My Soul to Take

by Amy Sumida

  “A Thaisce,” he took me by the upper arms. “These are the facts; you saw all of the elements within him, you saw him looking for even more magic, you saw a human and a god soul which gives him twice the power of a normal being, and the god soul has had a previous life which has taught it to be perceptive and careful. I think if we consider all of these details, there is little to worry about. Brevyn will make his choices and we will help him.”

  You're wrong, Faerie's grim voice came in my head. Arach stiffened so he must have heard her too.

  “What do you mean?” I demanded

  I should have seen it before, she sounded tired. I don't know why I didn't think to look.

  “Look at what?” Arach growled and Brevyn gave a cry. “Sorry, Son,” he began to rock Brevyn's cradle. “Shhh, it's just Faerie.”

  Brevyn's soul... souls, she corrected. You're correct about the dual souls, Vervain. But the god soul is not trying to decide on a magic.

  “But the bean-nighe said-”

  The bean-nighe was only partially right, she interrupted me. Brevyn is searching but it's not in the way you've assumed.

  “What do you mean?” I asked her.

  Think, Vervain! Gods can't choose their magic.

  “But I thought maybe since I was able to choose god magic...”

  That what; your son could choose a magic for his god soul? She scoffed.

  “But I saw the elements within the tendrils of his god soul.”

  Yes, you did, Faerie agreed. As did I. Brevyn does have the ability to cast spells and yes, he could make himself immune to fire if he wanted too, but this fire you see isn't an elemental god magic. It's a fey magic which is the result of his god magic.

  “I'm totally confused,” I huffed and went to sit in the rocking chair.

  Well that's nothing new, she chuckled.

  “Faerie,” I growled.

  Alright, she sighed. I'll explain it so that even you can understand. I didn't know to look for it until you did. That questing glow you see is his god soul, yes, but it has already been given its magic. The magic the bean-nighe told you of, though she didn't understand entirely what she saw. It's the magic of Borrowing.

  “Borrowing?” Arach laid a hand on Brevyn's back.

  “Brevyn's magic has the ability to take another person's magic,” I explained to Arach.

  Finally! Faerie declared. Yes, your son can have any magic he desires, even faerie magic, thanks to his accommodating human soul.

  “The universal soul type,” I muttered.

  What? Oh... yes, that's a good way to put it. The human soul can accept both fey and god magic, it's flexible. Anyway, that's what you saw, his god magic reaching out to what's around him, connecting with potential sources of magic to borrow and completely unlimited in his options due to his universally compatible human soul. However, the only magic in Faerie he can draw on are the elements and...

  “And me,” I whispered and yanked the goggles back on.

  Sure enough, I found the blush of Love on the tip of one of his tendrils. Another cord glowed an earthy mustard and I knew it was my Intare magic. Finally, the pale light of my moon caught my eye. They were all camouflaged among the rest of his glowing threads, subtly filled as opposed to the brilliant colors of the elements.

  And you, she confirmed. The elements are brighter because he has more of their energy available to him here. If he were in the God Realm, among a host of gods, you'd most likely see those tendrils full of their magic. It doesn't mean he's chosen them and he will never hold any of them like you hold your three. He simply connects with everything nearby and when he wishes to, he makes a temporary choice. That is the undecided nature Nainsidh saw. In a way, he will always remain undecided because even when he chooses, he has the option of letting go and making another choice.

  “So wait,” I held up a finger. “It sounds like he can have any magic but only one at a time.”

  I believe so but I'll have to watch him and see what happens when he uses a magic, Faerie mused. If that's true, then when he decides on one magic, the magic should dominate his aura and those questing tendrils should disappear. However, I could be mistaken. Perhaps his human soul will make it possible to hold several magics at once. We will just have to wait and see. But for now, it's pretty clear that until Brevyn decides to keep a magic, he will be in this questing stage, where his psychic abilities are heightened to help him discern what magic would be best for him at any given moment.

  “So he'll always have the psychic abilities,” I sighed.

  This is a good thing, Vervain. It will be immensely helpful to him.

  “Yeah, I know.”

  “Our son can have any magic he wants, whenever he wants,” Arach surmised.

  Keep it in your pants, Fire King, Faerie chuckled. But go ahead and think about the possibilities. If Brevyn could change elements at will...

  “Oh hell no!” I pointed at Arach. “Wipe that look from your face. We already talked about this. It went bad when you tried to use Rian to rule Faerie and it will go bad if you try to use Brevyn.”

  My realm is ruled exactly as it should be, Faerie chided Arach. Do not upset the balance again.

  He gave a grudging nod.

  What I meant was; you could have one son to rule Fire and one to be an ambassador between the kingdoms.

  “An ambassador?” Arach made a disgusted face.

  “An ambassador,” I repeated and started to smile. “He could speak to the other fey with complete understanding of their elements.”

  Brevyn would be the ultimate faerie, Faerie agreed. Able to unify all of my children with his understanding and wisdom.

  “And compassion,” I added with a smile at Arach. “Told you so.”

  And compassion, Faerie agreed. Rian is a fighter, King Arach. He's your heir and more powerful than any prince before him. His dual souls have given him twice the magic. It's why he's strong enough to accomplish feats such as carrying his brother along with him on his first flight. But Brevyn is something altogether different. Something our world has never seen. Something no realm has ever seen.

  “A faerie prince who's not a faerie at all but yet can have the magic of all faeries,” I whispered.

  “Sounds like a high king to me,” Arach muttered.

  Faerie and I groaned.

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  I went back to the God Realm and informed my husbands of Brevyn's unique ability.

  “We tell no one,” Odin declared immediately.

  “We tell no one what?” Azrael asked as he came into the room.

  “Brevyn's god magic is the ability to borrow another god's magic,” Trevor informed him.

  “Like Vervain can?” Azrael made an impressed face. “Cool.”

  “He can change magic whenever he feels like it and he's not limited to god magic. Because of his human soul, he can borrow fey magic too,” I added. “I think his magic is going to be substantially more powerful than mine.”

  “We don't know that yet,” Odin said cryptically.

  “A what soul?” Azrael held up a hand to stop us.

  “Oh, sorry, babe,” I sighed. “I forgot to tell you about the boys each having human souls in addition to their fey and god souls.”

  “So they're twins in many ways,” Az mused.

  “And yet very different,” I nodded. “Rian's human soul makes him a super-charged fey and Brevyn's makes him a...”

  “Thief,” Odin sighed. “And it all comes back to me. I did this to you and you passed it to your son,” he looked at me apologetically.

  “Odin, this isn't a bad thing,” I gave him a grin. “I was worried at first, like you are. But then I realized that Brevyn will be able to become whatever he wants; faerie or god... and he can change his mind. It's a huge relief to know that he won't be stuck with a wrong decision.”

  “So you won't know how many magics he can handle until he starts taking them,” Trevor frowned. “Maybe you should keep him away from gods for now.”<
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  “What?” Odin growled. “No. I'm going to see my grandson.”

  “Who's now your step-son,” Azrael chuckled.

  “Step-son,” Odin mused. “Yes, I suppose that's what he is now. Just as Ull was once to Thor. How fascinating.”

  “So actually, he's a stepped-up step grandson,” Azrael kept going.

  “Nice one,” Trevor fist-bumped him.

  “I just realized; in Faerie, Brevyn doesn't have to borrow an element from any one faerie in particular,” I said as I remembered how much brighter the element tendrils were. “He can connect with the elements in the land.”

  “He should be able to do zat anywhere,” Kirill noted. “Elements are in all nature.”

  “That's a good point. Though I suspect that the elements in Faerie are a little more magical than those in the Human Realm,” I smiled. “But that means he doesn't have to be a thief.”

  “Even if he took a god magic, it sounds like he just mimics it,” Trevor mused. “When you take a magic, you pull it into yourself and claim it, Vervain. But you said Brevyn touches magic and forms a connection which he can later sever. He wouldn't be able to do that if he took the magic, it would need a place to return to.”

  “And if he took it completely, the god he took it from would be dead,” Odin noted. “The magic would have no place to go. It would have to be released, in effect it would be destroyed. And no magic would willingly destroy itself.”

  “That's right!” I started to smile bigger.

  “So he's a copycat,” Odin considered.

  “Why do you insist on using insulting labels for my son?” I asked him dryly.

  “I didn't mean to be insulting,” he looked genuinely surprised. “Would you prefer mocker or mimic?”

  “How about mime?” Azrael asked with a smirk.

  “You're on a roll today, Archangel of Comedy,” I laughed.

  “I had a good night,” he smiled serenely and slid into a chair beside me at the breakfast table. “I took an old man and his wife to Heaven.”

  “Together?” I lifted a brow.

  “Together,” he nodded. “She died in her sleep and it was like his soul sensed it and he just followed.”

  “Thanks a lot,” I smacked him. “Now I'm going to cry.”

  “It was sweet not sad,” he stroked my cheek. “And they're thrilled to be in paradise together.”

  “I'm not crying cause it's sad,” I sniffed and then wailed, “When will these damn hormones go away?”

  “You're just more sensitive now,” Az pulled me into his lap. “There's nothing wrong with that.”

  “Alright, lovebirds,” Trevor chuckled. “Can we get back to the mime?”

  “He's not a mime,” I ground out.

  “You thought it was funny when he said it,” Trevor huffed and pointed at Azrael.

  “He didn't mean for it to actually be used,” I grimaced. “It was a joke.”

  “You should watch Brevyn carefully,” Azrael had a thoughtful crease between his eyebrows. “Depending on what element he borrows, it could have dangerous results.”

  “What?” I gaped at him.

  “Well fire and water makes steam; you know, all that stuff. Like what happens around the borders of the faerie kingdoms, where the elements meet,” Azrael slipped me back onto my seat and went to pour himself some coffee.

  “But how would that be dangerous?” I pressed.

  “I don't know,” Az shrugged. “I just feel like it could. But that's only if he's able to borrow more than one element at a time.”

  “Just keep Brevyn under close observation until we figure this out,” Odin offered. “He's a baby, Vervain. We have plenty of time to deal with this.”

  “You're right,” I sighed. “And Faerie said she'd watch him. I'm just relieved to know that Rian will be reborn if he ever dies and Brevyn will have the choice that Ull wanted.”

  “Lots of choices,” Kirill snorted.

  “How do you know what Ull wanted?” Azrael asked as he came back to the table.

  “Oh, wow, I forgot just how much you've missed,” I blinked.

  “I got this,” Trevor gave my hand a squeeze and caught Azrael up.

  “Thanks,” I said to Trevor while Az reeled from the surprises.

  “Tima,” Alexander, one of my Intare, came running in holding the enchanted Samedi plate. “Something's happening.”

  “Samedi on the move again?” I asked as he slid the plate onto the table before me. “Wait; what's he doing?”

  “It looks like he's stealing soul pots,” Trevor growled.

  “He is,” Alexander confirmed.

  “Jerry jinx it,” I stood up. “Where is he?”

  “I don't know, Tima,” Alex shook his head. “I saw him trace out of his territory and then into this room but I can't tell where the room is.”

  “Son of a sea biscuit!” I clenched my fists in futility.

  “Is that Seabiscuit as in the famous horse or sea biscuit as in a weird faerie food?” Trevor asked dryly.

  “The food,” I looked at him in confusion. “There's a horse named sea biscuit?”

  “Yep,” Trevor nodded.

  “Why?”

  “No one knows,” he shrugged.

  “Vell, ve can't stop Samedi,” Kirill got us off the silly horse name. “But at least ve now know for certain zat he's guilty.”

  “Oh poop,” I huffed and fell into my seat.

  “Da, big Seabiscuit poop,” Kirill nodded.

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  We called a God Squad meeting to let everyone know what we'd discovered about Samedi. Yemanja was invited too of course. We had all just settled into our seats when Blue walked in... with Eztli. Everyone went quiet.

  “Eztli wanted to help,” Blue said into the silence. “But if we're not welcome...”

  “You're absolutely welcome,” I jumped up and went to greet them. “Absolutely! The absolutest. Thank you for coming,” I shook her hand. “Please,” I waved to the table,” have a seat. Would you like some coffee?”

  “I'd love some,” she smiled at me, her full lips making it seem suggestive even though it wasn't. Blue had definitely bagged himself a hottie, not that I ever doubted his sexual appeal.

  “Pan, could you pour her a cup?” I waved to him. “You're closest to the pot.”

  “I'd be happy to,” Pan gave Eztli a wink. “And there's a free seat next to me,” he nodded to the empty chair beside him.

  “I think we'll sit over here,” Blue gestured to the opposite side of the table. “Thank you,” he whispered to me as they went by.

  “Alright,” I said as I resumed my seat. “Everyone's here now so I'll go ahead and tell you what we've learned. Samedi is definitely the one behind the pot de tet thefts.”

  “What?” Yemanja sat forward in alarm.

  “We saw him stealing jars,” I said gently to her. “We know it was truly him, not some impostor, because we saw it in the plate Odin enchanted to watch Samedi.”

  “Oh Sam,” Yemanja sighed. “Why?”

  “Unfortunately, we couldn't stop him since we didn't know where he was,” I grimaced. “So I think we need to-”

  “Tima?” Fallon came into the room holding an envelope. “This was just delivered to Moonshine for you. The messenger said it was urgent.”

  He handed me the large envelope and I looked over the beautiful calligraphy on the front.

  “Godhunter,” I huffed a laugh. “Well okay,” I opened the envelope while everyone watched. “It's probably just another invitation,” I offered. “We've been getting a lot of those lately...” I trailed off as I read the elegant, gold-embossed card.

  “Is it an invitation?” Brahma asked.

  “Oh yeah,” I felt my eyes widen. “The first of its kind that I've ever received.”

  “Are you going to tell us what you've been invited to?” Horus drawled.

  “We're all invited actually,” I looked around the table and held up the card. “To war.”

&n
bsp; “Someone sent us an invitation to war?” Trevor took the card from me and stared down at it. “Godhunter and Squadron, You've been cordially invited to test your strength and magic against me and my army... and then there's coordinates,” Trevor laughed. “Well damn, we have been invited. I think that's the most polite battle cry I've ever heard. Or read, rather.”

  “Who sent it?” Odin snatched the card out of Trevor's hand. “It's signed; Me. Cute, very cute.”

  “So, another battle?” Eztli looked at Blue.

  “You want to join them?” He asked her in surprise.

  “You thought I just came to socialize?” She lifted her brow at him and I laughed.

  “Alright,” I confessed. “I'm starting to like her.”

  “Wait till you see what Blue and I can do in battle, Godhunter,” Eztli smiled.

  “First of all; you call him Blue? That's awesome,” I grinned. “Second, please call me Vervain. If we're going to be friends, that's a good place to start.”

  “Alright, Vervain,” she nodded.

  “Well happy, happy day,” Horus waved his hands about. “Can we get back to the war with the anonymous Me?”

  “More like; Despicable Me,” Kirill said to Trevor and then they both chuckled together like children.

  “Well he isn't anonymous, is he?” Yemanja said sadly. “It's Samedi, it has to be.”

  “Which means he'll have innocent possessed humans fighting for him,” Karni Mata said sadly. She turned to Teharon, her boyfriend, and the sweet Hindu Rat Goddess shared a concerned look with the Healer God of the Mohawks.

  “We'll put them to sleep,” Teharon reassured her, his turquoise eyes staring at her earnestly.

  “You won't be able to,” Yemanja shook her head. “The possessed are immune to magic that works upon the physical body. It's not their body after all.”

  “So what do we do?” Finn asked. “I'm not down with killing a bunch of innocents.”

  “Me either,” Morpheus added. “I've done enough of that to haunt me forever.”

  “We'll have to corral them and incapacitate them somehow,” I chewed at my lip and then looked to Yemanja. “Do you have any idea how many pots were taken?”