Blood Magic

6: Cold Shoulder

.^^ Revenants ^^

— James —

Fried Frog Legs. Never thought such a thing existed, or that I'd eat it if it did, but once I tried it, I was hooked. I finished an entire bag of them on my own, and then a bag of something Athenos gave me, offhandedly. It tasted like herbs and garlic, at the same time, and just like the legs, while it sounded weird, it was actually pretty good, sprinkled on top of fluffy bread.

We ended up, after wandering through the area of the Market that had food venders, in a lively pub. I ordered a mug of draft for the both of us, and heard Athenos chuckle. "What? Legal drinking age isn't a thing in Ireland. Anyways, tell me about the types of things that could open the door." I asked.

He settled down, serious now. "Yes, you'll need to learn this stuff, won't you? Well it's pretty simple. Anything that has more juice than every member of my family that has ever lived could open that door, and not a drop less."

I blinked slowly. "Oh hell... that's why you were scared."

"No shame in it. Beings like that aren't things I want to deal with. With proper preparation, I could seal them or kill them, but it's a coin-toss, and I'd rather not gamble with your life." He shrugged.

"What about if a member of your family opened it from the other side, then left it open on accident?" I asked.

He shook his head. "Only my father and one cousin that takes care of him is still alive, from the parts of my family that were given access to the Basement... only Apprentices were ever even aware of its existence."

"What about the ghosts of your other family members?" I pressed.

He seemed thoughtful. "Well, a few of my ancestors must have gone to Hades, I suppose, so they could be summoned as Revenants, but it would still take a good bit of power to accomplish. Only evil or neutral souls can be summoned from the afterlife." He explained.

"So your evil dead uncle would still have access to the doors, right?" I asked for clarification.

He nodded. "I guess it didn't get revoked, when they died, so yes."

"So it might be something we can handle."

"Might be isn't enough. I need to know exactly what it is." He shook his head, and drank the coffee he'd somehow exchanged his drink for. Mine, upon inspection, held green tea.

I sighed, but drank it in peace, until the French Ogre returned, with a few of his huntsmen. He was dragging two demons of some kind by their ankles, while one of the other ogres held a jar of fireflies away from them.

"Oooooohkay??? What's up with the demons?" I asked.

"Revenants. Your instincts are very strong." Athenos hummed.

"And the fireflies?"

"Power source." He answered swiftly, and snagged it, shaking it up.

The Spirits howled ethereally, making several patrons of the pub grumble, but Athenos continued, then smashed the jar on the ground, holding out a Crystal. The energy soaked into the crystal, making it glow gold, and the two twisted spirits stopped struggling.

"Much obliged, Garçon, I appreciate your assistance! Any other creatures? The master of these foul things?" Athenos asked.

"Nothing, sir. The library was undisturbed, as far as I could tell, from the one time I've been in there." The Ogre shook his head.

"So it was only their entrance... interesting. Alright, that'll be all, I have them now." He tapped the both of the spirits with the crystal, and they disappeared with soft sighs of wind.