Law of Shadows

“Who needs a house if one can sleep under the stars?”

- A memory of the Old Ones.

***Carinthia***

***Sely***

“Get up. The party is over.” Oilell's voice wakes me up. I groan and rub my eyes, but I don't open them. Instead, I nestle against the warm chest which is acting as my pillow. “Tired. I don't want to. Let us sleep a little longer.”

Oilell doesn't give up. “Most of the others already went back home. And in an hour the humans will telecast your interview. Don't you want to see what Samantha made of the three hours in which she spoke to you?”

I sigh and get up. Magnus and I partied until late at night. At some point, we simply went to sleep on the warm sand at the beach. He is lying spread-eagled on his back and snoring loudly. Surveying the area, I find several other people who didn't bother to go back to their homes. “Uh, we really had a night after we made that makeshift circle for Hatlix and Cecilia. Where are those two?”

Oilell shrugs. “Don't know, but I am sure that they found a quiet spot.”

I try to straighten my hair, but it's just one huge knot at this point. What a mess. And there is sand in it. It will be a pain to clean myself up. “Yep. We definitely had a long night.”

“You are too loud!” Magnus covers his eyes with his arm.

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“They are going to telecast the interview. Don't you want to see?” I ask and get to my feet. Standing, I am faced with a new problem. “When did I change into a bikini? I don't remember that!”

Oilell clears her throat. “That was me. I had to save the gown from destruction. It looks so nice on you that it would be a shame to get it full of sand.”

Magnus risks a peek. “I like your choice, Oilell. Black and white two pieces really suit Sely.”

I frown at him study the outfit. “It makes my pregnancy much too obvious. Jeez, soon, I am going to look like a whale.”

The brownie bows to us. “It's my pleasure, Master.”

I point at Magnus. “Why didn't you strip him too?” As much as I would like to see him in pants, he still wears his suit.

“There are plenty of suits, but just one bridal gown.” Oillel raises an eyebrow. “Have you ever heard of handing down the husband's suit?”

I shake my head, giving up the argument. I clearly lost this one. After orienting myself, I head back to the doorway, Magnus and Oilell follow on my heels. The others on the beach are still out cold, so I don't bother with saying my goodbyes. We return home where I can finally refresh myself.

Even with Oilell's help, it takes next to an hour to get my hair back under control. The brownie is still trying to untangle the knots when I make myself comfortable on the living room's sofa. Magnus and the others are also there to watch the show.

And it is really a show. Magnus and Hatlix did their best to turn the reporter's trip into an excursion to wonderland.

Everything starts with a few words of introduction from Samantha, the same reporter who took our first interview. She greets me at the entrance of the apartment complex, which looks rather plain and ordinary. Then I lead her inside and up to our apartment. The hired gnolls did an excellent job in repairing everything. The apartment looks better than before with its neat interior design. The furniture is held in cedar and fits perfectly.

But it's still just that. An apartment like any human could have it.

The real surprise comes when I open the door to the closet and walk inside, inviting the reporters to follow me. We emerge into the new entrance hall.

Hatlix and Magnus did their best to reshape the entire hall into a maze of stairs with a huge chandelier floating freely in the centre of the large room. They used force magic to accomplish that. Samantha stumbles when I follow the spiralling path out into the garden. She doesn't fall, but it's clear that the strange interior confuses her and her cameraman.

Magnus decided to use gravity magic to confuse enemies who try to charge into the hall. Therefore he turned the entrance hall into a gravimetric maze of opposing forces. Anybody who doesn’t expect it stumbles around for at least a few seconds before he gets used to the new situation. Such a defensive measure would've helped a lot when the fae invaded us.

I lead them out into the garden, where I explain about reality marbles and Veils. After giving them the basic theory behind it, I point out that we could make many such marbles to act as glasshouses if there is really an Ice Age.

Annia was of the opinion that we should’ve added a few pompous effects like endless hallways or spiralling waterfalls. I have no doubt that Magnus and Hatlix are capable of such a feat, but it wasn't like we had limitless time at our hands. In the end, we didn’t do it and invested all our time in the entrance hall.

I think that our reality marble is beautiful enough as it is. Oilell and Fiacre put real effort into the garden around the mansion. There is the area which was damaged by Lindwurm, but Fiacre cleaned it up a while ago. Then there are the ponds and the little forest around the hill on which the mansion is standing. It's impressive enough to be thrown into such a scenery, knowing that it's winter outside.

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We debated for a long time if we should let them see the graveyard with the thorns. Listening to Eva, we decided against it. We want to make a positive impression on the humans, not one of dangerous beings.

What blows Samantha’s mind away is the offer I make at the end of the interview. Magnus pointed out that the human’s technology is based on energy like electricity or oil. Using the orb, we can offer them a completely clean energy source. One that’s under our control. If the humans take the bait, we can make them dependent on us, as we are the only ones who can make the orbs.

Hatlix pointed out that the humans might be able to produce basic magical effects by using electromagnetic fields. Though he is sure that the orb will be beyond their capabilities for a long time. We still have to keep the secret of the orbs to ourselves, just to be sure.

In the end, I release the dazed reporters through a secondary doorway in the city centre, far away from our apartment. Cecilia thought that it would be a nice finishing touch to show them that we are capable of a lot more than they expect. Leaving them no chance to inquire about their sudden change in location also adds a little mystery to us.

I have to admit that it went well.