Page 10 of Wings of Ice and Steel

‘Well, we’ll see if we can make tomorrow an exception, shall we?’ Lord D’avant’s smile grew wider as he gave her a bow. He then gathered his attendants to him before wandering across the sands to observe the other companies train.

Ariadnne turned to her handler. ‘Seriously?’

‘Apparently so...’ Melixanthe was watching the High Lord leave, and Ariadnne crossed her arms, unimpressed with the idea of another performance.

Lucius sauntered over, sprawling with characteristic confidence against the stone wall behind as he surveyed his company.

‘That was some show,’ he said, flicking his hair out of his eyes. He was shirtless, of course; the varan thought far too much of himself.

Ariadnne shrugged. ‘It was what he needed to see.’ She gestured to the High Lord’s retreating figure.

Lucius nodded sagely, then smiled to himself. ‘I knew you’d win,’ he said, almost proudly. ‘I told Sol he was a fool to put money on Nieve when it was you she was against.’

Ariadnne raised her eyebrows.

Oh, how wrong he was.

Four

Ariadnne

The hall was a clamour of noise and bustle as lunch ended. Dantro was the unfortunate knight picked to be Ariadnne’s guard for the afternoon while the other knights had leave to venture into the city. Melixanthe, of course, made it clear Ariadnne was to stay in the castle.

So, no fun for her, then. She didn’t know why she was surprised.

As rest of the company headed towards the castle gates, talking with excited gestures, snippets of conversation drifted back over the clamour of the hall.

‘…Oh, I’ve heard their street food is to die for…’ Kayla’s voice rose as she linked arms with Han, his still-boyish face lit at the prospect.

‘I’m sorry you got landed with babysitting duty.’ Ariadnne glanced at Dantro, his face framed by a shock of Gale-white hair.

He shrugged and gave her a wide smile. ‘Don’t worry about it. I was born in this city. I’ve seen it all.’ He fell into step beside her. ‘Where to, then?’

Ariadnne picked at a nail. ‘Would it be terrible if we found the castle library?’

‘Lead the way.’

Ariadnne exhaled. Dantro was easy company, with few expectations—which was exactly what she needed. His air affinity lent him a tall, lean frame with faint swirls marking his skin. Other elemental fae took on their own features: Flames had their shocking auburn hair and amber eyes, while Earthlings were, quite frankly, a bit troll-like. And Nieve… well, her smooth, pale skin and silver hair were hallmarks of her ice affinity, along with her delicate elfen features and slender form that curved in all the right places…

Dantro walked right into the back of her as her feet slowed.

‘Sorry,’ he muttered, and Ariadnne looked away so he wouldn’t see the pink heating her cheeks.

She needed to stop thinking. Nieve was a knight. A very talented—true—but probably-insufferable-once-you-got-to-know-her knight.

A frustrated breath hissed through her lips. The library. Books were the best distraction.

They started down a large corridor, lit by hovering faelights, until they came to a grand hallway. Two twisting stairways led upwards to a second floor. Exquisite carvings of exotic flora and fauna graced the handrail, silken smooth under Ariadnne’s touch, while fragrant jasmine weaved between the railings giving the stair an organic, living feel.

Cresting the top, Ariadnne led Dantro down another hallway. Up here the floors were carpeted with a deep green rug, flowering plants filling giant vases on every corner. A set of double doors beckoned her onwards. As she cracked them, she was met by the enticing smell of musty books.

She stepped into the library, eyes wide. Spanning three levels, there were more books than she could read in a hundred years. Dantro settled his wiry frame into an armchair by the hearth, happy to wait while Ariadnne gorged on the titles offered. She wandered through the aisles. Fiction, histories, books about magic, anything she could possibly want was at her fingertips. She toyed with the titles, lingering over some dusty tomes describing the ancient Varax; demons whose invasion of fae lands spawned the dark fae. Human and fae had banded together to repel the invasion, pushing the Varax back into the abyss, led by the mighty varanya, Beatrix, though she had not come away unscathed. The last Varax cursed her race before the pit swallowed him. A curse that the Guild Council fought tooth and nail to keep at bay.

Ariadnne’s fingers hovered over the faded spine of one of those books before moving on down the shelf. She settled on something a little easier to read; something that wouldn’t make her feel so guilty about killing humans potentially terrorised by dark fae. Seizing the tome between her fingers, she left the stacks and curled in the chair opposite Dantro to read.

Thirty minutes later she was struggling to concentrate.

‘Dantro, have you fought humans before?’ she asked, extracting herself from her book. To date her experience was limited to fighting Kargan raiding parties and settling border disputes in the southern provinces. Not battling tens of thousands. Although she should be capable, the impending fight unsettled her in more ways than one.