Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17

I leaped on Kik’s back, and he opened a portal directly beneath us. We fell through and the world turned upside down, twisting and turning as Kik fought to right himself.

“Blinking finking and nod, I can’t get feet under me!” he bellowed as we toppled from the height of the treetops.

“You don’t have feet,” I reminded him.

His answer was lost in the anarchy of our plummeting fall.

I tugged on the surrounding magic, softening the ground beneath us. Kik landed on his side, and expelled a great gust of air, forming one word. “Fudge.”

There wasn’t time to ask what fudge had to do with anything, but if he hadn’t cursed after that landing, I had to wonder if he really had been reborn.

The thought had no sooner flitted through my head than I was off his back and bolting to the naga cave.

The nagas’ voices reached me first, hissing and screeching. Fighting. They were fighting.

I couldn’t get to the interior of the cave fast enough, and when I arrived, the scene before me left me breathless.

The naga surrounded the tree of life, and Keefe stood in the center with the sapling. He looked up at me and smiled. “You’re surprised? This tree is as crucial to life as water. I will rule now, Underhill. Good luck with the fall out.”

His hand was wrapped around an upper branch of the tree. His knuckles turned white, and I expected him to yank the entire tree out by the roots. Instead, he raised a sword and swung for the ‘v’ formed by the nexus of the branch and the trunk.

He cut it clean off.

A wail rose from the naga, and several lashed forward at Keefe, their fangs exposed, only for their attacks to slide off him.

He disappeared.

There will be a consequence to his action, Gaia whispered. Protect your people.

Fuck me. I’d expect no less at this point.

The tree of life bled where he’d cut it, and the steam curling from the wound warned me all wasn’t well. Earth shuddered, but I was already surging forward.

A backlash was coming.

I pulled magic from the earth and rock around us and threw a blanket of woven power over the tree. “Hide, all of you!” I yelled to the naga.

They slithered into the soft sand, all except for the king and the queen that I’d spoken through recently.

“We ssstay.” They locked hands and swayed, singing softly. Their words whispered across my skin as the pressure under the blanket of power increased. Smoke poured from the wound in the tree.

I had to stanch it, or we’d all die.

I eased through my own magic to access the space closest to the tree. The heat rolling off the steaming wound blinded me. Lifting my hands, I stretched my fingertips toward the tree and traced around the trunk until I found the cut.

Hot. Angry.

Afraid.

Strange to think of a tree of having emotions, and yet this was the tree of life, so why wouldn’t it feel every aspect of life as we did? I thought of Andas, of Kik and Peggy, and of Kallik and Cinth. All those who’d come into my life during these last few months. How much love and understanding had grown between us.

How much strength existed within my family, both chosen and blood.

That was the balance to the anger and fear.

Love. Trust. Understanding.

I lay my hand over the red-hot wound. Pain slammed through me, ribboning up my arm to my torso. The tree’s blood poured over my fingers and set my bones to rattling.

“I will fight for you too,” I said through gritted teeth. “You brought them back. You gave me a chance to love, and that’s everything in this world.”

I clung to the images of those I loved, and how they made me feel. Even Orlaith, when she’d been Orry. I held on to the love I felt for all of them, and then released it through my burning palm.

I didn’t know how long I knelt in the sand. My blood mingled with that of the tree, but the pain slowly receded, and my hand cooled but still tingled from tiny bolts of electricity that danced across my palm.

I dared to open my eyes.

The tree had grown, its leaves a simple silver now, rather than a combination of black and silver. I stared, feeling the rightness of what had happened.

Well done, young Underhill. Sacrifice and love are the path to balance against darkness. Love is what you needed to learn. Love for those you protect, and the willingness to make sacrifices to see them safe.

“I thought…I thought I’d been doing that.” I whispered, not quite sure how to take my hand off the wound.

Gaia didn’t answer, but I took her words to heart and committed them to memory. The tree’s longer limbs wrapped around me, gently stroking my arms and face as if acquainting themselves with me. Just as gently, the tree pulled my palm from the wound.

I’d expected pain and a violent burn. The image of the tree of life was etched into my palm, charred black like a new tattoo.

“Thank you,” I said in a hushed voice.

“Underhill.”

I turned to the naga king. He walked forward, and I lowered my web of magic around the tree so he could draw closer.

He took my hand without a word and brushed his fingers over the black charring. The burn fell away to reveal healed skin. The image of the tree remained, although now it was silver. Unless someone stared at my hand, they wouldn’t see it, but I could feel the tree in me, and I would forevermore.

“Bounnnnd to the tree of life,” he said. “We will protect it with our livesssss, mother of all.”

I wrapped my fingers around his. “You already did.”

His forked tongue flicked out once. “Closssse the cave, Mistress of Underhill. Closssse it to all.”

Understanding hit me. “You’ll be trapped forever.”

He swayed. “Ssssafe…we will tunnel below ground, make more cavessssss. Underground riverssss for water and food. Protect the tree.”

“The king issss right,” the queen whispered from behind him. “We will be ssssafer. The tree will be sssssafer. It issss an honor to sssserve this tree that isss yoursss.”

She bowed her head, her skin glinting like a new coin.

They were right, and yet…I hesitated before speaking. “I honor you above all others. King of the Naga and Gold Queen. I will visit you often, and I thank you.”

They bowed their heads and sunk down through the sand to join their tribe.

Alone, feeling bereft at the sacrifice they’d made—and wishing I saw my path as clearly as they saw theirs—I portaled from the cave.

Kik did a double take when I appeared outside. “I thought you couldn’t do that from the cave.”

“Now I can. The cave and the tree are mine.”

I’d claimed the humans, and now the tree of life. The Earth realm was mine. Yes, I could feel balance shift toward me again. More power flowed in my veins. Which meant less would flow through Andas’s veins…

I touched the rocks around the cave and felt out every tunnel leading into the place. I closed them off, filling tunnels with solid stone until no ready pathway in existed.

No sunlight for my naga family. My heart ached, but they’d made their choice and sacrifice, as had I, and I felt the rightness of it.

Except…

Trees needed light to thrive.

Keeping my hand on the rock, I used magic to form holes the size of my fist through the rock, creating openings that led all the way to the inner cave. But that wouldn’t be enough light for the tree to thrive.

I lined the holes with silver, drawing ore from the earth to coat the sunlit holes, reflecting light to the tree and visiting naga.

That would be enough light and air, and the tree’s roots would need to handle the water.

“Now where?” Kik butted me with his head. “I saw that knucklehead Keefe run out of here. The second his foot was outside the cave, he portaled way.”

“Any idea where he went? Did you see anything on the other side of his portal?” I already had an idea, but I needed it confirmed.

My connection to the tree of life hummed within me, a power that rivalled the strength I’d had after bonding to Andas and claiming a half-share of his power for a time.

“The scale realm.” Kik grimaced. “But you’re locked out of there, kiddo. I know it. You know it.”

I smirked. “I don’t think I am.”

Kik’s eyes went wide. “What?”

I rolled my hand, my magic curling around me more strongly than ever before. Balance tugged at my feet, and my path was suddenly as clear as the naga’s had been.

“Take me to Peggy. I need to speak to her and Sigella. They’re together.” I could have portaled us both there, but something warned to conserve my power.

Kik dropped lowered to one knee, allowing me to climb on his back. “You got it. Off to see the most beautiful mare in all the realms.”

I smiled, even as fresh fear battered at the hope building inside of me. What if I was wrong? What if I fucked everything up? Andas and I were extraordinarily strong, but we were both magical creatures. Keefe and Gaia…they were magic itself.

“Breathe, kid,” Kik said. “I can feel the tension in your butt cheeks. You’re grabbing at my back hairs.”

I laughed and wrapped my fingers in his mane as he portaled us from the resting place of the tree of life to the Alaskan court.

He trotted through the courtyard, and a pent-up breath left me when we didn’t arrive to find dying fae or drowning humans. My last visits hadn’t been the most relaxing.

The sound of wings thumped through the air, and Peggy landed behind us soon afterward. Sigella on her back.

My brows rose. That was an unexpected sight. Had Sigella bested her somehow? Peggy didn’t allow just anyone to ride her, and while the two were mostly civil enough with each other, I’d never perceived any friendliness between them.

“That was an excellent idea.” Peggy tipped her head at the ancient fae.

“Couldn’t have done it without your help,” Sigella gave Peggy a deep curtsy.

My brows rose further.

They were mocking each other. I squinted at them. No, they were serious.

I forced my eyebrows down from their shocked heights in my hairline. “Are they drunk?” I muttered to Kik under my breath.

But he looked as confused as me.

“What are you two up to?” Kik grumbled. “Having all these smart, beautiful females around makes me nervous.”

Peggy snorted. “Your flattery improves every day, my love. You need only mention that I am the most beautiful and smart of all to perfect the art.”

I slid from Kik’s back. “Sigella, I need your thoughts on a matter. And Peggy, don’t go far, I believe I’ll need your help next.”

Peggy winked at me. “At your service, Underhill.”

I strode across the courtyard a way, and Sigella fell into step beside me.

“What is it?” she asked.

“How do I kill Keefe?”

Her silence didn’t scream encouragement. “I don’t believe you can. The greater forces made him who he is for a reason. Without eliminating the reason—which I gather you wouldn’t be willing to do—then Keefe must remain. In some capacity.”

In some capacity. I hadn’t considered that.

“Gaia tends to these realms, but what of the other gods?” I asked, then dared to add, “Like Lugh?”

She snorted. “How lovely if he was living one thousand tortures for locking me in a fucking harp. Gods don’t die, though, they sleep. Or they choose to let their lives fade to almost nothing. That’s as close to death as they can get. Keefe has chosen violence instead, though that is not what he was created for.”

“Power,” I mused as Peggy and Kik joined us. “He wants power and control.” That was very clear by now. “So if he can’t be killed, he could be imprisoned again. Or put to sleep.”

Sigella rolled her wrist to draw a teacup from the once-empty air. She lifted it to her lips. “The old gods need to choose to fade. He won’t make that decision willingly this time. I suspect he did agree to his last imprisonment willingly.”

I sucked in a breath. “Because of Orlaith.”

“Likely.” She sipped at her tea, and I stared at the cup.

I swallowed, recalling the leech tea she’d once forced me to drink. “Would one of your teas incapacitate him?”

Her gaze sharpened. “My teas can do anything. But, again, he would need to drink of his own free will.”

My plans shifted and adjusted with her words like currents in the ocean. “Then I would have you make that tea, Sigella. If I can’t kill him, he must be subdued.”

“Silver.” The queen’s voice rang out from across the courtyard.

Cinth ran toward me, her hair a mess and her skirts covered in flour and sauces.

“What is it?” I asked, and the question felt repetitive. If my life was always to move from one crisis to the next, perhaps I could do away with that question altogether.

A sheen of sweat coated her pale face. “The humans… While some are grateful for our help, others are coming to attack us. Now. They said a fae with dark hair informed them that we are planning to weaken the humans and take control of this realm for good.”

I knew it was him before she said “Andas.”

“I’ll go to him now.”

“Why are you so calm?” she demanded. “Don’t you care?”

I considered that. “Yes, of course I care. But the realms are in a state of Unbalance, therefore darkness creeps in more readily than the opposite.”

I could tell Queen Hyacinth did not understand that one bit.

“The damage is done,” she said, bursting into tears. “I’ve been baking all morning, trying to find a solution. There isn’t one.”

I didn’t understand why baking would help her find a solution. It certainly wouldn’t protect her people from weapons, but I sensed it would be an unwelcome question. “What was your last communication from the humans?”

“They’re calling for me to step down. Demanding a new queen take my place. The fae are too loyal to say so, but I can tell they’re losing faith in me. They just love my cooking too much to anger me.” She bowed her head, and I placed a hand on her shoulder.

Knowledge buzzed to life within me.

The leadership would change. And it would be an opportunity for balance.

I said, “You’ve been an amazing queen, Hyacinth. You were foisted into this position by powers beyond anyone’s control. I trust you. I know you’ve only ever wanted to do your best in a situation you hated from outset to close.”

Her sob echoed through the courtyard, and the few lurking fae turned to look. I pushed my power in their directions until the courtyard was clear.

“But I don’t trust myself,” Cinth said. “I’m a queen for fair times and simple challenges. This is so far beyond me, Silver. I’m done. I can’t do it any longer.”

I looked past her to find Kallik watching us, cloaked as the Oracle.

“What does the Oracle see?”

My sister left the shadows of the small doorway into the palace that the human servants tended to use. “The pathways are closing to me, Underhill. I had expected to remain Oracle for the rest of my existence, but the power is fading.

The paths hadn’t closed off for me…

“The world is changing because of the new bond between myself and Andas,” I said. “Perhaps your sight will come back in time, daughter of a king. Or perhaps the power of the Oracle has faded so that you might claim the title you were born to have.”

Kallik’s breath caught. “You can’t be serious. The title was meant for you .”

“I am Underhill. I cannot be the Queen of the Fae. If you are not an Oracle, then you must take up this mantle. Hyacinth has bridged the gap beautifully. Now it’s her turn to live as she would choose.”

Kallik didn’t answer. She’d never wanted to be Oracle. She’d never expected to be queen. Just as she and Faolan had found their footing in the realms, she was about to make a second sacrifice for the good of all fae.

And she’d do it. Because she was the daughter of a king—and queen—and she’d been chosen by my mother to rule. I was choosing the same.

Cinth started to cry. “Thank you, Underhill.”

Her words were barely intelligible. She was a queen for fairer times of beauty and light, of beetroot tickles and bruadar. Not a queen made for warfare and battles. Not a queen created in the fires of sacrifice and death so that others might live.

Kallik was that queen. I tipped my head toward my sister. “I will not force you. But you have seen much that no other queen has seen in your time as Oracle. There was a reason for that. There was a reason you fought Unbalance. Your time to hide has come to an end, my sister. I hope you feel ready now, as you never did upon accepting the mantle of Oracle.”

I felt my sister’s sorrow as she fell to one knee. “I will do as you bid and trust in your judgement. There is none other for this task, I know. Though I will lose some freedoms, I’ll gain others. The freedom to speak without fear of altering the future. There’s joy to be had in that.”

She lifted her lilac gaze to mine as she slid her hood back to reveal her long, dark hair.

I struggled to swallow the lump in my throat. “We will work together, as Underhill and the Queen of the Fae always should have.”

The Oracle had served her purpose.

I touched the hundreds of magics in the palace and commanded all creatures into the courtyard. Fae started to exit the palace. They slowed and started whispering at the sight of Kallik kneeling before me, and of Hyacinth behind me, joy and relief etched onto her face.

The whisper was taken up, swelling with shock.

Kallik. Daughter of King Aleksander. Kallik. Returned. Alive.

Cinth started to leave.

I glanced back. “She will need you still, Hyacinth. You know that?”

Her eyes overflowed with tears. “I will always be there for my friend. She is the sister of my heart, and I don’t blame her at all for the life I chose to lead until this moment. It could not have been any other way.”

Their friendship was unlike any other I’d witnessed.

I turned to the gathered fae.

“Kallik sacrificed much to serve my mother as Oracle.” My voice boomed, silencing all. “Now, she returns in this time of need to the position for which she was born. She is Queen Kallik of All Fae, and she has the blessing and respect of Underhill.”

That was the best I could do for her. As terrible as it was that the humans were at our doorstep, the bigger threat was still Keefe and the piece of the tree of life he had stolen.

The fae crowded toward Kallik, and I moved back, heading out of the palace gates. Kallik would navigate this, of that I had no doubt.

“That worked out well. I was sick of the cook’s blubbering.”

I slid a glance at the ancient fae beside me. “Sigella, will you brew the tea for Keefe?”

“It will take me a few hours, but yes. I’ll prepare it gladly.”

“I’ll return to the palace for the tea then.” I found Peggy amidst the crowd and sought out and held her gaze.

She nodded, indicating she would be waiting for me too.

I closed my eyes and followed my connection to Andas, feeling him far across the world, creating rampant chaos and darkness in the humans. They were easy marks, especially now.

I sighed. Then, creating a portal, I stepped through it and into absolute tumult of a camp of human men.

Soldiers.

More than a few lifted their puny weapons to me. I could have used my power to blast their weapons into the dirt or shatter the humans like glass, but I waited until the fear left their postures and spoke one word.

“Andas.”

My heart fluttered as Unbalance walked between the men, dressed in a uniform that matched theirs. He flicked his hands in their direction. “Come to see my handiwork?”

I lifted my chin. “I’d have thought you’d outgrown the need to dress up and play with dolls.”

“Your sarcasm falls short, my Underhill. I see the quickness of your breaths and the pressing of your thighs. Perhaps I should wear this uniform more often.”

He wasn’t wrong. I pursed my lips. “Perhaps you should. I have a way to stop Keefe.”

“Do you?” His mocking tone made the other men laugh, as if they knew what was going on. As if their minds were his.

I pulled a face. “Do you need to control them like that? They’re filled with darkness. They’d follow you anyway.”

Andas lifted a shoulder, and the soldiers did the same. “You have the luxury of obeying your power with abandon. Mine is a beast that must be controlled. If I do not siphon it in small ways, then it will control me in large ways.”

Before I could open my mouth to ask if he enjoyed it, Andas cut me off. “Be sure you want an answer to that question. I am what I am, and that cannot change.”

My heart mourned the loss of the soldiers, but I let their suffering flow over me because there was no other option in this moment, and—in truth—I’d seen the reality of what my life with Andas would be. Only time would convince me that I could bear it.

I did my best to ignore them, asking, “What if there was a way to allow you to stay in one place?”

His laugh slid from his face. “You…it’s impossible. You can’t always stay with me. I can’t keep anchoring through your essence.”

My turn to laugh. “People keep saying that word to me, and yet here we are. Me, doing the fucking impossible yet again. The answer was simple, really.”

I waited.

Yes, I was going to make him grovel.

“And what’s the answer?” he said from between clenched teeth.

My lips curved. “What will you give me if I tell you?”

He considered that. “Much.”

If we were speaking as Balance and Unbalance, I might have given him a harder negotiation, but I’d come here as Silver. I lost my smirk and said softly, “This one is for free. Because I want you to be happy and able to rest. The reason you can stay in one place when anchored to my essence is because I have always been anchored to my home. Recently, though, my anchor shifted from Underhill to Earth, as did my power. I feel the need to reside here now, and it occurred to me in that shift that you don’t have a home. Unbalance has never had a home, if I’m guessing right. I have a way to ground you to a realm. Underhill will become your own, and in this way, your essence might rest and settle.”

The human soldiers reflected Andas’s slack-faced shock.

“You…” His voice hitched and he tried again. “You would give me a realm? You’d give me Underhill . Why would you do that?”

While I’d feared that my power—and that of all fae—was tied to Underhill, and that we would all slowly weaken, I now knew that wasn’t the case. Claiming the humans was the final part of the shift in me, and Earth was my new anchor and home. My creatures wouldn’t be harmed by any changes to Underhill, or the changes to Earth that would inevitably happen over decades in response to my power.

In fact, I had a feeling that in a few hundred years, Earth would appear a great deal like Underhill used to. Maybe I wouldn’t tell the human leaders that.

In short, I had no need of the old Underhill, and no fear about releasing it to Andas.

Along with all that, there was another reason as large as the rest. “Because I love you too.”