Declan - pt. 8

My birthday. It’s 11:30pm and I’m celebrating the final minutes with a hot shower. You would think I would not need a shower with all the rain I just walked through. But it was a cold twisted rain, mixed with my sister’s fear. I needed to wash that off. I walk into the bedroom of my Travelodge room. There’s no power in the room. I’m enjoying the quiet of nothing modern. I’m naked and enjoying the freedom of my body hair drying naturally. It’s dark, but I can see fine with my unnatural eyes. They are green with a twinge of yellow. Mother used to say I had eyes like a lion. Mother, I miss her.
*
Today is my mother’s day. I was her miracle birth. She died that day, but was brought back by the giants of our land. I was a different story. I was saved by the giants, but I was blessed by The Seelie Court and lived. I was branded with the La Guz a rune of water and life. My lifespan is unknown, but I have seen many empires live and die. I have not visually aged in many centuries. Mother named me Declan, after my father’s brother. The Seelie Court named me Shaol, meaning “life.” The Jötunheim, the giants named me Amharach, meaning “lucky.” Our family name is never shared, in an effort to avoid public scrutiny and drawing attention to our heritage.
*
I’m hungry. All I have is some jerky, so I pull some out to nosh on. But I flick my lighter and make a wish and blow out the fire. The jerky will tide me over till morning. I need to sleep and I’m not far off.
*
Within seconds I feel the pull of the full moon and the drag of the sleep. While my body rests, the moon tugs at my spirit. I am unaware, but The Seelie Court has slipped into my room to protect my body from harm. My spirit ascends higher and higher into the atmosphere, only to be blocked by the unearthly veil surrounding this horrid city. I feel a great hand wrap my astral form and I’m comforted. The firm grip tears me from the barrier. I am cold again, it is winter – my true birthday. The day my visions are at their peak, where my mind meets my ancestors for guidance. In this form, I understand completely what I am told. When I return, it will be a different story. They know this of course, but they do their best to implant in my spiritual memory the important imprints that will show me what I need to know. Women are much better conduits for dream interpretation. Maybe one day I will obtain the brand of dream analysis, if there is such a thing. But for now, I absorb all that I can.
*
The last thing I hear, is my paternal grandmother’s plea to “Feel the pain Shaol. Feel it within you and stomp it out with your foot! Feel the pain Declan, Stomp it out with your foot!”
*
The hand grips me and I descend with great speed through the cold icy air and punch through the barrier. I quickly return to my body and wake with a gasping breath. The Seelie Court, I see them depart, all cheering over a successful watch. As I sit up, I notice one straggler. D’Sidhe, a very ancient member of the Court.
*
*Shaol, I beg of you. Save my Jad’hia. She has been turned by the Leanansidhe. My sister cousins, they bring only death and have captured and made my precious daughter one of them. The Seelie Court can alter her vampiric ways, but you must find her first. My strength is waning and I have not the energy to fight the evil here.*
*
“D’Sidhe, I will do as you command.”
*
With that, the old nymph departs. It’s 6:00am, the day after my birthday, and I don’t feel rested at all. What do I remember… nothing.
*
*Feel the pain*