The Tears of Elios (23 page)

***

The next two days passed without any difficulties as they traveled further north, despite the deepening snowdrifts. Once again, she was grateful for the warmth of her cloak and the heat from Galen's chest as they rode. They made camp one night in the cavern dug out of a hillside—an abandoned bear’s den, she guessed. It offered them warmth and protection from the wind that night. The next night, they camped along the edge of a forest.

It was near midmorning on the fourth day when Kira noted the subtle changes in the landscape. The snow receded, and the forest closed in around them. The sunlight that filtered through the trees became faint, casting an eerie green glow around them. She unfastened all but the top clasp of her cloak. Spring had taken root in this place.

“We'll have to walk from here,” Galen said once they reached a point where they were dodging tree branches from the top of their horse.

When Kira dismounted, her feet sank into the soft and spongy ground. It seemed strange that the air would be so warm and sticky this far north, feeding the lush flora around her. The trees soared higher than her eye could see, blocking out the sky. Delicate ferns filled the spaces between them, and thick moss covered the surface of every rock and tree trunk. “Where are we?”

“On the edge of Sylvania, the faerie realms.”

She followed behind him, cautious of the greenness that threatened to smother her. “You say that like it's a bad thing.”

“It can be. I suppose I don't like being constantly watched.”

“By whom? There's no one here but us.”

“Look closer.” He pointed to a group of ferns ahead of them. “See those faint lights? Those are faeries. Mab’s spies, most likely. At least she’ll know we’re coming.”

Kira squinted in the direction he pointed and finally saw the twinkling purple lights. “They're so tiny.”

Galen picked up this pace, getting far enough ahead of her that she was forced to clear her own way through the vegetation. “It’s only because they're in their diminutive form.”

As they passed the ferns, the purple lights scurried further into the darkness.

“I've never seen a faerie before,” she admitted, embarrassed at her ignorance.

He stopped long enough for her to catch up. “There are three things you should know about faeries. First, don't eat or drink any of their food, or you'll become their slave. Second, no matter how good it sounds, don't make any deals with them. They usually have the upper hand, and you'll get far more than you bargained for.” He paused and waited for her to nod in understanding before continuing. “Lastly, don't anger Mab, their queen. She has a nasty temper, and her curses cannot be reversed except by her own hand. Am I clear?” She nodded again, and some of the tension eased from his face. “Good. Then stay close to me, and we shouldn't have any misadventures.”

She fell into step behind him. More and more tiny purple balls of light zipped in and out of the trees. She jumped when one whizzed past her face and tried to muffle her gasp. Galen turned and looked at her, his expression a combination of worry and annoyance. “Sorry,” she apologized. She needed to be less jumpy. After all, they were just tiny little faeries.

A group of them gathered around her face like a swarm of gnats. She waved them away, causing several high-pitched squeals to fill her ears. She thought nothing of it until she took a step forward. Her head jerked back. Stars filled her vision from the tearing pain in her scalp. She reached behind her and felt her hair growing like thread from a spinning wheel, winding around the spindle of a tree branch. “Galen, help!”

He reached for his sword when he saw her. As soon as he took a step in her direction, however, a swarm of purple lights descended upon him. He swatted at them, trying to clear a path, only to be met by more faeries.

Kira jerked her head forward, hoping to break the branch, but her hair tightened even further around it. The pain was so intense, she felt dizzy. Her knees buckled underneath her. Her eyes stung with tears, but her hair kept growing. She watched through a haze as Galen tried to come to her aid, only to be hindered by the fairies. Boiling anger flowed through her veins, overcoming the throbbing in her head, and she shouted the first thing that came into her mind.

“
Halewista!
”

It was a word she had never heard before, but as soon as she said it, the air shook the blast of magic that exploded from her hands. The purple lights stopped moving and drifted away like feathers in the wind.

Galen stared at her with wide eyes for a moment before shaking his head. He drew his sword. “This is a fine mess you've gotten yourself into.”

She bit her lip to suppress her scream when he tugged on her hair. “Just get me loose before they come back.”

“There's no way I can untangle this.” He lifted his sword, and she heard a whoosh of air behind her, followed by a release from the pressure that had been pulling at her head.

She was free. When she reached up to make sure her scalp was still intact, her hands encountered soft curls falling past her shoulders. By the Goddesss, it had never been this long before! The pain faded from her mind as she ran her fingers through her hair, experiencing it for the first time.

Galen seemed just as amazed by her transformation. He coiled one dark ringlet around his finger. Her breath caught as her eyes met his, and the forest became silvery instead of green.

“Somehow, I always thought you'd have curls,” he said in a distant voice. He took a step closer, closing the space between them, and pulled the ringlet out to its full length. When he released it, it sprang back into its former shape. His hand moved further down until it found hers. She didn’t realize she was trembling until his fingers intertwined with hers and steadied them. “Stay close, and I'll try not to let the faeries play any more tricks on you.”

Kira expected him to release her hand when he turned around, but he held onto it. Her breathing slowly returned to normal as they traveled deeper into the forest without encountering any more faeries. She cowered close to him and wasn’t sure what unnerved her more—the eerie silence of the woods or the way he kept looking at her as if he were seeing her for the first time. She ran her fingers through her hair several times to make sure it wasn’t becoming another tangled mess.

The smell of the damp earth gave way to a sweet floral scent. Flowering vines replaced the moss, and the ferns became sparser. The hovering purple lights, however, became more numerous, and Kira tightened her grip on his hand.

“You might want to pull the hood of your cloak over your head,” Galen whispered.

“Why?”

“Because they aren’t accustomed to humans getting this close.”

She did as he suggested, wishing she could become invisible. He was right—they were being constantly watched. The air filled with a high-pitched hum, but none of the faeries approached them.

The forest opened into a clearing. There, the slender tree trunks wove into intricate arches, forming arbors for the flowering vines that covered them. The sunlight seemed brighter, and she welcomed a break from the green shadows. Ahead sat a throne made of vines tangled in the shape of a flower. A small light hovered over it before exploding in flash of purple.

The strangest woman Kira had ever seen occupied the throne when she peeked around Galen again. Although small and slight, she had a regal bearing. Her skin had a greenish tint to it, and a pair of unusually large violet eyes narrowed as she assessed them. Long, spidery fingers curled around the arms of her throne as she said in a surprisingly childish voice, “Greetings Galen, son of Calyx.”

Galen flinched as if he had been struck. He regained his composure and bowed. “Greetings, Queen Mab. I am honored that you agreed to meet with me.”

Unsure what to do, Kira dropped to a curtsy.

Mab stood, and a pair of sheer wings snapped out behind her. They began to beat so quickly that they became a green blur as she flew towards him. Although her feet hovered mere inches above the ground, a trail of flowers sprang up behind her as she passed. She landed a few feet in front of them. “I know what you want, but you can't have it,” she taunted, her voice now breathy and high-pitched. “It's mine!”

“Mab, this is no time to be selfish. We need the Tear of Elios that you have if we are to defeat Anilayus.”

Mab rolled her eyes as she listened to Galen's argument. She was beautiful, in an exotic sort of way. Even though her wings now hung like sheer drapes down the back of her dress, her bright red hair continue to swirl around her face as if fanned by a vortex that surrounded her. She silenced him with a slash of her spidery fingers when another faerie approached her in its diminutive form. She leaned her head in its direction and appeared to be listening to it. Her eyes widened for a moment before flashing with anger. “You dared to bring a human here?”

Kira cowered behind Galen, now understanding his warning about her temper.

Galen reached behind him to make sure she was still there. “Leave her alone, Mab.”

The faerie queen ignored his warnings and circled them. As her fingers waved in front of his face, his body grew rigid. “You knew better than to threaten me, Galen.”

A grunt rolled in his throat, unable to escape his lips. His fingers grew stony cold under hers, and she backed away as Mab approached her.

“Don't be afraid just yet, little one,” she said as she lowered Kira’s hood. Her long fingers caressed her cheek, producing a soothing sensation.

Kira’s eyes grew heavy under the faerie’s touch as a blissful euphoria filled her.
There is nothing to be afraid of, a voice whispered in her mind.
Queen Mab would not harm her
. She started sinking under the spell until her mind suddenly burned with pain.

Kira!
Galen shouted in her head.

Her thoughts became clear again. She retreated from Mab, using Galen as a barrier between them while she waited to feel the full force of the faerie queen's wrath. She didn’t realize she was holding her breath until the faerie turned around.

Galen wrapped his arms around her as soon as he was freed from the spell.

Mab flew back to her throne. “What a peculiar little human.”

Galen pulled her closer to him. “Leave her out of this.”

Mab's musical laughter echoed through the clearing. She motioned for one of the faeries to approach her throne and whispered something to it. In a flash, a male faerie appeared in full form at her side. He knelt beside his queen. “Fairlin, take Kira to a place where she can rest.” Her violet eyes scanned her visitors and filled with cunning. “She must be weary after such a long journey. Offer her whenever she wants to eat and drink.”

Galen still held onto her. “Remember what I told you earlier. Don't eat or drink any of their food.” He retrieved a piece of journey bread from his pouch and pressed it into her hand. His eyes never left Mab. “This should fill you up until morning.”

She nodded and stared at him. She had never seen him so unnerved before. His gaze flickered to her, and he forced a smile on his face. He was trying to be brave for her, even though he was at the mercy of the half-mad queen, and she reciprocated the same forced smile. He squeezed her hand before releasing her.

Fairlin approached her and beckoned her to follow him. Unlike his queen, his hair was more orange than red, and his chest was bare. But, she noted, he still had the same green tint to his skin, the same violet eyes, the same arachnid fingers. “This way, Kira.” His voice was boyish, but his tone was authoritative.

She followed him, continuing to feel ill at ease until she was free from Mab's line of sight. They stopped in front of a massive hollowed-out tree. The inside formed a small room with a wooden slab carved out of one of the walls large enough to be a bed. The ceiling formed a dome high overhead, eliminating the cramped feeling in the small area. She began to relax and stepped inside.

“Kira, what is the one thing you desire above all else?” Fairlin asked from the doorway.

She froze at the abruptness of his question. “That’s none of your concern.”

His wings brushed against her skin like spider webs as he passed her. He stared at her as if he was trying to sear her mind. “If I were to make him fall in love with you, what would you give me in return?”

She stumbled backwards onto the bench.
Was it that obvious?
She toyed with the idea for a moment, and the faerie’s grin widened. Then she remembered what Galen had told her about faeries liking to make deals. She wouldn’t fall victim to any more of their tricks. “I would never agree to such a thing. It wouldn’t be of his free will, and love shouldn’t be built on deception.”

Fairlin laughed. “So you think.” He turned and walked to the door.

Her whole body became heavy, forcing her to lie on the wooden bed. She struggled to keep her eyes open, and she wondered what sort of magic had been cast on her now. “Sleep well, Kira,” she heard him say in the distance as she succumbed to the blackness.

Her sleep was so heavy and deep that she wondered how she heard Galen enter the tree-room. Somehow, he had made enough noise to wake her, and she sat up. Her limbs felt normal now as she brushed her hair out of her face.

He staggered and stopped a few feet in front of her. For a moment, she thought he was drunk, but he stared at her with an intense emotion she had never seen before, nor knew how to identify. His eyes seemed brighter than usual as he lurched forward. The silver fog she always saw when her gaze met his was absent. “Galen, is something wrong?”

He came closer to her, bent down, and cupped her chin, tilting her face towards his. She grew uncomfortable as his eyes traveled the length of her body. “I've waited long enough.”

Before she could reply, his lips were on hers. He was kissing her, but not like she had imagined. Kira always thought his kisses would be soft and gentle. But as she felt herself being pushed back onto the bed, his mouth assaulted hers, prying her mouth open and filling it with his tongue.

She pushed him away. “What are you doing?”