by Suzy Turner
"Zalea!" yelled Jack as he rushed to her side and lifted her head carefully off of the dry sandy surface. "Nick, get some water."
After they'd tried to get her to swallow some water, Zalea stirred but didn't wake.
"What is it? What's wrong with her?" asked Jack while Nick shook his head.
"I've no idea. Perhaps she's over done it. Perhaps she needs to rest?"
"Surely she wouldn't just collapse like this if that was the case? She would have warned us if she wasn't feeling right."
Oprah trundled up to their side and put her head down to the faery's face. Sniffing, she gently licked her cheek and waited for a response. When there wasn't any, she lifted her head upwards and let out an extraordinarily loud long, deep groan.
Jack and Nick both placed their hands over their ears and waited for her to stop.
"What the hell was that?" asked Jack as Nick finally managed to get her to be quiet.
"I don't know, she's never done it before."
"Never? Not in the fifteen years you've had her?"
Nick shook his head in shock.
Turning back to face Zalea who moaned quietly, they watched her open her eyes, "Wh...what happened?" she asked.
Both men shook their heads in disbelief as Oprah once again leaned forward and licked Zalea's cheek.
"Ew... thank you Oprah, I think."
Lifting her up so was she in a seated position, Jack cradled her until she felt strong enough to hold her own weight.
"You just collapsed, and you wouldn't wake up. Well, you wouldn't until Oprah here managed to wake you. How are you feeling?"
"Honestly, I think I feel fine. A little light headed, but otherwise fine."
"Perhaps we should stay here for the rest of the day and let Zalea recuperate?" suggested Nick while he looked around at his surroundings.
"No, I'm fine, really."
"I have to agree with Nick. We should stay put for now."
Zalea shrugged her shoulders and nodded, "All right," she conceded.
An hour later, both Zalea and Jack were feeling a little strange.
"I feel quite drowsy," said Jack, swigging water from the container Gwynethea had given him.
"Me too," said Zalea before she collapsed on the ground behind him.
"Oh God... it's happened again," muttered Jack, who felt increasingly weaker before passing out beside her.
Nick rushed over to them while Oprah let out a low groan. His head began to pound and soon he was on his knees beside them. All three had lost consciousness.
Oprah stood over them making loud groaning sounds until she heard movement from up ahead. Flying closer and closer were two of her own kind.
The moment they arrived, they touched down on the ground in front of her and hobbled over to her side. A moment passed between them where they seemed to communicate silently before they hopped from one side to the other and bowed their heads down to one another.
Then Oprah turned to Nick and shoved him eagerly with her nose. When there was no reaction from him, she turned and nodded to her friends.
They each stepped forward, delicately taking the people's legs in their beaks before gently pulling them along the ground away from the spot where they had collapsed. After about 10 minutes, the creatures came to a standstill and carefully put their human and faery friends down. All three creatures began to groan noisily. Halting, they waited to see if they would get a response. When none was forthcoming, Oprah nodded once again and all three placed their beaks by their friends and gently shoved them straight into the flowing waters of the river and waited patiently.
For a moment, the three bodies bobbed carelessly before they began to sink beneath the water. Oprah watched as they slowly disappeared from sight, letting out a low cry that soon became a desperate wail. Her two companions watched on before they turned away from her and ran away, taking to flight and flying off into the distance.
Oprah sat waiting, her wails echoing in the valleys beyond.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
It seemed like forever that December and Lilly had sat sobbing in Rose's house as both their families fussed around them, doing everything they could to try and make them feel better.
They'd seen vampires rip their enemies to pieces, evil witches cruelly commit murder, people turn into bizarre creatures, but this was the first time they'd witnessed an innocent man obliterated by a speeding truck. And the reason? Simply that he'd been under the strange spell of a woman named Calliope.
"The Elders are on their way, sweetheart, with Carmelo and Jo and the others," said Moira who sat beside her daughter gently stroking her red hair.
Lilly was still in shock, unable to speak while both sat next to each other, holding each other's hands as tears rolled down their cheeks.
Lilly's uncle Wyatt arrived and walked into the kitchen. He was as pale as a sheet.
"His name was Adrian Donovan," he said whilst removing the brown scarf from around his neck before taking off his woollen beige coat, "He wasn't from around here. Apparently he was just visiting some old school friends when... when it happened."
"I can't believe it, I just can't believe it," muttered Lilly.
"I know darling, I know," soothed Rose as she stood holding one of her many cats as it purred loudly in her arms.
Suddenly, December looked up, startled, "I've just realised something!" she said aloud.
"Hm... what's that sweetheart?" said her dead grandmother, who had been hovering around the room carefully avoiding the cats, who began to growl whenever she went near them.
"Wyatt... you're not under her spell. But I thought it was all men. But you're not... you're not, you know, erm, supernatural?" she asked.
"Oh my," said Rose, "she's right, Wyatt. Why aren't you affected? You must have the gene. You must have the raven gene. But you've never been able to change? That's strange."
Wyatt's eyes lit up, "I'm... I'm not sure. The change just never happened for me."
"But this means you've probably got it in you to change, Uncle Wyatt," said Lilly with a sad smile, "When was the last time you tried?"
He shook his head and went from one foot to the other, "Not for a long time. Years, maybe seven or eight."
"I think perhaps it's time you tried again, young man. How wonderful, another Tulugaq family member who can probably change into a raven. Oh how exciting," clapped Ruby.
"Mother, now is not the time for excitement... the girls are mourning here. There is a time and a place, you know," scolded Moira as Ruby immediately dropped her hands to her sides and looked to the ground like a child.
"Wyatt, yes it is very likely you can change but Moira is quite right, now is not the time for this. Perhaps you can concentrate on the raven gene later. Now there are two things we need to focus on. One is this Calliope woman and the other is Jack..."
Just as Rose was speaking, there was a tap on the door before it was pushed open to reveal Carmelo and Jo. They rushed to the girls' side and hugged them both.
"We're so sorry you had to witness something so horrendous. Are you both okay?" she asked, looking into their eyes sorrowfully.
After a few moments, December and Lilly both nodded.
"We will be... but now you're here, can we concentrate on finding out more about this woman?"
"I'll put the kettle on," said Rose, stretching her legs before she began filling the kettle with water and putting it on the heat.
"The others are right behind us," said Carmelo just as there was another tap on the door and it was opened to reveal Tabitha and Zoltan.
"Have we missed anything?" asked a panting Tabitha, pushing her hand through her spiky grey hair while Zoltan's face lit up questioningly.
"No, not yet," said Lilly as she hugged them both, "we're waiting for everybody else to arrive first."
"Well then, a nice cup of tea would go down nicely while we wait," said Tabitha with a grin as she watched Rose take a number of cups out of the cupboard. "I'll give you a hand."
#
That evening, when the final group of Elders, witches, vampires and other assorted 'people' had arrived, they all decided to move on to Lilly's house where there was plenty more space. It was also where Tiffani happened to be... a crucial link in tracking down Jack.
"Now we have all come together, we can finally discuss the two problems we are facing: discovering the location of Jack and the Nephilim and this strange woman who is causing havoc in Powell River," said Carmelo as he strode up and down the living room whilst the group watched and listened.
"I think we need to sort this woman out as a matter of urgency," said Moira, "All the men have gone totally crazy and our girls have witnessed such a gruesome event, that she caused."
"Absolutely."
"Yes indeed."
"There's no doubt about it."
"She must be stopped!"
"Do we have any theories?" asked Gabriel, who had made the journey down from the mountains and arrived after everybody else.
"At this moment in time, we have nothing concrete. We have researched back hundreds of years and there has been nothing written down that matches the appearance of this woman... and, of course, the way she has an effect on this townsfolk," said one of the witches.
"Could she be a witch?" asked Sammy.
"We're pretty sure she's not one of us. Of course, we can produce a spellbinding spell to enchant anyone at all, but we would have to be present, close to the men to have such an effect. We know for a fact she was nowhere near these men when they went wild, for want of a better word," said another.
"We have spoken to the witches of the North, South, East and West and none of them know this woman's work. Her picture is not familiar with any of them."
"So if we know she isn't a witch, what else could she be?" asked December.
"How about a Harpie?" piped up Ruby as she floated in and out of all the unusual people that sat and stood around the room.
"Hm... that's a possibility, I suppose," pondered Carmelo.
"What's a Harpie?" asked Lilly.
"Theh were believed to have bin winged spirits who stoole food from Phineas," said the tiny man that was sitting high on a stool brought in from the kitchen.
"Kieran!" exclaimed December, "I didn't see you come in."
The strange little man smirked and nodded to her, "Yer've got lots on yer mind sweet Decembah. Yer too, Lilly. But werry not, we are ere too elp yer," he chuckled to himself.
"Do you think she could be a Harpie, Kieran?" asked Lilly.
Sitting quietly for a moment, deep in contemplation, he eventually shook his head quickly from side to side, "Nah, I doon't. Harpies ave wings. Did yer see any wings?"
Lilly, December and Crystal all shook their heads.
"But they could have been hidden from sight," said Walter, taking Rose's hand who was sitting on his lap comfortably.
"No," said a sweet high pitched voice from the back of the room. "Hiding one's wings is not an easy thing to do... and incredibly painful. From what the girls have told me, this woman, Calliope, has no wings. Believe me, I know what that's like," said Tiffani, turning slightly to one side and letting her own wings flutter behind her.
A gentle chuckle flowed throughout the room before Moira spoke, "You do know the meaning of her name don't you?" she asked the group before continuing, "Calliope means beautiful voice... I wonder if it's got something to do with her voice. Is it her voice that is having this effect on the men?"
"It can't be, Mom, because she wasn't even there when we saw the kids in school go insane, and then that poor man in the street. I never saw, or heard her. You didn't either, did you Lilly?"
Lilly shook her head.
"But we shouldn't dismiss this idea though, Moira. It might still be a possibility. What else do we have?" asked Carmelo.
"Could she be a mermaid with human legs?" asked Zoltan. Tabitha gave him an odd look and he shrugged his shoulders, "Just thinkin' out loud," he said.
"No, she would look like Carla," replied Jo.
"Who is Carla?" asked Ruby.
"She's a mermaid who lives part of the time with us in the mountains and part of the time beneath the waters of the Pacific Ocean. On land, she grows legs, in the water, she grows a long tail for swimming."
"Oh yes, I remember her," said Lilly who recalled the first time she'd visited the Elders' caves," she had dark sparkly scales all over her skin."
Jo and Carmelo both nodded. "Proving Calliope is not a mermaid," added Jo with a smile.
"How about a Banshee?" asked Sammy.
Almost everybody shook their heads, "Far too beautiful for a Banshee, I'm afraid, Sammy," smiled Carmelo.
"She could be an Encantado," said another voice.
Jo smiled and turned to the source of the question, "That did cross my mind a couple of days ago so I contacted a few of our friends in Brazil and was told, no, it's impossible. The Encantados never leave the Amazon Rainforest, plus, they can only be seen in human form at night."
"But what are they?" asked Moira who had never heard of the word.
"They are beautiful creatures resembling dolphins who come out of the water at night and steal humans. Of course, in human form, they are particularly striking and highly seductive, apparently. But there's no chance Calliope is an Encantado. She's too far from home and she's been seen during the day. It's just impossible. Sorry, keep thinking!"
"I just had a thought... what about a Succubus?" exclaimed Lilly who recalled watching a fictional TV series about them recently.
The room went quiet as everybody gave it some thought.
"They do have the power for mind control and are particularly attractive," said one of the Elders as the others nodded, "You might be on to something there."
"When I was still alive, well, the first time round," said Millicent who had been silent until then, "I met a Succubus and you're absolutely right, she could control the minds of anyone but... she had to physically touch them to do so. And as the girls have said, Calliope was nowhere near these men and students when they went a little mad. So, I'm sorry to disappoint you, but Calliope is not a Succubus."
"Why don't we just go and ask her?" said Zoltan who was, as ever, eager for a fight.
Some of the others laughed out loud and patted him hard on his shoulder.
"Not this time, Zoltan. It's just too dangerous when we don't know what she is. When we don't know what we're dealing with," said Gabriel with another chuckle.
"Ah've got it, Ah've got it," yelled Kieran, the half faery, half elf who, as he jumped up and down on the high stool, lost his balance and fell with a thud to the floor.
His miniature Wolf Hound, who had been snoring at the foot of the stool, immediately stood to attention and began licking his face.
"Ger off, Ger off," he shouted to his dog.
As the others rushed to his side and picked him up from the carpeted floor, he rubbed his elbow and his bottom at the same time.
"Ooooh me arse an me elbo..."
December and Lilly shared a secret grin and tried hard not to laugh out loud. No matter how hard they tried, it was always difficult not to laugh when someone fell over.
"Yer can laff, yer can laff... it wer actally a bit funny," he said, joining them to giggle at his unfortunate accident.
Soon the entire room was full of laughter as Kieran's giggle was totally contagious. He was soon helped up to a lower, safer seat though, on the sofa next to the two girls.
As the laughter died down and everybody wiped the tears from their eyes, bellies aching from laughing so hard, Kieran finally managed to say what he'd thought of.
"Ah shall try agin," he said. "Callupe.... praps she's a Saren?"
"What's a Saren?" asked Ruby.
"I think he means a Siren," corrected Moira.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Jack's eyes shot wide open after he felt oxygen flood his body. When he realised he was under water, he went rigid with panic. Looking upwards he soon discovered he couldn
't tell top from bottom. The feel of a hand on his made him jump and he turned his head to face Dacius. She smiled before placing her mouth on his. She was breathing for him. Again, he felt another flood of oxygen in his lungs. When she pulled away from him, she pointed upwards, showing him the right way to swim to safety.
When she released her grip, he nodded slowly, and began to swim away from her. He looked down and watched, repeating the same thing with Zalea who immediately came out of her unconscious state and followed him upwards towards the surface.
As they broke free of the water's hold, both gasped for air while they looked around to find the best place to swim to the edge of the deep river.
But as soon as they pulled themselves out of the water, Jack realised Nick was nowhere to be seen.
"Nick," he gasped and turned to look back down into the dark water but he could see nothing, not even Dacius.
"Are you all right, Jack?" asked Zalea who coughed and spluttered at the side of the river, her wings shaking off the little droplets of water that had accumulated there.
Nodding, he looked at her sadly, "but Nick?"
She shook her head.
There was also no sign of Oprah.
"What happened?" he asked as the two just sat side by side for a moment.
"I honestly don't know, Jack. I don't remember anything."
"Me neither. Are you all right to get up and walk for a while?" he asked her and she nodded.
Standing, he pulled her up and looked around. They appeared to have been dragged much further downriver, to somewhere unfamiliar. Their belongings were nowhere to be seen.
"Jeese... I don't believe this. What the hell happened?" he said to himself as Zalea began to sob.
"Don't cry, Zalea. We'll be okay. We'll figure it out. Shhh," he said, holding her hand and patting her shoulder.
Suddenly, the smooth surface of the water broke, bubbling slightly. After a few seconds, the face of a beautiful woman appeared. Dacius.
"Dacius!" yelled Jack, "Thank you for saving us... again. We are so grateful to you. But we have no idea what happened. Can you tell us?" he asked.
The mermaid swam to the edge of the river and pulled herself half out, so she sat on the riverside, her long tail swishing backwards and forwards in the water.