Chapter 108: 2:Chapter 39

With the sun beaming in the window, I was thankful for the aches and pains. It was worth every minute of pain, it meant I was keeping my people safe. I sat up as my body protested against the movements, my legs and arms feeling heavy as I still felt the drain from everything. I dragged myself into the shower, the heat loosing the aches and pains a good bit. I finally crawled out of the shower, and grabbed a hot towel. The soft fluffy towel felt amazing but I needed to motivate and make a game plan on how to actually have an alliance with gods and goddesses.

Gently pulling on my leggings, a sweater dress, and a pair of knee high boots. I was content and walked slowly up the stairs, step by step felt agonizing as my legs begged me to get off them. My head throbbed as I finally got to the fifteenth floor, walking to my office as I sat there reading, book upon book, on different gods, goddesses, deities, and creatures. There were so many that even my books only covered a handful. I at least had a good idea how to appease some, and at the current moment I didn’t have the energy to even do the basic spells to attract their attention. I laid my head on the desk with a growl of frustration.

“Are you okay queen?” A small feminine voice called from my doorway. Rolling my head to the side I peeked up at my visitor. She was dressed unusually, her seductive low cut crop top of leaves barely covered her breasts, her see through skirt of vines gave way to a pair of, what looked to be, bikini bottoms, and she was barefoot. Leaves and vines weaved in and out of her hair. This had me sitting up quickly as any sane person would be covered up in the twenty degree weather.

“Uhh,” I looked at her puzzled “do you need clothing? You’ll freeze wearing that outside of the buildings.” I said stunned.

“Oh, no,” she chuckled “us forest Seelies adapt to the weather quite well here, but I come baring an invitation from our court.” Her voice was as docile as the gentle winds brushing through the branches of a spring morning. “Forest Seelies? Court? I’m sorry but I lack knowledge on what you are referring to.” I looked at her attentively. Her chuckle causing my head to tilt from curiosity.

“You are like a young kit, quite adorable. Seelie are the good fae folk, we are divided into different courts, each having light and the Unseelie being dark. Each season has a court, each element a division, and various other things. Our court, the Spring Court, welcomes you. Our King wishes to greet you.” She smiled her eyes shifting of different hues of green as she spoke.

“And what of my mates?” I said as my guard went up.

“Oh, you have mates? That may prove a bit harder, but I am up to the task of taking you all.” She fumbled a bit but smiled once again. Her eye twitched slightly, it seems I have given her sour news and it was festering in her mouth or she just gave me vital information about what she was up to.

“When do you wish to leave?” I watched her for any sneaky tricks. Elre spoke of fae always having a trick up their sleeves, always wanting compensation for any favor, you had to word everything precisely, and they couldn’t lie. I contacted all five explaining everything quickly as I was preparing for her to just latch on and rip me from my chair and wouldn’t you know it, my gut was right. She smiled widely as she lunged forward, my vision twisting and tilting, swinging at her, I made contact. I caused her to scowl as I pushed away from her, out of the swirling colorful mess, and then I hit hard on an unfamiliar surface. I pushed myself off the ground as I looked around, I was in a lush green forest of some sort. The colors were vivid and wild, brambles untamed, large flowers scattered about the field I landed in.

I tried reaching out to the guys but it was if I kept hitting a wall of some sort. I sat there a minute taking in everything, it was warm and the sweater was growing itchy against my skin as sweat prickled and pooled. Spinning I went into a new sort of armor. The top piece was more of a tank top with padding above my shoulders, the breast plate was anodized metal that went into a pleated skirt of the same material. My boots went to mid thigh, attached to the underside of my skirt. My haladies attached to both hips. I looked at myself amused by the new transformation. Unable to break through the wall, I began walking. The trees seemed all the same and after a bit of walking I finally came to a stream, sprites and floating fluffy creatures hopped and skipped on the surface. Their chirps, squeaks, and humming was amusing as I watched from afar. Slowly walking towards the stream I watched as glowing green deer drank and eyed me, their horns looked like branches. There were the fluffy creatures that resemble stacked dandelion seeds with tiny green eyes floating on the wind, others resembling pine cones if the scales were long and flowing. There was trails of a sparkling mist behind the sprites and other aerials, it glittered and shimmered against the water. I looked at all the creatures who seemed to gather around the stream, some looked as if they were flowers, others moss, branches, trees, and everything dealing with a forest.

“You don’t belong here young one.” A voice called out but I could not pin point where it came from.

“I...I was brought here, by a Seelie Forest Fae. I do not know my way.” I whispered to whoever spoke.

“Well, well it seems you’ve been dropped during a teleporting spell. Hmm, I may help I may not, all I need is a little motivation.” The voice hummed. I sat there with an unamused facial expression as I laid my hand on a nearby tree.

“Woodland spirit, I call out to thee, I am in need of guidance to my rightful path. Please aide me in my journey.” Just as in the Sacred Woodlands my palm glowed against the tree, flowers sprouting from the bark as I looked on, ignoring the voice from before. I began following the light that danced among the trees.

“Hmmm, it seems you have a knack with the spirits, it seems I underestimated you.” Sweat beaded my brow as the voice never grew distant and always seemed to be right beside me.

“Please if you won’t help me, then leave me be please.” I whispered.

“What are you spirit whisperer?” The voice once again spoke to my left. I had to word my answer carefully or I could be in a world of pain.

“If I answer that, will you leave me alone?”

“I may or may not.”

“Then the only thing you get from me is, I am everything yet I am nothing.” I looked around for any movement the glow brightening slightly as I ran after it.

“Ah, a riddle of sorts. I will love unraveling this one.” A small chuckle slipping from his voice. I was beginning to get annoyed but at the same time I felt some comfort. Why would I feel comfort from an unknown being? I shrugged it off as I continued through the woodlands, the air seemed to grow cold as I stepped over a strange line. The trees going from green on one side to naked, bare, and snow covered. As if someone put a line down the middle and divided the sides between. I sat admiring the division.

“Hmm winter and summer, equally divided.” I said to no one in particular.

“Yes, here there are four courts however we have many divisions.” The voice chimed in.

“Ugh, if you are going to follow me, why not just show yourself already?” I growled in frustration.

“I doubt you would like my company if you saw me.”

“Hmph appearance isn’t everything, personality, character , and so much more are though.” I crossed my arms as I waited for a response. Out of the corner of my eye a strange figure seeped out of a shadow, it’s eyes glowed like the embers of the nether, it wore a skull of a deer, it’s antlers twisted, it body was human like but was much larger than I was. I looked at him as if he as I would any other being. “See doesn’t that feel better than traveling shadow to shadow.” I smiled at him. This creature, though constantly mislabeled as a windigo, was a Shadow Shifter. Of course, they were always treated terribly, rumors that they brought death to people, consumed human flesh, and so many other things but honestly, they were just like any other. They could be elemental of darkness and feed on it, or contain light, or both. This one leaned more towards the dark but with his curious nature, he seemed to hold both. Shadow shifters feed on greed and sins, ridding the world of those corruptions, one person at a time, by consuming the person or their tainted soul. They hold numerous forms this one had the deer skull form or a man’s form. With being misinterpreted, they were slain to near extinction when in their Shadow form. Light Shifters flourished with kindness, good deeds, and didn’t usually consume the person just the radiating aura of the deed. These usually took forms of faeries and sprites.

“You...you don’t fear me?” He seemed taken aback by my smile.

“No, why would I? Just because you're a Shadow Shifter? That’s not very fair now is it?” I looked at him sadly. “ I am not like the others, you are safe by my side.” I nod at him as I held my hand out for him to take. He looked shocked but in the end his large hand engulfed mine as he came closer. What shocked me was the sparks his hand sent to mine. Oh boy, this may be a hard one to explain to the guys.

“You’re so….” He seemed to be looking for the correct word. “warm? Enchanting?” He continnued on with the words as I stood there letting him go through his spiel. “Hmmm.”

“Safe, trusting?” I added.

“Yes those. Why do you feel this way?” I looked up to him.

“Well, by the sparks I feel of our skin touching, we are mates, I am not sure if we are fated. Only our bond will show that.”

“What is a bond?”

“It means I will love you unconditionally no matter what. I will try and save you, protect you, and hold you close to my heart. Our souls entwine and we become one if we are fated, if we are not our souls are similar and are kind of chained together.” I smiled up at him. His body shifting and morphing into a man. His face had three scars from his temple to the corner of his full lips, he was strikingly handsome, however, even in the form of a man he towered a good two plus feet above me. Now having a mate after all, along for the journey, this was going to be a thrill of an adventure.