Page 13 of Dark Stars
"Why does it smell like a watered-down oceanin here. Okay that sounded less stupid in my head."
Bobby laughed.
"Shit—" was all the warning he got as Alejoslipped and crashed into him, sending them both tumbling painfullydown the stairs to land in a puddle at the base. Alejo groanedwhere he was sprawled on top of Bobby, head on his chest."Sorry."
Bobby huffed and got them upright. "Are youhurt?"
"Only my dignity, like usual," Alejo said."You? You're the one who took the brunt of it."
"I'm fine," Bobby said, because that wastrue. It wasn't like his body was entirely real, not by humandefinitions of the word. Any injuries he'd suffered were alreadyfading away. "You know, so far I've just been curious why yourfamily sent you all the way across the country. Now I wonder whythey sent you herealone."
Alejo heaved the sigh of the eternallysuffering, but didn't otherwise reply, only retrieved his knapsack.He pulled something out of it before swinging it back on oneshoulder. A flashlight. Bobby supposed a human, even one witharcana, might need help seeing in the dark.
They seemed to be in some sort of… storageroom slash antechamber. Wood, old and rickety and slick with morelichen. There were crates, boxes, bags, and against one wall was anentire wine rack of all things, one of those crisscrossing styleones that Bobby didn't know the actual name of.
"Well, I don't like the look of that," Alejosaid, going straight to the wine rack. He set the flashlight on anearby crate before swinging his bag down again, this time pullingout a pair of gloves that fit like a second skin. Why was that sodistracting?
Bag returned to his shoulder, Alejo pulleddown one of the bottles and held it directly in the beam of thelight. "That's what I thought. Blood wine. This one is human, but Ibet there's all kinds in here."
"Blood wine? Jones has mentioned that stuff.On a scale of one to ten for anger, any mention of it sends himstraight to twelve."
Alejo gave a sharp laugh. "Yeah, I guess itwould, given he's the kind of vampire we don't mind having around."He returned the bottle and pulled down another one. "Unicorn. Thatis disgusting." Another bottle. "Werewolf. They've got an alarmingvariety down here, and so much of it, I see at least thirtybottles."
"Thirty-seven, and by the look of the dust,the three missing from those bottom slots were only recentlyremoved."
Alejo swung the flashlight where heindicated. "How did you see that? You know what? Nevermind. Youwouldn't tell me anyway."
"Me and the dark are old friends," Bobbysaid. "So someone keeps a disturbing amount of blood wine downhere, and has either recently begun to drink it or sell it. Wonderif this is connected to our mystery or just a side quest."
"Let me get some pictures. Can you hold theflashlight while I do it?"
Bobby snorted and turned off the flashlightas Alejo handed it over. "I can do better than that." He spread hisright hand, reaching into the well of arcana that was always therefor him, until there was a pinpoint of light at each fingertip. Thelights floated up, expanding and strengthening, moving around untilthe room was filled with soft, greenish light.
"Show off," Alejo said. "You couldn't dothat from the start?"
"It takes moderate arcana to create andmaintain, and we don't know what dangers we may yet be facing."
Alejo started taking pictures on his phone,pulling out several bottles to get close up shots of them. He thentook a few of the rest of the room before finally putting his phoneaway. "All right. Shall we carry on?"
"Let's." Bobby closed his hand into a fistand the lights went out. He turned on the flashlight and returnedit to Alejo. "So what are your arcana strengths?"
"What?"
"You said you're neither vodun nor brujo,that no one really knows what you are. So what are you particularlygood at?"
Alejo shrugged one shoulder as they ventureddown some steps that shook ominously with every step. "This isgonna sound stupid, but I have an affinity for bugs. Spiders,roaches, moths, centipedes, you name it, I seem to get along withit." He rubbed the back of his neck, and for a moment somethingshimmered, like a tattoo made of blue light. Protection. Alejo wasbeing protected from something. Likely hidden from it. "On mytwenty-first birthday, right as the sun went down, what must havebeen thousands of fireflies showed up."
Bobby stumbled to a halt.
"I'd never seen so many in one…" Alejoturned as he realized Bobby had stopped. "Are you all right?"
"Fireflies?" Bobby said.
"Yeah, it was really weird, that's what I'msaying." His frown deepened. "Why, do fireflies mean something toyou? Why do you know more about me than me?"
Bobby laughed, though it came out weak andever so slightly shaky. "Fireflies aremine. They are drawnto me, they are my friends as much as such a simple creature canbe." They were his avatars, but that was giving too much away.Ordinary beings did not have avatars. Only the divine did.
"Huh," Alejo said, and then broke into asmile that did funny things to Bobby's insides. "Guess we're meantto be partners, then, huh?"
