I have no idea how to control this time-weaving magic, and it’s only a matter of time before someone else finds out. If the world discovers fae can gift their magic to other creatures, the world will fall into chaos and extortion.
“Make sure you smile widely, but not too widely. You don’t want to look like an ax murderer. Women don’t like that; they prefer swords. Long, hard, shapely steel cocks.”
“I’m gonna stab you with my sword if you don’t stop,” I groan, running a hand down my face.
“If I were a woman who wasn’t related to you, that would make me swoon. Although may I suggest, ‘I’m going to plunge my sword into you with such a force you won’t be able to walk for days.’ It’s got a vibe ladies would prefer.” Tristen slaps my back, but before I can reply, the king is calling my name.
My skin turns into a tough shell I want to shake off. Run away. I don’t want praise for killing. If only they knew I would have done anything,anything, to take back slaying Prince Everett.
They all smile and clap.
Miscreants, every single one of them.
I walk up to the king. Selene has left early, which messes up my plans because I was hoping to talk to her. I’d rarely have an opportunity to approach the queen.
Tristen thinks we should target Sable for help, and after seeing Selene this evening, I agree. But the other twin hasn’t shown up at the party.
Maybe she’s skinning bunnies for pleasure. I wouldn’t put it past a royal-born fae.
Why the heck would Sable come here to honor me, the man who killed her brother?
All I hear is a buzzing as King Galen’s lips move, his arms open, and he touches my shoulders and welcomes me.
Shit! It’s happening! No! No! Not here!
Everett’s time-weaving magic is complicated. I have no idea how to use it, but it certainly knows how to use me. There are signs, like the dimming of other senses. Sound is always first.
A soldier comes forward with a sword in hand, bows, and hands it to the king.
What is he saying?
Shit!Just nod. Oh, King Galen is giving me the sword.
Oh, it’s a gift. I dip my chin and accept it, and then my eyes shoot to Tristen, but his clapping slows.
No!
Movement is the second sense to dim, just like it did the day of the battle. When these time bubbles trap me, I can move freely. Others who are not trapped have no idea. Tristenhas witnessed it. He said it always appeared as if I were there, moving the same.
The first time I pulled Tristen into the bubble, he was so impressed he started brainstorming dozens of ways to use it to our advantage.
That’s when I realized why Everett had given his magic to me.
I don’t want to use it to aid me in killing kings when they have no idea I could move faster than them. I don’t want crowns. All I want is safety and security for my family. I want to make sure no child is forced to become a soldier. I don’t want a child to grow as Ember did, to have nothing, not even a name, for their first few years.
I want friendships to evolve into brotherhoods, not because they were forced to fight together or be killed, but because there was a genuine connection.I just… I know a better world is too much to ask for. I want adifferentworld. A world where we respect life more than we value killing it.
I want land in a small village, where I know my neighbors and help them if need be. I want birds chirping and not men screaming as they die.
I think my heart is starting to sweat. I sink back, trying to distance myself without offending the king.
Snap!The time bubble traps me, and my breath turns to wet cement. Suffocating.
Wait, I’m… alone. How’s that possible? Galen is so close. Did the time-weave listen to me?
I feel like I’m going to be sick, but then… a chill ripples down my body. That’s not part of the time-weaving.
It’s something else. A new sense I developed on the battlefield. This sense tells me one thing.
