“Catacombs… so there are Fae remains inside?” I asked, grimacing.
We’d left the village nestled among the trees and returned to solid ground. Andrea took the lead, with Leonardo and me following close behind. A handful of warriors accompanied us, stopping just outside the catacombs. Although we were safe here for now, Andrea was taking no chances.
“Yes,” Andrea chuckled softly, “for us Earth Fae, returning to the earth upon death is only natural.”
“So much for immortality,” Leonardo muttered, momentarily faltering in his stride.
Anxiety coiled in my stomach, and I quickened my pace. Leonardo didn’t look good; the dark circles around his eyes and his unusually pale complexion worried me. Even his hair, once dark and striking, now seemed dull and faded. Every passing second felt like a reminder of his overwhelming fatigue, and I swore I could feel it echoing through me.
“True immortality is rare, even among magical creatures,” Andrea explained, eyeing the scowl that had settled on Leonardo’s face. “Fae may come close, but we aren’t without our limitations.”
“There are truly immortal creatures?” I asked, curiosity slipping into my voice.
“You wonder why they don’t help in saving this world. Those creatures possess the oldest, most potent magic,” Andrea replied, his mossy eyes darkening. “But they don’t feel as we do; they crave death, revel in it, even feed off it. They’re revered as gods in our world, but we would never seek them out. Many of them prey on us Fae indiscriminately. They can appear beautiful, yet beneath the glamor, their desires rot them from the inside out.”
Even though I hadn’t seen Andrea in over a year, being around him felt as natural as breathing. He’d been a beacon in my childhood, someone who saw strength in me before I saw it myself. He never treated me as fragile, never doubted my resilience. I realized now that his connection to Earth had shaped him into the person he was: steadfast, enduring, and occasionally stubborn.
“Like… the woman I saw when I first came here,” I murmured, more to myself than to the men beside me.
Her hauntingly beautiful voice echoed in my mind, along with the memory of her withered skin and the bone-deep fear she’d inspired. I remembered running, every muscle in my body screaming for relief as I heard the heavy thuds of footsteps close behind, felt the sinister fingers nearly grazing the back of my head.
“A woman?” Andrea’s head snapped toward me, his eyes hardening until they looked like stone. “What woman?”
Ignoring Leonardo’s grumble, I recounted my first encounter in the Fae lands. Just speaking about it again brought back a tremor of fear.
“You’re fortunate to be alive, Isabella,” Andrea murmured, exchanging a look with Adriano.
“I’ll investigate why she was so far from the ocean,” Adriano said, nodding at a few guards who immediately sprang into action.
“Who was she?” I asked, a nervous flutter stirring in my stomach.
Leonardo’s hand curled around one of my fingers, and the simple touch calmed my nerves. I tried not to overthink my comfort in his touch-it was enough that it settled my heart.
“Her name is Silvana, known to your people as the mother of all sirens,” Andrea replied, his tone icy and detached. “The sirens of this world are not like your legends. They dwell in the oceans, surfacing only to feast. They’re scaled, webbed creatures, driven by an insatiable lust for beauty. The only way to restrain a true immortal is to bind them to a form. Silvana was once the spirit of the ocean, but she wasn’t merciful or benign. Binding her into human form was the only way to curb her endless destruction. Even so, she remains deadly. You are one of the few who has encountered her and survived.”
“She nearly had me,” I muttered, the memory chilling me anew. “I could feel her fingers reaching for my hair.”
“Lucky-or perhaps unlucky,” Andrea replied, eyeing me thoughtfully. “I haven’t decided yet.”
“Let’s hope it’s luck,” I said, laughing dryly. “I could use some.”
We walked on for nearly an hour. If not for Leonardo’s worsening condition, I would’ve enjoyed the journey. The forest was undeniably beautiful, albeit with an ever-present sense of danger. Shadows moved at the edge of my vision, blurs of white against the green backdrop. Andrea assured me that nothing would attack us with so many Fae present, and I decided to trust him.
The path gradually steepened until we arrived at the foot of a mountain. I couldn’t see the top from where we stood, but the air thrummed with ancient power.
Andrea had shared tales of the Earth Fae and their connection to the very ground beneath us. I’d need to tap into that same power-unyielding and unmovable-if I were to unlock Earth magic.
When we stopped at the mountain’s base, I glanced at Leonardo, who looked on the verge of collapse. Andrea gestured for quiet and moved toward the rocky surface with Adriano. Together, they pressed their hands against the stone, and threads of emerald and mahogany light began to wind through the air, merging with the mountain itself.
A loud grinding noise filled the air as the stone parted, revealing a hidden entrance lined with green-lit torches. The tunnel sloped downward, vanishing into the depths below. With my Fae-enhanced vision, I could see faint carvings and faded murals along the walls.
“Head straight down,” Andrea instructed. “There’s a hot spring at the bottom. Adriano and I must return, but my men will stay to guard you. It’s best to stick to the lit path; many things lurk in the dark here.”
Trusting Andrea as he directed us into the cavern seemed risky, but Leonardo’s condition was more pressing. Andrea had said that harming me would harm them all, so I pushed any doubts aside and pressed on into the tunnel, determined to help Leonardo regain his strength.