by Toni Cox
Heat rose to my face anew, and my heart pounded unevenly. “After everything I’ve been through, you tell me it was a mistake? I could have just stayed at home?”
“Faeling, please.”
I closed my eyes. I breathed. Through the nose. One. Two. Three.
“If you hadn’t gone, we would not have known about the elves. You did well, Dana. I am so proud of you.”
Alright, maybe he had a point. I opened my eyes.
“But, please, promise me you will never seek out Arianna again. Can you do that?”
My skin prickled. “Why not?”
“Because she is dangerous. She could cause this kingdom great harm, faeling. Greater harm than you could ever imagine.”
I watched him, looked into his eyes. He believed what he said. My heart and my mind were at odds. “Alright, Father.”
“Good. Now, let us go meet the council.”
My father’s guards fell in line behind us when we exited the office, and they followed us to the council hall, which already bustled with councillors and captains.
Councillor William gave me the evil eye as I entered with my father, but I ignored him.
“My daughter has been to one of the elven strongholds and will give testimony to the captains,” my father opened the meeting once everyone took their seats.
I cringed as the hall filled with whispered voices.
“Why was she there?”
“Did she lead the elves here?”
“Did she tell the elves about the moonstones?”
“How do we know she is not a traitor?”
I shrank back towards the podium until I bumped against it.
“Silence,” the king yelled. “Dana was captured by the elves and held against her will. She has information about how to get into the elven portion of Raven Hall. You will listen.”
In the awkward silence that followed, Captain Jared stepped forward to join me next to the podium.
“I will be leading the expedition, Princess Dana. Please, tell me every detail.”
My father nodded, and I began, leaving out only the fact that I had gone back a second time to rescue Thomas, which I had not even told my father in detail.
I also didn’t mention how big a part my blue magic played in the success of my journey, but stressed the importance of the fae healing magic to them, or they would not be able to pass through the forest.
The sun began its descent when we returned to our chambers. I seethed internally that we had wasted an entire day on talk and strategy when an army could already have been on its way.
My father would ride beside Captain Jared to retrieve the moonstones, followed by one hundred of our best cavalry.
“Have I not proven to you that I can fight? That I am capable of looking after myself?” I asked as my father walked me back to my room.
“You cannot come with us. It is too dangerous.”
“But, Father. I know more about it than any of you.”
“Dana…” That voice again. He stopped in the middle of the passage and turned to me. “Enough argument, now. I will be leaving in the morning, and I need to know that I can rely on you while I am gone.”
My shoulders dropped. I hated being a princess. “Yes, Father.”
He smiled and pulled me into a hug. I drew comfort from it, as I had done as a little child, but it didn’t ease my misgivings about his quest.
“Come now. I need to prepare for tomorrow. Will you see me off in the morning?”
As if I wouldn’t. My father saw me to the door of my room where he bid me goodnight. I watched his broad back until he turned the corner at the end of the passage.
Too early to sleep, too late to go into the city to see Alyssa. I dismissed my servants and sat on my bed.
The silky tassels of the blanket slid through my fingers as I twirled them, while I fretted about what the elves could be doing with our moonstones. I felt so helpless sitting here.
The stones had always been part of my life and had never been at the forefront of my thoughts. Now, however, I couldn’t keep my mind off them. I longed for them. Craved them.
The hollowness ached within me. I dropped the tassels and wrapped my arms around myself, rocking my body. I needed those stones.
Maybe, I could try one more time to convince my father to allow me to accompany him. I rose from the bed. Then, I sat down again. He would not allow it.
I started to rock again ~ restless. Too many things did not add up. Why had my father sent me to Arianna, but now wanted me to forget about her?
Why would he not let me go with them to retrieve the stones when I clearly knew the way and had proven that I could handle the trip? Even by myself.
What did he know about my magic that he was not telling me? I was sure there was something he knew. And, what made him believe Arianna was dangerous?
Suspicion crept over me like a dark shadow, discolouring my trust. I needed to test him. But how? A thin smile spread across my face as an idea formed in my head.
Taking a pen and some paper, I wrote a few words, then hurried to my father’s rooms.
“Come in, faeling,” he answered immediately when I knocked.
“May I ask a favour, please, Father?”
“I thought you’d gone to bed. What do you need?”
“Do you remember the shifter I told you about? The one that helped me and saved me?”
“Yes. What of him?” His eyes narrowed.
“I would that you grant him freedom of the city so that he may visit me. He has become my friend, and I fear we might lose contact now that I am home.”
My father regarded me sternly. I didn’t flinch. Everything depended on the outcome of his decision.
“Very well, faeling. You may have your wish.”
“What?” Not the answer I expected.
No shifter had set foot in Draeguard in centuries. I thought my father’s animosity towards Arianna stemmed from the fact she wasn’t fae. Allowing Thomas into Draeguard dispelled my theory.
I blinked rapidly, holding back the tears. “Thank you.”
“Bring me my seal. I’ll sign the decree now. Is there a message you want to send?”
I held out the scrunched up paper I wrote in my room. My father took it and then folded it into the official decree, before sealing it with his stamp.
“Do you know where to send it to? I can dispatch a rider now if you like.”
“Thank you, Father. I’ll take it down.”
I hugged him and quickly left before he could change his mind. Too easy, my mind screamed at me.
It did not fully restore my trust in my father, but having Thomas here would probably make me a whole lot happier. I blushed, then laughed. A servant looked at me as I skipped down the stairs to the stables.
After handing the missive to a messenger with the instructions, I returned to my room. The moon shone in through my window, and I looked at it for a moment.
I raised my hands, palms up. Two blue spheres floated above each palm, spinning slowly. Quite beautiful. I brought my hands together, and the spheres merged.
Arianna had the answers. I knew she did. I needed to see her. What was it that Thomas had said? Arianna was so much more than a witch.
I let the glow fade from my hands and put them in my pockets. So many things didn’t make sense. Even being an outcast, why would a ‘more-than-a-witch’ raise a shifter?
Our society didn’t work like that. We didn’t mingle with other races, which was why my father granting Thomas leave to visit the city was such a miracle.
Thomas had said his mother died when he was a toddler of only two years. Why had his father not taken care of him? How had he ended up with Arianna? I vowed to ask him when he arrived here.
Irritated, I turned from the window. I walked into my cupboard and searched the hangers for my favourite nightdress. There was a chill in the air tonight.
Standing in front of the mirror, I brushed out my hair. It contrasted starkly against the whiten
ess of the nightdress, and I cursed my red hair ~ so un-fae like.
With eighty per cent of the fae population having blonde hair, my red hair always stood out. Some tended towards brown, and some even auburn, but I took the auburn to another level.
My restlessness didn’t let me sleep. The questions chased each other around in my head. Worry for my father nagged me. The longing for the stones maddened me.
“Urgh.” I couldn’t stand it.
Slipping my feet into a pair of shoes, I left my room. At this hour, not many people walked the palace, and I didn’t have much problem sneaking around unseen.
The corridors were empty of rubble and dropped swords; the evidence from the fight cleaned up.
I descended the stairs to the lower levels, shivering in the cold marble halls of the palace in my nightdress. Hurrying, I slipped into the corridor to the elder quarters. No signs of the fight remained, here, either.
A little further on, I heard voices. Hiding behind a pillar, I listened. Two men talked about their day. I peeked around the corner. The guards had their backs turned to me.
I looked over to the prayer room, but couldn’t see the elders. Fingers crossed and hoping for the best, I dashed around the pillar and sprinted down the passage to the vault.
Only the elders and those of the royal line could open the gate to the vault. It remained a mystery how the elves had known to use an elder to unlock the gate.
I pressed my hand against the locking mechanism, and a hundred gears moved to unlock the trellis-like gate to the vault. I cringed at the click-click-clicks it made.
Eight stones sat on their velvet pedestals. Mother-of-Pearl orbs, glowing dimly, calling me to them.
The four empty nests glared at me like raw wounds. Each one hurt; digging its accusing finger into my conscience.
When I had stolen a peek at them when I was younger, all twelve had sat on their pedestals. Back then, they had just been pretty. Today, I needed them as they needed me.
I approached the dais. My hands reached out and trailed along the stones. They glowed brighter in the places where I touched them. Their energy flowed through me.
Turning towards the dais, I laid both my hands on a stone each. My body trembled as the stones under my hands became hot and glowed blue.
The glow travelled along my arms, surged through my body, filled me. So much energy. I couldn’t let go. My vision turned blue. Everything turned blue. I became a glowing beacon, shining a light straight up into the night sky above.
“It’s the child of the prophecy,” an elder said behind me, falling to his knees.
“The child of the prophecy!”
Get book 2 here:
The Fae Prophecy: Unrest
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About the author
Born in Germany in 1976, Toni Cox moved to South Africa in 1991. Although she has spent much of her working career in the timber wholesale business, she is also an accomplished horse rider, has a diploma in project management, photography, and nutrition, and has a passion for books and all things fantasy.
From a young age, her dream had always been to put her imagination into words - give the stories life. When she was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis in 2013, she decided life is too short not to follow her dream. So, with the support of her husband and three children, she began writing book 1 of the Elemental Trilogy in January 2015.
Toni Cox writes: Epic Fantasy, Young Adult Fantasy, Sci-Fi Fantasy, Dark Fantasy, Dystopian Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, and PNR.
The Elemental Trilogy
Elemental Rising
Elemental Betrayal
Forbidden Elemental
The Elemental Short Stories
On Fire
Midnight Tales
Jasmine In Love
Luke
Rebirth coming soon
The Blade of Death coming soon
Stand-alone novels
Resilient
Dreamstate
The Wolf (Prequel)
The Wolf of Ashford Manor
The Fae Prophecy Series
The Fae Prophecy: Prophecy
The Fae Prophecy: Unrest
The Fae Prophecy: Uprising
The Fae Prophecy: Conquest