No Quarter

by Anita Cox

  The woman looked down at her book before clutching it to her chest. “I’ll keep it if it’s all the same to you.”

  Nala knew the situation could continue to get worse, or someone could make a move toward peace. She already had to worry about challengers to her seat, but now, the humans…they were out for blood. “You have no idea what you’ve done. How many people are hurt and scared.”

  Zoltar crossed his arms over his chest. “They’re lucky my pregnant wife is okay. Let’s show them.”

  “Excuse me?” The bible clincher said.

  Grace looked at him briefly then gave an affirmative nod. “That’s a great idea. Instead of us all killing each other, why don’t you come inside? You can see other than the wounded from your attack, our community is one of peace, of learning, and integration.”

  A man shouted from the back. “What’s that gonna prove?”

  Nala clenched her jaw in disbelief and anger. “You’re willing to kill us, but not take a look around?”

  Grace continued as if there was no question of a tour. “Now, if you’ll all follow me, you can come meet the woman whose wedding you just destroyed and many more of our kind. You can take a tour of the school to see nothing sinister is taking place. Or…if you’re more comfortable, you can make an appointment to take a peaceful tour of the school.”

  The woman backed away slowly. “You’ll slaughter us.”

  “If you attack anyone, yes, you’ll die. However if you peacefully proceed, not one hair will be harmed on any of your human heads. See, I am the Queen of the Lycans, or…as you know them, werewolves. This,” she said pointing to Zoltar and Wendy, “is the King and Queen of the Centaurs. The other royals have assured me they’ve told their people to stand down so we can find a peaceful resolution to this conflict.”

  Nala looked around the humans, waiting for something to happen. Finally three teenagers from the rear began heading toward them. “We’ll go.”

  “No!” A large man stepped in front of them. “I won’t allow it.”

  “Get out of the way! How many of them died because of us?” The young man challenged the older. “We at least owe them this much.” The two young women behind him locked hands.

  The three of them stopped a foot in front of Grace. “We’ll go. And we will come back and tell them what we saw.”

  “Do you have any weapons?” Theron asked.

  The redhead to the left dug in her bag and pulled out a pocket knife, holding it up to him. “This is it. You can have it.”

  He smiled down at her. “You can keep it.”

  The other two shook their heads, indicating they were free of weapons.

  The brunette girl looked at Nala. “So, you’re like a werewolf, huh?”

  “Yes.” She eyed the girl, but tried to remain calm.

  “So do you go all crazy when the moon is full?”

  Nala couldn’t help, even with the tragedy, the girl’s question made her laugh.

  The girl’s mouth fell slack. “You do?”

  “Not in the way you think. But in a way that makes my mate—er, husband happy.”

  The girls both giggled.

  As they crested the hill, the devastation below came into view. The redhead released her girlfriend’s hand and covered her mouth. “Oh, my God!” Real tears streamed down her face. “It was a wedding.”

  Grace looked at them over her shoulder. “Four of my people are dead. All of the attackers are also dead. The Pixies, Fae, Dwarves, and Gnomes are still getting their numbers together. The man who officiated the wedding was cut in half.”

  The brunette dropped to her knees and vomited. As she choked and spit, she cried. “Oh God, please forgive me!”

  “Get up!” Theron barked.

  Nala shot him a look that told him to shut up, or she’d make him. She knelt next to the girl and put her hand on her back. “I know this is hard, but you need to stand up. We’ll get you some water.” Colin, bring me a bottle of water, please. A moment later he approached with a bottle of water. His eyes widened at the three humans. One was on her knees throwing up. The other stood with her mouth open and tears streaming down her face and the young man had his hands in his pockets and kicked at the grass, shame painted on his face.

  Colin handed her the water. “Here,” she said, “rinse your mouth before you drink.”

  The woman did as instructed, swishing and spitting before sipping at the water. “I can’t believe you’re being so nice.” She wiped her tears on the back of her wrist and stood to her feet.

  “Would the three of you look at me, please?” Wendy asked.

  The humans turned their attention to her.

  “For hundreds of years we’ve all fought each other. It wasn’t until Grace, a Lycan who was raised believing she was a human, came to us. It was then we all began to get along. This school was built to integrate our species…to live peacefully among each other. We don’t want to hurt humans any more than we want to continue to hurt each other. I’m not saying we don’t have bad eggs, just like humans have theirs. But most of us…we just want to live.”

  The girls locked hands again.

  The boy began to sob. “We understand.”

  “Very well. Now, we’re going to walk past the wounded and into the school. Are you ready?”

  When they nodded, the group led the human trio inside the building after the redhead stopped to gag one more time. Once inside, the heavy air of chaos lifted.

  “Holy shit! This is a school?” The guy put his hand on his forehead. “It’s like a huge castle.”

  “Let’s start off in the dorms and work our way to the classrooms.” Grace flagged them to follow her. She froze in her tracks and closed her eyes. She turned to Nala. “Xander is going to be okay, but it’s going to take him a long time to heal from the brain damage. He could be in bed for a few weeks. Gustav is going to get our mother so she can sit with him.”

  She nodded and silently breathed a sigh of relief.

  “Who is Xander?” The brunette asked.

  “My brother. His head was crushed by a shifter bear.” Grace wiped a tear off her cheek then proceeded toward the dorm.

  “Oh my God. Her brother was almost killed and she’s taking us on a tour?” The brunette whispered to the redhead.

  Grace spun on her heel until she was in the brunette’s face. “Little girl, he almost died because of you…humans. Yes, I’m giving you a tour and trying to remain calm because you need to see we are just like you. I’m showing you how we live so you can tell the rest of them so this doesn’t happen anymore. Do you understand? This is difficult for me. But my hearing is much better than yours, so please keep your comments to yourself until you leave.”

  “Ma’am,” her face pale, she cleared her throat, “what I, uh, meant was, maybe someone else should give us the tour so you can be with your brother. Please. We’ve obviously done enough harm.”

  Her shoulders slumped forward. “I’m sorry. You’re right.” She took a step backward. “Zoltar, if you would do the honors.”

  “Of course, go.” He stood for a moment as Grace shifted and ran off toward the makeshift hospital. Once she was out of sight, he pasted a smile on his face, which shocked Nala.

  “So, uh…” The young man shifted his weight, “so you have actual dorms?”

  Zoltar put his arm around the man’s shoulder. Nala tried not to laugh when the human tensed.

  “They’re much nicer than you’re used to, but come and see for yourself.”

  The Centaur looked like a mountain compared to the thin human. When he opened the door to a room, the humans rushed in. “Do you take human students?”

  Wendy chuckled. “We hadn’t thought about it, but as you know, until now, we were just a myth to you.”

  “Oh man,” the redhead blurted, “we could like…pay tuition and stuff. We could be ambassadors.”

  Nala could feel the supernatural eyes roll in the room. “That’s actually not a bad idea, Wendy. How is it any different th
an Gnome settlements among Lycans? We’re all about integration. Maybe if they see human students attending our school and stay human and alive…they could see we’re not dangerous.”

  “But we are dangerous, Nala.” Zoltar spoke up. “We could hurt them on accident sparring or just…kids being kids and roughhousing.”

  “It’s not like you’re eating us though. Those are accidents.” The redhead looked hopeful. “Look the girl that came to us said you guys were like, creatures of the night, all gnashing of teeth and stuff. But this is an actual college right? You’re accredited and stuff?”

  “Wait? What girl?” Wendy stepped forward and stared the girl in the eye. “Brittany!” She gasped. “Zoltar ran out of the room.”

  “What just happened?” The brunette looked at Nala.

  Wendy grabbed the girl’s wrist and stared her in the eye again. “Think about what you know. Why you are here.”

  The girl stared back at her. “You’re like…you’re inside my head. Holy fucking shit! You’re inside my head!”

  After releasing her she stepped back and leaned against a wall to steady herself. “Nala… I’m…Oh shit.”

  Water gushed out from Wendy’s dress.

  “Wait, you’re not that pregnant yet!” She ran to her side. “Sit down.”

  “Whoa. What’s going on?” The human male asked.

  “Centaurs don’t gestate that long. I think all of this action…Ouch!” She clutched her stomach. “Shit! Contraction! Shit! Grace!” She screamed.

  Zoltar and Grace rushed into the dorm room seconds later.

  “Ow!” Wendy cried.

  “Towels, we need towels.” The redhead fanned her hands in the air.

  “Straight behind you,” Grace waved. “Light is on the right. Towels are in the cabinet.”

  The redhead ran and returned in seconds with four towels. “Lay her down.”

  “Do you know what you’re doing?” Zoltar’s face burned red.

  “Look man, I grew up on a farm. I’ve delivered four horses and one baby. I don’t know what’s going to come out of there, but I know what I’m doing. Now hold her hand.”

  “I don’t even know your name,” Wendy cried.

  “Oh honey, my name is Susan. I’m going to help you deliver your baby, okay, but I need you to do as I tell you to. Your water broke so there’s no stopping the birth. When is your due date?” She laid a towel by Wendy’s rear and draped another over her own lap.

  “We figured three weeks.” Zoltar held onto Wendy’s hand.

  “Okay, and how long is a normal pregnancy?”

  “Five months.”

  The girl looked into the air and started counting. “Okay, at that rate, your baby might be a little small, but can live outside the womb. So what I want you to do is take a deep breath and let it out. Do it three times.”

  Wendy did as she asked. While she was breathing, the girl looked at Nala. “I need some scissors and a sterile knife. Dental floss would be great too if you can find it…and a bottle of liquor, something high proof.”

  Grace jumped up. “I’ll get it.” She scrambled into the kitchen.

  When she came back, she had a large bowl with everything in it.

  “Okay Wendy, what I’m going to do now is cut off your panties. They’re pretty, but they’re already ruined. Are you okay with that?”

  “Cut them off!” she screamed.

  Susan smiled. “Keep breathing. No pushing yet.” She lifted up Wendy’s skirt. The human male passed out, hitting the floor hard. Ignoring him, she went to work, cutting away the panties and pulling the material, tossing them on the floor.

  “Ow, ow, ow!”

  “No, don’t do that.” Susan put her hands on Wendy’s knees. “Listen, I want you to say this with me, breathing through the words. Who. Who. He.”

  “Who, who, he. Who, who, he.”

  She nodded. “Very good, that’s a bit of Lamaze breathing. It’ll keep you from pushing too soon.” She explained she was going to check Wendy’s dilatation. Zoltar, who normally looked like a bronze statue turned an odd shade of grey.

  “Don’t you pass out on me, or I’ll kick your Centaur ass all over this school!” Wendy screamed.

  Grace grabbed Wendy’s other hand. “Look at me, Wendy. Good. You feel no pain. The only thing you feel is glee that you’re about to meet your son or daughter for the first time. Okay? Total elation.”

  Susan’s mouth fell open as Wendy calmed down. “Keep breathing.” She looked to Grace, “explain to her just the way you did, she’ll feel pressure and when she feels that pressure, she needs to push. Your voice seems to do something.”

  Grace repeated the instructions.

  “It’s a royal thing,” Nala whispered to her. “It’s sort of like they can control some things in another being.”

  “Sweet!” The brunette knelt down next to Susan. “I’m Fawn. Weird name for a human, I know, but there you have it.”

  “Go put lukewarm water in the bowl and bring it back.”

  Fawn grabbed the bowl and headed to the kitchen.

  “The pressure. I feel the pressure. I feel the pressure!” Wendy huffed.

  “Good, now push! Hold to ten. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight. Stop.”

  Wendy blew out a large breath of air. “What is it?”

  “No biggie,” Susan said, “the cord is wrapped around the baby’s neck. It happens all of the time. I just have to unwrap it before you push. Breath like I said, who, who, he.”

  Sweat rolled off her face as she breathed the words. Susan made quick work of unwrapping the cord. “Okay, whenever you’re ready, push!”

  She gave one hard push and the baby came out. It was small, but looked good. Susan dipped the end of one towel into water and started wiping the babies face. It finally let out a cry. “You have a beautiful baby girl.” She placed the girl on Wendy’s chest. Tying the floss around the cord, it severed the connection. “Um, Mom might want to hand the baby to Dad.”

  “Why?” Zoltar asked. “Is she okay?”

  “Fawn, go get a few more towels. We have another baby crowning.”

  “What?” Wendy’s eyes widened.

  Zoltar’s mouth fell open. “What?”

  “Yeah, I see it crowning. Okay, Wendy, whenever you feel the pressure, go ahead and push.”

  “I can’t. I can’t.” Wendy cried.

  “You can. Ready?” Susan smiled. “You can do it.”

  Nala could hear her own heartbeat in her ears and it was thundering. A tear trickled down her cheek.

  “Ow!” Wendy yelled before she pushed. The baby’s head popped out with the blackest hair Nala had ever seen. It looked different though, like the baby was face down. No…that’s a rump. The next child was coming out in Centaur form, butt first.

  “Take a deep breath and push again!” Susan yelled. The baby came the rest of the way out. The black little horse body shimmered then morphed into human. “A boy!” Her eyes widened. “I think.”

  After placing the baby on Wendy’s chest, she severed the cord and folded the mess in the towel.

  “Twins. Z! We have twins!”

  “At least one of them came out half a horse,” Susan stood, scooping up the towels. “He came out that way, anyway. I’m sorry. I don’t know how it works for you.”

  “Congratulations!” Grace sniffed.

  “Yes, congratulations,” Nala cried, “that was beautiful.” So much chaos and violence was suddenly overshadowed by the beautiful delivery of two healthy babies. The energy in the room was completely positive and happy. She wiped her eyes on the back of her hands.

  Zoltar kissed Wendy’s forehead. “Thank you for the greatest gift. I can’t believe my eyes. Wait until the herd finds out.”

  Fawn and Susan went to the kitchen and washed their hands. Nala followed them. “Ladies?”

  They turned to her.

  “I want to thank you for what you just did. I know it was…different.”

  Susan slid down
the cabinet onto the floor and began sobbing. “Are you kidding?”

  Unable to contain the shock on her face, Nala bent down. “Uh, are you okay?”

  “We could have killed the mother…and those babies.” Her face in her hands she continued sobbing. “Innocent lives.”

  Fawn patted her shoulder. “We didn’t know. That lady said they were like Satan worshipers and sacrificing humans and stuff.”

  Nala set her jaw, determined to decimate whoever was behind this absurd ploy. “As I said, we’re not all bad people. Sure, we have some bad apples, but then again so do you. Right? Just like Wendy said outside.”

  Susan paused and looked up at Nala. The skin around her eyes began to swell and turn red. “Right.”

  “Let’s make a promise to each other.” She stood and held her hand out to Susan, who used it to stand to her feet.

  “Okay?”

  “Let’s both do what we can to decrease the fear. Maybe if we understand each other a bit more, we can coexist. Less casualties means both sides win.”

  Nala heard a high pitched shriek come from the other room. “Babies!” Mary had apparently been made aware of the births.

  Susan, Nala, and Fawn giggled, easing the tension in the air.

  “Truly, what you did for Wendy was amazing. You stayed very calm. Both babies came out fine. Not really part of the tour but…thank you.”

  “It’s time for the tour to end. Escort them from the property so we can lock down security.” Graced pushed through her mind. Nala shivered and asked the women to follow her.

  Fawn collected the human male who stared at the floor like he saw the slightest sign of the birth, he might pass out.

  “Congratulations on the babies.” Susan gave a weak smile to Wendy and Zoltar who were holding their newborns. She turned to Mary. “I’m very sorry about your wedding day. If there is anything I can ever do for you…” Reaching in her back pocket, she pulled out a card. “This is my phone number. Don’t hesitate to ask. I will do whatever I can to earn your forgiveness.”