Winter Winds

[The Watcher]

I stand outside her apartment, watching her through the windows. She doesn’t notice me, because I do not wish to be seen. I’ve been watching her for a while now, for a very long time. I had noticed Queen Mab’s powers were weakening again, as they do every few decades since her extended reign, and I knew that I needed to hurry this time to find Morgana before her assassins did. She thinks none of us know, but there is a growing number of us who are watching and waiting for her to return, the Queen Who Was Denied, The Queen of Night and Shadows, the Goddess of Rebirth, Morgana.

As with all fae creatures, we are immortal in a sense. Not only do we live exceptionally long lives, but in the unfortunate case of one of us dying, we are reborn within our bloodlines, and reincarnated as one of our kin. But very few bloodlines are still pure enough to produce one of these immortal heirs, a human born to be a god. The lineage of witches and wizards, children of the fae, otherwise known as “elf-touched,” are a rare and special breed. They are mortal, at least until they take on their whole power, then they become tied to the elements, able to harness them, to harvest their nature as they reshape the world. Since leaving Avalon, so many of our kind had lost their way, mated to humans, losing memory of where their ancestors started, creating children with only a spark of magic left within them.

But you only need a spark to ignite a flame. 

My task, my assignment, is to watch over the line of Morgana Regina Primus, descendants of Morgana’s only son, Mordred, who in turn had three daughters, often called the

Fates of Avalon, three exceptionally powerful oracles. Each one has hundreds of descendants that span generations, sometimes crossing with other regal bloodlines. This line is especially important, as it is the most potent, having crossed over itself several times, containing the blood of all three sisters.

Faye Archer received this bloodline from both parents. Her father held the bloodline of Regina Primus and Segundus, and her mother the line of Regina Nexus. It has been centuries since this bloodline has crossed so purely.

It was said that when Morgana rises again, that she will not come alone. The oracles claim that when their true daughter returns to Avalon to claim the throne, they say she will do so with an army at her back, the Court of the Round Table as her council. The Court of the Round Table, often known as Camelot, was an enemy in ancient times, but time can change almost anything, and this world is nothing like the one she left behind. There is also so much that the stories got wrong. The Court of Round was not merely a court of kings and knights, but a gathering of elf-touched wizards and witches, some of the strongest mages to ever walk the earth. With them on her side, rather than against her, she’d be unstoppable.

That was the true prophecy, the one I was given by the Oracles themselves on the day that Morgana died. The day the Oracles themselves were killed by the Queen’s assassins to keep the secret safe. Instead of telling the truth, the Queen spreads a new prophecy, one that promises Morgana’s rise to power will destroy both realms, that of Iron and that of Spirit, unless she is brought to the Queen directly before she rises to full power.

Of the 721 descendants of Morgana, 15 were born with red hair. 10 were born male. And of the 5 remaining, only 1 has her eyes. Faye Archer. 

I would smirk if my beak allowed it. Such is the life of a crow.

I cannot have Queen Mab guessing my true intentions, so I will need to return to court to convince her that she has nothing to fear.  As soon as the Queen feels Morgana’s power start to rise (if she hasn’t already) she will want me to entice her into the shadows. I will need my voice to do that. My voice and my body, and the freedom to move between the two. It's been so long since I’ve had legs. The queen prefers I come to her begging as a bird, so at court that is who I am. I will need to convince her to give me the freedom to transform at will. Only then will I be able to access more of my powers, powers I need two hands and a voice to access. 

Powers that will help me keep Morgana hidden and safe.  

I continue to study the couple through the crack in her curtains. There is something so familiar about the young man she invited into her domicile. I cannot quite place it, but…

They step outside together. She gives him a quick kiss as he jogs down the stairs into a waiting car. Just before he sits down he stares straight up at me. 

I’d recognize that face in any lifetime.

Arthur.

If the Pendragon is awake, I won’t have much time.

The pieces are already falling into place.

Taking off on a winter wind, I fly east towards Tilden Park. The dense trees hold enough twilight shadows that even in the height of the day, I can find a way into Avalon.

Now that I found her, I must keep the shadows at bay. Once the shadows rise, the Queen will feel it.

And if that is the Pendragon, that means the others will rise again soon. 

Faye Archer is Morgana.

My Queen.

The time has almost come for her to return to Avalon to be tested and crowned.

The balance must be kept. 

Winter must follow summer.