Enchanted Revenge (18 page)

“What was that?” I screeched, louder than I meant to. Everyone just kept walking, like they hadn’t just heard it, like there wasn’t someone fairly close to us screaming their head off.

Alec turned and looked me straight in the eye.

“Listen to me. You cannot react to what you will see. It may go against every single instinct in your body. But you cannot react to it.”

“What are you even talking about? It sounds like someone is seriously hurt,” I told him, trying to emphasize how crazy he sounded.

“Who
is
she?” Lynn asked Alec.

“She is my protégé.”

“Well, why has she never heard this before? Are you not required to give magics? Are Realm Guard not taxed?” At first she seemed confused, but that instantly changed into aggression.

“Of course I am.”

I ignored them and asked him again, “What’s happening? I don’t understand.”

Then I heard it again. That screeching, crying scream that tore down into the pit of my stomach and clawed at my insides killing little pieces of my heart. All the little hairs on my arms and neck stood erect. It sounded like someone was dying and it almost felt like I was being physically affected by it.

“A Sprite is being drained of their magic right now. It’s taxing time. We all must submit. Only, Sprites are up to being taxed once a week now.”

Alec’s shock and disgust at her statement made me realize even more how serious the situation was. He said he was worried about Fae being taxed every month, and that if it happened every other week, it would be devastating.

“Why do you think we are fighting against them, child?” Lynn asked me. I ignored her
child
statement, because really she could be hundreds of years old and to her, I guess I was a child. “Not only did they usurp the throne from the most righteous monarchs we have had in many millennium, but the damn Pixies have pushed the Sylph from Kamalani, making them crowd our waterways and parts of the Nymph Ardennes. They are using our resources, when we already don’t have enough. All while the Pixies are continuing to destroy what little resources we have left.

“And now, with them taxing us once a week, we cannot recover. We are being forced to kill ourselves. At this rate, Sprites will be extinct within a few decades, if that long!”

As she spoke, her eyes turned to an icy blue, cold and hard as stone.

“We used to be able to fight against them; the guards aren’t too hard to take down, especially since so many of them don’t actually want to hurt us. They know that what we’re doing is right. But with the Mortem coming after every rebel who stands his ground, we continue to lose. If you fight back, it would be considered treason and the guards would have free reign to kill you on sight.” She turned her head then, her black mane whipping around her shoulder, but not quite fast enough to hide the tear that dripped from those glacier filled eyes.

Alec looked at me sternly, as if to emphasize what he said earlier, and then we continued walking. The screaming continued, but this time it was a female. The sound was truly heart wrenching.

I was strong. I ignored it. I would not let it affect me. I was stone cold. Kinda. For the most part. Well…almost.

I tried to be, anyway. I’m pretty sure I left pieces of myself along that path, with every step I took without trying to help.

At least this place was familiar, minus the water surrounding us. It looked almost like a normal city in Kansas. I mean, no breeze, and no grassy weeds, and no bright sun, but there were buildings. I mean, real buildings, with stones, and not just tree limbs.

When we rounded a corner, we came to what looked like the center of the village. It was a round opening, with super tall buildings surrounding it. Up on a wooden platform was a group of five men, all dressed in white, and a line of sprites leading up to the platform.

It was there, in the center of the village, raised up for all to see, that the guards chose to drain magic. I could see the mist being pulled from the Sprite next to them, who looked young enough to be my age. I mean, I guess she could’ve been older, but she looked
really
young. And she was crying.

“A novice?” Alec demanded, after stopping Lynn in her tracks with a stare that would melt icebergs.

“They start one year after they mature now. At least here in Muircadia.” The somberness of her tone made me want to weep for them, for all of these people.

“A travesty if I ever heard one. And the rest of The Empyrean knows of this? I haven’t heard of it before now.” Alec’s face was still aghast at the tragedy we were all watching. If the girl on that stage was a novice, I was right in thinking she was young.

“I don’t know. I just know I want it over,” she said, before turning away and leaving the courtyard.

We followed behind her, leaving the poor victims to their own demise. How could this be happening? How can this tyrannical monarchy decide to steal the very life source from these people? Why has this been allowed to happen?

Why aren’t there
more
rebels?

As we walked away from it, I really looked at my surroundings. I realized that everything was blue, or a variation of blue. Greenish blue, light blue, dark blue, purplish blue, reddish blue, bright blue…everywhere. I thought at first it was just a reflection from the water, but then I realized that it wasn’t, everything really was just blue. It was like I had blue tinted glass coating my eyes, since even the Sprites had blue tinted skin.

The building that we walked into looked mostly normal. It had black floors, and sky blue walls, but the windows were to die for. They were all stained glass. Some with water droplets, or rain, and one window at the far side of the room depicted an entire gorgeous scene. It was a thunderstorm with a raging ocean wave pounding against an island.

“We decided that this base would be the best location for you to visit,” Lynn said, after turning to look back at us. “The majority of the rebel bases are under the water, places the Pixies would never want to go. We’ve gotten to the point where the majority of the Sprite civilization is in Lemuria. It’s the safest place for us in all of The Empyrean in this dire time.” Well that made sense, since the Pixies couldn’t touch this water.

“So all Rita explained to me was that you have been tracking the Mortem, that you would need some assistance in leaving Ardennes, and that you would need sanctuary.”

“Yes. We have been tracking the Mortem for three weeks now. We were on their trail when Lord Nettle intercepted us and decided we needed to be made quiet,” Alec answered. “It was only then that I realized the Mortem was even working for the lords. So, the more information you can share with us, the better.”

“It used to be that the Mortem was composed of only Nymph. However, about 50 years ago they recruited a Pixie, and 10 years ago they somehow drafted a Sprite. They are so very lethal, and now that they have a Sprite, they can come into Muircadia and commit their crimes here as well.”

“Have they been here recently?” Alec questioned her.

“We just received word that they arrived in Muircadia only a few days ago. We have many men working on finding their location as we speak.”

“Thank you, Lynn, for sharing this information. I would very much like to be part of your investigation.”

“Of course. How long do you plan on staying?”

“As long as it takes.”

She nodded, “Very well. Come with me and we’ll find a place for you to stay.”

She led us down a series of hallways, and then into an elevator that dropped us down, instead of going up, even though the building we were in seemed very tall from the outside.

“We do have several dormitories available for persons of refuge. Do you request one bed or two?” She addressed the question to Alec, but she glanced at me when she asked it. I was certain my face was the reddest thing in the entire city at that moment.

Most awkward silence ever.

“Two will do. Thank you,” Alec answered, completely unfazed by the personal question.

She led us into a room, and then said before leaving, “We’ll be discussing more at our meeting after dinner, right about eight in the evening. Alec, feel free to join us.”

I ignored the Alec only invitation, as did he when he answered, “Of course, I’ll be there.”

I sat on the bed trying to come to terms with everything that was going on in my totally messed up life. My parents were dead. I sighed.

My parents. Were. Dead.

I was in a fairy world. The leaders of this world were bad. They were dictators. I didn’t feel they should be called monarchs, as they were so cruel, unfair, and unfit to lead.

They were torturing people, killing them slowly and painfully, and that was wrong on so many levels. The people that I was hunting, the same people who stole my parents from me, worked for these leaders.

Now I sat in a rebel camp, which was dangerous and a little scary, but I felt compelled to stay with them anyway, to fight with them. I could still hear that girl’s screams in my ears, and just the thought alone almost brought tears to my eyes.

I had never really felt a strong connection to people. Everybody usually felt different or other to me. I had always been the different one and just hadn’t known it. I had never had siblings or anything, and really the only people I cared about had been my parents.

But for some reason I felt a connection to these people. To all the Nymph I had met in Ardennes. To Nona and Kerr. And now to these Sprites. I felt like I should help them.

Killing the Mortem, enacting my revenge, finding justice for my parents and their murderers. In this way I could both help myself and help them as well.

Alec left the room and went into an attached bathroom. Just thinking about the bathroom made me crave a real shower. And then my stomach grumbled, and I realized I hadn’t eaten in probably 24 hours.

That wouldn’t be my first priority though.

As soon as Alec came back into the room I would demand he teach me more. I knew we were at an awkward place right now, what with me being completely and utterly infatuated with him and him apologizing for me kissing him…but I would put all that aside, and hopefully he would too. I needed to be able to defend myself.

And I needed to kill these people.

That night after dinner, Alec was at that secret meeting or whatever that I hadn’t been invited to. You would’ve thought I would fall asleep quickly, considering the lack of sleep over the last few days, but I just had so much on my mind.

It had been about an hour and half since dinner was over when I heard a knock on the door. I stood up, went to the door and crouched a little, not completely in my battle stance, but still ready for whoever was knocking, no matter what. And then I said, “Enter,” trying to sound just like Alec when he said it.

Lynn walked in and shut the door behind her.

“I just wanted to check on you.”

“Oh, thanks. I’m doing well. Thank you for your hospitality, we appreciate all you are doing for us.” I told her, easily slipping into a plural and speaking for Alec as well.

She handed me a cup and said, “I brought you some tea.” I took it and looked down at it, wary of what it might really be. “Don’t worry, it’s not made with water. It won’t harm you or anything.”

I smiled as I thanked her and we walked to my bed to sit down to talk. It was warm, and tasted so normal and wonderful and filled with honey that it brought a pang of longing for home as it coated my tongue and slithered down my throat to warm my belly.

“I wanted to ask you some questions, if that’s okay with you,” she asked, as she relaxed more on the bed, stretching back and crossing her legs under her arms.

Immediately I was on guard. It was always scary when someone started out a conversation like that. I knew I wouldn’t lie, so it worried me what questions she might ask me.

“Umm,” I mumbled. “Okay. Sure.”

“I’m curious. Where are you from? You obviously are not from around here.”

“I
am
Fae, if that’s what you’re asking,” I told her defensively. She just kept looking at me, like that wasn’t enough. And for some reason, I felt the urge to tell her more. “I actually grew up in the Mortal Realm, though. I don’t know if I’m allowed to talk about it. Alec has made a point of trying to keep it quiet. But I feel like I can trust you, and I want to be honest with you. Please don’t tell anybody.”

“No, that’s fine. Your secret is safe with me,” she assured me, smiling. “We have each other’s backs around here.”

“Oh, good.” It grew a little quiet then. Like, what was I supposed to say after that?

“So…?” she encouraged.

“So, up until just over a few weeks ago, I didn’t even know fairies were real. All I knew was the Mortal Realm.”

“Wow,” she murmured, as she looked off in the distance. “I’ve only been to the Mortal Realm once before, and it was many years ago. I can’t imagine living there. I usually stay here, very close to Muircadia.”

Then she looked back at me. “Do you know why you grew up there? Your parents never told you that you were fae?”

“No. My parents,” I took a deep breath. “My parents never mentioned anything about this place.”

“Interesting. And still now, they haven’t explained it to you?” She seemed truly confused and surprised by this. “When do you mature?”

“My birthday is in a couple of weeks.” Saying it out loud made me realize just how close it was. It felt good to think I would be getting magic soon. I wouldn’t be defenseless.

“Oh, very close then. That’s good. Maybe then they will explain your lineage,” she offered hopefully. “Have you asked them about it?”

I looked down. I refused to let even a single tear escape. Not now. Not in front of this stranger, a leader of the freakin rebellion. I would not cry.

“The Mortem killed them.”

“Oh…” she murmured as she looked down. Then she reached forward and placed her hand on my knee. “My condolences.” The sincerity in her voice was nearly my undoing. I almost broke down and cried all over, but I knew that if I started again, I wouldn’t stop for a long time.

“Unfortunately, the Mortem has taken a loved one from most of us. For some of us, they have taken all of our loved ones, and left us completely alone.” I knew in that moment we shared a common pain. They had stolen from her too.

We stayed quiet for a few minutes, thinking of and missing those we have lost. Loving them, even as they are gone. Mourning them. Wishing things were different, but still knowing they couldn’t be. And swearing we would avenge their deaths.

She took a deep breath and then looked back at me. “So, do you have everything that you need?” she asked, effectively changing the subject and taking my mind off my parents.

“Yes I do, thank you,” I said, as I looked over at the little dresser where I had placed the abscondita and started to take out some of our belongings.

Her eyes followed mine, then she stood up and walked over to our things, picking up something of mine.

“Where did you get this?” she demanded.

I walked over to her, and took the ephemeris back from her. “It was my mother’s.”

“Your mother’s?” she asked again, seeking confirmation.

“Yes.”

“It’s very rare. Most fae don’t keep them. I’ve only ever seen one once before.” She looked longingly at it. “Do you know what it is?”

“Yeah, of course. But I don’t know how to open it.”

“Usually they can only be opened by the author or by someone the author trusted. If it was your mothers, you should be able to, it’s just magically bound.”

“Right, and I don’t have my magic yet.” Go freakin’ figure.

“Well, maybe we can do it together,” she offered. “I didn’t know your mother. But I do have magic, and if you hold it, maybe together we can open it. I’ve never read one before.”

She assured me, “I’m not asking to read it, don’t misunderstand.” Her eyes begged forgiveness and understanding. “But I would love to help you open it and just look at it.”

I probably should’ve been more cautious. I didn’t know her, I didn’t really know if I could trust her at all. And already, I’d told her things I hadn’t told any other fae, other than Alec. But, I was too hopeful it would work.

“Okay,” I said, hoping my excitement didn’t show through as much as hers did.

“Hold it out in front of you. I’ll place my hand on yours, and the other on the book. Okay?” I nodded, and she did as she said.

Then she closed her eyes and I could feel her magic flowing around me. It wasn’t like Alec’s. It wasn’t warm and sunny at all. It was almost cold, but not in a bad way. It was that first glass of ice cold water you get after sweating all day in the middle of the summer. Refreshing, cool and crisp.

I welcomed it wholeheartedly. Let it rush over me, and flow down my head, down to my fingertips.

And then she whispered, “Go ahead. Open it.”

So I did. And just like that it opened.

The first page read:

The Ephemeris of Norleen Volante

“It’s blank?” Disappointment clouded her comments.

“Blank? No, see?” I tried to show her the first page.

“Hmm?” she murmured, the wheels in her head obviously spinning rapidly. But I didn’t press it. There had to be a reason I could see it when she couldn’t, even when she had magic and I didn’t.

The only question was, who the heck is Norleen Volante?