“I…” He backed away from the cage. She wasn’t who he thought she was; she wasn’t who he wanted her to be.
“Jinn!” Never had she spoken his name with such hatred, or with such contempt.
Just as he turned to walk away from her, the love who wasn’t as he remembered, the lock fell away from the cage; the broken metal device clanked against the concrete floor. The door swung open with a high-pitched squeak of the hinges. He turned back just in time to see Nitara lunge for him, hands poised for his throat.
The dream shook him, as he sat up in his bed, covered in beads of sweat. Nitara, what if she didn’t want him to come? What if she hated him? He wiped the sweat from his brow and lifted his hair from his neck to allow air to flow against his skin. He stood and looked at the king-sized mattress which now held a full impression of his body, outlined in sweat. He was going to need another shower.
The soft tap on the door wasn’t enough to pull him from his thoughts, neither was the low whisper of his name when she entered the room. It was the warmth of her hand as she touched his arm, which snapped him into the present, moments before he nearly killed her. His vision cleared and he saw the frightened face of Praia, his large hand, dark flesh, in contrast to the pale tones of her throat.
“Praia?” He questioned if he held the fae girl he cared for, or the shrew of an ex that had just attacked him.
“Jinn, please.” She pulled at his hand, but when he refused to let up, she placed her hand on his wrist and emitted a small shock, just strong enough to make him release her.
“Praia, I’m sorry, are you okay?” He stepped away from her, as a feeling of shame washed over him. For the second time in a matter of hours, he’d attacked someone he cared for.
“Yeah. I’m fine.” She rubbed her throat and coughed. “What the hell was that about?”
“I’m sorry, I had a dream, it just really messed up my head.” He grabbed an elastic band from the bedside table and used it to tie his hair up.
“Guilty conscience, making you dream your wife wants you dead. Could you be any more stereotypical right now?” She kept a safe distance from him. Jinn knew she cared for him, but the man did just have his hand wrapped around her throat! “That is why I came here. I had a feeling you were struggling with this. Now, had I known you would try to take my life, I would have stayed in my room.”
“I didn’t mean to hurt you, are you okay?” He examined her neck. There was a small bruise that would likely heal in a few hours, but he frowned knowing he’d hurt her. “Shit, are you in a lot of pain does it hurt a lot?”
“I’m fine. You wanna talk about it?” She rubbed her neck and frowned at him. “Your dream, what happened?”
“Praia, I just… it's been a long time since I saw Nitara, and this, who we are now, it's my fault.” His regret was unending. “Had I listened to her; we would have lived normal lives. We would have had a family, children. We would have grown old together on our little farm, happily. I just had to get involved, I had to interfere. My refusal to stay out of things then, though I thought I was doing the right thing, is the reason that she has spent an eternity in servitude and is now locked up like an animal!”
“What do you mean? What happened?” She sat on the foot of the bed. “How is any of this your fault, Jinn?”
“We weren’t always like this, Nitara and I. We were normal… well, close to it. We were witches. We left our coven at a young age, though, choosing to live simpler lives. Our coven was starting to look for power., They wanted to expand their territory. We agree that we didn’t want any part in that, and it was something neither of us wanted. Instead of joining the expansion, we built our home, a dairy farm, not far from a local town. We were one of the few in the area, so things were damn good. We were happy. Nitara wanted to use our magic as little as possible, and I agreed.
I went along with what she wanted. But the nearby towns began to be attacked by something wicked, a dark evil, I had to do something. I refused to sit by and watch as they all suffered. Nitara asked me to stay out of it, begged me to. I didn’t listen.
“I thought I could save them, protect them. I had no idea what was really plaguing their lands. I’d never encountered magic so dark, or so powerful. What was more disconcerting, was the man who wielded it. There is no way he should have possessed such strength. I managed to get away and ran home, which was the biggest mistake. The asshole. I should have never returned to her. It followed me and he cursed us, making us what we are now.” Jinn fell back, sitting on the edge of the king-sized host of his nightmares.
“You've been blaming yourself all this time?” She sat next to him. Jinn had calmed, and he knew that she could feel that shift. The girl had a weird way of understanding him like no one else had been able to. He was thankful for her, because she kept him grounded.
“Who else is there to blame?”
“I don't know… maybe the asshole who terrorized a village, then decided to curse you for attempting to save it?”
“She may not want to see me. She may not love me anymore.”
“Yeah, that's a definite possibility, but we both know that it's not going to stop you from going over there, kicking some witch ass, and doing whatever the hell you have to do to save her. You couldn't turn your back on complete strangers, people who meant nothing to you. There is no way you're walking away from this.”
“You're right. Backing down from this isn’t an option.”
“I know. Now, we need to get our shit together, Jinn. We need a real plan,” Praia spoke, still counting herself in on the mission, she had already been formally uninvited to. “Mike may be able to get us to the right place, but I have a strong feeling that it isn't going to be as simple as knocking on the door and asking for Nitara. Whoever has her is powerful enough to contain her. A djinn just like you. Sybella said you heard a witch chanting a spell. We need to figure out what spell it was.”
“I believe I already know the spell. I wasn’t sure at first, figured it was my mind playing games with me, but it’s a familiar one.” The sun was coming up soon, the last of night slipping away as the horizon turned a bright orange announcing the next morning. “I hoped like hell to never hear the damn thing again.”
“What was it? Where do you know it from? That can help us piece this together, at least give us some indication of origin.”
“It was used on us after we were made into djinns. That spell is what was used to bind us. It was how we became bound to our vessels.” Turning his back on the sun, he looked at Praia, whose eyes were wide with excitement, calculating their next move. “They are trying to bind her.”
“That wouldn’t be necessary, unless…” Praia lifted her eyes. For the first time since they’d known each other Praia didn’t feel like she was alone in her optimism.
“She is free,” Jinn finished Praia’s thought, and as unimaginable as he thought it was since he opened the envelope containing her photo, he felt a sense of relief. Nitara was free, no longer bound to her vessel. If he could get to her in time, he could make sure she remained that way.
“If she is free, that means she doesn't have to do what they wish. They’re trying to bind her again so they can use her powers. Can that be done? Once you’re wished free, can that be taken away?”
“I don’t know. Hell, we didn't even know that we could be wished free, until I was. There is no precedent for any of this.” He paused, taking his mind back to the vision Sybella gave him. “There were others there, other djinn in cages just like hers. A couple I recognized, friends from my past. Do you think it’s possible? Could it be possible that they are all free?”
“That would make sense. Trap them and keep them contained until you can be sure they must obey you.” Praia was now pacing the floor as her mind calculated the information she’d received. “If they are still working the spells, that means they aren’t bound yet. So why haven't Nitara and the others used their powers to break free? What’s stopping them?”
“The cages
are enchanted. There is some powerful magic at work in there, I could feel it through the vision.”
“Enchanted cages, powerful magic attempting to bind freed djinns and force them to do its bidding… yeah, this isn’t going to be some cakewalk. Do you think we should call in reinforcements? There are others who would help us.”
“No, it's already going to be difficult enough with the three of us going. Briar is going to prove difficult to hide.” He shook his head. “I can smell her from here and the scent is only going to get stronger as the sun continues to rise.”
“I should be going with you,” Praia insisted, this time without the pouting face.
“Maybe, but I think we have this covered. Mike has some people on the inside who will help us out once we get there.”
“You all get to go and save the day while I get the awesome duty of staying behind and babysitting. This is ridiculous!”
“Praia, I’m sure this is only the beginning of the shit we are going to have to face. Trust me, you will get your chance to kick some ass and save the day.”
“Just make sure you get back here safely. Do try and keep Briar from killing Mike. The last thing we need on our hands is a murderous fairy.” She headed for the door, stopped, and frowned at the bed. “Oh, and you may want to take a shower and change those sheets before you leave.”
“Boonie, baby! It's so good to see you!” The chubby man who was wrapped head to toe in tattered fabric meant to hide the appearance of his skin, wobbled up to their group. His full beard helped to further hide his discolored flesh; the sunglasses not only blocked out the sun but prevented anyone from seeing his yellowed eyes with elongated pupils. He, like so many others, didn’t have the freedom of Mike, who stood with a light jacket, and V-neck shirt. The trio had arrived just moments before, having transported from Jinn’s living room where a pouting Praia rolled her eyes at them, to the edges of the Collective. They were on the coast of what was once Tanzania. The smell of the Indian Ocean washed over them.
“Cole, man!” Mike greeted him with an animated bear hug that lifted the man from the ground. “Thanks for securing a landing zone for us.”
“No problem, Boonie. Anything for you, my man!”
“Boonie? Why does he keep calling you that?” Briar gave Mike a side eye full of suspicion. She already lacked trust for the slither and now he was being called by a different name.
“It's my last name.”
“Boonie is your last name?” She questioned again, her suspicion of him unfaltering.
“No, my last name is Boonsfield, Boonie is Cole’s thing. Is that okay with you, that a friend has given me a nickname?” Mike was losing his patience with the uppity fairy.
“Cole, nice to meet you,” Jinn interrupted before the two of them could take a simple conversation and turn it into more bickering.
“Jinn, I’ve heard a lot about you, man. You saved my man’s life.” Cole shook Jinn’s hand and smiled. “I owe you many thanks for that.”
“Yes, it seems I did, but no thanks is necessary.”
“I don’t mean to be rude, but we need to make this quick. We don’t have much time to get you in and out of here before the shit hits the fan,” Cole addressed Jinn, instinct telling him that Briar wasn’t as friendly. He kept his distance and ignored her, as she did him.
“What's our route?” Mike put his arm around his friend’s shoulder. “Lead the way, captain! We are all eager to get our asses out of here as quickly as possible. This isn’t exactly a hotspot for vacationing.”
“Underground, of course. These witches are pretty smart, but most of their protection spells are above ground. Only a few have the lower levels spelled, and if you ask me, if anyone is spelling the soil beneath their layer, that is a place you definitely don’t want to be!” Cole wobbled forward about ten feet before reaching down to open a camouflaged hatch. The Earth around them was plentiful in its foliage, even in the Ashen—the witches cared for the earth, they protected it as a natural source for not only their magic, but for its ability to grow. Plants were used for potions, and animals for sacrifice. There were many rituals which depended on the Earth around them. It was in their best interest to insure its survival.
“What is this place?” Briar spoke to Cole for the first time since their arrival.
“This is safe passage, my dear.” The chubby man waved at the tunnel, presenting it to them. “It’s the best way to get around without being caught by those up above.”
“It smells like ass,” she mumbled as the air picked up, carrying the stench from the opening out into the field.
“Well, the odor of an ass, or get caught by the coven, your choice,” he offered, and smiled as Mike laughed.
“How far do we have to go?”
She caved, as he knew she would. No odor was worth risking your life to avoid, no matter how rancid.
“It's going to take about a day on foot. I got us as close as I could to her without tripping any magical radars.” All of the witches had them, alarms that went off if anyone using magic from outside of their coven came to visit. Jinn’s magic would have set off every alarm within the Ashen had he transported them any closer.
“Is it that intense?” Mike asked. “They need alarms? I thought they had a treaty in place, no fighting. Why do they need alarm systems?”
“Man let me tell you, it has been crazy around these parts since they got the hold of this place. But they were damn brilliant in staking their claim here. Regardless of what treaties they have in place, not one of these witches are going to risk losing their homes. As I told you before, things are about to change, Boonie. We aren’t the only ones preparing for it.”
“Why do you say that? Why was this such a great place for them to claim?” Jinn looked around. Sure the place was beautiful, but any place could look that way with enough magic.
“The lands here are much richer with life than any other. This was the motherland, all life started here. That includes all magic. The more they nurture it, the stronger it grows. Here, even a person who has no magic can do great things if shown how. We all thought they wanted this place because at the time, no one else did. There was gold here, yes, but that wasn’t going to be worth anything after the war, we all knew that. What we didn’t know, is that there is so much more here, so many natural resources, ones that we had no idea about, but they did. Trust me. This place is like Fort Knox, above ground. Lately, though, more of those annoying barriers have been popping up down below as well. It's like they are on to us.” He winked at Briar as she entered the hatch following Mike. Once Jinn was through, he scanned the area, making sure they weren’t being watched, and disappeared beneath the soil.
“How long have you been here?” Jinn questioned Cole, who removed his wraps and shades and stuffed them into a backpack. They stood inside the hollow ground; tunnels dug by hand as the Collective had few underground passages that had existed before the war. Over the years, Cole and his people worked to expand the labyrinth as far as they could without pissing anyone off. It was hard and endless work; crews worked daily on expansion and repairs to their pathways.
“Long enough, just before they really settled in. Bounced over here from Australia about five years prior. If you ask me, this is the safest place to be. They know we are here, and as long as we keep to our areas, don’t muck up their plans, we’re all good. Unlike those over in the Scourge, we have better access to food, though it is still limited. This little excursion may mess that up though.” He paused. “You know, if you could get this done without implicating us, that would really help us out.”
“I appreciate you taking the risk. I’ll try my best to keep a low profile,” Jinn agreed. He didn’t intend to make life harder for any of the people who lived there.
“To help my man, Boonie? Anything!” Cole chuckled as they moved ahead.
“What did you do for him to make him so loyal?” Briar asked.
“Believe it or not, I have actual friends, friends I don’t have t
o bribe for loyalty.”
“I didn’t mean—” she whispered, but he stopped her.
“Yeah, okay. I know what you and your people think of me and mine. Let’s just keep that shit at bay for now while we have to work together, please. I don’t feel like defending myself to you throughout this entire ordeal.” Mike walked ahead, matching his pace with his friend. The two quickly fell into a humorous conversation as they laughed and joked about times before the war.
“I didn’t mean to offend him,” she said to Jinn, who remained on pace with her.
“Didn’t you though?” Jinn asked.
The first leg of their journey brought the group to a makeshift camping ground. Beneath the surface, they did the best they could to make it work. Items, mostly stolen, were brought down to create cots inside of dug-out caverns with thin, tattered sheets covering the entrances to allow for some semblance of privacy. This was their reality; this was the life Mike wanted to get his child away from.
“I never really thought about how they lived down here all these years.” Briar watched a family of four shuffle past their group and head down a tunnel that lead east of them, where Cole said the majority of their people stayed.
Cole announced that he had chosen housing away from the general population when he learned that Briar was coming. It was a better bet to keep them separate and avoid any misunderstandings. A fairy appearing in their world wasn’t going to be taken as a good thing.
“We tend not to think about the things that make us uncomfortable,” Jinn offered as he laid down a blanket over the pallet. “Don’t beat yourself up about it.”
“Mike, he grew up like this?” She adjusted her own bedding as they spoke.
“Born and raised. His parents were some of the first to have to take to the sewers. Unless you're in an area where snakes, alligators, and crocodiles are common, you have to hide. Even then, it's not as if they are out and about with everyone else.”
Djinn Rebellion Boxset (Books 1 -30: A Post-Apocalyptic Fantasy Page 7