Fall of the Mystic Wood: Prologue

Author's Note: 

If you've been reading the first draft I put out for this story, I apologize. I did what I always do and panic when I'm halfway through something and do a bunch of rewrites. However, I think this rewrite is for the best. The same spirit of the story will be pursued, but with a few more characters and a more compelling and interesting story. This is the prologue of the series, but could easily fit as a first chapter in terms of length and events. I figured I would do this prologue now so I can get started on Organism X - Ch. 09. 

The warrior fairies zipped through the air, remaining just above the upper canopy of the forest. Their eyes and ears were finely tuned instruments honed to pick up even the slightest anomaly. That was how they heard the screams. 

Fia Cailinion, the leader, motioned to her partner, Gela and began to descend in the direction of the sound. Her blazing red hair streamed like a gout of fire between a pair of monarch butterfly wings that flapped majestically in the wind. Her body radiated power. 

Gela May, a raven haired archer, followed her leader, making sure to keep enough distance in case their unseen foes launched an especially powerful magical attack. As she zipped through the air on a pair of Luna moth wings, she drew her Silverwood bow and nocked an arrow. She felt the familiar tingle ran up her arm as she focused her pool of magic into the tip of the arrow. 

The pair of warriors moved swiftly and silently, weaving between the trees as they zoned in on their target. The screaming woman provided a reliable beacon for the fairies to use as they approached. 

Gela focused on Fia and sent a question through the magical bond the two shared. 

“Genuine or a trap?” 

For a moment, Gela only felt Fia’s rapidly beating heart and rushing excitement on the other side. Then, after a moment’s delay, the answer came. 

“It doesn’t matter.” 

“It could be dangerous.” 

Gela could practically feel Fia’s smirk on the next answer. 

“Maybe for you.” 

After that, they stopped exchanging thoughts. The battle was nearly upon them. 

Gela could see an assembled crowd of humanoid shapes through an opening in the trees. There had to be nearly twenty figures standing there and the screams only grew louder. The warrior fairy silently landed on a branch of a large oak close to the clearing and drank in the scene. 

The figures were human. Gela could smell them even from her distant perch. A dirty smell of rotting onions and dried sweat.

The men were clad in makeshift leather armor and armed with poorly constructed longbows and short swords. They stood around a small iron cage mounted on a wagon. Inside the cage was a single woman in tattered, filthy garments. The woman’s rosy cheeks were streaked with tears. She screamed and begged for help as the men taunted her. 

Cold rage seeped into Gela’s veins as she watched. Human or not, the woman was clearly a victim and the men slavers. They would pay for this moral abomination. 

Then, as Gela caught sight of her commander, shock replaced her anger. 

The red-headed fairy zipped over the slavers, doing an elegant loop high in the air above them before landing directly in the middle of the crowd. For a moment, the men were stunned into silence. 

Gela looked on with a mix of horror and awe as her commander glared at the men. An average fairy standing among human men would have looked comically frail. Short of stature and light on raw physical strength, fairies were often outpaced in physical combat by men of comparable training. 

This was not the case with Fia, however. The powerful warrior stood eye-to-eye with a powerfully built man wearing a spiked helmet - the apparent leader of the slaver band. 
In the next moment, the tension broke and the slavers drew their weapons. 

“Halt!” Fia shouted. “You are within the borders of the mystic wood. Explain yourselves. Why have you captured this poor woman?” 

The leader stepped up to Fia and spat into her face. Watching this, Gela fought back the strong urge to let loose her magically charged arrow into the human man’s skull. It would not solve anything to kill the man yet, even if it was a punishment he clearly deserved. 

“Fuck off, fairy bitch. It’s a human girl. This isn’t your peoples’ business.” 

Fia’s eyes narrowed and she stepped closer to the leader, drawing her enchanted sword. The man momentarily faltered as he realized just how imposing this odd fairy was, but quickly recovered. 

“Slavery is illegal within the kingdom of the mystic wood. Humans living within our borders abide by our laws and live under our protection.” 

The man let loose a barking laugh and drew an axe from his belt. 

“Slavery? Why, this little cully is a fugitive. We’re men of the law, you see.” 

Fia smirked and pointed to a red patch on the man’s shoulder. 

“I suppose the nearly half a dozen other bands of humans we intercepted in the last month, all of which were wearing the exact same symbol on their persons were also men of the law.”

“Listen, flutterslut. You need to back off and mind your business.” 

Gela felt the familiar tingle as Fia’s thoughts traversed their blood-bond. 

“Close your eyes until I give you the go-ahead. Then be ready to give cover.”

“Ay, commander,” Gela sent back. 

She closed her eyes and allowed her sense of hearing to expand beyond its normal scope. The warrior fairy could hear the ongoing conversation between Fia and the lead slaver, but she could hear other things as well. Someone in the crowd passed gas. Another muttered the word flutterslut, again forcing Gela to suppress her rage. However, the most interesting sound was the hissing of air reminiscent of a tea kettle. 

Immediately, Gela focused on her blood-bond and sent the message to Fia. 

“They’ve got a magic user. He’s preparing a spell. Probably heat magic.” 

“Thanks,” Fia responded. 

The lead slaver was now hollering in Fia’s face. 

“I’ll give you one more chance, flutterslut. You come her alone acting all high and mighty, interfering with the law. I won’t stand for it. Now fuck off.” 

Fia flashed the man a sunny grin. 

“No thanks,” she said. 

In the next moment, Fia ducked to the ground as a blast of heat rocketed towards her. The magical energy flew over her head, exploding upon contact with one of the assembled men. The slaver screamed as his body burst into flames. 

Fia muttered a rapid incantation and jabbed her enchanted sword into the earth, letting loose a dazzling blast of light. The spell was so intense that Gela, perched several hundred feet away, could see the bones of her fingers through her closed eyelids. Men howled as their vision was stripped away from them and in the confusion, Fia grabbed the lead slaver and shot into the air. When she reached a height of nearly a hundred feet, she let the man loose, sending him tumbling to the forest floor. 

The men least affected by Fia’s blast of light magic began drawing their longbows and firing wildly in the air. This was where Gela came in. She let loose her magically infused arrow into a particularly dense clump of slavers firing arrows. On contact, the tip of the arrow exploded, throwing the men several feet. 

Without skipping a beat, Gela zipped to another branch, nocked an arrow, and took out another slaver. She repeated this process repeatedly, gradually thinning the crowd.
Meanwhile, Fia descended on the remaining slavers like an eagle, slashing them with her enchanted sword. The elegant blade burned like a hot iron as the warrior fairy’s magic coursed through it. 

In a short amount of time, it became obvious to the remaining slavers that the battle was lost. The surviving men stumbled off into the woods, leaving behind their camp equipment and the girl. For a moment, Fia made to give chase, but Gela called out to her through their blood-bond. 

“It’s not worth it,” She sent. “They won’t be coming back after a fight like this.” 

“They should die for what they were doing.”

“That won’t help this poor girl,” Gela thought. “Let the mystic wood decide their fate.” 

“Fine,” Fia answered. 

Gela zipped down to the clearing and inspected the damage. Several bodies lay on the forest floor without a survivor in sight. Gela felt sick. While she despised humans like this, such bloodshed felt like an abomination of its own. 

“Well, we did it,” She said to Fia. 

“They keep coming back to these woods. Why? They never used to.” Fia said, deep in thought. 

“They’re obviously coming from Ilium,” Gela responded. “I think it long overdue that we speak with someone from the kingdom about this.” 

“Maybe,” Fia said, kicking the helmet of the former leader of the slaver band. 

The sound of a woman weeping broke the two fairies out of their funk. Gela looked over and saw the human girl gazing at them, her face pressed up against the bars of her cage. Her eyes were wide with terror. 

“Please don’t kill me,” the girl said. 

Gela stepped over to the cage and flashed the young woman a reassuring smile. 
“Don’t be silly. We aren’t here to kill you, we’re here to save you!”

The girl brightened and immediately stood up. Gela noticed that the poor thing’s clothes were filthy and soaking wet, pressing tightly against a pair of large breasts. It was always strange coming across humans and seeing their bizarre proportions. Such breasts and hips were unheard of in the fairy kingdom. It was unheard of for fairy women to ever grow beyond a small handful.

“Oh, thank you!” The human girl proclaimed. “Thank you so much! The man with the helmet, I believe has a pair of keys. If you just search through his person and--” The girl trailed off as Fia marched up to the cage.

“Stand back,” Fia said.

The girl obeyed, cowering in the corner of her cage. If Gela had to guess, it was more out of fear of Fia herself than interest in following orders. 

Fia raised her sword and began to slash through the iron bars as if they were butter. Magic crackled and sparked as her sword contacted the inferior human materials. Soon, a human-sized hole was gouged in the cage. The tips of the iron glowed where Fia had struck them. 
“Come out,” the warrior commanded. “Watch the edges. 

The wide-eyed girl slipped carefully out of the cage and jumped to the ground below. Gela watched, fascinated, as the girl’s large bosom bounced as she landed on the ground. It was always amusing looking at breasts so large. So much jiggle and bounce! 

“Are you alright?” Gela asked. 

Without warning, the snatched Gela up into a tight hug. The human girl stood nearly a head taller than the fairy, and as she embraced her, she unconsciously pressed her chest into Gela’s face. The fairy warrior had to suppress a giggle as the sobbing girl held her close and thanked her repeatedly.

“Enough,” Fia said, pulling the girl off Gela. 

For a moment, it seemed as if the human was about to give Fia the same loving treatment, but a glare from the redheaded commander killed the impulse. 

“What is your name, human?” Fia asked. 

“Millie,” The girl responded. “Millie Bowen.” 

“How were you captured?” Gela asked.

Millie’s eyes filled with sadness. The girl slumped to the ground and began to sniffle. 

Watching this, Gela felt a wave of pity and despair for the young woman. She glanced at the dead bodies of the slavers and then back to the girl. She didn’t care what other fairies thought of humans. Sure, some were vile, but a poor wretch like this Millie girl didn’t deserve the misery she received. 

The girl began to tell her story in between loud fits of sobbing. 

“I lived with my sister and my dah. My ma is dead, you see. We had a farmhouse a couple of miles away from here. One night, this thing attacked our house. It was enormous. It had so many legs. Oh, by the gods, the legs were horrible. It killed my dah, destroyed our house. I got separated from my sister while we fled. Those awful men found me a day later and locked me in this cage.” 

Gela shot Fia a look. Things only seemed to get more interesting. Many legs, eh? That sounded like a party. 

“Do you know what attacked you?” Fia asked. 

“It had lots of legs, like I said. Many eyes too.” 

Fia raised an eyebrow. 

“Like a spider?” 

Millie brightened and nodded her head. 

“Now that you mention it, yeah! I never got a good look at it, but it must have been a spider. My dah used to tell me legends of large spiders and insects in the mystic wood, but I thought they were just tall tales.” 

“Oh, I can assure you,” Gela said. “Such things are very real. We know from experience.” 

“I’m sure!” Millie said. “You two are so powerful! I can’t believe how fast you took out those men. And there were so many of them!” 

“It’s all part of the job,” Gela said. 

The fairy felt the tingle of her blood-bond with Fia. 

“You’re getting attached,” the fairy commander said. 

“I’m just trying to make her feel safe,” Gela shot back. 

“Be careful. We don’t have Marrow along to sus these situations out. This might be a trap.” 

“It’s not a trap. Are you kidding me? She’s a scared girl!” Gela shot back. 

Millie cocked her head at the pair of fairies. Her eyes darted back and forth between the two, full of confusion. 

“Is everything okay?” She asked. 

Gela realized with a pang of embarrassment that she and Fia had been standing in perfect silence for several seconds as far as the human could tell. 

“Sorry about that. We were, um, sensing the natural vibes of the mother earth. You know, fairy things!” Gela said. “You said your sister was missing. Do you have any idea where she might be?” 

Millie shook her head. 

“I lost her in the woods. The only thing I can hope is that she went back to our homestead.” 

“Then that’s where we’ll head next!” Gela announced. 

Fia responded over their blood-bond connection immediately. 

“You aren’t the one making the orders.” 

“What else are we going to do?” Gela responded. “Leave her in the woods to die?” 

Fia grumbled out loud and sheathed her sword. 

“Fine,” she said. “Take us to your home, human.” 

A look of fear fell over the young woman. 

“But what about the spider? What if it comes back?” 

Fia smiled, showing a pair of canines that were far sharper than fairy teeth had any business being. 

“Trust me. We are more than equipped to deal with such things.” 

It took nearly two hours to find the Bowen homestead. The going was slow on account of their human companion the woods in these parts were dense and swampy. Twice, Gela had to fly into the air and take note of landmarks in order to help the confused girl navigate. 
There certainly was evidence for a spider infestation. Large webs dotted patches of the forest here and there and once or twice, the warrior fairies thought they saw a large shadow creep through the undergrowth far off. 

The trio reached the homestead an hour before sundown, finding it to be a hopeless wreck. The ceiling of the small, squat farmhouse was caved in and most of the furniture and floor was soaking wet. Webs blanketed the ruins. 

When Millie saw the remains of her home, she began to tear up. Gela felt for the girl. In one short flash, everything she had ever known and loved was taken from her. Thank the gods they had found her. 

Fia left Gela to comfort the human girl while she explored the ruins.

“Hey, I’m sure your sister will be fine. Why don’t you tell me about her,” Gela said. 
Millie choked down a sob and forced a smile. Given what the girl had gone through, she was damn brave. 

“Bethany is incredible. She’s so strong and smart and brave. She saved my life the night the spiders attacked.” 

Gela started suddenly. Spiders? Before, the girl had only mentioned a single spider and she hadn’t even identified it until Fia suggested it. Maybe it was just trauma clouding her memory, but Gela couldn’t put the detail out of her mind. 

“She sounds incredible!” Gela said. “Does she look like you?” 

Millie blushed. 

“She’s prettier. Blonder too.” 

“I find that hard to believe. You are a gorgeous woman,” Gela said. 

At that moment, Gela felt a message from Fia pass through her blood-bond, beckoning her over.

“Hey, wait right here, Millie.”

“Is everything okay?” 

Gela forced a fake smile. 

“Perfectly fine.” 

Gela flew over to the other side of the homestead and joined Fia, who was gazing down at something on the ground. As she got closer, Gela realized she was staring at a corpse and gasped. 

The fairy warrior was used to seeing death, especially in these dark times. Still, what lay on the ground hardly even seemed like a corpse. Its skin was withered and dry, clinging to the bones. In place of eyes were two black pits that sank into the skull. The lips were drawn back, leaving a permanent rictus grin on the face. Gela had seen similar corpses in the ancient barrows left behind from the black fleet wars, but those bodies were nearly two thousand years old at this point. 

The corpse wore a simple outfit of brown leather and cream-colored cloth. If this were mummy of the ancient ones, these garments should have rotted away millennia earlier, but instead they appeared fresh save for a couple stains and holes. 

“How much do you want to bet this is the girl’s father,” Fia said. 

Gela looked down at the corpse and felt a deep pang of sorrow. Every day, the mystic wood grew in danger, giving rise to little tragedies like this one across the kingdom. 

“We can’t let her see,” Gela said. 

“I agree,” Fia said. “She is already volatile.” 

Gela slid her small carrying pack off her back and began to fish around for a shovel. 

“Let’s bury it quickly,” she said. 

“Hang on one second,” Fia said. 

The commander kneeled and cut through the clothing on the corpse with an elegant knife. Pulling the tattered garments aside, Fia revealed the naked body underneath and began to comb over it with her fingers. 

“Come on, Fia. We know what killed the poor bastard.” 

“Do you see a bite wound?” 

Gela joined Fia on the ground and began to look closely over the body. The skin was wrinkled and discolored, but a gaping wound should have been visible. Any spider large enough to cause the damage seen around the homestead would leave a mess. On the front of this body, however, there was no trace of any wound. They turned the body over and still found no evidence of fang marks. 

The kernel of doubt in Gela’s heart began to sprout. First the girl’s story was inconsistent, now the body of her father is completely desiccated without a trace of injury. Nothing added up. 

“Keep your guard up,” Fia said. “Something about this place makes me feel uneasy.” 

“Ditto,” Gela said. 

They buried the body in a shallow grave and returned to Millie, who was kicking around in the dust in the front yard. When the young woman saw the two fairies, she brightened and jogged over to them. 

Whatever was amiss, Gela could not imagine this sweet young human was the root of it. Clearly, she had been traumatized the night her home was attacked. Still, Gela could not shake the feeling that something was wrong about the entire situation. 

“Did you guys find anything?” Millie asked. 

“Just a bunch of spiderwebs, unfortunately,” Gela answered. 

“That’s probably for the best.” 

By then, the sun was slipping low in the sky. It would not be long before night was upon them and with it, danger. Spiders loved the dark. 

They set up camp for the night approximately a quarter mile away from the homestead in a small hollow next to a natural spring. This way, they could fly under the radar of any spiders or other beasties. There was no use staying at a known hunting ground, and besides, the ruin clearly upset the poor human girl. 

Millie helped Gela collect firewood while Fia dug out the camp and cast basic protection enchantments on the hollow. As the fairy and the human picked branches and logs from the underbrush, they chatted idly. 

“How are you guys setting up camp?” Millie asked. “Your bags are so small.” 

“Small on the outside, maybe,” Gela answered. “On the inside, there is quite a lot more space.” 

“Fairy magic?” 

“Of course. And we use magic for the other odds and ends.” 

Millie picked up a large branch and snapped it across her shin. She was a sturdy girl, likely well-built from years of farm work, but Gela was still amazed by her physical strength. Gela herself stuck to smaller branches and twigs. 

“I wish I could use magic,” Millie said. “It seems fun.” 

That was one way of putting it. Gela ran through a list of ways magic could go horribly wrong as a result of simple mistakes. Even after decades of training, she still managed to be surprised by the intricacies of magic. 

“It’s fun until it isn’t,” she answered. “Convenient might be a better word.” 

“Perhaps I could live with you fairies and learn all of the little details!” Millie giggled. 

“A human in the castle tree, that would be quite the controversy.” 

In the distance, Gela watched flames erupt from Fia’s outstretched palms. The camp was nearly built and ready. It was sparse, but enough for a single night. She and Millie gathered up their respective piles and made their way back. By now the last rays of light were disappearing and darkness reigned in the mystic wood. 

“Where will you take me tomorrow?” Millie asked Gela, a note of melancholy seeping into her voice. 

“There are other human settlements in the mystic wood. More and more each year. The largest lies on the border between her and Ilium. It’s called Neska. There are plenty of opportunities to start a new life there and it’s fairly safe.” 

Millie nodded somberly and dropped her pile of sticks and branches at the edge of the firepit.

“I hope they will accept me,” She said. 

With that rack, darling, you should be more than fine. 

The three of them ate a simple dinner of bread and vegetable stew before settling into a long, quiet night. Fia spent the evening poring through various magical texts she brought along for study while Gela and Millie continued to chat. Gela could feel death in the air, but the fire and the warm food brought a touch of civilization to the wilds. 

Soon, Gela felt herself growing drowsy. From the look on Millie’s face, the girl was in the same boat. Both tucked in for the night while Fia took the first watch.

Before she slipped unconscious, Gela contacted Fia from their blood-bond, asking her if she thought they were safe. 

Fia responded by telling her to sleep very lightly, causing Gela to shiver a little. 

The warrior fairies changed guard twice before it came. During her posts, Gela found the woods to be silent, but still could not shake a sense of lingering danger. Something was out there, watching them. 

Just before Gela went to wake up Fia for the next exchange, a loud shriek rang out from the woods. The sound echoed through the camp, forcing both Fia and Millie awake. Fia drew her sword, the blade igniting with magical power and glowing balefully in the darkness. Gela nocked and arrow and immediately began channeling magical energy into the tip. 

“Have you ever heard a spider like that?” Gela asked Fia. 

Fia held up finger and listened. 

“Someone’s charging a spell.” 

Gela listened carefully and heard the whistling of wind and under it a faint chanting. She turned back towards Millie and prepared to warn the girl when the spell released from deeper in the wood. 

In the next moment, a thick cloud of mist rolled at unnatural speed towards the camp. Before the fairy warriors could react, it was upon them. The swirling cloud black out all useful vision. It swirled like a miniature tornado around them, wailing loudly. All Gela could see was the sliver of blazing silver that was Fia’s sword as well as a pair of bright red eyes that moved quickly into their camp. 

In the next moment, Gela heard an ear-piercing scream that sounded like it came from Millie followed by the sound of feet dragging across the ground. 

In the confusion, Fia chanted words of the ancient magical language of the fae, sticking her sword high in the air. The tip flashed like a newly risen sun, sending rays into the thick mist. Where they struck, the mist burned away. Within moments, the camp was clear again. Millie was nowhere to be seen. 

In the distance, Millie cried out. Something was carrying her deeper into the woods. 
“How did we let that thing get the drop on us?” Gela asked. 

“It does not matter,” Fia said. “Come on, let’s give chase.” 

Fia flapped her monarch butterfly wings and started to ascend only to be sent sprawling to the ground as a gob of thick, white silk collided with her wings. Gela turned and saw to her horror a multi-legged monstrosity advancing on their camp, its fangs gleaming in the moonlight. 

Gela sprinted over to her commander and began trying to rip the silk off her wings, but Fia stopped her. 

“Go for the girl,” she said. “I have this.” 

“But you can’t fly!” 

“I don’t need to fly, I just need to kill, now go!” 

Gela hesitated for a moment, but the sound of approaching spider legs and the fury in her commander’s eyes convinced her. She rocketed into the air, hearing Fia engage with the monster in the distance. 

Listening for Millie’s regular screams, Gela easily tracked the girl and her kidnapper through the woods. It was surprising that this unseen attacker had not silenced the girl. Perhaps Millie had gotten away? 

Gela zipped between the trees, her raven hair billowing in the wind. Something akin to battle rage burned in her heart. Over the past few hours, she forged a connection with the poor farm girl. Now that someone was endangering Millie, especially after she suffered so much, Gela was ready for blood. 

The voices were getting closer and Gela could sense that confrontation was near. She could see an opening in the trees further up ahead and a pair of figures, one carrying the other. One she recognized immediately as Millie. The kidnapper was dragging the girl towards the entrance of a cave. 

“So that’s how you want to play it?” Gela snarled. “You just picked your burial plot, swine!” 
The figure and Millie disappeared into the cave, followed by Gela a few moments later. The second the fairy was bathed in darkness, she drew a short, needle-like sword from her scabbard and channeled energy into the tip, casting a bright light. For once in her life, Gela wasn’t interested in being stealth. She wanted this scumbag to know the full wrath of the fairy kingdom was coming down on his head. 

The fairy warrior ran silently through the narrow passageway, following Millie’s sobbing cries for direction. The cave was much larger than she initially thought. There were several deviating paths and Gela had to do her best navigating the tunnels based on sound alone. 
As she moved deeper into the woods, Gela noticed that burnt out torches lined the hallways here and there. Archaic symbols were carved into the walls, their meaning long since lost to time. 

Up ahead, Gela saw a faint red light. Millie’s screams were growing louder, too. Things were finally coming to a head. 

Gela burst into a round chamber lined with dim torches. At the center of the room was a makeshift stone altar with a pair of black candles placed on it. The room smelled sweet and musky. 

Standing before the altar was Millie’s attacker. As Gela focused on the figure, she noticed it was a woman. The attacker pulled down her hood, revealing long, curly blonde hair and a pretty face. The woman’s eyes were the only thing out of place - they blazed with unholy crimson light. 

“Where is the girl?” Gela demanded. “If you don’t free her, I’ll kill you.” 

“I guess you’ll have to kill me then,” the woman said, holding up her palm and charging a spell. 

Gela readied her sword and advanced on the woman, ready to end this nightmare. She changed the magical focus on the tip of her sword to a defensive spell that would deflect the woman’s attack. 

“You have one last chance,” Gela said. 

“Is that so? Well I better use it then.” 

The woman winked and just as Gela was upon her, a blast of magical energy struck the fairy in the back. Gela screamed as dark energy flooded her body, turning her limbs to mush and sending her to her knees. Her sword clattered to the ground, leaving Gela helpless. 

“Good job, Millie,” the woman said. 

Millie? It couldn’t be. 

Sure enough, the buxom farm girl skipped over to Gela and smiled brightly. Her sweet brown eyes now blazed with the same fiery light as the blonde woman’s. 

“Thank you, sis!” Millie said cheerfully. “Do you like what I brought?” 

“A fairy warrior. Millie, this is perfect!” 

The blonde embraced Millie, kissing her on the lips and cupping her large breasts. Gela watched on in disgust as the sisters engaged in such a forbidden act. 

The blonde turned back to Gela and smiled wickedly. She pulled off her robe, revealing massive breasts that even dwarfed her sisters and toned, exquisitely feminine body. 
“So, this a fairy. I’ve never seen one up close before. She’s cute!” 

“You should see the other one,” Millie said. “She’s even better. Much more powerful!” 

“You did well, sister. This one will do for now.” 

The blonde woman kneeled and cupped Gela’s cheek, staring into her eyes. The evil Gela saw in those eyes made her feel sick. 

“I’ll kill you,” Gela muttered, but she knew it was a hollow threat. 

The magic that sent her to her knees was potent and she still couldn’t move her arms or legs. All she could hope for was her commander. That was, if the spiders didn’t kill her first. 

“What a feisty little creature,” the woman said. She turned to her sister and commanded, “give me the blood.” 

Millie obeyed, bringing over a clay cup that smelled of iron. The blonde witch held up the cup and chanted in an arcane language Gela could not understand. 

“This is the blood of our father,” the blonde said. “Collected before we drained his life force.”
“So that’s what happened to him,” Gela muttered. 

“Ah, so you saw his corpse. How is father dearest?”

“How could you kill your own father?”

The woman cackled. 

“I’ve done far worse. Just ask Millie over there.” 

The brown-haired farm girl had pulled off her clothes and was playing with her full breasts and crotch as she stared at Gela. 

“Sis opened my eyes,” she said, cupping squeezing her breasts. “She helped me grow, too.” 

“But the slavers and the spiders. It doesn’t add up,” Gela said. 

“Ah yes. I should thank you for rescuing my dear sister. She was so foolish to let those men take her.”

“She let them take her?” 

Millie giggled. 

“There’s a whole wide world out there, dear. And so many men to play with!” 

“She had a crazy idea of starting her own coven in Neska when she was captured by those brutes. I was just going to leave the idiot girl to her fate, but you just had to play the hero. I really ought to thank you.”

“But the spider that attacked your homestead. We saw the webs,” Gela said. 

“Yes, it was a pity. Those brutes interrupted our ritual,” the blonde witch said. “But we still go our blood.”

The witch held the clay cup up so that its lacquered surface gleamed in the dim light. The smell of copper was overwhelming. 

“Now, little fairy, why don’t I reward you for bringing my sister back to me.”

The witch waved her hand over the clay cup and began to chant in the same arcane tongue as earlier. The torchlight in the chamber dimmed and dark aura began to seep from the cup. It made the hair on the back of Gela’s neck stand on end and sickened her to her core. 

“I won’t drink that,” she said. “You can’t make me.”

Millie giggled and came up behind the fairy warrior, grabbing her slender arms and holding them behind her back. Gela tried to resist, but she still felt so weak from the previous attack. 

“Silly fairy,” the corrupted farm girl said. “The blood isn’t for you.”

“What’s it for? Why are you doing this?”

“So many questions,” the girl tittered. “You’ll find out soon enough.”

By now, Millie’s sister was bellowing her incantation, her voice taking on a deeper, inhuman tone as she did so. The strange words echoed through the tunnels of the cave, carrying with them intense dark power. Gela could feel the energy crackling in the air like lightning ready to strike. Whatever this spell was, it carried great and terrible power.

The witch concluded her chant with an ear-piercing shriek and held the cup up in the air. Gela watched as a red mist filled the chamber, collecting within the cup. Before long, the bloody contents began to glow as they were transmitted into a powerful brew. 

Millie cooed in the fairy’s ear, clearly pleased by the release of such dark magic. Gela could feel the animal heat radiating off the corrupted woman. Cancerous magic seemed writhe just under the surface in both girls. 

Meanwhile, Millie’s sister began to cackle as she inspected her handiwork. The blood in the cup now emitted an infernal light, giving it the likeness of molten lead.

“With this, oh lord of the tainted hollow, I shall become your conduit. Fill my body with your unhallowed power until it drips from every orifice!”

Gela didn’t like the sound of that. She tried once more to fight off Millie’s restraints, but it was useless.

The witch took the cup and began to drink the noxious liquid within. As it ran down the woman’s throat, Gela thought she could hear screams and moans of pain as if the witch were drinking down dozens of lost souls. Wicked power thrummed in the air, concentrating on the witch. 

Fia, if there ever was a time for you blow down the door and start doing your thing, it would be now. 

Save for the sound of the witch chugging her potion and Millie’s soft giggles, the cavern was silent. 

The young witch finished her potion and threw the cup against the opposite wall, smashing it to pieces. She sighed deeply and closed her eyes before reopening them, revealing two blazing orbs of unholy light. The chamber filled with the sound of arcane whispering from an unknown source as bizarre symbols matching those on the walls of the cave crawled along the witch’s skin, covering her body. 

Gela watched in shock as the witch’s already large breasts began to swell further. The nipples hardened and lengthened as droplets of black liquid began to fall from their tips. The witch groaned as her body transformed, her tongue growing to an inhuman length as her canines sharpened to elongated points. 

“Gods, it feels amazing!” The witch screamed. 

She grabbed Gela by her long raven hair and pulled the fairy in for a deep kiss. Before the warrior fairy knew it, the witch’s soft, pillowy lips were locked on her own. The witch’s long tongue slid down Gela’s throat, slithering like a snake. The witch’s spittle was sweet and spicy like cinnamon, making Gela’s head spin. 

When the witch finally pulled away, Gela swayed wildly, feeling her consciousness flicker. If it were not for Millie’s grasp on her arms, the fairy would have toppled to the ground. 

“What’s the matter, little flutterslut? Is this magic too powerful for you? You better gird yourself because that was only the beginning. Sister, keep her still.”

“You aren’t going to get away with this,” Gela said sleepily. “My commander will come. She’ll kill you both.”

“I’m sure she’ll try,” the witch said. “Now, let us heat things up a little.”

The witch seized Gela’s head pushed the fairy’s face into her massive bosom. Gela tried to turn away, but the witch’s grip was like iron. Whatever was in the potion had seemingly increased the woman’s strength a thousand-fold. 

The fat, dripping nipple of the woman pressed against Gela’s thin lips, smearing black fluid on her face. Gela could feel the noxious aura of the fluid and knew instantly that it was saturated in evil magic. Years of training taught her how to identify such things. This was very bad news. 

“Drink, little fairy. Take me into you. Don’t be shy.”

More fluid drizzled down Gela’s face. Where it contacted the fairy’s pale skin, it tingled. Soon, the fairy became lightheaded and giddy. Black milk continued to splash on her face. 
“So stubborn. I suppose it’s respectable, if annoying,” the witch said. 

With her thumb and index finger, the witch pinched the fairy’s little button nose. Even with her fading willpower, Gela tried her best to hang on. She fought the growing pain in her lungs, knowing that opening her mouth meant letting the vile essence into her body. 

Still, the pain grew with every second and before long Gela saw stars in her vision. The pain raged in her lungs and before she knew it, her instincts took over. She opened her mouth to take in a deep breath and before she knew it, the witch’s turgid nipple was squeezed between her lips. 

Black fluid sprayed into the fairy’s mouth, rolling down her throat like honey. The taste was indescribable - sweet and rich and exotic. The second the first droplets spilled into the fairy’s stomach, she lost her will to fight. 

“See? It isn’t so bad, flutterslut. Have some more,” the witch said. 

She squeezed her swollen tit, sending gulps of the tainted milk down Gela’s throat. As the liquid touched the fairy’s insides, an overwhelming sense of pleasure and warmth filled her. Within moments, Gela could feel her nether region heating up like a blast furnace. It grew moist and tingled greatly. 

It was all so pleasant. A voice in the back of Gela’s mind demanded that she run while she still could, but that voice shrank with every droplet of wicked milk entering her system. 

The witch groaned as her breast spurted more and more fluid into the fairy’s mouth. The arcane symbols marked across her body flared as she channeled ever more dark energy into the syrupy milk. 

Before Gela knew it, she was sucking on the nipple, desperate for more of the delicious liquid. Her delicate fingers, trained for decades with the bow and dagger, now grabbed the swollen tit, massaging and squeezing the flesh. Touching the human witch’s breasts sent a shiver of pleasure down Gela’s spine. They wonderful; soft yet firm. Every squeeze shot more milk into her mouth. 

“That’s it, fairy. Drink me. Suckle me like a babe.”

“Look at her go!” Millie said.

“For all the talk about the magical resilience of fairies, this one gave into me so quickly! So much of our master’s power is flowing into her. Oh gods, I love it!”

Meanwhile, Gela continued to suck at the tit, her pussy now dripping with pleasure as she did so. She felt hot and confused, but it didn’t matter if she kept tasting that sweet, sweet milk. The aura in the room darkened further as the witches continued to defile the pure fairy warrior. 

With each ounce of the cursed liquid that flowed into Gela, her body grew more saturated with dark magic. Her tiny nipples grew stiff and brushed against her leather tunic, sending electric pulses of bliss through her tiny breasts. 

She heard whispers in some far-off corner of her brain. They uttered foreign and arcane words that reeked of forbidden power. 

Every bit of light and goodness inside of the fairy begged her to stop drinking the evil liquid, but the fairy couldn’t quit the witch’s teat. She felt like a nursing child, slurping and swallowing the vital essence so that she may grow. What would she grow into? Gela couldn’t possibly imagine, nor did she care. All that mattered was the syrupy release flowing from the nipple lodged in her mouth. 

The witch ruffled the fairy’s raven hair and smiled. Her new ward was now fully under her thrall. Having a fairy in their coven would suit the master well. Never had she heard of the master’s darkness touching one of the fairy folks. Theirs was a race of purity and mysticism well beyond the races of men. Their bodies were sensitive to all forms of magic and the witch could already see that the darkness would suit this one well.

Already, the fairy had consumed much of the wicked good contained in the witch’s breast. Was it enough? Probably. Was it fun to let the fairy continue to suck with abandon? Definitely. 

However, in the next moment, there was a loud rumble down the hall, followed by a bright orange glow. Here came the other one. Millie had spoken highly of this one, so the witch felt a tingle of glee as she sensed the warrior’s presence. 

In stepped an exceptionally tall and powerfully built fairy with wild red floated in the air as it radiates sheer magical power. The fairy’s eyes burned like blue suns and her hands crackled with fiery magic. 

“Nice of you to join us,” the witch said. “Your little friend here has been enjoying herself quite a lot.”

Fia looked in horror at her patrol partner, watching the fairy suck mindlessly at the tit. Black magic filled the room like poisonous gas, concentrating around the place where the witch and Gela kneeled. 

“Let her go!” Fia demanded. 

The witch let go of Gela’s head, threw her head back, and cackled. Gela continued to suck obedient at the witch’s distended tit. 

“It’s her choice, dear. She loves my darkness.”

Fia’s rage intensified. Her entire body began to glow as she called upon a magical reserve beyond any normal fairy. Soon, the dark aura in the began to shrink as Fia’s righteous anger replaced it. 

“I’ll kill you,” Fia growled. 

“You’ll try,” the witch said, raising her hands. 

In the next moment, dark flames appeared in the witch’s palms. The spell was far more powerful than Fia anticipated and she could feel the evil in the room concentrate, preparing for a terrible onslaught. 

“I don’t want to kill you,” the witch said. “But I will if I have to. After all, I already have my own pet fairy.”

She looked down at Gela and pet her head. The dazed fairy continued sucking the woman’s tit like nothing was happening. 

“She’s already so far along. So full of my potent fluid. She will do just fine.”

“Shut up,” Fia shouted. 

The witch smiled and tossed Gela to the floor before firing off her magical attack. The evil energy soared towards Fia, just missing her as the warrior ducked. 

“By the Gods, my powers have grown so much!” The witch bellowed. “Even this flutterslut is nothing to me now!”

“Careful, sister!” Millie cried. “She’s more powerful than she seems.”

As if to prove the corrupted farm girl’s point, Fia pounced, her blazing sword coming out in a wide slash. 

The witch dodged the blow, but in doing so stumbled backwards and landed on her butt. She screeched and fired off another bolt of wicked energy at the attacking fairy. However, this time Fia was ready and held up her enchanted blade, channeling all her energy along its length. 

The energy bolt struck the edge of Fia’s sword and dispersed. For the first time that night, the young witch looked truly afraid. 

“Master help me. Let me strike this flutterslut down with your power!” The witch cried. 

She fired another blast of dark energy which Fia again deflected. The warrior fairy then advanced and with a single swift motion, severed the witch’s head from her body, leaving nothing but a charred stump. 

The farm girl, Millie, cried in sorrow and indignation and dashed towards the exit of the chamber. Fia turned and readied a spell to end the traitorous bitch’s life, but soft groan broke her concentration. 

Gela, her face plastered with black liquid, convulsed on the floor. The fairy’s eyes stared vacantly at the ceiling and every few seconds, her hips pumped into the air. 

Fia knelt beside her friend and tried to access the blood-bond they shared. She felt nothing. It was as if the link between the two had been completely severed. 

A rare moment of fear overcame the powerful fairy commander as she shook Gela, trying as best she could to wake her from her stupor. In the distance, Fia heard the shuffling of many feet and remembered her bruises and cuts from her battle with the spider. Apparently, it had family. 

The fairy lifted her best friend up over her shoulder and began to jog towards the exit of the cave, her sword drawn. Spider silk still caked her wings, making flight impossible, but Gods be damned, she could still fight. As the night deepened within this remote corner of the music wood, Fia Cailinion prepared for her hardest fight yet. 

The Tainted Hollow: Part 1 (WIP)

Author's Note: 

This is a story concept I've tried to work out a few other times. It's a pretty big departure from Organism X in terms of genre, but as with most of my stuff, it will have a hearty bit of corruption. This story will be a part of a broader fantasy universe that I hope to set other corruption stories in. So far in this story, I haven't reached any corruption/good stuff. Mainly it's just character development and build up, but I hope it will lead to some good payoffs. I'm releasing it early on the blog and adding to it as I go so I can get advice while I construct the story.

This will also be a much shorter series than Organism X. My plan is to do either three or four parts total. However, some of the characters in this series will likely bleed through into other stories set in this universe.

I hope you guys enjoy!

Also: Organism X Chapter 8 will arrive on literotica tomorrow. You can already find it at Hentai Foundry. Once I finish The Tainted Hollow, I will move on immediately to chapter 9. 

Golden morning light filled the halls of the castle tree on the fifth morning of the season of the carp. An unremarkable day for most in the faerie wood, but not for Oona Cailinion. For Oona, the day marked a bright shimmer of light in the drudgery of Royal duties. It was her birthday.

The morning rays flickered across the young fairy’s nose, tickling her and causing her to sneeze. Oona’s eyes snapped open.

It was time.

The second princess of the Faerie Wood bolted out of bed and made her way down the hallway. She reached a humble green door at the far end of the hall and knocked loudly.

There was the soft pitter-patter unique to the footfalls of the fairy race along with a grumbling of colorful expletives. The door flew open revealing a pudgy fairy with very short, very curly brown hair and striking purple eyes. She looked displeased for just a moment. Then her eyes focused on Oona and her expression softened.

Before the pudgy fairy could say a word, Oona dashed forward and snatched her into a tight hug.

“Kell! Guess what day it is!” She cried.

“What day?” Kell asked, her voice straining as Oona squeezed the air out of her. “The fifth of - oh! Happy birthday!”

“Did you forget?”

“No, Oona, I swear! I’m just kinda sleepy. I had the strangest dream.”

Oona jumped on this immediately.

“Oooo, a dream? Tell me about it!”

Nell’s face darkened as she thought about the night before.

“I don’t really wanna talk about it, Oona. Besides, it’s your birthday!”

Now that the chamber servant was starting to wake up, she was gaining back some of her trademark cheer and warmth.

“Not just any birthday,” Oona proclaimed.
A nervous look crossed Nell’s round face.

“It’s the day of your reckoning,” She said.

“Oh don’t say it like that! You make it sound like I’m going to my own funeral!”

Nell slapped her hand to her mouth to stifle a gasp and turned as red as a raspberry. She stumbled backwards into her humble little room and averted her gaze.

“My apologies, Mistress. I reacted poorly!”

“Stop!” Oona said. “And stop with this mistress nonsense. What has gotten into you?”

“Nothing!” Nell cried.

Oona’s eyes narrowed. She could sense something afoot. She could see her mother’s machinations written all over her poor friend’s face.

“Did someone speak with you, Nell?”

Nell’s eyes widened and she retreated further into the room.

“Please don’t ask me that. You know I cannot lie to royalty miss-I mean Ooona.”

Oona hugged Nell again and shook her head.

“I’m so sorry, Nell. I hope she didn’t pressure or scare you.”

“Of course not! Our Queen is a majestic and kind ruler!” Nell said, but the tone of her voice betrayed the truth.

Yeah, if you say so, Oona thought.

“As long as she isn’t around, you can drop the mistress junk. If she catches you, I’ll fend her off. Don’t you worry.”

Nell broke into a big, goofy smile that suited her rounded face well.

“It’s really no trouble,” she said. “But thank you mistress-er-Oona! Ah, I practiced it and now I can’t stop!”

Oona giggled, her button nose scrunching up as she did so.

“No come on, we’ve got to get ready for the ceremony!” Oona said, seizing her friend’s wrist and dragging her back down the hall towards her lavish apartment.

“Ceremony?” Nell asked.

“Well they must have a ceremony! It is my Reckoning after all. You remember Fia’s Reckoning, right? I’ve never seen Castle Tree Court so packed!”

“Right, Fia. The King and Queen certainly put on a party with her.”

“Exactly! I can only imagine what they have planned this time,” Ooona gushed. “They’re always trying to outdo themselves! Now help me pick out what to wear!”

The next hour was a blur of tossed dresses and upturned bottles of makeup and perfume. Before long, Nell loosened up and began to laugh and play with her best friend like old times.

The entire time, Oona was an unstoppable ray of sunshine. The second princess of the Faerie Wood defied expectations by nestling herself in an intricately woven uniform of golden silk-wood leaves and spun unicorn fabric. The design was inspired by the paintings of elven warriors from the distant south brought back by trading and patrol parties. While beautiful beyond any mortal garment, the dress held a second purpose. The materials would provide exceptional armor against both blade and magic. A fitting dress for the Reckoning Oona desired.

Nell initially refused to dress up, feeling it impertinent to risk crowding in on her princess’s highest moment. However, Oona insisted and before the hour was up, Nell’s pudgy body was tightly encompassed in an elegant violet party dress inlaid with minium leaf. The rare metal glowed with faint blue light in the shadows of the room. It was, by far, the prettiest garment the humble servant had ever worn.

At the end of the hour, Oona and Nell stood before the large, ornate mirror in the back of the princess’s spacious apartment. Both looked radiant in their own ways.

Staring at herself in the mirror, Oona could not help but notice the slight similarities between her dress and the enchanted armor of her sister - especially the silver stitched orchid at the center. From a distance, it was not much different than her sister’s own trademark golden rose.

So be it, Oona thought. Fia, you’re about to have competition!

The fairy princess shook out her long hair, its golden strands sparkling in the new light. One day, these locks would be locked in the ceremonial braids of a defender of the forest.

“Are you ready, Oona?”

Oona took a deep breath.

“As ready as I can be! It is my Reckoning after all.”

The princess stepped into the hallway and looked around.

“It is awful quiet,” She said. “I wonder if they have a surprise planned.”

For a moment, Nell’s face turned overcast and she averted her glance. The servant fairy knew something, but whatever it was did not seem good. For the first time that day, a sickening doubt crept into Oona’s heart.

They couldn’t have forgotten. There were a lot of things they were capable of, but forgetting her Reckoning? That was unthinkable.

***

The throne room was crowded when Oona arrived at the front entrance. Dozens of courtiers and warriors and scribes filled the vast chamber of carefully tended branches and vines. Many of the younger fairies of the court splashed about in the central pool of the vast room, giggling and playing.

“It really is crowded,” Nell said.

Oona didn’t like the way she sounded so surprised. The longer the day dragged on, the sicker she felt.

“Well a surprise party is probably out of the question, but at least there seems to be something planned.”

The two fairies took to the air, Oona on her graceful swallowtail wings and Nell on her functional brown skipper wings. They landed just before the first step to the throne itself.

The crowd around the throne was even denser, but through the mess of butterfly wings and slender bodies clothed in every possible color of the rainbow, Oona recognized the billow of fiery hair at the center. It was the blazing mane of her sister Fia - the supreme warrior princess of the Faerie Wood. The pit inside Oona’s stomach grew deeper.

Without thinking, Oona drove into the crowd, pushing and shoving courtiers out of the way to get to the center. As she wormed her way in, she noticed various courtiers flashing her looks of annoyance.

Finally, Oona reached the center. There, her mother and father sat upon their matching ironwood thrones, gazing intently at Fia. Behind the king and queen stood Marquette, the court sorcerer. All three of them were focused intently on the object Fia held in her hands.

It was a jagged and ugly blade made of dusky gray metal that sucked in the surrounding light rather than reflecting it. Oona had never seen a blade like this, but the very sight of it filled her with unspeakable dread.

Oona’s mother noticed her first. The queen gave her a blank look as she pushed through the crowd, betraying nothing of her underlying feelings.

“Hello daughter,” the queen said. “Look what Fia has in her hands.”

Fia turned to face Oona and her icy blue eyes filled with light and joy.

“Oona! I’ve been meaning to pay a visit to your quarters. I just got back late last night from another patrol.”

“Enough prattling, Fia. It’s below your station,” the queen said.

Fia’s attention snapped back to her mother.

“Yes, my queen.”

The queen stood and walked over to Oona, resting an elegant hand on her daughter’s shoulder.

“Do you know what that blade is?” The queen asked.

Oona shook her head. Between the dark energy wafting off of the blade and slowly dawning realization that her Reckoning was an afterthought, it was all she could do to not vomit.

“It’s a goblin blade. Fia found it while out on patrol on the northern border.”

Oona’s eyes widened, fear temporarily supplanting disappointment.

“Goblins? In the Faerie Wood?”

The queen burst into cold, mirthless laughter that echoed across the throne room like falling rain.

“I highly doubt it. They have been extinct in these parts for centuries. Besides, that sword is ancient. Still, it’s quite a find by your sister, is it not?”

“I’ll still be collecting a party to inspect the area starting this afternoon. We must be certain of the kingdom’s safety,” Fia said.

“Such a good protector,” the queen gushed.

Oona shook away from her mother’s hollow touch and looked upon her assembled family in disbelief.

“Wait a minute,” she said. “Is that why everyone is gathered?”

“It’s not any day that our very own daughter recovers a relic of the ancient wars, dear,” the king spoke up.

Oona stumbled backwards, feeling as if her heart had been ripped from her chest. This had to be some kind of prank. It was a fairy custom after all. Or maybe it was a dream.

It was the fifth day of the season of the carp. It was her day. How could they forget?

“What day is it, father?”

“Why, it’s the fifth day of -- oh my.”

The king’s face went pale and his eyes bulged in his slender, aged head. Meanwhile, Fia looked shell-shocked and proceeded to hide the goblin sword behind her leg and out of sight.

The queen maintained her empty, level expression as did Marquette, the sorcerer.

“Oona,” Fia said. “I was on patrol, I forgot. I’m so sorry.”

“We’ll start the festivities right away!” The king said, his voice shaking.

“It doesn’t matter now,” Oona said. Tears welled in her big green eyes as she looked upon them. “You forgot. You forgot my reckoning.”

At that moment, Nell barrelled through the crown and fell flat on her belly in front of everyone. She took one look at Oona and gasped.

“Oh no,” she said.

“Oona, we’ll make it up to you,” Fia said.

“I don’t want it made up to me!” Oona cried. “You got your parade. You got your feast and your ball. What do I get? A make up prize. By the Gods, how did you forget?”

“I didn’t,” the queen said.

The regal fairy stepped up to her daughter, towering over the younger fairy. Her wings spread out in full, showing the pattern of a monarch butterfly, but with speckles of icy blue and silver instead of the usual orange and black.

The queen continued.

“I instructed Marquette this morning to perform your trials. You can receive them as soon or as late as you wish. I suggest the former - he tends to get sluggish in the afternoons.”

“Thank you, my lady,” Marquette said. “I live for your praise.”

The queen turned back to the sorcerer and flashed him a wry smile that the king did his best to ignore.

“That’s all?” Oona said, nearly sobbing at this point.

“Oona, dear. This isn’t the time for parties and parades. We have active patrols circling the kingdom on a regular basis. The ancient wars are long gone, but threats remain. We must focus our resources wisely.”

“Let her have something, mother,” Fia said. “She deserves it.”

“I don’t want your charity, Fia!” Oona snapped.

Fia’s eyes widened and then went cold, making the powerful warrior look very similar to her mother.

“Enough,” The queen snapped. “You can perform your trials today and be sorted by tomorrow. Ask no more of me.”

Oona looked for a friendly face in the crowd and found only one. It was the round, sweet face of Nell. The chamber servant gazed at Oona with a blend of sorrow and pity, her eyes misty.

Of course Nell knew. Mother would have gotten to her early, knowing their close bond.

Loneliness seeped into Oona’s heart like a poison. She felt cold, even though the air of the throne room was balmy and sweet smelling.

The stricken princess leveled her eyes on the queen.

“I’ll face my challenges right here. Right now!”

The queen’s eyes narrowed to slits.

“You are embarrassing us,” she said.

“You said I can take my challenges at any time today. I’m taking them now.”

The queen turned to Marquette.

“Grab the necessary items. Be quick.”

Marquette shook his head.

“That won’t be necessary, my queen. There is only one challenge this one is interested in. You can tell by her little costume,” he said.

Oona seethed with rage. Her outfit was the product of months of careful enchantment and weaving. It was true armor.

Marquette noticed the princess’s anger and smiled. His canines were longer than average and glistened like snow.

“She desires to be a warrior, like her sister. We can settle that right now.”

The sorcerer approached Oona, shaking his right arm and producing a small dagger from his cloak. It was a plain thing. No designs or intricate shaping - an anomaly in the among fairies. And yet, when the dagger became visible, Oona watched as brave, strong Fia began to tremble.

“Do you know what this is, young princess?” Marquette said.

Oona shook her head. The trials of the Reckoning were a closely guarded secret among the royal family.

Fia stepped up and laid a powerful hand on the sorcerer’s shoulder. Marquette brushed it off as if were a loose branch.

“Marquette, don’t you dare put my sister through this in front of all of these--” Fia grimaced at the gathered crowd. “These voyeurs.”

“Your sister has made her request. I am respecting it. You should too,” the sorcerer responded coldly.

He turned back to Oona and continued.

“You saw the parades and feasts for your sister’s reckoning, my dear. You never saw what came before. All fairies can play with magic, but only true warriors can master it. This blade tests this capability. Only the most powerful magical beings can wield this blade without losing control.”

Fia piped up again, this time nearly screaming.

“Listen, you bastard sorcerer. You aren’t doing this to her.”

“Fia, shut up,” the queen snapped.

Fia looked as if she had been slapped. She stared wide-eyed at her mother and then slinked away from the sorcerer.

“I’m sorry Oona,” she said. “I tried.”

Oona looked at the rinky little blade and then at the sorcerer.

“All I have to do is hold the blade and if I’m powerful enough, I can train as a warrior? That’s nothing. I’ve been using magic since I was little.”

“Every fairy uses magic starting at an early age. Even this fat trollop you pal around with,” the sorcerer said, pointing a bony finger in Nell’s direction. “Don’t take this lightly, young mistress Cailinion. You’ll regret doing so.”

Oona felt hatred rise like bile in her soul at how the sorcerer regarded poor Nell. No one deserved to be treated like that, certainly not sweet Nell. He would pay for that.

“Give it to me.”

The sorcerer grinned and through the blade in the air. It spun three times before he caught it by the blade-end while remaining unharmed. He then extended it to the princess.

“Brace yourself,” he said.

“Don’t patronize me,” Oona said.

She snatched the dagger out of Marquette’s hands and that’s when it happened.

A flash of red light filled Oona’s vision, followed by an explosive pain that radiated up her right arm. Oona tumbled backwards, landing on the hard ground below. The pain rapidly spread across her, filling her entire consciousness. Despite this, she did not scream and she did not let go.

The last thing Oona wanted was to give the damn sorcerer any satisfaction.

There were gasps and cries from the crowd as the second princess struggled against the blade. Her entire body was now engulfed in a hellish blaze of light.

Then Oona’s vision went dark. A moment later, she opened her eyes on an inferno. Before her, the castle tree was set ablaze, flames licking at the sky. The sky was black, but showed no stars. Scattered across the ground were dozens of corpses. Deer and fox and even fairies.

Oona’s vision swirled and reformed on a putrid swamp. The air smelled strongly of decay. From the shadows of the surrounding trees came strange chirps and bellows. Before the princess, three noxious red eyes appeared, arranged in a triangle. They stared at her with pure hatred.

Another shift. There was a flash of intense pain and a woman’s agonized scream. A fairy rolled across the ground, coming to rest face down. Oona saw that her wings were severed, leaving a pair of bleeding pits in their place. That, however, wasn’t what truly horrified her.

No, it was the fairy’s hair that sent her into a spiral of despair. It was the fiery red mane of Fia, Oona’s dear sister.

Oona screamed, though she could no longer find her mouth, and felt her consciousness plummett to untold depths. In the next moment, she opened her eyes and looked into Fia’s terrified face.

“By the Gods,” Fia said. “Oona, talk to me.”

Oona sat up and looked around. Everyone in the crowded throne room was staring at her. She could feel the weight of hundreds of eyes upon her shoulders.

In front of the young princess sat the blade, looking innocent and plain.

“I failed,” she said.

Marquette held his hand above the test blade and muttered an incantation. The blade flew to his palm and disappeared up his sleeve.

“As I suspected,” the sorcerer said. “You are your father’s daughter.”

Fia glared at the sorcerer. Oona could feel the hatred wafting off of her sister as she began to spit venom at Marquette.
“What is that supposed to mean? You dare say such things about your king?”

“I mean no offense. It is a simple fact.”

Oona saw that her father now stared vacantly down at the ground. It was no secret that the king was not of the warrior class, but to hear it brought up with such brazen disregard was shocking.

Meanwhile, Fia was still on the warpath.

“You meant every bit of offense! I see the way you look at my father. It’s the same way you look at her.”

Fia jabbed a finger at Oona.

Oona expected their mother to intervene, but the queen merely stared at her daughter with that empty, level gaze.

“You should watch your tongue, first princess,” Marquette answered.

“You should watch your back. Look at her! You humiliated her! You knew she wasn’t going to pass that test. We all knew!”

The words escaped the warrior princess’s mouth before she realized what she was saying. They hung in the air like strung up corpses.

“You knew I would fail?” Oona asked.

The queen’s lips curved into a nasty little smile as she looked upon her stricken youngest daughter.

Fia whirled around and tried to put an arm around her sister.

“It’s not that. Really! I misspoke.”

Oona slapped her sister’s arm away and scrambled to her feet. Rage like a fever descended on her.

“You did not,” Oona said. “You meant every word. All my life, I have wanted to be just like you. A warrior. It was all a lie.”

“No! Not a lie,” Fia said.

The queen stepped forward and stood next to Marquette. She was still wearing that nasty smile. By the Gods, Oona wanted to knock that smile off of her.

“It was a delusion. One indulged by too many in this court, myself included.”

“There are other places for a fairy,” Marquette added, raising an eyebrow. “You could be a seamstress, for example. That’s a fine little costume.”

“It’s my armor!” Oona cried.

The sorcerer grinned.

“Sure it is.”

“Enough, Marquette. She might not be a warrior, but I sure am. You do not want to test me.”

Oona felt her rage boiling over. The lies, the condescension. Now Fia was here to protect her. It was always Fia who got to be brave. Fia who was exalted. Fia, Fia, Fia.

“Stop protecting me!” She shrieked. “I’m not some child!”

Fia turned cold.

“Excuse you. I am trying to help.”

“But you aren’t! You never have. You don’t even know what it’s like! You get to be the face of the kingdom and I’m the forgotten black sheep. And you!”

Oona pointed at her mother.

“No matter what I do, it is never enough for you! All you see is your glorious first daughter. I guess you can’t be bothered to remember you have a second one!”

“Are you finished?” The queen responded.

“I am,” Oona said. “I am finished forever. I’m leaving the kingdom.”

The queen through her head back and cackled.

“Then go, my dear daughter. You’re free to leave!”

Even in self-imposed exile, there was no satisfaction. Mother was glass that never cracked. Oona could feel the tears streaming from her eyes, tickling her cheeks. She felt so small surrounded by the crowd. It was all too much.

In that moment. Oona broke.

“I hate you!” She screamed at her mother.

The queen simply smiled.

“I know.”

She didn’t care. None of them did. Oona shook her head in despair. There was truly nothing for her here. She flapped her swallow tail wings and took to the air, zipping as fast as she could out of the throne room.

She needed to get away. Far away.

***

The sun sank low in the sky, casting a fiery hue over the Faerie Wood. Oona gazed down at the bubbling brook in front of her, musing on how the water looked like molten gold during sunsets. You could just cup that water between your hands and be richer than all the kings and queens of the world.

Oona tossed a stone across the brook, infusing just enough magic into the item to make it bounce perfectly.

See? I can do it too.

The dagger must have been a trick. The sorcerer never liked her and mother was always manipulating things from the shadows.

All of a sudden, Oona heard the desperate flapping of wings and a high pitched shriek. In the next moment, Nell skittered to the ground next to her.

Oona flashed the chamber servant a dark glare.

“Are you here to retrieve me?”

“No! They don’t even know I’m gone.”

Oona eased up. It was nice to see a friendly face.

“You really are my only friend,” Oona said. “Thank you for coming, Nell.”

Nell stood up straight and saluted Oona.

“It is my honor, princess!”

Oona smiled and plucked another rock from the river bank. She focused on its surface, imagining her own life force surrounding and permeating the surface. In the dying light, the dull surface of the rock began to sparkle.

With a flick of the wrist, Oona rocketed the stone into the distant woods, making the air hiss with the release of magical power.

“See? I can do magic just fine. I think that test was rigged,” Oona said.

“You might be right about that,” Nell responded, but she didn’t sound convinced.

The chamber servant picked up her own rock from the shoreline and cupped it in her palms. She closed her eyes and focused. Within moments, the rock began to glow with a soft violet light that matched Nell’s eye color.

The rock lifted into the air and began to spin, starting slow and gradually picking up speed. Oona watched the glowing rock become a blur in equal parts wonder and envy.

The moment was shattered when a loud shriek rang out from the woods.

Nell screamed and the rock fell to the ground, the purple glow retreating from its surface.

“What was that?” Nell cried.

Oona looked off into the direction from which the sound came and drew a slender shortsword from a scabbard at her side. As she did so, Nell squeaked and jumped backwards.

“Princess, where did you get that?”

Oona flashed her friend a mischievous grin.

“I may have dropped by the armory before I left the castle tree.”

Another shriek rang out across the land. Oona could sense pain and fear radiating from the woods beyond. It felt like storm clouds rolling over the folds of her mind.

“Stay here,” she told Nell.

The second princess of the Faerie Wood leaped into the air and flew towards the treeline. As she approached, she noticed a soft white light radiating from the shadows.

Oona landed and approached the light carefully, doing her best to remain quiet and unseen. As she got closer, the glow intensified. Then, after another few steps, she saw it.

Nestled in a patch of brambles was a small, glowing orb. Oona could make out vague shapes swirling under the surface of the orb moving like living ink.

The orb bounced up and down within a cage of thorns and let out another ear piercing screech, causing Oona to cover her ears in pain.

The thorn-tipped vines surrounding the orb sprung to life and closed in on it. Oona had never seen a plant move like this before, but she had heard of similar things witnessed by patrols in the borderlands. As the thorns closed in, the orb dimmed and began to let out a series of strange whimpers.

In that moment, Oona felt her heart gush with pity for the orb of light.

“By order of the royal family of the Faerie Wood, I command that you let this creature go!”

The vines went still and for a moment, Oona thought the issue resolved. Then, without warning, a black vine lined with razor sharp thorns lashed out at the princess like a whip, striking Oona on the leg.

Hot pain erupted across Oona’s leg, causing her to cry out. From the other side of the brook, Nell called to her.

There was no time for Oona to respond. The vines redoubled their attack, slashing at with abandon. In response, Oona brought her small sword up. This creature’s impertinence would not go unpunished.

The creature flicked another vine Oona’s way, but this time she was ready. Oona brought her blade out in a savage slash, severing the plant’s limb.

The bramble bush let out a hiss of pain and retreated backwards, in the process leaving an opening for the little ball of light to escape. The orb flew into the air and came to hover just above Oona’s shoulder.

“Hey, you’re free! Are you okay?” She asked.

The little orb bounced up and down in the air as if it were nodding its head yes.

The thorn bush tried one final strike at Oona, but it was weak and easily blocked by the fairy princess. After that, the plant dashed off into the gloom of the forest.

There was a thud on the ground behind Oona and she turned to see Nell standing before her, red in the face and holding a big rock between her pudgy hands. The poor fairy’s violet eyes were wide and moist from fear.

“Princess, are you okay!”

Oona looked down at her right leg. There was an ugly looking scratch across her shin, but otherwise, she was unscathed.

“I think so.”

The orb bounced up and down before orbiting Oona several times. As it did so, it let loose several little chirps and peeps of joy.

“Gods be praised,” Nell gasped as she stared at the orb. “Do you know what that is, Princess?”

Oona shook her head.

“Whatever you are, you’re pretty cute, little buddy,” she said to the excited little orb. “What is it?”

“It’s a wisp!” Nell exclaimed. “They usually are only found in the deepest parts of the Faerie Wood!”

“A wisp, huh? Is that what you are?”

The orb bounced up and down in assent.

“We should leave this place, Princess. That creature was dangerous. We need to warn the royal guard!”

Oona thought of the humiliation of crawling to the royal guard, and by extension her sister, for help. All her bluster and rage rendered impotent.

“Not yet,” Oona told Nell.

Oona cupped her hands and motioned for the wisp to land between them, which it did obediently.

“You can understand us.”

The orb bounced up and down.

“Can you speak?” Oona asked.

The wisp moved from side to side as if to say no.

“Hmm, is there any way for you to communicate with us?”

The wisp bounced up and down excitedly and shot into the air. It did a loop-de-loop before descending on a patch of dusty earth. From its body shot forth a tendril of bluish lightning that carved its way across the earth. Oona watched as symbols began to carve themselves upon the ground. She immediately recognized them as the high language of the fairies.

The letters on the ground spelled out the word “write”.

“Good,” Oona said, clapping her hands together.

“Princess,” Nell said cautiously. “It’s getting dark. We should head back.”

Oona put out a hand, indicating for her friend to wait, and turned her attention back to the wisp.

“What was that creature?” Oona asked.

The wisp danced across the ground with its little lightning bolt, carving out the word “taint”.

“Taint? Do you know what it means , Nell?”

Her companion shook her head.

“Whatever it is, it sounds vile,” Nell responded.

Oona scratched her head and pondered what the wisp meant.

“Why did it attack you?” Oona asked.

Instead of writing new words, the wisp merely bounced up and down above the one it had already written.

“Taint? It wanted to taint you?”

The wisp bounced up and down emphatically. In the same moment, a cold and foul smelling winds fell upon them from deeper in the forest. Oona shuddered and felt goosebumps rise on her exposed skin.

Peering into the distance, Oona began to notice odd details. The trees seemed to grow more sickly the deeper they were in the forest. Strange vines and fungi with unnatural colors attached themselves to some of the trunks and branches of the most withered and unhealthy of these trees.

“Taint,” Oona repeated, mulling over the word.

“Princess, we really should head back. This seems like a job for the royal guard. Your sister should be told.”

Oona leveled a cold glare at Nell.

“Don’t bring my sister into this.”

“Yes, Princess. My apologies.”

Oona turned her attention back to the wisp.

“You came from the deepest part of the Faerie Wood, right?”

The wisp motioned Yes.

“Why are you all the way out here?”

The wisp flew back over the ground, carving the words “driven out” into the ground before tapping the word “taint” once more.

“So the taint drove you out?”

The wisp confirmed.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Oona said. “I’m guessing the taint is more than that thorn thing?”

The wisp bounced up and down.

“Did it make that thorn thing?”

It did.

Nell once again tried to pull Oona away. By this point, the sun had slipped over the horizon and the last of its rays were rapidly retreating from the forest. Nell’s voice was frantic.

“We don’t have to go back, Princess, but we shouldn’t stay here. I have a nasty feeling about this place.”

Oona looked off into the distance at the sickly trees and fungi.

“Taint,” she repeated.

“Please, Princess.”

“You can go back, Nell. I won’t judge you. But I’m going to figure this out.”

“You can’t! It’s dangerous.”

“Warriors don’t run away from danger. They face it bravely to protect the innocent.”

Oona reached out and cupped the wisp, feeling a reassuring warmth rush over her body as the creature nuzzled against her palm.

“Can you take me to your home,” she asked it.

It could.

“Then take me there. I’ll save your home and fight this taint. Besides, I fought off that thorn bush pretty easily.”

The wisp bounced around the glade like a ball of lightning, its joy palpable. Even the nervous chamber servant, Nell, had to smile at the sight.

“I’ve made up my mind, Nell. I won’t force you to come, but it would be nice to have you by my side.”

Nell looked like she was about to vomit, but she forced a smile.

“I suppose I’ll come along,” she said. “I couldn’t leave you alone to face whatever this taint business is.”

“Good,” Oona said. “It’s a party then!”

***

The three of them soared over the woods in the darkness with the wisp leading the charge. Every passing moment took Oona further from home. This was uncharted territory for her.

Despite the gloom, the young fairy princess felt an effervescent cheer inside her heart. Before her was an adventure; her best friend flew at her side and her newest friend looked to her as its savior. Beyond anything else, this was the opportunity for redemption Oona craved.

After nearly an hour of flying in the darkness, the wisp began to sink down towards the canopy below. Oona and Nell followed suit and before they knew it, they had plunged into an alien portion of the Faerie Wood.

The first thing Oona noticed was the stench. It was a pungent, rotting smell with a spicy undertone. It was a smell of neither death nor life, but instead something in between.

The trees in this portion of the woods were even worse than the ones Oona had seen earlier. They were graying, gnarled monstrosities with black leaves and glowing fungal blooms.

The putrid glade the trio had entered was silent save for a whistling breeze coming from an unknown source. It was cold, despite the Faerie Wood being in the height of its summer and before long, both fairies were shivering.

“Is this your home?” Oona asked the wisp.

The wisp moved side to side to indicate that it wasn’t and then proceeded to lead them slowly forward.

“Come on,” Oona said. “It wants us to follow.”

Nell stared at her surroundings in equal parts awe and horror. A humble servant of the castle tree, she never before saw such unsettling rot and decay in the wood.

“This place scares me,” Nell said.

Oona extended her hand to her friend. Just because she felt on top of the world did not mean Nell felt the same way. The chamber servant was being so brave for her sake.

“Hey, it’s okay. You’ve got me by your side!”

Nell clutched Oona’s hand and flashed her a weak smile.

“Thank you, Princess.”

The going through the forest was slow as this section was far denser than any Oona or Nell had ever walked through. Gnarled roots and sticking brambles lined the forest floor in most areas leaving a handful of openings to carefully traverse.

Despite it being the dead of night, an eerie green glow emanated from the woods. The soft light illuminated just enough of the woods to make the fairies uneasy.

At one point, a large black fly with many luminous red eyes randomly placed across its body landed on a tree next to Nell. It regarded her with a curious stare before zipping off into the woods, leaving the chamber servant deeply disturbed.

Eventually, the wisp lead the pair to a clearing in the woods. Here, the air was even colder and the whistle of the wind had become a howl.

Standing in the clearing were three obsidian pillars with arcane markings carved across their surfaces. Between them, the earth rose to form a mound. The wisp darted forward and hovered over the mound, looping through the air in excitement. Clearly, they had reached the spot.

“This is your home?” Oona asked, stepping forward.

The wisp bounced up and down to indicate that it was.

Meanwhile, Nell looked over the pillar closest to her. The markings carved into the black stone reflected red in the dim light of the clearing. Something about the markings seemed familiar to Nell, but she could not quite place them.

“Come on Nell,” Oona said, approaching the mound.

Nell fought the urge to listen to her dear princess and continued to examine the markings before her. She had seen similar markings before, but where?

“I’ll be there in a bit, Princess,” Nell answered.

“Come on, we have a forest to save!”

Reluctantly, Nell pulled herself away from the pillar and slowly approached the mound. Oona was already climbing to the top, her sword in hand.

Something was wrong with this place and Oona did not see it. Nell spared one final glance at the pillar and that’s when it hit her. A bolt of fear ran through the fairy as she remembered where she had seen those carvings before.

“Princess, we need to leave!” Nell cried.
Oona turned to face her, looking peeved.

“We have a mission, Nell. We can’t chicken out now.”

“You don’t understand, Princess. These markings, they’re from the ancient wars!”

“What?” Oona said, shocked.

“These are dark fleet markings!”

Oona glanced at the pillars and froze. How could a dark fleet artifact still exist in the heart of the Faerie Wood?

At that exact moment, a red glow fell upon the clearing, bathing Oona’s body. Turning around, she saw the wisp - only, it wasn’t the small white orb of light it had been. It was bigger now, reaching nearly the size of an overripe melon and it burned with hellish light. The writhing ink under the glassy surface of the orb condensed into a single point. It was an eye.

“Princess, run!” Nell screamed.

The red eye focused its wicked glare on Nell and sent her flying with a burst of magic.

“Nell, no!” Oona cried.

In the next moment, the second princess of the house Cailinion froze like a corpse as magical energy sparked through her body.

The mound rumbled violently before splitting down the middle, revealing a deep gouge in the earth. From this gouge emerged dozens of thick, black vines which wrapped themselves around the arms and legs and torso of the paralyzed fairy princess.

In the distance, Nell recovered from the magical blow just in time to watch her beloved princess and best friend be carried into the dark maw of the opened burial mound. The last she saw of Oona that night was her bulging, horrified eyes.

Then the fairy princess and the burning eye disappeared into the earth, which resealed immediately afterwards.

***

Oona awoke to the sound of water dripping. Her consciousness slowly emerged from the murk and she opened her eyes on a cramped, shadowy chamber. At the center of the chamber was a deep pool of black liquid with a pungent odor.

The fairy princess tried to move only to find her arms and legs secured to the wall by the same kind of dark vines that pulled her underground.

“Nell!” Oona called out. “Where are you, Nell?”

There was no answer.

A wave of panic washed over the fairy as she realized she was completely alone. She glanced around the chamber, looking for her sword, but could not see it.

From deep within the black pool came a gurgling sound. A red glow appeared at the center of the pool and the liquid began to bubble. In the next moment, the wisp, now in its malignant red form, emerged from the pool and slowly approached Oona.

The aura given off by the orb was repulsive and mind numbing - a far cry from the warmth and reassurance Oona had felt while touching it at sunset.

“What are you?” She asked.

The burning eye turned back towards the pool and summoned a dollop of the oily fluid into the air. The fluid weaved its way in front of Oona and began to spell a familiar word.

“Taint,” Oona repeated. “So this was all a trick?”

The eye nodded and started to creep closer.

Oona looked on as if she were having a nightmare. How could she have been so foolish? For the first time since her catastrophic reckoning, Oona desperately wanted to see her sister. Who else could save her now?

The only thing she could do is put up a good bluff.

“What are you going to do? Kill and eat me? Better make it quick. Pretty soon, my sister will be here and you do not want to mess with her!”

The eye cocked itself to the side and spelled out the word sister as a question.

“Yeah, she’s the greatest warrior in the land and she’ll rip you apart!”

Deep sadness sank into her bones as Oona remembered her last exchange with her sister. The look of hurt in Fia’s eyes. It wasn’t her fault that mother and father could be so vile.

The eye manipulated the black liquid again, this time spelling out the word “mother”.

Apparently even her thoughts weren’t safe.

“Stay out of my head,” Oona snapped.

She half expected the eye to kill her right there. It certainly seemed capable of it. Still, why had it lured her all this way? Why had it captured her? It had plenty of opportunities to harm her, but she felt fine.

Instead of attacking, the eye dimmed its light and came very close to Oona. She could feel animal warmth rising off of the surface of the being and soon, beads of sweat formed on her pale skin.

The black liquid swirled in right front of Oona’s eyes, forming the word “weak”.

Oona blushed and looked away in shame, but the liquid followed her line of sight. She watched as it reformed itself, this time into the shape of the dagger from her reckoning. It turned until the handle was pointed directly at Oona.

What in the heavens was this thing’s game?

“You know about that?”

The eye nodded.

“Of course. The entire kingdom saw. Why wouldn’t a demon eye in the middle of the forest see it?”

The liquid dagger shattered into thousands of little black droplets before reforming into another series of words. What it spelled this time shocked the fairy princess.

“I can help you,” it spelled.

“What?”

The liquid fell to the ground and condensed into a small humanoid form. The figure was a female fairy clad in jagged and imposing armor. It wielded a pair of sabres with lethal efficiency as it danced and cut its way through legions of invisible enemies. As the figure turned to face Oona, she realized with a shock that it was her clad in the armor.

“I wish,” the fairy said. “I couldn’t even pass my reckoning test.”

The figure melted into an amorphous sludge that rose into the air. It swirled, forming the letters for the word “help.”

“How could you help me? And why? I saw the markings on those pillars. You’re part of the black fleet, aren’t you?”

The eye blazed and released a loud shriek that rattled Oona to her core. The liquid below it reformed itself into several words in quick succession.

“No”

“Hate”

“Enemies”

Oona cocked her head to the side. This puzzled her. Why would something that lived in a place covered in black fleet ruins hate them so much?

“You hate the black fleet?”

The eye nodded.

“But the markings.”

The eye formed the word “trapped” with its dollop of liquid.

So the black fleet had imprisoned this creature. It matched with everything Oona had learned from her elders regarding the dark army of antiquity.

Still, if this thing was trapped, how had it made its way nearly to the castle tree? It hardly seemed confined to a prison.

“You left this place to find me. How are you trapped?”

The liquid shifted to form an answer.

“Only a part of me.”

So this eye was only a portion of something bigger. Oona wondered what it was like to be trapped alone for centuries. It was a ghastly thought that made her heart swell for the strange being.

“If you’re trapped, then we can help. My people fought the black fleet. We have powerful magic on our side. We can free you.”

The eye shook its body back and forth emphatically, refusing Oona’s help.

“But why?”

The eye did not answer. Instead, it formed the word “help” again with its black liquid before motioning to her with its body.

“But how could you help me?” Oona said. “I’m not special. I’m not Fía. I couldn’t even hold onto a bloody dagger.”

The eye brightened and brushed up against the fairy princess. It drew the black fluid close to her eyes and spelled out the words “show you”.

Before Oona could react, a tendril emerged from the bulk of the eye. It swirled through the air before coming to rest just above the fairy princess’s forehead. From the tip of this appendage came a single drop of liquid that glowed like molten iron. The dollop, no bigger than a drop of rain, fell upon Oona’s skin, where it sizzled.

“Hey,” Oona yelped. “Get it off!”

The liquid took on a mind of its own and rolled down the princess’s forehead. It made its way over the ridge of her nose and then defied all natural laws by arcing from the tip of her nose directly into her mouth. It was down Oona’s throat before she realized it.

The liquid burned and tasted spicy. As it entered Oona’s stomach, it seemed to react with her body and expand, filling her belly with warmth. Before long, Oona’s entire body began to tingle as if lightning were coursing through her veins.

“What is this?” She asked. “It feels so-so-oh!”

At the moment, the warmth hit the fairy’s nether regions. Her virgin lips immediately moistened and begged to be touched. Meanwhile, her tiny breasts began to tickle as her nipples hardened against the enchanted material of her makeshift armor.

The muscular vines pinning Oona to the wall retreated, granting the fairy princess freedom. However, all she could do with her newfound liberty was fall to her knees and grope reflexively at her burning crotch. Before she knew it, Oona was rubbing herself, trying desperately to relieve the building pressure between her legs.

As Oona writhed and clumsily pleasured herself, a wave of crimson energy radiated across her skin. Arcane markings revealed themselves before disappearing into her pale flesh. The fairy princess didn’t notice. All she could focus on was the inferno building in her core, bringing her to an alien threshold of need and desperation.

Moments later, the princess cried out as an earth-shattering wave of lust exploded from her nether regions. Her body took on a devilish illumination in the gloom of the cavern before a shockwave of energy erupted from her body. The entire chamber shook violently. Rocks and debris fell from the ceiling, crashing onto the dusty ground and splashing into the pool.

Then the cave fell silent save for the shallow, rapid breaths of the princess in her post-orgasmic state. Oona’s mind was blank as she lay on the ground, feeling a steady trickle of fluid escape her lips.

There had been times when she had experimented with herself in the privacy of her lavish apartment in the Castle Tree. However, none of those moments ever lead to such an eruption of pleasure.

After several minutes, the fairy princess finally sat up into a kneeling position and drank in her surroundings. The first thing she noticed was the debris scattered around the room.

Turning to the eye, Oona asked, “Did you do this?”

The eye shook back and forth to indicate no.

Oona’s eyes widened.

“I did it?”

The eye indicated that she had before spelling out the word “power”.

Oona stood up and immediately noticed that her arms and legs felt full to the brim with pent up energy. She felt as if she could leap hundreds of feet in the air without even using her wings. The fairy princess bent down and picked up a chunk of rock near her foot. She held it in her palm and focused her energy on its surface, just as she had done at the brook.

Awestruck, Oona watched as the rack began to glow bright red, saturating with energy. In the next moment, the fairy chucked the rock at the wall as hard as she could. It flew through the air like a crossbow bolt before exploding on impact with the opposite wall.

Oona cheered and began to dance across the chamber. Never in her life had she managed that kind of destructive magic. Now, after drinking one single droplet of whatever the eye had given her, she was filled with potent reserves of energy. How was that even possible.

“Power,” Oona said, echoing the eye. “You gave me power! I can be like Fia!”

The eye nodded.

“Thank you!” Oona cried.

Oona turned her attention to the opposite wall and extended her arm. Focusing, she brought all of her energy to a single point in the tip of her index finger and then let it out. A ray of fire shot from the fairy’s finger, colliding with the opposite wall in a loud clatter. Some of the vines lining the wall even burst into flame.

Having this kind of power was incredible. For a fairy that had always struggled with the most fundamental gift of her people, the power to throw this kind of magic around was intoxicating. Still, it was only a tiny fraction of what her sister could manage. Oona had seen Fia’s exploits first hand. The warrior was a prodigy beyond even the strongest of her predecessors.

Oona imagined Fia and her, back-to-back, facing off against hordes of enemies. She imagined the parades and parties in their honor. They would be an inseparable duo. Two sisters, both unbelievably powerful in their own ways, carving out glory for the castle tree and the Cailinion name.

Oona turned to the eye, her eyes blazing.

“More! I want more!”

***

With an impotent cry, Nell the chamber servant focused all the magical energy she could muster and flung it at the mound. There was a loud bang as the magic collided with the mound. There was a spray of dust that filled the air, obscuring the mound for a couple seconds. Then, as it cleared, Nell saw the fruits of her labor.

A tiny little crater marked the top of the mound. It sank into the earth a couple of feet and then stopped. There was no entrance to the chamber below.

Nell screamed and dove into the crater, tearing at the dirt with her bare hands. The earth scorched by her magical attack burned her fingers and knees, but she did not care. All that mattered was getting at her beloved princess.

As the humble servant fairy strived to reach her best friend, a strange chattering sound arose from behind her in the woods. Nell dismissed the sound when it first rang out. Woods this creepy were bound to have all sorts of strange creatures. As long as she kept her wings at the ready, Nell knew she could get away from anything. Besides, she had a mission.

However, the chattering sound grew steadily louder. Soon, the sound of rustling branches and snapping twigs joined the odd call of the unknown beast. Fear replaced righteous fury in the heart of the servant fairy as the size of the approaching creature dawned on her.

Nell looked behind her into the treeline, but saw nothing. Again, the loud chattering sound rang out.

“By decree of, um, the Castle Tree and house Cailinion, I demand that you show yourself, forest creature!”

More chattering rang out from close by and a spindly black shadow skittered between the trees before disappearing once more. Whatever this creature was, it was larger than any Nell had ever seen in the woods.

Nell swallowed hard and turned her attention back to the earth beneath her feet. There had to be an entrance into the place the evil wisp had taken Oona.

“Please hold on, Princess. Please,” Nell whimpered.

Tears of despair fell from her cheeks as she burrowed in the dirt like a rat. She knew she was running out of time.

The chattering sound rang out again, this time much closer. Every hair on the back of Nell’s neck stood on end as she sensed a presence directly behind her.

Panic overtook the fairy. Whatever stood behind her radiated ill will.

“I’m sorry princess,” Nell whispered.

Then she jumped into the air, flapping her wings with all her might. In the next moment, something hot and sticky slammed into the fairy’s back, sending her tumbling to the ground. Nell tried to free her wings from the substance, but found that they were completely immobilized.

She screamed and rolled around to face her attacker, immediately regretting doing so the moment her eyes lit on its hideous bulk.

It was a spider. Not the small kind that only ever got as big as a royal dubloon. Those ones hid in the corners of the castle and fed on bugs. No, this creature was enormous.

Its hairy body was nearly as black as the night’s sky and covered in sickly red eyes that glowed dimly in the darkness. It had many legs - too many legs. The monster’s head was by far the worst aspect of it. A pair of thick, blade-like fangs protruded from the bulbous head that was more eye than flesh or hair. Hundreds of eyes, both big and small, stared at Nell with demonic hunger.

Terror seized the young fairy and by some miracle drove her to her feet. She sprinted into the woods, shrieking like a banshee.

Behind her, Nell could hear the insane chattering of the spider as it took off at her with unnatural speed and grace.