Tenkha

Gerald looked confused; it was a look that often crossed his coarse features. Teague told him;”I said we need to get you a change of clothes Gerald”

The enterprise bruiser tilted his head slightly; like a hound who had heard an unusual sound. So Teague continued with; “you look like bloody murder man.”

This was absolutely the case: the large man was currently in his shirtsleeves, having discarded his cotton jersey because it was drenched with his life’s blood. This was due to Gerald’s encounter with Vittorio in a back room of the Italian eatery that he and Teague and Fitz had been investigating.

To be fair; Teague was the one doing the investigating. Gerald and even Fitz had only been along as a form of backup. It was a good thing too, because Gerald had tackled the Italian who had been about to ambush his friend Teague.

Gerald shivered visibly because he remembered vividly, grabbing Vittorio and then the ensuing struggle that had ended with Gerald dying on the floor.

Teague looked at Gerald and said again; “we need to get you a change of clothes”.

Gerald shook his head slowly; Teague thought it unlike the big man to be so quiet, but then he figured that will happen when you end up on the wrong side of an ivory handled razor.

Penrose spoke up: “he’s quite right Gerald. Go with Teague and get yourself some clean clothes.”

“Yes Sir Mr. Penrose,” Gerald said. The two large men turned to go and as they were exiting the room, their employer said to them: “be sure to take the back stairs so you don’t alarm any of the guests with your appearance.” Both men responded simultaneously; “yes sir.”

After the two large enterprise men left his office; Penrose asked his diminutive guest; “would you care for a drink Mr. Pecht?”

The pixie answered the enterprise leader in a soft, high voice; “I’ll take a whiskey if you have it old boy” the short fae walked over to the settee near the window and nimbly hopped up onto it. He told Penrose “Pecht will do old boy; and while your lads are going about their business, we can discuss your use of language around impressionable young men.” The pixie was smiling slightly while he spoke, and his expression grew to an outright grin when he saw Penrose’s face darken with annoyance. “you know that young Tobias shouldn’t be exposed to such vulgarity”.

Everyone knew that Penrose did not care for vulgar language; and had only used the word Hell because he was caught off guard. First there was the whole meeting what had up to that moment been a literal fairy tale creature to him. And second had been his surprise when the aforementioned fairy tale being told him that he was in love with a fairy.

Penrose stopped pouring a superb whiskey to glower over at the pixie. The enterprise leader’s expression would have caused any of his men to wince; but the pixie simply smiled like the cat who had got the canary.

“Lighten up old boy;” the pixie told Penrose, “I’m just having a little fun with you”. Penrose poured a second whiskey and walked over to the settee near the window. As he walked there, he told Pecht, “people don’t generally have fun at my expense.”

Pecht told the enterprise leader; “technically speaking, I’m not people”.

Penrose watched the small figure enjoy a healthy sip of whiskey and asked; “is Pecht your given name, or your surname?”

The response he received from the small fae was “Yes!”

Penrose had made a habit of referring to most people by their surname and many often wondered not just why; but sometimes, how he found out that information if it was not readily available. There was no mummery or magic involved. He had many contacts in many places; and had always had a penchant for gathering information. In the case of his man Teague; Penrose had contacts in the War Office who had supplied him with Teague’s file. That is how he knew the man’s surname was Jowan.

“well Pecht;” Penrose spoke, “you mentioned something about a fairy and love?”

“That I did old boy”, Pecht said to the enterprise leader.

Penrose nodded and stated; “I believe you had said that Pixies and Fairies don’t get on very well: why is that?”

The Pixie took a long sip and upended the now empty glass before handing it to Penrose. “I’ll educate you on that while you pour me another if you please”

Penrose got up and went to the sideboard where the antique crystal decanter rested; now half full of 30 year old single malt whiskey. As he poured another healthy glass for his guest; he heard the small high voice from the settee. “So many reasons not to like the fairies old boy.”

Pecht continued; “I think for me, the main thing is that they think they are better than.” Penrose nodded slowly. “Pretentious and stuffy I say,” the pixie continued. “Your man Gerald might say something like: they got a stick up their bum.”

Penrose smiled slightly and offered; “I could hear Gerald saying something like that.” The enterprise leader continued:”so you were saying; about the whole in Love thing?”

Penrose returned to the settee and sat on the opposite end of it after handing the single malt whiskey to the Pixie.

“Yes;” the small figure said to Penrose, “I am in love with a fairy.” Pecht took a sip and said; “I would not have thought that possible, but she is a marvelous, beautiful creature.” Penrose nodded slightly; showing appreciation for the Pixie’s intense emotion.

Pecht took another sip and said; “your people would reckon her a fairy; but in the Mediterranean, where she is from, they would know her as a Nereid, or a sort of Sea Nymph.”

Penrose nursed his whiskey and asked “is that a sort of Sea Fairy?” Pecht agreed with “that’s as good a term as any.” He continued in his soft, high voice “you see, she hails from the waters near the Isle of Sardinia; and truth be told she’s half my age, but I love her none the less.”

Penrose had a somewhat sketchy track record with love himself; but offered this, “my sister used to say that the heart wants, what the heart wants.”

Pecht smiled slightly and said; “a wise one, your sister.” The little fae continued “her name; at least as close as you could pronounce it is Tenkha.” Penrose said “Tenka?” Pecht’s response was; “no, Tenkha” “Tenkla?”, from Penrose. Pecht shook his head and slowly, in his high soft voice said “Tenkha.” This time Penrose responded with “Tenkha.”

Pecht reached out and in a friendly fashion slapped the enterprise leader’s leg, “that’s quite right old boy!”

“in any case,” the Pixie continued, “Tenkha grew up in and around the Isle of Sardinia, back when your Carpenter and his dozen cronies were wandering about spreading their message.” He continued; “now some would say to beware Sea Spirits like her, and truth be told; if you are a sea faring sort, the Nereids could well and truly have their way with you.”

Penrose could recall reading classics like the Odyssey, and how much trouble Sea Nymphs could cause. The enterprise leader offered his thought. “You mean like Homer wrote of?”

Pecht nodded his head in agreement; “you may be thinking of Circe; but she was a much more powerful, distantly related sort than my lovely Tenkha.”

Pecht continued with “Tenkha is more like the friendly sort who helped out Jason and his crew on their search for the Golden Fleece.” The Pixie took another pensive sip and offered;”although they did kind of take that sailor Hylas.” Penrose’s brow raised a bit at that, and Pecht continued: “truth be told, they were as enraptured of him, as he was of them. And I have heard that he actually fell in love with one of them and lived a long happy life with her”

Penrose was familiar with that classic as well. He thought for a few moments and finished his whiskey. “What does your love have to do with your apparent abduction from the Cornish?”

Pecht handed his glass to the enterprise leader and looked back at the sideboard that held the decanter of whiskey. Penrose reached out to take the glass from his diminutive guest and rose to get another refill.

“Old boy,” the pixie told Penrose, “there isn’t anyone or thing currently residing in this city that could forcibly remove me from my own establishment.” Pecht continued;”I left because they had taken my love from me, and I was going to fetch her back.”

Penrose thought on the pixie’s statement as he filled the glass with his diminishing supply of whiskey. He spoke as he poured:”if Tenkha is a Sea Spirit; how were they able to take her?” Penrose returned to his place at the settee and handed Pecht his third glass.

“Doesn’t she have powers or what not to stop them?” Pecht was about to speak but Penrose interrupted:”and speaking of powers or what not; was it you we have to thank for the unseasonable snowfall today?”

“good questions old boy,” the pixie told Penrose. “In fact,” Pecht continued, “if she is on the open ocean, then Tenkha can be a force to be reckoned with.” He took a sip of his whiskey and said; “but several miles inland as she is here in the city, and she has much less to work with.”

Penrose sipped his drink and Pecht told him; “as for the snow this day: well sometimes the local weather is influenced by my mood, if I don’t pay attention.” The Pixie took a long drink and upended his glass: “I admit to being distracted when I discovered Tenkha was gone.”

“Another?”, Penrose asked as he rose and made his way to the sideboard where the diminishing decanter rested.

The Pixie looked towards the door and said “your Big man has returned.”

Penrose looked to the open doorway and several long moments later; Fitz entered the office.

The big man with hair the color of pitch, and calm serious face looked at his employer as he entered and said “Mr. Penrose Sir, I came as soon as I could.” Fitz continued “I’m afraid I let you down, sir: I wasn’t there for Teague and Gerald when they needed me.” At this point the big man noticed the small figure on the settee and blurted out “What the hell!”

The Pixie grinned; and the enterprise leader frowned at the big man’s exclamation.

Fitz saw both reactions to his language and said “beg pardon Mr. Penrose sir.” The big man continued :”it’s just that I didn’t really believe all this stuff about Pixies; and now here one is, sitting on the settee in your office.”

The Pixie hopped off the settee and went across the floor. Pecht stood in front of the big enterprise man and looked way up; while Fitz for his part, looked way down. The Pixie offered a small hand and in his soft, high voice he said;” nice to meet you big fella.”

Fitz found himself grinning slightly as he went to one knee and engulfed the diminutive fae’s hand in his own.

As Penrose watched the interaction he couldn’t help thinking: it’s like Branok meeting a toddler. The small fae being was literally less than half of his big employee’s size.

“You must be Master Pecht;” the big man said. The Pixie’s response was “Pecht will do just fine big fella.”

“Branok:” Penrose said, “you were saying that you feel you let me down?”

Fitz rose back up to his two meter height and faced his employer. “Yes sir Mr. Penrose”. Fitz looked away momentarily; his employer knew the man well enough to see that Fitz was uncomfortable.

“of course you know that Gerald and I were there at the Italian place as back up for Teague:” Penrose nodded his head in the affirmative and prompted Fitz with; “and?.”

“Well sir,”Fitz said, “we had sat at our table and food was arriving just as Gerald got up from the table to go after Teague.” The Pixie chimed in with “and?”

Fitz looked down at Pecht then back up to his employer: “well sir, we had spotted that snake Vittorio there as he went off after Teague.” The big man looked down at his feet for a moment before continuing; “Gerald had already gone after them and I was going to follow; but the food smelled so delicious that I had to take a bite.”

Pecht looked at Fitz and slowly nodded as the big man continued. “Mr. Penrose sir;” Fitz said, “I was just going to take one bite and then go off to help.” He looked at his employer and said;” but after I took one bite, I took another. Then I took another. Then I took yet another.” Fitz looked troubled. “Mr. Penrose sir, I knew that I had to go after Gerald and Teague. But I couldn’t stop.”

Penrose looked at his man and Fitz said:”I swear on my mum sir. I couldn’t stop. I kept eating until every bit of food was gone from that table.”

The Pixie broke in then saying “it’s alright big fella. It’s not your fault.” Fitz looked down at the pixie with an inquisitive look on his calm, serious face.

“What do you mean Pecht?” Mr. Penrose asked.

The pixie told them; “the Italians are using too much Pixie dust.”

Pecht continued; “you see at the Cornish, we use enough to make it better but not so much that it turns into a compulsion.”

The Pixie looked at the confusion on both men’s faces; so he explained further. “the italians are using too much; and that makes eating the food like when people smoke too much of the poppy, or when a man falls into the bottle and can’t make his way back out.”

Fitz nodded slowly as the last comment made him recall his own granddad who had drank himself to death at a relatively young age.

It also made the big man feel a little better that he had been so late in going after Gerald and Teague.

“Mr. Penrose sir,” Fitz said to his employer, “I’ve some bad news though.” He continued:”after I finally went after Teague and Gerald, I found a room where there had been a struggle.” Fitz paused momentarily, with a sad look on his face.

“I didn’t see a body; but there was so much blood sir: I can’t see how Gerald survived.” Penrose told Fitz; “there’s actually some good news on that subject.” Fitz looked confused and said; “but I found a bloody piece of Gerald’s jersey sir; and there was too much blood. I’m afraid he’s gone.”

Penrose looked over at the Pixie and said “that’s something we need to talk about as well.”

Pecht nodded his head and told the men “we will.”

At this point there was a slight disturbance at the doorway as the two enterprise men returned from their clothing related endeavor.

Fitz looked at the doorway and saw Teague and Gerald. Gerald was in ill fitting clothing. The bruiser’s trousers were a bit tight and his shirt was a bit loose. This was due to the fact that the bottoms belonged to Teague, and the shirt was one that Fitz recognized as his own.

Fitz had a confused look on his face when he saw Gerald come in from the hallway. It was a look that was much more common on Gerald’s face. Fitz thought to himself; how can this be? But out loud he said; “What the Hell!”