First Down

by Paula Mabbel

  “It seems that your sister might not have betrayed me in the way that you thought,” Rob said as he smirked over the table at Dominic.

  “Is this true?” Dominic asked Trina was a voice soaked in hatred. “Have you lied to me? Have you sent our men to the wrong place? What in the hell is wrong with you girl?” He asked, as his voice steadily got higher and more menacing.

  “I told you that the plan was over, but you didn’t listen. You gave me no choice brother.”

  “How can you sit there and call me your brother when you have done this to us?” Dominic asked her as he looked at her in utter shock. “This can’t be happening. My own sister had betrayed me for some piece of dick. This is ridiculous.”

  Trina let her eyes glance over to Rob, who was watching her intently. She tried to tell him how sorry she was without speaking, but she wasn’t sure whether he was getting the message. A loud slam on the table brought her attention back to her brother, as he lifted his hands and placed one of them in his pocket. Trina’s eyes opened with horror, as she realized that he was pulling out his gun.

  “This just won’t do. I won’t have this. I won’t have my sister betray me like this,” he said as he shook his head. “Here,” he said, as he pushed it over to him. “Shoot him, or I will.”

  Trina looked down at the gun, which he had pushed across the table. It was a black, matte finish hand pistol. She’d used one just like it a hundred times before and without even realizing it, she picked it up. It felt heavy in her hands and metal was cool against her skin, as she straightened it up.

  “What are you waiting for? I told you to shoot him,” her brother exploded and she watched, as he reached into his other pocket.

  In the space of three seconds everything happened. It was like time had slowed down, so that she was able to think clearly through the madness. She could see her brother’s hand reaching for his second gun. She could see the look of panic in Rob’s eyes, as he realized that he was the only person in the room without a gun in his hand.

  She made the choice without even thinking. She knew in her heart there was only one thing to do. She turned the gun quickly, as time sped back up to its normal rate and then she pulled the trigger. For a moment all that she could think about was the booming crack of the explosion as the bullet left the gun, but then that thought was pushed far from her mind, as her eyes fell onto her brother who was lying in a pool of thick, red blood that was pooling out from his chest.

  “I’m so sorry brother, but you made me choose,” Trina said, as she fell to her knees and took her brother’s hand in her own. “I love you,” she whispered to him, as she watched the last glimmer of life fall into the shadows of his unfocused eyes.

  “Trina,” Rob said from behind her and she jumped.

  She’d forgotten that he was there. “Rob,” she said, but then she stopped because deep sobs had started to roll from her chest and she could do nothing other than shake as they rolled out of her.

  “Trina, I saw the test,” Rob said gently as he pulled her into his chest and held her tightly. “I know that you’re pregnant.”

  “I’m pregnant?” Trina asked, as she stepped away from Rob, so that she could look up into her eyes. She’d forgotten about the test. She’d forgotten about being late on her period. There had just been so much going on. Her hand lifted up to her stomach and she held it there, as she realized what it meant. “Are you going to forgive me for what I did?” She asked Rob, as she suddenly realized that she might have to raise the baby on her own.

  “Can I forgive you for ultimately betraying your brother for me? Yes, I think so,” he said softly, as he reached out and pulled her chin upwards, so that he could kiss her cherry red lips.

  *****

  THE END

  LGBT ROMANCE

  The Prince of Flames

  It had been a long time since the magical creatures of the forest could walk amongst men without the fear of being captured. Things had gotten bad a few hundred years ago when man turned its back on magic. They started to hunt those who possessed abilities and they killed anyone they found guilty. They killed many of their own kind in their desperate attempt to end magic, in their desperate attempt to end their fear of the unknown.

  That’s why the dragon-bloods returned to the forest. That’s why they went into hiding. So, that one day their children might be able to walk amongst humans once again-without fear. It seemed like that time was coming. The humans had long since forgotten that their fairy-tales weren’t always fiction. It seemed like it was finally becoming safe for those magical creatures that could disguise themselves as human to leave the forest.

  The community had been in talks about it for years. They had carefully planned every last detail for the select few who were to be chosen to enter the human world again. It seemed for a while, as though it was really going to happen. The whole community was buzzing with excitement over the thought of leaving the forest that they’d been living in all of their lives. There was no one more excited than Sam though.

  Sam had lived in the forest his entire life and was anxious to spread his wings. The small magical village that he lived in wasn’t even big enough to allow him to shift into his true shape. He’d spent every night dreaming about the open skies and how the wind might feel under his wings. He was more than ready for freedom.. He was eager.

  That’s why he couldn’t seem to find any rest on the day of the last meeting. It felt like he had beans in his body that had suddenly come alive. He couldn’t sit still. Sam found himself pacing the kitchen floor until his wife asked him to stop. He couldn’t though, because time was passing too slowly. All he wanted to do was go to the meeting, so he could stand up and volunteer himself for the expedition.

  The sun finally started to sink low below the small huts that Sam could see out of his kitchen window. The meeting was being held in the centre of the forest at night fall. It was finally time to set off. He turned to his wife who was stoking the fire in the hearth. “I think it’s time for me to set off. Will you be staying here?”

  “I think tonight I’ll stay in. I wish you all the luck though for the meeting,” she said to him with warm smile that reached into his heart.

  “Thank you my love,” he said, as he stepped through the distance that sat between them, so that he could kiss his wife before he left.

  “Be careful,” she said with wide eyes, as she placed her hand gently on Sam’s stomach.

  Sam nodded, as a movement inside of him brought a smile to his lips. They had only found out a few short months before that they would be having a child. It was part of the reason that he was so eager to step back out into the real world, so that his child wouldn’t have to live in hiding and fear.

  “I’ll be back soon,” he said, turning from his wife and heading out of the front door. The air outside was gentle in heat, but that didn’t matter to Sam. His blood was made from the embers of fire itself and even in the coldest of winters he could walk around without feeling even a shiver.

  He made his way down the winding paths that had been made by footsteps rather than hands. The centre of the forest was only a short walk away, but he wanted to make sure that he wasn’t late. He knew that this would be the meeting that he had been waiting so long for. He knew that everything had been organized and all they had left to do was pick the creatures who would step out among man.

  The heavy line of trees started to thin out and he could hear the quiet buzz of excited conversation, as he got close to the small opening. He pushed his body through the rough bushes and branches that tried to tear at his skin, until he was standing in a circular meadow. There was already a large crowd waiting for the meeting to begin and he walked hurriedly down to meet them.

  The space fell quiet, as the grandfather started to speak. The grandfather was the only known living magical creature who had walked with man. He was the only one of the magical creatures of the old world to still be living and it was because of that reason that he’d been elected to lea
d us back home again when the time was right.

  “Creatures,” he called out into the space where we were all standing. “It has finally been arranged. We will return to the human world in the space of a week, but before we can, we must find volunteers.”

  The whole crowd started to murmur over what they had just heard, but Sam didn’t need to waste his time with hypotheticals. “I put myself forward,” he said loudly, so the whole group could hear him.

  “That’s very good Sam,” the grandfather said with a small, but approving nod. “Please come and join me here at the front.”

  Sam started to make his way through the crowd, but found it impossible to move forward when a hand tightly grasped his arm and pulled him to the side.

  “Sam, you can’t do this,” his sister said with a frantic look in her eyes.

  Sam tried to understand what had freaked her out so much, but he couldn’t. He’d told her at the dinner they’d had the week before that he would be stepping forward when the time came. “Sister, what’s got you so full of strife?” He asked her quickly because he could sense the crowd’s impatience over him stepping to the front.

  “I don’t know,” she said as she shook her head wildly. The deep red curls that fell to the small of her back bounced with her movement and made her look so much bigger than she really was. “I just have a bad feeling about this. I don’t want you to get hurt,” she said and her voice was full of desperation.

  “It’s going to be fine,” Sam told her gently. “The world is safe to walk again. I’m going to prove that to you all.” He kissed his sister on the forehead and then turned away from her.

  “Please brother,” he heard her call out, but he’d already started to walk to the front of the crowd.

  It took some time before enough of the creatures volunteered to step out into the world that they’d left behind, but eventually the grandfather had everyone that he needed for his plan to work. The crowd cheered, as they realized that they were standing before the people who would free them from the woodland prison they had been born into.

  The atmosphere felt electric. The witches were sending sparks into the air that fizzled and danced around with illusion of life. It was wonderful and it was everything that Sam had expected it to be. That was, until a great crashing noise filled the trees that lined the meadow.

  Sam looked over into the darkness, but couldn’t see anything. The whole crowd had dropped into silence, as they all peered nervously at each other. Tension filled the air, as they tried to work out what had creature such an awful noise. Then something tore out of the woods. It was clearly magical; it moved too quickly to be anything else.

  He tried to focus in on the creature, but he couldn’t. It was moving too quickly for even his fine eyesight to catch. A scream filled the silence. It was a sound that Sam knew all too well. It made him shiver for the first time in his life as his insides turned to ice. It was his sister and her voice was getting further away with every shriek she let out.

  It was all over so quickly. The creature had managed to grab his sister and leave without anybody being able to get a real look at it. The whole community was in a panic. They couldn’t understand why one of their own would attack them. They couldn’t understand what had even happened, but all that Sammy could think was that the creature had moved unnaturally quickly, even for a creature of magic.

  ********

  Sam knew what he had to do whether the grandfather allowed for it or not. He knew in his gut that the creature that had attacked them wasn’t working on its own. He knew that somehow the human’s had something to do with it, but he also knew that he couldn’t prove it.

  He walked quickly back to his small hut where he knew his wife was waiting. He burst in through the door with little thought and looked at her. She was a beautiful woman. She had soft orange eyes that reminded him of the morning embers from a fire. She had gorgeous fire red hair that was cut short to her chin and framed her circular face. Her features were delicate and her smile warm. She was a good wife. The best that Sam could have ever hoped for and he knew that he was lucky to be with her.

  She gave him a startled look as he burst through the door. “What’s the matter?” She asked quickly because all she had to do was look at him to see something had gone wrong.

  “It’s my sister,” Sam said as he tried to work out how to explain what had just happened to his wife.

  “Lucy?” she asked.

  “Yes, someone has taken her,” he said with a curt nod.

  “Who?”

  “I don’t know for sure. I mean I know that it was something magical, but my gut is telling me there’s more to this. It doesn’t matter either way though, because I have to go out there to find her.”

  “Has the grandfather said that it’s still safe to leave the woodland?” his wife asked with a worried expression etching itself onto her face.

  “I don’t need his permission to go looking for my sister,” Sam said quickly. “I know what I’m doing. I’ve been preparing to leave the woodland my entire life. I’ll be fine. You have no reason to worry.”

  “I have every reason to worry. It isn’t just you who is leaving to walk among the humans. You are taking our child too. You must be careful Sam. I know that you must go in search of your sister. I would never have expected any less of you than that, but please you must be careful,” she said with big, caring eyes that forced Sam to make the promise.

  “I will be careful,” he said, so that his wife could cease some of her worry. “I cannot simply allow for my sister to be taken though and I’m glad that you understand that. You are very special and you know I am very lucky to have you,” he said with a gentle smile, as he pulled his wife over to him, so that they could embrace her.

  “I love you,” she said quietly into his chest, as he held her closely to his body.

  “I love you too,” he said, as he tucked his hand under his wife’s chin, so that he could bring her lips to his.

  The early morning light was already leaking into the night’s sky, as Sam walked out of the small home that he had built for himself. He knew though that his journey could wait no longer. He knew that he had to leave, before anybody could stop him from doing so. He said his goodbyes to his wife and then pulled the door closed behind him, as he took the first step he could to find his sister.

  *******

  The whole woodland had been cloaked in a glamour spell. It meant that no one without magical abilities would be able to see the woodland, never mind enter it. To the people with magic though, it cast a light purple shimmer across the border between the human world and the world of magic. Sam had seen it many times. It had been a favourite place of his to visit, as a child.

  Humans had always been somewhat of a curiosity to him. He couldn’t understand how people without the aid of magic could be a threat. He couldn’t understand why the magical community saw them as such a threat. He’d seen many humans walk passed the glamour and none of them had ever looked remotely threatening. In fact, to Sam they looked weak.

  He reached the spot where he’d spent countless hours as a child and stopped. He’d imagined what it might be like to pass the glamour spell a hundred times. It had been his favourite day dream growing up. It had been something that he’d spent more of his time than he should of thinking about and now it was about to become a reality.

  He took a deep breath and let the moss scented air fill his lungs. He couldn’t believe what was about to happen. He could feel the hairs on the back of his neck starting to stand up, as he walked over to the mystical purple sheen that distorted the world outside. He could feel the magical energy in the air, as he brought his hand up to touch the air that surrounded the magical field.

  His heart was hammering in his chest, as the touch of magic sank deep into his skin and raced around his body. It was time. He took a step forward and felt his entire body meet with the warming touch of magic. He stood for a minute on the line between the magical world and the rest of reality. H
e closed his eyes and enjoyed the magical energy that rushing over him. He could feel its’ touch as it sought out the tired spots of his body and brought them back to life.

  He took another step and found himself standing on the outside of the magical field. The woodland that he’d spent his entire life within was sitting behind a purple haze of magic, which he knew couldn’t be seen by anybody else. He let his eyes pause over the sight, so that he could commit it to memory, before he turned around and walked away.

  The ground felt strange beneath his feet. The humans had covered the fresh earth with some kind of grey stone that felt too hard and unnatural for Sam as he walked towards a burning orange light that had been hung from a tall pillar. He could hear strange noises coming from somewhere beyond his vision. It kind of sounded like something was running fast and was forcing the air to whoosh passed it, but that whooshing was mixed with a deep grumble that sounded like no animal that Sam had ever encountered.

  The wind started to pick up, as he walked away from the final patch of trees and he stopped, so that he could take in the strange scents that were driving his mind wild. He tried to separate each one from the other, but there were too many. He started walking again without any real sense of direction, before he found himself stopping when he managed to pick up something from the wind that he actually recognized.

  His sister had been where he was standing. He could smell her. He could feel the panic she’d felt, as she’d been brought across the glamour line. He turned his head in all directions trying to work out, which she went. He found her scent growing stronger, as he followed a path away from the woodland and into the concrete jungle of the city that he’d only heard stories about.

  The noise from the city was unbearable. The low grumbling noise he’d heard by the woodland was much louder in the city. Sam had discovered that it was coming from metal pods with wheels that were racing around with humans inside of them. He tried to hold his sister’s scent through the mixture of street food and toxic gases that were being expelled into the streets, but he could tell that it was fading.