Chapter 65

Chapter 65

T hey didn't wear their uniforms when they came to the palace to stand before the council. There were no more Queen's Blades. And now that there would be no more Queens, there never would be another group of Queen's Blades again.

Instead, the three of them had dressed like civilians. Fey supposed that's what they were, now.

The council had set up in the palace throne room, though they had made some changes. The blood and bodies had been removed, and the walls were so clean you might be tempted to believe all the violence and bloodshed had been nothing but a bad dream.

The dais and the thrones that sat atop it at the far wall of the room had all been removed. In their place, a large wooden table had been added, and though the chairs that lined one side of the table were ornate and well-made, no one would be tempted to call them thrones.

They arrived at the palace early—Alice leading them, Joy and Fey at her back. Early enough that the council itself hadn't yet convened.

Sana rushed forward to greet them when they entered the throne room. Only she and the other three High Priestesses of the remaining covens were present. They stood on the other side of that wide wooden table, and Fey couldn't help but meet their eyes one by one. Leandra, embracing her new powers, had added a stripe of blue representing the Water Coven and a stripe of yellow for the Air Coven to her red Fire shawl. She gave Fey a small nod when their eyes met.

Claudia, High Priestess of the Earth coven, looked as though she'd aged thirty years since the last time Fey had seen her. The tragedy of the Queen's betrayal had taken years off her life, and when she met Fey's eyes she looked as though she may cry.

It was Linh, High Priestess of the Air Coven, who gave Fey pause. Ancient and wrinkled, she looked no different than before. But the sneering smile she gave Fey was all venom.

One Priestess, at least, had no interest in making this a pleasant experience for them.

"Thank you for coming," Sana said as she approached, taking Alice's hands in her own and smiling at the three of them.

Fey had argued against their coming, even after they'd agreed to it. There was nothing they could tell the council that they didn't already know. And this—all of this—felt far too much like a trial for her liking.

But Alice had insisted, and Joy had readily agreed with her. A new government had risen, she said. And if they wanted the citizens of the city to respect this new council, respect the laws that they would enforce, they had to show that same respect and deference themselves. They had to set an example for the realm. Especially now that the realm knew who they were.

At least they had one trick up their sleeves, if necessary. Fey hoped it wouldn't come to that, but something in Linh's face made her reconsider.

"Of course," Alice said to Sana, mirroring her smile in answer.

"The others will be convening in just a moment," Sana explained. "And each council member will be allowed to ask whatever questions they believe relevant. Just tell the truth, as it happened, and everything will be fine."

Fey did not find her nervousness terribly reassuring, but before she could argue, before she could raise the idea of leaving with Alice again, the herald spoke.

"Introducing the representative of the Shifter Faction, Kellos, of the Lion Order," she said, her voice crisp and carried by Air to fill the entire room. Fey recognized her as the same herald that Queen Edelin had used and was pleased to see she hadn't suddenly found herself unemployed in the new regime.

Or killed, during the violence of the Blood Moon.

Behind the wooden table, where the thrones had once stood, a door opened and Kellos entered.

Fey had expected that the Shifters would elect a representative from amongst their strongest, their most powerful, and found herself a little surprised at the male they'd chosen instead.

Kellos was older than she expected, well into his sixties, and well past his prime fighting age. He wore his hair long, and it grew in heavy, golden white curls, around his face, like a mane. His face was heavy with lines, but above his thick beard his eyes were sharp. When he looked at the three of them, meeting their gaze one by one, Fey saw a deep wisdom in those eyes. A calm, intelligent leader.

So, the Shifters had gone for wisdom and experience over strength. Something about the choice gave her a small semblance of comfort. It was a smart choice. Maybe she'd underestimated them.

Salvatore deSanguine was announced next.

Now that she knew their relationship, the resemblance between him and his son was unmistakable. It was a wonder Fey had never seen it before. The same strong face, the same angry eyes, the same almost painful masculine beauty.

Like Kellos, deSanguine met each of their eyes in turn. Not in anger, or in challenge, Fey was surprised to find, but in respect. When he met her gaze, he inclined his head ever so slightly to Fey.

"Introducing the representative of the Witch Faction, the former Princess and heir to the Crown, Amalia Goddess Blessed."

Fey swallowed hard when Amalia entered, her head bowed low. She had been hidden by her handmaids that night when the fighting started, kept safe and far from harm, and Fey had been glad of it. Had she been in this room, with her mother and father that night, Fey wasn't sure she would have left that room alive.

But she had been kept safe. Safe, but not wholly protected from it all, Fey knew. Afterall, they couldn't protect her from the fallout of that night. No. Her parents, her title, her very identity, were ripped away from her on the Blood Moon.

Ripped away by the very Witches who stood before her today.

Amalia did not look at any of them as she entered. Still dressed in the same frilly dresses her mother had always styled her in, Amalia looked down at the ground the entire walk to her chair and took her seat without raising her eyes to anyone.

Linh put a comforting hand on hers when she sat.

Several minutes passed as the council awaited their final member. Enough time for an oppressive awkwardness to settle over the room. Fey shifted from foot to foot, and even Alice began to fidget. The High Priestesses glanced at one another uncertainly.

"Oh, for God's sake," deSanguine snapped, finally. "If the Demons still haven't deigned to elect a leader, then I see no reason why we should be forced to wait. Perhaps we should just get started?—"

A shadow fell across the room.

No , Fey thought, glancing around. Not a shadow. It was as if the very light itself was being pulled away, being smothered by something else. Something more powerful.

Run .

The command came from her. Some ancient instinct, something deep and primal inside her.

Run .

Fey looked around at the others, trying to see if they felt it as well. Kellos was only looking around in confusion, taking in the change in the lighting around them with slow, deliberate blinks. A predator unused to threats. The High Priestesses seemed unfazed, and had begun to chatter amongst themselves, whispering about what to do in the event a council member did not show. Arguing about who had sent assurances that the Demons had chosen a representative.

But at Fey's side, Joy shivered.

"There's something here," she whispered. "Something strong."

"Karla told me there were Demons in the eighth octant who were like nothing we'd ever seen before," Alice said in a low voice. "Things more powerful than we could ever dream of…"

Amalia's eyes rose from the table before her, and she glanced quickly at Fey. She could feel it too, Fey realized. Amalia's eyes were wide. Scared.

RUN . That instinct screamed.

"Introducing the representative of the Demon Faction, from the eighth octant, Kallista of the Undying."

The woman who entered was the most beautiful creature Fey had ever seen. Her thin stiletto heels clicked rhythmically as she walked to her seat, and the black tailored dress she wore clung to every curve of her body when she moved. She wore her straight, white-blonde hair down, where it cascaded over her shoulders. She wore no crown, but she held herself with the regal air of a Queen.

Her chair moved on its own, without a single identifiable flick of power from her, and Kallista sat, her ice blue eyes traveling over each of them in turn.

RUN , that voice inside Fey's head screamed, as the Demon turned that cold stare on her and held her gaze. Held her gaze and smiled, revealing a row of perfect, white teeth.

In the Eternal City, Demons are as common as cockroaches and just as powerless. They are a nuisance, if anything. Fey had fought more Demons than she could count. But this? This creature in front of her now was nothing like anything she'd ever encountered before. If this was the sort of Demon who occupied the eighth octant, if the horror stories about creatures out there who were stronger than Witches in every way possible, were actually true?

Then they were all completely fucked.

"I apologize for my lateness," Kallista said, and even her voice sent shivers down Fey's spine. "It is difficult for me to travel in the way I am accustomed at this time of day."

Shadows appeared and danced over her fingers, spinning around her long black matte nails, and coalescing to form a pen. Completely solid. She held it delicately in her fingers, as though prepared to take notes.

"Shall we begin?" she asked.

At her side, deSanguine chuckled. "Kallista, my dear," he said, looking her up and down. "What a pleasant surprise to see you here." He smiled, showing sharp fangs. "I had heard you were dead."

She turned those cold eyes on him and smiled back. "Hello, Cassiel," she said. "I do hate to disappoint. But I'm certainly not surprised to see you here, begging at the Witch's table for scraps, as always. Some things never change, do they?"

The Vampire king bared his fangs at her and snarled. Behind him, Kellos hissed, lips curled back to reveal his own sharp teeth, unnerved by the anger in the room.

"That's enough," Sana snapped. She stood at Amalia's side, straight backed and proud, and only the slight shake in her hands as she clasped them before her gave away the nervousness she was feeling. "If we are going to be working together then we gain nothing by treating one another with disrespect. I ask that the members of this council present themselves with the decorum these positions require."

Kallista considered her carefully.

"Tell me, Priestess," she said. "Why does this council have five representatives for the Witch Faction, when the rest of us have only one? I was led to believe this was a council of equals, and this," she gestured toward the four High Priestesses. "This feels less than equal to me."

Sana's face reddened. "We are not representatives," she explained. "The other High Priestesses and I are here to advise our representative, Princess Amalia, and nothing more. We are here to offer her advice until she comes of age. The Witch Faction can cast a single vote, the same as all other Factions."

"Princess Amalia," the Demon said, rolling the title in her mouth as though tasting it. Her eyes moved to regard the Princess. "But, not a Princess, is she? Not anymore."

Amalia glanced up at her.

"Do you wish to be called by this title?" Kallista asked. Her voice was not mocking, nor cruel. Curious. "Do you wish to still be called Princess?"

Amalia swallowed, hard. Then looked away.

"Yes," she said in a voice with more steel in it than Fey expected. "Yes, I do."

Kallista only nodded. "And you wish to keep these advisors?" she asked. Shadows seemed to circle the Priestess as she spoke, like snakes.

"Yes."

"Then they can stay," Kallista conceded with a smile, and those circling shadows vanished. "Until you decide you no longer wish to keep them."

There was a threat to those words, Fey noticed. She wondered, absently, what would happen to those four Witches if Amalia told Kallista she no longer wished for their service.

"Good," said Sana, her hands obviously shaking now. "Good. Then let us get started.

"The council welcomes Alice, Fey, and Joy, of the Eternal City," Sana said. "I hope that we will not take up much of your time, but we have brought you here to clear up any questions the council may have about your… involvement in the Queen's death. I will open the floor to questions."

Kellos spoke immediately.

"The Shifter Faction has no questions for the Witches before the council," he said in a deep voice, and Fey glanced at him in surprise. At her side, Alice just smiled. She, at least, was not shocked by the support.

"I have spoken with the Lionesses who were present that night," Kellos continued. "As well as several respected members of our Faction. And I am satisfied with the justice that was delivered. The Shifters offer their thanks to these Witches for their protection of the realm."

He inclined his head to them, blinking his wise eyes at them in a way that was unmistakably feline.

"The Vampire Faction has no questions for the Witches before the council," deSanguine said, waving his fingers at them with a smirk. Linh and Leandra were speaking together in low, urgent voices. "We, also, offer our thanks to the three Witches," he continued, and looking right at Fey, he smiled.

"On a personal note," he said, sitting up straighter in his chair. "It seems one Witch in particular deserves special recognition." His smile spread, and while it wasn't cruel, Fey couldn't bring herself to entirely believe it was kind. "It takes a very special creature to capture one of my son's hearts," he said, softly. "I hope you are worthy of it."

Joy coughed, loudly, to cover her laugh, and Fey shot her a scowl.

Kallista said nothing, though she watched the proceedings with obvious, growing amusement .

This was, clearly, not the reaction that some of the High Priestesses had expected. Certainly, not the reaction that Linh had hoped for.

Sana, Fey was pleased to see, had relaxed considerably. She gave Fey a comforting smile, her eyes warm and friendly.

But when Leandra spoke, her voice was anything but.

"Regardless of the feelings of the Vampires and Shifters," she said, shooting deSanguine and Kellos a dismissive glance. " We do have questions."

"Then, by all means," Kallista said, turning in her chair to watch her. "Let your representative ask them."

Leandra opened her mouth, then shut it. She glanced down at Amalia, who still stared at the table before her, as though in a trance.

"Amalia, dear," Linh prompted.

Princess Amalia looked up.

"Don't you have questions for these Witches?" Linh asked, pointedly.

"I do have a question," she said, so softly her voice was barely audible.

When she looked at them all, Fey recognized the emotion in her eyes.

Hatred.

"Which of you did it?" Amalia asked, softly. "Which one of you killed my mother? Which of you dishonored your vows and killed the Queen you were sworn to protect?"

"I did," said Joy in a pain-laced voice at the same time Fey stepped forward and said, loudly, "That was me."

Amalia blinked, looking between the two of them and frowning.

Leaning on her hand, elbow propped on the table, Kallista's smile widened. "Interesting," she cooed softly. Shadows danced in her eyes as she looked at Fey.

"I killed the Queen," Fey insisted.

"Fey, don't," Joy hissed, but Fey ignored her.

The council brought them here for this, no matter what Sana had assured them. They didn't want to know what happened. They didn't need any questions answered. Someone had committed the ultimate treason and murdered their Faction's ruler. Someone needed to pay for it.

And so long as she was standing, Fey wasn't going to let it be Joy

"I killed her," Fey insisted. "Don't listen to my sister. She's only trying to protect me."

Joy opened her mouth to argue, but Alice reached out and placed a hand on her arm, shaking her head. She knew what Fey was doing. And if the choice was losing Fey or losing Joy, she would choose to save Joy. Fey couldn't blame her. They deserved their happiness.

Even if they would get it over her dead body.

Linh was shaking her head. "There were witnesses, you forget. Servants, and guards, and friends of the Crown, all of whom have testified to us that they saw that Witch"—she pointed at Joy, and Fey bristled at the thought that she might not even know her name—"behead our Queen."

"No," Fey argued. "What they saw was a blade of Air behead the Queen."

"Yes," Linh insisted. "And before us stands a Wind Witch who?—"

Wind whipped through the room, cutting her off.

Fey let it dance around them all, let it touch each and every council member, let it hit against Linh, jostling her, before calling it back to herself, where it swirled around her.

"No one present that night could tell you who killed the Queen," Fey insisted, letting them see the air around her dance and spin, catching dust motes in its wake. "Only that someone used Air to do it. Joy and I were the only Air Witches there that night, but the blade came from me. I am responsible for the Queen's death."

"Then the Witch Faction asks the council to sentence this Witch for her crimes," Linh said with a snarl. "The Witch Faction calls for her death."

Sana spun around, " What? " she gasped. Leandra paled, putting a hand on Linh's shoulder, and hissing in a low whisper, "Sister, this is not what we discussed…".

"You heard it from her own mouth," Linh snapped. She straightened her back to stand as tall as she could, though age had taken much of the height from her. "She murdered our Queen. That is treason. And treason is punishable by death."

"It was punishable by death," Kellos said in a soft, amused voice. "When there was a Queen. But if there is no Queen, how can there be a rule against killing one?"

Linh and the other High Priestesses were arguing, ignoring him entirely.

"How can you do this?" Sana hissed. "You promised me they would be safe here, they saved us , Linh!"

"They have doomed us," Linh hissed back.

Amidst their arguing, Amalia stood.

"I am the representative of the Witches," she said, enough of her mother's strength in her voice that Sana and Linh stopped to listen. "And the vote is mine, and mine alone to cast."

She looked across the room at Fey.

"My mother was not a kind woman," she said. "She was not a loving woman. And she made choices that she thought were right, even if they weren't. Choices she thought were for the good of the realm. I believe she made those choices thinking they were for the greater good.

"You also made choices you thought were right. You chose to kill my mother, your Queen, the woman you swore your life to protect. You chose to kill her, rather than arrest her, rather than try to bring her to justice through nonviolent means," Amalia's voice broke, but no tears fell from her eyes.

She's stronger than any of us gave her credit for , Fey thought. It'll be a shame if she makes me kill her.

"And so, I must make my choice," Amalia continued. "I must choose what I think is right. And I cast my vote for death. And I beg the other Factions present to do the same, for the good of the realm."

She sat down then, not glancing at the High Priestesses, stunned and silent at her shoulders. Not glancing at the other representatives. Just staring at Fey, her eyes full of anger.

Fey nodded at her. It was what she'd expected, after all.

"How?" Fey asked Amalia. And when she didn't answer, Fey continued, looking instead at Linh. "How do you plan to kill me? "

"We can discuss details of execution after the vote," Linh said with a sneer.

Fey shook her head. "No, you misunderstand me," she said. And she smiled at them all, then, letting them see the danger in it. Letting them see the monster she'd kept behind the mask. They had wanted the Queen's Broken Blade brought before them. And she would give it to them. "I don't mean ‘by what method' you plan to kill me. I ask the council how you plan to take me down. I want to know which of you thinks you are strong enough to risk your own lives to try and take me into custody."

She let the threat hang in the air for a moment, let the blood drain from Linh's face, before continuing. "I am a Queen's Blade. I am a murderer. I was built to kill, built to be the most dangerous Witch in the realm. Were you?" Linh looked away, and Fey turned her eyes instead to Amalia. "Were you?" she asked in a whisper.

The Princess only stared at her. She had but a shadow of her mother's powers, and she knew it.

"Do any of you believe there is anyone in our city strong enough to take me down?" Fey asked. "Because, if not, you will want to think very seriously about how you want to cast your vote. I make a dangerous enemy."

This was their secret weapon. If the council voted to send her to death, Fey was ready. Ready to face anyone they sent to kill her.

Ready to fight.

While the High Priestesses paled, while they considered the implications of what Fey was saying, considered the very real possibility that Fey would kill them all if they sent anyone after her, deSanguine spoke up.

"I think it goes without saying that the Vampire Faction votes against death," deSanguine said, with an irritated sigh. "This Witch did you all a favor, whether you're too blind to see it or not. She saved this city. And it's not only insulting to request she be punished for it, but clearly suicidal. We vote no."

"The Shifter Faction votes against death," said Kellos in a low growl. "And it is… distasteful that it be suggested in this forum."

Only one vote remained. Fey had no idea what would happen in the event of a tie between all four Factions, but she feared they were about to find out.

The Vampire king and the Shifters had their reasons for backing Fey, for owing her thanks. But the Demons?

Fey had no idea what to expect from them.

Kallista regarded her curiously. The pen in her hand dissolved back into shadows and disappeared.

"Explain something to me," she said, her voice soft but dark with power. "I am na?ve to the laws of your Faction. But didn't the royal line follow power? Wasn't the sole reason Edelin was Queen because she was the only Witch in the realm, with the exception of her daughter here of course, who could wield all four elements?"

She addressed the question to Fey, but Sana was the one who answered.

"You are right," she said. "The First Queen was the first Witch to be blessed with all four powers, equally, and since then only her daughters that were similarly blessed were judged worthy enough to inherit the throne."

"Then, as the representative of the Demon Faction, I do have a question for the Witch before I vote." The room dimmed slightly as Kallista spoke, shadows licking up the walls. "Why, after you killed Queen Edelin, did you not crown yourself Queen?"

A shocked silence followed the words, and Sana paled. The other Priestesses, however, looked bemused.

Sana never told them, Fey realized. She never told the other high Priestesses what she was, that she and she alone held the power over all four elements. It showed a loyalty from her that Fey hadn't expected.

"Ah, I see your confusion," Leandra said, in a condescending tone. "Only Witches with all four powers may ascend the throne, and Fey here?—"

"Oh, I don't think I am the one who is confused," Kallista said, never taking her eyes from Fey. "The Witch you've brought before us, the Witch who claims to have killed your Queen, she holds power over all four elements in her veins. Don't you?"

The council had gone very still. Linh paled at Amalia's side, suddenly realizing the power of the Witch she had just threatened. A sound not unlike purring arose from Kellos, and at his side, deSanguine leaned forward in his chair, his movements so quick it was as though he'd jumped. His eyes sparkled.

All eyes on her, Fey slowly nodded.

"So, I ask again," Kallista continued. "Why did you not crown yourself Queen? Do you not have that right?"

"I don't want it," Fey said simply. It wasn't the truth, but it was close enough. The truth was it hadn't occurred to her at the time. Even if it had, though—her answer would have been the same.

"You don't wish to be Queen?" Kallista pressed.

"No," Fey insisted. It took all her strength, but she held the Demon's stare as she said it. "I have no desire to rule. I don't want to be Queen. I don't want power. I just want to be left alone."

Kallista smiled, and it was both a beautiful and terrifying thing to witness.

"In that case," she said. "The Demon Faction votes no to death. And we would also like to thank these upstanding Witches for their time, and for their role in bringing the Queen's crimes to our attention. We hope this council will have no further reason to bother them in the future."

Amalia left the moment Kallista had voted no, not acknowledging Linh or any of the High Priestesses. She had simply stood, turned her back on them, and left the council room without another word.

"You should go," Kallista advised Fey, with a smirk, nodding toward the door. Leandra and Sana were arguing, close to shouting, and Kellos looked wildly uncomfortable with their public display. DeSanguine was laughing, more to himself than anyone in particular.

They didn't need to be told twice.

"Come on," Alice hissed, pulling them out the door.

Someone had removed much of the art and crimson curtains that Fey associated with the palace interior, she noticed as they snaked through the hallway and toward the open doors leading out of the palace .

"You go ahead," Fey told them when they reached the palace entrance. "I'll meet you back at the apartment later tonight, okay?"

"Are you sure, Fey?" Alice asked, a hint of concern in her voice.

"Yeah. I have a few things I need to do." Fey insisted.

Joy pulled her into a tight hug.

"I should kill you for what you did back there," she whispered, and Fey chuckled when she instead squeezed her tighter. "But I know you did it out of love."

"I did," Fey admitted.

Joy gave her a wide grin, and then, clasping Alice's hand, they descended the palace steps together. Fey watched them go, smiling after them, knowing that whatever happened next at least they had this—this love, between Alice and Joy. If nothing else good came from the Queen's death, this was enough.

Fey watched them until they faded from her sight, and then she settled in to wait.