Pride and Perdition

by Kaye Draper

  "Stop it!" I yelled. "Just fucking let him breathe. He's only a human."

  The fae tilted his head to look down at me. "They are so frail, aren't they? Crushing them is like stepping on a bug. I quite enjoy the...pop."

  He glanced at the moon above and then at Hisashi and Oisin, and I could tell his patience was wearing thin. "Bring me my power," he said to Hisashi, his voice laced with compulsion magic.

  Con fell over, unconscious from the lack of Oxygen.

  The fox took a step closer, and for a moment, I thought the compulsion was working. Then Hisashi turned to me, broke through the fae's barrier, and placed Oisin in my arms. "Go to the jet, Gesa. I'll be along in a minute."

  I gaped at him as I took his precious cargo from him, Con gasping out a startled breath behind us as air poured into his lungs. "Hisashi...what the hell are you doing?"

  But once again, I had my arms full of the one thing I'd die for or kill to protect. "Damn you, don't do this."

  Kai and a rather blue-tinged Con pulled me back, away from Hisashi and toward the distant hangar. "Hisashi! You motherfucker come on, right now!" I shouted, panic clawing at my chest. He could not be fucking thinking of taking on an ancient, powered up fae by himself. Dumbass motherfucking, self-sacrificing asshole fox!

  I couldn't fight my way free of Kai's grip with a busted foot and Oisin in my arms. And the fox fucking knew it.

  His snow-white hair lifted in a breeze no one else felt. "You've lived a few centuries too long, fae," Hisashi whispered, his deep voice echoing with power. "Let me help fix that for you."

  The fae smiled, showing off sharp teeth, his red eyes flaring with magic. "Are you threatening me, child?"

  Hisashi only smiled a feral smile. "Me? Of course not. But them?" He gestured at the air around them...at nothing. "They might have something to say about all the pain and suffering you've caused in the clan you were supposed to lead and protect. The way you've disturbed the balance of nature in your pursuit of everlasting power."

  The breeze picked up and a swirling mist started to form around the Hisashi. It curled outward like fingers, grasping, seeking.

  Oisin's father's smug expression faltered and a flat mask fell into place to hide his unease. "What are you rambling about now, fox?"

  The mist started to solidify, to form people-shaped forms of smoke and shadow that made all the hair stand up on my arms and chills walk up the back of my neck.

  Hisashi spread his arms. "Your clan. Your ancestors. The ones you've tortured and murdered. The dishonor. The lives you've crushed underfoot all these centuries." He grinned. "Dude, you can't think you were going to get away with that shit forever. Karma's a bitch and all."

  He moved his hands forward and the people-shaped smoke figures rushed the fae, pummeling him with half-formed fists, pulling at his hair and clothing. I was shocked when some of them seemed to be material enough to cause actual damage. Rips and tears appeared in the fae's perfect riding clothes. A long, bloody scratch appeared on one cheek.

  The fae's red eyes widened in fear, but he shook it off and stood tall with a wash of his own magic tingling over him, setting all to rights. "Children's tricks meant to scare the superstitious." He flicked a hand dismissively and took a step toward me and Oisin. "I'm done playing your games. Your parlor tricks are nothing to me." His eyes met mine and his voice echoed in my head. "Bring. Him. Here."

  I roared internally when my foot lifted and I took a step toward the fae, helpless against his mind control. All I could manage to do was slow the movements. I was about to deliver the man I loved right into the arms of his tormentor.

  "Fae!" Hisashi shouted. "Look at me."

  Surprised, Cadoc turned to the fox with a look of exasperation on his face. I was afraid of what that gaze might compel Hisashi to do. But one look at the fox and I was suddenly more afraid of what Hisashi might do all on his own.

  His eyes skipped silver and went straight to smoke white. My jaw dropped open as Hisashi lifted off the ground, hovering in a tornado of misty magic, nine fluffy white tails spread out behind him. He spread his hands and opened his mouth in a silent war-cry.

  The misty forms rushed the fae...and seeped into him. I watched in horror as the ghosts of the slain filled the fae's body, overwhelming his aura until he was pulsing with a gray light that felt inherently...not good. The pulses of energy grew stronger and stronger as the fae gritted his teeth and tried to fight it off.

  The fae threw back his head and howled in anger. Then he...exploded.

  The contained spirits flew outward, swirling and howling as they flew skyward and faded out. Chunks of fae meat pattered around us like rain. I doubt there was a piece of him left that was bigger than a dime.

  "Jesus, Buddha, and Odin," I breathed.

  Well, that was...a thing. What a fucking way to die.

  I glanced at Hisashi and my hackles rose. He was still floating, eyes still lost in that misty white. The wind around us picked up and I fought to keep my feet as Kai swore and grabbed a hold of Con and Halstad, pulling them to the ground and anchoring them with her tentacle-like grip and her kraken strength.

  "Hisashi!" I called out. "You can stop now. We're good. Call it off."

  The wind whipped around us, sucking everything in toward the fox. I staggered another step closer involuntarily as I was tugged forward by invisible hands. Misty forms began to materialize in the wind, along with the whisper of voices forming unintelligible words. They didn't sound friendly.

  "Hisashi," I yelled again. "God damn it fox. Stand the fuck down!"

  I really didn't want to do that exploding thing like dear old pops. Didn't look fun at all.

  I hit my knees and leaned back, holding onto Oisin and fighting the wind. I let out a very girlish squeak when something tickled my neck.

  Glancing down, I found dull emerald eyes peering up at me as Oisin made a weak attempt to pull me down to him, his fingers like a ghost touch on my neck.

  I bent my head to him. "Oh Gods. Fuck I'm so glad you're alive, you little snark."

  He croaked something into my ear. The wind and the ghosts were howling so bad by this time that I could barely hear him. He tugged me closer and I finally understood. "Take me to him."

  Pulling back, I looked down at my poor, nearly dead fae. "If you wanted to die, I could have left you back there, you know. Ghostsplosion does not look like a good way to go."

  He didn't even crack a grin. His dim eyes flicked to the fox and his long throat worked as he swallowed. I thought he was going to tell me to fuck off. But instead he lifted one scarred, skeletal hand and pointed at the fox.

  I sighed and pushed myself unsteadily to my feet. The crushed leg still wasn't completely healed, and it protested the abuse. I let the wind tug me forward until we reached Hisashi. "Hey up there," I shouted over the wind, craning my head back to look up at the floating nine-tail. "Visitor for you, Dr. Weirdshit."

  Oisin reached out a trembling hand and I moved closer, holding the fae up like some sort of offering to the scary fox god. Oisin gripped the hem of Hisashi's sweatshirt and tugged weakly. He didn't have the strength of a kitten, his fae healing overwhelmed by the energy drain and what looked like repeated trauma. But it was enough to get through to Hisashi.

  White eyes flicked downward, and the silver returned as Hisashi slowly sank to the ground. The wind started to die down a bit and Oisin reached out both hands in supplication, like a baby insisting on "up."

  Hisashi reached out and took the fae from me. I was loathe to let him go now that he was awake. Especially since Hisashi was one step away from killing us all. But it felt right, somehow. Oisin went to his other mate and curled into him, putting a hand on Hisashi's broad chest. Hisashi started and his eyes returned to their usual ice blue shade as the spirits and the wind disappeared.

  It was only then that I sensed a hint of Oisin's magic. The moment Hisashi came back to himself, Oisin slumped, passing out again. The idiot had probably just used up all the magic he had left.<
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  Hisashi clutched the fae to him and let out a half-sob, lifting silver-rimmed eyes to mine. "Gesa?"

  I heaved a sigh and tugged at his sleeve. "Walk now, talk later."

  We all turned and headed toward the hangar. Thank fuck this nightmare was almost over.

  "Faster," Halstad urged, his gravelly voice even more gruff than usual. His face was still stained with bloody tears and he was wearing his goggles. He limped and shuffled but managed to pick up the pace. "I sense fae magic. The rest of the fuckers are still headed this way."

  I grimaced. Of course. The rest of the nobles. Maybe what was left of the hounds. And we had just murdered their dear leader. We burst into the hangar and I slid to a stop, causing the others to slam into me from behind and send me a few more staggering steps forward.

  The troll was lying dead on the ground, fae arrows protruding from his thick chest and his face. Next to the jet stood a six-foot tall stone gargoyle, a few fae that I recalled from Evalyn's group lying dead around it.

  I ran to the statue and smoothed my hands over the stone wings and the ugly bulldog head. "What...Granite?" I turned back to the others, way the fuck out of my element. "Is he…dead?"

  Halstad shuffled over and put a hand on the stone beast. "Dormant. I can still feel a trace of magic there." He shrugged. "Probably wounded so badly he had to go into stasis...it's a gargoyle thing. It'd take a nuke to hurt him now."

  I rubbed a hand over my head. "Who did this? Why?"

  Kai let out a string of curses and I turned to watch her shove a dead fae out of the jet. This one was dressed like the ones in the hunt, all dark fabrics and bristling with weapons. "These fuckers," she muttered. Her dark blue eyes met mine and her mouth was pinched. "There's a few more dead ones onboard. Looks like Granite and the troll killed them. But not before...." She gestured for me to follow her.

  The cockpit had been completely destroyed, the wires and controls ripped out and smashed, then melted.

  "Gesa!" Con called from outside the jet. "We need to get out of here."

  Kai and I joined the others to find Halstad pacing awkwardly on his bum leg, weaving a shield over us. "They're coming."

  I could see the moonlit landscape out the wide door of the hangar. The thunder of huge hooves and the baying and howling of the hounds was shitty enough. But beyond that...torches. The wild hunt was nearly upon us, and they were followed by the rest of the enraged Silverleaf clan.

  I had no idea where the fuck Evalyn and her crew had bugged off to...but we were screwed. We had no way home. And all of us were injured in some way or another. Halstad and Hisashi might be strong, but they couldn't hold off a mass of other magic users indefinitely.

  "I...." I looked at my pride. There was nothing I could fucking do to save them. I was supposed to be capable. Strong. I was their fucking alpha, for fuck's sake. And we were all going to die here.

  "Come closer to me," Hisashi said softly. "All of you. Touch me. Get a good grip and don't let go, no matter what."

  We all shifted closer, sharing wary glances. After that little exploding fae trick, I think we were all a bit gun-shy of our fox.

  Halstad backed closer to Hisashi, one raised hand still holding up the shield. "Boy, you can't seriously be thinking what I think you're thinking."

  Hisashi just gave him a nervous smile. "What's the point of power if you can't use it for good. Someone old and wise—and fucking cranky as hell—taught me that. Grab a tail, old man. I can feel it inside me. The power calling me to come. We're going for a little trip."

  I reached out and clutched one of Hisashi's fluffy fox tails as the others did the same. "Hisashi? What is he talking about?"

  The fox held Oisin tighter and closed his eyes as the air began to rush around us. "I know it's scary. But please Gesa, believe in me just a little longer."

  The air around us began to shimmer and waver, like looking down a long stretch of blacktop on a hot summer day. Fae riders poured into the hangar through the wide door, brandishing swords and magic, trailing deadly hellhounds. Then we...shifted.

  It was like stepping sideways, like falling into a reflection in the puddle at your feet and coming out on the other side.

  The world around us was misty and gray. Smoky creatures I had never seen before leered at us from every direction, interspersed with humanoid forms, ghostly vegetation, and the tall, broken skeletons of half-finished buildings and dead trees.

  "Hisashi," I breathed, my voice oddly flat as if there was nothing for it to echo off from in this place. "What the hell have you done?"

  Chapter 15

  "Fuck, son," Halstad breathed. "You really did it. I'll be Godsdamned!"

  Hisashi let out a nervous chuckle. "Oh, I did it all right. And it's taking every ounce of strength I have, so let's hurry this along." He shot me an apologetic look over his shoulder. "I have a feeling yanking you all in here with me was the easy part."

  Shifting Oisin to a more comfortable position in his arms, Hisashi squared his shoulders and closed his eyes. After a breath or two, a glowing trail appeared on the ground, leading off into the mists. "Stay on the path. Don't let go of me, no matter what. And just...ignore them when they try to get your attention. They're like stray dogs—feed them and they'll follow you home." He shuddered. "And they don't make good pets."

  We all shuffled along with Hisashi, who went at an agonizingly slow pace. I wasn't sure if he was moving like an old man so we could all keep up, or because he was barely holding on to whatever magic he was doing. I prayed like fuck it wasn't the last reason.

  The light here was different here, a sort of diffuse dullness that came from nowhere in particular. It made the whole place seem colorless and made me feel like I couldn't tell up from down. I tripped, clutching Hisashi's tail so hard he hissed at me to ease up. Glancing back, I saw a long, pulsing tendril of mist had snaked across the trail to trip me.

  "Uh, Hisashi," I said glancing to the side to see faces leering at us out of the gloom, wide, black eyes reflecting us back like mirrors. "Are they...like actively trying to get us to freak out and leave the path?"

  He didn't answer that. "Just don't go off the path."

  A glowing lantern appeared by the gray outline of what looked like a pub. Warm laughter filtered out. It was so enticing, I almost stepped right off the Godsdamned path. A cold hand trailed over my neck, and I jerked my gaze straight ahead.

  Don't meet their eyes, Gesa, you fuckstick. I hoped like hell this creepy puppy wasn't following me home. A sudden chill shook me, and I huffed out a breath, watching it puff like smoke in the cold air.

  "It's getting colder," Con breathed, his teeth chattering. "Why is it getting colder? Is that a bad thing?"

  Hisashi stopped, tilted his head, his eyes still closed. "Shut. Up. All of you."

  I didn’t think Hisashi was talking to us. I shared a glance with Con. The rest of us were a bit hardier, but Con could only take so much cold. And I didn't know what Halstad's tolerance was—if having magic protected his basically human body or not.

  We shuffled along a bit more, then turned suddenly and veered off in another direction, the glowing path lighting up then fading, lighting up then fading, as if we had a faulty signal.

  My fingers were growing numb with cold and Con's teeth were audibly chattering when Hisashi stopped and didn't start up again. "Fuck," he whispered, going rigid.

  "Just breathe," Halstad said, patting Hisashi's back with his free hand.

  Hisashi growled at him. "I lost it. I fucking lost the path." He held Oisin tighter, burying his head in the crook the fae's neck, and I feared he might crush him.

  "Hisashi?" I said tentatively, knowing I was not going to like the answer to the fucking question. "What do you mean you lost the path?"

  He threw back his head and howled, making the creeping creatures in the mists startle, then start howling themselves. "I mean," he said through clenched teeth, "I've yanked us all over here to save our lives but now I can't find the fucking way home
!"

  Con leaned against me, his hand still gripped claw-like around Hisashi's tail. "S-s-sooo cold."

  I put my free arm around him. I was still fucking naked. Kai had been wearing Con's coat, but she draped it around him awkwardly with one hand and she was as naked as I was. Any colder and we wouldn't have to worry about nipples anymore. They’d fall off.

  "You're not actually cold," Hisashi said softly. "It's soul loss. This place is draining you all." He sent out a soft wave of his own magic and I felt instantly warmer as it swirled over my skin.

  Hisashi closed his eyes again and I could feel him seeking, pouring his own spirit energy outward in search of home. "If only I had listened and tied myself to a fucking shrine. At least I'd have a Godsdamned anchor right now."

  I sighed. "If you'd tied yourself to a shrine you wouldn't have been here to kill Oisin's dad or help us escape a bunch of rabid fae and their dogs...we were going to be toast either way." I let out a bitter laugh. "Although Popsicles seems more likely right now."

  Kai laughed. No one else seemed to see the humor in my words.

  Another cold hand ghosted up my thigh and I shook it off like a mosquito. My legs suddenly felt weak. "I need to sit," I warned Hisashi before my knees buckled. We all crouched together, like some sort of weird choreographed interpretive dance.

  Con was shivering again, and I held him against my side, hoping maybe he could steal a little of my innate magic. Halstad sank down on my other side. "Well, this really wasn't how I thought I'd die. A million other weird-ass situations I could think of, and it comes down to death in the otherworld, surrounded by a bunch of over-sexed idiots."

  "Thanks," Hisashi muttered, caressing Oisin's pale face, his own vulpine features sad and wan, stark white in the odd lighting. He looked like a ghost himself, like he belonged here, king of the ethereal, smoky assholes.

  I chuckled at my thoughts, and it slowly built to a wheezing, belly laugh that left me in tears.