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“Iris, stand down,” Oberon orders. “There’s no reason for you to worry about me. I’m perfectly fine.”
Reluctantly, Iris tucks her dagger back into its sheath at her waist. She roughly pushes Harold out of her way as she strolls over to her brother.
“Winn and I saw the two of you enter this forsaken place,” she explains. “I wasn’t sure if you had been captured to be eaten by these mongrels or what. Good to see you alive, brother.” Iris peers at me with mild disdain. “Emily.”
“Iris,” I say back in her truncated style of greeting.
“Where are Winn and Uri?” Oberon asks.
“Never fear. Winn is somewhere safe, and Uri stayed behind on the ship.”
“Hewhat?” Oberon shouts.
“I’m sure he’s fine.” Iris waves Oberon’s worry away like it’s a pesky fly. “He said he knows how to prevent the ship from falling to Earth. Since I haven’t seen it enter the atmosphere, I have to assume he was successful in his mission. You know Uri would never place his life in danger unnecessarily. You should be grateful, brother. He’s helped you retain your control over the king.”
“Control over the king?” Lev questions. “What does that mean? Who exactly are you people?”
Oberon turns to Lev. “Sorry for the slight subterfuge.” He holds his hand out to Lev who shakes it warily. “My name is indeed Oberon, but I’m also king of the dark fae.”
Lev appears confused. “Are you telling me there is more than one kind of fae?”
“My kind left this planet before the war started,” Oberon explains. “We ventured farther into space to see if we could find an uninhabited world we could call home. Unfortunately, we weren’t successful and only just now made it back.”
“Does dark mean you’re evil?” Lev asks. A group of townsfolk has gathered around us now, listening intently.
“No more evil than anyone else,” Oberon explains.
“They’re here to help,” I quickly add. “Oberon and I are to be wed, and with that union, we’ll have more power to push my father from his throne. Once we’re in power, there will be no more experiments except for the one I’m in charge of.”
“Like father like daughter,” one of the town’s people says.
“No! I am nothing like my father. My experiments are meant to reverse what he’s done to you, not add to your pain.”
“You can make us normal again?” Elle questions from just within the doorway of her home. “You can take these away?” She holds up her paws with tears glistening in her eyes.
“I can try. That’s all I can promise.”
“Lies!” Lev says savagely. “We don’t want to be tested on anymore. Get out of our town! The sooner you do, the sooner we can go back to living our lives.”
“But what kind of life is this?” I ask him. “What kind of life are you offering your child? You have no idea what its deformity will be. Will it be like you? Like Elle? Do you really want your child to have to live like you have? I can help, if you’ll just let me.”
“Get out of our village!” Someone from behind me throws a rock and hits me square between my shoulder blades.
Cries for our departure ring through the air. Oberon does what he can to shield me from the volley of rocks thrown our way, but they don’t stop until the sound of one of the royal aircraft zooms overhead.
“Never come back here,” Lev tells us. “We don’t need or want your kind of help.”
He walks into his house with a stunned Elle looking on and slams the door shut, causing the wobbly structure to shake to its foundation.
“Are you all right?” Oberon asks, looking me over for any major injuries. “They’ll pay for what they did.”
“No.” I reach out and rest my hand on his chest. He squeezes it tightly. “They’ve already paid enough. We have to help them, Oberon. Promise me you’ll do whatever it takes to help them.”
Oberon sighs heavily and doesn’t answer right away. “You’re not going to give me a choice after we’re married, are you?”
“Afraid not.” I let out a small laugh, but the action causes me pain on my right side. “I think I might have a cracked rib.”
“After what they just did to you, how can you still want to help them?” Iris asks like I’ve lost my mind.
