Cursed by the Phantom Prince (Once Upon A Curse)

Chapter 9

9

RHAN

“ W hat is black rot?” I asked, completely horrified by its name. What could it possibly be?

“Black rot is a sickness that hasn’t been seen here for a millennia,” Rea explained, shifting uneasily in her seat. “I haven’t had time to research it, but what I do know is that this is a scourge from the Otherlands intent on consuming everything in this realm.”

“Consuming?”

“It feeds on magic.”

Those last words made me frown as worry gnawed at my stomach, making me feel nauseous. Everything in this realm, including the Fae, were products of magic. They might resemble humans but that’s as far as the similarities went. They were born of magic and were therefore magic themselves, which meant this black rot could devour them.

The implications were alarming. What sort of sickness ate magic? Magic was infinite here and only limited by the strength of will the wielder possessed. Whatever this sickness was, it was the opposite of magic.

“Does Fiskh know?” I asked, wondering if he was just as disturbed as I was.

“Yes, that’s why he requested to see me.” She looked conflicted like there was more she wanted to share but wasn’t sure if she should.

“Tell me,” I requested in a firm voice. She was protecting me and I appreciated it, but I wasn’t a delicate flower. I was the rose of the Court of Dawn. Beautiful and resilient and easy to underestimate. But roses have thorns.

Beauty and pain.

“One of Fiskh’s guard was…infected,” Rea revealed, her voice solemn and sorrowful. “He developed a fever as black veins spread over his body. Within hours he was a husk of what he used to be. The royal physicians tried everything, but the more magic they used, the faster he died.”

“Gods.” It sounded like the worst possible way for a Fae to die.

“Black veins had traveled to his eyes, turning them as black as pitch. Right before he passed he said “death to the half human Princess.”

My eyes widened and I sat there stunned, staring at Rea as panic threatened to overwhelm me. I was the only half-human princess in this realm, but my lineage was a closely guarded secret. How did this Fae guard know? Was he just speaking ominously? Had he found out somehow? Or guessed?

“We don’t know if he meant you,” Rea said, trying to make me feel better.

“I’m the only half-human princess in this realm,” I exclaimed, rising to my feet, my earlier weakness forgotten. “There is no other.”

“We don’t want to assume…”

“He all but said my name,” I yelled, my fists clenching at her excuses.

Lady growled in warning; turning, I saw that Lir was back and standing in the doorway leading back inside. He remained covered, his features cast in shadows, reminding me of a wraith or phantom. I couldn’t see his eyes and his posture didn’t give anything away.

‘How long has he been here?’ I asked Lady, trying to quell the annoyance I felt at her for not warning us sooner.

‘Long enough,’ Lady retorted, icily. Thankfully she was more annoyed that Lir had snuck in without her knowing.

Lir cleared his throat, a belated warning that he had returned. “Apologies.”

I looked away, my cheeks heating at the thought that he might have overheard Rea and I discussing my heritage. No one could know that I was half human. It was stupid on my part to talk about it out in the open.

“What is it, Black?” Rea asked, her tone giving away nothing.

“There’s a concerned woman at the door,” he said simply.

“A concerned woman?” Lua asked, appalled. “I’ll have you know that I have been the Princess’s lady’s maid for years. I should be asking you who you think you are? A man traipsing about in the Court of Dawn’s heir’s chamber. Unsightly!”

“He’s from the Moon Court, Lua,” I told her, holding up my hand to stop her from another tirade. “He’s here to protect me.”

“Protect you? From whom? His own blasted court?”

Rea snickered and I turned to shoot her a glare, a warning. I was not in the mood for insults or games.

“He’s here Lua because the Queen and the Moon Court King are in negotiations.”

“Queen Róisín would never…”

“Lua!” Rea snapped, cutting her off from saying something that would insult our guest. Like it or not Lir was a guest here, at least for now.

“The Queen is in negotiations…for my hand in marriage.” I took a breath, the words making the air feel thinner for some reason.

“She’s…” Lua began but stopped, tears filling her eyes as she looked at me in horror.

I turned to Lir, who was observing everything with a coolness in his eyes like nothing we said truly mattered. “Lua is my lady’s maid and is allowed access to my chambers at any time.”

Lir nodded his understanding, careful not to meet my gaze. The visions I’d seen when I touched him came to the forefront of my mind, making my face grow pale. I’d touched many people; most were intentional but what I’d experienced in the brief glimpse inside his mind was enough to make me shudder. He was only a couple years older than me but what he'd experienced was beyond terror. I was surprised he hadn’t gone mad from those memories alone.

A throat cleared, drawing my attention and banishing the dark visions I’d witnessed.

“There is an audience request, my lady,” Lua said, wiping her eyes with a corner of her apron.

“With whom?” I wondered, not nearly ready mentally to handle another impromptu meeting with the Consort.

“The emissary from the Court of Stars,” Lua replied, smoothing her apron over her hips once more.

I shared a look with Rea, who looked concerned. Larek had been a witness to my collapse last night. How did he know I’d recovered? I opened my mouth to ask Lir if he had told him that I was awake but snapped it shut instead. Of course he had notified him. They’d traveled together and they both had vested interests in seeing this alliance succeed. I needed to remember that their loyalty belonged to their respective courts and not me.

Lir might have been sent by the Moon Prince himself for my protection, but that didn’t mean he served me. If anything it meant that he was ordered to protect me and learn everything he could about me, the queen, and our court. I’d need to tread carefully from now on.

“If he is agreeable, he can meet with me this afternoon in the gardens.”

“I will relay your request.” Lua bowed then turned and walked out of the room.

“In the meantime?” Rea raised her eyebrow and I knew what she was thinking.

“A session is just what I need,” I confirmed, climbing to my feet and strolling back into my room, heading for the closet.

I had some frustrations I needed to work through.

I gripped the handle of my blades tightly, facing off against my opponent. Rea was my friend and protector, but here on the sparring field she was my instructor. Our friendship did not exist. She wouldn’t go easy on me because, though I was positive she’d never betray me, you could never be too careful. Here everyone was a foe. A lesson that hadn’t quite made its way to my life outside of this room but after the events of the previous night, I was beginning to understand what she had been telling me since the beginning.

Sweat beaded on my forehead and I could feel droplets of moisture running down my back. We’d been sparring for hours. After six years of constant tutelage I had advanced to a level that was nearly even with Rea. I say nearly because I could block her strikes, defend against her advances, and anticipate her movements but what I couldn’t do was throw out etiquette. Any sort of fight was never fair. I needed to overcome my hesitancy and win by any means necessary.

Rea grunted, swinging her sword in a graceful arc, giving me plenty of time to parry or take the opening she created. I blocked her swing with the edge of my sword while my right arm jabbed simultaneously. Rea pushed off my sword, using the momentum to dodge the strike with my dagger.

Rea retreated and I followed, yelling with every swing of my sword. My muscles were screaming as I tried to keep up with my Fae guardian. If I were fully Fae this would be the moment to employ some sort of trickery in order to guarantee my victory, but I was determined to beat her fairly. As a human would.

We continued for a few more minutes before an opening presented itself and I decided to try something I’d been thinking about. Any swordsman knows that any weapon is an extension of yourself. Knowing your weapon and using it as appropriately was the basic art form of all fighting styles. I was taught early in my training that a weapon is useless if it is not in your hand. To be disarmed was the ultimate defeat so what I was about to attempt went against everything I’d learned about swordsmanship.

Rea swung her sword down toward my head. I blocked with my sword and dagger. I needed both in order to combat her superior strength. I gathered the last remaining vestiges of energy I had and pushed her back, away from me. The shove wasn’t powerful enough to send her flying but enough that she had to take a couple steps backward to regain her balance, which was the opening I needed.

I took aim and threw my dagger at Rea’s chest. Her sword came up lightning fast to block the thrown projectile. I knew that she would then step forward, swinging her blade backward in order to force my own sword from my hand. Instead, I tossed my sword into the air so it flew over Rea’s blade while I twirled, dodging her strike and letting her momentum carry her past me. At the end of my rotation, I caught the sword by the handle with my right hand, the blade already in position and pointing at Rea’s back.

Steadying the blade, I touched the tip to the back of her neck. Rea froze at the cold touch of my sword. She faced away from me, in the middle of whirling around so she could face me again. I exhaled sharply, hardly willing to believe that it had actually worked.

A long moment passed before I took a step back, angling the sword tip down.

My chest was heaving with the exertion and it felt like my arms were going to fall off if I moved them slightly. So I stood still, catching my breath and watching as Rea worked through what I had done.

“Impressive,” she complimented, sheathing her sword, her breathing slow and steady like she’d just been on a leisurely stroll.

Damn Fae.

“Thanks,” I replied, sheathing my own sword then dropping to my knees before flopping onto the soft dirt that made up the arena floor. “I can’t believe that worked.”

“Me either,” Rea said, walking closer as I rolled my exhausted body onto my back so I could look up at her.

“Don’t be mad. I know I let go of my sword,” I sighed, ready for a lecture about not letting go of your weapon.

“I’m not mad,” Rea chuckled, squatting so she was closer to me. “I’m actually pretty damn proud.”

“Really?” I asked, confused. I’d thought she’d be angry or annoyed at the least.

“Yes, because technically you threw your sword. That’s not the same as dropping it.” Well, that was good to know. “You are progressing and thinking more like a Fae.”

That was high praise here in the arena.

I smiled, preferring to see pride in her eyes instead of constant worry.

Maybe fighting like the Fae wasn’t unfair but just finding a loophole or a way around what was fair by human standards. I had tossed my sword not dropped it, which opened up a whole new way to view combat.

Find a loophole in the rules then exploit it.

Now that was something Fae-like that I could bring into my life outside of the arena.