Red Skies

by Jan Stryvant

  "Well, that would definitely help. But I think I can give you another week."

  "Why the sudden change?" Sean growled, looking down at the First.

  "You don't need to know that."

  "Bull. Shit. Back when none of what was obviously coming was affecting me, I was perfectly fine to focus on just freeing everybody. But that's just changed, and you've said so yourself. Tell me."

  "Sean," the First growled.

  "Dad!" Sean growled back, bending over and getting right in the First's face. "You need to start talking! NOW!"

  "He certainly is your son." Keairra laughed. "I haven't seen such pigheadedness since Clint."

  "Clint learned better," the First grumbled.

  "I wasn't talking about Clint, Dear. I was talking about you," Keairra said and laughed.

  The First frowned at Keairra and then looked back at Sean. "You heard the dwarves, there's going to be a war. I thought we had until winter, but now it's starting to look like we only have until the fall, maybe sooner."

  "A war? With who?"

  "Who do you think? Now get back to your practice, and yes, you're going to need to start teaching your men and all the other lycans sword fighting when the dwarves start delivering. But we need as many of our people freed and able to fight, which means you need to free them all now so they have time to adapt and learn, and we can start working on patching up things with the magic users.

  "Got it?"

  Sean stood there and stared at the First. They were going to be fighting a war against demons?

  The First lightly cuffed Sean on the side of the head with a paw, making him blink.

  "Yeah, Dad. I think I got it."

  Straightening back up, Sean watched as the First padded off, and then turned to look at Keairra.

  "A war?" he asked.

  "Well, you didn't think all of those prophecies were about you, did you?" Keairra asked, laughing at him.

  Then she swatted him with her sword, and Sean was suddenly a lot more concerned about not getting hurt than with what he'd just been told.

  Rude Awakenings

  The phone was ringing. Groaning, Sean opened his eyes and felt around the headboard until he found it.

  "What?" he groaned, answering it.

  "My parents called me!" Steve said. "They wanted to know why some lady met them at the hotel this morning and had tickets for them to fly home."

  "You're calling me for that?" Sean grumbled. "What time is it?"

  "Seven. What, you're still in bed?"

  "We didn't get back until three, I think. Then I had a long and enjoyable game of hide the salami. What the hell, Steve, don't you watch National Geographic? Lions are supposed to sleep all day and you're getting me the fuck out of bed at seven?"

  The phone went silent for a moment.

  "You're telling me that you had sex with all six of them last night?"

  Sean groaned again. "I married them all, didn't I?"

  "Damn. I thought you just said cats are lazy!" Sean heard Steve snickering on the other end of the line. "No wonder you want to sleep in all the time!"

  "Steve," Sean growled, "was there a reason you were calling me, other than to ruin my sleep and tease me about my sex life?"

  "With six wives, I don't see how I could be teasing," Steve said, chuckling, "but yeah, there is. How the hell did you get someone to my parents so quickly?"

  "I told you last night, I'd get another lion to handle it, or lioness in this case. Are your parents coming home?"

  "Yeah, they'll be here late tonight. When I told them you needed me to go to DC and lobby for you, they didn't even ask why. I don't know what your lioness friend told them, but I think you going to all that trouble to find them got their curiosity up."

  "Wonderful," Sean said and yawned. "Now, when are you going to Washington?"

  "Oh, I think Thursday or Friday?"

  "I was thinking Monday."

  "That's way too soon, Sean."

  Sean laid back on the bed and sighed. "Steve, I'd ask you to leave right now, but I know it's been a couple of years since you've seen your parents."

  "That bad?"

  "Worse, way, way worse. I need to think about this, but you're going to be asking for a lot of favors, a lot of favors. Oh, and take John with you, you'll probably need his help to keep from being spied on."

  "Any clues?"

  "Not yet, but the first thing we need is to find out how the president is handling the pushback from Congress on that executive order."

  "I'm surprised there even is any pushback," Steve admitted.

  "Yeah, and I want you to find out just where that pushback is coming from, and why."

  "Then what?"

  "We'll talk. I gotta go." Sean sighed. "Now that I'm awake, I got a lot of things to deal with."

  "Six wives?" Steve snickered.

  "Oh god, how I wish that was all I had on my plate this morning," Sean said and hung up.

  "What's up?" Roxy asked, yawning.

  "Steve's parents will be back tonight. I'm asking him to head out Monday. Check with the people you've got setting things up in Washington and make sure he's got lots of bodyguards and security. I told him to take John to deal with any spies."

  Roxy nodded. "Anything else?"

  "Not for you." Sean reached over and shook Cali who woke up almost instantly.

  "What, Husband?"

  "Starting today, I want you to begin training everybody in sword fighting."

  Cali looked around the room at Roxy and the rest.

  "Not just them," Sean said, "everybody. If they're a lycan, I want them trained. Start with everyone in Reno and just go from there. Hopefully you can find some help."

  Cali just nodded and smiled. "As my husband wishes."

  Sean smiled, leaned over, and kissed her. Then he gave Roxy a kiss because she was there.

  "Jo, Dae, we're going to be visiting Arthur in a while, you might want to hit the shower soon."

  "Ugh, do we have to?" Daelyn grumbled as Jolene just sighed.

  "No, I'm perfectly fine with dragging you over there naked and stinking of sex," Sean smiled then, "because I'm the reason you're all nice and stinky."

  Daelyn hit him with a pillow so hard it burst and knocked him out of bed.

  Sean couldn't help but laugh as Daelyn swore loudly and, getting out of bed, stomped off to the bathroom, then turned around, came back to the bed, picked Jolene up, threw her over her shoulder, and stomped back to the bathroom. It was easy to forget just how strong Daelyn was, due to her shorter stature, but that womanly physique of hers concealed some serious dwarven muscles, after all.

  Jolene started to squeal not long after that as they all heard the sounds of the shower turning on.

  "What about me and Peg?" Roberta asked.

  "Hey! Don't go volunteering me for nothing!" Peg grumbled and stuck her head under a pillow.

  "I'll let you both know when I figure it out," Sean told them and, looking at his phone, he dialed Chad.

  "So, I take it Steve said yes?" Chad said, answering the phone.

  "Yeah, his parents come back tonight and he heads out Monday."

  "Wow, that was fast."

  "I know. We've got until Saturday to free everybody in Canada. Mexico, not much longer."

  Sean heard the sound of spewing liquids come over the phone.

  "What!"

  "Yeah, that was my reaction too. Hop to it. We need to figure out how to smuggle an army across the border into a foreign country, fight a quick war across three thousand miles, and then do it all over again next week."

  "Oh, when you say it like that, you make it sound easy," Chad replied sarcastically.

  "Yeah, well, it gets worse. I'm going with you; I'll fill you in on the rest later."

  "When are we leaving?"

  "As soon as you have the barest glimmer of a plan."

  "I'm gonna want more helicopters," Chad warned.

  "Be careful of what you wish for." Sean sighed.

>   "As long as I get lots and lots of toys, I don't give a shit!" Chad laughed.

  "No, you wouldn't." Sean sighed and hung up the phone.

  "What happened last night in lion la-la land?" Roxy asked.

  "The First believes there's a war coming."

  "I guessed that when he had you order half a million swords. Who with?"

  "I'm not quite sure, but I think it has something to do with that gate that opened last night and let those three demons in."

  "Djevels," Cali corrected.

  "Djevel, devil, demon, whatever." Sean sighed. "They want everyone freed and trained, not worrying about anything other than the fight that's coming."

  "Why?" Roxy asked.

  "Damned if I know," Sean sighed, "I'm just gonna follow orders. Now I better hit the shower and get ready to go warn Arthur."

  "Why tell Arthur?"

  "Because if a war is really coming, we're probably going to need all the help we can get?"

  "Sean! Jolene! Daelyn! Please, have a seat!" Arthur said, standing up briefly and waving to the couch as Sean was shown into his study.

  "It's been several weeks since we've met; to what do I owe the pleasure?"

  Sean smiled as he sat down. "Sorry about that, Arthur, it seems the whole world has been going crazy lately. I want to thank you personally for helping out the other week when the president was here. I gather that Duncan has been getting on well with him now?"

  "It's something of a mixed blessing." Arthur sighed. "On the one hand, the president definitely seems to trust us, Sapientia that is, but on the other, he's been seriously discussing renegotiating the Treaty of York. Between the Vestibulum's betrayal and you not asking for any special treatment for your lycans…" Arthur sighed. "Let's just say that the president is starting to wonder why we deserve the 'special treatment' we've been getting all these years."

  Sean laughed. "Sorry, Arthur, but I've always wondered that myself."

  "When the governments and the rich and powerful start using us to further their own ends, the world will become a very unpleasant place, young man. And not just for us magic users."

  'He's got you there, Son.'

  Sean nodded. "I'll have to concede that point. But still, your numbers aren't getting any bigger, Arthur, unlike the lycans. By all means, ask for the safeguards to keep the bad things from happening. I think you're right that there has to be some amount of separation. But you need to climb down off your mountain. I'm not so sure the total isolation is still as necessary as it once was, and maybe if you mingled more, you'd see an increase in your numbers."

  "Honestly, Sean. I didn't know you lions cared," Arthur said, raising an eyebrow.

  Sean shrugged. "If we didn't, we'd have let you all be slaughtered all those thousands of years ago instead of helping you."

  Arthur looked thoughtful a moment, then nodded.

  "Arthur, magic users obviously have a lot more to offer the world than they've been giving of late."

  "Now that sounds like a proposition," Arthur said with a smile.

  Sean nodded. "There's a war coming. A war that's going to need magic users, I'm quite sure. That event that all of your seers thought was me?

  "Well it isn't."

  Arthur looked at Sean a moment, organizing his thoughts. Once again Sean obviously knew more than Arthur, or the rest of the council, had suspected, and had freely shared that knowledge with him. It was only fair, he figured, to return the favor.

  Arthur nodded. "The Seer's Conference in Paris came to that conclusion several days ago. They believe you have a role in whatever is coming, but that this isn't about you or the lycans. Apparently they let themselves get distracted by those events due to their own prejudices, and now feel quite guilty that they missed something truly important. They have not seen anything about a war yet, however."

  "I don't have all the facts myself," Sean admitted. "There are still details that I haven't been told, other than that a war is coming and it's coming sooner than was first thought."

  Arthur blinked. "Wait, you haven't been told about it? Why not?"

  "Because it's not my job. Well not yet, at least."

  "I thought they told you everything?"

  Sean snorted. "I'm young yet, Arthur. Sometimes I make mistakes, as I've been reminded more than once."

  'Well, you do!" the First snickered.

  "Freeing the lycans was the first step in preparing for what comes next. I was given that task, and no others, because no one wanted me distracted from what we all agree is the most important thing right now. I came here today to warn you about what's coming. I wasn't told to come here by anyone, I came on my own because I felt it was only fair after all the help you've provided me to tell you what I know. When I know more, you'll know more."

  "This isn't going to get you in trouble with your leaders I hope?"

  Sean shook his head. "No, he didn't stop me when I said this morning that I was going to talk to you."

  Arthur nodded. "I'll call Duncan and the other council heads and pass on your warning. Adding that to what the seers are telling us, well, I think that will be more than enough to get us to start taking precautions."

  Sean nodded. "Thank you."

  "Oh, Jolene?" Arthur said, looking at his niece.

  "Yes, Uncle?"

  "Call your mother, please. I've been talking to her, and I think she wants to make amends."

  Jolene hesitated a moment. "I, I don't know, Uncle."

  "Jo, I know my sister. Sometimes she acts hastily, and sometimes she takes rash actions she regrets later. She's felt bad about the things she said to you ever since she said them, but she didn't know how to apologize for them. Humility has never been one of Sharon's strong points, regretfully. However, I think I've helped her figure that out."

  "I'll, I'll think about it, Arthur."

  "I'm not asking you to do this just for you, Jo," Arthur said with a smile. "I'm asking it for her, too. She is my little sister, after all. But if there's one thing your husband is right about, it's that we all need to stop acting like we've got a magical stick up our butts that makes us better than everyone else. I'm hoping to get your mother to see that."

  "Thanks, Uncle Arthur. I'll think about it. I promise."

  "Thanks, Jo. I can't ask for anything more than that." Arthur stood then, as Sean had started to rise.

  "Again, thank you all for coming, and thank you, Sean, for your warning. If I learn anything, I'll be sure to let you know as well."

  Sean shook hands with Arthur and smiled. "Until next time then."

  "Until next time," Arthur said with a smile.

  Arthur's man James opened the door, and Sean followed the girls as they were escorted out of the study and down to the front doors, where James wished them all a good day.

  "So, Jo," Sean asked, "you going to call your mother?"

  Jolene shook her head. "Maybe. You know my parents threw me out when they discovered I had no magic of my own, right?"

  Sean nodded, and gave Jolene a hug as they stopped by Daelyn's car. "Yeah, Roxy told me. But hey, you did marry a rich and powerful man like the seer told them, so it all worked out, right?" Sean said with a smile.

  "I seem to recall you beating Peg's father to death, Sean."

  "Yeah, but he was going to kill her to save his own skin." Sean gave her another hug. "Look, what your parents did was despicable; you won't get any argument from me on that. But there's a world of difference between being disowned and having your father whipping you to death to save his own skin."

  "And I seem to recall you had to forgive someone who tried to murder you, didn't you?" Jolene sighed remembering what had happened between Sean and the Hyena.

  Sean snorted. "I haven't forgiven him; I don't know if I ever will. But he kept his word, so I'm not going to kill him. Whatever you want to do, Jo, I'll back your decision. But still, I'd think you'd want your mom to meet your husband and…wives," Sean said with an evil grin.

  Jolene shook her head and smacke
d him on the ass, grinning. "And to think you were such an innocent when we first met."

  "I was naive and inexperienced, I wasn't exactly innocent." Sean chuckled, helping her into the back seat of the car.

  "Where to, Sean?" Daelyn asked.

  "Might as well touch bases with Sawyer as well, he always seems to know something about anything that's going on."

  "You got it!"

  Roxy stretched and sighed as she sat down in her office. When they'd started building on the property, she'd had them put an office in the building that handled all their security next to the one they'd put in for Oak. Since she was the one in charge of everything, it was of course the biggest one on the property, even bigger than the one Sean sometimes shared with Deidre.

  Not that Sean knew about it. Roxy was pretty certain Sean hadn't figured out she even had an office yet. He'd never been in it. All the others had, of course, they all knew Roxy ran things and they were fine with that. The others were all picking out their own 'personal' space in different buildings on the compound so they could engage in their own hobbies or pursuits. Daelyn had taken over one of the garages, and Roxy had approved quite a few equipment purchases that made no sense to her at all, but if Daelyn wanted it, Roxy made sure she got it.

  Cali had taken over one of the vaults in this building, turning it into her own personal armory. Roxy tended to avoid it because, as she had told Cali, "When I see all those weapons, I get jealous. Then I get horny." Cali had laughed and promised her that when things settled down, she'd help Roxy start her own collection.

  Roberta had wanted a workshop of her own, like most magic users, though, because hers was for casting and studying spells, it looked more like a study and wasn't as big as the one Sean used for enchanting. Roxy made sure to put it in a building as far from Sean's as possible after Roberta warned her that having them too close to each other could cause problems.

  Jolene had wanted a workout room. Roxy had never realized that Jolene practiced some offshoot of yoga. Apparently that had a lot to do with how limber she was and why she was able to do some of those amazing tricks in bed. She also had a cello in there, which apparently she practiced on daily. Roxy now made a point of listening to Jolene practice at least once a week, because Jolene was actually quite good, and while Roxy loved all the others a lot, she'd been friends with Jolene for almost three years now, and sometimes she just needed that familiarity in her life. Especially when Sean wasn't around.