by Al K. Line
Shots rang out for a few seconds more then stopped once the message got through. Mack turned back to us, the beautiful cut stone of the building falling around him as the damage settled. "Blimey. Bit jumpy, aren't they?"
"Mack, you just trashed the damn building, what did you expect to happen?" Sometimes he needs to think before he acts, but I knew his heart was in the right place, assuming he had one. That's not to say I didn't miss him being a dormouse, because I did.
There's no doubt he's intimidating, but what the men didn't know was that he couldn't actually do much in the way of interfering in our world. He's from another place and even though he's here his nature meant he couldn't just go on the rampage—minimal interference and all that. Then it clicked. Hell, the soldiers earlier. He'd had no problem killing them for insulting him and wanting to round up Strange from the Rift. Shows how much the Shift was messing with my head along with everyone else's. I knew the answer but asked, anyway. "Mack, do the same rules still apply now you're maybe here for good? You know, about getting involved in things?" The spreading smile told it all.
"Aha, wondered when you would ask. Well, my little pumpkin, never fear, Mack is here and Mack can do what he wants now. Just like a human." He strode into the building, knocking his head on the high ceiling, causing everyone but the Lieutenant Major to scramble out the much-enlarged exit, climbing over the rubble as fast as they could.
"Oh, that's just great," I sighed. Like he wasn't enough trouble already. Still, at least he was on my side, which was pretty lucky as I wouldn't want to be an enemy when he's angry. "And what are you doing here, anyway? Thought you were off out doing stuff?"
"Felt your call, that Robin was in danger, so came to help," he said with a shrug, brushing a block of masonry off his shoulder.
"Ooh, thanks, Mack, that's so sweet." Robin seemed entirely unaffected by Mack's sudden entrance, and was preening herself now we were the center of attention.
"Let's just get out of here before you totally destroy the bloody building. Sorry about the damage, Lieutenant Major, but let it be a warning. Keep your men in line or Mack here will eat them, and yes, I do mean literally."
"I'll stay awhile, make sure we have a few rules in place about these soldiers," said Robin. "Sort things out with mister army guy here."
"Oh, you just made my day. You people are nuts. The sooner we're out of here the better."
"And I'll stand guard," said Mack, stretching to his full height and poking holes in the ceiling.
"Well, good luck," I said to them both, then turned to the Lieutenant Major. "Because you're gonna need it."
I got the hell out of there before anything else went wrong.
A Partner
Family, there's nothing like it for making you stressed. I was glad Robin had called for my help, that she knew she could rely on me, just a little annoyed that I'd dashed to the rescue rather needlessly. But at least I now knew the way people were acting wasn't merely their own nature, that something in the air was making them act strangely. The rising heat awakening something primeval and dangerous.
If the Shift got any worse then the place would be a bloodbath. A hot, sticky, sexy bloodbath.
I fumbled in a pocket for a smoke, pulled out a rather sorry looking cigar and got it lit with a lighter that wasn't too happy about the humidity. Standing alone in the plaza, watching the soldiers trying to clear away the mess Mack had made, glancing in at the giant form nervously, I sucked down smoke and felt my muscles relax a little.
The damn cigar was soggy, smoking badly, but I didn't care. It was better than nothing. Robin's call had totally thrown me off, and I had a hard time remembering what I'd been doing, where I was headed.
Find Blue, that was my job, what I should be doing. With the city going crazy she would have to be stopped soon. She was mad enough anyway, so if she was affected then it didn't bear thinking about. With a deep pull on my cigar that was now so limp it was like sucking on a damp cloth, I stubbed it out, found a bin and dumped it.
Sighing, I stepped away from the clear paving and back into the jungle. It swallowed me up in a moment and once again I battled with the plant life as I headed toward shifter territory.
Figuring it was a good place to start, that I could get valuable intel whilst also checking on Faith to make sure she was okay and to see how the Shift had affected the community as a whole, I forged through the wet wilds. Shifters are susceptible to magical events, so the disruption to the Pool could be affecting them even though they didn't use magic consciously like me. It was still a part of them, and the last thing we needed was a load of frisky shifters chasing about the city.
The jungle was stinking now, the stench of rot thick in the air. It was impossible to breathe without getting a sickly-sweet cloying taste at the back of the mouth. Plants were dying all around me, rotting fast, food for the insects gathering in ever greater numbers. Flies were everywhere, beetles and grubs and birds of all description devouring the bounty the wayward garden offered.
Fruits littered the ground in patches as I made my way, pockets of overpowering sweetness, exotic and tempting. I didn't know what half these things were, though, whether they were safe and delicious or poisonous. But it didn't seem to bother the birds, or the wasps that buzzed loudly and feasted on the overripe goodies that made the going increasingly treacherous.
At one point, I had to make a detour as the smell was just too intense. Fat red fruits fell from overhead, splitting and littering the ground in a large circle of pulpy flesh. A massive pile swarmed by wasps, angry and violent as they guarded their feast.
As if this wasn't enough to test my resolve and fast-diminishing patience, it kept raining in fast bursts. One minute the sky was blue where I glimpsed it through the canopy, the next it was gray and the heavens would open, soaking everything. The jungle visibly grew as it sucked up the moisture, then it was back to sun, the ground and plants steaming as the humidity shot up once more.
Everything was running fast, the cycle of life and death, the weather, even the people. Amped up, the threat of violence and sexual tension palpable as I passed others making their way through the jungle.
There were leers and there were frowns from both men and women I passed, some looking for a lover, others for a fight. I was left alone, my Justice tattoo visible so they knew not to mess with me. How long that would last was anyone's guess, but I got the feeling it wouldn't be long before everyone went loco.
I sped up, dipping into the Pool to let the magic flow, cool my body before I too became wild. And this was an issue—was I still me? Was I being affected, too? I'd certainly come over rather eager with Pumi this morning, and that wasn't like me. What about him, was he the same? And Robin, she was oozing sexuality like honey dripping off a spoon. Was the Shift responsible or were we acting as we otherwise would? How to know, and what to do about it? Was using magic making it better or worse?
Putting such thoughts aside, I moved faster and battled with the dangerous plant life, stepped around the thick trunk of a banana plant, and smack bang into the strong arms of Pumi.
"Hell, you made me jump," he said, laughing and smiling, pleased to see me. Luckily, he lowered his machete and put it back in a leather scabbard at his waist. Close call!
"Where did you come from? You okay?" We were holding hands somehow, both our palms slick but refusing to let go. I drew back to arm's length to look at him properly, much as I'd liked the closeness, his arms around me, me feeling his firm body, the smell of him. Yep, I was definitely being affected. I knew for a fact that wouldn't have normally been my first reaction. I got it together and focused on him, not on our tryst of earlier.
"I'm okay. You?"
"I'm good. Well, if you can call this good." I waved at the jungle.
"It's getting worse, isn't it?" I nodded, not needing to say anything. "Sorry about what I did. I lost the plot and was ashamed, didn't want you to see me like that. I shouldn't have run off, though, especially without my clothes on."<
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"It's okay, I understand. You wanted to protect me but I can take care of myself, Pumi, always have. You overreacted, you know that, right?"
"I know, and it isn't what I'm usually like. Can't understand what came over me. I went back, to find you, and, er, to get some clothes, but you were gone. And you ate all my dinner," he accused, studying me and smiling that impish smile of his.
"Ah, sorry, but I was hungry after..."
"After the rather intense exercise? Damn, we're like two young kids. Don't go expecting it to always be like that, I'll get worn out."
"And don't think I always put out on a first date. Actually, we haven't even had our date yet. You owe me dinner."
"It will be my pleasure. Anyway, forgive me? I feel so awful, so stupid. All these years, and I still can't control myself. I'd never hurt you, never think that."
"I know it. Look, you were out of line but it's not entirely your fault. It's the Shift, it's affecting everyone." I told him about Robin and the soldiers, about how I believed everyone would lose the plot soon unless the Shift somehow just went away.
"Damn, this is just nuts. I can't believe the Rift only went yesterday. It feels like we've been living with this heat for a lifetime." Pumi wore a pair of faded shorts and a gray vest, but he was soaked with sweat, muscles bulging, scars visible across his body. I knew him well enough to know he wouldn't normally expose his body like this, but even so he was extremely uncomfortable, wiping at his head, a bandanna tied around his forearm.
"People need time to adjust. The soldiers aren't helping, but that's nothing compared to what it'll be like if the city ever goes back to normal. We'll have hordes of politicians trying to clean up the place, the police force, not to mention God knows how many tourists descending on us to see what's going on. Hell, I bet they're arriving already. Although, no, maybe not. They've probably put up roadblocks to stop anyone getting in. Too dangerous and too much of an unknown."
"Too true. No way will anyone be let in here apart from the army. I'm surprised they aren't wearing protective gear in case the place is poisonous."
He was right. We would be shut down same as we were during the Rift. Although, that was mainly because certain creatures stopped anyone getting in, but now we would be seen as a different kind of danger zone—contaminated.
"So, we good?" he asked, standing awkwardly, looking at his foot as he kicked about in the rich soil that covered a small park surrounded by houses we could no longer see.
"We're good." And we were. One thing I knew above all else was that he would never hurt me. The monster protected its own, and we were together now, neither of us having to spell it out. I think that was because of fear of what the other felt, both of us a little off-balance because of the relationship we found ourselves in. Drawn to each other. Two broken human beings who'd been alone in the world for so long. For too long.
"Now, what's the plan?"
"The plan? I have to find and deal with Blue."
"Then I'll come and help."
"Okay, partner, but I'm in charge. No doing anything unless I say so. I work alone usually so don't cramp my style."
"Yes, boss, whatever you say, boss."
I got the distinct impression there was no way he would do as he was told.
Very Enterprising
We made progress best we could through the living forest, Pumi tearing creepers and vines from our path, hacking at them with his machete if they were too strong even for him. The rain soaked us then the sun dried us then the humidity soaked us all over again, and all I could think was I wanted to go home and lie down on my bed with a fan blowing cool air over my body. Maybe a few freezers' worth of ice poured over my naked body. Ah, bliss.
We chatted as we made our way, a comfortable and relaxed conversation. There was something about the two of us together. We clicked, like we'd known each other for years not days. We were like an old married couple, rather than relative strangers. Would I have another husband? Was that where this was heading? Damn, I was getting ahead of myself, but the more we talked the more I knew this was to be no fling. Yet we didn't speak of it, so then I worried I was thinking one thing and him another.
Just see what happens, that was the way. Don't push it or jump to conclusions. I hardly knew the man, so whatever feelings I had for him were because of the newness of the relationship and the fact I was incredibly lonely yet refused to waste my time with anyone that could make my life worse.
One thing that comes with age is the deep understanding that you are alone, always locked inside your own head at the end of the day. I've come to accept this, to embrace it to some degree. I'm comfortable with the woman I find myself being, happy to be without a partner unless I truly believe them to be a good person underneath whatever veneer they project to cope with the world.
Pumi was that person. Good, but flawed, same as most people. Same as me. At least I liked to think I was a good person, although there are days when I'm not so sure.
Finally, we were in shifter territory. An oasis of familiarity for its inhabitants, a crescent of houses with small front gardens and a curved wonderland of communal self-sufficiency at the rear. Every garden without a fence, the land used for growing crops, providing meat, and much more for the shifter community.
Now it was very different.
"Bloody hell, guess nowhere's exempt," said Pumi, staring at the once neat front gardens, now teeming with towering plants, the creepers trying to monopolize many of the houses. The road was still relatively clear, but it wouldn't be long before the jungle devoured the asphalt.
"But it hasn't overwhelmed them. Must be because of the inherent magic. It's not taking over totally where creatures from the Rift congregated or lived and my guess is it's the same for those strong with magic. Heck, your garden was tame compared to the rest of the city, and that's just because of one shifter. Wonder what the fields and the crops are like? Hope they've got it under control."
"Let's go find out. You know where Faith will be? Haven't seen her for a few weeks."
"Probably messing with her tomatoes again. She's got growing them down to an art." She had grown to love working in the gardens over the years and definitely had green fingers, and very skilled ones when it came to other more intimate uses.
"Yeah, she's got a magic touch all right."
I noted Pumi looking rather wistful and wondered what had gone on with them, if anything. But then, I was probably looking the same way so neither of us asked questions.
There were a few people out the front, stripping away the plants from their gardens and houses, doing a good job of it, too, but it was the communal spaces that were the focus. People were working hard everywhere you looked. Some of the fields for cereals were being tended by a gang of workers, painstakingly taking out anything that could ruin the crop.
Luckily for them, magic was keeping the worst of the jungle away, but as we approached the orchard things changed rapidly. Mixed in amongst the ancient apple trees were more exotic specimens, the red fruits of earlier in abundance. People were picking them and loading them onto carts, huge Shire horses slowly walking between the neat rows, pulling the carts behind.
We watched as people uprooted rogue plants, others hoeing and digging, keeping everything orderly, the invasive fruit trees that remained, growing in neat lines. It was harder going here, probably as nobody spent much time in the orchards, but, resourceful as ever, they were making the best of a bad deal.
We caught sight of Faith and went to check on her.
"Look out!" someone shouted, and my world erupted with pain.
Damn Weather
One moment the sky was blue, the next dark and angry, my body battered by what felt like cannonballs. People shouted and screamed, ran for cover as thunder boomed across the city and lightning streaked across the sky. And hail. Ungodly hail the size of tennis balls assaulted us. Cracking skulls, bruising bodies, breaking noses and covering the ground in white lumps of destruction in an instant.
> I dashed for the cover of a large apple tree, only to find it worse. Twigs and leaves tangled in my hair, apples pummeled my shoulders, and hail the same.
I saw Faith panic, looking to the vegetable garden and beyond, where the greenhouses protected her precious tomatoes. They would be trashed, the glass broken, the tender plants destroyed. She glanced up at the sky then decided to make a run for it.
"We have to go after her," I shouted to Pumi and he ran from the next tree, bruises appearing on his shoulders, hands over his head. Something ran past him in a blur of fur and I realized the hail may have been the least of my problems.
As Faith disappeared around a hedge, creatures dashed this way and that, growling and howling, yipping and barking, running and cantering, bucking and leaping as a menagerie of mayhem tried to escape the destruction.
The only ones in human form were those of us that couldn't shift or those that would be no better, or even worse, off if they shifted. No point turning into an owl when the first hail would flatten you. And there was Pumi, face contorted, holding back the change his body craved, fighting it and winning.
There was something else. The Pool was churning, magic eddying and spiraling out of control as the weather worsened until it felt like the whole city spasmed.
With a terrible crack in my mind, I felt the Pool over Strangetown almost fracture as wild energies not born of anything natural bled through the gaps in reality and tore at the minds of all things magical.
I was floored and so was Pumi, so were all others in human form. The animals went wild. They ran, frantic. The Shire horses toppled carts and bolted, the shifter animals fought even as others copulated, and violence replaced the sexual tension of moments ago.
Rage threatened to boil over and consume what little sense I had. To make me do things I would never normally do but now maybe wanted to. A tug at my magical abilities, corrupting the power lurking inside. Anger at the world reared its ugly head. Hatred of my mother, envy of my sister, animal lust turned violent directed towards Pumi. A jealous resentment ran deep as I thought of Faith, and everything churned and mixed in my head and heart until I didn't know what was happening or what I was doing.
