“Is this…” His voice turned deep and rough again, and his body tensed, like he was struggling to keep his composure. Like he might want to kill them all again. “Did they scratch away your skin?”
“They wondered why I could understand them.” She told him what she’d said and why.
“Ah.” He relaxed slightly. “Clever. When it comes to the power in a kingdom, not many outside of a court will have mindgazer magic. And members of the court don’t trouble themselves with mundane affairs like acquiring chalices and diddling with humans.”
“Except you.”
“Except me, but I’m a rare circumstance.”
“Why?”
He didn’t answer as he pulled her torn shirt away from her arm to look at the wound. “At least you heal quickly. That’s a blessing.” His hand dropped, and his eyes met hers. “Chalice, in your tongue, is a goblet of sorts. Or the cup-shaped interior of a flower. In mine, it’s more” —he toggled his hand—“myth, almost. It’s given to mean an instrument that holds unlimited power. That isn’t necessarily the case, as no power is unlimited, but that’s the theory. There are many kinds of chalices—again, in lore. The most powerful is one produced by nature, enhanced by a human, and blessed by the gods, some say.”
“The ones over there with the gems?”
He toggled his hand again. “They aren’t exactlygems, but yes, essentially.” He looked beyond her at the horses. “We’ll need to bring all these animals with us. I won’t leave them here to die. Tomorrow, though. We can’t travel any more tonight. It’s too dark, and there are wild things out there that would give us trouble.”
“You can’t see in the dark, then?” she asked. “I thought dark fae could see in the dark.”
“Not all. And while yes, I can mostly see in deep night, the horses cannot.” He walked around her to the animals. “Besides, that fire is glowing merrily. We might as well enjoy it.”
“What about the other group? You’ve been watching me, fine, but what about them? I was in the Chester lands when their…whatever they were attacked.”
“Nottheir.” He ran his palms along the horse’s withers. “Those creatures were the minions of the dark fae, but not under my control. Further proof that the Sapphire Throne is dabbling where they shouldn’t. And how did they find you?” He glanced back at her, his expression lost to the night. “They felt you. Any fae on this side of the fringe would’ve. You still radiate the power that coursed through you. Smell like it, sweet and savory and delicious. It adds to your overall allure, something I didn’t think could be possible. It seems you’ve found the crystal chalice.”
So it was true. She’d been right. And judging by how long he’d looked at it a moment ago, he knew which one it was.
Cold washed through her. This was it. He’d found what he’d been seeking, plus a host of additional powerful items. Now he could create that bridge and bring his kind into these lands.
Her chest was tight, but her resolve hardened. She was here now, in its vicinity. She knew which one it was. If she could destroy that orb, they wouldn’t have the power to leave their realm. Their plans would be forfeit.
Not advertising her intent, knowing she was far enough away that he couldn’t touch her mind, she raced toward the fire and the magical items. She barely paused to get her bearings, knowing he’d be coming hard after her. She planted her foot, lifted the other, and slammed it back down. It connected with the item, and she anticipated hearing the hard crunch of its cracked surface…except that sound never came.
A burst of power so potent that it made her eyes water exploded from the point of contact. It didn’t seep into her body like before, but burst outward. She was lifted up and thrown backward, her limbs windmilling as she flew. She hit the ground and rolled, the breath knocked out of her.
Sputtering and wide-eyed, she pushed up to her elbow to look back toward the fire. Tarian wasn’t there. He was still with the horses. He hadn’t even bothered to turn around and watch her. The orb sat where it had a moment ago, twinkling like before, laughing at her.
“You can’t destroy it like that,” he said in a boredtone. “You can’t throw it in a fire or crush it in a human vise. It won’t succumb to magic or tolerate being covered in spells to diminish its power. It is eternal, as far as you are concerned.”
She pushed up to sitting. “What does that mean—as far as I am concerned?”
“It means itcanbe destroyed, but it must be taken to the Divine Collective, the seven gods of the Celestials, and they must be asked to retire it. Must be pleaded with, probably.”
“What…like taking the One Ring to Mordor?” she asked incredulously.
He half turned to look at her, pausing in placing a feed bag. “I don’t know what…ring… I’m not sure what Mordor is.”
She scoffed and shook her head, remembering a long time ago when Mordie had gotten her to watchLord of the Rings. She used to make fun of his name because of it—Mordie/Mordor. The memory was bittersweet at the moment.
“And these gods exist in the fae realm, obviously,” she said, her heart dropping.
“Very astute.” He was mocking her.
“And a human couldn’t reach them within the fae realm?”
He shrugged. “Maybe a magical one could. But you? Only if you rode a flying pig.”
She bit her lip, staring at the fire. She couldn’t destroy it, fine. She could hide it, though. She couldsteal it when she was escaping and put it in a place his court couldn’t recover it from, since he’d obviously have to be dead by then. There was still a way to salvage this. There had to be.
