“Who’s joining us this time around?” Shade asked as she sat on a fallen log near the Guildrin Mound entrance. Soap was standing near her. He smiled as he also plopped down on the log and gave her a hug. He was absolutely gleaming from seeing her again, even though they had talked just a day prior. He was always happy to see her. He breathed in deeply like the air was fresh and exhilarating. Shade rolled her eyes and leaned her chin in her hand as she drew in the dirt with a stick.
Whatever, thought Shade. Her mood was still no better than the night before.
“Oh, come on, Shade, don’t be such a pickle. We get to trek through Faerie again. How exciting is that? We won’t even have to stay at the Teleen Caverns, this time, what a relief! You’ll get to see a whole new side of Faerie. Aren’t you even the least bit excited?” Soap frowned at her and shook his head as she shrugged.
“Thrilled.”
Dylan walked up to her just then, his lips in a tight line as his eyes narrowed at the sight of Soap. He cleared his throat and turned his attention to Shade.
“Shade, we’re pretty much ready. Rylan is coming with us, but so are Than, Sary, and Stephen. Camulus joins us from Prince Lotinar’s guard to lead us to the meeting point. Are you ready? We won’t be traveling too much by foot.”
Shade’s eyes widened. “Wait, what do you mean? Who’s Camulus, and where’s Jack?”
“He’s on a special mission from the Queen herself,” Dylan informed her. “As for your first question, I’m talking about Camulus. He has the ability to teleport. If we link together while holding onto him, he can teleport us to wherever we want to go. He’s one of Prince Lotinar’s lieutenants, sent to pick us up. Beats traveling by foot any day, don’t you think?” He smiled down at her surprised face.
“Wow. Something new to learn every day. I couldn’t agree more.” Shade returned the smile, her mood elevated by his disarming charm, which rarely came out. She jumped to her feet along with Soap and followed Dylan toward the familiar group of warriors.
Camulus turned out to be part Elven and part Pixie. His long hair was pulled back in a thick tail of silver-blond, a trademark of the Elves. His skin was a smooth, leafy green, like a Pixie, and his eyes were a gleaming, fiery, orange-yellow. Shade wasn’t sure which one of his heritages gave him those.
“Camulus, I’d like you to meet Shade, the newest member of our court.” Dylan gave Shade a slight shove to push her toward the green guard. Shade swallowed back her shock and managed to crack a timid smile.
“Um, hi… Camulus? Pleasure to meet you.” They shook, and she noticed the smoothness of his hand, which seemed a bit thin with abnormally long fingers. He did have a firm grip. She slowly pulled away, but his hand lingered a moment longer, testing her grip just the same. He watched her curiously but then let her go, smiling and flashing pearly white teeth.
“The pleasure is mine, Shade. I’ve heard much about you,” he said while still staring at her.
“Have you? All good I hope.” She felt herself continue to flush under his relentless gaze.
“Extremely good indeed.”
Shade glanced away from the intensity of his fire-lit eyes. They seemed to see into her, peeling away her surface to get right through her. It was almost as if he knew a little too much about her. She wondered just how much he’d heard and from whom.
“I apologize for my curiosity, m’lady. I’m most intrigued by you. A wielder of the Water Magic of the Santiran Fountains is unheard of. I would most love to see how you use it sometime.” Camulus bowed, never letting his intense stare waver. She smiled and returned the gesture. She had to admit he intrigued her as well. It was not infatuation but more of a curiosity.
“Shall we proceed, then?” Dylan motioned to the rest of the group. Camulus held his hand out as he gestured for her to take it. She slipped her fingers through his and stepped back, allowing Sary to take his other hand as the rest of the group linked together into a circle.
“Ready? Hold on tight, this might feel disorientating,” Camulus said as he closed his eyes. In the next moment, the world flashed away. Shade felt like she was hurtling uncontrollably, and held fast to the hands she gripped. The toss ended almost as quickly as it had begun. Shade opened one eye, followed by the other, to find them all still standing in a circle, but the forest was gone. Instead, a great glass castle stood before them on a lush, grassy hillside. They released their hands and examined their new surroundings.
“Wow, that was a rush! How did you do that?” Shade’s face flushed scarlet as she pressed her lips together, realizing her outburst. Shoot, I must look like an idiot!
Camulus smiled back at her. His brilliant eyes glowed even brighter with the mid-morning sun reflecting across his irises, much like cat eyes on fire.
“That’s pretty much the reaction I get from first-timers. Pretty cool, huh?” His face lit up as he winked toward her.
Shade nodded, wondering how it was that he seemed to chat along with her as if he were just another person, not an Elven guard. “Do you ever venture outside of Faerie? Like, wear glamours or anything? You seem pretty laid back for being fey. I mean, like you hang with humans sometimes.”
He nodded, raising an eyebrow as his eyes danced while pondering her questions. “Yeah, I like checking out the iron cities around Faerie. Humans are quite fascinating. I wear pretty strong glamours so as not to stand out like a sore thumb and to ward off the iron-sickness. Want to see what I tend to look like when I get the chance to wander off?” Camulus looked eager to transform. Shade nodded with her eyes wide open and waiting.
The air around him shimmered and shivered, falling about him like glitter rain. A moment later, his green skin shined with a deep, golden-brown tone, and waves of platinum-blond hair framed his head. His eyes now flashed back a muted blue that made him look like someone from the blue lagoon. His lips widened in a grin as his eyes crinkled with it, smooth, tanned skin now where the green used to be. He looked like some kind of surfer dude stranded inland.
Shade felt her mouth gape open. She pulled it shut and grinned back at him. Not bad for a green-skinned guy.
“Nice. You’re pretty good. Soap is probably just as good as you. I’m impressed.”
“Soap? No one can top Soap,” Camulus laughed. “But I do try. I’m glad you’re impressed. You should see Prince Lotinar. He is very good at glamours, mostly to entice the female gender of course, but he is one of the best at changing appearances. He can almost rival a true Changeling, even though he isn’t one. But lately, he has preferred his own face to that of any other.”
“Really? Well, he sounds pretty amazing, too. I can’t wait to meet him,” Shade said.
“Oh, he is most impatient to meet you, too, Shade.” His voice seemed to wrap around her name in a deeper tone, causing the hairs on her arms to rise. She licked her lips as she nodded and turned back toward the rest of the group. Camulus was handsome, but something about him made her feel just a tad naked.
Dylan stood a couple feet away and had almost certainly been observing them the entire time. Shade lowered her eyes away from his cold, steely glare. His face smoothed out to a blank stare when he realized she’d seen him. She was tired of his brooding moods and started walking away from both men. Not a moment later, she felt Dylan’s hand grab her arm and readied herself to swing at him but stopped as he brought himself into step beside her, his body practically blending into hers.
“I wouldn’t get too friendly with an Elven-Pixie. They are more conniving than you can imagine,” Dylan muttered under his breath.
Shade pulled away but found his iron grip a bit too firm. “Dylan, let go! You’re digging your fingers into my arm!” Shade hissed at him. She stopped, making him turn toward her.
“You think I’m joking? Why do you think he likes to wander about your human world? He plays tricks and messes with ordinary people. He doesn’t care who he hurts. You’d best keep your distance.”
Shade yanked her arm loose, glaring at him. “You know wh
at, Dylan? I’m tired of your pathetic bouts of jealousy. Get over yourself already! He is just being nice, and I don’t see why you have to be such a cold, narcissistic jerk all the freakin’ time!” She marched ahead toward the Glass Castle, where everyone was filing in through the clear doors.
She breathed in deeply, letting her temper slide slowly away. She’d wanted to smack Dylan so badly. He pricked at her like a thorn she couldn’t get rid of. She knew how frustrated he was by the blood bind, but she really had no idea what to do about it. Ilarial didn’t have any solutions either. All Shade knew was he was becoming more of a headache with each passing day. She wondered how much longer they would be stuck with each other.
“The Glass Castle of Winter,” Soap explained as he slipped into step beside her. He’d waited for her to enter and had probably witnessed the whole fall out. He could sense her sullen mood, so he had decided to play tour guide instead of his incessant usual chatter. “The castle is made of a billion connected plates of glass, no two the same exact size. It is one of the last original castles built in Faerie, thousands of years ago. The glass stands strong and impenetrable, no matter how fragile it may seem. Wars have waged around it for centuries and yet, here it stands. Through time and chaos, nothing has undone it. What do you think, Shade? Nice digs, dontcha think?” His slang made her smile and think of the high school kids back home. His jokes were a welcomed change from Dylan’s glumness.
“It’s pretty amazing,” Shade said. “Is this where Prince Lotinar resides? It’s absolutely breathtaking.”
“No, he lives in the Great Horned Castle right smack in the middle of the Santiran City. This is his summer home, on the southernmost border of the northern realm of Faerie,” Soap responded.
Shade nodded at his brief geography lesson. She remembered the extensive Faerie maps she had studied on the way to the Santiran Fountains, as well as the ones stolen from Ursad. They looked nothing like the maps of earth that regular humans possessed. The world was much larger than anyone could imagine. A huge chunk of it belonged to the world of Faerie. She wondered how upset the rest of the world would be if they discovered this huge chunk of untaxed lands. Probably not too happy at all, Shade thought.
“Hey, Shade!” Soap’s softened voice broke through her thoughts. She turned toward the faery warrior and smiled at his twinkling emerald eyes.
“Yes, Soap? What’s up?”
He squirmed for a moment and sighed, looking around the great hall they were walking through before answering her. “What’s going on between you and Dylan? I mean, well, I was going to ask you if you wanted to, um, hang out more often….” He breathed in deeply before continuing. “It’s just that Dylan seems to be your jealous boyfriend attachment lately. I don’t want to interfere if you two are together or anything.” They had come to a stop just outside a doorway. Soap’s voice was just above a whisper so only she could hear his questions.
Shade felt her cheeks flush as she watched him stumble over his request. She knew that he liked her, but it hadn’t occurred to her that he had wanted to be an item. Her eyebrows rose in surprise as she studied his face. She spotted Dylan a ways behind them, making sure he wasn’t within earshot.
“You mean like girlfriend-boyfriend? I—I really don’t know Soap.” Shade watched his face fall in disappointment as he turned back toward the rest of the group.
“Soap, wait, I just didn’t expect that. Um, I love to hang out with you. You’re a ton of fun. I just don’t think I should have a boyfriend right now, even Mister Jealous. We’re not together like that. I’m not seeing him at all if that’s what you thought. He just feels like being an overprotective bossy pants. Plus the blood bind keeps us together. You know that.” Shade felt a twinge of denial in her words but shrugged it off.
This made Soap smile and glance back at her, pleasantly surprised. “Well, I’m glad to hear that. At least, I’m in the running, I guess. Especially with the stuff I’ve heard about going on with the Teleen Clan.”
It was Shade’s turn to be shocked again. “What did you say? What do you mean? What’s going on at the Teleen Caverns?”
Shade stared at him as he pressed his lips together. He looked like he was caught with his hand in the cookie jar. “Uh, well. I thought you knew,” Soap stuttered. “It’s just, I heard through the grapevine there would be some Teleen males coming to Guildrin to court you. You being all Teleen fire-resistant and all, you’re eligible bachelorette number one to them. That’s why I thought maybe you’d chosen Dylan already. He would be the best choice out of all of them to pair off with. I, um—I thought you wouldn’t want to be with a half-breed Teleen Changeling like me.” Soap stared glumly ahead of them, his face still as he retreated into himself.
Shade watched him, her mouth agape as the shock rippled across her face. She remembered what Dylan had mentioned in the oubliette about the scarcity of Teleen females to pair with the males. She felt her heart skip a beat.
No way! Totally forgot about that. Oh, crap.
Before she could answer him, Camulus opened the door they had gathered at and let the group through into a large sitting room. Expansive, intricately-designed rugs lay uniformly across the floors underneath plush sofas in a horseshoe shape facing a large marble fireplace. The marble stone was exquisitely carved into what looked like smooth vines and tree limbs. The vast windows let the brilliant light of day flood the room so there was no need for any kind of lighting. Shade wanted to walk around the room to study the elaborate designs, paintings, and trinkets on the various tables and shelves lining the walls, but someone caught her attention instead.
The Elven Prince stood by the massive fireplace and turned toward them. Shade stared at the tall faery. His hair was silver-grey and hung down to his waist. It was partly pulled back with a leather tie. It reminded her of liquid mercury but lighter with its shining highlights. His skin was a pale milky-white, and his thin, firm lips were the color of a dusted rose.
But his eyes were what caught Shade. They were a deep emerald green, so deep, they seemed like an endless bamboo forest. She was sure she’d seen eyes like his before. Soap had similar eyes, but these seemed to match a distant memory of hers that she couldn’t quite put a finger on. She gulped as the Prince approached them, walking with an air of power which pulsated across the air.
“May I introduce the warriors of the Guildrin Court, Your Majesty,” Camulus said as he introduced them to the Prince. “They are Stephen, Than, Sary, Dylan, Shade, and Rylan.” Camulus’s voice echoed in the room as he spoke. “This is Prince Lotinar, the Crown Prince of the Northern Realm of Faerie and Lord of the Santiran City.” He bowed before the Prince and the group followed his actions.
The Prince also bowed his head slightly, his eyes never leaving the group. They seemed to settle on Shade and bore into her like hot pokers. Shade felt the scarlet heat flush across her face again as she averted her eyes to the floor. She was never going to get used to how much the faeries seemed to stare at her as if dissecting her and examining the little pieces inside her like a science project. She gulped and let her eyes dart back up to his still face. They continued to drift back and forth from his ghostly skin and metallic mane to the soft rugs under their feet.
“I am most pleased to meet all of you, especially you, Shade. The Water-Wielder of the Sacred Santiran Fountains. Your reputation precedes you, and I am most interested to see if all I have heard is true.” He glided toward her as everyone parted, and she became lost to him as he trained his eyes on only her.
Shade felt like a mouse in a lion’s den as she was swallowed by his eyes. He was definitely powerful. His magic poured off of him in a tidal wave, crashing into her. It made her feel faint as she felt the room swirl around her. Again the feeling of déjà vu crept into her. His voice, his overall essence, felt so familiar. It was as if she’d known him before, maybe in another life, long ago.
She shook her head and felt the magic recede like low tide. Her head cleared up immediately as she felt Soap p
lace a hand against the small of her back, helping her clear her mind. Prince Lotinar reined in his magic and shut it deep inside him as he realized how much it had affected her. Shade bore her eyes into his and tried with all her might to remember how she knew him, yet her memory failed her.
“My apologies, Shade. It seems your powers have flared my own to life. I will try to be more careful.” Prince Lotinar’s voice was a low, sturdy, jaunt. Shade couldn’t ignore the slight feeling that he was a bit angry with her. She was hoping it was all in her head, but her gut feelings always seemed to be right on.
“Pleasure to meet you, Prince Lotinar,” Shade said. Her voice caught in her throat and came out just above a whisper as he turned away and walked to the enormous glass windows. He stared out of them as the breeze swayed the lush trees outside.
“I have been waiting for all of you to arrive. I can feel much unrest in Faerie, and as it grows, Queen Aveta becomes more restless and more powerful. She has sent her winter. Frost scorches my lands and withers the forests, burning the soils with its death grip. She holds the Eastern Realm, but I think she will be mobilizing soon. I feel her taint crossing the borders into the neutral territories. Wild magic is pouring out of the Sacred Vices of Faerie with her disturbances, and I fear she is scheming to capture Shade since she holds the key to the water magic of Santire.” Lotinar turned then, looking sternly and seriously at Shade. “Tell me, Shade, have you mastered the water wielding arts yet? We will need them when Aveta decides to invade the other three territories.”
Shade clasped the small ampule dangling from her neck. Ilarial had made her split the original flask of sacred Santiran Water, one part into a necklace she now wore. The original flask was safe in Guildrin, but since no one could wield it but her, Ilarial thought it better to have Shade keep some with her at all times so she could wield it whenever she chose. Unfortunately, no one alive knew how to use the water magic. Shade had been doing exercises with Ilarial. She was able to move water around from bowls to glasses and make it float all around her in a dance of small water baubles. She definitely had not mastered its power, and she certainly was not yet able to use it as a weapon against the dark Unseelie Queen’s army. She slowly shook her head.
“Pity. I had hoped we had one thing going for us.” Prince Lotinar’s icy voice echoed in the room. Shade had caught his cold stare before he turned back toward the dance of the landscape outside.