Birthrights (4 page)

“Good noon day to ya, lass,” he spoke with a gentle
Irish lilt that reminded Caislyn a bit of her father. “Me name's
Angus. I have something' here fer ya.” He fingered a little card
that was in his hand, no bigger than a typical business card. It
was predominantly black with a few splashes of color here and
there. “Twill get ya to the party. 'Tis the questions you ask there
that will lead you to the answers ya seek.”

The Irish were sometimes as hard to decipher as their
riddles, but Caislyn continued to listen to the little man. The
frustration was clearly showing on her face, though she held it
calmly out of her voice when she spoke “Is this about my
parents?”

“Aye, lass, 'tis in fact.” Seeing her frustration,
the little man felt compelled to add, “All I can offer ya, I've
been bound, ya see. Can't say this or that, but the card I can give
and promise ye this, twill lead to that which will bring ye
answers.” He reached out and took Caislyn's hand, turning it palm
up so that he could place the card there. His fingers lingered, for
a gentle moment in her hand before he closed her own hand around
the card. “Be wary, lass. 'Tis a rough road ye travel, though you
won't be on it alone for long. Not that the company will make the
path any less difficult, ye see.” With a sigh he allowed his hands
to fall from hers and began walking back to the front of the store
towards the door with his odd gait that reminded her of her the
ommpa loompas from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Caislyn
managed a nod of thanks and mock understanding before she heard the
familiar tinkle the door gave off as the Fey left the store. She
looked down at the card clasped ever so gently in her
hand.
　

The moment Caislyn opened her hand so that she could
view the card full on, she nearly laughed. She had almost been
dreading what it would say. She recognized right away though. This
was a card you get as a sort of invite to a rave. A rave, being the
type of party where everything goes, the music is as loud as the
revelers can stand, lasers flash, and dancers, well they do so much
more than dance at these things. Caislyn hadn't been to a good rave
since before her parents went missing. Just as the thought popped
in her head she chided herself and remembered this was not a chance
to go party, this was a chance to get answers. 'The little Fey man
had told her so,' she thought to herself, nearly laughing at the
thought. The only problem was, the raves always coincided with
specific moon phases. This one was for the first Summer New Moon.
This was a new moon night, so the rave had to be tonight, which
didn't leave Caislyn a lot of time to translate the riddle that was
the card. These raves were for the magical in nature. The card was
a clue that led you to the golden ticket, so to speak. You had to
find the guy they called the “Ticket Master” in order to get your
pass that you needed to get in to the party. And you had to do it
by a certain time of day or all was lost and you would find
yourself sitting this rave out. Caislyn had been to her fair share
of raves before her parents went missing, so she knew the protocol.
She also knew, as she looked down at her watch again, that she was
running out of time.

Caislyn looked again at the little black card that
sat in her palm. The glyphs that seemed to jump off the card were
calling to her. She knew two things instantly. There would be no
humans attending tonight's little party and that, she knew, because
the card was charmed. As she looked at the card she realized no
human, or lycan for that matter, would be able to read the clue.
The lycans would be able to smell the charm on the card and take it
to someone who could decipher it for them, but the humans just
wouldn't know. The party, it seemed was a product of witches and
vampires. Only a witch could charm the cards, only the vamps would
worry about keeping humans out. Which also meant this was to be a
vegetarian party for them, or at the very least a party where they
brought their own favors. As a general rule, Were-critters weren't
welcome to the indoor raves, and most definitely not the full moon
parties. Even the rave scene doesn't have enough Ketamine to keep a
werewolf down for long. Since it was only a new moon, maybe there
would be a few who would show up.

Caislyn went to lock up the store, looking at her
watch once again, it was already five o'clock. The ticket master
usually only hung around till about six. Caislyn began cursing the
little man for showing up so late to give her the card with the
clues. After all, she still hadn't even sat down and deciphered it
to know where to meet up with the ticket master. Once she did, she
would have to get to where ever he was, which usually wasn't
anywhere near the vicinity of the rave. Considering most indoor
raves were held in this part of town since the humans had long
since abandoned it. Caislyn realized she was going to have to
figure out where this rave was taking place and hope she could
sweet talk her way in. She retreated to her apartment above the
store and started putting thought into the charm that was placed on
the card. Cais was hoping she could figure out who had placed the
charm, since they often have their caster's signature attached to
them.

Before long she was sitting at her kitchenette
staring off into space when she reached out for her notebook. She
started sketching, though she was still staring off blankly into
the wall across from her. When she came out of the trance, Caislyn
had a sketch of her on a rooftop; it was oddly similar to one that
she had drawn on the full moon. She looked at it and saw that the
stars were shimmering brightly in an otherwise blackened night sky.
There was no moon to speak of and the building lights were dim, if
present at all. It was then that she realized she knew the
building. It was the old Chesson building just a block over from
her place. The building used to belong to the Pasquotank Arts
Council before the humans left town in droves. It had long since
been abandoned, but it was a great spot for a rave, since it used
to be a theater and the acoustics inside were fabulous. Even though
she lived in the city limits, Elizabeth City was really nothing
more than a suburb of the Hampton Roads area of Virginia. In the
sketch, Caislyn realized she was wearing certain clothes that she
wouldn't normally wear unless it was to go out clubbing. This had
to be where they were holding the rave tonight. If not, she wasn't
supposed to be at the stupid party anyway. According to her vision
she was supposed to end up on this rooftop.

“If I remember right,” Caislyn said to herself while
getting ready. “I wasn't on that rooftop alone.” She didn't bother
going for the sketches she had done two months earlier. Instead,
she continued to get ready for the rave. She would have to get
there early in order to try to slip past the gatekeepers. The
gatekeepers were the guardians of the party. They worked the door
to make sure everyone had tickets and belonged there. They were
also there to make sure you oathed in. Oathing in was a way to keep
the peace at mixed non-human parties. Everyone took an oath at the
door to intentionally to do no harm to others while they were
there. All non-humans were serious about their oaths though. For
some, it seemed a trait that their blood would not let them break.
For others, like the witches and lycans, it was more because they
took oaths seriously after years of staying in hiding from humans
and having oaths of allegiance being the only thing that kept them
from the gallows or the fires. Besides, those that broke their
oaths were placed on a permanent ban from any other functions. The
gatekeepers held a list, albeit a short one.

***

Artful Arrivals

A stray strand of hair fell into Jaxon’s face,
tickling her nose as she stared out the window of her office. The
view was nothing more than a deserted street between the art
gallery, where she was recently hired, and what used to be the
Pasquotank County Courthouse. She imagined that years ago, the
building was probably quite charming with its Dogwood trees planted
in the small green grass of the courtyard. But now, it just stood
showing years of neglect. The trees hadn’t been trimmed, and the
courtyard’s lawn was yellowed and dry. The concrete outer walls
showed slight cracks and even a few daring attempts of graffiti.
Evening had come across the town in a curtain of darkness, and the
streetlights’ harsh glare made the building look even more worn and
dreary.

Jax often wondered what this little town had been
like before the monsters had come out of hiding and before the
Years of Darkness when chaos and fear ruled. What a different world
it must have been. She could almost see people bustling about the
streets, and cars of all types hurrying from one stoplight to the
next. Jaxon imagined little shops and stores open to their
customers without bars on the windows or wards on the doors for
protection. Neighbors smiling and waving, chatting and gossiping,
never once scared to meet the eyes of those in their company.
Children laughing and giggling while riding their bikes and
skateboards along the sidewalks.

Jax smiled softly to herself, still immersed in her
daydream when the alarm on her watch beeped loudly at her. She
jerked slightly as it startled her and she looked down realizing
that it was almost the end of her co-worker's shift.

‘Maybe I can get Stacey to close up for me tonight so
I can get home and get ready for my training,’ she thought. She had
been training with her swords and knives since she was healed
enough to wield them. The family who had taken her in while she
healed was amazing. Jason had taught her well. He had explained to
her how guns were easily maneuvered from a person, but swords,
knives, and daggers were easy to conceal, easy to use, and just as
deadly. They also had the added bonus of being silent killers. He
spent months working with her as she continued to heal. The work
with the swords was more than just exercise and therapy for her
body, it was a sort of Zen meditation for her. The way her body
worked, the way the blades became an extension of herself made her
feel powerful and serene all at once as she worked out. Swords were
her favorite, but she also practiced with all sorts of other
blades, just in case. Jaxon seemed to have a natural ability with
the weapons. She also enjoyed the rigorous training schedule she
had created for herself. The better I am,' she thought, ‘the less
vulnerable I’ll be.’ Vulnerable and helpless was something Jaxon
never wanted to be again.

She stood and moved around the desk towards the door,
taking a quick glance at herself in the mirror that hung on the
wall. Most of her dark brown hair was still pinned up on top of her
head, allowing for a few tendrils of curls falling in just the
right places to frame her face. Her light auburn highlights
streaked through her curls, adding to her hairs’ natural gleam.
Dark eyes peered out from thick lashes and a pale complexion.

Once upon a time, people would have swooned over her
porcelain skin, saying how she looked like a china doll. Once
everyone found out that vampires were real, they all looked at her
differently and even avoided her. It was obvious they thought she
could be a vampire. Her parents had even home schooled her, to keep
her challenged as the schools were unable to, they claimed. But she
had wondered if it was because the other parents didn’t want their
children around her. Of course, if they had thought it through,
then anyone would have seen she was only human because she could be
out during the day. The vamps would have been dust if they went
into the sun. At least she’d heard they would, but that wasn’t the
point. She wasn’t a vampire, but people sometimes still looked at
her as if there was a possibility. It was just natural for people
to be more frightened of the unknown, even if the known was worse
than their nightmares. She was thankful that she wasn’t left with
scars from her last battle with Rick. Had her face scarred the way
the doctors at first thought it would, she would really look like
the monster people tried to make her out to be.

There were times she felt like her complexion was
more of a curse than a blessing. It was really hard to find clothes
whose colors didn’t reflect off her skin, which is why she wore a
lot of black. People just thought she was trying to be morbid, but
really, she just looked better in the darker colors. While her
looks made her stand out a bit from everyone else, Jaxon really
didn’t mind at all. She was definitely her own person, and felt
that one shouldn’t conform to what everyone else was doing. Her
parents used to tell her constantly, “Be yourself and be proud of
who you are.” Jaxon smiled slightly at the memory of her parents.
They were good people. Both of them were hardworking and
compassionate, they never judged anyone, and were always willing to
lend a helping hand. They supported the causes of the Other Than
Human Society. Her parents thought that all creatures were a part
of God’s great plan, and deserved the same chance at happiness as
humans. “After all, why would God have created them, if they
weren’t meant to be here?” her mother would say. Jaxon missed her
parents so much. They had died in a car accident right after she
turned 18. She sighed softly, letting go of the memory of her
parents and walked out into the gallery to find Stacey.

The tall blond was behind the counter against the far
wall looking at pictures of handsome men on the computer. “Stacey,
when are you going to realize that looking at those match making
sites is not going to bring you love and happiness?” Jaxon
questioned as she sauntered up behind her co-worker.

“Honestly Jax, who said I’m looking for love? I’d
settle for something absolutely mouth watering to stare at across
the dinner table! Besides, who are you to give me advice? The whole
six months you’ve been here, I haven’t seen you on one single
date!”