stronger than you look. Let's wait until you are fifteen. I will marry you when we reach your homeland and you dedicate one of the temples of Maxis to Me.” Ares added.

“I agree, Maxis will be pissed,” Serinina giggled. Then Ares also laughed. “He probably didn’t like the Goddess knocking his statues down either or what Patinea did, but he is a weak bitch. We will also dedicate one of the temples of Prognita to Athena. That ancient fallen temple the girls always play at. We can dedicate that one to my sister Athena.”

She wondered how her people would react to all of this, but Serinina didn’t really care how they felt. None of them gave a rat’s ass how she felt by having her entire life changed against her will when she was a boy suddenly forced into the life of a helpless maiden princess. They can deal with these changes to their faith, or they can die as traitors. She didn’t really care. These were her people now. These are the people who really support and care about her. The people of her homeland cast her out and betrayed her. They can live or die, she didn’t care which. “We are engaged, I will be Serinina Ares.” Shouted Serinina. “Now, let's celebrate. For tomorrow, we sail toward Sparta. Celebrate, eat, feast for our upcoming victory. For tomorrow we sail to war and our destiny of uniting Greece.”

Serinina largely sat alone during the grand celebration of their victory and the breaking of the Greek blockade. Now, the Amazons could supply Troy, and they could hold off indefinitely. Others could handle the defenses now as Serinina was going to Sparta and subjugate the other Greek states. They held a great feast in celebration.

Now, she sat at the table alone, reminiscing about the battles she had fought. She had finally achieved the life she had long for. She had made herself into a great leader and a seasoned warrior. She also felt very traumatized and sad. The first taste of war was a horror that brought her nightmares. She had come upon a burnt-out town with the slain bodies of the villagers, stench, and flies.

Serinina had fought a desperate battle totally outnumbered and trapped. It was her strength and her brilliance that kept the battle from being a total defeat, and they had lost a portion of their forces defeating the Spartan. It wasn’t easy and then they fought onboard ships in a massive naval battle.

This was what total war was all about. Serinina highly doubted that Patinea had ever faced the shit she was now facing. Patinea always fought from a position of almost overwhelming superiority. Patinea was the King on an isolated island putting down feeble rebellions by a power-hungry lady Ansay. Serinina was fighting the total combined strength of the united Greek states, all directed against her, and she had come out victorious. She wondered how Patinea would do in this war. Serinina didn't know, but she would like to know. Then she heard a voice beside her. Serinina turned to see a beautiful Athena who said, “Patinea would not stand a chance. She is smart, but she is not as smart as you are, Serinina. She is strong, but she isn’t as strong as you are. Patinea has nowhere near your skills at leadership. Patinea’s army simply followed her out of fear, for she had the crown. Your army follows you because of your inspiration and guidance. Patinea would have lead her army into a defeat, and she would likely not have survived. That is why I support you, Serinina.”

Serinina gave secret orders that night to upgrade the weapons of their triremes, including the surrendered spartan ships. Then, Serinina called a meeting of the Lords of the Amazonian’s to announce some of her future plans so they would be ready. Serinina had already heard that some of them were already very unhappy because of the course Serinina had set them on.

She arrived at the royal council chamber. The women were seated around a large round table with her mother, the Queen sitting at the dais. Penthesilia, along with her daughter Cassandra sitting at her right.
Lady Hippolyta was sitting on Penthesilia’s left with her daughter Dianna. Dianna was a fierce-looking girl of around sixteen with black hair and olive skin. Then there was Lady Antibrote seated on Cassandra’s right. This woman looked more Nubian than any of the other typical Greek or roman looking women. Her isles were below Hippolyta, and both women had enormous armies of elite trained Hoplite’s and Antibrote also had many forges that made the enchanted weapons and armor the women used. They were always trying to find larger deposits of iron and ore. Lady Alcibie and Theodora were seated on Antibrote’s right and near the center across from the Queen. Their isles were to the west and there wasn’t much iron ore to mine. If there were then, Antibrote would be wanting rights to extract the ore for the forges. Ancibie had vast fertile farmlands which fed most of the Amazons.

Serinina stood behind her mother as the ladies and nobles waited. Then she spoke to them all. “I have decided to set our people on a new course with our involvement with the Spartan. I know this is unusual.

Hippolyta spoke with a deep frown of disapproval. “Yes, you have, indeed. We have defeated the Greeks already, but yet you are planning an expedition to land our forces in Sparta. And this isn’t in any defensive measure. It’s a military occupation and a subjugation of the Spartan people, and it won't end there. You are planning to march into every Greek city-state. This is not our way. How can our Queen allow this?” Hippolyta demanded looking at the Queen.

“They have attacked us, and attacked our allies. I know conquering lands in Europe to in order to expand isn’t our way. But, it is the will of Serinina, and she is favored by Athena. The Goddess had decided it’s time to go into Europe and let our culture be known. Hippolyta, do you want to argue with Athena?”

Hippolyta backed down from Serinina's fierce look. “This has never been Athena's will, I just don’t understand, but this is a perilous move that will have consequences. And it won't even end with the Greek states. I heard you have designs on Clovis and the Franks. It might be the will of Athena, but it seems wrong.”

“This is her will and even you said you would love to land our army on the shores of my homeland after you were told what their King did to me. Are you having second thoughts?”

“I said I would love to,” Replied Hippolyta, “but, not that I would. If you intend to lead us on that path, then we must follow. Is this what you wished to discuss?”

“None of these moves are up for discussion. They will be carried out. I have another matter that I wished to discuss. Actually, I was just going to inform you all. This isn’t up for discussion, either. Sooner or later, we will be in a position to move against the Golden Isles. And when we are finally in a position to land forces in the Golden Isles. I am informing you that the civilians and the people are to be considered exempt from our usual rules of treatment of civilian populations in occupied areas.”

The look of horror spread among all of the ladies. It told Serinina that they fully understood the meaning and her intentions. “Serinina,” gasp Dianna. “We have always had mercy on civilians unless they show us otherwise, especially the women that wish it. This is something we simply can't agree with you.”

“Yes, you can,” replied Serinina in a tone laced with iron. “I speak for Athena and Ares here. The civilians in the Golden Isles won't be treated with mercy of any kind. They are exempt from our standards of treatment. They are all considered hostile. That includes the females. They are allied with the men and will follow men's ways. I know, I was there.”

“But didn’t the girls all support and make friends with you,” Asked Dianna with Cassandra nodding.

“Yes,” replied Serinina, “they supported me after I was transformed. But none of them stood up for me when I was transformed by my sister. None of the girls disapproved of how I was being treated. They didn’t disapprove of what was done to me. They were all behind Patinea and the witches. They are all hostile and to be classified as enemies. Are we clear?” Serinina demanded in a booming voice.

They could try to oppose Serinina’s new direction, but things were very clear. There was no opposing the power Serinina now wielded. Diana suddenly realized with a horrifying icy feeling that if Serinina wanted to seize the crown that there would be little any of them could do to prevent it. What they didn’t realize was that even Athena knew she couldn’t really control Serinina. Athena didn’t approve of Serinina’s course. But with Serinina’s power and her union with Ares, she could do little to stop this thing that was set in motion. That meeting was dismissed and the ladies all left with very puzzled looks on their faces. Serinina turned and left to meet her fiance Ares, and they went into the other room to see the naval commanders waiting for their orders from Serinina.

She stood in front of them and spoke, “Our job now is simple. With the might of the Spartan navy as our allies, we now have overwhelming naval power. The Greek fleet is now of no consequence. But, they are still a possible threat if our fleet sails. Our job is simple, we must destroy them. We no longer have to capture them or save the crews. The fleets of the Athenians, Rhodes, Thebes, and Corinth are to be destroyed. We can leave them enough transports to evacuate their armies when they finally realize that any further struggle is hopeless. That's why I gave orders to arm our galleys and triremes with large ballistas and catapults on the bows. And be aware that Athen’s ships are armed with a secret fire weapon. I suspect they will try a trick when they realize they are defeated. They will probably build a decoy or something to sneak in.”

The commanders yelled in agreement and went out to follow their orders. It was clear, this was going to be simply destruction. There was to be no mercy on the rest of the Greek fleet. The commanders went out to relay the orders to their captains and the crews and they prepared for battle.

The Queen stood on top of the main keep of her castle with her nobles to watch the upcoming naval battle. Most of them knew this was going to be a ruthless attack that was going to result in a massacre. This battle was going to be so one-sided. Serinina was going to have no mercy. She had armed her ships with the most devastating weapons available. She had and had even designed a new class of supership for naval supremacy. It was an enormous ship with six rows of oars on each side and was armed with multiple enlarged catapults on each side and its main deck had iron plating. Its bow and stern had raised decks for additional trebuchets and places for bowsmen and bowwomen to rain down arrows on the enemy decks. The new class of ship was like a galleon before the age of galleons. It looked like a first-rate ship of the line like Nelsons Victory. Serinina’s fleet had three of the superships ready for the upcoming battle.

Serinina had also given secret orders for their ships to sail to the isles and hide. The ships docked on another island to rearm and resupply. The fleet remained docked overnight during the grand celebration and coronation. Serinina had ordered the fleet to sail around in the morning and blockade the remaining Greek ships.

The Greeks had fallen for Serinina's trap when the Amazonian ships sailed around the isles. The Greeks had gone in to blockade Troys harbor, thinking the Amazonians sailed away. The Greeks found themselves trapped when the sun rose that morning.

Serinina flashed a sinister evil grin and said, “There’s no need for subtlety here. The Greeks are trapped between the anvil and the hammer. Destroy them without mercy!”

And that’s what happened. The Greeks attempted to close the distance to employ their fire. The Spartan and Amazonians kept their distance and pounded the Greeks with their long distance ballistae and catapults. Serinina never had to board a Greek ship and directly engage them. She would have loved to zboard and fight them face to face, but that wasn’t the battle plan now. The Greek fleet needed to be destroyed. Serinina remained on her flagship and pointed out the targets for her fleet to attack. The Amazonian and Spartan ships remained in formation and fired into the Greek ships and set them ablaze before they stood a chance. The Greek fleet was a smoldering wreck sinking into the bottom an hour later. Amazon's bowwomen finished off who was left and it was over.

The fleet removed their heavy weapons after it was over so they could move through the water faster. Then the main army divisions boarded the fleet. The heavily armed spartan phalanxes and several of the phalanxes under Serinina boarded, and they set sail to Sparta. The Amazonian soldiers were very disturbed by Serinina looking like the Spartan warriors she stood by. Serinina was donned in a traditional spartan red cape, spartan bronze armor and her royal helmet. She looked every bit a seasoned spartan soldier and King. The Amazonian women were very unhappy at Serinina’s choice of attire.

Her huge fleet loaded with spartan and amazonian soldiers sailed toward Marathon. The drummers below decks were setting a slow pace to keep the rowers from tiring too quickly and the fleet was off. Serinina stood proudly on the bow, looking off into the distance and doing all she could to keep her fleet safe. Ares stood beside her holding her hand affectionately. They embraced each other, and passionately kissed. Ares said he was going to visit Sparta and see if he could reason with Demaratus before they arrived. He smiled and suspected she knew something that she wasn't revealing, and he resolved to find out what she was laughing about. Ares leaped into the air and vanished into the distance. All that was left was for her to maintain her command and keep her people safe. This was still a lot of responsibility to put on someone like her. This was the way of the amazon and the way of the warrior. This was the life she had chosen. It was more like it chose her, but either way, this was the life that she wanted. It was horrible when the warrior's life was stolen from her, she was glad it had been returned.

Maintaining her presence and making sure everyone was safe and doing their duty was a massive task. She did her rounds as the Queen and consulted with her officers and various generals. She kept watch for pirates and various Greek raiders that may try to interfere with the fleet. Nothing really happened. A storm threatened them once along the way, but she waved it back and prevented it from forming. Ares returned a day later into the voyage, nearly laughing in hysteria. This was funny and Serinina knew that he also knew about Demaratus now. They both began laughing uncontrollably.

Serinina inquired, “So you know who he really is?”

Ares smirked knowingly, “Yes, fucking Maxis. I can't believe he's trying to pull this on the Spartan. Some of them are very reluctantly following him. His misogynistic teachings are slowly taking hold, but not much. It simply isn't the Spartan way. Give him a few centuries, and the way of Maxis may become the way of Sparta. He’s encountering a lot of resistance now. They are just too afraid to confront their King, and he has power they fear. A few noble Spartans have turned to his way. But, not many. I just can't believe the God Maxis is trying this.”

“Neither can I,” Serinina was having giggle fits. It was just too funny. “You are the real god that men and warriors should follow. Maxis never had a place teaching young boys how to live like men. His corrupt teachings are what led to the hell that my life became when his religion fell. I am so pissed at him,” Serinina saw red thinking about Maxis and what his religion led to in her life. “His bullshit is what led to the destruction of my entire life. I will get my revenge and make him feel what I felt.” Her fists were tight with rage.

“Indeed, you will,” Ares smirked. “I have no doubt you can defeat him. His power is mostly gone. The Goddess is quickly regaining her power. Her witch moon is mere years away from reappearing in our night skies. Maxis knows it and feels his power shrinking. You can easily defeat him. It's going to be great. Then you will be crowned in Sparta. Long live the Queen.”

Serinina also realized that this was also going to include many of the tedious administrative details that exhausted her as a sixteen-year-old boy. Those details drove him mad. Those were also going to become her duties as the Queen of Sparta. Of course, Sparta was only a city state and it was nowhere near as massive as the Golden Isles. She fully intended on expanding her kingdom to every city-state in Greece. The entire nation of Greece was much larger than the Golden Isles. Greece’s population dwarfed the population of the Golden Isles.

So Serinina waited another three long days on the pitching deck of her massive Quinquereme warship while maintaining the welfare of her crew and her soldiers.

She saw the army waiting for her when they arrived at the Marathon three days later and they began offloading their troops by the thousands. By contrast, the army awaiting them was pathetic, and she could tell there were many on the fly conscripts that had little to no training. She even guessed that Maxis and the Spartan forced some of the poor helots to fight for them. This was going to be a complete massacre if they had to engage.

Maxis and his army stood no chance against her seasoned troops. Her troops were offloaded and moved into formation. The experience and training of her forces shinned when they all assembled into a phalanx as one and raised their shields as one massive wall. Serinina took her position at the front and center of her phalanx and then moved forward to take a look at what they opposed.

Serinina observed the enemy formation with a clear look of disgust on her face. They were unready. Many of them were poorly trained compared to her unit. Maxis’s troops stood no chance, and most of them knew it. She loudly called, “Do you all really want to fight for the false King and die where you stand? Think about it. You stand no chance!”

Maxis yelled loudly, “Silence, woman, you have no place among honored warriors. You and the women standing by you daring to fight with Spartan traitors bring dishonor and shame to them.”

It took all of Serinina’s effort to repress her giggles at this buffoon leading his men. She replied, “Silence Maxis. You are a deceiver and a coward. You brought dishonor to all who follow you.”

When he tried to protest, Serinina shouted even louder. “Has Demaratus ever disrespected women in the past? Does Spartan society dishonor noblewomen and queens? And what has this man began teaching you all, and how does he regard women fighting among the ranks and holding positions of power.”

She saw that she was making sense, and the men across from them were beginning to have serious questions. But, the man wasn’t going to go down easy, and he began to talk, and Serinina decided to let him talk.

“Silence woman,” He yelled at her. “We will not hear your emotional nonsense and deception. You have no place speaking to men like that. Ajax, look what you have allowed yourself to become. How has this witch diminished you?” Serinina saw the men abandoning Maxis. There was going to be no battle this day. They knew they could not stand with him now.

Now was the time to drive it all home. Serinina's voice became a condescending sneer, ”Maxis, the weak fallen God, and you expected to reform Spartan Society in your image?” She laughed at his face standing there alone, holding his sword. “What made you think you could come here and spread your religion in Sparta? My homeland still follows you. Your religion still had an iron grip on everyone. But, you do feel your power diminishing, and you know there's nothing you can do to stop it. You know that, don’t you?”

Maxis stood alone, facing this angry and condescending woman. He knew she spoke the truth. “Yeah, they are stupid and they will fall. Just like you were, you were shown to be unworthy. Everyone saw what happened to you. Those moronic priests have no clue.”

“Of course not, but neither did you, Maxis,” Serinina roared. “It was easy to spread your corruption at first, considering what the men were enduring. They would follow anyone who helped them break out of it. Helpless, desperate men wanting freedom and power over their lives. You knew what you had set up couldn't last. Once the Goddess began regaining her power. You knew you stood no chance and you felt your grip weakening every day. It’s still laughable that you think you could have come here. let's fight, Maxis.”

Serinina stormed forward, facing Maxis with a hateful glare. “You and me, or are you too cowardly to face me in open combat?”

Maxis felt like laughing, but he began to really sense the power of this woman. He at least had to keep up the pretenses of his male superiority. “Woman,” He said arrogantly. “You know you stand no chance against a man, or a god. You had best stand down. You have no place trying to be a warrior.”

“That's what you believe, and that's what you had me believing, Maxis,” Serinina said as he approached the armored man. She laughed, angering him even more. ”So you are the one who wants to set the standard on what it means to be a man!” Serinina shouted in a laugh. “You, little man Maxis. You think you are worthy to set up institutions to teach boys how to be men. Your boy's temples, and the rules you set. I believed in you and I can't believe I believed in you. I can hardly believe you were able to achieve what you did for so long. You had little opposition. Now, I feel nothing but shame in what you had me believing about women. Ares is a real man. You are nothing, Maxis.”

“I firmly believed in everything you taught us about a woman’s place and a man's role. And everything you had me believing led directly to my doom. My suffering was your doing, Maxis. You taught us that junk about women. Everything you taught was a lie. Your system you had us living under was unsustainable. You are so weak that when the Goddess began regaining her power, you were unable to maintain yours over the land. You were unable to protect me from their power. And I’m glad for that, or I would never have learned that everything taught by you was a lie.”

“So you admit that you were unworthy of living life as a real man,” Maxis boasted confidently.

“NO,” Said Serinina, “except for your corrupt teachings. I was worthy if not for your corruption on my life, but I had to be changed. I needed to be taught a lesson because of your teachings. I had a lot to relearn. It involved suffering and unbelievable humiliation at the hands of the witches and my own sister hating me. Thanks for that, by the way. If it had never happen, then I would not have learned a thing. I would not have grown and learned. And the women of my homeland would continue to suffer and live lives of oppression under your servants. So it is good that what happened to me happened. And I suffered because of your nonsense. It is all your doing. You made it happen and you are weak. You failed to protect me and you failed to protect your temples and your servants. Your religion will fall at the hands of my sister. And to that, I say good.”

Maxis could not believe that these men were letting her speak and even follow her after all of this. He simply did not understand Spartan society at all. Maxis had to admit that Serinina had become an extremely formidable woman.

“So,” Serinina boasted, “because of that I suffered due to you and what you taught us. Everything that happened is your doing. Your teachings made me unfit to be King. Your teachings made me hated. It made us all hated. I will make you suffer in humiliation. You will be defeated by a woman. That is something you should be used to by now,” A girlish giggle escaped from her mouth. “Prognita defeated you and destroyed your statue. She brought me down to a princess, showing you were unable to protect me. That signified your defeat to the entire kingdom. Then my sister destroyed your temple and rounded up your priests after three assassination attempts. Patinea made your head priest flee, disguised as a woman. And now, I will personally defeat you personally. I will have my revenge for what I have suffered.” Then she held out her spear, and Maxis started seeing the electrical energy coursing through her armor and her spear. He started to see the power of Hera and Olympus inside her. He knew he stood little chance against Serinina now.

“You had me believing women were unable to fight. I saw my sister fight, and as a woman, I saw that I can fight. Then I saw all of these amazon women fighting very effectively. Then I led them to crush an army of thirty thousand Spartans. They will take control of Sparta, and I will reign as Queen. After I kick your ass, unless you want to flee. We will meet later if you flee as a coward.”

“I will never flee a woman,” He boasted arrogantly, knowing he was about to be humiliated by this vengeful woman. Serinina blamed him for all of her suffering in her life. His male pride could not allow him to withdraw from a woman’s challenge.

Serinina raised her spear and shield and prepared for combat. “You determined that I was unworthy to be King after my transformation to a girl. You offered me no support after a lifetime of loyalty to you. You thought because I was made into a girl that it made me unworthy. I will prove to you that I was even more worthy as a girl, Maxis. You are one who is unworthy.”

That had already been proven to the Spartan beyond all doubt. None of them stood by him any longer. This was a pointless exercise. She didn’t need to humiliate him by a trial by combat to prove his unworthiness and destroy his credibility. That has already been done. Serinina was pissed at Maxis and simply wanted to show her superiority over the idiotic misogynist that led her to all of her suffering with his moronic teachings. Maxis knew he stood no chance against her now, but he had to try.

Serinina closed the distance and began lashing at him with her spear, holding her shield ready to defend against any counterattack. He easily blocked her attacks and he countered with a series of his own, that she easily countered.

The battle was way too fast for any of the humans to really see. The strikes and counterstrikes were a blur to their eyes. Ares watched with an amused grin and knew that Serinina was simply prolonging the battle. She was just playing with Maxis and letting him think he was better than he really was. She wanted Maxis to believe he was holding his own against her. Serinina could have shut him down within the first seconds of the battle. This was just fun for Serinina. Let him think he is doing good, his fall will be that much more devastating.

Serinina seemed to slow down and left openings for Maxis to exploit. He was unable to take advantage of her deliberate errors. He couldn’t take advantage of her lure. Serinina began making more apparent mistakes and Maxis suddenly saw the openings. Maxis lunged in to exploit her error. That was his mistake, and she pivoted avoiding his strike and struck down on his sword with her spear. Her spear shattered his blade. Maxis’s sword shattered into pieces. Then she took the hilt of his sword and tore it from his stunned hand. Maxis was effectively disarmed, and he saw what she had done. She had made obvious mistakes and lured him into a false sense of superiority over the woman. With Maxis disarmed and defenseless, she took full advantage of it by bashing him across the side of his head with her spear, then his body and swept his legs.

She started to see him reach for his godlike power to strike her. Serinina simply let her power flow. Maxis withered when he saw the raw electrical power course through him and spark at her fingertips. “If you want to fight that way, I am ready, Maxis.” Then a huge powerful bolt of lightning struck from the sky very near him. He felt the heat from the blast and withered in fear. Maxis was afraid.

Then she dropped her spear and said, “Since you have no weapon, let's fight without weapons, Maxis. let's see if you can overpower a defenseless girl.”

They heard some of the Spartans chuckle bitterly. They knew that Serinina was anything but a defenseless girl. Maxis also knew it. Maxis lunged for her trying to strike her with his fists, and grab her, but she was ready for such an attack and pivoted away from his attempted grab. She reversed it and Maxis soon found himself picked up and slammed on the ground. Serinina knelt over him and struck him across the head. He was hurt. “Let's end this, Ares, can you drain his power?”

He shrugged, “sure, you can too. Maxis is that weak now. I don’t want his corrupted power in me. I don’t need it either.”

“Neither do I, Ares. What do we do?” Replied Serinina.

“Let's summon Hades,” Ares suggested.

No sooner than he said that, a black portal appeared near them and Hades walked through. The sight and smell was revolting. As soon as the disgusting pale slim man walked into their presence, they were overwhelmed by the stench of rotting flesh and death. The Spartan were strong enough to handle it. Most of them were.

“Did someone ask for me?” then he looked at Ares and said, “my nephew, so do you want me to drain this man's power so you can all have your way with him? So this vengeful demigod can teach him a lesson?”

Serinina stepped forward and said, “That's what I want, Lord Hades.”

Maxis was beyond terror right now.

“I would be more than happy to,” Hades replied. “This disgusting fraud. Pretending to be a god, terrifying your people for 700 years by a mere trick while all the time leading them to their doom while the real Goddess regained her power. Knowing it was only a matter of time and when it did, there would be chaos and he would be unable to prevent any of it. You most of all, paid the price for it all being made little more than a sacrifice.” He pointed out the obvious. Then grinned, “Oh yes, I know your rage at the injustice that was inflicted on you and you have handled it great. I don’t blame you for what you want to do to this man. I will do as you requested. I won't ask for any bargain or deal with you in return. Consider it a favor.”

Ares growled. “Of course, you know if you tried to strike a deal with her for your service here that you would have to answer to me and my sister.”

Hades laughed. “My nephew Ares. I am not afraid of you or your sister Athena. Not in the least,” He replied dismissively. “I simply don’t want the conflict. And even Hera has taken a small liking to this girl. I am actually more afraid of her, Serinina than you.” Ares blinked in shock. Hades said, “You will see.”

Hades violently grabbed Maxis and he cried out in pain as they watched his energy being drained from him. What little he possessed was drained instantly. And now he was no more than a helpless mortal man. He began to sob. Maxis had a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach, thinking about what Serinina intended.

Maxis was right, as Serinina swaggered toward him threateningly. Her full power had been ignited. “What I do to you now, Maxis is what was done to me. You should experience it. This is no blessing. I will not use that spell on you because you don’t deserve to be blessed. You will be made into the shape of a girl. You will never have any powers or abilities. You have no merit. You will simply suffer a woman’s life. Maybe the Goddess will have mercy on you when the time comes, but I highly doubt you will ever prove worthy.”

Then she muttered a different spell, and the human male form of Maxis began to transform against his will. He cried out in pain and fear for a second time as his body transformed. His chest expanded into two large soft globes. His hips expanded. His face softened and transformed into a small feminine oval face. His skin softened and his short, coarse hair lengthened into beautiful golden locks. He knelt there, trembling after having been fully transformed into a woman. Hades was long gone by then.

Then Ares shrugged, “Now what do you want to do with him?”

“I know exactly what to do with him, and where to deposit this person.” Serinina grabbed the feminine form of Maxis, and she leaped into the sky. They shot up over two miles into the sky. The two flew all the way across Europe. Then they descended, feeling the heat on their skin from their rapid pace as they descended down. Maxis looked around and noticed they were in Denaerk.

They had landed in a heavily wooded area just outside of the royal palace. Serinina smelled the lavender and violet flowers from the bushes and trees. Serinina stepped over a stream and knew where she had landed. This was the small opening in the forest where Actonia had encouraged Patinea to use her magic. This is where they had cruelly transformed the buck into a doe showing Patinea that it was possible to transform him. This is where it all began for Serinina. She sent a silent thanks toward the Goddess for the enormous gift, then they headed toward the palace.

They came across the stables where the royal family held their horses and she saw Sparkle in her stable. That was the great horse that Patinea refused to allow Actonia to transform because he didn't deserve it. She cared more for the welfare of her horse than her own brother.

Serinina looked cruelly at the great horse and let the electrical power ignite in her eyes and began flowing through her body, to her fingertips. She reached out and gently touched Sparkle and let her lightning flow into her hands and into the horse. The horse shuddered and cried out in pain as he began frying. He was shaking as if from an uncontrollable seizure. Then he collapsed and Serinina had no mercy. He kept frying it until there was nothing left but a smoldering pile of roasted flesh and the stench of burnt hair and horse. Sparkle was cruelly electrocuted to death. She knew that Patinea would be devastated and frightened. That was the entire point. Especially since she cared more for her horse than her brother's life.

Maxis looked on in horror at the cruelty of Serinina and whispered, “Hence what I taught about a woman’s emotions. You really can’t control yours, can you Serinina?”

“Like men are so good at controlling their anger, huh?” She snarled. “But, all of this is thanks to you so give yourself a hand. You deserve the credit.”

They walked out into the streets of Denaerk. People backed away from the frightening sight of a heavily armored fearsome woman carrying a bronze shield with the image of a snaked head and a shining spear walking down the street, holding a larger woman against her will. Maxis saw they were headed toward the girl's conservatory. “This won't end well, you have to know that, Serinina. No one really knows who you are. But you know they won't take well to a warrior woman in full armor walking down their streets.”

“They can’t stop me.” Serinina replied casually. Like she didn’t even care. “How can it not end well?”

“I didn’t mean for you,” Maxis pointed out. “I meant for anyone else. What is the point of all of this?” then he began thinking and it all hit. A terrifying example and some payback may be precisely what she intends. Have mercy on anyone who tries to interfere, and several city guards were now approaching.

One of the lead guards shouted, “Halt, identify yourself!”

“Sure,” Serinina said menacingly. “I am Enyo, Make way!” She commanded.

“Enyo,” the guards drew their weapons. “Stand down and lay down your spear!”

“Come and get it,” Serinina replied threatening. She almost glowed with power as the Olympus lightning coursed through her with audible snaps and popes. The smell of burning air rose around them and the guards backed away as she pointed the electrified spear at them.

Then a large priest interfered, yelling, “Hekatin, witch!” He approached wearing the typical black robe with the flame insignia on his cloak. He thought he could defend himself from her power. He was severely mistaken and they asked, “And who is this poor woman you are holding prisoner?”

She smiled behind her helmet and said, “This girl is Maxis, your god.” She shouted in a condescending sneer.

“Liar, you witch. Seize her,” The warpriest yelled. But they found themselves unable to move. Then a terribly loud series of blinding lightning bolts shot down from the sky next to them all. Serinina smiled under her helmet and roared, “I never lie, little man. What I say is true. I am a goddess. This is your fallen god Maxis. Your religion will fall. Your god has fallen. Now stand aside, or you will die!” A series of deafening thunderclaps sounded, causing the guards to cower and kneel down in fear covering their heads from the roar.

Serinina walked passed the cowering guards and the helpless warpriest who now knew that this woman was likely telling the truth. Maxis now felt so degraded.

“The priests aren’t guilty. That's who you want to make an example for, is it not?” Maxis asked knowingly.

“No, the priests are brutal, but they are all fools. They don’t need me to cause their downfall. They will do that in a few years all on their own. My sister will take care of them when the time comes. You will all pay for your ignorance. Just as I did. I am headed for the girls who thought this was such a good idea. I intend on teaching them otherwise.”

The way she said it was so frightening and casual.

Serinina approached the girl's conservatory. She saw the girls sitting around conversing with each other in the yard in front of the school. She briefly considered killing every single one of them. Serinina didn’t. She just walked into the yard and headed for the cobblestone walkway that led to the doors. It was now time for her example.

Serinina menacingly stood in the yard of the girls school, holding up her electrified spear and spartan shield. She truly looked like a girl out for blood. Her wrath seemed to radiate out in palatable waves. The girls stood back in terror. Serinina briefly considered burning the entire school down, but she decided against it. The girls weren’t used to displays of terrifying displays of magic.

The girls were used to amazing feats of magic and had often seen it from the teachers and high level students. What the girls were seeing now was a power on a level they had never seen before. Blinding bolts rained down from the sky with deafening thunderclaps. The girls shrieked in terror.

Serinina had made her point clear. She roared in an enhanced voice, “I am Lilith, Queen of the nine realms and lord of the Princes’s of Hell. I come to tell you that your religion will fall. There is no hope. Prognita will die. If she is freed, then I will destroy her and claim her realm of Lunis.”

The girls cowered in terror and several teachers heard the commotion and ran out to investigate. The teachers saw the enraged young girl flinging lightning bolts. A pretty pink tiara appeared on her head that looked strangely like the one the royal princess from the house of Denae wore. Falconette tried to regain control. She looked up into the girls face. “Lilith, you look like Princess Serinina Denae. So you have allowed Lilith’s rage to consume you by now? I had hoped for better from a girl as strong as you were.”

“I am what you made me, Professor,” Said Serinina acidly. “Your cruelty and malice created me. You could have left me as the boy I was meant to be, but you couldn’t. You used your magic to transform me and I embraced Lilith for revenge. I will never allow your Goddess to reign. I will destroy her, and I will destroy the Hekatin. That is my destiny. You must all pay for what you have done”

“I doubt even you can withstand her full power,” Falconette boasted.

“If you all ever try to free the Goddess Prognita. Then I will free the Morning Star. Others call him Lucifer. I will free him to the world.” Then Serinina turned her full wrath on the Professor and flung all of the teachers into the stone wall of the conservatory. “You all deserve to pay for your malice and that’s what I am here for.

“We did what we had to, for our freedom and our survival” Falconette groaned in pain as Fawnae struggled to stand up. ”You were an arrogant and entitled boy who refused to understand and you still refuse to understand. Now you embraced an evil force and seek vengeance. I doubt you understand the consequences of what you are doing.”

“I fully understand,” shot Serinina. “My sister received the power of Prognita after being made the vessel of her spirit. She was able to destroy me with no effort, and all of you helped and conspired to destroy me. The innocent boy stood no chance against your power. I deserved a chance to defend myself so I embraced Lilith. Your evil caused this, you only have yourselves to blame.”

“And what do you intend to do?” Lady Fawnae asked in a trembling voice.

“I intend,” replied Serinina, “to show you an example of my power, and what you will soon face. You could have hundreds of witches combining their power, and it would make no difference. I can destroy all of you.”

Serinina pointed her spear at the two women and its lightning power struck out. The Hekatins defenses were totally unable to repel power of that level. The electrical power tore into the women as they screeched in pain.

Serinina threateningly stood over the two frightened women as the smell of their burnt flesh and clothing rose from their bodies. They were moaning in pain. Serinina glared. “It sucks to be helpless, doesn’t it. That’s how you made me feel for over a year. I felt you should all share the feeling. And now…” Serinina rose her spear and brilliant huge bolts of Olympus’s lightning struck the spear electrifying it even more. The women cringed in terror.

The electrical power coursed through Serinina even more menacingly as they saw that she was preparing to end it all with them.

Serinina saw a large armored woman holding a spear appear behind her. This was the Goddess Athena holding a matching spear. But hers wasn't enchanted by Hera.

“Serinina, they all know they made a mistake. You don't need do this. You are terrorizing these girls. Please, don’t do this to them.” Athena pleaded.

Serinina turned to face Athena with pure menace in her eyes. Her power elevated to another level as she stepped forward.

“You dare take these people’s side against me!” Serinina thundered. The force from her voice was terrifying. Her voice shot out with a thunderous blast of air and sound. The girls covered their ears from the blast.

“After what they did? And knowing what evil they did?” Serinina demanded. “How can you side with them now? You are making yourself no better than your father as he plays with people’s lives.” Serinina leapped into the air and twisted her entire body and struck down with her spear. The electrified spear slashed down onto the side of Athenas face. The girls hardly saw the blur and the strike as it was faster than any human eye could see.

Serinina was not done yet. She twisted the spear and struck the other side, and then in a series of five more strikes to various parts of Athena. Who totally collapsed in withering pain.

“Traitor!” Serinina raged. “You betrayed me Athena, just like my family, just like my mother Aanya, just like Patinea, just like the lords that pledged loyalty to my sister. Just like the priests who stood by and refused to help me. You made yourself no better than them.” She pointed her spear at Athena’s body and struck out with its power. Extremely powerful electrical energy blasted out from the tip and tore through Athena. She streaked and withered as the energy kept coursing through her entire body.

As Serinina was taking her wrath on Athena, an even larger man wearing menacing black spiked armor appeared beside her. He laid a gentle armored hand on the girl’s shoulder trying to calm her down. “Serinina, my girl, enough. Athena knows she made an error. Don’t kill her.”

Serinina stopped. “I can’t believe she defended these evil scum!” Serinina spat.

“Me either. She knows these peoples deserve everything you will give them. And she isn’t entirely innocent of a sadistic revenge either. Just ask Medusa. Just have mercy on my sister, please.”

Serinina relaxed, “Okay, get her treated and I hope she learned her lesson.”

“Serinina, why do you think you are so strong,” Lord Ares inquired.

“I don’t really know,” Serinina replied. “I know I studied the dark arts and embraced Lilith but I never even guessed that I would be able to overcome her the way I did.”

Ares turned to her. “I think it’s because you are Lilith’s daughter. Prognita made Patinea her vessel and she saw what would befall you for nothing you did. Hera saw it and arranged for Lilith to claim you at birth. And Hera bestowed much of her power on you. You were able to totally comprehend the very ancient texts that were even older than the Hekatin’s books at the beginning of the age of Prognita. There’s a reason for that. You were able to understand and totally embrace that power. Hera favors you. There’s a reason you are prophesied to destroy the Gods of Olympus. Even Zeus stands no chance against you. He knows what is coming. We all do. I will never make the mistake of betraying you, my queen. I will marry you. Just don’t ever release the morning star. Please.”

“I will if they release Prognita.”

Serinina was preparing to leave. She turned a venomous glare at the withering women trying to relieve the pain that had just been inflicted on her. “Falconette, should a girl be forced to wear a corset if she does not wish to? Should she be beaten and put in a corset if she does not want to wear it?”

Falconette shook her head side to side furiously, “No, of course not. We must wear it. It's part of our culture. We all wear them, but a girl shouldn’t be forced if she does not wish to wear a corset. She will be forced, but it isn’t right.”

“Should she be beaten and put in it if she does not want to wear it?” Falconette inquired with her eyes blazing.

“No, that would be horrible. It happens to girls who try to refuse, but it’s wrong.”

“What about wearing a gown,” Serinina asked Falconette. Lady Fawnae saw the trap that Serinina was setting for Falconette and tried to warn her.

“If a girl does not want to wear a heavy gown, if she wants to wear pants like a boy. Should someone beat her and force her into a gown? Would such an action be correct or wrong?”

“Oolae, Think carefully about your answer. Please!” Lady Fawnae warned.

“No,” Falconette answered firmly. “No girl should be forced to wear anything she does not wish to. That is horrible. It’s what many of us experience as girls. But it is wrong?”

“So, it's wrong. But girls wear dresses, right Falconette. That’s the generalized reasoning here. And it’s part of what it means to live as a young woman, isn’t that right, Falconette? Being a young woman means one must wear a dress to signify they are a girl, or is that reasoning wrong?” Serinina inquired with a victorious smirk. “If a girl refuses to wear a gown and a corset, then they are not really living a girl's life? Is that what you believe Falconette? So if a girl refuses, then she must be forced to live as a young woman? And punished for resisting?”

“No,” Falconette replied. “That is very wrong. I know where this is coming from. When we all agreed that force must be used on Serin after his transformation into a girl. We agreed to force him to wear dresses and crushed into corsets as a young woman. That had to do with the public perception of him accepting his sex and being part of it. Then what he believed should happen to girls. The men seeing the prince wearing a gown and crushed into a corset would diminish him and they would not rally to him to depose Patinea. It would also inspire fear among the men who thought to resist Patinea.”

“And how did that work out, Falconette?” Serinina demanded hatefully.

“It didn't work at all,” snarled falconette. “You never understood.” She shouted at him. ”You refused even to try to understand our point of view. You still don’t understand what we were trying to accomplish. All you had was your selfish hunger for the crown. And your entitlement of what you think you deserved. What you wanted no matter who else had to suffer for you to get it. You never understood.”

“I did understand,” Serinina shot back. “But, did anyone care about my life or what I wanted? You did this to free the women, and you made me a woman but I wasn't allowed to be free like the other women. I didn't get to determine my destiny. You stole everything from me. You took my sex, my name, my crown, and my very life. You stole all of my dreams and aspirations. You stole everything from me. It's not being entitled to want the free will to determine one's own course in life. That’s what you were all fighting for and you should have known that I would fight for the same rights. Since you all refused to understand my point of view, I ended up having to fight and destroy you to regain power over my own life. But, Falconette, can you guess that if I could do it all over again, what would I want? I seriously doubt you will get this correct?”

“What,” Falconette sneered. “to be an only child? Or perhaps, the eldest son so no matter what, you would be the rightful heir? Am I right?”

“No,” Serinina smiled, having correctly guessed she would get it wrong. “I would want to never have been born. That’s what I want. Or, a second option is to have been born Patinea’s youngest sister. As a girl born and raised all my life as her younger sister so she wouldn’t hate me. She wouldn't have to change me like she did and I wouldn't suffer the humiliation of being raised with the aspirations of a boy, as a boy and then suddenly losing it all in an instant. Then suddenly into a life I hated. I would have lived all my life as a girl. But then, my dad would keep trying to have a boy, and that boy would suffer. Same outcome if I was never born. So some boy would be screwed no matter what.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Serinina loudly declared. “You did what you did and you will do it again. When the witch moon arriveds in our sky in a few years. The times will merge together. I will be the crown prince and be transformed by you all once again. Then you will do everything you did before. You will prove what kind of people you really are. You will be revealed for the vile, cruel monsters you are inside. Serinina will rebel and leave. She will have the adventures I am presently having in Greece and Troy. And, I will return with the full might of the Greek states. And mark my words, I will destroy you. Patinea will seize the crown. I will return. I will take it back. Your reign of women will be very short-lived. And then I will hunt down the Hekatin. You have revealed yourselves to everyone. Every single one of you, every woman and girl that is part of the Hekatin will be hunted down and destroyed. I will kill every single Witch. And unlike those men who tried. I will be Successful. There is nowhere to hide from me.” Serinina smiled evilly. “I will find you all, and kill you. I will burn your temples, I will burn the secret library of Gunaefar. This time, the Hekatin will be destroyed for all time. And I will destroy your goddess just like I did to Athena when you release her. So Professor Falconette, give yourself a hand for all of this. You deserve much of the credit for the events that will take place. This girl is Maxis. Do what you will with him, I don’t care. But I have to leave.”

Serinina leaped into the sky, leaving the young woman Maxis there with the women not really knowing what to do with him.

Serinina had returned to Sparta where everything had been set up for her official coronation. All of the Spartan nobles and their lords and families had arrived and the ceremony had been prepared in front of the massive Temple of Ares.

This temple was in the center of Sparta. Sparta, unlike Denaerk, was much more militaristic in culture. And its main design reflected that. The nobles were all wearing their spartan robes and armor. The designs of the buildings around them showed their discipline. They approached the great temple of Ares. Its giant marble columns rose into the sky topped by images of Ares himself. The temple gleamed in the sunlight as the nobles seated themselves in front to observe the ceremony. The same warpriest was going to perform the ceremony again in full view of Sparta now. This was official, and she had given him her king's helmet only to be placed on her again.

She turned and faced the nobles again, still having some weaker flashbacks of her first coronation when her sister transformed her and stole her crown when she used to be a boy.

Only her mother Penthesilea, wasn’t there. Neither was Cassandra. Female Ajax and his wife Archippe was there. In fact, very few people were there on the raised platform in front of the great statue of Ares. She knew she had little to fear here. There were those who only needed to be there. The priests and their servants were there to officiate this crowning. Everything was prepared.

Serinina stood there wearing her white Chiton robe ready to be crowned as the Queen of Sparta. Sparta’s first queen ruler.

The Priest approached, holding the royal Helmet of the King. He stood beside Serinina and announced loudly. “We are here to witness this pivotal moment of our great state. Serinina Denae has defeated the false god Maxis to rescue our people from his corruption. He has been struck down. Serinea had shown us the wrong path we had taken when we followed Agamemnon to Troy. She solely defeated our armies we sent there and returned, not to seek vengeance or punish us for making war on her people. She come to rescue us. Serinina has shown her nobility and greatness and we must honor her. Our errors could have cost us our entire country if not for Serinina's greatness and wisdom. Does anyone oppose Serinina?”

No one spoke up. “Then, by the Authority of Lord Ares. I hereby crown Serinina Denae, the sole Queen of Sparta and the leader of the house of Agaid and Eurypontid.”

The gleaming bronze armor was placed on her chest and its thick leather straps tightened. Serinina briefly thought how it felt so much better than a corset. She also felt its power coursing through the bronze armor. Armor was strapped on her shins and her forearms. Then the great Helmet of the house of Agaid that Ajax used to wear was slowly lowered onto her head. She was given the shield and the spear and a royal red cape was tied behind her. She rose her spear and saw the electrical discharges shoot across the sky in a deafening thunderclap.

All of the nobles and warriors shouted at one, “Long live the Queen. Hail our Queen Serinina Denae.

She stood in front of the nobles and began speaking. “All of the great houses of Sparta, I do not seek vengeance. My mission is to preserve your great society. Many painful changes will have to occur to save your country from collapse. If we succeed, then you will soon find your state as the most powerful state in all Greece. It will not be easy, but it must be done, or Sparta will collapse. I will honor the loyalty of all of your great houses if you are loyal to me. Ares, Ajax, have you brought who I asked?”

Ajax shouted, “Yes, My queen. Many of the Helot Leaders are here to witness this. We have brought them here as you ordered.” Many of the other nobles wondered why they brought such unworthy lower class servants here.

Serinina approached the assembled Helot servant class. They looked frightened and dirty. Many of them were scantily dressed do to their status and the abuse they often suffered. Some of them had already started the violence when the Amazons and additional Spartan arrived, and they had stopped from a promise made to them.

Serinina spoke to them, “As of this moment, you are all now free men and women. You no longer have to take orders from the warrior caste here. They do not control your lives. As Queen I am granting you control and ownership of the farmland you work on. Your family's now control it. I will go with you later and divide it all among your various families. You will be protected by my amazon sisters and the selected loyal warrior Spartans who I decide I can entrust with the mission. Your job will be the farming and selling of your products to us, and to the rest of the Greek states. In addition, a number of you, the ones who are the strongest and wish it, will be invited to join the warriors and participate in the Agoge warriors training to become spartan hoplites. It is not an easy life if you chose it. And a selected number of girls will also be able to participate with the boys, or you could go to Themescura if you wish and my sisters will take you. The choice is yours.”

Serinina deals with violence against the Helots, then she deals with the other greek states and marries Ares

Queen Serinina; she really liked that title now. It wasn't equal to the King of the Golden Isles yet. She was a queen of a small state within the Greek Isles. But, it was not going to remain that way. Serinina was planning an expedition to the coastal state of Argos for the future.

But the title did come with its extreme frustrations, and she wondered if Patinea ever dealt with such intense frustrations when trying to protect a very vulnerable part of the population. She knew that Patinea had dealt with a few attacks on the Hekatin by the priests and their young disciples. Still, few ever really seemed to be in any real danger from those attacks. The attackers quickly found themselves outgunned and overwhelmed by sheer numbers. The Hekatin proved extremely capable of defending themselves. But, it seemed that the Witches were the only ones Patinea considered worthy of protection. Putting them on protected status meant placing the rest of the people at their mercy.

These people weren't able to defend themselves, and killing them was actually considered a sport for the military caste. And Serinina was standing over a dead Helot boy and his parents. The three must have been brutally murdered last night. Serinina felt her hot rage rising as she stood over the bloody body of this seven-year-old boy, and the beaten body of his father who must have been killed trying to defend his son. His mother was found dead in another room. She knew things like this were likely to happen. The military caste would resist the Helots being made free. She knew that she would have to drag Spartan society into the future, kicking and screaming. Here she was, and she was committed to this course. The Spartans were going to comply with this, or else. And she suspected there would be many “or else” situations soon before they finally got the point.

Serinina examined her records and found out which Spartan guards were on duty that night and summoned all of the captains to her.

They all came and stood there with her standing over a slaughtered child and his family. She looked outraged and said, “Last night, one of you allowed someone to sneak through and slaughter this boy, and his entire family. I had enough guards, so one of you had to know and willingly allow this crime to occur. It is no use resisting or trying to hide your guilt. I will find out. So tell me which of you allowed this?”

She waited, and of course, every single one of them professed their innocence. So she reached for her energy and examined each one of the guard's minds, and one of them sang out to her. She stood in front of him, wearing a furious scowl on her face. Her narrowed eyes spoke volumes about the level of her anger. He visibly gulped in fear as she glared into his eyes.

“So you allowed the killers to pass. It only makes sense. The pass you were assigned to, leads to their house. You and the guards assigned to you will follow me for questioning to find out who killed them.” Was it some of the guards, or someone else? That was the big question.

Serinina waited for the other guards to arrive. The guards were rounded up and taken to their queen at sword point by her loyal officers. They all saw that she was not happy. “I have one simple question for you all. Did any of you kill this family,” She demanded in a barely controlled tone of fury. “Or did someone else kill them, and you simply took no action to prevent it? You may as well answer me because I will find the truth anyway. If it was someone else, I demand their names?”

And these guards were as stupid as the captain and remained silent. “So, you won't answer me, huh. Fine, we will have to do it the hard way. Seize one and hold him still.”

Her loyal guards seized the first guard and held him tight as Serinina approached him. She held her hand on the young man’s forehead. He began screaming in agony as his memories were ripped from him. Then she repeated the process on all of them.

Within an hour, the entire group was huddled in a fetal position withering in agony. “So you simply didn't do your job and allowed one of your friends to slip pass to kill this family. So he could call himself a man and a warrior. And you thought he deserved it.”

They nodded and the captain made one of the biggest mistakes he could. “These people are servants. They serve us and we refuse to bow to an entitled bitch trying to change our culture. This is how a boy becomes a warrior. it's required, and these Helots mean nothing.”

Of course, that was the culture, Serinina knew. Killing a Helot and getting away was a test, and a right of passage for a boy training to be a spartan warrior. She knew they would fight to retain their position. It was no use. Serinina turned to her guards and commanded, “bring that family to me. They are all sentenced to death, as are these disloyal guards that disgraced themselves. After you round up that family, assemble the generals and the military and this will be public.”

The family of the young man that murdered the Helot Family was taken from their home and thrown in a dungeon along with the specific guards that were responsible. They were held there for days as the entire military, their generals, and captains were assembled with the nobles of Sparta for the great presentation that Serinina had planned to assure that they all understood the price of resistance. And she would tolerate none.

Everything had been prepared at Serinina’s direction and commands, and everything was ready. Then she had the criminals dragged out in chains. The individually responsible guards, the young man and his father, were taken out and presented to the military caste. Serinina stood there with a furious glare and it almost looked like she was being consumed with flames of her anger. She spoke aloud. “These people killed a Helot family. They murdered a ten-year-old boy, his father, who tried to protect him and his mother. Let you all witness their deaths now, and bear witness to it. This will be the penalty of resistance to my rule. Murdering Helots will no longer be tolerated. Any guard responsible for it, or for allowing the killing of Helots will suffer the same as the killers. Helots will be protected. They are free citizens now. They are not sport. As of now, the protection of Helots will be raised from five hundred to five thousand guards. Present the criminals now for execution.”

The boy and his father were presented along with the specific guards and the captain that conspired with the boy were made to kneel. Serinina stood behind them and drove her spear into the back of each of the criminals one by one. “Killing Helots will no longer be tolerated. Bear witness to the fact; any more attacks on Helots will be dealt with in the same way.”

Serinina had no illusions that that was the end of it. She knew she would have to deal with many more attacks on Helots and make examples of their killers. And before the lesson was learned, the protection detail of the Helots was raised from five thousand to twenty-five thousand. Thousands of executions took place before the Spartans finally got the message. But they eventually got the message.

She had spent the past four months revamping the training of the Spartan military and increased recruitment. Many of the Helot males had wanted to join the Spartan military, and she had opened up the military to the lower classes. Soldiers, captains and Generals had been promoted. She had increased the Spartan military to its old glory days, and now she was the head of one of the most powerful military forces in the Greek states. They were ready to march to Argos if they needed to.

However, she doubted it would be required. Their army was trapped in Anatolia with a disastrous war with Troy. Their army was not going to return. Serinina had decimated their great navy and Argos was one of the strongest navies in the Greek Isles. They were second only to Athens itself. Argos’s shipyards were world-famous, and they had designed and built the enormous Deceres that were now guarding the Harbor.

That was the ship Argos built for Agamemnon himself. It was the biggest ship of the world until Serinina designed her supership. She called it the floating citadel and it was named the Gerrik.

Serinina didn’t think she would require her army for this. She thought she could reason with the Argos King and his arrogant daughter, frightening them into submission. She was traveling to Argos with only her small group of guards. She had been allowed into the city with her small group of guards, and she was now about to enter the King’s Royal chambers. She simply waited outside of the enormous doors to the massive royal chambers where King Kepheus and Queen Kassiopeia were. They had agreed to grant the new Queen of Sparta an audience, and she figured that the King guessed what it was going to be about.

Already, the King of Arcadia had traveled to Sparta and was waiting for her. Their King wanted to negotiate terms. He was not going to be happy to hear that Serinina would accept no terms. They surrender and accept Spartan occupation, or face the Spartan Phalanxes in battle. Arcadia had sent over ninety-five percent of their forces to Agamemnon. They had no hope in a battle, and they knew it.

However, Argos had the forces to hold out for a while. Their chief city was well defended and could cause the Spartan forces a lot of damage if it came to that. They would still fall, and there were many smaller undefended cities and some poorly defended cities that would fall first. Argos could hold out for months at most, and it would be a fight to take it.

The large doors opened, and a royal guard of Argos marched forward and told Serinina she was free to enter the royal chambers of the Argos King.

She walked through and saw what they considered the royal chambers. It was about a third as large as the royal chambers and throne that was stolen from her. But the followers of Maxis and the Denae family were known for their extreme hubris and egos. Patinea was a testament to that, and so was her father.

These chambers were rather small. But, they had an enormous dome above the chamber, and as she looked up, she saw the images of Zeus and Hera, and various other gods fighting the Titans. Then she looked upon a massive raised marble platform where the royals of Argos sat.

King Kepheus began the discussion sounding annoyed and arrogant. “Before you start, let me guess what this is about,” he sneered sarcastically “since a massive portion of our remaining forces are trapped in Anatolia fighting King Agamemnon's futile and disastrous war against Troy. One in which you have effectively wiped out a large portion of their troops, and the entire navy. Considering the rapid speed in which you claimed the sole crown of Sparta and rearmed their army. You are here to demand our surrender to Sparta, or face war? Is that why you are here?”

“You have most of it correct.” Serinina admitted arrogantly.”

“You may as well leave then,” Kepheus replied. “We kept our best troops here, and our city is very well defended. Although we have many undefended towns, and some weakly protected by thinner walls and smaller contingents of untrained town guards and such that would fall to you in a war, you will find this city very difficult to storm. We also still have a large navy defending the city. If you want to try it, go ahead. We are ready for you.”

“You have accurately described the strategic situation better than I hoped you would,” Serinina admitted to the King. “But you are missing a big part of the equation. Sure, you could hold out for months. But your walls would still fall. We would enter, and your futile resistance and the causalities you needlessly caused our troops in your futile resistance would inspire significant reprisals against your population. Not that you care for the people behind your city walls at all. But, there is a huge part you are missing here, and that is me. I could defeat your navy and blockade your city. I know the weaknesses of your city's defenses. But, I also have abilities and favor of the Gods. Hera granted me enormous power. I have control of Poseidon’s pet Ketos. So here are my demands. I do demand you surrender your city. Open the gates and accept Spartan control. And, surrender your daughter Andromeda to me. She will be sent to the Golden Isles to marry Lord Ansay’s son, Rhunteck. You have three days. If you refuse, I will release the Ketos on your city. He will sweep away your city, your people, you and your family, and all of your dreams. Make your choice, surrender, and give your daughters' hand in marriage to a noble from my homeland. Or die. It’s your choice. I will be waiting just outside of Argos territory, awaiting your response. I will release Ketos in three days if I receive no answer.”

“My daughter marry Rhunteck? Can you show us what this boy looks like?” He demanded, not really caring. It wasn't going to happen. But he was interested in how the boy looked.

Serinina created an image of the lanky and slightly grotesque teenage boy that Patinea was arranged to. And the thought of marrying him disgusted her.

It disgusted Kepheus too. Andromeda cried out, but she knew there was little choice, if Serinina had control over the Ketos. Her marriage to a disgusting boy, and surrender, or the destruction of the entire city and the death of all of its people.

Serinina knew she was starting to become very cruel. But she had to be like her sister to maintain the power she required. Her sister had taught her precious lessons in her life. To be respected, she had to be feared. She couldn’t be the easy-going and loving teenage boy she was before. He trusted people, and he ended up getting what he deserved. He was destroyed. In his place was a ruthless and cruel Lilith. Someone that no one dared to cross. Even Ares and Zeus knew that Lilith could ruin them.

Serinina traveled back to her army camp just outside of Argos’s Territory and she waited in her tent while her army trained. The King of Arcadia had arrived with his guards and a few administrators to discuss matters. He saw the writing on the wall and hoped there was some way to maintain his independence or at least some measure of political autonomy. They had gone back and forth long enough, and it was boring Serinina. She had reached the limit of her patience with this fucking moron.

She slammed her fist down on the table, and the thick table shattered from the impact. Her eyes narrowed, and the King of Arcadia thought he saw flames in her eyes. When she spoke, he knew she was furious. It wasn't the sweet voice of Serinina anymore. This was a death growl from Hades. “I have listened to your mewling nonsense long enough, King Leon. So let me make our conditions very clear. If you want to avoid a conflict, you must order your soldiers to surrender, and lay down their arms. You will face a military occupation. Our military will occupy your towns and forts. Whether it's by your consent, or after our forces destroy yours is your decision. But it will happen. You, your family, and your political administrators will be replaced. That's also unavoidable. Arcadia will be absorbed into Sparta. Those are the conditions you will accept, you can resist and we will have a brief conflict. There will be no more discussion. Leon, will you accept our conditions, if not then leave and know that as soon as my conflict with Argos is over, we will march on Arcadia. I am tired of listening to you now. Make your decision!” Serinina yelled.

“I accept. My forces will lay down their arms and accept your conditions, my Queen.” He knelt and bowed his head.

Serinina smiled and called one of her commanders in. Ajax and his wife entered, and Serinina ordered, “Take five of the phalanxes and cavalry of your choice. Leon,” Serinina avoided addressing him as King anymore “has abdicated. March into Arcadia, they just surrendered. But, if it's a trap and his meager forces try an attack, withdraw and take him, prisoner. I will deal with Arcadia then.”

Leon protested, “it's no trap, I will order them to lay down their arms and accept your conditions, my Queen.”

“You make sure your armies lay down their arms. Make sure they don’t attack us, Leon. The safety and lives of your citizens depend on it.” Serinina warned cruelly. “I would hate to have to make an example of them.”

He cowered, shivering and nearly crying, “I promise my Queen. I will ensure they will not attack you.”

Then they marched out. All that was left was Argos, and they had a day to make their decision. Ketus was waiting. Arcadia had just surrendered, or so, Serinina hoped. She believed Leon.

The female form of Ajax had his phalanxes and were marching out with King Leon, escorting them. Then he saw a lone, very beautiful woman approaching their army camp. Serinina called some of her troops, and Cassandra led a small group to defend them. Not that Serinina thought there would be a problem with one lone woman approaching them. But always be prepared for the unexpected. It could be anything. Best to be ready for a sudden attack, than unprepared and lose lives by underestimating a lone woman approaching them.

She approached closer, and somehow, this woman looked very familiar. Something about her face and her features reminded her of someone she saw before. Serinina looked into her face as Cassandra and her small group stood in defense formation with their spears pointed directly at her preventing any further approach. Then Serinina recognized her. This woman was Andromeda. She was King Kepheus’s daughter. She was the daughter of the King of Argos. Was she here to arrange their surrender? Serinina told Cassandra to allow the woman to pass, and Andromeda walked to Serinina and they entered her command tend.

Serinina sat down and asked, “Princess Andromeda of Argos. Has your father accepted our terms?”

“No” she replied. “My father is a fool. But I will accept your terms in his place. I will submit myself to marrying the man you demand. I will marry Rhunteck for you. And I will ensure that Argos submits to you. You will have everything you desire, Queen Serinina. My father is stupid, but if submitting myself saves the seventy thousand in Argos, then I will do it. I will also surrender the city for you.”

She loved that title. Queen Serinina. “How can you override your father if he insists on resisting me?”

“The guards won't refuse me, if I order them to let you in. My only demand is you harm no civilians. If I am going to lead you in and surrender the city against my father's will. Then I expect you to honor it and take no action against the people.”

“That is my intention,” Serinina replied with a sweet smile. “I want to be their Queen. I can't harm them, if I want to rule them. I will trust you, but if this is a trick, then it will be your people that pay the price.”

“I am paying the price, Serinina,” Andromeda replied with a frown and a tear of sorrow. “I am marrying this repulsive boy with bug-like eyes to save my people. I have no idea who he is, or how he will treat me. I will be his wife in a loveless marriage and giving up my free will. I will give up any hopes of marrying a man that I chose, all to protect my people. I am risking my father's wrath to save the people. This is no trick. I am surrendering and betraying my family to protect the people. The only question is do you accept my conditions?”

“Yes,” Replied Serinina. “If you are for real, then yes, and I will protect you from your father's wrath. Now, meet Ampar Ansey, the father of Rhunteck.”

The Duke of Ansey Isle walked in and looked at Andromeda and smiled. “She looks better than your arrogant sister Patinea did. I think my son will be much more happy with her. I thank you for accepting Serinina’s terms.”

Andromeda bowed and said, “You are welcome. I just hope he can respect me. But he can do as he wishes. I will be his wife.”

Then Serinina interrupted, “Just remember, Lord Ampar what I demand. When the time comes, you will let us occupy Ansey Isles and claim it. That includes your lordship of the Isles. I, and my Spartan's will claim it as a beachhead to establish our presence, and our power against Denaerk.”

None of this really sounded good to Ampar. But this was the bargain he struck with Serinina and he knew how his administrators and his military would react to a female queen claiming leadership over them and their land, and their military. Of course, with these Spartan's. He strongly suspected that his generals and administrators would have little to say about the matter. He suspected that they may not say anything in life at all. This didn’t sound good at all. He knew what Serinina intended. The fearsome merciless look in her eyes spoke of a hatred that ran very deep. Serinina’s reckoning wasn’t only with his sister. It was with the entire country.

Serinina spoke up, “You resisted Patinea’s claim to the throne. That small part was good. But still, it wasn’t for me. None of you cared at all about me. You wanted to use me. Once I was transformed, you gave up on me. You all cared nothing for what my life had become, Ampar. You wanted to be King, or your son. I was pretty much irrelevant. I am using you to gain a foothold on the Golden Isles, that's your purpose here and why I am letting you claim Andromeda. I don’t need your bargain or consent to land troops in your Isles. I can do it against your consent and have my army wipe yours out and burn your cities, and your palaces. But, I am giving you this one chance to retain some of your power if you are willing to cooperate. You know your pathetic troops won't stand a chance against mine. You could barely withstand Patinea’s. Your troops fled her army. What chance will you have against battle-hardened Spartans?” Serinina laughed.

“I will accept your terms Serinina, and I am sorry for the way my family treated you. We made a horrifying error. Everyone did and they will pay a price none of then can bear. I am glad I have one chance to rectify our mistake.”

“I don’t care either way.” Serinina quipped dismissively. “Your opinion and your apology mean nothing to me. Andromeda,”

“Yes,” Andromeda replied.

“Let's go and see if you can accomplish what you say you can.” Serinina commanded. “Let’s see if you can get the city guards to open the doors and let us in. I will be bringing the bulk of my forces in”

Serinina assembled her forces and they marched toward Argos. Andromeda knew that most of the city guards trusted her and if many of them had to choose who had their loyalty that she would win. They knew that in most situations, her father would sacrifice them for his sake but she cared for them and the city's people they were supposed to protect.’

They marched toward Argos and there they encountered their first challenge upon meeting the city guards at their first large town. The town's guards saw the large columns of spartan troops led by the newly crowned spartan Queen Serinina. They were surprised to see that many of the new spartan soldiers were women. They were even more shocked to see that the princess of Argos, Andromeda was providing them an escort. This wasn't good at all.

So Andromeda and Serinina’s forces found themselves surrounded by a hundred of the city’s town guards with their swords drawn. The captain of the Town’s guard shouted, “Release our princess at once!”

The town guards would be no match for the thousands of spartan soldiers if they had to fight. Andromeda was extremely alarmed now. Serinina looked like she was close to ordering an attack. She had started to suspect that Andromeda was betraying her promise. She wasn’t, but this meant that Serinina would kill the guards and then possibly burn the town. She had to do something fast. So she went to the captain of the Towns guards and told him that she wasn’t being held.

“I am here of my own free will, Captain,” Andromeda assured him. “This is my choice and you are required to respect it. I am doing this to protect you, your children, and the people here. Don’t make my sacrifice here be meaningless. I beg you, let us travel to Argos.”

She was surprised when the Capitan stepped aside and ordered his men to withdraw. Serinina’s suspicion was disproved, and she relaxed. Andromeda let out a breath in relief as they marched on. Andromeda suspected that it would get more difficult as they approached the larger and more fortified towns. They went through more towns, and few had stopped them demanding an explanation. Andromeda explained the situation and implored that they let them pass. The town they were protecting and their families depended on it, and they were allowed to pass. Many of the guards were upset at Andromeda's fate with these men, but they understood. None of them were actually aware that she was defying her father in doing this. Many of them assumed that this was their King's decision, and Andromeda was simply and very reluctantly accepting it to save them. But that assumption would not continue as she made it closer to the capital.

That challenge was about to be faced as they approached a large coastal fortified city. It's large stone walls and towers blocked their path. The town's large military garrison was also ready to defend the town if it was required. The gates were shut in their face, and Andromeda saw the towns, archers, in the towers prepared to unleash their fury on them. The town stood little chance if it really came down to it. Those walls were formidable, but Serinina’s Spartans would make quick work of It. They were nowhere near the imposing walls of their capital.

They saw that the Princess was being held, but she approached them and demanded to talk to the commander. The gates opened, and the commander and his staff walked out to meet the Princess.

They couldn't be tricked. They knew that if the King had wanted them to let the Spartan's through, he would have relayed direct orders to them. However, they had received no such orders.

“Princess Andromeda, you know I can't let these men through. Why have you done this, and who are these men?” The General said to her.

“General, meet Ampar the father of my fiance and future husband, and you probably heard of Queen Serinina of Sparta, her general Ajax, former King, and Cassandra from Troy. We must demand you allow us to pass through to Argos. Please be reasonable.”

“Your future husband? How?” The general demanded in shock. “I thought you were going to marry that boy from Athens. You and him got along so well. You visited our beaches and had a great time. I thought you were going to marry him, what happened?”

“This, I have no choice here, Baldwin. I really don’t. I must agree to this or you will all pay for our defiance. I am saving you, your family and your children, and these towns. I wouldn’t do this if I thought there was a chance, but you know your small garrison doesn't stand a chance if it comes to a real fight with the Spartans. My idiot father gave all of our forces to Agamemnon for his moronic war with Troy. Our armies are being destroyed against Troy's walls. We have nothing to fight Sparta with, do you think you can resist this?”

The look on her generals face told her that he knew this would be a fight he would lose. “No, we know that, but how can you do this?”

“I have no choice here,” Andromeda stated. “You know this isn’t my father's choice. It’s my own. He couldn’t sacrifice my future for yours. But that's part of our duties at times. I must protect you all. And you must honor it. By resisting Sparta, he is also sacrificing your lives for his own, but it will all be futile. Are you willing to die, and then have these people suffer the Spartan's reprisals for your resistance, and even possibly my own life, General? Think about this. They will burn the entire town.”

The General saw the point and opened the gates and let the Spartan's pass. Serinina left a large garrison of her own in the town to protect them. The town's garrison was disarmed and placed under house arrest until the final surrender. Their main coastal town was placed under Spartan control. They were now approaching Argos. This was either going to end with a siege and a desperate battle that would result in all of them being killed, and Argos being destroyed, or their guards and soldiers seeing her sacrifice and turning on their King.

In the end, after some haggling and arguing, their general saw Andromeda’s reasoning and opened the gates and surrendered the city. They all stormed into the Palace and captured their King. He faced Serinina and Andromeda with a look of betrayal. “Daughter, how can you do this?” He roared at her.

“Because, I am a princess and we are entrusted with the protection of the people we rule,” Andromeda informed him. “You were going to sacrifice them, their dreams, and families for your ego. And it would have made no difference in the end, except for the destruction of Argos and their deaths. I couldn’t allow that, so I took action.”

Serinina stated, “She saved Argos. Thanks to her, Argos and it's people will survive. Your fate is to be determined by your actions at this point.”

The idiot simply couldn't see reason and rushed Serinina in rage and ended up impaled on her spear with her spearpoint out of his back. He was tossed into the harbor. And with that, Argos had fallen to the Spartans. Olympia and Messenia would be next. But when they saw Arcadia and Argos fall, they submitted to Sparta without a fight. Serinina had firm control of the entire island of Peloponnese, and she was solidifying control over it and preparing for an invasion of the Greek mainland.

Serinina had gone to Arcadia to settle. She had been very impressed with Ajax lately. She did his duty to Sparta well, she served as Sparta’s regent very well. She did his duty and followed her orders to reform Spartan society. She followed Serinina’s instructions to upgrade the military training and include women in the Spartan army. She allowed girls to participate in the Spartan Agoge training regime. She had defended the Helots that were now free. She forbade any attacks on them, and ruthlessly punished the Spartan's that took it on themselves to attack the Helots in reprisals. Those men saw their final day if they killed a Helot. She allowed a great number of Helots to enter spartan military training and their boys to start the Agoge training. Ajax surpassed all of her expectations. Ajax has proven herself to be a very worthy woman. She almost passed out when she heard that Ajax personally apologized to the women he abused when she was a man and did anything she could to help them. Lands, titles protection, and anything they wanted were given to the women.

Serinina had selected a location for her grand personal palace just outside of the city of Arcadia. It was going to be twice as large as the one she lived at in Denaerk. It's main royal chambers were almost a copy of the one his sister stole, only much larger, and its throne was massive. No one was ever going to take this from her. Construction had begun, and she suspected it would take three years to build her new palace in Arcadia.

But for now, she occupied the old palace of the Arcadia royal family that she deposed. Serinina had prepared an elaborate ceremony of her victory here. This campaign took roughly a year, and she had subjugated the surrounding states. She planned it in a week and waited for the nobles and their militia to arrive with their people. What remained of the Argos royal family except for Andromeda, who was now being taken to Anseys Isles for her upcoming marriage to Runteck. Their queen Kassiopeia had arrived with their guards and administrators. Arcadia's prior King and Queen Leon and Francesca were here. Olympias's royal family was set to arrive shortly. Queen Chloe and King Demetrios were on their way with their son Cyrus. They were going to arrive within days.

King Heroidas was going to arrive from Messinia with his family. The ceremony that was going to solidify the submission of the state to Sparta and make her the queen of them all was about to occur. Soon, no one was going to stand in her way.

Serinina made sure to greet every state noble when they arrived personally, and she promised them their safety, some other titles as their lands were reorganized into the greater state of Sparta. Their armies were incorporated into Serinina’s army, and their standards of training were standardized. Their sons were chosen to be in the elite forces and participate in the Spartan Agoge. New administrators were sent.

Serinina threw herself into the enormous and exhausting task of politically reorganizing the new territories she had conquered. The job was exhausting, and sometimes, it was very frustrating. She loved it and enjoyed the challenge of looking at their administration and finding ways to streamline them and make them fit better with her idea of a more significant spartan state.

She thought about how she hated these tasks before and could barely wait for them to end. It was that, that showed to her family she was ill-suited for the job of King as a sixteen-year-old boy. Her sister Patinea stole her crown and threw herself into the task.

But, it also occurred to her that she was not in any way pressed into it. Actually, she chose this path herself. She defeated the spartan state and she could have stayed away and let them deal with the defeat themselves. But she insisted on going to Sparta and assumed the spartan throne. Then she set herself on the task of reorganizing the spartan state, then sending them to the neighboring city-states and subjugating them all. Now she was the master of this entire island, and it was her job to reorganize their political organization, their administrations and solidify her control over them all, and to prepare for the future. She didn't have to, and she had little claim to their thrones and titles except for the might of her military and having subjugated them all. And Serinina was now almost sixteen. The Witch moon would be appearing in their skies in little over a year. There was nothing she could do about the political developments in the Golden Isles. There's no way she would be ready to take their throne. Patinea would, and she would reorganize the homeland and probably release their Goddess. Reorganizing Peloponnese would take years. It would be years until she’s ready to land forces on the mainland and threaten Athens itself. But she would soon have to go back to Troy. Alarming developments had taken place. She heard that her mother was hurt, Helena was still missing. The Greek forces had been annihilated, and they had accepted defeat. At least that's what their King says, and they are building a gift for the Trojans. They are going to gift the Trojans a massive wooden horse.

Serinina wasn’t tricked by this. They could have given the Trojans gold, or anything else. Why an enormous hollow horse? She knew what was being planned, but the Trojans were falling for it. Hector was ecstatic, but she strongly suspected he was the traitor that was planning on giving Troy to the Greeks. She was planning on returning soon, and killing Hector.

Dealing with the Spartans and the Helots was one of the most frustrating tasks. There have been countless attempts to murder Helots. She originally thought five hundred loyal troops would be enough of a presence to prevent Spartan attacks on them. Serinina was wrong. Within a week of declaring the Helots were free and stationing five hundred troops to defend them, she got word that over forty of them were murdered. She underestimated the situation. Killing helots was a sport to some of the Spartan noble caste. A Spartan boy was recognized as a man by killing a Helot. Serinina had offended and angered the Spartans by freeing their Helots, and they were going to resist. She had put down minor rebellions and uprising and attempts to murder Helots in retaliation. Her meager five hundred troops to defend the Helots had swelled to over twenty thousand with an additional fifteen thousand in reserve to put down uprisings. They were needed and only added headaches for her efforts to reform Spartan society. But it was moving ahead despite attempts to stall the progress. She had even suffered an assassination attempt and a stupid attempt at storming the palace and killing her. That ended up to be a mistake. Many of the spartan nobles and their loyal soldiers had ended up being killed. But she made progress and there had been little resistance in the past six months.

Then she was able to plan expeditions to Arcadia and Argos. She had solidified her control over the Island now. She was it's undisputed leader, and it was now time to make her rule official.

She stood over the construction site of her new palace just outside of the city of Arcadia. She watched countless heavy wagons full of bricks and marble stones headed for the construction site to lay its foundation and floors. This was only the beginning. The number of carts and the outline of the ditches dug for them showed the sheer size of her new palace. It was going to take three to five years to build. This was going to dwarf the palace at Denaerk. This was her imperial palace. It was fit for an Empress.

Her fiance was now waiting for her at her own wedding ceremony. Serinina was almost ready. She had debated about what to wear. Did she want to wear an elaborate gown as the typical Greek ladies wore on their wedding, or did she want to wear her armor as a spartan warrior? This was a very unusual event for Greek Culture. A man was a warrior in this situation. But the woman was the reigning queen and also a battle-hardened warrior. She chose the Gown in the end. She wore the garments of an elite spartan noble woman. Serinina donned herself in the typical Greek spartan gown with the belt tied right under her bustline and crisscrossing the center of her breasts to the opposite shoulder. She donned the cape like himation down her body and finished her look with the crimson red spartan royal cape. It would look stupid to wear all of this female attire and complete the look with her royal king's helmet. That would really look stupid, so instead, she wore her humiliating princess tiara that she was given the day of her transformation from a prince to a princess instead of the King. She had planned an imperial coronation for tomorrow. It was humiliating at first, and the way it was placed on her head was more of an insult while her sister got the royal crown. She had learned to live with it, and it was better for a wedding than a warrior’s helmet. Then she draped a veil on her head. Her chariot and her loyal friends and administrators were waiting. This was going to be a very interesting wedding ceremony. And of course, Spartan's never did anything the easy or romantic way. If that's what you thought, who are you kidding? Serinina laughed.

The chariot driver laughed as she stood still, he said, “Now, if you think I'm taking you all the way to Olympus, think again my Queen.”

Almost everyone laughed at that joke. But it was tradition to hold the ceremony in front of the groom's home. But Ares settled for the service at the new temple dedicated to him. She was going to live in her palace anyway. The chariot went slow so her family and friends, and nobles could follow them as they sung spartan warrior songs.

The chariot stopped in front of a huge golden statue of Ares and his newly built temple. Serinina stepped off, seeing her fiance standing there in his godlike robes waiting for her arrival and she approached him.

Defying tradition yet again, she held her own apple and fed herself. She took a defiant bite of her apple. Tradition dictated that the husband gave the wife the apple to eat, signifying that he was going to provide for her. Serinina would tolerate no such thing. And then both of them received a weapon and faced off against each other. This was the Spartan way. They faced off and fought. The wife was supposed to show she was competent and strong, and the husband was also supposed to prove that and end up with the wife over his shoulder. And this was going to be a vicious battle.

She held her custom spear imbued with Heras's power and Ares held his and they began the one on one battle. The spears struck each other, sending out deafening blasts as the friends held their ears and cowered down. Serinina struck out with her power, and Ares blocked her attack. This was supposed to be a ceremonial friendly battle, but they wanted to prove something to each other. In the end, she allowed herself to be defeated and picked up. Or this may never had ended. Ares knew she could have beaten him, but she chose not to. They tightly embraced each other and then stood in front of the assembled guests and said, “My name is now Serinina Ares. Ares is, um just Ares.” She giggled and passionately kissed each other.

Then the newlywed couple received gifts. Their friends and nobles gave Serinina new weapons, gold, and beautiful jewelry. Hades appeared and gave Serinina a gift. He gave Serinina a scepter and said, “This will allow you to enter Erebus any time you want. Charon will take you across the Styx any time you desire. “

Hade's wife, Persephone, approached and gave Serinina a mysterious glowing block. “This will allow you to enter Tartarus and leave at will. Just be careful there, and whatever you do, do not release Kronos.

Hades’ sisters, Hestia and Demeter, gave her a gleaming new crown.

"I am sorry for how I treated your sister," she replied. "My behavior toward her was wrong. I'm glad that she is only injured and that she will recover."

Demeter smiled at Serinina's apology and said, "Athena is stronger than she appears. She will be fine soon enough."

“This is for your ceremony tomorrow. We will place it on your head then. Athena wanted to be here, but she's still recovering from the wounds you inflicted on her. She had lost her temple and the wounds were severe.”

Serinina nodded at the implied scolding the two women were giving her. She had thought about the confrontation she had had with Athena and had come to regret how angry she had been. Athena had been one of the first gods to bless and support her desires.

Serinina sat at the head of the table with her new husband as servants set huge plates of food on the table for them. They all began eating and having fun into the night. One of the more rebellious nobles decided to ask her near the end, “Serinina, I don't want to be disrespectful. You had to deal with enough of those but I really need to ask. Once you have Greece in your hand. What will you do then?”

“Vienna, and then Rome,” Serinina admitted.

“I suspected, and we will follow you. But I know you intend on taking most of Europe and then landing in your homeland. Why do we need to do all of this for you and why do you want to make us fight in the Golden Isles?”

She figured someone would ask that and she hoped it would be later. However, all of the nobles that trusted her were looking at her.

“I have this power for a reason,” Serinina said. “We need to make major reforms and give our gifts to others. The Italians fell and are under a brutal foreign king now and can hardly even defend themselves. We need to restore their culture and their pride. Clovis is sadistic. But all of this is to finally fight in the Golden Isles. That is for several reasons. We need to destroy their witches and the order of the Hekatin, and their Goddess Prognita. With their power, they can destabilize the world. They are evil and monstrous and with their Goddess restored, they can spread their cruelty to every corner of the planet. We must stop them. I must stop their Goddess and I’m the only one who can. The Hekatin want to usher in a golden age of an age of Women Rule. I used to believe that, but I suffered by their hands and realize they are cruel. Their Goddess is a dark force and they must be stopped. There is going to be a new age, and it will be my age. It will be an age of peace and freedom. that's why I forced the Spartans to free the Helots and my people will free their male captives and I will restore their dignity. Slavery is outlawed. I will not allow anyone to hold slaves any longer. That is the Law!” Serinina shouted louder than anyone could have guessed her voice could go. The message was clear.

And after that encounter, the celebration slowed down into the night and they all went to their places for the night. The military men from the neighboring territories went into their army camps and found their tents. This did resemble her first coronation. But she had already been crowned at Sparta with no incident. But she had kept a very close eye on any potential rivals and their meetings with the nobles to make sure no agreements were reached that may threaten the nobles loyalty to her. That was one of her big errors at her first coronation. She didn't watch her sister that week. Serinina trusted Patinea and loved her. But Patinea had met with all of the nobles as they came to the capital that week and promised them all gifts, gold, and lands for their loyalty. So when the time came, none of those nobles stood up for Serin. They had all been bribed and not even the guards stood up for her, for those guards were all selected because of their faith to the Goddess. Serin stood alone. Patinea had their loyalty and she got the crown from him. Now Serinina had her own crown of many nations and it was going to grow.

The rooster crowed that morning waking Serinina up in her bed at the Palace of Arcadia and she dressed for her new coronation and accepting the loyalty of the new aristocracy she was slowly developing here, and the former Kings and Queens of the areas she now occupied. And to hand out a few of her own gifts for their loyalty. Chloe and Demetrios from Olympia were there. Eulalia and Heroidas were here from Messenia ready to pledge their loyalty to Serinina. Queen Kassiopeia was here from Argos and Leon was here from Arcadia and her new grand palace was slowly being built in the background. Everything was coming into place for her, finally. It just took long enough, and enough of her suffering.

They agreed to hold the ceremony in front of the grand temple to her husband Ares with his enormous statue overlooking them all. He was there of course holding her hand. She was Serinina Ares now, wife to the God Ares. He considered taking the name Ares Denae but she didn’t want that. The Denae cast her out so she no longer had any use for the surname Denae. Denae can go fuck themselves. She was going to wipe them all out.

Serinina stood with her husband Ares on an enormous raised marble platform underneath the shadow of a huge gleaming bronze statue of Ares. Each land’s military was gathered in front of them with their lords all knelt in front of them. First, she called up Ajax and his wife Archippe and they stood up and stepped forward. Ajax was smiling having an idea of what was about to happen.

Serinina spoke, “Ajax has proven his undying loyalty and the strength of his character as a man. He has truly reformed his image and his character. The lessons I wanted him to learn have been learned ten-fold by this man. He will truly become the great man that he was meant to be and I will reward him by restoring his manhood before you all. Bear witness to Ajax’s reward.” Serinina spoke the language of the Goddess once again and they all saw the image of Ajax grow and reform itself back into the man they all knew. It had only been a year but that was enough for him.

“Ajax is now a man again, and I am appointing him the administrator of Arcadia for his merit, his achievements and his character. You may have a seat.”

Then the Celebration proceeded. Queen Kassiopeia stepped forward and knelt before Serinina and pledged her loyalty. “I Queen Kassiopeia surrender Argos and it’s people, palaces and forces to our great Queen and Empress Serinina Ares of Sparta. I pledge my loyalty to her and promise to never betray my imperial sovereign.”

One by one each of them stepped forward and knelt, and gave their oath of fealty to Serinina.

And then it was time for the big ceremony that she had been waiting for. Hades and his sisters appeared with a huge shimmering and gleaming crown with each tip embedded with a jewel not seen anywhere on earth. Hades spoke in his gravellike voice, “We the Gods crown Serinina Ares Empress of Sparta, Olympia, Messena, Arcadia and Argos. And an empress cant have only a spear made from the Gods. She also needs a sword to go with it. Hera had this sword made for you.”

She was given a massive shimmering sword that looked very much like Justice the sword that had been taken from her. But this one looked so much more lethal. Serinina smiled in approval and thanked them.

With all of that now taken care off, she had to plan a trip back to Troy to resolve some ongoing issues there. Her adopted mother had been hurt, the Greeks are leaving but are in the process of building a massive horse as a gift of their goodwill. Serinina chuckled but they knew how the Trojans prided themselves on their horses. They would likely fall for it if she didn't arrive soon. And Helena still had yet to be found.

Serinina faces some personal issues and a tragedy within her new family and had to learn to deal with it
and she lashes out in anger

The feeling of treachery was thick in the air as Lady Hippolyta and her daughter Dianna stepped off of their trireme followed by their best troops onto the Golden Isles. They had reached a friendly port and docked with Fawnae's people. They had departed in secret and took with them the core of their most experienced and best troops with them and made the voyage around the Mediterranean and around the peninsula and into the narrow channel docking in Fawnae.

They were met by Lord Fawnae and his escort as they disembarked. The Amazons hardly needed an escort, but it was nice to have. They felt that they had to warn them about what was coming and help them prepare. They had slim hopes that there was any way to prevent it or defeat Serinina when she came, but they needed a chance and that was why Hippolyta and Dianna betrayed Penthesilia and Serinina. Hippolyta felt Serinina's anger at what she suffered here but she also felt she was taking her vengeance way too far. When Hippolyta had heard that Serinina had attacked the Goddess Athena and gravely hurt her, she knew then that this was a course they could no longer follow.

Hippolyta looked up at Lord Fawnae and asked, “Will a group of strong female fighters going through your land to meet the King's family and his daughter Patinea cause any problems, my lord?”

“I don't think so,” he replied. “It is unusual but the priests won't bother us. And this has been approved by the royal family, so this will go without incident. And if not, that's why we have my escort. They are lethal."

Fawnae grinned and they began marching toward the capital to their meeting. They knew that this was going to be rough. The Kingdom was still ruled by the priests' iron fists and their misogynistic ways. But secretly, the King had a much more tolerant view of women and was looking for ways to improve the lives of women and had secretly nominated Patinea as his heir. Edwyn was the official heir apparent, but he was going to step aside for Patinea. Edwyn was in love with Patinea.

A day later, they had reached Denaerk, the capital of the Golden Isles. Hippolyta and her daughter had seated themselves at the royal council table. Edwyn and Victoria had seated themselves beside them. Patinea had seated herself at the head of the table along with her friend Actonia. Lady Fawnae and Falconette stood behind Patinea and the council meeting began.

Patinea began, “I know that I have made many terrible errors in the way I handled this entire situation.”

Hippolyta said acidly, “You can say that again. Basically, you, Falconette, and all the rest are a bunch of fucking idiots. I hate the fact that we have to come help you bunch of fools. You don’t deserve it."

“Then why are you here?” Patinea inquired at them.

“For your people who will be stuck in between this power struggle and vengeance,” Hippolyta replied. “They didn't ask for it. That’s why we are here. I don't really give a damn about all of you. But since you are the power on the Island, we have to deal with you all whether we like it or not. And we don't like it.”

“I can accept that,” replied Patinea. “How about you Falconette?” She always valued Falconette's advice.

“I admit we made errors. Had we known about the spell and Serin's path and the Goddess we would have handled it very differently. But none of us knew how powerful he would become or how favored by the Goddess. And so blessed, he would be able to totally turn his life around, enjoy femalehood, endear himself to the girls and become so devoted to her. But we were all blindsided and he became convinced we all hated him.”

Edwyn spoke up, “Yes, that is still what he believes and it really isn't hard to see how he can think that. I am still connected to his feelings and his thoughts. I felt his suffering at your hands. I saw what you all did to him."

Edwyn continued with a new accusing tone to his voice, “No wonder he turned the way he did. Most of this is to prove he can be a competent leader, and exceed Patinea. Patinea will be a king. Then Serinina will make herself into an empress. You will beat rebels. She faced savage Spartans, outnumbered defending a town from massacre. And she is doing a good job. And behind it all, she can't help but keep wondering how you would handle yourself in the same situation. Sometimes, she even wishes she had your strength to help her. She still admires you Patinea. Even if she hates you with every part of her being. She admires your courage and your strength and how you proved her wrong about girls.”

Falconette asked, “I have been beaten by her many times. The first time was when she was very young and living as a boy. She came to the school to ask for help to restore Actonia's brother's masculinity. He changed her to punish Actonia and prove a point. Then he began attacking us and almost killed us.”

"In another life he nearly beat me to death. And this time, was the worst. She is fully female and lashed out with such power there was no way to defend ourselves. It's like fighting a goddess. Serinina's power is growing. And she said if we restored our goddess she would release the Morning Star. What is that and what can we do?”

“Some of my visions have begun to return,” Actonia stated. “But I can't see this. I think Serinina is bluffing. The Morning Star is her natural husband Lucifer. She would never free him. That would be freeing a nightmare on the world that would make us suffer just to please him. He is a force of evil. Serinina is enjoying her marriage to Ares. We don't have to worry about her freeing the Morning Star. He would burn down the entire world and laugh. She may release Kronos from Tartarus though. I have seen that is a possibility and that would be a nightmare.”

“What is Kronos?” Patinea asked.

“Kronos is a massive god, the father to all of the other gods we worship. He could destroy them all and devour our world if he is released," said Hippolyta.

“Oh,” Patinea gasped in horror.

“But I never hated Serin,” Patinea said toward Edwyn. “I loved him so much.”

“You didn't hate him?” Edwyn snarled in fury. “Let's examine what you did to him. You transformed him into a girl so you could seize his crown. And he accepts that was necessary. It doesn't even bother him anymore. He has adapted to life as a girl. Then you take every opportunity to mock and belittle him. You forced him into dresses and gowns and corsets. Then you brutalized and, even when he's sexually assaulted, it doesn't bother you at all.”

"After that, you belittle and mock him some more like, when at the championship called the Sixteen, the boys are fighting for prizes and you mock him saying girls can't fight. How is he supposed to think you feel about him?”

"And even in the end, when he begins adapting, when he sees you off to war, you mock him some more calling him pretty. When you return and he's grown, it makes no difference. He stands on stage and sings for your victory. He sang for you in front of everyone, singing praises for your brilliance and your victory. And you hated him for it. He sang for you and you hated that and teased him.”

"When he realized his mistakes and personally approached the girls he mistreated he apologized to each of them. He made personal friends with them and even converted to the religion of the Goddess. Then he forms a relationship with a boy and you got mad that he's beloved as a boy or a girl. So you took it out on Asyrn for him felling for Serin. Then Serinina gets pregnant and, to stop Asyrn, you try to force Serin into a marriage.”

"How is he supposed to think you feel about him? He thinks you hated him. And the worst of it was how you treated him Patinea. And he was forbidden to do the things other women were able to do. You went out and fought, he wanted to fight too. You let your friend go with you but not him. Do you know how much that hurt Serin?”

“I know,” Patinea raised her tone. “I know I hurt him and I know I was wrong. I had built up so much resentment at him I was unable to control myself. But I never hated him." She shouted loudly. “But I understand how it felt to him,” Patinea whispered. “So what does he intend to do now?”

“Her army is headed for Vienna right now. Vienna won't last long. And a critical matter at Troy is requiring her attention. She will personally lead the final defeat of the damn Greeks once their ruse fails.”

“It's good that you see how wrong you were,” Hippolyta said looking at Patinea. “I wish you had found that out earlier. It's just a little late now. What's done is already done and she spent those years thinking you had an uncontrollable hatred toward him for no other reason than she was born as a boy. Do you know what she wishes for?”

“What, that I wasn't born?” she said, knowing that wasn't true.

“No, she wishes he was never born. Or she wishes she was born as a girl so you would have loved her. But I still see an issue that Serinina doesn't see there. That even as a girl, she would still have the same nature and same drive to be loved and to lead and that would lead you to treat her as a rival just the same. It would make no difference if she was a boy or a girl, you would still view her as a rival. And she would probably win. You are ill-suited Patinea, and the Goddess made an error in choosing you. She only chose you because you were a girl. Do you know how hurtful this all is to Serinina? He was condemned and dismissed only because of his sex.”

“How do you think it felt to me for not even being considered because of my sex?” Patinea snarled. “It was so infuriating.”

“That's not why you weren't chosen to be the heir. It's some of the reason but the other reason is that you have a cruel heart and your nature pushes people away. And then you wonder why you weren't as beloved as your brother. Now you have the answer.”

“Seeing my hard partying brother who is so easy going, trusting and so beloved but took nothing seriously be chosen when I was more mature and serious. I thought I was better, but he was just chosen because he was male. I hated that." Patinea stated.

“Now that's all solved and you have no reason to resent him. He is female, happy to be so. She is very serious, deadly serious at times and she's driven. She's coming after you Patinea.”

“Is there any hope to defeat her when she lands here,” Patinea inquired.

“No, even with my forces here, there's little hope to stop her. She has fought many battles, vastly outnumbered and won. She will still win, but we can make it harder for her. Actonia, do you see a victory?”

She shook her head sadly, “No. I see her making her stand at the wall the Romans built a century ago. She is having the Ansays rebuild it and make it three times as high. There will be no bypassing the wall and only a few ways through it, and she will make sure you can't get through it. That's where she will annihilate your army. It will be a total victory, or you can wait for her to besiege Denaerk and the result will be the same. Serinina will emerge victorious here. She will become the queen of the Golden Isles. Nothing can prevent that and she will kill the Goddess.”

xxxxxxxx

Serinina and Cassandra held the hand of their gravely wounded mother hours later. Penthesilia laid limp in her bed struggling to take shallow breaths. Her breathing was getting weaker by the second as Serinina clutched her mother's hand in desperation. Tears stained her face as she grasped her mother's hand, trying to give her the strength to recover from her wounds. Penthesilia was led into an ambush shortly after leaving Troy to find Helena. It was a well-timed and executed ambush by strategically placed Greek forces under Achilles. Serinina knew how they planned it, she simply had to prove it

Her doctors did all they could to stop her bleeding, but they strongly suspected there was internal bleeding that they were unable to stop. Athena was still too weak to help because of the injuries she had suffered from Serinina's attack and this was beyond Ares. He was better at killing humans than saving them. Athena was the wise one and Hera wouldn't raise a finger for them. Serinina's attack upon Athena had offended Hera and Hera wanted nothing to do with Serinina. So Penthesilia was slowly dying.

She gasped to Serinina, “You know this cannot be stopped. I will shortly die and nothing can prevent it now.”

Serinina raged at the gods once more for playing with the lives of people. A god took Serin's father away so long ago and that was considered a good thing for it set up the goddess and her vessel. Now another god decided to take her adopted mother away. Her fist tightened until her knuckles turned white. She swore her blood oath that the gods will pay for this.

Her mother gasp in her final breath, “You will be the queen shortly. You were made my heir, Cassandra and Emily both support you.”

“Yes I do," Cassandra told Serinina, "not without question but I understand you are the best of us, Emily and I would never dream of betraying you. You will be our queen.”

They held on to their mother's hands for hours as her breaths became weaker and weaker. Into the sixth hour, Penthesilia breathed her final breath. It was let out and she didn't inhale again. Penthesilia went into the next world. Serinina began weeping and sobbing as she held onto Cassandra. Serinina laid her head on Cassandra's shoulder and the two girls wept.

For all of her anger at the gods for letting this happen, Serinina knew that part of the blame was hers as well. If she had not allowed her anger to control her, she would not have attacked Athena when she had tried to stop her attack on the witches. Athena did not have enough power to save Penthesilia and the other gods were too offended by Serinina's actions to be willing to help.

Serinina shook herself. Yes, she had hurt Athena. But the gods were still playing with their lives and they had the nerve to be upset when a mortal took action on their own that went contrary to their desires.

“We have another coronation to arrange. My Queen." said Cassandra quietly.

Serinina looked sad, “Yes, but this is one I had hoped to put off for a very long time. I guess we need to go back to Themyscira to crown a new queen of the Amazons but not before we deal with this nonsense. They are almost done with that damn horse and the Trojans are eager to take possession of it. Especially Hector, and I wonder why?” She said snidely.

Cassandra agreed as they watched the Greeks finish building the enormous horse on the beach outside of the city. It was built large enough they would have trouble taking it inside the city walls. It wouldn't fit through the gates without some modifications to the gates.

Later that night, she held a council with the king and various nobles of Troy. Paris, Cassandra, Priam and his wife were there. She stated firmly, “That horse is a trap. You have to know the Greeks would never accept defeat by us without us forcing the issue. You can't consider accepting the horse.”

Hector spoke out, offended.

“What does a woman know about war?” He said arrogantly. “You do not speak to us woman!”

She almost laughed. Maxis would love these men so much.

“The Greeks realized that any attack on us is futile. They have left camp. They are putting the final nails into the horse for us. We will accept their gift,” Hector said to her. “And we won't argue with a woman about it. We will accept the Greeks offer of friendship.”

That sealed the question of Hector's allegiance for Serinina. She knew he was working with the Greeks and resolved to figure out who he was talking to them. There had to be spies in the city.

“As you wish, prince Hector." Serinina said hiding a smirk behind her hand. The man didn't know it, but he had sealed his fate with those words.

She dismissed the rest of the council but kept Cassandra and her generals there. “Keep a close eye on Hector and under no circumstances allow them to let that horse in without a strong 24-hour guard. Whoever exits that horse will find themselves surrounded by spears and bows. They won't last long. I will closely watch Hector.”

The Council was dismissed and she quickly found Hector to follow him for the rest of the evening. She kept herself from his sight even using magic when necessary. Then it finally happened. It took long enough but it did happen.

She found him talking to a group of Greeks dressed as Trojans within the city. “Those fools will take the horse in. I made sure no one took that whore seriously. We will wheel the horse into the city and you can open the gates. The City will fall.”

“What of Agamemnon's wife Helena. She still hasn't been found. He is getting angry." Asked one of the spies.

“At least we took care of Penthesilia. She won't rescue Helena. It's up to you to find her, I have no idea where that whore is hiding. Just take the city and someone should know where she went.”

They did a Greek salute and left. He suddenly found himself face to face with Serinina when he turned to leave. Serinina glared into Hector's eyes and snarled, “I knew you were an honorless traitor.”

“My sister will never be queen." He snarled. “She has no right.”

Then the next thing he knew was blinding pain as a spear was driven into his stomach that exited out the other side, dripping with his blood. He gasped as the Amazons rounded up the other Greek spies. They were executed one by one and the city was made safe.

Later that morning, Serinina made an announcement to the city that Cassandra was appointed as the Queen of Troy. Priam was deposed and imprisoned for his treason.

When evening arrived, the Trojans wheeled the enormous horse into the city and locked the gates behind them. They knew what was going on and stood watching the horse into the night.

The guard around the horse was tripled when night fell. Hundreds of hoplites surrounded the horse with bowmen and women behind them. It was no surprise when the belly of the horse opened up and men began sliding down ropes. They quickly found themselves surrounded and killed one by one right up to Agamemnon

The Trojans pretended that the trick had worked and opened the city gates making sure there were tens of thousands of troops ready. The zone between the outer and inner gates of the city became a killing ground. The remaining Greek forces were slaughtered without mercy and the Trojan war was over. Troy remained, the Greek forces fell and made it all that much easier for Sparta to absorb Athens and the rest of the Greek states. They all surrendered one by one. Serinina began feeling like an Empress now.

With the war over, she had to plan an expedition to Themyscira to be crowned as its new queen. Finally, she had a little time to mourn and remained locked in her bedroom and began crying.

Serinina wept uncontrollably all night long. Her head was buried in her pillow and soon became soaked with her tears. Her sorrow turned into anger and then to white hot rage as she raged at the fates for this. It seems the fates want to keep playing games with her life. She would play games with them

She slowly felt her temperature rising. She was soon burning, a dark reddish like glow that consumed her body. This wasn't much but a few hundred degrees as most. But her rage grew and the dark glow brightened into a brilliant blinding yellowish glow. And she kept going. By now she was in the thousand's and it rose into a white hot glow that was over ten thousand and then an angry dark blueish glow that was over twenty thousand. She was forced to take measures to shield the extreme heat from the atmosphere, lest the extreme heat ignite the air around her and wipe out life on the planet.

She let her heat go away. There was no need to be that hot. Another idea took hold. She could execute this one very easily. She shut her eyes and reached out with her mind. She found the boy that she once loved. It was night over there and he was sleeping by Patinea. She was torn between Edwyn and Asyrn. She loved Asyrn but also loved Edwyn and they were both great. Serinina was going to make it an easy choice for her. He connected with Asyrn and sang into the boy's mind.

He shifted and almost woke, “Serinina, is that you? What are you doing here?”

“Shshshs,” replied Serinina. “Be quiet. I just wanted to talk to you.”

He saw the flare in her eyes and knew. “Please understand, I couldn't resist her, but you know I always wanted you. But she was the King, how could I fight her affections? Please understand.”

“Oh, I do understand,” She said dangerously. “But you could have fought for us. But you accepted her affection and slept with her, many, many times. You could have rejected her and went to me.”

“You may be that strong,” Asyrn replied. “But I wasn't. I was afraid of what she would do. I knew she was vindictive. And she bewitched me. I was unable to resist. It was unfair to blame me for it and you left.”

“What happened to my life was about as unfair as you can get,” Serinina spat venomously. “I was destroyed. You could have resisted, but you didn't. If she retaliated, she would have revealed her pettiness to the entire kingdom. You didn’t resist her. I do blame you, Asyrn. And I have a gift for you, and I have a question for you, perhaps you can answer this for me?”

Asyrn looked confused. “What question, we have been talking for about an hour now, what do you want to ask me?”

“Have you ever thought about what it was like being a girl,” Serinina looked into Asyrns eyes.

“No,” He snorted. “I am not a sissy, and neither were you. This was a life forced on you against your will and I remember how difficult it was, and now totally devestated you were when it happened. So dont think of doing this to me, please Serinina, I beg you, you must know how horrible it is for a boy. It was totally sadistic and cruel to do to you, it was so wrong.”

“Of course not,” Serinina replied calming the boy she once loved. The one that Patinea wanted so desperately. It would be fitting to do it to him but she had much better ideas. “I won’t bestow the blessing on you. You will want it more than anything else in life. You will be desperate to be pretty and graceful like a girl. You will beg for it!” Serinina smiled and kissed Asyrn full on the mouth. Then she began chanting into his mind.

“You will want to look like a girl more than anything. You will want long beautiful hair. You will wear girls underthings, you will want our gowns and our corsets, our shoes. You will associate with girls on a much more personal level than before. And you will desire boys to desire you as a girl. You will want our bodyparts, our breasts, our faces, our soft skin, you will want femininity and you will go to the Falconette and beg for it and you will remind her of how much she loves transforming boys. You Asyrn will begin dressing as a girl and want to live the life of a young woman when you wake up.”

This was going to be so fun. And the best part of it all was there was going to be no way the Hekatin could possibly break this spell. It really wasn't a spell at all. She didnt change his body at all. Serinina fundamentally changed Asyrns personality. She took his personality away and inserted a female personality in him. She didnt just insert a feminine personality in him, but she put an extremely feminine super girlie personality in this big strong macho type warrior. It was exceptionally cruel and so fun.

Patinea was horrified when she woke up and saw her boyfriend being laced into a corset. He was tightly holding onto a tall corner post with a large woman lacing him into a corset and he was crying for her to tighten the laces more.

She cried out, “Asyrn what in hell are you doing?”

Asyrn said in a sing song like tone, “I want to be pretty, like you girls are. Just wait until you see me wearing that lacy pink gown. And get my hair done, I cant wait.”

“What,” She cried in despair. “Asyrn, you were born to be a leader and lead armies. How can you do this!”

He laughed as she finished the laces and pulled a gown over his head. “So was your brother but you didnt care about his future, but unlike what you did to him, this is what I want, you should have had it done to me, but I wasnt the heir, he was. But you wanted the crown, you didn’t care how he felt about his life. You simply wanted to be King and that was it,” Asyrn said accusingly. “Considering how you treated him, how can you think I would ever want you? Youre horrible.”

“He was going to have me married,” Patinea cried. “I wanted control over my own life.”

He snorted, “You could have ran away, there are many ways you could have taken control over your life. Especially considering you were part of the Hekatin. Do you think those other witches let any man dominate them. Huh,” Asyrn snorted. “You wanted to control his life, and control all of us. Considering how you forced and manipulated me into this relationship using your spells, and those potions to make me desire you. How can you think this was real. It isnt, and I dont want you at all. DO you think Otto will desire me,” Asyrn fluttered his eyelashes as he began painting his face.

“Do you think the witches can turn me into a girl just like they did to your brother?”

xxxxxx

It was now time to go back to the Amazons and prepare for her coronation as their queen. She didn't need to go to be recognized as their queen. She already was, and she was the sovereign of many other nations by now so there was no question of who they were going to crown; who now held power. But she still needed to do this for the symbolism. Serinina prepared a voyage to Themyscira and this would be the final most important crowning she would have. This was her birthright now. It wasn't one she would seize by force or conquest. This was being offered to her because of her birthright.

The queen's ceremonial guards had already been chosen. Most were killed in the ambush on Penthesilia, but a few survived. The Captain survived and she chose another eleven guards among the best trained women on the isles. Serinina insisted on one of them being a boy and a boy was chosen.

She chose a pretty young sixteen year old boy with unruly blonde hair. He was one of the few farmhands that had not been castrated. He was meek enough as it was, and he obeyed his female overseers with no problem. He was slim, obedient and very pretty. His name was Jason and he was chosen for he had just expressed a desire to defend and fight for the queen.

The queen's personal quinquereme was prepared for a voyage to Themyscira and she boarded. Things weren't all that different. Being responsible for the Amazons was slightly different but she already had enormous and massive responsibilities as the empress of many nations now. She ruled the entire Greek isles and her forces had overran Vienna. Vienna surrendered and she ordered them to hold Vienna and wait for her before they crossed the Rubicon and invaded Italy itself.

Her fleet took less than a week to arrive at Themyscira. She insisted that her personal guard, Jason stood by her side at all times. Mostly, it was for his protection. Jason was a demure sixteen year old going on seventeen. She had restored his masculinity and made him strong and confident. He was one of the only boys able to keep up with the fiercest Amazonian warriors. He rivaled Dianna Prince herself at times and even defeated her in some of their mock fights. Jason had a woman's heart, Serinina thought, and she adored him. So she insisted on making Jason a personal queen's guard and ensured he would eventually have glory as a boy, and possibly even have his own family. The Amazons had no idea what changes were coming and she was going to adore this. Some things about the Amazons had pissed her off.

They made their way down to the grand Temple of Athena, and she felt some sorrow for what she did to the Goddess. Not much, but a little. Athena was trying to protect the witches. They didn't deserve anyone protecting them. The witches were evil and cruel. They had to be destroyed once and for all and if Athena failed to realize that, then that was her mistake.

They disembarked from their grand ship and stepped onto the wet dock and made their way onto land and then went on their way to the great temple of Athena. The way was mostly paved with stone and marble. She occasionally avoided trees and other various growths. The Amazons loved nature so much, and she finally made it to the enormous temple. The temple she had built for Ares was much larger, but this was still impressive.

The Priestess that had taught her as a child was there ready to present her with the crown of the queen. The Amazons don't do anything the typical way. What she was being presented with wasn't actually any crown. It was more like a pretty tiara. It went around her forehead and had a symbol of an eight-pointed star inside of a triangle pointed down to her nose. The Priestess placed it on her and announced, “I crown Serinina Denae Ares queen of the Amazons, and leader of Themyscira and head of her family of Penthesilia. Long Live the Queen!” Shouted the Priestess and her warriors replied.

She stood there in her thick leather padded armor of a typical Amazon warrior woman and she raised her fist in the air and ignited her power once again.

“We stand upon a golden age of peace and prosperity. Our culture will lead Europe into a new age of freedom and love!” she shouted. “We will be a shining example to the European people. My first act was to appoint a boy to be my personal guard. That offended many of you, but I believe in equality. I was denied my life because I wasn't born as a girl. I felt that was unfair and cruel. I think the way you treat males is cruel and that is now ending. All male captives will now be freed!”

The Amazons protested, but some like Cassandra expected it. She knew how her sister felt.

“And males can train as Amazon warriors. That is all. I now have a meeting.”

And in another half hour, she entered into the royal council chamber once again. Only she was the ruler this time. And there was no Hippolyta or Dianna. She appointed a male to lead that island. It would be Jason when the time came.

“My first act as your queen is to change the line of succession. The crown will go to the one who Ares and Athena choose, regardless of sex.”

“What if they don't make their wishes known?” Lady Antiope asked.

“Then we hold a series of trials and determine who is the smartest and strongest heir and on from there. You may be ruled by a boy in the future and you will have to accept that.”

Serinina sinisterly smiled at the women and nearly hissed, “Many of your male captives will receive military style training with Spartans. That's why I allowed them to land here and make a camp. Your males will be trained and protected by them. Let's hope I don't receive the same problem I had with the Spartans and the Helots. I would hate to have to have over twenty thousand Spartans here just to protect your former male captives. I would be greatly disappointed if I had to.”

“You won't,” Lady Antiope said. “We are compassionate and mature women, unlike the men. We honor and respect our queen and her wishes will be obeyed without issue. I will see to it that the male captives won't be attacked. They can be trained by the Spartans or I will host their training in the way of the Amazons. I would gladly train your boy Jason if you wished, my queen Serinina.”

Serinina saw that lady Antiope was being sincere and smiled softly. “That's very kind of you, thank you for your offer maybe I will let you train Jason. He is free and it's up to him.”

Jason spoke softly, “I would love to train with Lady Antiope, my queen.”

“Okay,” Serinina replied. “He will train with you for a few weeks before he takes his formal place as my guard. I am sure he will be a lot more loyal than Elverus. That traitorous toad.”

Jason was taken by Lady Antiope to her Isle and he was shortly put through the same Amazon woman's military training that they all did at a young age. Serinina observed for the first few days to make sure there was no abuse taking place.

Jason dealt with the harsh new reality of his training as an Amazon woman. He did farming for the Amazons but wanted to be a warrior for them. It might seem very weird but he respected and loved the Amazons or he would have left and risked being killed. But he saw how the rest of the world treated women and saw that women were fierce and free here. It was no wonder they guarded their island so brutally. Perhaps some of it was in excess but not by much considering how the rest of the world treated women.

Jason was put through the grueling training program of the Amazons, and thought he wouldn't make it. He enjoyed it and persevered and succeeded in not collapsing the first few days. Serinina couldn't watch it all. She had to return and find Helena. She thought she knew where Helena was hiding so she had to return to Anatolia.

Serinina gave the appropriate orders to her fleet to prepare an expedition to Anatolia and Troy. Cassandra was already their reigning queen and they seemed to love her. Paris nearly worshiped her. They had such a supportive relationship that she wished Patinea and Serin shared the same.

So she took charge of the preparations for the fleet departing and handled the provisions for the crew during their voyage. These were more of the tedious things a queen needed to concern themselves with and she knew they did tax Patinea too. She mentioned how she would prefer to be fighting than dealing with the provisions and food rations for her army. But this didn't bother Serinina. She made sure her crew had the best rations for their voyage and made sure her fleet had its full complement. One of the ships was short and she increased the wages to make sure it had its full crew complement. She threw herself into preparing her fleet for departing.

Finding someone who did not want to be found was difficult. But that was the problem. She had a good feeling about where Helena was hiding and she wasn't hiding that well if Helena was where Serinina thought she was. There was a great and a very powerful empire far to the east that is following a strange and new religion that proclaims there is only one god. Their Caliph as they call their ruler Umar and his wife Fatimide were friends with Helena. No one thought that she would flee to the Caliphate for protection but under their religion, they strove to protect women. Abusing women was a grave and unforgivable sin that condemned the abuser in the afterlife. Helena felt safe there unlike at Troy which seemed likely to fall, or the Greeks who just wanted to use her as an example of their culture's superiority. Why wouldn’t she feel safe there? That was the better question. So that is where she had to go and hope she could convince Helena to return to Troy with her sister Cassandra.

Luckily, she knew their language, Arabic. She would have to brush up on the language on the weeklong voyage to Anatolia so she required her guards and close advisers to also use the language when speaking to her.

They landed at Troy without issue and they prepared to travel across Anatolia to the Rashidun Empire. Their Caliph had been informed and he was waiting for them. She prepared her small group to cross the harsh Anatolia Desert and she made sure they had animals that could handle it.

Sarinina finds Helena and they return to Troy with a few surprises.

The Caliphates guards led Serinina into his meeting chambers where he sat on his throne with his wife Fatimahe. She still didnt see Helena anywhere.

He spoke in a tone that was long accustomed to power. Umar was an old man by now, but it had been over fifty years since he campaigned with his holy prophet peace be upon him. “I think that I know why you are here empress Serinina, but I want to hear it from your mouth.”

“I assure you that I mean no harm. The danger to her life is over. I make no demands I only want Helena of Troy returned. Her sister misses her so much, Umar.”

“She is free to leave any time she wishes,” Replied Umar with an undertone of steel. “We aren't holding her here. What she does is her decision. She fled for our protecting when a violent conqueror won her hand in marriage on a bet with his brothers. We protect her and she can leave any time she wants.”

“Those people are no longer among the living.” Serinina said. “She can safely return if she wishes. But I cant imagine why she wouldn't want to return to her family.”

“Her family that used her life try to make peace,” Umar rose his eyebrow. “That family.”

“NO,” Replied Serinina. “Those people no longer have anything to say about her life. Her sister does miss her but it is her choice, we cant and wouldnt ever consider forcing her to return against her will. But there is nothing to fear now. And I know all about using of a life to make progress or affect safety. My life was violently changed against my wishes. My lifes path was altered. I hated it and fled but I will return.”

Umars eyes narrowed. “Yes I know about you, crown prince Serren.” He watched as Serinina gasp in alarm. “Helena can return if she wishes to, she always could return. You will have to ask her and I will bring you to her. Follow Fatimahe and she will show you where Helena is staying.”

His wife stood up and led them out the doors of the throne room and down the hall. They went up the steps and into a massive tower room on top where Helena was staying. This was her bedroom on the fifth floor on top of a massive tower. She sat on her bed waiting for Serinina and smiled, “greetings Serinina. I had expected my sisters mother Penthesilia to come.”

“Hectors betrayed her, and he got his, they all did. The war is over and the greeks are defeated. Those who wanted to take you are gone, or learned their lesson like Ajax. Cassandra misses you so much.”

“Why isnt she here,” Helena inquired.

“She has her duties as the queen of Trojans now. She sent me.” Serinina said. “It is all up to you Helena and im sorry about Penthesilia.”

“I will return, can I bring my family?” Helena asked.

“Your family,” Serinina repeated having a feeling about where this was going.

And it was. “Yes, my husband Ali and our son. They would like to see Troy if it is safe.”

Serinina took it in stride and replied, “Sure, Cassandra would love to see your family. She had newphews to spoil.” They laughed.

“Good,” Helena said letting out a breath she was holding. “Let us get pack and We will return for a time. But our life is here now. This is where I belong.” Helena stated as they began to pack. “And Fatima wants to talk to you, She thinks she can help you with your own issues, Serinina. Fatimahe is a very smart woman, please trust her.”

Serinina was led out of the bedroom and into a small drawing room of the palace where Fatimahe was waiting with a soft compassionate smile.

“Serinina, I have seen you have adapted to life very well as a female. Much better than any other guy could have.”

“Whats that supposed to mean?” Serinina spat venomously.

“It means,” Fatimahe responded with no anger at all, “That a male life may not have been what you were meant for. Changing you was what you needed. The will of Allah and all of his wisdom and compassionate. YOu should not be angry at them, or hold it against them. Change any male here and he would rather die. They probably would choose death but you adapted and persevered. Do you understand?”

Serinina took in a deep exasperated breath. “I understood that for a long time and I keep finding myself explaining this point to people who ask. My sisters, the gods themsevles. I am not angry at being made into a woman. I am glad. That is not the source of my anger. The source is how they treated me once they turned me. The entire motive for my change was corrupt and defeated the very reason they did it in the first place. It was to make me weak, so I could be controlled and abused. Had their plan worked then I would have chosen death. I couldn't have fought them. I am happy to be female but I dont want to be abused.

“Helena dealt with that bull all of her life from her brothers and father in their culture before the Amazons came around and even then, she faced their sexism. She harbor no anger at them.” Fatimeah pointed out.

“They are men who knew no better. We can forgive men who know no better. I faced them myself. BUt my sister and those witches knew better. They lived that life and wanted to impose it on me while saying they were fighting to liberate women. I understand to a point not being able to trust my motives after my change but that should have passed. I grew, but they don't care and then I was raped. I got pregnant and they still tried to force me into a marriage to cover their shame. Just like a man would have. My sister is no better than Hector.

“I understand,” said Fatimahe,” But what of the people there?”

Serinina laughed. “They will be fine. I never intended to harm November Charlie's. Not at all. I just want them to think I will. But I defended civilians at risk of my own life. I wouldn't hurt them. Except for those stupid nobles, they are dead men walking. They betrayed me. But, not the common people. Only the nobles.

“But still, do you really need to make them suffer?”

“Yes,” replied Serinina in a tone that broke no argument. “The nobility must feel the loss that I was forced to experience. They must suffer as I have. They must watch helplessly as everything they love in life is taken from them as it was taken from me. They must all experience that, then perhaps next time it happens they won't stand by and watch as a boy loses everything he holds dear in life.”

It was clear that there was no argument here. Serinina was going to take her revenge on the nobles and there was no detouring her in this. She was totally committed to it. Serinina smiled a vicious and cruel smile that sent shivers down the other woman's spine and she said, “There's nothing to fear my dear. This is what is needed to be done. It has to happen. They were looking forward to their boy princess. It's their prophesy they have been looking forward to for generations. Let's see how they like him when he returns. Or, the Boy Queen, their boy goddess.” She smiled that smile again and turned to head back. The discussion was over and she learned a little more about Serinina. At least she wasn't a complete monster that Fatimahe had feared

Serinina returned to Helena to see her with a larger man packing for a long trip to Troy, and there was a small boy around seven years old helping his parents pack the things that they needed. Then at around noon, they all stopped and placed rugs on the floor. Then they knelt on it and bowed their heads down and began chanting in one voice. Everyone around them did the same thing, the entire city as far as she knew, everyone in the entire region did the same thing. Serinina felt the strength and conviction toward this new religion and the new God that they were devoted to.

It was over as quickly as it began and the family continued packing for their long trip. Helena and her husband Ali showed some affection for eachother, and it was clear that they loved eachother very much. Serinina briefly wondered about Ares. It was about that time that a guard summoned Serinina back, saying that Fatimahe wanted to see her again. She resented being summoned like a common noble when she was an empress that summoned others when she needed them. But she wasn't the Empress here, and their leaders summoned who they needed to speak to, just like she did so that was her status here. She respected it and acquiesced to the caliphates wife's wishes and went to see her in her private chambers to see what she wanted.

Serinina figured it was her plan for the nobles of her homeland, and she had no intention of budging on that matter. Fatimahe was going to be greatly disappointed there.

“I know you are convinced about your course here, Serinina but I must strongly question if it is right. I must ask what makes you so sure, and what exactly you intend to do to the nobility of your homeland?”

“I intend to make them suffer as I suffered,” Serinina replied with her voice trembling with the emotion she felt. “They must watch the destruction of their entire lives. First, they will bury their children, watch as their handling's and their entire lives are destroyed. Then they will be buried with their children. I don't care what you say, this is what I intend and what I will do.”

“Why do you need to be so brutal to them?” Fatimahe asked sincerely.

“They are cowards who deserve it. They are supposed to be so strong, they said they supported me and loved me. But none of them lifted a finger to help me. They all watched the destruction of my entire life as my entire future and my life was taken from me. I was helpless, and betrayed and none of them stood by me. They need to experience what that is like.”

“Why,” Fatimahe asked again.

“Because they need to experience it, they inflicted it on me. They deserve to experience that suffering themselves. It’s only right.”

“Are you sure,” Fatimahe asked, looking into Serinina’s eyes that had begun filling with frightening darkness that threatened to entrap anyone who looked into them too long. “What would you have done if you were there that day, as a noble watching it happen to another boy up there? Would you had dared defied that kind of power they saw that day?”

Serinina thought about it and said with conviction, “Absolutely. If we fail to confront evil, then we become part of it and deserve to suffer from it. I would have stood by Sarin that day and dared anyone else to stand with me.”

“Sarinina, are you sure of this?” Fatimahe asked.

“Yes,” Replied Sarinina.

“Let's see if you are right,” Fatimahe said warningly and then touched Sarinina, and she suddenly felt herself transformed and sent somewhere else.

Suddenly she saw herself, or himself now sitting in the seats by his parents. Fatimahe said, “These are your parents. You know nothing of what will happen now. You are not a prince, you are just a noble boy watching Edwyn's coronation as King after his father's assassination a week ago.” Then she vanished

He watched as the women gathered around the prince Edwyn. His sister Patinea stood beside her brother and smiled warmly, but she also had a look of fear in her eyes. Sarin didn't really understand this. Shouldn't she be happy for her brother's coronation at the King?

Then all of the 12 women assembled there rose their hands and pointed a finger up at the sky. Then they began chanting in one ominous voice, it was a very quiet chant, but he heard it. Then Patinea placed a hand on Edwyn's shoulder. Edwyn thought it was comfort or support, but fear clutched Sarin as he watched it. The hard look in Patinea’s eyes spoke of something else, and then she chanted a spell, and her brother began shrinking. He tried to speak, but only a high pitched squeak came out of his mouth as he transformed in front of everyone. His body shrank, his chest expanded into two massive soft mounds. His face shrank and developed soft feminine facial lines. He screamed and clutched his crotch as he felt pain in his groin area as it transformed and shrank inside of his body.

Then he was a girl looking up in fear. Patinea rose her fist in the area and declared proudly, emotion filling her voice as she was now victorious, “Bear witness there is no longer a male heir to the throne. That makes me the rightful heir now.”

The women gathered around her to protect her. Falconette dared, “Let anyone who disagrees, join Edwyinina here.”

And then a great earthquake occurred. The windows to the temple shattered. A great opening appeared under the giant statue of Maxis, and it was swallowed up in a massive hole.

She dared everyone again. Sarin had enough and stood up and walked to stand beside Edwyn and thundered, “I can't believe you people. We stood by this boy, we played with him, we fought with him, and now you are abandoning him. I know what you just witnessed, and we know some horrible things happen to women, but it isn't this boy's fault. Don't blame him for it or make him a sacrifice. I question any god that would inflict this on an innocent and kind boy like Edwyn. Just because this corruption happened doesn't make him unworthy. It doesn't even make him not a boy anymore. He's still the Edwyn we always knew. Stand by him now or be declared a coward! Let's fight this together with Edwyn. Fight the priests who burn women and fight these women who want to lay it all on his shoulders.”

Then the vision vanished, and Fatimahe looked surprised. “So you aren't all talk, you would have stood by him and confronted them. You probably would have ruined their entire plan that day.”

“How did you do that,” Asked Sarinina, and she wasn't entirely sure what was happening now, but she caught a glimpse of Fatimeh’s image being distorted, and she whispered, “Danis?”

She looked out and saw the witch moon in the skies and got very angry,” Danis?”

In an instant, she felt reality shift all around her at once. The witch moon's appearance changed everything. She was indeed still a goddess in her own right. Having Lilith's crown and ruling her realm of hell gave her supreme power over the planet that even Zeus and Athena couldn't begin to match. But she felt reality shift to the one she knew. She was in the original time where she was transformed on the even of her own coronation, and Patinea stole the throne from him. It was Patinea’s throne now. She escaped and went to the Amazons and trained as a female warrior. These adventures were still here's and she rescued troy. She formed a relationship with Ajax and restored him. She was still the Empress of the Greeks and her army had overrun Vienna. They have stationed their troops on the borders of Frankish territory and preparing to march on Paris.

“No,” Fatimahe replied. “But, we love her.”

Suddenly Sarinina felt the electrical energy flowing through her hands, and a long electrified spear appeared in her hand. The doors to the chamber slammed shut on their own and a field appeared over them, preventing anyone from forcing their way in. Sarinina had pushed Fatimahe down and had the spear pointed toward her throat.

“Your plan to show me a coward failed. I would have acted that day, and I proved it. I would have defended Sarin, but I won't defend Edwyn. He is the Son of the Goddess you love. I will destroy him.”

Fatimahe didn't say anything else. She was so afraid now and Sarinina spoke again. Her tone took on a cruel, harsh, unforgiving tone now as she spoke. “And, Danis, You probably think I have been fearing this day, but no. I have been looking forward to the day you regained your power. Oh yeah, I have. Seeing your moon appear, then disappear, will be so demoralizing. I will destroy you, your followers will be hunted down. I will find each and every witch and kill them. Starting with you Fatimahe. I will inform your husband, Umar, you are a Jinn. And you are not to be trusted with the safety of your son Ali. Ali will be a great Caliphate for the Empire. He will destroy the prophet's rebellious wife, Aisha.”

And Serinina did precisely what she intended and informed on the wife before they began their long trip to Troy. Fatima was arrested and tried as a Jin. She executed as they were leaving the palace. There was no defending Fatimehe after such an accusation of being a jinn. It was common knowledge that Serinina was a Jinn and she was too powerful to fight. She had taken the spirit of man's first rebellious wife that defied her own husband and defied Allah himself. She was cast out of paradise and had married the rebellious angel of light. The most powerful of the angels who thought his power was equal to Allah himself. He was wrong

But Lilith does not want to do evil with her power. She is just angry at having been so badly mistreated. Serinina tends to agree with that assessment, and she won't release her husband. She doesn’t agree with the Honor and Obey. She didn't want to obey. She didn’t want to obey evil men, especially.

She saw her husband Abul riding alone with a distraught expression on his face. Her son Samir was riding beside his mother, Helena, and he seemed okay. But her husband was very unhappy, and she reached out. She realized that his trouble had to do with her. She had deliberately exposed the Caliphates wife Fatimeh, knowing it would result in her execution. Many of them knew about her, and even the Caliphate himself was okay with it. She meant well and used her abilities for Good but publicly exposing her as she did. No one could be seen publicly defending her from charges of witchcraft. The Imams had to act. That was a vicious thing to do. Many people have a very different view of the Goddess than she has. But she was the Victim. She was nothing but a sacrifice and suffered at the hands of the Goddess. She has a very different view of the Goddess than many other people do. The Goddess may have good intentions, but so does her ex-husband, Lucifer. It makes no difference in the end. Evil is Evil. What she suffered was Evil

She rode up alongside Umar and said casually, “I guess you don't like me, don’t you?”

He tried to defend himself but found such a thing would be weak. “I don’t not like you, your Majesty. I don’t have any personal feelings either way about you. I don’t like what you did to our Caliphates wife. We all knew about her, and we loved her. What you did was wrong!”

Serinina looked sharply into the man's eyes. “I am astonished at this Umar,” She said down to the man wearing a turban. “As pious as you are to your new faith. What it says about the Tawheed and the Oneness of God himself. How it is a sin to associate any partners to him. How can you in your faith believe, or even tolerate a belief in a goddess like this?”

“Who said anything about a goddess, we don’t worship her or anything like that?” Replied Abu. “Its much like the other messengers and prophets, Issa, Jesus, Abraham, Issac, Elijah, Muhammad, All of them, and then there are a host of other angels like Gabriel that gives us messages from God. We aren’t those hekatin who worship her. We respect and follow her will, at times. And Fatimahe didn’t worship her. Her faith was only to one. She used the powers of Danis to enhance and do good things for people. That's all and you exposed her as a witch and had her executed. She wasn’t an evil woman.”

“Abul, you simply do not understand, do you,” Said Serinina taking a breath of frustration and letting it out. “This is no angel. Danis has immense power and she won't wield it on behalf of any religion other than her own. When she is released, she will create a great conflict within your people and your religion for those who follow her. It may destroy your religion once and for all.”

He shook his head. “No, maybe only to those imams who want to execute people like her. Much like it did in your homeland. And perhaps that is as it needed to be. Those killings need to stop Serinina and I know how you feel. I know how you have suffered at their hands. YOu feel your life was nothing more than a blood sacrifice on her altar. And you feel they are evil. But they just want to stop these killings and be free. Everyone wants freedom and what they are fighting is a great evil. Even you agree to that.”

“Any goddess that requires a child to sacrifice his life or sex on her behalf is evil and cruel. I'd think you especially would agree with that, Abu.” She raised her eyebrow and then quoted one of the Ayat's about Issa and the belief of a blood sacrifice for sin. “Don't you all belief that is corrupt. God needs no sacrifice for his sins, does he?”

“No,” Abu replied. “But it's not about that. It was about stopping evil men from killing people and persecuting the women. We also want to defeat them. Now, we know some of those followers also believe in evil things. Especially in your land but not all of them. That's where you were supposed to come in. You were supposed to do it.”

“I will do it, but I could have done it as a happy boy rather than a victimized girl. How can I serve a god that persecuted me and destroyed my entire life? I cant. I must not let her defeat me.”

“In making this a competition between you two, and defeating her? You may find yourself condemning more generations of girls to male brutality and subjugation. Like under those Spartans you love, and your marriage to Ares. You put him in charge of Themyscira, didn't you?”

“Yes,” Serinina confirmed. “I put him in charge of enforcing my will and protecting the former male captives that they held and insured their protection and training in the spartan way of combat, unless they wanted to join the Amazons which a number have. It's great.”

He shook his head in sadness. “Enforcing male equality and freeing the male captives and having them trained. Allowing a large spartan contingent to make a military camp on their island may have, in the end, destroyed the Amazons entire civilization. They only existed because they kept their island hidden and refused to expose themselves. Males who landed found themselves subjugated and a number of them like your boy Jason understood the necessity of keeping their society a secret. You exposed them, and forced them to accept males being freed in their civilization and militarized. You have doomed them, and the Amazons are too honor bounded to refuse your demand. They will follow their queen, but they should refuse you. Unlike the Spartans, the Amazons won't survive this. Their female warrior culture they formed around strong women will vanish from history, thanks to you Serinina. All hail the queen.” Abu snorted sarcastically.

That was an issue that had been bugging Serinina since she did it. She knew that the Spartan society was strong enough to handle having a large number of their former subjugated people being free and working for the good of the society as a whole. They were enslaved before and forced to work the land for Sparta so the warrior cast could continue to train. It was a life of bleak subjugation and humiliation that would not last. At the slightest sign of weakness, they would rise up and the society could only handle a number of those before they were overwhelmed. It was an earthquake at first that showed the weakness of their society. Then the Helots revolted, and the rest of the Greek states that had tired of Spartan brutality and supremacy invaded and it was the end of Sparta.

Serinina’s arrival changed everything, and it was going to happen a lot sooner this time. Their defeat at Troy was going to be the sign of Spartan Weakness. Serinina took care of that and found that the false God Maxis was trying to get in on Spartan's weakness to spread his religion to them, and that was almost laughable. Some of the Spartans were falling for it, but not many. Maxis’s faith was too harsh and too strange for them. If he was given time, it might have worked, but Serinina's arrival put a stop to that nonsense. But Spartan society would endure this upheaval and end up stronger because of it. They have a whole new merchant class to strengthen their entire society and still allow the military caste to train full time.

But she doubted the Amazons would survive the freeing of the men on their land. And not only freeing them but allowing them to be trained as part of the military. This would like end up with the women being subjugated within a generation. Their isolation was their strength and what allowed the women to maintain their strength as warriors. But if that was the future, then it was the future. The Amazon's had relied on brutality and terror to maintain their female supremacy against an entire sex they terrorized and brutalized into submission, and that only existed because there was a very limited number of men allowed. Once that safety net was removed, their society was now living on borrowed time.

Along their way out, Serinina realized they had been followed and surrounded by a massive number of soldiers. Abu calmed her, saying it was nothing to be alarmed about. This was their army escorting him, their lord and his wife Helena and their family. They were going to escort and protect them all the way to the gates of Troy. There was no need, and they realized Serinina herself was very capable, but the image of them being escorted and protected by thousands of troops was necessary. There was nothing to be done about it. The Caliphate’s army was ordered to provide escort, and that is what they were going to do.

They went through the desert, and Serinina wondered how they were going to keep their army alive through the desert. There wasn’t much water, and her small force was only allowed to survive because they had enough animals to hold their water cans and blankets; they kept soaked and shaded to retain its moisture. They had learned how desert nomads stayed alive. this was impracticable for an entire army. There was no way to carry enough water for thousands of men. The critical thing about transporting an army across a desert was to follow the water holes quickly. They had to stay around the water or know where it was. And there wasn't enough water on their way through the hot stand. Luckily, they had Serinina, and she was caring and led the army to the nearest water hole, or she summoned it from the depths, and they went on. It went a lot slower transporting an entire army of soldiers and commanders. What took a week took three weeks this time.

But she wasn’t out of surprises. The army was surprised and alarmed when they reached the Trojans border and saw another vast army of battle-hardened female warriors. Their escort of Amazons led by Helena’s sister Cassandra was there waiting. She smiled, and the two sisters embraced eachother. Then she asked with a frown, “Who is this?” Cassandra gestured to the man smiling at them, and his small boy.

“That's my husband, Abu, and my son.”

“What!” Cassandra demanded in anger. “You got married, and didn’t invite me, and had a son long enough for him to be this old and never bothered to tell me?”

“You had enough of your own problems with Troy, the War, the siege, fighting your father and brother to maintain your claim to the throne. You couldn’t had left, and had I told you then they would have come after me.”

Abu snorted, “What are you complaining about. You had all of the fun and left nothing for these men. They would have loved to fight some arrogant Spartans, but you kept them all to yourself.” But she saw a smirk and a mischievous twinkle in his eye

“We will try to leave some enemies for you to deal with in our next war, Abu. We are sorry for keeping all of the fun.” Cassandra said, laughing and then looked at Helena and got serious, “I understand why you couldn’t invite us to your wedding. We will discuss this more when we arrive. Are these men going to escort us all the way?”

“Yes,” Abu said, seeing how it was so silly now, but orders were orders.

“Okay,” Cassandra shrugged.

Abu realized that much to his sadness that he had been wrong about Serinina. She did good things, but she still saw herself in competition against her sister. She saw this as a win or lose situation, and she intended on winning it. That meant defeating her sister and making her sister suffer. If she did not suffer, if she got away with what she did, then she would win, and Serinina could consider that Patinea defeating her. That is something she could not allow to happen. This meant a total war. Serinina was going to destroy the Golden Isles. She was going to destroy their temples and their goddess. She was going to destroy their entire religion and everything that they loved. IN many ways, Serinina was still pretty much a child. But, that can also be forgiven. The boy was destroyed, the boy was never allowed to become a mature man. His growth was stopped, and he was subjected to a devastating life-altering change that stopped his maturity. Just as any boy who is abused or mistreated, they stop growing. This is Patinea's doing, and for all of her claims of being more mature and the rightful heir, she was not. She proved herself to be as petty and childlike as Serin. But she was older, she should have known better. Sarin could be forgiven for being childlike. He was sixteen and then destroyed. Now this child was a God and was going to raise hell on earth. He tried to reason with her, but he should have known he was doomed. There was no reasoning with Iblis.

They had finally reached the City of Troy, and Abu watched in total amazement. Female guards opened the two enormous bronze gates, and they marched, though. The army, except for a selected number of personal guards were allowed in. More of the female warrior army marched through in ridged parade formation carrying their bronze spears high.

The crowds cheered for Helena of Troy. They were happy to see their princess return finally, and she was holding a dark man's hand as they entered. She raised her hand in the air for silence and said, “I am glad to be here if even for a short time. I must return to my home with my husband Abu and my son Samir. A lot has happened since I left. I see the remains of a burnt horse in the center, and I am guessing those bones are the dead Greeks who tried to sneak their way in.” She gave a cruel sneer.

Everyone laughed.

The Prophet

By Jasmine Monica

Chapter 19
Serininas true nature really begins to show in this chapter

It was before sunrise on the island of Guanefer. Their leaders were just waking up and preparing for their day when the youngest daughter of the Duke woke up to see a strange but very angry woman standing alone in her bedroom. The girl was just over seventeen. She was startled when the older woman said, “Don’t bother trying to call for your guards. They can’t help you now.”

She knew that voice and gasped in terror, “Serinina!”

She knew that no one could help her now. The girl had heard about how powerful this woman was. She had defeated another Goddess in a one to one fight. She nearly killed one of the most experienced witches she had ever known, multiple times with almost no effort. The level of power Serinina could wield was far beyond anything she could do.

“I have no intention of harming you unless you force my hand.”

“Then what do you want?” The girl demanded defiantly.

“To warn you, and to save you. By noon, you may be one of the few people left alive on this entire island. The temple in the mountains has already collapsed. There were no survivors and everything and everyone except for you will be dead by noon.”

The girl had little doubt that Serinina could do what she was talking about. She truly felt fear by now.

“Serinina, please, we only did what we had to do. We had to end the rule of man. I wish you would understand that and stop your hatred.”

The girl's protests only angered her even more. “Nothing that was happening was my fault and you all shouldn’t have persecuted me for it. I refuse to discuss the issue with you. I only came to warn you and tell you that no matter what, I have shielded you from harm. You will be the only survivor.”

“I will,” the girl shouted when Serinina replied.

“Warn them? Go ahead, it will make no difference. There’s nowhere any of them can go to survive. Your family and everyone you know and love will still die.”

The girl began shouting and by the time the guards burst in, Serinina was gone.

No one knew much about how the world really worked back then. Plate tectonics and how the world's crust really worked was a foreign concept to everyone. To all except the Gods like Ares and beings like him. Serinina also knew what they were.

Serinina focused on the Goddess, making sure the Goddess could not influence what was about to happen. She reached out into the center of the Atlantic and found a serious stress point that was pointed directly at Guanefer thousands of miles away. All that was needed was to apply a more stress and it gave away. A huge part of the Atlantic floor shot up hundreds of feet along a ten mile ridge. The effect on the surface was hardly noticed. A tiny wave that was hardly noticed appeared and raced toward the island of Guanefer. None of them had any idea about the horror that was headed for their coastline.

On the docks in Guanefer, workers were enlarging the docks and rebuilding their fleet. The fleet was impressive during the restoration war under Patinea's leadership. Their blockade of Ansay crushed them and it eventually forced them to surrender. The lack of food had crushed their will and they fell into line.

Patinea had now given orders to build more ships. They all knew a greater threat was approaching them. Someone with an imposing war fleet and they would need a lot more ships to combat this empress when she finally arrived. They built extra slipways and new ships were rolling down every week. They would be ready for this bitch.

They were totally horrified to see the ocean pull back exposing the sand and leaving the docks without water. It was as if something far out to sea had sucked all of the water away. They had no clue what was happening. The ocean pulled back exposing everything. There was no ocean as far as their eyes could see.

Some brave individuals walked out to the edge of coastal shelf to see the ocean floor drop down thousands of feet. This was something that no one had any experience with an it terrified them all.

Their horror increased hours later when a distant roaring could be heard. Far out where the ocean should be was a black line that was growing closer and taller as the moments went by. Everyone stood in shocked terror as the black line grew higher in the sky until it seemed to be hundreds of feet tall.

Some of the more experienced sailors screamed a warning of a tidal wave and everyone began running away from the shore. The wave rushed at them with blinding speed. The beached fleet that had been guarding the shores was crushed like twigs. The new ships that were under construction were destroyed just as easily.

Water crashed down onto the docks and their slipways, scraping them away to leave empty rocks. People and buildings were swept away in an instant as the wave continued its march over the city. It swept away the palace and the temples to the Goddess and their secret library were destroyed. Nothing was left.

The water that drained back into the sea was filled with splintered wood, broken ships and bodies. The mystical island of Guanefer was removed as a political entity of the Golden Isles. There was only one survivor.

xxxxxxx

After the customary greetings, Helena asked where her father and brother were.

Everyone looked to Serinina and she figured she would have to own up to it. She boldly stated, “I had to execute Hector near the end of the war. I caught him conspiring with Greek spies within the city. We rounded up his spies and executed them all. And your father Priam is in prison. He was also conspiring with the Greeks to surrender the city. They wanted to break the alliance with the Amazons and deprive your sister of her crown.”

She braced herself for Helena’s outrage but it never came. Helena looked upset at first but her look softened. “I understand and I must admit to not liking Hector myself. He was such a sexist ass just like our father and never liked the alliance with the Amazons because of your strong women. He wanted the Greeks to overrun us, and at least be subjugated by a male dominant culture and marry me off to them. You did what you had to, to defend my sister. Thank you Serinina. May I see my father?”

Cassandra conferred with Serinina and her other advisers and nodded at Helena. Guards were summoned and they led both Cassandra and Helena down to the prison cells where they found the cell their father was imprisoned.

Priam looked out arrogantly, “You stole my crown, Cassandra, you betrayed your family with this alliance with the Amazons and you pervert nature itself by acting like a man. The Amazons murdered my son. And now you wear my crown and lead my daughter Helena to see me in my shame. How cruel can you be?”

“The Amazons preserved the country and protected us when it was you betraying us all. If you had gotten your way, the Greeks would have burnt the entire city and enslaved us all. How can you even look at yourself after what you and my brotgher tried to do? He tried to trick us into bringing that horse in. You earned your shame, father. I feel ashamed to call you my father.”

Priam glared at his daughter Cassandra and looked defiantly at Helena hoping for some measure of sympathy. He only received a cold emotionless glare in return. He yelled in fury, “Don't you even care, Helena my daughter? I raised you, won’t you say anything in my defense?” He demanded hopefully.

Helena shook her head side to side glaring into her father’s eyes and responded coldly, “No. You betrayed us all. And you tried to use me to make peace with the Greeks. I pleaded and protested the marriage with Agamemnon. He was a monster. I don't want any marriage with a man like that. Perhaps if it would have helped the country, then I would have done it but I knew there was no need. We had our alliance with the Amazons to rely on. Then our savior Serinina came. She is the wife of Ares and a genius at military strategy. She subjugated the Greek states and has overrun Vienna. Thanks to her, we are free and my fiancée is dead. I have a new family that loves me. We are also allied with the Rushidun Empire. They offer a much more valuable alliance than the Greek states ever did.” Helena glared at her father and said, “You will get no help from me. I enjoy seeing you like this, and your daughter Cassandra is our Queen. She wears the crown and she has our loyalty. I am proud of my sister.” And with that Cassandra and Helena hugged.

Even Paris ran to his sister and gave her a heartfelt hug wrapping his arms tightly around her waist. “We all love you Sis. And I am proud to call you my queen. And I am glad to see my other sister returned. Thank you for finding her Serinina. I am ashamed to call you my father Priam, and I hated what you did to Helena. You turned your back on us all, most of all your daughter. At least she has a good husband. It's time to get to know her new family, let's celebrate the union of our families."

He turned to this father.

"Priam,” Paris said with a look of sadness on his face, "You earned this but you could have been part of the celebration and feasting with us had you not betrayed us all. Enjoy your fate, personally, I’d have you hanged.”

Then they all went back up the steps where steaming plates of food were being placed on the table. They sat around the table with Serinina sitting along the side of the table letting Cassandra sit at the head and motioning to them to eat. She didn't mind being sidelined at this time. She didn't even eat all that much, letting the other women feast on the food. She noticed that many of these women did eat as men did. They didn't take little demure bites of the meat. They ripped off huge hunks with their teeth and filled their mouths like hungry men did. This is how women acted when they were free to live by their own rule. This was how women should live. They couldn't be so worried about the judgment of society or what men think is ladylike. She briefly thought of what she had to teach the girls during the classes of feminine grace and she felt like she was betraying the girls that trusted her. Serinina also remembered the distaste the head teacher felt when she saw Serinina being so unhappy at teaching the girls those things. Mistakenly thinking it was that Serinina was a boy teaching girls about feminine grace. She mistakenly thought it was feeling humiliated together with masculine pride. But Serin had no masculine pride left by that time. She enjoyed teaching the girls, but she felt that she was betraying the girl’s trust. The teacher understood and explained she felt the same way but she had to teach these things. It was part of being a girl.

The teacher was also wrong. This right here is what being a girl is all about. Girls should be free. That's what was so frustrating to Serinina and why she hated the Goddess Prognita. Even the Goddess had no idea what being a girl was about. She thought being a girl was living by men's rules, as men. These women know how to really live free. They made their own rules and lived by them. They were proud of their femininity. They fight but they also know how to be exceedingly feminine. Dianna Prince is going to be very disappointed when she learns how her homeland teaches girls. She would be ready to forgive them when they returned.

Serinina silently watched Cassandra reunite with her lost sister Helena. She was happy to have been part of it. She found Helena and reunited her with her family. Serinina knew she was good. She also knew that many people had raised serious questions about her morality. The fact that she had no mercy on witches and her intentions in her homeland raised many serious questions and she accepted that. She knew that very few people could really comprehend her feelings on this matter. She accepted that and didn't care. She accepted those who failed to accept her wisdom. There were many people who did understand. She could not accept witches in any way. Especially witches who followed Prognita or Hecate. There could be no mercy for them.

Cassandra saw that her sister Serinina was deep in thought and barely touching her food. She had said nothing through the entire feast. She was just staring out into space, deep in her own thoughts. “Sister Serinina, would you care to join us here? What has got your attention?”

She spoke up, “I understand that the course I have embarked on will lose many of my supporters. I may even lose your support, dear sister Cassandra. I know what I want will horrify many of our people. But I am fully committed and I know that many will follow me. I hope you can follow me here.”

Cassandra laughed, “I will follow you to the end, My Queen. If you think killing some rich traitor's sons will make me weak, you have to think again. They all choose their fate Serinina and if you want to execute their sons in front of them and make them bury their children before you send them to the same graves, I will still follow you. We are hardened Amazons who don't shrink from the will of our queen. I know they all turned their back on you after pledging loyalty to you upon your father's death. They deserve the horror they will be facing and I will be proud to bring it to them.”

Emily turned to Cassandra with pride.

“Anyone who pledged to Patinea is a traitor who deserves a traitor's death, and their family cannot be trusted. Wipe them all out.” Emily said harshly.

“What of the Witches? I know that also makes many question me,” asked Serinina.

“You have convinced me that the witches need to be dealt with.” Cassandra replied. “I know what they did to you and they had no reason to. We have powers but we would never even consider transforming an unwilling male that was like you. I understand you were raised to be sexist, we wouldn't have allowed that. And even if you were, we wouldn't have transformed you.”

Serinina snorted rudely. “Of course not,” She spat. “This is a female supremacist society and you would see transforming me much of the same way they did, except they were too stupid to see what they were really doing for me. But they did see transforming me as an elevation in status and how you used to see men, you wouldn't have even dreamed of transforming a male like me. You would have probably abducted and had me sold as a field hand somewhere and had me castrated.”

“But you would have still been male and allowed to live a male life.” Said Cassandra, not attempting to contradict Serinina. “I know that would have been wrong and that's why you are enforcing the royal Edicts you did about male captives. I may have tried to help you but I don’t know for sure. But you helped show us how wrong we were and that's why I will follow you Serinina.”

Abu was very disturbed by the level of loyalty these women had toward Serinina. She had a way about her that inspired such an extreme level of loyalty helped by the way she explained things. He saw it when Serinina attempted to explain herself to him in such a way that it almost seemed like a logical conclusion. Until it meant that she would be ordering the execution of children for no other reason than who their parents were. And it had nothing to do with the children. This act of horror would be done to destroy the parents. He understood that was the ultimate horror for any parent. That was why it was being done. Abu knew it would work. It would punish those nobles in ways they could not even begin to cope with. But even that doesn't even begin to approach the level of horror of execution of the witches. That would be the whole sole slaughter of innocent children. Whole schools of girls would be slaughtered there. Many witches began training at around four to five years old. This would be an unimaginable horror and these women were totally accepting it.

Abu felt horror clutching at his heart. He turned to his wife Helena who was totally enraptured by what Serinina was saying to her about the witches. She was explaining what the witches did to her and why.

Helena was disgusted of course. Abu interrupted, “Remember, Helena. They were wrong but Serinina is talking about declaring all of the Hekatin enemies of the Kingdom. Every young girl and woman, teacher and student. Girls as young as five being put to the sword for no other reason than they were going to school that day. And they will be hunted down. This isn't something we can be part of.”

Serinina felt anger but she accepted it, “I understand your point of view Abu. You are a man, after all and never faced having your masculinity being taken from you. I have a different view of the witches that practice this type of magic. I don't want any hostility with the Rushidun Empire. You can keep your witches if you want. We don't want them here.”

Abu stood up and took his wife's hand, “Thank you for your hospitality. But I believe we must leave now.”

Helena allowed Abu to lead her from the banquet hall. They walked in silence to the chambers that had been assigned to them. Once they were behind closed doors, she turned to her husband and said, "Abu, I am sorry. I understand why Serinina feels the way she does and why she intends to do these things. I also understand why you find them so horrendous."

Abu looked at Helena sadly and said, "Thank you. I cannot support or even understand the depth of her hatred. Yes, she was treated evilly by the witches who made her into a girl. Maybe the witches do need to be removed from power in the Golden Isles because of their misuse of their magic. But she refuses to see that her behavior and intentions will make her even more monstrous than the witches or the goddess that they follow.”

"Anyone who opposes her in word or deed faces her anger and power. I heard from the servants that she even tried to kill one of the gods who supported her when she attempted to defend some of the women Serinina intended to torture and kill.”

"I'm sorry, Helena. I will not act like the typical men from my country and attempt to exert my authority over you. But I cannot tolerate being in Serinina's presence any further. I ask you to avoid her and her venomous rants as well."

Helena looked at Abu with love and even greater respect. Yes, the men of the Rashidun Empire did have a chauvinistic attitude toward the women in their households. But Abu had found that treating his wife as an equal made their home a much happier place. He was working to raise their children the same way.

"My husband, thank you for that. I know that you could order me to do these things and under the marriage vows that we took, I would have to obey you. I can see the wisdom of your words, and through them, I can see Serinina through your eyes.”

"If she continues on this path, I believe that she will lead a very cold and lonely existence. Everyone will be afraid to tell her what they think or believe lest she destroys them. I fear that the entire world will suffer from her hate and anger as it will continue to grow upon itself."

The couple held each other tightly out of sadness and fear. They did not know what kind of world they were raising their children into, but they hoped that it would be a very long time before their children's children would have to worry about. Abu began thinking of plans of returning to his homeland with his family and removing them from this city.

Xxxxxxx

Actonia had called for a meeting with the King and her advisers. She was the king's most trusted adviser and she had something serious to report. Patinea and her lover Lord Wensay had arrived with the Hekatin leaders. They seated themselves around the table with a new strange teenage girl. They knew she was the only survivor of the horror that befell Guanefer.

She began the meeting. “Early this morning, I woke up to see Serinina in my bedroom. From the things we heard of her, I knew calling for help would only put more people in danger. I was shocked to hear that she was there to save me. She told me that by noon, everyone would be dead except for me. She had shielded me from harm. The guards came when I panicked but she was gone. I tried to warn them and they barricaded themselves in the palace as if that would save them. None of us knew what was coming. The dock workers were the first to report the sea had been pulled back. We explored and some of the witches tried to understand what had just happened. We were horrified to find that the water all vanished all the way out for miles. Then it returned in a giant wave hundreds of feet above us. It destroyed everything and everyone. Every city on the coast was destroyed. There were close to one hundred thousand people and I was the only survivor. There is no more Guanefer. It’s just an empty island full of dead people and what is left of the great cities. No one can comprehend what had just happened. But I know it was Serinina. She admitted it but we don't know why none of us could prevent it or why the goddess couldn't stop her.”

Actonia spoke up, “This is just an example of Serinina’s cruelty and madness. I admit it’s all our doing. We know why she did this to Guanefer. It was the spiritual center of the religion of the Goddess. They had the great library of the Hekatin, they shielded the witches from the hunters. The last survivors of the hidden witches were there. They are there no longer. Guanefer was wiped from the map. There is no defending ourselves from Serinina’s rage.”

Patinea asked, “So what do we do? I will follow your advice, I know what you can do.”

“She will come,” Actonia said to them. “Her armies will land in Ansay land and occupy the areas you had just restored into the Kingdom. She has a secret agreement with the Ansays. Serinina likes them and arranged a marriage with one of the girls of her lands. The Ansays will cede power to Serinina.”

“Thank you for the warning,” Patinea said misinterpreting her warning.

“My advice is to let them, and take no action against Serinina when she comes. Let her take the Ansays’ land and make peace with the new country.” Actonia said.

“What?” Patinea shouted.

“There’s no way to stop her, and that’s exactly what Serinina wants. Give her anything and anyone she wants, we know she will demand the lords that betrayed her. She will also demand your guard Elveres and possibly his family.”

“Why does she want Elveres?” Patinea demanded.

“That was the first guard that betrayed her and locked her in her bedroom. You know this. Serinina told the guard she would have him hanged for what he did to her.” Elveres watching this, felt all of the blood drain from his face in terror. “Serinina had not forgotten that betrayal. She means to hang Elveres. You must let her.”

Patinea could not believe what she was hearing from Actonia and shouted, “No way. How can I give my people to her knowing she will murder them?”

“Serinina will use any excuse to go to war. She will use your refusal as an act of war. She will count your refusal to deal with her as an excuse to finish her conquest and you know you don’t have the forces to defeat her. She will destroy us all if you give her any excuse. So please, don’t refuse her. Don’t give her any reason to go to war on us. We can have peace with Serinina if you agree to her demands. If not, she will consider that an act of war.”

Then Actonia shared a vision she had with them of Serinina in this same room after having suffered a horrific brutal attack. She had recovered and then in one act, Serinina declared every Hekatin to be an enemy of the Kingdom. Then she is seen leading thousands of troops into the girl’s school slaughtering them all from the teachers to the little girls hiding under their desks. Then an Edict goes out across the Kingdom to hunt down and kill every single Hekatin. She called it Royal Edict Sixty Six.

“This is what we are facing,” Actonia told Patinea. “Don’t give her the excuse to wipe us all out. Our victory and our liberation may be very short lived and there won’t be another chance this time.”

Xxxxxx

Patinea went back to her personal chambers to see her lover Asyrm sitting in front of a mirror applying shadow to his eyelids and extensions to his lashes. Then he started brightening his lips. He had already had a stylist do his hair earlier that week. She had tried everything to bring back the boy she loved so much. The Hekatin’s strongest spells could not reform his mind.

He already had one of the female staff help him the the laces of his corset tight and snug so he had a slim feminine waistline. Pattenea looked disgusted.

He had thrown away all of his male clothing and had chosen to wear only clothes fit for females. He had not worn a stich of male clothing in weeks. She had once tried to force him to wear male clothing but that didn’t go well.

She only succeeded when by her royal command her guards forced him in male clothing. But it angered Asyrn to no end and brought out a hateful rage that almost drove him to kill himself. He raged at her after that, “I am a girl, you bitch and you will let me dress according to my sex. After all, changing your brother to a girl, that’s exactly what you forced him to do. I would think you would demand the same for me. I am as much of a girl as you, or perhaps more of a girl.” Then Asyrn twirled and she was forced to continue to allow him to dress and live his life as a girl.

In doing so, she felt part of herself die inside every time she saw Asyrn dress himself as a girl. He was no longer Asyrn now. He insisted on being called Asryinea. He very successfully presented himself as a girl. But Patinea had forbidden the Hekatin to transform him no matter how much he begged for it.

Patinea wishes there was a way to stop him but there wasnt. The Hekatin could reform bodies but changing a mind was an act of the gods. There was no way to reform a persons mind. Suggestions could be implanted from time to time but not on this level. This was too much. It disgusted Patinea and she felt her sexual attraction to Ansyr vanish in revolution.

Xxxxxx

Serinina had just arrived on the outskirts of Vienna to meet with the phalanx that she had left to take the entire Italian peninsula. She designated the rest to march on the Franks. Ajax was leading that assault. She wanted Italy and had prepared her Phalanx to cross the Rubicon. She stood in front of her forces wearing her gleaming bronze armor and her imperial crown shimmered in the sunlight overhead. “The Romans are not the imposing people we heard about. The days of the Caesars and the Senate are over. The Italians are occupied by the tyrant Theodoric and his sadistic Ostrogoths. They have no Italian lineage. They are imposing their will on the Italians and they are helpless to put up any form of resistance to the occupation by the Ostrogoths. So, our job is clear, we will liberate the Italians. We will cross the Rubicon with our swords. We will defeat the fake senate and their hero Magnus. At this moment, their hero and Theodoric march toward us with three of his legions. That will be close to twenty thousand soldiers. We must prepare for a siege and we will destroy him.”

Serinina looked up at the witch’s moon hovering so low in the sky. Its sheer size blotted out much of the sky by now. Its light was nearly blinding and almost made the night look like day. She just smiled at the moon knowing that she was the Goddess’s worst nightmare. “Prognita, you and I both know there is no hope for your people. I don’t even know why you have bothered to return. You just helped expose your people, and I will deal with them all. During the last war, your people were able to hide from the men and survive. The men didn’t know what to look for. I know exactly what to look for, my people will find all of your followers. Every last one of them.”

Serinina had led her vast army toward the outskirts of Vienna and found the perfect place to build a defensive camp. This was the largest army she had ever led. There were contingents from every Greek state here ready to liberate Italy. But first they had to defeat the vast army headed their way. Theodoric the great was leading his vast army to liberate Vienna and he was leading about one hundred thousand men their way.

Serinina’s army only numbered sixty thousand. They were outnumbered but many of her soldiers had received Spartan training. She had mandated that every solider under her command in this army be able to endure and match the Spartans. And there were almost an equal number of women that trained under the Amazons.

They decided to hold in an open field that the Roman Legions could not bypass. They were in a valley in between heavily wooded forests and streams. There was going to be a serious fight.

Then they heard the Roman Legions marching their way and Serinina yelled “Formations. Calvary you know the plan. Formations and positions.” And her Hoplites formed their line. Their bronze spears armed forward ready for the Legions to attack.

“This is where we make our stand!” Serinina yelled at her soldiers. “This is where we hold the Romans. This...is..wher..they….Die!!”

But she was impressed with the discipline of the roman legions marching against them with their heavy metal armor and their huge tower like shields with the roman standard on them. But they were not equal to the armor of the Hoplite's in any way. The Legions were going to fall. She had a feeling that they knew it.

The Legions lined up for advance and marched toward them at one unit holding their shields up and they pulled their gladeous sword. They got close enough and threw their spears at them. They did no damage at all.

Then it was time for the Greeks secret weapon. The greeks had readied a new weapon on their flanks. They had designed and built six powerful ballistas and set three of them on each flank. And then they Serinina designed crossbows for the Greeks. The Romans stood little chance now.

The front ranks of the Greeks unleashed a horrifying crossbow barrage on the Roman legions that their armor had no hope of repelling. They raised their shields and the powerful war bows in the rear ranks of the Greeks unleashed their storm that shot up 100s of feet in the air and plunged down with devastating affect. The ballistas did the rest. They sliced through the ranks of the legions like nothing and by the time the legions made contact with the Greeks, there was nothing left. There was little left for the main ranks of the Phalanxes to do. Serinina was sort of sad she got to cut down so few Romans. How can she satisfy her bloodlust? She wanted to kill more.

Now that they had so soundly defeated the main roman legions defending Italy, it was time to solidify control over the country. Her army had been camped in Ravenna for this battle and now it was time to move forward. She assembled her Phalanx of over eight thousand soldiers and marched toward Italy.

The few boys fishing in the tiny stream looked frightened at the army boldly marching across it. Serinina smiled at one of the small boys fishing as she marched her army across the Rubicon. Thousands of her horses and hoplies followed her and her general staff. This wasn't a common sight at all. It had sadly become more common than it was in the ancient times. Italy had been subjected to various invasions in the past two hundred years from the Goths to the Vandals and the Ostrogoth's are holding Italy. But this was seen as a liberation of the Roman culture from a foreign occupier and she had gone through extensive effort to let the local towns know she meant them no harm.

So when her army reached the outskirts of a small town called Ariminim, there was no resistance. They opened the gates and surrendered without a fight. They joined Serinina’s cause

By Jasmine Monica Chapter 20

The Prophet
Serinina takes on Italy and makes final preparations for her landing on the Golden Isles. Patinea finds herself more frustrated with her sisters success and events in her personal life.

Serinina had taken her first city, Ariminum, in this war without a fight. As soon as her phalanx approached the gates, the wall guards opened the gates and her phalanx was invited in. Once inside, the city's leaders surrendered to her. Her tactic worked wonders, and now it was time for more.

They made camp outside of the city and she told her people to go have some rest or pleasure. Her soldiers had fun in Ariminum.

Later that day, she split her army and took half, sending the other five hoplite units with Ajax to take the city of Arretium.

She sent her hoplite commanders to demand the surrender of Pisarum, Fanum, and Acona. Meanwhile, she waited with the rest of her hoplite phalanxes for a response from her commanders.

The answer she waited for arrived within a day. Pisarum, Fanum, and Acona opened their gates to her hoplites, surrendering to her side without a fight. Ajax took Arretium with little resistance after the city guards were taken. Her propaganda campaign was more successful than she had anticipated. It was amazing. By now, she had a sizable chunk of Italy on her side, so she resolved to march toward Auximum. That city was occupied by a legion loyal to the Ostrogoths. Serinina guessed that taking Auximum would result in a fight with the Roman Legion defending it. Ten cohorts defended Auximum. Serinina had one entire phalanx. Her phalanx was roughly equal to the legion as she approached Auximum.

Auximum’s leaders must have known there wasn't much of a chance against Serinina's Thirteenth Phalanx. She saw the city's defending legion rush out the back gate and head away as fast as possible when her phalanx approached. They gave chase and followed the legion to destroy it.

The legion's rear ranks turned and formed up to defend as the front of her phalanx, and her personal guard attacked. Serinina threw herself into the fight as her hoplites advanced with their shields and the fight was broken up. Most of the defending cohort were slain by Serinina’s spear and her sword. Auximum had fallen, and much of the remaining legion joined her ranks. Which caused a serious problem now.

Roman legionnaires turned from their former commanders to join Serinina in the fight. Her Spartans had vastly superior and different training. They fought differently. How could she possibly incorporate Roman legionnaires in her phalanx? They saw the problem, and the cohort’s commander approached and told Serinina, “I know our fighting styles are vastly different, and you don't want to accept us.”

“I do, Commander,” Serinina assured him. “But the question is how with your different standards of training and style of fighting.”

“Easy,” said the Centurion. ”We will fight as legions, and you will have several cohorts of legionnaires to help your phalanx. It looks like another phalanx is approaching.”

Serinina looked up the road, and her Twelfth Phalanx was quickly approaching her position. She had two entire phalanxes and half of a legion at her command. Her Twelfth Phalanx commander reported that much of the Franks had fallen. The Campaign was winding down.

All that was left now was the enormous city of Corfinium. The city was defended by a force roughly equal to Serinina's. They had two entire Ostrogoth Legions defending it. She saw they were ready for a fight as they approached. The city was guarded by large walls and towers topped by ballistae.

She could not besiege a city with forces roughly equal to hers. Not with those towers, so she built a defensive camp just outside of the ballistae range. Her camp could be defended from an assault, and the legions knew that attacking the camp would cost many people. Serinina knew that launching an assault would cost her many of her troops. They were at a stalemate.

Within days of building her camp, her cities raised another entire legion, and the new legion marched into her camp to help. Then her eight phalanxes approached and this raised her entire forces to the equivalent of five entire legions. She had four phalanxes and more than one legion.

Corfinium was now outnumbered and the forces had been ordered to abandon the city.

The only problem was that once Serinina saw she vastly outnumbered the forces defending Corfinium and her army began building siegeworks and walling the city in, the city’s forces could not break the siege. They were trapped and their commander tried to sneak out, only to be caught by his own soldiers. The legions surrendered the entire city and handed the commander to Serinina. Corfinium had fallen, and now she nearly had nine legions and marched into Rome. The whole region had fallen. Italy had fallen to Serinina. Most of its people saw it as a liberation from the Ostrogoths.

Xxxxxx

Patinea was enraged that it had been suggested to her to make peace with her upstart brother. There’s no way she was going to make peace with that little pipsqueak. Her annoying little brother, who had made her life a living hell, would feel what it was like. She didn't have to make peace with him at all. If he dared to challenge her, then she would deal with him with the ease she had dealt with all of the other enemies that had thought to challenge her. She was the chosen one. The Goddess herself chose her to be King. Who would challenge that?

She had been in an argument with her mother and Actonia and they were against her. How could anyone even suggest that? However, her mother finally got sick of it and actually yelled at her, “Patinea, shut it. You have no idea who you are facing here, so let me explain it to you. When we chose your brother as the heir, his sex had little to do with it. I agreed with it then, and his sex wasn't much of a consideration. It was his compassion and brilliance. That’s why we chose him. Not to mention his strength, which he has been displaying for all who cared to watch his conquests across Greece, Troy, and now Rome itself. The Franks will fall soon. You sure as hell couldn't have achieved that, and this is all after he was transformed into a woman. I knew that changing him into a woman wouldn't affect him as much as the witches hoped. I knew he was strong enough to handle it. He had a woman's strength and a woman's heart. I think he was meant to be a woman. But let me explain his brilliance, Patinea,”

“Okay,” She quipped.

“You know we sent him across the world to learn from the world’s greatest. We sent him to the great Kahn of the east. We sent him to the Southern Song dynasty under their emperor Wu to learn under their emperor and study under Sun Tzu, and even Trajan. Then he learned under the Amazons. He learned about tactics, military, provisions, strategy, and it all. He played games like checkers and chess. And after he learned from all of those minds, he beat them. He beat them at everything. That’s how brilliant your brother is, and as you know, he also had a spiteful and cruel side that you only enraged. There’s no way you can beat him Patinea. Now let me explain about the troops he is leading. The Spartans. I don’t think you understand who they are, so let me explain their training.”

Patinea was now enthralled, and she felt fear crawling up her back. Her annoying brother was that brilliant. Now she was very afraid.

“The Spartans were once a tiny elite part of the Greek military units. At most, ten thousand strong. Now they are hundreds of thousands. Not as highly trained mind you, but enough. Boys are taken from their homes at age seven to begin their military training. It’s not like here where our soldiers have other jobs for their families like farming and their fields and crops or blacksmiths and fight when called. War is all the spartans in the military do since they are children. They train their entire life. Spartan training is brutal, and only those who survive the training can call themselves warriors. For instance, they train to not show fear when outnumbered. They actually prefer being outnumbered and often train four to five on one and succeed. They train to not show pain, your brother did this when he was sent to Sparta at seven. A boy will be tied to a post and beaten until they learn to not show pain. That’s only the beginning. Serinina had expanded this training to all of the Greeks who want to train in what they call the Agoge. So Patinea,” Aanya smirked, “You seriously think our soldiers stand a chance against even ten thousand Spartans, let alone fifty thousand? And the Amazons training is even worse, and Serinina expanded that to include the formerly captive boys. Do you think our army stands a chance? You better think about this”

“Why in Hell didn't I get this education and training?” Patinea demanded. “Why?”

“You would have failed. Your brother was far stronger and smarter. That’s why he was the heir. The Goddess made a sexist error simply because of your sex, you were thought worthier. That’s a decision she will pay for, with her life and her ambitions over us. She played with the wrong person's life. She should have chosen Serin.”

“It's too bad for all of us,” Actonia said out loud. “Prognita’s plan was a good plan. She wanted to liberate us from the Church of Maxis. Serin will enslave us. I just can’t believe how horrible this turned out. I used to think it was so cute. I used to sing a song about the boy princess. ‘The pretty boy princess in his dress and crushed in his corset. He looks so fair as he prances in his gown.’ It was so cute I would giggle. I used to sing it when he was around, or I would hum the tune. It would anger him so much at first until he learned to accept it. But there’s nothing funny now. No one is laughing now.

"I didn’t see this in any of my visions.” Actonia pointed out. “But unlike Patinea, I did see his acceptance of his life as a girl to a level that no one thought was possible. I saw it in the other life too. But in this life, I saw how he accepted it but hated the cruelty we all inflicted on him. There are many things I missed. His acceptance of being a woman and how he found peace with it. How he used it to strengthen him and reform his outlooks. I was especially surprised by his marriage to a man.”

“Marriage,” Patinea and Aanya shouted. “To a man?”

“Not actually a man,” Actonia said. “Serinina married a god. Ares, the Greek’s God of War.”

Aanya nearly laughed and said, “Why doesn’t that surprise me?”

“And she is pregnant with his child. Ares strengthens her and her army. Not that it needs Ares, but it’s unstoppable. She will soon start showing she is with child and have to rest. That should be by the time she arrives here.”

“Aanya, you knew his strength, and you saw this coming, didn’t you? Why didn’t you warn us?”

Aanya shrugged, “You made your choices, and I supported you then. I helped you do this because I thought it was for the best. I knew he would overcome it all. I knew he would soon accept and love being a girl. So, I just watched and prepared. He just never knew I fully expected him to accept it. I knew he hated me for supporting this plot. I turned on my son, and I knew he would hate us all. I knew of your hatred Patinea. I am going to enjoy watching your dreams get shattered into dust.” Aanya flashed a vicious and triumphant smirk. “That’s what I find amusing. But I feel like I betrayed both of my children. Both of you hate me.”

“I remember it was so funny when it started. Seeing the big strong sexist warrior prince in a dress and a corset was so amusing. Seeing him living the life we were forced in was so wonderful. Seeing his frustration and humiliation. Many of us laughed. It was funny. No one is laughing now.” Actonia quipped. “All we feel now is dread.”

Then she switched gears. This may be something none of them were aware of, except for Actonia. “I remember a Serin that many of you may not be aware of. Aanya, do you remember Serin's childhood as a Duke's son in Guanefer and his confirmation as a witch, raising him there and him being a teacher at a school for witchcraft?”

Aanya blinked in confusion and asked, “Actonia, are you drunk or something? My son was a prince raised in Denaerk. Not a Duke, and he wasn’t raised in Guenefer. And they would never have a boy be a teacher for girls.”

“Many things were reset when the Witch Moon appeared. One of them was the false timeline Serin and the Goddess created to try to spare him the pain of his unwanted transformation. What he didn't count on was it spared him nothing. He still had the vivid and painful memories of this timeline. He still had the ingrained femininity and knowledge of witchcraft he gained from the Hekatin. He was a boy in this timeline that I remember. But he was mighty in the ways of the Goddess. He was one of the youngest witches ever to pass the three ways. He was confirmed as a witch at around ten years old. That gave him full rights as a witch, and he was established as a teacher. I remember being taught by him, and he was great. Many of the girls would have died for him. He was full of love and compassion, and that endeared himself to the girl's hearts. But the plan failed, and the Goddess reset time, so now we are in the original time. Serin is coming for us all.”

Xxxxxx

Patinea walked into her chambers to see Asyrn standing in front of one of her full-length mirrors applying a purified wheat powder to the foundation of his face and then taking some of her ground Lilly root to help with the base coat. Then she watched in disgust as Asyrn took a light brush of her ground sulfur to smear around his eyelids to darken them like women.

Then he used some wax to redden his lips. Patinea’s stomach twisted in disgust, and she felt her stomach heave. How could a man she once loved demean himself like this, and turn to look at her with pure venom on his eyes? He snarled in hate, “If you don't care about your femininity, then someone should. I will be getting my own cosmetics soon. But until then, I have taken the liberty to help myself to yours as you no longer use them since you decided to seize the crown from your brother, and consign him to this unwanted life.”

“Help yourself, you can have it,” said Patinea as he smiled joyously. “I just wish you would fight this. How can you demean yourself as a man?”

He giggled a girlish giggle that made her twist in revulsion. “You are so stupid, King Patinea. And you just don't get what this revolution you were entrusted with is all about. You seem to think we should be taking men's place and rejecting our femininity. You are ashamed of your femininity. But many women are proud of it, and we believe that is our strength as women.”

“You are not a woman,” Patinea yelled at Asyrn, and that nearly made him burst into tears.

He stood his ground and replied, “Yes, I am, and I won't be ashamed to appear as a woman. This is part of our strength, and you are ashamed. You have been ashamed of your femininity all your life and struggled against it. I can't blame you,” Asyrn said. “It was a large part of our culture and what the priests taught us all. Being a woman was a shame, a punishment from Maxis, and women were lower than men. You got to watch your brother get all of your parent's love, be trained for his responsibilities, and be ignored. But don't let that turn you against what it means to be a woman. We are stronger than men, and we don't have to live as a man to show it. That weakens us. Think about it, Patinea. There's a reason why women were not even allowed to be educated for hundreds of years following the great revolution of Maxis. Women were kept illiterate and forbidden to be educated. They knew then that we were smarter and stronger than they were. And there's a reason they ended that and started allowing women to be educated in only the basics. But we expanded it from there, right under their nose and women started getting educated in the ways of the Goddess and magic. That is our strength. So please embrace it and stop trying to live as a man. You only give them strength over us.”

“Asyrn,” Patinea said, “You are not a woman and you can't possibly understand what it is like for us. And you can never understand what it was like for me seeing my little brother get the life I wanted.”

“You should never want that life at all,” Asyrn said. “Fighting and combat.”

Patinea frowned, “Are you saying we can't do those things?” She felt her anger rising. “I am the one chosen by the Goddess Prognita. I have shown I can fight.”

“I never said we can't fight. We can fight as well as men. I am saying we shouldnt want to fight. The greastest leaders were those wise enough to avoid a fight. The best made peace. But if we must fight a war then we do it our way. There are a great many women fighters around the world. But we use speed and technique to overcome men's physical strength.

"You seem to want to use brute strength to overwhelm men the way they do, and when it doesn't work, you use terror to force it to work. Like when you used your magic to steal that blacksmith's physical strength and force him to be a palace maid and an object of ridicule. You tried to take mine, but I refused, and I have the family connections you require. That man didn't, and you were able to force him to hand over his strength and terrorize him into compliance. That was wrong, and it will come back to you.

"What you did to your brother and that man is just justifying the worst of men's fears that you want to steal all of their lives and replace them. Patinea, we have different strengths that are greater than what men possess. You shouldn't want a man's strength. Unless you want to become a man, and that can be done just like when you made your brother a girl. Imagine if you made yourself into his older brother and took his crown,” Asyrn giggled at the thought. “That could have been just as humiliating to him but maybe not as satisfying to you. You would have never seen him wear a dress then.”

“I don’t want to be a man,” Patinea replied. “But I also don’t want to be weaker than men. The way you used to overpower me, humiliated me.”

“I didn’t want to give you my strength. I need it, what you did was wrong. I bet there would be many men willing to give you their strength if you only asked them in the name of the King. But you chose a man to steal it from. Then you justify it to yourself that it was good for him. How selfish can you be? This is what we hate men about. Their anger and selfishness. Your brother has shown he is a better girl than you are. Where you have enslaved men. She has liberated them and protected them, but I don't think she will come to protect us. We have you to thank for that one, so thank you, Patinea.”

Asyrn gathered his new cosmetics in a handbag and began to mince out. Then he turned to Patinea and said, “You deserve the credit for this. Thank you and thank you for the makeup.” Then he walked out, moving his hips and legs as a woman as he walked out, swaying his hips side to side.

Xxxxxxx

Serinina stood on the grounds of the Roman forum holding a ceremony that had not been held for centuries. It had certainly never been held for a woman. She stood there as the leaves were put in her hair, and the proconsul proclaimed her dictator for life.

The last person to take this title was Gaius Julius Caesar when he claimed the title of Dictator of the senate. And he was killed in this very spot for it. She wouldn’t be killed for it now. Actually, Serinina was certain she would live. Her sister claimed the crown after destroying her. Try to beat this. “Eat your heart out, sister. I have just been crowned the Dictator of Rome.” There is no real senate anymore. The council and its proconsul had been dissolved for little more than a century. She reinstated it all and liberated the Romans.

Octavian was named the primary citizen of Rome in this very spot to avoid having to claim the title of Dictator. But, they meant the same thing. Everyone answers to her, or him, regardless of what title is used.

Paris was under siege by Ajax. They wouldn't last long. Pretty soon, her army would be on the coast of Calae and ready to land on the Golden Isles. She planned to circle around and take the northern half and the little island to the west. Those minor territories were not as prized as the mainland, but they were enough for her to occupy. She had still not got over the way her sister treated her. She was so horrifically cruel to her and then to claim that because she was a girl, she couldn’t become King. How sexist and insulting was that. She deserved to pay for everything that she did. Patinea didn’t know it, but hell was coming her way.

But for now, it was finally time to claim her real crown. She was Lilith, and it was time to travel to Edon, confront her, and claim the crown of Edon and make the princes kneel before her power. She had to find the portal hidden somewhere in Anatolia. It was at a place named Hierapolis. Getting there would be easy, and her garrisons could handle the job here while she was away claiming her true power.

She arranged the details of who would be in charge and what their job was here. They were to restore the roman religion and their former government offices that were dissolved under the Ostrogoths and the Vandals. Then she leaped into the air and took off toward the Plutonian temple at Hierapolis.

She had a general idea of where this place was. It was somewhere within the interior of Anatolia. This was where the Trojans ruled and where her sister Cassandra ruled her people from the city of Troy. It was a place they were forbidden to go to. This was the city for the dead. Their God Pluto and Hades ruled this place. It was the only way to the realm of Edon.

Serinina had flown up past where the atmosphere ended. She felt the air thin and the sky darken around her. She was actually in orbit now, circling around the planet, waiting to descend toward Anatolia. It was a forbidding place that many people feared. Even Serinina felt some fear as she angled herself to descend toward Anatolia. Her body heated up as the air whipped past her. Its friction caused her body to glow white-hot. Even her obscene sized breasts glowed from the friction of the air as she descended toward the earth.

The ancient temple at Hierapolis had long been ruined. Not that it did much during its heyday during the time of Rome's greatness. It was a feared place where only the brave came to worship and pay tribute to the God Pluto. He was feared over all of the other gods. He was just another name for Hades. God of the Dead and the underworld where the dead went. Its ancient stones were so old that they seemed to predate human settlements on the planet. The temple was mostly ruined. Its enormous structure had eroded and fell.

She sensed its portal was still working. Of course, it would still work, and it would transport her anywhere she wished to go. She approached the ancient temple and felt its power flowing through the ruined structure. She saw the portal structure, which was little more than an ancient hole knocked into the stones. She saw the darkened ring and activated it. It could send her anywhere. She could go to Luna and visit Prognita. She could go to Olympus if she dared to confront Zeus. She could even go to Tartarus and visit Cronos if she wanted to. She would release Cronos on Olympus someday. Those Gods really pissed her off. They had her mother killed. But there was only one place she felt like going right now. She activated the portal and sent the other side to the temple on Edon. It was where many people called Hell.

Its dark power activated and the portal structure ignited with its hellish purplish fire blazing around the ring. The hole blazed and she propelled herself through the portal and landed in front of an enormous ancient temple on Edon. Most humans in this time think Hell is a place of never-ending fire to burn people for the rest of eternity. Hell was actually unimaginably cold. It was a ruined world flying off from its dead star. Its star had long lost much of its fuel. The people died eons ago. The star no longer had the mass and gravitational force to hold on to its worlds and they flew off. The world had died. The world was darkened from the distance from its weak, dead star. Its star blazed only a few thousand degrees more than a lightyear away. The Star provided no warmth or the life-giving energy a world needs to support life. The structures were still mostly standing in a ruined or dilapidated state. She was standing in front of its ancient temple to some ancient god. Inscriptions on the temple were written in some ancient lost language.

The only beings alive here now are beings like her. The Princes and Princesses of Hell who laid claim to the world. She walked into the ruined temple and saw the planets present inhabitants. The servants to the princes, princesses, and people like her were beings that humans tended to call demons. This is what they want to do to Earth if its protection ever weakens enough.

She saw a woman proudly standing alone, smirking at Serinina. The woman approached walking in the sensual feminine walk she was well known for. This was Lilith. Only she was diminished somehow. She spoke to Serinina, “Welcome to my realm, princess Serinina. Welcome to Edon.”

Serinina said nothing.

“I am assuming you are here for my crown. I don’t have it.” Lilith stated. “When you drained my power and defeated me. You sent me back here, powerless. I was unable to prevent Azazel from claiming my crown and ruling Edon. It seems that is going around, you know the story well don’t you, Prince. Having your crown stolen and watching helplessly as someone else rules in your place. It's irritating as fuck. But,” Lilith said thoughtfully, “I am proud of what you have achieved. I have little doubt you will defeat Azazel. But you don't know what you really want, do you Serinina?”

“I do want the power, but,” Serinina started, but Lilith cut her off.

“You don’t know if you want to make yourself into the enemy of everyone on earth. You can rule them any way you wish if you claim my crown. They won't be able to stop you anymore. Unless you do something stupid. The only question you need to ask is, what do you want? Do you want to let those that hurt you get away with it and continue to claim what is rightfully yours? Or claim your destiny and punish them, punish them all. Do you have the guts?”

“Yes,” Serinina said, looking at the beautiful woman standing in front of her. Lilith was a very large and imposing woman. In some ways, Lilith reminded her of her sister. Patinea had a brutish build for a woman and her personality was just as abrupt. Lilith was large and imposing, but she also oozed sexuality, and she was very easy to get along with. Her only problem was she refused to submit to authority. Some men felt that she must, or something was wrong with her. Patinea was a very independent-minded woman like Lilith. She would fight for her rights to live as she chooses. But Lilith was also very kind, and she had a very sensual way about her that Patinea didn't have. Lilith was genuinely concerned with the status of women and wasn’t ashamed to display her femininity. At the same time, Patinea wanted to live her life as males did. She seemed ashamed of her female attributes and felt it was right to force them on her annoying little brother. She felt that was female empowerment. Serinina felt that Lilith's view was more appropriate.

Lilith laughed and said as they walked toward a small dark stream. “I just love life's little ironies. You are the last person I should ever really want to help. You, the egotistical and very chauvinistic prince Serin who cheated on his fiancé, belittled women in every way, was heir to the throne and raised in the way of Maxis and firmly believed females were beneath you. I, the very embodiment of female empowerment, am now helping you get my throne. And I feel no shame in wanting to help you. You have learned the lesson well, and now, because of your sister, you are subjected to the same sexist attitude she hated. She acts no better than the priests from the church of Maxis. She will liberate no one. You will after you hand out some very needed punishments for those involved and fill this realm with a bunch of new souls. And I will get a new playmate.” Lilith giggled.

“I just want to ask,” Serinina stated, “What will happen to the children sent here.”

“They do just fine,” Lilith assured Serinina. “They are sheltered and protected in another realm while they await rebirth and hopefully get more of a chance to live. That's what would have happened to you if you simply gave up, and I would have made sure you got a chance to grow into a man. But you were much stronger than that and made the best at being a woman. The children are happy and hardly even know they died. Here, let me show you.”

Serinina was led to an ancient rickety boat. The boat looked like it shouldn't have even been able to float much less take anyone across this sickening black muck. She could almost smell the rot coming from the stream. There was an enormous black hooded figure standing on the boat holding a long bonelike stick. He looked at Lilith and bowed his head in submission, letting her on but holding his stick out toward Serinina.

Lilith spoke, “Let Serinina on. I know she is alive, but she requires crossing.”

He lifted his stick and allowed Serinina on. The figure had no real form. There was no face. Under the hood, it all looked empty, but it had some physical presence too. The figure spoke, “You have the power of Lilith, and you are her successor. Serin, Serinina, milord, or milady. I am not sure how you prefer to be addressed.”

“Call me, Queen!” Serinina spoke with authority.

He laughed, “You will be a good successor. I approve my queen. Where do you wish to go?”

“This is Charon. He takes us wherever we want to go and ferries the dead across to their final place,” said Lilith.

“Yeah,” Serinina said dryly. “I guessed that. I wanted to see where children go.”

Charon pushed them off into the distance and went down the stream, and they entered another portal and entered into a totally different planet.

This planet seemed alive and full of animals and plant growth. The sun shone hot in the sky, making it a perfect planet.

Lilith stated, “We created this specifically for the innocent and for the children.”

They walked off and saw children playing and giggling with cuddly animals. The plants seemed to glow with divine light. Everyone seemed happy. Serinina watched with a warm smile, and Lilith said, “And many will be given a second chance at a full life. Many of them were abused in life and never given a chance. We will ensure they get a good chance at growing to their full potential. But, Serinina, you need to be aware of something important about this place.”

Serinina looked up at Lilith waiting, and she continued, “The people who send children here are damned. There is no mercy. Even for a god. Even for us divine beings. There is no chance for us after that. I know what you are planning for the children of those that betrayed you. Those adults deserve to pay, but you need to find another way. Or you will be condemned here. Of course, you will rule here. This entire place will be your realm. But it may be the only place where you are welcome. You will be condemned if you do what you intend. There are many other ways to make them pay. Ways that are just as painful for the adults.”

Serinina accepted the warning and began reassessing what she intended to do to those who turned their backs on her. Lilith led Serinina back to the boat and told Charon to take them to the palace to confront the usurper Azazel. Serinina asked, “Can I use my power on earth and rule?”

“Yes, as long as you don’t break the rules. You will be able to claim both realms.” Lilith responded. “That's why I couldn’t have children, and I kept trying to claim a child there. There will be nothing stopping you unless you violate the rules. One of the rules is you must not kill innocent. Once you go down that dark path, you will be one of the condemned.”

This really made Serinina angry. But as she thought of it, she knew there would be many better ways to make the parents suffer that wouldn't condemn her soul.

She looked at Lilith and saw that she was one of the condemned. She was utterly beautiful, but that beauty was just a facade. She saw the real form under the beauty, and that form was hideous. Her real form was monstrous. She had condemned many children over her inability to have any of her own. Her soul was condemned. If she visited earth, she was hunted and there was no safe place for her. Serinina didn’t want to live like that. There were ways to punish the nobles that may not be as devastating as watching their children die. But some ways to punish them approached that level. She would have to think of it.

Serinina watched Charon lead them to a bank on the stream that had a huge black towering structure with a crown at the top of the black tower. It was an enormous burning crown. Black flames were erupting from the top of the crown. This must be the palace where the King or Queen ruled from. It used to be Lilith's until Serinina defeated her and stole her power. She was sent back, and Azazel took her crown and proclaimed himself to be King of Edon. His theft would be answered. Serinina felt Zeus's power flowing through her and she wondered if that would be enough. Lilith seemed to think there was nothing here that could begin to defend against the Lightning attacks. She hoped Lilith was right.

Charon docked the small boat and the two women stepped off and approached the enormous tower. Serinina let out a short girlish giggle as they approached the dark tower. It must be over a mile high.

Lilith asked, “What's so funny?”

“This situation. I am this sweet girl, Serinina, that everyone dismissed as too nice or too weak. My sister was thought to be the stronger one who had the strength to do what needed to be done. I am here walking into a dark tower to challenge a prince of Hell for the crown. I have its former queen supporting my claim. This is ironic and funny.”

Lilith usually didn’t have any sense of humor, but she laughed too. Her laugh wasn't a girlish giggle at all. Her laugh was terrifying. Lilith asked, “I want to ask you. You were obviously a very powerful witch when you made the choice to take this form. You could have taken any form you wanted when you left the Golden Isles to go on your adventure in Troy. Now you are a goddess so why do you choose this sweet, helpless-looking form?”

“This is what they wanted for me. I could choose a form much more imposing, but I want them to know this does not weaken me. It's what they wanted, let them have it. It will become their nightmare. Since you asked me, let me ask you, why you choose the form of a disgusting scaled snake?”

Lilith laughed bitterly, “Who said this form is my choice?” She inquired, “I didn't choose it. I pissed off a god and this is the form I am condemned to be. Let this be a warning of what condemned really is, Serinina. And don’t piss off Gods. They can be vindictive. Ask Medusa and we still don’t know the real story. She slept with Athena’s lover and was condemned to be a monster that killed men with just a look of her eyes. Whether that man forced himself on her or not is debatable. It could have been that way, but it makes no difference. Athena was pissed and condemned Medusa. Now she is hunted as a prize by the strongest men in the world. Perseus will get his when his time is up. Medusa and the other women he preyed on will use a strap-on dildo on his ass for the rest of eternity. After he is changed like you.”

The two women flashed wolfish smiles to each other as they walked into the dark tower.

Serinina was going to challenge a King of Hell for rulership of the realm. She strode up the blackened stone steps up to the front door of the Dark Palace and boldly entered.

The guards didn’t even make a move to stop her. He saw the fear in the guard’s eyes. They weren’t human in any way. They were huge scaly monsters with hooves for feet. Their faces were menacing and their scaly mouths were full of needle-like teeth and they had eyes like predators. No person could hope to defend against such a thing. But she saw fear in the creature’s eyes as they move to let her and Lilith pass.

She walked down the great hall of the kings and the guards to the main throne room showed the same fear as they moved aside and let her pass. Her arrival was loudly proclaimed, “Lilith and her heir Serinina have entered.” He announced in a voice laced with fear. Serinina wondered why everyone feared her. She briefly wondered if it was really Lilith that they feared and not her. But the creature’s eyes were clearly on her showing this hesitation and fear, not on Lilith. They showed no fear of Lilith.

It was time to be very brave now as she boldly swaggered up to the throne and thundered in an enhanced booming voice, “My name is Empress Serinina and I am here for what is rightfully mine, Azazel.” She thundered to the towering man sitting on the throne wearing a menacing and almost feminine crown on his head. Azazel must have stood over Fifty to sixty feet tall and with his bulging muscles, he should weigh over a thousand pounds. He appeared as a man but this wasn’t his real form. Azazel was powerful, there was no question. He was second only to Lilith and her husband the Morning Star himself. He was the Luminous one. Azazel was the Morning Star’s second only to Lilith and was the leader of all of his armies. His true form was almost like a grotesque dragon. His most lethal weapon was his fire and his deadly tail. He could also appear anywhere.

He roared at her in a terrifying voice of his own, “The Boy Princess Serinina comes to challenge me.” He laughed, “Who would have ever thought? You may want to go back to Denaerk and flee to the safety of your sister and have her babies for her.” He laughed again but behind all of his bravado and hubris, she saw fear and defeat in his eyes. He knew he stood little chance against Serinina and it was going to be a very short fight. She let her power flow through her. She saw the spark in his eye and knew he was going to suddenly appear behind her to strike. His image shimmered and she quickly turned behind her and let her electrical power flow. It nailed him in the chest and sent him flying back. She lashed again and again with her intensely powerful lightning. Azazel collapsed and held up his hand, “You are indeed Lilith’s chosen heir and I also see you have elevated your power to include Zeus’s. Clearly, none of us stand a chance against you. This realm is yours, Queen Serinina.” He bowed his head in submission and lifted his crown off of his head and handed it to Serinina.

She accepted the crown and placed it on her own head. She felt a newfound authority flow through her as well as an intense new power. This power was amazing and almost unbeatable. There was no one who stood a chance against her now. All of the princes assembled in front of her knelt in submission. Asmodeus, Azazel, Eidolon, Belphegor, Abbadon, Hecate, Argomon all knelt toward her. They all pledged their submission to their new queen.

Serinina roared, “Hecate, What is the meaning of sending your god creature to rule over the Golden Isles and have a host of followers that call themselves the Hekatin? Do you have any clue of the misery they caused me, you bitch?” They all saw the hatred in her eyes.

“My sister Prognita is very misguided and stupid. The Hekatin proves their stupidity every day. But who are you to complain about what they did to you, My Queen? Look how it all turned out. Had they not changed you into a girl, you would have lived a very uneventful life as a man just like your father.”

Serinina laughed bitterly, “You call reigning as king, leading those men, and his accomplishments in war and peace uneventful? He lived a very full life.”

“His accomplishments may seem a lot by human standards,” Hecate responded. “But in your seventeen years of life, your accomplishments already vastly surpassed his own. You conquered Greece and Rome. Your forces are overrunning the Franks and preparing for an amphibious landing on Ansay. You have claimed the crown of Edon and won the submission of all of the princes of Hell. I have no doubt you will claim Luna and Prognita’s crown next. Have you considered what to do with her?”

“She will be powerless here once I claim her crown, right?”

“Yes,” Hecate said. “This is not her realm. She wouldn’t even have her power here with her crown. But since you are a queen of Edon you will have your full power in her realm and she has no chance against you. She also knows it.”

Serinina laughed bitterly. “I will claim Luna and imprison Prognita here. Lilith will do with her as she wishes. Make her a servant to the army. It serves her right.”

Lilith was still powerful in this realm even if she was no longer queen. She was still a princess of Hell.

Just then, Serinina heard a voice behind her, “Please, Serin, Don’t do this.” The voice sounded very suspiciously like her father Gerrik. She turned and saw the imposing form of her father standing behind her. Azazel said, “I felt it was right you should meet your father in the realm you now rule. This is his punishment. I felt you two should have some words together.”

She flashed a scalding look of hate at Azazel but figured that was exactly what he wanted. She turned to the form of her father and said in a voice dripping with hatred, “How dare you try to command me? You arrogant fool. You ignored all of the signs that were right in front of your face. You dismissed everything when it was clear as the nose on my face. Your wife, my mother was plotting against you from day one. She was plotting against me and even said she was looking forward to a renewal of the reign of women. How much clearer did it all have to be? It could have hit you in your face and you wouldn’t have noticed. You were that stupid. And now you are here trying to offer me advice. You, your arrogance, that damnable church of Maxis and its rule of men is all of what led to this. Damn you, damn the entire line of Denae Kings to hell.”

Gerrik laughed bitterly and said, “That’s exactly where we all are. Here freezing, tortured, unable to get any nourishment. We know how foolish we were. Some of the older kings were more aware, and we forgot the lessons and dismissed the existence of the Goddess and the signs.”

Serinina smirked and said, “Damn you all for this. And I have the perfect punishment for you all. You will all be reborn as girls.” The prince’s roared with laughter.

That may actually be a blessing if they could possibly take advantage of a second chance at life. She felt a few of them could. But Serinina secretly hoped her father could. She asked Gerrik, “Were you actually resurrected by the priests and rekilled by Patinia?”

Gerrik shivered in fear and said, “Let’s not think of that anymore. Being reanimated in that way was a horror mixed as a blessing being away from this place. But still under their power and unable to really control my actions. I can’t believe I attacked her the way I did. Daughter, I agree with you, damn us all we deserve our fate here. I was such a fool and I will try to take advantage of what you are doing for us. I seriously doubt many of the Denae Kings have the wisdom to take advantage of the gift you are granting them. But I will try to. I will try to live better. Thank you, my beloved daughter, and please, have mercy on the people at home. They really didn’t know what they were doing. And much of it was my fault and the Church of Maxis. We inspired such hatred at us that it was unleashed on you when you were turned. They were angry and suffering under the church. Don’t bring them even more suffering.”

“What they were suffering was not my doing,” Serinina replied through her teeth. “It was how I was raised and I was never given a chance. That’s all I ask for is a chance. I was given no chance they just did what they did and made me responsible for it all as if there was a thing I could have done to stop it as a damn child!” Serinina roared with hate. “They made their choice to make a child suffer so they deserve to feel the same. They will suffer under my rule. They will be sorry for how they treated me. This will be no liberation. The only ones who will benefit will be the Ansays. They were the only ones with the guts to oppose my sister. They paid for it but they will find they made the right decision to oppose the horror and usurping.”

“They didn’t do it for you,” Gerrik pointed out looking into his daughter’s eyes. “You know they didn’t even give a damn about you. They were going to force you into marriage and leave you powerless just so their family could rule.”

“I know,” Serinina agreed. “Still, they did oppose my sister and were right to do so. Apparently, my family also didn’t give a damn about me. No one cared about my life. But at least they disagreed with my sister claiming the crown and turning me into a girl. They were the only ones. No one else gave a rat’s ass about how it affected me. So, the feeling is mutual, and I don’t care about them or how what I will do will affect them. I will repay the favor on their sons, and father you should be thankful. I am giving you a second chance to avoid this fate so how can you oppose my decisions, should I reconsider?”

“No, I will make you proud,” Gerrik said eagerly.

Serinina laughed, “You won’t even know me. You will be an infant, then a baby girl, then a little girl child. I will be sending you to one of the most sexist places on the planet. You will be born in the Ming Empire. Foot binding, the culture on women is very harsh and very strict. They make the Church of Maxis look like progressive liberals by comparison.” She laughed and sent him away. Then she sent the entire line of Denae Kings away to be reborn as girls in the Ming Empire.

And now, it was time to unleash hell on her homeland. She made the final arrangements for the Goddess to arrive and be trapped and enslaved here. Then she returned to Charon and crossed the stream. Then reentered a portal and went back to the mortal world. She arrived in Rome. Her territory stretched from Greece to the Franks. She had ordered her army to assemble at Brest and the fleet to arrive there. Everything should be ready by the time she arrived. Most of the Franks resistance was crushed. Clovis had been killed. There were a few pockets left and the war would be over. Everything was being set for her occupation of the Golden Isles. The only problem she was hearing was the presence of a large spartan military camp in Themyscira. They were having trouble accepting the existing free men there, and the training of the former male captives. This Garrison of Spartan troops in Themyscira was seen with growing hostility and was quickly turning into a military occupation. It was one being led by Ares. He wasn’t helping her here. She had requested the help of Hades and Azazel to help her in her homeland.

In addition to all of that. Serinina was told upon arrival at her new palace in Rome that The so called Imperial fleet of the Golden Isles had set up a blockade on the straits of Trafalgar. The combined families had a little over eighty ships blockading the pass. They had hoped to bottle up Serininas fleet in the Mediterranean.

Serinina laughed. She scoffed at the arrogance of the Patenia calling her fleet an imperial fleet. Their familys fleet combined was still imposing on a small scale. They could blockade a helpless isle that never bothered to build any navy. Even without Guanefers ships to add, they had over eighty ships blockading Trafalgar. But, they were going to find their fleet illequiped to fight her imperial fleet. Serinina given orders to rename the new arsenal ship the fleets flagship. It was going to be called the ISS Ajax. Imperial Spartan ship was ISS. She now ordered the new flagship to be renamed the ISS Victory. She thought it was a fitting name. There were ten arsenal ships in her fleet, in addition to the hundreds of Triremes, biremems, and dozens of Quadremes and Quintremes.

The fleets meet at Trafalgar and Patinea starts to realize the very serious consequences for her actions against her sister as the merciless force lands on her shores

Serinina stood on the bow of her newly christened Imperial Spartan ship, ISS Victory. This was the largest ship ever built and people had thought Nero had gone mad with his enormous palace ship. This ship was hundreds of feet long with rows of massive catapults on each side. There were rows of enormous ballistae ready to fire through ports under the deck.

She looked up at the towering sails and the oars that propelled the ship through the sea. She had 10 of these monsters ready to unleash destruction on an enemy fleet. On the mainsail was the symbol of the Spartan military. To modern readers, it would look like a deformed blood-red A. It was really the Lacedaemon symbol that they used on all military units.

She had thousands of ships headed toward Trafalgar. Her fleet was going to break through the strait and meet with her troops at Brest. Then they were going to land on Anseys Isle and occupy it all the way across the sea to the Onsey land and Wensae was going to get a surprise. They were going to stop at the main wall the Romans built centuries ago. But they had to first crush the Golden Isles laughably named imperial fleet.

She stood on the bow of her ship and commanded them to set sail for the strait of Trafalgar. Her arsenal ships led the way, followed by her enormous quadrireme warships and the triremes. They headed for battle.

Her fleet was approaching Gibraltar. She briefly wondered if the crews of the Golden Isles knew how hopeless their situation was. How overwhelming her numbers were and how totally outclassed they were by the size of her ships. And it wasn't just the size either.

She saw the fleet assembled against her, blockading the strait. It was an impressive fleet. But there was one main difference here. The crews of her ships were drilled for combat. They had lived through the battles at Troy and Greece. They did endless combat drills and they knew what they were facing. She knew the fleet of the Golden Isles wasn't drilled for combat. Most of those ships were cargo vessels that shipped food and supplies to the other Isles. They had been refitted for war but their crews rarely if ever faced real naval combat. No Nelson was leading them. They had no hope for victory. They would be outgunned, outnumbered, and outfought. Let's see how they deal with facing veterans of naval combat that have faced enemy ships before.

Her arsenal ships were almost the size of a twentieth-century dreadnought. She stood on the bow of her flagship and yelled in a magically enhanced booming voice to the opposing fleet. “You have this one chance to break formation and leave. I will let you all leave in peace. If you force us to fight, then I will have no mercy on you. I will destroy you all. I will give you one hour.”

They had to see that her fleet vastly outnumbered their fleet. They had to see these enormous powerful ships could smash through their fleet without her other ships’ help. Their ships had no long-range projectile weapons. All they had was boarding actions and their archers. And those ships’ crews had no training in ship to ship combat. They weren't soldiers. They were sailors, so when it came time to face the trained naval troops and soldiers of her fleet, they would stand no chance. Their resistance would utterly collapse.

Serinina received an enhanced booming voice in return, “We can't let you pass. We know you will invade our home and we are loyal to our King Patinea. If you force a fight, we won't have any mercy on traitors like you, Serinina.”

Serinina realized that they must be led by a witch. There could be more witches that might try some of their tricks on her fleet.

“So, there are Hekatin in your crews on your ships. You think they will protect you from my power. Think again, if you dare try any of your witch tricks on me, I will use my tricks and burn your fleet down. Ask any of the witches what I did to Guanefer.”

Then she called up a lightning storm. The wind picked up across the strait, blasting the fleet of the Golden Isles. Powerful bolts of lightning struck the masts and ships, causing little damage, but killing some crewmembers on those ships. Then, Serinina ended the storm. She felt the witch's power trying to create a storm on her fleet, but the witch's power was totally ineffective. Serinina yelled, ”You better stop it or the next storm will be much more powerful. That was just a warning.”

The witches felt it was a bluff and tried to create a storm anyway. Serinina lost her temper and called on a few very powerful bolts from the sky that struck three of their ships. The ships went up in a blaze and sank within minutes.

Then Serinina roared, “Do you want this to continue? I can finish your fleet without us firing a shot at you, but I would like to keep this as a conventional fight.”

Her Megaships sailed forward to get within firing range of the Golden Isles imperial fleet. They sailed within range and turned to fire large broadsides into the enemy fleet. Huge flaming fireballs were ignited and sent into the blockading fleet.

Their witches did their best to stop the flaming trebuchets and catapult projectiles from smashing into their ships. Some of their attempts to turn the projectiles or stop them were successful, but others smashed into the ships. The ships that took the projectiles were put out of action. They ended up with huge flaming holes in their sides. Or the balls ignited the rigging and sails.

The witches realized very quickly that their fleet stood no chance against the Spartan fleet. Within minutes of action, almost half of the Golden Isles ships were sinking. The other half turned and fled. They knew that to flee would open up their coastline to invasion, but they could not stop this fleet.

Another quarter of the ships were destroyed while preparing to flee. Out of the original eighty ships that were blockading the Golden Isles, less than twenty had survived, and they were quickly hunted down and sunk. Serinina had defeated the Golden Isles fleet at Trafalgar, and they sailed on. They sailed around Spain and around the mainland of the Golden Isles. They prepared to land their troops on the rocky coastline of Anseys Isle.

Xxxxxxxx

“My Lord,” A voice called out as they entered the throne room and knelt before Patinea. “I have just received news that our combined imperial fleet has been destroyed by the Spartans at Trafalgar.”

“How is this possible?” Patinea demanded. “My commanders told me that no fleet could break their blockade at the Trafalgar Strait. How could they have been defeated?” This was unbelievable. They had done blockades in many different ports. Their siege at Anseys during the restoration was so successful. They nearly crushed the Anseys. Her commanders assured her that they could successfully bottle up the Spartans at the Strait of Trafalgar and they would never have to worry about the damn Spartans landing here. More than eighty of their largest and best ships were blockading the straits. Now she had been told her fleet had been defeated.”

“I don’t know, my lord,” replied Baldic. “I have received news that all of our ships have been destroyed. There were no survivors. The Spartan Fleet sailed into ours and crushed our ships. They are now sailing on to Ansey Isles and will be landing within the hour. Ampar said their agreement still stands. He will surrender to Serinina and let her use his isle as a staging point to project her power further."

Patinea knew there was no way to avoid the Spartans landing forces on the Golden Isles. Her last hope had been defeated at Trafalgar. Her fleet was crushed, and there was no way to prevent the Spartans from landing now. They were coming and she didn’t even have the ships to try to blockade Anseys ports anymore.

There was nothing they could do. She only hoped her army could deal with this. Of course, she also had her creatures. The huge Hawks and her Griffins could help her. But something gave her the feeling that it would be a horrible idea. Something made her think that Serinina had a plan for dealing with her large creatures. They would not crush Serinina’s army the way they had descended and crushed the Anseys. Patinea didn’t know what made her think that, but she got this very unpleasant feeling. And someone once told her that if she feels it, that it means its already too late.

Xxxxxxxxx

Serinina was sailing into Anseys’ Harbor. It was about the only place except for Cork that was a good stop for a real amphibious landing. They had no idea of the hell headed their way. She hoped that Ampar and his son Rhuntick had kept their part of the deal. Rhuntick had married Andromeda and they were now husband and wife. Rhuntick was satisfied.

Ampar's wife, Rhuntick's mother, had been killed in the war when they were betrayed by Patinea and she was angry at Ampar for breaking the alliance. Now Ampar had agreed with an alliance with the Spartan’s Empire and agreed to cede to the Spartans.

Serinina hoped that Ampar was going to agree to keep the deal and let them land. She knew it was asking a lot. She was asking Ampar to surrender his land and his holdings, his very political power to the Spartans. It would mean they no longer had much of a say in anything when Serinina’s troops landed. It would all belong to her, but she intended to reward Ansey handsomely following her occupation. Ansey would be the regent. And she would possibly even place Ansey in charge of the Fawnae or Malnae lands once she dissolved and had those families executed for treason against the crown. They betrayed her and watched as her sister stole her name and her life. Then they swore loyalty to Patinea. That would have a severe cost.

Anseys’ coastline grew and her triremes approached the Harbor. Once the ships had reached the docks, they began offloading thousands of troops. Her ship approached the dock, and she walked down to see Ampar with a very troubled look standing there with his guards. She saw what was left of his loyal soldiers standing further away. The army was less than what they had once been. Ampar used to have a vast, imposing army here that would make any battle for this island treacherous. Patinea decimated his army with the creatures she controlled. She hardly had to fight at all. She killed lady Ansey and badly hurt Rhuntick. But that was about it.

Serinina descended from her ship and approached Lord Ampar Ansey. The man along with his guards knelt and pledged feilty. His son and his new wife followed them in kneeling.

Ampar said, “I honor my commitment to our deal. I surrender Anseys Isle and all of our forces to you, Lord Serinina Denae.” He bowed his head.

Serinina shook her head. “I am not a Denae anymore. My name is Serinina Ares. My husband is Ares.”

“My apologies, my lord, Serinina Ares. The surname fits you well. This island, its people, and forces are now yours to command.”

“Rhuntick, how are you and your new wife getting along?” Serinina asked.

“She's having trouble learning to obey,” Rhuntick said. “She's almost as bad as your sister.”

“No one is as bad as my sister. Maybe you should learn to respect and honor her,” Serinina snarled at the boy. “Instead of trying to force her to obey. She's a wife, not a servant. I can’t believe you tried to force me to marry you. You are lucky I made this deal for you Rhuntick. You better learn to respect it, or it will all be for nothing. There's a reason my sister was so panicked. She did all of this to avoid marrying you. I gave Andromeda little choice in the matter, but she can leave you if she wishes. It will make no difference in the end.”

“You had to agree to this, or my father wouldn’t have agreed. You had no choice either Serinina,” stated Rhuntick harshly.

Serinina laughed as they watched the massive number of troops walking off the ships and headed toward the docks. Thousands at a time. Serinina laughed as she gestured to the enormous number of massive ships out there and the giant army marching from the ships.

“Rhuntick. This agreement was just to avoid a fight that you would have no chance in. I didn’t need Ampar’s deal to seize this island. I could have done it without any deal. Your army wouldn't have stood a ghost's chance. I could have crushed you all. I only gave you all a chance because your family was the only one with the courage to oppose my cruel sister. But I didn’t have to make any deal. Look at that fleet. It's still holding over a hundred thousand troops."

Endless troops descended from the ships and headed inland. They looked at the fleet and laughed, Ampar said, “No wonder Trafalgar was such a one-sided battle. I bet our fleet wasn’t even ready for those monsters. That was so funny it caught Patinea by surprise when she was informed of her fleet's defeat.”

They laughed as they watched tens of thousands of troops walk from the docks and assembled into the formations. Then they began to march away and Ampar said,” If they are headed toward the Wensae or Onsey lands, be aware, there is no agreement with them.”

Serinina shrugged, “I don’t care. I don’t need any agreement. They aren't ready for twenty thousand battle-hardened Spartans. Baldic's forces will fall. I doubt any of their family or forces are left on Wensae.

Xxxxx

“My Lord,” Shouted Actonia as she approached the King's Chamber. “The Spartans are landing on Anseys Isle unopposed. Ansey has totally surrendered control to your sister. They are now marching toward Baldic's lands. His family and forces safely evacuated weeks ago, as you know. Onseys are requesting asylum, and we have accepted them. Most of them know there's no opposing this. I know they all hope, like you, that your combined army will be enough to hold them from occupying the mainland. You are all wrong. I see that Serinina’s army will defeat yours if you ask for a fight. But she is willing to accept peace between your two nations.”

“There are no two nations.” Patinea sneered. “There's just a military occupation and treason going on. There will be no peace with this occupation of the Golden Isles. We will defeat my sister.”

“No,” replied Actonia. “You won't. You are a fool. You will lose what you have left and give the Spartans the excuse they need to attack us directly. We will all be kneeling before Empress Serinina because of you.”

Actonia really hoped that Patinea understood. However, one of the things she admired about Patinea was the strength of her determination. That's what first convinced her that Patinea would make a strong King.

When Patinea felt she was right, then nothing could stop her determination to go after it. She was a force of nature. But Actonia also realized that this strength could also be a great fault. Actonia realized that Patinea was going to lead them all to their doom, and it was too late to stop it. She had already set Patinea up to become the King. Patinea had been crowned the King, and there was little anyone could do about it.

Patinea was going to refuse to deal with her brother, who was leading a much stronger rival Kingdom. The crushing naval defeat at Trafalgar should have shown Patinea that her sister's kingdom was much stronger than her own. She had best try to keep peace between them.

Patinea's anger at Serinina and her conviction that she was better made her refuse to deal with Serinina in any way. Even Edwyn and Victoria tried to reason with her, but it made no difference. Patinea thought Edwyn's strength could help the Kingdom, but Edwyn simply said, “I am very powerful. I have been given the strength of Michael and Gabrial. But even I can't contend with Lilith’s power. This is something entirely new, and Serinina will destroy me.”

Patinea said, “Edwyn, you and Victoria go and deal with Serinina. Kill her or make her step down and surrender. Those are your orders.”

“I can’t stop Serinina, my lord,” Edwyn pleaded, trying to get Patinea to understand. “She is much stronger than I am. Serinina is possessed by an ancient and potent evil,” Edwyn warned. “I can’t defeat her. No one can.”

“I have seen your amazing abilities Edwyn,” Patinea encouraged him. “And your sword Glorious. You may be the only one who can defeat Serinina. Or there is no hope for us. I am the chosen one, not her. The Goddess chose me to lead. Actonia saw it in her visions. I am the Vessel of the Goddess. Not Serinina. I say you do have the strength. It is the will of the Goddess.”

Actonia spoke up even though she didn’t really wanted to. “Yes, you are the Vessel. You were meant to be King. I saw that and I saw Serinina. But you were brutal and not really fit. The Goddess also saw that, and that in time, Serinina would grow and claim the crown. That was also seen and approved once your sister learned what she had to. But you were too brutal, we were all too brutal. Serinina suffered and saw her suffering as the will of the Goddess. She, thought the Goddess hated her. The Goddess ripped her life apart and placed you in charge. So, she did the only thing she could. She allied herself with an even darker power. She researched our history and learned of a goddess that even Prognita feared. A goddess we dared not even speak of, such horror would unleash death across the Golden Isles. Serinina allied herself with Lilith and released Lilith on us. Then she claimed Lilith’s power for herself, and she has now totally subjugated Lilith and claimed her Crown for herself. Sorry, Patinea, but even the Goddess knew you were not worthy. She intended all along that Serinina become the King. You were only to prepare the way. You were not doing the Goddess's will. You were doing your own when you abused Serinina. Now you have unleashed Hell. You have sent Edwyn and Victoria to their deaths. They won't return alive.”

Patinea roared in frustration, “Can anyone defeat my sister? I thought that this revolution was the will of the Goddess.”

“The revolution to throw down the church of Maxis and end the subjugation of women was the will of the Goddess. You abusing your little sister was not. That was a betrayal of the Goddess. You are not the chosen one anymore. You betrayed your sex in more ways than you know. Your sister, mistakenly believing it was all the will of the Goddess, blames her and will destroy the Goddess. Thanks for that, you deserve all of the credit.

“It's also a lot of my responsibility. I set it all up, and I was thinking the Goddess wanted to set women in control again. I thought we were headed for a reign of women once more. The Goddess didn’t want that. Even if so, abusing a woman the way you did your sister was a betrayal of everything and has created our worst nightmare. Perhaps we deserve it all.”

Xxxxxx

Serinina had watched her fleet offload their endless troops for over half of the day. Nightfall was a mere hour away. Her fleet had offloaded seventy percent of their total troops and it wasn’t finished yet. Her troops had assembled in an open field outside of this island's capital next to a large temple of the Church of Maxis. More columns of troops were streaming in by the hour. The Island’s home troops that were loyal to the House of Ansey were also assembled with her army.

Then she called one of her generals and commanded, “Destroy that vile temple. Bring me the priests, bind them, and bring them here.”

“As you command, your Majesty.” Troops marched toward the temple. It wasn’t much of a fight, but the priests tried a little of their magic to trick or overcome the troops. They had some success until Serinina sent a powerful lightning bolt striking very near the priest causing the most trouble, and she warned in a booming voice, “If you try to fight the troops coming for you. I will have you all killed. The Church of Maxis must fall. The church is a vile and corrupt church that has caused so much resentment and hate at the regime that was solely directed at me as if I was responsible for their persecution. I will not allow it to continue!”

Resistance to the troops had stopped after that. The priests were tied up and carried out of the temple. They were placed in front of Serinina lined up in a row. Then she began seeing smoke rising out of the temple, and the troops began smashing the buildings. War engines were placed in front of the Temple and began bombarding it with heavy stones. The large temple was going down. Serinina watched with a satisfied smile.

The priest cried out, “You defile the sacred temple. This is blasphemy!”

“Your religion is corrupted and your god Maxis has fallen,” Serinina said. “He has no power and I have turned Maxis into a girl. He now serves the Hekatin and counts himself lucky to be their maid and not in Erebus or Tartarus with Hades. You have a choice, to renounce your god and go live your lives or die. If you want to live, stand and renounce Maxis and give an oath.”

One of the youngest priests stood up and said in a shaky voice, “I was raised to love Maxis, but I always questioned the priest's brutality toward the women. And I questioned the rules they enforced against women. I was never comfortable with it all, but I tried to stay faithful.

"When I heard what your sister, the girl King, did, making you the princess, the statue of Maxis falling, and the earthquake that destroyed the temple, I knew this religion was falling, but I had to act faithfully here. The Anseys firmly believed in the rule of man even after the conquest. Even after Patinea sent her creatures to decimate the army and her troops landed. She allowed the temple and the priests to remain as long as they took no hostile action against the women or the regime. Our lord Ampar returned from prison, and peace reigned. But my faith was shaken. However, after all of that said, I renounce Maxis. That religion has obviously fallen, but I don’t believe the Goddess is good either. I see how her followers treated you. What she did to your life was wrong. Her creatures tormenting our population. I can’t believe in such a vicious god either Serinina.

“Neither do I have any loyalty to the Goddess Prognita. I hate her and her religion. I hate her followers as well. The Hekatin have something very nasty coming their way.”

Serinina said in a booming voice to her army and her followers. “The Religion of Maxis and the Religion of Prognita are to be suppressed. The old edicts that were in force before Patinea overrode them are now enforced. Witches will be hunted, and worship of the Goddess is forbidden. Worship of the God Maxis is also forbidden. The Priests will also be hunted. The Temple of Maxis is to be rededicated to our Goddess Athena. The Daughter of Zeus and sister to my husband, Ares. The remaining Hekatin are to be told that they have a week to leave, any that remain after a week will be subject to the Inquisition.”

A group of female priests that had come from Themyscira with the fleet went into the temple to begin their work rededicating the temple to Athena. It was clear that now, Serinina was sorry and trying to repair her relationship with the Goddess. Athena was still angry at Serinina for attacking her and it would take more than dedicating a destroyed temple to her to mend that relationship. Ares kept trying to get Athena to forgive Serinina, but it was a difficult task. Athena was vindictive.

Serinina then met with the leaders of her armed forces.

“Now we will occupy the surrounding area and search for potentially hostile forces. You will march north and occupy and subjugate Onsey on the northern half of the Isles. And the other army will cross the sea and occupy the Wensae on the southern tip of the mainland up to the wall. I have also ordered another hundred and fifty thousand troops to arrive within the month.

"You have your orders. The units marching toward Onsey and Wensae have their lists of people to find. The main families have probably fled to the nation's capital. But I suspect many of the distant and removed families are still there. They are probably hoping that they will not be hunted or that we do not know about them. The grandparent's siblings, their brothers and sisters who had family removed from the main Onsey’s and Wensae’s. Their sons and daughters, and their children on down the line. They probably think we don’t know about them, or don’t care. They will find they are wrong. We have their names and addresses, and perhaps the main line may have people in hiding. Find them all and bring them to me. And anyone who tries to shelter them is to be considered a traitor. Find all of the rat traitors and their children. Every single one of them is guilty of treason. The adults have forfeited their life. And their children have forfeited any future as free men and women.

"Go carry out your orders!”

Serinina watched as her army marched out to follow her orders. She knew that this was going to be a very difficult and cruel occupation. But it was one that they deserved. Onsey’s area fell almost without any opposition. There were some of the troops left that were still loyal to the family. Their resistance crumbled almost without any fight. There were very quick skirmishes between the Spartan phalanxes and Onsey’s troops. The Onsey’s troops fell back and surrendered. The bulk of the Onsey’s forces and their family fled to Denaerk and swore allegiance to Patinea.

Serinina led her forces up to the Onsey’s territory and overcame their armies. Their resistance was weak at best. They were quickly defeated, and she occupied their main cities and then she went out to the countryside to visit the smaller towns and made sure they were all loyal to her. She left a sizable garrison in the main cities, and she went on to Wensae.

Serinina’s fleet was ready to transport her forces across the sea on to Wensae’s territory. She looked at her generals and lords and said, “These people are our enemy. Wensae was one of the first to swear loyalty to my sister. They stood with her from the very beginning. They were happy to see what happened to me. No mercy to any of the Wensae. Find them all, take them, their uncles, aunts, on to the grandparent's siblings and the great grandparent's siblings and their descendants. Find them all and end the Wensae’s for all time. Destroy every single member of the family on to the once, twice, and all removed. You have their family members from all family lines. Search and find them all.”

The ships docked and the troops forced their way into the docks and gained control. What was left of the Wensae forces stood no chance of maintaining any sort of control with the thousands of Spartan troops flooding the docks that then proceeded to spread out to the countryside. The Wensae forces were crushed, and there was no mercy there. Some tried to surrender when it was clear that they were overwhelmed and were going to be defeated. Serinina killed them all as they tried to surrender. They had their chance to surrender and swear loyalty to her when they arrived. They forfeited that chance and tried to resist. There was no mercy after that. She took no prisoners after they tried to fight her overwhelming forces, and she quickly gained control over the main cities. Her forces spread out to the smaller towns. The campaign took only weeks until she reached the wall. Ampar succeeded in upgrading the wall. This would be an excellent barrier against Patinea's forces when they arrived to try to defeat her. She looked up at the towering wall that Ampar and Wensae rebuilt. She inspected the fortifications and camps for her forces. She stationed some of her garrisons to guard the wall and had scouts to report if Patinea was sending forces in to attack.

Serinina heard reports during her occupation that her special squads were carrying out their particular set of orders. The squads with the names of the families had found many of the people they were sent for. Those people were in custody and being taken back to Ansey in chains.

Her other special inquisition squads were rounding up the members of the Hekatin. The Hekatin were finding out that the Inquisition squads were too highly trained for them. Resistance only meant death. There was no mercy on the Hekatin. Many of the others surrendered to her Inquisition squads.

The Inquisition kept a careful eye on everyone. Their effectiveness made the Purgatorists under the Church of Maxis look kind by comparison. Yes, they were brutal and made life for women very bleak and short if they were revealed to be a witch. But the Purgatorists didn’t know magic that well. They didn’t have the training to find magic users. They were easy to avoid.

There was no deceiving the Inquisition. They had an extremely high level of magic training and knew exactly how to find members of the Hekatin. The Hekatin’s connection with the Goddess and their training sang out to the Inquisition. There was no way to deceive them. They always found members of the Hekatin no matter what, and anyone who tried to shelter them were treated the same way. A feeling of hopelessness descended on the entire Hekatin. They all began fleeing to Patinea. Serinina began to travel back to her palace on Ansey to meet those that had been taken into custody.

The trip back to Asneys Isle was rough. She made it back to Rooks Rock Port and took one of the ferries back to Ansey. She went from there back to her castle. The Ferry Service that used to ferry goods and people back and forth had been requisitioned by her military and enlarged to ferry massive numbers of troops onto the mainland in preparation for an attack. They all knew that Patinea’s royal army was going to come sooner or later and they were going to be in for a very rude surprise. Serinina’s forces weren’t going to flee battle like Ansey’s troops did. Patinea’s now nonexistent navy had no hope of blockading Ansey from the rest of the Kingdom. Not to mention that her forces now occupied roughly half of the Golden Isles. Serinina hoped that Patinea wasn’t stupid enough to try to drive her off of the Isles. Still, Serinina knew that Patinea was that stupid. This was going to be a hopeless fight for her.

She walked into her now enlarged royal chambers that had her enormous iron throne waiting for her. This was the royal chambers for the Ansey’s, which really held little power except on half of this island. The chamber had been enlarged to represent the real power that Serinina held on this land and extended to mainland Europe. Not much expense was spent on this. Serinina suspected that she would soon be sitting on Patinea’s throne in Denaerk.

She sat on her throne and then commanded, “Bring in the remaining family members of those who betrayed me.”

Hundreds of bound and hooded prisoners were forced into the royal chambers at sword point. Serinina said, “You no longer need to be hooded.” With a flick of her finger, their hoods vanished from their heads. There were dozens of adult men and women with dozens of children. Many of them had no idea why they were arrested and taken into custody. They were afraid to say anything.

Serinina spoke with a powerful, majestic voice, “You are the remaining family members of the cowards that fled. Some of you are what remains of the Wensae line. You may not carry that name, but I know you have descended from their grandparent's siblings and removed from the main family. But you are still here and remain a threat. Or you descended from the Onsey who refused to join Ansey in their rebellion. The wife of their family once approached me for my loyalty when they should have offered me theirs from the very beginning. But you swore to Patinea, and that was a mistake. Now your families are doomed.”

One of the eldest members stood up and raged, “So this is what it's about. None of us are even considered part of noble households. The heads of our families carry no titles at all.”

“That's a lie,” said Serinina harshly. “You are carrying the title of Baron. There's a reason for that. You all betrayed me.”

“I had nothing to do with it.” Said the Baron. “I had nothing to say about the matter at all. The decision to swear to Patinea was made by Duke Onsey and I couldn't leave him as part of the family. Even if we are removed from the main family. It is unfair to hold us accountable. Especially as many as you have here. Many of these men and women hold no titles or power at all. Yet they are here in chains awaiting your judgment.”

“I also had nothing to do with the conditions many of the women were living under,” said Serinina in a cold tone. “I was made to pay for things that happened nearly a thousand years before I was born. You weren't there that day, but I am sure you heard about it and had such a laugh of the prince ready to be crowned King who was suddenly made the princess and his sister got the crown. Is any of this funny now?”

“I never thought it was funny, and I think what happened was wrong,” said the Baron. “But there was nothing I could do about it. I think it was terribly unfair. But I was powerless to stop it or do anything about it.”

“So was I,” countered Serinina. “As many of you probably know. This has very little to do with you, just as what happened to me had almost nothing to do with me personally. Life is full of such things, so why try to be fair? Life is unfair, the Goddess is unfair. So I am a bitch too. Everyone over the age of fifteen will die. Your children will be taken to Greece as slaves. Take the adults to the courtyard and execute them all. The children will be shackled and taken to Greece.”

Ajax approached, “So you are going back on what you said about freedom. You are making these children part of a new servant class?”

“Yes,” retorted Serinina coldly. “But only on a much smaller scale than what you all did. Your ancestors enslaved the entire population of your conquered people. These are only a few dozen entitled noble children. There’s a huge difference. Most of the people here will know freedom under my rule.”

“What about the Hekatin?" Ajax asked accusingly.

“They sought to enslave us all.” Serinina shot. “There’s no mercy on them.

The prisoners were taken out, and she began hearing screaming and crying as they were led to the chopping block. The children were led out with their parents and forced to watch the beheading before they were taken to their fate.

Another group of shackled prisoners was led into the chambers and forced to kneel before their empress. Their hoods were removed and Serinina asked in a tone filled with cold ice, “Were my warnings unclear before. I said you were all to leave a week ago. Was the warning unclear?”

The women only looked up defiantly.

Serinina laughed, “Or perhaps you all thought you could avoid detection from my inquisition just like you all operated your religion right under the Purgatorist's nose. Those men don't know how to find you. You knew how to avoid their detection. You thought it would be the same, didn’t you?”

Serinina saw the look of disbelief in the Hekatin women's eyes. “There is no avoiding the inquisition. They are unavoidable. I was a Hekatin and I have trained them in the arts. I have taught them how to detect your power and your connection to the Goddess Prognita. They know what to look for and how to root you all out. They will find every last one of you. You cannot avoid their detection. They are not like those priest fools who did not know how to find you. You operated your religion right under their nose for hundreds of years, growing your power until you were ready to strike at the heart of the kingdom and destroy me by turning me into a girl, then take over. My inquisition will root you all out and exterminate the Hekatin for all time. Every last one of you will be found this time and you won't be allowed to rise again. There will be nothing left when I am finished with you.”

Serinina stood proudly in front of the terrified women. The girls began crying as she glared at the subjugated terrified group. Suddenly, a massive bronze spear materialized in Serinina’s hand. “You thought you could transform me into a girl and mistreat me and that would be alright because I was nothing but a helpless teenage girl that couldn’t do anything against you. It didn't work out that way. Now that teenage girl is an adult woman and she is very angry at what was done to her. She already wiped out the Maxis. I crushed the God Maxis himself and he's nothing but a girl serving Patinea. Now it's time to wipe you all out.”

Another group of shackled prisoners was led into the chambers and forced to kneel before their empress. Their hoods were removed and Serinina asked in a tone filled with cold ice, “Were my warnings unclear before? I said you were all to leave a week ago. Was the warning unclear?”

The women only looked up defiantly.

Serinina laughed, “Or perhaps you all thought you could avoid detection from my inquisition just like you all operated your religion right under the Purgatorist's nose. Those men don't know how to find you. You knew how to avoid their detection. You thought it would be the same, didn’t you?”

Serinina saw the look of disbelief in the Hekatin women's eyes. “There is no avoiding the inquisition. They are unavoidable. I was a Hekatin and I have trained them in the arts. I have taught them how to detect your power and your connection to the Goddess Prognita. They know what to look for and how to root you all out. They will find every last one of you. You cannot avoid their detection. They are not like those fool priests who did not know how to find you. You operated your religion right under their nose for hundreds of years, growing your power until you were ready to strike at the heart of the kingdom and destroy me by turning me into a girl, and then take over. My inquisition will root you all out and exterminate the Hekatin for all time. Every last one of you will be found this time and you won't be allowed to rise again. There will be nothing left when I am finished with you.”

Serinina stood proudly in front of the subjugated and terrified women. The girls began crying as she glared at them. Suddenly, a massive bronze spear materialized in Serinina’s hand. “You thought you could transform me into a girl and mistreat me and that would be alright because I was nothing but a helpless teenage girl that couldn’t do anything against you. It didn't work out that way. Now that teenage girl is an adult woman and she is very angry at what was done to her. She already wiped out the Maxis cult. I crushed the God Maxis himself and he's now nothing but a girl serving Patinea. Now it's time to wipe you all out.”

Serinina approached the frightened group of women and stood inches from the eldest woman who appeared to be in charge of them.

“What made you think that you could steal my life and my name away? That you could have me abused, raped, impregnated, forced to deliver, molested and sidelined. Did you think that having my life stolen, someone with my political power would never be able to fight back? What made you think there would be no consequences to what you did to me?”

“You were so young,” the eldest woman protested. “You were the young prince and raised to love Maxis. You didn't know what was really going on. You didn't know of the sadistic brutality of the priests or the fear we all lived under. But you were raised to believe that women were inferior and you needed to control us. That is something we all had to end and we couldn't allow another follower of Maxis to get the crown. We all did what we had to. But not all of us agreed with you being raped or abused. The plan was for you to learn and grow, but your sister was too cruel. She refused to listen to reason.” Her tone was apologetic.

“I will give you one chance to live,” Serinina said coldly in a tone that could freeze the air. “I know some of you have brothers or sons. Would any of you agree with him being treated as I was treated?”

None of the girls agreed. One of the oldest girls stepped forward and said, “I know my brother is only a boy, but that's what he was meant to be and I wouldn't let anyone abuse him.”

“What if the Hekatin decided that he must be made into a girl,” Serinina asked. “Would you agree to that?”

She shook her head and said, “Being a girl is a blessing, to be elevated in status in the Hekatin. It was stupid to do what they did to you but there was a reason they did that, to give you a chance to grow. They betrayed it all by doing what they did to you when you were a girl. I would protect my brother from that because I know he wasn’t meant to be a girl and couldn’t handle the life of a woman.”

Serinina laughed, “I almost couldn't but I had to deal with a lot of the women's frustrations being laid on me. But, a lot of my frustration was in learning all of this stuff that was withheld from me. Yet, I was blamed for it. But I didn't know because the Hekatin history was only for the eyes and ears of young girls. I didn't know any of it. Do you really think your brother is really less than you because he's only a boy?”

The older girl thought for a second and then replied, “Of course he is less. He is only a boy. You studied under the Hekatin and you know this. Even Lilith agrees. Males need guidance from superior females. Males can't control their anger.”

Serinina smirked, “As I found out, some women also have problems controlling their anger. Their inability to control anger isn't exclusive to only males. And part of the religion of Maxis was condemning females for their inability to control our emotions. And you know that as women we do tend to be very emotional. Some women also need guidance.”

The older girl looked down. Serinina continued, “So do you really think that because some males are unable to control their anger that makes women superior? Can any of you honestly say that women are always in control over their emotional outbursts?”

They all knew the answer to that and Serinina asked, “So what else makes men inferior and in need of guidance from a strong female?”

Few of them had an answer. So Serinina said, “Males are strong and they can be very intelligent. Men have proven in the last thousand years that they can be good leaders and they have created this society. They were successful in overthrowing the rule of women and suppressing the Goddess. Your religion is obviously wrong just like theirs is obviously wrong for condemning women as inferior. Both religions are wrong. I am here to bring a new way that can elevate both sexes. My Goddess respects both sexes for their strengths and their weaknesses. If you are willing to give her a chance, I will teach you about Athena and her brother, Ares, who is also my husband. She is a wonderful warrior Goddess, just like her brother is. Under her, no sex is inferior. Some of her followers needed to be corrected and I helped them with that. If you are willing, I will teach you about her. If not, then...” Serinina let that threat hang.

The group of women conversed among themselves and then the eldest woman turned to Serinina and she said, “We will turn to your Goddess.” The women around her nodded in agreement.

“Good,” said Serinina. “Let's hope you aren’t turning just to save your skin. Let me lead you to the temple where Cassandra will help teach you about Athena.”

Serinina felt Athena smiling on her. Helping Athena get new devoted followers and spreading her religion went a long way to repairing their relationship.

Just then, an older boy and a girl approached the throne that Serinina had returned to. The boy was well-armed. He now looked like he was in his twenties. She spoke in a tone that sent shivers through everyone in the chamber. “Edwyn, so you have come to challenge me?”

“Yes, I must. I saw you just execute children. And…” Edwyn replied before she was cut off.

“And you are following orders. Yes, I know,” Serinina retorted. “But you know you stand no chance against the power of Lilith. You know you have come to die, why do you follow such stupid orders from an idiot?”

“You are clearly an enemy of the Goddess,” Edwyn said as he held Victoria’s hand.

“She made me her enemy years ago. I suffered all because of her. Many were suffering under the reign of the Goddess and her agents. You know this, as you are her son.” Serinina looked into Edwyn’s eyes and saw that he also knew he stood little chance against Serinina’s power. She saw nothing but defeat and frustration in his eyes. He was ignored.

“You clearly intend to destroy us and I am following the orders of my King Patinea,” Edwyn explained. “I must kill you. That's what she commanded after the defeat of her navy at Trafalgar Straits. I tried to tell her that I stood no chance of defeating you, but she said I had to. So, I must. Her orders stand against my objections.”

Then he drew his sword of power, and she saw its furious power flowing through the blade. She knew that she must not let the blade touch her.

Serinina stood, and her huge spear materialized in her hand. “If you must follow that idiot's command, then let's go fight in the courtyard. I suspect you will try your flying thing with your wings.”

“Just spare my sister,” Edwyn pleaded. “She won't fight you.”

“I will spare her if she takes no hostile action. She can carry your remains back to Denaerk if she does not attack me.”

“She won't, she knows she can't attack you,” Edwyn assured. “So, are you ready for this?”

“Yes,” said Serinina. “Are you ready for this?”

“Yeah,” Replied Edwyn. “I am ready.” He said in a voice full of dread.

“You don’t have to do this,” Serinina told Edwyn. “You know she is wrong. You know Patinea is little more than a tyrant in power. Her orders are cruel. Her rule led to me being raped by Prett. Then she let the guy go over some agreement with his family for their support. Something about her honor. Then she caused me to get pregnant using some sort of Hekatin magic, and Prett attacks me again. I used my own magic to terminate the pregnancy. It was a violation and forced on me. And I killed Prett, and then I find out that my pregnancy was caused by my sister, and she was going to take the children at the end, had I delivered them. But I terminated it. And this is the woman you chose to follow Edwyn? You don’t have to obey her, and you don’t have to die for her!”

“She is my King and I swore to her. The Goddess chose her,” Edwyn explained.

“Then you deserve what you get,” replied Serinina materializing the bronze spear in her hand and walking out to the courtyard.

“What about you How many have you killed,” Edwyn warned. “You know what the consequences are.”

Serinina laughed, “This same god that destroyed an entire city full of children and flooded more of them,” Serinina looked into Edwyn’s eyes. “I found out there are exceptions to everything. As for you, I will rip off your wings, Edwyn.”

*****

Patinea sat on her stolen throne, feeling anger increase at the results of each report she was being given. Patinea had been told that now Serinina was headed to Denaerk with a delegation for a diplomatic discussion a truce under the flag of peace.

The first report covered the ship losses at Trafalgar. Each ship that was lost, its complement and captain. Eighty-three ships in total. From the larger caravels to the smaller carracks onto a few massive galleons. Some of the ships had hundreds of crew and soldiers down to only a hundred. In total, they lost nearly thirty thousand people. The problem, she was told, was that the Isles never considered employing or building a full time dedicated navy. Their ships were never devoted solely to combat. So her seamen never received any combat drills, and her ships weren't designed for combat. Serinina’s Spartan navy was dedicated to combat. Those ship’s crews were relentlessly drilled for combat. They had fought many naval battles against each other, against Troy and against the Romans. Then they crushed the Frankish fleet. Her little navy never stood a chance. Trying to engage the Spartan fleet at Trafalgar was a mistake. Now, not only did they not have anything to defend their coastlines, but trade between the Isles was restricted. That's what those ships usually did. They shipped cargo and food to the other Isles. Now, trade was suffering.

And now, with this occupation, things were getting much worse. Ansey‘s and Onsey’s Isles were under Spartan occupation. And they were unable to blockade it as they did before. That was where they should have engaged the Spartan Navy and they may have been more successful at engaging them on their own coastline and disrupting the troops being offloaded for the occupation. Now they had nothing.

Serinina had landed and rounded up the rest of the noble families that didn't escape. Patinea was told that the families had been all beheaded. Each of them was led to the chopping block and executed one by one from the most powerful barons to the common people who simply had family relations with them.

Patinea was more enraged. Her friend Baldic Wensae began sobbing on hearing what happened to his family and to his distant cousins. He knew them and cared for their children. They were all gone now. He wrongly thought they were safe since they didn’t come from his main family. He was very wrong. Every single one of them was hunted, found, and delivered to the executioner.

The only good thing was that he heard that the children were spared. They were being shipped to Sparta as slaves. He wasn’t sure if that was a better fate at all. Then he heard the worst. Some of the boys were transformed into girls against their will. He was sure Serinina thought that fate up. Those girls would be raised to deliver strong spartan boys that would be taken from them at a young age to be raised as warriors. Baldic broke down and began crying.

The only good thing that Patinea was told was that the state of her main army was mostly unaffected. The bulk of Onsey and Wensae’s forces escaped and were available for her to use. In total, with the Malnae and Fawnae’s armies, and the levies she could call up, they had over twenty thousand to thirty thousand troops she could summon. She was happy until she was told that the Spartans had landed over a hundred thousand troops and there were another two hundred thousand on their way. She knew there was no way her army could fight that. This was not going to be like her war against the Anseys. She was not going to roll over the Spartans like she did with the Anseys.

She suspected that her sister had no intention of honoring any agreement she ever made with her. Her sister Serinina was enraged and she was coming for her Kingdom, her people and her blood. Patinea felt fear for the first time in her life. Her sister had displayed her barbarity and cruelty during her occupation. They hunted the families, the children and then wiped out the remaining Hekatin that thought they could hide from her inquisitors. They were all proven very wrong and were executed to the last. There was no mercy. She had to privately admit that if she had been treated as Serinina was treated as a woman that she may be just as enraged and unwilling to compromise one bit.

Her musings were interrupted when one of the men loudly announced, “Milord. Serinina has arrived with her people to discuss a truce between our two Kingdoms.” Patinea waved her hand to signal that they should be allowed to enter.

The two enormous doors parted and she saw her sister Serinina walk in wearing an enormous heavy blackened crown and holding a creepy looking royal scepter. She was dressed in flowing black robes and walked in with her group of delegates and advisers which followed behind her along with her own personal guard. They approached Patinea’s throne.

Then Patinea’s eyes caught a body in the back and she became very frightened. Victoria was in the back of the group. She and a few other women were carrying a body on a slab of wood. It was Edwyn’s body, broken and bloody. His wings were laying on his chest. They had obviously been ripped off of his body. The body was battered, cut up and covered in his blood. The blood was not regular human blood. His body was filled with the ethereal golden elixir of angelic beings. But Edwyn had been brutally killed.

Patinea looked into her sister's eyes and saw that the rage was still there, along with a look of envy. She really didn’t know what Serinina could feel envious about. Patinea ruled these small isles and half of it was just taken away from her. Serinina ruled from Troy to the Atlantic coastline of the Franks. There was no question that she ruled them with her merciless iron fist in ways that Patinea could never have gotten away with here. The loyalty of the lords here was always contingent upon many different things. Even as the Vessel of the Goddess, that only made some things more troublesome under an island that was ruled by followers of the God Maxis. But many of the people were still loyal to the Goddess.

Serinina spoke first, “You sent the son of the Goddess to murder me!” Her voice roared and the room shook with Serinina’s voice. Everyone but Patinea cowered. “And you knew he stood no chance against me. He told you that you were sending him to his death but you refused to listen. Now Edwyn is dead because of your arrogance.”

Victoria walked up to the throne and laid the body of Edwyn at Patinea’s feet and she said viciously, “You caused this. You deserve what is coming.”

All she saw in her sister's eyes was a white-hot burning rage and a desire for total destruction. Patinea said to her sister, “Not even someone with the power of Edwyn can defeat you. You must be very powerful. Have you come here to discuss peace between our two Kingdoms, dear sister?”

“Yes,” replied Serinina in a voice so cold it could freeze the air. “I am willing to stop my armies advance and settle with our two kingdoms. If you are so willing to compromise with me.” She said as if she didn’t believe it for one moment.

Patinea knew her forces stood no chance and the total defeat at Trafalgar showed her. “My Kingdom has lost so much because of your vendetta against me, Serinina. If you desire, we can discuss a truce and you can have your Kingdom and I will settle for the mainland here. But I do so very reluctantly. I can’t imagine how a brutal person like you is treating the people under your rule. You hate the Goddess and the religion so I can only imagine how brutal you are to the women. It is clear you are still a misogynist.”

Serinina smiled under his black hood and called, “Emily, Julie, Agrippa. Please come here.”

Three of the soldiers walked up wearing full spartan military armor and holding their long bronze spears and round shields. Serinina ordered, “Please remove your halmets.” And the women removed their spartan helmets revealing that they were indeed women.

Serinina said, “I opened the military to women. Agrippa here was a Helot before I ended that. I said that the Helots could join the Spartan army and go through the Agoge, and she was one of the first. Emily here is a general. She leads her own troops and is one of my most trusted military advisers. Julie is an Amazon and will help me spread the religion of Athena to the people of the Golden Isles. I am not the boy you once knew that kept saying women can’t fight. As I see it dear sister, much of your army still lacks women. Only you wear the magical armor that allows you to fight. If we were to go by your example, I may still think women can’t fight. Luckily for me the Amazons opened my eyes. The Anseys and Onseys will learn a new way. As for my demands.”

Serinina smirked, knowing that Patinea would refuse. “I demand the families. The Onseys, Wensaes. You can keep your traitorous Malnays, Denaes, Fawnaes. But I demand you surrender the Onsey and Wensaes. They deserve to pay. I also demand you surrender the conspirators that destroyed my life. Except for you the King. I want Falconette, Lady Fawnae, Actonia, your friend Danala, all of them. Even my mother. And I demand your guard captain, Elverous. I also demand an annual tribute.”

Patinea shook her head. She knew that if she agreed to these terms that her nation would soon become little more than her sister's vassal. “I can't surrender so many people to die at your hands, people that I consider my friends.”

Actonia tried to speak, but she was silenced. “I won't agree to those terms. Please try to see reason.”

Serinina’s featured narrowed and everyone sensed the hatred. She spoke, “Then as of this moment, you can consider our two nations at war.”

Serinina turned and walked out in triumph.

But she turned when Patinea asked, “You come in here and make impossible demands and then declare war? What makes you think I will let you leave?”

Just as they watched, a black boiling mass materialized in the center of the royal chamber twisting in fury. All of Patinea’s guards weapons were ripped from their hands and their armor pulled off their bodies. Then they collapsed into the floor.

The black boiling mist materialized into a human form. The body looked deathly and frail. People chocked as the chamber was filled with the smell of rotting flesh. The figure floated up to the throne that Patinea sat on and he said in deathly howell. “You have no power to prevent our liege from leaving your city. She came under a flag of peace and it was you who refused her offer. She only demanded a few rats who betrayed her and you refused. You have proven over and over again that you are unworthy. Your sister has passed every test and proven to be a great leader who has earned the love and devotion of her people from greece to Rome. You will find out why she is such a great leader when she shatters your army into pieces.”

“Who are you,” Patinea demanded.

“I am Hades.”

The guards began to stand up on their feet, totally disarmed and afraid. Hades floated up to Elverus and asked Serinina, “Is it okay,”

“Yes,” Serinina replied. “Make an exmaple of that rat who threw me in my room. Elverus, I told you that you would die for what you did to me that day. I said you would hang but this is so much better. Hades, make him an example for me.”

Hades smiled a deathly smile and lifted the protesting man off his feet. He said, “Elverous, You shall die for what you did to your King. Just as she said.” Then the life began leaving Elverous’s body. His entire form began to age and shrivle. He looked decades older and he kept ageing until the flesh on his face and arms shriveled into bones. Then he died and began rotting on the floor until there was nothing left. It was a horrifying display of Hades power. “The traitor is dead for what he did. The rest will follow when we occupy Denaerk. All of you lords will die for your mistake. And Patinea, dont think you can use your huge Sun Hawks and Griffins to attack our army the way you did on Anseys Isles. I will destroy them all if you try that trick again. Azazel will be with me guarding the army from any arial attack by your creatures. If you try that, we will hunt down every last one of them and wipe out their entire race.”

At that moment, Serininas entire group vanished from sight and materialized in the center of her entire assembled army. She shouted triumphantly, “We go to war!”

The Prophet

By Jasmine Monica

Serinina goes to war in her homeland

Serinina transported back to the wall where her main army was. She had been told that her additional two hundred thousand troops were landing to maintain control. One hundred thousand of them were from Themyscira.

She faced her giant army. They had assembled in enormous columns with their red battle flags waving in the breeze. Their generals and commanders were standing in front of their troops. These were all battle-hardened Greeks. They had trained in the Spartan way and they had marched into every Greek city-state to defeat them. She led them into Rome and then crushed the Franks under Clovis.

“The false king, Patinea, rejected my generous offer of peace. She refused to sacrifice a few of the traitors that humiliated me. Patinea has decided to fight. So it is WAR!!!!” Serinina roared to the cheers of her army.

“We will make sure her old tactics won't work. We are Spartans. We won't flee the field as Ansey’s troops did. We won't abandon our positions or revolt against our leader. Will you abandon me?”

Her troops shouted a resounding no.

“Patinea will face real Spartans in battle. Her usual tricks won't work. She won't be able to use her hawks against us. Our army will be defended against her massive griffons. They won't be able to attack us from the sky. If she wants to fight us, she will find out she must actually do real battle. She will be on the front lines against real battle-hardened seasoned spartan phalanxes. She will get a taste of what real battle is! We will show her true war.”

Her troops began yelling the usual Spartan war cry.

“But don’t get too confident," she shouted to her army. "Patinea is strong, and she is intelligent. She is not the usual girl. Patinea is a powerful girl. She has stolen the strength from many men who underestimated her. The men she stole from are living miserable lives being feminized and humiliated. Don't underestimate her if you face her on the field. Fight her as you would any man. Seek justice for the men she stole from. Show her what real Spartan combat is. Make her pay for what she did. Once, we march into the heartland of her kingdom and the area controlled by the three ruling families of the Denaes', Fawnaes and Malnaes'. We will begin employing a scorched earth policy. We will burn their homes, cities, towns, crops, and fields. We will burn it all. March toward York.”

Her army began crying her name with the Spartan war cry. One hundred thousand Spartans marched out in enormous columns, waving their flags and shields on their back. They were marching toward York with Serinina in the front.

They didn't even slow down when they crossed into the Fawnae land. They continued on until they saw the first two border forts. Those small garrisons knew they stood no hope of stopping this army of a hundred thousand troops. This was the most massive army ever assembled on the Golden Isles. They didn't know armies of this size during the great war that threw down the Hekatin and burnt their temples. And that was one of the bloodiest wars ever fought on the Golden Isles. The small garrisons were crushed with little effort.

Serinina held her army back when they encountered the second border fort. She rode out by herself and fought the small garrison. She threw herself into battle against the small garrison of 50 riders and archers. She killed them all single handedly.

Then they ate and her army built a defensive camp for the night. She knew that York would not last long. A vast majority of each of the noble family's troops had been called by Patinea for this war. Their army was assembling to meet hers, and they would march out soon. Serinina had assembled her army and marched out first. Patinea’s army had been assembled and were ready for war. They only needed to march out. Serinina had already marched out and defeated Wenseas border forts.

Emily and Ajax approached from behind and sat down in front of Serinina and began eating with her. Ajax asked, “Serinina, milord. Is this really the life you wanted to live? Always on campaign, fighting, leading your army from place to place, camping like this?”

“No,” Serinina shook her head at her sister Emily. “It is not. When I was young, this life seemed romantic. Living under the stars, sleeping in the open like this. Camping every night and going on long military campaigns. But this is not what I want. It's a duty. We have to destroy this evil that's corrupted my homeland. I want peace and to stabilize my kingdom. I want to live in my palace, making policy and protecting my people.”

Emily laughed, “Doing a slash and burn campaign isn't going to make peace. It will turn your cities and your homeland into charred bodies and smoking ash. This is nothing but vengeance, Serinina.”

Serinina shrugged. “This campaign will be quick. My sister's army will be defeated, we will burn everything and start new. We will have a new aristocracy in place. New families. That's why I brought two hundred thousand people from Greece and Themyscira. Not only the troops to help maintain control. But their families. Greece is becoming overcrowded. York will become the new Thebes. Malnaes land in what some have started calling Wales will become new Argos. The cities will be rebuilt for Greek people. Our religion will reign here. There will be peace. And I am looking forward to it.”

Emily knew what was going on. This was going to be a brutal and bloody war.

Serinina continued. “This is not the way I want to live. But it must be done. This was also how my sister wanted to live. Patinea wanted this life of going on campaign to campaign and sleeping in the open like this. But I think once she got a real taste of this life, she no longer wanted it. But, once she got what she wanted, she abused and sidelined me. She tried to take it away from me and throw it in my face. That only angered me and made me her enemy. We could have had it together and fighting our enemies side by side. But she made me her enemy. She thought it was a good idea. And I’m going to teach her otherwise.”

The army marched at the first light. They saw the massive stone citadel that was guarding the path to York. It's enormous towers and massive stone walls grew as they approached. Serinina knew this was not going to be an easy battle. Even if Patinea had taken a majority of the garrison for her own war. The Citadel still had two thousand troops. That was enough to man the massive towers, it's catapults and ballistas to make any direct assault very costly. They still had no hope against a hundred thousand Spartan's. But they could make any frontal attack very costly. A frontal attack could cost ten thousand to twenty of her troops.

So she prepared her troops for a long siege. Serinina began preparing her long-range heavy trebuchets far out of range of the enemy towers and their catapults and ballistas. The trebuchets began launching heavy stones and iron balls into the outer walls of the Citadel. Serinina settled in for a long siege battle.

She watched her trebuchets launch their stones into a weak section of the Citadels large walls. They did very little damage upon impact. This was a massive citadel designed to withstand heavy attack and continue to protect its troops.

Then Serinina ordered some of the diggers to begin tunneling. That was the most common method of taking down a large, almost impregnable fortress. She saw the diggers start digging a large tunnel and then they started digging the tunnel deeper into the ground. That process took hours until they had finally tunneled under them and went on. It could take weeks to finally reach the walls of the enormous citadel. Serinina went down into the tunnel to inspect the progress every few hours. Progress was very slow. They were building a large tunnel for many people. And they had to keep bringing wood to support the tunnel so it would not collapse on top of them. Progress was very slow.

Meanwhile, her large trebuchets kept firing their massive stones into the weakest part of the wall. The constant firing seemed to have little effect on the massive walls. They were designed to resist and defeat the battering of the large trebuchets and catapults hammering into them. The weakest part of the walls was still over ten feet thick. It was better than the twenty feet in places that supported the towers.

Xxxxxxxx

Patinea was studying the map. Her army had been assembled and was about ready to march out. There wasn't going to be a grand celebration this time. There was really no glory to be had, and this wasn't an event to be celebrated with the grand procession of horns, shining armor flags waving, and a grand speech. This was in response to an invasion and an enemy occupation of their homeland. A foreign power had brought war to their shores and they were responding. The war had already cost the lives of thousands of innocent civilians and nobles in the great families that ruled the Isles. This wasn’t about glory or honor, Patinea had mobilized her army for their survival as a nation. This was a fight where very few thought that they could win. The worst of it all was that she was being blamed for the entire damn war.

The worst news was coming when Actonia came in with Lord Baldic Wensae. Actonia said, “The citadel guarding the path to York is under siege. Serinina has dozens of enormous trebuchets battering the citadel's walls. We have just received news that she had brought sappers to tunnel under its walls. With the battering of the walls, the hundred thousand Spartans putting the citadel under siege, and its inadequate garrison, we strongly suspect it will fall weeks before we can reach it.

More defeatism from her leaders. Patinea said gloomily, “So you are saying they are likely to take the city of York and the entire Fawnae lands.”

Lord Fawnae nodded, “I think so, and that's not the worst of it. We have been informed of massive burnings by the Spartans. They have evacuated many of the smaller towns and fields and burnt them. Serinina is employing a scorched earth campaign. They are burning everything. I heard they plan on burning York.”

“Oh, Goddess, I beg you to save us from my sister's rage. Please I beseech you,” Patinea pleaded in tears as she looked down at the map. This was her sister's rage. This was their punishment for what they did to Serinina. This was obviously going to be a campaign of no mercy. Their citadel was about to fall. When it fell, York would likely follow. They were going to burn York to the ground when it fell. It was up to them to find a way to stop it.

Patinea stood up with her crown and said, “It is time for war. It isn't a war that we wanted. It's the war that my sister brought to our shores, burning our cities, enslaving, and killing our people. We need to have hope that we can defeat her. We are outnumbered, but we have proven our soldiers are strong and capable. We can defeat this army of Spartans and save the Golden Isles. We can defeat my sister. This is why we felt it was necessary to make sure she never got the crown. She proves it with every one of our people she murders. Assemble the army and prepare to march to war!” commanded Patinea as she left her office to get suited up.

She went down to her royal armory, and her squires helped her put on her armor. Wearing this armor and holding this sword no longer felt as great as it once did. She felt something else, where before she used to feel victorious and powerful. She now felt fear.

“You know you could be marching toward your death, don't you?” A voice said as she walked into the King's personal Armory. “There is no chance for victory here. You were wrong. We are outnumbered, and our army can't counter that number with skill. The Spartans can outfight us even if we outnumbered them ten to one. They faced those odds before and won. They only lost against the Amazons at Troy but they have improved since then. We have some rebel Amazons here fighting against Serinina. It's not enough. Hippolyta, her daughter Dianna, and their small army won't be enough. You are also sending them to their death and their defection enraged Serinina.”

“Is that what your visions tell you, Actonia,” Patinea asked.

“My power has returned, and I see what happened in multiple times before they all merged. However, I can’t see the future of this. Serinina’s power is preventing my visions of this battle. We will be going in blind. However, it doesn't take a powerful seer like me to know that there is no way our army can win this battle. They outnumber us by a massive margin. The Spartans have superior skill, so we can't overcome their numbers with tactics. And they even have gods fighting against us. We will be seeing Serinina there. I have seen fragments of her personally fighting our troops with her husband, Ares. He will be there. Hades will also be there. There is no chance of victory. We had our chance for peace and you refused her.”

“Her offer would have left us little more than a vassal state under my sister's power,” Patinea said.

“Better than being destroyed and subjugated,” Actonia countered.

“I don't know. Personally, I would rather die in battle than to submit to my sister. I just couldn't bear that.” Patinea retorted.

“So this is about your pride and your anger at Serin. That's always what this was about,” Actonia accused. “You were never able to give up your childish resentment at Serin growing up the way he did and getting the love you wanted. Now you are going to sacrifice us all for it. And it will all be for nothing. It will change nothing in the end. The result will still be the same. Just more deaths on our side. Can you at least admit that how you treated her once she was a girl was wrong!”

“It was all of you who told me that I had to be harsh to force her to accept her place as a girl. If I remember right, Actonia, you were totally behind forcing her to wear dresses and live as a young woman. Now you want to say it was wrong?”

“I supported turning him into a girl,” Actonia countered. “I supported forcing him to live the life of a girl. I supported and advocated forcing him to dress as we do. It was necessary to get him to accept his new sex, and for the people to accept that their beloved prince was now a princess. As her elder sister was their King. Or they wouldn't have accepted it. But I didn't support your relentless taunting, teasing, and abuse. And you getting pregnant, then transferring it to Serinina forcing it on her, then her rape. You didn't have her protected, and you had to know that our family's personal enemies might target her. There's a lot that happened that I didn't support. What you did to her was extremely cruel. And really betrayed our sex.”

“I didn’t have her raped,” Patinea snarled in defiance. “That just happened.”

“You refused to provide her protection after you released Prett. Her rape pleased you and you used it against her,” Actonia pointed out accusingly. “And mocking her for her first period. Come on, Patinea, you were extremely cruel. Your sister's suffering brought you delight.”

“You have no idea what it was like living in his shadow when I was young,” Patinea snarled. “I knew I was stronger and would make a better King. I never got the support or love and he teased me relentlessly.”

“The way he teased you doesn't even begin to approach the level of suffering you inflicted on him,” Actonia pointed out. “If I was subjected to what you did to him, I would feel just as much rage. I would probably want to burn the country down too. Being raped, having a pregnancy forced on him, your relentless teasing after having everything he loved taken from him. It all adds up. And, as king, you had a responsibility to put all of the past aside and be a noble and kind King. You failed at that. You had a duty to train and help your sister in her new path. As sisters, you could have been allied against your family’s enemies. But you made each other enemies, and now the people are stuck in the middle. You are marching your army to your doom.”

“Then what am I supposed to do as Serinina burns York?”

“it's too late for them now. York will burn.” Actonia said. “But you could keep your army here and defend Denaerk. Make her come here and face a city defended by forty thousand of your best. Her army would be nearly broken trying to attack that. And you have your citadels.”

“Nothing we have can counter the gods that support her. I was supposed to be the vessel of a Goddess, but she doesn't seem able to help me like she once did. I feel we have been abandoned.”

“We have,” Actonia accused. “Thanks to you, Patinea.”

Xxxxxx

A triumphant smile spread across Serinina's face. She waited in anticipation. Her enormous trebuchets relentless battering had caused a small section of the top of the wall to collapse in a heap of dust and stone. But that wasn't what she was smiling about. It was about to happen. She just waited in anticipation. Then it finally happened as her trebuchets kept launching their stones at the wall.

An enormous section of the outer wall totally collapsed in on itself. Her tunnelers had done their job. A huge section of the wall was now a large pile of stone and floating dust. There was still the inner wall, but the outer wall was breached. Serinina charged in with her army into the defenders guarding the breach of their outer wall.

Serinina yelled as they charged in, “Leave none of them alive!”

Ares and his wife Serinina charged from the front. Fawnae’s army did their best to resist, but the thousand of them guarding the breach in their wall knew this was hopeless. Serinina and Ares charged into them, and it was a hopeless fight. Serinina slaughtered hundreds of them with her spear and her own hands. Her vision had turned red with bloodlust as she slaughtered them.

Not even Ares was as ruthless. He slaughtered another few hundred before Fawnae's army realized they were being defeated and retreated to the keep. They manned the inner wall and the keep. It was now time to fight for real. Serinina brought up her siege towers.

The Fawnae defenders watched in dread as Serinina’s enormous siege towers rolled forward, and their battering rams were placed next to the inner gatehouse. Ares and Serinina had already personally killed half of their army. And Serinina’s army controlled the outer walls and her archers and ballistae did their best to keep Fawnae's archers from harassing her army.

There was little threat to her massive armored siege towers as they were slowly pushed toward the inner defensive wall guarding the keep. The enemy archers poured arrows onto the siege towers to no effect. Serinina had designed them to be almost impregnable to enemy fire. The only thing that had a hope against them were the large catapults and ballistae, and most of them were taken out of action. There were a few left on the towers of the inner defensive wall but the Spartan Archers kept their fire on those towers to make sure they could not safely fire their weapons.

Serinina was in one of the leading siege towers waiting for it to approach the wall and lower its ramp. It was only a few more minutes now. Ares and Serinina waited for their moment as the tower was pushed up the hill. She heard the endless rain of arrows trying to damage the tower. Its bronze armor plate was all but invulnerable to arrow fire. The tower's heavy armor plating made sure that the enemy arrows could not puncture it. Her army was safe inside as long as a heavy catapult stone didn’t smash into the tower or a heavy ballista bolt slam into them. Serinina felt the tower slide into position. Its hooks pulled them into position. She lowered the ramp and ran out with a Spartan war cry, cutting down enemy swordsmen and pikemen by the dozens. The six large siege towers rolled into position and it was a massacre. The Fawnae knew they were defeated, and they tried to raise the white flag to no avail. There was no mercy by that point. Every single enemy defender of the keep was killed with no mercy. Serinina was in her bloodlust mode by that point. They killed the defenders and occupied the keep. The main citadel defending York had been taken. She spent another week rebuilding the damaged wall and making sure the citadel was garrisoned. Now it was time to besiege the city of York and burn it down.

She garrisoned York's citadel with four thousand of her troops. Then Serinina marched onto the city of York. Serinina guessed that this wouldn't be a long siege. Their defensive fortifications were already overrun. All they had left was their very formidable city walls and towers. Her army surrounded York and began building siege works. Then her trebuchets began launching huge stones at a point in the city walls. These walls weren't as thick or formidable as the walls guarding the Citadel. That was meant to be the main city defenses and it wasn't supposed to fall. The city was mostly defenseless when the citadel was taken.

She saw the wall start to buckle under her relentless bombardment by her trebuchets. Huge cracks began to appear on the face of the wall. It was about to collapse, and that was when she got in one of the largest siege towers and ordered her army to push them into position. The men began rolling the tower up to the wall and that was when York came out. They opened the gates and the towns commander came out waving a flag of truce. She got out and approached the commander when he said he wanted to discuss terms to save the city. He saw the Citadel fall and knew it was only a matter of time.

Serinina wouldn't accept any terms. “Your wall is about to fall. You know it. The towers will finish off the defenders. York will fall. There will be no terms Lord Fawnae. Open your gates and let us in. Or we will prolong this battle and the result will be the same. We will occupy and burn the city of York. The decision is yours.”

“Will you spare the city if we surrender,” Asked the commander hopefully.

Serinina shook her head. “No. You all watched as my life was taken from me. I intend to repay the favor. I will burn everything in Fawnae.”

He demanded in frustration, “How do you expect us to accept those terms?”

Serinina laughed cruelly, “I don’t expect you to accept it. It's just going to happen whether you accept it or not. There is no hope of resisting my army, Milord. Like my sex changing and my cruel and ambitious sister taking my crown. It's going to happen whether or not you accept it. What will happen is what will happen. I will destroy everything.”

The commander walked back into the city, wondering where Patinea's army was. Patinea had just formed and began marching out of Denaerk. They wouldn't be there for weeks. And even when they met Serinina's army, there was little hope of victory. Her army was totally outclassed by the Spartans. There really was no hope to be had here. Serinina had everything she needed to totally overrun the entire Golden Isles.

Serinina wondered why the commander of York insisted on the futile fight. But he did, so Serinina commanded her trebuchets to continue firing at the cracks in the wall. Serinina got in her siege tower and it rolled up to another section of the wall.

She felt the tower approach the wall, and its hooks launched out and grappled the edge. The hooks pulled them snug against the wall. Its ramp lowered, and they rushed into the defenders slaughtering them all.

Suddenly a huge section of the center of the wall buckled and totally collapsed into a heap of stone and dust. Her army rushed toward the center and she made sure they knew to spare the children in the city. Their army was to take the children into custody. Burn the rest.

Serinina and Ares overwhelmed the defenders and killed every one of the town's garrison. They invaded every house and took any child they saw. Then in no time, she saw smoke rising from York as an enormous fire began to spread among the dry wooden structures. York was burning. Everyone left in York was going to burn alive. Then they spread to the smaller towns and started burning them. They burnt the fields, crops, towns and the cities. The entire land of Fawnae was burning. Their children were taken to the port and were going to be resettled in Ansey or Sparta.

Xxxxxxxx

Patinea knew by now that this was a hopeless fight. As her army marched forward to meet the Spartans in Yorkshire in Fawnae territory. She knew this was not going to be like her war during the Restoration. This army was a lot larger and they were a lot more powerful than Ansey’s had ever been. They had all seen Serinina's power. They saw Hades' power when he killed Elverus and they saw Edwyn's dead body. This was about as hopeless of a fight as you can get. They were fighting gods, and she thought she had a goddess supporting her. But either that Goddess had abandoned her or Serinina was more powerful than that Goddess. Either way, the Goddess was going to be no help here. But she had to fight to preserve her country. It was her duty.

She had received news of Serinina’s cruelty. They burnt the entire city of York. It was one thing to hear about it, but it was still shocking when they approached York to see the city burnt down. Even from a distance, it was something totally horrifying. Then she saw her sister's triumphant face nearly hidden in the craw of her black cloak she often wore.

Serinina said, “Don't look so surprised. This is all your doing. None of this would have happened if you hadn't abused me. If you had just allowed me to become king. But you caused this. Now you must all pay.”

It was clear that the entire lands and holdings of Fawnae were all burnt down. This was a total scorched earth campaign. Patinea's heart wept at the total destruction before her and she finally realized what her cruelty had caused.

Patinea and her generals approached Serinina as she stood in the center of the open field overseeing the destruction of the City of York.

“So sister, does it make you proud to have killed so many people and destroyed their hopes and dreams?”

Serinina smirked in triumph and pleasure, “Absolutely. I see the look of pain on Lord Fawnae's face here. It pleases me very much. I saw him watching that day and made no move to help me at all, even if he knew I was the rightful heir. This is his penance. He gets to watch the hopes and dreams of his beloved people crushed the way mine was. I am very proud of what I have done. Are you proud, my dear cruel sister? Does what you did give you any feeling of pride?”

“It's not about pride,” Patinea tried to explain. “It's about our duty to our people as a sovereign. It's one that I think you would understand by now. Your people are all over Europe. The areas under your control. I did what I did so I could protect and help my people. It was about a duty entrusted to me by the Goddess.”

Serinina snorted rudely, “You did feel pride and a lot of personal pleasure for what you did to me. Is that why you killed our father to claim his crown from his son? Why you had me impregnated by your dark magic and let my rapist go free? While you had me humiliated continuously? The Goddess had little to do with that, it was your selfish and cruel desire to destroy me, dear sister. You are a monster ruling with monsters.”

Patinea chuckled sardonically, saying, “You call me a monster. You destroyed the entire area of Guenafer. Killing over fifty thousand people. You kill everyone in York and the surrounding towns and cities here. All are totaling up to probably near a million people. You dare call anyone else a monster?”

“I know what I did was heartless and cruel,” Serinina pointed out. “But it's all on you, you made this happen with your cruelty toward me. And you had our own father murdered. You sent him into that ambush, knowing he was likely to be killed. All so you could have the crown. You did what you did to me, and let's not forget what you did to that poor guy you call Feather. You stole all of his strength and consigned him into being a maid in the palace. Don't you try to take the high ground here, dear sister. I know what you did. There's no high ground here. We are all monsters ripping this country apart. But I am what you made me. I am your creation. You should be very proud of that.”

“I didn't have anything to do with my father's death,” Patinea protested. “That was Actonia. I had no idea what he was hunting when he went out that day.”

“You don't expect me to believe that, do you,” Serinina said harshly. “You knew, you all knew. It was all so you could become the king. You murdered our father and stole his crown from his body. You destroyed his only son so you could take his place. Don't try to fool me, you liar.” Serinina roared accusingly, pointing a finger at her. “And I have proven I am far superior to you. You should have left me in charge. These people would have still been living.”

“Everything you have done proves I am the superior leader. You have the blood of nearly a million on you right now. And it will rise. I am a better leader.”

Serinina laughed, “You can try to say that on the remains of your shattered army. Sister. You don't think you can win this, do you,” Serinina looked into Patinea's eyes.

“Yes, just like I have done up till now. I can win this.” Patinea boasted as Serinina walked away, laughing. She called, “Hades, Azazel. Are you ready?” She had a feeling.

Both replied yes as she approached her army, looking up into the sky. And then it happened. Dozens of huge griffins and hundreds of Sun Hawks appeared and descended on her army. She floated up and struck down dozens of them with her bolts.

A roiling black mist appeared over her army. It was Hades as he struck out. Hundreds of sharp projectiles flew out from his cloud, striking every creature that tried to attack from the air. They were all struck down within minutes. Azazel appeared in his dragon form eating and devouring every creature.

Patinea watched helplessly and roared in frustration as her aerial attack totally failed, just as Serinina said it would. She warned her, and then it was over. She roared in an enhanced booming voice, “I warned you, sister not to try it. It failed, and now we will exterminate the entire race of griffins and the great sun hawks. Future generations will know a world without them. These great creatures will only become things of myths and legends. Thanks to your foolishness. And now, destroy her army.”

Serinina marched forward with her husband to meet Patinea's army. Her army followed her as they clashed. Serinina and Ares did the most damage, crushing everyone they encountered. Patinea's army was amazed and horrified at Serinina's speed and strength. They had not known such powerful women, and mostly, they were raised in a very sexist and misogynistic religion, so seeing a woman march forward, killing everyone they encountered was unbelievable. It was all over very quickly. Serinina and Ares had no mercy. They slaughtered everyone. Even when they tried to lower their swords and surrender, Serinina had them all killed. She killed everyone from the lowest soldiers to the lords and generals. She only spared Patinea and had her put in chains.

“Your army is crushed, now there is no more royal army. Your crown and your throne is mine. Dear sister, you are now a slave.”

Then she turned to her army and shouted, “Now, march toward Denaerk.
It's throne is mine by right of conquest, and birthright that was stolen from me.” Serinina took Patinea's crown and placed it on her own head in full view of her army. Patinea looked up and sneered as Serinina placed the humiliating and demeaning princess tiara on her head.

“I expected to get this crown of the Denae Kings and I got the princess crown instead. I got humiliated and demeaned while you held power over me. That has been corrected, you sadistic bitch. This belongs to you, and I will have you buried in it! It will be on your head for all time, you cruel bitch!” Serinina snarled in pure hatred. Even Patinea was now afraid.

Serinina enjoyed seeing that demeaning crown on his sister's head again. “You deserve everything you are going to get.” Then she viciously slapped Patinea with such force that blood poured out of her split lip.

Her army marched away from the slaughter, and the still smoking city of York. They headed south toward the city of Denaerk.

From there, Serinina and her army marched into Denaerk with Patinea as prisoner. It was a rough march for Patinea trying to keep up with them, wearing heavy iron chains. There was no mercy on her. Any time she faltered or fell back, Patinea received a lash from a whip or a pole from Serinina. Serinina was showing a real sadistic streak now. Her sister was really enjoying this more than she should.

Patinea knew this was coming. She knew Serinina was going to reclaim the throne, and when she did, Patinea was going to receive no mercy. She was going to be beaten and treated as a common criminal under Serinina's sadistic pleasure. It was just about as much pleasure as Patinea received seeing her arrogant sexist brother live the life women were consigned to live.

As for Serinina, this was one of the moments she had been waiting years for. Serinina waited for years to see her sister deposed and in chains as the traitor she was. Serinina didn't want Patinea to die. There were much worse things than dying, and Patinea was going to experience them all, just as she experienced the horror. What Patinea did to her was a total horror, and Patinea was going to pay for it.

She didn't want to have to put Denaerk under siege and destroy its walls. They approached the walls, and the gates were opened. The guards knew what was going on and let the Spartans in, Serinina marched in with her Spartan army. Her army quickly took possession of the city. They set up patrols and searching for the traitors that betrayed her as Serinina. Her personal guard marched into the palace with Patinea in chains. She had a brief thought to burn it, but she needed the palace to establish her control. Her hundred thousand Spartans helped, but this pretty much made it official.

She went into the throne room, it was now her throne. This had been the moment that she had been waiting years for. The moment when she claimed the crown of her homeland and the throne that was stolen from her. Serinina turned and sat on her throne for the first time. It was all finally hers. She turned to Ajax and Emily and gave her first order.

“Ajax, take fifty thousand of the troops and march west toward the Malnae lands and occupy them. Then use the list and find any members of the Malnae family and bring them here. They are the final area we need.”

“Emily, take the army out and occupy the surrounding towns and cities. Make sure they are all loyal and find the remaining members of the Wensae's, Onsey's, Fawnae's, and Malnae's. Bring all of the families that are seeking shelter. Denaerk has fallen to me, and I am the law now. Everyone who betrayed me will die. Every single member of those families is now an enemy of the kingdom. All of them are traitors of the crown. Find them, and I will deal with them all,” Said Serinina in a majestic and cruel voice. She was sitting on her throne and wearing her royal crown of Danae.

Patinea was kneeling beside the throne wearing her heavy irons and was horrified at Serinina’s first royal command. Not that it was a surprise at all. She heard of the slaughters in Onsey and the Wensae. She knew this was coming when Serinina established her control, and there was no avoiding her revenge.

“So your first royal command as our King is to order general roundups. Do you realize there will be thousands? All of the remaining members of the main line of the Wensaes and Onseys that didn't make it out. In addition to the main and secondary and removed members of the Fawnaes and Malnaes. You just ordered them all to be taken and brought before you, sister. You are turning out to be a very great king.” Said Patinea sarcastically.

Serinina laughed, “This is not intended to be merciful in any way. It is not noble. I intend nothing short of revenge against everyone who sidelined, ignored, or abused me. I intend to deliver a message that they made a very costly error, dearest sister. It will be the last error of their entire family. They should have sided with me and helped me force you out. They didn’t, and now they must pay for their treason. I was the rightful heir, not you.” Serinina shouted. “You should have never claimed my crown. This will all be on you for what you did.”

“If I had not claimed the crown,” Patinea nearly snarled, “I would have ended up as Rhoontick's wife bearing his children and never doing anything I dreamed of. I would have been consigned to be his wife. I had to stop that life.”

Serinina smiled a horrifying evil wicked smile that sent ice shards down her spine. “You will wish you were his loving wife after what I have in mind for you, dearest sister. Being that man's wife will seem like a dream. I have a much, much worse fate in mind for you now as a traitor to the crown. There's a brothel waiting for you.” She laughed a horrifying cruel laugh as Serinina began removing Patinea's stolen strength. She felt her body weaken. Her strength diminished to that of a usual girl her age. She slumped in defeat.

Her dungeons were filling with the traitors who turned their backs on her and it wasn't even close to being finished. They had rounded up hundreds of traitors, and they had many hundreds more to round up from the Noble families.

Serinina received news that another hundred thousand families had landed from Sparta and were going to make a life here. And now she had the leadership of the Hekatin standing before her. Falconette looked at her with a sneer. “So you got everything you wanted, Serinina. You are again wearing a crown, you are sitting on your father's throne. It's what you have been fighting for since that day, and now it's here. You must be so proud. You shot down your dear sister, put her in chains, and forcing her to service military men at a local brothel. Take her to the dungeon.”

“The Hekatin are still here.” Serinina pointed out. “Not that they deserve to exist after what they did to an innocent, loving boy so long ago. But you are still here with your witches. Women have more rights under me than they did under the Maxis. As for my sister, she deserves it after what she did to me. She wanted to make me pay for living as a boy. She wanted me to experience all of the hardships women live through. She experienced none of it, it's about time she experiences it. Just like I did. I was raped, abused, and humiliated as a woman. While she held all of the power.”

Actonia got Falconette's attention and mentioned, “Remember to be nice. She has a set of orders already in place. All she has to do is sign them to make them official. Her royal order sixty-six to send the army out to round us all up and destroy us once and for all time. She wants to sign her royal orders to declare us all enemies of the crown and exterminate us. I have seen futures where she gladly sends her army after us. She will gladly sign those orders. Tread very carefully with her Falconette. Our lives now depend on it.”

Falconette looked up more submissively and asked, “So what have you called us here for?”

“I want to discuss peace with our religions. My idiot sister tried to make peace with the Church of Maxis. It didn't work well, but we mostly knew they would never accept a girl king. They would fight it and keep trying to kill her. Maybe I’m an idiot for thinking the Hekatin would ever accept a former boy follower of the Church of Maxis as their King, but I want to discuss peace between our two religions. Professor Falconette, will you accept me as your King?”

She shrugged. “You are a woman now, and you are a very devoted follower of a feminist religion and a strong warrior Goddess.” Falconette shrugged. “And I was upset that you rededicated the main temple of Actonia that your sister was having built. You rededicated it to your Goddess Athena, and you are teaching our children in the ways of Athena. I really don't have much problem with it at all. It's way better than Maxis. I am willing to discuss peace if you will have it.”

It was unsaid that it was far better than instituting royal order sixty-six.

“Good,” Serinina said. “Then let's discuss peace.”

They discussed and agreed to the particulars of a peace between their two religions, and Falconette had to make many humiliating concessions to the new order. But in the end, peace was signed between them. They just had to agree that the religion of Athena was the ruling religion of the Kingdom.

Falconette left humiliated. A new group was coming soon. The families of all that had betrayed Serinina.

Soon, her chamber was filled with thousands of people led there in chains. The cries of the condemned.

She spoke out loud, “You all ignored what my sister did to me while she ruled. You stood behind her while she destroyed my life and had me abused. I was raped, impregnated and humiliated beyond all reason and you stuck with her. That will have a cost. You are all to be executed. Except for your innocent children who will be adopted by loyal families to my regime. Your old order is gone. The New Order now reigns. I am the New Order.”

They were all led out to the courtyard where the executioner was waiting with his massive ax. A lot of heads were about to roll.

Serinina walked down to the prison level after dealing with the traitors and their children. That felt very good. She went to face her sister one last time.

She sat in her cell stripped of her royal garments. Now wearing a dirty gray lose fitting women’s prison outfit. Her legs were bound by heavy shackles. She looked up in angry defiance. “I never did this to you, not that the thought didn’t cross my mind but even I wasn’t that cruel.”

“That’s because you knew as a little teenage girl, I was little threat to your rule. At least until I started learning witchcraft. Then by the time you realized the threat it was too late. I was too strong to imprison. Don’t try to say you don’t deserve this my dearest sister. After what you did to me. It was a horror. I was raped because of you.” Serinina yelled in rage.

Serinina’s anger shook the very foundation of the palace. She struggled to get her anger under control. Patinea said, “You got everything you desired, and it looks like you win. I lose once again to you and I will get nothing but suffering and sadness. So, have you come to gloat?”

Serinina shook her head with a smirk struggling to get her anger under control. This was going to be something good. “I have come to give you an offer of everything you ever desired. I will make you a leader of a great empire on the eve of a great and massive war. You will get to lead them and fight to your hearts content. If you are willing to accept it, I will grant it to you. You can’t lead here. That’s my duty, but there are other nations that want a great leader. So, do you accept it?”

“Why would you do this for me?” Patinea asked in confusion.

“Because I really love you. I am angry at what you did, but I always loved you and I even told you that after what you did. You did make a good king. You were just very cruel to me. I think you hate me, but I always loved you. I just have a lot of suffering to recover from, but you were my dear sister. Even if you hated me with an uncontrollable rage. That hatred was wrong. The things I said were words said by an immature teenager. You weren’t that nice either.”

“I accept, but I suspect it’s a trick.” Said Patinea.

Serinina walked through the cells bars and embraced Patinea. Then there was a blinding light and everything shifted around them. Suddenly they seemed to be standing in some sort of strange and huge palace throne room. It was like nothing she had ever seen before. She was wearing some very strange scarlet royal robes. She was surrounded by adminsitrators.

Serinina spoke, “No one can see me. The year is 1893. You are the elder sister and had just secured the backing of the priests of the church and many of the nobles. They now support you against your younger brother Nicholai. He has just found out and that’s him coming in to confront you. Be aware.”

Nicholai rushed in with a red face pointing a finger, “Sister Patinea, how could you do this to me?”

She tried to look innocent but then said, “Why should you rule just because you are the eldest boy. I am older and would make a better ruler. I am sorry Nicholai.” Her accent and her language was very different and turned to look at Serinina.

“You speak a different language but you know it. That was a good response. And also, some of this empire’s greatest emperors were female.”

Nicholai’s features softened. Then he said, “That’s okay. I love you my sister. But my problem is that you were going to spring them on me in a few hours. I never wanted to be the emperor. It was thrust on me by our father Alexander. I never wanted it. I don’t think I will be very good at it. Our greatest leaders were women. Ekaterina, Katherine, Victoria, they were our greatest and most beloved Empresses. Just in the past few hundred years, the priests got their head stuck in their ass with incompetent male leaders. Had I known you wanted this, I would have gladly stepped aside for you. I had no idea, and then you pull this humiliating coup on me. You never needed to. But now we have a problem with me. I am afraid.”

“I won’t have you hurt or imprisoned.” Patinea responded.

Nicholia relaxed, “Good, but being our father’s chosen heir will pose a problem. You must exile me. I will go to New York.”

“I accept that,” Patinea responded. Then they discussed the matter for a few more minutes. Then she started discussing the specifics for her upcoming surprise coronation as the Tzarina.

Then she waited until everything was set and made her grand entrance into the throne room. The nations flags were hoisted. The finely dressed priests were awaiting as the music blared. She swaggered into the throne room as the head priest announced as she sat down holding the scepter. “I name Patinea, Tzarina of all Russia. Tzarina of Siberia. Tzarina of Lithuania. Tzarina of Estonia. Tzarina of Poland.” And he read off all of the areas she controlled. She wondered how fucking massive this empire really was. It just went on and on.

Then Serinina appeared behind her throne and whispered. “Just beware. There is a great war coming in around twenty years and your empire is very unprepared. Years of mismanagement and a refusal to enact any modernization is going to cost you. But you have twenty years until 1914. But if things continue as they are, it won’t be good in any way. And be very wary of a man named Vladimir Lenin. Then Serinina vanished and went back to her own time.

Just then, Ajax and a few of his people approached the throne. “My Lord, I fear we have been betrayed. You told us that the Hekatin were going to be executed. But you let them live at Ansey and now you sign a formal peace. You told us that the children of the nobles were going to become our servants. But you let them all be adopted by loving parents. You lied to us!”

Serinina confronts those that are trying to undermine her as she establishes her rule over her homeland into the 20th century

Serinina knew this was coming. Sooner or later someone in her administration would find out her true orders concerning the children of the nobles and the peace with the Hekatin. She knew that there were members in her army that would not be happy with her deception.

Ajax sneered, “You have deceived us.”

“Yes,” replied Serinina. “How can you be against what I did, Ajax? Wasn’t it you who agreed with me dissolving the Helot system and making them free citizens of Greece?”

“Yes,” Ajax agreed. “If you remember, not long ago I wanted to free them myself and I was surprised and disgusted when you announced that those kids had no future. I am happy to learn otherwise. I just wish you were honest with us. There are others in the army that aren’t too happy about this.”

Serinina looked hard. Her eyes narrowed and then she spoke, “Assemble the army and the commanders so I can speak to them. I want to talk to them in two hours.”

Ajax agreed and left.

“Can you believe this?” She snarled in anger. “I make sure a few children are free to live their lives successfully and many people are upset.”

Ares materialized in the room and assured his wife, “We support you Serinina. Even my sister will support you in this. Athena loves what you have done in her name. Not the burning of cities and killing but she likes how you were so successful in her name. You really have nothing to worry about. It’s about time to address your people.”

Serinina donned her shimmering armor made by Ares and Zeus and went out to meet her army. She could tell that some of them were upset at being misled.

She amplified her voice and spoke, “I am sorry for misleading many of you,” she apologized, “but I knew that many of you were still stuck to the Helot system and were looking forward to having some of these citizens serving you. I knew you would oppose what I intended. I should have been honest. The Helot system was dissolved. It was unjust and cruel. It would be an abomination to condemn the children of the nobles for what their parents did. I won’t allow it.”

Some were still disappointed until Ares and his sister Athena stood proudly in front. Athena spoke, “We support Serinina and I love her. My brother is her husband. The Helot system id dead. If any of you oppose Serinina then you oppose us. All of you who oppose her step forward and face our wrath!”

That pretty much solved that. None of them wanted to be seen opposing Athena.

Xxxxxx

Serinina had known that she was pregnant for over a month now. She had to finish this campaign and get everything settled. But it was here and it would not wait. When she had not gotten her period,she knew. Ares was happy and informed her that she would have a human baby since her body was human, but the baby would have some very enhanced powers. Giving birth would be messy and painful for her.

Serinina had already begun to experience her morning sickness and the rushings to the pot. She knew it was time to accept it and slow down. She knew that she needed help and called her sister Emily and Cassandra to inform them.

To Serinina's annoyance, her sister and Cassandra entered her chamber as she was recovering from another bout of morning sickness. With the two women, she saw her Mother Aanya and Actonia. Ares was behind them and Actonia was smiling.

But Actonia approached first and demanded, “Where is Patinea? What have you done with her?”

It made little difference. They would be long dead before she encountered Patinea again. “There is a new order in place. Patinea was immaterial so what difference does it make Actonia? Can't you see what happened to her?”

“Not with you nullifying my abilities.” Actonia shot back. “I can't see, but she wasn't executed.”

“I had her secretly executed. She is gone Actonia and you have to accept that or you will be visiting the chopping block. Now leave. I don’t need you to advise me. I don’t trust you. You should be thankful for the peace between our religions. That can always change!” Serinina threatened.

Actonia got the hint and left. But she didn’t believe that Patinea was executed.

She glared at her mother and demanded, “What are you doing here? You aren’t my mother, Aanya.”

That hurt Aanya’s motherly heart and she looked sadly at Serinina. “I was your mother for years. How can you be so cruel Nina?”

“You had a boy named Serin. You acted as if you loved him all of those years. The only daughter you have is the one you loved and sided with all of those years. You destroyed and killed your son. He no longer exists. You didn't have Serinina. You are not my mother. My mother was Penthesilea. She was the one that loved me, and helped me learn to accept being female. She made me strong and helped me when all you wanted was for Patinea to rule and be strong. You wanted to keep me weak and under control. You weren't my mother. You hated Serin and you hated me. You are not welcome here. I only want those that really love me here to help me during my pregnancy. You may leave.”

Aanya wanted to cry as she turned and walked out. She had had a feeling that Serinina would totally reject her. It made her sad but she had known that Serinina had become increasingly heartless and cruel. This was nothing like the kind and loving boy she had raised. She could not blame Serinina. This was all Patinea's doing and she created the woman Serinina was now. She felt like she had lost her whole family. First, her husband was murdered. Then Patinea rejected her after her coronation so she wouldn’t appear weak by needing her mother. She was alienated by Patinea and that hurt. Then Serinina totally rejected her after learning that she was on Patinea's side during her coup and her coronation. She lost all of her children and she blamed Patinea. She knew much of it was her own doing. She should never have agreed to transform her son. It was a huge mistake.

Now that the unwanted people had left her room, her friends and her husband were what was left. “I suspect that you already know, but I am pregnant and I will need your help to deal with this. As many of you know, I was raised as a boy.”

Ares embraces his wife and kisses her.

Xxxxxxx

Nicholai sat in his old office reminiscing about the past. He remembered his ship sailing into Ellis island looking at the very ironic message under the Statue of Liberty about bringing in the tired huddled masses. He was an exiled noble, and it was about as far from the huddled masses as possible. He wondered if he was even going to be accepted. He tried to make a new identity to hide his nobility but it didn’t work. Many Russians were fleeing to the United States to make a new home and he was recognized. Of course, he was the crown prince and supposed to be the future Tzar. How could his fellow Russians not notice him? But, he was accepted by the port authorities and immigration and let in. He worked at it and eventually was granted citizenship. He ran his own small business and worked as a teacher.

He had kept in contact with his sister during his exile. His eldest sister Patinea kept him updated on her activities as the Tzarina. Patinea occasionally made state visits to the United States at times and he made sure to be there and talk with her. He held no hostility over her seizing the crown at all. It was actually a great relief to him. He dreaded his coronation and hated what could have been thrust on him so soon. He knew his reign would be a disaster. That was made clear during Patinea’s coronation as the new Tzarina. She made some key changes to the event and made sure there was enough beer and food for everyone. He would not have had enough beer available for everyone there and that could have been a disaster. It may have resulted in much anger and a stampede that killed thousands. That wouldn’t be a good way to start a reign at all. By making sure there was enough beer and food for everyone Patinea’s coronation resulted in a very successful event. Nicholai couldn't have been happier that his country would be led by a very competent Tzarina. He was proud of his sister.

Patinea kept writing to him about her frustration with the state of her country. She spent the first six months of her reign educating herself about the modern world. That was curious to Nicholai since she had lived in this world with him all their life. But she traveled to the United States and even went to the Golden Isles to learn about industrialization and the power of the modern world. She learned much about it and was ready to begin her big campaign to fully industrialize her country.

She also resolved to educate herself about the country's religion. Patinea found it very odd that almost everyone in her country, even the women were very devout members of the orthodox church and followed the priests. The priests were hated in her old country. They couldn’t wait to destroy the priests and overthrow that religion in the Golden Isles. But the Russians loved the church and were devout in this male-dominated religion. She educated herself about the Orthodox church and its faith. There was no way to overthrow it or even consider trying to institute a religion of the Goddess here. She was forced to accept the orthodox faith and converted to the church. Nicholai was very confused about what all of that meant.

Patinea was very frustrated that much of the country seemed stuck in the eighteenth century going into the twentieth century. Patinea threw herself into modernizing Russia as quickly as she could. She planned out new mines to ensure there was enough steel and began constructing new enormous factories in her largest cities. She had hundreds of them constructed across the country. It was a painful transition for the country and she did her best to make it as smooth as possible. She made sure there were enough people for the factories and that they would be well paid and provided for. She succeeded in little over a decade and several of her largest cities were full of massive factories making automobiles, modern guns and planes. Her shipyards were turning out huge dreadnoughts to rival the Golden Isles Empire.

The grand campaign was on its way around 1905 when the war hit them. The Japanese Empire attacked an outdated Russian fleet at Tsushima. It was a disaster for Russia. The attack was a total defeat. The ships were outdated but they were still powerful warships with large long-range guns. Patinea wrote to him about the crushing defeat by the Japanese Imperial Fleet and talked about how it reminded her of her defeat by her sister Serinina at Trafalgar years ago. That really confused Nicholai too, but he accepted it. That defeat taught Patinea a few important lessons. Her ships shouldn’t have been defeated so easily, but the Japanese Naval training was superior. She resolved to upgrade her navy and new large drydocks were built, and new classes of ships were being constructed. She realized that her seamen needed to be well trained on her ships for them to do any good. This would not happen again. The Golden Isles, Germany, Austria, and even the United States were building new classes of very powerful ships. Russia needed to join them or be left behind.

Russia was very prepared when the great war hit the world. It was almost as if Patinea saw it coming. Some damn fool thing in the Balkans started the war. A Serbian terrorist group assassinated the Austrian Arch Duke in Sarajevo. The Austrians clamored for war against Serbia. They mobilized their army and sent the Serbians an ultimatum which the Serbians promptly refused. Austrians went to war followed by Russia who was allied with the Serbians. Then the Golden Isles mobilized and even the United States entered the war.

That war was long and bloody. The Golden Isles against the Russians seem to be a very personal war to the two sovereigns. The brutality of that war was shocking. And the Golden Isles were especially brutal. They instituted the first use of gas on the Austrian and Russian trenches. Thousands were killed in the gas attacks. Serinina seemed to reserve her most deadly weapons against the Russians and their trenches barely survived. Hundreds of thousands of Russians were killed in that war. Nicholai didn’t understand it. But their armies seemed to be very equal this time and the lines stagnated into trenches. Russia barely held its own against the Europeans. But Patinea sensed trouble in her own nation by then. Many people were very upset at the enormous cost of the war and were considering rebellion. Russia descended into a bloody civil war during which Patinea often went to the front lines to rally her troops.

The Bolsheviks didn’t stand a chance this time around. The war took years and nearly ripped the country apart. Millions died in the war but in the end, Patinea’s Imperial forces won and destroyed the Bolsheviks. Lenin was publicly executed and they were destroyed.

Patinea’s letters to him seemed very curious during the great war. She seemed very surprised that they could campaign in the winter months. But in some places, there was only the winter months. She was shocked that they could conduct campaigns in the subzero weather and the snow. She seemed used to waiting until the spring like Europeans usually did. Russians preferred the winter and were always prepared for it. She learned to conduct military operations in the snow and conduct their war against the Bolsheviks.

Lenin and Trotsky frustrated her, those two were a good team but Patinea was very intelligent and kept her army together and their mobilization and industrialization in the years before the great war and her leadership ensured that they survived the civil war and finally defeated the Bolsheviks.

Once that chaos was solved, the two great sovereigns of the world gathered to find a way to avoid war in the future. To Nicholai’s surprise, it seemed that the two great sovereigns really loved each other. Empress Serinina really loved his sister the Tzarina Patinea. They had a great conference to discuss ways to avoid their empires going to war in the future. They resolved it by both punishing the Austrians for bringing their two empires into war. They both agreed to occupy and take a piece of Austria. Their Kaiser Wilhelm was surprised at the result. Both mighty empires going after his realm was horrifying but he was helpless. Since that measure didn’t entirely solve any future issues, they both agreed to personally meet if any future issues arrived that could cause them to go to war.

The United States’ President Wilson tried to intervene and form some hair-brained council he called the League of Nations. Patinea and Serinina both rejected it out of hand and told the United States to butt out of European affairs.

xxxxxx

Serinina had just returned from another bout of her morning sickness and was cleaning herself when there was a knock at her door. She went to open the door to see a young woman she had not seen before. The young woman was stunning. Her makeup was flawless and she was wearing a light blue gown with the laces on the sides. She was a little small in the chest but some women were like that.

Serinina felt a little weak now. She looked into the strange young woman's face trying to figure out who had come to visit her. The young woman said acidly, “You really got your revenge against me for choosing Patinea, didn’t you milord. I am sorry for that, but I was helpless against her power and when it wasn’t in effect, she was the King and my Lord that I was afraid to disappoint. You of all people know how ruthless and uncaring she could be when she was angry. But you have proven you can be even more ruthless to those who betrayed you.”

“Asyrn,” Serinina said in disbelief looking at the stunning young woman standing in front of her. How could this girl have possibly been Asyrn, a boy?

He looked embarrassed. “Yes, it's me Asyrn. I am still biologically male. I have learned many ways to hide that so I can appear as naturally female as my heart desires. That's all thanks to your curse. I understand your intention was to hurt Patinea and it worked wonders. She was so hurt and disgusted by my change that it crushed the love she had for me. I couldn’t be happier. But she forbade the Hekatin to give me the blessing I so desire.”

Serinina smiled, “I will see to it that they give you the blessing.”

Asyrn leaped into Serinina's arms and gave her a big hug. “How I have suffered desiring to be female above everything else. And not able to. Unlike you who were cruelly made female against your wishes but your desires and mind were still male. You have suffered far more.”

“Yes, I have,” Serinina said bitterly. “It was a struggle but I finally was able to find peace with this body. I have been able to reform my image and my mind to make peace with my body. It was an epic struggle. I have learned how to reform people's minds like I did for you. I had no desire to inflict suffering on you. I could have ‘blessed’ you but Patinea may have just had her witches reverse it. Unless I made it so strong that they couldn’t. But that would have hurt you. Making you desire to be female was perfect. You could reform your image and your body, and Patinea would be helpless to prevent your desires unless she wanted to hurt you. All she could do was watch the increasing feminization of the man she loved. It was so sweet.”

“She caught me and she upset me,” Asyrn admitted. “Saying what I was doing was demeaning myself. What's so demeaning about being a woman? She thinks so since that's how she was raised to look up to in a male culture and their desires. She wanted to be male and still sees males as above females despite some of her rulings that inheritance can only go to females. It was good you changed that. Only your Spartans were burning people out and claiming the land for themselves. I don’t feel demeaned at all. I can see how you did and that was their intention. I also don’t feel angry at you for doing this to me. I am grateful. I want to be changed into a female.”

Serinina smiled, “I will make sure you become the prettiest female you can be. You are already so beautiful that any man would be happy with you.”

Asyrn blushed and smiled sweetly. Then he asked, “My Lord, Serinina. Are you still angry at being changed?”

“Yes,” Serinina said harshly. “Unlike you, I never had the desire to be female. It was a crushing violation and humiliation that almost destroyed my will to live. It made me wish to die and I actually made plans and tried to carry them out to relieve me of the pain my life had become under my sister. It wasn't done to help me in any way. They made me female to demean and destroy me so my sister could seize my crown. If they wanted to help me learn the lesson of how they lived under the Church of Maxis. I would have been happier. But they didn't want me to learn anything. They just wanted me to suffer so I am returning the favor. Their religion will be destroyed under my Goddess Athena and my husband Aries. I am just waiting for them to make a mistake so I can implement Edict sixty six.”

Serinina gave Asyrn a wicked icy smile that sent shivers down his spine. Then Serinina stood up and rushed into the washroom again.

Xxxxxx

Aanya was nearly in tears as she sat in her bedroom totally depressed. She had lost her entire family. Her two children seemed to hate her now. They both felt totally betrayed by her actions. Her eldest daughter totally rejected her after she gained the crown. She did not want to appear weak relying on her mother to rule. Patinea pushed her aside and ignored her, even rejecting simple displays of affection from her mother. It left her feeling rejected and cold.

But that doesn't even approach the feelings of her son/daughter Serinina. Serinina's reaction wasn’t totally unexpected. She saw it coming before the transformation. She knew her son Serin and how he would feel about it all. Everyone rejected her warnings beforehand and they pushed her to go through with it. It was the will of the Goddess and she knew things had to change. Aanya wanted things to change for women.

But she knew Serin would refuse to understand and feel nothing but cheated and betrayed by his own family. She was right. She saw his hatred after the transformation when he refused to speak to her, after realizing she was behind the transformation and was on Patinea's side. From that moment on, Serin would have nothing to do with her. He totally rejected her as a mother or anything to him. It crushed her motherly heart, but she couldn't blame him. Even Patinea was surprised by the level of hatred from her brother when he threatened her life a week after the transformation. He felt so cheated from the crown and swore to regain it no matter what he had to do. It was all he could talk about from that moment on. It became an all-consuming obsession to regain his birthright. His hatred only grew. She knew he was on the right path when he left for the Amazons. She knew that he had gained the favor of another goddess and then she married a god.

Aanya was horrified by the level of Serinina's wrath when he cut a path of blood and ash from one end of Europe to the other. She united much of Europe under her iron fist in ways Patinea wished she could. Then Serinina invaded the Golden Isles and her wrath upon the people of her homeland was vicious. She exterminated all of the noble families. Every single member of the five noble families was executed one by one. Thousands were killed daily. From the leading heads of the families on down. Lord Baldic Wensae was beheaded in front of Patinea. He was her love and one of the first to go to her side. Killing that man brought much delight to Serinina. She had the Malnaes executed. Even Nemeria was beheaded by the executioner. Serinina enjoyed watching that. Nemeria, lady Nemeria her mother and her father. Her siblings were all executed. It brought a lot of joy to Serinina to watch the extermination of the Malnaes. She held Nemerias head in her hands and thought of their relationship. Her mistake was wanting to keep Serinina as a woman and not wanting her to be restored. That was the time when she would have given almost anything to become a man again. Then Nemeria’s mistake was proposing, and wanting to be her husband in the marriage. It would have been fine but she wanted a more traditional husband and wife marriage where he took her name, and she ruled as a man. That was completely unacceptable. Serinina could have taken the Malnae name. Her own family failed her. But in the age of the goddess being restored to the land, and female inheritance and rule of women restored under the goddess. Serinina as the wife should have ruled over her husband. Nemeria should have accepted a submissive position under the wife and mother. But she refused that, so Serinina couldn't accept the marriage and called it all off. And she had aspirations to take control of the Malnae family and use them to combat her sisters rule and claim the crown as a Malnae. And with only Patinea and Aanya left, that family would be dissolved and the Malnae’s claim the Denae lands and holdings. That would have been a great punishment for Aanya to watch her family get dissolved and lose their lands. But it never happened. All of the Wensaes then the Fawnaes and Malnaes to the Denaes royal family. Every member of those families was executed. Serinina took so much pleasure in ordering those families extermination. They no longer existed on the Golden Isles. She exterminated the hekatin and left fields and towns a pile of smoking ash and charred bodies. Even Aanya who knew the level of Serinina's rage was horrified by what she had done here. Nothing would ever be the same. But Serinina regained her crown and reigned as the queen. Patinea was dead for all she knew. Her homeland was a pile of smoking ash. What was left of the witches were cowering in terror under the degrading peace treaty Serinina forced them into. She knew the peace would not last. The peace was a humiliating submission that would eventually render them out as irrelevant, and they would eventually be phased out of existence under this peace. The Hekatin would fight it and that was exactly what Serinina was counting on. That was going to be a mistake that would give Serinina the excuse she needed to totally exterminate the rest of the Hekatin for all time.

Serinina's wrath was horrible. And as a mother, she knew that even after getting everything she ever wanted, Serinina was still not happy. She still felt empty. Serinina's last words to her mother let her know that Serinina felt Aanya must have hated her son. She was pregnant with Ares child, and Aanya was forbidden to ever see her grandchild. That was the most crushing punishment of all. Aanya felt so rejected, alone and depressed. This was the most depressed she had ever felt. She knew nothing would ever be the same. The culture of the Golden Isles was being transformed. The old families were wiped out. The old culture and the religion were being transformed into something very ugly under these new gods. An incredibly militaristic new society was taking shape in the Golden Isles. The warriors and the military would rule. This was going to be a very powerful empire. And all of it was under Serinina's iron fist. Aanya could do nothing but watch the horror unfold.

Xxxxxx

After the great war between the Golden Isles and the Russian Empire, an uneasy peace settled between the two great empires of the world. Serinina threw herself into guiding a new weapons project and dumping much of the empire's wealth into it. About ten years after the civil war with the Bolsheviks, she finished the project. Then Serinina called all of the other great heads of state to witness the new power of her regime. This was mainly a way to intimidate her sister Patinea. She figured it would work wonders.

Patinea was surprised to get an invitation to witness a demonstration in the Golden Isles. She was reluctant to accept anything from Serinina. Serinina's brutality during the great war of 1914 and the way her empire totally slaughtered entire Russian divisions and her use of gas on the troops in the Russian trenches horrified her. The sadistic brutality of the Golden Isles during the war was shocking and horrifying. Patinea was enraged. Only her armored divisions held the troops of the Golden Isles back. That war introduced the world to a new level of brutality. But even that did not match the brutality of the Civil War. Trotsky's brutality made Serinina's look kind by comparison.

But Patinea accepted. Whatever demonstration of a new weapon that her sister possessed was an important development which she would be wise to witness. It would have an impact on them either way. So Patinea made the arrangements to fly to the Golden Isles and witness this demonstration. It was January and with her dignitaries in toll they boarded a large four-engine aircraft from their capital in St. Petersburg. They flew from there to the City of Denaerk in the Golden Isles. She thought it would feel very nostalgic and almost like visiting home.

It was anything but that. Then Patinea did a palm face and almost kicked herself. What in hell did she expect, the medieval walled city guarded by enormous castles and man at arms? She faced the Empire of the Golden Isles and saw their army. They were dressed in green, had modern arms and even armored vehicles. They had a very powerful air force and bombs. Modern artillery and dreadnoughts bombarded their coastline. Their army had modern artillery that bombarded and lobbed gas at her troops. She should have expected to see a modern city with numerous smokestacks belching black smoke into the air. This was a modern industrialized city. It looked nothing like the Denaerk she left. Patinea felt sad.

Her large state aircraft leveled out to land at a large military airbase outside of Denaerk. She felt the large wheels hit the pavement and they slowed. The doors opened and she exited with her guards and diplomats and generals.

She saw Serinina there wearing a royal gown of an empress, and the crown she wore in the sixth century. Her husband was beside her and her generals. Patinea swaggered up to her still little sister and greeted her in Russian.

Oddly, Serinina returned her greeting in the old language they learned in the Golden Isles of the sixth century. The language didn’t change one bit and she half expected the language to evolve to what was spoken in the United States. But they still spoke a very early dialect of English. Serinina refused to allow the language to evolve. Some of her generals also spoke ancient Greek along with early English.

Patinea struggled to remember her old language and said to Serinina, “Praise the Goddess. This city has really changed since the last time I was here.”

“Cities change in thirteen hundred years, dear sister.” Serinina shot back sardonically. “I know you aren't that old now. But your cities have radically changed since the sixth century. I should have sent you back during the Mongol invasion. But I sent you back on the eve of the February and October revolution to see if you would survive or suffer the fate of the Romanov's in the other time. I should have known you were far more competent than your other brother Nicholai. You're all alive. The Bolsheviks are dead. Praise Athena.”

“He took it far better than you did. He said it was a great relief. He didn’t want to rule. He was happy that I took the crown,” replied Patinea.

“That crown looks far better on you than mine did. I was competent. I wanted to rule,” Serinina said harshly. “And unlike what you did to Nicholai. You kept me there, imprisoned me, and humiliated me beyond anything. Imagine if you entrapped Nicholai and turned him into a girl to be mocked and humiliated. You know you could have. Then I’m sure he would feel much like I did.”

“If I did that, I don’t think it would have gone well with the other nobles and members of my family. The church wouldn’t have supported me then. Unlike the revolution of the Golden Isles. This one wasn’t for some feminist goddess that saw being changed as an elevation and a great blessing,” Patinea said.

“As Tzarina, you can do anything you want,” Serinina replied. “Ekaterina murdered her husband and had another boy imprisoned for his entire life. He lived in a prison since he was a little boy. I think he was Ivan the sixth. If that can be done. I’m sure you could have used some of your power to transform Nicholai and it would have been totally accepted.” Serinina smiled.

Patinea was troubled that her sister seemed all too eager to see another boy transformed like he was. She was very troubled.

“Well, the other countries are almost ready. They are here and going to the demonstration site. It's time for us to go. It will be amazing.” Serinina gave a very dark evil grin that sent shards of ice rushing down her back. It gave Patinea a very bad feeling. Whatever Serinina had planned. It was going to be horrible. That grin was nothing good. Her little sister was planning something evil.

The trip to the demonstration site was a long one. They traveled north to one of the small isles above what was once Anseys Isles. There was a chain of small islands above Anseys. It was now called Emily's Isle.

She saw Roosevelt sat there in his wheelchair with and his generals and dignataries sitting in a row of seats next to the beach. Patinea saw some of the other smaller countries in South America there. Generals from the Golden Isles were alsothere. Patinea and her people took their seats. She felt nothing but dread here. Total fear clutched at her heart.

Patinea looked behind them and saw large rocket launchers ready to fire behind them. And these weren't like the small launchers from her country like the Katyusha launchers. These were massive launchers. These missiles looked like long-range ballistic missiles.

Serinina stood in front of the group holding the hand of her husband. Then she spoke to the assembled guests. “Welcome honored dignitaries and heads of state. I am happy to hold this demonstration for you. As you can see behind you, those are missile launchers. They are going to fire the biggest missiles that have ever been built. I named them after my husband. The Ares two. These are the second generation of Ares missiles with a range of about ten thousand miles. They are all equipped with a new very powerful warhead. We have mined great quantities of a new element we have discovered we call Uranium 235. They go critical if packed in sufficient amount. We have developed an implosion method to get the element critical.

She saw some of the scientists from the United States stiffen in alarm. They now knew exactly what was going on. Patinea heard one of them scoff, “No way they did it.”

Serinina flashed her evil smile and continued, “Oh no my friends,” She said gravely, “That isn't it. I was disappointed by the very limited yield so we continued developing the new weapon to increase its yield. We started mining new elements called deuterium and tritium. The Fission method is only the trigger to fuse those two elements into Hydrogen. That will increase the puny kiloton yield into millions of tons of explosive. My scientists predict a yield of ten million tons of TNT. The demonstration is prepared. Underneath your seats are shielding goggles. We predict this to be very bright and will destroy your eyeballs if you see the detonation without a cover for your eyes. Please put them on.

Patinea saw everyone putting the goggles on and she felt it was wise to do as her sister said. She put on the very heavy and dark goggles. She could hardly see anything now. She briefly wondered if it was a trick.

She heard her sister issue some commands and the three launchers behind her fired their missiles high into the sky. They went out of sight and wondered if this was a mistake. How could they see anything going on that high into the sky?

The missiles went up fifty miles into the sky and separated. The nose cone separated off and started spinning and descending into the atmosphere.

Then Patinea was thankful for the goggles. They all saw it. An impossible searing brilliant flash of light and heat. The searing heat felt uncomfortable and she realized that brilliant flash would have destroyed their eye sockets. The flash lasted for about ten seconds and it went back into an enormous towering fireball. The brilliant fireball rose into the atmosphere. It must have risen up a hundred thousand feet into the sky. It towered above them and they heard an enormous deafening roar. The explosion must be thirty miles away.

The fireball disappeared into a huge cloud that continued to rise into the sky. Patinea was right. It was a horrifying display of power. And even more, there wasn't just one, but there were three explosions.

Serinina stood in front of them and said, “My empire has built thousands of them and we won't stop until we have tens of thousands of those missiles. I will unleash these on any country that tries to build them. This will be the response to any attack on my country. And dearest sister. I have dozens targeting your cities right now. If you dare attack us again, I will destroy your entire country and turn your greatest cities into radioactive ash.”

She mumbled to herself, “You like turning cities into ash. It must be your pastime. I still remember York.”

Serinina scoffed, “York will look puny compared to what this will do to a city. Does Moscow want a demonstration?”

Patinea realized that even after thirteen hundred years, Serinina was still angry at her. And even as powerful as Russia was now, it could not begin to match the power of the Golden Isles. Serinina was here threatening the entire world.

Serinina stood in front of Roosevelt and said harshly, “You will cancel the Manhattan Project. Or one will be fired right into the Alamogordo desert. What you call the Trinity site.”

“Of course, Your Imperial Majesty,” Roosevelt replied. How could they risk this?

Serinina realizes that after everything she accomplished that she is still very unhappy and bitter. Her suffering wont end and she makes a critical decision and gets the help she needs to correct some of the things she did.

Serinina's bouts of morning sickness seemed to have passed within a few months into her pregnancy. Things were still rough for her but she was healthy enough to make a trip to see the one who had started this entire nightmare. She needed to visit the Goddess Prognita. The bitch who wanted her to be made into a girl whether or not Serinina liked it. Now with the full power and authority of Lilith within her, she no longer needed to search for a portal to travel to the other realms of the universe. She could create her own and go wherever she desired. She simply activated her power and phased to the Realm of Luna and saw the despicable Goddess Prognita.

“It is time for you to pay for the horror you inflicted upon my life, you disgusting bitch! I hope you like what has become the third age. I know that I do,” Serinina smiled sinisterly.

“You have used all of your will to resist my plans for the third age of mankind,” said the Goddess. “You have fought it with everything you could and have released horrors upon the world like they have never known. You have slaughtered millions in your mindless rage and sought to reform the world. I could do nothing to protect my beloved subjects and it has pained me to see what has become of you. There will be no glorious third age.” The Goddess nearly wept. “And now you intend to destroy me.”

“You should never have started the third age with my destruction,” Serinina snarled in rage at the Goddess. “To deprive me of my life, my very name and my sex. To place me under the power of my horrifying sadistic and cruel sister. No, I could not accept that. I had to rise above it all and reclaim my right. This is your doing, Goddess.”

Prognita just looked at her calmly. “Let me tell you that had you gone along with my plan, you would have found peace, happiness and power like you never imagined. You would have got what you wanted while your sister would have found nothing but frustration and misery in her new life. She would have ended up being hated and deposed. It would be your name that would have been echoed into the ages. Not hers.”

Serinina smiled, “My name still will be, and no thanks to you.”

Prognita looked at her sadly. “But you are hated for what you have done. You are feared much like your sister was. Your sister is more of a martyr now. You will have to deal with her name being a rallying cry now. I hope that you are happy.” Now the Goddess smiled.

“Fear is the only respect that matters, my sister taught me that,” Serinina retorted. “She taught me that lesson very effectively. Again, thanks to you. I am no longer the weak boy that wanted to party and please everyone. That boy was crushed by you.”

The Goddess felt great frustration at being blamed for it all. She didn’t command Patinea to abuse and mistreat her little sister the way she did. She knew Patinea's frustration with her life. And she knew how Patinea was likely going to treat her annoying former little brother. But it wasn’t the Goddess’s will. Patinea was going to suffer the consequences for her actions. Serinina shattered everything.

“I blame you, Goddess. Because of your actions and your cruelty. Your stupid plan for a third age built on my destruction and humiliation. Goddess Prognita you have proven you are unworthy and ill-suited to be a Goddess. I suffered for your sake Prognita and I still don’t know why you all hated me so much. Was I that horrible? I don’t think so.”

“You were not a bad kid,” Prognita agreed. “But you were raised wrong and serious changes needed to be made that you couldn’t have done yourself. I am sorry Serinina.”

“Save your sorries. They mean nothing to me,” Serinina spat out acidly. Everything that I accomplished was in spite of what you did to me. I succeeded beyond what any of you thought I could. I proved I was not the weak kid that you could all shove out of the way for my sister.”

“Does what you did make you proud?” The Goddess asked.

“Yes,” replied Serinina proudly, “I have defeated you all.”

“Indeed,” agreed the Goddess. “But you have made yourself into that which you hate. You rule with force and fear, much like Patinea did.” The Goddess pointed out. “All of your family fears you now. Those that used to love and help you now fear your madness and your power. You have burnt entire cities with your rage. You have murdered millions. You exterminated thousands in your homeland for no other reason than the family they belonged to. What used to be a beautiful vibrant culture is now turning into something ugly and militaristic. And you rule through fear and your iron first. You are just like your sister, only much worse now. Does any of this make you happy Serinina? Are you really happy with how it all turned out? Is this what you wanted?”

“No,” replied Serinina in shame. “But it's my only option. It's the course you set me on so long ago. I could have accepted your plan but your plan was to crush me. I needed to be strong so no one could harm me anymore. I didn't want to be helpless.”

The Goddess smiled, “You wouldn't have been once you learned to unleash your strength. Even your sister couldn't have stood against you and it would have been in my name. She would have realized the cost of her cruelty and brutality. She would have stood alone while you would have had many who loved you.”

“I’m sorry Goddess,” Serinina replied. “But I cannot accept your plan and the pain it inflicted on me. That was all so unacceptable. I need to make my own path. Not one forced on me through my pain and suffering. I don't want to suffer pain for you and I don't want to be forced into a meaningless life or be humiliated for you. I know others were suffering but it wasn't by my hand. I had nothing to do with it. Everything that I did was all because of what you did to me. Does this outcome make you happy?”

“No,” the Goddess replied. “My beloved subjects are suffering by your hand now. This has really pained me.”

“Good,” Serinina said. “They deserve it. All I wished was to not suffer. I did not deserve what happened to me and as a goddess you should have known. I was really a good kid who did not deserve to suffer. I just wish I could have lived a life where I did not suffer. I don't want to bring a child into this life. But it is what I have chosen and it is what you have done to me.” Then Serinina reached out and removed the Goddess' crown. Serinina claimed the realm of Luna for herself and left the Goddess there, helpless.

Serinina returned to Denaerk and sat on her throne feeling depressed and angry over it all. She still felt the helpless pain of her life. And she knew she had become a monster. Serinina had justified her brutality by blaming it on Patinea and the Goddess. She was a monster but she was a monster of their creation. But somehow, that didn't help her.

“Do you really want a life where you don’t suffer?” A beautiful feminine voice asked behind the throne. “We can do that for you if you are serious. We can make the arrangements to do that.”

“Athena how could you do such a thing,” Serinina asked. “Not even me with Lilith's full power can turn back time and give me a new life. I know you can't,” Serinina retorted.

“But I can,” an even more powerful voice said behind Athena, “We can.”

The voice was Hera. Then she saw Nyx, Rhea and Gaia were behind with Hera. Nyx said, "We can use the power of Kronos to help us in that. This time will still exist but we can help spare you in another time. If that is what you want.” They did not mention that this timeline would eventually fade if Serinina accepted their offer.

Serinina found herself facing some of the most powerful gods in existence. Gaia, Nyx, Hera, Zeus, Rhea. Yeah, what they were talking about was within their ability. “But if you spare me the suffering then what will happen in that new timeline? What would you all do for me?”

“Whatever you want. If you want to prevent your change somehow and rule in the name of Maxis. In your father's name.”

“Absolutely not!” Serinina spate out. “But if you are serious about granting my wish. Athena, do you love me?”

“Yes,” she replied. “So does my brother. I convinced Hera and Rhea to help you and they gathered the elder gods of Chaos to help you. Whatever you wish.”

A sinister smile spread across Serinina's face. “They want a matriarchy. Let's give them one. Make me your son Athena. And I will become your daughter. But since I will be raised in the religion of Maxis. You must help me break free of it very early. Arrange with the Amazons to take me at a young age and help guide me in their way. I don't want to know anything about what will happen to me until the time comes. I want no link to this time. I know that I will have to be informed of the future when the time comes. So, I will be educated about it when I am abducted. The Amazons will abduct me on one of my childhood trips. They will take me to Themyscira and teach me. I know it will be a tough task. Abducting a Prince raised in a very male dominant and misogynistic religion and convince him to convert to a female dominant religion and be changed into a girl. But I know it can be done. Let them transform me when I am ready for it.”

Athena and Hera smiled. “We can make you transgender. That would be perfect. But you will know you will have to hide that part of you in your homeland. Being in Themyscira will be a paradise for you. You will have a girl's soul. You will be transformed into a strong female warrior. You will have to be transformed back when the training is over. But when Patinea and her witches transform you in my image. It will be a big shock. You will still suffer but nothing like what was inflicted on you before.”

Serinina looked and then said, “Do it.”

Epilogue

Then suddenly Serinina was Serin again. Except he seemed trapped and was being pushed around. He had no control over anything. He had been transported back to his mother Aanya's womb and she was on her back pushing for all she was worth. She was trying to push him out. Serin was eventually pushed all the way out and his mother named him Serin.

Serin's parents realized that there were some very curious things about their son. His elder sister Patinea enjoyed dressing him in her gowns as a toddler. Serin enjoyed that time with his sister so much. His parents allowed Patinea to continue to dress Serin as a toddler since it makes little difference in the long term. Serin really enjoyed wearing her gowns and pretending to be Patinea's sister. He enjoyed that so much that Serin burst into tears when the time came for Serin to take his place in society as a young man. His father told Patinea that the gowns would no longer be tolerated. Serin was crushed and he cried. It was as if his happiness was taken away from him. Patinea found that very amusing and interesting. She didn’t understand it at all. It was as if this boy identified with the girls much more and hung around her friends.

That put the first major rift in the father and son relationship and there were many others as Serin began to understand society and ask awkward questions. Many of his questions were about the status of girls in society and why there were no women in powerful positions.

Eventually, he understood his place. He was the heir to the crown. He understood what was expected of him. He took on a very sexist and arrogant attitude like what was expected of him as a male heir to the crown. Just like society was teaching him. But Patinea knew that his hostility and sexism was only a front to please society and his father. She saw beneath it all that he didn’t mean a thing he said. She knew that because of how much he admired women and his mother. And the questions he asked them when he was younger and got into arguments with his father. He didn’t mean anything he said about other girls. He got older and his insults at females become more vicious and effective. He also became more skilled at hiding his feminine nature behind an insulting sexist male hubris. Patinea still knew that he didn’t mean a thing he said. But it did hurt her. It was still frustrating and annoying. She swore to pay him back for everything he said and did to her.

Patinea realized as she got older that she was being raised to be a mother and a wife. She wanted more than that, but that was what she was being raised for. She was older and stronger than Serin but none of that mattered. She could never become the King even though she would be better at it than her brother would be. That frustrated her to no end. It enraged her. Why should Serin get to be king just because he was a boy?

Serin seemed fascinated by female warriors and the first age of mankind. He knew enough not to bring up the subject with his father by then so he discussed the issue with his mother and began reading books about the first age of mankind. That was the age of the Goddess and the Matriarchy that existed before the war overthrew it. Before the Age of Maxis.

But as time passed, Patinea saw that Serin had a strength of will that she could never possess. And then it all changed when Serin was around ten years old. None of the family knew, of course.

The caravan he was traveling to the east with was intercepted by a group of hardened warrior women that easily overcame Serin's guards and abducted him. Serin was shocked and amazed to see a group of armored female warriors leap out at his male guard and so easily overcome and kill them. Almost every member of his guard in the caravan was overcome and defeated. Serin was taken hostage by the female warriors. One of them bound his hands and began leading him. She introduced herself as Cassandra of the Amazons. Another girl introduced herself as Dianna. Strangely, these girls were around his age but they were so much stronger than he was. There were enough adult women in the group. He was taken to the coast, forced onto a ship, and taken to their island where Cassandra assured him that no one would ever look. Serin believed them. How could his family find him here? His family probably didn't even know his caravan had been intercepted. But the women told him that he would not be harmed at all. They were going to give him his dream and prepare him for his future. Of course, the small ten-year-old boy didn’t understand, but he admired these women. He was fascinated by the female warriors and the female kings of the first age.

Serin was kept isolated on the ship except for Cassandra and Dianna that were allowed to keep him company. Cassandra seemed to be in charge of this operation and she did her best to explain why they had abducted him. Cassandra explained that she wanted to help him. They wanted to protect and teach him. They wanted him to break away from the control of the Church of Maxis and learn the true value of women. She wanted him to learn that women could fight and lead. What he was being taught was wrong and it would cost him if they didn't help him.

Cassandra didn’t know that these were things he had little trouble accepting. He already knew that. Serin looked into Cassandra's eyes and said, “I have no problem learning about women's strengths. I love the first age of mankind and I want to bring it back. I know women can be strong fighters. I also know that what the priests are teaching me is wrong. I have dreams that I am a girl warrior just like you Cassandra. I feel bad for what the girls of my homeland are going through and I want to stop it. But why did you have to take me? What is it that you really want and who are you all?”

“We want to protect you,” Cassandra replied. ‘You have no idea of the prophesies the followers of the Goddess really believe in and will do anything they can to make them come true. That’s why we are here for you. And we want to train and help you become the woman you were meant to be. Not the woman that the Hekatin want you to be. Athena wants so much more for you.”

“I thought that the Hekatin were defeated. They are no longer an issue,” said Serin.

Cassandra shook her head, “No, they have been suppressed. But they are still very powerful and will destroy your life. You must beware of their intentions. Even your mother, Aanya, and your sister, Patinea, are leading members. They never loved you. They love their Goddess and their Prophesy. They will do anything to make the rule of women become a reality once again.”

Serin's eyes narrowed. “So why do you care what happens there and why do you want to help me?”

“Because you are female in your heart,” retorted Cassandra. “You don’t deserve what they want to do to you. You deserve to rule over them and that’s why we are here. We want to offer you training to fight as a girl. I want to also train you in Magic, powers that we use that has been granted to us by our Goddess Athena. And how to communicate with her and protect yourself from the Hekatin.”

“But I am a boy,” Serin responded. "How can I fight as a girl?”

“We can fix that,” Cassandra said. “If you wish it, the Goddess Athena can make you female. You have lots of time here. Your father wanted you to spend a year studying under Sun Tzu in the Tang Empire. We feel your time would be much more useful here so you have a year with us. We don’t want to hurt you Serin. I want to protect you. And prepare you for your future.”

Serin thought carefully before saying, “Let me stay a boy until I’m ready.”

“Okay, but I know that you really want to be female.” Cassandra smiled. “You will come around to us. We have lots of time.”

Xxxxx

They had no idea what a life-changing event this would be for Serin. He also started getting very close to Queen Penthesilea. Who adopted him as her own. He even began referring to Penthesilea as his mother and staying with her and her daughter Cassandra.

The Amazons weren't surprised when Serin requested to be transformed into a female and they took her to the priestesses of Athena. Serin began feeling the limitations of the training and his abilities as a male in this society, and the limited effect of his training versus the other girls. The training was having little effect since he was male and, as a result, he stood little chance against the trained female warriors in sparring. So, he requested to be transformed into a female. The priestesses gathered and cast the spell on him. He felt Athena's power fill him as his body was transformed. Suddenly Serinina felt a power he had never imagined. He was finally at peace with his body.

Serinina trained and learned with the Amazons for roughly a year, learning everything she could about the religion of Athena and the other Gods. She also learned Greek with them and began communicating with them in their own language. She trained to fight as a female warrior and that was about the roughest transition. Up to that point, Serin had trained to fight as a boy using male strength and techniques. She was surprised to learn to fight using female methods of combat and learned they were much more effective. Her first ass-kicking by Dianna drove home that she had to learn a new way to fight. Dianna defeated Serin when he was a boy and learned she had no hope of defeating Dianna's speed and strength. It wasn't until about six months into her transformation that Serinina began holding her own against Dianna's strength and then started defeating her.

She also was taught about the prophecies of the Hekatin and their prophecy about a boy becoming their princess. She was shown her own future and it was a crushing event. Serinina was shown how much her family really loved her and what their goals were. She was never really that close to her father Gerrick, but felt closer to her mother. Being shown that future and taught about their religion and prophesies destroyed Serinina's love for his/her mother.

The time came when Serin was to return to his family. Serinina was transformed back into a boy and transported back to the Golden Isles and his family. Serin even took part in the endless rowing and they docked at Rooks Rock where he went back to his family. His family thought the ship that docked at their port was very strange. It wasn’t the typical sailing ship they expected. It was a long narrow ship with three banks of oars. It was an ancient type ship that was still a very effective combat vessel.

Xxxxx

The change in their son was undeniable. He had always been distant with his father and even got into some vicious arguments when he was younger. He argued about the status of girls or why they were denied any positions of power within the Government. He flat out refused to agree with his father about the limitations of a girl. It simply didn’t make sense. Serin only agreed to accept his father's view just to end the discussion.

But Gerrick sensed that his son only pretended to agree. Serin didn’t really agree with him, he was just tired of arguing and realized any further discussion with his father was useless. This was before Serin's trip to the East. It only got worse after his return. But he kept his sexist attitude after his trip and pretended to be a misogynistic sexist male. He had to, but his mother sensed it was a front.

To his mother's despair, Serin became hostile and distant to her after the trip. Just like he was to his father. He treated her as an enemy and distanced himself from his mother with whom he had enjoyed a warm motherly relationship with before. Aanya tried to get answers but she got nowhere. She wondered if it was Maxis and he really agreed with the religion but she didn't think so.

Strangely, Serin sought more answers and often was caught in the Hekatin library. She found him reading ancient texts that were only meant for the eyes of young women. Stranger than that was the fact that some of those books were written by hand in the ancient language of the Goddess. They were written by hand in the first age of mankind. And Serin seemed to have no problem reading them. She marveled and was frightened by the abilities of her son. She knew he would change many things.

Another curious thing was Aanya's son took an interest in art. He hid much of his art from them but she invaded his quarters a few times to see what the secret was. She just had to know and Aanya was stunned.

Serin's art was filled with strong dominant female warriors and the language was written in a script she simply couldn't comprehend. She saw vast fields of strong female warriors carrying weapons very unlike that of the Golden Isles. They carried long spears and round shields fighting in an ancient method of combat. But it was clear they were all female. Some of them were incredibly strong. Other pictures showed what Aanya could only guess was a mighty warrior goddess dressed in the same way.

Then she saw a strange picture he painted of a temple to this goddess and one of the pictures showed him. She guessed it was him, only as a female around his age. She could tell that he desperately wanted to be female. And, Aanya actually saw Serin doing magic. How was this possible? But it was unlike any magic she had ever witnessed. It was a very different type of magic unlike any that the Hekatin had ever done. And the language was not of the Goddess. She tried to find the source of this but Aanya was unable to find it.

Amazons landed in secret on the Golden Isles when Serin was around the age of fourteen. They set up a secret temple and training camp for other girls. Serin met his friend Cassandra and trained with them as a girl. It was wonderful. Things were moving forward. Serin often traveled there to train with his friends. He helped them recruit other girls to their ranks. Their numbers swelled and Serin knew he was on the right path now. They were going to re-institute the first age. The corruption of Maxis was going to be destroyed.

Everything changed when the witch moon arrived when Serin was sixteen years old. Serin still held to his sexist front and insulted Patinea whenever he could. Only his insults were more personal and vicious toward Patinea, but not so much against women at times. He still insulted and demeaned women. But his actual behavior was different. He had a girlfriend and he was very respectful and honored her. Unlike his father and the culture which taught that women were just to be used.

The date for Patineas marriage was arriving and she was being put under increasing pressure to make decisions on her gown and the arraugnments of the marriage she didnt want. She was being arranged to marry a disgusting son of a Lord on Ansey. She couldnt face marrying that man at all.

But the plots against the regime increased. A strange young woman came from Guenefer and informed Aanya that Patinea was the vessel for Prognita and she was meant to be king and usher in a new reign of women. The entire Hekatin witches were joyous except for Aanya who knew there was something special about Serin. The plot moved forward. She was the one that gave Patinea a way out of this marriage her father was forcing her into.

And then Gerrick was murdered and the way was paved for a regime change. Serin didn't seem to care that his father was murdered. He was never close to his father and it was almost as if Serin felt that Gerrick got what he deserved. That hurt Aanya but she figured she understood. When Aanya asked him about his lack of emotion about his father's death, he glared at her and actually said, “I would figure you would be looking forward to his death. Didn’t Father stand for everything you hate? I know what you are and what you support. I support it too; I only wish you all didn't hold me responsible for what he did. I am surprised you care at all about his death, Mother.”

That was the most vicious things he had ever said to her. The plot moved forward. Patinea was resistant to a point. But beyond that point, she savored the idea of forcing her arrogant annoying little brother to wear a corset and a gown and live as female. It would serve him right. The Hekatin had a big meeting where they all agreed to transform Serin, proclaim him the little sister, and crown Patinea as the new King. Patinea was there and agreed that it must be done. They also agreed to treat Serinina very harshly and force her into the role of the Princess. She must be forced to adapt to living and dressing as a young woman. Patinea was excited and agreed. Aanya began having a very bad feeling about it all. But she held her tongue.
Patinea with her brother in charge now hoped that he loved her enough to stop the marriage and confronted him with it. Unknown to her, he tried to but the lords refused to budg and actually threatened him. Unknown to the lords, he was making arrangments that would eventually render them irrelevant in the new regime. They had sealed their doom by threatening him with war. So be it if they wanted a war. But Patinea faced him and tried to get him to call it off and his only response was hostility. He refused to and told her that she would marry and do her duty. She tried to ask him about how he would feel if he was a girl. He smiled and giggled girlishly. Then he just left and did a weird girlish twirl.

Then, nights before the upcoming coronation, Serin actually walked into the Hekatin temple and confronted the High Witch Falconette. She was frightened beyond reason and sensed that the plot was going to fail. He confronted her and said, “I know what treason you are planning against me and it won't work. My friends will slaughter you all if you try to deprive me of what is mine.”

Falconette was terrified and a tear dropped from her eye.

Then Serin said, “I have a proposal. You cannot tell anyone else. But go ahead and transform me. I am looking forward to it.”

Falconette blinked.

“I am a girl inside. But you must crown me, not my sister. My sister will be a disaster. She will not institute a reign of women. She admires the men. Crown me, and I will give you all what you want. I will crush the church of Maxis. I hate them anyway. I always have.”

“But I heard what you said about women and girls,” protested Falconette.

Serin giggled girlishly. “I had to say those things. But I never believed them. If you go forward with your plan, my friends will kill you all. Cassandra and her people are here. They are to make sure I rule. With me, you will get your reign of women. I will give you all what you want,” Serin promised.

Falconette felt she had little choice. She agreed and Serin said, “Don’t think of backing out. You cannot unless you all want to die. And don’t tell Actonia or my sister. I want this to be a big surprise. They have no idea what is coming.”

Then, a few hardened female warriors came in and Falconette saw that he did have friends. His friends weren't what she was expecting at all. She began to have hope. His friends were female warriors. Cassandra was among them. Unknown to them, his friends now ranked in the tens of thousands approaching nearly fifty thousand. Many women wanted a way to escape the brutal culture. Even some boys approached them with their sisters to be transformed and helped.

The night before the coronation, Patinea approached her little brother again and tried to talk to him about being a girl. She thought she was softening the blow by asking him how he would feel as a girl. And if he ever dreamed of it. Sarin decided to be honest and told her to her utter shock that yes indeed. He dreamed of being a girl every night. He was a girl once when he was ten and spent over a year as a girl. He even had his first period and was taught by the other women how to deal with those times. Patinea wondered if her brother was entirely sane but he seemed sane. He seemed to be real. Then he warned her that this was not going to end as she wanted. But he told her that she had to transform him into a girl. It was the only way and he would institute he first age again. She had to.

The day came and he was standing on the dais of a great temple for Maxis and preparing to become the official king. Sarins friends, Nyx and Rhea and her husband the titan Kronos went to Prognita to make sure that she would be unable to use her power to transform Sarin into the helpless girl she wanted him to be. The witches cast their spell and began muttering in their language. Then to everyone's surprise, except for Falconette, Serin did not change as they had expected. Instead of transforming into a little helpless weak teenage girl, Serin transformed into a large, hardened female warrior and began glowing. Solid bronze armor appeared on her chest. Patinea tried to push him down to his knees before her, but Serinina was too strong.

Patinea made her arrogant proclamation, “Let you all bear witness that there is no longer a male heir to the throne.” She shouted with emotion. “That makes me the rightful heir.”

Serin was not defeated at all and stepped forward. “Just because I am female and her little sister doesn’t make me not the rightful heir. Patinea may be older than me, but that is irrelevant. I am much stronger and much more competent than her. I am still the rightful heir to the throne under the authority of my goddess Athena. Challenge that if you dare.” Then she struck Patinea down with her large bronze spear. Patinea collapsed in pain and stared up at the spear aimed at her throat.

Serin snarled, “You will pay for what you tried to do to me. You all will. You thought you could destroy me, but you were wrong. I am stronger than all of you.” Then she struck Patinea on the side of the head and knocked her out.

A large group of female warriors carrying spears and shields approached them threateningly. Serinina smiled. The priests were lost and had no idea what was happening. Falconette knew they were trapped and did what she agreed with. She proclaimed Serinina as the King of the Golden Isles, much to Patinea's horror.

Serinina stepped forward and raised her fist in the air. “The Rule of Women will be reinstituted. The glory that was the first age of mankind will be realized under my rule.”

The Hekatin cheered and many women in the audience cheered. The priests were horrified but the Amazons subdued them

“The Hekatin must pay. As of now, the Church of Maxis is to be disbanded and outlawed. The Hekatin will help us with the new regime if they can agree to a peace between our two religions. But the conspirators that acted against me are now enemies of the Kingdom. Arrest these women!”

Serinina made many edicts and proclamations from that day on that deprived the Hekatin of their rights. It was worse than under Maxis. She did institute a brutal matriarchy under her women and the Goddess. She also deprived males of their possessions and positions of power were to only be held by the women of the regime.

Days later into the new age of mankind, Serinina visited her sister and mother that were being held in the dungeon.

Aanya spoke first, “So this is why you become so hostile to me. You knew we would try to do this years before we did. I won't ask you how you knew since you are obviously very skilled in Magic and have the support of a Goddess.”

“I am actually her daughter,” replied Serinina.

“I actually couldn't be more proud of you, Serinina. I should have known what you would do. Your fascination and our secret talks about the first age. I just wish it was under our Goddess.”

Then Serinina looked at Patinea who had a look of total defeat and sorrow on her face. If there was one good thing about this, its that her marriage is off. As a criminal in prison. But also the edict that no woman can be forced into an unwanted marriage, and in a marriage the woman rules. The man is supposed to be obedient. Her marriage was off. Serin glared at her and said in an icy cruel tone, “You wanted me to suffer as a powerless princess. All while you rule over me. I know you would have been incredibly cruel to me as my King.”

“Just like you are, but I wouldn't have had you imprisoned,” replied Patinea.

“Of course not, I committed no crime. Had things unfolded as you planned, I would had just been a victim of a coup and would have been transformed into a tiny busty and helpless girl. I would have committed no crime except be a victim of a sadistic plot. The crime was your doing. I would have just been forced into a life that was unbearable and humiliated by you. Forced into an unwanted change. But even with all of that, you still have no idea what I would have suffered. I would have been raped by enemies of our family. Then you would have had me impregnated. I would have suffered so much that I would have devoted my entire life to the total destruction of the Golden Isles.”

Patinea laughed bitterly. “This is so much better. While I wanted equality. Your stupid obsession with the resurrection of the first age again has resulted in all of the lords joining forces against you. You will face a very widespread war across the entire country. This is so much better.”

Serinina shrugged, “I have enough allies that I will win. But you lost and you deserved to.”

Patinea paid the worst price for her actions. She never would hold a sword or fight in her life. Even if Serinina had allowed it, Patinea never learned their style of combat. She was totally ill-suited to fight with the Amazons despite how strong she thought she was. She was a princess and hated that position. Despite being princess was one of the greatest things one could be in this new age. It could give her so much power if she accepted it, but she eventually became a wife and a mother. That's all she would ever be. She could have been great if she could have accepted the nobility of that life. Patinea never gave up her resentment and hatred toward her infernal little sister.

Serinina instituted a very militaristic culture under her Amazon warriors and the girls that trained with them were the real power of the new regime. For the Hekatin and those witches, they had been forced into a humiliating peace. They were forbidden to teach any more children their religion. That became a crime and many of their children were converted to the warrior religion of Athena. A new very militaristic religion began to take hold across the Golden Isles. They all found out that girls could indeed fight.

Aanya and the Hekatin were horrified when the incredibly militaristic culture of the Amazons began to take hold across the Golden Isles. They could do nothing but helplessly watch the horror unfold. The glory and peace that was supposed to be the reign under the love of Progrnia would never happen. They would not know a time of peace and prosperity under the Goddess and the Hekatin. This was almost as bad as being under the priests of Maxis. This was a military regime where the military ruled their entire society. Being a warrior was the highest ideals one could strive for. Even if they were brutal female warriors under a strict matriarchy. This was the age of Athena.

Serinina in the other time continued to exist as she slowly took control of the other nations of the world into the 21st century. A shadow of oppression and tyranny spread across the world as Serininas iron frist closed across the world. No one could oppose her. No one dared.

This concludes this story. Princess in a New World is now irrelevant and I think I should ask for it to be removed. It was a fascinating story but this ending cancels that story totally. If I were to continue it into the modern age I could explore Serinina and Patineas relations into the 20th century in the original timeline. But I wont.
I think I will continue the story He Shouldn't have Teased his Sister and the Britney story. Those tales have been ignored while I finished this story and I ignored them enough.