by Martha Carr
“Oh, he’s good. Sound asleep upstairs,” Erika replied. “But how are you? I could feel your nervous energy all the way out here in Texas.”
“Okay, just restless.”
“Where’s Correk?”
“Out in some exotic land...or Wyoming...doing his Fixer duties,” Leira replied. “The life of a Fixer’s girlfriend.”
“I’m sure he thinks the same thing sometimes.” Erika laughed.
“I’m sure he does,” Leira replied with a smirk, thinking of Correk.
“Well, I am going to shut it down and get some sleep. I just wanted to check and make sure you were okay.”
“Yes, go. Don’t worry about me. You are a newlywed, after all. There must be more exciting things for you to do.”
“Nothing more important than my daughter,” her mom replied. “Call me soon so we can catch up.”
“Will do,” Leira replied, hanging up.
She tossed the phone onto the table and sighed again, standing up and walking over to the window. She shoved her hands in her pockets and felt a key. Turner had given her privileges at the gym in his DC mansion. She pulled it out and looked at the glimmering piece of metal. That’s the best course of action. Working out would get her mind off of what Correk was doing and tire her out a bit.
Leira changed her clothes and grabbed a towel, heading down the block toward the big old house she had lived in when she first got to town. The streets were quiet, and she could hear music a couple of blocks over from the bars. When she reached the house she took a right, taking the familiar path to the converted gym in the old two-story garage that was bigger than her townhouse. When she walked in she smelled that commonplace scent of sweat and rubber and tossed her house keys to the side.
She wasted no time, jumping onto the treadmill and cranking it up to seven right off the bat. Her legs were tired like her body, but her mind was wide awake so she forced them to move faster, imagining herself chasing down a perp in the streets of Austin.
Leira ran for almost an hour, finally slowing down to a jog and even slower till she was walking. She turned the treadmill off and grabbed her towel to wipe the sweat from her forehead, and walked over to grab a couple of the hand weights. She gripped them tightly as she took lunging steps around the room with them by her sides. She liked the burn in her muscles. It was a human thing, not magic. After a couple of laps she set the weights back in their slots and sat down on a bench, taking a drink of water from her bottle and just looking around the quiet space. That was good for the night. She figured she had exhausted her body and mind enough to be able to fall asleep.
She grabbed her house keys and her bottle and headed back out, giving the cameras a sideways glance. She knew Turner could see her there, but she didn’t care; all she was doing was working out. She made her way out of the front of the mansion and down the street toward her house. As she moved through the quiet residential area she stopped, having gotten the sensation that someone was following her. As she clenched her hands her bracelet buzzed against her skin, but she kept moving.
The feeling got stronger and she picked up her pace, taking a quick left around the block and ducking down a long alley. Slowly she backed up toward the other end, eyes alert for any sign of movement. A feral cat’s mewing and hissing startled her and she tripped and fell backward onto her ass.
“Oomph.” She hit the ground and bounced, but quickly pushed back to her feet. Might as well check if there was something to worry about.
Leira shoved her keys into her pocket and dropped the water bottle, spreading her feet apart and breathing deeply. She pulled the energy from the ground and up through her center, creating a warm calming feeling in her chest. Her eyes glowed as symbols slowly flipped and turned on her skin, gradually picking up the pace. She closed her eyes and set her intention: Find any magic trail. She opened her eyes and followed streams of glowing light that floated across the street at the end of the alley, showing her different people walking past at various times during the day. It was like a movie playing in her head.
Leira kept intently searching for the trail of whoever was following her, but suddenly there was a crash behind her, complete with shattering glass and a man groaning. Leira released her magic and spun around, her eyes still glowing brightly as the symbols faded from her arms. A middle-aged man, his dress shirt half untucked and his hair a mess, stumbled down the alley, drunk as a skunk. He had seen Leira doing magic, and the look on his face was both curious and terrified.
“Hey, are you one of those...magic...peop...”
“Never was, Never Will Be,” Leira whispered, rolling her fingers over his face. Streaks of white light seeped into his nostrils.
He froze in place for a moment, giving Leira enough time to grab her water bottle and jog out of the alley, turning the corner and making her way toward the house.
The drunk came back to reality and started stumbling around the empty alley. He wasn’t quite sure what he had stopped for so he shrugged and kept going, holding himself using the wall, He had no recollection of the magic he had just witnessed.
9
“I’ll do the Kung Po Chicken with fried rice, fried wontons, eggrolls, and give me a small order of shrimp fried rice for a friend,” Louie told the girl at the register in the restaurant downstairs.
“Louie!” Mr. Hou waved his hands in the air excitedly. “What is up?”
Louie held back a chuckle and gave Mr. Hou a fist-bump. He’d purposely made friends with the owner for two reasons: one, to keep him off his back over rent, and two, to enjoy the family discount on food. Hou was fascinated by Louie; something about his magical aura made him seem cooler than he actually was. Mr. Hou walked over to the register and clicked some buttons.
“Louie gets the family discount,” he said, wiping his hand on his stained white chef’s coat. “Family. He is family. Fifty percent!”
“Thank you,” Louie told Mr. Hou, putting his hands together and bowing.
“You going out to search for more cool stuff?” Mr. Hou put the food on the counter.
“Not today Hou.” Louie popped a wonton in his mouth and handed the girl a five-dollar bill. “I’ve got a super top-secret meeting.”
Hou oohed, shaking his spatula. “When you come back tonight I give you some of the leftover dumplings. No charge.”
“You,” Louie fist bumped him again, “are the man.”
Louie grabbed his bag and winked at the girl behind the counter, turning and walking through the restaurant. He high-fived several of the regulars, who were sitting at the sushi bar sipping their Baijiu and nodding excitedly. Louie had become somewhat of a celebrity in the place, so he figured why not at least be friendly with the locals? They were pretty much the only friends he had on this world. It was a double-edged sword, though. He felt less alone on Earth, but it also made him miss his home that much more.
The sweet smell of the Oriceran roses, the sounds of the passenger pigeons delivering mail overhead, and the familiar pungent odor of the dark market all spelled home to him, and he missed it. His best friend was still there—the lonely and grumpy old Gnome, Ronnie. Louie hadn’t even realized how much he’d cared about his Oriceran family until he had made the choice to stay on Earth to help the transition as the portals began to open between worlds. He knew that it would be difficult to go back now, though. He was invested in fighting alongside Leira, even if it meant making friends with the locals and spending most of his time alone.
Louie turned the corner and gave that same street vendor a high-five. He pulled his bag close to him, feeling the warmth of his late breakfast and his stomach rumbled. He made his way from 6th street down to the Gallery Place- Chinatown metro station. He knew he could find the local Starbucks and give the magical train station a whirl, but he had gotten used to the human subway and figured he was less likely to be spotted there.
He took the stairs down and stood in front of the ticket machine, inserting a twenty-dollar bill—one of the last in his wallet
—and pulled out his ticket and his change. He waited patiently, looking around at the all the humans, some with cameras constantly taking pictures and others just going along with the humdrum of the day. That was one thing he liked about DC. There were all kinds, just like on Oriceran. He stuck his ticket in the slot and pulled it out of the top when it popped out, whistling to himself as he pushed through the metal bars.
The Red Line was already loading so Louie hurried forward, pushing through the doors as the familiar bell dinged overhead. He smiled as he scooted through those who stood and held the bars and plopped down in an empty seat toward the back. He put his bag on his lap and sighed as he pulled out his Kung Po Chicken. He was starving, and had waited all morning to sink his teeth into the food. He unwrapped the plastic fork and opened the Styrofoam container, licking his lips, poking a piece of chicken with his fork and raising it to his gaping mouth.
“Ahem.”
Louie froze when a woman cleared her throat across from him. When he looked up he recognized the magical energy surrounding her. The witch wore a business suit and was holding her phone firmly in her lap. She pointed at a sign behind her that read, “NO EATING,” and raised her eyebrows. Louie sighed and put the fork in the box and shut it, stuffing it back into the bag.
“What are you, the food police?” She narrowed her eyes at him and he noted the handle of her wand sticking out of her large purse with cats embroidered on the outside.
“All right,” Louie griped, putting his hands in the air. “I can wait, but when I eat cold Chinese I’m blaming you.”
She snorted and looked back down at her phone, pleased with her efforts. She thought, Scavengers! It’s not enough they plague Oriceran. Now I’m stuck with them here too. And trolls. I thought taking the human train would get me away from them, but I guess not.
Louie raised an eyebrow and shrugged as she snickered to herself, leaning back in his seat and glancing out the window. He was excited about seeing Leira and Correk again. He had been floating out there waiting on her for a bit. The dark magic coursing through the air every night told him things were getting worse. He had been tasked to track Lucius, but the old Light Elf-Shifter had been quiet until recently. Even that battle hadn’t panned out.
Louie was curious to find out what Leira had in store for him.
Leira wiped her hands on the towel and looked up at the knock at the door. She closed her eyes and centered herself, sending a burst of energy outward just to make sure it was Louie on the other side.
“It’s not like the dark families are just gonna ring the doorbell.” Louie’s voice was muffled by the door and Leira smirked as she opened it.
“Hi, Louie,” she greeted him, walking into the living room.
“Hey there.” He smiled and following her inside, as she dug a small box out of his bag.
Yumfuck came hopping down the stairs with his pack on his back. He smiled at Louie and took the box, inhaling deeply.
“Mmmm, shrimp fried rice!” Yumfuck exclaimed.
“Thought you might want to have lunch with me.” Louie smiled and ruffled the green fur on his head.
“On my way out,” Yumfuck told him, popping a chunk of shrimp in his mouth. “But thanks, motherfucker!”
“No problem,” he called over his shoulder as Yumfuck shut the front door behind him.
Leira sat down in her red chair and crossed her legs. Louie shook his head and walked over to the couch, pulling the coffee table toward him and setting his food out. He looked around the house for a second, finally realizing it was no longer a heap of dust.
“I like what you’ve done with the place,” he told her. “A bit bigger than mine, but just as homey.”
“Thanks,” Leira replied, wrinkling her nose as she watched him tear through his Chinese food.
“Couldn’t eat on the train,” he explained, pieces of rice falling out of his mouth as he spoke. “I was starving. Hey, where is Correk?”
“On one of his missions,” Leira replied. “Figured this would be a good chance to talk about the magical happenings around Earth.”
“Mmmm, yes. So, Lucius is on the move again,” Louie began, wiping his mouth. “He has continued to pull in large groups of shifters, forming a pack that spans like six states now. He’s the fucking alpha over all of them with junior alphas running them on the local level. The interesting thing is, the other night he gathered a group in the suburbs of Houston—a new group, although from what I heard they were all there to swear to him. Suddenly, a group of young wizards and witches from the dark families, came up. There was some sort of all-out battle. Very messy, lots of injuries on both sides, and one of the wizards died.”
“That explains it,” Leira exclaimed, leaning forward. She thought about the dark magic she had felt rush through her the other night.
“Explains what?” Louie asked through the eggroll in his mouth.
“Nothing.” Leira shook her head. “Listen, I want you to shift your focus. Lucius is important, but he hasn’t made any serious moves and there is a much bigger threat out there.”
“Okay,” Louie said slowly, leaning back on the couch.
“I need you to locate Sirius,” Leira explained. “After the fight a year ago he disappeared into the shadows, separating himself from both us and his dark family. He has been spotted several times recently, and I know he is up to something. He has become a bigger problem than even Rhazdon might have been, even to his own family.”
“Not to mention that he has vowed to take you down,” Louie reminded her, pointing at her. “And the one thing I know about that man is, when he puts his mind to something he won’t stop until someone is dead. His strength has to be waning, though. He was injured badly.”
“He’s had a year to recover,” Leira replied. “A year is enough time to recover from anything—especially if he is sneaking in and out of Oriceran, which we don’t know.”
“It’s actually funny that you brought Sirius up,” Louie declared, rubbing his stomach. “Well, not funny, but... you know what I mean. One of my informants, the one who told me about Lucius and the fight, mentioned Sirius the other day.”
“Really?” Leira replied, sitting forward. “What did he say?”
“It was rumored that Sirius was spotted in Chicago and has been making some seriously big trouble for the Silver Griffins, plotting to break into their vault under the old Water Tower theatre. Apparently there is something he wants from there.”
“It’s full of old artifacts.” Leira sighed. “Any number of them could be used to bring him back to his former glory, not to mention give him a serious arsenal to use against the Griffins and me.”
“The last thing we need is Sirius gaining strength,” Louie replied.
“I know,” Leira agreed. “I want you to pursue this. Find out whatever you can from your informants, but this time I need you to tell me what’s going on as you hear it.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He sat up straight.
Leira nodded and looked into the distance, rubbing her chin. If Sirius was back in Chicago, that meant he was on the hunt again—and she knew his next stop would be her. The dark families had already sent out a half a dozen wizards in an attempt to take Leira out, luring her into traps and narrowly escaping before Leira could neutralize them. She didn’t need to add Sirius to the mix, as well as whatever band of hooligans he had collected to follow him. Wounded or not he was a threat, one who was breathing down her neck on a regular basis.
“Have you talked to your father lately?” Louie asked.
“Jackson? No, not since my birthday.”
“I miss artifact-hunting with him,” Louie told her, crossing his arms over his chest and thinking about the old days.
“You mean scavenging?” Leira chuckled.
“Whatever you want to call it. Your father was my mentor, so give him some credit.” Louie laughed. “He’s the reason you have my wonderful talents on your team.”
“Remind me to send him a thank you letter,” sh
e remarked sarcastically and laughed.
Correk walked slowly alongside Turner, enjoying the air off the lake. He had been getting ready to portal to another call, but Turner had called him before he left. It wasn’t unusual for that to happen. Even with Correk being the new Fixer and now done with his training, Turner was always there to lend a helping hand and give him intel he might not otherwise have been aware of.
“Leira used the gym the other night. It was late, so she must be having trouble sleeping,” Turner told him, stopping and leaning on his cane to watch a crane swoop over the water.
“Do you watch all your former students or just the ones who jilt you?” Correk laughed.
“You know I worry about her. I wouldn’t even have known she was there except that when someone comes into the mansion in DC late at night I get notified. The cameras are usually just for show, but I flipped them on to look in on her. She was running on the treadmill like she was chasing Rhazdon.”
“She has a lot on her mind. We all do.” Correk turned to Turner. “With Sirius still out there, the dark families putting the bounty on her head, and her going it alone, I’m sure things can get a bit overwhelming for her human side.”
“She’s tough,” Turner argued. “I just want to make sure she stays tough…and smart. Not training with me leaves her a bit vulnerable to her light magic, I feel. We have all moved on since the battle a year ago, forgetting that the power inside Leira is just as dangerous if she doesn’t handle it properly.”
“I know.” Correk sighed and gazed at the water. “What can I say? Leira Berens is one stubborn elf. She knows the risks. Hell, the light almost absorbed her before, and then there was that near-brush with falling into the in-between. You need to let her do this. We will be able to tell when she needs help.”
“Maybe,” Turner said, clearing his throat.
There was a moment of quiet, with only the calls of the birds overhead breaking the silence. Correk could tell Turner was holding something back, but he didn’t know if it was knowledge or worry. He was like that, though. He only put out what needed to be known at that moment, a not-so-charming quality in a Fixer. There was a sea of knowledge inside his head.
