by S L Mason
He rears back for me. “No, I don’t know you. Get away for me, fucking Fairy.”
My hands drop to my side. Of course, he doesn’t know me. I’m not me anymore. Nick steps between the two of us and puts his index finger square into Brad’s chest, pushing him back. “She just saved your life. I think you owe her a thank you.” Nick pushes him back in time with his words, like a bird pecking.
“Thank you for saving my life. If you did, I don’t remember. Just stay the fuck away from me.” He moves to the human boys hiding amongst the crowd.
My chest clench, and I wipe the tears from my face. I don’t know what I’d expected. As a terrified life form being attacked by magic, he instinctively recognized me and looked for my help, but fully human and cured of the magical disease, he sees me for what I am. No longer like him, I’m not human in his eyes. I’m Fae, an evil creature out to kill everyone he ever loved. He can’t see the humanity left in me. In his eyes, there isn’t any. Is being human biological or something you feel? I don’t feel Fae, even if I look it.
Nick remarks, “Don’t let his behavior get to you. He is just some stupid teenage kid who got fucked up. You saved him. Don’t lose sight of the prize.” I latch onto Nick’s words. Eyes on the prize, focus on what our true business is here. It isn’t to make friends or just save friends. It’s to save every human I can, and I saved Brad whether he likes me or not. I pull myself out of my own head. Running around and feeling sorry for myself isn’t to get the job done.
Jake asks, “The barn’s empty. Did we get them all?”
I hear Tom’s voice off in the distance. “There’s still one in the paddock. He’s skittish. He won’t come to me.” Tom wouldn’t be my first choice either.
“I’ll be right there.” I round the corner of the barn, heading to the paddock.
Prancing around inside the wooden fence post is a gorgeous black stallion. He is at least twenty-hands high with a massive chest and strong, stout legs. His main flows like it’s made of liquid silk. It waves down one side of his neck, cascading into ringlets. His hooves wear a furry skirt of silky ringlets, resembling a hula skirt.
It’s something out of a dream. He tosses his head and snorts while pawing the ground. The fringe of silky hair covering his eyes is tossed back, only to reveal the yellowy, golden eyes of Fae. They lock on to me. Everything in Fae is there to deceive you, to draw you to it so it can kill you or toy with you. His eyes release me as he prances away, circling the paddock.
“Tom, get out of here! Maybe, I can work my magic on it.” I feel silly using the word magic. I’m sure the guys think it’s magic. I mean it as a horse-whisperer, like humans do. The farther my human friends recede, the closer the horse comes. He paws the ground several times in between his tentative steps. Then he prances around the paddock, jumping and kicking in the air. It’s a glorious show, and he knows it. Taking one last flying leap, the air around him shivers as a magic wake of bubbles shake off of him.
When he lands, it’s a man.
CHAPTER 22
Why do the Fae have to fuck up everything? Why can’t it just be a beautiful horse? A real horse? No, it has to be some Fae freak. A gorgeous freak. His Fae form isn’t much different from his horse form. His shining, silky black hair cascades down his back into ringlets. Golden eyes stare into your mind, freezing you in place. Every inch of him is covered in muscles with every inch of those covered in black leather. Even his boots somehow look naturally part of his body.
He stands there for a moment, wagging his jaw back and forth, as if to fit it into place. He runs his fingers through his hair, starting at his brow, over the top, and down to the nap of his neck.
I’m still leaning against the paddock post. I have to pull back. I lean in, tasting the air. All of it is laced with his magic. It tastes of leather and musk. I pull myself out of the magic. It makes it easier to see the desire lining it.
He wants me to want him. “You must be the new one. I’ve seen you before.” The gleam in his smile tells me he knows what he’s up to. Only, I’m not game to become one of his fairy conquests.
“You can quit with the come-hither crap. I’m here to take these humans back to the surface.” If he’s surprised, it doesn’t show.
“Really? What will you give me for them?” His left-hand toys with a ringlet, twirling it around his fingers. As his eyes tear into me, he rakes them up and down my body. I could have been standing there naked for how he makes me feel.
“Can you keep your slimy eyes to yourself, please? I’m not interested. Deston said I could take them, and I will.” I reply.
He throws his head back, laughing. “Did he now? I don’t suppose he explained that you would have to pay a price for them, did he?” He tosses a rock in the air, turning it into a flower and then bringing it back to a rock. “No, I thought not. Yes, Deston likes his games as much as I do. He said you could take them, or have them?”
I have to think. What had he said?
My heart falls. ‘Take them’ were his words. That means a fight. I can only have what I can take. That fucker. “What is your price?” I demand, through clenched teeth.
His eyes gleam with a golden flash. I hate players. “All you have to do is go for a ride, all night. Then I will give you all ‘my humans.’” He tosses his hair. That doesn’t sound too bad. He’s easy on the eyes and riding a horse all night can’t be that bad. His hand is outstretched, and I take it.
“Sarah, no.” Janice’s words hit me after the magic does. Time stands still.
Puca changes back into a gorgeous stallion. The magic wake waves off of him, popping bubbles. Every bubble has a different color. My hands reach for them. They float into the sky. Puca turns his head. I see one golden eye.
“Better hold on, Sarah.” He lurches forward. I thread my fingers into the silky mane on his neck. The wind pushes my hair back. I throw my head back and laugh. A thrill runs up my spine, along with my adrenaline. I lean into his neck, keeping my eyes above his ears. The hills flash by. He leaps over creeks and rocks.
The horse begins to sing. A sound wake cuts the hill in front of us. It shimmers and splits. Puca jumps, and we dive through.
_________
It’s night, and we are surrounded by massive stones. In the back of my mind, I know this place, but I can’t place it. Puca jumps over one of the cross-stones. His back legs collide with the stone, knocking it off the top of its supports.
I turn in my seat. “That was Stonehenge! You broke Stonehenge!”
He snorts and tosses his head. “Is that what you humans call it now? My people built that. Would you like to see what else we’ve built?” He shakes his head from side to side, snorting. My mouth goes dry with all the air rushing in as the landscape blurs by.
I had never been on a horse. I have no idea how fast they can go. Obviously, in the back of my mind, I realize cars equate to horsepower, but I don’t have an actual number for that, an engine is a five-horsepower engine. I don’t even know what one horsepower is. So, how would I figure out five?
It doesn’t matter if he has one horsepower or five. He isn’t a horse. He changed from a Fae to a horse. He’s a shapeshifter. The only shape he doesn’t seem to change are his ears. They stay long and pointy. But with every leap, he jumps over entire hills. From the time his back hooves leave the ground to the time his front regains it, he covers an entire field. He jumps over hedges from one side to the other.
Being in the human world, you would think everything has changed with the Fae attacking, but it all looks the same. I don’t know if Fae killing humanity is good or bad. The truth is as humans, we’re no better.
I see it coming. It’s a cliff, and beyond is nothing but ocean. My stomach clenches, and the beating in my chest ramps up. Where is he taking me?
I have to believe he isn’t going to kill himself. My legs grip his belly tighter as both hands wrap his silky mane around my hands. The cliff looms, but he never lessens his gait. In fact, I’m pretty sure we are picking
up speed. I lean my head into the silky tresses of his mane. The musky scent fills my nostrils. I scrunch my eyes shut as tight as possible. He’s gonna jump off the cliff. I sure the fuck don’t want to see it.
“Open your eyes, Sarah!” His voice is firm with the order.
I shake my head against his neck.
“Open your eyes or I’ll dump you in the water,” Puca says.
I pull my head back far enough to see over the top of his head. He sucks in a deep breath of air and pushes it out just as quickly. I pry my eyes open as we leap off the side of the cliff. I’d never heard a horse laugh, but then again, I’d never ridden a horse that could talk. His laugh is loud and booming. It echoes off the water as we glide over the channel, landing on a beachhead.
“Oh my God, where are we?” I release the breath I’d been holding.
“Normandy.” He jumps from the sand to the cliff and continues across the French terrain.
He leaps over fences and bridges, rivers and towns until we finally come to a complete stop. “Where are we?” My eyes survey the landscape, gentle rolling hills with a few French cottages here and there. What strikes me the most is the number of standing stones, small and large. They cover at least a mile.
“You silly humans call it the Carnac stones. That’s not what we call it. The Fae love their standing stones. We love circles. It used to represent the circle of life, at least for other creatures.” He trails off.
“Are you saying all the stone circles were built by Fae?” I don’t believe him.
“Of course, they’re built by Fae. You, humans, aren’t clever. You don’t even know how old the stones are. Humans are just a stupid workforce, created by a Fae queen to clean and serve her. You’re nothing more. I’m only indulging you because you’re the cleverest human I’ve ever encountered.” He snorts and paws at the ground.
“In case you hadn’t noticed, I don’t look very human anymore.”
He tosses his head. “No, I noticed. You don’t look human at all. But I can still smell the human on you. Whatever you are, Sarah, you haven’t made your choice.” He rears back. “Hold on.” He leaps away. Again the landscape turns into a blur of mountains and rocks, cottages, châteaus, rivers, and lakes. Greens and grays blur everywhere. It’s nighttime and yet the darkness doesn’t pierce me as much as it would have a few short months ago.
I see everything. They aren’t bright colors as if the sun is shining on it, though I hadn’t seen the sun since my trip back inside the Hallowed Hills. My greatest change happened then. It hadn’t occurred to me until now. I still looked pretty human before. But now I hardly look any different from the rest of Fae. I see my reflection, and I’m fiercely beautiful in a disturbing way. My eyes are more almond-shaped and tilted. Kelly green eyes so bright that it’s unnatural, something only achieved with Photoshop. My skin is luminescence, like a pearl shooting off sparks of rainbows as the light glints off of it, a hint of the day-glo markings similar to the Fae.
My stomach clenches at the idea I will someday be like them. Will I become an asshole, a selfish creature toying with lesser life forms? The landscape changes to a dry, barren rocky outcropping. I watch as Puca jumps over a break in continents, adding to an aching suspicion of where we are, but I’m afraid to speak. Puca’s gait slows and we come to a halt.
“The behold Gobekli Tepe, the most ancient of Fae circles. This is the birthplace of Fae. You, humans, have just recently discovered it. But if you walk around the monolithic stones, you’ll see the story. What I find fascinating is long after the Fae were tricked to live under the hills, humans continued to build temples on top of our stones and to worship us as gods. You, humans, are so stupid; you forget everything so quickly. Your short lives and short memories. If you had paid attention even a little, you would’ve known we were coming one day, and you would know why we’re here. But you don’t, stupid human. Hold on tight! I’m not done dragging you around the planet. Maybe I’ll show you some more Fae stones. Or maybe I’ll just toss you off into a volcano. I’m sure there’s a few nearby.” He turns his head right and left and flicks his tail.
The beating in my chest roars to a new rhythm, hammering out my human tune. His words shake me to my core. Will he toss me off? Can I stop him if he wants to chuck me into a volcano? My stomach clenches. The only volcano around here is in Sicily, Mount Etna. Puca could take me all the way to Hawaii and dump my ass in the Kilauea for all I know. Think fast.
“You won’t dump me off, Puca. You want me to run around singing your praises to humans and Fae alike. You also want to be able to brag to Fae how you tricked me and gave me the wild ride of my life. You won’t dump me off. You’re just saying it because you’re mad and you wish you could run during the daylight, free to do whatever you want. You hate humans. You think we usurped you. I don’t know what happened between Fae and humanity or whether you created us or we’re supposed to be friends and cousins. All I do know is I want to take my people and go, so finish our ride and I’ll tell everyone you scared the shit out of me. Agreed?” I offer.
He tosses his head, snorts a few times, and paws the ground. He rears back. I hold on for dear life. He stomps down. We aren’t even standing on the same ground he jumped from as he rears. We stand on the sands of an ocean of dry desert.
“I don’t need a volcano to get rid of you, Sarah. I could dump you here. You’d be just as dead, and you’d feel the heat just as keenly. Although in a volcano, I have a feeling you’ll die faster.” His words race down my aching spin like cold fingers causing a shiver.
He lifts his front hooves and gallops away, crossing mountains off in the distance following the blur. I can make out the shape of a giant snake in the landscaping. In the back of my mind, I know the only thing that it could be is the Great Wall of China. I close my eyes. We are running too fast, and it’s scaring me.
“Open your eyes, Sarah. If you can’t handle riding my back, how can you possibly be a contender for Fae? No Fae would ever follow a coward or submit their fealty to one.” He sneers.
“No Fae would ever follow a human, you moron. They only root for those they want to win because it’ll keep them alive longer so you can watch them die slower. You’re a bunch of sadistic freaks. I’ll keep my eyes open if that’s what it takes to save my friends. Leave me the fuck alone with your twisted Fae logic.” I bite my lip at the harshness of my fearful words.
We gallop in silence. There’s no way it can be night on both sides of the planet, and we certainly aren’t following the sun or the night. We’re going in the wrong direction. I think he’s messing with me. It can’t be night in Texas and China at the same time. The sky is devoid of a moon.
I spot wake waves. They split apart like a ripple in space-time. The closer we come, the easier it is for me to hear the song of Fae on the other side, calling to me and reaching for me. I lean in. I want it. I want to be in Fae and allow the sound to envelop me, to fill me. As we leap through, it’s cleansing, like I’m washing all humanity from me and I’m enveloped in the warmth and beauty only Fae can provide. We slow to a casual walk before coming to a halt in front of Puca’s barn.
Everyone is piled around sleeping. The ease of sleep even touches Janice’s face. His back leans against the side of the barn, his hand on the pommel of his sword. Even resting, he anticipates war.
“You may take your humans and go, but I know you’ll be back.” He taunts.
I climb off of his back. The wake lines of the bubbles shift around Puca. He turns into a giant white rabbit with long ears. He hops around for a moment before shaking himself with bubbles to shift back into his Fae form. He winks at me and turns a dazzling smile on like a beam of light. “So, Sarah, you managed to ride me and hold on tight. Most humans would’ve lost their grip and fallen somewhere over the water. I should know; I’ve lost enough of them. The drunk ones are the easiest to dump. What’s one or two humans every now and again when the planet has been infested by billions? Every so often what’s happening now has to happen
. The planet isn’t meant to hold as much life as humanity gives it. And you’re too stupid to figure out how to control yourselves. Maybe if you did build those spaceships that your people are always going on about and leave the planet, that might be good. Then you could infest the universe. As for Fae, we will be perfectly happy in our Hallowed Hills until you figure out how to get to them.” He straightens his leather jacket and saunters away into his barn, slamming the door behind him.
His words ring in my mind. They remind me of someone. My mother had echoed the same thoughts, about humanity and overpopulation. I shake my head. Na, couldn’t be.
CHAPTER 23
The sound of smashing wood awakens everyone.
“Sarah, you’re alive! You’re okay.” Nick jumps up and wraps his arms around me, hugging me.
I pull back. “Yeah, I’m alive. I made a deal with Puca. We’re free to go.” I shove him off. I feel bad about it, but Nick always wants to protect me these days.
Nick steps back and locks both thumbs into his back pockets. He hangs his head and looks at me through his eyebrows. “I’m sorry I didn’t mean to… or whatever. I’m glad you’re okay.”
I shake my head and smile. Yeah, he hugged me because he wants to make sure I help him find his sister. Yeah, I believe that.
Janice’s reproving voice cuts my musings about Nick short. “You should not have made a deal with Puca. Luckily, you survived. Most humans don’t. They are usually indebted to him for a lifetime. Did he ask you to swear anything?” he demands.
I shake my head and turn toward the deep voice.
“Well, wouldn’t it have been nice if someone had mentioned how dangerous and weird Puca was, or that he’s a creepy shapeshifter, before I approached the crazy black horse that no one could get a hold of. I mean, if I had known Puca was actually a horse too…” I let my words trail off for impact. “Yeah, your real forthcoming there, Janice. Great vassal you are. You think you could give me a little more information about Fae before we go wandering around and somebody else gets hurt? Or I make another deal that might cost everybody their lives?” I don’t know why I’m so mad at him. I know Fae are dangerous. Nothing here is as it appears. I don’t know why I trusted that horse. I thought it was a human forcibly being turned into one of Puca’s toys. I’m angrier with myself than Janice. It isn’t his fault. I’m not a child. Actually, I’ve been taking care of other people’s children for months. I leaped when I should’ve looked. I shake my head. “I’m sorry. It’s not your fault. I shouldn’t yell at you. Is there anybody else we need to run into before we leave this wretched hole in the ground?”