Fated Crown by Eva Chase
Chapter Twenty-Four
Talia
Laoni said Corwin had until the end of the day after she made her demand, but she doesn’t wait quite that long. The sun hasn’t yet dipped out of view when many more soldiers from her, Terisse’s, and Uzziah’s domains begin assembling around the border castle. The arch-lords themselves take positions at the front of their troops, standing tall and stern.
I wonder what Neve makes of all this. But then, Neve doesn’t seem to be all that aware of what’s going on right in front of her much of the time, so she may not even realize her colleagues have made this challenge. Corwin didn’t want to force her into the conflict when it’s doubtful she could turn the tide anyway.
As I watch from one of the winter-side windows, our own soldiers gather in a tighter ring around the Unseelie side of the castle. Being the ones most familiar with this realm, Corwin’s flock stands at the front, swords at their hips, heads high. A large part of Sylas’s pack fills out the area behind them, with some support from Donovan’s domain as well.
Our force looks so much smaller than the one opposing us. My fingers tighten where I’m gripping the diamond window frame, and Corwin comes up behind me, setting his hands on my shoulders.
“I should go out there now. Sylas and I will speak to my colleagues and see what we can make of this.”
I drag in a shaky breath. “Do you think there’s any chance they’ll listen to you at this point?”
His mouth tenses. “A peaceful approach is always worth trying.”
I can tell from the turmoil of emotions that seeps through our bond that he isn’t hopeful at all.
“Well, I’d better get ready for my part then,” I say, stepping back.
A pang of concern splits through all the other uneasiness I sense from Corwin. “Are you sure about this? I don’t think they’d do you any major harm, but if they succeed in striking at the castle, it could be rather frightening being in the middle of it.”
I fold my arms over my chest. “I think they need to see who they’re striking at when they try to destroy the home we built. It’s more than just a castle. And I’m more than just some random, powerless woman.”
He sighs but kisses my temple. “You are indeed. Let’s go, then.”
He walks with me to the sitting room that leads out onto a small terrace overlooking the winter realm on the castle’s second floor. As I step outside, the cold breeze gusts over me, tossing my hair. Several of the heads among the arch-lords’ troops twitch upward, noticing my arrival.
I’ll do whatever I can to see that no particle of this structure is touched,Corwin says silently as he heads downstairs.
And so will I, I reply.
I stand right at the railing, resting my hands on it and giving those below a clear view of me. A lot of the fae in the throng know me. They’ve watched me heal their people. Maybe they’ve never talked to me, but they have to realize what I can do for them is more important than the arch-lords’ petty complaints.
The question is whether that knowledge will override their loyalty to their lords.
I pick out Kesral in the crowd, standing a few paces back from where Laoni is poised. When my gaze catches his across the distance, I think his mouth curls into a brief grimace, but he holds his ground. He doesn’t want to be there, but he won’t let her down.
I don’t know if I’ll ever understand how awful she’s been to him when all he wants to do is support her.
Sylas is already outside, standing among his pack-kin with his cadre flanking him. When Corwin appears below, Zelpha, Verik, and Olander join him. The two groups move through the guards together to the front of the ring. The three Unseelie arch-lords take a step forward to meet them, though still keeping a clear distance.
Corwin speaks loudly enough for his voice to reach my high perch. “Comrades, we have spoken on this matter, and I will put forward my case again. We have found numerous accounts of beings less honored than my mate who have dwelled in structures similar to this one without resistance from the Heart. Since our joint castle has been built, there’s been no sign that the Heart or any other natural powers of our world objects to it. Talia has earned the right to a real home of her own that encompasses all her responsibilities.”
“Is it her responsibilities she’s concerned about or more private matters between the four of you?” Uzziah asks with a sneer, his gaze flicking up to me for an instant.
“I hardly think you can doubt her dedication to her duties after how much of her time she’s already devoted to healing your people,” Sylas replies. “As to how she chooses to spend what time she has to herself, and in what company, that is indeed a private matter that doesn’t affect you at all.”
I don’t think the other arch-lords agree with his assessment, but they don’t pursue that line of argument any further, maybe balking at airing their personal prejudices about my relationships in front of their people so openly. Terisse stirs on her feet, but it’s Laoni who speaks next.
“We gave our orders. We disapprove of the shape this venture of yours has taken, the pedestal on which you have placed your mate above all others when she isn’t even fae. The majority carries the rule. The summer fae can do as they wish, but we will see any part of this structure that intrudes on our lands fall.”
“Our authority as arch-lords can’t be thrown about on a whim but must remain subject to the laws and principles already established,” Corwin protests.
Laoni has already backed up to rejoin her people. She motions to her soldiers. They and the other troops move in near-unison, a vast murmuring of voices rising up as true names and other words of magic fill the air.
But our side was prepared for a magical assault. The fae protecting the castle lift their own voices, and a tingling rushes over my skin. The air in front of me shimmers with the barrier they’ve conjured.
Not a second too soon. The shimmering surface quakes an instant later with the warbling impact of a surge of energy. My fingers curl around the railing as if I need to hold onto it to stay upright, even though I haven’t felt more than a tremor in the atmosphere yet.
I know Corwin’s right—the arch-lords wouldn’t want to hurt the woman who’s curing their people. Their soldiers will have been instructed to catch me with their magic and move me to safety as they dismantle the diamond section of the castle. I’m just hoping it doesn’t come to that.
The barrier shudders again, but it holds against the onslaught, even when the opposing fae call out their spells louder. Are we that much stronger than them? They’ve got at least twice as much manpower—I don’t see how—
But then I do. As I peer through the quivering air, I spot many fae standing in the winter arch-lords’ troops who aren’t speaking at all. They’re standing silently, their hands by their sides, their expressions somberly stoic. A couple give me the slightest nod when they notice my attention on them.
They’re refusing to follow their lords’ commands. Have the arch-lords noticed that so many of their underlings are rebelling?
So many of the arch-lords’ own people are willing to stand against their rulers on my behalf. A strange shiver runs through me, a sense of power that’s unlike anything I’ve felt before. Somehow I’ve earned that much devotion, enough to turn flock-folk against their lords.
Maybe the arch-lords aren’t wrong to be worried about how I could undermine their authority. I already am. How much more could I accomplish, given the chance and the time for more loyalties to shift toward me?
I’m not sure the fae’s dedication to me will be enough to win the day for us now, though. Someone must have sent word back to the arch-lords’ castles, because more fae are swooping down in raven form to join the flocks. They add their voices to the chanting.
The barrier wavers. A lick of magic breaks through, streaking across the diamond surface next to me and opening a crack in the wall.
My throat constricts. “Stop it!” I call out. “Think about what you’re doing! This castle represents the unity between the summer and winter fae, between our realms—that we can work together to conquer the curse. Isn’t that what you want? What else is going to be ruined if you ruin this?”
I think I see a few more of the opposing fae falter. The arch-lords motion to their troops, rousing the others to greater efforts. The forces below me recite more magical words, but a raggedness is already coming into their voices.
It’s taking all their energy just to fend off our attackers for another minute or two. How long can their strength last?
As my spirits start to sink, an abrupt motion draws my gaze to Laoni. She’s still standing at the front line of her flock-folk, but her hands that were raised a moment ago have snapped to her belly. A strange expression has crossed her face, as if something has startled her, but I can’t see anything around that would have caused her reaction.
She turns to one of the guards near her and mutters something. He nods, and in a blink, she leaps off the ground into the form of a raven. With a few swift flaps of her wings, listing slightly to one side, she soars off toward her domain.
What’s that about? Has she gone to demand more help in person?
I can’t dwell on the puzzle for very long. More ravens are flying toward us, dark specks against the gray sky expanding into clearly winged shapes.
But they don’t drop down among the winter arch-lords’ troops. They land alongside Sylas and Corwin. Several make quick gestures of respect toward me before they open their mouths to add their voices to the protective spell.
Folk from other flocks must have heard what was happening—and they’ve decided to stand with me too.
A swell of warmth fills my chest with another of those strange shivers. I don’t know if I can live up to the blessed figure they see me as, but I’m glad to see they’re showing their support not just with words but actual action. I’ve helped them, and now they’ve come to my aid in turn, regardless of my humanity.
Uzziah and Terisse glance at each other and at the vacant spot Laoni left. Uzziah’s jaw clenches. He beckons to some of his soldiers, and they march up alongside him. The fae on our side rest their hands on the hilts of their swords or bring their arms up defensively. My fleeting happiness vanishes.
Is it really going to come to this—to the arch-lords ordering their flocks to outright attack the people they’re supposed to be representing? How long will our allies stay with us against a direct offensive?
I don’t want violence to break out,Corwin says, picking up on my anxiety. There has to be another way we can settle this.
He speaks out loud to his colleagues. “Please, can’t you see this is going too far? Our own people refuse to watch Talia and her home harmed. Listen to them even if you won’t listen to me.”
“The blessed one should have everything she asks for,” one of the newcomers shouts. “She’s going to save us all—we should do everything we can to reward her!”
Another lifts her voice. “By attacking her, you’re attacking our hope of a cure. You’re traitors to your own people.”
An increasingly angry murmur ripples through our side of the crowd. I suppress the urge to hug myself. They’re not just willing to defend me—they’d go to war for me against their own arch-lords if it came to that.
The realization is both exhilarating and terrifying. Do I really want that much responsibility on top of all the rest?
Can I afford to turn it away when there’s so much I could accomplish with these people on my side?
Terisse glares at our forces, though her expression looks more pained than defiant. “Who is a traitor isn’t for you to decide. We’ve proven ourselves before the Heart and earned the right to guide the realm in the directions we feel are best for all our people. To doubt our judgment is to betray us.”
“Lady Talia has done more to conquer the curse in the past month than you all have in decades,” someone snaps back.
I catch a glint of metal as a few of the figures below draw their swords. My stomach balls tighter. “Please,” I say, leaning over the railing. “I don’t want to see anyone’s blood spilled—here or anywhere else. This castle isn’t hurting anyone. Why do we have to fight over it?”
I can’t tell how well my appeal hit the troops who’ve continued to follow their lords’ commands. A few of the folk-flock have unfurled their wings as if preparing to soar into battle. A snarl carries up from one of the Seelie below me.
All these fae might be willing to fight for me, but that doesn’t mean I want to see them do it—not here, not like this. This confrontation could wreck not just the home my mates built for me, but the peace we worked so hard to construct between the realms as well.
But what if the alternative is letting the winter arch-lords win?
Before the conflict actually comes to blows, one more raven speeds into view. Flying toward us from the direction of Laoni’s domain, it moves so swiftly it’s little more than a dark streak against the sky. It dives down into the strip of empty terrain between the opposing factions, straightening into the form of a man at the same time.
I don’t recognize him, but Corwin clearly does. The man makes a signal for truce, and Corwin motions him over begrudgingly. He raises his inner barriers so I don’t hear exactly what the man says to him, probably worried it’ll be some new threat or insult.
I prod him impatiently. Whatever’s going on, I need to know.
When our connection comes back into full focus, the first things I sense from Corwin are shock and distress. What? I demand.
He looks up at me, his eyes even darker than usual. Laoni requests that you attend to her at her castle, with full discretion and an oath from her that you’ll be allowed safe passage back. Her coterie man will escort you. It appears… she’s been struck by the curse.
What? A wave of my own shock crashes through me. For a few seconds, I don’t know what to do with myself.
If it’s true—I have to go to her, don’t I? It may even be a chance to settle this conflict. But I’m not risking all the people who’d stood by me to attend to her.
Tell him I’ll come as long as her troops and the others stand down first, I say to Corwin. No magic or blows should be exchanged while I’m gone. Otherwise I stay here.
Corwin answers with a tendril of approval. He conveys my conditions to the coterie man, whose expression tenses before he nods. He goes to speak with Terisse and Uzziah. After a few minutes, the arch-lords’ soldiers back up several paces, lowering their weapons and retracting their wings.
They’ve given their word,Corwin says. I can come with you.
His offer reverberates with worry. I shake my head. No. You need to be here in case they find a way to go back on their word. Your people need you.
And it seems Laoni, as much as she must hate the fact, needs me.
