1. Prologue Ascend

CHAPTER 1

Prologue Ascend

OBERON

Royal Fae Court Winter 500AD

This morning I have received word that the other four fae kings have arrived for today's council meeting. The Drow have entirely broken with the beliefs of our race under the leadership of Lolth. They have fled to Illythirr in the Underverse to escape prosecution for their countless crimes. Hundreds have died because of the insurrection that Lolth started, trying to overthrow our once stable government.

The crystalline viewing room is made from varying quartz shades since it harmonizes well with our natural powers. For what I wish to do, I need the other four kings to touch the viewing pool at the same time to harness its full potential. The viewing pool I'm using today is made of pure lapis lazuli, meant to amplify astral travel and clairvoyance. I need to see into the future to ascertain precisely how much trouble the Drow will cause in the future.

Pacing within the viewing chambers, my anxiety has hit an all-time high. My heart hammers within my chest as I wait for the others to join me. First to arrive is King Arathorn Chaephyra of the Woodland Fae. Majestic, as always, he stands tall and proud. His skin a similar hue to the bark of a tree, and his long hair a smokey gray in color. In the tradition of his people, his crown is constructed of dragonroot and bloodstone.

"Blessings and health to you, Arathorn," I say with a flourished bow.

"Blessings and health to you, Oberon. I hope today is productive. The concerns you raised are rather troublesome if they come to fruition," Arathorn states before bowing to me in return. His lithe hands adjust his sand-colored robes before he moves to stand before the leaf carved in the edge of the viewing pool. Slightly I bow my head to him just as the door opens again.

King Arlen Trazana, the most flamboyant of all of us, enters next. He flutters his sliver-blue swallowtail-like wings before folding them behind him. Arlen has short, cropped blue hair, exceptionally on point today; he must have stopped and got a trim on the way here. Bowing deeply, he smiles, looking up at me. "Greetings and health to you and your home, Oberon." His voice hits tones that make mine pale in comparison. If I had to imagine what Gaia's voice sounded like, I would imagine it is similar to his.

Gracefully I return the bow and flourish my hand in the direction of the viewing pool. "Greetings and health to you and yours, Arlen. Please join Arathorn at the pool, if you would be so kind." A soft smile graces my lips as I stand back up again. Before Arlen moves past me, I adjust his flowing, shimmering baby-blue robes so that his folded wings wouldn't get tangled.

"Thank you, brother," Arlen says on his way to his place at the pool. He looks for his wind symbol and traces it with a single finger, smiling all the while. I catch him admiring his own reflection in the waters of the pool, looking over his perfect pale skin and gray, almost silver, eyes.

King Tanyth Parona of the Moon Fae and King Narbeth Quivaris of the Sun Fae arrive simultaneously, still bickering over which clan makes the best weapons. Rolling my eyes, I move forward to garner their attention. Once I possess both kings' attention, I bow deeply and flourish my hand in the direction of the viewing pool. "Greetings and health to you and yours," I say to both kings at the same time, showing no favoritism to either clan.

The stark contrast between the kings is evident in appearance, manners, and tone of voice. Tanyth responds in a soft musical tone. His bright blue eyes are mesmerizing, contrasted with his iridescent silver hair and pale skin. Narbeth, on the other hand, lacks the musical quality to his voice that most Fae possess. His flame-red hair and sunkissed golden-brown skin sing of the days he spends in the bright sunlight. They both respond with the traditional greeting and move to their places on the viewing table.

As the King of the High Fae, it is my place to keep order of all known species within the realms. Unfortunately, with Lolth breaking away from his kin and taking all of the Drow with him, this poses a significant safety issue within the realm. Once everyone is in position, I place my hand upon my mark and the pool's surface begins to ripple.

The initial vision moves to Skaldi Nyx Atriox, otherwise known as the Blood Queen. "Our first creation seems to be doing well, is she not?" Narbeth questions as the pool focuses on her rending the flesh from the Orcs that had invaded the southern part of her territory. The Orcs were released from the Underverse by the Drow; thankfully, Skaldi is strong enough to handle it.

"Yes, she is, but we need to see what the future holds if we don't interfere," I state, and the other kings agree with me. I move the visions forward twelve-hundred years, and Skaldi is in decline. Her Grandson, Nicodeamus Tepish, rises to power next and rules for almost three hundred years before the Drow rise-up. Battle after battle, the species of old are slowly slaughtered to extinction. Next, the Drow begin to march on the Strigoi as well as the human settlements. Each skirmish brings about a higher death toll until the human race has no paranormal defenders left to protect them. In the end, the humans are slaves, and our settlements are burned to ash.

Arlen, the most peaceful of us all, stands there with his hands in fists and his teeth gritted so hard his jaw trembles. "I implore you to allow us to interfere yet again. We must create a defender that no Drow will ever be able to destroy." His gray eyes flash wildly as he looks to each of us, hoping to sway the verdict.

"I second the motion; there are many powerful bloodlines that we can mix. Perhaps create a hybrid similar to our cousins, the Lythari, that helped create the Lycan and Dire Wolf races." Arathorn shrugs his shoulders as he passes a hand over the pool to the point in time where Anca Marelup is forced to take her mates. "What if we send Skaldi's grandson here, and he's a true mate of the last Marelup? We would have to send a special tincture to make sure the hybrid is created and survives gestation." Arathorn stands tall, knowing full well his plan so far is the most solid.

Leaning forward, waving my hand over the pool, the scene rewinds and then proceeds how Arathorn suggested. "Who shall we send with the tincture?" I question, looking directly at Arlen.

He rolls his eyes and huffs. "We can send my niece, Laurel, to deliver the tincture and make sure our plans are carried out to the letter." Arlen bows his head, having offered his niece's services for part of the plan.

"Excellent," is all I say before I wave my hand again, fast-forwarding through time. The Marelup Queen dies in labor, and our creation is born. Waving my hand again, moving time forward, we see our creation as a young child, shifting for the first time after being attacked by a cougar. She decimates her attacker and carries the head home. So far, so good. We leap through time again until she's about a hundred years old. Furrowing my brows, I study the tea the older woman keeps sending her. I rewind time to when the tea is packaged. Blood magic is at work, but to what end? Our creation's beast loves her protector's Bear; they're mates, but something in the tea is blocking the bond. "Should we interfere here and free their bond, so it flourishes?" I question the others.

"No," Tanyth states, then moves time forward and shows the importance of the stalled bond. We watch her battle time and time again, success after success. That is, until the Drow rise again. Hmm… She never took a dragon mate. Sebastian lives even after all of his deception.

"This blasphemy cannot be allowed to happen," Arlen says, then waves his hand over the water moving through time at a breakneck pace. He stops at a particular point and allows a Polar Bear to get involved. The course of history changes dramatically. Our creation takes an Ice Dragon – Gold Dragon hybrid as a mate. They birth twins, which is unheard of for Ice Dragons to do. The female has all the markers of Skaldi, plus the attributes of the Titanium and Silver dragons that had long since been extinct.

"Perfect," I say as I move time forward again, watching the hatchling mature and take her mate. Unexpectantly with the Drow's abduction, she ascends far younger than we had anticipated. The amount of power that child holds is staggering. Simultaneously we release our grips on the table and look at each other in shock. We may have just have figured out how to end the Drow once and for all. I stare down at the blank reflective surface of the pool in awe of what I had just seen. In my gut, I have a feeling this may be me signing my own death warrant. All of this interference isn't natural; then again, neither are the Drow. I can only hope the Goddess keeps me safe over the centuries to come. The other kings bow and leave quickly to carry out their part of this plan. At sunrise tomorrow, I shall set my part in motion. After that, it's all just a matter of time.