Chapter Two
Zarik
I stood at the window, staring out at the nighttime lights of Los Angeles spread out below me. It had been about a year since I'd been in LA and I had to admit that I'd missed it a bit. There was just something about the frenetic energy of the city that hyped me up. There was always something happening in the city. Always something to do.
And of course, there was always something to kill.
I was a Dragonborn Ranger, part of the force sent to the land of men from Chondelai. We were there to protect humanity from the creatures that preyed on them – many of which, came to their world because of the carelessness of our ancestors.
Of course, as we've been learning over the years, the world of man had plenty of monsters of their own.
We fought them all. Our charge was to protect humanity, and so we did. Whether the creature was born in Chondelai or the world of man, we protected humanity from them all. It was our duty and one that was a high honor among the Dragonborn.
I'd worked hard and had sacrificed much to become a Ranger. Ultimately, I wanted to become a Warden and knew that one day I'd achieve it, but until then, I was satisfied in my role. I enjoyed it. Unlike some of the Dragonborn, I enjoyed the world of man, what it had to offer, and even the people, as well.
I knew that some of the other Rangers and Wardens living in the world of man kept to themselves or only interacted with other Dragonborn, but I figured, we were in this world fighting for them, why not get to know them? Why not make a few friends here and there? Our duty, though sacred and honorable, was lonely. Solitary. Making some friends along the way made it less burdensome.
Not only that, but befriending the people we were sworn to protect made the job more, personal. At least, for me. It made me feel like I had a bigger stake in the world of man. A real purpose and an even greater sense of duty to the people I served.
Not that they knew I served them. Protected them. Kept them safe from all those things that went bump in the night. Our world existed within theirs, but was a secret world. The people never knew we existed anymore than they knew the monsters we protected them from.
It was better that way. Safer for all of us. One thing I'd learned about humanity in my time in their world was that they didn't cope well with having their realities challenged. They were likely to flip out about learning something like the Shongtal existed. Some would claim it had something to do with religion. Others would politicize it. Still others would simply wail in terror.
The one thing I knew for certain though, was that discovering something like the Shongtal – or any of the other terrifying creatures in their world – would be met with fear and violence. And as was the case with many things, that violence would be turned upon one another.
Rather than unify to protect the world – and each other – agenda-driven people would use that knowledge to gain power, influence, and push their views onto others. They would stoke the fears of the people and incite them to violence, all the while, claiming this group or that group was responsible for these evil beings. I'd seen it more times than I could count.
Discovery of the dark creatures we fought, not to mention the Dragonborn ourselves, would tear the world of man apart.
I finished the drink in my hand and set the glass down on the table. It was time to get to work.
~ooo000ooo~
Half an hour later, I walked into Heat, one of LA's premier hotspots. It was a restaurant and, in another part of the building, a nightclub. It was the place where the Hollywood elite came to be seen. Any night of the week, you could walk in and rub elbows with some of LA's movers and shakers and Hollywood royalty. Although, truth be told, most of them wouldn't give us common folk the time of day. Uptight snobs.
Heat also happened to be owned by my territory's Warden – Quint. And because I was back in town and at his disposal, I was required to check in with him. Not that I minded. Quint was one of the good ones. An honorable man. Somebody I was proud to serve under.
He was Fire Clan, while I was of the Forest Clan. Traditionally, our clans back in Chondelai weren't always on the best of terms. The truce between all the clans following the War of the Three Stones – the event that prompted our presence in the world of man – was still holding, but was always tenuous. At best. Politics in Chondelai were tedious and oftentimes, petty.
Most of the Kings of the clans wanted to do the right thing, but were often hamstrung by their own ambitions and desires. Once in a while, somebody's greed overcame their good sense and threatened that fragile truce, but the other Kings would rally together and make sure the truce held. So far it had worked.
For all of the damage the War of the Three Stones had done to Chondelai, for how close it came to splitting our world apart and doing irreparable harm, much good had also come out of it. Continued to come out of it even centuries later.
But in the world of man, things were different for the Dragonborn. We were so far removed from Chondelai and all of its politics that things like clan distinction – for the most part – were irrelevant. Oh, there were some who still held along those old lines of loyalty and would give those of us in traditionally rival clans the cold shoulder, but for the most part, we were all on the same side, working together for the greater good.
“Can I help you, sir?”
I looked at the tall, leggy blonde who was standing at the hostess’s podium in the lobby of the club side of Heat. The music was dull and muted out where we were thanks to the two large doors that were set into a wall at the far end of the lobby.
“I'm Zarik. I’m here to see Quint,” I said.
“Oh,” she said, very pointedly looking at her watch. “Is he expecting you?”
I nodded. “Probably,” I replied. “I'm a bit of a night owl.”
She gave me a small grin. “So is he,” she said. “Just give me one minute.”
“Of course.”
As she picked up a phone on her podium, I took a step back to give her the illusion of privacy. The fact of the matter though, was that I could have stood at the far end of the lobby and still heard every word she said. The senses of the Dragonborn are heightened. Sharpened. Our sense of smell, vision, and even hearing was greater than any human's. So, I listened to her softly speaking to Quint into the phone. After a moment, she hung up and gave me a warm, almost shy smile.
“He's waiting for you in his office,” she said and pointed to a door set discretely into the wall behind her station. “Just go through there, take the stairs up and follow the hallway down.”
“Thank you very much,” I said.
She pushed a button on her podium and an electronic buzzing sounded from the door. I opened it and walked through, letting it close softly behind me. Honestly, I was glad he had a private entrance to his office. The last thing I wanted to do was walk through that crush of bodies in the club. Given just how heightened my senses were, the last thing I wanted to deal with was the flaring strobe of the lights and the loud, skull-rattling music. Not to mention the overpowering aroma of drugs, sweat, and sex from the throngs of people grinding their bodies together out on the dance floor.
It could all be a little overwhelming at times; which was why Quint probably had this private entry built to begin with.
I followed the hallway to the solid oak door at the end. It opened before I could even knock and I found myself staring into Quint's smiling face. He pulled me to him in a powerful, back-slapping embrace – the embrace of brothers who'd gone too long without seeing each other.
“It's great to see you, Zarik,” he said. “It's been too long. Thank you for coming so quickly. Honestly, I hadn't expected to see you for another few days.”
“When my Warden calls, I come running,” I replied with a grin.
“Since when?”
“Since you called me yesterday.”
He laughed and led me into his office, closing the door behind us. As I stepped inside though, I paused. Sitting on a couch behind a smoked glass window that overlooked the club was a short, curvy redhead. She was a stunning woman, with dark brown eyes and milky white skin – she was also somebody I didn't recognize.
“If you'd told me this was going to be a party,” I said, “I would have brought a date.”
The woman hid her smile behind her hand, but couldn't quite stifle the laugh.
“Astrid,” Quint said, “this ill-mannered, uncouth lout is Zarik, my most valued and trusted Ranger.”
I shrugged. “He says that about all the boys.”
She got to her feet and walked over to me, extending her hand. “Pleasure to meet you,” she said. “Quint's told me a lot about you.”
I took her hand and planted a soft kiss on it. “The pleasure is mine, Astrid.”
She blushed and gave me a smile before she walked back to the couch and sat down. I cut a look at Quint, not sure how much I could – or should – say in front of a human woman. Quint smiled, as if understanding.
“You can speak freely in front of Astrid,” he said. “I hide nothing from her.”
“Nothing?” I asked, my curiosity piqued.
Quint gave me a small smile. “She has some personal experience with the Shongtal,” he explained. “And with us.”
Astrid turned her brown eyes on me and smiled. “And which clan are you?”
I cut one more quick glance at Quint and he nodded. “Forest clan.”
“Quint has given me a little bit of the history of the clans and your world,” she said. “But I know I still have much to learn.”
“Don't we all?” I asked.
I took the far end of the couch and turned to her as Quint sat down in the chair across from us. The music in the club was a dull thud coming through the thick glass. I took a look down at the floor of the club, watching the eager bodies grinding together beneath the strobes. Intermittently, bursts of flame would erupt from wall mounted devices, delighting the exuberant crowd.
“I see the club is still jumping,” I said.
Quint nodded. “It's doing pretty well.”
“Better than just pretty well,” Astrid chimed in with obvious pride in her voice. “Heat was named the city's top restaurant and nightclub. Again.”
“Congratulations,” I said. “I'm happy to hear of your success.”
“Wish I could take credit for it,” Quint replied. “But my role here is small, really. I've got an excellent staff who really makes this place work. Although I didn't ask you to come back to LA to talk about my business.”
“Well, not this business, anyway,” I said.
“Sadly, no,” Quint said. “I needed your talents here in LA.”
“The Shongtal?” I asked.
He shook his head. “Surprisingly, no,” Quint replied. “They've been astoundingly quiet for a little while now. A little too quiet, if you ask me.”
“I'd prefer we never hear from them again,” Astrid said.
A moment of silence descended over the room as Astrid tried to shake whatever memories were currently haunting her. Knowing her memories had to do with the Shongtal though, I figured that they were probably terrible.
“So, if it's not the Shongtal,” I finally said. “What's going on around here?”
“I wish I knew,” Quint said. “But we've recently seen a number of bodies left around the city that look like they've been – eaten.”
“Eaten?” I asked.
Astrid looked repulsed, but Quint nodded. “Yeah, the organs and soft meat on the body, anyway,” he said.
“Interesting,” I said.
“Disgusting,” Astrid replied.
I laughed. “Much of what comes from Chondelai is disgusting,” I said. “Including your boyfriend.”
Quint shot me the finger but laughed. Astrid just shook her head, grinning.
“You boys are no different than human boys,” she said. “Always looking to zing each other.”
I shrugged. “I suppose it's true – boys will be boys.”
“Anyway,” Quint said. “I've been looking into this for the last few weeks and haven't come up with squat. No leads, no nothing. There's something out there, but I'm obviously not finding it. I can use your eyes and your brain, Zarik. You've always been better at the detective work than me.”
I grinned. “No need to lay the flattery on that thick,” I said. “You're my Warden and what you ask, I do. I am yours to command.”
He shook his head and smiled. “You know I'm not like that.”
“I know, brother,” I said. “I'm just giving you a hard time.”
“See?” he said to Astrid. “Some things never change.”
“Boys will be boys,” she said.
I stood up and gave them both a nod. “I'll look into it and when I find something, I'll report back to you.”
“Thank you,” Quint said. “And please – be careful out there.”