Ashes of Raging Water by Michael J Allen

Author:Michael J Allen [Allen, Michael J]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Faerie, Fallen Sidhe Faerie, Angel, urban fantasy, Fallen, Sidhe, Angel Phoenix
ISBN: 9781944357405
Publisher: Delirious Scribbles Ink
Published: 2019-06-10T16:00:00+00:00

14: Goblin Market Rewards

Quayla

Color exploded in every direction, spinning gossamer walkways five stories high. Silk and finer fabrics formed gangways and hammocks, shops and bowers suspended in a handful of millennia-old trees. Sprites chained to one another by spider silk lit the walks in fluttering lines. Musical whistles rose and fell in the distance.

Three gruff voices spoke in unison. “Pay the toll.”

A satyr-like creature and his two larger brothers all extended hands.

“Toll?” I asked.

Caelum held up a hand to forestall me and handed three candy bars to each. Their gruff billy goat features transformed into the youthful delight typical of billy kids. He smiled encouragement back at me, but the encounter left me frowning.

He led me to one side. “What is it?”

“There’s never been a toll before.” I gestured upward. “And sure, the Market changes, but it’s never looked like this. How do we even get up there?”

“Vitae’s kept you on too tight a leash,” Caelum said.

“Not the way he tells it.”

“Let me guess, on your past visits the Market looked like a weekend swap meet decorated by some bigwig’s no-talent, color-blind mistress?”

“Yeah.”

He patted my shoulder.

I slapped his hand away. “Don’t condescend to me.”

Caelum held up both hands. “Isn’t water supposed to be calm, easy going?”

I glared and tapped a foot.

“Right, we’re enjoying a whitewater, raging waterfall kind of day. You only saw the tourist version.” Caelum swept the scene with a hand. “This is the real Goblin Market where natives come to play. It doesn’t offer the same protections to visitors, so rein in that temper and remember to keep things calm and polite.”

“How did you get in here then?”

He waggled a candy bar. “I’m a charming soul.”

“You bribed your way in.”

“We are talking about faeries here. The lesser Sidhe have no easy way to get into Creation. They live for experiences and making deals. I bring some of those things into their reach.”

“All right, mister smarty pants, how do we get up there? Climb a tree?”

He rolled his eyes. “So gauche.”

“Well?”

Caelum patted his pockets, turning the exercise into something of an amateur magic show. When my expression promised an imminent tsunami, he withdrew a silk handkerchief from his back pocket. He unfolded it once, twice, a dozen times until it reached the size of a small area rug. The silk carpet shimmered in a constantly changing rainbow, gathering the colors around it like a greedy toddler and swirling them around before seizing the next. He rolled the cart onto it and took a seat. “Coming?”

“On that flimsy thing?”

“Silk might look pretty and delicate, but it’s actually quite tough.” He beamed. “Like me.”

I folded my arms.

A thought widened his smile. He leapt to his feet and extended a hand. “Do you trust me?”

I knocked away his hand and seated myself on the carpet. “You watch too many Seelie movies.”

Caelum laughed. He settled into his seat and whistled. The ether-silk rectangle rose at his command, changing directions as Caelum changed tones.

We floated among merchants hawking wares or themselves in equally persuasive tones.

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