Chosen by the fae king, p.1
Chosen by the Fae King, page 1
Chosen by the Fae King
Brides of Falcondale Book 1
C.A. Worley
Copyright © 2024 C.A. Worley
All rights reserved
The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
This book contains mature content and is intended for adult readers.
No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.
ISBN-13: 9781234567890
ISBN-10: 1477123456
Cover Art by C.A. Worley via Microsoft Designer (ai)
Canva Map by C.A. Worley via Inkarnate
Character Art by C.A. Worley via Sudowrite (ai)
Editing Services provided by Elaine Miller
For Counshlur Brooke, Jurry, Barbosa, and Fritzopher. May the universe have mercy upon our dark souls and may there be lots of spirits—the kind you can drink—waiting for us in the Underworld.
Cheers, my pretties!
Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Map of Falcondale
GLOSSARY
NOTABLE CHARACTERS
Prologue
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Nine
Ten
Eleven
Twelve
Thirteen
Fourteen
Fifteen
Sixteen
Seventeen
Eighteen
Nineteen
Twenty
Twenty-One
Twenty-Two
Twenty-Three
Twenty-Four
Twenty-Five
Epilogue
Author's Note
Books By This Author
Map of Falcondale
Torrach Realm
GLOSSARY
crossing: a portal between realms
baast: a shifter-like entity carried in certain fae bloodlines; fae who house a baast complete partial shifts, morphing into a strong bipedal feline with razor sharp claws and teeth
Drótinn: formal title of the male leader of the Duersian Clan of berserkers
Duersi Clan: ruthless clan of berserkers deeply rooted in their tribal customs; guardians of Stirroghar Crossing
Earth Realm: realm where humans live, as well as some factions of Other
Ephandor: neutral province on the border of Falcondale where the Stirroghar Crossing is located; home to the Duersi Clan
Falcondale: kingdom in the Torrach Realm ruled by the Scullbrook line
Gatekeeper: guardian who monitors a crossing between realms and ensures there are no unsanctioned crossings; only the fiercest of beings can be Gatekeepers
Greenhollow: close-knit farming village in the Kingdom of Falcondale
Other: a non-human magical being, such as a demon, witch, fae, shifter, etc.
Otherland: perilous realm where magic was birthed; home to a variety of Others
Stirroghar Crossing: the sole portal connecting Torrach Realm to the Otherland; guarded by the Duersians
Thornewood Castle: seat of power in the Kingdom of Falcondale, where the ruling family of fae reside
Torrach Realm: one of the realms connected to the Otherland; primarily populated by fae
umbral: a rare type of baast that can blend into and manipulate shadows
NOTABLE CHARACTERS
Aeryn Faulkner: orphaned fae who grew up in the farming village of Greenhollow; has fiercely protective instincts; silky honey-brown hair and pale green eyes; toned from manual labor
Alistair Quinn: Sofiya’s father; woodworker and harvester residing in Greenhollow; helped raise Aeryn after her parents passed away
Astrid Kane: strong and intelligent light fae and bride trial contestant; sunset gold and red hair, warm golden skin, dark blue eyes
Brahm Duersi: Liam’s father; Drótinn of the Duersian Clan of berserkers in Ephandor; Gatekeeper of Stirroghar Crossing; tall and powerful wither long brown braids and russet eyes
Brigid Quinn: Sofiya’s mother; penchant for growing herbs; took in Aeryn and raised her after Aeryn’s parents passed away
Cade: one of Nox’s younger brothers
Dori: water fae and bride trial contestant; haughty, much like her family; pale skin and long, bluish tinted hair
Drayce: elder mage, Seer, friend of King Orson and ally to the Scullbrook family
Greer: brownie fae; servant employed at Thornewood Castle; short and plump with kind green eyes and brunette hair
Hawke: one of Nox’s younger brothers
Hilda: tree nymph with dark green hair and pale-yellow eyes; has musical and graceful gifts; stern etiquette instructor at Thornewood Castle
Liam Duersi: berserker fae from Ephandor, son of Brahm; the King of Falcondale’s head guard; Nox’s closest friend; jovial personality; chocolate-colored mop of curls set atop his tall and lean frame, russet eyes
Lorne Scullbrook: Nox’s brother; blonde beefy giant with a serious demeanor; same grey eyes as Nox; protective of his family
Mirrelle Gilroy: blood fae and bride trial contestant; tall with scarlet eyes, dark gold hair with streaks of white; smartass with lots of bravado and impeccable fashion sense
Nox Scullbrook: King Orson’s oldest son; dark-haired with olive skin and stormy grey eyes, athletic build; intelligent and dutiful, occasionally dons a cold disposition
Orson Scullbrook: King of Falcondale, father to Nox, Lorne, Cade, Hawke, and Sage
Raina Brandenburg: frost nymph with excellent fighting skills; white-blonde hair and purple eyes
Sage Sinclaire: powerful healer at Thornewood Castle; tan with long, wild dark hair and nearly-black irises
Sidra Blake: aristocratic female fae of banshee and incubi descent; porcelain skin, ebony hair and black-bronze eyes; pretentious and cunning
Sofiya Quinn: Aeryn’s closest friend and bride trial contestant; multiple magic types; long, wavy chestnut hair, neutral skin tone, and amber eyes; kind and caring disposition
Zoriyah: ambitious fire fae and bride trial contestant; one of Nox’s former lovers; ice blue eyes, rose gold curls
Prologue
Nox
A breathy exhalation passed between blood-red lips, an echo of desire seamlessly merging with the sizzling flames in the hearth. Long, inky lashes, generously coated with kohl, fluttered coyly.
I could never fathom why Sidra bothered with the elaborate façade for these nocturnal rendezvous at her family's secluded retreat. My visits, already infrequent, bore the weight of an impending farewell—an agreement we'd made during my inaugural trip into her bed months ago.
She understood our liaisons were to be temporary exchanges of carnal pleasures between two unclaimed and unwed fae. What she failed to grasp was my indifference to her company out of this bed.
Our families had once discussed a future union between us and I counted myself lucky that my father had no interest in making me miserable for his own political gain. Still, I was playing with fire and would need to end things soon.
“Nox,” she whimpered, tracing her fingertips along the contours of my chest. “Are you not going to touch me?”
A smirk twisted my lips, fingers lightly gliding across the skin beneath her navel. “I am touching you.”
A fan of delayed gratification, I crafted leisurely circles, prolonging the torment. Her pulse quickened, the rhythm visible beneath the smooth porcelain skin of her arched neck.
As my lips grazed her collarbone, the sensual mood shattered with the force of a battering ram against the heavy oaken door.
I snapped upright, severing the connection with the convenient diversion beside me. The female's eyes widened with a mixture of surprise and disappointment as she hurriedly shrouded herself in satin, feigning a modesty that was nothing but a farce.
Why the pretense? I mused absently as I watched the sullen intruder lumber across the threshold.
My brother, a hulking figure with a stormy gaze, eclipsed the doorway with his ominous presence. He stood there for a long beat, every inch of his body coiled with tension.
“Nox.” His voice, strained and cutting, carved through the atmosphere like a dagger through flesh.
I shot to my feet. Lorne was not one for theatrics. He wouldn't have sought me out like this over an insignificant occurrence.
With urgency, I slid my feet into my boots, grateful I hadn't removed my trousers. Snatching my shirt, I followed my brother into the corridor, deafening myself to the shrill protests echoing from the bed behind.
Though Sidra both looked and acted like she was all succubus, her banshee heritage was coming out swinging. She obviously didn’t know me well if she thought throwing an inharmonious magical temper tantrum would hold my attention.
After firmly sealing the door to her chamber, I matched Lorne's strides toward the front entrance. The spell protecting this place wouldn't allow us to shadow-walk from within its boundaries.
“Speak,” I demanded, my patience thinning like parchment.
He shook his head. “Not here.”
At least one of us possessed the forethought. The last thing I wanted was for one of the Blake family’s servants
Once beyond the gates, Lorne's massive hand clamped onto my wrist. His chest heaved, golden locks tousled by restless fingers.
Lorne never fidgeted. Yet, now, he mirrored the disquiet that had gripped him when our mother was slain.
A cold, stabbing fear slithered into my chest. “Father?”
He nodded curtly. “Poison.”
“Poison?” I whispered, the word clinging to the air like a grim omen. “Is he alive?”
“Barely.”
King Orson, our sire, had been absent, visiting distant towns. His return wasn't anticipated until tomorrow.
“Where is he?”
“Thornewood. His chambers.”
In an instant, I vanished, going directly into my father's bedchamber, with Lorne following closely. My countenance hardened as the scene unfolded before me.
The air was dense with the metallic tang of blood, our father writhing on his bed, a puppet in the throes of an unseen malevolence. His once-piercing gaze now stared vacantly, a silent plea for release.
Liam, the king's head guard and my closest friend, tenderly wiped our father's brow. The room was steeped in an eerie hush, bearing witness to Liam’s insistent vow.
“I will stay with you, my king. Until the end.”
Liam straightened, taking his position near the door, a guardian in the shadows. His noticeable lack of acknowledgment conveyed the depth of his sorrow. He was my brother in all ways but blood.
A haunting groan emanated from the bed.
“Father,” I choked out, moving to his side.
His cold, clammy hand rested within mine. The once-mighty patriarch had been reduced to a spectral semblance of what he was the last time I saw him, mere days ago.
My heart ached at the sight, at the relentless battle that played out in his weakened frame.
“Father,” I repeated, my voice barely audible.
His eyes flickered toward me, a glimmer of recognition extinguished as swiftly as a dying ember. Lorne stood stoic at my side.
“Where are the godsdamned healers?” I demanded of my brother.
“I dismissed them. There's nothing more they can do.”
“Sage–”
“Sage agreed. I sent her to write letters to Hawke and Cade. I have two squads on standby waiting for your approval to deliver them.”
Last I heard, our youngest brothers were distant from Thornewood Castle. The request to write to them would occupy Sage’s thoughts, distracting her from self-recrimination.
Healing constituted her essence, the core of her existence. Dwelling too long within her own mind would torment her soul.
I despised the helpless feeling that enveloped me, standing idly as life ebbed from my father. My king.
His chest rose, lips moving. Lorne and I knelt, bending forward, catching the fragments of his fading orders.
“My sons,” he croaked.
“We're here,” I assured. “Lorne and I are here.” Father didn’t appear to register that only two of his children were present.
“Drayce. Summon … Drayce.”
Lorne leaned into Father’s field of vision. “I already sent for him.”
Drayce was an elder mage with the gift of Sight. He was a close friend of our father. He couldn’t choose what he was shown in his visions, but a small part of me resented his gift for not Seeing this.
Father blinked slowly and took a deep rattling breath. “Find them,” he commanded “... find the bastards. Protect ... the kingdom.”
I nodded solemnly, jaw set with a determination that mirrored the steel in our father's eyes. He continued speaking in fragments, laboring to articulate his final commands.
As Father's breaths dwindled, I directed Liam to fortify the castle and secure the grounds. Unraveling the truth behind this treachery first required ensuring the safety of our stronghold.
Yet amid issuing commands, I couldn't escape the grim reality unfolding before my eyes. The strongest male I'd ever known, succumbing to a cruel fate, was cracking a fissure through the middle of my soul.
The reign of King Orson waned, and the onset of an impending storm cast a shadow over the kingdom.
As the last vestige of breath left his body, the weight of responsibility settled upon my shoulders, a burden far more formidable than any unyielding crown. The searing pain numbed me from within, a sensation I welcomed in the shroud of encroaching darkness.
May the gods have mercy on those who dared to poison the blood of our kingdom because I sure as hell wouldn’t.
One
Aeryn
The morning sun drenched the rolling hills of Greenhollow in golden light, illuminating the thatched rooftops of its small stone cottages scattered among the rolling hills. My boots crunched on the dirt path as I made my way into town, nodding to the few early risers going about their morning chores.
I loved this time of day. It felt like the gods were shining approval on our small community, a mere blip on the map of the Kingdom of Falcondale.
In the Torrach Realm, where fae outnumbered most other beings, kingdoms were aplenty. I'd heard there were enormous cities and breathtaking sights of fae creation across all the realm, and that dozens of sects had contributed to create harmony and balance.
Though curious, I had no desire to seek out such sights. I was safe and self-sufficient here.
Why would I ever want to leave? I thought to myself as the sunshine warmed my skin.
I had the Quinn family to thank for my contentment. They'd taken me in when I was young, a scrawny orphaned girl with nothing to my name but the clothes on my back and the tiny parcel of land my parents had left me.
They'd helped me cultivate a handful of acres until I could handle all fifteen of them on my own. Over the years I'd formed bonds with them, as strong as any kin. Stronger, even.
There wasn’t anything I wouldn't do for them, especially Sofiya.
Speaking of, I should have come across her by now. We always did our weekly shopping together.
My best friend was the pure soul who first showed me kindness in this place, and I owed her more than I could ever repay.
She'd convinced her mother, Brigid, to let me live with them until I was old enough to stay in my parents' cottage alone. For five years they kept me in their home and begged me not to move out when I'd decided it was time.
Sofiya had been a light when my world had turned dark.
I spotted her sitting on the steps of the stone fountain in the center of the square, her chestnut waves spilling over the pale green shawl wrapped around her shoulders. Even from a distance I could see the worry etched into her delicate features.
Something was wrong. My pace quickened as I strode over to her, boots kicking up dust with every step.
“What is it?” I knelt down, taking her hands into mine.
I quickly scanned the area for any signs of danger. The usual morning crowd was sparse.
A few clusters of fae were scattered along the walkways that lined the storefronts, quietly whispering to one another. The village was eerily quiet for this time of morning.
Then, l spotted what was surely the source of her anxiety. I hadn't seen one of them in years. I nearly forgot how fearsome they could look.
“Why are they here?”
Sofiya bit her lip, amber eyes flickering with fear as they met my own. “They're here,” she whispered, “because the king is dead. His son has taken the throne and sent soldiers around the kingdom to take females to Thornewood.”
My blood turned to ice. King Orson had died? How? Fae didn't die easily.
And now the new king's soldiers were here. There was only one reason they would come collecting fae females in the Kingdom of Falcondale.
The trials.
“Over my dead body,” I vowed, hands curling into fists at my sides. No one was taking Sofiya. Not if I had anything to say about it.
Sofiya's eyes welled with tears, her hands twisting in the fabric of her skirt. “It's too late, Aeryn. They've just been waiting for more villagers to gather so they can announce it. The rider in charge said if anyone refuses, all of Greenhollow will be punished.”
Rage boiled in my veins, hot and swift. So this was how King Nox planned to take a bride, was it? By force and violence, caring not for the lives he would ruin along the way?
