by Martha Carr
The dogs howled again followed by a loud yelp and the sound of a sharp crack. “That’s definitely not good. Kilomeas are still in these parts. Apparently dining on wild dog tonight.” We might have a little competition on our hands.
They got up with the bright Oriceran sun the next morning and Louie dined on blue poppy beetles he found under the rocks, roasting them over a small fire and crunching on their hard shells. “Want some? No?” The men scrambled through their packs and chewed down on Kind bars and beef jerky, sipping water from Earth. None of them offered him a bite or a sip and seemed determined not to share, even with each other.
“Might want to ration out that water. We have another full day ahead of us and I don’t know how you’d take to Oriceran hydration.” Louie gave a one-sided grin. Okay, that was at least a little fun.
They hiked along the base of the mountain till they got to the entrance to the Gnomes kingdom that burrowed deep into the lower parts of the mountain. Louie put two fingers in his mouth and let out one sharp whistle. A Gnome came waddling out of the darkness, shading his eyes, a scowl on his face and a stocking cap on his head to protect against the cold winds that blew through the mountain. Some suspected a dragon lived in its depths but Louie suspected the magical whirlpools that had sucked in more than one careless scavenger and drowned them had more to do with it. Still better than death by harpy, thought Louie as he took in a deep breath, steeling himself for the negotiation.
“Louie! I thought you got your ass kicked the last time you passed through these parts. Heard the caves almost won the last time. Usually takes you a good month to build up your courage to do the same dumbass thing again. Why the rush this time?” His eyes grew wide as he looked behind Louie and saw the pack traveling with him. “You must have taken a bigger blow to that head of yours than I realized.” The Gnome squinted into the light to get a better look as he wrinkled his forehead and snorted. “Humans! You brought humans up here who have no magic! Might as well have brought them on a spit and made it easier for the Kilomeas! Do they know they’re considered prey by some of them?”
Louie shifted his weight resisting the urge to punch the Gnome square in the face just to shut him up. That would hurt negotiations. Don’t do it. We have to get by here. Remember the last time you got in a fight with one of them and a hundred of the shorties chased you for a good mile. There’s a reason they call this the ant hill and they are fast little fuckers. “I think you’re worrying the livestock,” Louie said with a smile. “If you could keep it down…” He pushed down with his hand, doing his best to look relaxed.
“Wait till I tell my cousins. Hey! Hey Mannie, you’ll never guess…” he yelled over his shoulder.
Louie rolled his eyes and took out a shiny piece of gold, flipping it in the air to catch the reflection of the sunlight.
That caught the Gnome’s attention and he whipped back around, the smile gone from his face.
“We would like the privilege of passing by your door,” said Louie, still flipping the coin.
The Gnome looked at the coin and peered around Louie to look at the men behind him. They were all huddled closely together doing their best to not just grab each other’s hands and hold on tight.
“I’ve heard stories from other scavengers that there’s something new and slimy up in the higher caves. Must have crawled out of the whirlpools and has taken refuge higher in the mountain. Two coins.”
“Not the first time something like that has happened. One coin and I leave you alone for a week.”
“This one may have eaten one of your competitors. Two coins and I punch you in the nuts.”
“I’m pretty sure that’s not how you negotiate shortie. Not much of an incentive for me, and my kind get eaten all the time. It’s why I don’t like making friends with them. Too hard to keep figuring out who’s still around.”
“Call me shortie again and I’ll punch you free of charge. Besides, those things have to be withering on your puny vine. You’re not getting much use out of them.”
“Not sure why you’re so fascinated by my junk. Apparently I’m what you dream about at night, and seems we’ve gotten a bit off topic.” Louie flipped the coin again and suddenly felt the sword warming his back, sending a flood of energy through him. Focus.
“One coin and I use your head for a table top.” Louie felt his palms becoming hot and itchy. This cannot be good.
The Gnome’s eyes grew glassy. “Okay, deal!”
Louie gave a small shake to his head, replaying what just happened. The sword felt like it was branding his back, pushing him forward. He quickly put the coin in the Gnome’s hand, shifting the weight of the sword on his back.
The Gnome bit down on the edge of the coin, looking pleased with his deal as he turned and walked back into the depths of the mountain without looking back. Louie waited a moment to make sure none of his hundred brothers or sisters were about to pile out of there, but the entrance was quiet.
“That was fucking weird. What just happened?” He clapped his hands together and turned to face his small entourage. “Okay, don’t question good fortune, especially on this trip. That has never been that easy. Maybe it’s an omen. Come on gentlemen, let’s move our asses. We have a ways to go before we get to the hard part. Let’s get away from the shorties’ entrance before whatever that was wears off.”
It took hours but eventually they made it to the high cliffs, winding their way to the mines. They were inching along the cliff face toward Dead Man’s Crawl with Louie in the lead, taking constant looks over his shoulder to make sure no one had quietly slipped over the edge.
It was Louie’s first time being responsible for anyone other than Ronnie, and even Ronnie wouldn’t come near this part of Oriceran. Jackson was the one who originally showed him the route but even he thought long and hard before venturing up there. This was fucking stupid. There was a sheen of sweat across Louie’s forehead. He wasn’t used to worrying this much before trouble showed up. Even then, he was always too busy working at a solution to get involved with worry. This is fucking stupid.
He heard a yelp behind him and the sound of gravel spraying and turned around to find one of the men on his knees and the others frozen around him, not even helping him up. “Come on, aren’t some of you supposed to be at least weekend athletes? Help the guy up. Look, let’s try this from an angle you can understand. You survive this little adventure, you’ll be richer than all your little friends and can tell them about this adventure for the rest of your lives. Even better, I won’t be around to call you liars about the details.”
“What if we wait for you here?” The tall, thin man who was pointed out as being good at tennis and a weekend runner stepped forward.
“Spokesman for the group? Okay, I get it. No can do, though. You’re just bait out here. You think this has got to be safer, especially after all the trash that the shortie was saying but here you’re like antelope sitting too close to some very hungry Kilomea who actually know how to use weapons besides having way more strength than something with that small a brain and short a temper should have. Don’t tell them I said that. Some of them are friends.”
The men stood there, looking around nervously, not moving an inch.
“Come on guys, I kid… Except about the getting eaten part. You really need to keep moving.” He waved his arm, shooing them along like lost sheep. “Come on, get moving. Not my idea but now we gotta see it through. Life lessons, am I right? Think about how you’ll spend the money on the honeys.”
The men started moving again and Louie deftly wove through and around them, balancing on the edge of the cliff at one point with his heels over the side, till he was back at the front. “Almost there, lads. Just a couple more hurdles.” The wind briefly shifted and the smell of something rancid filled his nostrils. The smile dropped from his face momentarily as he listened for any unfamiliar sounds knowing full well the mountain could easily insulate the sound of tearing or screaming. Nothing. I wonder if that’s what somet
hing slimy would smell like.
He heard the sound of retching behind him but didn’t look back. So I lose one or two. Leira is just gonna have to understand.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Correk opened his eyes to see Leira standing over him. “Are you out of coffee again? That can’t be it. I can smell it on you.” He shut his eyes again and sank back into the pillow. “What time is it?”
“Creeping up toward lunch.”
He opened one eyes to look at her face. “You look serious. How is that possible? The little furry beast usually pulls at my hair at some point. I’ve found dried Cheetos stuck to my hair on some mornings. There was that one Raisinette that gave me a real start till I figured out it was chocolate. That would have been a new low, even for a troll. You know he actually took it out of my hand and ate it. I think I tasted my own Poptart coming back up. Hang on.” Correk gave the center of his chest a few hard taps with his fist, swallowing hard at the memory.
“He took off out of here early this morning. I feel fairly confident he’s not planning anything that could go boom.” Leira shrugged. “Okay, I admit it. I’ve lowered the bar when it comes to the troll and it’s freed up a lot of my time.” Leira pursed her lips, picturing where the troll might be. “I should ask my grandmother what’s going on. I feel her fingerprints all over this one.”
“Why are you standing over me? Are you bored? That’s good news. You’re only bored with what everyone else calls an ordinary day. It means nothing is blowing up and no one is waving a gun or an artifact.”
“I got it out of Turner. What you’re up to. I know all about it.” Leira stood there with her hands on her hips, her chin sticking out. “You should have told me.”
Correk sat up on his elbows waiting to see exactly what Leira knew.
She tilted her head to the side, arching an eyebrow. “So it’s like that? Okay, I know you’re his pick for the new Fixer. Were you ever planning to tell me?” Leira paced the floor in front of him. “I tell you everything…”
“Not true.”
“And bring you in on every case…”
“Not true.”
“I even take your advice most of the time.”
“You’re deeply in denial.”
“I trust you with my life.” She pushed his feet aside and sat down on the end of the couch.
“Alright, that one is true.” Correk pulled himself up to a sitting position, wrapping his arms around his knees. His long silver hair was tied back in a braid. “But trusting me with your life doesn’t mean an obligation to tell you everything that’s going on in my life. You’re not doing that either, and I don’t expect it.”
Leira glanced over at Correk as the blanket slipped down to his lap. “Are you wearing a Demogorgon sweatshirt?”
“The troll found Netflix. Reminds me of a game I loved to play when I was a young Elf.”
“Of course you played Dungeons and Dragons. You live among the real thing.”
“I knew you would know what that is.”
“You know, this right here,” she said, pointing back and forth, “this is why we don’t have the time to tell each other the important stuff.”
“Or it’s because you want to hear information more than you want to share it. I’m listening now.”
“Things are changing, again.” She shook her head. “It’s to be expected but something big is rolling toward us. Whatever it is, it’s dark and ferocious.”
“We’ll stop the beings behind the animal mutations and the sanctuaries will get built.”
“It’s not that. I can feel the edges of something dark and massive, some event getting closer.” Leira pulled in a small amount of magic, enough to light up her arms as the symbols slowly turned, giving out a message. “Look at that. It makes no sense. Best I can tell, it’s talking about an invasion from within. A darkness that smothers. I don’t know, maybe I’m reading them wrong. I need to show Turner.” She looked up at Correk, her eyes still glowing with magic. “Usually I can feel the answer from within.” She pressed her fingertips against the large scar on her belly. “All I can feel this time is the edge of something and it fills me with the same feeling I get when faced with danger. I’m ready to kick some ass.”
Correk smiled and leaned against the couch. “That’s your normal resting state. I approach you with caution at all times. Too soon? Look, your ability to channel energy is so great that magic actually talks to you about what’s ahead. But we don’t live by fate, so these can only be the possibilities, not the reality that hasn’t happened yet. Apparently, one of the possibilities is troublesome.”
“More like a new enemy.” A shiver passed down Leira’s back as her eyes glowed silver, the symbols changing to something Correk didn’t recognize.
“I wonder if the message is that one enemy is coming who’s powerful enough to throw the odds in his favor that we’re headed straight for his reality.” Correk watched Leira’s eyes brighten even further. “Focus on that idea.”
The symbols rippled across her skin again. Correk impulsively reached out and grabbed Leira’s hand to connect with her energy and felt a sharp icy cold fill his chest. He opened his mouth to speak and his breath turned to snowflakes as it hit the warmer air. He let go of her arm and felt the warmth gradually return. “Do you feel how cold that is?”
“I do, but the magic is protecting me from it at the same time. Fucking cryptic icy future behind door number one. Feels more personal.”
“Whatever it is, I’ve got your back. We fight with honor and to the end.”
“Was this Oriceran battle cry worthy? I’m more interested in finding the solution that steers us away from having to fight the icy future. I love a good battle as much as the next guy, but I’m not tied to it. I could find some other ways to fill my time. Get ready for the gates to open. Learn more magic so I don’t become a living light bulb. But I was planning to do that with you and Hagan. He’s my official partner at the PDF but…”
“Choosing to take on the responsibility of being the Fixer is me stepping up my game so I don’t get blown away by another fireball. The more I learn about magic, the more I can help choose a different door for the world to go through or at least be ready if we do end up in the deep freeze, or whatever that icy grip meant. It’s not enough to go on and is only a feeling. Our plate is full…”
Sparks shot across the room as a portal opened up in the living room.
“Need to get an Oriceran doorbell for those things…” muttered Leira. “Friend or foe,” she shouted, as her father, Jackson stepped through the opening. The Dark Forest of Oriceran was behind him, a gentle rainfall hitting the leaves. Jackson clapped his hands, shutting the portal as he shook off the rain drops running down his hair and back.
“This looks cozy.” Jackson stood in the center of the small living room, a rucksack tied to his back. “Not sure what my role is here.”
“Elf who doesn’t call first.” Correk scowled at him and threw the covers off, swinging his legs around and putting his feet on the floor.
“You don’t have a role here. I’m a grown ass woman. Is this a social call? You look ready for something.”
“I have a lead on a relic. Might be the one we need to ground Leira’s energy, but I’ll need some help to get it. I was actually going to ask tall, blonde and brooding here if he’d be willing to go along for the ride.”
“I’ll be coming along on this hunt. I don’t get left behind in my own story. Give me five minutes.” Leira easily bounded over the side of the couch and disappeared into her bedroom, leaving Jackson and Correk alone in the living room.
“So you and my daughter…”
“Are none of your business…” Correk created a small fireball in his hands and just as quickly extinguished it, glancing up at Jackson who smiled and made two appear in his hand, blowing on them to put them out, a wisp of smoke rising in the air.
Leira came back out dressed in jeans and a t-shirt with her leather jacket. “Smells like burn
ing hair in here. Don’t want to know.” She held up her hand before they could say anything. “You two have the silence thing down. Let’s get going…” Her phone rang just as Jackson opened the portal and stepped through. “It’s the general. I have to take it. Looks like you two are on your own. Duty calls. Try not to kill each other.”
Correk reluctantly stepped through, looking back at Leira as she shrugged and the portal closed with a sizzle and pop, leaving her standing alone in the guest house. “Hello sir.” She held the phone up to her ear, listening intently. “I know the place. I can meet you at the office and we’ll leave from there.” Leira hung up the phone and slid it back into her pocket. “Maybe they can bond hunting for the artifact. Nah, one of them is coming back with a scorch mark.”
Chapter Twenty-Eight
The general was waiting for Leira when she got to the warehouse. He was sitting at Hagan’s desk, surrounded by Alan Cohen and two other familiar PDF agents, Mark and Gail. His hat was neatly placed on the top of the desk. “This must be big. You brought reinforcements.” Leira waved to the two witches, Patsy and Lois who looked grim and had situated themselves on the couches, not saying a word. I feel better when those two are talking like magpies. They only grow silent when magic is running amok.
The general held up his cell phone, waving it in the air. “We have a rather delicate problem. Patsy, run it again, please.”
Patsy raised her wand toward the overhead virtual screen and images started to form in the air.
