Faery Forged

by Donna Joy Usher

  After Jared had gone I used my mirror to contact Sabby. I told her I was going on a peace-making expedition, but didn’t mention why we needed the peace making. It was probably best not to start a world-wide panic if we could help it. If Wolfgang were correct, we still had a chance of stopping Santanas’s full return.

  Then I tried home, but neither Mum nor Grams were there, so instead I finished packing, had a shower and headed down to the mess for dinner.

  I filled my plate and took a seat next to Wilfred. ‘Where’s amnesia boy?’

  Wilfred snorted. ‘That’s the pot calling the kettle black.’

  ‘Mine wasn’t amnesia. Mine was schizophrenia.’

  He barked out a laugh. ‘He’s organising provisions for the trip.’

  ‘So what’s the plan for tomorrow?’

  ‘We ride as far as we can.’ He stuffed a piece of roast pork into his mouth, chewed twice, then swallowed.

  I rolled my eyes and handed a chunk of roast beef down to Scruffy. Wilfred had never been a planner. He preferred to wade into battle and fight his way back out. ‘We hunting tonight?’ There were some first years sitting near us so I couldn’t mention Trillania.

  ‘Nah,’ Wilfred said with his mouth full. ‘Rako wants us fully rested.’

  ‘How are they going to hunt successfully with so many of us off on other missions?’ I was guessing none of us would be allowed to dream-walk whilst away from the barracks.

  Brent pulled the seat next to me out and put his plate on the table. ‘The Australians and South Africans are spreading their shifts to help us out.’

  I smiled at him around a mouthful of food. I hadn’t had all that much to do with him while my fae side had been dream-walking but I liked and respected the man.

  Luke pulled a seat out from the opposite side of the table and plonked into it. ‘Have you heard? Larkson and Bobbington are having none of it.’ He took a long swig from his mug of coffee and then banged it back onto the table. ‘Dark Sky save us from pompous fools.’

  Mark Larkson and Ralf Bobbington were the human and witch Prime Ministers. It didn’t bode well if they didn’t believe us. The Border Guard may have been a faery-derived body, but it strived to protect all the different races – magical and non-magical alike.

  I ate my dinner while listening to the easy banter of the three men. Then I dilly-dallied over dessert, and then a cup of tea, but it soon became apparent that Aethan wouldn’t be joining us. I squished my disappointment into a little ball and tossed it at the waste-paper basket in my mind. I missed, of course, and instead had to live with the dull ache around my heart.

  When I could no longer pretend there was any reason for me to still be there, I headed up to bed. The room was empty but for one exception. Aethan’s sister, Isla, was curled up like a cat on the middle of my bed. She stretched when she saw me, her long limbs slender and toned, and then she pushed herself up until she was sitting cross legged. As usual, I felt like a pimply adolescent in her presence.

  ‘I came to see how you are.’ Her glorious eyes bored into mine.

  I ignored my sudden urge to cry. ‘I’m fine, why?’

  ‘A little birdy told me what happened.’

  I sighed and plopped onto Jared’s bed, pulling my legs up underneath myself till I was mimicking her cross-legged pose. ‘It’ll work out.’

  ‘Hmmmm.’ She held her hands out in front of her, inspecting her nails. ‘Well for your sake I hope so.’ She frowned and pulled her left hand in for closer inspection. ‘Oh phooey. I’ve chipped one.’

  ‘Don’t you hate that.’ I stared down at my dirty, torn nails. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d taken a file to them.

  ‘So what time do you leave in the morning?’

  ‘First light.’ They really were disgusting. If I were to win Aethan again perhaps I should consider at least cleaning them.

  ‘Off to get Orion a bride. Who would have thought?’ She pulled a file from her hair and began to reshape her nail.

  Maybe I should try some polish. The bright-red lacquer Isla had on hers looked nice.

  She finished with her nail and tossed the file to me. I set to work making mine presentable. It was going to take a while. ‘Yes,’ I said, ‘and a night faery too.’

  Isla hissed and jumped off my bed. All urges to make my nails pretty fled from my head. ‘A night faery?’ Her face held muted rage.

  ‘You didn’t know?’ I looked at the nailfile in my hand and snorted in disgust. ‘You thralled me?’ I threw the file at her.

  She whipped her hand out and plucked it from the air. ‘I did what I needed to do to find out what I needed to know.’

  ‘You could have just asked me.’ I stood up and glared into her eyes.

  ‘You wouldn’t have told me.’

  ‘No,’ I said. ‘But I might still trust you.’

  For a second her eyes held a trace of sorrow, but then she stiffened her spine and the look in her eyes hardened. ‘Well, it sure has been nice chatting.’

  ‘Lovely,’ I said.

  ‘Perhaps we can do it again sometime.’ A small smile tugged the corners of her mouth up. ‘Next time you can choose the conversation.’

  ‘I look forward to it.’

  As she sauntered off, I realised the crazy thing was, that even though I didn’t know her, and I sure as hell didn’t trust her, I couldn’t help but like her.

  ***

  My alarm woke me while it was still dark. I dressed quickly in my camouflage pants and black t-shirt, trying hard not to wake the students still asleep in my dorm, then I carried my saddlebags and weapons down to the entry hall. Brent, Luke and Aethan were already there.

  ‘Here.’ Aethan handed me a package containing dried meat and biscuits. ‘The rest of it is on the packhorses but I thought you two might be hungry.’

  Scruffy let out a little bark and stared up at me with his big, brown eyes. I shook my head and passed the majority of the meat down to him. ‘Thanks.’ I tried to say it casually, but of course my voice caught halfway through and, instead, I sounded like a pubescent boy.

  For a few seconds everything had been perfect. I had known that I loved him and he loved me, and then Galanta’s spell had hit, and now I felt like a love-sick girl, crushing on her teacher – again.

  I bustled Scruffy outside to where the horses were waiting. The same white mare I had ridden the other night was the only horse without bags already in place. I placed mine onto the blanket on her back and then went over the saddle, checking the girth strap and adjusting the stirrup length. When I was happy with everything, I hooked my quiver full of arrows and my unstrung bow over the pommel.

  The rest of the group emerged from the building while I was settling my sword onto my back. They went over their horses while I picked up my mare’s hooves one-by-one to check for stones. Then I ran my hands over her ankles and legs, checking for tender spots.

  ‘Never fear, I am here.’ Wilfred bounded down the front stairs and slapped Luke on the back.

  ‘Wonderful,’ Luke said, giving Wilfred a dirty look.

  ‘On time as never,’ Brent said, looking up from his horse’s foot.

  ‘We’re meeting Wolfgang in Isilvitania.’ Aethan swung up into his saddle.

  Brent and Luke reached out together, each grasping an edge of the veil. They pulled open a large enough gap for man and horse to enter.

  ‘You’re late.’

  I groaned inwardly as Isla’s voice chimed from the other side of the veil.

  ‘And you’re not invited.’ Aethan used his knees to direct his horse through the break in the veil.

  ‘Now, now, brother, don’t be like that.’

  I leapt up onto my horse’s back and dug my heels in so that she leapt in front of Wilfred’s horse. Ignoring his jibe of ‘young love’ I urged her towards the veil. I had to stop Isla from dropping me in the poo.

  ‘How did you even know we would be here?’

  ‘I have my ways.’ She laughed gently.

 
; I resisted the urge to mention the word thrall. If I did, they would know I was the mole for sure.

  ‘Well, ways or not, you’re not coming.’

  She was dressed in black from head-to-toe and looked every inch the warrior. A bow and quiver hung over the pommel of her horse, and a large broad sword was strapped to her back. I was impressed that she could handle such a large blade. ‘You need me.’

  Aethan burst out laughing. ‘Why would we need you?’

  ‘A little thing called etiquette.’

  Aethan didn’t say anything but she had his full attention.

  ‘It would be unseemly for the future bride of the heir to the faery throne to be escorted by a group of men and only one female. Are you trying to cement a union,’ she looked ill as she said the word, ‘or start a war? You need an entourage of fae women to keep her company and protect her virtue.’ She sniffed as if she didn’t believe that a night faery might have any virtue to protect. ‘At the very least, two females of the blood of the throne may appease them enough to allow this mission to be successful.’

  Silence followed her words and then Brent, who had brought his horse through and mounted, said, ‘She’s right, damn it.’

  She buffed her nails on her shirt and shot me a coy smile. I pretended to ignore it while I bit into one of the hard biscuits.

  ‘But…,’ Aethan started.

  ‘I’m your only option. Which other female of the blood would you risk taking?’

  He stared at her for a long moment while he weighed her words. ‘If we tell mother,’ Aethan said, ‘she will insist we take the entourage.’

  ‘Best to keep this our little secret till we are far enough away that they can’t do anything about it.’

  ‘Day’s a wasting.’ Wilfred was the only one who didn’t seem upset by the idea of Isla coming.

  ‘Fine,’ Aethan said. ‘We’ll send a thought bubble when we get to goblin territory.’

  Isla clapped her hands together and then turned the head of her mare and trotted off.

  ‘Let’s get one thing clear,’ Aethan said as he rode after her, ‘I’m the leader.’

  Isla laughed her tinkly laugh as she let him take the lead. Instead she dropped back till she was riding next to Wilfred.

  ‘What’s a good-looking gal like you doing in a dump like this?’ Will said.

  ‘Looking for some fun. You look like fun. Are you?’

  ‘I’m more fun than the lovechild of a circus and a fun-park.’

  But I couldn’t help but feel that with this one, he might have met his match.

  ***

  We skirted around the woods surrounding the castle until we came to the road that ran towards goblin territory. Wolfgang was waiting for us there. He raised his bushy, grey eyebrows when he saw Isla riding beside Wilfred, and looked at Aethan.

  ‘Isla thinks we’re going to need her help with the etiquette side of things.’ Aethan shrugged a shoulder. It seemed he’d come to terms with his sister’s presence.

  Wolfgang scratched at his beard. ‘I was going to ask how she found out.’

  I squirmed in my saddle, waiting for them all to look at me with accusation in their eyes.

  ‘You know Isla,’ Aethan said.

  Wolfgang flicked his bridle and his mare trotted towards us, falling in beside me. ‘And how have you been Isadora?’ he asked me.

  ‘Busy,’ I replied. ‘You heard that I’m whole?’ It was the best way I could describe what had happened to me when my witch and faery sides had joined.

  ‘Yes Rako told me. He also told me about….’ He nodded his head towards Aethan.

  I sighed. I didn’t want to talk about that. There was, however, something else I did want to talk to him about. ‘Wolfgang.’ I cleared my throat nervously – I mean what if he refused me? ‘Will you help me?’

  ‘With that?’ He nodded his head toward Aethan again.

  ‘No.’ My voice came out as a strangled yelp. ‘With my powers.’

  ‘Oh, well yes that I can help you with.’

  A vision of Wolfgang trying to match-make Aethan and me popped into my head and I pressed my lips together so the resulting laugh could not escape.

  ‘What in particular are you having trouble with?’

  ‘Everything.’

  Normally, when witches’ powers came in, the witch was almost fluent in the field of their talent straight away. The hard part was discovering exactly what their talent extended to. The generic spells, that all witches could do, were taught well before our 17th birthdays when our familiars might find us.

  It didn’t seem to be working that way for me. I had a blend of faery and witch powers that sometimes worked together, but mostly competed for dominance. The results were only occasionally predictable. The best that could be said of them were that they were strong. But what were the use of strong, unpredictable powers?

  Wolfgang rubbed his hands together. ‘We’ll start tonight. It will give us something to do while we travel.’

  ‘How long will it take to reach Emstillia?’

  ‘Well, if we encounter no difficulties, a little over a week.’

  I didn’t ask what those difficulties might be. Sometimes it’s better not to know. That way the fear doesn’t cripple you.

  We didn’t encounter any ‘difficulties’ that first day, arriving at the edge of the goblin territory as the sun was setting. I was happy to hand Scruffy down and clamber out of the saddle. My bottom had progressed from sore to numb and I felt like I had left it behind a few hours ago.

  After we had groomed and fed the horses, we set up our small tents. I watched as Brent dug a hole and built a fire in it. ‘Last chance for a hot meal till we get to Emstillia,’ he said as he placed a pot over the flames. I watched him add water, dried meat and some herbs to the pot.

  ‘Gotta love the smell of a campfire,’ Wilfred said as he plonked onto a log next to me.

  ‘There’s something very romantic about it.’ Isla’s voice came from right behind us.

  I was happy to see that Wilfred appeared as startled as I was.

  She slid into view and perched on the log next to Wilfred, her waterfall of midnight hair shimmering in the light from the fire. ‘Don’t you think?’

  I saw Wolfgang emerge from his tent and look in my direction.

  ‘Don’t normally have time for romance.’ Will sounded out of his depth.

  Wolfgang raised a hand and beckoned me.

  ‘No time for romance?’ Isla’s voice had taken on a sultry edge.

  I really wanted to stay and hear how this played out. It wasn’t often that someone flummoxed Wilfred. But I had asked Wolfgang for the lessons; it would be rude to make him wait.

  Wilfred made a grab for my arm as I hopped up off the log. ‘Wolfgang needs me.’ I shook his hand off and gave him a Cheshire-cat grin.

  I followed Wolfgang into his tent. A small ball of light hovered in the air, casting a soft glow.

  ‘Sit, sit,’ Wolfgang said, lowering himself into a cross-legged position on a rug.

  I made myself comfortable and then said, ‘So how are we going to do this?’

  ‘I want to see the extent of what you can do.’

  ‘That’s just it,’ I tried unsuccessfully to keep the frustration out of my voice, ‘I can’t do anything predictably.’

  ‘You can make a shield.’

  ‘About ninety percent of the time.’

  ‘Well let’s start with that.’

  Make a shield. I’d never consciously done it before. Where to start?

  I threw my arms out in front of me, imagining the air hardening till it solidified. Nothing happened. I willed the air to obey me, I wished it with all my might. I closed my eyes and threw my arms out and prayed to the Dark Sky, but nothing that I did worked.

  ‘Excellent,’ Wolfgang said, rubbing his hands together. He took a rock from a pile beside him and placed it on the floor in front of me. ‘Try levitating this.’

  I wasn’t sure what had been so excellent
about my last effort but I shrugged and pulled my wand out of my braid. Pointing it at the rock I said, ‘Risius rockius.’ The rock quivered. ‘Risius rockius,’ I raised my voice. The rock hopped up and down as if there were something stopping it. There was no way I was failing at this as well as the shield.

  The next time I flicked my wand and cried out the spell, Wolfgang threw another rock at my head. I shrieked and threw my hands up in front of me. A shield of air sliced through the tent in a perfect line, the material fluttering to the ground around us. I could see Aethan, Brent and Luke staring in our direction, their hands resting on their swords.

  ‘Very interesting.’ Wolfgang wiggled his fingers and the tent fabric danced back into the air, sliding up the tent poles till the two sides met. The edges seemed to bleed into each other until once again, the tent was whole.

  I put my head into my hands. ‘I’m useless.’

  ‘On the contrary,’ Wolfgang said, ‘your use of magic is instinctual.’

  I lowered my hands a little and peered up at him through my fingers. ‘My magic is what?’

  ‘You use magic without thinking about it. That’s what we need to work on.’

  ‘But… how am I meant to work on it without thinking about it.’

  Wolfgang let out a laugh. ‘Well that’s what I have to think about. We will continue this tomorrow night.’ His mouth widened into a yawn. ‘I don’t know about you but I think I am not long from my blankets. Let’s get some grub.’

  I put my hands over my face as I yawned as well.

  ‘They really are contagious,’ Wolfgang said as he pulled back the flap of his tent.

  Brent had served up the stew while I had been having my lesson, leaving two bowls close to the fire to stay warm. Scruffy sat near the bowls, staring at them as if he could magically summon the food to himself.

  ‘I’ve already fed him,’ Brent said, ‘but he licked that one.’ He pointed at one of the bowls.

  ‘Well,’ Wolfgang picked up the other one, ‘I guess this one’s mine.’

  ‘You licked it?’ I said to Scruffy.

  He seemed unconcerned by his lack of manners, instead continuing his staring.