Destined

Chapter 19

“Tamani, wait!” Laurel yelled, not entirely sure why. After all Klea had done, surely she deserved to die… didn’t she?

Answers, she told herself. We need answers.

Laurel felt more than saw David step up behind her and with wide eyes, watched the guards raise their guns and point them at her.

“No!” Tamani’s shout reverberated in her ears, but as the guns sounded David lunged in front of her. Laurel retreated, almost tripping over Chelsea, who was sheltered behind a thick oak. Laurel joined her as the guards continued to spray David with bullets, ripping the quiet air with the sound of gunfire. David didn’t even flinch — just looked down as the bullets dropped into the dirt.

Laurel chanced a peek and saw Klea slip away from Tamani and pick something up off the ground. She stood with her signature semiautomatic levelled at David’s chest and Tamani took the opportunity to run to Laurel, sliding onto the ground beside her and clutching her to his chest, his fingers shaking against her back.

“I suppose bringing your girlfriend in to save my life is going to have to make up for the fact that you’ve been making the rest of my day damnably inconvenient,” Klea said dryly before unloading a clip at David, point blank.

Laurel and Chelsea both clapped their hands over their ears as Tamani tried to shield them, but David was beginning to look amused. He put his free hand on one hip and stared pointedly at the pile of jacketless bullets accumulating at his feet.

Klea got the idea and stopped shooting, smoothly snapping the gun into a holster at her side.

“David Lawson,” Klea said slowly. “I saw your car back in Orick and figured Laurel had used it, but I admit, I’m surprised to actually see you here. There haven’t been humans in Avalon—”

“For a thousand years. You know, everyone keeps telling me that.”

“Yes, well, that’s probably another one of their lies,” Klea said. “Almost everything the faeries here tell you is a lie.”

“This sword is no lie,” David proffered, stepping forwards again. “You saw the bullets dropping.”

“And I see you coming my way, and can predict your intentions. But hear me out, human. I’m the only reason Barnes didn’t kill you and Laurel last autumn, and you owe me.”

“Owe you? Do you remember what you did to Shar, when he said those words this morning?”

Laurel felt Tamani’s body tense beside her.

“A tragic waste,” Klea said, not missing a beat. “He was probably the most skilled warrior I’ve ever met. But he was on the wrong side of history, David. This whole island is on the wrong side. Look around you! It’s a tiny paradise, filled with effortlessly beautiful people who want for nothing, busily squandering their vast potential on petty social differences.”

“Sounds like high school,” David retorted. Yuki laughed, the bark seeming to surprise her as she flung her hand over her mouth — but Klea pressed on.

“Think what this place could offer to the world, David. And wonder why they don’t. They hide themselves away — because they think they’re better, purer, superior. And after this conflict is over and you give back the sword, what will you be? A hero? Maybe you want to believe that. But in your heart, you must know the truth. You’ll go back to being a lowly human, unworthy of their notice. After all you’ve done for them — all the trolls you’ve killed?”

David tried to keep his face impassive but even Laurel could see the pain in his eyes.

“Do you have any idea how many years of nightmares you’ve earned today?” Klea said, clearly aware she was salting a wound. “And for what? A race that will cast you aside the moment they’re done with you.”

When David didn’t respond, Klea continued. “If you really want to be a hero, what you should do is help me fix this place. Avalon is broken. It needs a new vision, new leadership.”

“He’s not going to fall for this crap, is he?” Tamani whispered — but Chelsea just raised one eyebrow.

“What, you? Please,” David said.

Chelsea shot Tamani a triumphant smile.

Klea sighed, but she sounded more annoyed than disappointed. “Well, can’t say I didn’t try. Enjoy your moment in the sun, David; it will be over before you know it. Now we really must be off. As the humans say, I have bigger fish to fry.”

“I’m not letting you pass,” David said, stepping on to the path in front of the group as Tamani drew himself to his feet.

Klea pushed her sunglasses to the top of her head and ran her fingers through her hair as if she had nothing better to do in the world. It was strange to see her without her ever-present dark lenses — to see the light green eyes rimmed by thick, dark lashes that gave her face a beauty and softness that contradicted everything else about her.

“David, you need to play more poker; you bluff like a child. Now, I’ve heard legends of Excalibur — which is what I suspect you’ve got there — and I can guess from the way you’ve been stalling that something about the enchantment prevents you from actually harming me with it. So I’m going to walk past you now. Stop me if you can,” she said wryly, turning toward the Winter Palace and pulling her gun out again.

Excalibur glinted as David swung toward Klea. She didn’t even flinch.

But he wasn’t aiming for her.

With a clang the sword sliced through her gun, then David turned and made short work of the guns in her soldiers” hands as well. Several leaped back in surprise, but they were too busy protecting their skin to realise it was their weapons he was after. Some of them tried to shoot him again, only to have their guns severed in two. Barrels, stocks, and springs soon littered the ground, along with spent brass and deflected bullets.

Tamani took advantage of the confusion to lunge from the tree line and twist Klea’s arms up behind her, his spear returning to her throat, but Klea kicked back and Tamani yelped as her heel connected with his knee. Laurel clenched her fists in frustration, hating that she couldn’t do anything without getting in the way.

“Stop it!” Yuki yelled, flinging an arm towards David, palm up, fingers extended. She flexed her hand into a fist and several tree roots, as big around as David’s chest, burst from the ground in an explosion of dirt and rock. They rocketed towards him and Laurel heard a strangled scream from Chelsea, but the instant any tendril touched David, it went limp, slumping back towards the ground.

Yuki gasped and thrust her hands towards the grass at his feet and the roots sucked back into the earth, scattering soil like raindrops across the clearing. She looked to Klea, but Tamani had her on her knees now, bent forwards with his spear pressed against her back.

“Chelsea,” Laurel whispered, never taking her eyes from Yuki, “stay here. Element of surprise. It’s the only thing we have left.” Aside from David, Chelsea was the only one who could surprise the Winter faerie, the only one Yuki couldn’t sense at a distance. They’d used that advantage to capture her after the dance — last night, Laurel realised, though it seemed forever ago — perhaps they could accomplish something similar here.

Chelsea nodded as Laurel rose.

“Yuki,” Laurel said, stepping forwards tentatively with her hands held up in front of her.

“Stay where you were, Laurel,” Tamani called, his voice strained. But Laurel shook her head. Yuki was too powerful for Tamani to fight without Jamison’s help. Maybe Laurel could talk her down.

“Please, you can’t really want this. You’ve been with us — all of us — for the past four months. We never wanted to hurt anyone, much less kill them. Yes, Avalon has its problems, but is it worth this?”

“Kill her, Yuki,” Klea called.

Yuki’s chin trembled. “It’s a society built on lies, Laurel. You don’t know what they do in secret. It’s for the greater good, in the long run.”

“Says who?” Laurel said sharply. “Her?” she asked, pointing at Klea, still fighting to get free of Tamani. “I’ve seen the way she treats you. She’s not noble and strong; she’s a scared bully. She killed all those faeries in the Academy. They’re dead, Yuki.”

But Yuki’s eyes were narrowed. “It was just a fire, Laurel.”

“And the red gas? Almost a thousand Autumn faeries are dead because of her — never mind the faeries killed by trolls.”

“They’re not dead — they’re just sleeping.”

Laurel’s jaw dropped and she spun to Klea now. “You didn’t tell her?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Klea said calmly.

“The red smoke? I know what it does,” Laurel said. They were dead. She knew it; Klea knew it.

And Klea had lied to Yuki.

“Yuki, you have to listen to me — we’re not the ones lying to you. Klea is. After the fire she sent that red stuff in and it killed everyone it touched. Not sleeping — dead. She’s not what you think she is. She’s a murderer.”

Yuki blinked, but in her eyes, Laurel could see her decision was made. “She said you’d say that,” Yuki said softly, steadily. She turned and looked at Tamani. Then, so low Laurel barely heard, Yuki whispered, “I’m sorry.”

Roots erupted from the earth again, forming a dark, mossy birdcage around Laurel. Then the ground round David retreated, pulled back by a million tiny filaments of plant matter, forming a doughnut-shaped pit around him — too far to jump over without a running start, too deep to climb out of easily.

“Forget him!” Klea yelled. “He can’t do anything.”

Yuki turned and looked at her mentor and Tamani and, after a moment’s hesitation, clenched one fist.

“Tamani!” Laurel shouted, but thick roots thrust up beneath him, knocking his spear away and throwing Tamani to his knees, binding his wrists to the ground.

“Don’t hurt them,” Yuki said, even as Klea pulled a knife from a hidden sheath. “Let’s just go.”

But from the road, a familiar voice intoned, “I think you’ve gone far enough.”