Page 48 of The Queen The Fae Forgot
Ever since we’d arrived in the human ring of the city, I’d been unable to keep a twinge of guilt from growing into something far greater inside me. I saw the poverty and desperation that plagued the people there, conditions that I’d grown familiar with in my own human life but had so quickly forgotten now that I was fae. Their homes were run down and dilapidated, with leaky roofs and broken windows. Children ran barefoot through the streets, their clothes ragged and torn.
It was a stark contrast to the luxury and opulence of the faerie courts. It was really no wonder that unrest was brewing.
And what I could see, I was sure, was only the beginning.
“I want to stay,” I said, glancing up at Zev, and ignoring the tug of Finch on my sleeve. “I need to hear this for myself.”
We moved as close as we could towards the outer edges of the crowd, but it soon became apparent we were anything but welcome here. The faces that turned our way quickly soured, their stares following us until we were out of view. It quickly became apparent that we’d have to find another way to view the spectacle, but luckily Finch seemed to be particularly skilled in this area.
Before I even had a chance to complain, he’d found a ladder squeezed tight between two houses that led up to a small construction platform overlooking the square on the other side. From where we sat, nestled tightly between two buildings on boards that sagged particularly beneath the two fae’s weight, we had a clear view of the stage above the onlookers.
At first, I was worried that we’d be spotted, but no one was going to see us. Not when every face was trained forward towards the man that was now stepping up to stand in the middle of the stage.
The moment I laid eyes on him, I shrank back slightly into Zev and Finch. I knew, instinctively, that I should fear this man. I didn’t have to see the stumps where his hands used to be to know who he was. Even from here, from this distance, I knew him.
And I knew whatever was about to come from his mouth was going to be dangerous.
It was a small wonder Rayner had lived to see this day. Though, one look at the state of him, and he could hardly be said to beliving.He’d been a cruel twisted version of a man when I first met him, and now … now he was what a cruel, twisted man became when fate had been even crueler and more twisted to him. His face was a mask of rage, even when he rested. His eyes flitted across the crowd, brow drawn, tongue darting across cracked lips that foamed with fury. The moment he opened his mouth to let out an angry cry, the crowd responded.
From the way they jumped and pounded their fists on their chests at the front of the crowd, this was not the first time they’d heard Rayner speak. This was a performance, one that he’d mastered well.
He stood before them like a savior ready to lead them to the promised land, and from the way he drank in their praise, he knew it.
“Look at this, I think we’ve grown since last we met.”
Cheers broke out among the crowd, their voices a deafening roar that echoed through the square. Rayner basked in it, his eyes scanning the faces before him, a smug grin spreading across his face.
“I see many new faces here today,” he continued. “People who have come to join us in our fight against the oppressors.”
The crowd erupted in cheers again, fists pumping in the air.
“We will not be silenced,” Rayner yelled, his voice rising above the din. “We will not be oppressed any longer. The fae may think they rule this city, but they are wrong. We will take back what is rightfully ours.”
The crowd roared its approval, and I felt a shiver run down my spine. Rayner was dangerous, and his words were inciting violence. As I looked around at the faces of the people in the crowd, I saw desperation and anger. They had been pushed to the brink, and they were ready to lash out.
I’d never been afraid of being a fae until that moment.
This was far worse than I imagined. There wasn’t simply unrest in the city.
Rebellion had been the right word for it, and it was on the verge of breaking out. We might not even have a full week left.
“Many of you have heard what I have to say, or at least, youthinkyou have, but I come to you today with news. I come to you with word from another kingdom, from the land that lies beyond our Western courts.”
Another man stepped up onto the platform brandishing a scroll high above his head.
The crowd fell quiet at that. Bodies pressed closer as it was unfurled and held out for those closest to the front of the crowd to read what was written upon it.
“We’ve talked long of fighting back against the fae of Luxia,” Rayner called out, “but talk is cheap. Our neighbors have decided they’ve had enough. Our neighbors now ready for war.”
Whispers broke out amongst the crowd until one brave soul called out.
“But there are no fae in the western lands.”
“No,” Rayner agreed. “Not until recently.”
A heavy silence fell, stretching deeper as Rayner moved to stand at the very edge of the platform.
“The boundaries between faerie and the human realm have been breached, again,” he said, the crowd so quiet now he barely had to raise his voice. “If we do not act soon, it won’t just be our own courts we need to contend with. If we don’t act soon, more fae will come from their realm and they will push us out just as they did so long ago. But we have nowhere else to go.”
