Abducted by Faerie (Stolen Magic Book 5)

by WB McKay

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  The castle looked just as I remembered it from my first trip to Faerie. It could have been dropped out of an ancient city in Europe. For all I knew, that was what had happened. I didn't see any sentries patrolling. That could be because The Morrigan had eaten them all and we were wasting our time, but I didn't have any other ideas.

  "It looks abandoned," said Zoe, echoing my thoughts.

  The view from our hill was expansive. If there were anyone that wanted to be seen, we would see them.

  "That's how it looked when I was here before. The castle was meant to house several hundred. It only had around a hundred that I saw." I started down the hill and they followed. "Let's knock on their door. Maybe we'll get lucky."

  "Isn't our plan to fight these guys and hope The Morrigan shows up?" asked Ava, stepping up beside me. "Is knocking on the door really the smartest course of action?"

  I shrugged. "Probably not, but it is the fastest." I was done being delayed. I needed to free Owen today.

  My pace picked up until I was jogging, putting a halt to conversation. The massive oak door stretched high above us. I pulled out Haiku and banged on the wood with the pommel. A dull thud could be heard echoing through the hall behind the wood.

  "Doesn't seem like anybody's home," said Phoebe.

  "They're probably not expecting company," I said, like I was stopping at an old friend's for an unannounced visit. I thudded on the door again. "Hello!"

  A moment later there was the clank of chains. We all took a step back; the sound of steel clearing scabbards rang all around me. My girls had drawn their weapons.

  It was anticlimactic when a small, stooped man peered out through a crack in the door. When he got a look at me, he straightened, his eyes widening. "You have returned!" Despite his obvious fear, the man stepped back and heaved the door open. "Please, come in. Your friends are welcome to enter as well."

  No weapons were put away as we entered the castle. I fully expected to see a contingent of huge clansmen in furs with big swords and axes as soon as my eyes adjusted to the dim light in the hall.

  That didn't happen.

  When I could see properly, I was greeted with an even bigger surprise. The stooped man wasn't as small as I'd first thought. He was tall and built like a wrestler, who had grown very old. In his hair were strips of black cloth and a smattering of small feathers. I looked down to his thick fingers and found a silver ring etched with runes. "Smarty?" I asked, though I'd never actually called him that out loud.

  Still, his face transformed as if I had handed him a pot of gold. "You remember such a humble servant, even though I have aged greatly. You do me such honor!"

  "Wait," said Ava. "You mean this is the leader of the clansmen?"

  "Yes," I replied simply, trying to make sense of the situation.

  "But I thought he was some strapping hulk?" asked Phoebe.

  I'd told them both the story of my escape from the castle with Owen. Lacking a name to call him by, I'd used Smarty because he'd been the one that put together all of my powers and decided I was The Morrigan.

  "He was," I replied, and since he didn't seem inclined to do anything other than stare at me reverently, I prompted him. "What happened to you?"

  "The Morrigan was displeased," he replied as if that was a complete answer. Maybe it was.

  "The Morrigan aged you?" I guessed.

  "Yes," he replied, nodding repeatedly. "I became this in mere moments. If she had let me have all of my years, I would be long turned to dust. She spared me to train the new recruits."

  "The new recruits?" I asked.

  "That is a conversation that must be held over a meal," said Smarty, heading down the hall. "Follow me if you wish, Sophie Morrigan."

  Well, at least he seemed to know I wasn't The Morrigan herself. That was new, and a good start. Still, I wasn't into the talking thing. I was in a hurry and wanted nothing more than to throttle his ass and get this party started, but beating up one old man who showed no inclination toward violence wasn't likely to be a great battle The Morrigan would be drawn to.

  Still, I was hopeful he'd lead me to great violence soon. After all, it was what he'd been good for in the past. The swords stayed out while Smarty led us through the castle, passing through one arch after another.

  The path, while nondescript stone, started to seem familiar. After a little while, we emerged into the grand dining hall, the site of my great battle with the clansmen. It hadn't changed much. The inhabitants, however, had. Gone were the furs and beards of the men I'd killed and watched The Morrigan swallow alive in her giant crow form. The new crew looked much more modern. There were still a few beards, but they were manicured. The size of the men hadn't changed much, though. They were still huge, and looked like they'd seen their fair share of brawls. In a small room to one side I could see men dueling in pairs. One of each pair held an axe, and the other held a sword. All of them carried shields on their left arms.

  It was obvious that they hadn't been training with the weapons since they were kids like I had, but what they lacked in finesse, they made up for with fierceness.

  Smarty weaved through the mostly empty tables to one that was close to the kitchen. I could hear the clatter of pots and pans through the nearest arch. He spoke with a boy that couldn't be more than eighteen in a whisper. The boy ran into the kitchen.

  "Food will be out shortly," he said, waving at the table. "Please, sit."

  I sat because the few gazes I managed to catch didn't look hostile, they looked reverent. "You called me Sophie," I said. "You do remember that Sophie is not The Morrigan?" I asked. "To be very clear: I am not The Morrigan."

  Smarty let out a long laugh. "Of course. We know now that you are her non-banshee child, the special one who brought her to us again after so many years. The new recruits have been trained to follow you as readily as they would our greatest goddess of battle."

  I shook my head. Well, that wouldn't do at all. "Fine, I'll eat while I think of another plan. Sit, Smarty. We need to talk." I grimaced at the sound of the nickname. It was starting to grate on me. "And what is your real name? I need something better to call you."

  "You honor me, Sophie Morrigan." He over pronounced Morrigan like he was savoring the syllables. It made my skin crawl. He stood behind the seat across from me, next to Ava. She moved to my side of the table. You had to be extra strange to creep Ava out. I gave him an expectant look, hoping he'd spit out his name already. He straightened his shoulders. "My name is Graulfv."

  He pronounced his own name like he was coughing up a hairball.

  "I said I needed something better to call you." I thought for a second and sorted out some of the sounds he'd made behind the hacking. "Graulfv?" I tried. It came out sounding more like Ralph with a 'g' in front.

  "Wonderful, Mistress," replied Graulfv.

  "All right, that's enough of that," I said with a growl. "I'm not my mother. I won't eat you for breathing too loud. Call me Sophie." I pointed. "Sit down, you're making me nervous."

  He sat so quickly I thought he might topple the bench. "Yes," he hesitated, and at my glare, finished, "Sophie."

  Four men rushed out of the kitchen bearing platters mounded with food. Meat and potatoes were featured prominently. Just what a girl needed.

  My stomach was empty after the journey there, and I ate more than was advisable. I spent the quiet time struggling to hatch a new plan. I couldn't have a great battle against people devoted to me. It just wouldn't work. All I could think of was going back to Oscura and coming up with a plan to kill the beast and see what happened from there. The only problem was, I wasn't at all sure that we could get it done. That thing was a monster. It had chewed us up and spit us out already, and I had no new strategies for how to take it down.

  I sighed and pushed my plate back. "Anybody have any ideas about where to go next?"

  "We split up," said Zoe. "We spread across Faerie and seek out any scrap of information we can find on Oscura. If we
could piece together a better map of their defenses, we could find a way to beat them. Information on the details of why the Orani agreed to be hired for this job would also be great. If we get an opportunity to negotiate, knowing their motivations would help us argue for his freedom."

  "How long does something like that usually take you?"

  "There isn't a real average on this one," she said, but her face showed exactly what I feared. "Listen, Sophie. We find him. As fast as we can."

  I closed my eyes and turned my head away. "Any other ideas?"

  "We go back to Yelena," said Phoebe. "The high priestess of Faruk Forest has many at her command. She might spare some of her people to help us. Another few trained dryads might be able to hold that thing down."

  "It's a possibility," I replied, knowing that it wasn't likely to happen. Yelena hadn't seemed inclined to do anything that wasn't in her best interest. How did I feel about using the Fleece's authority to order strangers into battle with me? Not great. "Anything else?"

  "If I may ask, Mist--Sophie, what is this beast you speak of?" He looked sheepish. "Might we be of service?"

  "Can you get The Morrigan to come here?" I asked. Maybe fighting them wasn't the only way they could be helpful.

  Graulfv looked crestfallen. "No. She has already said she wants nothing more to do with us. We will continue to worship her just the same."

  "Why?" I asked, not bothering to hide the disgust in my voice.

  "Because, she is a goddess deserving of worship. Her not finding us worthy does not make it less true."

  "As fascinating as this is," interrupted Ava, "I don't think that's what he was hinting at when he offered assistance." Her arm swished out to indicate the room that had rapidly filled with hulking brutes who weren't even pretending not to stare. "He is offering their services."

  Phoebe giggled uncontrollably. "Hunk services."

  Graulfv nodded enthusiastically. "Exactly. We can slay this beast. Not that you need help… Sophie."

  "Keep the sucking up to a minimum, Graulfv," I grumbled, surveying the crowd of newly-minted Morrigan worshipers. Excited whispers filled the room. "This might work." Even if the Orani still weren't willing to talk with my small army at their door, we could slay the beast, and if that didn't get me anywhere, then at least there should be a great battle. The Morrigan's presence always changed things.

  "Prepare a team," called Graulfv, his voice still strong despite his aged body.

  "Not so fast, Graulfv," I said. "We're not rolling out just yet. These recruits look pretty green. I want to test a couple."

  "Of course," said Graulfv. He barked off four names that sounded like more hacking and coughing. Four walls of manflesh trotted to our table and thumped hands to their chest in salute. "Will these be suitable?"

  They were freaking ginormous. Was I really sure I needed to test them? It wasn't like I had a better option. I sighed. It was always better to know what your team had to offer. "Yep, let's get this going. Tell them they are going to fight me and my friends.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  It took a while to convince the brutes to brawl with us. All four of the men spoke different human languages, so translating slowed up the conversation. The bigger obstacle was some combination of the effect from the Fleece and the brainwashing of their little cult that made them hesitant to fight me. Once I started punching faces, though, things got going. They refused to use their weapons, but we made no such promises.

  Ava and I developed a rhythm together. I went high and she went low. We took on two of the brutes in tandem, while Zoe and Phoebe handled one each, and Phoebe managed to harass them all with her vines.

  "Behind you," I called to Ava. She ducked just in time to avoid being wrapped in a crushing grip from a guy with a red goatee.

  "Hey," shouted Ava, "wasn't that one yours, Phoebe?" She inflicted thin slices along the backs of his calves and then kicked his back, knocking him to the ground at Phoebe's feet.

  Phoebe made an offended face and pointed at the two men she had hanging from vines. They were our men. "It's a lot of work keeping these two from knocking you guys senseless."

  "Enough you two," said Zoe, hitting her clansmen in the forehead with the pommel of her sword. "We're a team."

  I called it quits shortly after that. I'd seen enough. When we were done, all the clansmen sported some superficial cuts, and burns from Phoebe's vines. They fought well enough, if a little crazed. With weapons, they'd be downright frightening.

  "They'll do," I said, working to catch my breath. Graulfv beamed. "We'll take twenty more just like them."

  "At your service, Sophie," he replied, a hand thumping to his chest.

  Several boring hours later, we had returned to the site of our previous encampment outside the borders of the green mist, plus twenty-five huge warriors. The forest would likely never recover from the tromp of their boots.

  "Rest up," I shouted. "We march to battle at dawn."

  Graulfv translated into a half dozen different languages, and the men set about making camp. They insisted on setting up a tent for the girls and I first. I didn't bother refusing. The march back with all the brutes had been exhausting, emotionally more than anything else. The clansmen worship was just so irritating. It took all of my restraint not to start chopping off the hands of those that tried to steal a feather out of my wings. Unfortunately, they'd need those hands tomorrow. Noses, on the other hand, were fair game.

  Two men with newly crooked beaks set up a guard outside our tent. I almost asked Graulfv how breaking their noses had inspired even more loyalty, but I didn't want to fall down the rabbit hole of fanatic logic. I just needed them to be ready to fight tomorrow. We didn't need to be friends.

  It wasn't just that they were irritating or that they were devoted to The Morrigan and associated her with me, or even that their little cult had put me in a cage and tried to kill me, though those were all good reasons to dislike them greatly. As desperate as I was to save Owen, I didn't love the idea of leading a group of men who didn't know any better into battle. My friends were here because they cared about me and they were brave. Zoe was here for honor, and because apparently this was what she did. I was here for Owen. But every reasonable person unassociated with the situation wanted nothing more than to stay clear of it. And then I had these jokers. I needed their help. And I didn't believe the Fleece's influence was making their decision for them. Sometimes you just had to let people make their own choices, even if they're moronic. That was going to have to be good enough.

  For being right outside the green mist in Faerie, I slept okay. The morning of our trek into the green mist broke clear and cool, and filled with the sounds of grunting men and the scrape of sharpening weapons. Phoebe rolled over and cuddled against Ava, who shoved her off way more roughly than was necessary. She got a slap from a vine without Phoebe so much as cracking an eye open.

  "Rise and shine, ladies," chirped Zoe, peeking her head in the tent, a mug of coffee already in her hand. "We have us a beast to kill."

  I sat up and leveled a glare at her. "If you want me to spare your life, you'll give me that coffee and promptly dial down your enthusiasm by about a hundred notches."

  She handed me the mug and backed out of the tent slowly. I wasn't sure if it was an act to placate me, or if I'd really shaken her up. I shrugged and took a sip of my coffee. It was delicious.

  "That was a little harsh," said Phoebe, her cheer rivaling Zoe's.

  "But effective." I held up my cup of coffee as proof and took another sip. "How the hell did I ever end up traveling with more than one morning person? There needs to be a capacity limit on you people."

  "You have good taste, and a bit of a masochistic streak," said Ava, rolling out of bed. "I'm going to need some coffee to achieve your level of cheer."

  That made me smile. "Finally, somebody who understands me." I pulled back the tent flap. "Hey, Zoe, I thought you'd never had coffee. Where did you even get this?"

  "I heard them pac
king food when we were back at the castle," Zoe explained. "They were fretting over what to pack. They didn't know what would please you, so they were overpacking. I told them to bring coffee."

  "Good woman," I said.

  "I have my priorities," she said. "They're cooking breakfast."

  "And I'm up." I was out of the tent in two seconds flat.

  The guys had packed some weird breakfast foods, and frankly, I didn't much trust what these people did. Still, I spotted some familiar looking things, and once we were properly caffeinated, fed, and strapped with weapons, our crew marched down the path toward Oscura and the green mist. It was still just past the ass crack of dawn. I walked backward and spoke loudly. Graulfv translated. "You were all told last night what to expect today. Keep your eyes open and follow the orders of your team leaders. If you do that, this thing might not stomp you flat."

  I faced forward, done with motivational talks for now. The green wall of mist that marked the land controlled by the Orani loomed before us. There wasn't any reason to stop before we stepped onto their land, so we didn't, but there was a definite moment of hesitation as the mist brushed my skin. The last time I'd been in those woods, I'd had to be carried out. I wasn't eager to repeat the experience. Hopefully, the devoted brutes would make the difference.

  We walked for a half hour through trees dripping with moss and vines before we heard the crash that heralded the approach of Steggy. "Get ready," I called behind me.

  The cute nickname seemed less appropriate now that he'd almost killed me. I was musing on that when I heard two crashes at the same time, on opposite sides of us. "Fuck," I swore under my breath. "Split up, I think Steggy has a friend!"

  It was a good sign that the men had already started dividing before I got the words out. Maybe this would work.

  Steggy and his wife obviously had other plans. They crashed out of the woods like two boulders rolling down a mountain. Not everyone made it out from under the crush of their epic feet. Something that big shouldn't be allowed to have magic that hid its sound. Seeing a man crushed to death in perfect silence was too disturbing.