I finally see the blue-and-red shimmer of the portal appear some hundred feet above us. I have no way to get there unless I Astral us straight into it. I can’t Shift with Delinda in my arms and no way am I placing her down while I do so. We stay attached to one another until we are in the Fae Kingdoms, end of story.
Tiamat roars again and I hear Remiel bellow, “Aefre!” at me. Tiamat has turned Herself around now and is coming straight at us. I have no choice but to take the leap of faith. I have never Astralled into a portal that is located about a thousand feet from the ground, but there’s a first time for everything, right?
“Aefre!” Remiel thunders at me. “Don’t do this!” I hear the slight edge of panic in his voice and that is when I know I am done for unless I move now. Tiamat roars again and I turn my back as I close my eyes and Astral up to the portal. Her arc of fire just caught me, and it is a searing heat on my back as I scream in pain in my head, thinking only of the portal. I open my eyes again when I feel that we aren’t plummeting with terminal velocity towards the canyon floor below and find that we are in the portal.
I have never hung around in one before and it is all misty and ethereal. I know that I have to rip open the other side right next to the Faerie Ring because Tiamat will be hot my heels. I tear a hole in the fabric between Worlds and then we are falling.
I had miscalculated and opened the portal somewhere above the woods in my back garden. I scream and Delinda squeals as we crash through the trees. I wrap my arms around her and before I can Astral us to a safe landing, we hit the ground. Hard.
I land on my back with Delinda panting on top of me, grinning with the excitement. I am completely winded, and I struggle to catch a breath as I frantically turn my head, looking for the Ring. I find it about three feet from my head and as I am gasping for air and trying desperately to ignore the immense burn on my back, I grab Delinda close to me again right as Tiamat appears in human form with Remiel right next to Her.
“You bitch,” he snarls at me and drops his huge, ancient fangs. I can see the venom dripping off them as he advances on me and I scramble back to the vicinity of the Ring. I have no idea if either one of them knows it is here, but I can only hope that they don’t.
Delinda suddenly starts to cry as she sees her father Vamped out and coming for us and she realizes that this adventure is not the fun she thought it was. Tiamat Astrals behind me and I would be boxed in if it weren’t for the Ring. I feel the grass go soft and velvety under my hands and my shallow breathing eases slightly. But then Remiel has a hold of my foot and is dragging me towards him as Tiamat throws up a ward so fierce it nearly scalps me. I scream again as I curl myself around Delinda and pull back with every single ounce of strength that I have. I get myself into the circle and it is enough. The pull of the Faerie magick drags us through Worlds and even though Remiel has his claws in my calf, we are still transported through space without him, as he has no Fae blood in him whatsoever.
Chapter 18
The Fae Kingdoms, Date Unknown – Aefre
I crawl out of the Ring on the other side and try to take deep, even breaths. I eventually resume normal respiratory function and I can feel the burn on my back start to heal as well. I am beyond glad that the magick of the Ring still brought us here even though Remiel had his claws in me. I was panicking that they would stop us from leaving like they do when trying to Astral. Once again, I am grateful for my father and his heritage as we managed to escape. They will be enraged far past anything now and I am glad we are nowhere to be found.
Delinda is watching me with big eyes and I smile at her in reassurance. She gives me a shaky one back and then crawls into my arms as I sit back on my heels. I have no idea what to say to her. I can’t expect her to understand what just happened.
“Where are we?” she asks after a moment.
Now that I can answer. “The Fae Kingdoms,” I say.
“Where the Faeries live?” she asks, looking around. “Papa said you were half Faerie.”
“Yes, I am half Dark Fae,” I say. “Which also makes you part Dark Fae too. That’s why you could pass through the Faerie Ring.”
“And why Papa and Grams can’t?” she asks, crinkling her nose.
“Yes,” I say, relieved that she understands that much at least.
“Why were you running away from them?” she asks me the question I was dreading having to answer.
“They were trying to take you away from me,” I say and stroke her hair. “I have wanted to be with you for so long, I didn’t want them to take you away again.”
“But why couldn’t we all have stayed at home?” she asks, close to tears.
I hug her and she sniffles into my jacket. “One day,” I lie to her. “For now, they are angry with me, but we will return soon. Right now, there is someone here who really wants to meet you. Your grandfather.”
“Gramps!” she shrieks, completely forgetting about what just happened.
I laugh at her choice of word. I don’t think Drake will take too kindly to that. “How about Grandpa?” I say as I stand up with her still clinging to me. She wiggles out of my arms and has a good look around. I brush off my clothes and then Astral on some new ones. This is the only other one of my Dragon Powers that works here, and for that I am grateful. Delinda looks back at me, now dressed in a dark purple, medieval-style gown and her eyes go wide. She looks down at her plain, white, cotton nightgown and I kneel and Astral a pretty, green dress onto her that twirls around her ankles when she turns. She nods her approval and then takes my hand. She looks towards the Light lands and then dismisses them for the Dark Fae ones.
“This way?” she asks astutely.
I smile at her and say, “This way,” and then puffport us straight into my father’s palace.
I land in the enormous Entrance Hall and there are people everywhere, going about their daily business. I wonder exactly how long I have been gone from this time.
“Aeval,” Drake booms at me as he strides forward. Delinda shrinks back behind me and peers out at him from behind my skirts. I bend and pick her up and Drake stoops to give me a kiss and a hug.
“Good to see you,” he says, patting my back and I wince.
“Daddy,” I say. “This is my daughter, Delinda.”