“Most likely,” Yutani said. “Longlear was a shield that belonged to Lugh the Long Handed. I don’t know how Nuanda got hold of it, but he owns it now. Apparently, Lugh is a distant ancestor of Nuanda.” He turned Herne. “How much do you know about Lugh the Long Handed?”
“Well, from what little I’ve had to do with him, I don’t exactly trust him. I’m not sure what it is, but there’s something that has never set right with me. I’ve only met him once or twice. I’m not even sure of his lineage, and I don’t think my father or mother knows a great deal about him either, even though he’s high up in the hierarchy. Why?”
“Because Lugh is the son of Cian, one of the gods of the ancient Tuatha de Dannan. His mother was Ethniu, a daughter of Balor, who was one of the Fomorians. Only, Lugh killed Balor. He turned on his Fomorian heritage. So Lugh is actually a half breed, so to speak. He could be considered part Fae, given Cian was a god of the Tuatha de Dannan, and he’s part Fomorian.”
I was beginning to get a queasy sensation in my stomach. I had a feeling I knew where this was headed, but I decided to keep quiet and just listen.
“I almost hate to ask, but what is Nuanda’s heritage?” Herne asked.
“Funny you should think of that,” Yutani said, arching his eyebrows. “Nuanda is the son of a Fomorian giant, and one of the Light Fae.”
“Of course,” Herne said. “And he’s one of Lugh’s descendants, so…”
“Exactly. He considers himself to be of divine heritage. Only for Nuanda, his mother was Fomorian, and his father was one of the Fae. And the Fae, being Fae, rejected him. The Fomorians rejected him too, though he focuses on the Fae for some reason.”
“I know why. The Fae accepted Lugh. But they won’t accept Nuanda, so he’s out for revenge.” I straightened. “But why the hatred against the Fae and not the Fomorians?”
“I’m not certain,” Yutani said. “Except that he seems to have overlooked the fact Lugh killed his own grandfather, which kind of sealed the deal for him. He seems to be taking it out on all the Fae by creating an organization that he hopes will bring them to their knees. The Tuathan Brotherhood is both a stab at the Fae who rejected him, and at the Fae in general. By turning them into apparent terrorists, he’s attempting to make everybody reject them.”
“Boy, he’s a piece of work, isn’t he?” Talia said.
“That’s an understatement.” Yutani sat back, shaking his head. “And it gets worse. Not only is Nuanda severely unstable, but he’s also extremely charismatic. I watched a video of him that I found in the files, and he’s an excellent orator. Now that the initial recruitment period is done thanks to drugging and brainwashing Fae, he’s managing to appeal to disgruntled Fae, encouraging them to follow him. They don’t know his background. Only those closest to him know about his birth. And by wielding Longlear, he’s able to give the impression that Lugh implicitly approves of what he’s doing.”
“Did you find out anything else so far?” Herne asked.
“Unfortunately, yes. Nuanda has picked up a great deal of magic over the years. He can move between the worlds, and his home base is actually in Annwn. We won’t find him over here, just his general army. I believe, however, that they’d fall apart without him behind them. Those closest to him know his agenda. But those in the general Tuathan Brotherhood are, for the most part, a ragtag bunch of disgruntled outliers. We all know how disorganized the Fae can be, and without the ruthless stranglehold that Nuanda has on his followers the organization would collapse, at least in my opinion. The Brotherhood is far smaller than we assumed it was. I found a members list. I’d say, all total, there are only a couple hundred members in the entire country. They’ve focused in this area because of TirNaNog and Navane. Their aim is to destroy the two cities.”
As Yutani finished, a silence fell through the break room.
As I tried to process the information, I wasn’t sure how I felt. On one hand, I was relieved. This proved that neither Saílle nor Névé were behind this, and neither would be backing Nuanda or his manifesto. In some ways, that was a saving grace. We could prove that the Fae Courts weren’t out to disrupt the government. On the other hand, I knew how easy it was for public opinion to hold sway even when the facts weren’t there to back those opinions up. Unless we took Nuanda down and did it soon, it wouldn’t matter to the hate-the-Fae groups that were springing up. Because hate groups relied on fear mongering and deep-rooted prejudice.
“What’s our next step? If we can’t find Nuanda here, how can we find him in Annwn?” I asked.
Herne considered the situation for a moment. Finally, he said, “I need to take this information to Cernunnos and Morgana. We have to ask them how to proceed. Given that he possesses a shield from one of the gods means that he’s going to be difficult to take down. Even if we were to go to Annwn right now, since he has the shield of Longlear, we probably couldn’t kill him. I’m not sure of all of its properties, but you can be sure it’s got some sort of protection enchanted into it.”
“Also…what does Lugh think of Nuanda? Is he behind this? Is that how Nuanda got hold of the shield?” I tapped my fingers on the table. “We can’t overlook that possibility.”
“Right. Though, given Lugh is part of the Tuatha de Dannan, I rather doubt it. But you never know what goes on behind the scenes.” He turned to Yutani. “Did you find any more information that we might need? Anything else that I should know about before I go talk to my father?”
Yutani shook his head. “That’s all I’ve been able to skim through so far. I just broke into the files around three a.m. I’ve been up all night trying to hack my way in. I need to transfer the rest of the files and start combing through them. A lot of them look to be statistics and graphs, but if I’m lucky I’ll be able to find their list of targets.”
“At least we know why they’re focusing in this area,” Viktor said. “The great cities are here, and of course Nuanda is going to go after them first. And if he focuses his crimes in the Seattle area, it makes it seem even more likely that Saílle and Névé are behind them.”
“How soon can you write up a report for me to take to Cernunnos?” Herne asked Yutani.
“Give me twenty minutes. I’ll have it printed out for you.”
Herne stood, pulling out his phone. “I’m going to call and let them know I’m coming over. I don’t know how long it will take, so hold down the fort for me.”
“Do you have anything in particular we should do while you’re gone?” I asked.
“Not particularly, not unless a new case comes in. I guess… If Yutani opens up new files, help him read through them. Take care of backlogged paperwork. Whatever else comes up on the radar.” With a worried look, Herne headed out of the room toward his office.
The rest of us sat there, staring at one another, until Yutani jumped up.
“I’d better get that report ready. I’ll be in the office if you need me. I’m going to start in on the other files and find out what I can about the Brotherhood. Maybe I can find out where Nuanda’s generals are located.”
As he left the room, Angel stood as well. “I’d better get back to my desk.”
That left Talia, Viktor, and me. I headed over to the counter where I poured myself another cup of coffee. At least we had the information we had been hunting down for months. We were ahead of the game now, and it was up to us to stay there. I turned around, leaning against the counter.
“Well, what do we do? I’ve already finished inputting all of my backlogged cases.”
Talia frowned before she finally said, “I made a decision about Lazerous.”
I blinked. She had been tossing back and forth her options regarding the liche that had stolen her powers. We had found out that he was located nearby, and her sister had encouraged her to attack him.
“What do you want to do? Are you going to try to recover your powers?”
Talia was silent for a moment, then she said, “Honestly? I don’t think I want most of them back. You wouldn
’t like me as a harpy. I wouldn’t have the life I do if I returned to being a harpy—at least if I returned to having my powers. However, I want to destroy Lazerous. I don’t want him to do what he did to me to anybody else. I want to take him down. Will you guys help me?”
Taking on a liche seemed like a big order, but we had fought more dangerous opponents.
I let out a deep breath and nodded. “I’ll help you. I’ll do whatever I can to help.”
“Count me in,” Viktor said. “I don’t like the thought of a liche running around the country here. They’re few and far between, and they are inevitably dangerous. Why don’t you ask Herne before he goes if we can work on this while he’s gone?”
I straightened. “That’s a good idea. We can at least get a feel for where he is and do some research to see if he’s got any minions or helpers.” I paused, then turned to Talia. “Are you going to ask your sister to help us?” I realized I was hoping that she would say no, because the idea of working with a full-blown harpy—especially a chaotic, overenthusiastic one—wasn’t my idea of fun.
Talia laughed. “Varia isn’t exactly the easiest woman in the world to handle. She would insist that I try to regain my powers. She wouldn’t understand my reasoning. So no, I’m not going to contact her until we’ve ended Lazerous. And even if I do have the chance to get my powers back, I’ll just tell her that somebody else got to him before we did and that it destroyed my chances.”
I headed toward Herne’s office, to ask him for permission to work on Talia’s case. I tapped on the door and peeked inside. He was sitting at his desk, staring up at the massive rack of antlers on the wall behind his desk.
Herne’s office was large, with pale blue walls and a white ceiling. There were plants everywhere, draping over bookcases, off of his desk, hanging from the ceiling, and they were all lush and vibrant. The antlers were mounted to the wall behind his desk, and the other walls held cases of weaponry: daggers and crossbows, swords and other hand-to-hand combat weapons.
Herne’s desk was handmade out of dark walnut, and it was polished to a rich, warm, sheen. He sat in a leather chair in back of it, and in front of the desk were two leather wingback chairs. Another pair of chairs rested against a wall, with a small end table between them. The daybed was on the other wall, with pillows and a microfiber blanket on it. Herne and I had made good use of it several times.
He waved me in, and I sat down in one of the chairs opposite his desk.
“Did you get hold of Morgana or Cernunnos?”
He nodded. “I’m headed to Annwn as soon as Yutani brings me the report. This is the break we’ve been waiting for, Ember. You watch—this will be seen as the turning point in our war against the Tuathan Brotherhood. I may be gone all night, so don’t expect a call from me. If you tell everyone to be here on time tomorrow, I’d appreciate it. But I may not get back for a while. It may take a day or two. I’ll do my best to let you know.”
“On that matter, I have a request. Talia wants to go after Lazerous. She doesn’t necessarily want her powers back, but she wants to make sure that he can’t destroy anybody else. We’d like your permission to help her—Viktor and I.”
He leaned his elbows on the desk and furrowed his brow. After a moment, he said, “Do you guys think you can really take Lazerous down? Remember, liches are extremely powerful and deadly creatures. There won’t be any wiggle room if you go after him. And don’t forget how old he is. He’s older than Talia, perhaps by thousands of years. You don’t know where he got his start, or how powerful he is by now. He possesses the powers of everyone that he’s drained.”
I thought about it for a moment, then shrugged. “If something that powerful, that deadly, and that evil is near Seattle, don’t you think we should take care of it? Granted, Lazerous has nothing to do with the Fae, but he could have everything to do with harming others. If we go after a band of goblins scaring cows out of their milk, then shouldn’t we do something about a liche? And remember Talia’s feelings—he drained her of her powers. Maybe she doesn’t want them back, but she needs closure. To know this creature who almost killed her is nearby, and that we’re okay with him just hanging around, it doesn’t make us very good friends.”
Herne laughed. “You should have been a lawyer. All right, the Wild Hunt will take on Lazerous. But you damned well be careful. We can’t afford to sacrifice anyone at this point. Lazerous is dangerous, and I agree that we need to destroy him. But dealing with the Tuathan Brotherhood is our priority. Do your due diligence on Lazerous but nobody goes running off half-cocked without consulting me first. Do you understand?”
I nodded. “I hear you, loud and clear. And I agree. And maybe all we’ll get done over the next couple days is a little research. But at least Talia will know we’re doing something.”
“All right. But remember what I said. I don’t want to return from Annwn to find you or Viktor or Talia laid up with a broken leg…or worse.” He paused, then added, “As soon as Morgana brings her back, I want you to start practicing with Serafina. Get comfortable wielding her. I have a feeling you’re going to need her over the next few weeks. Just a feeling.”
I smiled. I’d been itching to get my hands on the bow ever since I carted it away from Sharne’s apartment. I was about to say so, when Yutani knocked on the door and peeked in.
“I got your report for you.”
Herne motioned for him to join us. “Good. That’s all I need, so I guess I can head out. Yutani, will you tell Talia and Viktor to meet me in the reception area. You as well.”
Yutani nodded, handed Herne the printout, then vanished out the door. Herne walked around his desk to where I was sitting. I stood, trembling. For some reason it felt like this was a bigger good-bye than it should be. Or maybe I was trembling because of the thought of going up against Lazerous. Or perhaps I was on alert because of what we had found out about Nuanda. One way or another, there was a part of me that felt like crying, though I couldn’t pinpoint why.
Herne opened his arms and I walked into them as he pulled me tight against him. I rested my head on his shoulder and we stood there, not speaking, not kissing, just holding each other.
“I love you,” he whispered, his breath tickling my ear. “Never forget that.”
“I love you too,” I said. “Come back to me in one piece.”
We stood like that for a while, and then I went out into the reception area. Herne followed, wearing his jacket and carrying his messenger bag. Everyone was gathered around Angel’s desk. Herne looked at each one of us in turn, then cleared his throat.
“While I’m gone, Ember and Viktor are in charge. Talia, I told Ember that the Wild Hunt will take on Lazerous. While I’m gone, go ahead and start the investigation, but no going after him till I get back. We can’t afford for any of us to be hurt at this point. I hope to be back by tomorrow morning, so we’ll meet at eight a.m. as usual. If I’m not back, I’ll let you know why. Keep out of trouble, and Yutani, if you find anything else of importance before tomorrow morning, text me. I’ll set my phone to forward to one of the portal keepers and they’ll let me know if any of you have an emergency.”
“I’ll get on the rest of the files right now,” Yutani said. He turned, heading toward his office.
Talia smiled, ducking her head. “Thanks, boss. I’m not so stupid that I’d go charging out there without doing my research.”
Herne nodded. “All right then. I’m off. Until I get back, everybody behave.” As he headed toward the elevator, he stopped, turned back, and motioned to me. I crossed to him, and he leaned down, giving me a long kiss. Then, silently, he stepped into the elevator and the doors closed behind him.
As I turned back, the tension in the air was thick and I decided we needed to diffuse it.
“Angel, order food for the break room. Don’t think health, think comfort. Talia, go ahead and start researching on whatever you can find out about Lazerous. Viktor, check over the armory. Make sure everything is in order and ready for use.
I’ll be in my office.”
As I headed back to my office, I wanted nothing more than to sedate myself with a massive amount of sugar. We had tried for so many weeks to get a handle on the Tuathan Brotherhood, watching them mow down innocent lives again and again. Now we knew who was behind them. We knew why Nuanda was driving his agenda forward. The only question was, could we put a stop to him before he managed to turn the entire country against the Fae?
Chapter Eleven
An hour later, we were eating brunch when Talia, who was reading something on her tablet, let out a shout. “I can’t believe it!”
“What?”
“You remember when Varia told us that Lazerous lives about forty miles from here?”
I nodded. “Right. But I don’t think she told us exactly where to find him.”
“No, she didn’t. But I just found a report in Mage Weekly that a couple magic-born teens were hiking out in the Mount Rainier area. They were attacked and drained of their powers. One of them survived, the other didn’t. The one who made it out alive reported seeing a skeletal figure coming toward them, and that’s the last thing she remembered. Her boyfriend pushed her behind him and ended up taking the brunt of the attack. The girl managed to get out of the way, but she was still struck by the energy drain. She played dead, she said, until she was alone. It took her ten hours to make her way down to the road and hail an oncoming car.” Talia set down her tablet. “I know it’s Lazerous. I can feel it.”
“So if he’s out near Mount Rainier, then we have to find his lair. And that’s going to be difficult. Do you know how many places up on that mountain he could be hiding?” Mount Rainier was immense, a huge volcano that loomed over the Pacific Northwest. Part of the Cascade mountain range, Mount Rainier rose 14,000 feet over the landscape, watching in her brooding, pristine glory. We’d never find him if we had to search the entire mountain.
“You’re right. But we can talk to the girl and ask her exactly where they were attacked.” Talia tapped away at her tablet and after a moment, she looked over at me. “I have her address and phone number. Should I give her a call?”
A Sacred Magic Page 11