A Piper's Song: The Pied Piper Tales

by C. K. Johnson

  McKennan opened the front door and waited for Ben to leave. I watched out the window until Ben’s truck pulled away. McKennan made a gagging noise when I passed him, as if he couldn’t imagine anyone wanting to kiss his little sister. I punched him in the shoulder. My next date with Ben would be far, far from the house. I promise.

  When Malcolm hadn’t come back by the second week, I felt elated at the prospect of more Ben time. Yet, in the back of my mind, I had the distantly annoying reminder of what Malcolm had said. It couldn’t be much longer until I became a full piper, and with it would mean the return of my problems.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  Piper's Origin

  A FEW HOURS LATER, MY HEAD started killing me. I’d have preferred dying to the insufferable pain. I let out a strangled scream and sat up, but that only seemed to make it worse. What was happening? Why did it feel like someone had shoved all the songs in the universe into my small head? My head obviously wasn’t big enough to hold it.

  I grabbed the pipe beside my bed and held onto it tightly as tears streamed down my face. If I died, this pipe would come with me to my grave.

  I should call Malcolm back from wherever he had disappeared to. Maybe he could silence me; it would be preferable to this. Silence sounded blessed, peaceful. After minutes passed, each second slipping away slower than a June bug on a hot day, I decided I needed to call him. The breaking pain in my head wasn’t getting any better; it continued to escalate in intensity, getting worse with each breath I took. However, to call him, I would have to wake up McKennan and Kelly, and they were all the way down the hall. I sat up and whimpered, but this seemed to only aggravate my condition. I felt ridiculous doing it, but I had to crawl down the hall to their room.

  After I twisted the doorknob, I leaned against it so it would swing open. It took McKennan and Kelly a bit to realize what was going on because I wouldn’t say anything. I didn’t trust myself to not let the pain out and release what felt like Pandora’s Box. One of them called Malcolm, but he didn’t answer.

  I mentally cursed him up and down, calling him most of the names I could think of before the combinations just started sounding ridiculous. I lay quietly in McKennan’s lap as he rocked me back and forth, singing to me. For some reason, despite the storm breaking in my head, I could hear his voice and it grounded me.

  When we were young and McKennan had watched over us, he’d sing this song to me. No matter how bad the nightmare, how ugly the boogieman, or how badly I just needed the company, McKennan and his song were there. He probably sang it to Conner after the broken flute incident. The song spoke of comfort and now that I had become a full piper, I could feel the soothing power behind it.

  The pain peaked right before dawn and then started to drop off just as the first rays of light fell in through the window. I sagged against McKennan and tried to push away an irritating feeling that had started to grow with the pain, but unlike it, had not gone away.

  Something was left undone. It promised a sweetness and joy that called to me so alluringly that despite my exhaustion, I opened an eye. McKennan sat propped against the base of his bed, lightly sleeping, his mouth slightly open, gentle snores escaping. Kelly must have gone. I softly whistled for him, but got no reply. No need to wake McKennan; I already felt bad for last night.

  I hummed a gentle tune that spoke of lazy days and napping on the grass during the heat of the summer. I sang it so quietly, I wasn’t sure if it actually left my mouth. McKennan shifted and, with a slight grin, fell into a deeper sleep. I smiled, got up, and placed a soft kiss on his cheek before leaving the room.

  I should have changed out of my pajamas, but it would take too long. Besides, the overpowering song I heard in my head commanded me to leave. It had morphed into something too important to ignore and promised something wonderful, something safe. I almost left without shoes, but at the last minute, I looked down and saw McKennan’s large leatherwork boots, so I slipped them on. He wouldn’t mind anyway; he would sleep for a while yet.

  The air felt warm and humid on my skin as I exited the house, but it only vaguely registered against the song that drove me. Sweat started to form on my arms and forehead before I even reached the main road, but that didn’t seem important now. The longer I walked, the clearer my purpose seemed; if I could just get to my uncle, the world would be right again.

  I distantly heard a horn honking, but right then, it seemed trivial, like it couldn’t possibly pertain to me. Besides, if it didn’t take me to my desired destination, then I didn’t care.

  The next moment, someone grabbed my shoulders and shook me. I looked up to see Ben’s worried eyes. I patted his hand and tried to continue, but he didn’t let go.

  “Hey, Kyra, what’s up?” asked Ben. He looked me up and down. I nodded and tried to step past, but he blocked my way again. “Is something wrong? Do you realize you’re still in your pajamas?” he babbled at me. At least, it felt like babbling.

  I didn’t respond, just frowned and tried the other way, but he shifted again and before I knew it, he had picked me up and thrown me over his shoulder. He shoved me into his truck and drove at a breakneck speed back to my apartment.

  When I came in, Kelly was pacing back and forth. I didn’t see McKennan around and guessed he still lay sleeping in the back room.

  “What do you think you’re doing?” Kelly roared in part anger, part fear, as Ben carried me in.

  “She was on the side of the road, walking around like a zombie. When I tried to ask her what happened, she wouldn’t say anything,” he said as he set me down.

  Once I managed to stand on my own, Kelly started yelling at me. I gave him a few minutes, but as soon as I realized this wouldn’t lead me to where I wanted to go, I headed toward the door. Ben stood in front of it, blocking the way. “What is wrong with her?” he asked as he continued to shift from side to side, preventing me from exiting.

  “I don’t know. She was so sick last night, I went in search of Malcolm, but he hasn’t come back yet. When I got back, she’d gone and I haven’t been able to wake McKennan.” He breathed a sigh of relief as his phone rang. I could hear him speaking to Fischer.

  His words echoed loudly in my head. They sounded like exploding land mines, but the end result of them made me smile. Fischer told my brother to do as I desired and take me to my uncle.

  He would find Malcolm and let him know where we had gone, but I would not return to myself until the calling had completed and my uncle had me by his side. Part of me realized this was what a calling felt like. It rippled between half-dream, half-reality. I had fallen into sweet honey and as I slowly drifted down, I realized I had no desire to surface.

  Kelly thanked Ben and they both walked me to our truck. Ben offered to stay behind and catch McKennan up when he did wake. Kelly nodded and got in the truck.

  “Welcome home, ma cherie,” my uncle said as he opened the truck door and ran his hand gently down my cheek. I smiled and extended my hand for him to help me out. I felt good, light, and oh so happy. I giggled. From somewhere in my consciousness, another part of me stirred. You idiot! Can’t you see this is not you? What are you doing? You did exactly as he bid. I shoved her down and smiled at my uncle.

  “That is all, Kelly. You may go home now,” my uncle said, giving Kelly a slight dismissing wave before slipping his arm through mine.

  The small village spread out before me, a corner of the world time had passed by. Tiny cottages rolled out like rows of dominoes leading to a massive stone keep.

  Each step I took into the piper stronghold made my gut clench tighter. My stomach seemed to be the only thing my puppeteer wasn’t controlling. It sent out danger signals that did little more than make my smile falter for the few seconds my uncle’s gaze rested elsewhere.

  What I had taken as quaint cottages were little more than one-room shacks with warped wood and sagging doors. This is where my father grew up. Had it looked this derelict when he lived here? Had he been in one of the nicer houses closer to
the keep? Everything we had lived in over the years looked like four-star accommodations compared to this.

  To my side, a woman softly hummed a tune that matched the rhythm of her stick thumping against a threadbare rug. Puffs of dust rose up, caught on a breeze, and drifted off. As we drew near her, her eyes narrowed. She stopped her task, stepped back, and bowed her head. My uncle continued past her as if she weren’t there.

  Dusk set in, blurring the imperfections, and the call that bid me to please my uncle took over again. “Isn’t this just lovely,” I whispered in awe. “A town made up completely of pipers. How wonderful!”

  Shut up. This is not what you want. Wake up, wake up, wake up, the annoying part of me shouted from somewhere in the back of my mind. I tried to scream, to use my newfound power to break through this horrid call but all that came out was, “You shouldn’t say mean things about uncle. He only wants to protect us.”

  “Hmm, interesting. Can you hear me?” he said as he leaned down to look in my eyes.

  “Get away from me, pig,” I said, the words coming out before the subservient side could stop them. I blushed in embarrassment.

  “I didn’t mean to say that,” I said. Tears welled up in my eyes as I looked up at him.

  “No need to worry, little one. If you can understand, it’s best to just give into it. Who knows? In the end, you might find yourself enjoying this life,” he said as he patted my arm, and walked away. I paused, waiting. Without turning around, he said, “Come.” I bound forward joyfully to follow him, happy my Master had allowed me to stay in his presence.

  By nightfall, the voice in my head had become louder. It gained strength and started to break out bit by bit. I made a conscious effort not to speak for fear she could steal my words and twist them. My uncle didn’t seem bothered by my silence.

  “Henry, why don’t we show my niece one of the joys of living in a piper community,” my uncle said as he rapped his pipe against a piper who sat nearby. “Kyra sit,” he ordered pointing to a log beside a large fire pit.

  Henry flinched as the pipe hit skin. He released the notes before I even finished sitting. The air shivered when the first three notes hit the air filling it with the pungent smell of pine.

  Another piper jumped to his feet as my uncle approached and sang along with the eerie tune.

  In the forest dark and deep

  Lies a babe still asleep

  The song wrapped around me as the words nestled in. A babe lay before me, thick conifers hovered over him. I reached out to comfort him but my hands swiped through empty air. The land around him pulsed with a power that felt so very old, the beginning of time old. Maybe even before time.

  My uncle rested his hand on my shoulder and leaned in, “I doubt your father bothered to tell you the story of the first piper. Hear those words, In his rage the son released. A song that killed his father’s pleas, I used to hate it. I thought it meant we were doomed before we began. But I understand now.”

  The vision before us shifted as the young man fell to his knees next to his dead father. Maybe uncle was right. Maybe we were tainted.

  “We can choose. He could’ve chosen to die at that moment, but he chose to live. I had an experience that brought me to my knees and I chose to stand. Kyra, you think Malcolm is the right decision. But he’s not. You don’t know him the way I do,” he said. His hold dug into my mind with a searing pain.

  I wanted to blame my curiosity on the call, but the question that came out was mine. “What did he do?”

  “Let’s just say it’s his fault Avalyn died,” he said, releasing his hold and stepped back into the shadows.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  Reckoning

  THE PIPER’S SONG DREW TO A close and Harry began a lighter melody. It drifted up and told of breaking ice and coming spring. The air filled with the smell of rain and tulips.

  I sighed in awe. Another piper joined in and above the leaping flames, a wavy image appeared. The tulips I smelled now blossomed before my eyes. They bloomed and dropped their petals. One by one they blew away in the wind woven into the same illusion.

  I was so entranced with the scenes before me, I did not notice Malcolm’s car approach until it pulled right up onto the grass and stopped short of hitting Harry.

  The piper jumped out of the way and glared at the intruder, fingering his pipe.

  Malcolm stepped out, fury radiating around him. An avenging angel—finally.

  “You crossed a line, Magnus. She is bound to me,” he roared.

  “She is not your kin, Malcolm. Let her stay where she belongs,” he replied, his anger rising to the level of Malcolm’s. They were two lions fighting over their prize, the kill—me. I shivered, but was unable to step back.

  “Come here, ma cherie,” my uncle said, waving me toward him. This time, I felt the invisible string tighten, forcing me to do his bidding. I bound up to him happily, but inside, my anger blazed. The fire seemed to eat at his control over me. I was growing stronger.

  “She does not want to be here, Magnus. The only reason she is here is because of the dratted call you forced on her. Release her. Let her decide,” Malcolm growled as he stepped closer.

  “She does not know what she wants. She cannot truly know the danger she puts herself in by aligning with you. You are just a thief in the night—who stole the one person you held dear. Even then, you could not protect Avalyn. What makes you think you can protect Kyra?”

  Malcolm’s eyes narrowed, but that remained the only outward sign he had been stung.

  A cold smile spread across my uncle’s face and I took a step back, despite the call. “I’m not surprised you couldn’t protect Avalyn. You let her go wherever she pleased. Everyone knows who ran your household,” he scolded.

  “Magnus, she is dead. You loved her once; how could you talk about her like this? I warn you not to besmirch her any further or I cannot be held responsible for my actions.” Malcolm’s tone shifted to that of a Master Piper addressing an apprentice.

  My uncle’s grin spread wider. “If you had taught her how to behave correctly, she might have known how to beg properly at the end. She might even be alive today, minus, well, you know. I did care for her once.”

  As my uncle continued to speak, his true character burned through the haze of his call. I once again saw him for the bitter dreg of a man that he was.

  Malcolm took barb after barb. His attention never wavered. He was here for me. My heart broke free from the call while tightening with the pain Malcolm was experiencing for me. At that moment, I knew; I would truly walk to the end of the earth for my Master. He had shown me repeatedly that he was a decent man. The fates blessed me when he showed up for my call. I would do whatever I could to make up for the pain my uncle was now inflicting.

  Malcolm stood straighter. “Say what you will, Kyra is not yours to take. Again, I say I am her Master. Release your call or I will claim that a wrong has been committed by your clan,” he said calmly.

  “Your clan will not back you. You are the one who is in the wrong. Leave now and I will agree to forget this error of judgment,” my uncle said, grabbing my wrist. I yelped as the pain of his icy grip shot up my arm. I bared my teeth.

  “Now you have crossed a line and have hurt my apprentice. Release her now or I will lay so many claims against you, you’ll be lucky to escape having just lost your status as the Law,” Malcolm said. He beckoned me to come to him. I took a step toward him but skidded backward as the invisible cable tying me to Magnus resisted.

  Malcolm drew something from his belt. I could tell Magnus feared Malcolm would bring out his pipe, for he took his own with his free hand.

  “I repeat. For the third and last time. I have made a deal with her and a deal is a deal,” he said, a little louder so all around us could witness. Magnus shook his head and started lifting his pipe to his lips.

  Malcolm pulled out what he had been concealing behind his back and tossed it to me. I caught my beloved pipe and knew what to do.


  In a movement so swift I couldn’t believe I did it on my own, I started spinning the pipe with my fingers. Faster and faster it went as air blew through it, creating a hollow whistle. I made a slicing motion in front of me, then to my side, feeling it sever the strings that connected me to my uncle.

  He let go of my wrist in shock and stared as I performed an act that until a moment ago had been impossible. Now that my movements were unencumbered, I could spin the pipe faster. I finished shredding the last connection with ease.

  My emotions burst into flames once my uncle’s call waned. I was unable to suppress my anger. The monstrous power I normally kept at bay gained traction as the bindings ripped away from controlling my free will.

  Fury rode my thoughts, whipping me into a frenzy and reminding me he had made me beg to be near him. He had ordered me around like a dog. For this, he would not escape, not unscathed anyway. It was time to take him down a peg or two. If I was the only one smart enough, or possibly stupid enough, to do so, so be it.

  Stilling the pipe, I brought it to my lips, wanting to force the truth out of him. Wanting him to spill his secrets. I wanted to know what part he had taken in Avalyn’s death.

  The music burst out as I released a song that called for truth. It lay so heavily on the air that those nearby also started spouting secrets that must have been hidden on their tongues for years. My uncle, under direct attack, fell to his knees and bit his lip so hard, blood started to slide down his chin.

  I knelt down beside him and asked in a sweet, honeyed voice, “What part did you have in Avalyn’s consuming?”

  He shook his head back and forth as if doing so could stop the words from spilling out of his mouth. “I was not the leader; I swear it. I didn’t even witness what truly happened. I only came because they called for able-bodied men to come witness. They needed a fifth, one from each clan, and I only agreed because I wanted the power. It was the greatest I had ever felt, and even a piece of it was more than I could hope to have again. Who was I, a nobody, to question four other clan leaders? If they said it was so, it must be so.”