by Kim Schubert
A pearl white horse stepped forward with an obsidian horn. On his back rode a dark-haired beauty.
“They friends?” Anna asked.
I shrugged, “Hopefully.” The woman slid from the unicorn’s back.
“Olivia, daughter of The Queen and The Magician, have you come to pay your debts?” she asked.
“That depends, any chance you have a spare horn and a shadow lark with you?” I asked.
The pearl unicorn stomped his feet. “You have already taken from us! How dare you demand more?”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “Watch it, or I will leave you here to rot.”
He scoffed, “You are the daughter of the liar. I shouldn’t be surprised that you continue that legacy.”
“Hey, any chance anyone saw a skinny asshole with a cow?” Anna asked.
The unicorn dropped his head to Anna. “Why?”
“We need the cow,” Anna said, his proximity not fazing her.
“They didn’t make it past the snake pit,” the unicorn shook its head.
“Fuck,” I hissed.
“Why did you need the cow?”
The door to the kitchen opened, the baby wailing. “I think she’s hungry,” Ox said. “We don’t have any more food.”
“Dammit.” I turned to him, but the mermaid stopped me.
“That is what you needed the cow for?” she asked me.
I nodded.
“We can help, one of our sisters is nursing a child.”
“Good, we don’t have much time. The Queen and all her court are on Earth. I have to get back to protect … well, basically everybody,” I said. “Now, about those items.”
…
Mark, Jerry, and Jaelle’s entire coven had landed thirty minutes earlier and been shuttled over to the mansion. Everyone was assembled in the backyard. Jaelle claimed the outdoors quieted them after such a traumatic, forced journey.
“Olivia is trapped in the red world. Her father, The Magician, and a djinn sent her through to gather information, but neither of them has regained consciousness,” Logan explained.
Jaelle shook her head, the coven wandering around her restlessly. They made Logan nervous; he could scent the stench of death on them.
“We know nothing of other realms,” Jaelle said, rattling the thin bracelets on her wrists. “Had you just explained the situation, it would have saved us both time.”
Logan growled and Jaelle stepped back.
“Can you help wake up The Magician and the djinn?” Logan asked.
Jaelle shrugged. “We deal in death, not healing.”
“Is there something buried here?” one of the necromancers asked, kicking a clump of dirt.
Logan raised his eyebrows. “Not that I know of.”
“What are you sensing, Dacey?”
The young girl shrugged her thin shoulders, her fingers flexing at her sides. “I don’t know, something.”
…
“What guarantees do we have?” the large unicorn named Hemit rumbled.
“None, except that I am as anxious to get out of here as you are,” I told him honestly.
He grumbled before lowering his head. “Take it, before I change my mind.”
I reached up, slightly freaked out as I tugged the thick-based black horn free from his face. It came away easily, revealing a skinnier horn underneath.
“Cool,” Anna breathed.
I handed her the horn, before turning to the river-eyed mermaid named Arista. “So, you have legs.”
“We do,” she agreed.
“Look, I was going to come back, I actually have properties already for the unicorns.” Hemit huffed behind me. I got the feeling he didn’t believe me.
“How did your mother leave?”
“The fucking Fae,” I hissed.
Arista nodded, “And what about us?”
I shrugged. “We’ve had issues. I haven’t had time to scout for properties.”
Arista shook her head. “The shadow lark is pure energy, what was taken hasn’t regrown yet.
“Shit,” I grunted, turning away from her. Blood spell it was, then.
“But, we can give you a boost.”
I groaned, “That’s going to fucking hurt.”
“What about the other items, Olivia?” Ox asked, watching everything nervously.
“We can try merging the two spells, use our blood to make up for the missing ingredients,” Anna offered with a shrug.
I groaned, shrugging my own shoulders in return. “Sure, what the fuck do we have to lose?”
…
Dacey knelt in the wet grass, using her hands to pull back the earth. “Something is here, but not,” she mused.
The others gathered around her in their frail, unnerving ways.
Jerry squinted at the spot Dacey was working on. “She’s right,” he confirmed.
Jaelle turned to him, surprised.
…
“Alright big boy, smash those,” Anna said, setting his horn and the griffin feathers under Hemit’s hooves.
He looked at her from black eyes and I could only imagine what we wanted to tell her. Anna shrugged, waving her hand in a get-to-it fashion.
Hemit huffed, obliging her.
I turned to Arista, holding out my hand. She had pulled from each of her fellow mermaids and was glowing. “Are you ready, Olivia?”
“Ready as I’ll ever be,” I grunted as her hand clamped down on my own.
I groaned, my body arching forward, a scream clamped between my grinding jaws as pure white energy shot up my arm. Don’t ask me how I knew the color when my eyes were closed, but I felt the searing heat and wished for the cool waters of the muddy-banked river.
I straightened up, finding myself able to release Arista’s hand before I leaned over, resting my hands on my thighs.
“The babe won’t take my milk,” a voice said, with wailing following on its heels.
I grunted, blinking back white spots and forcing the pain in my head to manageable levels.
“Hemit done?” I asked, turning to Anna.
The unicorns were watching me intently.
“Yep, all dust,” Anna said, bending down to pick it up.
“Leave it,” I commanded, shaking my head.
Anna looked up at me. “We need rope, quickly,” I rasped at her.
Anna nodded, heading into the barn and producing what I needed.
“Hemit, you are going in first, with Ox and the baby tied to you,” I commanded.
He huffed, “I will not ride with a halfling.”
I snarled, the sound ripped from my very soul, turning on him. He backed up quickly. “You will do as I say or you will rot here.”
I didn’t recognize my voice.
“Easy Olie, it’s the magic. Your eyes are black,” Anna counseled me.
I nodded, drawing an anger-infused breath before turning back to Hemit. He knelt down and I nodded.
Ox handed the baby to me before awkwardly mounting Hemit’s back. I looked down on the soft, malnourished bundle. “Hang on, beautiful, we are going to get you help,” I whispered, kissing her forehead.
“Use the sling to tie her to you, be sure the rope doesn’t cut into her.” Ox nodded, silently accepting the rope. Anna moved to help him.
I blew out a breath and wrapped the books in a curtain. Handing them to Arista, I warned, “These have to make it through. I have to be able to defeat my mother before she makes Earth like this place.”
Arista nodded, “I accept the charge.”
“Alright, let’s do this.” I had read the spell over fifty times already. I lacked the love potion from my mother and the dust of the high desert, but I had plenty of dirt and here’s hoping blood as well.
Slicing my wrist open with a dagger, I let the bright crimson pool onto the crushed horn and griffin feathers.
“Do you want mine as well?” Anna asked.
I nodded, pumping my hand to get more blood to flow. She knelt next to me, slicing her own wrist.
I exhaled, laying my hand on the blood and dust, pushing the borrowed mermaid energy into the pile. Everything snapped into high-definition clarity.
“By my blood, by my oath, by my right, open the portal to where my bones call home.” I imagined the backyard of the mansion, where Logan’s well loved and falling apart grill had been placed. The pool where Tommy loved to play water basketball. The grass Ginny so often would climb off her blanket to pull at and try to eat.
The ground in front of us yawned open and Anna fell through with a scream. I pushed back, the portal following me, eating at the ground.
“GO! GO! GO!” I screamed. Mermaids and unicorns both flew by me. The portal called me, demanded me. I wanted to go through, needed to.
My body moved forward, but I forced myself back with a groan. Bodies flew by me, and I bowed my head. With a scream, the last went through and I let the portal take me, the anticipation of Logan’s arms and soft grass a whispered promise.
…
Logan didn’t understand a word the necromancers were chanting, but Jerry was sitting cross-legged with them on the ground, listening to something Logan couldn’t hear.
Logan shifted his weight, crossing his arms over his chest. Mark stood next to him, sharing in his discomfort.
The ground rumbled, and they were both rocked back.
“Get out of there!” Logan yelled, his voice lost as a huge portal opened in the center of the circle. There wasn’t time; the wind howled, whipping around them. Huge horses tumbled out, tossed around like rag dolls. Only one stood its ground and Logan turned, not believing his eyes.
A pure white unicorn with an obsidian horn carried a man clutching a makeshift sling to his chest, while a rope dug into his waist.
Logan recognized that sling style, it was something Olie used to cart Ginny around in. Partially shifted, he was moving toward the man before he even realized it, slicing through the ropes with his claws and helping the man down.
“The baby—she needs—she needs food,” the man whispered before losing consciousness.
Logan turned, seeing Tommy in the doorway at the back of the house. “Get formula, now!!” He screamed.
Tommy stood shell-shocked for only a moment before he was moving.
Logan turned to the portal. “Olivia,” he whispered, as bodies kept being tossed around. There was a pause and then the portal shuttered before drawing in on itself.
“NO!” Logan bellowed.
…
I groaned, curled up on my side, my head splitting with pain, my body feeling skinned alive. I didn’t even care that grass had been shoved into my mouth.
“Yuck,” I coughed, spitting out the moist dirt. Hell, at least it wasn’t red. I rolled to my back, looking up at the beautiful, dark night sky.
A caramel head came into my view and I smiled. “Hey honey, I’m home,” I croaked.
Logan smiled, dropping to his knees and pulling me into his arms. I groaned in contentment. “And you brought friends,” he murmured.
I laughed, “Yeah, yeah, I did.”
Chapter 6
I took Logan’s offered hand as I stood up, the vertigo causing me to sway slightly. Once my vision stopped swimming, I looked around the backyard. Unicorns pawed the fresh dirt, jumping and bucking in joy. The mermaids had taken to the pool, jumping in and laughing. I couldn’t help but smile, freedom was always something to celebrate.
Anna rolled into a sitting position, spitting out grass with a groan.
“What the fuck?” she asked, standing up, arms braced wide as she stumbled.
Hemit shook his head, prancing with his pack. “The baby?” I asked with urgency.
Logan turned me. There, sitting on a deck chair, was Tommy, feeding the baby and talking to Ox, like all this was normal. New babies, new faces, new races. I shook my head, instantly regretting it as I swayed again. Maybe this was our normal. This band of outsiders I claimed as my own.
“One problem down,” I muttered. “What is Jaelle doing here?”
“Your father and Amin are unconscious. We needed the coven to reach you.” Logan tightened his arm around my shoulders. I sagged into him.
I nodded, heaving a sigh. The only thing I wanted to do was rest in Logan’s warm and never-failing embrace.
“How long have I been gone from here?” I asked him, pulling back and standing on my own. He hesitated to release me, but I had to appear strong here, had to set the right tone for everyone: This bitch could spin spells, open a portal and still kick ass.
Logan chuckled, clearly having heard that mental pep talk.
“Three days,” he answered.
“It was only a day for us,” I told him. I needed to tell him everything that had happened, the memories of my father and Anna’s father. I needed him to help me sort through the new and conflicting emotions I was having about The Magician.
I groaned, exhaling a breath before pushing all that mess back down where it belonged.
We had work to do.
I turned to see Mark helping Jerry up.
Jaelle had regained her footing and was checking on her coven. I moved toward her. Sensing my approach, she straightened her pearl white robes, brushing off flecks of dirt.
“Quite an entrance,” she began.
I shrugged. “The usual. How did you know where I would be?”
“Dacey sensed something,” she said, nodding to a young member righting herself.
“Nice work, Dacey,” I told her. She smiled timidly, shrugging.
Mark finished righting Jerry, helping him over to us.
“About damn time, Olie,” Jerry grunted.
“Wasn’t even a full day where I was,” I informed him.
“Whatever, how did you get back?” he asked.
“Magic, luck, and blood.”
Jerry nodded. “I think you pulled from us as well.”
I nodded, rubbing the back of my neck, a throbbing building at my temples.
“Hey, so I’ve solved your adoption issues. Go see Tommy, that’s my half-sister.”
Logan grunted, looking down at me. “A little more finesse in informing them they are about to be parents to your own blood might have helped.”
I shrugged, turning to see the shocked faces of Jerry and Mark. They were both still, hardly breathing and ashen faced.
So I could see Logan’s point, but I didn’t have the time.
“Come on,” I said to them, moving to Tommy and Ox, who had made it into a sitting position, resting his thin arms on his knees, looking around in wonder.
“We have a new baby?” Tommy asked, holding the baby bottle like a professional.
“Mark and Jerry are going to raise her,” I explained. “If they want to,” I added.
I turned to see Jerry reaching out tentatively to the small bundle.
Tommy looked at me, confused. I nodded and he handed over the baby with the bottle.
“She’s really hungry,” Tommy said.
“Our mother left her, abandoned her,” Anna informed him, venom dripping from her words.
I looked over at her. She was worn, her steps heavy and slow. I wasn’t the only one hurting from losing blood creating the portal and energy passing through it. But none of that compared to the memory she had seen.
I rested a hand on her shoulder. “We will find her.”
“Find who?” Logan asked.
I sighed. “Our mother wasn’t in the red world. In fact, only Ox and the baby were left behind there.” No need to mention Giv, he’d gotten what he deserved. “We found a Fae in the library and learned that Mommy Bitchest had brokered a deal with the Fae for passage here.”
Logan nodded, the relief and happiness over my return draining away.
Mark looked down over Jerry’s shoulder at the little infant. At least something good was coming of this.
“Why can’t we keep her?” Tommy asked, looking back at them.
I
rested a hand on his shoulder. “She has a chance at a normal life, untainted by our tortured pasts. Let her have that. Besides, it’s not like she won’t be over all the time.”
“She is our sister,” Anna said with a smile.
“What’s her name?” Mark asked, looking up at me with tears in his eyes.
I shook my head. “She doesn’t have one.”
Mark nodded, looking back down at the baby.
“What of me?” Ox asked softly.
I sighed. “We will get you a room set up. I’ll have to figure out a tutor to get you up to speed.” Placing a hand on his shoulder, I added, “But you are safe now. No one will harm you. No one will force you to do anything against your will.” He met my sincere gaze with hardly restrained tears.
“Thank you, sister,” he whispered.
I nodded before standing.
“Let’s go see my father. I’m going to need him awake to figure out where my mother is.”
“Where are the books?” Anna asked, searching the ground and finally spotting them. “I’ll grab them, you see your father.”
I nodded, heading inside, noting the sadness in her voice.
“What happened?” Logan asked, keeping pace with me. I felt Tommy following closely.
“The Fae we killed showed us memories of our fathers. Anna’s is Luharposn, and he wanted her killed at birth. She’s taking it hard.”
“What of your father?” Logan asked.
I sighed, turning to face him at my father’s doorway. “He loved me, and had a hell of a time giving me up. After seeing how Ox was treated, I’m understanding more why he did what he did.”
Logan nodded and I opened the door before we could get further into the complex emotions that were clouding my ironclad disgust with my father.
Doyle raised his back and silver fur-covered head in the small room, a single lamp throwing more shadows than light. “You have returned,” he announced with no joy.
“You don’t sound surprised,” I said to him, moving into the room, crossing my arms over my chest.
Doyle shrugged, “You are his daughter, you share his stubbornness and intelligence.”
I couldn’t argue with that, going to my father’s bedside. “Why hasn’t he woken up yet?” I asked.
Doyle shifted nervously. “It is too early for him to wake after such an exhausting feat. The real question is, why hasn’t Amin woken up?”