AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Liliana noted with interest how large Siobhan’s demi-plant form’s bright violet eyes were in proportion to her petal pink, heart-shaped face. Her miniature form looked delicate and exceptionally cute. Adorable even. The spider-kin might not be skilled at social interaction, but even she knew better than to speak that thought aloud to the fierce sprite.
Siobhan switched back to her larger human form to wrestle the bot onto its side. Her wings withdrew into her body like a flower blooming in reverse. The cropped heavy metal band T-shirt she wore had slits cut into the back, just like her jacket, to allow the wings to come and go unimpeded. “I can’t take plant form without losing the arm and the eye, but I haven’t done that in over a century anyway. There’s too much of a chance I wouldn’t wake up.”
“Andrew Periclum made your cybernetics?”
“Yeah, Doc Periclum’s the cyber specialist at Fort Liberty. He’s the only one in the world who specializes in cybernetics that change size and shape for Others.” The sprite didn’t look up from where she had parts of the room-bot spread all over Liliana’s rug. “He did me up after I got hit by a van. He usually deals with soldiers after they get body parts blown off. He said his work on me was ‘a miracle of miniaturization.’” Her freckled nose wrinkled adorably as she used her tiny tools on the bot’s damaged telescoping joint.
“It does seem quite extraordinary. I did not know that technology was so advanced. I also did not know the king of the North Carolina lion-kin pride had such skill until recently.”
“He’s king of the pride? So people actually do bow and scrape around the doc on a regular basis,” Siobhan said. “That explains a lot.”
“It is considered polite to bow or curtsey to the king of lions, yes. He is the informal leader of all beast-kin in his pride’s territory, and all lions, hyenas, and jackals serve him directly.” Liliana tilted her head and considered the sour expression on her guest’s face. “Why do you dislike Andrew Periclum?”
The flower sprite glanced up with a wry expression. “That obvious, huh?”
“I would have expected you to speak of the man who gave back your limb and sight with admiration or gratitude.”
“You sound like him. His majesty, the almighty Doctor Periclum. I should bow at his feet for lowering himself to bestow his brilliance on a mere lesser Fae.” She snorted. “Arrogant git. Nudd saved my life, even though he was afraid it might cost him his, and he’s never even called in the favor I owe him.”
Liliana shivered suddenly as the part of her mind that handled her fourth eyes prodded her. With the sprite’s attention back on her work, the seer risked opening her fourth eyes for a moment. “Doctor Nudd will die very soon unless…” Possibilities flickered into being as she considered the favor the sprite owed the goblin.
Siobhan stared at her, mouth open, tools forgotten in her hands.
Quickly, Liliana closed her fourth eyes. People seemed to look at her with their mouths open a lot. “Apologies. I know my eyes disturb you.”
Siobhan scoffed. “Not nearly as much as hearing that my best friend is going to die disturbs me.” Her cupid’s bow lips tightened into a thin line, and her blue, human-form eyes narrowed dangerously.
“I am very sorry.” Liliana had made her guest upset. She thought she was doing so well at social interaction. Now, she’d committed a serious faux pas that might cost her a valuable ally. “I did not mean to offend.”
The sprite made a sour face and waved that away with her cybernetic arm. “Spill, spider girl. Nudd’s going to die unless what?”
“I am not certain. Death is difficult to see around. I have only seen a badger-kin with a needle in his arm near the doctor when he dies. I think it is Lieutenant Runningwolf since he is the only badger-kin I know, but I have not seen his demi form. I know that if Doctor Nudd removes the needle from the badger, he will gain time. He will live a few minutes longer, but he will still die. But when you mentioned that you owe Doctor Nudd a favor…”
“You got some kind of spooky spider eyes intuition that I might be able to save Nudd by paying back my favor?”
Liliana tilted her head to one side. “That is reasonably accurate, yes.”
“Huh.” The sprite went back to reassembling the bot, hands working while her mind appeared to be considering what Liliana said.
Taking the sprite’s comments as permission to use her fourth eyes, the spider-kin opened them again and searched. With Siobhan’s favor to focus on, she could see a few more of the events surrounding the goblin healer’s death. Some of her visions now included the fierce little sprite’s death as well, or instead of the goblin. “If you choose to try to save him, it may cost your life in his place, or you may die together.”
The sprite finished putting the access panel back on the room-bot. She didn’t look up while she turned the bot on and ran it through its test sequence. “I’d have been dead ten years ago without him.”
“Your life is your own. You do not owe it to anyone, especially not an unseelie Fae.” Siobhan had called Doctor Nudd her best friend, but most would consider a goblin and a sprite to be mortal enemies by their very nature.
Siobhan lifted her chin. “Right, my life’s mine, yeah. And I get to decide who I would trade it for.” Liliana did not need to open her third eyes to perceive the smoldering heat of old anger. “Nobody, especially no court, can tell me who my friends are.”
Liliana made a mental leap that for once wasn’t in a random direction. “The leaders of your people banished you.”
Siobhan looked at her, and her human blue eyes were filled with pain and old anger. “Yeah. And executed my friend. She was an unseelie mistletoe sprite. Never hurt a soul in her life. She told the best jokes.”
Liliana leaned forward and squeezed Siobhan’s shoulder. “I am sorry for your loss. It is very hard to lose a friend.”
The sprite smiled at her oddly, large eyes shiny. “You’re the only person who’s ever said that, you know? Most people assume we couldn’t have been very close.” She turned the bot on, put her empty tea glass in its bin, and stood up. “Time to go.”
Liliana pretended not to notice as Siobhan surreptitiously wiped her eyes with her back turned.
While the room-bot busied itself washing their tea glasses inside, Liliana walked Siobhan out the back door to the customized Harley Davidson Spirit in the driveway. The weather had been mild lately, hinting at the beginning of spring. The sky was clear and studded with bright stars.
