Chapter 17
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
ORION
T wo royal guards followed His Majesty into the hive, deadly swords and white-gold armor glinting in the golden light.
King Damien wore one of his famous burgundy suits, his blond hair sleek and loose. He always looked so chic, his copper skin boasting a healthy glow. Nothing was ever out of place, every single aspect of him exuding elegance.
But his smile was cruel.
Wendy buzzed loudly, landing on my shoulder. "I didn't hear your carriage land."
Instead of planes, air travel in Faery came from flying horses pulling carriages. The horses moved at the same pace as Earthly jets, the royal steed the fastest of all.
The king folded his arms behind his back. "And?"
"What do you want?" Wendy flew off, getting back to her work.
I backed away from the log, standing by the edge of the moat. My heart droned like angry wasps trapped in a jar.
"I want you, Your Majesty," he answered, eyes roaming the honeycomb. "You and your miraculous honey. May I sit?" He gestured to the log.
Wendy didn't answer.
He sat anyway, gazing up at the busy bee, not so much as glancing my way. "Honestly, in all my years, I'd never really given you a second thought. You were nothing more than a lost wonder, one of the many memories of this great realm. Until I went swimming in an ocean cove close to my palace."
I stuffed my hands in my pockets, scared out of my mind. However, I knew I'd defend Wendy, prepared to backhand his smug face if need be.
Assbug. He'd ordered me killed, tried taking Wendy from me. Even knew who she was before I did.
"I'm not sure if you're aware of the gifts some water-folk possess," he said, smoothing the lapels of his jacket.
Like Malorie Gilmore, the weredolphin who put Miko and Trev on their mind walk.
King Damien's eyes found me. "A starfish whispered of the return of a great queen. At first, she spoke in riddles, not making much sense. I was surprised to be approached by a starfish, let alone hear its voice in my head." He chuckled.
Yes. Super hilarious. Now could he please piddle off and darken someone else's beehive?
"Anyway, after some mild confusion, she began to make sense. She told me of you…" He hesitated, a brief look of distaste on his face. "I hate to call you Wendy."
"That's my name," Wendy countered, filling a second chamber with honey.
"Quite. Well, she spoke of your new life as a pet on Earth with a trapped fae. Said you would come home to become yourself again to share your wonderful gift. Immediately, I knew what to do." He paused, staring at me for half a minute.
I stared right back, my hands balled into fists.
His guards flanked him, silent and always watching.
"I witnessed your pleas these past two years, Orion." He finally broke his silence. "Every day my staff showed me footage from the watching orbs at the gates. Just like I watched you here in this forest when I discovered there are orbs in the trees. How convenient."
Judging by him not bringing it up, he'd missed the Dawn stuff go down.
Interesting.
"As I said before, I am ashamed of my actions. But what choice did I have in those days? Open the gates and doom all fae? Or leave you there and pray to the stars for your safety?"
He was so full of crap. He prayed for my safety right up to the point of ordering my execution.
What an assbug.
"And then along came this miracle." He pointed at Wendy collecting more pollen from the flowers. "Isn't this wonderful, Orion? What an incredible sight. A true miracle."
Taking a breath, I finally used my voice. "In what way is the honey a miracle to you?"
He cupped his chin, examining me with a curious gaze. "How informal of you."
I didn't throw in any royal title to correct myself. He didn't deserve it.
Damien stood, clasping his hands together. "I may as well tell you, I suppose. I think you'll like it. But then you must tell me what you mean to do with the honey. Because I fail to see how it can be as important as my plan."
Didn't the starfish spill all about Miko?
King Damien rocked on the heels of his expensive shoes. "I mean to replicate the Faery realm."
His Majesty instantly earned gold in the What In The Name of the Stars Olympics.
"Replicate—"
"Ambitious, I know," he interrupted me. "But with enough of the honey it can be done. It must be done to save this realm. You see, it's only a matter of time until Dawn enters our world. If we replicate Faery, we can evacuate and put enough distance between ourselves and that horror for a brighter future."
Both guards nodded in agreement.
"Now, do you see how imperative it is for me to have this honey?"
Pardon me while I pick my jaw up off the floor.
"You're a fool," Wendy said, flying up to another cell.
Damien narrowed his eyes in her direction. "I am fighting for the future of my kind. Of your home. I would think you would want a front seat in this plan."
Wait. Wait. Wait. There were things to unpack here.
Firstly, was he blissfully unaware that Dawn was already here? Hadn't he seen anything on his flight to this forest?
Secondly, this starfish told him Wendy would come home and wake up. Okay. But not in the correct context, the information he received was seemingly quite vague. I suppose that was enough to go on when you were terrified of what might come next. Especially with a zombie apocalypse on your doorstep.
"There is not enough honey in existence to make that possible," Wendy replied.
The king strode to the water's edge. "Why not?"
"Because there isn't. Even if I could repopulate my colony to its glory days, it's impossible."
King Damien watched the water flow. "Your honey can replicate anything."
"There are conditions, there are limitations. There is always a small difference to the replicated thing."
"I see." He came at me, taking me by surprise and twisted my arms behind my back, holding me with an iron grip.
"What—"
"Do not speak!" he spat into my ear. "I've had enough of your insolence. I did not come this far to be disrespected or told no. This affects all of us. This is for the greater good."
Wendy filled a third chamber, then came to hover before us. "This brings back awful memories. You're all the same with your greed, with your wants, with your self-centered attitudes."
The king tightened his grip, huffing hot air at the back of my head. "Self-centered? For wanting to save my people from an Earthly curse? Please tell me how that makes me?—"
Scurrying came from the tunnel. The guards moved to the entrance, warning the king to stay back.
Damien loosened his grip, but still held my arms, forcing me to turn with him.
"What is this?" he demanded.
Pink smoke curled around the edges of the tunnel in answer.
"Dawn's already here," I said. "It's been here this whole time."
Pink eyes flared in the dark, the guards calling for the intruder to halt.
"What is?—"
The undying fae lunged out of the tunnel, landing flat on her face. One of the guards immediately beheaded her, kicking the head to the side.
It rolled a few feet, coming to stop in a grim replay of me facing a talking head outside.
"Check for more!" the guard on the left boomed, pulling out a crystal shard. He clicked it on, casting a bright beam of white light into the darkness.
No sign of another. Yet.
Those pinks eyes remained vibrant, a black tongue licking black lips.
The king released me, shoving me away from him. "What is this?"
"Behold the rise of a god, silly king. Behold the greatest power. Behold me."
"You're talking to Dawn," I confirmed.
His eyes widened, his guards coming to his side. "Talking to it?"
"Yes."
"This can't be true," he countered breathlessly.
Pink smoke rolled from the base of the head, wisping across the ground. "I have been here all along. Waiting. Growing. A foolish king is blind to me. A foolish king will see my power."
Damien paled, swaying on the spot. One of the guards came over to steady him.
"My people," he rasped. "My people."
Dawn chuckled. "Foolish king helped create me."
Everything stilled for a few slow beats, Dawn's words throwing me off. "What does that mean?"
This couldn't be right…
"Fae blood to contribute to my making. A cure for humans, for fae, for all creatures. The silly king made deals with dirty fae blood. The silly king knew of the failed project, cherry fae. He knew. He knew. He knew."
My pulse pounded in my throat as I faced the king. "You knew?"
"Stay back!" a guard snapped, holding up his sword.
The king needed the other guard's support to stay upright. "I… I…"
Dawn pursed its lips and blew a stream of smoke directly at me. It struck me in the face, sinking into my skin. My blood flared, pumping wildly in my veins, rejecting the pawing of Dawn, the violent attempts to take me into its thrall.
Nausea struck, my guts churning. I bent and retched, vomiting up a globule of black goo.
"Stars…" I breathed, wiping my mouth.
"A test," Dawn said. "Fae blood must be broken. Fae blood must not hinder."
The effects of my blood were still a mystery.
What about the undying fae? Did their unnatural life corrupt it, thereby working differently?
The nausea passed, leaving my mouth dry.
Dawn licked its lips, eyes rolling in its sockets.
"Take me home," the king said. "I cannot stand this."
"Did you seriously miss Dawn while you spied on me?" I asked.
The king's head snapped in my direction. "What did you say?"
I repeated my question, adding, "I can't understand how you can watch everything yet miss the crucial details. Was there a bad signal? A blind spot in the orbs?"
"Don't listen to him, my king," a guard said. "Say the word and I'll cut out his tongue."
Wendy landed on my shoulder. "You will do no such thing."
Damien's face flooded with hate. "I saw all I needed to bring me here. I regret it now. I regret everything."
I couldn't help my response. "Like dooming Faery?"
"Enough!" a guard barked. "You will not speak to His Majesty with such brazen disrespect."
Because he deserved my respect? Sure. Okay. Maybe once upon a time when I breezed through life, ignorant to violence, to real suffering, to the slimy machinations of monarchs and big human corporations making deals in the shadows.
Now my eyes were wide open, my soul stained with darkness.
My people didn't deserve to suffer because of the likes of King Damien. Just as humans didn't deserve to be wiped out by terrible people cranking the winches of power.
"Go on, run!" I yelled. "Hide in your palace. Let the rest of us take care of the mess you made."
The king held up a hand to stop an enraged guard. "Ignore him."
What a disgusting sliver of assbug excrement. "What about the honey?"
His lips curled into a snarl. "Your insect friend has already made it clear she doesn't care for the future of this realm. So why should I?"
"Pathetic," I replied. "What a weak man you are."
"I'm weak? You have no idea how I feel, what I would do for your future."
I swallowed a laugh. "You tried snuffing out my future. Don't even try?—"
"I do what is best for the realm!" he spat. "I sit on the throne because I have been bestowed with the responsibility to protect my people. You are one of those people, Orion, regardless of my order to take your life."
Pitiful. Absolutely pitiful. He sat on the throne because his mother did, and her father before her. Handed power, never voted in, making decisions for the rest of us.
Looking back, the throne should've gone to his twin brother, Prince Dorian. He'd been seen as the weakest brother by their mother, completely unfit for the throne compared to the glorious Damien.
The realm agreed, ignoring Dorian's greater capacity for empathy.
I always admired the king, went to royal parades, celebrated his birthdays—all of those things. Even made the special orange and lemon cake in honor of his tenth year on the throne.
My monarchist leanings were in tatters now. My respect went down the drain, the rosy spectacles losing their lenses.
The king looked up at the honeycomb. He sighed. "I cannot walk away."
He spun, drawing a dagger from within his jacket and flung it at me with a grunt. I attempted a dodge, not moving quickly enough.
The blade buried itself into my stomach.
"Orion!" Wendy cried.
I fell to the ground.