Page 85 of Lady of Darkness

Sorin waved his hand. Sparks swirled, and a rolled piece of parchment appeared in his hand. Despite her best effort, Scarlett jumped at the display of magic. “You will get used to it,” Sorin said, setting his tea down on a side table.

“How will I get used to magic if no one can use it without a ring?”

He unrolled the parchment as he said, “True, I suppose, to an extent.”

Scarlett was about to respond to such an odd comment, but she stopped short when she saw what was on the parchment. It was a map, but not a map she was used to seeing. In fact, she had only seen this particular map in one other place. The book she had been reading. “These places are all real?” She gingerly took one side of the parchment from Sorin’s hands.

“Yes. I told you that weeks ago, when I told you that book was full of truths,” Sorin replied.

Scarlett ran her fingers over the various territories. “How? How do we not know of these other lands?”

“What do you know of the Great War?” he asked instead.

Scarlett gave him an unimpressed glance. “Really? You’re asking me to recite history to you now?”

The corner of his mouth kicked up in a half grin. “Humor me.”

Scarlett sighed deeply. “The Great War was fought between King Deimas and Queen Esmeray of these lands and the continent of Avonleya across the sea. Avonleya and the Fae Courts were allies and wanted to enslave the humans that resided in the kingdoms under Deimas and Esmeray. The king and queen sacrificed their lives to enact some powerful enchantments. One to lock away Avonleya and keep them sequestered across the sea. The other to render magic useless and enact wards to keep the Fae from entering our lands…which are clearly faulty.” She gave a pointed glance at Sorin.

“Yes, I heard you are particularly skilled at exacting justice from Fae who cross the borders,” he said tightly.

Scarlett gave him a sharp smile. “Considering the Fae are responsible for the death of my mother, it is not something I shall apologize for.”

“We will come back to that another time,” Sorin said casually, and before Scarlett could say anything to that, he continued. “All of what you said is one version of how things happened, but none of what you said included these three bloodlines.” He pointed to the eastern territories. “And that is by design. The mortal kings do not like them spoken of. They want them forgotten in the secluded lands. Two aided Avonleya and the Fae Courts. They were allowed to live at the end of the war if they agreed to be sequestered and secluded from others, particularly those they aided. The other posed a danger to the humans, so most were isolated as well.”

“So, you’re saying that the Witches, Shifters, and Night Children fought against King Deimas and Queen Esmeray and that is why they are confined to their own regions now? Why were the Fae not confined?”

“Were they not? The Avonleyans cannot leave their continent. The Fae cannot leave their Courts without the risk of being caught and tortured by vicious, albeit very attractive, women,” Sorin countered.

Scarlett gave him a cool look. “Who rules over them, then? The mortal kings?”

“No. They have since created hierarchies like the other lands.There is a Contessa in the land of the Night Children. The Witch Kingdoms are ruled by the High Witch. The Shifters are ruled by an Alpha and Beta, and, of course, the three mortal kings rule the human lands here,” Sorin said, pointing to the various territories as he spoke.

“And these other lands have magic?” Scarlett asked. She gently let go of the map and took another sip of her tea. It was still hot.

“Some more than others. The Fae have elemental magic and can do some spell work. The Witches have Healers, Seers, and other powerful magic. Shifters can shift not only their physical forms, but some can shift matter and energy as well,” Sorin replied, rolling the map up gingerly.

“The Night Children don’t have magic?”

“They are excellent at tracking. They are incredibly stealthy and can heal quickly. They are apex predators and their gifts enable such things, but raw, tangible magic they do not possess.”

Silence fell between them. The only sound was the crackling logs in the fire. “You are from the Fire Court?” Scarlett asked.

“I am,” he answered.

“Do you know the Prince of Fire?”

“I know who he is, yes,” Sorin answered.

“Is he the one oppressing your people? The one you seek this weapon for to help free them?”

Sorin was quiet for so long that Scarlett turned to look at him. “The Prince of Fire has done many dark things. Some say he did them for his people. Others say his actions have only caused things to escalate for his people.”

“And what do you think?”

“I do not know that it entirely matters what I think.”

“Do you think he should be ruling over an entire Court of people?”

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