The Evolution of Fae and Gods (Chronicles of the Stone Veil 3)

Like how Nimeyah and Kymaris are considered sisters, I surmise. So fascinating—there’s so much more I want to learn about demi-gods.

About Carrick in particular.

Moving back to the chair, I nod at the book. “Sparing me the prose and internal feelings, what did you find so far?”

“It seems like the chalice that Light Fae Wells mentioned at the party exists,” Carrick says, leaning back in his chair. He clasps his hands behind his head and arches back a bit in a slight stretch, and even that slight move is poetically beautiful to me.

“The author saw it? Wrote where it is?”

Carrick nods, and a tiny thrill runs through me. While it wasn’t the Blood Stone we had been hoping would turn from myth to fact, Wells said it was pure meteor and its powers were infinite.

With a grimace, Carrick says, “For about a hundred pages, he wrote the details, but to give you the short version, there is a realm that was created by a Light and Dark Fae who had fallen in love. The Light Fae was a female named Charmeine, and the Dark Fae was a male called Micah. They were two of the earliest immortals to get a chunk of the meteor. To hide its nature, they used the magic it held to fashion it into an ordinary-looking chalice. With that chalice, they went on to create their own realm, and then, throughout millennia, opened it up to others who wanted to be able to live in peace without prejudice.”

“Because while Light and Dark Fae will often mate,” Zaid adds, “they very rarely do it for life.”

“Sounds like true love,” I say, but not to be a smart ass. I remember months ago when Zaid warned me that being born light or dark doesn’t determine the measure of someone’s character in the end. Hell, he’s proof of that.

“That’s what the author penned it as,” Carrick replies. “He went to visit the realm at their invitation and spent a great deal of time there. He was surprised to learn they had more than just a chalice made from the stone. They also had parts of the meteor that had been fashioned into a box, as well as another piece they made into a large, faceted jewel the color of obsidian that was set within a gold necklace for Charmeine to wear. They exchanged these as gifts of their love to one another, and they sat in a place of honor with the chalice.”

“So much power,” I murmur in awe, thinking of the size of the stone that had to be cut away to make three objects of substantial size.

“And yet, they didn’t want the power for anything other than to create a safe realm open to all,” Carrick says in a low voice. “A utopia of sorts. Light and Dark fae, all daemons, and even humans were welcome there. They lived peacefully, and even though the Light and Dark Fae didn’t create children, they created beautiful creatures with their magic and made their realm so lovely no one would want to leave.”

“Uh-oh.” I shake my head, not wanting to hear the rest. “Any time anyone calls something a utopia or points out there’s harmony, it usually goes to shit.”

Nodding his agreement, Carrick gives a bitter smile. “Exactly. Apparently, Charmeine had a roving eye, and she ended up falling in love with someone else.”

“Who?” I ask.

“The demi-god who wrote this book,” Carrick replies, and my jaw sags in disbelief.

“Micah found out about it, and he fought his dark nature. He tried to win Charmeine back, but nothing worked. She had fallen deeply in love with the demi-god, and Micah became enraged. He took the box she’d given him as a gift, and, with its power, he destroyed everything within the realm. Every creature they had created and every being they had invited to live there perished under his fury, except for the demi-god who could not be killed even with the power of the box carved from the meteor. The beautiful landscape burned to ash, the bordering ocean dried up, the mountains turned black, and the skies permanently darkened. Freezing winds howled continuously, and the ground shook horribly. With the last of the magic in the stone box, Micah called forth a mighty river of lava that flowed from the horizon and through the blackness, the only color and light against the darkness. It made its way to a mountain where it flowed upward. The mountain cracked and the river disappeared inside of it. When that was done, the box disintegrated into nothing.”

“Whoa,” I murmur because I know Carrick is summarizing what was written, but the story is incredibly captivating.

“Micah spared one more life, and that was his love, Charmeine. He gave her one final chance to renounce her love for the demi-god and promised they could rebuild their realm, but she wouldn’t do it. Her heart belonged firmly to another.”