It was a beautiful illusion, a trap for lunas like me.
SEVEN
The blue pendant on my necklace swung back and forth when I leaned forward to tie the laces on my boots. I tilted my head up and looked at the dangerous ocean that sat between me and my beloved staff. Every luna got one, and it was unique to them. It could not be used by anyone else. Our magic was beautiful, entwining our souls with the lunas before us. Being without it felt like a part of my body was missing. My magic was an extension of myself.
There was a cool breeze in the air. The beach was sparse of sorcerers, who were used to temperatures much hotter than this. Everything I had read about Berovia boasted of its hot weather and golden beaches. I looked out at the horizon, desperate to see the tell-tale black sails of a pirate’s ship, or any ship, but there were none. The faery had been right; my rescuers were gone.
Tight-lipped, I sat on the beach, then curled my toes into the warm sand. I examined my wounds again, carefully running my fingers along the scars. I fingered my necklace, using my other hand to push against my thigh.
Behind me, a couple of teenage solises giggled as they walked. I curled my knees up to my chest. I wanted to blend into the background, but in my current attire, I stuck out. At least I had my pendant, which looked enough like a relic used by solises to channel their powers. Perhaps I could be mistaken for one of them.
I watched the few solises who were enjoying their sun, and I frowned. Magic was a sorcerer’s given right, a gift to be used with pride, not controlled or hidden away. They might have used their powers differently than us, choosing to draw theirs from the four elements instead, but it was their rules that separated solises from lunas. They refused to see the beauty in ancestral magic. They saw it as unnatural. They were ignorant. All life must end, and using the energy left behind, channeling through wood taken from the burial grounds of our families, was the most natural thing in the world.
Because of those differences, our two kingdoms had been at war since anyone could remember. The light fae naturally sided with the solises and lived peacefully with them as they, too, lived by a strict string of rules when it came to faery magic. They both looked down upon us and the dark fae. I hated all of them. They spoke of peace and love, but they had attacked us first, ruthlessly killing thousands of my people, including my brother, tearing our family apart.
I exhaled slowly, letting out my frustration. I couldn’t show my hatred there; not while I was so vulnerable.
The heat hugged my skin as the midday sun took its place in the blue sky. I licked my chapped lips and waited for a sign of what to do next. I tried to reach my ancestors by focusing my thoughts, hoping to receive a whisper of what I needed to do, but not even our dead wanted to set foot in Berovia. A strand of hair tickled my forehead. I pushed it away, wiping sweat onto the back of my hand.
“Hi,” a squeaky voice said from behind me. A girl stepped up next to me. She held out her hand.
I leaned over to push myself up with my arm. I dusted the sand off my hands before shaking hers. It was unusual for me to shake someone’s hand. Usually, people bowed and kissed mine, but I was undercover.
“Hello,” I said woodenly.
I looked down at the state of my dress. My next priority was to find new clothes to wear.
The girl looked no older than eighteen. It was the first time I had come face-to-face with a solis.
I bit the inside of my cheek until I could taste blood. Against my instincts, I forced a smile.
She did not look threatening, but looks could be deceiving. She had a heart-shaped face, a long, straight nose, and darker skin, which contrasted in comparison to my pale appearance. Her big brown eyes looked up at me. She couldn’t be more than five feet tall. She flicked her black wavy strands over her shoulder.
“I’m Isabelle.” Her lips curved upward into an innocent smile.
“Hi. I’m...” I paused at my name. I had told Cedric my real name, but that had been a mistake and one I shouldn’t repeat. “Summer.”
She beamed. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“Uh, you too.” I wondered what the point of this discussion was. “Can I help you with something?”
“Oh.” She flushed. “Sorry, I had to say hello because you are unlike anyone I’ve ever met,” she said with admirable honesty.
I raised both eyebrows. “How so?” I asked, feeling paranoid. Aside from my torn dress and knotted hair, I hoped I could pass as one of them.
“You just look...different.”
My eyes widened. “Oh.”
A man with dark-brown hair and piercing green eyes approached us. He wrapped his arm around Isabelle’s waist when he reached us and looked me up and down.
“Who’s this?” he asked, glaring.
There was something about him that rang familiar to my senses, something I couldn’t quite put my finger on.
“Summer.”
“Uh-huh...” he replied, seeming unsure.
Isabella interjected. “This is Damien, my partner.”
I couldn’t stop staring at him. Curiosity kept me rooted to the spot. His green gaze latched onto mine, like a snake staring at its dinner. Did he recognize something in me too? We couldn’t have met, being from rival kingdoms, but... That was it! I could sense it all over him. There was something unique about a person touched by ancestral magic; they weren’t the same after. Power like ours always left a trace, and Damien had at some point used it. I wondered if he could sense it on me too. He wasn’t about to say, even if he did. Outing me would incriminate him too.
We eyed each other with caution until Isabelle broke the silence.
“What brings you to the beach? I’ve not seen you here before.”
I rolled my shoulders back. Damien had me on edge. “Do you keep track of everyone who ever visits this beach?”
Damien grimaced. “Someone’s defensive.”
“It’s been a long day.” I let out a small sigh, reining in my annoyance. “I should go.”
I walked away quickly, avoiding eye contact with anyone else who might mistake it for an invitation to talk.
I ambled through a small town, feeling the cobbled stone through the soles of my boots. The sun had peaked high in the sky, the only upside to being trapped here.
Nervousness buzzed through me as I thought about Blaise. I had met my fiancé twice, the first time when I was five. My memories of him had faded with my childhood, but the lure of the fae court stuck with me into my teenage years. Everything shone like stars, and the entire area beat with magic. It was different than ours, the natural magic, the same used by pixies, unicorns, and other earthly creatures.
The second time I met Blaise was after our engagement was announced, before I was sent to live on Inferis. It hadn’t been a huge affair. Father just wanted to introduce us officially.
Going to the court where Jasper had lived felt wrong; the ghost of him had echoed in every room. He was reflected in the eyes of his brothers and sisters, whom I met for the first time. I kissed their cheeks with lips that held the secret of their brother’s murder, a lie I would have to keep swallowed for the sake of my rule. They thought he was living his best life with a lover on a long-lost island. That was the official story, a complete cover-up, but then who’d believe an immortal had been murdered? That would be absurd. No matter how much I’d looked into it, I never did find out how my father did it.