strangerthanfiction

by HalkettLucas

  “You have been given the biggest enemy to this realm, Storm. Only you could find insult in that.” Dola laughed as he looked at Storm. “The truth is, we don’t know what her full powers are—she’s an unknown entity to us and that is why we need you on the case.” He slapped Storm on the back and shook his head. “Do what you do best and stop looking for problems where there are none.”

  Storm headed back towards the Blood Gates. He was still unhappy at the orders, but would comply as he always did. The Blood Gates had earned their name well in the past. Before the former King Egill had taken the crown, the only way to use them was for blood to be spilled by killing a sacrifice. King Egill had put a stop to all of that though and ensured that not only were both sides to the Gates heavily fortified with Guards, but the only way they could be opened was by one of only a handful of powerful wizards spell casting.

  Chapter Three

  She had looked for his coming as warriors come,

  With the clash of arms and the bugle's call;

  But he came instead with a stealthy tread,

  Which she did not hear at all.

  ——Love’s Coming, by Ella Wheeler Wilcox

  Pushing her cart around the supermarket, Maddy leaned over the large freezer and almost toppled in. Being only five feet two, she often had trouble with either reaching for things off high shelves, or tumbling into deep freezer units. Shopping was hazardous at times.

  She had always been ‘curvy’—or heavy-built, as some unkind people would put it indelicately—but she was happy in her own skin. Her hair was shoulder length and styled in an asymmetrical style, and it was bright purple this week. She liked to experiment with colours, finding her natural auburn colour boring.

  As Maddy kicked her legs and gave a muffled cry for help, a passer-by helpfully hauled her out from the freezer unit. She blushed and smiled, then proceeded to throw the carton of raspberry ripple ice-cream she had clung onto as she was “saved” into the cart and pushed off quickly in the opposite direction to her saviour.

  From the corner of her eye Maddy spotted a store detective watching her intently. He was quite simply drop-dead-gorgeous. She first realised that she was ogling him when she rammed her cart into another shopper’s and was on the receiving end of the skinny woman’s rant about “rudeness” and “watching where you are going…” Instead of telling the woman to shove her cart where the sun didn’t shine Maddy fumbled an apology, and continued on her way. But the tall, shaven-head and handsome detective had her all ‘hubba-hubba’ and drooling all the way to the checkout.

  Maybe she could fit him into a character in her next book, she considered as she packed her groceries into the back of her Chevy. As she contemplated on what the character would be and named she got into the car and started the engine, double checking her mirrors—the way her luck was going, she didn’t trust herself not to cause an accident.

  Maddy switched on the radio as she drove home. The store detective was still on her mind, and she was enjoying her private little daydreams about him. He was a mixture of brooding stillness with a hint of menace...a maelstrom of manliness. That’s it. She thought. He could be called ‘Storm’ and be some kind of bounty hunter. Her creative juices were flowing, and not only the creative ones. “Boy oh boy...” she spoke to herself as she parked the car outside her apartment block. “...I really need to get a life. Or a cold shower. Or a cold shower with Storm-man…” She giggled as she shut off the engine and got out the car to retrieve her groceries. She was eager to get into the house and start writing...a sexy unpredictable Storm was heading her and her readers’ way.

  ****

  “Target has been identified,” Storm thought into his cortex-transmitter as he stood watching the human in the crowded shopping mall. She was prettier than the identiform had shown her to be. Her eyes had a playful glint and her lips formed the most seductive smile he had ever seen.

  So that was Maddison Scott, the named enemy of the Vargr Realm? She seemed harmless enough, and if her antics in the mall where anything to go by, a little on the clumsy side. He also noted that he had never had to apprehend a dangerous criminal who giggled. Storm was so confused that he actually double checked the information he had been given to ensure he had the right human. According to the sources, he had.

  It had been far too risky to apprehend her at the mall, however. Witnesses and possible human law-enforcement involvement was to be avoided at all costs. At least he knew he was in the right location. It was only a matter of time before he could complete his orders and return back to the Realm. Storm really didn’t want to rush this job though. Dola was right...they didn’t know her full capabilities. Maybe the smart thing for him to do was observe before apprehending her? Storm made up his mind—he would gather more evidence before bringing her in. And it had nothing to do with his own personal curiosity about the human. Nothing whatsoever. He was and always would be unaffected by the need for relationships. Besides, even if he had been that way inclined he would never be allowed to join with a human. A human criminal at that.

  ****

  Most of the other Hunters had returned within hours—their targets had either been humans who had been successfully neutralised—which involved their memories of supernatural beings or paranormal events being wiped clean—or they had been rogue supernaturals who had been brought back for imprisonment.

  The Hunter that had been assigned to apprehend Troy’s prisoner however, had not returned. He paced in front of the fortified glass cell like a caged tiger. The human woman was so familiar to him, but still he could not figure out why.

  Troy, like the majority of Vargr inhabitants, had never actually been to the human realm before—although he knew of some comrades who had broken the rules and done so for adventurous excursions and sometimes even to smuggle goods back through the borders.

  Troy didn’t agree with the smuggling, but had to admit that when he was offered a quart of maple syrup for a fraction of its real market value, he had jumped at the chance. That technically made him an accessory after the fact….but damn that syrup was just too good.

  That was one of the main differences between Vargr and the human realms. What was in abundance in the human world was scarce and valuable here. Another major difference was the fact that the Vargr was home to all types of supernatural and mythical creatures and their existence was a heavily guarded secret from the human population.

  That was why it was so important to have guards like him and the WRAITH hunters—any proof that the supernaturals existed compromised the balance between the two worlds. Humans might riot and lose their sanity if they discovered the legends and fables they had heard throughout the years was actually true.

  And say for arguments sake that they didn’t panic? The humans would hunt his own kind down and experiment upon them, use them for their own ends…well, according to the latest doctrine that was sanctioned by the new King Marek and his Vargr Council, that is. The secrecy of their realm had to be protected at all costs. The humans were not to be trusted and would only bring death and destruction to their race.

  Chapter Four

  Ah come with me!

  I'll blow you that wonderful bubble the moon

  That floats forever and a day;

  I'll sing you the jacinth song

  Of the probable stars

  —You are Tired, by e.e. cummings

  When Maddy wrote, it was as though she went into a trance and her fingers took over, hammering away on the keyboard and bringing her imagination to life. She thought of herself as merely reading the story for the first time—and was as excited, surprised and frustrated at the events unravelling just as much as any of her readers were.

  Storm stood palming the gun at his left hip. With his intense stare and brooding good looks he was watching, waiting. As the best bounty hunter in the whole of Vargr, he had been hired to bring her in. Now that he had seen her with his own eyes? All thoughts of his job vanished from his h
ead—he wanted to bring her in all right, but not to face justice...he wanted her for himself.

  Maddy grinned as she fanned herself. The image of the store-detective she was basing her character on was so vivid that her body heat was rising just thinking about him. With every word she typed, she was falling for the hero of her book. He was shaping up to be amazingly swoon-tastic.

  Storm was conflicted—messages were being relayed from high command that he was on a time limit to retrieve the threat. His loyalties were being questioned and that shocked him to his very foundations. He was contemplating throwing away all that he held true for a woman he had never met. A woman who threatened the balance of peace within the whole of his world.

  To defy a direct order meant he would be named as a criminal himself, and bounty hunters would be sent to bring him in. This caused a dilemma in his soul, because to carry out the order seemed to go against every instinct he had in his body.

  Maddy was excited at the way the story was developing. This book had an edge to it that followed on nicely from the one she had just finished and she couldn’t type her ideas fast enough.

  The hero from her last two books was a policeman called ‘Troy’ and he had stolen her reader’s hearts with his pursuit of a long lost love. She needed to include Troy in this book—but she was feeling guilty at how she was more inspired to write her new hero, Storm. She shook her head and called herself silly for feeling such strong emotions for imaginary men, but she couldn’t help it. She fell in love with all the men she brought to life on the page.

  Troy took off his policeman’s uniform and hung it up in the wardrobe. He had been troubled all through his shift, but didn’t know what was wrong. He was likely just coming down with a bug and a good night’s sleep was all that he needed.

  As he stood under the shower he let the spray hit his athletic, toned body. He wasn’t overly muscular, but he was strong and fit. Running his hands through his short bluish black hair, he leaned his forehead against the glass of the shower cabinet and he closed his eyes. As he did so, an image of his mystery woman appeared in his mind.

  She was perfection—small, curvy and with the most soul-searching eyes that he had ever seen. Her voice was music to his ears and he could hear her say his name in a whisper. “Troy….Troy, I need you….find me.”

  The steam of the shower was creating a fog around him. Troy groaned low and his hand wrapped around his already hard shaft. He didn’t know her name, but he was calling out for her as he pumped his dick in firm and slow strokes. “I’ll save you...don’t give up on me...you’re all I ever wanted”. Troy’s hand was working hard and fast now, his breathing was laboured and he planted his other hand against the glass for support. “I’m coming for you….” and just as he said it, he did.

  Maddy giggled as she saved the document and closed down the laptop for the night. She needed to get some sleep or risk falling asleep at her desk the next day and she was looking forward to having some creative dreams of the store detective and her fictional heroes as soon as her head hit the pillow.

  ****

  Storm closed the distance from the yard to his target’s apartment. She was sitting at a desk and her fingers were gliding effortlessly over the keys but her eyes were glazed and he noticed that there was the slightest burnt-orange aura outlining her body.

  Peering in, Storm knew that being a cobalt sprite he was undetectable to the human eye unless he willed it. His twin however had a much more useful power, being able to turn objects into stone just by touching them. Storm had grown up resenting his brother’s power, but as they matured to adulthood he realised that his twin was cursed whereas he was blessed.

  Storms’ power enabled him to do his job and move with ease between the Realms. His twin however had to wear thick silver chainmail gloves and avoid contact with others as much as possible. He had already lost several lovers to his ‘stone-dead’ touch, which left him bitter and lonely.

  When the cortex-transmission demanded an update on his position, Storm found himself telling an untruth to his leader for the first time in his career. He had told Dola that he had temporarily lost contact with the target, but was following a lead and would report back later. Storm didn’t even register that he had lied until after the communication ended. Being a Cobalt Spirit, lying was against his nature and he felt a wave of nausea hit him in the pit of his stomach. All he was certain of was that he would not be rushed on this assignment. He craved to know more about this human. Storm was becoming obsessive.

  Storm looked back through the window, but couldn’t see Maddison Scott at her desk. He cursed under his breath for taking his eyes off her for a few seconds to reply to Dola, but then he relaxed when he saw a light being switched on in the next room. Maddison Scott was undressing for bed.

  Through the slight gap of the curtains, Storm could just about see her as she slipped under the sheets and turned the bedside lamp off. He wanted to step inside the apartment, climb in beside her and hold her tight to his body.

  Storm stilled. What was he thinking? Had he lost his mind? This human had captivated him in a way no other had, and he hadn’t even spoken to her. When he got back to Vargr, he would consider reporting himself in for a psych eval. This wasn’t him, at all.

  ****

  As Troy dropped his key card into the slot and waited for the door to his apartment to open, he felt a wave of exhaustion hit him. His shift at Caer-Sidi had been uneventful. Doing nothing was worse than being busy, he thought.

  The swoosh of the doors was a welcoming sound and Troy shrugged his leather jacket off before heading to his sleeping quarters. Kicking his boots off and starting to unbutton his shirt, he sat on the edge of his bed and yawned loudly. The fact that Hunter Alaziel was not back in the Realm was not a good sign. If this Maddison Scott could evade capture from WRAITH’s most notorious Hunter, Storm Alaziel, then she must be a force to be reckoned with.

  The info screen flashed to life and the King Marek approved news was blasted into his compact room. Images of the Vargr Council opening new centres of learning and smiling footage of the King, flanked by his Goblin Guards, shaking hands with his public and receiving applause and cheers seemed to be on a loop as a stiff-as-a-board presenter read out the pre-written words on screen.

  The news had never mentioned anything about the notorious human who was at this minute being hunted. That struck Troy as weird—surely it was the hottest news story in the Realm and yet nothing. Another thing that struck him as weird was that the only time humans were mentioned now was to exploit their hatred for all things ‘different.’ Surely the humans couldn’t be all bad? They must have some good points to balance the evil?

  Troy wanted to be loyal to the Realm, but lately he was questioning the policies and decisions that King Marek and the Vargr Council had been making.

  Troy had heard rumours of a resistance unit that was growing within Vargr since King Marek had taken the throne. Vampires, shifters, fae, and witches who had joined forces to fight against the new King now wanted to strengthen an alliance with the humans. At first he thought it was just an urban myth, a joke that kept the other guards entertained through the long boring shifts. Now though, he wasn’t so sure. Too many things weren’t adding up and the thought of living in peace and harmony with the humans was an increasingly tempting ideal.

  Of course, Troy knew better than to vocalise his thoughts. Especially as he was a Vargr Guard—to say anything against the official doctrine was tantamount to treason.

  Deciding to hit the shower, Troy leaned his head against the cool glass wall and closed his eyes. The human prisoner was still on his mind—if only he could remember where he had seen her. The Hunter would surely have tracked her down by now, and in the morning he would be face to face with her in the cell awaiting trial. Perhaps then he could get some answers to his growing list of questions.

  As the hot water soaked his aching muscles, Troy rolled his shoulders back and let out a satisfied gr
oan. It felt so good, and his body was starting to relax after a long day. “Maddison Scott…” he found himself saying as he looked down to see his rock hard erection standing proud and needing attention. Closing his eyes, he thought of the human who was evading capture as he wrapped his hand around his length and started to jerk his hand up and down slowly. “Maddison…”

  ****

  Dola was on one knee, head bowed before the Vargr Council. He had been there for just under an hour and still they were not satisfied. When the King had stolen the Throne from Egill, he had replaced most of the Council with his own personnel—the majority being goblins and dark elves. They were two of the most contemptible species in the whole of Vargr, in Dola’s humble opinion.

  “My Lords, I am at a loss to explain Hunter Alaziel’s absence. I can only presume the human has proved a more worthy opponent than we first realised.” Dola wisely kept his tone respectful.

  The Goblin Lord rose from his seat, approaching the Dola. “This human is a direct threat to the security of our Realm. She must be brought to us with immediate haste. I do not have to tell you what will happen if anything goes awry.”

  And he didn’t. Dola knew only too well what would happen. He would be stripped of his rank and the King’s wizards would use his own powers against him in a public execution.

  As soon as Dola returned back to the facility, he demanded contact with Storm through the cortex-transmitter. “Storm. Apprehend the target and bring her back through the Blood Gates immediately. The Council has ordered it. If you’re not back with the prisoner within twenty four hours, an order will be put out on you.” His voice was hard as stone and the order was explicit.