Finding Fae

Nando

I had been mostly awake for four days now. Since Fae was taken and Ben’s brilliant idea to use the bracelet to track her, I have been trying to modify the spells from simple danger alert to tracking. It wasn’t that difficult to do if I had the charms right in front of me. Without them, it was like pulling teeth, it was so slow.

I had decided to use Blaine’s charm first, since he was faster and, being a hellhound, he was harder to hurt, in case something was up. He was also fairly stealthy, though Ben certainly had him beat in that area. Zane was a more experienced fighter, but speed was our concern at the time.

Now, it was even more important that we try to find Fae as quickly as possible. After learning that she was being tortured for some reason, we all forgot everything else except for Fae. My mother was in tears more often than not as she tried her best to help me figure out what to do to make this process faster and just as accurate. That was the biggest issue we had. Accuracy.

Since Blaine’s charm got us basically no where, we had to decide which one was next. Ben, Zane, or me. Immediately, I was ruled out as the last effort, since I’m not made to sneak, fight, or go on rescue missions. I wished so hard that I was right about now, but since we now knew what was happening to her, it was best if I remained on the sidelines for when she was found. A healer would be needed more desperately than a fighter when that happened. Not if. Never if. We would find her, save her, and bring her back.

“I still say we should have used my charm,” Zane muttered as he watched me working over the tiny fox charm.

“Ben is the better choice when sneaking around and with his magic, it would make getting in and sneaking her out easier,” I said, restating the reasons why it was decided that Ben was next.

He crossed his arms and stayed quiet, which wasn’t normal for him before Fae came here. Now, it was like he was sulking and brooding at the same time. He was so quiet and kept to himself more often, which went against his nature as a dog Morphi. It was very strange, seeing how much he had changed in such a short time. It was like he didn’t care that any of this was happening.

Malachi was another problem that needed delicate handling. For four days, he’s been trying to find her himself, leaving well before sunrise and not coming back until well after dark, usually in terrible shape as he pushed himself too hard and wound up with wing cramps and muscle tearing. Ben kept a comm wisp on him to make sure he at least ate something, though I think his reminders were ignored most of the time. He was, essentially, killing himself looking for her.

While the rest of us only were told about the torture, Mal lived it. He shared the pain she felt, so it hit him harder than the rest of us. The Bond made it that way on its own, so I could only guess what he was dealing with now. He was so determined to find her, that trying to get him to rest for longer than a few hours was like having a camp fire near a pile of black gunpowder. It was just asking for something to explode.

“Zane, it’s time for you to leave now,” Mama said, gently. “The less outside energy in here to sort through, the faster this will go.”

Zane huffed as he left and I sighed in relief. For some reason, I felt like Zane was only a few words taken the wrong way from breaking things, mostly bones. Pushing the thought aside, I focused on finding out where Fae was.

Ben

I was pacing outside the door as Nando worked. Zane had left hours ago in a huff, leaving for who knows where in a way that spoke volumes about what would happen should he be followed. His attitude wasn’t my main concern at the moment, though it certainly needed to be addressed sooner than later.

Fae.

She was equal parts saint and sinner. She had a temper worthy of any unchained hellhound and the cunning any fox like myself would be jealous of. But she was also sweet, kind, and naive. She struggles every single day, but she never quits. She would take a break for the day, spending her time off with Mal some place or leaning into his side while watching a movie and eating popcorn.

I didn’t understand why she chose to be around him so much more than the rest of us. Now, it was kind of obvious that the Bond was bringing them together, even if she didn’t know it then. She laughed harder, smiled easier, and relaxed faster around him. She was never like that with us. I wasn’t jealous and I certainly didn’t feel less important to her during those times. I was just glad that one of us was able to connect with her that way.

Hearing about Fae’s torture sent my anxiety levels into space, which was an entirely new experience for me. I didn’t stress about things, normally. It wasn’t in my nature. I was cautious, when I needed to be, like around Zane these days, but I just rolled with the punches as they came.

Not where Fae was concerned, apparently. She was too important. Like my sister, only more fragile and delicate in my eyes. Like a morning glory in bloom.

“We got it!” Nando shouted as he threw the door wide open and slapped my forehead with a wet hand. “Go find Fae.”

I was transforming as I ran, feeling the location of the charm like a hand pushing me in the right direction.

“Lover boy,” I called through my wisp on Mal. “I’m tracking the charm on Fae’s bracelet now.”

“Where is it?” he asked quickly.

“Farther than Blaine’s wa,” I sighed. “It’ll take me at least an hour to get there.”

I heard him before I saw him. The sound of wings humming in the air was all the warning I got before I felt Mal grip the back of my neck and snatch me up, making me yelp in shock before he put his arms around my middle like I was a kitten being carted around by a toddler.

“You’re an ass,” I growled at him.

“Which way?”

I pointed with a paw and he flew faster, making my eyes sting and water. It took no time at all before we got there and I yipped, telling him we needed to land. I found the charm easily enough and Mal sort of went into a daze, no doubt looking for Fae in his own, Bonded way.

His screaming startled me before I shifted back and caught him as he fell forward. He lashed out and screamed until he was hoarse then screamed some more, digging his nails and heels into the dirt as he struggled with Fae’s pain. It made me sick to see him hurting like that, knowing it was only a shadow of what she felt.

Finally, after what felt like forever, Mal stopped screaming and groaned, rolling over and retching several times onto the ground before crawling away a bit and falling down in a gasping heap, covered in sweat and unable to focus.

“Jesus,” I whispered.

“We have to find her, Ben,” Mal rasped. “They’ll break her if it takes too much longer.”

“Did you get anything other than pain? Anything at all?” I asked, hoping there was something useful about all of this.

“Gray Demi,” he said, closing his eyes. “Cells in a dungeon. Chains. Terror and fear and pain.”

“I don’t think there are many dungeon type places to search around here,” I nodded. “And gray Demi tend to stick out a bit more than red ones.”

“She’s begging for us to hurry. I can’t stand letting her down like this,” he said and I saw him shaking as he did the last thing I though Malachi King would ever do. He cried. “I can already feel the cracks in her mind. If we don’t find her soon, there won’t be anything left of her to save.”

“We’ll find her, man,” I sighed. “I’m not sure how the Bond works, but you got more than you did last time, so that has to mean we’re getting closer, right?”

“I can’t tell if it’s her pain that’s making the connection with her or if it’s us getting closer,” he said as he tried to stand on wobbling knees, his face still wet as more tears fell from his eyes. “It did feel a little easier, though.”

“There’s something to hold on to,” I nodded. “You good to fly?” I asked as he started flexing his wings.

“Flying is second nature to me,” he nodded as I sprouted my fur and sank to four legs, making myself smaller and lighter for him to carry back and forth. “I’m going to find her, Ben.”

“When you do, lover boy, save a few of those bastards for the rest of us,” I snarled as I was picked up and Mal flew us back towards Nando’s house.

“No promises,” he said darkly.

Mal

Fae told me once that Ben’s fur was the softest thing she had ever felt and that it smelled of cinnamon, oddly enough. I smiled to myself as I had to admit, she was right. I can imagine Ben’s face as she held him down and squeezed him, pressing her face into his fur like a child. The thought made me smile. She got such a kick out of it, she could barely finish telling me about it before she fell into hysterics, laughing so hard, she snorted a few times.

The memory made my heart warm up and a smile pull at my face. Then the dark mood returned as anger flooded me. I had to get her back. I needed her back. It was killing me that she was so far away. Knowing she was being hurt like that was even worse. The ache in my heart was so painful, I couldn’t sleep, even if I had wanted to.

We landed and Ben struggled a bit before I put him down and he took off. I followed a little slower, not too eager to face Zane and his glares. Something was seriously up with that guy.

“He’s not here,” Blaine said as he saw me from the side of the house. “I need your help.”

“With?” I asked, lifting an eyebrow.

“Trapping Zane. I think he’s hazing,” Blaine said.

“That’s a myth,” I said.

“Not a myth. Just rare,” Blaine said. “Until it passes, Zane is dangerous. He’ll hurt anyone for any reason.”

“So, what do we do?” I said.