When Nero woke, he didn’t feel cold anymore. The air around him was warm and dry, and he felt more rested than he’d been in weeks.

When he tried to turn over, he found that he was unable to move. His hands and feet were bound with thick golden ropes. His heart was pounding with fear as he struggled to sit up. Where was he?

He was no longer in the grassy spot under the apple tree—he was in a wooden cell. The door was made of tree branches that were held together by the same ropes that bound Nero.

He wasn’t wearing any clothes, either. What kind of place had he been brought to, and why did they take his clothes?

There was the sound of footsteps, and two men approached, opening the door to Nero’s cell. They were tall and thin, with pale gray skin and pointed ears. They wore shiny blue armor that looked like it had been designed to look like beetles. As they moved into the dark cell, Nero noticed they had translucent blue wings that glowed, and he gasped.

He’d been taken by Faeries.

“Get up,” one demanded, cutting the rope from Nero’s ankles. The other one took him roughly by the arm and hauled him to his feet. “Let’s go.”

“Who are you?” Nero asked as the forced him to walk. “Where am I? What do you want from me? Where are my clothes?”

“Quiet,” one of them said. He gave Nero a rough shove forward.

All around, there were huge flowers, enormous mushrooms, and towering blades of grass, taller than Anzino Castle. Some of the plants had leaves that could probably bury his kingdom. Many of the flowers had strange colors that Nero had never seen before, giving off all kinds of powerful scents. Below, they walked along massive tree roots.

As he was pushed along by the guards, Nero noticed other Faeries. A few rushed away out of sight, and others just stared in awe.

They brought him out to a wide clearing between the giant tree roots. The only thing there was the stem of what looked like it used to be a sturdy plant. They forced him to his knees in the dirt and tied his hands to the plant so he couldn’t move.

What was this place? Were they going to leave him there to be eaten by a wild animal? He couldn’t see any of his surroundings, just the plant in front of him that he was bound to.

“Let me go!” He tried to pull his hands free, but the ropes held firm. “Why did you bring me here?”

“Thirty lashes for unlawful consumption of the Moon Apple,” a voice said behind him. “Then, bring him to Queen Tana.”

Nero’s eyes went wide, and his heart was pounding, his breath coming out in quick, panicky huffs. Lashes?

“Wait! I didn’t—”

There was no warning when the first lash came, and Nero screamed in pain. He writhed, trying to break free, but there was no escaping it.

He lost count after the first few lashes. He just knelt there and took them. His whole body felt like it was on fire, tears and sweat running down his face. His chest shuddered with each labored breath, and his hands were trembling. It took everything in him to not faint.

“That’s thirty,” one of the guards said. “Untie him and make sure he’s still alive.”

They cut him loose and Nero collapsed, face down in the dirt. One of the guards nudged him with his foot, and it sent excruciating pain through his back, breaking out of his daze, and he screamed in pain again.

“Take him to the Queen.”

He was dragged to the trunk of an enormous tree, where there was a small opening at the base.

Nero was barely conscious, held up only by the guards’ firm grip on his arms and the headed down the dark path.

All around them, light began to emanate from the flowers and mushrooms, and the path was illuminated by their glow. It let to a large open space in the center of the tree, covered in all kinds of bioluminescent plants and mushrooms of every imaginable color.

There were tons of Faeries there, too. Their eyes and wings glowed brightly in the darkness.

In the center of the room, there was a tall, beautiful Faerie. She had lavender skin and bright yellow eyes, and an intricate silver circlet adorning her forehead. Her dress looked like it was made of butterfly wings, with intricate colors and patterns, and the pieces were held together by shimmering golden threads, similar to the ropes that were tied around Nero’s wrists. She had long blue hair that was pinned pack with tiny glowing flowers, and it fell around her shoulders in soft curls.

“Bring the Human forward,” she said. Her voice was calm and inviting. She waved her hand, the restraints that held Nero vanished.

Beside her, there was a large, muscular Faerie, clad in black and red beetle-like armor. He carried a tall spear with a strange serrated blade at the end, and his pearly white skin and bright blue eyes made him stand out more than most of the Faeries there.

The Faeries around the edges of the room whispered amongst themselves as the guards brought Nero forward. He felt vulnerable and humiliated without his clothing, but no one else really seemed to care.

When they got to the bottom of the stairs below where the Faeries stood, the guards let him drop to the floor, and Nero just knelt there, keeping his head down. He didn’t want to have to look at any of them. His body felt like fire while he trembled in pain and struggled to catch his breath.

“I am Queen Tana,” she said. “Who might you be?”

“It… it doesn’t matter,” Nero said through his pained breathing. He couldn’t go back to Anzino. No one needed to know who he was or where he’d come from.

“Answer the question!” the other Faerie shouted, pointing his spear at Nero. “Show your respect to the Queen of Ombra!”

Nero’s eyes went wide. Ombra? How had he come to the Dark Kingdom? He only remembered falling asleep under an apple tree.

“Why… Why did you… bring me here?”

“You, young Human, have been brought before me for committing crimes against Ombra.”

“I haven’t done anything!” Nero gritted his teeth and tried to stand, but one of the guards shoved him back down to the floor, and he cried out in pain.

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“You invaded a Faerie Circle, stole and consumed fruit from the sacred Moon Apple Tree, and slept in the middle of our gathering place on the eve of our Winter Festival. Do you deny these claims?”

Nero tried to get up to argue, but he was struck down by a guard again. He knelt there, doubled over and clutching the back of his head, and spoke through gritted teeth.

“I didn’t know what it was. I didn’t know it was sacred!”

“So, there you have it,” the male Faerie said. “He admits his guilt, so he must be punished.”

“I didn’t know!” Nero finally got the strength in him to stand, but this time, he was stabbed in the shoulder by the serrated spear. All he could do was stare at the weapon in shock.

Some Faeries cried out in horror, others left the room, and some looked on with interest. The Queen didn’t react at all.

“How many times must you be suppressed before you learn your place, filthy Human? Would you rather I just kill you where you stand?”

He pulled his spear free, and Nero screamed as the serrated blade tore through his flesh. Blood ran down his arm, and Nero vomited before he collapsed in the dirt.

“That’s enough,” Queen Tana said calmly. “Leave us.”

Nero lay on the ground, writhing in pain and clutching his injured shoulder. Soon, the only ones in the room were him and Tana. She approached him without fear or disgust on her face like most of the other Faeries. She walked around him in slow circles, eyeing him curiously.

“What have you gotten yourself into, little Human?”

She knelt down and placed her bare hands firmly on the wounds on his back, and he screamed in pain.

“Calm down,” she said softly. “I’m only examining your injuries and seeing what I can heal.”

After a moment, she pulled her hands away, a grim look on her face.

“Magical immunity? It seems you are full of surprises.”

Tana attended to Nero’s wounds by hand, covering the wounds with a salve made with crushed ingredients for healing, and wrapped him up in thick leaves like bandages.

“That should suffice for now.”

“Where are my clothes?” Nero asked, covering himself up with some of the leaves.

“You’re in Ombra,” she said, laughing a bit. “You’re too small for those clothes. You’ll have to visit the Seamstress. When you return from her, your fate will be decided, so prepare yourself.”

Nero walked the path to the Seamstress alone, even without the guards. It was quiet. All Nero could hear was his own footsteps and pounding heart.

He came to a clearing that was covered in the same thick golden ropes that had bound Nero earlier. They covered the whole area, like a maze of nets. There was no way he would be able to get through there without getting tangled up.

He reached out and touched one of the ropes. It was smooth and cool.

“Hello?” he called out. “I’m looking for the Seamstress. I was sent here by Queen Tana.”

“Oh?” a small, sultry voice echoed all around him. “It’s been a long time since Tana sent me a Human. Are you here for clothing, or are you my dinner?”

Nero took a fearful step back, his eyes darting all around, trying to find the source of the voice.

“I have no intention of becoming dinner for anyone. I was sent because my clothes—”

“How disappointing. Humans are so much better than my usual meals. Their insides are so warm and juicy.”

All the color left Nero’s face as an enormous spider came down across the maze of ropes. It was a spiderweb?

“Are… are you the S-seamstress?” Nero asked, trying to sound more calm than he felt.

Don’t panic, he told himself. Nothing is going to happen.

“I am,” the spider said. “The Faeries call me Nephila. What should I call you, Human?”

Nero swallowed hard as the spider looked over him with its many eyes. She reached out to him with her long thin legs, measuring each part of his body with a bit of her golden threads.

“My name is Nero.”

“Oh?” She laughed softly. It was terrifying and strange to Nero, to be standing there having a conversation with a spider. “I’ve only ever heard of one Human with that name. I wonder what the Prince of Anzino has gotten himself into.”

“It doesn’t matter,” he said, lowering his gaze with a scowl. “I left Anzino, and I can never go back. It’s better this way.”

“Your secret is safe with me. Nero… what a powerful name for such a small, fragile creature. I wonder if you’ll grow into it. Although, you won’t be doing any actual growing any time soon, being a prisoner of the Ombra Faeries. No Human has ever been released from Tana’s service. The only release for you will be your death.”

Nero was quiet as she wrapped him up in soft orange leaves, weaving them together with her golden thread.

“What about you?” he asked. “You’re big and powerful, aren’t you? Why do you serve the Faeries?”

“We simply cooperate with each other. I live in the shelter of the Moon Apple Tree, and in return, I make clothing for them. I use whatever resources I have around me. Leaves, beetle shells, feathers, butterfly wings… all things I don’t consume have become precious textiles for the Faeries. We share and protect each other. It’s a quiet, peaceful existence, and occasionally they bring me prey. Invaders, traitors, trespassers, humans…”

Nero took a deep calming breath. Nephila wouldn’t try to eat him, would she?

“Why do you like Humans so much? You can’t hunt them unless they’re brought here too you, right? Even if you could pierce Human skin, which I doubt, your venom wouldn’t be potent enough to harm them.”

“That’s what makes the prey better, don’t you agree? Being able to indulge in something that you wouldn’t normally be able to obtain. Even Humans do it. The people of Anzino get fish from Oorlog. That’s no different.”

“I suppose…”

“There,” she said, finishing Nero’s new robes. “An outfit fit for a prince. Although, you won’t find any royal treatment here.”

“Why orange?” Nero examined his new clothes. The leaves were as soft and loose as silk, and the threads shimmered in the bits of sunlight that came through the trees.

“Despite my many eyes, Little Nero, I am actually quite blind. I don’t choose the color—I let Mother Gaia guide me.”

“Mother Gaia?” Nero remembered Faeryn telling him about Druids who worshipped Mother Gaia and obtained magic power through her.

“Most Humans don’t worship the earth anymore like other races do. Throughout time, many even invented their own deities and idols. However, Gaia is the wife of the Creator, and responsible for the balance of all living things. Trust in her, and perhaps you may find yourself on a kinder on than what led you to this place. After all, she chose the color of wisdom and endurance for you. Now, you should go. The sun is setting, and you won’t want to invoke the wrath of Moonlight Faeries while they’re at their most powerful.”

“May I ask one more thing?” Nero rubbed his bandaged shoulder, a pained grimace on his face. “What can you tell me about the man who works beside the Queen?”

“Have you noticed how different he is? Have you seen his apparent love for violence and bloodshed, as well? He is Tana’s husband, although he is not the king. You see, he was once a Sunlight Faerie, and like you, found himself prisoner of Ombra. Tana was much younger then, and fell in love with the prisoner, and many tend to do. It’s only natural to become attached when you spend so much time with the same person. The laws of Ombra and the rules of royal lineage prevent him from ever becoming the King of Ombra.”

“That doesn’t explain why he’s so aggressive. And why does Tana allow him to—”

“Sunlight Faeries are children of fire. They’ve always been known for their wild tempers and unpredictable nature. Humans only fear Ombra more because they have always feared what lives in the shadows. Tana tolerates the violence because living in moonlight is detrimental to the welfare of Sunlight Faeries. She is also not fond of Humans, so I suspect she partly leaves Aiken to his own devices so she doesn’t have to dirty her own hands. Now, go. I’m tired. And it’s not wise to be on the path after nightfall.”

When Nero returned, the guards were waiting for him. They ties his hands with Nephila’s ropes again before leading him back to the tree where Tana was deciding his fate.

There were many Faeries this time, filling up most of the room. They all fell silent as Nero was brought before the Queen. Many had never seen a Human before, and looked down on Nero with either curiosity or disgust. Others seemed afraid.

“Orange robes?” Tana had an amused smirk on her face. “How very interesting.”

“The prisoner is ready for his sentence,” one of the guards said, forcing Nero to his knees before the Queen.

He kept his head down and held his breath. What were they going to do to him?