The gnome crossed the room to me and climbed into the stool opposite.
“I am Eric von Radach, Keeper of the Manor in Calgary,” the gnome said quietly. “Announce yourself, stranger.”
“I am Jason Kilkenny, changeling out of Georgia of no known fae parent,” I laid out quickly. “I seek leave to settle and take up a mortal occupation, as my blood is not thick enough for me to serve the Courts.”
Eric typed all of what I said into a tiny laptop that appeared from nowhere and vanished just as thoroughly a moment later.
“You’ve come a long way, Mr. Kilkenny,” the gnome observed. “What brings you all the way up here?”
“A hope for quiet,” I answered honestly, though my welcome to the town was now making me doubt that hope. Again. “I just want to live a normal life, and it’s hard to remove oneself from the Courts in the South.”
“A fair hope,” Eric agreed. “I see no concern for us here. You will need to meet Lord Oberis, of course—I called him before I came out. He should be here”—there was a burst of wind as the doors opened and closed again—“shortly.”
The man who entered was every inch a sidhe lord, fair and terrifying. Like everyone else in the room—including me—he wore his blond hair long to cover his ears, and it brushed against the shoulders of the heavy cashmere coat he wore. The tall fae walked across the room toward Eric and me, and I considered what Oberis would see.
I am tall for a human but short for a fae, at just under six feet tall. I probably looked scrawny and underfed to this perfectly chiseled specimen of inhumanity. My mixed brown hair was as long as Oberis’s but due to lack of care rather than style. I was dressed in a mismatched mess of clothes stolen or purchased for warmth more than color coordination on the way north. Every possession I owned was in a backpack at my feet.
There was no way—no way—that the fae lord would have dropped everything to come meet the new changeling in town. Fae lords had flunkies for that. And yet...
“I am Oberis,” he introduced himself superfluously when he reached the table. “Lord of the Court here in Calgary—there are hardly enough of us to justify two courts,” he explained with a grin that somehow shattered the cold inhumanity of that perfect face.
“This, my lord, is Jason Kilkenny, changeling of no known lineage,” Eric introduced me formally. “He wishes to settle and pursue mortal employment.”
“Is that so?” Oberis regarded me, his gaze level but warmer than I expected from the winter outside. “Why mortal employment? There are few changelings here, even fewer than there are fae. We may find some use for you.”
Well, if there were that few fae floating around this city, that would at least somewhat explain why his Lordship was here talking to the newcomer so quickly. It meant both that he wasn’t busy and that, weak as I was, even my presence might be considered important.
“With respect, Lord,” I answered slowly and carefully, trying to consider how to dodge politics without offending a fae lord in apparently desperate need of help, “my blood is too weak for me to be of much aid, and I desire more than anything to leave the world of Court and Manor behind. It has brought me little but grief.”
Oberis nodded. “Very well. I grant you both succor and the right to settle. However, there is one last formality.”
My sigh of relief stopped in mid-breath at his words. “What formality, my lord?”
“I am not the final authority here in Calgary,” Oberis explained. “In this city, we all answer to the Wizard and his Enforcers.”
“There is a Wizard here?” I squeaked. The last heirs of Merlin’s teachings were few and far between in the modern world—I’d heard one old fae guess less than twenty remained—and were basically demigods that only traveled because moving the continents around to bring their destination to them was a bit too flashy.
Changeling’s Fealty by Glynn Stewart
Interested in reading more? Changeling’s Fealty is available now.
About the Author
Glynn Stewart is the author of Starship’s Mage, a bestselling science fiction and fantasy series where faster-than-light travel is possible–but only because of magic. His other works include science fiction series Duchy of Terra, Castle Federation and Vigilante, as well as the urban fantasy series ONSET and Changeling Blood.
Writing managed to liberate Glynn from a bleak future as an accountant. With his personality and hope for a high-tech future intact, he lives in Kitchener, Ontario with his wife, their cats, and an unstoppable writing habit.
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Other books by Glynn Stewart
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Teer & Kard
Wardtown
Changeling Blood
Changeling’s Fealty
Hunter’s Oath
Noble’s Honor
Fae, Flames & Fedoras: A Changeling Blood Universe Novella
ONSET
ONSET: To Serve and Protect
ONSET: My Enemy’s Enemy
ONSET: Blood of the Innocent
ONSET: Stay of Execution
Murder by Magic: an ONSET Universe Novella
Starship’s Mage
Starship’s Mage
Hand of Mars
Voice of Mars
Alien Arcana
Judgment of Mars
UnArcana Stars
Sword of Mars
Mountain of Mars
The Service of Mars (upcoming)
Starship’s Mage: Red Falcon
Interstellar Mage
Mage-Provocateur
Agents of Mars
Castle Federation
Space Carrier Avalon
Stellar Fox
Battle Group Avalon
Q-Ship Chameleon
Rimward Stars
Operation Medusa
A Question of Faith: a Castle Federation Novella
Exile
Ashen Stars
Exile
Refuge
Crusade
Duchy of Terra
The Terran Privateer
Duchess of Terra
Terra and Imperium
Darkness Beyond
Shield of Terra
Imperium Defiant
Relics of Eternity
Shadows of the Fall (upcoming)
Peacekeepers of Sol
Raven’s Peace
The Peacekeeper Initiative (upcoming)
Shattered Stars: Conviction
Conviction
Deception (upcoming)
Vigilante (With Terry Mixon)
Heart of Vengeance
Oath of Vengeance
Bound By Stars: A Vigilante Series (With Terry Mixon)
Bound By Law
Bound by Honor
Bound by Blood
Fantasy Stand Alone Novels
Children of Prophecy
City in the Sky
