Chapter 8
Wake up, Birdie. Wake up.
Birdie pinched herself over and over in hopes her eyes would open and she would snap out of the nightmare she was in.
As the horse-drawn carriage rolled down the streets of the busy city packed with Feys, the skin of Birdie's wrists began to bruise from how hard she pinched herself.
Baba? Mom?
Birdie's heart ached with each beat. She shifted herself to the edge of the carriage as far away from Cliff as she possibly could get. The brass cuffs on her hands sizzled and burned as her skin rubbed against them.
"Have you ever seen anything like this?" Cliff asked the commander.
"No," the commander said, eyeing Birdie suspiciously. "Does it talk?"
"She does," Cliff nodded. "She was talking on the boat with the fisherman."
"What did she say?"
"She kept asking where she was," Cliff's eyes bounced from Birdie to the commander.
The commander, an old fey with graying black hair, nodded slowly. His eyes never left Birdie as he studied her under a very watchful lens.
"Sir..." Cliff looked at the old man once more. "Do you think she came from Deserati?"
"How would that be possible?" The commander scuffed. "Some one like her would have been found the moment she took her first breath on Pangaea."
"What is that?" Birdie suddenly found herself speaking up. "What's Pangaea?"
The commander's eyes widened just a bit. Not enough for Cliff to notice but definitely enough for Birdie to get a wind of. The two men looked at each other and then back at Birdie.
"Pangaea..." Cliff said. "It's where we are, ma'dam."
"You don't have to call her madam, Cliff," the commander said. "She's not a madam. She's a moor."
"Sorry, sir," Cliff apologized. "It's the way she looks."
"I know," the older fey nodded. "It's confusing the hell out of me."
"Where is Pangaea?" Birdie asked, her heart pounding and her insides telling her to shut up. "Where is it located on Earth?"
"On Earth?" the commander laughed. "Where in the world is that?"
The hearty laugh of the man made Birdie's insides shrink to the size of a pea and quiver.
"Earth...." Birdie's voice was barely a whisper.
"Is that where you are from?" Cliff asked. "Earth?"
Slowly, with her remaining strength, Birdie nodded her head.
"Is that beyond the Falls?" Cliff wondered. "Or is it beyond the Glass Lands?"
Birdie's throat tightened as the boy's strange questions made her eyes water. She felt a dark hollowness start to blossom inside of her as her sides began to ache from how tense her body was.
"She's pulling our legs," the commander narrowed his eyes. "These manipulating cunts."
"But they can't lie," Cliff looked at the old man. "She said she's from Earth."
"They can twist their words," the commander leaned forward and used his baton to lift back Birdie's hair. His eyes darkened as he saw her ears before he leaned back and let out an angry breath. "If they believe something to be true, they will be able to say it."
"Why would she think she's from Earth?" Cliff wondered.
"Look at her!" The commander snapped. "Someone in Deserati obviously wanted to keep her hidden. They won't want her telling us where she's from."
"But sir," Cliff frowned. "I thought you said she couldn't be from Deserati."
"Who trained you?" The man's sharp eyes turned their attention to Cliff. "Are you questioning your superior?"
"No. No, sir," Cliff shook his head.
"Stay quiet. For all we know she could be a spy."
"A spy for who?"
"Another question?"
"Sorry, sir."
Birdie watched the two feys with wide eyes and a pounding heart. The carriage rocked along the stone path as they moved farther and farther into the city. Birdie could no longer see the river in the distance. It was lost behind the tall buildings and spice markets and clothing shops. She turned her head to stare at the fey women and children running around the markets, enjoying a night down in the lively city.
Time was an abstract concept as the carriage rolled down the city streets. Birdie's clothes had dried in the cold night air along with her hair and the tears running down her face. Her skin still sizzled with each bump on the road, making her grind her teeth to keep the pain at bay.
After several long minutes of riding through the noisy city life, the carriage began to move over a narrow bridge that could pass only one carriage at a time. The horse took cautious steps as the wheels of the carriage rolled with extreme slowness.
The commander shifted in his seat and cleared his throat before pulling out a comb from his back pocket and bruising back his hair. Birdie and Cliff watched him as the carriage came to a stop in front of a large stone building with burning torches and fey guards posted outside.
"State your business," one of the guards outside said, appearing at the window of the carriage.
"I have to speak to General Parry. It's urgent," the commander opened his side door and hopped out. "Cliff, get the moor out."
"You have a moor with you?" the guard outside said with distaste. "You better have a good reason for that, Commander Alben."
"Ohh," the commander, Alben, laughed. "I do. Trust me. The General wants to see this."
"You know the protocol is to take the moors to the Lieutenant commander, right?"
"Just get the general," Alben clicked his tongue. "This is a special case."
The guard looked unsure. He knew his orders were to not disturb the general during his evenings. Especially not when he was in his bedroom with Lady Ebony. But as Cliff helped Birdie off the carriage and nudged her forward, the guard sniffed the air and narrowed his eyes.
"Is that..." he took a small step forward to get a better look.
"Yeah," Alban nodded. "Now, hurry."
"Open the gates," the guard turned to the others inside.
Birdie said a silent prayer as the double doors of the building opened with a rumbling sound like thunder. Her mind-link was left open, her thoughts constantly calling out to her father.
"Bring her in," the guard said, stepping out of the way as if Birdie was contagious.
Cliff placed his baton on Birdie's back and pushed her forward. He stayed right behind her and with the baton placed firmly against her back as they all made their way into the courtyard.
"Stay here. I'll go call the general," the guard announced.
Alban nodded as he turned to make sure Birdie's cuffs were on. His gray hair shimmered under the torch lights of the courtyard as the summer air blew through the place, welcoming them with the scent of ripe fruits.
"Where did you find her?" One of the other guards asked, eyeing Birdie.
"On a fishing boat off the coast near East Yori," Alban said.
"What is she?"
"That's what I'm here to find out."
The men's gaze made Birdie's skin crawl with disgust and fear. Suddenly, her clothes felt as if they were too tight on her body. She had the urge to tug at her shirt but feared the brass would roll down her wrist and burn her arms.
As they continued to stare, Birdie grew desperate to hide from their gaze. She tried to step behind Alben but he took a step aside and put her in the center of the courtyard. Cliff pushed her forward once more , making her visible under the torch light.
Angered, frustrated, and scared, Birdie felt her magic trying to surface. She wanted to try opening a portal again or shield herself from the men. But as she stood there, under their impure gaze, she knew the last thing she should do was call upon her magic.
Birdie remembered what the feys on the island had tried to do with some of the jinns. What they had tried to do to her brother. Her spine shivered as she pushed her magic down. From the corner of her eyes she found Alber smirking as if he could sense her abilities pacing underneath her skin.
"Go ahead," he leaned forward and whispered, his hot breath hitting Birdie's face and making her flinch. "Try it."
Shivering, Birdie took a step back. She felt the brass move against her skin, making sharp pain shoot up her arm.
"Alban," a deep voice suddenly broke the tension in their air.
Alban, along with all the other guards turned to look at the large man waddling down the stairs to the courtyard. His silk robe parted down his chest, revealing white hair and hundreds of freckles. The mustache on the man's face matched his chest hair and, coincidentally, also the hairs sticking out from his ears.
"General," Alban bowed, placing his hand over his chest and the other hand behind his back. "I'm surprised to see you here," General Parry said. "At this hour."
"My apologies," Alban said. "But I have some urgent matters to discuss with you."
"What is it?"
Alban took a small step back to reveal Birdie to the fat old man.
At first, the corners of the General's mouth curved up wickedly. Birdie felt his dirty gaze linger on her figure as he moved his eyes up and down.
But just then, the wind blew once more. Birdie felt a chill run down her spine as her scent was carried over to the General. The man's nose wrinkled with disgust and his face twisted with confusion.
"Have you ever seen anything like it?" Alben asked, eyeing Birdie all over again.
"No," the general held his hand out for Alben's baton.
Birdie tried to step away when the man approached her, but Cliff gripped her arms and held her in place. She struggled to create space as the brass cuffs around her wrists jingled like bells.
"She has ears too," Parry noticed, lifting Birdie's hair.
"She says she's from Earth," Alben announced.
"And where is that?"
"I do not know, Sir."
"It must be somewhere," Parry said before turning his attention back to Birdie. "What is your name?"
Birdie pressed her lips tightly together. Despite how hard Cliff dug his nails into her arms, she still leaned back to try and move away from Parry.
"What should we do with her?" Alban asked.
Parry picked up a long strand of Birdie's hair and sniffed it. His eyes watched her as he twirled her hair around his short stubby finger and tugged her forward.
"Bring her to my office," Parry said to Cliff. "You two Alben."
"N-no," Birdie shook her head as Cliff shoved her forward.
The guards all stepped back as the group made their way into the house and down the short corridor to the General's office.
"Wait outside, Cliff," Alben said.
Birdie watched as the young soldier bowed and stepped out of the room, leaving her alone with Parry and Alban. Her eyes began to scan the room, identifying all the possible exits and easily liftable objects. There appeared to be a window to the left, covered by long heavy curtains. A second door was across the room, behind Parry's desk. But Birdie was sure that probably led to another chamber inside the house. The goal was to get out of the house.
"Commander," the general shut the door and cleared his throat. "Who else knows about....this situation?"
"Just Cliff and one another," Alben said.
Parry slowly nodded.
"Should we send words to Xaiba?" Alben looked at the man.
"Yes....we should," Parry's eyes once again moved up and down Birdie's figure. "Leave her here with me. I'll send words to Xaiba and see what they want to do with her."
"As you wish," Alben bowed.
Birdie began to panic. The thought of being alone with the old fat man made her stomach twist with disgust. Her breathing labored and her eyes started to water.
"Thank you, Alben," Parry said. "You may leave."
"No, no, no," Birdie tried to hurry after Alben as the man opened the doors.
Parry raised his hands and Birdie froze, unable to move her legs. She looked down and struggled, but she was frozen solid.
Alben looked over his shoulder and his eyes connected with Birdie. For a brief second she thought she saw something that looked like sympathy swim over them. But as Birdie blinked, it disappeared and so did the man.
"You will snap your legs like twigs if you don't stop struggling," Parry said.
Birdie stared at the door with her tears running down her face.
"What's your name?" Parry walked over to his desk and picked up his pen. "What are you? Do you identify as a fey or as a moor?"
"As a jinn," Birdie said, letting her arms fall to her side. "I am a jinn."
Suddenly, there was a feminine laughter that filled the room. Birdie turned as the back door to the office opened and a woman with midnight dark hair and piercing green eyes stepped out.
Her wine red dress hugged her body tightly, showing off her full chest and tiny waist. Her eyes were lined with kohl, making her look alluring and mysterious. the red silk shawl she carried barely stayed on her body as she moved like a graceful cat, making the gold jewelry she wore dance.
"I don't think I've ever seen one of your kind before," the woman said, leaning against the door. "And you say you're a jinn?"
Birdie nodded, making the woman laugh once more.
"What kind of jinn looks like that?"
"Lady Ebony," the General looked up. "What are you trying to say about her looks?"
"Nothing, my lord," Lady Ebony giggled. "I've just never.....oh never mind."
"Do you have a name, moor?"
Birdie watched the smile on Lady Ebony's face waver as the general used the word to refer to Birdie. She peered closer and realized the woman was a jinn herself too.
"What are you going to do with her?" Lady Ebony asked.
"I'm sending her to Xaiba," the general said. "They will know what to do with he-"
"No," Lady Ebony cut in. "Sell her."
"What?" The general looked up just as Birdie's heart stopped.
"Sell her to the collector," Lady Ebony said once more, her eyes not leaving Birdie. "Look at her, Perry. She can pay off all your debt."
The General's eyes turned to Birdie. She watched the wheels turning in his head as he slowly lowered the pen in his hand.
"The collector loves these....mysterious little things," Lady Ebony smiled. "I'm sure he will pay a handsome sum for something like her."
Poor Birdie :(