by Amy Bearce
“Bentwood must not see you, Phoebe, do you understand? He considers you his property now. You’ve got to stay hidden. He could kill you for leaving, and Jack wouldn’t stop him.”
Phoebe nodded, eyes dilated wide in fear. Sierra took off her wool cloak, wet as it was, and put it over her sister, pulling the hood up to cover her red hair. Sierra found a discreet spot in the doorway of a closed shop on the back corner of the square.
“I’ll come back here. If it all goes bad, turn and run. Go to Corbin’s parents.”
Phoebe shook her head desperately.
Sierra gently held Phoebe’s chin to force their eyes to meet. “I won’t have you back in his hands. It would kill me. You run if you have to, do you understand?”
Tears filled Phoebe’s eyes, but this time she nodded.
Sierra wished Micah was there to stand guard. She wanted Phoebe safe. She felt a pang of worry for him, too. Where was he? She wished she knew.
Leaving Phoebe alone to go to Corbin and Nell was like being torn in half. Too much love for too many people destroyed you. But it was too late now. Sierra couldn’t leave them up there to be killed.
She squeezed her way through the crowd. Each time a group of people noticed her trying to get by, they recoiled at the sight of her soaked clothing, giving her a bit more space to move. No one wanted their finery ruined. Even the poorest wore their best cloaks when the elders held a meeting in the port square.
Pushing and shoving to get through the gathered mob, Sierra wished she had the comforting touch of Phoebe’s hand. But she was better off where she stood. Far safer. The smell of tobacco, body odor, and roasted corn filled the air, making Sierra’s stomach turn.
Bentwood stood in front of the crowd. “They declare we need to set the fairies free. To live without Flight, to do without our most profitable elixir. What say you, my people?”
“Noo!” The crowd’s roar shook Sierra’s body. The growl beneath the roar told her she’d somehow better get Corbin and Nell out of here soon.
“They say magic will save us. Let me show you what magic brings us.”
Two burly men climbed onto the stage, dragging Micah between their arms. Blood dripped from his mouth, and he stumbled as they yanked him along. Micah’s hands were chained, and his ankles were hobbled. His legs looked strange, like they bent differently than a human’s… and hooves were clearly visible below the hem of his pants.
Sierra’s mouth went dry, and a strange roaring filled her ears. Her knees barely held her up. He’d changed back into a faun. How terribly had they hurt him that he lost his hold on his magic? And what more would they do?
What had she done to him, bringing him here?
Queenie? Sierra thought, desperate to save Micah. Queen, are the other queens ready?
It looked like they were going to need them.
They forced Micah next to Bentwood. Corbin’s mouth hung open, and Nell’s cheeks were as pale as her hair. Sierra’s feet were frozen to the ground.
The men each took out a knife, and shock ran through Sierra like a lightning bolt.
Words whispered past her lips, almost like a prayer. “Not him! Not him!”
Her eyes burned as she stared at Micah’s hunched figure. It was the very thing she had feared. She told him not to come, didn’t she? And he’d come with her anyway.
They slapped him across the face.
“No! Stop!” The words exploded from her but were lost in the noise of the crowd.
They shook him and laughed at him. Sierra shouted louder, “Leave him alone! Not him! Please!”
Tears rolled from her eyes. Please! She was ready to beg for his life. He didn’t even know how much he meant to her. She had never let him see.
She shoved past people, uncaring about their startled cries. She cursed her small size, which slowed her down.
She would never reach the stage in time.
“Queen!” she cried, but the fairy still wasn’t there.
One of the men brandished his knife, and the crowd leaned forward in anticipation of a show. Sierra wanted to vomit.
But instead of the man slashing Micah’s throat, he sliced down the legs of Micah’s pants over and over. Bits of fabric flew off the stage, floating in the wind. Then the man stood back, leaving Micah alone center stage. He had nowhere to go. Micah was completely exposed for what he was, his furry faun’s legs clearly visible among the ragged strips of pants. The crowd gasped.
“It’s an abomination!” someone cried, and people started shouting.
Micah’s head hung down.
A new burst of energy slammed through Sierra. She pushed and weaved through the crowd again, eyes fixed on the faun. Corbin backed up to Nell, and Sierra could tell they were having a quick, hushed conference. Nell looked out over the crowd, sky blue eyes widening when she spotted Sierra making her way toward them. Nell’s gaze flickered to Bentwood before she shook her head at Sierra, the message clear: Don’t do anything stupid. Sierra shook hers back and pressed forward. She swore she could see Nell sigh from here.
“That’s right. They want to bring an army of these mismatched creatures to take over our world! They’ll make you all slaves!” Bentwood’s big, booming voice carried to the end of the courtyard.
Fury was stamped on Nell and Corbin’s face, but Sierra knew their rage would do no good. Suddenly, though, Nell’s head tilted back in a familiar way. Oh no, Sierra groaned. Not now.
Nell grabbed at her throat frantically, but her message wouldn’t be stopped. So much for keeping her new talent a secret from the alchemists.
“Why do you listen to a man known to lie and cheat? A man who steals your children and sells you only elixirs that enslave you?” Her new deep, gravelly voice soared over the crowd now quieted in shock.
Dread filled Sierra, but she kept moving forward.
Nell continued, “Have you not felt the groaning of the earth as the very land shakes in death? Where have all the fairies gone? Have you not wondered? The queens left in despair, you fools, and their little ones died from lack of magic. You have stolen from them for too long. The whole earth suffers. You are all tied together and must work together to save Aluvia for your children and your children’s children!”
A heavy hush flowed across the crowd. Her eyes were black as night now, startling in her pale, pale face, and people cried out as they saw her. Radiance shined from her, shocking even Sierra. A beautiful smile crossed Nell’s lips, making her stunning. Corbin certainly looked stunned, eyes nearly popping out of his head, but to his credit he watched the crowd around them carefully. If she passed out after this one, they’d all be in trouble.
Looks of fear and suspicion faded and turned to shame as Nell raised her voice louder. “Look at this lone, frightened creature of magic! Yes, magic! But where is his threat? Is he the one with the knife in his hand?”
Sierra’s knife was cold in her hand. She was getting closer.
“Where is this army this man says is coming? Besides the one of his that keeps you pinned here in this square?”
Mutterings filled the crowd, people hesitantly nodding.
Bentwood glared, jerking his head at the two men by Micah. While the man with the knife guarded Micah, the other hustled toward Nell, clearly intending to shut her up. With a shout, Corbin blocked him, the two of them grappling while Nell continued to prophesy.
Go, Corbin! Hang on a bit longer! Sierra edged even closer. She silently begged Micah to meet her gaze, but he continued staring at the ground.
“Why do you not fight back, people of Port Iona, and take back what is yours?”
Sierra tensed her arm muscles, preparing to jump onto the platform as soon as she reached the edge. She was almost there when she saw a face that made her knees too weak to move.
Her father stepped onto the stage.
ierra’s heart took off, racing faster than a merman’s tail. Nell remained in the grip of the prophecy. Micah was still in chains, and Corbin was wrestling the man away from N
ell. In a matter of seconds, Bentwood would no doubt call up reinforcements. Sierra’s rubbery legs would have to hold her. An icy wind slapped her in the face, giving her courage. She pushed aside the last two people in her way as Jack swung up his bow and arrow, then shot Micah in the chest.
Sierra tried to scream but had no breath left to make a sound. He crumpled on the stage, her father’s feathered arrow buried in his chest. When Micah groaned in pain, obviously still alive, Sierra gasped in relief. Thanks to the unexpected wind blasting through the courtyard, her father had missed Micah’s heart, but he was already drawing another arrow.
“No! Stop it!” Sierra vaulted up in front of Micah, rattling the wooden floorboards, uncaring about the cries of the people in the crowd.
The elders stood, uncertain of what to do. This was a colleague’s daughter, after all. They’d let him handle her.
Jack lowered his bow slightly and smiled. “Are you sure he’s worth it? You know he’s already dead, even if I didn’t hit his heart. A unicorn arrow means even a miss is a bull’s-eye.”
Despair acted as a weighted chain around Sierra’s neck. With an intensity matched only by her rage, she reached her mind to her fairy.
Queen! she called with all her soul. Bring the queens! Bring them all now!
At least Phoebe was safe no matter what happened. As long as she followed Sierra’s directions, her life would be spared, even though it would cost so much.
Sierra looked Jack right in the eye. “He’s worth everything. And you’re nothing.”
His face became immobile. That was his work face. She was only business now.
Jack redirected his aim from Micah to Sierra. She pulled up her knife, but it was a worthless defense against her father’s bow. Jack sent the arrow flying.
Sierra steeled herself for the hit, but Queen zipped in front of her.
A sharp sound like shattered glass roared through Sierra’s ears. Queen fell, fluttered to the ground, light dim, wings quivering. Sharp pain stabbed Sierra, right where her heart stuttered in her chest. Her legs buckled as horror swamped her soul.
“Queenie,” she whispered, kneeling beside the little fairy. The arrowhead was huge in comparison to Queen, taking up her entire midsection. Queens were incredibly strong, but Jack’s weapon of choice pitted magic against magic. Sierra yanked out the narrow, wickedly pointed tip, and thick golden fluid rushed from Queen’s body. Sierra’s chest tightened in response, but not only from the unexpected ripping pain at the thought of losing her fairy. A physical pain vibrated inside, jolting her stomach, squeezing her heart like a fist. She wondered if she was sharing Queen’s death. And if the fairy queen was dying, was Sierra?
Waves of heat and cold flashed along Sierra’s limbs, and a white explosion of light filled her eyes. She found herself lying down next to Queen. Her body seemed to have no choice. Corbin shouted, but it sounded as if he were a very far distance away. Micah lay on the ground, unmoving. She could barely make out Nell’s voice, her prophetic words garbled and faded, but then silence draped across Sierra’s mind.
She closed her eyes, but, instead of blackness, Sierra saw a golden sea below her, deep under the earth. She had a new way to see, a new set of eyes. The people around her were visible, though her eyes were still closed. It was as if she’d always had this type of vision.
Time slowed to a crawl. Everything around her was tinged with gray. Below the earth there remained a golden glow, but raw, red spots seeped through like lava boiling up in a golden river. She wanted to reach her hands into the golden river and take a deep drink. She understood somehow the energy of that river would revive her. In fact, her head was filled with knowledge, so much information she gasped as a torrent of arcane understanding flew through her mind. Through it all, she sensed Queen’s presence, her thoughts in the background as Sierra experienced what Queen knew. They were sharing at a level deeper than Sierra ever imagined. The door that opened between them that day at the cave was blown off its hinges.
And the golden river below? That was the magic holding their world together. Sierra felt she’d always known this. But the river was poisoned. The decay reached out, making her bones ache. She didn’t want to move, couldn’t imagine how she would ever move again.
“An unexpected bonus,” Jack said, prodding Sierra with one booted toe. When she didn’t move, he returned to the other end of the stage.
Queen, Sierra called. Don’t leave me. Don’t leave me.
Queen had saved her. Queen had given up her own life for Sierra. In all the years they’d been tied together, Sierra had never known how much Queen loved her. Sierra’s fairy queen loved her the way she loved Phoebe.
Queen loved Sierra like they were a part of each other. What was she saying? Sierra was a part of her.
And Queen was a part of the earth, part of the magic of their world.
Which meant so was Sierra.
She concentrated against the increasing hum in her ears and saw Queen’s link to the earth. It was like a golden ribbon tying her to the stream below, but it was fraying. It billowed in a breeze that came off the golden river but didn’t move Sierra’s hair or caress her skin, made as it was of magic, not air. Sierra couldn’t see it before, but she did now. Whatever had happened with Queen, they were knit together now beyond conscious thought.
Focusing on the golden flow of magic below, Sierra reached out with imaginary hands and strained toward it, knowing Queenie needed it. So Sierra dipped mental hands into the warm, sparkling waters and pulled, willing it to raise a new ribbon to her, siphoning off energy. A tiny waterspout formed, and Sierra pulled harder until the magic danced up from the stream and connected to her heart. The joining shocked her breathless; a jolt of pure energy poured into her.
She was fire. She was wind. She was earth. Her skin was too tight to hold her.
The earth pulsed now. Sierra sensed the entire depth and breadth of the land. She was utterly grounded, and was suddenly as ancient as the rocks that had stood against the pounding waves for eons.
She swirled the magic inside, the heat sparking along her spine. A thin line of shining energy connected her and her fairy. Sierra sent the energy crashing down the little ribbon to Queenie. She wouldn’t die, not if Sierra could help it. Not after she finally realized how much she needed her fairy queen. How much Sierra loved her.
Sierra had little control of this new, strange power, and a tidal wave swamped Queenie, washing away the ragged hole in her body. The flow of time returned with a snap. The fairy spun into the sky with a shock that reached to Sierra’s toes. Queenie shrieked, but the shriek turned to a tiny shout of triumph as her wings beat smoothly and her body was whole again. But the energy was too much for one fairy to hold. The power was like an electrical storm. They needed to be grounded, or the power would eat them alive.
Queenie flew to Micah and touched him. His head bowed back as she flooded him with magic. The power flash-burned the arrow to dust and started to heal him at a blindingly fast pace. Sending him so much magic drained the shocking overload on Queen’s system, on their system, enough so Sierra could see the regular, plain earth around her, too. It was a sad, sad place, but with so much potential. She saw how Aluvia was meant to be. Even now, the ground glowed ever so slightly, as did Micah. Queenie was incandescent.
With regret, Sierra slowly relinquished her new ribbon to the golden glow below. She couldn’t function properly with that double vision layered on top of everything. It amazed her that magical creatures must walk around with that kind of sight.
Then the ground started to tremble.
ueen flung herself at Sierra and burrowed into her hair. Sierra’s age-old terror erupted as the ground did. The shivering and groaning of the earth nearly flung them to the ground. People in the crowd screamed. They ran into each other in their attempts to get away, but they were piled in this space like fairies in an overcrowded hatch. Cracks crawled up the buildings nearby. She moaned, thinking of her little sister alone in this chaos.
Keep Phoebe safe! Sierra begged Queen, who zoomed into the air with a cry, zipping across the top of the crowd.
Micah’s arm landed across Sierra’s waist, pulling her close to him, holding her tightly even when they both fell from the stage as it shimmied and bounced.
Sierra curled up into a ball as her body slammed into the ground. Micah grunted as he rolled them to soften the impact. For that moment that lasted an eternity, Sierra was certain she was about to be swallowed up into the center of the earth.
But then a voice whispered inside her mind, one she had never heard before. It said, But now you’ve seen inside the center of the earth… and it’s beautiful.
The voice offered comfort, and, for once in her life, she took what help was offered. Thankful Micah was with her, she squeezed her eyes tight and tried to stay calm. If only she could know Phoebe was fine, that’d be easier to do.
Yes, yes… sister’s safe, Queen whispered, sending an image of a dusty but alert Phoebe crouched in the far corner of the square. Relief flooded Sierra, even though the earthquake continued. She could get through this now.
When the shaking stopped, Sierra and Micah heaved deep sighs, stood, and looked around. Bentwood had fallen, buried beneath a pile of rocks. It was pretty clear he wouldn’t be bothering Phoebe ever again. Sierra wasn’t exultant, though. She was glad Phoebe was safe from him, but Sierra’s earlier need for violence disappeared during her final bonding to Queenie.
Jack had fallen, too, near her, ten feet away from the stage, but he was already pushing his way to his feet. Corbin and Nell were still on the platform, which remained standing strong. Nell’s eyes still shined as black as the night.
With the red dust making a haze in the air, she spoke again, “So speaks the earth that has been too drained! So cry out the rocks from which you have stolen! This is the reason for the quakes that have grown in number! People of Aluvia, if you continue to misuse the fairies and steal their nectar and their magic, your ports will soon tumble into the sea! This is the truth! You are all held in the palm of the earth in a great net made of magic. The fairies are meant to keep the net spread wide as they fly through the wild places of Aluvia. They must spread their nectar wherever they go, sharing with other magical creatures! But you steal their nectar before they can collect enough for themselves. Even the fairy keepers aren’t enough to keep them healthy. The little fairies have died―and you are at fault! You are stealing from the land and from yourselves!”
