Page 30 of Within the Veil

I glare at her, "Stop interrupting, and I will tell you."

Ignoring her frown, I rub my temples. If Fae could get headaches, I would have one right now. I'm sure of it. "Yes, we can manipulate our lands. Outside of Terraheim, we can still manipulate the earth better than most, but the closer we are, the stronger the magic. Our bloodline also grants us certain liberties. One is that the nature spirits, closely tied to the earth, like dryads and nymphs, are uniquely tied to us. They come to our aid when needed and vice-versa. The biggest and most complicated..."

Oberon scoffs, "Complicated, is putting it mildly. Nypmhs are notorious meddlesome creatures. I cannot tell you how many times one of them has tried to get into my breaches while doing recognizance...."

Oberon ignores Ryder, and Gray's hand signals to stop talking immediately, and Remi watches with glee as Hudson's eyes narrow. Any minute now...

"You want to run that by me one more time, Scail?" Ouch, back to Scail, not Oberon or Obi.

"The Nymphs? Yes, they are quite voracious in their appetites..." He's cut off as Hudson launches her own unique elemental weave of magic and knocks him on his ass, feet overhead, as the couch he was lying on flips over.

Remi falls over with laughter, "Oh, is that the same one you used in class? Your mini nuclear bomb? Fuck it was great then, but it's even better now."

Grayson whistles, "a fuck-ton more powerful. You didn't try to hold back. If he didn't consistently shield like the paranoid fucker he is, you would have been down a mate."

"More Hudson for us!" Ryder laughs.

I stand up and walk over to where Oberon is on his back, looking completely dazed. He wasn't expecting that at all. Dumb fucker. Centuries-old, and still has no idea how to talk, or in his case not talk, to a woman. Scratch that to a Hudson. Which is a learning curve all on its own.

"If a mini-bomb puts the great Scail on his ass, then maybe he needs to stop swinging from the horny trees and start upping his combat game," Hudson scowls.

Giving him a hand, I sigh, "Get up, man. Lesson number one, do not, and I repeat, donotspeak about any other women if you want to live a few more centuries. Got it?"

He grimaces as he stands up, "I was..." He groans at my look. "I am sorry, My Love. It was simply an old tale. No person or nymph has taken liberties with my body in a long time."

Hudson ignores him, "Continue, Zane. The most complicated..."

Oberon sighs and straightens the smoking couch before dousing it with water. He sits down next to Hudson, his large body looking very uncomfortable as he tries to maneuver himself closer like a Fae puppy.

I bite back a laugh, "Complicated, yes. Nature spirits can shape-shift."

She claps her hands, "Like in Hercules!"

I chuckle, "Yes, like that. Because of our bloodline, we can also shapeshift. However, it is not always perfect, nor does it mean you can change into something with a bigger body mass or a smaller one. So, I can change into one of these guys because we have a similar build. But I can't change into Remi."

"Hmm, still ridiculously useful. Make some mountains, throw a few boulders around, then change into an annoying ass family member and have them take the blame. Makes you wonder, though, between everyone's unique strengths and abilities, what kind of baby milkshake did we make?" Hudson asks.

I shrug, "No idea, baby. But I am looking forward to finding out."

Remi laughs, "Until one of them summons a Dryad, a giant, and a fucking water dragon for a tea party at two in the morning. Then you'll be looking forward to several appointments with a healer once they trample on your sleeping body." She wipes tears from her eyes.

Ryder frowns, "She has a point."

"Nothing we can do about it now," Grayson shrugs. "Other than figure out extreme baby-proofing measures and pray to Gaia that they won't figure out a way around it."

"Gaia is gonna bring her ass down here and babysit since she wants to give out goddess powers like candy. But between me, Hunter, Grayson, Zane, Oberon, and Remi...shit, even Xena, they will be...."

"What about me?!" Ryder asks, cutting her off.

"What about you? You'll be in time out with them, all decked out in matching baby and daddy designer clothes after helping them destroy half the town," Hudson says dryly.

Ryder stares at her for a moment and nods, "Good point. I have plans. Diabolical ones that will involve...well, you'll just have to find out, won't you?" He gives his best interpretation of an evil laugh, and we ignore him. Hot fucking mess.

"You know," Hudson says softly, her green eyes taking on that familiar glint of curiosity.

"I now understand you four better, and I already know about Remi, but there are two puzzle pieces that have yet to fall into place. One, how did you guys all keep in contact? Other than river dates? Can't imagine it would have been easy for you all to be seen together. Two is Oberon. How is it that no one made the connection between Oberon and Scail?" She pauses, her voice trailing off slightly.

She looks at Oberon, her eyebrows raised, "I get that you had this cloak and dagger thing going on, but seriously,no onerecognized you? Voice? Movements? Scent? Mathematically speaking, longevity plus power should equal at least a good memory. I can't argue for intelligence, but surely people can put two and two together. Other than you having the other piece of the prophecy and terrifying everyone who comes near you, whatisyour background?" The words table from her mouth as confusion wars with logic and Oberon sighs.

---