The colorful one—Anton, I remind myself—nods sagely. “You are correct, but also the logic in your request is undeniable. Therefore, I am comfortable reiterating that I am a magic-using demon and a peacock shifter. My magical lineage is from the Cubi, so I am useful in that regard, but it is also… somewhat disconcerting in practice.”
I snort, shaking my head at his incredibly analytical description of such an emotion-based skill set. “You are a study in contradictions, I believe. Steady and logical with powers that are anything but.”
“Yes,” he replies matter-of-factly. “Everything about me is vexing to my family, but not my brothers.”
I know how that is; Li has always accepted me more than any blood family.
“Fiiiiiine,” the black and white-haired demon says dramatically. “I’m Salem; my powers are dream based, and I shift into a panda. I also get tired all the time, and I hope to shit Annie has some of my damn tonics in his pockets. This is like being in the first day of class in kiddie school, you know.”
Sighing in irritation, I remind myself that despite how old I assume these demons are; they are exactly in the age group that Lucas is on the surface for hellspawn. Of course they’re going to be annoying little rich shits, and I have to deal with that. “Despite the commentary, that helps me greatly. I can extrapolate size and physical prowess, plus magical enhancements if we run into trouble.”
“How old are you?” the Gemini asks as he squints at me. “You look like 30s-ish, but if you’ve been serving a Fae royal since childhood, I’m guessing in the mid-centuries or higher. Dragons age slowly, and ones bound to Fae probably even slower.”
Rude.
“I don’t think my age applies to our task,” I reply grumpily. “Only a demon who’s spent most of their life in the Earth realm would even ask.”
“I’d agree with your estimation,” Anton says as he studies me. “But I have not seen his dragon, nor his powers. That would help me maintain accuracy, as you can tell by their scales sometimes.”
“Your prince tell you that?” I snark back with a scowl. “It doesn’t hold true for every type or species of dragon, you know. We’re not scaled sequoias, demon.”
Slade holds his hands up, stopping us all before we start up the staircase looming in front of our group. “Guys, I don’t think age is worth arguing about. I’m easily the youngest one here, but I’m very experienced with many types of supes and powers because my gang-leading parents used me for their business. You wouldn’t know it by looking at me, nor by judging my quiet nature. But I have alotof things to offer other than the singing you expect from me.”
Well, I’ll be damned—I think the kid just shocked the shit out of the rest of them and shut them up simultaneously.
Excellent.
“Your facilities are interesting,”I say to Salem as we rifle through the locker room. Anton was right; the gym will not give us much of anything. However, Slade and the Gemini are searching the machines and pool while Anton uses spells to rule out the offices, so I’m here helping to go through the student storage. “They seem geared to developing various skills without being too specific for general students to not use.”
He looks at me with an arched eyebrow. “I mean, isn’t that what gyms should be? Accessible but also good for more skilled users?”
I frown. I honestly don’t know; this isn’t how we train in Faerie, and it’s been a long fucking time since I’ve needed to. “I guess? This is closer to what they do on the surface than what armies and trainees in Faerie have. There, it’s more geared to battle scenarios and weaponry from a young age on the physical side. Like fantasy movies in the human world, I suppose, not like a magical version of a human fitness facility.”
Salem chuckles and shakes his head. “That’s what the arena is for, man. This is more for health and strength, and rehab if you’re injured… you know, just body stuff. You don’t do that?”
“No.” I turn to face him after I shove stinky clothes back in the locker and slam it shut. “Shifters don’t really need that shit; you know that.”
“Of course, dude, but most demons here aren’t hybrids, much less shifter hybrids. It’s more common to be magical or demonhybrids than shifters. Thus, building the body when not in demon form.” He winks and shrugs. “Obviously, my brothers and I don’t need it, though Slash enjoys the spring and he’s been bringing Kat here to practice shifting in private. She definitely needs it.”
Oh, the amount of shit each realm doesn’t teach their inhabitants about others is infuriating.
“I don’t know what the demons have taught you fuckers, butno, she doesn’t.” I shake my head and run my fingers through my hair as I consider how to phrase this so he doesn’t take it wrong. I hate diplomacy, which is why I let Li handle it, but he’s not here. Morgana will be furious if I fuck this up, especially since I’ve promised to do better. “Your secret girl has animal shifts, yes?”
“As far as I’ve seen at least two, but Slash hinted that he saw a third. He won’ttellanyone, though, because we’re having… internal difficulties.”
Snorting, I look up at the ceiling as if the dragon deities can even hear me down here. “Three fucking shifts means she’s three times as powerful as a single demon hybrid, you nonce. She doesn’t need weight lifting; she needslotsof food, magical training, shift-specific nutrients, and demon-specific training. The more she does, the easier it will be to harness and control all those rioting pieces. When she can do that, her physical form will accept the shifter and demon forms, and grow more powerful bit by bit. Fuck, how do they not teach this?”
“Hell isn’t fond of hybrids, especially shifter ones.”
I turn to look at Anton in the doorway and give him a disbelieving expression. “How did the rest of you learn, then? And how the fuck are you all… like that?”
His smile is sad, but firm. “Our parents made very specific rituals around our summonings and with specific lines and species. Some went exactly according to plan, and others… did not. That is why they all either dislike us or only tolerate us if we perform, depending on whose parents it is. They must have been aware of some prophecy or story that we haven’t discovered yet—at least, that is my assumption now based on current events. Jasper believes it’s because Hell won’t want us to reign because of it, and they won’t have to retire. Either way, they chose this for us from the beginning.”
“And that doesn’t mean anyone helped us,” Salem adds ruefully. “We found each other as court heirs, and Jasper sort of became the leader. Everything we know about the hybrid parts is because of trial and error, man.”
Holy Mab’s girdle, these idiots are teaching an enormously powerful lost one with fucking guesswork.
I have to calm myself before I respond because despite the bullshit in Faerie, especially in the royal families of the Courts, they wouldn’t let their damn heirs just fuck off to learn shit on their own. They might hamper them, limit them, or even bind them because of politics or to protect them—but they don’t skimp on their education. Though, to be honest, I have little experience with the other three courts, so I could be wrong. Regardless, this is a group of very young demons who don’t even know what the fuck they’re doing trying to fight a takeover of the entire realm.
