Shadow Play

32

Although Oberon does exist, he is nothing like a king.” His eyes dropped to his mug and his words bore a note of distaste. I wanted to know more, but I was aware that I had already pushed my luck asking about Lochlan, so I let my questions about Oberon go unanswered. “Lochlan said that the creature that attacked us was a draug, can you tell me about it?” “Aside from the Seelie and Unseelie, on the fringes of Faery live the savage Fae of the Shadow Court. Unlike the Seelie and Unseelie, their magic is dark and malevolent. They are ruled by an ancient creature named Lolth and usually keep to the darkness of the Shadow Lands. That is why it was so unusual that the draug attacked you. They are known for seeking out treasures, but not at the risk of stepping into the light.” “Would the light kill it?” “No, but the brightness of day is excruciatingly painful to any creature of the Shadow Court.” “The draug, after it attacked us, it seemed to dissipate into smoke when Lochlan showed up—can all Fae disappear or trace?” One of his eyebrows rose in superiority. “What you describe is not the same as tracing. There are certain Fae that can manipulate shadow to disappear and others that can trace, or what you might call teleport. Tracing is primarily a gift of the gentry and only a few lower castes of Fae have the skill. The ones that do generally possess no other great ability.”

“If portals are needed to transport between the worlds, does that mean Fae cannot simply trace or transport between them?” “Correct, tracing is only performed in relatively short distances, which makes tracing between worlds an impossibility.” “Are there any other types of Fae, besides Seelie, Unseelie, and the Shadow Fae?” “No, just those.” “What is the difference between Seelie and Unseelie?” “Both use light magic and the Unseelie are not so much a distinct type of Fae, but those who choose to live isolated lives and refuse to be governed. Most of them are less sophisticated than the gentry and it is usually particular castes that choose that life. The Seelie respect and fear Guin such that few disobey her command.” “Does that mean only the Unseelie attempt to sneak onto Earth?” “The Unseelie and Shadow Fae are not burdened by rules and periodically a resourceful one is able to find a way between the worlds. Over the last few months, there has been an increase in this activity. Someone has figured out a way to open portals and has been sneaking Fae onto Earth.” His words made my stomach turn. “What does that mean?” I asked quietly. “We aren’t sure. We've been tracking the portals and attempting to locate the responsible party, but they're powerful and have managed to stay well hidden.” I considered pushing for more information on these portals being opened but I could tell I wasn’t going to get much information and instead went back to my previous line of questioning. “Why doesn't Guin rule the Unseelie?" “Guin doesn’t have sufficient power to rule over the Unseelie. Several millennia ago they were ruled by Queen Mab, who was a malevolent and vindictive queen. She was one of the few Fae powerful enough to bend the Unseelie to her will. Now that Mab is gone, Guin has the Seelie realm warded to keep the Unseelie out and contained to the Wild areas of Faery. Since they are by nature solitary creatures not found in groups, nor apt to unite in any great numbers, they haven't been a threat in Faery. They don't have access to the human world, but should they ever have the opportunity to make their way onto Earth in any great numbers, the havoc and destruction they would wreak would be unending.” He paused, eyes distant. “What happened to Queen Mab?” I was fascinated with everything he told me, like learning that Beauty and the Beast was a true story and they were now married and living in the Carolinas with their grandchildren. “She had a fatal weakness that ended in her downfall. Her love for her twin brother was her Achilles heel and it was that love that got her killed. You will likely be familiar with her brother, his name was Merlin Ambrosius.” “Merlin, as in the legendary sorcerer in King Arthur’s Court? Of course! He was rumored to be half Fae—the son of a Faery woman.” I gasped, eyes wide in total astonishment. “I'm not sure where the half came from, he is full-blooded Fae. As far as I know, conception between the races is not possible.” My hand slammed down on the table as my mind nearly exploded. “Are you going to tell me Arthur and Guinevere were real as well? Wait, you said the Seelie Queen's name is Guin—is that Guinevere?” His lips quirked in amusement. “Sometimes, there is a seed of truth in Faery tales. Yes, your fabled Guinevere is the Seelie queen. The Fae have a long and complicated history. Although there are many Arthurian legends that are fictional, Arthur himself was very much real. The telling of those stories though would take us all night and they aren't immediately relevant, so unless you'd like to come back to my place and get more comfortable, I suggest we keep to more current events.” His eyes gleamed and his eyebrow arched in question. I shook my head at him. “Nice try.” As I laughed off his teasing, I realized how comfortable I had become talking with Ronan. I greatly appreciated how openly he was sharing information and I made the decision to give him a second chance and wipe his slate clean. Not to say I was jumping into bed with him, he was Fae after all, but I would keep an open mind and see if a friendship was possible. Continuing with my interrogation, I decided to ask some generalized questions about Fae objects in the hopes that I could learn more about my necklace. “In books that I’ve read, the Fae often have objects of power, like a cauldron, or a spear, or an amulet. Does that kind of stuff exist?” “Yes, there are any number of Fae objects imbued with power.” “Could you sense if one was near you?” His head tilted just a fraction and I was hoping he was contemplating his answer, rather than suspicious of my question. “It would depend on whether magic had been used to mask the presence of the object.” As he spoke, my eyes were drawn out the window over Ronan's shoulder to where I could feel eyes on me. Enveloped in shadow, Lochlan stood across the street watching us. My heart started to race with anger as I rose to confront him about spying on us. “Actually, I just remembered that I never told Ashley that I'd be coming here after work. Let me give her a quick call before she thinks I've been kidnapped.” I gave him what I hoped was a convincing smile before hurrying outside. I stepped out into the cold, realizing too late that I had left my coat inside, and went around to the side of the building where I couldn’t be seen through the window. I called over to Lochlan in a whisper-yell. “What the f**k are you doing here?”