by Amy Sumida
Unfortunately, that's where my peace ended.
My father came rushing out to meet our Hummers (it's rough terrain up there) and whisked me away immediately. Tiernan and Cat followed but us my father stopped and gave Tiernan a small head shake. Tiernan's eyes widened but he nodded his compliance and went back to our group, where some council aides were directing everyone to their accommodations. Cat of course paid no mind to Keir and remained beside me. But then Keir hadn't tried to stop her.
“What is it?” I asked. “And what are you doing here? I thought you were going to stay on the Isle of Danu until the summit?”
“The raven mockers have disappeared,” Keir whispered as he rushed me down the hallway.
“What?!” I stopped and screeched.
“Seren, we must hurry,” Keir grabbed my arm and started to pull me along. “Raye made it to Twilight and collected his people from Criarachan. They left Fairy through the San Francisco rath, and were transported from Gentry to the airport, where they were seen boarding the plane provided by the Human Council. The plane took off without a problem but it never landed in Tulsa. They're missing.”
“A whole plane of fairies is missing?” I growled as my hands started to shake. “Damn them, I never should have trusted those witches.”
“You did as your heart dictated,” Keir shook his head. “And I support your decision. It was a wise mercy that you showed, an outstretched hand offered in friendship.”
“And they bit it,” I shook my head. “That's what I get for being kind to werewolves. No good deed goes unpunished.”
“We don't know that the witches are behind this,” Keir said reasonably.
“Of course they're behind this,” I huffed. “Damn them, there were children among Raye's group.”
“I know,” Keir's face was lined with worry. “And they're our people. We will find them and if any harm has been offered them, we will return it tenfold.”
“You're damn straight we will,” I looked towards Cat and she started to growl. “Don't worry, Cat, I won't leave you behind. You'll get your pound of flesh too.”
“Before flesh or blood, we must have the truth,” Keir pushed open a large, golden oak door.
It was carved with swirling designs similar to Celtic knotwork and opened onto a vast room with a vaulted ceiling and a pristine floor the color of fine porcelain. It looked like it had never been walked upon and I did so with a small amount of trepidation over the state of my boots and what they might leave in my wake.
Windows were built into the slopes of the ceiling, letting in large shafts of light which made the polished floor gleam like it was its own light source. Besides those architectural wonders, there was only one other window in the place and it was set into the wall at the far end of the room, behind a U shaped table.
The window was massive and came to a curving point at its top center, to fit into the angles of the ceiling. It held an amazing view of a pastoral countryside; little lambs fluffs gathered together on the glistening grass of gently rolling hills. The peaceful scene was in direct opposition to the grim and anxious faces of the fairies seated at the wide table. I recognized Greer and nodded to him. He gave me a respectful head bow back.
So my father wasn't the only one to come over from the Isle of Danu early. That didn't bode well.
“My daughter has arrived,” Keir indicated me with a wave of his hand as we stepped within the center of the U. “I've given her a brief report on what has occurred.”
“Princess Seren,” a man with flowing cornsilk hair stood at the direct center of the table and nodded to me. He looked familiar but I couldn't remember where I'd seen him before. His eyes, a bright violet, settled on me serenely and he waved an elegant, nut-brown hand towards a chair across from him. “Please join us.”
“Thank you, Councilman...” I glanced at my father.
“Timberstride,” Keir whispered to me. “Lorcan Timberstride, Chief High Councilman.”
“Chief High Councilman Timberstride,” I inclined my head as I took the indicated seat. Keir took the seat beside mine and Cat settled between us.
“I assume that King Keir has told you of the missing raven mockers?” Timberstride waited for me to nod and then continued. “We have sent hunters to investigate but they've found only one clue; the remnant of powerful weather magic.”
“Storm,” I growled. “It must be the Storm witches.”
“You met with these witches recently, is that correct, Princess?” Lorcan asked while the other high council members stared at me silently.
“I did,” I confirmed. “Through the use of a crystal amulet they call a cluster. The stone allows a group of people to form a psychic connection by projecting them into a neutral location where they can converse.”
“Fascinating,” Lorcan shared a look with Greer, who was seated on his right. “These witches are more advanced than we thought.”
“I believe their powers are muted and mutated versions of fairy magic,” I said. “It's not surprising that they would learn to use crystals as communication devices, just as the fey do.”
“Well said,” Lorcan nodded. “You've briefed High Councilman Greer on the witch magic and he has informed us of your findings but have you learned anything new since your conversation with their elders? Any insights you may have picked up through interaction that could help us with the disappearance?”
“I thought they were honorable,” I sighed. “They seemed to want peace but I did imply that we were more powerful than they and that peace would be in their best interest. Perhaps they were offended and changed their mind.”
“Do you truly believe that?” Lorcan leaned forward. “From the reports I've had on you, Princess, I've learned that you are known to be quite perceptive and I find it hard to believe that Danu's chosen one could be so easily deceived.”
“It surprised me too, Councilman,” I grimaced.
“But are you certain?” He pressed. “For the moment, all we have is a missing plane and a remnant of weather magic. Perhaps you were not deceived then but are being deceived now.”
“You think this may be a trick?” I frowned. “Who would do that? Who would abduct a plane full of fairies and make it look as if the witches were responsible?”
“Someone who wants a war,” Lorcan said simply. “I have been Chief High Councilman for many years, Ambassador Seren. I have witnessed many deceptions and have developed a sense for them. This feels wrong to me... this answer is too simple.”
“I see your point,” I frowned, a little impressed by the fairy. “It does seem a little convenient.”
“We'd like you to conduct your own investigation,” Lorcan went on. “Is there anyone you can contact within the Coven?”
“Yes, actually,” I thought of the little white card that was tucked in my pocket. “An alpha of the Pack clan.”
“Perhaps you can speak with him and get a better sense of what has occurred,” Lorcan offered. “Then you will add your sense to mine and we will hopefully be able to make a more informed decision on what to do next.”
“I'll go call him immediately,” I nodded and started to stand.
“Princess,” Lorcan stopped me.
“Yes?” I sat back down.
“I'm sure we don't need to tell you how delicate this situation is,” Lorcan glanced around the table and all of the fairies nodded in agreement. “We would prefer if you withheld this information from Lord Raza... for the time being.”
“Sweet Danu,” I sighed. “I forgot about Raza.”
“I'm sure you can see how this would be upsetting to him,” Lorcan went on. “And we'd prefer not to add a hotheaded dragon-djinn to the volatility of our plight.”
“I understand,” I whispered as I thought of how Raza might react to the news that his son and a huge amount of Raye's people were missing. “I won't tell Raza until I absolutely have to.”
“Thank you,” Lorcan inhaled deep and a sense of relief went around the table.
I
looked them over in surprise. I knew Raza was dangerous but damn, I didn't realize he could scare the High Council of Fairy. It made me wonder if it was him they feared or just the fact that he was a dragon-djinn. And if it were the latter, what had his people done to scare the most powerful fey alive? Had it warranted their extinction?
“Councilmen,” my father nodded to the group as he got up. “Councilwomen,” a bow to the ladies (because my dad was nothing if not a gentleman). “We will take our leave now.”
“Thank you, King Keir,” Lorcan nodded. “And thank you for leaving your kingdom to come here and lend us your support.”
“My kingdom is merely part of Fairy,” Keir helped me up. “It's my honor to give aid to our realm and our people.”
“Just give me a few minutes,” I pulled the cell phone Dylan had given me, out of my leather jacket and held it up for them to see. “I'll go out into the hall and make the phone call.”
“Please,” Lorcan waved to a little door set into the wall on my right. “Use the antechamber and take your time, Princess Seren. We need as much information as you can acquire.”
“I'll do my best,” I headed towards the door. Keir and Cat followed me.
Once we were safely shut in the comfortable sitting room, I let out a string of curses and stalked across the thick carpet to plop down on a teal velvet couch. Then I took every throw pillow on it and threw them across the room. I figured that's what they were made for and I was merely seeing to the fulfillment of their life's purpose. Keir followed me more sedately, dodging pillows with the deftness of a Shaolin monk, and then took a carved chair on my right. Cat however, bounded after me enthusiastically (after chasing a few pillows) and jumped up onto the couch beside me.
I pulled Aidan's card out of my jacket and dialed his number with angry jabs of my fingers while I cursed his name, and his Pack, and his stupid grindman ways under my breath. It rang for what seemed like an eternity before he answered gruffly. The abruptness of his voice made me scowl at the phone.
“This is Ambassador Seren,” I stated with matching brusqueness.
“You!” He nearly shouted and I frowned deeper. “Why'd you even release them if you were just going to steal them back?”
“What are you talking about?” I lost my scowl to confusion.
“Don't act as if you don't know.”
“I don't; I was calling to ask what you knew of the disappearance of a plane full of raven mockers.”
“What?” His voice lost its ferocity.
“Raven mockers,” I repeated. “They returned from Fairy and boarded a plane in San Francisco, heading home to Tulsa. But they never made it. The entire plane has vanished and left only a trace of weather magic behind.”
“Weather magic?” Aidan sounded stumped. “But... Flight; they disappeared too and all that was left behind was a trace of cold... weather magic.”
“Are you telling me that the Flight witches I released are missing too?” I asked calmly.
“Yes,” he whispered. “We dropped them at Hunter Park, where they were supposed to be met by other flighters. But no one was there when their rides showed up.”
“Aidan, we had nothing to do with their disappearance,” I vowed. “Which means that your Coven most likely had nothing to do with the vanishing plane.”
“Someone is setting us up!” He shouted.
“It appears so,” I ground out. “Any ideas?”
“On my end?” He huffed. “I can't think of any witch who would want to start a war with the fey. Not any, except perhaps all of the members of Flight.”
“Do you think the Prime Flight elder could be behind this?”
“Abduct her own people to make the fey look guilty?” He asked with scathing sarcasm. “No, of course not, she's the sweetest, most gentle- abso-freaking-lutely she could do this!” His voice shifted into anger. “She's a damn lunatic, that one.”
“Coming from a wolf, that's pretty bad,” I sighed.
“Ha ha, very funny,” he grumbled. “What about your people? Maybe Elder Wasutke is innocent.”
“I admit that it would make more sense for a fairy to want a war,” I conceded. “We are almost assured of winning. But still, capability is not a reason to fight.”
“Perhaps they just don't like humans,” he offered.
“Well, that's a trait several fey share,” I sighed. “Whittling down the suspects based on such criteria would take forever. I can think of several fairies right off the top of my head and most of them, I'm related to.”
“Harsh,” he sympathized. “You're half human and have human haters for relatives?”
“Yep, my family is rather complicated.”
“Aren't they all?” He snorted. “You don't even want to know how about Pack interactions.”
“You're right, I don't,” I chuckled. “Look, I think we both need to go back to our people and let them know what's going on. Hopefully, they'll believe us and then maybe we can work together on this.”
“I'd like that, Princess Kick-Ass,” his voice lowered into a purr.
“Keep it in your pants, Prince Furry-Ass,” I shot back. “I've already got a man.”
“You married?”
“No.”
“Then you ain't got a man,” the phone went dead and I found myself scowling at it again.
Chapter Thirty-Six
“King Keir. Princess Seren,” a man opened the door to the antechamber and poked his head in. “You're needed at the curtain wall. It appears that we're under attack.”
“Excuse me?” I gaped at him. He'd delivered the news so placidly, I wasn't sure if I'd heard him correctly.
Before he could answer, the whole castle shook, sending me stumbling forward. I caught myself and ran out of the room, following after the fairy. He waved me on urgently, past the stunned high fairy council members and out into the hallway. My father and Cat chased after us.
The sound of shouting started to reach us as we neared the main hall. I heard a boom and then the castle shook again. A large painting fell free of its moorings and plummeted to the floor on my right. I lurched out of the way as it toppled forward and made huge crashing sound. Then my phone rang.
“Hello?!” I shouted into the receiver.
“The elders have declared war!” Aidan shouted back. “I contacted the clans but it was too late, they've already left. They're going to attack the Fairy Council.”
“Yeah, I figured that out,” I snapped.
“Are they already there?” He asked in shock.
Another boom vibrated through the castle.
“What do you think?” I yelled. “See if you can get a message through to them, I'm going to try to stop them from my end.” I hung up on him and slipped the phone back into my leather jacket as I ran out of the castle.
In the courtyard, the fey were calm and organized. I was a little shocked to see how well they were handling the surprise attack. Rows of hunters formed and were given orders before running to their assigned positions. Most went atop the curtain wall but a select few went to higher points, up in the towers, and set to raining magic down upon our attackers; in some instances, quite literally.
Thunder rumbled as the sky above us darkened ominously; oily clouds churning like the hands of a maniac. Flashes of light lit up that demon sky with streaks of cinnabar, sulfur, aubergine, and arctic blue. Howls echoed off the shivering stone walls and screams of pain cried back in response. I ran up the stairs to the walk atop the curtain wall, and looked down into a mass of madness.
Funnels of water swirled by and smashed into the barred gate on my left. Groups of wolves gathered a short distance away, pawing at the earth as they waited for the water to break down the gate. Spheres of flame shot through the sky, coming down on the fairy soldiers along the wall. Most were able to protect themselves in time but a few painful shouts rang out.
“Great balls of fire,” I couldn't help whispering.
But it wasn't the fire that bothered me. Nor the funnels of wa
ter. Not even the werewolves or the Quake witches moving the earth beneath us. I could deal with all of that. It was the dead that unnerved me. There was a platoon of zombies waiting to be dispatched on the far right of the field. They just stood there numbly, some more decayed than others, staring with their dead eyes directly ahead of them. What a reprehensible but morbidly fantastic skill. To be able to command an army that would feel no pain, eat no food, and need no rest... it was a hell of an advantage. But it smelled. Eadan had been right, the scent of death was atrocious, even just the light whiff that was carried to me on the breeze.
“Seren,” Tiernan was suddenly beside me, leaning over the crenelated stone for a better look. “Why are they attacking us?”
“They think we stole back the witches I freed,” I sighed. “Look, I'll explain later. Right now, I've got to handle this.”
I was about to start shouting at the witches when a monster flew over my head and breathed fire down upon that dead army. I lurched back, staring up at the magnificent form of a sparkling scarlet dragon. Its body was covered in glossy scales going from bright cherry at its underbelly to deep crimson at its shoulders. There, the color shifted into an overlay, just a sheen of ruby over the sinful black leather of the beast's wings. It roared and angled its head down to look at me, sun glinting off its gold eyes.
“Raza!” I shouted as the whiff of decay turned into roasted rotten meat. “Stop! I need to talk to them! Stop!”
The zombie militia was on fire but they didn't seem to know it. They just stood there as Beckoning witches called over their cousins in Tide to put out the flames. I didn't think the water witches would make it in time though. Raza was spewing some seriously hot flames and the zombies were already crumbling away into piles of blackened bones. I hoped that meant that their souls were freed but I noticed that some of the piles were still moving.
The dragon pulled up abruptly and circled back while the witches scrambled about in terror and panic. Wherever his shadow fell, people froze and stared up at him like deer caught in headlights. And with a wingspan wider than a semi-truck, the shadow he cast was significant. I didn't know if it was some kind of magic or just the fear felt when a dragon was overhead but even the wolves went silent when Raza passed over them. The dragon himself came to rest on the wall beside me, his enormous talons curving over and through the crenelations as his wings settled around us.