A Fey New World (The Godhunter #32) - Amy Sumida Page 0,12
close it before you take care of the flora.”
“Of course.” Arach gestured for Mallien to proceed.
“Shouldn't it be in the center of all of this?” Lugh asked.
“Not necessarily,” Mallien murmured as he stretched a hand out and looked around. “Magic can behave erratically, especially when it's growing. It could have jumped.”
“Jumped?” I asked.
“Jumped.” Mallien nodded as he walked off... then vanished.
“Mallien?” I called.
Mallien reappeared, looking grim. “The way through is here.” He lifted an arm and his hand vanished. “No cave or tree or anything to hide or hold it—just a door from this world to ours, hanging in midair. It is most irregular.”
“An invisible door,” I growled. “Anything could wander through, not just humans.”
“Yes, that has occurred to me, Queen Vervain,” Mallien said grimly. “But this is what I'm here for.”
Mallien held up both of his hands, palms facing outward, and closed his eyes. A glow seeped out of his palms and soaked into the passage, forming a tall oval. The oval of light brightened and then suddenly winked out. I'd seen the trick before, when Mallien had closed the passages in the Fire Kingdom, but it was still impressive.
“There. Now, your efforts should prove triumphant, King Arach,” Mallien declared.
The other men drew even further back, but I stayed at my husband's side as he blew a stream of fire over the affected land. The beautiful flowers and grass were gone in an instant, reduced to ash that floated up into the morning mist. It hurt my heart a little to see them destroyed, but I understood that it was for the best. They couldn't be left there to be discovered by the locals. Or worse, hurt the locals.
After Arach burned them, I held out my hand and drew in the lingering heat, taking its power into me and putting out and embers that might be hiding in the soil. Fire Faeries can use the energy in fire to heal and strengthen ourselves. It's also the easiest way to put out a fire.
The smoke cleared, merging with the mist, and Lugh stepped up with the other men to stare at the blackened ground in a reverent silence that we all shared. The plants may not have been sentient but they had held magic. Which meant that we had just destroyed fey magic—a part of Faerie and, therefore, a part of ourselves.
But as we stared silently, each of us lost to our sad thoughts, a tiny blade of grass sprang up rebelliously through the ash of its predecessors.
“Oh, no,” I whispered.
More grass began to sprout and then flowers blossomed upon stalks, their vibrant petals waving like the banners of valiant knights. Maybe the damn things were sentient because it sure felt as if they were communicating. Like a floral middle finger flicked in our faces.
“This is very irregular,” Mallien murmured.
“The paths aren't the problem,” Lugh noted. “They're only a symptom.”
“Like sex,” I muttered.
“Excuse me?” Arach lifted a brow at me.
“Sex,” I said again. “All of the lust going around the Faerie Realm is a symptom of whatever this is.”
“This isn't a disease, Vervain,” Arach argued. “This isn't a symptom, it's simply a result. Cause and effect.”
“Look at you, talking like a human,” I teased. But then I sobered, “And you're right. So, if this is the effect, what's the cause? Because that's what we need to deal with.”
“Whatever it is, it's strong enough to establish a magical foothold here,” Mallien noted.
“A foothold?” Lugh asked.
“It jumped, as I said. Leaping from the passageway to anchor itself in this patch of earth,” Mallien explained. “It separated from its source and, as you can see, it doesn't need the source anymore. This has essentially become a piece of Faerie on Earth.”
“Oh, fuck,” Lugh cursed. “Faerie said this happened because the realm was flourishing. Does that mean we have to stop the Faerie Realm from growing to stop it from coming here?”
“Growing!” I pointed at him. “That's it! It's not just flourishing, it's growing past its borders.”
“But the Faerie Realm is surrounded by dark matter—open space,” Lugh argued. “If it's growing, shouldn't it be growing in that direction?”
“It should,” I agreed. “Except there's now a ring around the original portion of the realm. A ring of land that was never connected to Earth.”
“The Dark Kingdom,” Arach murmured.
Everyone looked at Drake.
“What did I do?” Drake huffed.
“Do you think the Dark Kingdom has somehow confined Faerie and forced her to grow inward, pushing her magic through the Aether and into Earth instead of outward?” Rory asked.