County Road 4 was an unpaved mess of gravel and potholes that rattled Raven's poor little Fiat like there was no tomorrow. The rare other cars on the road took it too fast, creating a washboard effect in their wake. Raven rumbled along at a sprightly sixty kilometres an hour. A massive dust cloud trailed in her wake.

The barn was a beacon on the hilltop, old but majestic and painted a pristine white. Raven kept her eyes open for the turn and nearly missed it, overgrown as it was. Trees hugged close on either side of the narrow road, verdant and stunning as the sunlight filtered through the leaves above. Shadows danced on the gravel. It went on for a ways with no interruptions but the odd driveway, before suddenly opening up on the left to reveal a sprawling graveyard behind an old picket fence with peeling white paint. Most graves were liberally coated in moss and lichen from what she could see. The gate was closed, but the lock was open, so Raven got out and opened it wide enough for her car to slip through.

There was an old brick building to her right, fitted with tiny windows and a heavy wooden door. She parked beside it and got out into the lovely fresh air. The heat was oppressive even in the shade of the building. Raven gazed around. Amethyst hadn't said where the circle would be located, as though it was obvious. Now that she was there, though, it wasn't. The graveyard sprawled on all sides and gave no indication of where she might find a ring of mushrooms.

Tools in hand, Raven shrugged and set off to the left, taking the trail that wound around gravesites, intending to follow it until it terminated or until she found the ring. Whichever happened first.

The graveyard was stunning and simultaneously somber. Birds twittered in the lush trees, leaves rustled on the wind. Gravel crunched under her sneakers. The graves varied in quality, from simple grave markers overgrown with grass and buttercups, to extravagant headstones with polished plaques that shone even through the overgrowth. It hadn't been long that the graveyard was out of use based on the quality of some of the headstones.

The trail wound around the perimeter of the graveyard with trails interspersed through the orderly sectors. Raven stuck to the perimeter at a leisurely stroll. She was in no hurry to get anywhere. It was her day off, after all, and that faerie ring wasn't going anywhere.

The trail wound further into the woods, the graveyard narrowing in size until she could see the other side of the trail from where she walked. A few minutes later, she spotted it. A wide circle of fly amanita over the most overgrown grave she had seen yet. The ring was perfect, even on all sides and evenly spaced between the mushrooms. Raven wandered over and crouched down to examine it closer. She saw nothing else out of the ordinary, though, and turned her attention to the headstone beside her. It was large and ancient in appearance, crumbling at the corners between patches of lichen. It was nearly impossible to make out the name on it, but she thought it said Marian Storms, and the dates were completely illegible.

Raven stood and opened her bag. It contained the essentials: lip balm, hair brush, pain killers, a travel pack of bandages, a lighter, and a smudge stick. Everything she could need during the day. Raven slung her bag to the ground with the lighter and smudge stick in hand. Amethyst hadn't been specific if she had to be in or out of the circle to do this, so she stood within it, using the gravestone as the twelve-o'clock marker. Heart in her throat, she began a purposeful walk counter-clockwise around the circle. It took only a few steps to take her back to the top of the circle. Then again, and again. She felt no different when she finished, and saw nothing out of the ordinary around her. Doubtful, Raven took a seat in the middle of the ring, brandished the smudge stick, then lit the end. The bundle was as thick around as an Oreo cookie and caught flame in seconds. She blew it out, watching the twigs smolder red at the tips as they burned down. The fragrance was outstanding. Raven leaned on her knees and held it with both hands, and waited.

Dead leaves danced on the breeze across the grass. Birds dipped overhead, casting Raven in brief shadows. The sun beat down on her and she could feel her shoulders beginning to burn around her tank top. How long should she wait? Amethyst had said, after all, that no one might show up at all. Plus, there was always the possibility that this was just a supreme joke. Would Amethyst do that? Set her up for failure just for a laugh? It wasn't out of the question. Fey were notoriously impish and it's not like she had much else to do, chained to a wall as she was. Perhaps this was just entertainment for her.

Time ticked onward as it is wont to do, and Raven still sat amid the ring of mushrooms. The smudge stick was only an inch long, burning precariously close to her fingers. As it started to burn, she placed it on the headstone behind her and rested her chin on her hand. She would give it another hour, and if nothing happened, she would pack up and go home.

The sun was low over the treetops when Raven resolved to head home. She had been through every inch of social media and had resorted to texting people she rarely talked with just for something to do. She was beyond bored.

At first she wasn't sure what she was hearing. A moment later it registered as the gentle clinking of metal. Raven sat up and glanced around, seeing nothing. Just tree after tree, headstone after headstone. Something glinted to her right and her head whipped around in time to spot the most stunning person she had ever seen emerging from the foliage. His skin was fair and flawless, pulled taut over sharp features. Long, icy blonde hair was half up, half down and trailing on the breeze. His disdainful eyes skimmed Raven up and down as he came to a halt.

"You are not what I was expecting," he stated bluntly.

His brilliant armour caught the sunlight and blinded her momentarily. Raven wanted to scoff but thought better of it. There was a sword at his hip she would rather not tangle with.

"Nor you," she managed. "Please, I need your help."

"I have no time for the likes of you." He turned on his heel and made to walk back into the woods.

"Wait! I'm trying to help your kind, please stop!"

"You know nothing of my kind." He trod on, faster than Raven was despite his gleaming armour.

"Please, Amethyst sent me, she said you might be able to help me free her."

Though he hesitated, he didn't fully stop. The forest was growing thick around them now and the sunlight was all but nonexistent. If not for his clattering, she might not have been able to see him.

"Tricks. They won't work on me."

Sputtering, Raven shouted, "Buttercup!"

Amethyst had given her the suggestion at the end of her shift the day before, knowing Raven's plan to visit on the weekend. This gave him pause. The faerie froze, then whipped around so fast he became a blur. Furious green eyes locked onto hers and seemed to glow in the gloom. His hand came up, caught Raven by the throat, and he backed her into the nearest tree. Knots and twigs stabbed at her back, and she tried to cry out, but it came out rather strangled.

"Where did you learn that?" he shouted in her face.

Raven tried to respond, but couldn't, so he relaxed his grip somewhat. "I told you, Amethyst sent me."

"Amethyst has been missing for more than a decade, I don't believe you."

"She has long black hair and eyes, violet wings, strong muscles-"

"Enough." The fey shook his head, hope glimmering dim in his eyes when he met her gaze once more. "What have you done with her?"

"Me? Nothing, it's a long story. Can you please let me go so we can talk about this?"

Glowering, he finally released his grip, and Raven sucked in a greedy breath. One hand hovered over the pommel of his sword, but he backed up a couple of steps. Raven sighed.

"Tell me what you know," he demanded.

He was clearly used to getting what he wanted. Raven wanted to scoff and leave, but knew better. He was her only hope of rescuing the prisoners she was in charge of healing. 

"I work for a company called Nevison Corp. They run a research facility in the city. I'm a nurse there. I was just promoted to the lower levels a month ago and found out they're holding fey captive there. Amethyst is one of them. There are hundreds, thousands maybe. I have no idea how large the facility actually is, they only let me as low as level three.

"The scientists there are running experiments on your people. I'm in charge of keeping them alive. I hate it. I hate every second of it. No one should be treated this way. I need your help, please, to set them free. Amethyst thinks you can help."

For a long time, he only stared. "And it took you this long to decide to help?"

"No, I decided in the first hour. It's been hard to find time alone to talk with anyone. Amethyst's researchers left me alone with her the other day for the first time, and we made this plan."

He scowled. "It's not much of a plan, what do you expect me to do?"

Raven's heart sank. "I'm not sure, really. Amethyst put all her eggs in your basket."

He sighed. "Tell me about the facility."

And so she did. Raven described the way the fey were held captive, right down to the fleece-lined iron cuffs that burned the skin if the fey struggled too hard to get free. She described the heavy iron doors, the iron door frames, the square layout of the hallways, the elevator and security system. She told him absolutely everything she could think of that might help them form a better plan for freedom.

At the end of it, his face was ashen, his guard lower. He palmed the pommel but his grip was relaxed. Raven held her breath as he pondered.

"I'm not sure what we can do, really, but there is one thing we can try. I can't bear to call the army to action only for us all to be captured and held prisoner. We need to know their security can be penetrated. I have an idea, but you're going to have to take a huge risk."

"Anything." And she meant it. She would do anything to get Amethyst, and everyone else, out of there.

He seemed to have heard what he was hoping to. Nimble fingers worked at the clasp holding his scabbard to his waist. He passed the sword over to her with a measure of reservation apparent in his eyes.

"Take this. Have you ever heard of mythril before?"—Raven shook her head—"It is a magical metal mined from Mount Nayru in the Winter Court. As far as I understand, it is undetectable by standard means. You should have no issue bringing this into the facility. Beyond that, it is the hardest metal we know of. You should be able to cut her binds and set her free."

"That's a lot of 'should be'-s."

"It is the only hope there is."

Raven nodded, tucking the short sword under her arm. "I understand. I'll do my best to get her out of there."

He nodded, then paused. "I suppose I should ask your name."

He didn't, but she told him anyway. "I'm Raven."

"Well, Raven, if Amethyst trusts you enough to guide you here, then you are the only hope for my people. Set her free."

He turned to leave, but Raven stopped him. "What do I call you?"

He glanced over his shoulder, eye bright. "You may call me Ilya."

The gloom quickly swallowed his figure, and Raven didn't make a move to follow him this time. The sword was heavy under her arm. She brought it before her and slid the blade partway out of the scabbard. Brilliant mythril glittered in the dim lighting. The edge appeared so sharp it would split her skin at the slightest touch. Raven sheathed it once more and made for the small path they had cut through the brush.

The sky was pink as she emerged into the graveyard once more. A small pile of ash rested atop the headstone she had placed the smudge stick on. Raven grabbed her lighter out of the ring and headed for the trail back to her car. The graveyard was much eerier cast in shadow as it was.

It would be a long drive home, but she had purpose now. The sword sat in her passenger seat just begging to be put to use. Monday couldn't come soon enough. Raven just couldn't wait to tell Amethyst her plan.