Chapter 5
Link
They arrived back in Bishops room atop the jumportal symbol. Their landing was harsh, and they felt the full force of it upon the completion of the transportation. Had Rook activated the symbol any later they would have suffered the full impact of the four story fall and suffered severe injuries.
Gasping for air, Bishop rose to his feet, wiping off debris from his clothes while Rook used the bed as a crutch to pick himself up. Lying on his back, he spread his arms out and chuckled softly to himself. He’d done it, he completed the mission successfully.
“That… was close,” said Rook in between breathes. “But we did it.”
“Yes… yes we did, Rook… but tell me… you can read, can’t you? I mean, the box here… clearly says… e-mer-gen-cy. Or am I wrong? Wait let me look… nope… that’s exactly what it says.”
“I had to take something,” Rook replied. He rose, leaning on his hands. “We were supposed to do this together, remember? Oh, you don’t do you? That’s because you were asleep!”
“You… could have died. Do you not realize if I hadn’t listened to your voice mail when I did you’d be dead? I understand you want to find your sister, but you can’t be so careless! Having the will to fight is only as good as the knowledge you possess.”
“Okay, I get it! I won’t touch your emergency kit again. All right?”
Bishop didn’t respond. He simply snatched the pack from the floor and placed it carefully back into its glass box. He turned to walk out of the room. “I need a drink, you coming?”
“Right behind you.”
Although Bishop didn’t show it, Rook knew he wasn’t as upset as he was expressing. In truth, Bishop couldn’t care less about his kit; he was upset with Rook for going by himself even if he believed he could handle things on his own. Bishop wouldn’t forgive himself if something happened to him and tonight he’d come very close to dying. He understood why Bishop felt the way he did, but he knew Bishop understood his reasoning.
Rook rose from the bed and grabbed the rectangle case before following Bishop out of the room and downstairs, where Harmony, Felix and Niles sat at the counter. He didn’t hear what they were talking about initially but from the laughter things were going fine.
“Hey, Bishop—Rook,” Felix greeted.
“Think you can get me a drink, kid?” Bishop asked before joining them at the counter.
“Sure thing,” Felix responded. Before reaching under the bar and retrieving a green bottle of scotch and pouring it into a glass.
Rook walked to the front of the counter and sat next to Harmony.
“You guys weren’t too hard on her, were you, Uncle Niles?”
Niles grinned and chuckled. “Not at all. She handled everything with perfectly. It will be good to have her on board.”
“That’s good,” said Rook. He turned to Harmony. “Congratulations, welcome to the team.”
“Thank you,” she said with a smile. Her gaze fell to the case in Rook’s hand. “I didn’t know you played the flute. I used to when I was in high school.”
“Oh this? This isn’t a flute—it’s just a case with some items inside. I can’t play any instruments, actually,” Rook laughed, before sitting the case in the chair on the other side of him, trying to not draw anymore unwanted attention to it than he already had. “You should show me sometime.”
“It’s been a while, but I think I can do that,” Harmony responded with a smile. She looked at the clock on the wall before rising from her seat. “It’s getting late, I should head back now, my roommate will be get worried if I’m out too late. I’ll be here at eleven. Thank you again for the opportunity, Niles.”
“No problem young lady. Felix, see her out for me will you?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Until tomorrow,” said Bishop holding his glass up, drinking all of it and shuddering.
Harmony nodded. “Until tomorrow,” she said, before turning back to Rook who extended his hand. “See you tomorrow.”
They shook hands as Felix came from behind the counter to meet her. She buttoned her jacket up before Felix led her out the door. The bell rang as she crossed the threshold and Felix followed her outside. Bishop reached over the counter and grabbed the bottle. Pouring himself another drink before turning to Niles.
“Think she’ll make it, Old Man?”
“I think she’ll do fine—I’ll admit, she’s no Marron though, but she has the skills and knowledge. It’s only a waitressing job after all.”
“That’s good.”
Rook turned to Bishop as he and Niles waited for Bishop to say something else. Niles cleared his throat and turned to Bishop, tilting his head slightly.
“That’s it? No snappy comeback or anecdote? Are you okay tonight?”
“I’m fine, I’m just in a mood right now,” Bishop answered.
Bishop’s mood came as a surprise to Niles, but not to Rook. Normally, Bishop would make a snide comment toward Niles, but not this time. His mind was elsewhere. Niles didn’t know where, but Rook did. Felix returning from seeing Harmony out of the cafe broke the awkward silence as the bell rang once more. He joined Niles on the other side of the counter and cleaned a few glasses with a dry towel.
“Great job on the brownies by the way, Felix. They were fantastic.”
“Fantastic? Really? I could tell you enjoyed them, you finished them all,” Felix laughed. “I’ve never seen anyone eat as much as you do.”
“Being a jack-of-all-trades takes its toll on me and I need lots of food to fuel my talents,” Bishop said with confidence.
Niles scoffed before tending to the counter wiping it down as he listened to Bishop brag about how great he is. Rook left the counter and walked to the booth where the papers from the job still sat on the table. Sitting down, he sat the package next to him and collected the papers together neatly before placing them inside the folder. He rested for a moment before reaching into his pocket and retrieving his cellular phone. All that remained on the table was the case, and Edgar Killshaw’s business card.
Rook’s thoughts drifted to when he was being interrogated by Magnus Rathbone and being accused of being an assassin. Rook didn’t understand what that meant or why he was asking about who his parents were. His reaction was that of a person in disbelief as if he’d seen a ghost.
The thoughts about the negative events that plagued his night faded as his heart raced at the thought of seeing his sister once more and Edgar Killshaw’s client had the resources to help him find her. If they could gather so much information on Magnus and his estate, finding his sister should be just as easy.
Rook dialed the number and waited as it rang twice before Edgar Killshaw answered.
“Good evening, this is Edgar Killshaw.”
“Hello, it’s Rook—we spoke earlier.”
“Ah yes, I’m surprised to hear from you so soon.”
“What can I say we work fast. Although, things didn’t go quite as smooth as we’d hoped.”
“So you failed then?”
“No—no, sir, we didn’t fail—we retrieved the item as you instructed. It just was more difficult than we imagined.”
“Hm. I see, well I’m glad to hear that you’re safe and you succeeded in your task.”
“Thank you, Mister Killshaw.”
“I spoke to my client when I visited him today. He has agreed to your terms, pending the confirmation of the item.”
“If it isn’t too much to ask, can you tell me your client’s name?” Rook asked.
“Unfortunately, I am unable to confirm my client’s identity, I’m sure you understand. I prefer discretion with my dealings.”
“I understand,” said Rook. He didn’t care if Edgar told him; his only concern was finding his sister. “So, when can we meet?”
“First, I need you to confirm the contents of the case, so I know it’s exactly what’s supposed to be inside.”
“Okay… what am I looking for?”
R
ook slid the case in front of him, an analyzed it. It had a six symbol locking mechanism on its front. Each of the five rows carried five symbols: a star, moon, flame, water and tree. All were random and the case wouldn’t open unless the sequence was put in the correct order.
“I will tell you the symbols you must place in the correct sequence, understand? If you don’t put them in the correct sequence, a spell has been placed on the case to lock itself permanently. Any attempts to destroy it would also mean destroying what’s inside.”
“Okay, I understand.”
“The sequence starts from the middle row, then moves to the row to the left, then right, left then right. Understand?”
“Middle row… left then right… left then right… I got it.”
“Enter these symbols in that order and the case will open: flame, water, tree, star then moon.”
Rook calmed his breathing before rolling his thumb on the symbols, following the sequence as instructed. The lock opened, following the sound of a pop from inside, lifting the top of the case slightly.
“It’s open!” Rook exclaimed. He exhaled and slumped in his seat before shaking his head and collecting himself. Had he messed up the sequence, he never would have forgiven himself.
“What should be inside?”
“Inside, there should be a folded up scroll, open it and describe what you see.”
“Okay,” said Rook. He opened the case then removed the scroll and unfolded it. Sliding the case out of his way, it extended the length of the table. “It’s long… has a large symbol in the center I’ve never seen before… and small writing that covers the entire scroll I can’t read.”
“Okay, things look to be in order. What you see is my client’s family will. It is worth more to him than anything. Thank you for getting it back.”
“No problem,” Rook said while still admiring the scroll.
“There’s one last thing. I need you to ensure that document isn’t forged. Place your hand on the symbol and imbue your magic with while saying the word: link.”
“I don’t think I can do that,” said Rook. He hesitated, knowing neither what the document was nor what the writing was and after what happened earlier in the night, he wasn’t ready to take any more chances.
“Unfortunately, Mr. Rook, it is necessary,” said Edgar. “You do wish for my clients in finding your sister, do you not? This is the only way. It will be the last thing you have to do, I assure you.”
Rook said nothing as thoughts of his sister rushed through his mind once more. Was this was the only way? Is this the only true opportunity he would have at finding his sister? He thought about everything he’d gone through that night to get the scroll, once more. They captured and almost killed him. The risks he took to get it almost cost him his life. But he came this far and there was no turning back now. He convinced himself in that moment, this wasn’t for his sake, but for his sisters.
“Okay, I’ll do it.”
Slowly Rook placed his hand on the symbol before exhaling deeply. “Link.”
The symbol erupted in a blue aura and Rook felt a sudden rush of magical energy flow through him and into the symbol. A radiant blue aura of magical energy spread from the symbol, and into the foreign writing on the scroll, until suddenly receding back, then into Rook.
The symbol disappeared under his palm, slowly appearing in black on the back of his hand, until the blue aura dispersed. Rook jumped from his seat panicking frantically while trying to rub the symbol off of the back of his hand. His movements grabbed the attention of the others from their conversation, causing Bishop to come to his side.
“What is this—what did you do?” Rook shouted into the phone.
“See you soon, Marques,” said Edgar, his voice was cold and empty.
“Tell me what did you do?” Rook shouted frantically before throwing his phone to the floor.
“What—what is—”
Bishop stopped speaking once his gaze met the scroll. His eyes widened before turning to Rook, who noticed his shocked expression.
“What did I do Bishop?” Rook asked frantically.
“What’s going on?” Niles asked from the counter.
Bishop exhaled and lowered his head. “You signed an Avatar contract.”
Chapter 6
The Avatar War
Rook watched as his uncle walked from behind the counter, quickly tapping his way toward him.
“Why did you sign that?” Bishop asked. “We were sitting right over there, Rook!” Anger flashed in his eyes as he spoke. He turned and walked away, pacing around the cafe. “You do not understand what you’ve just done.”
Rook held his hand, gazing at the symbol, his mouth gaping and his mind racing. The sound of Niles cane interrupted his thoughts, grabbing his attention.
“Tell me what happened—what did he do, Bishop?”
“He signed an Avatar contract.”
Niles’ eyebrows arched high, before he exhaled deeply. He held himself up with his cane with one hand and rubbed his head with the other. “Rook… do you know what you’ve done?”
“No! I don’t know what this symbol means or what an Avatar contract is! It was… It was the only way I could find her!”
“Her? You don’t mean—”
“Yes, Isabella. I did it for her! It was the only way they’d help me find her I had to confirm it otherwise—,”
Niles stepped forward. “Calm down, take a seat and tell me everything from start to finish, okay?”
Rook wiped his eyes before sitting back down at the table. Using his stick to guide him, Niles joined him at the table and sat across from him. Sitting his stick aside, he lifted his head in Rook’s direction.
“I know you want to find her Rook, but you’re going to get yourself killed!”
“Bishop—enough!” Niles snapped, turning to him.
“I’ll see you later—let’s see if you can talk some sense into him. Maybe he’ll listen to you,” said Bishop before storming out of the diner in a huff, causing the bells to ring.
“Go after him Felix,” Niles ordered. “Make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid.”
“Yes, sir,” said Felix, before bolting out of the cafe after Bishop.
“I don’t understand what’s happening, and now Bishop—”
“Bishop will be all right. He means well, Marques. I know he and I don’t get along very well, but we share a bond when it comes to you,” Niles explained. “Now, tell me everything. Leave no detail out.”
For over twenty minutes, Rook talked and Niles listened. He didn’t ask any questions, he didn’t make any statements he just sat, absorbing every detail his nephew was giving him. Rook didn’t leave out anything as his Uncle asked, even thought he knew it would be upset with him after, but he had to tell him.
From Bishops business cards, to Edgar Killshaw’s opportunity, infiltrating Magnus Rathbone’s estate, being captured and almost killed, Bishop saving him and the phone call with Edgar Killshaw, Rook left no detail out. When he was done, Niles leaned back and said nothing for several minutes.
“Rook, you should have come to me with this, when you were first approached.”
“I know, but I knew what you would have said and I—”
“Did it for her?” Niles asked, finishing Rook’s sentence. “No, you didn’t do all of this for her, Rook. You did it for yourself. You may not think so, but that’s the truth.”
“I… seeing her again is why I did it! You’ve given up on finding her, but I can’t! She’s my sister!”
“I hear you, but tell me something, how do you think she would feel if she knew how carelessly you risked your life for the sake of finding her? Do you think she’d want that? Do you think she’d be happy knowing you died trying to find her? No Rook, she wouldn’t. She would be heartbroken. That’s why I know you did this for yourself and not her. Because you truly aren’t thinking about her, you’re thinking about you. You are being selfish.”
Rook lowered his head and slump
ed in his seat. The words Niles spoke stung him to his core. He’d always thought he was doing the right thing, and he was making decisions for the right reasons, but he was wrong the entire time. His heart was in the right place, trying to find his lost sister and be reunite with her, but the selfish desire to do anything and everything he could to achieve them no matter the cost clouded his judgment.
“What’s done is done, Marques. We can’t change the past. Many have tried and failed, we can only move forward.” Niles explained before reaching over and placing his hand on Rooks. “Let this be a lesson and don’t dwell on it, learn from it, okay?”
Rook nodded as Niles removed his hand. “Okay,” he mumbled, disappointment rattling his voice.
“About what that contract is and what that symbol means. That contract is what is known as an Avatar contract. When you imbue your magic with it, you have signed and agreed to what it states. That symbol upon your hand is proof,” Niles explained. “That symbol is also there in the event that you don’t uphold the contract, it will spread through your body and it will kill you. Those are the terms of the Avatar contract.”
Rook looked up, shooting a glance of concern at his uncle. “Kill me?”
“Yes, by signing it, you have entered yourself into a war between mages, The Avatar War.”
“The Avatar… War?”
“Yes.”
“What is that? How do you know so much about it?”
“I know about it because I won it. Twice,” Niles explained as Rook tilted his head. “I know it may seem hard to believe, but I was once a mage of great skill and competed and won the two Avatar Wars I entered. In fact, it was the War that ultimately brought you and your sister into this world,” he laughed.
“What do you mean?”
“Well, my sister—your mother—Lucia told your father the only way she would marry him is if he competed in and won that years Avatar War. She’s was only joking with him, but your father, being as determined as he was followed through with it and won with me. They were married soon after and a year later you were born.”
Magecraft (Magik: The Avatar Wars Book 1) Page 4
