Chapter 22
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
RIVAN
D awn in the land of Winter is bright with the light bouncing off the ice and snow. Theron brings us in several miles from the meeting point to make sure they haven’t infiltrated his land in an attempt to surround us. High in the mountains, he surveys the area below. Once assured it’s empty, we head down.
Brutal winds slam into us as we begin the journey to meet the Phoenix. From the valley to Southland Meadows is only a few miles. Thankful for the parka’s thick protection, I burrow into its warmth. Except for Arden and Theron, who are wearing Fae armor, the rest of us are bundled from head to toe, trying to conserve our magic in case the meeting doesn’t go well. I eye the thin, almost impenetrable fabric covering their bodies. It must also regulate temperature, as neither of them seems to be the least bit cold. There is one big disadvantage to the armor… it doesn’t protect against faery fire. Let’s hope nobody regenerates today.
Both the light and dark Fae armies thought themselves superior with their lightning fast skills, high-level magic, and armor, but the Fire Fae proved them wrong during the rebellion. Defeating the Phoenix means finding a way to bring about eternal death. If not, they end up fighting the same soldiers over and over.
Coming out of the mountains, Madoc signals for us to stop, then pulls a jar of clear, thick liquid out of his pocket. “Dip the tips of your weapons into the toxin. Be careful not to get any of it on you.”
Taking a deep breath, I unsheathe my sword and step forward. “What is it?” I want to be sure it isn’t something that will permanently damage my kind. They may not want me in their ranks, but I still consider myself a Phoenix.
He wrinkles his nose. “Aamon’s saliva. It’s a mild toxin that will incapacitate our enemies for ten minutes tops, giving us only enough time to disarm them. So, if we end up in a fight, we need to finish before they’re able to move again.”
“Ewww,” Meri drawls, as she dips a pair of gold daggers into the mixture. She pulls out the tips and watches the thick glob separate and slowly slide down into the jar. “Gross.”
Theron’s eyebrow twitches as he eyes the mixture. “Does it wash off?”
“Yes, but I’d sterilize your weapons with an astringent like alcohol, too,” Madoc suggests.
Once everyone has added the mixture to their weapons, which includes a wide assortment of swords, daggers, throwing stars, and arrows, he dips a wicked-looking black curved blade into the mixture. As well as several other sharp, pointy things. But my eye keeps returning to the blade. It looks familiar, but I can’t place it right now.
As the valley meets the meadows, the ice disappears, leaving only a few inches of snow to cover the land. I stop the group when I see my sister and her men. They’re almost at the meeting point. I scan the skies, looking for wings of flame, but spot only a few. Uneasy, I count the soldiers with her on the ground and add the ones flying above. Ten. More than we agreed.
Aware it’s not just me, I turn toward the group. “They have more than the seven we dictated in our terms. What do you want to do?”
Theron shrugs. “Three more makes little difference to me. Fallon? Arden?”
Fallon squints at the sky. “Something seems off to me, but I can’t figure it out.”
We all stare at the blue-grey sky above us, but it’s not until I turn my head to the side that I catch something with my peripheral vision. I turn back, but there’s nothing but sky.
Meri shades her eyes with her hands. “The sky is moving.”
“What do you mean?” I ask her, moving to view the sky from behind her so I can see what she’s seeing.
“I don’t want to point, but if you look at my six o’clock, you’ll see the slightest movement,” she murmurs, aware of the way sound carries across the land.
“I’ll be damned,” Madoc says with a hint of admiration in his voice. “They’re using mirrors to reflect the sky and hide more soldiers. If you look closely, you can see a cloud drifting the wrong way or the same piece of sky replicated several feet apart.”
I raise an eyebrow at Fallon. “Good instincts.” Now that we know what we’re searching for, I’m able to get a better idea of the count. “Maybe fifteen to twenty soldiers.”
Theron’s violet eyes harden, and he picks up his phone. “We were right. Wait until we give the signal.”
“Valerian, Astor, Daire, and a half dozen of my best men,” he explains to Cormal, Madoc, and Meri. “Rivan’s suggestion.”
When all three turn to look at me, I shrug. “Last night, I realized you were right, and thought we should have back-up ready in case we needed it. Theron and the cadre agreed.”
Madoc’s scowl eases into something like approval, and Cormal slaps me on the back. “Good thinking.”
“Let’s go,” I say, urging everyone forward. I’m furious, but I manage to shove the emotions down deep until my face is completely blank.
Twenty feet to go. Aeris drops down in front of us and folds in her wings.
Startled, I look at the dark-haired woman leading the Fire Fae to the meeting point, and she smirks as if I’m a fool for believing she was my sister.
Aeris strides forward, her features so strikingly similar to our mother, I can’t breathe. She raises her fist and Phoenix, including those who are shielding their presence with the mirrors, reveal themselves. Gold triumphant eyes lock with mine, victory shining in their depths, and I see our father in the lines of determination on her face.
“We agreed to seven,” I remind her, instinctively tracking the movement of the Phoenix in the sky. “Were you scared to meet with me?” Deliberately taunting her to see if she can stay cool.
She lifts her chin. “Never trust a traitor. That’s what Dad always said.”
Surprised, I stare at her, then bark with laughter. “Ironic coming from him. I’m not a traitor. In fact, I’m pretty sure I’ve sacrificed more for the Phoenix than anyone else still alive.” I watch several of the older Fire Fae shift from one foot to the other. Some people remember me.
She presses her lips together.
“You look like her,” I blurt, unable to stop myself. The last time I saw my mother was a week before we surrendered. Both the elite squad and I had needed a break, so I ordered everyone home for a couple of days.
She sweeps me with a furious gaze. “Don’t you dare bring her into this.”
“How did she die?” I ask, desperate to know.
Her brows draw together. “Father didn’t tell you?”
When I shake my head, her shoulders drop. “She died trying to protect me and the rest of the Fire Fae children from the light Fae.” She spears me a look of speculation. “It happened the night before you and the elite squad surrendered. Dad… told me you knew. Said it changed nothing.”
Shocked, I shake my head, unable to say anything. The entire time I spent in the light Fae court, nobody had ever mentioned her death to me.
She scrubs her face. “It doesn’t matter. She died. Life moved on.”
I step forward. “I’m sorry. She was the best of us.” Taking a deep breath, I offer my hands to her. “Do you want to say the rites?” Which is it going to be, Sister? Peace or war? I wait for her to decide.
For a few seconds, she stares at my hands with a wistful expression on her face. One of the men next to her says something, and I watch her wipe the expression from her face. The moment is gone.
“Do you really think I’d say the rites with his killer?” She sneers, looking away for a second. She scans our side and points to Meri. “I’m only here for her head.”
She never could lie worth a damn. “For the record, I didn’t kill Brixton, but I can guess who did.”
She shuffles back and forth.
“You know what? It doesn’t matter. He was the wrong leader for the Phoenix. Maybe now you can find a leader who puts the needs of the people first,” I state firmly, staring directly at her.
She lifts a defiant chin. “The Fire Fae want our freedom. Our next leader will accept nothing less.” The ones with her yell in agreement and raise their fists.
Inspired by their actions, she raises hers again.
Damn it.
She opens her mouth, but I interject before she can say a word. “This is Theron, Lord of Winter. Do you think the dark Fae won’t avenge this attack?”
Her eyes dart from me to him, and for a second, she wavers, but the man next to her murmurs something to her that solidifies her resolve, and she brings her fist down.
“Now!” I shout to Theron, pulling my sword to fight the Phoenix landing in front of me. In a flash, I nick several of them with the tip of my sword, and they slide to the ground, immobile from Aamon’s toxic saliva.
A portal opens to our right, bringing our back-up into the fight. Valerian immediately takes to the sky in dragon form, flying toward the approaching Phoenix. Several scatter, panicking at the sight of one of the few creatures who can render them an eternal death. Dragon fire is lethal to our kind.
Aeris spins around in astonishment, yelling orders at the soldiers around her in an almost chaotic manner. It’s clear she isn’t versed in battle, nor did she expect us to bring our own reinforcements.
It’s been two minutes since I took down the first few Phoenix. Cormal shouts at us and points to the portal he’s opened to Gora Mountain. Arden immediately sends their weapons through the opening.
I spare a moment to view the battle. Cormal’s magic whips through the men, blinding them, before he nicks them with his xiphos. Madoc’s a blur by his side, the black blade making a brief appearance against his enemies, dropping them one after another. The rest of the cadre and Theron’s soldiers are working just as quickly to take them all down.
Turning back to Aeris, I leap forward and attack the soldiers nearest to her. Under a time crunch, I slice through them quickly, but when I stop and face the last soldier, I realize the gold eyes and black hair are familiar. Tiernan.
In a fast maneuver, he steps to the side and brings up his sword, only to find Meri’s dagger meeting it.
“Kill her!” Aeris shouts at Tiernan.
I tense, but he immediately takes a step backward. “I can’t. I swore an oath.”
Meri smiles at him, then slices his arm with her dagger. He drops to the ground.
Furious, Aeris screams and comes running toward Meri with her sword drawn. I stop her advance with my own. The two swords collide in a loud clang that rings across the near silent land, but she doesn’t stop. Going on the attack, she parries and thrusts, her intent clear.
I flash a taunting smile at her. “You’re good.”
It’s clear she learned everything she knows about sword fighting from our father. With a flick of my wrist, I use a move Theron taught me a few days ago. Her sword goes flying out of her hand and into the portal.
“But I’m better.”
Chest heaving, I lay the point of my sword on her neck and look around at the clearing. Phoenix and other Fire Fae litter the ground.
Her eyes widen as she stares at her fallen comrades. “You’ll pay for their deaths. The Fire Fae will hunt you for the rest of your life.”
I laugh. “I doubt it. Not once they find out you killed Brixton.” My aim hits its target, and she glances around in panic. “Why?”
Her chin lifts. “He’s been working with Denir and the dark Fae. All he wanted was more power. We want our freedom from both the light and dark Fae. It’s all we’ve ever wanted.”
I sigh, understanding her reasoning. “They’re not dead, only temporarily paralyzed,” I assure her. “Despite what you think of me, I don’t wish to harm the Fire Fae, especially not the Phoenix.”
She snorts in disbelief. “Right. That’s why you’re with her.” Her head tilts toward Meri. “Are you going to stand with the light Fae this time?”
Meri laughs. “I willingly gave up my light Fae crown. We represent the dark Fae, but we do count the Water Fae as our friends and allies.” Her point is clear, and my sister stares at her in confusion.
Cormal, Madoc, and the rest of them start tossing the immobile Fire Fae through the portal, and I wince as their bodies thud against each other.
“Go home to your daughter,” I urge Aeris. “Think about her future. We’ve been caught up in the past, never stopping to think about what we truly want. Personally, I’m tired of letting what others think define my path.”
I turn to stare at the beautiful soul who led me out of the dark and into the light. “The path I choose going forward will include Meri. She’s my future, not the Phoenix.”
Meri’s breath catches in her throat.
My eyes return to my sister, and I kiss her cheek. “Goodbye.” Digging the point of my sword into her neck, I send her to sleep, then sheath my sword and carry her into the portal. When I return, Cormal immediately closes it.
I return to Meri and wrap my arms tightly around her. “I choose us.” Holding her, I turn to the side to include Cormal and Madoc. “And whatever future we carve for ourselves.” Madoc sheaths his dagger, and they both silently move closer, enclosing Meri and me between them.
It suddenly hits me where I’ve seen Madoc’s curved blade. In a painting in the dark Fae palace. In the hand of the first Fae king, Konnyr.