Tràth released the time stream, and Aaron didn’t even jump at the sight of the prince suddenly appearing in front of him. Tràth crouched to the druid’s eye level. “Which house?”
Aaron jerked his head toward the building behind him.
“You’re sure?”
The dark look Aaron cast him left no room for doubt. “I’m sure.”
“Did you speak to him? Or is the faerie a her?”
Aaron barked a laugh. The sound was strange and hollow, and the druid’s face was slick with tears. “Yes, I spoke to her.” The human druid appeared dazed, almost broken.
Tràth nodded. When he learned that the district was full of azuri fae, he realised only one thing would lead Aaron here: the lure of a compatible bond-mate. “What did she say?” Tràth asked softly. Surely anyone would want to leave that place. “Does she feel the pull of the bond?” The street was strangely desolate. He sensed the presence of many fae within the surrounding structures, but not so much as a curtain twitched. The entire district held its breath.
Aaron laughed again. “She said nothing,” he said.
Tràth looked up at the house and stood. Trepidation crept over his skin when he touched the door, but he had to do this. When he pushed the door back, moonlight streamed into the filthy hovel.
His breath caught in his throat when he saw the small occupant of the home. She cowered in the back, scars covering her face. The worst of them were hideous burn marks around her empty eye-sockets. Her lumpy skull was bald, and a familiar rune had been branded onto her forehead: forbidden.
Tràth spoke in the fae tongue, keeping his voice quiet. “What is your name?”
She hesitantly tapped her forehead.
He sighed. “I am Prince Tràth of Caledonia. The man outside is a druid named Aaron.”
She reached up again and this time ran a finger from her eye down her cheek.
“Yes,” Tràth said. “Aaron is crying. Do you know what a druid is?”
Quivering, she shook her head sharply one time.
“He is a human sorcerer. The word in our tongue is draoidh. Do you understand that word?”
She tilted her head. She wasn’t sure.
“Can you speak?” he asked.
She tilted up her chin and fingered a thick scar warping the crimson skin across her throat.
Nausea swept over Tràth. “You have been silenced.”
She nodded once and touched her forehead.
He searched his mind, trying to determine what to do. “Do you know about the Halls of Mist?”
She tilted her head again and indicated her ear. Did that mean she’d heard of the place or that she was listening?
“Every kingdom has a Hall there. These druid lords do as well. It’s like a protected village, a safe place. Would you like us to take you to the Druid Hall? No one would hurt you again.” She sat perfectly still and silent, so Tràth went on. “You feel him, don’t you? You’re drawn to him. His heart beats in your chest, and his thoughts fill your mind. You might not yet understand this, but he is your soul-mate.”
She hugged herself tightly and rocked, her mouth trembling as she made no sound. She touched her cheek again, miming a single tear running down her face.
Tràth said, “I know you must be terrified. You’ve been through so much. I can see that.”
She raised her chin in response, clearly an attempt to be brave.
“Do you have a family?” he asked. Without Alyssa’s touch, he couldn’t have kept his composure. Even from this distance, he was glad to feel her calming influence.
She tapped her forehead.
Of course she had no family. Not so long ago, even in Caledonia, azuri, particularly poor ones, had no family. Here in Zalia, they were thrown out like garbage. In his own kingdom, they’d most often been executed. He’d only been allowed to live as long as he had because his mother had been a queen. Eventually, even that didn’t protect him. “Lord Druid Aaron can take you to the Halls of Mist. Not even Queen Naima can stop him. Do you want to go?”
With another tilt of her head, she tapped her fingers together in an intricate dance. He had no idea what her movements meant.
“I’m sorry. I don’t understand.”
She made her fingers into a circle and lifted them up.
“The moon?” he asked.
A sharp nod, then she tapped her forehead.
“You can’t leave at night? Forbidden?”
Another nod.
“Do you trust me?” he asked.
A tilt of her head told him maybe. Then she pointed toward the door and traced a tear again.
“You trust Aaron?”
She nodded.
“Okay,” he said. “Gather anything you want to take with you. Say goodbye to anyone you care about. You never need to return here.”
The faerie made a sign with her fingers.
“I don’t know what that means,” he said.
Tentatively, she held out a hand to him. He reached toward her and touched her fingers. She grasped his hand and kissed the back of it. He wanted to touch her, to offer her comfort, but he was afraid any contact would terrify her. She trembled so, and it seemed barely an inch of her body wasn’t covered with scars. She released his fingers, and then appeared to be bracing herself. Did she expect to be hit?
“You don’t need to be afraid of me. I will never do you harm. I’m like you. I’m azuri.” The words hurt to say them. He was exactly like her, even though his scars didn’t show.
She tapped her forehead. Forbidden.
“Not anymore,” he said. With that, he went outside. Aaron sat precisely where Tràth had left him. “She’s packing to go,” Tràth told Aaron, noticing Imena, Cen, and one Watcher stood at the end of the street.
“She is?” Aaron said.
“Not that she’ll have anything worth keeping. I told her you’d take her to the Halls of Mist. I promised her she’d be safe there.”
“Will they try to stop us?” Aaron said.
“I don’t know.”
“How did you convince her? I said a million things, but all she’d do was kiss my hand.”
“I doubt she ever learned English.”
Aaron laughed ruefully and shook his head. “I didn’t think of that.”
“Like most children, her powers probably started to manifest when she was less than ten years old. Some azuri are not discovered then if they possess even one weak earth power, but if she displayed clear ability… Anyway, she recognised the potential bond, so she trusts you.”
“How did you get all that? She can’t talk.”
“Just because she can’t talk doesn’t mean she can’t communicate.” Tràth paused. “Plus, I know because I’ve been there.”
“Jesus,” Aaron muttered, wiping his eyes.
“Come on,” Tràth said and held his hand out to help Aaron stand. He didn’t want to talk about what had happened between Aaron and Douglas or think about the days before Tràth and Douglas performed the ritual incantation. Getting Aaron and this faerie out of Zalia was a more immediate concern. Tràth finally let himself meet Imena’s gaze. It might have meant something to him that she walked past the gate at all, but he couldn’t be impressed with her ground-breaking move, not after what he’d seen. What would have been done to him, had he been born in this kingdom.
The door to the hovel opened, and Aaron stood. The faerie walked out cautiously, holding only a small linen sack with a few items inside. She was short for her race. She walked directly to Aaron and held out her hand to him, magic telling her what her sightless eyes could not. Aaron put his arm around her, gazing at her as though she was the most beautiful creature he’d ever seen. If Tràth hadn’t been certain Aaron was responding to the call of the bond, he would be now. Aaron didn’t even seem to notice her scars. She trembled at his touch but didn’t back away.
“Stay behind me for now,” Tràth said, then he switched to the fae tongue. “Are you ready?” he asked the faerie.
S
he nodded and lifted her face toward the moon. Tràth wondered how she’d known where it hung in the sky. Perhaps her azuri magic had found a way to compensate for her ruined eyes.
Tràth approached Imena, Aaron and the faerie walking a few paces behind.
Only by pure willpower did he not lash out at Imena. He spoke to the princess in English, not wanting the exchange to upset Aaron’s faerie further. “Lord Druid Aaron is leaving with this unfortunate faerie tonight. They are departing now for the Halls of Mist. We request your people not impede them.”
“Our laws forbid shadowlings from travelling at night, and they are not permitted to leave the city nearest the place of their birth. I’m sorry, but my mother will never allow her to travel to the Halls of Mist.”
The anger he’d been trying so hard to suppress raged within him. “Have you not heard what happened when Queen Konstanze defied the druids? If your mother does not want to condemn her entire kingdom, she will not interfere with the Druid Hall.” He took a moment to calm himself and softened his tone as best he could manage. “This is one slave. One faerie you’ve already thrown away. Do not doom your people over this.”
Imena’s brow creased with worry. “Why does he want her?”
“This is bonding magic. Her essence has called to Lord Druid Aaron since he arrived. For whatever reason, some ancient power chose her to bond with him.”
Imena’s face contorted for a moment, but she made no comment on the pronouncement. “Do you have faith that abandoning her homeland is her wish?”
Tràth muttered impatiently. How could the girl not want to leave this place? He turned to her and spoke in the fae tongue. “The princess wants reassurance you are leaving by your own free will.”
The small, scarred faerie tentatively made signs with her fingers.
Tràth looked at the princess, but saw she was as ignorant as he of her meaning.
“If I may, Your Highness?” Cen spoke for the first time since their arrival. “I can interpret her signs. She said she will follow the druid lord anywhere he leads.”
Imena stared at the scribe in surprise. “How did you come to learn the shadowling signs?”
He hesitated. “As a child, I knew an azuri. She taught me their manner of communication.”
The princess frowned and turned back to Tràth. “Very well. I will ensure they are not stopped.” She paused. “What about you? Will you consider staying to finalise our contract? As you said, the trade agreement will benefit both our kingdoms. This need not affect the Zalian treaty with Caledonia.”
“Not affect them?” He no longer had the willpower to keep his voice calm. He rounded and pointed at the small faerie woman before spitting angry words at the princess. “That could have been me! Would have been me if I’d stepped within your borders, what, two years ago? One?”
“You and I could change this place,” she pled. “We will heal the wounds and rewrite the laws. Do you not realise this is why I asked an azuri to be my mate?” She paused to compose herself. “I didn’t want you to see this place yet, but I did intend to show you when the moment was right. I wanted you to understand what your acceptance would put an end to. Please. Let Aaron and…his companion go on their way. Stay in Zalia. We can discuss how we would change this kingdom together. Zalia needs you if we’re going to make the wheels turn faster.”
“Please give the orders to let Aaron and this faerie pass,” Tràth said.
Imena nodded. She led the group back to the Shadow Gate. She ordered her Watchers to escort Lord Druid Aaron to the castle and then onward to the portal to the Halls of Mist.
Aaron led the girl by the hand, and they walked slowly. She was clearly uneasy with the crowd of Watchers around her, so she clung to Aaron as though her life depended on him. For all she knew, it did.
When they’d gone out of sight, Tràth turned to the princess. “I do not trust myself to speak tonight, Imena. If I told you what is in my heart at this moment, I would do irreparable harm to the relations between our kingdoms. I scarcely have enough self-control not to start a war.”
She nodded and looked away. “I understand. Whether or not you believe me, I am deeply ashamed of what you witnessed. These are remnants of the old ways. With or without your help, I will fight to change them. It may prove a difficult battle, but I will spend my reign righting this wrong if I have to.”
Tràth pressed his eyes closed, uncertain what to believe. “I will take the rest of this night and the day to consider our treaty. I’ll have an answer for you at dusk tomorrow.”
“Thank you,” she said. “All I can hope is that you’ll reflect on everything we discussed, not only the facts you’ve learned in the past hour.”
He strode away without acknowledging her or saying goodbye. After a few steps, he stopped time and ran through the streets of frozen faces, past Aaron and his companion and guards, all because he didn’t want Imena to watch him walk away. He sped into the castle and to the guest wing, releasing the time stream at the corridor in front of his chamber. He spoke to the Mistwatchers outside Aaron’s door. “Your lord is preparing to leave Zalia at once. Ready yourselves and tell his attendant.”
“Thank you, Your Highness,” one of them said, and they saluted him.
He went into his own room and ripped off his jacket. He wanted to scream. The rage pulsed through him, drowning out everything else, even the thrum of the time stream. Petroc entered the foyer and froze when he saw Tràth’s face. “Your Highness?”
Tràth rushed toward one of the walls and punched it with all his strength. He didn’t even feel the pain in his hand. Before Petroc managed to say a word, he punched the wall a second, then a third time. He let out a visceral roar. He heard Petroc speak to someone outside the door. “Get Alyssa,” he said.
“No!” Tràth shouted. He sensed Alyssa’s comforting presence. With a twist of his thoughts, he evicted her from his mind. The time stream roared. He reached for the flows of time and wrapped them around him. They grew louder, but he thrust them away, slamming that symbolic window behind them. His mind fell into utter silence. Then he turned to the bond he shared with Douglas. With another shout, he created an avalanche that buried the bond so deep, he could no longer detect it. The magic that connected them rumbled and protested, but when his mind settled, he was free of any interference. For the first time in his entire life, Tràth felt completely alone.
He collapsed to his knees, weeping. Petroc wrapped his arms around Tràth. “I’m here,” he said. Then lowering his voice, he whispered to someone else. “It’s all right. If he needs you, I’ll send word.”
Alyssa replied, “I’ll be standing by, night or day.”
“Thank you,” Petroc said. The great door closed, and the chamber went silent. “Can you stand?” he asked Tràth.
Tràth couldn’t answer. He cried like he hadn’t done since he was a child.
“Come on,” Petroc said. “I’ll carry you.” Despite his lithe frame, he lifted Tràth to his feet as though he weighed nothing. He bore the prince’s weight and helped him to his bed, then removed Tràth’s outer clothing.
“They blinded her, Petroc. They cut her throat and took her eyes.”
Petroc didn’t answer. He cradled Tràth as he wept. The attendant murmured soft words and rocked the prince gently in the swing bed.
Chapter 14
Aaron had been surprised at how accommodating Imena turned out to be about the girl. After he took her to his suite and arranged for their departure, Cen brought a message from the princess. She thanked Aaron for his visit and indicated Zalia was eager for a positive relationship with the Druid Hall. When next they wanted to use the Zalian gates to the human realm, the druids could rely on her kingdom’s cooperation. She invited him to return, should he wish to continue his research in the archives.
While Aaron’s attendant Jalail occupied himself with packing, Aaron spoke to Cen. “Would you consider coming to the Druid Hall? If I make the request, I believe Princess Imena would agree. Most
kingdoms have citizens who serve our Hall. You’d be more than a scribe. You could be a research assistant for me and, until I learn to communicate with her, a translator for the girl. I need time to learn the fae tongue and her, English. Perhaps you might teach me her hand signs as well.” He sighed. “This is the last thing I expected to happen.”
“I imagine so, my lord druid,” Cen said. He eyed the girl cautiously, trying not to stare but unable to draw his gaze away. She sat perfectly still, looking wary, but content as long as Aaron didn’t stray too far. “What you suggest would be a challenge, for certain.”
Aaron raised an eyebrow. “You wouldn’t have a problem working with an azuri, would you?”
“As I told the princess, as a child, I knew a shadowling. They are unfortunate, but not dissimilar from any of us. The old ways were wrong. If our princess is taking the prince as her mate, then attitudes will change quickly. In truth, I believe many Zalians will be relieved. It’s no small thing to worry the child you tried for a century to conceive will receive these unexpected traits, be silenced, and shunned.”
The practice of silencing struck Aaron as both barbaric and curious. He wondered how recently the tradition had continued. Surely Imena had put a stop to it. Did this indicate some rift between Imena and the queen? Change was often most difficult for older generations, and fae generations were old indeed. “I’d like you to pen a response to Princess Imena, please.”
“Of course, my lord druid,” Cen said, and he took a stylus and paper from his satchel.
Aaron dictated a short letter, thanking Imena for her hospitality and assuring her that the Druid Hall would be pleased at her generosity and openness. He complimented her on the beauty of her country as well as its cultural richness, stating he did hope to return soon with one or more of the other druids to study the archives. They played around with the wording a bit, Cen making the occasional suggestion for the sake of protocol and the difference in meaning of certain phrases between the fae tongue and English.
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