Chapter 17 #2
“Sacred place, this,” Sunflower said, tapping the toadstool. “We worship our own deity. Not your Ancients. We thank the One who made the flowers and the mushrooms and the dew. You don’t even know our deity’s name, probably.”
“No, I don’t,” Thea admitted, chagrined.
“Well, I’m not going to teach you,” Sunflower snapped, as if Thea had insisted and needed to be put in her place. “You said you have some information. What is it?”
Thea paused, worried she might get thrown out if she said one wrong thing. “I… was going to wait until Autumn gets here.”
“I’m here,” Autumn said, her voice weak.
Thea turned her head toward the doorway, her heart contracting when she saw that Autumn was walking instead of flying.
Autumn’s hair was as bright auburn as ever, but her eyes were sunken, her skin pale.
She came into the room and stopped at the toadstool, leaning on it for support.
Surprisingly, Sunflower patted her shoulder in an affectionate way.
“I’m sorry you’re not feeling well,” Thea said. “Thank you for coming to see me.”
“The visions won’t stop,” Autumn said, putting a hand to her temple. “I See the silver trees in Thirstwood, more each time. I think it’s a warning of what’s to come.” Her eyes met Thea’s, a bitter twist to her lips. “I suppose you don’t believe me.”
Thea leaned forward. “Of course I do!”
“Your other Huntsman didn’t,” she said, her eyes falling to stare at the floor. “I told that yellow-haired one last time he was at the Grotto.” She furrowed her brow. “Durk.”
“I call him Shirk,” Winter said, “because he never listens to us.”
“Burke?” Thea asked, annoyed to think how likely it sounded that Burke had dismissed Autumn’s warnings. He didn’t like magic. Well, neither did she, but she wasn’t about to ignore a good source of information. “What did you tell him?”
“That I saw more trees, and this time… they were real. I could touch them.”
Thea sucked in a breath. “Can you take me to them?”
Autumn frowned. “I wish I could. They’d disappeared by the time we returned to the same spot. That’s why he didn’t believe me. But it’s a sign that what I saw in my vision is coming to pass.”
“Do you know anything about it?” Sunflower asked, her brows forming a groove of worry as she gave Thea a harsh stare.
Thea opened her mouth, wondering what would come out.
“I’m not sure how much I can say.” Her shoulder muscles tensed with growing frustration.
She had come here for answers, but she didn’t even know if she could ask questions.
Could she utter the words? She tried, swallowing against the thickness in her throat—it was restricting her breath.
She tried to ask about the shadow king, but all that came out was a thin croak.
Trying not to panic, she closed her eyes against the confusion in the elder pixie’s stare.
As the enchantment started to ease, she managed four words through gritted teeth: “A. Spell. Prevents me.”
Sunflower’s brow cleared as if she understood. “We can help with that,” she said, snapping her fingers. “Winter? Some truth?”
Without hesitation, Winter flitted out, returning with a bow. He drew the string back, and Thea saw that a pine needle arrow was ready to fly at her.
“Wait, what will that—” The arrow hit her in the neck like a bee sting. Thea glared at Winter.
“A truth arrow,” Sunflower explained. “Speak openly while you can.”
Thea’s eyes widened. Could she finally tell someone what had happened to her?
“I think… Erebus, the king of shadows…” Relief coursed through her as the words poured out more freely.
“… is behind the silver trees. And likely also the shadow creatures appearing in the forest.” Her lips parted in shock that she was able to get the whole sentence out.
Sunflower’s eyes darkened. “I know of him, of course. While other primordial beings had dominion over lightning, fire, wind, and weather, Erebus was the lord of dark places. His power was greatest in caves, deep crevasses, and the deeps of the ocean, all the spaces sunlight never touched.”
Thea leaned forward. Finally, she was speaking to someone who knew the history of the Old Ones. “What can you tell me about him?”
Sunflower squinted. “Erebus fell in love with Solis, your Ancient sun goddess. She was much younger than him, but Solis fell in love with him, too.”
“She fell victim to his charm magic, more likely,” Autumn said.
Sunflower nodded in agreement. “The stories say that although he had power over shadows, he fed off people filled with light. He had the ability to woo people into loving him. He might have taken Solis’s life if not for the intervention of the other Old Ones.
Charvelus, the primordial lord of stone and mountains, was protective of the young Ancients, and he forbade the union.
Erebus threatened that if he couldn’t have Solis, he would take her powers and plunge the world into darkness. ”
“What happened?” Thea asked, breathless at what Erebus had intended for the world.
“From what I remember,” Sunflower said slowly, “Solis managed to run off with Erebus, but she started to lose her light when she was with him. Her peers, the other Ancients, along with Charvelus, came to her aid, punishing Erebus by removing most of his powers and depriving him of his followers. They placed him in darkness to rule over no more than shadows.”
“So he was imprisoned?” Thea asked, already knowing that must be what the Forgotten Realm was—a prison whose walls were breaking down. “Alone?”
Winter interjected, sounding proud to be able to add details. “Not alone! His followers were so loyal, their spirits came to him in death, even after Noctua created the Netherwhere as a haven for all ephemeral beings.”
“Oh, so you do listen to your lessons sometimes,” Sunflower said with feigned amazement.
Thea recalled Damon’s shadows. Were those actually Erebus’s loyal spirits?
Thea swallowed, realizing she had better say as much as she could while she was able. “I’ve been to a dark realm with shadows that seem to have minds of their own.”
Sunflower’s lips formed a perfect circle. At the same time, Autumn gasped, a hand going to her chest.
“What was it like?” Winter asked, sounding more curious than horrified.
“There’s no sky, just a lot of silver trees,” she said. “And a dark river that leads to a castle.”
“Silver trees?” Autumn asked. “Like the ones appearing here?”
Thea nodded. “But they’re not figments. They’re cold to the touch, like metal.”
“Did you meet anyone there?” Sunflower demanded, her eyes bright with urgency.
Thea hesitated, not sure how to sum up Damon. “About a dozen folk under some enchantment and a young man who controls the shadows.”
“Erebus!” Sunflower said, her voice hoarse. “Though he is older than the Ancients, it is said he does not age. And you managed to escape? How?”
Thea opened her mouth to explain it wasn’t Erebus but Damon… but did she know for sure? “He gave me a different name, but I suppose it could be him. As for escaping, I didn’t. He let me leave.”
“What does he look like?” Winter asked.
“He’s very handsome.” Her throat tightened. She put a hand to her neck, massaging. “I think I need another arrow.”
Autumn looked to Sunflower, who sighed, her mouth turning down at the corners. “I’m afraid if we use too many at once, it could harm you. Come back in a few days and we can try again. In the meantime, we have a better understanding of the danger. It’s worse than I thought. Much worse.”
“Can we work together?” Thea asked, still laboring to speak, even though she was no longer trying to reveal anything about the shadow realm. The silencing spell had come back with a vengeance.
“Of course,” Autumn said, rubbing her eyes. “We’re grateful for the information you bring us. I’ll tell you anything I See.”
Sunflower nodded. “Your mother was the one Sylvan I felt I could speak freely to. Even your Court Seer tends to doubt our information. And your father has his own way of doing things.” She gave Thea an assessing look, not hostile but not warm, either.
“Trust is built over time, and you have taken the first steps.”
Thea bowed in agreement. “Thank you. I’ll do my best to help.”