Chapter 60: Another Mission

Yolanda woke up lying beside Ian in bed. Her brain to a moment to catch up to the fact they used an apartment in the packhouse. Rather than going back to their cottage. Once her heart slowed a little, Ian finally got to the alarm and turned it off. “Why do I feel like I haven’t slept yet?” She mumbled to herself as much as to Ian.

“Because I think we’re running on about five, maybe six hours of sleep. Let’s get this show on the road. I feel we’re in for a rough patch if he’s asking for us.” Ian climbed out of bed and hit the bathroom for a fast shower. “I’ll head down for food. What do you want me to bring up?”

“Whatever going is fine. Thanks, I’ll be quick.” She rushed through her routine and met Ian in the main room. “Thanks. I’m really curious about what he wants us to do.”

“We won’t know until he tells us now eat so we can head out. Sorry, but all they had were a few lunch specials left.” They ate, knowing if the mission took place immediately, that eating would take a backseat for a while.

“You won’t hear me complain about eating a grilled bacon/cheddar with tomatoes sandwich.

Now we’ll need to make sure everything is up-to-date with armoury. Because who knows how long this mission will take.” Yolanda sighed and bit into the crunchy sandwich.

“We’ll figure it out. Don’t worry about it.”

“Yeah.” She looked at the other half of her sandwich like it’s the saddest thing she’d ever seen.

“Okay, I can’t eat another bite without knowing what he wants. Let’s go.”

“Fine. I’ll just finish my coffee and I’ll follow you.” Yolanda wrapped the leftover sandwich up and slipped it into her jacket pocket. If she couldn’t eat it now, then probably later. After the boom came down on what Gregory wanted.

They left the apartment and moved through the packhouse back to the main lobby. The smells of brewed coffee and toasted bread lay heavy in the air. The main door frequently opened these days, so the lobby’s temperature was several degrees lower than the rest of the house.

“We really need to figure out something better if this goes on too long. The heating bill will be insane for this place.”

“Well, it’s not as if you can just whip up a building in no time. Using magic to do that would cause questions about permits and where did it come from.”

“Hm… but it would be nice if our land returned to us soon.”

“This is the most protected location in the world from the Fae. Think about it. These lands have the best chance of coming through this unscathed.”

“Yeah, but it still doesn’t invalidate my feelings. I can appreciate their presence and resent them too.” Yolanda tried to lighten the conversation by uttering this outrageous statement with a flourish of her hair. “If I don’t, I might try to kill something.”

“Good to know. I sincerely hope I’m not the thing you want to kill.” Ian hadn’t seen her like this before. It’s not like he’d known her for long. “You’re fine. Come on, his office door is open. Let’s get this done and over, shall we?” Ian’s hand waved toward the door and offering to let her enter first.

“Yeah, I guess.” They entered the office to find several people working in there along with their Alpha. “Gregory? You wanted to talk to us?”

“Good, you’re on time. Find a seat and I’ll fill you in on everything that’s going on. I need the two of you to do something.” Gregory waved them to the sofas to sit. A pile of files lay on the coffee table between them. Mages studied documents and papers in the corner at desks, quietly ignoring the small group.

“That sounds intriguing and mysterious at the same time. However, it sounds like you want us to go to Ikea for you.” Yolanda leaned back on the sofa, her arm laid across the back of the sofa behind Ian’s shoulders.

“When I’m done, you’ll wish it was a trip to Ikea. No, it’s more than a mere shopping trip.”

Gregory didn’t pick up the joke, or he ignored it. That was a toss-up of which he did.

“But why us?” Aria asked from where she perched on the edge of a sofa.

“Well, it’s the makeup of your group, actually. The others should be here soon, then we’ll get down to the brass tacks of it.”

They settled in to wait, but it didn’t take long. For the others to arrive. “So, we’re considered a group. What does this mission hold for us?” Asked Yolanda as everyone sat down.

Gregory paced at one end of the sofas as he spoke to the group. “Good, now that everyone is here. I’ll explain what we’re doing. We’ve been studying the situation. We need you to get into the midst of the Fae. Place a trap and get out in time. The thing is, you must place the object in this realm and the dream realm.”

“How are we going to do that? I have so many questions. What does it do?” Desire blurted out in her need to know what would be their next challenge.

“It’ll cause the Fae to become trapped in this reality without access to the Dream Realm. We have troops that will go in and draw them out of the dream realm. Once they are within this realm, we’ll activate the device, effectively cutting them off from the Dream Realm. Then we will go in after them seriously. That means the ladies will enter the Dream Realm while the men will work to get the device to the correct location here. We must do this, or we won’t block their access to the Dream Realm, and they’ll be able to escape.”

“If it must be done, then let’s get it done. How large is this thing? How’s it activated?” Jaxon said from his end of the sofa.

“It works like a bomb. It’s temporary and it won’t destroy the Dream Realm as it is. But you will need to get out of the Dream Realm before it goes off or risks being trapped within the Dream Realm for an unknown amount of time.”

“I gather you want us to drop the bloody device into the middle of the Fae horde?”

“It’s a hunt, but close enough. I’m afraid that’s what we need you to do. As if the device isn’t dangerous enough. Both groups must move through enemy lines. Therefore, I’m using this group. You are all highly trained and most likely have the best skill set for this. Dean left folders for each of you.

We’ve chosen your teams. Before you ask. We’re keeping the groups small to attract less attention from the Fae. Timing, maps, explanations are all within the files. Please look at them and we’ll meet your teams within the hour. Questions?”

“Why did you choose humans for this?”

“Simply put. Your friends are part Fae. They won’t immediately attract attention with their magic. You, as a human, don’t carry magic and they’ll assume you are the servant or slave of your friends. With their attention on our attack, find a way into their midst and out before the device goes off.

Please, we have little time left. Try to study quickly and we’ll return to this in an hour.”