Veiled Fae (Fractured Fae 2)

The fear of failure consumes me as I step forward, filling me until my footsteps falter and I stop altogether. This is my last bit of hope and if it doesn’t work… what then? The thought of slipping back into darkness makes my soul ache.

Do it for them.

That thought fuels me, forcing me to walk to the wall. There, right in the center, the stone shattered a small fraction. Crumbling stone has never looked more beautiful and that small, insignificant hole gives me more hope than it should, but I’m clinging to whatever I can at this point.

I did it! I can do this!

No, you can’t, your magic is already gone again, you are a pathetic, waste of a queen.

My inner asshole isn’t wrong, my magic feels weak now. With a sigh of frustration, I put my back to the wall and slide to the floor. Resting is my best bet, even if it’s the last thing I want to do.

“Hello?” A small voice startles me enough that I would have fallen down if I was standing. The voice is a gravelly, yet melodic female voice. Almost as if they haven’t spoken in ages.

Down here though, that makes sense.

“Wait… I’m not alone?” The realization is delayed, but once it hits me, I practically fly to my feet. Spinning around, I face the hole, trying to see through to the other side, but it’s only darkness beyond.

“Hello?” the voice comes again and I’m so desperate for human interaction I don’t hesitate to answer this time.

“Are you really here?” Even now I have trouble trusting my own mind. There’s a muffled reply, shadowed by a cough that sounds dry and painful. That’s enough to convince me and I practically fly over to the hole, hesitant but desperate for some human interaction. I’m beyond thankful for Dormouse, but he hasn’t talked back to me yet. Although, I was taking that as a good sign that I hadn’t gone completely crazy down here.

“Hello?” I call again, peeking through the hole. It’s so dark that I can’t see anything, even with my magic glowing in my hand.

Despite not being able to see her, the woman moves closer, chains scraping on the stone floor. “I can’t even begin to describe how thankful I am to hear another person. Though I’m sorry that someone else is going to suffer as I have,” the woman sobs back to me. The pure, raw relief in her voice has my eyes stinging with unshed tears. Whatever I’ve been through… it’s nothing in comparison.

“Hey, it’s alright," I soothe, though my false words hang in the air. We both see them as they are.

A lie.

“I appreciate the thought, but I lost hope long ago,” she replies. “My name is Allura. What is yours?”

“Arabella," I reply. “And my companion is Dormouse. If you hear me talking to Dormy, don’t be alarmed, I promise I’m not crazy… yet," I joke, letting out a short maniacal laugh that contradicts my promise.

Several minutes pass and I can only hear her faint sobs now, unable to even respond to me around them. I’m not about to judge someone who has been locked down here for who knows how long. I just chalk it up to her relief at hearing another voice. I don’t have to do the math to realize how damn long it’s been.

“Did I upset you?” I ask in what I hope is a gentle tone.

“I’m sorry, tell me about your parents Arabella," her voice is thick with emotion that I don’t understand, but I oblige her random question.

“I couldn’t tell you, I know nothing about them. My parents had a secret relationship that put them in danger. They weren’t able to keep me," I explain softly. She makes a strangled sound that only deepens my confusion. It’s like everything I say to her sets her off more and I wonder if finding a companion was a good thing after all.

“My lover and I went through something similar. These lands were unforgiving, and our baby wasn’t safe with us. I’ve thought of her every single day since, she’s why I’m still alive." Her voice sounds so heartbroken I have to change the subject. I’m too worn down for a case of the feels.

“How long have you been here? How have you survived?” I ask, almost dreading the answer. Please don’t let her say years or something equally as horrifying, I think as I close my eyes and take a deep breath in anticipation.

“Time is meaningless down here, but years I’m sure. The last I saw of the outside was the Winter King’s last battle. The day he somehow survived and crawled back here to lick his wounds.”

Oh, dear Gods. She’s been here that long.

“That battle was over thirteen years ago, Earth time," I choke out, her words letting despair creep back in. “We have to get out of here. Do you have magic?” Desperation fuels my movements and I start running my hands over the stone until they’re scraped and raw.

Now I’m the one sobbing against the wall.

“I’m sorry,” she says, voice breaking. “He placed iron in my room, love. I have very little energy left and that is only because I was powerful. I’m lucky to still be alive around this poison.”

“Do you have a door? Have you seen guards?” At this point, any information might help us.

“The doorway is concealed into the wall. It’s hard to detect with little light. They were made that way to enhance the effects of isolation. As for guards, no. Somehow water and food only come when I’m asleep. Even after all of these years.” Shit! That was hardly the answer I had hoped for.