eldritch files 07 - elemental blood

by weldon, phaedra

  "My wards don't extend to the Cairn, Crwys." Arden rubbed at the back of her neck. She half yelled her response to be heard over the wind and hum of the cart. "I can't prevent anyone from entering and exiting that Cairn. Not my creation."

  "But they can get to it?"

  "It's got its own natural ease way. Magic and land works on its own rules." She made a face. "If I could bend those rules, I would. But it's not that they're on my land that worries me as much as what they're doing with the Cairn."

  "Well, all they can do is summon Faeries, right?" Levi yelled back.

  "That's just one use. Cairns are gates themselves and can be turned into conduits because they usually stack with ley lines. And that one definitely does."

  Crwys held onto the side pole as Levi made a sharp left through the path. "What does that mean?"

  "Not sure yet. I just have this hunch if they try to end the Quest, if Lethe doesn’t show up and kill them, Medbh might."

  Levi stopped the cart a good distance from the cabin. Crwys sensed the Wolves surrounding them in the woods. He also sensed the enemy's Wolves. It was a different sense though, as if moving from comfortable to foreign. The Aces had a certain scent to them that his Dragon nose could identify.

  But this other pack…they smelled…

  Wrong.

  He led the way around the cabin to the side where the Cairn Circle was visible. Through the years Arden's coven had planted and tended an actual Circle just outside the ring of toadstools that made up the Cairn, the portal to the Faerie World. Tall hedges surrounded it, clipped and pruned to create a barrier to the human eye.

  “We need to keep to this side of the hedges. They form a barrier between instances.” She smirked. “I’m happy Ceridwen came out here last night and regrew some of the hedges, since a knuckle head in a large car knocked a few of them down.”

  Crwys wasn’t sure what that meant, so he concentrated on the hedges. The only opening faced the path and that’s where Crwys moved along with Levi and Arden. Arden moved slower than usual, so he picked her up and carried her to the outside of the Circle. They used the thick hedge as a blinder between them and the Nisse inside.

  Looking in, Crwys spotted the lit balefire and the mirror, which had been uncovered, in the center. Because the Faerie can't place their feet upon the earth without turning to ash, Arden had erected a mirror to use as a portal from one realm to another. One like it existed in two places in Alfheim. One with Medbh, the Winter Queen, and with Tzariene, the Summer Queen. Through these mirrors, communication between the realms could be achieved without either humans or Faerie venturing into the other's grounds.

  Now that mirror lay bare and filled with smoke. Arden hissed and leaned around the edge to get a better view. Levi had his gun unholstered and ready. Crwys motioned him to put it away. If things came to a fight, he was ready to use Dragon Fire. He no longer worried about hiding himself from them. All of his thoughts centered on one thing—finding Samantha.

  But first, he had to stop the Nisse from whatever it was they were doing.

  "They're summoning," Arden hissed at him as she ducked back behind the hedge entrance.

  "A Faerie?"

  "I can't tell. I just know that incense." She wrinkled her nose. "It's close to what I use for calling on Medbh…but there's something different…"

  He watched her expression for a few seconds and didn't like what he saw. "Arden?"

  She looked at him with wide eyes.

  "What?"

  "Elemental Blood is part of a Daoine Sidhe."

  He frowned. She’d already said as much at the table. Crwys glanced back into the Circle and saw a puff of smoke as the mirror began to glow green. "What are they doing?"

  "I told you they’re summoning. I’m just a bit afraid of who they’re summoning."

  "Spit. It. Out." He didn't like what was happening with that mirror.

  "There is another, like Riven, they might have learned about."

  "Who? How?" Levi hissed next to her.

  "How would have been from me when they were torturing me…" She winced at Crwys. "Who would be—"

  There was a crashing noise and a sort of explosion. Crwys ducked as his arm ignited in Dragon Fire, a natural protective reaction to the sudden blast. He'd dropped to his knees as the area filled with smoke and crawled over to Arden and Levi. They were okay, or as much as he could tell through the smoke.

  "What the hell?" Ashur hissed through Levi's voice.

  Crwys chanced a look between the hedges again and saw several of the Nisse stand, and heard them coughing as the smoke cleared around the mirror. The glass was cracked and irrevocably broken. Glass pieces lay on the grass like tiny pools of silver reflecting the blue sky above.

  And standing in front of it, staggering just a bit as if he'd been hit, was a young man. Medium build with broad shoulders and slim form, topped by a mop of brown hair. When he put his hand up and cast a light in the darkness from his palm, a dozen Risi arrows were trained on him.

  When he turned around far enough for Crwys to see his face— "Son of a bitch."

  "What?" Arden said as she moved forward and looked through the hedges. "That’s who I was afraid they’d summon."

  "Who?" Levi said as he stood and bent forward to look.

  Crwys sighed, shaking his head. "Dags McConnell, Goblin and Grimoire," he muttered.

  TWENTY THREE

  Levi leaned around. "I’m gonna assume they summoned him cause we took their other blood bag?"

  Crwys was about to say something when he spotted Tas as she approached the dazed and stumbling Dags.

  "What is she doing?" Arden hissed.

  That's when Dags apparently got a good look at where he was and who he was with, and with a wave of his hand cast a yellow circle at his feet. Crwys could see the shimmering dome emanating from the protection ward around him.

  Crwys wasn't sure what was going on, but given Dags's lineage, being the son of a Daoine Sidhe and a human, who was later turned into a Leviathan, him possessing Elemental Blood made his present predicament the most immediate threat. He knew Dags was strong magically and had the added bonus of having the Grimoire fused to his soul—but whether he could stand up to a dozen Risi, all armed with weapons and magic, was another story. If they took him, Crwys was afraid they'd try to take his blood right there in the Cairn's Circle. And that would mean bleeding Dags out.

  Get him to safety…

  Tas's voice in his head was a surprise. He'd been subconsciously trying to talk to her since he knew she was there. Did they summon him because of his blood?

  Yes. He's in real danger. Lethe told them she has the magic to make me bow to their knife. With Riven gone, they think if they can get Dags’s blood, Lethe will come and Yolyn can finish the Quest now. I just wanted Riven safe…I didn’t think they’d bring a Goblin in.

  What about you? With your help, I can get you both out easily.

  I will stay and fight. Get the Guardian to safety first.

  There was a pause.

  The Aces are in position. Do it now, Apollo!

  That was all the information he needed.

  Crwys straightened and took a deep breath, fueling his internal furnace. He lost a bit of the Dragon's Fury to give him control of his Fire and his body.

  "Crwys?" Arden said as her eyes widened. He was pretty sure she was starting to see the real him.

  "Arden, Levi, I need you to stay here. Keep an eye on Dags, and the moment there is an opportunity, get him to safety."

  "What about Tas?" Levi said.

  "Not yet." He shook his head. "Just get Dags back to Gypsy Gardens."

  Levi nodded as Arden drew a small white pentagram in the air. With a flick at its center, it turned into a white butterfly then zoomed off. "I just sent a message to my own reinforcements."

  "Good. The Aces are in position." Crwys stepped out to stand in the archway into the Circle. This made him visible as he stepped through the wards, the magic falling away as he les
sened control of his human form. He knew as he approached that his face and body would shimmer to the Nisse. He didn't plan on going full-on Dragon…but if it came to it, he'd be pretty satisfied to snap Yolyn's head off like a grape from a vine.

  "Stop!" someone yelled as several turned to face Crwys with their arrows and spears at the ready. He stopped on the opening side of the balefire and looked at Dags, who turned within his circle of protection to give him a confused expression. "Detective Holliard…what the hell is going on?"

  "They want your blood," Crwys said and heard the amplified tone of his voice as it went deeper and more guttural. "Can you make that protection mobile?"

  "Silence!" Yolyn barked as she came forward and stood between Crwys and Dags, blocking his view. "Don't interfere. This isn't your concern anymore."

  "I'm afraid it is." He smiled at her. "The moment you made a deal with Lethe it became my concern."

  As if to accent his declaration, a barrage of wolf howls broke the afternoon silence. The Nisse reacted with slightly lowered weapons as they looked around.

  Yolyn narrowed her eyes. "How did you know we were here?"

  "What can I say?" He smiled as he let slip a bit more control and he felt his wings unfurl from his back. "I used my super powers against you."

  Yolyn's shocked expression, along with Brahms and the other Risi, was worth every bit of spirit it was going to take him to put himself back under the Dragon's Fury when he was done. The Nisse yelled and ran, dropping weapons as they beheld something they didn't expect. Crwys could hear them scream when they ducked through the hedges surrounding the Circle only to be caught by the Aces on the other side. He could feel their power burning around him, hear their bloodlust in his mind.

  Oh yes…it was always good to be a Dragon again.

  Even Brahms backed up a few steps before he ran behind the now broken mirror.

  "You!" Yolyn drew her sword as Crwys advanced. "All this time…"

  "Dragons are only visible when they want to be," Tas said as she approached Dags and stood between him and Yolyn.

  Levi ran out then, and with a few Wolves, escorted Dags out of the Circle and through the hedges. That left Tas and Crwys face to face with Yolyn and a handful of stalwart Nisse soldiers.

  "You tricked us," Yolyn hissed at them.

  "No," Tas said, and Crwys was amazed she hadn't lost control over her own physical form. Calmness and serenity were something he remembered most about Artemis, for she was far older and wiser than him. "You tricked yourself the moment you made a deal with Lethe. She is forsaken by the God Mother, and because your greed brought you down a path of mindless destruction and death…you are also forsaken."

  "Forsaken?" Yolyn held her sword with both her hands. "I am a daughter of the Rigel House of Risi! I do not bow to the God Mother. I do not even bow to the God Daughters, as do my people. I am the rightful ruler of the Greater Kingdom!"

  Crwys frowned for a second before he smiled. And he was pretty sure it wasn't a good smile as his right hand ignited and he held it out, the orange and red fire of his Elemental Magic. "Then that makes you an even bigger fool than I thought. Where is Samantha?"

  Yolyn laughed. "Somewhere you will never find her…Dragon." She moved back on her heels and then screamed as she and her remaining soldiers charged at Tas and Crwys.

  Crwys held up his right hand, Artemis her left…

  And the world for the Risi vanished.

  TWENTY FOUR

  It took most of the afternoon and evening to recast the Dragon's Fury spell well enough to hide his wings and scaled skin. Arden had pointed out that though she and a few of her attendants could get used to the look and the wings…he'd already knocked over a few priceless heirlooms and swatted one of the handmaidens. Afterward, he showered again and was dressing when Tas knocked on his open door.

  "Hey," she said as she stepped inside. "Got a second?"

  "Yeah." He pulled a t-shirt on and ran his fingers through his damp shock of hair. "I have a few questions for you—"

  Tas held up her hand. "First, I hid who I was for good reasons. One of which was the God Mother's."

  "I'm not gonna ask about that. What I want to know is why you let them take you?"

  "I wanted to protect King Satar. And keeping a close eye on his prison would mean sticking close. I was never in any danger from the Risi. You knew that."

  "Maybe." He put his hands on his hips. "I'm just…hear me out." He took in a deep breath. "You tried to kill Lethe."

  "Yes."

  "But you gave the arrow to Elizabeth."

  "Yes."

  "Why didn't you use it yourself?"

  Tas's mouth pulled up to one side. "Because…” She hesitated. “Because the God Mother wanted it that way.”

  Anger fired up Crwys’s internal furnace as he balled his hands into fists. “She wanted Elizabeth to die?” His voice was tight…fury laced.

  Tas held up her hands. “It’s Her will, Apollo. I can’t change that any more than you can. She has a plan, and don’t ask me because she hasn’t shared it. I’m her enforcer. I always have been. I wasn’t happy about Elizabeth Hawthorne’s death any more than you or Samantha was.”

  Crwys’s anger flared, and then died when he thought of Sam and her devastation at the loss of Elizabeth…of Grey. “She has no right to do this to innocent people.”

  “You sound like them.”

  “Them?”

  A smile haunted her lips. "Thea and Dáinn. They have always disagreed with the God Mother. Even more so than Lethe. Only they have never acted out as much as she has."

  "You’ve spoken with the other two?” Crwys took a step forward. He was always so surprised at how little he knew about his kind. "Are they okay?"

  "Yes. And they’ve kept a close watch on you." She moved closer as well until she was nose to nose with him.

  “Why?”

  “They saw what Lethe had become and feared you too would be corrupted by her. They were ready to destroy you if need be.” She smiled at him. “But the God Mother told them to step away. She knew what Lethe did to you would have the opposite outcome. Lethe loved you and couldn't bear to have you not love her in return."

  "Lethe did terrible things, Artemis. Things the God Mother should have stopped."

  "And if she had, you wouldn’t have witnessed such cruelty. It would mean you would never feel compassion for anyone. Not even yourself. You would have become a monster among us. A single-minded tool for destruction." She moved her face close to his as their noses touched. "You would have been lost to us."

  Crwys remained still as Tas pressed her lips to his. He felt her tongue part his own lips, and she opened her mouth and devoured his. The passion that flared deep inside of him was nothing like he'd felt before. Fire burned in his stomach and ignited a series of spasms along his arms and legs, up his back and to his shoulders as he wrapped his arms around Artemis.

  The forger of the weapons that could hurt him.

  Abruptly, Tas pulled away and Crwys stumbled. He blinked a few times and took a step back. "What the hell—"

  "That is the passion Lethe gave you with her magic, Azazel. That is what you must thank her for…" She stepped back, turned, and walked to the door. She paused and looked back at him. "Before you kill her."

  "Artemis—"

  She remained at the door.

  "You knew they were going to bring Dags here. You could have stopped them."

  “Yes. But I agreed it was best they summon him.”

  "You…" Crwys balled his hands into fists. "Do you realize you've put his life in danger?"

  "We need him, Crwys. You will need him."

  "Need him? For what?"

  Tas looked at the floor. "To unlock your heart's desire. I only hope when the time comes"—she looked back at him—"he will be ready."

  ARDEN CALLED Tas and Crwys down into the parlor where she'd gathered everyone up. Apparently, it was meeting time again. He stood at the door as Dags came from the kitchen, a
sandwich in his hand and cell phone to his ear. He nodded at Crwys as he walked past him and into the parlor. Crwys had never known what to make of Dags. Learning he was a Goblin was easy. Seeing him use his portal ability was another thing. Now knowing that ability was something he shared with members of the Risi… The boy was just an enigma.

  And don't get him started about the all-powerful Great Grimoire attached to Dags's soul.

  Riven, now looking better than before, sat on the couch and his attention instantly focused on Dags as he took a seat next to Kyle and Jack on the other sofa. Arden sat in her wicker chair. Crwys and Tas stood in the back with Levi, and Solomon… "Where's Solomon?"

  "We're not sure," Arden piped up.

  "And Ivan and Dharma?" Kyle said.

  "Looking for Solomon," Arden said. "He disappeared while we were at the Cairn. Ivan said he got a lead on him online, so the two went to keep an eye on him. He's been a little unhinged since you used his Fetches, Crwys. Care to fill us in on why?"

  "No." He and Tas exchanged glances. He was pretty sure Tas had the same misgivings about Solomon's present mental state, and it was pretty much Crwys's fault for not making sure the old Conjurer wouldn't travel along to the Dragon's Eye.

  "I'll accept that for now. But I’ll need an explanation if something happens, Holliard. Now, about that jewel Kyle said you picked up in the thicket…do you have it on you?”

  Crwys pursed his lips and fished his hand into his pocket. He did have the jewel with him, having transferred it into his pocket…

  Only, there wasn’t a jewel there, but a scrunched up leaf. He held it up and watched as it transformed into a long piece of parchment paper.

  A handmaiden took it from Crwys, who handed it to Arden. She grabbed a lighter from the table beside her and held the flame on the corner of the paper.

  "Wait!" Kyle said.

  "What're you doing?" Crwys cried out.

  But they both stopped when it became obvious the paper wasn't going to burn. She released the flame and the paper remained unblemished. "I can't burn this contract. Crwys, come here."

  He approached her and she handed the contract and the lighter to him. He looked at her with a raised brow.