Chapter Forty-Nine: A Queen of Alfheim

I don't think Calivar has the gift of prophecy - and, at least among fae, magical prognostication is viewed very skeptically, because it seems to contradict the idea of free will, which is important in fae society and magic. I don't think Calivar is a seer, but damn if he didn't guess right about my mother. As we sailed into Fort Starron, we saw a huge royal contingent waiting for us: my mother, Queen Alathea, and the other three monarchs of the fae (even Queen Presimiwe). And, since this was the shore of Wyrmsreach, Prince Velda and his father were also there to greet us. It was a calm day, and we could hear the cheering and whistling and the blurting of trumpets from miles out, before we could make out individual people along the harbor wall.

"Wow, they really pulled out all the stops," I said.

"We did save the world," Meliswe said. "And they probably don't even know the most impressive bits yet."

We'd sent advance runners ahead of us on a fleet ship - but, obviously, none of them had been in our elect party imprisoned in Aru-Khazi and none of them had done battle with the Engine of Change out in the deep of the jungle. All they knew was that we'd defeated Nargillis, quelled the threat, and whatever other bits of the story we'd seen it fit to convey. I wasn't entirely sure - I'd helped Calivar draft the message, but we'd let Gaelin pen the final draft since his musician's soul also had a way with persuasive prose, and I'd only given it a once-over to make sure he hadn't gone too over-the-top. Meliswe read the whole thing, though, and insisted it did us all justice.

Smaller ships came out to meet us as we eased into port, and several fae delegations buzzed out across the water to tend to the royals on board to make sure we had our proper regalia on - the little bits of woodsong 'jewelry' I preferred along with my royal circlet, for instance. Finally, our ramp deployed, royal runners rushed to the side of the boat, and each of us was announced to the crowd to great cheering. Even Lady Meliswe of the Blue Fern Valley got announced with a little cheering, since she was a noble, a royal consort, and a hero. She deserved it!

I accepted congratulations from the Velda IV, King of Wyrmsreach (our Velda was to be Velda V, apparently), Queen Presimiwe, my father-in-law, King Alvaelic, and my father, King Fostolas. Last along the royal procession was my mother, Queen Alathea, and she did not look happy. Her pale green eyes surveyed me, and she pursed her lips before she spoke.

"I see someone who looks like my daughter… I see her face, her royal crown, and the sword she loves to swing about like a buccaneer… but I do not see her spellsword, which I began work upon since she was but a babe, the most valuable gift I have ever bestowed upon any soul. Tell me, princess, where is this most valuable gift, which kings, emperors, and, I daresay, a god or two, would scour the world and topple nations to get their hands on? Did you leave it on your boat?"

"I…" Was she really going to castigate me in front of all these people? The cheering stopped, and you could hear the waves lapping at the pier and the wind whipping the sails around. "My queen, we were beset by the enemy while at sea and it was lost… sunk to the bottom of the ocean… but I know the place and swear to you I will recover it."

Stolen story; please report.

"Oh?" And then I saw something in the queen's eye. Was it… was she teasing me? "Captain Vittoro, have we got a spare?"

"I believe so, my queen," the captain of the Queen's Guard said.

He knelt and presented her with an ornate case, which Alathea carefully opened. She frowned and, with a forest-green fingernail, flicked off a piece of semi-dried seaweed before lifting the spellsword out of its case. "I did not toil upon this for the better part of a century to have it lost at sea. Naturally, I provided myself with a way to get it back, should the need arise."

I couldn't imagine the sort of complex, nigh-incomprehensible magics that might have been involved to do that. But, if anybody could do them, it was Queen Alathea. As far as I'm aware, I'm the most magically robust magic-user among all the fae (in terms of magical purity and potential, at least), which probably makes me tops in the world. But Alathea is one of a handful who isn't too far off (which, I suppose, makes sense since I am her daughter). Nobody can call down lightning or meteors or call up Elder Trees like I can, but I haven't got centuries upon centuries of practice, and Alathea would wipe the floor with anybody in the fae realms in a straight-up magic contest. Apparently, she could recall my spellsword if it had been too far away from me for too long.

"My ritual sanctum is now flooded, by the way," she said, finally unable to contain her smile. "Apparently that's what happens when you open a portal to the bottom of the ocean to retrieve a sword. But we cannot have the High Queen without her spellsword."

"The…" I looked back to my friends - only Meliswe seemed to have any idea what my mother was talking about.

"Oh, sweet Gaia…" Meliswe said. And, usually when she says that, it's bad. But this didn't sound bad.

"Somebody care to enlighten me?"

"We fae do not believe in prophecy," Queen Presimiwe said. "But we do believe in precedent. There have been no high kings or queens since we fae came to Alfheim, but we have records of those from the old realms during the Sylvan Age. It is said that, to become High Queen of the Fae, you must unite all realms, whether through birth, marriage, or conquest. Alathea makes a strong case that you have done all three. She must not be overly biased against any realm, and I must admit that you have been both respectful and disobedient to every king or queen you've ever met in equal measure in your time here. She must be a leader, able to inspire the common folk and the nobility alike… you sail back victorious with two fae princes and a host of loyal soldiers… and I will not tell you what threats I had to levy against my daughter to prevent her from trying to join you. She must be a skillful warrior and a mighty sorceress. No questions there. And she must show a willingness to sacrifice herself ultimately to preserve the realms. Even I must admit that you have done all these things. And, in these uncertain times, we must have a leader to unite us. Unanimous agreement among the monarchs is required to name a High Queen… and last night, we all agreed that it must be you."

"I… is this really real?"

"We will go to the Nexus Mountains, and you will be crowned and bequeathed the Sceptre of Fae, to hold for all seasons," King Alvaelic said.

"Honestly, it's mostly a ceremonial title," my father, King Fostolas said.

"Shush, you vagabond!" my mother said. "It most certainly is not. Well, daughter? Will you do it?"

"Of course I'll do it!" I wrapped my mother in a hug, and was soon mobbed by the others - my father, Calivar, Meliswe, and Gaelin, all pressing into a great big hug and laughing and crying all at the same time. It was perhaps the most undignified thing I'd ever witnessed at a fae royal event, and I absolutely loved it.

All around me, people were chanting: "Hail Queen Laeanna! Hail Queen Laeanna!" And we would all be celebrating long into the night.

And so, I suppose, that was the end of my brief tenure as a Princess of Alfheim.

TO BE CONTINUED…