Finding Fae

Ben

I got us all sorted out to go to the Sidhe, minus Nando’s mother. That was kind of a bummer, but it would have been too much on one smuggler, which was the only way to get from here to there so quickly, unless you wanted to take the chance with a bribe. That would have been expensive, if it was taken, or it could land us in some pretty hot water, if it wasn’t.

We packed up what we thought we would need as well as some gear, in the likely event that we’d be camping in the wilderness. Not advisable, but with a hound on our side, there was little we needed to worry about unless we went too far south, which we were planning on not doing.

Blaine may have been born here, but he hasn’t made a trip back since he was an infant. I was constantly back and forth, bringing this and that from place to place, so it wasn’t a big shock to me as it was to Nando and Blaine. I mean, who wouldn’t be a little surprised to see the grasses of the eastern fields? Each blade was blue in the center that faded to purple before turning pink along the edge. The few trees were stark white wood with leaves that looked like cherry blossoms. The sky was a soft lavender color because it was nearly dusk, but the Moon Flowers were going to bloom, meaning the area was already filling with their fragrance. It smelled like hot sugar, or a brulee.

After Mal and I helped those two pick their jaws off the ground, we made it to a small village and checked into a hotel I knew wouldn’t dare steal from a fox, since it was a mouse Morphi running the place. I locked our things away in a safe in the wall while Nando basked in the free energy flowing all over the place and Blaine looked like he was about to start drooling.

“It’ll take an hour or so before my mind starts to work right,” Mal said as he kicked off his shoes and rolled his shoulders, letting his wings out in all their glory. “At least they look a little brighter.”

“So how does that work, exactly?” I asked. “Do all fairies get glittery wings at some point or another?”

“They aren’t “glittery”,” he shot my a glare. “As far as I know, it’s unique to noble fairies when we’re part of a Soul Bond. But, there isn’t much information to go on where that’s concerned. I thought it was a myth until it happened.”

“Clearly,” I said, eyeing the pretty colors. I was a fox. We have a thing for stuff that sparkles. “So, brighter is good, right?”

“I’ve noticed it’s brighter the closer I get to Fae,” he nodded.

“Cool. So like a homing beacon for your girl,” I grinned.

“Until a certain distance, yes. I guess that’s one way of looking at it,” he shrugged.

“Well, settle in lover boy. I’m going to go see what I can find out through the old fashioned ways,” I said and got up, leaving a wisp burning on the table in the middle of the room.

It wasn’t difficult to find the smugglers and thieves, getting them to talk was the hard part. Being a demon had it’s perks, though. We tend to have a slightly sadistic side when the occasion calls for it. I wasn’t a fan of going that route, but for Fae, my morals could be put aside.

I didn’t get much aside from the odd sighting of gray Demi here and there, which was about as good as it was going to get in a tiny little village like this. The news was weeks old but it was more than what we had before, so that was something. I was making my way back to the hotel and saw a couple of cloaked people looking rather suspicious in the hall before they noticed me and ducked into a room.

I went into the room with the guys and frowned at the door.

“What is it?” Mal asked.

“I’m not sure but there were some people that seemed... off,” I shook my head. “Anyhow, there’s not much to go on here. A few random rumors of gray Demi, but most Demi live on the other side of the mountains farther east. It’s not unusual for them to be around.”

“Maybe I’ll get lucky and be able to get a lock on her,” Mal sighed. “I just hope we’re close enough.”

There was a light knock on the door and Blaine, Mal, and I all looked at it like it was about to explode before I went to answer it.

“Can I help you?” I asked through the crack seeing a man and a woman standing there.

“Actually, son,” the man said. “I believe we can help you.”

“Quinton?” I heard Mal say and stepped back for him. “And Mary. What are you two doing here?”

He opened the door and let the two adults into the room.

“I go where she goes and she got it in her head to come here,” Quinton chuckled.

“You’re going to need help finding you Bonded,” Mary said. “Who better to do that than another Bonded couple?”

“They’re the ones?” Blaine asked.

“Taking a bit to get your head on straight, again?” Quinton chuckled. “Newbies, huh?”

“Well, we used non-official means,” Mal shrugged.

“It gets better the more frequently you travel,” Mary smiled as she held out her hands and put them on Blaine’s cheeks. “In the meantime, it’s nice to have someone like me around.”

“She’s kind of a healer,” Mal shrugged. “A terrifying one, so don’t make her angry.”

“Trust me, that’s the last thing you want to do,” Quinton shuddered.

“So, I’m guessing you haven’t tried to find her yet, since you’re still standing around like an oaf,” Mary piped up as she frowned at the still dopy looking Nando. “Is he okay?”

“He’s newly Awakened and has been working nonstop to find Fae,” I said. “And he’s Earth bound.”

“Ah,” she said, waving her hand in front of his face. “Well, he’ll be like this for a while. I suggest we get to work.”

“It can be kind of... loud,” Mal flinched. “We’ll need to leave the village.”

“So? What are we waiting for, stupid? Let’s go,” she put her hands on her hips.

“I like her,” I chuckled as we started gathering up the more essential things, like cloaks and lanterns. Most of the advanced tech from Earth doesn’t work here. The magic short circuits electronics. “She acts like Fae a little bit.”

“Yeah, she kind of does,” Mal smiled a little bit.

-----

Mal was screaming and writhing around on the ground while Blaine and I tried to keep him from hurting himself. Mary had tears running down her face and her hands where over her mouth as Quinton held her close to him, seething with anger.

“Malachi! Try to find her!” I shouted over his screaming. “Focus on where she is!”

One last scream that took all of the air from hism and turned his face a deep red before he gasped in deeply and flipped over, heaving onto the grass under him. Blaine handed him a bottle of water after he was finished and I took a shaking breath.

“Dear Gods,” I heard Mary sobbing behind us. “Is this all the time?”

“He was able to connect once when she wasn’t being hurt, but more often than not, this is how it goes,” I said sadly. “It’s been going on for nearly a week now.”

“You have to find her,” she shook her head as she wiped at her face.

“That’s why we’re here,” I nodded and helped Blaine get Mal back on his feet.

“I-I found he-her,” Mal slurred.

“Which way, lover boy?” I asked as Blaine transferred all the weight to me so he could transform. Mal pointed north and Blaine growled. “Go ahead. Once Mal’s recovered enough to fly again, we’ll catch up.”

Quinton came and took Mal’s other arm, holding him up as we helped him walk towards the carriage he and Mary had bought from the livery stable. Mal’s wings were limp and dragging on the ground until Mary picked them up.

“W-we have to f-find her,” Mal slurred again.

“We’ll ride with Mary, Quinton, and Nando while you recover a little bit, then me and you can go help Blaine,” I said as we got him in the back next to the goofy Nando who was sucking up as much of the errant energy he could get, little sponge.

I climbed in next, so I could stop them from rolling out of the back as Quinton helped Mary into the front before hopping in and grabbing the reins and turning the horses around and heading north, following Blaine’s earlier path.

Fae

Mal was on his way. He had found me and he was coming. Nothing Rex could do to me could make my mood sour. He had been at it much longer than normal, meaning he was catching heat from the higher ups. It didn’t matter anymore. Mal was coming for me.

I was laughing as Rex punched me again. I spit out the blood and laughed harder.

“I think her mind is broken, Rex,” the healer said as he came over to give me a once over.

“Not even close,” Rex growled as he tossed the knife back to his tray of tools.

“Something’s different,” the healer said.

“It doesn’t matter,” he said and grabbed the smaller pliers.

“No. Her hands can’t take anymore abuse right now,” the other guy said as he stepped between me and Rex with a hand up.

“I don’t care if she’s crippled, so long as she talks!” Rex shouted and shoved the healer aside.

Then, something glorious happened. I heard the distinct call of a hellhound on the hunt. It sounded like a bloodhound baying mixed with the vicious snarl of a pack of dogs fighting each other with a hint of wolf howl. Blaine was here, which meant Mal wasn’t far behind and I laughed again.

“They’re here, assholes,” I laughed. “There’s nothing that can save you now.”

“Sound the alarm,” Rex said.

Mal

We found her. There was no doubt that this manor was where Fae was. I could feel her pain like a beacon pulling me to her. I dropped Ben off next to Blaine as I flew around, looking for a way inside. I recognized this place. It used to be a part of the King estate. It was my uncles, but it had been given to one of his mistresses who was pregnant just before he died.

That baby was Rex.

We were both bastards of the King family, but he had the benefit of his mother’s family. She was from the Noble family and when the Kings refused to acknowledge Rex, the Nobles named him the fifth heir, should something happen to the other four.

I scoffed as I found an open balcony. Drawing the light sword from between my shoulders, I started my search for the dungeons.

“Hold on Fae. I’m coming,” I whispered.

-----

I was so close but there was no way I could get through all of these goons on my own. At least six were gray Demi and another twelve were behind them, guarding the stairs down to the dungeons. I was good, but eighteen to one were not good odds no matter how good you were. I needed Blaine or even Ben and his tricks to stand a chance. But they were both busy keeping the bulk of the small army occupied.

As much as I hated to admit it, now would be a good time for Zane to be here.

“Need help kid?” Quinton’s distinct voice said as he dropped a hand on my shoulder. “Step aside. Mary’s pissed.”

He pulled me against a wall as the small woman walked calmly down the hall way. He hair was spread around her, like she was in water, and her moving was slow and fluid, like a dance, but her face was a mask of fury and her normally brown eyes were a bright red as she put a finger on one of the Demi’s.

Just one dainty finger touching him sent him flying into the wall, his chest caved in like every bone had been shattered into dust. There was no recovering from that and I shuddered as the cold, harsh realization hit me like a bucket of water.

“Queen Justine,” I whispered.

“Hey,” Quinton said with a smirk as he put a finger to his lips. “Shush.”

“I think we need a long talk when this is all over,” I muttered and he slapped my back and chuckled while his wife made quick work of the guards.

“Go find you Bonded, boy,” he said and pushed me forward as he went to catch Justine as she teetered on her feet and her eyes turned back to their usual color.