“Cool mode of transport,” I whispered to Eli.
He just nodded sternly, seemingly unimpressed.
“How many cities are there in Faerie?” I asked Pan.
“Several hundred,” he said with a glance over his shoulder at me.
“Really? I had no idea there were that many.”
“Only a small percentage of faeries choose to visit the Earth realm. Most stay in Faerie. We number in the tens of millions.”
I was flabbergasted. With those numbers faeries could easily overtake Earth.
“Earth has its charms,” continued Pan, as if he had read my thoughts, “But Earth cannot sustain the volume of magic that we perform here. It would tear it apart at the seams. A supernova of epic proportions.” A small smile crossed his lips as if this thought amused him greatly. “Thus, we have no desire to conquer and occupy it. Humans themselves are our playthings, and they are plenty amusing enough to keep us entertained.” His green eyes glowed as he looked at me.
I wanted to change the subject. “So, what is this city called?”
“Valyria. The City of Night.” He waved his walking stick, and the metal tip showered sparks over our heads. “And our next stop is the Dawn Fields.”
We walked in silence for a few more minutes, and gradually came to what looked like a train station. There were tracks, benches and ripped up posters adorning the sides of the buildings. A couple minutes passed, maybe three, and then I felt a gust of air and turned to see the train had arrived. Not arriving, arrived. I hadn’t heard it coming or anything. “What on Earth?” I muttered.
“What on Faerie,” Eli said. It was his first attempt at humor all night.
An ordinary-enough looking train; sleek and steel gray, a metallic caterpillar. The doors whooshed open, faeries exited, and we got on. It had poles and ‘oh-shit’ handles hanging from the ceiling just like a subway. I heard a sing-song voice announce that the train was pulling out of the station. I grabbed one of the handles.
“You may want to sit down the first time,” Pan suggested, gesturing to one of the seats.
“I’d rather—” and the words were ripped from my mouth as the train shot forward. As in, went to warp speed like a space ship. Everything turned to pin-pricks of color, including my body, and then to streaks of light. I had a moment to wonder at the dematerialized state of everything, and then we had jerked to a stop again. I hung limply from the handle, my stupid boots crumpled beneath me. Sheepishly I scrambled to my feet.
Pan just smiled. “I welcome you to Dawn Fields.” He waved his arm in a wide arc at the view.
I followed Pan and Eli out the doors of the train onto the platform. I blinked in the bright light of a cotton candy streaked sunrise. It was perfect, that vivid awesomeness that usually only lasts a few moments before vanishing. An enormous field of flowers stretched out before us, as far as the eye could see in all directions. A slight breeze shimmered over the fields, making the flower petals sigh. Perpetual dawn, a new day, fresh and flawless forever. It was so beautiful I thought I would cry.
Pan laughed at my awestruck expression. “Well isn’t this lovely? Time is a-wasting, however, so let us be on our way.” He stepped out into the flowers and began to tromp through the meadow.
Contrary to the City of Night, Dawn Fields was everything I had envisioned Faerie could be. Every blade of grass, every flower petal, every cloud, every far-off shimmer of water was insanely bright and perfect and vibrant, like one big acid trip. I could imagine linking hands with complete strangers and running through the flowers, dancing and jumping and spinning. Living to smell the honeysuckle and gaze at the sky and watch the sun rise eternally.
I wondered if Heaven was like this. I glanced over at Eli, to see if something in his expression would give me a clue. It did seem his expression had softened somewhat; he no longer glowered at everything. Of course, other than asking him, I would never know. I would never visit the realm of Heaven. I ground my teeth in frustration. Eli was a constant reminder of something I could never have. Like forbidden fruit dangled right in front of my nose.
Pan turned back and smiled broadly at me, and I wondered again if he could read my thoughts. Incredibly creepy. “We’ll reach a lake before too long, and we’ll need to gain passage across to the city of Elanid. It is there that your friends are held captive, if still alive.”
I pushed his comment from my head, focusing on my surroundings to keep from thinking about what was happening to Riley and Quinn. I studied the strange animals meandering through the meadow. First, a creature that looked somewhat like a pony-sized lemur, except instead of brown or yellow fur it was pale purple all over with dark purple ears and a striped tail. It tore flowers from their stems and then slurped the nectar with a long curled tongue like a chameleon’s. We also came across a flock of birds with long legs like storks that changed color to match whatever flower they touched, and instead of feathered wings they had dragonfly wings.
Gradually, the lake Pan mentioned came into view. Its blue was brighter than the brightest turquoise waters of Earth’s most lush tropical paradise. A few strange boats dotted the surface that upon closer inspection seemed to be made purely of colored silk. And on the far side of the water I could see a beautiful city on the horizon, with tall shining spires, gleaming bridges and shimmering flags. “How are we going to cross?” I asked.
“I will ask the water faeries to bear us across,” Pan replied.
Eli and I gave each other a questioning look, but kept our mouths shut. Pan approached the shore and whistled loudly as if calling for a taxi. A minute or so later, five heads popped out of the water. It was hard to see them with the sun glinting off the water, and being as how they seemed to be all silvery themselves. I could barely tell where the water ended and they began. Or maybe they were one and the same.
Pan began to speak to them in faerie language, which I couldn’t understand. A moment later, he reached into his vest and pulled out a wooden pipe, made of small reeds all strung together in a row. He placed his lips to the instrument, and then the most gorgeous music I’d ever heard flowed up into the sky. The water faeries clapped their hands together and laughed delightedly, splashing and swimming around in circles. All too soon his song died off, and I couldn’t tell whether it had been one minute or one hour. Time had vanished into his music.
The faeries dove under the water, disappearing from view. “Where did they go?” I asked.
“To get a boat,” Pan answered, putting away his pipe.
Beneath the water seemed an especially odd place to store a boat, but again, I kept my lips pressed together. This was no time for smartass comments. And good thing I hadn’t made one, because a moment later the surface bubbled and one of the silken sailboats rose up out of the water. Its tangerine-colored sheets caught and magnified the pastels of the rising sun.
“Climb aboard,” Pan said with a sweeping bow.
I dubiously stepped over the side, but while the material flexed beneath me like a net, I didn’t sink below the water. Eli clambered in after me, and Pan last. Pan stepped forward to the front of the boat and stood on the bow, staring off toward the city. The water faeries began to push the boat forward, and we floated over the lake. Elanid grew bigger and bigger as we approached, and as we got closer I could see the entire city was made of clear crystal or glass which reflected all the colors around it. It didn’t seem the type of city that harbored kidnappers.
“That which is most beautiful is often that which is most dangerous,” Pan said. Now I was sure he could read my mind. Freaking fantastic.
The water faeries delivered us at a shining silver dock. The dock led to stairs, and the stairs led to the city gates, which sparkled like diamonds. Oddly enough, no one guarded the gates, so we passed through unnoticed. “Where to now? Where does Taryn stay?”
“His palace is not far from here. But that’s not where we’ll find him.” Pan strolled along, making his walking stick disappear and then reappear.
; “So, where will we find him?”
“At the gladiatorial arena.”
I couldn’t have heard him right. “Did you say gladiatorial arena? You’re joking.”
Pan’s eyes gleamed. “I’m afraid not. That’s how we get our entertainment here in Elanid.”
“A barbaric human pastime?” Eli asked, anger tinting his voice.
“Actually, we’re the ones who gave the idea to the Romans. Only humans seemed to grow tired of it after a while, whereas we did not. We simply found new ways to make it more entertaining.”
I felt sick. “And Quinn and Riley? They’re making them fight?”
“Most likely,” Pan responded nonchalantly.
Eli and I followed him in gloomy silence down the glittering street. It wasn’t long before I heard it. The cheering. A low hum at first, rising to a deafening roar as we got closer. What chance could my friends and the HR stand against faerie warriors? Quinn knew magic, so probably had an advantage there, but still. Were we too late? Did we come all this way to discover they were already dead? I’d known it was a possibility, but now it seemed more a probability.
The stadium came into view, and it indeed looked very similar to the Colosseum, except made of the same silvery glass as the rest of the city. We followed Pan up some stairs and out onto a balcony overseeing the arena. A battle was just concluding. My stomach flipped up into my mouth for a moment, but the figure lying on the floor of the stadium was neither Riley, Quinn or the HR.
The victor was a female with long blonde hair tipped vivid pink to match her wings. Like Gladiator Barbie or something. “Jintara! Our undefeated warrior in magical combat!” The crowd went wild. No one seemed to notice when two faeries came out and dragged the mangled body of one of their own out of the stadium.
Pan turned to me, his green eyes intense. “And this is where I call on my favor from you, Zyan.” He paused, his eyes flicking down into the arena. “I want you to battle the champion.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
“No way,” Eli answered, stepping in front of me. “I’ll do it instead.”
I would have been flattered by his attempted sacrifice, except I’m just not that big into sexist chivalry garbage. “Just hold on—”
Pan beat me to the punch, though. “Sorry, but I don’t want you. I’ll call on your favor at a later time.”
“You’ve been planning this all along!” Eli argued. “What kind of sick faerie game is this?”
“Temper, temper,” Pan said soothingly. “Yes, I have been planning it all along.” He turned to me. “Since I felt all that wild power within you. It’s just waiting for an outlet.”
“But you said yourself I had neglected it. I can’t control it at all.” I liked a good fight as well as anybody else, but not one I had zero hope of winning.
“Mind over matter, Zyan.” Pan smiled encouragingly. “You have the potential. Nothing like a little pressure to put the shine on the gemstone.”
“You’re an asshole,” I said to Pan. God of fucking nature or not, he’d just pushed me over the edge with his smug superiority.
Pan responded with a grin and a twirl of his walking stick. “Let’s get started then, shall we?”
He disappeared.
And promptly reappeared in the middle of the arena. “I call a challenge against our champion!” His voice rang up through the stands. “My Anam Gatai from Earth against the undefeated Jintara!”
As the crowd erupted in cheers, I felt like a freakshow spectacle. In the realm of Faerie, non-faerie gladiators must be a hot commodity. Which was exactly why Pan had brought me here.
“You don’t have to do this,” Eli said. He put his hands on my shoulders and hooked me in a pleading gaze.
“I do if I want to get Riley and Quinn and the HR back. We’re not getting out of here alive unless I fight her.” I tried to smile, but I could tell it wasn’t very convincing.
“Zyan Star—please join us!” Pan shouted, pointing up at me.
Eli’s hands dropped slowly to his sides. I avoided his eyes as I turned to face the cheering crowd. The onlookers went wild as I jumped lithely down into the stadium. The least I could do, considering I was about to get my ass handed to me. Pan bowed to each of us and retreated from the center of the ring.
Jintara began to circle me immediately, and I could feel her probing at me with her mind, trying to get a sense of what powers I had. Was I really in Faerie, with the god of nature, in a gladiator ring? My life was really weird sometimes, but this took the cake.
Jintara lashed out her magic in the form of a bright pink wall of energy which shot out from her hands and smashed into me. Her magic flipped me head over heels into the sand. And let me tell you, this tiny little outfit Selfora had created for me wasn’t very good at keeping sand out of places it didn’t need to be.
The crowd roared in approval, though it also held an aura of disappointment. Thus was the sad reality of champions. The audience rooted for them because they had risen through the ranks and proven themselves best. But there was always that twisted curiosity to witness the hero’s downfall. To see who could best the best. Because sooner or later, no matter how long their reign, all heroes fell.
As I rose awkwardly to my feet in my three-inch heels, Jintara circled me like a vulture, her vivid pink lips curled in a taunting smile. Her fist began to glow like a ball of sunset, and then the glow extended, forming a curved blade. Well, if that’s the kind of fight we were going to have, maybe I could hang in a bit longer. I returned her smile as I pulled my sword. I heard the audience murmur in disapproval at my lack of magic.
Jintara whirled in the air, her blade growing in length, and brought all the force of it down on my blade. I have no doubt she figured it would shatter into a million mere metal pieces. But she didn’t know my little secret—that my blade had been forged with the fire of a Japanese sea dragon. It was nearly indestructible. There was a stunned silence, from both her and the crowd, whose discontent ceased instantly. Then Jintara’s dangerous faerie eyes narrowed at me, and the battle truly began.
A human crowd wouldn’t have been able to track our movements at all, but the faeries could. We were a blur of black and pink and silver. I had a slight edge on Jintara in speed, but she had the magical blade that could extend to any length. A couple times she caught me with the tip as I spun away, but I got in a couple nicks on her as well. We battled on for nearly fifteen minutes, neither gaining the advantage, neither tiring, and soon the audience began to grow bored. They wanted more magic.
Jintara’s sword dissipated and I felt her forming something with her power that would end me. She held her hands up and between them a swirling vortex began to form. At first I thought something was going to come out of it and attack me, but then I felt the tips of my boots pushing through the sand like canoes approaching a waterfall. She was pulling me into it. I called on my own power and threw a blast at her face, but she just shook her head like I’d gotten a little sand in her eyes. My struggling was to no avail, and I began to inch toward the vortex, which now stretched from her toes to her forehead.
At that moment two things happened simultaneously. First, my demon spiral began to glow. Second, I felt a power rush into me that I’d never felt before. For a terrifying moment, I thought Lucifer had taken control of me. But then I realized the power came from Pan. An image of him flooded my mind, and turning my head slightly, I could see the glow of his eyes from the shadows at the edge of the ring. It was entirely too intimate to have someone else’s power inside me, and I realized Pan might not be a much better alternative from Lucifer. Either way I was a puppet on someone else’s strings.
But I didn’t have time to contemplate this further, or even to get good and angry, because Pan’s power lashed out with a blast of green sparks and demolished the vortex Jintara had created. She fell back onto the sand, eyes wide with shock. The crowd went insane.
And Pan was just getting warmed up. My arms raised into the air, not of their own accord, an
d showered Jintara with thousands of tiny arrows of light. She threw up her arms, a shield of power covering her, and scrambled away as they bore down. I felt a surge of Pan’s power within me, like a cobra rearing its head back to strike, and then a ball of blue flames rocketed into her, shattering her shield and breaking over her body. Jintara screamed and twisted as the flames sizzled into her skin. I felt another surge building, this time even bigger than the previous one, tsunami sized compared to what had just been rough surf before.
No! I screamed in my head, hoping he heard me. I would not kill for him, for the faerie’s entertainment. The demon tattoo still glowed ruby red on my skin. And abruptly I had had enough. Lucifer had tried to possess me, and now Pan. Who the fuck did they think they were? I was not just a pawn in everybody’s evil agendas. They could do their own goddamn dirty work.
I felt my own reservoir of wild power rise within me. The power I knew I couldn’t control. Once I let it loose, I didn’t know if I’d ever get it shoved back inside me again. But it was my only chance of stopping Pan and saving all of us.
The first thing I did was kick out my squatter. I simply flexed my power and pushed him right out. Secondly, I reached out and grabbed Jintara between two walls of energy, pulling her to her feet and holding her tight. “I don’t want to kill you,” I called. I met her eyes across the five feet that separated us. “I didn’t come here for this, I came to free my friends. Leave now.”
She struggled for a second, but I squeezed my power against her until she gasped for breath, then finally nodded. I released her and she disappeared in a burst of pink sparks. Hey, at least she was color-coordinated.
A moment of uncertain silence settled over the crowd as everyone tried to figure out what the hell had just happened. Pan strode forward and lifted my arm to the sky. “I give you your new champion, Zyan Star!” The stands erupted in a cacophony of applause.
Martinis with the Devil Page 21
