by Maya Daniels
Raphael watched as she embraced the girls and told them to take their positions in front of the sizable golden statue. His fangs burst through his gums as Iris lifted her hands and dozens of candles lit up at ones with a burst of flames shooting up. The wall crumbled under his hand as he gripped it, trying to control his instinct and not rip the witch apart. As he stood there panting, the two girls started twirling around and singing. Their angelic voices calmed him down enough to hear what Iris was saying.
“Sing and then dance the Arkteia. Do the She-bear dance for her. Please the goddess so she can bless you,” Iris told the girls as she joined them in the dance.
Raphael started truly enjoying the sound of the two little girl’s voices, and he was able to distract himself from the magic. A smile played on his lips as he watched them lift their hands and stomp around while giggling between verses. Raphael almost forgot why he was in that room and the answers he was seeking when the first pull in the center of his chest happened. He froze like one of the statues, only his eyes darting around. The second pull was much stronger, making him almost stumble even though his back was almost to the wall. The two girls and Iris kept singing and dancing until he felt the third and strongest pull of power, unlike anything he had felt, a second before an array of colors burst in the middle of the room. Blinded by its brightness, he had to keep his eyes closed longer than was comfortable. As soon as the light lessened, he squinted at what now looked like a portal that had opened in the middle of the room. Clenching his fists, he tried his best to control his anger so he didn’t walk up and strangle the witch. The power and uneasiness he felt around him now was the reason why he stayed away from magic.
Unlike him, the two girls and Iris were excited more than anyone had the right to be. Or it might have been that Raphael was so pissed off that everything bothered him at that moment. Squealing and twirling, all three of them dropped to their knees and spoke just one word.
“Artemis!” three voices said in unison.
As Raphael lifted his eyes from the three females kneeling on the floor to the swirling portal, everything around him stopped. Looking back over the centuries, he couldn’t remember one moment in his entire existence that he had been as terrified as he was the moment he set eyes on what walked through the portal. He tried to launch himself at it by instinct, but the damn witch must have anticipated him disobeying her wishes, because he found himself rooted to the spot. The only comfort he could gather was the fact that the creature didn’t seem to notice him, either.
The first thing Artemis noticed was that this was not the room with portals in the palace. Second, it was a large room empty of everything but statues, candles, and three females that were kneeling on the ground, their foreheads touching the floor. She was unsure if she should entirely walk out of the portal, so only her two front legs were in that room while the rest of her body stayed between realms. Waiting there produced an unpleasant feeling, but this had never happened to her before, and she was cautious. When none of them moved and no one was there to attack her, she slowly proceeded forward.
Raphael was frozen in place by the shock as he watched the portal. At first, two legs stretched out of it and looked like they belonged to a giant insect that was coming through the portal. They were almost as long as his body and his instincts were screaming for him to attack or get the fuck out of there. He wasn’t sure if he should thank Iris or kill her for making him immobile. As he watched, the creature slowly started to come the rest of the way through the portal. With the second set of legs came a torso and a head, but he couldn’t look at it properly because the third set of legs came out, followed by a long tail. All his muscles coiled for an attack. Everything in him screamed danger. If he could have, he would’ve laughed at himself for wondering what could be more powerful than a vampire earlier that day. The ancient power coming from the creature was something he had never felt or heard about before. That power was pulling on a rope of energy that was somehow attached to his chest with such intensity that he almost felt faint.
“Who are you? Stand up and face me!” the voice was seductive and melodic that took Raphael by surprise. He jerked his head up from the exoskeleton of the creature and looked at the head.
While Iris and the two girls stood up and watched her with awe written on their faces, Raphael found himself stupefied. Forward from the abdomen of the creature, there was no thorax, but the upper body of a beautiful woman. Shaking his head, he wanted to punch himself. This creature could crush him with one of those legs, and he is gawking like he has never seen a pretty face in his life. If he were honest with himself, he’d admit that he hadn’t seen as pretty a face like hers, but that was beside the point at the moment.
Unable to stop himself, he looked at her again, avoiding the lower part of her body. She had a toned bare upper torso and round breasts covered only with a corset that did nothing to make him dislike her. Slender arms were folded over her chest as a frown pulled her eyebrows low over her violet eyes. One side of her mouth was slightly lifted in a cocky smirk that made it look like it was a permanent state of her lips. Thin horns twisted somewhat at the tips suited her beautiful face perfectly. Thick violet hair, twisted like a rope, hung down her back and fell between twin sets of shimmering wings.
Frowning, he looked down at her exoskeleton and slowly followed it up to her head. The realization hit him like a ton of bricks, and all of his anger and instinct to attack fled, making him almost sag in his spot. A dragonfly. She was a fucking dragonfly, and definitely not one of those cutesy, pretty bugs, no. A dragonfly with enough ancient power to crush him where he stood without blinking an eye. A stunning one, if he allowed himself to admit it, but that was unimportant.
“We have been praying to you, goddess. You have finally come to bless us.” Iris’s words brought Raphael back from his thoughts.
Artemis didn’t know what to make of the female standing in front of her. The two young ones were staring at her in awe and fear, making her want to turn around and walk back through the portal. She had never learned how to deal with younglings. Her nostrils flared as she detected the same scent like at the vampire house. Her stomach clenched, and she unfolded her hands, bending down at the waist to glare at the human in front of her.
“What else you have here apart from the younglings, human?” The softly spoken words made Iris take a step back. Her eyes widened in fear that the goddess could see the vampire, even after she placed her strongest concealment on him.
“Do you have a weapon? You think you can harm me?” Artemis hissed at Iris.
Raphael watched, fascinated, now that the initial shock had worn off and he almost felt sorry for the witch. At Artemis’s question, Iris almost sagged in relief. A snort escaped him, and he regretted it the next second. At the sound, Artemis jerked her head in his direction. He knew she couldn’t see him, or she would’ve attacked him by now. When she looked his way their eyes locked, and for the first time in centuries, he felt his heart stutter and thump painfully in his chest. Grateful to his enhanced senses, he watched her nostrils flare and her pupils dilate as she took a long breath. An unexplainable pull was telling him to go to her, but he resisted it with everything he had.
“I have no weapon here, and I only wish for a blessing. One of your protectors and ambassadors told me you would come when the time allowed. I have waited for this day a long time.” Iris made a low bow, making Artemis turn her attention to the witch.
Raphael was finally able to take a full breath, and his mind started whirling with what all this could mean. Then Iris’s words registered and he went on full alert, looking sharply at the witch. Just how many creatures had she summoned through the veil? Raphael started getting the feeling that Iris was more trouble than even he had thought.
“My protector? And ambassador? Pray tell, human, who it was that was that helpful to you so that I can reward him or her.” Artemis did her best to stay calm and not show the human how furious she was. Who dared to come here and speak
in her name?
“The female did not promise, but the male did. He promised to take our prayers and worship to you as well. I heard you are pleased with the offerings.” As Iris spoke, her cheeks darkened to deep red, making Artemis narrow her eyes.
“What kind of offerings, human?” she glared.
“The songs…the dancing…” Iris stuttered “He said they were fit for a goddess such as you.”
“Describe him,” Artemis snapped, dismissing the female the witch had mentioned, and Raphael hoped that it was not someone she knew. There was a promise of death in those jeweled eyes.
“He was very handsome…” Iris swallowed past the lump in her throat, feeling miserable. She hadn’t envisioned meeting her goddess like this.
“Be more specific. My people all look alluring and tempting to you humans.”
“He had blue eyes and black long hair.” Taking a deep breath, Iris released it slowly, and Raphael noticed she was doing that strange thing with her fingers again. “His skin was like melted caramel…”
“No need for more description,” Artemis growled, making Iris flinch back “I will make sure he gets rewarded, human. Have no fear.” There was a dangerous glint in her eyes. “But what should I do with you? Huh?”
“I just wanted a blessing, but now I know you are not the goddess I thought you were.” Iris lifted her chin and Raphael was impressed by the human. He wasn’t sure he could’ve stood firm if he had been in her mortal shoes.
“I am not!” She purred. “I should snuff out your life.” Artemis tilted her head to the side in a very inhuman manner. “I can feel you have power in you. It’ll be tasty.” She smiled at Iris.
“Just let the children go. You can do what you want with me if I have displeased you.” Pushing the two girls behind her, Iris stood firm in front of Artemis.
“I have no use of the younglings. They can go.” Artemis waved her hand dismissively, still looking at Iris like she was a tasty morsel.
“Go. Go, find Danny and stay there.” Iris pushed both girls towards the door, and whimpering, they bolted towards it, slamming it shut behind them. Turning around, she proudly faced Artemis and Raphael hoped the witch would release him so he could at least try to help her.
As Artemis’s lips lifted into a predatory smile, Iris started moving her fingers in that strange manner even faster, making Raphael feel sorry for her. It must be a nervous quirk, he realized. Too bad he wouldn’t be able to ask Iris all the questions he had in mind. There would be no answers for him here, apart from seeing the woman-creature tonight. He watched, unable to help, as things moved in slow motion. The pull Artemis tried on Iris’s life felt like a bomb blast in his chest. Just as he expected to see the witch falling, Iris lifted her hands and threw them in front of her, towards Artemis. The magic blast was so strong it almost lifted Artemis off the ground when it threw her back through the portal just before it winked out of existence. When the portal vanished, Iris crumbled into a heap on the ground and Raphael was finally released from her hold. He was next to her in the blink of an eye, bending down to lift her in his arms. Carrying her, he bolted out of the room towards the store in hopes that Danny would know what to do. After he left Iris with the other woman, he walked outside the store without a word. His feet ate the distance to his car in no time and he flung the passenger door open. Leaning in, his chest heaving as though he’d run for miles, he opened the dashboard and stared at the arrow sitting unassumingly there.
Before Artemis disappeared through the portal, he saw the same arrows slung across her back. Do all Fae use same arrows, or had he accidentally found the one he had been looking for? Gripping the car with his hands almost unconsciously bending the metal, he pried his fingers open and slammed the door shut. He winced at the sound as though it were a physical pain. It wasn’t his car’s fault that he let the killer go. He was now more determined than ever to get his hands on the Fae, and he would get Iris to help, too.
Artemis flipped head over heels a few times as she flew back through the portal. Angry and disoriented as she hovered in the air trying to clear her head, she looked around. She wasn’t mad that the human had dared to attack; she understood survival instincts better than anyone, and she appreciated a good adversary any day. She was angry because she didn’t know how to go back through the same portal and continue what she had started. Her mind was working hard with possibilities of going to the human realm again when she heard noises coming from outside the portal room. Lowering herself to the shiny marble floor, she shifted back to her human form.
“I see you’re back.” His words proceeding him, Lazarus strode inside the room. “Did you find your arrow?” He glared at her as though she were his enemy, making her anger spike higher.
“I did not.” She glared back, her eyes glinting with the ire she felt at that moment. “I came back to tell you news of the human realm before I go back to get it.”
“So you know where it is, then?” Crossing his hands over his broad chest, Lazarus tried his familiar tactic of intimidation by rustling his massive dark wings.
“I know who took it. That’s enough to go on to get it back.” She lifted her chin, staring him down even though he was a head taller than her. “Shouldn’t you be more interested about what I’ve found out? I thought you wanted to have no missteps in your plan.”
“Watch your words, girl. You have done more than I can tolerate lately to alter my plans. Daughter or not, everyone must follow the rules. It’s what has kept us alive and thriving for centuries.” His words boomed and bounced off the walls, making it sound like it was vibrating in her chest.
Artemis glared at him but bit her tongue. He was right in one regard; it had been her actions that had created this mess for all of them, because she couldn’t stay put. Her mind was working on how to tell him about what she had found out without being punished more harshly for it. If the vampires were making a weapon, it was because of the killing spree she’d been on for days—that and losing her arrow. She had thought herself invincible, and look where it had got her. Regardless, she still refused to apologize. Punishment sounded much better than admitting to Lazarus that she had been wrong. Or worse, that she was sorry. Because she wasn’t sorry, not at all.
“I will take my punishment now, father.” She sneered the last word, making him clench his fists so hard that his knuckles turned white.
“What of the news?” A venomous glint sparkled in his eyes, making her stomach twist into knots.
She relaxed her stance as she debated whether she should tell him the truth. Not because she was a coward and wanted to escape his wrath; she definitely was not. Artemis didn’t want to recount everything she had found out because some twisted part of her wished to see him fail with his ‘perfect plan.’ It was a ridiculous thought, because she wanted the humans to suffer as much as Lazarus did, but it was there nonetheless. She decided to turn it in her favor for once, and the words that came out of her mouth surprised even her.
“There is a human who can alter the portal as we travel through it.” She watched as a frown formed on his perfect face; so different from her own. “I was going in one direction, but she pulled me to another. And she has magic.” Lifting her hand to stop him from speaking, she continued. “It’s not very strong, so it begs the question how was she able to do that.”
She watched him, still unnaturally as he was staring at her as though he was seeing her for the first time. Artemis didn’t miss the slight stiffening of his wings at her words, so her eyes narrowed. Lazarus knew something about it, and she wasn’t sure if she should call him out on it or just let this whole thing play out as it will. The feeling of wanting to keep her mouth shut solidified as she watched him transform from the arrogant venomous creature he was a second ago to the relaxed, laid-back king that most of the Fae thought him. He was hiding something, and she would be damned if she didn’t find out what that was.
“A magic human that can alter a portal with one of us traveling through it?” One
of his eyebrows arched. “That’s preposterous!” He made a cutting motion with his hand, and her eyes tracked it. “It must’ve been a fluke, a glitch…whatever you may want to call it. No human has that much power.”
And there it was said out loud, Artemis thought to herself. That same thing had been nagging her the entire time. How did that human manage to pull me through the portal? Her whole life she had been told that they were below the Fae. Pathetic little creatures with no magic but full of greed and envy. Lazarus never missed a chance to remind everyone that the only reason they had succeeded in banishing the Fae had been that there were too many of them, and they had gotten help from the vampires. This little misfortune of her losing the arrow had brought a lot of revelations that said otherwise. Doubts started eating at her, doubts about everything she had thought was the truth. Had she been lied to all her life? And if that was the case, what else has he been lying about?
As Artemis opened her mouth to say just that to his face and provoke his ire, Lazarus spoke again. “We can talk about this ridiculous matter later. Now it is time for you to take your punishment.” A cruel smile bloomed on his handsome face, “Follow me.” He turned around and strode out of the room without looking to see if she would follow.
Artemis followed. She had never shied away from accepting the consequences of her actions. She held everyone else responsible for theirs and didn’t think she should be an exception. She would be well, she always was. After all, everyone knew Artemis was the strongest Fae, after Lazarus, in the whole realm. She felt that she was stronger than he, but she kept it to herself. There was no need to make him hate her more than he already did. She had a feeling that his excuse that she irked him because she looked too much like her mother, whom he missed immensely, was just another lie.
