The roads made Plume queasy. Warren and Nerea teased him a little about it before he passed out. “Wake me up when we reach Houston,” He curled up in the backseat and passed out.
The trip took longer thanks to dense fog. The headlights barely penetrated the thick wall of mist, and Nerea grew more frustrated with the lack of vision. “What is with this fog? When will it end?” her teeth were clenched, and her head practically rested on the steering wheel.
Warren placed a hand on Nerea’s arm, “What is with you? Ever since we left the gas station you’ve been different.” He hated seeing her like this. It reminded him of his mom lounging around in her sweatpants.
“I hate this whole trip. I used to tease Melanie that she bragged too much about you. Then I got to know you and realized she was being modest,” Nerea sniffled and kept her eyes on the road. “It’s not fair, you have to lose everything just to gain control of that thing.” Nerea wiped her eyes with a smooth hand. “sorry.”
Warren felt the eidolon wilt under Nerea’s words. The entity had feelings. “That thing is a part of me now. It can’t be removed either. Like it or not, it is a part of this family now. I know the first meeting made him look bad, but he’s trying to make up for it.”
“It’s going to lead you into danger. I promised Melanie I’d protect you from harm…”
Warren cut her off with a sharp slash of his hand, “You can’t protect me from everything. If mom had lived we’d still be having this discussion with Plume in the backseat. The eidolon came to me in that arena. I don’t know why it chose me, but it did.”
“We could go on the run…”
“How much do you know about magic?” Warren asked. He crossed his arms in frustration. Nerea was beyond stubborn.
Nerea hung her head, “I could learn…”
“How long before you know enough to help me with the eidolon?” Warren wanted out of this discussion now. The entire discussion caused heaviness in the air to press down on the occupants.
The eidolon begged for his attention and pulled his thoughts back to the fog. A kid dressed in a sheet, a man with a knife, and a stop sign flashed across his mind. Warren ignored it at first until the sequence repeated three more times. “We need to stop for a minute. I think the entity has an idea.”
Nerea glared at him, “Now you are trusting that thing? It tried to control you before.” She refused to look at Warren at all.”
“Well, the eidolon seems to think there is something more going on. I agree with it. This isn’t you Nerea. You may not like it, but I have to live with my new friend. I think we should allow him a chance to earn our trust.”
Nerea locked eyes with Warren. They exchanged determined expressions for ten seconds. Nerea looked away first, “It had better protect you, or I will never trust it again.” The car slowed and pulled to the shoulder of the road, the gravel rattled under the tires.
The thick fog obscured the ditch and Warren inhaled the sickly night air. An image of two people shaking hands danced across Warren’s mind. “Okay, what is the plan?”
The eidolon flashed to the first time Warren released it. Nerea poked her head out of the car, “What is it’s the plan?”
Deep breaths, Warren took deep breaths. “It needs to be released. Pray, I can put the genie back in the bottle when I am done.” Warren hesitantly allowed the eidolon to creep further into the foreground of his mind. The pain of the last eruption of power came back to his mind fresh.
“You don’t look so sure about letting it out. Maybe we should carry on toward Houston.” Nerea shouted from the driver's seat.
If Warren backed out now, it would set a dangerous precedent. “Sometimes the greatest things come from the most difficult moments. If we turn away we may miss them,” He remembered his mother’s words well.
Slowly but steadily the aura around Warren increased. This time a soothing sensation washed over him. Like a warm bath, his cares and worries vanished into thin air. The eidolon erupted, bathing the area in bluish light. It shrieked and stomped its feet. The luminescent being hissed at the fog.
Mad cackling echoed around them, screams and moans grew closer. A remote-controlled car, and a picture of himself, hit Warren's mind. “You want control, can you pull back from it?”
The eidolon didn’t answer, it just waited for permission. Warren inhaled deep, “Let’s do this.”
Warren felt his limbs move involuntarily. At first, the pair locked in mental combat, before he relented and allowed the spectral creature control of his form. A five-minute timer appeared in his mind and began to tick down. He understood, too long with the eidolon active meant disaster for them both.
A trail of light followed the clutch of talons while they swiped the. The fog began to dissipate and revealed victims and those who died. Their twisted and grotesque forms clawed at the eidolon desperate for the energy to help them realize life or at least simulate it.
One lost soul dared to touch a single feather on the great wingspan of the majestic beast. Its hand sizzled and started to fade, the soul screamed loud and vanished. The other souls slowly backed away and away from the lonely stretch of road.
The timer read thirty seconds, as the troop of disenfranchised souls faded into the distance. The eidolon began to shrink and return. In his mind, he could see the clutch of Talons reach out to him. Warren accepted the gesture and the phantom beast faded with a second to spare. Warren felt weak and drained from the experience.
Nerea raced from the Charger to Warren and helped him to his feet, “The creature kept its word?”
“I knew it would because it is a part of me,” Warren rose to his feet with a little difficulty. “It explains why it was going crazy at the gas station. The eidolon knew we were being followed by the spirits.” Warren sank into the soft bucket seat and closed the passenger side door.
Nerea rubbed his shoulders, “Next time the eidolon has something to say, I will do my best to listen. Warren?” Nerea looked over and Warren was fast asleep. A soft glow came from his head and the eidolon appeared and stared at her.
“I owe you an apology. I let my losses and fears become me.”
A clutch of spectral talons touched her hand in comfort. the other clenched in fierce action. Nerea took a moment to think about it, and realized what the eidolon meant. We both will keep him safe.
Day came to the small town of Houston the only thing good about it was the world's largest fly fishing rod. At one time people came from all over just to fight a steelhead trout. With the economy on the decline and the town with boarded-up shops and dirty streets, no one wanted to come anymore. The motel diner was not the cleanest, and not a single employee wore a uniform, just black pants, and a black T-shirt. On the wall pictures of semi-famous people who passed through the town. Above the bathroom doors a small sign read, “We have run out of toilet paper, please use the spotted owl beak side down.” Today Warren and his two companions would board the ferry to New Avalon in hopes Warren could gain better control of the eidolon. Plume trusted the spiritual be
The wind whipped Warren's hair around as the massive boat carried them onward toward a group of islands off the coast of Vancouver. White shoals crashed into the boat, a pod of killer whales put a show for the handful of people watching from the deck above. They oohed and ahhed as the black and white mammals played in the waves. “Are you Warren Vandal? I can barely tell you, humans, apart, you all look the same to me.” A female voice asked. “There’s no need to make that face, it’s just a question.” Nerea and plume were off talking in the passenger area. She had questions for Plume about New Avalon. At this point, Warren welcomed someone else to talk to, “I’m Warren Vandal,” he said as he raised his hand. &
Warren found it hard to believe New Avalon was new in any fashion. Fully formed buildings made of wood and stone stretched to the heavens, paved roads and primitive street lamps dotted the sidewalks. Seelie people of all shapes colors and descriptions carried on their day. The sight of the Dodge Charger got more than a few finger points and astonished looks. Warren waved to the people outside the vehicle, “How is this possible? New Avalon was just formed the other day.” Vasilia laced her fingers in Warrens, and gave them an enthusiastic squeeze, “Time moves slower where we are from. We had time to prepare for the big change. It’s the reason why humans had to be careful how long they spent in our realm.” “Yeah one guy came to a wedding, it lasted a week, he returned to the earth realm, and thirty years passed, he returned to our realm and lived
The eidolon took to the queen almost immediately. Images of a knight kneeling danced across his mind. “I get it already,” Warren said under his breath. He knelt before the queen, “A pleasure to meet you, my queen.” Elphame touched him lightly on the forehead, “Please rise. You flattered me with your actions,” She scowled at Vasilia, “I thought we agreed the choice was his Vasilia. You walk a thin line, Daughter.” “I only wanted to make sure he didn’t get lost on the way to you,” Vasilia replied with a smirk. Vasilias' words fell on deaf ears. Elphame saw Nerea and motioned her forward, “Please don’t kneel. I get enough of that from my people.” She clasped both of Nereas hands in hers, “Welcome, I wish more parents would come to see their children off.” It started with narrowed eyes and ended with Nerea pulling her hands free, “I intend to remain
One would expect many things if they were to visit the land of Seelie. Winged people, strange hairstyles, odd skin coloring, and of course magic. One would not expect to see a fully loaded armored personnel carrier in the middle of a Seelie castle, and yet in front of warren, sat a fully loaded armored personnel carrier. Queen Elphame flourished her hand, “Project Scald Crow is our response to human fear,” she said proudly. “The Arcane Seekers will help solve magical problems all over the continent, thus raising our profile with the United Nations, we were denied entrance into those sacred halls.” Warren marveled at the sleek design and the crow's head painted on the hall with large glowing red eyes, “What does this have to do with me?” Nerea once again protectively stood in front of Warren, “Yes please explain it to us in English, and slowl
The events of the day weighed heavily on the mind of Warren Vandal. He wasn’t ready to make adult choices. He always pictured his adulthood somewhere in the nebulous future. A future where he played in the NHL and signed autographs for his fans after the games. He never dreamed of dealing with beings like Archon, or meeting Seelie queens, and armored personnel carriers. Nerea backed off and let him think things over. The queen graciously allowed them to dine alone to talk things over. The beeswax candles lit the elaborate table. Warren couldn’t help but look at the empty chair and wished his mom filled it. He’d give up all the magic in the world just to get her back. It was but a dream, because Seelie had tried to put things back, but failed. Great tension ruled the dinner table. The sounds of Cutlery on wooden plates and the crackle of the fire kept the maddening silence at bay. Nerea poured a glass of
Sleep didn’t come to Warren the previous night. His mind put a laser focus on the choice he had to make. During the night he tossed and turned, making a choice and then unmaking it. Archon remained silent and allowed him to choose the witching hour, Warren came up empty. “Archon, what should I do?” Warren asked. A picture of a man voting and a person shaking their head, and then his picture, with a checkmark. He manifested at the foot of the bed and laid down. If Archon had been real, Warren would’ve been squashed beneath Archon’s form. “Do you think Theria is the right choice? I mean you are older than me, so your opinion matters.” Archon sat up straight and conveyed his message while flourishing his talons. The pictures flashed and Warren took it as a fatherly speech about mating, and how important it was for the
The first day of school, a pivotal moment in our lives. We compare the first day of a job to it, especially if we don't know anyone. The same can be said of Warren Vandal when he first met the crew of the Scald Crow, an armored personnel carrier modified by the Seelie. The Seelie came to earth from an alternate dimension of Tir Na Nog, following a botched spell that fused the realities. Theria smiled and adjusted his clothes, “Now, they aren't going to be crazy about you, Warren. You represent the race that broke our reality. Remember to take it in stride and prove you are here for the team and nothing else.” She kissed him on the cheek and he felt a little silly, “If all else fails at least you have me.” “I'm so nervous. The game we are playing isn't for lun