Alikur

“That was fun,” Ruby said, giggling as she rode atop Alikurs shoulders. They were across town, almost at NEID to report the results of the extermination.

“Getting caught is not fun, the fact that the girl saw us is a problem. If she’s smart, she’ll realize that I was at least partially telling the truth about no one believing her if she told anyone,” he paused, “Even if she did talk, Trojan will handle it.”

The NEID worked with a task force, called Trojan, within the local police force, and they would cover up anything that he might have missed. Ruby looked up at the starry sky absentmindedly, “Wasn’t there only three of them left though? After that incident five years ago with the captain…” Ruby trailed off. While Alikur was familiar with the Trojan captain, Ruby had only known Captain Crane for a few years. Even so, they had hit off spectacularly, and her death had hit Ruby hard, as other than Alikur and the Boss, Crane had been one of her first friends. After her death, the police force cut funding for Trojan and it was now being headed by Captain Drake, his brother Chris, and Drake’s son Ryan.

“Don’t worry,” Alikur cooed, as he reached up to pat her on the head, “Drakes a good guy, if there’s a problem, he’ll let us know.” Stopping at the entrance to NEID, Ruby quietly slid down his back so they could go in without accidently taking out the overhead. He stopped powering the disguise rune as he walked in.

Sitting down at his desk, Ruby taking her place beside him, Alikur saw that Lauren was typing away rapidly across the way, her desk free of paper. This wouldn’t have been odd if it was anyone else, but Lauren had a nasty habit of pushing her paperwork onto her “assistant” Reece. Reece was a ghoul who didn’t usually have to hide his appearance, although he did look like Gollum from Lord of the Rings with the exception of having a goatee and average human height. Boss had sent him on a clean-up job so that Lauren couldn’t use him to get out of her punishment. But as far as Alikur knew, Reece returned as he was leaving for the Bacchant job. “Where’s Reece?” he asked.

Lauren stopped typing, flexing her fingers as she did so, “Boss took him to take care of the bacchant bodies, he’s never had them before so he was quite excited about it.” Ghouls partook of only one food type, corpses. Lauren used him to clean up if she accidentally killed a victim and he lent his services to the NEID, taking care of bodies that would reveal anything to the public that there was another world out there. Ruby could hide the bodies, but they were still around.

Reece wasn’t originally Laurens servant, but lost to her in a battle of will that the undead seem to revel in. He told Alikur that he was planning to challenge her again so that he could have his free will returned, so of course Alikur helped him in secret to strengthen his mental fortitude.

Three loud knocks rang through the hall, Al and Lauren stopped and looked towards the entrance. There wasn’t anyone with appointments and those who were authorized could enter without tripping the magical traps. Al raised his head, and took a sniff of the air. He turned to Lauren who had her fangs bared, “It’s okay,” he began, and then spoke to no one in particular, “I authorize Captain Drake of Trojan to enter.” The doors swung open and Drake stormed through, his face a visage of rage.

“Alikur we have a problem,” he began as he reached his desk. “What in all the gods’ names were you thinking?! Tell me, were you using the anti-magic area rune? Please tell me you weren’t?!”

“Umm,” Alikur hesitated, he’d never seen Drake this angry before, “I always use it, why?” Drake punched him in the arm, which did nothing.

“The girl, do you know who she was?” Alikur was even more confused now.

“No, but did she talk? I would have tho-” Drake waved his hand signaling him to stop, he was pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Her name is Crystal Crane, daughter of, you guessed it, Jen Crane” He stopped and let that sink in. Alikurs eyes widened and he swore in several tongues.

“I didn’t get any of that, but by the tone you realized you must have started some shit.” Lauren, who had been enjoying the exchange, as it wasn’t her mistake, chimed in. “What did he start? I know Jen was the lady that helped kick start the Trojan program, but what’s her daughter got to do with anything?” Drake wheeled on her, a look of surprise.

“Lauren doesn’t pay attention to details,” Alikur pointed out. “It’ll be easier to just explain it.”

Drake sighed and rolled his eyes, “typical of a vamp, ok, here’s the gist of it. People with the Sight like Boss, Jen and I, tend to attract magic and the supernatural to them. The difference between Boss and us regular folk is that we have families. Normally, when a person with the Sight becomes strong enough, they can hide themselves, but with blood relatives, the magic surrounds them and it's only thanks to a counter ward from Boss that’s kept Crystal from being engulfed by the lingering magic. Chris and Ryan have known about how the world works since the very beginning and have the Sight themselves so they’re prepared.” He paused, clearly thinking.

“Crystal locked herself in her room for a week and was inconsolable at the funeral, which is probably why she never recognized you or me, but we might have to interfere with her life a little since your anti-magic rune would have weakened or destroyed Bosses old counter ward. I’d give it about a week before she starts encountering the supernatural, we should act before then.” Drake finished, his frown telling everyone how much he didn’t like this plan.

Alikur sighed, he knew that as the one responsible that he would be the one to either place a protective ward without being noticed, or take her on as a disciple of magic. Neither appealed to him, especially if Crystal inherited her mother's especially strong Sight, which could pierce even his camouflage and illusions.

With a little luck, maybe her Sight would take some time to awaken after being sealed away for so long. Making her a disciple was worse, since she would inevitably ask about runes and how to make them. It felt like the setup of a hero movie, and he did not fancy disappearing mysteriously like Obiwan or die as Dumbledore did. “This is going to be a mess, isn’t it?” he said to no one in particular, rubbing his hands over his eyes as he leaned back in his chair.

“Well at least it’ll be a fun show,” Ruby said, finally speaking up. “I’m looking forward to seeing her reaction to your ugly mug!”

Crystal

Officer Drake called late into the night, Luke distracted Frank by informing him that there wasn’t any Natty Lite in the house, this gave Crystal enough time to answer the phone and talk without interruption. She told him everything, but skimmed over the mass killing of murderous supermodels by a tall man and a little girl. “It was weird,” she explained. “It was like everyone was in a trance, I didn’t like how it was progressing so I high tailed it out of there. You guys showed up not long after.”

“Hmm,” Officer Drake began, “Thank you for your time Miss Crane, if I have any other questions for you I’ll contact you, have a nice night.” He hung up and Crystal let out a sigh of relief, she just lied to a police officer, but she really didn’t want to wind up in an insane asylum. She slinked to her room and collapsed onto the bed, tired as all hell. Whatever may happen with her friends, she’ll deal with them tomorrow. She thought to herself as sleep took hold of her.

………………….

The next day, Crystal found herself in the hospital visiting her friends. All of whom were currently going through some sort of therapy and mental health evaluations. Damn, patient confidentiality, all I want is to see if they’re okay…

Finally, she was able to meet them after they exited a group session they were in. “Crystal!” May cried out as she latched onto her. “You’re alright! I didn’t see you whe-” she stopped, her eyes glossing over and her body began to tremble.

Not saying a word Crystal hugged May, squeezing the taller woman as she began to sob into Crystal's shoulder. Fuck… this is… she didn’t know what to think or say to her, so she just held May while eying the equally listless guys beside her. Well, not completely listless. While she comforted May, Max was rocking back and forth, eyes never leaving the floor. Jon on the other hand, was looking away from the group, the glimpses of his face Crystal caught, she read easily. Guilt…

………….

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

It was a little after midday when Crystal left the hospital, which ended up being quite the scene. Apparently a major car accident had occurred downtown, and the ambulances arrived at the hospital as she was leaving on her bike, she hopped the curb as the ambulance nearly clipped her with the speed they were going. “Fucking...,” she grumbled as she biked to the nearest Dunkin Donuts for a coffee and muffin.

Alikur

Taking a deep breath, Al went through the plan in his head again. She’ll come out, get on her bike, I activate the rune as she leaves, her Sight is sealed. Easy. Except it wasn’t. While interfering with cameras at a nightclub overtaken by sex-crazed monsters was one things, cameras at a hospital was another. He couldn’t place the rune directly on or near her bike either, as he would easily be seen by others and most likely questioned.

Thank the gods she obeys traffic laws. From what has been seen and reported, Crystal was one of the few people who actually obeyed biking laws. So he placed the rune on the bike path when he pretended to need to re-tie his not-so-real shoes, and went to the bus stop across the street. He left a lingering bit of magic, acting as a string so he could activate the rune remotely.

A few hours later, he saw Crystal come out of the hospital. He got ready to pull the metaphorical magic pin. His ear twitched at a familiar sound. Ambulance? As Crystal was leaving the red and white vehicle screamed around the block and took a sharp turn into the hospital entrance. Momentarily blocked from view, Al activated the rune, a prayer left his lips.

Which immediately turned into cursed mutterings when he saw Crystal on the sidewalk. Just outside the range of where the spell went off. He watched as she sped away, muttering her own curse.

“Well, she’s a lucky one,” an older woman, with tan skin and clear laugh lines sat down next to Al, her cane tapping the ground. “That ambulance sure was in a rush.”

Al stiffened, Boss sneaking up on him was one thing, Boss was Boss after all and did it often. A random old woman with a cane? Problem. “Yes, she was,” he replied, giving the gray haired woman a once over. She wore what looked to be slip-on shoes, black suit-pants with a matching jacket. She struck quite the professional image. “Huh, wonder where everyone wandered off too?” He voiced this outloud, as for some reason, the few people waiting at the stop around him had suddenly left.

“They probably remembered that a ride-share was picking them up,” the older woman chuckled. “I doubt you’d be able to fit in one of those Alikur.”

His mind went to building the most destructive explosion rune he could before he was able to calm down. “You… have me at a disadvantage Ma’m,” it was always better to err on the side of caution when someone, or something, was not being hostile. “You know me, but I do not know you. Unless my memory is finally starting to go downhill.”

The old woman chuckled, “Oh, no it isn’t, but you do know me. We just haven’t met. I’ve gone by many names, but only one truly fits,” her grin was predatory as her eyes sparkled. “Call me Nit.”

FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK FUUUCK. All background thoughts to counter whoever this woman was halted immediately. Nit, the Weaver of Fate, only interfered when something was messing with destiny. Gods could only interfere in specific circumstances, usually revolving around their domains. Fate was not a god. She was primordial. A being that existed before everything, weaving a tapestry that was the multiverse. There was only one time she was bested, and the god responsible is still in hiding. Fate does not like to be cheated.

“To what do I owe the pleasure?” Only his years of self-control kept his voice level and passive.

“Oh, that's cute, don’t worry though,” she patted his head. “Everyone swears and insults me, and that’s fine, I live off it.” She chuckled again. “I’m just here to observe, after all. She would do well, the path is painful, the love is found, the unknown lost, discovered. Watch your step with her.” With those words, she got up and onto a black bus that seemed to appear out of nowhere. “The paths going down that route are all entertaining.” The doors shut, the bus silently drove off.

Al sat there. People started to congregate again. Taking out his phone, he called Boss.

“Were you successful?” Boss asked immediately.

“No, and it looks like I have to take her on.” He responded as he thought about what he needed to say.

“Ok, what’s up? You don’t give up on something like this.”

“I’ll tell you when I get back to the office,” he sighed, as he got up and started walking. “I can tell you that it won’t be a problem, but I'll explain when I get back.”

“Fuck, that bad huh? I’ll see you in ten.” The call ended, and he got up to walk back downtown.

Well, this is not my week.

………………..

“So, what the hell happened?” Boss leaned against his desk, Captain Cross on the other side. He groaned as he slumped into his chair. Boss waited patiently as he huffed and got his thoughts in order.

“So, bad news is I couldn’t reinforce the spell you put on her,” he started. “Worse news, Nit intervened, dropped some prophetical bullshit.”

“Hsss,” Boss sucked air through teeth. “Fucking gods dammit. Let me guess, Crystal is involved.” The tone was clearly rhetorical.

“Here, it went, the path is painful, the love is found, the unknown lost, discovered.”

“By the- fuck I hate the vague bullshit, Loki’s Curse dammit,” Boss grumbled.

“Loki’s Curse?” Captain Drake questioned, his face pinched. “I know that a god interfering is bad and a damn good reason to not wipe her memory, but what does a curse have to do with it? Wasn’t Loki the Norse god of mischief?”

“Oh!” Lauren piped up, rolling her chair over from her desk. “I got this one, my former mistress had a massive crush on the guy.” She cleared her throat. “So, one of the first ever true prophecies was Ragnarok, the doom of the world and all that. Very easy to understand, and the Norse gods were… not that concerned. All except Loki, he didn’t want his sons to die, and he actually got along with his brother, Thor, despite the amount of pranks pulled.

“So, he racked his brain, and decided to take a risk. He created a game that involved members of every branch of the World Tree, and involved every aspect of Ragnarok. He introduced it as making amends for a prank he pulled that had also involved every World Tree race, and encouraged them to play.

“It wasn’t long before everyone was laughing and having a good time, and the game ended just as Ragnarok was predicted to end. Every being of the Norse pantheon felt the weight of the prophecy be lifted, and while there was quite a bit of ax throwing, Frigg put a stop to it. She knew that Loki had spared her son, Baldur, from a fate that she would not have been able to prevent.

“Of course, he had slighted Fate, one of the Three Bitches, by using the straightforward prophecy to create a vague interpretation of it. So, she marked his soul. It is said that any being with gods-blood in them will be overcome with an urge to kill him. Loki fled, obviously, and hasn’t been seen since. Fate made it so that every prophecy from then on would be as vague as possible so that others wouldn’t be able to pull off what Loki did, hence, Loki’s Curse on prophecies.”

“First,” Drake raised a finger. “Who the fuck are you and what did you do with that valley gal vamp? Second, wouldn’t making a prophecy vague make it easier to manipulate?”

“Well,” Lauren raised a middle finger. “First, fuck you. Second, yes and no. Yes you can interpret a prophecy in multiple ways, but the real reason Fate made it vague was so that she could have an easier time manipulating it. Say you interpreted a vague prophecy and then went out of your way to try and cheat it. Well guess what, this small part is now talking about something completely unrelated and completely changes the prophecy! So yeah, as long as you don’t try to cheat a prophecy, then more than likely it will be something obvious or at least obviously adjacent.”

“Still doesn’t answer the question of how in the nine hells-” “infinite”Al whispered as Drake glared. “-you of all people know so much about prophecy.”

Lauren rubbed the back of her neck, “Well, my former mistress, before Boss turned her into a pile of ash, was a bit of a Loki fan-girl, as I had said earlier. She created all these theories about where he might be and going on and on about prophecies and how they work while going… slightly insane. I actually shortened a lot of what I remember.”

“Well,” Al coughed, getting everyone's attention. “Regardless, we have to go with Plan B. I’ll train her for six months, afterwards it's standard practice to enroll her in NAMU for two years.”

“Did you ever actually attend the North American Magi University?” Lauren asked, an eyebrow raised.

“Graduated with a degree in scriptomancy and curses,” Al rolled his eyes.

“Curses? I would have pegged you as an enhancement major.”

“Seriously? this is all natural.” He regretted his choice of words as soon as the suspiciously silent Ruby popped her head out from her dirt circle.

“All natural slabs of juicy beef!”

“... This is why I regret ever introducing you to Medusa.”