Pixie Dusted: Glens Hills's Monster Hunter Glows in the Spotlight

By

Macey McCabe

Editor in Chief

 

There must be something about Arabica Beans that just draws the creatures of the night, I thought as I pulled into the sparsely lit parking area around dawn of the recently popular Bad Ass Coffee Shop. The lot was packed and I had to park at the far back of the lot and wade through a sea of Beamers, Lexuses and various sundry other über-nice rides. It made me wonder what type of vehicle my interviewee would be driving and what kind of money Glen Hills's only monster Hunter made -- maybe I was in the wrong line of work -- Nah!

I briefly wondered if our meeting, scheduled at the ungodly hour of four-thirty in the morning, was so that she could get to work or if she was coming in from work. As I spotted the fluorescent green of her hair in the back corner booth of the coffee shop catching the light and shimmering around a gentle face on the body of a petite doll, I thought there was no way this side of hell that this was my girl. That is until she turned those sharp, knowing, and quite intense mercury-flame red eyes in my direction. It seemed that Ms. Rihker Tennai had caught my scent and like any other creature, I was utterly spellbound.

MM: "Ms Tennai. Thank you for meeting with me,” I said as I extended my hand in greeting.

RT: “You're late,” she said as she looked from my outstretched hand to my face disdain clearly marked in her dark red eyes.

MM: “Yes, well, traffic was a bit thick in the parking lot.” Her nod and dismissal allowed for me to grab a seat and take in the persona that was our city's only monster hunter. It was hard to believe that this small, ethereal creature could pound me to smithers, stake a Vamp, tackle an Ogre, track a Were, and assist the Police in finding the creature(s) responsible for the bloody mutilation of an innocent girl. But I knew it in the pit of my gut; as readily as the moon sets and the sun rises. The information was there in the calm, serene, placid smile of her perfectly white, straight teeth as she grinned at me with a knowing look in her eyes.

RT: “So, you have questions?”

MM: I cleared my throat and began my barrage -- “So what exactly are you Ms. Tennai? As in, what kind of Other World creature are you? There are whispers and rumors that you were raised by Ogres. Some even say that you are a daughter of a Dark Lord, is that true?"

RT: "My mother and I use the term loosely, is a Pixie."

MM: “And your father?”

RT: “It is said that he was a Druid Priest -- a human.”

MM: “Was? Is your father dead then?”

RT: “To me.”

MM: “Ah. Well, what about the Ogres? Were you raised by Ogres?”

RT: “I have a guardian that is an Ogre – Gimlit. He raised me.”

MM: “How long have you been a Hunter for the Silent Courts? How did you get into this line of business?”

RT: “This isn’t a business you just “get into” Ms. McCabe. I am a tracker by birth. It is a Tell that I was born with.”

MM: “What exactly is a Tell? Are they special powers that all Other World creatures have? Can you use them against humans?”

RT: “I don’t know about any other creatures' powers but my own -- and each Tell that is given to us by our gods is different, each of us have our own unique gifts. And as far as using them against the humans, they are like any other gift -- some use them for good and some for evil. Pixies are creatures of the Light. To do harm is to go against our very natures.

MM: “But what of the creatures that are not of the Light? What about them?”

RT: “They get to deal with me.”

MM: I had the distinct feeling as I sat and watched her strange silver-red eyes bleed back and forth between the two shades that dealing with this Hunter could be very, very painful.

“So, what can you tell me about the current investigation at Silence on the Moor? Have you been able to assist the Police further in locating the creature or creatures responsible for the heinous crime?”

RT: “Sorry, I’m not allowed to discuss a current investigation.”

MM: “What about the club’s owner, Kieran? Is it true that the Silent Court has ordered him under house arrest?”

As soon as the question slipped past my lips I knew I was on shaky ground.

RT: “You’ll have to discuss the Court’s business directly with the Court, Ms. McCabe.”

MM: “Is it true the two of you are an item? That he has marked you and is sharing you with his Human Servant?”

Her fist clenching around the collar of my shirt as she twisted the cloth and pulled me forward across the table was the only response I received to my question. I thought for sure she was going to pound me right there in a shop full of patrons grabbing their morning cup of Joe on their way to the office, and as I looked into the glare of her crimson eyes I knew she wanted to do it.

RT: “Be careful you don’t print a bunch of bullshit about me or the Court, Ms. McCabe. Neither one of us takes too kindly to lies.”

And that was all I got. Interview over. The flash of tight, black leather pants, the hint of lavender and the glow of green as she sauntered out the door, the rest of my interview going with her. It seems I was having that affect on the creatures of the night.

Macey McCabe
Editor in Chief