“I just got a frantic call from Nalina.The will-o’-the-wisps are outside her house.We need to get over there.”I turned to Talia.“We’ll call you when we’re there.”
“Okay, let’s go,” Viktor said.“If Yutani calls?—”
“I’ll call you,” Talia said.
“What do we need?”Herne asked.
“I’m amazed they’ve shown up during the day.Will-o’-the-wisps don’t like light or fire.”I strapped my dagger to my thigh and pulled on a denim jacket.It was warm outside still, but the tang of autumn was in the air.
“I’ll get a torch,” Viktor said.He’d devised a mini-flamethrower that didn’t have a long reach and it had a thin flame.It was perfect if you were out to direct the flame at a small area, without starting side fires from wayward sparks.
I frowned, thinking about it.“Do you think there might be more than one type of will-o’-the-wisp?They’re more dangerous over in the Realms, but they aren’t playing around here, either.Maybe there’s a stronger type we’ve never seen?If there are Fae races we’ve never met—like the Crystal Fae—why not other creatures?”
“I honestly don’t doubt it,” Herne said.“There are hundreds of species of animals in the world we’ve never encountered, and probably thousands of insects we’ve never laid eyes on.Given the multitude of dimensions, and even of countries within the Realms, I wouldn’t be surprised to find numerous versions of the will-o’-the-wisps.But if light doesn’t hurt them, what can we use aside from fire?”
“I don’t know.Probably magically enhanced weapons?”I had no idea.I hadn’t had much interaction with will-o’-the-wisps for a while, and the interactions that I had navigated through remained vividly terrifying in my mind.I might be a goddess now, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t be hurt.And I didn’t relish pain.
“All right, let’s go,” Viktor said as he returned with the jury-rigged blowtorch.“I brought along several magical weapons, just in case.”He handed Herne a sword; it glowed with a faint green light.I hadn’t seen that one before, and I wasn’t sure what it did.And to me, he handed a silver dagger.“The dagger can touch etherical creatures, and it can handle astral creatures as well.So, it should be able to affect the will-o’-the-wisps.”
Herne grabbed his keys, and we waved to Talia and headed out for Nalina’s house.
The greater metropolitanarea of Seattle spread out to encompass the east side of Puget Sound, two lakes, and over 3 million people.The Eastside, as it was commonly called, was made up of a number of bedroom communities that were each a city in its own right.Redmond, the home of Microsoft, up through Kirkland, down through Bellevue, and into Normandy Park, Renton, Woodinville, and a number of other cities — they all were covered under the umbrella of the Seattle area.One city bled into another, and bled into yet another, the only demarcations being a sign on the side of the road saying welcome to and then the city name.
All the great tech companies had their homes here, and Redmond was the birthplace of Microsoft, and Seattle was the birthplace of Starbucks.A lot of great music had its roots in the area as well: grunge — with Nirvana and Pearl Jam, psychedelic rock with Jimi Hendrix, and other beloved bands like Heart all sprang forth from the area.
And yet the area was as beautiful environmentally as it was diverse with cultures.Across the sound, the Olympic Peninsula beckoned with its haunting rainforest and ghost-ridden towns.Sasquatch traversed the back roads, as did rumors of aliens.To the east of Seattle stretched the massive Cascade mountain range, with its volcanoes still boiling beneath the surface, abruptly dividing the state into two separate ecosystems and cultures.West of the mountains, the tech and liberal coffee culture had taken over.East of the mountains, conservative farmers tended to rule the agricultural and desert biomes.The two halves of Washington state might as well be on two different planets, connected only by the knelt passes through the mountain range that could be dangerous at best, and treacherous during the icy winters.
As we headed across the 520 floating bridge, heading into the Eastside, I thought it might be nice to move over here.While the population was still thick, and growing every day, it seemed like, it felt less compacted than Seattle, a little more breathable.
“Where did you say she lives?”Herne asked.
“Near Raven,” I said.I gave him the address, and we headed toward Kirkland.About 15 minutes later, thanks to light traffic, we pulled up in front of Nalina’s house.As I stepped out of Herne’s SUV, I caught sight of a light darting around the edge of the house.Even from here I knew it was a will-o’-the-wisp, though it felt different from the ones I remembered encountering.Either my sensitivity had heightened, or the energy of the creature was stronger than I was used to, but one way or another, I could tell from here that they were surrounding the house.
“I’ll call Nalina and let her know we’re here,” I said.As I put in the call, static cluttered the line.I stuffed my phone in my pocket and headed toward the door, figuring that she would be inside.
The woman who answered the door was tall, with long blonde hair and blue eyes, and a natural tan that would be the envy of any bronzed beauty around.She had a beachy look and was thin in the way that most Coyote shifters embodied.She looked terrified and motioned for us to come in, peering behind us as we entered her house.
The house itself wasn’t large, but it was clean and updated, and it felt comfortable.With walls the color of sand and glossy brown trim, the living room had a nautical feel.Wicker furniture with denim-blue upholstery gave the room a lighthearted feel, and a seascape covered the upper half of one wall.The entire room made me feel like I could breathe, and I could almost smell the beach.
I glanced around, taking in the thriving plants, the carefully arranged seashell displays, and the Greyhound curled up in a large dog bed.It gave me a good idea of who Nalina was.Several trophies lined the mantle over the fireplace, and even from where I was, I could tell they were for some sort of race.
“I was so worried,” she said, almost stuttering.“So I did the only thing I could think of, which was to call you.”
“It’s a good thing you did,” I said.“Will-o’-the-wisps aren’t easy to deal with, and this appears to be an unusual variety that have somehow latched onto you.They feed on energy, so it’s important that we get rid of them.They can drain you dry if you’re not careful.”
She paled even further.“Drain me dry?You mean they can kill me?”
“Yes, they can.And they’re anything but friendly.They’re like psychic leeches.They live in this realm, and yet they also inhabit the theory ground, and they can attach themselves to your energy.”I grimaced.I didn’t like parasites of any kind, and will-o’-the-wisps were no different from any other kind of parasite.
“Can you do something about them?”She asked.“I have no idea how to handle this problem.”
“When you were running in the park, did you notice anything around the time when you encountered the lights?Was there anything out of the ordinary that made you question what they were?”
Nalina motioned for us to take a seat.“Would you like something to drink?”
We shook our heads.We wanted to get right to the heart of the matter and take care of these will-o’-the-wisps before they spread.Because theywouldspread, throughout the neighborhood and beyond.
She sat on the arm of the sofa, arms folded as she thought.After a moment, she said, “I did notice something, but I didn’t think much of it at the time.There was a statue.At least I thought it was a statue.It was low to the ground and covered with what looked like Celtic knotwork.It was polished marble, if I’m remembering right.And for a second, I thought it was glowing.But the next moment I saw the will-o’-the-wisps, and I forgot about it until now.They seemed to be singing to me, and I had a difficult time resisting them.I couldn’t pull away,” she said, a dreamy look on her face.
