Maria stood under the shade casted by the castle wall, her arms crossed gently over her chest, a soft smile dancing on her lips as she watched what was happening in the training yard.
She'd expected Abram to be a bit reluctant but by the time he'd joined her in their bedroom, he had been looking forward to it, asking himself why he didn't think to do this earlier.
She smiled in remembrance as the clashing and clanging of the steel practice swords filled the air, Ren, Darius, and Felix sparring under the morning sun.
Abram stood just a few feet away from them, hands clasped behind his back, his focus on every movement the boys made.
That was one of the things she loved about him. When it comes to the things he cared about, he never held back. At least, when it doesn't come to speaking.
She chuckled at that. How would the kids feel if they knew their father was just very… shy?
"You're overcommitting again, Felix." Abram's voice pulled her back to the present as he corrected his son, speaking with authority, but without harshness. But of course, it all just sounded the same to the children.
"That footwork will get you knocked flat." He said. "Take note of it."
Felix glanced at his father, before turning back to his opponents, Darius and Ren, the three of them engaged in a three way fight. "Yes, father."
"There is no such thing as a fair fight." He said, watching them attack each other, sweat falling from their brows. "If two people are in a 'fair fight,' one of them has definitely been robbed of an advantage."
"Your enemy won't come at you one after the other. They definitely won't wait for you to be at your best before attacking."
"And of course," his hand snapped forward, sending a stone into the fray, "there'll be unexpected interruptions like an arrow being fired at you."
Ren and Felix ducked as the stone flew towards their head, Darius capitalizing on their change in rhythm.
"Darius," Abram called out, his eyes on his second son, "you still drop your left shoulder before every upward swing. If I can see it, your opponent can too."
Darius didn't bother answering, his focus on the fight as Ren finally had the upper hand, sending him on the defensive.
Maria watched from where she stood until her husband called the end of the fight. She watched as Abram turned to Ren. His brow furrowed slightly.
She leaned forward slightly.
Abram took a few slow steps, circling around Ren. "Your problem isn't your form. It's nearly flawless. The problem lies with your mind." he tapped his head with a finger as he stopped in front of his son, holding his gaze.
"You're too arrogant." Abram said bluntly. "A skilled opponent would be able to read your arrogance in every move you make and they'll definitely use it against you."
"Just because you're skilled in the ways of the sword doesn't mean you can't be surprised or tricked. A warrior that doesn't stop learning will eventually defeat the talented one that wallows in his arrogance. Understood?"
Maria smiled. She could see from the expression on his face that Ren's pride had taken a little hit but she had confidence that Abram would take care of it. As he always does.
Her eyes wandered upwards to the sky and her smile dropped. The world had changed. She could feel it.
It had all started six months ago, around the time the king had died. A shift in the energy of the world.
Her passenger had always taken every chance it had to whisper in the back of her mind, but now, it stirred more often. The change in energy was affecting everything. Subtly for the physical world but a less subtle change in magic.
She'd spoken with Abram about it. They had theorized, debated, considered every possibility. And she knew some of the truth.
Something had been lost. An anchor. A guiding thread that kept the world on its proper course. Without it, things would fall apart. Slowly but surely.
And worse, she could feel them. Things out there in the dark, stirring. Waking up. Being created.
She didn't know how many. She didn't know what form they would take or when they would emerge. But she could feel them, like distant thunder before the storm.
They were coming. They were inevitable.
But then, there was her own truth. A truth she hadn't spoken of to anyone. Not even Abram. It would break him.
Her death was slowly approaching like a thief in the night. She didn't know when or how, but she could feel it drawing closer.
And when she died, her passenger would be released. And it would become a Calamity. The first Calamity.
She'd spent the last thirty years trying to find a way to stop it. To control it. But she'd found nothing. Neither had Abram.
But now, time was running out. A due date has been set, even if she didn't know it.
She had to find a way to stop the Calamity from falling. To stop it from becoming more than it already was before it was too late.
She couldn't risk her death becoming the spark for the next disaster. Not this close to her family.
She exhaled and her gaze drifted northward.
Toward the Green Tree.
She terribly missed her home. She missed her father. She missed her brother, Bellamy. She missed flying through the sky on the back of her wyvern.
If she had one wish, it would be to experience it one more time. One more time before she dies.
As a gust of wind blew through the courtyard, Maria looked back at her family.
At the boys training. At her husband watching with a critical eye. At Ren, who held more power than he was willing to let them believe. The child who could potentially become the greatest Savior or Calamity.
She would protect them.
Until her last breath.
And maybe, just maybe, she would find a way to change the ending that was already written.