Total pages in book: 147
Estimated words: 139662 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 698(@200wpm)___ 559(@250wpm)___ 466(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 139662 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 698(@200wpm)___ 559(@250wpm)___ 466(@300wpm)
I study my wine. When I first met Finn, I accused him of living in luxury while his people suffered. But as I grew to know him better, I knew he would do anything for his people. Even now, despite everything, I feel guilty about my offhand attempt at cruelty.
“So there are those who supported Mordeus,” Misha says, continuing with his explanation, “and then there are those who follow Finn. But there are also those who want to see Prince Ronan on the throne, who fought in the Great Fae War and think that only a ruler with both sun and shadow in his blood can unite the realm and save their children from endless war.”
I shake my head, remembering the argument I saw through the hawk’s eyes. “Finn said that couldn’t happen, that it was impossible for Sebastian to rule over both courts.” I frown.
“Finn’s right, but the appeal of Sebastian’s rule isn’t that he’d rule both courts. The hope is that Queen Arya wouldn’t go to war with her son’s kingdom.”
“Oh. But wouldn’t she?”
Misha scoffs. “I’ve yet to find something she wouldn’t do for more power, so I think those holding out for that are putting stock in an overly optimistic assumption. Regardless, the fact is this: the shadow court has never been as divided as it is now, and as long as it’s so broken, it’s weak.”
“Okay, but you’re king of the Wild Fae. Why do you care so much about the Unseelie Court?”
His eyes flash and his nostrils flare, his temper slipping for just a beat before he reels it back in. “A strange question from the former mortal who risked her own life to help dozens of Unseelie children escape the queen.”
“Anyone in my position would’ve helped.”
He hums. “I’m not so sure, but I find it quite endearing that you believe this, after all you’ve been through.”
I look away, my face burning with embarrassment. I don’t need Misha believing I’m some naïve girl, and I don’t want him digging into why I feel this compulsion to help. The truth makes me vulnerable.
He sighs. “I care because what happens between the courts affects my lands and my people. I care because I know that as long as the shadow court is weak, the golden queen will capitalize on that weakness.”
“Meaning what?”
“War is imminent,” he says, “but this time instead of being locked into a centuries-long battle between two equally matched courts, the Seelie will be victorious. The golden queen will win, and the consequences will be catastrophic, not just for the Unseelie Court but for my territory and the human realm as well.”
“What could she possibly want that’s worth risking the lives of thousands?”
Misha turns up his palms. “What are all wars about? Resources, territory, power.”
I narrow my eyes at him. “Specifically?”
“The Goblin Mountains that divide the courts are split down the middle by the River of Ice. The mountains to the east of the river are part of the Unseelie Court and the mountains to the west, the Seelie. The Great Fae War was waged when the golden fae tried to take the entire mountain range as their own.”
“What about a mountain range is worth losing so many soldiers?”
“At first glance, nothing. The treacherous mountains are so sacred that the goblins themselves won’t use their magic to bring fae beyond the foothills. But beneath those mountains, you can find our most precious resources.” He nods at my chest, where the necklace from Sebastian still sits. I don’t let myself think about why I haven’t taken it off. “The fire gems.”
I pull the necklace from beneath my top and study the softly glowing gem. “What do they do?”
“They make everything . . . better. Stronger. The fire gems are magical amplifiers.” He holds up a hand and wiggles his middle finger, where a canary yellow stone sparkles in the evening light. “Wearing one can increase an individual’s magical range and strength several degrees.”
I scoff. “Knowing how the fae feel about magic, I’m surprised you’re not all dressed head to toe in them.”
He shrugs and looks almost bashful when he says, “I suppose we would be if there were benefits to wearing more than one, but wearing one fire gem amplifies an individual’s power the same as one hundred.”
“And what? There aren’t enough to go around? Is that why they’re fighting over them?”
“The fire gems found beneath those mountains are not abundant, nor are they infinite. For an individual, they are valuable, but in great amounts, fire gems are for far more than personal use. Our ancestors hoarded them, gifting them to their priestesses, using them to strengthen borders and to create tonics the likes of which could never be achieved without the fire gems.”
“Like what?” I ask, tucking the gem back into my shirt.
“Like the Potion of Life, or the restorative potion the golden queen ingested to survive the damage of the curse. Like the toxin they injected into those children to steal their powers. As an amplifier, the magic of one gem serves us for hundreds of years, but those potions and tonics take hundreds of gems and are for one-time use. By all rights, the queen’s reserves should’ve been depleted after the last two decades, but she’s been vigilant in her efforts to gather more.” Anger flashes in his eyes. “She’s not satisfied with what’s available on her side of the mountain range, so she’s going to resume the mission of her grandfather, who started the Great Fae War to claim the Unseelie’s side of the Goblin Mountains as his own.”