Not My Fae, page 2
part #8 of Vegas Fae Stories Series
Chapter 2
"About time," I said as Charlie reappeared a few minutes later. "You get her there safely?"
"Of course," he replied as he trotted up the steps.
"Anybody see you?" I asked.
"No. I told the Faerie that guards the tree to watch for outsiders," he replied. "Your friend did not leave until it was safe."
"Awesome. Come on then. Let's blow this popsicle stand before Gaea thinks of something else to dump on us."
"She has returned?" he asked as we headed out to the Jeep.
"Not exactly," I replied. "More like dropped a hint through the High Priestess, or at least I think it was a hint. It's getting hard to tell sometimes."
"What does she want of us now?"
"Something to do with the Knight," I replied as we cut through the grass. "We'll worry about it later. First, tell me what’s going on in Fae. How did you get permission to take Livia to the Neptune?"
"It is not just this world that has changed," he said as we reached the Willy's. I popped open the driver's door and he jumped in. "Your line does not exist here. Sylvana rules the realm from her vault beneath the ground, still bound to the temple chamber where she guards the entrance."
"Well, that sucks," I said, recalling how the Hamadryad Sylvana had been bound by magic to the roots of the trees that grew above the underground temple of Demeter. Sentenced by the Goddess to never see the sun. All so that she could protect the entrance to the temple from her enemies. I had freed her in my world but doubted I would be able to do the same in this one. "I don’t know how we can help her this time. What else has changed?"
"There is much movement between Fae and this realm," he replied. "Yet Fae seems darker somehow. They are much more warlike there. Sylvana does not trust many humans, nor most of the Fae that make their home on this plane. Although from your account they seem to dwell in peace here."
"Peace is a relative term. Let's just say they both need each other. But that sounds almost like a political statement to me," I said, starting up the Jeep and making my way toward Pecos Road. "So how'd you get her to agree to letting Livia cross over?"
"The High Priestess was not entirely correct," he replied. "Certain humans are allowed to use the trees. But only those few that are trusted friends to the Dryad. The rule is in place to prevent any of the humans or Fae in this realm from gaining an advantage over the Dryad. Once I convinced her that your Livia was no threat to her people and that I would accompany her, she consented."
"Seems almost a little too easy, doesn’t it?" I remarked. "I mean, considering how you just got here and all."
"You forget," he replied. "Gaea did not change me. I am still a descendant of the Fae hounds of Arcadia. Those that were given to the Goddess Artemis by Pan. Their descendants have a special status here. Sylvana recognizes this. The allegiance between our two realms stands, just as it does in our world."
"Lucky you," I replied, immediately regretting my words. "Sorry. I didn’t mean that quite the way it sounded. What I meant was that it was lucky that she didn’t change you. Which makes me wonder. Why didn't she?"
"That I cannot say," he said. "But perhaps it is because she did not intend to send me here."
"I remember her saying you were driving her crazy," I replied. "What did you do to get her to send you here? For that matter, how did you even know I was gone?"
"I felt the void when you left," he replied, pulling back. "I would have known if you had died, so that left only Gaea."
"So? What? You decided to chase her down to see what was up?"
"Of course. Did I not tell you I would always find you?" he replied. "But I admit it was difficult. Gaea was becoming quite angry with me."
"I imagine she was," I said, smiling at the thought of the big dog nipping at Gaea's heals. "How did you do that anyway? Wait, don't answer that. It doesn’t matter. You’re here, that's what's important. Not to mention that you one-upped her by getting her to send you here. Oh… one more thing. When I showed up, it was as the Robert from this world. Did you get any sign of him there? I mean, did she just switch our bodies, or is it something else?"
"Not that I was aware of," he replied. "I felt only the void when you were gone. I know nothing of another Robert."
"Damn!" I said, feeling disappointed. I'd hoped to learn something about what was going on back home, but it was not to be. "Okay, let's leave that on the back burner then. Nothing I can do about it anyway. We'll deal with what we can. Here, let me tell you what's been going on with me..."
I spent the next few minutes giving Charlie the nickel version of my conversation with Gaea before she sent me here, then tried to bring him up to speed on what I'd been doing the last few weeks, including my thoughts on what had happened tonight as well as my grandmother being a Demon Hunter. At the same time, I took a roundabout way on side roads to stay out of sight of the Feds. When I reached Owens and Rancho, I made the right and started heading back toward my grandmother's house. This late at night the road was clear and there were no signs of anyone looking for me, or at least none that I could see. I passed Craig Road and continued up to Ann, making the left toward my grandmother's house. Where the asphalt turned to dirt, Charlie suddenly raised his nose up into the air and began sniffing.
"Something approaches," he said, turning to look back.
"From what direction?" I said, glancing around before checking the mirrors. "I don’t see anything."
"Winged Demons," he replied, his nose in the air. "Several of them. They will be upon us soon."
"Of course they will," I said, pulling over to the side of the road.
"Wait…" he said, his head twisting as he followed something unseen through the roof of the Jeep. "They are not stopping."
"Not stopping?" I said, opening the driver's door and stepping out to scan the sky. I didn’t see or hear anything so I stuck my head back into the car. "Where'd they go?"
"I do not know," he said, moving to my side of the Jeep and lifting his muzzle. "The sounds are gone and they have moved downwind of us."
"That doesn’t make any sense," I said, sliding into the seat as Charlie backed up. "They had to see us. Who the hell else would they be looking for up here?" I leaned over and reached around him, grabbing the old style crank and rolling down his window before moving back and closing my door. "We're missing something. Keep your eyes peeled and nose in the air. Watch for an ambush." I reached into the back and grabbed my sword, laying it between the seats where I could get to it and then pulled my Walther from the leg holster I was wearing and stuck it in my belt next to the knife behind my back. I pulled the Willy's onto the dirt road and continued slowly up the hill. As I made the left onto the road toward my grandmother's property, Charlie spoke again.
"They are ahead of us. On the road," Charlie said as we made the turn.
"Damn! Okay. I guess they were looking for us after all." I sighed, seeing the three of them in the middle of the road not far from the mailbox next to my grandmother's property. I'd run into Rael's Demon, Paige, when we'd snatched the Knight. I thought I'd convinced her to let it lie. I guess I'd been wrong and I doubted Rael was going to give me a pass for letting her live. "They don’t look happy. But at least we have an advantage this time."
"What would that be?" he asked, looking over at me.
"You," I said, pulling over onto the side of the dirt road about five yards in front of them. I turned off the engine, leaving the headlights on as I pulled the big dog's head down into my lap. "Here's hoping she hasn’t seen you yet. All right, then. I want you to watch my back but stay out of sight until things go bad. You'll know when to jump in." I kicked open the driver's door and then pulled the same glass grenade out of my pocket I'd used to get my point across to Paige, holding it in front of him so he could see it. "If things really turn to shit and you see me throw this, get your ass away and take cover. I'm hoping with you here I won't have to use it, but if I do, I'd rather you not get caught in the maelstrom."
"Where did you get such a thing?" he asked, his eyes growing as he recognized what I held.
"From my grandmother's Demon hunting kit," I replied with a wink. I pocketed the grenade and grabbed my sword then stepped out of the Jeep and walked around to the front, stopping in front of the hood and glancing back. Not seeing Charlie through the windshield, I figured things were as good as they were gonna get so I twirled the sword in my hand and started walking toward them.
I knew very little about the Rael in this world and Robert's files had been unusually sparse, except to imply that she wasn't a fan of either the Department or the Fae. Which meant that my past dealings with Rael in my own universe meant nothing. I also had no idea if any part of the Fed's insistence that I not be involved came from her. Not to mention that me pointing a knife at one of her followers and threatening to blow us both up probably wasn't going to score any points in my favor. Then there was the issue of this secret meeting. That was obviously important to Gaea or she wouldn’t have let me get mixed up in it. Oh sure, if I was still a God none of that would matter. But as a human? Well, that's another issue entirely. Especially when I was about to go up against a Fallen Angel. I mean, I knew I couldn't win. The best I could do was force a draw. Now I just had to figure out how to do that without getting killed.
"Rael?" I said, my hand over my eyes as if I was trying to determine who they were. "That you?" Not that I didn’t already know. How many 15 foot tall Demons with that face could there be? Even when furled behind her back my headlights threw enough light to see the feathers on her wings that marked her as a Fallen Angel. They were black as night, unlike the rest of her, which was covered in small scales that sparkled with hues of brown, silver, and red all the way down from her horns to her cloven hooves. Her horns sprouted up from above her pointed ears, ringed and twisted upwards before pointing back behind her head. As for the other two… Well, even if I hadn’t already run into her, I recognized Paige and the other Demon at her side. Both were shorter versions of Rael, except for the wings. Theirs were leathery and lacked the feathers that marked the Fallen.
"I'm sorry. I guess I'm a little foggy tonight," I said, waiting for her reaction. "Was I supposed to know you were coming?" Something about where they stood tickled at the back of my brain so I played for time.
"Insolent human," she said, pulling her sword from her back. It burst into flames as she pointed it in my direction. "You dare face me with a weapon and mock me? I will kill you where you stand."
"Face you?" I said, looking down at the sword as if I just realized it was there. "You mean with this thing?" I flicked it downward, the blade burying itself into the dirt. "Come on, Rael. That's hardly a real weapon. Besides, why would I want to face off with you? Hell, I didn’t even know you were in town until I ran into Paige a little while ago."
"Do you deny invading my privacy and threatening one of my Demons with magic?" she asked.
"Invading your privacy?" I said, suddenly realizing what had bothered me. That gave me an idea. It could still get me killed, but it was enough to know that I held the advantage, and not just because of Charlie, although he was my ace in the hole. "I suppose you could look at it that way. But then again, that would mean the Department knew where you lived. Unfortunately, you neglected to let us know where that was so I can hardly be accused of an invasion of privacy, especially since the Feds never mentioned your involvement. But hey, that's what you get for moving into Demon town and bringing in outsiders when you decide to do business here. Had you trusted us; we could have given you a heads up when we discovered a problem in the area."
"I care not for hollow words from a Fae thrall," she replied, a look of disgust when she said the word Fae. "Those that hold your leash are well known to me. But your actions against my Demon have spoken against you. The penalty for such is..."
"Oh, please," I said, interrupting her. This Rael, unlike the one in my world, did not seem to be the negotiating type. So be it then. Time to speed things up a bit. I just hoped Charlie was everything I thought he was.
I pulled the glass grenade out of my pocket and held it up for her to see. "You can’t tell me you think I'd really have used this against her. Your Demon fears nothing, and if you must know, I think she was quite excited at the prospect of facing such powerful magic. My apologies for flirting with her. I was just trying to make a good impression. I'll try to be more careful in the future."
Rael didn’t flinch at the sight of the glass sphere but the flame brightened as she squeezed her sword.
"Your quarrel is not with me, Rael," I said, putting it back in my pocket. I was still hoping I wouldn’t have to use it, but at the same time, I was hoping it would give her pause. "I don't give a shit what you think of the Fae. I don’t answer to them. But this is my town. You have no one to blame but yourself when you forget that and put your trust in others to handle your business here."
"My quarrel is with anyone who interferes with my business," she said, her sword blazing again. "That is twice you have dared to threaten us with magic. It will not happen again. I do not care who you are or what you think you know. I have no time for foolish humans who involve themselves in things they do not understand. We are done here." She nodded to her right where Kimar stood. "Kill him."
I pulled my sword from the ground and rolled toward him, coming up on my knees and blocking his attack as his sword clashed with mine, sparks flying as the force of his swing drove me down into the dirt. Barely able to hold onto my sword, I spun to my side as he pulled back to strike again. Before he could do so, a dark blur collided with him and the Demon was suddenly launched backward into the air, landing behind the other two. Charlie had made his entrance. He placed himself between us and began to bark ferociously. By this time, Kimar had recovered. Looking pissed, he rushed toward me, only to have Rael's clawed hand reach out and stop him before he could continue his attack. She pushed the Demon back and stared at Charlie.
"You dare to stand with my enemy and challenge me?" she said, waving her burning sword. "Move aside, hound! You have no claim here."
I got back to my feet and shifted toward Charlie.
"Nor do you, Queen of darkness," he replied. "As this human has stated, he has done you no harm. Go now and I will forget this slight. Continue this course and you will be destroyed."
"You threaten me?" she said, sounding both surprised and annoyed at the same time. "You forget your place, mongrel."
"…and you forget yours," Charlie said, suddenly growing in size till he stood above my shoulders. He looked back briefly and I tried to get his attention but he ignored me. Instead, he lifted his head and howled before returning his gaze to her. "I am Karalos, Lord of Arcadia. Return to whatever dark hole you crawled out of and leave Robert be. Challenge me further and you declare war against my kind. The choice is yours."
There was a faint answer to Charlie's howl and his head swiveled in its direction. There was a scattering of dust in the desert across from my grandmother's property. A moment later, I heard the sound of animals scurrying as faint outlines began to appear in the desert on the other side of the road. One by one, their eyes began to glow.
"War!" she bellowed, glancing across at the desert before thrusting her sword into the ground as flames shot up around them. "Are you mad? You would threaten me with war over a…a… a human! The Fae of Arcadia once answered to the Gods. Since when do they align themselves with mere mortals?"
"This is no ordinary human, Rael," Charlie said, his head held high. "Chosen by Gaea herself, he has been named her Hero. That is enough for us. As to war, there are but three of you and you are not of our kind. Your loss is not one we will mourn."
"Gaea…" she replied, sounding almost in shock, then turned to both her compatriots and threw her head back and laughed. "Now you see for yourselves how addled the Fae truly are." She turned and looked at the big dog. "You claim Gaea supports this human yet he flaunts the use of magic that even the Fae condemn, or had you not noticed the weapon he carries?"
"Perhaps you should look within yourself, Rael," Charlie said. "I do not question the will of the Goddess. But it was not she that taught the humans such magic. Was it not the Watchers that taught men spells and enchantments? You have no one to blame but yourself for that which your own brought to the Earth."
"I have no time for this." She took several steps toward Charlie, stopping a few feet in front of him. "Your kind are lost in the past, Arcadian. Your bones will be long bleached before your precious Goddess returns. So be it. I will withdraw… for now. But mark my words, I will not be so inclined in the future, especially to any human involved. Interfere with us again and war will be the least of your concerns."
She walked back to her sword and plucked it from the ground, sheathing it behind her back before opening her wings and disappearing into the air. A moment later, the other two Demons followed suit. But before she left, I could have almost sworn that Paige winked at me.
As the sound of their wings faded, I heard a short bark from the desert and a coyote stepped up onto the side of the road. Bowing once to Charlie, it turned and the eyes behind it winked out as it faded into the desert. A moment later I spied a German Shepherd and a small white Poodle.
"A freaking poodle?" I said, shaking my head as the two dogs trotted down the road. "Dude, that was brilliant! Threatening a war, I mean. Where did you learn to bluff like that?"
"From you, where else?" he said, turning around to face me as he shrunk back to normal size. "But it would not have been necessary had you not goaded her so. The Demon would have killed you had I not intervened when I did."
"I wasn't too worried," I said, patting the big dog's back. "Don’t get me wrong. I was expecting you to jump in. That was all part of the plan. But trust me, I had it covered. Hey, about that growing in size thing. You never did that before. How'd you do that, anyway?"
