"Please tell me we've got a plan to get out of this?" I asked, backing away from the window.
"Our options are pretty limited, Clint," Nareena replied with a grimace. "We've got nowhere near enough weaponry to fight them and I can't teleport us all out of the building in one go. I'd struggle to do it at full strength; it would render me near comatose trying to do it with my powers diminished."
"Could you teleport groups clear, though?" Nick asked.
"In theory," Nareena answered, "but I'd need time, and I'd also need someone else to make sure I was uninterrupted."
"We could use the ballroom at the back of the house," Nick said to the two world leaders. "Nightshade, Clint, and the rest of the security guards could try and hold them off as long as they can."
"Where will we go, though?" Scott asked. "We need somewhere we can at least temporarily occupy while we regroup."
"I've got an idea," Nick replied. "There's an old farmhouse not too far from here; I drive past it a lot, and every time I do I wish I had the money to buy it. It might not work in the long-term, but it would at least give us somewhere safe to take the guests while we regroup."
"Then it's agreed," Nareena said. "And we need to move quickly – I don't want to risk the possibility of being overrun while we're still trying to get people out of here."
We wasted no time, the two leaders gathering the guests in the dining hall and explaining the plan to them as best they could. The fairies were pleasantly surprised that not only were they honest about what was about to happen, but also that the guests seemed to trust Nareena without pause.
Those covering the escape started setting up barricades, making sure all their guns had plenty of ammo, and then Nick came over with a pistol in his hand. Smiling, he offered it to me.
"I can't take a gun," I said, briefly looking away from the window. "I can't imagine Dad would like this suggestion, anyway."
"It was your dad's idea, Clint," Nick said, pushing the gun into my hand. "He said that if you're going to stay here with us, he wants you armed as well."
"Listen up," Nightshade – who'd been made de facto leader of the defences – said loudly before I could even really think about what Nick had said. "I have good news and bad news: the good news is that the enemy likely won't be well-armoured, so a good enough shot should take them down. They do, however, make up for the lack of protection by being extremely quick, so don't waste time between bullets."
"Did you think you could get away from me that easily, Clint?" Niana said then, laughing softly at my confusion as she sat with her back to the barricade I was hiding behind. Upon seeing my expression she added, "I'm not sitting in some old farmhouse with a group of people I don't know while you guys risk your lives for us. Besides, you might need some magical help – Nightshade's magic is limited enough; I wouldn't fancy relying on it mid-battle. No offence," she called out to her Queen's guard as she saw him shoot her a fierce glare. "I'm just hoping they don't get anywhere near close enough that we have to ask you to use your sword."
"Stop yakking and pay attention," my dad shouted from further up the barricade. "They're almost within range!"
I looked out through a gap in the barricade and felt my heart sink as the line of fallen fairies drew nearer. Seeing guns being moved into position I pointed my own pistol through the hole, trying to find the right target. Then I waited, holding my breath.
Just then the silence was suddenly broken by an immense bang that shattered all the glass in the windows, causing the defenders to duck in order to avoid the flying shards. A handful of yelps from nearby soldiers told me that not all such attempts had been successful.
"What the hell was that?" I asked no one in particular before seeing the source; just metres from the barrier was a fairy, but it looked nothing like any I'd ever seen before. It had dragonfly-like wings, a huge (if almost skeletal) frame, and it was leaning on a weapon that looked part staff, part spear. Its skin was deathly pale and it had a pair of grey, sunken eyes just visible under its wiry grey hair. I tried to shoot at it, but it moved faster than the bullet, dodging out of view. "What the hell was that?" I asked again.
"I don't know," Nightshade shouted from where he was sitting, the soldiers around us beginning to fire as the enemy got closer. "I've seen pictures of many types of fairies in my life, but that... that was something entirely new to me."
"Clint, you'd better come here!" Nick suddenly called out. "It's your dad." I looked around to see him hunched over, his hands glowing orange intermittently.
"I'm not sure what happened," my dad said as I reached him, his breathing panicked. "One of those... things... got close enough to touch me before anyone could take a shot. The minute it vanished, this started."
"Don't worry, Dad," I said, hoping he wouldn't notice the panic in my own voice. "When Nareena comes back we'll get her to teleport you to safety."
"I... I'm not sure that's a good idea," my dad stuttered.
"What do you mean?" Nick asked.
"When it touched me it briefly gave me a vision," my dad replied. "Those creatures, they are fairies, but Feth'rael created them. One of their purposes seems to involve me: they've been ordered to follow me wherever I go. No matter what, they'll always find me. They also intend to turn me into a weapon," he added. "They didn't send me to the President by accident."
"Oh my god," Nick said, the colour draining from his face. "Clint, they're using him as a bomb! Their plan was to get all the dignitaries in one place, then use a weapon we could never trace, wielded by a person we'd never suspect."
"Then we get you out of here," I said, grabbing his arm. "If you're not here then no one will be in danger."
"I told you, Clint, they'll follow me," he said, shaking my hand off. "You need to go; I don't know how long this will last."
"I've already lost Mum," I said, a mixture of despair and anger in my voice, "I'm not losing you too. We'll find a way."
"I should be dead already," my dad said, grabbing my chin and forcing me to look him in the eyes. "This should never have come about in the first place, do you understand? I love you, Clint, and I've never taken the time to tell you how proud you've made me. My two consolations are the knowledge that you'll be safe, and the knowledge that I'll be seeing your mother again in the next life. Now go – you aren't safe here anymore."
"The rest of the guests have been cleared," Nareena said as she reappeared in the room. "This place is about to be overrun." As she said this she nodded towards the window frames, where the fairies were now clambering through the broken windows, their swords drawn.
"Go!" my dad said again, pushing me towards Nareena. "Get to safety while you still can. Niana, Nick – I'm trusting you to keep him safe." He turned to face me again then, smiling as he said, "I love you, Clint."
"Dad, wait..." I tried to shout as Niana grabbed me before taking her sister's hand. Then, as the barricade became overrun by the enemy, I caught one last glimpse of my father before a bright light flashed in front of my eyes and everything went black.
"Where are we?" I asked when my senses had returned to some form of normality, looking around to see the overgrown garden of an old cottage. As I looked I caught a glimpse of the house we'd just left in the near distance. "My dad, we have to go-" Before I could utter another word, however, there was a large flash of light and then the entire house vanished in a pillar of smoke.
I let out a sob, falling to my knees only to be caught by Niana. Distraught, I buried my face in her shoulder.
"What the hell just happened?" the US President asked, putting a hand to his forehead. "I don't get it! If I'm their ally, why did they just try to kill me?"
"I fear I have an explanation for that," Nick said, looking down at his phone with a grimace. "Apparently people are demanding that Parliament be recalled to discuss the assassination of a US President on UK soil."
"This was their plan all along," Nareena said, the realisation making her heart sink. "You were never supposed to make it out of that building alive. But why..." She paused, looking down at the ground as she tried to formulate her answer. "Mr President, your advisers... have any of them started acting strangely recently? It doesn't have to be anything major, just something that seems out of place."
"Nothing that I can..." He trailed off then, concern suddenly crossing his face. "My vice-President. He seemed close to nervous collapse, and he'd been working so hard that six months ago I insisted he go on a long holiday, saying the rest of my staff could look after things while he relaxed. He came back after just a week. He claimed there was a family illness, but he wouldn't tell me any more and I didn't want to intrude on a private matter."
"What are you saying, Nareena?" I asked, intrigued despite everything that had just happened.
"The best case scenario?" she asked. "Well, there are three possibilities: one, your deputy has been an agent of Feth'rael the entire time, but recent events have accelerated their plans. Two, he was in some way converted to Feth'rael's side while he was on holiday. The third is the worst possibility: that your real deputy is dead, and that the man who's been advising you is a shape-shifter designed to fool you until the trap was ready to be sprung."
"If that's true then we can't stay here," my uncle said, anger in his voice. "We have to do something!"
"The Prime Minister should return to Downing Street," Nareena said. "As far as they know he's still alive, and we simply cannot risk raising more suspicion." She took Scott's hand in hers. "I know I can't ask you to obstruct your people's democratic processes indefinitely, but if you can buy us some time in order for us to make a plan and do what's needed, I will be eternally grateful."
"I owe you my life, your highness," Scott replied, bowing to her. "I will do whatever I can." He looked at the rest of us. "Good luck," he added, and with a flash of light he vanished.
"What about us?" Niana asked. "Clint's right; we can't stay here. Before we know it that explosion will have this place swarming with humans."
"I fear we need to reveal ourselves to the world far sooner than I might have wished," Nareena replied sadly. "We need somewhere we can speak to the world but where we're safe from any further attack."
"The United Nations," the President said. "Most countries on Earth are represented there and weapons are all but banned inside the building. The only problem is... if I'm officially dead I'm not sure walking in through the front door is a viable option."
"I think maybe I can help with that," came a voice from a nearby tree as a tall, thin, raven-haired girl with paper-thin wings landed in our midst. "I can get you into America the same way I got out of there."
The President sighed. "One of these days, when I tell you to stay in the house you're going to actually listen to me. You shouldn't be here."
"Mr President," Nareena said, looking between the dignitary and the newcomer, "do you mind explaining to us who this charming young woman is?"
"I'm Selina," the girl replied. "I'm his daughter." Upon seeing our expressions of confusion, she said, "Yeah, he knew about fairies before the big reveal. My father has spent my entire life hoping that if he pretended my wings – and my mother's wings – didn't exist, they'd eventually go away."
"You said you could help us," I prompted, interrupting anyone else's attempts to comment on her statement. "What do you mean?"
"No one's sure how they came to be," Selina replied, "and they seem to pre-date anyone crossing the Atlantic, but there are a series of tunnels running under the ocean, protected by a form of magic no American fairy has ever heard of, never mind wielded in any living fairy's lifespan. I can get you in, but we're going to have to be careful, and I suspect I won't be able to take many with me." She eyed the big group of us, her expression regretful.
"Niana, Clint, and his friends can go with you," Nareena said before anyone else could speak. "If you can't risk an army you'll need people who can help. Clint and friends bridge the gap between our peoples, and I trust Niana to represent the Glade exiles as well as I would in person."
"What about my uncle?" I asked Nareena while looking at Nick. "What's he going to be doing during all of this?"
"The Queen needs me," Nick said as I suddenly realised the two were holding hands. "Besides, I'll be more use to Scott on this side of the Atlantic than I will if I'm in America." He took out a piece of paper then, quickly scribbling something on it before handing it over to me. "If we can't be sure who's on our side, you're better off calling this number if you're in trouble. A long time ago, an old friend of mine told me not to take important calls on government-owned phones."
"I hate to break up this touching moment," Selina said, tapping her foot impatiently, "but we'd better leave now; if we're goingon an adventure I'd quite like there to still be a country left for us toexplore."