Faded Memories #2: Rise of the Battle Faerie - Part Five

      At the sound of her cell door opening, the dark faerie looked up and stared at them through a curtain of long, purple streaked raven hair. Valeane squirmed inwardly under those piercing violet eyes. She had expected Mithana to do something, anything. It was the dark faerie who broke the silence.

      “Well?” she asked, her voice flat.

      “Well what?” Fyora replied.

      “What are you sentencing me to?” The look on Mithana’s face suggested that she would rather not know at all.

      “Depends on what you deserved to be sentenced to,” said Valeane. She tried her best to keep her voice casual. “Are you guilty of the charges being pressed against you?”

      “If the charges include treason, then no.”

      “Then what are you guilty of?” questioned the queen.

      “Nothing that is against the law,” said Mithana in return. “My rights as an Uber Faerie and as a council member allowed me to act as I did.”

      “I think,” said Valeane as she leaned against the wall. “That you are going to need to explain this situation. Why were you giving that faerie information?”

      “That faerie was not part of the rebellion, nor are any of the faeries I have been working with,” said Mithana. “All of those faeries are spies within Sirine’s inner circle who have been giving me information on her plans for months.”

      The dark faerie then began to explain how she had gathered some of the more loyal dark faeries in order to form a group that would help over throw the rebellion. All of those faeries had joined the rebellion under false identities in order to pass on information to Mithana, who then passed it on to the council. The catch was that the faeries who worked as spies did not want Mithana to reveal her sources in case their real names somehow leaked out. To be discovered as a spy within the rebellion would be the last thing someone would want to happen to them. Because of this, Mithana had been forced to keep her dealings with her sources secret.

      “Why did you agree that you wanted Fyora off of the throne, then?” asked Valeane. Mithana made a face, disgust written clearly on her features.

      “We never said anything about Fyora,” she pointed out. “We were talking about Sirine. She calls herself the Dark Queen.”

      Fyora and Valeane still looked doubtful.

     “Why can’t you just put a truth spell on me?” demanded the dark faerie. Fyora gave her a stern look.

      “I’m not sure how much I would trust a truth spell put on a faerie that could dissipate my holding spell without so much as blinking.”

      “But that was out of desperation,” insisted Mithana. “You were the one who told me that desperation can increase a faerie’s abilities if she wanted them badly enough. That maid was completely innocent.”

      “That is true. I did tell you that.” The queen’s expression was thoughtful. “I don’t think that will satisfy the court, though.”

      “Why can’t we just get the names of your sources and put them under truth spell?” asked Valeane. “They could prove not only your innocence but theirs also.”

      “Uh...” Mithana hesitated. Fyora gave her an exasperated look.

      “You swore an oath, didn’t you.” It was not a question but the dark faerie nodded anyway.

      “What does that mean?” questioned Valeane.

      “It means that Mithana couldn’t tell me the names of those faeries even if she wanted to,” stated Fyora. “An oath in the dark faerie tongue in the strongest oath a faerie could give, at least in the dark faerie point of view. A dark faerie that breaks that oath is considered completely unworthy of anyone’s trust and is an outcast in their society.”

      “It was the only way to satisfy them,” insisted Mithana. “I didn’t know that it would come to this.”

      “So I’m guessing that the only way we will see one of those faeries is if they turn themselves in.” Fyora and Mithana nodded in agreement to Valeane’s statement. “Like that will ever happen!” This whole situation was beginning to look absolutely hopeless.

     “You could talk to Lithine,” suggested Mithana. “Or Ariella and Nova.” Fyora shook her head.

     “It wouldn’t work if they didn’t know about you forming this spy network,” she replied.

     “But they do know about it,” said Mithana. “They were the ones who helped me form it. They take care of the information from the faeries that aren’t dark faeries.” Fyora looked at her, surprise written clearly on her face. Valeane was confused.

     “Wait a minute,” she said. “Who are these people?”

     “They’re long time friends of mine. I went to the Faerie Academy with them and I haven’t sworn to keep their names secret,” answered Mithana. Fyora was silent for several seconds before a smile began to form on her face.

     “This might actually work,” she said.

     When Mithana had said that Lithine, Ariella and Nova were friends of hers, Valeane had assumed that they were dark faeries. She was surprised to find out how wrong she was.

     Nova was a fire faerie whose temper matched her element. She was talkative and, like all other fire faeries, loved nothing more than to pull pranks and practical jokes on others. She had been the first of Mithana’s three friends that Valeane was to meet.

     Valeane and Fyora had been explaining Mithana’s predicament to the council when the doors of the council room had burst open, revealing a fire faerie. She ran into the room and, before anyone else could get a word in, began speaking

     “Your Majesty, Mithana is innocent and I will happily swear that under truth spell and Lithine and Ariella and I have been helping her and the other dark faeries are too scared to come and--”

     “Nova!” yelled the queen. The fire faerie shut up and looked at her.

     “Huh?” she asked.

     “Please, we know she is innocent, so calm down.” Despite her earlier outburst, Fyora looked highly amused by the fire faerie. Some of the council members were grinning.

     “Oh.” was Nova’s only reply.

     “Make a fool of yourself again, Nova?” a voice questioned from the doorway.

      Valeane turned to see a light faerie and an air faerie stride into the room. The air faerie threw an annoyed look at the fire faerie.

      “When will you learn manners?” she demanded. Nova grinned.

      “When will you stop nagging me, ‘Mother’?” she asked instead of answering the faerie’s previous question.

      “Both of you stop it,” demanded the light faerie. She turned toward Fyora and the council and curtsied politely. “I would apologize for them, Your Majesty, but if I did, they would only go and embarrass themselves in some other way and I would have to apologize all over again.” The queen smiled.

      “We’re used to it. After all, we work with Mithana.” At this, the three friends laughed. “I don’t believe you have met Valeane before, though.” Fyora gestured toward her sister.

      “As you may have guessed, Nova is the fire faerie. Ariella is the air faerie and that’s Lithine.” Fyora introduced each faerie who smiled at Valeane when the queen said their names.

      Once the introductions were over, Lithine turned troubled eyes toward Fyora.

      “Is Mithana okay?” she questioned. “She truly is innocent and, as Nova said, we will all happily swear that under truth spell.” Fyora nodded.

      “Very well,” she said. The queen mumbled several words before lavender magic floated from her hands to surround the three faeries. “Is Mithana innocent of treason?”

      When the three friends replied the affirmative, the magic surrounding them glowed silver. The council continued to ask questions of them and each time their answers caused the magic to glow silver. Valeane knew that this meant they had been telling the complete truth. The magic would have turned gray for half-truths, and black for outright lies.

      When the council and Fyora were done interrogating the three friends, Fyora turned towards Valeane.

      “Will you go and get Mithana?” she asked. “I think we’ve cleared everything up enough.” Valeane nodded.

      ***

     When she reached the cell holding the dark faerie, Mithana looked up at her with relief in her eyes.

      “I had a feeling I would be seeing you again soon,” she said teasingly. Valeane couldn’t help but admire her spirit. After all, how many faeries could face charges of high treason and end up joking about it?

      “Let’s go back up to the council.” Valeane smiled reassuringly at the younger faerie. “I think Fyora is going to want to figure out how to stop that cousin of yours before something like this happens again.” Mithana nodded.

      As they were walking, Mithana cast frequent glances her way. Valeane waited patiently for her to voice her question. A mischievous smile had begun to spread across the dark faerie’s features.

      “Did Nova embarrass herself again?” she asked slyly. Valeane glanced at her.

      “What makes you say that?” she asked while trying to keep a straight face. Mithana’s smile grew wider.

      “It’s Nova after all,” she replied. “You can always tell someone has met her by the expressions on their faces.”

      Valeane couldn’t help it. She just threw her head back and laughed.

To be continued...