by J. A. Curtis
I existed before, assuming this was all true. Maybe this was some strange fringe cult they had dragged me into. Maybe Nuada kidnapped children and brainwashed them to believe her stories. I added the idea to the list of possibilities.
He left me alone in the hospital style room, promising to return. Caelm entered and offered me food. I pricked the food with my fork, trying to process. A loud growl shook my stomach. I really hoped the food wasn’t poisoned. But by the way they talked, Arius and Caelm wanted to convince me this was all true. So they most likely weren’t trying to kill me. Yet.
My hands shook as I tried to shovel food in my mouth, giving away how terrified I felt. Luckily, Caelm had stepped out of the room. I needed to have that under control before he came back. If I continued to focus on figuring out what was going on here, I might keep the approaching emotional breakdown at bay.
After lunch, Arius returned and led me out of my room and into the hallway. A girl with a bull-headed man stuck to her arm stood outside the door. Our eyes met, and she bowed without a word. Arius was halfway down the hall, and I worried if I stopped to chat, I’d lose him.
My sneakers scuffed against the smooth wooden floors stretching along the open corridor. Logs stacked on top of each other and molded together made up the bare walls. A skylight and hanging light fixtures gave off plenty of light. A large staircase descended away from us.
“So,” I said, “You’re what? Nuada’s second in command?”
He grunted. I took that as a yes. The spotless floors reflected my outline. I began to wonder if Nuada was a grumpy old woman who made kids do ridiculous chores in the middle of the night like some olden times orphanage. Then again, I hadn’t seen more than four or five kids here.
“Where is everyone?” I asked. A mental institution sounded more and more plausible to me. The floors, the lack of people, Arius’s explanations. I half expected a nurse to pop around the corner and say, ‘Hello, Mina, time to take your medicine.’
Another idea for the list.
“Outside, training. You’ll meet them tomorrow after breakfast.”
He stopped. Butterflies, caterpillars, and small handprints were carved intricately into the wood of a large ornate door.
“This is the nursery. When we fall, we are reborn in the care of the domovye. They tend to us until we are ready to begin training.”
“Who is domo-domovee-domovay?”
He sighed and ran a hand over his face. “Not who, what. They are house spirits that perform the many chores so the faeries are free to train. And its domovye.”
This might be the most incredible thing I’d heard so far. “You mean there are creatures that aren’t attached to your arms?”
“There used to be many magical creatures, but here, we have domovye, stymphalian birds, and a wolpertinger.”
“Can I see them?”
“The domovye don’t like to be visited unannounced. The stymphalian birds live in the forest behind the manor. You will see one, but not today. And you are bound to run into Wolpertinger, he’s usually lying around somewhere.”
I tried to peek through the slightly ajar door as we passed but saw nothing. His answers, these claims, the dragon—everything was so fantastical. Each answer more unrealistic than the next. It felt like I’d landed on a whole different planet. But there was no way this all could be true, could it? I had the sudden urge to grab Arius and scream at him to tell the truth—to explain all these crazy things in a logical way.
He led me downstairs and past the double front doors toward what looked like a sort of cafeteria when soft sobs brought me to an abrupt halt. That’s not made up. Arius had disappeared into the cafeteria room. The sobs were coming from the room off to my right. A set of doors were open a crack.
“Are you crying?” a voice said.
“You better not be crying, we’ll get in trouble,” another voice said.
The sobbing continued.
“You’re such a baby.”
“Look at her, clutching that baby necklace.”
“I’m going to bury it in the ground where you’ll never find it.”
“Give it here.”
“I’ll rip it off her neck.”
I’d heard enough. I charged toward the doors, shoving them open. Three small children, about five or six years old sat in the middle of a child’s wonderland. On the far wall hung several televisions and underneath rested a gaming console. Next to the gaming system was a bookcase filled with video games and DVDs. Toys laid scattered about the room—trucks and Legos and little warrior men including dolls that once came pink and frilly but now had the frills torn off.
Two boys held controllers in their hands, and a small girl sat with them. One boy was reaching for the girl, and she was leaning away from the boys, her fist wrapped around a chain on her neck. Three sets of eyes grew wide as I marched into the room.
They scrambled to their feet and stood with heads bowed. Their response caught me off guard. What made little kids snap to attention like that?
Out of the corner of my eye I saw the outline of Arius in the doorway.
The girl wiped her nose on her shirt, tears still rolled down her cheeks. I stepped close to the little girl, keeping an eye on the boys at the same time.
“Can I see your necklace?” I asked the little girl. She appeared startled but nodded, untangling her hand from the chain.
She raised her hand and opened her fist. It was a charm necklace filled with many figurines—a turquoise stone, a ballerina, a heart, a cross that looked like a sword or a sword that looked like a cross, and an “I love Idaho” state charm. She even had a small fishing lure attached to the golden chain.
“It’s beautiful,” I said, and she gave me a shy smile. “Thank you for showing me. What's your name?”
“Dairlin of the Mystic Mountains, warrior of the King’s guard, soldier to Her Majesty the Queen,” her voice quivered.
That was a mouthful. I faced the little boys who hadn’t moved. Their heads bowed a little deeper as my shadow fell on them.
“My name is Mina.” My voice became hard as I spoke to them. “Dairlin here is my friend. From now on, if you mess with her, you mess with me, got it?”
It probably wasn’t much of a threat. These kids didn’t even know me. But I was older, so I hoped it carried some weight.
“Yes, my lady,” came one quiet voice.
“Yes, my lady,” said the other.
Arius stepped up behind me and addressed the boys. “Your orders were to remain outside. You will go report to Thaya immediately and tell her where you’ve been. She will fix a proper punishment for your disobedience. Go now.”
The boys bowed. “Yes, sir.” Seeming more grateful to be excused than anything, they both scurried toward the door.
Arius laid a hand on Dairlin’s shoulder, and she looked up at him with large watery eyes.
“You also disobeyed orders. You will need to serve the same punishment.”
“Yes, sir,” she squeaked.
The little girl turned to me and bowed. “Thank you, my lady.” She hurried from the room.
“Are you sure that was the best decision?” I asked Arius. “Those little boys were bullying her.”
“If I let her avoid punishment for disobeying orders, they would only treat her worse afterward. We must be careful about the appearance of favoritism.”
“What’s with all the bowing and my ladies?”
For some reason, he didn’t look happy. Had I done something wrong? “A way of showing respect and deference.”
I could see why they’d respond to Arius that way. Me though? I was pretty sure I just tended to tick people off. Especially people like Arius. Already, he had that look my mom got right before launching into one of her lengthy lectures. But I hadn’t done anything wrong.
I touched the bracelet on my wrist that my brother had made for me. It was a woven mixture of purple and blue threads. My mom, my dad, and—and Corbin. What were they thinking right now? Were
they missing me? Who would watch out for Corbin if I wasn’t around?
But not just Corbin. My parents had stolen my Nana’s home from her. They’d forced her out. I was the only one willing to stand up for her. And all I kept thinking about was getting back to the people who had torn her life apart.
Arius must have decided to keep his disapproval to himself. I followed him from the room and walked back into the entryway, skirting the large staircase, we headed toward the back of the building where he showed me their library filled with books.
Whatever was going on here suddenly no longer mattered. I had to escape. I would escape. For Nana, for Corbin.
Arius took me up a back stairway to the second floor into a short hallway. He walked to a single door at the very end.
“This is Nuada’s office,” he said. “If you ever need to meet with her, tell me. I will set up an appointment for you.”
He moved on without entering. The manor was impressive, but I couldn’t help but feel like it was all an elaborate prison built to hold me. As he walked with his strict gait, I took in the long foreboding sword belted at Arius’s waist.
I‘d wait for the right opportunity. But for my own safety, I would have to play along. For now.
3
Meeting the Faeries
“When you are uncertain, don’t be afraid to take matters into your own hands.”
I LAY IN THE LAST BED and stared out the large bay window. Moonlight filtered in through the glass.
Time to act.
I slipped out of bed and crept to the window. The front lawn was devoid of life. I glided forward and inched the sheets off each of the beds. My hands worked, double-knotting ends together. The latch creaked as I pushed the window open, and a sharp breath filled my lungs.
I glanced at the door. When the guard standing on the other side didn’t burst into the room, I released the breath and gathered the sheets into my arms.
Night air streamed in, but the summer night kept me from feeling too cold in the lightweight cotton T-shirt and pants they had given me for pajamas. My hands wrapped the sheet around the beam that ran between the middle window and the smaller one to the left. I knotted once, twice, three, four times, gave a good tug and leaned back with all my weight to make sure it would hold, then pushed the rest out the window.
I’m coming, Corbs.
Crawling onto the window ledge, I took the sheet in both hands and dropped my entire weight onto it. Fibers stretched and strained, but the sheets held my weight. I began inching my way down.
The knot between the first and second sheet pulled and pulled and pulled. I loosened my grip on the sheet and let it slide through my hands, falling as far as I could before tightening my grip. The jolt caused the first and second sheet to snap apart, and I fell.
My back hit the ground with a dull thud, expelling all the air from my lungs. I stared up at the starry sky and tried to breathe. Finally, I took a large gulp of air. Bedsheets out the window—not a very good idea. I sat up. My lungs ached, but nothing felt injured or broken. I untangled my body from the sheets and got to my feet. The ledge had a single sheet waving in the breeze.
Huge mountain peaks cast dark shadows across the manor as I made my way across the front lawn and around the back side. A deep forest loomed behind.
I paused next to three white delivery trucks each about the size of a half-semi parked close to the back windows. A chilled breeze sifted the grass and tousled my hair. Worn grooves in the grass showed the path the trucks drove away from the manor. There were no roads, not even electric or telephone lines. No signs of civilization anywhere.
Tracks. They had to lead somewhere. I hesitated. What if a dragon had actually destroyed Nana’s house? What if someone could heal with just a touch? What if, somehow, I really was a nearly immortal faerie?
My hand brushed the thin threads of the bracelet on my wrist. Corbin.
I passed the delivery trucks and followed the tracks away from the manor.
A figure stepped from the shadows of the forest, blocking my path. They were out here? My hope of an easy escape thwarted, I turned toward the trees. No guard stood in between me and the forest. If I slipped inside the seclusion of the trees, I might be able to find a place to hide and lose my captors.
“Mina, stop!”
I spun around and looked up. Arius stood on the roof of the manor, one hand held high. He let his hand fall to his side. Three more figures separated from the shadows surrounding the manor. They stood still, facing me, swords strapped to their waists.
My shoulders drooped. I should turn myself in. But if I did, I might not find another chance to escape, and all my efforts would be for nothing.
I twirled back toward the trees and dashed forward. The closest guard on the path raced along the forest’s edge. I kept running, sure I would beat them when suddenly, a dark creature rose up right in front of me, standing the height of the treetops, massive arms and legs as thick as stumps, flabby rolls filled out its middle, and its fists were the size of small cars. Clutched in the right fist was an enormous double-edged ax. A shoulder pad with a long spike curved off the creature’s shoulder. Two sharp tusks protruded from its lower jaw, the rest of the head too small in proportion. The creature leaned toward me, opening its gaping mouth, large enough to swallow me whole. It let out a bellowing roar.
I shrieked and came to a stop so quick I nearly fell. With a frantic about-face, I sprinted back toward the manor. My legs pumped hard, and I didn’t stop until I came to the front door. Hands sweaty and shaking, I clutched the latch and tried to push the door open. Locked. I pounded like a maniac then sank down and pressed my head against the smooth wood, willing my erratic heartbeat to steady.
Laughter floated to me from the side of the manor. Someone said, “Did you see how quick she bolted in the other direction? I’ve never seen anyone turn tail so fast!”
“She sounded like a banshee,” another voice said.
“That’s not fair to the banshee. It would never be terrified like that.”
The laughing faeries stopped in their tracks when they rounded the corner and saw me leaning against the door, trembling and out of breath. Three boys and a girl, about my age, about to burst out laughing.
“Soldiers, fall in,” Arius barked. All four kids jerked to attention, smiles and laughter gone. Somehow, Arius had gotten down off the roof. He walked up to the four kids. None of them looked him in the eye.
“You think what just happened was funny?” he snapped.
“No, sir,” the kids said in unison.
“Do you think you have the right to make fun of your superiors?”
“No, sir,” they answered again.
“You will not speak of what happened tonight either amongst yourselves or with any other faerie soldier. That is a direct order.”
“Sir! Yes, sir!”
“And you will serve double watch tonight for your insubordination.”
This “yes sir” sounded less enthusiastic.
He ordered a large, muscular, dark-skinned boy named Palon to wake Thaya and have her take over his watch on the roof, and then ordered the other three back to their posts.
As one, the four kids bowed to Arius. Three of them left, scattering back to their original positions. Palon followed Arius as he approached me, still clutching the locked door latch in my hands. I rose to my feet and released the latch, taking in Arius’s composed face.
Should I thank him for standing up for me? Why had he called me their superior? He pulled out a set of keys that hung around his neck, and I moved so he could unlock the door. He pressed the latch and shoved the double doors wide.
A dozen kids of different ages stood in the entryway, swords drawn, prepared for battle, the littlest coming up to my waist. Thaya was there, and Caelm. Arius hung his head. “Everyone outside, fall in. There is no danger here.”
Swords were stowed back in their cases, and the kids trudged outside to line up. I noticed curious glances, especially from t
he younger ones as they passed, but every time I met their gaze, they looked away. Arius motioned for me to enter, and I stepped over the threshold. He ordered Caelm to stay with me.
Caelm and I stood in the entryway in silence while Arius went back outside, shutting the door behind him.
What now? I should have waited, gotten to know my surroundings more before acting. Instead, I had seen the chance and taken it—and my escape attempt had ended in miserable failure. Bitterness clogged my throat.
I thought of my family. Had they called the police? How was Nana dealing with my parents without me? I had thrown that party for her. Hopefully she knew that and didn’t hate me as much as my parents probably did right now.
They’d still report me missing, wouldn’t they?
I placed a hand over my eyes and groaned. I couldn’t think about this—about them. Not now. I pushed it away, shoving it all down.
The front door opened again, and I straightened, dropping my hand to my side. This time, Arius entered and commanded Caelm outside. Caelm glanced at me, brows furrowed before following orders.
Arius shut the door. “The damage you have just done to your reputation will take months to undo, if it can be undone at all.”
My reputation? I was just about swallowed whole by a terrifying ax-wielding monster, and he was worried about my reputation? “You realize how hard it is to believe all the crazy information you’ve thrown at me.”
Arius gave me a blank stare. “This isn’t proof enough for you?” He pointed to the tattoo on his arm.
The mark on Arius’s arm, though detailed, was dark and scary, the holes for the rock monster’s eyes, black and soulless. The power behind it pulsed in my ears.
“I told you stymphalian birds live in the forest behind the manor,” he said. “If you had walked into that forest tonight, you wouldn’t have walked out.”
A shudder ran through me. When I had thought about stymphalian birds, I had pictured beautiful birds, able to work some mysterious magic that made trees grow or sang haunting songs, something like that. Either that, or I’d figured they were just ordinary birds. It hadn’t even occurred to me they might be dangerous.