Soul Mates: Magic (Soul Mates Series) (9 page)

“Very well. But you will take more than just Thane and Cole with you. I will see who else I can round up to go into Never Never with you.”

“Thank you
, Max.”

Auberon and my father had been fairly quiet throughout this exchange. “Abbey it is indeed a great loss to lose Daire in such a way, but to risk your life, your safety, I cannot allow it.”

I left Max’s side and moved in front of Auberon, I removed my ring, tossing it to the floor. I was in a temper and I wanted Auberon to be very clear that I was one hundred percent Fae, that I was not being driven by human feelings. “I will return with Daire, Great Grandfather. Or I shall not return at all. I am your heir, but I have also been trained to fight the Darkness and I will not allow the man I love to be tortured to death by those creatures. I will go to him and you
will not
stop me.” I could feel the rage that I had kept in check beginning to break free. I was so close to being out of control, I just needed a direction to unleash my fury.

Auberon took one look in my eyes and changed his mind. “Go. Go get him and bring him back.”

I followed Cole and Thane to the door of Never Never. I wasn’t nervous, but I was anxious. Cole flung open the door and we stepped through to another dimension, Never Never was like no other world you can even imagine. It is vast and ever changing. The landscape can be very wild and it will swallow you if you aren’t careful. I checked behind me to see Cale, James and Thomas coming along for the journey.

“Princess, I know the path well and the Goblin King and I are on friendly terms. We should be able to pass with little trouble, however you must grant him a boon for allowing you safe passage,” Thomas commented.

“And I’ll follow your spoiled self anywhere any time, and I’m sure you know it,” James said with a grin.

“My liege asked that I join my sword to yours, your highness. I will help to keep you safe,” Cale said quietly.

“We must hurry, the poison is spreading quickly and we must get to him before it completely destroys him,” I said completely in control again. I could feel the rage banked, waiting, burning for release, but I held tight. I would only unleash it on the ones that deserved it.

Chapter
Twelve

We moved quickly through the forest of ancient trees, I could tell that Gaia was on our side, she was clearing the way as we moved through the density. I prayed every step of the way that we would reach him in time…that he was not being tortured more…that he would hold out and wait for me and not choose to fade from existence. I prayed to every god and goddess that they would be generous and help me to save his life, that the three fates would not cut his lifeline. I knew they existed. Diana was always at the Faerie Mound because of Max. In fact she and Auberon had gotten into it a few times because of Max’s duties. Auberon tends to push the issue a lot and sometimes she just has to step in and force him to see reason. I hoped she was listening now.

“Princess, we have almost reached the edge of the Goblin King
’s territory. Are you prepared?”

I’d never met the Goblin King, or any other Goblin for that matter. They tended to keep to themselves quite often. “Yes, I am prepared,” I said following close behind Thomas.

The Goblin King’s palace was not your typical palace. It was built into the side of a mountain. It was dark and craggy and a little on the spooky side. And it kind of smelled like rotten eggs.

“
Eww, what is that stench?” I asked Thomas.

“The mud springs your highness,” Thomas replied. “The Goblin women use them for their spas. The Goblin’s find it a pleasant smell, so do not mention
its odor to any of them.”

I nodded as Thomas raised a hand to knock on the outer door. We waited a moment and the door was opened by the most unusual creature I’d ever seen. He was short, four feet tall at the most, his skin was marbled in appearance and seemed to have a greenish brown hue. His black eyes were huge and never wavering as he stared at us. I tried hard not to focus on any one part of him, especially not the long pointed ears that flopped this way and that or the very large feet that seemed almost too big for his body. He wore very little, just a pair of short pants that seemed to be made out of some heavy canvas like material.

“What do you want?” he asked, his voice gruff.

“We wish to see the Gareth, the Goblin King,” Thomas answered for us.

“What will you give me to see our King?” the Goblin asked haughtily.

Thomas pulled some gold out of his pocket. “Will this do?”

“Aye, that will do,” the Goblin agreed and led us into the cavernous room. I thought that it would be dark and dreadful inside, but I was wrong. The walls were laden with gold and everything sparkled and shone brightly.

We followed him down a long hallway, and into another golden room, this one befit a King. I couldn’t wrap my mind around all that I was seeing. “Did you know about this?” I whispered to Cole.

“Of course Princess, the Goblins are the keepers of the gold, they enjoy the shininess of the metal. They of course also enjoy other riches as well. I’m sure that is one of the reasons Thomas is such good friends with Gareth, the Goblin King. They have much in common,” Cole whispered back.

“Welcome, Thomas! Who have you brought to visit me this afternoon? Is that the Princess?
My, my, my...isn’t she delicious,” Gareth said. I was fairly certain he was the King, he was a little taller than the other Goblin, his jet black hair flopped down over his right eye, giving him a roguish appearance. His eyes were a brilliant blue and he looked more Fae than the other Goblin, his ears were slightly shorter, less floppy and his face was less pointed, but he shared the same marbled skin tone. I suppose that made sense since the Goblins were distant cousins of the Fae. He wore a crown of gold inlaid with jewels of emerald and ruby and a bejeweled robe to show off his status, I assumed. The biggest difference between the King and the Goblin that answered the door was the Goblin King looked powerful, strong in both magic and strength.

“Gareth, my friend, King of the Goblins, I appreciate your hospitality. I have come with friends t
o ask your safe passage to the forest of Darkness. We journey to the Castle of Darkness to seek that which has been taken from us.”

“Do you lead this journey, Thomas?”

“No,” Thomas said and shook his head. “That would be Princess Abbey, heir to the throne of Light and Illusion.”

I stepped forward and curtsied to the King. “It is a pleasure to meet you, sir.”

“Princess Abbey, it has long been my desire to meet you,” Gareth said stepping forward and taking my hand in his. He pulled my hand up to his lips. Watching my face, he turned my hand palm up and kissed it, closing my fingers over his kiss.

I smiled, “I too have long desired to meet the Goblins and their King. I have heard many stories of your adventures.”

Gareth’s chest puffed up and he smiled, showing his jagged teeth. “Well Princess, do come in and visit for a while.” Gareth gestured to another room.

“Your Grace, I wish that we could, but we are in a hurry on this particular trip. The Queen has taken someone valuable to me, and he has been poisoned by Toxic Kiss. I must reach him before the poison spreads through him completely.”

Gareth studied me. “Is this your lover you seek?”

I blushed. “No, not a lover. I have no lover. He is someone I care about though.”

“No lover,” Gareth said raising a brow and giving another grin. “That is a shame Princess. Though you are young, there is still time for that,” he said, his look speculating.

I blushed again. “We would greatly appreciate it if you would grant us safe passage through your territory.”

“Ah but Princess, what do I get out of such a thing? I find I quite enjoy having you here, why would I want you to leave?”

I smiled. “I will grant you a boon, should you allow it.”

“Hmmm, very well, but I will ask for three boons, as there are so many of you and you will need safe passage on your return trip as well,” Gareth negotiated.

I
pretended to consider his offer. It would have been impolite to do otherwise. “Two boons, your Grace, one for each direction we travel.”

“
Done. Now as to the first boon…I want your company for an evening of pleasure. It isn’t often that I get to entertain other royals.”

“My company? And what might that entail?” I asked almost timidly.

“Just for you to share an evening with us here in the Goblin Kingdom, for feasting and frivolity, nothing more, unless it is your wish,” Gareth said with a lecherous grin.

“An evening of feasting and frivolity sounds quite entertaining, your Grace. I shall look forward to it. After we rescue my warrior, and he is well again, agreed?”

“Most definitely, Princess.”

“And the second boon?” Thomas asked, wanting to clear up the obligations so that we could move on.

“The second boon I shall keep on reserve for a time when I need it,” Gareth said smartly. “Agreed?”

I nodded. “Agreed.”

“Are you sure you will not stay for awhile? It is nearly lunch time,” Gareth offered. “We are having a delicious repast of meats.”

I knew that Goblins liked their meats raw and wild, so it was not a meal I was exactly hungry for. “Thank you, your Grace, but we should decline such a mouthwatering offer, as I mentioned, time is not on our side. We really must be going.”

“Very well, but do please call me Gareth, Princess.”

I smiled. “Only if you call me Abbey in return.”

“It is my pleasure to call you Abbey, my sweet,” Gareth replied. “Come, I shall have Gurtag show you the way.”

“Gurtag?” I whispered to Thomas.

“The goblin who answered the door.”

We followed Gareth through the palace to the underground caverns. Gurtag greeted us at the entrance. “Your Grace, you want me to do what?”

“Lead the Princess and her entourage safely through the caverns and forest to the Dark Castle and wait for them until they return.”

“The Dark Castle, your Grace?” Gurtag looked a bit scared, more scared than any Goblin should look.

“Yes, you don’t have to go beyond the forest Gurtag. The Queen will not lay a hand on you.”

“If you say so, your Grace,” Gurtag replied, but didn’t sound very sure of his words.

Gareth sighed. “The Queen and I are feuding at the moment. Of course the Queen is feuding with everyone at the moment, so that should come to no surprise. She has threatened if she caught a Goblin in the Dark territory she would have him boiled in oil and eat him for her for dinner. It’s just healthier for us to stay in our realm,” Gareth said practically. “Do be careful Abbey, I would hate to hear that you had been boiled in oil and eaten by the Queen.”

“I would hate that as well, Gareth,” I said with a smile. “Thank you for the guide and the safe passage.”

“It is my pleasure,” Gareth said leaving us.

“Come. Follow me,” Gurtag said gesturing for us to follow him into the dark maze of caverns.

“Stay close to me, Princess. I would not lose you in the darkness of the cavern,” Cole said softly.

I stumbled as I attempted to follow Gurtag in the dark. “This is ridiculous, why do we not have a light to help guide us?”

“Goblins see very well in the dark, they have no need for light Princess,” Thomas replied. “However, I am sure Gurtag will not mind a small lantern to help us see as well as he.”

I snapped my fingers and a lantern appeared in my hand. It barely had enough glow to show where I placed my feet, but at least it was something. “This is a little better,” I said looking around at the cavern walls. They were moss covered and a bit creepy looking, but as I stepped forward I noticed the ground was paved in gold. We were walking upon solid gold, one of the most precious metals ever found. I looked closer at the
moss-covered walls and glimpsed a shimmer of gold there as well. “Is this entire cavern made of gold? Or is it my imagination?” I asked Cole softly.

“It does appear to be gold, Princess. I cannot imagine the Goblin King would allow anything other than pure gold to be used to create his caverns,” Cole replied.

“Damn, if I’d known this place was full of gold and jewels before I might have come sooner,” James said with a grin.

“James, do not lay a hand upon any of the gold with an eye to stealing it.
The Goblins have a harsh punishment system set up for such offenders,” Thomas said severely.

“What kind of harsh punishment?” James asked speculatively.

“The kind that gets you roasted over an open fire and fed to their resident dragon friend,” Thomas said, eyes narrowed. “And the dragon in question, that would be me. And trust me I haven’t an appetite for wolf, so please, don’t touch the frigging gold.”

“I bet I could take ‘em…” James grinned. I
knew he was just goofing around. He liked to push Thomas’ buttons every now and then.

“James…” Thomas warned, breathing out an ounce of fire.

James laughed. “Fine, I’ll keep my hands to myself.”

Gurtag ignored us as he moved quickly through the maze. It would not do to lose him, the caverns were huge and the maze had many different options of direction to go. I wondered if he actually knew which cavern to take next or if he was just leading us around in circles.

“Come, it is not too much further,” Gurtag called from several paces ahead of us. Thank goodness for the lantern or we really would have lost him.

“Princess! Watch out,” Cole grabbed my arm before I fell into a very deep pit in the middle of the floor.

“Whoa! What the hell? I swear he walked right over this,” I said incredulous.

“Goblin magic, it’s to keep intruders from escaping.”

I nodded, a little warier of where I stepped. We followed Gurtag for another couple of minutes through the caverns and then it got even darker, as if that was even possible. “Where are we?” I asked.

“It’s the edge of the Dark forest, it’s still in Goblin territory, Gurtag will take us to the edge of it,” Thomas replied.
“Be careful, there are creatures that live in this forest that… well let’s just say they do not like to be disturbed.”

“Got it,” I replied with a nod. I was hesitant to take my eyes off of Gurtag and the path, but when my eyes drifted to the scenery I became aware that several things were watching us. I could make out dozens of yellowed luminescent eyes just beyond the initial layer of trees that surrounded the path adding to the creepy factor. “Cole,” I started.

“It’s all right, Princess, they will stay away if we stay close to Gurtag.”

I continued to silently follow behind Cole and Gurtag with Thomas, James and Cale bringing up the rear. At one point I thought I felt something reach out and attempt to grab me, but I’m fairly certain it was my imagination.

“This is as far as I go,” Gurtag said and pointed ahead of him. “Keep going this way and you will come-out in the Dark territory. I will wait for you here.”

I looked ahead and I could just make out the Dark Castle’s walls looming in the darkness. A feeling of dread, of death and destruction, of complete t
error seemed to emanate from its structure. A compelling spell and a good one, designed to compel invaders to turn back. I had mastered that sort of spell by the age of five, so deactivating it was easy. I took two steps in front of our group and held up my hands, palms forward, calling my power to me. I breathed in and swallowed the spell and breathed it back out into broken pieces. She wasn’t going to be rid of me so easily.