"Genie, Mariah, get down here!" Jenny called.
Pounding down the narrow staircase, hot on Mariah's heels, Genie's imagination treated her to all kinds of terrible things. Gangsters. Vampires. Alien dark elf men in black kidnapping squads. She was completely unprepared to find an international superstar and a slightly mad witch.
Blinking, Genie watched as Cassie Goth pulled her daughter, Miranda, into a fierce hug.
"Mom? You're here?" Miranda laughed.
"Hush, let me hug you," Cassie said.
"... so that's what where we are," Genie said.
They had moved to the couch and explained everything they knew about Shannon Charm's murder, the worsening conflict between the witches and vampires, the Crossing project and the possible involvement of the svartalves.
"We were hoping you could tell us more about the svartalves," Miranda said. "All I know about them is what you two told Mariah and me, about your encounters with them when you first met."
"We'll tell you what we know," Gwen said serenely.
"Though really, Bella knows more about them than we do," Cassie said. Bella Goth, Cassie's stepmother, was a retired secret agent who had become regrettably famous after taking down the Landgraab Syndicate several years ago. "Unfortunately, we probably can't ask her since she dropped off the grid years ago and... unlike some people... she knows how to stay hidden," Cassie continued with a teasing smirk.
"Anything you can tell us would be helpful," Genie said. "According to Etta, the svartalves were magical craftsmen and friends of the original witches, but they disappeared during the Century War. Miranda says you told her that they are aliens..."
"Yes. That seems a good place to begin," Gwen said, her eyes taking on a distant look. "The svartalves came from another Realm, just as my people, the alfar, did.
"Wait," Jenny said, her eyes wide as they moved quickly between Gwen, Cassie and Miranda. "Witches are aliens too?! You guys are aliens?"
"Cassie and Miranda both have more mortal blood than alfar," Gwen said with a smile. "Even I was born in this Realm, if only on the very edges of it. Only a handful remain, the oldest of the high alfar, who were born in the Otherworld... but, yes, our ancestors came from another Realm. One known by many names - Alfheim, Tir Na Nog, the Realm of Eternal Youth, the Realm of Magic."
"The svartalves," Cassie prompted, reminding her wife of the topic at hand.
"Ah yes, the svartalves," Gwen smiled. "My ancestors were explorers. They sailed the Sea of Stars in silver ships, and crossed the Void between Realms. In another Realm, like but unlike their own - a Realm we call Myrkheim, Nidavellir, or the Realm of Night - they encountered another people, like and unlike themselves. The svartalves.
"As Etta told you, the svartalves were talented craftsmen, even in those ancient days. Much of what my people accomplish with our Will and Words of Power, they accomplish through Knowledge and Craft."
"In other words, science and technology," Cassie put in.
"Perhaps," Gwen said, "But svartalf 'science and technology' was much closer to magic than it was to your cars and computers. They also have another magic of their own. A magic of the mind that allows them to look into the hearts and memories of others, and to influence them.
"So, when our peoples first met, the svartalves looked into the hearts of alfar and recognized fellow seekers of knowledge.
"Together, alfar and svartalf learned much from each other, sharing secrets to deepen their understanding of the Universe. Some of them joined my ancestors on their silver ships, and set out to explore the other Realms.
"Eventually in their travels, they found a Realm that was fair and green - this Realm, that we call Midgard. Some of them - alfar and svartalf alike - weary of travel, chose to make a home for themselves here."
"I wonder what the locals thought of that," Mariah muttered.
"Some of the mortal people of Midgard, your ancestors, welcomed them," Gwen said. "They saw my ancestors as gods and heroes. Still, not all mortals did. I will not pretend the alfar and our allies did not take by force what was not given in friendship. Nor will I excuse their actions.
"By means good and ill, the alfar and svartalves built their castles and cavern-holds. In time, their domains grew into kingdoms."
"As their strength grew, the most powerful of the alfar and the most skilled of the svartalf came together for a great project. Combining alfar magic and svartalf craft, they constructed the Gates - portals connecting Midgard to the other Realms. With these Gates, one could travel between the Realms as easily as crossing a threshold.
"One Gate, connecting Midgard to Alfheim, was raised in the kingdom of the alfar - where the town of Glimmerbrook now stands. Another, connecting to Myrkheim, was built in the hidden cavern-holds of the svartalves.
"Reunited with their home Realms, the kingdoms flourished and eventually joined to form the First Empire."
"Arrogance has ever been the greatest weakness of my people," Gwen sighed. "Even as the First Empire grew, it became decadent and corrupt. In their pride, a cabal of alchemists made homunculi - duplicates of themselves, created by alchemy and nourished by blood - to be their immortal, tireless servants."
"They tried to make perfect slaves," Miranda said coldly. "Instead, they created the first vampires."
"They did," Gwen agreed. "The draugr, the first vampires, turned on their creators. They fed upon the blood that had created them and, in doing so, absorbed the magic within that blood, growing stronger themselves.
"Under the rule of the first of their kind - a draugr known as the Pale King - the vampires attempted to destroy all those with alfar blood, and all of their allies. Mortal history remembers this as the Century War and the Fall of the First Empire."
"The svartalves, dear," Cassie prompted again.
"I'm providing some needed context," Gwen said serenely before continuing. "As I was about to say... the svartalves found themselves caught in a war not of their making. The vampires' hatred for the alfar was foremost in their cold hearts, but the part the svartalves played in the First Empire was not forgotten or forgiven.
"Above all things the svartalves valued peace, order and stability. They wanted no part of this war. The vampires, however, were unwilling to make peace with them. Their war host marched on the svartalves' cavern-holds, intent on wiping out the alfar's allies.
"The svartalves' leadership made their choice. While a handful of those brave, foolish, or still loyal to their friends in Midgard, remained behind to hold off the vampire host, the rest of svartalves retreated through their Gate... and destroyed it."
"They would not be seen again in Midgard for more than a thousand years."
"A thousand years is a long time," Cassie said, taking up the story. "The svartalves, the aliens, live longer than humans, but they aren't immortal, and Myrkheim isn't timeless in the way Alfheim is. When they returned to our world, they had changed.
"For one thing, they had developed their own ships for traveling the stars and crossing the Void between Realms. What Gwen calls their Craft, they had turned into what we would consider some very advanced technology."
"The difference between svartalf technology and alfar magic remains, in many ways, a matter of approach and perspective," Gwen commented.
"The aliens' perspective on a lot of things had changed," Cassie said grimly. "When they arrived in the late 1940s, just after the Second Great War, they didn't try to contact the Witches' Council. They made contact with humans."
"Wait, so those stories about aliens crash landing in the Great Western Desert and the government covering it up.... that's true?!" Jenny gasped.
"Pretty much. They came in peace," Cassie continued with a slight chuckle. "Like Gwen said, the aliens value peace, order and stability above all. They offered to share their science and technology with humans, and to help us achieve our own peace, order and stability. You can imagine how that might be appealing, after the Second Great War.
"The aliens learned how to disguise themselves, to appear human and work within human institutions. Bella said she thought they were actually involved in the formation of the Strategic Intelligence and Multinational Security Agency. They were certainly deeply embedded in the Agency when we encountered them, twenty five years ago. They even had their own division within the Agency - Section 6, a covert group dedicated to 'monitoring and containing extraordinary threats to peace and order.'"
"That sounds kind of ominous," Genie mused.
"Well, it seems that they had come to believe that witches - or to use their term, 'psychokinetic actives' - were potentially serious threats to their idea of peace and order," Cassie said. "Section 6 was tasked with keeping these 'threats' under control. They don't much like vampires or werewolves - they call them 'infected' and 'aberrations' - either, but Section 6 was particularly interested in witches.
"You see the leader of Section 6 - a scientist called Dr. Key - had a secret agenda. By capturing and studying witches, Dr. Key was attempting to understand our powers and to recreate the legendary devices that combined alfar magic and svartalf craft... including the Gates.
"There was a faction among the aliens - including Dr. Key and Section 6 - who planned to bring 'peace and order' to this world... by conquering it," Cassie said. "The first step in that plan was to recreate the Gate and bring through an army of so-called Protectors - their warrior caste. We're guessing that their accounts of the First Empire and the Century War have led them to believe that witches are erratic, corrupt and dangerous and that humans are weak and need to be controlled.
"Twenty-five years ago, thinking he was close to a breakthrough, Dr. Key sent his chief enforcer - a Protector called Agent Hand - to abduct Gwen," Cassie continued. "That's how we became involved in all of this. Dr. Key believed that, because Gwen has a connection to the Glimmerbrook Gate, he could use her to finally create his own Gate."
"He failed," Gwen said with a pleased smile.
"Well fortunately, and this is important, not all of the aliens agreed with Section 6. With the help of those friendly aliens..."
"... and a little help from us," Gwen pointed out.
"... and a little help from us," Cassie agreed with a smile, "Bella was able to put a stop to the invasion plan. In the end, she got the Agency to shut down Section 6. Dr. Key and his faction fell out of favor with the other aliens, and we haven't had any trouble with them since... until now, it seems."
"Your family is so weird," Jenny said, looking at Miranda.
"You don't have to tell me," Miranda chuckled. "So, I guess the question is, are we dealing with Section 6 again... or at least the faction that was behind Section 6?"
"You said the aliens lived longer than we do... humans, I mean," Mariah said, obviously recognizing that 'human' only described half the people in the room. "Could the Mr. Hand we saw at Evergreen Development really be the same as the Agent Hand who worked for Dr. Key twenty-five years ago?"
"It seems likely," Gwen said, considering.
"But why would aliens, even alien dark elves planning world domination, be interested in a shady land deal?" Jenny asked.
"Etta said it... the Moonwood," Miranda replied. "It's a nexus of natural magical power... like a hot spring would be for geo-thermal power... almost as strong as the nexus at Glimmerbrook. If they're still trying to combine our magic and their technology, it's a perfect location for their research. They might even be trying again to create their own Gate."
That all sounded very important, Genie thought, but her mind was stuck on a thought that had been circling in her mind since something Cassie had said.
"You said the aliens value peace and order, stability and tradition," Genie said.
"That sounds familiar, when you say it like that," Jenny said.
"It should," Genie breathed. "It's the Axis party agenda."
"Wait, are you seriously suggesting the aliens are behind the Axis party?" Mariah scoffed. "That's crazy... isn't it?"
"Actually, it's a possibility," Cassie said. "Just like they infiltrated the Agency decades ago, it's not that much of stretch to imagine they would infiltrate other organizations, even the Lower House. With their powers to read and influence minds, it wouldn't be that difficult for them."
"Are we seriously talking about mind-controlling aliens in government?" Jenny asked, looking around the room.
"Why not? We've already know there are witches and vampires in the Upper House," Miranda shrugged.
"OK well, the crazy history lessons and alien conspiracy theories are... crazy and all, but if we're going to stop Baron Charm from making the whole shadow war worse, put a stop to the Crossing project and bring Shannon's killers to justice, we still need proof," Genie pointed out.
"I bet my mom knows something," Genie continued. "Jenny and I have seen her meeting with Mr. Hand. We know she's dealt with Mr. Grey and laundered money for the Alto family. Throw in the fact that my dad is a member of the Axis party, and she knows... and fundraises... for them," she sighed. "I know she's started to keep files of all her shady deals, like my grand-père Jacques did. If I can get into her files, I can find the evidence we need. I'm sure of it."
"This sounds familiar," Mariah smiled, remembering another time they had attempted to get secret files from Genie's family. "When do we leave?"
"We don't," Genie said firmly, looking at Miranda and Mariah. "You guys stay here. Update Etta and Demarco and see if you can find any more evidence from Evergreen Development or that Cletus guy."
"Meanwhile, Gwen and I can try to keep a lid on things with the shadow war," Cassie said, though she sounded doubtful. "I have a few contacts who might be able to help, and Gwen can talk to the other members of the Council."
"At the very least, I can try to keep Darrel Charm from doing anything foolish," Gwen said. "I've known him since we were children. He'll listen to me."
"Sounds like we have a plan," Jenny said brightly.
