Chapter 1




The Girl and The Young Man

The girl ran, she ran because there was no other option. She ran across the damp concrete in the dark city, her shoes slapping and sloshing and splashing as she went. Their eyes tracked her movements through a dizzying haze, their overworked legs powering them across the wet concrete of the back alley streets. Fueled by a voice unknown but deep seated and nostalgic and unquestionable to them, they hunted the girl, tracing her movements around corners and through the maze of alleyways the city bore. This is why the girl was running, cold and alone. Looking back, she saw them, their eyes red and drunken, their faces as dirty and worn as the clothes they wore. They stumbled after her, great lumbering animals, tripping over their own feet, but she was much more capable then they were. In an attempt to confuse them, the girl suddenly rounded a street corner, leaving the cramped alley and moving into a dim apartment district. The roads were empty, but a lone man was walking in the direction of the girl. He walked gracefully compared to the bumbling drunks who were chasing her. Hands in his pockets, backpack hoisted over his shoulders, he moved slowly, taking his time in navigating his way through the city. The man wore light blue jeans, faded and frayed to give them a worn vintage look, and a black hooded pea coat, which complimented his medium length shaggy black hair.

The young man looked up from his staring contest with the puddles on the ground when the girl yelled for help, and all he could do was stop and stare in confusion as she ran toward him, arms pumping, long brown hair and oversized gray sweater whipping about in the wind of her motion. The girl hoped she had just found her safe haven, someone to help save her from her assailants. The men turned the corner, the voice whispering softly, suggesting, easily persuading the inebriated fools, and it had them bearing down upon her and the young man, their grunts short, winded from the chase. She ran to hide behind the young man, grabbing onto the back of his coat and pulling herself into it, taking in the pleasant smell of the wool, pleading for him to stay and save her. The young man was utterly stunned and confused, slowly realizing he was being targeted as well, because instead of drunkenly shouting, “Get her!” they began shouting, “Get them!” The young man turned around, forcing the girl to let go of his coat, and grabbed her hand, pulling her along with him as he began rushing down the street.
“We’re getting out of here!” He said.
He pulled her around corners and brought her through places she would’ve never think of running through. This man, whoever he was, knew the city well enough to outpace and confuse the men, who let out howls of rage and confusion, eventually deciding to give up after what felt to the girl like an endless chase. Her legs were burning, and she was forced to sit and catch her breath after the young man made sure they were safe. They winded up in a musty, garbage lined alleyway, filled with the waste of the various vagrants and hooligans and the occasional schoolchild who was dared to take a shortcut through the fabled dark alleys. The walls of the buildings that surrounded this alley were covered in dirt and graffiti, marking it as one of the places in the city that was lost in the war against those who were trying to ruin it. The young man wiped his brow, as he had been starting to drip with sweat. The coat he wore was making him incredibly sweaty after having run at least a mile, so he took it off, exposing a black shirt with some sort of tribal design and a name on it. He shouldered the coat, preferring not to let his coat get covered in the dust and dirt in the alley. He leaned back against the wall, resting his backpack against it and used his coat to wipe his face.
“Ah man… I probably shouldn’t have run that hard.” He said, gasping as he spoke.

He had run fast enough to give the girl a hard time keeping up with him, his longer legs giving him a much longer stride than hers.
“Uh… Thanks for helping me…” the girl said, straightening up and dusting off the back of her pants.
“It’s nothing… They were gonna try and get me too… so I couldn’t just leave you there.” “Well… It’s my fault they were going to go after you… If I didn’t make that turn…”
“Don’t blame yourself. Were those guys chasing you drunk?”
“Those things chasing me weren’t men, they were animals…”
The man snorted, “Yeah seriously. Anyone who would devote that much time to trying to ruin themselves like that must be some sort of animal.”
The girl rubbed her arm nervously, bunching her sweater up and letting it slide back into place.
“It’s not that simple.” She said, looking down at her pants, losing her focus and letting her vision blur.

I really want to tell him.
“Seems pretty simple to me. They get drunk, they go around ruining lives and not caring until they come down of their buzz, then they get depressed and drink again.”
He shouldn’t know, she thought, would it change anything?
The man looked at the street, “I hate people when they get like that.”
I don't want to be alone.
“You know my dad was like that, drunk all the time, but I guess that really isn’t important anymore.”
I can’t let him be involved with me anymore.
“What is important is the fact that I don’t even know your name.”
The girl suddenly snapped back into reality, realizing that the young man was still talking to her. She looked at the man, seeing what she felt was genuine concern on his face. Somewhere off in the distance there was the low whooshing sound of cars driving by on the nearby highway. The drunks, had returned to the bar they came out of, had completely forgotten about the chase.
“Oh, its, uh, Kyria.”
“That’s quite the strange name.”
“Yeah.”
“Mine’s Jack”
Jack held out his hand. Kyria looked at it for a second before tentatively reaching out to shake his hand. His grip was tender and warm, but sweat was abundant between the two hands, due to their flight through the city. Jack smiled and let go. He walked over to the end of the alley and looked around for any signs of the drunks.
“Well, since I don’t think it would be a good idea to let you roam around with those guys out there… How about I help you get to where you were trying to go?”
“I, uh, wasn’t really trying to go anywhere.”
Jack turned around and gave her a puzzled look. Even in this city, a young girl that was wandering aimlessly in the middle of the night was rare.
“You homeless?”
“No.”
“Where’s your house?”
“I can’t go there, even if I wanted to.”
“Why not, did you run away? Did your parents hurt you or something?”
Kyria looked down, and grabbed the right arm of her sweater with her left hand, gripping the fabric tight, as if trying to hold herself together. Jack saw that she was visibly upset, and decided to try and distract her.
“Uh. I was just on my way to my friends’ house, but if you want you can stay at my place. Leaving you out here in the cold with those guys running around doesn’t seem like a good idea to me.”
“Er, I think it would be better if I didn’t.”
“Why not?”
“Bad things tend to happen to people when I’m around them.”
Jack raised an eyebrow, he could understand not wanting to go with someone you didn’t know, he was taught to not to talk the strangers the first day of preschool, but he felt that the excuse she gave was pretty ridiculous.
“I think I can handle one night of bad luck.”
“I don’t want to get you any more involved than you already are.”
“I wouldn’t have offered if I didn’t want to get involved.”
“I… I’m sorry but I just can’t.”
Jack sighed in exasperation; she wasn’t making it easy for him to help her.
“Alright then, at least let me show you where I live so if they start chasing you again you’ll have someone to go to.”
“Ok.”

She was glad to have someone to walk the damp streets with, even though she was going to eventually have to leave him, because she knew what would happen if she stayed with him, and she didn't think she could face it. Jack walked leisurely in what Kyria assumed to be the direction of his apartment. She figured she was never going to go to him for help, but she remembered where it was anyway, as thanks for helping her escape from the drunks. She didn’t tell him about the secrets the city kept, she had to stay alone, so she couldn't.
When they got to his apartment he showed her where it was, telling her to just come in if she felt like coming back. She just nodded and left. Jack entered his apartment, leaving his door unlocked in the event that Kyria decided to take up on his offer. He threw his bag of clothes and various other personal items on his ragged old couch, slid his coat off and hung it neatly on a hook on the door out of his apartment. He kicked off his dirty white Nikes, flinging them haphazardly at the welcome mat he had set down in front of the door. Patting his pockets, he realized he left his cell phone in his coat pocket, so he reached in and dug around for a bit in both pockets, eventually finding it hiding underneath his wallet. He figured he would give his friend Kyle a call to tell him he wasn’t going to be able to make it to the party in a few moments, putting it off to allow himself to get a drink and get situated.
Heading into the scummy little box he called a kitchen, he yanked open the door of his hand-me-down refrigerator, the paint chipping off in regular intervals and the door of it was as stubborn as a pit bull with a particularly delicious chew toy, but it hadn’t blown up on him or anything so he kept it around. He mulled over the few options he had, his eyes passing over an almost empty jug of milk, some booze Kyle had brought the last time he came over, a few cans of Arizona Watermelon juice, which Jack had a particular attachment to, due to their cheapness and the fact that watermelon was always a good flavor for anything to be, and a carton of orange juice. He grabbed the carton, feeling its weight and determining that it was emptier than his jug of milk; he had to remember to stop at the store to get more in the morning. He sighed and tossed the juice carton in the blue recyclables box he kept along with his normal garbage can next to his fridge and winded up grabbing a can of the watermelon juice, cracking it open and taking a few swigs. Feeling slightly more refreshed, he headed over to his couch and got comfortable next to his backpack. He flicked on his TV and pulled his phone out of his pocket and pulled up his contacts, scrolling down until he got to Kyle Edstrom, hesitating as he decided whether or not he would find his excuse for not coming to his party believable.
He had met Kyle earlier in the year, when both of them had been waiting through the introduction speech at the college they went to, both of them being incoming freshmen. Kyle had made several jokes at the deans expense to Jack, who winded up sitting next to him during the speech, and when Jack joined Kyle with making fun of the deans, they ended up becoming friends, getting a class together and hanging out during their lunch breaks and after school. Jack figured he wouldn’t believe that he winded up running through the city with some random runaway, because frankly he wouldn’t believe it if someone told him that either, so he ended up making an excuse about forgetting an assignment. Jack pressed the call button on his phone and held it to his ear, waiting for Kyle to get to his phone. When he answered, Jack could hear the dull roar of the party over the line.
“Hey man, where you at?” Kyle shouted into the other end, trying to keep his voice above his partygoers.
“I think I’m gonna stay home tonight, I forgot I had an assignment due on Monday and I want to get it done early.”
“You suck man, just do it tomorrow!”
“If I put it off its not gonna get done.”
“Whatever man, I’ll see ya later.”
There was a soft click as Kyle hung up his end. Jack tossed his phone on the other side of his backpack. He wasn’t lying about the assignment, and before he left he was planning on finishing it the next day as Kyle had suggested, so Jack figured he would do it anyway to pass the time. He didn’t think he would be sleeping tonight, after what just happened.
After she left Jack, in front of the apartment complex the girl continued about her usual business, finding herself a place that she could call home for the night. A place where she could be alone, away from anyone she could hurt. Wandering, looking for a place she could relax, she eventually made her way to the local park, the man made pond reflecting the light of the waning moon, the trees leaving piles of dull brown leaves scattered all over the ground. She found a bench she could sit on, allowing herself to relax and think over whether or not her decision not to tell him about the faeries even mattered.
A jet-black Mustang convertible sped its way past the park, darting around corners and streaking through the silent city streets. Red lights could not stop it, instantly changing into a dull disappointed green as it sped past. The air started to become thicker as the car made its way into the heart of the city, which was plagued by various industrial projects, each with its own variety of poisonous particles choking the air, blocking the light of the stars, foiling any attempt at foiliage. The Mustang slid silently to a stop in front of the tallest industrial building in the city. A slender young business man in a black suit to match his car stepped out of the vehicle, and stood next to it for a short period of time, contemplating when to step inside the looming building. The smooth sounds of jazz broke the silence of the city, and the young man pulled a cell phone out of his pocket and held it up to his ear.
“Hello?” He said aloud, to no one in particular.
The conversation he was going to have wasn’t with the phone, but he needed to pretend like it was. A voice ageless and endlessly echoing floated through the wind, flowing like water over the crevices of his mind.
Welcome, young Aryl, to the fair Court of the Fae.
“Im at the warehouse, where are the files you wanted me to go over?”
Thank you, Elder. What has the Queen called me here for?
I’m sure you know already, child.

“And you want me to send them over to Kent in accounting?”
That girl again?
The very same, it seems the Queen has another mission for you regarding a new pet the girl has come across.

“Do you want me to attach a memo then?”
I’m growing weary of going after the same pitiful girl every time, Elder. What is
it the Queen wants with her?
We do not question our Queen, young Aryl.

“I better be getting overtime for this”
I apologize, Elder. I am only curious.
And rightfully so, but nonetheless we must obey her, for she is the Queen. The portal is ready, head into the Court.
The wind became quiet and dull, no trace of the whispers the two faeries shared left on it. Aryl sighed a deep sigh and spoke one last time into the phone.
“I’m starting to tire from all this extra work.”
Sticking the phone back in his pocket, he strode through the glass doors of the building, manipulating the glass into a permeable membrane, passing through it as though it had never existed, into the border between our world and Emain Ablach, the Land of Promises. He made his way over to an elevator that would take him to the 13th floor, waiting patiently as the elevator rose up, bringing him onto the 13th floor, where the exact center of both the building and and ancient tree once stood. Stepping off the elevator, the faerie made his way to a large pillar in the center of the floor, the main structural support of the building, and where the trunk of the Queen’s Tree once stood. He stared silently at a point on the pillar, feeling the ancient magic of the tree, its dying screams echoing throughout eternity, its fate etched in the fabric of the space contained by the pillar. Aryl reached out to touch the point with his finger, a faint blue light spread from the spot he touched, revealing ancient words that spread out in a circle from where he touched the concrete pillar, rotating slowly around the center of the pillar. Aryl couldn’t read the ancient tongue, but he knew what they said, and the significance they had.
“Here stood the Tree of Gaia, destroyed by her selfish sons.” He whispered the words to the wall, causing the words to glow as he said them. The glow grew stronger, and began to emanate in a physical manifestation, slowly twisting and spreading over Aryl’s arms, then his torso, and the rest of his body, a familiar tingling sensation wherever it touched his exposed skin. When the last bit of skin was covered, the light dissipated, and the wall returned to the pale cream color it had been before, no sign of the writing or of the faerie.






Chapter 2




The Hidden Truth



An hour of unrest plagued Kyria, constant worries of what the faeries were going to do to Jack. She just wanted them to leave her alone but she felt constantly surrounded by them, feeling their magic in the wind, pushing her and pushing her further into the hole they dug for her. Making her lose hope but never taking enough to stop her dead in her tracks. Every so often a person or an animal would become friendly with her, but she knew that the fae were watching, and they ended up dead as soon as she turned her back. She wanted to find him and tell him to run, run far away and forget that he ever had the misfortune of meeting her. After what felt like an hour of agonizing paranoia, she felt chilling breeze freeze her in place, instilling in her a primal fear and the sudden impact of inevitability. A cold hand touched her face from behind her, causing her to let out a low whining noise.
“Every time I see you, you just keep getting cuter and cuter. I love the look of a girl who has given up on everything, your pretty little face is the perfect example of that.” Said a smooth flowery voice from behind her. She felt the heat draining from where the hand had touched her, leaving her growing colder and colder as the wind held her in place.
“I believe you know why I’m here, girl.”
“Leave him alone.” She choked out, barely able to control herself, the shallow heat of anger of fear trying to fight off the piercing cold she was suffering.
“You know we can’t do that, he helped you, and now he has to pay.”
“Why? Why not just kill me and get this over with!” She yelled, eyes tearing, the cold creeping further and further through her veins. The voice let out a single laugh and its owner moved around Kyria so they were face to face. Kyria glared at the man, sleek black business suit wrinkle free, long blond hair perfectly straight, his golden eyes like a hawks, piercing and cold, his mouth pulled up into an amused grin, his skin ice white and flawless. She absolutely hated him, for to see him meant someone was going to die, and she knew who it was. He brought his face close to hers and grabbed her chin, bringing her eyes to his level.
“Because that would be too easy. My master wants you to suffer.”
The faerie let go of her face and stood up, straightening his suit and flipping the hair out of his eyes.
“However, we can’t have you running around this place with no reason to live, because then this game she wants to play with you wouldn’t be as entertaining as it already is. She decided to let him live if you can save him. That is, if you can manage it.”
“Why.”
“Because she cares.” After he said this, a strong blast of wind whipped around her, stinging her eyes and forcing her to close them. She could feel the cold air around her swirling and reheating, her bonds dissipating, no evidence that they were even there in the first place.

Kyria stood straight, pulling her ragged sweater tight around her, trying to rid herself of the last bits of cold he brought with him, and broke into a run. She knew what he was saying was the truth. Her father had told her before he died, that if there was one redeeming quality about the Fair Folk, it was that they never lied.

It only took her about 4 minutes to make it to his apartment, but it felt much longer knowing that chances were that Jack’s mangled body would already be hanging out a window, or splattered like pigeon droppings across the pavement or pooling blood onto his carpeted floors. She rocketed up the stairs to where he had pointed out his apartment to be, and knocked heavily on the door, completely forgetting that he had told her it would be unlocked. There was a shout and a crashing sound from the other side of the door. She knew they wouldn’t let her keep him. Tears began to form in her eyes as she heard footsteps coming from the other side of the door. She didn’t want to believe that they had gotten to her again. She wanted the faerie on the other side of the door to open it, and turn her to ash where she stood. It hurts too much, she thought, to keep living alone. She looked down as the door opened, hoping for it all to end.
“Oh, it’s just you Kyria. Did something happen?”
She looked up and saw Jack looking at her, confused and tired, bags beginning to form under his eyes.
“I made it.” She said, before her legs buckled, sending her to the floor, exhausted.
“Are you ok?” Jack asked, concerned, his hand stretched out in assistance. Kyria, after regaining her senses, wiped her face with her sleeve, and gratefully accepted his help.
“Ill be fine.” She said.
“Is someone after you or something?” Jack asked. Kyria wasn’t prepared for the fact that Jack would actually be alive so she was frantically trying to piece together a story without exposing why she was actually here.
“Oh. Uh, No, I don’t think anyone is.” She said, nervously scratching her left elbow.
“You sure look like someone was.” He replied, confused.
“I, uh, thought I saw one of those guys from earlier.” Jack looked even more concerned and a bit angry as she said this. Footsteps coming from the apartment upstairs made Kyria uncomfortable.
“You wanna come inside? My neighbors are probably sleeping.”
Kyria nodded, and walked inside the apartment.
“Sorry its so dirty, I fell asleep on the couch and didn’t know if you were going to come or not.”
It was pretty dirty inside, but she didn’t mind. It was a place that she felt safe. It was small, quiet, and comfortable.
“Its fine.”
“You can sit down if you want.”
Kyria did sit down, the couch creaking from overuse and old age. Jack went over to his fridge and pulled out two more of the cans of juice, and walked back over to the couch, moving his backpack so he could sit on the other end.
“Here, if you’re thirsty you can have some of this if you want, its pretty good.”
He handed her a can with a watermelon on it, which she assumed was some sort of juice.
“Thanks.” She cracked it open and took a sip. It was incredibly sweet.
“Its not alcohol or anything. Just watermelon juice.” Jack said, scratching the back of his neck
“Its good.” She replied, taking another sip out of the can.
“If you can’t finish it all, just put it in the fridge.”
“Alright”
Jack dug around in the couch for a bit, and pulled out a thin black remote, instinctively pressing the buttons that would turn on the TV and switch it over to a channel that specialized in comedy. After a few minutes of the comedian telling a story, the theme of the program sounded, and the show cut to commercial. Jack had polished off his can of juice, and had put his feet up on the table, pushing some of his half-finished assignments out of the way. Neither of them said anything for most of the commercial, and Kyria was beginning to nod off.
“So, Kyria.”
She jerked back to full consciousness, nearly spilling the drink she had been holding.
“Huzzawha?”
Jack laughed, receiving a stern glance from Kyria.
“What?”
“I was wondering if I could ask you something.”
“Oh.” She said, staring nervously into her drink.
“Is that a yes?”
“Go ahead.”
Kyria sighed, she figured she had to tell him about the fae and find some way to help him at this point. She knew that the faerie who showed up every time she met someone, Iglaeus, would have planned something for if she did get to him while he was alive.
“So what was all that earlier about you being bad luck?”
Here it comes, she thought.
“Well, uh.”
She focused even harder on her drink.
“You might not believe me if I tell you.”
Jack scoffed.
“That’s ridiculous, I don’t have any reason to not believe you.”
“Thanks, but I didn’t believe it when I heard it.”
“Heard what?”
Kyria looked over at Jack and looked into his face, he was sitting straight, elbows on his knees, arms hanging off his legs.
“That faeries and other fantasy things were real.”
Jacks passive expression quickly changed into one of surprise.
“Aren’t you a little old for that kinda stuff?” he asked, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. The look on Kyria’s face was completely serious, Jack could easily see that she wasn’t lying, but he just couldn’t believe it.
“The past 4 years of my life I’ve been running from them, I’ve seen them turn people who tried to help me into ashes in less than a second, I’m not lying to you Jack.”
Jack lifted his arms and rested his head on his hands.
“I know you aren’t, it’s just hard to believe.”
Kyria felt relieved, at least he didn’t completely reject me, she thought.
“Thanks for at least trusting me.”
“Hah, I should probably be the one saying that.” Jack said, relaxing again.
“Yeah.” Kyria replied, smiling slightly.
Jack stretched and stood up.
“We need some sleep, so I’m gonna pull this bed out for you. You can watch TV if you want.”
Kyria nodded, and helped Jack set up his pull out couch, grateful for something soft and dry to sleep on for the night. The two of them set it up in a matter of minutes, and Jack gave her some spare sheets for it and some of his pajamas to change into, taking her old clothes down to the shared laundry room. When Jack came back upstairs, Kyria was curled under the covers, half asleep with the TV on.
“Ill be in my room, just call me if you need anything, G’ Night.”
“Alright.”
Jack turned off the lights in the main room as he entered his bedroom. He threw on the pajamas he had tossed in the corner the previous morning and got comfortable, diving headfirst into his pillows. It didn’t take long for him to get to sleep, and as soon as he did he fell into a dream. He dreamt that he was walking around a large office space, with a large stone pillar placed in the center of the building. He walked through each floor to the other end and climbed up the staircase to the next one, eventually making his way up to the 13th floor. His legs carried him to the middle of the office, where the stone pillar stood, solid grey. He stared at it for a few seconds, and reached out to touch the pillar. When he finally touched the pillar, he froze in place, and spun around instantly, his legs rotating around without his permission. He now stared a young looking brown haired man about his size and age in the face.
“So, she told you huh?”
Jack couldn’t speak, his mouth sewn shut in silence.
“You know, this is probably the first time I’ve ever had the chance to talk to one of her victims, so to speak.”
What do you mean? Jack thought
“What she’s told you is reality, and it’s a dangerous thing to know for your folk.”
Seriously?
“If it wasn’t, we wouldn’t be talking right now. I probably wouldn’t even exist. All that’s important however is that the Fair Folk are after you, both of you. If you want to survive, you probably should cross over, and learn how to defend yourselves.”
What the hell are you talking about!
“Find this building in the center of town, and on this floor, in front of that pillar, speak the words ‘Alai Seelie Leole’ and have that girl touch it. I will find you and help you then.”
After the man finished speaking, the dream started fading. Jack fought to stay in the dream, but failed, waking in a cold sweat, with the words the man spoke engraved in his mind. Jack sat up and wiped his forehead with a cold hand and looked at his alarm clock, which read a bright green 6:29. He sighed and figured he wasn’t going back to sleep anytime soon, so he decided to get out of bed. Pulling his clothes for the day out of his dresser, he trudged into his shower to melt away the cold.
It was a good 20 minutes before he got out of the shower, absorbing the warmth as much as he could.
He walked over to the kitchen, taking care not to wake Kyria, honestly surprised she didn’t run off during the night. Opening the fridge he faced utter disappointment, completely forgetting that he gave his last can of juice to Kyria.
“Damn, all I’ve got is booze.” He whispered to himself. He closed the door and shook his head. He took a look over at Kyria, thinking to himself that if he didn’t leave her a note before he went out she might get mad, or worse. He silently grabbed his bag and pulled out some paper and a pen. He shook the pen to loosen the ink and wrote her a quick note.
‘Going to the store real quick, Ill take you out for food if you’re hungry when you get up. Stay inside and don’t drink what’s in the fridge, cups are in the big cabinet if you want water.’
He placed the note on the table, and grabbed his keys and his coat, locking the door behind him.






Chapter 3





The Kaleidoscope


Kyria woke up about an hour after Jack did, sitting up and rubbing the sleep out of her tired eyes. She slid out from under the covers and stood up, stretching and yawning. From where she stood she couldn’t see Jack anywhere in the kitchen or the living room Seeing that the door to Jack’s room was opened slightly, she decided to peek inside, opening the door wider and taking a step inside after seeing that he wasn’t in his bed.
“Jack?”
No answer.
“Jack, are you in here?”
Dead silence, she felt a sense of panic begin to rise up to her throat, where it remained, a returning reminder of her fears and worries.
Slowly, hesitantly, she inspected the area around his bed, relieved to find nothing but dirty clothes. She opened his closet to more of the same, cluttered mess that filled the room. Turning around, she saw that the door to the bathroom was slightly ajar. She pictured Jack, dead on the toilet or in the bath, blood slowly staining the yellowing tile or the puke green ceramic of his tub. She walked over and touched the door, closing her eyes and wishing as hard as she could that nothing happened. Eyes closed, she started sliding the door open, and when the door was all the way open she took a step inside.
“Jack, a-are you in here?”
Slowly she opened her left eye, and seeing nothing but ugly designs on the walls instead of a fresh coat of blood, she opened her right one and took a look around. Nothing but the aftermath of Jacks shower earlier that morning, wet towel hanging up to dry, razor and toothbrush lying used on the countertop. She sighed; angry with herself for letting her thoughts get the best of her. She returned to the living room and sat down on the couch bed.
“Where is he?” she said to herself.
She stood up again and walked into the kitchen. The first thing she saw was a note with her name on it on top of a pile of her clothes. Seeing nothing else out of place in the kitchen she unfolded the note and read it to herself.
‘Going to the store real quick, Ill take you out for food if you’re hungry when you get up. Stay inside and don’t drink what’s in the fridge, cups are in the big cabinet if you want water. P.S. I remembered your clothes were in the laundry so I brought them up for you. Go ahead and use the shower, there’s a towel in my closet. I have a phone with me so you can use the one in the kitchen if you need to talk to me. The number is 1-555-283-2595’
Kyria looked at the number, and then looked over at the phone. Without hesitation, she yanked the handheld off its dock, causing the dock to unbalance itself and wobble about. She punched in the numbers as fast as she could and held it up to her ear. It rang two times before the other end picked up.
“Jack?” she said into the speaker, shaking slightly.
“Yeah?”
Kyria sighed in relief.
“When are you coming back?”
“I’m coming up the stairs now. Are you ready to go? I wanted to talk about the stuff over breakfast at a local place.”
“No, not yet.”
“You should probably get on that, Ill be there in like a minute.”
“A-alright”
Kyria set down the phone, still shaking, and gathered up her clothes, bringing them into the bathroom. When she got out of the shower Jack was in the kitchen, reading through a newspaper, looking incredibly warm in his coat. He looked over at her, her damp hair still dripping water, and stood up, leaving the paper on his table.
“Lets get going, its right down the street.”
She nodded, following him out of the apartment and down the street. The restaurant was a small place that looked like it had been there for a hundred years, maybe more. They went inside, and a middle-aged woman brought them over to a booth and gave them both menus that looked like they had endured millions of children ripping and tearing at their edges and plastic casing. Kyria ordered something small, not wanting to take advantage of the situation, while Jack ordered nothing but a cup of coffee. Silence flowed around the two as they waited for the food, which came after a good 20 minutes of silence. Kyria slowly picked at her food as Jack put cream and sugar in his coffee. He took a sip, shuddered, and set the cup down.
“Well, at this point I’m kind of starting to believe you Kyria.”
Kyria looked up into Jack’s face, anxiety twisting his face into a somber frown.
“Why?” She asked, surprised by the sudden acceptance.
“I think one of them entered my dreams last night.”
Kyria dropped her fork, causing it to land on the table, clanging in agony.
“W-what happened?” she said in a panicked voice.
He described how he was dreaming of walking through a building and winding up on the 13th floor of it, making his way to its very center.
“The man appeared behind me, and I couldn’t move or speak anymore. He told me he was watching us, and that he wanted to help us, and he told me how to go through some sort of portal.”
“A portal?”
“Yeah.”
“To where?”
“No idea, some other dimension I think.”
Kyria furrowed her eyebrows.
“I think they’re trying to trick you.”
“Trick me?”
A waiter walked up to their table holding a platter full of drinks, and started setting them on the table, when Kyria looked up into the waiters face her eyes grew wide, her face draining of color. Jack looked up when he saw the look of fear spread across her face, into the face of a man who, to Jack, seemed to be emitting a pale gold fog.
“Don’t demean us just because you’ve had bad experiences with us, girl.” Said the man, flipping his hair about his face. Jack stood up, face to face with the man, ignoring the intense, almost burning cold he was feeling.
“Who are you,” He asked, his stance aggressive, “One of them?”
“’One of them’ would be an accurate, if vague, description. If you mean a faerie, then of course.” The man said, smirking. Jack saw the gold fog growing thicker as the tension grew, and it made the room grow much colder. The other people in the restaurant were either staring or complaining about the cold, until all of a sudden, one by one the other patrons and the workers started passing out, like flies in a freezer. Jack was practically freezing to death where he stood. He fell to his knees, holding himself and shaking, frost threatening to take the use of his limbs.
“S-stop it I-Iglaeus!” Kyria shouted, stuttering due to the severe cold.
“And just as I was getting to the fun part. Oh well, orders are orders.”
Iglaeus seemed to absorb all the gold fog back into him, along with the cold felt by Kyria and Jack, the red heat returning to their faces.
“Why are you here.” She said, standing up, her fists clenching and unclenching to make sure her fingers still worked. Jack heaved himself up to a standing position, breathing heavily to support the blood that was restoring its normal pace in his veins.
“To escort you, of course.”
“Escort us where?” Jack asked through gritted teeth
“To the place of your dreams, Gaea Industries Inc., so we may test what my clansman has told you.” Iglaeus spread his arms wide as he said this, producing several images of what Jack remembered as the place in his dream in wisps of the golden fog.
“What makes you think that we’re just going to go with you?” Kyria said, dreading the answer.
“This.” Iglaeus replied, waving his arms once more through the mist, he conjured a newspaper with the headline “FREAK SNOWSTORM KILLS 20,000.” with the next days date in the upper corner.
“How can we trust that?” Jack said, stubbornly holding his ground.
“Because, something like that is child’s play for us, as beings of nature.”
“What do you even want with us anyway?” Jack replied.
“What our Queen wants is beyond me, I am simply the delivery boy.” Jack couldn’t tell if the man was lying or not, he wasn’t giving the impression of faking his bravado. Kyria looked down and sighed.
“Lets go Jack. He’s not going to give up, and if we don’t go…”
Jack took a glance over at Kyria, and saw the look of tired resignation that seemed to always be present whenever he saw her. Whatever the faeries wanted, they didn’t have any problems wiping out an entire section of the city, and if he and Kyria didn’t go along with it, they would.
“Alright. Lets get this over with.”
Iglaeus smiled, mouth extending into a wicked line, and held out his arm. Jack watched as more of the fog emerged, spreading and engulfing them.
“What are you doing! ” Jack grabbed Iglaeus’s arm in an attempt to stop the smoke.
“Making this easy. You didn’t think we were going to walk now did you?” Iglaeus said, laughing as more of the smoke poured out. Jack felt himself being pulled into the mist, which had started to obscure his vision and choke him. Kyria couldn’t keep her eyes open, her mind disoriented, her body being pulled backwards by an invisible force. Both of them suddenly lurched forward, landing in the middle of an empty office space. Kyria fell to her knees, gasping and shuddering, clutching her stomach, feeling as though she were about to throw up. Jack felt no better, but had managed to retain his balance, catching himself on the side of a cubicle before he fell. Iglaeus shook his head, laughing.
“Are all humans this entertaining?” he said, grinning widely.
“F-F*** you.” Jack let out a wheezy cough, the wind having been literally pulled out of him. Iglaeus laughed for a few more moments before recomposing himself. Turning around, he started walking toward the stone pillar in the center of the building. He stopped for a moment, and then turned around, enjoying the sight of the two people gasping in the middle of the room.
“When you catch yourselves, head toward the center. Please don’t waste any more of my time.”
Iglaeus walked off, leaving Jack and Kyria to recuperate with the sudden change in location. It took them several minutes to get their bearings, and several more to finish cursing at the faerie. Jack helped Kyria off the ground, and together they took a quick survey of the building.
“I can’t believe it.” Jack said.
“What?” Kyria asked.
“This is the place. The building in my dream.” Jack looked around, taking in the reality of what he saw in his dream. What he saw in his dream was an exact copy of the building they stood in.
“This is crazy.” He said, overwhelmed by it all.
“Fae don’t lie,” Kyria replied, “They trick and deceive, but they don’t lie.”
“Huh.” Jack said.
They looked at each other for a few seconds, and then looked toward the door that Iglaeus had passed through minutes ago.
“Lets get going.” Kyria suggested, starting to make her way though the maze of cubicles.
“Yeah, yeah.” Jack replied, begrudgingly heading for the door.
What have I gotten myself into? Jack thought to himself.
I guess it’s a bit late to back out. He thought shaking his head as he walked into a large circular room with a massive stone pillar in the center of it. Iglaeus was facing away from Jack and Kyria, lightly touching the pillar, engrossed in it.
“Speak the words girl.” He said, his voice distant and misty.
Kyria looked at Jack, who was staring expectantly at Kyria. When their eyes made contact, they both knew there was no turning back. Either they listened to Iglaeus, or they let twenty thousand innocents die. Jack had already been shown evidence that the power Kyria had claimed was after her was real, because Iglaeus proved it was. Even if the lone faerie couldn’t kill all of the people in the city at once, people could die.
“I’m not backing down now Kyria.” He said, turning his head and locking his eyes on the stone support in front of them.
Kyria nodded, and walked forward, putting her hand on the stone. Something was moving underneath her palm, and the stone was warm. She could feel the soothing energy of life pouring out from the concrete, and for a moment, she thought she could see the faint outline of a tree in the back of her mind. She swallowed her doubts and cleared her throat and spoke the words loudly.
“Alai, Seelie Leole.”
Faint blue lines began appearing on the concrete pillar, the stone dissolving as if it were sand, the glowing blue particles collecting around the bodies of Kyria, Jack, and Iglaeus. Kyria was rooted to the spot as most of the blue energy started sticking to her, causing her skin to tingle and her heart rate to rise. She felt as if she could run to the ends of the earth without stopping. She felt as if she were floating in a sea of pure energy, and that she could use it as she wished.

Jack was on his knees, and it looked as if he were on fire, the blue light dancing around his hunched over form. He felt as if his body was releasing something that had been stored away for a lifetime. The light was scorching to him, burning his soul clean, releasing it and making it his own once again. He passed out from the heat, the cold floor icy and unforgiving.

Iglaeus stood stunned; as he watched the two humans begin to absorb pieces of the Border Tree, its pale blue energy gathering around Kyria more densely than it did around Jack. He could sense three different magical powers being released, each of a different magnitude. Jack’s was the weakest, as it faded when he fell to the ground, unconscious. The Border Tree was slowly growing weaker, its power being sucked into the girl’s body. Iglaeus soon realized that at the rate it was transferring, the passageway between worlds would disappear. Gritting his teeth, the faerie gathered excess energy from around him, channeling the blue light into his hands. He easily shouldered the unconscious Jack, and grabbed Kyria, who was now just a glowing blue mass. The light that had touched her body was slowly eating away at the aura he had gathered around him, and he could feel power seeping from his body as well. Wasting no time, he rushed forward into the gaping hole in the pillar, disappearing in a rush of blue light.

The light continued dissolving the pillar until nothing but a tall thin tree remained in the center of the building, its few leaves glowing a faint and pale blue.