Shattered Wings (published short story)

[Angel24]

Sierra cried as she crashed down to the splintery wood. Her dreams shattered along with her wings; the punishment for betraying her kind. Burly knights surrounded her, ready to haul her away from the shimmering throne room. The Queen of the Fairies said nothing as she observed her only child being taken away.

“Mother, please!” Sierra screamed but the elderly woman remained silent on her throne. Two of the knights, each gripping an arm, carried the now-wingless fairy through the immense entryway and onto a perch outside the tree. Sierra struggled to get free but it was pointless; they held on tight until they threw her off the branch.

Sierra watched the willow she once called home grow taller. Halfway down, she shut her eyes to dull the pain. She had lost everything and was now going to die.

Miraculously, as if by chance, a cushion of soft leaves saved Sierra from the hard fall. Other than a hurting back, her fragile body was unharmed. She sat up and raised her gaze back up to the branch she had just been thrown off of; she missed her home already.

“It’s not my home anymore.” She told herself.

Sierra stayed there on the cool dirt for some time. Her mind raced through all the memories of the past several hours.

 

“Do this and I’ll make it worth your while.” The mysterious elf had offered.

“And what would be worth my while to do this?” she asked.

“How about this?” He said, from the pocket of his worn coat he produced a small drawstring bag “wing dust; will make any fairy fly faster than light.”

Sierra didn’t understand exactly what he meant but was enough to convince her.

 

So she stole the lilac crystal, the sacred jewel of her people. Sneaking into the treasure hall was no easy task but she craved wing dust and couldn’t give up a chance to get some.

Almost immediately after, the alert birds began their cries that rang throughout the entire kingdom. In panic, Sierra dashed out of the hall and ran for an opening to fly to safety. She wasn’t in the air long before she was sighted. Within seconds, a mob of knights charged after her, and not one of them appeared to be merciful. While looking back at the crowd, Sierra paid no attention to where she was heading. She turned back in enough time to see the tree before crashing into it, smashing her forehead into the rough bark. Unconscious, Sierra’s lifeless body began plunging towards the ground below.

She woke up to the Queen bearing over her, rage in her eyes.

“What have you done?” She spat.

Sierra couldn’t answer.

 

 

*This was written for a short story contest and published in the collection "In The Skies" by Polar Expressions.

[Guest ScorpioBeastWolf]

Beautiful, very beautiful story. Loved it. Dreams, desires, awakening.

[Guest McLeodLot65]

I love your writing! You evoke so much with just a few words.