by Linsey Hall
My gaze darted to Del and Nix. They nodded toward the door. It was definitely time to go.
As the newscaster turned her report toward something more boring and the crowd got rowdy again, we threaded our way between the tiny tables and chairs.
I shoved the heavy wooden door open and sucked in a breath of sticky jungle air, relieved to be out of the bar. Night creatures screeched, and moonlight filtered through the trees above. The jungle would be a nice place if it weren’t full of things that wanted to kill us.
“We’re never escaping him, are we?” Nix said softly.
“We will.” Somehow. Someday. “Let’s just deal with this for now.”
We found our motorcycles, which were parked in the lot with a dozen other identical ones. They were hulking beasts with massive, all-terrain tires meant for the jungle floor. We’d done a lot of work in Southeast Asia this year, and these were our favored forms of transportation in this part of the world.
Del could transport us, but it was better if she saved her power. It wasn’t infinite, though it did regenerate. But we’d learned a long time ago to save Del’s power for our escape. Nothing worse than being trapped in a temple with pissed off guardians and a few tripped booby traps.
We’d scouted out the location of the temple earlier that day, so we knew where to go.
I swung my leg over Secretariat—I liked to name my vehicles—and kicked the clutch. The engine roared to life. Nix and Del followed, and we peeled out of the lot, leaving the dingy yellow light of the bar behind.
Our headlights illuminated the dirt road as we sped through the night. Huge fig trees dotted the path on either side, their twisted trunks and roots forming an eerie corridor. Elephant-ear sized leaves swayed in the wind, a dark emerald that gleamed in the light.
Jungle animals howled, and enormous lightning bugs flitted along the path. They were too big to be regular bugs, so they were most likely some kind of fairy, but I wasn’t going to stop to investigate. There were dangerous creatures in the jungle at night—one of the reasons we hadn’t wanted to go now—and in our world, fairies could be considered dangerous.
Especially if you called them lightning bugs.
A roar sounded in the distance, echoing through the jungle and making the leaves rustle on either side as small animals scurried for safety.
The roar came again, only closer.
Then another, and another.
“Oh shit,” I muttered. This was bad.
~~~
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Author’s Note
Thanks for reading Institute of Magic! If you’ve read any of my previous books, you may have noticed that I have a fondness for including historical places and mythological elements. I did the same with Institute of Magic. Sometimes the history of these things is so interesting that I want to share more, so I like to do it in the Author’s Note instead of the story itself.
Celtic myth plays a large role in Ana’s series. Several side characters are from Celtic myth. Cade is actually Belatucadros, one of the Celtic war gods from Great Britain. Another character from Celtic myth is Muffin, the Cat Sìth, a type of fairy creature. In actually Celtic myth, the Cat Sìth’s name isn’t Muffin (that was my own addition). According to legend, he is supposed to resemble a large black cat with a white spot on his chest. The myth of the Cat Sìth was possibly inspired by the Scottish wildcat. In one British folk tale, the Cat Sìth is considered to be the king of cats. They can even steal your soul, though the Muffin in my books is more interested in stealing fish and jewels.
Muffin is hairless, however, which makes him a bit different. In the fiction wold (as opposed to the one of Celtic myth) he’s the distant cousin of Magpie, a hairless cat from the Spellbound series written by Annabel Chase. I loved Magpie so much that I thought maybe my own series needed a hairless cat, and Annabel was kind enough to approve of Muffin. If you like fun paranormal cozy mysteries and you also liked Muffin, consider checking out Annabel’s series and meeting Magpie.
The rest of the book draws heavily from history. Paris is indeed called the City of Lights (as are many other cities), and long ago, it was founded by the Romans as they spread across Europe. The cemetery of Père Lachaise is the largest in the city and contains a storied history. In fact, it is the most visited cemetery in the world, though of course no one can visit the supernatural section. It was established in 1804 by Napoleon and has grown astronomically since. It has been so popular that bodies are often exhumed after decomposition and their bones stored in the ossuary, where Madame Alamedra performs her ritual.
In addition to having the most famous cemetery in the world, Paris also contains the most famous sewers. They date back to 1370, though it was a much simpler system then. In the years since, it has grown massively, particularly during the 19th century. The modernization of the sewer system at this time led to a decline in epidemics, since sanitation in the city was greatly improved. Starting in the mid 19th century, it became possible to tour the sewers, which you can still do today.
Another historical aspect of Institute of Magic is Pompeii. The famous city was entombed in ash and pyroclastic flow from the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. Today, it is an amazing place. I chose to set the Pompeii scene in the baths because they were such an important part of Roman history. The baths were a common meeting place for people—both men and women—and it was common to visit the baths daily if you could afford it. In fact, it was so important that the baths were often subsidized by the government and the price was very low. One of the most interesting parts of the baths was the fact that the Romans had developed heated floors. The technology involved a hollow floor through which hot air was forced.
I think that’s it for the history and mythology in Institute of Magic—at least the big things. I hope you enjoyed the book and will come back for more of Ana, Lachlan, Rowan, and Bree!
For Lindsay and Andrew.
Acknowledgments
Thank you, Ben, for everything. There would be no books without you.
Thank you to Jena O’Connor and Lindsey Loucks for your excellent editing. The book is immensely better because of you! Thank you to Eleonora for your idea to make Muffin the Cat Sìth, and to Richard for your eagle eye on typos.
Thank you to Orina Kafe for the beautiful cover art. Thank you to Collette Markwardt for allowing me to borrow the Pugs of Destruction, who are real dogs named Chaos, Havoc, and Ruckus. They were all adopted from rescue agencies.
Glossary
Alpha Council - There are two governments that enforce law for supernaturals—the Alpha Council and the Order of the Magica. The Alpha Council governs all shifters. They work cooperatively with the Alpha Council when necessary—for example, when capturing FireSouls.
Blood Sorcerer - A type of Magica who can create magic using blood.
Dark Magic - The kind that is meant to harm. It’s not necessarily bad, but it often is.
Demons - Often employed to do evil. They live in various hells but can be released upon the earth if you know how to get to them and then get them out. If they are killed on Earth, they are sent back to their hell.
Dragon Sense - A FireSoul’s ability to find treasure. It is an internal sense that pulls them toward what they seek. It is easiest to find gold, but they can find anything or anyone that is valued by someone.
Djinn - Possesses invisibility and the ability to possess others for brief periods of time.
Earthwalking Gods - Reincarnates of the ancient gods who can walk upon the earth. They are mortal but with all the power of that god.
Enchanted Artifacts – Artifacts can be imbued with magic that lasts after the death of the person who put the magic into the artifact (unlike a spell that has not been put into an artifact—these spells disappear after the Magica’s death). But magic is not stable. After a period of time—hundreds or thousands of years depending on the circumstance—the magic will degrade. Eventu
ally, it can go bad and cause many problems.
Fire Mage – A mage who can control fire.
FireSoul - A very rare type of Magica who shares a piece of the dragon’s soul. They can locate treasure and steal the gifts (powers) of other supernaturals. With practice, they can manipulate the gifts they steal, becoming the strongest of that gift. They are despised and feared. If they are caught, they are thrown in the Prison of Magical Deviants.
The Great Peace - The most powerful piece of magic ever created. It hides magic from the eyes of humans.
Magica - Any supernatural who has the power to create magic—witches, sorcerers, mages. All are governed by the Order of the Magica.
Order of the Magica - There are two governments that enforce law for supernaturals—the Alpha Council and the Order of the Magica. The Order of the Magica govern all Magica. They work cooperatively with the Alpha Council when necessary—for example, when capturing FireSouls.
Seeker - A type of supernatural who can find things. FireSouls often pass off their dragon sense as Seeker power.
Shifter - A supernatural who can turn into an animal. All are governed by the Alpha Council.
Transporter - A type of supernatural who can travel anywhere. Their power is limited and must regenerate after each use.
Undercover Protectorate - A secret organization dedicated to protecting supernaturals and solving the crimes that no one else will.
Vampire - Blood drinking supernaturals with great strength and speed who live in a separate realm.
About Linsey
Before becoming a writer, Linsey Hall was a nautical archaeologist who studied shipwrecks from Hawaii and the Yukon to the UK and the Mediterranean. She credits fantasy and historical romances with her love of history and her career as an archaeologist. After a decade of tromping around the globe in search of old bits of stuff that people left lying about, she settled down and started penning her own romance novels. Her Dragon’s Gift series draws upon her love of history and the paranormal elements that she can't help but include.
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All reference to events, persons, and locale are used fictitiously, except where documented in historical record. Names, characters, and places are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.
Copyright 2017 by Linsey Hall
Published by Bonnie Doon Press LLC
All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form, except in instances of quotation used in critical articles or book review. Where such permission is sufficient, the author grants the right to strip any DRM which may be applied to this work.
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ISBN 978-1-942085-58-4
