From the Heart of a Fae

Everyone was quiet when they met for breakfast. They were all waiting to see what Malik would say. He sighed and rubbed his face. Tossing some stacks of parchment down into the middle of the table, he rose.

“We knew that the enemy would not take 2 personal hits and not retaliate. Ian’s informants have confirmed that he is on the move, but no spy has been able to penetrate their forces. Where they are going, we do not know. But we have a bigger problem. They are targeting villages along the way. He is intentionally leaving us a trail to follow, and its one we cannot ignore.” Ben picked up the parchment and began reading, his voice angry.

“He is poisoning them? How?” Kora looked over his shoulder and Ludis snatched some more of the report off the table. Ian remained stoic, as did Ikalla, waiting for Kora or Ben to say something. Stella looked at Royce, and she could see the anger burning in his eyes. This man did not care who he killed.

“Three villages, who knows how many more before he reaches his destination? Are there any survivors?” Stella asked, and Kora turned to look at her, the parchment dropping from her hand.

“None. women, children … all dead. They … just died.” She turned to Ian.

“Do we have any details about the victims?” Ian shook his head and pulled the parchment stack left over to himself leafing through the pages.

“They turned purple, like they were suffocating. No one knows what happened.” Ludis grabbed a map from the drawer of Maliks desk, and tacking it to the wall, began to mark Sinclair Fief, and the three villages. Kora walked over to it and Ikalla followed.

“When did these happen?” Royce was looking over Kora’s shoulder, while Stella took her turn with the reports.

“Last week, all three.” Malik informed them. Ludis began to mark the map with the villages closest to the last, trying to map out potential targets, when Kora grabbed her hand.

“ I know where he is going.” She looked at Ikalla, and saw she felt the same. Turning, she looked Ben in the eyes. His face was unreadable.

“Attrition Castle.” Ben stood up and tossed the papers on the table.

“No. Hes baiting you, it’s a trap.” He walked forward, grasping Kora by the arms.

“We know that Ben, but these are innocent people! We cannot just let him continue, there are at least 6 more villages between there and Attrition Castle, that’s thousands of people. Our people. We must do something!” Kora shouted. Malik walked over, placing a hand on his sister’s shoulder.

“We will, in a way that doesn’t involve you running out of here like a willing sacrifice.” Looking over to Ian, he nodded and walked out. Now that they knew where Drew was headed, Ian needed agents there ASAP and to warn the villages. Ikalla stood and headed for the door as well. Ian called for her, seeing she was headed the opposite way, and not following him.

“Where are you going?” Ian turned and began to follow her.

“I am going to warn the villagers. No one rides faster than me. And that horse Royce helped me find will beat any horse here. Guaranteed. Ian’s anger flamed.

“Like hells you are! I have that handled.” He grabbed Ikalla’s arm, and she turned to look up at him, and her eyes were golden fire.

“You will let me go.” Kora came right up behind them and grabbed Ikallas hand. Pulling her out of Ian’s grasp, he heard the others coming out of the room after them.

“Meet you at the stable soonest.” Stella called back to him, and Ian, and the other men cursed loudly.

The hostlers had the horses saddled. Kora checked Oginalli making sure he was good to go. Shadow paced outside, and the others nodded. They were gone. Thundering out of the main gate, they headed north. Kora and Ikalla led.

It was a few hours before they called for a stop to rest the horses. Camping next to the river, Royce and Ian began to grumble about sleeping in the snow. Ikalla laughed.

“You really have forgotten who we are traveling with already, haven’t you? Kora. Do the thing.” Kora grinned and settled herself in the snow. As soon as she closed her eyes, the snow melted, and green grass sprung from the ground. A section of the river melted providing water. The trees grew, sheltering them from more snow. And the temperature rose. They began stripping off their layers, and the horse drank and munched on grass. Ben kissed Kora’s forehead in wonder and helped her stand up. Ian looked at her, dumbfounded. She shrugged.

“Just because I like the cold, doesn’t mean I like to sleep in it.” Ikalla nudged him, and he grumbled as he laid out his bedroll.

“This trip just got a lot easier.” Malik murmured, and signaled for Royce to help him hunt, Shadow joining them. The rest set camp, Ludis surrounding the area with a spell for concealment. Stella marveled at Koras handiwork, seeing that everything outside her barrier was still frozen solid. She smiled at Kora, who had just started a fire. Sitting down next to her to divvy out provisions, bread, and cheese, she said-

“I remember, before we went to the ruins of Attrition castle, thinking how terrifying a Fae must be. That no being should have that much power over the elements’ happy we have you, Kora.” She looked at her sister, who smiled and squeezed her hand.

“We’re going to get this guy, Stella. I’m ending it here.”