The Evil King and His Mate

Chapter 5

Moira and Cairbre ride to the stand of trees where Cairbre likes to be alone. They dismount and let their horses wander. 

“So what is so important you couldn’t tell me around people?” 

“Well about a year ago I sailed across the Great Ocean and met with all the elven rulers of the world at King Alfhilds castle. The discussions were about human revolts and didn’t amount to much. After the other rulers had gone, King Alfhild asked if I would do him a favor. He asked if I would take all of the human kingdoms from their rulers and unite them under myself as king. I refused because I didn’t want to be a part of a human g******e. He then threatened my family. They are what I hold most dear in my life and I couldn’t let any harm come to them. So, after sailing back, I completed the task and he has sent me horrible decrees to force upon you ever since. I have only told the people I trust the most, which is very few. We are currently building a plan to overthrow him and put someone better in his place. It is going more slowly than I would like but the plan has to be perfect.” 

“You don’t actually expect me to believe this do you?” 

“Yes, actually I do. It is the complete and utter truth. This is not something I would joke about. Because of him I now have the death of many humans on my hands. I do not take that lightly.” Cairbre says solemnly. 

“If this is true, why are you telling me?” 

“Because I think you can help us. You are a strong fighter and a strong leader. Those are both good qualities and ones that I will need against King Alfhild.” 

“But I am a human.” 

“That gives you an even greater advantage. He will not expect anything that you do. He thinks that humans are weak and can’t stand against the elves, he won’t expect one to be his downfall.” 

And with that, they caught their horses and rode back to the castle. Cairbre was happy with how the conversation had gone, but Moira still had a lingering rage for the elves over here. She knew she had to help but had to get past that first.

* 

They meet with all of Cairbre's advisors that he has been working with to form the plan to overthrow the king. The advisors and Cairbre fill in Moira. 

The plan is to lure King Alfhild from the safety of his home and make him vulnerable. Cairbre is going to send Alfhild a message saying that he needs to discuss some things, that he is worried about a mole and doesn’t want to discuss them through written correspondence. He is dealing with the human revolts and can’t leave the continent to do it. Once the King has arrived he is going to make him feel as comfortable as possible. He is going to feed him good meals and place him in one of the best rooms in the castle. Once he is comfortable enough, Cairbre is going to initiate conversations with the king. Once they are alone he is going to kill the king. The plan is going to take a lot of resources and will require Cairbre to never drop his guard. Moira thought the plan was a good one but would take a lot of finessing. She was ready and willing to be a part of it. After the meeting, Cairbre and Moira went to eat lunch.

 After listening to the plan and learning about this elf king Moira’s anger towards the elves on this continent starts to lessen. Moira’s anger only grows for King Alfhild though.

 * 

As Moira’s anger started to grow less for Cairbre and his people, Cairbre started to feel weird things. Cairbre does not know that Moira’s anger is slowly fading, all he knows is that he would do anything to protect her. This thought jars him. Anything? Only a couple of days ago he was fighting against her for his life and now he would lay it down for her? These are strange feelings, but he brushes them off, there is a lot of work to be done. 

*

Cairbre wasn’t the only one feeling weird things with Moira’s change in feelings. She also started to feel protective of Cairbre. While she thought the plan to overthrow the king was a good one, she was also worried about Cairbre's safety. She had never felt this protective towards someone before and it made her feel funny. She just wanted to go and be with him.