by Laney McMann
“A misfortune. Nothing more.” He waved a hand.
“A misfortune?”
“Son …” He strode back to his desk. “The Legend of the Fire Born is a very old belief. Passed down through many millennia. Its meaning varies, depending on the reader. I am not sure what you were told, but the Fire Born of Legend were prophesied to be enemies. The superpowers of opposing races. Teine was never meant for you. Her father did a cruel, unthinkable thing. He bound you to the one person you could never truly have. Your heart will pay for that deed forever. How can you call them your people after what they’ve done to you?”
“I …” He was right and wrong in so many ways. No one had ever told me the truth about who I was, or what had happened to my parents, but as much as the truth mattered, Layla mattered more. She was my life, my past, my present, my memories. My everything. Everything I wanted. The only thing I wanted, and she was in danger because of me. Because of who I was.
A Fomorian.
The knowledge shuddered through me. All the years I’d been protecting her from who she was— a Light Bearer for the Otherworld—an Ancient Fire Born hunted by the Fomore—when all the while, it was me she needed protection from. Me, who was the enemy. Nausea welled in my stomach until I thought I might be sick.
“You don’t really believe Teine knew nothing of your birthright?” My father continued, clearly oblivious to my internal struggle. “That seems folly.”
“I have no reason to think otherwise. Layla had no idea who she was until a few weeks ago. She didn’t know anything about this.” I shook my head. “Lorelei sheltered her from the truth for years. It’s because of me she knows anything at all. Because of me she’s in danger now.” I mumbled the last part, staring at my hands.
“I can offer you that which you wish for. Teine’s safety in a world of treachery and deceit. I can give you the luxury that so few people can afford.”
I had no idea what to say.
“Inform your friends, your guardian, too. Tell them of your decision to stay here. I will not ask you to abandon them without explanation. I only wish that you be a part of this world as you should be. Allow me to accustom you to our traditions, our way of life. You are the heir to this realm. Teine should understand. She has a duty to her people, as well. One I am sure she needs to tend to. She could protect her people as the rightful Light Bearer should. And in time, she, too, will inherit her realm. I offer you the peace you seek amongst the races without the need for battle.” He inhaled deeply. “Think it over. The servants have made up your quarters. We will talk tomorrow.”
In a state of confusion, I headed for the door, but stopped before I made it there. “My quarters?”
“Elethan chuckled. “This is your home, not your prison.” He smiled a gentle smile.
“And if I refuse?”
He glanced toward his folded hands. “Well, MacKenzie, the Tuatha Dé stole you from me. At infancy, no less. It is a terrible, unforgivable crime. Not one I can simply forget. If you wish to walk away from your life here, your true family, then I am afraid I have no recourse but to continue with my initial plan. You see, only the love of my son could override such a heinous crime. And truly, I would prefer not to force your hand.”
“But you don’t hunt the Fire Born.” I gave him a mocking smile.
He grinned back. “There are other ways to … handle your Twin Soul.”
“Right.” I gritted my teeth, momentarily wanting to hurl him into the library wall.
“MacKenzie, please. As I said, it is not my wish to go after the girl any longer. Or to quarrel with you.” He bowed his head. “Allow me to ask one more question of you before you go, if I may. The love that you believe you feel for Teine—how can you be sure it isn’t a simple matter of predestined magic?”
“What do you mean?”
“The Curse that was placed on yourself and Teine? The Legend foretold of the destruction of the Twin Souls—if I remember correctly.” He strode around the front of his desk and leaned against it. “The Tuatha Dé bound the two of you through the Tie in hopes of stopping the curse—a hope that you would not be able to kill each other, if it came to battle. Again, if what I have been told is true.” He inclined his head. “Admirable of Teine’s father. But … how do you know it is true love you feel for the girl? A magical binding of that nature removes one’s free will.” His eyes sparked, and my stomach plummeted.
I stared at him, blood throbbing in my veins, refusing to give him the satisfaction that his revelation jarred me.
“You are a Fomorian, after all.” He shrugged. “Normally, it would not have been in your nature to care for someone of our opposition. And even if you had recognized your Twin Soul upon the day of battle, as Legend says, it would not have stopped you from destroying her. It is in your blood.” He seemed to appraise me. “How can you be so sure, MacKenzie, that the Tuatha Dé have chosen the right path for you in binding you to the girl, if you have never been allowed to choose on your own? How can you know it is love and not magical coercion?” He gave me a curious smile.
“You really are a bastard.” I walked out the study door, weighted down as if lead shackles were dragging the floor by my ankles.
“Do not take too long making your decision. A few days at best,” he called out. “Or I shall worry.”
I stopped, fists clenched, and turned to him. “Since you know so much, what happened to my mother?” I had been trying not to ask, trying not to look as if I needed anything, any information he might have that I wanted or needed, but I couldn’t stop the words from tumbling out of my mouth. I’d always wondered.
“Dead.”
The punch in my gut was more than I was prepared for. I wasn’t sure what I expected him to say, what I expected to hear, or why it should matter. I’d never known my mother, never even seen her face that I could remember, but his words cut through me all the same.
“I had my people look into her whereabouts. It seems she died only recently, as it were. But no matter.” He waved a bored hand. “It is not as if you ever knew her.”
No, I never did.
I turned on my heel, unable to bear the sight of him, aching to throw him bodily through the wall of his study. Continuing past the guards outside the door without a word, I didn’t glance back. Instead, I walked past the raging fireplaces, the servants dressed in ivory uniforms flanking the stairs and waiting to usher me into my quarters, underneath a massive stone archway that made up the entrance into the castle, and outside onto the barren landscape.
I kept walking.
Straight toward the tall black gates that loomed in the distance underneath the darkening clouds that hung overhead. Upon my touch, the gates disintegrated like smoke. Whatever I’d expected—it wasn’t that. Without another thought, I marched through, and the lingering smoke simply reformed again with a grind of steel on steel behind me. Only then did I glance back through the iron scrolls and spiked finials that barred the Formorian castle walls.
Underneath the wide stone archway, Elethan stood, arms folded over his chest. He hadn’t tried to stop me from leaving. No one had. I stared at him over the expanse of yellowed wasteland between us, wondering why, and it hit me like another punch—a blow I was sure he would have wanted me to feel. The only explanation that made any sense at all.
It had always been said that no one could simply walk into the Underworld.
Only the Fomore could pass through the gates without invitation.
Someone with their blood.
Me.
Ice seemed to fill my veins.
I held the King’s willful stare. A slight spark—a twinkle—shined in his eye, and I could’ve sworn he smiled before he turned away.
19
The waterfall that blocked the gates into the Royal Court in the Otherworld seemed dull and lifeless, as if its luster had fizzled out. Everything looked sullen. Even the forest—its usual bright green color was faded to dull a brown.
I stood in front of the tumbling sheet of white water,
wondering if I should try to run through it the way I had with Layla, to force my way into the booby-trapped, dark cave and make it beyond and to the Crystal Gates that led into the Royal Court. I knew they wouldn’t open for me, even if I made it. Still, I wished, with some desperate kind of hope, that they would, that something as simple as that would prove I belonged in The World of Light. Prove I was one of them.
“Max?”
I would’ve known her chiming voice anywhere. Turning around, wearing the first real smile I’d had on my face in what had to have been weeks, I watched Cara run from the shaded tree line.
“Max!” She jumped at me, not her usual teasing flirtation either, but with a true desperate sort of bound into my arms.
“Cara.” Her small frame trembled slightly, and I put her back on her feet. “Are you okay?”
“Max …” Her voice shook, and tears fell down her little face. She swiped them away hastily, reminding me painfully of Layla, before her expression turned serious. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah—I …”
She threw her arms around me again before I could say anything else. “Everyone’s been searching and searching. We’ve been so afraid. People have been saying that you’re a Fomore. It’s not true, I told them. Liars. All of them.” A lump lodged in my throat, and she squeezed me harder. “You’re really okay? Really? You look kind of … did you get in a fight?”
“I’m okay.” I patted her back, hoping it was reassuring. “And you’re not one to talk. Have you been sick?” The color of her skin had a green hue.
She shrugged. “It’s nothing.”
“Okay …. Well, I came to see your mother. Do you know if she’s here?” I pointed toward the waterfall.
“No, she isn’t.” She looked up at me.“She’s at the Underground.” Cara put her hand over her mouth, eyes widening. “You don’t know? That’s not why you’re here?”
“Know what?”
She grabbed my hand. “I’ll take you. No one else knows the way. Only family.” She pulled me away from the waterfall and through the woods. “No one knows you’re here? That you’re okay?”
“Uh, no … I came straight here from—wait, what don’t I know? Why does the forest look so … dead?”
“You really don’t know, do you?” she said in a serious tone and grabbed both my hands, staring up at me. “We have to traverse together, or the doorway will block you. Don’t let go, okay?”
“Wait … will you tell me what’s going—“
She squeezed my hands tight and spun, yanking me beside her with incredible strength, and drowning my words.
The cave we landed in reeked of something rotten, the ground so slippery I almost flattened Cara when I reached to steady myself against an equally slimy wall.
“What is this place?” I wiped my hands down my jeans, barely able to see an inch in front of my face.
“It’s one of the doorways into the Underground. My grandmother’s doorway.” She reached for my hand again. “Come on. Just place your steps behind mine. It’s the only way you won’t fall.”
“What’s that smell?”
“Well, we are underground. Lots of stuff lives down here. You probably don’t want to touch the cave walls. And you might want to breathe through your mouth. You can’t smell anything that way. My grandmother taught me that.” She had a lilt to her tone, like she was proud to be teaching me something.
“Lead the way, I guess.” I took her advice, breathing through my mouth. Only, I then tasted the sickly sweet smell on my tongue which was worse, so I closed it.
Cara continued in front of me, her hand outstretched behind her, holding mine. “You know, the Underground—it’s impenetrable. Cool, huh?”
“Uh, yeah, sure.” I tried to watch her footsteps like she’d said, but it was too dark to see. “Isn’t there any easier way inside?”
“Sure. We usually traverse, but … well—” She stopped. “You know, I guess we could’ve gone the easy way, since you do count as family.”
Cara couldn’t have seen it, but I smiled, a genuine heartfelt smile, which warmed my entire body.
She started walking again. “Oh, well, we’re already down here. Might as well keep going.”
The cave bottomed out after a few more steps, onto a shallow basin flooded in light. The ocean, in pure green reflective water, stretched beyond it for miles.
“This is it. See, it’s not so bad once you get through. Smells like salt, now.” She grinned up at me, and her body became sort of translucent.
I stared at her, wondering if the light was playing tricks with my eyes.
“Look at your legs,” she said.
I glanced down, and she burst out laughing. My legs were completely invisible. So were my torso and my arms. “Cara?” I couldn’t see her anymore, either.
“Welcome to the Underground,” she said, giggling. “Just take a step forward.”
I did, and the cave seemed to dissolve around me, and I found myself standing in the middle of a massive great room.
Two giant rectangular windows looked out over the green sea. In a grouping of about eight ornately carved wooden chairs sat the matriarchs of Layla’s family, and a palpable sense of foreboding hung like wet drapes in the air.
“MacKenzie!” Lorelei rushed me from across the room, momentarily stunning me with shock.
All of the faces turned.
“Teine—she is not with you?” Lorelei’s gaze roved behind me, and her expression crumpled, no doubt at the look of panic that had to have washed across my face. Every muscle in my body tensed like steel cables.
“What do you mean she isn’t with me?”
“MacKenzie, my dear, are you all right?” Layla’s white-eyed grandmother shuffled forward, hands reaching out and touching my face. She looked ancient compared to the last time I’d seen her.
“Yes, My Lady. I’m all right for now, anyway. What happened? Where’s Layla?”
Her grandmother sighed and released me. “She has disappeared.” Her tone was ragged. “A few of the Guard tracked her as far as the Dryad’s lands but lost her.”
“What?” My heart beat painfully against my ribs. “Why was she there? The Dryads hate her. Us.”
Lorelei sank into her seat and threw a hand over her eyes. “Because she was told not to go looking for you.” Her voice was strained, tired. “So, of course, she snuck out and followed Justice.”
She’s safe with Justice. I hope.
“MacKenzie, we do not believe that Teine is in immediate danger.” Layla’s grandmother shook her head with what had to be irritation. “Please, tell me what has happened to you.”
I glanced at Flidais. “I came to see you at the Royal Court. I met Cara instead.” I motioned to the little girl sitting in one of the large chairs, swinging her legs back and forth. “She brought me here.” It sounded like an apology, or maybe I felt the need to defend myself, especially since it was my fault Layla was missing. Looking at them—all their faces—knowing that these women knew who and what I was—a Fomorian—that they’d always known, brought up some sense of shame.
“As Cara should have, my dear.” Layla’s grandmother patted my hand. “We are so pleased, so relieved, to see you.”
“MacKenzie, I am indeed pleased to see you,” Flidais said. “Pleased that you came to me with news. However, my mother has resumed her throne. She presides over the World of Light now, and prefers the Underground to the Royal Court.”
I nodded and faced Layla’s grandmother.
“Please, tell us what has happened, child.” Layla’s grandmother gave a fluid motion with her hand.
“My Lady … King Elethan … he has offered to lay down his arms against your realm—against Layla.” A familiar lump lodged in my throat. “If I walk away from her—from all of you.” The words were like acid in my mouth. “If I sever ties permanently.” My posture stiffened as if waiting for a hit. “I thought you should know, before I …” Before I what? Abandon the only family I’ve ever known?<
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The elderly Queen hissed, a long drawn out sound, and her gaze met mine for a brief second, and I wondered if she could see me. “Please, tell me you said no, child.” Neither her tone nor her expression held a hint of wavering.
I swallowed hard. “I didn’t give him an answer, yet. My …” I tried to continue without allowing my voice to break. “My duty is to the Tuatha Dé. To Layla.” I glanced at my feet and back to her face. “Regardless of blood.” I cleared my throat. “Or any magical … persuasion. That duty was given to me by your former King, Layla’s father. I can’t simply ignore Elethan’s offer. If I can guarantee Layla’s safety, there isn’t a choice to make. Her freedom, her life, is more important than my own.”
The Queen exhaled. “MacKenzie … my dear, when we placed the Tie, we did what we felt necessary to protect two innocent children from an unnecessary evil. That does not, however, erase our blame. We removed you from your home, your rightful place. If you choose to abandon your efforts here—abandon Teine for that matter—and return to your father, no one would blame you. That is your choice.”
I shook my head. “This isn’t about Elethan being my father. I have a parent in my grandmother. I’m not looking to replace her. I understand why you felt the need to protect me—protect both of us—but, Layla …” I bowed my head. “I made a mistake. I put her in danger. If I can give her safety back—” I glanced away, finding it hard to continue. “My Lady, I have to protect her. It’s what I do, what I’ve always done. I love her.” My voice caught. “I am one of you, a Tuatha Dé, by magic or no, and I have no desire to ever change that. If you’ll still have me, that is.”
A small unexpected smile played at her mouth. “Have you, child?” Her tone was gentle, motherly. “The question is whether or not you will still have us?”
“I’m sorry, I don’t understand.”
“Child, we love you like our own and will continue to do so, but by all rights, you have every reason to hate us,” she said.
I grinned in surprise, finding I could breathe again. I hadn’t realized I’d been holding my breath. “I could never hate you.” I glanced toward Lorelei. “Any of you. If anything, I think I owe you my life.” Heat rose into my cheeks.