Father sat back on his chair, eyeing me, back in full control of his emotions. “Do you really think you can beat me as you said before? An elf who is one thousand two hundred and fifty years old? With you having just twelve years of concentrated training?”
“You trained me, too.”
“I did, but I can still kick your royal ass.”
“Fine. In the future, we’ll have our illegal date with blades.” I shook my head and rolled my eyes. “May the best royal ass win.”
Father snorted through his laughter and shooed us with his left hand. “Go on. Study and rest with your grandmother. But be ready by sunrise to leave for the royal summit.”
“Because it sounds like so much bloody fun.” I flashed my fangs in the light. “I can’t wait.”
CHAPTER FOUR
Confession of a princess:
What in the Fae fuck just happened?
I don’t understand! This cannot possibly be right.
All I know is this is some deep, scary shit.
The beloved Fae need to fix this.
Now!
“Is my attire appropriate for a royal summit?” I asked cautiously, timidly twirling in a circle on the front lawn of the king’s castle. “Grandmother helped me pick it out.”
Father’s blink was gradual, and he stood frozen to his spot. In his stupor, he mumbled, “You look like you’re going there to kill them all. What could she have been thinking…?”
I stared down at my black leather pants and matching leather sleeveless shirt that formed tight to my entire body. My clunky, black leather boots shifted as I took a step back. I gazed up at my father and pointed at my waist. “I know she chose a lot of leather for me, so I added the belt myself to balance it out.”
King Traevon’s emerald green eyes snaked to my midsection, his head tipping just so to appraise my accessory. He blinked three times in quick succession. “Yes, your assassin’s attire needed that gaudy, sparkly belt to pull off this look. It shines in the light like a rainbow.”
I took another step back, while my brows furrowed deeply. “All right. I’ll go and change if it’s not right. I don’t have the foggiest of what to put on, though. It’s not as if I’ve ever been to one of these bloody summits before.”
Father held up a swift hand, stopping me in my tracks.
He asked, “Are you positive your grandmother wanted you to wear this? She knows the extravagant garments that the women wear there.”
“Grandmother seemed very adamant that I wear this, despite my hesitance.” I shrugged a shoulder and glanced down at myself again. “Well, not the belt. She laughed when I put it on and told me I was adorable. I don’t think that was a compliment since she wouldn’t stop snickering and pointing at it.”
The king tilted his head back and stared at the sky. He shook his head at the clouds and scowled. “This can’t be good.”
I was quick to hook a thumb over my shoulder. “I can stay here. I really don’t have to go this time—”
“Yes, you do. You know this,” Father muttered, cutting me off short. He dropped his attention back to me, his aggravation washing away as he looked upon my face. An amused smile eventually lifted one side of his lips, as he admitted, “Your grandmother was correct. You are adorable, my daughter.”
My eyes narrowed. “I don’t think my first impression on the other rulers should be one of cuteness.”
Father beckoned me over with his left hand to where he stood next to our Fae-gifts. “I think you’re adorable. Your mother thinks you’re adorable. Your grandmother thinks you’re adorable. But the others won’t have the same opinions as your family. You’ll look properly frightening to anyone else. Do not fret on that, my heir.”
I stepped beside Penelope, my flying saddle ready. I pointed at my belt. “You are sure? I shouldn’t take this off?”
Father bent down and hooked his hands together to give me a boost up. “You are perfect just as you are. Now, get on up there and get strapped in. We’ve discussed your outfit enough.”
I placed my left foot into his waiting hands, then hoisted myself up, slinging my right leg around her back to settle firmly on top of my Fae-gift. I strapped myself in and evaluated the king’s black silk tunic and his black leather pants as he situated himself atop Javon, the humble crown all rulers wore resting over his forehead in a small glimmer of gold.
“Actually, Father, other than the crown upon your head, we match very well.”
Javon started trotting with a pat from the king.
Father stated over his shoulder, “Except for your belt. That doesn’t match our clothes at all.”
“Damn you, Father!” I nudged my Fae-gift, and she obeyed me with no other prompting. We caught up to the king and started riding even faster to keep up. I shouted over the whipping wind, “Should I take the bloody thing off or not?”
King Traevon tipped his head back and laughed. “I’m only teasing you! Your rainbow belt is spectacular!”
If he was lying, he did it well. I think he liked it.
I sighed and looked away from him, lowering myself to Penelope’s body and held her mane tightly. “It’s time to fly, my beautiful girl. Open those wings and let your father know just how amazing you are.”
Penelope’s ears twitched, and her wings unfolded, beating at the air. Faster and faster, she galloped, and quickly, her wings took us up into the early liquid red and orange rays of the sunrise.
Tickled by her tricks, I asked evenly, “You know I have your favorite treat in my pocket, don’t you?”
Penelope whinnied—most definitely a laugh.
“That’s what I thought.” I patted her flank and squinted through the wind. “Follow my father. He’ll be leading the way.”
Her wings slanted. One high, one low.
We veered through the sky, banking a sharp right, flying around the king’s grounds—the castles, stables, orchards, lake, and immaculate fields—until she met up with my father and her sire. Penelope kept us a perfectly respectable head-length back so that the king was in the proper placement as the head of our kingdom.
I snorted. “Now you’re just showing off.”
My Fae-gift flicked her head, whapping me in the face with her blowing black and red mane.
I turned my head to the side and spit pieces of dirt out, unaware she even had any in her mane. “And there’s the stubborn ass I know well.”
King Traevon took that moment to glance back at us. The king shouted, “I can tell you’ve been working with her! Penelope was so headstrong before. Your uphill battle has paid off! I’m very proud of you, my daughter!”
I plastered on a fake smile and ignored the piece of dirt still on my tongue, nodding my head grandly. I yelled, “She is a precious girl now! I couldn’t ask for better!”
He turned back around, smiling into the sun.
I leaned down, and whispered sharply, “I will give you a whole damn barrel of blue apples today if you are the most well-behaved pegasus anyone has ever seen—for the rest of the day. Deal?”
Ever so slowly, she nodded her big head up and down.
“Thank you.” I patted her neck.
My shoulders finally relaxed, lowering with my sigh.
Fae help me, but their blessed gift was a handful.
Below us, Gatlin Grove passed by at a leisurely pace, the lush green trees, massive and shading the sun for the elves below, hid most of the beauty that was our capital. The eye could still see a few of the red pointed tiled roofs of larger homes, the beautiful Fae statues in a clearing, sheep grazing on a hill, and the many waterfalls that crested over higher ridges. What you couldn’t see were the many shops and squares, the hustling elves preparing for customers at the markets, children waking from their beds for school, that odd elf that always sings every morning by the center fountain and wears his clothing backward, fisherman at the lakes casting their reels, and so many other wonders that boggled the mind.
My home was breathtaking. And I had missed it dearly.
My satisfied smile slid from my face as the four points of the Blood Forest came into view, where all kingdoms on land came together at one lone intersection. The space between the four points held the Fae-created domed glass building, with red and green ivy braided over the entirety of the structure reaching far into the sky—the building aptly called High Pointe. All travelers were required to go through High Pointe before entering a kingdom not their own. Each kingdom’s guards were stationed at all entry and exit points, with only approved individuals allowed admittance.
If a person tried to cheat the Fae born system…
Well, the Blood Forest came alive and destroyed them.
It was an utterly gruesome affair. Blood splatters painted the red leaves of the Blood Forest trees where the four points pressed against the domed building, not ever washing away in the spring rains. War paint that never disappeared, remaining as a warning to those who thought they were stronger than the Fae—the Fae who had created us all.
High Pointe was also where the royal summit was always held. I swallowed down my choke of fear. If I just focused on something else, it would make it better, surely it would.
I looked down below us, instead of gawking at my fate.
Small, pristine thatch-roofed inns and taverns now dotted the lone, wide road below us that led to High Pointe. There were no travelers on the dirt street today, the lane clear of all people and looking desperately lonely and bereft. Father kept flying, though, apparently, not wanting to travel the rest on land, even if High Pointe wasn’t that far from here—Gatlin Grove was extremely close to the cross-sections.
I took the little remaining time we had to gather my courage, not looking up since that truly did not help matters, but a flutter of movement to my left brought my internal pep talk to a halt.
I jerked my head to the side…and stared.
Another pegasus was flying in the air over the Caster Kingdom. On its back rode Queen Mikko, the caster queen. We were still far enough away that I couldn’t make out any of her facial features, but I could tell the ruler was staring right at us.
“Let her look away first!” Father called loudly over the rushing wind in our ears. “Do not appear weak!”
All right, apparently, she wasn’t staring at us.
The tender hearted queen was staring right at me.
Her stare didn’t feel so ‘tender’, either. More like an alligator waiting to snatch and roll you away into a swap. If this ruler was the nicest of all of them, then I was already in over my head.
I cleared my throat, still holding her stare. I shouted, “Father, I’m not positive I am ready for this!”
King Traevon peered back at me over his shoulder. He sent a wink in my direction. “You have me! There is nothing to worry about! If they upset you, I’ll simply kill them where they stand!”
“Please tell me you’re not serious!” I hollered. Finally, the damned caster queen looked away, allowing me to dart my attention to the king, who had not answered. “Father! You must tell you’re not serious!”
The smirk he wore gave me shivers. “Time will tell if I’m serious or not!”
“Holy Fae,” I mumbled under my breath, my eyes wide and drying out in the wind. “This is most definitely going to be a hideous day.”
Father was unable to hear me, but he got the gist of it from the look on my face. He started laughing so hard his entire body shook, his shoulders bouncing up and down, causing Javon to glance back at his owner in worry. The king petted his Fae-gift’s flank, and a sharp order left his mouth that I couldn’t understand.
Penelope did, though.
Javon and she both started our descent to High Pointe.
We had arrived for this wicked day of dread.
The structure built by the Fae to keep us all safe loomed closer the lower we flew. The stained glass peeked between the knotted ivy, twinkling in the morning sunlight, all stunning shades of color, a monumental gem of supremacy. King Traevon’s personal guard waited in their elven royal colors of red, standing straight at attention in front of the entrance—the normal border guards stood four steps aside, gifting the personal guards their respect for their higher rank.
Javon’s hooves touched down on the cobblestone grand entrance only a beat in front of Penelope’s. Fortunately, there was enough space for a stress-free landing between the structure and the stairs that led down to a small open market where elves sold their wares to new arrivals. Those visitors had a long way to travel—on foot only, no horses allowed for the other kingdom’s people, nothing that could give them an advantage over us—on the dirt road to Gatlin Grove, so the market always did well.
Although, the market was deserted right now.
Not even the elves who sold their trinkets were there behind their permanent stands. The silk covers of their tables fluttered in the breeze, while their wares were left untouched—and unsold—inside their stalls.
I glanced at my father. “Why is no one here?”
“The other rulers, and myself, decided to close High Pointe until we’re done with this meeting.” Father unhooked his waist belt, and then started on his feet. I quickly moved to do the same. He added, “We didn’t want to chance anyone overhearing our discussions.”
“That makes sense.” I swallowed down that nervousness that tried to bubble up in my throat again, while one of my father’s personal guards helped me down from Penelope’s back. “When will the others be arriving?”
“The summit starts in an hour. They’ll be arriving sporadically until then.” Father snorted softly under his breath. “But Queen Alora is always late. And she has never failed to blame it on the fact she has farther to travel. Her excuse is poor at best, and most assuredly, Fae shit. The merfolk queen simply likes to make us wait.”
That sounded par for what Father had said about her last night. “Let me guess. King Elon is the one who suggests you all wait for her arrival, too?”
“I’m glad you were listening before. You are correct.” King Traevon walked over the cobblestones to stand next to me, and turned to stare at the building and crossed his arms. “So, my clever daughter, what do you think of High Pointe now that you’ve seen it at this level?”
I gulped, and whispered, “It’s intimidating. All I know of it I read in books and my lessons.”
“My mother’s books?”
“Yes.”
“I’ve read those, too. Everything inside them is correct.” His emerald green eyes peeked down at mine. “But thinking you know something is vastly different than having experienced it. It’s perfectly normal to be scared your first time here. Don’t think your feelings are different than any other new person entering High Pointe for the first time.”
I quirked a red brow and lifted the hidden blue apple from my pocket, my Fae-gift bumping me in the side to remind me. While I fed her the sweet treat, I grumbled, “Except for the fact, most new arrivals to High Pointe aren’t going to a royal summit of the queens and kings.”
Father smirked. “Well, yes. There’s that.”
“Yes. Quite.” I lowered my raised hand, the blue apple now nibbled away to nothing, and eyed the sticky juice left remaining on my palm. I debated brushing it on my clothes, like I normally did in a comfortable setting, but I didn’t think that would be entirely proper considering who I was going to meet. “Um, is there a bathroom inside close by?”
King Traevon snickered softly. “Are you sure you don’t want to wipe it on—”
“Bathroom, Father,” I interrupted. And rolled my eyes.
“Follow me,” the king murmured. He strode toward the large, glass entry door and glanced at the closest border guard on his way. “Take our Fae-gifts to my stable here. Have them tended to.”
The guard’s eyes widened, having been spoken to by his king, and quickly bowed at the waist in reverence. “Right away, my king.”
We stepped inside High Pointe, my father’s personal guards silently following us and respectfully putting distance betwee
n us and them, scattering so they blurred to the side of our vision—allowing the privacy my father always demanded.
Everywhere beams of multi-hued colors shot down through the stained glass onto the white, seamless marble floor, casting colors of light on the grand space, the area so vast our footsteps echoed inside the building. A large desk sat fifty feet in front of us, with an equally massive, steel blue ceiling structure curved over the top from the floor, shading the colorful lights for anyone who would staff the desk. An “Elf Kingdom Registration” sign hung from the edge of the desk’s quasi roof. The sides of two other desk structures, of the same make, could be viewed to the far left and right—surely, the Caster and Gorgon Kingdoms. The shifter’s registration desk was unseen—straight west of the Elf Kingdom—because of the enormous and circular, solid blue glass wall that sat in the very center of High Pointe, the sectioned off glass area reaching to the top of the domed building.
King Traevon pointed to that area. “That’s where we are going. Only staff is allowed inside on the first level. The upper level is exclusively for the royals to gather together if it is needed.”
“I read that somewhere.” I bobbed my head in awe, gawking at the majesty that surrounded me. “Father, do you think all of Fairy, above and below, looks like this?”
King Traevon placed a pointed finger under my chin, and affectionately pushed up, shutting my gaping mouth. “I imagine the dark and light Fae lands are even more breathtaking.”
“Wow,” I breathed softly.
Father waited a full minute before asking, “Are you done ogling? Queen Mikko wasn’t too far behind us. Do you still want to wash your hands before meeting her?”
I blinked hard and straightened my back, unconsciously, having been leaning in every direction where I’d been gawking. I lifted my chin and sniffed in his direction. “Yes, that sounds like a marvelous plan.”
The king’s lips twitched. “Perfect.”
His guards split into two groups, half staying where they were, the other half following us. They did so again when we entered the circular center, bypassing the staff rooms, then again, when we started climbing the stairs to the top level.
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