The Vanguard

by Jeffrey Ellis

  “They're just protecting their home. There's nothing wrong with that. Are you all okay?” Sebastian asked the four naga.

  “We are but you were wrong, that took fifteen seconds, not ten,” Serena replied without looking at the other four as they all laughed at the joke. Whenever she spoke, a light hissing sound could be heard.

  “What about the rest of you?” Sebastian asked.

  “We are,” Serena replied again, and Sebastian gave her an odd look.

  “They're sisters. They have a strong sense of each other and can feel the pain of their sisters,” Bo told them. “Serena is the eldest, so she speaks for her hatch. Her sisters are Selena, Serana, and Selana. They have been with us since they were children. Their parents fought for the Unified Army and were killed during the Unification War. I've raised them as my own daughters since then.”

  “Your parents were heroes,” said Sebastian.

  “All who fight for life are heroes. We still feel the pain of their deaths. Naga are connected at a deep level with those who share our blood. We still hurt but Bo took care of us until we were adults and now this is our family,” Serena told them.

  “I wasn't aware naga could do that. That's a profound connection. I have a similar connection to Sebastian and I've nearly lost him more than once and I can still feel that hurt. I understand your pain,” Chelsea said.

  “We both do,” Sebastian said. “Losing someone you love is not easy. I lost my own father recently and still ache from it.”

  “Thank you. It was difficult at first but with Bo's help we managed to move on with our lives,” Serena told them, the faint hissing of her voice sounding deeper, almost mournful. “Time only moves forward. It took us some time to learn that, but it was a lesson worth learning.”

  “Will Morgana be coming?” Bo asked.

  “She doesn't know we are here. How do you know Morgana?” Sebastian asked him.

  “I do not, at least not well. The only time she has appeared in my lifetime, she was here but for a few days. Many years ago, in the days of my great-grandfather, long before my own birth and before the great nuclear war, she visited us with her apprentice. She helped us build this sanctuary and told us the story of you two. She showed us your faces and said you would return one day to save the fey. After the Seal broke, she came briefly to tell us the time was nearing and to help us learn our full powers now that magic had returned. That was the only time I met her. We have awaited your coming and now you are here to bring peace to the world and unite all of the fey,” he told them. “She is a great prophet and we have awaited your return as she instructed. We are honored you chose us to visit us with the war against the dark mage your time is precious and to share it with us is a great honor,” Bo told them.

  “I guess that no secrets thing isn't that big of a deal to Morgana,” Sebastian said.

  “Be fair. She was here almost a year ago and was only here a few days. She has a very long life and we can't expect every detail to be laid out all at once. We haven't had that kind of time to speak with her,” Chelsea said.

  “You're probably right. I don't think she is intentionally holding anything from us anymore. I jumped to a conclusion and shouldn't have,” Sebastian replied.

  “Our army is small but is yours to command. We hold our allegiance to the lieges as we promised your prophet in exchange for saving us, King Baldric,” Serena said.

  “I don't command you. You are free people,” Sebastian told them.

  “When she saved us, our forebearers promised to repay the debt by fighting at your side should you ever request it. Are you denying our service?” Serena asked.

  “We are not as great a warrior as you, but we can fight and will lend whatever strength we have to your cause, my Lord,” Serena said.

  “Maybe you should start by telling us how she saved you,” Sebastian said.

  “It was nearly two centuries ago. We were scattered and running. My grandfather had been finding peaceful fey in the hopes to start a place of our own. The Wardens hunted us mercilessly. We had no home. She sought the fey, the peaceful ones as my grandfather did. Those who acted violently were shunned. She helped us learn to hide from humans and from Wardens and to blend in with society. She brought us here where we could walk with freedom. The people here are strange, so they don't notice other strange ones. We learned to be productive and use our skills to be part of this society. Her apprentice, the one called Alexander, gave us this place. He helped us build our sanctuary, Haven as we have called it. We offered what meager possessions we had in payment, but he refused saying gifts should never come with a price attached. She has visited us periodically throughout the decades, never staying for long but keeping watch over us and making sure we were still free from the persecution of the Wardens. Now, as the Wardens grow stronger, they have grown bolder and more aggressive and begin to hunt us once more. We have lost a fourth of our numbers already to their blades and magic. Now though, you have arrived. You are the one who walks in both worlds, the world of the humans and the fey and you will save us. She said you would have the power to do it when she last came,” Bo told them.

  “The Wardens are hunting you? That makes no sense. They should only be targeting fey that are a danger to others. If you don't hurt anyone, they should leave you in peace,” Sebastian said. “Have you truly done nothing to antagonize them?”

  “Nothing, my liege. The first time we realized they were stalking us was when one of our shifters, a lycanthrope, was selling his wares on the strip. The Wardens came at him from two directions and he died in seconds. He was selling nothing but data chips that cause euphoria and they killed him for it. We don't create any drugs that would cause true harm to someone. His mate escaped after being severely injured. She died later of her wounds. They used silver blades on her,” Bo replied.

  “They hunt us for no reason and call us animals,” Serena said as her and her sisters made a hissing sound.

  “How do you know they are Wardens?” asked Chelsea. “Could it be someone else?”

  “They have the armor and swords of the Wardens and golden knots on their wrists,” Bo told them.

  “How many are there?” asked Sebastian.

  “We don't know. There has only been one other attack with a survivor. Lumpy was attacked on his way home from a casino two weeks ago by four people. He managed to get away with minor injuries to himself and he said he broke the leg of one of the attackers. Glorin, the lycanthrope, told a similar story but was too weak to tell us much before she died,” Bo told them.

  “There has to be some mistake. You're no threat to anyone. I'm going to talk to Alicia,” he said. “I am going to get to the bottom of this. Do you have a vid screen I can use?”

  “We do. Come with me,” said Bo.

  He led them down a hallway to an elevator. They went down what felt like a few dozen feet and it opened into a bunker.

  “Alexander helped us construct this place to last. It's strong enough to survive most bombs and is our main living and working area. We make the drugs and devices we sell here. We have some of the areas set up as living spaces,” Bo told them.

  They came to a door and he went inside. The room was laid out with electronics and computers. There was a small workbench of some kind along one wall with the tools and components for making electronics. The room had several computers, old models but functional. There was a vid screen along one wall. Bo walked over to it and typed in a password and it came online.

  Sebastian and Chelsea sat in front of it and he opened a channel. “This is Lord Marshall Sebastian. I need to speak with High Lord Alecia.”

  “She's in a meeting and not available. I can have her contact you when she's out,” said her assistant.

  “Then get her out of that meeting. I want her in front of that screen in the next minute or I'll teleport her ass here and we'll have this talk face to face,” Sebastian told him.

  “Give me a moment,” he replied and left.

  A minute or so late
r Alicia sat down. “What you want, Sebastian? I was in a meeting with the Directorate. This had better be damned important for you to threaten me.”

  “I want to know why Wardens are hunting non-violent fey. I just spoke with a group in Las Vegas and found out your people are hunting peaceful fey,” Sebastian said.

  “There must be some mistake. We don't hunt fey that don't pose a threat. You both know that,” Alicia told them.

  “We have a small group of fey here that is being targeted and hunted and from all indications the attackers are Wardens. They have our armor, weapons and the knots. They're killing indiscriminately. The fey here are no threat to anyone,” Chelsea told her.

  “Give me a moment,” Alicia said and closed her eyes. Many of the Wardens were known to do that when scanning their internal feeds due to the disorientation of the feed overlay on vision. After a minute she opened her eyes. “We don't have any Wardens active in that area. There was a vampire hunt about a month ago in Reno but that's been the only activity in the American Southwest in months. That hunt terminated successfully, and it's been quiet in that area since.”

  “Then we have rogue Wardens,” Chelsea said.

  “Or impersonators. We can't be certain they're our people. I'll send a team. Do we have an idea on numbers?” Alicia asked.

  “At least four. Our only eyewitness was attacked by a group of four and injured one. I'll start pulling medical reports from local hospitals and see if they went for treatment. We can handle this. Thank you for the offer of help,” Chelsea told her.

  “My people will handle this, not you. Wardens still have jurisdiction in this matter. Whether they are rogue or fakes, they're our concern,” Alicia told them.

  “Alicia, we're going to be involved. These people need help. We're already here and more than able to handle a few humans,” Sebastian told her.

  “I don't doubt your capability. It's more a matter of responsibility. You're in charge of the Vanguard when you return to active duty. I read your reports and know you're on a leave. Rogue Wardens or Warden impersonators fall under my domain,” the High Lord told them.

  “These are our people. We're going to help them with or without your support,” Chelsea told her.

  “You're putting me in a difficult position. I'll tell you what. I'll send a team and they'll come strong. You can join them in an observational capacity. If you just happen to be put at risk and are forced to defend yourselves, I want the attackers alive. They need to answer for their crimes. Whether rogue or impersonators, those are both serious crimes and they need to answer for it,” Alicia told them.

  “Murder is a pretty serious crime as well,” Sebastian replied.

  “Except they haven't committed murder. UniGov doesn't recognize fey as citizens so they aren't extended the rights of citizenship. I know it's not fair but I'm not in the Senate. For now, crimes against the Wardens are all we have them on and those are enough to put them away for the rest of their lives,” Alicia told them.

  “That's something we need to talk to Neala about. For now, you're right, we can lock them away for good with just those charges,” Chelsea replied.

  “Why is this such a personal issue to you?” asked Alicia.

  “You said you've read the reports. Do you know about Asala?” asked Sebastian.

  “The dragon soul, sure, but I don't see what that has to do with anything,” Alicia replied.

  “Alicia, we're fey. Not just Chelsea and I but you and the rest of humanity. We are all from a common ancestor shaped into what we are now via magic. We are as much children of the dragons and born of the Weave as any other fey,” Sebastian told her.

  “That sounds like horse shit to me,” Alicia told them.

  “Everyone thinks the world changed but it didn't. It reverted to what it should be. This is the natural state of the world. Humans are as connected to the Weave as any fey and are as much a part of it as any non-human. You can use magic yourself. Look around you. The world is healing itself and as it does, we become closer to what we were,” Sebastian told her.

  “And what were you?” asked Alicia.

  “I was a fey. A child of the dragons like all other humans. As are you. As are all of us,” Sebastian told her.

  “I'm not going to debate history and evolution with you. The letter of the law is our guideline and that is my only concern. My team will be in route shortly and will contact you. Anything else?” Alicia asked.

  “No and thank you for sending your people to protect fey,” Chelsea said.

  “Officially it's to handle potential rogue Wardens. Unofficially, I'm happy to help. I see no reason why peaceful fey should suffer,” Alicia said and turned off the comm.

  “Until the Wardens get here we'll do everything we can to keep you safe,” Chelsea said.

  “Thank you,” Bo replied. “Now if you don't mind, we have bills to pay and need to keep our businesses running.”

  “Of course, we'll be out of your way,” Chelsea said. “Do you need us to leave for privacy?”

  “Not at all. We have nothing to hide from you,” Bo told them.

  “Serena, two customers tonight for you and your sisters. One for a solo fey and the other for two humans. They're at the usual hotel so stick together until you get to the rooms. Here's the info,” he said and handed her two slips of paper. Serena took one and handed the other to one of her sisters.

  “Rolo, we're running low on chips. Can you restock the euphoria and intelligence chips?” he said to one of the other fey who looked to be insectoid.

  “Got another fight for Lumpy. Serena, whoever doesn't go out tonight, can you have them accompany Lumpy. I don't want anyone alone while the attacks are still happening. I'll escort whoever goes to their solo job,” Bo said.

  “I can escort Serena and her sisters,” said Sebastian. “Chelsea can go with Lumpy and the fourth sister. If someone gets attacked I want one of us to be there.”

  “What about the lady telling you not to get involved?” Bo asked him.

  “We'll handle her if that becomes an issue,” Sebastian told him. “In the meantime, lock this place down if you can.”

  “We always do. Thanks to Alexander's help this place is a fortress if we need it to be,” Serena told him.

  “That's good to know. There's only two of us and I think we're needed more out there than in here. It's good to know you'll be safe while we're gone,” Sebastian told Bo.

  “Mondo, we have a big order on the hydro. Pull in everyone you need to help with the harvest,” he said to a fey that looked to have canine traits. “Has anyone seen Mew?” he asked.

  “She's probably chasing mice in the gardens again,” said Rolo, his voice making a slight clicking noise as he spoke.

  “Or she's right behind you,” said a voice behind Rolo as a feline humanoid appeared behind him.

  Rolo jumped a bit forward. “Don't do that. You know it scares me.”

  “What can I say? Cats love to chase bugs,” the feline said to him.

  “That's enough, Mew,” Bo said. “Stop scaring Rolo. I need you and the rest of the strigoi to patrol. Keep watch around Haven and let me know if anything at all is out of place or odd.”

  “Yes, Bo,” Mew replied.

  “Strigoi? I've heard of you but never seen one,” Chelsea said. “You're originally Romanian, correct?”

  “In recent history yes. Before that our ancestors were, like all fey, Atlantean and migrated to northern Africa after the sinking. We traveled north into Europe following the fall of the dynasties after the coming of the Romans, eventually spreading out into the Carpathians trying desperately to stay ahead of the advancing Empire. We're natural hunters and had no trouble surviving wherever we went but taking game is one thing, fighting highly trained Roman Centurions is another. Our numbers have thinned over the centuries. We left Romania because the locals killed us for nothing more than being us and came to the new world. The Romanians thought we were bad omens and cursed children. Paranoia is a powerful motivato
r,” Mew replied.

  “How many of you are there?” Sebastian asked her.

  “We have two dozen here. There are myself and my mate and our children. We fled our village during the Unification War when the soldiers came. Bo found us hiding and offered us sanctuary here until we decided to return to our people. Around the world, our numbers are probably no more than a few thousand. We can sneak very well so now we stay hidden and keep to ourselves. We have tried a few times to make peace with the locals but since Egypt, we have not found a culture accepting of us so we either blend in if possible or avoid them altogether,” Mew told him.

  “I would love to meet your mate and children as time allows. I would bet Ra and Nefertiti would love to meet you as well,” Chelsea told her.

  “I would be honored, my liege,” Mew replied.

  “Everyone has their assignments. I'm going to go check on the hydroponics and living quarters. Thank you, my lieges, for your protection,” Bo told them.

  “Can everyone please stop calling us liege. We're not your masters. We're your allies,” Sebastian told them. “We help you because it's the right thing to do and we're not your monarchs. We would, however, like to call you friends.”

  “I think we would all like that very much. You are every bit the people Morgana said you would be,” Bo told them.

  “How many fey are here?” Chelsea asked.

  “About two hundred now. We've lost almost four dozen to the attacks,” Bo told them. “Most of them are busy in the gardens where were grow much of our food. Many of our fey have nutritional needs that are not quite able to be bought at a local grocer. We also provide a small portion of the local drug market and provide some prostitution services as you have seen. On a good night, we might have a dozen customers that our naga and some other fey handle but tonight is quiet. The coronation ceremony is keeping most people busy.”

  “If we can do anything about it, there will not be another death,” Sebastian told them.

  “We thank you for that,” Bo replied.