by R. J. Ross
Century catches on quickly, which shows as he relaxes and smiles slightly. "I see. You're thinking of mentoring him to my Flame. That could work out for both of us, honestly. Turn the page. You did put Jimena's information in there, didn't you?" he asks Double M.
"I did. But when dealing with any of the Superiors you need to put the carrot first," Double Me says simply.
“Well really, what I should say is that we might have a deal--IF your boy can handle the problem we’ve got. I did want one of your students for this, but I was hoping for someone with a bit of… toughness. This Vinny of yours, what’s he like?” Century asks.
Nico stares at him for a moment, thinking about the teen in question. “He’s the second in command of the zoo kids, as we call them,” he says, waving the hologram of Flameblaster off. “He’s one of the few kids that came out of a year of being kidnapped and stuck in a glass cell with his complete sanity, stability, and surprisingly, a talent for cooking. Honestly I’ve got no idea where the cooking thing came from, but it’s useful.”
“He’s a cook?” Century repeats. “I’m afraid I’m not seeing what he’s like with just that simple description. Think you could expound on that?”
“If the whole world were falling apart around him, Vinny would be the one making sure everyone got fed before he got them out,” Nico says bluntly. “He’s sharp as a razorblade, too. He promises to be one of our best heroes, or he would be if he actually applied himself to more than just watching the cooking channel.” He starts reading the information on the next page, a slight frown crossing his face as he gets further in.
“You see what we’re dealing with, then?” Century asks as he closes the envelope. “The girl has just gone off the leash. She’s not a bad girl by any means, but she’s involved with the wrong crowd. They’re all talking about how they’re the new capes, running around vandalizing places! And honestly, as much as I want to shut them down, the idea of doing that to Alonso’s little Princesa on national television, well, I can’t do it. Alonso's saved this world’s bacon so many times I’ve lost count.”
He’s laying that good ole’ boy line on thick, Nico thinks, earning a slight shrug from Mastermental.
‘We do what we must,’ Double M says silently, ‘but he’s right about Voltdrain. The man has saved this world several times already.’
Nico nods. “I’m interested in Flame. I’ll have to do a bit more research on him, though.”
“Are you going to save little Jimmi?” Century demands.
“We’ll see,” Nico says. “Tell me, before I commit, though, how does Alonso feel about having his little ‘Princesa’ sent away to school?”
***
“So what do you think it is?” I hear Sunny ask. We’re supposed to be going to science class right now, but the teachers had pulled us back, saying Nico was busy with a special meeting. I saw the two guys that went in earlier, one was Mastermental, the head of Central Hall, the other was this massive monster of a guy wearing a hat big enough to shade half of Kansas City.
Oh, right, I should introduce myself, huh? Name’s Vinny Accardi. Yeah, it’s Italian. I’m Italian on my father’s side, but I grew up in America and have no ties with the mafia whatsoever. I’m not related to Rocky, either, got it? Now that we’ve got that cleared up, I’ll tell you one other thing. I’m a super. I’ve got fire abilities and go to a school for supers. But I’m STILL not mafia. Just in case you were wondering, got it? Well, maybe a few generations back there was a cousin--but that’s just a story my dad told me when I was a kid. Dad liked to tell ridiculous stories. That’s what he called them when I called him out. The rest of the world would just call it lying.
“That’s Century up there with Dad and Nico,” Max says casually. We’re all sitting on the strange little playground that Nico and Taurus built for Sunny’s girlfriend, Adanna. She’s a shape-shifter, one that turns into a black panther. That’s why there are three of these human sized tree houses linked together by ramps with hammocks hanging off the side. I claimed one of the hammocks already. I’m tempted to take a nap.
"Who's Century?" Carla asks. I glance up at the black girl sitting on the walkway above my hammock, a bit surprised.
"He's one of the Hall leaders, right?" I offer. Something about this is making my brain itch, I just can’t remember why...
"Yeah, South Branch," Max says. "He plays up the Texas accent--but I'm pretty sure he's an Ivy League graduate. Not sure which of them, but definitely Ivy League. That means he wants something from the school."
"Maybe he's just bringing in new kids," Morgan says. Morgan’s the head of the zoo kids, like me and Carla. She’s sitting above me, as well, right next to Carla.
There's a slight breeze rocking my hammock. I yawn, wondering if anyone will notice if I go to sleep. As interesting as this is (or isn't) this is really a nice place for a nap. "Think they'll move into the dorm?"
AND I'm up. "No more dorm kids," I say, sitting up abruptly. "Please, for the love of God, no more dorm kids."
"Oh come on, Vinny, it'll be good to have new blood!" Morgan says, laughing at me from where she's sitting next to Carla.
"Blood is exactly what I'm worried about," I tell her before falling onto my back again and staring up at the sky. "I doubt it's that, though. More likely they'll want to build another school or something, right? It's bad enough that all of us are away from our families, no point in taking the legitimate cape kids away from theirs." I yawn and relax again, intent on getting that nap.
"They can try," Max says. The son of Mastermental is way too much of a know-it-all for my tastes. He always seems to be two steps ahead of everybody. It's annoying, especially when he's smug about it. "Dad had the blueprints for this place back when I was a little kid--he never built it until Nico was getting out of the Cape Cells. That means Nico is the driving force behind the school system."
"He can oversee it from here, though. You know, act as an adviser," Zoe, Nico's daughter and Max's girlfriend says. "So Vinny might be right."
"Hah," I say, simply because I can.
"Why aren't you going super villain, Vinny?" Max asks abruptly. Wow, that was out of left field. I turn slightly, looking at the black haired teen sitting at the next tree house. "You'd make a good one."
"He is NOT going super villain," Morgan, ever the mother of the zoo kids, says. "And why are you still trying to recruit people? You've got two of our toughest students on your side. We need more heroes."
"Ace is too busy drawing pretty pictures to be a threat more often than not," Jack says. We all turn to watch the goth boy in question doodling on an art pad. "Besides, Vinny would make the super villain camping trips awesome. Just think of the barbecue we could pull off!"
"You're planning on cooking hotdogs over my head, aren't you?" I drawl, easily picturing it.
"Absolutely."
"I'm not going super villain," I say. "I'm perfectly fine being one of those second rate heroes that only get cameos on TV. They'll dress me up in red and orange and send me in to fight fires with the local firemen. As long as I get paid and cable TV, I'm good."
"Wow, what aspirations," Max says sarcastically. "Are you going to ask for the movie channels, too?"
"Think they'd toss them in?" I ask eagerly. The entire group bursts out with laughter at that. "Hey, free cable is free cable," I defend myself. "A place of my own, cable, a good kitchen, man, that's all a guy can ask for in life." I start my hammock swaying again, listening to them joke about my "lofty goals."
"Supers in the Hall get paid enough for more than that, you know," Max says. "At least aim to be a well-known hero, if you're going to be one. It'll look bad if a Cape High student turns out to be sidekick level."
"Especially when he's got promise," Morgan says, staring pointedly at me.
"I might start up my own restaurant, how's that sound?" I ask. "Vinny's Bar and Grill. It'll be a nice little place--" I start laughing as random objects are thrown at me. I'm half buried in paper balls and s
hoes when they go still. I sit up and look at what they're watching, blinking at the sight of Nico and Century walking straight for us.
"Is there a problem?" Max asks, always the first one to speak for the group. Personally I think Morgan should, but it's not worth the argument. Morgan tends to shy away from heroes, anyway. I guess I can't blame her, considering her dad. He's a super villain.
"Vinny," Nico says as I start shoving stuff out of my hammock. I go still, holding a girl's sneaker.
"Yeah?" I ask.
"Come with us."
Like R.J.’s writing? Like Fantasy? Check out her Seasons of the Fae series! Book 3 will be coming out soon!
Seasons of the Fae
Book 1: Raven’s Return
It didn’t take him long to wake up. The movement of his bed started the waking progress, but the overly loud “thump” and consequent jostle of the bed hitting a large rock finished it quite thoroughly. Oscar cursed, opening his eyes and looking around. It was dark, save for small strips of light peeking through the wooden slats that held him in.
“A box?” he asked, reaching out and pushing at the slats. They wouldn’t budge. He could hear the sound of water rushing around him, and could even feel it leaking into the box around his feet.
The box was gaining speed, and he grunted as it hit another rock, throwing him against the side so hard that he was sure it would leave an ugly bruise. “Hey!” he shouted, slamming his fists on the wooden slats. “Let me out! Let me—“
Suddenly the water that had been supporting the box gave way. For a second it felt as if he was floating, then the box plunged downward, so quickly that he didn’t even have time to scream.
***
“So,” Visal said, standing at the window of his large office. The office was built near the top of the Holy Tree, and he could see almost all of the land that made up the Fall Tribe’s territory. He could even see the craggy cliffs that made up the Summer Tribe’s territory, including the small, dark figures that he was positive were their little rock army—
“Yes, Tribe Leader?” Bebe asked from the couch. It sat next to the desk at the center of the office. “Visal,” she added with a little smile that made his delicate transparent wings shudder ever so slightly under his cloak. Of all the fae that lived in his tree, he thought as he turned to look at her, Bebe was the most attractive creature he had ever seen. She was a Honeybee Influence fae, which showed in her big oval eyes, and her yellow and black outfit. She even had the fuzzy top that she wore over her ample chest, one that showed the pale white skin of her neck. Her pants were form fitting, striped like the material crafted to look like a flattened bee tail worn tied around her waist. Her boots, furry, much like her top, came up to her knees, hugging--
“Visal, you’ve gotten distracted again,” she said teasingly. “We were discussing the new business that the twins wanted to open.”
“Ah, yes,” he said, his expression going blank once again as he squared his shoulders. “So they have enough trained rats to open a stable?”
“They’ve been working hard,” she said. “They’ve got fifteen browns, and, counting your Pistol, two grays, and they’ve been looking into a rumor about the white rats near the edge of the grove.” They had to cross the River to get to it, but they were quite good at that.
“Tell them not to bother,” Visal said. “They’re wasting time looking for them.” He walked over to the desk, picking up one of the sweet honey buns she always made for him. He loved her honey buns.
She leaned forward in her chair, and his eyes were drawn downwards once again. “But they find so many other things,” she said, forcing him to look at her face. He wondered what she saw in those multi faceted eyes of hers. No doubt it was something like what he saw in the mirror, a tall, thin fae with the eyes of a copperhead snake, pale green in color and with a slit down the middle, just like a cat’s.
His face was sharp and long, and when he smiled, those rare moments, his fangs showed. His copper colored hair was long and straight, pulled back at the nape of his neck to leave his sharp angles in stark relief. His suit, which brought comfort to all the fae of the Holy Tree, was made of the skin of his influenced, the Osage Copperhead. Although the dark brown hourglass markings that decorated the back of his short cloak and pants often struck him as too flashy, his tailor swore that they were necessary. They reassured the people, he was told, and that’s what a good leader was supposed to do. A fang was tucked at the belt of his outfit, both a symbol of the creature he had influence over and a weapon.
“And they’ve found a new mushroom that they believe we could easily cultivate at the base of the Holy Tree,” Bebe went on, forcing Visal to remember what she had been talking about.
“Have they tested to see if it’s poisonous?” he asked. “We don’t want to forget what happened the last time.”
“No one died!” she said.
“Not for lack of trying.”
For a moment she glared at him, and he wondered if he would see her angry again. Then she smiled, a bit sheepishly. “You’re right, actually. This time I’ve told them that if the rats refuse to eat them, so do we.”
“Have them test that before they try to bring it over to the Holy Tree,” he said. “The last thing I want is tiny influences eating poisonous mushrooms because their parents aren’t paying attention.”
“I agree one hundred percent,” she said so emphatically that he almost laughed. Bebe had a weak spot for children. “Speaking of tiny influences,” she said, hesitantly.
The door to his office opened before she could go on, and he turned, looking expectantly at his secretary. “Have you found out anything?” he asked.
“Yes, sir,” the Centipede Influence male said, glancing over at Bebe for a second before looking at Visal. “But I’m afraid it’s something we need to discuss in… private, sir.”
“Bebe, if you don’t mind?” Visal asked.
“Of course not,” she said as she stood. “He’s all yours, George,” she added with a flirtatious wink. George flushed brightly, tugging at the collar of his suit.
“Thank you, ma’am,” he said, stuttering slightly as she walked past him, the long tail of her suit flapping slightly. Visal watched her go for a moment before turning to his secretary.
“So,” he said as the door closed behind her well curved body, “what have you found out about Raven?”
***
“Stupid, stupid, stupid!” Bebe cursed herself as she headed through the hall they had built over the thick branch of the tree. The Holy Tree was hollow in the center, but to have houses on the branches, they had had to bring in wood from other places. The less they took from the Holy Tree, the more it gave to them, including natural holes on the inside where they could build their businesses and homes.
She stepped through the door that led to the hollow center of the Holy Tree and looked down, admiring the bustle of life and shopping for a second before she started down the wooden walkway that connected all of the branches and businesses in the tree. She stopped at the door that led to another tree limb, looking at it for a moment before shaking her head. She didn’t feel like going home just yet, she was still irritated with herself for using such a retarded starting line.
But seriously, Bebe thought, how did you tell a guy like Visal something like—like that? “Oh yeah,” she muttered to herself, “something like, ‘Lovely day, don’t you think? Oh, and by the way, I—‘” She stopped and snorted, not so much amused at herself as wanting to be.
“They ate the mushrooms!” Kani called, making her look up as the twins raced up the walkway. They were both taller than her now, but still teenagers. She was proud that they had gotten so far with their rat training in such a short time. “And nobody died. They didn’t even turn green.”
“And their eyes didn’t even cross!” Naki added, barely a second behind his brother, the long rat tail tied around his waist slapping against his leg as he pulled to a stop. She had tried to talk them into wearing the ta
ils like a belt, since they tended to get caught in doors, but they had yet to listen to her.
“Yeah, Bebe! They’re perfectly fine mushrooms!” Kani agreed. She smiled at him, certain that it looked a bit strained, but unable to do any better, even for the two boys she had raised. She wasn’t their mother, but she had taken them in when they were orphaned. It was a decision she had never regretted.
“That’s great,” she said. “But you need to be absolutely certain, got it? We don’t want to forget what happened last time.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Kani said. “You’ve been talking to Visal again, haven’t you?”
“And he’s absolutely right about this,” she told them.
“He’s a jerk,” Naki said. “I’ve got no clue what you see in the guy. He’s as cold blooded as his influenced is, and everybody knows it.”
“Naki!” she snapped, glaring at him darkly as she crossed her arms over her chest. “That’s the tribe leader you’re speaking about, you know.”
“Yeah, and cold blooded is fine in a tribe leader, but it isn’t for a boyfriend!” Naki said. “We’re worried about you, Bebe! Everyone knows that the moment a better offer comes along—“
Bebe felt herself going pale. The twins must have seen it, because Kani elbowed his brother. “He’s not like that,” she whispered.
“Yeah, we know you—“
“Shut it, Naki!” Kani growled. “Bebe, do you wanna lay down or something? C’mon, let’s go home. You can have a nice honey tea and we’ll start dinner, okay?” They gently herded her back up the walkway to the door that led to their home. “Hey,” Kani went on once they were there, looking serious. “You know, we’ll always be--well, you know, there, right, Bebe?”
“Of course I know that,” she said with a smile. “You’re good boys. Someone must have raised you right.”
“Nahhh,” Naki said. “We just like to look good in front of pretty ladies.”
A little laugh escaped her and she squared her shoulders. She had done perfectly fine raising these two on her own, she thought. She was a strong, independent female and everyone knew that, even Visal. “So,” she said after a second. “What’s for dinner?”