Demon Ash

by M. J. Haag

  “You need to rest,” he said.

  I nodded and handed the cup off to one of the men waiting for his portion.

  Drav lifted me into his arms and pressed his lips against my forehead. I set my head on his chest and let him take me upstairs.

  Three

  Drav’s fingers stroked the skin of my stomach, waking me. Feeling much better than the day before, I snuggled closer and smiled sleepily as his hand drifted lower. Movement on the floor beside our bed reminded me we weren’t alone, though. I grabbed his wrist as I opened my eyes and shook my head at him.

  He exhaled heavily but stopped his tempting assault. Mutually disappointed, I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and quietly sat up. At least ten men had found space to sleep on the floor.

  Ghua lay right beside the bed on my side. He opened his eyes and looked up at me then winked. I shook my head and tossed a pillow down at him.

  “Don’t get weirder,” I whispered. “Skootch over so I can tip-toe out of here.”

  Half the men in the room opened their eyes and sat up.

  “Sorry.” I quickly stood and made a beeline for the door. Drav followed closely behind.

  When I glanced back, I saw Ghua move from the floor to my spot in bed. I couldn’t blame him. Sleeping on the floor sucked.

  In the hall, I stepped around more bodies. Some fey even leaned on the stairs. There were far more men present this morning than there had been when Drav had taken me upstairs. They lay in any open spot. Even in the kitchen. Those who slept in there stirred as soon as I entered the room.

  I motioned for Drav to follow me outside and felt bad when his eyes began to water in the early morning light.

  “I was thinking I could cook something for everyone. Or at least try to. How many men do you think are here? A hundred?”

  “At least.”

  “Come on. Let’s see what we can find in the barn.”

  Before we even made it halfway across the yard, I heard muffled yells from within the building and hurried my steps. Drav beat me to the door and went through with a growl. I peeked around him and almost laughed.

  The four men still sat in their chairs, but gags now stuck from their mouths. The one on the right rocked from side to side, his face beat red in his agitation.

  “Hey, guys,” I said to the fey standing guard. “What’s going on?”

  The human men all started yelling behind their gags, and one of the fey began speaking to Drav. Walking up to the rude guy who’d spit at me yesterday, I pulled the gag from his mouth.

  “I’m going to fucking shit my pants,” he yelled at me.

  “Yeah, that wouldn’t be cool.”

  I looked at one of the nearby fey.

  “What’s your name?” I asked him.

  “Anizo, Mya.”

  “Anizo, will you please untie this man—”

  “My name’s Bud, bitch.”

  “—and take him outside so he can relieve himself?”

  “Yes,” Anizo said.

  I turned away from the pair and found Drav glaring at the man who’d just called me a bitch.

  “It’s not worth getting angry over, Drav. They’re scared, and they don’t understand. Honestly, tying them to chairs isn’t going to help win them over either.”

  “Nothing you do will win us over, you grey-skinned piece of shit,” Bud said with venom.

  “For Pete’s sake.” I turned on the man. “Did you like the gag in your mouth? Do you want to crap your pants? Do yourself a favor and shut your pie hole.” I looked at Anizo. “After Bud’s done, take the rest outside, too. Don’t retie them, but keep a close eye on them.” I studied the dirty human men. “If you want, come inside, clean yourselves up, and get something to eat. Do yourselves a favor, though, and stay away from any form of weapon. The fey will see it as a challenge. And, trust me, you’ll lose if they decide to take you up on what they perceive as a challenge.”

  Shaking my head at their continued angry glares, I moved down the aisle of racks until I found one with boxes of mac and cheese.

  “Don’t touch our fucking food, demon whore,” one of the men yelled.

  I heard a slight thump of flesh on flesh and shook my head again.

  “Idiot,” I mumbled under my breath. No doubt, Drav had hit the man. I just hoped he'd held back a little.

  Grabbing one of the nearby laundry baskets, I knocked at least fifty boxes of mac and cheese in, then went to look for the spam and tuna fish. Once I had a full basket, I joined Drav, who stood at the end of the aisle, watching the men slowly walk around. Two of them were standing close and whispering.

  “Don’t be stupid,” I said, moving toward the door. “Because the fey aren’t.”

  Outside the barn, Drav took the basket from me.

  “Why can we not remove their heads?” he asked, his tone indicating sincere puzzlement.

  “Because there are so few healthy humans left. Because you guys aren’t cruel and know now head removal would result in a final death.”

  Neither of those reasons seemed to be an answer for Drav.

  “Because I’m asking you not to,” I added.

  He grunted, and I grinned.

  In the kitchen, those who had been sleeping now milled about. One said something to me that I couldn’t understand. I looked to Drav to translate.

  “He’s wondering if he can help.”

  I nodded. Others offered to help too, creating the whole “too many cooks in the kitchen” scenario. Not wanting to hurt anyone’s feelings but needing to create some space to work, I came up with another idea.

  “Actually, I have a different task for anyone willing.”

  They moved aside as I made my way to the television in the living room. As I’d hoped, a shelf of DVD cases hung from a wall. The titles ranged from kids’ classics to adult action films. Selecting one that looked like it would have plenty of words and a family friendly rating, I went to the TV.

  The number of men who had crowded into the room made maneuvering a little cozy. Molev now sat up on the couch, freeing additional space for others.

  “This,” I said, holding up the DVD, “will help you all learn some English.” They quietly watched me put the DVD into the player and turn on the television.

  “Only I am allowed to change the movie,” I said, straightening.

  “Why?” Molev asked.

  “Movies can be different things. Some are real, but most, like the ones in this house, are make-believe. The only human you’ve ever really known is me. That means, so far, my behavior has been the sole basis of your opinion of humans. Some of these movies have humans pretending to do things most humans would never do. We’re not going to have an easy time convincing the rest of my kind how good you guys really are. And, I don’t want you watching stuff that will have you giving up on the humans before you give them a chance. Because I don’t want you to get the wrong ideas about us, I don’t want you to watch those kinds of movies. Make sense?”

  “Yes,” Molev said. The rest echoed him.

  “Now, get comfy. Most movies last between an hour and a half to two hours. This one has a lot of pretending in it, but not bad stuff. It’s more silly than anything. If you see or hear something that doesn’t make sense or seems unbelievable, ask me about it. By the time this is done, I should have something ready for everyone to eat.”

  Just as I finished speaking, Bud came walking in with Anzio. He glared at me and went to stomp off in the direction of the bathroom.

  “Door stays open,” I said. “No razors. Just the soap. And if Anzio doesn’t trust you, he’ll probably open the curtain. You’ll get used to it.”

  Bud mumbled something under his breath and kept going, Anzio close on his heels. I started the movie, which was about a father who accidentally shrunk his children, before going back to a much emptier kitchen. Drav stood by the stove, staring at two large kettles of steaming water.

  “Is this right?” he asked.

  “Yep. Next, we start opening thes
e boxes.”

  With the help of a few others, we had a meaty version of mac and cheese ready to feed the multitudes by the time the movie finished.

  Molev joined us in the kitchen and waited for me to scoop out three bowls. I handed one to him, one to Drav, and kept one for myself, understanding their routine now. We sat at the table and ate while the rest of the men slowly filed into the kitchen. The ones with the shortest hair stood by the sink and washed plates as the others finished.

  Drav, Molev, and I took our time.

  “If the humans here don’t know where the safe zones are, we’ll need to find them on our own,” I said to Molev. “I doubt we’ll find another setup like this, though. Safety from the hounds…a lot of food…”

  He nodded thoughtfully.

  “They mentioned two others of our kind,” Drav said to Molev.

  “You think those are the two who killed the man in your world?” I asked.

  Molev let out a long breath. “Yes. It is unfortunate they have not given into a final death up here. We will watch for them as we search for your safe zones.”

  “The hellhounds and infected will make traveling at night harder with a large group of men and you,” he said. “Perhaps we send scouts out during the day. They can look for other humans and report back before nightfall.”

  “That’s a good idea,” I said. “We can keep playing movies so the ones who leave will be able to talk a little. Not all humans are jackasses like the ones you found here.”

  “I heard that, bitch,” a voice yelled from somewhere beyond the kitchen. The yell was immediately followed by a solid thump.

  “Remember you guys are stronger than humans when you hit him,” I called out. “Don’t break bones. It’s not fair.”

  “Yes, Mya,” a voice returned.

  A moment later, Bud walked into the kitchen. The pissed off look on his face hadn’t mellowed with his shower.

  “Come sit,” I said.

  He opened his mouth to respond but closed it again when every fey in the room stopped what they were doing to look at him.

  Sullenly, he sat in the fourth chair.

  “Where are you from, Bud? Around here?”

  “I’m not answering any of your questions.”

  “Why not? You’ve already proven what an asshole you are. No one is going to contest that. And the answers you have aren’t any kind of state secret. I’m just trying to figure out what I missed in the last week or so. How bad were the bombings? Are there any cities left? Any hope for us survivors to rebuild our lives?”

  He snorted.

  “Rebuild? What do you think you’re going to see in your lifetime? A shopping mart open on the street corner? That’s not going to happen. That world is dead.”

  I nodded slowly, understanding what he meant.

  “Yeah. It is. How many of us are left?”

  “I’m not telling you that.”

  I rolled my eyes.

  “Probably because you don’t know. I saw a bunch of guys like you on a bridge north of Oklahoma City. The douchecanoes were taking supplies from people still leaving. Is that how you got all your supplies? Jacking other people’s stuff?”

  “Hell, no. We cleaned out the evacuated town ten miles from here. Lost two guys to the infected before the bombing. Another one to the two grey-skinned fuckers that came after.”

  “I’m sorry. They aren’t with this group.”

  He snorted in response to that.

  “Are there less infected now, after the bombing?”

  “Shit no. At least not that we can tell. Out here isn’t so bad, but we still see them on supply runs.” He got quiet for a minute, looking down at the table. I waited and was rewarded when he looked up at me with just a pinch less anger in his gaze.

  “Our men should have been back by now. If you’re sending these guys out, I want to go and look for them.”

  “Honestly, that would be helpful. But, you wouldn’t get a gun or any other kind of weapon. Do you still want to go?”

  The anger returned.

  “Do you think I’m some kind of idiot? I’ll die out there with nothing.”

  “I haven’t had a weapon since this started. Do I look dead?”

  He glared at me and looked pointedly at my boobs. Drav growled beside me.

  “He wasn’t looking at me with interest,” I said, patting his hand. “He’s hinting that you guys have only kept me safe because I’m a girl, which is true.” I focused on Bud again. “That also means they will keep you safe because I’m asking them to. Well, safe as long as you don’t do something that puts them in danger.”

  “Why do you love them so damn much?” the man asked with contempt.

  “Haven’t you figured it out yet? Beyond the fact that they’re actually nice, they are our only hope against those hellhounds. Have you ever seen one die? No,” I said answering for him. “Because they’re that hard to kill. But these guys know how to fight them without dying themselves.”

  At least, I hoped they did.

  Four

  “Fine. I’ll go,” Bud said.

  After that, I listened to Molev give orders, in English, to the men who wanted to go out.

  “Hey, Bud, would you happen to have a dozen pair of sunglasses?”

  He stared at me like I was insane. I held his gaze until he relented.

  “We might have some,” he said.

  “Good.” I looked at the nearest fey men. “Can you bring Bud out to the barn? He will show you where to find the glasses. They’ll help with the sunlight.”

  The fey who were willing to scout for the day led Bud through the kitchen door. I stood and pulled back the blanket to watch them through the window. Bud’s friends were being escorted to the house. The two groups stopped for a minute as the humans spoke to each other. I nibbled at my lip, uncomfortable with the mistrust swelling inside me.

  Bud and his friends could plot all they wanted, and it wouldn’t likely do any good. But, the fact they still wanted to plot sucked. That meant we weren’t doing a very good job of finding any common ground. I wished I would have been awake when we’d arrived. The tension would have been lower by now if the men hadn’t spent a day and a night tied to chairs.

  The human men looked at the house then back to Bud and nodded before they resumed walking toward the house.

  “We should tell the scouts to watch for a new, safe place further north of here,” I said, returning to my chair. “We’ll need to keep moving as we look for the safe zones. I think staying in one place for too long will be dangerous.”

  Molev grunted in agreement just before the men entered. The youngest of them immediately glanced at the small portion of leftover food in the pot on the stove.

  “You’re welcome to it. Or you guys can make something else if you want. Shower. Use the toilet. Do whatever you need to do.” I hoped my offer to let them in the house would help gain their trust.

  The men didn’t say anything, but one separated from the rest and went to the bathroom. The other two stood near the sink, considering the leftover food.

  “What are your names?” I asked.

  “Fuc—”

  Molev and Drav growled. The fey watching the movie in the living room grew very silent.

  “Might want to watch your language,” I said. “They understand.”

  “I’m Jerry,” the silent, younger one finally said.

  The guy with the sailor mouth glared at the kid.

  “Learn to keep your mouth shut,” he growled.

  The third human returned to the kitchen, and sailor mouth left the room in a temper.

  “Friendly,” I said with an eye roll. “I’m Mya.” My hope to start willing introductions was rewarded.

  “Tucker,” the new arrival said.

  “And your friend with the temper?”

  “Butch.”

  “Thanks. Is there anything you can tell me about other survivors?”

  Jerry and Tucker exchanged looks. When both remained silent, I stoo
d up from the table.

  “Think about it. I have to change over the movie.”

  Drav stood and walked with me to the living room. Most of the fey were sneaking glances at the guys in the kitchen. While I protected the fey from negative influence with the movie choices, there wasn’t much I could do about real life negative influences. And, I hated that.

  Plucking another movie off the shelf, I faced the men crowding the living room.

  “Any questions so far?”

  “Is there really a machine that will shrink people?” one asked.

  “No. Not that I know of.”

  “Do all married people have children?” another asked.

  “No. Some choose not to.”

  “Will you and Drav have children?”

  “Okay. Time for the next movie,” I said quickly, turning around once more to change the disk out.

  Just as I moved toward Drav, Butch stepped out of the hall from the bathroom and bumped into me. I stumbled a step. Drav steadied me with an arm around my waist at the same time something thudded.

  I glanced up to see one of the fey pressing Butch into the wall. Butch’s eyes widened further as the gray fist wrapped around his t-shirt and lifted him to the point his toes barely touched the floor.

  “Ease up,” I said. “It was an accident.”

  The fey didn’t step back. I absently brushed away Drav’s hold and went to the fey.

  “It was just an accident,” I repeated. “Not a challenge or a disrespect or whatever. No harm done, I promise.”

  The fey reluctantly released Butch. From the look he gave the man, the fey still itched for a fight.

  “Go join the others in the kitchen,” I said to Butch.

  Butch glanced at me, then the fey I had coaxed off of him, before nodding and heading to the kitchen.

  “Mya? What is this?”

  I turned toward the unfamiliar voice to find an almost bald fey holding up a clean pair of my underwear.

  “I took it from the machine that stopped making noise,” he said.

  I snatched the garment out of his hand, fighting not to turn red. Drav watched me closely, probably trying to determine if the fey had upset me. The last thing I needed was more man-drama, though. So when I answered, I kept my tone free of the annoyance and embarrassment I felt.