BOOK TWO
PART ELEVEN: CHANGING PERSPECTIVES
The centaurs of the Grove gave Thane and his warriors a hero’s welcome as they marched into the village early the next morning. Zoe watched from her perch atop Thane’s back as centaurs of every shape, size, and color lined the dirt streets and cheered their return. She frowned as she heard many shouts of “Princess!” mixed with the exultant cheers. Even though she was getting more comfortable with using her magic, she was still not used to the idea that not only was she not quite human, but royalty as well. Tyler, on the other hand, was thoroughly enjoying all the attention. The way he grinned and waved from his seat on Sangar’s back would have made one think he had defeated Acrimony’s forces single-handedly. Zoe shook her head and returned her attention to the commotion all around them, desperate to distract herself from the knowledge that Jonathan was still in Vendetta’s clutches — most likely on his way to some terrible fate even as she was being given a royal welcome. She felt sick.
The men of the Grove were dressed in sturdy roughspun wool jerkins of varying colors, mostly shades of brown or tan, and a few wore leather aprons bearing the tools of their trades such as blacksmithing tongs or leatherworking awls. Only the warriors wore their hair long and braided while the rest of the men kept their hair and manes cut shorter. The women were mostly smaller than the men, though Zoe noticed a few who matched their male counterparts in size and even a few who surpassed them. The most common attire for the women was a loose blouse that looked much softer and more comfortable than the men’s wool jerkins, draped a little lower past the waist, and was tied with a colorful braided cloth belt. The blouses came in an array of colors; with reds, blues, and purples seeming to be the most popular choices. Unlike the men, nearly all the women braided their hair and tails, often held with colorful ribbons or intricately carved wooden combs or clips.
The children, or foals as the centaurs called them, surprised Zoe. They trotted up to the procession of warriors, handing them garlands of flowers while laughing and squealing with glee as Aella zipped about, joining their fun and adding a blustery touch of her own. All of this wasn’t so surprising, but their clothes, or rather lack of them, was. She didn’t know why that should be so shocking. All centaurs, both male and female, wore nothing below the waist unless they had some sort of strap or harness on, and even on Earth it was not uncommon to see toddlers running around in only their underwear or diapers, sometimes even less, but some of these foals looked nearly old enough to begin school. As Zoe watched the children frolicking about, she noticed that none of them seemed to have ever had a haircut either. In many cases, the only way she could distinguish the boys from the girls was that most of the girls seemed to have their hair pulled back into a simple ponytail, while the boy’s hair was left wild and free. She leaned forward and asked Thane about this.
“It is simple, Princess,” he said with a laugh even as Zoe fought back a grimace at being called “Princess”. “The foals grow so fast we would be fitting them with new clothes and cutting their hair every week. Is it not the same with humans?” Zoe shook her head. “It is best to let the younglings grow first,” Thane continued. “A foal’s first haircut is a big event in their lives, and cause for much celebration.”
Zoe nodded in understanding. That made sense, in a way. She tried to relax and enjoy the festive mood as Thane continued leading their procession through the village. Zoe began to realize that it was much larger than she had expected. She began to think of it less as a village and more like a town, or even a city. The street remained unpaved, but the buildings – which were all single-story affairs with large doors and windows – grew closer together, giving the town a slightly more claustrophobic feeling. Most of the shops she saw were open to the outside like vendors at a street fair, but with more permanent structures. She saw no benches or other furniture for sitting, and all the counters were taller than she would be comfortable standing at without a stool. Despite the early hour, the streets were busy with activity, with centaurs buying their daily supplies or working at their crafts. Most stopped what they were doing and joined the procession as they passed, making Zoe more and more uncomfortable as they went, especially since most of them seemed to be cheering for her. As they walked, Zoe noticed that wherever a tree was growing the street flowed around it and that each one was carefully protected and guarded by a low fence. Some even had small offerings of food or handiwork laid by their trunks. The centaur’s reverence for dryads was evidenced in other ways, too. Intricate carvings of trees and vines adorned the trim of their structures, and she noticed many relief carvings of beautiful dryad women on what would otherwise be bare patches of wall. “Where did the handmaidens go?” she asked, craning her neck to look behind, suddenly realizing they had quietly slipped away at some point in the morning.
“They do not enter the Grove, Princess. Not during the day, at least. A few visit at night, to commune with their tree if it happens to be one of the few here, and to collect their offerings, but we rarely see them. The three dryads who accompanied us are among the bravest and boldest of Her Highness’s retinue. This is why we are so excited for your arrival. Many centaurs hope you can help bridge the gap between our two peoples. Recent events have almost certainly reinforced the hamadryads’ reluctance to engage with the outside world. You will find them waiting for you at the palace, but we centaurs will not see them again anytime soon, I think.”
“Palace?” asked Zoe, her stomach twisting in knots. “There’s a palace here?”
Thane laughed heartily. “Indeed, young cousin. Where did you think we were going?”
Zoe blushed. “I don’t know,” she mumbled. “I guess I didn’t really think about it.”
“We’re going to an actual palace?” asked Tyler as Sangar trotted up to their side.
“You will only be seeing the outside, young warrior,” said Thane. “The Queen’s house is no place for men to enter.”
“So Zoe gets to go and get treated all royal-like and we can’t even go inside?”
“That is the way of things, Cousin.”
Tyler huffed and folded his arms. “What a rip-off.”
Sangar laughed and turned to look at Tyler. “Take heart, Cousin. I will show you the training grounds and barracks while the Princess gets settled. You can stay there. You have earned the right to be counted among us.” That seemed to satisfy Tyler, as a huge grin spread across his face.
“Daphne will be there, at the palace, right? Will I get to see her soon?” asked Zoe. She wasn’t exactly eager to meet her supposed grandmother for the first time without Jonathan by her side, but if this woman was as powerful as she sounded, then she was probably their best hope at rescuing him and Kelviana.
Thane looked confused for a moment. “No, Princess. Queen Daphne has not resided in the palace for more than fifty years. I was still serving on the Seelie Court when she left. Has no one told you what happened?”
Zoe shook her head, frustration building inside. “No one’s told us anything. We keep asking, but all you guys say is, ‘Later, there’s no time now’.”
Thane frowned. “I suppose that is true. My apologies, Princess…”
He was interrupted by Aella zipping up and stopping only a few inches from Zoe’s face. She had to shut her eyes against the gust of wind that accompanied the sylph. “You’ve got to see this place,” Aella said, speaking a mile a minute. “I’ve seen it from above lots of times, of course, but I never bothered going inside. It’s sooo beautiful. The floors are all clean and white, and of course, the woodwork is amazing, but what do you expect when dryads built it?”
“You've been inside already?” asked Zoe, shocked.
“Of course I have. I keep saying you lot are too slow. I wanted to see what all the fuss was about.”
“And the Queensguard did not stop you, Small One?” Thane asked with a frown.
“Hah!” Aella replied, zipping about the old centaur’s head, causing him to flinch away slightly. “They’d have to catch me first, and that’s only if I let them see me, which I didn’t.”
“But what about the charms?” asked Sangar.
“They can’t stop the wind, so they can’t stop me,” said Aella, puffing out her chest in pride. “Now come on, slowpokes, we’re almost there,” she said before flitting off once more. Zoe watched the tiny woman fly away on her dragonfly-like wings and couldn’t help but smile, feeling some of her tension melt away. She was glad Aella had decided to stay with them. Whenever things seemed to be getting too serious she always managed to burst in and liven things up with her carefree antics, like a breath of fresh air.
“Never mind the sylph,” Thane said. “Though she has exposed a breach in our defenses that will have to be resolved. Fortunately, without the Queen there the palace is of little concern to Acrimony, and even in her current state, the Queen is more than capable of seeing to her own defense, if need be.”
“There you go again,” said Zoe. “What do you mean by, ‘her current state’?”
Thane took a deep breath and let it out slowly. A small filly with long blonde hair and a golden coat to match trotted up and handed a wreath of flowers to Zoe. She smiled and accepted the gift, placing it on her head despite her usual aversion to such decorations. “I am not the best one to tell you this story, Princess,” said Thane as the young girl pranced away, chatting excitedly with her friends. “I was away at court when most of it happened. About fifty years ago, not long before the war with Acrimony came to an end, Queen Daphne left the Fey Realm suddenly and without explanation. We centaurs were in disarray, and the fey were furious, feeling like their alliance with us had been betrayed. I, with no small amount of help from General Kelviana – who was still only Princess Kelviana at the time but was making quite a name for herself in the war effort – managed to salvage the alliance.
“The war was eventually won when the general and I led an expedition to the location of the last known portal, which had been recently discovered. There we met with Acrimony’s forces and engaged in a great battle. During that fight, Kelviana herself passed into your world, and shortly afterward the portal was closed, ending the battle and, we thought, the war — though she was trapped on the other side with no way home. I resigned my position on the Seelie Court and returned to the Grove, grieving the loss of both my Queen and my friend, and began rebuilding our society without the guidance of Queen Daphne. The hamadryads were inconsolable, and many of them disappeared into the woods, never to be seen again even to this day. Then, about forty years ago, both Queen Daphne and General Kelviana suddenly returned together. The General seemed no worse off for her ordeal, but the Queen was… greatly reduced and immediately fell into a deep sleep.”
“So Kelviana does know a way to get here without a mirror?” Tyler asked. “I knew that fairy was lying.”
“The fey cannot lie, young Cousin,” said Thane. “It is impossible for their kind. If the General told you she did not know how to return you to your realm then she spoke the truth. Whatever method she used to return here must not be possible for getting you back home.”
“Do you know how she did it?” asked Zoe.
“She would not speak of it to me. I do not believe she has ever told anyone, even her mother.”
“And what about Daphne? You said she’s awake again. Does she know?”
“That, Princess, is a question best asked of her yourself. You shall see her tonight. The hamadryads will take you to her.”
“Please,” said Zoe with a sigh. “Stop calling me ‘Princess’.”
“I’m afraid that’s impossible, young Cousin.”
“I know,” she said. “But I still don’t like it.” And after what she had just heard about her grandmother abandoning her own people, she liked it even less than before.
They arrived at the palace a short while later. Beyond the tall, vine-covered outer walls was a huge tree, sprawling away in every direction, covering the compound with its leafy green branches. Within those branches she spied windows and hints of walls and peaked roofs, and she realized that Daphne’s home was more like a massive tree-house straight out of a Disney movie than any palace she had seen pictures of back on Earth. The only trees she could think of that compared to this one were the ancient redwoods of California. But even those giants didn’t quite do justice to the magnificent tree the palace seemed to be built out of.
Thane escorted her through the main gates while the rest of the procession waited outside. They were met by a pair of guards just inside, who, Zoe noted with some surprise, were both female centaurs, wearing highly polished plate armor in sharp contrast to the bare chests and large wooden shields of Thane’s forces. With surprising grace, Thane lowered himself to his knees and gently helped Zoe dismount his back.
“Thank you for bringing us the princess, Captain Thane,” said one of the guards with a slightly haughty air that bordered on contempt. She was much smaller than Thane, though the red plume on her helmet was just as large as his. Her coat was dappled brown and white, much like Hamaan’s. “We will see to her from here. You may depart in peace.”
Thane’s face tightened and his eyes narrowed slightly. “Thank you, Captain Kaira,” he said, his voice sounding slightly strained. He glanced at the other guard and gave her a small nod. “It is good to see you again, Andriana.”
“Captain,” she replied with a curt nod. Thane’s face tightened even more, but he said no more. This centaur was larger than her companion but looked and sounded younger. Her coat was the same chestnut color as Thane’s, and the tufts of white covering her hooves looked just like his. Zoe couldn’t see her hair beneath her helmet, but her tail was creamy blonde and intricately braided.
Thane frowned at Andriana for a few moments more, then composed himself and stood, bowing toward Zoe, one hand clasped over his chest in a fist. “I leave you in good hands, Princess. As I said before, men are not allowed in this sacred place. We will meet again on the morrow, and you will tell me what you can of your meeting with the Queen.”
“Thank you, Thane, for everything,” she said, blushing slightly. She didn’t know how to respond to someone bowing to her, and she hated that it made her blush.
The centaur straightened and smiled down at her kindly. “We will rescue your brother and Kelviana, Princess. Of that, you have my word.”
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Without quite knowing why, Zoe lunged forward and wrapped her arms around his waist in a big hug. Thane tensed up, then relaxed and wrapped his strong arms around her, patting her gently on the back – though it still felt as if she were getting hit by a small wrecking ball. As they pulled away Zoe was embarrassed to find that she had been crying, leaving a big wet spot upon him.
Thane smiled down at her. “I shall prepare our forces, Princess,” he said, then departed with another bow. She could only see a little of what was beyond the palace gate, but it looked like the crowds had begun to disperse now that the excitement was over.
As the gates shut with a dull thud Zoe felt a tug on her hair and something tickled her neck. She shivered and almost reached back to swat at whatever it was. “Quiet!” Aella’s voice hissed in her ear. “Let me sneak in with you. This’ll be fun!”
Zoe sighed, wondering why the sylph needed to sneak in on her shoulder if she had already found her way in once before. Still, she didn’t want to give away her little companion’s presence, so she remained silent. Besides, it would be nice to have a friend with her as she faced whatever was coming next. She turned to the two guards, who were impatiently waiting. “Well,” she asked, wiping her still-wet eyes with the sleeve of her jersey. “What now?”
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The centaur guards, who Zoe learned were called the Queensguard, led her to a room deep inside the tree palace and up several stories. There were no stairs, only gently sloped ramps spiraling around inside the towers. She assumed this was for the benefit of the centaurs, who would probably struggle with traditional staircases. The room was luxurious and held a large four-poster bed, a gold-framed floor-to-ceiling mirror, lush green carpeting, and three very familiar hamadryads. Kaira and Andriana bowed without a word then turned and hurried back down the corridor, leaving her with the handmaidens.
The hamadryads immediately rushed her into a side room and straight into a steaming hot bath. The water felt quite nice, and if it hadn’t been for the hamadryad’s complete disregard for her privacy or personal space, she might even have enjoyed it. Aella flitted out of her hiding spot in Zoe’s hair and spent the duration of the bath zipping about the ceiling and laughing at her. To Zoe’s surprise, the hamadryads didn’t seem to mind the sylph’s presence, which made her wonder why Aella felt the need to be sneaky in the first place. She didn’t have much time to ponder this, however, as the hamadryads got right to work scrubbing her raw with a wider variety of sweet-smelling soaps than she ever knew existed, many of which ended up spilled into the bath water, courtesy of Aella. When the bath was over they shoved a frilly nightgown over her head and sent her to bed even though the day was still young. Zoe wanted to protest, but the plush mattress and thick, light green comforter called to her, reminding her how little sleep she had gotten the night before. Before she knew it she had been tucked snuggly under the covers and the curtains were drawn shut, blocking out most of the light and sweet, blissful sleep took her.
She woke feeling incredibly guilty, angry at herself for lying around in luxury, doing nothing, while Jonathan was still out there, in Vendetta’s clutches. When she had needed him, Jonathan rushed to her aid, somehow managing to find her even though she was in an entirely different world. Now he was in need and she was doing nothing. Kelviana was with him, so that was something, at least. But the fey had been forced to promise not to stop Vendetta, and fey could not break their promises. Even with her newfound magic, Zoe couldn’t take on an entire army of smoke creatures by herself. And even if she could, Vendetta had clearly demonstrated how little chance Zoe stood in a one-on-one fight against her. Thane had promised the centaur’s help, but it would take time to get an army together and make a plan, so what other choice did Zoe have but to meet with Queen Daphne and see what came of that? The whole situation made her want to rip her hair out and run screaming down the hall, even if such actions weren’t befitting of a “princess”. She covered her face with her hands and groaned in frustration. Immediately she heard a stirring from the other side of the curtains and a moment later they were pulled back, revealing the strangely textured, brown-tinted face of a hamadryad.
“Did you rest well, Princess?” the handmaiden asked. Melia was her name if Zoe remembered correctly. She was the one with leafy branches growing out of her head — the thought of how that would feel still made Zoe shudder inside.
“I did,” she replied, trying to hide her impatience. “But I’m worried about my brother. I can’t just keep sitting here, safe and comfortable while he’s in danger.”
“I do not understand your attachment to him, Highness,” Melia said as she opened the curtains fully and began helping Zoe out of bed. She was too tired to try telling the dryad that she was perfectly capable of climbing out on her own. It would have been a losing argument anyway, as previous attempts had proven. “He may be kin, but he is still a man. And a rather brutish one at that.”
Despite everything, Zoe had to stifle a chuckle. Jonathan may have been many things, but “brutish” was not one that came to her mind when trying to describe him. “He’s my twin brother,” Zoe explained as the dryad leaned over and slid some fuzzy slippers onto her feet before helping her stand up. “That alone should be enough. But even if it were Tyler or anyone else in his place I’d still be upset. It’s not right, what Vendetta is doing. No one should be kidnapped like that.”
“It would indeed be disastrous if Acrimony came into possession of a human. You must meet with Queen Daphne as soon as possible. She may have a solution to the problem. After you have been appropriately dressed, we will take you to see her. But first, the hobgoblins have prepared a small dinner for you.”
A chill ran down Zoe’s spine at the mention of “appropriate” clothing. Visions of all the frilliest, laciest dresses she had ever seen cartoon princesses wearing flashed through her mind as Melia led her to, of all things, a dressing table. “Where’s Aella?” she asked, trying to distract herself from her impending torture.
“Your sylph companion has gone exploring,” Melia replied as she pulled out a hairbrush and ran it through Zoe’s hair. “We warned her not to let the Queensguard catch her – they're very particular about who is allowed in the palace – but she only giggled and said that was what made it fun. There has been no alarm, so I assume she has not been noticed. I like her. She’s cute.”
“Why don’t you like men?” Zoe asked, wincing as the brush hit a snag in her hair.
“Men cannot be trusted. Everyone knows this.”
“But you trust Thane and his men.”
“Centaurs are creatures of principle. Once they make a vow the Fey Realm itself will tear asunder before they break it. Even the vow of a fey is not that strong. Because of that, their men fight our battles for us. For more… delicate matters, however, we have the Queensguard. Men have their uses, but we must not rely too much on them.”
“That makes no sense,” Zoe said but let the matter drop. She was tired of arguing with these women, and despite their strange quirks, they did seem like nice enough folk.
Dinner was served in her room. She remembered Jonathan’s warnings and checked with the dryads to make sure there were no strange rules about eating any food offered to her. They just giggled and replied that such rules wouldn’t apply to her anyway, since she was a dryad herself. Zoe frowned, both at the unwelcome reminder of her heritage and at the fact that, in the end, they never did actually answer her question. She sighed and ate the food, which was a simple but refreshing green salad with a sweet, sugary dressing, and then resigned herself to the dryad’s ministrations as they finished getting her ready. The dress, it turned out, was nowhere near as horrible as she had imagined it would be. In fact, aside from the fact that it was still a dress, it wasn’t that bad at all. It was made from a light green fabric — which seemed to be the color of choice for dryads — with a skirt that fell right around her ankles. It was trimmed with leafy gold embroidery around the hem, neckline, and cuffs, and flowed comfortably about her as she moved. It felt sturdy, too, as if it were designed to be worn while traveling, and this, she was informed, was precisely the case. When the hamadryads were finished dressing her and braiding her hair they brought out a dark green traveling cloak with a large hood and draped it over her shoulders, clasping it about her neck with a gold brooch that looked a lot like the ones the characters in the Lord of the Rings movies wore. She almost laughed, imagining that she must have looked like someone at a cosplay event or something, but the laugh died in her throat when she remembered what was truly at stake. If she didn’t do something, and soon, then Jonathan would never get the chance to tease her about how silly she looked in this getup.
The hamadryads led her out of the chambers where they were met by Captain Kaira and Andriana, who were both wearing red cloaks and had their swords strapped to their sides. They bowed at the waist, clasping their fists to their chests and dipping their front legs slightly in something that looked a bit like a curtsey. Zoe just stood there silently, not sure how she was supposed to respond. “We shall be your guards this evening, Princess,” Kaira said after a few moments. She rose from her bow and turned to Melia. “The streets have been cleared. No one will see us.”
Melia nodded, suddenly much more reserved than she had been when it was just her and the other hamadryads alone in the room. The three hamadryads, still wearing only their thin, silky dresses – cool temperatures didn’t seem to affect them much – fell into place behind Zoe as Kaira took the lead. Andriana hung back, guarding their rear. Zoe felt very self-conscious as they made their way down the winding ramps and out of the palace. No matter how often the dryads and centaurs claimed that she was their princess she just couldn’t believe them. She felt like a fraud, even though they were the ones who insisted on treating her like this despite her constant protests. She was just a normal kid who liked riding bikes and was trying to make it through school with something that resembled decent grades.
They reached the ground level and stepped outside. The front gates were already open and flanked by two more Queensguards. They clasped their fists over their chests and bowed their heads slightly as Captain Kaira approached. Kaira nodded her acknowledgment and the two guards snapped back to attention. “The way is clear, Captain,” the mare on the right reported.
“Very good,” Kaira replied, then stepped through the gates. The Queensguards bowed their version of a curtsey as Zoe passed, keeping their eyes on the ground. She couldn’t help but feel a blush rising even as she wondered why they were going through so much trouble to protect her when they were probably currently in the safest place in the entire Fey Realm. She smiled sheepishly and waved as she followed Kaira around the gates and up the road. Once they were past the aura of light the flickering torches provided Zoe realized just how dark it was that night. A layer of clouds covered the sky, obscuring any light that the moon and stars may have provided. The darkness did not seem to bother the centaurs or dryads any, however, as they continued forward without so much as slowing down, and Zoe was suddenly glad to be in the middle of the group so she could have someone to follow. A gentle breeze blew in, rustling Zoe’s hair and bringing with it the smell of autumn rain and a soft, girlish giggle. Zoe gasped slightly as something brushed against her neck.
“Shhh!” Aella hissed in her ear.
“Is everything well, Princess?” Kaira asked, turning back as she kept walking forward, her hooves clopping softly against the dirt street.
“Y – Yes,” Zoe stammered. “Sorry. I just stumbled. It’s so dark I can’t see the road very well.”
“Would you prefer that I carry you?”
“No, it's fine. My eyes are starting to adjust, I think.” Kaira nodded and faced forward again. “Where exactly are we going, anyway?” Zoe asked, trying not to squirm when Aealla tickled her neck as she settled down on her shoulder.
“To the queen, of course,” Kaira replied, matter-of-factly. Aella giggled.
“Yes, but where is she?” Zoe asked, trying not to frown at Aella despite her invisibility. “Why isn’t she in the palace? If she was sleeping, wouldn’t that be the best place to put her?”
Kaira turned to look at her. Even in the dark Zoe could tell she had a puzzled look on her face. “She is a dryad, Princess. It’s because she has been sleeping that we could not move her to the palace.” That made no sense, but she decided to let the matter drop. Nothing around here made any sense anyway. Since she had arrived she’d been kidnapped by creatures made out of pure smoke, met and fought with real-live fairies and dragons, ridden on a centaur’s back, and learned that she was a magical princess. If the next thing that had to happen was traipsing off in the dead of night to meet up with Sleeping Beauty, well, that was pretty much par for the course by this point.
Zoe’s eyes really were slowly adjusting to the darkness, and she began to make out some of the details of the houses and other structures around them. It seemed that they were heading out of town. The buildings were more spaced out here than in the center of town and more and more trees were growing along the side of the road, with little picket fences set around them. Most had offerings of food or tiny wooden hair decorations set by their trunks. As they neared one tree at the edge of town a dark shadow at the base suddenly moved, startling Zoe until she realized it was a hamadryad who seemed to have been visiting with her tree. At first, it seemed that the timid woman was going to flee, startled by the sudden appearance of a group of strangers, but when she caught sight of Zoe she gasped and bowed instead. Zoe smiled and waved sheepishly, still not sure how to respond. Kaira kept walking as if nothing had happened and Zoe hurried to match the centaur’s much longer strides. She glanced back in time to catch a glimpse of the hamadryad scurrying off into the woods.
Not long after that, the road left the Grove behind entirely and led them into a thick forest. Zoe didn’t remember any forests like this near where she lived, but she had long ago stopped trying to keep track of where their location in the Fey Realm coincided with its mirror on Earth. As they entered the forest, darkness enveloped them completely, and even Kaira had to slow her pace until little balls of green light sprang from the hamadryad’s hands and flew out ahead of them, lighting their way. That surprised Zoe a little. She hadn’t known the dryads could do that. “That’s useful,” she said, startling herself with how loud her voice sounded. The hamadryads jumped and seemed to shrink back a little. Kaira turned her head slightly, but then faced forward again and kept walking. “Can I do that too?” Zoe asked, deciding that a little conversation was better than listening to the strange chittering noises she had just heard coming from the darkness just beyond the green glow of the dryad’s lights. The temperature dropped and Zoe was suddenly glad for the cloak the hamadryads had given her as she pulled it tight around her shoulders. Jonathan had given the Scouts a try once and had enjoyed camping and the outdoors, but Zoe had always been perfectly happy to leave nature to itself. Even their mom supported environmental causes and attended rallies at the local parks and such, but they never much interested Zoe. She wondered what that meant. If she really was a dryad princess, shouldn’t she have been naturally drawn to that sort of thing?
“Anything we can do is a pale reflection of what you can achieve, Your Highness,” said the hamadryad with thorny roses in her hair. “Your power far exceeds whatever meager amounts we possess.”
“If that’s true, then why couldn’t I beat Vendetta?”
The third hamadryad looked at the ground and spoke, her voice so soft Zoe could barely hear it. “The fey created this realm, Highness. None but Queen Daphne herself are more powerful than any one of them. And, forgive me, but you simply don’t yet have the experience needed to overcome someone like her, who has devoted most of her long life to the path of destruction.”
Zoe shuddered, remembering how Vendetta had toyed with her during their fight. “If the fey are so strong, then why is Acrimony giving them such a hard time?”
The question came out more harshly than Zoe had intended, and the poor hamadryad looked like she was about to sink into the ground. Zoe felt a little bad about that but still wanted an answer. Some things about this whole situation just didn’t add up. “His power doesn’t come from this realm,” the hamadryad replied, shaking so hard Zoe feared she might faint. “It comes from yours, Highness. From the anger humans feel. There’s so much of it in your world that not even the fey can combat it alone.”
“And now that he has Jonathan he can go there,” Zoe said, a cold chill running up her back that did not come from the cool forest air.
“Were he will have unfiltered access to all the raw emotions he could ever dream of,” Kaira said, her voice hard. “General Kelviana should never have allowed those boys into the realm. Your presence alone was dangerous enough if you will forgive me for saying so.”
“No forgiveness needed,” Zoe said, trying to remember how exactly she had wound up there in the first place. She was surprised to realize that she did not know.
A soft gasp in her ear broke Zoe out of her contemplation. A cool breeze blew against her neck and she felt Aella lift into the air, blowing her hair aside. “We're here!” Aella said, no longer trying to hide her presence, glee evident in her voice. Kaira sighed as Aella zipped forward, suddenly visible and emitting a soft white glow.
“I suspected we had a sylph trailing us. I could smell it but never could find it. Is this the one that has been accompanying you, Princess?”
“Her name’s Aella,” Zoe said apologetically. “Sorry for hiding her. She’s friendly, though, and has helped us out a lot.”
“It is well, Princess. If I had been truly concerned I would have been more diligent. Sylphs can be mischievous, but they are harmless enough.”
Zoe thought back to their battle with the Tempests and the huge tornadoes the tiny nymph had summoned. She also remembered the way Aella had assisted her when she fought with Vendetta and found herself wondering if Kaira was entirely accurate with her assessment of how harmless sylphs could be. Aella giggled again and Zoe watched as the nymph darted into the branches of a large tree that sat alone in the middle of a clearing. The clouds had cleared up while they were in the woods and now the moonlight illuminated the clearing enough for Zoe to see that the tree was a magnificent specimen unlike any of the other trees in the forest; dark green leaves grew thick on spindly branches that reached upward, splitting into more branches like twisted fingers from a gnarled hand. It would have been creepy if it hadn’t been so beautiful. Kaira, Andriana, and the hamadryads all stopped at the edge of the clearing. “You must go by yourself from here, Princess,” Melia said softly, her eyes downcast.
“Go where?” asked Zoe, confused. Melia glanced briefly at the grand tree in the center of the clearing. White light twinkled from between the leaves as Aella joyfully danced about in the branches. “To the tree?” Zoe asked, her confusion growing even more. “Why? Is the queen there?” A sudden thought occurred to her. “Is this her tree?”
“No, child,” a deep, feminine, and powerful voice rang in her mind, as loud and clear as if it had been spoken out loud. Zoe jumped and the hamadryads all dropped to their knees, heads bowed in the direction of the tree. “I am the tree. I am your grandmother, Daphne, Queen of the Dryads, and I have been waiting a long time to finally meet you, my heir.”
END OF PART ELEVEN