Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 105815 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105815 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 353(@300wpm)
“I-I-I,” Rei stammered, his gaze darting around at the other members of the fae who were watching him with large, questioning eyes.
“In His Majesty’s defense, his manner and words were always more courteous than those of his parents,” Olag interjected.
“No.” Rei released a heavy breath and hung his head. “I wasn’t much better than my parents. I respected you and others because of your perceived age and knowledge, but I’ll admit that I don’t give the other races much thought.” His head snapped up, and he glared hard at Ellora. “But I have never considered any of them cannon fodder!”
Ellora huffed and met his glare. “Well, Trin isn’t any better than Ash and Belladonna. He’s overlooked the other members of the fae, using them as scouts and grunt troops to be killed in his war against the humans and vampires. He’s commanded all the elves he can get his hands on to remain on this side of the door so they can fuel his spells and fight his battles.”
Yichen shrugged one shoulder. “Tell all the gnomes, brownies, pixies, and others to head to the fae realm and close the damn door. Leave us to kill off the elves. Less problems for them.”
Ellora pointed a finger at Yichen and opened her mouth, but she closed it again and turned her attention to Rei. “Your mate is adorably bloodthirsty, even for a vampire. I can see why you chose him.” She turned her attention back to Yichen. “The problem is that the fae realm needs the elves, regardless of whether the other races want them there. Without the elves, the fae realm will die.”
“I’m confused,” Xiao Dan murmured, and Junjie nodded. It felt as though he were missing some key part of fae lore to follow this conversation.
“Allow me to explain.” Olag waddled across the room and hefted himself into a large chair. He wiggled his butt to get settled. His hands resting on his round stomach, he directed his piercing gaze at Xiao Dan and Junjie. “The fae realm is a place of magic and nature. The magic feeds into nature, and in return, nature adds to the magic in the air. However, none of that is possible without elves.”
“But I thought all the fae were magical,” Junjie cut in.
“We are, but the elves have more depth and breadth to their magic. We gnomes are linked to the mountains and the rocks. Our magic is about endurance and strength. We know nothing of the beauty and fragility of flowers. That’s the realm of the pixies.” As he spoke, he motioned up toward the top of a nearby bookshelf where some pixies were watching the conversation. “But the elves and their magic, they can split the rocks and tell the trees to grow. They can control water and the air. There’s no element beyond their reach.”
“It’s for that reason that our people have become so snobbish,” Ellora said.
Rei nodded. “And how the elves have held control of the fae realm for so long.”
“So, we need to take out Trin and possibly some of his crazy followers, then convince most of the elves to go through the door,” Yichen stated.
“Basically.” Ellora shifted from her left foot to her right while both of her eyebrows lifted as she stared at Rei.
“Got it. Got it.” Rei held his hands in front of him as if to ward off more of her looks. “I’ll kill Trin for you. Possibly Aire Bira. I’ve got a dragon and a vampire mate who are itching to take out a few elves, so I might have to share with them.”
“Fine, but how are we supposed to keep yet another Trin from rising to take on the humans?” Ellora tossed up her hands and paced a short distance away, only to spin back and glare at her half brother. “This has been an endless cycle of blood and mayhem.”
“I think a dragon eating a large number of Trin’s fighters will be fairly convincing that this is a battle they cannot win,” Junjie offered. “Once you spread the word that Rei defeated Trin and the door is closing, the elves should race to the fae realm.”
“Because staying means death for them,” Xiao Dan finished.
Rei was going to be the one exception to that rule. He didn’t need the magical connection to his own realm any longer, thanks to the gift and spell he’d received from the witch Zelda. But they weren’t spreading that knowledge about, because Rei had no desire to see more of his fae brethren running loose in the human world after the door was closed.
Ellora tipped her chin toward her chest and chewed on her bottom lip in thought. “Okay. That will help. But what about after the door closes, in the fae realm? Who is going to lead the fae? Who will wrangle the elves into something coherent and less vicious?”