“Surrender or we will destroy the building with everyone in it,” he said. “You have one minute to comply.”
The Kurokami that remained left in flashes of light. Sebastian came close and lifted me up from the floor. The PTF knocked down the door and surrounded us, guns drawn. Sensei was nowhere to be seen, I guessed that she left the same way the Kurokami did. Franco walked into the warehouse with more PTF behind him.
He looked ragged and I could tell from the torn clothes and bruises that the fight outside the warehouse was every bit as fierce as the fight inside. Franco approached and I could tell he wanted to take me in. Sebastian stepped in front of me but I moved to the side. I heard the bolt action on the rifle again and shook my head no. The shot never fired.
“Thanks for the adventure,” Titus said. “We’ll talk again.””
Then he vanished. His masking was so complete I almost thought I imagined his voice.
Franco stood several feet away. Behind him, I counted no less than twenty PTF officers with their guns pointed in my direction. Walking through that group, I saw Moira with Ross in tow.
“She is MID and this is an Enclave matter,” Moira said, her rich voice echoing in the warehouse. “We will take it from here.””
“Not this time,” Franco replied. “I have dead PTF and Enclave here and in Japan, not to mention the property damage. She is a threat to the safety of everyone in this city.””
Moira smiled and stepped back to make a call, leaving Franco to stare at Ross.
“It wasn’t me,” I said. “You’’re looking for him.”
I pointed to the body of Kaze.
“Convenient that he’s dead,” he said. “Don’’t move.”
I heard the chirp of his headpiece. He stepped off to the side to take the call. Moira came back to join us, her face grim.
“Yes, sir,” he said. “Sir, that would be unacceptable. She is standing right in front of me.”
There was a long pause and I couldn’t make out who was on the other end. He hung up and came back to where I stood and stared at me hard. He then looked at Moira who returned the stare.
“It would seem that the mystic responsible belongs to a group called the Kurokami,” he said reluctantly. “A group you have no apparent ties to, Ava.””
“The person you are looking for”—Sebastian gestured to body on the floor near us—“is named Kaze,” he said. “He is the one responsible for the mystic deaths here and in Nezu. If you run an auric scan you can confirm what I’m saying.”
“I never mentioned Nezu,” Franco said. “What do you know about Nezu?”
“Enough to stay away from it,” I said. “I suggest you do the same.”
“We will take it from here,” Moira said. “The MID still has some questions for Miss James.”
“Canus will have questions for you,” he said. “Make sure you are reachable.”
Moira and Ross escorted my uncle and me out of the warehouse. Franco gave the order to remove the bodies.
“You need to debrief,” Moira said. “MID will need a full breakdown of what happened here and in Nezu.”
“I need to sleep is what I need,” I said. “Can we do this in the morning?”
“My office, seven sharp,” she said. “Try to avoid destroying anything between now and then.”
She got in an MID vehicle and waited for Ross, who remained outside.
“Thanks,” I said. “I’m glad you were on my side.””
“Hey,” he said, “your family are the people you choose to be in your life,” he said. “It doesn’t only depend on blood.”
“I’m learning that,” I said. “I’’m not as alone as I thought.”
“There you go,” he said and gave me a hug, which surprised me. He had never been the hugging type. I felt a weight in one of my pockets as he pulled away. “Make sure you check that before you come over. See you in the morning.”
“See you,” I said as he got in the MID vehicle and drove away. I looked at my uncle as we headed back to the dojo.
“We need to check on Hana,” he said. “The Kurokami may have taken action for her participation in this.”
We arrived at the dojo and found it dark and silent. I heard three heartbeats. One of them belonged to Arashi. Of the other two, I recognized Sensei. The third one was unknown to me. It was a slow, methodical sound, which I had never heard before. Arashi and Sensei’s hearts were beating at a regular pace, which meant they weren’t being threatened.
“Someone is in there with her,” I whispered. “I don’t recognize who it is.”
“I do,” Uncle said. “Let’s go upstairs. Keep your weapons holstered and your power controlled.”
We went upstairs to the dojo floor, removed our shoes, and stepped in. Arashi rushed at me and crashed into my leg. I picked him up and rubbed his neck. He licked my face and hands and made a slobbery mess of the greeting.
“I missed you too, boy,” I said and put him down. He fell into step next to me as we entered.
Sebastian walked ahead of me and into the dojo proper. Seated in the middle of the floor, I saw Sensei facing someone in Kurokami armor. A hood covered her face, but I could sense the strength of her power from where I stood. My power began to flow reflexively, but Uncle turned and gave me a look.
“Your student has arrived, so I will take my leave,” said the figure in the armor. “I will return in three days for your response.””
Sensei nodded and the figure stood. The Kurokami glided silently across the dojo floor and looked at me.
“You faced Kaze?” she said and the faintest hint of a smile crossed her face. “Well done. Today you have made enough enemies to last you several lifetimes.””
She gave me a short bow and stepped past us. After a few steps, she stopped, but didn’t turn around.
“What has the Kurokami offered?” Sebastian said.
“Death or the mantle,” said the woman. “She must choose, and quickly. I will return. Her answer will establish if I am to be a herald or executioner.””
“I see,” he said. “The rest of the families have agreed?”
“They are in agreement,” she said. “It was good to see you, Sebu. I wish the circumstances were more…pleasant.”
I felt a surge of power and she was gone.
I walked over to Sensei. She remained seated, facing the ceremonial shrine.
“What did she mean?” I asked. “Death or the mantle?”
Sensei uncrossed her legs and stood.
“I have three days to decide if I want to lead the Kurokami,” she said, “or be killed by them.”
TWENTY-NINE
“YOU CAN’T,” I said. “The Kurokami tried to kill you.””
“Not much of an option here,” she said. “Besides, you have other matters to concern yourself with. The Enclave will not condone your activities as of late.””
“What do you mean?” I asked. “Moira asked me into her office to debrief in the morning.”
“If you step into the South Enclave tomorrow,” she replied, “they will arrest and cleanse you to justify their actions. Even now you are being watched.””
Sensei looked at my uncle. He looked at me and nodded.
“There’s a good chance they will cleanse you to save face,” he said. “Kaze is dead and they can’t reveal the Kurokami. The MID knows this. If they have you, they can give a face to the cause of the chaos of the last few days.”
“A scapegoat,” I whispered. “I don’t believe it. Moira helped me at the warehouse.”
“She helped the Enclave,” Sensei said. “But if you don’’t think it’s possible, try to cancel the meeting.”
I looked at them both. They were my family. They had no reason to wish me any harm. I couldn’t say the same thing about the Enclave. I checked my pocket and felt a magazine to one of my guns. The weight that I felt after Ross hugged me. On the side, there was only one word—run.
I held up the magazine and showed them. Sens
ei nodded and went to the other room. My uncle put his hand on my shoulder.
“You can’t stay,” he said. “They will try and take you in the middle of the night.”
It was the usual MID procedure. Let the target feel comfortable—then shock and awe. I felt my anger rise and flames erupted around my hands.
“I don’t recommend you do that in public,” he said. “You must control your emotions and power.”
Sensei returned with a large backpack and placed a portable dog carrier on the floor next to me.
“Everything you need is in here,” she said and handed me the bag. She said something in rapid Japanese and Arashi jumped into the carrier. “You must take him with you now. In time, you will learn to communicate with him through your bond. Did you tell her?”
“Tell me what?” I asked.
“After you were born,” he started, “I checked to see what became of your parents. My sister…Mei—your mother— perished on the day you were born. That was confirmed.”
“And my father?” I asked.
“Your father was one of the most powerful mystics I knew,” he said. “They never found his body. A few years ago, a mystic disturbance caught my attention. When I traveled to the site, I was certain it was Roland—your father.”
“What kind of disturbance?”
“An Enclave building was destroyed,” he said. “When they investigated the structure, it was a confluence of energies.”
“It could have been more than one mystic,” I said. “It doesn’t mean it was my father.”
“Except I knew your father and his auric signature, and every ability at that site had the same signature.”
“We both know that can be faked,” I said. “Kaze made it appear I was the one who killed the mystics.”
“One ability can be faked, but not five in confluence,” he said. “Only an Arch Mystic leaves that kind of trail.”
“Where was this?” I said, still not daring to believe my father could still be alive.
“South of London, near Brighton,” he answered. “The ruins still stand. They were deemed too volatile, and wards were placed around it to keep anyone out.””
“Downstairs…The car is waiting,” Sensei said. “You should go now. Sebu has arranged your trip.”
“What, now?” I said, surprised. “You knew?”
“I guessed,” he said. “Is your Black Heart charged?”
“No, I wanted them to find me.”
“Charge it on the way down and mask your aura,” he said. “I will distract whoever may be watching.”
He gave me a hug and kissed me on the forehead. “You will always have us,” he said. “If you need anything, call me.”
He went outside and I felt him release his power. His null flow-state washed over the area. Sensei came close to me as I grabbed the dog carrier. Arashi had fallen asleep and was snoring lightly. He opened his eyes when I jostled him and then he closed them again. She came close, gave me a brief hug, and then stepped back.
“Remember what you have learned,” she said. “I will be watching. You are never alone.”
“Thank you, Sensei,” I said and bowed deeply.
She returned the bow and walked me to the stairs. She remained on her level as I descended to the garage. I looked up one last time and swore I could see her eyes glistening with unshed tears as she nodded down at me. She waved me to continue and I entered the garage. Standing beside what had to be the most nondescript vehicle ever—a beat up minivan——was Titus.
“How?” I asked as I jumped in the back and he closed the sliding door.
“Your Sensei is a hard woman to refuse,” he said. “Your crystal charged?”
I nodded, still in shock.
“Good, we need to get you to your plane,” he said. “Your flight leaves in an hour. Please mask yourself. Hold your guardian close so that he is hidden as well.””
I grabbed the carrier and placed it on my lap as he pulled out of the garage and drove down the street. No vehicles pursued us. Rockets didn’t launch and reduce us to scrap. I let out the breath I was holding when I realized we were on our way to a private airfield outside of the city. A large private jet sat on the runway. I recognized my family crest on the tail.
“Whose plane is that?” I asked.
“Tonight, it’s yours,” he said. “This is where I leave you. Have a safe flight. I hope you find what you need.”
He closed the door of the minivan and pulled off, leaving me standing alone on the tarmac. I hesitated on the first step before boarding the plane. Arashi barked.
“Okay, we’re going,” I said and climbed into the plane. “Don’’t be so pushy.”
I was on my way to London, and hopefully my father.
The End
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This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2016 by Orlando A. Sanchez
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Published by OM Publishing NY NY
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Every book is a group effort. So let me take a moment to acknowledge my (very large) group:
To Dolly: my wife and biggest fan. You make all of this possible and keep me grounded, especially when I get into my writing to the exclusion of everything else. Thank you, I love you.
To my Tribe: You are the reason I have stories to tell. You cannot possibly fathom how much and how deep I love you all.
To Lee: Because you were the first audience I ever had. I love you sis.
To the Logsdon family: Thank you for everything. You each have made this journey possible.
To my Launch Team: Dolly S. Steve L. Bill T. Mark R. Leslie P. Tracy B.
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Thank you! You each make me a better writer. Thank you for creating an amazing community.
To you the reader: Thank you for getting on this ride with me. I truly hope you enjoy this story. You are the reason I wrote it.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Orlando Sanchez has been writing ever since his teens when he was immersed in creating scenarios for playing Dungeon and Dragons with his friends every weekend. An avid reader, his influences are too numerous to list here. Some of the most prominent are: J.R.R. Tolkien, Jim Butcher, Kat Richardson, Terry Brooks, Piers Anthony, Lee Child, George Lucas, Andrew Vachss, and Barry Eisler to name a few in no particular order.
The worlds of his books are urban settings with a twist of the paranormal lurking just behind the scenes and generous doses of magic, martial arts, and mayhem.
Aside from writing, he holds a 2nd and 3rd Dan in two distinct styles of Karate. If not training, he is studying some aspect of the martial arts or martial arts philosophy.
He currently resides in Queens, NY with his wife and children
and can often be found in the local Starbucks where most of his writing is done.
Please visit his site at OrlandoASanchez.com for more information about his books and upcoming releases.
A Dream of Ashes: An Ava James Mystery (Chronicles of the Modern Mystics Book 1) Page 15
