The impossibly tall stone walls of the arena formed an oval structure far outside the palace. The open space could fit an entire legion of warriors, as well as trainees. Rennick and Finn spent every bit of free time they had either training with the other trainees or watching the warriors train.
The large colorful trees filled with rainbow leaves and capped in snow provided shade on cloudless days, but even theyweren’t enough to filter out the blistering sun today. Sweat coated Rennick’s lightly tanned skin, and he swiped at his damp forehead, but the leather of his sleeve stuck to his skin, making it worse. Finn’s warm umber skin glistened as well, and Rennick knew it was time to go inside before one of them died of a heat stroke.
The Mountain Kingdom was cold and covered in snow, but its location high in the mountains placed them closer to the sun. On a clear day, it felt like the seven rings of hell, especially when weighed down by armor. It didn’t help that Rennick’s father had increased the training schedule for the trainees and newer warriors.
New rebel factions had popped up throughout the four fae kingdoms. They attacked at random and grew bolder by the year. In history classes, they learned that with each generation came new waves of unrest, but no matter the era, the rebels’ goals remained the same: to extinguish the royal bloodlines.
Rennick once asked his father why the rebels hated the royals so much, and his father said,“You will always be someone else’s villain, whether you deserve the title or not. Your duty is to ensure their hate is unjustified.”
They could thank the stupid rebels for their mandatory extra training.
As Rennick and Finn left the training arena with dirt coating their sticky skin, all Rennick could think about was soaking in a snow bath.
Finn jogged alongside him to keep up with his long strides. At thirteen, Rennick already stood six feet tall, with broad shoulders that rivaled those of fully grown men.
“When does your father leave?” Finn asked between pants.
Rennick continued his hurried pace in silence.
Finn punched Rennick’s arm. “Answer me.”
Rennick punched him back, dodging when Finn swung again. “Tomorrow morning.”
Rennick’s parents had spent the last few days checking the Mountain Kingdom’s birth registry for anyone named Amelia with the same birthday as Rennick, but they’d found nothing. Tomorrow, his father would leave for the other kingdoms to check their registries as well.
Once a royal fae heard the name of their mate, they needed to find them as soon as possible and move them to their kingdom’s capital for their own safety. The quickest way to end the royal lines was by killing a royal’s mate or a young royal heir.
“Your Majesty,” Rand, Finn’s father and one of the king’s most trusted generals, called out to Rennick. The look on his face had both boys pulling up short. Something was wrong. “A group of rebels breeched the palace walls. I need you two to come with me.”
“How?” Finn asked as they followed Rand back toward the palace.
“They managed to slip into the garden,” Rand replied, his eyes distant.
The garden.On sunny days, his mother spent hours in the gardens. Rennick sprinted toward the palace walls as the other two ran after him, yelling his name.
His chest tightened as he closed in on the palace gates.Please be okay, he chanted silently as his feet pounded against the ground. A guard moved into his path with his hand out, and something within Rennick went wild. They’d not keep him from his mother. An explosion of anger had him slamming the guard against the stone wall.
“Unlock the gate,” he commanded in a voice he didn’t recognize, scaring himself.
“Yes, Your Majesty.” The guard waved his hand to another. “Let him in.”
If the rebels had hurt his mother, she’d be in the infirmary. He took off in a sprint, praying she wasn’t there. Guards jumped out of his way, and when he rounded the corner of the servicewing, he saw the familiar silhouette of his father entering the infirmary. A flash of red hair dangled from his arms.
Rennick’s blood ran cold, and he skidded to a halt outside of the infirmary door. “What happened?” A guard stepped in front of him and braced his hand on Rennick’s chest. Through the gaps between the guard’s body and the door, Rennick watched his father lay his unconscious mother on a bed. Time stopped.
“Mom!” He should have been embarrassed by the desperation tainting his voice, but the vision of his mother’s lifeless body killed whatever pride he had.
The guard spoke in a deceptively soft voice. “The best thing you can do for the queen is let the healer and his staff do their jobs uninterrupted.”
Rennick tore his gaze away from his mother. “What if she dies?”
The guard pinched his lips together and glanced over his shoulder into the room for a long moment. With a sad sigh, he turned and motioned for Rennick to follow him inside.
Callum turned on them with such fury and pain in his eyes that Rennick almost stepped back. He took tentative steps to his father’s side and stared at his mother with abject horror.
The healer and nurses switched out blood-soaked towels at an alarming rate in an attempt to staunch the bleeding. Fae were stronger and faster than humans, royals even more so, but they weren’t immortal, nor did they heal rapidly, like the human fairytales claimed. The healer hung his head and stepped away.
Rennick moved to the other side of the bed and tenderly took his mother’s hand in his.
