by Martha Carr
Oh hell, fuck getting on with my life. Leira ran across the few steps between them, cutting him off as she wrapped her arms around Correk’s neck, holding him tight.
Correk started but put his arms around Leira. “If you’re checking me for broken bones I’m not sure this would be the best plan.”
Leira focused and pulled in just enough energy to light up her eyes, her chin ducked down as she sent a thin stream of energy through Correk, making sure he was really alright.
Correk lifted his head, arching an eyebrow. “You know I can feel that…”
“We’re family and this is efficient.”
Correk let go and gently took a step back so he could look at Leira. “I’m sorry I frightened you. I know, I know, you can handle anything. How is your leg? Can you still go on those long runs you insist on calling fun?”
“I’m slowly getting back to it. It’s taken a while. All the parts are working, though. Mom and Nana used their magic to speed me along. You know, before I met you I didn’t have a single scar on me. Not one. Never broke as much as a finger.”
“I had a hand in putting you in the middle of two worlds. But I also helped you figure out you have magical capabilities. Did you really think you never would have noticed? You should be thanking me.”
“Is that right?”
“Without me, your arms would have lit up like Christmas trees one day and freaked you out.”
“Freaked? Clearly, you’ve been watching television somehow all the way from Oriceran while you were laid up.”
“Let’s Make a Deal reruns and old movies. Alright, alright, alright.”
“Dazed and Confused, I get it and so appropriate. But don’t do that.”
“He’s an old Wizard. Matthew McConaughey. Very clever one. Retired from the Silver Griffins on Oriceran before he took up acting. You know he lives near Lavender Rock.”
“You’re making that one up. Don’t cross your heart. That’s not really a thing.” Leira brushed her bangs off her face. “God help me, I missed this too.”
“Well, you took a couple of hard blows to the head. Maybe it shook some sense into you.”
“They told me later what you did for me. You saved my life and it nearly cost you your own life.” She punched him in the arm just hard enough.
“Two moons! First, you’re hugging me and now you’re punching me! Is this some strange human custom or more likely, your own version of good cop, bad cop that you can do all on your own?” Correk rubbed his arm. “You’re an enigma wrapped in a riddle.”
“Don’t do that again,” she said sternly. “I’m not losing any more family, not even temporarily. Next time, fucking duck dude. I mean, really, I appreciate the gesture but you couldn’t pull the fireball toward you and then just duck?”
Correk rolled his eyes. “Second time I’ve heard that one today. Fireballs are a little trickier than a bullet. Ducking isn’t enough. They seek out a target. I changed the target.”
Leira’s eyes grew wider. “You knew it would hit you… Did you think you’d survive?”
“Aren’t you the one who gets tired of the touchy-feely parts? Surely, this counts.”
Yumfuck came back from the kitchen, the oversized bag of Cheetos held over his head. “Welcome home!” he chirped.
“Saved by the snack food.” Correk took the bag from the troll, giving him a tiny high-five.
“First person in the history of the world who’s probably ever said that. Fine, I’ll drop it… for now. But I’m quizzing Turner. Clearly, he didn’t tell me everything about fireballs.” Leira pushed her purse aside and sat down, cross-legged in the red velvet chair.
Correk settled back onto the couch with the Cheetos bag in his lap. The troll quickly climbed onto his shoulder and put his tiny arms over his head, arching his back.
“Don’t even think about diving into this bag.” Correk quickly plucked Yumfuck off his shoulder and put him down next to him on the couch.
“He managed not to open that bag, even on days when he plowed through everything else in the place. We had a deal. Those were yours.”
“Time’s up!” squeaked the troll, holding out his paws.
“Give him a bowl. That orange dust is permanent. Just look up at our ceiling.”
“Those stains involve other-worldly gases. Magical fart dust.” Correk gave a grunt as he got up.
“I’ll get it old man. You stay there.” Leira watched him settle back as she got up, stopping to look at him more closely as she passed by the couch. “Is that a white streak in your silver hair?” She went in the cupboards and found an old red plastic bowl and brought it out, handing it to Correk.
The troll climbed in the bowl and sat down, holding out his arms.
“Not sure he gets what bowls are for.” Leira went back to her chair.
“Oh, he gets it.” Correk poured Cheetos all around the troll who let out a squeal of delight. “Kind of nice it takes so little to make him happy.”
“He hasn’t been this excited since you left. I think he missed you too.”
Correk looked down at the troll who had filled his cheeks, stretching them out to either side. He was chewing away as fast as he could. His eyes were shut and cooing could be heard above the crunching.
Correk looked up at Leira, watching him closely. “It’s okay. I promise you there’s nothing wrong with me and if another magical weapon comes at you I’ll send it at a tree or a rock instead. Tell me what I’ve missed.”
“There’s a lot to tell you. I guess I should start with all the groups racing for artifacts.”
CHAPTER FIVE
Leira looked out over Lake Anna the next morning, focusing on the day’s exercise. Another magic lesson. Turner Underwood was standing next to her, leaning on his cane, guiding her energy. His familiar bowler was tilted back on his head.
“You can learn to connect your energy with other magical beings who are willing to join you. Before, you did it under duress and with the help of your grandmother or your mother who knew how to connect.” Turner pulled in a stream of magic, lining it up with Leira’s energy, following the trail without crossing over or pushing.
He twitched his bushy eyebrows, surprised at what he saw and felt. “Hmmm… Your magic has a new flavor to it. Something in you has changed and from the looks of it, permanently.
Leira felt herself gliding along with the energy, letting it lead her. It was so much easier for her these days. The stream was pulling her along at a faster and faster pace, showing her different parts of the world. “Wow…” Her voice came out in a hushed whisper. She took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, cruising along the Pacific Coast Highway, looking down over the cliff.
Turner tapped his cane hard on the slate pathway. “What are you doing? Part of having such great power is learning the maturity to restrain yourself.” He leaned in and whispered in her ear. “Quit fucking around, my dear. This is not a game.”
Leira barely registered Turner was talking to her and concentrated on letting the magic pull her along, a feeling of joy lifting her up, soaring.
“It’s intoxicating.” She heard the echo of her voice, blending in with the light from the ribbon of energy, sparkling out in front of her.
“Well, that’s new.” Turner pursed his lips and closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath to get a better handle on what was happening. “You live almost a thousand years, you think you’ve seen it all. Then a little something happens and… ba da bing, ba da boom.” Leira’s magic grazed up against his accompanying stream and he felt the giddiness bubble up inside of his chest.
“That’s amazing.” His eyes popped open and he slapped his forehead with his hand. “Of course, you exist. If dark magic exists, you must be out there. A thousand years. You’re a bitch to find.” He shook his head and leaned forward on his cane.
Leira heard the echo of Turner Underwood’s voice and craned her head to the right, her eyes still shut. His magic was a sparkling copper, moving swiftly alongside her own.
The smooth, silkiness of the ride pulled her back toward the energy and she turned her head back. Every worry or frustration left her mind and was replaced with a feeling of serenity. Everything was possible. Any thought of the lesson was gone. She never wanted it to stop.
Turner reached out and firmly placed his hand on Leira’s forearm, sending his energy more forcibly straight through her, blending it with the deep river of magic Leira was entranced with, following every curve and turn. She felt the magic pull her out over the Gulf, the warm waters shining below her. She gasped as the magic made a sudden lurch and pulled her over the dark green fields of Ireland dotted with sheep. A sudden whomp surged through her abdomen, pulling her energy higher into the sky.
Turner drew up more energy from the Earth and focused all his abilities, introducing average, every day concerns back into Leira’s thoughts. Hagan and the next case. Correk is getting stronger all the time. The regulars are going bowling later that day. Leira glanced over at the thoughts and ignored them, a smile coming across her face.
“Thought for sure reminding you of Correk and Hagan would do it.” Turner scratched his head. “So be it. I can jostle you a little harder.” Memories of the dark mist flooded her brain and the battle against it. The death of Prince Rolim. The elder king trapped in the world in between sacrificing himself. Leira felt a heaviness coming back over her. Rhazdon and the necklace…
The breath was knocked out of her and she exhaled hard, falling back onto the ground. She lay back, letting her head rest on the ground as she struggled to get back the feeling of bliss. That’s what it was… Bliss!
Leira could feel the reach of joy and pain, both of them pulling at her from opposite directions. The rush was leaving her with an ache in the middle of her chest. She sucked in air, trying to fill her lungs, and opened her eyes.
Turner was leaning over her, blocking the sunlight. “You’re a very stubborn cookie when you want to be. I had to lay it on thick to get your attention. Relax, no need to hit me with those stares.” He held out his hand to help her up. She ignored him and sat up on her own, easily jumping to her feet.
Turner Underwood stepped back, crossing his arms across his chest and hooking his thumbs under his armpits. He was smiling, rocking on his heels. “I’ll have you know that I’ve been in battles fighting alongside my king and risen up against the darkest of magic. More than once! In all that time, only once before have I had the pleasure of experiencing what humans like to call pure joy. It was amazing! What a trip!”
“Then why the hell did you pull me out of there?” Leira still felt the remnants of joy passing through her chest, mixed with anger from the abrupt exit. The reminders of everything she went through lately wasn’t helping either. She took in slow, deep breaths, determined to recapture the glow.
“My dear, it makes perfect sense that Dark Magic announces itself so loudly everywhere it goes. It wants to cause harm and pull in as many fools as it can. It’s full of thousands of years of ego and willfulness and fear. When it’s present you can feel it before you even look up to see who is playing with it. A feeling of dread sinks deep into your bones and you want to turn away. Only the entitled and greedy go further and beckon to the darkness.”
“Not the question I asked.” Leira felt the edge of the happiness, a tingle passing through her body as she looked up at the clouds and felt weightless again. Her eyes shined with tears… but the feeling didn’t last. It faded into mist as she shut her eyes, feeling the last bit of it slip away.
Turner straightened the daisy in his lapel. “But Light Magic, in its pure form eludes us all. Stays a few steps ahead of us, as it should.” Turner tapped a finger against the side of his nose.
Leira looked out over the lake. She wasn’t ready to look back at Turner and be pulled right back further into every worry, every desire.
“See! That look you just gave. Light Magic is intoxicating in its pure form. I felt it right along with you!” There was excitement in his voice that Leira had never heard before. “You can feel how perfectly everything aligns in the world… in both worlds! Every care drops away and your mind goes blank. All you can do, all you want to do is take in the wonder. There’s the danger.”
“How can light magic and that kind of joy be called dangerous?” The weight of her cares felt even heavier after feeling the absence.
“The one time I felt it before was on a battlefield hundreds of years ago. A sword passed through me, right about here.” Turner pointed to the right side of his belly. “Broad sword like that, didn’t take long for the blood to flow out of me. I lay back on the ground and let go. Every concern passed from me and a sense of peace took its place, filling every vacuum. Do you understand? You were tapping into death. I stopped you before you could go too far.” He held out his arms to the sides, as if he was explaining the obvious.
“You thought I was about to die?”
“I actually don’t know. That was the dilemma. You and I seem to end up in new territory far too often.” He ticked them off on his fingers. “You crossed over to Oriceran without a portal… or your body for that matter. You drained Rhazdon of her dark magic.”
“I had a lot of help with that one.”
“And you tapped into the stream of life. Exquisite.”
“I thought you said it was death.”
“Don’t be thick. They’re one and the same. That’s a human thing to think death is an ending, an absence of everything. It’s the holder of the life force. The other side of the world in between.”
Leira looked up abruptly, tilting her head to one side. “You know more about the world in between, don’t you?”
“I know a lot of things. I told you, I’m the Fixer. You don’t get that title with an empty head.” He shook his finger. “Or from blabbing everything you know, either. It’s a constant balancing act.” He put his hand out to Leira and waited patiently. She gave in and put her hand in his, feeling the connection of magic.
“Still,” he said, “I’ve never seen anyone travel smack into the middle of that energy who wasn’t about to die.”
“The feeling was so peaceful…I…I can’t even describe it.” Leira tapped the center of her chest. “The second I started to think about something…anything, the feeling went away.”
“It’s supposed to work like that. It’s so you’ll go local. Stay put on this side of the mystic plane and get shit done!” Turner tapped his cane on the ground. “However, you have had the pleasure of feeling the other side, a brush up against death, without the usual trauma. You’ve also felt the worse that Dark Magic can slam at you, hopefully…”
“Hopefully…fuck. Can you imagine worse?”
“No, but haven’t you ever wondered why thousand-year-old Elves don’t look bored? I mean, come on that’s a lot of time to be kicking around. No? You really haven’t?”
“I’ve been busy.”
“Something new is always popping up that I never imagined. Lately, it’s you!” He squeezed Leira’s hand. “You have been encircled by the Darkness and ridden a wave of Light. The yin and yang. It’s not just theory for you and that is a very powerful tool, my friend. Most hesitate for fear the edge of the envelope is too far out there. You know that it’s further than that, and that’s okay. Now, come on. We’ve wasted enough time. Your lesson isn’t over and right now you’re failing at it.”
Leira rolled her eyes.
“Joy was not the assignment.” Turner poked his finger in the air. “Getting someone you don’t know to merge with you magically is the assignment. Come on, try again. I have places to be. A fetching Elven woman to wine and dine.”
Leira let out a snort as she shut her eyes, inspiring Turner to tap her hard on the back of her legs with his cane. “Don’t sass your mentor, still a lot of magic left in this carcass, my dear. Now focus. Search for someone to merge with and learn to guide and be guided by their energy as well.”
Leira shut her eyes and focused, pulling up energy through her feet, lighti
ng up the symbols on her arms again as it spread up to her neck.
“Not so fast.” Turner tapped her hard on the shoulder. “I can read the fucking signs, literally. No heading back toward the light or I shut this thing down and you can find a different mentor. We don’t play with Dark Magic here, or pure Light Magic. Have some respect for the elements. Look kid, I’m glad the great unknown had the good sense to balance things out for you, and let you know that the Light is actually stronger than the Dark Magic but that’s where we leave it.” Turner arched an eyebrow and looked at Leira.
“How do I know the Light is stronger?”
Turner gave her a look and shrugged his shoulders, scratching his chin. “All very interesting. Save exploring this mystery for another lesson. Now try again, and no funny business.”
“Seems a little intrusive for you to be reading my arms.”
“Does make it tricky to have any good secrets sometimes. Get used to it. At least your symbols move so fast that it’ll be hard for most to catch up to what you’ve got planned next. Start over, no more dawdling. Lenora awaits me. This time no Superman impressions. We weren’t meant to leap tall buildings in one bound, go faster than a train. What? Even Elves need super heroes to look up to. We can’t do everything. It’s not the way it’s meant to be. Leaves very little to look forward to.”
“I’m a big Green Lantern fan. In brightest day, in darkest night…”
“That’s a good one too. I liked how they would pass the torch. All of them knew a thing or two about doing the right thing but they didn’t get out much with the ladies. Now, I could write a super hero!” Turner shook his cane in the air, a twinkle in his eyes. “Alright young lady, on with it!”
Leira smiled and shut her eyes, pulling in energy again and letting go of the feeling from the Light Magic.
“Set an intention,” said Turner, “then let go.”
Leira followed behind the magic as it set out in search of someone to merge with. “Not a relative,” she muttered.
