Meanmna: Book One of the Daearen Realms (22 page)

I woke up to a hard smack across the right side of my face and my left temple hit a solid surface behind me. I hadn’t even opened my eyes when another blow landed on the left side of my face. I tried to move my arms and legs, but my entire body was immobile except for my head. Opening my eyes a little, I looked at my extremities. My arms and legs were stuck to a white, slightly curved stone wall. I was held in place by magic; nothing visible was holding me. My head was pounding and my ears were ringing. I focused on the fey standing in front of me.

“You bastard,” I said.

Ray’s smile grew wider. “Tsk, Tsk, Princess. Is that anyway to talk to your soon-to-be mate?” He closed the distance between us and pressed his body against mine and nuzzled my neck.

“Too late,
” I declared and Ray grabbed me by the hair, wrenched my head to the side and bit the skin where my neck and shoulder met, hard enough to draw blood.

“Ow! What? Are you a freaking vampire, too? What the hell is wrong with you? Never mind, too much to go into and you’d need a real shrink to deal with your issues.”

Ray grabbed my chin and ground his groin into me. I nearly gagged with repulsion. He whispered into my ear, “Just think about how
fun
those issues are going to make the loss of your virginity.” I opened my mouth to scream for help and Ray clamped his hand over my mouth. “You better stop that or I’m going to do with your feet what I did with your hands.”

What?
I looked to my right and left, my heart seizing with panic. My arms were extended out, but they ended at my wrists. There were bloody stumps with stringy tendons hanging out. I screamed the loudest scream I have ever screamed, and just kept screaming behind Ray’s hand.

“Shut up.” Ray moved his hand from my mouth. I tried to scream, but no sound came out. Ray ground into me again.
“Couldn’t have you doing any magic. No hands and no voice means no spells. The devil is in the details, my dear.” Ray licked up the side of my neck and said in my ear, “I’ll let you scream tonight. I can’t wait to hear you scream.” I silently whimpered and he pushed off me. He winked and walked to the edge of the roof and gazed upon the fighting below.

Ray raised his wand and
lit up the sky with a bright black light. The fighting below us stopped and Ray’s booming voice filled the void. “Put down your weapons. The queen is dead and the king has fallen. I have the princess. She is mine. Bow and I may let you live. Bow to the new king!”

Oh no! My grandmother and father are dead?
I stopped worrying about how I might escape or survive this. I was about to lose my virginity to a sadist who planned to kill anyone who refused to bow to him. Not to mention the eventual end of the world would be my fault. The weight of it all began to overwhelm me and all I could do was cry.

“You can’t have her.”
Elwin was walking slowly across the roof like a giant cat stalking its prey. I tried to think of a plan, but I couldn’t think. The pounding in my head was so bad that I couldn’t get a single thought to form completely.

Ray was angry, poised, and ready to fight. “You lost her again, Elwin. I can’t believe you were the king’s favorite. What a waste of his time and energy.” In his anger, Ray let the hold on my voice go.

“Geeze, Ray. How many issues do you have? Don’t you guys get
Dr. Phil
here? ‘Cause you, dude, you are in some desperate need of sentences with verbs in them.” I shook my head and rolled my eyes at him.

Confused, Ray looked at me in disbelief. “I told you to shut up!”

I had succeeded in distracting Ray long enough for Elwin to close the distance between them. Elwin swung his sword, but Ray dodged just in time. The clang of the first hit echoed around us. They jumped back from each other and the fight was on—ducking and diving around the roof trying to kill each other. Ray landed the first strike and a dark red line of blood appeared on Elwin’s thigh and began running down his leg. It steeled his resolve, though, and he began raining sword swings and thrusts with such strength that he soon backed Ray behind whatever wall I was stuck to. I could not see them, so I strained my ears for any clue as to who was winning. Suddenly, I heard my grandmother telepathically say,
Sarette, your hands are an illusion.

I look
ed at my right hand; it was still a stringy stump. If it was an illusion, I needed to see reality. I focused on where my hand should be. I zeroed in so tightly that I went crossed eyed, but through the haze, my hand began to take shape. I could also see Ray’s magical bond and envisioned it opening. Soon my hand was whole and the bond faded into nothing. I repeated the process with my left hand and then quickly removed the bonds on my ankles. I slid to the ground but was unable to stand. It took a minute of shaking my limbs before the feeling came back to them.

As soon as I was able, I got to my feet and ran behind the gigantic dome thing that I had been attached to. I rounded in time to see Elwin knock Ray
’s sword out of his hand. The sword clattered and slid across the roof. Ray pulled his wand out of his pocket and flicked it at Elwin. Elwin was thrown and landed on his back twenty feet away. He sprung back up like Jackie Chan and ran after Ray. Ray had picked up his sword and ran to the edge of the roof. He had an evil grin on his face when he saw me and pointed his wand at me. He flicked his wrist and I fell to the ground, clutching my head. Elwin dropped next to me. I screamed in agony, but that just made the pain worse. I curled up in the fetal position and covered my head; it was all I could do.

“Ba ha ha ha ha!” I could hear Ray laughing over the fever pitch pounding in my
temples. “There’s always more than one way to bind someone.” My body levitated right out of Elwin’s grasp and above his reach. I was still in the fetal position, unable to function through the pain. “When are you going to get it? I win! The king and queen are dead and when Sarette and I are bonded—”

“I am not dead yet.” I heard
Grandmother Paige’s voice ring out as the pain in my head lessened. Opening my eyes a sliver, I saw that I was encompassed in a purple light. As the light faded, so did my pain. I was floating ten feet higher above the roof. From the spirit crystal at the top of Paige’s wand, a purple light was stretched all the way around Ray’s waist; it pulled him off the roof, holding him suspended eighty feet above the fey below.

“
Ray, I told you, you are too late. Elwin and I have been mated by the queen,” I said from my suspended position.

Ray looked at me and snarled. He started to move his wand when Elwin ran across the roof with his
sword in hand. Ray was still looking at me when Elwin jumped off the roof, ran his sword through Ray’s chest, and pushed them both out of my line of sight. I knew the moment Ray died, though. Whatever was holding me up popped like a bubble and I went crashing onto the rooftop. My only thought was of Elwin, who had fallen in the process. I saw a door on a turret on the other side of the roof. I started crawling until I managed to get on my feet and then I ran.

I ran through the door in the turret and looked into the circular space. Stairs lined the wall going down, which reminded me of the inside of a lighthouse. I took the stairs two at a time, around and down. At the bottom there was one door. I opened it and walked into the middle of a long hallway. Doors lined either side and steps went down on either end. I had no idea where I was going. With no point of reference, I took off at a jog to the stairs on my left.

On the next floor down, there was another hallway of closed doors like the one above. I went down another flight of stairs that ended in a wider hall with arches and openings. I ran down the corridor
. Half way down the space opened up. To my right was a grand foyer with marble columns, a fountain in the middle, and arched double doors that were at least fifteen feet tall. Around the doors was a stained glass window depicting the different realms of Daearen. Across the hall on my left was the entrance to the ballroom. I ran through the opening as Elwin ran in from outside on the opposite side of the room. I ran down the center set of stairs and took the left circular stair to the ballroom floor. Elwin was faster than me, and was almost at the bottom of the stairs. I still had a couple more to go, and I either tripped or launched myself off the steps toward him. Elwin wrapped his arms around me as I knocked him over. I landed on his chest and he let out “oomph” and closed his eyes.

“Oh my
Goddess! Did I hurt you?” I looked Elwin over for injuries, but stayed on top of him. I put my hands on either side of his face and looked closer.

“Survive a vicious battle to be plowed down by your mate.”

I slid my hand under his head and brought it back, looking for blood. There was none. I moved my other hand under the other side of his head to check and said, “Yep, wonderful queen I’ll make.”

Elwin quickly snaked his hand around my waist to my back and
pulled me tighter to him. His other hand on the back of my head pulled me into his hard kiss. When the kiss ended, I put my forehead to his and took a couple of steadying breaths.

“I agree with your grandmother. You are going to be the most wonderful queen Daearen has ever had,” Elwin murmured against my lips and gave me a light kiss.

“My grandma!” I got up quickly, causing another “oomph” to come out of Elwin, and started running toward the courtyard door. “What about my dad? What about all the other fey?” I shouted back to Elwin as I ran. He was answering me but I didn’t slow down long enough to hear what he said. There was a large silent crowd with their backs to me in the courtyard. With the intent of politely and inconspicuously walking through the crowd, I took a couple of steps, but I didn’t look where I was going and tripped over my own feet. I caught myself before falling on my butt, but not before kicking a pile of discarded weapons. The clinking and clanging of swords, daggers, and who knows what else, reverberated through the courtyard.

All at once, hundreds of fey turned to me. I stood there looking like an idiot. I didn’t know what to do
. Wave and say hi? Pretend it didn’t happen? Jump up like Mary Katherine Gallagher, Superstar from that
Best of Saturday Night Live 90s
DVD I had given my mom?

Standing before me were my fey who had risked everything for me, my family, and my kingdom. There were los
ses; we just didn’t know how many yet. I was humbled in their presence. I placed my right fist over my heart and bowed my head to them all in respect and gratitude. I heard a rustling and when I raised my head I found every fey had returned my gesture.

When the fey lifted their heads, they parted and created a path to the center of the courtyard
. I began walking and nodding to the fey as I passed them. In the center of the courtyard was my dad. He was bloody and battered from his fight with Ray, but alive and standing. My grandmother had Will on one side supporting her, and the young fey I had saved on the other. I picked up speed and ran to remove the distance separating us. My father caught me and picked me up. We put a lifetime of hugs into that embrace.

“Daddy
!” I croaked out and burst into tears.

“Princess!
” My father, the king, was crying too. “I love you so much and I’m so sorry, Sarette. Please forgive me for not being there.”

“There’s nothing to forgive. I get the bigger picture. I love you too, Daddy.” One last squeeze and my father set me down. I walked into my grandmother’s arms next and her two support
ing fey stepped away.

“I really wish we had time to get to know each other in this form. I
’ve waited so long to meet you, Sarette,” my grandma said.

“What
?” I leaned back to look at her.

“
It’s time,” she said.

Shaking my head, “Grandma, no, I just got here. I have no idea what I’m doing. I’m not ready.” I began to sob. “And I’ve never had a grandma before
. I don’t want to lose you now.” She pulled me to her and held me tight.

“
You will be the
Spirit
queen, my dear. You
will
see me again.” I sniffled and she pulled back again and put her hand on my cheek. “My beautiful granddaughter, you are going to change everything. It
is
what it
is
, you
are
who you
are
, and
who
you were
meant
to be, Sarette, the queen for a new age in Daearen.” She wiped the tears from my face and stepped back. She looked past me and nodded. Elwin was at my side holding my hand.

“First, let’s make this officially official
by announcing it to the realms.” My grandmother touched my pendant and then Elwin’s with her crystal wand, smiled, and took several steps back. Both of our pendants started glowing green and the light they emitted grew. It enveloped us and spread out. When it hit the fey closest to us, a purple light waved through the crowd like at a laser show.

“Trippy,” I said.

“Wait for it . . .” Elwin replied. My pendant began to vibrate on my chest and the light from it got brighter. The ring of light around us flashed brightly and then left the courtyard, shooting out in all directions, expanding like a giant smoke ring.

“Wow!” I said.

“Sarette, please come here,” Paige said. Elwin squeezed my hand and I stepped in front of my grandmother. She held out her wand to me and I took it. There was an audible noise around us in response—a mix of ahhhs, ohhhs, sobs, and sighs. I didn’t look around. I had a feeling this was going to be the last time I ever saw my grandmother alive. These were the last moments of Queen Paige of the Spirit Fey’s reign. She reached up and took her crown off. I bowed my head and she placed it over my head and straightened it across my forehead.

“I love you, Sarette,” s
he said.

I looked up. “I love you too, Grandma.”

She placed her hands near mine on the wand and her entire body started to sparkle like a disco ball. The sparkle was then concentrated over her heart before it moved through her arm to the wand and paused there, growing in brightness. The sparkle moved into my hand and spread throughout my body. I was a disco ball for ten seconds or so. Then, Queen Paige closed her eyes and started to collapse. The king was there to catch her and gently lower her to the ground.

As
I knelt, the sparkle faded completely. My grandmother’s last breath was a loud exhale of a purple misty smoke. It floated above her, moved to me, and I inhaled it through my mouth. As soon as I closed my mouth, it flew open again and I screamed. A brilliant purple light released from the crystal wand. As it hit Ray’s dead body and those of his fallen minions, and many of his survivors, they turned into purple smoke and “poofed” out of existence. The dark fey left standing fell to their knees and did the heart-fist-bow.

“Elwin, please come here,” my father said. As Elwin walked to the king, I placed my grandmother’s hands on her chest and stood up.

King Roland, my father, took his crown from his head and Elwin bowed his. My father placed the crown on Elwin’s head. It fit perfectly across his forehead. My father then took a large gold ring with an inset amethyst off his right hand and placed it in Elwin’s palm. Elwin put it on and my father said in a booming voice, “Long live King Elwin of the Spirit Fey.”

The entire crowd, including me, repeated hi
s words.

Will stepped next to the king and said, “Long Live Queen Sarette of the
Spirit Fey.” The entire crowd repeated his words.

The young fey
that had watched over my grandmother stepped forth and said, “May the God and Goddess bless their reign.”

“Blessed be,” the crowd said and did the
heart-fist-bow.

I’m not sure what made me do it or where the knowledge came fro
m, but I suddenly knew what I needed do. I held my crystal wand up and said, “I am humbled by the presence of the sacrifices my brave and loyal fey have made today. I am honored to return you to your elements.”

I closed my eyes
and heard a gasp from the crowd.
Please God and Goddess, let me honor them. Honor them. Honor them. Honor them.
I felt my chest start to warm and I opened my eyes. I was a disco ball again. I concentrated the feeling into my heart and pushed it into my wand. When the spirit crystal glowed brightly, I forced the energy out all at once. My knees got weak. Elwin caught me, and tightly wrapped his arms around me. My fallen fey began to shimmer. They let out a flash of light as their bodies disappeared and they became one with their elements. Swirling spheres of water, air, earth, and fire danced where their bodies had been. They hovered for a moment before rising and dissipating into the atmosphere above us.

Gasps came from all around me. On the ground wherever there had been a fallen fey a small disk appeared—yellow, green, blue, and red. There was one purple one and it was where my grandmother’s heart had been. I picked up the disk and on the front wa
s an etched picture of my grandmother, her name, and the dates of her birth and death. On the back were concentric rings of Celtic knot work leading to the center where there was the trinity knot. I held the disk to my heart and closed my eyes.
Soon
, I heard Grandma say.

I opened my eyes and had another moment of brilliance.
“Is every fey ready to go home?” There was a slight murmuring amongst the crowd. “Elwin, why is every fey looking at me like that?” I whispered to Elwin.

“The queen was the first fey to even attempt anything like that. Queen Paige was able to teleport herself and a few others with her. But that was very rare; it took an extraordinary amount of magic and left her in a weakened state for days. What she did tonight was one of the reasons she died. She must have exhausted almost all of her magic at once
, leaving her only enough to mate us and make you queen.”

“Then, how did Ray bring all of his fey here, then jump all over the hillside, and then do a bunch of magic on the roof, and still not even look tired?”

“By taking our magic,” I heard spoken from the crowd.

“I’m sorry. What?” I asked and one of the remaining fey who had followed Ray stepped forward. “Those who went willingly with Ray had to give him some of their magic. That was his price for sparing their families. Those of us who resisted . . .” Tears fell from his eyes. “He found another way to be in control of half of my magic.”

“Oh my Goddess, no,” I said and tears welled in my eyes.

“He took my mazon, my Leah, right from our house. He left our children there by themselves. Not all of us made it home before something bad happened to the little ones. Our mazons were back on their own porches the next morning in an almost catatonic state. They have almost no magic left and it has not regenerated like it’s supposed to.”

I stepped away from Elwin and walked over to the fey. I put my hand on his shoulder and said, “I am so sorry. Is she gone now? Can you still feel her?” He looked at me and didn’t say anything. “I know I would feel my heart rip in two if Elwin died. What do you feel?”

“I feel whole,” he said and fresh tears formed in his eyes.

“I think you need to get home posthaste. I don’t know what you’ll find. But, don’t you want to find out now?” I asked. He nodded his head. “All the more reason to try to send every fey home.”

“Sarette, I don’t think that’s a good idea. We have no idea how strong you are yet,” my father said.

I rolled my eyes. “I’m stronger than I look. You said it didn’t take
all
of the queen’s magic to do it. She still had some left to mate us and make me queen. I have no intention of abdicating the throne. I just got here and unless there is a need for a royally sanctioned mating,” I shrugged my shoulders and scanned the crowd. “I think I’m good. I thank you all. Godspeed.” I raised my wand and thought,
Home.
In less than a blink of an eye
,
almost every fey was gone. The fey that were left were those who helped me get to the castle.

Mike and Tessa had their arms around one another. Lilly was leaning
against the train car with Mica. Ethan and Meghan Conner and Paul were sitting on the ledge of a fountain that I hadn’t noticed until now. Mick and Darius were standing near Elwin. My father was next to Will and he had his hand on the young fey’s shoulder. I think I unknowingly gave him a royal assignment or something. That’s okay, he’s a sweet kid. I smiled at him and he broke his “o” face to smile back. Then, I took a closer look at everyone else and they all had the shock and awe face.