And yet I was, through no real fault of anyone but my own, although I hadn’t yet decided if my true crime was pledging service to a vile dictator or betraying her. When I went to the Moonstone Castle and the Kings weren’t there, fear had set in that I was really too late, that Minerva had won. I knew her end goal was not only to trap the Kings but to kill the girl. She refused to tell me why, or maybe she had told me and then suppressed the memories. Either way, I didn’t quite care. I’d killed enough people for the Unseelie Queen without worrying who deserved it and who didn’t; that wasn’t my job.
Meeting Myrcedes had been a shock. It was obvious she wasn’t ordinary the second we were in the same room. After all, how many people in the Underworld had literal fire that surrounded them? The only other creatures who radiated energy that way were Death and his twin brother. I’d assumed Minerva’s quarrel with this human woman was mere jealousy over an ancient rejection, but seeing Myrcedes’ power emanate from her in such a visible manner, it was obvious that there was something deeper. Then, for this powerful woman to step in between me, an agent of her enemy, and her own gargoyles was an act of bravery. It immediately pissed me off.
From that first moment she’d stepped in between us, placing herself in the perfect position to be assassinated if that had been my plan, I became annoyed. I couldn’t explain why she seemed to bother me. I’d spent weeks, months even, building her up in my head as nothing more than the most recent plaything for the Kings of the Underworld. Even though this was nowhere but in my own head, it was embarrassing to admit that I’d been so unabashedly wrong. I’d assumed her merely human, inconsequential. Then to hear my own Queen admit this flaming girl was the Queen of Earth, and to watch that girl destroy one of the most ancient and powerful creatures in existence in under a minute was preposterous. Yet it happened.
I’d helped save the Kings and watched what I had once believed to be an average human woman destroy the being I had pledged my life to serve. After that was over, I didn’t have much of a desire to stay with them in the Underworld. Besides, as soon as I’d fulfilled my purpose, I could sense the gargoyle brothers’ welcome wearing off. My help was no longer needed, after all, so once everyone had calmed down after Myrcedes’ outburst - some frivolous, petty complaint about the Kings not disclosing that Death had been involved with Minerva ages ago - I excused myself and returned to the fae realm. I had a passing suspicion that it was a bad idea, but I couldn’t abandon my home.
The second I jumped to the yard in front of the Jewel Palace, a pit formed in my stomach. People were running around in confusion and fear, worried that whatever took the Unseelie Queen’s life would come for them. I took a deep breath and headed inside.
“General!” Once someone called for me, the dominoes began to fall.
“General? Where’s the General?”
My own soldiers descended upon me. It didn’t surprise me. There were quite a few alchemists, but none as skilled as I in the Queen’s company.
“What happened?” The accusatory and demanding voice came from none other than my right-hand man, Bahz. I kept my head high and met his gaze. I had expected this. It was the price I had to pay for betraying the Unseelie Queen. I told myself that whatever came next, it was worth it.
“Lieutenant,” I began. “Queen Minerva is dead.”
“What happened?” he repeated, fear creeping into his eyes. “What did you do?” Bahz grabbed my shoulders aggressively and pushed me.
“Lieutenant!” I snapped. “Keep in mind to whom you’re speaking! I am your superior and deserve your respect.”
“No…” the pale blonde Seelie shook his head. I felt my eyebrow twitch, not expecting such a blatant reaction. “You killed the Queen. I believe that qualifies as a resignation, don’t you?”
“This isn’t a game, you-”
“Take Kalian to the dungeons,” he barked. I could have laughed. This was clearly a boy too big for his breeches. All humor drained from my mind, however, when I felt two of the guards grab me. I knew better than to resist and refused to waste my energy on an explanation no one would heed, but my eyes didn’t leave Bahz’s face, rife with confusion, fear, and hubris even he knew was dangerous.
“You’re under arrest for treason and the murder of Queen Minerva,” he announced. “More charges will be brought against you as soon as an investigation is complete.”
A lump sat in my throat. I didn’t know what to say, so silence hung in the air as two of the soldiers began leading me through the palace, on display like a prisoner of war after a successful conquest. Appearances should have been the least of my worries that night, yet I couldn’t help but feel humiliated at the sight I must have been. Still, I kept my head high and my chest forward, ever the brave and confident General they knew me to be. I’d made my choices, and I’d accepted the consequences.
It had been a week and a half now that I’d been in this cell, the same dirty hole I had locked too many prisoners in to count. I thought back through some of them as I dug into the cold meal: the ogres, banshees, spirits, and Unseelie that had sat on the same bed I sat on now.
“I still can’t believe it…”
The guards outside my cell were chatty, as usual. I had
