Page 111 of A Kingdom of Lies

“Blood,” Elinor said quickly. “He steals it from our bodies and puts it into the vessels of his followers. Just like mydear husband,” she mocked. “Your Hand is no different. He creates beings that should not exist under Altar’s or the Creator’s rule.”

“Right and wrong,” Aldrick replied. “The result of my work does not belong to me, Altar or the Creator. These are the children of Duwar. Beings who do not belong. Beings who are not claimed by either the fey’s god or the human’s beloved Creator. Just as Duwar did not belong among its siblings, Duncan and the rest of my Hunters do not have a rightful place among the realms. That will all change soon enough. We will become a world of beings crafted of pure power and chaos.”

“Do you wish to say anything?”

Suddenly, my voice was mine again. Aldrick’s claws pulled free from the flesh of my mind, allowing my control to return.

“Burn. In.Hell,” I hissed, spittle flying past my lips.

“That judgement does not belong to you, Robin Icethorn. I think it is time that you all see for yourselves the promise of a future that is coming.”

Aldrick looked towards the Twin. “Seraphine, it is time we show them.”

The Twin, Seraphine, nodded, sheathing her blades at her waist. It was strange to understand that she had a name; she was a nameless puppet in my eyes.

“Go to him,” Aldrick said to me, hand urging me to move. “Be with your love and witness this together. Perhaps you will both understand what it is I work towards. Now go.”

“Fuck you,” I managed as my feet began to step forward and I walked, without my own doing, towards Duncan. As I joined his side the guards took a hold of me, dragging me to my knees. I bit back a gasp as my bones smacked into the stone ground. With the echo of a haunting laugh, Aldrick finally retracted from my mind.

“I didn’t mean to–”

Duncan stiffened beside me. “I know.”

I longed to reach for him, but the guards held me firm. Elinor looked down the line at me, eyes brimming with worry. I could see the question within her stare, and I nodded subtly to answer.I’m fine.

There was a screech of wheels, an awkward, unrhythmical squeaking as Seraphine struggled to pull a large object covered in a deep red velvet cloth. Aldrick stood still, hands clasped before him, as Seraphine guided the object behind him. From my view point it looked as though it was a large frame, and Aldrick was the painting trapped within it.

“The humans have followed the Creator for centuries, all without seeing Him, hearing His command or feeling His presence. The fey believe stories of Altar and how He created the four Courts from His blood and gave His children access to magic that placed them above anyone else. Stories. That is all it has been to each and every one of you. I cannot blame you for thinking me a fool, a cruel old man preaching the promise of a god that has been erased from the realm’s stories.”

Seraphine moved towards Aldrick and reached for his cloak. With bated breath, I watched, knowing what was coming. Slowly she lowered it, exposing the face of the man beneath, and the two points of his ears.

Kayne released a sound that was both a gasp and a growl. I was silent as Aldrick finally revealed his truth before us all. Even the guards who held me relaxed their hold as they too shared their shock at what they witnessed.

Aldrick had revealed himself as the very being that he had commanded his Hunters to hunt. He was fey and that truth snatched the sound from the room entirely.

He smiled, flashing stained teeth as he surveyed each of our reactions.

“I don’t understand.” Kayne broke the silence. “You cannot be…”

“Fey? Was the possibility far from your mind, Kayne? Was it truly that hard to imagine that one of their own could sign the seal of command that demanded the fey to be rounded up like cattle and brought here? I am part of both realms, Wychwood and Durmain, just like Robin here. It is why Duwar chose me to herald the new world, to create an army strong enough to fight for them.Freethem.”

“You tricked us,” Kayne shouted, finally fighting back against those who held him. “Why?”

“It is time you see why I’ve done all of this.” Aldrick tipped a head towards Seraphine, who grinned. She reached for the velveteen sheet across the large object and gripped a fistful.

I studied the hard, sharp profile of Duncan, who did not take his eyes off Aldrick for a moment. His lip was curled, his scarred face pinched deep in disgust at the man he saw.

“History will remember the names of those who witnessed Duwar before freedom was granted to them. And each of you will help in shattering their bindings and bringing the possibility of a new realm, one combined in Duwar’s name. There is still much work to do, but the wheels are turning.”

Seraphine yanked the cloth and it fell from the object, gently fluttering across the floor. It was a mirror, golden frame carved with intricate designs of stars woven among vines and flowers. The golden-painted surface had become worn in areas, revealing an uglier truth of ancient wood beneath it. The mirror held within the frame was equally as aged. In the corners were webs of small cracks spread across like greedy fingers wishing to claim the entire surface of the mirror.

Someone sucked in a sharp breath. I didn’t look around to see who it had been as a strange movement caught my attention. Something was moving. I looked harder, narrowing in on Aldrick’s back which was reflected in the mirror, then to the hand that reached out and wrapped around Aldrick’s shoulder. There was nothing in the room to explain what it was we saw.

This was no ordinary mirror. It was a window, revealing a realm that was not ours. The figure stepped forward from the darkness slowly. At first it was only the hulking outline that I could see. I blinked, unable to believe that what I saw was not one of Aldrick’s mind tricks. But it was as real as the floor beneath my knees. As real as the hands of the guards who still held me down.

Then I found myself muttering a name I had never believed I would call out for. “Altar, help us.”

CHAPTER 39

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