December 26, 1975. It was a time of changing worlds in Spain. It was the year Franco died. It was a time of chaos, strife, and yet.. of birth.
If he had been born one day earlier it would have been a miracle. As it was, Domingo Felipe Luez was born both a burden and a curse. A strange substance excreted by the fetus prevented the baby from being born the "right" way, and a cesarean was necessary. Marcia Luez was thus prevented from ever birthing again in her life, and she never let Domingo forget it,
Domingo’s father, Rodrigo Luez, was a proud politician and a motivator for change within Spain’s government. His moves for social and political reform helped Marcia forget about her woes and disappointments for a time.
On January 17, 1977 that time was over. Militarist reactionaries raided the parliament house, killing many of the founders of the new democracy. Including Rodrigo Luez.
After Rodrigo’s death, Marcia took Domingo with her to Madrid to find a job. She rented out a small apartment but neglected to send Domingo back to school. Marcia took a job as a janitor in the day and a prostitute at night, more for her expensive "needs" than to support Domingo. Needs she couldn’t outgrow since she was wed to a wealthy politician.
What Marcia didn’t know was that through all her neglect and abuse, Domingo was still happy. The child had always been introverted and didn’t like to play with the neighborhood kids. Sometimes, he would play cruel jokes ON them, but he would never play WITH them.
Marcia figured that it was because Domingo was a failure in every way. He was destined to be, after all. What disgusted her the most was his imaginary friend, "Racha". Throughout his childhood, Domingo never let go of "Racha", a friend that must have been invented because Marcia was never home to play with him. Not that she would play with him if she were home.
But Racha was real. Domingo knew it, and that was all that mattered. Why have friends? Racha would only come if Domingo was alone. Racha cared about Domingo. Racha loved Domingo, even if nobody else would.
Domingo always knew when Racha was coming. The spiders would come. They would crawl out of the holes in the wall and the cracks in the floor. Spiders of all types come to play with him.
Racha never showed herself to him, but she was there. She would talk to Domingo and teach him. Domingo’s first word was "Unseelie". Marcia heard him say it, but didn’t recognize it was anything more than baby talk. The next thing he said was "Oh, YES!" which isn’t surprising as he would hear it throughout the night. Marcia promptly slapped the infant across the face for it and huddled in the corner to cry away her troubles.
It could easily be said that Racha raised Domingo. She taught him most of what he learned. The highest lesson of all, "Don’t trust anyone", was accomplished after she told him to stick "Forkito" in the "Lectric hole".
Domingo built up a great amount of aggression from Racha’s tricks on him, but never directed towards her. Domingo loved her too much. Racha would often subdue his bitterness with tales of the beautiful Unseelie Court. A place where every second was a nightmare of bliss. A place where nobody made anybody do anything unless they wanted to.
The subdued emotion quickly twisted the dreams in his head to become the object of his life. To join the Unseelie Court. Racha would tell him tales of glory in battle against the Seelie. Tales of Unseelie Sidhe rescuing fair faerie maidens from peril, and these were Domingo’s most favorite of all.
And, of course, Racha insisted that all of her stories were true. If any of the big people told him otherwise they were just trying to trick him.
When Domingo reached seven years of age, Racha played no more tricks on him and told him no more stories. She said it was time to practice what he had learned.
On a given Spring day, Domingo left the house to play with one of the neighborhood kids, Pedro. Pedro was always making fun of Domingo and pushing him around, calling him a bastard. Pedro was thus very surprised when Domingo walked up to him one afternoon and said "Can I be your friend?"
The two played around in the streets for most of the afternoon and as they did so Domingo gradually built the idea in Pedro’s head that he was a coward.
After several hours, Pedro grew tired of Domingo’s comments.
"I’m not a coward, you are!" Pedro shouted at him in frustration.
"Oh yeah? I bet you are so scared you won’t even ride your bike down the old abandoned street." Domingo folded his arms.
"Yeah I will, that’s easy!’ Pedro shouted with confidence.
"I bet you’ll go slow like a baby." Domingo jeered him on.
"I won’t! I’ll go fast! Really, really fast." The two boys raced to get Pedro’s bike and then went over to the old street. It was dark, slightly slanting, and for a child of seven very foreboding. At one end of the street was Domingo’s neighborhood and at the other, a construction site and an unconnected road.
Pedro mounted his bike and began to peddle, Domingo slowly jogging after him. Feeling how easy it was to avoid the few obstacles, Pedro picked up his speed to peddle as fast as he could.
With a grin of superiority, Pedro put his foot on the brakes to gloat at the whore’s son. But, as Domingo had removed the brakes that morning, his efforts were unsuccessful.
Losing control as he continued shooting forward, Pedro’s bike toppled sideways and the momentum threw his body straight into a puddle of cement left out to harden.
Domingo burst out with laughter, pointing his finger and shouting "Stupid Pedro" for several minutes. Domingo cut himself off as he realized that Pedro’s body, face down in the cement, wasn’t moving.
Domingo ran off in fear back to Marcia’s apartment and slammed the door to his tiny room. The spiders came again, but this time there was a large, sleek, black one about the size of both of Domingo’s feet put together. It crawled into Domingo’s lap and he pet it for a few moments before it scatted off.
Domingo then heard Racha’s voice. She was saying how proud of him she was. She told him that his reward was well deserved.
Wondering what his reward was, Domingo looked around the room. In the corner he spotted a small glass of water. A bit disappointed, he picked it up and gulped it down.
Domingo’s vision blurred, but then came back to him. All around him, there were many colors. The world was beautiful. The darkness shined. The sunlight never seemed to touch the ground. The spiders around him became fantastic and distorted. Some even seemed to be carrying tiny weaponry. Domingo’s disappointment almost instantly turned to glee and he found himself eager to do more pranks for Racha. As many as he could.
The next day, the construction workers arrived at their jobs to find the young child encased in cement. Nobody knew who was doing it, but over the next seven years children continued to die.
By 1990, the number of children in that area of downtown Madrid had been cut by two thirds. Any children that began to speculate near the mark about their missing friends were soon to join them. All this time, Marcia never paid the situation any attention. If this mad killer took Domingo, all the better. Just a burden off her hands.
It was that year, 1990, that Racha told Domingo it was about time to pull his greatest prank of all. The masterpiece. On this one, Racha and Domingo would work together.
It started the night before. Domingo, listening in from the noises in the other room told Racha that the man’s name was "José". The neighbors, the Lapacas, then received a phone call with a female voice saying that José was sick of their mutt and was going to take care of it.
As the thought festered in their minds, Domingo took a sausage link and spread it over the crotch of José’s pants, which at the time were conveniently no longer attached to him.
The next morning, when José went to leave, Domingo made sure that the Lapaca’s mongrel would escape. The huge dog ran straight to José and savagely attacked him, ripping apart his genitalia. The man, in terror and confusion, pulled his knife and commenced with repeatedly thrusting it into the animal.
Hearing the yelps, the already paranoid Señora Lapaca came to the door, revolver in hand. Her vision was obscured by rage, but she still managed to hit José with all six bullets. The stained knife splashed into the pool of blood below it, and both José’s and the Mongrel’s bodies fell lifeless to the ground.
Señor Lapaca had to move when his wife was arrested, and their dog would never again bark at passerbys in the street.
For a short time, Marcia was forced to abandon prostitution. The cops were all over the area and she couldn’t run the risk of being taken in.
For that "prank", Racha gave Domingo the greatest reward of all.
April 1, 1991 there was a knock on Domingo’s door. He had been told by Marcia to never answer the door, but the knocking continued. Curiosity eventually getting the best of him, Domingo looked out his window to see a beautiful adolescent girl. She was clothed in an expensive black dress, the kind that he might see a rich kid wear. She had a small steel jug slung under her right shoulder.
Forgetting Marcia’s commands completely, Domingo opened the door for her.
"Hello, sir, I think this is your jug." The girl took the jug from her shoulder, her long, shining black hair falling where it pleased.
"I don’t own a jug like that." Domingo put his hand on the door to close it.
The girl raised her arm to the door to stop him, and read off an engraving on the jug. "You are Domingo Felipe Luez, aren’t you?" The girl stared into his eyes.
Domingo thought he was going to urinate his pants as her entrancing brown eyes met his, and there was no doubt in his mind that he was blushing.
As Domingo was completely paralyzed, the girl continued talking. "Of course you are. Just take a sip." She pulled herself close to him and put the jug up to his lips, slowly tilting it.
Taken off guard by her advance, Domingo fell backwards and his world became a confused array of colors.
He couldn’t see through the blur, but he heard the girl follow him in the house and shut the door behind her.
Domingo was starting to regain his vision and the recognized the sight of enhanced colors all around him. The sight directly in front of him, however, was new. The girl was darker. From her spine sprouted a number of sleek, black appendages. Her hands and feet ended in horrific claws and the edges of her face were sharp and darkened. Her eyes were completely black. She was even more beautiful than she was before.
"Racha." Domingo mouthed the word silently.
"Yes, Domingo, it’s me." her voice was now very familiar to him. The water apparently affected more than a single sense.
Racha and Domingo talked for some time. She told him that her friend Malifex was coming and that he would see what he could do to get Domingo to the other Unseelie. She told him even though she was from a house called Ailil, and Malifex was from a house called Balor, they were still friends.
When Marcia came home, she opened the door to see Domingo laying back and resting against the wall with a beautiful young rich girl in his arms leaning against him.
"Who is this?’ Marcia demanded, pointing at Racha.
"Hello, Señorita Luez." Racha and Domingo both stood up and Racha extended her hand. "My name is Mercedes Castille."
About to order the girl from her apartment, Marcia’s mind raced. If she could set Domingo up with this girl, her parents might take him away. Maybe even give him an education. Marcia calmed down.
"I’m sorry, Mercedes." Marcia smiles "It’s been a hard day at work." Marcia took Racha’s hand and shook it.
"Thank you for showing me around town, Domingo." Racha gave him a conspiratorial smile and pecked him on the lips, turning to open the door.
"I’ll see you tomorrow?" There was an eagerness in Domingo’s voice.
"You will." Racha opened the door chuckling lightly and shut it softly behind her.
Racha continued coming back day after day to spend time with Domingo. Marcia even began taking better care of Domingo, making sure he was bathed and polite. Racha taught Domingo many more things about the Unseelie.
Racha told him of the Sidhe, and of the Seelie tyranny and the liberty that the people of house Ailil enjoyed.
As Racha had told Domingo, a week later Malifex appeared. He introduced himself to Marcia as Racha’s brother, "Antonio Castille". In his mortal seeming, Malifex was a tough, tan skinned construction worker. The appearance of his Fey spirit was vastly different. At the drinking of Racha’s water, what Domingo saw was a grotesque creature, only slightly humanoid. Twin horns on his forehead seemed the most dominant appenditures. Malifex’s body had many spikes and horns, twin rows of claws on his hands and sets of teeth that would put a great white shark to shame.
In the months to come, Malifex became the father figure that Domingo had been missing all his years. Domingo and Racha grew even closer.
Domingo would often hear the two talking and not understand what it was about. Something he did notice was that he was often referred to as a "Living glamour conduit", whatever that meant.
Some time in January, Marcia was growing tired of waiting for Domingo to leave. ‘So, Domingo, do you and Mercedes have sex? You should. It’s very enjoyable." If only Domingo would get her pregnant, Mercedes’ parents were sure to force Domingo to wed her and then the two would be off to live happily ever after.
Taken completely by surprise at her comment, Domingo ignored it and walked to his room, thinking.
The year to follow was one of complete bliss for Domingo. Racha and him would often talk of his future in the Unseelie court.
All good things come to an end.
Domingo and Racha lay in his small bed, watching the sun through the window as it finished setting on the horizon, his senses heightened by her water. Domingo softly caressed Racha’s skin and the spiders played their games on the floor.
Racha brought her lips up to his ear, whispering softly to him. "Domingo, I’m pregnant."
Domingo had never felt emotion so pure in his life at that moment. The complete happiness prevented him from even forming the thoughts required to speak. His smile told Racha all she needed to know, and she pulled him close.
Hours passed, but they seemed to stretch on forever. Domingo could feel the bond of love between himself and Racha, strong as steel. Almost even visible.
Racha and Domingo sat up in shock as the window shattered and Malifex came through. "I saw a group of Seelie down the street. They are coming for Domingo. We must flee."
As Malifex finished his sentence, a knock on the door was heard. "We don’t want any." Marcia yelled from the other room.
Racha grabbed a slip and pulled it over her head and Domingo put on a pair of pants. There was a loud clatter in the other room, follow by a pair of gun shots and a high pitched scream.
Domingo began climbing out the window, pulling Racha from behind him. Looking outside, Domingo found his vision clouded by a pair of furry feet and was send flying backwards against his bed. The door to the room was kicked in and two Sidhe knights clad in green and blue armor stepped through. One held a long iron sword, the other a pistol. The creature that had kicked Domingo came though the window. Naked except for a loin cloth, it’s body was covered with coarse black fur and a blood-red mane. It held a large, blood stained axe in it’s right hand.
"You take care of the Pooka and the kid. We’ll handle the Troll." the knight with the pistol ordered the one holding the sword.
Not giving the Seelie time to carry out their orders, Malifex grabbed the red-maned creature and launched it at the one holding the pistol, sending the pair flying back into the other room. Malifex chased after them.
The Sidhe holding the sword deftly rolled to the side and recovered, swiftly taking Domingo and Racha by the hair. "Don’t try anything, slut." He commanded through his teeth down to Racha. "This thing ain’t chimerical. The two of you are now the property of house Gwydion."
Racha pointed her arms toward the knight and sent spiders from her hands, covering his body with them.
Domingo grasped Racha’s hand and pulled her towards the window while the Seelie swatted at the spiders in frustration.
Domingo was helping Racha out the window when he heard "Bitch!" shouted loudly from the room. The Seelie’s sword sliced through the air, cutting through Racha’s spine and sending her blood flying. Screaming in pain, Racha’s prone body fell backwards to the floor and was impaled on the Sidhe’s sword. Domingo never let go of her hand.
"Fuck you. FUCK YOU!" Domingo’s vision clouded with tears, but that didn’t stop him from toppling the Seelie to the ground. Domingo found a firm hold on the Sidhe’s neck and began to squeeze.
Domingo heard a crack and knew it was his arm breaking, but he didn’t care. He continued squeezing. When the body finally became limp, Domingo stood and walked in to the next room, his lust for murder unsated.
Upon entering, Domingo saw that the first Sidhe was now a nearly unidentifiable bloody smear around the room. Malifex held the red-maned creature by the head with two hands. It’s axe was buried in Malifex’s left thigh, the severed arm still attached.
Malifex pushed his thumbs into the creature’s eye sockets and ripped it’s skull in half, letting the decapitated body slump to the ground. Malifex pulled the axe out and tossed it to the side like a play toy.
"Where’s Racha?" Malifex tilted his head toward Domingo.
"SHE’S DEAD!" Domingo, in his struggle to say the words, found that he had shouted them.
"We have to get out of here. They have found out where you are and who you are." Malifex’s tone of voice was even more dark and foreboding than usual.
"Why? What makes me so special? Who am I?" Domingo wiped the tears from his eyes, but more kept coming.
"You are the fulfillment of a prophecy." Answered Malifex. "From now on there will be no more pranks or fun. From now on you must do what I say, when I say it. If you have any love for Racha, you must strive forward with all the energy you can summon. We will have our revenge."
"Where will we go?" Domingo cradled his arm, finally starting to notice the pain.
"To train." With that, Malifex led Domingo down a dark, empty street. Away.
Flashing lights and the whir of police sirens filled the night.