Fairy Queens: Books 5-7 by Amber Argyle

Author:Amber Argyle
Language: eng
Format: epub

Situated in a high-back chair between her mother and grandfather, Elice watched the thousands of fairies, a smattering of animal and magic bonded to form creatures that could have been human, had there been any humanity left to them. Elice realized how desperately she needed Chriel’s steadying presence, her gentle demeanor.

Two raptor fairies came into the room in their bird forms, carrying an iron cage between them. Inside, Chriel stood with an ageless stillness. Elice’s heart lurched. She’d missed her friend. Missed learning the secrets of the world in their library while the candles flickered and the aurora danced beyond the open windows.

The raptors set the cage on the long table before them without so much as a lurch before shifting into fairies with sharp beaks and talons. They backed away without a sound.

The Winter Queen studied the rabbit fairy. “Perhaps I should kill you, Chriel.” She looked about the room, a warning in her gaze. “It would certainly strike fear into the hearts of my enemies.”

Elice stiffened. Was her mother about to change her mind?

Ilyenna let out a long breath. “But really, how could they possibly fear me more than they already do? Those who rise against me believe I am unbendable and unforgiving, and it is true that the magic in my veins does not lend itself to mercy.”

Her voice dropped. “But my father and daughter have tempered my need for justice. Chriel, you have faithfully served me and my family these long years. And even a Winter Queen can be capable of mercy. Beg my forgiveness, declare your allegiance, and I will spare you.”

Ilyenna pulled out a key, inserted it in the cage door, and swung it open. Chriel stepped out, her feet bare and dirty. Her face was haggard, her body limp. Being underground had left her exhausted and weak. Elice longed to comfort her friend, but she dared not show any sympathy for the fairy her mother was trying to make an example of.

“I thank you for your mercy, my queen,” Chriel said.

Elice breathed a sigh of relief. When this was over, things could go back to the way they were. Adar’s chaotic presence would be gone, and Elice would resume her studies and her life. So why did she feel so lost?

Chriel took a deep breath. “I thank you, but I cannot partake of it.”

Many things happened at once: Elice gasped, dozens of the fairies in the room shifted to their animal forms, and Grandfather shot a worried look at Elice.

Ilyenna rose to her feet, leaned forward, and placed her hand on the table, ice spreading from her fingertips. “What did you say?”

Chriel lifted her head. “This age will end in blood and fire. That end comes, close enough I can taste the ash in my mouth. Your reign is nearly over, my queen. Our allegiance must shift to another if we are to survive.”

The table beneath Ilyenna’s hands cracked in half, the two pieces wedging against one another at a harsh angle. Elice jumped back.

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