by C. A. Pack
THIRD CHRONICLES OF
ILLUMINATION
C. A. PACK
Artiqua Press
www.artiquapress.com
Please Note: Due to the various formatting requirements of different e-readers, the overseers’ symbols show up in some e-books, but not in others.
To make it easier to identify the overseers, their initials and symbols will both precede their dialog so, even if a symbol is missing, readers can identify the speaker.
Primary Characters & Symbols
Johanna Charette—18-year-old prime curator of the Fantasian Library of Illumination. She’s a triple-B: brains, beauty, and bravery.
Jackson Roth—17-year-old co-curator of the Library of Illumination. He’s cute, funny, and innovative.
Malcolm Trees—the former curator of the Library of Illumination who brought in Johanna as his replacement.
(Mrs.) Naimh Fitzpatrick-Roth—Jackson’s mother
Chris Roth—Jackson’s 16-year-old brother
Ava Roth—Jackson’s 14-year-old sister
Logan Elliott—Jackson’s best friend
Cassie Turner—Logan’s girlfriend
Brittany Chelvie—Chris Roth’s girlfriend
Emily Brent—Cassie’s best friend
Cameron Thorne—Dean of English, Cranford University
Nero 51—curator on Terroria
Furst—curator on Dramatica
Pondor—Dramatican Judge
Dungen—Pondor’s son
Ozzro—Dramatican soldier
Lenc—young Dramatican soldier
Natalia Dalura—curator on Romantica
Dame Erato—former curator on Romantica
Arraba, Felicia and Milencia Jolen—three sisters who help establish the militairres on Romantica
Ingur Aguri—a white witch
Selestra (a.k.a. Bel)—Pru Tellerence’s child
Hue the Elder—curator on Mysteriose
Prophet IAN c.—curator on Aventura
Odyon—shapeshifter (a.k.a. Robert Birk of the Eahta Frean fram Drycræft)
The residents of Juvenilia only live to age fifteen and are then reincarnated as three-year-olds. Their lives are not short, however, because each year on Juvenilia is equivalent to five Earth years. Peer Meap, the curator of their library, is a transplanted teacher from Educon and is the only adult who lives in the realm
Peer Meap—curator
Duddu—teen leader
Pollo—Duddu’s right hand man
Marbol—the oldest teen and the inventor of the sonic scrambler
Jee-Joy—teen girl
Guffle and Flugle—teen twins
Waxmo & Pokkie—teen twins
Selly & Cici—teen twins
Pye—Juvenile teen
Dee-Dee—youngest Juvenile
Boxer, Elmie, Fibber, Harlo, Bungie—Bullaroot players
The esteemed members of the College that oversee the Libraries of Illumination are either known as overseers or deans. Each dean is assigned to one of the twelve realms, which he or she benevolently controls. Ryden Simmdry is the Master of all the deans, and he oversees the main Library of Origination on Lumina, the thirteenth world and the center of the Illumini system. Overseers go by both their first and last names—you would never say one without the other. They are each identified by a symbol and can speak telepathically.
RS:⌘ Master: Ryden Simmdry, Lumina
HB:✠ Dean: Horatio Blastoe, Romantica
AR:∑ Dean: Artemus Rexana, Adventura
GP:≎ Dean: Grappho Pluck, Educon
GA:⚛ Dean: Galio Abbingdon, Scientico
ZF:§ Dean: Zenith Fullova, Juvenilia
PT:★ Dean: Pru Tellerence, Dramatica
RB:⧳ Dean: Reichel Bean, Comedia
MK:◼ Dean: Marsh Kierand, Inspiracon
PB:♆ Dean: Proteus Bligh, Mysteriose
RZ: π Dean: Rubicon Zenicon, Numericon
SS:◍ Dean: Selium Sorium, Fantasia
RZ: Ω Dean: Plato Indelicat, Terroria
ALL: ℌ Consensus of all
The Eahta Frean fram Drycræft—The Eight Masters of Wizardry—live in various countries on Fantasia and protect Myrddin’s Memoir, a collection of Merlin the Magician’s spells.
Cathasach Caird of Scotland
Zendali Zendaga of Zimbabwe
Mateus Ferrari of Brazil
Alianessa Anjou of France
Robert Birk of Switzerland
Brychan Rhydderch (Beck) of Wales
Edmund Beasom of England
Veronika Veselov of Russia
This is a basic index of characters. Not everyone who appears in this book is noted above. For a more inclusive list of characters, please consult the Illumini Compendium (due 2017) or go to:
www.libraryofillumination.com
This is a map of the neighborhood surrounding the Library of Illumination on Fantasia. Considering the Ancients created the libraries on all realms, the areas surrounding them often bear similarities.
1
The perfect black cube Ryden Simmdry had given Johanna Charette started glowing. The master of the overseers had created the cube to capture Odyon, a powerful wizard trying to steal the life’s work of Merlin the Magician. Library of Illumination co-curators, Johanna Charette and Jackson Roth, both knew they had to prevent the book of enchantments from falling into the wrong hands. The collection of spells and incantations—known as Myrddin’s Memoir—ranged from simple remedies, like a cure for the common cold, to an obscure invocation calling for the total destruction of life as we know it.
Unfortunately, Johanna couldn’t whip out the black cube in time to capture Odyon. The shapeshifter had transformed into a beam of light before he could be caught and disappeared. Instead, the tiny cube had sucked up the essence of Alianessa Anjou, the French member of the Eahta Frean fram Drycræft, a secret group of eight wizards entrusted with protecting Myrddin’s legacy.
Johanna chewed her lower lip. The eighteen-year-old had failed at what should have been a simple task, and she wanted to discuss what she could have done better with the cube’s creator. “I wish Ryden Simmdry were here.”
“No you don’t,” Jackson said. He was a year younger than Johanna, but he’d been around long enough to know where her train of thought would lead them. “Then we’d have to tell him we bungled capturing Odyon and admit the threat against the Library of Illumination is still hanging over us. He’s going to give us one of those disappointed looks, like my mother gives me when I’ve let her down. Let him stay where he is—thinking we’re saving the world.”
The remaining six wizards representing the Eahta Frean fram Drycræft glared at them. One of them, Veronika Veselov, walked up to Johanna and tried to snatch the box from her hand.
Johanna twisted away from the Russian woman. “No. There’s only one person who can open this now, and he’s not here. I have to keep it safe until we find him.”
Veronika turned to the other wizards who had sworn to protect Myrddin’s memoir. “I’m leaving. Anyone who wants to further discuss this debacle, follow me.” She grabbed Cathasach Caird and dragged the startled group leader from the room. The others followed, with Beck—the newest member—bringing up the rear.
Johanna grabbed Beck. Myrddin’s ring and the Illumini constellation embedded in Johanna’s left palm rubbed against the sigil tattooed on Beck’s wrist. Suddenly, Johanna felt lightheaded. Her knees weakened and she thought she might faint. Her lids fluttered as her eyes rolled back.
Beck grabbed her to keep her from falling. “Jackson, there’s something wrong with your girlfriend.”
Jackson lifted Johanna into his arms. He tried to walk away but couldn’t. “Let go of her.�
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“I’m not holding her.” Beck wriggled his fingers. “She’s holding me.”
“Johanna…” Jackson kissed her forehead. “Let go of Beck.”
But she couldn’t respond. Waves of energy and power she had never experienced before surged inside of her, and her thoughts became crystal clear yet more confused than ever.
“What did you do to her?” Jackson asked.
“Nothing. I was walking out the door. She grabbed me.”
Johanna didn’t know how much more of the energy surge she could take. Even as the strange new power entered her being, it zapped her own resources, and she felt herself shutting down, losing consciousness.
Her grip on Beck’s wrist released when she blacked out.
He pulled his hand away. “I’m going. I don’t know what you two are up to, but if it’s no good, we’ll be back. Otherwise, I doubt we’ll be seeing much of each other.”
“We’ve been upfront with you,” Jackson said. “This is Odyon’s doing, or didn’t you notice how he magically disappeared when we accused him?”
Beck nodded toward the cube Johanna still clutched in her other hand. “For all I know, he’s stuck in there with Alianessa. You’ve taken on the wrong group if you think you can pull one over on us. We weren’t selected for the Eahta Frean fram Drycræft because we’re a bunch of yahoos. On the contrary, we’re the most powerful wizards in the world. Pray we don’t have to return, because if we do, it won’t be pretty.”
Jackson’s voice increased in volume but lowered in pitch. “We didn’t do anything.”
“Two wizards are missing. If one or both of them are responsible for trying to steal Myrddin’s memoir, we would have dealt with it. Internally. You did do something, and you’ll have to pay for it.” He stormed out of the room.
Jackson carried Johanna toward the virtual George V hotel suite they had recreated in the Periodicals Room of the library by opening a travel guide. He walked past the wizards, who argued loudly as they crowded the front door.
“How the hell do we get out of here?” Beck shouted.
“Illumination,” Jackson said quietly. The door slid open, allowing the wizards to escape.
It wasn’t long before Johanna’s eyes flew open, her blood surging through her veins. “Where am I?”
Jackson knelt at her side with an ampoule in his hand. “The hotel suite.”
She studied the re-creation of the guest room. “I’ve never been in one of the bedrooms before. Nice.”
“Are you okay? What happened? I thought Beck did something horrible to you using one of Myrddin’s spells.”
“I’m fine, I think.” She struggled to sit up.
“So…?”
“Something weird happened when I grabbed Beck. Like all his knowledge and power seeped into my body. He’s studied Myrddin’s spells quite closely, and now I feel like I know them all by heart.” Her eyes glazed over as she searched her memory. “I do.” She gripped Jackson’s shoulders. “I know them all by heart.”
“How could that happen?”
“It just did.”
“I think you and I should go downstairs and have a little chat with Myrddin.”
“He told me not to visit him in the vault anymore. He gave me the name of a book to use instead.” She searched her pockets. “Wait a minute, I wrote it down.” She finally pulled out a scrap of paper.
“It’s a wonder you can fit anything in your pants pocket.”
“What do you mean? Do you think they’re too tight?”
He threw both hands in the air, palms facing out. “Don’t change a thing,” he said. “They fit you like a glove.”
She made a face. “You can stop staring now.”
“Just admiring your form.”
Johanna set the cube down on the floor. “I hope Alianessa was telling the truth about not being able to transmogrify for any length of time.”
“Why?”
“Because I’m going to set her free.”
“I thought only Ryden Simmdry could do that.”
“Maybe that was true, until now.”
“Really? You think you’re that powerful—that you can undo the protective charm the master of all the overseers placed on the cube?”
“Yes.”
“Even if you could, I don’t think you should.”
“Why not?”
“Because she’s going to be mad as hell and may try to take it out on us, and frankly, I’m tired of being defensive.”
“We have to do something. We can’t just leave her in there.”
“Maybe you could tell Mal. He’s your mentor. Write something in your diary and then say, ‘Don’t you agree, Mal?’ He’ll try to figure out what you mean and might even pay us a visit. Then we can sort this out.”
“I don’t know,” she answered. “It doesn’t sound very proactive. It makes us seem like children waiting for a parent’s approval.”
“Mal has never steered us wrong.”
“No, he hasn’t,” she agreed, “and I don’t want to tarnish his reputation now by dragging him into this.”
“Well, that’s all I’m going to say. If you want to open the box, open the box.”
RS:⌘ You will find it is not possible.
Jackson whirled around at the sound of Ryden Simmdry’s voice. The master of the College of Overseers—which protected the libraries on twelve different realms—stared at the box in Johanna’s hand.
Johanna didn’t allow his arrival to distract her. She cleared her mind, envisioned a pinpoint of light, and forced it to grow larger before opening her eyes. A swirl of gray motes took form and within seconds, Alianessa Anjou appeared. The dazed woman stood apart from them, her mouth agape.
Ryden Simmdry inhaled sharply. RS:⌘ Something has changed since last we met.
“She held hands with Beck from the Eahta Frean fram Drycræft one moment,” Jackson said, “and claimed she knew all of Myrddin’s spells the next.”
Ryden Simmdry used his mind to plumb the depths of Johanna’s consciousness and found he couldn’t. RS:⌘ Explain to me what happened with Beck.
Johanna told him about grabbing Beck’s hand and suddenly feeling both lightheaded and energized at the same time. “It’s like I absorbed all his knowledge.”
RS:⌘ Did this sudden influx of information feel like it entered through the Illumini constellation on your left hand?
Johanna thought back. “Yes.”
RS:⌘ And you were merely holding his hand… his palm?
“No. Not his palm. His wrist.” Her eyes widened with recollection. “His sigil.” She opened her left palm and gazed at it. Myrddin’s signet ring rested right above Fantasia.
RS:⌘ The ring—
A commotion coming from the main reading room interrupted their conversation. They found Alianessa pounding on the front door. “Let me out of this place.”
RS:⌘ In good time. First, I must determine why the cube chose to induct your essence. I designed this box to absorb unnatural energy that is imbued with protective powers or special charms. It chose you as the most likely source instead of Odyon.
The Frenchwoman pouted. “I do not know of any Odyon. It’s something you’re making up.”
Johanna held her gaze. “You were right there when I accused Robert Birk of being Odyon. You know exactly who we’re talking about.”
“I never knew him by that name,” Alianessa said.
RS:⌘ But you do know him. The question is, how well?
“He’s just one of the eight. I don’t know him any better than the others.”
RS:⌘ That’s too bad, because it would have explained why the cube worked on you. I will have to investigate your relationship more directly. He placed his left palm against her temple.
Alianessa backed away. “Don’t touch me.”
RS:⌘ I hate to involve you, Jackson, but would you please hold her?
Jackson grabbed Alianessa from behind and wrapped his arms around her so she couldn’t move.
Ryden Simmdry placed his palm against her temple.
Alianessa stomped on Jackson’s instep with the five-inch stiletto heel of her shoe.
“Ow,” he shouted, loosening his grip on her. She squirmed away and ran for the door.
Jackson started to run after her.
RS:⌘ It is all right, Jackson. I have what I need. Ryden Simmdry picked up the box. Alianessa struggled but once again dissolved into a smoky haze before being reabsorbed by the cube.
