by Gene Curtis
She looked like she was recovering from crying now. She shrugged, “No idea.”
“No, really, I think it’s important. You have to use Spirit Sight before you remanifest and he didn’t see us before he did.”
“Could be he was in a routine, just going from place to place and not expecting to find anyone.”
He wondered if that was even possible. Could anyone become so complacent that he didn’t pay attention to where he was remanifesting? People walked into traffic without looking all the time, but that was because they were distracted by something else. He thought about Aaron’s Grasp and how that had become second nature to him and wondered if that was similar.
He wrapped his arm around her and said, “Come on; let’s get out of here before someone else comes looking for us.”
CHAPTER SIX
There has to be a Better Way
The large old olive tree near the front entrance of the school was one of LeOmi’s favorite places to just sit and think. It was also the favorite spot for her counselor, Bekka, to mull things over in her mind. Bekka walked out of the front door of the school just after sunrise and spotted LeOmi sitting on the gnarled roots of the old tree. “Well good morning. I thought I might find you here.”
“I wish you a good morning too,” LeOmi nodded.
“My, we’re in kind of a mood this morning.”
LeOmi shook her head, “Well, wouldn’t you be?”
“Not everyone feels the way you did after you killed Compton. Mark certainly doesn’t. He feels good that he was able to help keep those men from getting you.”
“It’s not just that. I have to go after the staff and I’m no closer to finding it than I was when we started this. I’m not even sure the Council of Elders is going to let me keep looking for it. Plus, anyone that goes with me is going to be in danger.”
“Well, Mr. Diefenderfer and Mr. Young will be accompanying you on any further explorations. Any Neo-Phylum wishing to attack you will have serious reservations about that as long as they’re with you.”
“I see. Any ideas on how I can locate this flippin’ lake?”
“Keep looking, that’s all I’ve got. Ready for breakfast?”
* * *
After breakfast, Bekka dropped LeOmi off outside of the engineering building. LeOmi signed in and went straight to Nick’s lab. The door was unlocked so she walked in and saw a pair of legs sticking out from under a large machine. Nick’s voice said, “Hand me the ratchet with the nine-sixteenths socket on the table.”
There was a small ratchet on the table with a socket. She put it in his outstretched hand.
A couple of minutes later he said, “Silicone grease.” His hand shot back out.
She handed him a small plastic tube with that label.
A moment later he said, “Run through the sequencer settings on the phase variation selector so I can check the calibration. Start with one and work your way up.”
LeOmi chuckled, “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
Nick rolled out from under the time machine wiping his hands with a rag. “Well hello there. I didn’t expect to see you here. I thought you were Jessie.”
“Sorry, not Jessie.”
“What’s up?” He stood and tossed the rag down by the creeper.
“I just wanted to see if you have any ideas on how I can locate the correct lake.”
“I think you’re going about it the best way. There are loads of pictures on the Internet, but finding one that will give you an idea of what the lake is really like could be a problem. You don’t get a sense of being there: no smells, no feel of the surface, no atmosphere and it would be a miracle to find one shot from the perspective you’re looking for.” Nick sat down in front of his computer and pulled up several screens full of small lake pictures based on the list he’d given her. “See what I mean?”
“There has to be a better way to do this than opening ourselves up to attack every time we go out.”
“No one but you can identify the lake so that means you’re the one that has to go. Not many people from here have ever been to these lakes so that means finding someone that has, so word gets out. I don’t think there is a way to prevent them from figuring out which lake you’re going to next,” he rubbed the side of his chin with the back of his hand, “unless, they don’t know when you’re going. Maybe we could get permission to use the time machine. No, that’s not a good idea. Just thinking out loud.”
“You need permission to use the time machine? It’s your machine.”
“It’s my rule. If Benrah ever got a hold of it, he’d have the ability for unlimited do-overs. We shouldn’t use it unless there’s no other option.”
LeOmi stepped to the other side of his chair. “So, you’re saying I should just keep doing what I’ve been doing?”
“That seems the best way to me.”
For a guy that was renowned for brilliant solutions and thinking outside the box that was a lame answer, or was it that there really was no better way to search for the lake? She felt she needed to get another opinion.
* * *
LeOmi stood behind the bench press machine and watched Cap’n Ben do eight sets of five reps at one hundred and eighty pounds. His upper body was a gloss of perspiration and his biceps looked like grapefruits under his skin. He rolled off the bench not noticing her and went directly to handstand pushups. When he did notice someone standing near him he said, “Sorry to keep you waiting. Let me do twenty more and I’ll clean the bench for you.”
He finished and stood running in place. Slightly winded, he said, “Oh, hi, I didn’t know you were into weight lifting.” He grabbed his towel and wiped his face and arms.
“I’m not. I just want to ask your opinion.”
“My opinion?” He stopped running, bent and picked up the sanitizer spray bottle and a couple of paper towels from the rack on the side of the bench press machine. “Well, I’ve got an opinion on just about everything. It’s usually wrong.” He finished wiping the bench and started running in place again.
“You think differently than most people. That’s what makes your opinion valuable.”
He smiled. “LeOmi the diplomat, who would have thunk?”
She smiled back, “Can you think of a better way for me to find the lake I’m looking for?”
“Sure, look at the ground level pictures on the Internet.”
“Nick showed me that wouldn’t work.”
“Told you I was usually wrong. What about Spirit Sight?”
“Don’t you have to have been there first?”
“Just close, then you can pop around to areas you can actually see with your physical eyes.”
“Thanks, that might actually work.”
“That’s the way I used to think. I’d come up with an idea and think of ways to do it. Trouble was I wouldn’t think about the pitfalls and almost always got into trouble. I’ve learned to discard my best seeming ideas and start concentrating on ways I might fail and then devise a plan based on circumventing failure, risk assessment is more important than reward. Because I thought of Spirit Sight as an easy way to accomplish your goal it almost certainly won’t work.”
“What are some of the pitfalls?”
“First, you have to telegraph your next move in order to find someone that has been close to where you want to go. Second, when you’re actually using Spirit Sight you won’t be aware of your physical surroundings. That makes you easier to capture. Third, and most important, the longer and farther away your spirit is away from your physical body the easier it is to find you by using Spirit Sight or Tactical Sight.”
“I haven’t learned about Tactical Sight yet.”
“It’s harder than Spirit Sight, but you’re aware of your physical surroundings. The connection between the spirit and the body is visible to anyone using either. The farther your spirit is away from your body the easier the connection is to spot because the cord is longer.”
“You’re right; Spirit Si
ght is probably not a good idea... I’ve got another question for you. When that guy found us at the lake, he had his back to us when he remanifested. Any idea why?”
“It’s possible that he was just bored and not paying attention to what he was doing, or it could be that he’s about used up his powers. I doubt he’s been building them up.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
Assembly
Every year’s first assembly was always on the last day of Orientation. At exactly five o’clock Mrs. Shadowitz stood and walked to the podium. A hush settled over the gathering when she cleared her throat. “Thank you for your attention and welcome to The Seventh Mountain.” She introduced the Council of Elders for the benefit of the freshmen and made the usual announcements reminding everyone not to feed the leviathan, to stay off the school grounds at night, etc. She even told another joke, “Due to the decline in rational thinking as evidenced by the riot this year all students are required to take my class in Advanced Algebra and Numeric Logic... every year.”
Groans and murmurs filled The Oasis.
“Just joking. Now you understand why I keep my sense of humor locked firmly away in my desk drawer. Since I have broached this topic, I’ll tell you that Slone Voif’s lack of judgment has caused his expulsion from this school by unanimous vote of the Council of Elders. If you have questions about this you may discuss it with your counselors; they have been fully briefed.”
Low murmurs coursed through the room amid a smattering of applause.
“Now for some good news: The Seventh Mountain has been restored to full functionality except for the labyrinth which is still full of rubble. If you wish to fall into the labyrinth then you must go to the farming section to find the other opening. Be prepared to jump really high when you do.” There were a handful of chuckles across the room. “I’ll be putting my sense of humor back in my desk drawer directly after this assembly.”
When the noise died down she continued, “Three more statues are being added to the pre-chosen monument out front: LeOmi Jones who most of you know of; James Young, Mark Young’s older brother; and Joel O’ Ham who is commonly known as Cap’n Ben, will have their likenesses added. The additions are being put in place this very moment. Every time you see this monument, I want you to remind yourself to increase your vigilance. Attacks against Magi are increasing and we surmise that the time until the ultimate confrontation with Benrah and his forces is much closer than we previously calculated.
“Additionally, you may notice an older student studying as a second level junior this year. This is happening as a special exception based on the deliberation of the Council of Elders. This student suffered a horrendous attack several years back at the hands of Nageed Shade, commander of Benrah’s demonic forces, while a student at The Seventh Mountain. She lost her memories as a result of this assault but has recently regained them and has expressed a desire to continue her studies. She has asked not to be identified at this time.
“If there are no further announcements,” she looked side to side at the other councilors, teachers and staff, “then that concludes—”
Tim Fairbanks stood, “Sorry to interrupt you, your honor.” He bowed his head a little and then looked back up. “Jamal Terfa tells me his kitchen will be open for business tomorrow night. I know a lot of people were wondering.”
“What time?”
“Six o’clock.”
She smiled and nodded once before turning back to the room. “Jamal’s Kitchen will open tomorrow night at six.”
Most of the people in the assembly clapped and cheered.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Picture the Future
After the assembly most of the students cleared out. Mark went with the rest of his core group to their usual set of tables in The Oasis and pushed them together. When they were seated, Shana and Bekka approached.
Bekka began, “Thralls carry out the desires of their creators, but they’re autonomous in their actions.”
Shana added, “It’s like if you had a desire for a pizza and you created a thrall. The thrall would go get you a pizza and it would decide how best to do that.”
Bekka continued, “It might rob a bank to get the money to buy a pizza or it might steal a pizza or whatever. If you desired a pizza it would bring you a pizza or die trying.”
Shana picked up, “Slone had a desire for you guys to just not exist here at The Seventh Mountain. Whether he knew of this desire or not is a matter of debate, and in the end it’s a moot point.”
Bekka added, “He’s shown animosity toward you guys from day one. If he didn’t realize it, he should have.”
“His thrall was not a prank. It was unmitigated bad judgment that resulted in serious injury to others,” added Shana.
“While we encourage trial and error, the safety of others is paramount. This wasn’t the first time he’d shown disregard for the safety of others.” Bekka took out her pad, “LeOmi, what would you like?”
When the counselors left Cap’n Ben said, “I think that’s the first time anyone has been expelled for nonacademic reasons.”
Salina corrected, “That’s true in the last couple hundred years. There was one, he wasn’t exactly expelled; he was sent to Mattaraw for killing his rival.”
“Still, it’s rare for a nonacademic expulsion.”
“How do you know so much about academic expulsions?”
“I not only flunked my third year, I was put on academic probation. I studied up on what to expect.”
Cap’n Ben asked LeOmi, “Did you figure out what to do about finding the lake?”
She shrugged, “Same old thing. Mr. Diefenderfer and Mr. Young are going with us on future explorations.”
“With them guarding you you’ll be able to use Spirit Sight.”
Mark said, “Have you thought about trying to remanifest to the lake from the dream? I mean is your spirit already there at the lake or is the lake really a dream lake? If it’s a dream lake, maybe you can dream up a sign or something.”
Cap’n Ben said, “If it’s the real lake in her dream then you can bet whoever is tracking her already knows the possible lakes and they’re watching. They could spot the connection between her body and spirit pretty easily.”
Nick said, “Not necessarily. There’s over a million dream connections coming from this area every night.”
“True, but how many go toward the kind of lake she’s looking for? They’d be stupid not to watch all the possibilities.”
Nick countered, “It wouldn’t do them any good to spot where her spirit is if she’s protected here at the mountain.”
“She’s going to go there at some point. It’ll let them know where to concentrate their forces.”
LeOmi hit the table with the side of her fist a few times like a gavel to gain their attention, “Irrelevant. Mr. Diefenderfer and Mr. Young have a lot more experience at this sort of thing. I’m going to do it the way they suggest.”
Breakfast was almost over when Mr. Young approached the table. “Good morning, everyone. I hate to disturb your meal together, but we need to speak with LeOmi.” He pointed to a table on the other side of The Oasis where Mr. Diefenderfer was already sitting. “Mark, you’re welcome to join us if you wish.”
Mark and LeOmi followed him to the table. Mr. Diefenderfer said, “Please... have a seat.”
Every time Mark heard Mr. Diefenderfer’s halting speech, it reminded him of his time in the labyrinth and the battle fifteen years earlier that had put Mr. Diefenderfer into a coma. He still had a little brain damage that healing oil had not completely cured.
Shana walked up behind them and asked, “Would you guys like something to drink?”
Mr. Diefenderfer said, “Some of that... blueberry green tea... you like... so much.”
Mr. Young said, “That sounds good. I’ll have some too.”
Mark and LeOmi said, almost in unison, “Me too.”
Mr. Young began, “That encounter you had in Morocco is troubling. It tells us how se
rious they are about getting you. Our scouts tell us that your sister, Ruby, is a ranking officer within the Neo-Phylum organization and she is determined to secure you away from Mark. They believe that you and Mark working together might possibly be able to defeat Benrah or at the very least toss a monkey wrench into his plans.”
Mr. Diefenderfer continued, “For the time... being... forays to the... remaining lakes... on your list... should be curtailed. You should take... a different tact in... finding the staff... we believe.”
Shana returned with a carafe of hot water, two boxes of tea bags, four cups, and saucers. “I use one bag of blueberry tea with one bag of orange pekoe tea. Bekka uses two bags of blueberry with one bag of pekoe.”
Mr. Diefenderfer and Mr. Young bowed their heads toward Shana and then looked up. Mr. Young said, “Thank you for providing nourishment for our bodies.” He looked back at LeOmi and continued, “What I’m about to tell you is to remain a closely guarded secret. Will you agree to that?”
LeOmi nodded. So did Mark.
“You need to... speak the promise.”
Mr. Diefenderfer’s black orbs that had once been his eyes seemed to stare into him; or was it just the stern look on his face that gave Mark the willies? “I promise to keep what you are about to tell me secret.”
Mr. Young said, “LeOmi?”
“Yes sir, I will keep the information secret.”
Mr. Young laid a thick folder on the table and slid it to LeOmi. “What you are about to look at are photographs of projections from the sunstone. There are eighty-three of them from forty-seven different dates. They all depict the time just before the staff you’re looking for is recovered. In seventy-one of the recoveries it is, we believe, your hand that holds the staff. In the remainder, it is the hand of other young ladies recovering the staff except for one, which we believe to be male. We are showing you the times before the actual recovery in order to explain what we are thinking.”
Mr. Diefenderfer sat his teacup down. “There are... common elements to... every image. They all transpire... in an underground... cavern. There is... a glimpse of... cave art... and... all of the... cave art depicts... a wheel that... has twelve spokes... if it is... symmetric.”
