A Court Of Thrones And Glass

chapter one

Feyre

Mor, Cassian, Rhys and I had been patrolling the border all week, looking for any signs that might explain the tense feeling in my stomach that something was about to go terribly wrong.

What exactly are we looking for, Feyre darling? Rhys asked through the bond.

Something off. I had a feeling our world was about to change drastically but couldn't figure out how or why.

A bomb? Rhys taunted. I turned to glare at him but he seemed preoccupied in a conversation with Cassian.

Find a man that can do both, I teased.

Oh, you have no Idea, he turned and winked at me and I scowled, turning to Mor, trying to conceal my blush from Rhys and found her laughing at us, shaking her head slightly. I shrugged.

Suddenly I heard a bang and quickly looked up. The edges of a huge fire appeared at the edge of my heightened eyesight.

Bombs away, Rhys laughed again.

This isn't funny someone could be hurt, I glared at him.

Without another word I grabbed Mor and we all took off into the sky, unfurling our wings.

We crossed the Day, Dawn, Winter and Summer courts before spotting the gigantic fire on the border between the Summer and Spring court.

My blood froze when I saw Tamlin and his Sentries already there. We hovered above, waiting for Tarquin to allow us to land on his territory. We caught one of the guards eyes and he whispered to Tarquin, who motioned for us to land beside him.

When we landed everyone exchanged smiles and slight bows of the head. Then Tarquin looks at me and Rhys,

"How did you see the fire?" he asked.

"We were patrolling our border, and the edge of the flame could be seen," I interrupted Rhys before he could even say anything because I knew he was used to all the high lords using mind games and cruel words but Tarquin wasn't the same as the rest of them.

We all turned to the border between the two courts, seemingly where the fire had begun. Tamlin leered at Cassian and Mor and completely ignored Rhys and I.

"Tarquin," he acknowledged, "Cresseida, Varian. Shall we figure this out?" they all nodded stiffly. We circled around the large fire, making sure it wasn't currently expanding and then moved to one side to discuss what we should do.

I couldn't find Mor or Tarquin and I counted one of Tamlin's Sentries missing.

Where are Mor and Tarquin? I asked Rhys through the bond. He shrugged at me.

Then I saw Tarquin walking toward us with a knife pressed to his throat. The male behind him was fae, but not like we were. He had short silver hair and piercing pine green eyes and was tall with broad shoulders; a body of a honed warrior. A black tattoo in an ancient language I couldn't read started on the top left side of his harsh face, snaking over his jaw and down his throat and disappearing beneath his black shirt.

I reached out to his mind but it was blocked with a wall of ice. I tried to scratch at it but one of my mental talons froze and broke off. I felt that Rhys having the same problem and panic set in my stomach as everyone around me froze.

"Let go of him, you filthy fae!" Cresseida screamed, baring her teeth. The fae male simply smiled, showing his sharp, elongated canine teeth.

Is that normal for fae? I asked Rhys. He didn't answer because Mor and one of Tamlin's guards also had knives pressed against the flesh of their neck. The one behind the guard was a warrior human with blond hair and aqua eyes ringed with gold. He smiled wickedly. Mor was held at knife point by a woman; her collarbone length dark brown hair was blowing in the wind and her green eyes smiling and full lips painted red. The outfit she was wearing was not one of a warrior, rather a long blue sleeveless dress that exposed her long graceful arms.

"Let them go and we won't kill you," Tamlin said. I scoffed as the blonde man and green-eyed woman exchanged glances with smiling eyes. They didn't seem to mind the threat.

Rhys smiled, "Or we could just kill you now."

"I won't offer again," Tamlin though he just had. The three of them grinned.

"We don't take orders from you." The blonde man shifted his weight easily.

"Then who do you take orders from?" I asked, my voice shrill in the wind.

"From me." I turned to see where the voice was coming from. A beautiful woman stood behind them. Her medium length blonde blew in the wind, her aqua eyes that where ringed with gold were even brighter, fiercer than the blonde man's; they looked like fire. Her full lips pulled into a wicked smile as she place a hand on her hip, drawing the attention down to her toned body. A soft emerald shirt accentuated her breasts and her black trousers seemed to have been tailored to a tee. The sun bounced off her tan skin, highlighting the dozens of scars across her body.

"You're human." Tamlin didn't ask, he announced. I didn't miss the snarl he added at the end of his statment, as if all humans were filthy. I growled.

"I, am Queen Aelin Ashryver Galathynius of Terrasen," she said to all of us.

A mortal queen of a place called Terrasen? I have never heard of either, I sent down the bond. Rhys again didn't answer.

"I have never heard of a Terrasen. And I am the high Lord of the Spring court, and you landed on my territory." Tamlin sneered at the human Queen, she scoffed.

"And I don't give a shit." Aelin dismissed him with that. He growled and lunged for her. I was about to scream for her to watch out when he crashed into a wall of ice. Tamlin flew back but the fae male was already behind him.

He grabbed Tamlin by the shirt and hissed, "If you attack my queen again I won't hesitate to kill you." And then, as quickly as the fae male grabbed Tamlin, he let him go and reappeared behind Tarquin with a knife to his throat. Aelin looked at the fae male, her gaze reciprocated evenly. She laughed. For a moment it seemed like the two were in their own world, but then Aelin snapped back to reality.

"I would like someone to come forward and tell me where in the rutting hell we are." Aelin demanded in the voice of a queen. Then she strode toward us in a powerful walk, hips swishing and all. After a second of silence, I stepped forward.

"We're in Prythian The land of fae. Prythian is divided into 7 courts. He," I pointed to Tarquin "is the high Lord of the summer court, Tarquin. He," I swallowed "is the high Lord of the Spring court, Tamlin." I pause, "Rhys over there is the high Lord of the night court and I am the High Lady, Feyre."

She simply stared, her face was too controlled for me to see if the information shocked her or not. I took one more step toward and prayed she wouldn't use her twin blades to skin me alive. She unsheathed her sword and threw it, and my eyes widened in terror.

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