by Eric Asher
Nixie snarfed down a slider before snapping up another one and leaning back with a satisfied growl. “Someone in Faerie needs to learn how to make these.”
“You just need to visit more often,” I said.
Nixie looked up from her sandwich and gave me a small, sad smile. “It’s only been six months since the death of Lewena. We defeated her forces in Saint Charles. It was a battle won, but not the war. We have to press our advantage.”
At that moment, the feeling of things being normal again evaporated. “I know. Nudd and Hern are still in Falias. And still a threat.”
Nixie nodded.
“How are the other water witches? Lewena’s witches, I mean?”
Nixie chewed her sandwich, pondering that question as the shadows of two distant tourists wandered the edge of the causeway far above us.
I started looking for my pants in earnest.
“Some have joined us,” Nixie said. “And some of those I trust. But it is a slow process, the aftermath of any battle. Some will harbor resentment for us, for me, until I am dead or dethroned. But some of them will value peace above vengeance. Some will want their children and their families safe from the war Nudd wants so badly. I’m trying to keep them all too busy to get into trouble.”
A wave peaked high and crashed onto the causeway. A spray of cold, salty water reached us, just enough to remind us it was there. I studied Nixie, the subtle crease in her brow, and wondered how much influence she actually had over the nearby waters. Some stories said the water witches could control the oceans, and I’d certainly seen them control bodies of water before, but the seas themselves were vast, and sometimes terrible. The ocean was a beautiful, deadly thing.
Nixie hesitated. “We’re making due. What about Sam and Foster? And Frank? They’re still consulting with the military, I assume?”
I nodded. “They’re good. Frank’s friendship with Sergeant Park paid off. Or I should say, First Sergeant Park, now.”
“Not to mention your actions in Saint Charles,” Nixie said. “The support you gave Casper’s squad, and that her squad gave our allies in return, was no small thing.”
Casper and her people had proven themselves invaluable. It had been a risk, giving them the arms Mike had forged that could kill undines. But it was a risk with great reward. Casper had struck a deadly blow against Lewena, and she had saved my ass in the process. But that had turned Casper into the new poster child for the military, and she hated every minute of it. They’d rolled out banners around the base, and even a few billboards in Saint Charles. She didn’t like being a face for recruiters and propaganda.
The crashing waves drew my attention once more. There was something calming about the ocean, or perhaps it was more the silence in my head. It held a great many mysteries, even from the water witches themselves.
“You remember me telling you about that video?”
“The propaganda idea?” Nixie looked up from her newly unboxed slider.
“Yeah that one,” I said. “It’s been making the rounds. From what Park says, a good portion of the military has seen it now. They’ve added a few things to it, like the details on how to strike down a dark-touched. But the basics are still the same.”
Nixie frowned and swallowed. “I’m still unsure how to feel about this. Training humans to recognize us, and in some cases even how to kill us. And we know we have enemies among their ranks.”
“We have allies among the ranks, too,” I said. “I only hope that proves more important than the former.”
Nixie exhaled slowly. “Time will tell. It always does.”
We ate in silence for a while, watching the waters and listening to the cry of nearby birds. I took down seven or eight of the sliders from the Crave Case, and Nixie inhaled the rest. Something squawked over the rolling waves of the ocean. At first I thought it was only another bird, but as it grew closer, I could make out words and something else. Concern.
“My queen,” a voice shouted.
It drew our attention as fast as a battle cry would have.
“Euphemia,” Nixie said. “What is it?”
The water witch sprinted across the columns of Giant’s Causeway. As I watched her graceful movements across those steps, I wondered how much truth there was to the legend of Finn McCool, and whether a giant had in fact once lived here. Or perhaps still did. And then I remembered I still didn’t have pants on. It was about then I saw the sly grin on Nixie’s face and she lifted the damp denim out of a pool behind her. I snatched my pants back and hurried to pull them up before sitting my wet ass back down beside Nixie.
“There’s been an incident back in the States,” Euphemia said, and the absence of jabs about our lack of clothing said worlds.
My back stiffened, and I leaned forward.
“How bad?” Nixie asked as she magicked armor back onto her body with a wave of her hand. “Casualties?”
Euphemia shook her head. “Nothing so dire as that. At least not yet. Have you checked your phone today? I was not sure if you would’ve already heard the news.”
I looked around at the beauty above and below us and frowned. “Why in the world would I look at my phone here?”
“Because humanity is addicted to them,” Euphemia said.
I gave a sideways nod of my head. “Fair point. So, what is it?”
“Search for the phrase ‘Saint Louis dragon.’ I believe it will tell you most of what you need to know.”
“There is no need for games,” Nixie said glancing from me to Euphemia. “What has happened?”
But I’d unlocked my phone before Nixie finished asking the question. I’d already typed the phrase in and stared at the impossible image on top of the results. It had been posted by what amounted to little more than a tabloid, but I’d seen dragons. And I had little doubt of what I was looking at.
I cursed and looked up at Euphemia. “Did they attack? What happened?”
As the words left my lips, I stared at the silhouette of the dragon gliding through the Arch before my eyes roved down into the article itself. There were no human casualties, but the dragon had been seen fighting with a group of Fae. With such a delicate balance between the military and the Fae, I didn’t like the idea of anyone trotting out a dragon.
“Goddess,” Nixie said, pulling my phone closer to her. “That’s not Drake.”
“No,” Euphemia said. “It’s not. Can you think of no one else?”
“Can’t be,” I whispered. I zoomed in as close as I could, and at the base of his neck, was a lump just large enough to be a young teenage girl. “Vicky?” My mouth felt dry, and a terrible dread climbed its way up my throat.
Nixie looked from the phone screen to me and back again. “Shit. She’s a risk, Damian. She’s a risk to you, to me, to all of us.”
“What? I mean, she shouldn’t have flown a dragon into Saint Louis …”
“No, Damian, you’d do anything to save that child. Too many people know it. She’s a weakness. Your weakness. If she won’t stay hidden, we have to act. Now.”
CHAPTER TWO
I grimaced and turned off the do not disturb settings on my phone. The roll call of notifications felt like it was cursing my own carelessness. But I’d needed to get away. Nixie and I hadn’t had much time lately. Between keeping our alliances together, trying to integrate the water witches that had been loyal to Lewena into the society of witches who had struck down their queen, and launching some of our more underhanded campaigns, time had become precious indeed.
Nixie leaned over and studied the rather intimidating list of missed calls and text messages. “I can see why Euphemia thought we might have already heard. Is that a different Foster?” She pointed to a rather irritated text message.
“No, that’s our Foster.”
“And he carries a phone?” Euphemia asked, stepping closer to Nixie. “No device like that can transition with him.”
I nodded. “He’s with First Sergeant Park today. Sam’s carrying it for him.”
/> “I hope their training went better than last week,” Nixie said, referring to an unfortunate incident where Foster had accidentally impaled one of the privates when he’d failed to follow directions.
“Let’s hope.” I copied and pasted the same response to half a dozen concerned text messages. We saw it. Will be in touch.
“Hugh is still in Kansas City,” Euphemia said. “The witch coven has gone to meet the pack. I am unsure if they were invited, or if this move is of their own volition, but they continue to hunt the dark-touched.”
“And the blood mages?” Nixie asked.
“Elizabeth would likely follow Ashley if she suspected danger,” Euphemia said. “I haven’t been able to reach her or Cornelius, which likely means they’re already there.”
“Ashley can take care of herself,” I said. “Woman could probably kill more people in one strike than the three of us.”
Euphemia nodded. “And you have yet to see what the blood mages are truly capable of.”
I frowned at her. I’d seen enough of their power, and I couldn’t stifle the shiver that rolled down my spine as I remembered the creature they’d summoned from the shadow realm.
“What about the other wolves?” I asked. “Dell and Caroline aren’t stationed far from the southeastern edges of Falias.”
“They are charged with the protection of the armory at Antietam,” Euphemia said.
Nixie glanced between us. “The Utukku are more than capable. Be sure they’re aware we may need the Irish Brigade. I am certain Wahya would not miss a chance to sink his claws into the allies of Gwynn Ap Nudd.”
I rubbed my chin. “We could ask Caroline outright, see if they’ll stay closer to Falias.”
“The Obsidian Inn would shelter them,” Euphemia said.
“See to it,” Nixie said.
Euphemia gave an informal nod of her head. I liked that, seeing the witches in a more casual exchange. The rituals of Fae were not so unlike those I’d read about in history books, formal ceremonies that almost felt designed to cause discomfort and remind those who served that they were less. To say I didn’t like it would be a bit of an understatement.
“What of Graybeard and the vampires?” Nixie asked as she turned to me.
I rubbed my palms together. “As far as I know they haven’t killed each other.”
Euphemia chuckled.
“That was just rotten luck,” Nixie said. “Zola turning up that little tidbit in the archives. No one could have foreseen that. I wouldn’t think Vik would hold a grudge that long.”
“A vampire can hold the grudge of his sire and his sire’s sire,” Euphemia muttered. “They can be most trying. Look at Camazotz if you need further evidence.”
I smiled and looked at Nixie. “I have little doubt they’ll be able to put aside their differences to help Sam.”
“But what exactly happened?” Nixie asked. “How did Graybeard, mortal at the time, plunder a ship full of vampires?”
“He hasn’t told me yet,” I said, “but you better believe I’m working on him.” I leaned forward and looked up at Euphemia. “Speaking of the Obsidian Inn, have you heard from Aideen and Angus?”
“Yes,” she said with a nod. “Training is going well. Angus is well versed in, shall we say, less-civilized methods of combat.”
“Isn’t pretty much every Fae?”
“Brutal combat, yes,” Nixie said. “But his more devious tactics are beyond what even I would have deployed in our darkest hour.”
Euphemia blew out a breath. “I am afraid the darkness grows bolder every hour, my queen. It may be that the time for more civilized warring has passed.”
Nixie grimaced, and it sent a chill down my spine. I’d seen how merciless the Fae could be. What in the ever-loving hell were they holding back?
“Angus won’t rest until Hern and his entire legacy are buried,” Euphemia said.
“At what cost?” Nixie whispered, running her fingers through her hair.
I already knew the answer to that question: “Any.”
The three of us sat in silence for a time, watching the water crash below us as ravens soared above. One, a monstrous bird with slightly off, diamond-shaped tail feathers, swooped low, circling as it went.
“Morrigan,” Nixie said, frowning at the bird.
The raven cawed back twice before speaking. “We must leave, Euphemia. Your message has been delivered, now come.”
Euphemia looked to Nixie, and only when her queen nodded did the water witch take her leave.
“No judgmental observations today?” I asked. “Just going to be an angry bird in the sky?”
I could have sworn the raven glared at me before rocketing over the cliff and vanishing on the other side.
“Good hearing,” I said.
“She is not the best being to torment,” Nixie said. “She could kill either of us.”
I smiled, watching the sky where the bird had vanished.
Nixie frowned and turned to the horizon. She still wasn’t too happy about what the Morrigan had done to me at the Obsidian Inn. Essentially, had I failed her test, I would have died. A small, slightly mad part of me wondered if the Morrigan would have survived Nixie’s response. Being we weren’t dead, I hoped that was a grudge I’d never see play out.
“Go,” Nixie said. “I must meet with Ward and the Old Man. They’re journeying to Faerie, and I fear the timing could not be much worse with the unrest across the realm.”
More of the Fae wanted to come live in the new Falias. I couldn’t be sure how humanity would respond to that, but I had a pretty good list of concerns.
“I fear a civil war between the Fae, Damian. And that I cannot abide. The world may not survive it.”
I stood up and brushed my pants off before holding my hand out to Nixie. “Sounds like we need to get back to work.”
She leaned forward and kissed me, and I smiled as I felt that soft warmth before she pulled away. “Be careful.”
I nodded as I fished Gaia’s hand out of my backpack. “I just need to drop by and see Park and Casper to make sure they don’t go shooting at dragons. The kid picked a rotten time to stop hiding.” I turned to go, but Nixie grabbed my arm.
“Did you speak to Zola?”
I nodded. “She’s at the cabin. I’m heading that way after I talk to the military.”
“Good.”
“Any word from our agents?” I asked.
Nixie looked out at the ocean and hesitated for a moment before shaking her head. “Not yet. It’s been almost a week, and I’m starting to get somewhat concerned.”
“Does Euphemia know?” I asked. There weren’t many people who did. And only those in Nixie’s deepest confidence knew about the agent who had slipped into Gwynn Ap Nudd’s ranks.
“No,” she said. “Not even Euphemia. Once we have something we can act on, or perhaps I should say if we have something, I’ll tell her immediately. Right now, it is only you, Morrigan, Sam, and Foster.”
“It was a lucky thing, meeting those three.”
Nixie nodded, though she didn’t say their names, names I’d come to know well in the past few months. Liam, Lochlan, and Enda. They were a family of Fae that we more or less accidentally rescued from the ruins of Falias. They’d been hurt by Nudd and Lewena in the past, and it hadn’t taken much convincing to get them to help Nixie’s cause.
Nixie stepped away, but I followed her and wrapped my arms around her. Her armor was cold beneath my fingers, but Nixie’s lips were soft and warm, and the salty taste of the sea lingered as she leaned into me. I gave her the best smile I could muster as we drew apart.
Nixie adjusted the sword at her waist as I laced my fingers into Gaia’s and stepped into the darkness. The stars of the Abyss tilted around me as the warm glow of Gaia’s form slowly took shape to my right.
“How may I assist you?” Gaia asked.
“So formal,” I said. “What’s the occasion?”
When Gaia didn’t respond, I looked up at her.
There was a small shadowed crease in her golden brow.
“I suppose it is simply an old habit. I have tried to leave the old compulsions behind, as you requested, but I cannot fully abandon them.”
I smiled at the Titan, letting the smooth cadence of her voice wash over me, providing a warmth that the Abyss lacked in every way. “Don’t worry about it.”
“Where may I take you?” she asked as we walked the dimly illuminated path.
“I need to get to Sergeant Park, First Sergeant Park, I mean,” I said. “There’s a dragon in Saint Louis. And I don’t want him taking a shot at it.”
“A dragon?” Gaia frowned as we strode along the path. “That is most unusual.”
I shook my head. “You’re telling me. I thought Vicky would stay hidden longer. I never dreamed she’d take Jasper out. I’m worried.”
My own words struck me. I was worried. I was very worried. Most days I felt like the war was going well. Lewena had fallen, and it had been months since we had a conflict with Hern or Nudd or even the dark-touched.
“Your thoughts are troubled, young one.”
“It just feels like the calm before the shitstorm,” I muttered.
“I am not familiar with this term. Shit … storm.”
I glanced up at the Old God and chuckled. “It’s almost worth it just to hear you say it.”
Something glistened near the path beside me. I mistook it for one of the massive Leviathan tentacles we sometimes crossed in the Abyss. But a closer look showed something different. It was like thousands of rubbery gray worms slowly rising and wriggling in a giant ball, only the ball had form. It ended in some semblance of a hand, and I followed that mass up into the shadows, somewhat disturbed to see that the writhing appendage continued up into an arm. I suspected there was much more lurking in the darkness.
Even as I watched, the gray rubber worms cracked open at the ends, revealing countless thorn-like teeth in their eyeless faces. I’d seen something like it before on a nature show. They looked like lampreys. The creature blossomed with countless fanged mouths as it leaned toward us in an impossibly slow strike.
“What the hell is that?” I asked.
