Equilibrium

Chapter 25 - The bad Fae element

Kara flipped through the television channels aimlessly looking for a good rerun or something. She passed an infomercial for Glitter Bomb counter curses and tucked the knowledge away just in case. The effect was pretty, but damn itchy, and took forever to wear off. On the next channel was the record-breaking human-elf romance movie. She'd seen it a million times. Flip. A garden elf pop star with flowing pink hair dappled with flowers urged the viewer ardently to donate relief funding to the still-recovering Cedar Grove. It was a city in Monterey that was afflicted with low birth rates - a magical remnant from the War. It was great farmland and the ailment didn't afflict those who came from outside the region, so she also urged entrepreneurial-minded people to move in. The elf was hot but the music wasn't for her. And she'd given to that cause pretty recently so - flip.

Her Linx, Sasha, finished with her beauty rest on the sunlit window bench, hopped up onto her lap and sat down. Kara pet her absently.

The next channel, the national news, gave Kara pause. Arden Haveford, a prominent politician from the Capitol, was talking about the 'bad Fae element' rising in the city. Kara scoffed. She thought the world was done with that bigoted bullshit. He was speaking in front of a surprisingly large crowd. "Are the bedroom potions and face lift spells really worth the pervasive and persistent threat to our families?" he asked. "And what kind of deals does Shelby make with them? I want to see the records of those closed-door meetings."

Kara frowned. The guy was running against Shelby? Kara took out her phone and bit her lip. Before she could convince herself out of it, she called Sara.

"Hi sweetness, what's up?" Sara answered.

Heat rose to Kara's cheeks and she smiled wide. "Wish I just called to say hi, but - Haveford is certainly making a fuss, isn't he," she said.

"Don't I know it," Sara answered.

"He can't be serious."

"Oh, but he is. And his office called me last night to try and recruit me to his campaign."

"Damn. You tell him to get lost?"

"You bet I did."

Haveford went on. "Stand up with me against the overreach of the Fae Nation. Against their control and success at the expense of the good, hard-working people of Kreta."

The wheels turned in Kara's head. "Wait a minute," she said. "Can you - can you introduce me to him?"

"Why?" Sara asked, baffled.

"What if he really knows something? I have to talk to him. I mean, the guy's a scumbag and totally full of shit of course, but there may be a grain of truth that could help me figure out what's been going on with Zen. What if he knows exactly what the Dokuyaku's and Rashidi's are doing."

There was a long pause on the other end of the line. Kara pet Sasha anxiously as she waited for Sara to answer. "Okay," Sara said. "But if it gets that far, I'm coming to the meeting too."

~

Zen, Kevyn, and Brock talked in quiet tones over their breakfast late the next morning.

"Do you think these people know about your unique electronic skills?" Kevyn asked Zen leadingly.

"I never let on to my family. So no, I really don't think so."

Zen had awoken to the enticing aroma of coffee, bacon, and eggs that morning and when he'd padded to the small dining table the spread had been waiting along with buttery croissants and hash browns. Zen now wondered what the day would bring and what breakfast might be on offer tomorrow as a result, if there would be any at all.