The kelpies had brought Tarragon to shore, and that was where he stayed for a few days. He lived off the fresh, clean river water and ate wild berries and small animals. He enjoyed every moment of his freedom, and never again would he ever be a prisoner. He would die before he got locked up again.
He had hated the months that he had rotted away in the Dark House. He had hated that his followers had been too scared to break him out and risk Severin’s wrath. Tarragon hated Severin and wanted nothing more than to kill him. He had thought they were friends, but the moment Tarragon had confessed that he killed the former prince and princess, Severin had forsaken him. Severin didn’t have any loyalty, and he was as power hungry as Dagan. Tarragon wanted to kill him, but who would sit on the Everblossom throne? There was no way he could rule again; he had already lost too much support.
They also needed a queen or a king to sit on the Eternity Throne and rule over all four kingdoms. Without a proper leader, everything would fall apart.
For once in his life, Tarragon didn’t have much of a plan; he was lost and alone. Tarragon would take things slowly, step by step. There were Prenumbras on Earth, and his sword was the only thing that could kill them – unless Celine succeeded in convincing the Elves to forge more. Tarragon’s No-Name sword had stayed behind in the Everwhite Kingdom with Prince Caynin. He wanted it back.
But he couldn’t barge into the kingdom, alone and unprotected. He was outnumbered and hated, and he feared that the Fata would kill him. If he was going back there to retrieve his sword, he would need at least one powerful partner.
Tarragon knew his way around the Everblossom Kingdom. He kept off the main roads so that no one would spot him. He was good at remaining hidden. He had grown weaker after spending months in the Dark House; he had not eaten or worked out enough. His legs cramped as he hiked, but he did not stop until he reached the Lake of Lost.
Tarragon filled his lungs with the fresh air before exhaling loudly and wading into the lake. The water was cold and clear – he could see his boots as he went. There were beautiful water lilies but no animals. Tarragon stopped once he reached the middle of the lake.
“Beast, I call on you,” he said.
He did not speak loudly or shout the words. He spoke as if to a person who stood right in front of him. He didn’t have to wait long before the water rippled, and the Beast emerged slowly from the water. Her scales shimmered in the sunlight, and her mouth was open to reveal her rows and rows of teeth. The serpent lifted her long neck, as if she was a snake, and Tarragon gazed up at her. He was not afraid. A knife had been stuck in her eye – which had undoubtedly blinded her. It was iron and must hurt like hell.
“Hello, Vipress,” he was one of the few faeries who knew the Beast’s name.
“Tarragon,” she said in her snake-like voice. “I didn’t expect to see you ever again.”
“I did not expect to return,” he said. “What happened to your eye?”
“A human did it,” she hissed.
It had to have been Celine. She must have done it when she retrieved the sword.
“Her name is Zoey Wright.”
“Let me take it out,” Tarragon said.
She slowly lowered her head to his height. Those razor-sharp teeth were inches away from Tarragon, and she could swallow him in one bite if she so wished. Tarragon gripped the knife and yanked it out quickly. The Beast roared in pain, threw back her head, and her body twisted in the water.
The iron knife burnt Tarragon’s faerie skin, and he dropped it into the lake. His hand slowly healed.
“I’ll take the pain away,” Tarragon said.
She slowly lowered her head and let him put his hand where her eye once was. He took away the pain and healed the wound until a hollow space remained where the serpent’s eye once was.
“Thank you,” Vipress hissed.
“I’m sorry you got hurt,” Tarragon said. “I should never have gifted the sword to you, but then again, I had no idea the girl would come for it.”
“She’s cunning,” the serpent hissed. “I’m sure you did not come here just to talk about me. What do you want?”
“I want my sword back,” Tarragon said. “I want to go to the Everwhite Kingdom to retrieve it, but I am not welcome there.”
“You want me to offer my protection,” the Beast said.
“Yes. I can’t do this without you.”
“What do I get in return?” Vipress asked.
“Was taking the knife out of your eye not enough?” Tarragon asked.
“I want one more thing,” the beast said.
“What is that?” Tarragon dared to ask.
“I want to kill the human girl who stuck her knife into my eye.”
“I do not know where she is,” Tarragon said, “and I will not help you hunt her.”
“Fine,” Vipress said. “You don’t have to help me hunt her. All I ask is that if I find her, you don’t interfere.”
“All right,” Tarragon agreed. “We have a deal.”
Vipress lowered her neck so that Tarragon could climb on. He grabbed a hold of her scales and pulled himself onto her neck. There was no saddle, but he didn’t think he would fall off.
The beast swam to shore and then she slithered, like a snake, toward the Globetrot-tree.
***
Caynin and Rane rode Chet and Fang, while ten of their best warriors rode glow-wolves. These wolves were significantly smaller than the leopards, and they did not have wings. Instead, they had long, feathery tails and glowing manes. They were white, like Caynin’s hair, with round eyes that could see well, even in a snowstorm.
Caynin could tell from the way Chet was swishing his tail, that walking irritated him, and he wanted to fly. He was not fond of the wolves, as he did not belong to their pack. Caynin was tempted to let Chet soar above them, but there was no point in straying from the group, so they rode to the river together in silence.
Caynin had briefed his Fata while they were at the castle. He had tried his best to convince them not to be scared as they outnumbered the Prenumbras and they had Shatterproof swords; despite the odds being in their favor, everyone was on edge.
They reached the river and headed upstream to the waterfall. No one spoke. The wolves grunted and listened to the sounds of the forest. A light breeze ruffled the branches and blew snowflakes to the ground. Squirrels danced in the branches, and small fish darted in the river. Some of the wolves stopped to drink water.
“We are almost there,” Caynin said as Chet started upstream. He was alert, with his ears pricked, while he scanned their surroundings.
“What if there aren’t any Prenumbras?” Rane asked.
“Then we will wait. I believe they will be drawn to our magic, and that they will come.”
Although Caynin was cautious, he was not terrified. He had no doubt that they would prevail.
They reached the waterfall and halted. The portal was closed, but three Prenumbras stood in front of it, facing the portal as if expecting it to open. They were motionless. What were they waiting for?
Rane looked warily at Caynin and waited for orders.
“There are the others.” He pointed.
The other two Prenumbras were lingering under the trees, still as statues. From the distance, Caynin guessed that they were Flint and Toriano. It was terrifying to see faeries Caynin once knew turned into these mindless, hungry creatures. Parts of their bodies weren’t solid but billows of smoke. They looked as if they had been set on fire and had burnt out.
Caynin shivered to think that if he and Rane were to die that was what they would become. Turning into a Prenumbra, forgetting who you were and what you believed, was so much worse than death. He shouldn’t think like that. They wouldn’t die or turn into shadows because they had the Shatterproof swords. For the first time since the Prenumbras had found them, they had a way to defend themselves and fight back.
The Prenumbras felt the Fata magic and turned their heads. Chet tensed as if he, too, knew these creatures didn’t have souls.
“Get ready.” Caynin drew his sword. The other faeries mirrored him and held their swords before them.
“Go!” Caynin didn’t have to tell Chet twice. He started running toward the Prenumbras, with his wings tucked in as if he were a bullet. Caynin gripped his sword with both hands, ready to swing it and behead the Prenumbra closest to him.
When they reached the Prenumbra, it bent down, ducked beneath the sword, and grabbed Chet’s paw. The Prenumbra yanked his leg, popping it out of its socket. Chet went tumbling, head over heels, twisting his wing in the process. Caynin also lost his balance and fell forward, rolling with his winged leopard until Chet came to a stop on Caynin’s legs. Caynin heard his legs break and cried out as his legs were crushed under his leopard’s weight. He might not be able to feel the different elements of nature, but hell, he could feel pain. It shot through his lower body. Frantically, Chet tried to get to his feet, realizing that he had unintentionally hurt Caynin, but his leg was immobile. He fell onto Caynin’s legs, and it took everything for Caynin to not scream before Chet finally managed to heave himself up and stand on three legs. Caynin looked down at his own broken legs and realized he could not get up. He didn’t have the time his body needed to heal, and he didn’t have his sword. He had dropped it during the fall, and now he was completely useless.
The Prenumbra who had grabbed Chet slowly turned his head toward Caynin. He was calm and patient because he knew Caynin couldn’t run away. He approached, and Caynin’s heart started racing before he glanced at his winged leopard. Chet hadn’t abandoned Caynin. He stood on his three good paws, snarling.
***
The ten warriors were intent on fighting the other Prenumbras, but Rane only focused on his prince. He cried out as he watched the Prenumbra rip Chet’s leg from under him. He was mortified when the winged leopard unintentionally crushed Caynin’s lower body. He didn’t have time to think; he had to act.
He and Fang raced toward the Prenumbra, and he swung back his sword. He was ready to kill the Prenumbra before it got too close to his prince. He swung at the Prenumbra’s head, and this time the Prenumbra did not reach for his winged leopard’s leg. His Shatterproof sword, that was supposed to kill the Prenumbra, connected with the Prenumbra’s neck and shattered.