Page 122 of King of Storms and Feathers

“Have I told you before how annoying you are when you’re right?”

A tall, dark shadow stretched both ways in front of us, likely the city’s walls. Squinting, I raised my face to the smoky clouds above, willing them to part so moonlight could illuminate our surroundings.

I grunted when they barely moved. “Interesting.”

“Now, do you see why you must take a cautious approach? In the Earth Realm, your powers are much reduced.” Ari led me toward metal gates shaped like a giant letter M. “Consider this a game where you must move carefully across the board. Think before you act. In Mydorian, it’s quite possible that you may not have the capacity to fry anyone’s brains.”

“Perhaps I should test that theory on yours,” I muttered as two human guards approached us.

I stifled a grunt of laughter as I scanned their thin armor, their pathetic weapons and long guns that I could snap before they even pointed them at me.

“State your business,” a guard said, raising a lamp toward us. His close-set eyes flared, and a lump bobbed in his throat. “You’re—?”

“King Arrowyn of the Light Realm. I’m here to grant your—hmm, shall we say, regent?—the audience that he has begged for.”

The second guard goggled, and the lamp bearer stumbled in his haste to bow before I turned him to ash. I was pleased that my reputation had preceded me.

“Certainly, King Arrowyn.”

As we walked through the gates, I flicked my wings out, startling the guard and folding one around Ari’s shoulders.

“Please follow me to the steward’s quarters,” the guard continued. “When he wakes, you will be shown to the best rooms the palace has to offer, apart from the Regent’s, of course.”

I raised a brow. “Can I not have his? After all, I am a king, and if I’m not mistaken, your regent is merely a man who holds the crown for his sister.”

The guard coughed, and I whispered in Ari’s ear, “Last chance to obey me and leave.”

“I’ll be leaving you when I take my last breath,” she murmured. “Not a single moment before. Besides, I predict you’re going to need my help once we get in there.”

“Fine,” I reluctantly agreed. “Your schemes got us into this mess. I suppose the least you can do is help me clean it up.”

As we moved through the lamp-lit city, I cursed under my breath, astounded that the reavers had kept this place hidden for so long. Most fae believed war decimated Mydorian long before my father’s reign, which began three hundred fae years ago.

The glyph on my cheek burned, a good sign that my Aldara still lived. This knowledge helped me bank my rage and prevented me from tearing Mydorian apart stone by stone. The option wasn’t completely off the table, of course, but at least for now, it wasn’t a mindless compulsion.

We entered a turreted palace of black stone and darkened glass, waking several humans from their beds as we moved through night-quiet halls with the newly awakened steward. He stopped in front of a pair of engraved silver doors on the fifth floor. I estimated at least two more levels ranged above us.

“Your rooms,” said the steward with a deep bow. “We have informed the Regent of your arrival. He will grant you an audience in the Great Hall at dawn. Food will be delivered to you shortly, and a servant will direct you to the hall in the morning. Until then, rest well.”

Another trembling bow, then he turned to depart. I let him march a fair way down the torch-lit hall before I spoke. “I have heard the joyful news that the regent’s sister has returned to him. Tell him her presence is required at our meeting tomorrow. That is not a request. Trade discussions won’t occur without her.”

The man grimaced and scurried away.

We entered a large sitting room with two open doors on either side that led to separate bed chambers. I gave the opulent red and gold interior a cursory inspection, then turned to Ari. “Get in bed and rest. I’m going to find Leaf.”

She flopped over an armchair, her limbs flung out haphazardly. “Absolutely not. You will wait until dawn. It’s the safest option. The last thing you want is to be found skulking around the Mydorian palace like a disobedient servant.”

“I hardly think I look like a servant,” I said, glancing down at my travel armor. “But you’re unfortunately right again. So get up. You can cloak me as I search, then I won’t be seen.”

“Arrow. Please. Lie down. Rest. I understand your urgency to find her. But remember the game we’re playing. At present, the element of surprise is your best weapon.”

A knock sounded. Ari opened the door, returning with a tray of food—dried fruit, cheese, sliced bread, and goblets of watered-down wine. She sniffed the food, and then the cups.

“Don’t eat anything. It’s laced with serum. The regent is already working against you, which means he’s afraid. Drink the water from the faucet in the bathroom. Then rest. I beg you.”

I followed her instructions and tossed and turned on top of the silken sheets until rosy morning light lanced through the gap in the curtains. Then I sprang from the bed and surveyed the city below.

Black and silver streets, accented with gold and wreathed in dark, flowering vines, spread out in a functional geometrical pattern. Beyond the city walls was endless forest. The town was plainer than Coridon, but far from being in decline; it was most definitely thriving.

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