Chapter Nine Mabel

I hold on tightly to Brugo's arm as we step aboard the queen's ship. It is not big or grand, merely a way to travel through these strange lands. Fenn is beside me and Zeklan draws up behind us all. One of his tentacles slithers over my shoulders as I settle into the vessel. It is made of wood, old and smooth, rubbed so by countless hands upon it, no doubt. The dark wood feels wet to the touch, but so does everything here. The fog swirls around us, catching on my hair and dripping from my nose.

As soon as we are aboard, the queen nods her head and the boat glides away. One person at the front of the vessel pushes out with a long pole before stepping down to join the rowers in the middle of the boat. The ship is long and curls up at each end. A single mast rises high in the middle, but I can't see a sail.

Arthur has followed the queen to the front of the boat, and they are now huddled together, speaking quietly. I have no idea what to make of it. All I know is that she knows him by another name, and they seem to have known each other for eons.

"That woman is a bitch," I mutter under my breath, and she seems to hear me. Snapping her head in my direction, she glares down her precious nose at me, and I refuse to look away. Then Arthur says something else, and she draws her attention back to him.

Beside me, Brugo chuckles. "Jealous much?" he asks.

I pinch his arm and glower up at him. "He belongs to me, not her."

"He belongs to all of us, actually," Fenn says, sidling closer, his nose close to my shoulder. "You smell of him."

"As if you didn't hear what we did," I utter and the satyr laughs.

A tentacle curls around my neck and draws under my chin, the suction of it making me wet from the mere touch. Looking back at Zeklan, he leans over to kiss my cheek. "He doesn't love her. There's no need to worry, Mabel."

"I know," I say, but it's more to convince myself than anything else.

I continue to stare at Arthur and wonder how I'm supposed to explain to the others how he is tangled up in all this, in all of us. Sure, they know he belongs in our group. But they have no idea just how much he had a hand in everything. Now isn't the time to bring it up though.

Grabbing at my bottom lip, I rub it between thumb and forefinger as I give up on Arthur and the queen and turn my attention to the world around us. I have been to foggy locations before. Dreadmire is a country covered in deep mists nearly as much as Kiros Somu and Murkbrook is another place that is shrouded in so much rain that it also resembles this place. Even Alverline is similar. However, regardless of the familiar fog, this place feels almost alien to me.

There is an unearthly glow that puts me on edge. It is as though every surface–even the ones hidden below the fog–is imbibed with an essence I've never seen. Like the glow of a candle hidden behind a hand, or the reflection of the sun as it sets low over a mountaintop.

Because of this, it presents as an eerie beauty over the landscape. And while the fog coats everything, there are still moments when the real world it hides breaks through. Tall trees dripping with long wisps of thin branches and leaves hang down into the water below. A rocky outcrop that shimmers with the strange light even though it is dark stone. The roof of a house, low and flat and with a door that opens straight out into the water.

And yet, there are parts of it that are the same–no matter where you go in the world.

People adorn this world just as they do everywhere. And while they all have the strange white-blue sheen as the queen and the rowers onboard the boat, they all look human–except for their fearsome teeth and pointy ears. Looking at the queen, I notice the same feature hiding behind her raven hair.

But it is their humanity that really strikes home. For all that us outsiders are fearful of this place, the people here don't seem to be particularly scary–the queen excluded. I watch as a child waves from the open window of a house as we pass by. Brugo waves back and the little girl gasps in shock before smiling and waving with more furious abandonment, putting her pointy teeth on display.

A man tends to a field, although I have no idea what would grow in such an environment. Looking skyward, I can see no sun filtering through. Although, the light is everywhere, so maybe plants do grow here. Beside him is a beast similar to a karvel, but without its back lump. It draws long leather straps that are attached to some sort of plowing implement.

While human-like, all of them are hazy around the edges as they drift between their physical form and the murk that surrounds them, reminding me of the lift of fog from the ground when the sun hits first thing in the morning.

Yet, all of it is so familiar that I wonder just why exactly we have been so scared of this place. Is it merely because no one has been here?

"Possibly," Arthur says, suddenly appearing beside me. I startle with his words but then settle back into my stance as his arm settles softly around my shoulders. His arm is smoke-like again, as though he can't help but become at one with this landscape. They are all the same. Except the queen. While wisps of smoke still hang around her shoulders, she seems to be the most real thing here–excluding myself and my monsters.

"It's all so surreal. And… beautiful. Somehow, I wasn't expecting that," I return. And it's true. While the fog should be depressing, much like the constant rain in Alverline was, there is an ethereal vibe going on that is magical rather than a drag to the senses.

"It certainly has its appeal, even for those who don't belong here. Wait until you see the castle."

I'm intrigued but don't ask anything further as I will wait for the surprise of it. Because I have no doubt it will be spectacular.

"What's the story with you and the queen?" I ask instead.

"I wondered when I'd get the interrogation." He gives a small chuckle when I glare at him. "Don't worry, I deserve it. I have lived a whole life here without you. I would be mad too."

"Why did you wind up here?"

"I don't know," he replies.

His weight settles heavier on my shoulder, and it feels more like he is human again, so I close my eyes and pretend that he is, that we are simply traveling along a river in Enzoria, close to home. But then memories of my family well up–my mother, my siblings–and I suddenly want to be anywhere but trapped in the memories of time that has long passed us by. Thankfully, Arthur continues to speak, and I can concentrate on that instead.

"Reeve cast his magic over me," he says. "Then I remember nothing until I woke up here. A hunter found me and dragged me before the queen. She immediately took ownership of me, and I had no say in what happened after that. No matter how much I begged her to let me go so I could find you again. Her majesty has complete control over the people here. You leave only because she gives her permission for you to do so. It's how she keeps us all safe." He pauses a moment, his thoughts drifting slightly before he speaks again. "Tell me, how did the others start their existence as monsters? Did they all appear just like me?"

"No, Brugo and Fenn were born into families. Zeklan was a baby when he first remembered his existence, but he had no family. The merpeople raised him."

I shudder as I think about that. Poor Zeklan, not only has he gone through torture of late, but he has been rejected by his family, by all of his people, in fact. I haven't had a chance to really speak to him about it. Glancing across, I see Zeklan watching us, and I give a small smile, reaching out as I do and beckoning him forward. He comes my way immediately, his tentacles reaching me first before his hand settles in mine.

"How are you?" I ask. "Everything has happened so quickly that I haven't been able to check in with you properly yet."

He nods his head. "I am better now I am back with you all. I will be fine in the long run, no doubt."

I can see the pain there, though. He is hurting something fierce to have lost all that he did. Reaching up, I cup his chin, gazing into his eyes as I let mine and his souls mingle. Something passes between us, something raw and unnatural that binds us even though there is nothing physical to prove it. That light that is everywhere settles between us, joining us, smothering us, and… repairing us.

I want to curl up with him, to let our bodies settle and become one. In fact, I want it for all of us and I feel the approach of the others before they are actually in my line of sight. We all crave it, the closeness that only sex can bring. We need to connect. All of us, Arthur included, for the final piece of our puzzle to slip into place.

"There will be time later tonight," Arthur whispers in my ear, low and fierce, sending a shiver down my spine even as the air between the five of us crackles with the heat of our need.

"Good," Zeklan says, his gaze still wholly connected to mine.

I shiver in response and a tentacle curls around my stomach, a rough orc hand twinning in my hair, and the nudge of Fenn's hot cock touches my thigh. All of them letting me know they feel it, that they need it just as much as I need them.

"So, the queen took you on once you appeared here," I say, breaking the moment. No one moves back, my monsters crowd me, and it is the only place I ever want to be, circled by the men who are all somehow intertwined because of Arthur's overwhelming need to be with me–even after I was changed.

And I feel bad about that. All these years I thought he left me because I was hideous. A monster hunter that wasn't human anymore. Yet, all this time, he was here, desperate to get back to me. That is a mountain of regret right there.

"It doesn't matter," Arthur croons. "It all worked out in the end. Plus, you're here now and we just might be able to finally fix this mess."

I shudder at the thought. Gods, the years I've wasted wishing this curse could be lifted. And now, here we are, ready to move into action. Ready to finish this once and for all.

"What will happen if we kill Reeve?" I ask, not so sure all of a sudden that I want an answer. Looking around at my monsters I can't imagine a life without them. And, sure, they are all parts of Arthur but, honestly, this is better. This feels like what it was supposed to be all along. I don't want that to change one little bit.

"I don't know," Arthur answers honestly and a part of my heart breaks clean away. I gasp with the shock of the pain, leaning forward slightly. My monsters crowd in closer. Arthur understands why I have reacted like this, for he can read my mind, but the others are worried about me.

"I don't want this to change," I whisper, blinking hard against the tears. "Please promise me that all this won't go away."

"I can't do that," he returns, his breath hot against my skin, carried softly across the space like he is the very wind, and they disappear as quickly as they come. Which is good because my heart can't take any more of them.

"What do you mean?" Brugo asks.

Thankfully, Arthur answers for me because I have nothing left to give, only tears to shed if I were to open my mouth at the moment.

"This is a strange curse that Reeve put on us all and not one that anyone I have ever spoken to has heard of. Because of that, we don't know what will happen when we kill him. Sure, the curse will dissipate because he is dead. However, whether or not we continue to exist as we are, remains to be seen."

Arthur lets the words sink in and I lift my head to watch as the message is received loud and clear.

There's nothing to say. Everything around us, the words floating in the air are too big for conversation. I don't want my men to go. And now I have to decide if we kill Reeve or not. Because, honestly, I am considering just living out my life as far away from the clutches of the man in order to stay exactly the way we are.

I bite down on my lip to stop it from trembling but there's nothing I can do about the water shimmering in my eyes. If I blink, the tears will shed and if I wipe at my face, the others will know. So, instead, I watch the mist as it parts for the boat and concentrate on that rather than looking at my monsters.

"We're nearly there," a voice says behind me, and I have no choice but to turn and face the queen. When she approaches, we are eye to eye, both of us so short compared to those around us. Fenn being the only one in comparison to our height. But it doesn't mean we are equal. I can see it in every part of her body. The way she holds her head high, the stance of her shoulders that show she has never doubted herself for a single moment. The stare that never waivers.

"Thank you," I finally say, although, for what, I have no idea. The fact she allowed us to enter her lands? The trip to her castle? Her allowing us to live? Maybe it's all those things. Maybe it's none.

"Think nothing of it," she returns. "An enemy of King Gilberd is always a friend of mine. Besides, I have something I would like you to see."

I cock my head at the woman, truly taking a proper look at her for the first time. Her gaze is alive, so bold and mesmerizing that I can't look away, even if I wanted to. But there is something hiding there too.

She is surprised by me.

And that is something I can't quite come to terms with. Added to the mix is some other emotion, one I can't quite place. Her gaze looks through me, almost like she is remembering something–or someone–else.

Then, behind all that, is the wild glaze of a woman who is about to cry.

It is a feeling I felt all too well just a short moment ago and it is the reason why I finally break contact with her. I bob my head, looking down and away before stepping back and turning once again to look out over the foggy water.

And that's when I lay eyes on the palace for the very first time.