“What did your dog do?”I asked.
“Muffin started barking and ran away from me.As I was heading off-trail, Muffin barked louder and finally, I seemed to shake out of the trance.That’s all I can call it; it seemed like a trance.Not that I’ve ever been in one before.I managed to pull away from the lights and ran back to where I found Muffin curled up under a tree, shaking and whimpering.I glanced over my shoulder and saw the lights coming toward me again, so Muffin and I took off, and I ran as fast as I could back to the trailhead.I glanced over my shoulder, but the lights were nowhere in sight by then.”
“You said you’ve been back there since then?”Viktor asked.“It was in the initial report.”
Nalina nodded.“I went back there a couple more nights.Each time I tell myself I wouldn’t, but I was pulled back, as though something had an invisible hold on me.I finally managed to keep myself from going out a couple of nights ago.Something inside told me I wouldn’t come back this time.But I can still hear the singing and whatever it is, still wants me to come to it.I guess it got impatient and now it’s come to me.They’ve come to me?I have no clue what will-o’-the-wisps really are.I tried to look them up after you mentioned the name, but I’m finding conflicting answers.”
There was something about Nalina that made me uneasy.Her energy was spilling over like a fountain.And it was at that moment that I realized that somewhere in her bloodline there was a little of Fae blood.
“What do you know about your family history?”I asked.
Herne gave me an odd look.So did Viktor.But they kept silent.
Nalina frowned.“I was adopted.My mother died in childbirth, so my aunt — my mother's sister — took me in.As for my father, he was a drifter.My aunt said he seemed to be a coyote shifter, as far as she could tell, but there was something odd about him.Why?”
“I believe you have some Fae blood back in your lineage.And I think that’s what is attracting the will-o’-the-wisps.Whatever your bloodline is, they seem to be attracted to it.”And right then, I knew I was right on track.
“You’re kidding,” she said.“How would I find out?”
“We’ll worry about that later,” Herne said.“Right now, let’s go see what we can do about those will-o’-the-wisps.You stay inside and lock the door until one of us texts you.”He motioned for Viktor and me to follow him, and we headed toward the door.
I glanced over my shoulder.“Don’t worry.One way or another, we’ll find a way to get rid of them.”And on that note, we headed out the door, and I heard her lock it behind us.
As we stepped outside,Herne turned to me.“Are you sure about her bloodline?”
I nodded.“Ever since I became a goddess, I’ve been able to sense the Fae more and more.Maybe it’s because I’m a goddess of Fae now, and I was born from both sides.Whatever the case, I just seemed to be opening up to a broader spectrum of understanding about my people.It’s almost like I’m starting to remember things that never happened to me.Things from long ago.I was meaning to talk to Morgana about that when this all came down.”
“Make sure you do.Those who go through the Gadawnoin usually develop heightened powers and sensations that have to do with their mortal lives.My mother said she did, and I’ve met a couple others who mentioned the same thing.”He stopped as the will-o’-the-wisps swarmed around us.
Or rather, they swarmed around me.One of them on the outskirts darted over toward Herne and slammed itself against him, giving him a nasty shock.Two more headed toward Viktor, and he stepped back quickly, holding out the torch.They stopped about three feet away from him, hovering, just waiting for a chance to dart in.
“There’s something different about these will-o’-the-wisps,” I said.They weren’t acting like normal corpse candles.And they seem to be fascinated with me.
“I do believe you’re right,” Herne said.“I’m hesitant to attack them because I have a feeling that they’re trying to communicate.”
I had that same sense.In my gut, it felt like they were reaching out on an astral level, trying to connect with my energy.
“Let me try something,” I said.I walked over to a bench in Nalina’s yard and sat down.The will-o’-the-wisps followed me, congregating around me in a circle.I closed my eyes and listened.I couldn’t hear the singing that Nalina had heard, but I could hear a whispering.It wasn’t so much words as a susurration in the wind that shouldn’t be there.
I held out my hand, and a small, glowing orb of purple landed on my palm.It tickled, almost sparked off a little pain, but it wasn’t trying to hurt me.It nestled itself in the cup of my palm, and I felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude.The others closed in, a few touching my shoulder, my hair, but most just circling around me in a ring.
What do you want?I projected the question, in a neutral tone, towards the purple orb.
In a shadowy response, more feelings than words, a cry for help echoed through my body.They were in danger, seeking help.These were no ordinary will-o’-the-wisps.Whatever they were, I wasn’t sure, but they were in danger and they were looking for someone to help them.
CHAPTERFIVE
Totally caught off-guard,I held up the orb to eye-level.“What the hell?”
“What is it?”Herne asked.
“They’re looking for help.”I was confused.Will-o’-the-wisps that actually communicated with the outside world?Sometimes they were used as weapons, but they couldn’t be charmed, they couldn’t be given orders, and never—not ever—had I heard of them communicating with anyone else.I’d always assumed they lived within their own little world and that there was no way for them to interact.Herne looked as puzzled as I felt.“Since when did will-o’-the-wisps start talking to other people?”
I shrugged.“I have no clue.I’m as surprised as you are.”
“What do they want?”Viktor asked.
“I’ll try to find out,” I said.I turned back to the purple orb that was still resting in the palm of my hand.It almost tickled; its energy snapped and crackled against my skin.I took a deep breath, then let it out slowly as I focused on the orb.Reaching deep within, I sought that thin thread of connection that had appeared.It was still there, and it was still questioning.I tried to focus my thoughts into sensations.It was difficult communicating through emotions, but I had done it with water elementals most my life and now I use that same pattern—a recognition of intent transmitted through curiosity.I asked,What do you need help with?
