"The Dragons Are Here"
During the discussion in the library, Delia came in. "My lady, my lord. Lord Troi Darkwynde and a small contingent from Starshadow have arrived," she announced.
Britiana and Darius looked at each other. "That was fast," he said.
"They must have used acceleration spells to get here so quickly," Britiana mused. It had been less than an hour since Darius sent his request.
"Bring them in," Darius said.
Delia bowed and stepped out only to lead in four people and three Drakes perched on their shoulders. The Drakes not only wore satchels, but also helmets and collars with insignia signaling they were part of the Starshadow Military Corps.
Troi bowed, the four guards followed suit, and the Drakes lowered their heads. "Lady Britiana, Lord Darius," they greeted them first.
"No need to be so formal," Britiana said. "Duchess Starshadow worked quickly," she said.
Troi's lightly tanned face contorted into a wry smile. "Yes. She even provided us with acceleration spells for the flight," he said. He wasn't at the Changing Age yet; therefore, he had to ride on the back of one of the soldiers and was a little embarrassed about that.
He took the opportunity to introduce the three guardsmen and Drakes to the Silvermoon siblings. All three were Dragons, Two Onyx and one Quartz. She, like Troi, suited an angelic image with pale pink hair that was pulled back in a bun.
The red Drake, Ptolemy, shifted back and forth on his fake owl feet. "Hey, boss, we're not being replaced, are we?" he asked in an exaggerated whisper to Britiana.
Britiana patted his head again. "Don't worry. They're going on a mission. You four are staying here at Crowley House," she said, trying out the new name of the inn. She liked it.
Troi didn't notice the conversation. He cleared his throat. "The Duchess sent a lot of fabric...'just in case' she said," he stated.
Britiana snickered. "Give me enough of it for three cloaks. Give the rest to Deputy Darovan," she instructed.
Darius looked at the guards. "One of them needs to stay at Crowley House to help on this end. You choose," he said to Troi. "The guard that stays behind can also help arrange the logistics personnel."
Even though Troi didn't have a military rank, he was technically still in school, as the son of the High Guard, he was treated with respect. Troi looked at the three guards. The Quartz Dragon would go for sure. Both of the others were capable of staying or going. Finally, he reached a decision and named the one staying.
"Delia," Darius called out.
Delia appeared and he gave her instructions to show the guards where they can rest while they're in the inn; have the guard staying behind join a rotation; and then give Troi a room to stay in.
"No need. I can stay with the guards," Troi quickly interrupted quickly. Darius didn't argue with him. Delia led them away.
Before long, a Drake came back with a bundle of black and dark blue fabric. He set it on a table. He bowed and left again.
Britiana stood. "I'll work on cloaks," she said and bundled up the fabric and moved to a larger table.
"I'll make Drake medallions," ZsaZsa said.
There was still time until lunch, so everyone found something to do. Not knowing how else to help, some of the Crowley's decided to find the kitchen and see if they could help Mrs. Shumacher. Others wanted to learn from ZsaZsa, Britiana, or Raven who started the process of drawing portable spells. She was glad for the help and taught them how to do it.
Darius left them to it and went to the guards' quarters to hammer out the details. He was going to leave either Amadeus or Lazarus in charge while he was gone. He was leaning toward Amadeus. While both were equally capable, Amadeus was more of a planner or strategizer while Lazarus was more action oriented.
When he arrived, the contingent from Starshadow was unpacking while trying not to bother the Noxies who were wrapped in dark shadows. He briefly wondered if he should find them a different place to sleep. He stepped back out and gestured to Delia and Wallace. They approached him. "My Lord?"
"Have the Noxies complained about anything? Is it too bright during the day for them to sleep?" he asked.
Delia shrugged. "They haven't said anything to me. Not that they say much," she said.
Darius looked at Wallace, who shook his head. "Noxies are hard to read. They don't have strong emotions for most things," he answered. "They seem peaceful when they sleep," he explained.
Darius nodded. He dismissed them to go on with their patrols. He went back into the room and gestured for Amadeus and Lazarus to come out. He walked toward the office, and they followed. He sat behind the desk, and they sat in front of the desk with permission.
He steepled his fingers and looked at them. There was a long moment of quiet stillness. "One of you will stay behind to organize things here," he said finally. "I decided on Amadeus. You'll help coordinate newcomers," he said. "I wanted Lazarus here to hear us, because once things fall into place, you can trade off the duties," he said.
Lazarus and Amadeus nodded in agreement. They didn't argue. He was giving them a large responsibility. If they did well here, their futures were pretty much assured.
Darius then went into detail on how he wanted personnel and resources allocated as they arrived. He listened to their suggestions for both locations. This was why he chose them. They were intelligent, and they were ambitious and driven enough to offer their own ideas or contradict his when he might be wrong or inefficient. They hammered out their thoughts until someone called them to lunch.
Lunch was served in the tap room. Everyone except the Noxies came to eat. The Shaunessy family made their appearance and got a table to themselves, but they greeted everyone.
Despite being one person, Mrs. Shumacher didn't seem to have a problem feeding so many people. The additional help from Crowley's was just finishing up.
The lunch was neither fast nor slow. They were nearly done when a couple showed up with a baby.
--
New Aurelea, Terranthea
Several people were gathered around the foggy ruins of the Crowley House. It was late at night, but the sky was clear. The moon shone on the fog making it look extra bright. Things seemed to move within the fog. As one got closer, a chill would seep into the bones. Voices would whisper to get out.
One man familiar with the family swore he clearly saw the half-burned face of Clarence Kyteler. The people gathered together, shaking but holding up phones to record the occurrence for internet clout. "As you can see, the site is truly haunted. Witches are real, man. It's not just politicians making up a boogeyman," the young man was saying into the live broadcast. He was a pretty well-known amateur paranormal investigator.
A pretty young woman hugged his arm. "It's so creepy here. Can we leave now? We've proved that it's real," she said.
"Yes. Witches are real," a female voice said as someone stepped out of the shadows nearby. It was a dark skinned woman with black hair and golden eyes. She wasn't dressed any differently than anyone else. "Hey, kids, y'all want an exclusive interview with a real witch?" she asked with a smile.
The girl screamed at her sudden appearance from the fog. The young men also scrambled back.
Amalthea snorted. "I thought y'all were brave," she derided. "If y'all change y'all's minds, just come on. Don't worry, my brother-in-law won't hurt y'all," she said and stepped back into the fog.
About half an hour ago, they returned to Terranthea. Lysithea immediately checked the surveillance footage during the time they were gone. They discovered the parade of people coming to the ruins to see the new "haunted house". Nothing too concerning. Then they saw the group of young adults come with cameras and other equipment. Lysithea quickly checked the livestream. Her mouth ticked up. "We can use this."
Darius was watching along with the couple that showed up at the last minute in the inn. This couple was a pair of Ruby Dragons. They were Technopaths that actually lived in Silvermoon. Romily Scarletflame, the wife, was the deputy director of technomagery of Silvermoon City. She often oversaw new technomagery implementations around the city. Wilson Redstorme, the husband, taught a specialized course at Silvermoon Academy. Chrystianna had actually asked the Director of Technomagery for any suggestion for technomages. Romily volunteered herself and her husband immediately. They were on parental leave and tinkering around without much to do.
The baby, Pasha, was old enough to travel now, and a relatively safe, indoor job of learning some new technology on another planet was quite appealing to her. It didn't take long to be approved. They quickly packed and joined the team. They'd stay on Terranthea permanently for six months. It was exciting.
They didn't speak but watched everything with interest. The baby was lying in a baby carriage.
"How can we use it?" Darius asked. He really didn't understand the intricacies of how their technology and society intersected, but he could somewhat follow along.
Lysithea tilted her head. "All this time the witchborn has been trying to minimize our presence. Hiding, not drawing attention. Maybe we should do the opposite. Be out and proud. That way, mortals will get to know the truth. Whether they believe it or not, discussions will be sparked. We can also use the opportunity to inform any witchborn in hiding that there is a safe place for them," she explained.
"This is your world. You know best. We'll just facilitate what you need," Darius finally agreed.
Lysithea thought about it. Britiana, Delaney, and ZsaZsa were drawing a transfer spell in the shelter. She didn't want to bother them. "Does everyone here know magic?" she asked.
"At least second tier," Darius answered without thought. It was very rare for a Dragon to be any lower tier after a certain age. "What are you thinking?"
"I want someone to lead that little weirdo with the camera into the fog, and when he steps into the fog, I want him to appear in the dining room. I want the dining room to be insulated from the rest of the house," she answered, thinking about her plans in her mind.
Darius thought about it. "I can open a rift and instead of taking the step myself, someone else can," he said. "The timing would have to be just right," he said. "It's possible," he said. "Lazarus," he called.
The guard appeared. "Yes, my lord?" he asked.
"Set isolation wards on the dining room. No sound should be able to come in and no one should see anything out of the window or the archway but fog," he explained.
Lazarus raised his brows. It sounded like something fun was afoot. He went to the dining room to set the scene.
"Who's going to be the face of this campaign?" Darius asked.
"I will," Amalthea declared. She wasn't far away, but she wasn't crowding the study either. "Sounds like fun, telling everyone what's really what."
Lazarus returned a few minutes later. "It's done," he said.
"Then let's go before they get bored and leave," Amalthea said. Darius loosely held her arm and stepped through a rift, arriving in the fog. They could hear people talking. Amalthea smiled. "Ready?" she asked him.
Darius nodded. She stepped through the fog, spoke a few words and stepped back through. Darius created a rift and stepped out of the way and let her go through before it closed. He moved close to see who was going to come through.
There was fierce discussion before someone stepped forward. Darius generated a rift and stepped back. The young live streamer stepped through it without a pause. All the camera saw was fog and then a dining room.
That's all he saw as well. Amalthea had been pleasantly surprised to see a tea service set up on the dining room table. She sat down and poured herself some tea. She looked up when the boy and his selfie-stick appeared. "Welcome. Tea?" She greeted cordially.
The live streamer was breathing hard. He clutched his chest.
"Oh, dear. Are you having a panic attack? Here, have a lemon candy," she said and pulled a pack of lemon candies from her storage space. She liked sour things, so she usually had some with her.
He shook his head. "I'll be fine," he said and shakily sat down at the dining table.
"What's your name, sweetie? I'm Amalthea. Everyone calls me Thea. Most folks around this part know my name and my family. Those folks being the people who burned down my house and unalived my brother-in-law. I can say that, right? I don't want your stream to get taken down," she said.
"Julian," he answered. "You can say it like that. I'm sorry that happened. Are you really a witch? Aren't witches all devil worshippers?" he asked.
Amalthea snorted. "That's what men and demons say. Witches protect mortals from demons," she said. She poured him some tea. "I'll tell you the truth. Since the beginning there were three realms; the Upper Realm where the gods are from, the Mortal Realm where humans dwell, and the Lower Realm where the demons dwell. For a long time, the three realms interacted. Then there was a conflict of some sort, and the world was nearly torn apart. The gods retreated and sealed off the Upper Realm. Before they left, some mortals were given gifts so that we could defend ourselves from the demons.
"Witches were given magic. For the past several thousand years, that's what we've been doing. We live our lives and occasionally fight evil. We never deserved persecution. We've been risking our lives and dying for yours." Amalthea took a deep breath to keep her emotions in check. She cleared her throat.
"Demons, you see, are overtly evil and covertly evil. They like weaseling into the hearts of mortals and making them into puppets. They give them money, status, power, strength, magic even. That's what witches have to deal with. And we can't even defend ourselves against mortals. If we hurt them, we lose our power and are susceptible to demon control," she said, tapping her fingers against the table emphatically.
"That's what witches are," she blinked a few times and swallowed. "So, the demons got into the ears of the right people and put them in the right places. Anti-witch laws were passed even though most people don't even believe in witches. We're real, we're here, and we're human." she looked directly into the phone's camera when she said this.
Julian was silent. Most of the chat in the live room was silent, with a few people calling her a liar, and some calling for the burning of witches.
"You've seen the news lately. Riots, people being accused of being witches, arrested, assaulted, run out of their homes, killed. To name a few incidents. We've set up safe houses. We won't stop. The witchborn should have hope," she said and smiled. "The angels have come to protect us. They'll take us somewhere safe. Just keep strong. Keep your heads down and find a safe place and wait. Help will come soon," she added the last part on a hopeful note. "The Forsaken can also be saved. Resist the demons until then. Have hope. The angels are here," she said with a triumphant smile.
Julian was stupefied. So, the angel sightings were related to the witches? Witches were protected by angels?
"Okay, sweetie, you can turn the camera off now. I'll send you out," Amalthea said.
Julian tried to argue, but someone came up behind him and reached around to turn off his phone. He jumped at the sudden appearance of another woman, this one dirty blond. "Another witch?" he asked.
Lysithea smiled and blew some dust in his face. He fell asleep. When he woke up, he was surrounded by his friends. He was lying on the ground. His girlfriend was cradling his head. "What happened?" he asked, looking around.
His girlfriend was crying. "You scared us! After the livestream closed, the fog receded, and you were laying in the grass!" she sobbed in a high-pitched tone.
Before he could react, there was a strange sound in the fog. What sounded like the flapping of the wings of a large bird reached their ears. One of the friends was recording the entire process on his phone. His hair suddenly stood on end, and he pointed it at the fog. A shape moved. Something shot out of the fog.
Bright white wings glinted in the moonlight, a man gray hovered nearly, slightly long black hair, glowingly healthy skin, a gleaming sword in one hand. "You should leave this place now," Darius said firmly. "Guard your hearts. Don't give demons a chance to twist them," he added. The cloud of fog around the house expanded and the "angel" disappeared into it.
The entire group dragged Julian to his feet and ran away. The property was protected by a closed gate, so they'd parked their vehicles beyond the fence, so they hopped the fence. They scrambled back over it. A while later, the vehicles took off at breakneck speeds. The witches didn't scare them, but the angel did.
Darius grunted at them as he watched. Amalthea was standing beside him, watching as well. She shook her head. "At the very least, Lyzzie should have gotten some good sound bites," she said. "Sorry for calling y'all angels. Sounded better than 'the Dragons are here,'" she said with a wry smile.
Darius chuckled. "Whatever works," he said. "Let's head back. We have a lot of portable transfer spells to make," he said.
Amalthea sighed. "I guess even magic has his limits." Darius smiled, took her arms and stepped through the void again.