Five Winds

Sparrow flies in through the window, shifting as he lands. I have to say I prefer him in his bird form, he's just so cute. Not that his bad looking in his human form, he's just not fluffy.

"What are you eating?" he asks.

I hold up the bag of marshmallows he frowns, "what?"

"Tell me that's not your first meal of the day?"

"So, what if it is?"

"You're on assignment, the first thing you eat should be a fistful of sugar."

"I don't have to listen to you."

Sparrow yanks the bag from my hand incinerates it filling the truck with sweet smoke.

"Yes, you do," he rolls up the window, "now, where is he?"

"In the one place, I have to return to eventually," I start the engine, "the Vampire Realm."

"Why?"

"I kind of made a deal with someone and I never went back," I say pulling in to the harbor.

"No, I mean why is the Crown Prince in the Vampire Realm?"

"He let himself be captured so Anastasia here could use it as an excuse to Assassinate Andreas," anyolite eyes look at me through the rear-view mirror.

"Hummingbird," I dig my nails in to keep from squealing okay perhaps I had too much sugar after all, "how, what, how?"

She lets out a little laugh, "if I have to explain then you're not very good at your job."

"Right, so I hope you don't mind the undersea but there is no way I'm flying," I type in the coordinates and drive us into the sea.

"Seriously?" Sparrow asks.

The truck changes into a sub the moment it hits the water, I don't see why he's upset.

"If it helps fish won't eat birds," I reach into the backseat and pull my hand back when I feel a pair of powerful legs, "Okay, what is going on, that I have two of the Five Winds in my car," I ask locking eyes with Hawk, "and where's my duffel?"

"This," Hawk holds up my bag.

"We're here to make sure you don't get the Prince killed," Hummingbird says.

"I doubt he needs me for that," I press an icon on the screen and the seats shift and just in time to. Raven, Mariposa, and Falcon appear on the floor of the sub, "all Five Winds, seriously?"

Falcon shifts brown white hair standing on all ends, "if it helps, we didn't want to come either."

I look at Sparrow for any hints that he knows what going on but he seems as clueless as I feel. My phone starts buzzing, "why...

"Just listen," Master cuts me off, "set the phone on speaker."

"Done."

"You seven are going to get Fie out without starting a war," Master says, "mainly because ones already brewing in the Dragon Lands," the King adds, "yes, like Night said, a war is brewing in the Dragon Lands the eight of you will be tasked with retrieval and assassination."

"Who's the target?" Raven asks, her hair is as black as her feathers her golden eyes and pointed ears the only sign of her Fay heritage.

Four of the Five Winds were born in their animal form and cultivated for thousands of years until they reached their human forms. It's said they were blessed by the Underworld and are amongst the few that remain from the old Shadow Realm.

"Empress," is all Master says.

"Our old friend is a little over her head," the King says, "Fie will explain the rest."

"Yes sir," Falcon says, "is there anything else."

"No," with that the line goes dead.

Great, how am I supposed to get rid of Elena when I'm across the continent. I blame Fie.

"Your all old as dirt," I pull out the pouch with what I presume is ordinary quartz, "tell me what this is?" I toss the pouch at Falcon.

"We're old as dirt," Hawk says no amusement in his voice.

"Yes," I lock my eyes with his until Hummingbird makes him look away.

"She's not wrong," Mariposa says, "you're all so old," she smiles at me her yellow-green eyes shining with mischief. If I remember correctly, she's the youngest of the Five winds followed by Falcon, Raven, Hummingbird, and Hawk, "do you have nectar," she tilts her head rainbow hair obscuring her face.

"No nectar but I have," I pull out the last of my guavas. She beams at me and takes them handing one to Hummingbird before eating the rest, "I had marshmallows but someone incinerated them," I look to Sparrow.

"Why?" Mariposa asks.

"She thinks a fist full of sugar is an acceptable meal," he says.

Hawk snorts, "wrong answer."

"It is perfectly acceptable," Mariposa says.

"Of course, you'd agree with her," Sparrow says.

"Enough," Hummingbird says, "how much longer?"

At that moment the voice system speaks, "opening gateway please brace for impact."

"It's ordinary quartz," Falcon holds out the quartz towards me, "what was it supposed to be?"

"A piece of quartz from the Nether Realm."

"What do you need that for?" Hummingbird asks.

"If you know who I am then you know what I need it for," I say just as the sub gets pulled into the gateway. Crossing the gateways with any kind of vehicle always feels unnatural. It's as if the gates were trying to say this is wrong.

"Why are we still in the undersea?" Sparrow asks.

I press a button and the seats change back to their original position, someone squeals, "Technically we're in a tunnel," I say, ignoring the angry birds, "we are in the City of Antares, arriving through the Vampire Realm's port would have been tricky."

"And why is that?" Hawk asks.

"I'm kind of banned from entering the city," I take the truck of autopilot as we exit the tunnel.

"The favor you own?" Sparrow asks.

"Yup," I stop as a child runs into the road chasing a colorful ball. Antares is a port city that's maintained an antique look with its cobblestone roads, candle lanterns, and various street markets, "we should be at the border by sunset."

"If you can't enter the Vampire Realm, how are you crossing the border?" Hummingbird asks.

"You'll see," I say, just as the voice system says, "message from Maya, where is Jackson?"