The HeartStone Path

The HeartStone Path cont.

CHAPTER 19

I waved to Helian one more time at the landing behind the dresser in my room.  Then I felt a push against the wards around my rooms.  I hurried through the opening and sealed the area around the bookcase.  The first knock nearly made me drop the book and seeds as I was crossing my bedroom to my office.

In my office, I locked away the seeds and the book in the bottom left drawer of my desk and put the key in its hiding place again.  I barely had time to lock the office when the second knock sounded. 

I locked the keys in the trunk at the foot of my bed and crossed in to my front room.  On my way to the door, I pulled out one of my favorite well-worn history books from the shelves and placed it carefully on the couch. 

I finally answered on the third knock to see Prince Aerron standing there with a tray of food and a bottle of wine.  I groaned inwardly.  I had missed all of the meals in the dining hall.  I opened my mouth to dismiss him, but my stomach growled instead.  Defeated by my own body, I opened the door enough for him to walk in.

“I didn’t see you at any of the meals today,” he said as he set the tray and bottle on the table in front of the couch.

“I didn’t feel like seeing anyone.  You could have just sent a maid up with a meal,” I suggested.  And given me a chance to take a bath.  The spell removed the dirt but left the essence of it under my nails and on my skin.  I wanted nothing more than to soak and think about the day.

“I promised an explanation,” he reminded me.  “And I’m sure your rooms are safer than any others in the castle.  Well, safer than any others that I can be seen going in to.”

I rolled my eyes and curled up on the corner of the couch that was closest to the door of my bedroom.  “Fine.  Explain.”

“Are you comfortable like this?” he asked me.

“What?  On the couch?” I asked.  What an odd question.

“No, like this,” he gestured at my clothes.  “The pants and shirt and worn boots.”

I know I must have looked confused.  “Your grace, you are among the teachers who trained me.  You know I am.”

“But you wear the dresses so well.  Aine prefers them, you know.  She prefers a life like this, a life at a court.  Not in pants,” he tried to reason with me.

I already knew she did.  “Did you ask her?  And why does it matter?  I wear them because I have to.  I was trained to.  The same way I was trained to wield a sword or a poison or cast.”

“Why can’t you just like the dresses,” he mumbled to himself.

“What was that?” I asked.  I had heard him clearly, but I wanted him to repeat it.  He wasn’t making any sense.

“You know women in my kingdom aren’t allowed to fight.  Not anymore,” he said.  He didn’t look up at me.  He continued to stare in to the fire, his thoughts no longer in the room.

I stayed where I was in my corner of my couch, a safe distance from where he was in the middle of the couch.  “I remember learning about that.”

“Most Fae kingdoms are like that now.   Men and women used to be equals everywhere, in every kingdom.   I’m not quite sure where it started, but we certainly aren’t the only ones who began to remove women from armies.  My father took it a step further and removed them from councils and any seats of power.  Because they needed to be protected, he said, because our children are so precious.  But most kingdoms are like this, Mor. Women in dresses, not part of any armies.  Their battles are political, if they fight any at all,” he sighed.

I didn’t say anything.  I rested my chin in my knees and waited for him to continue.  I knew what the kingdoms in the Known Realms were like.  I also know which races viewed each other as equals and which didn’t.  What I wanted to know was, if he was going to tell me the truth about how he became the Crown Prince of his father’s kingdom.

“I remember when it changed for us, though.  You know I am my father’s second son.  I’m sure you heard the rumors.  But, you deserve the truth,” he started.  “My eldest brother never quite fit the mold of the monster our father kept trying to shape him in to.  We had all been born after my father’s failed conquests, so we had been spared those battles.  But that didn’t mean that my brothers and I had been spared any wars.  There were plenty to fight, mostly in the name of the Order of Ebon Lys. 

“For some reason, though, our father got it in his head that he wanted to send out our armies to another kingdom.  My brother knew the failed conquests well, and he refused.  First, on the grounds that the Order would do what they had done before; they would give the land to someone else to settle and we would have nothing to show for it.  Instead of seeing the reason of his general and his war council, our father grew angry and insisted on the conquest.  My brother refused again, and this time said it would make him and his armies nothing more than savages and murderers.

“That drove our father to madness and he attacked my brother in front of the war council.  The blows might have been enough, if one of my brother’s captains had not jumped in to save his life.  It turned out that she was my brother’s lover and a low born Fae.  And that she had bore him a son. 

“Our father had them locked in the dungeon and sent all emissaries away from the palace.  A week later, me and my siblings were summoned to a special council in a public chamber.  The war council was there, the prime council and our mother…emotionless and magnificent as ever.  And in the middle of the room was my brother, his mate and their son.

“They had not given up the location of their son even under torture, so our father had used blood magic to find him.  He was such a strong, beautiful boy.  Children among Fae are precious because they are so difficult to conceive.  We live for thousands upon thousands of years, yet, a couple may only have one child.  We are so like the Elves in this way.”

He stopped to take a drink of wine and to wipe a single tear that had formed in the corner of his left eye.  I shifted from the corner of the couch so that I was sitting next to him and I took his left hand between my own and held it, unsure of what else to do.  He still didn’t look away from the fire.

“Our father killed their son first.  They didn’t make a sound.  They only cried silent tears.  I had never seen my brother cry before.  Our father raged at him for such a weakness.  I didn’t see it as weakness, though.  My brother never looked away from his son’s eyes as he died.  He was giving his son every strength he could by not crying out and begging.

“My brother’s mate was next.  She didn’t beg or say a word.  She just looked at my brother.  He looked in her eyes as our father tortured her.  Punishment for my brother’s disobedience, punishment for an affair with a low born Fae, punishment for having a child with her, and whatever else he could come up with.  And the whole time, neither of them said anything.  No one in the chamber breathed a word.”

Above us, I heard Helian and Lord Roman in the room above mine listening to what the Prince was telling me about his father.  I had felt Helian’s magic ripple across mine when Prince Aerron had entered my room.  They must have been wondering if he would tell me the truth.  I could picture them, sitting silently in the chairs above us, as riveted to the tale as I was.

“When it was my brother’s turn, our father screamed at him, spat on him, threw his mate’s blood on him, his son’s blood on him, everything he could think of to make my brother talk.  Nothing worked.  My brother stayed silent, chained to the pole in the center of the room.  He didn’t beg for his life, he didn’t apologize to our father.  He didn’t even look angry.  He looked profoundly sad.

“Our father started beating him with his fists, trying to get a sound out of him.  Anything.  When that didn’t yield what our father wanted, he turned to his sword.  That is when we knew it was over.  Just before my brother faced our father for the final time, he turned to me in the crowd.  He was sad for me, sad that I would take his place.  Then he closed his eyes and smiled.  He knew he was joining his mate and his son.  Our father sliced his head off and left him to bleed out on the floor.  The marble still bears the stain of their deaths.

“To this day, I don’t know if our father knew about the captain and their son before that meeting.  If it wasn’t all done on purpose to teach my brother a lesson.  Or to remove weakness from within his own family.  But, our father used it to do many things.  He removed all women from the armies and from the councils.  He said they couldn’t be trusted to make decisions or to remain calm when it really mattered.  Then, he made me his heir as his next oldest son.

“Don’t disappoint me’ he said.  ‘Such weakness didn’t come from my bloodline’. “

“From his bloodline?” I whispered.

“Another dirty little family secret,” Prince Aerron snorted.  “My oldest brother was born of our father’s first wife.  I and another brother from his second, and so on.  I won’t make you keep track of his wives.  That’s just cruel.  Suffice to say he’s on his seventh.”

“His seventh,” I echoed.

“Yes.  And he has but one daughter.  We all guard her fiercely,” he confessed.

“How did you come to be at the High Keep to train me?” I asked. 

“My father has been obsessed with the Prophecy of Power, as he calls it.  He found a piece of it when he was traveling just after the Wars.  When he is not trying to figure out how to expand our kingdom, he is trying to figure out how to gain the power of whomever that prophecy is about.  He has been chasing down every rumor and every sign for as long as I can remember.  Some charlatan claimed years ago that the first part had come to pass, that the babe had been born. 

“He disappeared for years, chasing rumors across realms looking for a child.  When he returned home, empty handed, we hoped it was the end of it.  Then, after an obscure message from someone, he sent me off to the High Keep.  He was certain one of the new Rangers was the child of prophecy and I was to not only train her but convince her to take me as her Tuillaryn.  I thought he was mad.”

“You’ve thought he was mad ever since he killed your brother,” I mumbled.

“Before that, actually,” he confessed.  “But if you tell anyone, I will deny it.”

“You didn’t do much convincing,” I said.

He turned to look at me finally.  “I didn’t believe him.  Even though I felt your power.  I could feel the difference between you and your sisters.  And I have been in Boudicca and Corbyn’s confidence for longer than you know.  I also didn’t want it to be true.  I didn’t want that life for you.  So, I have spent years trying to figure out how to keep you out of my father’s hands.”

I stared at him.  “Marrying me doesn’t keep me out of your father’s hands,” I said angrily.

“No, it doesn’t.  But, sadly, neither does me as your Tuillaryn.  Because I am my father’s heir,” he said sadly.

“Couldn’t you give up the throne to another brother?” I asked.

“My father would have to allow that.  And he won’t.  And the old brute refuses to die,” Prince Aerron grumbled.

“So, what did you come up with?” I asked.

“Letting you go.  Tristan became your Tuillaryn like he was supposed to.  Only, I don’t know how my father was summoned to the Rites or how the councils made themselves part of it all.  I barely made it to Vahl’strael ahead of him and that was only because I convinced him that I wanted to tell you in person first before he announced publicly that he wanted us to marry,” he said, frustrated and sad.

“Yes, please explain that,” I asked.  I was barely keeping my own anger in check.

“The marriage?” he asked.

I nodded.  “The marriage.  You said you let me go.  Yet, you arrived in Vahl’strael with him and you let him send you down here.  And here you are, allowed in my rooms, because you are courting me.  Which I still don’t know what that means.”

He took a deep breath and let go of my hands.  “He is holding my sister.  If I fail to get you to marry me, if I fail to procure the power that flows through your veins for my father and his bloodline, he will kill my sister.  And it will be worse than what he did to my brother.”

There was no humor left in him.  He had leaned forward and was resting his head in his hands.  His whole body appeared defeated.  He had let me go, had been determined to save me but now had been forced to choose between me and his sister.  His only sister.

“Your grace, I…” I hesitated.

“I’m trying, Mor,” he said.  “I convinced him to concede to the traditions of the kingdoms here and that the potential wars are more important right now.  But I don’t know how long that will last.  My sworn send reports back to him daily.”

I rested my head on his left shoulder.  “Then we will give them something to write about.”

He turned to look at me.  “What do you mean?”

I groaned.  “It’s just to keep your father at bay and to keep your sister alive.  Okay?”

He nodded and sat up so he could look at me.  “What do you have in mind.”

“They will be writing back about what they see, I suppose.  So, they need to see us together.  The Princess…Queen, sorry, has given her permission for you to court me, whatever that means here, so you court me.  Let the court see what we want them to see,” I suggested.

“Do you want to know what courting entails?” he asked.

“Not tonight, I don’t,” I said quickly.  “Does that mean you agree?”

He nodded.  “Why, though.  Why do this?”

“We might need your father’s armies before all of this is over.  And I don’t want your sister to suffer.  Or you,” I said truthfully.

“Not to get back at your Tuillaryn a little?” he asked.

I frowned at him.  “No.  Not even a little.  I don’t care what Tristan does.”

“You have felt the difference around him, haven’t you,” he said.  It wasn’t a question.

“Yes,” I whispered.

“You didn’t have to help me or my sister, Morrigan.  I know that.  And don’t say it’s for my father’s armies.  He is sworn to the Order.  He must come if called,” he said.  “I will never forget this.”

“One small favor?” I asked.

“Anything,” he breathed as he leaned forward to kiss my cheek.

“No pet names.  Ever,” I said firmly.

He dropped his head on to my shoulder and laughed.  His breath was warm against my neck and chest.  Blood rushed to the place on my left thigh where he had placed his hand.  For a moment, I froze, unsure of what he was going to do.

“No pet names,” he said from my shoulder.  The breath again bringing shivers across my skin and down my spine.

I could only nod my thanks.

He brushed his thumb over my thigh where it rested and turned his head so he could see my face, but didn’t raise his head from my shoulder.  “Have you always reacted this way with me so close to you?”

I swallowed and tried to find my voice.  “I don’t think you have ever been this close.”

“I have,” he whispered.  “Only a few times.  But, this is new.”

He lifted his head up from my shoulder so that he was facing me completely.  I forced myself to meet his golden amber eyes.  A part of me, deep in my mind, wondered if this was wrong.  If I shouldn’t push him away and tell him to leave.  I loved Tristan.  Tristan…the thread that had snapped.

Kai made her presence known from the doorway of my bedroom with a deep growl.  Enough that Aerron leaned back from me and looked at where she stood behind me.  He didn’t get up from the couch, but he opened the distance between us.

I shook myself mentally and tried to figure out what had happened.  I wasn’t like Aine, I didn’t like this kind of attention from just anyone.  I couldn’t stand for someone to be that close to me, with a hand on me, at all times.  I liked my personal space.  Speaking of…

“I’m tired,” I said, getting up from the couch.  “I’m going to bed.”

His mouth slowly spread in to a feral grin and his amber eyes danced with mischief.

“Alone,” I clarified.

“Kill joy,” he teased. 

He got up anyway and walked to the door.  The aloof, teasing Prince that I was used to had returned.  This was what I was used to, what I could handle.  I didn’t know what to do with the man I had encountered a few moments ago.

“And what would the court think if the Fae Prince was caught leaving a lady’s chamber in the morning?” I asked sweetly.

“Lucky Prince?” he tried.

“More like dead Prince,” I said flatly.  “I’m going to bed alone.”

“There aren’t too many Fae I can think of that like being denied,” he said on his way through the doorway in to the hall.

“I don’t know too many Fae who have deigned to court a Ranger,” I countered hotly, not stepping away when he leaned closer to me.

I forced myself not to flinch and to kiss him back when he leaned in for a kiss that time.  If this was going to work, it had to be seen by servants, too.  Unfortunately, the first person to see us was my own Tuillaryn.

Tristan was halfway down the hall and looked like he had been heading to my room.  I saw him too late.  He spun on his heel and left the hallway as quickly as possible.  I turned to glare at the Prince standing in front of me.

“You knew he was there,” I accused him.

“I thought you didn’t care who or what he did,” he reminded me, taking a half step towards me.

Damn.  “I don’t.  But there is no reason to torture him,” I mumbled.

“True.  But what’s the fun in that?” he shrugged. 

I knew what he was doing.  He wanted to know where I stood with Tristan.  Well, you and me both, your grace.  I was just as confused.

“Good night, Your Grace,” I said louder than I needed to.

He bowed dramatically and strode off down the hallway where Tristan had been just moments before.  I tried not to think about my Tuillaryn and why he had been coming to my room.  I locked the door, checked the blood runes and settled the ward around my rooms again.  I didn’t want to be bothered again that night.

Sleep was elusive, though.  I tossed and turned for hours before I finally fell asleep, only to be plagued by dreams that I wanted no part of.  The dream about the blackness had been soothing before.  I had looked forward to it most nights.  But, it had changed.  I was frustrated when I couldn’t reach the other presence and my cry of frustration matched his.  His.

CHAPTER 20

I felt awful in the morning when I was thankful that I got to sleep in.  Still, I didn’t want to get out of bed.  I eyed the empty tray sitting on my table and wished I had shortened the wards to allows servants in to bring breakfast.

As if on cue, there was a knock on the door.  I lessened the wards around my room for the day and drooped my head back on to my pillow.  An older woman stuck her head in, deemed it safe and stepped in to the room.  The tray she was carrying was full of fruits, pastries and juice.  The small of pastries gave me the extra push I needed to pull myself out of bed.

The maid had pulled open the curtains in the front room, but there wasn’t much light coming in because of the clouds so I turned on a few of the lamps in the room.  There was a soft rain falling outside so I opened up the windows a bit and the balcony doors in my room.  I opened them just in time for Kai to land on my balcony.  She made straight for the fire place to dry her fur.

“You stink,” I told her.

She huffed at me and sat down to bath herself.

“I should probably give you a bath myself.  You smell like you have been rolling in something awful.”

She gave me a look that said she would love to see me try such a thing.  So, instead of making her suffer the indignity of an actual bath, I used a spell similar to Aine’s cleaning spell.  A small wave of blue drifted over Kai and she was clean of the dirt and blood, at least.  She gave me a haughty look and returned to bathing.

I laughed and went back to my breakfast.  I had no desire to have skin ripped off in an attempt to give her a bath, no matter how bad she smelled.

“Oh Gods, what is that smell,” Aine said, covering her nose as she walked in to the room.

“It’s Kai,” Rhiannon said from behind her.

“You have to do something about that,” Aine said through the part of her robe she held to her nose.

“You are welcome to try,” I laughed.

“Not it,” Rhiannon said quickly.

“Give her time,” I said.  “She will bathe herself or I will spell her in to a bath.”

Kai growled at us playfully and turned her back to us.

“I didn’t want to be alone,” Aine said quietly.

I nodded, holding out a plate of pastries to my sisters.  We ate in silence, each of us lost in our own thoughts.  After breakfast, they wondered around the room until they found books they liked, then settled down to read.  I read for a while then put the book away in favor of sharpening and cleaning my blades.  Rhiannon joined me after a few moments, the song of a blade too much for her to ignore.

“I heard that you accepted the courtship from Prince Aerron again,” Aine said casually later that afternoon.

Rhiannon turned to me, her eyebrows raised.  I shook my head.

“It’s not what you think,” I said.

“I hope not,” she said pointedly.

By the time I had finished explaining what Prince Aerron had said and the deal we had worked out, my sisters were staring at me like I had grown a second head.

“You know he’s probably lying,” Aine said flatly.

“I know,” I said.

“He doesn’t gain anything from lying, though,” Rhiannon added.  “He has never stuck me as someone who would risk his honor for lying like that to get something.  He’s Fae.  They have never been shy about taking what they want.”

“That’s what’s bothering me,” I said.

“I still don’t like it,” Aine grumbled.

“I don’t, either, but it will keep the Fae king distracted long enough for us to deal with what is important,” I said.

“The fact that King Einal wants to trap you in his kingdom seems important,” Aine countered.

“We can’t focus on that,” Rhi said.  “We don’t even know if there have been any more demon attacks.  I haven’t been able to get outside this castle for a moment since we have been there.  We aren’t ever going to make it out on that damn tour, either.”

“I may have a way out,” I said. 

“Where,” Rhi asked. 

I sighed heavily.  The Master was going to kill me.  “Follow me,” I said.

My sisters didn’t say a word when I led them to my bedroom and pushed the shelves out of the way.  I took the stairs up and hoped they would follow.  The rain was still falling gently when we reached the garden.  It felt soothing on my face.  I watched my sisters walk around the garden, touching the plants softly as they walked through them.

I walked to the western wall and looked out towards the colors of the sunset leaking through the clouds.  The city around us was starting to turn on the lights in the streets.  Little lights blinked on here and there, casting the castle walls in an eerie light.  Another light in the distance caught my attention.  It didn’t look like an electric light like the ones below the castle.

“Rhiannon.  Come see this,” I said, not taking my eyes off of the little light. 

“What is it,” Aine said as she stepped up next to me.

“It looks like a camp fire,” Rhi said. 

“We can’t get out to it to find out,” I said. 

“Yes, we can,” Aine said.

Rhiannon and I turned and stared at Aine, waiting for her to explain.

She shifted her weight back and forth before she answered.  “I can shift,” she said quickly.

“What?  Like Kaskarii, or…”, Rhiannon asked.

“Something like that,” she said.  “I have only one form right now.  I don’t know if I can do more.”

“And I’m guessing that form can fly?” I really didn’t have the patience for this.

The air around Aine shimmered and then there was a flash of blue light.  Where our sister had stood, a large owl with pure white feathers sat on the wall.  The owl clicked its beak at us and fluffed it’s feathers.  Unable to stop myself, I reached out to touch the owl.  Rhiannon laughed when Aine dipped out of reach of my hand and give me an indignant look.

“Get as close as you can,” Rhiannon told her.  “But don’t get close enough to get caught.”

Aine launched herself off of the wall and took off in to the spreading darkness.  The owls in my garden, disturbed by her sudden change and flight, took to the air after her.  We kept our eyes on the light winking in the distance. 

“I wonder if we can all shift,” Rhiannon mused out loud. 

“I don’t know” I lied, “but I can weave.”

“Weave?”

“The Master taught me,” I said. 

I closed my eyes and opened them again when I was standing across the garden.  It barely took a scrap of power to do.  My sister was smiling at me.

“Can you move more than just yourself?”, she asked.

“I don’t know.  I’ve never tried,” I lied again.  I had gotten sick of lying to my sisters.  Showing them the little things I could do couldn’t hurt anything.

“It’s worth trying out,” she said. 

“Well, I guess, while we are waiting on Aine,” I shrugged.

I used plants first, in case something happened.  I knew it wouldn’t, but Rhianon enjoyed the trials.  As I moved around the garden and to other roof tops across the castle grounds, Rhiannon couldn’t resist, and insisted I try small weaves with her.  We flitted from roof to roof, winking in and out of sight.  If anyone had been watching, I’m sure they were convinced they were losing their minds. 

Confident in my abilities, she pushed me to try different places out in the city.  It was still easy, so she kept pushing me to go farther.  She only gave in when I was visibly beginning to tire.  It wasn’t for lack of power.  I physically was becoming tired.  It was a strange feeling.  I made a mental note of it in case I ever felt it again.

I explained the feeling to Rhiannon.  She mulled it around a bit, then decided we should return to the garden to wait for Aine.  We appeared on the rooftop garden just as our sister returned from her flight and landed on the wall.  I had a lot of explaining to do when she was in her normal form again, but she took it rather well, considering.

The light was indeed a camp fire.  Rhiannon had been right.  The fire had belonged to a group of demons, though.  To Aine, it looked like a scouting party.  It was only ten lesser demons.  Smaller, but usually more intelligent than their bigger brethren.  She couldn’t see another legion nearby or any area where they had come from or would be reporting to. 

“Well, what do you want to do,” Aine asked us.

“If Mor can carry me, no one would know we were gone,” Rhiannon said.

“If you think you are going out after a demon scouting squad without me, you better think again,” a deep, angry voice said from behind us.

Aine jumped and let out a squeak, but Rhi and I spun around, blades already in hand.  The amused look on his face was disarming, but I saw the glint in his golden eyes that dared Rhiannon to move first.

“How did you find me up here,” I demanded.

“Well, there I was, minding my own business on my balcony when lo and behold, I see two idiots flitting about on the rooftops where anyone could see them,” he said pointedly at me.

“She was moving too fast for anyone to see us,” Rhiannon shot at him.

“Do you think I’m the only one watching?  If you do, we need to revisit some of the lessons I taught you,” he said, crossing his arms.

“We don’t need to revisit anything,” she grumbled.

“Oh, just tell him,” Aine said.  “He’s not going anywhere until we do.”

“I’m not going to tell anyone about you three running off to slay demons.  As long as I go to make sure nothing happens to you.  Boudicca would never forgive me,” he said.

“Why should we believe you?”  Aine asked.

“He’s telling the truth,” Rhiannon said, putting her dirk away.

“How can you know that?”, Aine asked her.

“Oh, please do tell them.  I’ve been waiting for this one,” Prince Aerron said.

I cringed inwardly.  I had already guessed Rhiannon’s talent, or curse, some time ago.  She had always been too good at knowing things about people.  It’s probably why I was a terrible liar, because I had known growing up that I couldn’t lie to my sister.  But apparently, we had all be omitting information.

“I know he’s not lying,” Rhiannon hesitated, “because I know when anybody is lying.”

“What?  How?  Anyone?  Or just Fae and Kindred?  Is it everyone?  Can it be warded against?  Can you tell when the Druids are lying?  When did you learn it?  Have you used it against anyone?  Have you used it against me?” Aine rattled off, her mind clearly swirling with the possibilities.

Rhiannon cringed, “I’ve known since I was a child.  I could tell when the adults lied to us.  It wasn’t often, but enough that I noticed the difference.  It’s everyone.  Doesn’t matter what race, though some are easier.  No, I don’t think it can be warded against, though I would like to see someone try.  It’s not something I use against people.  I just…know.  Whether I do something about it is up to me.”

Prince Aerron was grinning like a cat who had just eaten a bird.  I didn’t like it.  I also wondered if Rhiannon would have ever told us if he hadn’t said anything, but I knew what he was doing.  He was testing our loyalty to each other.  It made me want to claw his eyes out, agreement or not.

“What’s your point,” I asked him.

“My point is that you are taking me with you,” he growled.

“We have to,” Rhiannon said.  “If it really is something and we need to tell the other kingdoms, his father is only going to listen to him if he saw it for himself.”

“Fine,” I ground out.  “Meet us back here in 10 minutes.  And bring Lord Roman.”

“I’ll be waiting,” he said, grinning again.

I ignored the angry glares I was getting from my sisters and wove us back to my rooms.  When they realized I wasn’t going to talk about it, they hurried off to their rooms to change.  It felt normal pulling on my pants and boots again.  The cotton of my worn shirt was as comforting as the leather bodice that was shaped just for me.  Each weapon slid in to place perfectly, like they had missed being used.

My sisters were back in my room by the time I was strapping my sword across my back.  They still weren’t happy with me, but they didn’t bring it up again.  I held out my hands for theirs so I could weave us to the roof again, but Aine stepped back, a hand on her stomach.

“Can we use the stairs.  Please,” she asked.

“You can fly, but weaving bothers you?”, I asked.

She nodded meekly.  I felt awful.  I had never considered that it would make someone nauseous.   So, I pushed the shelves back again and let my sisters slip through first.  Prince Aerron and Lord Roman didn’t say anything when we came through the door at the southern end of the garden.  They just waited for us to join them at the western wall.

“If I’m not weaving you, Aine, I need to know where I’m going.  You have to let him look,” I said.

Aine cringed but relented.  Prince Aerron could glimpse the terrain that she had seen from her memory and could share it with me, giving me a visual of where I wanted to set us down.  I had hoped that the Prince was going to be the one to weave us there, but no such luck.  He seemed determined to test my abilities.

 It was difficult to keep weavers out of anything because they wove the very matter of space and time around them to move.  A lot of people thought it was just disappearing and reappearing.  Not even close.  To be able to successfully weave, one had to be able to exert their power and will over the physical and metaphysical plains.  Because of this, only the strongest spells could keep weavers out of a place.  The exact spell I had added to the ward around my rooms and I think he had just figured that out.

While Prince Aerron was with Aine, Lord Roman pulled me aside.

“Why did the Prince pull me from my rounds, Morrigan,” he whispered angrily.

I shook my head.  “This demon camp.  I wanted him to bring you so you could see it.  I needed you to be able to tell the Queen and to be able to send the report to the other Tribes.  It can’t come from me.”

“Why not?  The Ancients trust you,” Roman asked.

I turned to look at my sisters and Prince Aerron where they were still arguing.  “They trust me.  But no one else knows that the Order is in the realm, do they?  What looks better?  A Queen’s ladies out killing demons?  Or her Yova guards?”

“Point taken,” Lord Roman conceded.  “But you will be going out with us?”

“Yes.  We will.  Which is why you are here.  I have a feeling that this is just the start.”  I smiled at my sisters when they turned to me. They must have come to an agreement with the Prince finally.

“We are going to talk about this,” Lord Roman warned me.

“Why is he coming with us,” Rhiannon demanded angrily.

“Because,” Prince Aerron said, “it looks bad if the Queen’s ladies are out killing things when her Yova are home sitting on the walls.”

I fought the smile that was starting to form on my lips.  I was thankful that he had said it instead of me.

Rhiannon rolled her eyes.  “Right.  Ladies of the court.  So, the noble General and his guard stumble across the camp, s*******r them, find the valuable information and the fragile ladies hide behind the walls.”

“No.” I stared hard at my sister.  “The unassuming ladies keep their nocturnal activities to themselves and no one knows anything.”

Rhiannon smiled at me finally.  “That’s better.  But I’m not weaving with him.”

“Oh, for the love.  Your grace, can you take Rhiannon.  I’ll take Lord Roman,” I sighed.

Prince Aerron only smiled.  He placed his right hand on the left side of my face so he could show me the area he wanted to go to, upwind of the camp.  His touch was as soft as a lover’s caress.  I was thankful it was dark and that my sisters couldn’t see the blush that covered my cheeks.

Aine shifted and the Prince wrapped an arm around Rhiannon’s waist.  I held out my hand for Lord Roman.  I didn’t need to hold on to him as tightly as Prince Aerron needed to hold Rhiannon.  I had a little bit more control than that.  Too late, I realized that I probably shouldn’t have shown that level of confidence in my abilities.

The clearing we landed in was upwind from the camp.  Aine’s initial count had been off.  There were fifteen demons around the fire now.  They had maps out and were pointing to what I knew were populated areas.  It was good that we had brought Prince Aerron and Lord Roman with us because we could rely on their hearing instead of us having to get close enough for us to hear what was being said.

Prince Aerron silently led us down to the camp.  I knew we needed the maps and it needed to be silent.  If there were any other camps nearby that we hadn’t seen, we didn’t want to alert them.  Not that night.  Aine was poised to go for the maps while the rest of us sized up the demons closest to us and waited for the Prince’s signal.  Rhiannon didn’t like following his lead, but she accepted it gracefully. 

At his signal, we slit the throats of the demons closest to us.  In the moment of shock before they reacted, we were able to kill more.  By the time the demons had begun to react, we were ready and had already thinned their numbers.  I kept the area clear for Aine so she could get in and gather up all of the maps they had been using.  

Thanks to the element of surprise, it was over quickly.  All of us were covered in black demon ichor but had come out unscathed.  My heart leapt up to my throat when I saw two forbidden blades on the ground by the packs.  I swallowed my fear and wrapped them carefully in a part of a shredded tent I found.  Prince Aerron and Lord Roman went out in to the forest around us to make sure we had killed every part of the squad while Aine, Rhiannon and I went through the packs.

We were consolidating the information when Prince Aerron returned with Lord Roman.  They must have run in to a few more demons because they each had more ichor on them than when they had left.  Aine decided she didn’t want to shift to fly back.  She wasn’t sure if the ichor would stick to her feathers or not, so she held her breath when I wrapped my arms around her and wove us back to the garden.

All told, it was over very quickly.  The Prince taught us a spell to remove the ichor from our clothes so the laundresses wouldn’t notice it when they came through our rooms for laundry each day.  It was more for Aine than me or Rhiannon.  The ichor could potentially make it so she couldn’t fly in the future.  And, to be honest, she didn’t especially enjoy being dirty in any way.

I lit a Fae light in the garden so we could look at everything we had brought back.  We agreed that we had to tell the Queen and King, but we weren’t sure about the council.  Her reign wasn’t stable yet and this could throw everything off if they suspected a coming attack that they felt she couldn’t handle.  No one was ready to talk about what we would do if we came across more scouts.

Later on that night, after tucking the information we had recovered safely in to my study, I fell in to bed.  There was no way anyone could weave in to my study, so I relied on my wards to alert me if anyone entered my rooms.  Kai had sniffed at me a bit when I came back down to my rooms, but she had ignored me after.  Apparently, I hadn’t done anything to cause her to worry all that much.

Sleep came swiftly, for once, but I was plagued by dreams.  I woke up before dawn drenched in sweat and breathing like I had just run up several flights of stairs.  Hoping a shower would help, I turned on the cold water and stood in it until I was shivering.  It was day three of the private mourning period, but we couldn’t wait.  Not with what we had found.

CHAPTER  21

When I opened the door to the hallway the next morning, the maps and other information tucked under my arm, my sisters and Prince Aerron were waiting for me, his hand poised to knock on my door.  Aine offered me a weak smile when we started down the hall to the Queen’s rooms.

My knock was answered by the new King, but the look on our faces must have been enough to let us in to talk to them.  The Queen was sitting in front of the fireplace, red eyed but fresh.  They had been prepared for her father’s passing, but that never makes it easier.

“My husband tells me you have something important to tell me,” the Queen said wearily.

“Yes, your majesty,” I said.  “I apologize, but it can’t wait.”

“I understand,” she said, getting up and walking over to the table.  “Show me.”

Rhiannon helped me lay out everything on the table, even the forbidden swords.  Aine explained how we had found them and that we had killed the entire scouting party.  It was the only fire we had seen but judging by the letters and maps we had found, it wouldn’t be the last.  All of the other kingdoms needed to be told.  I had already written to Boudicca the night before in our books, but I didn’t tell the Queen that.  How her kingdom handled this news was entirely up to her.

The King was reading carefully through the letters, raking his hands through his hair.  He hadn’t slept much recently.  There were dark circles under his eyes and a pale pallor to his skin.  Like his wife, he had taken the passing of her father hard.  So far away from his own father, I think he was worried about not being there when his own father passed.  And now, with this new development, he had a potential war to prepare for.

“It’s just one scouting party,” Queen Arianna said.

“For now,” the King countered.  “If these letters are any indication, there are going to be much more than scouting parties soon.  Look here, my love, they have found the third heartstone, whatever that is.  They are looking for something called the Relic.”

The Queen turned to us, “Explain.”

That one word made my heart jump to my throat.  Aine and Rhiannon shook their heads, refusing to speak, so I cleared my throat and told the King and Queen the bare minimum that they needed to know.  I left out the fact that the Relic was under their castle and the fact that the Master thought I was the one to protect it.

By the time I finished speaking, the Queen had sunk down in to a chair next to her husband, a hand over her mouth.  Aine rushed to fill cups of tea for them and added a few logs to the fireplace.  Rhiannon was watching them both carefully for any sign shock.

“And you are sure she will come to this realm?”, Queen Arianna asked quietly.

“I’m not completely sure,” I said.  “I am guessing she will come through the lost kingdom and use that as her opening to the rest of the kingdoms here. She will be searching for the Relic in every place it has ever rumored to be held.”

“How can you know this,” the King asked me.

I swallowed hard.  “Because it’s what I would do.”

The King nodded at my answer.  It was a logical entry point as it would offer the least resistance.   There was no guarantee that she would use it, but it was the best I had to offer.

“Do we tell the other kingdoms, yet?”, Queen Arianna asked the King.

He shook his head.  “I don’t know.  You’re right, it’s just one scouting party.  But, there will be more.  We can’t go to the other kingdoms with a hunch, though.  They don’t know who Morrigan and your ladies really are.  We would be exposing their identities not just in our kingdom, but in the West and North.  I can’t make that call without Boudicca and my father.”

“Lord Roman was with us, your majesty,” I said.  “He will have told the other tribes by now.  Even if the other kingdoms don’t know yet, the Yova know and will know what to watch for.  It’s an advantage, at least.  The Yova will not break the trust unless it is dire.  So, for now, you are walking a very fine line.”

“If we wait, your majesty, for an imminent threat, it could be too late.  Armies take time to muster and move,” Rhiannon said.

“How long do you think we have?”, King Curren asked.

“I would say months at most.  There will be more scouting parties for us to gain information from.  If we alert our sisters only for now, we will be able to give you a better answer. But I wouldn’t wait for more than a few weeks.  Demon legions move faster than our armies.  Aided by their mistress, they could appear and disappear at her will,” Rhiannon answered.

“Then we tell them only for now,” Arianna answered.  “And we keep this from the council.  For now.  Only go out at night.  I can’t make excuse for your absence during the day.  Not now.”

“You have been awfully quiet,” King Curren said to Prince Aerron.  “Do you not agree with their assessment?”

“I agree with them completely, your majesty.  I wonder at the wisdom in hiding the information for now.  This squad was carrying forbidden blades.  What if there are more?”, he answered.

“Tell the sisters and the Yova about them.  Take every blade you can find.  From what I remember from Val, they can be destroyed,” Curren said thoughtfully.

Prince Aerron nodded and went back to looking at the maps that were strewn about the table.  We had become a team somehow and I had to rely on his discretion.  Which meant I had to stay in his good graces.

“For now, we go on like nothing is happening,” Queen Arianna said.  “Compare notes with your sisters, with the Yova, watch for more scouting parties and wait.  That’s all we can do for now.”

“Morrigan, keep these in your rooms,” the King said, sliding everything on the table closer to me.  “I know they are safer with you and your sisters.  We can’t ward these rooms without raising suspicion.”

“Today, we will have to attend the viewing.  Tomorrow is the funeral.  The next morning will be the first council meeting.  I know it sounds paranoid, but I need you to find out what you can about my council members,” Queen Arianna said.

“Leave that to me,” Aine said.  “I will have it before the meeting.”

“Just you?”, the Queen asked.

“She’s better than both of us when it comes to silence,” I said.  “and one of us can get in and out of rooms or a house better than three.”

The Queen nodded.  “Then I need the rest of you to help her.  This does not leave this room.  Not even your Tuillaryns or your sworn.”

We agreed and left their rooms.  My chest was tight when I reached my rooms and tucked away the maps in my study again.  If Aine got caught, there is no telling what would happen.  I didn’t think she would, but one never knew.

No one questioned me, thankfully, that I wanted to be alone in my room.  I set the blood runes around my room to enhance the ward and then went up to my garden in hopes of getting Lord Roman’s attention again along with Cathan.  I had promised to tell him about the meeting.

The general and the plains gryphon were waiting in my garden.  He was leaning against the western wall where his mount was resting, soaking up the sun.

“The meeting went well?” he asked.

“As could be expected.  The Queen expects us to be watching every night with you.  With Prince Aerron, of course, so he can report back to his father because his father will only trust his reports,” I sighed.

“I knew those would be the terms.  The Fae King is corrupted beyond sense,” Lord Roman said angrily.  “These are the copies of what we found?”

I handed him the leather wrapped stack of papers I was holding.  “Yes.  Exact copies so you can show the tribes.  The Queen wants all forbidden blades to be seized and held.”

“Not destroyed?” He was shocked.

“She wants them destroyed, but I don’t think anyone remembers what happens when they are destroyed,” I said.  “The two we found are in my rooms.  Any others are to be kept with the Yova.  I worry about them being destroyed, my lord.”

“But why?  They are evil,” he frowned.

“Yes, but we don’t know what is trapped in them,” I reasoned.

He mulled this over as he looked through the packet I had handed him.  “You are right.  Worse things could be trapped in the blades.  We will keep them hidden.  Do you think the Master and Helian can find a way to remove the corruption from people?”

“You are thinking about Rhiannon.”  I joined him at the wall.  Cathan hadn’t tried to talk to me yet, but he had been listening to the conversation very carefully.

“I am.  She is special to me, Morrigan.  I would save her if there is a way,” he said softly.

“I will talk to the Master about it,” I promised.  “If there is a way, he may know where to find it.”

“I know better than to hope,” he said sadly.  “Cathan warns me that even the Ancients have not felt this before.”

“It doesn’t mean we won’t try, my lord.”  I turned to look at the young General.  “I love my sister.   I refuse to believe she is lost.  If there is a way, I will find it.”

“I trust you, Morrigan.  Cathan trusts you.  I will warn the Tribes.  I know you don’t want to but, trust the Prince.  He is not corrupted.  Your Tuillaryn is.”  Lord Roman didn’t want to admit that he trusted Prince Aerron, but that he did meant a lot.