Age of Druids (35 page)

The atmosphere felt strangely stiff, and no one spoke for a few moments.

“What’s going on?” Munro asked.

“It’s really a formality now,” Aaron said. “Huck told us everything Maiya told you. Yesterday, we held a vote. It was unanimous.”

“You voted already?” Munro said with a frown.

“Come now,” Lisle said, walking up to him with a smile. “You know you wouldn’t have voted for yourself. No matter what Maiya said.”

“Look,” Munro began. “I don’t believe in fate or destiny. We can make our own decisions. We do what we think is right for Ceòthan and now for the Danastanis, for the Otherworld.”

Huck chuckled. He was standing at the side of the room, next to Demi, who was seated. She looked pale, but a million times better than she had two days before. “We are doing what we think is right.”

Demi put her hand over the one Huck had draped on her shoulder. She nodded to Munro. “The vote was unanimous.”

“If I recall,” Sheng said, “you promised to accept a two-thirds majority vote. We have more than that.”

“Was it unanimous?” Munro met Rory’s eyes. The red-haired druid had been quiet and subdued and sat a little away from the others.

“Aye,” Rory said. “It was.” His contrite expression spoke volumes.

Douglas grinned. “Better you than me, mate.”

For the first time, it all seemed real. He was going to be a king. Before, he’d somehow just regarded it as happening sometime off in the future, one possible future among many. The weight of the decision rested firmly on his shoulders. So many lives would become his responsibility.

Aaron clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry. We’re all here for you. We won’t let you do anything stupid.”

Munro grinned. “Thanks for that.”

“My lord druid,” Fiyr said. “Your mate and the other queens await us in the garden.”

“Right. So, some kind of party?” He exhaled, not quite sure he was ready to face all those powerful women and all their expectations of him as a new king.

“We celebrate later,” Fiyr said. “For now, we have to attend to your words.” The head of the druid conclave smiled at Munro. He nodded to Aaron. “Give me a few moments with Lord Druid Munro. We will join you shortly.”

“We’re doing this
now
?” Munro said, stunned.

“Aye,” Aaron said. “Before you have a chance to talk your way out of it.”

Those
few moments
went by in a buzz as Fiyr talked to Munro privately about the words he must say, the commitment he was making to his new people, to all the citizens of the Otherworld. Traditionally, the oath was made to the Mother of the Earth. Eilidh had been the first queen in a long time to also include the Father of the Sky in her ceremony, but now that Munro had met him, he didn’t really want to make a vow that included Ewain. After all, both of the ancient draoidh were only human, despite the fact that centuries and millennia had turned them into legends of gods.

The pair discussed the changes, and Fiyr finally agreed what he should say. He waited as Munro undressed, then he led him to the adjacent garden. The druid conclave was there, the other druids, and all the Otherworld queens, including his mate. She beamed at him with pride as he walked in. Each person present bowed their heads, and the crowd parted, forming a circle in front of a large stone altar that had been covered with a cacophony of wild flowers. At its base was a small silver knife. Munro knelt.

As Fiyr had instructed, and as Munro had seen Eilidh do when she took her vows as queen, he cut both of his palms and squeezed them together, letting his blood fall into the earth.

Somewhere over the walls, Munro could hear the voices of the people of Ceòthan, raised in cheerful celebrations for what they must by now know was happening in this garden. He thought about them. They deserved better, but he promised himself he’d do whatever it took to be worthy of their trust.

Munro breathed deeply for a moment before speaking his vow. “I come before you humbly, citizens of the Otherworld, and swear with my blood to serve you, to act with justice and mercy, to remember always that my life belongs to my kingdom, from this day until the last of all days, in this realm and beyond.”

Overwhelmed with love for the people he’d just promised to serve, Munro paused, fighting back tears. He felt Fiyr’s hands helping him rise, and Munro opened his eyes, meeting those of all the queens, of his friends, of the conclave that would be beside him as he ruled. With their help, he could do what needed to be done. He gave a half-smile, and they each returned it.

Queen Grenna stepped forward, holding a runed wooden box. She bowed to Munro as Fiyr opened it. Inside rested an Iron Crown, identical to the one Flùranach had stolen from him just before the Way was destroyed. Munro looked at Grenna.

“It was one of the five artefacts entrusted to the people of Meditar by our Lady Juno,” she said.

Munro’s mind whirled. Somehow, his crown had gone back those ten thousand years and been recovered, then entrusted to Grenna’s ancestors. How it had gotten there and who had brought it back to him, he had no idea. That was someone else’s story, but one he’d like to hear someday. “Thank you,” he said and tilted his head.

“It has been my honour, and that of my mother, and all those who came before,” she replied with a smile.

Fiyr took the crown from the wooden case and lifted it over Munro’s head. “In the name of the citizens of the Otherworld, we consecrate Lord Druid Quinton Munro of the Druid Hall and Scotland as their holy servant and lift him up as first among us.” Eilidh handed Fiyr a long cloak of black wool trimmed in silver fur. The conclave leader placed it over Munro’s shoulders. “His Majesty King Quinton Munro,” he said.

As the words left Fiyr’s mouth, everyone in the garden went to his or her knees. By attending this ceremony, Munro realised that each of these queens was pledging fealty. His mind buzzed with thoughts as he looked at each of them.

The last part of the ceremony involved him going to those who knelt, starting with the queens. He spoke to them one on one, and in a quiet voice for them alone, he made them his own vow. “Rise,” he said to each when he was finished, and accepted her kiss on his cheek.

At the last, when he went to his friends, he helped them to their feet and thanked them and promised he would serve them well.

When the ceremony was over, he embraced Eilidh. “I’m so proud of you,” she whispered.

He grinned at her. “Can I put some trousers on now?”

She laughed, and the others joined her. “You are so human.”

“Yes,” Fiyr said. “I’ll show you inside to your new private chambers. We can talk for a few moments before the celebrations begin.”

Still not quite able to take it all in, Munro followed the conclave leader to an immense suite while six faeries helped him dress in something they insisted was “appropriate.” He didn’t even argue about the fur cuffs or high boots. He learned that he was expected to live here in this palace.
His
palace. Then he would begin a six-month tour which would encompass every kingdom in the Otherworld.

Once he was dressed, he looked at himself in the mirror. He hardly recognised the man looking back at him. His old life was gone. He was the first druid king. It still felt like a dream, and he wondered when it would sink in.

“Are you ready, Your Majesty?” Fiyr asked politely after a long moment of silence.

Munro met his gaze and nodded. “Aye,” he said. “I’m ready.”

A Note from the Author

Thank you so much for reading Age of Druids, the final book in the Caledonia Fae series. If you enjoyed it, please take a moment to leave a review at your favourite online retailer.

I welcome contact from readers. At my website
http://www.indiadrummond.com
you can contact me, sign up for my newsletter to be notified of new releases, read my blog, and find me on social networking. Follow my
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—India Drummond

The Caledonia Fae series by India Drummond

Book 1: Blood Faerie

Unjustly sentenced to death, Eilidh ran—away from faerie lands, to the streets of Perth, Scotland. Just as she has grown accustomed to exile, local police discover a mutilated body outside the abandoned church where she lives. Recognising the murder as the work of one of her own kind, Eilidh must choose: flee, or learn to tap into the forbidden magic that cost her everything.

Book 2: Azuri Fae

A faerie prince disappears in the borderlands, and his father enlists the help of outcast Eilidh and her bonded druid, Quinton Munro. Tantalised with hints of a lost and ancient magic, they learn that time is working against them every step of the way. Is the prince’s disappearance related to the vanishing of an entire Scottish village?

Faced with deception, assassination attempts, and a mad queen who would sacrifice her own child to keep a dreaded secret, Eilidh struggles with an impossible situation. Her people demand she commit treason and betray the man she loves. Will she do what duty requires, or throw away the chance to reunite the kingdom in exchange for the life she hadn’t dared hope for?

Book 3: Enemy of the Fae

With a young, inexperienced monarch on the Caledonian throne and traitorous plots implicating those nearest Queen Eilidh, unrest is rife in the kingdom. She must sift through the intrigues and lies to survive, all while trying to discover which of her trusted companions hates her enough to commit mass murder.

Pressures threaten to overcome the young ruler, and to protect Quinton Munro, her bonded druid, she must send him away. His journey becomes a mission when he stumbles on an ancient truth that will shake the foundations of the entire faerie realm. Confronted by infinite danger and the promise of limitless power, Munro faces the most difficult choices of his life. Will he hide the truth to preserve stability in the faerie kingdoms or embrace the promise of his true druid heritage?

One friend will die because of that truth, one friend’s betrayal will cause irreparable scars, and the once tightly-knit band of druids will learn that not all magic is benevolent.

Book 4: Druid Lords

The druids of Caledonia have taken their place in the Halls of Mist, only to learn that their path is fraught with many dangers. When their newest member, Huck Webster, finds a woman of magical talents in Amsterdam, their troubles multiply. Lying between them and a peaceful existence are a dead prince, a furious queen, and a druid accused of murder. Each druid must search his soul and discover where his talents, and his loyalties, lie.

Book 5: Elder Druid

As the Druid Hall celebrates the completion of the Mistgate, their leader Munro is abducted, leaving them in disarray. Queen Eilidh declares Munro dead, which threatens the fragile balance of power in the Halls of Mist. With the druids crippled by grief and uncertainty, no one notices the insidious force influencing them from a dark mirror realm.

That force has a voice, a sinister whisper in Lord Druid Douglas’ ear, compelling him to feed the Source Stone and driving a wedge between him and his companions. Trath’s magic could protect the druid lord, but the prince has fled heartbreak in search of a different life. But will his quest bring redemption or ruin?

Book 6: Age of Druids

Imprisoned by the demons of The Bleak, two lost druids fight to survive while Munro pushes himself to the brink to find them. In his search, he discovers a mysterious gate even the oldest and wisest of the Otherworld fear.

The Halls of Mists are in ruin, and people scheme, grasping at power as a new kingdom emerges and an ancient one reappears. Tragedy pits druid against queen, testing friendship, loyalty, and love once more.

Who will survive and who will be lost forever as desperation drives some to unthinkable ends?