Crowned A Traitor: A Hellish Fairytale

by Kate Callaghan

  “You don’t believe me?” Lottie frowned.

  “Wolfgang!” Lottie called out. The sound of her voice echoed thanks to the sparse trees.

  “Shhh Lottie, it’s okay. I believe you both.” Wolfgang heard Lottie cry out and stopped, but Klara waved him on telling him it was okay to continue. He lingered for a moment until Arthur joined his side.

  “So not sad flowers?” Klara joked, and Lottie stuck her button nose high in the air.

  “Nah. You’re too sweaty to smell like flowers,” Lottie snorted correcting her earlier statement. “But I like sweaty clouds,” Lottie said, dropping her head on Klara’s shoulder.

  “With night about to fall, we have to make camp,” Arthur reasoned as the ground was incredibly thick with mud making every step twice as long and draining.

  I should have just left a year ago, stolen jewels from the vault and taken my chances. Klara cursed herself as a sleeping Lottie stirred in her arms. If it hadn’t been for her heart, Klara would have been able to move twice as fast, but now she feared overexertion. Staring at the back of Wolfgang’s head made her question her abilities, why could I see through Lokey’s glamour but see nothing when I touch him?

  Klara suppressed her magic for fear of being tracked, but when the Centaurs had gotten close, there wasn’t even a hint of warning from her core. The self-doubt knawed at her, but she had to ignore it if they were to press on.

  Arthur and Wolfgang drop to their knees, and she did the same. Lottie’s weight threw her off balance and Klara gripped the bark of the tree beside her to balance herself.

  “What is it now?” Klara grunted freeing her foot from the sinking mud.

  “I can’t tell,” Wolfgang said, scanning the trees. They didn’t have the time to keep stopping.

  What remained of the potion in their systems would only last so long, and then the Hounds would be upon them. Not wanting to waste time Klara scanned the trees letting her eyes flash to black.

  Wolfgang stared at her eyes, his mouth agape. Klara didn’t have time to pan him off with an excuse. As she uncapped her magic, she felt it, but it was faint. She used just enough magic to sense that whatever was out there was more powerful than a Creature of Malum.

  Klara eased Lottie from her back and moved away from the group letting her senses become clearer. Her hands grew heavy as they ached to reveal what was coming for them. She was about to touch the earth, but there they were, in plain sight.

  The patrolling Fae emanated a bright sapphire aura as they emerged from the trees. Klara figured it must be a random patrol as they weren’t coming at them in formation. Instead, they wandered through the trees keeping a level distance between themselves. Klara eyed the weapons secured at their sides. They were tracking something, but they weren’t ready to engage. Klara started to back up slowly and signaled for Arthur and Wolfgang to do the same.

  “I’m scared,” Lottie whispered as Klara helped her up onto her back. The potion wouldn’t be as potent after so long, and once the Fae got close enough, they would be able to sense them but not track them.

  There was nowhere to hide, so they forced a retreat. “Move!” Klara mouthed to Wolfgang as a Fae turned towards them. Wolfgang nodded stiffly, and Arthur vanished into thin air, the benefits of being dead.

  Klara noticed that even though the trees were few and far apart, the tops were dense clusters of interwoven branches. If they could climb, the Fae wouldn’t be able to see them amongst the thick leaves and branches. Klara wasn’t sure if the Fae would be able to sense them that high up in the clear air.

  “Arthur,” Klara called quietly as Wolfgang stood one tree over keeping an eye on the approaching Fae. Arthur reappeared over her shoulder, and she pointed up the tree. Wolfgang and Arthur’s gaze followed hers to the top.

  “We climb, they might not be able to sense us from there. Get to the top, and I’ll know if I’m able to sense you,” Klara said, handing Lottie to Arthur. With her unreliable powers, she hoped she would be able to protect them. She sensed their quiet doubt, and she saw the concern on their faces.

  “Arthur is going to take you up and remember to be as quiet as a mouse,” Klara said, holding a finger to her lips and Lottie mimicked her action. Klara could see her small hand shaking. Before Klara could say go, they were gone. Another perk of being dead, being able to climb a fifty-foot tree without gaining a single splinter.

  “Where are they going?” Wolfgang rushed to Klara as his sister evaporated before his eyes.

  “She is safe up top, we can hide until the patrol passes.”

  “How do you know that is going to work and then we are stuck in a damn tree?”

  “There is no cover down here, and we can’t outrun them, Hell we could run into another patrol.”

  “You want your sister safe or caged in a Fae prison?” Wolfgang’s jaw clenched. “If something happens to her.”

  “Hold the angst and trust me,” Klara’s words came out as an order.

  “The patrol is getting closer,” Wolfgang warned. If they found them, Klara would be sent straight back into the arms of those trying to kill her.

  “Sense anything?” Wolfgang asked, and she felt no energy from above them. “No, the energy of the tree is masking them.”

  “Can you see the Fae?” He asked, looking at her suddenly white eyes. All she saw was the vibrant blue aura in the distance. Klara saw his unease as she revealed a part of herself that she didn’t even understand.

  “Can you not stare?” Klara asked, and Wolfgang opened his mouth, but nothing came out. “I can’t sense them, but that could be the potion.”

  “Heat sensor, I can see it when your eyes change,” Wolfgang said, and his eyes flashed amber, “I can do the same.”

  They both looked at the tree line and saw nothing. Heat sensor, she had never considered it before. It was the ability of a Creature, and yet she wasn’t born of the divided lands. At least Wolfgang’s eyes were beautiful while she looked like a soulless Demon.

  “I’ll follow you up, make sure I can’t see you either,” Klara ordered. She watched the trees as Wolfgang climbed quickly. Klara could hear the barking of orders as the Fae grew close. She leapt halfway up the tree just above Wolfgang hearing him curse quietly as she frightened him.

  Wolfgang climbed up beside her, “you scared the shit out of me. I could have fallen.”

  “Use your claws, and you won’t fall,” she snapped being unreasonable. She’d practically leapt on top of him.

  “The Fae were getting too close they would have spotted me,” Klara admitted.

  They climbed in silence until they reached the top. They sat on the second-highest branch, and Klara tried to peer down to the Forest floor to see if the Fae were passing through. But the branches and leaves were too thick, and she wasn’t going to risk climbing back down. If she couldn’t see the Fae, it meant they couldn’t see them either.

  Klara gripped a branch and snaked her mind through the tree to see the Fae below flustered and arguing. The tree would mask a small amount of magic. Klara watched the patrol head in the wrong direction. She was about to release her grasp when she saw him.

  Frendall is in the Forest, but it was all wrong he was blurry and distorted. She gripped tighter, knowing she shouldn’t use so much magic, but she needed to know how close he was, if he was real.

  The branch cracked and splintered in her hand, and Frendall’s blurry face disappeared. Her pounding heart settled as Arthur’s hand found her shoulder and Frendall evaporated entirely.

  “Are they gone?” Wolfgang asked. Klara nodded, unable to talk of whom she’d seen. Klara tried to use another branch, but Arthur grabbed her wrist, “don’t.” He was trying to protect Klara from herself. Arthur dropped her wrist and went to sit with Lottie perched on the highest branch. Lottie stared out at the magnificent view, and Klara followed her gaze.

  This plane was a lie itself; one moment, swamps and mountains surrounded them, and then seas and lakes appeared. There was no natural order. Ev
ery natural element had been created and placed by magic for the furthering and protection of the land and its inhabitants. Unlike the Human World, where magic was so low in concentration that Mother Nature shaped the land. Klara would like to see the Human plane, walk amongst the Humans and see what it would be like to live in a society with no magic. She had hoped that one day she would accompany her Father on one of his trips. Fine chance of that happening now.

  “It’s beautiful,” Lottie’s teeth chattered in the cold air. They stared at the Northern parts of Malum right into the mountains of Kalos and the ocean that divided them. “Yes, it is.”

  Klara heard as Wolfgang’s eyes drifted from her to the ocean. Had he meant me? She ran a hand over her bald head. Different, yes but beautiful she wasn’t sure. She thought of Eve’s feminine beauty and Lilith’s hard but gracious edges, they were beautiful.

  Klara noticed the tension in Wolfgang’s body as he watched the skies. She felt a stirring in her chest. The same stirring, she felt when Frendall’s hands had found her waist in the pantry. She turned her attention to Arthur, who watched her with a smug smile.

  “What?” Klara said, and he shrugged his lean shoulders. “Nothing just admiring the view,” Arthur winked, and she hated the guilt she felt as Frendall’s shadowy figure filled her mind.

  Is he hunting me or searching for me? Klara asked herself, needing to know either way.

  “We’ll stay for a few hours after nightfall. They won’t patrol this deep into the Neutral Lands at night. They’ll concentrate their forces close to the border,” Klara said. She figured there would be little danger in any roaming nocturnal Creatures. Wolfgang didn’t argue to her surprise.

  “What about Abadan and Mila? They won’t stop for night or patrols,” Arthur said, readjusting his position on the branch.

  “It was your idea to make camp. Sure, we can leave right now if you want me to slaughter a whole heap of Fae in front of a child and have both the Fae Queen and Abadan come down on us.”

  “That’s not what I was suggesting,” Arthur scrubbed his lined forehead.

  “We’ll have to risk it,” Klara said. “You three will go ahead, and I’ll remain here for a time. By then the potion should have worn off. They want me, not you.” Klara knew it would be harder for the Hounds to track separate sources of energy.

  “No, we aren’t leaving you behind. We have gotten this far because we were together,” Wolfgang argued.

  “The three of you can pass through without me, and if I am not dead then I’ll catch up,” Klara reasoned, and Wolfgang winced at their reality. There was a long silence as Wolfgang looked at Lottie.

  “We will wait for you.”

  Klara ignored him knowing he had his sister to think of.

  “At the end of the Forest, you’ll reach the field and will be exposed in the open. You have to pass through the gateway as quick as possible.”

  “We can help you fight. We stay together. We still don’t know how close the others are.”

  Klara knew Wolfgang thought she was rash, but when she reached into the Forest, she felt Abadan’s ever grasping talons stirring in her veins. The High Queen might not be close, but she wasn’t far either, and at their current pace, they wouldn’t make it.

  Klara leaned in closer to Wolfgang supporting herself on the branch.

  “Think about Lottie, what happens to her if you get caught?”

  Arthur began muttering to Lottie in the background, and Klara knew Arthur didn’t want Lottie to hear them. “Come, Lottie, let’s get some sleep,” Arthur said, and Lottie crawled into his arms. Arthur closed his eyes, but she knew he didn’t need to sleep. He was just giving them space.

  “After all that big talk, you are going to hand yourself over on a platter,” Wolfgang inched closer to her.

  “I won’t go down easily, and I usually find a way to survive Abadan’s plots.” There was a higher chance of the Hounds catching her than the Fae; either way, her fate would be the same. She wanted to save at least two lives, and a soul meant for Abadan’s flames. If Klara genuinely thought she belonged in the lands of Kalos, then she had to put them first.

  “We will wait,” Wolfgang said stubbornly, but she knew if the choice came between keeping his sister safe and waiting for her, he would pass through. Klara was okay with it. “There’s something else,” Wolfgang sounded like he was in physical pain.

  “I can’t… I’m not…” he stammered fighting for words. “Not what?” Klara asked, and he fisted his hair in frustration. She leant in to hear soft muffling, and he turned his head to hers, his eyes drifting to her lips, and Klara closed her eyes as his hand brushed her cheek. Wolfgang pressed his lips to hers and Klara gripped his shirt. A part of her wanted to push him away, but she found herself pulling him closer. Klara felt his desperation as he pulled her onto his lap, deepening the kiss. Klara expected to see something, anything, but everything was clouded. Just like Frendall in the Forest.

  Abadan must have figured out a way to blind my sight. Klara pulled away, and his eyes searched hers for answers.

  “Did you see?” Wolfgang sighed, his forehead resting against hers.

  “We can’t do this, there is too much at stake.” Klara pushed herself off him, finding her own branch. She watched the hurt and confusion on his face. “I shouldn’t have,” Wolfgang kept his eyes on the horizon while Klara wrapped her arms around herself.

  “Get some sleep,” Klara said, moving further from him, and he looked out at the ocean in the distance. The light breeze drifted through his hair as he settled onto a branch. As she drifted, her senses heightened, and with every passing moment, she could feel the Hounds growing closer. The Hounds would wipe out the Fae patrol in minutes and then there would be nothing between them.

  “I’ll wake you when it’s time,” Klara said, and Wolfgang closed his eyes leaning back directly across from her. When his breathing evened out, and she was sure he was asleep, Klara started to descend. She would lead Abadan in the opposite direction for as long as possible and away from the others; she just prayed she wouldn’t encounter the Fae in the meantime.

  Klara landed with a soft thud and she ripped off the lower half of her other sleeve. The more skin she exposed, the easier it would be for the Hounds to track her.

  The air whipped her scent into the air as she ran towards the Hounds. The further she moved from the group, the clearer her senses became. She set off snatch after snatch, but Klara moved too quickly for them to ensnare her. Klara stopped as she smelt something matching her strides. She darted behind a tree as sweat beaded on her forehead.

  Where are you going? A sorrow-filled voice edged into her mind, and Klara peered out as a small Lycaon whined.

  You didn’t even say goodbye. The snow white Lycaon sat at half the size of a mature wolf.

  “Lottie?”

  ~15~

  The Lycaon nodded, padding her new paws into the mud. Klara noticed Lottie’s dilated pupils and shaking body.

  “Are you ok?” Klara asked, moving closer, not wanting to startle her. All the stress had caused her to transition with the moon.

  “I need you to stay calm,” Klara crouched in submission. New Lycaons were quick with their emotions and Klara didn’t want to risk upsetting her. Lottie tapped the ground lightly as she got used to the sensation of being on all fours. I feel strange, but so strong, her shy voice echoed in Klara’s mind.

  I thought changing was going to hurt, but I wanted to follow you, but you were too quick, and I just wanted to bring you back but then my skin felt like it burst. I was running faster and faster I couldn’t stop it, Lottie’s voice was frantic.

  “I need to lead the bad people away,” Klara said, and Lottie tried to pad towards Klara. Lottie held her nose high in the air. I can smell them, she whined, and Lottie’s sudden snarl surprised both of them. Klara blocked Lottie from following the scent she had caught.

  “You need to get back to your brother, he will be sick with worry,” Klara said, and Lottie lo
oked over her furry shoulder in the direction they’d come.

  I’m not scared to help! I’m big now! Lottie shook her ears.

  You should be scared, I am. Klara said to herself.

  “Come back we can fight them together,” Lottie said too young to understand the danger. A young Lycaon was strong, maybe even strong enough to take on a Hound or two, but she was too small and vulnerable to those more experienced. Klara didn’t have time to argue as her skin crawled to reveal the impending danger. She needed to get Lottie away before her scent sent the Hounds wild.

  Lottie’s new body temperature would burn through the potion in no time if it hadn’t already.

  Let me help, Lottie panted when Klara felt Them in the darkness of the trees.

  The Neutral Lands grew silent, there were no more creaking insects or owls hooting high in the trees.

  “Get behind me, Lottie.”

  The small wolf whined, her fur standing on edge as her new senses told her what was coming. Lottie slowly padded behind Klara as the red eyes appeared in the darkness of the trees. Klara’s eyes darted left to right. They were everywhere, except for one small gap and there was one thing missing. No yellow eyes were amongst the red. Abadan and her soldiers were still some distance away.

  “I need you to be brave and run as fast as you can back to the others,” Klara backed her legs up against the Lycaon. Lottie whined as more eyes appeared, and the panting and growls began.

  There are so many, Lottie said her snout lowering, as her instincts told her to submit. Klara nudged her again, causing Lottie to rise, if she submitted to the Hounds, they would kill her in seconds. Klara kept her eyes fixed on the Hounds still as marble waiting for their chance.

  “I know, but you are so fast, remember? Fast enough to catch me, but if they come at you. You fight! Don’t submit!”

  A single Hound raised a paw to advance, and Klara clicked her fingers hoping the Hound would obey. The Hound lowered their snout, baring its teeth as her eyes locked on the mangy Hound.