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Thursday, April 23, 2167

The Gray Ward

Dragon Heights, Wyoming

At eight in the morning,a courier arrived with a king’s ransom in camera equipment. I signed for the delivery, and while a curious Garnet observed from my lap, I unpacked everything. The elegant camera backpack would see a great deal of use, especially as it featured a ridiculous number of anti-theft features. According to the internet, my father had spent several thousand on the camera body. The collection of lenses would convince just about anyone I was a professional photographer.

I had considered working a street corner for such a camera during my days as a cop.

I assembled the camera, set up the battery charger, and accepted the inevitable: I would need to get a laptop to process the photographs. To distract my kitten, I offered her milk to go along with her breakfast before texting my father that I admired his ruthless cunning, forcing me to acquire a laptop to best make use of the ridiculous camera. I also thanked him, promising I’d take plenty of pictures of his grandkitten.

His replying text informed me he would arrange for a laptop to be delivered as he had not realized I’d gone quite so far off the deep end.

Heaving a sigh, I called. When he answered, I said, “You can’t blow all your money buying me shit, Dad.”

“That might have worked with your father, but it will not work with me,” my mother informed me.

Crap. My mother must have stolen my father’s phone. “Hi, Mom. Please do not add Dad’s phone to your hoard. He needs it.”

She laughed at me. “I’ll let him keep his phone, but you’re not getting out of accepting the laptop.”

“I’m not a complete luddite. I have a tablet. You don’t have to spend all that money on me.”

“While a tablet is a good tool, we have missed several Christmases and birthdays now due to your stubborn pride and nature, so you can view it as retaliation for skipping out on the important holidays. How are you doing?”

I kept an eye on Garnet to make sure she didn’t choke on her breakfast, giggling as she purred while drinking her beloved milk. “I’m doing decently. Once I finish feeding my kitten, I’m going to take her and my camera out for some blatant tourism.”

In reality, I’d be hitting numerous birds with one stone, photographing the haunts around the brothel before checking out the shrines. The shrines would be an issue—an issue I would not discuss with my mother.

She had even more opinions than my father, and if I gave her an opportunity, she would share them all with me.

“Excellent. Your father was forced to notify me that you have acquired a carbunclo.”

My mother had probably caught him in the act of sending me the camera. While I loved my father dearly, he often failed to cover his tracks when my mother was involved. “How did you catch him in the act this time?”

“I came home to discover him bouncing around the house. As your father does not usually skip, bounce, or otherwise engage in such activities, I determined something had pleased him far beyond the norm. I stared him into submission. He confessed about your new camera. Upon reviewing the purchase, I approved his selection. So, are you going to accept a delivery of a laptop?”

“That depends on if the laptop comes when I’m home. I have plans to take this camera that mystically appeared at my apartment out on a walk today. I have no idea what the weather is like yet, but it’s the perfect day to play with this camera.”

“I know you’d always wanted a good one when working on the force, and you’d complained about sometimes never being able to get the photographs you needed. If you’re doing private investigation work, you need a good camera. Also, what’s this nonsense I’m hearing about you being anonymous in Dragon Heights?”

I foresaw a great deal of trouble in my immediate future. “I have enjoyed my privacy.”

“Just register yourself properly. I will inform Erik he cannot make use of the registrations to locate you as he should display his determination. Your father had mentioned that to me in his effort to survive my wrath.”

I rolled my eyes at the blatant bullshit my mother spouted. “I like the testing process, Mom. And it hasn’t done me any real harm.”

“You’re poor,” my mother announced, and her tone implied I had committed some form of crime.

“Yes, that is what happens when you get by picking up bounties and doing little jobs for people, Mom. What’s the problem?”

“You have a savings account. Use it.”

“I can’t without registering,” I replied.

“Register.”

“I don’t want to. I want to test in.”

She growled at me, drawing on her draconic heritage to inform me I walked on thin ice. As hissing might upset Garnet, I went with my next weapon in my arsenal: I laughed at my mother. “You’re mad because I’m not using my savings account?”

“Yes.”

“Come on, Mom. I’ve been doing fine.”

“You’re living in the slums.”

“I happen to like the slums. And while I do happen to live in the Gray Ward, it’s the safe part. Cecilia’s liked by the dragons, she has dragons and dragon-kin on staff, and I’m right down the street from her brothel. Sure, it’s not the swankiest of places, but it’s cheap, it’s mine, and I’m holding my own.”

She growled at me again, which she followed up with a sigh. “Holding your own is good, but you deserve a proper house.”

Once I passed my test and established my permanent identity in the city, I would have an easier time—and I already had a bank account in the city, which I’d gotten with a little help from the titanium dragons. “I guess there’s no reason I couldn’t transfer money from my savings account into my account here. I might be anonymous, but I do have a bank account.”

“And how did my pretty little princess manage that? Dragon Heights is notorious about such things.”

“A titanium dragon-kin and his clan vouched for me. The same clan that gave me Garnet.”

“Ah. That is acceptable, then. Did you forget about your savings account?”

Damn. My mother had it out for me, and she was as accurate as ever. “That may have happened in my general determination to beat this city.”

“Now we’re talking. And just how do you plan on conquering Dragon Heights?”

“She is not going to be conquering Dragon Heights,” my father stated in the background.

“Like hell she isn’t, you old snake! You take that back. She can conquer Dragon Heights if she wants to.”

I laughed at the argument between my parents, which was very similar to their argument when I’d joined the force. They’d wanted me to aim for being a captain or chief, but I had wanted to solve crimes as a detective. It had taken work, but I had convinced both of them I lacked that sort of aspiration.

I still longed to do detective work, and I carried around more than a few regrets.

“Mom, I don’t want to conquer Dragon Heights—not unless conquering it is required to pass my test and pick up a job in forensics accounting.”

“You want to do what?” my mother bellowed.

Right. I was the daughter of egotistical and proud dragons. “I want to catch crooks being crooks with money. It interests me.”

She heaved a sigh. “That’s the gold dragon in you, raising her wicked little head. Darling, she wants to hunt robbers using the financial trails. Where did we go wrong?”

“Can we go back to talking about how I’ll accept the laptop?” I begged.

“Only if you allow us to bring it in person,” she countered.

I considered my situation and decided I could use a hug from my parents. “I might permit such a thing with a few conditions.”

“Okay. What conditions?”

“You do not embarrass me in front of any other dragons. Frankly, I’d rather you pretend you aren’t even dragons if such a thing is possible.”

“That is not possible. We’re known in Dragon Heights, my little hatchling. Frankly, I’m astonished no one has started leveling accusations of being our child at you yet.”

I giggled at the disgust in my mother’s tone. “I did not come out a clone of either one of you, Mom. I’m sorry. If people know you really well, they might figure it out examining my features, but I’m more like a feminine version of Dad, and there’s nothing feminine about Dad. Dad’s manly.”

“Is he ever,” my mother replied. “But you’re right.”

“It’s a miracle,” my father stated in the background.

I laughed. “All right. You can deliver the laptop in person so you can meet your grandkitten. But unless anyone exposes me as your child, you will pretend like you’re meeting me for some entirely unrelated reason. You will hug me in the questionable comfort of my home. I’ve earned my reputation here, and I want to continue earning it on my own.”

“We will do our best. Is there anything you’d like us to bring out of your storage?”

Right. I’d left them with the key to my storage unit before I’d gone wandering, claiming they could count my stuff as part of their hoard. “No, but I do have a challenge you can issue to Erik.”

“Oh, that’s even better. What challenge?”

“If he’s that determined to come waltzing back into my life, he needs to charm himself a young, handsome carbunclo—and his little carbunclo will need to be charming enough to earn Garnet’s approval. She’s my little girl. You got me, Mom?”

“I am so proud of you. That is absolutely the perfect challenge for Erik. If he wants to pull off that sort of caper, he’s going to have to strut his stuff. First, he’ll have to find a young male carbunclo kitten. That’s going to be hard enough. There is only one kitten in the United States right now, and that’s yours. Breeding won’t be a requirement, correct? She just needs to accept him into her space?”

“I will be heartbroken forever if Garnet leaves me to get some nookie, Mom.”

“She’ll only leave you if she thinks you can handle the separation for a while. But I would watch what you say around her. She may take matters into her little paws.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean that carbunclo are highly intelligent animals, and once they bond with someone, they will do whatever they can to make their someone happy. If she thinks you’re lonely, and you’ve told her about Erik, she will do just what you demanded: she will find a young male kitten, charm him, and then make sure he bonds with Erik, and then she’ll bring the whole lot of them home to you. Or she’ll set those wheels into motion however she can. So, as you were foolish enough to say such a thing in front of her, you may want to show her Erik’s picture. That way she knows what he looks like. I’ll bring some of his hair.”

For fuck’s sake. “You did not steal some of Erik’s hair.”

“He needed a trim, and he was foolish enough to let me do the work. I gave him a lovely cut, and he did not request I dispose of the hair. He assumed I would. As such, his hair is now my hair to do with as I please. And giving it to your little kitten so she knows who Erik is counts! It’s as I please.”

“If I have to put up with this nonsense, you will take me and Garnet on a field trip to find her some gemstones.”

“You are a naughty little hatchling, but I suppose I must do as you demand.”

My kitten mewed, abandoned her breakfast, and bounded to me, squeaking the whole way. Laughing, I leaned over and scooped her up. “Garnet is excited to get her first gemstones, Mom.”

“Of course she is. Carbunclo are grubby little gemstone hoarders.” She sighed. “I’ll bring a few presents for her, some things of Erik’s, a change of his clothes so you are prepared in case he comes calling, and your wallet.”

“I left my wallet in storage specifically to avoid people being able to identify me, Mom.”

“And how do you handle your taxes, young lady?”

“I do not file my taxes in Dragon Heights, and I use the anonymous system for my local taxes.”

“I don’t know whether to be proud of you or utterly disgusted at how good you are at this.”

“Can’t it be both?” I giggled, scratched under my kitten’s chin, and said, “Tell Dad I love him, Mom. I love you, but I’m going to go be a tourist for the rest of the day. Text me when you expect to get into town, try not to draw attention to yourselves, and come up with some reason why you would want to see someone like me.”

“Clearly, we are nosy dragons, heard about your kitten, and demanded to evaluate if you’re good enough for her. Don’t worry so much, Kinsley. We’re dragons. We can handle anything those silly beings in Dragon Heights can throw at us.”

“Those silly beings are also dragons,” I reminded her.

“Are they, really? Really? I suppose the titaniums are a decent lot. They did give you Garnet. I’ll put some thought into it. Have a good time, be careful, and do look closer at the pilgrims. Perhaps it’s not where they went but where they’ve been that’s the real issue.”

* * *

Thursday, April 23, 2167

Pilgrimage Ward

Dragon Heights, Wyoming

I should have dishedout for a cab to take me to the shrines. However, I’d wanted to get photos of those in the Gray Ward, and bus hopping was one of the best ways to get around the city when lacking wings and needing to get a good look at as many people as possible. I didn’t expect the photos would lead to anything, but I took them anyway. On the way, I told Garnet what I knew of our home, and I taught her to make different sounds when she wanted to ask a question. Well, I somewhat taught her.

I asked that she make a sound indicating she was curious about something, and I did my best to memorize which of her mews was inquisitive along with the pitch of her squeaks when her excitement over the new and interesting became too much for her to bear. Everything about the carbunclo sparked joy, and I regretted I hadn’t allowed myself to experience the joy of having such a companion before.

If regular cats came anywhere close to the carbunclo, I foresaw my immediate conversion into a crazy cat lady.

Later in the afternoon than I appreciated, we arrived at the base of Shrine Hill, which had a forested mountain vibe. To play at being a tourist, I took photos of everything before stepping up to the large sign that displayed a map of Shrine Hill, including a guide to where to find the shrines, how long it would take to visit each one, and a warning that there were many steps for those wanting to visit all twenty.

The board informed me I would lose four hours to the mini mountain, which would put it after dark before I escaped.

Fortunately for me, Garnet was willing to ride on my shoulder, and she took care with her stone paws and claws, somehow balancing without poking me full of holes. I snagged a brochure from the pile in a holder hanging from the board, which included a map, and decided I would accept my father’s advice on which shrines to visit first. The maze of trails would drive me more than a little crazy, but if anyone asked where I was going or why, I’d express my confusion and act like I had no idea where I was going, just that I wanted to see everything before I left.

To help keep people from becoming too lost, the trails were marked with ribbons matching the nearby shrine’s color.

I photographed everyone around the base of the shrine, noting how the coverage of trees on the slope offered shelter and privacy for anyone making a pilgrimage or playing tourist. I suspected the attacker lurked in the foliage. A little magic went a long way, and someone clever could hide without using any magic at all.

As I wanted people to believe I had no interest in a pilgrimage, I stopped to photograph every flower on the way, getting artistic shots of the paths, and otherwise taking my time. Few others ventured to the place and opted to stay at the base of the mini mountain, and I blamed the clouds building in the sky. Those would grow teeth after night fell, pelting the city with rain while lightning and thunder kept most awake until the wee hours.

I wondered how Garnet would handle the weather, and I decided I’d make a stop in the next few days at some stores to find her more milk and charmed jars to have her favorite treat on hand. If the storm frightened her, I’d hold her through the night and comfort her until I could teach her, over time, that it sounded scary but wouldn’t hurt her.

Well, I hoped.

The dragons tried to keep the worst of the storms at bay, but nature defied even them from time to time.

At my father’s suggestion, as the last thing I needed was more men in my life, I visited the cyan shrine first. I had no idea what to expect, but a small stone platform with a cyan colored box placed on top hadn’t been it. Puzzled, I walked around it, taking photos from every angle. If there was power at the shrine, I felt nothing.

How strange.

The pale blue-green flowers growing around the circular stone pathway around the shrine appealed more than the shrine itself, and I spent a few minutes taking pictures of them. Garnet squeaked, and she rubbed her head against my cheek.

I allowed the camera to dangle around my neck from the strap my father had gotten me, which featured a riot of colors, and petted her. “You’re such a good girl. It’s not what I expected, either. I thought these would be more like those fancy Japanese shrines. I’ll show you pictures of those when we get home, okay?”

Garnet bobbed her head and settled back on my shoulder, purring her contentment.

I left the cyan shrine, and once around the bend leading to the hive of trails traversing Shrine Hill, I checked the map. I would have to go across the entire thing to reach the orange shrine, and heaving a sigh, I meandered across, careful to watch my step.

Rolling down the slope would surely break my fancy new camera, hurt Garnet, and win me a trip to the hospital.

The orange shrine proved to be another box, although someone had painted a triangular pattern around the sides to offer something of visual interest. I took photos of the whole thing, unnerved by the place’s ethereal quiet.

Had the attacks on the shrines driven away everyone? Was the weather responsible? I hadn’t noticed an opening or closing time.

Where was everyone?

To my relief, the copper shrine was nearby, a short trip up the hill through a dense copse of birch trees. Rather than a box, the copper shrine featured a bell. A hammer rested on the platform holding it, and a placard invited me to ring the bell and enjoy the bell’s clarion tone. The instructions offered clues on how the bell would sound based on where and how hard I hit it. After taking pictures, I did as the sign said, and I decided I wanted to hear a faint whisper of a sound of middle pitch.

I tapped the hammer to the bell, and it chimed, whisper soft like I’d wanted. Garnet mewed, and I set her on the shrine’s base. Pointing at the placard, I said, “If you tap it lightly with your paw, it might make a sound. But be very gentle. This is a precious thing to the dragons who honor this shrine.”

With adorable caution, the carbunclo stretched out her paw and touched the bell.

It made a tink noise, and she squeaked her excitement.

Before she could do as cats did when given something to bat at, I scooped her up, praised her for being a good kitten, and pinned the camera to my chest with my forearm while I contained the furry troublemaker. Once I had her situated on my shoulder, I put the hammer back where it belonged, made certain everything was as I’d found it, and moved on.

The gold and silver shrines were nearby, and I questioned how the precious metal boxes hadn’t been stolen. Judging from the teeth marks all over the box, people liked to bite the gold shrine to test its authenticity. I assumed the gold dragons wouldn’t use anything other than gold on their shrines, but I refrained from biting something many had put their teeth to in the past.

Gross.

The silver shrine tarnished in places, and a polishing cloth waited in a black stone bowl with a placard inviting guests to help keep the shrine clean. A little elbow grease wouldn’t hurt me, so I did as instructed. With nobody to observe me, at least as far as I knew, I gave the whole thing a wipe down and had Garnet help with the top. The box supported her weight, and the kitten played at using the cloth with adorable ineffectiveness.

The lack of others at the shrines continued to disconcert me.

At the green shrine, an emerald ball of light hovered over a malachite dais. Shadows shifted along the stone path, also fashioned of some dark green stone. A sign on a tarnished copper pole welcomed guests to the shrine and issued an invitation to touch the shrine and behold an omen.

A footnote indicated that the omens were a form of illusionary chaos magic meant for entertainment purposes only. Laughing, I read it to Garnet and invited her to play with the light if she wanted. She squeaked and bobbed her head, and I lifted her off my shoulder and held her out to the shrine so she could stretch out her paw.

The green light enveloped her foreleg before tendrils reached up and formed the shape of a dragon breathing fire.

Garnet squeaked her excitement, transformed into a wisp of red light, and zipped around the dragon’s form.

It dissipated, and the carbunclo whined.

I wondered what sort of dragons had bonded with her mother and father—and how badly she missed her family. I held out my hands, cupping them together. “It’s okay, baby girl. It was an illusion like the sign said. I can take you back to the cell store so you can see a dragon soon, okay?”

Garnet returned to my shoulder, transformed, and crowded against my neck, continuing to whine.

The poor baby. I petted her, cooing reassurances to her.

Rather than upset the kitten with another illusion, I photographed the shrine before heading to the lead shrine.

A blocky grayish crystal rested on a silvery dais, and a placard informed me that the lead dragons of Dragon Heights preferred allowing nature to do as it would. A warning advised me against licking, biting, or otherwise interacting with the shrine, as lead could be quite toxic.

A footnote informed me that all guests who ignored the warning were liable for their medical bills.

I wondered what sort of magic imbued the stone—and how toxic lead was on its own. Curious, I dug out my phone and checked the internet to determine its toxicity surpassed my expectations.

Even touching it without thorough washing could cause lead poisoning.

I kept my distance, warned Garnet about the hazards of lead, and left before we might be exposed to its dangers.

Following my father’s advice, I headed for the purple shrine. Upon arrival, a myriad of amethyst crystals sparkled in the late afternoon light. I appreciated the shrine’s beauty despite my regrets of how my heritage had driven me away from my home. Wind blew through the trees, and the light reflected on the stone. Garnet squeaked, and I set her down so she could play, giggling at her effort to bat at the patterns created by the encroaching storm. I took photos, mostly of her, and waited until she panted to put an end to her play, picking her up. She settled on my shoulder, allowing me to take photographs of everything while I explored Shrine Hill.

Aware of the storm brewing overhead, I hurried along, blitzing through the rest of the shrines. Yellow featured a plain box lacking adornment. The mercury shrine consisted of a glass ball filled with the metallic liquid, which I gave a wide berth.

Stone kitten paws would destroy such a thing, and I had no desire to go mad from mercury poisoning.

The navy shrine featured a bowl of water, dyed to be a deep blue color, with a placard declaring the oceans to be the cradle of life. The iron shrine featured a sword in a stone with a placard challenging users to become the next King Arthur. As I had no desire to rule anything, I told Garnet the tale of the legendary king on the way to the tin shrine. Upon seeing the can opener on top of a platform designed to resemble a jar of spaghetti sauce, I laughed until I cried. I took photographs, wiped my eyes, and told Garnet I would explain the why of my amusement later.

The white shrine featured a marble dais topped with clear quartz, and the first drops of rain came down from the sky. As I didn’t want to ruin my new camera, I packed it into my backpack, made use of the rain cover to keep everything dry, and moved to my phone to keep taking pictures. Aware I’d get soaked, I sped up my pace, one eye on the sky while following the map in the failing light. Rather than follow the theme of the other shrines, the red one featured a mix of red stone roses and rose plants. The pink shrine, situated next to the red one, blended white and red roses with pink ones scattered between them.

Garnet wanted to sniff the roses, and while I wanted to get us out of the rain, I indulged her, praising her curiosity and calm handling of the souring weather.

At the tan shrine, which was yet another box on a stone platform, the rain fell in earnest. With only three shrines left to visit, I refused to give up, trudging to the titanium shrine to discover it was fashioned into the shape of an infinity loop.

That made sense, as those dragons might live forever with their general durability.

Fortunately for us, the chrome shrine was located near the black one. Not even the deepening darkness could mask the shine on the chrome box.

The black box devoured all light, and curious, I turned on the flash on my phone to discover some magic ate the illumination. I wondered about that, as the black dragons were known for ferreting out secrets. I’d have to ask my father about that later. With my mission completed, I picked my way down Shrine Hill, cursing myself for having delayed through taking the bus. In the twenty minutes it took me to reach the bottom without falling, the skies opened up and dumped cold sheets of rain down on my head in a torrent. I sheltered Garnet in my jacket, headed for the nearest bus stop, and made use of my phone to summon a cab to take us home.

During the wait, I wondered what had kept everyone away from Shrine Hill except for me.

What was going on in Dragon Heights, and what did the pilgrims have to do with it if anything? Whatever it was, it was strange—and it was powerful.

As such, I worried.