Sean Cullen - The Prince of Neither Here Nor There

Or did you think I’d merely doodled little pictures on all the remaining pages? Certainly, my doodling is renowned in World Doodling Circles. In fact, I was once torn between pursuing a career in doodling and being a narrator, but in the end, I decided that the world would be a darker place without me to narrate the important stories.

So, no doodles. Just more story. Brendan has already gone through a great deal of struggle, but there is always more struggling to do. Life is worthless without struggle. Struggling is also a good source of cardiovascular exercise. I struggle three times a week and I’m as fit as a horse. Well, not a horse. Perhaps a small shaggy pony. But I’m fit and that’s the important thing.

Without further ado, let us get on with the story.

“A Quest!” Og had cried, delighted. Something about his giddy exclamation had filled Brendan with dread. He looked to Ariel for an explanation.

The ancient Faerie seemed uncomfortable for the first time since their conversation had begun. He pursed his lips and sighed. “Oh, dear.”

“Oh, dear what?” Brendan demanded. “What, oh dear? What does he mean, ‘a quest’?”

“You have lost your token. You must find it or forever be banished from the presence of the Fair Folk,” Ariel explained.

“Lost it?” Brendan said, incredulous. “I’ve never even seen it before. How could I have lost it? How am I supposed to find this thing? I don’t even know what it looks like!”

“When you were taken and hidden among the People of Metal, your father would have given you the amulet. No one could have taken it from you unless they were Faerie.”

“Again,” Brendan said through gritted teeth. “Anyone could have taken it. I was a baby. A Faerie could have easily taken it. How could I stop them?”

“No Faerie could have found you. You were under a Ward,” Ariel insisted. “A powerful glamour forged by one of the strongest of our kind shielded you from Faerie eyes. Now that the Ward is removed, your true nature will be revealed to Humans. Perhaps more dangerous is that you will be visible to Orcadia and those who follow her. You will be vulnerable until you find your token and undergo the initiation.”

“Who could expect me to be able to hold onto an amulet?” Brendan was totally exasperated. “I was an infant! Anybody could have taken it from me. Haven’t you ever heard the expression ‘Easy as taking candy from a baby’? Well, just substitute amulet for candy and you see my point.”

“If it were just any amulet, I would agree,” Ariel said. “However, this amulet had its own Wards as well, attuned to you. It would be invisible to Human eyes. Only another Faerie could have removed it from you and to do so would bring dire punishment, should the theft be discovered.”

“So some other Faerie took it. Maybe they destroyed it.”

“If they had,” Og interjected, “you would be dead.”

Kim nodded soberly. “Og is right. It contained an essential part of you within it. If it were broken or destroyed, you would perish.”

Brendan felt a chill pass over his heart. “I hope it’s a sturdy, high-quality item,” he said in a dry tone that hid his anxiety.

“Of course it is,” Og declared. He thumped his chest and burped loudly. “Made it myself, didn’t I?”

Brendan didn’t find the declaration reassuring. “So what do I do now?”

“Now you must find the amulet,” Ariel said simply, leaning back in his chair.

“It sounds like an impossible task,” Brendan said. “How can I possibly succeed?”

Ariel’s face became deathly still. “You must. If you don’t, you will have no protection. Orcadia and her ilk will find you and either destroy you or turn you to their dark purposes. Your Human family will be endangered. You will have nowhere to hide. Without being fully initiated and integrated to your Faerie powers, you will be a danger to all those around you. You will have no control.” He shook his head sadly. “It pains me to cast you out once again when we have only just found you, but this is our Law. We must follow the Law or we are doomed.”

Brendan looked at his face and saw that there would be no change of heart. He looked to Kim, and she shook her head. “Can’t you help me? At least tell me where to start?”

“Ain’t done,” Og said, staring at the glass held between his scarred hands, unable to meet Brendan’s gaze. “No one in this room can help ye, son. Ye have to do it all on yer own. It’s the rules!”

“But we have to help him,” Deirdre said suddenly. “He has no idea what to do. He’s a special case. Not just because of who he is but because of his circumstances. He is ignorant through no fault of his own.”

“Deirdre, no,” Ariel said firmly.

“You can’t send him out there alone,” Deirdre insisted.

“No!” Ariel thundered. The entire room fell silent, and even Deirdre seemed cowed. For an instant all the lights dimmed, and Brendan saw a shadow in Ariel’s eyes, a hint of the power that lurked beneath his gentle exterior. “He must follow his Quest and retrieve his token. Alone! That is the Law!”

No one spoke. Brendan saw how Ariel commanded them all with the force of his personality. He could easily imagine Ariel in ancient Greece striking fear and awe into the hearts of his worshippers.

Brendan looked around at the Faeries gathered there, the people he had never imagined existing before today, and felt despair. He suddenly didn’t want to lose them. “This isn’t fair! You pulled me out of my Human life, and now you’re kicking me back out into the street?” He looked at Kim beseechingly. “You can’t do this!”

“I’m sorry, Breandan,” she said softly. “I can’t help you any more. I’m bound by the Law as much as you are.”

Brendan looked at her, this girl he’d never truly known. He saw how much this was hurting her, too. “Okay. I understand.”

“I’m sorry…” she said miserably.

“S’okay.” Brendan hung his head. He didn’t want to whine. His dad had always told him that life wasn’t fair. You had to do your best with what life gave you. He would succeed or fail, but he would do his best. “That name they call you…”

“Ki-Mata.”

Brendan stood up from the table. “I think I’ll call you Kim, if you don’t mind. It suits you.”

“You and you alone may call me that,” she said. “Be careful, Brendan.”

He shrugged. “I’ll do my best. Thanks for watching out for me at school. You were a good friend. I just wanted you to know that in case I never get back here.”

She smiled but said no more. Og’s hand fell on his shoulder. Brendan looked up into the beefy, red face. “Here, son. Take this.” He held a ham and cheese sandwich in his hand. Mustard dripped over his knuckles.

Brendan looked critically at the offering. “Is it a magical sandwich?”

“Sadly, no,” Og admitted, laughing. “Delicious but not magical.”

“No gifts,” Ariel said.

“It ain’t a gift! It’s provisions. He’s hardly had nothing to eat, Ariel. You won’t begrudge him a morsel for the road?”

Ariel pursed his lips. “Hmmm. All right. I will allow it. Now, Brendan, you must be gone. Return with the amulet and the doors of the Swan will be open to you. Good luck.”

Brendan took the sandwich. “Thanks, Og.”

“Uncle Og! And enjoy the sandwich!” He winked a great blue eye and clapped Brendan on the back. “Just be careful where you bite,” he said cryptically.

So Brendan walked slowly across the room toward the door. Faeries called out to him as he wove his way through the crowd, patting his back, wishing him luck. He came to the door and found Leonard standing there, massive arms crossed over his huge chest. There was a slight gust of wind and then Saskia appeared by Leonard’s side.