The Vanishing Throne (48 page)

aileana kameron's
notes and observations of the fae

Re-created at will in the Pixie Kingdom, and added to with annotations and addendums. Certain notes have been excluded, including those made by a certain pixie in residence . . .

YOU RE-CREATED THIS WITHOUT MY NOTES? WHAT KIND OF BOLLOCKS IS THIS? I'M ADDING NEW ONES.

As I have come to learn, the stories of the fae from my childhood are the result of several thousand years of diluted oral history.

Dear younger self: Let's not forget half-truths, omissions, and made-up rubbish.

What remains of the fae world now is but a shadow of its former magnificence. The Seelie and Unseelie—two warring kingdoms of light and dark fae—had once conquered whole continents. Humanity was driven practically extinct from what the fae called the Wild Hunt,
a systematic attempt to capture and kill the strongest humans, especially those with the Sight.

According to the Cailleach, the Unseelie King requires the Wild Hunt to survive. Without it, he and his subjects grow weaker and eventually die. I will add, but choose to ignore, her statement about the culling being necessary to the natural order of things. She is, after all, a murderous harridan with questionable judgment.

AND HER HEAD WOULD MAKE A LOVELY TROPHY FOR MY CLOSET.

Derrick! How did you find out where I hid this book?

YOU CAN'T KEEP ANYTHING FROM ME. I KNOW ALL. I SEE ALL. AND YOU USED THE SAME HIDING SPOT.

It was the never ending war between the two kingdoms that nearly collapsed them, and the final war with the Falconers that finally destroyed them both. 

Oh, what simpler days these were when I wrote this note, and now I hardly know where to begin . . .

The Unseelie King and the Seelie Queen ended their war, breaking the fate that had been planned for them since their birth. They couldn't have known that decision would have catastrophic consequences that led to the destruction of both kingdoms.

After everything Kiaran has taught me, I've come to realize that only one truth has endured across time:
Never trust the fae.

Too late.

Aileana Kameron, 1844.
Revised in—I can't believe I'm writing this—
December 1847

Baobhan Sìth

Sorcha:

Solitary fae (Possibly belonged to a kingdom in her past).

Nonsolitary faery. The Unseelie King's former consort.

THAT ALMOST MADE ME VOMIT UP MY HONEY.

She is related to the
daoine sìth
, yet distinct because of her strong telepathic abilities. She is magnetic, with long, dark hair and the most vivid green eyes I've ever seen. Her smile is both haunting and terrifying, a thing of nightmares. Her power tastes heavy, as if blood is being forced down my throat. Aside from slaughtering the Falconers, she murdered any other
baobhan sìth
born so that her abilities could remain unmatched.

Except for her brother, Lonnrach.

Strengths:
She is highly intelligent and cunning, her ability to kill aided by mental powers that can deceive a person into meeting her on a dark road of her choosing where she drains her victims of blood.

One distinct note about Lonnrach is his ability to extract

Lonnrach's expertise is that he

I'm not ready to write about this yet.

I'M PLOTTING HIS DEMISE.

Kill count:
20
36
87
103
Too many to tally off the map any more.

Disregard. The map, like my misguided quest for vengeance, is no longer my primary objective.

Weaknesses:
No known weaknesses. I will find one. 

Sorcha: Kiaran. I don't know how I'll use this information.

Lonnrach: I still can't.

STILL PLOTTING.

Brollachan

Usually a solitary faery, though the one I encountered in the pixie city lived with other fae under forced circumstances. A
brollachan
is a faery without shape or form, a shadow figure with glowing red eyes. This creature steals energy by inhabiting a human host and slowly depleting his or her life force. To any other human, this would look like a sudden illness.

S
trengths:
Their shadow form makes them harder to kill.

Weaknesses:
Exposure to light.

Cat sìth

A solitary faery, though forced to live with the fae in the pixie city. This is a catlike creature. Like its counterpart the
cù sìth
(faery hound), the
cat sìth
comes in a size that is unnaturally large for a common pet or even a wildcat, though unlike the
cù sìth
, this faery is not Unseelie and prefers to hunt on its own.

S
trengths:
Speed, size, agility.

Weaknesses:
Not terribly intelligent creatures. Ruled by instinct rather than intellect.

NAPPING AND BALLS OF YARN. FAE OR NOT, CATS ARE ALL THE SAME.

The Cailleach

Nonsolitary faery. The Cailleach is the queen of the fae and the oldest among their kind. Her power was so great that she was once considered a goddess. Legends claim she shaped the hills, mountains, and lochs of Scotland with her hammer and staff, and that she created both the human and faery realms. The position and power of the Cailleach is passed down through lineage. Two fae children are born to rule separate kingdoms of light and dark (Seelie and Unseelie) and raised to view each other as competitor to their throne. The strongest of the two starts the war, kills the other, and takes the place of the former Cailleach. If this process is interrupted or altered, the realms begin to fracture and crumble. I have seen proof of this in the
Sìth-bhrùth
, though this degradation hasn't extended to the human realm.
Yet
.

S
trengths:
At the Cailleach's full power, there would be no stopping her. She can command the elements, she has skills of mental influence that make Sorcha's look weak in comparison, and she is adept in battle.

Weaknesses:
She's not at full power. Her decision to have offspring is causing her to age and die slowly the way a human would. She must pass on her powers to one of her children before she dies. This has only made her more eager to murder me.

THIS HAS ONLY MADE ME MORE EAGER TO TAKE HER HEAD AS A TROPHY.

Daoine Sìth

Nonsolitary fae, both Seelie and Unseelie (light and dark fae). They are unearthly beautiful, a warrior race known
for wreaking destruction and for how they once drove humans to near-extinction (what Kiaran calls the Wild Hunt).

(See opening.)

The
daoine sìth
once ruled not only the faery realm (
Sìth-bhrùth)
, but had once managed to conquer nearly every continent on earth.
Kiaran claims there was once a distinction between Seelie and Unseelie rule, but over time, both courts became equally power-obsessed and ruthless. 

The Seelie Queen and the Unseelie King were raised in separate kingdoms knowing they would one day have to kill each other. Only one of them can replace the Cailleach.

Of course, Kiaran is being vague on strengths and weaknesses—but I have managed to garner that their powers include the ability to command the elements.

Weaknesses:
?

The Unseelie depend on human energy to stay alive. When the Unseelie King was stripped of his power and it became absorbed by the fae in both kingdoms, this weakness extended to those previously Seelie.

Kiaran's power, at least, tastes earthy—sweet, floral, something wild. Which is indescribably lovely when he's being pleasant, and nauseating when he's not.

(Still quite true.)

PARDON ME, CASTING UP EVERYTHING NOW.

Each uisge

Solitary fae. A water horse that is related to the kelpie, but more dangerous and aggressive. It lures humans to a water source using the
power of its unearthly beauty, appearing primarily in the form of a horse, but has also been known to take the form of a handsome man. This was the first fae I ever fought and I spectacularly failed to kill it. I learned my lesson here: Iron doesn't work against the fae.

S
trengths:
In water, their fur becomes an adhesive that is impossible to escape, which aids them in drowning their victims. I doubt I would have lived through my own attack had Kiaran not intervened, and I still have the scars to show for it.

Weaknesses:
Their power is diminished on land. However, they circumvent this by remaining near water at all times.

Mara

In
Gàidhlig
, they are referred to as
droch-spiorad
. Nonsolitary fae, though they have chosen not to belong to either court. They live in packs within the dark forests of the
Sìth-bhrùth
. From what I could see of them, they are hulking creatures with pitch-black fur and glowing eyes.

S
trengths:
They can see better in the dark than I can.

Weaknesses:
With a bright enough light, they all scatter.

Mortair

Nonsolitary, though their status is a bit complicated because they were created by the Seelie Queen. They are building-sized mechanical fae made of near-unbreakable material that is constructed in armorlike plates across their entire bodies. The inner core (heart) of a
mortair
glows and powers the entire machine, including the weapon in the center of its palms. Aithinne created them to be sentient, though not terribly intelligent. Their primary purpose is to seek and destroy.

S
trengths:
They are massive and strong. And since they aren't intelligent, they can't be reasoned with. If you interfere with their programmed mission, they will strive to kill you. Lesson learned.

Weaknesses:
Aithinne's sword is the only thing that can pierce their armor. Second lesson learned.

Pixies

In
Gàidhlig
, they are referred to as
aibhse
.

Small, winged-fae, mostly nonsolitary. Pixies, like other smaller fae, are only distantly related to the larger types of
sìthichean
. They once had their own realm, lands, and kingdom that was separately ruled somewhere on Skye,
but mass-migrated to Cornwall sometime before the Falconer battle with the
daoine sìth
. 

The survivors left for Cornwall after Kiaran destroyed their city and nearly slaughtered everyone in it.

(THANK YOU FOR REVISING THIS AND FOR USING HIS NAME.)

Pixies' power shines in a halo around them, the color of which can change depending on the pixie's mood. Can feed off of human energy, as do most other fae, but largely choose not to. Power tastes of gingerbread. Apparently cannot help but mend clothes and steal shiny objects.

They are keepers of ancient relics precious to the fae, which they buried all over Skye.

S
trengths:
Extremely fast flyers; adept with small, sharp weaponry.

(STILL VERY GOOD WITH THE LADIES.)

Weaknesses:
Honey, torn ballgowns.

(and closets)

(AND A CERTAIN HUMAN COMPANION BUT NOW I'M GETTING TOO SENTIMENTAL AND THERE'S SOMETHING IN MY EYE.)

Well. Now I have something in my eye, too.

Will-o'-the-wisp

In
Gàidhlig
they are referred to as
Teine sionnachain
.

Nonsolitary, though they do not belong to either of the courts. The will-o'-the-wisp is smaller than a pixie and distinctly more otherworldly in appearance, with black eyes overly large for their faces, pointed ears, and dark, onyx-like skin. Before the Wild Hunt, they shunned civilized contact, preferring to live in forest caves far from Scottish cities. They are a feral species and I still have to remind myself not to kill them on sight after they attacked me. What vicious, awful creatures.

S
trengths:
Their numbers. They live together in the thousands and attack in a swarm.

Weaknesses:
Individually, they're incredibly fragile. Unlike pixies, they cannot survive on their own.

P
ersonal note:
Don't kill them, even if you want to. Not here.