Chapter 29 Midnight Mischief
Midnight Mischief
Theo
Sleep, dreams and nightmares… one of my gifts. It’s what I usually use on children so they don’t realise that their life is leaving them.
I glance down at the girl now fast asleep in my arms, her breathing soft and calm, nothing like the fire-breathing menace she usually is.
My eyes flick to Ahren, who appears to be asleep. But if he sees me holding her, he’ll lose his fucking mind and try to kill me. With a quiet sigh, I lower her carefully to the ground beside me. She won’t even notice she’s sleeping on stone, not with what I’ve done to her.
A loose strand of her pale hair brushes across her lips. I reach out before I can stop myself, brushing it away with my fingers. I’m way too nice; no one appreciates me.
This outfit is damn inappropriate. Shaking my head, I adjust the layer of her see-through skirt, covering her up the best I can, muttering under my breath. She’s asleep, but still demands attention.
Just as I’m about to turn away, she shifts slightly, making me pause, the faintest frown creasing her brow. Even unconscious, she looks ready to bite someone’s head off. She’s not at ease…
I remember the conversation we had moments ago and sigh. Why the fuck did I say what I did?
Suddenly, a slow grin tugs at my mouth, an idea popping into my mind.
“Now, this is going to be fun.” Reaching over, I place a finger on her forehead as I pour a dream into her mind.
When she wakes up, she won’t even remember I made her fall asleep, and with this dream, I will have the perfect chance to tease her. I snicker.
I look over at Allie; I should do the same to her.
Quietly, I get to my feet and sneak over to her makeshift bed.
Crouching down, I place a finger to her forehead.
She stiffens, almost as if she’s about to wake up, but I force sleep to pull her deeper and create a dream.
She’s sleeping in a field, and there are cowpats beside her head, and it stinks. And then there’s fleas and-
I can sense her aura rising and quickly return to my spot, stifling my cackle as Allie struggles in the horrors of her nightmare. I mean, it’s just cow shit, but she’ll be fucking traumatised.
One win for me.
I look down at the blond next to me, as for her… she’ll dream of me just so I can fuck with her, and of course, she’ll feel mortified when she dreams up that dance we performed earlier with some adjustments, and she’ll be shocked. And that is what I’ll use to mess with her.
Now, this is the reason I like keeping what I can do a secret.
Wait, should I fuck with the rest of them?
Is that even a question? Even my wolf seems to approve, so obviously, I should. I mean, this shit is boring, and they sleep way too much.
I drag myself up and walk silently over to Renji, crouching beside him.
I decide to torture him with embarrassment.
His pants fall down in front of a girl he likes, and she gets disgusted by him.
I hope he has a crush, so he has a face to picture; otherwise, he may figure out it’s a dream.
I will put the idea there; the rest his own mind will cover.
Carter’s dream is that his hair has fallen out, and he has his nails done, a nice, ugly pink to irritate him.
After all, he loves his masculinity. I snicker as I move to Jayce.
I make him dream that he falls at Sienna’s feet when we get to her, begging her to marry him- Wait, he should cry, too. Yes, make him look like a lame-ass sob.
Ahren… Hmm, this guy’s a weirdo. Wait, I have an idea.
He’s swapped bodies with Kaden, and Kaden is an evil alpha, and he knows he has to get rid of his toddler body, and Ahren is terrified and calling for help, but no one can hear him.
And he has no bladder control, so he keeps shitting in his diaper. Yup, that’s good.
The last one is Ares. I grin. This one ain’t fucking hard. He’ll dream he’s a belly dancer in his fancy new skirt getup in front of the entire school. Yup, shake that ass, bro.
Chuckling quietly, I go back to my spot, leaving a few feet between me and Blondie, whose cheeks are actually pretty pink.
I lie down and place my hands under my head, and close my eyes, although I’m alert and won’t fall asleep.
Now, I can’t wait for them to get up, so I can see their reactions.
From the moment they woke up in the morning, it’s been fucking intense to keep a straight face.
Everyone’s moods are insane. Ares is straight up pissed, and Allie is grouchy and keeps rubbing her arms and shivering.
Carter keeps glaring at no one in particular, his jaw taut.
Ahren looks glum as fuck, and Renji looks sad, too.
Heaven is avoiding eye contact, and Jayce is now glaring at me.
He can’t possibly know…
“Why the fuck didn’t you wake me for my watch?” he asks icily.
“Hey, man, just thank me. You know I did you a favour taking your watch.” I smile.
His eyes flash. “I didn’t fucking ask,” he snarls.
Now, I know exactly why he’s fucking pissed.
“Why are you pissed?” Ares asks. “By any chance did you have a fucking weird dream?”
Simultaneously, they all look at one another.
“Yes!”
“Yeah!”
“You cunt.”
“Me too!”
Heaven also nods vigorously, her cheeks burning up again.
I stifle a snicker. “Damn, was it bad?”
Allie looks at me suspiciously. “Funny that we all had dreams; mine was disgusting. Did you do something to make us have those freaky-ass dreams?”
What a buzzkill. “Man, I’m not a witch. I can’t cast spells.”
“What were your dreams about?” Renji asks the others.
Ahren shakes his head. “I’m told that we shouldn’t share bad dreams, but it was messed up.” He pouts, a look that doesn’t suit those horns or glowing, freaky eyes.
“Yeah, they were just nightmares.” Ares shudders. “Fuck, I hate this shit.” He glares down at his clothes, and it takes a lot not to snicker.
“Yeah, a nightmare,” Jayce agrees. Everyone but Heaven nods.
Ah, here’s my chance.
“What about you, Blondie? Wasn’t yours a nightmare?” I ask smoothly.
Her eyes widen as she looks at me before nodding hurriedly and looking away. “So, what was it about?” I push, combing my fingers through my hair. Her eyes widen more like saucers, and I smirk. “You ok there, Blondie? You look hot.”
Ahren growls, and I cock a brow. “What did you just say?”
“That she looks hot- fuck, not that kinda hot. I meant her cheeks are red.” I internally facepalm as Heaven glares at me from beside Allie.
Ahren’s frown deepens. “Stop teasing her,” he commands.
“Why? I like annoying her.”
Shut up, Theo, Heaven writes, now glaring at me.
“Sure,” I smirk. Oh, Blondie, I know exactly what you dreamt of, and I will not be dropping that shit.
“Right, let’s just get going. I think if we don’t see anything soon, a pathfinder might be the best way,” Jayce says, his voice clipped.
“A what?” Carter asks, with a frown stuck on his face, as he plays with a strand of his hair, probably traumatised over that hair loss. I want to give him some tips, but I don’t want them to know it’s me.
“A guide. I’ll explain it later,” Jayce mutters, clearly not in the mood. Wow, bro’s ego is bruised.
“Why do I feel that Theo did have something to do with this?” Allie persists.
“Shut up, Zombilesandra. You always blame me for everything,” I point out, yawning, spotting Heaven coming closer.
Now’s my chance. “Hmm, do you think my abs look as good as they did on Earth? Without food, will we maintain our bodies?” I ask, running my hand down my abs slowly, not missing the way her eyes snap in my direction before she shakes her head as if trying to clear it.
I chuckle as my brothers all look at me, unimpressed. “Right, Theo, you’re on a speaking ban,” Renji says, attempting to be firm.
“Yeah, and if you don’t shut it, I’ll carve you some permanent abs,” Ares snarls.
Ok, you know what? There’s one way this would be more fun. “Sure thing, I mean, if you have the time away from your belly-dancing dreams.”
Allie gasps before all eyes turn on me. “You!” she snarls. “You made me dream of cow shit!”
I snicker. “Oh, I know exactly what each and every one of you were thinking about. Right, Blondie?”
She looks at me, her nostrils flaring, her cheeks red as her power glows, and I’m thrown backwards. I flip, landing on my feet, as I raise my scythe in defence, the power humming through it as it deflects part of her attack.
You asshole! she writes, stabbing her finger in my direction.
“Oh, come on, Blondie, I thought it was the best dream of them all. I mean, Jayce was cry-”
“Theo, shut the fuck up before I fucking castrate you,” Jayce warns. I snicker.
Damn, he’s pissed.
“What did he make you dream of?” Allie asks Heaven, who shakes her head.
Just something dumb I would never EVER dream of on my own! she writes, glaring at me.
“You guys are buzzkills.” I yawn, turning and sauntering off.
A while later, we’ve stopped as we prepare to summon a pathfinder. “One person will have to use the words, and most likely they will be the one to go face-to-face with the challenge,” Jayce explains. “I’ll do it.”
“No, I’ll do it. If things get messed up, we need the five of you together to go up against Helios. So, I’m the best shot,” Ahren says.
“Excuse me, and what are we?” Allie asks, pointing to herself and Heaven, who nods.
“Not happening,” Ahren says firmly. “It’s going to be me.”
“I hate how you think it’s your job to protect us women,” Allie remarks. “By relation, I’m your aunt, so you’d better listen to me.”
Ahren smiles. “Well, aunty dear – ain’t happening. By age, I’m older. Now, let me do this.”
“Yeah, I have more confidence in Ahren succeeding in this test than you,” Ares says. “And shame you can’t use the aunt card on me. As your older cousins, you should learn to respect us.”
“I hate people,” Allie growls, giving me a dirty look. She’s still not forgiven me for the dream.
“Remember, they will target your weaknesses,” Jayce warns Ahren, ignoring the rest of us.
“Who said I have any?” Ahren replies lightly with a wink. “I got this. Trust me.”
I trust in you, Heaven writes.
Ahren looks forward. “Right… let’s do this.” He takes a deep breath before speaking words in a language I don’t understand.
At first, nothing happens, and then the air changes, and a figure begins to solidify before us. First, the grey robes, and then the features. They’re tall, with androgynous features, making it difficult for me to determine if they are male or female.
“You summoned me.”
That wasn’t spoken in English, but I understood it, and like their features, their voice is genderless, too.
“I did. We need guidance to the abode of the Mighty God, Helios.” Ahren’s voice is level, powerful and void of all humour.
“Of course, if you can pass one test.”
“Certainly. What is it?” Ahren asks.
Silence.
Excruciating silence.
What the fuck is this?
I can’t hear my own heart thumping, or my breathing, or anyone’s breathing for that matter. I can’t hear the wind. It’s as if I’ve gone completely fucking deaf and my ears are about to erupt from it.
I slam my scythe into the ground as I try to focus on what’s happening. Ahren hasn’t moved, but something is happening between them. I look at the others, their auras, like mine, are swirling around them.
Ahren doesn’t move, his wings spread behind him now to the max, feet apart, unmoving.
What kind of test is he facing?
A powerful surge of wind throws us all back. None of us are able to hold our ground. I’m flung back, but force my scythe into the ground. Allie’s shifted, still clutching her spear as she holds her ground. Heaven’s using magic, although Renji’s beside her.
She’s the only one without her wolf, meaning that when it comes to physical strength, she’s far weaker than the rest of us.
Her eyes flick to mine as if sensing me watching. I look away, turning and focusing on Ahren’s back again. I’m not the only one here, I don’t need to worry about her – or anyone. We all came willingly.
The wind suddenly disappears, slamming us all to the ground, and I growl. The hell with slamming us around like fucking rag dolls. I get to my feet as my ears are suddenly unblocked.
“Let us begin our journey,” the pathfinder says, turning and walking slightly east of where we were heading.
Ahren looks at us. He looks normal, but he’s exhausted. “How did that go?” Carter asks.
“We’re being guided, aren’t we?” Ahren says with a tired grin.
“What was the test?” I ask.
His eyes shadow. “I cannot speak of it and, honestly, I’m good with that.”
I don’t say anything, but I have a pretty good idea of what it might have included… That look in his eyes… I’ve seen it countless times in the mirror.
The pathfinder stops and waves their hands.
A glowing light appears, followed by runes and symbols, before they form an arch.
“Your desire is the fastest route, and so we must cross the Marshes of Vhaldir. Be warned, it is no easy crossing. Follow the moonlight, and on the other side we shall meet again.”
And then we’re all being dragged through the archway, and everything becomes dark.