“His name is Daegal, he is a warlock.”
They continued moving with Cole leading the way. He took his time to steer them clear of any traps.
“Daegal… I’ve never heard of him,” Mike offered. He kept well informed of the heavy hitters, the major players, anyone that may have proven a threat to him and his people. The name Jinn mentioned had never come up.
“He was never one for show, always kept to himself. I wouldn’t be surprised if he is using a different name now. But that symbol, it’s his. I would recognize it anywhere.”
“Okay, so how do you know him?” Briar kept pace with Jinn. “You said he is from your past, when did you cross paths with someone so terrible?”
“He is the one who turned us, Nitara and I. He is the one who made us what we are now.”
“You mean, he turned you into djinns?” Mike stopped walking and looked at his friend. “You weren’t always a djinn?”
“No, we weren’t. We were made this. Before Daegal attacked, we were witches, farmers. He condemned a local town. At the time we thought he was just there to terrorize the people. A lot of witches had gone rogue at the time, lashed out at the human population. Some were doing it out of fear, others out of hate, and some just for the fun of it, but it became clear his intentions were something different entirely.”
“Meaning?” The group had proceeded again, following Cole down a path that became tighter as they moved forward.
“He was looking for a lot more than just being a pain in the ass for the locals. I stepped in, interfered, thought I could help those people. Had I known what I know now, I might not have stepped in at all.” He swallowed the lump of guilt that formed in his throat. “It turned out that his intention was to draw out witches who would be foolish enough to try to help the humans. He preyed on the kind hearted. Anyone who would stand up against an unknown enemy and take the heat for a village whom they barely knew, was someone he wanted. Once I stepped up, defended those people, he left the town alone and came after us. We ran but didn’t get far before he found us.”
“Why the hell would he want to make you a djinn?” Mike blurted out. “Hell, how did he have the power to do that? I mean, you’re essentially a demon, right?”
“Something like that. He used dark magic, and a lot of it.” As far as everyone knew, the djinn were demons. They were tricksters who used their magic to turn wishes into punishments. Daegal wanted his own special brand of djinn; he wanted them to grant his wishes without consequence.
“Clearly he was playing a long game. Think about how many djinns he made, and all this time later, he just now wants to collect and cash in.” Briar was turning over the pieces in her mind. “He had something in the works all that long ago? Do you think he wants you too?”
“How is he still alive? As far as I knew, witches weren’t immortal,” Mike spouted off more questions. A warlock powerful enough to make magical demons was not something he wanted to mess with. Thoughts of his unborn daughter and the wife he’d left behind came to him. He wanted to provide a better future for them, but he also wanted to be a part of their future.
“Well, if he is using dark magic, we can be sure that has something to do with the longevity of his life. There is no telling what type of shit he is in, or what bargains he has made for immortality.” Briar shook her head, wiping sweat from her brow. The sun was lowering, and her temperature was rising. It had been too long underneath the ground, and the few moments in the sun were not enough. If she didn’t get home soon, she would get sick.
“So, we know who our target is, that’s a leg up. Maybe some of my contacts have information on this guy that we can use to our advantage.” As much as he wanted to turn and run, Mike swallowed the bullet. He was already in the thick of it, better to play his part or risk proving what everyone already thought of his people. He chose a side and he had to stick with it.
“Yes, and I will use our archives. If anyone has come into contact with him, it would have been logged for our records. No way someone this evil could have flown under our radar entirely. Right now, we just have to get home. Sybella can help as well, but she will need you to be there so she can tap into your memory.” Briar’s mind was working a mile a minute, as was Mike’s, who gave Cole a list of directives for who to reach out to once they’d gone.
“Shit!” Cole, who had remained silent in order to not get any further involved in the mess, stopped in his tracks. “Gloamers!”
This time it was too late for them to avoid the oncoming threat. Just up ahead the left side of the tunnel exploded and through the opening, with a thundering sound of growls and shrieks of hunger, poured in mutated beings.
“Run!” Mike yelled as the creatures stormed the tunnel headed for them. The four retreated, backing up into a large, hollowed-out zone, previously inhabited by more of Cole’s people, but once the gloamers moved in, they evacuated the area. The evil that created them was the type to poison everything around it.
“This isn’t right!” Cole shouted as he pressed his back up against the wall. “It's like they are acting on command, like they were sent here for us.”
“This isn’t normal?” Jinn questioned.
“No, I’ve never seen more than a few of them together at a time. That has to be just about every damn one of those things that are down here!”
“Well, I guess we know who created them!” Jinn placed his hand on the entrance to the tunnel. The mutated creatures were closing in on them. “Get back!” He yelled, and then slammed his fist into the carved entrance. The opening collapsed, sealing their predators outside, but this left them trapped. On the other side, they could hear frantic digging—the gloamers were trying to get through. “Well, that buys us a little time.”
“This isn’t right, they are different now,” Cole continued his panicked assessment of the monsters’ behavior.
“What do you mean?” Briar prepared herself, centering the remaining power she’d drawn from the sun.
“Usually they would just turn away, give up, and go find another meal option. They aren’t stopping.”
“Meal option?” Mike spat. “What the hell do you mean?”
“Yeah, they aren’t just murderers, they are hunting for food. The damn things never stop. Usually they find animals, some that we hunt and leave for them.”
“You feed them?” Mike turned on his friend, disgust with his revelation evident on his face.
“It's either feed them or get eaten.”
“Oh hell no! I am not going to be a part of some freak’s dinner plan!” Briar screamed at the wall that stood as a barrier between them and the things that planned to have them as a meal.
“What are we going to do?” Cole muttered as he searched hopelessly for a way out. His fear stunk as much as the sweat that poured from his chubby brow.
“We’re going to fight. Get ready, they are almost through.” Mike stepped forward, then turned to Cole. “Get back, stay low.” Cole was great at many things, but fighting wasn’t one of them. If he stayed out of the way it would mean less of a distraction.
“Mike,” Briar stepped forward, “you know how to kill these things?”
“No, but in my experience, removing the head has always been a surefire way. Hope you got enough charge from the sun while we were up there.”
Briar held up her hands, and two long blades of light appeared. “I got plenty.”
Jinn remained where he was, focusing on the sound of the monsters trying to get through. As he stared ahead, he steadied his breathing, blocking out all sound, all senses focused on the goal: kill as many of those bastards as he could. They were almost through—the temporary blockage began to crumble, lifting more dust into the air. He took one deep breath as the last of the barrier fell away.
The gloamers poured through, making their way quickly Briar and Mike, who lunged forward and engaged in physical combat. Mike shifted his form; instead of taking on that of his favorite, the anaconda, he became a large, mutated crocodile. The
only thing different between him and a regular crocodile was the length of his legs. His were about twice the size, and that gave him the agility he needed to quickly move between the monsters. His powerful jaw snapped repeatedly, breaking bones, and ripping flesh. The creatures screamed in pain as his teeth cut through them, while his tail whipped around with precision, knocking them down.
Briar kept in tow, doing exactly what Mike suggested and removing their heads. Her blades sliced through necks, torsos, limbs, anything they came in contact with, sending the orange blood splattering around her. Each shriek of pain fueled her to continue, each mutant death was a step closer to her own survival. She kept an eye on Mike, afraid one would catch him off guard, but every time she checked for him, she found large teeth cutting through tendons, ripping heads from bodies, and leaving disfigured forms littered in his wake.
Cole ducked further into the back of the space, finding a small nook to crawl into. The gloamers were starting to get past Mike and Briar, and yet not one had approached Jinn, as if he wasn’t in the room. They flooded the area, parting as they ran around Jinn, unquestioning the action. Jinn watched as the pair worked together as they continued to cut down their enemy. He intentionally held off his attack. He hoped that allowing them to fight, side by side, would inspire a growth in their relationship. If their kind was ever to come to an agreement, knowing that they could trust one another on the battlefield was key. It wasn’t until the creatures made it deeper into the space, nearly surrounding the two fighters, that he decided to step in. Two steps and a leap planted him in the center of the fight. The anger that burned through him, the rage he had been suppressing for nearly a week was released in a storm of heated action. He snapped necks with one hand, broke limbs, and ripped hearts from their chest. More and more came and still he fought, enjoying the physical nature of the act. Magic was easy, but taking them on, hand to hand, it gave him joy, pleasure.
“Jinn!” Briar was down, on her back, her swords the only thing protecting her neck from the teeth of the thing on top of her. Mike was also cornered, hideous creatures coming at him from all sides. Jinn followed her line of sight and realized quickly that his time of enjoyment had to come to an end, or one of their lives would.
“Stay down!” He yelled, giving his friends only a moment of notice before lifting his hand up and releasing a stream of blue flames which ripped out into the space. The blade of fire sliced through and burned everything it touched. He controlled the flame, making sure not to hurt those who were on his side. He lifted his other hand, aiming for the point of the gloamers’ entry, and shot an identical stream of fire through the opening. Anything that was trying to get in was burned, flesh melted away as they continued to try to enter regardless of their unavoidable deaths. The blaze sustained until there were no more cries of agony. He called the fire back, eliminating any evidence of the flame, besides the charred and melted bodies covering the floor.
“Damn.” Mike got to his feet, no longer in his reptilian form.
“Um…” Briar averted her eyes from Mike’s nude body. “Wanna cover up?”
“A little help here?” He asked of Jinn. With a wave of a hand, Mike was fully clothed again. “Thanks. Jeans are a little snug, though,” he joked.
“How’s this?” Jinn lifted his hand and Mike screamed.
“Hey, I was only joking!” The fabric around his crotch loosened again and he sighed with the relief. “Damn, I’d like to have a chance at a son, you know.”
“Are you okay, Jinn?” Briar laid her hand on his shoulder, but he flinched away from her touch.
“I’m fine. Let's go.” In a moment, he’d gone from humor to anger. Reality reached him as the stench of burned flesh and the rot of mutated blood filled his nostrils.
Traveling back to the exit was a silent, tension filled trek. Again, they stopped to rest up; this time Jinn went straight to sleep, no gifts of fresh food for the locals. Mike and Briar gave him space, time to process his thoughts, and when Cole questioned about food, Mike warned him that it was a bad idea. His people wouldn’t be getting another magical feast. They’d come in hopes of rescuing his wife and were leaving empty handed.
“Thanks again, Cole.” Mike hugged his old friend. They stood at the exit point, smells of the ocean a great relief from the stale stench of the underground.
“Any time. Thanks for keeping me from getting my ass chomped back there.” Cole shook his head. “Hell, hopefully that entire ordeal eradicated the gloamer population for us.”
“Anytime, man, you know I need you intact!” Mike smiled. “If you need anything, Cole, let me know.”
“Yeah, I will.” The round man smiled at Briar and nodded at Jinn.
Both returned his silent farewells before he disappeared beneath the ground again.
“Shall we get going?” Mike turned to Jinn who again nodded. The three grabbed hold of each other and disappeared in a swirl of blue magic.
When the smoke cleared, they were standing inside of Jinn’s garage, next to his black beauty. He ran his hand across the side of the bike, inspecting it. Of course, it hadn’t been touched—if it weren’t by his hands, the bike never moved.
“As far as Praia knows, we got in and out clean. No mention of the gloamers, or any of that shit,” Jinn instructed.
“My lips are sealed,” Mike responded, just happy to hear the voice of the man who’d been silent for far too long.
“Same here.” Briar wanted to forget the damn things anyway. If Praia found out about them, she would ask a million and one questions, which would make squashing the memory all but impossible.
The door to the home opened, and the moment they stepped across the threshold, they felt it—panic. Praia’s emotions radiated from her, filling the home with an alarming sensation.
“Whoa, what the hell is that?” Mike asked, grabbing his chest.
“It’s Praia, she is an Empath, and very advanced. She is upset.” Jinn moved further into his home. “Praia?” Jinn called out. Scanning the entrance and the living room just off the foyer, he looked for her, but didn’t find her lounging in her usual spot on the oversized sofa.
“Jinn? Help!” Her voice called from the kitchen. The three ran to her to find her standing over Sybella, who was slumped over the table. “Help! I don’t know what happened. She was fine, and then—”
“Sybella?” Briar pushed past Jinn and Mike to get to the table. Gently, she lifted the seer’s head from the table. Blood leaked from her eyes “What the hell happened?” Briar turned and yelled at Praia. “You were supposed to be watching her!”
“I was. I…” Praia shook. “She was fine!”
“Praia calm down. Tell us what happened,” Jinn coaxed the fae with a tranquil tone. If she got any more worked up, her emotions would start to overwhelm them all, and that wasn’t going to be good for any of them.
“She asked for tea, and I was making it. She said she needed to check in on Alesea, the queen. She said she felt something wasn’t right. She couldn’t tell, but she could sense some type of panic. Next thing I know, she fell forward on the table, and blood was coming from her eyes. I tried to help, but nothing worked.”
“She tried to see Alesea, and this happened?” Mike frowned. “That can’t be good, right? Has anything like this ever happened before?”
“No, it hasn’t,” Briar answered his question, still examining the seer, before turning to Praia. “Did anything else happen? Anything at all, focus!”
“Yes, um, she mumbled something.” Praia shook her head, trying to calm down before responding. She knew as well as Jinn just how dangerous it could be if she didn’t get a handle on her emotions.
“What? What did she say?”
“I don’t know. It was a name, I think.” Praia took a deep breath, refusing to let Briar’s anxieties rub off on her. “It was difficult to understand.”
“What name?” Jinn questioned again with a soothing tone.
“Um, shit… It sounded like Diego, or Digger, or
something.”
“Daegal,” Jinn spoke the name.
“He’s here?” Mike stepped to the djinn who held his fists tight at his sides. “Is that possible?”
“Apparently.” The djinn looked at Mike.
“Wait, she was trying to peek in on the queen, right? Not us?” Mike was the one to question the fae girl this time. “Are you sure?”
“She said Alesea specifically.”
“Shit, that means…” Mike trailed off as the pieces connected.
“We need to get to Vilar.” Briar turned to Mike and Jinn who wore mirroring looks of shock. “Now!”
The blue smoke settled in the city of Vilar which was in a state of panic; there wasn’t time for a subtler arrival. Besides, not one person who passed them gave a damn about the misfit gang in the streets. When the smoke cleared, they saw that what they feared was true. Vilar was under attack. The tower that stood at the center was under full lock down. Praia joined them this time, after Briar placed a protection spell around the seer only another fairy would be able to cross it. She would send help for the woman who, though she was still unconscious, was stable and had stopped bleeding.
“How are we going to get in?” Mike stared up at the building that was usually transparent with its large glass windows but was now sealed in metal shutters that slid down from the top, locking everything out.
“They will let me inside, I’m the second.” Briar ran forward, and as she did, without so much as a word from her, the doors opened. They allowed only her and those she approved to enter the fortress before the building was sealed shut yet again. “Update,” Briar barked at the small girl who opened the door.
“The queen is trapped inside the chamber.” Her voice trembled with the weight of her fear and sorrow. She, like so many others, had already accepted the worst. “We cannot get the doors open. Mysti says she can feel another within.”
“Why haven’t we gone in?” Briar asked, confused by their lack of action. She forged ahead with the small girl shuffling along beside her, and Jinn, Praia, and Mike followed close behind. “There are other ways inside that room!”
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