Conjured Defense (Terra Chronicles Book 4)

by J. C. Jackson

  “Aye, ain’t seen another caster sync so well and certainly not anywhere near as quickly,” Jonim commented. “Most have a hard time getting the screens on let alone firing the whole thing up.”

  “We need her to test the system fully. I knew it worked,” Jake said excitedly.

  The man shifted moods faster than I could keep up with.

  “I thought you said the screens were a separate system,” Silver said.

  “They are,” Jake said emphatically. “Look, they’re designed to come on when the system activates. There’s no magical energy being diverted to them. They operate off power from the ship.”

  “It’s one of the initial sensors to get tripped. We’ve used it as a base for tests,” Jonim explained further.

  Silver’s hand on my shoulder drew my attention. “Ketayl, I think we need to take time and compare notes. That way we can formulate a plan of action.”

  I sighed. Formulating a plan would save us time from simply running in circles. I signaled for the others to lead the way out. I paused before I stepped away from the offense station. I still needed to touch it again. A quick second would be fine. Just one more moment of being able to breathe.

  My hand was grabbed and I was roughly pulled away. “No,” Silver hissed.

  “Sorry, it’s just…” I shook my head and walked ahead of my partner. He needed to be a barrier between me and the system. I wondered how he would react to it.

  Chapter 4

  The ride back to the hotel was silent. Occasionally I would hear a faint creak from Silver’s fingerless leather gloves as his grip tightened on the steering wheel. How am I going to explain my actions without sounding crazy?

  He opened the door to the hotel room and held it for me. As soon as I entered, I went to the large windows to put some space between us. This room was smaller than others we had previously stayed in so there was not as much space as I would have liked. I immediately turned my attention to the small ship with the prototype on-board. I had not noticed we could see it from here before.

  Even from here I felt drawn to it. I wanted that perfect moment of being completely balanced without having to fight for it.

  I blinked when the curtain was drawn in front of me. “I know you’re upset, but you don’t have to be rude,” I snapped at him.

  “It’s also rude to ignore someone,” Silver growled.

  I tilted my head to the side. “What do you mean? You didn’t say anything.”

  “Ketayl, you’ve been staring out the window for the past five minutes. You heard nothing I said?”

  I shook my head and bit my lower lip, trying to figure out how I lost time. I swore it had only been seconds.

  Silver dropped to sit on the edge of his bed. “I don’t like this. You barely brushed the damn thing and now it’s as if you’re obsessed with the system. What happened? What draws you to that machine?”

  I sighed and took a seat next to him. “I’m not sure how to explain it. At least not without sounding crazy.”

  “Then sound crazy.”

  I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye. His rigid back told me he was still angry, but those blue eyes intently staring at me were full of concern.

  “I think I connected differently than intended. I should have needed the screens to see outside and it felt like I was everywhere outside the ship at once. Maybe because I wasn’t prepared for it I couldn’t stop it? Because I’m an Arcanist? I don’t know.”

  “That doesn’t explain why you kept wanting to touch it.”

  I bit my lower lip and thought through the experience, searching for the right words. “I can’t explain the irresistible urge to touch it again. Not in a way that makes sense.”

  “Try me.” Silver snaked his hand under my hair to rub the back of my neck.

  It pulled me fully from the draw of the system and my mind was able to focus again. I had not even noticed how clouded I still was.

  Silver knelt down in front of me. He kept his hand on the back of my neck. “What just happened?”

  It was as if he dissipated some spell I had not realized I was under. Even with the curtain drawn part of me still felt compelled to touch the system again, but now it was gone.

  “What’s going on? Ketayl, talk to me.”

  “I don’t feel drawn to the system anymore.”

  He breathed a sigh of relief. “Okay, maybe now we can get somewhere. You were scaring me there. At least we know how to get you back if you ever have to touch it again.”

  “Was it that bad?” I bit my lower lip. The last thing I needed was more questions from the people we were dealing with.

  “I’m the only one who knew something was wrong. The others didn’t seem to notice anything unusual, but we’ve been working and living together long enough I know when something is off.”

  “Sorry.”

  “I don’t want an apology, I want to know what happened. Your control is normally far better. Tell me how you felt when you touched it.”

  “Peace?” I shook my head. “Relief - a brief moment I didn’t feel like I had to fight to keep myself balanced and maintain control.” I took a shuddering breath and a couple of tears rolled down my face as I thought about it.

  My internal battle had become second nature to handle on a day-to-day basis, but for a split second I got the chance to breathe. A chance I would likely never have again.

  Rough fingers brushed the tear away. “Promise me you won’t go on-board without me. In fact, I don’t want us to split up if we can help it. Jake concerns me.”

  I backed away from Silver if only to give myself some breathing room. “I’m not arguing, but why?”

  “There are multiple reports showing his behavior becoming increasingly neurotic the more setbacks Spelltech has. The Navy is considering pulling their support from Spelltech not only because of the setbacks, but also because of his behavior. He’s been downright abusive on occasion to the personnel at the base.”

  At least I was not the only one who thought something was wrong when dealing with him. “What happened when I touched the grip?”

  “The whole system activated. The lights dimmed when the screens kicked on and the entire station lit up. And frankly, I haven’t seen your eyes do that color-changing thing since you broke the barrier on your reserves. It wasn’t just the gray this time - it was your entire eye it covered.”

  I sat there staring at Silver. They stated the others had barely managed to get past the first set of sensors. All I had done was accidentally brush the grip.

  How had I manage it? I should not have been able to do more than feel a thrum from the system without actively engaging it.

  “We can figure out what happened with you later when we start reviewing the files,” Silver said, breaking my train of thought.

  I nodded, stood up, and moved away from Silver, going to my gear bag to get my tablet. “I want to delve further into the company. He gave me a tour of the facilities and the dual-magic system isn’t the only thing they’re working on, but nothing else is even close to operational.”

  “He seemed protective of the plans for the system.”

  I folded my arms, thinking through the encounter. “And yet the office is left unlocked. Jake claims there are cameras and everyone knows not to go in. The place is such a disaster even he had a hard time putting his hands on the most current plans.”

  Silver stroked the small patch of hair on his chin. “Anything digital?”

  “Some apparently. I haven’t gotten into the system.”

  My partner sighed loudly. “This is going to take a long time.”

  I typed up a message to Lockonis requesting Sparky’s assistance. “I think we need to start with reviewing the footage and then interview the people involved with the test when the accident occurred. Preferably privately. That way when we start digging through Spelltech’s files we can narrow down what we’re looking for.”

  “Agreed. How long do you think it would take you to transfer the files to y
our tablet?”

  His question made me pause and look up at him. “This one is faster than my last one, but it would still take about as long as it took me to copy the files to the computer we first used in Ghost Forest.”

  “Too long then. To a gem?”

  I crossed my arms and tilted my head, trying to figure out what he was getting at. “Depends on what you want copied.”

  “Anything useful to us. I don’t want to have to fight with Jake every time we need something. Jonim is about the only person willing to deal with him and he has other duties he needs to attend to.”

  Biting my lower lip, I thought it over. “A few seconds at most. I could do it without him noticing, but I don’t have anything to copy to.”

  Silver grinned broadly. “Sounds like we need to go shopping.”

  “Wait. No. There’s got to be something we have here that we can use.” I needed to dissuade Silver of this idea.

  “Oh come on. You never let me buy you anything,” Silver said, pouting.

  I rolled my eyes, my watch vibrated on my wrist. I looked down at it and paused for a moment before rubbing my fingers on the material the band was made out of. “This is silicon. I can use my watchband.”

  Silver frowned. “You like to ruin my fun.”

  ~*~

  I fingered my watchband while we waited, staring at the gray material. My partner sat across from me. He insisted we stop for something to eat.

  “Something wrong?”

  “I’m worried we’re crossing a line we shouldn’t with this plan,” I said.

  Silver shook his head. “We have a right to the files pertaining to the investigation which Jake has been borderline impeding. Not to mention I’m certain you’ll be able to organize it better.”

  “Taking it to a computer I could. It’s a little harder in this format.”

  “Stop worrying so much and enjoy this moment of reprieve.”

  I wanted the other moment of reprieve I had earlier when I brushed the grip at the offense station. Silver was right to worry, even after being away from the system and seemingly broken its hold, I still longed for that moment again.

  My watch buzzed with a message from Sparky stating he was ready for anything we might need. I dug my phone out of my pocket to reply, asking him if he could get a full background on Spelltech and its owner.

  “Not supposed to be working right now,” Silver chided.

  “Sparks messaged me and I want him to get started on pulling information.”

  Silver snorted. “Don’t give him a reason to go hang out with the cyber team. He’s been wanting any excuse to go hang out with his Gnome friend.”

  I shook my head. He and Sparky still had a very odd friendship that I could not comprehend.

  “I’m thinking once we finish here, we head back to the base and see if we can’t get the footage from the accident and find out where everyone involved is,” Silver suggested.

  I nodded. “Probably see if we can get a hold of any reports filed. I’d also like to take a look at footage from other tests. See if there was something out of the ordinary.”

  “Well, they did say they were only operating the defense station this time.”

  “Doesn’t mean it’s the only time they’ve singled out a system to test. There’s got to be a pattern to how they run them.”

  Silver stared at me for a moment. “Are you backing the idea it was sabotage?”

  “No,” I shot back. “It would help rule it out if something was out of place. There’s a chance of negligence.”

  He stroked the small patch of hair on his chin. “They’re so busy pointing fingers I don’t think the idea crossed their minds.”

  “Jake employs a dozen or so people, but I don’t know if any of them work on the ship system. The people I saw were all busy with other projects.”

  Silver frowned. “And it sounded like he rotated through Naval personnel fairly regularly. He complained they were incompetent if he didn’t drive them to request a transfer first.”

  “Hard to get anything accomplished if you keep rotating through people. It could lead to accidental negligence, but honestly, it should only be the casters doing anything with the system itself. The most anyone else is doing is either recording or directing them through the test.”

  “What about maintenance, repairs, or changes to the system to try and drive better performance out of it?” he asked.

  I shrugged. “I guess I’ll be spending a lot of time going through the files in that office.”

  “We, remember. We need to stick together.”

  I dropped my gaze to the table. I had initially been excited about this assignment because I would get a chance to look at a new technology, but now I feared it to some degree. Namely in how I could not fully shake this feeling of being drawn to the system. Silver called it an obsession and I started to agree with the assessment.

  “How good of a look did you get at the plans?”

  I perked my head up at his question. “Enough to get a rough idea of how the system operates. Why?”

  “We probably shouldn’t have this discussion in public.”

  I glanced around. The few other patrons here were preoccupied with their drinks, their food, or their company. There still could be an unwanted listener.

  “Has Kitteren said anything about how things are going in Ghost Forest?”

  “About the same I think. She didn’t say much in her last message. I can only imagine she’s not too thrilled to be stuck doing so much paperwork.”

  Silver laughed and shook his head. Our conversation put on hold about the case. My mind did not stop working on piecing together what I had seen so far.

  ~*~

  “Alright, out with it,” Silver said as soon as we were back in our loaner vehicle. “You were churning something over in your head all through dinner.”

  I bit my lower lip. “I was thinking of the projects Spelltech has going on. All of them incorporate using arcane and divine casters somehow.”

  “What’s Jake’s magic background? I didn’t sense a divine presence.”

  “Nor is there an arcane one,” I confirmed.

  My partner glanced at me quickly. “Trying to use both without being proficient in either?”

  “Is it even possible? I think he might be simplifying the two types of magic a little too much. I’m not sure how his projects even work without having some sort of magical background.”

  Silver flicked the end of his braid back and forth as he drove. “I think toying with something he doesn’t understand would be more accurate. He didn’t even know about his shielding materials doing the opposite of what he wants.”

  “It’s not common knowledge.”

  My partner tossed me a look. “This isn’t a common project.”

  “True, but…”

  “Is it more rare than I’m assuming?”

  I nodded. “Most people outside of the Arcane College didn’t know how to store spells or information until I brought it to the TIO. Even then I found out about silicon when I learned the computer systems.”

  “A good thing we have you then. Should you have shared it with him?”

  I shrugged. “There’s little he could do with what I’ve said so far outside of change his shielding material, which would be a lot of work if I remember the diagrams right. Remind me I do want to check and see if there’s residual arcane energy in the shielding.”

  Silver tugged lightly on his braid with one hand. “I should probably check for divine also. That might have caused a problem if they’re using the stations interchangeably.”

  “Are they?” I could not recall it in any of the reports we had seen so far.

  “Sounds like they might have considered the idea at the very least.”

  I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. They could have just as easily blown themselves up.

  No sooner had we passed the gate to the base when I felt a pull on my senses and sat up straighter. Something was barely there - jus
t enough to be noticed and I felt the strong desire to go touch the system again.

  Silver pulled over roughly and threw the vehicle into park. “What’s going on?” His fingers got under my hair to rub the back of my neck.

  His touch dampened the effect enough so I could focus. “I’m good. Let’s go.”

  “No, you’re not,” Silver argued. “Is that thing still affecting you?”

  I stared at my hands in my lap, unsure of how to deal with Silver’s rising anger. “It caught my attention is all. I’ll know to expect it now.”

  My partner hesitantly pulled away and we continued to the Naval offices. I followed him, staying close by his side. The pull got stronger the closer we got to the ship and I refused to chance a repeat of earlier. Once I knew what to expect, I could handle it. At least I kept telling myself that.

  Silver spoke with the person at the front desk who directed us to someone else.

  The computer lab was staffed by a Human man who smiled broadly when he saw Silver. “How can I help you?” I caught the name Colbernoux on his uniform.

  Silver flipped the end of his braid back and forth. “We want to review the footage and any reports from the accident with the prototype dual-magic project on the ship.”

  “Absolutely. Let me get you set up and into the project file.” He led us to a computer at the back. “Hope this station isn’t too out of the way. Some of the others get picky about their spots. This one no one ever bothers with because it’s in the corner and they usually want to chat while they’re here.”

  “This is fine,” Silver replied. He put his hand on my back and pushed me toward the chair.

  Taking a seat, I made a face at the screen. Silver would want me to be the one navigating.

  The man helping us looked at us confused for a moment before reaching over my shoulder to get us to where we needed to be.

  I leaned away so he would not accidentally touch me, but it put me precariously close to touching Silver.

  “This is the file you want. If you need anything else, let me know. You can just shout for Aris - most people do.”

  Silver pulled a chair over once he left. “He’s a little odd,” he whispered.