Then it hit me. By the Maker!
This was all…it was all about me. Lyssa had wanted me here all along. Everything seemed to confirm it. Brecca’s brother, her capture, then my summons to the Citadel.
But why?
Lyssa wanted to hurt me; that was plain. The scars on my back were tight, even after the magical salve.
Brecca hated me as well, but I could deal with that. I had time, after all, time to bring her round.
“So…you’re my maid. What does that mean? Do you dress me? Maybe braid my hair?” I needed to figure it out so I could play the game.
Brecca shrugged. “I’m to do whatever you want. I’ve never been a maid before.”
I smiled slightly. “Well, I guess we’ll have to make it up as we go along then, because I’ve never had a maid before either.”
The small figure stood still, and the silence grew awkward. I looked down at the chains binding her feet. “You know, not all bindings are as visible as those.”
“Really? All I see here is a luxurious suite of rooms. A piano! I sleep on a bare cot in a room barely big enough to swing my arms around.”
This wasn’t going to be easy.
An inkling of a plan hatched in my brain. “Why don’t you sit on the bed? I’m ready now so there isn’t much for you to do.”
Brecca tensed for a second before nodding. Her thick neck made the gesture barely visible, but she walked to the bed and sat down. I waited expectantly. She had to feel the thin mattress. My heart sank as I realized Lyssa’s spell had planned for this; Brecca seemed perfectly comfortable. Well, if I couldn’t get her to see through the illusion, I’d try different means, though I knew they’d take a lot longer.
“Tell me about this place,” I asked. “You said they kept you in the dark for a year.” I lowered my gaze to the floor. “That must have been dreadful for you, and I’m so sorry. But you’ve been outside for four years. What do they make you do?”
Brecca sighed. “I had a wonderful job before this one.” Her eyes lit, though she kept to her word. Not a ghost of a smile touched her lips. “I looked after the unicorns. Although I knew it was because even the lower elves thought the job beneath them, I didn’t care. Unicorns are such noble creatures.”
Unicorns! “I’ve always dreamt about seeing one. Are they as magnificent as the stories say?”
There it was. For a split second the corners of her tree bark–textured lips creaked upward. I don’t think she even knew she’d done it. We had something in common, although I’d need to take it slowly. A mutual interest in magical creatures wouldn’t be enough to overcome the hatred she felt for me.
“They are wonderful, but you will soon find out. You are to ride with the princess today.”
My heart leapt. I was going to ride a unicorn? “Really? By the Great Maker!” Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all…but then I hesitated, chewing my lower lip. The princess thought I’d still be in agony from her attack the night before, and the very next day she was taking me on a ride? The outing wasn’t meant as a fun excursion but yet another way to hurt me. I looked at Brecca, panic-stricken. I was sure she knew Lyssa’s plan, but instead of dwelling on it, I shifted the conversation. “I’ve never ridden a unicorn before.”
She snorted. “You will be fine. They will look after you. No one falls off a unicorn unless they want you to.”
That reassured me…a little. “So, I suppose that makes you even angrier with me, now that you can’t see the unicorns anymore?”
“No, I can visit my friends any time I want…unless you forbid it?” Her eyes narrowed, daring me, but there was something else. Her mind was shut off to me, but I sensed she wanted…needed me to put whatever puzzle existed together.
I weighed the facts, carefully separating conjecture from what I knew for certain. The princess had engineered Brecca’s hatred for me. That much was clear, and the brownie’s actions, visibly at least, confirmed that she despised me. Then it struck home. Brecca’s words played out in my head in a casual sentence: At the beginning I thought she was being kind.
My chest tightened. This was it. Brecca was testing me. The small being sat with a disinterested expression, and I knew I was outclassed. She’d been here for five years and had played the game to survive. Her hand reached down to caress the mattress, and two of the branch-like appendages squeezed the thin surface, indicating—
She knew! She saw through the deception. I almost cried out.
“Why would I ever stop you, Brecca?” I kept the tone pleading and tragic, as if I needed Brecca to be my friend, even though I knew she already was.
Brecca stared back and said with a stony voice, “To be the cruel faerie I know you are. You are evil. You led Bronta to his death, and you will live to torment me.”
The dance of words confirmed we were being watched, even if I couldn’t detect how they did it. There was no scent of magic, and I couldn’t feel any presence close enough to overhear us.
In fact, I couldn’t even feel Brecca’s presence. It was as if she were a hole in the room. Even when Lyssa had hidden her true feelings the night before, I could feel her. I couldn’t fathom why Brecca could possess this ability until she winked, her chestnut eye closing for the tiniest fraction of a second.
The gesture conveyed a thousand thoughts. In this world of darkness and peril, Brecca had managed to not only survive, but to thrive. She’d lived a year without the warmth of the sun on her face and then spent the next four years doing Maker knew what. All the time, she’d taught herself to hide her thoughts so deeply as to be imperceptible.
The eldar probably hadn’t noticed, as her shift into invisibility occurred over the years, but I knew. And as she let the mask slip for the briefest instant, we shared a flash of understanding. She hated the eldar, and she had reason to. My next thought, though, had me suppressing a sob. She didn’t blame me for her brother’s death. How could she, when she knew who was really guilty?
I didn’t care who watched us at that moment. The shimmer in my eyes could be tears of joy or despair. Let them think what they would.
Chapter Three
The Plain
The agony of the night before was a distant memory as we flew across the plains. I did my best to act like every tiny movement was painful, grunting and grimacing when the unicorn below me jostled me. Keeping the fact from Lyssa that my wounds were almost totally healed was vital.
Brecca was right. These amazing beings – I couldn’t bring myself to think of them as beasts – instilled in me a feeling of safety I hadn’t felt since my arrival. Their hooves thundered across the tundra, echoing in my ears as the wind whipped my braid back and forth. Lyssa’s laughter carried back from the shining pale pink form racing through the tall grass ahead. I was shocked to realize it was a genuine laugh, not forced and false. Was she really enjoying this as much as I was?
‘The princess can be ruthless and cruel, but she has always treated my kin with respect and kindness.’
Magical stability or not, I almost fell off. I was glad Lyssa was ahead of me, so she missed my amazed expression. Why hadn’t Brecca told me?
Gentle laughter tickled my mind. ‘In case you’re wondering, no. The princess, while she loves us, thinks us simple beasts, a way to take her mind off matters in court. And while we love our little brownie friend, she doesn’t possess the skills to hear us as you do.’
This was getting crazy. I lurched as the glistening dark sapphire body below me followed the leader, jumping over a narrow river that snaked along the vast plain surrounding the Citadel. We landed gracefully on the other side, the impact barely registering though the mighty muscles of the…What’s your name? How should I address you?
Amusement flowed through me. ‘My, you are direct, even for a faer. Tell me, does Elita still rule over the people of Faerhaven?’
My mouth dropped open. I’d never heard of a unicorn visiting the Tree, but then I supposed the eldar must have got there somehow. How do you know my queen?
Another musical laugh. ‘I have known the faer queen for centuries, child.’ This being’s thoughts were enchanting, and I found myself hanging on its – his, if the tone gave any indication of gender – every word. ‘But my name. Yes. I think I shall tell you, although knowing a name can be a mighty weapon, especially if it is a true name.’
True name? What did it…he mean?
‘People, especially two-legs, take many names. Your queen, for instance. She is the beloved ruler of the faer; but she is at times the terrible queen. She has done things, child, that would chill your young bones.’
I had no idea what he meant. To me she was the mother, the soul that bound the faer in peaceful harmony with the forest. I couldn’t imagine her committing an act that would harm another being. Then I remembered what Lyssa had done to me last night, and the voices in my head and heart afterward.
‘Tell me, child.’ There was no tension or enmity in the voice, just contentment. ‘If you called your queen by her title, Majesty, in a crowded room, would you be heard?’
I thought about it. I’d been to court functions, normally serving my mother. I remembered how small I’d felt, a tiny shrub in a mighty oaken forest.
‘If you called her by her true name, do you think she might notice?’ As we bounded up a moss-covered mound I felt the tendrils exploring my thoughts, testing me as Brecca had earlier.
I nodded. If I’d shouted her name, I’d have gotten her attention all right. Then my parents’ ire afterward.
My head exploded with his laughter. It provoked a snort and I struggled to prevent a giggle. Mental echoes of laughter passed back from the unicorn ahead.
The dark blue bullet below me dodged a growth of gorse hedge. ‘My name is Firehoof, a name bestowed upon me an age ago by a mutual acquaintance. True names are earned, and mine has a tale, as do most others, but the story will keep for another time.’
I desperately wanted him to tell me more, but Lyssa’s screams of delight were real enough to interrupt me, even as we jumped another stream.
‘My name is Jesaela. My friends call me Jes, and I’m afraid my name means nothing.’
Firehoof chuckled. ‘I urge you to remember these words in years to come, child.’
I had no idea what he meant, but as his hooves drummed on the ground, I clung to the thick and lustrous ebony strands flowing down his neck. I buried my face in them. I was about to ask him what he meant when we slowed to navigate what looked like a solid wall of thick thorny branches.
I winced. Each spike was over an inch long and as sharp as a needle. The tips shone a sickly shade of green, and I was pretty certain if any of them pricked my skin, I’d end up having a very bad day. Was this another of Lyssa’s plots? Wasn’t she content with taking my wings, then subjecting me to a torturous trek across the plains with a ruined back? Now she wanted to poison me. Seriously?
“I do love this place.”
Lyssa’s words shocked me from my daydream, and I spun round to face the princess. She sat atop her beautiful shimmering pale pink mare, who gazed at me with amber eyes, sparkling with the spring sun.
I looked away. I didn’t want Lyssa to get any indication they were anything more than the simple beasts she considered them, so I did my best to distract her.
“Why do you love this place?” We stood in a wide, deep hollow, surrounded on all sides by poisonous thorns, and even without her answer, I thought this place was a perfect reflection of the princess. “I mean, I thought you loved the luxury of the Citadel.”
“Because it’s raw, Jes.” She used the friend name. Even here she wouldn’t let go the mask of her cruelty. “This place is natural, not made.” She glanced back in the direction of the Citadel. I caught a look of disdain in her eyes. “The Citadel has been my home for all my life, but it was made, made by the dwelves.”
Another sneer. She hated them too, felt superior, better than them. Lyssa was a contradiction. She loved the unicorns, but hated, despised just about everything else. She turned to me, her eyes wide and excited as she clapped her hands, the sneer gone as fast as it appeared. “You know the forest! Teach me. I want to hear the songs.”
I cocked my head, hesitant, feigning disinterest. “Why should a faer song be important to the eldar?” Even I didn’t have a clue, but it seemed important to the princess.
She cast her hand out, her eyes up at the noon sky with her customary arrogant expression. “Because I want to hear it, and you will sing.”
Magic surged, the scent filling my lungs. I stiffened again as my chest filled, and I sang. I couldn’t help it. The air came from my lungs in a familiar tune as Lyssa forced the song from me.
I sat on Firehoof’s back and cried as I pulled his mane. It hurt him, maybe as much as the words being wrenched from my heart hurt me. I sang, loud and pure. Lyssa made me face the forest and tears flowed down my face.
‘My mate is called Tears of Twilight,’ Firehoof whispered in my mind. ‘That is what she wants you to know her as for now, and she is sorry she cannot risk telling you herself lest the princess discover us. She may tell you her true name someday.’
Waves of sadness washed from the female unicorn as I sang, and her golden eyes hesitated as they flickered up to mine. She was ashamed. My hands clenched, the only movement I could make, but Firehoof trembled below me and Tears bowed her head.
“This song is not as good as the first time I heard it, the day I killed that disgusting little creature.” Lyssa laughed, a sound that froze my blood. “That little beast of a maid of yours still thinks it was an accident.” She looked straight at me, her expression blank. “I gutted him as he screamed for mercy, then that little bitch had the audacity to try to attack me. She’s lucky she only spent a year in the dark. I wanted to skin her alive, but my parents… urgh…it was so unfair.”
She was evil, pure evil, and I shuddered under the iron grip of her spell. “I wanted you back then, you know. But my parents.” She hissed the word.
Did this monster love anyone?
“They said I already had a companion.” She flicked her wrist in dismissal. “As if that little mongrel was worthy of my company.” Then her face brightened. “But he’s gone, and the tedious year of mourning is over, and now I have you.”
I was wrong. She wasn’t just evil. She was insane.
The spell broke and I breathed my own breath. My relief lasted only an instant. “I think I may be bored, Jes.” She kicked her heels into Tears’ flanks, taking off toward the forest.
‘What does she mean, Firehoof?’
His frustration and anger flowed through me. ‘We cannot take sides, Jes. My entire family is in the Citadel, and it would be a simple matter for an accident to befall them. Accidents have a nasty habit of happening, especially where the princess is concerned.’
‘What do you mean?’ His only reaction was a tremble beneath me. I knew I only had a moment to act before Lyssa caused pain to another being. She might not want to hurt the unicorns, but there were other beings here, and as we cleared the thin overhang of bushes I saw her raise her hands to shield her eyes against the glare of the sun.
“Do you know what the mightiest beings on Teralia are, Jes?” Lyssa’s words seemed innocent, but an undercurrent of menace bubbled below the veneer.
Was this a trick question? The eldar were surely the most powerful, but mighty? No, that privilege was granted to another race.
“The…the dragons?” I stammered. I waited for her to punish me for the insult as she sat staring at me in silence.
Then she chuckled. “A very brave answer, Jes.” She put her hands together, playing with her thumbs. “Brave but correct. Yes, the dragons are surely the mightiest of all the beings on this world. Their fire alone could reduce the Citadel to molten glass, and their magic…their power is unique and perfectly suited for battle. They are untouchable behind their defenses, and their assaults could level the mountains they live in.”
Why was she telling me all this? And if they were so po
werful, why did they submit to the will of the eldar? Then Glyran’s words came back to me, the curse he spoke of. It must have something to do with their bondage.
“Ah, there we are.” Lyssa stared up smugly. For a moment I could see nothing. Then a tiny speck appeared in the northern sky, growing rapidly, sprouting wings and a long sleek body, and within a couple of minutes the dragon was landing in front of us.
Firehoof trembled, and Tears’ eyes were wide as I glanced at her. I turned to look at the dragon, and my jaw dropped. I expected a dragon similar to Glyran, and I suppose if you just looked at the wings and general shape it would be; but she – and it was beyond any doubt a female – was beautiful. Her scales were a shade of cobalt blue that caused sparkles of sky to appear on the ground as the sun reflected off them. Her eyes shone with a silver light, and I started as she nodded at me in recognition. She knew me, or knew of me, at least. Glyran, I thought.
She bowed to the princess. “How may I serve you, Highness?” Her voice was light and mellow, but the mind behind it quivered with barely restrained anger. I wondered if Lyssa had any clue of my abilities, but then dismissed it. My own family hadn’t believed me until I showed them, and even afterward they thought it was only spiders I could communicate with. No…there was no way she could know…unless Glyran had…
The thought faded as fast as it entered my head as the female dragon shook her head, barely perceptibly. No. The dragons might be bound to do the eldars’ will, but they were free to keep knowledge from them.
Lyssa jumped down off the unicorn and strode over the thick grass to stand by the huge head. “Hmm. How may you serve me?” It wasn’t a real question, and there was menace in it. My blood ran cold as I watched her walk around the dragon. “I like dogs, you know. They are loyal and true, like the unicorns.”
If only she knew.
“Bark like a dog, dragon. Bark for me, then roll onto your back and play dead.”
This was horrific. She was humiliating this wonderful being just to amuse herself. Oh, I knew it was a display of control and power, another reinforcement of how helpless and at her mercy I truly was, but to make such a noble creature demean herself in this manner! I felt sick to my stomach.
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