The Faerie Curses

Chapter Fifteen: Objects of Power

Diandre and Glen were beside me, and the three of us could only watch as The Master began to pace around his throne, addressing the sprites.

"It has taken years of planning to make this moment a reality." He said, his gold eyes drifting across the throne hall. "And up until now we have all felt our share of suffering."

Some sprites began to shriek in agreement.

"We've lost everything, every single one of us. We've lost our families, our homes, our wings, our magic. We've been publicly exiled without a second chance by our own people, the Fae."

At the mention of the Fae, howls of rage rose in the cavern.

"The fae think that they are so above us," The Master snarled. "They are the ones that force us to hide beneath the ground, and think of us as merely scum beneath their glittering palaces. They have killed countless of us without mercy, they are the ones that have taken away who we are, leaving monsters behind. But now is our chance to make them pay for what they did to us, to show every single faerie that they are no better than we are. The Fae can take our lives away from us, but they cannot take our desire for vengeance. And mark my words, my people. We will have our vengeance."

The Master's voice dripped with stark venom and ferocity, and behind his iron armor I could see that he had been desperately wanting to speak those words for eternities of time. Deafening cheers echoed off the walls as the sprites punched their fists into the air, releasing savage cries. It was a scene that made my blood run cold. Diandre didn't say a word. He stood like a statue through The Master's speech, portraying no expression.

The Master let the ruckus get louder until it nearly blasted my eardrums. He stood still in front of his throne, and reflected in the mirror behind him I could see the sprites' murderous faces snarling with hunger. Finally, after a few more stretched moments, The Master raised an iron arm into the air. The noise cut off abruptly.

"You may wonder how we plan to do this. How we plan to destroy the faeries and reclaim what is ours. It wasn't easy, but I was able to recover the one thing that will lead us to the ultimate weapons on this earth; The Objects of Power."

My sword clattered to the dusty ground. Glen cursed impressively from beside me as Diandre folded his arms across his chest.

I couldn't believe it. This was uncomparable madness.

"You may remember The Objects of Power from legends long ago." The Master addressed the sprites. They all leaned in towards him. "Back in the days of old, the very first winter and summer Fae crafted weapons unlike anything ever seen on earth. Their magic can conquer and destroy anything in any realm. These Objects of Power are known as The Summer Scepter and the Winter Wand."

"This is impossible," Glen whispered fiercely. "The Objects of Power are a myth. They don't actually exist."

"I wouldn't be so sure of that, your highness." Diandre murmured in response.

"The Summer Scepter and The Winter Wand were placed in the hands of the rulers of the two faerie kingdoms." The Master continued, his voice echoing darkly. "For centuries, these two weapons were used against each other in Fae wars until one day in history, The Objects of Power faded with time. They vanished. Disappeared. Never to be seen again. Some say that the objects were hidden so that the opposing kingdoms couldn't steal them, but their whereabouts remained a mystery through the generations. Until now."

I knew of the legend, my parents had told me it one night back when we lived on the edge of the Grimwood. But I had always thought of it as a bedtime story. Just a bedtime story, until this moment. If The Summer Scepter and The Winter Wand were actually real, and they fell into the hands of the sprites, it could mean the utter obliteration of the entire Faerie Realm. I couldn't let that happen.