AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Fantastic,” Yichen muttered. His eyes skimmed over the forest, trying to spot more creatures watching their every movement.
“While they aren’t terribly hard to manage, I’m more worried about one of them being smart enough to leave and bring back more troublesome help. It would be in our best interest if we conduct our business and leave.”
“Agreed. Is it much farther?”
Rei resumed point on their trek. “Not far now.”
“Is that like your ‘fewer than a dozen, I should think’?”
The elf glanced over his shoulder and, as expected, a sly smile had spread across his pale-rose lips. No matter what Yichen said, the elf rarely lost his temper or showed that his feathers were the least bit ruffled. He ate up everything Yichen gave him with a smirk or a near-breathless laugh.
There had been a few times when Rei had lost his temper—all episodes thanks to his twisted parents. Those had been some very bad days for both of them.
Thankfully, Rei was more correct about their destination than their followers. They walked for another ten minutes before the elf held up one hand, halting Yichen. He took another couple of steps toward an enormous maple tree with flame-red leaves, although they were still deep in summer. Rei knocked on the tree bark three times, paused, and added two more quick knocks.
He retreated to stand beside Yichen, flashing him a reassuring grin.
Yichen was not reassured, but he didn’t have the chance to say anything. The center of the tree trunk split in two and opened as if someone were pulling open a pair of doors. Soft yellow light spilled from the tree, only to be blocked by a short figure with an enormous head. Yichen blinked at him. He was something out of a fairy tale.
The creature was a meter tall, and most of that was its head. Enormous brown eyes and an even bigger bulbous nose dominated its face. A long white beard stretched to brush the ground, nearly hiding its baggy clothes.
“I’ve been expecting you,” the creature announced and waved them in, though Yichen never saw his hand as a voluminous sleeve swallowed it up.
“Olag?” Yichen choked out. “Olag is a gnome?”
“Mn,” Rei grunted. “Gnomes are one of the few members of the fae that live longer than elves.” He giggled and tacked on, “They’re born from rocks.”
“And we can trust this Olag?” Following the gnome inside the tree seemed like a bad idea. They’d be trapped, and it would be impossible to escape in one piece. If they weren’t careful, they would be in the hands of the king before dawn.
“As much as I trust you,” Rei said, and that sealed their fate.
With a groan, Yichen ducked and stepped into the opening of the tree to find himself standing on a set of round, wooden stairs leading deep into the earth. The golden glow grew fainter as if Olag was carrying a lantern away from them while he descended. Except the passage didn’t immediately turn black. Pale-green glowing mushrooms grew out of the wall, lighting their way.
He permitted himself a moment to stare in wonder at the strange place. His family would love to see this, to hear about it. They would never believe him.
An old ache echoed through his chest. Gods, he missed his clan. The pain felt worse than it had been while he was being held captive. Now he was free and yet not. So close to them…but he still couldn’t reach out to them.
“Yiyi?”
Rei’s soft voice prodded him forward, breaking him from his dark thoughts. He hurried down the long, winding stairs into a cozy parlor with a flickering fire in a stone fireplace. The scent of dirt, roots, old wood, worn leather, and pipe tobacco permeated the space.
Olag dropped into an overstuffed chair so big his feet didn’t touch the ground. Odds and ends covered every nook, cranny, and surface. Paintings of landscapes and other gnomes covered the walls. Colorful patchwork-quilts of dizzying quality covered furniture, and stacks of books that looked as if they were in danger of tumbling over stood in every corner.
“Why have you sought Olag?” the gnome inquired.
“We need your help,” Rei began, his tone incredibly respectful. The only time Yichen had ever heard Rei use that tone was when he was addressing his parents. “While the king and queen held Wu Yichen within the fae realm, a blood bond formed between us. He had no choice but to feed on my blood in order to remain alive. Now he’s unable to take blood from anyone else. Human blood makes him ill.”
Olag extended an arm and shook it until one hand with five stubby fingers appeared. He used that hand to stroke his beard. Bushy eyebrows lowered and met over his nose, almost completely obscuring his eyes. “I don’t understand. If you fed him, he’s now yours. Why would you wish to allow him to be free of you? If you want to gift him to another of your kind, he needs to feed from that person.”
Yichen made a scoffing noise and held in a few choice scathing words when Rei briefly placed a hand on his elbow. The elf stepped forward and dropped to one knee so he was at eye level with the gnome. “You’re not amusing, Young Master Olag. You might prefer to stay underground, away from politics, but you’re not unaware of what happened in the Silver Court. Wu Yichen has saved my life countless times over the years, and I have saved his life. We are not beholden to each other. He has a right to his freedom, and I need to stop the king and queen from accomplishing their insane plan. But none of that can happen if, against his will, he is tied to me.”
The gnome slouched in his chair with a huff. He pulled on his beard and emitted a growling noise. “Why does the king want to leave our home at all? It is beyond my understanding. It’s madness.” Olag shook his fist at Rei until his overly long sleeve devoured it again. “Madness!”
That was the truth. King Ash and Queen Belladonna wished to keep the door between the fae realm and human realm open indefinitely, pouring all the magic of the fae world into the human one, allowing them to take over.
“I don’t argue with you. The king’s plans will not only destroy our home, but they will ultimately destroy this world as well.”
“So, you’re going to what? Defeat the king and queen, then close the doors? Seal all the fae back in our realm?”
