Skellig shook her head, “it’s not the same thing, Jak.”
“Isn’t it? We’re talking about killing these things that we know almost nothing about. Sure, our priorities should be our own preservation, but these are Fae we’re talking about. They should be treated as such.”
“That would be a naive approach,” Skellig said, her stance firm. “We don’t know for sure that they are Fae, or that they have any intelligence in them whatsoever. From what I observed, they’re far more like demons. We wouldn’t accept demons as Fae, would we?”
“The queen said much the same thing about all of us. Or at least the Fae. I just think we need to know more about them first. Try to find a way to reason with them.”
“If you want to reason with them, by all means be my guest, but do it away from the camp because if any of them gets within two-hundred yards of our perimeter, we will do everything in our power to drive it off or eliminate it.” Jak squared her shoulders, feeling several retorts come to her mind. Queen Telma had called her naive too, and she wasn’t growing fond of the phrase. The others were staring from one to the other of them, feeling the tensions rise. No one said a word for several seconds.
Suddenly a messenger, one of the Sightseers stepped into the clearing. He paused, examining the situation and probably sensing the tension hanging in the air.
“What is it?” Skellig said, turning away from Jak to face the man.
“Whatever happened at the queen’s army, it appears to be over, and they’re breaking camp,” he said.
“They’re leaving?” asked Karlona, looking somewhat relieved to have something else to talk about.
“Yes ma’am, we think they may have killed some of the...uh,” he stared down at the rocky corpse at their feet. “Whatever these things are. But we clearly saw more of them fleeing to the west, over the river. They may have circled south, though we’re not sure.”
So there were more of them out there. At least they were safe for the moment. The last thing Jak wanted was for those creatures to attack them again and confirm Skellig’s theories that these new Fae were hostile before Jak had a chance to prove otherwise.
“And you said the queen is retreating?” Skellig asked. Jak perked up, yes this was important information. Could their troubles be solved somehow through all this? She could hope, but she seriously doubted it.
“Yes, though they’ve just begun.”
Skellig ran a hand through her short hair in thought. “Probably not going far.”
“What makes you say that?” said Seph.
“Well, even if they were going all the way back to Skyecliff, an army of that size will need supplies to get there. They’re probably heading north to the main road between Tradehall and Skyecliff. Plenty of provisions travel along that path. But retreating all the way to Skyecliff now would mean taking a loss, however minor, with nothing to show for it. It wouldn’t be great for moral, not to mention the public perception of the queen’s competence.”
Yewin spoke up, “And without the peace treaty that Jak nearly arranged with the queen, the only way she can turn their journey into a profitable excursion…”
Skellig finished the thought. “Would be to eliminate us as a threat, or possibly this new group of Fae if you want to call them that. Doing that much would at least give her something to boast about, though I doubt too many people would be satisfied with it. They’ve been attacked, and even if it wasn’t us, many will be out for our blood.”
Jak’s mind darkened. Everything Skellig said made sense, and that was the problem. Why couldn’t people be...she searched for a word. Nice? It wasn’t that hard to do. At the very least if everyone just minded their own business then no one would care about the Fae or anyone else.
“So then what are our next moves?” said Karlona. “Do we take the Fae into the mountains like we planned, or…”
“I told you, we don’t like being called Fae,” said a voice off to one side. A quick glance showed Girwirt marching into the clearing, followed by Noralim. The gnome had his arms crossed in indignation. “And how come we weren’t informed of this meeting.”
“I’m sorry, we had to meet in a hurry. We sent a messenger but didn’t have time to wait for your arrival,” said Skellig. “You’re welcome here, of course.”
“Seriously though, the next person that calls us Fae, I will climb onto their head and rip their hairs out one by one,” said Girwirt.
“We weren’t talking about you, specifically,” said Jak, putting her hands on her hips and staring down at the gnome.
“It’s all the same. We’re all so different anyway. Using the same name will get confusing the more of these things start popping out of the ground.” He waved a hand at the giant rocky mass in front of him.
“So you agree that this is—” Jak stopped herself from saying Fae. “—one of the races?”
“What else could it be?” said Girwirt. “They’re obviously not those demon thingys. They’re more like trolls. That’s a name we have for even bigger giants, usually the stupid ones. Sometimes we use it for you.”
“As important as it is to find a better classification for some of us,” said Yewin, cutting off Jak’s retort. “I think we should get back to the matter at hand, determining what our next move is.”
“We would like to stay here,” said Cerai, and Amelia nodded beside her. “Going into the mountains was never an option that suited us well, and now with those...trolls possibly heading into the mountains, we don’t know if we’d be safe from them if we travelled that direction.”
Skellig’s armor clinked as she crossed her arms. “I don’t like the idea of staying put.”
“Forgive me, Skellig,” said Gabriel. “I know you’re the tactician here, but I think what the Water Fae suggest is best. We can still maintain readiness to leave at a moment’s notice, but there are new unknowns that will face us if we do leave. We lose little by staying here. It might give us an opportunity to stockpile more food. Especially if Jak continues to hand out Hungerless brands to those who can use it.”
Skellig looked to Jak for the first time since their minor argument, measuring her. Jak held her gaze.
“Very well,” Skellig said finally. “Our first priority, therefore, will be readying to leave if needed, and gathering food that we can store.”
“And finding new names for all the races!” said Girwirt enthusiastically. Noralim, who had remained silent this whole time smiled and met each of the council member’s eyes, clearly liking Girwirt’s idea.
“Perhaps not at the top of the priority list,” Skellig said carefully. “But you may all consider what you will.” With that, she stormed off in the direction of her own tent, looking unhappy with the situation. Jak did not follow.
9
With Skellig gone, most of the others decided it was a good time to disperse. Jak, however, stayed put. She wandered over to Amelia. It seemed like such a long time ago when they were both students at the College of Skycliff. In actuality, it was only a few months earlier. It had been an eventful time for both of them.
“How are you holding up?” asked Amelia. Cerai, who had been hovering next to Amelia, glanced at the two of them then retreated, leaving the two to talk.
“That obvious?” Jak said, eyebrow raised.
“You look like a cat about to pounce. Wait no, bad analogy, too aggressive. A bullwhip about to snap. No, too vague. Maybe a…”
As was often the case when spending time with Amelia, Jak couldn’t help but smile. “I get it,” she said. “I’m too much of an open book.”
“Well that does fit everything else about you,” said Amelia. “Mind if I relax?” She pointed down at the column of water extending from the river that held her in place. Perhaps holding that thing for long enough wore the Water Fae out as much as the continued use of magic did for Jak.
“Not at all,” said Jak. Amelia let her Fae magic guide her column of water back towards the river. Jak followed until they were right on the bank. Am
elia lay down on the edge, her back tail swishing playfully in the water, her arms and front half on land.
Jak took off her shoes and sat down next to Amelia, letting her toes dip into the flowing river. “It’s like, sometimes I don’t know if everyone thinks I’m a child or a savior. Sometimes it feels like both.”
“So relatable. Every teenager goes through that,” Amelia said, winking.
Jak chuckled. “Just like every teenager gets a giant tail fin.”
As if on cue, Amelia’s tail swung through the water and splashed Jak full in the face. “Hey!” Jak said, opening her mouth in shock as the cold water drenched her top. “Not funny! Remember I can control fire. I’ll turn you into steam.”
“You’d have to catch me first,” said Amelia, making a splash behind her again. She had a point, those tails were powerful. It could probably propel Amelia at incredible speeds. Though the river was narrower where they were, restricting what the Water Fae could do. And out of the water they were all but helpless.
Jak lost her smile as she thought of the other Water Fae, some of which would still be trapped in Skyecliff. The queen’s palace had been locked up tight before they left. Not even the Water Fae were able to use their magic to get in and rescue their companions. What had the queen done with them? She had promised to release all of them, but that was before the attack by those trolls.
“Are you sure you don’t regret becoming a Water Fae?”
“What I regret most is that awkward name,” said Amelia, still in a good mood. “Girwirt is right, we need something new. No, I don’t regret it.”
“Not even a little?” Jak probed.
“Perhaps at first, when I was still in the palace and had no way of getting around. The Royal Priest took samples of my blood and kept me out of the water for days. I thought I was going to shrivel up like a raisin. There were definitely times when I thought of this—” she waved her tailfin once more, “—as a curse.”
“But not anymore?”
“Once I was united with the ocean, I can’t really describe the feeling to you, Jak. It was something beyond anything I experienced as a human. I was suddenly aware of the ocean, and all the water which connected to it, which is most water by the way. All the major rivers and seas, I had a connection to all of it. Do you have any idea how big that is?”
Jak nodded slightly. “Actually, I think I might. It sounds very similar to how I felt when I linked with Yewin and the gnomes and dwarves. Though water isn’t really their thing.”
“You know, we never did try that link thing. I’ll bet we could puzzle it out.”
Jak immediately shook her head. “Don’t. Every time I’ve tried, it nearly kills the participating Fae. It only worked in the mountain because there were a lot of Fae present. And if I’d kept it up much longer I would have used up all of their...I don’t know...energy I guess.”
“There’s got to be something to that, though. It seems too important to be a random thing that kills Fae. There’s got to be some reason for the link to exist. Maybe we’re missing something.”
Jak shrugged. “For now, we don’t use it except in the most important of emergencies. And then only with the help of a lot of Fae, so we don’t kill anyone else.”
“Well, in any event, I can say for sure that once I reached the ocean, everything felt right.”
“What exactly does that mean?”
“I don’t know, it’s like I was always meant to be a Fae, and I didn’t even know it. Like I was born in the wrong body, and the change made me into what I was supposed to be all along.”
“Hm,” Jak said. “I wonder if everyone sees it that way. Mother has told me something similar before.”
“I mean, statistically I’m sure there are some who don’t. And I really had to be in the right environment before I made that discovery. Anyone still trapped in the palace might still resent the change.”
“I guess that’s just another reason why we need to establish peace with the queen at any cost,” said Jak looking out at the river.
“I thought she broke the treaty.” Amelia cocked her head.
“Well, I can’t see any other option.”
“What if we can’t find peace?”
Jak turned her head back to face her friend. She held her gaze. “I honestly don’t know.”
“It’s a question we should probably be asking ourselves. If the queen won’t give up the Fae, or leave us alone, what are we going to do about it? We can’t keep running forever, and those Fae will need our help eventually.”
Jak ran a hand through her raven hair. “I had hoped it would never come to that. I just had a long conversation with the queen assuring her that we would not attack her. That we just wanted to be left alone.”
“Do you think that’s really a realistic option?”
“I want it to be.”
“But if it isn’t, are you willing to be the one that goes on the offensive?”
Jak studied her friend. The strawberry blonde had changed a lot since Jak had first met her. Becoming a Fae and being held by the queen had changed her. “I can’t be certain that I would,” she said eventually. “I’ve committed violence before when I had to, and I would fight a person like Cain if he showed his face again. But the queen and her armies are every bit my people as you are.”
“I suppose I can understand that,” said Amelia, resting her face on her hands on the sandy bank. “But we don’t live under normal circumstances anymore.”
“You have never said a truer word.”
They sat in silence for a time before Amelia asked one more question. “Do you ever wonder why the Fae are here?”
“What, like why you transformed?”
“I mean, why have we transformed now? These powerful Relics have been around for a long time. People must have come in contact with them before, so why are we only seeing and hearing about Fae over the last few years?”
“Well the gnomes and dwarves claimed they’ve been around for generations.”
“Yeah, but you know what I mean. Even if they did change a long time ago, we’re only learning about it now. It’s like everything is happening at once.”
Jak nodded. “Yeah, I see what you’re saying. And when you add prophecy to the mix…”
“Right! It’s clearly not just happenstance.”
“You’re wondering why prophecy is fulfilling itself now?”
“Yeah,” Amelia’s fin swirled around lazily in the water. “‘Why’ is a good word for it. Because it’s clear that something is happening. We’ve transformed now for a reason, and your boyfriend says it’s because of this Illadar thing, whatever that is.”
“My…what?” For a moment, Jak forgot what they were talking about. “You mean Seph?”
“Oh please, it’s obvious you’re into him. And after what happened with your last choice of guys, I think you could probably use a fresh start.”
“Um…” Jak started. How was she supposed to respond to that?
But just then, they heard a light rustling in the grass behind them. Jak turned, grateful for the distraction, to see Vander approaching them. The Shadow Fae looked relieved to see her.
“Hello Jak.”
“Vander,” Jak greated him in return. She always liked that Vander never used her titles, just her name. “Aren’t you supposed to be patrolling the perimeter?” That had been Vander’s primary job since arriving.
“I just came from there. But a large group of humans has just arrived and I thought you’d like to hear the news from me first.”
Jak stood, catching Amelia’s curious look as she did so, her tail still making soft splashing sounds behind her.
“What is it?”
“It’s Naem. He’s back.”
The splashing sounds stopped abruptly.
10
“Who are all these people?” Skellig barked at the mild confusion as a large group of travelers voiced their discomfort at being surrounded by Shadow Fae. They were being held just outside of t
heir camp, and Skellig had arrived almost exactly at the same time as Jak.
Jak barely heard Skellig. Her eyes were fixed on the man at the front of the group. His blonde hair was longer and dirtier, and he’d grown a beard, but it was clearly the same young man she’d spent a lot of time with earlier.
Naem stepped forward to meet Skellig. “I can vouch for all of them. They’re here to join your band.” His eyes met Jak’s as she stood behind Skellig. Was that a hint of excitement on his face? To see her?
Jak broke the eye contact to survey the group. If Naem was in charge, she wasn’t sure she would trust anyone he brought. His betrayal in Skyecliff had nearly led to her death, and the death of Seph and his followers, not to mention Amelia and Gabriel. If Jak’s mother hadn’t come to free her, or she had arrived at the execution a moment too late, they all would have perished because of this man in front of her.
Still, she couldn’t see anything suspicious about the group. There were maybe fifty of them, with a few large wagons to carry their belongings. A lot of wagons actually. What were they doing with so much stuff? Surely Skellig would order a full search.
“We barely have enough to feed ourselves,” said Skellig. “And we’re a little short on trust right at the moment. A lot has happened in the last day alone.”
“We saw some of it from a distance,” said Naem. “We only felt safe to come closer because the queen’s army retreated, leaving the main road clear.”
“So you know I’ll need a good reason why we should take on more mouths to feed.”
One of the women standing near Naem spoke up in a dry voice. “We don’t mean to be a burden. We can forage for food, cook, clean, anything you need from us. But we have nowhere else to go.”
“Anyone can do those things, and we already have plenty,” said Skellig. “You’ll have to give me another reason.”
Jak glanced at Skellig, wondering if the major was being a bit too harsh. Sure, Jak didn’t trust these people, and they were short on supplies, but she also didn’t like the idea of turning people away outright. Then again, if they weren’t assets they would become liabilities, and they did not need more of those right now.
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