The summer king jumped in: “We were attacked en masse by erchos, killans, slimers, and many others just a fortnight past. It was the reason we were not there to stop the Winter Court crossing the barrier to Earth during your summer festival. This makes us wonder if maybe the dark lands and the winter queen have formed an alliance. You need to tread very carefully, Queen Arianna. Do not find yourself in the dark lands, and beware of their ability to come to Earth.”
His warning sent chills up my spine, the hairs standing up on my arms. All of the pieces were clicking into place now. “The ercho was trying to take me,” I breathed, and Kade stiffened beside me. I didn’t want another enemy, but if I had one, then I wanted all of the information I could get on it.
The king nodded. “An ercho is a demon spawn of the Dark One. This fae stays in the shadows and we have never been able to destroy him. The darkness has never been content to stay in the banished lands of the Otherworld, but until now we were strong enough to keep them at bay. We couldn’t wipe them out completely, but we could keep them from taking over everything. Now … if they have sided with the winter and fall courts, there is no telling what power they might have.”
I didn’t like where this conversation was going. I had too many wars to worry about. The king stepped closer to me and lowered his voice. “Fix the mecca, give us back our health and life, and when the time comes we will fight to the death with you against the demons.”
Dammit. There went my hope that after fixing the mecca I could just live happily ever after.
We need this alliance, Kade told me.
I agree, I replied.
I reached out my hand to the king and met his steely gaze. “We will fix the mecca, and should the war come, we will help you cull the demons.”
The prince looked pleased, as did his father, who extended his hand to grasp mine. “I pledge my greatest warriors and magic born on the day that the demons leave their dark cave and come for you.”
We shook on it, and I prayed like hell it never came to that.
Caspien pointed to my ears. “I knew from the first day we met that you were connected to the Winter Court. You smelled like one of the highborn, but I couldn’t figure out how it was possible.”
I nodded. “Yes, I am half Winter Court fae, but I claim nothing from them. We make our own destinies; we’re not born into them.”
The king smiled. “I know that to be true.”
I curtsied again. “It has been a true pleasure to speak with you. We are very thankful for all of your help. Especially for the healing of my friend. I must return home now and fix the mecca. There is no more time to waste.”
Kade shook the king’s hand and then we were walking briskly back to where my friends awaited. As much as my mind wanted to mull through all of this demon and ercho business, I had more pressing matters right now. So I stuffed it deep down where I put everything else that was too big or horrible to deal with, and decided I’d pull it back up when I needed to.
As we neared, the summer soldiers took to one knee and bowed their respect toward Kade and me. At the same time, the two magic born stepped into view. They were carrying a large piece of reflective glass, like a mirror but more opaque. It was placed against a tree, and then both spent many moments hovering their hands across it.
As the time passed, their words grew softer, and their bodies hunched forward. Their haggard expressions worried me as they slowly brought a swirling portal to life across the reflective surface. I swallowed my gasp when they both slumped forward, clearly unconscious.
“Will they be okay?” I asked Caspien, who stood close by.
The prince nodded. “They will sleep for a few days, but otherwise will be fine. Opening portals between our two worlds is extremely difficult.”
The portal now filled the entire piece of glass, at least six feet wide and ten feet tall, flames roaring in front of it. I peered through and my heart lifted as I recognized the inside of Baladar’s loft.
“I gave them a little direction,” Violet whispered close to my side. “I didn’t fancy having to take a dip in the lake today.”
I’d bet that they hadn’t even know they were getting a little help from Violet. Seemed she had learned a few things in her time in the Otherworld.
Giving all of the fae around me one last nod, I turned to my friends. “Let’s go home.”
Despite the darkness of the king’s message, I could only be grateful that we were all returning in one piece. Technically, our journey into the fae world had ended in happiness. Violet was alive. Everything I had gone through was worth it. I would go to the ends of the Earth and far beyond for my best friend.
She caught my eye and a wonky grin crossed her face. “Let’s go have ourselves snake burgers for dinner, eh?”
My smile grew wider. “You just read my mind.”
The moment I stepped through to Earth, the force of the mecca almost slammed me to my knees. It was so strong over here, and after being in the Otherworld, with their weakness, I almost couldn’t handle the overflow. My fae energy swirled as it smashed into the mecca side of my power. My hands formed tight fists at my sides as I gritted my teeth and tried not to lose it. The shifter gods only knew what havoc I might cause if I lost it now. With a final surge of effort, I managed to lock some of the power down, long enough for the rest of it to settle in my core.
Straightening I recognized the room we had stepped into, it was the sitting area where Baladar had served us tea. This time, though, there was nothing magical about the area. It was now a large, sterile-looking parlor holding a few dusty pieces of furniture, and one ragged, gray, worn out magic born sitting in the lotus position, eyes closed, hands steady across his knees.
I rushed forward, toward him. “Baladar!”
Calista let out a squeak, distracting me as she jumped to her feet. I hadn’t noticed her at first, my attention firmly locked on the magic born, but now I took in her pale features, which showcased both shock and relief as she took a few hurried steps toward me, wrapping me up in one of her hugs.
I hugged her back hard, trying not to cry as her familiar warmth and love washed over me. She was the closest thing I had to a mother, and after meeting my father and grandmother, I was more grateful than ever for her.
“What happened?” she choked out as she pulled back, scanning across me. “We’ve been trying to reach you. I thought you were dead.”
Her voice got all screechy and she was shaking a little, her eyes locking onto my face. She reached up, her fingers drifting over my pointy ears, but she didn’t freak out or demand to know what happened. She just smiled. I could feel her emotions. She was simply grateful I had returned alive.
I pulled her back to me, hugging her as tightly as I could. “I’m sorry, I was taken captive by the winter queen and we only just escaped. I’ve returned as soon as I could.”