The Seelie court was something that he never thought he would miss however, stepping foot into the blinding sunlight and comfortable heat, made him smile with longing. It was a stark contrast to the cold and dry air of the Unseelie territory. Whereas the northern lands were characterised by thrashing waves against rocks and even snowy mountains, the Seelie court was decorated with fields of flowers and endless forests. Unlike the Blackstone of Leana's home, the Seelie palace was a temple of yellow sandstone, overlooking the warm Red Sea that crashes in displays of white foam across the beach bellow. Children paddle as nannies stand by watching to make sure that no sirens come and snatch their little angels away. Not that sirens would dare come this close to land but it's a story to tell children so they behaved.
Jehovah sighed as he placed a hand atop the hilt of his sword, leaning forward onto the balcony wall and stared out into the sea. He wondered what was north of Avalon. He knew of the small islands that dotted the northern territory where groups of fey lived together in harmony unbeknownst to the cutthroat bloodbath that is their southern politics. He had never felt a love for the sea before but now, he longed more than ever to rush back over the border, steal Leana away with him in the night and live out their lives together on one of these islands. A warm hand touched his back, shaking him from his trance-like state.
Turning, he saw Dronolas standing there, un-glamoured for the first time in a while. His skin was a pale green similar to the underside of a leaf. Pixies were not exactly less beautiful in Jehovah's opinion though they did tend to be a little rougher around the edges. Compared to the likes of his own, Leana's and the queen's perfect faces, Dronolas had a slightly crooked nose; the girl whom he saw in the Unseelie kitchen had slightly upturned eyes but they were no less attractive to him personally.
Dronolas said nothing, only smiled sadly. He knew that he was yearning, but he dared not mention her here. Even the birds whispered. "Good to be home," Dronolas sighed not truly believing it, leaning to look out to sea beside him. Jehovah hummed in response, not even wanting to pretend that he was happy. It wasn't only Leana though, he had become quite accustomed to the human realm. Showers were an ingenious invention. Baths were alright but when you're covered in blood and mud, crusted so thick that it could be scraped off with a knife, baths begin to lose their appeal after stepping into the water.
Human underwear was a miracle. Soft cotton was a beautiful change from rough fabric made of god only knows what. Transport was a dream considering his inability to fly. Did he really prefer the human realm to home? Interrupting the men, a short, overweight soldier came onto the balcony, clapping both men on the shoulder. Tarquin had a little, fat round face that beamed with nothing but happiness all the time. Even the sight of his old superior's smiling face was enough to drag Jehovah out of his moment of depression long enough to smile back.
"Boys!" He called, throwing his arms around the two infinitely taller men. "We've missed you," Tarquin smiled. Realizing that Jehovah wasn't going to lie to the man, Dronolas took the lead.
"Good to be back, Tarquin," He replied flatly, knowing full well the extent of the sorrow his friend was feeling in that moment. The man, never breaking his vow of happiness, thankfully didn't pick up on his tone.
"We'll be out on the town soon, eh boys!" The small man bellowed, now letting go of the men. Jehovah couldn't keep up the act any longer as he looked out to sea once again.
At his disinterest, Tarquin lowered his grin. Saving his ass again, Dronolas took a step between the two men almost. "Of course," He beamed a broad smile and threw his arm around his best friend. "Maybe we'll even get this guy to join in this time," His smile was so large it was clearly false.
Tarquin leaned in and nudged Dron on the shoulder with a cheeky wink. "Maybe he'll finally get some action," Jehovah tensed under his arm. Jay's virginity was a hilarious joke between all of the men of the guard after his display in the whore house where he chickened out. But now, that was a forgotten story to him. Trying to settle the mood, Dron just laughed nervously as Tarquin stood straight again. "Anyway, as much as I love to see you boys again, this isn't why I was sent," This time, they both tensed. If he was sent then he was sent by the queen and Dron feared that if Jay was left alone with the queen he would kill her for what she had done. A man in love will do crazy things. "The queen wants to speak to you both. She's in the west courtyard,". Dronolas gulped as he nodded, promptly sending Tarquin on his way. The small man plodded off back into the palace. Waiting until Tarquin was out of earshot, Dronolas turned to face the sea with a sigh, Jehovah never moving. Dron ran his calloused hand down his face and groaned quietly, Jehovah still quiet as a mouse.
"You know that we must go," To Jehovah, this was the worst part of being at court. The ability to be summoned at any moment and being unable to refuse. Whether it was some military meeting or being summoned against his will to Elixibur's chambers – he hated it.
"Indeed," He murmured and without a look to his friend, he turned making his way into the palace.
The halls of the Seelie palace were much livelier than the dark, dismal halls of Leana's home, though he couldn't help but feel as though her presence alone made that horrific place beautiful.
Approaching him as he walked down the hall, Dronolas now hurried at his side, was a young woman, no older than sixteen, beside her mother who was far too interested in a conversation with a friend. The girl was youthful and pretty much like a delicate princess from a fairy tale. Her hair, a shimmering light brown that fell down her body to her hips. Some of it braided into a crown atop her head which was decorated with all kinds of pastel flowers. Her dress complimented her figure perfectly though his attention was stolen when she blushes as they meet in the hall. Listening to her mother talking beside her, Jehovah could deduce that her name was Elaine. Pretty name, he thought.
Elaine pushed a strand of her hair behind her ears, blushing and looking down shyly after meeting his blank eyes. If he could have spoken to her in that split moment, he would have said "Don't waste your time looking for the attention," Men were dangerous animals and a pretty young flower like her had to be careful when navigating the lions den.
They moved past the trio.
The two walked the rest of the distance in silence, until Jehovah stops at the steps down into the courtyard, his eyes filling with fear as they fixed on the tiny woman, bending over, hands on her knees, to delicately sniff the pink roses of the garden.
Dronolas' eyes skimmed over his friend, watching as his eyes dilated with pure fear, his throat bobbing as he watched the woman bellow. He reached out his hand to touch Jay's shoulder, giving him a sad smile. "I'm with you," he assured. In that moment, he understood what his friend meant. He had said that things were going to change. Dronolas Tabor was the general of the Seelie court but Jehovah Seral was the White Knight; to whom the pixie pledged his allegiance till his last day. They would stand together, no matter what was to come of this.
Reassured of his closest friend's support, they descended the stairs together towards the fiend of a queen.
They approached her confidently as she stood straight, smiling with those blood red lips of hers. Her huge grin was unnerving. "My knight," She greeted, striding over to Jehovah and running a thin nail down his chest but he stood tall. Dronolas' eyed never leaving his friend's face. He would not turn a blind eye to what she did to him; not anymore. "I have been thinking terrible thoughts," She cooed as she pulled her cheek to his chest, curling her arms around his shoulders. The queen retracted a hand to trace circles around his jacket. Dronolas could swear that he saw Jehovah twitch from rage and disgust. Once she realised that she wasn't going to coax the response out of him that she wanted, she pushed him away with a cruel smile. "At first," She began turning to the roses once again, carefully caressing their petals. "I thought that you had taken some human whore to your bed," Dronolas heard Jay's heart skip a beat from where he stood, a breath catching in his own throat. It wasn't like he cared for the Unseelie woman but seeing what that sick fuck did to her and how happy she made his friend, made him frightened enough for her safety. "But then I smelt the pelle perfume," Her voice turned dark as Jehovah gulped.
Stupid, stupid woman! He cursed. Why did she choose that night to wear perfume native to Avalon? His body shook with fear. Elixibur knew… Leana was as good as dead. The queen snapped, becoming frustrated with her silence. "Tell me the name of your whore!" She screamed, yanking a rose from its stem, and casting it to the path before her, nicking her hands on the thorns causing blood to drip down her snow-white skin.
"No," Jehovah snarled. There was no point lying, she wasn't stupid, but never would he tell her even if it cost him his life. At his defiance, Elixibur's face flooded red, she turned to the pixie, making him jump. "You," She pointed. "Tell me the name of his whore!" The queen commanded. Jay looked to his friend. He would understand if he felt the need to cave even if it would make him want to murder him for the betrayal but Dronolas wasn't going down easy either.
He simply bowed mockingly. "You may be my queen," He began as he looked into her eyes from his bow, trying to mask his smirk. "But Jehovah is my brother," A sigh released itself from Jay's chest as Elixibur's rage bubbled, her tiny hands curling into fists. "You'll have to kill me," He mocked as he raised back to face the tiny woman about to explode.
But then she calmed. "Leave us," she hummed, turning her back to him, dismissing his mere existence. At this, Jay gave him a nod of approval. In talking to their queen the way that he had, Dronolas had already risked his life and more. He had done enough. Giving his friend a curt nod and a warm small smile, he turned to walk back into the palace. Elixibur turned and dragged a bloody finger across Jay's lips as he shook with anger. "Who knew that a mere pixie could be so loyal," She sneered as she stepped away, wrapping up the cuts on her hand with a handkerchief that she had concealed up her sleeve. This caused his fists to curl. How dare she? Though his main concern was the awful metallic taste of her blood on his tongue.
Then, her demeanour changed. Her thin, ruby lips curled at the edges into a cruel smirk. Turning seductively, she smiled. "You can't walk," That was all it took for Jehovah's knees to buckle! He fell to one knee with a grunt, steadying himself with one hand on the stone path and the other on his knee. His breathing ragged as fear filled his body. He knew exactly what she had done to him. She had poisoned him.
"You bitch!" He growled as he tried to control his breathing. The woman laughed, kneeling before him and taking his trembling face in her hands. Her blood was laced! She must have drank the serum whilst he and Dronolas dossed on the balcony. Immune to her own binding spell would have caused no issues to her. Jay, on the other hand, was completely at her mercy, and she loved it. It aroused her in a way that she had never felt before, to have this warrior brought to his knees before her.
"Tell me her name," She snarled, leaning in so close that he could feel her breath on his face. His blood ran cold, his body shook as he fought the magic flowing through his veins, but he was no match for things above this world.
"Leana Payne," he sneered through gritted teeth, ground so hard that he thought they may shatter in his mouth. She gasped at first, knowing full well whom the last name belonged to. She knew not that Nydale's daughter survived the massacre but she knew that this woman had to be his relative in some sense. The queen grinned as she leaned forward and whispered in his ear.
"Where does she live?" she asked. The words slipped from his mouth as though he had no control to stop them flowing into Elixibur's ear.
"The Unseelie palace," The queen tensed as Jehovah began to sweat from fighting an uphill battle with his own mind. Leaning back, he saw the rage in her face. Then, she did something that she had never done before; raising her hand, she struck him. Her golden ring cutting into his face. He tasted blood. He had never felt anger such as this. Recently, anger had become part of his regular pallet of emotions which normally wasn't something that he felt.
"You let some Unseelie whore crawl into your bed?" She screamed. He knew that other sentries could hear every word, he also knew that Dronolas would be lurking somewhere close eavesdropping on the conversation. Looking up, he scowled into her golden eyes that were melting in fury.
"Leana Payne is no whore," he spat at her. Shocked by his bravery, the queen collected herself and smoothed her dress as she stood.
"You may stand," She ordered in a darkly cold and calm voice. He did as he was compelled. "I have one last request of you," He could see her trying to hide her wicked smile. Whatever she was going to request, he knew that he wasn't going to like it. He didn't respond, only growled at her. "Kiss me," She turned revealing her crimson mouth drawn into a cunning grin.
He fought once again but his legs moved regardless as smoothly as if he had moved them himself. He watched as his own hand raised to cup the crown of the queen's head. His own vision dipped as he leaned down to touch his lips to hers. She tasted sour. If he wasn't bound by her magic he knew that he would have crushed her skull beneath his shaking hand. Her delicate hand snaked up his arm, grazing her nails across his sleeve. After a reasonable amount of time had passed, he broke from her, pushing her away from him breathing raggedly. He wiped her horrid lipstick from his face and glared at her with hatred burning in his eyes. The queen smiled sweetly; she had won this round. Her fingers raised to touch her lips, revelling in the kiss like a child receiving a light peck from their crush. "Do with yourself what you will," She told him as she waved him away, turning to leave. "I release you," she purred as she strutted off back towards the palace.
This time, Jehovah dropped to his knees voluntarily. Leana was as good as dead. He had killed her. His eyes scanned his surroundings, if you weren't looking carefully, you wouldn't think that every guard in the area had their eyes on him. He was the White fucking Knight and now he would forever be known as the queens whore.
Pushing himself to his knees, Jehovah stood and met the eyes of every single guard under his command that watched him. His eyes hard and chin high, he pulled his sword from the scabbard at his waist and cast it down into the moss growing between the stones. By releasing himself of the sword, he was abdicating his title. He was no longer a knight. For the first time in years, he was back to being the son of a simple farm owner and her deceased lord of a lover.
Gasps erupted all around him, even from places were seemingly no fey stood – the queens little birds. The message of his treachery would reach her faster than he had hoped. With that announcement, he spun on his heel and ran. He wasn't sure where he was running to, he just knew that he had to get as far away from the palace and the queen as possible.
No one chased him, only watched in shock as he ran through the halls of the sandstone palace.
Skidding to a halt, he reached the edge of the treeline out by the front of the palace. Without looking back, Jehovah delved into the depths of the forest.
His first thought as he ran was of Dronolas. Everyone knew that where Jay went, Dron followed and vice versa. A bold exit from Dronolas would not be far behind his own but he knew that the pixie could handle himself, he was far more intelligent than him he admitted.
Jay wasn't sure how much time had passed, but the sun had set over the treeline and the forest had become darker. Kelpie territory he knew, perhaps a sword would have been useful.
His feet pounded against the soft mud and sludge of the forest floor now, after miles of running, with all the grace of a sack of wet sand. The springing, directed steps from when he first began his journey had long since disappeared. His rasping throat was as parched as a dead lizard in the desert sun. His head bobbed, hair soaked with sweat, with each footfall, his eyes heavy in his sockets. He had to stop. If he didn't, he knew he would keel over.
Stopping in a clearing, he rested his hands on his knees, bending over and panting like a dog. His shirt was soaked through with sweat, his legs aching beyond comprehension. Around a hundred yards to his left, there was a quiet stream hissing. Water sounded mighty appealing but due to his location and the finally set sun, he dared not risk a kelpie attacking him, dragging him to a watery grave. Deciding that it wasn't worth the risk, he turned his head away from temptation.
Thinking that he was alone turned out to be a lethal oversight, a strong hand gripped his shoulder, yanking him up, a sharp pain stabbing into his back; and then his legs gave in. Jay dropped to the muddy ground with a yell as a figure shrouded in darkness rounded him confidently. He knew from the smell who stood before him. Growling and gritting his teeth, desperately trying to move his legs and failing, Jehovah sneered at the king as he squatted down beside him, a blood-covered dagger in his left hand; the same dagger used to stab Leana. "You must be truly desperate to come onto my land unarmed," His deep, seductive voice purred, an entertained smirk breaking at the corner of his mouth.
"Bold of you to navigate kelpie grounds with only a dagger," Jay answered, still gritting through the pain in his lower back. His spine had been damaged, say what he would about the king but he knew where to hit. The king only laughed, holding out his arms and looking around cockily.
"I own these lands!" He yelled, the wind howled in answer. "The kelpies serve me," Deploma laughed. Sheer power radiated from his simple presence. He was every part a king. From the way that he held himself to the way that he spoke. Jehovah was no match for this god of death. "I am a god here!" He yelled, this time to the very air around him. For a moment, Jay swore that the ground even shook from fear under him.
Turning away, Jay grunted again as he tried to force his paralysed legs to move. The king looked back to him and waved his hand in dismissal, looking to his knife, pulling out a white cloth to wipe it clean. "Oh relax," He groaned. "You'll get your legs back. But right now, I'd prefer if you couldn't get the upper hand on me this time," That wicked smile that Leana had once fallen in love with a lifetime ago beamed down at him.
Jay had no answer. At this, the king angered. He grabbed him by the shirt, thrusting his limp body against a nearby tree, snarling down at him. Normally, he would have hit him, but now, the adrenaline from the running was leaving his body, causing his upper limbs to render numb also. His head lolled as his back impacted on the rough, damp bark. "Don't die on me now," The king raised his perfect brows. "I need you alive," The king stood to do something unseen to Jehovah as his vision began to blacken and blur by the second.
"Don't…" He gasped. "Don't hurt her," This got the man's attention, turning to face him, he grinned.
"Jehovah Seral," The man had clearly done his research on him, if he knew his name then what else did he know? His cold, ringed hands gripped either side of his ragdoll head. His face so close that he could taste his husky breath. "You're the answer I've been looking for," In that moment, spitting on him seemed like a pretty good idea, at least it was until Deploma raised a fist that connected with his jaw. That was the last push, his consciousness finally gave out.