by Jessica Roe
Uang just shrugged a shoulder.
Charles stormed out of the warehouse. Gable followed behind him with a heavy heart.
“He destroyed our last lead!” he hissed, pulling at his brown hair. It was usually neatly combed to one side, but he looked oddly hot with it all messed up like that. “Without Pablo's partner we have no key and no way of getting to Zawavia. All of this has been for naught!”
“No it hasn't,” Cadby protested. Gable hadn't even realized he'd followed them. “We know more now than we did yesterday, and knowledge is power. We're so much closer to finding them.”
Gable shook her head. She was feeling so many things - hope, despair, fear, anguish. There was a war inside her heart and she couldn't pick a side. “Uang killed him so we wouldn't find out who the partner is. Charles is right; knowing where they are is useless if we have no way of getting to them.”
“Actually, there is one other way.” They all span to face Terelle. She stood in the doorway, her expression grim. “But you're not going to like it.”
Chapter 8
Gable
Guardian Officials arrived less than an hour later to pick up an unperturbed Uang. Gable watched them take him away with narrowed eyes, praying the sick freak was locked away in the dingiest, darkest cell they could find.
Then she, Charles and the Outcasts regrouped back at Yarmac & Bogely's, where Charles called a group meeting with the rest of his NYC Guardians. Not a member of the team, Gable was definitely not permitted to know the secret location of their headquarters – not that she gave a crap.
“So we know where the Outcasts are being kept but we don't know who's keeping them and we have no way of getting to them without this key thing?” Zay summarized, sitting back in one of Terelle's luxurious sofas.
“We have a way,” Charles corrected. “I think. Terelle was waiting for everyone to arrive before she explained.”
“Where is she anyway?” Walker demanded, pacing back and forth behind the sofa.
“She and Cadby are heading a meeting with the rest of her Outcasts. They're updating them on the situation.”
“What, everything?”
“Terelle doesn't keep secrets from her people,” Gable said distractedly, jiggling her foot up and down. Next to her on the sofa, she knew her constant fidgeting was pissing off Zay, but she didn't care. She was ready for answers and didn't want to wait any longer.
Across from them, Kain checked his watch. It was large and bulky and looked ridiculously high tech. “She should only be another minute.”
He wasn't wrong. They didn't have to wait much longer before Terelle glided in, Cadby and Ward at her side. She settled into her gold framed armchair with a dignified grace, placing her hands on her folded knees. “My people are pleased,” she informed the others with a dainty sigh. “They are certain we will find a way to bring our friends home soon. Expect to hear the sounds of celebrations any minute now.”
“We haven't found them yet,” Zay pointed out, disheartened.
“I have faith in us,” Terelle said. “I have faith in all of you. Besides, we should let them have this, at least for tonight. It has been a trying time for us all. We-”
“So you were gonna tell us how to get the Outcasts back?” Gable jumped in. Most wouldn't dare to interrupt Terelle, and those who did wouldn't get away with it, but Gable was Gable and Terelle was Terelle. Gable could get away with things others didn't. Though she probably wouldn't have cared even if Terelle hadn't been her best female friend – she wanted answers and she wanted Sacha and what she didn't want was to wait a minute longer.
“I can tell you how to get to the Dark Islands,” Terelle corrected. “Not how to get to the Outcasts or even how to get them home. Once you're there, the rest is up to you.”
“Aren't you going?” the nerdy science chick asked, brushing her wild curls out of her face. The freckles dusting her cheeks darkened as she blushed when everyone turned their attention to her. Gable reminded herself to learn her name – she was actually one of the more tolerable Guardians.
“I can't.” Terelle lowered her head and her long, perfectly straight dark hair fell over her face like a curtain. “A faerie without wings is like a great, flashing beacon to all other faeries. The second I crossed over they'd sense me and hoards would come from the dark region to assassinate me and everyone with me. Us Zawavians take our banishments quite seriously. Besides, it is near impossible for faeries to cross into a region not their own. I would surely perish the second I stepped foot on one of the Dark Islands.”
“Well that sucks,” Nicky stated unhelpfully.
“How exactly do we get to the Dark Islands without the key?” Charles asked, and Gable could have kissed him for bringing them back on topic.
“There's one other way for humans and Outcasts to get there,” Terelle began. “Most know nothing of this, not even other faeries. It's information only permitted to royals and those most trusted. The thing is, it's extremely dangerous.”
“How dangerous?”
“Possibly fatal.”
“Oh. . .yes, that does sound rather dangerous indeed.” He hesitated for a brief moment, like he wasn't sure he wanted to hear what was next. “Do go on.”
“There are certain spots around the human realm where the walls between this world and Zawavia are thin – thin enough to pass through.”
“Like a portal?” Walker suggested.
Terelle nodded. “These spots are rare, but they exist. And to get to the Dark Islands there is an area, a very small, specific area, at the bottom of the ocean a few miles outside of Hawaii. I am fortunate enough to know the precise coordinates.”
Kain raised an eyebrow, absentmindedly fiddling with his bow-tie. “So we. . .go to Hawaii? That doesn't sound too bad.”
“It's not quite that simple. You must go to Hawaii, find the specific spot in the ocean, and then. . . Well, then you must drown.”
Silence, and then, “WHAT?”
Everyone began talking at once, trying to be heard in their utter shock, their voices becoming louder and louder until eventually Gable leaned forward and slammed her hand down on Terelle's mahogany coffee table, so hard the teacups rattled and her palm stung in the most satisfying way. It wasn't like the idea of drowning appealed to her but honestly, she'd been expecting something worse. “Jeez, let her speak, yo!”
They settled, albeit reluctantly.
“You have to be at the very point of death before you can cross over,” Terelle continued to explain. “Once you're over you should be well again – if you're strong enough. However, if you don't cross over in time. . .”
“You drown,” Ward finished quietly. “And death claims you.”
“Well. . .” Gable said after a long, depressing pause. “That's kind of sick.”
Terelle shrugged a shoulder. “If you think that's bad, you should try crossing over to the Summer Fields. I won't go into detail, but it involves a volcano in Mexico.”
“You faeries are weird.”
Terelle smirked.
Charles blew out a long, resigned puff of air. “When you said fatal, I had quite hoped you might be exaggerating.”
“I never exaggerate.”
“Yes, I see that.” He rubbed his face tiredly, the recent events having taken a toll on him. “We need time to think this through very carefully-”
“I'm in,” Gable interrupted, determined. “You guys can do what you want, but I'm going to Hawaii.”
“Gable. . .” Nicky uttered desperately. She knew he still couldn't deal with her putting herself in so much danger. No matter how much time had passed, no matter what they'd been through together and apart, he still thought of her as that sixteen year old cheerleader who couldn't even change a tire.
“I'm in,” she repeated firmly. He needed to let her go, in more ways than one. “If there's even the smallest chance I can get Sacha back, I'm in. I'll do whatever it takes.”
He closed his eyes in defeat. “If you're going, then so
am I.”
“Hold on just a second,” Charles said. “Before we do anything, I need to arrange a meeting with the Guardian Elders. We'll need their permission before any of us venture off on any missions, especially one as dangerous as this.”
“Not me,” Gable argued. “I don't need permission from anybody.”
“Nor do I,” agreed Ward, and then he grinned and winked at her when she raised a questioning eyebrow. “Yeah, I'm in too. Who am I to say no to a party?”
“Do you have a death wish or something?” Walker demanded.
“I just like to help.”
She rolled her eyes, her earlier fascination vanquished in the face of his apparent stupidity.
“The two of you can't take this task upon yourselves alone,” Charles tried to point out.
Gable gave him a look, like, watch us.
“Just let me meet with the Elders,” he reasoned. “Any help they can give can only be a good thing. It's worth one or two days more waiting. You'll need that time to prepare anyway.”
She sighed, pissed but seeing his annoying point. “Can I at least come?”
“To the meeting?”
“Sure.”
He looked hesitant at that. “I suppose. . .we'll see.”
Chapter 9
Gable
It didn't take Charles long to organize a meeting with the Guardian Elders. Three days after they'd pried their information from Zebb, Gable found herself on a small, privately owned Greek island with Charles, Nicky, Zay and Terelle. Charles had left the rest of his team back in New York City to run things while he was away which meant no Walker, much to Gable's delight.
Though the island was 46 acres of pure, tropical paradise, there was no time to relax in the white sand or swim in the clear blue water. No sooner did they step off the Guardians' private jet did they have to make their way to the Elders.
“Why Greece?” Gable had asked Zay on the flight over as she'd relaxed back in the luxurious seats. Say what you wanted about the Guardians, but they sure knew how to fly in style.
“Huh?”
“Why do we have to meet the old guys in Greece?”
“Oh, right. Every time they come together it's in a different location in different parts of the world. Mainly for their own safety. There's a lot of bad guys out there who'd love to get their hands on them and their powerful positions.” He'd paused and his eyes had widened, probably because it was the first time he'd ever really let his guard down around her. “Wait, maybe I shouldn't be telling you this.”
“It's okay,” she'd assured him dryly. “I'm only evil part time these days.”
The island was small, but Gable had never seen anything so beautiful. The sea sparkled like tiny diamonds as the sun reflected off it and she was momentarily memorized – until she saw the beach house, that was. Surrounded by trees on one side and the beach on the other, the huge, three story building held up by thick pillars and decorated with golden cherubs was definitely. . .something. And if she hadn't been around Outcasts for so long, the fact that it seemed to be snowing directly over the house, and only the house, even though the sun was shining only a few meters away might have struck her as odd.
“What the hell?” Nicky asked no one in particular. The closer they got to the house, the thicker the layer of snow on the ground. He looked back at the calm ocean and the blazing sun once more, and then back at the snow covered house, puzzled. It was kind of cute.
Gable jumped when Terelle suddenly clutched her wrist with a shaking hand. She glanced over, surprised to see her friend's usually golden skin pale.
“Faiz is here,” Terelle breathed, fear in her eyes for possibly the first time since they'd met.
“Who's Faiz?” She looked down and studied her shorts and cami. “And I wish someone woulda warned me about the random weather sitch. My nips are gonna freeze right off.”
“You want help keeping them warm?” Nicky asked with a smirk. She chose to ignore him.
With rosy cheeks, Charles wordlessly shrugged off his suit jacket and placed it over her shoulders like the gentleman he was. “Faiz is king of the Winter Mountains,” he explained when he'd finally found his voice. His eyes darted towards Terelle and away again quickly. “In Zawavia.”
Just like that, Gable understood Terelle's fear. Faeries, no matter their realm, did not like fallen faeries. Coming face to face with a royal would be terrifying for Terelle. “Why is he here?”
“He's one of the Elders.” Charles reached out to pat Terelle's arm. “Do not worry, he cannot harm you in our realm, not without severe consequence.”
That didn't seem to ease Terelle's fears.
Together, the five of them climbed the marble steps leading up to the doors, the place so fancy there were two of them.
“What pretentious ass owns this island anyway?” Nicky questioned.
“Just a businessman,” Charles told him. “He rents it out to whomever needs it for a tidy sum. A team of caretakers and cleaners visit once a week but nobody lives here, so there'll be no one to see our little snowstorm.”
Stationed at various points amongst the trees, so well hidden that even Gable and her sharp eye had almost missed them, Guardians with guns stood stoic and watching, there to protect the Elders inside the house.
They reached the doors where two burly looking guys waited. Charles, Nicky and Zay immediately held up their Guardian badges – kind of like police badges but the symbol had two swords crossed over the letter G, surrounded by flames. Totally not douchey at all.
One of the doormen nodded. He was wide and bald and though he had a large, potato shaped head, his facial features were strangely small. “You're expected. Them too.” He looked down his nose at Gable and Terelle, like the idea of anyone not being a Guardian was simply abhorrent. “An Official will greet you in a minute.”
Inside the beach house was even colder than outside, if possible. When Gable breathed out, her breath misted before her, something she'd loved to do as a child – though the fun had soon worn off when she'd been an orphaned teen living on the streets.
They stepped into a large entrance, with doors leading off on either side and a wide, polished staircase in front of them. Expensive paintings decorated the walls, fancy, pointless statues stood in corners, and Gable stood on a rug so thick her feet sunk in. She decided that whoever had decorated the place was obviously an idiot with way to much cash to flash.
“So who are these Elders?” she asked while they waited for the Official.
Charles blinked at her once, twice. “The details were all in those papers I gave you on the plane. Didn't you read them?”
“No,” she replied, like that should have been obvious.
He glanced between her and Nicky. “I mean. . . The two of you are just. . . How do you even. . . Hopeless, the pair of you. Utterly hopeless.” With a long suffering sigh, he began. “The Elders are made up of seven of the most senior, most skilled Guardians, and each of them heads one continent. You already know there are teams of Keepers stationed in certain areas, like us in New York City. I'm Head Keeper for the NYCGD, and directly above me is the head of the state of New York. He deals with all of the Guardians in the state, including the other teams of Keepers, and then directly above him is the head of our continent – North America. The Trackers usually answer to the head of whichever state or country they were born in, though if they travel all over they deal with the head of whichever place they are in at the time.”
“Right. . . So if you were in Europe you'd have the Keepers in towns or cities or whatever, and they'd answer to. . .”
“The head Guardian of whichever country they were in. France, for example. Or Germany, England, Spain. . .
“And those guys answer to the Elder of Europe?”
“Correct.”
Gable thought about it for a moment. “Man, that is some complicated bizz.”
He shrugged. “It's quite easy to remember. If you study it,” he added pointedly.
A woman with wild, curly dark hair bounced down the staircase, looking very out of place in such posh surroundings. She wore a fuzzy pink sweater and a matching bow in her hair. “Hi, guys!” she chirped, way too happy for Gable's liking. She reminded her of an elementary school teacher. “I'm Kacey Taggart, Official extraordinaire.” She grinned wide and laughed at her own lameness. “The Elders are ready for you upstairs in the conference room. Follow me.”
Without waiting on them to answer, she span around hurried back up the way she'd came, chattering over her shoulder a mile a minute. Gable zoned her out as they entered a large waiting area, decorated in yellow and white. One entire wall was made up of glass. Outside, beyond the snow, she could still see the shining sun and the calm, sparkling ocean. Weird.
Before she knocked, Kacey smiled at Gable. “You look cold under that coat. You can borrow my sweater if you like?”
Behind her, Gable heard Zay cough as he tried to keep in a laugh.
“Do I look like I want to borrow your sweater?”
Kacey just smiled wider at Gable's frown. “Okydoky.” She rapped twice on another set of double doors and stuck her head in. “They're here!”
“Let them in,” called out a commanding Australian voice.
She turned back. “Good luck!”
When they'd all entered, she pulled the doors shut behind them.
The conference room was just as large as the waiting room, but that was the only similarity. Cream walls were made magnificent by swirling golden patterns, the plush red and gold carpet was even thicker than the one downstairs, and the large candelabra hanging in the middle of the room was glistening with a hundred tiny lights. A thin layer of frost dusted it all.
In the very center of the room was a large, round table, and in a semi-circle around one half sat seven people, positively radiating power and authority in a way that even Terelle could never hope to achieve.
“Sit,” the Australian voice instructed. The owner of the voice, a blonde man in his forties, stood up and held out his arms invitingly. “I know Charles and Xavier, but I haven't yet had the pleasure of meeting the rest of you. Let's introduce ourselves, shall we?”
