A Fey New World (The Godhunter #32) - Amy Sumida Page 0,121

filming the people around them; they'd probably caught their transformation back to human. Andrea Pittman was practically peeing her reporter pants with glee. She smiled broadly as the portcullis lifted and stepped up to meet us at the end of the drawbridge, quickly introducing herself and her crew. Then she curtsied; it was adorable.

“Welcome, all of you,” Azrael said. “As you can see”—he waved his hand at the ex-faeries—“My wife and I have been busy this morning. There is much to discuss. But first, I need to speak with these people here, if you don't mind?”

“Of course,” Andrea Pittman said, then waved at her cameramen to keep rolling.

The ex-faeries dropped to their knees as Azrael and I approached them.

“Please, stand up, all of you,” Azrael said.

They got to their feet, exchanging wary looks with each other.

“I want to thank you for your service and the sacrifices you made to be with us,” Azrael said. “The Golden Citadel will soon become an embassy and my wife and I will need humans to help us run it. If you wish to stay, you will have a position here. However, if you wish to leave, you may continue to live on our land until you find a new home and you will be compensated for the time you spent with us. Either way, I want you to know that all of you are special to me. You are humans who were chosen by our magic. There is something inside all of you that welcomed faerie and that speaks well of you. Even without the magic inside you, you are still our chosen ones.”

The ex-fey cheered and cried and thanked Azrael. Then they bombarded him with questions and he patiently answered every one of them. Several chose to return to their old homes and families but many more decided to stay with us. Once they were seen to, they headed back to their cottages in the forest that still stood around the Golden Citadel while Azrael and I escorted the news crew inside.

“Do you mind if we film the inside of the Citadel?” Andrea asked.

“Not at all,” Azrael said graciously.

The cameramen—there were three—immediately started filming the courtyard and kept filming as they followed us inside. Andrea walked just behind Azrael and me but the rest of her crew—each of them pulling wheeled carts of equipment behind them—came in behind the cameras, making sure to stay out of the shots. We led them to the reception room where, to Andrea Pittman's gasping delight, we introduced them to the Royals of the Faerie Realm.

As the crew set everything up, Andrea went over how we'd like the interview to go. We decided that Azrael would make a statement to begin, introduce the Royals next, then she could question him. The Royals weren't there to be interviewed, just introduced to the world. Andrea, of course, agreed and once everything was set up, she eagerly launched into the interview.

“I'm Andrea Pittman and I'm here at the Golden Citadel in Lexington, Texas,” Andrea started, looking straight into the camera. “Just a short time ago, I witnessed a transformation among the people we call Wild Faeries. They appear to have become human once more and, from the reports I've been getting since then, it seems that transformations like this one have been happening all over the world and, in addition to that, the fey magic seems to have disappeared. The Faerie God and Goddess have granted me an exclusive interview, during which, I will hopefully address everyone's questions about what has happened today. But first, the Faerie God would like to make a statement.”

All three cameras focused on Azrael and me, seated in throne-like chairs to Andrea's left. The Faerie Royals were waiting in similar chairs to our left and wouldn't be shown until we introduced them.

“You have proven to us that you are ready to reclaim responsibility for the Earth,” Azrael spoke to the central camera as Andrea had done. “We've shown you how important it is to preserve your planet and care for the creatures upon it. Now, it is up to you to continue to do so. We have withdrawn our magic from most of the world and, as I'm sure you've seen for yourselves, we've also removed it from those humans and animals who have been altered. The Golden Citadel and the surrounding land will remain here to promote peace between our people and offer guidance to you if you should need it. We hope that faeries