Steampunk Time: Cape High Book Seven (Cape High Series 7) (28 page)

"Yeah?" I ask.

"Come with us."

Seasons of the Fae

Book 1: Raven’s Return

It didn’t take him long to wake up.  The movement of his bed started the waking progress, but the overly loud “thump” and consequent jostle of the bed hitting a large rock finished it quite thoroughly.  Oscar cursed, opening his eyes and looking around.  It was dark, save for small strips of light peeking through the wooden slats that held him in. 

“A box?” he asked, reaching out and pushing at the slats.  They wouldn’t budge.  He could hear the sound of water rushing around him, and could even feel it leaking into the box around his feet.

The box was gaining speed, and he grunted as it hit another rock, throwing him against the side so hard that he was sure it would leave an ugly bruise.  “Hey!” he shouted, slamming his fists on the wooden slats.  “Let me out!  Let me—“

Suddenly the water that had been supporting the box gave way.  For a second it felt as if he was floating, then the box plunged downward, so quickly that he didn’t even have time to scream.

***

“So,” Visal said, standing at the window of his large office.  The office was built near the top of the Holy Tree, and he could see almost all of the land that made up the Fall Tribe’s territory.  He could even see the craggy cliffs that made up the Summer Tribe’s territory, including the small, dark figures that he was positive were their little rock army—

“Yes, Tribe Leader?” Bebe asked from the couch.  It sat next to the desk at the center of the office.  “Visal,” she added with a little smile that made his delicate transparent wings shudder ever so slightly under his cloak.  Of all the fae that lived in his tree, he thought as he turned to look at her, Bebe was the most attractive creature he had ever seen.  She was a Honeybee Influence fae, which showed in her big oval eyes, and her yellow and black outfit.  She even had the fuzzy top that she wore over her ample chest, one that showed the pale white skin of her neck.  Her pants were form fitting, striped like the material crafted to look like a flattened bee tail worn tied around her waist.   Her boots, furry, much like her top, came up to her knees, hugging--

“Visal, you’ve gotten distracted again,” she said teasingly.  “We were discussing the new business that the twins wanted to open.”

“Ah, yes,” he said, his expression going blank once again as he squared his shoulders.  “So they have enough trained rats to open a stable?”

“They’ve been working hard,” she said.  “They’ve got fifteen browns, and, counting your Pistol, two grays, and they’ve been looking into a rumor about the white rats near the edge of the grove.”  They had to cross the River to get to it, but they were quite good at that.

“Tell them not to bother,” Visal said.  “They’re wasting time looking for them.”  He walked over to the desk, picking up one of the sweet honey buns she always made for him.  He loved her honey buns. 

She leaned forward in her chair, and his eyes were drawn downwards once again.  “But they find so many other things,” she said, forcing him to look at her face.  He wondered what she saw in those multi faceted eyes of hers.  No doubt it was something like what he saw in the mirror, a tall, thin fae with the eyes of a copperhead snake, pale green in color and with a slit down the middle, just like a cat’s.

His face was sharp and long, and when he smiled, those rare moments, his fangs showed.  His copper colored hair was long and straight, pulled back at the nape of his neck to leave his sharp angles in stark relief.  His suit, which brought comfort to all the fae of the Holy Tree, was made of the skin of his influenced, the Osage Copperhead.  Although the dark brown hourglass markings that decorated the back of his short cloak and pants often struck him as too flashy, his tailor swore that they were necessary.   They reassured the people, he was told, and that’s what a good leader was supposed to do.  A fang was tucked at the belt of his outfit, both a symbol of the creature he had influence over and a weapon.

“And they’ve found a new mushroom that they believe we could easily cultivate at the base of the Holy Tree,” Bebe went on, forcing Visal to remember what she had been talking about.

“Have they tested to see if it’s poisonous?” he asked.  “We don’t want to forget what happened the last time.”

“No one died!” she said.

“Not for lack of trying.”

For a moment she glared at him, and he wondered if he would see her angry again.  Then she smiled, a bit sheepishly.  “You’re right, actually.  This time I’ve told them that if the rats refuse to eat them, so do we.”

“Have them test that before they try to bring it over to the Holy Tree,” he said.  “The last thing I want is tiny influences eating poisonous mushrooms because their parents aren’t paying attention.”

“I agree one hundred percent,” she said so emphatically that he almost laughed.  Bebe had a weak spot for children.  “Speaking of tiny influences,” she said, hesitantly.

The door to his office opened before she could go on, and he turned, looking expectantly at his secretary.  “Have you found out anything?” he asked.

“Yes, sir,” the Centipede Influence male said, glancing over at Bebe for a second before looking at Visal.  “But I’m afraid it’s something we need to discuss in… private, sir.”

“Bebe, if you don’t mind?” Visal asked.

“Of course not,” she said as she stood.  “He’s all yours, George,” she added with a flirtatious wink.  George flushed brightly, tugging at the collar of his suit.

“Thank you, ma’am,” he said, stuttering slightly as she walked past him, the long tail of her suit flapping slightly.  Visal watched her go for a moment before turning to his secretary.

“So,” he said as the door closed behind her well curved body, “what have you found out about Raven?”

***

“Stupid, stupid, stupid!” Bebe cursed herself as she headed through the hall they had built over the thick branch of the tree.  The Holy Tree was hollow in the center, but to have houses on the branches, they had had to bring in wood from other places.  The less they took from the Holy Tree, the more it gave to them, including natural holes on the inside where they could build their businesses and homes. 

She stepped through the door that led to the hollow center of the Holy Tree and looked down, admiring the bustle of life and shopping for a second before she started down the wooden walkway that connected all of the branches and businesses in the tree.  She stopped at the door that led to another tree limb, looking at it for a moment before shaking her head.  She didn’t feel like going home just yet, she was still irritated with herself for using such a retarded starting line.

But seriously, Bebe thought, how did you tell a guy like Visal something like—like that?  “Oh yeah,” she muttered to herself, “something like, ‘Lovely day, don’t you think?  Oh, and by the way, I—‘”   She stopped and snorted, not so much amused at herself as wanting to be. 

“They ate the mushrooms!” Kani called, making her look up as the twins raced up the walkway.  They were both taller than her now, but still teenagers.  She was proud that they had gotten so far with their rat training in such a short time.  “And nobody died.  They didn’t even turn green.”

“And their eyes didn’t even cross!” Naki added, barely a second behind his brother, the long rat tail tied around his waist slapping against his leg as he pulled to a stop.  She had tried to talk them into wearing the tails like a belt, since they tended to get caught in doors, but they had yet to listen to her.

“Yeah, Bebe!  They’re perfectly fine mushrooms!” Kani agreed.  She smiled at him, certain that it looked a bit strained, but unable to do any better, even for the two boys she had raised. She wasn’t their mother, but she had taken them in when they were orphaned.  It was a decision she had never regretted.

“That’s great,” she said.  “But you need to be absolutely certain, got it?  We don’t want to forget what happened last time.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Kani said.  “You’ve been talking to Visal again, haven’t you?”

“And he’s absolutely right about this,” she told them.

“He’s a jerk,” Naki said.  “I’ve got no clue what you see in the guy.  He’s as cold blooded as his influenced is, and everybody knows it.”

“Naki!” she snapped, glaring at him darkly as she crossed her arms over her chest.  “That’s the tribe leader you’re speaking about, you know.”

“Yeah, and cold blooded is fine in a tribe leader, but it isn’t for a boyfriend!” Naki said.  “We’re worried about you, Bebe!  Everyone knows that the moment a better offer comes along—“

Bebe felt herself going pale.  The twins must have seen it, because Kani elbowed his brother.  “He’s not like that,” she whispered.

“Yeah, we know you—“

“Shut it, Naki!” Kani growled.  “Bebe, do you wanna lay down or something?  C’mon, let’s go home.  You can have a nice honey tea and we’ll start dinner, okay?”  They gently herded her back up the walkway to the door that led to their home.  “Hey,” Kani went on once they were there, looking serious.  “You know, we’ll always be--well, you know, there, right, Bebe?”

“Of course I know that,” she said with a smile.  “You’re good boys.  Someone must have raised you right.”

“Nahhh,” Naki said.  “We just like to look good in front of pretty ladies.”

A little laugh escaped her and she squared her shoulders.  She had done perfectly fine raising these two on her own, she thought.  She was a strong, independent female and everyone knew that, even Visal.  “So,” she said after a second.  “What’s for dinner?”

“Mushrooms!” both twins said a bit too cheerfully.

Bebe sighed.  “I was worried you were going to say that.”

***

The water lapped at the river bank, having calmed after the waterfall.  It deposited a small, completely soaked fae onto the rocks, his gray squirrel tail barely tied around his waist and soaked so thoroughly that it looked like a stick.  He was unconscious, barely breathing, and already heading toward “the light.”  The sound of flapping came from above and a sharp talon landed on his stomach, unwittingly shoving the water out of his lungs.

Oscar coughed, turning his head and throwing up the water until there was nothing left inside of him.  Then he looked up, blinking stupidly at the crow standing atop of him.  “Gyahhh!!” he screamed, batting futilely at the bird’s leg.  “Get off of me!!”

The crow let out a loud caw and promptly stepped off of him, walking away with that little hopping strut of theirs.  Oscar took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves.  He hated birds.  Birds were the most dangerous predators out there for the fae, especially for the influence ones, since the influence fae usually stood five to six inches tall, at most.

“Gotta… leave,” he muttered to himself as he rolled over and pushed up to his knees, then to his feet.  Where there was one crow there were always more, and he doubted the yelling trick would work a second time.  “Gotta… leave,” he repeated, stumbling up the river bank blindly, his hands out in front of him since he knew he would fall over again at any moment.

“Gotta… leave,” he said again as he plunged forward, landing on the ground face first, his entire body shaking from fatigue and fear.  He couldn’t move anymore, he realized.  Even if he did need to leave, he wasn’t going to.  He wondered if being eaten by crows would hurt for too long.

Probably.

Impatient for the next Cape High? Need an amazing superhero series to keep you busy during the down time? Check out Cheyanne Young’s Powered Series!  And check out her website at
CheyanneYoung.com

Born a villain, raised a hero.

The Powered Trilogy by Cheyanne Young

OVERPOWERED will be released on August 1, 2014!

After rescuing Nova from a life of evil, Maci fears she's made a huge mistake. As if she didn't have enough trouble fitting in with her fellow Supers, Nova outshines Maci in personality and power.

In the midst of this one-sided sibling rivalry, humans are dropping dead from a powerful drug that originates in the underground tunnels of King City. Someone is a traitor and Maci wants to capture the villain before anyone else—especially Nova.

With Nova in the spotlight, Maci needs to set aside her jealousy before more humans die and the future of King City is changed forever.

And don’t forget to check out all the awesome writers at
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R.J. Ross has been writing since junior high, when she discovered that it could help her keep an A in English Class. She lives in Missouri, where she works as a secretary for the family business and spends all of her free time writing.   If you would like to see more of her work, you can find several short stories at
http://amazon.com/author/rjross
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