Caledonia Fae 04- Druid Lords (4 page)

As he drew near the gate, he became aware of the Ashkyne Watchers. Of course, they had observed his approach. No human could come near a faerie gate without the Watchers’ consent. Only those with the blessings of the faerie queen would be permitted close enough to see the magnificent, glowing arches.

He passed through the gate, and once on the other side, he breathed deeply. The Otherworld air was thick with magic and had a loamy scent that felt fresh and clean to his lungs. With a sense of purpose, he turned north, running back to the glowing blue portal to the Halls of Mist. He moved quickly, but a part of him resisted leaving the human world behind. He sensed the loss every time and wondered if he would ever feel at home among the fae.

In another hour, he came to the portal. In addition to the usual Watcher contingent, faeries filled the area. The atmosphere hummed with anticipation. A group preparing to enter the portal drew his attention. Queen Konstanze met his gaze and stopped short. She glanced to the portal, as though eager to be on her way, but she seemed unwilling to turn her back on Huck. With a tilt of her head, she acknowledged him and waited.

Huck suppressed a sigh. The brown and gold of her swirling eyes reminded him of the woman he’d met in the Netherlands and the urgent business that pushed him forward. He didn’t want to speak with the queen, but she had been gracious about allowing him free roam and had given generously to the Druid Hall, so he couldn’t snub her. With a smile plastered on his face, he approached. “What a pleasant surprise, Your Majesty,” he said. “What takes you to the Halls today?”

“Lord Druid Huck,” she replied, with an odd emphasis on his name as though she found it somewhat distasteful. He wondered if perhaps his name meant something rude in the ancient fae tongue. “We received word the gates are shifting. How fortunate you will be there to witness the flow of power.” Although he didn’t know what these events might mean, he assumed from her slight smile she expected to benefit.

“Does this happen often?” he asked.

She blinked at him, as though just remembering he
might be unfamiliar with fae history. “The last time was when the seven Reshkin gates came to be part of Ashkyne.”

Huck nodded solemnly, even though he had no idea what would have caused one kingdom’s gates to transfer to another. Some druids didn’t mind exposing their ignorance, but Huck knew several queens didn’t like showing deference to humans in the first place, much less humans who understood so little about their world. “Of course. Then, we should go at once,” he said.

She tilted her head again, and he returned the gesture. Despite her cold manner, he liked Konstanze, or at least, he respected her. To save her the embarrassment of allowing him to go first as propriety would dictate, he indicated the portal. “The matter is urgent, Your Majesty, so I insist you go ahead. You were kind to stop to greet me, but I shouldn’t keep you. Please.”

“As you wish, my lord druid,” she replied, turning to signal to her entourage. Without another word, the group stepped through the blue orb of light and vanished.

He waited for her entire group to disappear, and then waited a few moments to allow her time to move away on the other side. None of the faeries who stayed behind spoke to him, although he sensed their gaze on him as he stared into the blue light. One thing he did like about faeries—they were patient. As he stood in silence and stared, they appeared to think nothing of it.

With an intake of breath, he stepped through. The difference between the Halls of Mist and the faerie kingdoms was as large as the difference between the Otherworld and the human realm. Where the kingdoms were lush and forested, the Halls of Mist was constructed and artificial, made of smooth, too-perfect stone and bridges that arched a touch too high. Each of the kingdom Halls was large and imposing, floating away from the main courtyard, suspended over an impenetrable, lifelike fog below. Wisps of mist wended over the edges of the narrow paths like ghostly tendrils.

Every eye in the courtyard turned to him expectantly, but once the faeries recognised him, the crowd looked away as though disappointed. He’d never seen so many queens in one place. He glanced around, spotting the other druids standing together. Munro hovered beside Queen Eilidh of Caledonia, his fiancée. Rory and Aaron stood a little bit behind, with Prince Griogair and a few other faeries Huck didn’t know well.

He made his way towards the familiar faces and greeted Munro with a whisper. “Konstanze told me the gates are shifting. What’s that mean?”

Munro appeared even more serious than usual, and that was saying something. “From what I understand, the Stone dictates which queen controls which gates. At any time, the Stone can transfer one or more gates from one queen’s control to another’s, shifting the balance of power.”

Eilidh stepped closer and nodded to Huck. “Hello, Huck,” she said. Although none of the faerie queens typically showed much emotion, she looked markedly nervous.

Huck got along well with Eilidh. Of all the queens, she treated the druids like normal people, saying things such as, “Hello, Huck,” instead of “Greetings, Lord Druid.” The gesture was a small one, but it put him at ease. “Hi, Eilidh,” he said with a smile. “So, what are we waiting for?” he asked.

“For the last two queens to arrive. Well, one really. Queen Grenna won’t come, no matter what.”

“No?” he asked. “Who is Grenna?”

“The queen of the sea fae. I’ve never met her. As far as I know, none of her people have
visited the Halls of Mist in over two thousand years. Some believe they’ve died out, but if those rumours were true, the gates would have shifted to another queen’s control.”

“Who else isn’t here?” Huck glanced around, but was too unfamiliar with the faces to be able to determine who was missing.

“Vinye of Andena,” Eilidh said, her white eyebrows knitting together in a frown over her swirling silver-green eyes. “We thought you may have been her. On the other hand, she may be taking her time to show she isn’t worried.”

Huck could understand both the concern and the posturing. Losing one gate would mean losing access to part of the human realm. The fae visited altars in the human realm to ask for the Mother of the Earth’s blessing of fertility. From what he’d gathered, they couldn’t reproduce without going through that ritual. If a fae kingdom started losing the ability to reproduce, they would certainly die. “What if a kingdom loses all the gates?” he asked.

By the anguished expression that flashed over Eilidh’s face, he knew she feared this scenario the most. “Throughout the Otherworld, faeries will now gather near the gates. When the gates shift, the kingdoms will be torn. If the queen loses one gate, she loses any territory close to that gate, and her citizens gathered around it will owe their loyalty to their new queen. The lands could be divided and shifted physically to be part of the new kingdom. If the entire kingdom passes to a new queen, the new lands will meld with hers, creating a new region in her kingdom. She will gain the property, possessions, and citizens of the former queen.”

“Sounds terrifying,” Huck muttered. He couldn’t imagine the upheaval, both figurative and literal.

“The receiving queen will provide whatever her new citizens need to transition well, and all will welcome their new neighbours. It is a great honour to have the power of your kingdom strengthened, so residents of the receiving kingdom will be glad to aid those who add to their numbers.”

The system sounded like it provided quite a few opportunities for disaster. Huck understood why Eilidh was so worried. “And what happens to the queen who has her gates removed from her control?”

“If she loses only a few gates, she will return, her kingdom diminished and some of her people gone.” She paused, looking away. “If she loses them all, she loses her crown. What is a queen with no people and no kingdom?”

“But what about her?” Huck persisted.

Munro cast him a dark look. “We don’t know what’s going to happen. There’s no need to dwell on the worst possible scenario,” he said.

“It’s all right,” Eilidh said softly to Munro. “If my reign has come to an end, I can’t stop the inevitable. This is magic as old as the fae themselves.” She turned to Huck. “If the victorious queen will have me, I would become her subject. The queen of Reshkin lost her throne this way. She was mated to the receiving queen’s youngest brother. The pairing allowed for a more graceful transition by providing the queen the protection of the other royal family. I would be fortunate to be offered such an arrangement, should I lose my throne.”

“But you already have a mate, almost two,” Huck said with a glance at Munro.

She nodded. “Of course the outcome depends on who takes my throne.” Her gaze shifted to Konstanze. “Some queens are less accommodating than others. Griogair is a prince in his own right, cousin to Queen Zdanye of Tvorskane. He will always have options, no matter what.” She hesitated before adding, “As a druid lord, Quinton is not dependant on me for shelter or status.”

“If Caledonia’s gates are lost, you can become a part of the Druid Hall,” Munro said. He squeezed her hand, but Eilidh didn’t seem buoyed by the offer.

“Eilidh,” Huck began, “what makes you so sure your kingdom is the one at risk?”

She smiled, but there was no happiness in her expression. “My kingdom is the youngest and the least stable. I was a usurper to begin with, and my reign has been plagued with treachery, murder, and near chaos.”

“If you’re right, who would take your gates?” he asked.

Munro interrupted before she could answer. “She’s not right. Nothing indicates the gates will shift away from Caledonia.”

Eilidh ignored Munro’s response. “Konstanze, most likely,” she said. “She controls a huge swathe of the human realm, more than any other. Another contender might be Vinye, of course. We share control of a group of human islands. Our gates are near to one another’s. But in truth, human geography matters less than a queen’s influence. No one has more influence than Konstanze.”

Huck located Queen Konstanze in the crowd, and he was surprised to find her watching the three of them closely. When their eyes met, she gave a slight smile. Huck didn’t care who was queen of what place or who controlled which gates, but Munro had been the one to help him after his druidic powers were unlocked. If Konstanze gaining control of Scotland meant Eilidh and Munro wouldn’t be able to get married and that Eilidh would lose everything, Huck didn’t like the idea.

“Why is Vinye tarrying so long?” Eilidh muttered to herself. “If she isn’t here when the portal closes, she cannot be eligible to take control of the new gates. No queen, no matter how haughty,” she said with a glance towards Konstanze, “would miss the opportunity to add to her power.”

“What if she’s the one who is losing her gates?” Huck asked.

“Vinye?” Eilidh said, surprised. “Impossible. She’s been on her throne for hundreds of years.”

“But didn’t you dole out some humiliation to her last year?”

Eilidh chuckled. “Politics is full of humiliations. No, if the Stone shifted every time one queen had a political triumph over another, our people would be dizzy from the perpetual upheaval.”

Huck opened his mouth to ask another question but was silenced by a loud rumble.

“She’s not here,” Eilidh whispered. “The portal is closing.” She sounded almost hopeful. Perhaps, Huck thought, this meant Eilidh wouldn’t be losing out to Vinye, whom even he knew she hated.

The blue orb began to dim, but before it closed completely, two figures stepped through.

“Vinye,” Eilidh said, but broke off when she realised the figures exiting the portal were male.

Huck recognised one of them immediately. He was Vinye’s mate, an elder faerie with greying hair and cloudy blue eyes. Streaks of blood splattered his tunic.

A gasp went up in the crowd. “Vinye is dead,” said the prince-consort.

“Who’s the other one?” Huck whispered to Eilidh.

“Vinye’s son and only living heir, Koen,” she said, her attention riveted on the arriving pair.

Huck was surprised. Because none of the kingdoms were ruled by men, he hadn’t realised men could be heirs. Surely this wasn’t the reason the gates were shifting. Of course, on the other hand, the blood on their clothing indicated something more was amiss.

“What happened?” asked one of the queens, but her question was drowned out by the murmurs around her when the gate turned black and began to solidify. The blue light had vanished, and as the new arrivals moved away from the platform, the familiar glow was replaced by a solid, black granite disk.

The disk began to spin slowly clockwise. A series of runes appeared on its surface, each one glowing brightly. Then the disk stopped and one rune burned brightly, then disappeared.

“Vinye,” Eilidh whispered. “That was her sigil.” She closed her eyes and her lips moved as though she was again talking to herself.

“What happens now?” Huck asked softly.

“Now we see the rune of the queen whose kingdom will enfold Andena.” The disk ground around and jerked from time to time. Eilidh watched closely as each rune approached the top of the disk.

At one point, the gathered queens gasped. Both Munro and Huck looked to Eilidh. She seemed puzzled. “It passed over Konstanze’s mark.”

A few minutes later, the hushed crowd began to shout with disbelief. “What?” Huck said over the uproar as he peered at the stone. “Whose sigil is it?”