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Chapter 43
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Fairy-Struck Chapter 44
I woke up in a dark room; lying on a soft bed. I blinked and tried to rub the sleep from my eyes but a heavy weight held my wrists back. The clink of chains alerted me to the fact that I was bound to the bedposts; my arms stretched out to either side of me. My heart sped up as I tried to peer through the darkness. The slim wick of a candle caught fire and my gaze swung toward it. A beeswax taper set into a simple, silver holder was held by an elegant but masculine hand. The small circle of light revealed very little of the man beyond the hand; only a bit of arm and chest.The flame flickered as the candle was brought forward and placed on the bedside table. Then, with a wave of the elegant hand, the whole room was illuminated. It seemed as if hundreds of candles had been lit but there was still only the one placed beside me. I blinked against the glare until I was able to focus. King Uisdean stood beside the bed, smiling softly."Greetings, Daughter of my Brother," he purred."Greet
Fairy-Struck Chapter 45
Here, at least, there was architecture better suited to a castle. The walls were polished onyx; glassy enough to cast reflections in and they soared up to a vaulted ceiling crisscrossed with dark wooden beams. The ground was slabs of malachite and the same green stone soared seamlessly up from the floor to form a line of flame-topped columns that ran down the longest sides of the room. At the far end there was a dais holding the high table and set before it were two lines of dining tables—one to either side of the room—placed parallel to the lines of columns. The tables were set end to end; forming two, long, continuous pieces. A very similar set up to that of the Twilight Castle but yet vastly different.The sound hit me first. Screeches, growls, roars, and chitters. Then waves of foul scent washed over me as we passed goblins, bogles, hags, and slimy kelpies who had changed from their normal waterhorse forms into something that vaguely resembled human. They had thick, seaweed-green
Fairy-Struck Chapter 46
The entertainments of the Unseelie Court would haunt me forever. Oh, they danced, drank, and made merry like they did in the Twilight Court, but in Unseelie, the merriment consisted of several rounds of rather inventive torture; inflicted on captured seelie fairies. Since the Fey were immortal, torture could continue almost endlessly; just so long as they gave their victims time to heal, and there were fairies there who had a blank, hopeless look to them that spoke of years of such treatment.By the end of the night, I was staring into my lap, trying to drown out the sounds that seemed to echo in my ears, with the deep, tremulous breaths I was taking. My eyes were rapidly blinking back tears and my throat was constricted from holding down my screams. My skin ran hot and cold as if trying to decide whether to be terrified or furious. The smell of blood was an undertone to burnt flesh and hair, and I was a step away from throwing up all over their feast."There is no feast without crue
Fairy-Struck Chapter 47
I watched Bress spiral out of control and his magic followed suit; condensing into a distressing mass of thunderclouds which roiled across the ceiling, sparking and rumbling like an angry beast. Bress shouted more insanity about his mother, his voice melding with that of the swelling storm, and I prayed silently for help. Tell me what to do. Please, God... Goddess, anyone, help me stop him. Help me save us. Then, suddenly, it came to me; an understanding as if I'd known Bress for all of my life. I knew why he was so angry, what had created the madness and violence in him... and what would quiet the storm."My son," I called in a breathy whisper, and Bress froze; the whip dropping from his startled grip as his whole body tensed. "Come here.""Mother," he whispered and closed his eyes tightly. "I hate you so much.""Why do you hate me?" I asked as the beaten fairy looked over her shoulder at me in shock... and hope."You made me like this!" He turned and yelled at me; thunder punctua
Fairy-Struck Chapter 48
We rode for hours; Bress driving the team of horses as I huddled inside the carriage, cradling Nighean as carefully as I could so she wouldn't be jostled too much. I'd given Bress my cloak since it was cold out, and I felt bad for not making him put his tunic back on before we left. I was warm enough inside the carriage anyway.Then a wave of magic gave me the chills, and I looked out the window to see packed-earth walls surrounding us. The dark intensified into a void, but Bress kept his rapid pace. I suddenly realized where we were; inside a large fairy mound. Was he taking us into the Human Realm first? Why?The passage brightened and then we were riding out into another forest. This one felt familiar, and I knew it was the Twilight Forest. What the hell? I hung my head out the window so I could shout to Bress."Did we just go through a fairy mound?""Yes," he called back. "The road between Unseelie and Twilight."Right; the paths between the kingdoms. I'd forgotten about those
Fairy-Struck Chapter 49
"Dad?" I asked as I sat beside Nighean's bed, waiting for her to wake up."Yes?" Keir smiled at me.It was getting easier and easier to call him Dad, which seemed to delight him to no end."Do you remember the night I made the cloud appear?" I was staring thoughtfully at Bress, who was seated across Nighean's bed from me; staring at me as if not only was I his entire existence but he was perfectly happy with that."Yes, of course." Keir frowned. "The night before you were crowned.""Is this what I did to our fairies?" I waved a hand at Bress."I..." my father's face fell. "Not this exactly. To achieve this kind of result, you have to pour stardust directly into your victim's eyes, but it's possible that you cast a version of it. Something less...""Consuming?" I asked."Yes," he agreed. "Less consuming. I don't have that ability, but magic always changes a bit in the transfer. Perhaps you're able to spread out the spell to affect an entire room full of fairies.""Or perhaps it
Fairy-Struck Chapter 50
That night, I stood on the dais in the dining hall and addressed the Twilight Fey. Keir remained seated behind the high table and allowed me to do the talking, but Cat was standing loyally beside me; looking ready to hurt anyone who reacted badly to my speech. I gave her a quick head pat to try and keep her calm, but I was pretty sure she was reacting to my nerves so it didn't do any good."You have all been so welcoming to me," I started. "You've made me feel as if I'm one of you, even though I know some of you were unsure of me in the beginning." I saw some of the fairies exchange confused glances. "You had good reason to be concerned. I'm only half fairy and although most of you are halflings as well, I'm well aware that it makes a difference when one of the halves is human."Cat whined and leaned against my side; causing me to steady my stance."I was born with great psychic gifts and was taught very early on how to control them," I went on. "Not so with my fairy magic. I've only j
Fairy-Struck Chapter 51
After the Star's Guard welcomed their new brother into the fold, the Twilight Fey surrounded Conri to do the same. Then toasts were made to the new knight. Even King Keir came down to wish Sir Conri well and add his approval to Danu's decision but, eventually, the Court calmed and my father escorted me back to the high table."I've never seen anything so beautiful as you speaking with the voice of Danu," he said proudly. "I will carry that memory with me forever.""So will they, I hope." I looked out over the crowd and knew that they would. Attitudes would alter. Prejudice would depart. The Fey may be stuck in their ways but they always listened when Danu spoke to them. The lessers would be considered less no longer.I believe they will," Keir echoed my thoughts. "Now, what have you decided for Bress?""I imagine this existence would be more pleasant than that in a dungeon," I said and cast a look at my cousin.Bress looked lost; staring out at the court as if he wasn't sure where he w
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