“Well, that’s the impossible part, isn’t it?” Marcus touched the tips of his fingers together staring into the fire.
Sloan looked closer at the print.
“The print is one we’ve seen a hundred times before, but…” Jack pointed to the sketch of the paw design once more, “this one is four times as large as any we’ve come across.”
“So we’re ruling out wolves, what else could it be?” The voice came from the doorway. All three members at the table jumped and turned. Sloan’s hand tightened on her saber hilt once again.
“We’re really going to have to work on that, Captain.” Aareth smiled from the doorway. “Every time I talk you don’t need to draw steel.”
“Well, you haven’t given me much of a reason not to, have you? What are you doing back? You walked out on your queen and on your city.”
“I had a change of heart.” Aareth sauntered toward the group and shrugged off his long black jacket. He placed it on an empty chair and took a seat.
The room was silent as Sloan examined their new ally with a raised eyebrow. Marcus nodded a greeting toward Aareth. The room was quiet.
“Well, we’re glad to have you,” Jack coughed trying to ignore the awkward silence. “At least I am.”
“Thanks. I heard you talking about the possibility of wolves. The canine animals that are no larger than the size of large dogs?”
“My father and I have tracked our fair share,” Jack ignored Sloan’s hard stare as he got the fourth member of their team up to speed, “but they’re not naturally aggressive animals.The largest we’ve ever seen couldn’t have been more than seventy pounds.”
“So we have nothing?” Aareth asked.
“It seems like we’re tracking an animal of unknown origin that has been able to elude, well, everyone,” Sloan ignored Aareth and looked only to the sorcerers. “Marcus, Jack, what do you think? Can you find it?”
Father and son smiled as Jack repeated what had become their catch phrase, “If it leaves tracks, we can find it.”
Sloan seemed content with their answer.
In the interim well dressed servants brought in large platters covered with silver covers.
“And mercenary?” Sloan finally looked to Aareth. “When we do find this beast, do you think you can kill it?”
“I’m not a mercenary anymore, Captain.” Aareth pushed back a curtain of his long black hair. “But to answer your question, yes. I’ve never met an animal, man… or soldier, I couldn’t beat.”
Jack half expected for Sloan to jump out of her chair at the challenge, but instead was surprised as she suppressed a smile.
The rest of the night was spent over a feast. Jack’s eyes were wide, not only from the magical bulbs covering the inside of the room giving off light, but at the quantity of food that was laid before them. As a sorcerer and tracker, Jack and his father lived on the road and meal to meal. They never went hungry; however, Jack learned to be grateful for food at an early age, never wasting a single mouthful.
The night’s dinner consisted of; roasted duck, grilled chicken, skewered salmon, salad, vegetables, rolls with butter, pitchers of wine and beer, and every kind of dessert imaginable.
Jack smiled to himself as he bit into the juicy roast duck and flavors burst in his mouth. He couldn’t help but notice how proper and efficiently Sloan ate compared to Aareth’s “hands on” approach to tackling a meal. Jack couldn’t imagine four people more different that his present company.
Sloan, and especially Aareth, helped themselves to the wine, while Jack and his father stuck to water. After a mostly quiet meal, Sloan pushed her plate away. “If we’re going to spend the next few weeks together, I’d like us to be honest with each other. I don’t mean we have to be best friends, but the most successful teams I’ve every worked with in the past have had a mutual respect and trust in one another.”
Sloan looked at each one of them in turn. She allowed the silence to build before she began again.
“I’ll go first. As captain of the queen’s guard, I’m used to leading. That doesn’t mean I’m not a team player. With that said in this mission I want to make it clear that I am the leader. I’ll do all I can to make this a quick journey. We’ll go into the town—Jack and Marcus, you’ll find the animal. Aareth and I will kill it and we can all go home.”
“My son and I have been sorcerers of the paranormal for years.” Marcus smiled with pride at Jack. “We’ve tracked everything from shadow spirits to shape shifters I’m honored to be in a position to help the queen and the city of New Hope. We’ll find whatever this thing is.”
“I, uhhh, I’ve been practicing the magical arts and tracking ever since I can remember.” Jack stumbled under Sloan’s stern gaze. “My father and I have never failed a job we’ve been hired to complete. This one’s not going to be any different.”
All eyes turned to Aareth, who was wiping his hands and mouth clean of sticky meat.
“I’ve been working—freelance—in the Outland for the last three years. I’m here now and plan on seeing this thing through to the end.”
Sloan cocked her head to the side and looked like she was about to ask a question, but at the last minute stopped herself and instead made plans for the next day.
“We’ll leave early tomorrow, so be ready. We’ll make a quick stop at the armory, gathering any supplies we may need for the journey, and then we’ll be off.” Sloan rose from her chair and looked at the three men sitting at the table. “Rest well. If I’m right, it’ll be the last time we can close our eyes without worry, for a long time.”
Jack
Jack and his father were shown to a large room with two beds, and to Jack’s delight, mage lights. Their weapons were waiting for them in their room just as Lieutenant Baker promised.
Jack sat in his bed, switching the mage light on and off. The lamp was on a nightstand next to his bed. The switch to turn the light off and on was so simple to navigate it was almost comical.
He couldn’t help but notice his father assemble his staff and place it next to his bed. “Expecting trouble tonight?”
“Not particularly,” Marcus ran his hand over the staff and the ancient ruins of their order carved deep in the wood. “But it’s better to be safe than sorry, right?”
“Yeah, but I can tell that’s not it, is it? There’s something else bothering you, isn’t there?”
“As perceptive as your mother.” Marcus let out a long sigh. “You know me too well. It’s our traveling partner that makes me uneasy.”
“Sloan?” Jack stopped playing with the light and gave his father his full attention. “Or Aareth?”
“It’s Aareth. I have a feeling I’ve seen him before. And I don’t mean passing through a town. There’s something off about him, son.”
“Well, who do you think he is?”
“I’m not sure, but there’s something in his eyes. If I had to guess, he’s a hit man, an assassin.”
Jack’s jaw dropped. He heard about assassins while traveling through the Outland. They were professional killers for hire to the highest bidder. As Jack thought about it, he’d heard stories of an assassin with long black hair and piercing blue eyes. Stories of a killer more ghost than man.
“Are you sure, Dad? I mean, why would the queen allow a person like that to come on this mission? Aareth isn’t going to exactly win the award for personality of the year, but—”
“I’m sure, son. As to why the queen has allowed him to come with us is another story. We have to trust that the Crown has their reasons. But in the meantime…” Marcus patted his staff gently. “It’s never a bad idea to be cautious. Have you said your prayers?”
“Dad, we’ve talked about this,” Jack rolled his eyes. “I’m eighteen years old. You don’t need to remind me of that stuff or tuck me in or kiss me on the cheek at night.”
“You just turned eighteen, and in my defense, I have done a great job on the no tucking in and kissing thing. You’ll understand one day when you have k
ids of your own. Goodnight, son. I love you.”
Jack gritted his teeth but he knew he would regret it if he didn’t say it. “Love you too, Dad.”
Jack’s mind was still reeling with the real identity of their traveling partner that night as he fell asleep. There was a real life assassin going on a journey with them. Jack was equal parts excited and fearful of the trip to come and what the next days would bring. The last thing he remembered as he fell asleep was a lullaby his mother would sing to him as a baby.
If Jack knew what the next day held in store for him, he wouldn’t have slept so soundly.
Jack
Jack woke to the sound of knocking on the door. “Marcus, Jack?” It was Sloan’s voice. “Be ready to visit the armory in fifteen minutes. A servant will come and get you.”
Jack rubbed sleep from his eyes as he washed and dressed himself. The clothes he had grown so accustomed too in the Outland seemed below mediocre and strange in a place like the palace. His worn boots and jacket were laughable and the pants and vest he wore were patched in more than a few spots.
This is not the time to start worrying about your wardrobe, Jack thought to himself as he strapped on his leather harness that carried the two pieces of his staff on his back. You need to be focused for whatever’s coming.
“Ready, son?” Marcus asked.
“Yeah, let’s go.”
“Are you sure? I mean, you don’t want to flick that mage light off and on a few more times?”
“No,” Jack glanced at the bright sun streaming in through the large windows. “I think I’d rather go see what toys we can get our hands on in the palace’s armory. You can’t tell me you’re not excited about that.”
“Oh, I don’t think the queen has anything to offer me that would make me part with these.” Marcus patted the twin staffs that poked over each of his shoulders.
The two men left their chamber as the sun made its way up through the thin clouds and dry air. A servant was waiting for them. He bowed as they exited their room. They followed the stiff moving retainer through the palace halls, eventually arriving at a large set of black double doors.
Sloan and Aareth were already waiting for them as the servant bowed and walked away. Jack felt like he was meeting Aareth for the first time. Aareth was already tall and muscular, but now with Jack’s knowledge of who he really was, he seemed like a giant. Aareth noticed Jack’s stare and ran a hand across his mouth and chin.
“What? Do I have something on my face?”
“Oh no,” Jack’s eyes darted to the door. “I mean, I was just, ummm—”
“Please, boys, can this wait?” Sloan banged on the massive double doors. “We have an armory to pillage and a mission to start.”
Jack nodded as he noted for the first time how attractive Sloan really was. Before he was so overwhelmed with the palace and the new information of what they were summoned for to notice. Now he had to blink and tear his eyes away from her flawless complexion, tight black pants, and corset.
Jack felt a nudge from his father as the massive doors began to open. The black doors were twenty feet high and at least ten feet across. What Jack first thought were decorations in the wood were actually magical symbols of all shapes and sizes. Now as the doors opened, the symbols began to shine. One after the other they lit up in a bright display of red light until the entire door was covered in the magical illumination.
Noise like a hundred bats in flight shot out from the opposite side of the door. Edison’s familiar head popped out. He was wearing goggles over a smeared coal black face. He motioned them forward wearing a heavy set of leather work gloves. “Please come in and welcome to D.P.S.M ‘The Department of Paranormal Study and Magic.’ I’ve been waiting for you.”
Jack
Jack had seen the city, he witnessed the power of magic to produce light, still he wasn’t ready for the sight welcoming his eyes on the other side of the door. The palace armory was actually one gigantic room filled with gnomes, machines, smoke, and leaping fires. Steam and whistles filled the air as the group entered.
The gnomes wore facemasks and goggles. They labored on various projects in different stages of development. Edison led the group around the armory like a proud father, introducing them to invention after invention.
“This is only a prototype but we’re hoping by the time it’s done we’ll be able to actually carry mage light with us from place to place. Imagine that? Being able to carry light with you and illuminate even the darkest places with the flick of a switch. Granted I know a sorcerer could do this at anytime but to the everyday man it will be groundbreaking.”
“Even for us it would be useful,” Marcus looked at the prototype that was nothing more than a tube with a bulb at the end. “Lighting a path is easy enough but it takes energy and power. Having a mage light means we can save our strength.”
Edison was pointing to a large square box sparking blue light as short statured gnomes tried connecting it to large cables. Jack couldn’t help but smile at the older man’s enthusiasm for science and technology. He was ripped from these thoughts as a small explosion erupted a few yards away.
Gnomes ran on squat legs to help, carrying buckets of water and heavy towels.
“Should we have masks on or at least goggles?” Sloan pointed to where a small blaze had broken out. “I think that gnome over there is on fire.”
“Oh no, he’s fine. You’ll be safe.” Edison shook his head with reassurance. “That’s a regular occurrence here. That project has been in the works for months now. He’ll be reborn again. We just have to find a way for him not to burst into flames.”
“What is it?” Jack said, craning his neck to try and get a glimpse.
“We’ve codenamed it project phoenix. It’s the first step in creating a potion that will bring someone back from the dea—”
A bearded gnome with a squished nose and large ears came up to Edison. He pulled on the inventors sleeve until Edison leaned down. With excited chatter the little employee whispered in Edison’s ear.
“He’s here now?” Edison looked around the warehouse floor.
The gnome nodded furiously.
“Well, please show him in. Have him meet us by the weapons.”
The gnome ran off. Edison turned to his group and led them to the back of the large room. “It seems we have an unexpected visitor.”
Jack noticed a well-dressed middle-aged man approaching the group. He was wearing an expensive suit complete with gold-rimmed glasses and a gold pocket watch, the chain hung from inside his vest.
“Well, hello, Edison,” the stranger said, taking in the rest of the group with a smile. “I’m sorry, is this a bad time?”
“No, of course not.” Edison grinned and shook the man’s hand vigorously. “Not for the man who’s been so generous to the Crown. Please let me introduce you. You’re already familiar with the captain, I think. This is Jack, Marcus, and Aareth.”
Sloan crossed her arms with a frown that said she was anything but happy to see the mystery man.
“Gentlemen,” Edison continued as though he didn’t notice. “This is Dr. Oliver Livingston. He owns the largest magic and technology manufacturing company in the city. He’s also a great supporter of the Crown. In fact, many of the projects you see here today are being developed side by side with his team.”
The doctor extended a greeting to each of them and exchanged warm hand shakes.
“And Captain,” Dr. Livingston turned to Sloan with a pleasant smile. “Always a pleasure to see you as well.”
Sloan didn’t say a word but Jack could tell she was biting back a few choice words of her own. He even half expected to see Sloan reach for her sword.
The doctor didn’t seem to notice or care and instead turned back to Edison. “Well, it looks as though you’re on a tour, so I’ll be brief. The progress on the locomotive track is going well above the planned schedule. I have crews working on it around the clock. With the latest tools we’ve developed for the projec
t, we’ll be able to reach the first Outland city tonight.”
“That’s wonderful news.” Edison smiled from ear to ear. “I know the queen will be pleased.”
“The other project is still being worked on.” The doctor noticeably lowered his voice for this piece of information. “We ran into a few… hiccups.”
Jack leaned in towards the two men, trying to catch more of their conversation as their voices continued to lower. At that moment there was shrill steam blast coming from a large stack of pipes, making it impossible for Jack to hear anything but the last few words from Dr. Livingston’s mouth, “enhanced soldiers.”
“Well, thank you for the information. I’ll be contacting you later today to go over your report in better detail,” Edison said with a nervous glance at his guests.
“Of course. It was a pleasure meeting you all, and Sloan, you look beautiful as ever.” With that Dr. Livingston turned and walked away.
“Well, he seems nice.” Aareth lifted his eyebrows at a scowling Sloan. “And he definitely has a thing for you.”
“Not another word,” Sloan looked at Aareth with murder in her eyes. “Not one more word from you or I swear to every gnome in here I’ll—”
“Well, let’s be on our way.” Edison licked dry lips trying to diffuse the situation. “I know how eager you all are to begin your journey.”
He led the group a few more yards to the rear of the building. There was an area where a makeshift practice ground was erected.
“Ahhh. Here we are.” Edison turned to a table behind him and opened a small metal box. Inside was a black steel rod, thick as Jack’s staff but not much longer than a pencil.
Edison lifted it into the air for Jack and his father to examine. “Since staffs seem to be your weapon of choice, I thought I should show you one of our latest inventions. Until now every staff either needs to be held in one cumbersome piece or in two like your own. We’ve managed to condense the original staff into something much more user friendly. The metal is durable but you will still be able to carve you own desired ruins on the material if you deem it necessary.”
House of Wolves: (A Paranormal Urban Fantasy) (The Vampire Project Book 1) Page 5