“If Chand stays here, we can help,” Daemon Lord Baxter Daray insisted.
“Go,” Chander directed.
“Any idea what this is?” Emperor Ellery Draconis asked.
“The sky is pink,” Renny responded, laying a hand on his sword. “Given that, and our clothing, I think we’re in the Fae realm somehow. I don’t know why it’s keeping me in true form and altering everyone else’s appearances.”
“And who in the world is going to explain to the Council of Sorcery and Shifters that not only are their leaders on the Fae realm, but so are some of the most powerful sorcerers and shifters alive?” Chrysander demanded.
The tension leached from Rafe’s body as family members entered the room, which helped lower Aleksander’s anxiety. His mate’s brother, Seneschal Duke-mate Kendrick, had inched his way to Rafe’s side while he waited for his other half, Seneschal Duchess Noirin, to help round up D’Vaires. Although he’d acted horribly toward his brother for many weeks, Kendrick had made it a personal mission to build a friendship with Rafe, and Aleksander’s kind mate had welcomed the idea with cautious exuberance.
It might still piss Aleksander off that Kendrick had hurt him, but Rafe would have never allowed any kind of repercussion to befall him, so Aleksander had not made it a point of contention between them. Instead, he’d elected to wait and see how the future unfolded. Had Kendrick not so enthusiastically embraced a relationship with his sibling, Aleksander might have tried to talk Rafe into a punishment. Although he was not inclined to form a tight bond with Kendrick yet, he had offered unwavering support to his cousin.
Noirin had been subdued for months, and Aleksander had worried over her, but he could not interfere in a matebond. Not one to show her feelings on the outside, Aleksander had to wait for those rare moments when she wished to discuss it. Her choice was to either forgive Kendrick for lying to her and inflicting pain on one of the men she was sworn to protect or walk away from the other half of her soul. It was the pitfall of having a mate, and Aleksander was glad she was returning to her normal self with Kendrick at her side.
“That’s everyone,” Worth stated, swaggering in after Prism Wizard Severin Porfyra-Dewitt’s familiar, Emrys, who ran in on hurried kitty legs.
“This is fucking ridiculous,” Chieftain-mate Aristos Valzadari-Centaurus snarled. Unlike the dragons, who had what appeared to be a layer of scales on their skin, the centaur and his brothers bore the long hair and beards that normally accompanied their shift.
“That’s a bad word, Dad,” Pyxlevir Valzadari told him. “You owe Tiri a dollar.”
“Why do I look the same, but almost everyone else doesn’t?” Ducblanc-mate Tiridythas D’Vaire asked.
As Aleksander gazed around, he noted that except for the elf-dragon hybrid and the two elves who bore demonic blood that had their wings behind them like Chander, every other person with elven blood looked no different than normal. Even their clothing hadn’t changed. Setting that aside as something to worry about later, Aleksander had to figure out what in the hell had brought them to the Fae realm and how to get home.
Rorie rushed in, and his expression was strained. “Have you seen Drekkoril?” the fairy asked.
“Rorie, where are we, and how did we get here?” Aleksander demanded.
“We are in Sindrell; it is the center of government on my realm. This is my castle,” Rorie explained.
“Why did you take us to the Fae realm without our permission?” Imperial Duke Damian Draconis asked, his brow furrowed.
“I feared you would not agree to come, so I bespelled your food and drink,” Rorie answered, his eyes on the ground.
Aleksander opened his mouth to speak, but the room filled with complaints and demands in short order. The words toppled over each other, no single person making their voice heard. A loud whistle ripped through the space, and Aleksander’s attention went straight to his brother.
“If everyone speaks at once, we can get no answers,” Worth calmly stated. “Rorie, you cannot take people against their will to a location, no matter how right it is in your mind. Many of the folks here have duties to attend.”
“No one will miss you,” Rorie insisted.
“With all due respect, Protector Roriethiel, that is patently untrue,” Chrysander retorted.
“Please, I must explain. This is a dream,” Rorie said. “I crushed the scales of Orlami and Zurenzi, so I could craft a spell that took us here to the realm of the Fae. You will sleep no longer than normal. I confess this was not an easy feat. When I tied my soul to Orlami, it took much trial and error to construct my magic to make this possible. Orlami showed me such a thing in a dream, and I had to try it. Together, we often relived the creation of our bond. It is told through his eyes. Faedrekan see only truth. This time, he and his v’airsell nioll will guide us. I must know what happened to Drekkoril and myself. How did we come to be in your world? I am glad to have met you, Renny, but I need you to understand what I am missing. I beg you to keep open minds.”
“Rorie, I can appreciate that you need answers and that you want us to visit your home, but you should’ve asked,” Renny answered, his gaze burning with anger.
“Would any of you have agreed? How long would you have allowed a debate to go on about who might travel with me through this dream? What if I could convince no one?”
“Although we might not like the expediency of waiting for agreement, there should be guidelines to how you meddle with people’s lives,” Worth stated.
“It is merely a dream,” Rorie said. “Nothing will happen to you in this world. In eight hours, you will awake, remembering everything. It will cost you nothing. I know it was cowardly and rash of me to do it without your knowledge, but I cannot regret it.”
Aleksander’s eyes met Rafe’s, and the dragon shrugged. “Why do we look so different from our normal appearance?” Rafe asked.
“How is this going to affect Rafe’s intolerance to magic? How will we make his special ginger tea here?” Kendrick demanded.
“Because it is a dream, his body will remain unaffected by sorcery. I do not know why you appear different, but I find your painted skin exquisite, Renny,” Rorie said. “Perhaps here in this realm fueled by magic, your true selves show.”
