Silver Magi 1

by D. Levesque

  “Oh shit,” she says.

  “Yeah, oh shit is right,” I tell her. “What the fuck, I could have let you die, you know, with that silver bullet in you. Jesus, I try to save you, and this is the thanks I get? Fucking hell. I seriously don’t understand you right now. You should thank me for saving you, but all you do is put a gun to my head. Which, by the way, while badass, is fucking scary as shit,” I tell her, ranting away.

  “Silver, what?” she says in shock.

  “Bullet,” I tell her.

  “In me?” she says again, shocked.

  “Yes,” I sigh, “I pulled out a fucking silver bullet out of you that that asshole shot you with last night after you killed his buddy,” I tell her, putting my free hand to my face and rubbing it. Fuck, I need a shave, I think to myself.

  “That’s impossible,” she says to me, dumbstruck.

  “What, that you got shot with silver? It’s true. I was the one who took out the bullet. I can even show it to you if you want.” With that, and without thinking about it, I go back to the kitchen and the cup I left the bullet in, and I grab it and bring it back out. With it in my hand, I head back to the living room where the girl is still sitting on the floor with her hands up in the air. As I get closer, I get down lower to her level and hold it in front of her face, about a foot away.

  “See?” I tell her, but then she gets a look of pure panic on her face and seems to struggle, but her body isn’t cooperating. What? Oh shit! I get up and move the silver bullet away from her and move back about five feet.

  “Shit, sorry, forgot that it’s not good for Werewolves. My bad, sorry,” I tell her apologetically.

  “How? You should be in pain, or worse!” she tells me disbelievingly.

  “I think I should interject here, Brandon. Don’t you think?” Silvana says, appearing out of thin air next to me. Damn neat trick to have.

  The girl jerks in surprise, looking towards where Silvana appeared. “How did I not smell you in the room?” she asks in shock.

  “Sorry, I have dealt with you Were before, and I learned a thing or two,” Silvana says with a smile.

  “Brandon, go hide that thing again before you give her a heart attack,” she says, looking at me.

  Feeling like an idiot at what I did, I do exactly that. But fuck me, she pissed me off there. Man, that woman has anger issues. Once I put the bullet back into the cup I had it in earlier. I go back into the living room, where she is still sitting on the floor with her arms over her head. I can see they are shaking. Silvana is now sitting on the couch.

  “Brandon, you can tell her she can come and sit on the couch. And you can put that gun of hers away,” she tells me.

  Without thinking about it, I unload the weapon, take the clip out of it, and put that part in my pocket before putting the gun on the coffee table. Then I sit on the chair next to the couch. After I sit down to tell the girl she can sit on the sofa, I catch both of them looking at me, wide-eyed.

  “What?”

  “How did you know to do that so fast?” the girl asks me in mild surprise.

  “Hmm, my uncle,” I say, embarrassed. “When I was young, Uncle John trained me in small arms combat and even taught me how to use assault rifles. As dad said, never know when the zombies will come. Anyhow,” I say, and then think the same thing I did last time, “you can get up and go sit on the couch.”

  Again it comes out in the authoritative voice I have never heard myself use before. She gets up off the floor and sits at the opposite side of where Silvana is seated, shaking her arms out. Guess they were going numb from being held up like that.

  Once she is sitting down, Silvana continues. “Now, as I was saying. Why are you here for Brandon, and who sent you?”

  “Like I would tell you, you fucking Elf. All you Fae think you’re top shit, but you’re not. I am not telling you who sent me or why. I was just told to protect him, and I did, sort of.” That last part, she says with a blush. I guess she remembered she did kind of get shot and left me alone with a second thug.

  “Very well. Let’s leave that for now. If they sent you to protect Brandon, then that is what we need to do. It seems that the Organization is after him. I am sure you know who they are?” she asks the girl with a raised eyebrow.

  Hearing that, she gets a shocked look on her face, with some fear. “Oh shit, yeah, I know who they are. How is that possible! They have been out of service for over thirty years. My dad was in the last battle with them. We killed off many of them. We figured they were done for, or so my dad and the Council of Were thought.”

  “Oh no, they are like roaches. They don’t kill off that easily. You should know this about humans. While we killed many, they are back at their activities again. This time, they tried to kill Brandon. And we do not understand why,” Silvana says to the black-haired girl. Looking at her now that I don’t have a gun to my head, I can see that she is rather good looking. Gorgeous even, except for that perpetual scowl she seems to have.

  “We have also found out something rather interesting about Brandon, but we will keep that close to our chest, for now, all right, Brandon?” she says to me, pointedly. Getting her drift about me being a Silver Elf and a Silver Werewolf, I nod my head. With her pissy attitude, I am not sure I want to share that with her anyhow. And I am still learning who the fuck I am anyhow.

  “Now, you know who Brandon is. I am sure you know who I am, as I have seen you at my Court before with your father. Can we get your name?” Silvana asks the black-haired girl.

  “Yeah, I know who you are. You’re Silvana Miramenor, and your dad is,” but here Silvana interrupts her.

  “Brandon need not know that, as I am sure you would not wish me to tell Brandon exactly who your father is?” she asks her pointedly with a raised eyebrow. What the fuck, they don’t want me to know who their dads are? Hey, I am sure we all have hang-ups about our parents, but mine was more that my dad was always busy.

  Nodding, the girl continues by turning to me. “I am Johanne, Johanne Ianson. As you now know, I am a Werewolf. What you saw last night was me in my full Were form. And if you really took that silver bullet out of me, thank you. You might have saved my life. For that, I owe you a blood debt.”

  “Think nothing of it,” I tell her. “I did it because at first, I thought you were a dog who was helping me out with those two thugs and got shot. I hate seeing animals in pain. Honestly, I wasn’t sure you would survive.”

  “Now, we need to figure out where we are going, because it’s no longer safe here,” Silvana chimes in, before I can ask what a blood debt is.

  “Right, since we have Brandon’s car, I know where we can go. But we need to go into downtown,” Johanne tells her. “We have a safe house there, that is protected. It was a safe house years ago, and it’s fully warded.”

  Silvana looks at her in shock, “You have warded places in town?”

  “Yup, we aren’t about the new Order or new mentality. Some of us Were still believe in being ready for anything. Dad and I are the only ones who know of this place. I already scouted it, and it’s secured, and no one has been there in ages. The wards are still up from what I can see,” she says smugly.

  “Do you have a magic-user with you?” Silvana asks with a raised eyebrow.

  “Nope, I have this.” She produces a necklace out of her neckline that seems to be made of copper, which makes sense, with what silver does to Werewolves. On the chain is a small crystal in the shape of an animal, a stag.

  “So, that’s what happened to the Crystal of the Stag!” Silvana says, surprised.

  Chapter Six

  “What’s a Crystal of the Stag?” I ask, breaking the silence since Johanne had not answered the question.

  “The Crystal of the Stag is something that was lost, or thought lost, over two hundred years ago. It’s a crystal that was created by, well, honestly, we aren’t sure. We believe an Earth mage who worshipped the Mother created it. But the key thing it does is it allows the wearer to see magic,” s
he says reverently. “Even we Elves, when we first saw it, we were amazed at the quality of it.”

  “It’s been in my family for generations,” Johanne says possessively.

  “Do not worry. I shall not take it from you. I might be an Elf, but I do not believe that magic should only belong to us, unlike most of us. I have had enough arguments with my fellow Elves about that,” Silvana says angrily. I can tell her anger is not directed towards Johanne since she doesn’t look at her when she says that last part.

  “Well, we need to get away from here then, and if what you are saying is right, I need to let dad know,” Johanne says out loud.

  “Excellent idea. I already let my father know so that the Court will know. And I am sure the Winter Court will know soon enough,” Silvana says.

  Winter Court, I think to myself. What? I vaguely remember watching a movie where there was a Winter Court, and something about the opposite being a Summer Court. Shit. What the hell did I get pushed into here?

  “So with this Winter Court, I assume you’re part of the Summer Court? Are other things real? Like goblins, gnomes, fairies?” I ask them both.

  Instead of answering right away, they both look at each other knowingly, and it’s Silvana who answers. “Yes, I am of the Summer Court, and as for those other things, yes, they do exist. Though, probably not the way your media portrays them,” she says cryptically.

  “But we can talk about that later. If what you are saying is right, we need to get out of here. And fast,” Johanne says, getting up from the sofa. She grabs the gun and holds her hand out to me. Looking at it, I look up at her face to see if I should trust her.

  “Just give me back my fucking clip, asshole. Otherwise, I can’t protect you,” she says, making a motion with her hand to hurry.

  Sighing, I reach into my pocket and give her the clip and the single bullet. She takes both and puts the single bullet into the clip one-handed and jams the clip into the gun. She then pulls back and puts one in the chamber, as I had found it. Damn, she knows guns. Hope she doesn’t shoot herself with a live round, I think to myself.

  Once done, she heads to the garage door, so we both follow her. When we get there, I see that my good old Volvo is there. Walking to the car, I head to the driver’s side, but Johanne stops me with a hand on my chest.

  “Not so fast, it might be your car, but I am driving her. I don’t let anyone drive a car but me. You can sit in the back, easier to protect you from there. Elf girl can sit in front with me,” Johanne says.

  Looking at Silvana to see what I should do, I see her grinning at me.

  “You heard what the she-wolf said. You’re in the back,” and with that, she goes to the passenger front seat and gets in.

  Sighing, I head to the back door of my Volvo and get in. I have never sat in the back. Hell, it’s still clean as hell, since I don’t sit or put anything back here. And I get it cleaned once a year. I look at them both and ask, “So, can I know where we are going?”

  “We are going to a safe house in downtown Orlando for now. Then we are taking a flight, well me and you are taking a flight to New York City,” Johanne says, looking at me.

  “New York?” I exclaim in shock. “Why the hell are we going to New York City?”

  “Because that’s where all or most of the Werewolves live. The rest around the U.S. are just small family groups,” she says with a grin.

  “I shall join you in that flight,” Silvana says to the two of us.

  “Say what? How? You’re a fae. You can’t get on a plane,” Johanne says, puzzled.

  “Actually, I can. It’s much easier for us to get on a plane now. We no longer need to have the rule of being invited on, as most planes built in the U.S. in the last fifty years have had magic placed on them to allow us to travel easily. Most Elves still refuse to use it for travel but prefer to use, shall we say, our Underworld, to travel. But in this case, I think it would make sense that I should not remove myself from Brandon right now, don’t you agree, Brandon?” she says, asking me.

  Damn, she is asking for my permission to come along? Or is something else going on? Figuring it wouldn’t hurt, I tell her, “Sure, and the more of us, the better the odds, right?” I say lamely. Dude, that is the quote you want to use? Smooth.

  Smiling at me, Silvana says, “Exactly,” and then turns to Johanne, who is looking at her suspiciously.

  “What’s your game?” Johanne asks her finally.

  “Game? Oh, there is no game. I was also told to protect him. I am not sure who told you, but I was told to find him and protect him, and that is what I will do. Even with my life,” Silvana says sweetly to Johanne.

  “As long as you don’t get in my way. I was told to bring him to a safe spot and that someone would contact me,” she says strongly.

  “Fine by me, but know I will also protect him, even if it means from you,” Silvana tells her with an enormous grin. What the fuck is up with those two? They seem to be on friendly terms, but honestly, they also seem one shoe drop away from attacking each other.

  “Glad we agree,” Johanne replies with the same grin. Oh fuck, this will be a lengthy trip, I think to myself.

  Turning around, Johanne starts the car and presses the button on the remote for the garage door to open. Then she backs the car up and pushes the button on the remote again before heading out towards the highway. I live on the outskirts of Orlando, so getting downtown will take us a while. I’m about 40 miles outside of Orlando. I moved here mostly for work, but also at the start it was because I always wanted to visit Disney World. But after going twice, I hated the crowds. I loved the park, though.

  Eventually, Johanne gets up on Interstate 4, heading northeast. Sitting back in the car, I watch Johanne drive. She is going much faster than the speed limit and is weaving between cars. I am sure the limit here is 70 mph, but looking at the gauge, I see she is bringing my Volvo up to 110 mph, and it’s starting to shake.

  “Aren’t we supposed to get where we are going in one piece?” I say to her.

  “We will! But this hunk of junk sucks at getting us there. I need to get different wheels when we get to New York.”

  “Hunk of junk? I will have you know that this car has been good to me for almost 11 years,” I say indignantly.

  “I am sure it’s been good for leisurely strolls to and from work, but fuck me, it sucks at driving. Handles like a boat,” Johanne says.

  “Sorry, my car isn’t up to your standards,” I tell her. What the fuck is wrong with this girl? God, this will be a long trip.

  Sitting back, I close my eyes and think about what has happened to me in the last 24 hours. This is nuts; what I wouldn’t give to go back to my coding right now, instead of all this. I am broken out of my reverie by Johanne.

  “Shit, shit shit,” she says over and over. Looking at her, I see she is looking in the rearview mirror. Looking back, I see a black SUV speeding to catch up to us. It looks exactly like the one that those two goons got out of at my work building. And it’s coming on fast.

  “How did it find us?” she says, slamming her hand against the car’s steering wheel.

  “I might have an idea,” Silvana says. “I should have thought of that.”

  “El manio ela paola,”

  And she closes her eyes, looking around her inside the car, not sure what she can see with her eyes closed though. Then her eyes fly open.

  “Shit, they have a scrying spell on us. That’s how they found us,” she says angrily. Turning to Johanne, she continues.

  “Can you lose them for five minutes and let me out of the car? I need to run a counterspell on it,” she says, irritated. “I should have thought of this, but was preoccupied.”

  “Counterspell?” I ask her. More magic? How many fucking spells does she have?

  “Yeah. I assume one of the Organization's mages must have put what is essentially a tracking spell on your car. I would say they did it at your workplace since they knew where you worked. So I need to run a Counterspell. I
t won’t get rid of it, not in the little time I have to do it, but it will be enough to hide us within a 100-foot radius. I just need two minutes to do it. The good thing is, the spell they are using is a pulse one, so they aren’t running it constantly, as it’s draining on one’s power. And I can see when the pulse happens. Just keep going,” here she stops and nods, “all right, so the pulse is every five minutes. I have a feeling, based on the strength of it. It’s not a powerful mage. Lose them now if you can, Johanne, please.”

  “On it!” and with that, Johanne guns the car, and suddenly we are veering quickly towards the exit ahead. We are still in the suburbs and haven’t hit downtown Orlando yet. Reaching under the seat, Johanne produces another gun and hands it to me.

  “Here, since you seem to know your way around a gun, I assume you also know how to shoot one. Once we stop, we will be security protection for the Elfy girl there. She will need to focus without distraction for the time she needs to run that Counterspell,” she says.

  Taking the gun, I see it’s a Glock. Making sure it’s loaded, I tell her after, “Yeah, I know how to shoot. I just never shot at anyone before, that’s all.”

  “It’s easy. Just pretend they are carcasses of beef hanging on a hook,” Johanne says with a grin.

  Once we hit the bottom of the off-ramp, she turns hard to the right and heads down the street and into the housing area. She keeps going left and right down random streets. Shit, I hope she doesn’t hit a dead end.

  “Lose them! They just pulsed again,” Silvana cries.

  With that, Johanne completes tighter turns, but longer drives. Then she pulls up at a house that has no car in the driveway. The house is a newer style one, with bushes on the side that partly hide the car. We all get out of the vehicle. Johanne on her side, and I get out of the side that Silvana is on. I head to the back of the car, and keep the gun hidden, but ready to shoot at whatever comes. Silvana is right behind me with her hands on the car, and her eyes are closed. Then she starts to say under her breath over and over, “Benia loumina brata magaar.”