Forever Fae (Forever Fae #1)(58)
We walk along the outskirts of the village to avoid the various fae creatures. We can see the dark sorcerer’s army consists of thousands of trolls, brownies, red caps, giants, and even different types of animals that I have never seen before in the Land of the Fae. I could see the various Summer and Winter Court fae that either must be traitors or were forced to join. Everyone is scattered through the village, celebrating and enjoying a massive feast which must be in celebration of the princess being here.
I can tell by their appearance which fae are from each court. Most look like local villagers from the courts, but there are some that look like warriors as well. How dare these people turn on their courts? The villagers I imagine were forced to follow, but the warriors had to want to do it. Any honorable warrior would have sacrificed his life before following the evil of the dark sorcerer. Seeing all the fae that belonged to my court bowing down to a dark sorcerer makes me furious. I wish I could storm through and kill every single one of them, but I can’t. I don’t recognize any one of them because they probably switched over before I was born. The time will come to strike, but for tonight I am here only for Calista.
Merrick breaks the silence with a whisper, “Are you seeing what I’m seeing?”
I let out an angry breath.
“Yes, unfortunately, I see what you’re seeing, but we can’t think about them right now. We need to get to the big tree and get Calista before I turn all ice boy on these f*ckers.”
Merrick laughs quietly.
“I see I am rubbing off on you, huh? Ice boy.” He can’t see me flipping him off since we’re invisible, but I do it anyway.
We walk for a couple more minutes and then we get to the big tree. It’s massive in size so the house inside of it has to be huge as well. The door opens and I see Avery walk out with Calista in tow. A hiss escapes from both Merrick and I and Calista pauses for a brief second like she’s heard it. Does the connection to Merrick work out here? Why the hell is Avery holding her hand like that? Where is the dark sorcerer? I also want to know why she is in those clothes. Her breasts are about to pop out any second. They look like lovers going on a midday stroll, but in this case it would be lovers going to the brothel. I turn my eyes away to take a deep breath. I need to stop overthinking things and stop letting jealousy cloud my vision. Elvena says to trust her. I almost lost her to doubt and I won’t do it again. I have to believe that she knows what she’s doing, even though it’s painful to watch. I’m dying to rip out his f*cking throat.
I hear Merrick shuffling beside me and he whispers as quietly as he can.
“She’s talking to me, Ryder, but once she gets into one of the dwellings she’ll lose the connection. Apparently our magic works outside of the dwellings, but not inside. The dark sorcerer is inside of Avery’s body. It seems that he can take hold of other people’s bodies somehow. I told her to stay outside as much as possible to give us more options on how to rescue her.”
I can’t believe the dark sorcerer is inside Avery’s body. I wonder how often he’s done that and if he’s ever done it with Warren’s body. It would explain Warren’s odd behavior. Merrick goes still while I watch Calista walking through the village. She’s smiling and talking to the various people as she walks by us. This must be so hard for her to do. I knew she was strong, but having to endure what she’s going through takes great courage. They disappear into a scraggly looking building and I turn back to Merrick.
“What else did she say?” I ask.
“She says she’s sorry for us having to see her like this, but it’s all an act. The ring Elvena gave her is protecting some of her magic, but not all because she can feel the talisman draining her essence. I told her earlier that we were invisible and we plan on getting her out. She also made an imp friend called Nixie who’s going to help with the rescue.”
“That’s right!”
I turn quickly, startled.
“What the hell?” I hiss quietly. My chest hurts from jerking around so fast but what I see in front of me must be the imp Calista was talking about. She’s green with green spiky hair and her wings are fluttering so fast with excitement I can’t tell what color they are. She holds her hand over her mouth to keep a laugh from escaping. I think she finds it amusing that she startled us. I wonder how she knew we were here.
“Who are you?” I order.
Her voice has a twinkling sound when she speaks.
“My name is Nixie and I am the one who is going to help you escape. I knew you would arrive sometime to save the princess so I kept my senses open to find you.”
The imp can’t see my looks of suspicion since I’m invisible, so I ask curiously, “Imps don’t freely offer their help or magic without some sort of payment. What did Calista promise you?”
She floats in the air with her wings flapping silently. She looks off into the distance and her smile fades. Her features soften when she speaks.
“The princess has promised to take me with her and my family will seek refuge in the Fall Court when you both rule it. She has promised to keep us safe and that is all the payment I need. I was taken from my family as a child and was threatened with their deaths if I ever decided to leave. We will be safe with you and the princess under the protection of the Fall Court. She will be an amazing queen, just like you will be an amazing king.” Her eyes are bright and she seems to take on a peaceful glow. Her actions are genuine and if Calista trusts her, then I will, too.