They had reached their destination, or at least it looked like they had. Andromeda had no idea what she was looking at. She stood, mesmerized by the sight of tan, mud brick buildings and tiny Goblins surrounding her. Her brows furrowed in curiosity, busy little creatures the Goblin's were. She could sense a strong presence surrounding the city.
Strong magic, who is this?
She felt eyes on her, watching her and she became suddenly aware of her actions. She looked over to see the Goblin who had helped her staring at her. She cleared her throat and straightened her posture up.
"Well," Andromeda began, " here we are."
"Yes. Good bye!" The Goblin waved her off and stormed away before she could thank him. It made her have chills. She exhaled and nodded her head, treading on.
"Farewell." She spoke lowly, her feet beginning to carry her away.
"Andromeda Fearowae, nice to see you again,"
The voice sounded old, wise and just a bit mischievous. Familiar, very familiar. She knew that voice, from where she did not know. Andromeda began to think in order to wrap her brain around that voice. Realization flooded through her, her heart skipped a beat and she rushed to great him.
"Balor!" She beamed; embracing her old friend tightly. Balor had been a great story teller in her village; though he had never lived there. She looked over him, seeing him donned in a blue servant suit. White knee highs covered the length of his calves and black shined shoes adorned his feet. She pursed her lips in thought. "You are no Goblin, what are you doing here?"
"I live here, my dear. I work at the castle. Now, the better question is; what are you doing here?" He threw the question back, keeping his voice low. She bit her bottom lip nervously, and staring into his gray eyes. He nodded understandingly. He didn't need her to explain; he knew something was wrong. "Let's go see the King and get that wound cleaned up."
~)()(~
"Hold still, child." Balor instructed softly yet firmly; pressing the wet, clean rag against the tender cut. Cleaning away any dirt and excess dried blood he noticed that she was already beginning to heal. He inhaled in awe and noticed her glancing up at him in curiosity. He sighed and smiled. "Your kind never ceases to amaze me." He complimented warmly. She smiled at the old man; glancing down at the tiled floor.
"The king is lucky to have you." Andromeda murmured.
"Oh am I, now?" A voice chimed in, making both her and Balor jump; though she was merely taken off guard, he jumped as if seen doing something wrong. Andromeda stood up immediately, recognizing that she stood in the presence of the King. He was strange to look at; his platinum blonde hair teased to look big, it was short in the front and long in the back. She noticed the slightly different colors in his eyes; noticed he wore light gray pants and a loose white tunic and knee high black leather boots. She certainly thought his look was... Unique.
He was powerful, very much so. She acknowledged that it was his power that she could feel around the city. It was Fey magic. Surely there were many races of Fey, though her race was said to be extinct.
"Well?" He challenged, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Cat got your tongue?"
She narrowed her eyes, regaining her courage.
"Sir, my name is Andromeda Fearowae; I am of the Forest Fey," the Goblin King's eyes grew wide, his breath caught in his throat, "I have come to seek your council, possibly your help. My people are in trouble."
~)()(~
Andromeda came crashing through the doors in a heated mess; her cheeks red with anger.
Damn coward! She cursed him in her mind; storming away. He had turned her away! How dare he?! All he did was make fun of her and refused to believe that she was who she indeed said she was.
". Andromeda, my dear. What happened?" Balor inquired, voice stricken with worry.
"What's wrong? What's wrong?! He insulted my gender! He refused to help because 'the Forest Fey are extinct, and even if they weren't, they do nothing to contribute to our society!'" She mocked his voice rather loudly. Balor was taken aback by the–normally calm–Fey's outburst. He hurried along to stop her from leaving, trying to calm her and maybe help her bring reason to the recently heart broken king.
"Andromeda wait-!"
"What?!" She all but screeched. He placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Let me talk to him, I'm sure I can reason with him. You might just need to prove your identity to him."
Andromeda scoffed; exasperated by what he was hinting at. "And just how do you expect me to do that?"
Balor closed his eyes for a moment.
"Stay for a few days."
"Balor we don't have a few days," she protested. Tears spring to life in her eyes.
"You don't have a choice. You need his help, you won't beat this thing without it." He reasoned. The Fey inhaled and sighed heavily, reluctantly; leaving the elderly seer to talk with the king.