by Angel Lawson
“What the hell is that?” Nadya asked, her eyes glued to a boar-like beast with six horns.
“The Queens’ minions. Their reach goes beyond the Sidhe and humans. They also have forces in Underworld. Hold on, we’re close!”
Sharp toothed wolves and snarling beasts raced toward us on one side while dark versions of fox, boars and birds swarmed on the other. With every step closer to the platform they gained on us. Grace flew overhead, fighting her own battle against the lashing wind and sharp clawed birds. She hadn’t lied—they were out to get her, too.
“Listen,” I shouted to Nadya over the furious sounds. “I can’t step on the platform, but you can. I need you to jump off Camelot and run up the steps.”
“What if they catch me?”
I turned, letting Camelot lead the way. “You’re our only hope. For me and the rest of the Guard, for Merida and the Maidens. Even for Grace.”
“Okay. Just step on the platform?” She sounded terrified. Wary. She should be both. If there was any other way I’d do it myself. History has proven this is her duty—her destiny.
I took her cheeks in my hand and kissed her hard, ignoring the screeching battle cries and growling beasts. “I love you, Nadya.”
“I love you, too,” she said, her voice drowned out by the impending onslaught. A ring of dark figures stood around the platform. I drew my sword.
“Liam look!” Nadya cried. “It’s Colleen. And Daniel!” Brayden and the other Guards waited at the edge of the ancient stairway. Wearing hooded cloaks, they stood on alert—fighting always for Otherworld.
I made eye contact with my crew. Nadya’s odds just got a little bit higher. “Why are they here?” she asked.
“That, sweetheart, is the rebellion. The Guardians, rebel and other, are here to protect you.” Camelot came to an abrupt, skidding halt and I nudged Nadya off her back. “Go! Now!”
She jumped to the ground, her tattered shirt hanging loose at her back. Her hair whipped in the wind and she futilely swiped at it so she could see. Colleen moved to protect her back. It wasn’t necessary. Grace had flown down, wings spread wide, and shielded her from assault. The gesture showed her loyalty, but ultimately no one could follow her up the stairs anyway. They weren’t worthy. None of us were.
Daniel cut down a wolf at the base of the stairway and demanded the beasts to back away. The Rebel Guard held their weapons high, allowing her safe passage. Everything shifted to a dull roar as I watched her take a step up the crumbling, ancient stairs. Her boot touched the stone and a ringing hum vibrated through the air. The roar of beasts filled my ears and their sharp claws wrenched me from Camelot’s back. With her second step the ground rumbled like an earthquake. The dry dirt rippled under our feet, starting at the platform and stretching behind us for miles. Fearful she’d topple off, I searched for her, but my worries were groundless. Nadya had made it to the top step of the platform, strong and stable.
She stood in the center, small but powerful. The might of the land shook beneath her feet and the swirling clouds wound into a cyclone, twisting high above Nadya’s head. Energy flared through her body and I felt it from my spot on the ground, charging like a volt of electricity through our bond. So powerful that the beasts holding me back jumped away, yelping, their teeth and claws burning from the connection.
A crack of lightening zig-zagged above the cyclone, splitting the sky in three parts. A chorus of terrified beasts howled in reply. Fiona and Eleanor were coming.
For them, it was too late. I had been right all along.
Nadya was our Lost Queen.
Chapter 33
Nadya
“That, sweetheart, is the rebellion. The Guardians, rebel and other, are here to protect you.” The words rang in my ears as I climbed the steps. Grace flew down behind me, her wings protecting me from behind. Colleen whispered words of encouragement. They wanted me on that platform. They needed me there.
I just didn’t understand why.
Part of me thought this was just an intricate dream and I would wake up soon, snug in my bedroom. I’d see the iron cross over my bed and hear my father downstairs. But other things, like the way I felt with Liam at the Valley…I couldn’t have made that up. And right now, with the sand whipping across my cheeks and the sound of howling beasts at my back, everything felt real. Too real.
I had no idea what to do next, but my body felt differently. I didn’t know if it was the bond or something else, but I took one step toward the platform and energy jolted through my body. The good kind of energy. The powerful kind. I took another step and felt the surge roll across my limbs. The action created a chain reaction, the ground trembled like an earthquake, and the sky threatened to engulf us all.
As terrifying as it all seemed, it also felt undeniable.
Liam had been right. The land accepted me. All the warring magic, dark vs. light, meshed together into something that consumed me. The combination filled every sense, every pore, and I now understood what he had tried to prepare me for. I needed to be strong. To be fit, just to contain the energy and power coursing through my body.
“Hold on,” Grace shouted. She hovered mid-air, just outside the platform. The guards were all engaged in a fight with the beasts outside. Blood sprayed and splattered, soaking the ground red. Liam had been pulled from Camelot’s back. I tried to find him—find his eyes, but he was lost in the crowd.
The air above me turned electric and I saw a spike of lightening, branched in three directions, followed by a quick, furious roll of thunder. I looked over my head and saw a dark cyclone curling in my direction. The storm was sent by Fiona and Eleanor as their final attempt to stop me. I saw their shadows far across the land. They wouldn’t try to take me down themselves. No, they wanted their minions to do it for them, not because I was beneath them but because they feared me.
They should.
My body moved on instinct, crouching low to the ground. My palms spread flat, feeling the cool, stone dais. There’d once been a castle here, something magnificent and grand. I could feel the energy where the walls once stood. The ghosts that lingered from past lives. The spirit of the original Goddess herself. The cyclone shifted down, its tail twisting toward me. I waited, grounded by hand to the kingdom. The cyclone wrapped around my body, darkness and light, dirt and air, magic and nature, engulfing my entire frame. I inhaled deep, clenching my teeth, absorbing everything.
The storm raged in my ears and filled my lungs. I peered through the debris and saw the beasts fleeing, racing off in all directions. The ground shook beneath them, the Deadlands coming to life. Vines heavy with life exploded from the surface. Long, green grass and thick, flowering trees pushed through the earth. Hedges lined emerging walkways. Ivy grew and stretched, reaching for scattering hooves and claws, yanking them back into the earth, back to the depths of Underworld.
The storm reached a frenzy and I stood, holding my hands up high. In a sudden whoosh, the cyclone unraveled and thousands of birds flew into the bright, cobalt sky. With a deep breath, I inhaled this new world, this kingdom, feeling the power of the original Goddess in my veins.
It was then that I surveyed the full extent of the Deadlands’ transformation.
“Come here!” I called, waving the Rebel Guards and Grace closer. Brayden offered a hand to Liam, who was still dazed on the ground. One by one they mounted the dais.
My partner—my soulmate—pressed his body against mine and whispered in my ear, “May the Gods have mercy. The Lost Queen has returned.”
We watched as the land grew fertile around us. Branches and leaves sprouted on the trees. It was like watching a nature film in science class; petals unfurled, roots twisted deep. “How far will it go?” I asked.
“Right now? A couple miles, circling the palace. After that the growth will be slower but eventually your plentiful land will connect with Ravenwood and Solar,” Colleen replied.
Grace flew upward and circled over us. “It’s magnificent!”
I couldn�
�t keep the smile off my face. I’d done this. It was true, I was the Lost Queen. Heir of the original Goddess.
“One thing left,” Liam said, fingers intertwined in mine.
“What’s that?”
“You have to build your castle.”
I glanced around for a Home Depot. “Um…with what?”
“Whatever you want—however you want.”
He was talking crazy, but what about this was sane? The others looked at me with expectation, but I still had no idea what to do. Colleen leaned close and said, “You can always ask the castle to restore itself.”
“How do I—“ I started, but I knew. Everything came from the ground. All of life, all the Sidhe. I understood that now. Liam’s assignment made so much more sense to me.
Once again I knelt to the floor and touched the stone with my palms. I closed my eyes when the earth shook around us, fearful I was asking too much. The ground shifted, roaring with life, the sound of rocks and stones grating across one another. I pressed my forehead to the dais, breathing in and out.
“Open your eyes,” Liam said, his hand clasped around mine as he helped me from the ground. Once standing, he didn’t let go.
I blinked and my jaw dropped.
An entire structure had risen around us, white marble walls with ornate arches leading from the room we were now standing in. I spied a staircase off the main room, winding up the wall to another floor. Large windows allowed in bright sunlight and a view of the gardens surrounding the castle. I spun and found the castle fully equipped with fixtures and furnishings. “This was Celeste’s castle?”
“Yes, and the queens before her,” Liam said. “You’ve restored it to its original glory.”
“It’s breathtaking.” I took in the throne and luxurious carpet of furs that lined the floor. A large fire pit sat in the middle of the room and various cushions and seating areas lined the walls. The entire concept for the room was foreign to me. I paused, taking in a long row of people standing straight and still against the fall wall.
“Who are those people?”
“Your staff,” Colleen replied.
“My what?”
“They come with the kingdom. They’ve waited decades for the castle restoration.”
Everyone surrounding me spoke as if any of this made sense. As though there were logic surrounding a castle that sprung from the ground because I touched it with my hands. The staff, the furnishings and everything else about this situation was absurd. I looked back at my friends, the men and women I’d known since childhood back home at airport, and waited for them to tell me this whole thing was a joke. Daniel smiled at me warmly.
“Well done, Your Highness. I’ve waited so long for this day.” Oh god, not him, too.
I took a deep breath and held up my hand. “All this “Your Highness” stuff is not cool.”
“But you’ve reclaimed the kingdom. The Lost Queen has returned.”
I wanted to deny it, but I felt the power in my veins. I knew I belonged here and I knew this castle was my home. There was no argument. I just had no clue what that meant for me. For my father and my life back in the human world.
Grace gave me a sympathetic look and said, “You’re understandably overwhelmed. Things will get easier.”
“Yes,” said Colleen. “We will help you adjust. Make it as easy on you as possible.”
The others nodded, well, everyone but Liam. His face held a look of concern. I would have been shocked if he had any other expression on his face. “What?” I asked, ready to get it over with.
“There are still urgent matters to deal with,” he said.
“Like what?”
“Like Fiona and Eleanor. They’ll have returned to the safety of their kingdoms by now, most likely to unify their armies.”
Grace’s face paled and I swallowed back the immediate surge of fear. I’d never met either woman but if the storm and beasts they sent for me today were any indication of their strength, I was okay holding off on the introductions for a while longer. “Against me?”
“Before, they hoped to control you, thought maybe you’d pick one side or the other. Worst case they’d kill you. But now? You’re the enemy.”
Even with my newfound power this made me very uncomfortable. I wasn’t in the position to lead an army in return—not even the rebels, who seemed willing to fight in my honor. Even if everyone else was convinced I was royalty and had amazing magic abilities my actual skill was limited. Even with these concerns, something different nudged at me: the desire for revenge. For my mother and grandmother.
I just needed more time.
“How do we hold them off—at least for now? Can we do that?”
No one said yes. No one said anything, but Liam’s head tilted just enough to say no. It wasn’t possible. In that moment I longed for the quiet normalcy of my home and father and job. I sighed and ran my hands through my storm-disheveled hair. “I guess it’s time to face them, see what I’m really up against. You’ll help me?” I asked Liam.
“Of course.”
I turned Grace. She looked nothing like the girl I’d bar hopped with at home just days before. Her hair was a mess and her wrists were still red and swollen from her binds. If it was possible she looked smaller than before, but she was already tiny. Right now she gave the appearance of someone who wouldn’t cause a problem. I knew differently. I knew what kind of damage she could do on both sides of the magic. This girl was going to be a problem and apparently she was going to be my problem to deal with. “Thank you for warning me and protecting me today. I think you may be a good person, but I’m not sure I can trust you yet.”
“Please don’t send me out there,” she begged. Grace grabbed my hands with her own. “They’ll kill me. Or worse, torture me again. I’ll do whatever you want.”
“You can stay here for now, but under supervision. You can’t leave the grounds.” I looked at Liam again and was surprised he didn’t look upset by this decision. I ran my hands over her wrists and the wounds disappeared. The least I could do that before locking her away. If I didn’t would I be any different from Eleanor? “Is there a way to do that without putting her in prison or something?”
“I can think of something,” he replied and waved over a guard. “Take her to Nadya’s parlor and wait with her there. I’ll return with further directions later.”
Before she left, Grace pulled away from the guard and said, “Thank you. I’m sorry for any betrayal. I didn’t have a choice. Above anything else, I’m at your service.” She curtsied, sweeping low to the ground. Oh, for goodness sake.
“Please never do that again,” I said, not even hiding the cringe on my face. “I’m absolutely serious. I hope once this is cleared up, you can be my friend, not my servant. Like we were before.”
“I’d like that,” Grace said and I saw a flare of the Grace I’d known at home. She and the guard walked out in search of my parlor. A parlor? What the hell? I turned and crashed into Liam’s chest. He’d moved that close to me, that quickly. The massive amounts of energy rolling under my skin left me raw and edgy. The castle held its own unnerving power and it sought me out a conduit or something. Everything felt intense, including the constant eyes of my “staff” waiting for direction. All of these emotions warred with one another until Liam wrapped his arms around me, and for the first time since we left the Valley, I felt stable.
“How do you do that?” I asked. His lips pressed against my neck and I ran my hands over the cut under his eye. The blood dried and the wound healed instantly.
“Do what?”
“Make me calm. Feel safe.”
“I don’t know but you do the same for me.”
Face to face, his eyes darted to my lips. He wanted to kiss me, but needed permission. The power I’d just inherited—all of the magic from the original Goddess and the land—surged through my body. If I kissed him what would happen? Would I lose something? Could he handle it?
“You don’t have to,” he said, foll
owing my unspoken thought. “We can wait until you’re sure.”
I linked my hands at the back of his neck and glanced sideways at the servants lining the wall. “I’d rather wait until we were alone. Do they just stand there all the time?”
“Unless you give them something to do. They’re dedicated to your needs. They will not reveal any personal or private details of your life. Even your time in the bedroom.”
I studied their healthy faces and grooming. Even their clothes seemed well kept. They didn’t look like they’d spent decades tied to a castle beneath the ground. “How did they survive all this?”
“It’s Sidhe magic. Never underestimate it.”
“You keep telling me that,” I said, removing my hands. “As much as I’d like to spend time with you exploring the physical ramifications of my new status, I think Fiona and Eleanor take precedence, don’t you? All of this is bad enough, what the hell am I doing to do when they get here?”
Liam, the fierce man, or rather Sidhe, I’d watched in battles and command his guard, replaced the gentle one I knew as my lover. Confidence straightened his shoulders and an intent blaze flared in the back of his blue eyes. “Don’t worry, I have a plan.”
I returned his contagious smirk, my own assurance building in my chest and said, “You always do.”
*Liam*
The ride to Ravenwood went quickly traveling by main road. I told Nadya I would be back in two days. That gave her time to prepare for the meeting and two days for me to convince both Eleanor and Fiona not to go on attack but sit down with the Lost Queen instead.
Nayda needed more time to develop her skills—that we both agreed on. Now we just needed to convince the Queens our intention was to unify the land, nothing more.
