A Court of Desires and Darkness

Chapter 3

The wooden door slams closed behind me. I take that moment before the soldiers burst from it to alter my glamour, changing first my hair to a golden yellow, then my clothing changes from the greenish color to a tan one. 

I immediately stop running the moment I hear the door to the inn open, the soldiers yelling at the surrounding fae to move. Like the others around me, I glance back at them, my eyes shifting from their original hazel to an icy blue. They scan the town around them before catching sight of a female who dons a similar dress to the one I was wearing. The dark haired one grabs her shoulder, forcing her to turn around. She yelps as he does so and he curses at her for not being who he wanted. 

They continue aggressively turning people around who look similar to what I did moments ago. I turn around in tandem with those around me and continue on as if I have been walking this street all along, a triumphant grin on my lips. 

As the sun sets, I contemplate my next moves. The last time I was on the run was my Turning almost a thousand years ago, when the public knew about me. Over the centuries, my existence leaked from most minds. If this Seer knew that I would be at that inn the same time the soldiers were... is anywhere safe from his eye?

                                                                     ~

Five armored fae in grey, along with a cloaked figure, stalk toward my tent in the dark woods beyond the now quiet village. Above, a raven circles the small clearing, lending me her eyes. The soldiers circle the one without armor. I wonder if the Seer himself has graced me with his presence. In my hand is my black steel dagger, the power of the Cauldron humming beneath my skin, its eagerness for my next moves apparent. 

The group of enemies continue to stalk--almost silently--toward my camp. The cloaked figure stands back as the two fae from the inn grab either side of the tent, nod at each of their companions who have their swords drawn, and rip my tent out from the ground. As they do, I vanish into darkness, disappearing from the inside of the tent in wisps of shadow. I emerge right behind the one under the cloak.

The cloaked figured turns quickly--too quickly. His hood falls down as he blocks my blade with a heavy duty bracer. He has a plain face, nothing extraordinary, framed by ink black hair. The soldiers behind us scramble to come to the male's aid, still shocked that I wasn't where I should have been. 

A devilish grin spreads across the High fae male's face. Somewhere deep in my memories do I recognize his face. "So it is true, then. You exist after all." I step back. The soldiers come closer, but the cloaked fae holds up a callused hand and they stop. "You can drop your glamour, it is unnecessary," he adds as he shrugs off the brown piece of clothing, revealing a heavy armor set and a sword hanging from his waist. 

It is hard traveling light with a weapon like that, so I have only ever kept this dagger. Up until now, it was all I ever needed. I scan the soldiers, wondering how I can disarm one of them. 

The male laughs, a deep unsettling sound. "Alright then." He unsheathes his weapon and strikes quickly, his movements fluid. I respond to his speed with that of my own, evading his jabs and swipes. My magic pools in my chest, beckoning to be used. For now, I play his game, dodging attack after attack, hoping he tires out. Past experience makes me hesitate to use my magic in battle. It seems to call to those I hide from when I use it. 

"I am almost as old as you," he chimes in as if he could read my mind. A daemati maybe? Without breaking my movements, I enforce my already thick mental shields. "My advantage? I have been fighting my entire life." His swings quicken to an impossible speed. "What have you been doing. Hiding like a coward?"

Fury bubbles in my mind and I send a blast of magic toward him and the others. His sword cuts right through my swirling black wall and his elbow meets my face, sending me flying to the ground. Immediately, I open myself to the shadows long been away. They swirl around us all. The soldiers look around as black whirls circle them, their swords raised. 

A piercing pain in my right wrist stops me from rising. I glance down and see an arrow sticking out of my limb, shot so hard that the point is firmly in the ground. I grunt in pain, a concerning dark purple glow to my veins. My magic begins dwindling inside me, my shadows retreating. The glamour I have held on to fades away. 

The High fae male creeps over to me, leaves crunching underneath his heavy boots. He stops beside me, placing a hand on the arrow still lodged in my wrist and a boot on my free hand. I writhe in pain, my nostrils flaring. He places a silver cuff on the left wrist, a purple jewel in the center. Whatever magic was holding out disappears when he put it on. A rough hand grips my chin, lifting my head up to meet cold, dark brown eyes. 

"I thought you would have put up more of a fight." He studies my face and I glare back at him through gritted teeth. "A pity." 

I bring my right wrist up, ignoring the excruciating pain shooting through my arm, my hand in a fist as it collides with his head. Taken off guard, he falters backward. I take the time to rip the arrow from my wrist and chuck it to the ground. The cuff, though, that won't budge. Spelled, I suppose. And with my magic suppressed, there is no way I will get that off. 

The fae male smirks to me as he gets on his feet, wiping the blood that is dribbling down his cheekbone. "That is more like it," he says. 

I look to the other soldiers again, still standing back. The one closest to us is perhaps twenty feet directly behind my opponent. 

I charge forward. The male looks confused for a moment, but readies his weapon. I muster all the speed I can and juke him to the left as he swings down, vaulting over him and toward my prize: the sword in the surprised soldier's hand. He doesn't have a moment to react as I kick him in the stomach. Waves of pain in my foot that catches his armor reverberates up my entire body. He flies backward, but I grab his hand and twist as he does, and he drops his weapon, crying out in pain. I turn so that my back is to the woods, the other soldiers on my right and the sole male, who looks pleasantly surprised, is on my left. 

I didn't see the soldier behind me. Didn't hear the crack of a stick as he half stepped toward me. I did hear the release of the bow string right before the arrow shot through my upper side. 

That same purple glow leaks from this wound, too. My vision blurs and I drop to the ground, my legs immediately giving out. 

The High fae male looks to whomever was behind me, fury in his eyes. I see him throw his sword behind me, a soft thud followed by a louder one before unconsciousness takes me.