Page 158 of The Shadow Path
The king of the fae held up a hand, then bent down, touched the watery surface of Saris Plain, and Carys saw his mouth move as he spoke to the water.
Lightning flashed and thunder ripped the sky. With the fae king bent down, the ground burst open and the Great Serpent, its golden-brown scales shimmering in the flashes of lightning, burst from the watery ground and aimed itself toward the last of the Fomorian army.
His body was the length of a city block, as giant as a great whale, and as his mouth gaped open, Carys saw the jaws lined with two rows of vicious, serrated teeth.
The serpent slithered over the grassy plain as water poured from the sky, and then it opened its great jaws and swallowed the last of the monsters in a single, violent gulp.
“Fuck me,” Duncan muttered. “That’s something you don’t see every day.”
Every human on Saris Plain was frozen as the massive serpent turned, its body gliding smoothly over the grassy hills and the watery rills, passing by the Anglian armies, the various fae, and all the staring wolves.
After a pause, the wolves threw their heads back and howled in triumph.
A moment later, the Great Serpent of London twisted his great scaled body, slid into a massive pool of water near the fae king’s feet, and disappeared from sight.
In the middle of the howling and ferocious cheers of the wild fae army, Dru spoke words that whispered across Carys’s ears, then slipped away without leaving footprints.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
Three days later, King Harold of London and Crown Princess Finola of Éire reaffirmed the Queens’ Pact on the top of Lud’s Hill with cheering crowds from across London celebrating the return of good weather, healthy animals, and the Great Serpent, who had reappeared in the Tamis two days before.
The river was filled with flower wreaths, offerings of food, and floating lanterns to celebrate the great snake’s return.
Milk was set out on every hearth, and flowers and ribbons hung from the branches of every tree in the forests that dotted the city.
King Harold had declared a week of celebration and unity to commemorate the lost and give thanks to the gods and the Great Serpent for securing peace.
Carys, Laura, and Duncan walked along the river on Oswulf’s Way, the large green embankment that bordered the Tamis where wild river sprites danced in the reeds, the occasional mermin peeked out to watch the brightly dressed humans, and otters were back to play in the verge.
The people of London had filled the green space, and Carys in her leather dragon armor was thanked by nearly every Londoner she passed.
Even the trolls.
“You’re a hero here,” Duncan said. He still had a long dagger at his waist, but he’d left his sword at Dafydd’s castle. “You sure you want to go back to the Brightlands?”
“Ha!” Carys looked at the grey sky overhead. Even with the raucous celebrations happening across the city, the brightest the Shadowlands got was a milky-white sky. “I need some sunshine.”
“So not London then,” Duncan said. “Or Scone.”
“Or Baywood for that matter,” Laura added. “It’s June Gloom time back home.”
“June Gloom?” Duncan asked. “What, the sky you mean?”
“Yeah, it’s a thing by the coast from the ocean fog,” Laura said. “May Grey. June Gloom.”
“No-Sky July,” Carys added. “Fogust.”
Duncan frowned. “Wait, is the weather in Baywoodworsethan Scotland? I didn’t think that was possible. You’re in California, for goodness’ sake.”
“It’s a big state,” Laura said, “with a lot of cold ocean.”
A pair of brightly clad children ran past them, nearly causing Carys to trip. They giggled and raced through the crowds on the river walk as their father shouted at them to “apologize to the dragon lady, for Tamis’s sake.”
Carys squinted at them as they disappeared into the trees. “Were those kids wearing Spider-Man shirts?”
“One was Deadpool, I think.”
“Ah, the troll markets are back in business,” Duncan said. “The Shadowlands are healing.”
