by F. L. Jordan
“I don’t think I want to do this anymore,” Zach fought against the rope she’d tied him with.
Her lips pressed against his gently and he stilled, “Zach, shut up and quit being a bitch. I trust you with my life, pay me the same respect.”
He groaned, but stopped fighting her, allowing her to bind his feet to the bed and his forearms to his chest. He heard the bags rustle again, followed by the sound of snapping twigs and the smell of burning sage. More rustling and snapping before her gentle hands were on his face.
“I need to put this in your mouth. Bite down on it, but do not swallow, understand?” her voice was calm.
Zach nodded slightly and opened his mouth for her. The herb she packed into his cheeks was bitter and made him gag instantly. She tied a cloth over his mouth to ensure that he couldn’t spit it out. Next he felt something sharp against the skin between his eyes.
“This will sting a little, try not to move. I don’t want to accidentally gouge out an eye,” her voice was soft, but her touch had become stern.
He hummed a response, then groaned as her blade cut a small incision on his forehead. He wasn’t sure what she put on top of the wound, but it felt like it suctioned to his skin.
He felt her climb onto the bed and straddle him, her thighs pinning his chest to the mattress, “Now the fun begins. I’m going to put some drops in your eyes, Zach. It’s going to burn. Then I’m going to use my magic to manually remove the curse, ok?”
He took a few deep breaths, I’m ready.
Nothing could have prepared him for the pain he experienced the second the drops hit his right eye. It was a good thing she had him immobilized, because his entire body responded to the fire that ripped through his skull. She pressed into him, trying to keep him steady as she forced his left eye open and deposited more drops. He was grateful for the gag, because the scream that tried to escape his throat was anything but human.
He felt her hands on his temples and suddenly the fire traveled from his skull into his chest, then to his entire body. He was sure he was fighting her, screaming and writhing beneath her restraints, but he couldn’t hear it. It was like his brain couldn’t fully process the amount of pain he was in. The only thing it could seem to understand was that he was dying, and he was terrified.
Zach had no idea how long she kept him in that state of existence, but when her magic finally left his body, he was exhausted. He felt like he’d just run fifty marathons while being shot. His entire body was vibrating from the adrenaline that coursed through him. He felt her get off of him and slowly start to untie his restraints. The moment she got his hands free he ripped the cloth from his mouth, grabbing the trash can he knew was beside his bed. He dug the bitter herbs from his cheeks and vomited, groaning and gasping for air after he’d finished.
Natalie placed a bottle of water into his hand, “Rinse, then drink the rest.” He obeyed. The cool water felt like salvation as he swallowed it.
He tossed the empty bottle into the trash angrily and spat at her, “You put me through that hell and I still can’t see? Why can’t I see?”
“Because your eyes are closed, stupid,” she sounded as exhausted as he was.
Zach felt his face, surprised to find she was right. He struggled to get them open on his own, then pried his eyelids open impatiently with his fingers. The bright light of the room shot searing pain through his head and he shouted from the shock of it, closing his eyes tightly against the offending light. He tried again, a blurry vision of his room bombarded his brain. Zach held his face, laughing from the euphoria of sight as his eyes closed against the pain of being used.
He heard Natalie close his curtains before rustling around in a bag once more. He sat up and took a deep breath in through his nose, tilting his head back and exhaling through his mouth as he pressed his hands down into his legs. It felt as though he'd been freed from prison after receiving a life sentence.
A soft silky fabric slid gently over his face. Natalie's voice was low and soothing, "You'll need to keep them covered for a while, Zach. Your body needs to relearn how to use them."
"Wait!" He pulled the blindfold away and turned to her, trying to open his eyes, "I want to see you."
She chuckled, "Later. Don't stress them too much or you'll go blind again, permanently."
She slipped the blind fold back up over his eyes and tied it securely. Natalie then gently pushed him down onto the bed, softly kissing his lips as she pulled the quilt over him.
"Rest now," she tried to pull away from him, but Zach grabbed her hand and gently brought her onto the bed beside him.
"You sound as exhausted as I feel," Zach wrapped his arms around her protectively. "And I'm not stupid. There's no way in hell I'm letting you go alone."
He linked his fingers together behind her back and tossed a leg over her, but to his surprise she didn't fight him. Instead, Natalie snuggled into his embrace, burying her face in the starchy fabric of his uniform. Zach breathed in the scent of strawberries, falling asleep within minutes.
Natalie waited until his breath was deep and even. Once she was sure Zach was asleep, she cast a charm to ensure he stayed that way and wriggled out of his embrace. She quickly cleaned the room, removing all evidence of magic. She even emptied and scrubbed the vomit filled trash can. Once done, Natalie gave the room a quick scan. Her eyes fixed on the small pointy lump in Zach’s breast pocket. She plucked the curse from its hiding spot and left, closing the door softly as she entered the living room. Two dragon heads instantly popped out of Copper's bed, looking at her expectantly.
He'll be asleep for a while, she whispered to them, Take care of him when he wakes, Copper. Slag, come with me. I need to take the car back and clock the two of us out for the day.
Her dragon obeyed, giving Copper a quick nuzzle before leaping onto her shoulders. Natalie turned to the creature on the counter, "Don't let him take the blindfold off unless it's dark."
Copper nodded, Are you coming back?
Her sad smile told him everything he needed to know. A sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach told him he shouldn’t let them go alone, but he couldn’t leave Zach unprotected. He watched as Natalie opened the apartment door, grabbed the bag of trash, and left. The anxiety Copper felt as he stared at the closed door was all too familiar, and he didn’t know what to do about it.
Natalie hurried down the building’s hallway. She didn’t have much time to waste. Agram and Corvis were on the verge of destroying the world, and she had to figure out how to stop them. A task that was easier said than done.
We're not taking the car back, are we? Slag asked as they walked to the elevator.
No, we're not, Natalie got inside and pressed the button for the lobby. We're heading to the South Side.
What's there? Slag tingled with the anticipation of an adventure.
Agram, Natalie pulled her phone out and selected the desired number. Hopefully I can reason with her.
As her human raised the phone to her ear, Slag thought about everything Natalie had told her about Agram. The woman sounded awful. Manipulative, controlling, and deceitful. The little dragon doubted Agram would listen to anything Natalie said.
"Tark, Agram's making her move," Natalie spoke into the device as she tossed the bag of trash into a nearby dumpster. "Warn the others." She hung up and headed for the cruiser.
Natalie started the vehicle and slammed the accelerator to the floor, peeling out of the apartment's parking lot. Her gut twisted with anxiety as she barrelled towards their destination. If she couldn't get Agram to listen, she'd have to kill her. Natalie didn't know if she could. She’d never been one to pray, but in this moment she gripped the steering wheel and gave it her best effort.
Halfway into the drive she glanced over at Slag. The dark scaled dragon could hardly sit still. Her little eyes were alight with the thrill of it all. Natalie knew the creature would happily kill if asked. She could rely on Slag to be her back up.
"Slag," Natalie warned, "we're no
t going in with guns blazing. It's just the two of us. We'll need to be stealthy."
Slag calmed a bit, no longer wildly hopping about the seat, but mildly bouncing, What do you have in mind?
"I need you to be my eyes inside," Natalie brought the car down to the speed limit, turning off the siren and lights as she entered the 3rd Precinct’s district. An outside car would draw enough attention just by being there.
She needed to find the Nightingales. They had always been friendly and knowledgeable. Natalie drove into the rough part of South Side, thankful to find her favorite Nightingale within the first group of men she saw.
She pulled the cruiser up next to the group and rolled down her window, letting out a specific high pitched three note whistle. The smallest man turned, a smile growing on his face when he saw her. She parked the car and he approached.
“Pent, my lady. Long time no see, darling. Loving the new digs,” he leaned into the car, his silver plated teeth glinting as he smiled at her.
“Hey Shone,” Natalie smiled but maintained an sense of urgency, “any chance you’ve seen Agram around here lately?”
“I haven’t,” his voice dropped and his eyes became shifty, “but Evok did. Old warehouse by the wharf. Old gal is up to something, sugga. I don’t like the smell of what she’s been cooking in that place.”
“That’s why I’m here,” Natalie sighed. “Shone, she’s lost her damn mind. Her and that puppet are trying to summon Satan.”
“I hope you’re playin’,” he stood up off the vehicle, fear in his eyes.
“I’m not,” Natalie shook her head. “Warn as many of the others as you can. When the death toll from that new drug of her’s hits the mark, all hell is going to break loose.”
“I’ll send my doves out,” Shone stepped back on the sidewalk. “You be careful, Pent.”
“Always am, Shone. Thanks for the help,” Natalie rolled up the window and headed towards the wharf, looking into the rearview mirror to see bursts of bird shaped lights exploding from Shone’s wand. He’d always been an excellent messenger. All of the white witches in this area would know what was happening within just a few minutes. They would either rally around her, or flee. Historically, light has fled in times of darkness. Natalie prayed this time would be different.
Roll down my window, Slag got an idea from watching the interaction.
“What are you going to do?” Natalie asked as she honored the request.
Calling in a little back up of my own, Slag stuck her head out the open window, producing a high pitched sound wave that cut through the city noise, settling into the nooks and crannies of the streets. Soon the entire city began to vibrate with the calls of street dragons. Natalie found the sound eerie and comforting at the same time.
~*~
Copper shot out of his bed, landing on the window sill. He scrambled to claw the window open, hoping beyond hope that he hadn’t just heard what he thought he did. When the distress signal rang out again he whimpered, unsure of what to do.
He decided to call down to a few strays in the alley, Where did that come from?
Southern end of the city, a large green dragon flew up to the window to talk to him. Word spreading around the humans is that the Witch Queens are going to fight. White Witch’s companion is requesting our aid.
Go to them, Copper stated with authority. I know them both. The White Witch is a dragon tongue. She’s a good person. Her companion is a street dragon.
That’s good enough for me. See you there, house dragon, the creature winked at him before taking off to join others in the street below. Copper could hear him encouraging them to go. After a few minutes of discussion the group took off enthusiastically, ready for the excitement of a battle.
Copper decided to try and wake Zach. He flew to the bedroom door, clawing at the handle until it turned. He’d never entered the room without permission before, but at the moment he didn’t care. Slag and Natalie were in trouble. He shouldn’t have let them leave.
The dragon flew into the room, landing directly on Zach, slamming his feet into the man’s chest repeatedly, Wake up! Zach!
When the man didn’t respond, Copper turned and whipped him in the face with his tail. The impact was hard enough that it left a welt on Zach’s cheek. Nothing. Copper tried again, pouncing on him harder this time. It didn’t matter what the dragon did, his human wouldn’t wake. What had Natalie done to him?
Chapter 15
Natalie stopped a few more locals as she drew closer to the wharf. They each pointed her towards the exact same warehouse. The witches she came in contact with, dark or light magic, all responded with the same urgent desire to warn others. Natalie parked the squad car several blocks away, concealing it in an alley behind two dumpsters before she walked to the building. She didn’t want to risk being seen before she got the chance to find out what was inside.
The amount of dark magic that seeped from the building was immense. The closer she got to the old warehouse, the more nauseous Natalie became. She powered through the dizziness and sent Slag inside as she looked for a good exterior vantage point. She was pleased to find a fire escape ladder that had been lowered on the western side of the warehouse. Natalie quickly climbed it and camped out next to a broken window. Muffled voices came from within. She leaned into the building’s outer wall and listened.
“What are you worried about, Viv?” Natalie recognized Daniel’s voice. “We’re so close to achieving our dream! Within hours the world will be ours to command.”
“It feels too easy,” Agram’s voice came next. “Pent will find a way to mess everything up. I just know it!”
“Oh, please,” he was as cocky as ever. “Her and Hail are too busy dealing with the commissioner. Babe, literally all we need to do is sit back and relax. Look at the soul counter, we’ve already reached 587 sacrifices.”
“You’re right,” Agram sighed. “You’re always right, baby.” Natalie couldn’t help but make a gagging face when she heard them kiss. A few minutes of nauseating make out noises ensued before Agram spoke again, “I have something to tell you.”
“And what would that be?” Now that she herself wasn’t under the influence of his charms, it was easy for Natalie to hear the magic in his voice. She knew Agram would fall apart if she ever broke away from him. He’d taken too much from the woman.
“Well,” the happy tone in Agram’s voice was far too familiar to Natalie for comfort, “you’re going to be a daddy.”
“Really?” there was no surprise in his voice, no joy at all, just an extra dose of charm.
“Uh huh!” Agram sounded so happy. Natalie felt bad for her. Daniel obviously already knew about the baby. He likely planned to use it as the final sacrifice once he’d gotten Agram to finish the incantation.
“What is that thing doing in here?” Daniel suddenly asked in surprise, a malicious undertone in his voice.
“Oh, calm down,” Agram assured him, Natalie heard her walking towards the window. “It’s just a street dragon. This old building has like, a thousand broken windows. It probably flew in to get some shelter.” As Agram pushed the window open, Natalie flattened herself against the wall as much as possible and held her breath.
She heard Agram dust her hands and turn, “There, it’ll fly out eventually.”
“I don’t trust those things,” Daniel’s tone worried Natalie. “They’re smart. That one of Hail’s was able to see through my charms and caused serious setbacks.”
“Yes,” Agram had taken on a sweet, seductive tone now, “and I so hated having to share you for so long, but I wouldn’t worry, dear. That thing is scrawny. It’s clearly not attached to anyone. Even if it were, I doubt it could tell them anything. Zach is the only person in this part of the world that knows how to talk to them.”
‘Guess again, bitch,’ Natalie thought, glad she’d never told Agram about her ability.
“I still don’t like it,” Natalie heard Daniel cock his pistol.
Don’t get shot! Na
talie screamed at Slag, panicked worry coursing through her.
I won’t, her dragon responded calmly. I’m going to lure them away from the window so you can get in.
Before Natalie could agree to the plan, Corvis fired his gun and Agram screamed, “Oh! Daniel! That wasn’t necessary!”
“Fast little fuckers,” the man growled and Natalie heard him give chase. “Where’d it go?”
“Seriously?” Agram followed.
Coast is clear for you to come in! Slag’s exhilarated voice reverberated in Natalie’s mind.
She peeked around the edge of the window frame, pleased to find the room inside empty. She quickly shimmied through the opening and instantly began looking for a way to sabotage their plan. She'd already eliminated one of their key components by taking care of Zach's eyes. If only there were a way to stop people from taking the drugs. She planned to destroy the warehouse entirely, but it was likely that Agram already had enough product on the streets to accomplish their goal.
She looked around and found the soul counter Daniel had mentioned. It was an old analog flip clock that sat inconspicuously in the corner of the room. To the average human eye, it looked perfectly normal, aside from the little green pill that sat atop it. To her eyes, it was anything but normal. Agram's aura floated about the object like a thick fog.
Natalie flicked the pill off the clock and watched as the number flipped to zero. That would buy her a little time, since they would now need to recalibrate the spell, but it didn't solve the problem. She looked around for something else, her eyes pausing upon the top of a nearby desk full of papers and spell books. Agram's wand sat haphazardly thrown onto the jumbled mess. Natalie thanked the stars for Agram's laziness.
She had to be careful about this, since wands are particular to their owners. Natalie couldn’t just pick it up as it would likely injure her, but she could use something else to do so. She quickly grabbed the sheet of paper underneath the ornate stick and lifted it from the desk, tossing it out the open window. A small group of street dragons had gathered in the alley below. She watched as a large green one snapped it up, looking up at her as if asking for permission to destroy it.