Page 42 of Queen of Thorns
Caelynn
The images of my childhoodhome haunt me for the next hour as we bump down the uneven roadways covered in weeds and overgrown bushes. Even with Rev’s arms around me, my mind cannot keep those heavy thoughts and feelings from suffocating me.
The carriage stops eventually, and Rev squeezes me. “We’re here,” he whispers.
My stomach drops to my feet. I blink back my dark memories to see the three Crackling Court fae staring at me. Here.
Home.
Rev exits the carriage first. The sky is dark grey behind him as he holds out his hand to me. I take it and step out into the world of shadows. My home.
I pull in a breath as I look up to the massive castle looming ahead. Dark spires stretch into the sky over sharp-edged stone platforms. The palace looks like a mountain carved into a gothic castle.
I struggle to force air through my lungs.There is a stretch of cobblestone road lined with buildings between me and the stairs to the palace gates.
Rev stands beside me, a constant comforting presence, but he doesn’t push. He just waits for me to be ready. The shadow sprites swirl around us, leaping down the pathway toward the shining black steps that lead to two huge iron gates.
The Crackling Court carriage is a few yards behind us, watching. They too realize that this is a big moment for me. For the court. And the presence of a ruling court carriage has brought the attention of many townspeople all around, even as the sun sets.
The chattering of distant fae grows quickly, and soon, crowds begin pooling at the edges of the alleys.
They’re waiting. Waiting for me to do something, say something.
It doesn’t take long for my name to scatter through the crowd, though I’m surprised I’ve been recognized that quickly. As much as I’m famous here, most Shadow fae have never seen my face, and I’m still a few dozen yards from the gathering crowds down the hill.
The shadow sprites are less patient, though, and they leap down the streets, bounding and chattering excitedly. Maybe they’re the reason the crowds have caught on to who I am. Maybe they already know why I’m here.
I’ve been fairly infamous in the fae realm for a full decade, but this is the first time I’ve really had the opportunity to experience my fame in the court that actually likes me. My muscles tense, heart pounding. I half expect to be attacked at any moment because that’s the kind of treatment I’m most used to.
I hide every emotion behind a mask so carefully constructed it’s hard for me to tell the difference between me and who I pretend to be.
My feet are frozen to the spot, my eyes glued to the dark stone that’s visited my dreams for decades now. Everything here is dark, and not in the way that I expected the Shadow Court to be.
In my dreams, the wonderous Shadow Court is glorious and majestic. Shining, poised, and smooth. But this place is... dull. Large and impressive, but haunted.
This is closer to what the courts who hate us picture. Old and dingy. Lifeless.
At some point, it became a reality through neglect.
The spires on the outside of the massive building are faded, translucent. Like a dark ghost. Like the phantom I see in myself.
The center of the palace is solid black, but even there, dirt and scorch marks streak down the stone walls. One of the pinnacles is bent. Pieces of the tallest turret is crumbled.
The city even smells stagnant. Old. Dirty.
