Page 19 of The Rebel Seer

“Whoa,” the king says. “She’s not going anywhere.”

“You should listen to him,” Neil adds. “Your sacred one is kind of spoken for, and you will have one pissed-off elemental following you. He’s getting good with weather, so think about it.”

“I fear not the Green God,” Matilda replies. “Of course he is welcome to join his goddess. The fact that Rhys Donovan-Quinn has selected one of ours as his goddess gives all the kings hope. We are entering a new age. The stars have aligned, and we will either be destroyed utterly or we shall make this age one of peace and prosperity.”

“I wouldn’t think a death crone would care about peace and prosperity,” the king notes.

“Because for all of that death magic clinging to you, Your Highness, you do not understand death at all. You may deal it. May feel yourself mired in it. But you do not know death at all if you think it only darkness.”

“I’ve been to the Hell plane,” the queen admits. “It was a fearsome thing.”

“That is the Hell plane, a place created by and for very specific people. Annwn is our underworld. You only call it Hell because you have no imagination, Your Grace. And I also happen to know Shahidi is planning a trip to Faery along with the rest of you. Tell me, how are you planning to get through the wizard’s guards?” Matilda asks, summing up one of our problems.

I manage to get to the steps, sitting down. The hellhounds come with me. One on the step above me. One at my feet below. One beside me, his big head resting on my lap.

The queen sits with me and gives me a grin. “This is the fun part. I made friends with some black dogs once. Such sweeties. They get a bad rep. I mean, sure, throughout human history they’ve been death omens, but if you get past that they make excellent pets.” She looks at Matilda. “Will they let me pet them or try to bite my hand off?”

The mysterious crone—isn’t there always one—smiles slightly. “As you explained, you are the high priest’s goddess. They are Fae creatures. They had one mission, and it is done. I think you’ll find them to be happy for some affection. They are canines, after all. Despite the magic they carry, they also harbor the deep instincts. For love. Companionship. Like all dogs, they are as open as they’ve been taught to be. You’ll find my master takes care of his own.”

The one behind me moves to the queen’s side and his tongue lolls out, giving him a smiling expression. The queen practically melts as she starts to pet the creature.

I stroke the head on my lap and feel the oddest connection to the hound. “Are you saying you can get us into Faery without having to get past Myrddin’s guard?”

“I want to understand how she knew we were going to Faery at all.” The king stands close as though watching over the situation, but I see that Neil is behind us now. So we have a vampire king at our front and a werewolf on our six. As Rhys would call it. Rhys is a good soldier. Rhys is the one who follows commands and gets things done. At least he had before his power went insane. How hard is it for him?

Can I make it easier?

“While my master does not believe it to be safe for him to come to the Earth plane right now, he does keep up with what is happening here. After all, what happens here affects all of the planes. The inner planes are the working heart of the universe, though there is an outer plane that forms the…how would you say it…the engine of the universe. I believe you were recently there, Your Highness.”

The king nods. “Yes. My daughter, Summer, and her husband, Marcus, have taken their rightful places on that Fae plane.”

Matilda chuckles. “It’s closer to a celestial plane, but I doubt you’ve been on one of those.”

“Are you talking about Heaven?” Neil asks.

“Heaven is a human construct,” Matilda corrects. “Like what you would call Hell, Heaven is made of many different planes. The celestial planes.”

“This doesn’t answer my question.” The king is determined, but then I bet Sasha would be, too, if he was here.

“My master is a lord of the dead. Do you think he doesn’t have a network?” Matilda asks. “He keeps watch on what is happening here. On what is happening on all planes where he has a presence. He also has allies who exchange information with him. The underworlds are worried, Your Highness. They are worried about Myrddin.”

“I assure you Hell is not,” Neil says with a bitterness that can’t be denied. “They’re working with him.”

“Some of the Hell planes are,” Matilda allows. “Some are not. Some are ready to resist should Myrddin fulfill his plan to close off the planes. My master will not allow it. Cutting off the celestial planes will harm those in transition. It will cause millions to be stuck. So he will aid you in doing what you need to do, Your Highness.”

“I’m supposed to trust the man who nearly killed me so he could get high?” The king’s voice goes dangerously low.

“He would rather like to speak to you on that subject himself.” Matilda’s head lowers deferentially. “Your Highness, I cannot tell you how important the girl is. He would never place her in danger.”

“I’m not important.” I think I’m the only girl here. Not many people would call Zoey Donovan-Quinn a girl. She’s a badass woman queen. I’m just… Well, I’ve been trained and can take care of myself in a fight, mostly. But I feel like a girl.

Matilda gets to one shaky knee in front of me before I can stop her. “You are yr un sanctaidd, lost from our kingdom for millennia. The fact that you are resurrected in this time means something. You are here to save us, to be what you were created to be. You are walking death.”

The words bring tears to my eyes. I don’t know why. She’s not saying anything I don’t know.

Rhys is life, abundant and rich. I simply cling to shadows.

“You think I insult you,” Matilda says softly. “Because you do not know death, either. Come to the Faery plane and learn who you are, what you can do. Death is not the end. Death is change. There can be no rebirth without death. No end to suffering and hope of something new without death. You can see yourself as a cold, pointless thing, or as necessary and warm and loving as birth itself. Like all things, you decide how to see the world around you and by choosing your vision, you form reality. Come to meet my master and let him show you all the lies this world has told you. You are nothing to fear, Shahidi Davis. You are a miracle.”

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