2017 #teaser #fantasy #paranormal #fairy #pub #drinks #troll #mystery #suspense 0 Comments

Teaser Tuesday!

Legends of Deceit

Welcome to The Blue Fairy. It's a pub in Atheon. I invite you into this scene where you can be the disembodied spirit sitting at the table with Alaris, Larkin, and Farran while they fret about what to do in Alaris' precarious situation.

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Farran had his back to the wall and held a pewter mug in his hand. He nodded at us in acknowledgment. Keeping my head bent and the sides of my hood shielding my face, I followed Larkin, staying to the back of the room so we wouldn’t draw too much attention to ourselves, though I was highly aware of the curious looks thrown our way.

“What happened?” Farran asked as we took our seats. Larkin and I exchanged a look. “That bad?” Farran took a swig of his drink and set his mug down.

“We should get a drink and a bowl of stew before we fill you in on the details,” Larkin said.

As if he summoned a waitress, right on cue a fairy with dark shoulder-length hair and green eyes flew to our table. She hovered between Larkin and me. “Hello, my name is Nissa. What do you two fancy tonight?”

“Two bowls of stew,” Larkin said. “A dark ale for me.” He looked at me and so did Nissa.

“Um.” I didn’t care for beer, not after playing quarters when I was nineteen at a party with Kimmie, and I ended up hurling in the trash can. “What do you have other than beer?”

“Whatever your heart desires, sweetie.” Nissa smiled and gestured toward the bar to the far right of the round stage. A ghostly woman with long hair, wearing a dressing gown was pouring blue liquid from a gooseneck bottle into a tall thin glass. A burst of red rose from the bottom.

“I’ll have a Singapore sling. Do you know what it is?”

“No, but I’m sure Appara will,” Nissa said. “Her hobby is to learn about drinks in every realm she can enter. It’s a challenge for her.”

“Okay, well,” I answered. “If she doesn’t know, I’ll take a cabernet sauvignon.”

Nissa half-nodded. “Will do. Your order will be here in two shakes of a lamb’s tail.” She flew off to the bar and hovered near Appara’s ear, giving her our order I guessed. I was too far away to see her face, but I think she was looking at me.

“What is Appara?” I asked Larkin, realizing even though I gained most of my memory back (The rest will come in time, I know), there was a lot I didn’t know about in this realm. Karrina had sheltered me from a lot of things.

Larkin folded his hands on the table and leaned forward. His eyes flicked to her, then back to me. “She’s an echo, which is a spirit who is caught between the living and dead.”

“Oh,” is all I said. I wanted to know more about Appara and echoes, but Farran cleared his throat, snapping me back to the reason why we were here.

Larkin and I moved our chairs closer to him. With bent heads and low voices, we proceeded to tell Farran what happened. Toward the end of our story, a light green-skinned gal with long dirty-blonde hair and tiny scales on her heart-shaped face came to our table. She carried a platter with two bowls of stew, thick white buttered bread, and our drinks. I recognized her right away from the party.

Lucy.

“Thank you, Lucy,” I said, pleased Appara was able to make the Singapore sling.

She smiled. “You remembered my name.” She sounded surprised and happy that I did.

I forgot how deep and reflective her big blue-green eyes were. I thought they were amazingly cool but made an effort not to stare too much into them. I didn’t want to make her self-conscious.

“Well, to be honest,” I said, “I’m usually horrible remembering names of people I’ve met, but for some reason, I remembered yours. I think it’s your eyes. I find them extraordinary.”

A brownish color bloomed in her cheeks. “Thank you.” She held the empty platter to her chest. “Enjoy your meal and drinks. If you need anything else, let me know.”

Farran folded his arms on the table and leaned forward when Lucy left. “Finish your story. What happened when you were about to leave Brunhild’s house?”

With hands cupping my mouth, I told him in a high whisper what Brunhild had done and the dragon’s head that emerged from my chest.

His eyes widened, and his lips parted. He leaned back, covering his mouth, his expression clearly saying, Oh, shit.

I nodded. “Yeah, what the hell are we going to do? My goose is cooked because we all know Brunhild is not going to let this go. Larkin and I are thinking maybe she’s the one who was controlling the headhunters.”

“Do you have any ideas on what plan of action we should take?” Larkin asked as I scooped some stew into my spoon. There were chunks of meat and vegetables in a thick brown gravy that looked yummy. I took a bite, and the beefy flavor burst in my mouth delightfully.

Farran drummed his fingers on the table and the bottom corner of his mouth twisted in contemplation. His eyes flicked to mine. Fear and sadness glistened in them. My throat tightened. I didn’t want him to feel that way about me. We were becoming friends and sharing similar tragedies. I took a long drink of my cocktail to stop myself from getting emotional. It tasted awesome, like fruit punch with a cherry undertone. When I set my glass down, Farran reached out and placed his hand on my wrist, surprising me. “I’m not afraid of you,” he said as if he could read my thoughts. “I fear if this information gets out, your life will be compromised.” He looked at Larkin. “I think after we follow the map tomorrow night, we should take Alaris to see my father and tell him everything.”

“Why your father?” I asked, not sure if I liked the idea and thought maybe my own father would know what to do if Brunhild told him, which I was sure she did. Then I thought about him being power hungry years ago. It almost destroyed him. Would he return to his old behavior?

Larkin nodded. “You’re probably right,” he told Farran and frowned. “I wish I can find Mardella. She would have the answers we seek.” Right when I opened my mouth to repeat my question, Larkin’s gaze dropped to mine. “Alder is a wise man. He’s not only king of the Solas clan, he’s also a historian, among other things.”

“Good evening, ladies and gentlemen,” a sultry female voice rang above the chatter, catching our attention. It was Oona. She was onstage holding a wireless microphone. Her metallic purple mini dress clung to her tall, lanky form. The color stood out against her bluish skin beautifully. “I hope you’re enjoying yourselves,” she continued.

“Yeah, baby,” a gruff voice called out, raising a beer glass. He sat at a table near the center of the room. His scraggly black hair reached his shoulders, and the tip of his pointy ears curled away from his head. He had a long hooked nose with a rather large mole on the side, and his yellowish-green skin looked tough and rock-like. “I want to see you dance tonight.”

I leaned next to Larkin’s ear. “What type of creature is that guy?”

“A trow,” he said. When I gave him a funny look, he corrected his statement. “A troll.”

“Oh, wow. I always thought of trolls as cute and little. I don’t think Karrina ever told me about them. At least his kind.”

Farran leaned into the table. “Why would you think they’re cute and little?”

“Because in my realm,” I told him, “there are small naked troll dolls with adorable faces and colorful wild hair that stands up on end. I actually have a few of them in my bedroom on a shelf.”

Farran pointed at the guy staring at Oona as she told him tomorrow night she’d be dancing, but tonight she’d sing the siren’s song. “As you can see, he’s nothing like what you described. He’s probably seven feet tall.”

I gaped. “Are you serious?”

Farran nodded. “Yes, I am, Princess.” He smirked and took a swig of his ale, obviously enjoying my reaction.