EPILOGUE

Ruella paced up and down. From behind the doors came loud screams of pain. There were many a times when Ruella just felt like bursting in to help alleviate the pain, to relieve her of such burden. She couldn't believe that she had actually allowed this to happen...

"Is she all right?" Ruella asked the physician as soon as he finished checking Anyss.

"Err..." the man hesitated.

Ruella didn't exactly like the sound of that 'err..' She gazed at Anyss with worry, then back towards the physician."What is it? Is she all right or not?"

The man trembled before the sorceress reluctant to give her the news as he feared for what could happen to him if he incurred her wrath.

"Speak! Or you can forget about ever speaking again!" Ruella threatened.

He cowered and dropped to his knees. "M-m-my lady..." he stammered. "My l-l-lady Anyss...err...is just overcome by e-e-exhaustion..."

Ruella looked doubtful. "Exhaustion?" Anyss was always fit. It was hard to believe that she could hardly be overcome by exhaustion.

"A-a-and..." the poor man hesitated yet again, unsure of whether to proceed or not. "A-a-and...she is also with child..."

Those words were barely a whisper but to Ruella, they were clearer than if they had been spoken with a blowhorn.

"With child?" Ruella tried to grasp the situation before her. So, whatever Kane said before Anyss had struck the fatal blow was true. She looked at the woman lying on the bed. The woman she had spent 6 years of her life with. The woman she had grew to love. The woman she loved. Ruella closed her eyes and images of Anyss in bed with a man flashed before her. She clenched her fist and let her nails dig in to the flesh, hoping that the pain she felt there would somewhat block out the pain of her heart.

"Get rid of it."

"M-m-my lady, Lady Anyss, she..." the physician stuttered. "Removing t-t-the child may be f-f-fatal for h-h-her...I-I-I..."

"Leave," Ruella interrupted. She had heard enough. "Leave us," she waved limply to the physician.

The shaking man was only more than happy to hear that. With a hasty bow, he quickly scampered out of the room.

Ruella slowly moved towards the bed and sat down next to Anyss' sleeping form. Why, Anyss, why, she silently mumbled as she wrapped the bandit queen's limp hand with her own.

It wasn't long before Anyss stirred. Feeling the warm touch on her hand, she slowly opened her eyes. There was a figure next to her. Anyss tried to focus.

"Ruella?" she whispered.

Ruella squeezed her hand acknowledging her presence.

"Ugh," Anyss moaned as she pushed herself up. "What the hell happened?"

"You're with child."

Had Anyss heard right? No it couldn't be. Surely she must still be delusional. Or else it was Ruella playing a joke on her. "What was that again?"

"I said, you're with child," Ruella repeated without emotion.

Anyss felt the world crash before her. She shook her head in denial. "No no no, it can't be! It was only one night!" Then she realised Ruella was just sitting there looking at her. Waves of guilt overwhealmed the bandit queen. "Oh Ruella..."

"I'm so sorry. I don't know what came over me that night. You have to believe me. It was nothing. It didn't mean anything..." Anyss clutched tightly at the sorceress' hand. "It was after that fight we had and...and I was so upset, he was there...and...and...oh I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for it to happen, Ruella. I love you..."

"We'd get rid of it. I don't want it...I don't want it..." Anyss started thumping at her belly as tears rolled down her cheeks.

Ruella grabbed her hands to stop her. "No..."

The sorceress sighed. That was nine months ago. The physician had told her that getting rid of the fetus would be too dangerous and potentially fatal for the bandit queen. No matter how she hated it, Ruella couldn't bear to let any harm befall Anyss and so had instead convinced her to keep the child. Anyss had balked at the suggestion at first and even though Ruella had told her that they'd kill the child once it was born, she had even tried countless times to 'accidentally' lose the baby. But after a while, she had gradually come to accept her pregnancy. Ruella could see the change in Anyss. The normally active and vivacious bandit queen was actually starting to grow fond of the child within her. Ruella had started to worry that Anyss would get too detached.

"Don't worry," Anyss had reassured her. "We'll get rid of it as soon as it is born."

The wails from behind the door suddenly jolted the sorceress from her thoughts. She spun around just as the midwife walked out.

"How is she?" Ruella asked worriedly.

"My l-l-lady, Lady Anyss is doing well."

Ruella breathed a gasp of relief. "And the child?"

"The c-child is doing w-w-well too. It's a b-b-boy," the midwife reported.

Ruella swept past her and into the room. She found Anyss sitting up in bed cradling a tiny bundle in her arms.

"Ruella," Anyss looked up at the sorceress. There was a big smile plastered across her face. "Look at him. Isn't he adorable?"

The sorceress sat down next to her and gazed at where the bandit queen was gesturing. The baby boy in her arms was indeed a sight to behold. And just watching Anyss nestle him next to her, Ruella thought Anyss looked the most beautiful of all times she had known her. But the sorceress couldn't let herself get too emotionally attached. The baby had to go and she had to remind Anyss that.

"Anyss..."

"Ruella," the bandit queen grabbed her hand, her eyes pleading. "I know what I said earlier but...look at him, Ruella...I-I.."

"Anyss, you do remember Kane Galdrich? He is this boy's father. Do you remember how we 'took care' of Kane? What do you think the boy will do when he finds out all this?" Ruella said, pointing to the baby.

"But he doesn't need to know, Ruella. All he will know is that I am his mother. That...that we are his mothers."
Ruella shook her head. "Anyss, we can't -"

"Please, Ruella, please..." Anyss pleaded with the sorceress.

Ruella looked at Anyss. She saw the desperation and love in the bandit queen's eyes. Anyss had grown to love the child in those 9 months. Ruella had underestimated the power of a mother's love. Killing it now meant killing a part of Anyss. The sorceress knew then that she couldn't possibly bear to bring more pain to the bandit queen. Anyss was all that she had and after all that they'd been through, all Ruella wanted was to give her happiness.

There was a long pause before anyone said anything. Anyss looked expectantly at Ruella, hoping that Ruella would relent and let her keep the child but at the same time ready to fight for the child if Ruella did not agree.

Finally Ruella forced a smile. "So...what's the boy's name going to be?"

"Oh Ruella!" Anyss laughed amid her tears as she pulled the sorceress towards her. "Thank you, thank you, thank you."

"What do you think of the name, Lance?" Anyss' eyes twinkled as she asked Ruella.

In the darkness of the room, a small glow emanated from a corner, bathing it in soft light. The old man frowned and made his way towards it. The book laid opened at that one particular page - a page that the old man had flipped to many countless times. His eyes rested on the page.

"Out of the ashes rises the valiant son of man
Between witch and robber shall among them dawn
Will then darkness be vanquished
And light bequest the lands once more."

The second quatrain.

It was glowing with an energy the old man had never seen before. Suddenly an image began to form above it - fuzzy at first but slowly as it came into focus, the old man recognised the subjects within. Ruella Duquayne and Anyss MacCullen and...was his eyes deceiving him or was that a baby in the bandit queen's arms?

The old man stroke his beard in contemplation as he viewed the image before him. Revelation slowly came over him as he once again relooked the second quatrain of the prophecy.

With a gasp, he shook his head, "Who would have thought...who would have thought. The irony..."