Amaranta. Rival of Fairies’ Queen. Natalie Yacobson

about the people in golden masks.

      Expand the crew turned out to be unexpectedly difficult, as if some creatures were clung to the wheels and did not give to go on. Amaranta seemed that she hears their laughter and even sees how they swing on the axes, trying to pull them out of the wheels. They were frozen and shaggy.

      «Do not stick to us!» they were angry.

      Only none of the satellites have seen them, besides the horses who tried to flood them with hooves.

      The golden web on the left side of the new road, which was able to leave, no one also noticed. But the flickering creatures are crawling along it, or women, whether the spides, gloatingly whispered after Amaranta.

      «How good that you arrived! We all welcome you!»

      It was worth turning to the rear window of the carriage, and they no longer see them behind. Either the carriage is going too quickly, or a huge web with Arachnes was only an illusion.

      Golden game

      The king of the elves appeared suddenly. Angus did not expect him to visit right now. And how can he call the guest of the one who originated right from the emptiness on the other side of the table from you.

      Just ranked somewhere bells, sounded right above the ear of wonderful voices, and here the elf is already here. Dagda clearly made a moment when Angus remained alone and without servants, and without vassals. Obviously, before appearing to all the inhabitants of the county, he wanted to agree on something with the count personally. But as it turned out, he wanted only to play, and the invisible servants were taken in care that all items disappeared from the table. Instead of them, the gold figures were lined up on the countertop: or chess, or checkers. They moved themselves. They did not need to even touch them. Angus has never become a participant in the game in which it is not necessary to play. Everything is done by yourself.

      «I just check the honesty of your intentions,» Dagda admitted, «and see that they are honest.»

      «And how can this be seen?» perplexed Angus. Unless the elf knows how to read thoughts in the face.

      «They catch all your intentions,» Dagda waved his hand to spinning figures, which resemble golden tornados. His nails were also gold covered with some embossed patterns. You do not need to wear with such nails and rob. Such nails are already as a jewel.

      Angus felt not in his place. Although he was sitting in his own chair in his castle, and Dagda was here just a guest. But in the presence of an elf, the owner of the castle felt himself uncomfortable.

      «So, do you know all my thoughts?»

      The elf looked at him through the table with clean azure eyes, for which, as if darkness was hiding.

      «They know!» He nodded again on the figures, reminding the ghosts from the golden sand.

      «You have a lot of thoughts, but among them there is not a single insidious idea,» the king of Elves decreased to clarification. «From the people you’re the first one, whom I can call sincere. So let’s be friends.»

      A good offer! Is it an honest one. Angus remembered the disturbing stories of the peasants and even several knights who returned from the forest in a terrible state and swore that the evil spirits almost pinched them to death.

      «In our areas, they say that Elves can not honest,» Angus admitted. He did not want Dagda to consider him petty or unfriendly.

      «In my country the elves talk about people the same,» said the guest indifferently. «But I see that it is not always worth believing what they say. People are different as we, elves.»

      «Among you there are not only an elves,» Angus did not even know how to call those terrible creatures that sometimes began to appear here together with quite harmless fairies.

      «Now I offer friendship from the face of the whole of my magic people, no matter how much varieties do not belong to them, as you have suggested a friendly union to me on behalf of the whole county, although not all the knights are also generous as you.»

      «You already know about their contradictions?»

      «I know about everything,» Dagda unexpectedly caught one of the golden figures with his hand. Under his fingers, it took the outlines of the flower closed by the petals in the ring.

      «You think now about your bride, which sailed here through the sea. Give it to her!»

      Angus took the ring uncertainly. For such elegant work, no earthly jeweler is capable.

      «She exactly likes it!»

      «I know how to please how to earth girls and fairies,» Dagda had a self-confident appearance.

      «How can I thank you?»

      «Only being honest in communication. I can’t endure hypocrisy.»

      And it says master of all elves. Is it worth trusting him or is it a tricky trap? He came here and now lubricate people to himself in the magical seven hills, and then rip them on the feast. Doesn’t the legends go about him that he did this with his enemies from the magic clan?

      «The danger was waiting on the sea,» Dagda said. «Your bride had not to saile by the sea. Water like beautiful girls, but the risk is already behind. Amaranta is save and sound on the shore.

      «You even know her name!»

      «You know it, and I know everything you know.»

      «And I don’t know anything about you. Do you have a Queen?» Angus asked with trepidation and felt relief when Dagda denied it. Seeing the real elf, unwittingly feel jealousy. He wanted Dagda to belong only to him. Even thoughts about Amaranta disappeared somewhere. Angus fed to the guest charm.

      «At least you have a bride?»

      They want to impose me one, but before it happens, there will be the next war. Already between us, elves. It will not affect you.»

      It is easy to say!

      «This bride is so ugly that you do not want her. She is a monster from the forest.|

      «She’s something like a black storm, which if you let her in our possessions, enlisters with her black everything and enslave us all.»

      «Then do not marry her!»

      «It is easier to say than to do.»

      The creature, who came with Dagda diligently made the view that he did not overhear the conversation. The game on the table was done by itself. In the hall hung such a pleasant atmosphere, as if everything was warmed from the sun, descended into the castle straight from heaven. It is a solid pleasure to have an elf as a guest.

      The king of elves, it should be noted, was incredibly beautiful. Near him, Angus was almost ugly. Is all elves so beautiful that even the most impoverished earth guy compared to them can be considered crippled? They are also strong not like people, but as titans. Dagda easily crushed the stairs to the railway, forgotten by some of the guards, while not borrowing about her spikes and not even noticing what he did.

      He would be the whole castle to crush with one fist. It’s well to have such an ally. With him no war is terrible. You just need to try so that he does not become an enemy again.

      Near Dagda, a green creature was expected, resembling a living tree. It held a bundle of pure gold keys. What are the gold resources of elves, if they don’t even have copper keys, but gold? How would you take all this at least partially?

      Angus himself could not understand where such a bad thought was from. He was never greedy. And to steal something from the elves is almost a suicide. They are hundreds of times stronger than people and immediately account for the thief. So what does he think about their wealth?!

      «Take something from them! At least try!» As if someone is a terrible, monstrous and planted in a distant underground cell, woke up and fiercely whispered in his ears. This someone, dark and terrible, oddly