Landing on the shoulders of a guard, I twisted my grip on the swords and sunk them both into the middle of her chest. Damn, right in the boobs. That had to hurt. As her body hit it’s knees, my feet slammed into the slushy earth while I turned to face the apprehensive guards. All of them Fae I once knew from my time as a little girl locked up beneath the castle. All Fae that stood by with blank faces as they followed their precious Queens orders and tossed a little girl out onto her ass in the outerlands. Anger settled deep inside my chest at the memory and renewed my drive to slaughter them all beside their beloved queen.

Private Conan, was the first to charge me with a roar and a raised sword. The metal of our weapons clashed heavily as we tried to force the other back. Unfortunately for him, he forgot that I was playing with two. Conan’s body jolted, wide orange eyes staring into mine as the tip of my second sword broke through the skin of his back. Within a second, the man who used to beat me for everything and anything I did as a young girl took his last breath upon my sword. Pulling it free, I got to work on slaughtering the rest of the people from my past.

A glance to make sure Mab was still there on her war horse cost me a deep cut to the outer side of my left thigh. And the rain that had been coming down in sheets, now hurt like hell from the way she turned it into hail. Growling lowly, I pushed back the hair that fell free of my braid while simultaneously cutting off a guard’s leg at the knee with a clean strike. Turning quickly at the heat coming towards my back, I slung an arm around the closest guards neck and pulled him tight against my front. The bolt of lighting hit him directly in the heart causing his body to convulse against mine until the end. Dropping him, I snatched a silver chain from around my waist and snapped it in Mab’s direction.

At my will the metal chain elongated until it was just inches from wrapping itself around Mab’s swan-like neck. When an excruciating pain ripped through my left hip causing me to lose focus and miss. Screaming in fury at the failed kill shot, I looked down to find an iron arrow poking out from the ruined flesh of my hip. Motherfucker! Breaking off the thin arrow head, I reached around and ripped it out of my body before the burning iron could slither into my bloodstream. Whipping it back in the direction I thought it’d come from, I watched the archer’s body come tumbling out of the tree with the broken arrow protruding from his forehead.

With four guards left, I realized with growing unease and relief that the Commander wasn’t one of them. But then where was he? There was no way he’d leave his men to battle against a threat to the Queen without him. While he didn’t always agree with her and occasionally saved me from her wrath, Dougal was still her most loyal. Clearing my mind of the thought, I tossed a sword high into the air and willed the metal to split into pieces. The sharp metal shards glinted in the moonlight as they rotated above our heads for a moment before the spread of my fingers had them raining back down. With unnatural precision, the pieces struck the remaining guards in the heart causing them to fold into the mud like a wilting deck of cards.

Panting, I pressed a hand to the hole in my hip and turned back to stare at Mab. She was standing on the ground now, perfect velvet slippers caked in mud and blood along with the ends of her robe. A pale hand rose flicking in my direction with an almost lazy twist of her wrist, a harmless gesture really, except for the way that the rain started pouring down in solid sheets making it difficult to see. Squinting hard, I flexed a hand calling back all the metal shards to reform a sword. Lightning struck the ground inches from where I stood, bringing a smile to my lips. Looks like I wasn’t the only one having trouble seeing through the rain. 

“Afraid to face me head on, Mab?” I screamed over the thunder, “Come on! Let’s have a little fun!”

Her blurred form moved slightly in the rain while I made my way towards her with a sword gripped tightly in hand. Pain pinched through me with every step, the wound to my shoulder, hip and thigh causing more damage than I had originally thought. Sloshing through the mud, I tucked my now completely loose hair behind my ears and willed the rain to lessen it’s descent. A headache pounded between my temples and it was slow to follow my will but the rain finally bent beneath my will making Mab easier to see. The look of rage on her face would warm me for years to come and I laughed at how soon all of this would be over. My Kingdom would remain independent and my citizens would be safe along with the rest of the realm.

Excited, I did something that I normally wouldn’t do in public. Feeling the roots deep beneath the soil, I urged them to break through the surface at a rapid speed and wrap around Mab’s ankles. As soon as they touched her skin they froze before crumbling to the sides of her slippers. The ones waiting behind her struck then, winding themselves around her form and holding her in place. Flashing pointed teeth at her shocked expression, I didn’t waste time with words but launched my sword directly at her head. Everything seemed to still, even the sounds of the battle below stopped as it flipped end over end crossing the distance between us with an unnatural speed. I waited with bated breath for it to sink into her face with a shlunk sound when at the last second another weapon struck it off course.

A hollowness flooded through me moments ahead of the unequivocal rage that burned my veins. Air hissed out between my clenched teeth as I snapped my gaze in the direction the treacherous battle axe had come from. A large masculine form came up over the hill looking just as drenched as I was but it was the purple C embroidered on his chest that caught my eye. Dougal. The man who used to sneak me Choco Blasts in the middle of the night because he knew how strong my chocolate addiction was. The man who fought fruitlessly with his queen over the fact that her bastard daughter should be allowed a bedroom instead of a cell. The man who was sent away on a mission when they tossed me out because he would have found a way to convince the Queen to keep me.

My heart grew heavy in my chest at the memories but I pushed it aside the closer he got. Something wasn’t quite right, he looked taller. Lightning flashed between us giving me a clearer view and stealing my breath away all at once. Lilly. Cillian Grymes, Dougal’s eldest son and my first childhood crush slash enemy. Divines, he still looked good. He’d been a young adult while I’d just been entering my teen years when we had last seen each other. Everything about him was the same but different. The sides of his head were shaved down only allowing the middle to spring up in tightly curled silver locks. The planes of his face were sharper and more defined with a slight silver stubble along his jaw. Bright eyes that looked even brighter against his oak colored skin were blank along with his expression. Still as illusive and infuriatingly expressionless as always.

His eyes swept over Mab quickly looking for injuries before he swung those metalic eyes my way. My breath wanted to escape me once again but I wasn’t a little girl anymore and he just stole Mab’s death from my hands. Glaring, I ripped my sword through the air and back into my hand while I willed the second one to reform in my palm. If he fought anything like his father than killing Mab just got a whole lot fucking harder. Twirling the swords in my hands, I raised them both in a fighting stance and nodded my head towards Lilly.

Full lips pulled tight seconds before he pulled another battle axe from over his shoulder and charged. Sprinting at him head on, I dropped into the mud and slid between his muscular thighs. Flipping onto my back mid-slide, I launched myself quickly off the ground and latched my legs around his waist. My arms shot forward to pull back sharply in a X formation and slit his throat but I didn’t get that far. His battle axe slammed against my swords with such force that the vibrations caused them to slip from my grip. Faster than I would have thought possible, he reached back and yanked me up over his shoulder to slam me into the mud at his feet.

Fucking fuck. The impact caused the pain from my multiple wounds to flare up excruciatingly. Groaning, I slowly blinked up at Lilly and then rapidly before throwing myself to the side. His axe slammed into the ground where my head once was as I tried to find purchase in the slippery mud to stand. Enough. The bitch has to die. But Mab had the same idea. Rain fell down in sheets again washing away the mud caking my hair and face before it stopped and instantly froze. I was suddenly stuck to the ground on my hands and knees for a few moments before a heavy boot slammed into my wounded hip and sent me rolling across the hard ground.

Black spots peppered my vision but when footsteps sounded out coming closer to me, I began to laugh at the cruel reality of it all. I was so close. So fucking close. Mab’s face looked down on me beside Lilly’s, both of them emotionless except for the absolute glee that shined through purple eyes. Painted lips moved but nothing pierced through the fog of pain I was currently swimming in. Blood loss was a nasty cunt. I think I was even still laughing because the expressionless look on Mab’s face cracked right in half and then I could feel everything again.

Gasping, I looked down and found the source of clarity was due to the icicle plugging the hole in my hip. Laughing again, I snorted, “Like a cockroach, you just can’t fucking die can you?”

“This could have all been avoided if you gave up on your silly delusions of being a Queen.”

“Like you gave up your delusions of beauty?”

The spike twisted.

“Vanity, vanity, Mab. It’s an ugly trait.” I coughed out in pain.

At my words Lilly’s eyes flared with something too fast for me to decipher.

Mab’s lips quirked up at my pain, “It’s over.”

“You’re right, Mab.” I said as I willed the metal closer, “It is.” And then with the last of my strength, I-

A scream of raw agony tore its way up my throat from the incredible amount of pain that surged through my chest. The burning tingle that ran immediately after the pain told me that it was iron piercing just a few inches to the right of my heart. Eyes wide in anguish, I looked down at the stake and found an oak colored hand wrapped around it. Panting in pain, I lifted my gaze to stare into cold silver eyes.

And even though it made absolutely no sense, I felt betrayal rip through me. It didn’t make sense, he didn’t even know the real relationship between me and Mab or recognize me but the little girl in me who’d felt adoration for him felt betrayed. Which was only made worse when I realized that even with his hand wrapped around the iron stake sticking out of my chest, he was still the hottest male I had ever seen.

“You...hideous...fucking cunt.” I breathed out between gasps of pain, keeping my eyes on his.

“Finish her off, Commander.” Mab ordered.

His fingers slowly unclenched from around the stake, “My Queen, if she really is the Queen of the Banished-”

“She has no rights to any throne.” Mab hissed.

“Now, illigmently that’s another story.” I coughed out as she twisted the icicle deeper into my wound but the look on her face was worth it.

“-then you might be better off keeping her alive. To guarantee the cooperation of the Banished Kingdom.” He finished, ignoring our interruptions.

My own death was being denied to me. Oh, how fitting, I thought with a bitter laugh.

“You would have me keep this traitor alive?” Mab spit at him, tone drenched in disgust.

Uh, no. Queens and Kings died in battle beside their warriors. It’s tradition! Is what I meant to say but my mouth seemed to have stopped functioning. That’s alright, though. She wouldn’t let me leave here alive, not when she finally had a clean way to kill me.

Lilly’s face didn’t even twitch at her tone, “Yes. Whether you want to hear it or not, the Banished Kingdom is almost the same size as your own. If we kill the woman they see as a Queen, what’s to stop her citizens from tearing down our walls? We won this battle, My Queen. But we cannot take on a war so soon. We will fall.”

The spark in Mab’s eye that lit from his little speech gave me a very very bad feeling. Just what in the fuck did he think he was doing?

“Then what do you suggest, Commander.”

A brief pause where his eyes flicked to meet mine and then, “Life in Slykhelm.”

The air in my lungs froze as panic overwhelmed my entire being at his deceptively simple words. No, no, no, no, no, no. I would not, could not go back into another cell. Not another cell. Never again. Not EVER again.

With a burst of raw fear and fury, I willed the sword into my left hand and lurched up. Taking them both by surprise and sinking it deeply underneath the left side of Lilly’s chest. His features flashed in pain before he concealed it completely and ripped my hand off the handle as I tried to twist it up towards his heart.

“Looks like Slykhelm’s a fine idea, Commander.” Mab announced and I didn’t need to see that bitch's face to know a smug look covered it. “A thousand years and then she dies.”

Her voice sounded muffled as every ounce of hatred I could muster was focused on the one person making me relive the most hated part of my life. “You’ll regret this, Cillian. When I get out, and I will get out, I’ll rip your shriveled fucking heart from your chest and bury you in the earth. There won’t be a place you can hide that’ll save you from my wrath.”

He leaned close, lips brushing my ear as his hand wrapped around the iron stake, and whispered, “I really won’t. And nobody likes a tease, Cell Bait.”

Motherfu-

A quick flash of pain cut-off my thought and everything else.

-----------------------------------------------------------

Tidhg pronounced Tige

Macha pronounced Ma-cha

Cillian Grymes pronounced Kill-ian Grimes 

Slykhelm pronounced Sly-Helm

Whew! Am I the only one who thought that last part was kinda hot? I squeal a little everytime I read it, lol. If you’ve read the first one and can’t already tell, Macha and Cillian are VERY different from Kaiya and Ryan.

Also if you didn’t read the first one, you don’t have to. Both can be read as standalones. 

Smooches, Verbage💋