Fae Courts A Faceless Lie

[Yvoire]

FAINRAETH,
DAY COURT

"Patrols have made multiple accounts of activity amongst known rebel leaders, and our spies confirm that a great number of meetings have —"

"Any of this intelligence, perhaps, worthy of sharing at this meeting of the council?" Yvoire's voice, a sweet and golden honey cadence that commanded many heads to turn her way. She sat to the right of the Queen, her cousin, and yet her icy stare was cast out to the window where the picture of perfect gardens and sprawling greens could be glimpsed. That part, at least, was no illusion.

The Commander stared after her, scoffing lightly. "I beg your pardon, Your Highness?"

Yvoire turned her eyes to cut across the table, to Fionn Adamou seated to the left of the Queen. "It is a hot and sweltering day, if you are to keep js here, then it better be something more than the report you are giving similar to yesterday's reportings. Do we have enough grounds to root out these leaders?"

The Commander looked to Gwynevere, the Queen, and also his betrothed. She had not called off the engagement, only the joining. Yvoire believed she should have put an end to his entitlement. After all, he had been plucked from the Elderglen.

"No..." Fionn said through gritted teeth. "We are close."

 

[Gwynevere]

Elliant Castle, Fainraeth
​

The two of them gave her nothing but headaches. Always seated with one on either side of her, they often spoke through her, discussing their business with all the hostility of two animals fighting. It was a tiresome affair, and one she found herself stuck in between increasingly more often since the death of her father. She wondered often how he would have dealt with such incompatible members of his court.

She sighed, turning her head to listen as each one spoke.

Gwynevere had never been prepared to deal with 'rebels' and whatever else they argued about. She was not meant to be their Queen for most of her life. Only a short few years between her coming of age and her father's death did they ever truly consider that she would be compatible with their illusionary magic. What she had to learn would never have fit within that timeframe.

So she let them argue, fanning her face as the sun's rays bounced off the sparkling floors and made the room much more unbearably hot than usual. Only when she felt both looking at her did she speak.

"Close to what, exactly?" She addressed her betrothed, a man she'd grown up with but never fancied. Not that feelings played any role when it came to her family. He was skilled, good for breeding stronger heirs, they told her. Admittedly, she was quite relieved that her father passed before they were wed. Perhaps now that she was queen, she could force that betrothal on Yvoire if she stepped out of line. What an entertaining couple they would be, indeed!

"If the rebel leaders are known, then why have you not brought me one?" She made no attempt to hide her irritation. "Is it really that hard to catch one or are your people that incompetent? Catch one for me. Bring them to me. Let us deal with them when we have one in cuffs or in a cell. Until then, don't waste my time with such pointless meetings." She huffed, crossing her arms and leaning back to let them continue their arguments.

 

[Fionn]

His stare meets the cold cut gaze of the Princess, next in line for the throne. She had always tested him, even as he grew up alongside the two princesses in their younger years, but he always suspected Yvoire to be jealous of his betrothal to the future queen, and that did not seem to change now he was appointed a legitimate position that would keep him here in this court.

"It is not that simple, Your Majesty. We have combed through the court tooth and nail and uncovered many details that will lead to a large uprising. I understand you both would like to see results, but if we go in now, we may never uncover the spies in which they have poisoned to their cause." Fionn's gaze hardened seeing the Princess open her mouth, and he cuts in before she could give complaint. "All present in this room are cleared, those outside this room are being watched. As we convene here, a team is questioning a rebel in the cells."

Yvoire pursed her lips, stared him a moment, before looking to her left to the Queen. "Well then, suppose we should finish for the day and get the Queen back to her quarters to cool." And with one last withering stare, she narrowed her icy eyes at the Commander.

Fionn knew what he was doing. By trusting no one, he weeded out the disloyal from the council, had fed planted intel with suspected staff, and now he waited for the ripple effect to begin.

 

[Gwynevere]

Gwynevere pinched the bridge of her nose, sighing heavily. "Is it not that simple? Truly?" She eyed her betrothed, the man her father dragged from a tiny stretch of land bordering the Spring and Summer Courts. A man who showed little interest in her beyond serving as her commander. She was grateful he agreed to put an indefinite halt to their arrangement. As far as she was concerned, he was free to mess around with any woman he wished. Even her ill-tempered cousin. She, of course, was free to do the same however she was not interested in any of that nonsense.

Her cousin cut in, suggesting they part ways for now and she smiled. A smile that did not seem to reach her tired eyes. "Very well then, be gone. But I expect a better report next time you call for a meeting with me. I'm starting to think you might fancy one of us when you come so often with so little news." She stood from the table, inviting them to do the same.

"The rebel in the cells..." She turned to her commander. "You are approved to use whatever force necessary to obtain the information we seek. So I expect you to use that to your advantage, Fionn." She bowed her head to him, and turned to leave with her cousin in tow.

The windows had been opened, letting the hot summer breeze flow through her room. It was unbearable, choosing between stagnant hot air or being hit by a gust of the burning wind. She could not burn, not with her innate talent for fire. But her discomfort was palpable, with her chambermaids scurrying about to find some way to make the place more pleasant.

"I hate the summer." She grumbled under her breath, taking a seat in front of a small round table which had been filled with iced drinks and snacks for the Princess and the Queen. "I should have sent him to find someone who could control the weather. Rebels be damned, what point is there to rebel if this whole place melts under the scorching sun? Tell me, cousin, what is new with you? Is Syndril doing well?"

 

[Raelys]

A fox trotted across the courtyard in the midday sun.

It was a common sight. The Day Court had a deep love of the russet furred canine. There were many noble families who tried to incorporate them in some way into their crest of arms and even the embroidery on their dresses. Many fae thought of them as the spirits of old fae who had passed on, or forgotten how they had once had fae forms and had chosen a life in their animal skins instead. As such they were afforded the run of the place by most guards.

Fools.

The fox trotted all the way across the courtyard, through the ivy covered loggia, and through the doorway that lead down a spiral set of stairs to the dungeons below. It was only then that the fox grew cautious.

A set of guards sat around a table playing cards and laughing amongst themselves. None of them glanced at the shadows where the fox slunk on to the corridors beyond. In there the cells seemed to stretch on for miles. There was little place to hide so the fox hurried until it reached the door at the far end that was slightly ajar. Inside the sounds of torture were unmistakable. The sound of a lash hitting skin over and over. The foxes fur bristled.

"Give us names, Samuael. Give us names and we can make the pain stop. Don't you want it to stop?" a lyrical voice asked. Sirens. The foxes hackles rose. They would only need to break the foxes friend to get the secrets that they wanted with a Siren there. That he hadn't spoken yet was a testament to his loyalty and his strength. They always underestimated the lesser fae.

The Siren didn't see the fox as it slid inside. She was too busy carving pretty symbols into the fae males chest where he was hanging from his wrists in the middle of the room. She didn't see the fox grow angry and finally shed her skin for that of a woman. She didn't see her draw one of the nasty blades at her hip and raise it.

She didn't see her Death.

But Samuael did. Raelys was almost jealous.

 

[Yvoire]

"Tell me, cousin, what is new with you? Is Syndril doing well?"

Yvoire would have walked arm in arm with her cousin, just like they had always done during their younger years, but it was too hot to do so. Her russet hair had been pinned up in an elegant twist, but in this heat, it had begun to fall flat and lifeless, strand sticking to her face.

"Syndril would be a lot cooler than here. They also fixed the small dock in the lake. If only our day was not to be spent in council meetings or addressing the court, I would suggest we ride up the mountain for a few days."

But with he rebels growing in activity, Yvoire knew none of the Nexus would allow either of them to leave. There were protocols for them both, to keep them safe. The Queen would be taken to a secure location in the castle, and the princess would be guarded away from the Queen. She was the Heir after all. If this place were to come under attack, it would not be smart to keep both powerful beings in the same place.

 

[Fionn]

There was an unfamiliar scent in the cells.

At least, it was not a scent he had smelled before down here, accompanying the common fragrances of the wet stone, the dirt and dust, the scent of blood that stained these walls and the stone floor. No, this was an oddity, one he smelled perhaps a handful of times when venturing into the city surrounding the Queen's castle.

The cells were a little ways from Elliant Castle, built into a mountain that shouldered the white castle. Treacherous to get to, impossible to escape unscathed. It was a maze inside, and only the cunning and sharp knew how to navigate the system.

Ah. There was a distinctive notion to that fresh blood he could smell, something he could taste on his tongue the closer her got towards the rebel's cell. He had done towards the deepest cells, meant for the dangerous and more stealthier pursuits of getting information out of someone.

"Cadhla." He called out, pausing at the end of the hall to the cell, and the only way in or out. "How fares the scum?"

 

[Gwynevere]

"It is a shame." Gwynevere picked up one of the drinks that had been set out, ice halfway melted already. "I see no reason to keep cooped up here when every summon brings nothing but disappointment from my useless fiancé."

She shifted uncomfortably in her seat, cringing mentally at that word: fiancé. Fionn had been calming, the voice of reason. Her left hand when Yvoire had always been her right. Her certainly had not been useless, but the countless meetings with no move to quash the rebellion and the sweltering heat had Gwynevere growing exceedingly impatient.

It seemed that both had thoughts of Gwynevere's safety, though they had come to vastly different conclusions. "Being here is not solving the court's problems. My sanity is dwindling here. The endless meetings and the heat...they are taking a toll on both of us." She dabbed her brow with a silk handkerchiefs.

"Fionn is my captain, not my master. I am the Queen and I believe that a few days could provide clarity. Perhaps it will allow us to think of things from a different perspective than one of two women boiling alive in their own home." She huffed quietly, tossing the handkerchief to the side. "Summon a pair of useless humans and I'll glamor them until they are the spitting images of you and I. Then, send word to Fionn that if he calls for a meeting without any substance, I will have his head hanging from the wall above my throne."

She smiled at her dear cousin. "Then you and I might spend a few days in the mountains."

 

[Raelys]

As the voice called out down the corridor, the two rebels glanced at one another.

"Can you walk?"

Samuel's binds had been made of iron and had taken far longer to remove than Raelys would have liked. Every second in this prison was a danger they would be discovered. The fox had no qualms slaughtering every single one of the males outside who sat guard over this festering pit, but she had orders. It would do the resistance no good if she were to lead the Day Court right to their hideout.

"I think so," Samuel swayed on his feet. He had lost a lot of blood. Rae could smell it all over the room - all over the woman she had just killed. Her lips pulled back from her teeth in a silent snarl of rage. She wish she had had time to make the other female suffer.

"Can you shift?" the male grimaced and shook his head. With a sigh Raelys strode for the door and unsheathed the wicked pair of curved knives from their sheaths on her thighs.

"Keep close then."

Peering round the door making sure to keep to the shadows Raelys eyed up the man walking towards them and her body stiffened as recognition speared through her. Murderer. The rebel didn't so much as hesitate to launch the first then the second knife at the fae's heart.

 

[Yvoire]

Yvoire had her reasons for not liking Fionn, for he had spent many days growing up with her and Gwyn to be seen as a rival. He was betrothed to her cousin, he was to one day have her Gwynevere to himself in name and title as husband, and one day fill her belly with a child. He had always done anything to serve Gwyn, to make her happy and to show the Court that they would make a powerful match one day.

To hear Gwynevere say she would take Fionn's head was a surprise. A fae male had been taken from his home to serve the future queen would so easily be discarded... of course, it would be a jest, but to the wrong ears it could complicate the matter of the LaRoe succession.

"Answer me this, Queen Cousin: Why is a Queen going to hide behind the pretense of illusions when she could simply order the council to reign for a few days in her stead?" Yvoire quirked a brow, smirking at her cousin. "We are not hiding from your father no longer. You are Queen. You need to start using that power you inherited with the title, Gwynny, lest such schemes be seen as weakness to your claim."

 

[Fionn]

Cadhla would have been quicker to respond, and so Fionn made his way towards the cell that held the rebel. Three paces later, two blades were aimed for him with quick succession. They had been quick, precise, but Fionn moved too late and managed to catch the first blade below his shoulder, the second slicing just past his head. He bared his teeth, not yet feeling the sting of the knife embedded into him as he charged a burst of light from his hands.

It was a quick blast, intended to stun his attacker long enough for him to draw his sword and swing at them.

 

[Gwynevere]

Gwynevere was in no mood for her cousin to be as irritating as her betrothed. She contemplated slapping the smirk off of her pretty face, but stopped herself. She clenched her jaw and let the rage simmer. And simmer. But she could not fully cool it down.

"Tell me, cousin: Why is a Princess questioning a queen? Such an act might have your head above my throne as well." She huffed. Knowing that Yvoire was right irritated her even more. Yvoire could see it plainly on Gwynevere's face. She could hide many things, but there was always some truth to her emotions written so plainly across her face.

"I find it much easier and much more enjoyable to know that I can spend some time away from the watchful eyes of the council. At least you are afforded that freedom if you wish it."

She sighed quietly. "Tell me why you get such a sour look on your face any time I speak of Fionn?"

 

[Raelys]

"Down!" Raelys barked a second before the light exploded into the room. The fox had just enough time to throw her arm across her eyes to stop herself from going completely blind, but she still suffered a peek to watch for the murderer who wielded such gifts storming into the room after. Her position to the left of the door afforded her some advantage even as spots danced in one eye. As Fionn crashed into the room Raelys drew one of the wicked looking blades from her back and swung it with all her strength at the spot where it would separate his head from his shoulders.

 

[Fionn]

Steel met with steel in a song of strength and cunning. They were both out for blood, he could feel it in the way her blade struck with his own. Fionn knew that scent, knew that she belonged to the Puca.

A fox.

The late King had outlawed the hunting of foxes, had believed that an animal should not suffer because of troublesome feykind. Fionn would have relished in the hunt, but now he could. She was helping a known rebel, she was breaking them out from this cell, and he could not wait to let them go and hunt them.

If there was one good thing about the LaRoes of Syndril, it was the hounds they bred that were bloodthirsty trackers. He would not ask permission from Yvoire, not when she had been so doubtful of his work in taking down the rebels.

He just needed one rebel in custody, and this one liked to put up a fight.

I can have my hunt later, he thought to himself as he pushed her back, a sinister smile unhinging the curl of his lip. There was one single flaming sconce in the cell. It was not sunlight, but his manipulations were strong, could feed off of it. And so he enhanced it's brightness, charged it until it was unbearable as he arced his blade in order to wound her and slow her down.

 

[Yvoire]

"Why is a Princess questioning a queen?"

Yvoire quirked a brow at her cousin, amused.

"Am I wrong, dear Cousin?" Yvoire challenged. They were alone, and yet Gwynevere was too easy to read her emotions. Perhaps she knew Gwyn too well to know when she was not happy, the heat be damned for being the cause of her restlessness. "We are not Princesses no more. You are Queen and I am your Heir. We cannot play these games of hide and seek lest something happens to your Court."

There was no harm in asking the council to run the Court for a few days, to have guards travel with them. There was no harm in them travelling by royal carriage, or to send word ahead to expect the Queen and the Lady of the Estate.

"I think it is time we return Fionn to the Elderglen. You clearly have no use for him here, otherwise you would have married him and strengthened your claim like all have expected." The people of Fainraeth whispered about their new queen, and all those rumours reached Yvoire's ears.

Fionn's too, given how many spies he had in his employ.

 

[Gwynevere]

"Yes."

Gwynevere willed the emotions bubbling at the surface to calm to a still and looked her cousin in the eyes. "You are wrong to be questioning me at all. You are correct in that we are no longer Princesses. We are no longer children. I am your Queen. I am your superior. Heir or not, you do not make any decisions regarding the fate of my kingdom."

Though her face remained a neutral mask, her voice betrayed emotions with each word.

The Queen's eyes narrowed. "Nonsense. I will marry him when I am ready. But, my claim...what has he to do with strengthening it? With what? I am the only one of my siblings to inherit my father's power. There is no other making any claim on what is mine...unless you know something I do not?"

 

[Raelys]

"Go, Samuel!" Raelys barked over the blades crossed in front of her face. She could see the other puca out of the corner of her eye enough that she could tell he had frozen. His eyes were large and where he was slumped against the wall panting he held the blade she had thrown at the enemies face and missed. They would both stand a better chance of getting out of here if he went ahead.

"Go, now!" she made sure the command rang through her tone. Pucas, at their hearts, were half animal. They responded to strength. Her comrade flinched as though she had hit him but it worked and he fled into the hallway just before Fionn's conjured bar of light.

Raelys snarled and shut her eyes but spots of red and black still danced behind her closed eyelids. But fighting enemies with the powers to manipulate the sun itself had forced her people to learn to fight with their eyes closed. She feigned distress, stumbling backwards with violent curses. As he pulled back and swung, the fox dove low and drove her fist right into the spot between the males legs.

 

[Fionn]

Fionn grunted and growled in pain that took it's time in relieving.

"Cheap, fucking shot." Anger spewed between gritted teeth.

She was clever. Trained. But she did not know Fionn fed off of his own pain. He was a warrior, and he wanted to be unstoppable. Of course, that certain pain also winded him. But Fionn was able to power through it all and fall to his knees and grip one of the fox's legs. He pulled, with all his might that he was able to summon in the wake of his reeling pain.

"Come here." He rasped, grinning maniacally. "You'll make a great pelt scarf for the winter."

 

[Yvoire]

"Nonsense. I will marry him when I am ready. But, my claim...what has he to do with strengthening it? With what? I am the only one of my siblings to inherit my father's power. There is no other making any claim on what is mine...unless you know something I do not?"

Yvoire dared to scoff and shake her head at her cousin. Did she not understand the legacy she was now part of continuing?

"Marrying him means your heirs will be powerful. His strength and magic will only bolster our blood you pass onto your children. If you do not show intentions for this, the council will whisper." And naming Yvoire heir had not been a favourite outcome at the time.

The Princess wandered until she could sit at the window ledge, frowning at the unrelenting sunshine of the day. "Besides. We have had monarchs with no power before, but only because their spouse was powerful." As long as blood flowed of the LaRoes, that family magic would pass on until the next chosen vessel. It was not only the Queen's duty to extend the family line, but Yvoire's as well.

It just happened that Fionn was picked for Gwynevere.

"Join me." She asked, turning to look at her cousin with a slight pout. "The breeze is nice."

 

[Gwynevere]

"You speak of heirs as if I have any intent to sire them. Perhaps in a few hundred years. Now?" Gwynevere looked at her cousin in disgust. "They may whisper all they wish if that's what they expect of me." She knew the pressure then fell on her cousin, but it did nothing to motivate the young Queen to proceed with her engagement. "I'm not ready."

She stared into her glass, avoiding her cousin as she moved away. "Not a single one of my siblings inherited the family magic." Yvoire was the closest after Gwynevere, but even her unique variations on the magic made her less than favorable. Gwyn knew she was right, she had duties to fulfil. She would be the last hope to plant the LaRoe seed and bring their magic to its former strength with her own children.

But Gwyn was young and inexperienced and stubborn and...

She did not love him. She did not love Fionn like her mother loved her father. Like her siblings love their spouses. And she did not understand how they could expect her to spend her life with someone she saw as no more than a friend.

Join me. The breeze is nice.

Gwynevere obeyed, finding nothing left in her to argue. "It is nice." She agreed, shoving her cousin slightly so that she might sit beside her. "But I'd bet my crown its nicer in the mountains. We are going." She crinkled her nose, squinting her eyes to watch over the city. Gwynevere always gave in eventually. "You can tell the council to reign in the meantime. Only for a few days."

 

[Raelys]

It was a dirty way to fight but the upper crust of the Day Court society had not given her much choice.

As Fionn grabbed her leg, Raelys cursed as she all but fell on top of him sending them both sprawling to the floor. But the fox was quick and clever. Even as they were falling she was twisting their bodies so that she could land on top of him. As soon as they hit the floor she grabbed for another of the knives holstered across her chest and aimed to plunge it into his chest whilst she straddled him.

 

[Fionn]

He had two seconds before that knife came down to stab his heart, and they had been the longest two seconds of his life.

The first allowed him to simply watch her, see her in all her murderous intent. She was cold blooded. That much was evident in the ferocity she exhibited above him, pinning half of him. The fox was beautiful in her fae form, as if she were almost undeserving to transform into her vixen body.

The second of these seconds allowed him to take note of their position. His arms, unrestrained, and she was smaller than him that she could not stop his legs from shifting beneath her.

And so Fionn took a risk.

He threw up his arms, taking the brunt of her slashing knife and gritted his teeth at the sting and the dripping of blood falling over his face. With one foot flat to the cold stone floor, he used it to leverage his weight to roll them over. Fionn did his best to pin her down in similar fashion to how she had done, but now grabbed at her wrists and tried to stop her from attempting to stab him.

"Dangerous little thing you are."

 

[Yvoire]

Yvoire smiled at her cousin, glad to see her temper cooling and reverting back to the Gwyn she knew.

"Alright, I can---" but her words were drowned out by the sounds of bells.

It started with one, off in the distance, but over time they warned other sentry towers to ring their bells, until it reached the castle.

Yvoire stared at Gwyn, unsure of what they were tolling for. The door burst open, some of the Nexus rushing in and bowing to the Royals. "Your Majesty, Your Highness. There has been rebel activity. We must escort you both to the Day Tower."

Narrowing her eyes, until they were thin sheets of ice, she stood and tilted her head at the guard that spoke. "And where, pray tell, is Commander Amadou?"

"In the specialist cells."

Ah. Where the rebel they had captured was being held.

"We must go, my queen." Yvoire held her hand out to Gwyn, giving her a gentler expression. "Syndril will have to wait."

 

[Gwynevere]

All seemed well for only seven seconds before the chime from the bells drew her attention. She took her spot beside Yvoire, and wordlessly scanned over the city as if she could see which one of them rang first. An awful sound it was, and one Gwynevere hoped not to hear again. Not this soon since the last rebellion had been snuffed out before it could burn too brightly.

She hadn't moved as one of her Nexus crashed through the door, ordering the Queen and the Princess to leave.

A large uprising, Fionn had said. He'd known rebel leaders. She told him to stop this rebellion before it could start once more. To put an end to this ridiculousness before their cause could grow. It was an order and he had failed her. He'd chosen what he had deemed correct. All of them had ignored her fucking demands as their Queen. It was as good as spitting on her, telling her that she was nothing more than a pretty face for the puppet masters to manipulate.

She could have each one of them replaced for how useless they were. How they thought they knew better. How they dared to ignore their Queen. For what? She could not begin to understand why they chose to imprison and interrogate. Surely word would spread amongst the vermin of her court. Those who supported this rebellion had gone missing. Had Fionn and his underlings thought this would scare them? It had only made them act faster. Faster than any of them had prepared for.

All because it seemed none of them could trust their Queen.

"No," Gwynevere snarled at her cousin, at the Nexus. "I am not going to go play Princess in the towers. Take me to the rebels." The Nexus did not respond immediately. They looked to Yvoire, looked to her younger cousin. Looked to a fucking Princess. Looked to anyone but their Queen for guidance before Gwynevere tugged on the mental strings she had woven between each one of them, save for Yvoire, bending their will to whatever she wished.

"Come, my Queen," The one closest said, ushering the women out. The group split in the hallway, one headed towards the towers where Yvoire could go if she wished, and one down the stairs where a small group of Nexus-bound guards lingered in wait. There had been armor ready for her. A weapon, too, which she had never learned to wield. She preferred magic, but something pointy might be useful.

"Bring me to the specialist cells. I'd like to see what has caused the rebels to act so swiftly."

 

[Raelys]

Raelys' eyes widened in surprise as their positions were flipped. There were not many guards in these halls that would take a knife to the forearm and continue on fighting with such vigour. She had been sure that she would be able to slash and then get away as they howled in pain like a babe. So when her back hit the floor all she could do for the first vital few seconds was stare in surprise up at the male looming over her.

Anger, of course, swiftly followed.

How dare he.

Instead of dignifying his rhetorical question with a response, Raelys brought her head up sharply in an attempt to crack her skull against his nose.

Outside in the hallway as the Queen arrived, Sebastian was slitting the last of the guards throats.