Mind Over Matter

by Shea Balik

  “What?” Teagan yelled, probably because he was one the Fae were already after, not just because he was a druid, but because he was a descendant from the Fae. A very distant descendant, but apparently that didn’t matter, especially to the Unseelie, who wanted to destroy that line of the Seelie’s that Teagan came from. “How can that be?”

  “I’m with Teagan on this one,” Ryley said. “We’ve never had trouble closing the Veil before. What makes you think we might, just because it’s bigger?”

  “Look,” Dermot held his arms out to the sides of his body as if to say he really didn’t know. “We don’t know enough about the Veil. Aed’s journals weren’t always very straight forward. And even when they were, some of the translations aren’t… exact.”

  “Then why don’t you ask Fen?” Cullen asked. “I get you hate the guy, but he was around when Aed wrote those journals. He should be able to tell you what Aed meant.”

  Dermot was shaking his head. “No way. There is no way I would trust anything that comes from Fen.”

  Wylie hadn’t met the Fae, who had also been cursed by Aed to help the Vikings and druids find a way to close the Veil for good. But he heard his friends argue about him. Most didn’t like him, but there was one who seemed to be more willing to accept Fen than the others.

  Turning to Teagan, Wylie asked, “What do you think? Will Fen help us?”

  “To be honest?” Teagan sighed. “I don’t know. The animosity between everyone here and him hasn’t helped. Fen isn’t exactly welcome and he knows that. On the other hand, I believe he really wants to do what is right, not for himself, but for Aed.”

  “Aed,” Dermot choked out. “He cheated on him, stole his daughter, who ended up enthralled by Fen’s brother, pregnant, and killing herself after the baby was born, and Fen’s brother basically casting her out.”

  Yikes. Wylie hadn’t heard all of that. No wonder so many hated Fen.

  “What part of any of that makes you think he would do anything for Aed’s sake?” Dermot demanded of Teagan.

  For his part, Teagan didn’t even attempt to deny any of what Dermot said. “Yeah, he did. But I think he loved Aed. He just didn’t know what that meant.”

  “All right,” Wylie interrupted before they got into another argument over the Fae he had yet to meet. “For now, we forget Fen. But I think, until we’re sure we can seal the Veil in one ritual, we need to practice using our magic.” Wylie paused before adding, “Together.”

  “What is that going to help?” Ryley asked. “If we don’t perform the ritual, none of our powers are going to make a bit of difference. In case you missed it, anyone above an Unseelie guard, can’t die from anything we do.”

  “Maybe, but it might also be possible that, so far, only two of you have worked together to make that happen.” Even then, Wylie had no clue if pooling together their powers would help kill the Fae. “Regardless of whether or not they will die, we can stop them from killing those we love.”

  He pointedly looked at Ryley. “Unless you’re okay with Meghan dying.”

  It was a low blow to bring Ryley’s sister into this, but Wylie was out of options to convince them this might be their only chance. Why he was the one doing it, Wylie wasn’t quite sure. He’d been the only one who’d never had to face anything but the pets, and Fritjof had killed them.

  If the rest were as terrifying as both his friends and the Vikings claimed, Wylie would have thought everyone would be training, not just the Vikings, who seemed to be the only ones taking this whole thing seriously.

  “I get that you’ve been lucky so far, but I’m telling you, if they find out about Tess, they will find a way to open that Veil as wide as possible.” There was no way to prove that, but Wylie felt it deep in his bones.

  If he had to force them all to start practicing, Wylie would. He wasn’t quite sure how, but he was able to make things move. Maybe he’d drag them all outside with him every damn day, whether they were willing or not.

  “Guys,” Dermot finally said. “He’s right. The fact is, we have no clue what the Fae are capable of if they manage to get through that Veil.”

  “But other than the pets getting through, we’ve pretty much been able to close it before any of them got out,” Kegan argued.

  Teagan barked a harsh laugh. “Really, because twice now, they’ve met us at the main ritual site.” His gaze landed on those most at odds with what Wylie was suggesting. “In case you’ve forgotten, the Seelie were invisible. Meaning we,” Teagan waggled a finger between all of them, “couldn’t see them to defend ourselves.”

  His gaze landed on Ryley. “If they’d wanted, they could have killed Meghan.” Then he looked at Cullen. “Kyleigh, Nessa, or Bryce,” he said of Cullen’s cousin, sister, and nephew.

  “And I’m not about to let anything happen to Gillie,” Dermot said of his own nephew. “If for no other reason, we need to make sure we can protect them and let’s face it, as strong as the Vikings are, their weapons don’t do shit unless it’s a pet.”

  “Are we in agreement?” Wylie asked.

  Not all appeared happy, but they did nod their assent.

  “Good. Then let’s get started.” It had only been a couple of weeks since he’d discovered his ability, but Wylie had spent a lot of time practicing how to use it.

  After that day his friends had failed so miserably trying to describe how to access it, Wylie had been trying to find a better explanation, but his was just as bad as theirs. He had to admit, he felt a lot like Dermot had said, the magic was a part of him. Not just a piece he accessed, but something integral to who he was.

  It didn’t even require him to give it much thought to use. In the mornings when he was getting ready, he often used it, unwittingly, to retrieve clothes, or open the curtains. Many times it wasn’t until he was dressed that he even realized he hadn’t pulled the clothes out of the dresser himself.

  The same happened at night. As he walked into the room, the shower would start, something that had taken him four nights to even recognize what he was doing.

  Dermot claimed the same when he needed something cold. He would barely even notice a drink that had become hot as it sat outside while he was playing with the kids, would suddenly be cool and refreshing.

  If the two of them were able to use it so easily, Wylie had to believe the others could to. The problem was fear. For Kegan, harnessing lightning had to be terrifying, but Wylie was sure if he could get past that, it would come to him naturally. Plus, as strong as lightning was, he had begun to wonder if Kegan had the ability to do things like turn lights on and off at will.

  After all, electricity, whether it be as powerful as lightning, or as mundane as lights, was still the same, just in varying degrees of strength.

  With that in mind he led them to a string of lights he’d hung on a group of trees along the west side of the valley. “Kegan, you have the bigger challenge because you’ve been afraid to practice since lightning is so dangerous. But,” he pointed to the lights, “if I’m right, I think you might be able to start training on a small scale until you’re ready for more.”

  “Lights?” Kegan looked at him like he’d lost his damn mind. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

  “Are those cactuses?” Teagan asked as he glanced at the small string Wylie had attached between two trees.

  Shrugging, he said, “What? It was all I could find.”

  “Wh…” But Ryley didn’t finish whatever he was going to say, instead shaking his head. “You know what? Never mind. This is your show, Wylie. What exactly are you hoping Kegan will do?”

  Wylie had thought that would be fairly obvious, but he spelled it out anyway. “Make them work,” he told Kegan. “If you can call upon the energy of lightning, it stands to reason, you can call on whatever energy is needed to light up this string.”

  “He has a good point,” Dermot said. “You’ve seen me create huge sheets of ice that are at least twenty feet tall and several feet thick.” Then he lifted a hand and
formed small crystals of ice at the tips of his fingers. “But I can also do this.”

  He hitched his thumb in the direction of the lights. “It stands to reason we all have the ability to go big, or small.”

  Before anyone could argue a small vine rose up out of the dirt beneath their feet. “They’re right,” Teagan said as he made the vine twist and turn in the air before eventually having it sink back into the ground until it disappeared. “The more I play with what I can do, the more I’m able to do. Whether it be create craters deep enough to sink a ship, or grow a daisy.”

  Instead of the vine, this time a small daisy slowly grew and unfurled its petals. That bright white flower stood there proudly as Kegan just stared at it.

  “You all are out of your minds,” he finally said. “What if I end up calling down lightning and it starts a fire?”

  Teagan grinned at him. “Then I’ll dump as much dirt over it as needed to put it out. Wylie’s right, it’s time we learned to work together.”

  Kegan shook his head but he turned to where the lights were strung up and blew out a hard breath. A flicker pulsed with the tiny cactuses. Kegan’s eyes grew wide with amazement. “Did you see that?”

  “Yes, we did,” Wylie said proudly. “I told you, you could do it.”

  Now they just all needed to hone their skills, then find a way to make them work together to fight the Fae. Piece of cake. Yeah, right.

  CHAPTER 15

  “Honestly, I don’t know that they will ever learn to work together,” Wylie said to Buttercup – and damn if Fritjof wasn’t getting used to the stupid nickname. “It’s like they’re afraid of their own shadows.”

  It had been a week since Wylie had convinced his friends to start their daily training to use the powers they were given. So far, only Wylie, Teagan, and Dermot seemed to wield them with any finesse. The others were like toddlers first learning to walk. Falling on their asses and crying about it every couple of steps.

  As frustrated as Wylie was, which was bad enough to have him yelling for the first fifteen minutes every time he came to see Buttercup, Fritjof had seen a change in this amazing man, who still didn’t seem to understand just how special he was. Fritjof tried to tell him when in human form, but it was like Wylie didn’t trust anything he said. Or anyone else for that matter.

  The only time he believed what was being said was when it was negative. Yet, to the rest of the world, Wylie appeared oblivious to any of it as he smiled and laughed his way through the day, no matter how much he wanted to punch someone. His words, not Fritjof’s.

  “Maybe this was a stupid idea,” Wylie grumbled.

  Fritjof nudged him with his nose so he was forced to look at Buttercup. Then he shook his head twice, making sure Wylie knew exactly what he was doing.

  A laugh burst from Wylie, sending the greatest sound Fritjof had ever heard along the breeze. Not for the first time, Fritjof wished he could take the beautiful notes into himself and hold onto them, so he could he could listen to it in the dark of night when all he wanted to do was go to Wylie and hold him.

  Not since he was fourteen and facing down a horde of Unseelie pets had Fritjof ever been so damn scared. Even then, he’d swallowed down the terror that had taken hold and forced himself to fight. The thought of actually knocking on Wylie’s door, or worse, telling him what he was feeling, had Fritjof breaking out in a cold sweat.

  “How do you always seem to know what I’m saying? You’re a horse.” Wylie rolled those beautiful blue eyes and petted Fritjof’s neck. “However you do it, I hope you never stop.”

  Then Wylie leaned in touching his forehead to the spot just below Buttercup’s eyes. “You’re my best friend.”

  If he could, Fritjof would wrap his arms around Wylie and hold him close, but all he could do was nudge him gently to let him know he felt the same. It wasn’t exactly the relationship he wanted, but then again, before Wylie, he never imagined allowing himself to feel this way about anyone. But until Wylie was ready to open up to Fritjof the man, he would be his confidant as a horse.

  “I just wish you were a person,” Wylie whispered more to himself than to Buttercup.

  The wistfulness in Wylie’s voice nearly had Fritjof shifting. He hated that the man felt so damn lonely. That it was his fault for keeping him at arm’s length when they first met, only made it so much worse.

  “Uncle Wylie,” Tess yelled.

  They both turned in the direction the little girl was running toward them. “I hope you’re ready to meet my other favorite girl,” Wylie told him as he grinned while he watched Tess race across the field toward him.

  “But don’t worry, you’re still my best friend,” Wylie said as he petted the side of Buttercup’s neck once more before bracing himself to catch Tess, who catapulted herself into his arms.

  “Umpf,” Wylie grunted as he stumbled a few steps before he was able to balance Tess in his arms. “What is Oluf feeding you? If you get much heavier, you’re going to be the one carrying me around.”

  Tess giggled. “You’re so silly, Uncle Wylie.” Then those purple eyes with their unusual specks turned toward him.

  “Would you like to meet my new friend?” Wylie said. “I’ve named her Buttercup,” he announced to Tess.

  Those way too knowing eyes stared right at Fritjof as if she held the key to his lie. “It’s nice to meet you, Buttercup,” she said. Then she leaned way over in Wylie’s arms so she could put her little arms around his neck for a hug. Except, what Wylie didn’t know was the move was so she could whisper into Fritjof’s ear. “He’s going to be mad when he finds out the truth.”

  Either she hadn’t been as quiet as she thought, or Wylie had very good hearing, for he frowned at his niece and asked, “The truth about what?”

  For a moment, Fritjof went very still as he feared she was about to tell Wylie his secret. But instead she winked, actually winked – he hadn’t even known a five-year-old knew how to wink – at Fritjof and with far too much innocence for his comfort, she said, “Buttercup is a boy, not a girl, Uncle Wylie.”

  Sure, it wasn’t technically a lie, but both Fritjof and Tess damn well knew that wasn’t what she was talking about when she mentioned the truth. Yet, she was able to come up with the half-truth without having to even think about it. Fritjof would need to plan a talk with the little girl, so she understood that even though he was lying to Wylie, it wasn’t okay for her to lie like that. Although, he would appreciate her not admitting what she knew.

  Okay, so maybe he’d have to have that talk with her once Wylie knew the truth. That way he wouldn’t need to tell her lying was bad but to please keep doing it. Talk about mixed messages.

  “She is?” Wylie said as he turned toward Fritjof. “How do you know that?”

  There was no way this conversation was going to end without Wylie knowing the truth. He wasn’t sure how Tess was going to explain how she could tell the difference between a boy or girl horse. Sure, Wylie should have probably figured it out all by himself, but a five-year-old? No way.

  Readying himself for the worst case scenario, Fritjof hadn’t seen Tess go completely still in Wylie’s arms at first. It wasn’t until he heard the concern in Wylie’s voice as he said, “Tess? What is it, sweetie?” that Fritjof took in the fear that seemed to glow in her violet eyes, making the pink and blue seem like beams of light radiating outward.

  “Tess,” Wylie said a little more panicked.

  “They’re coming,” she said. Then she turned to Fritjof, the warning clear in her voice. “They’ll open it wide.”

  Fritjof didn’t need to be told twice. He damn well know what she meant, even if Wylie was asking her what she was talking about. He hated what he had to do, but it was the only way to get Tess to safety.

  Shifting, he leaped over the fence. Wylie, seeing the movement, stared at him as if he’d just grown horns and tail. “Wha… How… What?” His head had been shaking the whole time he’d tried to get words out, but Fritjof knew they didn’t have the
time for questions or answers.

  “You need to get her to the house. Hide her. The Fae are coming and they can’t see her.” He even tried to push Wylie forward when he didn’t start moving.

  But Wylie either didn’t hear him, or he was too dumbstruck to understand what those words meant. “This whole time?” He said.

  “Not now,” Fritjof yelled, even going so far as to shake him slightly, hoping to pull him out of the fog he was in. “The Fae will be here any second. Tess has to be hidden,” he shouted.

  Wylie started to move, to back up away from Fritjof, but he wasn’t moving fast enough. Unwilling to sacrifice Tess’s safety because of his stupidity, Fritjof did the only thing he could.

  He yelled Hrafn’s name, who thankfully happened to be exercising one of the horses in the paddock. His friend looked his way, surprise evident on his face at seeing Fritjof in human form. Again, refusing to explain, he just said, “The Fae will be here any second, call the others, and keep Wylie safe.”

  Hrafn was already running their way, with his phone in his hand. Fritjof grabbed Tess and said, “Trust me,” to her, even as he threw her up into the air just enough so when he shifted she landed on the back of his horse. Then he took off, racing as fast as his legs would carry him.

  As a Fjord Pony, speed wasn’t exactly his thing, but Fritjof pushed himself, not stopping until he leapt up the porch stairs. Light from behind him seemed to electrify the sky and he knew the Fae were opening the Veil.

  Shifting, he reached his arm around to grab Tess before she could fall. Then he pushed the front door open. “Go hide in the special room in the basement. No matter what, don’t open that door for anyone. You can’t let them see you.”

  Her gaze was fixed on a spot behind him. “Too late,” she said.

  Fritjof glanced over his shoulder, dread sinking through his body as violet eyes peered past him to land on Tess. Surprise shook the Fae, as those that flanked him stepped through the Veil and into the human world. A mix of anger and what Fritjof could only describe as yearning radiated off the Fae as he joined the others.