Yara couldn’t take her eyes away from the blood splashed across the floor, the walls, and the remains of the maidservant who had been alive just seconds ago. She kept replaying the scene in her mind, even though she didn’t want to, and she had begun to lose her sense of smell from the constant metallic tinge in her nostrils. What in the world was going on?

“Yara…“ Dev brought her into an embrace. “There’s nothing we could have done.”

She didn’t push him away, not this time. Closing her eyes, she hid her face in his chest, so that he wouldn’t see the fresh tears that were forming. He felt so warm, yet her heart felt like it was wrapped in a layer of ice.  

“What happened?” Yara mumbled, trying to keep her voice steady. She was beginning to lose her composure, and she could feel it. She didn’t want to break down in front of him like this. In times like these, she would call herself weak for feeling so emotional. It didn’t feel wrong at this moment, though. The poor woman had not deserved her fate, and anyone with a functioning emotional core would feel sadness at her passing.

“It was an illusory charge implanted inside her. It was either a delayed release or someone could have activated it—but charges of this nature are banned. They have been for at least 50 years.” 

“They were last used in the war…” Yara said. The same type of charge that had been used against her mother when she was a child. The power of glamor was sickeningly terrible. She never would have guessed she would see it happen in person during a time of peace. “Why now? It seems unnecessary to be so cruel.”

“I don’t know—” 

The doors burst open, the wood splintering into a million pieces. Both Yara and Dev turned in surprise, only to see Jolan with his foot out like he had kicked the door in. He had a glowing bow in his hands, and he cleared both corners before running in. 

He stopped as soon as he saw what was left of the maid. “We heard an illusionary charge and cleared the perimeter, but there was no culprit in sight. The nature of the explosion makes it hard to pinpoint the location.”

“We thought it was coming from the room next to us,” Lumi added. Yara realized this was the first time she had heard Lumi’s voice. She was soft-spoken, but she still seemed sure in her words. Above all, she remained vigilant, her silver eyes always roving about the room. 

“Illusory charges are nasty work.” Jolan sighed deeply, kneeling by the corpse. He closed his eyes and said a few words under his breath. “I will light a paper lantern for her tonight to send off into the skies. It will help guide her soul to the Otherworld.” 

Even fae magic could not bring back the dead. Elven use of undine magic allowed them to repurpose water as a curative agent—healing superficial wounds, repairing broken bones, and even regrowing tissue and muscle at advanced levels. Once an individual’s soul left their body—it was too late…and no amount of undine magic could restore their life. Yara stared at the remains, the chatter of her companions drowned out by the weight of her own thoughts. 

Death came far too easily, and she could be next, just like her sisters before her. Her head could be taken off by a fae sniper well before she’d even have the chance to process anything. But it wasn’t about her right now. No—a maidservant that had acted under coercion had been brutally disposed of—perhaps by the very same people who had given her the task. Her life had been expendable, seen as nothing more than an inconvenience to their grand plans. The question that came to her mind—what was the motive behind all this? What did her enemies gain by assassinating an elven princess so soon after terms for peace had been agreed upon? And when their plan failed, did they murder the maidservant so that she couldn’t reveal their identities? Whoever was behind all this must have been someone with the power to go unnoticed throughout the palace, or someone so high in position that they could orchestrate such blatant acts of violence. 

Dev cleared his throat. “I put an illusory veil up after Jolan burst in. Onlookers will not be able to see into this room—they will only see a door.” 

“Good…” Yara said. A bloody murder in the middle of the palace would definitely cause untold chaos. “What’s our plan?” 

“It would be extremely difficult to cover this up. The veil will only buy us a little time,” Dev said. “The charge would likely have not been heard due to all the chatter and commotion in the main hall. The sound gets scattered easily the farther you get from the source.” 

“I see. I mean, we didn’t do it. Who would we tell?”

“We need to figure out who we can trust, first. Then we can decide on a course of action.” 

“On top of that, we need to be able to prove our innocence,” Jolan said. “And even then—negligence.” 

“Yes…” Dev stared at the wall, racking his brain for ideas. 

“What does that mean in this case?” Yara asked. 

Dev paced back and forth, his hands held behind his back. “A fae is not allowed to let a fae under their supervision die. Whether it was inaction or ignorance does not matter. Every faerie’s life is precious, and those involved in their death, even if indirectly, are held responsible. If it is unknown who the murderer is, the people who witnessed her death will still need to take responsibility.”

“And that entails?...” 

Jolan sat down, looking more exhausted than ever. It was as if the energy had been drained from him in an instant. “A trial before the Summer Court itself—or a trial by combat.” 

“And the Summer Court is not to be trifled with. A trial before them is essentially a guaranteed death sentence,” Dev said. “One does not escape without dire consequences.”

“A trial by combat could be just as bad,” Jolan said. “Remember the last one?”

“All too well.” Dev’s lips were pressed into thin lines.He looked at Yara before giving the details.  “The Summer Court had decided that it would be a duel to the death. And my mother, Titania, was the one who fought on behalf of the court.”

“What happened?” Yara knew the answer wouldn’t be pretty, but she had to ask. 

“The accused was torn to shreds by her illusory handguns. He lasted about five seconds before he was killed. His body had so many holes in it that he was basically see-through all around. Many residents of the Summer Court refer to that duel colloquially as the ‘Holy Duel,’ as a sort of twisted play on words.”  

Yara gulped. “Wonderful. I’m glad people can make light of such a thing…” Just the description of the event felt so macabre to her, yet folks were referring to it so casually, and even poking fun at it. 

“If we choose a trial by combat, at least we won’t need to be going against Titania. She hasn’t been seen in years. No one knows what she has been doing.” 

“Some say she might have ascended to the Otherworld,” Jolan added. 

Those words reassured her, if only a little. The queen seemed to be a formidable foe, and the chances of victory seemed like a near impossible feat based on how everyone referred to her. If they didn’t have to face her, then they could win—somehow. Lumi and Jolan both seemed capable of taking on almost anyone, and Dev was a skilled sharpshooter from what she had seen. Yara didn’t doubt their combat capabilities. Other than that, however, everything else seemed to be going wrong. 

The weddings she had read about in her romance books had been vastly different from what was happening at present. In the stories, they had wed in fancy palaces, performing loving rituals and enjoying the company of friends and family. They had not been dealing with a near-everlasting war, betrayal from within, the murder of innocent civilians for political gain. 

“So…is that our option? We fight?” 

“It’s the only option. Though chances are slim either way, this route gives us minimally higher odds of success.” 

“Something is better than nothing,” Lumi said as she ripped a tablecloth in two. She crouched next to the body of the maidservant and began wiping away the blood with a tender touch. “If it’s combat—I can represent you, my lord.” 

“Lumi…are you sure?” 

“As sure as I will ever be.” She stopped scrubbing the floor. “I wish to atone for this needless death.” 

“It wasn’t your doing.”

“No, but it was my responsibility,” Lumi said. “I failed to protect you, Lord Devesh. And in failing to do so, I also failed this poor maid. If we had been aware of her situation, we could have figured out a way to save her.”

A curt voice began to speak, and they all turned their heads toward the source, but they couldn’t see anything. Then they heard the slight buzz of wings. 

“Shi—” Jolan cursed. “A dragonfly drone.” 

“Information collected. Violation of Faerie Law: Murder on Royal Premises. Negligence detected. Defendants: Devesh of House Eglantine, Jolan of House NULL—Autumn Court, Lumi of House NULL—Winter Court…” The dragonfly raised into the air. Its bulbous eyes had a soft glow that brightened as it spoke each word. “Yara of House NULL, non-fae resident. Reporting to High King Oberon.”