8. ~Elliot Sabre~

8

~Elliot Sabre~

Change.

There had been so much of it over the last few weeks.

More than there had been in years.

It had been happening slowly, bit by bit, since Constantine had been resurrected and that had surged following Abi’s untimely death.

Her sacrifice.

It had been eating at me fiercely that I hadn’t gotten there in time to stop her, that I hadn’t been able to find another way. That she hadn’t waited for me to find another way.

It was what I did, what I’d been doing for years.

Making the impossible possible.

Whether I could have found a way to extinguish black magic that hadn’t involved her having to use her celestial light and sacrifice her own life, I didn’t know. But I hadn’t even been able to give it a good try before she’d done what she had.

She’d wanted to die.

She’d wanted to be at peace.

Despite her detractors and even her own doubts near the end, no one had worked harder for the wellbeing of the supernatural world than her. And it had been a thankless job. More than that, it had been a job that had constantly invited criticism.

And, for her, loss. She’d lost her husband, her daughter had been taken and corrupted by Constantine Vale and as to whether Alena would even fully recover from that, it still remained to be seen.

Abigail had had enough. Most people would have retired. But being a Fallen, she couldn’t allow herself to do that. Her life was her duty. In essence, she’d been trapped.

But now she was free.

I just wished so deeply that there’d been another way for her to achieve that.

Weeks had gone by and I still felt her loss as painfully as I had the day it had occurred.

Time assisted, but it didn’t cure.

Nothing did when it came to that.

There hadn’t been a lot of time to mourn properly either.

There’d been far too much to do.

Losing Abi, her leadership, her magic, it had taken its toll and I’d been doing my damnedest to try to ease the impact of that upon those whom we’d sworn to safeguard.

I’d had to re-erect all of her fallen magic. Structures, wards, numerous spells, everything. Fortunately, Saryan had lent his power and extensive knowledge base to assist me and to share some of the load. He’d taken on more in that regard than the King of the Light Fae, who Exemplar was known for having a much better relationship with. Gregor was extremely kingdom-centric, though, and helping anyone outside the Light Fae Realm was always second to him.

Abi had prepared for that, I’d realized, with the way she’d ensured she’d made peace with Saryan just before she’d died. Even at her end, she’d tried to protect and prepare.

I sighed and finished up sending another email to my second at Sabre Tech, Frederick. I was in the middle of the product launch of the Illuminex Shield while dealing with all of this and essentially pulling double duty and operating fulltime at Exemplar.

That weight would be eased somewhat soon, however.

At least that was my intention with the meeting I had scheduled here at the compound today.

It had been Abi’s intention too. Yet another thing she’d had the foresight to prepare for.

Her successor.

Unfortunately, it took a great deal to match her, so her successor was supposed to be two beings in her place—her daughter and the Dark Fae Prince.

As it stood currently, Alena was struggling, haunted, and traumatized by what she’d endured with her mother’s loss and during Constantine’s captivity.

No matter, for now I would focus on the Dark Fae Prince, someone who’d demonstrated his capacity for this role to me during several instances of late.

Despite him being extremely close to my son, because of my own estrangement with Xavier that he’d enforced in his misguided bid to protect me from my own worse instincts when it came to doing what was best for him, I hadn’t spent much time with Orpheus. There’d been brief interactions here and there, but not enough to really get to know him.

Today that was about to change.

I pocketed my phone in my suit jacket pocket and continued on down the corridor which I had been doing before a series of emails had come in demanding my immediate attention. Everything was immediate lately. And it had me off-schedule, something I hated.

I was even late to meet with the Dark Fae Prince and give him an induction into Exemplar.

I hurriedly made it into the Diplomatic Lounge, the space in which we received various leaders, monarchs, and heads throughout the supernatural world.

I’d been putting out fires non-stop for the last two weeks, those key individuals panicking at Abi’s demise, others reacting to Constantine’s threat upon the world, and a worrying amount also up in arms once news had leaked of just how close the demon had come to subjugating the magical community to his will.

Thankfully, a result of my efforts and that of my team here meant that I actually found myself walking into an empty room—all except for Orpheus Hart sitting in one of the sleek white armchairs typing rapidly on his phone.

I gave Gareth, the up-and-coming warlock monitoring the security desk in the room, a polite chin lift, then I strode to Orpheus.

He rose at my approach.

“My apologies for the delay.”

“I know you’re exceedingly busy, no apology needed,” he answered smoothly and showing no sign of agitation. At least toward me. I’d caught him grinding his jaw as he’d been typing away.

“Thank you. Let’s get started right away, shall we?”

He gave a nod and followed me out and deeper into the compound.

“Are you well?”

He smiled, reading the subtext in my question well. “Xavier is fine. He was in a session with his therapist at the house when I left.”

Relief sung through me.

It happened every time I heard something positive about how my son was doing. As awful as it sounded, I couldn’t trust him to be honest with me where that was concerned. So our two calls every day that I insisted upon could only tell me so much.

Orpheus offered more, telling me, “He’s been experimenting with his magic, flexing that muscle a lot, but also his vampire side. It seems he’s struck a balance at last and that he’s enjoying both aspects now.”

“And his mood beyond that?”

“Still struggling with the guilt of what happened.”

“What that demon made him do.”

“Yes.”

I sucked in a breath, needing to move on before it impacted me. “And Alena? Talon?”

“Talon’s bouncing back as he does. Alena… that’s another story.”

“Does the situation require my interference?”

“Talon is going to try to reach her. If that proves fruitless, I’ll let you know.”

I gave a nod. “And you?”

“Fine.”

Hmm. “Just like that?”

He frowned.

I elaborated, “You’ve been removed from Electi Academy.”

“ Removed . That’s a very diplomatic way of putting it.”

“Ah, well, being in the position that I am here at Exemplar requires a great deal of diplomacy. Something I understand you employed with Dean Bronson.”

“Hmm, you’re watching me.”

I nodded. “Keeping an eye on your interactions with key figures, yes. Observing how you conduct yourself.”

“And?”

“And why didn’t you make your displeasure known?”

“What would have been the point? Militarizing the students did endanger them. The faculty knows now so the army is off the table. My moves would be under a microscope even if I did finagle my return. Moreover, my attention is needed elsewhere now.”

“You’re ready to come into your full potential, to finally put it to good use?”

“That I am.”

“I was impressed with how you handled yourself during the battle at Electi Academy.”

“I did what was necessary.”

Hmm. Modesty. That wasn’t a trait his father was known for.

But he did possess certain similar traits.

“What you did with the army, it was highly underhanded. Was that another case of doing what was necessary?”

He stared at me as we walked, trying to read me.

And I let him.

I didn’t want subterfuge between us.

That would make for a dangerous partnership and one riddled with headaches.

“Yes,” he told me, surely.

I smiled at his brazen honesty, not even trying to play it down or defend his action in that regard. “Abigail thought the same.”

“Change really is afoot with her and I in agreement about something.”

“You were in agreement with more than you think.”

He cocked an eyebrow.

“Before she died, she was working on a proposal to alter the way Electi Academy does things. Her and I were also meeting to discuss your notion to shift from a standardized approach to threats and employ a case-by-case approach instead.”

“When it comes to the kill being off the table in all circumstances?”

“Among other things. In fact, it has already been put to vote. Our senior members and myself reached a unanimous agreement. Regarding the Constantine threat, the kill has been authorized.”

“That’s a big step in a very different direction for Exemplar.”

“A big step that could also prove dangerous if it’s not managed carefully.” I eyed him pointedly. “And with transparency.”

“I’m here for the same purpose as you are,” he assured me. “Constantine’s rise and everything he’s done since has proven that the current way of doing things isn’t good enough. It put so many in danger and in his crosshairs, including those I care about most in the world. My father almost died because of said shortcomings. And a lack of transparency on Exemplar’s part, everyone working against one another instead of as one. I aim to change that, to build a better, more cohesive and stronger way of approaching things so all this unnecessary pain, destruction, and death, doesn’t befall any of us again.”

I smiled. “Excellent answer.”

He smiled back at me. “Well, I came prepared to butt heads with you. At least, at first, while you remained unsure of just how similar I am to my father. What you’re chiefly concerned about is my penchant for going off-book. As I’ve just highlighted, I’m hoping you can see that I only do so when there’s no other choice, no other way forward.”

“When you’re running into roadblocks instead of assistance, yes. And your penchant for going off book actually has its positive aspects. It showcases your ability to think outside the box, something we, as an increasingly stagnant organization, could certainly do with. But if you and I are to work together, there can be no secrets between us. From others while we are working a situation and devising the best strategy and approach, yes, but not from each other. That would make for a dangerous situation and it would ensure this partnership fails in a spectacular and damaging fashion.”

“I agree.”

We fell into a contemplative silence for a while as we walked side-by-side through the winding hallways of the compound and I watched Orpheus looking around, taking everything in.

“Why is the compound so quiet?” he asked just as we were nearing the target location.

“That’s what you’re about to find out,” I told him, as I came to a stop in front of the arched golden door located deep within the maze-like structure of the building.

I swept a glowing indigo palm over it and the lock clanged, the door opening a crack.

I pushed it open the rest of the way and gestured for him to follow me inside.

As soon as he was in, I sealed it with my magic, then lit the space with another burst of my power.

The white walls of the room contained a single thing and Orpheus’ eyes went straight to it, widening in a mixture of surprise and wonder.

There would be a great deal of that as he came to learn about the innerworkings of Exemplar.

A mammoth white sphere levitated in the center of the space, lit up with a rainbow of magical sparks all over its surface area.

“The Eye of Intuitum,” I told him. “In essence, a globe representing the supernatural world. Green, orange, and red sparks signify an issue or threat that requires our attention, the colors identifying the degree and severity of each. This is what we deal with on a daily basis.”

“There are thousands of them.”

“Indeed.”

He studied it for several moments, then asked me, “And the black? Onyx alerts?”

“Yes. Currently those include Constantine, his acolytes, the remaining escaped prisoners we are still trying to track down, and upheaval from several factions in response to word being leaked of how close Constantine came to taking control. That’s why the compound is so quiet. All our members are currently deployed attending to the Onyx alerts, while we also have diplomatic forces on the ground seeing to the more standard situations.”

He walked around the sphere and I saw him notice the silver spreading through one area and knocking out several alert sparks in the process. He looked out at me. “Is that—”

“Your father, yes. He’s offered his assistance while we’re struggling and reeling from the loss of Abigail.”

“How do you manage all of this, especially alongside Sabre Tech?”

“That’s what you’re here to learn, is it not?”

“What?”

“You want me to teach you.”

“I—”

“So you can do what you really desire here at Exemplar and make an impact on the supernatural world, have the power to do so and to affect change, while also finding a way to share rule in the Dark Fae Realm so as not to disappoint your father with what he needs from you?”

He chuckled. “Fuck, you’re good.”

“Stick with me.” I stepped away from the sphere. “Come now, I have a lot more to show you.”

As we headed back out into the corridor, hope bloomed for the first time in a long time.

This was the start of a new day.

One that had the potential to fix everything.

Thank you, Abi.

Still safeguarding us, even though no longer with us.