Fire and Fantasy: a Limited Edition Collection of Epic and Urban Fantasy Read online

  As if hearing her dark thoughts, a warm caring hand touched her back. Abbey looked up when the hand squeezed her shoulder and Lourdie’s warm smile shined down at her.

  Abbey smiled up at her mentor and nodded, pulled away from the shadows that haunted her past by the mentor that had helped light her future.

  Lourdie nodded back and squeezed Abbey’s shoulder once more.

  The numbness receded, replaced by anger, frustration, determination, and hope. Abbey’s hunter senses began to resurface. She heard an archivist saying what a rare occurrence this had been. Abbey hoped so. She needed to never see or hear anything like it ever again. She also needed a distraction.

  Just what the doctor ordered, Abbey thought. Through the sea of dark blue uniforms walked Detective Jack LaCrosse, definitely nice eye candy. Tall, dark, and yummy was totally getting her mind off the gruesome scene and he was totally making eyes with her Sensei.

  “Either I don’t know jack, or you know Jack,” Abbey crossed her arms.

  Lourdie shrugged, “We were in school together.” She tried her best to be evasive, but knew that Abbey would be relentless. Both girls silently agreed lighthearted banter wasn’t a bad idea after what they had just witnessed.

  “What else did you do together?”

  “Abbey!”

  “Dude, he was totally making googly eyes at you. Were you two a thing?”

  “It was a long time ago.”

  “Come on, you’re not that old. What was it, like a minute ago?” Abbey asked, dipping her french fries into her chocolate milkshake.

  Lourdie laughed, “I’m ancient according to you.” She reached over and tried a bite of Abbey’s concoction. “Mmmm. This is surprisingly good.”

  Abbey looked at her mentor with sad puppy dog eyes.

  “Is this line of questioning an attempt to get your mind off the big bad we just faced or just pure teen queen fascination?”

  “Yes!” Abbey nodded her head eagerly as she ate her chocolate coated fries. She beamed her best smile at her mentor.

  “Okay, okay,” Lourdie chuckled and put her phone on mute. She and Abbey needed a little down time after the night they had had, “Phil. We’re going to need another order of fries and shakes over here.”

  “And pancakes!” Abbey added.

  Abbey didn’t blink as her Sensei spilled romantic detail after detail. Lourdie had to stop her story from time to time and remind Abbey to breathe.

  As Lourdie’s romantic romp down memory lane ended, Phil’s door dinged and a guardian entered. Lourdie didn’t need to turn around, the grin on Abbey’s face and wide eyes said it all.

  “Seriously?” Lourdie whispered.

  “Uh-huh, uh-huh,” Abbey chirped trying to take a nonchalant bite of her peanut butter and banana pancakes.

  “Um, Lourdie?” Detective Jack LaCrosse stood in front of the girls’ booth with a bouquet made entirely out of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups. But, instead of handing Lourdie the chocolates, he held out his phone, “It’s for you.”

  Lourdie strode down the hallway to Marcus’s office in a huff. Text me from Jack’s phone like we’re twelve, I know court protocol. She entered the absent knight’s office and glared at the crystal sword in the stone paperweight she’d given him last Christmas. Defiantly, she turned the object roughly twenty-three point seven degrees. Ha. Take that Mr. Everything has to be perfectly lined up Vaughan. Arms crossed, she slumped into one of the leather chairs facing Marcus’s desk and waited. She planned to confront him about the UK assignment. The unanswered questions and her overactive imagination were going to drive her crazy if she didn’t. Was this change of court a trial run for something more permanent? If I can’t train the other hunters, will it affect my rank? Future promotions? Am I not wanted here anymore? Will I become a test subject because I’m different? Lourdie shook her head, trying to make her brain stop rambling. No matter what or wasn’t between them anymore, Marcus was still her friend, her knight. She knew she could still talk to him.

  Marcus’s questions started before he even entered his office. “How’s Abbey handling what happened this morning? If I had known-- Do you think she’ll need extra counseling?”

  “No more than the standard hunter psych-eval-post-gory patrol we all go through. I’m okay, too, by the way.” Lourdie didn’t turn around as she spoke.

  “You’re always okay,” Marcus said as he walked to his desk and repositioned his paperweight. “But, I see you’re in a mood.” He started to walk toward his chair, but seemed to think better of it, and sat down beside her instead.

  “Still the best cure?” he asked, shaking a grande caramel macchiato in her direction.

  She seemed to relax a little. “It’s a start,” Lourdie said taking the luscious elixir.

  In unison they slid their shoes off and propped their feet on top of his desk. Lourdie looked down at the difference in their footwear. Her old hiking boots, one up right and the other on its side, were scuffed, well worn, and ready for combat. His dress shoes, lined up perfectly, were highly polished, brand new, and ready for a different type of battle, she supposed. She realized that her UK assignment couldn’t have been personal. Deep down she’d always known it was just a matter of time before the other courts requested her appearance. How could they not? She was the only one in the world able to create two orbs simultaneously. Marcus had probably prolonged the inevitable as long as he could, allowing her time to grow into her new ability without an audience or scrutiny.

  Marcus took a sip of his own coffee and looked over at Lourdie with a rare sadness in his eyes, “Well, at least I still get some things right.” He squeezed her hand tenderly before letting go.

  “Class, gather ‘round.” Professor Kapoi strapped on a backpack. “Ready, Abbey?” he asked as he started his class in the Vaughan building’s virtual chamber.

  “Ready.” Abbey gave him a crooked smile, “I’ll give the kids a good show.”

  The class surrounded their professor. “Some of you are used to solitary projections from a virtual backpack, now watch what the chamber can do,” Kapoi said as the room darkened and the class was enveloped by a perfect replica of an empty subway station.

  Students gasped at how realistic everything was. For the day, professor Kapoi had combined his first year hunters and novice hunter trainees. They walked down the subway line, following behind their professor and Abbey on a mock night patrol.

  Kapoi instructed the students to follow Abbey like they were a camera crew on the set of a movie. “See as much as you can,” he clasped his hands behind his back and came to an abrupt stop, giving them a serious glare, “But stay out of the way.”

  Growls echoed from in front of them, then from behind. The class all stopped, some novices so frozen in fear Abbey wondered if they would be able to move again. The growling surrounded them from all sides. They were trapped.

  Their professor pointed off in the distance and whispered. “Abbey, get up on that platform, I’ll draw them to me.”

  Kapoi slowly walked towards the nearest benign shadowskin. His thumb deftly moved over his weapon, activating it, as he crouched with strategic deliberation. He nodded for Abbey to start her escape when ready. Abbey nodded back and took off like a rocket. As he raised his stun baton to startle the creature and gain its attention, Abbey stumbled and fell. Kapoi began his approach and the shadow rattled and quivered. The gossamer shadow suspended in the corner now swirled into a solid, pitch black mass resembling a wolf, its teeth gleamed as it growled at the approaching hunter.

  A gasp escaped one of the novices as he watched the transformation. The netherwalker whipped its head in the direction of the disoriented students, then retracted its claws from the ceiling and ran gracefully along the wall towards the few stunned meals.

  Professor Kapoi whacked the krimvigo’s rear before it could reach them. “Pick on someone your own size,” he exclaimed. Then he looked at the stragglers. “Now run!”

  A frustrated roar burst from the krim as it
tried to slow its momentum by digging its claws into the cement wall, turning to follow Kapoi as he sprinted down the tunnel towards Abbey.

  The students followed a limping Abbey, jumping up onto a platform, as Kapoi ducked into a maintenance alcove on the opposite side of the track. Their professor, the seasoned hunter, saw two other netherwalkers barreling down on them, but he made sure he was their main target. Taunting them he aimed and shot a stun pulse at one of the krims. The creature quickly dodged this, but it was enough to keep their attention on him.

  The dark subway walls began to rumble, a train was very near.

  “Thorne, catch!” Kapoi said throwing a softball sized orb to her as she pretended to be a novice trainee, “Now find cover and wait for me.”

  A train rushed by as Abbey caught the orb. She let out a scared squeal as she did, hoping this would add to her dramatic interpretation of a damsel in distress. The wide eyed class could hear stun pulses and see orb light flickering and imploding beyond the screaming blur of the train. First to the right then the left down the line. Netherwalkers were running at their professor from both sides.

  Abbey pretended to struggle and hobble while she looked for a hiding spot. Drops of ice began to rain down around her from directly above. Her skin singed where the drops fell on her arm and shoulder. She screamed in agony as the acid sizzled through fabric and flesh. The wind from the train whipped through the station as a beast released its grasp from the ceiling and stood before her. Abbey raised her stun gun shakily, but it knocked the weapon from her right hand as a second train whizzed by. The clever krimvigar had positioned itself perfectly to trap its real threat, Kapoi. The creature seemed to relish playing with its new toy and it seemed to delight in Abbey’s realistic whimpers. It gave a sinister chuckling growl as it slowly raised its claws to strike down the defenseless guardian.

  Abbey brought her other hand out from behind her back and quickly let the orb grow between her palms. The krim froze in fear as she shoved the orb into its body with a limp and a grunt. She dove for her weapon as the orb labored to hold the ravenous beast. She struggled to activate the stun gun, but finally aimed it at the creature in case it broke free. The orb reluctantly imploded with the creature inside as the rumbling platform quieted and the wind died down.

  Kapoi jumped up onto the platform rejoining his class and began his lecture, “Those of you who chose a path other than hunting will hopefully never find yourself in that situation, but what if you do? Walking home late from school one night, you see a shadow lurking in a dark alley, but, more importantly, it sees you, its enemy. What will you do? Hope that your friend the apprentice hunter can save you? This class gives you the opportunity to be an active participant if need be, because together we are stronger. Together, you become hunters and not prey.” Kapoi paced in front of the line of students listening intently. “We are all guardians. We are all a threat to netherwalkers, so we all have a target on our backs. Netherwalkers won’t hesitate to kill you if they come into contact with you, hunter or not. Novices, I can’t commend you enough for your bravery, for stepping up and being the first to pave the way for others to follow. You are on the forefront of something great, something spectacular. Our engineers are on the brink of a phenomenal discovery. Within your lifetime there will be a weapon that gives you the ability to create orbs, and you,” he said, looking each novice in the eye, “Will be ready. First year hunters, look around you. Share your knowledge and the skills you learn throughout your years here with these novices. They may be standing beside you on a battlefield someday. Together we are stronger, and having more than one weapon in our arsenal is always a good thing.” Kapoi concentrated for a brief moment and the chamber changed under his will. “I cannot stress how dangerous these creatures are. We are their only threat, so we all need to be prepared.”

  The subway station’s platform morphed into a replica of S.B.’s gymnasium within seconds. Fewer of the young guardians gasped as they became accustomed to the virtual chamber’s abilities.

  “First year hunters pair up, practice creating a strong solid orb and then take turns throwing your orbs to one another. I’ll be around to check your progression. Senior aides, pair up with the novices and gently, gently, toss orbs to your teammates.”

  Four

  Juncture Closing

  Lourdie snickered to herself, sensing her apprentice five display counters away. Abbey was hiding behind some loud, chatty teenagers as they closed in on the make-up counter Lourdie was standing near. The young girl’s scare tactics always amused Lourdie. They never worked, but it was a fun game they played.

  “Abs, this is the last store,” Lourdie stated without turning around. “You’ve got to finish your schoolwork before our trip. It’s just a few days away you know.”

  From mere inches away, Abbey crossed her arms in a huff. “One of these days I’m totally going to be able to sneak up on you. That’s a promise.”

  Lourdie turned around and crossed her arms as well.

  “I’m almost done, I swear,” Abbey said, as she scoped out the direction of the junior’s section. She took off almost at a jog and expertly dodged the sales people attempting to spray her with perfume. Like Lourdie, she chose not to wear any. The sugary sweet smells would only confuse their hunter senses.

  “Over three months’ worth of assignments? Really?” Lourdie raised one eyebrow in disbelief.

  “Chill, Sensei, I’ve got it covered.” With a spin as they neared the juniors section of the huge department store, Abbey changed the subject, “I think I’m going to have my house mom finally cut my hair, too, to go along with my new wardrobe.” She touched what was left of the strip of hair from her netherwalker attack. “And, maybe add a little something extra to remember this by.”

  “No more steampunk, huh?” Lourdie said smiling about Abbey’s ever changing style.

  “No, no, just modifying it a bit. It’s too restrictive sometimes for hunt.... for what we do. I think I’m gonna go more retro casual. But I’m keeping my boots. I love my boots.” Abbey stretched out her leg admiring her worn in dark brown leather boots with buckled straps up to her knees. She had painstakingly created the one of a kind footwear herself. Lourdie knew they had hidden pockets and compartments everywhere. Suddenly, Abbey’s ears seemed to perk up like a cat’s, “Ooh, and I see the perfect t-shirts. Come on.”

  By the time they were finished shopping Abbey had accumulated twelve shirts, five pairs of jeans, and two jackets for her new look. Lourdie was exhausted. Leave it to Abbey to find retro style MMORPG shirts that deflected the public away from the true nature of the netherworld.

  Ten years ago King’s Court scrapers created an online role-playing game called The Nether. The game perpetuated the long standing myth that the netherworld was a way station for ghosts and demons.

  They were checking out when Lourdie saw it. She had to take a deep breath to calm her instinct not to go directly into hunter mode. There were too many dociles around. This operation was going to need a different approach than most hunters were used to. Walking away from the register Lourdie grabbed Abbey’s wrist like a giddy schoolgirl. “Aw, what a cutie!” The shopping bags rattled as she whispered, “Thorne, three o’clock. No sudden moves.”

  Abbey casually glanced to her right in disbelief. She appeared to bite her tongue in disgust and her body tensed. Lourdie’s grip tightened around her wrist as a warning.

  “Follow my lead, don’t look at it, and hopefully it will just consider us dociles.” Lourdie put a smile on her face and walked toward the woman holding an infant in a small seating vignette. The little nook was out of the way of foot traffic and appeared to be a convenient hiding place for netherwalkers.

  “And if it doesn’t?” Abbey asked quietly.

  “Then Marcus and the scrapers are going to have one hell of a mess to clean up.” Lourdie’s smiled widened as they neared their target. She bent forward and said cheerfully, “Hi, little man. What’s your name? Aw, he’s so cute.” She lo
oked up at the mother and asked, “How old is he?”

  Lourdie gave Abbey’s wrist one more squeeze as her apprentice finally calmed her breathing and slowed her heart rate as they stepped into the shadowskins snare.

  Abbey put a matching warm smile on her face even though the scene obviously repulsed her.

  The mother shook her head a little, as if she had been daydreaming. “Oh, um,” she straightened up and blinked several times, “This is Sebashtian, he’s almost thirteen months. Can you say hi to the nice girls?” The mother cooed as her son quickly glanced at the girls then back at the wall behind his mother.

  The guardians suspected the infant’s mother was a neophyte that had lost the sight; a descendant’s ability to see abnormal shadows lingering where there shouldn't be any. The shadowskin was in its benign form clinging to the wall, feeding on any human that came near it, taking drops of life of its unsuspecting victims. The process was virtually painless to its prey, creating a euphoric feeling as the netherwalker became engorged on its unabated feast.

  Lourdie was the picture of calm while a volcano of anger erupted under the surface as she thought of the shadowskin sharing the droplets of life with its master Nevra-Hsi back in the netherworld. With her heightened hunter senses, she could feel tiny molecule sized droplets of energy, her life force, her essence, being pulled out of her body through her skin. Trying to slowly leach her dry, the shadowskin fed its master. The experience wasn’t painful, but it was repulsive and intolerably invasive.