The Court of Souls?_Volume 2_Agent of the Realm?

by Andur

  I cross my arms in front of my chest. “Good!”

  He furrows his forehead in honest befuddlement. “Good?”

  “Think about it. If the pyramid is a standard example of their bases, then they won’t be able to move all those spirits. They chose secret locations so that they can build up a reserve of spirits. I admit that the swarm was frightening, but without the base it seems to be uncontrolled. Even the hibernating spirits woke up and are now drifting away from each other, some are even killing off each other. If we force them to relocate in a hurry, then they will have to leave most of their assets behind.”

  He smiles and heads over to my side at the sofa. “That sounds reasonable. We should share the theory with your parents. Your father said that he can’t use the pathway network as a weapon of mass destruction, but maybe all we need is information. The spirits are somehow tracking every large portal, so there must be a way for us to locate their portals in turn. And the pathway network must be the largest sensor array in existence.

  “Your father explained that it eats energy to grow. Your parents must have limited the energy sources which are recognized as viable. That implicates a detection system. Maybe all they need to do is to lift the restrictions on certain frequencies?”

  A devious smile spreads on my face. “That’s why I love you. You are thinking out of the box. It might just work, though we’ve to ask Dad about it.”

  Suddenly Marcus places his hands on my hips and flips me around, lifting my skirt.

  “Hey! We’ve no freebies left!” I complain and slap his chest, but something must’ve flipped his switch!

  A wave of desire surges through our marriage bond, leaving me no choice but to gasp. He hugs me from behind and starts nibbling on my earlobe, searching the sweet spot between my legs. “You really want me to hold back when you look at me like that. That smile of yours was too sexy!”

  I whimper in silent acceptance of my body’s reaction to him. Then I reach behind myself and pluck the amulet from his neck. “Only if I get to use it first!”

  57. ~Clueless.~

  “We should all relax about life because you don't have a clue as to what's really going on.”

  - The Journey to the Afterlife

  Kingdom Newerth, Capital City

  Seria

  I knock on the door while pressing the alarm button with the fierce determination to cause havoc if I am not let in immediately. Nobody answers. Either my mother isn't in her laboratory, or she is so caught up in something that she is ignoring everything else. Normally I would simply leave, but I want to know what she found out about that piece of cloth. Giving up, I reach for the handle and try to turn it.

  It doesn't move.

  “I told you many times that locking me out only results in damaged security systems...” I mumble to myself and punch a fist through the metal, slightly above and to the left of the handle. Then I fumble for the handle on the other side of the door and turn it. The door opens with a click and I step inside, closing the door behind me. It wasn't meant to keep out unauthorized people, but to shoo away everyone who doesn't have the determination to break it.

  If my parents really want something secured, then there is at least one death trap involved.

  A long hallway is stretching out behind the door, so I waste no time and walk my merry way. Strolling the corridor, I peek into the various rooms on my path. Most of them are just storage areas for various materials. There are also a lot of machines which aren't in use. My parents tend to store everything they invent, which results in a lot of junk lying around. Calling out my mother's name, I open yet another door. It's sturdier than the others and I find myself looking at a room which can be called a greenhouse. A single, large, potted plant is in the middle of the room. Three green leaves of the size of a human enclose a large flower.

  Though something is disturbing about the picture. Clean, white bones are arranged all around the plant. They look like something gnawed on them. The flower's beauty quickly turns horrifying as the flower petals part and reveal the head of some kind of spirit which is attached to the flower. The head looks at me with its beady eyes. It swivels left and right in a snake-like manner. Then its lips draw back in a snarl and reveal a set of sharp, bloody teeth.

  I slam the door shut and one moment later something bumps against it from the other side. What a creepy pet.

  “Okay. That looked like one of Mom's failed experiments.” I turn away and head further down the corridor, trying to forget what I've just seen. There is no point in getting worked up about it. Actually I think it's one of the cuter experiments. At least much better than the improved zombie-slimes which she created to clean the city's sewer system. Those things give me the creeps. When she showed them to me I vowed to keep a distance of at least ten metres to every manhole on the street.

  In the end I find Mom camping in the last corner of her part of my parents' shared lab-complex. I enter the room which is painted in a clinical white. Compared to the plant's lair this looks comfortably normal. Not witchy or alchemic... just a normal, medical lab. “Mom? Are you feeling alright?”

  She looks up from her microscope. “Quite fine. Why do you ask?”

  “Ahem. No special reason. I was just thinking that this looks almost normal compared to your other labs. Are you on some kind of no-magic trip?” I survey the room, trying to find the reason why she is here. There is a large working desk with various instruments in the centre. The left wall is taken up by a large locker and the other walls house all kinds of large devices.

  She laughs. “Not at all, Dear. I just felt like doing it by the book. That's all. Where's Marcus? I thought you and your hun are inseparable? I've hardly seen you without him since you returned.”

  “Mh... okay. I just wanted to know if you already had time to take a look at that piece of cloth. And Marcus has some things to do. We've both neglected our other responsibilities since all this havoc came down on us. I had this job as a teacher and there is also the coffee shop.” I wave my hand to show that I've taken on more responsibilities than I can handle.

  “Ah, that shop. Shade takes me there every morning to eat chocolate and support you. I would have never thought that you would indulge in such a hobby.” She smiles and plays with a strand of her hair.

  Yeah. I know. The two of you are showing up in demon form daily, chasing away all my customers. I gain two people and lose twenty others. Somehow I get the feeling that the two of you are doing it on purpose to take revenge on me for all the times I blackmailed you! Admittedly, Dad is eating chocolate cake for ten people, but that doesn't compare to having more customers.

  I decide not to dwell on my issues with Mom and Dad hanging out at my shop. I can't throw out my parents just because they refuse to change their looks. “Returning to my question about the piece of cloth-”

  “Ah, yes! Sorry. No real results there.”

  I slump. “Really? I had my suspicions about our opponent's identity. Without a solid clue it's nothing more than a hunch.”

  Mom squints her eyes and waits for a few moments before she decides to talk. “It wasn't conclusive, but I found a black hair in the fabric. To be precise, the tip of a black hair, so there was not enough DNA to be sure. All I can say about it is that it is in good condition. No split end or something like that. Just a black hair.”

  I furrow my forehead. “Did you compare it to Dad's hair?”

  She snorts. “There is no need. Shade's hair looks as if he washes it with gas. If it wasn't for me and magic, he would be bald by now. I really should hide his regeneration charms to show him what he is doing to his body. The man would be a wreck if it wasn't for magical healing!”

  “So if the hair belongs to another version of him, then the other him is taking better care of himself?” I fiddle with my fingers. The whole situation is becoming worse and worse.

  Mom sighs. “I know that something is troubling you. Spit it out.”

  If you have to know. “It was just that the robe
d figure moved awkward. It took me a while to realize what was bothering me.”

  “Moved awkward?”

  I scratch my head. “Yeah, you know. Like men have a certain way of running and women move slightly different...”

  Mom's expression darkens as she gets my meaning. “You know that you are entering dangerous territory? If that's true, then we've to be extra careful. If Shade learns that his other version could be... that... I don't want to think about it.”

  My shoulders droop in silent resignation. “I know.” It may be the end of a realm or two.

  Then she flicks her fingers. “Did you get a good reading on that person's aura? Maybe it was another version of you or me? Why shouldn't there be versions of us out there? It seems unfair that only Shade has a clone.”

  Another version of me!? Gods forbid! “No? If we had sensed that, we wouldn't be guessing now.” I raise a hand. “And before you ask, we were in the middle of a battle and the whole area was so charged with energy that I could hardly sense anything. Shade was doing his shadow-lord-thing and Moonray was doing his best to set the pyramid aflame.”

  After a few moments of awkward silence I decide to steer the conversation back to safe territory. “By the way, why aren't you complaining about Dad's new habit of eating so many chocolate cakes? Recently you aren't even mentioning his excessive consumption of desserts.”

  She shrugs. “I decided that there is no reasoning with him, so I am trying to have him learn by experience. The multiverse is my witness, I tried to make him see reason regarding his body. So if there is no other solution, he has to learn the hard way.”

  “You decided to allow him to become fat!?” I ask baffled.

  “No! By the gods! I still want to have my fun in bed. A little belly wouldn’t put me down, but at the rate he is going, he would look like a barrel in no time. I am slipping laxatives into his chocolate cakes, and emetics into his hot chocolate. I can hardly believe that he will keep up his behaviour once it sprays out from both ends of his body for a few days in a row. Once he comes to me for help, I’ll tell him that he is allergic and that he has to limit himself. Do you want to take a look at the hair?” She gestures at the microscope.

  Poor Dad. But it’s his own fault in a way...

  I smile and step closer to take a look for myself. What greets me is a highly magnified picture of a black hair. No way in hell that a normal microscope of that size could achieve this magnification! So she is using magic and all this equipment is just styled to look normal! “I see what you were talking about. And no luck with dandruffs either?”

  She sighs. “I found a few, but they were yours. So unless you are our enemy, there is no definitive solution to our question. Though I wonder what an evil sister of yours would be like.”

  I shudder and step away from the microscope. “Let's not go there. One last thing. What happened to Moonray after we left?”

  Mom tilts her head, looking at me.

  Raising both hands, I hurry to clarify, “It's not like I care for what's happening to him. I am just curious. He is still a relative after all.”

  It takes an uncomfortable moment, but then Mom shrugs. “Doreen took him, or rather what was left of him. You'll have to ask her if you are really that interested in his fate. I didn't inquire.”

  “Grandmother had a lot of time to harness her hatred for him. He got her with child, promising everlasting love, and then he dumped her in the most despicable manner, almost destroying everything she cares about. Doreen is living for the clan and her family. Moonray didn't just leave her, he almost killed my Mom and me with his machinations. It always astonishes me that the woman can love her child that much while harbouring so much hatred for the man who got her pregnant in the first place.”

  I see. “Maybe it's better that I don't know.”

  58. ~Poison.~

  “Holding onto anger is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.”

  - The Journey to the Afterlife

  ***

  Kingdom Newerth, Capital City ***

  ***Marcus***

  “You really don’t look that well, man. Should I call a doctor? Or your wife?” I ask.

  The reason for my question is Shade’s pale face. The guy should really take better care of himself. Not only is he as pale as a ghost, he also looks a little malnourished and worked up. Not the greatest state to be in.

  Shade waves my worries away and straightens himself, holding onto the working desk of his laboratory. “Don’t worry. I’ll be better in no time. Must be some kind of sickness. Maybe influenza! I haven’t been feeling well lately.”

  I grind my teeth. There was a reason to visit Shade in his lab. And that was to discuss the possibility of finding our enemies. He listened to all of my suggestions while leaning on his working desk, clearly trying hard to keep it together. “I’ve never heard of someone getting sick without a definite reason. Healing magic can cure most diseases easily. Were you poisoned? It wouldn’t be the first time that we were infiltrated by their spies.”

  Shade shakes his head in denial. “I carry charms which detect most poisons. You wouldn’t believe how many attempts at killing me I’ve to endure every week. Most of my slimy subordinates don’t dare to challenge me directly. Instead they are trying their luck in all kinds of sneak attacks. Of course I kill everyone who is stupid enough to get found out. No. It must be something simpler. I wouldn’t fall to such a petty attempt at taking my life. The cause for my state must be something natural.”

  Okay. If it isn’t poison or magic, then it must be something that isn’t recognized as harmful by the charms. Like food. And I accidentally know that Shade isn’t exactly holding back in his consumption of certain foods. “Are you still eating that many chocolate cakes at Seria’s shop? Maybe it’s food poisoning?”

  Shade’s whole face cringes in pain. “That can’t be! I’ve lived countless lives and I never had a problem with eating chocolate. And I am sure that Seria doesn’t serve bad food in her shop! Don’t dare to spread such rumours about my daughter. She is already angry at us for always paying our visits in spirit form.”

  I roll my eyes. “Everything can harm you if you consume it in abundance, even water. Seria’s shop doesn’t necessarily have to serve bad food. I am just thinking about the fact that you are really overdoing it with the sweet stuff. Maybe your current body doesn’t take well to sweets? Dedessia doesn’t have much sweet stuff, so your current body might not be used to your current diet?”

  Shade’s face pales and his jaw droops. He stares at me as if I just delivered a death sentence. I’ve never seen him like that. Actually I doubt that anyone has seen him like that. Ever!

  “Boy. I hope that you are wrong! For your sake!”

  I realize that I entered dangerous territory and raise both hands, palms out. Shade is the kind of ruler who kills the messenger for bad news. No matter that it wasn’t the messenger’s fault. “I just proposed a theory. I am not saying that it’s true. All I wanted you to do, is to visit someone with more medical knowledge than me. You look ill.”

  He hits the table with his fist. “I have no time to be ill! There are orders to give, research to be made, and your suggestions have to be put to the test! There is an interdimensional war going on and I am still three steps behind. And now you want to tell me that I am ill?” He stands up, sways, and sits down again. It’s like he doesn’t want to show weakness in front of me. Though I really don’t mind. If he feels sick, then he simply should say so. I have to find Elona and inform her of his dilemma.

  “So you think that using the pathways for gathering intelligence is feasible? That’s better news than I hoped for.” If he really can pull it off, then we are in a much better position.

  “At first glance I don’t see a reason why not. We designed the whole network for more than transportation. It’s organic design makes the whole issue with changing its function a little complicated, but there is no real reason why it shouldn’t be possible. In fa
ct I’ve thought of a similar spying mechanism myself.

  “Of course I wanted to use it as a fully functional spying tool, but that feature won’t be usable until the network goes fully online. That’s why I didn’t think of using it. But your idea means nothing more than searching for certain energy signatures, something that the network already does anyway. The main problem lies in accessing the data and making sense of it. It’s not so much a technical problem, than one of organizing the information. Once we’ve that under control, it should be possible to locate every portal that’s opened within the network.”

  He finishes his explanation and leans forward, resting his elbows on his thighs. It looks a lot as if he is going to puke any moment. “Are you going to puke?”

  “No.”

  Just why did that sound like a lie? “I’ll go and find Elona. She surely knows what to do.”

  “Well, of course she knows what to do! I bet she is the source of the whole problem!”

  I turn back to my father-in-law, raising an eyebrow. “Now you are even turning delusional.”

  “Hah! I knew that something was fishy about the entire situation. She stopped her attempts at holding me back from eating chocolate!” He calls out, slipping from his chair and curling up in a foetal position. Using one hand, he pulls closer a nearby garbage can… I don’t have to guess why he wants it nearby.

  Angrily, he goes on, “I kept thinking about her strange behaviour for a few days. When nothing bad happened I stopped worrying. This feels exactly like her work!”

  “That’s it. I’ll go and find you someone professional.” I turn around and hurry out of the lab. Once outside, I head directly towards Elona’s part of the huge facility.

  When I got a short tour through the whole complex, I asked myself for what reason two people would need all this space, but most of it is just storage area. When they showed me some device with nuke potential lying around in one of the closets I vowed to never wander off and explore on my own.