The Chosen One Universe Volume Three: An MM Paranormal Fantasy Shifters Series

by Macy Blake

  “Loch?” Sawyer asked.

  “Have you asked your mates for any ideas on this matter?”

  Sawyer looked away guiltily. “Uh, no? Not yet? I was thinking some things through. There are a lot of things to think about.”

  “That there are. Let’s find your mate and see what he has to say.”

  Sawyer nodded his agreement and followed Cecil back to the house. They found Loch in the kitchen with a muffin covered in honey on its way to his mouth. He paused for a moment, then continued, stuffing half the sweet treat into his mouth. Viv giggled. Sawyer shook his head at both of them before swiping away a blob of sticky crumbs from Loch’s lower lip.

  “Yes, my mate?” Loch asked once he’d managed to chew and swallow.

  “I need some help. I want to make sure Nick and the cubs are safe, and Cecil thought you might have an idea for me. It’s just— Palinourous can obviously get through wards, and if he’s as pissed off as we think he is, I’m really afraid he’s going to go after them again, if only to try to get back some of the power he’s lost. But I don’t know where we could put them that’s safer than behind the coven’s wards.”

  Loch only hesitated for a moment before answering. “I can only think of one place: the clodagh.”

  “We don’t have safe passage,” Sawyer said. “We can negotiate with Queen Orfhlaith, but that’ll take time.”

  Loch made a funny face and turned to Sawyer once more. “We have safe passage to the lake, if the lady agrees to keep the children safe.”

  Sawyer knew Loch referred to the lady of the lake when he spoke. Having once been one of her reincarnated imps, Loch had an intimate knowledge of the powerful lake that the rest of them couldn’t dream of understanding. “How so?”

  “My prince gave me a powerful gift as a reward for the time I served him.” Loch reached into his tunic and pulled out a small leather pouch. He opened it and removed a bundle of the prince’s distinctive blond hair.

  “What… I don’t…”

  Cecil beamed. “The hair will guarantee their safe passage. I’m sure Puteri could form charms out of it for the children. But only if the lady of the lake agrees to keep them safe once they are there.”

  “That’s right,” Loch said. “We’d have to go personally to ask her. But we do have access to one thing the queen would really like to have.”

  “What’s that?” Sawyer asked.

  “Dragon scales. It’s a gamble, and it does give her some power over us. Well, Draco in particular, but if you really want them safe, that’s the way I’d go about it. And you know the rules about gifts freely given.”

  Sawyer scowled. “I’d rather the gift be from me than one of my mates.”

  “That’s not how it works,” Draco said from behind them.

  Sawyer spun around and scowled. “Gonna put a bell on you. And you don’t have to do this. It’s just the first idea. We can come up with another one. There has to be something else—“

  “It’s fine, Sawyer. Do you really think Queen Orfhlaith would be dumb enough to use me against you? Especially as you are coming into your powers again? She doesn’t want to piss off a god, and hurting a god’s mate would do that and more. No, I’m sure this is the best idea. What are you planning, though? I missed the first part.”

  Sawyer explained his plan of taking Nick’s pack to the lake for safe keeping until they were all safe again.

  Draco nodded his agreement. “They are definitely your weak spot. And the power of the lake is unquestioned. We all felt it.”

  “The hellhound alpha has the queen’s permission to portal to the lake. We should ask Solomon to take a small group of us to the lake to negotiate this business,” Loch added.

  “Pip and Dakota should attend you,” Cecil said softly. “They have not been to the lake before and I feel like they need to go.”

  “Understood,” Sawyer said. “Draco and Loch will be my fire and air. Pip and Dakota will be my water and earth. We will leave the others here and have Henry reinforce the wards in our absence.” He glanced over at Draco once more. “You’re sure you don’t mind?”

  “Yes. I’ll gladly give up a scale or two if it means keeping those kids safe. Asshole should never have hurt them in the first place.”

  Sawyer wrapped his arms around Draco and held him tight. “I love you.”

  “And I you. Let’s get this done so you can stop worrying about it.”

  Sawyer grunted and squeezed Draco tighter. His mate could pretend to be grumpy all he wanted, but his heart was pure gold.

  Cecil wouldn’t let him get away with it for long though. He tapped Sawyer’s shoulder and held out one of the now ubiquitous smoothies. “Drink up, Master Sawyer. You’ll need nourishment to get through this day.”

  “Ugh. Why do I still need these things?”

  Cecil simply smiled and walked away, always the enigma.

  “I’ll go tell the others,” Loch said.

  Sawyer let Draco lead him outside, and they sat down at the edge of the pool and dangled their feet into the cool water.

  “Penny for your thoughts,” Draco asked after he snagged Sawyer’s hand and linked their fingers together.

  “I don’t even know my thoughts right now,” Sawyer said. “First thing I thought of, even hearing that Palinourous is gathering allies from other realms, is that I needed Nick and the kids safe. I want to let our allies know what’s going on as well. I think I’ll leave that to Eduard. You can talk to your family, right?”

  Draco nodded. “And Eduard is a good man for the job. He has a lot of resources we haven’t tapped into yet. No one wants to piss off the griffin prince.”

  “Not if they want their retirement nest eggs to stay in one piece,” Sawyer said. “But seriously, I don’t want anyone threatened to be with me in this fight. They have to believe that I can do this. It’s what all this is for, right?”

  “You tell me,” Draco said.

  “Ugh. Not you, too. I’m tired of the vague and mysterious thing.”

  “This whole thing is vague and mysterious. You can’t blame me for that. You’re the one who erased your own memories.”

  “Don’t remind me,” Sawyer said. He dropped his head onto Draco’s shoulder as he moved his legs gently through the water. “Do you think this will work? The lake, I mean?”

  “I’ve seen that lake do some pretty powerful magic,” Draco said. “There’s something… I don’t know the word.”

  “Primordial. Old and powerful.”

  “That’s the one.”

  “Do you think she’s one of the old ones?”

  Draco shrugged and Sawyer’s head moved on his shoulder. They settled again and Sawyer drifted into a haze for a while. He heard others moving around them as well as Draco’s rumbled words as he spoke. He wasn’t paying attention, though. He kept trying to move all of the pieces around on the chess board in his mind. He needed to figure out the answers, but they seemed just out of reach, as always. Every time he thought he’d found answers, it simply led to more questions.

  He wasn’t sure how much time passed before Draco cupped his face gently. Sawyer raised his head, blinking away all of the thoughts he’d been lost in, and looked up into his mate’s eyes. “Time to go.”

  Sawyer nodded. Draco climbed to his feet and pulled Sawyer up behind him. Cecil had his favorite pair of beat up old sneakers at the ready, so he slipped them on.

  “Ready?” Loch asked.

  “As I’ll ever be.”

  Solomon came outside with one of Viv’s muffins in his hand. He grinned before popping it into his mouth and opening a portal. Draco took the bag Cecil held out to him before tugging Sawyer back to his side.

  Pip and Dakota both looked a little confused as to what was happening, and part of Sawyer took a moment to wonder why Cecil thought they needed to be there with him. That was the way his magic worked, though, so Sawyer didn’t question it. He’d get the answers when he needed them.

  Solomon’s portal took them directly t
o the lake, unlike the one they’d used so long ago with Prince Kavalan. That one had required what had felt like a miles long hike through the mysterious and dangerous fae realm forest. This portal dropped them just outside the safety of the lake’s shoreline. Draco hustled Sawyer forward until they were in the safe zone of the sandy shore.

  Pip sucked in a breath and looked around in wonder. “What is this place?”

  The purples, pinks, and blues seemed so familiar to Sawyer that they didn’t seem unusual at all, which really told Sawyer how much he’d changed since all this had started. Imps fluttered around, their tiny forms performing flips in the air as they darted closer and closer to the newcomers to the lake.

  “Welcome to the clodagh,” Loch said.

  Sawyer stood staring at the water for a long minute. He could feel it beckoning him closer. Not in a creepy scary way, but more in a motherly, you look like you need a hug kind of way. He followed his instincts and began stripping off his clothes. He left a trail behind him as he made his way to the water, then waded into it up to his knees.

  “Sawyer?” Draco asked from behind him.

  “Wait for me.” Sawyer dove in, enjoying the blur of sound as his head went under. He closed his eyes as the water washed over him, then bobbed up a few seconds later.

  The lake warmed, greeting him. Sawyer never really thought about how she communicated, but Loch had shown him that she did. He simply had to listen. Sawyer rolled onto his back and floated, emptying his thoughts for a few minutes and enjoying the sensation of the lake’s warm embrace. He didn’t have a lot of time to forget, though, and once the first image of one of the orphans popped into his mind, the others flooded in soon behind.

  The lake pulsed, some answering response to his heightened emotion. Sawyer let her see his thoughts, feel his emotions where the kids were concerned. Then he thought about his plea. Could she keep them safe from Palinourous? Would bringing them to her shores protect them from a god who might try to hurt them again?

  The lake warmed once more, this time an angry heat. She understood and agreed. Sawyer let out a sigh of relief. The lake pulsed again, and one of the imps began flipping overhead. It moved closer and closer, giggling and chirping at him, deceptive in its childlike form. It held out one of its chubby little hands and something gleamed there. Sawyer held up his hand and the imp dropped the item into it.

  It looked like a sharpened stone, the edges as thin as a razor.

  “A gift freely given,” Sawyer mumbled as he rearranged himself in the water. He tightened his fist around the stone and felt it slice into his palm. Blood seeped from between his fingers and dripped into the water. “It’s not much, but it’s all I have.”

  The lake pulsed again, pleased with his offering. Sawyer sent his thanks in the form of another thought and began swimming back to shore.

  “What did you do?” Dakota grumbled when he noticed Sawyer’s hand. He grabbed the hem of his shirt and tore it before wrapping the strip around Sawyer’s palm. Sawyer glanced over at Draco, who watched with a pleased look on his face. Pip hovered by Sawyer’s shoulder, also worried about his injury.

  “I’m okay. Just a scratch. You both need to go into the waters, though. Say hello to the lady. It’s only polite. You don’t need to go as far as I did.”

  Dakota scowled. “I don’t swim.”

  “Come on,” Pip said, bouncing eagerly beside them and grabbing Dakota’s arm. “I’ll be with you.”

  Pip’s otters broke free, glimmering white steaks of magic which took shape into the little distracting animals who existed inside him. “Oops?”

  Sawyer laughed. “It’s fine. I’m sure the lady will be delighted.”

  Pip pulled his shirt off and ran for the shore. Dakota followed behind, sending a couple of disgruntled looks Sawyer’s way. Once they were safely in the waters and Pip had the otters swimming and doing flips to entertain the imps, Draco stepped up beside him.

  “Well?”

  “She’s going to help.”

  “Good. We have company.”

  “What?” Sawyer turned and found a group of satyrs stepping out of the woods. “Oh, the prince knows we’re here.”

  “I’m sure the prince was notified the minute we stepped through the portal,” Loch said quietly. “The queen as well.”

  “Man, I’m not ready to deal with all that political stuff.”

  “You must get ready,” Loch said before he pasted on his “captain of the guard” face and strode forward.

  Sawyer took several deep breaths while Loch did some complicated form of greeting only fellow soldiers could understand. By the time Sawyer had composed himself, the magic in the air shifted and Prince Kavalan and his guards strode from the forest.

  Kavalan had a smile pasted onto his face. He approached Sawyer like they were the best of friends. He pulled Sawyer to him for air kisses on each cheek before leaning back with a smile. The significant look he sent Loch’s way was less than subtle, but Loch raised a shield around them a second later, protecting them from any eavesdroppers.

  The fake smile faded. “What are you doing here?” Kavalan demanded. “My mother will be furious.”

  Sawyer quickly explained their plan. Kavalan was less than impressed, to put it mildly.

  “You’re bringing a pissed off god to our doorstep, Sawyer. What do you think he will do to our realm when he can’t get to the kids?”

  “Nothing, Prince Kavalan,” Loch answered.

  It wasn’t the answer either Sawyer or the prince expected.

  “We met with the alpha of alphas earlier today. The Chosen One’s brother is not making the journeys to the other realms himself. He is sending others who are able to travel freely between the realms.”

  “He doesn’t have his guide,” Sawyer said, the truth suddenly dawning on him. All of his siblings had one. Hell, the Mother even had her stag. Sawyer himself had Byakko. He had no doubt Palinourous would have attempted a visit to the god realm to regain some of his power if he’d been able. “I’m only able to come to your realm with the hellhound’s direct assistance, and Solomon has permission from your queen. Everyone else has been placed on lock down from portaling in and out after the incident with the banshees, even your own kind.”

  Sawyer reached for Loch’s hand, giving it a thankful squeeze. He’d not put that piece of the puzzle together and wouldn’t have thought to offer that reassurance to the fae royals.

  “Few are given the freedom to travel between realms. The human realm has been a place where we can all converge, but the hellhounds’ presence keeps it from becoming overrun. The rules are strictly enforced.”

  “You’ll have to convince my mother of that. This is a risk to our entire population, Sawyer.”

  “I will convince her,” Sawyer vowed. “The lady of the lake has agreed to assist us. We need to keep the children safe. They can’t be pawns in this war anymore.”

  Loch squeezed Sawyer’s hand before he spoke. “My prince.” Loch closed his eyes for a moment before opening them once more. He rarely looked shaken, but even Sawyer could see that his mate had dropped his facade and showed the prince of his people the pain he felt.

  “Loch?”

  The fae rarely lost his composure. He’d been too highly trained for that. Sawyer had a sneaking suspicion he knew what his mate was about to reveal to the prince, though.

  “It appears that some of ours were used in the quest to heighten Palinourous’s power.”

  Kavalan frowned. “Explain.”

  Sawyer squeezed Loch’s hand, relieving him of the duty. “My brother tried to steal magic from cubs. When it didn’t work as planned, he attempted to create hybrids out of different types of magic. Some of the children very clearly have fae blood.”

  Kavalan’s face tightened before returning to that emotionless facade Sawyer had seen on his face so many times. “Understood. Thank you for preparing us for their arrival. I will personally see to their safety and wellbeing.”

  “Thank you.”


  “And Sawyer?”

  “Yes?”

  “Prepare for my mother to be very angry. This added bit of information, as important as it is, will only enrage her further. We are caught up in a war that is not ours, and our people, our children, have suffered.”

  Sawyer understood only too well.

  Music filtered through the air and butterflies began flying around in the breeze. Queen Orfhlaith had arrived.

  Loch dropped the ward. Sawyer found Dakota and Pip staring at them. He’d not warned his mates of Loch’s ability, so he had no idea what they were thinking. He met Dakota’s gaze and tried to let him know to be cautious.

  Dakota stepped from the water and pulled Pip behind him. The otters were gone, absorbed back into Pip while they’d waited.

  The queen emerged from the woods before Sawyer could explain, a woman with a mission. That mission was likely to remove Sawyer’s head from his shoulders. Sawyer wouldn’t deny the shudder of fear that went through him. The queen was a warrior, through and through, and her fierceness was only matched by her beauty.

  Sawyer only hoped he could sway her to his side of the argument.

  Loch

  Queen Orfhlaith marched across the shoreline and stopped in a swirl of flower petals and butterflies. It should have been an innocent scene from a children’s movie. Instead, Loch had serious fears for them all. An enraged Queen Orfhlaith didn’t act with reason.

  “Chosen One,” Queen Orfhlaith bit out. “What brings you to our realm?”

  “Queen Orfhlaith,” Sawyer said softly, “I come to you with a most serious request. We are preparing to face my brother in battle, but we have a pack of children and their caretakers who need to be under the lake’s protection until we can be sure they are safe. There is no place in any realm as safe as these shores. I knew that with the lake’s protection and your own guardianship, I could rest assured they would come to no harm.”

  “Pretty words. I have no need for pretty words. I need to keep my people safe and not bring any more of this war to our realm!”

  Loch could practically hear the gears turning in Sawyer’s mind. She wasn’t wrong. It was a lot to ask of the Queen and her people, even if they were relatively sure Palinourous himself couldn’t come after the children. He could send his minions, though, and those had been just as deadly for others of their kind.