Forced Magic

by Jerod Lollar

  Chapter 18

  I woke up to a buzzing sound. It was my phone going off. Michelle had sent me another text. I was fuzzy headed and it took me a few minutes to focus on the words of the text. I could hear Fetch snoring at the foot of the bed; deep in-and-out loud breaths. I was glad to see that fire didn’t shoot out of his snout in his sleep. He would have burnt the place to the ground that way.

  “ur video taken care of.. More people calling it clever fake. No 1 can trace it back to source. Me and Johnathen bz now text u l8tr. Big things happening!!!:)"

  This put my mind at ease a little. Some of it seemed vague but I was happy about the video. I thought it was good no one knew about the magic world. If I could be attacked the way I was, then anybody could be. I texted back a simple "K" and told myself I would let them know where I was and what I was doing later. It hurt a little that Michelle didn’t ask me about that now, but I shrugged it off. Fetch had left the television on and, by what was playing, I could see it was early the next day. I had slept in my clothes. They seemed to be tight on me and my muscles ached. It felt like I had a really hard work out. I figured that my muscles were catching up to what I had been through the previous day. With a snort from Fetch, who was still sleeping on the floor at the foot of the bed, any thought of it all just being a dream left my head. I thought I better get the "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door or the maid would walk in to a surprising sight of a sleeping dragon on the floor. I took off my shirt and rubbed my bald head and got a pleasant surprise. I could feel the start of hair growing on my head. Feeling my face, I could feel eyebrows starting to grow in and a thin beard covering my face. I made a mental note to get some shaving cream, deodorant, and a toothbrush, along with clothes and a computer, today.

  It was going to be a busy day. I got up quietly, not wanting to disturb Fetch, and headed for the shower. I walked by the big mirror leading into the bathroom and took a good long look at my face. In the middle of the night Fetch had found a marker and had drawn a beard and eyebrows and even squiggly hair. I could see the shadow of hair growing underneath Fetch's art work. I heard a ‘huh' sound behind me and discovered that my dragon friend was not asleep after all. He was up and laughing at his little joke.

  “Laugh it up you stupid lizard, I’m going to get you back for this one."

  Fetch just continued to laugh. I turned back to the mirror and got a shock. I didn’t recognize myself.

  It was more than Fetch's art work. I was buff; really buff. I looked like I had spent months working out in a gym. Lean, powerful looking muscles were popping out all over my torso. I even had six-pack abs., something I had never been able to accomplish. I felt strong and now realized why I was so sore. My new body grew overnight. That also explained why I had been so hungry. I needed the calories to grow into my new body.

  This was yet another transformation. I was elated! I was Spiderman discovering my new found powers. It was like I was a super hero. I picked up the phone to text Michelle to let her know about this new change. I left her a text that simply said, “New changes" accompanied by a photo of myself in the mirror.

  Michelle texted back, “WOW! I really like the mustache and beard (lol), but really Jack, you weren’t this big last night. I'll show this to Johnathen and see what he has to say."

  I stripped off my jeans and headed to the shower. This was too awesome for me to be concerned about. I had tried every kind of workout program for years and never got the results I wanted. The best shape I had been in before was when I was riding my bike to work every day. When I got hit by the truck, that stopped me from working out at all. This overnight success was incredible. Fetch not consuming me had turned me into all I could ever want to be. I was beginning to enjoy my new life. How could I not? It was every comic book and fantasy lover’s dream come true.

  I stood there in the shower, letting the hot water massage my sore muscles, and I looked down at my leg. On the spot where Fetch's egg had attached itself, there was a strange spot. It looked like a bruise. It was in a perfect square and was purple, green, and had a strange white bump. I didn’t like the look of it. I touched it and discovered it had a strange smooth feel. When I pressed on the small bump it felt hard, like a smooth callus. I really didn’t want to worry about it. I felt too pumped and excited about the transformation of my body. Well, I couldn’t expect not to have some kind of scar there, after all, I had just had a dragon rip through that part of my leg. I'm lucky I didn’t have a scar across the whole side of my body. I told myself that I would show it to Johnathen the next time I saw him and see what he had to say about it. I jumped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around my waist. I went back to the mirror to get another look at myself. I looked down at the scar again. I was beginning to think of it as some kind of battle scar.

  Fetch was sitting on the bed watching “The Price is Right”.

  “Hey Fetch,” I said “take a look at my leg.”

  I pointed at the strange mark. He leaned in and studied it for a while. He took in a short breath and breathed a small line of healing fire, but it didn’t do anything. He sat up, looked at me, shrugged, and went back to staring at the TV. He didn’t seem to be too concerned about it.

  I was acting like a little kid, flexing my muscles in the mirror, showing off in front of Fetch. He continued to watch TV, ignoring me. I could still see a faint outline of the artwork Fetch had done on my face. Then it hit me.

  “Fetch, where did you get the markers to color on my face?"

  Fetch turned to me and smiled a big toothy grin. I guess it would have to remain a mystery along with how he got food. The way he just sat there and smiled let me know that I wasn’t going to get an answer out of him. My stomach growled. I had to get something to eat. Fetch seemed to like those sausage biscuits had gotten yesterday so I figured I would make that the first stop of the day.

  I got dressed and grabbed my teardrop choker and phone and checked that I had money in the pouch. As I headed for the door, “Come on Fetch,” I said “let’s start the day.” He turned to me and with the end of his tail shut off the TV. Going into camo mode he followed me out the door.

  The next two weeks were spent in shameless excess. I bought clothes and a laptop computer. I strutted around town enjoying my new body. I texted Michelle as much as I could and she kept on saying that she would meet me soon. I tried calling her but would only get her voice mail. From time to time, I would see one of Johnathen's bobcats watching me from a distance. I wondered why the teardrop choker had no effect on them. I guessed that it was because of some spell that kept them from not seeing me. I was a little annoyed at the idea of always being watched that way, but I knew it was just Johnathen's way of watching out for me. I was starting to get a little hurt that neither one of them had come to see me or Fetch. Fetch was getting grumpy. He missed Michelle. I could tell he was down, because he wasn’t bothering to play any tricks on me. We spent a lot of our time walking around town. We stayed outside as much as we could. During that time I was learning about Fetch. We found a stretch of desert where Fetch could fly around. He had to stay low and in camo mode because it was close to the Air Force base. It was out in the Vail area, not too far from my brother’s house. I thought about going to see him, but I realized this was a bad idea. He didn’t know who I was anymore. I waited one day, until he left for work, put fifty thousand dollars in an envelope, and stuck it in his mailbox. I left a note with it simply saying “Accept the blessing.” I hoped he would keep the money and spend it on something he wanted.

  I never had a lot of money before and I was quickly discovering how intoxicating it could be. I am ashamed to say that I lost my head for a while. I strutted around town enjoying my new found wealth and my new body. I had a new confidence I had never before experienced. Since nobody knew who I was, I could be whomever I wanted to be. My new found physical strength made me feel I could take on the world. Only the familiar twinge of pain from my hip let me know that I wasn’t indestructible. I talked with people I wo
uld never talk to before. I flirted with girls with a new confidence. It was, in a way, the best time of my life.

  I was starting to become lazy. I spent a lot of time out by the pool. With my teardrop choker, I had no fear of the magical world discovering me, and was beginning to think that I had nothing to worry about. I would wake up in the morning, muscles aching. A text from Michelle, containing a message from Johnathen, suggested that I start working out. It would help my body adjust to the changes it had undergone. I made it a habit to go to the small gym at the hotel every morning and then swim in the pool once in a while. It helped and I stopped feeling sore.

  It was getting harder and harder to keep Fetch from being discovered. He was starting to grow and I realized he would soon be too big to stay in the room. On the second night we were there Fetch had plopped himself on the bed and refused to budge. Not wanting to get into it with him, it became an unspoken agreement to take turns with the bed. One night I would get it, and the next Fetch would. I didn’t want to argue with him about this.

  From time to time, Fetch and I would come across something from the magical world. Most were hidden from everyone who was not touched by magic. I began to see magic working all around me. I never let myself be seen by these gnomes. It took me a while to realize that it was the same funny little fellow who was doing the entire cleanup around the hotel and park. He seemed to always follow the giant troll, cleaning up after him. It amazed me that no one but me, and of course Fetch, could smell that troll. There was one day, as I sat out by the pool, that the little guy looked in my direction. I grabbed the choker in my hand as the little gnome stared in mine and Fetch's direction. We didn’t move a muscle. A girl, who was staying at the hotel with her family, noticed how still I was sitting, and how I was staring, and came up and talked to me.

  “Watcha doing?"

  She couldn’t have been more than four. I didn’t want to respond to her, afraid that would let the gnome know that someone was here. I still didn’t know who sided with the fairies and who didn't, and there was the chance that whoever sent the goblins to attack me would strike again. The gnome eventually sighed, not really paying attention to the little girl, and went on his way. The mother called the little girl over telling her not to bother me. I glanced over and saw her give me a worried look. Even with my new look and confidence, I seemed to be a little intimidating to some. My hair and eyebrows had grown in pretty well, but I was still a little scary looking to some people. I stopped sitting by the pool for a while. I was starting to get frustrated and I wasn’t alone. Michelle had said she would see us in a few days but it had been longer. We had already extended our stay at the hotel and I didn’t know how much longer I could stay there. I had the idea of getting an apartment, but I wanted to wait until I got the "ok" from Johnathen.

  Fetch was getting extremely antsy. He was growing and was now about the size of a pony. If he continued to grow at this rate, we wouldn’t be able to stay in hotel rooms anymore. He started going off on his own at night, and I figured out he was hunting. Sometimes he didn’t get back until morning. I was concerned about what he was hunting and I made him promise not to eat anybody’s pets. I kept my eyes open for any fliers of lost dogs or cats. His abilities continued to improve. The thing that was amazing to me was Fetch's dragon fire. We would go out and practice with it from time to time. It never burned the same color but would change with his mood. When he was angry, it would burn red or white. When he was happy and having fun, it was purple. When he was sad, it would be blue. I began to notice that it was blue more and more. Fetch was lonely. We did have each other, but there seemed to be no other dragons around. I had people to talk to from time to time, but Fetch had no one but me to relate to. I had to remind him to stay in camo mode from time to time, and, I could tell by the look on his face, he was beginning to resent this. He wanted to see another dragon. Knowing what they would do when they hatched, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to meet one.

  It was on one of Fetch's hunting nights that it happened. I went down to the pool, sure I would not run into my little gnome friend. I had never seen him at night and so I figured it would be safe. There was a family at the pool, but the hot tub was not being used. I sat in the hot water, enjoying the bubbles, when I spotted it. It was a goblin. He was hiding in the bushes, looking at the family. They had a stroller with them. Dad played with two older kids in the shallow end of the pool, while the mom stayed with the baby. The goblin was staring at the stroller. I froze, not knowing what to do. I knew the goblin couldn’t see me. If he could, there might be trouble. But, by the way he was staring at the stroller, I knew I couldn’t just sit by and do nothing. I hoped the thing would just go away. I made a note to myself to tell Fetch about this, and see about taking turns keeping an eye out for the little creeps. Before I could decide what to do next, the goblin made his move.

  Darting out of the bushes he grabbed for the stroller, knocking the mother to the ground. She screamed as the goblin took the entire stroller, jumped over the fence, and took off. I jumped out of the hot tub in pursuit. I was thankful for my night vision as I could see the little creep. I was stronger than the last time I had to face one of these little beasts, and I was not about to let it get away with that baby. I could feel that funny, itchy, feeling again as I ran after the goblin. I let the magic build up inside me as I quickly caught up to the creature and grabbed it by the foot. It dropped the stroller, which landed on its wheels, and I could hear a frightened cry coming from it as I pulled the goblin away. The little slimy beast squealed in surprise. It wasn’t Booger, but, by the way it looked at me, I could tell it was one of the snot brigade from the parking lot, and he knew who I was. I took a swing at his head and knocked him to the ground. I kicked him in the face with my bare foot and I could feel the sting of his acid spit on my toes. I began to wish Fetch was there.

  The little beast was staring at me in shock. It must have been quite a surprise to him when I appeared after grabbing his foot. I took complete advantage of his surprise and dragged him away from the stroller and the crying baby. The magic continued to build up inside me. I forced it out and sent a wave of power through the goblin and out toward the stroller. The goblin went limp in my hands, and, as the wave passed the stroller, the baby went quiet. My heart went cold. I didn’t mean for the magic to affect the baby. I looked down at the now limp form of the goblin. Terror flooded my heart! If I had killed the goblin, then surely I had killed the baby. The goblin let out a snort. I looked down at him and discovered that he was sleeping, just sleeping. I dropped him and rushed over to the stroller. I looked inside and saw the baby. It was sleeping peacefully. My forced spell had just put them to sleep. I made a promise to practice my magic and get a better grip on it.

  I could hear the frightened voices of the parents as they ran in our direction. A flash of pain hit me in my bad hip as the goblin had recovered quickly, blindsided me, and smashed into the hip. I crumbled to the ground. The goblin was on top of me, sneering, as he looked in the direction of the voices.

  “That was my snack you just took from me, Flap. No worries though, there are plenty others out there. You can’t be everywhere at once, dragon survivor.”

  With these words a blue light appeared behind him. He flipped over backwards and disappeared into it with an insane little giggle.

  The mom and dad came rushing up going straight to the stroller, and found their baby sleeping peacefully. They helped me up, thanking me over and over again. I could hear the siren as the police got closer. The acid was burning my foot, and the blow to my hip made it too hard for me to just run off. That was when the gnome showed up. He stood there as the mother and father screamed in terror. She clutched the baby to her chest and the father stood in front of her, protecting them both. Then, with a wave of the gnome's hand, a pulse went out. As it washed over the parents, a strange confused look came over their faces. They got the stroller, and, without a second look at me, walked calmly back to the pool. I sat there in the grass not
wanting to move. The little gnome looked around as if he was looking for something. I realized he was looking for me. After a few seconds, he moved in the direction of the approaching sirens. As he walked off, I got up and quickly went back to the pool.

  The family was still there getting their stuff. They seemed fine, as if nothing had happened. I wanted to get a look at the baby to make sure it was all right. Mom decided to change him before they went back to their room, so she unwrapped the little guy from his blanket while cooing at him. I sat down at a table nearby not wanting to be noticed for staring. The baby wasn’t crying, so I didn’t think it was hurt. The mother changed his diaper and tickled his little feet. I could hear him laughing and cooing. Tears of relief flooded my eyes and I sat there quietly and watched the family leave. They really didn’t pay any attention to me, except for the little girl. She was holding her daddy's hand, and, pulling on his finger, pointed at me.

  “Daddy, that’s the man who jumped the fence when the green monkey got Joey.”

  The dad looked at me with a little embarrassed smile. I smiled back, the tears still streaming out of my eyes. The pulse had no effect on the little girl. She remembered everything. I said a little prayer in hopes that she didn’t have nightmares from it for the rest of her life. The family left and after a few moments I got up and limped back to my room. I was hyper aware of every sound and shadow as I made my way back. I was sore and stiff. My hip hurt and there was still a burning feeling on my toes, but I was all right. The thing that bothered me the most, was the words of the goblin, that there were others. I had to find a way to stop this from happening again.

  Chapter 19

  I walked into the room and saw Fetch sitting on the bed. He was watching some reality TV show. He had gotten some burgers and bottled sodas. I picked up a bottle and threw it at the side of his head. It bounced off and hit the floor.