The Phoenix and the Fae

By FD Everly

There is a prophecy that when the world's need is greatest, King Arthur will return to save us from the darkness.

But the Once and Future King cannot do it alone. He needs his Queen.

Guinevere was born to rule a Kingdom, but the darkness has fallen over the World threatening everything she loves. With the aid of her bodyguard, Lancelot, and her Phoenix powers, she will fight for her people.

Only Lancelot knows who she really is. Two thousand years ago, he fell in love with her. When she was the wife of a King.

A union that hasn't happened yet...

A history he will do anything to prevent.

Because the love of a Fae is powerful. But the love of a Phoenix is eternal.

• Language: English
• Publisher: FD Everly
• Release date: Jun 22, 2022
• ISBN: 9781005255572

FD Everly

FD Everly is a wife and mother of two boys. She was born and raised in Toronto, Ontario and studied Anthropology in University. She loves books and has always written short stories and poetry. She also writes romance under the pen name Frances Everly. You can follow her on social media or sign up for her newsletter for exclusive sneak peeks and updates at http://linktr.ee/franceseverly

Book preview

image-placeholder

The Phoenix and the Fae

Book One of The Phoenix Crown Saga

F.D. Everly

Copyright © [2022] by [F.D. Everly]

All rights reserved.

No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher or author, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law.

Cover design by Cover Couture

www.bookcovercouture.com

Cover photography by SP Cover Photography

Edited by Black Quill Editing

Cover model is JD Calicoh

Contents

1. The Prophecy

2. Prologue

3. Merlin

4. Paul

5. Gwen

6. Paul

7. Gwen

8. Paul

9. Selkirk

10. Merlin

11. Gwen

12. Charlotte

13. Gwen

14. Charles

15. Gwen

16. Gwen

17. Charlotte

18. Gwen

19. Gwen

20. Gwen

21. Paul

22. Gwen

23. Michael

24. Gwen

25. Paul

26. Michael

27. Selkirk

28. Gwen

29. Cas

30. Gwen

31. Paul

32. Gwen

33. Selkirk

34. Gwen

35. Paul

36. Gwen

37. Michael

38. Selkirk

39. Merlin

40. Gwen

41. Gwen

42. Selkirk

43. Cas

44. Gwen

45. Michael

46. Gwen

Epilogue

Afterword

About the Author

Also By F.D. Everly

. Chapter

The Pendragon Flame

The Prophecy

Aseer once prophesied that in the very distant future, a great shadow would cover the Earth, destroying everything in its wake. Creatures of darkness, demons and wraiths, selkies… every shadow creature known to man, and some we hadn’t known existed, would reveal themselves and cause havoc and chaos. Kings and leaders of every nation would turn on each other. Wars would ravage the land and fire and shadows would consume us.

image-placeholder

That same night, they foretold another prophecy. Of a union of light to battle the darkness. A trinity of magic and humanity that would push back the darkness and burn the shadows from this plane of existence. A union of phoenixes and dragons bonded together for eternity.

Prologue

Istill remember the night I woke, soaked in sweat, screaming for my parents as the world around me shook. Security guards in their bulletproof vests with the royal crest emblazoned on their chests, carrying big black guns, stormed into my room. They ripped me from my bed without a word and raced down the hallways, carrying me as if I weighed nothing. I remember the panic that seized me as I tried to scream, but I choked on my fear and no sound emerged. The hallways were dark with black smoke and lit only by flames as room after room burned. Shouts followed behind us, and I immediately recognized my father’s deep, commanding voice as he demanded to know how this could have happened.

Another loud crash shook my entire world. A wall collapsed, burying my mother beneath the rubble. I screamed, fighting to get to her, but the guards kept moving faster and faster, my efforts doing nothing to slow them down. The palace security team deposited me inside a giant vault beneath the palace before ushering my father and the rest of the staff inside. I ran into his open arms, immediately calmed by his encompassing strength. I shook and cried for my mother as the sound of shattering glass and screams echoed through the room.

Shh sweetheart. You’re safe now, my father soothed, smoothing my ruffled hair with his hand as he held me. There is nothing I won’t do to keep you safe, my love. You are my light, my hope, my world. I won’t rest until I destroy this evil and your mother avenged.

Your Highness, if I may? An elderly servant pushed his way through the frightened crowd and bowed, his body visibly trembling, in front of my father.

Speak Martin, only if it’s not in riddles, my father commanded, once more donning his kingly persona.

Your Highness, we have fought against this darkness once before. It’s not common knowledge, unfortunately, much of the history of that era was lost. However, I believe a very long time ago, the Romans fled our shores out of fear of an invading evil. The Once and Future King, King Arthur, was the only one to defeat this darkness. It is only with his might that we may defeat it now, the old man wheezed as he finished his prophetic proclamation. The prophecy states it is only when the world’s need is at its greatest should the King return to guide us back into the light.

Are you suggesting I give up my crown? In the middle of a war? How dare you! my father’s voice boomed through the dark and windowless room, quieting all conversation around us.

Your m-majesty, I—I do n—not suggest such a thing. I’m—merely suggest, perhaps an alliance by m—marriage with our future queen. Y—your Majesty, I do not doubt you, but warn you. I fear it is only with the power of the Gods, granted to the Once and Future King and his queen, that we may reap our salvation.

I’ve heard enough of this dribble. Leave me at once, old man, my father commanded.

His security team rushed to remove the ancient servant from our immediate vicinity.

I never learned what happened to Martin after that night, but his words have haunted my dreams for nearly a decade. We increased security around the palace and in the streets of London. The military was deployed to maintain the peace and fight at the borders and along the shoreline. Our island was surrounded by a black mass of shadows, and it covered the beaches in ash. Then the satellites went dark. We resorted to using ancient phone lines and radios commandeered from the British Museum to communicate. Refugees flooded our shores, and they constructed tent cities and temporary homes in every manner of style in every available park. Food was scarce as people rioted and stole, hoarding supplies out of fear of starvation and invasion.

It took six days for the world to descend into shadow and chaos. Six days for shadows to crowd our borders. All communication with the rest of the world ended in six days. It took six days to learn we were all the only ones left. Six days to destroy civilization as we knew it. No one knows why or how we survived. But we did.

Merlin

It’s an odd thing, to have lived so long as to be relegated to myth and legend. Entire civilizations have risen and fallen in my unusually long lifetime. I’ve been rather content to sit back and allow these changes to happen. When the First and later the Second World Wars occurred, it tempted me to wake him. Certainly, the world could have used such a warrior and leader, but it was not his time. She tasked me with protecting him until she needed him again. The past millennia, when my magic waned, I joined my old friend, Gwynn Ap Nudd, the Sidhe King in his crystal palace in the Faery Realm. Time moves differently there. Slower. It gave me the time I wouldn’t otherwise have.

I dusted off my lapels. Fear that I waited too long twisted my gut, but I needed to be absolutely certain. When Arthur lay dying, it took a great deal of magic to place him in an eternal slumber. It would take even more to wake him, and I only had one chance. If ever there was a time we needed a saviour, I couldn’t picture a better one. But it wasn’t only his strength and power that was needed to fight off Kiernan and his Shadows.

I feel so sorry for the princess, a passing maid whispered to a footman. Imagine, losing your mother on the very day the world falls, and your father sends you away to live in some random country manor.

She put up a brave face this morning when she climbed into the back of the town car, the footman responded.

Neither of them noticed me as they passed, and I sighed in relief. My cloaking magic, while a little rusty, still worked. It tempted me to follow the gossiping pair and learn more about this princess and her whereabouts. It was rather inconvenient she wasn’t here, but to get to her, I needed to get past her father. So instead, I returned my focus to the task at hand and made my way through the halls of the palace until I finally found my destination: The War Room.

Drawing my wand from its concealment in my sleeve, I gently tapped it three times on the pair of heavy wooden doors. "Fosgail!"

The corridor echoed from the sound of the heavy locks sliding open. The wooden doors before me creaked as they swung inward, revealing a dark room full of men and women gathering around a large boardroom table. It was clear they’d been arguing about something, but my arrival weighed down the room with a blanket of silence.

Guards swarmed the entry, weapons drawn, pointing at me. Or rather, the empty doorway. I stepped past their confused expressions and easily made my way toward the large man with the salt-and-pepper beard in the center of the action. I assessed his proud stature, and the exhaustion and sadness hiding behind his guarded facade. Guards surrounded him, and it was clear this was the man I needed to speak with. This was the man standing between the darkness and the light. The man I needed to accept Arthur’s role in the fight against Kiernan. But I suspected his mind was not one easily changed or convinced.

I took a moment to reassess my plan and alter it before making my presence known. There was over one path through this darkness, and if King Edgar was a stone blocking that path, his daughter might just be the hammer that shatters it.

Deciding on the alternative course of action, I climbed up onto the table in front of the king, my old bones creaking in protest. 

"Cleòca neo-fhaicsinneachd teich. Lasair agus deatach Pendragon Tha mi ag iarraidh gun cuir thu am falach mi!’" I discarded my cloak of invisibility, calling upon the Pendragon Flame to conceal me with smoke. A flashy appearance and show of power were exactly the entrance I needed right now. I suspected the king and his advisors wouldn’t accept anything less to authenticate my identity.

The silence of the room filled with a flash and a bang as smoke swirled around me and flames licked at my feet. I made quick work of the exhibition as chaos erupted around me. Men and women raced for cover behind the guards. Others frantically searched for exits. Everyone except for the king.

He was far less surprised as he rose to his full size, his large body towering over mine. Steel glinted in his eyes, and I fought back an approving smile. It’s been a long time since I’ve faced such an open display of strength.

How dare you barge in here! Did the Darkling send you? he growled. Hatred and disdain replaced the exhaustion I’d seen in his eyes a moment before. Where did you come from, old man?

Old Man? I scoffed indignantly. You do not know how right you are, Your Majesty. Forgive me this intrusion, but I could find no better way to gain an audience with you.

You have five seconds to explain your presence before I have my guards drag you out of here and shoot you in the courtyard.

If only that would put me out of my misery, I muttered. Please allow me to introduce myself, Your Highness. I have gone by many names over the years, but the one you may find the most recognizable is Merlin. I have advised many a great king and offer my help to you in this time of need.

Merlin? The wizard? Are you daft? Is King Arthur going to barge in here next? Or his Knights of the Round Table? What is this conspiracy? One of the Darkling’s tricks? Guards! Spittle flew from the king’s mouth as he shouted, his face turning a deep shade of scarlet in his fury.

"Reothadh!" I commanded.

The approaching guards froze where they stood.

Enough of these parlour tricks! What do you want? The King demanded.

Magic has long been absent from these lands. I do not doubt your capabilities as king, but you do not know how to deal with magic. If you wish to survive Kiernan’s Shadow Army, you will need someone to guide you. I paused, prepared to be interrupted, but none came. If you will not allow me to guide you, then allow me the opportunity to guide the young princess. She will need every advantage provided to her if she is to inherit your throne.

You’ve done all of this to ask to tutor my daughter in magic? King Edgar growled suspiciously.

Magic, yes. As well as the politics of your magical refugees. I bowed respectfully.

How do I know you aren’t a spy for the Darkling come to take or corrupt the princess?

You don’t. I shrugged. However, I presume you are familiar with Gwynn Ap Nudd, leader of the Wild Hunt and King of the Sidhe? He has been a great friend of mine for many centuries now. It wouldn’t be too great a favour for me to ask that he provide the princess with bodyguards from his household. The Fae are noble warriors and guardians of magic and nature. I can think of no one better to guard over your daughter. Can you? In these times, it would be foolish to leave her unprotected.

The king eyed me suspiciously as he mulled over my words. Of all the fae, Gwynn’s name continued to be whispered in the Cornish countryside. Some feared his power, while others worshipped it. As the leader of the Wild Hunt, he guarded the underworld and restrained the demons that would destroy the world if they escaped it. It was clear from the expression on the king’s face he was aware of that fact.

I am not convinced you are, in fact, the wizard Merlin, he finally announced. But I will entertain this suggestion of yours that Gwynn Ap Nudd’s warriors protect the princess. Gwen should always have a bodyguard, and only the best will do. Therefore, I will offer the position to any man or fae that can best my elite forces in combat.

I nodded respectfully.

You, oh great and powerful wizard, he mocked, will swear fealty to me and the crown in the old fashion in front of the entire kingdom! If you are not as powerful as you claim or as well connected, beware, old man! I will hunt you down and feed you piece by piece to the Darkling’s Shadows!

I shamefully struggled to maintain my excitement. In a matter of minutes, I not only learned the princess’ name but secured a position within her household, along with the bodyguards of my choosing. Now I only needed to determine if she was the princess I was looking for and convince my dear friend and ally to lend me his sons for her protection. Convincing the twins was another task entirely, should Gwynn agree.

Nodding, I unfroze the guards and allowed them to lead me from the king’s presence. They didn’t lead me to a prison cell, or the ancient dungeons beneath my feet. Instead, they led me to an office outside the kitchens where a butler adorned in a perfectly tailored suit introduced himself as Riordan, the palace butler.

He offered me a room in the palace, far from the king’s and princess’ apartments, and we agreed I would return within the week to inhabit them.

As I boarded the tube, I began devising a plan to convince the twins to subject themselves to be guardians. It would not be as easy to get them to agree to my plans as it had been to convince the human king.

Paul

The Phoenix daggers slid through my fingers as I sharpened first one, then the other, with the stone. A ringing sound echoed through the woods. The music of it filled my soul as I performed the ritual for the ten-thousandth time. Satisfied with the sharpness of the blades, I kissed first one, then the other, then delicately placed them in their silk-lined box and turned the lock.

It’s been two thousand human years since these daggers were last used in battle. Two thousand years since I became their guardian, entrusted with them by her. I squeezed my eyes shut; her memory was as vivid as if she were still here. The pain has never lessened, never eased its painful grip around my heart.

Footsteps crashing through the underbrush momentarily distracted me.

What do you want, old man? I called out once it was clear he wasn’t leaving.

"Old? Old? You and your brother are at least as old as I am!" Merlin spluttered.

I laughed mirthlessly and packed away my whetstone and daggers. Perhaps, but we do not look it. A failing of your humanity. It’s a miracle you’ve kept your wits… though that has yet to be seen.

I was not aware the fae were so amusing, Merlin muttered, settling his ancient body down on the large boulder next to me.

We have many talents, I replied with a grin.

Yes, which is precisely why I am here. I need a favour from you and your brother, Merlin said.

A favour? Is it not enough you’ve lived in the Crystal Palace all this time, under my father’s protection? I asked, my eyebrows shooting up in surprise.

It would be if this were not a matter of dire circumstances. Kiernan has risen again.

I’m aware. The black rain foretold his return. I shrugged. It’s of no matter to me.

He is stronger than he was back then. The entire human world has fallen under his darkness. Everywhere has descended into shadow, even parts of the Faery Realm are crumbling beneath his power.

What do you want from me, Merlin? I am not strong enough to fight him alone.

A single phoenix doesn’t hold enough power, even with all the years you’ve had to refine your power. But what if I were to say you are not as alone as you think you are?

I don’t have time for these games, wizard, I growled, rising from the boulder and collecting my belongings.

There is another. Kiernan is circling her as we speak. I need your help to protect her while she learns her power.

I’m not anyone’s bodyguard. Or have you forgotten what happened the last time I tried to protect someone? Perhaps your precious Pendragon would do a better job of it. I wish you the best of luck, Merlin.

She’s a child and alone she has kept Kiernan from consuming Britain, as he has everything else. She is completely unaware of this power. I thought it was her father’s strength at first. He is a formidable man but unfortunately, he has no power. No magic. No, it belongs to his daughter. The princess has great power, but no one to show her how to use it. No one to protect her while she learns. She needs guidance. She needs another phoenix to help strengthen her. Imagine the destruction Kiernan can wreak if he gains possession of her power.

I’m sorry, Merlin, but you’re wrong. What she needs is a dragon, not a phoenix. I walked away, but Merlin shouted something that froze me in my tracks.

She has a need for you both. Without you, she will fall before she is strong enough to wake the dragon. Without the dragon, not even the Faery Realm will be untouched.

I know the prophecy! I’ve lived it before! Don’t ask me to relive that pain! Hurt and anger warred within me of the reminder.

You know what I say is true. You need each other.

No. What I need is Guinevere, and she’s gone!

I turned and jogged down the path through the woods. My feet hit the bark of a large oak tree and swiftly carried me up the treetops, where Merlin couldn’t follow. Leaves tickled the bottoms of my feet, but I ignored the sensation as I ran across the treetops. The sky darkened with black clouds of smoke. An explosion ripped through the land. The ground rocked. My foot slipped, and I barely righted myself. My heart raced as the sweet air turned acrid and sour. The wind carried the sharp screams of my people to my ears, and it was as if daggers pierced my heart. Merlin’s prediction was right.

Realizing we were too far to fight or help our people, I did the only other thing I could. Whistling to alert my brother, I waited for his bird call. The long, drawn-out notes of a falcon reached my ear in return. I dropped to the ground as my twin raced from the direction of the Crystal Palace.

Kiernan— he began.

That was all I needed. I spun around and swiftly returned to the place I’d left Merlin, my brother, on my heels.

Merlin was unsurprised by my quick return, his deeply lined eyes sad with the knowledge the Crystal Palace had fallen. I sensed my brother’s silent questions but ignored them as I faced the ancient sorcerer.

What do we need to do? I shouted, urgency racing through my veins.

First, you must prove your worth to King Edgar, he replied cryptically. You will also need to conceal your identities. I’ve already done enough damage.

Gwen

Nighttime had fallen long before we reached wherever it was my father sent me. Hours had passed since we’d left the crowded streets of London. The car jolted as it hit a bump and for a moment; I was nearly airborne. Crashing back into my seat, the air knocked out of me with a loud  oomph . My maid, Brigid, fussed over me, straightening my hat and smoothing out the wrinkles in my black skirt. I gently pushed her away, blinking back the tears swelling in the corners of my eyes.

Seeing her pale hands on my black skirt reminded me of what I’d lost. First my mother, and the entire planet. Now my father has shipped me away to live with strangers while he tries to fight a war with an enemy we know nothing about. It isn’t fair. What if he falls too? I’ll be all alone. Alone and forgotten in the Leicestershire countryside. I straightened my shoulders and turned my attention back out the window so my maid couldn’t see my hurt and fear. My father always told me I could cry whenever I needed to, but never in public.

Kings and queens must always appear strong and worthy of the trust of our people to keep them safe. They must never doubt us, especially in times of war. Never let them see you cry, he’d reminded me as my mother’s casket lowered into the ground.

I buried the memory and focused on the scenery outside the car.

Bardon Rock soon came into focus as we turned down the long drive. It towered over the land, surrounded by crumbling stone walls. The sprawling stone manor was a relic of the 16th century, with its turrets and stone towers. We passed over the causeway and past the gatehouse. Scaffolds filled the area and servants lined the entry as the car came to a stop.

I waited for the driver to open my door and lend me help as I delicately stepped out onto the cobblestones. Taking a deep breath of the cool night air, I steeled my spine and drew myself up to my full height. Pasting a neutral expression on my face, I stepped forward and a stout, middle-aged man stepped forward.

Your Highness, welcome to Bardon Rock, he greeted me with a respectful bow.

Thank you, Lord Bardon, for your hospitality, I replied demurely, noticing his beady red eyes and the too-familiar grip on my arm as he led me to where his family waited near the entry.

"I hope your commute was uneventful. Allow me to