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JASH
Saga had just ended a call with her daughter. If I wasn’t currently being crushed by the car, I would have paid more attention to her and Alex. As is, though, my tail hung outside the car while the rest of me was inside.
I had to constantly make sure my horns didn’t kill Saga and Alex. I also had to constantly make sure that my movements didn’t destroy the Dwemer machine. To make matters worse I had to focus on making sure my dryskin illusion remained flawless. While there hadn’t been any other cars on the road for an hour, Saga couldn’t know what I actually was right now.
To ease my own mind, I focused on my breathing. Back in Argonia, I had been taught the basics of meditation through breathing and over the years my mastery increased. I grew calmer and the edges of the Dark Presence’s domain became clear.
Was it taunting me?
The trees. Nature. Those were the things I needed to set my mind to. If the Dark Presence felt the need to taunt, it could mean that the ancient foe was scared of my return. I couldn’t let it sink its fangs into me so soon.
“Nervous?” Saga asked. “Do you think the killer is still out there?”
Oh, that killer never left. It might have always existed in this reality. Maybe it was a new deity.
“My last visit to Bright Falls didn’t end pleasantly.” I replied.
“What happened?” Saga asked and I resisted the temptation to tense up.
“That song is meant to be sung at a later time.”
“Jash doesn’t like to talk about it.” Alex said. “Not even to me.”
“Does this have anything to do with the FBC?” Saga asked.
“If the FBC knew this tale, they would be interested in my return.” I hissed. “They might have even put traveling restrictions on me seeing Bright Falls once more.”
If not for the fact I had multiple souls, from being a Dragonborn and a Daedric Prince, Saga would have easily been able to read my mind. In that case she might have been able to see all the little verses of my tale. Even if she weren’t, she would have been able to know something supernatural was on the horizon.
By the fact her posture didn’t change, I knew my mind remained safe from her.
For the remainder of the drive, everyone was silent. The only exception was when Alex handed control of the case over to Saga.
I breathed my first calm breath the moment I exited the car. With a few brief motions I stretched enough so that my body once again felt free. If not for the Dark Presence being on the horizon or the case, I would have rushed into the forest for hours.
I needed sticks or bones to crack under my claws.
Nature. Trees. Leaves. The way the wind blew scents into my nose. I began to calm down even though there was still a taint in the air to this nose. The taint was born out of the nature of Earth and not a sign of the Dark Presence.
As Alex and Saga walked towards the crime scene, I followed a short distance behind. Not only did this ensure I wasn’t distracting them, it also made sure I picked up on little signs that had gone unnoticed before. Oblivion, it might even be there was a difference between this new cycle and the one I had experienced.
Due to focusing so intently on my surroundings, it felt as though someone else heard Alex correct a dryskin about who was in charge of the case. Saga’s voice echoed and it didn’t even sound mildly irritated.
“Hey, this isn’t an amusement park.” The dryskin said and I returned to the present moment. “Leave.”
“That’s Jash Casey.” Saga said and there was a hardness in her voice. “He’s a consultant on this case.”
“I’m…sorry, sir.”
“No offense taken.” I replied with a brief nod of my head.
As we continued our walk, I reached out with my senses. Not just my mortal ones but those granted from being a Daedric Prince. Yet there was no clear sign of the entity. Not one leaf blew in a wind that was anything other than natural.
Was the Dark Presence scared or did it just not want to waste its strength so soon?
Once we approached the FBC station the agent looked at me with a confused expression. Meanwhile Illmo had more interest in the agent’s reaction. Of course one of the leaders of the Cult of the Tree would be interested in the agent’s reaction. He would want to make sure that the people he protected weren’t in danger.
“You know him?” Illmo teased as he looked at me.
“I didn’t think he would be here.” The agent snapped. “Jash Casey lives in New York City. He hasn’t left the state of New York. Ever.”
“My husband is a consultant on this case.” Alex replied tersely.
“On what grounds?”
“He’s been to Bright Falls before.”
“Is that true, Jash?”
“I have.”
The agent looked at me as if I was in possession of a secret. He wasn’t wrong. But I wasn’t about to tell the truth when I was so close to returning home. If he knew the truth then Saga would remain in the dark.
Since Saga was so near it meant the agent couldn’t ask the questions that would force me to reveal the truth.
“If I could make a suggestion, Anderson.” Alex said.
“You want us to continue to the crime scene?” Saga guessed.
“Yes.”
“I agree. We shouldn’t waste our time.”
Before I followed my two companions, I looked at the FBC agent whose eyes shone with anger. He couldn’t find out what he needed to and that must feel like a slow death to him.
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