Poppy (The Deadly Flowers Series)

by Riana Lucas

  “I guess you’re right.”

  “You…” I start; but I am cut off by the feel of the chalcedony amulet beginning to warm in my pocket. Then suddenly an image of Damien appears right before us. It is almost as if speaking of him, has conjured him up. My return message has arrived.

  Chapter 8

  The Halfling is caught off guard, not only by the sudden appearance, but also by the fact that he is not aware it is Damien. I sense his sudden tension as he takes a step closer to me.

  “It is okay Halfling, it is Damien.”

  “Damien? But how is he here?” he asks, still not stepping away from me.

  “I am sorry, let me explain. It is an image of Damien. This is the return message that we have been waiting for.”

  He stares at the hologram for a moment. When the image does nothing but stay frozen, he relaxes. He then walks around the image of Damien, keeping a wide berth between them as if he does not trust it, “How does it work and how did it know how to find you?”

  “It is magic. I sent a message from my amulet yesterday. Now it is warm and is indicating a return message.” I hold the stone up for him to examine and then continue, “The message was sent to me and therefore it will always find me. I only have to open up my magic and allow the message to be received in order to hear it. When you are finished with your examination, I will proceed.”

  He narrows his eyes at me, but does not stop studying the hologram of Damien. As I observe the Halfling I notice that the image of Damien is not completely stable. It seems to be flickering as if there is a bad connection. I tilt my head to one side and narrow my eyes.

  Something is not right.

  “Halfling…”

  “Reed”, he says automatically now.

  “…I must hear this message. Something seems a bit off. It should not look unstable the way it does.”

  “It doesn’t look unstable to me. It kinda flickered once or twice, but that seems like it would be normal. I mean it was sent all the way from Faery Land and we’re in the middle of the forest. That reception has got to be bad.” He winks and grins.

  “Faery magic does not work the same way as your human technology. Reception is not an issue. Magic either works or it does not. It should be working and it should be strong. I fear this may be a bad sign,” I tell him irritably, wishing for him to get out of my way so I can get my message.

  He glances at me again and must see the worry in my face. He grows more serious and comes to stand beside me once again. “Okay, do your thing.” He gestures with his hand to the hologram of Damien.

  I close my eyes for a moment to gather my magic. I whisper the quick spell that will release the message.

  Open eyes

  And open ears

  Release these words

  That I may hear

  I open my eyes and wave my hand at Damien, sending my magic and the spell to the hologram.

  The hologram Damien instantly becomes animated. His hands move to his hips and he begins pacing back and forth as he speaks. At first his words are clear and strong.

  “Poppy. I am so sorry this has happened to you, but you are a strong and capable warrior. I do not doubt you will be able to find your way home. I only worry that the Halfling will make it more difficult for you as he is not as strong as you and not familiar with our ways. I trust that you will still complete your mission and bring him here to the Unseelie Court.” He stops talking and pacing. He turns toward us as if he can actually see us and looks right at me before speaking again. “I believe I have found a way for you to open a portal to Faery Land.”

  I feel myself go tense. This is what I was hoping for, but the sound of Damien’s voice and the look on his face tells me that it will not be easy and that he is not completely sure.

  “You must make your way…your last mission…the middle of the forest…highest mountain peak…” his words are beginning to cut in and out and I am only hearing bits and pieces of what he is trying to tell me. I move closer hoping that somehow this will allow me to hear more of the message, but knowing it will not matter.

  Of course it does not work. There is some sort of interference with the message that is only allowing me to hear part of it. But I continue to listen, hoping to make sense of it all “…all of your magic…Halfling help…dangerous…be careful Poppy…the Halfling…danger… not what you think…”

  Then Damien stops talking and his arms are back to his sides and he is a frozen hologram once again. I wave my hand impatiently at it and send it away. I do not need to listen again.

  “Welllll, that was helpful.” The Halfling says sarcastically after a few moments of silence. “What do us suppose all the talk about danger and ‘the Halfling’ was?” he uses his fingers to make quotes in the air when he says this.

  “I do not know but I do not like it. We need to make a plan and figure out what to do. I think I know where we need to go, but the rest…” I shake my head in confusion.

  None of that made sense. I do not know who is in danger or what the threat is. It almost sounded as if Damien was warning me to be cautious of the Halfling, but I know he is not a danger to me. Maybe Damien is aware of the Faery that is hunting us after all and was warning me. But Damien knows how strong I am. There are not many that could overpower me.

  I shake my head again and turn to the Halfling. “Okay. Damien mentioned my last mission. This is where my last mission was. The forest is secluded and safe and Fae magic is strong here, which is why I chose it to begin with.”

  “That makes sense. He also mentioned something about all your magic. Maybe you’ll need more to open the portal and this is the place to get it,” he says, trying to be helpful.

  I nod my head, still thinking. “Yes, and if we continue deeper into the forest we will eventually come to the mountain. He said something about the highest peak, so I assume that means we should make our way there. It is the furthest away from human interference and closest to nature. The height of the mountain puts us closer to the sun. My magic would be at its strongest there.”

  “Well that sounds like a plan to me. We need to continue the way we were going and climb up the mountain. Then you can open a portal and get us outta here.” He makes it sound so simple. He grins and I know that it is to reassure me. “We make a pretty good team, huh?” he does the shoulder bump thing again and I realize that it is a gesture of friendship for the Halfling.

  I bump him back but do not say anything. He only smiles as we both continue walking toward the mountains.

  We walk quietly for a while, both thinking and concentrating on the ground. It is growing rougher and thicker with vines and rocks as we get deeper into the forest and closer to the mountain. There are less signs of human traffic here, no paths or trails, which means we have to forge our own paths. We are both also constantly scanning the area for danger or threats.

  The Halfling finally breaks the silence with the questions that I have been playing over and over in my head since we started out again. “So what do you think all of those warnings about danger and to be careful were?”

  “I am not sure. I have been thinking of that. The only thing I can come up with is that Damien is aware of the Faery that is hunting me and was warning me about it.”

  He nods, “That makes sense, but what about when he said ‘not what you think’? What could that have meant?”

  “I honestly do not know. It could have meant any number of things. You are not what I think. The hunter is not what I think. This mission is not what I think. The King…”

  He cuts me off, waving his hands in front of him and laughing at me. “Okay okay. I get it. It literally could be anything.” He takes a deep breath and gets serious again, “What are we going to do about it?”

  I shrug, “There really is not anything to do. We will continue to the destination Damien indicated, we will be cautious of our surroundings, and when we get there I will open a portal and take us home.”

  “That simple, huh?”

 
“I hope so.”

  He is quiet again, deep in thought. We trek through the woods for a while longer before he speaks again. “You said when the hologram first appeared that it didn’t look right, the way it flickered?”

  “Yes, I remember.”

  “And then the way the first part of the message was clear, but the second part was all broken up and confusing. Why do you think that is? You said since it was magic is should work or it shouldn’t, but it kinda did both. Has that ever happened before?”

  It is actually a good question and something I have been thinking of as well. If the Seelie Queen has somehow figured out how to interfere with personal messages, we may be heading into a trap set by her. I take a minute to answer. “Not that I know of, no. I have never had a problem with any of my magic. Rho always says magic is foolproof, it is the Faery that messes it up.” I smile to myself at the memory of her telling me that.

  We were in my room, a few months after we started our lessons and she was teaching me how to pull water from the air to water my plants. We had been practicing all day and the only thing I had managed to do was make it rain all over my bed. The mattress and sheets were completely soaked and I was completely frustrated. “I give up” I told her. “This is pointless. Magic just does whatever it wants to do.” I had crossed my arms over my chest and sat down on my wet bed. Rho started laughing at me and just said “It’s not the magic’s fault Poppy, it’s yours. Magic is foolproof; it’s the Faery that mess it up all the time. You have to concentrate and tell it what to do.” “But I am concentrating,” I remember whining like a child. She just shook her head at me and said, “Come on, let’s try again. You don’t want to give up do you?” She always won that way. Asking if I was going to quit, knowing that I never would.

  I shake the thought away and refocus on what is going on now. I see the Halfling looking at me. Realizing that I had been quiet reflecting on my memory, I quickly speak to stop him from questioning me. “Something interfered with the message from Damien. I am not sure if it was a Faery that was able to actually tamper with the message itself or if there is something going on at Court. I hope they are not under attack.”

  I pick up my pace and my mind starts to race at this new thought. Rho immediately comes to mind again, but this time not in a fond memory, but in desperate worry. I have trained her well, but Rho is not a fighter. The idea of her having to protect herself is not something I am okay with.

  “Who is Rho?” I hear the Halfling ask, snapping me out of my thoughts. I must have spoken her name again.

  For some unknown reason, I find myself wanting to tell him about the one person in my life that is important to me. “Rho is my best friend. Actually, she is my only friend.” I chuckle ruefully, hating to admit that to him for some reason.

  “What is she like?” he asks, still tromping through the thick grass and rocks.

  I look over at the Halfling, wondering why he is interested. I only see genuine curiosity on his face so I continue. “She is the complete opposite of me. She is playful, noisy, she likes fashion and gossip, and to top it all off she is pink.”

  “Pink? You mean she wears a lot of pink?”

  “No. She is pink. Her hair is pink her eyes are pink and her skin is pink. I do not really care for pink.”

  “Huh? Her skin is actually pink? That is so cool! She sounds like the ultimate girly girl. I bet she’s totally cool.”

  I feel a weird pinch in my stomach for just a brief moment at his enthusiasm over Rho. I am not sure what it was, but I know I do not like the feeling. I tuck it away and decide to ignore it.

  “She is. But she is also fierce. I have taught her to fight over the years and she is nearly as capable as I am. I am very proud of her.”

  “Does she go on missions too?”

  I stiffen realizing to late that I have shared a secret with this Halfling without intending to, a secret that only Rho and I know and one that would be disastrous if found out by others. I look at him sharply and harden my voice before speaking, “Oh no. She is simply a tutor. No one knows of her fighting capabilities. You must not ever mention them to anyone. Do you understand?”

  He holds his hands up in defense with a smile tugging at his lips, “Whoa, Poppy. No problem. I won’t say anything.”

  “Swear it.”

  “Okay, I swear.”

  “No, say “I Reed, Halfling of the Unseelie Court, so vow to never reveal any information about Rho, Faery of the Unseelie Court, to another living being, ever’ say it!” I demand.

  “I Reed, Halfling of the Unseelie Court, so vow to never reveal any information about Rho, Faery of the Unseelie Court, to another living being, ever.” He rambles this out quickly, annoyed that I even made him say it. “Okay now?” He asks in a tone that sounds as if he is almost offended.

  I let out a breath and nod. I feel embarrassment over my reaction, but I must protect Rho.

  “Poppy? Was that really all necessary? You can trust me, you know. We don’t have to keep doing this vow thing.”

  “I apologize, but Fae often use things against each other to manipulate them. I could not bear it if that information was used against Rho because of me.”

  “How could it be used against her? So what? She’s a strong fighter. I think that’s good,” he says shrugging his shoulders.

  “I think it is good too, but the King would use it against her. He would force her to fight and I do not wish that for Rho. It would turn her cold and hard. She is a sweet and loving Faery. I could not stand the thought of her to be forced to hunt and kill, to become like the other Unseelie.”

  He is quiet for a minute and I know that he is trying to figure out how to approach a topic of conversation with me. “But you are Unseelie. Is that how you see yourself? Cold and hard?” he asks quietly.

  “That is not how I see myself. That is who I am. I am a Warrior Fae of the Unseelie Court. I am cold, hard, and manipulative and I am a killer. That is what I was trained to be and that is what I have become.” My voice is proud and my head is held high as I say this.

  “I don’t think so,” he says and I am caught off guard.

  I look at him, startled by the argument. “What do you mean? You think I am weak? Not a true warrior?” I realize I am hurt by this and that makes me angry. I ball my hands into fist at my sides and grit my teeth.

  “No! I know you are strong and an amazing fighter. You kicked the crap out of me.” He smiles, but it disappears when he sees that I am still angry. “I just don’t think your cold and hard or a killer.”

  “I have killed.” I state bluntly so there is no confusion.

  “But was it just because you felt like it, or in self defense?”

  “Self defense, but that does not change the facts.” I tell him, because I believe it is the truth.

  “I think it does. I think you are a good person…er Faery, Poppy. You have helped me to understand who I am and you have shown me some of what it means to be Fae. You obviously care a lot about your friend Rho. All of those things just make you strong and fierce, not hard and cold.”

  I stare at him for a moment, turning what he has said around in my head. I open my mouth to speak, but something causes me to quickly close it again. Going on pure instinct, I grab the Halflings hand and pull him behind a large tree.

  I crouch down behind it and pull the Halfling down also. He turns to look at me with a question in his eyes, but thankfully he is smart enough not to speak. I cannot say exactly what it is that put me into action, but all of the sudden I became aware of another presence nearby. I unsheathe my daggers and hand one to the Halfling. His instincts have proven to be good so far, hopefully he will be able to defend himself if it comes to that. He looks down and grips the dagger tightly in his hand without any hesitation. He turns the dagger over in his hand a few times, getting a feel for the weapon. He will be fine.

  He looks at me again and I almost gasp at the transformation.

  This is the first time I see his true Fae side co
me out. His face becomes serious and his eyes become dark. He is no longer the happy, carefree Halfling. He is now a fierce, serious Faery that is probably about to have to defend his own life. I take this all in briefly and then turn my attention back to the forest. I nod in the opposite direction of where we are hiding. The Halfling turns his head and looks to where I have indicated.

  We are both still as statues and have subconsciously slowed our breathing so that we make no noise at all. I summon my magic to hide our scent and watch as the Faery across the forest steps out from behind a tree.

  Chapter 9

  My body tenses as I watch the Faery step cautiously out from behind the tree. It is a female, which surprises me. I assumed my attacker would be male. I am one of the only female Warrior Fae in the Unseelie Court, so seeing another female warrior is rare.

  She also appears to be young, close to my own age, which is another surprise. She looks as if she is about the same height that I am. Her limbs are long and lean and toned with muscle. She is wearing clothing similar to mine, something that will enable her to fight more fluidly and blend into her surroundings effortlessly. Her hair is long with a slight curl that gives it an unruly look. It reaches her waist and is not bound. It is pale blonde with streaks of bronze and yellow. It reminds me of the sun. Her face has all of the sharp angles that are attributed to most Faery and her skin is a pale white. Her eyes glow a golden yellow when the sun catches them. She is obviously a Seelie Faery. All of her features are softer and more appealing, more beautiful than cruel.

  I am not fooled by the softness. I can see the glint in her eye and the critical way she looks around the area. Her posture is ready for a fight and her muscles indicate that she would put up a good one. She appears smart and focused. She would not have been sent after me if she was not a highly capable and deadly warrior.

  The forest is very dense, so our hiding place will provide us with a large amount of cover for a few moments. That is all I will need to observe this Faery. I need to see how she moves and reacts; this will help to give me an advantage when we are fighting. I know that she will not give up and I am not running this time. I also know with a certainty that she will not escape me either.