All her puppets lay broken around her as the Shining Force advanced. Mishaela waved her hand and cast the spell of Egress, transporting herself and her puppets out of the circus tent they had erected in Rindo.
They reappeared in a forest just outside of the town, hidden within a small clearing amidst the dense trees. Mishaela looked at her puppets as they writhed on the grass, trying in vain to move about on broken limbs.
Mother…they cried out to her, we have failed you and are broken. Can you fix us Mother?
Mishaela smiled weakly at them, her brave puppets that had fought so hard against the Shining Force. “First let me tell you a story,” she said to them. The puppets settled down and listened intently, black eyes shining towards her.
“Once upon a time, there was a baby girl born in a small Elven village. Even though she looked like an elf, her skin was a different color than everyone else.”
Just like Mother…one puppet whispered in awe.
“Because of this, everyone in the village shunned her, thinking her to be cursed or diseased in some way. Eventually, even her own family turned her away and she was made to leave her home. She ran into the darkest part of a forest and threw herself on the ground, intending to stay there and die. But as she lay there, a great voice spoke to her from the darkness. It told her of magic she possessed and how to use it, told her she would be a great sorceress one day if she would join with it.
Was it Master? The puppets seemed to smile at this thought.
“Yes, it was our Master, the great Dark Dragon, who called to this girl from his dreams, who promised her power and glory in exchange for her loyalty. He even made sure she would not be alone, by giving her puppets of her very own. She was very happy then and did whatever the Master asked of her. She had been saved.”
And then what happened Mother?
Mishaela turned from their eyes and took a deep breath. “And then…there was the Shining Force who came and took everything away. She was once again alone. Even with all her powers, there were some things she still could not do.” With these words Mishaela lifted her hand and whispered the spell “Blaze”. The fire immediately sprang up and engulfed the wooden puppets, burning them into piles of ash as they screamed Mother! Mother! Mishaela clasped her hands to her ears until the voices stopped and the wind carried away their remains.
Several tears fell softly onto the grass as she lowered her hands, the flames dying away. Now she would return to Rindo and destroy the boat the Shining Force would need and then she vowed she would gather together an army and make them all pay for what they had done. Yet this was not consolation enough; for even if she could tear them apart with her very own hands and make them scream and suffer, there were some things that could never be fixed.