A Fey New World: A Reverse Harem Magical Romance (The Godhunter Series Book 32)

by Amy Sumida

  “We've just been in pursuit of the most...” she had to stop and let out a shaky breath as her eyes watered and her expression took on the look of a religious fanatic who had just seen the face of God. “Of the most beautiful animal I've ever seen. Fur as white as freshly fallen snow, antlers of pure gold, and eyes of glowing sapphire. I don't know what it was, but I will be forever changed by the mere sight of it.” She cleared her throat. “We chased it through the botanical gardens but the animal eluded us and is now loose somewhere in the forests at the foot of the Ko'olau Mountains. Personally, I hope that no one catches it. That creature should never be caged. For now, it remains free but we are left with even more questions. What is happening on Earth and what is yet to come?”

  The recording ended and we stared at each other in horror.

  “What the faerie fuck just happened?” Lugh demanded.

  “That was a new location,” I said. “And I can say for a fact that there are no crystal formations like that in those gardens. Not before today, that is.”

  “The magic is getting stronger,” Mallien murmured.

  “Is it stronger because of what we did?” I asked him. “A reaction to us trying to destroy the magic?”

  “I don't think so, Queen Vervain,” Mallien assured me. “Yes, the magic fled and regrouped there because of what we did, but I think its increased power is due to the consolidation of the magic and its wild nature. You may have settled the Faerie Realm but the magic, when it left, was volatile and fertile. I believe it has continued to flourish in that volatile manner. It would have done so regardless but our actions have sped up the process by forcing it into smaller groups and now, it has reached back to Faerie.”

  “Reached back?” Arach asked.

  “It reestablished a connection,” Mallien explained. “It formed another rath. That's the only way the burol could have come through.”

  “So, we have to close the raths again?” Patrick asked.

  “I don't think that's going to work,” I murmured as I stared at the frozen image of the reporter's face. “If the magic can open raths, what's to stop it from reopening the ones we shut?”

  “The Cat-Sidhe is out of the bag, people,” Aidan growled. “There is no recovering from this. The entire world just saw the fucking White Stag walk out of Faerie. People are going crazy. Look.”

  He started typing and brought up web pages where people had posted videos of the other sites that had appeared and more fey creatures who had wandered into the Human Realm. Humans were panicking and rejoicing and fighting. Religious sects were praying for guidance while new religions were popping up. People had theories of Angels, aliens, and ancient gods. Some even got it right and believed that faeries had finally revealed themselves to humans. People flocked to the sites dressed in all manner of costume. Hippies, monks, LARPers, and everyday people gathered around the patches of Faerie as if they were shrines. They were after enlightenment, adventure, or redemption.

  “All hell is breaking loose,” Azrael murmured.

  “You mean, all Faerie,” Aidan corrected.

  “What do we do?” I whispered. Then, in a louder, more hysterical voice, “What the hell do we do?”

  “We need to mirror the High King,” Arach said calmly. “We can't have more fey creatures entering the Human Realm.”

  “Or humans entering Faerie.” Mallien shared a heavy look with Arach. “You know it's just a matter of time before one of them braves the land and blunders into a rath.”

  “Maybe you should try your star again, A Thaisce,” Arach said. “It erased memories before and it warded Faerie.”

  “You're right!” I closed my eyes and sought my star. I asked it to fix this; to close the raths and erase the memories of the humans. Give us a reboot. A do-over. Please! I waited. I asked again. Come on, don't be a poopy pants! Finally, I opened my eyes and met the worried stares around me. “It's not responding.”

  “This can't possibly be destined to happen,” Trevor growled. “Humans can't handle the existence of faeries.”

  “They did before,” Lugh said softly.

  “That was before they smartened up,” I argued. “Now, there's technology. There's the Internet, medicine, and science. They won't just accept the Fey as otherworldly beings and be done with it. They'll want to know about us. They'll want to dissect us. They'll want our magic. Every creature that steps through a rath will be in danger. And once one of them fights back, it will be war.”

  Everyone around me went still. Gods and faeries had the upper hand against humans and we were immortal, but we weren't invulnerable and humans made up for their frailties with all sorts of ingenious weapons. Humans excel at destruction. They had nuclear bombs and if they used them, the Earth might never recover.

  “We don't know that,” Lugh finally broke the tension. “Maybe we should think about getting ahead of this. Getting our story out there before the humans react violently.”

  “What? Like Instagram some faeries dancing? You wanna do selfies in your tree-castle? Hashtag faeries rule?” Aidan asked. “Are you fucking insane?”

  “It could work,” Lugh argued. “If we marketed the Fey before the humans knew that this is fey magic, we could stop the panic.”

  “Tell it to your father,” Arach said grimly. “He will have to make the decision.” He looked at me. “Vervain, we'll need a mirror.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  By the time I had brought down a mirror and the eyebright herb necessary for activating it, the rest of the God Squad had arrived with their own reports of the insanity happening on Earth. Austin had texted as well. Thankfully, there had been no further activity in Lexington, or even Texas as a whole, but he'd driven out to the Wilson place to keep an eye on the warded area—from a safe distance. Neither Thor nor Pan had emerged yet but Austin promised to text when they did.

  That must have been a hell of an apple.

  When we finally got King Cian in the mirror, we had extensive reports to pass on to him. Lugh argued for coming out strong and fey while Mallien urged a more cautious approach. The High King listened and considered everything. He considered it for quite awhile and then he consulted Faerie.

  At last, he said, “The Faerie Realm must be closed completely.”

  I froze. That had not been suggested. Not by any of us at least.

  “What?” Lugh leaned toward the mirror. “Father, you can't close the realm. I would never see my mother again. Vervain would be separated from her family. You can't be serious.”

  “It's the only option that will guarantee results,” Cian said soberly. “We've tried closing the raths and that didn't work. The magic is still seeping through except now, the raths have opened from the other direction. The wild magic could destroy the wards that Queen Vervain established and then our realm would revert to that volatile state it was in so recently. If that were to happen, not only the realm but all of the Fey could go wild and that could have horrible repercussions for the humans as well. I'm sorry, King Arach and Queen Vervain. I'm sorry, Son. But you all have difficult decisions to make. I have made mine. You have 24 hours to prepare.”

  “High King, there must be another way,” Arach argued. “I cannot give up my wife. Our sons cannot grow up without their mother. Please, reconsider.”

  “I understand, King Arach,” Cian said and looked at Lugh. “I fear that I may have just lost my son as well. But the entire realm depends on this. Sacrifices must be made. Lugh, I understand if you want to stay, but I need you to send the others home. I'll require every wayfarer we have to close off the realm.”

  Lugh looked shell-shocked. Probably as shell-shocked as I felt. He answered woodenly, “Yes, Father.”

  “I'm so sorry, Son. So very sorry. But I will offer you this consolation: if you can convince her, I'll allow your mother to live in Faerie.”

  “You will?” Lugh brightened.

  “I will.” He looked at me. “And I know you will refuse but I'm extending the same offer to you and your loved
ones, Queen Vervain. You may bring them all here.”

  “I can't,” I whispered. “All of my loved ones can't move to Faerie. I have humans relatives and the entire Pride. All of my lions won't want to live in Faerie.”

  “I understand.”

  “I will be abdicating my throne and leaving Faerie with my wife and sons,” Arach announced.

  The faeries around us gasped but the High King nodded as if he'd expected no less.

  “Please name a new ruler before you leave, King Arach,” Cian said.

  Arach nodded.

  “Are you sure?” I asked Arach. “You'll never see the Faerie Realm again.”

  “That is a far better option than never seeing you again, A Thaisce,” Arach said firmly. “That, as we both know, would destroy me.”

  “But the kingdom—”

  “Will survive without us,” he cut me off.

  “Our people—”

  “They will survive as well.” Arach took my hands. “We have to go back and say goodbye, A Thaisce. We don't have a lot of time.”

  “This can't be happening,” I whispered. “This is too sudden. Too much. I can't leave Faerie. What about Dexter and Deirdre? What about Blossom? Who will look after the Pixies? Who will—”

  “Maybe Dexter and Deidre will choose to come with us,” Arach cut me off before I became hysterical. “You can bring Blossom here and as far as the Pixies, you've made them strong, Vervain. They can look after themselves now.”

  I burst into tears and my men immediately huddled in around me.

  Lugh must have said goodbye to his father, but I didn't hear it. I was too busy wailing in misery and wondering if I was the one to blame.

  “Mommy?” Vero's uncertain voice stopped my tears like a switch had been thrown.

  I sniffed violently and swiped at my eyes, cutting off my sorrow as only a mother can. The men stepped back so I could see my son. He stood just inside the dining hall doorway with his sister and Zariel. I'd forgotten about them completely. Just another mark against me.

  “Hey, baby!” I said brightly. “I've got some wonderful news.”

  “But you were crying,” Lesya scowled dubiously.

  “Happy tears,” I said as I went over and crouched beside them. “Uncle Arach, Brevyn, and Rian are moving in with us.”

  “They are?” Vero asked.

  “And I'm bringing Blossom and maybe even Dexter and Deidre too!”

  The children shouted together, “Yay!” and jumped up and down.

  “Now, go on back outside and play. I've got to fetch them from Faerie. I'll be gone a day but I'll see you tomorrow at the latest.”

  “Okay, Mommy.” Vero gave me a kiss on the cheek.

  Then the children ran outside, talking about how much fun it will be when Rian and Brevyn got there.

  “I'll go watch them,” Samantha offered. She had come down with Fallon and several Intare during the arrival of the God Squad.

  “Thank you, Sam,” I said woodenly, all of my energy used up in my mommy acting. Then I turned to Arach. “Are you ready?”

  “We will be all right, A Thaisce,” he said gently.

  “Yeah.” I nodded determinedly. “We will.” I looked over at my other husbands and Viper. “I'll see you tomorrow.”

  “We've been here a day,” Arach reminded me. “That means we can use our rings to return and get an extra day in Faerie.”

  “An extra day in Faerie,” I whispered, still trying to process it.

  “Do you want some of us to go with you?” Odin asked.

  “We can't take you if we use our rings.”

  “We could leave now and meet you there.”

  “No, it's okay. Arach and I need to do this alone,” I decided.

  “Okay, sweetheart,” Odin murmured.

  “I'm sorry, Lugh, you and the others will have to make your own way back to the Castle of Eight,” I said.

  “We'll be fine too, Vervain,” Lugh assured me. “I'm not heading there right away anyway. I need to see my mother.”

  “Good luck,” I offered.

  “And to you.”

  Then Arach and I used our rings of remembrance to go home.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  I reformed in our bedroom a few minutes before Arach did since I had left the realm before he had. I used those minutes to mourn—to be weak for a moment when no one could see me. Then Arach arrived. We stood there looking at each other for a second and then I went into his arms and we just held each other. I stepped back when I felt the tears start to rise. I didn't have time for tears.

  “None of this matters,” Arach said with a soft smile. “You matter. The boys matter. As long as I have the three of you, I will not despair.”

  “We've been very lucky,” I said in agreement. “We've had a good life here. We've done a lot for our people. Maybe it's time to let go. Maybe this change will be for the best.”

  “Maybe.” He took a deep breath and my hand. “Let's tell the boys first.”

  “And Isleen,” I said. “She's family too.”

  “And Isleen,” he agreed.

  We found Isleen downstairs, checking on lunch preparations, and brought her back upstairs with us to the boys' room. The twins were playing cards with Hunter. I stopped when I saw Roarke's son and nearly burst into tears. I wouldn't see Hunter grow up. I already knew how he'd look and what kind of man he'd be, but I wouldn't have him in my life. Or his father.

  My throat constricted and I had to turn away.

  “My Queen?” Isleen asked in shock.

  “Hunter, we need to speak to Rian and Brevyn,” Arach said firmly. “Would you mind fetching your parents for me? We'll need to speak with them afterward.”

  “Yes, King Arach!” Hunter jumped to his feet and hurried out.

  Arach drew Isleen inside the room with us, shut the door, and went to sit on the floor beside our boys. “We have something important to tell you.”

  “I know,” Brevyn said, his blue eyes serene. “It will be okay, Father. Don't be sad.”

  I barely managed to hold back my sob.

  “What will?” Rian asked, his green dragon eyes not nearly as serene as his brother's. In fact, they narrowed at Brevyn accusingly. “What didn't you tell me, Brev?”

  “I didn't want to ruin the time we had left.” Brevyn shrugged. “It will be okay, Rian.”

  “What will?!” Rian shouted.

  “We have to leave Faerie.” Arach laid a hand on Rian's shoulder. “There has been magic leaking into the Human Realm from this one. We tried to stop it and have failed. The only solution is to close the realm completely—even the Great Tree.”

  “Will Mother be able to come home when she leaves?” Rian asked.

  It was a silly question but that's what you do when you're in shock and denial—you ask the things you already know the answer to.

  “No,” Brevyn answered for Arach. “So, we need to go with her.” He smiled brightly. “It will be such fun. We'll get to live with Lesya and Vero and Zariel. We can go swimming and play in their castle.”

  “I don't want to leave Faerie!” Rian jumped to his feet and wailed.

  “Brother, trust me.” Brevyn stood up and held out his hand.

  Rian stared at that little hand and then at Brevyn. He finally took it. Nothing could separate those two for long.

  Dexter, who had been sleeping in a corner with his daughter, Deidre, wandered over and nosed me, his crimson eyes wide in confusion.

  I crouched down. “I have to go, Dex, and it's forever, but I want you to come with me. You and Deidre, if she wants to. It will be very different, but I promise that you'll have a good home with new places to explore and lots of new people to love you. What do you think?”

  Dexter whined. No, he couldn't understand all of my words. Even with his fey intelligence, he was still an animal and only got the gist of it. He nuzzled my face as an answer but he didn't actually know what he was agreeing to. And I wanted him to know. I couldn't take him from his home
without him knowing fully what his choices were.

  “Faerie, could you help me out here?” I whispered. “I don't want to force them to leave but I don't want to leave them behind either. Can you make Dex and Deidre understand what I'm asking?”