by Jen Weddle
Chapter 23
This city was built for all those creatures that weren't wanted in the mortal world or the flawless world of the Fae and the Elves. Werewolves care a lot less about appearances and morals than the Fae and the Elves, we're all for equality. This is what I call home, although I’ve always had the slightest urge to see the human world—but it is and always will be forbidden for me.
This city was built as a safe haven for all the undesirable things in the worlds. We have warlocks, witches, trolls, zombies, dwarves, vampires, ghouls, goblins, ghosts and anything else that was classified as Unwanted by the Others.
I move past the restaurants, the bars, the shops—all owned by the creatures of the night. I look up at the sign that I’ve been looking for. It reads:
Trolley's Trinkets and Treasures
This is what I’d been looking for, a way to make Alison love me. I’d do anything to make that happen: Anything.
I open the purple triangle-shaped door and the tiny bell rings in my ear. A fat troll with large pointed ears, a pointy chin, purple skin, bloated eyes and a crooked nose looks up from a book with an alert expression. He scoots his glasses forward so that he can see me clearly.
“Prince Riley!” He shouts with glee and strolls towards me in a welcoming gesture.
“I wondered what had happened to you. Have you found the girl then?”
“Yes, I found her. How are you Trolley? How's business?” I inquire.
“Wonderful! Everyone loves gold pieces and shiny objects and magical potions to get you anything you could ever desire. Business is booming. What can I help you with today?” he asks in a serious tone. “Would you like a love potion, a Harpknick or perhaps a floating broomstick—the newest line just came in?”
He holds up a golden broomstick with silver, wispy strings that move when he places his hand on them. The golden broom whisks around the shop and stops in front of him, standing up on its own.
“Impressive.” I reply. “But do you still have the ring I requested?”
“Oh, the ring? I’ve had to keep it hidden, but I still have it.” He yells, racing toward the farthest corner of the store. He begins digging through one of the many treasure chests that line his store, flinging unimportant trinkets behind him. He walks over and opens his hand to reveal the tiny ring that I had requested. I take it from his hand and hold it closely to my face: a platinum ring, double-sided and sparkling with an enormous purple stone in the middle and tiny iridescent ones surrounding it.
“Perfect.” I breathe in.
“Will this be going on the tab?” he probes.
“No. I’ll pay in gold today. I can’t have anyone knowing about this purchase. You must keep it a secret.” I reply. “I’ll pay a little extra for that to happen.”
I wink at the troll knowing his weakness for bribery. He sighs and nods his head in agreement.
“That will be 100 Liefs.” He replies, eyeing the ring thoughtfully. If there’s one thing that Trolls hate, it’s parting with their shiny trinkets. But their love for money far surpasses their love for jewels.
I pull out two golden coins with my great-grandfather’s face embedded on them. A constant reminder of what I am—on one side is his man form but on the other is the growling beast that we can become. They each have the number 50 embossed around the circles. I smile at Trolley as he gingerly puts the ring in a beautiful white box and ties it with a purple bow.
“Thanks again.” I reply, tucking the box into my coat pocket.
“It’s always a pleasure, my dear Prince.” He replies, grinning and revealing his rotted teeth.
“Remember. That ring can cause catastrophic problems if it gets in the wrong hands… Eternity gems are rare for a reason and the Elders all but forbade us to have them so if anyone finds out you have one, we’re both in big trouble.”
“I know.” I reply turning and giving Trolley a wave goodbye, as I exit the shop with the clang of bells ringing in the distance.
A horse neighs nearby. It’s my horse so Alison and the others must have made it to the castle safely. My horse stares angrily at me as I reach into my pocket to pull out a few sugar cubes. He’s a very stubborn creature. He refuses to let anyone ride him without a treat. I walk up to him and pat him softly on his head, giving him some sugar cubes in the meantime.
I jump on his back and lean into his mane, whispering our favorite word.
“Fly.”
He releases his huge, majestic wings and I stroke the silky feathers as we float upwards. The wind starts to rush around us and I hold on tightly to the reigns. My horse is allowed complete control when we’re flying. I look down at the city—it’s dark and gloomy but the people that dwell in it are the opposite. They may be considered monsters to some and to the Others but to me they’re friends and neighbors and my people.
They’re lovely during the day, but when the sun sets, it’s a different story. If you aren’t one of them, you should consider leaving Elacia quickly. Or there’s bound to be trouble, and I wouldn’t want to be around to see it.
We soar up higher and higher, as high as the mountains and cliffs that guard and surround the city. I can see my home, the castle sitting between tall mountain peaks in the distance. It’s one of the ancient palaces of the Otherworlds, sitting atop a cliff overlooking an exceptionally large body of water. Here in our world my home sits next to the Dark Sea, the sea that separates the Elacians from Newholloweds.
The sea is dark and deep and full of creatures that have gone mad, living in an obscure and lonely pit that they’ve been banished to for attempting to escape Elacia. A few of these Dark Sea creatures have been known to escape our sea to the mortal world—the Trenadines are the sneakiest of all.
They’re an ancient breed that has lived in the Dark Sea far longer than we have lived on their land. They have dark gray skin with gleaming silver scales that look like leather and four tiny fins for swimming on their sides. But their tail is the thing that helps them swim; on average their tail is 15 feet long with green and yellow razor sharp edges that are its only source of protection in the cruel sea. Their teeth are also razor sharp and they have thousands of eyes on their dragon-like snouts that are as soulless and dark as I imagine the depths of that Hellish Sea are.
Trenadines are unimaginably fast and very clever, even in the mortal world they are a rare sight. I have read that one has finally been spotted. The humans name it “Nessie,” what a strange name for such a frightful beast. These “Nessies” as the humans call them are so fast they can easily escape through wizard portals and have been doing so for thousands of years.
My horse lands in front of the ancient castle. He stretches his wings up high into the air and neighs at me as he puts them back where they belong hidden in his mane. I scratch his head gingerly and he nuzzles my cheek.
I take in the familiar scent of home and the wilderness that surrounds me. The trees, the salty smell of the Sea and the smell of campfires in the distance make me remember what being home feels like. I lick my lips and direct my horse toward his stables. I put him in with the others and feed him one more sugar cube.
I enter the side door from the stables to the kitchen. The cooks are hard at work preparing a delicious dinner for the family. I smile as I walk by and try not to disturb them, but they all see me and start to whistle and cheer. It’s their way of saying hello without actually saying anything. I whistle back in return and escape into the lavish dining hall. The hall with the giant crystal chandelier and the light wooden floors that are so spotless you can see our reflection. The room that is much too large and extravagant that it makes your head spin as if your one of the mad dancers that has to dance in this ballroom once a week to please my mother. I practically sprint out of the room, remembering all the dance lessons that she made me take just so I would be prepared for her weekly dinner parties and the endless parade of girls she introduced me to.
The walls are painted a deep shade of royal blue and embossed in a sil
ver leaf pattern. Beautiful works of art—some even made by artists in Elacia—line the walls but my favorite piece is the one that hangs above the entry to the kitchen.
It’s a large painting with streaks of blue, green and yellow that depicts a simple field just at sunset but the bushes are painted black, as if they were shadows in the distance. I stare mesmerized at the painting and am startled when someone exits the kitchen door.
“Riley! Is it really you?”
A tall, reedy woman with frizzy blonde hair asks as she enters the room. Her skin is quite a few shades paler than mine, and she is wearing a bright orange dress the color of flames.
“Oh, I missed you darling.”
My mother pulls me close to her and hugs me so tightly that it's hard to breathe, especially when she’s wearing so much perfume. I try to squeeze out of her death grip but I'm unsuccessful so I just let her hold me, my arms flailing uselessly at my side. She sniffles and takes a step back.
“You look so handsome. I've missed you so much.” She coos, staring down at me because she is much taller than I am.
“So did you convince the Princess that she is your life mate yet?”
I look down somberly and feel a little bit upset at the thought. She realizes that it's a touchy subject and quickly changes it to something else because who would want to ruin such a perfect mother and son reunion with probing questions?
“Your sister is ecstatic about her wedding tomorrow. You should go see her and congratulate her!” My mother fusses, “I'm sure she would love to see you, and I think that she's already met Alison and made her feel welcome as part of the family.”
My mother grins slyly at me. I hate when she does that, it only means trouble lies ahead.
“Did you do something embarrassing?” I quip, “Did my sister do something embarrassing? She’s my first real girlfriend and hopefully my last. I suppose getting you guys to not do anything humiliating for once is too much to ask for.”
I sigh, sticking my hands in my pockets in dejection and looking up at the ceiling.
“Riley. I swear you act more like your father each and every day.” My mother replies, “Stop being such a Drama Queen. What I meant by your sister making Ali part of the family is that she asked her to be in the wedding. She knew that since you were a groomsman, Alison might feel awkward without a date to sit by so now she'll get to sit by you during the whole wedding.”
“That's brilliant!” I answer, hugging her tightly.
“Yes.” My mother replies, pushing me away gently and awkwardly—she’s a lot like a cat. She wants attention and affection and adoration when she wants it but if you want to give it to her: Forget it.
“Well Eva is taking a nap you should probably go and wake her up to try on dresses for the wedding. You better try on a suit while you’re with her. I want to make sure everything is perfect.” She purrs the word perfect and I know she means business.
The door slams noisily behind her; she sure knows how to make an entrance.
I'm left alone in the empty space and I smile at the door. I missed my mother, even if she's a bit eccentric: She's still my mother.
I missed the Kingdom and our ancient castle. I open the large wooden doors and trek upstairs to the formal library where everyone is getting fitted for the wedding. I think about Ali and how beautiful she will look in anything she wears. I lean against the railing and sigh like some love-struck fool.
