Prologue
Dagda
“My lord, there’s news from the mortal realm.”
Dagda glanced up from the intricate wooden puzzle stretched out on the table before him. Through the windows beyond his faithful servant, moonlight splashed onto the polished timber floor. Dagda blinked, surprised. He’d begun this puzzle straight after first light. How had he lost so many hours stuck inside his own mind, fitting corners together, struggling to force the little jagged pieces to match?
“The mortal realm?” Dagda asked, his booming voice echoing through the silent hall. He rarely had visitors. Once the chosen fae souls arrived at the Court of Death and learned he was no god at all, they cantered off into the wilderness to enjoy their immortal existence without his intrusion. No matter that he’d gifted Tir Na Nog with magic. No matter that he’d found this pocket of land beyond the ley line, all to ensure their future. He was nothing to them now.
“Aye.” Filobar nodded, his curtain of green hair whispering across his broad forehead. Filobar was a wood fae with an insatiable curiosity and one of the few who had stuck by his side. He wanted to know everything about Fomor and the great fall of the Fire Court.
The failed Cleaving of the World.
Unfortunately for the mortal realm, the Cleaving was still upon them. Another fae would come, desperate for Unseelie’s dark magic. And this fae would not fail.
“You asked me to keep an eye on them. It’s hard to get much information when no one can see or hear me, but I’ve been able to watch.” Filobar frowned. “The Namhaid has finally arrived.”
Dagda braced his hands on the table and stood, his great dark wings flaring behind him. “What about the Ghaisgeach, the hero?”
“I can’t be sure,” Filobar said slowly. “There is one who stands out from the rest, but your visions have always been confusing. It’s difficult to tell who fits the signs.”
With a sigh, Dagda nodded. “Well, thank you, Filobar. I know it’s difficult to return to Tir Na Nog when you can only watch through the ley lines. It’s hard to move on from mortal life when you can still see and hear them all.”
Which had been the point of the Court of Death all along.
Filobar sucked in a rattling breath. “My lord, surely there is something we can do. If you’re right about this Namhaid, then the entire world is doomed. What if the Ghaisgeach fails? It’s too great a risk.Wehave to stop it from happening.”
“We can’t. You’ve died.”
“But didyoudie?” Filobar asked. “When you came here?”
Dagda sucked in a sharp breath. “You push your boundaries, Filobar. I may not be a god, but I am a Fomorian. And my power is not gone, even in this place.”
“I just want to understand, my lord. You chose to come here. Not in death but in life. If there was a way for you to travel through the ley line, surely there is a way for us to travel back.”
“I am done with this conversation,” Dagda said, closing his eyes. “I’ve done everything in my power to protect the mortal realm. It’s no longer up to me whether the world survives. It is up to the Ghaisgeach. Seelie warned me what would happen if I interfered any more than I already have. So, we will sit here and wait while the Cleaving of the World begins.”
1
Reyna
Thorns crept through every inch of the tower. Reyna and Lorcan followed the twisting vines, hand in hand. Every so often, she cast a furtive glance at the king striding beside her. His dark hair curled around his strong jaw where the shadows of his hidden magic pulsed. The power of him washed over her, filling her soul with light.
They had searched every room of the tower, and none of the quarters seemed quite right for the place they would make their home together. But they had one more chamber to check. Eager, Reyna yanked Lorcan toward a door at the end of the corridor that led up to the highest rooms.
He chuckled as he followed behind. “Someone seems excited.”
“This tower sits on a cliff high above the entire kingdom. I can’t wait to see the view.” She meant the forests, of course, but that wasn’t the only view she hoped to see this night.
A delicious growl was her only answer. They pushed through the door, stumbling forward into a room fit for a king. A grand bed perched beside a floor-to-ceiling window that had no glass at all. The empty expanse looked out upon the western forests. Verdant trees stretched out as far as the eye could see, the full moonlight enveloping the entire realm in a silver glow.
Moss carpeted the stone floor, and the ceiling had been transformed by vines and lush leaves. There were several doors leading to other rooms inside these chambers, but Reyna did not get a chance to explore.
Lorcan lifted her from the ground and carried her to the bed. A wicked smile curved his lips, one that sent her heart racing.
“Shouldn’t we check out the other rooms?” she whispered, breathless.
“I think we’ve seen enough.” He dropped her onto the bed. The soft mattress pillowed around her. “These are the best quarters in the tower. And here, I can claim you beneath the light of the moon.”
