Demon Hero: Dark Fae Hollow 1 (The Dark Fae Hollows), page 6
“I’m not sure you owe Talon anything,” I said, my eyes implicating the impending closure of the bar — Sol’s primary means of livelihood.
He nodded.
“You’re right. I’ve already paid a fair price in this social war. Others will be asked to pay even more. I assume you went off with them then?”
“I did. We had to run from the police. After you passed out, we had to take flight. We were nearly caught several times, but by some miracle, we managed to make it through.”
“You didn’t have much of a choice.”
“If I had stayed, I would have been implicated, captured, and arrested. Who knows where I would be right now. Probably Naturalized in a holding cell downtown.”
“Did you kill any police?”
“Not yet.”
“I wouldn’t be too eager. Right now, you’re an accessory. Take another step in that direction and you become defined as a public enemy.”
“I’m with you, but I don’t know where else to turn. I came over here to grab my things and try to disappear, but if I were being completely honest, I don’t know how I would go about doing that in the long term.”
“Any ideas?”
“Nothing fancier than basically living as a parasite until I can get far enough away that I might be able to forge a new identity. Maybe I can get my phenotype changed. If that’s possible, I might be able to adopt an entirely new human form.”
“I’d miss you.”
Such a blatant display of emotion from Sol caught me off guard. He had always expressed a firm form of affection for me. I saw it as a soft spot in his hardened heart, which I found endearing.
“You never told me how you knew.”
“Knew what?”
“That I was a Fae.”
“Well, have you figured out my big secret yet?”
I paused, trying to put the pieces together, but he shook his head and interrupted me before I had a chance to work through the details.
“I’m a wolf shifter. A Lycan.”
Fear came over me, and I took a step back. Suddenly, everything started lining up.
“When you and I traveled through the astral, that wasn’t something you picked up… that was you.”
“Well, there is a fair amount of debate on that in my own mind. I’m not entirely convinced the wolf is me exactly, but I appear to be sharing a body with him.”
I had heard of Lycans before, but they were not nearly as common as Fae. Truth be told, among the magical community, the Lycans were considered to be monsters and aberrations. Fae magic was innate. The difference between Fae magic and the magic of lycanthropy was that Fae magic was turned to the will of the user. For humans, it had a rough equivalent to intuition, or a well-developed kinesthetic ability. When we talked about Lycan magic, we were talking about a person who had literally been infected with a chaotic course of energy. Lycans were nature’s version of demonic possession. According to nature, they were not wrong, but they weren’t socialized. There are some shifters who utilized animal familiars to shift forms, but these were done at will and were generally more contained. Someone who was infected with lycanthropy was no better than a wild card at the best of times. At the worst, the only useful advice was to stay the hell away from them.
No wonder I felt a sudden wave of dread. I had been scared shitless when I met the interloper who took up partial residence inside of Sol’s psyche, and now I knew why.
“Have you always been like this?”
“It’s something I picked up from my military days. The whole group of us were special ops. The assault team had the opportunity to volunteer for a new medical breakthrough. They thought the results of their experiments would be a form of super soldier. The experiment was successful, but the program was unstable and eventually folded. A few of us in the program staged a rebellion and then went into hiding. We would have been found, but there was an assassination on a few of the key political powers at the time.”
“The coup?”
Sol nodded, stretching.
“You got it.”
I admired the natural way he held his body. Sol had always been muscular, but I hadn’t asked any questions. At least not before now. There hadn’t been much of a reason to share.
“I guess that explains why you always disappear three days a month.”
“I have to run in the wilds during that time of the month. I used to attempt to keep myself locked down in a warehouse, just outside of town. That got expensive. Once I broke out and nearly killed someone, I knew I had to modify my approach.”
“What are you going to do without the income from the bar?
“I’ve been up thinking about that all night. As of right now, I’m as good as closed. Nobody will come here now, either because they think Fae will attack them, or because they feel like they might incur the attention of radicals. I have enough savings to last for another couple of months. If I liquidate the business, then I should be able to manage to at least get clear of any debt.”
He sat down on the futon that he slept on most evenings.
“I’m pretty tied into this place, and I fear the problem is a lot bigger than just pushing forward into the future a couple of months. If I don’t find a long-term solution for my condition, I might as well be in your position.”
I couldn’t tell if it was a statement of fact or an insult. One glance at his face assured me there was no malice intended. All I saw was the face of a man who was tired and appeared to have run out of options.
“Maybe you can join up with Talon…”
The thought came to me out of desperation for a solution, more than actual seriousness. I wasn’t even certain I believed in Talon’s cause enough to fight on his side myself.
“You’re not there right now,” he said.
“Well, I might not be brave enough to do what needs to be done.”
“Don’t turn it into an issue of bravery. That type of rhetoric is binary. It’s not useful for anything besides setting up and perpetuating individual campaign agendas. If Talon were trying to recruit people, he might use that paradigm. If the military wants to recruit people, they also use that. Both sides have their own agendas and use the same tactics. Bravery is something that a person chooses in the moment; everything else is propaganda.”
“That may be true. But you are still ex-military. I’d wager there is a fighter inside you somewhere. Someone Talon might be interested in having on his side.”
“You can bet the military has forces that are even stronger than someone who has genes like mine.”
“They do. Humans with cybernetic implants. They create and augment an anti-magic field. Combine that with the Naturalization Program, and you’ve got pretty stiff odds for the Fae.”
“You know, I’m pretty torn about the whole thing. On one hand, what you and your race are going through is unconscionable, there’s no question about it. All throughout history, we have examples of why the actions of the few are no justification for prejudice against the many. People might benefit from realizing the benefits of Fae magic instead of persecuting it.”
“Oh? So now I’m supposed to service you people?”
“Don’t be like that,” he said, shaking his head and smiling at me. “It’s not that simple. The point is that everyone has different strengths, and yours happen to be supernatural compared to most human beings. Who knows what kind of benefits society might gain if we were to embrace the diversity of the Fae instead of fear them?”
“There are aspects of humanity that are beneficial as well. It’s just hard to keep that in perspective while the powers of the human government are trying as hard as they can to snuff out any hint of diversity.”
“In my case, I’m starting to think it might not be so bad,” he muttered.
“I don’t know what you mean…”
“You were born like that. To take away something inside of your DNA… to ‘Naturalize’ you, that is political eugenics at its worst. For someone like me, it might be a different story.”
“Sol, whatever changed inside you after that experiment made you what you are today. I’m not sure I see the difference.”
“I didn’t know the full extent of the genetic alteration,” he said, raising his voice. “They told me I would become a super soldier, and I would be doing my country a great service. They didn’t mention the very real threat of mental instability, or endangering those I love once every month.”
I was silent for a moment, wondering if it was possible to truly understand what someone in Sol’s position must feel like. I decided it was better to be brave.
“I didn’t ask to be Fae, Sol. We manage the cards we are dealt.”
He shook his head and smiled darkly.
“Would you trust me as a wolf?”
I couldn’t respond. He was right. When I had seen just a hint of him in that form, I had felt my life to be in danger.
“I’m just not willing to preclude the Naturalization process from viable solutions to my particular hand.”
It was a graceful conclusion.
“Clearly, you and I have a lot of decisions to make,” I said. “Besides that, I think the police will be here soon to clear up the place.”
Sol nodded and looked me in the eye.
“There’s something you have to see...”
Chapter 10
Sol pulled out a tablet from a small, contained cubby by the side of his mattress. I watched as his fingers tapped in the password and opened the screen. The first thing I saw was a picture of my own face.
“That’s from last night…” I said.
“You got lucky. Not everyone who gets their picture taken by a news outlet ends up on the front page.”
“How do you know?”
“It’s not just one site. The story has gone viral. There aren’t enough eyes to see it, apparently. The reporter obviously struck gold whether he knew it or not.”
“That fucker did more than he understood.”
“I’ll say. We can’t always understand the depths of our actions when we commit them.”
Sol handed me the tablet, and I looked at my face. I was incredibly angry in the picture. There was a seething sort of hatred existing just beneath my skin.
Fae Attacks Peaceable Humans at Sol’s Bar
I didn’t expect the title to be so blatantly misleading, but what was even more incredible was the fact that the photo was a set. I continued to swipe on the screen, moving from one photo to the next. They revealed me in my human form, as well as my Fae one. The photos showed me smashing a bottle of booze on the counter before setting everything on fire with my magic.
Of course, the photos and the article didn’t say anything about the fact that it was Faerie Fire, and therefore was non-physical and totally not threatening. The article didn’t have to say anything about that because the objective was not to accurately represent the information. The objective was a smear tactic. Regardless if the reporter had done this intentionally or not, the articles had managed to take care of the rest of that work for him.
The photos also included pictures of Talon’s crew, and Sol. All of us were painted as menaces to the public, and the three racist alcoholics who had started the whole thing were nothing more than helpless victims. I stared in wide-eyed dismay at the screen as I scanned through the contents of the story.
“How could they do something like this?”
“Don’t ask yourself questions you already know the answers to, Vee.”
He was right. There was no reason to believe that the news would ever report a story from the perspective of a sober and impartial observer. Everyone knew it was the inflammatory perspective that sold news copies. All one had to do to understand those basic mechanics was to pay attention to their own feelings while watching the news.
“I’m not even sure how to move forward from this…”
“I think you and I are in the same boat, except yours has a few more obvious holes in its hull.”
“Jeez. Thanks, Sol, you really know how to make a woman feel better.”
“You can keep the cynicism, doll. It doesn’t suit you.”
I handed back the tablet, then slouched down on the couch next to him.
“Comfy thing,” I muttered.
“The government has already issued a response concerning the story,” he said, and played a video on the tablet that showed an officious-looking man in the harsh light of evening cameras. “Footage from last night, after the police chase.”
I watched as the rhetoric spewed from the man’s mouth.
“To make this city as secure and wonderful as I know it can be, we need to act in serious response to the growing threat that faces our population. I’d like to take this moment to remind you that the behavior of a few radicals is not representative of the behavior of the masses. By and large, the Fae are simply mal-adaptive to our society. There is no longer any place for magic within our world. What’s more is that this is not the fault of any one person. It is, in fact, a sign of the times.
The footage that was captured earlier this evening is a symptom of a larger problem. An illness, if you will. That illness is the physical manifestation of the sick within our society. Instead of clashing and being afraid of this sickness, we should look on our Fae brothers and sisters with compassion. We should find a means of arriving at a mutually beneficial resolution. Something that each of us can feel good about.
Fortunately, we have managed to develop a cure. As many of you know, we have been working on a genetic Naturalization Program for those afflicted members of our society. Their differences no longer need to be a point of concern for anyone, especially not themselves.
I’d like to take a break for a moment and impart a special message to our Fae brethren. We know how hard it can be for you to find a place within our society. This initiative is designed as an olive branch of amnesty — offered from me to you on behalf of the millions of people who lead regular lives and would like you to join them.
The process is painless, and the benefits are real and lasting. I’m not bullshitting you when I say that we have found a cure.
That cure is something that will allow you and your families to walk around without hiding any longer. Without worrying about whether you will lose control and hurt someone. Without being afraid of the dark forces inside of your soul that seek to unhinge the very stability of your own existence.
This great solution, this panacea, will be offered to all members of our society exactly two days from this broadcast. We will be there in the streets. This is a war — do not make any mistake about it.
However, this is a war on the destabilizing elements within our society. My gift to you is the freedom from that form of genetic oppression.”
The screen cut to a graphic depiction of the Naturalization Process. A young girl subjected herself to a shot from a kindly looking female scientist. The shot went in painlessly, and then the young girl smiled while her body was basically exorcized from her Fae genetic anomalies. The ending of the graphic was a logo depicting the woman and the little girl hugging one another — no doubt thrilled they no longer had to deal with the little girl’s demonic inner spirit.
“Fucking garbage,” I spat.
“Maybe so, but I’m not sure what can be done about it at this point.”
“We can go to Talon. We can stop them. Disrupt the supply somehow, or figure out some way to turn that shit on them.”
“Didn’t take much for you to change your mind about the philosophy of violence.”
“Well, you expect me to sit by while these fuckers put out merciless shit like that? Imagine being a young girl and actually buying into the message that they are presenting.”
“Vee, I know.”
“You can’t just go around saying that people have innate demonic problems that need to be genetically relieved so that they can have the pleasure of not scaring the shit out of the normal populace.”
“Vee…”
He put his arm around me and brought me into his chest.
I started crying.
There was not much else for me to do in the moment. It wasn’t a conscious decision. It was simply an overwhelming lack of understanding of how things got to this point. Apart from the confusion regarding the evolution of this problem, I was also astounded and disheartened by the apparent resolution.
“It’s one thing to hear about it,” I said, “but it’s another entirely to see their propaganda. People are going to resist. The Fae are not going to go quietly.”
“Honestly, I think a lot of them might.”
I looked at Sol in disgust and confusion.
“You have to understand, Vee, not everybody has the same kind of recently liberated perspective. You might have been pissed off for a long time, but I know you. You’ve got some serious audacity. When was the last time you heard about some Fae smashing a bottle of liquor on the table in front of some raunchy bar types?”
I calmed down just a bit and shook my head.
“Then you get what I’m saying. You’re on the edge of the resistance, and I know for a fact there are others just like you who are incredibly pissed off. You have a right to be. What they are doing to your people is criminal. It’s genocide, Sol. Fucked up, highly efficient genocide with no apparent casualties.”
Sol nodded.
“Brilliant as far as evil plans go,” he said, “but I think you underestimate just how worn down your people are. It’s going to take something powerful to wake them up to the point of rebellion. If that happens, all I have to ask you to think about is last night. Do you think the casualties of rebellion are a preferable alternative?”
I got up from the couch and started pacing around the attic.
“Doesn’t fucking matter. I’m going to tell Talon. These people don’t deserve this.”
“Hate me if you like, but I still see this as an opportunity for me. You don’t know what it’s like to be terrified that you’re going to murder someone in your sleep.”
I paused and looked at him.
“That’s what it’s like, you know,” continued. “When I shift forms, it’s like entering the dream world. I lose track of where I’m at and what I’m doing. Everything else is a question mark. It’s been getting worse. It’s not just full moons anymore, Vee. It’s getting bigger inside of me, and it wants me to change more frequently. I can’t let it win. I’ve been living in this nightmare for twelve years now. I’m ready for it to stop.”
