"I want everyone on high alert. The fae always have something up their sleeve." I tell my team as we get ready to leave. I check my gun to make sure it's loaded, grab a portal, and strap on my swords.

"If it were any other occasion I'd agree but no way would they risk attacking the nephilim heir and starting a war," Ash says as he looks through the wall of weapons. His eyes land on a sword that he takes off the wall. He tests the weight and balance before strapping it to his back.

"This meeting is to get the fae on the council and help them aid in the fight against Raiden. For all we know they could have already chosen a side. It could be a trap." I explain. They all stay quiet because they all know the fae would do it. "Meet at the door in five. I'm going to get Deyvon."

"Don't you knock," Deyvon says when I barge into his room.

"It's my house. I don't have to." I walk over to the desk chair and fall into it. I'm still feeling tired from last night. That explosion and the use of restoring the forest drained me.

"What if I was naked?" I open my closed eyes and take in his attire. He's dressed in a dark blue button down and black jeans.

"It's nothing I haven't seen before," I answer dully. He rolls his eyes and sits on his bed to tug on his shoes. "We're leaving. Let's go." I tell him once he's finished tying his shoes. He follows quietly behind me to the door where everyone else is waiting.

"What are these two doing here?" Zack asks, pointing at Cesar and Omari.

"They're coming. End of conversation. Deyvon, show me an image of where we need to go." He pictures the place in his mind for me to read. I open the door and we're in the middle of a forest. Tall trees surround us and the waterfall in front of us is the only sound around for miles.

"Prince Deyvon, it is an honor to be in your presence. My name is Breen and I will be your guide." He turns around and walks toward a waterfall. The crystal-clear water falls into a small lake. A path of stones creates a trail that takes us behind the waterfall into a cave. Breen presses a hand against the wall of rock and it begins to open up into a dirt tunnel.

I follow closely behind Deyvon being sure to be aware of my surroundings. There isn't much to see so I focus on my hearing and smell.

After a short walk, we enter a chamber. Vines and flowers cover every inch of the wall and against the back wall of the room are two thrones made up of branches. One plain, only made of wood but the other has vines and small flowers woven in it.

My new earth marking throbs softly on my wrist. I ignore it keeping my focus on my mission. Nothing can happen to Deyvon.

From the right side of the room, a tunnel suddenly opens. The queen and king gracefully enter the room with their arms linked. A patch of flowers is left behind where they step.

They walk to their thrones and I don't take my eyes off them for a second. The queen sits in her seat and her big green eyes lock with mine. Her chestnut brown hair falls in ringlets almost to the floor.

"We are honored to have you in our home prince Deyvon. You have grown much since we last saw you." She says with a gentle smile.

"Thank you for agreeing to meet with me and allowing me in your home." He says with a bow.

"I'm sure you are wondering why after many years of turning down requests for a meeting we've finally said yes." The king says bringing my attention to him. His eyes are a crystal blue almost the exact same color as the waterfall we walked through. His dark hair is short and his jawline looks as sharp as my sword.

"I was curious." Deyvon answers.

"We were waiting for her." The queen says and her eyes along with the King's land on me. I wish I could say I'm surprised but I'm not. With all the shit that's been going on and all the things I saw yesterday, I know that I'm a vital part in this war. I just don't know what my part is.

"The side that has you will win this war." The king explains.

"How do you know that?" I ask.

"We have our ways." The queen answers vaguely. "As long as you have Jade we will aid you in this war and join the council. Our daughter will take the position."

"Thank you. I will send word to my parents and they will contact you." He bows again and turns to leave through the only tunnel open, the one we came through.

"A word of advice for you Jade. Those closest to you may not be what they seem and those furthest are those that you need." The queen says to my retreating form. I don't bother looking back at her. The fae are known for their tricky word use. It's a mind game they like to play and I'm not in the mood for it.

"That went very well," Deyvon says with a smile as we walk through the woods to the house.

"Almost too well," I say suspiciously. We make our way into the house and Deyvon goes to write a letter that he'll send to his parents by fire.

Everyone goes to do their own thing. Some together and some by themselves.

"Jade," Cesar says and approaches me.

"What's up?"

"I wanted to thank you for showing me the truth yesterday."

"You're welcome. I'm glad that I was able to finally give you the answers you've been looking for all these years. Do you know the man who attacked you?"

"No, but I'm going to find him and when I do he's in for a world of pain." He growls. His eyes flash yellow briefly before going back to their original color.

"If theirs's anything I can do to help just let me know." He nods and turns to walk away but I grab his arm to stop him when an idea pops into my head.

"Would you mind helping me with something?" I ask.

"I'm your guy." He says with a grin.

"Not here. In private." I whisper to him and gesture for him to follow me. We enter my bedroom and I close the door behind me then try something I've never done before. I picture a shield around my bedroom. When I open my eyes, I can see a soft yellow from the shield along the walls of my room. I smile in satisfaction.

"I need to practice getting past peoples shields without them noticing. You have the best shield out of everyone here except maybe Constantine but he's on my shit list."

"You can practice all you want but what do you need to practice for. Is there someone I should keep an eye out for?"

"I don't know yet. Omari might know more than he's telling us and Zach has a shield that is incredibly strong." I explain.

"What's wrong with Zach having a strong shield?"

"At school, they don't teach us to shield to that extent. He's guarding something and now that we're connecting I can tell it's something he doesn't want me to know."

"What could angel boy possibly be hiding?"

"I don't know but I'm going to find out," I say confidently.

_______

Author's Notes:

I have a couple of chapters written that just need to be edited. I'm going to try posting at least once a week for the next month while I still have the time this summer.