Harmony: Harmony Book 1, page 8
The fourth and final coffin, to Nate’s surprise, contained a vampire. And not just any vampire, in fact, but a True Blood who was also a member of the nobility. True Bloods, Nate knew, were the name used to refer to pure-blood vampires. Like the Arcane Families, they used to organize themselves into powerful families that married their descendants only to other True Bloods, in order to keep the lineage pure. In contrast, vampires who had once been human were called Transformed, instead.
“Was he someone important?” Nate asked upon hearing that the deceased vampire was a noble. While at first glance being considered a noble might seem important in itself, in the grand scheme of things, this was far from true. Vampires around the planet Earth were extremely hierarchical and organized themselves as if in a monarchy, with the Blood Kings and Queens at the top of the courts, followed by Dukes, Marquises, Counts, Viscounts, Barons, Lords, and finally, members of the Blood Nobility who only held the shared title of Blood Noble.
“Not really,” Carmine said with a tired sigh, which reminded Nate that the girl knew the dead man. “But he is a direct descendant of one of the Blood Dukes under my father, so I have to go back to Earth to deliver the body personally. Trevor can handle things here by himself until I return next week.”
“I’m sorry for your loss,” Nate said honestly as he placed a hand on her shoulder.
“It wasn’t much of a loss, I assure you,” Carmine rolled her eyes and caught Nate off guard with those words. “The idiot was warned about behaving himself and about how we would go about feeding here. The last thing we want is to be as feared here as we are on Earth, but this idiot apparently didn’t care about our species being hated in a world that actually knows we exist. So, two days ago, he got it into his thick skull that the rules about only feeding on willing donors were something he didn’t need to follow.”
“Let me guess,” Nate began as he shook his head disappointedly. “He got caught by the city guard while hunting some victim and ended up being taken down?”
“No,” the princess huffed. “Apparently the pretty, frail, and harmless-looking woman who couldn’t have been more than a meter tall that he chose as his victim wasn’t so harmless after all,” Carmine then assumed a tone of voice dripping with irony. “You wonder how I know what the woman looks like? Well, it’s hard to forget the person who broke down my door in the middle of the night carrying his body in one hand and his head in the other.”
“Did she hurt you?” Nate asked, furrowing his brow as he looked his friend up and down.
“Oh, no,” Carmine said as she waved her hand as if the idea were ridiculous. “She’s a sweetheart. She actually became one of our donors after I explained who we are and the situation we’re in.”
Nate laughed and shook his head at hearing these words that only proved how crazy the world of Harmony was. Nate and Carmine continued talking to each other, practically ignoring any other Earthlings there, until the portal finally opened.
When the scheduled time arrived, a worker who had arrived moments earlier activated the portal with practiced ease. Like the portal they used to get to Harmony, a blue vortex formed within the arch. The worker then checked if everything was in order with the portal and informed the present Earthlings that it was ready for use.
“Make sure you're careful in whatever you’re doing, okay Nate?” Carmine said to her friend as the two vampires who would accompany her back to Earth picked up the coffin containing the nobleman’s body. “I suppose I’ll see you here next week?”
“Maybe,” Nate said with a shrug, unsure of it himself.
Without further delay, Carmine walked up to the portal. As the most important person among all the Earthlings present, it was her right to be the first to step through the portal, bringing her subordinates behind her. Watching the girl with his eyes, and definitely noticing how the outfit she wore accentuated her behind, Nate saw her bring a card close to the ‘tablet’ in the worker’s hand before being granted permission to cross the portal.
Not wanting the fact that his portal access card was different from those he saw being used by the other Earthlings, Nate patiently waited until he was the last one remaining to cross.
When he finally did, stepping through the blue vortex that for that moment divided two worlds, Nate came face to face with a squad armed to the teeth and dressed as if they were in the middle of a battlefield. And, at the head of this squad, was Captain Hart, who looked at Nate with a sharp, analyzing gaze that certainly wasn’t letting anything slip.
“You look like crap,” Hart said without a hint of humor on his expressionless face.
“You’re not exactly a supermodel yourself, my good captain,” Nate scoffed and rolled his eyes. His words even had the side effect of making two members of the squad, who seemed about to go to war, let out a small laugh. “Are you guys going to Harmony today, or are you just guarding the portal in case something went very wrong?”
“Both,” Hart admitted as he approached Nate, who still stood in front of the portal. “Although we didn’t expect anyone to actually die in the first week, so maybe the plans will be altered. The vampire princess and some others are being questioned to see if we’ll send our people or not. What’s your opinion on this?”
“Honestly, you guys will probably be fine,” Nate shrugged. “Your training and military mindset will prevent you from making the mistakes the dead made. I wouldn’t dress like this, though.”
“Why?” Hart asked as he checked his own uniform.
“Because everyone who lays eyes on you will know you’re a military force, even if they can’t recognize the weapons and symbols on the uniform,” Nate said. “That could be a good thing if a show of force were possible, but it’s not. So, you’ll just make ordinary people nervous about a military force coming through one of the portals. And the situation will only get worse when you’re walking through the streets. I give it 10 minutes for the city guard captain to question you about what the hell a foreign military force is doing marching through his city. That’s if someone doesn’t think it’s an invasion and react before everything can be explained.”
“But Tidehaven receives armed soldiers all the time, doesn’t it?” Hart countered thoughtfully. “Even if we disregard other planets and nations sending their military forces to protect their interests in Harmony, that world is so dangerous that from what I know it’s common to see armed people in the streets.”
“Yes, and that’s exactly the problem,” Nate explained. “The people of Tidehaven are extremely accustomed to seeing soldiers and warriors wearing metal armor and carrying swords at their belts. They’re so used to it that it’s become background noise in their everyday lives. However, what you’re wearing, and your weapons, they probably have never seen in their lives. And that’s what will draw attention.”
“You make a good point,” Hart closed his eyes and let out a long sigh, thinking about the information the young man had provided. They actually had permission from the government of Tidehaven to maintain a military force up to a certain size within the city limits, but he hadn’t stopped to think about how the citizens of the city would react to their presence there. “Thank you for the tip, I’ll pass that information up the chain of command. Any other useful information you’d like to share?”
“Yes,” Nate nodded. “With your weapons and training you’ll be able to handle most, if not all, Tier 1 dungeons even though you’re Tier 0, but the same isn’t true for Tier 2 dungeons,” when Captain Hart opened his mouth to say something, Nate raised his hand to stop him and continued speaking. “I know your weapons should still work on most Tier 2 monsters, but just because you can hurt them doesn’t mean you can actually kill them. That rifle will be of no use if an enemy goes invisible and kills you before you can notice their presence, for example. Also, when you encounter a dungeon whose access is controlled, don’t destroy the core! That’s the kind of thing that will get you in trouble even if you’re legal representatives of the American government. You should only destroy dungeons that you know don’t belong to anyone.”
Nate spent the next few minutes giving some extra tips and answering the questions that the captain or his men had, but they soon had to cut the conversation short when the higher-ups decided that Hart would indeed be leading an expedition to the world of Harmony. So, the military personnel escorted Nate out of the portal room. They needed to change clothes, after all.
“Well, this is where we part ways,” the captain said as they stopped in front of a door that would lead to where his men were waiting. “Just keep going down this corridor, and you’ll find someone to guide you. And remember to consider my offer to join us.”
“You have no idea how many boring tests and training sessions you’ll be skipping, kid,” one of Hart’s men said with a laugh, echoed by all except the captain, who simply shook his head.
“I’ll think about it, captain,” Nate said seriously, even though he couldn’t see a situation where he would work for Hart. With Hart, however, it was a different story. In the end, Nate knew that no man was an island, and he would need allies, even if it meant sharing some of the power he would gain. “But before you go, answer me this: is this base still a secret?”
“It’s not a secret base,” Hart said with a sigh.
“Yes,” the rest of the squad responded practically at the same time.
“Well, it will cease to be one when I call for a ride,” Nate said with a mischievous smile on his face.
Amid the laughter of the rest of the squad, Nate turned and began to walk down the corridor, whistling a happy tune.
Chapter 8
“Thank you for the ride,” Nate thanked the woman who had driven him all the way from the secret base where the portal to Harmony was located to his apartment. Nate wasn’t exactly sure what she was, as she had refused to talk about her life or career during the trip, but considering the impeccable suit she wore and the weapons she failed to conceal inside her jacket and on her ankle, she certainly wasn’t a secretary.
Nate would have much preferred to call a ride on an app, but even though he had purposely conserved his phone battery during the week he spent in Harmony, he found he had no signal inside the base. He even tried to get the Wi-Fi password from someone, but for obvious reasons, nobody wanted to give it to him. Though he was certain that even if he had the password, he wouldn’t gain access to the network until his cellphone device was validated. If his former workplace had such security measures, then a government secret base certainly had them too, and many more.
Bidding farewell as expressionlessly as she had been throughout the entire journey, the woman swiftly turned the car around and went on her way. Well, at least now Nate was sure the government knew where he lived, as he hadn’t given his address to the woman at any point. But then again, it was the government, after all. It would be strange if they didn’t know where he lived.
“Hello, Mrs. Dolores,” Nate greeted as he passed by an elderly lady who lived on the floor below him as he was entering and she was leaving the building. Normally, he would have stopped to chat with the kind lady who made wonderful cookies, but this time, he was in a hurry to get to his apartment. The journey home had been its own kind of torture, with time seeming to crawl, but he had finally arrived! “Have a wonderful day!”
“Well, looks like the boy has finally lost it,” the old lady remarked as she watched the young man walk away, his appearance and clothing a stark contrast to his cheerfulness. She even glanced up at the night sky to make sure she wasn’t the one lost in time.
Unaware of his neighbor doubting his sanity, Nate took the elevator and continued cheerfully to his apartment, which was on the fifth floor of the building where he had lived since graduating from college. In no time, he was unlocking his apartment door.
Upon opening his door, however, Nate realized he wasn’t alone at home. With his human eyes meeting eyes that were not, he found himself facing one as powerful as it was unpredictable. A being that could not only destroy him and the apartment they occupied more easily than Nate could kill a mosquito but could also destroy the entire planet if it so desired. And this being, who was practically a goddess to someone like Nate, was sitting on the couch wearing one of his pajamas and eating the ice cream he bought a week ago straight from the tub while watching a cartoon.
“Hey, Jess!” Nate exclaimed as he closed the door behind him. “You know you can’t eat ice cream straight from the tub!”
“And what are you going to do about it?” asked Jess, Gwen’s older sister. Or at least that’s what Nate deduced she had said, as she spoke with her mouth full of ice cream.
“I’m going to tell your sister you ate all the ice cream without sharing any of it with her,” Nate challenged.
To his disappointment, however, Jess didn’t fall for his bluff. Instead, she turned the tub of ice cream until Nate could see inside it. The young human had to sigh as he saw a guilty-looking Gwen wearing a swimsuit and covered in chocolate ice cream.
“I should’ve known better,” Nate shook his head as he kicked off his shoes, trying not to dwell on how odd it was that Jess was eating ice cream while Gwen was inside the tub. He almost said something about it, but while he had quickly learned as a boy that Jess wouldn’t erase him from existence for saying something like that, it didn’t mean he was free from her punishments. He at least hoped Gwen had taken a shower before this.
“Do you know what you apparently never learned?” Jess suddenly asked, turning her attention back to the human man. “That I can read your mind.”
“Oh, Great One!” Nate pleaded in his most servile tone. “You, who are the most majestic fairy to ever exist, surely have in your heart the capacity to show mercy to this unworthy one!”
“Nope,” Jess replied with a huge mischievous grin, exaggerating the ‘P’ sound. “I hope you’re not afraid of frogs, Nate.”
“Why, are you going to fill my room with frogs while I sleep?” Nate sighed in defeat, knowing that nothing he said could make the woman change her mind about punishing him for his ‘insolence’, which was nothing more than a flimsy excuse to pull a prank on him. “You’ve done that. More than once, actually.”
“Oh,” the woman said with her expression falling. “Well, in that case, why don’t you go take a shower and wash off all that dirt you’ve rubbed onto yourself like the crazy guy you are.”
“Okay,” Nate readily accepted, since that was exactly what he had planned to do from the start. He was practically bursting with anticipation, and the sooner he finished getting ready, the sooner they could continue their day. He also was almost certain that the woman was planning another one of her pranks that required him not to be present, but he didn’t mind much.
Tossing his bag of unimportant junk he had collected just so people wouldn’t see him leaving the portal empty-handed, Nate headed for his room. Originally, something like this wouldn’t have been necessary, but he had no doubt that at least one person must have seen Trevor passing him money under the table, which would make him returning empty-handed extremely suspicious. So, he bought some things that looked expensive but were actually practically worthless, like a wooden ball that seemed to be enchanted. And it really only seemed to be enchanted, probably being the creation of some apprentice learning the craft. In the end, he found he could have literally filled the bag with garbage and would have achieved the same result since no one checked it at the base. Well, if the government wasn’t concerned about someone smuggling goods between worlds, he certainly wouldn’t be either.
Entering the bathroom of his room, Nate stripped off his clothes and briefly looked at himself in the mirror, almost being taken aback by how dirty he really looked. Running a hand through his short blond hair that seemed to have lost a fight against the inside of a vacuum cleaner, Nate thought he understood part of the reason why the driver who took him home wasn’t very keen on interacting with him. Nate really looked like a beggar, especially with the pathetic ‘beard’ that grew during that week.
After a reasonably long shower, Nate stepped out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist and opened his underwear drawer to grab a pair. This was the moment, however, when he discovered what Jess had planned as his prank. In her incredible maturity, the powerful fairy had stolen all of Nate’s underwear and replaced them with panties. Honestly, he found it impressive that she had managed to do something like that so quickly. With a defeated sigh, he closed the drawer again and then searched for a pair of shorts and a shirt. He half expected the shorts to have been replaced too, perhaps by skirts, but he thankfully found that part of his clothing untouched.
“You know, this would have been much more impactful if it had been the first time you did this,” Nate explained to Jess, making a point to roll his eyes when she looked his way. Not only had she stopped eating the ice cream, which she had placed on the table, but she had also changed into a yellow floral summer dress.
“But I’ve never done this before,” the older fairy said with clear confusion on her face, a feeling that the human knew was genuine since she had long stopped trying to hide her emotions from him.
“Wait, does this mean...” Nate let his sentence die as he realized the implication of what she was saying.
“Sorry,” Gwen said with a giggle still from inside the ice cream tub.
