I'm back!

This is another version of Beryl winning that I wrote.

The last story got me to thinking: What if Beryl won from the origin? She and Endymion did not die on the Moon Kingdom. How far would Beryl go to get him then?

This is still rated M for Mature.

Wrath of Beryl

Ch. 1

Queen Matalia's plan for the Earth's revolution had been a wildfire of success! Not only was the Moon Princess dead and the Moon kingdom finished, but the people of Earth were rewarding Beryl! They saw her as a war hero for leading them against the Moon kingdom and the traitorous Prince Endymion!

"The Prince abandoned us for the Moon Kingdom!"

"The Princess is not his betrothed! He planned to abandon us for the luxuries of the Moon!"

"He doesn't care if his own people are sick or will die in his absence. What would Earth do without a ruler? Beryl is the one who saved us when he left!"

"Yes! Sage Beryl. She led her people in our darkest hour. With no heir to the throne but a traitor, we need a monarch who will protect their own!

"Put Sage Beryl on the Council!"

"No! Make her the Queen!"

"Queen Beryl! Queen Beryl!"

From Sage to Queen, Beryl could not believe her good fortune! Thanks to her the Kingdom of Earth would continue, and she had her revenge. Queen Metalia was also quite satisfied. Queen Serenity and the Moon Kingdom had fallen, just as she wanted. While she knew Beryl was feeling justified, and even celebrating being named Queen, Metalia knew Beryl was now her pawn more than ever.

Just a more powerful and influential pawn.

And bigger pawns get bigger rewards.

"You did well, Queen Beryl." Metalia said as they privately conversed. "Just as I helped you conquer the Moon, I will also instruct you on how to rule the Earth."

"You have more than simply delivered on our bargain, Queen Metalia." Said Beryl. "I have no more of the doubt I carried when we first met. I will happily obey and trust you to teach me further as you see fit."

Metalia thought that was a good enough declaration of loyalty. She didn't want Beryl becoming too ambitious or think she was holding out on her. She might become difficult to control then. So Metalia had one more gift, one more plot, for Beryl to enact. Revenge on the Princess was achieved... but a broken heart is a bountiful tool. "Yes." Metalia made her voice sound as sympathetic as she could. "But I heard what that wretched prince said to you... Calling my dear Beryl 'ugly' when she goes so far for her love for him."

At the reminder of what took place at the palace, Beryl looked jaded. Endymion had called her ugly! Before he hadn't even noticed her. She was just some casual girl, no more than a servant, to him. None of his kind smiles had meant a thing! None of his gratitude had a shred of truth! Now, when she had become more beautiful than she ever had before, he called her a hag! Her anger now combined with grief, Beryl almost cried.

"Now, now." Queen Metalia comforted her. "The people are going to be looking at a strong, vindictive Queen. One who does not let others push her, or her subjects, around. Prince Endymion is now a criminal in their eyes. And you are their Queen!"

"Yes..." The anger was coming back. Fine, if the Prince overlooks the humble, innocent Sage before him! If it takes are Negaverse powered Queen to get his attention, then he can have his way! Metalia thought this was good. She should feel angry at that boy. "I was always right there. I healed him and saved him from death over and over again in his escapades! I was right in front of him, but he always looked past me. Sometimes, when he did, he made me feel like such a princess. Our mothers were so close, a marriage was practically assured...Why did she take him away? He was going to leave me, leave the Earth, for her! I WAS ALREADY THERE! WHY COULDN'T YOU LOOK AT MEEEEEE?!"

"Still yourself, Beryl!" At the command of her teacher, Beryl regain her composure. "You still have a chance to have the prince. And! He will have to love you this time."

"How?" Beryl asked, almost letting her desperation slip.

"He is being held here, in the Earth Palace dungeon, yes?"

"Yes." Beryl confirm. "His once loyal, Heavenly Kings insisted he be kept there."

"Excellent." Metalia gleefully remarked. "Take heart, Queen Beryl. For we still need him. You need to organize a trial. Or rather... a very private meeting, with the prince."

Beryl listened closely to her master's instructions.

In a dark, trial chamber of the castle, Beryl set about creating the 'defense box' with her magic. First, she created a light green stand, round like the Earth it represented, for the Prince to stand on. Next, she conjured two thick, pink metal bars to stand within the base, only far enough apart for one person to be stretched in between them. The final piece was a large white orb, glistening like the moon to be set just on top of the bars.

Beryl began to muse. "Oh, this will play out nicely. Each piece represents a part in this story. The story that will drive my Endymion where he belongs: into my arms!" The woman laughed wickedly as she made herself vanish.

Later, Prince Endymion struggled and fought as his former bodyguards, Zoisite and Nephrite, led him down a dark, unfamiliar hallway. "Let me go! Zoisite, where is your loyalty? Nephrite, aren't you supposed to defend the Earth Kingdom?"

Zoisite replied, "We could ask you the very same questions."

They had been ordered to bring Prince Endymion into the trial room. As instructed, they tossed Endymion through the towering double-doors at the end of the hall. "Where are you going?! What is going on here?"

His only answer was slam of the doors.

"Welcome." Echoed a deep, resounding voice. Endymion shuddered, as the voice was somehow familiar. "So begins the Trial of Earth Prince Endymion!"

All at once, Prince Endymion felt seized off the ground and pulled through the air! He was shot forward, like a cannonball. His forced speed came to a fast stop as his arms and legs were forced out from his sides and manacled to two poles. The Prince looked around frantically.

"Who is doing this!? As Prince of the Earth, I demand-"

"You will be silent, foolish boy!" an old woman's voiced screeched. "You are a traitor to your own kingdom! You should be killed for your actions, by Earth's law!"

"However!" The old man's voice interjected. "Queen Beryl is who the people want to lead. She has proven herself, thus her recommendation for a trial will be adhered to."

A light turned on from up above. Endymion could not see their faces because of the blindingly light behind them, but above sat two judges. The woman spoke. "As such, we are here today as a People-" Two more lights flashed on, revealing rows of hundreds of jurors on both sides of the Prince. Likewise, their faces were unseen because of the light. "to hear the defendant plead his case. And perhaps lighten his sentence."

Endymion knew Earth legislation. He would state his story first. "I am Prince Endymion, Heir to the Throne of Planet Earth. My family has led and guided the People for generations, well into our Silver Millenium! I have been accused of treason and abandoning my throne. But I say this! My only crime was falling in love with the Moon Princess! I would have married her. The Earth and Moon could have been united as one. But now she is dead... Now there will never be peace... Because of that witch!"

Endymion's speech was followed by jeers and angry accusations.

"Queen Beryl is an angel compared to you!"

"You just admitted to your own treachery!"

"Why is he still alive?"

"SILENCE!" The male judge banged his gavel three times, then the courtroom fell quiet. "Prince Endymion, addressing the issue of love: you are aware you were to be engaged to a woman of Earth descent, are you not?"

"Yes," he replied. The Heavenly Kings had been making the arrangements when he first met the Princess. "And I even asked that Princess Serena be considered."

The female judge said, "We have the record here. It says that her name was immediately taken off the list. Do you know why, Prince?"

Endymion knew. He had argued it until it was clear he would not be heard. "Because we were both first in line for our kingdoms. But Earth and Moon have always been allies! It makes no sense that we-"

"Two kingdoms that separated by roughly 238,900 miles! What if Earth was suddenly attacked and we were left leaderless? As Crown Prince, you swore to always be at the aid of the people. Moon Magic is the only way to reach the Palace in less than a day, something our allies refuse to share with us. Had you married that Princess, a usurper or enemy could easily take over and destroy everything!" The woman banged her fist on the table.

The room started to go into an uproar again. Endymion looked around him at his angry subjects. This is how they felt? Had he really abandoned them? His bodyguards had warned him time and again that his best relationship with the Moon was one of trust and friendship. Nothing more would lead to anything good. He refused to listen. Endymion thought he could be with the beautiful princess who captured his heart, and led himself to believe that their union would ultimately been good for everyone.

But, hearing these words of hate and hurt, Endymion was starting to understand why his actions looked like treason.

The male judge spoke after the room became quiet again. "We also have reports from all levels of staff, kitchen maids to Heavenly Kings that the Prince had secretly met with the Princess on many occasions, and had even snuck away to the Moon together."

"We were in love!" Endymion pleaded. "We just wanted to be toge-"

"This proves the Prince had access to substantial amounts of Magic which he withheld from the Court and left his duties on hundreds of occasions." The judge then addressed Endymion. "Another act of treason. Undeniable abandonment of the people... Your father would hang his head in shame..."

Endymion gasped. Also realizing whose voice he had connected the judge's to. His dead father, whose dying words were to protect the kingdom at all costs. He had gotten distracted by his romance with the Moon Princess. But still...

"We-We never hurt anyone!" Endymion cried out. "Who got the people so worked up that a revolution got started?! How did they even get to the Moon Kingdom? And why isn't Witch Beryl being tried for killing an allied Royal?"

The male judge spoke again. "The people were starving and dying. An epidemic broke out on one of your visits with the Princess. As a Royal Sage, Beryl took charge in healing and guiding the people as best she could. Even seeking out stronger magic when her own proved ineffective. The Council approved Beryl's spell to enter the Moon kingdom. An act which almost cost Beryl her own life! As for killing a Royal: that was an accident. And with the Princess' wants and whims keeping you on the Moon, it was deemed justified."

"Outrage!" Endymion shouted.

"Justice!" The angry, lady judge corrected. "But this is your trial." Both judges stood and the woman addressed the room. "People of the Earth Kingdom, we have heard the Prince's story. We have heard the words of the Law. Now, we ask for the words of the People. Cast your votes now!"

In less than a minute, the two judges spoke with conviction. "The voices of the people have been heard unanimously! Prince Endymion, we hereby find you guilty and sentence you to-"

"Stop this!"

A third voice echoed through the courtroom. Endymion tried to look through the lights to see who it was. But there was no need. In front of him, calm and chillingly cool, came the form and face of the woman whom he had last seen at the Moon Palace.

"Queen Beryl is here!" one of the juror's gasped excitedly.

"She's twice as beautiful and elegant as they say!"

"Why did she stop the proceedings?"

But through all the praise and cheers for her arrival, Beryl's ruby eyes never once left the sight of Prince Endymion before her. She even smiled. The Prince himself shivered at the sight of her. Both in anger and in fear. It was clear she had far more power than he originally thought. Not just in magic, she also had the hearts of his people.

Queen Beryl simply raised her hand a little and the commotion ceased. "I will not deny the People's judgement. If you find that Endymion is a traitor here: then he is." There were murmurs of agreement. Beryl would respect the court's decision, yet at the same time sent a calming look towards the prince. Endymion, for the first time since entering, started to feel safe. Clearly, Beryl had the love of the people on her side. Perhaps he could convince her to let him go free. Whatever her reasons for killing the Princess, now the Queen was his only hope for seeing another day.

"But I will not have an ancient line such as his spilled in our liberation." Beryl knew there was power in his blood. His family were the rulers of the Planet for a reason. But this was about revenge for her. Endymion had led her on, now it was her turn. He would know twice the hurt that she did when he broke her heart! She wanted him to know what it felt like to be so broken that one takes any kind of help offered to them! And as she evilly smirked, she said. "Look at your feet, Prince Endymion."

He looked, all he could see was the round, green platform beneath his shoes. "You look down upon the Earth, yet you are bound to it. Bound by your bloodline, by your obligations and by those who count on you. Yet you have made it clear these things are your burdens. Now look above, see what awaits over your head?"

A giant, pure white orb, glistening like the beautiful... "The Moon." Beryl said. "What you turn away from your people for. It represents what you look at so longingly, where you think there is freedom, yet it looms above your head now ready to crush you! It would have killed the Earth, but now it just might fall upon your head!" The Prince shivered in fear. "And what binds you to your precious Moon?"

The pink bars. "Your lust, and spoiled-child nature. These are not bars that will save the Earth in any lifetime. They are flimsy and fickle and with just one word they will fall down. At the center of it all is you! You, who would let your own world be destroyed by the Moon. Did you really believe that there would be no consequences to your actions? You gave in to lust and desire while your people get lost in darkness and fear! You broke the laws and left your kingdom because our wants and needs got in the way of your own! You cannot deny this!"

All these people. His people. They wanted him dead. He had betrayed them. The weight of his guilt now felt so heavy on Endymion. Like the weight of both the Moon and the Earth were now strapped to his back. It was enough to crush him. In the position he was manacled in, he could only hang his head low in his shame. "No..." the Prince said, "I cannot."

He missed the look of wicked triumph on Queen Beryl. "Still. History will remember this day. The Moon Kingdom is gone. But I will not let the Earth be looked upon as a world of tyranny. Therefore!" she addressed the courtroom. "As Queen, I have spoken with my loyal guardians, the Heavenly Kings, and come up with this compromise."

Everyone leaned in to listen. Queen Beryl raised her magic staff as the orb began to alight with (dark) energy. "Prince Endymion will be stripped of his titles of Prince and Future King!"

Prince Endymion's head shot up. This was indeed world-shattering news, but it was better than being executed. "But that is not all he will be punished with."

Suddenly, Endymion's beaten and torn clothes ripped themselves to shreds, right off his body! Even his socks and shoes vanished. The air left his lungs in the shock! He couldn't even speak. He was naked in front of the entire jury!

"Endymion will from now on be my Royal Concubine. In the interest of keeping a prestigious line of heirs, only I will be allowed to touch him. He may only travel within the Palace and in the rooms I designate. We won't have him running off again or siring heirs outside the kingdom."

Endymion could not believe what he was hearing. The Courts of Earth would never allow this. But as he looked up, he saw smiles and nods of approval pass between the people. They were happy to see him stripped of everything from his title to his clothes?! They were satisfied with him being a sex slave and prisoner to Queen Beryl?! The feeling of the weight of their hatred felt like it was pressing down on his now naked form. Further disabling his speech.

"To ensure that Endymion understands the true weight of his transgressions..." Beryl raised her staff up again. Down came a choker, composed of rows of tiny diamonds and an oval moonstone in the center. "This collar in my own creation. By wearing it we will ensure Endymion is following orders and taking his punishment as he should."

Beryl walked up to the manacled frame of her love. Already naked and defenseless to stop her. But even now, he didn't seem to be looking at her. He was in a daze, his life spiraling out of his control. Now you know how it feels to have such heartbreak! To be so desperate! To have absolutely everything taken from your life! You cannot overlook me now. You won't even be able to speak once you have this on! You will either learn to love me or go insane.

Beryl fastened the clasp of the collar around his neck. It immediately dissolved into his neck, as Queen Meatalia had said it would. Then, taking advantage of her new liberties, Beryl ran her hand down Endymion's chest.

It was at the contact that Endymion broke of his daze. "No!" he choked out.

But Queen just quietly chuckled. She teased his nipple roughly between her thumb and pointer finger, and whispered, "You no longer have a say in the matter." Beryl wanted to do more, but it would have to wait. There was plenty of time for that now.

She stepped away addressing the whole room. "My People! Do you accept these terms of retribution against you?"

The response was thundering applause and cheers. Endymion swallowed. Queen Beryl was now the Queen of the Earth. He had been completely stripped, literally and figuratively, of everything. And everyone was happy with it!

He started to think that maybe... as it was the people's wish... that he accept the blame for his actions and take the punishment full on. As their former Prince...

The celebrating had not even died down when Queen's Beryl long, red hair and deep blue dress came into Endymion's view. Lifting his chin she said. "I will send you away to be dressed in more appropriate clothing. In a few hours' time we will be addressing the Earth to officially announce my rule as Queen. You will stay beside me and remain completely silent."

Even if Endymion had something to say, he didn't get the chance before Beryl teleported him away.

Now alone in the Courtroom full of praise, Beryl turned and said. "Alright, I believe that's enough for now."

She waved her hand, and the shadows of the people, along with the light all swirled and were sucked in to the orb, revealing it to be an old storage chamber.

A single floating mass occupied the room with Queen Beryl. It was completely black with red lining.

"That was fun, wasn't it?" said Queen Metalia.

Beryl enthusiastically agreed. "Oh, it was! I feel so much better now. I have my own kingdom, I have my revenge, and I even have Endymion waiting for me later!"

Metalia laughed evilly. "You put on an even better performance that I expected, Beryl! Endymion is now completely broken. All you have to do now is shape him into the kind of lover who will only desire you."

Beryl nodded. "I saw that look in his eyes. He now thinks I spared his life from an angry mob. And now he knows how all of this is all his fault!"

Metalia began thinking as Beryl got lost in her planning for later that night. I chose well feeding that heartbroken girl's jealousy and hate for the Moon Princess. Now I must tend to her lust for the former-Prince. Once I have enough dark energy, I can get started on my real plans!

But as she watched and caught words of Beryl going through all possible scenarios of meeting wither 'lover', Metalia had other thoughts.

Of course, I could put off my plans for just a little longer. Manipulating these Earthlings has been the most fun I've had in centuries. Beryl's wrath is the darkest and most twisted force I've seen in this millennium! Maybe...I'll get started, but keep the process slow and precise.

Gem Fact: Beryl has been said to have the power to keep demons away, to promote happiness and marital love, increase sincerity, cure laziness, protect travelers from danger, and maintain youthfulness.

Pliny The Elder used a powdered form of beryl to cure eye injuries, as well as disorders of the heart and spine.

(Guess the Negaverse causes the opposite!)