Down in Flames

by Jennifer Siddoway

  He nodded. “Yeah, me either.”

  It was a good bonding experience for us, taking this flight together. That gave us plenty of time to catch up and talk about all the things that had happened while I was underground. I didn’t want anyone to overhear some of the more confidential information, so that took place while writing my writing notes back and forth in the notebook I had brought. I would ask him a question and he responded by writing out a lengthy reply.

  On the flight, we discussed how he’d been training with Nadia on the weekends while I’d been away. He was even starting to enjoy having powers, and they were getting stronger over time. Nadia taught him how to channel that and not let it get out of control.

  We were both completely overwhelmed with jet-lag and all I wanted to do was take a nap. Thankfully, I had been able to catch a brief one on the flight across the Atlantic, but Nate had not been so fortunate. The flight attendant came by collecting trash before the final descent into Baghdad. I turned to Nate, “Thank you for doing this with me.”

  He nodded, looking out the window at the desert landscape. “Are you nervous?”

  Glancing past him at the unforgiving scene, I nodded slightly. “It doesn't look much like a garden, does it?”

  “Nope.”

  The seatbelt light turned on in the console above us, and he glanced back at me with a smile. “Tell me about Elyse,” he asked me suddenly. “When did she come visit you?”

  “Oh, it was while I was going through my trials. She came to check on me. I wasn’t assigned a Guardian after Caleb left the order so she took on the job herself.”

  “So, is she a Guardian?”

  I shook my head. “No, I think she’s a Messenger actually, but the Elders made an exception in our case because she’s family. I’ve only seen her a couple of times, but at least she’s a connection to the Angelic Realm and can tell me what’s going on.”

  “That’s nice. A Messenger angel, huh? I guess I never really saw her as a Guardian, so that makes sense.”

  “It is,” I agreed. “And she’s with her mom.”

  Nathan’s eyes grew soft and he nodded solemnly. “At least they’re together. What did you talk about?”

  “She was concerned about my visions, one time she brought Seroquel along. We talked about where they were coming from and how to control them better, I still don’t quite have the hang of it.”

  He nodded. “Huh, I can definitely see that as a problem. I’m glad she was able to help.”

  “She also wanted me to check on Kevin, he was going through a rough time apparently. I didn’t get the chance while I was living up in Tuscaloosa, there wasn’t any time.”

  “I’m sure she understands,” Nathan assured me with a smile.

  “Yeah, you’re probably right. Let’s just worry about finding this garden and we can deal with the other stuff later.”

  The pilot started broadcasting his landing announcements through the intercom and I let out a tired sigh. The airplane shook and trembled against the wind as it landed on the runway. I gripped the arm rest out of habit and felt my body leaning forward into the lap-belt.

  As the plane came screeching to a halt and the seatbelt light went out to let us know that it was safe, many of the passengers stood and began collecting their things out of the overhead compartment. For most of them it was a tricky endeavor, but Nate and I had only brought our backpacks. We were both hot and sweaty after sitting in the crowded passenger seating for the last thirty hours of long plane rides and layovers on our trip.

  I let out a yawn as we stood up in our seats and waited patiently for the rows of passengers to leave the plane. It had been an exhausting day of travel and our flight from London had been delayed. With a break in the line, Nathan and I were able to slip in, half-limping down the aisle from a combination of slowly moving passengers, and our own aching legs that hadn’t been able to stretch in hours. The polite British flight attendant smiled and thanked us as we exited, and we returned nods and our own thankyous for their service. With a sigh, I repositioned the strap of my bag as Nate and I finally walked through the tunnel to our penultimate destination, the last airport we had to travel through.

  Stepping onto the shiny linoleum floor common to every airport, I felt the growing need for real food. We’d been snacking on plane-food and the occasional airport restaurant, and by now were both sweaty, rumpled, and uncomfortable, but we had to make it through this last airport before food or rest could happen.

  “Are you hungry?” I asked him as we were walking through to customs. “We could get some food at one of the vendors here before we leave. Then I need to call Dad and let him know we got in safe.”

  He nodded eagerly and said, “Yeah, I'm starving. I’m worried about him, too. Do you think he’ll be okay in the safe house?”

  “Yeah, it’s off the grid. I don’t know why he wouldn’t be.”

  Before we left, Nate and I had moved him out to a secluded farm house that was far from prying eyes. It wasn’t perfect, but there was more room for us than at the hotel. I put up every barrier and protective spell that I could think of, the only people who knew we were staying there were the ones we wanted to.

  When we finally made it to the customs desk, a tall Arab man greeted us and gestured for our passports. I quickly pulled mine from my bag and handed it over with a smile. The man looked at each of us carefully and then back at the tourism visa in his hand while one of the other workers started searching through my bag. It had taken fifteen days to process before we were finally able to get here, that gave me plenty of time to think about where we were going and how I was going to make that happen.

  “You are American?” he asked us carefully.

  Nathan and I both nodded.

  “What brings you here to Basrah?”

  “Umm….”

  Nate covered for me by interjecting, “My sister and I are students. We’re studying Muslim architecture and paintings.”

  The man nodded approvingly and I stared at Nate in shock. We had not rehearsed this, but Nate was able to come up with a story like that off the top of his head -- I was impressed.

  “Enjoy your stay,” the man at the counter told us as he waved us through.

  Nathan walked ahead of me as we continued through the airport and stuffed the passports back in the zippered pocket of our bags. He and I agreed to limit our travelling gear so that we had only what was needed for survival. The trip was not intended for leisure, and we hoped not to be staying long anyways. Since we had nothing checked, there was no reason for us to go through baggage claim, but we did find a restaurant and settled down to get some food.

  We ate our meal in relative silence, listening to the foreign dialect and watching families pass. After we'd eaten our fill, we packed the leftovers and started to leave. I pulled my phone out of my pocket and dialed the long-distance number, ringing out to our father’s house. He answered blearily on the third ring and I let him know that we were safe before blowing a kiss and letting him fall back asleep.

  When I hung up the phone Nathan asked, “Where to next?”

  “We need to get a taxi.”

  He sighed. “Okay, let's get this over with.”

  We grabbed our backpacks off the floor and walked out to the loading bay where a line of taxis waited to pick up passengers. One of them in front of us rolled down his window and called out, “You need ride?”

  I waved and walked over to the car, saying, “Yes, please.”

  Nathan and I got into the back seat as I told the driver, “To Al Qurnah.”

  “Yeah, lady,” he confirmed.

  The car pulled forward and we drove through the streets of Baghdad, looking out the window. He drove for thirty minutes to the southeast part of town and glanced back at us through the rearview mirror. “I need address,” he told us.

  “Do you know of a vendor that rents camels?” I asked curiously.

  Our driver nodded, turning his attention back to the street ahead. “Yeah, v
ery good. I take you there.”

  There were a few twists and turns before he drove up to a dusty building that had twenty or more camels tethered outside. I smiled at the sight, my excitement at seeing them up close and personal getting in the way of the task at hand. Memories of trips to the fair and horseback riding came to mind, and injected a bit more adventure to the mood that had so far been consumed by the stress of air travel.

  “You pay,” the driver told us forcefully. I nodded with a smile, handing him the cost of our fare along with a generous tip. Dad had gone through the trouble of exchanging American currency ahead of time.

  When he saw the amount I handed him, the man’s face lit up. “Thank you very much!”

  I slid out of the cab and stepped out onto the dusty terrain with Nathan right behind me. The taxi drove away and we found the man in charge who was renting camels. The air stank from livestock, and flies were buzzing everywhere. Thankfully, the man spoke some English and we made the transaction easily. Offering overpriced but tempting Cokes, he was obviously experienced with western tourists coming through. We paid him for two camels that would take us down into the desert. He was very confused because we didn’t request a guide and charged us extra in case the animals didn’t make it back. Most tourists here visited the hotel and park at the meeting of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Instead we went the opposite direction, out of town.

  I paid him the extra fee without complaint and bought a dozen water bottles to carry with us on the journey. His son helped us climb on top of the large, smelly beasts and showed us how to work the reins. Minutes later, Nate and I led them out of the corral and down the sloping hill outside the city. We traveled for hours, slapping fleas off us, checking the notes that Nadia gave us, and headed down into a rocky mountainside. She said the gate “appeared” when it sensed fae blood seeking it, but you had to be ready and actively searching for that to happen.

  As the day grew to an end and the skies grew darker, I felt a strange tug pulling me down into a ravine we were travelling. My senses started tingling and I knew the entrance to the Garden would have to be close. “Nate, do you feel that?” I asked him.

  He nodded. “It’s like a water current dragging me down.”

  “That’s gotta be it!” I told him with a laugh.

  We climbed off the camels and sent them back the direction we had come from. Everything from here on out would have to be done on foot.

  “You’re sure it’s over here?” Nathan asked as we clomped down into the rocky pit of the desert ravine. We were both jetlagged from the intercontinental fight and it was making me grumpy.

  I sighed heavily and pointed my flashlight to the cave ahead. “No, but it’s the only lead we have, so let’s give it a try.”

  He exhaled in disapproval and followed me down into the pit, dragging his feet along the way. The sky was crystal-clear overhead, with stars as far as the eye could see. The city lights were long gone, since we’d left them hours ago and headed off into the wilderness. I pulled out a water bottle from my backpack and drank heavily. The luke-warm water felt like a kick in the gut, but I drank it anyway. Out here in the desert, dehydration and fatigue were a very real threat and it would be foolish to let something like that slow us down.

  “Nathan, drink,” I encouraged him when I heard him breathing heavily behind me.

  He nodded gratefully and slid the backpack off his shoulder to find his water bottle in the zippered pocket. I waited for him to finish. Nathan was such a good sport about this whole thing I didn’t want to push him.

  The base of the ravine twisted around so the opening to a massive cave opened underneath the ground where we had started. The opening was small, but large enough for me and him to climb through. On the other side, however, it was pitch black and spread out into a huge dome shaped tunnel. Waves of different-colored sediment left a pattern on the wall, but in one section, it seemed to be blank—almost like it had been erased. The red, tan and brown colors that surrounded it, stopped suddenly to form an archway.

  Nathan saw what I was looking at and came to investigate as well. “What do you think it is?” he asked. The sound of his voice echoed in the chamber around us and I gestured for him to be quiet.

  “I’m not … sure …”

  I took a few tentative steps towards the abnormal pattern, squinting my eyes to get a closer look.

  Blood of the Fae, I thought. Only a fairy can get inside. We have to prove ourselves.

  “Give me your hand,” I insisted firmly.

  He obliged and offered it to me without even looking to see what I was doing. I lengthened one of my fingernails out into a blade-like claw and pricked the top of his finger without asking for permission.

  “OW!”

  I pressed his hand against the rock, not wanting to explain myself, and watched as hidden runes around the cave ignited. Distracted by his hand, Nate didn’t see them at first and struggled against me slightly.

  “Wynn, what the hell? You freaking cut me!”

  “Yes, and you’ll get over it,” I told him with a smile. “Look!”

  Vibrations in the rock began to rumble through the cavern and shake the ground that we were standing on. The discolored rock began to illuminate like the other symbols in the cavern and then warp to a tunnel that led out into the sunlight. “It needed fairy blood to come alive.”

  As the cave came to life around us, chittering musical voices swept through the air like wildfire. Whatever magic filled the air, it recognized our presence and bid us welcome – it wasn’t audible, but I could sense it. Fae recognized fae.

  “Why didn’t you cut yourself?” he responded bitterly, glancing down at the bloody gash.

  “Because I’m also a demon and I wasn’t sure if that would corrupt the sample. We needed some that was pure fae.”

  He gave me a dirty look, pulling a bandage from his first aid kit and wrapped his hand around the cut. “A warning would have been nice.”

  “Sorry, I’ll keep that in mind next time.”

  His anger subsided and we glanced out into the magic portal. Nathan and I looked at each other, then carefully started walking through the narrow opening.

  It was the complete opposite of the desert we had come from, with a magical forest overgrown with leaves and foliage. Glancing around nervously as we emerged, we both became aware of eyes watching us from the trees. The forest appeared to be inhabited completely by fairies, some of them living on the trees, some inside, and others were the trees themselves. More than one of the trunks resembled a human figure, the branches reaching out like arms. On the mossy ground of the forest floor, magical lights illuminated a path and led us deeper into the thick of it, the base of each tree was surrounded by a bush of thorny brambles that made it difficult to pass.

  In the distance between the trees, we could see a huge, stone fortress that had been completely reclaimed by nature and stood in ruins. It reminded me of the vision I had back in college when Elyse and Seroquel came to visit me, concerned about the Cassandra complex. What I’d found, gazing into her mind was a memory of the most maternal creatures I’d ever seen walking along stony rubble at the edge of the Garden’s wall. The understanding and recognition of where that vision took place was obvious to me on a subconscious level. I didn’t question it, I knew that was where we needed to go and it gave me hope we were headed the right direction.

  The Garden of Eden…

  Stepping over some uneven ground, Nate asked, “What’s that?”

  I sighed, pressing forward through the trees as I pulled my backpack higher on my shoulders. “I think that’s the fortress, surrounding the original garden,” I told him speculatively.

  “What would the Garden need a castle for?” he asked me, even more confused.

  “The cherubim have been here for thousands of years protecting it,” I responded. “They got bored. All they know is protecting that tree, it’s their only job in life. Over time they built the fortress to keep the rest of the world o
ut.”

  As we drew closer, the forest quickly turned to swamp; the mossy ground was divided by filthy, blackened streams that cut through the stagnant foliage. Beside me, Nathan crinkled his nose from the smell of it and I tended to agree. There wasn’t much sunlight that could filter down from the canopy overhead, which made the trees look dark and sinister. It was still overrun by fairies though, and dancing lights seemed to skip along the path, leading us to the Garden’s center.

  Our shoes squished through the mud and grime, getting stuck in the swampy ground. Rotten fruit hung from the trees that had fermented over time. With no one here to pick them, they all went bad until finally falling to the mossy earth. The entire forest floor was littered with spoiled fruit, though most of them were apples in a wide variety. It left a sickening-sweet odor that made the air feel thick and moist. Even the leaves of the massive trees were tinged with rancid red and orange spots.

  “Ugh, this is so disgusting,” I complained as we pushed through the forest.

  “I thought this was supposed to be paradise!” he agreed, scraping the gunk off his boot.

  “Something about the energy flowing through the air and earth is wrong. Aidan’s work must be corrupting it already.”

  Nathan grunted and then suddenly a piercing squawk rang out in the distance. My ears perked up at the sound and I looked up toward the sky.

  “Oh, that does not sound good,” I told Nathan quietly.

  The squawking grew louder and many other voices joined it, followed by the sound of beating wings. Nate and I backed up against each other, our eyes focused upward, and prepared for an assault.

  “What is that?” he asked, pointing to the sky.

  I squinted, shading my eyes with an open hand and saw a flock of birds, or what looked like birds, circling overhead. They seemed too large to be your standard bird of prey, so that only left us with a more dangerous option – fae. As their circling came down lower I got a better look at their outline and saw one of them had hair that was pulled up into a bun.