The Time Corps Chronicles (Complete Series)

by Heather Blackwood

  All remaining resentment from the ridiculous leaf incident vanished, and she felt sorry for the little white fox who had been robbed of that which made her who and what she was. Astrid decided to take it to her, give her the ball and restore the girl. To have one’s soul removed was worse than death. For though death separated soul from body, the soul remained intact. Yukiko was wandering the world with part of her soul, conscious and aware, but separated from the rest of her own being.

  The spirit ball gave off light, and the little room was brighter now, revealing more of the things that the mermaid had collected, some things from the human world like toys and hair clips, some from the Seelie, like hairsticks made of moving wood and a red-cheeked painted doll under a glass dome that danced, clasping her tiny hands to her chest, smiling and spinning, dancing forever.

  Behind the spirit ball, she noticed two points of shadow on the wall. The shape was familiar. It was her owl bell, sitting upright and staring forward like a guard. And perhaps it was. For this was a piece of cold iron, the only one in the world to which she was immune.

  She dropped the owl into her purse. Then, she took the spirit ball, put it into the burlap coffee sack and went to sit at the edge of the water to wait for the mermaid.

  Stars were visible through the crack in the top of the dome, and she watched them move, slowly. The Earth turned, in the Seelie world as in her own. The moon was the same as well.

  The mermaid’s head surfaced and she climbed out of the water. “You have something of mine.”

  “The spirit ball belongs to Yukiko. You mentioned it before, that she is the Seelie’s captive. She told me she needs the ball, and I’m going to give it to her.”

  “And another thing you have taken also.” She looked at Astrid’s purse.

  “The owl bell is mine. I’ve had it my whole life. The Seelie took it from me and gave it to you.”

  “They did not give it to me. I found it over fifty years ago.”

  Had that long passed? Had she been in the Seelie house for so many years?

  “Look, I need to go home,” Astrid said. “The bell is mine, and Yukiko needs her ball. It’s a part of her, not just a pretty trinket.”

  “I know what I possessed. And you have stolen things from me fairly. You have entered as a guest and stolen from your host, which the Seelie most definitely frown upon. I will not be punished, by their own laws.”

  “So, I can have them?”

  “You have stolen fairly.”

  The look in the mermaid’s dark eyes told her that the loss of these things did not bother her. She could have taken them back easily. With her strength and her wicked little teeth, she could kill Astrid in a moment. She was allowing this, though for what purpose, Astrid did not know. If she hated the Seelie, then giving Yukiko back her spirit ball was a small act of defiance.

  “Where is Yukiko?” Astrid asked.

  The mermaid pointed at the wall of the grotto.

  “Are you pointing at Luna Park?”

  The mermaid bared her teeth and made a rhythmic hissing sound. Laughter. “Yes, at your park.”

  Chapter 38

  Yukiko curled up nose to tail on her thin, filthy blanket and snuggled down into it, but not because she was cold or tired. There were no more tears for her to shed, no more cries and pleas for mercy from the Seelie. Even her hate for them was fading into a kind of resigned indifference. She was theirs, not her own. She existed for their purposes. They had spoken with her, made her offers to become Seelie, which she had naturally refused. But time was on their side. It was only a matter of time now until she became weak enough to be forced to do their will.

  A breeze blew in from the water. The smell! The smell of her spirit ball was more potent. That meant they were bringing it. What could that mean? Were they going to let her have it and then enslave her in a different way? Or perhaps they would allow her to draw a little power from it.

  She leapt up and rushed to the front of her cell, a little caged area built into the rock beneath the Luna Park pier. It was wet and damp and cold. Other creatures had been kept here before her. She had found their bones and had collected them in the back of her cell, like a little burial mound. They were not Kitsune bones, but she felt they were her brothers and sisters.

  She was afraid, for if the Seelie were bringing her spirit ball to her, then she would be asked to do something for them. It was not as bad as being held captive by the Unseelie or some other creatures, but whatever they asked of her might not be good. It might violate the Myobu code, and then, when she got free, she would be in even more trouble than she already was.

  She sniffed, trying to feel what was coming. Was it Iolanthe? Or one of the guards? Or perhaps the governor of this region? Was she important enough for that? The Seelie were hierarchical, and there might be many layers of bureaucrats who might want to come and assess their prize.

  The wind now carried the scent of the person, and she was getting closer. It was the girl, Astrid, and the sea woman. There was only a hint of feeling from the sea woman, a remnant from the connection when Yukiko had summoned the creature before. She felt her presence as well as smelled her. Now the sea woman was moving out to sea, swimming away into the deep, and she could feel her no more.

  But the girl drew closer. Was she a fool? There was a guard posted outside the cell, a small frog-faced man who liked to eat pineapple and sing to himself when he was drunk. Yukiko had gotten used to him. Of the guards, he was the least odious and cruel.

  The spirit ball was close now, but not close enough for her to draw any power from it. Only a little nearer, and she could. But could Astrid get close enough without the guard spotting her? Right now, he sat on a three-legged stool, bottle in hand as he watched the waves. Funny, almost all sentient creatures could watch waves and fires and be fascinated. He was bored, that was clear, and was halfway through his bottle of blackberry wine.

  Yukiko started to pull power from the spirit ball. First it came in a tiny trickle, not enough to do anything, and she pulled harder. A small stream now, though it was exhausting to pull it at that rate. The ball protested in its silent way, and the scent went slightly sour. No matter, for if Astrid was caught, then it would never be restored to her. She drew more power from it.

  The frog man glanced down the beach, in the direction from which Astrid came. She must be far enough away to still pass for a Seelie. Maybe her being a Door would help disguise her. But Yukiko would not take the chance.

  She almost had enough power now. She pulled more, and her head hurt, a sharp pain behind her eyes, but she kept pulling. Almost there. Just a small bit more.

  “You there!” shouted the frog man, and Yukiko was out of time. She poured her power into the illusion, to hide Astrid, to make an image appear on the other side of the beach, the image of something pleasant, a female who the guard fancied. She slipped reality a bit, making him unable to see Astrid, and made the illusion of the female call out to him.

  Then, she held her breath as the guard stared into space. He blinked and turned around, looking up the beach in the opposite direction of Astrid. He waved to the illusion and stepped away. Yukiko sighed in relief. The illusion was small and brittle, but it was all she could manage.

  Astrid appeared, holding a burlap sack with the spirit ball inside. She glanced at the guard, and thankfully had the sense not to say anything. Then, she pulled out the spirit ball and held it out. It was too large to fit through the bars, but that was no trouble. Yukiko shrank it and Astrid pushed it through the bars and held it in her open palm.

  Yukiko reached to take it in her jaws. How trusting this woman-child was. Didn’t she know what she held? What she could do with a slave like a Kitsune? And yet she so willingly offered the spirit ball to her. She could smell the girl’s pity at her captivity. She knew she looked bedraggled and starved, though she had be
en fed. She would have continued to wither over time, but would not have died. Death would have been a mercy.

  The girl felt sorrow and wished to help her. Yukiko was the reason she was in this world, and she was so completely ignorant of it, most likely blaming herself for accidentally opening the Door. She trusted Yukiko to help her, not to trick or harm her. It made her feel like an honored being, a true Myobu. She did not deserve it.

  She swallowed her spirit ball. It burned a fiery path down her throat. She closed her eyes in ecstasy. It was back, back inside her, flowing like electricity through her cells, through her blood. She was whole, and alive, gloriously alive. She was fully herself.

  The lock wasn’t a problem for her now that she had her ball. She pointed her tail at it and it clicked open. She pushed open the door with her paws and she and Astrid ran up the beach, heading away from the guard and past Luna Park. They climbed up the rocky embankment that separated the land from the beach as soon as they were past the park.

  As they went, Yukiko used her power to shield them from Seelie eyes and senses. Her fur felt more lush and thick, and she felt her eyesight and hearing becoming keener. The feeling surged through her. Yes. This was what she was, what she was created to be.

  They stopped just outside the side gate to Luna Park. Luminous white birds, each four feet high, sat on perches on either side of the gate, welcoming people and chatting with guests and each other. It was only a matter of time before the birds were informed that there were two fugitives matching their description.

  “We need to get to the mirror house,” said Astrid.

  “Can’t you make a Door any other way?” whispered Yukiko. “This park is the worst possible place we could be at the moment.”

  “No, I’ve tried. I managed a small Door, but only managed to travel a few feet. I can’t do it without the mirror house. That’s the only place that will work.”

  “Well, if we move soon, I can get us there without being caught,” said Yukiko. “They have guards in both worlds, both in the human world and here. But that’s not what’s worrying me. I had some time to think while I was imprisoned. They might also have what you would call a magic tripwire to tell them if someone traveled from Seelie to the human world or vice versa. And if we trip one of them, they could send someone strong enough to catch us both. I don’t think my magic can conceal us from those.”

  “How can they plant a tripwire in somewhere insubstantial?”

  “Well, it’s not like a mechanical device. They would have to attach it to the far edge of the human world and the far edge of Seelie. But they can create such things.”

  “So even if you used your magic and we got through on this side, they’d catch us before we reached the human world?”

  “That’s correct.” Yukiko considered. “Since you have consistently used the mirror house, it’s sure to have an alarm attached. But there might be another way.”

  “And what is that?”

  “It’s dangerous, and most likely terrifying, but I’m completely sure the Seelie won’t have guards or sensors there. They would never risk it. We would set off the tripwire leaving Seelie, but they wouldn’t know where we went to, as it wouldn’t be the human world. The Seelie couldn’t follow us.”

  “Well, let’s go.” Astrid headed for the entrance.

  “It means we enter the Unseelie world,” Yukiko said, softly enough not to be overheard.

  The girl paused, but then kept on, either ignorant or foolish. “Let’s do it. I’ve had enough of being forced to stay where I don’t want to be. I’m a Door, and I’m going to go where I want to go.”

  Yukiko had no argument with that. Luna Park was as it had been before, full of tourists, travelers and locals, though Yukiko would have been hard-pressed to tell one kind from the other.

  “As long as we don’t get too close to whoever is at the mirror house, the illusion will hold,” said Yukiko. “Just stay right next to me.”

  “I’m not sure I can open the Door.”

  “I think you can. You’re scared, right? Weren’t you scared when the slaugh came through?”

  “Yes.”

  “And when you opened the Door to Seelie, what then?” She knew the answer, the sorrow and hopelessness and heartbreak the girl had felt. But Yukiko could never admit to knowing such a thing.

  “I thought I saw the mirror move,” said Astrid after a pause. “It startled me.”

  “Another strong emotion. And you said you made a small Door to move a few feet.”

  “That was in the house in Malibu where they held me captive. I got near the cold iron barriers and I was in pain.”

  “So fear and pain help you with the Doors,” said Yukiko. “That’s good.”

  “It’s a real barrel of monkeys.”

  They passed the stage show and the arcade. Astrid glanced down at her.

  “You’re looking better already.”

  “I’m feeling much better. I’m not fully restored, but it won’t be long.”

  “Why did they starve you and leave you in that place if they need you so much?”

  “They fed me, but without my spirit ball, I can survive, but I will wither. They offered to give me back the ball if I would become Seelie and serve their queen. But I refused.”

  “How long were you there?”

  “I’m not sure. A few days, I think.”

  “How long will have passed in our world?”

  “I have no idea.”

  They walked in silence for a short time before Astrid spoke again.

  “Yukiko? I have a question. I have a bell made of cold iron in my purse. How come they aren’t affected?”

  “You’re moving, so they’re only exposed for a moment or two. They probably feel nauseated, maybe a little headache, and then it passes. Also, you have all those knots. That’ll throw off their perception of the source.”

  “And I’m immune to it.”

  “Well, naturally.”

  “Not so naturally, really,” the girl paused. “As it turns out, I’m Seelie by birth, a changeling. A baby died and I took her place.”

  Yukiko was surprised, but then things fell into place in her mind. Something had been off about the girl, but she had smelled and felt completely human. She still did, except for the strange Door scent. But her ability to see things in their real form and as illusion was not human at all. And the Seelie had not felt her come through into their world. They had not had any tripwires then. But any human entering their world would have drawn attention, perhaps attraction, perhaps hostility. Anything but being ignored.

  Well, now. A changeling, in this day and age. The more things changed, the more they stayed the same, as the humans said. And now this changeling girl wanted to go home to the human world.

  The mirror house waited ahead. Two employees, both large and male, stood near the front and rear entries. They were undoubtedly guards, but not conspicuous ones. Yukiko headed toward the one at the rear entrance and changed reality a little, making him hear the call of the other guard. He went around to the front of the mirror house.

  “How do you do that?” asked Astrid.

  “There’s a reason they wanted my spirit ball. It lets me bend reality and time, create illusions. I’m burning through its power quickly, but hopefully we’ll be home soon. Assuming you can open two Doors in succession, one into Unseelie and one from there to the human world.”

  “I’m not sure I can.”

  Yukiko thought Astrid could do it, but mostly because she would use her magic to make an illusion that would help the girl. They went inside and headed straight for the mirror they had used as a Door previously.

  “I’m going to make an illusion to help you,” said Yukiko. “It’s not real.” She used her magic to create an image of slaugh, scratching and
snarling. They clawed over one another and wailed in their eerie voices. “Is that how they were?”

  “Yeah, that’s it,” said Astrid, breathless.

  “They’re not real.”

  “I know.”

  Astrid kept her eyes on the slaugh and stepped forward. Yukiko kept close, remembering how quickly the Door had closed behind her before.

  “Unseelie,” Astrid whispered. “Unseelie.”

  The mirror flickered and Astrid put her hand through. Yukiko leapt through beside her. There was the falling sensation, dizzying and swirling, and then she was on the floor of the mirror house once more. Astrid was on her knees beside her.

  “It didn’t work,” said Astrid, looking around the mirror house.

  “No, it did. Look.” Yukiko pointed her nose out the back exit from the mirror house. The light was more blue here, like twilight.

  “It’s purple. The sky is purple,” said Astrid. It was the light purple shade of the jacarandas that the humans planted around their boardwalk. “Do they call this place Luna Park also?”

  “I’ve never been to Unseelie, so I don’t know,” Yukiko said. “Now, let’s go to our world.” She summoned her magic and made an image of the human Luna Park, blue sky, ocean-scented air, the distant music of the carousel.

  “Home. Home,” whispered Astrid.

  A breeze rustled Yukiko’s fur, but it was not the illusion of breeze from the image she had made. Then, the air grew unbearably strong, pulling at her, dragging her away from the Door. Astrid yelped as she fell and slid behind Yukiko. They were being pulled to the exit by something unseen, but strong. Yukiko bit at it, but there was nothing there.

  “Release us immediately!” Yukiko shouted in her most commanding voice. “We are not under your jurisdiction! We have free right of passage!” It wasn’t true, but she wasn’t going to let anything or anyone know that. Perhaps the Unseelie had an ancient treaty with the Myobu. One never knew.