Chapter 47 The Rescue Mission
Faye’s POV (Earlier that night)
I flew through the darkness with four other ice faeries, the cold air biting against my wings. Ahead, the twin peaks of the Northern Prison rose like jagged teeth against the moonlit sky.
“Remember the plan,” I whispered as we approached. “Crystal, you handle the outer barriers. Frost and Snow, take out the guards. Aurora and I will find Lily.”
“What if it’s heavily guarded?” Crystal asked, her voice tight with nerves.
“Then we fight,” I said, forcing confidence I didn’t entirely feel. “That child has suffered enough. We’re bringing her home tonight.”
We landed silently atop the prison wall. Crystal knelt, her hands glowing blue as she examined the magical defenses.
“Strange,” she murmured. “These barriers should be stronger. It’s almost like someone already weakened them.”
A chill crawled down my spine, but I pushed the unease aside. Turning back wasn’t an option.
The barrier dissolved with a soft crackle. We slipped through and descended toward a narrow tower window.
Inside, curled on the stone floor, was a small blonde girl. Too thin. Too still.
“Lily,” I called softly through the bars.
Her head snapped up. Fear filled her eyes. “Who are you?”
“Friends of your sister. Elara sent us.”
“Elara?” Tears welled instantly. “She didn’t forget me?”
“Never,” I said. “She’s been fighting for you this whole time.”
I froze the bars. They shattered, and Lily scrambled toward us, trembling. Up close, the bruises on her arms made my blood boil.
“What they did to you…” I whispered.
“Can you fly?” I asked.
She shook her head.
“Then hold on tight.” I scooped her into my arms. She weighed almost nothing.
We were halfway down the tower when the alarms erupted.
“They know!” Frost shouted. “Move!”
Guards flooded the courtyard. Some mounted, some transforming into twisted creatures.
“Protect the child!” I ordered.
Crystal and Snow raised an ice wall as arrows rained down. Aurora blasted freezing magic at anyone who came too close. Still, there were too many.
“The gate!” I shouted. “Now!”
Pain flared as an arrow grazed my wing, but I didn’t slow. I didn’t let go.
We burst through the prison gates into open air.
Freedom.
Behind us, the guards stopped.
They didn’t chase.
That was when dread truly settled in my chest.
They’d let us go.
“Faye?” Lily whispered. “Is Elara okay?”
“She’s safe,” I said quickly. “She can’t wait to see you.”
But unease followed me all the way to Drakenmoor.
We arrived just before dawn. Healers rushed Lily away. I found Elara and told her the rescue had succeeded.
Then I told her how easy it had been.
How wrong it felt.
And what Queen Morgana had said through her mirror.
Give my regards to the imposter. The real fun starts at the festival.
Those words stayed with me all day.
By the time the Winter Moon Festival began, my magic was drained, but I stayed alert.
That was when I noticed something.
The girl in the healing ward “Lily”, her aura shimmered oddly. Unstable. Like an illusion straining to hold shape.
No.
I ran.
Burst into the ward and pushed past the healers. “Who are you really?” I demanded.
“I’m Lily,” she said, but her voice sounded empty.
I reached into her essence with my magic.
The form flickered.
Then collapsed.
A changeling.
Horror hit me like ice water.
We’d rescued a fake.
If this wasn’t Lily, then she was still trapped. Still suffering.
I ran for Elara.
But I was too late.
The festival was already under attack. Explosions rocked the castle. Soldiers poured in.
And Queen Morgana stood in the great hall, smiling.
She held up a mirror.
Inside it was Lily.
Alive. Bruised. Terrified.
I fought through soldiers toward Elara as Queen Morgana spoke.
“Surrender,” she purred. “Or watch your sister die.”
Thirty seconds.
Elara stood frozen, staring at the mirror.
At Lily.
At Drakon.
“Time’s up,” Queen Morgana said. “What’s your answer, imposter?”
Elara opened her mouth.
Then the impossible happened.
“Don’t do it, Elara!” Lily shouted from the mirror. “Don’t surrender!”
Queen Morgana snarled. “Silence!”
“I won’t!” Lily cried. “I know what you’ve been doing, forcing her to choose! I won’t let you use me anymore!”
In the mirror, Lily grabbed a guard’s sword.
“If I’m dead, you can’t control her!”
“NO!” Elara screamed.
The mirror went dark.
Elara collapsed, screaming her sister’s name.
My heart stopped.
Then Queen Morgana shouted, “Find her! She can’t have gone far!”
Wait.
If Lily was alive to be found…
“She didn’t kill herself,” I whispered. “She escaped or faked it.”
Hope, thin and desperate sparked.
I grabbed Elara and pulled her up. “Your sister just freed you. Don’t waste it.”
“She’s dead because of me,” Elara whispered.
“She chose freedom,” I said fiercely. “Honor that.”
Something changed in her eyes.
The guilt remained.
But rage ignited beneath it.
“You’re right,” Elara said softly. She faced Queen Morgana. “My sister freed me. And now I’m going to make you pay.”
Queen Morgana laughed. “And how will a seamstress do that?”
“This way.”
The mating bond between Elara and Drakon flared, golden, blazing, whole.
The light filled the hall.
Queen Morgana staggered back.
The bond was healing.
“Together,” Drakon said, taking Elara’s hand.
The light intensified.
And the real battle began.