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My eyes move past the lush greenery to the decorations that are just as precisely placed. Marble statues are scattered throughout the garden, helping the vivid colors of the foliage stand out. They vary in size and depict important faeries throughout the long history of the fae. There is a cobblestone path that winds around the statues and leads to the middle of the round garden where, in the very center, a small pond contains dozens of multicolored fish. Bold and vividly colored, they move rapidly throughout the water, skimming the surface in a way that looks like tiny rainbows are streaking through the liquid.

On either side of the pond are wooden benches. They are fae made and consist of intricate patterns of branches woven in and out of each other. The branches twist and turn around one another, giving the appearance that the pattern formed naturally, not by the magical hand of a fae. Damien takes a seat on one of these benches and I sit beside him. He waves his hand to cast a minor spell that will keep anyone else from entering the garden until we have completed our conversation. I cast a covert glance his way as he does this, hoping to catch a glimpse of his mood. His face is blank but I am not surprised by this. Damien is very good at controlling his emotions, so much so that I often wonder if he has any at all.

He catches me watching him and I quickly square my shoulders as I tamp down on my instinct to look away. If he knew the thoughts that occasionally went through my mind… well, I am not sure what the consequences would be, but I do know that they would not be pleasant. He narrows his eyes for a moment before he pulls a paper from the breast pocket of his jacket and hands it to me. Using that as an excuse to move my gaze from his, I open the paper that will contain my orders as Damien explains them.

"Poppy, I know you just returned from a mission, but the king is growing restless. He wants all of the halflings from the human world brought here, and as you're one of the only warriors that seem to be able to complete your missions in a timely manner without causing more problems that I have to go clean up, you are being sent out again." I hear the anger in his voice as he says this. Most of the warriors that are sent on similar missions tend to
play
with the halflings or humans before bringing them back. I prefer to be more professional, which is why I complete my assignments much faster than most.

"I understand," I tell him as I glance over the material on the first page of the information I will need to find the halfling.

"This mission is going to be a bit different this time." Forgetting the paper in my hands, my gaze flies to Damien's when he speaks again. The tone of his voice changes, just barely, but enough to have me concerned. "You are to retrieve a halfling from the human world as usual; however, you will be working with a shorter time frame."

"That should not be an issue. I have never needed all of the allotted time before," I answer, still waiting for the reason why.

"The seelie queen is threatening to close our portals to the human world in order to hinder our recruitment of the halflings."

Our king is convinced that the secret to winning the war is to use his unseelie armies to their fullest capacity. In order to do this, he sends me out to collect the halflings of the unseelie court and bring them back to him, where he then forces them to fight as well. The queen does not agree with this tactic, and it seems this is her latest effort to try and stop him.

"How is it possible for the seelie queen to override our powers and close our portals?" I ask, disbelief in my voice. The amount of power it would take for her to do that is greater than I can even imagine.

Damien's answer mirrors my thoughts. "It would take a lot of power, and His Majesty does not think she has the ability to accomplish this, which is why he is not postponing this assignment."

"Then why am I limited on my time? Not that it is going to pose a problem. I am quite certain I will be able to complete the mission quickly." My earlier disbelief morphs into utter confidence.

"I am certain as well. However, the new threat does make the king much more eager to have as many halflings as possible at his disposal, which is why he is sending you out again so soon. I only felt the need to inform you of the queen's threat so you would be aware of the situation and know how to plan accordingly."

"I see." I start to look at the information I have been given again, but Damien stops me once more.

"Poppy." His voice is a bit softer than usual, which alarms me because I have never heard this tone from Damien. I glance up to see him looking not at me, but out into the garden. "You must know that if the seelie queen is able to somehow override our powers, and you are not back in the faery realm…" He pauses for a moment, making my anxiety grow. "You will be trapped in the human world until we are able to gain control over the portals once again." He looks back to me. Along with the seriousness, there is also another look on his face I do not recognize.

A small part of me wishes for it to be concern, but before I can figure it out, it is gone. His face is stern, and he continues. "You must work quickly and return with the halfling as soon as possible. That is an order." With his final command, he rises from the bench, summons his spell, and strides quickly back into the castle.

I am a bit unsettled by the encounter that I have just had with Damien. That quick look of possible concern across his face confuses me. I shake my head as if to clear the thoughts and look back down to the paper in my hand. I turn the page and find a photo of a boy looking back at me. For some reason, looking at his image causes a feeling I have not felt since I was a child to course through my body.

It is one of fear.