Raven-Mocking (Book 3 in the Twilight Court Series)

by Amy Sumida

  “There could be,” I took one of the hands she was waving about nervously. “And I'm so sorry that this has been brought to your doorstep.”

  She sighed, settling a little and squeezing my hand back.

  “I promise you that we will do everything we can to protect your family and your property but there may be damage done,” I added grimly. “If you could put away any valuables, that would help. We'll try and keep the fighting outside but it will most likely begin near your son. He's what they're after.”

  “Why?” She began to sob and of all people, it was Raza who came up and put an arm around her.

  “Evil has no reason,” he whispered as he stroked her fluffy henna-colored hair gently. “There is no why, only what. What they will do and we will do to stop them. We are here to help you, Mrs. Barnett. Now what would you like to do to protect your family? What part would you like to play that would make you feel stronger, more in control of this?”

  “I...” she sniffed and pulled back to look up at him. “Yes,” she nodded and swiped at her eyes. She stood straighter and took a deep breath. “Thank you, I needed that. You're absolutely right; it makes no difference why. The only thing that matters is what I do about it.”

  I blinked in surprise. Who knew Raza could be so inspiring?

  “So what would you like to do?” Raza asked her. “Would you like to fight? We can provide you with a weapon.”

  “We can definitely make sure that you're armed,” Teagan interjected as he shot Raza a horrified look. “But perhaps you'd be more comfortable staying beside your family and protecting your son as we handle the battle.”

  “Yes,” she seemed to think it over. “I don't think I want to leave Johnny.”

  “Excellent,” Teagan smiled in relief.

  “But I don't need a weapon,” she went on. “We have three shotguns and a rifle. We'll be fine.”

  “Why don't you go and get them,” I suggested. “Lay them out near where you'll be sitting tonight. Keep them close but out of the way until you need them.”

  “Alright,” she walked away much more confidently than she'd approached us.

  “Would you like to fight?!” Teagan hissed Raza's words back at him. “What were you thinking, asking her that? We can't have civilians in the middle of a magic battle.”

  “She's a mother,” Raza growled. “It's her right and honor to defend her child. You should never deny a parent the privilege of protecting their offspring.”

  “Valid,” I held up a hand between the men. “And I'd say that was well handled on both your parts. Mrs. Barnett should be allowed to defend her child but she also needed some guidance as to where she'd be most effective at doing so.”

  “So let's not argue about it,” Tiernan added. “We have bigger issues to deal with.”

  “I wasn't arguing,” Raza huffed, “I was winning.”

  “I just want to be clear that certain parties are here in a voluntary capacity only,” Teagan added and looked pointedly at Raza. “They are not in charge.”

  “I'm going to check on the rest of the family,” I rolled my eyes and walked further into the house.

  I found the father and son in a back bedroom. Mark, the father was telling Johnny that there may be some bad people around the house later that night and that they may try to hurt him but good people would be there to protect him and he should try to not be scared. Johnny was a teenager but he had the look of a child much younger. His face was sweet; innocent and kind... and very confused. He asked the same question his mother had.

  “But why?”

  “I don't know, Son,” Mark sighed and then saw me. “Maybe this lady knows.”

  “Hello,” I went into the bedroom and held my hand out to Johnny. “My name is Seren.”

  “I'm Johnny Barnett,” the boy said and shook my hand.

  “And I'm Mark,” his father shook my hand next.

  “May I?” I indicated a spot on the bed next to Johnny.

  “Sure,” Johnny shrugged.

  “Do you believe in magic, Johnny?” I asked as I sat.

  “Yes,” he said seriously.

  “And do you believe that magic can be used for good or evil?” I went on.

  “Yes, I do,” he sat straighter. “I can do magic and I use it for good.”

  “You do?” I blinked, a little surprised by the turn in the conversation.

  “Yes, would you like to see?” Johnny asked eagerly.

  “Johnny,” Mark chided.

  “I really would like to see,” I waved down Johnny's father. “Go ahead.”

  “Okay, watch this,” he began to whistle.

  It was a gentle whistle, as far as whistling goes; a sort of sweet note that resonated within me. Before I could analyze why it seemed so significant, Cat came running into the room. Mark pulled back in shock but Johnny stopped whistling and leaned forward to hug her around the neck like she was a lost friend. As I gaped at that display, a pecking came from the window and we all turned to see a large black bird sitting outside on the ledge.

  “Is that a raven?” I whispered.

  “I think so,” Mark whispered back.

  “The birds really like my magic,” Johnny said as he released Cat. “But your dog likes it too. She's sweet. She says she'll look after me, she won't let the witches get me.”

  “She said that to you?” I forgot the bird at the window to gape at Johnny. “You can understand her?”

  “Yep,” he smiled wide. “I told you I can do magic.”

  “We thought it was a fantasy,” Mark said in an awed tone. “Is this possible? Do you think he really speaks to animals?”

  “I speak to them,” I transferred my look to the father. “They seem to understand me but I've never heard them speak back.”

  “You may one day,” Tiernan said from the doorway. “Your magic is still growing but it appears that this young man has fully developed his.”

  “I like animals,” Johnny said simply and the tapping came at the window again.

  “This feels very Edgar Allen Poe,” I stared over at the raven tap, tap, tapping on the windowpane.

  “It's just a bird, Seren,” Tiernan sighed and went over to open the window.

  The bird flew in and settled on the foot of the bed. Johnny gave another low whistle and the raven walked across the cornflower blue comforter and squawked at Johnny. It was an aggressive, strident sound but it didn't disturb the boy. Johnny just cocked his head and concentrated. His eyes went wide and he looked over to me and then to Tiernan.

  “You're fairies?” Johnny asked and my mouth fell open.

  “Did the raven tell you that?” Tiernan asked.

  “Yes,” Johnny gave a serious nod.

  “What the hell is he talking about?” Mark stood up.

  “I know this is a lot to take in,” I held up my hands. “You were probably just told that magic exists and here we are, about to tell you that there's another race of people. But please know that we are here to protect you and your family. Does it really matter what we are?”

  “Yes, it does,” Mark scowled at me. “Now, what the hell are you? And would you mind backing away from my son before you tell me?”

  “Mark,” Shaman Chepaney stepped into the room and I breathed a sigh of relief. “I just found out about them too. I'm sorry I didn't tell you but I felt that it might be too much for you to accept.”

  “You know that they're fairies?” Mark asked. “Fairies! Like Tinkerbell?! Are you all crazy?”

  “More like Mab or Titania,” I offered and Mark shot me a horrified look.

  “They are here to help,” Chepaney said calmly.

  “Dad, they're the good guys,” Johnny laid his hand on his father's arm. “I know it. She's even wearing a crown,” he pointed to me and I found my mouth dropping open again.

  “You can see that too?” I whispered, my hand automatically going to my temple, where I knew my aura held a “crown” given to me by the fairy creatures of Twilight.

  “
Yep,” Johnny nodded. “It's real pretty. The animals gave it to you.”

  “Yes, they did,” I smiled in amazement.

  Mark fell back into his chair and stared up at us before looking to his son. “You're certain, huh?”

  “Yes,” Johnny said serenely.

  “Well, I guess I should listen to the boy who can speak to animals,” Mark sighed.

  “He can speak to animals?” Chepaney looked over to Johnny and then finally noticed the raven. “Oh. Hello, Mr. Raven.”

  The bird blinked at the shaman and squawked.

  “He said they're watching you,” Johnny offered.

  “Who's watching us?” Chepaney stepped closer.

  “The men pretending to be fairies who pretend to be birds,” Johnny laughed. “That's a lot of make believe.”

  “Yes, it is,” Mrs. Barnett said as she entered the room holding two guns. “But I have some reality for them.” She handed her husband a shotgun and then pulled a box of shells out of her pocket. “I don't care who they're pretending to be, if they come after my family, the only thing they'll be is dead.”

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Mrs. Barnett never fired a single shot. The witches didn't make it into the house at all and I will be eternally grateful for that. However, the battle outside the house was brutal, much more than I'd been expecting.

  When you watch a fight scene in some movie, no matter how real it looks, it always has a feeling of flow. The moves are choreographed, the actors know what's coming, and even when things get really wild, you can always follow the action because the camera knows where to look. You know who the bad guys are and who are the good. But a real battle isn't like that at all; it's chaos. A blinding mess that leaves you floundering, hoping that your bullets are hitting the right targets.

  And a magical battle is something else entirely.

  It was confusing and painfully loud, with blinding flashes of light and paralyzing screams. There was fire in the sky; trailing after soaring sorcerers and erupting from the mouth of a dragon-djinn. I added to it; wrapping burning bundles of thorny vines around the shadowy shapes of diving witches. They'd fall before me, writhing in agony, and I'd feel only a moment's regret over their pain. These were people who had stolen life from others. They were thieves and murderers and now they were after a magical child for no other reason than revenge.

  “Try to keep one of them alive!” Tiernan shouted to me over the roar of the mini tornado he'd summoned.

  “What about him?” I pointed to the witch being tousled about in Tiernan's tornado. “Mine tend to come out on the crispy side.”

  “Alright,” Tiernan waved his hand and the tornado followed his motion, bringing the witch straight to the ground.

  The air magic dispersed as I strode forward and slapped some silicone lined handcuffs on the dazed man. He wasn't a fairy, so the iron handcuffs wouldn't hurt him or weaken his magic, but they were the only kind of handcuffs the extinguishers had and hunters didn't bother with handcuffs. After the iron cuffs were in place, Tiernan punched the witch in the face. Really hard. The man collapsed into a heap.

  “That works,” I shrugged and then screamed suddenly as someone grabbed me from behind and lifted me off the ground.

  I flailed about and Tiernan followed us up into the air but it was Raza who flew up behind my assailant and simply tore the man's head from his body. I started to plummet as blood gushed over me and the arms which had been holding me tight, fell away. They were replaced by new arms; bulging sin-black biceps. One wrapped tight around my waist as the other crossed over my chest. I felt Raza's cheek nestle against mine, his scent smokier than usual.

  As we gently met the ground, his hands clenched into my flesh and his lips brushed my cheek before he released me. I turned to face him and he set a talon to my temple, just barely touching me with the tip. He drug it lightly down my face as he looked me over. Then he nodded, satisfied that I was unhurt, and leaped back into the sky. Firelight caught him in its embrace, turning him from a guardian angel into a demon, and I shivered. It felt like I'd just been saved by Satan; set back upon the earth to watch as he waged war on Heaven.

  “Seren!” Tiernan shouted and grabbed me. “Are you alright?”

  “I'm good,” I glanced at the body of the decapitated witch, which had landed nearby. The grass was turning into a bloody swamp around the corpse. How much strength would it take to behead someone with your bare hands? I shook off the morbid fascination and looked back to Tiernan, “Where's Cat?”

  “Still inside guarding Johnny,” Tiernan assured me.

  “Good,” I looked around at the battle and was grateful that she wasn't in it. “What about Teagan?”

  “His own people will have to worry about him,” Conri said as he ran up to us. “We've got the upper hand as far as magic goes but we're outnumbered. They just keep coming, Princess Seren.”

  “Then we will keep fighting,” I flung my hand out and a body dropped before us, covered in firethorns and screaming in agony. “Keep fighting until they stop coming.”

  “Yes, Princess!” Conri grinned, looking a little demonic himself, with his curling ebony horns poking out of his dark curls.

  Then he lifted his head and howled, long and loud, but the sound of it seemed to just coast by me. I felt the vibration of its passing but it was like he had directed it upward. I focused on the sky and saw a shadow flinch and then a horrible shrieking carried down to us. The dark shape plummeted, striking the ground with a solid thud, but what was really fascinating was what I heard as it fell; cracking. It sounded as if the body had been breaking before it even hit the earth.

  Conri looked back at me and smirked, “You're not the only one with a cool mór.” He bounded off in a loping run.

  “What exactly is Conri's personal magic?” I asked Tiernan.

  “The shatterhowl,” Tiernan smiled. “He can break things with his voice and he can be very specific about it.”

  “Conri Shatterhowl,” I mused as another howl echoed through the night. “I'm so glad I knighted that fairy.”

  “Yeah but can he do this?” Gradh, my only female guard, held up a hand and twisted it in the air.

  Moisture condensed around her fingers and then hardened even further, freezing into lethal looking shards of ice. She lifted her hand and searched the sky but she didn't have to look long. A witch landed right in front of her, its form hidden by tentacles of darkness. Clawed hands reached out of the murk but Gradh was already prepared; she flung the blades of ice into the masked shape and the witch screamed.

  The dark mist slipped away as the witch fell, clawing at the icicles embedded in her chest. As we watched, her screams faded and her arms fell to her sides. She was actually quite beautiful; with long chestnut hair and soft honey skin. But all that changed as soon as death came for her. The years she had stolen slipped away and her skin withered, her hair seeping into gray and then stringy white. Finally, an old woman laid on the ground before us.

  “Nicely done, Queen Elsa,” I commended Gradh.

  “The witch's true age is revealed,” Tiernan said from my left.

  “That's one bitch,” Gradh grimaced and ran off.

  “Danu damn them!” Tiernan swore suddenly and ran off too.

  I followed his movement and saw that the man he'd left bound and unconscious was being carried off by two witches. They made it about three feet up into the air before Tiernan reached them. He leaped up beside them and tore one of them away with an arm around his throat. The other witch fell under the heavy burden of the unconscious man. I ran towards them but before I could get close enough to help, the second witch had dropped his cargo and followed it to the ground.

  Through the shadows fluttering around the crouching witch, I caught the glint of steel. I frowned and ran faster but it was too late. The rescuer had turned into an executioner. One hand held the blade that had cut open the man's chest and the other held a heart. The shadows fell away as the heart was lifted to the witch's lips an
d a young man was revealed. He looked no more than sixteen, with a cherubic face and a little, pouting mouth that opened wide to take a bite of the bloody heart.

  “You sick son of a bitch,” I declared as I came within casting distance of him and sent a thorny vine up from the earth to encase him.

  “Fuck you, fairy,” he spat at me and I set the vines on fire.

  His screams were horrible and I should have just let him burn after the atrocity I'd just witnessed. He deserved it but I couldn't bear it. I strode forward and pulled my iron shortsword from its sheath. With an upward thrust, I pierced his heart and ended his misery. The vines vanished but the burning body remained, still holding half a heart. The smell of cooked meat wafted up to me and I turned away in disgust. Too much more of this and I'd become a vegetarian.

  “Looks like we'll need to find another prisoner,” Tiernan said as he threw another corpse onto the bonfire I'd made of the boy. “They must have something worth hiding if they'd rather kill one of their own than let him be taken.”

  “Tell the others,” I nodded to him. “As soon as anyone can secure a live prisoner, they need to take them back to the Council House.”

  “Right,” Tiernan ran into the middle of the fray.

  “You need a prisoner?” Raye landed beside me, holding a bloody man against his chest.

  The man was cut in numerous places and his head hung limply with eyes closed. Raye dropped him to the ground before me and the man just slumped into a heap. I lifted a brow at Raye and he gave me a cocky shrug. His pitch-black wings stretched behind him, feathers ruffling lazily, like a man stretches his shoulders after a fight.

  “Perfect,” I nudged the witch with my boot, turning him onto his back. “Perhaps Teagan could take him back to the Council House.”

  “Teagan is in the center of a circle of extinguishers,” Raye scoffed. “And I would offer to fly him back to Tulsa but I don't know what kind of welcome I'd get, showing up with a wounded human and no councilman to back me.”