Chalice of Life

by R. A. Rock

“You didn’t,” Tess said. Who made a mistake like that?

  “I swear I didn’t know. As soon as I heard about it, I went back and took the spell off. Whatever. Doesn’t matter.”

  “Doesn’t matter?” Tessa said, outraged. “You ruined that girl’s life.”

  “No, it was all right. I heard it worked out pretty well for her. When she finally woke up, she married some prince or something.”

  “That sounds awfully familiar,” Ethan said, squinting his eyes suspiciously at Ignis.

  “The tales have to come from somewhere,” he said with yet another shrug. “Anyway. The point of this story is that the faerie that got blamed for the spell is the one I want you to get the ring from.”

  “So this faerie holds a huge grudge against you and would probably kill you on sight,” Tessa clarified.

  “Exactly, except her wards would kill me long before she could get her hands on me.”

  “And how are we supposed to get though the wards?” Finn demanded. He seemed to be liking this less and less.

  “You’re Faeries. The wards let Faeries through.”

  “Why would the wards do that?” Tessa asked.

  “Because they have to. It’s part of the deal with her banishment.”

  Ethan shook his head, terribly confused. “Ignis, just start at the beginning.”

  “Fine,” he said. “I’ll sum up. I went to that party and the faerie got blamed for what I did. Her name’s Melisende. And she got banished from Ahlenerra for misusing her power on Earth. She has a cottage in Ireland that no one can see unless you know how to get to it because it’s not quite on this realm but it’s not quite on Esper either. It’s in this weird in-between place. When she was sent over, she brought all her things with her.”

  Ignis reached over and snagged Finn's Elixir glass, pulling it toward him. He took a large gulp of the now-lavender drink.

  “So the thing is, that the ring has been passed down in her family for generations and she brought it with her.”

  “Got it,” Tessa said.

  “So all you have to do,” Ignis said, directing his words to Tessa and Finn, “is use a faerie ring to travel to Ireland. Get in, get the ring, and get out. Once you bring it back to me, then I’ll uncover your memories.”

  “Wait, why would the wards let Fae in? You never said.” Finn looked bewildered by the whole story.

  “She gets deliveries of Elixir. So she can survive on Earth. It’s a condition of her banishment." He tossed the rest of Finn's glass back. "Her wards have to let faeries through.”

  “But how will we get the ring?” Tessa asked.

  “I already had someone else do some surveillance on her when I tried to get it the first time. The ring is in a special display box on her shelf. And she always naps every day at two in the afternoon.”

  “That’s it? That’s all you’ve got?” Tessa shook her head in disbelief.

  “Just go in when she’s sleeping,” he said, lifting a shoulder and dropping it again. He picked his own glass and took a tiny sip. “And be quiet.”

  Finn huffed out his breath, running his hands through his hair.

  “Okay, we’ll do it,” Tessa said. “Right, Finn?”

  He gave her a dubious look, which then changed to resignation. “Sure, why not. I don’t have anything else to do tomorrow.”

  “How do we know you’ll keep your end of the bargain?” Tessa said.

  “He will, Tessa,” Ethan said, his voice and face earnest. “Ignis is a lot of things. But he keeps his word.”

  “I hardly know you,” she said, giving him a skeptical look. “How is you vouching for him supposed to make me trust him? Besides, he clearly hates you. He could be pretending to help us and then he'll somehow turn on us. Just to spite you.”

  Suddenly, Ethan’s whole demeanor changed and his entire body was on the alert. He sniffed the air.

  “What is it?” Ignis said, watching him.

  “Shifter,” he answered.

  “A problem?” Ignis asked.

  Ethan relaxed. “No. They moved past us.”

  “Okay, how about this?” Ignis suggested in a reasonable tone, getting back to making the deal. “You faeries are big on those palm vows. Why don’t we make one of those?”

  Another memory flashed across Tessa’s mind.

  “No,” she said, so sharply that all three men turned to look at her in surprise. She was not quite sure why she was refusing. A palm vow would ensure that he had to uncover their memories. But it felt wrong. “No palm vow.”

  “So how can we make this deal, then?” Ignis said. "If you don't trust me."

  “We give you the ring after you uncover our memories,” Tessa said. “That’s fair.”

  “But what if you’re a completely different person after you get your memories back? And you don’t want to give it to me?”

  They were all silent. This prospect seemed particularly worrisome. Then Finn leaned over and whispered in Tessa’s ear. She repressed a shiver as his warm breath touched her skin.

  “What choice do we have, Tessa?” he said softly. “We need our memories back. And this guy can help us. Let’s get the stupid ring, bring it back to him, and find out who in the Chasm we are.”

  Tessa pulled her head away from him, not liking how he affected her. But she knew he was right. It was a bad deal. Yet they had no choice but to make it.

  “Okay, fine. We’ll get the ring for you. And in exchange, you’ll uncover our memories.”

  “Deal,” Ignis said, slapping his palms excitedly on the table. “There’s only one more thing.”

  “What’s that?” Tessa said, wary.

  “Ethan has to go with you.”

  Chapter 11

  If Ethan had been wishing he hadn’t come to Styx at the beginning of this meeting, now he was seriously regretting it.

  And if he had to be up at one o’clock in the morning, it better be for a concert. Or for sex. Not to hang around with faeries and mages in a nightclub, hammering out a deal.

  What was he, a paranormal mediator now?

  “What are you talking about?” Ethan said, eyeing Ignis malevolently. “I’m not going with them on your little faerie errand.”

  “We don’t need him,” Finn said, giving Ignis a furious look of his own and then shooting daggers at Ethan for his faerie errand comment. “We’ll get your ring.”

  “Why would Ethan come with us?” Tessa said in a mocking tone. “He’s got a big musical career to save. He doesn’t have time for such nonsense.”

  “Before you all freak out,” Ignis said. “Too late,” he muttered to himself with a malevolent chuckle. “Ethan does need to go.”

  “Why?” Ethan demanded. There was no way he was going on this wild goose chase.

  “Number one, you want to help Rebekah and keep her safe," Ignis said with such heavy sarcasm that no one could miss it and Ethan felt the insult down to his toes, his face getting hot. "You say that you didn’t abandon her the way we thought you had. And this is part of that. The ring will protect her from Dark Magic, Ethan.”

  Ethan clenched his jaw.

  “Number two, someone else is trying to get the ring and these two truly need your protection.”

  “Who is trying to get the ring?” Finn said. “This stupid idea just got a lot more dangerous if there are other parties involved.”

  Ignis’s eyes cut over to Finn and his face got serious.

  “I think that they’re a group of humans called the Shadows. They’re powerful. Well trained. And they’re always around when magical artifacts are found.”

  “Humans chasing magical artifacts?” Ethan said. “That doesn’t sound good.”

  “No, it doesn’t,” Ignis agreed. “They’ve become a real danger for the archeological community. The biggest issue, of course, is that there seems to be Dark Magic involved. They’ve made one attempt to retrieve the ring but didn’t get it. I have no doubt that they’ll keep trying till they do.”

  “And Ethan is sup
posed to keep us safe from that?” Finn said, emphasizing Ethan’s name as though it were the most ridiculous thing in the world that he could protect them.

  It made Ethan’s guts tighten. What was with these Faeries not thinking he could protect them? He really wanted to rub Finn’s nose in the truth of who he was. But the guy couldn’t help that he was hung up on Tessa and probably a little bit jealous of Ethan. This thought made Ethan perplexed. That Finn should be jealous of Ethan seemed odd. He wasn’t even remotely interested in the annoying Fae woman.

  “Ethan’s the Great Hunter. The First. The original.” Ignis kept his eyes on Tessa and Finn, his voice irritated, as if he didn't wan to tell them anything about Ethan but knew he had to.

  “So?” Finn said. “Who cares?”

  Ignis laughed as if Finn's dismissal of Ethan gave him great pleasure and his eyes cut over to Ethan's, mocking him.

  “Let’s just say that the First has more power than you have ever seen or can expect to see in your lifetime, Finn Noble," Ignis stated the facts, completely unimpressed. "And you will not have to worry about any Dark Magic if he’s with you.”

  “Like the Faerie King?” Finn said, studying Ethan with a puzzled look on his face.

  “Yes,” Ignis confirmed.

  Ethan nodded. He didn’t usually tell people about his powers, though what Ignis had said was absolutely true. He studied the table with great interest.

  “The question is whether or not Ethan, the Great Hunter, will go.”

  Ethan looked up. “My career’s in danger of tanking, Ignis. And music is the only thing that’s important to me. I have nothing else. So, I can’t let that happen. You see that, right? Imagine if someone said you couldn’t make potions and spells anymore.”

  The mage shook his head.

  “Same old Ethan,” Ignis said with a disgusted expression on his face. “Only thinking of himself. You're worried about losing your career? Give me a break."

  Ethan frowned. What was it with people accusing him of selfishness lately?

  "You may not like it, Ethan," Ignis went on. "But they truly do need your help. I wouldn’t ask them to do this without your protection. It’s too dangerous if Dark Magic is involved.”

  He gave Ethan a resentful look as if he hated having to depend on him to help him in any way.

  "You’ll be back in a day using a faerie ring. No jetlag. And you’ll have helped someone who needed you. If you really are different, you would do this.”

  Ignis was really playing on his desire to be a good guy. On purpose. As if he could see into his heart and knew that Ethan was ashamed of himself. Once he had been the humans’ hero. He had saved people from rogues and done some good. When he had left the ranks of the Hunters, he had left all that behind. And he told himself time and again that he didn’t miss it.

  Didn’t miss being a hero.

  But somewhere deep inside he did. He really did.

  Ethan pressed his lips together, staring at Ignis’s face, which was filled with loathing for him. The two Fae were both sitting with their arms crossed, looking irked.

  Ignis leaned toward Ethan, dropping his voice. “I’m truly worried about Bex. I’m afraid she’s in grave danger, Ethan. The Dark Magic is like nothing I’ve ever seen. It's the only reason I'm working with you.”

  Ethan frowned at this new information. Ignis didn’t scare easily.

  “Fine, I’ll do it, Ignis. For Rebekah."

  “Good," Ignis said, looking at though he had swallowed something rotten.

  No doubt, he despised having to ask Ethan for help.

  “Okay,” Ethan said, turning to the Faeries. “Looks like you’ve got a bodyguard.”

  The next morning after a few hours of sleep in Ethan’s house, Tessa led the way to the faerie ring in the backyard. Well, backyard was sort of an understatement, considering that the place looked like the grounds of a huge estate in the middle of the country. Even though Tessa knew quite well that they were still in the city.

  “This is how you got here?” he asked.

  Ethan followed her. His guitar was in his soft case on his back.

  “Yes, we arrived at the Stonehenge faerie circle. I don’t really know what that is but I’ve been told it’s the main connector to Esper and has the most magic.” Tessa shrugged as if she didn’t really care about the geography. “Then the Caretaker showed us how to work the faerie rings. It’s just like all Faerie magic. You will it to do what you want it to.”

  “Right.” Ethan gave a nod.

  “And then we took one of the small faerie rings to your backyard. Traveling this way is extremely efficient, if I understand how far it actually is.”

  “Yes, very efficient,” Ethan responded, his eyes on the faerie ring. “It’s farther than you’ve ever traveled. Except, of course, when you came here from Ahlenerra.”

  Finn wasn’t joining in the conversation. He was not happy with the situation. Well, Tessa wasn’t either. And Ethan had been pretty much coerced.

  But they needed their memories back. Tessa felt like an empty slate. And she didn’t like it. She needed to know who she was, and she was willing to do what it took to make that possible.

  “Okay, get in the middle,” Tessa instructed.

  “Wait,” Ethan said. He was still for a moment. “Okay. We can go now.”

  “What did you do?” Tessa asked.

  “I just wrapped a little of your Starlight around me for when we go through the Passageways. That way, I’ll appear to be a Faerie at first glance.”

  Tessa frowned.

  “Are we in a hurry or what?” he asked.

  “Yes,” she said.

  “And do you think that dealing with the Caretaker is going to be quick?”

  “No.”

  “Then don’t worry about it. I’ll put the Starlight back when I’m done. I didn’t take it. Just used it as a covering, so to speak.”

  “Okay.” Tessa wasn’t sure about this, but if it meant that things would go more quickly, she was willing to go along with it.

  Once Finn and Ethan were inside the circle of mushrooms, she stepped in too, closed her eyes, and willed the faerie circle to take them to the Passageways.

  There was a dizzy feeling. Then she opened her eyes and they were in one of the grey, nondescript rooms of the Passageways.

  “Now what?” Ethan said.

  “Now we go to the door of where we want to end up.”

  Finn went out first into the narrow, bland, grey hallway. It stretched away in both directions forever, it seemed.

  “How do we find the right door?” Ethan said, peering down the hall at the hundreds of doors.

  “Technology,” Tessa said with a smile. “The Caretaker taught us how to use the magic mirror.”

  “It’s called a tablet,” Ethan corrected her.

  “Right. He told me that they try to keep up to date with those sorts of things. I have no idea how it worked before.”

  “He told me they used to use spells brought from Ahlenerra, but now they try to conserve as much magic as possible by using tech,” Finn informed them. “Because there’s so little ambient magic on the Earthly Realm.”

  Tessa walked over to where a tablet rested on a small shelf and picked it up. When she tapped it, a grey screen that matched the walls appeared with a box she could type into.

  Tessa typed in “Melisende” and a small digital faerie circle appeared, the mushrooms rotating as the information loaded. A map appeared.

  “Let’s go,” she said, starting down the hall.

  A few minutes later, the three of them stood in the middle of a faerie circle in the woods in Ireland. Ethan stood very still and undid his Starlight wrapping. Or that was what Tessa assumed he was doing. Then they all carefully stepped over the mushrooms and Tessa gazed around her. There was something off. What was it?

  There were evergreen trees all around them and a little pale sunlight came through their branches. She checked her phone. It was midday here because of the tim
e change. Though why the humans set their clocks this way, she wasn’t sure. But as she learned to navigate the human world, she was realizing that she didn’t need to understand why the humans did things the way they did. She just needed to educate herself and act appropriately.

  She took a deep breath, enjoying the sweet scent of the forest. It was damp. And it smelled delicious. L.A. had not smelled good. When she took a step, her foot sank into deep soft moss and she smiled.

  “Come on, Tessa,” Finn said. “What did Ignis say we had to do first?”

  She waved her hand, shushing him, trying to figure out what was wrong. She listened but could hear nothing.

  Ethan had already caught on and had lifted his hands into a relaxed fighting stance.

  What was it that she had heard that had tipped her off?

  She held her breath. That was it.

  Nothing.

  There was no sound.

  That was always a dead giveaway that something unusual was in the forest. And it had already been quiet when they got here. It wasn’t that the birdsong had ceased when they arrived.

  “What do you hear?” Finn whispered.

  “Nothing,” Tessa whispered back. “That’s the problem.”

  At that moment, five fighters stepped out from behind various trees. They were all dressed in black and wore masks.

  “Shadows,” Ethan muttered as three of them ran toward them. One of them stood and planted his feet, swirling his hands around each other, a black cloud of magic encircling them. Tessa could feel it.

  Dark Magic. Shit.

  A second later, the Shadow threw the black cloud at them.

  Chapter 12

  Tessa should have known it wouldn’t be as easy as Ignis had implied it would be. She covered her head with her arms and waited for the magical blast to hit her.

  “Fuck,” Ethan said, probably seeing what she had.

  Tessa didn’t exactly understand what Ethan did but she felt a protective shield come up around them only a second before the black cloud hit them. It smashed into the shield and made a shattering sound. Tessa could sense that Ethan was maintaining the field.