by S. M. Boyce
She laughed and stood, happy to have saved the little guy. As she returned to the house she felt something tickle her arm and looked down to find him holding on, his arms and legs wrapped as far as he could around her wrist. She chuckled and lifted him off her, setting him on the ground. “You'll be fine. Just don’t play with any more cats, okay?”
Pleased with her good deed, she walked inside as Audrey finished setting some sweet potatoes into another of the baskets. Wiping sweat from her brow, Audrey squinted at Victoria’s head. “What’s in your hair?”
“Huh?” Victoria reached into her hair to find the little guy holding onto her ear. She chuckled.
“What is that? He looks like a tiny human.”
“No idea. I saved him from a cat-thing.”
Audrey laughed. “Not even the cats are normal here. At least we have apples and sweet potatoes to remember home.”
“You just wait. I bet those potatoes sing when you cook them or something.”
Audrey snorted and pointed to the creature in Victoria’s hair. “You found yourself a pet already?”
“Guess so. He won’t leave me alone.”
The floor creaked under the heavy weight of familiar, stomping footsteps. Bertha ducked under the doorframe into the kitchen and clicked her tongue. “Oh, those pixies!”
“He's a pixie?” Victoria asked.
“Annoying things. They were some wood elf’s experiment gone wrong, and they escaped about three years ago. They’ve been bothering us ever since. Never fear, little one, I’ll kill him for you. Hold still.” Bertha raised her arm, tongue sticking out a bit as she took aim at Victoria’s head.
Victoria lunged backward, out of reach, “I’m good! All good, thanks.”
“Nonsense. Hold still.” This time Bertha grabbed a broom from against the wall. Victoria tensed and shuffled around the table, doing her best to keep it between her and the ogre trying to swat her.
Audrey doubled over with laughter, holding her sides.
“A lot of help you are,” Victoria said under her breath as she passed.
Audrey laughed harder, tears in her eyes now.
“Fine, fine,” Bertha said, dropping the broom. “Stubborn humans! Keep the stupid thing.”
“My own pixie, huh?” Victoria set the little guy in her palm. “I should name you Styx.”
Audrey shook her head. “A pixie named Styx. How original.”
“Shut up. It’s funny.”
“If you say so.”
Victoria picked up the second basket of apples she needed to take outside, grinning in triumph as Bertha returned to the front of the shop. So far, she had found two of her three necessities: food and shelter.
Now to find a mentor.
She studied her right hand, the cold metal of the relic in her arm a constant reminder of the unfamiliar tech that had permanently fused with her. She’d defeated a cat with it, but that was hardly a victory. This thing would get her killed if she didn’t act fast. With Fyrn out of the picture, she needed to find this wizard named Diesel and hope beyond hope he didn’t kill her on sight.
She grimaced, butterflies in her stomach at the thought. Maybe she should practice a bit first, get the hang of summoning at least the knife so she could bluff her way out of a bad situation if everything went south.
Ugh. Weak. She hated it when plans required bluffing, as it left too much to chance. Yet, as she stared up at the glowing green ceiling, the nerves ebbed somewhat. She had found Fairhaven. She had found Fyrn Folly. Her parents had set her on the right path, and she would not fail them. She wouldn’t be able to live with herself if she did. Failure wasn’t an option.
She nodded to herself, resolute about what had to come next. As much as it would hurt, it was time to train. Hard.
CHAPTER 13
Around lunchtime, Victoria ducked through the crowds on Fairhaven’s Main Street with Audrey in tow. Bertha only needed their help in the mornings and evenings, and since they had the afternoon off, Victoria figured she should find a place to practice. Styx had nestled in her hair and fallen asleep in her loose curls, so she took him along for the ride.
As she walked through the crowds, she eyed the cliff faces surrounding Fairhaven. Wherever she looked, she found a new cave. There must have been hundreds, thousands even.
It would be the perfect place to practice. The trick would be finding an empty one. That was why Audrey had tagged along. Though neither were exceptional fighters despite their time in kickboxing classes, Audrey threw a mean left hook.
First, though, they needed to get out of town. It wouldn’t do for half the city to see them scaling the cliff to a cave. Talk about suspicious. No, they needed someplace on the edge of town, like Fyrn’s house.
An idea dawned on her, and she grinned mischievously. His protection spell had hidden everything—his house, the caves in the cliffs, all of it. If they were going to practice, they might as well be hidden completely.
Perhaps the old fart would be useful after all.
***
Audrey led the way through the streets, most of the route still foreign to Victoria until they rounded a corner and saw the familiar trail toward the old cottage. Victoria’s heart leapt in her chest as she scanned the windows looking for signs of life. No lights. No smoke in the chimney.
Bingo.
Styx fluttered by, zipping around their heads as they hurried through the force field while Victoria scanned the cliff. There were at least two dozen caves to choose from, four of which had paths, or at least rocks they could hop across, to the entrances.
From here, she couldn’t tell how deep they were. She pointed to the nearest one. “That’s the one we slept in last night, right?”
Audrey cracked her back. “Yeah, unfortunately.”
“What about that one?” Victoria pointed to the only other one with a real path to it. The others would require a lot of hopping and prayer to reach.
“Let’s try it.”
They climbed the path, Victoria careful to press her back against the wall in the narrow parts as she inched along the rock. She peered over the edge—a good thirty-foot drop—and was grateful heights didn’t make her weak in the knees. Audrey, however, looked like she was having a rough time of it.
“You’re doing gr—”
“No talking,” Audrey said, back flat against the wall and eyes wide as she crept along the path.
Victoria suppressed a chuckle and nodded.
Once at the entrance, she leaned toward the cave and peeked in. Darkness. It was deep, and the light only illuminated the first fifty feet. After that, nothing but shadow.
She tensed her jaw, straining her ears to listen. No footsteps. No conversation. No bones or leftover carcasses that would normally litter a creature’s den. She held her breath but couldn’t hear a thing in the silent cave. No rugged breathing from some other creature, thank goodness. She scanned the cave for signs of life like the remnants of a fire or leftover food, but found nothing.
Carefully, she tiptoed inside. Audrey followed, fists balled and no doubt ready for a fight. Victoria craned her neck as her eyes adjusted to the growing darkness, but she didn’t see any moving figures.
“Sweet,” she said under her breath.
Audrey yelped, spinning toward Victoria. “Fuck, you scared me!”
Victoria laughed. “I think coming all the way out here was a good idea. Fyrn’s spell must keep out the creatures and thieves.”
“For now.”
“Thanks, Debbie Downer.”
“I’m just saying we should be careful. You never know when someone—or something—may show up. Besides, Fyrn made it pretty clear he doesn’t want us here.”
“Noted. What are you going to do while I practice?”
“Keep watch. These caves make me nervous.”
“We’re fine,” Victoria said with a grin.
“Do you want to get eaten by a giant centipede? Because I sure don’t.”
“What, a snarx? Sorry, but
it’s hard to take something seriously when it sounds like it came out of a Dr. Seuss book.”
Audrey blew a raspberry. “Just focus. Go train. I’ll be by the entrance.”
“Stay out of sight.”
“Yes, Ma,” Audrey huffed.
Victoria rolled her eyes and stepped into the low light at the back of the cave, careful to stay as far from the entrance as she could. Even this far out of town and protected by a spell, she didn’t want anyone to witness her magic.
“Hey, actually...” Victoria set one hand on her hip, tapping her chin with her finger.
Audrey glared over her shoulder. “What?”
“You should spar with me. That might help.”
“Hell, no.”
“Hey, be helpful!”
Audrey shook her head. “Your shield-thing might randomly appear and kill me. You master solo first, and maybe we’ll level up to sparring when I’m sure I won’t die.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence.”
Audrey blew a sarcastic kiss.
“Ugh, fine.” Frowning, Victoria rolled up her sleeves and studied the relic fused to her arm. It glimmered in the low light, the silver and copper metals twinkling like the sea. Styx hovered nearby, cooing as he stared at the glittering metal.
Nothing happened.
Hmm. “Appear.”
A glint of light from the metal embedded in her arm blinded her for a second, but that was it.
Pacing, she stared at the magical artifact and wracked her brain to remember what had been different about the times the shield had appeared for her.
Ah, right—moments of fear.
She eyed the cave entrance nervously, but this wasn’t quite the same. It wasn’t true fear, just unease. She’d felt fear when she thought of Luak, of the way he had charged her—
The shield appeared in her hand, weighing her down like a hundred-pound barbell. She groaned, bending with it as it crashed into the ground and embedded itself in the rock. Styx squeaked with fear and flitted toward the ceiling.
“Damn it,” she muttered. She wrestled with the massive shield, trying and failing to dislodge it. Cursing under her breath, she focused her attention on the shield. The memory of Luak faded, and the shield went with it.
She fell to her knees, pain shooting down her legs from the fall. She grimaced, frustrated, annoyance burning her up from inside.
“Calm down,” she said softly to herself. With a deep breath and closed eyes, Victoria slowly cleared her head. She could handle this. She could do this.
It seemed as though her new magic responded to either memories or emotion. At least she had finally narrowed it down a bit.
Success!
Technically.
Sort of.
She braced herself and lifted her right arm, tensing her shoulders as she prepared to summon the shield again. In the parking lot by the bank, the shield had changed size to accommodate both her and Audrey, which meant this thing could morph. Perhaps she needed to try a smaller one, one she could hold. Maybe she could—
A flash of green light from the entrance of the cave blinded her. Only streaks filled her vision. Victoria lifted her arm to shield her eyes, but she still couldn’t see.
“What are you doing?!” someone asked, his voice harsh and deep.
Victoria panicked. A massive shield appeared, blocking her entire view of the cave. She cursed, the weight of the massive thing pulling her onto her stomach as it tipped over. The shield disappeared as she fell, and she hit the ground hard.
Covered in dust and gravel, she looked up to see Fyrn’s silhouette. Audrey had been frozen in place, one hand reaching for Victoria and mouth open as if she were trying to say something.
“What did you do to her?” Victoria demanded. She pushed herself to her feet, clenching her hands into fists.
He quirked an eyebrow. “You’re going to fight me? Really?”
“I don’t care if you’re a wizard. No one hurts my friends!”
“She’s fine,” he said, rolling his eyes. “You, however, are an idiot. Why are you still here?”
“We needed a place to practice. We only stayed last night—”
“Not the cave. Here! Fairhaven! You’re going to get yourself and everyone around you killed.”
“Why? Because I have this thing in my arm?” She lifted her right arm, pointing to the artifact with her other hand to emphasize her point.
He grabbed her hand and lowered it, never touching the relic in her arm. “Exactly. Go home.”
“I don’t have a home,” she snapped.
He groaned, leaning on his staff as he studied her. “And you’re here for vengeance.”
“That, and I’d like to learn how to control this damn thing.”
“You won’t.”
Victoria gritted her teeth. “Don’t tell me what I can and can’t do. I’m going to figure it out even if I have to do it alone.”
“Right, and how’s that working for you?”
“Fine, until you interrupted. If you’re just going to waste my time, leave.”
Fyrn pointed one long finger at Victoria, voice lowering to a dangerous growl. “Listen here, you—”
Styx flitted behind the old wizard, hands on his tiny hips as he mimicked Fyrn’s motions. He squeaked and mumbled, mimicking Fyrn’s voice as well.
“Infuriating pixies.” Fyrn waved the creature away, the blow thankfully too slow to hit Styx. Scowling just as he had the first time she met him, the wizard tapped his staff against the rocky floor. “Need I remind you that you’re on my property, girl?”
She rolled her eyes. “Fine, I’ll find somewhere else. I don’t need you.”
“Yes, you do. You need someone to teach you about that artifact, but no one here will do it. I certainly won’t. If you want to live longer than a week, you will leave this city and never come back.”
“Why, because my parents asked you a few questions? You think being an ass is going to make you feel better about it?”
“A little bit, yes.”
“Look, they’re dead, okay? Dead. Luak killed them, and I’m going to destroy him if it’s the last thing I do.”
“It will be.”
She lifted her hands impulsively, desperately wishing she could strangle this asshole, but refrained from wasting the effort. “I’m going to get justice. If you’re not going to be useful, will you at least get the hell out?”
He laughed derisively. “Justice or revenge?”
“Why not both? I doubt my family was the first one on his hit list.”
“Do you even know what that thing in your arm is?”
“Take three guesses.”
“It’s a Rhazdon Artifact. It’s feeding off you like a parasite, and as its host you have certain abilities—abilities the people in Fairhaven fear. You will be killed on the spot if anyone so much as sees it.”
Victoria studied the metal dagger, buzzing with exhilaration because the old man had finally said something useful. Now she knew what it was called. “You said it’s an artifact. That means there’s more than this one?”
“Many. There are said to be two hundred and three.”
“Do they all have the same powers?”
He frowned. “Why do you ask?”
“Maybe there’s someone out there who has one and can teach me, since you’re being a jackass about all this.”
“Insult the only person with answers, sure. Very smart.”
She shrugged. She wasn’t wrong.
“Anyone with a Rhazdon Artifact would sooner kill you for it than train you to use it. These are items made from dark magic. They’re dangerous, and so is anyone who wields one. You should leave. Go back to the human world where you belong. Forget about this thing in your arm and wear long sleeves for the rest of your life. It’s for your own good, girl. There’s more going on here than meets the eye, and you’re going to get everyone who talks to you thrown in jail as a host sympathizer.”
“‘Host sympathizer?�
�� What are you talking about?”
“It’s not just the hosts who are killed on sight. Your friend back there,” he nodded toward the still-frozen Audrey, “and the shopkeeper who’s feeding you are in danger too.”