Golden Hue (16 page)

We drove into downtown Atlanta, and we parked in a large garage. The pass to park in the facility cost forty dollars, but Sarah didn't seem to mind.

The parking garage was mostly empty when we got out of the car. We walked towards an elevator and entered. Sarah pushed the button to take us to the basement level

Exiting the elevator Sarah led us into some kind of bar. There was smoke in the air, and I could smell alcohol.

As we walked forward, Sarah took us up to the bar. A woman with a shaved head turned and looked at us.

“Is that you, Sarah?” she asked.

“Yes – Dolly?” she said.

“Yes, it’s been a long time since you’ve been her here,” she said.

“We’re famished,” Sarah said. “Do you have a table available?”

“Certainly,” she said.

Very strangely, Dolly’s ears start to grow. They became long and pointy; she looked like something out of a fantasy movie.

“I know just the table,” she said.

The woman took us to a table in a quiet corner of the establishment. She motioned for us to sit down, and as we sat I saw a fully transformed vampire walk by. He was holding hands with a scantily clad woman that looked like she had gills on her neck.

“Where are we?” I asked Sarah.

“We’re in Outpost One,” she said. “It's a restaurant that caters exclusively to non-humans. As far as I know, it's the only one in this part of the country.”

I looked around the room at the various creatures walking around and sitting in booths or tables. Some of them looked almost human – perhaps just with pointy years or an overly pale skin tone – but some of them looked bizarre.

“Don't stare,” said Sarah, as her eyes turned black and her fangs emerged. “This is a place for people to be themselves.”

I looked at Cathy and Lizzie, and they had transformed as well. To join in the fun, I transformed into my hybrid state. A couple women at another table glanced at me.

“I doubt they have ever seen a vampire-griffin hybrid before,” Cathy said. “They might come over and hit on you.”

“Don't worry about that,” I said, as I looked at the woman's furry arms and legs. “I don't think I'm into werewolf chicks.”

“What about the other one,” Cathy said. “The one with the long red hair.”

I glanced at the red headed woman, but what I saw made my eyes widen. She had a series of small horns running all the way down the sides of her face. Apparently, she noticed me looking at her, and she waved. I gave a polite wave back.

“I hope all of these people have a human form,” I said.

“Some of them do and some of them don't,” Sarah said. “But here, people are accepted for what they are.”

A waitress walked up to our table. She was attractive with neck length black hair, brown eyes, and a perfect smile. I couldn't see anything odd about her.

“Welcome to Outpost One,” she said. “Is this the first time for any of you?”

“I've been here a few times before, many years ago,” Sarah said. “But I know Eli has never been here before.”

The waitress looked at me.

“So what are your dietary needs?” she asked. “We have everything, literally.”

“Can I see a menu?” I asked.

“You don't need one,” she said. “Whatever you want, just tell me -- we probably have it.”

“Do you mind if I ask what species you are?” she asked. “It might help me come up with a suggestion for an appetizer.”

“I'm a griffin-vampire hybrid,” I said.

“That’s so neat,” she said, touching my arm. “I'll have to ask the chef what he thinks would be a good appetizer for you.”

“Do you have any special requests?” she asked.

“I need some protein,” I said.

“Absolutely,” she said.

Cathy, Lizzie, and Sarah then put in their orders. For the most part, they ordered ordinary foods: steaks, roasts, pork ribs, and turkey.

“I'll be back,” the waitress said.

“You think she's pretty,” Cathy said, teasingly.

“Well, she isn’t bad looking,” I said. “I'm just trying to figure out what she is.”

“Well, why don't you ask?” Sarah said.

While we waited for our food, I looked at the décor of the room. There were odd paintings on the wall, mounted animal heads, and a giant mobile of the solar system hanging from the ceiling.

I saw a man with blue skin and fangs walk up onto a small stage. After straightening his tie, he began to sing a song I’d never heard before.

The waitress finally returned and set what looked like a platter of buffalo wings in front of me. I lifted one to my mouth, bit into it, and tasted the meat; it was good.

“Do you like them?” the waitress said.

“Yes,” I said. “They’re good.”

“I hoped you would,” she said. “They’re imported.”

“What exactly are they?” I asked. “They taste like chicken.”

“Well, you could say that they’re chicken-like,” she said.

She looked and smiled at me. I figured she was enjoying my ignorance.

“Where are they imported from?” I asked.

“Oh, they’re from my native land, Memnolgia,” she said.

“Look,” I said. “I apologize if I'm being nosy, but I just can't quite figure out what you are. From what I’ve been told, only non-humans are allowed in here.”

“What do you think I am?” she asked.

“Well, you look human,” I said.

“Well I’m not.”

“Are you a hybrid of some kind?”

“Nope.”.

I thought carefully about what she might be, but I was clueless.

“Where did you say you were from?” I asked.

“Memnolgia.”

“Where’s that?”

“Oh, it's a planet about three hundred light years from here,” she said.

My jaw dropped. I sat in the chair speechless, until Cathy elbowed me in the ribs.

“So you’re an alien?” I asked.

“Absolutely.”

“Then why do you look so human?” she asked.

“I may look human on the outside, but I'm far different on the inside,” she said. “For starters, I have two hearts.”

Focusing and listening carefully, I realized I could hear two heart beats – each of them coming from separate sides of her chest.

“I apologize if I’ve been rude,” I said. “I hope you’ve enjoyed Earth.”

“You haven’t been rude,” she said. “And yes, I do like it here.”

Before she could say anything else, another waitress began filling the table with the orders my family members had made.

Looking down, I realized that I had a platter of extraterrestrial chicken-like wings in front of me. I decided to dig into them.

A few minutes later, the original waitress returned and asked if I’d like to place an order. I decided on something I thought was exotic – a platter of alligator tail and deer roast, and a short time later, it was delivered to the table.

For the next half hour, the four of us ate together in the odd, out-of-this-world restaurant. When we were finished, Sarah placed five hundred dollars on the table and we walked back to the elevator. Five minutes later, we were back in the white sedan.

“Hey, Eli,” Cathy said. “The waitress handed me this one the way out.”

She handed me a folded up note.

“My phone number 234-398-1133. Please give this to the griffin and ask him to call me sometime. Tell him that my name is Etta, and I’ll be expecting his call.”

I read the piece of paper and blushed.

“The alien chick wants you to call her,” Cathy said. “Are you going to hook up with her? You too might have a very interesting date.”

I looked at Cathy and kissed her forehead.

“You’re the only babe I want,” I said. “No girl from anywhere in this universe could be as good looking or special as you.”

Cathy kissed me back, and I heard Lizzie giggle.

“You two are so cute,” Lizzie said.

A half hour later, we arrived at the mansion. The gate opened, and we drove into the parking area.

Upon getting out of the vehicle, a figure rushed towards us out of the night.

“How are you doing, Eli?” a woman’s voice said. Looking closer, recognized it was Meg.

We entered the mansion carrying our bags, and Meg led the way to a large master suite. Once inside, we began to talk. Sarah told her everything that had happened so far, and I saw that my grandmother-in-law looked concerned.

“We can't trust the empress,” she told us in a hushed voice. “I've known of her for a long time. There’s a side of her that’s unpredictable.”

I then quietly told the group that I’d encountered Demetrius at the hospital, and that he’d said the same thing about the empress.

“He said his order is planning an attack,” I whispered. “I don't know when it’s going to happen, where it’ll take place, or anything else.”

“Who do you think bombed the mansion earlier?” Cathy asked.

“I don't know,” I said. “Maybe Demetrius was sending her a warning shot, or maybe Henry was involved in it.”

“All I know is that we need to get some rest,” Meg said. “The dance is tonight and we need to keep our strength up.”

We all found places to sleep in the master suite. Meg, Sarah, and Lizzie shared two beds. I slept in a recliner, and Cathy slept in a sofa that she pulled up next to me.

I awakened to see all the women in the room changing clothes. I quickly shut my eyes.

“Please tell me when all of you are decent,” I said, standing up and trying to make my way to the restroom with my eyes shut.

“Sorry,” Cathy said. “We thought you were sleeping; it’ll only take a few minutes.”

I managed to reach the bathroom door; I opened it, entered, and shut it behind me.

Looking in the mirror, I realized I looked younger than I had in years. There were no lines on my face, no bags under my eyes, ever tiny scar from my battles with acne were gone, and my freckles – from too much sun – were gone.

Cathy then knocked on the door.

“Did you like what you saw?” she asked, giggling.

“I didn't see much of anything,” I said, answering honestly.

“Are you decent out there?” I asked.

“Just give us a couple more minutes,” she said.

I washed my face in the sink, and I heard Lizzie call me to come on out.

Opening the door, I saw that all of the women were in elegant dresses. They all looked gorgeous – especially Cathy. Her long, black dress with short sleeves took my breath away

“How do we look?” Meg asked.

“You all look perfect,” I said.

“Put this on,” Cathy said, handing me a suit and a some other clothes.

When I emerged from the bathroom, I was wearing a black suit, a white dress shirt, and a black tie.

“You look great,” Cathy said.

“Thank you,” I said.

I walked to my bag and found my dagger. I tried to find a place to hide it.

“They won't let you carry that in there,” Cathy said. “The seer at the door will notice it immediately.”

“No weapons allowed,” Meg said.

I decided that I was going to test that theory.

“I'll block the seer,” I said. “I blocked the witch's probe of my mind, and I'll stop the seer from detecting the blade.”

I put the dagger in a sheath and strapped it to my leg.

“Now, just be careful,” Meg said to all of us. “We don't know what's going to happen tonight. Be on guard at all times. Also, try to stick close together. Stay in sight of each other as much as possible.”

We exited the suite and Cathy wrapped her arm around mine.

“This is our first dance together,” she whispered to me.

“There’s only one problem,” I said.

“What's that?” she asked.

“I don't know how to dance,” I said.

“Have you ever been to a dance?” she asked.

“Does foot fellowship at a college and singles church social count?” I asked.

“What kind of dancing did you do?” she asked.

I told her about how we all tried to go ‘as low as we could go’ and she laughed.

“I'll show you how to dance,” she said.

The five of us walked towards the ballroom, and I saw the line. About a hundred or more vampires and other creatures – most of them couples – had formed a line. One by one, the individuals or couples were allowed to enter. Upon walking into the ballroom, their name was announced to everyone inside.

“Lady Ezra Martin,” I heard the announcer say.

“Mr. and Mrs. Menendez,” I heard him say, as a couple were allowed inside.

“Is there anything different about this dance that I should know about?” I asked Sarah.

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“Well, the restaurant you took me to was unique, to say the least,” I said. “Is there anything I should be aware about when it comes to this dance?”