by Viola Grace
Freddy stepped forward until she was next to her friend. The brunette settled next to her, looking out over the dotted landscape. The blond was on the other side of Adrea.
They all stared, and Adrea moved forward, her white hair ruffling in a light breeze. She lifted her hands out and whispered, “Thank you for your service, you may return to sleep now.”
The open plots of land sealed up and green meadow covered them in under a minute. Oddly, there were only ten remaining dots of soil on the landscape.
“The rest of you can wake now.” Adrea raised her hands upward, and for a moment nothing happened. The soil slowly shifted, and small tendrils crawled toward the light, pulling themselves out of the soil as their roots dove deep.
The apple seed that Freddy had picked wasn’t growing alone. Another tree was rising with it, twining together until they burst into blooming branches.
She glanced at Adrea, but Adrea’s focus was intense. The stranger next to her was looking beyond the apple trees, and when she saw what he was staring at, she jolted in shock.
Past the apple trees, along the furthest line of growing plants was something sprouting up from the base soil of Ritual Space that had no business being there.
Freddy took a step forward and then another. The brunette was at her side, and soon, they were standing together and looking at the creation that was about six inches tall and growing stronger by the second.
Her companion spoke softly, his voice a smooth whisper of sound, “What is it?”
“It was my unknown seed. I am guessing it was yours as well.”
The small twist of metal that was growing out of the soil was wreathed in fire. Demon fire. Specifically, Freddy’s demon fire.
She crouched down and reached out to touch the flickering flame, but it was the metal that bent toward her fingers. The burn of the silvery coil was a surprise. It felt like her hellfire.
He knelt and reached out. The fire wrapped around his fingers, and he smiled. “It feels cold and hot at the same time.”
She watched him play with it. “You have touched demon fire before?”
“There was an example at my master’s forge. No one was allowed to touch it, but it called to me.” He grimaced. “I had to change my path through the forge to avoid it.”
“That is peculiar.” She grinned. “I know most instructors would love to have demon fire on display and let their students play with it. That wouldn’t get them into any trouble at all.”
He chuckled and slowly pulled his fingers away from the flames. “You planted here?”
“I did. And everywhere you did as well. It seems we are going to have to split the proceeds.” She smiled. “So, do you want the metal or the flame?”
Adrea’s voice sounded behind them. “That belongs to Ritual Space. The other four can be split between you.”
Freddy turned her head and saw the seriousness in her eyes. “So, this is just a tease?”
“No, it is an experiment to find you a possible replacement mage. You are compatible on a magical level; now, you have to explain to him what your situation is, and he will have to make a choice.”
He got to his feet and looked down at Freddy. “What is she saying?”
Freddy got up and brushed her hands along her jeans. “Well, I think introductions are in order, and then, I will provide explanations.”
Adrea called out. “There is tea set in the gardens.”
Freddy nodded thanks and turned to her candidate. “Hello, my name is Freddy, and I am a hellhound bound to your family.”
He paused and extended his hand to her. “My name is Symon, and I am a metal mage. What do you need from me?”
Freddy grinned and linked her arm with his, walking him out of the planting field and toward the gardens.
“How do you know your way around so well?”
“My friend got bonded here. We had the rehearsal and the recon here. Also, I have been here for Imara’s graduation celebration.”
He blinked. “I got that invitation. I wasn’t sure it was real.”
Freddy snorted. “Imara is more than real; she’s here with her familiar.”
“Is she really the seventh child of a seventh child?”
“Oh, that. Yeah. I thought you were referring to the Death Keeper stuff.”
He smiled slowly. “I thought that was an exaggeration.”
“No. She can work with spectres, that isn’t in doubt.” Freddy looked around. The path to the gardens had taken a rather long turn.
“What do you do for an occupation?”
She wrinkled her nose. “I am currently between jobs, so I am keeping my family home up and running. I get free groceries and plenty of recovery time, so it works out.”
“What happened to your previous job?”
“Ah, I ended up absent a few too many times. It is excusable at a regular office, but it sucks when you are supposed to be reporting on sporting events.”
“May I ask what caused the absences?”
She wrinkled her nose. “This is the crux of the day, I guess. I am a familiar. I was born into a family curse, and when it was time, my mage called for me. My life has not been pleasant or predictable since.”
He stopped, and she let him look her over. “You don’t look like a familiar.”
She snorted. “Is it the lack of fur and pointed ears?”
“Uh, yeah.”
“Cursed familiars are different. It is a game that the Mage Guild likes to play with folks who have broken their rules. One of my ancestors killed one of yours in a duel, and now, I am stuck with one of your distant cousins.”
“What is the problem with your mage?”
Freddy let out a soft huff. “My mage is a brat who has been using me to intimidate her enemies and line her pockets. Even her own family hasn’t been immune to her using me as a weapon.”
He nodded, and they resumed walking. When he realized what she had said, he stopped again. “Weapon?”
“I am a hellhound. She used me to get her family to sign over wealth and properties. Currently, she uses me in familiar fights. It is agonizing and horrible to have to inflict such damage to other familiars. I hate it.”
She flexed her fingers against his arm, and he placed his hand over hers. He was trying to calm her, and it was adorable.
“What happens when you return to your normal life?”
“I spend a few days recovering from the damage, and then, I try to get back to regular tasks. When the bruises fade, I go and have coffee with friends.”
“Bruises?”
“Yeah, the slashes heal pretty early, but the bruises remain for quite a while. Some of the familiars I go up against have crushing strength and long fangs.”
“Wait, she is forcing you to shift your shape and then fight other familiars?”
Freddy cocked her head. “I am fairly sure that she doesn’t know I have a human shape. Her first summoning locked me into my default form, and when I fight, I become a hellhound.”
“What would you do if you were free of her?”
Freddy sighed. “I think I would sleep for an entire day and know that I was safe, that I wouldn’t be pulled away from friends or family. I would probably restart my life all over again.”
“What if your new mage needed you?”
Freddy chuckled. “I would be there in a heartbeat. Literally. Though, a warning on my cell would be nice.”
“What would you do for me?”
“Whatever needed doing. I can bring power and charm to any occasion.” She smirked.
“I don’t doubt that. So, I guess I just have one more question.”
She led him to the tea set that was suddenly at the end of their path. Freddy sat down and poured tea for both of them.
She took one of the little sandwiches and smiled brightly at him. “What is your question?”
He took a tiny tea sandwich that looked ridiculously small in his grip. “Wha
t do I have to do?”
Freddy blinked. “You are serious?”
“I am. Do I have to kill her or something?”
“I don’t believe so. The others are working on a transfer of power using your blood, and that of the original blood registered at the Mage Archive.”
He sipped at his tea. “How long will that take?”
“Weeks? Days? Months? I don’t know.”
“And in the meanwhile, you are still being used by your mage.”
“Yes, but if I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, things will be better.”
“And you will be tortured.”
Freddy smiled slightly. “I have already gotten today off, so things are looking up.”
He stared at her with his icy green eyes. “You were summoned today?”
“I was, but no one can remove magic from Ritual Space, and that is what I become when I am summoned.”
“When can we start this process? I will fight your mage if I have to.”
Freddy nodded. “Good. You might have to. The good thing is that without my power, she hasn’t got much skill. She uses a hammer to get through life, and I am her four-pound sledge.”
He grimaced. “At least you are speaking of something I am familiar with. Who will be coordinating your emancipation?”
“Imara, her mother Mirrin, and Adrea. It isn’t emancipation so much as transfer of attachment.”
“So, how would you feel about attaching to me?” He raised one of his dark brows.
Freddy looked at his hand, and she smiled. “I would be delighted to be your familiar if you handed over that last cream puff.”
He grinned and extended his hand. The bargain was struck.
Chapter Five
Freddy dreaded the ride home. Adrea had given her a bag with the fruits of the growing seeds, but it was just magical fruit and vegetables that would be applied to a later spell.
Symon got in his truck, nodded to her, and drove off with a wave. Freddy took careful steps away from Ritual Space until she was behind the wheel of her car.
Adrea was watching and waving from the doorway as Freddy pulled away from the parking area.
The pull on her magic went from a distant tugging to a hard yank.
The cool air of England wrapped around her doggy form. Her mage hauled her out of the purse and shook her hard. “How dare you defy me, you little bitch?”
Freddy’s small body was slammed into a wall, and then, she was kicked down a set of stairs, across a floor, and while she lay in agony, her mage scooped her up and dumped her back in the purse. “We have fights to win, bitch.”
Freddy was bleeding, and it wasn’t good. She tried to give the pain to her mage, but the woman wouldn’t have any of it.
When they arrived at the fight club, and her mage set her on the ground, the room went quiet.
One of the others yelled, “What the hell is wrong with you? She’s half dead.”
Her mage nudged her with a foot. “She will fight, or she will die. Those are her options.”
Freddy tried to pull her energy together, but she collapsed instead.
The blood coursing out of her mouth and nose made other members of the gathering look at her mage with shock and disgust.
“Fine. If you won’t fight, get gone back to where you live.”
Freddy was never so eager to get a dismissal in her life. She needed a healer in the worst way.
She woke up surrounded by white sheets and puffy pillows.
“It is about time that you were up, Freddy. I was beginning to worry. How did you get here?”
Freddy took a breath and smiled at how easy it was. She looked at Minerva in her queenly state of advanced pregnancy, and she inclined her head. “Thank you for your help. I needed a healer, and as you know, I am complicated.”
Minerva snorted. “All cursed beings are.”
“Well, thank you. I feel better. How long have I been here?”
“Three days. I have been in touch with Adrea, and she has had your vehicle returned to your family home. Benny is worried, and the Death Keeper, Imara, has something to keep a summons from happening again. She sent it along, actually.”
“Sent it? With whom?”
Minerva grinned. “Her cat brought them. He was very polite, very charming, and he stayed to have a beer with my mate. That shit was weird.”
Freddy was shocked into laughter, and she covered her mouth with one hand. The filigree band on her wrist was definitely new.
She looked, and her other wrist had the same flat and delicately woven band. She could barely feel it.
“There are two on your ankles as well. I must say, the workmanship is excellent. I have rarely seen such precise execution of the containment glyphs.”
Freddy looked at them, and she traced the design with one fingertip. “Is there one around my neck?”
“Yes. Can’t you feel it?”
“No. It is completely skin temperature.” Freddy touched her neck and searched for the slight difference in texture that marked the super-thin metalwork.
“That’s a good thing. If you don’t know it is there, I can conceal it.”
Freddy looked at them, and she cocked her head. “Can you get me the ingredients for an amulet or something? I can do the spell myself.”
Minerva scowled. “Are you suggesting that I can’t do a simple concealment spell?”
“I am suggesting that with all those extra hormones in you, it might blow up in my face. I want both of us safe and sound.”
Her pregnant friend exhaled slowly and picked up a notebook from next to the bed. “This is a simple one, so some herbs and a light enchantment should do the trick. You just need a focus object, and you are set.”
Minerva’s pen whipped across the paper, and when she was done, she lifted the page to her lips and blew on it. The paper stiffened, curled, and was a scroll worthy of an ancient mage in a few seconds.
“I love watching you do that.”
Minerva smiled and got to her feet with a grunt. “I know. It’s a kickass party trick. Now, I can send you home to your own bed.”
Freddy looked at her friend and nodded. “Right.”
“Well, my dragon will send you through. We don’t want you to end up halfway around the world.”
“Thanks, Minerva. I really mean it.”
“I know, Freddy. Take better care of yourself when you get your new mage. You deserve better.”
Freddy blinked at the sincerity in Minerva’s voice. “Thank you. I think that is the nicest thing you have ever said to me.”
“I will get my fire-breathing idiot. Wait here.” Minerva winked and left the room.
Freddy looked down at the parchment in her hands. The ingredients were simple, and the preparation was direct. The flicker of hellfire was the lynchpin, but it was an ingredient that she had in abundance.
Freddy got out of bed and snorted at the Grecian toga that she was wearing. Minerva was a fan of the classics.
Freddy looked around and located her clothing and cell phone. She had just wrapped her hands around them when a pillar of light enveloped her. Apparently, she was going home right now.
Freddy blinked at Mirrin Deepford-Smythe and looked at Symon. “What am I doing here?”
“We are in the Mage Archives, and we are transferring your curse from your current mage to Symon.” Imara walked into the small chamber and took her pile of clothing from her, setting it on a shelf against the wall.
“So fast?” Freddy was shocked at the timeline.
“Minerva and her mate had a conference with the guild, and they agreed that they wanted to live, and if your life was the price of that, they were handing you over to Symon.”
Symon was looking her over with a strange expression in his ice-green eyes. “I wasn’t expecting you to look like this.”
Freddy looked down and blushed. Slightly more humidity in the room and she would be naked. Th
e muslin of her toga didn’t hide anything.
Mirrin nodded. “They are waiting for us. If you are ready, Freddy?”
Imara snorted and picked up her familiar. She tucked him up on her shoulder, but he was busy staring at her mother. Imara murmured, “This is awkward. Mr. E, stop ogling my mother’s legs. I know she is flashing all kinds of ankle, but this is neither the time, nor the place.”
Freddy chuckled and fought the urge to cross her arms over her breasts. Symon had a definite interest in her curves that was both intriguing and terrifying. By the terms of the curse she was under, she couldn’t say no to him once they were linked. The prospect was more appealing than it should be.
She walked with the other mages down the corridor and blinked in surprise at the three mages who were waiting for them.
Mirrin went up to them and handed the central figure a small box. Without a word, the man opened the box, nodded, and walked over to a small brazier in the corner of the room.
“Hold the familiar, please.”
Imara gripped Freddy’s left arm, and Symon grabbed her right. The mage whispered soft words, and he placed some of the contents of the box into the flames.
Freddy didn’t have a chance to ask what was going on. The flames burned into her very soul. She arched her back and screamed as her magic and link to her mage were scorched. The fire of connection was something she had heard about, but not many familiars experienced it first hand and lived. Freddy wasn’t sure she was going to survive it.
“Just hold on a few moments longer, Freddy. It is almost over, I promise.” Symon’s voice was urgent and caring at the same time. It was strange, as they didn’t properly know each other yet. Freddy concentrated on his voice as he kept up the encouragement.
She was positive that her soul was nothing but ash, and sweat dripped into her eyes from the agony. A narrow-eyed glance at the mage in the corner let her know that he had opened a second vial and was pouring it over the embers in the brazier. The cool heat that washed over her was such a relief that she slumped into Symon’s arms. Imara let her go and looked at her mother.
“The transfer of blood has been completed. Her previous mage has been removed, but the new mage of the same bloodline has been activated. Freddy is now bound to Symon’s call.”