We stepped out into the utter darkness that we had left behind in the Fae Lands. Somehow it felt more forbidding here. Colder. I thought about the humans huddled in the cavern below, bringing all the light they could find, setting up their watch against the darkness.
And fighting each other because humans were territorial and prone to overreaction whenever they faced danger. I'd done my best to avoid finding myself in a battle with any of them because they don't often give up, either.
Which meant that before too long, humans all over would swarm back out of the dark and attack whatever monster they could find. And there was a monster out there. It moved with a deliberate thumping step, louder and closer. However, it was impossible to judge any real distance in the dark with the world literally trembling around us.
"I hadn't expected this," I said softly. I leaned against the wall, taking the weight from my leg again, trying to think if there was anything we could do. I even lifted my hand and tried to feel out whatever might be behind the darkness, even though that was an open invitation to find me. We didn't have a lot of other options now.
I glanced back and wondered if I dared do something magical. Then I wondered what I could possibly do otherwise. This was magic coming at us, human and fae alike. Doing nothing to try and help would be worse than doing magic.
I desperately wanted to see what was out there in the dark Desperation can provide all kinds of extra power for a fae. The magic I sent out was like a mini-sun, illuminating all the area around us in a bright glare of light.
Two things happened.
"Angels have come to guard us!" someone yelled from down the stairs in the place where the others hid.
I hadn't been called an angel before. I would have been amused except that the light showed we were far from alone. Outside the opening, I could see creatures stretched out as far as I could see, all of them moving toward us in an unnatural silence that had to be part of the magic that created the darkness as well.
"Damn," Yating said. "But at least this is a battle that I understand. Trolls to the right, (something) to the left -- but I suspect our true enemy is whatever moves in that dark cloud in the center."
I had not noticed the cloud, having been so caught up in the horror of so many creatures about to surge into the place where humans tried to hide. Had some already attacked people in other buildings?
Maybe not. Maybe the problem was that the humans here stood between them and the fae creatures hiding down in the depths of those secret caves. It hardly mattered since I would not be able to get the humans out of the way. Desperation gave me yet more power, and the light remained -- a gift to us, but an annoyance to those who thought they would arrive undetected.
A small win for us, then.
"So," a familiar voice said. "You thought this was the best place as well."
I looked over my shoulder to see Sylph and the Fae Queen slipping out of concealment -- probably magical, in fact, but with this much magic being tossed around, I didn't feel it.
I should not have felt so much relief to find the Queen of the Fae here in this danger. It was probably cowardice on my part. It meant that I was not the one in charge.
But then she turned to me and said, "What do we do now?"
So much for my moment of hope.
"We can't hold them off on our own," Lycan said. I gave him a grateful nod. "Even with the power of the Queen on our side. But I know where there are others who will help us. Unfortunately, they are on the other side of the humans down there."
"They think we're angels," I said and felt a glimmer of an answer. "And isn't that better than letting them know the truth?"
"I do not like to lie to humans," the Queen said, though, after one quick glance back into the depths, she nodded. "Although under the circumstances, I think it better than dealing with them and with magic. What do we do?"
"You know about angels? Good. An image, set just behind us and warning them to be calm and quiet, might work. I can help --
"Keep the light going," she said with a mistrustful stare out at the enemies. At least they were not rushing at them. "Yating --"
"Yes, I know what we need to do."
And that made me wonder when the two of them had had this sort of practice in the past. I had the oddest feeling that there was more going on than this piece I had stumbled upon.
Yating and the Queen created a vision behind us that even took me by surprise. Light, shape, angelic choruses, the music of the heavens -- If I had continued to watch, I would have been mesmerized.
Of course. The magic was filling the vision with a touch of power to hold the attention of the others.
I turned away and looked at the enemy coming at us still, though with slower steps. I thought they might even be uncertain now. The darkness had been their greatest weapon. With that in mind, I reinforced my own mini-sun that hung over the scene. I had never tried anything like this before, but I could funnel some of the ambient magic in this real straight into my construct. It should continue until I stopped it -- or I died.
Not the thought I wanted just then. The trolls had started to form up in the more familiar attack lines. There were only me, Lycan, and Sylph to hold them back.
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