Another famous and powerful fae stepped from behind the selenite statues. “Don’t let Merlin get under your skin. He doesn’t mean anything by it.”
Val almost fell on her ass. “Morgan Le Fay!”
“We know what our names are,” Merlin snarked.
“Shut up, Hat,” the queen amiably yelled.
Morgan Le Fay laughed, which made her peerlessly beautiful face look radiant. A cloak draped her slender figure, and her long, dark hair hung down her back, as straight as a sword’s blade. Her bright hazel eyes studied Val with glittering intelligence. “It’s good to meet you at last, Eiravel. Julie talks about you all the time.”
“She does?” Val squeaked.
“Of course. Your work is impressive. I’m familiar with drow concealment magic, and few people see through it.” Morgan tilted her head. “Humor my curiosity. Why did you choose to be bound to this faerie?”
Val shrugged. “I’m supposed to protect the realm, right? I’m protecting her and humans and paras by doing that.”
Morgan smiled. “Interesting.”
“Seems like the ritual is complicated.” Val watched as Arthur and Merlin laid a bunch of artifacts in a circle around the statues’ sandstone bases: a helmet, a spear, an orb, and a bow and arrows.
“It is, but don’t worry. It’s safe in our hands, and so are you,” Morgan assured her. “Besides, you’re no stranger to strong magic.”
“I use a little magic to forge my jewelry and fight,” Val admitted.
“More than a little.” Morgan nodded at Val’s amulet. “Especially if it has been passed down through your family for so long.”
Val laid her palm over the amulet’s warm pulse. “It hasn’t. The queen gave it to me.”
“Oh?” Morgan raised her eyebrows. “Julie didn’t tell me she’d found an ancient Iron Dwarven artifact.”
“She didn’t tell me much either.” Val paused. “Do...do you know something about this amulet, ma’am?”
Morgan laughed. “There’s no need for that here, Eiravel. You can call me Morgan.”
“Okay.” Val smiled, and the knots in her shoulders released.
“I am not well-versed in dwarven magic. A dwarf sage could tell you more,” Morgan admitted. “It’s both old and powerful, though.”
“A dwarf sage?” Val sighed. “I’ve never met one of those.”
“The Lunar Fae are not the only species who lost much of our knowledge and power during the Second Pendragon War.” Morgan shook her head. “We’ve recovered much since Julie became queen, but I know that almost all para civilizations lost much in that time.”
“The Iron Dwarves, too?” Val asked. “But why? We didn’t have to go into hiding the way you did after Mordred attacked King Arthur.”
“Perhaps not, but all the same, the Second Pendragon War lasted for centuries,” Morgan explained. “Every para group’s focus was on the war. We didn’t pay attention to anything else. Battles destroyed many of our libraries and killed our most learned mages.” Morgan shook her head. “That time was destructive to every language, art, and culture, human and paranormal.”
“I guess I didn’t realize,” Val murmured. “I had the same conversation with Sir Bedivere earlier today when I realized that the Iron Dwarves forged Excalibur. I don’t think any of us could build a weapon like that today.”
“Maybe.” Morgan’s eyes glittered. “Maybe one could.”
The weight of her words settled uncomfortably on Val’s shoulders.
“We are ready to begin!” Merlin boomed, raising his arms so the sleeves of his robes formed a second pair of wings.
“Drama queen,” Julie muttered.
“Bring forth the vassal!” Merlin thundered.
The queen rolled her eyes and face-palmed.
Lancelot, Guinevere, Kaye, Gawaine, and Percival disappeared into the trees. They returned a few seconds later, pushing the obsidian cage between them. Moonlight reflected sharply off the black substance since it repelled lunar magic. Fourth sat within, knees to her chest, arms around her knees. She showed no fear. Her eyes sought Val and narrowed in a sullen glare.
The knights halted at the edge of the artifact circle.
Merlin turned to Val, arms still raised. “Let the liege step forward!”
“That’s my cue,” Morgan muttered.
She joined Merlin, King Arthur, and Julie inside the circle, and moonlight flowed from their skin and bathed the clearing.
The amulet’s warm pulses quickened, becoming a drumbeat. Val shuffled to the edge of the circle. The fae were almost too bright to look at, so she gazed at Fourth instead. The faerie maintained her glare.
Merlin and the other fae in the circle bowed their heads and simultaneously extended their hands toward one another. Their fingers did not touch, but silver ropes of moonlight extended from their skin and bound them together. Then glowing cords wrapped around their forearms and torsos until dazzling light entangled them. Queen Julia pulsed the brightest, and when she smiled, the other fae smiled too.
As one, the fae stepped back to the edges of the artifact circle. Even the statues now pulsed with light.
Merlin raised his head. “Eiravel Stonehold, enter the circle.”
Morgan and King Arthur loosed their hands, allowing Val to step between them. The moonlight kissed her skin, cool and gentle but powerful.
