Page 8

Durin

“Where are you going?” I mumble, reaching for Rue as she slides out of my arms. “We have more sleeping to do.”

She laughs while slipping on her dress and fastening the ties. “I want our son to snuggle with us.”

I smile and pull on my leathers, listening to her feet padding across the hut. Do I really need to pretend to be some kind of savior? To rescue the realm from its evil queen like some kind of fable? I could stay here with Rue and Vaegon, free from obligations or fear. I’m sure I have something to offer the elves that would earn my keep. Would getting rid of the queen really change anything for them? They seem to have it good here already.

A deadly growl shakes the walls and rips me out of my thoughts.

I rush into Vaegon’s room and find Rue seething down at an empty bassinet. Panic and fury take control of her face. Her fangs protrude menacingly from of her gums. It’s both striking and terrifying, but it’s painful to watch.

Where the fuck have they taken our son?

Rue’s fingers grip the bassinet so tightly that her knuckles have turned white. She screams and turns to the rocking chair. With the strength of an Alpha, she picks the entire thing up and smashes it against the wall.

Straw spills from the cushion, and wood splinters scatter across the floor. She turns to me with a killer’s face but pleading eyes before racing out of the hut.

I quickly throw on my boots and chase after her.

She seems to know where she’s going. I blindly follow her while I try to convince myself that everything is okay. The elves are extremely selective about who they reveal themselves to. They’d never bring anyone into their hideaway they weren’t sure about. Vaegon must be okay.

But why would they sneak him out while we slept?

Whatever they’re doing, they’ve chosen a shitty way to do it. Seeing Rue so distressed fills me with rage. My magic surges to the surface. Flames spread across my hands, and my fingertips crackle with raw energy.

I worry the elves will see it as a threat, but maybe it fucking should be.

The small clearing where we met the seer comes into view. She’s there, sitting by a fire with another elven female who’s holding our son. He’s awake but seems unaffected. Seeing that he’s unarmed is a huge relief. But when they see us, the alarm on their faces tells me they’re hiding something.

I move to Rue’s side, and we charge toward them together, ready to take Vaegon back and demand an explanation.

The seer holds up her hand and casts out some kind of translucent barrier. It ripples over them like water flowing down an invisible dome. Rue reaches the barrier and pounds on it, screaming at them to give Vaegon back to us.

The seer touches his forehead with her hand and calls out a spell over him. “Tulya i calma en alass?, i orya yáve.”

She seems to have significantly stronger magic than most elves. Whatever she’s doing to Vaegon will be tough to undo. But I won’t even get to try if I can’t reach him.

I press my palms against the barrier and channel my magic into it. The elf holding Vaegon looks panicked as the barrier takes on a bright blue hue.

Rue steps back, and I push harder, pouring more of my power into the dome until it bursts into a cloud of steam. Rue stumbles forward, barely catching her footing before sprinting toward them.

But the seer is quick. She utters a single word and waves a hand over Vaegon and the other elf. They vanish, leaving Rue grasping at nothing.

The seer doesn’t flinch as Rue jumps right in her face, growling viciously around her fangs. Rue’s hands are clenched by her sides. She knows better than to mindlessly attack, but she’s still quite intimidating.

“Give us back our son!” she snarls.

“I shall. When the time is right,” the seer replies evenly.

“Fuck you and your cryptic bullshit!” Rue growls. “He’s mine! How dare you take him while we slept!”

She steps back and takes a breath. Her calmer tone isn’t any less threatening as she continues with wild eyes. “Bring him back to me, and we’ll leave.”

The elf clasps her hands together and bows her head slightly at Rue. “I apologize, Omega. I didn’t wish to upset you,” she says. “But it must be this way.”

I want to burn a hole in her face, but I can feel an invisible barrier holding back my magic. Vaegon’s spell... The one he cast to prevent me from harming any of his kind. It almost feels like he knew this moment was coming.

“What must be this way?” I demand, giving up on my magic. “And why?”

“You are indeed powerful,” the seer says, turning her attention to me. “Aside from the queen, you’re unmatched by anyone in this realm, even me. But you cannot defeat the queen alone. Your son is the key to her fall.”

“He’s three days old!” Rue snaps. “How can he be the key to anything?”

Tears stream down her beautiful face as she glares helplessly at the seer. I pull her into my arms, hoping to comfort her and remind her she’s not alone.

“You’ll see,” the elf tells her. “You must trust fate.”

“Trust you , you mean,” Rue scoffs, wrenching free from my arms. “Why?” she yells. “Why should I trust you after what you’ve done to us?”

The seer slowly rises to her feet, forcing Rue to lift her head higher and higher to hold her gaze. “This is bigger than you,” she says firmly. “Your family was chosen, meaning your hearts are worthy. That is the only reason I’m tolerating your disrespect.”

Rue clenches her jaw, holding back her anger. “Please let me have him back. I’ll do whatever you say. He’s so little... He needs his mother.”

“Allina recently had a youngling of her own. She’ll look after Vaegon while someone else cares for her daughter. You are not the only one who will bear the burden of fate’s design.”

“Where?” I demand, pulling Rue back into my arms. “Look after him where?”

“Another realm. They’ll remain there until Vaegon is strong enough to help you. Then, he will return to you.”

My heart sinks down into a familiar pit of rage and shame. “The power I gave him… They want him to grow it,” I mutter, releasing Rue and stepping away. “I did this. I’m so sorry.”

Rue turns to look at me. Her eyes are softer than I’d expected.

“You were protecting him,” she says, pressing her hands against my chest. “You didn’t do this, Durin. Fate and the elves have allied themselves against us. They did it.”

She turns to glare at the seer again. “Which makes no sense, does it?” she asks. “If fate will always play out, why do you think it needs you to intervene? Do you really think so highly of yourself?”

The seer remains calm despite Rue’s harsh words. “Seers are not allied with fate. We are its servants, delivering messages to those who need them and ensuring they stay on their correct paths.”

“Why does Vaegon’s path have to be in a completely different realm?” Rue shouts. “What’s wrong with here? No one knows how to find this place.”

“His magic will grow faster there. It is the only way.”

Rue’s anger gives way to her heartbreak. Her shoulders slump, and she whispers at the ground, “Why couldn’t I go with him? He’ll be scared. He’ll think I abandoned him.”

“If you’d gone with him, Durin would have no reason to stay here,” the seer explains. “He would abandon his mission to be with you and your son.” She locks eyes with me and asks, “Am I wrong?”

I don’t answer because I can’t deny it. I was thinking that very thing only minutes ago.

“Vaegon may be the key,” the seer continues, “but Durin’s role in this realm is just as important.”

She surprises me by resting her hand on Rue’s shoulder. “Please, have faith. Vaegon will be safe. If this was done any other way, I couldn’t say the same.”

The Rue I know would have ripped that hand clean off. But this Rue is too torn apart to register the seer’s touch. The life has faded from her eyes. She looks like she can barely keep herself upright.

My own heart cracked when I found out Vaegon was taken, but seeing Rue like this threatens to cleave it in two. I lift her into my arms and hold her as tightly as I can. But I don’t know how to hold her together when I’m breaking apart, too.

“Have hope.”

The whisper swirls across the clearing like sand in the wind. A feeling of calm settles over me, but I’m still too defensive to let it sink in.

I turn to see who the voice belongs to, and I’m frozen by what I find. A gentle dryad has emerged from the shelter of his towering tree and is moving gracefully toward us.

Deep blue intertwining roots form his slender body and legs. His long arms stretch out like branches and taper into thin, twig-like fingers. Layers of rough bark cover his face, revealing only golden eyes and thin lips from underneath. Purple saplings sprout from the crown of his head. Their tiny leaves sway with each step he takes like wisps of thin, wavy hair.

I’ve only caught glimpses of dryads in the forest–glowing, golden eyes blinking in the dark or the tail end of one’s body rejoining with its host. I’ve never seen one fully separated from its tree. I’m surprised to find he’s only as tall as I am, so slight next to the massive trunk he emerged from. Yet his spirit wraps me with warmth and tranquility. He feels like the essence of goodness itself.

I set Rue on her feet, hoping his presence comforts her, too. It’s so rare for dryads to show themselves. Perhaps they are closer to the elves than the rest of the high fae.

But this dryad isn’t here for any elf; he’s focused on Rue and me.

“You must believe what the seer tells you,” he says. “Time is your greatest adversary in this battle.”

“How?” Rue sniffs, staring down at her empty hands. She’s too heartbroken to recognize the significance of standing before a dryad like this. “The queen has ruled out of hate for ages. Why the sudden urgency?”

The dryad bows his head to her. “The queen wasn’t always evil. Long ago, she ascended to the throne by protecting the realm with her formidable strength. But as the centuries passed, she felt threatened by other fae with powerful magic.”

I lower myself to the grass and pull Rue down into my lap, hoping to convey my respect and attentiveness. The dryads are ancient. They are everywhere and see everything. They communicate across the entire realm, sharing all they know with each other. They usually keep this information to themselves. We need to hang on to every word he says.

Rue relaxes against me and numbly waits for him to continue.

“The queen tried everything to strengthen her magic. She tried stealing it from other fae, but she was unsuccessful. She experimented with potions and spells, all of which ultimately failed. Eventually, she became desperate. Lost. She began offering sacrifices to Faerie in hopes of a blessing.”

“What kind of sacrifices,” Rue asks softly, tightening her grip on my arm.

I doubt any of us want to hear the answer, but it’s important.

“At first, she took lesser fae. But that wasn’t enough. So she turned to the high fae. All species. Even her own.”

Rue covers her mouth with her hands in disgust and curls up in my arms. I can’t let myself waver now that I know just how depraved the queen really is.

“It was futile, for Faerie is goodness and light. But her insatiable greed drew the attention of something else. Something dark and far more sinister. It’s buried deep inside the realm,” he says, pointing his wooden fingers at the ground. “Far deeper than our roots can reach. It saw the queen and rewarded her wickedness with more power. Power no fae could hope to match. But… the magic was fleeting.”

“That’s why she communes in the forest…” I say, lowering Rue on the grass beside me so I can walk while I think. “She’s not communing with Faerie. She’s spilling innocent blood to buy more power from the darkness.”

The dryad’s roots creek softly as he nods at me.

Fleeting magic. Sacrifices. The mixed fae. It all makes sense now.

“She dumps what magic she has left in the mixed fae before each meeting with the dark force,” I think aloud as I pace. “She’s trying to make more room for the magic. Or wants to appear weaker in hopes that the force will give her more. Then, as the blessing runs out, she reclaims what she stored in the mixed fae to get her through until the next one.”

“We were not aware of her using the mixed fae for such purposes,” the dryad says gravely. “It would explain why we haven’t seen a mixed fae serve as her sacrifice in quite some time.”

I sit back down beside Rue to let him take over.

“Striking deals with evil is never wise. The sacrifices were no longer enough. She was given less power each time. She made more and more sacrifices in exchange for diminishing returns. In desperation, she promised the dark force anything it wanted.”

“And what did it want?” Rue asks, leaning toward the dryad in anticipation.

His eyes turn to her, filled with compassion. He folds his hands together and looks off into the trees. “It wanted part of the queen herself. Her very essence–an heir.”

Rue’s face is filled with horror. The pain the dryad had distracted her from comes crashing back in the worst way possible. “Did she do it?” she whispers.

“No,” he answers. “Each time she has spoken with the dark force since, it demands her spawn. She insists she’s trying but never provides the sacrifice it’s looking for.”

I run my fingers through Rue’s hair, not sure how else to soothe her. “That’s why she discards her consorts,” I say, “They didn’t give her an heir. That’s why she took me. She hoped a powerful fae might be able to.”

But one infuriating piece still doesn’t fit. “Why the turn of the seasons?”

Before the dryad can respond, Rue gasps. “The sprites! They’re most fertile at the beginning of the Still Season. And gryphons! They mate at the start of the warmer ones.” She counts off other creatures on her fingers whose mating patterns revolve around the change of seasons. “Could it be connected?”

“The realms line up at the turn of each season,” the dryad says. “Power is balanced. New life is kindled. That’s why many species mate during these times.”

“Yet, she still couldn’t conceive,” the seer interjects, speaking up for the first time since the dryad arrived. Rue shoots her a deadly look, but she ignores it. “When she discovered your ability to nurture magic, she must have thought she found a way to circumvent the dark force’s control over her.”

“With me, she could grow her own power without a sacrifice. And when she learned about Vaegon, she realized she could have two vessels to cultivate her power.”

The seer moves toward the dryad with her gaze pointed to the sky. “And she wouldn’t have stopped with Vaegon.” Her eyes dart back and forth as if she’s tracking streaks of heat lightning weaving through the clouds. I can only imagine she’s having a vision of what that future would have been like.

“You’d be shackled and chained, growing her magic while producing more spawn through fae proxies.” She lowers her eyes and finds me with them. “You must finish your preparations while Vaegon grows the magic you gave him. Only then can you defeat the queen.”

A growl rumbles through Rue’s body. “How long?” she demands.

“Not long,” the seer replies. “And Allina has left her own youngling as a promise to keep him safe.”

Rue climbs to her feet and scoffs at the seer. “One mother wasn’t enough? You had to break two?” She shakes her head but suddenly whirls around in a panic. “The bloodlust! How can he resist it without our help? Will he come back lost?” She searches my eyes for hope, bearing another wound I couldn’t shield her from. “Is the only way to save the realm growing infinite power in a crazed mixed fae?”

“He will not be lost. I assure you,” the seer tells her, still standing by the dryad as if she is his equal.

But she’s not. The dryad has given us invaluable information. The seer has given us nothing but more questions and heartache.

I expect Rue to lash out. I won’t stop her if she does. But Rue’s expression slides away until all that’s left is a vacant stare. She trudges back the way we came, pausing briefly to turn and bare her throat to the dryad.

“Thank you,” I say, bowing my head to him. “We’ll do what needs to be done.”

“We know you will,” he says softly. “We’ve always known you.”

I remember all the times they were there to help or listen. My heart still feels ripped open, but I know he’s right. And as much as I hate her right now, the seer is right, too. I won’t get my son back until I fulfill my purpose. And Rue will be heartbroken until that day arrives. At least she’ll be safe here while I prepare. Well... safer than anywhere else, I guess.

But if I come back and find that the elves have taken her, too, Vaegon’s spell won’t be able to protect them. I’ll pick them off one by one until someone returns them both to me.