4. Eldrin

Chapter four

Eldrin

W ell, this wasn’t what I had planned.

I hadn’t meant to follow her. I wasn’t going to ask her to come back to the Darkening Woods with me. She didn’t seem the sort to blindly follow me. That sort were easy to notice since those humans tried to dress like us, in some respects. I had been to the human city before. The first time I was accosted by women wearing long dresses, with pendants dangling over their foreheads. They pointed at my ears, giggling excitedly. That was the last time I left my ears uncovered when leaving the Woods.

The time after that I was followed by a man with his hair tied up, who wore an uncomfortably short tunic over tight leggings. He also smelled like a skunk. For a few minutes he followed me, calling for a “nature child,” until I lost him by taking a corner and then hiding in a tree. After that I learned to cover my hair.

But this woman, I had the feeling that she wouldn’t have cared about my nature, even if she knew what I was. It did not escape my attention that she ignored every single non-human creature in that establishment. That was a problem. I needed someone who did things like fawn over the singer, maybe at least wear some jewels in their hair. In short, I needed someone who looked like they’d be willing to do anything to see more of the other beings speckled in the crowd. And this one did none of those things.

But I couldn’t look away from her, even as I had to move around the bar, distractedly searching for someone else to bring to the Darkening Woods. No matter how much a part of me wished that she showed those like me the slightest attention, gave me some excuse to talk to her. Anything.

As she sat at that table in the bar, her gaze was sharp, intent, her lips curved in a daring smile while she joked with her friends. She was surrounded by curious creatures, denizens both mortal and other, and yet her only concern was for her companions in front of her. Best of all, she made them laugh , a true laughter that made one of the friends cough out her drink and the other knock over a purse that I hoped wasn’t made of a real feline. It was as if she were a light and everyone else merely insects, pulled to her brilliance.

I wasn’t the only one who thought like this—three different men approached and seemed to have left her table disappointed. I couldn’t be sure what she told the men, but whatever it was, it made her friends shake their heads afterward.

It should go without saying—it didn’t pass my attention that she was beautiful, with hair the color of russet autumn leaves, framing a face as carved and delicate as winter’s ice. She wasn’t elven. She didn’t have our innate grace, or our features designed to complement the splendor of the Darkening Woods. But that was a good thing. Her features made her her .

I was only going to follow her to her vehicle, truly. Just to make sure that she could make it home safe. Her steps were steady and her head seemed clear, so once she was inside that vehicle I wouldn’t need to fear for her. Then I could commence my hunt in earnest and not think about her again. There were two women who wore tight corsets with braided hair and face paint who kept staring at me at the bar—those two were promising. I still had time to do the task Vanir set for me.

However, the veinwart had other plans.

The name “veinwart” likely sounded better in our original tongue, but humans would probably just refer to the creature as a “giant spider.” They were similar to their arachnid cousins, as best as I could tell, except veinwart like to hunt larger, warm-blooded prey.

It wasn’t hard for me to get rid of the creature—just two carefully placed stabs with my dagger and it scurried off into the dark, dripping black ichor as it ran. I fatally wounded it, so other humans wouldn’t be harmed by it. Those things were a pest in the Darkening Woods and other areas of the old world, though how it got here of all places was a puzzle. Our barrier was weak, but not that weak—I doubted it came from the Woods. It wouldn’t surprise me if some human bought one as a pet from one of the fae and it escaped. Humans had a lot of good qualities—the cuisine, for one—but respect for the dangers of nature didn’t seem to be one of them. Not surprising, as they molded their world into such a shape that it was easy to forget that nature existed. The assault on my nose every time a vehicle passed me by reminded me of that.

With the creature gone, I bent over the woman and cursed when I saw the tell-tale dark blue marks on her skin. Gently, I moved back the knit fabric of her dress, showing more of her shoulder. And cursed louder.

She had been bitten, and the creature’s fangs had delved far under her skin. It was a bite that had already colored her skin and was spreading by the moment, working its way through her veins.

If I left her here, she would be dead by morning. Humans had their physicians, but it was unlikely they would figure out how to treat this in time, if they could at all. Even in our old world, treating these bites was a skill managed only by a few .

My people had the medicine to counteract the venom, but if I returned to the forest and then brought it back here…it would take too long, not to mention that the barrier would probably snap in the process, its magic gone forever. King Vanir’s prime advisor/lackey, a smug man named Ivas, emphasized that this was the last journey the veil could handle. I had to bring back a human—the safety of our people depended on it. Were the two of them overreacting so that I took things seriously? Possibly, though it wasn’t necessary, since I was not one to endanger our people. Was he hoping I would fail? Knowing Ivas, most definitely. But I could not take the chance that my retrieving the cure would break the barrier. Not for a human.

Not when we needed one.

For a moment I stared at her as I held her in my arms, her unconscious weight heavy in my grip. Her brilliant red hair fell in waves over her shoulders, cascading towards the ground. Her creamy skin was even and unblemished, her features refined. She was so vibrant, even like this. Much like the warmth from her skin, something about her—something primal—stirred me. Like stepping from the shadows and into the light. Her chest rose and fell, and I could feel every beat of her heart. A beat that would end too soon if I did not act.

That settled it. I was bringing her with me to the Darkening Woods .

And I prayed upon the never-ending Woods that she would forgive me when she realized what I had done.