AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The track opened into a sheltered meadow, surrounded by a ring of oak and rowan. The trees around the clearing were thick with crows and ravens. A holly stood in the center, and the ground was thick with patches of spongy moss.
And in the center of the clearing, I saw Morgaine. She and Mordred and Arturo were there, all three of them, sitting around a bonfire. Two large tents had been raised off to one side, along with what looked like a yurt, only with vinyl tarps stretched over the frame rather than skins or leather.
I entered the grove and slowly approached the fire. Morgaine stood. She was petite, shorter even than Menolly, and she still made me catch my breath, although I wasn't as starstruck as I had been on our last meeting.
Morgaine was wearing a long black dress, similar to mine, and she wore a silver crescent moon around her neck and a silver tiara that reflected the glow from the fire. Arturo, a stately man with grizzled hair and an otherworldly air, quickly rose and bowed. Mordred, her nephew, remained sitting. He stared at me, an insolent smirk on his face.
I gave Morgaine a quick curtsy, not quite sure how to open the conversation. But the sorceress took care of that for me.
"The dragon sent you, didn't he? He doesn't like me much, I think." Her voice lilted over the words. Oh yes, she was half-Fae as well, and her blood ran thick with darker, older magic than my own. And then it clicked. Morgaine's powers strengthened under the dark of the moon, while mine rose to their zenith during the full. She ran crone energy through her veins.
Arturo motioned for me to sit on the log between them. I opted for the end of the long trunk, instead. Easier to get away, if I needed to escape. As I settled down, Mordred squinted at me, then pulled a tin mug off of a makeshift table and filled it with something brewing over the fire. He handed me the cup. I took it out of courtesy, but I sure as hell wasn't planning on drinking anything they gave me.
"We just want to know what you're doing here. This is his land, and he's… curious." I pretended to take a sip, then set the cup down on the ground next to my feet.
"We? So you are the creature's mistress, are you? I thought I smelled the scent of dragon on you. You'd better be careful, child. Do you have any idea what you're doing, cavorting with dragons?" Morgaine slid closer to me.
I automatically scooted away. Though I didn't sense any evil or anything remotely akin to the Demonkin, she gave me the willies. Maybe it was the sheer magnitude of her power, or perhaps I still had a bad case of fangirl-itis… but whatever the reason, she made me terribly nervous.
I cleared my throat. "Who I cavort with is my own business. But tell me, what are you doing here?"
She paused, then glanced at Arturo. He shrugged. Mordred mumbled something under his breath, but she ignored him. "There's no harm in telling you. You and your sisters can't stop me, even if you wanted to. And somehow, I doubt you'll try. We're looking for a cave—"
"For the Merlin?"
"Hush. Mind your manners around your elders, or didn't those teachers in Otherworld teach you anything?"
Her abrupt command shut me up, but I wondered what the hell was going on. Last we'd met, she'd been seeking to find and awaken her mentor. Had her plans changed?
She sniffed. "There's a cave out here somewhere. It contains a far greater ally than that stuffy old lecher. I must find that cavern."
"But why? And what sort of ally are you hoping to find there, if not the Merlin?"
Who the hell was she looking for? And then the thought that my sisters and I had already discussed came creeping back, eating at the edge of my consciousness. What if Morgaine was seeking a way to contact the demons? What if this "ally" she was talking about turned out to be Shadow Wing? Or someone from his army?
She tapped her nose. "Enough said. All will be answered in good time. There was a time when the Fae of this world ruled supreme. We held the world safe in our arms from outsiders and invaders. That day will come again. I give you my word on that."
What a load of crock! The Fae had fought among themselves as long as I could remember—at least it was that way in Otherworld, and I doubted if it had been much different here.
"Of all the closemouthed, pigheaded, stubborn…" Frustrated, I jumped up, knocking over the mug as I did so. "Give it up, Morgaine. What's your purpose? Who are you looking for and why? We know you're up to something. Are you out to join forces with Shadow Wing?"
She rose slowly, with deliberate focus. My heart leapt into my throat. Never anger a sorceress who could make mincemeat out of you. I felt for the unicorn horn, my hand sliding into the inner pocket where I'd stashed it.
"You little fool. Shadow Wing? Pah! I have no love for Demonkin. But I refuse to stand by and watch you and your sisters hand over this world to the demon lord because you're so inept. You want to know what I'm doing? Fine. I'll tell you. I plan on raising the Seelie and Unseelie Courts again, and the Queens of Fae will unite to stop the demon threat. You can join me, or you can stand against me. Which do you choose?"
My jaw must have dropped a mile. Feddrah-Dahns was right.
"But… you mean to set yourself up as the Unseelie Queen?" The thought of Morgaine wielding the title of Queen of Darkness was terrifying. With her at the helm, the Earthside Fae could easily send civilization back to bow and arrow.
She stared at me for a moment, then began to laugh. "You are so earnest and so easily mislead. I know you've been keeping company with the Dahns Prince. Whatever you find to talk about, I can't imagine. But no, to answer your question. I'm not after the Dark Crown. I will rule the Seelie Court and raise it to heights that Titania could only dream of, even in her heyday. I first came seeking her, hoping to gain her aid, but rumor has it she's a drunken sot who's lost most of her powers as well as most of her wits. So I'll do this on my own."
I glanced at Arturo and Mordred. Neither looked happy under my scrutiny, but their expressions backed up her words.
Slowly crossing to the holly tree, I fingered one of the sharp leaves. "So, if you are determined to take the crown of the Seelie Court, then who do you expect to take the crown of Unseelie?"
Morgaine gave me a feral little smile that reminded me all too much of Grandmother Coyote's steel teeth. "Who else? The Queen who held it last. Aeval is rumored to be trapped in a cavern near here, frozen in time. Since the Fae Courts must be balanced here on Earth, why not offer her the freedom to return to what she does best?"
Aeval had been one of the queens of Fae before the Great Divide, as ruthless and terrifying as any modern dictator. She made Lethesanar look like a pouting schoolgirl. I shuddered.
