Zora's Dawn (Defender Book 1) (6 page)

Powers
walked out onto the veranda as Axel stood, and both men went to greet the new
arrival. Zora felt awkward and wondered what she should do. She decided she
should at least stand; it made her feel less at a disadvantage. Moving away
from the chairs she watched the ritual of handshaking that appeared to be the
chosen form of greeting among the supernaturals as well as humans.

“Greetings
Marcus, I trust you are well.” As she supposed was correct since he was a
Prince, Axel greeted the man first, then Powers, who followed it up by offering
coffee, accepted with alacrity by Marcus. Coffee too, was an interspecies
passion. All three men walked up the steps and came towards her. Marcus was
watching her very intently and Zora felt intensely uncomfortable under his
gaze. There was something predatory about it, and she suddenly felt like she
knew what a gazelle felt like when it became the focus of a lion.

She was
only a little surprised when Axel introduced them formally. “Zora, this is
Marcus, head of the vampire clan McDonald. Marcus, this is Zora.”

Zora took
the beautiful smooth,
cold
, hand that was offered and shook it
carefully.

“Pleased
to meet you,” she murmured, grateful that she still remembered her manners and
also grateful that the spurt of amusement she felt on being introduced – a
vampire clan called McDonald?? – was easily squashed by the fear she felt at
being introduced to another childhood bogeyman.

That her
fear was not completely hidden was clear from the sharp look Powers shot her,
and the amused expression that flitted across Marcus’ face. She swallowed hard
and summoned a smile as Marcus said in a voice smooth as silk, “Very pleased to
meet you Zora, I have been looking forward to this moment very much.”

Not a
sibilant hiss in a single syllable. Not even noticing the alliteration in her
thought, Zora relaxed a little - so long as he didn’t turn into a bat in front
of her eyes maybe it would not be so bad. Powers snorted again, and she stole a
glance at him to see him grinning like a fool. To her utter mortification he
addressed Marcus cheerfully, “Don’t turn into a bat in front of Zora Marcus,
it’ll freak her out.”

All three
men laughed with far too much amusement and Zora began to steam indignantly.
Marcus smiled at her. “I won’t turn into a bat Zora, that is entirely a human
myth. Do not worry, vampires are nothing like your myths and legends, any more
than any other supernatural.”

“So you obviously
don’t combust in sunlight, do you bite people on the neck and drain them dry?”

Marcus
stilled as he studied her neck and again she felt like a gazelle.

“Oh that
part is true my dear, but we do try not to drain them dry, and we make the
experience as enjoyable as possible. And of course we ensure that no-one
remembers an encounter. You would taste delicious I am sure, but you do not
need to worry, all defenders are off limits to vampires, although it is quite
difficult to ignore the call - your blood is quite irresistible spiked as it is
with a dash of fairy. As to sunlight, well new vampires need to be careful, but
the older one gets the better one becomes at dealing with sunlight. I am quite
old.”

Good to
know, if rather unsettling. Zora decided that sitting would be quite ok if it
looked like she was reaching for her coffee so she sank as gracefully as he
shaking legs would allow into the nearest seat. Powers waved Marcus and Axel
into the chairs and disappeared into the house to make more coffee. Zora really
hoped it was lunch time because she was again ravenous. All the excitement of
the day she supposed, that and the little gathering of supernatural beings in
close proximity.

Hearing
her name called she focused on Axel, her eyes skittering past the amused blue
gaze of Marcus. He sat as still as a statue in the chair, almost as though he
was not alive. Well he wasn’t was he? Vampires were dead weren’t they? Deciding
now was not the time to dwell on it Zora plastered a smile on her face and
pushed down her errant thoughts.

“Little
Zora, I wonder could you tell us what you saw when Marcus arrived just now?”

Marcus
glanced sharply at Axel who continued to smile serenely at Zora. Swallowing
down a sudden lump in her throat Zora looked past him to where she had seen the
cloud.

“There was a small
cloud, or maybe it was a patch of fog, and then Marcus appeared.”

Marcus sat
up from his relaxed position, the amused expression wiped from his face.

“You saw a cloud? You
saw me materialise? No human has ever done that, not even a defender.”

Zora stared
speechlessly at him, was this a bad thing? He looked like it was a BAD THING.

“She can
see my aura too when I am using magic, and even the colour, and that was before
I took away her block. But that I think is because I am the one who bespelled
her family, there is a connection stretching back generations.” Axel’s voice
was smooth as honey and unconcerned. “She is strong Marcus, I think the
strongest defender we have ever had. We need this now, and we are all on the
same side.”

Relaxing
as suddenly as he had turned serious, Marcus sank back into his seat and the
amused glint returned to his eyes. “You, little Zora, are the most interesting defender
we have had in many generations. Clearly you were born for just these times. I
wonder, if you can see the tells of the fairies and the vampires, can you see
the tells of the other supernaturals as well?”

“Stands to
reason she can,” Axel said cheerfully. “Ah here comes Powers, we’ll test it on
him.”

“Test what
on Powers?” the man in question asked. Powers was holding a tray on which sat a
large pot of coffee, milk and sugar, and extra mugs. He placed it on the coffee
table and began to collect the empty mugs already there. “There are sandwiches
and salad also, I’ll bring them out. I bet you at least are hungry Zora.” He
smiled at her as he spoke, his eyes resting on her face for a beat too long but
Zora didn’t care. In this strange new world Powers had become the only thing
familiar and she needed his support.

Axel held
up a hand to stop Powers from going back into the house. “A moment please
Powers, I would like to test something with you.” At Powers raised eyebrows he
continued, “Zora can see my aura and Marcus’s fog. As you know only we the
fairies can see the tells of all supernatural beings, and among yourselves only
like can see like. Some defenders could see the aura of the fairies but not the
tells of any other beings. Zora here is different. So we are wondering if she
can see your tell?”

Powers
stood staring at Zora, a stunned expression on his face. Marcus laughed good-
naturedly. “Come on Powers, get a grip, stop looking like a stunned fish. Just
begin the change and we will see if Zora can see your tell also.”

Powers
closed his mouth and focused his gaze intently on Zora. She shifted
uncomfortably, she hated being put on the spot. But she tried to focus, tried
to see something. She had no idea what she was looking for of course, but she
supposed it would be something on or near Powers. As she watched his face she
was distracted by a strange movement that seemed to be coming from under the
skin. She stared in fascination. It was like his skin was softening. No that
wasn’t it. Something was moving, no not something, lots of somethings. She
pulled her gaze back, stared at all of him and not just his face. Ohhhhh, that
was it. It was like there were multiple creatures moving around under his skin.
It was fascinating, and a little creepy. As she watched one creature seemed to
slide to the top of the others and sit just under his skin. She squinted a
little and saw the faint outline of golden fur and black spots start to shimmer
over his skin, like the creature was rising up out of him.

“Cheetah!”
Zora realised she had shouted this rather triumphantly when all three men
turned to her. The odd overlay on Powers faded instantly and the yellow tinge
she had not noticed until then disappeared from his eyes.

“Zora?” he
asked. “You could see?”

“Er, yes,
I saw what looked like many different animals and then the cheetah seemed to
rise up out of you and I realised which one you had chosen.”

Powers
sank down into the nearest chair, looking shocked. Marcus stared at her wide
eyed and Axel simply smiled and nodded his head.

“So little
Zora, you are by far the strongest defender ever. You see the tells as I see
them. You will know which creature the shapeshifters will turn into just before
they change. It will give a slight advantage should you need it, but of course
you won’t because the shapeshifters are our allies and always have been. Still,
it is good to know, yes?”

Zora
smiled back at him, because it was kind of cool. She felt it gave her a bit of
an edge over Powers and she liked that. She shot a cheeky grin at him and he
glared back at her. Impishly she winked, which earned her a large grin from
Marcus and a frown of disapproval from Powers. Then she looked back at Axel.

“I don’t
really understand why this is such a big deal Axel? I mean, seeing when a
supernatural is using his or her abilities, how can that be a sign of
strength?”

“Little
Zora, your strength is measured by many things. Your ability to see these tells
is simply one of them but it is the clearest indicator to me that you will be
extraordinary. No other defender has had such enhanced senses that they could
see this; for no other defender has the veil between our worlds been so thin.
This means that all your powers and abilities will be enhanced. I find myself
excited to see what you can do.”

He smiled
a purely male smile at her and Zora felt the impact right down to her toes.
This fairy man would be an amazing lover. No sooner had the thought crossed her
mind than a feral growl came from beside her. She glanced across at Powers and
felt a little faint at the raw animal anger in his expression as he stared
aggressively at Axel. The fairy gazed back at him unconcerned and grinned at
him cheerfully.

“Come on
Powers, you know there is no danger from me, dial it down and drink some
coffee.”

Zora
picked up her own coffee, and as she did so her stomach rumbled noisily. Powers
heard and snorted and the dangerous mood broke just like that. Without further
words he turned on his heel and went back into the house – to get the promised
food Zora fervently hoped. She was so hungry that she found it quite easy to
tune out Marcus and Axel while she stared hopefully at the door, rather like a
food oriented Labrador she realised, so with some effort she wrenched her
attention back to the conversation. Immediately she wished she had not done so.

Axel and
Marcus were deep in the discussion of blood stocks which she supposed was at
least one myth about vampires proved true. But seriously, they could bring
blood into the house in convenient baggies?

“Exactly
so little Zora.” Correctly reading her curious expression Axel was smiling at
her. Zora supposed someone – some
fairy
– as old as Axel was entitled to
call her little Zora but it did make her feel like a child in plaits. Realising
she had tuned out again she blushed faintly and hauled her attention back to
his face. “There are suppliers of blood to the vampires, families of humans
that have done so for many generations. It is, as you can imagine, far more
convenient than having to hunt for every meal.”

“I am sure,”
Zora replied gravely. She turned to Marcus and the question was out before she
had time to consider whether it was wise to ask.

“Marcus,
are you able to eat other food? Besides blood I mean?” Remembering belatedly
the relish with which he had drunk the beverage offered to him earlier she
tacked on hurriedly, “And coffee.”

Marcus
smiled gently at her, which was a rather unsettling feeling. “Indeed we do eat
normally Zora. We all need blood to satisfy our particular metabolisms, but we
still eat. I love a good meal, and I adore chocolate cake.” His smile changed,
became more wolfish, and Zora wondered dizzily if she was only imagining the
hint of fangs she saw.

Her slight
panic was interrupted by Powers coming out with a huge tray laden with food –
sandwiches and salad and cake and fruit buns, and a plate of sliced fruit and
cheese. Zora felt her stomach contract painfully and she had to swallow against
the rush of saliva in her mouth as she smelled the heavenly aroma that rose
from the tray. She watched as the tray was placed on the large outdoors table
and was out of her seat and beside the table with a speed that made her
slightly dizzy.

Powers
frowned at her as she reflexively grabbed the edge of the table. “You need to
get used to your abilities Zora. You’ll do yourself a damage.”

Repressing
the urge to stick out her tongue at him, Zora instead reached decorously for a
plate and began piling it high with food. Marcus and Axel joined her and there
was silence as they each selected items to add to their plates. Returning to
her seat and her coffee, Zora attacked the pile of food voraciously. She was
sure she had never been so hungry, and food most definitely had never tasted so
good.

As the food
disappeared off the plate and the edge of her hunger was assuaged, an unwelcome
thought occurred to her and she turned to Axel to ask the question – only to
have her line of vision snagged by Powers who was looking at her with a knowing
expression. Sighing as she realised he had again tapped into her thoughts Zora
let her eyes be trapped by his and waited. Sure enough, he began to answer her
unvoiced question.

“I’m
afraid so Zora, just as your senses have increased to enjoy such pleasures as
food and drink, so they will also be affected by less attractive things, such
as death and decay. Your enhanced sense of smell will pick up everything, not
just the nice things, and likewise your senses of taste, vision and hearing.
There will be some very disturbing sensations for you in the time to come.”