CHAPTER FOUR
CAMBION
Mortal Realm
When I find her, Eilish is standing deep in the forest, looking out over a misty pond. I first feel anger at her stupidity, for wandering so far when none of us are safe. But upon seeing her face, I soften, my anger mellowing as I observe her still form at the water’s edge.
She appears so alone out here. So small. Not the creature I’ve become so wary of, but a confused girl trying to navigate a world of which she knows very little.
Regardless, my sympathy is in short supply, and I refuse to reveal the softer side of my feelings toward her. Ever since Variant’s betrayal, trust is not a commodity in which I’m willing to trade.
“How could you be so stupid?” I scold when she’s within earshot. In my efforts to safeguard my concern for her wellbeing, I may have overcorrected. My words are scathing and cruel. I see the hurt in her eyes as she jumps out of her reverie and turns to face me.
“I… I’m sorry. There was…” she starts.
“We’ve just barely escaped with our lives, or did you forget?”
Her mouth opens and closes, but she can’t manage to form any real words before I’m at her again.
“Who are you talking to out here anyway?”
“I was…” She clears her throat. “I wasn’t talking to anyone.”
I can see the lie in her eyes. Furthermore, I could hear her speaking with someone. No, I didn’t hear the other side of the conversation, but hearing her voice was enough. Clearly, she was talking to someone who has since departed.
“Sneaking off into the woods doesn’t help your case,” I interrupt her.
“I didn’t sneak off.”
“Then how do you explain the fact that you’re here? Beyond the perimeter of the Glyph of Warding meant to keep you safely inside our camp?”
“I… I had to relieve myself.”
“And you travel this far away?” I eye her with a narrowed and suspicious gaze. She’s clearly lying to me and she’s terrible at it. She came out here for a reason and I want to know what that reason is. And I also want to know who the fuck she was talking to.
This girl is trouble. Just like Lamia and her daughters were trouble. Just like all Succubae are trouble.
“Dragan might be fooled by your act but I’m not,” I say as I glare at her.
“It’s not an act,” she insists.
“I’m no fool. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if you were the one who alerted Anona to our location in the first place!”
Her eyes widen and her mouth drops open. I don’t allow her to speak. Instead, I close the distance between us and glare down at her from narrowed eyes.
“How else would she have known where we were?” I demand.
“I don’t know!” she insists.
“I see what you really are,” I continue. “I see through this fucking mask you’re wearing. All that shit about missing your memories was just a bunch of bullshit, wasn’t it? You’ve been playing a game with us all this time, attempting to seduce us into trusting you. Well, it might have worked on Dragan and Baron but it’s not going to work on me. I’ll be damned if I let a fucking Succubus destroy my carefully laid plans again..."
“That’s enough!” shouts a booming voice from behind me.
I turn to see Dragan striding across the forest. My cheeks flush in anger. How dare he reprimand me! I shoot a glare at Eilish, her large eyes are dewy—the moonlight reflecting in their shimmery surface.
“Spare your fucking words,” I snarl at Dragan. “Until you understand what your little angel was in the middle of doing out here.”
She looks at me and then Dragan and opens her mouth as if to defend herself, but I continue before she can say anything.
“I found her out here, alone. She was talking to someone but whoever that person is, they’re long gone.” Then I glare at the big, stupid moron. “I told you we couldn’t trust her, but you don’t fucking listen to me. And now we’re going to pay because she’s obviously a spy!”
“A spy?” Dragan repeats with a frown.
“Yes! She has been all along! How else do you explain how Anona found us so easily?”
Dragan raises an eyebrow, “I said, that’s enough.” His voice is icy. I feel the air move as he speaks; everything changes focus and suddenly the ground vibrates with intensity.
“You don’t fucking talk to me like that,” I say.
“I’m sick of your idiocy,” he responds. He takes a step toward me as if to intimidate me but I don’t back down. I’m tired of this prick and his sense of superiority.
“I’m sick of you fucking up,” I spit back at him. Then I look at the girl. “And she’s just another prime example of you fucking up.”
“Don’t test me, faerie ,” Dragan whispers, his voice harsh.
Not wanting another physical altercation, I step back. The air returns to normal; I watch his shoulders relax.
“Revenant is awake,” he tells me. Then, turning to Eilish, he adds, “We need to get back. It isn’t safe out here.”
At first, I’m annoyed he doesn’t show any interest regarding what I’ve just told him. But then I decide I shouldn’t be surprised. This is just another example of Dragan’s pigheadedness. He’s a fucking fool, and he’s the worst type of fucking fool—a stupid and stubborn one.
“Let’s go,” Dragan says forcefully.
Then, something interesting happens. Rather than accompanying Eilish, he turns away from her pointedly. Obviously. His body language toward her is closed and formal, such that mine is. Before, he was a doting fool and now he appears… disinterested? Angry? Unsympathetic? Distrustful?
Eilish and I fall into step behind him, our journey back to camp silent and pensive. Dragan’s quick strides place him ten or so yards ahead of us. Prior to this moment, I can’t think of one example when he’s allowed me in Eilish’s company without him. This is very odd, indeed.
I fight the urge to continue to taunt her, to let her know I’m well aware of her duplicity. She hangs her head, but I can see her expression is one of disappointment and sadness.
But, no matter.
I’m more interested in Dragan’s reaction to her. I wonder if, perhaps, the bastard gargoyle has come to see things from my point of view after all? I smile at my apparent win, but not for long. For some reason, beating her doesn’t feel good.
Furthermore, the joy I’d anticipated at catching her solo in the woods conversing with a stranger, is nowhere to be found.
Yet, I had exposed her! I was right! I’d caught her red-handed, just as I’d assumed I would.
But where is my satisfaction? It’s missing. All that’s left is... perhaps pity? Disappointment?
It’s an interesting development, and certainly unexpected.
I can’t tarry on the topic, however. Instead, I turn back to thoughts of Baron.
He spent a long time under the influence of the stone, and he wouldn’t be the first strong mind to fall victim to its powers. Memory is dangerous territory; I should have done more to prepare him for all he might uncover. But how can you prepare someone for the level of betrayal Baron suffered? Stabbed by his own brother…
Because we were brothers, regardless of the differences in our lineage. For all our bickering and our disagreements, we were balanced. Where one of us had weakness, the others had strength.
Variant tipped the scales; the three of us could never hope to return to what once was. It took me a century to come to terms with that; how long will it take Baron? Even now, I wonder if this attempt of ours to cement our proper place among the kingdom is a wasted endeavor? But what is the alternative? Return to Geldingstock and become Variant’s prisoner again? I believe Variant is just looking for reason to end Dragan and me and now we’ve given him reason. So, maybe that means I wouldn’t even be allowed to return to being his prisoner again?
No, there’s no going back.
Much though I believe we are headed for certain doom, there’s no other path on which to travel. And now that the angel has proven herself to be anything but the answer to overthrowing Variant, we haven’t a hope in hell.
Of course, while it is true that I don’t trust her, I also can’t say with any conviction that I believe her to be working for Variant. I can’t imagine why he would allow her to maintain her wings if such were the case.
Then the question remains: who is she working for?
It’s a question I hope to answer soon.
For now, I must come up with a plan. Clearly, I’m the only one who can.
Dragan is a fool and Baron is unreliable at best. In fact, I’m not even certain he’ll remain with us after I free him from the influence of the stone. He seemed intent on leaving as soon as his memories were returned to him. Not that I blame him necessarily. Were I in his position, I should most likely make the same decision. Of all of us, Baron is blessed in his anonymity.
I envy him that.
As to my plan moving forward… I do have one. It’s still in the process of taking shape in my mind but the more I think on it, the more reasonable it becomes. First things first, I need to know what Baron’s plans are once I disengage him from the stone. Then I need to decide what to do with Eilish.
It’s my preference that we leave her somewhere and do so soon. She can no longer assist us with our cause and she’s untrustworthy, at best. Therefore she must go. After that, we must begin to assemble an army. We have no chance of going up against Variant and his forces if we have no forces of our own. And that is the sticking point on which I continue to beat my head against the proverbial wall…
I grow tired of the silence and Dragan is too far ahead for me to taunt him. I turn to Eilish. “So,” I say, “who were you talking to?” My voice is bordering on friendly.
“Maybe no one,” she confesses with a shrug and I’m momentarily surprised to hear her finally confess the truth.
“Then it was someone?”
She cocks her head to the side. “I’m beginning to think it was all a dream.”
Her face is clenched in great concentration, but even so, she’s stunning. A tendril of hair falls in front of her focused features. “Did you see anyone?” she asks, almost hopefully.
“No,” I tell her. And it’s the truth. I’d heard her voice, but when I arrived at the pond’s edge to see Eilish, she was entirely alone. I’d even summoned the Commune With Nature charm in order to scan the forest nearby but she was the only one there.
“Cambion,” she starts and looks up at me. Her voice is soft and hushed and, despite my grating distrust of her, I feel lulled by it. Hearing her say my name tugs at something in my abdomen. I want to hear her say it again…
“What?” I ask, rather curtly.
“Is there anyone more powerful than Morrigan?”
I stifle a laugh. “Of course not!”
Eilish nods, but appears as though there’s more on her mind. “What about gods?”
“Did that stone turn your head?”
She’s quiet.
“Why are you asking me about gods?” I ask, in a softer tone. I don’t know what it is about this woman but she makes me want to bark at her but at the same time, I recognize my own acidity and sometimes I even regret it.
“The gods…” She looks up at me expectantly.
I stop myself again. “You’re choosing an odd moment to begin a discourse on philosophy,” I say.
She nods but her mind is elsewhere. “How do I learn more about the gods?”
Somehow, I’ve all but forgotten I’ve just found her conversing with someone in the woods. I continue, “Variant burned all books referencing any of the gods when he took power.”
“Why?”
I shrug, thinking the answer obvious. “He didn’t want anyone learning there were beings more formidable than him. The Mortal and Shadow Realms are mostly godless now. You’ll find the odd believer here and there, but no one would dare speak the gods’ names outside the safety of their own homes.”
“And in the Fae Realm?” she asks.
I nod. “The Fae view them a bit differently. There are a number of Silvanite clerics who still actively preach, though they don’t reference the deities directly. Instead, the gods simply function as druids and rangers, ensuring the proliferation of the natural world and protesting civilization’s expansion into the woodland.” I pause for a moment and then frown. “They’re all a bunch of quacks if you ask me. If there are or ever were gods, I know one thing… they don’t care about us.”
“Why do you think that?”
I shake my head. “Look at what’s become of this world!”
She nods, growing quiet for another few moments. Then she looks up at me again. “Once Baron is finished with the stone, will it be my turn?” she asks, hope in her expression.
I shake my head. “The stone will need to be cleansed of Baron’s memories and re-energized with my own fae magic before it can hope to return your memories to you.”
She nods but appears disappointed. “How long will that take?”
“Perhaps a few hours to cleanse and another two or so hours to re-energize.” I give her a parental expression. “Patience is a virtue.”
But then I wonder what the bloody hell I’m going on about. Why even attempt to return her memories to her when she’s a spy? Perhaps this was all an act on her part and she’s had her memories all this time?
No, it’s important to subject her to the stone, in case there is some truth to her claims, I tell myself.
We reach the border of camp to see an exhausted Baron seated beside a small fire. Nearby, Dragan crouches over the fire, his posture open and non-intimidating. He’s in the process of cooking something, proof in the fact that there appears an iron pot floating above the flames, courtesy of Dragan’s shadow magic.
Baron’s shoulders are slumped forward; he looks exhausted.
Eilish’s pace quickens until she’s nearly jogging to reach Baron. When she meets him by the fire, he looks up at her and her eyes are wide with worry.
“Are you okay?” she asks as she extends a hand to his shoulder. He simply nods. Dragan, meanwhile, watches the exchange with an obvious frown and narrowed, angry eyes.
He might not trust the girl, but it’s clear he still has feelings for her.
“Whatever that is, it smells terrible,” says Baron, gesturing to the misshapen black pot spluttering and coughing over Dragan’s small fire. I bite back the condescending remark that rises up and into my mouth regarding Dragan’s Transmutation abilities as applies to his cooking.
Instead, I save my attentions for Baron. His voice is low and tired, his face sickly. His comment regarding the stew wasn’t exactly the revelation we all were hoping for, but at least he still possesses his language faculties.
“Didn’t need no fancy stone to tell you that much,” points out the disgruntled sprite as he stares dejectedly into the cup of stew that rests in his lap, untouched (impressive for the portly creature).
The steam rising from its surface smells acrid, and I decline to help myself to the remaining stew. The liquid inside looks to be hardly more than water, a few errant roots and questionable meat float inside. Rabbit? I’ve seen a few near camp, though all were skinnier than food grade.
Dragan grunts.
We all settle in once more, no one wanting to be the first to break the silence.
Baron’s somber mood is understandable. Our collective history isn’t a pretty one. If I had a choice between knowing and not knowing, I’d choose the latter. I wonder if Baron regrets his decision to witness the suffering we’ve all endured. He isn’t the only member of the walking dead—none of us is the same man we were when crowned all those years ago.
The mood around the fire is dark while we wait for Baron to speak. I would assume Dragan’s thoughts aren’t far from mine. We both know what Baron has most likely seen in the stone—his own death at the hand of a man he once called brother. It’s an image neither Dragan nor I have been able to carve out of our memories, no matter how hard we’ve tried. But the memories extend beyond just Baron’s murder to include visions of the war, the loss of our soldiers, the betrayals.
“It’s bleak, isn’t it?” Dragan says finally as he faces the vampire.
Baron doesn’t look at the gargoyle. Instead, his eyes find Eilish and his eyebrows knit together as though he’s remembering who she is. He appears to be wholly confused and out of sorts. No matter—it’s to be expected. The stone just returns memories to you—it doesn’t bother to put them into context or chronological order. And there’s no guarantee the memories it does return are complete.
Baron nods. “It’s difficult to explain, everything still blends together and makes little sense.” He raises his hands to his head to rub his temples. Eilish looks first to Dragan, then to me.
I offer a shrug.
“I need to speak with Eilish alone,” Baron announcess after a protracted pause.
I see Dragan tense.
“Why?” I ask at the same time Dragan says, “No.”
We all look at him but his eyes are focused only on Baron. And they’re angry.
“You have no more business here,” he starts. “Cambion restored your memories to you and now you need to make your way on your own, just like we agreed.”