Authors: Anna Keraleigh
“Do not have fear. It is
Flance. From the kingdom.”
That
was it
!
“Flance, want to tell me why you’re busting in a girl’s door without knocking?
I could have blown your head clean off your shoulders.”
Flance gave a small
smile. “A sword does not blow. It strikes.”
Morrigan frowned.
“Listen, I’m kind of naked, so you get on with why you’re here.”
His smiled dropped and
he took a deep breath. “There’s been a...tragedy.”
Morrigan’s first thought
was Brook. Those fucking troll things had taken her again. Her cousin was
kidnapped before by those nasty creatures but saved by the king of the fairies,
Carrick. She pulled the blanket off the bed and wrapped it around her body. “Is
Brook okay? Is she hurt?” Morrigan scurried around the room, grabbing pants and
a shirt as she went. The Saturday fun was forgotten in light of this news. She
shoved her jeans on under the blanket, forgoing underwear. Morrigan shoved the
shirt over her head and didn’t care if her hard nipples stuck out like pebbles.
“Did they take her?” Morrigan strapped a knife to each ankle then placed the
gun holster belt around her waist. She shoved her feet in her thick soled
sneakers.
“Brook is...alive. It is
not she who’s injured.” He seemed to need a breath, and Morrigan stopped her
mad dash to look at him. He looked truly lost, and there was sadness to his
gaze.
“The troll war has begun.
They attacked and our...our king was taken from the world by their hands.”
Morrigan froze, her lips
parted, and a sharp gasp filled the quiet bedroom. “Carrick’s...dead?” She
needed the horrible confirmation. The love of Brook’s life was gone. Flance
gave her a small nod. Morrigan sat on the bed. Her sweet cousin Brook didn’t
deserve any heartache, let alone a loss like this. She must be devastated. And
how was the kingdom holding up without the king?
“I was instructed to ask
for your help in the war.”
Morrigan slowly nodded
her head. “Of course.” She was stunned by the news but quickly got to her feet.
She had to pack a bag with essentials and get over to
away. Brook needed her and not even the devil himself could keep her away.
Chapter Two
Morrigan was stiff from
the flight. She gripped Flance so hard she wouldn’t be surprised if he sported
bruises tomorrow. They were in
were almost there. She could see the patch of grass and the green rolling
hills. There was the single willow tree that warned other creatures of the
fairy territory. She inhaled deeply, steeling herself against the emotions that
had built up. This was not a time for crying. Morrigan had to be strong for
Brook and she vowed to take down as many damn trolls as she could. Even if it
meant her life.
They passed the
invisible dome that protected the kingdom from intruders, and there the
beautiful city of the fairies was laid out. She was shocked into silence at the
destruction. Chaos lay all around them. The kingdom was in ruins, homes were
scattered rubble, and the palace that once took her breath away was nearly
collapsed. Giant sunflowers, big enough to hold three people, were toppled
over. Their enormous petals were dead, browning and taking their last ounce of
life under the sun.
They landed carefully on
the uneven ground. Flance shuddered, his wings stopping their movement, before he
stretched and winced slightly.
“Thanks for the ride.”
He nodded. “We’ve set up
in an abandoned home near the waterfall.”
Morrigan nodded,
silently following him. They walked the streets, what was left of them. This
place had been so beautiful, almost magical. Even she had liked it, but she ran
when she met him, the dark fairy. Morrigan peeked around as if he would come just
because she thought about him. Nothing stirred. They walked dirt paths,
avoiding big chunks of building and an occasional giant sunflower strewn across
the road. There were pools of black all over and drag marks as if something
heavy had been pulled from the spot. Trolls perhaps? She shook her head,
utterly shocked at the destruction. The sound of the waterfall pierced her
thoughts and a shiver ran down her spine. The last time she was near that body
of water was when she met him. He was so silent, his eyes as dark as his wings,
and then he had come so close she thought he’d kiss her. She would have let
him, maybe, if the reflection in his eyes hadn’t knocked some sense into her.
In his eyes, she saw herself, as prey.
The nearest door
squeaked open and Morrigan’s sight shifted. There in the doorway stood her
beautiful cousin, the woman with a heart of gold and a smile to match the sun.
This time, in this place, she had wide eyes filled with unshed tears. Her lips
were downturned in a frown, and she wore some sort of armor.
“Brook?”
Those pretty eyes shot
upward and toward her. Brook’s lips parted and she ground her teeth as if
holding back tears. She nodded slowly, holding out her arms.
Morrigan ran to her. She
enveloped her only family in her arms and held her close. “Oh, sweetheart, I am
so sorry.” Morrigan bit her lip and held in the emotion. Strength, revenge,
blood, she repeated the words in her head as the hug turned into a long,
comforting embrace of kin. She didn’t know how long they stood there, but
eventually one of the fairies, she wasn’t sure who, cleared his throat.
Brook pulled away but
held Morrigan’s hand tightly. “Thank you for coming.”
“A horde of zombies
would not be able to keep me away.”
That got the smallest of
smiles from Brook. She took a breath, blinked several times, and led them into
the building. This house seemed intact. There were walls still standing, and
books lining the hall. They passed a room with several cots on the floor and a
big ugly couch with a dozen or so mismatched pillows.
“They went for peace
talks.” Brook shifted some strands of blonde hair from her face. “There was a
new troll king, and we wished to avoid war.”
They stepped into a big
room where a round table was covered with maps. There were several wooden
chairs in various states of use. Several fairies stood, grabbing the hilts of
their swords until they saw her. All of them gave a nod in her direction, and
she replied with the same. Morrigan’s eyes scanned the room, surprised and
happy that the dark fairy wasn’t there.
“We had backup plans but
someone... They knew. Every move we made, they were there, and someone or
something gave them explosives. They tore the city down around us.”
“Yeah, I saw that.”
Brook stood near the table,
her jaw set, arms crossed under her heavy breasts over a flat belly. “He died
in the battle. We... I found him beside the waterfall.” She didn’t break down.
Brook pressed her lips together as anger filled her face.
“Was he the only
casualty?”
“Other injuries were attended
by our healer fairy, Brielle.” Brook shook the question off.
“And your kid?” Morrigan
knew Brook had been pregnant but now her stomach was flat.
“Adara,” Brook said and
a smile finally graced her lips. “She’s alive and driving me a little nuts.”
Morrigan smiled.
Good
. At least Brook had someone to
remind her of the man she lost. “So, what’s the plan?”
“Strike back. No mercy.
Wipe them off the face of this earth.”
Morrigan was a little
taken aback by her usually sweet cousin. She liked this new, more violent
Brook. “And I will be right beside you.” Morrigan walked over to her and placed
a hand atop hers. Together they would do this. She went to the table and stared
down at the hand-drawn maps. There was a clear outline of the fairy territory
and where the caves were. Trolls lived in most dank, dark caves. Morrigan
wondered if they all housed trolls or if the bastards were hanging around
hoping to finish the fairies off. “Do you have someone on watch?”
“Yes, two.”
“Are we going for a
strike first or lure them here and defend?” She wasn’t devoid of skill when it
came it this war stuff. Morrigan’s mother had been in the army and her father a
general. She was about to ask another question when the air rushed from her
lungs. She spotted him, the slight movement of a shadow and the rush of wind
from beating wings. Then his eyes seemed to glow from the darkened corner in
the room. With the sun setting, shadows were growing, and once again, they hid
most of his form. Morrigan looked up, their eyes locked, and she quickly glanced
away. He was here. Her dark fairy.
Whisper.
Brook must have noticed
or sensed something because suddenly her cousin was looking around the room.
“Whisper, you’re back. How do the caves look?”
“Deserted.”
His deep voice sent a
shiver down Morrigan’s spine, and she gripped the table until her knuckles
turned white.
“Damn it!” Brook smacked
the table with her palm. “They must be planning something. They think we are
weak!”
Morrigan wanted to say
something to bring strength to the moment, but her voice was snatched away. She
couldn’t seem to keep her eyes from the dark fairy hidden in the shadows.
Morrigan never even got a full view of the man but still her heart beat rapidly
and her stomach fluttered.
“I want to start patrols
in our territory. Start close to the kingdom, slay any troll in our path, and
work our way out,” Brook ordered. “We never leave the kingdom unattended. I
think if Whisper, maybe Bray and Morrigan go out together, they can create a
solid fighting party.”
Morrigan gazed at the
map as Brook showed them where they would start. She couldn’t help but smile.
Look at her cousin, strong, determined. Morrigan was proud despite the horrors
that brought them all to this place.
“Did you bring your
gun?”
“Of course.” Morrigan
rolled her eyes and patted the bulge under her shirt.
“What will that tiny
weapon do?” Thame, the fairy with the golden wings, asked.
“They’ve never seen a
gun?” She raised her brow in suspicion. Just how far away from civilization did
these fairies let themselves go? “I could shoot your nuts off from across the
room. There’s even some, like sniper rifles, that could shoot them off from
yards away.”
Thame shifted
uncomfortably in his seat. “Do not tell my mate that. She is heavy with child,
and I fear what she will do as the pregnancy has not been without trouble.”
“So it’s set then?”
Brook interrupted, her lips pressed together in a frown.
“Yes,” Morrigan said and
kept her eyes from the shadows. Despite her desire to avoid Whisper, she would
not let her cousin down. “Through the woods and off to grandmother’s house we
go,” she muttered sarcastically.
Brook snorted.
Thame turned to her with
such a confused expression. “We are not going to your grandmother’s home.”
Morrigan bit her lip to
keep from laughing. This was not a situation for mirth, despite that comment.
She adjusted her gun so it rested on her hip, in close proximity, without
encumbrances. Then she shifted the bottom of her pants so the knives would also
be easy to access. “Well, then let’s go kick some ass.”
Chapter Three
When she spoke of
kicking ass, she wasn’t expecting it to be so…well, boring. Morrigan and Bray
walked the woods around the kingdom, encountering nothing but the occasional
wild animal and a few bugs she couldn’t possibly name. Bray was Flance’s mate
and both of them were fairies with impressive wings. The fairy was one Morrigan
instantly liked. Bray was a tough woman with a sharp sword. Her wings were
brown and orange but looked bigger on her smaller frame. Morrigan admired the
fairy’s shoulder length red-and-orange hair. At least the female fairies wore
more than loincloths. Bray wore two strange dull armor pieces, one over her
breasts and the other around her waist that reached mid-thigh. Her bare stomach
was muscular and tanned. She must have noticed Morrigan checking her out
because she turned quickly and spoke.
“Does my appearance
offend you?” She had a look of defense and concern all at once.
“Nope, just glad you’re
not wearing those loincloth things.”
Bray grinned. “But the
men do look good in them.”
Morrigan chuckled.
Speaking of good-looking men, the dark fairy was with them, but the moment they
began patrol, he took to the sky. Apparently if he couldn’t hide in the
shadows, he flew high enough to keep from prying eyes. That suited her better
anyway. They walked the path with the quiet night surrounding them. They were
still rather close to the kingdom, and it was a grassy field and petite green
hills around them. Morrigan kept a sharp lookout for anything. “Do you think he
found any?”