“You never said he was so weak,” a wizened voice spoke to Servant.
“He has had his moments, and not everyone can withstand the price of summoning you even second hand, Ancient One.” Servant’s smooth voice held an edge of bitterness to it.
“Shut up.” An odd warmth covered my skin, and my health bar popped back up almost instantaneously. I had to fight the urge to nap as whatever it was blanketed me in heavy drowsiness. “You need to sleep, young King. Healer’s orders.”
I was almost out when Servant whispered, “I will watch over her. Rest.”
Darkness washed over me, and I could feel that I had one of those, “I can feel myself snoring, but I can’t really do anything about it, so I’ll just stay napping,” naps. You know the kind. After what felt like only ten minutes of that, I woke up refreshed, although my throat felt a little thick from all the snoring.
“Finally, the Bandersnatch awakens,” a gruff voice greeted me from a rocking chair next to the bed. “Look alive, young king, we have a bargain to strike.”
I sat up, blearily looking around, noting that Servant lay next to Maebe on the bed in his cat form. I looked to the figure in the chair, the blurry person coming into clarity as a medium-sized person with fur covering his body, stubby limbs with a snout like a bear’s but not a bear’s. I thought I could recall having read about a creature like this once, but the name eluded me.
“What would you have of me, other than Maebe’s life, power, my life, my power, her crown, mine, or anything to do with any of my friends.” I finished my spiel and the figure chuckled.
“You were right,” the figure said. “He is learning. No, I have no interest in those things. I like having the Lady Darkest as our Queen of the Unseelie, thank you. And rule has never really been of all that much interest to me. No, I want something else.”
“No games,” I ordered. “Tell me what you want, and I will tell you whether I can give it or no.”
The figure smiled, canines flashing. “I want an apprentice. Someone to pass my vast knowledge on to.”
“We can probably do that.” I frowned, that seemed almost too easy. There had to be a catch, so I voiced my worry. “What’s your play, though? What do you get out of it?”
“The passing on of my profession to someone who should prove to be even stronger than those before them, even me.” The healer’s grin seemed to grow ever wider.
“Why not take your pick then?” I shrugged. “A bunch of children were just taken to the Fae Realm from the Prime. One of them should suffice, right?”
He shook his head. “No, they could not handle my strength. What I want is the ability to choose who I want when the time comes. You can tell the queen when she awakens, she will likely not care. She may worry, certainly, but I have served her line since well before her mother’s time as Queen. She knows that I hold the hope of the Unseelie within my old, withered heart.”
I glanced over to Servant, who said, “He tells no lies.”
“Your services are appreciated, Healer.” I stood and moved a bit to work the stiffness out of my joints. The healer watched, unworried while I stretched. “If you mean no ill will, then I don’t see the harm in allowing you this boon as payment for saving the ruler of the realm.”
“I want your word,” he stated icily. “I know you to be Fae enough that your word holds weight. Swear it so as King, and I will tell you more of what ailed our Queen and how best to assist her further.”
“I, as King of the Unseelie Fae, swear that when the time comes for you to choose a successor, you may choose who you please so long as it is in the best interests of the Unseelie Court and will not be a detriment to the realm or my Queen.” I grinned, noting the marked look of recognition in his eyes.
A weight settled over my chest, but no notification came to me. Weird. Then the weight was gone, and a slow grin spread over the healer’s face once more.
“It is done, then. Thank you, Majesty.” He stood and pulled out a jar filled with a slithering mass of tentacles and spines near the base of each of them. “This was inside her, poisoning her, and siphoning away her strength and magic. It will take her time to recover all of her strength, but it was before the point where she could have lost any levels, so she was blessed you caught it before then.”
“And how do I assist her further?” I raised an eyebrow as I turned my attention to Maebe, where she meditated in the bed, almost like she was asleep.
“Short of allowing her to return home for a time, longer periods inside this space will assist her. It’s not quite the Fae Realm, but it is partially of it thanks to the metal, and it doesn’t have the…ordered nature of the Prime Realm.” He blinked up at me, his weird, furry face taking on a look of disgust at the word, then shook his head. “This place will help until she can go home. Use it often.”
He walked toward the edge of the room where the wall met the floor before turning back, “Your friends came for you, and I looked them over. None of them were affected by this thing, but know that there could be more. If you want to get it out of them, or anyone else for that matter, you must cut it out, then purify the wound with fire. It can latch onto you, but it cannot burrow without an opening. Something cut her leg so that it could get in.”
I took the news stoically, trying not to let my worries and fears gather on my face. “Thank you, Healer.”
“Do not call on me again unless she is dying, and even then, be prepared for a steep price—my King.” The creature faded from sight, the cold black eyes seeming to linger even as the rest was gone.
“I despise that old fool,” Servant grumbled, making me look at him. “I have known him far too long, and you did well to control things the way you did, though it may have seemed a little inevitable that he would get his way.”
“Thank you,” I replied simply, taking the healer’s spot in the rocking chair.
“You may call on me more, my King,” Milnolian offered, and when I looked at him, his teeth shone in the sparse light of the room. “I will not take as much from you knowing that you mean well and that you can be trusted. It is not a full trust yet. I may never see you as I do my Queen, but I like you.”
“Look at the two of you getting along,” Maebe observed softly. Her green eyes stared straight ahead. “What was the price of my good health?”
“An apprentice of his choice, your Majesty,” The panther answered before I could. “The King did well in your stead. Not quite so good as you, but passable.”
“I think I’ll take that back-handed compliment, Servant.” A wry grin graced my lips, and my hand found Maebe’s. “How do you feel, my love?”
She turned her head, her normally deep-black skin looking clammy and thin somehow. “Like shit.”
“You kiss me with that mouth?” I raised an eyebrow at her playfully, and she didn’t quite seem to get it. “I’m teasing. Hold still.”
I went through the process of casting every healing spell in my arsenal on her as I pulled shadows from all around us over her like an umbrella. Regrowth, Mass Regrowth, Renewing Flames, Void’s Respite, and Heal. My mana took a hit, but it was okay. She breathed a little easier, and she rested more comfortably where she lay back in the bed.
Finally, I called to Jaken through our earrings, Hey, she’s doing a lot better, but we need to keep an eye out for those little parasites.
We know, the brownie told us. He responded sleepily. All of us will be trying to get some sleep, and then planning when we wake up. I suggest you take advantage.
“So, he was a brownie?” I wondered aloud as I turned back to Maebe. “I admit, I don’t know much about them.”
Servant opened an eye and rolled it toward me, the golden slit widening slightly. “Generally helpful creatures who usually enjoy cleaning, but his power makes him much more astute and less content to simply clean.”
“What is his power?” My heart beat a little less steadily, wondering what fate I had just consigned someone to.
Maebe responded, “
No one knows. But he is the strongest healer I have ever known. And he’s dangerous.”
“I gathered as much if he could make me sleep the way he did.” I rubbed my head, suddenly exhausted once more. I looked longingly at the bed. “You feeling up to company?”
“Always.” Her soft smile was comforting. I disrobed and passed shadows over my body, then stopped cold. a shiver ran down my back like something was looking for me. I glanced back, finding nothing.
“What is wrong?” Servant asked, his head suddenly up and on the alert, nostrils flaring.
“I keep feeling something as if it’s trying to get my attention, but I can’t quite place it.” It was starting to freak me out, which was making me angry.
I am not certain what it is, but it is time, friend Zeke. Gorumbal interrupted the bitterness in my heart at my inability to figure out what was going on.
I sighed, but a smile spread across my face as I responded out loud, “Thank you, Gorumbal, for allowing me to sample your strength and giving us the hope we needed to get out of that dungeon.”
His rumbling presence eased on my mind, an avalanche-like sound of crashing, skittered through my being, and my body grew heavier. My children and I expected great things—we were not displeased. How did you say it? A sample was what you had, and you used it well. If you can resolve this quest for us, that power is yours. Good luck, friend Zeke.
His presence left, and I felt alone before Servant stood next to me, his elven form surprising me, but his arm around my body helped me to stay on my feet.
“Your scent has changed.” His features looked puzzled. This close, he was handsome, but the features seemed a little fuzzy. “You no longer smell like freshly tilled earth.”
“What do I shmell like now?” The world swam a bit, and I leaned a little more heavily on him.
“Like a bonfire on a crisp moonlit night, the moon shining in the sky.” I blinked at his answer, and he tilted his head. “The night and scent of ash make sense to you, yes?”
“You’re fuzzy.” My eyelids could have been tied to millstones for all I knew at that moment.
Weightlessness, then warmth and the scent of cool night air. Hands on my skin and gentle whispers of affection spoken against my forehead.
***
I woke up to find Servant sleeping on the floor in front of the doorway, and Maebe watching me with a small smile on her lips. She looked much better than she had before. Her normally immaculate colorful hair a bit mussed from the night.
“How are you feeling?” I brushed a finger through her hair, sweeping it behind her long right ear.
“Well, since the last time that you asked me, I feel much better.” Her smile shifted into a grin at my confusion. “You asked me any time I moved, though I don’t think you recall it, do you?”
“I don’t.” I stretched, the aching of my muscles finally abating a bit. I stood and stretched some more, bending and sweeping to and fro to adjust my bones and muscles further. “Thank you for watching over us, Servant.”
“Well, when someone tosses and turns as much as you do, my King, it seems appropriate, though tiring.” His baleful eyes shifted to Maebe. “How you deal with that, Majesty is beyond me. But you made your choice.”
“How long do you plan to stay?” She asked, likely choosing to ignore his sass.
He stood and stretched himself out, wicked claws extending from his front paws. “I will return home. And remember, my King, you can summon me at any time. I will not tax your strength so much anymore.”
Before I could say anything, his body faded from the room.
“I am glad to see that he likes you.” I could hear the contentment in Maebe’s voice. “While you slept, he told me everything. Thank you.”
“You’re my wife, Mae.” I turned to see her standing, stepping closer to me. “It’s my duty to protect you, not just as your husband and someone who loves you, but for our people.”
She paused. “I do so love when you call them our people.”
“Well, they are.” My palms massaged my temples, my stomach roaring at me angrily. “Let’s go get something to eat before my stomach decides to really riot.”
“Let us.” Her small hand wound its way into mine and tugged me back before I could reach the door. “You should dress first.”
I blinked at her, then looked down. Yup. I was naked. Thank the gods for her. As I pulled my clothes on, I had to ask, “Was what I did okay?”
“The old man can be trusted in the manner that a tree can.” She sighed, seeming a little worried. “He thinks of the long game, longer even than most true immortals. His strength is unfathomable, and his is a might that my mother and I are grateful to have among the Unseelie. An apprentice to one so strong would not be an unwelcome thing, especially if they prove to be as loyal as he is and less fickle about the use of his powers.”
That put me a little more at ease as I pulled my shirt over my head and laced my boots.
We dressed for travel underground in dark clothes meant to help us blend in a little, then stepped out into the common area. For once, we seemed to be the first ones there.
Then Yoh’s door opened, and the scent of cooking food wafted out, his pleasant smile was a nice surprise though. “Dude, I have a stove. This shit is awesome.”
I laughed and thought of a table. The one in the center of the room elongating on its own and stopping when it was done, having grown until we could all sit on the cushioned chairs that a green man in a butler outfit brought out and set up silently.
“Those guys can be a little creepy, but they’re a part of the spell, so no worries.” Balmur joined us in the room, his cloak hiding the rest of his body from view. “I’m glad you’re feeling better, Maebe.”
She smiled and nodded in return. The others came out as they would, Muu bringing up the rear of the pack looking refreshed but tired. We ate breakfast, all kinds of eggs, toast, bacon, and some chorizo. Amazing. Maebe loved the chorizo and ended up snagging some from my plate when I wasn’t looking.
Bea and Kayda ate off in another room with Tmont, the sounds of Bea and Kayda planning a coup were adorable. No, no, you heard me right. I could feel through our connections that the two of them were plotting on me. They wanted me to give one of them that crystal that Bea had alerted me to. Tmont seemed less interested, something about her not needing to really change any more than she had already to prove that she was worthy of Bokaj.
Let them plot. I can take it.
“So, do we know where we’re going?” Yosuke asked softly once most of us had finished eating. The servants had come to take most of our plates so they could be cleaned and brought all of us fresh water.
“Not really.” James sighed, his book came out of his inventory, and I found myself eyeing it critically. Seemed normal. “It’s not like the drow are going to advertise themselves. They’re perfectly adapted to living down here in this area. Their cities and everything will be perfectly hidden and well protected.
“Then how do we find them?” Bokaj smacked the table, making Fainnir jump. “Sorry, man.”
“We can have Pebble look,” Fainnir offered with what seemed like little hope that anyone would take it seriously.
“Can he look that far quickly?” Muu asked, still shoveling food into his face.
“He can go pretty far, looking for signs of life and stuff.” The young dwarf shrugged. “I know that the stone in this area isn’t all that good for mining and that they would likely set up their cities in an area of the Great Below with a high concentration of water and good metal veins.”
A few of us nodded, Jaken breaking the silence, “That’s so astute, and we can train on our way there.”
“Let’s make that happen, then.” Balmur clapped his hands. “We have a few more hours in here before the spell fades. Let’s try and devise a way to make this happen in the easiest way possible.”
“Sounds good.” I stood from the table and walked toward our room, I needed to think something through
. Something about what Servant had said was bothering me, then I realized something, “How long have we been in here?”
“Roughly sixteen hours, give or take an hour.” Balmur looked over the room. “It’ll last up to twenty-four hours depending on how much we manipulate the inside. Then it takes about eight or so hours to cooldown. Again, based on our consumption.”
I nodded and walked toward our room once more with Maebe joining me, quiet at first as I sat in the center of the room on the floor and closed my eyes. Finally, as I went through my third breathing cycle, she spoke, “What is it that you mean to do?”
I let myself drift back to where I could answer her, “I smell like a bonfire at night under the bright moon and stars. Servant had said something to that effect to me. And I can’t help but wonder what it means. Thinking about the powers I have at my disposal; I can tinker with fire and shadows. Servant said, ‘when he first got here, I smelled of freshly tilled earth’—what if he could smell the elemental blessings on me?”
“Then, his nose is much stronger than I have given it credit for in the past.” I could hear a thoughtful tone in her voice. “But why does this seem to concern you so?”
“Because the ‘under bright moon and stars’ bit doesn’t belong. I can’t tinker with light.” My confusion continued to make me rise to the surface of my mediation, so I took a moment to relax and try to center myself until I could continue. “I’ve spoken to each of the other elements, but never this one. I think I should try.”
“Good luck,” she said softly, and I breathed myself into a state of calm and inner focus.
I was deeper, I think than I had been when I reached out to the elements with Elder Leo before in the monastery. But I focused anyway.
Warmth radiating from the sun as rays of light shone into my back yard, where I happily read a book. The light playing in the breeze, dodging the branches and boughs of the trees at the park where I played. The bright spot reflecting off the water below me when I had flown with squadrons of Marines over the oceans off the Californian coast. Lightning shattering the sky, brightening the clouds during a storm, and the small beam of brilliance in my hand as a kid, using a flashlight to navigate the darkness.
Into the Darkness: A Fantasy LitRPG Adventure (Axe Druid Book 4) Page 47