Satyr Play 02 Pt. 02

"What happened to Morris?" Mary asked.

"Crushed under a falling dragon," Roy answered.

Mary blinked at him. "Crushed by a dragon?"

He nodded. "The previous owner of this mansion. There are large caverns under the house where Walter Zhao could drop his glamor and stretch out his wings. He couldn't fly down there, but he could be what he was." At Mary's incredulous stare, he continued. "There aren't a lot of dragons left."

"What... what happened to this one?"

Roy scowled. "Walter was a slippery one. He tried to do something I'm not at liberty to talk about, under a Hidden Races Council edict. Trust me when I say it was evil on a level that makes Hitler look like a schoolyard bully. Caught us all off guard... except for the witch-"

"Ok, who is this witch you keep talking about?" Mary said in frustration.

"I'll not speak her name as that might draw her attention," Roy snapped.

Mary gave Roy an evaluating look. "Superstitious?

"Cautious," he grumbled. "Listen, if you want more information about the witch, speak with Henry. She raised him from a baby after all."

Mary's eyebrows went up in surprise.

"He's the only one with any affection for her. Anyway, she knew he was up to this big evil, or rather she caught him in the act of it and prevented him from completing it. The dragon responded by trying to kill her."

"So... she killed him instead."

"No, Sigrid chased him into the sky, outflew him, outfoxed him, and knocked him out of the sky. He landed on the Detective who was about to start shooting. Then Sigrid drove her spear through Walter's brain for what he'd done to Meixiu."

Mary was shaking her head. "Wait, wait. Sigrid chased him into the sky?"

Roy looked back at her. "Yes, she's a Valkyrie. She has the loveliest wings!" He sighed as he saw Mary's confusion. "Listen, I'm sorry to dump all these new concepts on you all at once, but I want to be completely honest with you, so you know that we're the good guys, or at least we try to be. I was hoping to sit down to talk to you about something else."

She considered the man before her. As fantastic as it sounded, she believed his story about Harmon and Morrison. With the beings, she was meeting tonight and her experience with Roy in that alley, her gut was telling her she could trust him. "Now's a good time for me," she said.

"Good! Ok, well, it's like this. How set are you on being a police officer?" he asked.

Her brows came down in a frown. "Why are you asking?" she asked, her tone automatically defensive.

"I was hoping you might consider coming to work at VRL. If you can control your temper that is." He had a little smile on his face when he said it, so she wouldn't be offended.

"I had reason to be angry, at the time," she growled.

"No, you thought you had a reason, but you weren't ready to listen. I'm glad we had the chance to talk tonight," Roy suggested.

She held his eye, but he just waited, and she finally nodded. Then her look turned cautious once more. "What would I be doing?"

"We'll see what your skills make you suited for, but I think you'll find working for VRL to be far more rewarding than the NYPD. We're security for an investment house and for the most part that's a pretty cushy job. But I run my pack as a commando team. We protect the employees of VRL, and sometimes we're called upon to defend the company from external threats of a non-Human nature. This may entail protection details or even black ops missions if the threat proves to be dangerously hostile and requires intervention. I think you could be a definite asset to the team."

"How do you get away with running black ops missions in New York City?" she asked, curious.

"We train hard, and they're all seasoned professionals. It's not just a lot of machismo bullshit. It's about teamwork and intelligence gathering. Henry has been a positive influence for that last part."

Mary looked at Roy's earnest expression and thought about her recent issues with the NYPD. She frowned. "I still have to deal with the hearing. I'm not sure if they intend to press charges against me."

"Join VRL, and you'll have Mahati's law firm support you through any legal difficulties you have with the police, at no cost to you," Roy suggested.

Mary smiled at Roy. "Are you sure you're not in sales?"

He just chuckled at that. He watched the woman consider her options, but he was pretty sure she was in. His pack was down one member with the loss of Billy, but Mary would be a definite improvement. Just to hedge his bets he gave her one of his most charming smiles.

Her amused snort wasn't the expected reaction, but it didn't look like he'd harmed his sales pitch.

-=-

Camila followed Henry out the back door and saw he was sitting in the gazebo. She walked to it, climbed the stairs and Henry turned his head to look at her. She saw shame on his face.

"Henry? What's wrong?" She pulled up an ottoman and sat close to him.

He sighed. "I- I was so fucking jealous just then, and that made me feel colossally stupid. I'm a fucking Satyr. I stick my dick anywhere its welcome, and when it's not, I flush the area with pheromones to make it welcome. I'm attracted to so many women, that's not something anyone can build a solid relationship on. Besides, Marisa is a Succubus, and my new friend Nate is an Incubus. Of course, they're meant to be together!"

"Firstly, let me address the race card you just threw down. Ulysses was an Incubus, and I'm a Succubus, but our relationship didn't work. Being complimentary races doesn't have anything to do with making it work. There's a much more complex level of chemistry involved. The key ingredient in any successful relationship is empathy. A willingness to put yourself in someone else's position to understand how they may feel. Ulysses failed miserably at that and instead tried to compete with me." She saw Henry understood, so she moved on.

"As for your being a Satyr, that doesn't make you less attractive as a mate! And I'm not saying that as a Succubus but as someone not locked into Human preconceptions of relationships. Your adopted parent did an amazing job of raising you as a Human, but she did you such a disservice by teaching you their biases too. You are not Human. As long as it doesn't jeopardize the security of the Hidden Races, you don't have to follow Human social norms when it conflicts with your true nature. You can have multiple concurrent relationships if the other parties accept that from the start. Succubi are emotionally wired for this as well."

Camila gave Henry a sad smile. "You need to let go of those incompatible life concepts. They're just going to make you miserable. Jealousy is a stupid emotion. It only hurts you and the ones you care for."

Henry nodded to Camila. "Is this the tough love speech?"

She smiled in return. "Exactly that." She stood and reached down a hand. "Come on; we need to finish indoctrinating your friends into this brave new world of magic."

He groaned but accepted her hand to stand next to her. They walked back to the back door, and as it opened, they heard a scream. Henry rushed forward and saw Mahati standing in the doorway to the dining room with Michelle at her back. Both were looking into the room with shocked and worried expressions. Henry eased past to see Dayshia gasping for breath next to the table; her chair knocked over.

"I thought you said you were ok with spiders," he asked gently to the frightened woman.

"I said I love spiders, but you said nothing about snake people!" Dayshia snapped.

"She can see me?!?" Mahati exclaimed, her surprise emphasizing her accent. Michelle was wearing a surprised but oddly pleased smile on her face.

Sandy and Tish stared at the petite beauty in the doorway with new appreciation.

"Dayshia's eyes are extraordinary! They can see through glamors to the truth below," Henry said.

Mahati stormed into the room to confront Henry. "That's all well and good, but she needs to be able to see glamors! The Hidden Races Security Division won't take lightly to someone who reacts like that!"

Henry looked to Dayshia who was struggling to cope with the fact that a tall snake person was standing so close. He sighed and considered his new friend. It was time to think way outside the box. This was chaos magic, after all.

He turned to take her hands in his. "You know what I looked like before you changed. I'd like you to try to see me like that now."

She blinked at him. "What? What are you talking about?" she muttered.

He gave her a small grin. "Your eye's abilities are controlled by magic. Chaotic magic at that. How it changes people and what abilities it gives them is unknowable until you experiment. If you can see through the magic that even fools technology, maybe your eyes can see in different ways. Like maybe you can see into the different spectrums such as infrared? Maybe, if you tried, you could see glamors too. Give it a try. From the few experiences I've had with magic, the trick seems to be asserting your will with a firmly defined intent. In your mind, tell your eyes you want to see me as you remember seeing me. Push with your will."

Dayshia still looked unconvinced, but she closed her eyes and concentrated. When she opened them again, her mouth dropped open in surprise and she jolted back.

"What's wrong?" Henry asked.

"You're glowing red and smoke is coming from your mouth!" she gasped then turned her eyes to the lawyer. "You're not glowing at all. I mean, not from your snake parts." A shiver ran down her spine.

Henry relaxed and smiled. "That confirms your ability to see in other ranges. You're seeing infrared."

Dayshia blinked her lovely eyes at him. "What- what do I do?" she asked in a quiet voice.

"You were likely thinking about what I just said about seeing in infrared. You need to see me as Henry when you met in Sandy's condo. You have to hold the image in your mind. Try again. Use your will. See what you want to see," he coached her gently.

She nodded and closed her eyes again. Frowning, she recalled the meeting and her mind jumped to kissing him in the entranceway to Sandy's condo. Her frown slipped into a smile. She opened her eyes and there was Henry smiling at her.

"Oh! You're you!" she squealed excitedly. She looked to the doorway. "Michelle!" The woman beamed a smile at her. Dayshia looked to the two who had been Succubus and Incubus moments before. "Marisa! Oh, hello! You are tall, dark and dreamy! Enchanté indeed!" she purred as she looked at Nate. He grinned back at her.

Finally, she let herself look to Mahati and sighed. "You don't look like a snake lady anymore."

"What am I wearing?" Mahati insisted for proof.

"Dark blue suit jacket over a crisp white blouse and matching blue skirt. Black, tall boots," Dayshia said in relief. Henry was smiling at her with a thoughtful look, and she caught it. "What?"

"It makes me wonder what else you can do with your eyes?" he said.

"Right now I'm just happy to see what I'm supposed to see. Having options is for another day," Dayshia returned. She rushed over to hug Sandy and Tish.

Mahati gave Henry a worried frown.

He shrugged. "Isn't that what you needed? I hope so because it's all I've got."

She sighed then addressed the group. "I need to speak to the new applicants for Hidden Race status."

Mary looked at Henry questioningly.

"Yes, this applies to you as well. You may look human, but you have beyond-human abilities. You need protection," he explained. He gave Mahati a worried look. "Tish would obviously be covered by my Satyr Treaty, but what about the others."

Mahati's frown finally eased. "Everyone, please take a seat." They found their seats around the dining room table once more and made space for the newcomers. Mahati addressed the group. "Thanks to Michelle," she gestured, and the woman nodded. "...your treaty covers them as well." She looked to Michelle to take over, but she just shook her head shyly, so the lawyer continued. "The contract was created from an ancient template, and the Hidden Races Council indicated it should be edited to eliminate any sections that wouldn't apply to Stanley at the time." She looked around and saw she had everyone's attention now.

"Who's Stanley?" Mary asked.

"I'm Stanley or was before I had to change my glamor. I had to take on a new identity as my new glamor didn't let me look like Stanley anymore," Henry explained.

Mahati nodded and continued when she saw Mary's slight nod. "He was one of a kind, so the section on offspring was flagged for removal. Michelle thought that was unfair as, in her words, life finds a way. She not only left the section in but kept all of the redundant and generic verbiage describing the various processes for offspring generation. There is plenty of latitude to cover the creation of a new species of post-Humans. That's especially true since Henry was involved in the creation of each of them. Queen Mab signed the document, and a sufficient number of senior Council officials did as well, so it's binding." She looked to Henry. "It is my understanding you will be going to see Queen Mab to obtain glamors. Is everyone receiving one present?"

Henry shook his head. "There was one more. Roger Jensen. He disappeared the same night he was exposed to the magic. There's been no sign of him since."

"Knowing Roger, he's trying to find some way to undermine society with his new powers," Tish grumbled.

"Is he?" Mahati asked in concern.

Tish jolted as she hadn't realized she'd spoken aloud. She had a guilty look on her face as she glanced at Dayshia and Sandy, but all three nodded reluctantly.

"I'm going to have to report that to the Security Council. There's too much at risk," the lawyer stated.

"Roger isn't going to be easy to find. He's a huge conspiracy nut, and now that he has proof, he's going to run with it. When he's not with us, he hangs out with other conspiracy nuts. I don't know how they think, so I have no idea where they'd be," Tish explained.

"Do you have a recent picture of him?" Mahati asked.

Sandy nodded. "I do. On my phone upstairs."

At Mahati's look, Sandy rushed off to get her phone.

"What's going to happen to Roger when they find him?" Mary asked.

"It depends on how serious he is about exposing the truth," Roy said grimly. "With the very survival of the Hidden Races at stake, the Council will take extreme measures to ensure secrecy is maintained. Our personal survival depends on that as well. Did Roger ever tell you how you would survive if he managed to destabilize society and bring it all crashing down?"

Dayshia and Tish shook their heads sadly.

"That's because his mission to end it was more important to him than you were. Sorry to be blunt but that's how he thinks," Roy explained.

Sandy returned and shared the image with Mahati. She also gave her his address.

"Thank you," the lawyer said as she quickly wrote a message to the Council's Security Division, attached the image and sent it off.

"Am I going to have to move out of my condo?" Sandy blurted to the lawyer.

Mahati blinked at her. "Where do you live?"

"I'm in unit 401 of the building Henry lives in," she replied.

"Oh, yes. I'm sorry. That building is one of a group in the five boroughs which has iron-clad rules, backed by the Hidden Races Security Division. Only Humans are allowed on even numbered floors. Due to your special circumstances, I'm sure we can get your name to the top of the waiting list for another unit on an odd numbered floor. No guarantees on how soon it would be though."

"But I inherited the condo from my grandmother!"

"Who was Human, as you were when you inherited it. You are not Human now. We cannot break this rule. I'm sorry." Mahati insisted.

Sandy looked sad, and Henry's heart hurt once more for what he'd done to her. "I'm so sorry."

She looked at him then walked over and hugged him. Kesini wrapped herself around both of them, and they shared a smile as her affection was clearly felt by both.

"You can stay with me until an apartment becomes available," Henry offered, and Sandy's eyes widened in surprise.

"Do our apartment buildings have the same rule?" Tish asked.

Mahati looked to her. "There aren't many in the city that feature this segregation. Most choose to live amongst Humans in non-segregated buildings. I understand VRL's decision to arrange for Henry to move into the apartment he did as his circumstances and theirs made this the best option. Give me the addresses of your buildings, and I'll check to see if they have segregation. Odds are, they don't. In that case, I'll arrange to have your apartment's registered and prepared before you return to them. A team from the Hidden Races Security Division will visit to ensure your windows are treated to hide your true selves from the outside world as well as confirm there are no hidden surveillance devices inside the unit. Any doors from the outside will be adjusted to display an indicator that someone has entered your unit such as building maintenance and inspection. When you see this indicator, you must immediately contact the team to do another sweep. It's a minor inconvenience, costs nothing to you personally, and is mandatory. Failure to do this puts us all at risk and will be treated as a threat to us all. You don't want that." Seeing their nervousness, she glanced to Sigrid who took over.

"It seems a little daunting but understand one thing; it's for your protection as well. Anyone putting you at risk is going to be dealt with to ensure your safety."

"Like Roger," Dayshia said softly.

Sandy perked up nervously. "What do you mean by dealt with?"

Sigrid turned to look at her. "If Roger is insistent on exposing the fact of our existence as part of his anarchist agenda, then equally extreme measures will likely be taken to ensure that doesn't happen. I'm sorry, but it's that critical."

The room went quiet as people thought about that.

Nate was aware that the mood in the room was becoming gloomy, so he tried to redirect it. "I just moved out of my friend Jo's place, and I'm crashing in my buddy Joey's workout room until I can find a new place to live. Any suggestions?" He bounced his eyebrows with a grin and got a few chuckles.

"Finding an affordable place in New York is a battle in itself. Good luck with your hunt!" Sigrid said with a smile.

Mary caught Mahati's attention. "I own my own small one bedroom home. Am I going to need to do all that magic shit to my home too?" Roy snorted in amusement at her tone and got a smile from her.

The lawyer gave Mary a careful look. "You have no visual manifestation of your non-Human nature?"

Mary looked to Henry who shook his head. "No, I guess I don't."

"Then no. However, if you entertain other Hidden Races in your home, you'd need to inform them that your home has no protection. It is wiser to have the windows treated and the address registered. Again, it costs nothing and protects us all," Mahati said with a raised eyebrow.

Henry saw Mary was satisfied with that answer and was appearing much more comfortable with the group. He watched Roy move closer to speak with her as Nate moved to talk to Marisa. He sat back and watched Sandy, Tish, and Dayshia talking with Mahati, Meixiu, and Michelle, who was actually joining in on the conversation.

Recalling his earlier conversation with Camila, he glanced a Marisa and saw she was smiling happily at Nate and laughing at his jokes. That man was clearly smitten, and Henry allowed himself a moment to let that sink in. He couldn't hold it against Nate for being attracted to Marisa, especially when the feeling seemed to be mutual. He was going to step back and let that develop into whatever it might become. He owed Marisa that much at least.