Chapter 15
One hot day in June, Kinnek had kept me at the kitchen table for most of the morning, doing things to a glass of water.
He had swung himself up to sit on one of the honey-brown and cream kitchen counters, his bare paws dangling.
He wore a crop top and shorts and was winding a strand of his hair around a finger.
He looked like a bored teenager for some reason, and by this point, I was sure those blue-gray strands were dyed.
“Make it freeze again, snapdragon,” he said for about the millionth time.
The presence hadn’t left me, and I could still feel it in my head when I concentrated, but it was less chatty these days, which had probably been the point of all this magic training.
It was easier to interact with the outside world while I made the presence do things for me, such as freezing water.
I sighed and propped my head up on my hand.
The presence did the rest, and the water turned to ice.
There was still condensation misting the glass, and much of it had soaked into the placemat while I’d been practicing.
Part of me felt like I was an understudy sitting in on rehearsals for plays I hadn’t been cast for, learning the lines in the hopes someone broke a leg or something.
“There.”
Kinnek beamed. “You’re better than the fridge. Now make it liquid again.”
I tapped the glass with a finger, collecting a drop of condensation. “We’ve been at this for hours.”
“And you’re doing so well.” He looked at the actual fridge. Kinnek had a weakness for iced tea, especially if Charles made it, and there was a fresh batch in there. “Tell you what, you boil it, and you can take a break, yes?”
I had the water in the glass bubbling and radiating heat in less than a minute.
“That’s your break then, sweet pea.”
I stood and stretched, yawned. “And iced tea for you.”
Kinnek slid off the counter, grabbed two glasses, and filled them with ice and iced tea from the fridge. He walked back over and sat down next to me. I moved my practice water out of the way, and he set a glass in front of me.
He drank some of his. “Ah. This is one of the many human things I’d miss on Aer. Same as chai in the winter.” He brightened. “And hot chocolate with marshmallows.”
“Oh, so you thought about going back?” I had. Despite everything, I’d liked Aer and the people. Well, the ones who weren’t cola asshats.
Kinnek sipped his tea, the ice clinking against the rim of the glass.
“Not really. This is home. It’s just that it’s become a little more work since all the monsters started coming here when the veils fused.
” He leaned back and propped his feet up on the table, flexing his toes to reveal those sharp bagu claws.
“That spider Vergis said was about to eat you on the monster world? We had one of those earlier this year. It was out in the forest. Charles found it when he was picking wood garlic, and he said he felt like Ripley and the space marines walking into the colony in that movie. We have a flamethrower in the basement now.”
I paled. I didn’t want to remember the big orange spider. Ever. “I…need to change the subject. You know what, I’ll go out and pick some raspberries.” I stood and put my empty glass in the sink.
“Do. I’m making vinné for dinner tonight, and they’ll go great with fresh berries.”
There was a basket on the cabinet used for fruit picking, and I grabbed it. “Are you going to turn the raspberries into, erm, dissent jelly?”
“Oh, you mean disset? I hadn’t thought to. It’s usually cooked with a tuber that turns to jelly when you heat it. Like pectin. Hmm. I guess I could try to flavor the raspberries like disset. Which reminds me—Vergis said you fell in love with massa buns when you were on Aer?”
I gasped. “Those damn cilantro raisin massacre buns! No. They’re one of the most disgusting things I’ve ever eaten. No offense to Lugarran culture or cuisine,” I hurried to add.
Kinnek tilted his head. “None taken. Charles is very much with you on the…massacre buns, but I thought maybe massa was like blue cheese or natto to the human palate; either a favorite or very much not.”
I made a face. “Very much not. Vergis and his fudging jokes.”
Kinnek giggled. “He called you a ‘bearable human’ the other day. Don’t take his jabs too personally.
I was lucky to run into Charles and that Charles didn’t give a single fuck about the horns or me being blue and pregnant.
Let’s just say my baby wasn’t always as lucky as me when interacting with humans. ”
Well, that made sense. It also made me feel bad for Vergis all over again, Vergis, who’d have happily fed me massacre buns and dropped dead pigeons on me. Not to mention that memorable incident with the furious bear. Or the bloodworm. We’d had a lot of incidents together, come to think of it.
“I’m…really sorry.” I gripped the basket’s handle tightly.
“Not your fault, sweet pea. Remember, his daddy taught him where to punch any bigoted assholes so it’d hurt—something he took to much faster than most five-year-old bagua I’ve known.” Kinnek’s face turned dreamy. “He’s always been so talented.”
“Ah. Well, that’s…impressive.”
Kinnek nodded. “I know! He’s such a cute little marvel.”
Since I didn’t want to talk any more about how the cute little marvel had learned to maim and murder, I waved my basket and excused myself.
Fellisse was outside helping Charles with the tomatoes, tying them to poles. He stood up and clicked when he saw me.
“Rory! Put your hat on if you’re going out. We don’t want you to get sick with sunstroke.”
Charles snorted. “Sunburn, more likely.”
Fellisse grunted. He watched me in a way that made very clear he would grab me and carry me back inside to put a hat on me if I didn’t do it myself.
“Oh, fine.” I threw up my hands but turned on my heel.
“I was just going to pick berries.” I waved the basket for emphasis.
Fellisse looked unimpressed, and Charles was already back to the tomatoes.
The man had a talent for remaining unfazed that I deeply admired.
That a flamethrower was his solution to a problem didn’t really surprise me.
Five minutes later, with my hat firmly in place, I headed out to the berries. The bushes were next to the fruit trees, between the vegetable patch and the larger potato, bean, and pumpkin patch.
I walked through the rows made by branches heavy with fruit or flowers preparing to become fruit, minding the thorns as I picked the ripest red and golden raspberries, and some blueberries.
I ate probably as many as I picked. It was so nice, being out here with nothing to do and nothing lurking just around the corner, waiting to eat me. Tonight, I’d sleep in Inkiri’s arms, and nothing would change that. Things were good, better than I deserved.
I smiled, thinking about how I’d bring Inkiri some of these berries before handing them over to Kinnek for jelly making.
Inkiri and Lissir had been restringing some fairy lights in the garden earlier.
A yellow butterfly fluttered past the new growth branches of the berries and toward the sun, and I smiled as I looked after it… and froze.
A Koa Esher stood at the end of the raspberry row, clad in muddy white clothes that definitely looked like they’d seen better days, his twisted horns dull in the sunlight.
We both looked at each other for a moment that stretched. Then he said something and raised his hands, palms out, and I reacted out of fear and instinct.
I clutched the basket tightly and called for the presence.
It came immediately. Such bright kennings of fear in you, it said, more to itself than me. Which was weird. Maybe I could have a conversation with it about how weird it was that it was talking to itself while being in my head, but not right then.
I need my guys. And Kinnek. And the flamethrower.
Or did I need the cola asshat on fire? I wasn’t sure. An icy wind rushed toward the Koa Esher. He turned his head away, shielding his face with his hands.
“Rory!” Fellisse’s voice was close, and he sprinted around the raspberries just a second later, a knife in hand that was most decidedly not a gardening tool.
Charles had a gun out, and he moved like military dudes did in movies.
Fellisse reached me first. He pushed me behind him and hissed something at the Koa Esher, then Charles took up position next to Fellisse, and I was shielded behind them both.
Protect them, protect them, protect them, I said to the presence.
Nothing to protect them from, it said, sounding bored, like a commuter waiting for a train that was always late. The icy wind wouldn’t let up, but it was changing direction, and very soon, green leaves tore off the berry branches and circled around us in a maelstrom of foliage.
Something from behind me caught my attention, and I saw Kinnek sprinting toward us.
“What is—” he began, then he went silent when he saw the Koa Esher.
The next thing he said started out in Lugarra, I could tell that much, but then something about the cadence of the words and how the vowels and consonants were strung together changed.
Kinnek’s fury was still there, even if I had no clue what he was saying.
The wind picked up, and it got louder. I put my hands over my ears to dampen the howling.
“What fresh fuckery is this?” Vergis appeared on my left. He pinched me in the arm.
“Ow!”
“Stop this fucking nonsense. It’s not tornado season yet.”
“Did I…”
Did you make the wind? I asked the presence.
More you than me, Rory. Kennings of fear are never good for control.
Make it stop, I told it. I felt it shrug, and the storm died down.
Which was when Inkiri and Lissir reached us. Nokim was also there, but I hadn’t seen him arrive. He was covering our rear, making sure there was no ambush about to happen. Even the thought made me reach out to the presence to check, but then Inkiri got to me and pulled me close.
“Rory, you’re well!” He nearly made me spill the contents of my basket when he locked me in the comfort of his embrace.
Are there others here? I asked the presence. I felt it look.
No. This one came in through an opening in the veil to the north and then walked. He must’ve avoided the perimeter wards.
Inkiri had taken firm hold of my wrist, so I patted his hand. He was calm, focused, and tense, which was worrisome all on its own.
“He’s alone,” I said out loud. “Came in through the veil from the north.”
I didn’t know if anyone cared, but Inkiri relaxed marginally at the news that the Koa Esher was alone, not that he was letting go of me.
I peeked through the gaps in the wall of bodies in front of me. The Koa Esher was speaking. I didn’t understand a single word of it, but I could tell it wasn’t Lugarra. It sounded…clickier, rougher.
“What’s he saying?”
Inkiri growled. “He begs not to be killed. He wishes to talk. He says he has turned away from the Koa Esher and offers all he knows and his magic if we protect him from their retaliation.”
“He’s full of shit,” Vergis said.
“Does he have sacrifices on him?” Lissir asked.
Kinnek barked something out in the Koa Esher tongue, then said, “I’ll search him. Shoot him if he does anything.” Kinnek sounded strained, like his heart was going a million beats a minute.
Charles cocked his gun. Kinnek walked toward the Koa Esher, who was cowering now. He inclined his head, looking up at Kinnek, who barked out something that made him look away and to the ground.
Next to me, Vergis had pulled a knife at some point—his magic knife. The gleaming tip caught the light.
Kinnek searched the Koa Esher none too gently before kicking the intruder’s legs out from under him. It brought the Koa Esher to his knees in the grass, trembling. He was sweating too.
He said something, the words muffled by fear, and then he glanced up, his blue eyes meeting mine.
Inkiri made a growly hissing noise and pulled me back even farther behind him.
“Nokim, Fellisse, will you take Rory inside and watch over him?” Inkiri bit out. “It is not safe here.”
“We could always just kill the Koa Esher.” Vergis turned his knife so the Koa Esher could see. “That’d make it safe.”
The Koa Esher didn’t seem to understand English, but he could clearly tell what was going on. He looked scared now, saying something in a low voice that sounded like pleading.
Kinnek grabbed one of the Koa Esher’s asymmetrical horns and twisted, revealing the bagu’s throat. My jaw dropped when Kinnek whispered something into his ear. The way he said it, eyes wide, lips pulled back to show his teeth, all humor or joviality gone, it was enough to make my blood curdle.
“But he said he wanted to talk.” I looked at Fellisse, who stepped back and took hold of my upper arm. Nokim had closed ranks next to Vergis, but was stepping back now as well.
“There is never much talking that goes on with them, sweet thing. They’re deceiving. Go with Fellisse and Nokim.” Inkiri pushed me and my berry basket toward the big, oceanic bagu, and Nokim glanced at Vergis, but then came up on my other side.
I had the sinking feeling that this was going to turn bloody, and it was a sickening moment of déjà vu, taking me back to the religious compound. Really, I hadn’t been in that place long, but there had still been an inordinate amount of terror in that time.
I focused on the presence, which lingered. It was curious about the Koa Esher, given that his magic was different, not as familiar as Vergis’s smooth if relentless spells, not as comforting as Kinnek’s highly sophisticated yet humble workings.
Can you tell me for certain if the cola ash dude is lying? I asked the presence. If it could, I wouldn’t have to worry which pumpkin he’d end up buried under.
The presence’s focus shifted toward me, but it didn’t outright answer. Instead, vertigo and nausea hit me hard, and the world slipped away from me, fast. I knew I was falling, but I was no longer there by the time I should’ve hit the ground.