Forbidden Arcana: Mirage

by Tamryn Tamer

  “Well,” Jericho panted at Owl. “That was cathartic. And a hell of a lot cheaper than therapy. Let’s get to the portal.”

  “We’re going to be attacked before we get there,” Owl said as they led the civilians to safety.

  “I hope so,” Jericho said. He glanced at Owl’s Lichblade. “That looks so fucking cool.”

  “That it does,” Owl agreed.

  Chapter 4

  Knowledge is Power

  “I’m still pissed,” Terra said as Jericho and Owl poured through books. “It was really unfair not to bring an elf along. Killing those elf murdering assholes was literally part of my bucket list.”

  “For the tenth time,” Jericho groaned. “The plan was never to kill them.”

  “What’s your bounty up to now by the way?” Terra asked. It’d been continually rising ever since the incident. “I can’t imagine those assholes are letting this slide.”

  “Five hundred thousand,” Jericho answered nonchalantly. “Seems to be slowing down.”

  “Mine’s only reached fifty,” Owl said. “I’m a little offended.”

  “Don’t be,” Terra laughed. “Jericho’s just a showoff.”

  “Me?” Jericho laughed while tossing another useless book to Ariel to shelve. “Owl was the one showing off. He was shooting waves of ice and fire from his sword.”

  “More reason I should have been there,” Terra groaned. “But no. I only get to help with your stupid research.”

  “You call that helping?” Jericho laughed.

  “Hey,” Terra pointed to Jinx tied to a chair. “If it weren’t for me, she would have shredded up all of your books.”

  “And I’m going to get you back for this! Traitorous elf whore!” Jinx snapped and looked at Ariel who continued to happily help Jericho. “Don’t you realize what’s going to happen if he gets a shapeshifter? Insect! Idiot!”

  “We’ll have another friend,” Ariel reached to pat Jinx on the head but pulled her hand away just in time to avoid getting bit. Ariel glared judgmentally at Jinx. “You’re too selfish. He even brought you home a huge pile of jewels to make you happy.”

  “Are you stupid?” Jinx roared. “He’s a lecher! A pervert! An irredeemable sexual deviant! As soon as he gets a shapeshifter he’s going to spend all of his time in the bedroom with her! Then what do you think happens to us? Gnat! Cockroach!”

  “Familiars are interesting,” Owl stifled a laugh.

  Owl managed to work himself into the research by threatening to withhold the books he’d looted and almost immediately Jinx revealed that Jericho was looking for shapeshifters. That was before she tried to destroy the books to prevent anybody from reading them.

  “Let me go!” Jinx yelled while rocking back and forth in the chair. “The longer you keep me tied up the worse it’s going to be for all of you! Betrayers! Turncoats!”

  “Not until you calm down,” Terra said indifferently.

  “Alright,” Jinx said while ceasing to struggle. She took a deep breath and spoke with tranquility in her voice. “There. I’m not angry anymore. Release me so I can help Jericho. Bitch. Slut.”

  “I’m not falling for that,” Terra chuckled while shaking her head. “We both know if I let you go, you’re going to tear up those books.”

  “No, I’m not,” Jinx said calmly. “I just want to help my master. Whore. Hooker.”

  “She sounds sincere,” Owl said while flipping through another book. “Hm, interesting.”

  “What?” Jericho asked. “Did you find something on shapeshifters?”

  “No,” Owl said while reading through the page. He stared at Jinx then back at Jericho. “Spectral beasts. They use spirit magic. I’ve figured out why you’re so interested in familiars.”

  “This is why I didn’t want your help,” Jericho glared while going back to his book.

  “If you release me, I’ll tell you where to find a spectral beast,” Jinx grinned at Owl. “I promise. Dolt. Numbskull.”

  “Jinx,” Jericho said forebodingly. “Don’t give Owl information.”

  “You don’t have any familiars,” Jinx continued while ignoring Jericho. “Why are you helping him get a third? You must realize that my information benefits you much more than helping him find a shapeshifter. Dunce. Dimwit.”

  “While I appreciate the offer, I can’t release you,” Owl gestured toward Terra. “She is the one holding you captive.”

  “Okay. You don’t have to release me,” Jinx said happily. “Just burn all of the books so Jericho can’t find a shapeshifter. Dummy. Halfwit.”

  “I’m afraid I can’t do that either,” Owl said.

  “Dammit!” Jinx started struggling again. “Let me out! Let me out! Let me out! Snakes! Vipers!”

  “Should I gag her?” Terra asked while staring at the group. Ariel nodded eagerly while the other two shook their heads no.

  “Found it,” Jericho smiled as he opened to a chapter on shapeshifters. He started reading through the chapter as Owl maneuvered around the table to look over his shoulder. Ariel quickly followed suit. “Mostly just a lot of hateful rhetoric.”

  “That’s been a common theme,” Owl said.

  “It seems they can be anywhere but are mostly found in cities since they can blend in. And the only trait they’re not able to change is their bright green eyes,” Jericho sighed. “The advice in the book is to capture and imprison any person with bright green eyes until they admit to being a shapeshifter.”

  “Lots of people have green eyes,” Terra said.

  “Brightest,” Ariel corrected while pointing at the word. “It says brightest. Cynthia has bright green eyes but she’s a fairy. A shapeshifter’s eyes would be even brighter than Cynthia’s.”

  “Why are you helping him?” Jinx wailed. “You’re the one person over there who shouldn’t be helping him! Pest! Ant!”

  “Because I’m a good familiar,” Ariel smiled wholesomely while nuzzling up next to Jericho. “I’m going to get rewarded for helping right?”

  “Absolutely,” Jericho grinned while patting Ariel on the head. “What do you want for a reward?”

  “Well,” Ariel turned bright pink and whispered into Jericho’s ear. “I want you to do more of that thing Jinx made you do to me.”

  “Seriously?” Jericho chuckled nervously. Ariel nodded excitedly. “Alright.”

  “Alright,” Terra said while releasing Jinx. “You’re free to go.”

  “This isn’t over! I’ll have my revenge! Backstabbers! Defectors!” Jinx said angrily while sprinting up to her bedroom.

  “She seems awfully upset,” Owl said looking at Jericho judgmentally.

  “She’s just sulking,” Ariel said cheerfully. “Jericho will buy her a bunch of gifts and she’ll be happy again.”

  “Speaking of gifts,” Cynthia came around the corner dressed in black leather. She ignored everybody else in the room and went straight for Jericho. “Where is my Dragon’s Tongue and my Lunar Roses?”

  “I’m going to…” Jericho was interrupted as Cynthia placed her finger over his mouth. With her free hand, Cynthia stroked his hair lovingly before moving down his cheek. She struck him causing a warm sharp pain to shoot through his face.

  “Interesting,” Owl said. Terra nodded while watching the scene.

  “Why are you always trying to upset me?” Cynthia said sweetly. “It hurts my feelings when you break your promises. Is that what you want? To hurt me?”

  “No,” Jericho lowered his voice. “No goddess.”

  “What was that?” Terra asked loudly. “I couldn’t quite hear from over here. Maybe you should repeat it.”

  “She’s right,” Cynthia said. “I couldn’t quite hear you pet. Are you trying to upset me?”

  “No goddess,” Jericho answered louder as blood rushed to his face.

  “Very interesting,” Owl repeated while engrossed in the scene. “I was under the impression that dominatrices were specific to certain establishments.”

  “Cynthia,” Ar
iel worked up the courage to intercede. “Jericho is my master. You can’t…”

  “Listen pet,” Cynthia said ignoring Ariel as she lovingly stroked Jericho’s face focusing on the spot she’d slapped. “I was really looking forward to rewarding you. It hurts me so much that I can’t reward you. You want your reward, don’t you?”

  “Yes goddess,” Jericho answered shamefully.

  “Then bring me my herbs,” Cynthia said tapping him lightly before turning to walk away. “If I don’t get them soon, I will be forced to punish you. You made a promise, you need to keep it.”

  “Jericho,” Ariel spoke timidly as Cynthia left the room. “Did you promise Cynthia something?”

  “I promised I’d pick up some herbs,” Jericho said. “But I figured I had some time…”

  “No!” Ariel demeanor changed completely. “You have to get them now! Go! Now!”

  “I’ll get them tomorrow,” Jericho insisted.

  “Jericho,” Ariel was trembling not in fear but in fury. “How can you be so…so…stupid! Jinx is right! Idiot! Moron! Dolt! Dunce!”

  “What’s gotten into you?” Jericho asked. “Are you mad that I promised to do something for Cynthia.”

  “Yes!” Ariel snapped and swatted Jericho several times on the arm. “Cynthia takes promises very seriously! You have to get the herbs! How long has it been? You need to deliver them to her within eight hours or else. This is bad. This is very bad.”

  “Jericho,” Terra chuckled nervously. “I think you broke Ariel.”

  “Yeah,” Jericho said staring at the apprehensive fairy. “It’s already been four or five hours. What do you mean or else?”

  “You don’t want to know!” Ariel panicked. “Whips, chains, needles, hot pokers, it’s not nice!”

  “Interesting,” Owl said again.

  “Is that all you have to say?” Jericho said freaking out a little bit at the mention of hot pokers. Had he realized there was a timer on the herb delivery he would have done it first. Now with so little time left his only choice was the player market in Dawn and Dragon’s Tongue was expensive and hard to find.

  “I find it all very informative,” Owls said while looking at Ariel. “Your relationship with your familiars. Their personalities and behavior. Your behavior. You even gained that other fairy as a follower after making this fairy your familiar. You must admit, the dynamics are both complex and interesting. You’ve unlocked a dominatrix as a follower. It’s a lot to digest.”

  “Clearly you missed the mention of hot pokers,” Jericho retorted.

  “Funny how the whips, chains, and needles didn’t bother you,” Terra giggled.

  “Well,” Owl said looking over the books one last time. “I believe I’ve learned enough for today. Probably a little too much. And I’m sure Raven will be upset that I’ve shirked my duties so I’m going to head out. It was fun.”

  “Yeah,” Jericho laughed as Owl left. “We’ll do it again sometime.”

  “Now,” Terra grinned. “What are you going to do about Cynthia?”

  “What can I do?” Jericho said. “I need to find those herbs.”

  “Then what are you waiting for?” Ariel started pushing Jericho toward the front door. “Go! Go! Go!”

  “Right,” Jericho said while looking back at Terra. “I’ll talk to you later.”

  Chapter 5

  A Chase and a Date

  Jericho didn’t know whether to be relieved or annoyed as he paid the vendor for the Dragon’s Tongue. It took him nearly an hour to find the herbs at the Dawn market but he ended up paying nearly triple the normal price for it.

  Normally he would have spent more time looking but there were hundreds of vendors and most of the stalls were disorganized. The average player would rent a stall for a day and fill it with all the stuff they wanted to sell.

  The more organized players purchased several and made sure that each stall catered to a specific need. They’d purchase a stall for weapons, armor, potions, herbs, or anything else they wanted to sell. In exchange for this convenience, they massively overpriced their goods.

  After an hour of searching random stalls, Jericho gave up and paid the premium for Dragon’s Tongue and Lunar Roses. He’d deliver them to Cynthia with plenty of time to spare.

  On his way back to the portal he passed a woman with the brightest green eyes he’d ever seen and stopped dead in his tracks. He was positive they were the eyes of a shifter.

  “Wait,” he turned around and the woman had already vanished. “Shit.”

  Without giving it a second thought Jericho rushed through the area looking for that green emblazoned in his mind. Calling it bright was an understatement, it was practically neon. He caught it again out of the corner of his eye and rushed that direction.

  It might have been his imagination but he read shapeshifters liked cities because of the crowds and Dawn was one of the largest cities in Forbidden Arcana. It’d make sense for shapeshifters to hide there. He looked around and saw a green-eyed child glance toward him before rushing down an alley. Jericho gave chase.

  He exited the alley in time to see the child vanish behind a stall and a green-eyed young woman come out the other side and head straight toward a large crowd.

  “Okay,” Jericho grinned excitedly. “I got this.”

  He focused on her spirit as she entered the crowd and easily followed her as she traversed the mass of people. She might as well have been wearing a tracking device as he sensed her every movement. She’d regularly check in to see if Jericho was still on her trail, sometimes as a young woman and other times as an old man. Each time frustrated to see he was still there looking right at her.

  After a while, she stopped moving and a few seconds later she left the crowd. She was taller this time and wearing a cloak. He saw her entering an extravagant restaurant and followed her inside.

  The restaurant was filled with players gorging themselves on various decadent foods. There was an entire subset of players who spent their days hunting for the best food in the game, Jericho always felt that was time well spent because there was amazing food if you knew where to look. He saw the green-eyed woman sitting alone at a table staring at him.

  “Do you mind if I sit here?” Jericho asked while gesturing at the seat. The woman smiled politely and nodded. She’d obviously given up getting away from him. She watched him with curiosity as he sat down. He figured she was wondering how he followed her despite her numerous shifts, twists, and turns.

  “Can I get something to eat?” she asked graciously as the waiter headed toward them. Her voice wasn’t what Jericho had imagined, it was kind and soothing. For some reason, he was expecting her to sound more like a trickster. “I’m hungry.”

  “Sure,” Jericho said. The waiter arrived and the woman ordered almost everything on the menu. Jericho was going to pass on ordering anything but would have felt awkward so he ordered some small flavorful appetizers. “I’m Jericho, nice to meet you.”

  “Mirage,” the woman said. Jericho wondered if the buxom middle-aged blonde sitting across from him was her real form. He’d certainly be pleased if she was given her ample chest and generous hips. “Nice to meet you.”

  They sat in silence for several minutes sipping their beverages while they waited for the food. Jericho smiled thinking about his first date and how he blathered on and on because he was worried that silence meant things were going poorly. It took him a long time to realize that simply sitting quietly could be nice. The smile on Mirage’s face suggested she felt the same.

  “Don’t you have questions?” she asked with a wry smile. “I expected questions.”

  “I suppose,” Jericho chuckled. “But they can wait until after you eat. I imagine transforming so much took a toll on you.”

  “What makes you say that?” she asked as the waiter arrived. Other players in the establishment were staring at the massive cart of decadent food. “Oh, right.”

  They ate peacefully for a while. Mirage practically inhaled the foo
d as it came while Jericho took his time snacking on his appetizer. Eventually, Mirage started to slow down and went to wipe her mouth with her sleeve. She stopped herself and quickly swapped to the napkin.

  “Sorry,” she said looking around the fancy restaurant. Her face gained a hint of pink. “I didn’t mean to embarrass you.”

  “Do I look embarrassed?” Jericho asked. She shook her head no. “Are you full? Would you like some more?”

  “No thank you,” she answered. She picked up her drink with both hands and took a tiny sip before setting it back down. It reminded him of a squirrel eating a nut and he smiled. “I appreciate you not rushing me.”

  “It’s not a problem,” Jericho said completely intrigued by the woman. Compared to his other familiars she was calm and in control. “I have all the time in the world.”

  “Can I ask you who you’re bringing me to?” She asked staring down at her drink like it was the last she’d ever have. “Never mind. It doesn’t really matter. I guess I should be thankful that the person who caught me allowed me to have a last meal.”

  “I seem to have given you the wrong impression,” Jericho stifled a laugh. “I’m a mage.”

  “Mages can be bounty hunters,” she said knowingly. She looked him up and down suspiciously. “But are you saying you weren’t hired to capture me?”

  “Nope,” Jericho answered. Although, he was curious about the statement.

  “You’re really not a bounty hunter,” Mirage let out a sigh of relief while pulling down her hood revealing long sandy blonde hair. “Then why were you chasing me? And how were you chasing me?”

  “I saw your eyes in the market and thought you might be a shapeshifter,” Jericho shrugged. “So, I followed you. Then when you transformed, I had my confirmation.”

  “That doesn’t answer how you followed me,” she said suspiciously. “There’s no way you could have tracked my eyes in that large crowd.”

  “Following you was easy,” Jericho laughed. “Your spirit doesn’t change with your body.”