by Amelia Shaw
The Fae King shrugged. “It is a simple fact.”
I glanced up at him. Surely, ever as pure Fae, he knew better than that. “I suppose it is, as is the fact I am technically a bastard, but you must know that such terms have insults attached to them.”
He snorted with arrogance. “Fae do not shy away from the truth. We embrace it. We do not allow mere words, derogatory or not, to control our emotions. What a funny thing, a word having such power over someone.”
I sighed. He was probably right. I would have to get used to such terminology.
“I will accept that... and to answer your rhetorical question,” I said. “Yes, I have. I love Tavlor.”
He patted my hand, almost as though he was pitying me. “I can tell, and I’m jealous.”
I giggled. I didn’t actually plan to respond like that. I guess I was just shocked by his bluntness.
“Yes, you said as much,” I said. We were veering off subject and I needed to get that under control or else I was going to lose it completely. “But back to the point. Are you going to tell me why your people appear to live as though they have no magic?”
Surely, they had some. Or was I wrong in assuming all Fae were born with magical skills? I very well could be, considering I wasn’t properly educated on the matter.
His hand gripped mine, and it was no longer gentle.
“The Council took away the powers of my people,” he said with a sneer. His entire body tensed up. I knew he wasn’t angry with me, but he was angry, and if what he said was true, I could not blame him.
I stopped walking and turned the king towards me, staring up into his face where I now saw the ancient years in his eyes.
“They... what?” I said. How was that possible?
He frowned, his lips thinning. “A long time ago, many hundreds of years in fact, we were a strong people. A warring people. Something the Council did not agree with because they knew our powers made theirs look like tiny grains of sand, completely harmless. They gave us an ultimatum, to stop our natural ways, or lose our powers. I... did not agree with their conditions, for there were many and I did not trust them to keep their word on much of what was promised, which wasn’t much at all...”
I frowned. “I can imagine.” I knew exactly what sort of squiggly bullshit the Council would have tried to put into that contract. “But if you’re more powerful than they are, how were they able to take your power from you?”
“So, within a week of not signing their contracts, a plague hit my people, making them sick. Feeble. Robbing them of their magic. I could not prepare for it. I assumed we would be going to war. I had weapons made, provided intense training to my people. I did not expect illness and destitution.”
I stared at him, shocked. The Council had made his people sick? On purpose. “That’s... terrible. Surely there must have been another way for them to stop you?”
One which didn’t involve practically maiming the innocent people in a town?
He smiled sadly. “I’m sure there was, but not one the Council decided to employ. So, the Council got what they wanted. They stopped us from travelling, from warring with neighboring kingdoms. Too weak to fight back, we are now, as you can see.”
He spread his arm out to encompass his people.
“But... your throne room...” I started to say. There was still magic here, if not everywhere.
“It’s all we have left,” he answered my question before I could ask it. “I managed to maintain most of my powers, how, I am not entirely sure, and protected that one single room. But once upon a time, that was how my whole kingdom looked. We were strong, probably too strong for the Council to handle. And you know how they deal with people they think are too strong.”
He stared at me knowingly.
I swallowed hard, nodding once. I couldn’t be sure that the king wasn’t leading me into some sort of trap, but I didn’t believe that was the case. I thought there was a good chance I might be able to trust him.
“Yes, I do. With an unforgiving iron fist.”
I glanced around at the devastation the Council had caused. How could they do this? Destroy a town of people who did not deserve it. Children were suffering and they didn’t care. They didn’t even bat an eye.
“Is there no way to get your powers back?” I asked, turning my attention back to the king. “Have you considered re-negotiating with the Council? Or...”
He laughed and the sound was bitter. He turned and tugged on my hand. I followed, and we kept walking down the castle roads.
“I have asked, many times, Ava,” he said. My name sounded like honey on his lips. “Every hundred years, I approach them again. But the Council changes hands every fifty years or so. Therefore, the Witches and Warlocks that made the original plague are long gone and buried. Each new Council is more corrupt than the last.”
And the new Council doesn’t give a shit.
“I am so sorry, King Ankor,” I said, meaning every word.
I began to see why my father and Tavlor had brought me here. To show me what the Council were capable of. How they treated people who stood up to them.
“I... appreciate you letting us come here. And especially how well you have treated my father since we arrived. I have to assume it is hard for you to see him.”
Without wanting to kill him.
The king snorted. “I am no match for Matlock, and my soldiers are no match for Tavlor, so you are under no threat.”
I shook my head. “I didn’t mean that. I mean... Thank you for letting us come here. Thank you for being honest with me about the state of your kingdom. I assure you, I had no idea that this was happening. I wouldn’t stand for it if I had.” I sighed, wanting to show this man how grateful I was to him for letting us visit. He must hate all witches and warlocks. “You see, I am... deciding if I want the job as High Warlock or not, and my father thought it would be a good idea to see some of the other realms. And I think I know why he brought me here, now.”
“To show you what the Council does with their power?” the king guessed, arching a brow.
I nodded. “And the first things I’d fix if I was High Warlock.”
The king stopped walking. “You would fix...this?”
He gestured to the people around him, his eyes widening.
I nodded. “Oh, my god, are you kidding me? Of course! If I could find out how to. Of course, I agree that you can’t go back to killing anyone you want, wars aren’t good for anyone... but this, what they’ve done... It’s atrocious.” I let out a breath. “I’m sure there’s a compromise the two of us could come up with. One that involved peace and reinstated powers.”
I couldn’t stop myself from telling him the truth. I was gutted to know that these strong, practically immortal people, had been left to suffer in such a way.
Of course, I’d have to find out the Council’s side of the story; there was always two sides. But this... punishment had surely gone on long enough. Perhaps the king deserved it, but the people certainly did not. The children did not.
The king cocked his head to the side and studied me. “You are a very unusual Witch, Ava,” he said. “But I suppose I’ve said that already.”
I rolled my eyes. “Yes, you have. I still don’t know if I should be insulted or not.”
“Why would you not want to be High Warlock?” he asked, seeming genuinely curious.
I frowned. “Well, for one thing, their conditions... on taking me on as the illegitimate heir are...”
“Complicated?”
Hell yes!
“They demand a high price, I suppose is the best way of putting it.”
He pressed his lips together, the skin around his mouth wrinkling. Then he said, “Yes. I can imagine.”
Although looking around, my conditions suddenly seemed a small price in comparison to what these people had paid.
I squeezed his arm where my hand still lay in the crook of his elbow. “I’d like to thank you for the tour, King Ankor, but I think I need to go ba
ck to my rooms and ruminate on what you’ve told me.”
“I hope I have been of some help,” he said with a regal bow of his head.
“More than you know.” I gave him the biggest smile I owned.
The king escorted us all the way to the gates of the city, kissed my hand, and said goodbye to my father and Tavlor. We walked away, unscathed.
“Well, that went better than I thought it would,” I said to them with a grin.
My father laughed and shook his head. “He liked you, Ava. Without that simple fact, things may have gone very differently.”
“Thanks, Dad,” I said, but I wasn’t sure it was the case. These Fae were not true Fae, in my opinion. They had no magic, no beautiful world, no good food, or homes.
They were in trouble, and only someone with a lot of power, and influence, could help them.
But was it worth the price I would have to pay?
Chapter 13.
AS MUCH AS I WANTED to have made a final decision about what I was going to do with the information we gathered, I couldn’t. I was still debating if restoring power to realms where it was taken away unjustly by the Council was enough for me to give up my freedom.
At least my father had magicked us away to the comfort of his office, food already waiting for us.
We sat in my father’s Council offices, eating warm soup and meats and defrosting from the cold day we’d had in the Fae realm.
“I still can’t believe what the Council did to those people,” I said, shaking my head, and then took a sip of my hot chocolate.
I looked up at my father. “If you’re trying to convince me to be the High Warlock, that was definitely a good start.”
I wanted to help those people, to right the wrong. I couldn’t stop thinking about the things I’d change if I had the power to do something. All those children. They didn’t deserve that life. They were being punished for something they had nothing to do with. And yet...
My father smiled, though it didn’t reach his eyes. “I’m not trying to convince you either way, Ava. You need to see both sides of what the Council is capable of. What they will do to their enemies. What they’ve already done.”
He sighed as he put down his plate on the table between us. “From the outside, the High Warlock looks like he has it made. A great home in a secure realm, money, power, influence. But throughout my life, I have been nothing more than a ... powerless puppet, a figure head for the Council. Through my reign I have not helped anyone, I have not fixed any past mistakes. I have been horrified by the Council’s actions and done nothing. I tell myself it’s because I’m unable to do much of anything, but I know better than that. I know I haven’t actually tried the way I want to try. Because I am afraid.”
I couldn’t imagine that to be true. Saying he’d never helped anyone seemed like an over exaggeration. But I didn’t want to make assumptions about his time here. I didn’t want to do him the disservice of putting words in his mouth.
I almost reached out and hugged him, but he sat too far away. “You still have time, Dad.”
And he did. Decades.
He smiled. “I do... and with you by my side, I believe we could do great things. And irrespective of your choice, I still want you here. Helping me, advising me, until my time comes to stand down. But I also want you to go into this choice with your eyes wide open. There is a lot wrong with the realms the Council oversees.”
“I can totally see that.” I took a long sip of my hot chocolate, staring at the coffee table in front of us with food scattered about. Once my mouth was empty, I looked up at him. “How many realms do they control, exactly?”
How many people did they have power over? How many people had they hurt?
My father glanced to the side, as though thinking. “Nineteen, I believe. Five magical, eight Fae, and six with shifters and other people, not including the humans.”
Woah.
“That’s a lot, more than I expected,” I admitted. I grabbed a flaky chocolate croissant and took a bite of the pastry. Once I finished the food in my mouth, I looked back over at my father, seated across from me. “Are the others peaceful, or are there more like the Fae realm we just visited?”
I could imagine that there would be a lot of people who didn’t like the Council, if the last realm was any indication.
“They’re all... peaceful. So to speak.” His lips twisted with irony, so I took that to mean that the version of ‘peace’ was as forced as the Fae realm. “However, over the generations there have been many wars, uprisings against the Council. But the Council has always emerged victorious, or so it has been written. There are attempts, but none have succeeded. It is why most don’t try anymore. What’s the point, if they are just going to lose anyway? Why lose lives over a victory that will never be achieved?”
Well, the proof is in the pudding...
“So, people are still extremely unhappy?” I asked, almost un-necessarily. But I wanted Tavlor to keep talking. Explaining things to me.
Tavlor answered from where he sat beside me. “There are a lot of people that don’t like the way the Council rules the realms. They are very much a dictatorship, as you have experienced, and have no problem squashing anyone that gets in their way.”
I sighed. “Like me.”
I picked at the croissant, flakes decorating my jeans.
“Yes.” He nodded once. “Like you.”
After I finished my croissant, I reached for the fruit. I had my dessert, now I needed to stock up on something healthy. I bit into a piece of fruit, the tangy orange flavor exploding on my tongue.
Meanwhile, my head was exploding with all the new information. To be honest, it was difficult for me to keep up. I felt as though there was so much information at my fingers and I wasn’t sure I’d be able to understand what I needed to know before my time was up. Regardless, I still had to try.
“Okay, so my next question is, as High Warlock, how would I be able to change any of that?” This was the million-dollar question. Was it even worth being the High Warlock if I couldn’t actually do anything about the problems in the other realms? “If Dad’s right, the High Warlock is barely a figure head. He has no real power. He’s a puppet.”
My father cleared his throat and leaned forward, setting down a mug of tea carefully. “That’s not entirely true,” he said. “As you have seen with the amount of magic I have, if I choose to use it. The ceremony that converts a normal warlock into the High Warlock, is quite a powerful one, transferring a lot of formidable magical to the barer.”
“Then why haven’t you done anything for the people suffering under the Council’s rule?” I asked him. I didn’t want to put him on the spot, but it was a fair question.
Shame washed over my father’s face, making his eyes shiny with tears and his cheeks red. I had to hand it to him, though, he didn’t look away. He held my gaze regardless of how guilty he felt.
I instantly felt sick to my stomach. How insensitive could I be? “Father, I...”
I dropped my eyes to my fruit.
He interrupted my apology by holding up a hand. “No, you’re right. I have not done enough with my time as High Warlock. But in my defense... no... I will not defend my actions. I will do better with the time I have left. That’s something I can assure you of.”
A strained silence fell over the room as we continued to eat and drink. I didn’t want to push. My questions weren’t supposed to make my father feel uncomfortable. But this was information I needed if I was going to do my job correctly.
When I couldn’t handle the silence anymore, I cleared my throat.
“So,” I said, wincing as my voice cracked, “where to next?”
Tavlor looked towards my father. He had been quiet during the majority of time, but that wasn’t surprising.
“Shifter realm number three, Matlock?” he asked.
My father nodded. “Yes. I think so.”
“What’s special about that one?” I asked, wanting to be prepared a little
better than I had been today. I hoped it wasn’t cold enough where I had to wear the skin of a wolf to ensure I kept warm.
“Nothing special... but Shifter realms fall into certain categories. Some hate witches and warlocks, others hate the fae. The shifters have been persecuted, segregated, and otherwise disregarded by all realms. They are the lowest on the caste system simply because they transform their physical shape rather than possess magic the way you and I or the Fae do. What’s worst is that their battles are with each other as much as the different realms.”
I laughed awkwardly. They sounded like they were back trying to talk me out of being the High Warlock.
“Sounds terrible,” I said before finishing the last bite of my fruit. “Then why are we going there?”
“Because you want information about the people you can help, the realms you will be in charge of, if you become the high Warlock,” my father said. “We can’t forget a realm because it isn’t the easiest to manage. And, out of the shifter realms, realm three is by far the lease violent.”
They were right. Information was exactly what I’d been after, though initially I’d expected more of a theory lesson, than a practical one.
Baptism by fire, as my mother would say.
I touched my throat, missing my necklace. I had to put it back on.
I nodded, my stomach tightening into knots. “Sounds great.”
Tavlor stood up, having finished his food. “Ava, I must go,” he said abruptly. “I will organize our visit to the Shifter realm tomorrow, and I need to see my aunt today. Will you be all right here, by yourself?”
I glanced at my father.
“Do you need to go somewhere too?” I asked.
“Yes. I need to speak to three of the Councilors. I believe they are more inclined to side with us, than the rest of the Council, and I’d like to bend their ear while I can. We only have three days, after all.”
I grimaced out a smile.
“And I suppose I’m still on house arrest?” I asked even though I already knew the answer.