Home for Horny Monsters Ch. 111

Cyrus felt something at his side and looked down to see that Callisto's hand was brushing against his coat. The old man shifted Grace, allowing him to take Callisto's hand in his own.

"If you'll excuse us, we're going to head down to our rooms now." Cyrus squeezed Callisto's hand. "Let's give them a chance to settle for awhile, and then there will be time for questions."

Laurel opened her mouth to say something, but Grace hissed at her. Behind the mage, Elizabeth smirked, her head cocked to one side with her hands on her waist. She looked rather pleased with herself. Darius, however, looked like he was going to be ill. His skin had taken on a sallow cast. The man had seemed fine this morning. What had changed?

Laurel and her people left with Cyrus, staying back about twenty feet. When they got to the elevator, Cyrus cleared his throat and turned to face them.

"There's not a lot of room in here," he said, though the elevator was meant for cargo. "Perhaps you could take the stairs, or get it next time."

"We're supposed to--"

"That's an order, Laurel." Cyrus grinned. "If you disapprove, you should go tell on me and hope you get promoted."

The door slid open and Cyrus stepped inside. When he looked back, he saw that Laurel was apparently capable of turning a brilliant shade of crimson.

"Stairs would probably be best," he said. "If you run, you can make sure I didn't get ambushed by a pair of children."

When the door closed, he wiped the smile off his face and let go of Callisto's hand. "I have an itch is all," he said as he scratched his chin, then pulled a ring from his breast pocket. It slid neatly onto his pinky finger, and then he took the centaur's hand again. When he spoke, he did so while looking down. "We don't have long. This ring will keep our conversation from being picked up by the microphone."

"It will?" Callisto looked up at Cyrus, then noticed how his head was positioned and mimicked him. "Okay."

"I need you to know I meant every word I said before." Cyrus wasn't certain how much to tell the kids, but they needed to know how bad the situation was. "They're planning to hold you here forever, no matter what you tell them. They want to blackmail your dad."

"I figured." Callisto grunted. "Aunt Tink explained it to me a couple of days ago."

"How did they capture you?" Cyrus looked over at the centaur. "Weren't you hidden by the house?"

"It was that man with the sunglasses." Callisto shivered. "He attacked the village with magical fire and a bunch of demons he summoned."

"Demons?" This was an interesting development. To his knowledge, nobody in the SoS was any sort of spell-caster, much less a summoner. Was this some sort of massive secret they kept, or was there something else going on?

"Yeah, I think a lot of people got hurt, maybe even..." Callisto trailed off. "When they found me, I tried to get Grace to run away and hide, but she refused."

"Why?" Cyrus noticed that the little girl had quite the grip.

"Because my dad told us to take care of each other." Callisto sniffed. "I wish she had just gone."

"She doesn't seem to talk much."

The centaur shook his head. "She can't talk yet."

"I don't suppose she's a half-breed like you?" Cyrus raised an eyebrow. "Depending on what she is, it might help us figure out how to escape."

"I'm really not supposed to say, but everyone will figure it out soon enough. She's a--" Callisto snapped his mouth shut as the doors to the elevator slid open. Cyrus hadn't even noticed they had arrived in the detention area already. Some guards were waiting for them, weapons slung across their fronts. Cyrus pulled his pinky out of the ring and stepped forward with the children.

"Good afternoon," he said, being sure to make deliberate eye contact with everyone. "These will be our guests, if you know what I mean. Are their rooms ready?"

Some of the guards exchanged looks, but didn't bother questioning why the old mage sounded so cheery.

"They are." One of the guards tilted his head down the hallway. "All nice and warm."

"Great. This way, children." They moved down the hallway to where the cells were set up. Callisto stopped outside the cell made for him, his eyes now shimmering with tears.

"I want to go home," he said.

"I know. But look, this place isn't all that bad." Cyrus walked in with both kids and gestured. "Plenty of room to stretch."

"For a human. There isn't even a bed."

"I'll see about getting you one." Cyrus gestured toward the corner. "This room was originally built for a banshee, so there aren't any restraints. Why don't you have a seat and I'll see about getting you something to eat."

Callisto said nothing, but now had a look of doubt in his eyes, as if he suspected Cyrus had tricked him. Uncertain how to secretly reassure the boy, he stepped away, taking Grace with him.

"As for you, this room is yours." Cyrus walked just down the hall to the open doorway that awaited. A pair of guards had already closed and locked Callisto's door and were headed toward Cyrus.

At the entry to the room, Grace let go of Cyrus and snatched the rim of the door with her fingertip, effectively halting any forward movement. Cyrus tried to push forward, but the child was impossibly strong, somehow capable of resisting him.

"Please," he whispered. "I need you to trust me."

Grace hissed in his ear, the sound like nails on a chalkboard, causing all the hair on his neck to stand on end. Cyrus grunted and pushed some more, which caused Grace's fingers to slip.

"Don't be like this," he begged, noticing that the guards had taken notice of his struggles. "Please, we need to--"

Grace's fingers slipped and both of them tumbled forward into the room. Cyrus lost his balance and fell, stumbling at the last second as Grace fell free of him. He took a knee and groaned as several old injuries dropped by to check in on him.

"Sir?" One of the guards now stood right behind him.

"I'm fine," Cyrus said, waving the man back. "I just tripped. It's fine."

The guard backed out of the door and took up his post. Cyrus rubbed the bridge of his nose and sighed. When he looked up, he saw that Grace was watching him, her eyes never blinking. The hair on her forehead had fallen back, revealing a series of obsidian orbs that contemplated him silently. He could see his own stunned reflection in each of them.

His heart jackhammered in his chest as he let his gaze drop to where the dark folds of her dress had ridden up to reveal a pair of human legs and no more. Letting out a sigh of relief, he shifted back as Grace grabbed the slap bracelet on her wrist and gave it a tug.

The bracelet slid free. Like a magic trick, her legs shifted forward and several more appeared, all of them glossy and dark. The little girl pulled her legs in to cover them with her skirt, effectively hiding her nature from view, yet she never broke eye contact with Cyrus. Grace pulled her bangs forward to hide her arachnid eyes from view, her gaze almost accusatory.

Cyrus struggled for air as he felt the light brush of thousands of legs reach across the decades to crawl once more across his body, hundreds of mouths biting and tearing at his flesh. Pulse racing, Cyrus bit back a scream as he rose to his feet and stumbled out of the cell.

There was the stench of blood and fear in the air as Mike stepped out of what was left of Death's teahouse. The remains had been cobbled together for a portal, but that was about it. The mood was somber as everyone came through quietly.

Everyone except Mohan. Lily threw the man through head-first, where he collided with a stone statue that looked sort of like Abella. The others were already waiting for them, standing around the fountain with bleak looks on their faces. Mike noticed that almost none of them made eye contact with him, pointedly looking away in shame. Hanging from Amymone's tree were several men and women, all of them bound with spider silk and trying to call for help.

"Who are they?" he asked, gesturing toward the tree. His hands still shook from the surge of power that had almost claimed him on the beach. In the back of his mind, there had been the tiniest whisper that wanted to know if it was possible to snap a naga's neck single-handedly. It had taken everything in Mike's power just to cast Mohan to the ground to avoid finding out the answer. Though he knew that was the right decision, a large part of him still wished he had tried.

Eulalie hopped down from the tree, her features stricken. "Order and Sons of Sin we captured," she said. "We couldn't catch them all. We thought maybe Lily could take a look inside their heads and see where the kids were taken."

From his place on the ground, Mohan chuckled. Lily grabbed and lifted him by his feet with her tail, letting him hang upside down. It was probably just an accident that he banged his head on a nearby rock twice in a row.

"It won't work," he said smugly. "The only people who knew about the location are already there. Your children are gone, Caretaker, maybe forever. Now, I suppose I could ask Darius very nicely to return them, but that would require--"

Lily dunked him in Naia's fountain and let go. Mohan sputtered in rage and tried to stand, but froze as if held in place. His eyes lit from within as he attempted to rise, but couldn't. Naia emerged from the water, her once soothing gaze now like ice.

"Do you know where they are?" she asked.

"He doesn't," replied Lily. "I already did a deep dive in his head, which took me longer than usual. The guy is a pretty big asshole, which means I had to dig through a lot of shit to find what I wanted. After that, he let me watch how they set the whole thing up. Darius actually suggested that he find a secret location to hold them."

"And he targeted the kids deliberately?" Naia's eyes flashed gold.

"Sort of. He wanted to take some grown-ups, but Darius was extremely confident they could get Callisto." The succubus knelt by the edge of the fountain. "He agreed because he thought it would hurt Romeo the most."

"So what next?" asked Mohan with a grin. "Do you plan on holding me here forever?"

"What do you say, Romeo? Is there something in the Vault we could feed him to?" Lily's tail whipped back and forth. "Or maybe Naia could drown him."

Abella slammed a fist into her palm. "I have some ideas," she said.

Mike looked past all of them, his eyes on Zel. The centaur stood with her head high and shoulders back. It was clear that she had cried so hard that most of the blood vessels in her eyes had already burst.

He walked toward her, then stopped at arm's length. From there, he could see the way her lips quivered as if she was struggling to hold the universe together and might fail at any moment.

"What does Centaur Law say?" he asked quietly. "If anybody has a claim on him, it's you and your people. I understand he attacked the village?"

"People died," she said in a whisper. "We weren't expecting it."

"Centaurs, not people," Mohan corrected. "I can hear you all perfectly clear, by the way. Don't bother lowering your--"

The water devoured him, pulling him underneath. The seconds ticked away as he fought to get free, but couldn't return to the surface. The members of the house watched in silence as the man slowly drowned, desperately summoning bubbles of air to breathe.

"Let him out," said Mike. "But keep holding him."

Mohan broke the surface of the water and let out a gurgling laugh.

"I see how it is, Caretaker! Not man enough to do it on your own, are you?"

Mike knelt at the fountain's edge. "So if we ask real nicely, you'll help me get my children back?"

Mohan smirked. "No. Asking nicely won't do it. I want her." He pointed at Ratu. "I want her word that she'll return with me and fulfill the pledge she made to stand by my side so many years ago."

Ratu looked at Mike with more than a little fear in her eyes. He realized at that moment that she would rather die than go with Mohan. However, if he asked her to go, she would do it just to help him.

"She doesn't belong to you," he said as he stood. "And she never will."

"Then you should probably just kill me," Mohan said, pulling dramatically at the collar of his shirt to reveal his chest. "Because I intend to come back for her, Caretaker. No matter how many times it takes, she will be mine again."

There were many things Mike wanted to say. He wanted to explain that he wasn't a killer, that his power might evolve in dangerous ways if used in anger rather than self defense. That there were so many better ways to work through problems than to trade lives like pieces on a chess board.

But in a way, Mohan was right. The naga had hurt his family gravely and would only do so again. Thinking of the many people who just died on his lawn and at Paradise, he took a deep breath and held it for ten seconds before letting it out.

"I won't kill you," he said, then looked at Zel. "Your actions hurt her people. Therefore, I leave your fate to her."

Mohan's laughter bordered on hysteria.

"Centaurs? You're handing me over to horses?" The Director rolled his eyes. "What are they going to do, put me in stocks? Tie ropes around me and try to pull me apart? Even if I sat back and allowed them to harm me, they couldn't. They are an inferior species, just like mankind."

"Maybe I'll stuff dragon's breath up your ass." Zel already had a vial of the stuff in her hand. "Smack it with a paddle to break it until you pull out your own intestines."

"And there you have it, Caretaker. Childish threats. I ate molten rock as a child. Do you really think dragon's breath will have any effect on me?" Mohan laughed again. "Okay, then, centaur, I accept your punishment."

"Not so fast." The voice that spoke was both old and young, filled with the forbidden promises of springtime. In the span of a moment, flowers bloomed across the surface of Naia's fountain, trickling down the edges and onto the ground. The scorched earth surrounding the backyard erupted as blades of grass broke through it, reaching toward the golden figure that had appeared as if she were the sun. "I would make a claim on this one."

"Your majesty?" Mike stared in disbelief at the Queen of the Fae. She was wearing a crimson gown with a dark crown of obsidian on her head. Remembering his fae manners, he knelt his head in reverence. "You honor us with your presence."

"I am not here for you, Caretaker." Titania's golden eyes blazed as she studied him for several long moments. "Before you make any decision regarding this man's fate, I have a claim of my own to make."

"Then speak, Queen of the Fae." Mike threw a warning look at Lily and was relieved to see that the succubus had not only moved away from her, but had taken on the guise of a child and was hiding behind Asterion to avoid notice. "We find ourselves in the middle of a difficult situation, but are willing to offer you simple fare should you desire it."

"I won't be here long." Titania studied Mohan in the same way that she had looked at Mike. The gaze of the fae was inscrutable this time, but something Mohan saw had him shivering pathetically in the fountain. "You see, Caretaker, I have come on a matter of grave importance. I was informed that a rather egregious break in Hospitality occurred on these premises."

"I wasn't even here," said Mohan with a sneer. "The fae have no claim."

"You were the one who sent your people here. You gave them their instructions, all in the guise of luring the Caretaker to a different location just so you could betray him."

Mohan actually paled. "And? I can smell death in the air. If anyone broke Hospitality, it was the Caretaker's family."

"Many of the dead were not your people. The others were not offered Hospitality and I care nothing for them." Titania smiled, and it was terrifying. "Did not his people offer you food? Did they not offer good company?" The faerie queen surveyed everyone. "Where is Death? I believe he offered these things on your behalf."

Mike frowned. Where was the Reaper?

"Death is not here, your majesty." Eulalie stepped forward and did an odd curtsy.

"Interesting. I have not spoken with one of your kind in centuries." Titania's gown rippled, briefly turning green. "Where is he?"

"On a mission to recover the children, your majesty. He's really good with maps, so I sent him, Bigfoot, Dana--"

Titania waved her off. "I don't need details. Where is my daughter?"

Cecilia floated toward the fae queen and bowed. "Your majesty."

"Did you witness Hospitality given?"

The banshee nodded. "In my own way, your majesty. The one known as Death offered them tea on many occasions. The mortal known as Cyrus accepted this Hospitality on their behalf while he was here."

"Indeed. Where is your brother?"

"I be here, your majesty." Suly stepped forward. There was a dark stain on the side of his head that was criss-crossed with black veins.

"You were hurt." Titania's voice was like a knife.

"I've 'ad worse, yer majesty." He bowed. "I be blessed that they forgot to use silver. I also witnessed first hand the break in Hospitality."

Titania turned to face Zel. "It would seem that we have competing claims, Chieftain of the Moon tribe." Her voice softened. "This man is responsible for the abduction of your child on a completely different property. However, he did break the laws of Hospitality to do so. I suppose we could debate which crime occurred first, but I would be happy to just grant you a favor and allow you to make the claim first."

Zel scowled at Titania, her eyes briefly shifting over to meet Mike's. He shook his head and then tilted it in Beth's direction. Ever since Cecilia's return from the Royal Court, the general rule was that no deals or conversations should be had with the fae without either Mike or Beth weighing in directly.

"I would like to...defer to my legal counsel on this matter." Zel was practically grinding her teeth in anger. "I will abide by her words."

"I see." Titania nodded demurely, an act that was somehow terrifying. The queen turned to Beth, who now stood at attention. "So, what say you, then?"

Beth cleared her throat. "Your majesty, it is common for the laws of this country to define legal consequences around whether or not there was intent. This can be the difference between manslaughter and homicide."

"I'm aware of your quaint interpretations, but please continue."

"It would be my understanding that Hospitality was broken the moment this man ordered the children to be taken. The moment of intent, as it were." Beth gestured in Mohan's direction. "So your claim would precede our own, should you and I agree."

"Interestingly enough, this was similar to the argument I intended to make. It would appear we are in agreement." Titania predatory eyes slid over Mohan. "Mohan of the Navaratna Clan, you and the people under your charge were offered Hospitality at this man's home. You were granted both company and something to eat, yet chose to take advantage of your host's kindness to steal away his children."

"He had no right!" Mohan shouted, launching spittle through the air. "This man took the love of my life from me!"

"You love no person other than yourself." Titania's voice was like an assassin's steel blade. "Blades of grass will never be trees, no matter how small you make yourself."

"I challenge him to a duel!" Mohan's features distorted as the scales beneath his skin manifested. "Mike Radley, I challenge you to--"

"Enough." Titania clapped her hands together and there was suddenly no air to breathe. Those who required it knelt down and gasped for several seconds before Titania clapped her hands once again. She turned to face Ratu. "How long do your kind typically live?" she asked, her tone suddenly sweet.