Madeleine

The One Where Where The King Dies

Third Person POV

Whilst his adrenaline made Milo and Madeleine sprint up the stairs and into the King's chambers, desperation in his every step, others moved just as fast but their mind lagged, the feeling of their missing life force taking a toll on them all.

"How's he doing?" Milo asked, his tone was still soft but there was a heavy burden that they could all sense. "Not good, I'm afraid," Sweet said, placing his stethoscope around his neck, turning away from the King to watch Milo enter through the doors.

"Internal bleeding. There's nothing more I can do." He shuffled to the side to allow Madeleine to crouch down beside him. "What a nightmare. And we brought it here."

"'Ah, don't go beating yourself up.
He's been after that crystal since
Iceland." Milo scratched his head, frowning. "Wait, Sweet, that's it! The crystals. These crystals," he reached forwards to hold the King's necklace, still a blue but no longer glowing. "They have some sort of healing energy. I - I've seen it work."

"No," the King croaked, reaching up to take Milo's hand, covering up the crystal and any shine it had left.
"Where is my daughter?" "Well, she...she...mm," Milo couldn't answer the royal.

"She has been chosen like her mother before her."

"What?"

"In times of danger, the crystal will choose a host. One of royal blood to protect itself and its people. It will accept no other. " "Wait a minute," Milo sat beside the king. "Choose? So this thing is alive?"

"In a way. The crystal thrives on the collective emotions of all who came before us. In return, it provides power. Longevity. Protection. As it grew, it developed a consciousness of its own." the king coughed weakly. "In my arrogance, I sought to use it as a weapon of war but its power proved too great to control. It overwhelmed us and led to our destruction."

"That's why you hid it beneath the city, to keep history from repeating itself." Madeleine realized. "And to prevent Kida from suffering the same fate as my beloved wife."

"Wh...What's going to happen to Kida?" Madeleine asked softly, his head shook at the sudden information dump, but she did well to process it quickly in hopes of her and Milo being able to help Kida.

"If she remains bonded to the crystal, she could be lost to it forever. The love of my daughter is all I have left. My burden would have become hers when the time was right, but now it falls to you and your sister." the king removed his necklace, handing it to Milo.

"Us?" Madeleine accepted the necklace in astonishment.

"Return the crystal. Save Atlantis.
Save my daughter," were the king's final words before his untimely death. The guards kneeled in silence beside their spears to mourn respectfully. In the distance, a horn could be heard, alerting the Atlanteans of their king's demise.