Power of the Fae

by Ariel Marie

  During the day when the sun is the highest, it provides the best shade. It has the perfect view when you sit in front of it. It overlooks a cliff with a hundred-foot drop that shows off the beauty of the North Carolina mountaintops. The woods start at the base of the cliff and the view of the mountains are the perfect backdrop for a post card. You can see for miles around. It’s a place of serenity and I come here often to clear my head.

  My wolf catches a new scent of sweet apricots and becomes distracted. The wolf in me wants to find the origin of the scent. I know I need to catch up with my brothers but my wolf is determined to find where this scent is coming from. My wolf is getting excited so we head towards the tree. As I come around near the edge of the tree there is a small figure sitting Indian style in front of it. One look at her and I forget how to breathe.

  What the hell is wrong with me?

  I’m frozen in place drinking in the sight of her. She is the most beautiful creature I have ever seen. My wolf is excited and the strong urge to walk over to her is compelling. He wants to run and rub himself against her to cover her with our scent. But I’m able to control myself. She lowers her head and tenses as if she realizes she’s no longer alone.

  She has tanned skin, long dark hair that she has tied up in a messy bun at the top of her head. She has pointy ears that tell me she must have Fae blood in her. Her skin is flawless with her high cheekbones and small nose. She has on a black tank top, black cargo fatigue pants and knee-high black combat looking boots. She turns her head and looks directly at me. Her bright emerald green eyes blow me away. My wolf eyesight is perfect even at nighttime. She doesn’t say a word and stares right back at me. Her head cocks to the side.

  “Hello,” she says not taking her eyes off of me.

  A shimmer of light comes from her hand drawing my attention to the blade she is holding. Her hands are so small the knife almost doesn’t look right. I can tell by the way she is holding it that she knows that knife intimately and knows how to use it.

  “Are you shy or just plain rude?” she says, standing up.

  What the fuck?

  In order to speak to her, I would have to shift back to my human form. My very naked human form, I might add. I stand up to my full height on all fours. We are the same height and I’m able to look her straight in the eye. She has to be no more than five foot three inches tall. I sniff the air noticing the smell of fear is not on her, just that delicious apricot scent. Most people who would come across a large wolf late at night would turn tail and run for the hills. Not her. She looks me dead in the eye, with her body loose and knife in her hand, as if waiting to see if I will attack her.

  I step back from her to show that I’m not going to attack. My wolf would never hurt her. He wants to protect her. Her scent is too addicting. He wants to get closer to her. He is totally infatuated with her. Being this close to her makes me want to shift back to my human form, grab her and throw her up against the tree and fuck her senseless. Mate. A voice whispers. That one small word that could change my life forever. My eyes widen. No, it cannot be!

  “I know that you’re a shifter and if you’re not going to shift to speak to me as a human, I’m going to go. Have a good night,” she says quickly, looking up from her watch.

  She walks around the other side of the tree and vanishes into thin air. I run to where I last saw her and breathe in her scent. Yeah, she has to be part Fae. The Fae have the ability of teleportation. I don’t think she is full Fae. I have not seen many Fae with dark features, most are light in nature. As I’m breathing in her scent, Devyn comes out of the woods.

  What the hell are you doing? I thought you wanted in on the deer? He asks across our bond.

  I got distracted. I was checking something out, I answer him, pawing the ground in the last spot the dark haired beauty stood.

  Why do I smell apricots? he asks looking around with a confused look on his face.

  Don’t worry about it. Where’s Micheil? I ask him trying to distract him from the apricot smell.

  He’s with the deer. Let’s go before some coyotes pick up the scent of fresh blood.

  Devyn turns and starts trotting into the forest. I follow him, thinking of the beautiful little female that vanished into thin air. Hopefully, I won’t ever see her again. I can’t have a mate. There is too much happening to my people for the Gods to decide to finally show my mate.

  Wolves mate for life. It is considered a blessing from the Gods to find your mate. Once a wolf finds his or her mate, they don’t ever look at another person. A mating is an eternal bond that can only be broken in death. I don’t have time to have a mate. I choose not to be in a relationship with anyone. One-night stands fit my lifestyle perfect. A night of pleasure with no strings attached is my way of life. Who wants to have a mate that is not only the Alpha of one of the oldest packs in the United States but leader of the Legion? There is always that chance that I will one day not come home. I can’t do that to anyone.

  * * *

  Hot water has never felt so good. I turn the shower water off and reach outside of the shower to grab a towel to dry off. Running always helps expel some of the tension in my body. I throw on a pair of clean shorts, grabbing a beer from my fridge in the corner of my room. Staring off at the beautiful view of the mountains, I take a long pull from the ice-cold beer. My thoughts keep going back to the little black haired female from the forest. Thoughts of her have plagued my mind. If only I could pursue someone like her.

  Where are you? Devyn says through our bond.

  I’m on the patio, come on out, I reply. A few seconds later he walks through the glass doors holding a beer and sits in the other patio chair.

  “We received a message from Azura,” he states after taking a swallow of his beer.

  Azura is the High Priestess of the Witches’ Council and the leader of the local witches’ coven. She is very old and the most powerful witch that I know of. We have a mutual respect for each other. I’ve known her since I was a pup. She was around when my father was Alpha of our pack. The witches and the wolves in our area have an unofficial agreement between each other. Occasionally we will work together. The witches have warded our compound against the strongest of evil. Only those who we want to come in our compound can come in.

  “What does she want?” I glance over at him. If she is requesting to meet, it must be important.

  “She wants to meet with you. I guess a meeting to share information about the disappearances.” He shrugs.

  “When does she want to meet?”

  “Tomorrow night at eight at her home.”

  “That’s fine. Let her know we’ll be there.” Devyn nods, gets up and pats me on my shoulder and goes back inside.

  Not wanting to go inside yet, I continue to sit outside on my patio. The fresh air and beautiful mountain view helps me get my thoughts together. The recent disappearances have been at the top of my agenda as the leader of the Legion. The Legion has been investigating werewolf disappearances for the last two years. There are no traces of the missing werewolves. There have been reports of about six wolves that have gone missing all over the country. Each Legion in the region that the wolves went missing has investigated the disappearances and come up with nothing.

  One of the most recent wolves that went missing was from a southern pack. His name was Kevin Rhode. The thirty-year-old wolf had been seen leaving a bar late at night after having a few drinks with friends. He hasn’t been seen since. The alley off the side of the dilapidated building that housed the bar was covered in his blood. The only scents noted were his and a hint of brimstone. It is hard to believe that he could still be alive. Whoever attacked him took his body with them. If they had killed him in that alley in his wolf form his body would have been there. When a wolf dies in his animal form, his body will transform back to his human form.

  The next wolf that went missing was female. Serah Daniel was last seen at her best friend’s apartment. She was a young pretty wolf in her mid-twenties
. Her car was abandoned at a local nightclub. The car was trashed as if someone ransacked it. Like Kevin’s disappearance, there was blood everywhere in the car.

  We’ll meet with Azura tomorrow and hopefully we can learn new information from each other. We need to find out what is happening to the missing supernaturals and put an end to the disappearances.

  Chapter Four

  ~Lina~

  The Witches’ Council is made up seven members. Each member represents top covens from across the country. They meet quarterly here in Langdale. Hundreds of years ago when witches started to migrate to the United States from Europe and other countries, Langdale was the first settlement for real witches. Not the ones you see on television or websites claiming to be real witches. My mother’s family, the Văduvas, migrated to the United States over three hundreds year ago from Romania. We were one of the founding families of Langdale.

  A Văduva witch has been the High Priestess of the Witches’ Council since the beginning. My grandmother, Azura, is the high priestess now. It would have passed to my mother, had she not been killed ten years ago. According to the Commandments of the Witches, once Azura is no longer able to be the High Priestess, the position will be passed to me as the next in line since my mother is deceased.

  When the council began meeting, the Temple of Aegohati was built on what is said to be blessed grounds. Witches believed the Goddess Isis, the Goddess of Life and Magic, blessed the grounds the temple was built on making the lands sacred. The Temple of Aegohati was built deep in the Wilted Willow Woods. The Temple was built of white stone with a large white staircase that leads up to the second story entrance. The entrance is one large dark stone door. The building has three large pillars on each side of the staircase and you can see the glass dome that graces the top of the temple.

  Usually the council meets at night, but due to the urgent nature of the meeting to discuss the vanishings, they are meeting at noon today. I’m dressed in my traditional witch full-length black velvet cloak. Underneath my cloak, I have on black leather pants with a fitted long sleeve grey V-neck shirt. Since I am in the woods, I just threw on my knee-high black leather riding boots. My hood is pulled up to cover my hair. I have my hair pulled into a low side ponytail, which sticks out the right side of my hood. My cloak has been adjusted to where I can strap my katana to my back.

  The Văduva family crest is pinned to my left breast signifying my coven. Even though I am half Witch and half Fae I still belong to my mother’s family coven. My Fae powers come more naturally than my witch powers. The summers we spent with my mother’s family were spent learning spells, potions and the history of witches.

  Running up the stairs, the power of the wards that are set to protect the temple hits me as I pass through them. Only witches are allowed to pass through these wards. My crest is visible to the guards who are standing by the entrance door. They nod their heads and open the door for me to enter. The small flames of the lit torches that decorate the hallway lead the way to the council meeting.

  The temple houses several sacred rooms. In the middle of the temple, the hallway opens up to a sitting room of sorts that is underneath the glass dome. It has chairs and small tables and glass showcases. In the showcases are artifacts and old spell books that are placed on display. Once I walk under the glass dome I am only a few feet away from the Council’s meeting room. The dome showcases the sky and provides natural light for this room.

  Outside the Council’s meeting room, there is another guard that I must show my crest to in order to gain entrance. He protects the Council members as they are meeting. He opens the door allowing me to enter. It is a large, round, dark room with high ceilings. In the center of the room is a large round table that the Council members sit around. It has a few extra chairs at the table for when the Council has visitors. My grandmother, Azura, sits at the head of the table.

  Azura Văduva, matriarch of the Văduva family, may be a small woman but her power is unmatched by anyone. She has long black hair that reaches her mid-back. In the front she has a patch of grey hair that denotes her elder age. She smiles at me as I walk to the table, her green eyes, so much like mine, shine with pride and love.

  “Good afternoon, everyone.” I smile slightly. I make sure to make eye contact with all members as I take a seat at the roundtable across from my grandmother.

  “What is she doing here?” Uywrick Veckalnins, of the Solar Coven of Maine, sneers to my grandmother. He and his coven reside in a small town in Maine. He’s a small pale man with wild plain brown hair that looks like it hasn’t seen a comb in months. His eyes are dull brown and he has the face of a weasel.

  He has never liked Keegan or me. He was against my mother marrying my father for the peace treaty between the Witches and the Fae. He has always been very vocal with his hatred for the Fae and this goes back decades. Why he harbors such hatred, I don’t have a clue. I don’t really care.

  The smile quickly leaves Azura’s face as her eyes turn cold and fierce as she slowly stands, her attention on Uywrick. All who surrounds the table feel her radiating power. She is the High Priestess of the Witches’ Council and demands respect.

  “I requested my granddaughter be here tonight because witches are disappearing. She is here to help us.”

  “We don’t need help from the Fae!” he yells, spittle flying out of his mouth. She throws up her right hand and her power knocks him back into his chair. He gasps, his face turning a cherry red, as he is unable to breathe. He begins panicking, eyes wide as he claws at his throat.

  “I do not need to explain to you why I asked my granddaughter to come. She may be half Fae, but she is still half Witch. DO NOT QUESTION ME AGAIN!!” she yells in her thick Romanian accent that gets worse when she’s pissed. She releases him from her hold. He drops back into his chair, gasping for breath and holding his throat. She looks around at the rest of the table, with one eyebrow raised, daring anyone else to challenge her.

  “Any other objections?” She sits back down and looks at the rest of the Council, slightly out of breath. “Let’s not forget that with the alliance created from my daughter Loredana’s marriage to Prince Vamir, the Witches and Fae came to a complete unity truce. We have worked together to become allies.”

  Cyrene Nevitt, of the Midnight Coven, Evanora Cogan, of the Phoenix Coven and Klyleus Staskos, of the Firestar Coven, all quickly shake their heads no. Ginevra Ivanovs, of the Enigma Coven, just stares at my grandmother with her mouth hanging open and Geyus Zile, of the Grasslove Coven, has a blank expression on his face. I choke back a laugh, proud at my grandmother for sticking up for me. She’s like a momma bear protecting her cubs when it comes to her family.

  “May I address the Council please?” I ask rising to my feet and standing as tall as my five foot three inch body will allow. My grandmother nods.

  “I want to thank the Council for allowing me to come to this meeting. Not only am I here because of my grandmother’s request but as a request of my father, Prince Vamir Waldmar, the future King of the Light Fae. There are Fae missing too. I am here as a representative of the Guardians. We can work together, share information and hopefully find our people and bring them home.”

  “Vamir Waldmar is a joke. The Fae are a bunch of disrespecting, no-good bullies,” Uywrick mutters under his breath, but I hear every word. I use my Fae powers to drain his lungs of all air. My element that I am able to control is air. Right now, I can suffocate him to death without even laying a finger on him.

  “Arlina! No!” Azura says sharply. She rushes over to me. He’s gasping for breath, his beady eyes wide, frantically looking around.

  “He’s not worth it. I know he’s an ass, but he is not worth it,” she says softly and gently strokes my arm. I walk over to him, grabbing him by the front of his shirt, blowing air into his mouth. This was a trick I learned when I was younger to put air back in a person’s lungs.

  “Do not disrespect my father or the Fae in front of me ever again. I will not be as kind as my grand
mother,” I say very quietly to him. He nods his head and slumps down into his chair.

  I walk back to my chair and take a seat. I’m trying to calm down. My breathing is rapid. There are some things that I share with my brother and father. They are not the only ones that can be deadly in the family. The rest of the Council just stares at me. I’m sure they haven’t had this much excitement at a Council meeting in years.

  “I would like to apologize to the Council.” I feel the need to do this. I shouldn’t have reacted at Uywrick. I should have just ignored him.

  “Don’t worry about it Arlina. Uywrick does not have any manners. Thank you for coming to aid us,” Evanora Cogan speaks from her side of the table. She is the leader of the Phoenix Coven who are located in Phoenix, Arizona. She is a tall witch, standing about six feet. She’s very tanned with bright blue eyes, with thick grey hair that is parted down the middle and braided in two braids. The braids are so long, they brush against her behind. It’s hard to tell her age due to the grey hair. She smiles, nodding her head at me.

  “Yes, we all know he’s an idiot. Shall we get started?” Ginevra speaks up from her side of the table.

  “Yes, of course. Let’s start with the most recent disappearance and work our way backwards,” I request. I reach for the notepad and pen that is on the table in front of me to take notes.

  “Athena Ivy, twenty-two years old. She was a neophyte that belongs to a small coven in Massachusetts. She was out of town visiting friends in Pittsburgh. They were celebrating one of her friend’s birthdays. They were in a club in downtown Pittsburgh. They decided to walk the few blocks to her friend’s apartment instead of catching a cab. Her blood was discovered in an alley. Her friends were rendered unconscious and have no memory of what happened. She recently came in to witch-hood and did not stand a chance.” This came from Cyrene. I ask a few questions. Satisfied with what I’ve heard so far, I request for the next missing witch’s case.