Ledger DeMayne was furious with Jack for letting him get zapped when he had the ability to turn off the trees all along. Jack tried to tell him he didn’t actually “turn off” anything, and also, he had no way of knowing if the trees would do what he asked, but DeMayne wouldn’t have it. “That’s it,” he snapped at Jack. “You’re on my list too.”
“I thought I was on your team,” Jack countered with a touch of snark.
“For now,” DeMayne growled.
“It’s your own fault,” Allegra told DeMayne. “Jack warned you not to threaten the trees.”
“I can’t help it if they like me better than you,” Jack added. “They said they feel like they know me.”
“Bah!” DeMayne turned his back on the conversation and stalked off.
“Just ignore him,” Shazad told Jack. “No one else is complaining. If you ask me, that couldn’t have gone any better.”
Everyone gathered at the edge of the newly formed cliff. A hole in the earth the size of the Grand Canyon stretched out before them. Careful not to get too close, Joey looked down into the chasm. A foggy mist drifted through the air below the ledge, hiding the ground from view.
“Remind you of anything?” he asked, nudging Janelle with his elbow. The foggy, bottomless pit was similar to the strange hallway in DeMayne’s office building, but there was no bridge here. The tower was inaccessible.
It was the latest in a long list of unbelievable sights. The tower was like a medieval skyscraper. It was a hundred feet tall and precariously balanced on a small patch of land that sat on top of an ancient stone column. The tower’s slender foundation looked dangerously unstable. It was less than half the width of the structure it supported and was built like a child’s Lego tower. A narrow column of blocks rose out of the mist, stacked one on top of the other, all the way up to the base of the Secret Citadel. The whole thing looked like a gentle breeze could knock it over, but it stood firm, as it had for a millennium and counting. At the edge of the land in front of the tower was a wooden dock that extended out into the open air. An airship was tied to it.
“That’s Hypnova’s ship,” Allegra said.
“Where’s Hypnova?” Leanora asked.
“Inside,” Shazad said. “I hope.”
DeMayne cleared his throat. “Mr. Clear. We need a way across.”
“Really?” Mr. Clear complained. “I just warmed up.”
DeMayne gave his pale henchman a hard look, and that was that. Mr. Clear abandoned his protest and reached out a hand. The blue crystal on his wrist lit up, and an ice bridge formed between his feet and the entrance to the tower. It was an instant glacier the length and width of ten football fields that anchored the shaky tower to the cliff.
DeMayne didn’t say “thank you,” or “good job,” or anything like that. He just stepped out onto the ice, leading the way across the frozen plain. Joey and the others followed, with Mr. Clear shuffling along behind them, his collar turned up against a chill he couldn’t escape. They walked a long mile across the ice, occasionally slipping and falling on the slick, glassy surface. When they finally reached the tower, they faced a new challenge. There was no way in. The tower’s great iron doors were not doors at all. They were painted on. The entrance was all bricked up.
“How do we get in?” Skerren asked.
“Something tells me ‘please’ isn’t going to cut it this time,” Mr. Ivory said.
Joey wished he hadn’t lost the Hand of Glory back at DeMayne’s office. Ms. Scarlett’s magic paintbrushes might have come in handy too. He could have painted a new scene with open doors over the bricks. Shazad encouraged Leanora to try to break the wall down with a firestone punch. She was about to give it a try when DeMayne told everyone to step aside. He reached into his collar to retrieve a necklace and take it off his neck. It wasn’t the black stone pendant they had seen before. Instead, a thin metal rod made of gray steel dangled at the end of the string. Everyone moved out of the way as he struck it against the “door” like a tuning fork. A clear note rang out. It started out sounding pleasant, but the tone grew in volume and pitch until it became unbearable. Joey winced. It was downright painful to listen to, but it had an effect that was worth the momentary discomfort. The bricks began to loosen and move. Everyone covered their ears as stones inside the painted doorway dislodged from their mooring. They swung out as if on hinges, granting access to the tower. Once they were open, DeMayne grasped the metal rod tight, silencing it. When he let go, it cracked and disintegrated into dust.
“What was that?” Joey asked.
“A Chime of Opening,” DeMayne said. “It can open any door, but it can only be used ten times. This was the last use. I was saving it. I didn’t know what for, but it seems I was saving it for this.” He let go of the empty string that once held the chime. The wind carried it off across the canyon. “There’s a reason I stayed alive all this time. I was always going to end up back here. This is fate.”
Joey stared into the darkness beyond the doors, wondering what his own fate would be. He steeled his courage and gave a nod to his friends. “Let’s do this.”
Inside the tower, the entrance hall was as grand as it was empty. The floor was made up of large marble flagstones arranged in a black-and-white checkerboard pattern. In the center of the room, an ornate compass rose had been crafted out of gold, white, and black marble and seamlessly laid into place. Doric columns lined the walls, bracing a mezzanine, and beautiful stained-glass windows circled the room, letting in a rainbow of light. There was a large fireplace on the far wall, centered across from the door. A fire roared to life with a whoosh, illuminating the base of the tower. Joey spotted a staircase that led up to the mezzanine and wound its way up the interior walls in a spiral pattern. There were no floors above them, just open air all the way to the top.
“I thought this was supposed to be a castle,” Skerren said. “There’s nothing here.”
Joey looked up, tracking the stairs around and around until they disappeared into shadow. There had to be something up there. He figured they would have to climb all those stairs before they found anything or anyone, but that wasn’t the case.
A wisp of smoke entered the room, and a voice echoed through the chamber.
“You shouldn’t be here.”
Joey recognized the voice. It was Oblivia, Grand Majestrix of the Clandestine Order of Secreteers.
He froze as white smoke ran around the edges of the room. It covered the walls, rising almost up to the windows. The group moved toward the center of the room to get away from it. Joey felt like he was standing in the eye of a storm as the snow-white smoke revolved around him, obscuring everything. Everyone drew their weapons, ready for anything that might come out of the mist. There was no telling what dangers were hidden in this place. Only the orange glow of the fireplace was strong enough to penetrate the swirling fog, and even that, just barely. Joey’s eyes focused on the flickering amber light and then just above it as Oblivia appeared on the mezzanine.
Joey had glimpsed her only between flashes of lightning during the attack on Hypnova’s ship, but he knew it was her. Fear knotted his stomach when he saw Oblivia dressed all in white. She was an older woman who was fit and formidable. She had long white hair that was voluminous and shiny, and her face was creased with wrinkles. Oblivia had a natural beauty about her that was muted not by age, but rather by her hard eyes and scornful expression. She came off as cold and unforgiving, and her words matched her demeanor.
“You’ve gone too far.” Oblivia gripped the railing of the mezzanine, full of righteous indignation. “Too far. This is an atrocity. I cannot tolerate your presence in this place or forgive your intrusion. There will be a price to pay for trespassing here.”
Her words hung in the air like the sentence of an angry judge. DeMayne was not intimidated. “I could say the same to you. I haven’t been back this way in a long while, but the fact remains, I was here first. You’re the one who doesn’t belong.”
Oblivia squint
ed at DeMayne, no doubt confused by his claim and his swagger. She pointed a finger in his direction, probing for answers. Nothing happened. She was left staring at her empty hand as if it were a weapon she had forgotten to load.
DeMayne smiled. “Trying to read my memories? Find out what I’m talking about? Sorry. You people aren’t getting in my head again. I’ve got protection.”
Oblivia’s eyes fell on Joey. Her jaw tightened as she made the connection. “I see. The wand. I hope you haven’t been overexerting yourself, Joey. That kind of recklessness has only one possible outcome.”
“Don’t worry about me,” Joey said. “I’ve been careful.”
“Not from where I’m standing. Believe it or not, I’m trying to help you. You and your friends are playing with fire. You’re going to get burned, and for what? Look around. I know you were hoping to find some ancient relic like the dark magic markers you destroyed earlier, but there’s nothing for you here. Nothing but me.”
Joey turned around inside the tower, trying to get a sense of his surroundings. He couldn’t see past the smoke, but he saw right through Oblivia.
If there’s nothing here, what’s she hiding behind all this?
“You’re right,” Joey said. “I don’t believe you.”
“You shouldn’t,” Jack said. “She’s incapable of telling the truth. It’s against her religion.”
“Hello, Jack,” Oblivia said. “I didn’t expect to see you again. This day is full of surprises.”
“You two know each other?” DeMayne asked Jack.
“Our families know each other,” Jack replied. “We’re not friends.”
“That much is true,” Oblivia confirmed. “Your mother and I weren’t friends either. We were sisters.”
“She’s your aunt?” Mr. Ivory asked.
“No,” Jack said. “She just means they were both Secreteers.”
“That may not be something you ever understand, but it means something,” Oblivia declared. “Even now, it means something. Everything I ever did to your family, I did to protect the Clandestine Order and its mission. I make no apologies for it. I have a duty to something bigger than myself. What I do, I do for—”
“Let me guess,” DeMayne cut in. “The greater good?” He let out a derisive laugh. “I’ve been saying that for years. You don’t actually believe it, do you?”
“I know what you believe, Ledger DeMayne,” Oblivia scolded. “You only see the greater good when you look in the mirror. That’s what’s held you back all these years. You think small.”
DeMayne’s eyebrows went up. “I think small?” He touched a shocked hand to his chest. “Me?”
“That’s right,” Oblivia said. “You lack imagination.”
DeMayne gritted his teeth. “I’ll show you imagination.”
He took a big step forward with his hand on the hilt of the Tempest Blade, but he didn’t get far. His nose flattened against some kind of force field. DeMayne cursed and stomped his feet like a bratty child.
Oblivia cocked her head to the side, taunting DeMayne. “I’m sorry, did I forget to mention the invisible wall between us?”
As DeMayne clutched his nose in pain, Jack, Skerren, and Allegra put their hands out to feel the unseen barrier that separated them from Oblivia. Joey, Shazad, Leanora, and Janelle did the same and reached right through it.
“What the?” Allegra said as Joey and the others kept moving forward, immune to Oblivia’s defenses. “How come they got through?”
“Wait a minute,” Shazad said, turning around to “look” at the invisible wall. “I know what this is.”
“You should,” Oblivia said. “You’ve seen it before. My memory powers may be useless on you because of the wand, but I still have cards to play.”
The smoke around Oblivia cleared, revealing a body at her feet.
“Hypnova!” Joey shouted.
20 The Forgotten Memories of Ledger DeMayne
“What have you done to her?” Shazad demanded.
Hypnova was lying on her side, seemingly unconscious.
Please, let her just be unconscious, Joey thought.
“Are you all right?” Janelle called out. “Hypnova, talk to us!”
“She’s fine,” Oblivia said. “For now. Whether or not she stays that way is up to you.”
“How did you capture her?” Leanora asked. “How did you get past the shield?”
“You mean this shield?” Oblivia lifted the Caliburn Shield up off the mezzanine floor and put it on her arm. “This item frustrated us to no end as we pursued Hypnova this past year. Unfortunately for her, she set it down while she was trapped in the mirror world, looking for a way out—and I was ready.”
Joey’s stomach dropped. Leanora punched him in the shoulder. “I told you not to break that mirror!”
A golden blur flashed out from underneath the folds of Oblivia’s white robe. “Let’s talk.” She had the tip of a blade mere inches from Hypnova’s neck. Joey recognized it as Hypnova’s own saber.
“Please. Don’t hurt her,” Joey said. “What do you want?”
“What I want doesn’t matter,” Oblivia spat. “I want to see you all punished for what you’ve done. Unleashing magic. Defying our Order. Desecrating this sacred space. This isn’t about what I want. It’s about my responsibility and what I am willing to offer, which is more than you deserve—a chance to walk away.”
“You can’t be serious,” Leanora said. “We’ve come too far to walk away. We’re not leaving without a fight.”
“You don’t want this fight. This is the end of your journey. It’s time to be realistic about your options. This tower is empty. It’s over. Will Hypnova have to die before you admit defeat? Don’t think I won’t kill her. She betrayed her vows to the Order, revealing ancient secrets. Her life is forfeit, but she has reason to hope, and you… you have a choice. Surrender the wand to me. Abandon this foolish crusade. Go home. I know this isn’t what you hoped for, but your quest was doomed from the start. Ending it will be easier than you think. All you have to do is let me into your minds. I can send you on your way without an ounce of regret. The Clandestine Order will undo the damage you’ve done to the world, and everything will be just as it was.”
“That’s your offer?” Joey said. “Really?”
“We haven’t done any damage to the world!” Janelle protested.
“You’ve introduced chaos in the form of unrestrained magic. The results are completely unpredictable.”
“So why are you acting like you know what’s going to happen?” Shazad asked.
“Because I do know,” Oblivia countered. “You’ve made our job infinitely more difficult, but the Secreteers will work tirelessly to hide away any trace of new magic and set the world back to normal. That’s what’s going to happen, and you’re going to accept it. You’re going to forget about all this and go back to the lives you had before. That’s my offer. I’ll even be so gracious as to extend the offer to you, Ledger DeMayne. You can go back to thinking you’re king of the world if you like. I won’t stop you. There are worse fates.”
“I’ll pass,” DeMayne said. “If you know anything about me, you know I’m not going to put this woman’s life ahead of my own interests. Especially not after what she did to me.” He fluttered his fingers at Hypnova in a dismissive wave. “Go ahead. Dispose of her. You’ll save me the trouble of doing it myself.”
“No!” Joey blurted out. “Please, listen to us. Can’t you see you’re on the wrong side of this? The world needs magic, and you’re doing everything you can to suppress it. Your intentions might be different from the Invisible Hand’s. You might actually care about the greater good, but the result is the same. The world is sick and dying. You can help us change it.”
“You’re wasting your breath,” Oblivia said, disregarding Joey. “I won’t be a party to your misguided endeavors no matter what you say.” She prodded Hypnova’s shoulder with the golden saber. “And if you try to compel my actions with the wand—”
“Hypnova is hardly innocent. She betrayed the Clandestine Order’s sacred mission—a mission I have dedicated my entire life to.”
“Can’t you for once think for yourself and just do the right thing?” Jack shouted. “You care so much about your mission. You never stop to think about how it affects people’s lives. I never knew my mom because of you and your mission!”
Jack’s eyes welled with tears, and Oblivia’s stern facade faded slightly. It was only for a moment, but it was the first thing anyone had said that had gotten through to her. She seemed to have genuine sympathy for Jack and the pain he felt.
“I am sorry for that, Jack. Believe me, I wish your mother were here instead of me. Your loss was my loss too. I’m old. I shouldn’t be doing this anymore. Your mother showed such promise. I wanted her to lead the Order one day.”
“She wouldn’t have done it,” Jack said. “My mother tried to leave the Order. You wouldn’t let her go.”
“It’s true,” Oblivia said, her voice heavy with regret. “She had incredible potential, but she lost her faith. I’m sorry she’s gone, but I didn’t take her from you. The Rüstov did. We lost her in the battle of Empire City. She died defending you.”
“Maybe she would have lived if she’d had my father there to fight with her,” Jack shot back. “Ever think of that?”
Oblivia shook her head. “I don’t second-guess myself wondering ‘what if.’ I stay focused on ‘what is.’ I can’t help you because I believe in something bigger than myself. Unlike your mother, I will always hold the sacred tenets of our Order, handed down from the first Secreteer. I’ve spent my life protecting this place. Keeping its secrets. Keeping it safe. Ensuring that there will always be a refuge for magic—a hiding place for the fantastic, unbelievable, and strange. Even if it’s just a tiny corner of the world, it’s better than nothing. If the world knew about this place, it would never be the same.”
“That’s the whole idea,” Leanora said. “The world needs this. We need more than just a tiny corner of magic.”
The New World Page 20
