by John Corwin
I thought his parents were dead.
Harris saw us through the window and motioned us over.
Ambria grabbed my arm and dragged me toward the front door. "Let's go have some fun."
The last thing I wanted to do was have fun.
Self-pity is for the weak, Della said.
I bit back a retort when I realized she was right. Feeling sorry for myself; wallowing in pity would be a waste of time. I had to push forward through the pain and be ready for the next time my parents tried to hurt me.
"Fine," I said, and followed Ambria outside.
"I'd like you to meet my Aunt Kara and Uncle Louis," Harris said when we arrived, and it suddenly made sense why Harris resembled the man.
"What a pleasure," Kara said. "Harris told us all about how you two solved the final puzzle for the entrance exam."
"He's lucky to have a friend like you." Louis patted my shoulder. "You're a good lad."
Harris clapped my shoulder. "Hey, let's go kick the football." We ran over to Baxter.
I expected the boy to say something rude, but he simply booted the ball our way, his face flushed with pleasure. I wasn't good at kicking, but managed to keep up with the other two boys. Blue showed up later and joined us instead of hanging out with Lily and Ambria.
"You're really good," Harris said to her.
She bounced the ball off her knees then punted it off her head at me. "It's because I'm a lycan."
Harris grinned. "Maybe you could turn me into one so I'll be a better player."
"Me too," Baxter said.
Blue flushed and looked at me. "Would you like to be a lycan, Conrad?" She grabbed my arm and pretended to bite it.
I jumped back and the others laughed.
Later, everyone sat around a large picnic table outside eating the sausages and vegetables Louis had grilled.
At some point, I realized my anger and sadness had faded away, replaced by a strange feeling I didn't quite recognize. Even though these adults and children weren't family, I felt like I'd temporarily found a home, a place I belonged.
"What focus will you choose, Conrad?" Louis's question snapped me from my thoughts.
I hadn't given it much thought since we didn't have to choose for two more years. "Umm, I don't know." I chewed my lower lip and thought. "Elemental, maybe?"
"Almost no one chooses potions anymore," Baxter's mother lamented. "There's a shortage of good apothecaries these days."
"I might go with healing," Lily said. "Supplementing it with potions would be ideal."
"You're such a smart lass," Kara said.
Lily's father smiled proudly. "Healing would be a wonderful choice." He hissed air between his tongue and teeth. "Most of the good healers vanished in that fool's quest to conquer Seraphina, and the Overlord killed those who didn't agree with him."
"Let's not talk about that now," Lily's mother said, directing a worried look at Harris.
But the mention of my father only seemed to fuel Harris. "I want to be a Magitsu master someday, so I'm going to focus elemental like Conrad."
Louis ruffled the boy's hair. "You'll do us proud, lad."
"What's Magitsu?" I asked.
"It's a magical martial art," Kara said. "It nearly died out after the Blue Cloaks were trapped in Seraphina along with the rest of Slade's army, but there are at least two masters left in Eden."
"I want Master Kanaan to teach me," Harris said. "Everyone says he's the best."
"How powerful is he?" I asked.
Harris's eyes widened. "He killed Seraphim with nothing but wands." He flicked his hands around as if fighting invisible monsters. "There's a story about him fighting a demon lord named Karak and winning."
"I thought he killed a demon overlord," Baxter said.
Lily sighed. "You two always make the stories sound better than they were. If you'd read the actual book you'd know that Kanaan fought Karak, but the great Banisher herself, Emily Glass, sent him back to Haedaemos."
Ambria met my eyes and I could tell she felt as out of place as I did for not knowing much of Overworld history. At least none of these people seemed to notice or care, and that made it okay by me.
"Does Kanaan live in Queens Gate?" I asked.
Harris shook his head. "No, but he comes to town once a year to recruit graduates from the university for the Blue Cloaks."
"He's got a long way to go before he rebuilds," Baxter's father said. "There's too much money in being a freelance battle mage these days."
Louis snorted. "With the Arcane Council nearly broke, that's no surprise. They can't afford to pay themselves, much less the military."
The conversation soon turned political and I stopped listening. It became clear to me what I had to become if I were to one day defeat my parents.
A Magitsu master.
It seemed strange, me sitting here thinking about ridding the world of my parents while Lily and Baxter sat happily next to theirs. Even Harris acted as if his aunt and uncle were his true parents. I looked at Ambria and saw the uncertainty on her face as she listened to the others swap family stories. She looked at me and a smile cleared away her troubled look.
Ambria and Max weren't my flesh and blood, but they were my family. I couldn't bear it if something happened to them. They were the reason I had to end my parents once and for all.
Chapter 17
I divided my time over the next week and a half between watching for my parents at the crack in the world, studying, and having fun with my friends if for no other reason than to pretend everything was normal.
On the day before school, I went back to the fissure leading into the rift. Despite all the time I'd spent watching the place, I hadn't seen my parents come past here once. When school began, I'd have even less time to watch the crack.
I reached inside my backpack and removed the Basic Enchantments textbook I'd taken from the closet beneath the stairs. I skipped to the last quarter of the book where I'd marked the page for simple wards. Following the instructions, I drew a chalk oval on the smooth stone at the base of the fissure opening so anyone entering the crack would have to cross it. I pressed a thumb to the chalk and repeated the words from the book.
"Si fracti promptus ego." A tingle ran up my thumb and into my arm. I jerked back my hand in surprise, though it hadn't hurt. I stood and stepped on the line. Invisible fingers seemed to pinch my arm. I yelped and clapped a hand over the spot, but the pain quickly faded.
I didn't appreciate the alert method, but at least it worked. With the ward broken, I had to wipe away the chalk and redraw the oval. I armed it with the magic words once again and covered it with a light coating of sand so intruders wouldn't see it. Once satisfied, I retreated to my hiding spot in the dilapidated mansion.
A grin tugged my lips, and pride warmed my insides. It was a small accomplishment, but it felt like progress. I'm going to be the best student ever.
But now wasn't the time to bask in self-satisfaction. I took out my wand and pointed it at the battered leather divan in the middle of the room. I twisted the wand in a circle and flicked my wrist. "Torsious!"
The worn old chair remained where it was.
Blue sprang through the window. "Boo!"
My wand clattered to the floor. I yelped and stumbled backwards through a doorway to the adjoining room. My foot found emptiness since the floor had collapsed all the way down to the basement. "Gah!" I shouted, unable to form a coherent cry for help as I toppled over the edge.
Blue leapt forward and gripped my wrist. She pulled me back to safety and pecked a kiss on my cheek.
She grinned. "Am I your hero?"
Pathetic, Vic said. Frightened by a child.
Della's laughter rang in my head. He will never defeat us.
My face burned and my fists clenched. I was an idiot. One simple surprise from Blue and I'd nearly fallen to my death. What hope did I have of fighting my parents? "You almost killed me!" I shouted. I was furious with myself, but couldn't stop from taking it
out on Blue.
Her eyes grew round and filled with hurt. "It was just a joke."
"Why are you stalking me?" I kicked the old divan and almost slipped on the marble floor. This added failure only made me angrier.
Tears pooled in her eyes. "I'm not stalking you, Conrad." Her lower lip quivered. "Can't you see I like you?"
My anger evaporated, replaced by leaden shame.
"Why don't you like me?" Her voice squeaked with despair. "Is it because I'm a lycan? An animal?"
I reached for her. "You're not—"
She jerked away. "No, Conrad! I see how you really feel." Blue kicked the chair and sent it skidding across the floor and slamming into the wall. She ground out the last words between clenched teeth. "I'll just leave you and your stupid friends alone."
Before I could shout at her, she bounded out of the window and vanished in a flash. My arm dropped to my side and I stared blankly for a time. She likes me. Or at least she had before this. I'd heard older kids in foster homes talking about how they liked someone. How they wanted to kiss them and be around them. One girl had run away to be with an older boy, though the police had soon tracked them down and brought her kicking and screaming back to the foster parent.
I knew as much about romantic love as I did about magic. Thankfully, Blue had taken out her frustrations on the chair instead of me. I hoped she'd calm down so I could talk to her later. I did like her, though I wasn't too sure about all the kissing stuff. I supposed we could hold hands a little bit, so long as Max and Ambria didn't make fun of me.
My knees went weak and my hands trembled. Am I afraid of love?
I didn't have time to contemplate it when my newly installed ward pinched my arm. I bit back a shout of surprise and scurried over to the window just in time to see Serena vanish inside the grove of trees around the fissure. I grabbed my wand and let a count of thirty seconds pass before climbing out of the window and clambering down the rubble to the trees. I peeked inside the tunnel and saw a glowing light source about halfway through to the rift.
Echoes of voices drifted out, but I couldn't understand what they were saying. I stared into the tunnel for over a minute, trying to decide what I should do. I assumed my parents were with Serena. Even if I followed them to the rift, then what? How would I follow them past the guardians? If they turned around and came back while I was still in the tunnel, I'd have to crawl backwards as fast as possible to escape them. The only value in following them would be gathering information because I certainly couldn't fight them.
I wanted to eavesdrop, to discover their plans or any advances they'd made in the quest for immortality, but fear rooted me to the spot. The longer I contemplated the dangers, the deeper those roots dug into the ground. Several minutes later, and with great relief, I decided trailing my parents would be too dangerous.
"What am I thinking?" I hissed. Only a few minutes ago, I'd nearly died due to Blue's simple prank. I was physically fragile and had nothing with which to fight my parents if they discovered me. I squeezed my eyes shut. All the anger in the world wouldn't help me—only patience and stealth. I hoped Galfandor would do something about my parents before they gained their immortality, because there was nothing I could do.
I opened my eyes and cleared the blurring water from my eyes. A few moments later, I retrieved my broom and flew home.
Ambria and Max jumped up from sitting on the front porch when I arrived at the house.
"Something was wrong with Blue," Ambria said. "She stormed inside, took her things, and left before Max or I even knew she was leaving."
"She left?" I looked up and down the street, as if she might still be in view.
Max nodded. "She went next door and talked with Harris and the others, then they all hopped in a horseless carriage and left."
I dropped onto the front steps and buried my face in my hands. "It's my fault."
Ambria dropped next to me. "What happened?"
Max sat on my opposite side, noisily chewing gum. "I can't wait to hear this."
"I was hiding in the mansion near the crack—"
"Why would you do something so foolish?" Ambria pushed my shoulder. "You're going to get yourself killed if your parents find you."
"You're mental," Max breathed. He leaned forward so he could crane his head and look me in the eye. "Did you see them?"
I didn't answer that question and continued with my original story. "While I was waiting, Blue surprised me and I nearly fell into a hole going from the second story all the way to the basement." They frowned at me, so I continued. "I was upset. I yelled at her and she ran away."
Ambria patted my hand. "Well, she pestered you all the time, so of course it's natural for you to get upset."
"Duh, she likes him." Max snorted. "My brothers talk about girls all the time now and it's a good thing, too. They're so busy chasing girls they don't have time to play tricks on me." A huge gum bubble grew from his mouth and exploded with a loud pop.
"Conrad doesn't need a girl like Blue," Ambria said.
Max's forehead wrinkled. "Why not? I kind of like her, and she's pretty." He began to blow another bubble.
She sniffed. "Well, for one thing, she's a lot stronger than Conrad, and nearly his height."
Max's bubble popped.
Ambria slapped him on the arm. "Will you stop that? It's annoying."
He smiled sheepishly. "I can't help it—it's Trouble Bubble."
"What?"
"It blows huge magical bubbles without even trying." He took out two pieces wrapped in bright yellow wax paper. "Want some?"
Ambria groaned and snatched a piece from him. I took the other piece and tucked it in my pocket.
Ambria stood up. "Anyway, it's a well-known fact women like their men stronger and taller than themselves so I don't understand why Blue would like Conrad."
"Women are just too picky." Max patted me on the shoulder. "Don't worry, Conrad. Girls get upset over stupid things all the time."
Ambria gasped. "No, we do not." She folded her arms. "Maxwell Tiberius, you don't know a thing about women." With that, she stomped away and into the house.
Max chuckled. "See?" He stood and stretched. "I'll bet Blue will come back in no time and you can apologize to her. In the meantime"—he rubbed his belly—"let's go get something to eat."
The next morning was the big day.
I woke up early and ate breakfast with Ambria.
She nibbled at a slice of toast. "I'm so nervous I can hardly eat."
For some reason, I felt completely calm. I'd fallen asleep quickly last night despite all my worries and woken up with the alarm I'd set on my phone. I finished chewing my sausage and swallowed. "You'll be starving before lunch if you don't eat something."
Ambria stared at the parchment with our class schedule. "I'm certainly not looking forward to Elementary Magic with Professor Grace."
I finished eating and put my dishes in the sink. "Which period do we have his class?"
"Third," she said, and compared her schedule with mine. "Looks like we have two classes with Harris, Lily, and Baxter."
"Shouldn't they be in more advanced classes?" I asked. "I thought they went to other magic schools before this."
She rolled up the parchment and shrugged. "I have no idea. You'll just have to ask them."
I really didn't care to know the answer. I grabbed my backpack, now filled with all my worldly possessions, and slung it over my shoulder then helped Ambria secure her small suitcase to the back of her broom. We flew our brooms over to pick up Max at his uncle's. He was already circling over the house on his broom when we arrived, and zipped over to meet us.
"Wow, the first day of university," he said breathlessly. "Can you believe it?"
Ambria put a hand on her chest. "I'm so nervous I can hardly think straight."
Max pulled even with me as we flew up the cliff. "How about you Conrad? Has is sunk in yet?"
"Yeah." The excitement of starting this new chapter in my life had dw
indled away. I should have looked forward to a journey into the unknown. Instead, it seemed like a years-long slog through a marsh. My parents were decades ahead of me in knowledge and skill. Even if I survived to graduate, I'd still have years of studying ahead of me. By then, they might have discovered the secret to immortality and taken over the Overworld again.
"I think he's more nervous than me," Ambria said.
I replied with a wan smile. "Sure, that's it."
Scores of flying carpets flew up the cliff ahead of us, many of them coming from the direction of the main entrance to Queens Gate. The sky ferry, still in the shape of a pirate ship, glided up the cliff with a full load of students and their families. We glided past a massive flying carpet carrying furniture and luggage along with a girl and her parents.
Max waved at them as we passed, but they were too busy talking among themselves to notice.
"How rude," Ambria said.
An unpleasant view greeted us when we crested the trees at the top of the cliff. A mob of students and parents waited in line at the security gate.
"So many people!" Ambria said.
Max groaned. "Maybe we should have gotten here earlier."
"We were just here the other day," I said. "Shouldn't our security charms still work?"
"According to the note included with the class schedule, they change them on the first day of class," Ambria said.
Max threw up his arms. "This will take ages."
We landed our brooms and got in line.
Max took out his schedule and looked it over. "Do we have classes today?"
"Today is orientation," Ambria said, standing on tiptoes and craning her neck to look at the gate—a futile effort with so many people in front of us. "This line is even worse than the one on exam day."
"Yeah, because all the students are here," Max said, "and not just the ones taking the test."
Ambria shook her head. "I can't believe they'd reset security on starting day. This is ridiculous."
