Chapter 244: The Ultimate Fight (1)
Going down the Tower’s floors, they came to a level that looked like a farm. Horses made sounds in their pens, while cows and sheep happily ate from their food bins. Little fluffy chicks darted around near Kestrel’s feet, and her tendrils playfully messed with a tabby cat that was stretching in a laid-back way.
The floor after that was totally for wild animals. Kestrel spotted a real-life orca in a huge fish tank; it had a bent fin as it swam casually by her. She also saw a praying mantis, this small green bug that was in its own mini eco-world.
When Kestrel got close, the mantis moved its many-eyed head, like it was watching her through the clear wall.
The Queen took Kestrel even lower, walking by science labs, weapon storage rooms, and places where weapons are made. One floor was surprisingly filled with old-timey buildings; walking there felt like a trip back to a time when many people were around.
Feeling super tired, they went into an area called a cinema and sat on comfy couches. The big screen turned on, making everything else go dark.
"In old times, people liked spots like this," said the Queen next to Kestrel. "They’d chill in the dark for hours and didn’t think it was a waste of time. They weren’t afraid, ’cause back then, there were no monsters."
They stayed in that dim, boxed-in place, watching a weird short movie. The parts were cool but made little sense to Kestrel. Time had changed how people thought; even if from the same species, today’s folks couldn’t really get the mindset of past generations.
Yet the Queen looked sort of nostalgic.
In the flickering movie light, Kestrel for a split second thought the Queen’s face changed, turning into one she had never seen before.
When they exited that floor, the Queen gestured for Kestrel to look far ahead.
"See that? It’s a Ferris wheel," she explained. "Old ones used to be even bigger and taller. They stood near oceans or smack in the middle of busy towns, like all-seeing eyes from gods looking down on the world."
Kestrel thought Ferris wheels were pretty amazing. She’d seen lots of similar round things in the Mantidale flower fields. She even had a special night once, under a toppled-over giant Ferris wheel with Ren.
She wondered if the Queen had ever walked through those same flower fields in her own past.
At last, they reached the beta academy and the alpha camp. The head of the beta academy, plus some teachers and students, came out all dressed up to welcome them.
People gathered around Kestrel one by one, crying and saying stuff that was hard to follow.
Endless compliments circled around Kestrel, making her feel like she had always been a top student, super popular with teachers.
"A beta wanting to fight? That’s a joke. You should stick to arranging flowers."
"Does she even deserve to be a beta? She can’t even pass Home Ec."
"Her psychic power is way too wild. That’s not how a good beta should act."
"That girl is a freak."
"Don’t go near her."
"Keep your distance."
— All those mean voices from her past were now gone. Everyone around her was showering Kestrel with praise.
Even her former teachers were heard saying things like, "She’s always had strong psychic power. She’s really turned into something special."
Her classmates were all gathering around her, too. The looks of awe, the buzz of excitement, and the rush to be near her were all real this time.
All the stuff she wanted when she was younger—like thumbs-ups from teachers and having actual friends in school—now came easy to her, all thanks to her new status.
As she was leaving, Kestrel looked back one more time at the campus she knew so well and the uniforms she used to wear. Behind all the smiling faces, she thought she saw a younger version of herself—a lonely little girl, standing all by herself, away from everyone else, her head hanging low.
The Queen turned to look back with her. Right then, Kestrel saw the Queen’s face change for a moment, shifting into another, totally unfamiliar face, filled with this kind of sad longing, as they both took in the view of the centuries-old beta academy.
"It’s a place full of memories. I’ve read a lot of books here over the years," the Queen said.
"That doesn’t add up," thought Kestrel. "This Tower was built after she became Queen. She couldn’t have studied here."
Before Kestrel had time to think more about it, that emotional face vanished, and what was left was the Queen’s decayed face, almost crumbling, hidden behind a white veil.
Finally, in the alpha camp, a bunch of strong, young alphas knelt down before her, one after another.
"So, do you like what you see?" the Queen asked Kestrel. "I heard you like being around alphas. From now on, these are your alphas. Whoever you want to hang with or give special treatment to, it’s your choice. Everyone here will look up to you. Your future is all in your hands now."
The Queen said these words over and over: "All of this is going to be yours—every single thing in the Tower, including all the tech stuff, weapons, tons of money, and even the people. They’ll all respect you, bow down to you. Everyone will want to be your friend."
Kestrel looked at her hand. Her palm had all these complicated lines, like a mini-world was there. In her hand was the power to decide who lives or dies, and the future of every person, the whole Tower, and even the entire human Empire.
As her fingers kinda closed in, it felt like she could control the whole world just by using her hand.
This was real power, and it had its own amazing vibe. It was like something you just had to try, taste, and totally grab for yourself.
She felt this electric-like feeling poking at her heart. It was like her heart was being touched or something.
Kestrel knew she was hooked. "Who wouldn’t want something like this? This feeling is probably what people call temptation."
The last part of the tour was over, and they started to go up in the elevator.
They got a really good look at the entire Tower through the elevator. It had everything you could think of from the human world, all in one place. Kestrel could only imagine how much work it took to build this, and the person responsible was standing right next to her.
The Queen didn’t look like she used to. She was more like a melting candle, slowly falling apart, not even noticing she was falling apart.
Kestrel curled her hand back into a fist and hid it behind her.
The Queen kept going, not even knowing what Kestrel was thinking. "We’re not done yet. There’s one more place I want to show you."
She started to walk faster, and her voice got all shaky. She was super pumped. They were almost at the final stop. Her body falling apart didn’t matter now. She knew she’d get a new, young body soon.
"The next place is the Empire’s biggest secret. It’s how we stay in charge forever," the Queen said while walking.
Kestrel noticed she said "we" this time.
Before, the Queen had been like, "I want you to take over for me." She even held Kestrel’s hand and told her she was getting too old and needed to pick someone new right away. She said Kestrel would be in charge of the future of the Tower and all of humanity.
But now, the Queen slipped and said "we."
Even though Kestrel still wasn’t sure what the Queen was planning, one thing was clear: the Queen wasn’t going to fully hand over the Tower to anyone else.
She had been the leader of all humans for like, 400 years.
Walking down a dark, skinny hallway, Kestrel was led into this secret school that Ren had told her about. It was a super creepy place, hidden at the top of the Tower, surrounded by thick walls. No windows, no extra doors, totally hidden from everyone else.
Kestrel saw a bunch of kids just playing around. These kids had never been outside or seen any grown-ups except their teachers. They didn’t have to go to school or do chores; they just played all day and ate yummy food.
When Kestrel walked in, all the kids started laughing and it sounded super happy. But she felt super weird and scared. It was like she walked into a haunted place, and she felt this cold feeling go right through her.
It was super cold, like you’d feel in a graveyard. It felt like a lot of people had died there, and the place was filled with their angry ghosts. Kestrel even felt her thoughts getting all slow because of the cold.
The walls of the classroom were all pink, and there were bright lights and toys everywhere. Pictures of cartoons were all over the walls.
The kids kept laughing and running around.
Then, out of nowhere, a little hand popped up in front of her, blocking her view. It had paint all over its fingers and was pointing at something.
Kestrel knew that hand—it was the same little hand she had seen grabbing the Queen’s neck. Now it was pointing at something else.
"Check it out, that’s where I used to paint," a little boy’s voice echoed in her mind.
Kestrel looked and saw that the Queen’s face had changed again, this time into a little boy.
She followed where the little hand was pointing and looked at a corner of the room, away from all the noise and stuff. She saw a faint picture of a young boy sitting on a bench, totally into his drawing. His fingers were all colorful from the paint, and he was painting really fast.
Then, another image popped up, this time of a little girl. She was sitting with her knees up and looked super bored. Every once in a while, she’d peek at what the boy was drawing.
Both kids looked like they didn’t really fit in, sitting away from everyone else. Sometimes their heads would come close together to check out what was in the drawing book.
"That’s me, and the girl next to me is Ligia," said the young boy. Right then, Kestrel was seeing memories from him.
He pointed at an empty chair, hinting that he used to sit there and draw. Next to him used to be a friend he really liked.
Turns out, a kid who used to draw here got eaten by this creepy thing. Maybe it was because the Queen’s psychic incarnation was falling apart, but this kid still had some of his own thoughts. He even showed his real face for a sec, without the Queen knowing.
This weird thing happened a couple of times already. In the cinema, the Queen turned into someone pretty. In the beta academy, she turned into a young beta kid who looked all happy and stuff, while she and Kestrel looked back at the academy. Now, her face turned into this boy’s face out of nowhere.
The Queen didn’t seem to know that her face kept changing. She didn’t know that other minds inside her were talking to Kestrel. She just kept walking like nothing was going on, picking up her skirt and all.
Kestrel kept following this spooky thing.
