The Misadventures of Annika Brisby (27 page)

“Yuri…” She shook her head in disgust before downing her glass of wine. “I’ve never been so disgusted with her in the past three-hundred years as I’ve been this entire visit.”

“I feel the same way.” Talvi frowned and took a bite of taboule and tomatoes drizzled in olive oil.

“First she starts dressing strange,” Sariel began to explain. “That’s fine, I say. It’s fun to wear dresses and makeup every now and again. After all, if I did it, it can’t be that bad. Then she’s been fussing over the celebration for weeks. No, actually it’s been months! Strange, I say, but I suppose that’s understandable. It’s an important birthday and we all know she likes to have things be just so. Next she’s inviting nocturnal killers to her birthday party. But it’s her party and she’s entitled to some leeway with the guest list. Then I hear from who else but your cousin Sevan that Yuri is drunk as a sailor and has some vampire’s face in her neck! Now,
what the hell
can I say about that?”

“She didn’t,” Talvi said under his breath. Sariel made no effort to hide her contemptuous laugh as she decided to forgo the hassle of a glass and drank straight from her bottle.

“Oh she most certainly did, and right in front of
everyone,
” she sneered. “And by
everyone
, I mean your pious aunt and uncle, your fairy godmother, your parents, and the other five-hundred and six souls that showed up for your birthday!”

“That’s going too far!” Runa exclaimed. “Do you think she wants to become one of them?”

“At this point I think anything’s a possibility,” Talvi said bitterly. “I don’t even know who she is anymore. The Yuri I knew would never have allowed such disrespect in our home. You know how she is when she feels slighted.”

“Yes. She’s unbearable,” Sariel muttered, and said no more. They finished their dinner in silence and Runa volunteered to clean up while Sariel, Talvi, and Annika walked to her guest room to gather her things. He was quite serious that he didn’t want her to spend a moment out of his sight, which she discovered when she headed out the door and was scared half to death by a tall, dark figure leaning against the wall. At first it looked like Finn’s silhouette, but his hair wasn’t curly. It was straight and long, hanging far past his shoulders. Talvi pulled Annika behind him, and squeezed her arm so hard that it hurt.

“What are
you
doing here?” he said in a cautious voice. The figure didn’t budge. Only his lips moved.

“I came to offer Miss Annika my most sincere apologies for Vaj’s behavior. He is still young, and a little rough around the edges. I should have locked him up for the night.”

“Yes, you should have,” Talvi replied harshly. “Speaking of being locked up, why aren’t you? Where’s my father?” Konstantin tilted his head to one side, then the other, eyeing his host carefully.

“I will not be monitored like an unseasoned fledgling. Your father and brother are playing cards with Vaj in the library as I speak. I stepped out to get a bite to eat.” He chuckled at his last remark and struck a match along the wall, lighting the lantern in his hand. The flame danced in his dark eyes and cast a warm glow on his pale, but gorgeous face. He offered the lantern to Annika, but Talvi snatched it away.

“I only wanted the lady to see where she was going. It is very chivalrous, how you keep her under your wing…although I am wondering which one of us she is safer with, Prince Talvi.” The low, steady tone he used seemed to work just as effectively at hypnotizing Annika as it did to antagonize Talvi.

“Konstantin, I’m curious,” Sariel asked, just before Talvi could put a stop to Konstantin’s twisted humor. “Why didn’t Pavlo come? We were expecting him, not that monster you brought along in his place.” Konstantin’s beautiful features transitioned from looking amused to becoming unreadable.

“It was not my decision to bring Vaj. As for Pavlo, I don’t know where he is. I hoped to discuss this at the meeting. Again, Miss Annika, I apologize for Vaj upsetting you. If he causes you further harm he will cease to exist. I give you my word.” He gave her a polite nod of the head and continued down the hallway towards the kitchen, carrying himself regally as Annika watched in fascination.

“Hurry along,” Talvi said sharply, breaking her trance. But instead of heading towards his room, he turned in the direction of the kitchen and stormed back to it with the girls trotting behind him. They saw Runa laughing at a comment Konstantin had made while Yuri was slipping into her coat. The long-haired vampire looked up at Annika and smiled ever so softly. His eyes reflected the light like two glowing emeralds, and she swore she heard him ask,
Who do you think will keep you safer? The lieutenant who commands an army, or a prince who commands none?

“What are you doing?” Talvi demanded of his sister.

“We’re going out,” Yuri replied flippantly as she pulled her hood over her head. “Konstantin is still weak from his trip, and I’m accompanying him.”

“Don’t you think you embarrassed yourself enough the other night, or is there still more shame you can bring upon this family?”

“It’s none of your business what I do, as long as I’m not hurting anyone,” she defended.

“Oh really?” Talvi asked her in a voice that made Annika’s stomach lurch. “Is that a fact? What about when you
are
hurting someone? Is it my business
then
?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Yuri said, blowing him off.

“You know
damn well
what I’m talking about!” he roared in her face so loud that everyone winced, except Konstantin. He looked completely unimpressed by the outburst. “How
dare
you serve Annika up on a platter to a vampire in our own home! And what about the lies you spoon fed her about me? Why would you do such a thing? What is wrong with you?”

“Oh ho ho…what is wrong with
me
, you ask?” Yuri gave him the meanest look Annika had ever seen. “What is wrong with
me
? I thought you had changed! I thought perhaps you turned over a new leaf, but noooo…I was wrong. You haven’t changed a bit! You’re still The Prince, aren’t you? Are you happy with yourself,
Prince Talvi
?” She shot Annika an awful expression and then looked back at her brother. “You got what you wanted, didn’t you,
Prince Talvi
? And you dare to call
me
the bloody liar of the family?” Yuri shook her head in disgust and ran out the door to the back yard, but her brother didn’t bother to follow her.

“As for you,” he continued, stepping in front of Konstantin. “If you touch anyone else in my home, I’ll make sure—”

“You will make sure what?” Konstantin interrupted, suddenly standing in front of Talvi’s face. The elf and the vampire stood the same height, their noses almost touching, but while the elf was glaring furiously, the vampire only seemed mildly annoyed. Talvi shoved him hard against the wall and let his fist fly at Konstantin’s jaw, but the vampire caught his forearm in a move barely visible to the eye. Talvi tried to pull away, yet Konstantin’s grip was equally as powerful.

“Perhaps you should give your father more credit. Do you really believe he would welcome me into his home if he felt I would harm his family?” The vampire released him and brushed off his jacket nonchalantly. “It would not be wise to test me again, Prince Talvi. I wouldn’t want to prove your father wrong after working with him for all these years.” He gave Runa and Annika a courteous nod and then walked outside to join Yuri as though nothing had happened. Before the heavy door shut all the way, Talvi kicked it so hard that he put a large dent in the solid oak. The glass from the window of it fell out, splintering upon contact with the tiled floor. The girls looked frightened, and even the fearless Sariel was unsure what to think as she stepped carefully away from the broken glass. Up until this moment, Talvi had always been as gentle as a pussycat, never acting with such violence.

“He’s not that bad, Talvi,” Runa said softly. “You could try being civil towards him, at the very least.” His head whipped around and he looked like he was going to say something terrible, but instead he took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

“I’m losing my sister to him. She’s been acting so strange ever since they began writing to each other. She wants nothing more than to be like him. I can
feel
it,” he insisted from where he stood in the shards of glass that crunched under his shoes.

“I’m sure it’s nothing serious,” Hilda tried to assure him. “Besides, how could an elf ever become a vampire?”

“Why don’t you ask Konstantin?” Finn suggested, having come into the kitchen just in time to see Talvi break the door.

“What are you saying?” Sariel asked soberly.

“You mean you really don’t know?” asked Finn.

“Don’t know what?” Talvi demanded.

“He was one of us before he was made into a vampire.”

“
What
?” Sariel hissed. “How could we have not known this?”

“I certainly couldn’t tell you. Haven’t you ever wondered why he’s so much taller compared to other vampires?” Finn asked dubiously. “He wears his hair long so that his ears aren’t revealed.” No one had an answer. “Well…it doesn’t matter what he once was,” he continued, while giving Talvi the most disappointed look Annika had ever thought him capable of. “What matters is that Father trusts and respects him, Mother trusts and respects him, as do Anthea and I, and
you
ought to as well. Now get out of here so I can clean up your bloody mess.”

With nothing left to say, Talvi led Annika back to his room where he locked the door shut. She went to the stereo to play some music, thinking it would help him calm down, but he wouldn’t allow it.

“If anyone comes nearby I might not hear them,” he excused. He sank into the chair at his desk and stared blankly at the mess of papers in front of him. Annika didn’t know what to do. She felt bad for him, that he had so many things upset him in so little time. She walked quietly behind him, and set her hand on his shoulder. He tensed up even more, but she reached out her other hand and began to rub the many knots in his muscles. He closed his eyes and sighed as she tried her hardest to turn those knots into putty.

“Will you promise me something?” he murmured before grasping her hand and looking up at her.

“What is it?” she asked, somewhat frightened by the expression in his eyes.

“I know I’ve already asked this of you, but I want it to be clear that you need to stay very close to me after sunset from now on. Don’t leave my sight. I have a bad feeling…I feel like something awful is going to happen. I can’t trust my sister anymore. In my entire life, I’ve never felt anything like what I’m experiencing right now.” He guided her around to the front of the chair and sat her down in his lap, looking at her. “Can you promise me that, my little dove?”

“You’re not following me into the bathroom,” she said, trying to joke with him. He smiled faintly, but did not alter his request. “Fine, I swear, I promise.”

“And while you’re at it, promise me that you won’t go chasing after Konstantin, no matter how charming he acts towards you.” Annika looked at him skeptically. Sure, Konstantin was a babe, but so was the man whose lap she was sitting on. She wondered if it was his jealous streak acting up again.

“Why would I chase after him?”

“I don’t know, just don’t do it.”

“Trust me—I have no desire to be a vampire,” she sighed as she nuzzled against his sideburns. “And if anyone’s going to bite my neck, it’s going to be you.”

a different living legend

Two more days dragged by while everyone waited for the mysterious druid named Dragana to arrive. She was probably the only person alive who hadn’t been at the birthday party. Annika was no longer free to roam about the house unchaperoned, and she was locked in Talvi’s room at night. It wasn’t unpleasant by any means. The Derbedrossians were staying in the house as well, waiting for Dragana to arrive, and that meant there was a chance of bumping into Sevan. Between the angry glares from Yuri and the spiteful sneers from Sevan, Annika preferred to spend most of her free time in Talvi’s room anyway. She passed the time playing backgammon with him, reading, listening to music and being made love to over and over, which wasn’t a bad deal at all until a loud knock interrupted them on the third morning of her house arrest.

“Dragana is here,” Finn announced from the other side of the door. “We’re going to gather in Father’s library right away, so if you’re in the middle of something, wrap it up.”

A half hour later they filed into the library and took their seats under the rotunda around the large table with a handful of the guests from the birthday celebration. The wolves were curled up near the fireplace fast asleep, but their ears remained alert, twitching and swiveling at every abrupt sound.

There were two people she didn’t recognize, a young man and a very, very old woman clutching a gnarled oak cane. There was a wild, untamed look to both of them, especially the man. His brown hair had been formed into narrow dreadlocks that faded to blonde towards the ends, and his skin was deeply tanned like he’d spent every day of his life surfing in the sun. He wore a goatee and his blue eyes were so pale that they were like two bright lights in contrast with his tan skin. But the ancient woman next to him was even stranger looking. Her silvery white hair was also in long, thin ropes that almost touched the floor, and her age could be measured by the amount of color that remained at the ends. The wrinkles in her face were so deep that they seemed to have been carved with a sharp knife. But when she looked up, her eyes scared Annika. They were completely white, except for the tiny black pupils. The woman wore a very plain brown robe, while the young man next to her wore the same brown colored tunic and furry boots that laced up over his knees.

Around their necks and waists hung an array of talismans and amulets with colorful stones and magical runes inscribed in the metal. He helped the woman into a chair and sat beside her, looking around at all the books with a curious expression. Yuri walked in on Konstantin’s arm, looking content with herself. Her escort seemed less gaunt, and there was more color in his cheeks, which Annika took to mean he’d recently eaten. They sat across from the samodivi and next to Vaj, and Konstantin gave him a silent glance that made him lower his fledgling eyes in submission.

“I’m glad all of you could make it this evening,” Ambrose said from the head of the table. “I know there are a few of you who don’t know each other very well, so I will make the introductions.” He motioned around the enormous table. “You all know my wife Althea, and my sons Finn and Talvi, my daughters Anthea and Yuri. Our dear friends Runa, Hilda, and Sariel, and her greatest granddaughter Annika. The fairies Dardis and Chivanni, my wife’s sister Gousine Derbedrossian, her husband Ishkan and their children Zaven and Sevan. Our friends from the North, Konstantin and his companion Vaj, and finally the druid Priestess Dragana and her grandson, Nikola. It’s of utmost importance to set our differences aside and put our minds together to arrive at a solution. All of us at this table have different views and different strengths, and this is precisely why I wanted as few attendants as possible. The problem is already complex enough without involving additional chatter. Konstantin, why don’t you share your thoughts on the closing of the gates between Eritähti and Earth?”

“I would be happy to, Ambrose,” he said and stood up, brushing more invisible lint from his modern-cut jacket. “Finn, if you would be so kind.” Finn went to the wall and pulled down a giant map that measured nearly ten feet across. “We are already aware of the extent of the problem, so I am getting straight to the point,” Konstantin told them, looking quite dignified as Finn handed him a long, slender pointer. “Now…the way I see it, there is only one motive for the complete closings of the portals. It is to keep our world here pure and untouched by anything from the modern human world. But the laws of nature have always meant for our worlds to coexist. Any other arrangement is not natural. It is impossible to deny that we all benefit from humans or their inventions to some degree. Just look at the mills on your river, not to mention there are some of us who rely on humans for more…
basic
needs.” His eyes moved to Annika, and a cold feeling passed over her as her pulse quickened. He walked to the map and pointed to seven specific locations, which Annika recognized from her geography lesson with Finn. Then he pointed to a few other places that she assumed were the other secret portals like the samodivi cave. “The gates have been locked in this specific order, and they all now lead to a wasteland which we know nothing of,” Konstantin continued. “I am suspecting that it is a mirage…a false image meant to deter further investigation, although that is not to say we haven’t tried. I will tell you that I have seen a handful of volunteers step inside of this place…and I have yet to hear of one returning.”

“But it seemed so real,” Runa interrupted. “How can you say it’s a mirage?” The vampire set down his pointer and turned to face his audience.

“It is my opinion, and I am not alone in my beliefs, that the only ones who would have the power to organize and the power to alter nature to such an extreme level are the druids.”

There were more than a few breaths sharply drawn from around the table, but the old woman didn’t flinch at the apparent insult.

“That’s impossible! How can you disrespect Dragana like that?” Ishkan bellowed. “The duty of the druids is to protect the land and teach others to do so, not to
tamper
with it. I would like to know where you came up with this vile theory.” Konstantin walked slowly to where the Derbedrossians were sitting, making them stiffen in their chairs.

“From one who would know better than you.”

“And just whom might that be?” Gousine asked through her thin lips.

“I was invited here by Ambrose, but I was ordered to attend by Vladislav.” There was a murmur around the table that told Annika this person must be very important.

“Vladislav?” Ishkan asked, apparently stunned. “But…he…”

A thin voice mixed with a hissing sound spoke up in a language no one could understand. Everyone at the table turned to look at the old woman.

“You knew all along?” Finn asked, quite taken aback, and Konstantin took his seat beside Yuri. There was a brief moment as the old woman spoke at length to her grandson. It sounded like a faint windstorm, swirling and blowing and gusting at times for emphasis. It was the strangest thing Annika had ever heard, like what the trees might sound like if they could speak.

“What Vladislav suspected is true,” Nikola confirmed. His voice carried the essence of the moving air, but it was more of a summer breeze than a harsh winter wind. “No creature has such abilities as we do; no other being has the strength or skill to block the bridges between the worlds. But we don’t take responsibility. It’s against our teachings to alter nature like this. There can only be one explanation…” He stopped and looked at his grandmother again.

“Pa…za…chi…” she breathed in a barely audible voice. More silence.

“The Pazachi are a myth,” Ishkan arrogantly scoffed, and his wife nodded her head.

“I assure you, it is no myth,” Nikola said coolly. Ishkan glared at him.

“There is no proof that they exist!” he insisted.

“Well, actually—” Finn began, ready to share some contradictory information, but Nikola cut him off.

“No proof? You ask for proof?” Nikola asked. His blue eyes blazed angrily, but his voice remained calm and steady. “Tell me, Ishkan; tell me why my brother and I were orphaned and left for my grandmother to raise. Try telling Anthea that there are no Pazachi. Then tell her where the father of her children is.” Nikola and Dragana’s icy stares were enough to shut Ishkan up for good. “The Pazachi are very real, and they have been gaining strength in their numbers.”

“Aren’t they fairly radical?” Finn asked him.

“The term ‘fairly’ is very kind of you to use, Finn,” Nikola answered. “Ever since humans started traveling to the heavens above and building massive weapons that could obliterate an entire city within seconds, the Pazachi have grown more and more extreme in their beliefs and larger in their numbers. I think they are afraid of how fast human technology is advancing, and of how far removed modern humans have become from the very land that sustains them. The Pazachi’s views continue to gain sympathy and support as time goes by, and this is what makes them so dangerous,” he explained.

“But most of them are human,” Yuri stated. “How can they be so intolerant of their own race?”

“Wouldn’t you be intolerant of a population that could destroy not only your village, but your entire forest in a matter of heartbeats? They’ve already done it to each other in the modern world. They still do to this day…every day.” Nikola’s eyes looked heartbroken as he said these things.

“Would you care to elaborate on that?” Sevan asked with contempt from her place beside her parents.

“I think we are all aware that modern humans have a tendency to leave nature worse for the wear after they’ve set foot on it,” Nikola said, and glanced towards Annika. “No other creature does what humans do to their environment. They poison their land, their water, their food…they even poison the air they breathe. It affects all living things, from the enormous whale to the tiny ant, and humans only grow more ignorant and disconnected from the land as time goes by. They chew down the forests that serve to clean the air, but unlike termites who only feed on dead wood, humans are indiscriminate. They are the only animal that is capable of such intelligence and yet do such asinine things. It’s only a matter of time before their species dies out. Already there is such a high level of violence and disease among them. I have heard that some of them will go as far as to cut out their stomachs when they grow too large. They’re sick; mentally and physically, and it has a ripple effect on everything around them.”

“They cut out their stomachs? That can’t be true!” Hilda frowned with a look of revulsion that a few others around the table shared.

“Yeah, it’s true,” Annika replied, feeling suddenly ashamed for being one of these detested modern humans. “It’s called gastric bypass. People do it all the time.” There was a round of horrified whispers of disbelief around the table.

“These are but a few reasons to explain the logic behind the Pazachi’s actions,” Nikola concluded.

“Regardless of the reason, their intolerance of the mortal realm is unacceptable,” Konstantin said. “It is not their choice to make for any of us.”

“Can’t the Pazachi just tell them to stop what they’re doing?” Runa asked naïvely. “They could help teach the modern humans how to live closer to nature.”

“If only it were that simple, little samodiva,” Nikola said with a bemused expression. “I think it will take more than diplomacy to stop them. They’re trained to fight to the death for their beliefs. Negotiating is not a likely option.”

“Blood will be spilled over this,” Sariel said in a scornful tone. “The only question is how much, and whom it belongs to.”

“We have to know where they are first,” Finn explained. “Then we can strategize.” Konstantin nodded in agreement and walked over to the map.

“Unfortunately, since they are nomads, they could be anywhere in this general area.” His hand passed over a large body of water and made an arch to the northeast of it, covering two feet of the map. Annika didn’t know how many miles or kilometers it was, but she knew it was a lot of territory to cover.

“I still have a hard time believing this,” Ishkan disagreed with his nose in the air. “There are too many uncertainties. And even if you’re right, that it’s the Pazachi’s fault, I certainly don’t mind cutting off interaction with humans. I’m not willing to risk traveling so far away, and for what? Destruction of our land for the sake of convenience is
not
the way of the elves!”

“This mindset is exactly what has allowed the Pazachi to become so powerful,” Nikola argued.

“Call me what you will, but I won’t risk losing life or limb fighting against them when deep down I agree with their motives.”

“I would go myself if my children didn’t need me,” Anthea stammered, choking back her tears. “I would leave this very instant if I knew I had a chance to have Asbjorn home!” She abruptly stood and left the table, sobbing loudly as she ran out. Her mother glared at Ishkan and followed her distraught daughter out of the library.

“I agree with Konstantin,” said Nikola. “I’m willing to seek them out to try and stop them, but I cannot do it alone and be victorious.”

“We will accompany you in scouting their location. When we find them I’ll send word for reinforcements, if necessary,” Konstantin said, looking at Vaj for a moment. “It’s not exactly a simple matter for us to travel during daylight, but we will do what we can to restore the natural balance of our worlds.”

“I’ll go,” Sariel volunteered without a second thought. Hilda and Runa looked at each other and nodded their heads.