Come Winter's End: Fairy Fire Book #1

~𝑪𝒉. 1: 𝑭𝒂𝒕𝒆'𝒔 𝑯𝒂𝒏𝒅~

Place: Emberfrost Castle,
Timberest, Siog Rioght
Date: Eanáir 2, (January) 1618
The wee hours of the night
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Chapter 1: Fate’s Hands

Place: Emberfrost Castle, Timberest, Siog Rioght
Date: Eanáir 2, (January) 1618The wee hours of the night

Sitting out on the balcony of her room, Miri tried to process everything that had happened. The cold chill of winter stung her nose and cheeks, making them rosy. That bitter smell of dark magic still hung thick in the snow-filled air. 

Her mind roamed through the chaotic events of the past 24 hours.
How in just that short amount of time everything had changed. Her life was no longer what it had been. She couldn’t stay hidden anymore, quietly kept within the safe confines of the castle.

Now the whole kingdom knew her secret. Well at least everyone who was at the New Year’s celebration anyway. As the girl had managed to out herself, dark magic and all, in a proper fashion before most of Timberest.

She had no regrets though. It was the only way to save West, King Brogan, Lady Elda, and Flynn. There was no other choice, they couldn’t have survived a direct hit from that beam blast.

Maybe if they had some warning of the attack. The castle guard and troops could have handled it, but as the scene unfolded they were caught off guard and undermanned. There was so much devastation. The castle square was destroyed. She looked down at what was left.

As the wind picked up Miri could hear remnants of the festival decorations below flap loudly in the harsh breeze. Half-strung lumi lights and torn banners hung from destroyed booths, rattling and turning as the wind blew.

There was the loud clip-clop stomp of the palace guards and army troops echoing through the empty courtyard as their boots crushed the snow. Looking down she watched the patrols, their tall hats, and cloaks decorated with the king’s insignia.

The small bright multi-color lights of the soldiers’ Lumi’s followed them. Only those with the strongest magic have these little light beings appear to them. From the sight she saw in the courtyard there must have been hundreds of them.

Brogan had called out his strongest soldiers from throughout the kingdom. She could hear the medics moving the injured through the grounds. They had healed so many but there was an untold number who still needed help. The casualty count was high.

She recalled how she always told, “Fairies, don’t fight.” Today’s events, however, proved they were wrong.

“Where had this idea come from anyway.” she thought. “We are the race selected to be the keeper of the flames. The sole purpose of that power is to fight to keep the world safe.” Everyone knows “The legend of the Fairy Fire.” She remembered one stanza.

“Those fated with this magic’s might,
Must keep the peace, but born to fight
Only a fae can follow this path,
Balance light’s love and darkness’ wraith.”

See it clearly states it’s right there in legend. Born to fight! But after 350 years most fairies were starting to think the last keeper was indeed the last keeper.
Miri didn’t believe this to be true though.

She had heard the castle sages and the king arguing about it back in mid-Samhain. The sages were all in a fuss, saying all the signs are pointing to a rebirth of the Ancient Darkness and the return of the Keeper.