by T J Green
“You are?” Alex asked.
“And we’d like your help,” Cassie added.
“You would?” Avery asked, glancing at Alex.
“Nothing that would unveil your identify,” Ben tried to reassure them.
“I’m not Batman,” Alex said, looking amused.
“No, just a paranoid witch,” Dylan said. He held his hands up in mock surrender as Alex glared at him. “I get it, just saying!”
Ben stepped in. “Hold on. We’re getting ahead of ourselves. Can we show you some stuff first?”
“Of course you can,” Avery said, trying to ignore Alex bristling next to her. “We’re all ears.”
“First things first. Don’t go summoning any of your witchy magic in this room—unless we ask you to. Our stuff’s pretty sensitive, and we don’t want you shorting it out.”
“No problem,” Avery said, nodding.
“Great. So, Dylan—want to roll the video?”
Dylan turned to one of the computers behind him. “This video is from the other night at St Luke’s. I’ve edited it a bit…the first part didn’t show much. It’s in infrared, so the dark blue and green colours indicate cold, and yellows, reds and oranges are heat.”
It was odd to see themselves as thermal images. The church was in shades of blue, while their bodies were rendered in a strange, orangey hue, particularly their heads, where they were warmest.
“It’s interesting,” Cassie said, looking at them, “that all you witches look a brighter range than we do—redder, actually. I think it must be your magic.”
“You’re right,” Alex agreed, nodding. “That is interesting.”
“When you use magic, the flare of heat is even greater,” Dylan explained. “I think it’s the energy you summon, the way you manipulate the elements—or whatever it is you do. I’m going to have to ask you more about that one day.”
Great. Now they wanted to study them. Avery had no idea how she felt about that. Surely the magic of magic was its unknowability. She wasn’t sure she wanted it reduced to science and graphs. But, on the other hand, the footage was fascinating.
For a while, nothing much happened onscreen as they moved around the church, and Alex prepared the circle. They could see the flare of the candle flames and the bright buzz of energy around Avery when she lit the candles using magic, and the glow from the light bulbs.
And then the Nephilim arrived.
“Here,” Ben pointed. “You can see a shape behind the altar, a slightly paler blue than the surroundings. Turn the audio up, Dylan.”
Again the thermal imaging showed the wide sweep of wings, and they could hear a whining buzz of static as the electric lights started to flash and then overload and blow out, showing as very bright, orangey-red pulses on film. The sound of shouts filled the air, and the zap of magic buzzed again and again. The Nephilim started to get brighter in colour, too, swelling with power, and they saw Caspian sail across the room, caught by the Nephilim’s wings. When Estelle started to throw balls of energy at it, it was immediately obvious that it absorbed every single one, becoming brighter and brighter as it grew. When Caspian joined in, they could see its limbs forming out of what was an almost shapeless blob with wings before.
“Wow,” Avery said. “That’s amazing. I mean, I know, I was there. I saw it happening, but to see it again like this! You can actually see it absorb Estelle and Caspian’s magic.”
Ben grinned. “I know. This is way better than we expected. Watch this,” he said, pointing back to the screen.
Everyone was now back in the circle, except for Alex and Avery, who had left it to get Caspian and Estelle. They had only just made it, Avery thought, feeling a chill run through her as the Nephilim advanced on them. They saw the punch that Alex threw at Caspian, the bright burst of blood from Caspian’s nose, and then a huge red flare as Avery activated the circle, creating a wall of protective magic around them.
“And that’s your magic, Avery,” Cassie said admiringly. “That thing can’t get close.”
The Nephilim stalked around the outside, and then flared brighter again as it headed for the window and smashed through. A wave of yellow flashed across the walls, and then faded.
“That’s the spell breaking that sealed the church,” Alex noted. He leaned back in his chair, exhaling heavily. “That’s actually amazing, to see magic and elemental energy as infrared. And the Nephilim absorbing it.”
All three of the paranormal investigators grinned. Dylan said, “I’ve isolated some of the audio. Listen.”
He turned to another computer and played the audio he had displayed on the screen. Over the whine of static they heard a strange, guttural language.
“That’s the language Alex was speaking the other night!” Avery said.
“Yep. I recognise that,” he agreed.
“I can’t believe you’ve captured that.”
“That’s all we’ve got,” Ben said, “seconds only. Any idea what it says?”
“Not a clue,” Alex said, shaking his head.
“Have you noticed how much brighter your energy is, compared to Caspian’s and Estelle’s?” Cassie pointed out.
“I suppose it is,” Avery said, watching the screen closely. “Must be our new influx of magic.”
“Anyway,” Ben said, “we have some more footage to show you of some other places we’ve been. Nothing as good as this, but stuff that happened in different houses around Cornwall. We thought you might like to see some of the spirit activity we’ve captured.”
“Sounds good,” Alex said. “But first, you said you wanted to ask us something. What did you want?”
Ben glanced at Cassie and Dylan. “We wondered if we set up a paranormal business, could you help us, if we needed a bit of support with any cases? We’d pay you, of course. We’re going to charge for this. Or could you recommend someone who could help?” He looked slightly perplexed. “You know, most of the time, it should just be us recording and observing, but we could offer a service, too—to banish unwanted spirits, ghouls, dark magic…” He trailed off, looking hopeful.
Alex glanced at Avery. “I don’t mind helping, but I’m pretty busy at the pub, and I’m guessing Avery’s pretty busy at the shop, but we could have a think to see if there’s someone who could help more often than us.”
“Awesome, thanks guys,” Ben said, relieved.
“After what we’ve seen, it would be good to have some support,” Cassie added.
“We could probably teach you some simple protection and banishing spells, nothing that needed too much magic,” Avery said, already thinking of some basic spells that would work.
“Great! Thank you.”
And then Avery had another idea. “You know, I was talking to Briar the other day. She’s pretty busy at her shop. She doesn’t have help like we do, but I get the feeling she was thinking about looking. Obviously she wants someone trustworthy.”
“Me!” Cassie said immediately. “I’d love to help, and it’s a great opportunity to learn.”
Avery smiled. “Cool. I can’t promise anything, but I will talk to her for you.”
“Right,” Ben said. “Let’s show you what else we’ve been up to.”
20
At 7:30 PM that night, Avery was dressed in her heels, skinny jeans, and a slinky top, ready to meet Briar and El for a night out, identifying Mermaids.
After she and Alex had left Penryn in the afternoon, they both headed to work. She had decided to lie to Alex about her plans for the night. She knew he would disapprove and worry.
“I’m just having a quiet night in, catching up with some reading and spell casting.”
“Well, I’m working, so have fun.”
“If a gaggle of young, nubile women come to your pub, looking improbably glamorous, be on your guard.”
“Spoilsport,” he said, winking. He dropped her outside of her flat and pulled her close for a lingering kiss. “I’ll see you soon.”
She spent the remainder of the workda
y in the shop, and once she was back in her flat, filled the three perfume bottles with the finished potion. She held one up to the light, admiring the pale amber colour. It was always satisfying to successfully complete a spell. Let’s hope it works. She then fed the cats, grabbed her leather bag, and headed out the door.
Avery strolled through the streets and down to the harbour, enjoying the evening’s warmth. Down by the harbour, the smell of brine and seaweed was strong, and she inhaled deeply, feeling invigorated by it. The tide was low, and the boats were half beached. The fish and chip shops were doing a brisk business, and people were perched on the sea wall, eating chips from paper. The scent of the food, and the underlying sharp smell of vinegar, mixed with the salty air of the sea made her smile; she was comforted by the reassuring scents. This was the White Haven she loved.
She was meeting El and Briar at The Flying Fish, the pub perched on the rise of the hill overlooking the harbour, on the road that ran next to the beach. She paused outside it and looked up. It was a large pub, set back slightly from the pavement, allowing a few tables to be set up outside. But it was the large, first floor deck that was the busiest, and the sound of music and the chatter of people filled the air from above. The deck provided shelter for the ground floor seating, and it was edged with pots of greenery and strings of lights. Avery weaved through the already crowded tables, looking for groups of women, but most people on the ground floor were couples or small groups of three or four, both men and women.
Avery headed upstairs, and the noise of music, laughter, and chatter hit her like a wall. This place was busy. She leaned on the bar and bought a glass of wine, and then made her way to where El was perched on a bar stool at the far end, sipping on a pint of beer. Her long, blonde hair was loose, cascading down her back, and the light caught her piercings; she was drawing lots of admiring glances.
“Hey El, how are you?”
El nodded and jerked her head back over her shoulder. “This place is nuts.”
“I know. I haven’t been here in years. I forgot it got so busy.”
“I came here once, and that was enough. But, you’re right. This is a great place to start looking.”
Avery glanced around the room, and caught a glimpse of Briar emerging at the top of the stairs. She waved to attract her attention, and Briar waved back, weaving through the crowd to meet them. “I hate this place already,” she said as she joined them. She caught the bartender’s eye and ordered a drink.
Avery laughed. “Come on, ladies, it’s just a bit of fun. Well, until the Mermaids turn mean.”
“So, what’s the plan?” El asked.
“I think we just need to keep an eye on the groups, maybe wander around a bit, do some eavesdropping, and spray a little potion,” Avery said, reaching into her bag for a perfume bottle for each of them.
“This is your potion?” Briar asked, examining it. “It has a slight amber tinge.”
“Yep. It’s supposed to. Let’s hope I’ve made it properly, and that it works.”
“Do I need to say anything?” El asked.
Avery nodded. “Let’s find a quiet spot.”
El led the way through the jostling bodies to a corner of the balcony, where the music was quieter, and Avery shared the short incantation. “We just use it like perfume, spray it, but just casually miss yourself, and spray whoever’s next to you, say the words, and it should unveil the glamour of their appearance, revealing them properly to us.”
“Will they know?” El asked.
Avery frowned. “Not sure. But hopefully not.”
“Great,” El said, sarcastically. “So reassuring, Avery.”
“Sorry,” she answered, feeling slightly annoyed. “But it’s better than doing nothing.”
“Fair point,” El agreed. “Why don’t we get this party started?” She looked around at the small group of girls behind her, all giggling and chatting together, then spritzed herself and murmured the words to activate the spell. Avery gave the potion a little push with the breeze, allowing the fine spray to reach the group. They didn’t even notice. And nothing happened.
“Well, that’s one group eliminated,” El said, grinning. “Shall we keep going?”
Over the course of the next hour they worked their way through the room, checking out every available group. Every now and again one of them would visit the toilets and try in there, but with no success. Eventually, they stood at the corner of the bar surveying the room, the thumping bass of the music making conversation difficult.
“Should we move on?” Briar asked. “I think we’ve covered everyone.”
“I think so,” Avery agreed. “Let’s try The Kraken. The Badger’s Hat has the club in the basement, so we should leave that to last.”
“Do you think a Tuesday is probably a dud night?” Briar asked, looking around doubtfully.
“It’s jammed in here,” El said incredulously. “And I don’t think Mermaids keep work timetables, either.”
The Kraken was closer to the harbour and had a large beer garden out the back. Like The Flying Fish, the music was loud, and the atmosphere was raucous. They separated and started to sweep the room, the same as they had done before. It wasn’t long before Avery felt a tap on the shoulder, and looked around to see Dan, standing with a tall, blond man.
“Hey, Avery!” Dan nodded towards his companion. “This is my mate, Pete.”
“Hi, guys,” Avery leaned up and kissed Dan’s cheek. “Couldn’t keep away, then?”
“He couldn’t,” Dan said, looking at Pete.
Pete laughed. He was attractive, his blond hair slightly long and falling over his face. His eyes were blue, with laughter lines in the corner, and his attention was on a group of young, pretty girls by the bar. He extended his hand. “Hi, Avery. I’ve heard all about you. Dan tells me this bar could be bad for my health.”
Avery’s eyes opened wide at Dan, but he gave a vaguely imperceptible shake of the head that made her think that whatever he’d said, Pete had no idea she was a witch. He laughed and said, “Avery doesn’t want you to be fodder for these voracious females.”
Avery agreed. “I care about the wellbeing of my friends, that’s all.” She looked at the girls who were undoubtedly all glowing with youth, vitality, and an undeniable sexiness. Every single one was taller than the average woman, slim, with long hair and fair skin. The more she looked at them, the more she thought they might be Mermaids. “Which one’s caught your eye?”
Pete shrugged. “They’re all gorgeous and they’ve been here all week, teasing us mercilessly.”
I bet they have. Time to try the potion.
“Let’s hope they don’t break your heart, Pete.”
“I’d recover,” he said, smirking. “Come on, Dan. You’re my wingman.”
Pete turned and headed back to the group, who were already surrounded by men, and Dan hesitated a second. “Do you think…?”
“Maybe. I’ll head over soon and test my theory. Are you feeling okay?” she asked, examining his expression carefully for signs of vague dreaminess. “No odd compulsions, or the feeling of being bewitched?”
He looked at her, amused. “No different than usual.”
“Well, be careful,” she said. “I’ll find you later.”
Avery saw Briar and El by the entrance to the toilets, and threaded her way through the crowd to join them. It was getting darker now, and the low lights of the pub created shady spaces where couples could gravitate.
El broke her conversation with Briar. “Any luck?”
“Maybe, over by the bar. There are half a dozen women who all look possible.” She pointed at them discretely. “They are very good looking, flirting massively, and have a harem of men to choose from.”
Briar rose up on her tiptoes to see over the crowd. “Maybe. You tested the potion yet?”
“Just about to. You had any luck?”
They both shook their heads, but El answered. “No. Why don’t you go and check those, and then let’s move
to the last place. I feel my soul being sucked out of me here.”
Avery knew what she meant. There was almost a smell of desperation about this place. It should have felt fun, but instead it seemed predatory and sad. She headed to the bar on the pretence of putting down her glass. When she got close enough, she pulled the spray and angled it behind her. She prepared herself to see something unpleasant, and maybe to be recognised.
But absolutely nothing happened.
No one changed or unveiled their appearance; they continued to flirt unashamedly, and didn’t seem to notice Avery in the slightest.
Avery worked her way around them all, squirting her potion discretely. And still nothing. She caught Dan’s eye and gave him the thumbs up, and he smiled with relief.
She headed back to Briar and El, who had been watching from a distance. “Nothing. Damn it. I felt sure they were them.”
El sighed. “So, we have to go to The Badger’s Hat?”
“‘Fraid so, unless my potion sucks,” Avery agreed, as they headed to the final pub for the night.
***
The Badger’s Hat was situated in the centre of White Haven, in the middle of a run of shops. Like many buildings, it had stood there for several years and had a certain old world charm. The ground floor of the pub catered to all groups, and it had an extensive menu, but the owners had extended down into the basement, turning it into a club, with a dance floor at the far end.
It was almost 10:00 PM as Avery led the way inside. The restaurant area was on the left, and most of the tables were still occupied, but the kitchen had stopped taking orders and customers were eating desserts and cradling coffees. She didn’t linger there; instead, she turned right and heading for the door in the corner with a sign overhead, reading, The Badger’s Set. Avery laughed at the name. That was new—but then again, it had been years since she’d been here.