The Calling (The Andovia Chronicles Book 1)

by Tiffany Shand

  Nyx bolted and made it a few paces before something barred her way. A wall of invisible energy prevented her from moving forward. She turned and slammed into it again. No matter what direction she went, something blocked her.

  The messenger scurried off.

  “We’ve got to go to the palace.” Darius’ jaw tightened. “There’s no time to go anywhere else.”

  Nyx’s shoulders slumped. He knew she would run, and he’d stopped her.

  Like it or not, she was stuck with him. Now it was time to face the other Valeran brother.

  Chapter 8

  Darius led Nyx back through the city until they reached the entrance to the Crystal Palace. How he hated this place. On the outside it looked beautiful, but it held a wealth of dark magic inside. Hidden behind pretty glamours, jewels and finery. Darius despised everything about the fae court. He had always been glad when his father travelled. His mother insisted he remain with her until he had grown old enough to leave.

  His home was on Eldara, among the trees, nature and the openness. Being surrounded by his fellow druids and not among people who desired nothing but power and status was where he belonged.

  As they approached the giant double doors leading to the palace two guards dressed in shining silver armour approached them. Both were fae men with golden hair and a silver glow to their skin. The guards scanned him, then waved them through. They used their senses but wouldn’t detect any threat from him.

  “Why are the guards glowing? Do you see it?” Nyx hissed at him.

  Darius nodded. He guessed she had never seen people like these before or been into the upper realm. “The ruling fae here are called Silvans. They are one of the oldest and most powerful races of fae.”

  “Why don’t they have any wings?” Nyx frowned.

  “Not all fae have wings. Most of the ruling class do not. In fact, they consider having wings a sign of inferiority.” He wouldn’t go into depth about what the people here thought about the different kinds of fae. Nyx would find out all of that herself soon enough.

  Her eyes widened. “Why? I thought any race would be glad to rule the skies.”

  Darius gave a humourless laugh. “Oh, the Archdruid rules the skies here, but not with the fae. With them.” He pointed upwards where dark shadows moved over the city and roars echoed in the distance like thunder. “My father controls both the land and sky. One day soon he will no doubt rule the seas as well. I hope to the spirits that day doesn’t come any time soon.”

  “What are they?” Nyx asked, then gasped. “Are those dragons?”

  He nodded. “Most of them are the Dragon Guard – my father’s army. He has thousands of warriors stationed here in the upper realm and in the lands beyond.”

  “But you’re not in the Dragon Guard? I thought someone like you would relish the chance to do that. I know full well what the Dragon Guard does. News travels fast even in the lower realm.” Nyx’s hands clenched into fists. “They raze entire towns and villages to the ground.”

  Darius’ stomach clenched. He didn’t want to think about the many atrocities committed by the Dragon Guard. It was one of the reasons he had decided against joining them. “Don’t pretend to know anything about me.”

  They passed through a long hall. Tapestries and golden statues lined the walls. More guards were stationed throughout. Darius knew Gideon would be in the council meeting along with the queen and the other council leaders. It felt odd being back here. Gideon must have had his spies on the lookout for him since Darius kept his presence shielded. Blast it all, he should have transported himself and Nyx over to Eldara when they landed. At least that would have bought him some time and allowed him to coach Nyx on how to deal with Gideon.

  Would she have listened, though? Doubtful. But he had hoped to explain a few things to her, and to clean her up a bit. Nyx did look worse for wear with her torn, bedraggled clothing and dirt-smeared skin. Darius didn’t care about such things, but Gideon would.

  Thank the spirits he had used his blood on her bracelet before they got off the ship. At least her powers would be under control. He hoped it would last and it would keep her power hidden from his brother and everyone else in the council meeting chamber. It wouldn’t surprise him if her magic somehow managed to seep through whatever immunity he had. Her power was so strong he doubted anything could contain it.

  Nyx didn’t say anything as they carried on down the hall. Two double doors led into the council meeting chamber. The meeting was already in session.

  Darius wouldn’t go in that way. His stepmother would be furious if he walked in unannounced. He opened the door to the antechamber, and Nyx followed him inside, glowering at him. The small room held little more than a couple of chairs and a table where people or guests that were brought before the council were made to wait. A tapestry depicting the islands of Andovia covered one wall.

  It was typical of Gideon to force him to wait. Darius knew he couldn’t do anything to object. Like it or not, Gideon always came first, and Darius was used to being second in line.

  “Stop that,” Darius snapped when he caught Nyx tugging at her bracelet.

  Her eyes narrowed. “I know you bewitched it. I don’t understand why.”

  Darius sighed. “Would you believe it’s to keep you safe?” He didn’t see the point in lying to her now. But he knew he had to be on his guard, even the walls had ears in this palace.

  Nyx snorted. “You wouldn’t do anything to protect me.” She crossed her arms. “So, what did you do to it?”

  “Does it matter? You’d only see me as your enemy anyway.”

  “You’re hardly an ally, are you?”

  “I’m not your enemy.” He might not like the fact she was a criminal, but that didn’t make them enemies either. Her power could be useful in the right hands, and he couldn’t help but think of all the good she could do with it if she chose to. Instead of all of the bad things she had been doing.

  “You brought me here.” She glowered at him.

  “No, your actions did that.” He glared back at her.

  “Oh, so it’s my fault I can’t control my damned powers.” Nyx fiddled with her bracelet again, but it refused to come off. “Did you enchant this so it stays on my wrist?”

  “It’s for your own good.” He decided against telling her how the bracelet would suppress her power. Time would soon tell whether his plan had worked or not. If Gideon discovered the true extent of her power, he wouldn’t be able to do anything to save her.

  “How so?” Nyx put her hands on her hips. “I didn’t get over —”

  Darius clamped a hand over her mouth and stifled her cry of alarm. Be quiet. There are people here that will listen to everything we say. If you want to stay alive, you will keep your power hidden and your mouth shut.

  Nyx’s eyes widened, and she slapped his hand away. What are you talking about? Why would anyone overhear us? she demanded. Besides, why would you want to keep me alive? You want to get rid of me.

  Darius sighed. You are right. Perhaps I should just let my brother have you and do whatever he wants. Forgive me for trying to keep you alive.

  Give me one good reason why I should believe anything you say. You are a Valeran. Nyx crossed her arms.

  Believe it or not, the last thing I want is my brother to have your power on his side.

  Nyx scoffed at that. So, you want my power for yourself then? From what I’ve seen and heard, you have to live in your brother’s shadow. You want to use me against him, don’t you?

  That sounded so ridiculous Darius laughed. You couldn’t be any further from the truth. I don’t want to use you for anything. Spirits, I’d be glad if you hadn’t set foot here. You need to learn to control your powers and Ambrose might be the only one who can help you do that. I’ve suppressed your power because that might be the only thing that keeps you alive.

  You really expect me to believe that?

  Believe whatever you like. Darius gritted his teeth and stormed into the passageway. He hu
rried up the steps to the balcony that looked down on the council meeting hall. At least up there he could get away from her. Everything about her infuriated him, especially the fact that she thought he was a true Valeran. It made him wonder why he had bothered to help her.

  The high council sat down below. A vast blue diamond shape covered the tiled floor, and high arched windows let in cool streams of light. A table stood in the centre of the space and flags fluttered overhead depicting symbols for each race.

  A petite woman sat at the head of the room. Her rose gold hair shined like polished marble, and her pointed ears stood stark against her pale skin. A white crown glittered around her forehead.

  Nyx stomped up behind him and stopped short. “Who are they?”

  He motioned to the woman. “That’s the queen.”

  On the queen’s left sat a young man with a handsome chiselled face. His dark blond hair was tied back, and his dark green eyes were creased with a frown. He wore a dark green tunic and a glittering symbol of the Awen hung around his neck. Nyx would no doubt recognise Gideon from the projection she had seen earlier that morning. On the queen’s right sat an ethereal looking woman with silver hair and azure eyes. Her long white gown cascaded down her body like a waterfall.

  “That’s Irena of the Silvan fae. She is a leader too and a distant cousin of the queen.”

  Next to them sat a man with a long, black bushy beard. He wore a rumpled grey tunic and brown trousers. He looked out of place among the two stunning women.

  “That’s Alaric, leader of the shifters and chief overseer. He is Lucien’s mentor.”

  “Is he a Lycan?”

  “Lykae,” Darius corrected. “No, he is a fae shifter. The lykae are kindred of them. Different Magickind can become overseers – they are guardians. They guide and protect important people throughout their lives.”

  “Who does Alaric protect?”

  Darius shook his head. “No one – I suspect he did once. Now he leads the shifters on Migara and trains new overseers.” He didn’t see the harm in telling her who each of the council leaders were. It stopped them from arguing for once.

  The fourth person had pale, almost opaque skin.

  “Is that a man or a woman?” Nyx frowned.

  “That’s Navi, an ice elf, and I don’t know if they are male or female. They like to be referred to as they.” Sometimes Navi looked male, sometimes female.

  “Is Ambrose a leader too?”

  Darius shook his head. “No. He will step in as a leader on rare occasions, though.”

  “Is that all of them?” Nyx leaned a little closer then drew back when Gideon turned his head in their direction.

  “Yes, there used to be five, but now that only happens when my father is present.” Darius looked down again, surprised to find Ambrose absent. Had his mentor come and gone already?

  The double doors burst open and, as if on cue, Ambrose rushed in.

  Odd, where had the other druid been? What had taken him so long? Ambrose had left them at the dock a while before the messenger had come to find Darius.

  “Forgive me for being late.” Ambrose gasped for breath and sweat beaded on his brow. He bowed his head in respect to the leaders and scrambled around the table to reach an empty seat reserved for guests.

  “Was your ship delayed?” Gideon glared at the other druid. “I ordered you to come here once you arrived.” Gideon had never liked Ambrose since he got more respect from the other druids than Gideon ever would. They had wanted Ambrose to serve in Fergus’ place when the Archdruid was away. Gideon had been furious at that. Ambrose had refused, even though he despised the way Fergus did things.

  “No, I had another matter to attend to and was delayed. Again, my apologies.” Ambrose gripped his staff, still breathing hard. “I didn’t mean to be gone for so long. Has something happened in my absence?” He edged towards the seat but didn’t sit down since Gideon was also standing. “Has another rift opened?”

  “Where have you been?” Gideon asked. “You’ve been gone for days and didn’t once report in about where you were going or what you were doing.”

  Darius gripped the balcony rail harder. Since when did anyone need Gideon’s permission to leave the upper realm? He shouldn’t have been surprised though. Gideon did everything in his power to make the old man suffer.

  “I’ve been tracking the rifts that have been opening up here and in the lower realms.” Ambrose took a seat in an empty chair that was usually reserved for Gideon, who now sat in the Archdruid’s seat.

  Typical Gideon. He had to be in the place of power.

  “There have been more deaths. My apprentice was also attacked by a darkling.”

  Gideon’s icy gaze shot up to Darius. Blast it all, Darius hadn’t wanted his brother to see him or Nyx.

  Darius shot the prince a glare. Go about your meeting. When it’s over, I can finally leave.

  “I have seen the darklings on Migara,” Alaric spoke up. “We gave chase, but our magic had little effect against them.

  “No one was hurt?” Queen Isabella asked with a slight lilt to her voice.

  “Yes, one of the shifters was killed. When are you going to take the threat of those evil spirits seriously?” Alaric leaned forward in his seat.

  Gideon scoffed. “They are nothing but wandering spirits. They are of no threat to anyone. The veil is thin on this point of Erthea. Spirits are always coming through — that is nothing unusual.”

  “What about the rifts?” Navi asked and played with a strand of their long hair. “Have more emerged? Those are not natural. We have never had rifts open up before.”

  Irena leaned forward. “Yes, I would like to know about this too.”

  “The rifts are nothing to be alarmed about,” Gideon insisted. “Rifts open up in the land sometimes.”

  “The veil between the worlds —” Ambrose protested.

  “Enough!” Queen Isabella raised her hand. “Until you bring proof of this, it is not a concern of this council. You are always trying to bring such trivial matters before us. If you’re so concerned, you and the other druids can handle it.”

  “But what of the prophecy?” Alaric asked. “What if this is the dark time it speaks of? This could be the start of something terrible coming, and we need to be prepared for it. Our world barely survived the last dark age.”

  “There’s no proof of that.” Gideon sat down and leaned back in his high-backed chair.

  Then why did you send me to find Nyx? Darius wondered. You believe the next dark time is coming, brother. You just don’t want the council to know it. Gideon would want to sweep in and save the day so he would look like a hero.

  “Then, this meeting is over.” Queen Isabella rose from her seat and waved her hand in dismissal. “We shall reconvene again in a few days.”

  Alaric, Irena and Navi all rose and left the meeting chamber.

  Ambrose straightened to his full height, but Gideon shot to his feet before he had a chance to say or do anything. “How dare you embarrass me like that,” he snapped. “Why do you insist on blowing this situation with the rifts out of proportion? There’s no danger to anyone. You are causing fear over nothing.”

  That did it. Darius would not let his brother underhand his mentor. People were dying, and neither Gideon nor his mother would do anything to acknowledge that.

  Darius raised his hand; light flashed around Nyx, who yelped in alarm. He had cast another web around her to make sure she couldn’t run off. He didn’t have time to go chasing after her and knew she would try escaping again at the first opportunity.

  Darius stormed out of the antechamber and into the meeting hall. “A darkling attacked me today. If not for Ambrose, I would be dead now. When are you going to do something about this problem?”

  Gideon gave a harsh laugh. “Of course you would defend the old fool here. You would say anything to increase his agenda.”

  “Agenda? Are you out of your bloody mind?” Darius didn’t care about repercussions. Gide
on was out of line, and he knew it.

  “Watch your tongue, brother,” Gideon warned. “I sent you to retrieve something important, not for you to go gallivanting off with the old man. I grow weary of the two of you coming to the council with endless problems. It’s tiresome.”

  “Why are you so determined to ignore this problem?” Darius retorted. “People are dying, and the veil is breaking. If it fails, all of Erthea will be destroyed. A true leader would help his people, not condemn them to death.”

  “You are not a leader, brother,” Gideon scoffed. “No, you are woodsman who spends his days chasing sprites around.”

  Darius’ blood boiled. “You —” Power flared between his fingers, and he clenched his hand into a fist. Spirits, why now? He rarely ever lost control of his powers, but Gideon always seemed to set him off. He wasn’t like Nyx. He had been trained from a young age to keep his power under control.

  Ambrose put a firm hand on his shoulder. “Perhaps you should fetch the mind whisperer.”

  Darius stared at his mentor, incredulous. “But—”

  Go, boy, Ambrose said. Arguing with your brother will only cause you more problems. Besides, I’m sure Nyx is anxious for this to be over with. And we don’t need her trying to escape, which no doubt she will.

  Darius hissed out a breath and stormed off. He clenched both hands, and static rippled over his fingers. What was wrong with him? He took several deep breaths to calm himself. Still, his power and the darker side of it ached to get out. Darius pushed it back and locked it away where he always kept it deep inside himself. Just because he didn’t act like a Valeran didn’t mean he did not have the power and darkness which came with his family name.

  He had to get this over with. Ambrose was right about one thing: as soon as he delivered Nyx, he would be able to get back to more important matters like solving the darkling problem.

  Chapter 9

  Nyx gritted her teeth. No matter what she did, the bracelet wouldn’t come loose. When she made a run for the exit something blocked her way again. Another invisible wall of energy. Curse that druid!