“The Crossroads is unstable and exists within fragments of time,” Vilanos said. “It is now, never, and?—”
“Every time in between,” finished Absolis. “It is impossible to search in any effective manner?—”
“—but this does confirm at least one thing.”
“Yes, one thing.”
“Which is what?” Mr. Heiss snapped. “That you’re both absolute morons?”
Vilanos and Absolis exchanged a worried look, and Absolis said quietly, “That they must have a high-ranking member of the fae amongst them. It could be a duke or even a prince…”
“Only royalty would have the power to traverse that part of our kingdom safely,” added Vilanos.
“Straighten out your house,” Mr. Heiss said with a nasty smile. “If you are unable to, I will be more than happy toassistyou.”
“That is not necessary,” Absolis started.
“Not necessary at all!” Vilanos cried.
“There arethousandsof innocent souls in this city at risk and you are telling me it is notnecessary, you ridiculous littlecunts?” Mr. Heiss snarled furiously, the table cracking before him.
Absolis and Vilanos were on their feet in an instant, eyes black and teeth sharp, growling back in reply as the color drained from their flesh until they were both a deep, rich shade of gray. The air around them shifted between darkness and flashes of strange light, and the air had a sickly sweet smell to it.
Mr. Heiss met their unspoken challenge by rising from his seat and transforming into his demonic form, flames blazing from his crown so high they scorched the ceiling. His chair was instantly charred, falling back behind him in a plume of smoke as the wood continued to burn.
Myrna mumbled under her breath, “Make a mess.Quickly.”
“Not yet,” Lou muttered back, though the seams of his suit were obviously bulging.
Flanders was there now, posed on the other side of Lou, teeth bared and ready to strike.
Seymour cleared his throat. “So, uh, should we just… go?” he whispered.
“I don’t know,” Day whispered back. “Everyone is very angry.”
“So, we should go.”
“Maybe?”
“Yes?”
“Okay, yes.”
“Good, let’s just?—”
Any intention Seymour had of attempting to escape this room was shelved when the entire space vibrated.
It was a low tone, something deep and strange, and he could feel it back in his teeth.
It was…
It was Q.
Q.’s eyes narrowed and turned black, though it wasn’t quite the same way that the princes’ did. His eyes simply looked empty, as if everything inside his head was an inky void of nothing. Light no longer reflected there, and Seymour had to take a few steps back, struck by the possibly not so irrational fear that he’d be sucked right into them.
“Stop this senseless bickering at once,” Q. commanded, not moving anything but a single finger to tap the edge of the table to punctuate the order. His voice hadn’t risen in volume but still managed to fill every inch of the room. “We have a city to save. Lives to protect. An enemy to stop. Do you understand?”
There was silence, but Absolis, Vilanos, and Mr. Heiss all quietly reverted to their human forms.
