the plush throw which covered the arms bristle and hiss softly. “Since your incident at the Air shrine back in December, when you woke the Shard of Air, the other Shards, six in all, one assumes, have…” She searched for the right word. “ … Quickened, I suppose. They want to be found, Robin. They want to be reunited and made whole once more. And in their own way, each of them, wherever they may be, are shining out like beacons. Prizes to be claimed, and powerful ones at that.”
“And the sudden training in the Tower of Water?” he prompted.
“Because Eris, my boy, is not the only one who has spies,” his aunt replied darkly. “I have my sources also, and of late they have revealed to me that Eris and her forces are searching for what may well be the last known resting place of the Shard of Water. I cannot stress enough that it would be disastrous should she succeed.” Irene sniffed a little. “And so I have been doing some detective work of my own. The servants of Eris are convinced that this Shard is held in the home of the Undine, a sacred place known as Hiernarbos. As your tutor has already told you, the Undine were fiercely against Eris in the war she waged. Their leader, the greatest of all the Undine, and master over all her kind, and over all lesser forms like nymphs and sirens, was named Tritea.”
“So Strife is looking for this Undine’s place? He found the Isle of Winds easy enough.”
“Not Mr Strife, no.” Irene shook her head. “At least, not directly I don’t think. He is engaged in the Netherworlde on other dark business as far as I know. Eris has sent other Grimms, and from what I gather, they have yet to pin down the location of Hiernarbos, though they are searching desperately for it. Undine are powerful, and their sanctuary, the last place in the Netherworlde where they are safe, is well hidden and closely guarded. What is important for you to know are the following facts.”
Irene spread her hands. “Tritea, first above all Undine, is dead. This we know for sure. So much else is lost to us from the chaos of the war. Many of the records were destroyed by Eris’ order. But I have managed to piece some information together. It is believed that Tritea, the Great Undine was in the closest counsel of Oberon and Titania, a trusted friend to the Lord and Lady of the Fae before their disappearance. Rumours abound that when the Arcania shattered, and its pieces were scattered, one Shard, the Shard of Water, was entrusted to Tritea herself, and that she protected it for the remainder of her life, short as that was, and took it with her to the grave.”
“But the Undine are Panthea aren’t they?” Robin asked, a little confused. “I know there were plenty of Panthea who were against the war, but do you really think Oberon and Titania would trust an actual Shard to one?”
Irene held up a finger, begging patience. “I have my reasons for believing so,” she said.
“How did this Tritea die?” Robin asked. Talk of the war which had torn apart the Netherworlde was rare at Erlking. His aunt usually encouraged him to focus on his studies instead. Robin secretly suspected that she avoided talking about it in an attempt to shield him from his own parents’ deaths.
If she was taking him into her confidence this way, it must be important.
“I don’t know how she died,” Irene admitted. “No one does.”
Robin frowned. “So, where is she buried then?”
“I don’t know.” Irene copied his frown with her arched brows. “No one does. You begin to see the pattern we face, my young ward.”
Robin sat back in his chair, thinking. “Well, I suppose it would make sense for her to have been buried at this hidden sanctuary, right? This Hiernarbos place?”
“Possibly,” his aunt conceded. “That is certainly what Eris and her Grimms seem to believe. But as I have said, wherever the sanctuary is, it is well guarded, from Fae as well as Panthea. Hiernarbos, and the valley in
“And the sudden training in the Tower of Water?” he prompted.
“Because Eris, my boy, is not the only one who has spies,” his aunt replied darkly. “I have my sources also, and of late they have revealed to me that Eris and her forces are searching for what may well be the last known resting place of the Shard of Water. I cannot stress enough that it would be disastrous should she succeed.” Irene sniffed a little. “And so I have been doing some detective work of my own. The servants of Eris are convinced that this Shard is held in the home of the Undine, a sacred place known as Hiernarbos. As your tutor has already told you, the Undine were fiercely against Eris in the war she waged. Their leader, the greatest of all the Undine, and master over all her kind, and over all lesser forms like nymphs and sirens, was named Tritea.”
“So Strife is looking for this Undine’s place? He found the Isle of Winds easy enough.”
“Not Mr Strife, no.” Irene shook her head. “At least, not directly I don’t think. He is engaged in the Netherworlde on other dark business as far as I know. Eris has sent other Grimms, and from what I gather, they have yet to pin down the location of Hiernarbos, though they are searching desperately for it. Undine are powerful, and their sanctuary, the last place in the Netherworlde where they are safe, is well hidden and closely guarded. What is important for you to know are the following facts.”
Irene spread her hands. “Tritea, first above all Undine, is dead. This we know for sure. So much else is lost to us from the chaos of the war. Many of the records were destroyed by Eris’ order. But I have managed to piece some information together. It is believed that Tritea, the Great Undine was in the closest counsel of Oberon and Titania, a trusted friend to the Lord and Lady of the Fae before their disappearance. Rumours abound that when the Arcania shattered, and its pieces were scattered, one Shard, the Shard of Water, was entrusted to Tritea herself, and that she protected it for the remainder of her life, short as that was, and took it with her to the grave.”
“But the Undine are Panthea aren’t they?” Robin asked, a little confused. “I know there were plenty of Panthea who were against the war, but do you really think Oberon and Titania would trust an actual Shard to one?”
Irene held up a finger, begging patience. “I have my reasons for believing so,” she said.
“How did this Tritea die?” Robin asked. Talk of the war which had torn apart the Netherworlde was rare at Erlking. His aunt usually encouraged him to focus on his studies instead. Robin secretly suspected that she avoided talking about it in an attempt to shield him from his own parents’ deaths.
If she was taking him into her confidence this way, it must be important.
“I don’t know how she died,” Irene admitted. “No one does.”
Robin frowned. “So, where is she buried then?”
“I don’t know.” Irene copied his frown with her arched brows. “No one does. You begin to see the pattern we face, my young ward.”
Robin sat back in his chair, thinking. “Well, I suppose it would make sense for her to have been buried at this hidden sanctuary, right? This Hiernarbos place?”
“Possibly,” his aunt conceded. “That is certainly what Eris and her Grimms seem to believe. But as I have said, wherever the sanctuary is, it is well guarded, from Fae as well as Panthea. Hiernarbos, and the valley in
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