Ascending Into Light (Descending Series Book 2)

by Alainna MacPherson

  Beth had started leading her farther down the hall and Jess hadn’t realized her body had moved on autopilot, following along like a numb zombie, minus the drool and groaning.

  After a turn or two, going deeper into the maze they were in, Beth halted in front of a large set of double doors. Not nearly as big as at the Barr, but they were still impressively tall. The oak was stained almost black, but Jess could still make out the swirls of the grain on the wood’s surface.

  Instead of opening them, Beth turned to face Jess, her back to the doors, to say, “This is the queen’s throne room.” Her tone was apprehensive, giving Jess the impression that she, too, should be wary.

  “Oh, okay,” Jess said, frowning a little, then asking, “I thought she was alright with me being here.”

  “Oh, she is,” Beth rushed to assure her, and the tension in Jess’ shoulders began to ease a little. “But,” she went on. “Others in the room aren’t exactly of the same mind as our queen.”

  And…there was the tension again, spreading to her neck, threatening an oncoming headache.

  Beth didn’t exactly set her at east when she said, “Some nobles, you might call them, aren’t as approving. Some of them are of the thinking that they can restore the Goddess’ grace and still stay apart from the Seelie.

  Jess frowned at her words. “Fallon told me the king was the only connection to your Goddess.”

  Beth nodded, her lips turned up in a comforting smile before she said, “There are doubts in every society.”

  At that, Beth turned to push open the doors, walking in ahead of Jess, then stopped a couple feet in. When the murmurs quieted, she led the way down the center aisle as Jess silently followed behind her.

  Glancing around the room as discretely as possible, she saw various people of all sorts of sizes and colors collected in small groups lining either side of the room, making a path for her and Beth. Everyone looked dressed for a party. Women wore dresses and jewels, hair done elegantly. The men all dressed in suits with silk, and other classically expensive fabrics, ties. Jess did notice a pattern though. Everyone seemed to have an aversion to wearing anything lightly colored. A split sea of dark blues, deep reds, charcoal gray and some violets layered both sides of the aisle.

  “Welcome, Princess Jessandra, to Unseelie,” Queen Brianna said cheerfully to Jess. It seemed a little too cheerful, but it was clearly genuine. Jess just wondered what had her so tense. She thought of what Beth had said. Not everyone was as like minded as the queen. And, even though she was the queen, that may not mean that she didn’t have to answer to someone. Her people for instance. Perhaps she wasn’t in control of her people as much as she’d like. That thought didn’t sit well with Jess, but she didn’t allow herself to dwell on it at that moment. Bending to bow as Beth had, Brianna only allowed her a second in the curtsy before saying, “Please, stand,” with a true smile on her lips.

  “During your stay, please find that Beth will answer any questions you may have or you can ask Cormac. I will be available as much as I can be, between my other responsibilities,” she told her. The truth was there, but Jess could still see some reservation in her body language.

  Jess nodded and remembered she was in the public of all public eye right then and replied, “Thank you, your majesty.”

  Brianna gracefully tilted her head in acknowledgement and looked to Beth, who took that as her cue and gestured for Jess to come along. Hastening to obey, and happy to leave the room full of intimidating scrutiny, she quickly followed her back down the aisle and into the hall again. Two men – guards, Jess assumed – shut the doors at their exit.

  Beth led them on an abridged tour. Though Jess was sure it wasn’t necessarily to keep secrets, as it was just that she had instructions. Unlike Kaer, who had shown her nearly the whole of the Nead. Beth’s walk through of the Unseelie dwelling seemed to be that of a paid tourist trap, with just the highlights. Show the good and interesting before exposing the ugly, Jess figured.

  There was an old library that looked more like a museum than your everyday community book hub. The books looked old, and more for reference than for recreational reading and there were texts enclosed in glass boxes on display, too fragile to sit on a shelf. In a large case, against the back wall, strictly for display, was a large slab of stone, about four inches thick and four feet long. Beth only said it was “one of the first and oldest texts they had.” When they’d stopped to look at it, Jess could see faint etchings, even fainter than the ones on the memorial wall in D’anisis. The grooves were smooth where someone had chiseled out a sort of writing on the flat surface long ago. “What does it say?” Jess asked, fascinated.

  Beth frowned sadly when she answered, “No one knows anymore.”

  Jess’ brows drew together in confusion. “How is that possible?”

  “It’s in a language only the Seelie can read,” Beth explained. “There was a time when our ancient scholars knew the language and would transcribe the old texts. But they’ve all since died and the translated texts have gone missing.”

  Well, that sucked, Jess thought. A huge part of their ancestry and they didn’t know what it even represented. It could have been a casserole recipe for all they knew, she mused.

  Next, Beth took her to what felt like the “tower” of the castle. Jess wasn’t naive enough to believe they were in an actual castle, above ground. The only natural light that penetrated the dim within the walls they walked was the large skylight over the garden. Leading her to conclude they were underground. Relatively.

  At the top of the long twist of stairs, and with a burning in her legs, Jess stopped at the top as Beth began to speak to a lone guard at a heavy looking door. It was wooden, just like those at the throne room, but much shorter. She suspected the guard, who stood in front of it, ducked to get in and out of it when, or if, he ever go through it.

  After Beth quietly said something to the guard, he nodded and stepped to the side, allowing Beth to reach out and grasp the old fashioned latch rather than a more modern knob. Sliding the latch back, she pushed open the door. When she did, Jess could see that it was growing light outside, her eyes catching the rolling emerald hills in the distance. Beth stepped over the threshold first, Jess following much more slowly as she took in all that surrounded her. Still holding the sweater Beth had suggested she bring in one hand, she began to swing it over her shoulders when the biting wind lashed at her, whipping her hair around like a tornado around her skull before settling on one direction. They were standing on top of a hill she imagined was similar to the others in the distance. Below, in a sort of valley affect, appeared to be a body of mud or maybe marsh. It stretched as far as she could see the beginning of the hills, wearing around mounds of land here and there. Aside from that and the mountains, Jess couldn’t see anything else in the vast expanse on the other side of the door.

  “Where?” Was all she could croak as she turned to look at Beth, who was smiling, clearly amused with her inability to articulate past a single word.

  “Ireland. More specifically, Boggeragh Mountains,” she answered.

  Relatively speaking, Jess scoffed to herself. Which had an idea popping into her head. “How is this ‘relative’?” She ignored the hair blowing around her face when she turned to face the other woman fully.

  “Right this second, we are in Ireland, you and I,” she answered. “In the same space of time that you left a few hours ago.”

  Um, what? Space of time. Damn it. What the hell did that mean? Jess thought.

  Beth didn’t need to hear the words to know what Jess was thinking. She began to break it down for her, “The mound is protected within a pocket of time and space.” Jess wished, right then, for Fallon and his note taking skills.

  “It’s called, The Fold,” Beth informed her again. “It keeps us from being discovered by the humans and other enemies. Essentially, though the door is always fixed to this specific spot, the rest of the mound inside is constantly moving, you could say.” She stepped a littl
e farther away from the door. Beth waved her hand to encompass the scenery beyond as she spoke, “We were banished to this wasteland after the two courts separated. Denying the Unseelie from ever viewing the Cliffs of Moher again.”

  “Moher,” Jess repeated, testing the word on her tongue.

  Beth nodded inhaling the moist, crisp air deeply before saying, “The Cliffs of Moher is where the Seelie Court rests. The original sight from when all Seelie were under one rule.” There was sorrow in her eyes as she looked out over the valley and into the distance where the eye couldn’t see. Jess imagined the cliffs were out there in the direction of her gaze. Too far to make out, but her mind imagined it nearer. It wasn’t, of course. In a slow detached voice, she finished, “If one could manage to even open the door, it would only lead to a wall of dirt if they didn’t have permission from the queen herself.” Seeing that look of silent despair on Beth cut into Jess a little more than she was prepared for.

  They quietly took their leave of the mountain top, going back inside where the guard closed and latched the old door. Neither or them said anything further as Beth led Jess back down to the depths of the mound, as she called it. When they came to the double throne room doors again, Jess noticed they were open this time, though the guards now stood outside, keeping watch. Nodding to them, and receiving one in return, Beth entered the room without any other preamble, never slowing pace. The stark emptiness of the large room nearly caused Jess to trip over her own feet. It was quiet too, except for the tapping of their shoes on the stone floor as they walked deeper into the room. Bypassing the dais where the queen’s chair sat, instead Beth turned to the left, towards a single door that looked to hold a restroom, if you had asked Jess. Beth rapped her knuckles on the wooden panel and waited. A few seconds later, someone opened it. Peering around Beth, Jess could see a small figure, possibly feminine, she couldn’t be sure. Even when they spoke, Jess wasn’t able to determine the nature of sex.

  “Yes? Her majesty is resting,” they said softly.

  From inside the room, Brianna’s voice interjected, “Let them in, Ceiliah.”

  Ceiliah stepped to the side of the door, allowing them to enter. What looked like a glorified waiting area and judging from the large desk that the queen sat behind on the opposite side from the door, it was more likely the queen’s office. Made sense to have near her throne room. There was one other woman in the room who sat across from Brianna, holding a pad of paper on her lap.

  Brianna smiled at them from her seat, a more real and comfortable one this time, then looked to the other two women to say, “Leave us, please.” Her voice still the lyrical sound Jess recalled from when they’d first met.

  The two nodded and quickly took their leave of the room, shutting the door behind them. When they were gone, Jess could see tension, that had apparently resided in her shoulders, ease as the queen seemed to sink deeper into her chair. A dignified slouch, Jess deemed.

  A quiet sigh escaped her lips before she plastered on a smile and asked Jess, “Did Beth show you around, then?”

  Seeing that Brianna was at war with years worth of etiquette and wanting to feel relaxed in the friendly environment that she was currently in, Jess nodded and stepped around the chair the woman taking notes had vacated, plopping down in it with a slightly over exaggerated sigh before answering. “Yep. All the pleasant, pretty and amazing attractions one would find down here.” She gave a leveled look at the beautiful woman across from her.

  Smart woman, she picked up on the implication that Jess was purposefully shown only what was probably considered the best of the Unseelie. Keeping the nitty and gritty for a later date. To what end, though, is what confused Jess. They were already under the blood oath alliance. No matter what secrets she learned, Jess was bound to uphold her side of the bargain Though she wouldn’t dwell on it. As long as Brianna knew that she wasn’t naive. Maybe that would have been the case a few weeks ago, but that was an entirely different person, before Fallon and magic.

  The guarded smile that replaced the other more lighthearted one, told Jess that she had indeed got the message. Rather than ignore it, as she’d expected, Brianna said, “There are some things that I’d like to ease you into here in Unseelie.”

  Seeing that they weren’t intentionally keeping secrets, just guarding her, Jess nodded in understanding, her own tension subsiding a bit. She could wait. It wasn’t like she had plenty to keep her occupied as it was. Finding and learning about her abilities to start.

  Kid gloves aside, Brianna got down to business from there.

  Beth, still standing in the center of the room, having never gotten permission to sit and more gentile than Jess, waited patiently as the other two shared their moment of wiles.

  “There are only a few of us who possess the knowledge to tap into our abilities,” Brianna explained, looking to Beth.

  “Lissabeth,” she said looking back to Jess, “Your cousin…” she smiled kindly, “Is one of those such individuals.”

  At the news, Jess swung around in her chair and pinned Beth – Lissabeth – with a shocked stare. It was apparent that the other woman had already known about their familial relation because she only smiled in acknowledgement, no surprise.

  Before she could ask her anything though, the queen interjected, not finished. “She will show you how to tap into yours.”

  Chapter Nine

  “Mo ri,” Kaer’s voice dragged Fallon out of the daunting task of reading on a detail of a new policy the city was enforcing. Looking up from the computer at his office desk, he saw that Kaer seemed strained, worried

  “What is it?” Knowing already it wasn’t something good. Instantly, worry for Jessandra had him shooting out of his chair, ready for a fight.

  “Karshan’s mate, Letti, has returned to the Nead,” Kaer informed him, seeing his king’s demeanor change from warrior to sorrowful leader. The weight on his shoulders particularly heavy at the news.

  Quickly, he went about cleaning up his desk for the day. Once finished, he followed Kaer out of the room, passed Diana in the hall, telling her to lock up and let him know if anything came up. The two males walked in a clipped pace down the connecting tunnel. If they could manage it they would have probably jogged the nearly two miles back to the Nead. They’d been anticipating this, but the timing was unpredictable, depending on when Karshan’s master discovered the body. He could leave someone to watch whoever entered the building next. If there was even an infinitesimal possibility of being discovered, everything could be lost. And Fallon wasn’t willing to risk it. Not when they were so close to bridging to the next step in their plans.

  Along the way, Fallon sent a text to Gillian, hoping she received it before he arrived. It wasn’t too long before they made it back to the dark side of the old locker. Pulling on the lever, Kaer waited for the makeshift door to slide open. A particular screeching as the rusting metal scraped along the rock, made Fallon wince.

  Stepping through the narrow doorway, the two waited until the set of lockers slid back into place, covering the hole in the cavern wall. It had taken them nearly ten years to cut the whole thing all the way through, forced to do it a little at a time in such a slow process so as not to be discovered. Fallon recalled how delighted everyone was, not just to have the relief of not having tools and the noise to possibly attract unwanted attention, but damned blasts didn’t sit well with anyone. Blasts and caverns weren’t known for their stability. But the tunnel’s structure was secure. Steel supports, concrete layers surrounding it to keep erosion and collapse from happening.

  When the latch engaged, the two turned to exit the small cavern. Upon entering the opening mouth of the hall near the barracks, Fallon spotted Gillian approaching them, carrying something long, wrapped in what looked like a black silk scarf. She met them and quietly passed him the object. He didn’t ask what it was. He already knew. Nodding his head to her silently, she reciprocated, a sorrowful frown on her face. The three of them walked together, this time with Fallon
in the lead, to the meal hall. There would be people hanging about awaiting the last meal. As well as the widow of Karshan, the sick Fomorian who Fallon had killed after he abducted Jessandra. When the three of them entered, the few that were there had gathered around the one table near the back. Moira was there, fussing over someone, likely the widowed female. Hushed murmurs of support and condolences could be heard as they walked closer. What surprised Fallon, though, was seeing Alyss in the thick of it, holding the woman’s hand.

  He wasn’t blind, nor ignorant. He knew that Alyss had reservations to the whole situation Jess had recently found herself in. Or rather, that he had dragged her into. It was probably one of the reasons she did, because it wasn’t entirely Jess’ decision to begin with. And he hoped the goddess would save his house from any drama on that front. He had enough to deal with currently. Like comforting the grieving mate in front of him.

  The swarm of bodies parted at his approach. She sat facing outward on the bench. Her shoulders slumped and head hung low. Her hair, once a vibrant honey color, dangled in greasy brown blimps, almost concealing the tears on her cheeks. Almost.