by C. J. Anaya
“That’s not happening,” Kheelan said through gritted teeth.
The Goblins let out what I thought was laughter and the one in the middle made a shrill whistle, which must have been the signal for all Goblins everywhere to reveal themselves. I slowly turned in a circle.
Surrounded. Everywhere I looked, menacing yellow eyes stared back at me.
No way I was becoming the wife of one of these disgusting creatures.
The Goblins began chanting in their rough sounding tongue. They lifted their hands, palms facing toward me, while auburn streaks of magic oozed from the tips of their clawed fingers. I shifted, unsure what to do when a bright, auburn ball of elemental magic suddenly formed around me.
What the hell?
I turned in a circle, examining the colorful prison while Kheelan and my father shot off several rounds of their own magic in an attempt to penetrate the shield. The blue threads of my father’s magic and the golden threads of Kheelan’s did nothing against the collective magical strength of the Goblin shield.
“You may disapparate from here,” said the Goblin in the middle. “She stays with us. Our payment for letting you leave unharmed.”
“You’re not taking my wife from me,” Kheelan said. “It is against Goblin law to steal another faerie’s mate.”
The Goblin sneered at him.
“There is no bond. No connection. It is clear she is not yet yours.”
While they argued back and forth, I decided, for once, to actually be helpful instead of useless. The whole damsel in distress thing was getting on my nerves. I lifted my hand and touched the auburn shield, feeling the energy of the magic tingle along my arm, through my shoulder, and toward my core. It felt inviting, familiar, and filling, like I needed more of it. Maybe I could draw the elemental magic into me. My core felt a bit hollow now that I actually focused on it. I placed my hand flat on the surface and pulled the magic toward me, through me, and into my core.
The shield winked out with nothing to power it, and all conversation stopped.
I looked at the slack-jawed faces of the Goblins surrounding us. Kheelan stared at me with chagrin and nervously flicked his eyes toward my father who was still trying to get the three Goblins in front of us to respond to him. He finally turned to look at me, realizing I was their sole focus.
He blinked in surprise and addressed the three Goblins again.
“Why did you lower the shield? Have you changed your mind?”
The Goblins abruptly dropped to their knees and bowed their heads.
“Forgive us, Princess. We had no way of knowing who you were under the glamour.”
My father looked at them in surprise.
“Her identity matters to you? Aren’t you following King Moridan’s orders now?”
“The Fates showed her to us and said she would save us all. We would not have recognized her as our queen without the shield’s removal.”
My father turned to Kheelan in confusion.
“What are they talking about?”
I was about to answer when Kheelan quickly intervened.
“The shield must have removed the glamour. That’s how they recognized her.”
My father grunted and again turned to address the Goblins.
“What are you doing?” I whispered to Kheelan. “Why didn’t you tell him I’m the one who removed the shield.”
“Just trust me on this,” he said. “It isn’t a subject we can get into at this time.”
I wanted to argue, but the Goblins were already moving from the path, allowing us to pass. I hurried after Kheelan and my father, but one of the Goblins spoke as I passed him.
“Princess, once you have need of us, let us know. We would help fight against the hold King Moridan has over us.”
I paused, more than happy to take that opening and get more information.
“Are you the ruler of this race?” At his nod, I continued. “What has Moridan done to make you accountable to him?” I asked. “Why can’t King Roderick help you?”
“We cannot tell the King Roderick or my daughter dies.”
I sucked in an angry breath.
“King Moridan has your daughter. Why?”
The yellow eyes of the Goblin King held something close to grief.
I felt ashamed for not considering that this race actually had feelings. No matter how foreign they looked to me, they were still beings who were capable of forming relationships and experiencing love. Whether Goblin, Yanrath, or Stargis, they lived and loved like the rest of us.
“We have what he needs, but now you are here, all will be well.”
I thought his faith in me was extremely unfounded, but I didn’t have the heart to tell him there was nothing I could do. Instead, I grabbed his hand and squeezed it, getting a surprised look from him in return.
“We’ll get your daughter back. I promise I’ll find a way.”
Now why did I have to go and make promises I had no way of keeping?
Simple. I hated to disappoint, and the thought of a father and daughter being forcefully separated made my blood boil. I had no idea how I would do it, but King Moridan’s arse was mine. I’d save the Goblin King’s daughter and anyone else who needed saving.
Somehow.
The Goblin bowed his head again and let me pass. My father and Kheelan both stared at me with varying looks of love, pride, and bemusement.
“You were right to promise him, Crysta,” my father said. “We will free everyone from King Moridan’s tyranny.”
Kheelan put his arm around me as we continued up the steep path.
“You’ll make a fine queen someday. I’ve never doubted it for a minute.”
Good thing. I harbored enough doubts for the both of us.
After another hour or so, the path widened into a flat plain where an immaculate garden with fresh water from gurgling streams weaved its way among flowers of bright pinks, reds, and purples. In the middle of the garden sat a marble altar with intricate floral designs along the sides and legs. On the right of the altar stood a wooden pillar that reached just a few inches above the height of the altar. Atop it was a silver bowl and a curved dagger. It’s hilt was also silver with a thin line of gold etched around the base.
I detected a hint of lavender and rose in the air.
It was a tranquil setting. I was afraid to hope for a tranquil outcome.
“What is this?” I asked.
“This is where we summon The Fates,” my father said.
He brought us to the base of the altar and then motioned for Kheelan and I to wait as he walked up the three steps leading to it. He reached for the bowl and knife, placed the bowl on the altar and in one swift movement slit his palm with the dagger.
I hissed in surprise and moved to stop him from hurting himself further, but Kheelan held me back.
“It’s fine, Crysta. To call The Fates, a blood sacrifice must be made. He must drop some of his blood within the bowl and leave it on the altar. The blood, coupled with the spell opens a portal for The Fates to come through. They then take the blood of the one summoning them and ingest it so they can see their life span.”
“Disgusting,” I muttered under my breath as my father began chanting something in a strange tongue. The whole thing gave me the heebie jeebies. It reminded me of cult practices, not that I had any idea where that thought came from.
My father stepped away from the table as the golden bowl on the altar began to tremble. Bright light shot from the bowl straight up to the sky, blinding me for a moment. The light dimmed by degrees, and when I finally opened my eyes, three of the ugliest looking people I had ever seen stood behind the altar.
And that was saying something, considering our recent run-in with the Goblins.
Shaggy, gray hair hung wild and free yet unable to hide the grotesque, over-sized ears that came to a point on either side of their heads. Warts covered the puke green color of their skin, and their wide noses and huge teeth made the lower half of their jaws appear much larg
er than the rest of their skulls, which looked more cone shaped than anything else. Tattered robes covered in mud, leaves, and twigs adorned their squat bodies, as if they’d decided to roll down a muddy hill for the hell of it.
They may have been Seers, but damn if they weren’t all Goblin.
And for the life of me, I couldn’t tell if they were male or female.
Not that it really mattered.
Without a word they took turns guzzling down the blood within the bowl, snorting and licking it until there was nothing left. I had to hold back my gag reflex, a next to impossible accomplishment.
Once they set the bowl down, blessed silence permeated the area. I breathed a sigh of relief until the one in the middle pointed to my father.
“Rodri, you are allowed one question, but be warned, highness, too much knowledge of what lies before us has the power to destroy what could have been…”
“…what should have been…” said the one on the right.
“…and what is meant to be…” said the one on the left.
Female from the sound of their high-pitched voices.
“I am well aware of the risks, but I fear our future is destroyed either way if I don’t have the proof necessary to turn the tide of opinions in my favor.”
“What proof do you seek?” said the one in the middle.
“King Moridan’s Dark Arts have poisoned the land. If we are to stop him we must go to war, but most royals will not risk a civil war against the Seelie Court without some sort of assurance that we will be victorious. I need the Saytr King’s support, and I will not have it without assurances of our success. I must know if you see our victory or our defeat should we come against King Moridan to save the Fae realm.”
The Fates remained silent for a moment. I had no idea if they were contemplating whether to answer or if they were using their prophetic abilities at the moment to scan the future and reach a verdict.
Seemed like cheating to me, but I wasn’t about to argue since the alternative was the continued destruction of the realm and its inhabitants.
The Fate in the middle lifted her finger and pointed at me.
“Crysta.”
I swallowed down my surprise and nervousness.
“Come forward, child.”
I did as instructed, climbing the steps to the altar and standing much closer to them than was comfortable. Thank heavens the altar was wide.
Nothing like an effective buffer.
I sincerely hoped they weren’t thirsty. I wasn’t about to rip open a vein and accommodate them on that front.
“What does Crysta have to do with this?” my father asked.
“Queen Insley hid the source of King Moridan’s destruction and where to find it within the recesses of her mind. Help her remember what her mother planted within her memories. Find the key to bringing down King Moridan and you will save the Fae realm.”
Really?
Really?
“You’re saying the solution to our problem, the key to getting rid of him and saving everyone within this realm, is locked away inside my memories?”
The Fates nodded and the irony of it made me want to rip my hair out.
“Sort through your memories. Find the one your mother spelled you to forget.”
“Newsflash,” I said through gritted teeth. “I have no memories. I can’t remember a single thing up until a few weeks ago.”
The Fate in the middle shifted, her creepy eyes locking on me with uncomfortable intensity.
“Even before you forgot everything, this particular memory was lost to you. You were not given access to it. You must remember, or King Moridan succeeds and everyone dies.”
I heard Kheelan let out a few expletives behind me and my father groaned in despair.
The Fates merely stared at us with their creepy bloodshot eyes, and then they took their leave through a blinding blast of white light.
I shielded my eyes against the glare, opening them only after a faint chirping of birds and the gurgling noise of a nearby stream caught my attention. I wanted to take in the wonder of this area, drink in the serenity and beauty of its paradise, but it all seemed a bit out of place after dealing with three creatures who’d just landed us the worst bad-news bomb ever.
“Flaming hobgoblins, that was not what I expected to hear. If Insley had discovered a way to defeat King Moridan, why the hell didn’t she tell me?” my father shouted running a hand through his hair in frustration.
“Maybe she tried to, but was killed before she had a chance to speak,” I said. “If your brother Roderick is in league with King Moridan as you’ve stated, then neither one of them would want my mother’s discovery to come to light.”
“She must have planted it in your mind for safekeeping just in case,” Kheelan said. “Smart woman.”
“Brilliant, to be sure, but what we most need at the moment is something we have zero access to,” my father said.
“Kheelan has been working on spells to heal my mind and restore my memories over the last few weeks,” I said. “Maybe he can find the spell within my brain cloaking this secret and root it out.”
“You’ve been trying to help her remember?” my father asked in surprise.
A strange look passed between them as Kheelan made an almost imperceptible shake of his head. My father covered up his confusion quickly, but I thought their exchange was mighty strange.
“You’re right, Crysta. Even though Kheelan hasn’t been successful in healing the damage to your brain, he might be able to extract that one memory since it was encased within a spell. Her signature would certainly be there, pinpointing its location. Even I could find it easily enough.”
“There’s one problem,” Kheelan said. “I can reveal the memory, but in order for her to process it, that area of her brain will have to heal first, and there is some slight scarring there that I haven’t been able to repair. I have to be successful in that first before she can process the information her mother embedded within her mind.”
“So she has to remember everything at once. It’s all or nothing?”
Kheelan gave my father a grim look and nodded.
I understood their frustration. Kheelan had had zero luck healing my mind and restoring my memories let alone a spelled one meant to be forgotten. We had the source of our success within reach and no way to retrieve it.
Then a thought occurred to me.
“We can still tell the Saytr King what The Fates have told us. We don’t have to tell him my memory is shot to pieces. All he needs to know now is victory is certain, and we have the key to King Moridan’s downfall.”
My father nodded.
“Half-truths. I don’t like it when dealing with the Saytr King. He’s a shrewd faerie who has no patience for those who are not completely forthcoming, but as you said, we know for certain we can win this war, and that’s all that matters.”
“And once it’s time to share what I’m supposedly going to remember, what then?”
Kheelan wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me to him.
“One thing at a time. Right now, we need to focus on our meeting with the Saytr King. When we meet him tomorrow, we’ll let your father do the talking, present our case, and hopefully we’ll have another ally to move this campaign forward.”
One step at a time then. I hoped to high heaven Kheelan was successful in retrieving my memories once everyone demanded to know what exactly this secret weapon, this key to King Moridan’s destruction, actually turned out to be.
No one wanted to find out more than I did.
“We’d better head out,” my father said. “And for the sake of time and our own mental health and happiness, we’re going to break a few rules and disapparate the hell out of here.”
Amen to that.
I leaned against Kheelan and closed my eyes, waiting for that strange tugging sensation to take place. I could have disapparated out of there myself, but I had no idea where we were going next.
Just before we
disapparated, my father said, “You can do it, Kheelan?”
“Yes,” was Kheelan’s soft reply. “But not until the wedding. Surely, you see the wisdom in that.”
I wanted to ask them what they were referring to, but we were already disappearing from the top of Goblin Mountain. This type of travel was distracting enough to make me forget my line of questioning, and I was anxious to meet the Saytr King. I didn’t know much about him, but it seemed he held quite a bit of sway among the rulers of the Unseelie Court.
I sincerely hoped he’d sway everyone to our side.
The Saytr King’s massive fortress looked one hundred percent menacing. A thick wall of blackened vines circled round the entire edifice and outer courtyard, supporting a battlement where ghoulish creatures peered down from their perch with specific intent to glare. The fortress itself appeared to be constructed of the same thick vines currently blocking our entrance to the courtyard. The vines were twisted and gnarled, looking as if the castle had literally grown on its own from the ground up, twirling and tapering into four separate towers that came to a point at each corner of the edifice.
I knew what a drawbridge was since we were waiting for it to be lowered, and I had an idea of what a Keep was since that’s where we were headed, but forget about finding my way around this lethal looking place.
I’d be lost in a heartbeat.
I was sandwiched between Kheelan and my father who both appeared a little nervous. Did that have to do with the intimidating look of the fortress or their concern for my safety?
They hadn’t told me much about our destination other than to warn me to stay close to them and avoid looking at the creatures we encountered. We may have needed the Saytr King’s support in our efforts to overthrow King Moridan, but we didn’t want to be attacked in this volatile setting.
Peachy.
Kheelan and my father argued extensively about bringing me with them. Kheelan insisted I come since Jareth had been so close to catching me, but my father worried that I would pique the interest of a member of the Saytr race. Apparently, this particular race took to wife any female they wished, regardless of what the female wanted. A horrific thought, but also unlikely in my case since I was heir to the Unseelie Court, and soon to be ruler over the Saytr King.
