Vek leaned against the corner of his house and stared down at the city of Chattanooga nestled in the valley below. Inside, Fen played one of his video games—if Vek stretched his senses, he could hear the details of the cut-scene currently interrupting the action. A role-playing game, his nephew had called it. He spent hours killing fake monsters and rescuing artificial women. As if there wasn’t enough mayhem in the real world.
His senses tingled as a wave of energy swept through him. A few moments later, the electricity wavered, and Fen’s curse echoed through the wall as his game cut off. Despite the situation, Vek chuckled. Hope he’s saved recently.
Vek needed to face Fen and explain the situation, but he couldn’t. Not until he decided what to do. He had never outright defied the king, though he’d done his fair share of skirting the rules. But this? This was a tangled web he might not be able to unsnarl. The leader of the Moranaian colony would either be Ralan, a prince of Moranaia, or Aris, the man who’d subverted part of the wall holding back Earth’s energy into something else—though what, Vek hadn’t yet been able to divine.
And Vek owed a debt to both men.
Ralan had spared Fen even though his nephew had helped poison Earth’s energy field, and Aris had healed the wound Fen had sustained while atoning for that error. Saving his nephew’s life was a blood debt, and Vek never failed to repay those. There was no way he could bring himself to kill Ralan or Aris.
Aside from that, they’d acted in no way against the Unseelie. On the rare times Vek had used his talents against another on behalf of the king, it had been to prevent harm to his own people. He gained new abilities through taking others’ blood, though there were limits. But if he wished, he could steal the darkest, most wicked magic and turn it to his own use. Vek refused to wield such a dangerous ability lightly—and never against allies.
But perhaps “allies” was a stretch when it came to the Moranaians.
They had destroyed the barrier restraining the bulk of Earth’s magical energy, a necessary safeguard. Once ancient humans had learned to use magic, they’d torn their societies apart with power so intense it still echoed in their myths. If Vek’s ancestors and the dragons hadn’t stopped them, they would eventually have annihilated their entire race. The Moranaians had disregarded that protection recklessly.
But they were all about to learn if modern human society was more capable of handling the magic that had exploded into their world. It was only a matter of time until people began to use that power openly, and if they couldn’t cope with that new truth, there would be panic and discord. Many of the fae races might suffer, including the Unseelie, and the wise would hasten to prepare. His father was right to be concerned about the results of the Moranaians’ hasty actions.
Even so, not even Vek had expected an assassination order over the matter.
Behind him, the door clicked open. “Are you going to stop brooding and get your ass in here?”
Vek allowed himself a brief smile where his nephew couldn’t see. Fen was getting better at detecting those of his bloodline. Good. But he hid his satisfaction before he turned. “How much progress did you lose?”
“It wouldn’t let me save after the boss battle,” Fen grumbled. “We’ll see if there was an autosave after the power is back on. Seriously, though, what are you doing out here? Was the meeting that bad?”
Only when he’d brushed past his nephew and closed the door behind them, sealing the protective shielding on the house, did Vek speak. “It is wise not to discuss such business out in the open.”
Fen waved a hand, and the mage lights lining the walls brightened, dispelling the gloom. “Fine. We’re out of the open. Now tell me what happened. Are you supposed to take me back for execution or something?”
Vek strolled over to the large, L-shaped couch on the other side of the room and sat. “Not yet. If you cooperate.”
“If I…” Eyebrows raised, Fen stared at him. “What else could I possibly do? I’ve tried my best to fix all of my mistakes.”
Vek draped his arm over the back of the couch. “Well, if you want to be pardoned by the king, you’ll have to work with me. Become my student and learn our ways.”
Fen went so long without blinking that Vek feared he’d expired from shock. “Does that mean I would be accepted at court as one of your people? My people?”
“An eventual possibility.”
“That’s—”
“Not as great as you’re imagining,” Vek interjected. “Don’t think of this with a child’s hope when you make this decision. If your mother accepts you, it will be for her own agenda, and our way of life is not easy or pleasant.”
Fen’s lips twisted wryly. “I used to work for a guy who turned out to be a depraved torturer. You might like to appear dark and mysterious, but you’re not evil.”
“You’ve been around humans too long.” Vek tried to tamp down the anger that association always caused, but he could tell from Fen’s expression that he wasn’t entirely successful. “The Unseelie aren’t evil, at least no more than any other race. But there are things that must be done in the darkness. We take that on and are villainized for it. Do you think anyone was grateful when we worked with the dragons to wall off so much of Earth’s energy? No. But it was necessary to stop countless wars.”
Fen lifted his hands. “Okay, okay. Sorry.”
“What I meant was that other fae races will look at you differently, seeing only that you linger in the dark and missing the reason why. Your—” Mates, Vek almost said, but he stopped himself in time. Some things Fen had to discover on his own. Maddy and Anna were as young and unprepared as Fen, so hopefully it wouldn’t be anytime soon. “You must learn to accept that.”
Fen fell silent as he considered those words. “It wouldn’t be much different,” he finally said, his voice soft. “I’ll always be remembered for my mistake in working with Kien. Might as well be true to myself in the process.”
“Good.” Vek leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees. “Your first mission? Drive me over to the cave where the wall cracked. We need to figure out what the Moranaians are up to.”
Though Ralan kept frowning at her over his shoulder, he led Dria through the portal to Earth with less argument than she’d expected. She barely got a glance at the new palace, a relatively humble building taking shape around the trees. She was too focused on the shock of cold that bit into her skin after they passed through the gate from Braelyn. This was far from the pleasant heat of the plains.
But she’d barely had time to wrap her cloak more tightly around herself before they crossed through another gateway and into the relative warmth of the cave. As they halted on a small platform, wide stairs leading down to the floor, Dria exerted a bit of power to keep her trunk in the air until she could find a level place to set it.
With the addition of the guards flanking the gate, the platform was cramped enough that Dria didn’t argue when Ralan strode down the steps without preamble. Curious, she peered around as she followed. They hadn’t been joking about this being a large cavern. Stalagmites speared up around the outer edges, though the center had been smoothed. Magic hummed inside the floor, a sign that the flatness wasn’t quite natural, and the stairs spiraling up and around the cylindrical chamber were likewise marked by the energy.
“So,” Dria said. “We’re setting up a colony in a cave like the Seelie and Unseelie. Nice.”
He lifted a brow at her sarcastic tone. “It was your choice to come alone, Dree.”
Dria scowled. “Don’t call me that.”
“I knew this would likely be your reaction to me, but I had hoped a softer strand was still possible,” Ralan answered, his shoulders slumping.
“I don’t care what you See in the future strands, Ralan,” she snapped. “You should have paid more attention in the past.”
“I know.” Her brother’s gaze lowered. “It was unforgiveable that I didn’t say goodbye. I was so angry at Father that—”
“You think a mere goodbye is at the heart of this?” Dria wanted to punch him. How could he be so oblivious? So self-centered? “You abandoned me without a thought. Did it never occur to you what life would be like for a fifteen-year-old at court when half her family creates such a horrific scandal? When one brother is caught dismembering the woman the other brother wanted to marry, the rest of the family doesn’t go unscathed. Especially since you fled to Earth before the worst of it was discovered. That left Teyark, who was already overburdened as our father’s heir…and me.”
Ralan grimaced. “I never considered—”
“Of course you didn’t,” she interrupted. “Once you do, you can get back to me. I’m certain it will take a few decades to get through your selfish, stubborn brain.”
His gaze shot to hers. “We shouldn’t delay talking about this.”
He’d once used his Sight to protect her, but he appeared blind to her life now. “How about you examine your precious strands and see how successful that would be, brother dear? You couldn’t be bothered to do so before you deserted me.”
Dria spun away, frustrated with herself for losing her temper. If he wanted to continue the conversation, he could do so by himself. She didn’t owe him anything after the pain he’d put her through. Instead, she collected her trunk with a tendril of magic and marched up the staircase that curled up the side of the cavern. She would find an antechamber to stash her belongings in while she worked.
Eventually, Ralan’s footsteps thudded along the stone behind her, but she didn’t look back. She focused her attention on the hallway that led away from the first landing. The glow of the mage light hanging by the opening barely penetrated the darkness, but the entire structure was too regularly shaped to be anything but intentional.
Dria summoned light into her hand and cast it in front of her, pushing it down the hallway to illuminate the path. Doors of stone lined the tunnel at regular intervals, along with empty stone sconces shaped to hold mage globes. Whoever had used magic to create this complex didn’t do much work in wood.
“There’s a large room for you at the end of the hallway,” Ralan said, his voice gruff with an emotion she didn’t care to examine. “When the other mages arrive, they can stay in these rooms. It’ll be easier for you to give them their orders that way.”
She froze. “Orders?”
“You’ll be the one in charge,” Ralan answered, but this time, he sounded almost cheerful. “I’m technically the leader, but you’re going to be the one running the place. I can’t leave Cora and Eri for long periods of time.”
Fury filled her so completely that she had to count the striations of color in the stone beneath her feet to calm down. Twice. “Father specifically stated that I would not be in charge, only responsible for helping the mages as needed.”
“I’m delegating.” Curse him, he was enjoying this. “You wanted to rise up the ranks, didn’t you? Well, here you go.”
Dria spun to face him, her tenuous hold on her temper snapping as she advanced on her brother. She barely resisted the urge to shove him. “No one is going to listen to me, and you know it. Your bonded and daughter will be fine for a few weeks, or you could bring them here. It should be safe enough once the shielding is solidified.”
Though he’d been smiling, his humor fled. “No, I can’t. Cora is pregnant, and her magic is bound to Moranaia. It could harm our child to leave with such a bond in place.”
“With the portal, they’re only a short distance away. Just step through from time to time and—”
“No,” Ralan said firmly. “You are the leader here. Get used to it.”
Dria huffed. “Why not Teyark? No one would dare to question him.”
“He and his bonded, Corath, have finally found a surrogate to bear their child,” Ralan said, shrugging. “I’m surprised you didn’t know. It’s not like you have a grudge that keeps you from contacting him. They’ll have to remain close during the process.”
Her cheeks heated. “I have not called home as often in the last couple of months, and I forgot to answer the message he left on my mirror.”
The reason why hung in the air between them like her mage light—she’d been avoiding even the mention of Ralan.
“I need to go,” her brother said abruptly. “Eri is about to talk her friend Iren into a jaunt to the fairy pond, and that is not something either of them is ready for.”
“But—”
“If you follow the stairs to the top, you’ll find a small, cloaked exit leading out to the surface. I wouldn’t recommend you use it, however.” Ralan grinned. “It’s another planet out there, after all. But it’s safe enough in here for a battle mage. I’ll be back tomorrow.”
Dria opened her mouth, either to argue with him or call him a few choice names, but he rushed down the hallway before she had a chance. Baffled, she stared after him even after he’d disappeared from view. After all that, he’d left her here so he could rush back to keep his child from going to a fairy pond? Seriously? She hadn’t wanted to linger at Braelyn, but she’d expected to have the current situation explained in full.
At last, she shook her head and headed toward the door at the end of the hallway. This was going to be a disaster. By the gods, her brother was a seer. Had he not bothered to Look? Did he want her to fail?
Though maybe, just maybe, he knew she would pull this off.
Lord Naomh of the Seelie stared out the window at the verdant forest growing beneath an artificial sky. He’d been born here and was bound here, his magic layered into the spells that gave the underhill cavern life. His older brother, Meren, often bragged about inheriting the properties adjacent to the palace, as well as their father’s place at court, but Naomh had received the best of their father’s holdings. There was far more to this estate than his proud, ambitious brother knew.
But Meren had never been content to live beneath the surface, anyway.
Unfortunately, the sons of Míl, ancient predecessors of the modern Irish, had been clever at the end of their final war with the fae. In the treaty that ended the hostilities, they’d chosen to enforce the literal meaning of fei talef—underground— instead of the figurative “other dimension” that the fae had intended. After much negotiation, they had settled on a compromise: the fae would settle in closely connected dimensions beneath the surface of Earth while the humans ruled the surface.
The Milesians had no doubt feared what would happen if Naomh’s ancestors had found another sunlit world as the Moranaians had. They would have regrouped and strengthened until they could return to demolish every trace of human civilization. Instead, the fae had poured the energy of centuries into creating underground domains like this one. And fighting amongst themselves, of course. The Seelie and Unseelie had become true enemies not long after, both sides blaming the other for the poor negotiation with the humans.
The Seelie had kept to their word not to set foot upon the surface, though it cost them. Over and over, it cost them. Naomh’s price had been his Moranaian mate, who hadn’t been bound by that oath—and Kai, the son he hadn’t known about. If he could have touched the ground, he might have found his lover, for his connection to earth magic was strengthened by contact. Perhaps for once, he should have copied the Unseelie, the oath-breaking scum. They’d long ago decided that the treaty with the humans was useless and now roamed Earth’s surface as they wished.
No wonder Meren was plotting something with them.
Naomh detected Caolte’s energy before his younger brother entered the room. Quiet and seething, an ember waiting for its chance to flare. Born of an affair between Naomh’s and Meren’s father and an Unseelie woman, Caolte had long endured suspicion and scorn from many at court—including Meren. Naomh was only a few years older, so he and Caolte had grown close when the younger man had come here to train with their father as a child. They’d been inseparable ever since.
“Well?” Naomh asked as his brother halted behind him.
“As suspected, he was there,” Caolte answered. “My sister trailed Meren all the way to a tavern on the outskirts of the main Unseelie settlement.”
Naomh shook his head. Caolte’s precocious half-sister was far too good at spying. “I’m surprised your mother allows Vren to take such risks at fifteen, though I confess I am grateful. Did she recognize his contact?”
“No, the person was well-cloaked,” Caolte said, his voice rough with frustration. “But Vren heard enough to prove that Meren is negotiating with someone in the Unseelie court to circumvent our queen’s orders. He wants to destroy the new Moranaian outpost and use that as a stepping stone to reclaim surface Earth.”
Naomh spun away from the window, wanting for all the world to slam his fist into something. Anything. Caolte took a step back. “You are certain?” Naomh demanded.
“Positive.” Caolte’s lips thinned. “Whatever the Moranaians have unleashed under that mountain, Meren and the Unseelie are going to try to subvert it.”
Naomh’s chest tightened, and he shoved his long, pale hair back with an irritated flick. Would his son be at the outpost? With Kai’s soulbonded pregnant, perhaps not. Naomh could inquire, but their relationship was…tenuous. Something that tended to happen when one was mistakenly captured by one’s own father. But how could Naomh have known that Kai and his mate weren’t Kien’s allies, considering they’d been found in the madman’s camp amidst countless severed body parts?
“Why would Meren not avoid the Moranaians entirely if all he wants is to return to Earth?” Naomh asked.
Caolte shrugged. “I assume because Lord Lyr slighted him, and that won’t be easily forgiven.”
“It’s personal.”
“Partially,” Caolte said. “I believe Meren also hopes to gain power by taking control of whatever the Moranaians have. With Earth’s magic growing, he only needs a little more influence to convince some of our people to return. The queen would have to yield if he gains enough power and support to overthrow her. Meren will hurt anyone who gets in his way.”
“That he will.” Naomh’s hands fisted. He should have disposed of his brother years ago, but Meren had never quite given him a justifiable reason—at least not one that would satisfy the queen. But the bastard was treading on dangerous ground now. With Naomh’s son and future grandchild among the Moranaians, a threat to their holdings would not be allowed.
“Should we warn Lyr or continue to observe?” Caolte asked.
“Until we learn more about Meren’s plans, we wait.” Naomh smiled as his brother tossed his flame-red hair out of his eyes with a scowl. Caolte never had been the patient type. “Wait and guard.”