Caelum Gully - Book One - Ambrosine

Chapter One

Dodging the Keepers, darting in and out of the tangled vines and brambles, left breathless by their ability to effortlessly track her, they were closing in and moving much quicker than she. Even with her Faerie energy, they were outmaneuvering her, and they could foresee her next movements. Her heart pounded in her chest as the icy grip of terror engulfed her, it wouldn't be long now before she belonged to them. As the extended claw-hand of the Keeper closed around her delicate wrist, she sat straight up, in a sweat, gasping for air. It had only been a dream.

She stepped out into the thick, lush, greenery of the forest, as the earthy scents permeated her being, she sighed. Her days spent under the shelter of the weeping willows, wrapped snugly in the fern leaves, she longed for the freedom the nights brought her.

Ambrosine Nutari - a slight, wisp of a woman, even by Fae standards. Hair of silken onyx and almond shaped eyes a matching hue. She possessed an ethereal beauty no other in Caelum Gully could claim. Stretching her tiny filamentous wings, translucent yellow and blue, they glimmered under the drops of moonlight which trickled through the dark canopy above.

Not unlike the other Fae, she was kind-hearted and loving, but that's where most similarities parted ways. Alone since early childhood, Ambrosine yearned to be part of the Human world, one that existed beyond the realm of the Crysh Forest, and far beyond Caelum Gully. Many nights she would enter the forbidden area of the Shadow Lands, the final separation of the beauty and magic of the Fae Forest and the cold, distant, Human realm. The Shadow Lands, guarded by the Keepers, was a dangerous place for any Fae, especially one so young. The Keepers were hideous beings, pale and leathery, bird-like, known for their violent tendencies. Guarding the division always their priority, a wayward Fae, if captured, could lose their life. Ambrosine had learned years earlier how to evade detection by the Keepers, as long as there was any other forest creature who could skirt around the far edges of the Shadow Lands, she could make it past the eerie, mist-filled brambles and dead trees. Once crossing the barrier on the opposite side, she could take human form, and walk among the humans undetected. With her long, straight, thick hair worn down to cover her Fae ears - the only feature which wouldn't transform - she enjoyed the sights and sounds and being near people. No, she enjoyed being near Jax. The human male she had grown to love. It wasn't acceptable in her world, and her very existence scoffed at in his.

"There she is," a voice called to her.

"Ah, yes Vex, there she is," she replied.

"What are you up to tonight? Thought I would see if you wanted to watch the fireflies dance?"

"Not tonight, I think I'm going to do much of nothing."

She couldn't fool him. He was aware of her secret, and she knew he wouldn't tell anyone. If the Fae Queen ever found out, her nights in the human world would be over.

"You're going back there again?" he quizzed. As he leaned against the stalk of the over-sized fern, he crossed his arms in front of his chest, taking on a condescending stance.

"No, Vex, I'm not going to go," she sighed, "Okay, you win. I'm going. I have to go. It's the only time I can ever see him. Why can't Fae and Humans coexist in one world?" Her frustration evident as her shoulders slumped with her words.

Vex eyed her, and she could see the concern in his eyes. Almond shape like hers, and every other Fae, slightly smaller, the color of liquid amber. No one could deny that his eyes were beautiful.

"Amby, I don't want to see you get hurt. Nothing good can come of this, if the Queen were to find out, you'd never have the freedom you crave. If the Humans know, none of us would ever be safe," he paused, "As much as you think you love one human, is it worth risking all of Caelum Gully?"