Terato

6

   I lay on my back on the bed, inspecting the dagger Jake had given me a few days ago. Diablo was snuggled under the covers by my legs. The knife was clearly sharp, and even just the metal seemed to hurt me. I slid it under the blanket for Diablo to see.
   "So, what do you think, buddy?"
   Scary.
   "Yeah."
   I set the dagger on the nightstand and rolled over to go back to sleep.
   I woke up a while later to what sounded like a someone banging on a pot.
   "Wake up already! It's ten and I made waffles!"
   I groaned and sat up groggily. Diablo's feathery wing brushed my side before he shifted into a mouse and climbed me to nestle behind my neck. I reluctantly left the bed and got dressed. I hadn't had waffles in a long time, and even I had to admit that Ethan was a good cook.
   I finally slipped my jacket on, and Diablo crawled into the inside pocket. I made my way to the kitchen, and the smell of maple syrup hit me instantly, followed by Jake saying, "That's still way too much syrup."
   "And two drops is way to much for you, so I don't think you have any right to judge my preferences. Oh, hey, she's alive."
   "Hey, Caro," said Jake. "Okay, let me settle this one and for all. Caro, how much syrup do you put on your waffles?" He slid me a plate and a syrup bottle as I sat down at the table.
   I sighed heavily. "Is this what you idiots argue about all the time?" Every day since had been something about how much powdered sugar to put on French toast, how much sugar to put in unsweetened tea, how much ketchup to put on anything, or some other petty food related debate.
   "Fine." I squeezed my usual amount of syrup over the waffles.
   "What?" Ethan scoffed. "That's enough for half a waffle, and you expect it to cover two?"
   "I thought you were cool! You don't need that much!"
   The brothers went off insulting each other, and I was the only one who heard the heavy, bearlike footsteps of Mr. Murphy entering the room.
   He didn't say anything, and they didn't notice anything. I waited until the verbal battle escalated to cursing before saying loudly, "Nice morning, isn't it, Mr. Murphy?"
   I could feel the wind from their heads whipping around. They both went silent.
   "Uh..." Jake cleared his throat. "Good morning, Dad."
   "You're both crazy, you know that?" He grabbed a plate of waffles and the bottle of syrup from in front of me. "There's a compromise here." He picked up an extra plate and put half the waffles on it. I heard the sputter of syrup come from the bottle and I could only assume one of the stacks was drenched. Then he made a waffle sandwich with the soaked and dry ones and started eating it like a hamburger.
   The table was silent. I felt laughter bubbling up in my throat and tried to force it back down, but it didn't work. I almost choked on the bite of waffle I had been in the middle of swallowing. I pushed the waffles to the side and set my head on the table.
   "Well, then, does that settle it?" Mr. Murphy asked. I assumed Jake and Ethan nodded. Mr. Murphy continued. "Alright. So, I was wondering if either of you had plans for today?"
   "Yeah, but nothing too important," said Ethan. "Why?"
   "I was thinking that one of you could take Caro out somewhere. She's barely been anywhere but the woods since she got here."
   I sobered instantly, but kept my head down. I wasn't liking where this was going. They had gone off doing Hunter stuff every day and sometimes at night, but I had mostly listened to music or TV and spent time outside. The Hunters seemed to have better technology than the rest of the normal world, so they had all voice controlled smartphone and tablets, meaning I was set for being alone indefinitely. I was not, however, in any way prepared for human interaction outside of what was necessary.
   They were both quiet for a long moment. Finally Mr. Murphy broke the silence again. "Not like a date. Just to go somewhere."
   They relaxed somewhat. "I can go," Jake offered.
   "Alright. Caro, are you fine with that?"
   I sighed heavily. I wasn't fine with anything about this, but it was easier to agree than to argue. "Sure. Better than Ethan."
   Ethan growled and started to say something, but his father cut him off. "Okay. I've got something to go to today. We're looking for signs of Riders again. No one's seen anything else about Ace, but we're being careful. Don't need any more weapons stolen or people attacked. Will you all be okay for the day?"
   "Yeah."
   "Mhm."
   "Sure."
   Mr. Murphy grabbed his jacket from the hook by the door and left.
   "Bye. If you need me, Jake, I'm where I usually am." Ethan followed his father outside and I heard two car engines start and fade away.
   "So..." I began after a long moment of awkward silence. "What's the plan?"
   "I don't know."
   "Why'd you agree? You know I'd be fine here for weeks."
   "Friend bonding, I guess?" Jake said uncertainly. "I dunno, you've been here for almost two weeks and I still barely know anything about you. I have no idea what we're going to actually do, just that you should get out of the house like Dad said and I would like to know you at least a little bit if you're going to be living here indefinitely. Didn't I say you would be part of our family?"
   "Yeah..." I was going to make another excuse for why I didn't want to go, but the mention of that first week with the Hunters brought back a certain memory. "Hey, remember when you first brought me to your house in the spaceship and you mentioned pegasi?"
   "Yeah." A certain air of almost mischief crept into his voice. "You want to meet them?"
   "Heck yeah, I do."
   "Well, let's go. We have all day."
   The spaceship ride wasn't quite as bad the second time, and within minutes we landed.
   "Wait, you live in a normal neighborhood, don't you?" I asked once we stepped out.
   "Yeah."
   "How do normal people not notice this thing? It must be pretty obvious in the sky."
   "Invisibility. It's hard to do that with technology without leaving us blind, with the way light works, but magic does it fine. Same thing Ethan uses, but altered to work on vehicles. Only beings who use magic can see it."
   "Oh." I chuckled slightly as a sudden thought popped into my head. "Guess I'm not magic at all, then. I don't see a damn thing."
   Jake froze. "Wait, wait, wait. Did you just make a joke?"
   "Yeah. I do that all the time. It's just disguised as sarcasm."
   We walked for a minute and arrived at a wooden fence. I clicked my tongue a few times. We were somewhere huge and open. Jake unlocked a gate and we went into a large pasture.
   "So, is this where they're kept?" I couldn't see how a fence would hold winged creatures,
   "We don't really keep them here. This is the safest place for them. An illusion spell makes them look like horses. Governments would be all over this place and us if they found out. Normal humans- mostly governments, though- don't get along well with anything supernatural. The pegasi stay here and help us when we need it. Their magic is stronger than most of ours, and they can help us fly into somewhere when spaceships are useless and the Hunter hasn't gotten their wings."
   "Hunters have wings?"
   "Sort of. It's a power."
   "What kind of power?" I was intrigued at that point.
   "I guess when we reach a certain point, they just kind of appear. We can summon them when we want. I haven't gotten mine, though.
Ethan hasn't, either. Dad has." He was quiet for a moment. "Alright, ready?"
   He whistled loudly. I clapped my hands over my ears.
   "Oh, sorry. They're coming, though."
   I listened closely, and sure enough, I could hear loud wingbeats. Hooves hit the ground in front of us. The pegasi were here.
   A brief image of a herd of winged horses popped into my mind. Most if them were the same colors as normal horses, except with huge wings, some of which could have been the length of houses. Some had different colored feathers and manes and tails, but they all had an enchanting wild beauty about them. As soon as the image came, it was gone.
   "Whoa," I murmured.
   A few of them walked toward me and some sniffed me gently. I wondered if they would find Diablo, but none of them reacted.
   Well, you're a special one for sure.
   I jumped at the sudden voice in my head. The pegasi crowding me made way for one whose steps seemed to ring with gentle pride. I got a particularly sharp image of an old black and white pegasus with flecks of purple, gold, green, blue, and silver in her wings, which looked more like a scaly version of Diablo's than a bird's like the others. Her eyes were a swirl of the same colors and looked like a hawk's. She had branching antlers like a deer, and a tail like a dragon.
   "Whoa," I breathed, caught in the beauty of the fleeting image. "She's different."
   "Yeah. Did she talk to you?" Jake asked. I nodded. "Ah. It is weird the first time. Just listen. She has a lot of wisdom."
   Wisdom indeed, though that one nor his brother seem to listen.
   "Can he hear you?" I said quietly. She seemed to be talking like Jake wasn't there. "Who are you?"
   No, your friend cannot hear me. You can simply think what you would like to say and imagine projecting it toward me if you like.
   Okay... I furrowed my brows in concentration. Is it working?
   Yes, I can hear you fine. You have a natural gift for this, young one. You can communicate with your little Jersey Devil friend like this, as well.
   My eyes widened slightly in surprise. How do you know about Diablo?
   I know many things. And I do not share my kin's prejudices. For too long in too many places, people have seen light and dark as a duality to fight each other. I have existed long enough to know that this division brings nothing but suffering.
   I relaxed a bit. She seemed sincere, but I still wanted to know one thing. Who are you, anyway? Where did you come from?
   Where I come from, I am known as Atancca, the Gatekeeper. As for where that place is, I cannot share. All I can say is that it is far from here.
   I blinked a few times. I didn't know exactly what she meant. "Far from here" could mean California or Australia, or she could have meant space. But something about her tone seemed to fill in my curiosity with a sense that I would know eventually. Instead I asked, If you're from far away, why are you here of all places? To be with the other pegasi?
   Ah, old Pegasus, I remember him... One of the first to come and get himself a following. Never subtle, that one. Getting a race named after himself just wasn't enough, I suppose... She seemed to catch herself going off track. Well, no, not entirely the reason. I believe there's a book here with an eccentric lady rather like myself who- how did she put it- liked being where interesting things happen?
   I frowned. What's interesting about what's happening here? I know there are the Hunters, and the Riders, and all this amazing stuff, but surely you see that every day, don't you? And if you come from far away, haven't you seen more interesting things?
   Atancca shuffled. No, child. I have seen great conflicts and wars. I have seen a battle of the gods. I was brought into being to fight with them. Each of the gods on one side gave me a gift: my main shape and grace and certainty, the ability to love unconditionally, incredible knowledge, incredible power, the responsibility to use it wisely, the ability to see a bit beyond this reality, and most curiously, the ability to see both sides of a war. Even the one I was meant to fight in. Curious, that one. But they let me see that something most interesting will happen here. And I believe you will be in the middle of it.
   I held my breath for a moment, but she didn't seem to be joking. Seriously? But why me?
   Because you have something that is considered both a great gift and a terrible curse. Many, many years ago some had skills so strong that they could control it with a thought. You are not so lucky.
   I felt my heartbeat quicken. What are you talking about? What gift? What curse? What do you mean?
   Atancca was silent.
   Answer me! Please!
   The strange pegasus trembled for a moment, then relaxed. I'm afraid I can't tell you that. I couldn't if I wanted to. All I can say is this: Don't tell the Hunters anything I have told you.
   What do you mean? Why?
   I repeated myself, but Atancca seemed to have fallen into a sort of sleep, because I could hear her sides gently rising and falling in time with the wind.