92: Never After – Pt. 2

“Where are we?” Aria asked, taking a step closer toward Mike. He wrapped an arm around her waist as she looked at their surroundings. “Are we stranded on a deserted island?”

“Aria,” Mike sighed, “There’s something I need to tell you and you may find it a little hard to believe.” He glanced over at Victoria and she nodded. It was something she needed to hear because whatever awaited them in that jungle was certainly of mystical origins. “Magic is real.”

“What do you mean?”

“Fairytales, folklore, myths all of it; it’s real. Witches, vampires, even leprechauns, all of it is real.”

“Mike, are you concussed? What are you talking about?”

“Show her,” Mike said, looking again at his partner.

“Ok. Going back to the classics,” Victoria smiled, swatting at a large bug buzzing around her face. She conjured an apple out of thin air and offered it to Aria. Aria jumped back in surprise. Her bewildered eyes moved from Victoria’s to Mike’s and back again.

“How…how did you do that?” she asked in panicked confusion.

“Victoria’s a witch,” Mike answered. “And Derrick, well…Derrick’s a…”

“A vampire,” Derrick offered himself. “And I know that might seem a little…”

“COOL!” Aria squealed, looking up into Derrick’s eyes. “I mean, it’s cool. Are you really? Like for real a real vampire?” Derrick smiled, showing off his twin companions and Aria covered her mouth in surprise. “That’s unreal!”

Mike looked toward Victoria in confusion and shook his head. “Uh…you’re taking this a little better than I thought,” he said, placing a comforting hand on her arm. “Are you sure you understand what we’re saying?”

“Oh? Yeah. I—uh…well I suppose it should be scary and admittedly, it is a little unnerving. But I was the BIGGEST goth in high school. I mean, looking at me now, you couldn’t tell, but I always fancied myself a ‘creature of the night.’ And yeah, wicca is pretty cool, too.” She paused briefly in thought and turned to Mike with an animated look on her face. “Is this why you tell me a lot of your cases are so hush-hush? You’re using magic to solve them?”

“Well, yes and no. We’re doing the work, but a lot of our clients aren’t of our world. Like I said, leprechauns. I’ve met one!”

“Stop it!”

“No, I’m serious. He had the red hair, green suit and even a meerschaum pipe! He wanted us to retrieve his missing gold.”

Victoria nodded when Aria turned to her for confirmation. “That’s incredible!”

“Right, and I feel something along those lines may have pulled us here,” Victoria said, looking over at Derrick, ducking her head as another bug flew straight at her face. “I tried to fight it but it was useless.”

“But thanks to your protection spell, you ensured we all made it here in one piece, which is most important,” Derrick replied.

“I knew it!” Mike shouted. “That was one freaky lightning storm. It came out of nowhere. And Captain Manny, as hard as he tried, he couldn’t pull us out.” As Mike spoke, he turned toward the last spot he’d seen the captain sitting and was surprised to find him gone. “Hey, where is Captain Manny anyway?”

The group turned to view the beach in confusion. During the fifteen or so minutes they took to gather their bearings, their tour guide had vanished. “That’s weird,” Aria commented. Moving toward the shore, they searched for him but could find no trace.

“Which only makes me think us being here isn’t by accident,” Derrick said. “I don’t know if he had anything to do with it, but a sudden disappearance upon the arrival to a mysterious island certainly doesn’t bode well.”

“We need to make a plan; figure out what brought us here and how we’re getting out,” Victoria suggested. “But first, how about a change of attire? We can’t go running off into the unknown in our swimwear.” Closing her eyes, Victoria summoned new outfits for the group.

“Wow,” Aria exclaimed. “This looks just like the sundress I left back at…” she paused as she more closely examined herself. “Wait a second, this IS my sundress. How did you…?”

“I’ve found in my time working with Victoria and her talents sometimes, it’s better not to ask,” Mike laughed.

“It’s best if we stick close together. A place like this, there’s no telling what nasty little traps await us,” Derrick said, taking Victoria’s hand as they started toward a path leading into the forest.

The trees parted and they found themselves on a paved brick road. “Oh no,” Derrick muttered to himself as he realized where they likely were. Sighing as he glanced over at Victoria. “You know, that Toto line earlier may not have been too far off.”

“You know where we are, Derrick?” Victoria asked. Derrick pointed down and her eyes followed the red paved road until it turned yellow. “No.”

“Yes.”

“No, way!”

“Ok, well, not exactly but close enough.”

“What are you two talking about,” Mike asked, trying to follow the couple’s conversation.

“We’re in Oz!” Victoria exclaimed.

“No, I said ‘not exactly,’” Derrick corrected, “We’re in Hollow Glen; it’s the place that likely inspired L. Frank Baum’s book. Remember, I told you a lot of the myths surrounding supernaturals came from somewhere.”

“Hollow Glen? That just doesn’t have the same ring to it at all!” she huffed, shooing away an insect zooming around her. “But look, Mike, a yellow brick road! This just became way more interesting.”

“We still need to be cautious, Victoria. I haven’t been here in a few centuries. We still have no idea what we’ll find.”

Traveling down the yellow brick road, Victoria couldn’t help but smile at the idea of entering this fantasy land and the things they’d see along their path to the…

“Wizard,” Mike said, pointing at a man dressed in a top hat and cape and juggling bowling pins.

“And is that the Pied Piper?” Aria asked, pointing toward another man dancing merrily down the road with a line of rats spellbound behind him. 

They paused momentarily to watch as the Pied Piper made his way down the road, disappearing beyond a clearing as he blazed a path through the woods. “Which way do you think we should try?” Victoria asked, looking over at Derrick.

“Why are you asking me? I haven’t the slightest idea.”

“Because you’ve been here before. I figured you might see something that looked familiar?”

“Victoria, that was over 200 years ago and this place was so different. It was a lot more…alive.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, we’ve been here close to an hour now and have only come across two people. This place used to be a major party scene. It’s what brought me here in the first place. But now,” he said, motioning around with his arms. “It’s like a ghost town.”

“Well, it’s not completely a ghost town. It seems to have a huge population of giant bugs!” Victoria said, swatting at a large, flying insect. 

“VICTORIA, STOP!” Derrick shouted just as she was preparing to squash the pest. “That’s not a bug. It’s a pixie.”

“What, you mean like Tinkerbell?” Mike asked, moving closer to see.

“Tinkerbell is a fairy, not a pixie,” Aria corrected, playfully swatting Mike’s arm.

“Oh. Well, what’s the difference?”

“Fairies are more human-like while pixies are closer related to elven folk; hence the pointy ears,” Aria answered. Instantly, three pairs of eyes turned to her. “What? I’m into fantasy stuff. I’m like a Disney princess in training. I like fairies and unicorns and glitter.” Mike smiled and tenderly kissed her cheek.

Kneeling down, Victoria helped the tiny creature up into her hand and examined it closer. “I’m very sorry about that.”

“It’s ok, it happens. My name is Ziggy and I’ve been trying to get your attention,” the little sprite said as she dusted herself off.

“Me? Do you know who I am?”

“Of course, my sisters and I summoned you here.”

“You mean you purposefully crashed our boat into that maelstrom?” Derrick asked, a little angrier than he intended. “You could have killed us.”

“No, no. We had everything well under control. We were more afraid that your witch’s powers would keep you from entering but I promise the waters to pass through are perfectly safe.”

“You’re the force I felt fighting me when I was pushing against the storm?”

“Guilty.”

“So, it wasn’t Captain Manny?” Aria asked aloud. “He disappeared without warning.”

“That was also us. We returned him home safely, erasing his memory of these events. Please understand, we needed your help and when we felt your presence so close to our realm, we had to act fast.”

“Why? What’s wrong?” Victoria asked, hearing the urgency in the pixie’s voice.

“Our realm has been overthrown by a demon and we need help getting rid of him. Since his arrival, the kingdom has been total pandemonium. Nothing and no one have been the same. I’ve been tasked with getting you to Callon Shadowstep, the Elven elder to figure out a plan.”

“I’ll speak with your elder. If there is anything I can do to help I will.”

Following behind the blazing light Ziggy trailed behind her, the group made their way deeper into Hollow Glen. They passed a girl in a red hood battling an elderly woman, a pair of children chasing an old hag, and a man in green tights being attacked by his own band of merry men.

“What is happening here? Are these fairytales?” Victoria asked. “Why are they…wrong?”

“We don’t like to use that word around here,” Ziggy replied. “But, to keep matters simple, yes, they are indeed fairytales. It’s like I told you, things haven’t been right here since the demon appeared. And it’s getting worse by the day.” Derrick and Victoria exchanged a concerned look. Both wondering what help they could possibly offer to fairytale characters gone astray.

They walked until they came to a small settlement. “This little hamlet is Muckingham,” Ziggy said, resting just on the border of the village. “Please watch your step and stick close. We need to get through here as quickly as possible.”

“Whoa! This is crazy!” Mike exclaimed, watching as a bloody body was thrown across the pavement at their feet. “Is that a…”

“Werewolf,” Derrick answered, seeing the menacing glower of one of his natural enemies. “Give it a moment, it’ll turn back to…” Before he could finish his sentence, the corpse transformed back to its organic state. “Human.”

“So…is this like a normal work day for you two?” Aria asked, watching the chaos erupt around them as more wolves scrambled from the nearby woods, invading the villages below.

“I don’t think anything we’ve experienced so far could be considered normal,” Victoria answered, her eyes falling on the small houses in the town. “OH!” she exclaimed, “I get it. It’s the three little pigs. Look there, a house made of straw.”

Everyone simultaneous turned to look just as an anthropomorphic pig skirted out from another house made of sticks and stabbed a silver blade into the back of a wolf. “Oooh, HAM-let,” Mike said, “I get it. Funny!”

“This is insane! I can’t believe this stuff is real!” Aria said excitedly as they watched more pigs scramble from shoddily built homes to battle the incoming werewolves.

“We should really get out of here before they notice us. My last encounter with a werewolf was not the best. FYI, bullets don’t seem to faze them,” Victoria said.

“Yeah, but remember, you weren’t using silver,” Derrick replied.

“No, but I unloaded an entire clip in his head and it still charged at me!”

“Wait, when did you fight a werewolf?” Mike asked.

“It was some years ago. Around the time I first learned I was a witch.”

“Wow, there are so many stories I haven’t heard yet, aren’t there?” he asked to which Victoria nodded.

“And when we have time, I’ll tell you all of them. Let’s get moving.”

Finally, they made it to Niellon, a small kingdom just on the outskirts of Hollow Glen. “We are so glad you could come, please, his majesty is eagerly awaiting your arrival,” a blue pixie said as she and Ziggy escorted the group inside a large throne room.

An audience of supernatural beings all stood as Victoria, Derrick, Mike and Aria entered the great hall. They watched as a highly regarded elf stepped down from the pulpit and started toward them. Clearing the room with a wave of his hand, he waited until he had a private audience with his guests before introducing himself.

“Victoria Carson,” he said, approaching her and taking her hand in his. Giving it a firm shake, he held her close as he spoke. “Thank you for taking the time to meet with me. My name is Callon, head of the fair folk tribunal and elder of the Tyrale elven clan. I humbly make your acquaintance.”

“It’s my pleasure, though, our presence here wasn’t of our doing.”

“This I understand, I urged the pixie council to summon you here. We are in dire need of your assistance.”

“Yes. Ziggy was telling us that your realm has been invaded by demons?”

“Demon; singular. But, I’m afraid, it is one we cannot fight against. I am hoping you will be able to aide us in his removal.”

“Of course, I will do whatever I can. What can you tell me about the demon?”

“His name is Kron and he’s a chaos demon.”

“Oh no,” Derrick uttered behind her.

“What’s wrong?” Victoria asked, turning to face him. “Do you know this demon?”

“Not this one in particular, but I know of their type. Chaos demons are malevolent creatures that thrive on the psychic energy of those they torment. They live to make life as bad as it can get all around them and the more you fight against them, the stronger they become. Victoria, these demons can make even the most powerful magics useless as they live for combat. This may be one battle we can’t win.”