She sat Linx down next to a large tree. “Linx, I have to rescue my parents. Can you stay here by yourself?”
Linx nodded.
“I’ll come back soon. But if I don’t, take this.” She gave her bracelet to Linx. “I have sent a message. Someone named Cayson will come to rescue you. Remember, show this bracelet to him. He has an identical one. If he doesn’t have a bracelet just like this, it’s not him. Don’t go with anyone but Cayson, okay? He’s a good man. He’ll take care of you.”
“Who is he?”
“He’s my husband. Well, he will be if we are ever officially married.”
“So he’s not your real husband?”
“Oh no, darling. He’ll always be my husband, in my heart. The official marriage just gives me permission to bring my family to another universe.”
Linx nodded. “Eudaiz.”
“What?”
“My parents always wanted to go to Eudaiz. They talked about it all the time. Something about an official application. Is that like your marriage?”
“Are you sure they talked about Eudaiz?”
Linx nodded.
Fifi felt a chill run up her spine. She had just found the common denominator between her capture and Linx’s—both of their families wanted to migrate to Eudaiz. But why had the brotherhood killed Linx’s parents? And what did they want from her parents? Why had they captured her in the first place?
She secured a few large tree branches around Linx for camouflage, then went to the village for her parents.
From behind a small bush close to the village, Fifi saw her parents tied to two large poles. The leader of the brotherhood said, “I asked you one last time, are you willing to give me the list, or will you die for those strangers?”
Fifi felt her blood boil. That was what the brotherhood was all about—the list. Her parents would never agree to giving it up.
There was no time to think. She raced toward the brotherhood’s house. The streets were deserted because everyone was gathered around the bonfire to watch her parents burn. They would die protecting their own kind. They would never reveal the list.
She quickly gathered some dry tree branches. She made a small fire and from it made a trail of fire into the brotherhood’s house. She had grown up learning quite a few tricks from her own people—making fire was just one of them. The fire caught quickly, exploding straight into the dark sky like a giant torch.
It worked. She had caught the brotherhood’s attention just before they burned her parents. The men yelled at each other, scrambling back to the house to put out the fire. But Fifi knew fire. This fire would destroy everything in its way.
As the leaders of the brotherhood headed back to the house, two lower-rank brothers escorted her parents to where they had been held captive.
Fifi stepped out from the dark to stop them.
“Fifi!” her mother cried out. “I knew you’d be fine.”
“Behind you!” Fifi said to the gangsters. They turned around, and two large tree trunks with sharp edges swung at them from a large tree at the side of the road, piercing them from front to back.
She didn’t need to check the men. She knew they had no chance of surviving. Instead, she darted to her parents, untying her father first. Before she could get to her mother, she heard clapping from behind a tree. The three leaders of the brotherhood stepped out.
“Fifi Anton, you’re a brave girl.”
They three of them approached Fifi at the same time.
“Don’t touch my daughter,” her father roared. He picked up a tree branch and charged at the brothers. The leader pulled out a dagger and stood waiting with a smirk on his face.
Chapter 12
“You’d better be sure about this, Lyla.” Michael adjusted the double daggers on his belt and tucked a couple of hunting knives into his boots. He gave Lyla two knives, tugged at her belt to be sure it was secure, and then looked her over to ensure her safety vest was in place.
“Relax, Michael. I’m trained in basic personal defense. I can handle myself.”
“Not in Xiilok where our technology doesn’t work and real weapons can’t be used.” Michael glanced suspiciously at the dark hillside in Xiilok. They were surrounded by thick bushes and hovering rocks. Any of those rocks could turn into a Xiilok creature and attack them.
“Knives are good enough.”
“I’d prefer a gun.”
Lyla pulled out a small chip and placed it in her palm. “It’s buzzing again. We’re close.”
“Are you sure it’s Cayson?”
“Michael, I know a bit about technology—even more than you do—so stop questioning. This bug is basic. It can’t broadcast our frequency. We won’t get caught. It only pairs up with one device—the bug I placed on Cayson.”
“How the hell did you manage to tag Cayson and not Ryan?”
“Because the night before, Cayson seemed to be more of a loose cannon than Ryan, and I only had one bug with me at the time. I had to make a choice.”
“What if someone or something else got their hands on the bug? What if you’re being lured into a trap?”
“I don’t know…but I told you this is a very primitive tracking device. It’s discreet and effective, but it has limited capacity. That’s why I need you here with me.”
“You just want to tag along with me. I told you I can track Cayson and Ryan without technology. I have contacts here.”
“I know you’re well-connected, but technology is faster. We’re running out of time. I thought we agreed on this.”
“I never agreed to take you here physically.”
“Okay, so I forced you. Can we go now? If you keep whining, I’ll truly believe you’re old.”
Michael shrugged, mumbled some profanity under his breath, and strode ahead. Then he swiveled around, grabbed Lyla, and abruptly forced her to the ground.
“Ow!”
“Shss, someone’s coming,” Michael said.
Lyla focused. Faint footsteps. She glanced at her device. “It’s Cayson.”
“Are you sure?”
“It’s the signal of the paired device moving close to this host device.”
It was dark, but they could see the shadow of someone moving toward them. The person slid down a slope and dropped to a tiered rock base just below them. At that point, Lyla and Michael realized they were most likely at the top of the hill.
They crept closer and saw the shadow moving further down. They followed.
Nearer the ground, the bushes were thinner, and they could see farther into the distance.
“Cayson,” Lyla said, seeing his shadow crawling in among the bushes, heading toward what looked like light in the distance.
Then, before they could call out, Cayson stood up and made a run across the open field.
“Damn it,” Michael cursed and grabbed Lyla. “Let’s wait a minute. If he doesn’t get caught running across, then we’ll go after him.”
“You’re going to wait to see if he gets caught?”
“Would you rather we follow him right now, and all of us get caught? Let’s just say that when it comes to physical fights, you’ll have to take my word and trust my experience, okay?”
“Okay.”
Cayson made it across the field safely. They waited a bit longer. Nothing happened. Cayson kept crawling toward the light.
“Let’s go!” Michael said, and he and Lyla ran toward Cayson.
The closer they got to him, the clearer their view of the light was. It appeared to be a village of some sort.
Cayson must have been focused so intently on the village that he didn’t hear Michael and Lyla approaching.
“Cayson!” Lyla called when they stood almost right next to him.
Cayson was startled. “Lyla?”
She signaled him to keep silent. They looked toward the village.
“Is that where Fifi and her family live?” Michael asked.
Cayson nodded.
“Let’s go, but take it slowly
,” Michael said.
They moved a little closer and heard someone sobbing. Michael whirled around, grabbed a large tree branch and tossed it aside, and thrust his dagger forward, anticipating an attack.
A timid little girl was crouched on the ground. Seeing the dagger, she started to cry.
Lyla grabbed her and held her close. “Shss, it’s okay. We’re friends.”
The girl looked at Lyla and then at the men behind her.
“Put your weapon away,” Lyla said.
Michael tucked the dagger back into his boot.
“See, we mean you no harm,” Lyla said. “Are you from over there?” She nodded in the direction of the lights.
The girl nodded.
“You’re hiding here, so you obviously don’t want to go back. If you tell us who you’re hiding from, we’ll make sure they don’t find you,” Michael said.
The girl shook her head.
“What’s your name?” Lyla asked.
“Linx.”
“Where are your parents?” Cayson asked.
The girl’s eyes gleamed with tears.
“Wrong question, Cayson,” Michael muttered. To the girl, he said, “We won’t let anyone hurt you. But you shouldn’t stay here alone in the dark. You should go with us. With Lyla. See, she’s your friend.”
“Fifi said I can only go with Cayson.”
“What?” Cayson exclaimed. “Fifi? Where is she? I’m Cayson. She sent me a signal, but I couldn’t find her.”
“What signal? Are we being tracked?” Lyla asked.
Linx looked up at Cayson. “Show me the bracelet,” she said.
Cayson pulled out a bracelet. Linx pulled out an identical one.
“Where’s Fifi?” Cayson asked. “In the village?”
Linx nodded. “She said if she doesn’t come back, her husband will come and get me.”
“She called me her husband?” Cayson said.
“What signal did she give you?” Lyla asked.
Cayson pulled out a small charm in his pocket. It glowed. “She said it’s her spirit. It will guide me to her.” He thrust the charm into Lyla’s hand and then turned toward Linx. “Did she go back to the village?”
“She said she’d come back for me, but she said if she didn’t, you’d find me.”
Cayson turned around and raced toward the village.
Lyla picked Linx up. Michael ran after Cayson.
At the edge of the village, they could see the bonfire. The village people gathered in a corner. A group of menacing men walked back and forth in front of the crowd.
“The brotherhood!” Linx said, eyes wide.
“Do you mean those scary-looking men walking in front of those people?” Lyla asked.
The girl nodded. A tear rolled down her face. “They took me. And Fifi told me they killed my parents.” She started crying again, and Lyla pulled the girl into her arms to give her some comfort.
Two gangsters dragged a dead body from a dark corner and placed it next to the fire.
“Fifi!” Cayson cried out when another man brought her out, a knife against her throat.
Michael grabbed him. “Calm down. If they wanted to kill her, they would have already done it. They’re keeping her alive because they want something. We need time to think…and plan. We’re outnumbered, Cayson.”
Cayson calmed down, but Michael still had this hands on his shoulders.
A second woman was brought out.
“That’s Fifi’s mother,” Cayson said. “I guess the dead body is her father’s.” A tear rolled down his cheek.
“You know what they want, don’t you, Cayson?” Lyla asked.
Another tear rolled down his face. “Fifi is a gypsy.”
“Travelers of the multiverse,” Michael said. “They’re the most vulnerable people, wanted by all kind of criminals because they don’t have an origin. They have no protection of any kind. Not even a god. No universe will take them in.”
“You don’t trust us, Cayson? You don’t trust that Eudaiz and the Daimon Gate don’t discriminate against people because of their origin?” Lyla asked.
“I trust no one when it comes to Fifi, Lyla. I’m sorry. She told me, once a gypsy, always a gypsy. Every creature in the multiverse hates them, and for no reason. So they have to keep their identity a secret.”
“What do you think the brotherhood wants?” Michael asked.
“There are more gypsies in the village. They want to know who is who. Fifi’s parents are well-respected, so they want information from them about other gypsies, I’d guess.”
“They want a list. A dead list,” Lyla muttered.
The leader of the brotherhood walked back and forth, talking to the crowd. No one reacted. Lyla’s mother looked at the dead body of her husband then said something to the leader, spat in his face, and slid her throat across the knife held by the gangster behind her.
Fifi cried out, trying to pull away from the man who held her at knifepoint.
“No!” Cayson yelled and tried to charge toward the village.
Michael grabbed Cayson from behind, pulling him back, then swung a fist at his temple, knocking him out cold.
Chapter 13
Michael stepped out from behind a large rock to stand face to face with a ten-foot-tall man with a human head with thin hair and pointy elf ears and a lanky body covered in scaly green skin.
“Lanni!”
The man hissed and swung a large sword at Michael. He blocked it and grinned.
“Keep doing that, and I’ll chop your head off one day, Michael.” Lanni grinned back.
“Thanks for coming in such short notice,” Michael said.
“My pleasure. It’s good to see you again.”
Cayson and Lyla stepped out from behind the rock. Cayson tilted his head, looking behind Lanni.
Lanni turned, looked behind him, then looked back at Cayson. “There’s no one else. Are you looking for some troops?”
Lyla said nothing but looked at Michael questioningly.
Michael grinned. “We don’t need an army. Lanni here is a legendary fighter. He used to be a sea elf. He’ll kick the brotherhood gang’s ass. With my assistance, of course.”
“Since when do I need your assistance?”
“Always, bro!”
Lanni sneered. “When you get hurt, don’t cry like a baby and ask me for help.” He glanced at Lyla and Linx. “Are we going to take them with us?”
“It’s not safe to leave them anywhere here, but they’ll stay behind us. Always.” Michael looked at Lyla. “Right?”
“I have a kid to take care of. Do you need to ask?”
“All right, let’s do this,” Lanni said and turned around.
A short moment later, they approached the bunker where the brotherhood and the gangsters were staying. Michael, Lanni, and Cayson followed a low wall to the back of the bunker.
“You see the light at the far end of the yard? That’s where I think they’re keeping your people,” Lanni said.
Cayson crawled forward, but Michael pulled him back. “Do you know how many guards there are?” Michael asked Lanni.
“When I dealt with them, I saw a couple at a time. Mainly around feeding time. They don’t think they’ll ever be found, so they’re quite negligent of their prisoners.”
“Or arrogant,” Michael said.
They crawled closer to the prison bunker. Lanni peeked through a gap between the wall and a small air hole. “No guard,” he said.
Michael fiddled with the lock. In no time, the lock clicked opened. Cayson rushed through the open door. Inside the bunker were stairs leading down. He hurried down them and darted toward the first cell. “Fifi!” he called out.
“Cayson, I knew you’d come for me!”
Michael opened this lock as well. Fifi ran out, racing into Cayson’s arms.
“We might want to save the reunion party for later,” Michael suggested. “Is Ryan here?”
“No,” Fifi said. “But there are others.”
“Where?” Lyla asked.
“Down another level.” Fifi rushed down another flight of stairs. Cayson followed.
“What sort of shit are we getting into?” Lanni muttered.
Michael said nothing but hurried down the stairs after them. “Stay here please,” he said to Lyla on his way down. As he predicted, there were more locks to pick. After unfastening the locks, he rushed back upstairs.
“How many?” Lanni asked.
“Many. Women and children.”
“Lyla, could you instruct them to head for the woods?” Michael asked Lyla. She nodded.
“I’ll handle the brotherhood,” Michael said.
“No need. Just kill the hounds. They won’t chase us into the woods without them,” Lanni said.
Michael nodded and darted outside.
The stream of people quietly climbed the stairs, snaked out the door, and then ran toward the woods.
Michael found the hounds’ cages. He pulled out his daggers and executed them before they could make any noise. A gangster walked around the corner and saw Michael with the dogs. Michael threw a hunting knife, cutting him down before he uttered a sound.
From the corner of the yard where he stood, he could see the shadows of people running for the woods. He checked the bunker one more time and then headed after them. At the far end of the yard, two guards walked out and saw him. Michael charged at them before they could alert any others. A couple of swift stabs with his knife, and the two bodies dropped to the ground.
“Sorry, today isn’t your lucky day,” Michael said then ran to catch up with the group.
He saw a couple of young kids lagging behind. A shadow darted at one of them. Michael tackled the man from behind. Judging by his agile movement, this man was better skilled than the gangsters he had just killed.
“No one takes anything from the brotherhood,” he said.
Michael saw the flash of a knife. He pulled out his dagger. The two of them fought. After a few tumbles on the ground, Michael’s dagger ended the man’s life.
He again followed the crowd but stayed behind them to ensure they weren’t followed.
Magic After Dark: A Collection of Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance Novels Page 57