Chapter 13: Phoenix

The news came as a shock to all of faedom. Zeni, the king’s daughter, was dead. I was supposed to marry her, that’s our tradition. She died suddenly and in her sleep. No one is sure what happened. Her handmaid found her when she went to wake her for breakfast. Zeni just didn’t wake up. I know I should be grieving this loss but I am actually relieved. I mean, it’s sad that she died. But if I’m being honest with myself, I didn’t want to marry her anyway. Something has been telling me not to marry her or any fae for that matter. It’s telling me to leave this place all together. I’m not not sure why, but I feel like I should listen to this feeling.

King Omelette (oh-ma-lay) and my parents have been talking. I am to marry Zeni’s younger sister, Geeny. Geeny has a boyfriend and as far as I can tell, they are in it for the long haul. I know she will be upset when she hears this news. No one should be forced to marry someone they don’t love. And that is exactly what our parents are going to try to do.

It’s the day of my wedding. I can’t believe I agreed to this. I don’t want to marry this girl. Something has been telling me to go east for the better part of a year now. I know it is tradition for the next king or queen of the Fae to marry the heir of the last but I don’t want to hold with tradition. My instincts are telling me not to marry her and to travel east. Everyone will hate me except for her. She has told me she has doubts as well. For the last six months Geeny and I have been trying to find a way out of this marriage. She is in love with someone else and does not want to be queen. But we both know that the new ruler must be married by the age of twenty-five. The fate of the Fae depends on it. When the new king or queen turns twenty-five, the reigning ruler transfers his or her power to the new ruler ensuring all Fae keep their magic. If Fae lose their magic, they begin to die. If a ruler dies without transferring his or her power to the new ruler, all Fae will lose their magic and it will be the end of all Fae kind.

My name is Phoenix Ashworth. I am twenty-one and the next king of the Fae. I live in Obscjra (Ob-scra), the main city of the Fae, the entrance of which is located in Balboa Park, which is in San Diego. In four years, I will have to take over. I have no problem with being king. In fact, I think I would be a great one. I was born with the mark, so my whole life has been about training and leadership. Aside from the current king, I am the most well protected Fae. I hate it. I can’t do anything I really want to do. I have guards and staff around me at all times.

When I was a kid, I used to think it was cool to have the King’s Guard watching over me. Keeping me safe from bullies at school, pushing me on the swings in the park, teaching me Facdow (fa-doe), and many other things when my parents were away.

My parents, Ellis and Menagerie, run a business in the human world - technically it’s a garden, the Botanical Garden in Balboa Park. It wasn’t always a garden but as time went by and more people arrived, it became one. Their main competition is with Alcázar Garden. My parents spent their days in Balboa Park and their nights in Obscjra (ob-scra). So I didn’t usually see them until dinner time. That didn’t bother me too much; it was that way for the majority of fae children. There are only a few jobs in the fae cities and those only cater to our basic necessities. Faes hold all kinds of jobs; some are even in human government, hospitals, schools, etcetera.

By the time I finished my freshman year of high school, I was done with being guarded all the time. I just wanted to have a little fun with kids my own age. It was hard to do with the King’s Guard around all the time. One night, I snuck out through my bathroom window to meet up with some friends for a party. We had a blast; if my wardens had been there, it would have sucked big time. I continued sneaking out to hang with my friends for a while. Then one night during my junior year, I got caught sneaking back in. Since that night, King Omelette (oh-ma-lay) has tightened the reins. He ordered more guards and staff to watch over me. He even has someone to watch me sleep. This was my life. My parents and the king got nervous last year when I said I needed to travel east. The pull has only gotten stronger since then.

“I will stand with you,” Geeny said. “We can tell them together. My family knows about my visions, I can say that I saw you find your mate in the northeast. And I can add that if we get married, something bad will happen to our people.”

“You would do that for me.” I replied.

“Yes, because it is what I want as well. I would lie to my parents so we can both get what we need.”

“Thank you, Geeny. I have been feeling a strong pull from the northeast for almost a year now. Something is calling me there. I can feel something very bad is coming and the answers are there, so I have to go. I have been getting glimpses of some war that is yet to come. If I don't go east and get the answers, I fear we will all be doomed. Humans and supernaturals alike. Thank you for your willingness to do this. It means a lot to me and it will mean a lot to our people, one day.”

Geeny and I went to breakfast with our parents. When we sat down, Geeny told them about a vision she had. She even added some of what I saw in my glimpses. I don’t get visions the way Geeny does. My power lies in intuition and emotions. I sometimes get a glimpse of the future or the past but mostly it is a feeling. A feeling that tells me I have to do something or go somewhere. I never know if it will prevent or prepare me for what is coming when I do get glimpses of the future. When I get glimpses of the past, I mostly feel it as a warning not to do something or to do something differently. This is a gift that is possessed only by those Fae who bear the mark. So I’m pretty sure King Omelette, Geeny’s father, will know she is telling a half truth. But if he has seen what I’ve seen, he will let me go. It’s really the only thing the King and I have in common. We can feel the emotions of others through their words. As King, he can see more than just glimpses of the past or the future. He can travel in his mind to a particular place and time in the past and see what happened. This is something I will be able to do when he passes the crown to me. He can also stay in the glimpses of the future longer than I can. But I will have that power as well, when I become king.

King Omelette looks at me and then back at his daughter. He starts to protest when his eyes go white and he stops. After a few seconds they return to their normal color and he looks at me with pain in his eyes and then addresses the table.

“I will have to agree to this. I don’t want to, mind you. But what I have just seen, it’s… unimaginable horror. If Phoenix can some how stop what will come, I must let him go. He has been saying he needs to travel east, then we let him go east. But he must travel alone.” King Omelette looks back at me. “Unfortunately I can not send my guards with you. I fear I have seen more than you have in these glimpses, and while I can not send my guards with you, know that you will not be alone in your quest. I will have the staff prepare you some things for your journey.”