Chapter 1 Rhianelle
Volundr is quiet today, subdued by the arrival of guests its people do not yet trust. The valley opens before us in a sweep of green beneath a pale sky, its rolling hills stretching toward distant mountains.
Landon leads me toward the western garrison where his squadron has made camp.
He is unfairly handsome, though I still cannot understand why he dyes his hair so dark.
The sunlight catches the faint red showing at his roots, a glimpse of the true color hidden beneath the black.
I wonder what made him decide it needed hiding.
He is my mate.
Fate has bonded me to a fae… The thought should frighten me, but my heart remains calm whenever Landon is near. It tells me I can trust him and I have always trusted my heart.
Rainer told me Landon saved my life. His jaw remained tight the entire time as he spoke.
My uncle hates the fae. He has hated them longer than I have been alive.
Yet he tolerates Landon’s presence here.
Coming from Rainer, that is not a small thing.
I trust his judgment almost as much as I trust my own heart.
My steps falter when I hear the distinctive rumble of wyvern calls.
The sound is more resonant than anything I’ve heard before.
It vibrates through my chest, making my ribs ache.
Coral trots beside me, but her usual playful gait has stiffened into something more cautious. Her ears swivel forward, then back.
“They won’t harm you,” Landon says, glancing back at me. The mate bond between us pulses. I still know nothing about this golden thread that tethers us together despite being strangers.
“My legion are eager to meet you,” he murmurs. “But remember, they’re fae warriors.”
I nod, though my throat feels dry. I’ve faced death twice this week alone, once at the threat of the ocean’s wrath and once in the strange darkness of my dreams. Yet stepping toward the plaza where Landon’s legion awaits, my heart beats as if it will fail me again.
These are the same fae warriors who mere days ago were burning our western borders and capital to ash. Now they’re guests in my kingdom and I’m about to meet them face to face. Their commander saved my life. In return, I’ve given sanctuary to enemy soldiers.
It was the right thing to do. I know that with every part of me, yet I cannot stop wondering if I have made a terrible mistake.
My breath catches sharply in my throat. Wyverns fill the valley ahead.
Some rest in hollows dug into the hillsides while others gather branches, stones and great swaths of grass to build nests along the warmer slopes.
Their dark copper, silver, black and green scales gleam beneath the pale sunlight.
Smoke curls from several of them as they settle into the refuge I have given them, turning the peaceful valley into something ancient and wild.
I knew they were here. I gave them permission to be here. But nothing prepared me for the sheer number of them.
Some lie with their heads resting upon their forelegs while their riders tend saddles and armor nearby. Others pace restlessly at the edge of the camp, their claws cutting deep furrows through the earth.
Landon guides me through them toward two riders waiting apart from the rest. Their wyverns are so immense that I have to crane my neck merely to see their heads.
Coral, who normally stands proudly at the height of a horse, suddenly seems like a hatchling beside these ancient beasts. The smallest of them is easily five times her size. Their vast wings remain folded against bodies that could crush entire buildings with one careless movement.
I feel small and insignificant.
Landon steps forward and addresses his legion. His voice carries across the valley. “This is Queen Rhianelle. It is by her grace alone that we stand here today. Volundr has offered us refuge.”
Silence greets his words.
The first wyvern is a creature of burnished copper, its scales gleaming like freshly forged metal in the morning light.
Steam rises from its nostrils as it observes our approach, intelligent amber eyes tracking every movement.
Its rider is a tall fae warrior with dark hair braided in the traditional style of their military elite.
He swings down from the saddle and lands lightly beside his wyvern.
“Commander.” He greets Landon with a crisp salute before his gaze shifts to me. Something flickers in his expression, not quite hostility but certainly not warmth. “Your Highness.”
The title sounds strange on his lips, as if he’s tasting something foreign and hasn’t decided if it’s palatable.
“This is Theo,” Landon says. “My second in command. He rides Pyraxis.”
The copper wyvern lowers its massive head at the mention of its name. I fight the urge to step backward. One of its eyes is larger than my entire head, a molten gold that seems to see straight through me. Coral presses against my leg, a small comfort that I’m grateful for.
“Thank you for granting us sanctuary,” Theo says, though his tone remains guarded. “Our king’s betrayal left us few options.”
I want to say something gracious, but before I can respond, movement from the left draws my attention. Another warrior approaches, this one astride a wyvern of dark emerald green.
The rider dismounts without waiting for Landon to introduce him. “Glenn.”
His wyvern chuffs, sending a wave of hot air washing over us. Glenn looks back at me. “We owe you a debt, Elven Queen.”
There is real gratitude in his voice. I feel some of the tension in my shoulders ease. At least not all of them view me as just an enemy to be tolerated.
“Anyone seeking refuge is welcome in Volundr,” I manage to say, proud that my voice doesn’t shake despite the way my heart pounds. The words feel true as I speak them.
I think of what Landon told me, that some of his warriors never made it out of Avalon.
The ones who couldn’t flee fast enough were swallowed by the fae wilds, a place where monsters and other dangerous creatures roam.
I know what it means to have nowhere safe to go.
Astefar taught me that. I remember the fear of being stranded in a strange land with no shelter and no certainty that I would survive another night.
I cannot condemn anyone else to that same terror.
Coral chirps beside me. It’s a small, almost pitiful sound compared to the rumbling of the giant wyverns.
One of them, a magnificent beast with scales of polished silver, tilts its head to observe her with what almost seems like amusement.
Its rider, a grizzled veteran with more gray than black in his hair, actually chuckles.
“Is this your mount, Your Majesty?” he asks, not unkindly.
Heat floods my cheeks. I know how Coral must look to them, like a toy compared to these war beasts.
“She is,” I say, lifting my chin.
Another rider steps forward. “I’m Kieran, and this is Silverwind. We’ve been together for five hundred forty-three years.” He rests one hand against the silver wyvern’s jaw. “Your little one has heart. I can see it in the way she stands.”
I blink at him, surprised by the kindness in his voice. After the guarded looks from the others, I had not expected praise.
“Thank you,” I whisper.
The sound of wings draws our attention skyward. Two more wyverns descend into the courtyard, their massive forms blocking out the sun for a moment.
One of the riders is petite, with short black hair framing sharp features. I stare at her wyvern, unable to hide my awe. The creature is breathtaking. Its scales are so dark they appear black until the sun hits them just right, revealing an amethyst shimmer.
She dismounts and her ruby eyes lock onto mine instantly. I nearly step back from the intensity of her gaze. Those eyes shift to Landon and her entire demeanor changes with them.
“Alys,” Landon says her name with a note of warning in his voice. “This is Queen Rhianelle.”
The wyvern rider doesn’t bow. She simply stares at me, her hand resting on the pommel of a curved blade at her hip.
Alys studies me slowly, her eyes lingering on every weakness I cannot hide. She takes in the pallor that still clings to my skin and the way my dress hangs too loosely after everything my body has endured. Her gaze drops to the slight tremor in my hands as I tighten my grip on Coral’s reins.
“This is the Elven Queen?” she asks, her tone light with mockery.
“Careful, Alys,” Landon murmurs softly, his eyes narrowed slightly.
Alys performs an exaggerated curtsy that somehow manages to be more insulting than no gesture at all. “Your Highness, forgive me. I’m simply surprised.”
Her gaze travels deliberately from my silver hair to my boots. “When Commander Landon spoke of the person who broke into his house to assassinate him, I didn’t expect someone so delicate.”
Landon gives a low warning growl, but Alys only tilts her head playfully at him before turning back to me. Her smile widens, but I catch the subtle tension beneath her breezy manner. The flash of jealousy that darts across her eyes whenever she glances at my hand resting near Landon’s arm.
Heat floods my cheeks, but before I can respond, her wyvern lowers its great head toward Coral. My poor wyvern shrinks back, pressing against my side with a low whimper that breaks my heart. The beast’s lips pull back, revealing teeth the length of my forearm. It releases a dismissive snort.
“Nightshade, enough,” Alys commands, though she seems pleased by her mount’s behavior. “We shouldn’t frighten the queen’s... pet.”
Coral cowers against my leg and I look at her, this little creature pressing herself as small as she can go.
Something hot rises through the fear in my chest. My wyvern took an arrow through her wing to protect me.
When the capital was ransacked, she dragged me to the guards and refused to leave until they carried me to the healing house.
Rainer told me she had stood between my broken body and the witch as though she could defend me from anything.