History Of Fire: A Dark Faerie Tale Part 8

"Well, his manners are frequently lacking. I do apologize." Lorell motioned to a jug of water and several gla.s.ses. "Can I offer you refreshments?"

All three of us shook our heads.

"Very well." He slipped down onto an overstuffed, well-used chair and let his eyes roam over each one of us, studying our clothes and already judging. I could feel it. Oh, well. I'd done just the same a moment before.

"We seek information," Braelynn said.

"Do you have the crystal Larry told me about?"

I could tell he was trying to hide the fact that he was desperate to see the crystal. It sparked my curiosity, and I leaned forward as Braelynn brought it out of her purse and held it out in the palm of her hand.

Lorell's hands twitched, like he wanted to s.n.a.t.c.h the crystal away from her. Braelynn knew the deal and held it closer to her body.

"Where can we find Oran and his tribe?"

Lorell paled and slumped back onto his chair. His fingers intertwined, nervously rubbing his skin right off as he contemplated her question. "I can't tell you. Ask me something else."

"I can't give you the crystal, then. It's the only thing we want to know." Braelynn moved to return the crystal to her purse, making Lorell's eyes bug out in a panic.

"N-no! I mean. Please, I need that crystal back! Ferdinand wouldn't return it to me when I asked. You don't want to find Oran. He's not a reasonable man. He ... he's offended quite easily, I'm afraid." Lorell was almost in tears. I could feel his panic sweating out of his pores. The guy was losing his grip fast.

I s.h.i.+fted in my seat. I almost felt sorry for him. It was obvious Lorell wasn't the enemy here, anyone could see that. It made me wonder just how bad it would be to meet Oran. Something told me it wouldn't be pleasant at all and that we should heed Lorell's warnings. Still, this was exactly what I needed to find more Unseelie to complete my mission.

"We need something on Oran. That's how this trading thing goes. You can't expect something for nothing." I mumbled. My patience was running low. Enough of this run around. "So just tell us where he is already."

Lorell let out a long, lingering breath, looking helpless. I could see the fear carved in his face as he thought about how much this would cost him. I wanted to shake him and tell him that it didn't matter what he told us. We were the ones going to face the danger. We were the ones on this mission, not him, not anyone but us. Oran would never guess who gave us the Intel, it only mattered that we find him. Some things just need to be dealt with.

After what seemed like an eternity, Lorell straightened, and a calm, resolved expression fixed his features into a confident mask once more.

"Very well. Frankly, I'm surprised you don't already know. He's been lingering near the western border of Faerie," he said, staring right at me. "He's practically your neighbor, right in your back yard, young man."

"What?" My eyes widened, horrified at the implication. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Since you've been gone, he's moved his forces right next to your house in Portland, since it's quite secluded. Ideal to hide an army of Unseelie and banished."

I shook my head. "You're kidding, right?"

Lorell frowned, obviously upset that I didn't believe him. I didn't give a flying c.r.a.p if I'd offended him. "I'm afraid it's quite true."

"Have they been on our land? In my house ...?"

Lorell shook his head. "I don't believe so. Your mother placed several wards before her death to protect the land, correct?"

I nodded.

"Then you mustn't worry. They will remain intact as long as your family's core magic is still there." He paused, tilting his head curiously. "It's there, right?"

The Pyren. I hesitated, wondering if I should even disclose its location. What the h.e.l.l.

"Yes. Our Pyren is still there, protected with the strongest of wards. My mother made sure of it."

"Then I highly doubt Oran has been able to penetrate the wards. He probably settled just beyond them. Since you're not there, he has nothing to worry about."

I stood up, heading for the door.

"Where are you going?" Sary was at my side, hand on the door before I could yank it open.

"Where do you think? I have to get home. Shade has to know our family's magic is in danger. There is no way Oran is going to get near the Pyren."

"You can't go alone. It's too dangerous."

I laughed bitterly, letting out a long, frustrated breath. "Then what do you think I should do about it, since you think you know everything?"

Sary narrowed her eyes at me, angry at my snarky works and lack of respect. I didn't really care what she thought anymore. If Oran got through the wards and into our Pyren, our family would take a major magical hit, one we'd never recover from. He could steal our powers, use them against us. It was too dangerous to leave exposed with him nearby.

"Get your sister. You'll need help."

"I can deal with Oran."

"No, you can't. He has an army now. You'll never survive it." Sary's eyes filled with fear. Fear for me? I didn't think so.

"I can handle an army." Okay, so I was being delusional. Still, I needed out of this hotel.

"Be reasonable."

"I've told you what you wanted. Can I get the crystal now?" Lorell's voice broke through our argument, and we turned to find him on his feet, holding his hand out to Braelynn.

"Certainly. Thank you for the information." She dropped the crystal into his palm. Once in his possession, he clutched it like a precious cargo, tightly to his chest.

"I never thought I'd see it again."

"What the h.e.l.l does it do, anyway?" I muttered. My mood was soured, but that didn't mean my curiosity wasn't piqued.

He turned toward me, eyes burning with hatred. "It keeps the iron sickness at bay by creating illusions for its holder. It strengthens my glamour. That, and it can give the owner of it a wish. Any wish."

"Choose wisely." Braelynn's voice broke his insane rant, making him jerk his stunned glare back toward her. "It won't give you what you want. It never does exactly what you wish for, so do be careful." She walked toward us and nodded. "It's time to go."

Chapter Fourteen Night of Elves.

Night of Elves

September 18th, 1702 Today I witnessed a horrendous act. A child from the nearby village was murdered in cold blood. When I went to investigate, for I was in town trading for items we needed, I discovered the true reason for the attack.

I was told the girl was but in her fourth year and a vibrant, happy child. Her family had just come to the town after a long trip from an isolated area in the northern woods. They were accustomed to being alone for months in the wilderness. Since moving to this populated area, their daughter complained frequently of seeing monsters walking among the humans of the village.

The day of the murder, the girl had been agitated and was then grabbed by a stranger, who then proceed to twist the poor girl's neck violently. A nearby villager overheard the culprit screeching at the girl, saying she was forbidden to have "the sight" while spitting angry profanities before throwing her tiny body to the ground. The murderer vanished before anyone could give chase. The family is devastated, and my heart weeps for them.

My fear these two worlds cannot coexist, that of human and that of faery, without such incidents occurring, is not unfounded and frightens us so.

~Brendan I was ready to get back to Faerie and tell Shade what we had discovered. In fact, the press and noise of the evening crowd on Fremont Street was over-stimulating my senses and making my head hurt as I shoved through the thick of it. I could sense Sary and Braelynn behind me, so I didn't bother to check to see if they were following. My panicked rage blinded me as I zigzagged through the crowd, my temper near bursting. Nothing could relieve it, not until I made it back to Portland and made sure my family's Pyren was safe.

I came to a sudden stop as an eerie calm rushed over me, like a bubble had formed around my body. It was soothing, and it m.u.f.fled the harsh noise of the crowd as it wove around me, not quite touching me. I sighed, closing my eyes and enjoying the silence in my head, my rage all but gone. I was being tampered with, I knew it. I'd have to give my thanks to Braelynn later. But at the moment, it was what I needed, so I pushed down the anger as the stillness filled me up.

A hand on my shoulder pulled me back to the moment. I turned to find Sary peering at me with a sad concern in her eyes. "Ready to go?" she asked.

I nodded. She slipped her hand through mine and tugged me along until I followed behind her. Braelynn stayed close behind us, and we wove easily through the crowd.

A blast of audio from the Fremont Street Experience cracked through the magic, and Sary's hand slipped past mine and let go as the crowd thickened. I lost sight of her as the ma.s.s of people swallowed her up. Swinging around, I found Braelynn had disappeared into a swaying cl.u.s.ter.

The people were all looking up, watching the show now flas.h.i.+ng across the ma.s.sive arched screen above our heads. The crowd was tightly knit together, and I couldn't find either of my companions. I made my way through the throng but still couldn't find either one of the girls. Had they disappeared? How could they have left without me? The knot in my stomach told me this wasn't right. Something was going on, and we had been separated on purpose. I kept my eyes open as I slipped through the crowd, scanning the sea of unfamiliar faces. Families on vacation laughed and ahhed while others leaned against the walls of the casino entrances, puffing on cigarettes. Vendors appeared to quit their usual bustle while everyone was distracted. Scantily-dressed working girls s.h.i.+mmied their way through the crowd, pickpocketing unsuspecting tourists and stuffing their spoils down their s.h.i.+rts.

There was so much going on, I couldn't focus. It was like having a hundred TVs blaring in my face and ears all at once.

A movement of black caught my eye to the right. Was that Cornelius? I stopped and studied the crowd, searching for Braelynn's ex. It was impossible to find anyone there, and I decided to keep on going. There would be no finding Sary or Braelynn while sitting still.

Besides, it seemed he wanted me to follow him. If he wanted to confront me again, alone, he was doing a d.a.m.n good job. I felt for my Empyrean blade. It was secure and waiting for some action.

Another flash of black pa.s.sed in my peripheral vision, and I turned to find an alleyway between buildings. It was narrow and led back to a secluded parking lot for an Italian restaurant on my left. Quietly, I stepped into it, keeping my eyes peeled as I pulled out my sword. The crowd behind me paid no attention as it lit up and flickered with soft, orange-yellow flames. It felt good to hold its warm and familiar grip.

Something waited for me in the darkness. I watched the shadows as the last of the sunlight disappeared above me, over the rooftops and beyond the mountains. The stars were invisible due to the glare of the city's artificial light, and peering up at the unfamiliar, blank sky, I felt a sudden longing for the view of the stars from home. There, they shone brightly above the woods. The city was a completely different monster.

A noise brought me back to the darkened alleyway, and I concentrated on it. Nothing moved again, which made me believe it'd been just an alley cat or a rat. Still, I had a feeling I was being watched. The cold that emanated from the anonymous stare made the hair on my neck stand on end. I gripped the hilt of my sword in both hands, waiting for whatever would come my way. My knuckles turned white from the tension, and my heart began to race.

A whoosh of air slammed into me as a figure pounced from above, landing on the hot asphalt in front of me. I lost my footing for a moment, but I caught myself and found out just who'd been messing with me.

Cornelius stood firm, letting the faint light of a streetlamp pa.s.s over his features. He looked even paler than before, and his eyes s.h.i.+ned like stars surrounded by black holes.

"What do you want?" I called out, holding out the sword. I was going to make sure he wouldn't surprise me again.

Cornelius smirked, his dark elven eyes gleaming in the lights from the casinos behind me. They were all black but absorbed the twinkles of brightness like oil as he blinked amusingly at me.

"You dared to claim my chosen. I challenge you for her hand," he snarled. A flash of white teeth even brighter than his pale skin appeared, sharpened to points. Long locks of black hair hung over his eyes, and I could see his pointed ears sticking out from behind them. He was thin and not much taller than me. I wondered if he even had it in him to beat me. He could certainly try.

Another shadow approached, a slightly shorter version of Cornelius, but he had more meat on his bones. The younger night elf smiled maliciously at me, looking crazier than his partner.

"Ah, I would've brought a friend if I'd known this was a party." I twirled my sword in a circle, letting the flames spew ashes as the fire flared out to show them I meant business.

Cornelius pulled out his sword, one very similar to mine, but without flames. It had a silvery light curving down the blade in a slender river of glittery white power. I wondered what kind of blade it was, but didn't have much time to think about it before he was lunging at me, sword swinging.

I met his blade with mine, and sparks of magic flashed, blindingly bright in the darkness. We both swung again, and once more, our blades met. We continued this way for several seconds before his friend caught me on the side with a swift swipe to my legs. I crashed to the ground and rolled away as fast as I could, knowing they'd both be following me with their blades. Jumping onto my feet, I held my sword out as Cornelius again swung at me.

"What the h.e.l.l, man. I didn't claim her." I clenched my teeth together, shoving against his strength. For a lanky guy, he was a powerful foe.

"Liar!" Cornelius backed up to swing his sword down again. The sparks burst out in a circle, lighting fire to a garbage can nearby. I spun away from it and found myself facing his partner.

"What, are you his sidekick b.i.t.c.h or something?"

"Ralis volunteered to help take you down." Cornelius held back, obviously wanting to see how I handled his friend.

"Oh so, you're BFFs or something?" I couldn't help myself. Ralis growled, though he looked confused at my question.

"You're dead, human." The guy was really going to say that to me? Cliche, wasn't it?

I chuckled, catching my breath as I rolled back my shoulders. "Don't be so confident. Being human has its benefits." I reached into the pack strapped to my side. With a handy enchantment spell, it easily held a lot more than just clothes and weapons. I kept a nice supply of iron bolts and nails in it for rainy days. Summoning them, I grabbed a fistful and flung them at Ralis.

The night elf advanced, dodging most of them before several hit him straight on the chest, face, and hands. He screeched as the satisfying hiss of the iron burning his flesh made me smirk. I didn't have time to celebrate, for Cornelius decided to pick that moment to join in again with his sword. His. .h.i.ts were hard, and the sparks from our blades started burning my clothes as they landed on them. The ashes sizzled, and the smell of charred material made me sick. At least it wasn't smoking my arm hair.

"I told you. Whatever it is you think I did, you got it way wrong! She can see whomever she wants." I shoved at our interlocked swords, finding we were pretty well matched. I cursed under my breath while my muscles burned with tension and fatigue started to set in.

Ralis recovered and jumped onto my back, wrapping his meaty arms in a chokehold that made me drop my sword to frantically grasp at his arms. His weight pulled on my equilibrium and sent us flying backward against a wall.

I stepped forward and slammed him back into the bricks of the wall. My airway was cinched close, and the movement only made him tighten his grip. He didn't let me go. I could feel the blood rus.h.i.+ng to my face as I tried again to slam him back into the wall with even more force, but he still didn't let go.

"I don't care if you're not claiming her. I'm still going to kill you." Cornelius approached us, a venomous grin pasted on his face. I wanted to wipe it off with an iron bat and shatter those disgusting teeth. "I'm going to enjoy this, Benton."

How did he know my name?

He put his sword away and pulled out a smaller, s.h.i.+ny blade. Its intricate handle and embedded stones told me it was an eleven-made dagger, lacking any kind of iron. They were sharp and could kill with one stab in the right spot. I had to get out of Ralis's grip if this was going to go my way.

"Hey!"

Cornelius turned to look toward a voice ringing out from beside us. I took the moment to kick him back and shove Ralis against the wall one more time before I managed to whisper a summons for an iron dagger from my belt. It appeared in my fingers, and I jabbed it back toward Ralis's torso. His immediate release of my neck and subsequent screech as I stumbled forward told me I'd hit him right where I wanted to. Cornelius was back on his feet and flicking his eyes between me and whoever had interrupted our struggle. His eyes widened, his frown deepening as he stared at Ralis, who was still behind me and moaning.

"This isn't over," Cornelius snapped. He ran into the darkness of the shadows and disappeared.

I pivoted to grab Ralis before he could disappear, but I didn't have to do much. He was already on his knees, struggling to pull the dagger out of his side as it burned and melted into his flesh. His fingers sizzled, and he let go of the dagger in a futile attempt to yank it out. The pain overtook him, and he crumbled to the ground, his body convulsing while a foamy froth poured from his mouth.

"Hey! You left your friend!" I yelled out into the empty s.p.a.ce where Cornelius had disappeared. I cursed and peered back down at Ralis, now deathly still. "Some pal you got there." I reached down to yank the iron dagger out of his guts. I hoped he was dead. If not, I had to finish him off. Great.

A shuffle made me turn back around to find the girl who'd helped me out with her diversion. It was her, Miss Burgundy Redhead, the one who could see through our glamour. She had apparently followed us all the way from Chicago.

"What are you doing here?" I asked. She wrung her hands, and her mouth sat agape. She sputtered as she tried to speak, but nothing comes out of her pretty mouth. I had to admit that even in the dim light, she was beautiful. Her reddish brown hair reminded me of Sary's, but it was darker, thicker and not as long. Her skin wasn't as pale either, as though she had spent some time in the sun. Dark green hazel eyes revealed an undertone of brown, and they gleamed under the one lamp reflecting off them from the parking lot. I was so stunned by her sudden appearance that I didn't realize what was going on behind me until I watched her pretty face morph into utter horror.

"Look out ...!"

Luckily, I felt him coming, and I flipped the iron blade in my hand around to swing backward. I hit Ralis right in the chest, so close to the heart, I was sure I'd hit something vital. He stopped mid-swing with a dagger he must have pulled from a hidden spot on his person. His breath came out strained, hissing like an emptying balloon as his eyes rolled backward. His body toppled to the ground in a resounding thud while his black blood began to seep out of the wound in a spreading, oily slick.