Clash of the Otherworlds: Book 1, After the Fall (5 page)

Céline responded calmly.  "Torrie was very clear that Jayne was to be the Mother to the creature that would somehow make it possible to open the Here and Now to the other realms."  She looked at me apologetically, pity in her eyes.  She and I both shared some very unhappy memories where Torrie was concerned.  

I looked at Maléna to gauge her reaction.  Torrie had held a torch for her, back when he was a member of the Here and Now and before he'd been banished to the Underworld.  Nothing in her expression belied her feelings about him, though.  She looked as cold and calculating as ever.

"Since none of us know the legend to which Torrie referred, there's no reason or basis for us to assume that anything Ben has claimed is a valid conclusion."

I shook my head.  She was going to cling to this you're-not-the-boss-of-me thing, and I could already tell that it was a mistake to piss Ben off like this.  I think he was used to getting his way; and while he'd been willing to follow Maléna's lead in the past, apparently he wasn't anymore.

"You risk much by denying who I am," was all he said.  

Our connection was humming.  I could feel Earth and Water straining to join with his Fire and Wind.  It was almost an effort to keep them apart right now.  My cloak swirled with their power, and I wasn't doing any of it consciously.  I wasn't sure if it were Ben's anger that was causing it or what, but I had to force myself to stop looking at Maléna and focus inward to keep myself under control.

"Just focus.  Breathe in and out.  You'll get it,"
came the voice again.

Listen,
I thought to the voice,
if you're not going to identify yourself, then just stay the hell away from me, okay?  I don't have the patience for your stupid games.

"I cannot reveal myself to you, and I ask that you not share my existence with anyone else right now."

Oh, like I'm supposed to trust a voice in my head?  Are you kidding me?  I'm not that stupid.  I'm probably going insane.  You're probably, like, the Devil in there.  Pretty soon you're going to be telling me to eat a pixie or something.

"All in due time.  Trust me.  And I would never tell you to eat a pixie.  I hear they're bitter, and they have almost no meat on their bones.  They're like pheasants."

No.  Not possible.  I'm telling.

"What if I told you something ... something that could help you?  Could I earn your trust enough to have you keep our connection quiet for a little longer?"

I shrugged before I caught myself.  I looked around the table to see if anyone noticed, but they were all too busy shifting around uncomfortably, staring at Ben and Maléna, wondering if a gauntlet were being thrown down, putting them in the middle of a wind storm of epic proportions.

Maybe
, I responded. 
Depends what it is.

"Okay.  But if I tell you something you agree is helpful to you, you in turn will agree to keep our secret."

I get to tell one person. One fae,
I countered.

"No.  No deal."

Just one.  Tim.  The pixie.

The voice didn't answer right away.

Come on.  I can't keep a secret from everyone.  I'm not built that way.  If you won't let me tell anyone, I'll break and tell the world.  It's a character flaw I have.

"Fine.  You can tell Tim the pixie so long as you make him swear on his life he will not reveal your secret.  Pixies cannot break this vow."

Done.  Now out with it.  I'm sick of the suspense.

"You have another weapon at your disposal that you can use to fight the creatures of the Underworld."

I frowned.  This didn't seem like some big secret to me.

Of course we have other weapons.  The Dark Fae probably brought in a few hundred with them when they moved in.

"I'm not talking about other fae.  I'm talking about you.  And this is a weapon that no other fae can manage, other than you.  And Ben, in a manner of speaking."

I swear the voice laughed then.  And I wasn't sure whether it was a good laugh or a devious one, which made me a little nervous.

So what's the weapon?

"Another time.  Now listen to the conversation going on around you.  You're could miss something good."

I felt the voice leave.  I hadn't sensed it entering, but I definitely now felt the void where it had once been.  

Dammit.  Who are you?
  I received no response, but didn't expect to.  The owner was somewhere else, and Dardennes was speaking in raised tones now, enough to pull me out of my head.

"The Light Fae recognize the position of both Ben and Jayne as the Father and Mother.  There is no need to rehash that argument or situation here today.  Certainly, Maléna, if you wish to challenge their positions in our community, that is your right."  He gave the group a knowing half-smile.  "I wouldn't necessarily recommend that, but if you so wish, I would be happy to preside over an official, sanctioned challenge.  I'm sure Ben and Jayne would be happy to accommodate your wishes."  He raised an eyebrow at us.

"Absolutely," said Ben, staring Maléna down.

"Uhhh ... yeah.  I guess," I said, not feeling nearly as confident in my ability to take that mean bitch out as Ben apparently did.

"Set it up," she said to Dardennes, never taking her eyes from Ben.

Oh great.  Something to look forward to.  A death match. 
I could sense Aidan looking at me, so I glanced over and caught him smiling with barely contained laughter.  I kicked him to get him to quit it.  Pretty soon he was going to get dragged into the fight, if Maléna saw him cracking up over her getting her panties in a bunch.

"Moving on then," said Dardennes, clearing his voice, remaining completely professional.  "Jayne, you are going to speak to Maggie for us.  We ask that you determine, if you can, the legend to which Torrie referred and possibly the location from which the orcs and demon have entered our realm."

"And how they're doing it," added a witch.  "It's not just a doorway.  There has to be some magic involved."

"Quite right," said Dardennes, nodding his head.  He looked around the table.  "Anyone else?"

"Maybe she could ask her to do some scrying," suggested a green elf.

Several of the witches hissed and glared at him, moving around in an agitated way.

"Hush your mouth, green elf!" growled Red.  "Do not encourage such deviant behavior!"

My eyes widened. 
Deviant behavior?  What the hell is scrying and why does a green elf want me to do it with Maggie?
  I shivered involuntarily, wondering what the heck it could be.  Whatever it was, no one here liked it, especially the witches.

"No.  I'm sorry, ..." Dardennes looked at the green elf expectantly.  "Forgive me ... I don't yet know everyone's name..."

"Thaddeus."

"Thank you, Thaddeus.  No, Thaddeus, I don't think that is such a good idea.  Scrying has long been frowned upon by our Light Fae witches, and it appears the Dark Fae witches agree.  I believe this is a stone we should leave
unturned
."

Thaddeus shrugged.  "Why leave stones unturned?  We're fighting battles with demons here."

I was with Thaddeus, unless it involved me doing something nasty with Maggie.  I raised my hand.

Everyone else ignored me, since taking turns speaking wasn't really a fae thing, but Dardennes had learned that this generally meant I wanted to say something, so he gestured in my direction.  "Jayne?"

"What's scrying?"

Maléna snorted and rolled her eyes, immediately making me want to slap her.  She was so smug, I was almost looking forward to this challenge match now.  But I knew I was going to have to go into total Rocky mode and train-up so I could whoop her ass sideways.  She would be no easy win.  I gritted my teeth together to keep from saying anything.

Ben leaned down and said quietly, "Scrying is looking into the future, basically."

"Whoa," I said, my voice filled with awe, "Maggie can do that?"

"Yes," said Ben, turning his attention back to Dardennes.

"Any other suggestions?" the silver elf asked.

No one said anything, probably too worried about sounding stupid like Thaddeus and me.  He didn't look affected by it, but if I were him, I'd feel like an amateur.  They all acted like scrying was a seriously bad idea.

Dardennes nodded at me.  "You have your work cut out for you then, Jayne.  Good luck.  Please come to my office when you have accomplished your mission."

I didn't know what to say to that, so I just nodded back.  I snuck a glance at Ben, wondering if he'd go with me.  I kind of wanted to go alone, so I could ask her about this fortune-telling stuff; and if he were there, he'd probably stop me. 
For sure I have to go alone or with just Tim.
  I started formulating the plan in my mind as the group continued on with other business.

By the time I'd snapped out of it, we were taking a vote.

I leaned over to whisper in Aidan's ear.  "What are we voting on?"

He covered up his laugh with a cough.  He leaned towards me and said, "Yes for adjourning the meeting; no for coming up with more plans for world peace."

I threw my hand up with the rest of the yeses.

"It's unanimous," said Dardennes.  "The meeting is adjourned.  You will be notified of our next meeting by courier."

We all stood to leave, the sounds of scraping noises on the stone made by our chairs grating to my ears.

"So, how'd you like it?" asked Aidan.  "Our first council meeting as one big happy family."

"It was pretty good, I guess.  I didn't put anyone into a coma, so that's always a good day for me."

He laughed.  "I heard about you and that stuff.  I think I'd like to try that sometime ... getting lost in the Green for a while."

"You're nuts.  It turns people into crying babies."

"Sounds like good drugs to me," he said gamely.

Ben leaned in.  "You have to be careful of those weres.  They're total adrenaline junkies."

"Look who's talking," said Aidan good-naturedly.  "First meeting and you've got a challenge going with Maléna.  Good work on that, by the way."  He gestured with his head over at Maléna, his distain clear.

"Not on Team Maléna?" I asked.

"Not exactly," he said quietly.  More loudly he said, "The wolf has no quarrel with the silver elf."

He reminded me of the werewolves who had no quarrel with the siren of our lake, Naida.  They'd said the same thing to me about her once.

"Who
do
the wolves have a quarrel with?" I asked.

He shrugged.  "Demons named Torrie, for one."

I totally wanted to hug him for that.  A smile burst across my face as I battled to keep my hands down at my sides and not around his shoulders.

"What's wrong?" he asked, smiling, a little mystified.

"Oh, what the hell," I said, before flinging my arms around him.  "I love that the wolf has a quarrel with a demon named Torrie."

He put his arms around my waist and squeezed me back for a second before stepping away.  "Good," he said nodding.  We held hands for a couple seconds before I let go and turned to join Ben near the door.  "See ya," I said over my shoulder.

"Yeah.  See ya around," Aidan said, turning to speak to his wolf friend next to him.

I caught up to Ben at the door.  He was staring at me saying nothing.  I could see the muscle of his jaw twitching.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing," he said, instantly dropping the brooding look and smiling at me.  "Come on.  I wanted to show you my room.  Ready to see it?"

I shrugged.  "Ready enough."

I walked out the door and was immediately accosted by Tim, buzzing so close to my face I feared a pixie wiener-to-the-nose incident.  I quickly leaned my head back as far as I could to avoid the potential disaster.

"Tell me everything that happened in there and do not leave a single thing out.  My electronics totally didn't work.  I'm so disappointed in me."  He sighed, sounding pitiful.

"Let's go see Ben's place first," I said, walking next to my Dark Fae counterpart, trying to ignore his arm that occasionally brushed up against mine.  "Then you and I can do some girl-chat after."

"Oh, goodies.  And then you can help me with Baby Bee's flying lessons."

"How can I possibly help anyone with flying lessons?" I asked.  "I can barely walk without tripping."

"You'll make a good backboard," he said, flying out in front of us.  "Especially with your boobs and all."

"Great," I said shaking my head, picturing poor Willy doing face-plants into my private parts.

"What?" asked Ben.

"You don't want to know," I said, walking down the hallway, not paying attention to where we were going.  

My mind wandered to the voice I'd heard in my head during the meeting.  I wondered who it belonged to and if Tim would know how to find her.  If she knew about a weapon I could use, I needed to get my hands on it before this match with Maléna, and in enough time that I could learn how to use the damn thing.

CHAPTER FIVE

WE ARRIVED AT BEN'S ROOM a few minutes later.  Unlike mine, it had only a single entry door.  He pushed it open and gestured for me to go in ahead of him.  I walked by him, trying to ignore the Ben-smell that snuck up into my nose.  It was nearly intoxicating, the way it made me instantly think of him as a guy - one I'd kissed pretty passionately not that long ago.

I stepped over the threshold and was immediately struck by how masculine the room felt.  It was dark, much darker than mine; and the greenery was at a bare minimum.  No pixies would be making their homes here.  This was more a place for bugganes - classy ones, though, if there was such a thing.

The walls had tapestries woven of strange thread that seemed to wink with dark amber and colors of the rainbow in deep hues.  They had battle scenes on them, with many creatures I knew and others I'd never seen.  I stepped closer to one that was done in blacks and purples with some turquoise mixed in, noticing the theme of this one was dragons.  I reached up to touch one of them, fascinated with how fierce they looked, when Ben's voice caused me to jerk my hand back.