Page 10 of Heir of the Beast

Charming steps forward and places a hand on her shoulder, whispering something in her ear. She shakes her head and whispers something back, looking very upset.

What’s going on?

I shift in my seat and look at Cherie, noticing that everyone appears concerned. Cherie shrugs and glances back at the two.

We see Pierce give her a hug, and the Fairy Godmother leaves the room with her hand over her mouth, clearly distraught. Charming walks her to the door, then he returns to us and exhales.

“I’m sorry for the delay.” He saunters over to the desk and sits on the edge. “I will be leading the discussion today. The Fairy Godmother has a lot on her plate with appointments she cannot miss. I will be taking questions shortly, but for now, just listen.” His blue gaze lands on me, then passes over everyone else.

“If everyone here agrees to the terms, then all of you will be transported to another world—a kingdom, if you will. And yes, ladies, we can do that.

“There are many different dimensions, with many different planets with functioning worlds like Earth. Believe it because it is very true.”

He moves to stand behind the desk and starts typing, then waves his hands up in the air as 3-D images come out.

In one instant, the view of the universe changes.

I gasp.

I see some insanely technological PowerPoint display.

On the 3-D screen, I will call it, planets appear in a list from number one to a thousand-and-something. The top half is labeled in white, the middle blue, and different hues of red for the bottom.

“As you can see, these planets are currently under contract with Fairy Godmother Inc. This is not the normal speech we give our agents, and for that, I apologize.

“We need help. Desperation is an understatement here. Fairy Godmother Inc. is on the verge of being out of business. This is the best way I can describe it for you to understand.

“I will explain why, and you’re the first group to hear this behind-the-scenes information.

“The entire purpose of this company is to control and maintain peace within the universe. The Fairy Godmother answers to a higher authority, who gave her the responsibility to keep a certain level of peace between all worlds.”

He pauses as he gazes around. “All the planets are invisibly connected, and when one harbors evil, it affects the others like dark oppression, a chain reaction of negativity.

“This evil is not okay, and it needs to be managed. The Fairy Godmother believes that love can heal all wickedness; this has always been her slogan. She is an amazing woman, always thinking that redemption can be a part of the most corrupt.” He pauses at our still-confused expressions.

“We need to keep each planet above 50 percent—evil versus good. We can never eliminate evil altogether, but we can keep it manageable with this system we have used for hundreds of years.

“We are talking about the people who inhabit them. Their souls combine for a total percentage. If we cannot do this over time, we are out of the business, and a different power will take over.”

I raise my hand.

He looks at me, then nods.

All eyes are on me.

“So,” I clear my throat, “I’m guessing that the Fairy Godmother is going out of business because she is having trouble with keeping evil below 50 percent?”

I am trying to understand this complex dilemma. I blush, hoping I didn’t ask a stupid question.

He takes a moment. “Yes, we are having a problem with one planet. Remember that each planet is judged separately,” Charming continues as he points to the 3-D screen.

“The last world on the bottom is the one in question, the one that is bright red. As you can see, the other planets above it are being affected by it, starting to turn red as well.

“It’s like an infection, spreading unless we can cure it, fast.”

“I get it,” Laura blurts out loudly, looking around. “You want us to make the leader of a kingdom fall in love with one of us. To cure their evil souls. How romantically heroic of us.”

Her eyes are lit with excitement. “So we are like heroes—love heroes.”

---