by J. M. Briggs
“It’s alright,” he told himself. He didn’t dare speak too loudly, but he needed to actually say the words. “It isn’t the creature. Maybe it was just passing through.”
Dobiemir shivered at the thought of the creature. Just the memory of its strange body put him on edge. The creature had been there and yet, its body had been an icy void in the world. He couldn’t explain it. Add to that the cold, its glowing, unnaturally green eyes, and the way it attacked him, and it was a memory that flooded him with fear. Still, he had to be out here. They needed more supplies, and working in the forest now would make winter easier.
Lyubov had always been the one to go into the forest before. His father had taught him what he could and couldn’t eat of course, but his wife had been a deft hand at gathering. She’d always somehow manage to collect more, find the best berries, and make the most out of what she found. Hissing at the ache in his chest, Dobiemir kept working even as his hands shook. Lyubov was gone now. He’d lost her. Both he and Slavko had lost her. There was a part of him that was grateful that the child hadn’t survived. Without her it would have been impossible to care for the baby, and he would have only grown attached just to lose it in the winter.
Still, he knew that the ache would linger. Even Emond, who had lost four children over the years, had confessed that it never fully went away. Not even knowing that they likely wouldn’t live and preparing yourself for the pain made it any easier. It was just part of the weight of life, but he hated it and wanted Lyubov back. She’d have had a good idea of how to turn things around. At least, she would have given him more hope in these dark times.
Something was happening. He wasn’t sure what. But he knew that while never perfect, the land here was fertile. There was a reason his tribal grandfather and others had put down more permanent roots here. Now everything was turning. It wasn’t just his farm: it was all of them in the area. The animals were acting strangely; always frightened, and the weather was odd.
It had to be that creature. Or creatures, if there were more of them. Dobiemir remembered the terrible cold that had overtaken him. If that always happened, then the creature was damaging plants wherever it went. With that in mind he eyed the ferns and trees. They looked a bit wilted for the warm weather and recent rain. Certainty swelled in his chest, but it didn’t solve anything. If that creature was the source of the problems, then what could be done?
The missionaries might be able to help. Their words about the power of their God were impressive, but this creature more closely reminded him of the old stories of spirits that his mother had told him. Maybe the old gods had the answer. He wasn’t sure, but Dobiemir couldn’t solve it. He was a farmer, and at the moment a poor one. Strange creatures who seemed to be affecting the weather were not part of his world view.
Still, it all made him think of his mother’s stories about evil spirits and what happened when the gods were angered. The Christian missionaries had slowly come further and further east. He’d never really concerned himself with the question of religion. If a god or the God could help him, then he’d pray to them. But maybe the old gods of his mother and father were angry. Maybe this was some sort of punishment. Or maybe the spirits were displeased about something else.
The trip home took too long. All of Dobiemir’s thoughts about the creature and their problems had put a heavy knot in his gut. Worry for Slavko churned in his chest, and he kept speeding up. However he also had to be careful not to lose the berries. Looking down the hill towards the village, he wondered if the others had approached the missionaries yet. The last time he’d gone into town a few weeks ago, he’d stopped to pray. Slavko was still ill, and his farm was still struggling. Accepting their words and sympathy was hard. Shaking his head, he made a promise to go and try again. But for now, he needed to get home.
Their home was just as he had left it. A sheep looked up from their field as he passed and nothing looked out of place. Sighing in relief, he shook himself in an attempt to dispel all the worry he’d built up in his shoulders. It helped, and once he felt calm enough for his son to see him he stepped into the house. Slavko was seated cross-legged on his bed with a blanket around his shoulders and a half-woven basket in his lap.
“Father?” His son’s frown deepened, and the small boy looked up from the basket he was working on. “Are you alright?”
“Fine,” he answered. Moving forward, he put the bag down on his bed and quickly began unpacking the roots and berries he’d gathered. He could feel his son’s eyes on him as he stored the various items in separate jars and boxes. “Found some food in the forest.”
“Father, is the harvest going to fail?”
Forcing himself to turn around, he knelt by the boy and put a hand on his thin shoulder. “I don’t know,” he answered honestly. “Things aren’t growing well despite the rain, but there is still late summer and autumn for things to recover. I’m just trying to get ahead in case there are problems. If I can gather wood and food to dry out now, then winter will be easier.”
Slavko nodded in understanding and Dobiemir smiled in relief. The boy might not completely comprehend his worries, but it all made sense in a way. If this was normal, then they would be alright. It was just the two of them, and while Slavko wasn’t strong, there were many things he could do to help as he recovered. Smiling, he nodded to his son, and the boy’s face brightened.
But then he shivered. The low light of the house dimmed, and the air turned icy. Slavko pulled the blanket tighter around him as his teeth chattered. Reaching over to his bed, Dobiemir snatched up his blankets and threw them over his son. Then it hit him. His whole body tensed even as his limbs quivered from the cold. With growing fear he reached for his cloak and pulled it on. He debated lighting a fire. There might not be time, and he dared not keep his back to the door. He took a step towards the door and picked up his axe.
“Father? What is happening?” Slavko asked. His voice was still quivering from the cold. “It’s so cold.”
“I don’t know,” he answered. “Stay under the blankets.”
“But-”
“Stay on your bed and under the blankets.”
He inched towards the door, his ears straining for any noise. The animals had gone silent. There were no cries of fear or sounds of running, just total silence. Easing open the door, he looked out cautiously. It was brighter outside, but still far darker than it should have been. Heart pounding and sweat gathering on his palms despite the cold, he stepped to the edge of the doorframe and looked around.
At first he saw nothing. The world was dark and muffled, like a winter day right after it snowed, but he knew it wasn’t supposed to be that way. The animals were huddled together in the yard and standing completely still. Then movement in the corner of his eye drew his attention to the shade of some trees along the fields. Something dark was moving towards the house.
It was a different kind of creature. This one was more like a cat, but it was far too large and slinking through the shadows. Its eyes glowed the same sharp unnatural shade of green, and its body was too black. All light seemed to vanish into it — a creature of shadow and nothing more. Gripping his axe tightly, Dobiemir swallowed fearfully. It was coming closer, moving along the patch in the shade of the trees.
Far above them he could still see the sun shining down, but the light was distorted once more. The creature kept moving. It didn’t look his way, but he stayed firmly in the doorway. Behind him, soft noises were escaping Slavko as the cold weighed down on him. Was it possible to slay this creature? What would happen then? Would the cold vanish or linger? When the other one had left the area the warmth of summer had returned.
“It’ll be alright, son,” he said softly. “Just stay still and quiet.”
“I don’t-”
“Hush!”
He dared not look at his son. He kept his eyes on the creature as it moved past. The air grew colder as it came towards the house. Somehow his heart beat even harder. It was suffocating. The air was too col
d to breathe, and he heard a soft, almost pained cry behind him. He still didn’t look away from the creature.
It kept walking. In its wake Dobiemir could see leaves trembling and shining as if they had a fresh layer of frost. His heart sank. Whatever had still been growing was sure to be dead now. A different kind of fear filled his chest, but he didn’t rush out. The thing was too alien, too strange, and he was alone. Then it moved past the house, not even looking his way. Keeping to the shadows, the thing vanished from view into some trees.
Dobiemir stayed where he was, waiting for any sign of its return. Then the world brightened once more and the chill receded. Air filled his lungs and dizzy relief washed over him. Turning around, he looked towards the bed where Slavko was digging his way out from the blankets.
“Father, what was that? Why did it get so cold?” A lie gathered on the tip of his tongue, but the words wouldn’t come. His son blinked up at him, suspicion and worry growing in his eyes. “Was it an evil spirit? Like the sort in the stories?”
Still unable to speak, Dobiemir felt himself nod. He looked back at the doorway and wondered how far that creature would go. It was the second one he’d seen. How many of them were there, and where had they come from? More importantly, how could they stop them before they completely destroyed the harvest?
7
No Rest for Mages
Today was easier than most. Relief and a sense of happiness filled Alex and their new house; her new home. Everyone was safe and sound, and Avani had even joined them. Jenny and Lance had returned safely and hadn’t had any problems. While Bran had been attacked, he was back in Ravenslake without even a bruise left. Maybe it was selfish, but Alex was happy that they’d all come back and she had people with her. Every time that Aiden or Nicki vanished to visit their families there had been a sharp sting of pain and regret in her chest.
But now they had a full house. As much as Alex enjoyed sitting in the corner with a book, she had always preferred others to be nearby while she did it. Nicki was helping Avani take her suitcases upstairs and saying out loud that she hoped Avani had enough stuff. While they’d discussed her using a water tunnel, in the end it had worked out just fine for her fly over and drive in with Lance and Jenny. The couple in question were taking their things up to the room that had been earmarked for Lance but was now for the both of them.
“I hope she likes it here,” Jenny said. “It’s very different from Mumbai.”
“It is,” Lance agreed. He was following her up the stairs with one of the heavier suitcases. “But she’s decided that this is where she wants to bee. She wants to help. I’m grateful for that.”
Turning to look over her shoulder at Lance, Jenny gave him a wide dazzling smile that made her boyfriend grin in return. They seemed a touch nervous, but also very happy with the latest development, and as she followed them upstairs Alex couldn’t help but smile. The area around the landing was crazy with Nicki helping Avani with her things as Lance and Jenny moved their boxes and suitcases into their room. Alex could already see that the area might become a traffic bottleneck in the future.
“Thank you, Nicki,” Avani said. “Really, I can manage if you have other things to do.”
“No, I’m great,” Nicki said. “Besides, we want you to feel welcome!”
Avani was a very pretty young woman with a clear and warm complexion, long hair, and lovely brown eyes. And Alex was enjoying watching Nicki trying to keep herself from falling all over their newest housemate. Leaning against the railing, Alex held back a smile and watched as Avani nodded in understanding. Alex sidestepped in the doorway so Nicki could bring another suitcase in. Looking up she caught Alex’s eyes and looked a touch sheepish for a moment. That might be a good sign for Nicki, Alex decided.
Jenny came back out into the hall, pulling her long dark hair up into a ponytail. She smiled at Avani and turned towards the stairs, but the Indian woman jumped forward and carefully touched her arm to draw Jenny’s attention.
“I’m very grateful that you and Lance were able to bring me into town,” Avani said. “The landscape was beautiful.”
“Yes, the Oregon coast is a lovely area,” Jenny replied. “I suppose it was very different than you’ve seen around Mumbai.”
“Very different,” Avani agreed. Then she hesitated for a moment. “I hope my moving in didn’t put pressure on you to-”
“No,” Jenny said. Smiling at Avani, she reached over and caught the other woman’s hand. “Don’t worry about it. Truly. Lance and I… we’ve been working towards this for a long time, and when news came that you were coming, we had a serious discussion about everything.” There was a calm in her expression and a brightness in her eyes that Alex didn’t think she’d ever seen. “It was overdue. We’ve talked about our past, but never the future. Not really, but we both want to make it work. Long-term.” Her smile turned giddy. “Like, marriage in the future long term.”
“Did he ask?” Alex stared at Jenny, torn between shock and glee. “Did he?”
“No, not yet,” Jenny said. “But he…” Her skin flushed with pleasure. “He did say that when he thought about the future, I was it, and after we graduate he plans on asking me properly.” Giggling, Jenny tugged at the hem of her green shirt. “Joked that maybe we’d even go back to Paris for it.”
Jumping forward, Alex hugged Jenny, who laughed in return. For a moment, the tension she’d been carrying around melted away, and there was a hum of happiness in her head. Instead of any lingering jealousy from the lifetimes that had been involved with Jenny’s various prior incarnations, it seemed that all of her was relieved. Three thousand years of reincarnation, betrayal and tragedy seemed to finally be on their way to a peaceful and happy resolution. Her head went a little fuzzy as the euphoria of it all overwhelmed her. Alex almost cried: she’d started to forget what happiness felt like.
“Guys!” Bran called up the stairs. “We’ve got visitors.”
He didn’t sound panicked, so Alex just shrugged when the others looked at her. “Finish getting the boxes into the rooms,” she said. “Then come down. Unless I start screaming, of course.”
Jenny gave her a frown of disapproval at joking about something like that, but Nicki’s lips quirked up in a smile. Alex winked at Nicki and headed down the stairs to where she could hear voices. It took her a moment to place them as Bran, Morgana, and Merlin. Her happiness drained away a touch. As much as she wanted to believe otherwise, Morgana and Merlin probably weren’t here to give them a housewarming gift. They’d already bought the house and furnished it for them.
Merlin and Morgana were with Bran in the living room. Thankfully, they both looked calm. Morgana looked up at her and smiled with a touch of relief. It seemed that Morgana’s big sister instincts would never fade.
“Hey,” Alex greeted. “What’s up?”
“We wanted to check in with Bran,” Merlin said. He was frowning slightly. “It is distressing to learn in detail what Arthur can do.”
“We already knew he could do that,” Alex said. “That’s how he killed my parents.”
“I confess that at the time I thought it was more likely that he’d paid someone,” Merlin said. “I did not consider that Arthur could truly control people.”
Alex frowned. Her stomach tightened in a mix of anger and grief. Then she exhaled and told herself to relax. Merlin hadn’t seen the driver. He hadn’t seen the death of her parents. Of course he’d make assumptions. They’d never talked about what had happened. And that was the core of the problem. If they’d talked about it then maybe they could have had better defenses ready. Instead, they’d been worried about upsetting her.
“Fair enough,” she said. Sitting down beside Bran on the sofa, Alex smiled at him and gently knocked her shoulder against his. “I am glad you’re back safe and sound.”
He smiled in return at her. “I missed you too. All of you.”
“Really? I would have thought it was a nice escape from the insanity.”
“In a
way, but I also had to run five miles a day to deal with all the baked goods my mother kept putting in front of me. She was in full-on mom mode all summer.” His smile turned gentle, and he reached over to squeeze her hand quickly. “Besides, I worried about all of you.”
Morgana chuckled and said, “Well Bran, you are the most reasonable of the mages.”
“Hey!” Alex protested. “I’m plenty reasonable.”
Alex was saved from their response to that by the others coming downstairs. Avani hesitated at the back of the group as Jenny, Lance, and Nicki came downstairs. Nicki paused and looked around.
