I held it up to my face so I could see it better. I tapped my fingernails against it. Now that I knew it was a tooth, I was able to admit it wasn’t like normal wood. It was harder. And blacker. I wondered if the black was its normal color, or if it was covered in dragon plaque. The idea of this being a dragon tooth probably should have bothered me more, or freaked me out a little at least, but I’d pretty much decided that anything was possible in this fae world. If some fae came walking up to me and told me he could make monkeys fly out of his butt, I’d probably just nod my head and say, ‘Cool.’ And I wouldn’t doubt him for a second. Of course, then I’d ask for a demonstration because who could resist seeing a butt monkey? Not me.
“Gregale, I don’t know if it’s a good thing or a bad thing that nothing fazes me anymore.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, you just told me I come from a line of Dark Fae bad guys, that I’m holding a friggin’ dragon tooth in my hand from some evil dragon that one of my badass ancestors slayed, and I’m sitting here, not freaking out at all. I’m actually excited about using it again.”
“That would be your Dark Fae blood probably.”
“Hey! What’s that supposed to mean?”
He shrugged. “The Dark Fae are very straightforward beings. They see things in black and white. I think they would call themselves realists. You have seen many things these past few days that before you might have considered fantasy or impossibility. At some point your mind would begin to realize all of your preconceived notions about the world are suspect. A Dark Fae would then make the conclusion that all preconceived notions are suspect. It is their easy adaptability that makes them a very formidable enemy.”
“Aren’t you bothered by the fact that I have Dark Fae tendencies?”
“No, not at all. We are not our family’s histories. We make our own choices in life. You would not be the only Light Fae with Dark Fae history. Over the centuries, fae have switched sides as their nature has dictated. Dardennes was Dark Fae many moons ago. He came over to the Light Fae before I was born.”
“Dardennes was Dark Fae?! Holy shit. That is unbelievable!”
“Not really. As people age and see things, sometimes their perspectives change.”
“Yeah, but to go from evil to good. Is that even possible?”
“That is a common misconception that we of the gray elves are always battling over with our fellow races. The Dark Fae are not evil, much as the Light Fae would like to make them out to be. They have their beliefs and we have ours. We do not agree with their beliefs and so label them ‘evil’ or ‘bad’. But they feel the same way about our beliefs. They think we make choices that harm or even end up killing our own kind – meaning their kind too. That is evil to them. So it is not that simple to say we are good and they are bad. There is too much gray in between, and we are all in the Gray.”
“You speak about the Gray like it’s a place.”
“Oh, it is. Believe me it is. Not many fae go there, but it exists.”
“What is it?”
“It is the place that lies between our world, the Here and Now, and the Otherworlds.”
“The Otherworlds?”
“Yes. The Underworld and the Overworld.”
“Heaven and Hell.”
He tipped his head from side to side. “You could say that. The Christian religious definitions of these two places have some similarities to what we know as the Otherworlds, but there are many differences too. As usual, the myths and beliefs have a mixture of some truth and some fantasy. You must keep in mind that all of the world’s religions are man-made, often as a mechanism to control and intimidate the masses into following the bidding of a few. Therefore, it serves their purposes to paint certain pictures of these places to encourage their followers to strive towards one and avoid entering the other.”
“Yes, I am familiar with that particular tactic. I was forced to go to Sunday school for years before I finally put my foot down.”
“I am curious how you did this – putting your foot down. I am sure, though, that it was creative, if I have come to know you at all.”
“Well, I’m not sure if you consider painting three other children red during craft hour and calling them the new sons of God being creative, but that’s what got me my free ride. I think my mom was afraid the church was going to excommunicate her – or demand an exorcism or something.”
Gregale smiled, chucking. “You make me laugh. That is hard to do to a gray elf.”
“Maybe that’s one of my supernatural skills. I can make gray elves laugh.”
Gregale took a deep calming breath. “You do bring up an interesting point. What are your skills exactly?”
“Well, I could show you, but it would probably kill you, so maybe I shouldn’t. I’m more curious about this dragon tooth.”
“You should show it the respect it deserves. You will never fully understand the magic within it; the magic is a mystery to all fae. This weapon is the Dark of Blackthorn. Never forget that.”
“Well, I happen to think it enjoys being called ‘Blackie’, so that’s what I call it.”
He shook his head. “As the humans like to say: it’s your funeral.”
“So tell me. What exactly can Blackie do?”
“Well, I saw you give Ivar quite a dragonfire burn the other day.”
“Dragonfire burn? What’s that?”
“It is what it sounds like. The Dark of Blackthorn burns whoever it touches, as if the mighty dragon it once belonged to had breathed the fire itself. But of course it does not burn you, as you are of the Blackthorn line and the tooth was given to you freely – you did not steal it.”
“I thought you said my ancestor slayed the dragon.”
“Yes, but at its moment of death, the dragon always surrenders to the one being who is mightier than it. In the case of the dragon called The Dark, the mightier being was your ancestor, Shayla Blackthorn. He willingly sacrificed his fangs to her just before he died.”
“Wow. That’s messed up. I can’t imagine giving someone my teeth right after they permanently knocked me on my ass.”
“Dragons live by a different code than most other fae.”
“You said this tooth burns people; but other people have touched it and not been burned.
“Who?”
“Oh, friends. People who have handed it to me or whatever. The Green. Some orcs.”
“Even orcs?”
“Yes.”
Gregale thought about this for a minute.
“My friend Tony had an axe that only worked if he was angry and swinging it.”
“What axe?”
“I don’t know. It was the weapon he chose during the test. It would make blue laser lights and hum when he swung it at the orcs. They were scared to death of it.”
“Definitely dwarven-made. Yes, some weapons are only imbued with their power when the user wants to use the power. Otherwise, it is a harmless relic.”
“Maybe Blackie is one of them. Wanna try an experiment?” I got a devilish look in my eye.
I could see that Gregale was warring with himself inside his head. He was both an elf who was afraid of the weapon and a gray elf who loved knowledge and analyzing facts.
“What did you have in mind?” he asked, warily.
“I will put Blackie on the ground and specifically tell it not to hurt you. You see if you can pick it up without getting burned.”
He looked at me like I was crazy at first, but then as he thought about it, I could see his resolve weakening. “Perhaps ... ” He looked at Blackie and then at me. “Okay, fine. Do it before I change my mind.”
I put the tooth on the ground, thinking the whole time Don’t hurt the elf, don’t hurt the elf, don’t hurt the elf ...
Gregale reached down tentatively towards the weapon, hovering over it just a hair’s breadth away. Then he touched it lightning quick, pulling his hand back as fast as he could. He looked at his hand where it had touched the Dark of Blac
kthorn. There was no mark.
He smiled at me encouragingly and then immediately got serious again. He bit his lip in concentration as he lowered his hand again, moving faster this time, eventually placing his whole palm on top of it. Once again he quickly yanked his hand away and saw that there was no mark. His curiosity finally won out and he reached down, taking the weapon tentatively in hand. He lifted it to eye level, gazing at it from every angle, ecstasy written all over his face. “You have no idea what an honor this is, holding the Dark of Blackthorn like this.”
“Do you want to do stage two of the experiment?”
“What is it?”
I lifted my eyebrow. Then I sent out the message to Blackie that Gregale was no longer allowed a free pass.
I heard a small sizzling sound before I heard the scream. “OWW! Blessed Mother be!!! You burned me!!” He had dropped the tooth and was now gripping the wrist of his injured hand with his other one. Tears had jumped to his eyes, betrayal lacing his angry words. “You did that on purpose! You knew it was going to happen.” He struggled to get up without the use of his hands.
I actually hadn’t been sure it was going to happen, although I did suspect it might. But I had a backup plan just in case, and I thought he would be happy with this last step enough to forgive me for the burn.
“Relax, I can fix this.”
“No! You stay away from me you ... Dark Fae beast!”
“Listen, I can help you, but you have to stop calling me that. I’m pretty sure it’s a very bad insult and it therefore pisses me off.”
“I call you what you are. I trusted you, but you tricked me. You enjoyed burning me.”
“Oh, shut up Gregale. I did not enjoy it. I admit, I did enjoy conducting the experiment because it helped me learn more about the weapon and my connection to it. Come on, you’re a gray elf. You have to admit it was interesting.”
He held his hand tightly, still pouting. “Yes, the data is valuable. But your methods are Dark Fae.”
“No, they’re not. Come here and let me show you.”
“Ha! You must think me very naïve. No, thank you, but I will be going now. To the infirmary, thanks to you.”
“Not so fast, buddy. You’re not leaving here until I finish my experiment.”
He got a panicked look on his face and then made a move to run.
I sent out a quick message to The Green, its hum having surrounded me all day, just waiting for a request. The thought flitted across my mind that it seemed like The Green and I were only truly happy and alive when we were connecting with each other.
The deep grasses of the meadow tangled around his legs and tripped him in mid-stride. He screamed as he went down, rolling over onto his back to get his injured hand out from under him. The vines raced out of the nearby forest to wrap around his ankles. He was unable to run but still able to move everything but his legs.
“You ... you have kidnapped me! I am a prisoner!”
“Stop being so dramatic. I just needed you to stop running away, dummy.”
“So you could burn me again? My gray elf brethren will avenge my death. You will never get away with this!”
I looked Gregale in the eyes. All I saw was panic in return. I kept staring at him, using the nicest smile I could come up with, but his panic level rose instead of subsiding.
“Why are you freaking out even more when I’m not doing anything?”
“Because you are smiling at me!”
“That’s because I’m trying to calm you down, you idiot!”
“Well you look like a lunatic, so please stop!”
“Oh. Sorry. Listen, Gregale, why would I want to kill you? You’re the only one who’s told me anything about myself or my weapon or anything. You’re what we call in the fae world a ‘valuable resource’. It doesn’t make sense to waste resources like that.” I smiled big then, lunatic smile or not, I didn’t care.
I saw the panic slowly leave his eyes. Then a small smile started across his face. “I am a valuable resource. You are right about that.”
“Good. So let me take care of that burn for you. Last stage of the experiment, ‘kay?”
He looked at me suspiciously but then capitulated, his curiosity winning out over his fear of pain. “Fine. Please do not kill me or burn me worse, though, I beg you.”
“No problem. Just do me a favor and do your best to let me know when you’re reaching overload status.”
“What do you mean by that?” he asked suspiciously.
“You’ll see.” I hoped my work with Céline, learning how to control the flow of The Green through my fae friends, was going to work today. “Here goes nothin’.” I closed my eyes and reached out to The Green all around me. It was different out here in the meadow, but no less powerful.
I took Gregale’s hands in mine, gently laying my palm over his burned one. I opened my eyes to better gauge his uptake of the energy. I could tell he was feeling it, even though it was at a very, very low level right now.
“Okay, Gregale, I’m going to kick it up a notch. This is to heal your burns. Just hang on and let me know when it’s getting to be too much. Do you understand?”
He nodded, unable to speak.
I asked The Green for more, the healing power, and it gave it to me. Lovingly, willingly, happily even. I saw the rapture spread across Gregale’s face. I had to force myself to keep my eyes open; it was so much more peaceful to float away in The Green and not have the outside images intruding on my flow, but I needed to watch him for signs of fae stroke. I could feel his presence in the network of power – strong, steady and bright.
I looked down at his hands, both of us now enveloped in a faint green glow. For some reason the green glow of the energy didn’t change the colors I saw inside it. I watched the burns go from angry red to pink to nothing. I slowly pulled back the energy, watching his face as I did. A small frown appeared, understandably since he was now only receiving a fraction of the energy he had been getting just two seconds ago.
I let The Green go, thanking it and giving it a mental hug. A long, satisfied sigh escaped my lips. I smiled, looked at Gregale, hoping he wasn’t permanently in la-la land.
“Gregale? Are you okay now?”
His eyes were closed, but he was smiling. “I’m here. I don’t really want to be, but I am.”
I squeezed his hands and let go of them. He started to reach for me involuntarily. I patted his hands away gently.
“No more green vibes for you today. Time to go to dinner.”
He opened his eyes. “Is it time, already?”
“Well, not quite, but I have some other stuff to do.”
I stood and offered him my hand, which he took and stood. He looked down at his unscarred and uninjured palm, flexing it and turning it around.
“Jayne, I cannot thank you enough for what you have done for me today. That was the most profound experience of my life. To think ... I was burned by the Dark of Blackthorn and then healed five minutes later by the life force of The Green ... I am possibly the only elf in the entire known universe who can say that.” He looked me in the eyes, a very serious expression on his face. “I owe you a favor, Jayne. One very big favor, called in at your discretion. Anytime, anywhere. I will do it for you. That is a promise from a gray elf, which is a promise that lasts forever until the favor is repaid.”
“Wow. Thanks. I wasn’t expecting that.” It sounded good, all official and stuff. I guess what we had just done was a pretty big deal to him. “You’re probably right about being the only one who’s ever been through that. I know I haven’t done it before.” But what did I know? There could be ten other fae just like me out there. And this dragon had to have at least one other fang floating around too. But if it made Gregale feel special, then what the hell. I could go with that.
We began walking back to the door to the compound. Gregale started to wander a little in the wrong direction, so I had to take him by the elbow a couple of times.
“This way, buddy.”
br /> “Oh, yes, quite right, quite right. Sorry, I am still just a little in the clouds.”
“Speaking of clouds, I’m surprised you didn’t just fly away from me when you first got burned.”
“Well, we cannot do that instantaneously; and as you figured out earlier, all we need is someone there holding us and we are stuck in our regular form. It is not very convenient.”
“Still, I’d like to watch you do it. I watched Céline do it once.”
“She is a silver elf. We have different ... techniques.”
“Good then. You can show me tomorrow.”
Gregale stopped walking and turned towards me. I stopped too.
“So you want to work with me again?”
I shrugged my shoulders. “Sure. Why not? You’re not boring.”
He laughed. “And neither are you, Jayne. Neither are you.”
We both smiled at each other and then began walking again, soon reaching the door. I’m not sure if I made it appear or he did, but I was specifically thinking about that figure eight pattern right before the door became visible. Maybe I was getting the hang of this magic door thing.
We parted ways when I reached the entrance to the computer room, promising to meet again the next morning. I went in and logged onto the computer, immediately checking my email account. There were no messages. I started a new one to Tony.
‘Tony, hey. What’s up? Where the heck are you? If you don’t email me back, I’m gonna call the cops or something. Did you get kidnapped? Write me back. Love, Jayne.’
There. That should get a response.
I left the room intending to go to my cell, but I saw a glow around a door that I knew wasn’t the one leading to the dorm hallway. I walked up and opened it slowly, realizing as the room came into view that I was once again in Dardennes’ office. And once again, it was empty, except for the trapped pixie on the desk. I had been thinking about him as I left the computer room, wondering if he was still there. Maybe that’s why the door had appeared for me.
I walked slowly over to the bell jar. The pixie had been sitting, but when he saw me, he jumped up again, gesturing to the bottom of the jar, motioning for me to lift it up. He looked so hopeful, it was pitiful.