Queen of Midnight: A Dark Fae Fantasy Romance (Court of Lies Book 3)

by Olivia Hart

  I pulled out my gloves, slipping them over my hands. Then I reached into the little pouch that I’d begun carrying with me. Taking a handful of iron dust from it, I began to sprinkle it over the girl’s face.

  She closed her eyes and began to scream and writhe on the bed as the sound and smell of sizzling flesh filled the room for the third time today. She would break soon enough. I’d thought it would only take a few days, but she was becoming unreasonably stubborn. I would have to push her harder in the next day or two.

  The Dark Queen would need time to build siege equipment. Not long with the number of trolls and ogres she’d managed to convince, but still several days.

  She was the only one that had to die for this entire war to end, and this filthy creature laying on the table was the way for me to end it all quickly.

  And then she began to speak. A voice that I barely remembered. Not the one that plagued me now. No, this was a stronger voice. A Queen’s voice.

  “Even the Court of Light understands sacrifices, Seraphina.” I looked down into the abomination’s eyes and saw a dark flame in them as she smiled. “And though she has sacrificed everything in her life, she has found love that will never die. A family that loves her. A family that chose her. She is what a Princess of Light should be.”

  The pain that had plagued me for months rose up inside me, ripping through my chest like lightning. My hand went to my breast, as I struggled to breathe. Words I had said once before. “I choose you, Nicolai. I give up everything. My world. My magic. My family. My life. Everything about me, I give it up so that I can have a love that will never die. Even after the void takes us, may we never be alone.”

  Then that man’s voice came back to me once more. You’re not alone. I have always been beside you. Even after the void took me, I couldn’t stay gone.

  “NO!” I screamed. “I don’t know you! Go away!” Anger replaced the pain, and even as the tears welled up in my eyes, I grabbed another handful of iron shavings.

  I threw them at the child’s face, and she began to scream once again. Ignoring her screams, I dug another handful out and threw it at her. Again and again until my pouch was empty. That terrible little creature’s screams soothed me. I was not the only one that ached. I slipped down next to the bed, and I put my hands over my eyes, willing the tears to stop flowing.

  Why did I hurt so badly? Why did it feel like my heart was being torn to pieces constantly? An image of an orange crystal dagger appeared in my mind, and I knew it. The dagger I had hidden. Covered in a silk cloth. Never look at it again. My simple instructions to myself.

  But how could I possibly make this pain go away without knowing what it was?

  Chapter 36

  Sebastian

  The troops were arrayed. Rose, a team of three of her goblin guards, myself, and, surprisingly, Embrys sat on the back of centaurs at the front of the army. Fairies hovered above. Siege towers had been built, but they wouldn’t be used. Catapults were already raining stones down on the walls of the Court of Light, softening their defenses.

  We were ready. The final battle between the Dark and Light. The final battle that would decide the fate of the world.

  The troops shifted nervously. No one had ever seen anything like this, and even the most courageous of warriors knew that this could be their last day in the Immortal Realm.

  Besides the steady winding of catapults, the world seemed silent until someone shouted, and thousands of soldiers began pointing and whispering. A ripple ran through the ranks as I looked up and saw something that I had never imagined.

  Dozens and dozens of dragons, both light and dark began to descend from the sky. Their scales blazed even in the brightness of the Realm of Light. The largest two, a dark male and a light female landed with a boom only a few feet away from Rose and me.

  Dust and gravel sprayed as their claws crushed the ground below them. For a moment, I was afraid that they would attack us, destroying our army before we even had a chance to defend the Immortal Realm. Seraphina always had a new surprise, and though I’d never imagined it, for a moment, I thought she might have allied herself with the dragons.

  But then Rose spoke, “You will not fight this war.” The words were a command. She urged her centaur forward, and even though I could feel his terror, he did as his Queen said.

  The male lowered his head towards the ground, letting Rose come within a few feet of him. “You know the law, Dark Queen. You do not command dragons.” The voice was less words and more rumbling. I remembered the way that Nyx’s voice had sounded.

  “No, but this is an issue between the Courts. You will not fight.” Once again, the words were a command.

  “You have grown, Queen of Darkness,” the male said. “We will not fight, but we will witness. The repercussions will decide the fate of this world.”

  She nodded to the dragon and turned around, going back to her place beside me. The dragons took to the air again, joining their brethren to land just outside of where the armies were arrayed. They sat up straight and focused on what was happening. It was not a very dragon-like pose, but it showed just how interested they were in the events of today.

  As the ranks calmed down behind us, Rose left her seat, lifting herself into the air. I turned to look up at her and saw the entire army staring at her. Their Queen. The fairy that they were willing to lay down their lives for. The one who they were willing to fight against an entire Realm for.

  A strange mechanism floated through the air from the back ranks, lifted by liquid shadow until it floated in front of her. Made of bronze, it was conical, one end was almost ten feet wide while the other was small enough for Rose to fit her lips just inside of it.

  When she spoke, her voice was amplified until nearly all of the army could hear her. She’d found a purpose for this megaphone idea.

  “People of the Dark Realm,” she began. “It is time to don your LightBans.”

  She paused, and I watched as thousands upon thousands of hands went to side pouches. One by one, they slid a pair of goblin-made sunglasses over their armor, and the world was made dark enough for them to feel comfortable. If only Nyx had owned a pair of these.

  When the motion ended, she began to speak. “Today, we fight a battle unlike any in the entire history of the Immortal Realm. We do not fight against a Queen, and we do not fight against the Court of Light. We fight against corruption and tyranny. We fight against those who have forgotten what it meant to live in the Immortal Realm.”

  “Today, we fight, and we may die so that those who live will be able to live freely, the way that they choose. Everyone dies eventually. The thing that matters is whether we are allowed to live while our hearts still beat. Today, we will make sure that happens.”

  “You are from the Dark Realm, from the place where strength of arm and strength of heart are forged. You were born to fight and survive, and today is no different. Even the dragons have come to witness the strength of the Dark Realm.”

  “So steady your arm and ready yourself. Today, you will test your metal against the fires of the Court of Light. You will not crack. You will not fail. Someday, the Dark Realm may fail, but it will not be today. It will not be this fight.”

  Rose put her hand against the bronze megaphone, and somehow, it exploded in a flash of light and shadow. I could feel the thousands of people around us become excited. It was time.

  I watched Rose slowly drop back into her seat next to me, and I gave her a quick smile. “Ready?”

  She nodded, and I said, “Go,” to the centaur I rode. Immediately, he began the charge. Within seconds, the war machines on the walls began to fling rocks and giant bolts the size of trees at our troops.

  Thousands upon thousands of centaurs beat the ground with their hooves as they raced across the field. Fairies flying above us extended massive shields to protect the troops, blocking the projectiles being flung from the walls.

  Fairies rose from the castle walls, beams of light and fire flaring from their fingerti
ps at the dark fairies protecting the troops. Fairies began to fall from the sky, their bodies burnt and broken as they crashed into the ground among the charging centaurs.

  I glanced at Rose when we were halfway across the field, and she nodded. We were close enough. Reaching out to her, I tapped into her Queen’s Gift and created a warren beneath us that led to the gatehouse. Shadows extended around Rose, and I leaped into the air. As soon as my foot touched the ground, I slid through the shadow into the warren.

  My momentum carried me into a wall within the warren, and I felt bone crack. My magic healed it instantly, and I was on my feet almost immediately. Sliding through the barely wide enough warren, I reached the end of it. I touched the wall and saw the image of the wheel that would be used to lower the drawbridge into the city.

  The room was filled with soldiers. All of them were terrified. They were no different than the Dark Realm’s soldiers. Yes, some of the Court of Light had battle experience, but most of them were just as untested as ours. You could see it in their eyes and in the way they gripped their weapons too tightly.

  I only held the image in my mind for a moment before I slid into the room that had been packed with guards. They milled around nervously. Not all fairies or elves, there were people that didn’t glow as we’d known would happen.

  A giant from the mountains stood in the center of the room with a heavy club in his hand. Giants looked just like men except that they were massive. Even larger than ogres, they were impossibly large. This one had long brown hair that hung to the middle of his back. He wore a brown shirt that was nearly as large as a house made of rough-spun thread that looked almost as thick as yarn. His pants were made of patched together animal skins of all different shapes and sizes. All around him were elves with crossbows. Fairy magic was too dangerous to use in a room this packed.

  I slid out of the shadows between the giant’s shirt and pants. Immediately, even before I’d hit the ground, I formed two copies of myself from mist, not even trying to make them solid. They were barely more than shadows in the room, but they flew around the ceiling as I fell to the ground in front of two very surprised elves.

  My daggers were in my hand instantly, and I shoved them through the elves’ breastplates before they’d raised their crossbows. I heard bolts hit the stone ceiling as soldiers tried to kill the mist in their nervousness. My daggers moved faster than ever before, my power enhancing my speed.

  Elves died as I moved through the crowd, and then I heard a bellow. With a quick glance at the giant, I realized he had finally turned around. Not caring what collateral damage occurred, he swept the club through the elves in golden plate. I leaped upward, and as I touched the wall, handholds formed.

  Mist rose from the floor of the gatehouse even as soldiers began to call for reinforcements. I dropped to the ground and bolts hit the spot I’d held onto for that split second.

  I could feel the soldiers’ pain and fear. Each and every one that had been thrown across the room from the club of that giant had broken bones, and it took everything that I had to keep my mind focused on my plan. There was so much more riding on our success than a few broken bones.

  Racing through the mist, I found the door to the room, and I squatted down to touch the floor. As soldiers ran to reinforce the gatehouse, I heaved, and stone rose from the ground, blocking the doorway.

  And then, with a crack, I felt half the bones in my body break as the giant hit me in the back with his club. I screamed out in pain as he raised the club over his head to slam it down on top of me. Magic raced to my broken body, healing shattered bones in seconds, but even that was too long.

  Slumped against the wall, my legs no longer functioning, I put my hands to the ground once again and pulled a slab of stone upward in front of me. The club crashed down and hit the stone with a crack so loud that it made my ears ring. I watched as the head of the club broke and hung loosely from the end.

  I felt my feet again, and though nothing was completely healed, I stood up. My body screamed in agony as I forced it to move before I was healed completely. Crossbow bolts sang through the air, and more than a few of the soldiers bellowed in pain as they were hit by their comrades. The mist was doing its work, but I was moving too slowly. The cavalry would be almost to the gate, and they were depending on me to open it.

  I got up and ran to the wench. With a quick slice with the obsidian blade, the rope was cut, and the drawbridge began to fall. I slid into the shadows that were everywhere within the mist.

  My hand went to the walls as soon as I was in the warren. My fingers traced a line until I saw an image of Rose nearing the palace. I moved into the shadow that she held over my centaur, and a half-second later, I appeared on his back. He turned his head in surprise, and I smiled as we watched the drawbridge slam into the ground only a few dozen feet in front of us.

  All of that had been done in a matter of a few minutes.

  The centaurs slowed as they were forced to fit across the bridge. Fiery explosions filled the air as fairies battled above us. I caught a glimpse of an assassin causing havoc amongst the enemy archers. Harpies lifted soldiers off the wall and dropped them into the river below.

  It was pure and utter chaos.

  The screams of the wounded and dying were everywhere, but we knew that this would be the way of it. As we crossed the drawbridge, our centaurs pulled off to the side, and Rose, the goblins, Embrys, and I all climbed off. The centaurs went back to the terrible battle that would take place within the city.

  All of our small band touched my hand, and we slid into the warren that would lead to the palace. Seraphina would not be caught in the city. Her Queen’s Gift would bolster the fairies who defended the Court of Light, but she would not risk battle. Not with anyone other than Rose.

  It took far more energy than I had expected to transport all of us into the warren, but I wasn’t worried about wasting power now. I led them through the tunnel, and the goblins murmured amongst themselves. I heard the phrase, “There was a sparkle.” That was goblins for you. We were in the middle of the biggest battle in the history of the Fae, and they were worried about gemstones in warrens.

  I touched the end of the warren and saw the place I needed. The Throne Room. As I’d expected, the stone that Rose had pulled up was still there, and the broken artificery box was there as well.

  And neither of them glowed.

  “Ready?” I asked.

  Little murmurs of acceptance were all I heard, but that was all I could hope for. They touched my hand, and with a deep breath, I slid into the Throne Room.

  Chapter 37

  Andryn

  Soldiers collided in the streets that had once been my home. Golden plate rang against silver shields. Overhead, the fairies battled. The catapults had stopped slinging stones as soon as we had entered the city. Now, ogres used the rubble to mow down lines of soldiers in gold.

  I stood behind my regiment of pikemen. Their spears were tucked between shields as we slowly pushed further down the main street of the Court of Light. The enemies were giving ground, but they had a fairy behind them that was controlling the air. Crossbows were useless, and our thrusts were constantly being pushed into shields. It was only through sheer numbers that we made any headway.

  And then a giant appeared from behind a building. My men and I scattered as he approached. There was nothing that a group of pikemen could do against a giant. All that ground we’d claimed was lost.

  He stepped over the enemy pikemen like they were a branch in his way, and I turned and ran just as quickly as my men. Throwing our lives away was useless.

  But then a black cloak appeared out of a shadow on the back of the giant’s shirt. The man appeared immediately afterward, and before he could fall, he gripped the shirt and pulled himself upward like a squirrel climbing a tree, obsidian dagger in one hand. The giant tried to reach behind him to rip the half-fairy from his back.

  The assassin grabbed the long locks of hair that hung from the giant’s head, a
nd swung upward, landing squarely on top of his head. Before the giant could shake him off, he reached in front of the giant’s face and plunged the dagger into the giant’s eye. The giant screamed, and a massive hand swatted at the assassin.

  But the assassin was already gone, sliding into a warren to wreak havoc somewhere else. I screamed for my troops, and surprisingly, most of them attended the call. I formed them up into ranks quickly enough, and we rushed the giant. The enemy stared up in shock as he began to swing wildly, ignoring the men under his feet.

  Several of them were crushed in their shock, but the rest of them fled, ignoring the scream of the fairy controlling the air. My men, as afraid as they were, showed their courage as they rushed a creature that could kill them with a single swing.

  They circled the giant’s ankles and began to stab upward, piercing his calves, and ripping away at the muscles that were as strong as iron. He began to bellow and stomp, but my men were agile enough to move out of his way.

  Above us, two fairies battled. One, a light fairy that had control of lightning, and the other, a water fairy from the Dark Realm. The strikes of lightning were uncontrolled, and many of them arced down to the ground with loud explosions. Water poured down on the men, most of whom barely noticed it.

  The enemy pikemen began to form ranks behind the giant but didn’t seem to want to be trampled again, and so they stayed back. They screamed at the giant and my men, but they didn’t get into the range of the rampaging monster.

  I was proud of the men that I’d trained. Working together, these hundred men were slowly taking down one of the strongest of the enemy’s forces.

  The enemy pikemen began moving forward, not wanting to be trampled accidentally, but also not wanting us to manage to kill the giant. Everyone knew that if we could only manage to take him to the ground, we could kill him.