​An Exchange of Power
​Lauren D. Fulter

Featuring characters from the upcoming "The Unanswered Questions" Series

Her mind was deaf to the silence that blared against her skull, her world whirling around out of focus with the constant jolt from her stead. 
The blur of the moonlight shining through the silhouette of the trees around them was the only comfort the lady could take comfort it. The harsh wind stung at her bare face, her fingers sore as they clung deep in the tough mane of the creature, never breeded for it’s swiftness.
It’s ride could have cared less.
Her mind was adrift, the lines of the trees as they climbed toward the sky up forever. 
The stead whinnied, the rider jolting from her daze, tightening her grip on the mane, hurriedly adjusting herself onto the back, catching her breath.
She forced her eyes open, training them hard on what passed before her. The trees began to blur again. She shook it off.
Tears pricked at her eyes, clenching her jaw, the pain in her side flaring. She opened her mouth, daring to take another breath. Her attempt was deemed unsuccessful.
Her head grew lighter.
She forced down the itch crawling up her throat. She tightened her grip, gritting her teeth. She couldn’t stop the cough, the warm substance gathering at her lips.
Another cough followed.
Then another.
She felt herself begin to slide, her body weight being pulled by the sweet gravity of the ground below her. She tensed, weakly leaning her body to the opposite site.
The stead whinnied again. She felt the pace slowing. She tried to move it foward.
One a snort.
No faster progress.
They didn’t have time to slow down.
It continued to prance. Tears began to prick her eyes again. She kicked, pain searing up and thrugh her chest, a tiny cry escaping her throat. 
The creature gave a warning snicker.
They needed to go faster.
She gave a frustrated shout. Suddenly, the world rose, her hands torn from their grip, her body slamming hard into the ground below.
A loud, harsh stomp, sent dirt flying, the lady clawing at the ground to get away. The creature let out a noise, and stormed away. The lady raised her arm weakly.
She tried to call out for it, but her voice failed. Her arm fell lip. Her eyes fell upward toward the sky.
A horrible sensation swept over her.
Her chest tightened, unable to breath.
No.
She couldn’t be left here. This wasn’t where was to go.
Her hand crawled for her side. The tear in her dress was dampened by her own blood. The wound’s pain was numb in her mind now, the world ringing loud in her ears, her fingers vibrating.
She pressed her hand firmly against the wound, and with a desperate cry, she heaved herself to her side. With her free arm, she pushed herself to her trembling knees.
That was as far as her body permitted to rise.
Her mind kept her body steady.
She closed her eyes, her mind immediately wanting to draw her away farther into the soothing darkness. She refused it.
She concentrated.
Her legs shook.
She took a short breath though her nose. Her chin began to fall to her chest. She had no strength to keep it up. Warmth began to gather around her fingers.
She tightened them to a fist.
She felt the dust begin to shift beneath her.
Another breath.
Her fingers grew warmer.
The wind began to tug at the tatters of her gown.
Another breath. Her eyes burst open, falling into a coughing fit. She collapsed, her hands growing cold, as she clasped her chest. Her body roared with pain, a subconscious groan escaping her.
She couldn’t stop now.
She refused,
It couldn’t be now.
She tightened her fists in her hair, feeling her face heat, a tear slipping down her buring face. 
She had been a coward to run.
And a fool to die.
She didn’t want to die.
She coughed again. Her body shivered.
A fool.
The trees began to move gracefully, growing up high, their branches blending together in the darkness of the night. A small light blurred together with them. 
It didn’t take up the dance of the trees.
It grew brighter.
Her eyelids drooped.
Fight it.
She couldn’t.
Like a fool, she couldn’t open her eyes.

“Wake up.”
Her eyes flew open, gasping for air, sweet oxygon filling her lungs. She nearly sat up too fast, her wound reminding her. 
The moon had shifted in the night.
The sky seemed darker.
The trees were different around her, as she sat in an empty ring of grasses. She frowned, turning in search of the voice. She scrambled back, seeing a tall, elegant glowing feminine figure standing at her side.
The lady grasped her hands over her mouth, her eyes wide, too astonished to force a word from her mouth.
The woman’s gown looked to made of pure light, falling from her shoulders down. She wore her hair in a tight bun, branches weaved around her head into a circlet. Her skin glowed of a white hue, and her lips a bright blood red. Her fingers were long and dainty, a small cape, appearing to be made of leaves fell behind her,
“I-it worked,” the lady stammered.
“Of course,” the woman said, her voice ringing with a sweet echo. “Young Lady Adrienne Emberson.”
“Queen,” the lady murmured with correction.
The fae smiled in amusement. “Oh, of course. Correct me, Queen. We meet as fellow acquaintances.”
The lady gave an awkward bob of the head.
The fae queen held her hand to her face in observation. “Not many call for a simple hello,” she said, her glow darkening. “I have put ou under a temporary state to keep your condition from worsening. Make your plea.”
The lady shifted uncomfortable. “A request.”
“Speak.”
“A grant of life.”
The fae queen raised an eyebrow, her eyes shifting to the lady. “An escape from death?”
“Yes.”
“And what makes yourself think to be qualified of such a grant, Lady Emberson?”
With a twist of the queen’s dainty wrist, horrible pain seared through the lady. She cried out in pain, crumbling down to the ground. Her hand twisted back.
The lady’s body fell in relief, as she gasped for air.
The fae queen strode to the lady. “What about your existance is worth saving?”
The lady sat up, her body shaking. She tried to gather her thoughts, but the clashed together in an unorganzied mess. She stared blankly, her lips trembling.
“I-I’m an Ewyon.”
 The fae queen face darkened, unimpressed.
The lady grasped a long piece of her muddied golden hair in her hands. “I can give you my beauty! I’m an Ewyon!” she cried out, her throat building up.
The fae queen gently closed her eyes, taking a short breath. The trees rustled in the silence, the lady’s exchange falling weakly away in the wind.
“I-I don’t want to die,” the lady said, tears crowding her eyes, her breaths growing short.
The fae queen looked away.
“I’ll do anything!” the lady screamed after her.
The queen stopped for a moment, her hands limply by her side. No movement. The whole woods went silent.
“Life...” the voice was dark and thunderous. “... comes with a price.”
The lady’s eyes narrowed, her head growing light in horror. Pain erupted from her side, racking at her skull. She tried to cry out in pain, but not a scream escaped. Her mind blurred, her body burning with cold.
She squeezed her eyes shut. An energy seemed to be pulling her down. She fought it. 
The pain only tore at her harder.
Her fist tightened, beginning to burn.
A cry tore free from her lungs. 
The burning reached her shoulder. Her bare feet brushed the dirt. The pain was blocked by the warmth. She raised her arms, wind beating upon.
She forced her eyes open.
Her vision was blurry, subconscious tears steaming upon her skin. She kept her eyes focused on the queen light figure.
She throwing her fists down, slamming into the ground below.
The earth echo.
Everything rushed back into focus. She didn’t gasp for air. She stood up from her knees, turning her eyes up to the fae queen. 
The fae pressed her lips together. “What are you?” she asked.
“I told you,” the lady said, her shoulder’s relaxing, seeing the confusion grow in the fae’s twisted features. “A queen.”
The fae chuckled, her features brightening. “I will grant you life,” she said. “For your mind.”
The lady frowning, holding out her hands. “But my abilities are much stronger-”
With the raise of the fae queen’s forefinger, the lady’s lips were sealed shut. “Once I have you, you will become far greater than just alive. No Lady Adrienne, but a Lady of the Universe.”
She stooped into the lady’s ear, the whisper brushing against her skin. “You will be my queen.”
The lady tensed. The fae grasped her hands in her own. Her hands were surprisingly cold. 
“I will do anything,” the lady said, sinking to her knees.
The fae queen smiled, her pearl teeth showing through her thin lips. A slow, enchanting hymn began to echo through the air.
The lady’s arms fell away, as the fae stepped back. 
The lady’s lips refused to move, her eyelids growing heavy.
In exchange for death, you must take a life.
The words soothed her, her body beginning to rise from the ground, the ripped edges of her gown beginning to glow.
Power’s beauty. Anger’s strife.
Her hair began to flow around her. The fae’s delicate finger tips ran from her forehead down her nose and gently pressed against her lips.
Her body rose, laying flat as the air cradling her body. 
In exchange for a truth, you must take a lie.
The world began to blur. Something cold pierced her back.
Children cheer. Empire’s cry.
Thick cords of shrubbery began to crawl around her, twisting securely around her wound, holding her ankles. Her hair was pulled at by the branched as they entangled their way threw.
In exchange for wisdom, you must take a child.
A vine tightened around her throat. A sweet tasted coated her tongue. Her body flooded with warmth.
Mind’s empty. Heart’s wild.
The sweet hymn was cut off abruptly. 
A vine held itself above her. Her chest shuddered with a cough, the vine falling across her face.
She inhaled, letting her eyelids fall shut.

Submission to Author T. Strange's Contest.