Myth stood still in the center of her room. She had a bedroom, a private bathroom, a kitchen, and a library. She'd never had so much space that was her own.
She basked in feeling alone and safe for a moment, but her stomach roiled. Fable was still in danger. Myth had to hope Apan and Gajo couldn't contact Iqiohr. Eir, Clio and that other woman didn't seem worried, but no one had been on Myth's side before. It was hard to trust, but she wanted to, and the lure of stories compelled her to look for Clio.
Clio greeted her with a big smile. "I'm glad you decided to find me. Come on. I'm off work. Let's go to the pub. Gyges is working tonight, that's always fun to watch."
They entered the pub and Myth tried not to gape again. The bar was huge and packed with hundreds of people and creatures, A golden dragon lounged in the corner playing cards with four men dressed in colored suits of armor. Red, green, black, and white. At another table a man with a burned face and smelling of the ocean rolled dice against two women with black wings and avian facial features.
A huge circular bar stood in the middle of it all, and in the center stood a lone man. A giant with fifty heads and a hundred arms. Most of the crowd was gathered around the bar. They shouted out orders while the giant gave them fifty grins in return, but made no move to prepare a drink.
"What's he waiting for?"
"It's a game they play. Gyges gets bored with one order at a time, so every hour he takes orders for the whole bar at once. Would you like something to drink? Ambrosia, beer, cider-"
Uncomfortable with the idea of smacking Clio like Eir had, Myth touched Clio's hand instead.
Clio grinned. "Thank you."
"I'll try whatever you're going to drink."
Clio patted her hand. "Wait here. I'll put in our order."
Myth guessed the giant must be Gyges, and recognized the four horsemen of the apocalypse by the colors of their armor. She was trying to puzzle out who the man playing games with harpies was when her attention was drawn to a couple walking to the table next to her. A man with white hair drew a woman along with him, her hand tucked in his. Myth went rigid as the man sat down pulled the woman into his lap.
"What's wrong?" Clio asked when she returned. "You're stiff as a board."
"He's going to... He can't mean to..." Myth closed her eyes, bracing herself for the screams. It was bad enough when Iqiohr's men drained the witches in front of her in the throne room. To have it done here, in front of so many more people would be humiliating. People were supposed to be safe here.
"What?" Clio asked. "You're not worried about her, are you?"
"He works for a Mage. He'll drain her right here in front of everyone! I don't want to be here for this." Myth opened her eyes, averting them from the couple as she pushed her chair back.
Clio snorted, kept her grip on Myth's fingers, and leaned close. "Ha! Not likely. She'll be the one doing the draining."
"What?"
"She's a succubus," Clio whispered. "They feed on energy they drain from men."
Whipping her head around, Myth caught the amused gaze of the succubus, who curved her lips into a sultry smile and winked. "He's my third tonight." She licked her lips. "It's like an all I can eat buffet around here lately." The man stared up at the succubus, eyes glassy, oblivious to their surroundings.
"Sometimes karma's a lich," Clio said.
The succubus crossed her eyes and stuck her tongue out at Clio over the man's head.
Myth clapped a hand to her mouth to stifle a laugh. Her mother hadn't told her any stories about a succubus, but she had told her stories about retribution and karma.
Clio nudged her. "The show is about to start."
Gyges' hundred hands joined together in fifty pairs, fingers intertwining and pushing out. Popping sounds filled the air as hundreds of knuckles cracked. The giant shook out his arms and crouched, hands at the ready, over bottles and chopped fruit arrayed all around him.
"Go! Go! Go!" Two massive ravens with gold and silver runes on their chests chanted and hopped up and down on an overhead branch.
The room erupted with more calls for drinks and cheers as the giant blurred into motion mixing drinks. Tankards, mugs, glasses and shots were filled and smacked onto the bar
Within minutes hundreds of people had been served and broke into applause. A creature picked up two mugs from the bar and brought them over, dropping them off on their table then rushing back to the bar to deliver more.
Clio lifted her drink, sipped it and sighed. "Ambrosia. Try it."
Myth took a cautious swallow from her mug. Her eyes widened as the sweet liquid slid over her tongue, heating up in her stomach and radiating out to the rest of her body.
The crowd broke apart, smaller bunches moving to sit at tables around the room. A group of eight men claimed a table near Myth and Clio. They all ran their eyes over her as they stepped past, and she felt their gazes boring into the back of her neck. Myth fidgeted, spinning her mug in her hands.
"What's wrong?"
"The men are staring."
"Of course they are. You're a beautiful woman. Own it."
"Own what?"
"Eh, people used to make fun of my lists, but now it's my thing. If someone doesn't get a list from me they're disappointed. When you own something about yourself no one can take that part of you or make you feel ashamed. So you turn right around and stare back at those boys and see what they do."
Myth took another sip of her drink and set it on the table. She wouldn't dare do something like this in Aztlan, but here, with Clio and the succubus nearby, and a belly full of ambrosia, she felt brave. She turned in her chair and stared at the men staring at her. She held each gaze until a few looked away, the others smiled and held up their glasses at her. One gave her a cheeky wink and blew her a kiss, but none of them did anything threatening. She turned back around.
Clio held up her mug. "To owning it."
Myth picked up her mug and clanked with Clio's. "To owning it."
<><><><><>
NORRIX
Norrix regarded his shredded shoelaces as he knocked on Stryx's door. He should have replaced them. "Let's go downstairs. The pre-auction is starting in a half hour. I'm curious to see what kinds of things they're auctioning, and who's running things."
"I'm ready. We're waiting on Ember." Stryx nodded to the closed bedroom door.
"I'm almost ready!" Ember called. "Selene isn't built like me. This isn't easy."
"Do you know what her disguise is yet?"
Stryx shook his head. "She says it's a surprise. I hope she and Selene know what they're doing. I don't care what the rules are here. If a Mage or an acolyte lay a hand on her, I'll kill them, neutral territory or not."
"Don't even think about it. You don't have to worry about her safety here. If someone attempts to hurt her, they'll be dealt with before you can move. They mean it about this being neutral, and they keep it that way by being ruthless about it. We need to worry more about someone realizing shes Strygoi. There's nothing stopping someone seeing that and leaving to tell the world Strygoi are back."
Ember emerged from the bedroom, clad neck to foot in a skintight black catsuit, complete with gloves and knee high boots. She wore a deep hood pulled up over her head. What could be seen of her face under her hood was covered by a mask.
"You can't go down there wearing that!" Stryx leapt from his seat. "Everyone will be staring at you. You're supposed to be incognito!"
Norrix burst out laughing. Her disguise was ideal to make people not want to look at her, in spite of how revealing the catsuit was. "Where did you come up with that? Turn around, let us see the back."
She spun to reveal a pattern of jewel-colored writhing snakes uncoiling from a circle.
"Perfect." Norrix said. "I should know better than to doubt Selene."
Ember peered over her shoulder. "Selene said Gorgons are treated like lepers. No one wants to get too close."
"It's true," Norrix said. "One story badly told turned them into pariahs. You should be fine. That crest isn't one that would usually be chosen freely. It's seen as a stigma Gorgons are forced to wear, as well as the keepers they travel with. And while they aren't numerous, there are still enough Gorgons around meeting one is rare but not unheard of. Especially in a place like this."
"What about your silver glow?" Stryx asked. "That's the main thing we have to hide."
Ember turned back around and lowered her hood. Silver magic shone like a beacon around her. "I'm Strygoi-ed out. I'm asking the magic to help me play a trick on everyone and hide." Her eyes unfocused, like she was listening to someone else. "Sora thinks that's a fun game, so I think we'll be fine."
<><><><><>
They entered the sunlit hall, crowded with hundreds of people and other-world denizens. The lots for sale were exhibited behind spelled ropes or under glass, and ranged in size from a single stone to a jumble of items that looked like they'd come from a garage sale.
Norrix took a deep breath and nodded to Stryx. "Do it. Be very specific with your words."
Stryx gestured to the room at large with a sweep of one arm and spoke in a low voice. "Witness, this marks the first time two vampires have walked in sunlight thanks to the magic of a strygoi dressed like a Gorgon to see what mages are selling at auction in Ashana."
Norrix shuddered as the power of the Witness awoke. His vampire senses heightened—every sound, smell, touch, sight, and taste would be Witnessed and available for him to recount in the future.
"What's happening?" Ember's fingers squeezed around his. "Are you all right?"
He nodded and tightened his fingers around hers. "The occurrence is singular. I will Witness the phenomenon."
"What does that mean?"
"It means he'll remember this event—every face he sees, every item for sale, who shows interest in and bids on what, who interacts with who, every word spoken within his hearing. He'll have perfect recall of everything."
Ember nudged him. "You're better than Karov's spy cams."