“I will not let her manipulate me!” Bronwyn hissed to herself as she followed the little fairy guiding her back to the throne room. “I will not be emotional!” She felt very clear-headed today, and when she thought about the events that had transpired yesterday following her touching Hops’s little crystal coin, it all seemed like a blurry dream. She could remember what the Queen had said to her, but it didn’t feel like it could have really happened the way she remembered. Still, here she was, on her way back to speak to the mystical fairy Queen. She followed the little flitting, sparkling fairy, a different one from yesterday, through the hallways carpeted in soft bark and grass and through chambers with gardens and flowing streams until she saw the tall, elf-like guards and realized the fairy had brought her to the front doors of the throne room.

The guards didn’t even look at her, and the doors were already slightly open, so Bronwyn followed the fairy through the tall, narrow opening and into the big pillar-lined hall again. She zeroed in on the Queen, sitting on her flower-covered throne, and started marching toward her, all the while admonishing herself to keep it together. As she drew near, she felt the Queen’s aura again and the warmth and happiness that came with it. She felt her stress and worries start to drift away, and she said, perhaps a bit too loudly, “Can you please stop that?” The rush of positivity wavered and then pulled back a little as the Queen leaned forward to speak.

“I’m sorry, child. I’ve reined in my aura now; is that better?” It was better, but it was still there. Perhaps it was the best Bronwyn could hope for. At least, she felt like she could speak her mind.

“I’m not trying to be rude, but I want to be able to think about things without breaking into tears, okay?”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way. As you grow more accustomed to my presence and as your own power grows, my aura will affect you less and less. Unless I want it to, that is.” A slight smile touched the Queen’s lips. “Have you considered my proposal?”

“I have, and I’d like to talk with you a bit more before making up my mind.”

“Of course; I have some time. What can I say to assuage your doubts?”

“Is there any way you can make me believe that you won’t lie to me?”

“Well, I can make you believe almost anything. The fact that I don’t want to do so should give you some comfort and confidence in my words. I can also tell you that the Fae don’t lie. We often withhold the truth or give half-answers, but we do not lie.”

“Is that true? What about Hops? He pretended to be a little squirrel turtle; isn’t that sort of a lie? If I knew he was a Fae man, I wouldn’t have taken a bath with him!”

“You make a good point, Bronwyn. Fae have some leeway involved with the truth in indirect circumstances. Coraignon didn’t lie to you; he simply never showed you his true self. Had you somehow asked him if he were hiding his true form, he would have told you the truth or simply not answered.”

“So if I ask you a direct question, you won’t lie to me?”

“That’s right.”

“Are you trying to trick me somehow?” The Queen’s face remained impassive, and she didn’t hesitate for even a second.

“No.”

“Is it in my best interest to accept your offer?”

“I can’t answer that, but not because I want to lie to you; I don’t know the answer. I think what I have to offer you is to your benefit. I think you’ll thrive working with the Summer Court, but even someone as old as I am cannot see the future. Well, aside from glimpses that I don’t necessarily ask for.”

“Are you at war with the Winter Court? Will I be in danger from them?”

“Yes, I suppose our relationship could be described as a war. To me, it’s more of a constant struggle, but it can and has escalated to violence many times. You certainly will become a target for their agents should you don the mantle of the Summer Court. Do you have more questions?”

“Yes, thank you for answering so many. Can you tell me how Energy was taken away from Earth?”

“I will give you a very brief primer on what is a story that could fill a hundred volumes: The Summer Court works to foster the spread of Energy, and we grow stronger, indirectly, through the people and creatures that thrive in Energy-rich worlds. The Winter Court tries to grow their power by taking the Energy directly, stealing it away from other lands, and siphoning it into their Winter Realms. We battled for tens of thousands of years on Earth, and the Winter Court won.” Some sadness slipped through into the Queen’s aura before she caught it, and Bronwyn felt an icy grip on her heart and nearly sobbed aloud. It was gone in a second, but not before Bronwyn sensed the depth of the Queen’s sorrow at the losses she suffered on Earth. Bronwyn wanted to help her. She wanted to crawl up on that dais, wrap her arms around the Queen, and swear that she’d do anything to help make things right. She even took a small step forward but shook her head and cleared her throat.

“Are you doing that on purpose? Influencing me with emotions?”

“No, Bronwyn, that was my mistake again. I’ve not dealt with Humans in a long while, and I forget how deeply you feel. Fae are different; we have feelings, but they are things we can look at and contemplate. They don’t rule us.”

“If I become one of your agents, will I still be able to help my people? Will I have free will?”

“You’ll most definitely be able to help your people! That’s what I want for you! I want humanity to thrive on Fanwath because you’re some of my favorite children and your gifts with Energy are nearly unrivaled among the younger races. I cannot properly explain my joy when I sensed you all on Fanwath. As for your free will: yes, you’ll have autonomy, save for when I have given you an explicit task; you will feel pressure to complete missions for me. I promise you, though, and Bronwyn, I do not break promises, that I will never ask you to do something that causes your heart grief, and I will listen to your requests and always consider your well-being.”

“I have one more question. If I agree to be your agent, will I ever be allowed to change my mind?” Bronwyn studied the Queen’s face as she asked her question, but the impossibly perfect visage gave nothing away.

“You will be able to remove the mantle of the Summer Court, but all that you’ve gained in my service will be taken from you.”

“When you say ‘mantle,’ are you speaking figuratively, or is there something I’ll actually be wearing?” The Queen’s lips spread into a genuine smile for the second time.

“I’m being figurative, child.”

“Alright. I’m in. I like how I feel when I’m here, and I like that you want to see my people prosper. What do I need to do?” The Queen stood up, her smile broadening, and she stepped down to stand in front of Bronwyn. She was imposingly tall, and the aura of power emanating from her made Bronwyn feel like she was standing next to a nuclear reactor.

“First, you must accept my mark, and then you must face the Trial of Summer, where your will and character will be tested.” She reached forward and rested her right palm on top of Bronwyn’s chest, over her heart. “Are you certain?” Bronwyn nodded, nervously biting her bottom lip. “Brace yourself, child.” Bronwyn stiffened and stood up straight, pulling her shoulders back. She felt warmth radiate out of the Queen’s hand; at first, it was pleasant and even comforted Bronwyn, then it grew hotter, and she felt it spear through her like a knife. She gasped but stood still, and the pain was gone as quickly as it started.

***Congratulations! You have earned the title “Agent of Summer” this is a transient title. You have the favor of the Summer Queen and access to areas of the Summer Realms where outsiders are forbidden.***

The Queen hissed and stepped back, “Infernal System! Even here, it puts information in your head. It rides you like a parasite, leeching some Energy from everything you do. I’d help you be rid of it, but I think we can learn from your connection to it, at least for now.”

“Before the System, would I have known what you just did to me?”

“No, but I would have explained it. My mark,” she pulled the collar of Bronwyn’s shirt down enough to expose the flesh over her left breast. She gestured to a mark, something like a tattoo, depicting a glittering silver circle adorned with lifelike yellow and white flowers, “will give you access to areas of the Realms that are forbidden to the non-Fae. It also serves as proof of my favor should the denizens within the Realms challenge you.”

“Okay,” Bronwyn looked at the mark, admiring how the silvery ring seemed to move in a circle on her flesh and how the flowers looked so real that she almost thought she could pluck one. She reluctantly pulled her collar up and fastened the button that had come loose.

“Now, are you ready to face the Summer Trial? I know the System helped you form a Core, but I think you might find something greater if you make your way through.”

“What do I need to do?”

“You’ll need to earn three blessings and then make your way to one of the Summer sources. I can’t tell you more, child. I’m sorry.” Bronwyn just nodded, and the Queen turned and held out a hand; a brilliant oval of light appeared in the air, and through it, Bronwyn could see a sunny glade. “Step through, child of Summer.” Unable to think of anything else she should say, Bronwyn straightened her back and stepped through the shimmering opening. Her foot landed on soft grass, and when she set down her other foot, the portal was gone.

The glade was bright and surrounded by young, skinny trees with yellow and gray speckled bark. A small hill rose on the far side, and a lightning-struck tree stood there, still tall and mightly looking but split with a dark, black opening at its center. Something urged Bronwyn to approach the tree and examine the hollow.

She trudged up the slight slope, realizing as she went that it was further than her eyes had led her to believe. By the time she’d come to the crest, the tree had grown in her perspective to a true giant, a fallen patriarch of the forest. Whatever mighty lightning strike that had torn the trunk in two had blackened the edges and opened the earth, creating a tunnel that descended into the loamy soil. Bronwyn knew she was expected to go within, so she took out her old light stone and hung the chain over her neck, activating it so that a pool of white-yellow light moved with her into the darkness.

It smelled like bark, charcoal, and damp soil, and the ground was soft and springy under her feet. The tunnel had a gentle slope, but it meandered from side to side so that she wasn’t ever able to see more than a few feet ahead of her. Just as it started to widen, and Bronwyn saw a junction up ahead, she began to hear something that reminded her of when she used to lay in her bed on a Saturday morning and the apartment maintenance crew would cut the grass and trim the hedges. It was a buzzing, droning sound, but it seemed to be getting louder. She moved to the intersection of tunnels, and the sound grew in volume and intensity. Not knowing what to expect, Bronwyn cast her Stone Warding spell, covering her arms in a thin layer of protective stone, and holding them in front of her while she slowly turned around, looking for what was creating the racket.

The buzzing and humming grew to such an intensity that the ground began to vibrate and loose dirt and pebbles fell from the ceiling. Bronwyn was starting to think about turning and running out of the tunnel when a horde of crawling and flying insects surged around the bend to her left and were upon her. They were larger than any insects she’d ever seen, from ants the size of rats to flying bees that looked like small dogs. She cried out in alarm, using her Stone Fists to strike out at the swarm, but they were innumerable, and the few that she smashed were replaced by ten others.

She pushed her Energy into her Stone Warding, trying to cover her entire body, and she managed to avoid their stings and bites for a while. Still, no matter how she struggled and surged, pushing and jumping, she couldn’t get out of the swarm and, eventually, her Energy ran so low that she couldn’t maintain her armor, and the stings started to land on her flesh. She cried out as the burning toxins from the bee-like flying creatures coursed into her veins, and she veritably vibrated with pain as the crawling, ant-like bugs began to bite her legs and then crawled upon their companions to lay into her back and arms.

Bronwyn writhed under the vibrating, poking, buzzing, biting, crawling, stinging swarm, trying to scream in agony but unable to find her voice. When the pain started to fade, and her body felt numb, she thought she had died. She lay there for a while, her face in the bark dust, moss, and dirt at the bottom of the tunnel. Then she realized the buzzing was gone; it was silent. Was she dead? She still couldn’t move, but she thought she could feel herself breathing when she concentrated.

It felt like an eternity later when she felt a tingling itch at the tip of her left pinky. Ever so slowly, the tingling and itching sensation started up on her other extremities and spread through her limbs. When Bronwyn could turn her head and open her eyes, she found herself lying in the tunnel, completely alone and covered with swollen, itchy bites and stings. When she was finally able to scoot herself up onto her butt and lean against the wall, a System message appeared in her vision:

***Congratulations! You’ve earned the feat “Blessing of the Swarm.” You are now far more resistant to natural toxins.***