Maleficent & Diaval: A happily ever after?

Chapter 12

Five months later…...

Another round of pain racked through her body as Maleficent once again woke up, screaming in agony. It felt like someone was repeatedly slashing her with an iron sword, yet each time not enough to bleed. "Maleficent! Are you alright?!" Diaval jolted up beside her, and she hugged her knees, crying silently as she shook her head in a form of saying no.

This had already been happening for months. Aurora had already sent her soldiers to stand watch, but somehow, these people managed to sneak into the Moors and destroy or remove some of its riches for themselves. For example, the wood in the Moors would never rot or break, making it a good choice to build carts and so on. 

But everything in the Moors was linked to Maleficent. Thanks to the link, whatever magic they had was hers to use. But also because of the link, what they felt, she felt. Which had her awake in the early morning or sometimes even at midnight, screaming as the burning hot slashes came back.

Vomiting again, as she shook violently, Maleficent curled her wings around herself for comfort. "Maleficent,  I'll take a tour later. I want to see if I could possibly catch any of them and get information out of them." Diaval thought that it might comfort her, but that only made her more terrified. "No, please, Diaval, don't go. I can't afford to lose you!" Maleficent's eyes were wide and glassy, and Diaval frowned. She wasn't this emotional in the past.

"Maleficent,  I'll be alright. It's just a fly over around the Moors, just another patrol. Nothing would go that wrong." Diaval coaxed, gently trying to peel off the long, slender fingers that were curled tightly around his forearm in a firm grip. "Diaval..." Maleficent shook her head, refusing to let go, and with no choice left, Diaval gently drew out a small golden flower, one that Maleficent had used so many years ago, and he blew the pollen grains towards her, catching her lightly as her eyelids slowly shut and her body relaxed.

"Wait for me." Diaval whispered, laying her sleeping form softly in the nest, before he climbed up the edge of the nest and plunged down from its height, only letting his Dark Fae form take over once he had left the nest far enough to not wake Maleficent up.

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"Good morning Balthazar." Diaval greeted from overhead, and he prepared to leave when he heard angry screeching from the tree spirit, and he knew something was wrong. "What is it?" Diaval instantly flew back, and Balthazar screeched, "There are humans in the woods. Those hunters. They're chopping more trees."

Instantly, Diaval frowned, before he gave a slight nod, flying off towards the woods without hearing what Balthazar had yet to say. "Be careful! They are armed!" Balthazar screeched loudly, but his efforts to call back Diaval were in vain as the raven disappeared beyond earshot. 

Flying at surprisingly high speed, Diaval found himself at the woods almost instantly, and without further ado, he flapped his wings powerfully, sending a huge gust of wind into the woods. There were shouts and screams, but Diaval couldn't make out what they were saying. However, almost right after the shouts, the hunters had quietened down, and Diaval felt disturbed. They couldn't have all disappeared, right?

Deciding to go for a closer look, Diaval didn't notice that he was set up. Flying over, he glided slowly over the trees, when a burning sensation slid over his skin, and with a jolt, he realised that it was a trap. The iron chain around his leg was burning the skin, and he could see the blood flowing from the cut. 

Screeching, Diaval took off angrily, and the hunters were flung away as they couldn't hold onto the chain up in the air. But, as though they had planned for his reaction, hundreds of gleaming arrows came flying towards Diaval from different directions, and the glowing redness of the tips were enough evidence for Diaval to confirm that they were iron.

With no choice left, Diaval changed into his raven form, the narrow feet change giving him enough time to slip out from the chain and take to the air. But alas, Diaval hadn't trained as many years as Maleficent, and his fighting skills weren't that good to begin with, so when he whipped around just in time, an arrow found its way to his shoulder.

Tipping heavily on his right side, Diaval gasped as the burning completely overtook his left shoulder, rendering it useless. Blood was pouring down his shoulder like a leaky tap, and as Diaval staggered, losing altitude, the hunters were preparing a second round of arrows.

In an attempt to save himself, Diaval summoned whatever he could, raising a vine wall to shield himself, but it was too late. Although he managed to kill several of the hunters and many were left unconscious, Diaval found himself with an arrow to the back of his skull and with a last screech of pain, Diaval collapsed, darkness overtaking his eyesight as his promise to Maleficent shattered and woke her up.

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"Diaval?" Maleficent woke up instantly, and image after image flashed through her mind as Diaval was attacked, falling through the air, and the arrow striking his head as though he was nothing but a straw scarecrow. With a cry of pain, Maleficent pitched herself over the ledge of the nest and hurtled straight for the woods.

Landing, Maleficent didn't care as she let loose a destructive wave of magic, sending all the humans flying away, crumbling at the mere power of the Phoenix. She didn't think too much about any sniper machines that they might've set up, that might be aiming at her at the very same instance. She only knew that Diaval was lying unconscious in front of her, and with a heartbreaking scream, she shattered all the mechanisms that the hunters had previously planted in the ground.

Hugging Diaval tightly in her arms, Maleficent desperately summoned her magic, hoping that they could heal Diaval, but it was no use. Her mental state was far too erratic to even process anything on how to heal Diaval. And so she began to cry. Crying in the hope that Diaval would be alright. Crying because she knew it was mainly all her fault. Crying because she knew that she had failed, to take care of her only love and as protector of the Moors.

And so she cried, cried until her stomach hurt so much. Cried until the world spun so fast she no longer knew who she was, where she was. Cried until the entire Moors went extremely silent, as though they could feel her pain radiating everywhere.

And then all went black.

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