“No, Ryder. It’s my duty. Not yours.” Prince Norivun rose from his seat and approached the female. Milis gave him an apologetic look, but all he said was, “What’s amiss?”
The injured female fell to his feet, blubbering and crying. “Oh, my prince. It’s my son. He’s lipped off to my husband again, and he’s got my son pinned to a wall, using his affinity to hold him. My son can’t fight back. Not even to defend himself. He’s going to kill him this time—I’m sure of it—and I’m not strong enough to stop him.”
Haxil, Nish, Sandus, and the fairy with the braid—apparently named Ryder—circled around the prince.
Prince Norivun placed his hands on his hips. “Your husband’s committed these acts?”
“Yes, her husband’s a real brute of a fae,” Milis said under her breath. “When he’s drunk on leminai, he’s dangerous and cruel.”
The female with the torn wing cried louder. “I tried to stop him, but his claws—”
“What’s his affinity?” Nish asked as a swirl of magic flowed around him.
“Ice bear.”
My stomach dropped. Of course it would be one of the large animal affinities and not something easier to contend with like a superficial affinity.
The prince muttered something under his breath, then nodded toward the door. “This’ll be messy. Let’s go.”
CHAPTER 6
“Haxil?” The prince inclined his head toward me as he followed Mealow. Haxil nodded and moved to my side.
“Keep that stew warm for us, Milis,” Ryder called, throwing her a wink. His silvery white braid whipped between his wings as the prince and the two other guards headed after the female fairy.
“Thank you, my prince. Thank you!” Mealow called as she rushed toward the side door.
Their boot steps filled the room as the other patrons watched. When I just waited by the fire, Haxil gave me a sly smile. “What do you think you’re doing?”
I frowned and raised my hands. “Waiting here with you?”
Haxil cocked an eyebrow. “Where the prince goes, I go, which means you’re coming with me.”
“You’re not staying here to guard me? I thought that’s what the prince wanted.”
“No, I mean, you’re correct that he wants me to guard you, but not here. That was merely his way of telling me to stay at your side.”
“Why? I’m a magicless, wingless, defective fairy, not a precious treasure that needs to be kept within eyesight at all times. You could just go with him and leave me here.”
Haxil’s eyebrow rose higher as an amused smile split his lips. “Just do as you’re told, Ilara Seary, daughter of Mervalee Territory.”
Knowing I wouldn’t win this fight, I stood, but I couldn’t help the annoyance that prickled my skin at once again being commanded against my will, so I gave a small yet dramatic bow. “As you wish, Haxil Hubberline, guard to the crown prince and son of Isalee Territory.” I twirled my hand to add to the effect, then stood.
He chuckled, his eyes sparkling as he pulled me toward the door. “I would say I detected a hint of mockery in that bow.”
“Really?” I asked innocently.
His grin grew. “You know, I think I’m going to like you, Ilara.”
I snorted a laugh. Strangely, I was coming to the same realization, even though I’d just met him, and his archon was my sworn enemy.
Outside, the wind bit into my skin and was even more of a shock after an hour’s rest in the warm lodge. Ahead, the prince and his guards were following Mealow down a path to High Liss.
“Are you worried about encountering a fairy with an ice bear affinity?” I asked Haxil. While animal affinities were common, the larger predator affinities were less so.
“Nah,” he replied as he extended a wing, stopping the harsh wind from hitting me directly. “We all have warrior affinities and have yet to encounter a fight we can’t handle, but the prince will likely deal with this fairy himself. We’ll just stand watch and guard his back.”
“You don’t help him?”
“He doesn’t need our help.”
Of course. Considering the prince had no qualms about using his affinity and did so freely, he wouldn’t need anyone’s assistance, but only a true monster would use an affinity such as the prince’s unchecked.
“So why are you guarding him at all if he’s so capable?”
Haxil pulled back a tree branch as we entered the forest. “The crown prince doesn’t need us to protect him if he’s aware of a threat. It’s just when a threat sneaks up on him or tries to catch him unaware, then we come in.”
I nodded, realizing it only made sense that Nish, Sandus, Ryder, and Haxil would all have warrior affinities. What better guards to surround oneself with than fae who were naturally blessed fighters?
“Was your affinity a job requirement when you became one of the crown prince’s guards?”
“No,” Haxil replied as dim lights appeared ahead through the thick foliage. It appeared that High Liss was only a short walk down the mountain. “If you have the skills to guard the prince without a warrior affinity, you could be chosen, but very few fae are able to match our skill without it.”
I could only imagine. I’d never encountered another fairy with a warrior affinity as far as I knew, but it wasn’t as though fae wore their affinities on their sleeves. Unless one chose to reveal it, or you witnessed firsthand a fairy using their affinity magic, it was easy to keep it hidden. For all I knew, I’d been living beside a warrior fae in my village my entire life and had never known it.
Haxil kept his wing curled around me as we followed the others, but it didn’t give me the creeps like when Vorl had done so. With Haxil, the movement felt natural, as though he used his wing to protect me and didn’t give it much thought. Versus when Vorl had used his wings, it was to trap me and hold me hostage.
A yell reached my ears a moment later, then the mountain village of High Liss appeared. Rows upon rows of small homes, shops, and winding roads teetered on the mountainside. The village was perched on such a steep slope that I knew the founder of the village had either a constructo affinity or some ingenious engineering had been invested into its creation.
Ahead, Mealow was running toward a home on the valley side. Lights blazed from the windows as another yell came from within, this one filled with pain.
I stopped midstride. Those screams were probably coming from her son.
“We’ll stay outside their home,” Haxil said calmly and propelled me forward. “The prince won’t want you in harm’s way.”
“Staying at the lodge would have been safest,” I replied as uneasiness crept through me. “You could have left me there while you stayed with the prince.”
“Not necessarily. What if someone tried to harm you?”
“Why would they do that? I’ve done nothing wrong.”
“You’re traveling with the Bringer of Darkness now. He has many enemies.”
My stomach turned. “Meaning, harm may now come to me as a way to get to him?”
“Exactly.” He quickened our pace as the prince and Mealow ducked inside her home while Nish, Sandus, and Ryder guarded the perimeter.