by Tom Keller
"Siegfried, excuse me for interrupting," I called out. "And you, Sergei, is it? Perhaps you would allow me to speak before you call me the fool." I added as I pulled the sword given me by Ouranos from behind me and allowed it to burst forth from its hilt.
Sergei's eyes widened as he saw what I held. His expression changed from surprise to anger.
"Are you challenging me?" he asked.
"If this was a challenge you'd already be dead," I answered with a somewhat mischievous smile. "No, you said you sense no magic. I mean only to show you that which you have not seen." Before he could respond I raised the now flaming sword and a bright light burst forward from it. As quickly as it came it was gone and we were no longer in the same place.
We stood in a field amongst giant trees. I appeared as my Fae self, as did Siegfried and Milagre. Both of them had known what was coming, as did Diantha. The rest were still in suits, for the moment. Sergei, blinking his eyes, turned his head towards me. Again, before he could answer, I raised my sword and there was a flash of light, when it receded, everyone was in their Fae persona.
"Behold the High Fae, Robert of the Dryad," a female voice called out. It was, of course, Diantha. This time, I had approved the script. "With your own eyes you now witness his power and position. He wields the sword of Zeus and of Cronus, given to him by Ouranos himself. Do you still doubt him?"
There was silence, and then one of the gathering spoke. It was one of the females, I hadn't known her name.
"No mere Fae could wield the sword that spilt Cronus' blood, nor force us to reveal our true selves. It must be as Siegfried has said. I, Franxine of the Meliai, will recognize your claim."
"Fine, fine, so you are a God!" Sergei shouted out. "I, too, recognize your claim upon those of your kind. But I am not one of you. I am Vodianoi! Why should I bow to he that is not one of my Gods?"
"A fair question," I answered, lowering the sword. "But I do not claim Godship, nor do I ask you to bow. I ask only that you heed the words of Siegfried, son of Olafr. A darkness has come among the Fae and she will not be imprisoned forever. Even now her followers spread evil and threaten us. The attack against me is just another example of the danger we face."
"Since when do the Gods want nothing? And why the Lilin? They are our ancient enemies, why free them. Let them rot," he countered.
"It is true that the old Gods were vain and jealous. Their actions almost destroyed our kind, but I am not one of those Gods. I ask for nothing except allies, and even then, only of their own accord.
"As for the Lilin, it was Demeter herself that decreed their fate and as her heir I would have them free. Delia, one of their kind, fought alongside of me against the other High Fae. We will need their strength if we are to overcome the darkness Marissa spreads in her wake."
He looked unimpressed, but at least nodded without argument. "I will consider your words," he finally said.
"I have a question," one of the other Fae announced.
His name was Walter Ferrer and he also had ties to the casino business. He was some type of descendant of the Roman God, Vulcanus. I'd often wondered if that big volcano on the Las Vegas Strip had been his idea.
"Why now? From what Milagre tells us you've been in town for years and this Marissa High Fae has ties to here as well. Why show yourself now? You were what, a cop and now a P.I.? Hell, you could have run this town with us for years."
"I showed myself when it was necessary," I answered, not willing to let them know how new I was to this world. Milagre and I had expected just such a question. "Like I said, I'm not one of those old Gods… and… I don't need to run this town."
With that said and a smile on my face I raised my sword again and with a flash of light we were back in the conference room of the Neptune's Landing, everyone back in their fancy suits. Thank the Gods for smoke and mirrors, I thought to myself.
"As leaders of your community I'm sure you still have much to discuss," I announced, allowing my sword to magically disappear back into the hilt. "Mr. Milagre, I return the meeting to you." I swung my head back and addressed the others in the room. "While I believe my little demonstration has answered your questions about who… and what, I am, I also hope you will consider what Siegfried has told you. I am available should any of you wish to discuss these matters further." That said I walked over to the doors, turned and nodded to them all, and then left the room before anyone could ask another question.
I swung by the casino and stopped in a coffee shop for a cup, then took the long way back up to the executive offices to wait for Milagre. I suppose I could have gotten some from his secretary, but I needed the walk to clear my head. I wasn't sure if my little show had accomplished much but at least I'd made my presence known. We'd just have to see if that was going to be a good thing or not.
As I opened the door to Milagre's office, the sound of a clap… clap… clap… greeted me. It was the attorney, Gerald Cornwall. He had been in attendance before I stepped in and was one of the Fae I had met before. He was also one of the most powerful attorney's in town and from what Bernd, the dwarf, had told me, a descendent of Artemis, the huntress, although he wasn't a High Fae as I was. Nonetheless I guessed he was pretty powerful in his own right.
"A remarkable display of magic," he commented as I walked into the room. "And you told them absolutely nothing, you should have been a politician."
"Thanks, I think…" I replied. "Where are the others?" I asked, meaning Milagre and Siegfried.
"Oh, they're still in the meeting. I left early to talk to you."
I walked over to the bar behind Milagre's desk and poured myself a small glass of Midelton, neat, then gestured at Cornwall who gave a small nod. Pouring a second glass, I went back and handed one to him before sitting down on the couch.
"I'm curious as well," he said. "Why haven't you revealed yourself until now?"
I started to respond but he stopped me.
"I'm not trying to question your motives, call it instead, an observation. I have followed some of your career. I remember when you were a police officer and I did know that your business existed. But yet there's never been even a hint of the Fae about you."
"If you're not questioning my motives then what's your point?" I responded.
"Like I said, I find it… curious."
"And as I have stated, I had my reasons." I said with a hint of agitation in my voice.
"Well then, let's leave it at that, for now. It was not my intent to offend you" He moved over to the other end of the couch and sat down. "The reason I ask is that you should know that this Marissa has been here before."
"Has she?" I asked. Of course, I knew the answer. Diantha had told me about meeting her some 40 to 50 or so years ago when Marissa was searching out the Fae. That meeting had sent Diantha into hiding until I had found her and restored her youth by returning to her the Dragon's eye, given to her by Apollo. It was the source of her longevity and beauty.
"I remember her," he said, raising his glass before taking a sip. "Of course I didn't know what she was then, but then I didn’t know what you were either."
"Interesting, I'd like to hear about it." I downed the rest of my glass and set it down on the table.
"I thought you would," he replied with a smile.
"It was after the war, WW II, that is. Vegas was a different place then, smaller and unsettled. But the magic was growing and that drew the Fae here." He turned to face me. "Did you fight in any of the human wars?" he asked.
Still digging, I thought to myself. "No, I was a little too young for Vietnam," I replied, throwing him a bone.
"Ah, well, it doesn’t really matter," he continued, ignoring the comment about my age. "Suffice it to say that when gambling started drawing humans to this place the magic drew the Fae. Not many, but a few… those bold enough to leave their planes of safety and thus begin to explore the new world. Of course, some were already here, but a least a few Fae found their way back from hiding.
"I had assumed the
role of a young attorney and settled here with the first Fae that arrived. That would have been the late '40s, after the war. That's when I first met Milagre, as a matter of fact. Of course he was using a different name then, as were we all. Oh, I knew of him before, but in those days it was Meredith that was the better known Fae. But it was he that first led the Fae to the casinos and realized we could harness the magic and begin our return to these lands.
"If the FBI hadn't come down on the mobsters so quickly we would have infiltrated them all and owned this town, as the humans would say. But as it was we were able to slowly take control of key businesses and cement our place here. "Humans," he noted. "The right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing. So afraid the general populace will learn of us that they do not even tell most of their own agents about us. As if we would allow that to happen." He said with a laugh and then paused and took a sip from his glass.
"But back to the story at hand. I believe I first met her sometime in the early '50s, must have been '52 or so. There are several reasons that I can recall her so vividly. The first is because of what I later found out, she was a Dryad. She was the first Dryad, hell, the only Dryad I'd seen here outside of the old world until you came along. The second reason is that, like you, I didn’t know she was a Fae at first, very unusual at the time. But if she is a High Fae, then that would account for it."
He got up from the couch and went over to Milagre's bar. Pouring himself another drink he gestured to me, I shook my head.
"So what else was special about her?" I asked, hoping to learn something that might be useful. As I mentioned, Diantha had told me that Marissa had been in Vegas sometime in the '60s or '70s, if Cornwall was correct, she'd been here some 10 to 15 years earlier as well.
"Well," he replied, returning to his spot on the sofa. "As I said, I didn’t find out until later that she was a Fae. But the rumor at the time was, that someone, and I now believe it to be her, was searching for a Dragon, among other things."
"A Dragon? Why would she be searching for a Dragon here?" I asked skeptically.
Cornwall stifled a laugh. "Come now, surely you know the power a Dragon could wield. Alive they could be a powerful ally. Even if dead there is much that can be utilized in magic. Take your friend, Diantha, what would she be were it not for a Dragon? But why she was searching for one here I cannot say. I am not aware of any ever leaving the old worlds. But, as I said, the magic was growing here. Who knows what it could have attracted?"
"I'm sorry," I replied. "It just caught me off guard." Score another point for Cornwall. But what he was saying was true. Diantha, the former Oracle of Delphi, owed her youth and beauty to a Dragon's eye that had been gifted her by Apollo. Although she was now basically immortal, she had been turned into an old woman when the jeweled eye was stolen from her. It was I that restored her beauty when I returned it to her after receiving it from an acquaintance of Milagre. That act had cemented her loyalty to me.
"Of course," he said, continuing. "I found all this out later, but I was told that she had been staying at a rooming house in the old Formyle area. Next to where Roxie's was before it was shut down. I believe there was at least one rather large oak tree there, next to the poplars, which would make sense for a Dryad. That is another interesting point, as I heard about this at about the same time that the old brothel burned down. Perhaps she found her Dragon after all."
I knew the place he was talking about. It was a piece of old Vegas history. Roxie's had been a rather infamous brothel that got shut down after it had been raided by the Feds in around '54. The place where it had been located was just a dirt lot bordered by the freeway and a motel these days, but the rooming house was still there, as were many of the trees.
"You said she was searching for a Dragon, among other things. What else was she searching for?" I asked.
He stood and looked down at me for a moment before replying. "Why do you wish to free the Lilin," he asked.
I shook my head and answered. "It's like I said. Delia, a Lilin, fought alongside me when I faced Marissa. I made her a promise, one which I intend to keep."
"I see… and the fact that the only way to do that is to possess the Tears of Blood has no part in your decision?"
"What does that have to do with it?" I asked, staring back at him. He was talking about the decanter Bernd had given me. Little did I realize then what I had sitting in my safe.
"Oh, come now! First Dragons and now the Tears? Surely you don’t expect me to believe that you don’t know what they are… or what one could do if they possessed them?"
I stood up and walked back to the bar. "Why don't you enlighten me before I respond?" I countered as I refilled my glass.
"Fine, keep your secrets. If that makes you happy," he retorted. "Who am I to argue with a God?" He moved back to the sofa and sat down. "Forget I said that. It was not my intention to be argumentative. Suffice it to say that she was searching for something or someone, and not just Dragons, or at least so the rumors indicated. After the destruction of the buildings she disappeared, but I had heard that she had been seen several times over the years. Don’t get me wrong, I wasn't keeping tabs on her. The Fae community is still small, and it was smaller then. In my business, well, let's just say one hears things.
"Knowing now what she is I have to assume that she was here searching for items to increase her power. It's clear she had, or has, an agenda. Killing Fae, seeking a Dragon, who knows what else she was looking for. I, for one, had no knowledge of such items of power being here, other than the magic of the city itself. But since I didn’t know about you, either, I have to guess that there is more. If the Tears are found we are in great danger. If she gets her hands on them there will be no stopping her. It will be the Fae-Lilin wars all over again… but with her leading the Lilin." He paused and looked grim. "If what I have been told about her is true, she will not be in Tartarus forever. If she does escape and amasses such power… well… that is not a battle I believe we can win."
I didn't know what to say. Bernd had given me the decanter and told me that I needed it to free the Lilin. I'd just wrapped it in a pouch and thrown it in my safe. Sure the pouch was magical and hid its contents, but if what Cornwall was saying was true I had a whole new set of problems to deal with. As if I didn't have enough already.
"Look, Gerry," I finally said. "Do you mind if I call you Gerry?"
"I hope you will. We are not at odds, you and I, and I rather hoped we could work together," he answered in a sincere voice. "I can be of great assistance in matters where the Fae and human worlds intersect. At the very least, I will make some discreet inquiries about this matter."
"I appreciate that, but listen," I said, sitting back down. "She won't be out tomorrow and believe me, I will do everything in my power to prevent her from getting her hands on anything that would be to her advantage, especially these Tears. I will find them first, and when I do they will be used only to free the Lilin." I hoped that would throw him off a bit. I was going to have to be careful to make sure that no one knew I had them. He was about to say something in response when the door opened and Siegfried, Milagre, with Diantha behind them strolled into the office.
Milagre looked over at us as he walked into the room. "I hope we aren’t intruding?" he commented.
"No, no, not at all," replied Cornwall as he stood to greet him. "Mr. Hoskins and I were just discussing future business plans. So how did the rest of the meeting go?"
"Fine, I believe we got their attention," he answered, then turned towards me. "The demonstration went over well. I think even Sergei may come on board."
"At least for now," commented Siegfried. "One can never be certain with the Vodianoi."
"True," added Milagre. "But he is no fool. He can see where the real threat is." He sat down at his desk as Siegfried and Diantha moved to seat themselves, Diantha sliding on to the couch next to me.
"So what do you want to do next?" asked Milagre.
"Well," I sighed. "I guess it's mos
tly a waiting game as far as Marissa is concerned. Although we have to assume her people will continue to attack Fae, me in particular I might add. Now that we have the leaders alerted, we'll just have to see what information comes up."
We continued on like that for a while, discussing strategies to locate our new enemy. Everything was going smoothly until Milagre asked when I planned to confront my aunt and announce my place as leader of the Dryad.
"Excuse me?" Cornwall interrupted. "I seem to be lacking some information here."
Damn, two clichés came to mind, the best laid plans and in for a penny, in for a pound… I stood up and pulled one of those new, gold colored, dollar coins out of my pocket and gestured at Cornwall. "Here, catch," I said as I tossed the coin to him. I guess I was going to have to let one more in on my secrets. It just figures, complications seemed to be the word for the day.
"What is this for," he asked, examining the coin as if he expected something magical to happen.
"Well, I suppose now I'm gonna have to hire you as my attorney for all things Fae. Consider that the down payment of your retainer. There's a few things you're gonna need to know," I answered with a sigh. Cornwall listened incredulously as I told my story, starting with the attack on Milagre and the effects of the Mages attack on me. By the time we were done he was shaking his head.
"Incredible" he said. "I suppose I should thank you for your confidence. Although I am not actually sure if you meant to share your story in this fashion."
Chapter 3
Charlie came bounding across the yard as I pulled into the driveway. I expected him to run up to the car and I did a double take as he stopped to look at me and then continued running…after a ball. Damn, I'd almost forgotten what I'd asked Sendy to do.
"All safe, kept him busy," Charlie muttered as he dropped the ball at my feet.
I was just closing the car door when Malcolm Smitt came around the corner looking for him. Malcolm was a PI specializing in computer forensics and one of my closest friends. We'd worked together on the force before we each retired and started our own PI businesses. I knew I needed some human allies so I'd had Sendy go and get him.