Changing His Reality

by Sophie Martin

  “It’s done. We can be on the move now,” said Dominic as they approached the car. “Your man here used his magic mumbo-jumbo and lured the rest of the people into the front room so that we could treat them to the ‘amnesia cocktail.’ I think it’s safe to say that come tomorrow, nobody will have the slightest idea as to what the hell happened to them.” Tyler lifted his brows at “magical mumbo-jumbo,” but they didn’t have a better description of Jason’s powers, so he let it go.

  “The situation here is mostly resolved as well. Annette here,” he pointed at the woman they saved first, “is an older vampire, and she can disseminate. With a little help from Timiny, she’ll take everybody home.” Annette nodded. “The only problem is Jack.” She gestured to the man she earlier named a cuberow and who was currently sitting inside the car with Toby. “He’s got nowhere to go. Apparently he got kicked out of his pack and is not allowed on pack territory. He put all his stuff in a storage and was on the lookout for a new place to live when he got caught by the slavers. That was six months ago. He has no home now, and his storage space will expire in another week or two.” Tyler looked at Jason expectantly. It was as if, despite Dominic’s training and obvious capability, they all looked to Jason as a leader.

  Jason sighed. The motion was more muscle memory than a real sigh. His emotions weren’t back yet, and he could think with a clear head.

  “He’ll go with us. Anything else?”

  “Yes, there is,” spoke Dominic suddenly. “What do you mean ‘with help from Timiny?’ What is he going to do?”

  Tyler looked at him with a grimace. “He’ll give Annette some fairy dust. For vampires, it works by increasing their abilities for several hours. She’s exhausted, and they starved her for weeks fearing that otherwise she’ll escape.” Annette stepped forward and continued.

  “I fed, thanks to Toby, but even if I was back to myself, I couldn’t disseminate with more than one person at time, and I wouldn’t be able to do it several times in a row. With Tim’s help, I think I might be able to take two or three people and do it three times in a row. I read some on fairy dust, and it said it may triple my abilities or makes them even stronger.” She barely finished when Dominic turned to Timiny.

  “Are you sure you want to do it? Let her take your dust?”

  Timiny narrowed his eyes.

  “And why would you care? I don’t even know you, dude.”

  “I care because you’re Jiminy’s brother. And he told me all about the dust. Everything! Did you know it can be highly addictive?” He turned to ask Annette.

  “Yes, I’m aware of that,” she answered calmly. “But vampires are usually quite resilient when it comes to any addictions, and Tim said it shouldn’t start with just one dose. It usually takes three or four for my kind.” Dominic looked at her for a second before he turned back to Tim.

  “And what about other effects? The ones that producing the dust have on you? What about that?”

  “Wow, you and my brother have to be very close if he told you all of that,” stated Tim, clearly surprised. Then he straightened and answered. “I can deal with it. It’s just one small dose for Annette, and then we’ll be able to go home. I can do it.”

  Dominic measured him with long steady gaze then nodded. “Okay, if you’re sure. Go and do it now. The people in that building are unconscious, but there is no reason to stay here any longer than we need to. The faster we’re home, the better.”

  Both Timiny and Annette nodded and went behind the car to do what they needed to extract the dust. Everybody waited impatiently, the captives clearly anxious to get away from that place. Annette and Tim came back, Annette’s hands glistening as if covered in body glitter. Her eyes were huge, and she was breathing deeply.

  “Wow,” she said. “I feel invincible.”

  “That’s what junkies say just before they jump off buildings thinking they can fly,” Dominic said sourly. It seemed to do the trick. Annette laughed as she approached the group and she didn’t look high anymore.

  “It’s normal,” said Timiny. “For most species there is an instantaneous rush from taking fairy dust. But it wears off quickly, leaving only enhanced abilities. Or other effects, depending on their species,” he added.

  “Where are you taking them?” Jason interjected with a question. “If you’re taking more than one person, you can’t take them straight home. And you probably won’t have enough strength to take them one by one.” Annette frowned as if she didn’t consider it. She came to a conclusion quickly as she answered.

  “I’ll take them to my apartment.” She saw Dominic opened his mouth to interrupt because she interrupted him with a lift of her hand. “I know they stalked people they were about to kidnap, but it wasn’t the case with me. I was simply in a wrong place at the wrong time. I was visiting my friend on the other side of the country from where I live. We went to a club, had few drinks. I felt a bit dizzy, so I left through the back entrance to clear my head. And I stumbled upon some people trying to kidnap someone. If I were clearheaded, I’d probably do the right thing—go back and call security or the police. As I was still under the influence, I tried to help the guy myself. You know, vampiric strength and all. Unfortunately they were all paranormals and my strength didn’t help. I got kidnapped right alongside that guy. But it means that they have no idea who I am and they wouldn’t target me if they knew. I have some friends in high places who will make a real storm to deal more permanently with this scum.” She looked fairly sure of herself, so Jason nodded.

  “Okay then. Let’s get on with it. Ladies first,” she said, and all three other women they freed from cells went to her. She ordered them to hug her in the middle of them. Soon they all shimmered, and next second they weren’t there.

  They all waited, tension palpable in the air, until she appeared back barely five minutes later. She then repeated the process with two men and appeared back, looking slightly tired after another five minutes. Jason took her to the side, then with Tyler following closely, behind them.

  “Are you going to be okay taking the last two?” he asked. She sighed slightly but nodded. “Yes, I’ll manage. I’ll probably need to feed straight after, but I’ve got a willing donor living next door and should be okay. What about you? Are you going to be okay getting back home? Don’t you worry, they’ll track you somehow. There is no way to track dissemination, but a car is easy to track if someone knows what they’re looking for.”

  “It is a hired car, and the track records will show it was in the shop being prepared for the last week,” said Jason calmly. “Nobody will remember people like us being anywhere near this area. And everyone will forget where the people we freed today did come from, who they were, or how they got captured.” He finished in the same even, almost robotic voice.

  “So there will be sudden case of amnesia surrounding the whole thing, huh?” Annette asked in an equally calm voice.

  “Yes,” said Jason stated simply.

  “Understood,” she said. And then after a moment. “You might also consider no one remembering what you look like. Just in case,” she said, touching Jason’s arm.

  Jason though it over for a second.

  “Nobody except you and the cuberow will remember what any of us looked like.” Then he charged his next words with his reality-changing ability. “You can see me for who I am,” he murmured under his breath. There was a sudden intake of breath from the woman which told him that his “spell” worked. Annette looked at him with widened eyes, her bare arms and shoulders covered in goose bumps.

  “You’re not a vampire or a warlock. So who the hell are you?” She whispered, half to him and half to herself. Jason grimaced. It was the second time today somebody asked him that.

  “Just a human,” he answered. “A human with a bonus, but still a human.”

  “Riiiight,” drawled Annette with disbelief. “Anyway,” she changed the topic. “I meant to speak to both of you,” she said, stepping back and tipping her head at Jason and Tyler. �
�I understand that you are the ones taking care of little Toby there?” She didn’t wait for an answer, she just continued. “You must guard him closely. Don’t let any unknown vampire near him. Nor the ones you know but don’t trust explicitly.” She came closer and lowered her voice even more to a near whisper. “His blood is like nothing I’ve ever tried. It’s as if my entire life I’ve drank muddy water from a puddle and suddenly tasted some from a clear, ice-cold mountain creek. It’s better than wine, sex, and chocolates together,” she said dreamily. Then her eyes took a sharp look, and she stated pointedly. “If I wasn’t as old and experienced as I am, I wouldn’t be able to stop myself after taking the barest sip,” she warned. “And it was richer than normal blood too. After taking one sip, I felt full, like after a feeding from my usual donor.”

  She gazed at the car where Toby sat chatting with the other man. “Many vampires would give anything to have him for himself. There are legends among our kind about people with ambrosia for blood, but nobody believes in them. If they learned they’re real though…” She didn’t finish the sentence. Instead she straightened and spoke in a normal voice. “You might add me forgetting all about it to your ‘sudden amnesia’ list. I won’t tell anybody, but it would be a precaution you might want.”

  Jason measured her with his gaze. “I’ll think about it,” he said. He shot a glance at Tyler, whose face was tenser now than before. Jason was once again grateful for his lack of emotions. He knew that the small squeezing feeling in his stomach would otherwise be a full-blown panic attack. He tipped his head towards the last two men. They started walking back to them. “Could you please leave us your personal data so that we can contact you? We’d like to know if everything went according to plan and if everybody got back home safely.”

  “Of course.” Annette nodded even as the last two men encompassed her in their arms. They all said their good-byes, and the three disappeared. There were only the five of them left now.

  “Let’s go,” said Dominic tersely. “I don’t want to stay here a minute longer than necessary. I know you’ve got your hoodoo stuff, but I’ll still feel better being as far away from here as possible.” Nobody could argue with that.

  They jumped into a car. Tyler taking the driver’s seat, Dominic next to him and the other three sitting in a back. They didn’t speak. Everyone was tense, feeling that the danger hadn’t completely passed yet. After half an hour of driving, Jason, Tyler, and Toby exchanged knowing glances. Both Dominic and the other men were asleep. They neared the parking lot of car tire company, and Tyler slowed down. Jason met his gaze in the mirror and nodded. Tyler and Toby closed their eyes when Jason whispered the words laced with power, changing the reality as their previously agreed upon.

  One second they were in a slowly moving car next to a parking lot in the city where the prisoners were kept. Next they sat on sofas in Jason’s living room, those previously slumbering waking with a groan each. The sound of a chair being moved came from the kitchen, and Jiminy came barrelling into the room. He squealed loudly and jumped, his still disoriented brother hugging and squeezing the life out of him. Dominic shook off the remnants of sleep and watched them with a fond expression while Toby sat up in the armchair where he landed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. This way of traveling wasn’t the most comfortable one. Jason and Tyler could vouch for it.

  Jason glanced at their other guest and realised that the cuberow—whatever that meant—was awake, his eyes huge and breathing heavily as if on the verge of a panic attack. Jason moved his gaze first to Tyler then Toby tipping his head in direction of the man when they returned his gaze. His men seemed to understand him without words. Tyler immediately herded his twin friends and Dominic to the kitchen while Toby stood up and moved to sit on the sofa next to the man.

  “It’s okay, Jack. I told you, we’ll get you out of there and somewhere safe, and here we are. It’s Jason’s house, and you’re welcome to stay here with us. Nobody will be able to find you here. And they won’t even remember who you were. They’ll remember they had you, but not how they got you. We can bring all your stuff here, and you’ll find a job. Everything will be okay.” He spoke, rubbing the man’s back in a reassuring manner. Slowly, the man seemed to calm down.

  “Thank you,” he said after a moment. “But it won’t do me much good,” he said quietly. “I’m a cuberow, an Ethiopian wolf, as Annette told you. We need to have a pack to survive. Without pack ties to at least two or three others, our animal will slowly lose its will to live. Then the human side becomes heavily depressed, and we soon die.” He looked away saying that. “I hoped to maybe find some wolf pack or maybe some other shifters that would accept me among them, letting me join their pack. But now I don’t have much time. It was a foolish idea anyway. Shifters of any kind are so rare these days that finding a pack willing to take a stranger in is almost impossible.” He dropped his head and started picking at his jeans. Toby with his hand still on Jack’s back looked up at Jason, his eyes full of helplessness and a tiny bit of hope.

  Jason grimaced. He stepped back from the place where he ended up standing and sat in one of the armchairs. He rubbed his temples, feeling a huge headache coming at the same time that he felt a rush of emotions flooding him. It looked like his fears about staying emotionless proved false. And he wasn’t as of yet sure if he should be happy about it. The only thing he was certain of right now was that he was tired.

  Jay was so tired, as the matter of fact, that for the first time ever he accidentally released his ability. He only meant to reassure the lost-looking man sitting on the sofa, when he said, “You’re part of our pack now.” But before he realised it his power slipped from under his control, permeating the words and making them true. Both Jack and Toby gasped and looked at Jason. He looked back at them and felt something weird. As if there were something within him not entirely belonging to him. As if there were a different presence touching his. He frowned, not knowing what he was feeling, but noticed Jack’s huge eyes staring at him and his mouth hanging agape. “What?” he asked. He was too tired for this new bullshit. He used up too much power and desperately needed an aspirin and some sleep.

  “You made me a part of your pack, Sir. But you’re not a shifter. How is that even possible?”

  “God, please not another one calling me ‘sir!’” groaned Jason, tilting his head back and closing his eyes. He heard footsteps, and Tyler entered the room.

  “I suddenly felt another streak-tie appearing. Anyone cares to explain that?” he asked.

  “What’s a streak?” answered Toby with a question of his own.

  “It’s a family group of tigers. Like pack for wolves and pride for lions.” Tyler smiled at him answering. “And we instinctively recognize members of our streak even in human form. For me, my streak is my family. I can feel a kind of bond with them that goes deeper than a normal family bond for humans. I heard it’s possible for the alpha male or female of a streak to accept others into it, but it involves some weird ritual from what my father mentioned. As there is no sign of any ritual anywhere and I can clearly feel that Jack is now my streak member even though there isn’t any other shifter in sight, would you care to explain what the hell happened?”

  “So that’s what I’m feeling? A streak bond?” said Toby more to himself than anyone else in particular.

  Jason suddenly felt irritation blooming within him. He was tired, he had the mother of all headaches, and he was drained from both the events of the day, losing his emotions and getting them back as well as using his power repeatedly. He sighed and opened his eyes.

  “I lost control over my freaky mumbo-jumbo and accidentally made Jack here, a part of our pack. Now someone get me some hot coffee and aspirin, and I’ll shut up before I change one of you into a woman or something.”

  Everybody flinched as if he hit them. Yeah, he reckoned the threat of being turned into a different sex would do it to a person. It was Tyler who answered him first.

  “That would explain why you fee
l like an alpha to me now,” he said, turning and going to the kitchen. “I’ll bring you your coffee and something to eat before you take that aspirin and go to bed.” He added on his way out the room.

  “But how? How did he do it? How is that even possible?” Jason heard Jack ask, but he couldn’t be bothered to answer. Toby did it for him.

  “Jason is special,” he heard him say. “He rescued me and Tyler when we were being kept by a slave master vampire. The vampire’s people kidnapped Jason, but they didn’t know what they were getting themselves into. Jason has a special gift. I saw him turning the vampire into dust with just his words, and then, with only words as well, he made Tyler healthy again and destroyed the cage they kept him in!” he assured the other man. “He is really powerful. He can change reality.”

  Chapter Nine

  Jason didn’t remember going to bed, but when he woke up, it was dark outside and there was someone plastered to his back. He didn’t remember the last time he had someone in his bed. It was way before his change, and even then it wasn’t for long. Now though, when he moved, he realised there was not one, but two. Someone’s in bed with him. One in front of him and another one behind. His shifting must have alerted a person at his back that he was awake as a rough-from-sleep voice murmured in his ear.

  “Calm down, it’s only us.” Tyler murmured, his warm breath tickling Jason’s ear and doing some weird stuff to his libido. “We thought you wouldn’t have anything against us crashing here for tonight. We gave up our rooms to the rest of the gang. They weren’t in any state to go home tonight, so we helped them settle into our rooms for tonight with Jack taking a sofa in the living room. At his own insistence,” Tyler finished, as if sensing Jason’s coming objection. Jason relaxed a little. He might have been unused to having anyone in bed with him, but he had to admit it felt good.

  It started to feel even better when Tyler pressed even closer to his back, grounding his erection against Jason’s ass and letting his hands roam all over Jason’s body.