changeling chronicles 03 - faerie realm (31 page)

“You dare walk in here and have the audacity to demand things from me?” The Chief’s staff hit the ground with a thump. I’d insisted he meet me alone, partly because I’d about had it with him only agreeing to speak to me with the Mage Lord at my side.

“I’m not demanding anything except the right not to get attacked here in your territory,” I said. “Also, it’d be nice if you listened to my warnings next time. The Lady was the villain. People died, a god nearly got loose in town, and once again, you ignored everything I told you.”

His mouth opened and closed a couple of times.

“I’m not asking for compensation,” I said. “But it’d be nice to have a warning next time a crazed old faerie gets loose. If you get so much as a hint that anyone in your territory is working against humans in any way, or might be in league with the Grey Vale, report it immediately to me. Or to Vance, or any mage you might come across.”

The Vale had stepped up its game. Sure the Lady had acted alone, but she wasn’t the first to steal a talisman, nor bring it here to Earth.

We needed every defence we could get. One god had already awoken. I might have sealed it away, but the balance of all the realms had changed. You couldn’t stir up the veil like that and expect things to go back to normal.

“I’ll report if I see anything. There’s no need to resort to threats.”

“Didn’t threaten anyone,” I said cheerily. “That’s all I wanted to say.”

“It seems we cannot trust even our own,” muttered the half-faerie Chief. “Humans walking around with faerie magic and gods awakening in town.”

“Welcome to the world we’ve lived in all along,” I said, and left the clearing.

Vance waited for me. “Ready?”

“One last stop,” I said.

We’d seen every supernatural in a position of power in the city within the last day. Except for one.

Lord Evander waited for us outside the necromancers’ place in silence, along with three other black-clad figures.

“You guys might want to consider adding some colour to your ensemble,” I informed him. “It’s a little dull.”

“Ivy Lane,” he said. “You’re permitted
one
meeting with the dead. Only one.”

“One per week as necessary.” I hoped I wouldn’t be using the offer that often. But rather than hopping over the veil, the best way to meet with Frank was right here in the necromancers’ territory. I’d prefer not to push my luck with the veil. They’d permitted me to use their private outdoor crypt. Thoughtful of them.

Behind the iron-bound door of the small mausoleum was a square room. At first, its dark corners revealed nothing, until the pinpricks of white candlelight brightened to show the way, surrounding a summoning circle. Everything was already set up.

A transparent figure floated within the grey smoke clouding the circle.

“Ivy.”

“Frank,” I said. “Thought we should be formally introduced in front of your living counterpart.”

“We’ve met,” said Lord Evander. “You neglected to tell us of your previous encounter, Lord Sydney.”

“Because I rightly predicted you’d raise hell, figuratively speaking.” Frank sighed. “Ivy might be an anomaly, but her ability grants her right of access to your guild, complete with supplies. It’s law.”

“As if I’d
ever
let her create a summoning circle.” Lord Evander shot me a furious look.

“As if I’d ever want to,” I countered. “No thanks. I get enough creepy in my everyday life. Leave us alone. We have something important to discuss.”

“If you’re going to continue to come here, you will show me the proper respect.”

“Leave, Evander,” said Frank, cutting off the necromancer’s words. “You, Ivy, are going to end up in trouble one of these days.”

I arched an eyebrow at him. “Trouble? Me? Never.” I checked we were definitely alone. “That god. Is it true that the necromancers bound it originally, a long time ago?”

“I cannot tell you,” he said. “If it’s true, it was far, far before my time—before the guild itself.”

“I thought so. People would have noticed a dragon.” I stopped. “Speaking of, it didn’t damage the veil, did it? I couldn’t think of any other way to get rid of it.”

“The veil is resilient, believe it or not. We deal with millions of spirits every day. The beast caused a ripple, but not lasting damage.”

“Just checking. You mentioned gods… the reason the Grey Vale was created.”

“Yes.” His eyes darkened, and his body appeared to grow more transparent, less substantial. “A long, long time ago. I cannot pretend to know the details of how, exactly, the Sidhe bound their gods. Only that our realms overlapped. Spirits occasionally disappear over into that world, and it is possible worse lies beyond, where the veil overlaps with the darkest side of Faerie.”

“The Grey Vale. I trapped the god there. It shouldn’t be able to get out.”

“You—trapped a
god?”

“With my magic. Long story. I don’t think it’s a god, exactly. But it’s… linked to the shifters.”

His expression went flat.

“You knew that, right?”

“Shifters appeared after the first use of the veil to navigate realms,” said Frank. “Records are vague, but it’s believed some of the fey-kind lived here in this part of your realm, thousands of years ago.”

Damn. “So they did come before the invasion.”

“Navigating realms is hardly a new innovation,” said Frank. “The necromancers prove that. But your power… crossing realms and trapping a god… it’s certainly not one I’ve heard of.”

“Figured that much out myself,” I said. “So gods can escape. Ghosts can, too. Half-faeries? Like… like Calder.”

He frowned. “In theory, yes, like Calder.”

“
Could
he come back?”

“Conceivably? Yes. Any of us could, if the walls between the realms were sufficiently disrupted.”

“That’s no answer. Is it
likely
to happen?”

“Is a god likely to rise up and take flight?”

“That’s not reassuring.”

“It isn’t meant to be. Ivy, you need to know the consequences of meddling with the veil. Every time you cross, it creates an aftereffect that might well spread across the realms. What you did appears to have had no lasting effect, but even the necromancers sometimes forget that the slightest disruption to the veil could tip us into another war.”

“I won’t be forgetting anytime soon,” I said. “I’ve only ever crossed when I had no choice. There won’t be any more accidents.”

“Good,” he said. “I’ll let you know if I see anything.”

“Thanks,” I said, genuinely. “You’re the first person to understand what I’m saying without a fuss.”

“And I’m dead,” said Frank.

“There might be hope for the living yet.” Vance appeared next to me, eyeing the necromancer. “So this is him.”

“You’re the Mage Lord,” said Frank. “I see the resemblance. You’re the spitting image of your grandfather.”

Vance stilled. “You knew him.”

“For a time.” Frank was almost entirely transparent by now. “Your time’s up. I can only materialise for a short while. I’m sure we’ll speak again.”

“Yeah,” I said. “Thanks.”

The candles sputtered out and the smoke faded. We turned our backs and left the dead man behind.

“I have my hands in every supernatural associate in town,” I said. “More’s the pity for them.”

Vance took my hand, and we reappeared in front of my flat.

“I’m impressed. Five meetings and no arguments.” His eyes gleamed with amusement.

“The huge glowing sword helps.”

Someone waited in the garden, behind the new layer of tripwire spells. “That’d be the landlord. Care to help me explain we’re converting upstairs into an office for dealing with supernatural problems?”

“I think you and your new sword will do fine on your own.”

“Sure we will.” I kissed him, about-turned, and headed to the flat where Isabel waited. Once we had the landlord’s permission, we’d begin setting up our business for real.

I waved at the landlord. The sunlight reflected off the glowing sword in my hand. “Hey,” I said. “Isabel told you our plans to expand our business. I’m sure we can come to an agreement…”

***

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Faerie Realm.
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If you like the sound of YA urban fantasy with demons and sorcery set in a small English town with a sinister history, you might like the Darkworld series, starting with
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About the Author

Emma spent her childhood creating imaginary worlds to compensate for a disappointingly average reality, so it was probably inevitable that she ended up writing urban fantasy and young adult novels. When she's not immersed in her own fictional universes, Emma can be found with her head in a book or wandering around the world in search of adventure.

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