A few yards away, I could see a large dais with a guillotine sitting atop the stage. There was a mob in the street chanting something in a fae language as two of the royal guards clad in golden armor ascended to the dais. They were dragging someone along with them that I didn’t recognize, but I knew from the scythe attached to her back that she was a reaper. She looked like an elf as well. It hit me quickly that this must be Serriah, the elven reaper Daath had assigned to assist in ruling the fae realm.
The pale soldier with blonde hair was next to the guillotine waiting for the guards with their prisoner. His beautiful armor was splattered with blood, just as the blade of the guillotine was. As I took in this sight, I felt as though I was going to throw up, and I knelt to the ground to steady myself.
My reflection knelt with me. “They are working their way through those they feel unfairly treated by. They have already executed some council members. Now it’s her turn.”
“What happened to Kalian?” I asked quickly, holding back the bile that was trying to come up my throat.
“Kalian was the first.” Her words hit me like a brick. My mind flooded with images of him at the guillotine, punished once again for his actions of doing the right thing.
“Why are you showing me this?” As horrified as I was, it also confused me. This seemed to have more to do with Daath and Syrion’s actions than mine. “Am I supposed to stop this too? Is it my fault?”
Instead of answering, my reflection stood. “Remember these images, Myrcedes.”
I managed to stand to my feet. “Can you tell me anything else?”
“Not right now, Spirit.”
I felt the voice echo around me once again and turned to find its source, only to see another door that seemed to appear from nowhere. I turned back to my reflection, but she had gone. The chanting from the mob grew louder, and on the stage, Serriah was forced to her knees before the massive weapon. I grabbed the handle and ran through the door as fast as I could, only to realize I was back in the original moonstone hall of the Floor of Dreams. The door I’d just come through swung shut behind me.
“Hello?” I called. “Come back!”
No answer. I tried to open the doors, but all that I was met with were walls of moonstone. In the corner of my eyes, I thought I saw the back of my reflection walking away in between two doors.
“I need to know-” I began to walk toward myself in the reflection, but hit the wall. I cringed, holding my nose where it had slammed into the stone. “Shit…” I looked around until I recognized the door that led out to the rest of the castle and opened it to find Syrion. He turned to see me and stared as I still held my nose.
I expected this King of mine to comfort me, ask what had happened, perhaps take me in his arms. Instead, he only laughed.
I glared at him. “What the hell is funny to you?”
“You…” he struggled to speak between laughing. “You walked into the wall, didn’t you?”
I sneered. “Yes.”
He held his hand over his mouth, trying to stifle his amusement. “It’s… It’s just… Daath and I did the same thing,” he laughed. “It had been so long, I forgot… I should have warned you, my love.”
“Yes!” I growled. “You should have!” I pushed past him and began to descend the stairs.
He followed me, grabbing my arm and pulling me close. “No!” He was still struggling to stifle laughter. “Yes, you’re right. I should have. I am so sorry I forgot, dearest.” As he spoke, he wrapped one arm around me and brushed through my hair, trying to quell my anger. “Please, forgive me. Tell me what happened before that?”
I frowned, calming down but still frustrated at him. Suddenly, a wave of exhaustion hit me. “I… I need to lie down.”
All amusement disappeared from his face, and concern took its place. He nodded. In a second, we were back in my room. He picked me up and laid me on the bed before sitting next to me. He stroked my hair as a glass of water materialized on the nightstand. “What happened, little one?” he asked as he handed me the glass. “Did you find what you were looking for?”
I took a drink and shivered as the cold washed through my body.
“N-no,” I sighed. “She wouldn’t tell me… but what I saw was more important.”
Syrion stared at me in concern and confusion. “What did you see?”
8
Myrcedes
“Hiiiiiiiii!” Lindsay squealed, throwing her arms around my neck as I walked in the door. “Ah! I have been waiting for this for so long!”
“Lower the frequency, Linds! You’re scaring the dolphins,” I laughed, hugging her tight. I’d been dying to see her ever since I’d visited the Floor of Dreams a few days ago. It was such a relief to see her so lively.
For decades, I’d known Lindsay as a beautiful girl with waves of red curls, creamy skin, bright, beautiful eyes, and a nice figure. That was the best friend I’d known for years. Once I met Daath and Syrion, however, and they’d given me true sight to remove most of the glamours that non-human creatures used to disguise their true forms, I’d seen her for what she truly was. Now, I knew her to have gray skin the color of charcoal dust, sharp ears and sharper canine teeth, pupils shaped like a cat’s, and even more drastic and sexy curves than she’d had before. It was a bit shocking at first, but it had only taken me minutes to get past my shock and remember that no matter how she looked, she
