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Ashildr leaned against
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Ashildr leaned against
Ashildr leaned against the car, trying to keep up a calm facade while staring at her cell phone. She had gotten it precisely for this purpose, really: that when the time came, she would be able to lean against something, plug in her earbuds, and text like she was some high schooler in Starbucks.
Luckily, it was only about nine o'clock, and nobody was asleep at that time. Ashildr was able to have a very realistic conversation as she waited. Hey, Ash, what's up? U shud come over tomorrow: we're having spaghetti.
Nah, won't be able to make it. We're going to a movie.
Cool, which one?
Dad's an Emma Watson fanatic.
Say no more.
Well, at least she had appropriate friends.
"Honey, are you doing okay?" Ashildr looked up at the officer, who was bending slightly to be face to face with her. "I know this is rather traumatic for you."
"I'm fine," she replied, shrugging with a teenage air.
"Good. Then you won't mind if I ask a few questions."
"Fire away." She had prepared for this.
"What's your full name?"
"Aishling Luna O'Brien. I'm Irish."
"What about your father's?"
"Michael William O'Brien." That wasn't true. His name was Áed.
"Where were you two headed?"
"We were going to the movies in the strip mall up ahead, to see Beauty and the Beast." That was, technically speaking, true. They were going to hide in the movie theater.
"Thank you. I'll come back if I need to ask you anything else." Ashildr noticed the obvious lack of what happened? She, of course, had an answer ready, but it wasn't needed. The smashed driver's-side window, cowering daughter, and beaten father showed it all.
They hadn't made it. Somehow, their chasers had missed Ashildr, but there was still the matter of her father. Dead, the medics had said. Rediculous, Ashildr knew. All she had to do was get to him and everything would be fine.
Everyone there was very distracted. The flashing lights and CAUTION tape sent even the policemen into a panic. This was a small town; nothing like this had ever happened before, and there was only so much you could do. That made it much easier for Ashildr to sneak right up to her father's body and wrench his jaws open.
"Taispeáin dom má tá sé ina chónaí," she whispered. "Ostende mihi vivit."
A thick white smoke billowed from her mouth and down his throat, spiralling and contracting, writhing as it entered its new host. But it soon billowed, overflowed, and poured out of his mouth again. "No. Impossible. Taispeáin dom má tá sé ina chónaí. Ostende mihi vivit. Ostende mihi vivit!"
No matter how many times she repeated the spell, it was painfully obvious.
Her father was dead.
Ashildr wrenched open the backseat door, crawling into the car and hefting out one of the cushions. There was a messenger bag there, smushed from being hidden so long, but ready if she ever had to flee. Ashildr snatched it up, slung it over her shoulder, and got out of the car again, sprinting into the woods.
When she was far enough away, she pulled out a flashlight from the bag and rummaged around for the notebook. That was the most important thing, bigger than even the map. If the notebook was not there, all was lost.
She breathed a sigh of relief as her hands closed around its hard leather surface, pulling out the brown-binded book and flipping it open. Her father's handwriting had not changed in thousands of years: it was still almost impossible to decipher. Still, she only needed to refresh her memory, not learn anything anew.
____
THE CONTENTS OF THE NOTEBOOK
On your travels, you will encounter many creatures, and it is essential that you know how to recognize them, and battle them if need be. Know that all magical creatures are either immortal or undead, so the methods for defeating them must be followed to the letter. The rarities are from one to five, one being the rarest and five the most common. Please be careful, my darling. Remember, every magical creature can transform themselves to look human, so be alert at all times.
Species: Dragon
Rarity: 1 - there are many of us in this world, but almost all are hibernating and healing. I doubt you will come across another waking dragon on your travels.
Types: Riding (that is you, my dear - designed for others to fly on, red-scaled); hunting (as I am, made to seek out prey and capture it, blue-scaled); fighting (the most dangerous of all, I pray that you do not meet one of these vicious creatures on your quest, black-scaled); breeding (like your mother, made purely to keep the species alive. Beware - they have a violent streak, purple-scaled).
Powers: Fire-breathing, flight, impenetrability (do not let anyone get under your scales or you shall be truly doomed).
Identifying features: long, claw-like nails; wild hair; short build. It is possible they may show you their wings, but unlikely.
Weaknesses: If you ever find yourself fighting a dragon, get your claws under their scales before they get under yours. You are agile and quick, like all of your type; most other dragons are slow, but harder to breach the defenses of. Fighting dragons do not have scales on their stomachs, so if you do find yourself battling one, get under them. Just remember: this lack of scales makes them the quickest of the dragons, so beware.
Immortality: It is impossible to kill a dragon, as you know. But we can be mortally injured, and fall alseep to heal our wounds. This happened to you when you attempted to join the American Revolution, do you recall? You slept through much of the Western Expansion. Remember that dragons are one of the oldest species on this planet, and can come from as long ago as Ancient Greece.
Species: Pixie
Rarity: 5 - they normally travel in packs, and there are many around this world.
Types: Flying (Flying Pixies are often called fairies by the humans because of their wings and small shape); shape-shifting (one of the trickiest, as they use these powers to pass off as anything and then wreak havoc); spell-casting (the most dangerous, as they are tiny, powerful targets); boogieman (terrifying pixies, ones that prefer scaring humans as opposed to their other, prankster relatives).
Powers: Invisibility, changing their height (each type of pixie has a separate set of powers.)
Identifying features: A small, skinny build; short hair; freckles; a light, common laugh; pointed ears in some cases.
Weaknesses: All pixies cannot resist a good joke, and will fall over laughing; they especially appreciate slapstick. Flying Pixies' wings are incredibly delicate and can be harmed simply by touching them. If you can find a way to silence a Spell-Casting Pixie, they are completely harmless. Boogieman Pixies detest the light, especially sunlight.
Immortality: Pixies are easily confined, and it is difficult for them to escape almost any cage, but they cannot die, as they don't have blood in their veins or a heart to pump it. Remember that Pixies are generally not more than a few hundred years old, as they first started appearing in the sixteenth century.
Species: Mermaid
Rarity: 3
Types: Selkie (shifters, though they are limited to mer-shape, sea creature-shape, and human-shape), Siren (the most beautiful, with singing voices that will lure anyone towards them - but beware, for they are the singular carnivorous species of mermaid); Maiden (the ones most commonly seen by humans, and a completely useless breed in my opinion).
Powers: They do not breathe, resistance to pressure, inhuman strength, communication with sea creatures
Identifying features: Very long hair, an attachment to water, flirtatious nature,
Weaknesses: Mermaids dehydrate if they are out of the water too long, and become weak and susceptible. In order to shift into their creature-shape, Selkies need their skin (often a piece of clothing), and are stuck as a human/mermaid without it. Sirens admire voices as beautiful as theirs and will let you free if you impress them. Maidens are flirtatious and weak, though they have a tendancy to befriend other, stronger sea creatures - beware of those.
Immortality: Mermaids do not breathe, and therefore do not need lungs; they have no blood to react to pressure with. They can feel pain, but are not damaged by attacks. The best thing to do is render them incapable of whatever they are attempting. Remember that mermaids are creatures that first came about during the Reconaissance, though ones that old have generally retired to the middle of the ocean by this time.
Species: Vampire
Rarity: 4
Types: Pack (travel in groups and are very vicious when together. They are very loud and blend into crowds, trying to isolate groups to attack.); Lone (travel alone, very bloodthirsty. Usually hunt in small areas, blend in with the background, and attack singular people).
Powers: Turning into bats, knowing their exact location at all times, a limited teleportation, night vision
Identifying features: Overlarge canines, a goth dressing style, overly pale skin
Weaknesses: Vampires dislike garlic, and enough of it will make them hesitate before attacking you, though it is not the best weapon. They are not susceptible to holy water or crosses, so DO NOT USE THESE. Wooden stakes are the best, though they are also injured by silver. They detest sunlight, though it will not kill them, and lightbulbs/flashlights have no effect.
Immortality: Vampires are undead. They do not have blood, but they do have a heart. Piercing this heart will cause them to return to their grave - the time depends on the severity of the wound - before they can walk the Earth again. Remember that vampires average at about two hundred years old, though they first began appearing in the eighteenth century.
Species: Werewolf
Rarity: 3
Types: Hybrid (can turn into a wolf at will, generally very bloodthirsty and dangerous creatures even as humans); Moon (only turn into a wolf at the full moon, though they still have dangerous qualities as humans); Lycanthrope (can turn into a wolf at will, though also turn into one at the full moon; at this time they have no control over their actions, and tend to be rather docile otherwise).
Powers: Shifting into wolves, inhuman strength, inhuman agility, night vision
Identifying features: A lot of hair, scarring, a tall stature, sharp teeth
Weaknesses: Werewolves are injured by anything silver, and even touching it against them will make them cry out in pain. Other weapons don't even harm them, however. They detest getting wet and will avoid water at all costs.
Immortality: Werewolves can die. However, if you kill them, they are not destroyed; a hundred years after dying, they return as an Undead, and the only way to fend them off is returning them to their grave, similar to a vampire. Remember, werewolves can be ordinary humans with their lifespans, but once they die they can be hundreds of years old - I once meta 567-year-old Lycanthrope when I was searching for your mother.
_____
I actually get to talk now.
Okay, so, that was a big info dump, but please read it - everything there is important, and stuff you need to know. There's actually stuff I didn't even mention, which I will clarify in the actual writing when we get to that.
First things first. This is a solo write, not an RP. Sorry, everyone. However, in this solo write, I am requesting that you do not, actually, base your character off yourself. Design it like you would in an RP; make it anything you want. However, I need you to be REALLY SPECIFIC. I don't want to mess up anything while writing this, so I need as much info as possible on your charries.
As much as you needed to read, I had to write. I don't think I can stand writing another creature bio right now. So, if you notice that I'm missing an obvious one, poke me and I'll decide if I want to include it. Got another creature in mind? Give me the name and I'll decide if I want to have it there! If I do, I'll give you a bio for it - if not, you can choose one of the ones above, or request a different one.
I'll accept ten people in this, maybe a few more if I feel generous.
Here's the charrie sheet! Please keep the characteristics of your species in mind while filling it out. I'll correct you if something doesn't line up.
Name:
Age:
Species/Type:
Gender:
Appearance:
Clothing:
Personality:
Likes:
Dislikes:
Hobbies:
Family:
Background:
Other:
submitted by St.Owl, age Recarnated, Everywhere
(April 16, 2017 - 5:40 pm)
(April 16, 2017 - 5:40 pm)
TOPTOPTOPTOPTOPTOPTOPTOPTOP
(June 16, 2017 - 8:46 am)
Soo, I got into kind of a slump with this. I don't think I wrote it very well, and I ended up revealing a lot more than I thought I would (not stuff that really impacts the story, just background information I was saving for later). It's not complete, but y'all are bugging me (and made a good job of it too, thank you!) so I'll just post what I have.
Part 7 - In My Life
When Ashildr's mind crept back into consciousness, the first thing she was aware of was that she had somehow been turned into a sack. She then realized that she was not a sack, merely slung over someone's shouder. Her instincts screamed at her to escape.
Ashildr braced her previously limp palms against her captor's shoulder blades, shoving as hard as she could, both landing on her feet, ready for a counterattack, and sending her opponent toppling towards the ground. But her heroic pose didn't last long. Smoke was invading her mind and her vision, sending her swaying, then toppling as ungrancefully as her captor.
Someone cried out.
~~~~
"We're not letting them get away," Argen told Sorrel, quiet as a dragon head could get. "Brace yourself."
"For w - " Sorrel's question was quickly answered as Argen's snake tail reared up, spitting poison mere inches from the selkie. She shrieked, toppling over the side of his torso, clutching to his fur for dear life. As he sighed, she could have sworn the dragon head rolled its eyes, watching her scrabbling for purchase on his back. When she finally got to a secure position, Sorrel noticed something lying next to her - a blade!
"Argen, I can't fight," she told him in a hushed whisper.
"You may have to," he replied. "Now listen closely. I'm going to swoop towards the entrance and go low enough for you to jump off. We'll surround them and rescue Ashildr. Understood?"
"Well, I don't think - "
"Too bad. We're off."
As he promised, Argen slowed near the entrance, allowing Sorrel time to slip off. It was certainly not a graceful exit, as she stumbled and fell over before regaining an unsteady posture, but she successfully halted the exiting possessed Nocturna.
"I told you not to stop me," Nocturna warned. "My powers are not restricted to the ones this body holds."
Something snapped, suddenly. Maybe it was the way Nocturna's eyes kept staring, staring like bottomless pits. Maybe it was the way something seemed to be crawling up Sorrel's innards, leaving a trail of misery behind her. Either way, she was done. "No offense, but I don't really care. I've just been dumped from the back of a chimera who was previously spitting poison at me, - among other things - watched one of my closest friends collapse because she was attacked by some sort of demon - which doesn't make sense - while the other ones are missing, and then I was abandoned by another close friend who's now attacking me because she's got another demon in her! Oh, and, on top of it all, I haven't even had breakfast yet."
"That sounds terrible and I'm extremely sorry for you," said Nocturna sarcastically. "However, I've got more important things to do than listen to your whining. Like, for example, somehow subduing this irritating creature." She gestured to Ashildr angrily.
Argen landed behind Nocturna, morphing back into human form.
"Subdue her? What have you done to Ashildr?" Sorrel demanded. She wasn't sure how much worry was in her voice; Ashildr's well-being was the last thing on her mind at this point, and all she wanted to do was distract the demons from the sword Argen was pulling out of its sheath.
However, Ashildr made her own distraction.
Somehow, she'd woken up, and suddenly Nocturna was toppling to the floor as Ashildr somersaulted towards Argen. The latter, not missing a beat, shot his sword towards Nocturna, easily dissolving her into black smoke. The others were quick to suffer the same fate.
"Did you just - "
"No," Argen assured her. "Once demons are in a body, the body can't be destroyed. They're just another form of magical creature, you know. They're just as immortal as we are, and therefore pretty much absolutely invincible."
"But then how come I've never heard of them?"
"Well, immortal is a relative term," Argen explained. "Nothing is really immortal. Áed, Ashildr's father, died, remember? Even though he's a dragon. I, too, have died, and I brought a demon with me."
"Wait, what?"
"That is a story for another time," he said with a smile. "It is very difficult to kill a magical creature is my point, but it can be done. And that is how the demons disappeared. I haven't the faintest idea how they could be back . . . you understand, the only way is necromancy, but all the witches are gone too, or so I thought . . . "
"Argen?"
He whirled quickly towards the limp form of Ashildr. Her face was deathly pale and lined with sweat. "Argen, are you there? I thought I heard you . . . "
"Yes," he said, hurrying over. "Ashildr, do you know who you are? Do you know where you are?"
"Yes. Yes, I think - I think so. I - I am Ashildr, daughter of Áed, slayer of demons. I am - I am Ashildr, steed of Sir Galahad, knight of King Arthur Pendragon's Round Table. I was a Tory and a pilot in the RAF. Now - now I'm in a hotel. We're going to Canada. We're going to Canada to see Sir Galahad again . . . "
"Oh, no, no, no." Argen's face was taught with worry. "We can't see Sir Galahad anymore."
"Yes. That's right. The Grail . . . The Holy Grail." Ashildr smiled dreamily. "It sent him up to Heaven, didn't it? He left me down here, didn't he? But - but you didn't, Argen. You flew up to Heaven but you came back down. You came back down to Earth . . . "
He sighed. "The demons must have fought you hard. C'mon, Sorrel, help me pick her up. She needs to lie down."
Sorrel grabbed Ashildr's feet, helping Argen heave her up the stairs. Once she was safely in her bed, Sorrel turned to Argen, placing her hands on her hips. "All right. I want a few answers, Argen, because whatever happened downstairs was - weird. Firstly: Did you and Ashildr know each other before this?"
"I guess this will take a while," Argen said, settling himself on the foot of the bed, behind a snoozing Ashildr. "Yes, we did - though I knew Ashildr's father better than I knew her. We were close contacts, and whenever I went to Europe, he was usually around and ready to welcome me - except for that one time in Iceland - oh, never mind. In any case, Ashildr's mother was a breeding dragon. Do you know what breeding dragons are like? They throw themselves down wherever they go, get together with someone, then run off. Poor Áed was stuck with a baby dragon to take care of, and he hadn't the slightest idea what to do. Luckily, I have a few siblings, so I knew a bit more about taking care of kids than he did. I worked as a godfather for a while, and once she was old enough, I left. We ran into each other periodically, though. Ashildr made Áed travel a bit more than he did before."
"And Ashildr's whole rant about not leaving her behind for Heaven or something?"
Argen sighed. "Something I don't really like thinking about. You see, I was killed once. Do you know the story about the first dragon?"
"The one who wore down the Earth with its claws? Sure. It's a popular bedtime story. Why?"
"Do you have some sort of mermaid variation?"
"Yes. Y'know, funnily enough, his name is CarrAskan, like that merman we met at home. Ours is a more tragic story than the dragons'. We learn about it in school as popular folklore, but we definitely don't hear it in bed."
"Where does CarrAskan live now?"
"In a deep part of the ocean that no one else can penetrate. That's why mermaids go underwater infinitely once they reach a certain age. They're searching for CarrAskan."
Argen smiled. "That makes my bit of the story easier, then. Morphlings have a version of that story, too. I've been alive since Ancient Egypt, and during the time of the Greeks, I felt my time was just about up. I wanted to search for him. So I flew into the sky."
"What happened?"
"I died."
"You died?"
"If dragons fly into space, they die. If mermaids delve too deep, they die. I touched Ra, and I died."
"But then how are you here?"
"Well, I'm sure I went into the afterlife. But somehow, I was cast back up into the world. A demon had caught hold of my spirit sometime during the journey, and I was sent back into my body, trapped by its hold of me. Have you heard the story of Bellerophon and the chimera?"
"Of course. Everybody has."
"That chimera was me. I was slayed by Bellerophon. Now, I'm not sure exactly what happened to me. I can't remember. And, though I don't believe in Grecian folklore, the stories that the Greeks tell me seem the most plausible. Remember how, after Bellerophon slayed me, he tried to fly up to Olympus and meet the gods, but Pegasus threw him off? The Greeks tell me that the gods re-examined my case, and after realizing that I'd been killed while possessed, they brought me back to life."
"So you've died twice."
"Yes."
"One last question," Sorrel said, less ferociously. "That whole thing about Sir Galahad?"
"Well, I was never very interested in the knights of the Round Table. I mostly avoided Europe during that time. But many dragons were interested, and the ones who weren't were forced to be. The knights didn't actually fight dragons, you see. They rode them. They would kidnap dragons (or dragons would volunteer), assign them to a knight, and that was that. Ashildr was lucky enough to be Sir Galahad's dragon, and they were very close. Some stories say they were in love - I've never asked, and don't you dare try, she's in no condition to respond."
Sorrel sat in silence for a moment. She'd never been very interested in history, but she was sure she'd never heard anything like what Argen was describing. There weren't many Old mermaids to talk to, she realized. Heck, there weren't many Old anythings.
"I should probably go look for Adelaid and Henna," she said after a pause.
"Good idea," Argen replied. "Just be careful. If they're possessed, they won't hesitate to kill you."
Sorrel had a lot on her mind as she made her way downstairs.
(June 16, 2017 - 5:27 pm)
Ahh yess!! A new part! And quite an information load, this one. I love the way you weave old Greek and European tales and legends into your story, with things that all people have heard of. Great job St.! I'm exicted to see when my character would enter, and where you take it next! :)
(June 16, 2017 - 7:51 pm)
YAY!!!!! Finally a new part! I feel like it's been so long, but I slipped right back into the story. Your writing is still as good as ever St. And if you ever feel unable to write for a while again, make sure you tell us, we'll understand.
(June 16, 2017 - 8:29 pm)
This is really good!
(August 15, 2017 - 12:05 pm)
good job St. I hope Noctura becomes unpossesed.
(June 17, 2017 - 8:28 am)
HURRAY!!!!!!!!!
(June 17, 2017 - 12:35 pm)
YAYAYAYAYAYAY!!!!!!
New part new part new part! *tap dances*
(June 17, 2017 - 12:50 pm)
(June 20, 2017 - 3:15 pm)
Post! Write! All of the above!
(June 23, 2017 - 5:55 pm)
As an update:
I'm channeling this part much better than the last one! The next few parts are ones I've been planning for quite a while, and I know pretty much exactly where I want them to go. THIS IS THE CLIMAX. GET EXCITED.
I'm not done with it yet, though. So, in case I can't have it ready by tomorrow, here's a little placeholder to ponder over:
"It'll be okay," Ashildr assured her.
Listen to it in your head, you'll get it.
(June 24, 2017 - 8:37 am)
Personal guess: Nocturna gets rid of the demon or vice versa, leaving Nocturna a hairsbreadth away from an out-and-out panic attack - if there's one thing she hates, it's having her mind fooled around with. Ashildr trying to comfort her? Maybe??
(June 24, 2017 - 3:53 pm)
Ahm . . . no. (sorry :P )
It's in the wording, not the content. Actually, don't even think about the "It'll be okay." That's just so it doesn't sound nonsensical.
(June 24, 2017 - 4:51 pm)
Oh! I actually did get that, but I thought you were posting a clue about the story. I hunted in vain for a clue that wasn't even there!
(June 29, 2017 - 9:12 pm)
So, no one got it. xD I suppose it just wasn't as impactful, then? The idea was Ashildr assured her. A-shil-dr. A-ssured-her. I dunno, it made my day when I thought of it.
Part 8 - Sooner or Never
Adelaid and Henna were still perfectly safe, both sporting their normally colored eyes. They claimed that they hadn't seen a single creature, possessed or not, that could have harmed them, so Sorrel herded them back upstairs just in time for Ashildr to wake up.
"That was quick," Sorrel remarked as Ashildr lifted her head.
"Once the demon's gone, the mind needs just a small bit of time to recuperate to normal capacities," Argen explained, "because there's nothing obstructing it. Of course, that doesn't mean Ashildr's perfect. Her mind is much more than normal."
"Hey," said Ashildr suddenly, sitting up. "Speaking of which - that demon wasn't normal. I've been possessed before, but not like that. That was too quick, and it was different somehow. I'm not sure why."
"If she was at perfect capacity, she'd be able to both tell us what was different, but also what caused it," Argen whispered to them. "I'd be able to, too. Before you ask, Sorrel, I didn't pass out because I didn't fight the demon."
"What we need is more research," said Ashildr firmly, slipping out of bed. "Demon legends change from species to species, and we need to know what we're dealing with. Sorrel, you need to go home and look up mermaid demons. Henna, Adelaid, go back to the woods for pixie demons - which are not the same as bogeymen, okay? Argen, you and I can continue to Talamh na Tearmann and find out what they know. If we figure out anything of importance, we need a way to contact each other, though. Do any of you have cell phones? I do."
"So do I," said Argen, taking his out.
"I have a splashometer," replied Sorrel, raising her wrist to show them. "It's basically an Apple watch, but more advanced. Also, it only works underwater."
"I have a splashometer too," said Adelaid.
Argen gave his phone to Henna, seeing as the two wouldn't be underwater, and Ashildr went over methods of contact. They were about to adjourn when Sorrel asked, "Are we leaving now?"
"Is there anything else we should do first?"
"Well - breakfast."
~~~~~
"Wait!"
Ashildr and Argen whirled around, both ready to fight, and their position didn't change when a familiar-looking girl ran up to them. Her hair was wild and brown, her orange eyes decorated by a jagged scar. "Please! Take me with you! I need to get home!"
"You're the girl who fought me earlier," said Argen skeptically.
"Some random people - well, they're always random - decided to mug me! Then, I don't know, something happened and I felt so empty, and I couldn't control what I was doing, but I don't feel like that anymore and I need to get home, so can I go with you? I saw you beating up those guys before. I can tell you about them if you want. Though I don't know a lot."
"No," said Argen just as Ashildr said "Yes."
"Oh, come on!" he grumped. "We don't know anything about her!"
"You're making assumptions based on the fact that she was possessed, Argen! She's a completely different person!"
"Or maybe she isn't!"
"Admit it! You just don't want to because she's a werewolf!"
To Falleg's surprise, Argen flushed and said no more.
"Look, I know you don't like werewolves," Ashildr continued. "But she has information we need. And if she ends up being a creep, we can overpower her easily. Anyway" - she turned to Falleg - "I'm Ashildr. This is Argen. Who are you?"
"Falleg," she said hesitantly. "You guys smell different than the other creatures I met. Mind you, I haven't met many. But you smell . . . a bit like my grandparents' house, actually."
"We're Old," explained Argen grumpily. "It means we've been alive for a very, very long time. As in, thousands of years." He smirked as Falleg's jaw fell open. "How long have you been a werewolf for?"
"Only two years," she replied. "I met my first magical creature yesterday. She was a werewolf, too, and the one who mugged me. She seemed very high up, so do you want to hear about her?"
"Yes," said Ashildr firmly, "but let's get out of here first. Rule number one of being a magical creature: don't talk about it while there are humans around, and this lobby is about to fill up."
"But we're in the middle of a city."
"Well, we're not staying here! Argen and I are off to Canada."
"Canada?" Falleg bit her lip. "I just want to get back to the East Side."
"We'll get you there," Ashildr assured her*, steering them out of the hotel and into a much more deserted street. "Just tell us what you know."
"The woman who mugged me looked really young, but also pretty proper. Her hair was dark, and she had it in a bun, but you could tell she'd used a lot of gel to get it that way. Her posture was great, though really rigid, and she had a scar on her nose, but her clothes were so modest you couldn't really see any other parts of her body. She even wore gloves - I think to protect herself from silver."
"Did she have a name?"
"Somebody called her Miss - Can-do, maybe? I'm not sure. The memory's pretty hazy."
"Kontou, maybe?" Argen suggested, more to Ashildr than Falleg. "That means short in Greek. I don't know why any werewolf would want to call themselves short, but they do use a similar language, don't they?"
"Werewolves have a language?" Falleg asked.
"Sure," Ashildr replied. "Every species does. Sometimes it depends on where you were raised, but mermaids and werewolves especially use their own dialect of other languages."
"But I only speak English. I don't even know Greek."
"Trust me, when it comes time, you'll be speaking fluent werewolf," Argen assured her. "Flag a taxi, will you? We want to get you home quickly."
~~~~
Knock. Knock. Knock.
"Yes?"
A middle-aged mermaid answered the door. Bags under her eyes and a lined face made her seem older than she really was, but her light brown hair was piled stylishly on top of her head, and her emerald green tail was decorated with glimmering seashells.
"Hi," said Sorrel, smiling as genuinely as she could. "I'm looking for Caspian Searock. I heard he lives here."
"Well, yes, he does," said the woman, raising her eyebrows. "He's never had a friend call after him before. Hold on, I'll get him."
Caspian arrived at the door quickly, and his cheeks gained some color when he saw Sorrel waiting outside. "I'm here to cash in a favor," she told him.
"Oh - sure! What can I do for you?" he asked, a little too quickly.
"Well, this may seem weird, but I'm looking for information about mermaid legends on demons," Sorrel said. "But I have no idea how to handle the nonfiction section of the library. Also, did we ever go over that in school?"
"Demons? No, I don't think so, but there are definitely some fascinating legends about them, even wars! They're one of the few mer-legends that include other magical creatures in the tales. C'mon, I'll show you where they are."
~~~~~
"I'm not sure. I'm no expert, you know."
"Oh, please please please!" Henna cried. "I can't go back there! If I do, my parents'll keep me there for eternity! You've gotta have something!"
Osana sighed. "You know, my grandmother is a bit of a history geek. But she doesn't let just anyone into her library. I've only seen it a few times."
"I'm sure she'll understand," said Henna confidently, adding a little giggle. "We're on a very important mission."
"All right," Osana agreed.
~~~~~
"Stop the car!" Falleg screeched.
"What? What?" Both Ashildr and Argen scrambled over to her side, ready for any sort of disaster.
"That's her," said Falleg, pointing out the window. It was a woman who looked, indeed, exactly as Falleg had described, standing at the edge of the crosswalk, just staring at their car. "Um, I don't think that's a good thing."
"Either she wants you back, or she wants one of us," Ashildr said, "And she's not getting it."
As if she had heard, the woman turned away and began walking down the street again, and the cab pulled away.
~~~~
"So, this is all I could find." Caspian dumped about five scrolls onto their table. "I'm sorry there's not more. I mean, I usually need at least ten scrolls for something as important as this. But it'll have to do."
"Caspian," Sorrel began, "why aren't there more scrolls? It isn't like demons didn't exist. My Old friends have very vivid memories of them. And you said you knew quite a bit about them too. So -"
"It's the Council," Caspian scowled, and Sorrel saw a terrifying flash of pure hate cross his face. "They're corrupt, Sorrel. They do stupid things for no particular reason. I'm sure there's something the 'matter' with demon lore, because it's being censored, just like so many other things, and no one has a clue because they don't bother to pay attention."
"Wait - Caspian. If they're censoring demon lore . . . is it possible the Council is siding with the demons?"
~~~~
Oneria's grandmother was crabby.
"She's really quite nice once you get to know her," Osana had whispered to them, but it didn't seem that way to Adelaid or Henna. First, she had cast a multicolored, judgemental stare over the two, unnerving them with literally kaleidoscope eyes that seemed to shift and twirl. Then she grumped about how they weren't trustworthy, snapped to touch nothing that they didn't ask for, and slammed the door behind them in the library.
"Well then," said Osana brightly, rubbing her hands together. "Grandmother keeps her documents organized by topic, so we'd need to look at legends/lore, then demons. I think she has a lot on them - even mermaid scrolls! Isn't that weird?"
"Yes," said Adelaid. "We have a really strict inventory on scrolls. We'd know if some were missing."
"She said they were a gift," said Oneria, shrugging. "Guess she must have done a higher-up a favor at some point." The pixie didn't notice, but Adelaid raised her eyes suggestively at Henna. "Hold on, I found them."
Oneria dumped a huge inventory of text onto the table. Like she described, there were mermaid scrolls, human-bound books, and pixie texts, printed on huge, brittle leaves and tied together with vines. "We can split these up three ways, I guess. Some of them are pretty complicated, though."
Henna hopped up onto a stool. "I've memorized a thousand digits of pi. I think I can handle a few ancient texts."
~~~~
With Falleg out of the way, Ashildr and Argen were able to get back to Argen's pickup, which got them out of the city quickly. Soon they were driving around a little-used dirt road in the middle of the woods.
"This forest is alive with magical creatures," Argen warned. "I don't like it."
"Neither do I," Ashildr agreed. "Especially because our scents are so conspicuous. Anyone could attack us."
"Doesn't mean we can't take them," Argen remarked with a grin.
"True that."
They relaxed in the silence for a few minutes, until Ashildr inhaled suddenly. "Argen - Argen, we are in a lot of trouble."
"What do you - oh, hell."
"You smell it too." Ashildr deflated. "I'll text them. Looks like we've got another thing to research."
~~~~
Sorrel's splashometer dinged, and she took a welcome break from the scroll she'd been reading. It wasn't particularly educational, more of a dry essay by a scholar who didn't have anything better to do but didn't put any effort into it. The text she had recieved was fairly simple, reading only, Also research: witches.
"Caspian? What does the library have on witches?"
"Witches? A lot. We have all the human legends."
"What about the mermaid ones?"
"I don't know if there are mermaid ones."
Sorrel bit her lip, texting back What kind of witches?
Any mermaid legends you can find.
There aren't any.
Other creatures, then? Dragons have millions of legends.
Sorrel asked.
"Nope," Caspian replied. "If the legend wasn't by or containing mermaids, the library doesn't have it. We only have human stories because we learn about them in school."
Negative, Sorrel texted.
Just whatever you have on demons, then. Let's hope A&H have better luck.
"Hey, Sorrel?" said Caspian. "I'm really sorry I couldn't be of more help. I know this is really important to you."
"It's okay," Sorrel assured him. "But we might want to think more about this whole Council thing. Are you up for a trip?"
"I'm up for anything that puts the Council to shame."
~~~~
"Hey, what's with this weird notebook?"
"Huh?" Osana put down her scroll, bending over to where Henna was looking. "You're right. It's all glowy."
"Not all of it," Adelaid corrected. "Just this thingy in the middle."
Osana squinted at it a little closer. "Weird. It looks a bit like - " Carefully, she revealed an amulet she'd been hiding under her tunic. One end was jagged and cut off, but it matched perfectly with the one on the cover of the book. When she put the two together, they fused into a solid, perfect circle.
"Well. I think we've found ourselves a jackpot."
~~~~
"Argen. How in the world are we going to avoid witches?!"
"I was worried they might be back, too, when I realized necromancy was at work. But, Ashildr, you and i both know that witches can't do that."
Ashildr buried her face in her hands. "Y'know, we seem to be running in a stream of absolutely crappy luck."
"Look, I don't want to deal with a sorceress either. But we may have to."
Ashildr groaned.
"I'm sorry." Argen settled a hand on her shoulder. "I know what your experience with sorceresses has been. We can get through this, okay?"
"No. We can't. Argen, a sorceress can do anything to us. They are unbeatable. Even if we were both in Full Form, she could toss us around like we were dolls. She could make us tear each other to pieces in her sleep. I just - can't - "
She was cut off by a sob. Argen moved his arm so it was around her, and pulled her close.
"With dad dead - I just really need him now, Argen. I don't think we can do anything anymore. It all seems so hopeless. If they have a sorceress, we might as well just fly up to search for Chéad now."
"Ashildr," said Argen patiently. "There's one thing you're forgetting. If we can make it to 'Ard Alharam Alshsharifat, we'll have our own sorceress on our side."
________
*Look! Look! I put it in!! (I'm way too obsessed with this.)
(June 26, 2017 - 12:43 pm)