Page 5 of Veil of Monsters

There are so many towers, ancient structures, and forests filling the cities that I’m not sure where to look first. There are massive caverns leading off in several directions, still within the mountains, and I can see the bright lights of cities within them. A thousand stars shine on the city, illuminating the white bricks and crystal rivers.

It’s just beautiful and now, finally now, I understand why Emerson hid his people. This place is untouched, quiet, and peaceful, and a long way off the city I grew up in where screams always filled the night. Posy is speechless too. Her mouth dropped open along with mine. I’m so lost watching every inch of the city, I rear back as a creature of some sort flies right in front of me in a flash of scales. I blanch, nearly falling back into the mirror, but Lorenzo’s hand on my back steadies me.

“What the fuck is that?” Posy gasps.

Lorenzo grins at us both. “They are what we ride into battle.” Lorenzo puts his fingers in his mouth and whistles loudly, and a creature flies over, landing on the edge of the cliff top itself. Its body almost looks like a snake, but large feathered wings spread out of its sides. It stands on a pair of legs, sharp long claws digging into the ground. Its face reminds me of a bird with a long beak, but it has a mane of black braided hair. Down its back is a long line of spaced-out thick thorns, all the way to its tail, which is a spiked club.

My mouth feels dry. “What is that?” I can’t hide the amazement in my voice. It’s beautiful. Its scales almost shimmer like a rainbow, but they’re mostly black. It’s only when the light hits them that I see the real color underneath. Most things are like that in life: shine a little light on them and you see something beautifully real. Its eyes, sparkling rainbow colored, fix on me.

Lorenzo finally gives the creature a name. “These are the Vipera.” He strokes the Vipera, who almost purrs like a cat and leans into him. “Our mountains are full of them, and they have kindly bonded with our kind for centuries. When we go into war, we’ll be flying on them.”

“Vipera are fairy tales,” Posy whispers in astonishment. I would even say she looks impressed. The Vipera huffs at her but watches her carefully.

Lorenzo pats her side. “Celeria, be nice.” He looks back and narrows his eyes at us. “They are kept as fairy tales to anyone living outside of the city, and that’s for a good reason. You’ll be keeping them a fairy tale, because you won’t be leaving the city. My king has decided to keep you here, so you won’t be revealing any of our secrets. We have to protect the Vipera. They were almost brought into extinction by the fae and witches, who killed them to wear their scales as they can heal you from disease.”

Celeria lets out an animalistic growl as sickness rises in my throat. How could they have killed these beautiful creatures? “That’s horrible.” No one disagrees with me as I look around, and I realize the mountaintops are full of them. What I thought were Wyern flying about are Vipera too. They’re flying everywhere, in and out of the many, many caverns where they must live. Moonlight shines in bright from above, catching their scales now and then.

“Come on,” Lorenzo commands, patting the side of Celeria.

I widen my eyes. “Absolutely not.”

Lorenzo frowns. “Don’t worry, she can easily carry four Wyerns. I’ve never tested five, but you two weigh nothing and will be fine.”

“I’m not getting on that,” I outright protest. I barely like flying as it is, and this is pushing my limits. “Just no.”

Posy is silent. “I like flying. Being a bat and all, I almost miss how freeing it was.”

Lorenzo waves a hand at Celeria. “Calliophe, you either get on or you stay up here. Trust me, it’s going to get cold and damp when it starts raining through the holes in the mountain, and the Vipera might get hungry. They aren’t fans of the fae.”

The creature roars in agreement, and I shiver in fear. “Fine.” I reluctantly walk to the edge, near Celeria. It’s a sheer drop down, but I have to trust that Lorenzo doesn’t want me dead. My heart feels like it’s in my chest as I look at her scaled back. I can do this, I repeat to myself a million times over, hoping that I can actually convince myself I can do this. Lorenzo climbs on her back first, sliding in between the thorns that seem to hold him in place. He holds on to one, and Posy jumps on the next, far more confident. Against all my instincts, I climb on and slide in between the thorns. I grab hold of the thorns right in front of me, right as the creature jumps off the cliff with a whoosh. My scream echoes in my throat as we dive straight towards the city.

The creature doesn’t tuck her wings in, letting us free-fall down, and I don’t stop screaming. Lorenzo’s laugh is manic and insane as we fall, right before Celeria spreads her wings out. We glide over the tops of the buildings, which are full of plants, trees and greenery that make little gardens. I feel sick by the time we land on top of a garden rooftop, filled with sweet-smelling flowers of bright orange colors. I quickly jump off the creature and suck in a deep breath. Lorenzo and Posy climb off next, and Celeria roars once at us before flying off into the air.

“I’ll take that as she likes you, or she would have eaten you both. Mortal and fae are treats to her,” Lorenzo explains, so calmly, like he didn’t just test us with his giant pet that apparently could have eaten us. He waves at the door in an alcove nearby. “That goes down to your rooms, but this whole building is protected. It’s our home.”

We follow Lorenzo, and Posy leans into me. “The moment he leaves us alone, I’ll open a portal.”

ChapterThree

PRINCESS NERELYTH MIST

Soft water drops onto my cheek like rainfall, and I blink a few times, adjusting to the heavy pounding in my head and the weakness of my body. I use the surrounding water, pulling it to me and healing any wounds on my body, fixing myself. Everything is silent and I’m left wondering what the hell happened as I sit up. One minute I was asleep in the sea, and the next—

I pause, looking around me as I realize that I know the scent of thick salt in the air. Only one place smells like this. I’m back in the sea court. Did we win the test? How is this possible? I look around the tiny, empty storage room I’m in and find Felix on the ground nearby. “Felix!” I rush over to him, pulling what is left of the water with me to heal him. My magic mixes with the water, wrapping around his body. My body aches by the time I’ve healed him, and I gently shake his thick shoulder. Felix groans, rubbing his face before looking up. He smiles when he sees me, reaching up and tucking a strand of my red hair behind my ear. Butterflies erupt in my stomach, and for a moment, we both forget the world. I have to clear my throat, leaning out of his touch, for him to realize we aren’t safe. He’s alert and jumping to his feet within seconds, searching the room for any signs of danger.

I take his offered hand and stand with him. “This is my father’s court. My old home.” I keep my voice quiet. “I don’t know what room we’re in, but I’d recognize the castle anywhere.”

Felix rubs his jaw. “I can’t remember much. Why are we here? Where’s the others? Where’s Emerson and Calliophe? Lorenzo and Zurine?”

Shaking my head, I look around. “I don’t know, but I don’t sense them nearby, and I have a sinking feeling we are alone here.” I hope Calliophe is with Emerson and safe. He will look after her and protect her from Louie and the Rift. We were in the sea, and I think I was injured in one of the tests. I can’t remember much, but I know I was being looked after. How did I end up here? With Felix? I glance at the powerful Wyern guard at my side, his wings stretching out like he wants to fly us both out into the sea. But there is no escaping this place without a portal, and it will be guarded. He’s a Wyern in the sea court that is at war with his kind. A new, desperate panic fills my heart. I’ve got to get him out of here before my father sees him. “You need to get out of here, Felix. If my father finds you…”

Felix moves his gaze to me. His dark skin glitters with my water, and his honey eyes remind me of the deep amber gems that I once had in my princess crown. My hands itch to touch his short, newly grown out dark hair, to mess with the three silver earrings he wears. Now that I’m closer to him, I wonder why he wears them at all. “Nerry, I’m going to find what we need to get out of here.”

Felix takes my hand, linking our fingers. I don’t say anything as we stare at each other. I’ve never had someone completely and utterly at my side like he is, willing to fight to the death for me. He fought for me more than once in the sea, and this burning attraction between us makes me want to fight for him, too.

I always saw being with a male as a kind of trap, a box that I would be contained within and never be able to escape. With Felix, I have a feeling he wouldn’t box me into being his wife, but he would let me be free as long as we stood together. I never had someone that would fight for me because of how they felt for me, other than Calliophe. But it’s not the same. Not like this. What this could be between us? I think it could be something special.

He leans closer, pressing his forehead against mine, and even that small touch sets my body on fire. This burning between us started from the moment we entered that test. I couldn’t keep my eyes off him. He’s gorgeous. I mean, he’s full of muscles, the kind of male I’d go after a million times over. But it was more than that. The way he fiercely protected Calliophe in the fae court, the way he fiercely protected me under the water, and how he is kind even when everything is going wrong. His loyalty… I’ve never met a male like him. The way he fights, the way he’s just good in his soul. Probably too good for me, but I can’t help myself from wanting more of him. “I won’t let my father hurt you.”