Chapter One Hundred Twenty-Eight
Chapter One Hundred Twenty-Eight
The summit location was breathtaking - a hidden valley surrounded by stone pillars, each one carved with runes older than any living thing, and a building of sorts, where they will ho;d the summit. Fairy lights drift through the air like floating stars. Council guards patrolled the perimeter. Fairies wove containment wards into the ground. Diplomats arrived in small groups, escorted by security.
Avery and her mates stepped through the portal into the valley. The air hummed with magic. Lucien whispered, “It’s beautiful.” Kael muttered, “It’s creepy.” Molly elbowed him, “it’s both.” Riven squeezed Avery’s hand, “You ready?” Avery nodded, “Yes.” Then she turned to the fairies and they started the building of the room that the summit would be held in, while the Council members started setting up the communication arrays, and hauling things into the building that was being erected around them. The table first, then the smaller tables, then the chairs. Lucien and Molly were on setup and placement, so they moved around the room giving instructions. Riven and Kael moved to the guards to set up the perimeter, and what they were to do. Avery gave Riven a nod, letting him know they needed to allow for a ‘weak’ spot.
When everything was finished, she looked at her watch, and then she turned to the door, her mates moved to her, and everyone else stayed back in their places. It was time.
The convoy rolled to a stop at the mouth of the summit valley, engines humming softly as the morning mist curled around the vehicles. Fairies darted overhead, invisible to most eyes, but not Avery. She stepped out of the shadows before anyone else could move. Not dramatically. Not loudly. Just… there. But the effect was immediate. The air shifted, magic stirred. Even the valley seemed to hold its breath.
Avery stood tall, calm, centered - her aura shimmering faintly like sunlight through crystal. Her mates felt it through the bond instantly. Lucien, the more astute of them, urgently opened a link with all of them, “She’s glowing! She’s glowing, Kael-” Kael quick with a response, “I KNOW, I KNOW, I’M TELLING THE FAIRIES-” Kael and Lucien both leaned toward the fairies on their shoulders whispering under their breath, “Ready the hall, Now. Plan B. And warn everyone. Quietly.”
The fairies didn’t hesitate. Opal, Sapphire, and Emerald zipped away in streaks of light, carrying the message to the summit staff, the Council guards, and Titania’s watchers. Plan B was in motion.
Londrell steps out of the lead vehicle, expecting a formal greeting, maybe a Council escort. He did NOT expect Avery. The moment he saw her, he froze. Not because she was beautiful - though she was. Not because she was powerful -though she radiated it. It was her aura. It hit him like a tidal wave, warm, ancient, familiar in a way that made no sense. He stared, actually stared.
Vee and Steele exchanged a look, then landed on his shoulder and jabbed him sharply, “Stop ogling.” Steele, “You’re being obvious.” Londrell blinked hard, tearing his gaze away, “I- yes, right. Of course.” But his heart was pounding. Because he had been briefed on Plan B. And Plan B meant one thing: Avery was about to reveal her full aura. Her true magic. Her ancient inheritance. And anyone who stood against her - anyone who held destructive intent - would be marked. Marked and stripped of their magic. Londrell swallowed, then whispers quietly to Varyn, “She wasn’t supposed to reveal herself like this.” Varyn’s eyes were already on Avery, “She must have seen something. Something we didn’t.”
Thistle flutters on Londrell’s shoulder, “she sees what others cannot. She saw a threat. She switched to Plan B because she had to.” Londrell’s stomach dropped. If Avery switched to Plan B… then the extremists were already acting. And Avery was stepping forward to meet them head-on.
The extremists, stepping out of their vehicle, watched the exchange with narrowed eyes - unaware that the wards beneath their feet were already draining their magic, and abilities. Unaware that Avery’s aura was already marking them. Unaware that the trap had already begun to close.
Avery lifts her chin, her aura brightening just slightly - enough for the fairies, the Council, and the loyalists to feel it. Not enough for the extremists to understand what was happening, “Welcome to the summit.” Her voice carried through the valley like a bell. Clear, Steady, Powerful. The extremists stiffed, their magic faltered, and the wards beneath the earth pulsed in response.