by Alanea Alder
Aiden stared at Law with a thoughtful expression on his face. "You have known her longer."
Law nodded. "Yes, though we were out of touch the past year or so."
The queen brightened. "What did you do?"
Law froze, and he shot a desperate look to Meryn, but it was too late she was already answering.
"We killed people." Her declaration seemed to echo through the room.
Amelia looked around. "But they were all bad," she added quickly.
Brennus tapped his chin. "Maybe an escort while they're here."
Meryn waved off his concern. "I got this. I can be good when I wanna."
Aiden pinched his nose. "But the problem is that you can go from wanting to be good to not caring if the city burns in about two seconds."
"True," Meryn admitted as she nodded.
Ryuu took pity on the consort. "I will be with her at all times and will endeavor to keep the chaos and mayhem to a minimum."
Aiden glowered at the squire. "That is not reassuring, you tend to be in the thick of it right alongside her."
Ryuu gave a lazy shrug. "I try not to stifle her creativity."
"It needs to be stifled sometimes," Aiden countered.
"I am right here you two," Meryn said, then turned to the queen. "So what do I call you?"
"What do you want to call me?" the queen asked.
"Aleks, Aleksandra has too many syllables," Meryn said, without hesitation.
The queen beamed at her. "That's perfect. I am so going to spoil you. Magnus can't have all the fun."
Aiden looked spooked. "We need to start putting parameters on these declarations. Magnus already promised her a damn flamethrower."
The queen's eyes danced with laughter. "That sounds fun!"
Izzy hesitated. "Can I call you Mama?"
Instantly the queen's eyes filled with tears. "Of course, you can." She turned to Amelia. "That goes for you too!"
Amelia leaned over to rest her head on her mate's shoulder. "I would like that."
Brennus turned to Izzy then Amelia practically pouting. "Then I insist on being Papa."
Izzy felt her heart turn over. It had been years since she lost her parents, she honestly didn't think she'd ever have another mama or papa again.
"Cord feels like a Sebastian, like a super mom," Meryn declared.
Behind them, they heard a loud crash. "Oh my, I'm sorry," Cord said, sounding flustered. Meryn turned in her chair. "I meant that in a good way," she explained.
Cord's eyes welled up with tears. "Now I understand why Sebastian fussed over you so much. He must have fallen head over heels in love with you and I have a feeling I won't be far behind him."
Meryn scrunched up her face. "But like, no sex, right? That's for Aiden."
Cord gave a deep belly laugh. "By all means, keep that for your mate, but allow us poor squires to dote on you."
Meryn rubbed her hands together. "Yummy squire food."
Ryuu sighed. "You can't be hungry already."
"I think the cinnamon woke my stomach up," she replied, then looked at him eyes wide.
Ryuu nodded. "I already spoke to Cord in the kitchen, we have arranged for a large shipment of fae cinnamon to be sent to Sebastian this afternoon."
Meryn sat back. "Thank you."
The queen sipped her tea. "I heard about your pudding addiction. Thanks to you, I hear we're getting shipments from Noctem Falls."
Meryn blushed. "Sebastian said he was going to send me pudding and meat kebobs."
Cord served his queen first then Brennus before moving around the table. Izzy smiled up at him as he placed what looked like two biscuits in front of her with some sour cream.
When he placed the plate in front of Meryn, Izzy watched in amusement as she tilted her head a bit. "What's this?"
Cord cleared his throat. "That would be the cinnamon scones and clotted cream I was telling you about."
Meryn poked at the scone with a finger before picking it up and dunking it in the cream like a chicken nugget into bar-b-que sauce. Everyone stared as Meryn took her first bite. Her eyes widened. "Oh my God," she whispered reverently. She picked up the small bowl of cream and began a rapid-fire dunking and chewing process.
Aiden who had delicately cut his scone in half and spread the cream diligently eyed his mate in envy.
The queen chortled and picked up her scone with her fingers. "Might as well join her Commander. It looks like she found the quickest and easiest way to inhale Cord's amazing scones."
Aiden sighed in relief and picked up his treat before beginning his own dunking process.
Brennus scowled down at his plate. "Why have I never thought to do that?"
Law shook his head. "Meryn is a genius at seeing things clearly."
Meryn stopped mid-chew. "Whaaa?" she asked, her mouth full.
Izzy realized that it never dawned on Meryn that she wasn't supposed to eat it with her fingers.
Amelia patted her arm. "Nothing darling, just eat your scones."
Meryn shrugged and continued chewing.
"While you eat, I can tell you a bit about the city if you wish," the queen offered. Meryn nodded and kept eating.
"You probably saw some of the residential and commercial parts of the city when you came in through the main gate."
Izzy nodded. "The shops looked amazing."
The queen sat up a bit straighter. "They work so hard to keep the city gleaming." She held up her hands, making a triangle. "The widest part is where most of the citizens live. The middle portion of the city is where all the vendors, shops, guilds, and temples are. The point is the palace."
"Now the palace is surrounded on all sides by the Royal Garden, the only exception is the gate to enter and leave. In the Royal Garden, we have a large courtyard..."
"Do y'all have Founding Family peeps like the other cities?" Meryn asked interrupting.
The queen nodded. "Yes, they reside here on the palace grounds." She pointed behind her. "The Royal Palace acts as the anchor. Along each side opening up to the courtyard, there are six houses on the left and six houses on the right. The four closest to the palace belong to our Founding Families, the next four to our Noble Families and the last set of four to our Warrior houses."
"What are Warrior Houses? We don't have those in Lycaonia and they didn't have them in Noctem Falls either," Meryn asked.
"We've always had them," Brennus said, answering Meryn. "They are the four houses that produce the most sons who end up serving as unit warriors. Because of this, these four families have dedicated their lines to taking care of the warriors that not only defend Éire Danu, but also serve in the other pillar cities."
Amelia leaned forward. "How do you mean?"
Brennus scratched his chin then eyed Aiden. "I think in Lycaonia Byron calls the retired warriors the Old Guard. Our Old Guard is heavily involved with the warrior houses. House Erlondon acts as a training ground for our children who are too young to train as cadets. The older warriors love instructing the children and getting them started on the exercises to strengthen their bodies for future drills. House Aindin is comprised mostly of retired warriors who have taken up weaponry. They are learning to incorporate fae magic into human weapons."
Meryn turned to Aiden. "I need a superweapon."
Aiden shook his head. "No."
"But..."
"No! You already cause enough trouble with your damn screwdriver thingy."
Meryn turned to Brennus with puppy dog eyes. "Brennus, can't I please have a weapon to keep me and the baby safe?" she asked pitifully.
The queen's consort practically melted. "Aiden, why don't you want that child to have a weapon?"
Aiden gave Brennus a flat look. "Because she accidentally shot me, she took out ferals with a sniper rifle, and she loves tasing my warriors. I'd be terrified to see what she'd do with a fae enhanced weapon."
Brennus grinned broadly. "She sounds adorable."
Ryuu preened. "I think so."
Meryn pointed to Brennus. "See, he thinks I should have one."
"No. Ask for a self-cleaning diaper."
Meryn opened her mouth, paused then turned to Brennus. "Is that a thing?"
Brennus looked confused. "Of course."
"Can I have one for the baby for when I'm watching over them?" Meryn asked.
"Hey!" Aiden protested.
She glared up at him. "You get to play in shit for cock-blocking my weapon upgrade."
"Meryn!"
"As you were saying," Meryn said sweetly.
Aiden stared down at his mate in shock as Brennus continued. "House Orthames and House Liordon help provide support to our warrior estates in the form of food preparation and house care."
Izzy was impressed, it sounded as if the city really looked after their warriors. "We're moving to Lycaonia, right?" she asked Oron.
He looked down and nodded. "Yes, I serve in the Gamma Unit."
"Could we start those warrior house things? I like the idea of y'all getting more support."
Oron's heart was in his eyes as he looked down at her. "What? You're my mate I want to make sure you're fed and are taken care of."
"But not by you?" Amelia asked.
Izzy winced. "I'm not the best person to trust in the kitchen or garage or workshop..." she sighed. "Accidents happen, buttons are my weakness."
"Sounds like Beth," Amelia said, eyes wide.
"Yeah, but hers is because of a death curse, Izzy is just curious," Meryn clarified.
"I can't help it! It's like a sickness, I have to see if stuff explodes or turns color or if alarms sound... that sort of thing."
Aiden stood, reaching for his phone; he walked away as he brought it up to his ear. "Hey Sascha, you know that plan for the biometric lock on the armory?" he walked away from the table toward the windows.
Izzy looked at Meryn. "There's an armory?"
"Just, no!" Aiden shouted his hand over the phone.
Meryn wagged her eyebrows. "Oh yeah."
Micah sat back, his hands curled around his teacup. "I have never been more grateful to live in Noctem Falls."
Darian looked over to his brother. "We're gonna die, aren't we?"
Brennus clapped him on the back. "Buck up son. I'm sure six units of warriors can handle a few innocent women."
Law tapped his chin. "I wonder if those fae warriors from Aindin could create a kinetic energy absorbing suit, you know, just in case."
Darian shuddered then turned to Meryn. "No bombs, please."
Meryn eyed him shrewdly. "Only if you promise me a fae weapon."
Darian eyed Aiden whose back was turned. "Deal," he whispered.
"Yes!" Meryn hissed quietly.
"Meryn, no weapons testing near coffee facilities," Izzy said quickly.
"Duh! Nothing can happen to muh coffee. Speaking of which," she got on her knees in her chair and turned to face her squire. "Did you order our supplies?"
"As they are vital for everyone's continued good health, of course, I ordered your coffee supplies. I'm having everything delivered to Marius and he is forwarding on to Éire Danu. As time was of the essence, I did not want to wait until I could ascertain a shipping process."
Meryn sat back down and looked at Izzy. "Coffee Goddess will get her new altar supplies soon, then I, the High Priestess of Merytopia, will commence in my new morning rituals."
The queen covered her face with her hands as her body shook. When she removed them she was wiping away tears of laughter. "She is nuttier in real life than she is on Facebook," she said between chuckles.
Meryn shook a finger at her. "You're in by the way. I processed your cult application this morning. Good job passing your Geek Life test."
"Thank you, Meryn, I have a feeling that particular group will be most entertaining."
Izzy looked around. "Is no one going to ask about the whole High Priestess, cult thing?"
Around the table, heads were shaking. Amelia answered. "We just let her do whatever she wants, for the most part, it's harmless, just a confusing lesbian message here and there."
Izzy brought out her phone. "I so have to get in on this. What's the name of your group?"
"Friend me and I'll invite you. I set the group to Super-Secret so you won't be able to search for it." Izzy scrolled through her app and fired off a friend request. "Done."
Aiden returned to his chair and sat back down. He looked at Oron. "Your unit leader may need a vacation by the time I get back."
Oron winced. "What'd Colton do now?"
"He tied Sascha to the bell tower in the drill field."
"That doesn't sound so bad."
"Then he covered every inch of rope in superglue which hardened and not only made cutting the rope near impossible, but also ensured that when he was finally cut free, he was mostly naked."
Oron shrugged. "That's what he gets for letting Emmy nearly get kidnapped and assaulted."
"What?" Aiden demanded.
Izzy watched as nearly all the blood in Oron's face drained away. "Nothing."
"Oron!"
"Shit," Darian whispered.
"She's fine Aiden."
Aiden stood again, reaching for his phone. "Hey, Colton." He walked back toward the windows.
Oron let his head drop to the table. "My unit leader is a dead man."
Izzy watched as Meryn's fingers moved a mile a minute. When she was done, she eased her phone back to the table as Aiden stomped back and sat down. "Everything okay love?" she asked.
Aiden's ire slipped a bit at her endearment. "Yes, though I can't wait to get home."
Aiden's phone dinged, and he picked it up. He read the message, sighed and sat it back down.
"Problems, sir?" Darian asked.
"Colton can't find Sascha anywhere, which may actually be a good thing at the moment. I wonder how he knew to slip away?" Aiden mused out loud. Everyone eyed Meryn's phone then looked anywhere but at the commander.
"I bet it was his cat instincts," Amelia suggested quickly.
"Could be," Aiden agreed.
"Hey, speaking of cats, where's Rex?" Meryn asked, looking around. "I heard this was lion country or something."
The queen wiped at her eyes with a napkin. "That is mostly true. After the Great War, I opened up Éire Danu to two groups of shifters, the sun-loving lions and the wind walkers or bird-shifters. Both groups made the city their family seat. They are so well integrated into our society; I cannot imagine the city without them."
"There are bird shifters? Like robins and blue jays?" Izzy asked.
The queen shook her head. "More like harpy eagles and hawks."
Brennus turned to her. "In fact, the ranking unit of the city, Tau, has a harpy eagle shifter in their ranks, his name is Priest Vi'Aerdan."
Meryn scrunched up her nose. "Huh? A shifter with a fae name?"
Brennus smiled at her. "He was adopted."
"I told you they were well integrated," the queen said.
"One royal palace and twelve houses?" Izzy asked.
The queen gave a slow nod. "Beyond the houses, at the far end of the courtyard opposite the palace is our Sacred Arboretum or Sacred Forest. It's where the seedlings of our trees are raised to be given to extended family members so that they remain connected to their House."
"Cool," Izzy said. She had always loved trees.
"Why is it sacred?" Meryn asked.
"It isn't generally discussed outside of Éire Danu, but since you're family, I have no reservations telling you about our forest." She folded her hands in her lap. "Each Founding, Noble and Warrior house has a correlating scared tree. My own house of EirDan is guarded by the spirit of the Oak tree. Vampires have their Books of Life that they created based on our trees, our family trees. The inner courtyard is lined with sacred trees, each one acts as the core of the Royal, Founding, Noble, or Warrior house. As family members are born branches are added, when they pass the branch petrifies to act as a memorial."
"Our house of Eirlea is guarded
by the spirit of the Elder tree," Brennus added.
"House Alina is guarded by the spirit of the Holly," Darian continued.
Izzy looked up at her mate, did his house have one? He looked down at her, his eyes filled with sadness. "House Eirson is guarded by the spirit of the Birch tree, but she isn't doing well."
"She?" Amelia, Meryn, and Izzy asked together.
Oron nodded solemnly. "They are true spirits that live within their tree. Many of the sprites can also claim a flower or an herb as their guardian spirit. The sprites are closer to their counterparts though, if their flower dies, so can the sprite."
Meryn turned to look at Felix, who was perched on her shoulder. "You better make me your guardian Felix, because I ain't losing you to some accidentally sprayed Round-Up, you hear?"
Felix smiled and flew up until their cheeks rubbed together. "Together, forever," he said in a piping little voice. Felix kissed her cheek then floated over to the window to sit amongst the flowers on the ledge."
Izzy was curious to see that Brennus' eyes had taken on a sheen. "Papa?" she asked, worried for the fae.
He shook his head as if to escape his own train of thought. "The Skysong clan was a part of the palace long before the Eirleas returned to Éire Danu..."
"Return?" Amelia asked.
Doran turned to her. "Our parents were heavily involved with the humans of our village, and when the queen created the city to move us to another plane, our family chose to stay. It's why Brennus didn't meet his mate, our queen, until seven hundred years ago." He gave her a droll look. "It was quite the shock to see your older brother swing the queen into his arms and kiss her in her own throne room."
The queen sighed happily. "It was the best day of my life."
Brennus huffed. "If I had known you were waiting with our sons, I would have returned when you created the city."
Meryn waved her hand. "What about the Skysongs?"
"Well, when we returned and I mated Aleks, the Skysongs sort of adopted the Eirleas and began looking after us as well. He looked over to Felix. "He was supposed to be with my brother, but Eamon said he was too young to go out in the human world, so he stayed behind," his voice trailed off.
"Is he okay?" Amelia asked, looking between Doran, Celyn, and Brennus.