Twist of Fae (7 page)

Using a trick I'd learned from an Angel, I summoned the
blade of Zeus, given to me by Ouranos himself when we had battled the dark Fae,
and it appeared in my hand. As arcs of blue electricity shot up and down the
blade, I thrust it into the wall and began to cut the mirror out. When I was
done I gave it a push and it fell out, crashing into the corridor with a loud
thud— two agents jumping back and cursing as they pulled their weapons. One, a
gun, the other a sword. There was a momentary stand off as I faced the two of
them. Then I heard footsteps and someone else appeared.

"Stand down," the new arrival shouted in a deep
voice as he reached us, pushing aside the agent that held the gun and facing me.
"Is there a problem?" he asked as a fiery sword appeared in his hand
as well.

This Agent was not like the others. He wasn't human, but I
doubted he was half anything. I'd faced Demons before and whatever this guy was,
he was the real thing. What surprised me most was that he reminded me so much
of Zeke, the Archangel I'd met when we battled the dark Fae's Mages not too
long ago. They were similar in build and the flames that flickered from his
sword were the same. No, this guy was the real thing, and judging by the way
the other two agents jumped at his orders, I think I'd found the being in
charge.

"Oops," I said as I willed my sword away and
leaned out through the hole, looking down at the now shattered mirror. "It
was getting a little stuffy in there. My apologies for the damage. Send me a
bill and I’ll be happy to replace that for you," I said with a shrug of
feigned embarrassment. "And you would be?"

"Agent Samson," he replied, extinguishing his own sword
and turning to look down the hallway. "Theno," he yelled. "Meet
me in your office. You two, get this… gentleman… out of there and clean this
mess up."

The one holding the sword sheathed it and a moment later
opened the door.

"Sorry about that," I said as I stepped into the
hallway.

"I'm sure you are," the newcomer said. "This
way."

I followed as he took off down the hallway, turning down a
side corridor after a moment and leading me into an outer office with a
secretary at her desk. She barely had time to look up before we entered the
other office and he motioned for me to sit before taking a seat himself behind
the desk. The door opened just as I was sitting down.

"You have the file?" Samson asked as Agent Theno
came into the room.

"Top drawer," he replied.

"Fine," Samson said as he reached down and pulled
out a red file folder. "Go ahead and get back to the briefing. We'll join
you when we finish here." Then he began perusing the file. "Interesting
display of magic," he said after turning a few pages. "My predecessor
would have enjoyed it."

"Would he?" I asked, finally being able to sense some
hint of magic from him. Whatever spell they had used before didn't seem as
potent in this room but still, he wasn't recognizable. "And what about
you?"

"Like I said, I found it interesting." he replied
as he placed the file folder down. "I am sorry that my predecessor felt
games like that were necessary. I assure you that I have neither the time, nor
the inclination, to treat my guests in that manner. There are better ways to
verify a person's power and intentions. But let's move on."

"Fair enough," I said. Well, at least I was guest
now. "But first, do you want to explain to me why you dragged both my kids
into this?"

"An error on our part, I must confess," he said,
leaning back in the chair. "From all appearances it was believed that they
were aware of their heritage. Although I admit to a certain curiosity, that does
not seem to be the case. However, as soon as Agent Guerrier made me aware of
the situation, measures were taken to minimize their exposure. It was not our
intention to cause internal strife within your family. As a matter of fact,
they are both currently in a briefing which now focuses primarily on their
roles in the investigation of a terrorist group that killed several prominent
citizens. I'm sure you will recall the unfortunate death of Mr. Shoda."

"I'm not sure they'll be a problem anymore," I
replied. Chitose Shoda had been one of several Fae killed by the dark Fae's
Mages. As a matter of fact, the same group's attack on Eddie Milagre, the
Nereid owner of the Neptune's Landing, had been my awakening into this world. Since
then, the dark Fae herself had been sentenced to Tartarus, and with the help of
other local Fae, we'd cleaned up the last remnant of their forces in Las Vegas.
Or at least, so I thought.

"Yes, your attack on the Mages compound. I should thank
you for that," he said with a smile. "But to continue, let me assure
you that the briefing will not involve information beyond the human world. They
will be told that it is more of an opportunity to meet our agents as the
possibility exists that they will be working closely with them on similar cases
in the future. As to what damage has already been done, that I cannot say.
Their role in future events will be determined after our discussion."

"Thank you," I replied, knowing it was too little,
too late. But I'd deal with both of them when this was all finished. "What
exactly is it you want to talk to me about?"

"Let me be frank, Mr. Hoskins," he began.
"You are an enigma. For over two hundred years this agency has monitored
contact between the supernatural and human world within this country's borders.
While that does not mean we can account for every Fae or otherworldly being
that comes into this country, as a general rule, we know who they are. As an
example, do you know how many Fae lords reside within our boundaries?"

"I have no idea," I replied.

"Two," he replied. "Do you know why that
is?"

"Again, I couldn't tell you," I answered. I knew
one had to be Ms. Milagre but I had no clue who the other could be, unless he
was talking about me.

"This is still the new world to your kind, Mr. Hoskins.
Few Fae venture past their borders and fewer still cross the sea to take up
residence here. Fortunately for us, those that do tend to settle in a few
places. We find that cooperation between them and our agency is necessary, as
you may already have observed."

"Hey, I paid my taxes on any monies we brought over. What's
your point?" I asked.

"Indeed, I have seen your file." he said, holding
up the red folder. "The government appreciates your support of our tax
laws. Still, you have a fifty year history, including an impressive law
enforcement career in the human world. Yet I find it odd that there is no
mention in any of our files of anything out of the ordinary about you. How do
you account for that?"

"There was no reason to make my presence known before I
decided to bring resources in from Fae," I said, knowing that wouldn't
satisfy him. But I wasn't about to go into the whole story, especially if he
really didn’t know.

"I see," he said. "Yet here you sit. The first,
no, the only male, ever to hold a Fae throne among your kind, and we are only now
learning who you are."

"Maybe you need better resources," I said.

"I do not think so," he countered. "Did I
mention that we also track Fae relics? I could not help but notice that the
sword you wielded is most likely one of the three most powerful and sought
after of Fae artifacts. That is the sword of Zeus, isn't it? The same sword
believed lost in the ruins of Olympus? Then there is the matter of the Lilin.
They could not have been released without the possession of the
Tears
.
Even setting these relics aside, the fact remains that within the last year, you
have engaged in several battles against dark Wizards or Fae and in each case
were victorious."

"So you have a list of my accomplishments. Let me ask
you again, what's your point?"

"Mr. Hoskins," he began. "While I grant you
that only an heir of Demeter could have released the spell that the Lilin were
under, that still does not tell me who you are or why you have suddenly made
yourself known. I am charged with protecting this country from supernatural threats.
That is why I am here. I need to be sure you are what you claim to be and can
be considered an ally. Before we go any further, I will need to see your true
self. Will you show it to me?"

"You want me to switch to my Fae self? Ok, not that I
think it'll make any difference," I said. But fair was fair and I still
didn't know what he was, either. "I'll show you mine if you show me yours."

"Agreed," he retorted.

He stood up and switched to his true persona as I did the
same. He was not what I expected. I now realized why he reminded me so much of
Zeke. Instead of the regular Demon I assumed him to be, he looked more like an
Angel. Well, at least the fallen kind. He was clad in armor and his wings were
dark, but his face looked radiant, even if the light that shone from it was
dark instead of bright, if that makes any kind of sense. I saw now that he was
one of the fallen, no, more likely a direct descendant. He had to be a Nephilim.
He stared right at me with a gaze so intent he appeared to be looking into my
very soul. For an instant, I wondered if I should let him continue.

"I am Samson of the line of Samyaza, and you are what
you claim to be," he said before suddenly switching back to his human form.

"I am Robert, son of Gabrielle, of the line of
Demeter," I said in response. "And you are not what I expected you to
be." Then I switched back as well.

"Sins of the father," he replied with a shrug.

That was something I could relate to, even if our paths and
history were so radically different.

"Despite what you may think you know about my kind,"
he continued. "Know that even a Fae lord cannot hide their true nature
from us. So while I am satisfied that you are what you seem to be and are not our
enemy, I must nonetheless ask you to respect our decrees and agree to terms.
While you may be a citizen of this country, you are also the leader of a
foreign government, and therefore, a formal treaty must exist between us."

"I will agree to the same terms as the Nereid with one
addendum as it relates to my children. That part doesn't have to be written. Will
that be agreeable?"

"Name the additional terms."

"First, I need a few days with them to explain what's
going on."

"Agreed," he said. "What else?"

"Jay remains an agent and no bullshit postings because
of what he is. I'll let you choose the job and agency should you decide you
want to offer him that, but I don’t want him suffering because of what he
didn’t know."

"Again, agreed. He has already proven himself to this
agency so I see no need for his talents to be wasted." he replied.
"And your daughter?"

"Let her be a liaison between you and the locals. I'd
prefer you didn't offer her a job, but I would like her on a Joint Task Force
or something like that so she has a little freedom of movement." She was
going to need that for what was in store for her when she found out just what
we were.

"That can be arranged," he said. "Do you wish
a formal ceremony to document our agreement?"

"I don't see the need for one unless it's prescribed by
custom. Otherwise, if you will send it to my Fae attorney, Gerry Cornwall, I'll
sign it after review."

"A ceremony is not a requirement, but I will need to be
present when it is signed," he said.

"We can do that. Anything else?" I asked.

"Yes, I must ask one thing as well," he replied.
"There is still the issue of the Lilin."

"What about them?" I asked.

"While I do not consider them a threat at this time due
to their low numbers, that is not to say that your actions in freeing them will
not create a problem in the future," he explained. "Therefore, I must
insist that you be responsible for them."

"In what way?"

"Very simply, Mr. Hoskins. If an issue arises, we
expect you to deal with it just as you would if your own Fae where involved. Is
that agreeable?"

"Agreed," I answered. Not that it would have been
my first choice, and I wasn't sure what kind of mess I was getting myself into,
but since I'd brought it upon myself by freeing them, it didn’t appear to be
something I could say no to.

"Then I am satisfied that we have come to terms. Unfortunately,
I have other duties to attend to this trip so I will have Theron take you to where
your family is," he said as he stood and walked around the desk. He
offered his hand and I shook it. "I look forward to an interesting
alliance. Perhaps next time we meet we can do so without the theatrics."

"Perhaps," I replied.

R
OBERT

As I was led into another conference room, this one larger
than the last, I saw that the meeting was already breaking up. Several agents
in suits were milling about, and both Jay and Nikki looked up and saw me as I
entered the room with Agent Theron.

"How was the briefing?" I asked as they both
walked over.

"Different," Nikki replied. "What are you
doing here?" she asked with a quick raised eyebrow look that I knew meant
she had no idea what was going on.

"I will leave you to your family," Theron answered
before I could reply. "Agent Browne is on his way and will drive you back
when you are ready."

"Thank you," I said.

As he walked away Nikki leaned over.

"Alright, Daddio, what the hell is going on?" she
whispered in my ear.

"Not now," I whispered back. "I'll explain it
all when we get to the house."

"The house?" she repeated. "I've still got
things to do at the office and besides, my car is still there."

"I'll get you back to it," I replied. "There
are some things we need to talk about first so bear with me for now." I
could see she wanted to ask more, but Jay grabbed her arm.

"Relax, Nikki," he said, giving her a guarded
look. "I think we're gonna want to hear what Dad has to say about all this.
But this isn’t the place for a… family discussion."

"Ok," she said, still sounding confused, but I
could see she had caught the warning in his expression.

We met up with Agent Browne, and after stopping to retrieve
our cell phones, walked out to his SUV. I had a brief moment before getting in
to let Sendy know to meet at the house before we were on our way. The ride back
was quiet but both of them gave me quite the look when we arrived and Browne
returned my seax and the kid's guns. Nikki just gaped at the blade and even Jay
gave me a WTF look as I slid it back into its shoulder rig.

"You're carrying a sword? I knew that there was more
going on here!" Nikki exclaimed as the black SUV drove away. "What
are you expecting, Zombies?"

"It's not a sword," I said and shot her a grin.
"It's a seax, and as to Zombies, well, not at the moment. But the day is
young."

She shared a glance with Jay as I opened the gate and they
followed me into the yard. Charlie, was of course, already waiting and I looked
in his direction and shook my head. He must have figured it out as he just ran
up to them and acted like a regular dog as they petted and pushed him down.

"Your children cannot see me?" I heard Sendy ask
as she settled on my shoulder. She was in her diminutive form and still
invisible to others.

"Not yet. Go wait for us in the back," I said
softly, and she was gone.

"What was that, Dad?" Nikki asked as we walked
through the doorway into the house.

"Just thinking out loud," I responded.

"Dad, what the hell is going on," Jay finally asked
as he followed us into the kitchen. "And what was all that crap Guerrier
was talking about? Something's not right about all of this."

 "It's a long story, son," I replied. "Give
me a second then we'll talk."

"What's a long story?" Nikki asked.

"Go ahead and tell her what you heard," I said.
"But first, give me your phones."

"Our phones?" Jay asked, as he handed his over. I
took Nikki's as well and placed them in a drawer.

"Just in case," I said.

Nikki just shook her head and turned to Jay, who began
telling her what had transpired before he'd met up with her this morning.

I slid open the back door and walked onto the patio. I was
trying to decide the best way to explain everything and finally decided I'd
just have to show them. When I'd first travelled to Fae, I'd been told that
whatever magic flowed through me would eventually become known to my offspring.
I'd also been told that, as it had with me, it would take time to make itself
known. It had taken quite a bit to fully awaken the magic within me, but I
hoped I could jump start whatever was in them by trying something that the
Dwarves had done to me.

"Alright, Dad," Nikki asked as she and Jay walked
up behind me. "That bullshit meeting, Jay's trip here, and now the phones.
What the hell is going on?"

"Do you remember me talking about your grandmother and
her mother, Maria?"

"Of course," she replied. "What does that
have to do with all this?"

As she asked, I walked between them and held out my hand.

"There's no easy way to do this so I'm just gonna show
you," I answered, holding my left arm out between them. "Both of you,
put a hand on mine."

"What?" they asked in unison.

"Just humor me," I responded. Jay looked at me hesitantly
but did as I asked, Nikki eventually following suit but not before, once again,
looking at him as if I'd gone crazy.

Jay's palm touched mine, and as soon as Nikki placed her
hand on his, I grasped it tightly and willed every ounce of magic within me to
flow into them and make them aware. Without my being aware of it, my sword
appeared in my right hand and blue electricity arced up and down the blade. I
saw Nikki's eyes go wide just before it expanded and enveloped us.

There was a burst of blue flame, and tendrils of electrified
magic formed and began to circle around us. Faster and faster they spun until
they were just a blur. As had happened to me before, images appeared as if I
was watching a movie at high speed. This time it started with what seemed to be
a replay of their lives.

The day they were born, their first Christmas. Here, one of
them on a bicycle. There, the other graduating. Then my grandmother and mother,
and before I knew it, my life was on the screen as well. In an instant we'd
caught up to today and I felt an intense pressure as the magic built up.
Without warning it burst forth, out of me and into them. There was a sound like
thunder and suddenly it was over. I felt like I was going to faint but it soon
passed, although I did feel weaker than I had before. Whatever had happened had
drained a lot of power from me, but I tried not to show it. When I opened my
eyes a moment later, they were both staring at me in disbelief.

"What the hell was that?" I heard Jay say before
Nikki jumped in.

"What just happened? Was that a sword…? Oh my freakin…!
What the hell is that?" she yelled and then reached for her gun.

I turned and saw Alf, the Imp behind me.

"Whoa, whoa!" I said as I put up my hands to stop
her from shooting him. "It's just an Imp. He's not dangerous!"

"A what?" she asked, lowering but not putting her
gun away.

"Holy shit!" Jay said, pointing over my shoulder
at the yard. "What are those?"

"What? The hummingbirds?" Nikki asked as she
looked to where he was pointing.

"Those aren’t hummingbirds," he replied. "…
and, are they naked?"

"Ok, this is gonna take some explaining. Those are Garden
Faeries," I said, waving the Faeries back. I stepped between the kids and
took them each by an arm. "Why don’t we sit down and I'll tell you all
about it."

"Get out, Dad!" Nikki said, in an excited voice as
she slowly put away her gun. "What the hell is a Garden Faerie?"

"First I'm seeing visions, then the plane ride with
Guerrier," Jay exclaimed before focusing on Alf. "This can't be happening!
What is that thing?"

"Ah, allow me to introduce myself," Alf said,
bowing. "I am Ataulf, but you can call me Alf, and may I say that it is a
pleasure to…"

"Okay…," I interrupted. "Let's leave the
introductions for another time." I led them both to the patio table and
sat them down. As I moved to sit down myself, Charlie trotted up and stopped
next to me.

"Sorry, I told him to be quiet," he said as he sat
beside my chair.

"Did Charlie just talk?" Nikki asked skeptically
before looking at Jay. "Did you hear him? Did the dog just talk?"

"It appears so," Jay replied and then looked at me.
"I think you'd better tell us what's happening."

I was about to answer when Nikki burst out laughing.

"What the hell is so funny?" Jay asked.

"What's so funny?" she replied, sputtering between
laughs. "Yesterday and now this. This is freaking unbelievable."

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

"I thought I might have been hallucinating!"

"You had one, too?" Jay asked. "Yesterday? I
had a vision of something that was going to happen before it did."

"A vision? No. But yesterday I was on this call,"
she began to explain. "Forty-four shots fired and the rounds had gone in
every direction. It was Retta's caper but I was helping out. I was looking
everywhere, but I was still having trouble finding the last of the impacts and rounds."
She paused as she caught her breath. "First I hear this bird yelling and
swooping. Then it shows me where a bullet hole is. Then when I'm on the ladder,
this other big black bird lands on the roof in front to me. A crow, I guess it
was, and it just stares at me. Then the damn thing starts cawing and I swear it
tells me where to find an injured vic! I thought I was going nuts. But sure as
shit, there was another victim, and he was just an innocent bystander. Now this.
WTF!" She leaned back in her chair. "What the hell is this, Dad?"

"This is… something wonderful," I said, taking a
cue from an old sci-fi film. "There's no easy way to explain. It appears
you've both had glimpses. But what I just did was to try and open up your
senses a lot more. To a new world. A world of magic. Because, the truth is,
we're not exactly human."

"Not human?" Jay asked skeptically. "Then what
does that make us?"

"About Maria, my grandmother, as it turns out, she was
a Faerie. But more importantly, she was descended from the Greek Goddess
Demeter," I replied. "Which makes me, and I'm not kidding here, King
of the Faeries, or at least some of them."

"King of the Faeries!" Nikki said, bursting out laughing.
"What, so that makes me some Faerie Princess? Get the hell out of here!"

"And we're just finding this out now?" Jay said.
"Not that it makes any sense, but still, you've been telling us stories
about this stuff since we were kids. And what about Mom? Is she part of
this?"

"I don’t know," I replied. "About Mom, I
mean. As to the stories, hell, I didn't know they were real. There's been so
much crazy shit happening that I still don’t really know everything. As to why
now?" I stood up and began to pace, something I was known to do when I was
trying to figure out the right way to say something. "Believe it or not, I
just found this out myself not too long ago. And trust me, I know how weird
this all sounds. I've been trying to figure out a way to tell you since it all
started."

"But why now?" Jay asked. "And why the EAB? I
gotta tell you, I was nervous as all hell when I got ordered to go to the
airport this morning. And then all that crazy talk on the plane. For what? To
wind up in some bullshit dog and pony show that made no sense. What was that
all about, anyway?"

I started to answer but was interrupted by Charlie pushing
his head into my lap.

"What?" I asked, looking down at his big head.

"Sendy," he said.

"Oh, yeah," I replied. "Look, before we get
into everything, I need take care of a few things."

"No way, Dad," Jay said. "We need to know
what the hell is going on."

"I agree. But this is all part of it. Let me introduce
you to a few folks and make a few calls and then we can get into a full discussion,"
I said as I turned and called out to Sendy. She appeared immediately, full size
and dressed only in a pair of capris.

"My Lord," she said.

Nikki's eyes widened as she watched Sendy's wings fold into
her back.

"Wings!" she said in amazement. "She has
wings?" She stood and looked around at her back. "Do we have wings,
too?"

"No, we don’t have wings," I said with a laugh.
"Sendy is an Aurae. What you might call a sky Fae. A totally different
kind of Faerie. Sendy, this is my daughter, Nikki, and my son, Jay."

"Do you always fly topless?" Nikki asked as Jay
just stared.

"My apologies, my Lady," Sendy said as she pulled
her shirt from a pack around her waist. "Your father has already
introduced me to your customs. I regret that I cannot fly fully clothed, yet I
came prepared." She held up her shirt and then slipped it on and bowed.
"A pleasure to meet you both."

"This is insane. But where'd they go," she asked
as she walked up to her. "Your wings I mean."

"Excuse me, but I have wings, too," I heard Alf say.

"Indeed you do," I said in agreement as both the
kids watched him flap them a few times. I started to get up to go into the
house to get my phone since Nikki was talking to Sendy and Jay was watching Alf's
antics, but a sudden increase in volume from the Garden Faeries made me stop.
"Oh, yeah. Come on Fiora." The swarm of Garden Faeries flew up to us
and Fiora stopped just inches from Jay, causing him to throw his head back.

"Whoa," he exclaimed.

"Jay, Nikki," I said. "This is Fiora and
these are the Faeries that tend my yard." They all bowed in unison, and I
have to give Jay credit for not flinching because at that moment Fiora landed
on his arm and began chattering away.

"Thank you. I'm glad to meet you, too," he said
aloud and then turned to me. "Dad, I don’t know what language she's
speaking. How can I understand her?"

"It's the magic," I replied. "You're part of
this world now so it only makes sense that you can understand them."

"If you say so," he said. "So that's why
Nikki could understand the bird. But you still haven’t told us why all this is
happening now."

"And I will. But you gotta admit," I added,
sweeping my arms across the backyard. "It's pretty cool."