The Pledge: An Origins Story: Fae of the Crystal Palace

By Kylie Fennell

***THE PLEDGE IS A SHORT STORY***

A Fae Ranger sent through a portal to Victorian England to stop an assassin faces an impossible choice: save her family or the Fae Realm in a battle between the light and darkness.

 

This origins story sets the scene for the Fae of the Crystal Palace – a gaslamp romantic fantasy (with a touch of mystery) series.

 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kylie Fennell
• Release date: Mar 1, 2023
• ISBN: 9780645405255

Book preview

The Pledge

THE PLEDGE

A FAE OF THE CRYSTAL PALACE ORIGINS STORY

KYLIE FENNELL

Lorikeet Ink

Published by Lorikeet Ink, Brisbane (Yuggera and Turrbal Country), Australia. The publisher acknowledges the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples – the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which we live and work.

www.lorikeetink.com

First published in Australia in 2023.

Kylie Fennell copyright © 2023

All rights reserved. The author asserts her moral rights in this work throughout the world without waiver. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted by any person or entity in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, scanning or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior written permission from the publisher, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events, organisations and incidents are either the products of the individual author’s imagination or, if real, used in a fictitious manner.

ISBN 978-0-6454052-5-5 (eBook)

A catalogue record for this book is available from the National Library of Australia.

Cover design Jo Edgar-Baker

Author photo by Marissa Powell

Ornamental break icon by Eucalyp via Flaticon.com

Fae of the Crystal Palace Series

The Charmed

The Entangled

The Kyprian Prophecy Series

Beginnings – An Origins Novella

The Earth King’s Heir – Book 0

The Firemaster’s Legacy – Book 1

The Water Catcher’s Rise – Book 2

The Air King’s Return – Book 3

The Ice Queen’s Revenge – Book 4

Anthologies Featuring Kylie Fennell

Lighthouse

Forbidden Doors

Stories of Survival

First Peoples Shared Stories

THE PLEDGE

KYLIE FENNELL

We are twins. Identical in all but one thing.

My sister was born to wield the power of the fairy glass pendant that adorns her neck. I was born to fear the moment it would find its way to my unguarded throat.

Idouble over, dry retching.

Rak pats my back. ‘I’m sure you’ll get used to it, Nyim.’

I’d scoff but bile fills my throat. This happens every time I travel through a fae portal. No one else is affected like this. I wonder, not for the first time, if I was never meant to be a Fae Ranger.

Rak scans Green Park. ‘An unknown fae has used magic to manipulate an Irishman, William Hamilton, to kill Queen Victoria. Apparently the Irish are disgruntled that the Queen hasn’t done more to help the famine-stricken country.’

A Fae Ranger’s job is to hunt and stop fae who have turned – those who serve the Dark Ones, whose primary goal is to cause chaos in the human realm.

We must stop the human assassin and capture the turned fae to face trial.

I force myself upright and take in my bell-shaped skirt and the corset constricting my chest. Thanks to the portal’s magic, our clothes have transformed into replica fashion of the day.

The fae materials are lighter and more manoeuvrable than the human versions, allowing a Ranger to move with reasonable ease, but it doesn’t stop me cursing the Fae Gods as I indicate to my skirt and layers of petticoats. ‘How am I supposed to run in this?’

Rak gives a lopsided grin and hands me a ray gun disguised as a Victorian pistol. Only effective against fae, one short depression of the trigger will stun a target. Holding the trigger longer will kill them.

‘Only use lethal means if absolutely necessary.’

I nod grimly.

I’ve only seen one fae killed before. The image of them crumbling into chalky