Niam nodded, moving forward with arm raised as if in battle. His dark skin was splashed with blood, his shaved head dusted with dirt and sweat, a savage glint in his ebony eyes. "Step aside, Ace. I do not want to hurt you, but if what Levi says is true, the Princess is an enemy."
Ace gripped his staff, his knuckles turning white. "You will not kill her."
"No," said Niam.
The others glanced at him, their faces puzzled.
The Prince of Greed lowered his sword in a peaceful gesture. "We must do this properly. We must hold court. We must have a trial. This is neither the time nor place to dispense justice."
Levi sighed. He shared a look with each of his brothers. "We are the justice of this land. Is it not our duty to protect our people? To end this war? Is it not better to sacrifice one life to save thousands more?"
He was swaying them. I could see it in the way they raised their swords, in the way their eyes filled with rage.
"Please," I said. "Hold a trial if you must, but let me go to Fen. He needs medicine." I held up what little I had been able to find as evidence.
Zeb ran a hand through his short brown hair. He turned to the princes at his side. "You can deliberate all you wish. I go to find Fen."
"So do I," said Ace. He glared at Levi. "If you choose to fight us, if you choose to kill the future Queen, then you put yourself above the law, above all other princes, as if you are King already…"
Dean and Niam seemed to ponder the words. For the first time, I thought the princes might actually let me go.
Then Levi laughed. "Don’t be fools. You dare leave this to trial? With Asher and Fen present? You know they care for her more than they do our kingdom. Oh, Asher plays the slave master, but he is soft at heart. And Fen… Fen does not see clearly anymore."
The princes said nothing. They knew his words to be true. Even I could not argue.
Whatever urge Zeb had to find his brother seemed to fade.
Levi turned to me, raising his sword. "You will not fool me again, Fae. I will take your life, and then I will find my brother."
He took a step forward, but Dean surprised us all by moving in front of him and laying a hand on his chest. "And what of the contract? We are all bound to it. She must choose the next king."
"Why do we need another king?" asked Levi. "We have ruled our own realms these past few months. Why put one of us above all? We shall be the Seven Lords. Seven Kings for Seven Realms. And with her gone, we will rule in peace."
This gave them all pause, even Ace, and the hall was silent for a moment, before Levi spoke again, his voice calmer, more collected… more persuasive. "The Princess has deceived us. I will never have her as my Queen. Will you, brothers? Will you be ruled by the High Fae? A liar and a traitor? Will you surrender our world, our people, over to the Fae by making one of them our ruler?"
Ace spoke softly. "The Fae used her as a pawn in this game. She’s not responsible for this war."
Zeb clutched his dagger, thinking. "That may be true, but without her, the Druids would still slumber. Without her, my people—the ones who died today—would yet live."
My heart broke a little at that. I thought the Prince of Gluttony was on our side. He'd always been kind to me, and liked by Fen. But could I blame him, really? He'd watched friends die today, all because I woke the Druids and brought war to them. If it were my friends, my family, the people I loved in danger, would I feel any differently?
I could see that all but Ace had turned against me. Niam wanted a trial. Zeb wished to avenge his people. Dean wanted to be his own ruler. And Levi… Levi wanted me dead.
I tried to think of something else I could say. Something else I could do to sway them. "Please, I am not your enemy. I fought the Fae to save Fen. I fought the Fire Druid."
No one moved. Even in this, they did not believe me.
Ace spoke one final argument. "Brothers, do you not remember who brought her here?" he asked. "It wasn't the Fae. It was our father who arranged for Arianna to enter this world. Who arranged for her to be Queen. He must have had a reason."
"Our father is dead," Levi said.
"And have you learned who killed him?" A new voice filled the stone halls. A familiar voice. A voice that nearly destroyed my composure.
We all turned to see Fen standing there, shirtless, his heavy boots almost shaking the castle, the white globe lights faltering in the power of his presence. Asher stood beside him, a worried frown on his face. Fen held his sword, a large blade of thick grey steel etched with runes.
And then I noticed the tree tattoo covering his body… and I saw his ears. Fae ears. How could this be? An illusion spell? Some kind of trick?
The hall remained silent, all eyes on Fen as he spoke. "Perhaps you thought the Fae conceived his death? Perhaps you thought Arianna orchestrated it? No. I killed him." His voice thundered through the halls, ripping the air apart and pulling it back together.
The other princes were stone cold, frozen in place by his words.
Fen stepped forward. "Your father told me of his plans for peace… he spoke of weakness. So I poisoned him."