The Faerie War (8 page)

“Maybe you’re, like, a princess. Or maybe your parents are super important and they have enemies, so their daughter needs to be protected.”

“I’m a guardian. Shouldn’t I be able to protect myself?”

“Hmm. Good point.” She bites her lip, then starts rattling off another theory. I join in, feeling more relaxed than I have in weeks. By the time I leave—much later than I’d planned—I think I’ve spoken more words in one afternoon than I have in all the days I’ve been with the reptiscillas combined. I’m also feeling more determined than ever to find out who I really am and what happened to my memory during The Destruction. I don’t want to spend the rest of my life making up stories about my past.

So, once again, I find a quiet corner of a tunnel and slide down onto the floor. I ease the note from my pocket, hoping that this time,
this time
, I’ll recognize something I didn’t recognize before. The shape of the letters, maybe. Or the tilt of the words. Or the nickname at the end.

I smooth the small page out over my knees and read the words again:

V,

I have to go somewhere. I can’t tell you where or why or who sent me, but it’s important that I leave now. Don’t try to find me. It isn’t safe for you to know where I’m going—someone might try to get the information out of you. I know I’m leaving you at a time of great uncertainty and danger, but I also know that you’re more than capable of kicking any villain’s ass without me. Just do me one favor: don’t get yourself killed, okay? I’ll see you soon, Sexy Pixie.

Ryn

PART

II

Take the faerie paths to the other side of our realm where the Dragon’s Back mountain range is
.
Go to the foot of the peak that looks like a dragon’s tooth. Climb straight up for half a day. Look for a grouping of three tall rocks like fingers in a row. The entrance is at the base of the middle rock. It shouldn’t be too difficult to find.

Yeah. Right.

Eight days later and where am I? In the middle of flipping nowhere. At the foot of a mountain range. Disheveled, hungry, and frustrated. All because Kale, Violet’s father, sent me off on this mission. This highly important, highly secret, highly
unsuccessful
mission.

I dump my pack at my feet and stare up at the mountain peak I’m starting to hate the sight of. I think it’s the right one. It looks more like a dragon’s tooth than any of the others. Unless . . . dammit, they all look like dragon’s teeth. And I’ve climbed up at least five peaks in this mountain range. There’s no grouping of three tall rocks
anywhere
.

I close my eyes and rub my hand across my unshaven jaw. What makes this situation even more infuriating is that I have no communication devices with me. No amber, no mirror, nothing. Because what else did Kale say?
It isn’t safe to use your amber. New magical technology allows people to track communication devices when you use them.

Great.

The guy is clearly paranoid.

And I’m starting to think the Order of the Guard doesn’t exist.

The Order of the Guard. A secret group of faeries guarding an ancient weapon that could destroy Tharros’ enduring power. I’d like to believe this Order really exists, but I have to admit it seems unlikely. It was only the barest of a rumor that led Kale to begin searching for them in the first place. And it took him almost a year to gather enough information on where they might be hiding. Barely anyone knew what he was talking about. It’s been so long since guardians destroyed Tharros all those centuries ago. Anyone who might have known about a secret weapon that could destroy the power he left behind is probably dead by now.

I sit down on the nearest rock and weave a spell around myself to ward off the chill. It’s worse here than back home in Creepy Hollow. The leaves have only just begun to turn autumn gold there.

I want to go home.

Yeah. As much as I hate the thought of failure, home is where I want to be. I want to get back to fighting bad guys, solving crimes, and having Violet try to sneak up on me in my bedroom. I want to sit at the top of the gargan tree whispering secrets in her ear and kissing her.

But I haven’t forgotten the very last thing Kale said to me:
Do not return until you’ve found them. This is very important, Ryn. Tharros’ power
will
be unleashed upon the world again, and this time, we need to destroy it.

I asked him why he wasn’t going on this mission himself, if it was so important. He said the Seelie Queen didn’t want him disappearing on some weapon hunt she believed was futile.

Seems the Seelie Queen and I agree on something.

If Kale is certain Zell’s going to unlock the chest of power soon, then shouldn’t I be at home getting ready to defend the Guild with everyone else? Violet’s contact at the Unseelie Palace may have already told her when Zell’s planning to attack. The Guild might be preparing for battle right now. And where am I? Wandering the wilderness like a fool looking for something that doesn’t exist.

But you have orders
, a voice at the back of my mind says.
Orders from a senior guardian who reports directly to the Seelie Queen. That’s not something you want to disobey.

I’ll give it two more days. That makes ten days. Surely that’s enough? If there really is no Order hiding out here, Kale can’t expect me to search
forever
, can he?

I want to see Violet.

The desire strikes suddenly, sending an ache through my chest. The longing to see her hits at least once an hour. Sometimes I want to hold her so badly my arms ache. Part of me is surprised she hasn’t shown up to demand why the hell I disappeared. I told her in the note not to find me, of course, but when did Violet Fairdale ever listen to me?

After running both hands through my messy hair, I stand. Two more days. Just two more days of silence and loneliness. Then I’ll be back at her side.

*

I climb the peak again. The one that looks most like a dragon’s tooth. After a few hours of steady climbing, I start walking in a wide zigzag. I don’t want to miss these mysterious three rocks again. The chilly air makes the sweat on my forehead sting like ice. Tilting my head back, I see snow capping the peak. Thank goodness it doesn’t snow further down at this time of year. That would make this pointless mission even worse.

I stop when I see a slim rock pointing toward the sky. Now
that
is what I imagine when I think ‘tall rock shaped like a finger’. Too bad there’s only one. Yup. One. Like this mountain is flipping me off. I start laughing, then stop when I realize how crazy the echoes sound.

I continue up. After several more hours of climbing, I figure I’ve gone too high. Seriously, those three rocks are
not here
. Maybe I need to get to the other side of this peak. Perhaps Kale left that part out of the instructions.
Climb straight up for half a day. WALK TO THE OTHER SIDE OF THE PEAK. Look for a grouping of three tall rocks like fingers in a row.

Maybe. I’m doubtful . . . but maybe. I’ll have to try that tomorrow.

I head back down. The light fades quickly after the sun slips behind the mountains. I won’t make it to the bottom before dark. Not a problem. I’m a faerie; I can make camping on a rocky, sloped surface into a comfortable experience.

I drop my pack onto the ground. Darkness creeps closer as I consider what spell to start with. Transform my pack into a sleeping bag? Enlarge the tiny bit of food I have left? Create a fire that won’t die until I tell it to? Through the half-light, I see the finger-pointing rock I laughed at earlier. I find myself wondering if maybe,
just maybe
, there were once two other rocks beside this one. I stand up and head over to examine it, taking my pack with me.

I can’t help the half-groan, half-laugh that escapes me when I reach the rock that’s taller and narrower than I am. “Are you
kidding
me?” I say out loud. “This is what I’ve been combing the mountainside for?”

Here they are. The three fingers in a row. It’s just that two of them are broken, leaving nothing but a patch of jagged stone at ground level on either side of the pointing finger. I crouch down and examine the base of the middle rock. I brush away loose dirt with one hand while creating an orb of light with my other hand. The white glow illuminates an arrow carved into the stone. I run my finger along it as I consider using a simple doorway spell. It probably wouldn’t work, but—

Light explodes from the rock. A second later, I’m hanging upside down in midair. Pain tears through my body. I try to grasp at my magic, but it slips away like water through my fingers. I writhe about, but I can’t escape the pain and the invisible force holding me upside down. After willing myself to calm down, I notice the shape of a person silhouetted against a doorway of warm light.

“Who are you?” he asks. My first instinct is to try to read his emotions, but it doesn’t seem possible to feel anything other than agony.

“From . . . the Guild. I have . . . the Seelie Queen’s . . . token.” I squirm around and slap at my right back pocket for the ring Kale gave me. It’s a one-of-a-kind piece, like all the Queen’s jewelry. Her symbol’s engraved in the metal beneath an oversized emerald. The ring falls to the ground. The man bends and picks it up.

“You’re a guardian?” he asks.

“Aargh . . . yes.” I keep as still as possible so he can see the markings on my wrists.

He snaps his fingers. I hit the ground. The pain evaporates, but I’m left feeling like a troll ploughed through me. “I’d . . . I’d like to speak to whoever’s in charge,” I say, “about the two missing rocks. Because it’s taken almost nine days of searching to find this place.”

“Nine days? You’ve done pretty well then,” the man says, “considering the point is for us
not
to be found.” I sense relief and a hint of excitement as he reaches for my arm and pulls me up. “Come inside. We’re desperate to know what’s going on, but we weren’t sure if there was anyone left out there who still remembered us.”

Still feeling shaky, I grab my pack and follow him through the rock’s narrow doorway and into a large sitting room. It’s like a faerie home, but concealed within a rock instead of a tree. “What are you talking about?” I ask.

He seals the doorway behind us, then turns to me. “The faerie paths. It’s the only hint we’ve had that something’s gone wrong. Well, that and the tremor.”

I stare at the man, getting a good look at him for the first time. His anxious eyes are a very pale blue, like the strands that run through his blond hair. Like all adult faeries, he looks to be in his early twenties. But his eyes have that aged look I see on those who’ve been around longer than several decades. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. I was sent here to find the Order of the Guard and the weapon they’re hiding. I don’t remember any tremor.”