In the Land of Fae 2: Return to Ice ♔ (gxg)

18. golden

"Mother?"

Nyx stepped in front of Caspian to get a better look at her mother. Valerie's eyes were red and watery from crying, and there was a fresh bruise forming over her eye. Two earth fae appeared behind her, both looking to Caspian with the same wide-eyed, frightened look.

"Henry," Valerie gasped, her voice cracking as a fresh tear slid down her cheek. Her chest heaved as she mouthed the formation of words that never came.

Nyx stepped forward, taking her mother's face gently in her hands. Her thumb ran over the bruise below Valerie's eye. "Henry did this to you?" she questioned in a whisper, feeling anger radiate in her bones.

Valerie nodded and took Nyx's wrist in her palm as her lips trembled, staring between Nyx and Caspian. "The humans..." she trailed. "They're coming."

Caspian stepped closer, his blue eyes widening as he looked to the two earth fae for confirmation. "What do you mean?"

"They're coming to attack!" Valerie yelled, her raspy voice echoing in the hall as her hand shook around Nyx's wrist. "Henry and a group of his men!" She looked back to Nyx as more tears fell down her red, wind-bitten cheeks. "I told him, Nyx. I told him—I'm so sorry." She broke down into a sob, nearly falling to her shaky knees if Nyx had not held her up.

Nyx shushed her mother and passed a golden hand over the bruise, watching it heal under her palm. She turned her head slowly to the water fae who felt frozen by this news. "Caspian?" she whispered.

Before the water fae could get his mind straight, a scream was heard from outside the castle. Coming to his senses, Caspian sprinted past everyone and to the front doors which were partway open. The figureheads all jogged behind him as Caspian skipped down the steps, looking in every direction to find where the scream had come from. Then, near the far corner of the village he saw a group of humans emerging from the woods and marching straight into the village. A few of them were carrying torches high into the air, and even from afar he could see the outline of guns and swords. A line of humans at the front had already reached a cottage on the outskirts of the village and had set a torch to it. Fire emblazoned on the roof, and smoke was already rising in the air as another scream came from the Fae family trying to escape the burning cottage.

Everyone had seen the humans and the fire simultaneously, and as soon as Caspian's feet had left the ground, everyone else's had, too. Nyx, who had been standing at the door of the castle with Valerie in her arms, grabbed onto Dion's cloak before the boy could fly off with everyone else.

"Dion, take me," Nyx whispered as the green-eyed boy looked to her with fear evident in his face.

"Nyx—" he began, but Nyx had already jumped onto the thin boy's back.

The blonde turned to the two earth fae still standing there. "Take Valerie to the nursery with the twins. Lock every door, and protect this castle with all your might."

"Nyx, don't!" Valerie yelled, but Dion had already taken off, his forest green wings producing a large gust of air that blew her hair from her face. The two earth fae pulled her back into the castle and slammed the heavy doors shut, deadbolting them with every lock there.

"Take her!" the female earth fae told the male one who took Valerie and began ushering her up the stairs, the human too dumbstruck to resist or ask any questions. The female earth fae conjured roots that crumbled through the thick stone floor and wrapped up around the doors, twisting around the handles and forming a barrier around the doors and the wall surrounding it. Going to the nearest window, she did the same to every window and doorway she could think of.

Back in the village, the figureheads were flying full speed to the humans and the burning cottage which was already engulfed in flames. "Disarm them!" Caspian yelled to the others. "Don't kill them!"