by D. Levesque
“Yes,” Bower says in confusion. “But he’s human!”
“Bower, how the fucking hell did you even get into the M.A.G.I. Bounty Hunters, being so dumb! I know he is human! I am not happy with it either, but we don’t make the rules. The rules are if they can do Magic, and they get a recommendation from a high Council member, they get trained. End of story. This does not differ from us having to take on some sycophant’s lap boy and train him. What you just got was what I am sure is the result of her dad,” Pathy points at Marrisa. “Having put a powerful protection spell on him. I know I would. Even those Council members put them on their lap boys, giving them some protection until they can protect themselves. The fact that it was Magus Targun, you should count yourself lucky you only blew a hole through my fucking office! Some Council members use a death protection spell!”
Bower looks at her in horror. “Gods!” Pathy yells in frustration. “Bower. Leave. You are on administrative leave for a week, with pay. You need to think about what you just did. No, you big fucking oaf, leave through my door, not the hole in the wall!” Pathy screams at him, as he had been about to go back through the hole that his body had just created.
“I need my stuff to get home,” he says numbly.
Deciding to see if I can smooth things over, I say. “Excuse me. Pathy, was it? Do you think we can let this one slide? Marrisa kind of gave him the go-ahead to attack me.”
Marrisa now turns and glares at me. Too bad. You want to be bitchy at me at times. I can be a prick too, can’t I? Pathy looks at me and then looks at Marrisa glaring at me.
“You are all right if we drop this? Leave it off Bower’s record?” Pathy says slowly.
“Sure. Listen, I am all new to this, and I don’t want to cause Bower here any problems. I am sure he has a valid reason to hate humans. I don’t want him to get into trouble, if that’s all right.”
Pathy looks between me, Marrisa, and Bower. Finally, she nods and says, “Fine. But I will finish this process for you. I don’t need his anger towards you to cause any more delays in your training. If you will come around, Marrisa, with him?”
“Sure,” she says through gritted teeth.
Yep, I got her well and pissed. Too fucking bad. This hot and cold emotional roller coaster with her is making my head hurt. And well, she did kind of encourage it. So she can’t blame anyone but herself.
Marrisa heads to the door we had come in from, and I follow her. We end up going back the way we came, but we take another hallway to get to the other side of the building, where Pathy’s office is. We pass Bower, who flattens himself against the wall. That’s when I see how tall he is.
I’m tall at six foot four, but this guy is at least seven foot three. And he is big. I am sure if a real grizzly bear were standing up next to him, they would be identical in height and width. Marrisa heads to the end of the hallway and to the last door. She stops just outside and points to it.
“Here is your fucking appointment. Enjoy,” Marisa says to me with a glare, and without a backward glance she walks away, her back straight. That’s when I notice she is in her cat form, and her tail behind her is puffy as fuck. Yep, she’s pissed.
“Come on in, young man. Don’t mind Marrisa. No one gets along with her,” Pathy says.
I turn to her and say, “Yeah. I have been told she can’t keep partners?”
Pathy snorts at that. “Of course not. She isn’t friendly with her partners,” Pathy shrugs.
“Why?” I ask, hoping to get some insight into Marrisa.
“We think it’s because the first partner she had when she started with M.A.G.I. got killed in the line of duty. She took it pretty hard.”
“Shit,” I say with a shake of my head. “What killed her partner, if that’s not breaching some kind of protocol or something?”
Pathy looks at me silently at first, without answering. She nods and points to one of the chairs in front of her desk. The other one is busted and is still on the ground, mangled. She walks to the other side of her desk, rights her chair, and sits down. I follow suit and wait for her to speak.
“Simple. It was while she was on an assignment on Earth. Her partner was shot with a stray bullet from a human’s weapon. Normally it would not be a killing shot, as we Beasts heal quickly, but her partner took the bullet right through the eye. She didn’t survive.”
I close my eyes, now understanding why she hates humans so much. “Was she close to her partner?” I ask her, opening my eyes again to ask Pathy the question.
“Marrisa and Lori, Marrisa’s sister, considered her family.”
“Ah, shit,” I say, understanding even more. With a sigh, I say, “I would hate humans too, if I were here.”
“Exactly. Now, shall we get you enrolled?” Pathy says, changing her tone to one of business.
Chapter Sixteen
“You don’t hate humans?” I ask Pathy.
“Oh, I do. The difference is, I don’t let it impede my job,” she says in a hard voice, which softens as she continues. “But also, I am not as hardcore about my hate as some. I’ll give you a little piece of advice.” She looks down at the paperwork in front of her. How did she get that so fast? Did she crawl through the hole?
“You will get a ton of hate directed at you for being human, Kevin,” Pathy says, not sugar-coating it. “Expect it. Get used to it. Hell, it won’t just be hate. You will have people trying to kill you. It won’t be because they want to study you, the first human who can do Magic. It’ll be because you’re human. That’s it. Your race caused us to flee Earth. That resentment still runs deep, even thousands of years later. I am honestly not thrilled that we have a human on our books now, but it is what it is. Rules are rules. Now, this is your communication stone and this is your Portal stone,” she finishes, taking two black stones that look exactly like Marrisa’s and placing them on her desk.
“The Portal stone right now is only set to one destination, which is where your training is. The communication one is blank, as it’s new. When you want to add someone, you just put each other’s stones together and think of transferring your resonance. Now, they need to be designated to you. Place your hands on them, please,” Pathy says briskly, but not in a harsh tone, more with a let’s get this done attitude.
I reach over and place a hand on each of the stones. My right hand on the communication stone, and my left on the Portal one. They both feel cool to the touch, and smooth, almost like glass.
Pathy puts her hands over mine and says something under her breath, and suddenly I feel a jolt rushing up my arms that makes them tingle, like when you fall asleep on them. I pull back and shake them.
“That’s normal. That was your Magic binding them to you. Now no one else can use those but you,” she says.
“Next, I will need your signature. I know you humans usually sign with a pen, but contracts here are signed in blood. So I will need you to press your thumb hard on the small pad there.” She points to a round metal pad, which, upon closer examination, appears to have some kind of tiny needles on it. “That will bring out some blood. Don’t worry, it has a healing property, so you will heal after twenty five seconds. I need you to press your thumb here, here, here and here as well,” she says pointing to different locations on a piece of paper.
I get up and look down at it to read it, but it doesn’t make sense to me. I look at her with a raised eyebrow. “I can’t read this, and there is no way I am about to sign anything I can’t read, with my blood, in a world of Magic,” I tell her in a soft voice.
She looks at me and nods, and I can tell it’s approvingly. “Good. You have a head on your shoulders. She mumbles over the paper, and suddenly it’s in English script. I look at her in surprise.
“It won’t last long. But it’s so you can read it,” she says.
“And how do I know you didn’t just Magic some kind of other words that to me seem safe, but underneath them is wording that has me signing away my soul?”
Pathy smirks. “And you’r
e cautious. You might just survive. Give me a moment,” she says, and then she takes her communication stone and closes her eyes. After a minute she nods and says,” Let me see your stone.”
I take the stone out of my pocket and go to hand it to her, but instead she presses her stone against mine. Suddenly I hear a pinging sound.
“You there, Kevin?” I hear the voice of Magus Targun in my head.
“Yes! Where are you?” I blurt out loud.
“No need to say the words, young man. Just think of them as if we are talking. Now. Pathy tells me you have concerns about signing the contract?”
“Yes,” I tell him, or think to him hesitantly, now sure how this works.
“Well, don’t worry. The contract is in the Elven language, so unless you can read the language of the Elves, you won’t understand it. Pathy used a translation spell so that you can read it. You can trust her when she says that what you are reading is what you are getting. Does that ease your mind?”
“Yes? I mean, do I have much choice?”
“You do, young man. You know the two choices you have,” Magus Targun says softly in my head.
“Either sign the papers or become a slave and guinea pig for the Council and their tests,” I tell him with a sigh.
“Kevin. You have a chance here that no other human in, hell, any history has been given. I am glad we can talk quickly like this so that no one else can hear. This is a chance to help redeem your race! Take it by the horns, as you humans would say, and run with it. Become powerful and show us what you can do as a human being!” he says jubilantly.
“That’s a lot to ask,” I tell him. “For me, one person, to redeem my race for what they did to all the others?”
“It is, but you know what? I don’t think you got that last elixir by accident. The universe, the Gods, you name it, might have put you there at the right time for the right reason, right? Prove me right, young man. Make my daughter proud of you.”
Yeah, right! Your daughter who hates me for being human, and who I just pissed off even more. I doubt that was a smart move on my part since I’m married to her, and I have to live with her later.
“I will try, Magus Targun,” I tell him, unsure if I can meet those expectations.
“Please, Call me Targun. You are my son-in-law now, of course. I can’t have family calling me by my title.”
“Sure, Targun. Thanks for easing my nerves some.”
“Anytime. I just sent a request for you to add my resonance to your stone. Go ahead and accept it,” he says.
I almost feel that request in my mind somehow. I’m not sure how to accept it, so I think of just accepting that feeling and it goes away, and then I hear a ping.
“Great! I’ve got to go, but Pathy is a good person. She told me what happened with Bower. Don’t worry. I won’t do anything to him. But she wanted to let me know and thanked me for not putting a death spell on you. Bower has been with the M.A.G.I. for a long time. She works well with him, and she would have hated to bury her husband.”
“Husband!!!” I cry out loud. Pathy, who had been staring at me during the call, smirks at that.
“Later,” Targun says with a laugh, and I feel the connection drop somehow.
I numbly put the stone into my pocket without thinking. “Husband?”
“He has his moments. He’s a good Beast, but there are times I want to slap his head against the wall. I’m kind of glad you did it for me. It’s been a while since I needed to discipline him. He knows when I get home, I’ll be cussing him out,” Pathy says with a laugh. “Now, did you want to read over the contract quickly?”
“Sure,” I tell her with a chuckle. Sorry Bower, but in retrospect, I didn’t cause this. You and Marrisa did. Want to blame someone? Blame her. There is no way she did not know that I had that spell on me.
I look down at the contract and it’s still in English. Skimming it, I see that it’s a basic contract. I will work for the M.A.G.I. for a minimum of two years in exchange for the training they offer me. I can leave at any time after that or sign on for longer. I could leave before then if there is a good reason, but it would need to be discussed with my manager. The pay rate is, as Marrisa said, 60,000 credits. Unexpectedly, there’s a clause indicating I’d be receiving a signing bonus of 150,000 credits as the first human to join. I am also being assigned a standard communication stone and a Portal stone. They do not need to be given back when I leave M.A.G.I. Damn, how much are these worth then? Are they cheap and standard as it says? Or are they another perk you get for being a Bounty Hunter for M.A.G.I?
It also says that after training I will be assigned a partner, which in this case, I know will be Marrisa, which makes me scowl. I will also be assigned a world to work on.
“A world?” I ask Pathy.
Nodding, she says, “Most recruits are usually given one world to work on for at least two years, to gain experience and knowledge. I’m not sure what world you will get since that comes from up higher.”
“Makes sense,” I tell her. “It’s like getting to know the locals and becoming part of the community.”
“Exactly,” she says, nodding.
The rest of it is standard stuff, which is surprising since it’s a Magic organization. I mean, M.A.G.I. stands for Magical Agency for Government Investigation. They have parental leave, vacation. Accrued time off for sick leave. Hell, this contract is even better than the one I signed for my last freaking job!
“I meant to ask, why are we called Bounty Hunters if we are investigators?” I ask her.
“It’s an old term. Before M.A.G.I. was founded, we were Bounty Hunters who went after those who broke Magic laws. There was no such a thing as a police force in the cities. Just Bounty Hunters. When M.A.G.I. was created, they brought in the best of the Bounty Hunters. The name just stuck. Trust me, when it comes to record keeping,” she says with a sigh, “It gets difficult at times.”
“So, the M.A.G.I. was created out of the Bounty Hunters. I guess they would have been investigators going after their targets. They would need to find them.”
“You know for a human, you catch on fast,” Pathy says, approvingly. Hey, coming from someone who hates humans, I will take that.
“Thanks.” I feel my cheeks blushing at the compliment. “I always loved watching television shows or reading books with private eyes or criminal investigations.”
“Oh, did you used to read that book by you humans, hmmm? Dammit, what was his name—from old England in your world.”
“Sherlock Holmes?” I supply.
“Yes!” That’s him. “My husband loves those books. Shhh. Don’t let him know I told you! He hates humans but loves human books like that.”
“Too bad,” I tell her with a laugh. “In my apartment on Earth, I have tons of books like that on a shelf. When I was young, I wanted to be a cop. Actually, do you know a Fairy named Mavin?”
“Mavin,” Pathy says, thinking about it. “Did he work with Marrisa once?”
“Yeah, I think she mentioned it. He’s actually protecting my apartment, and he’s in it right now. If you want to contact him, tell him that your husband can borrow all the books he wants from my collection.”
“Seriously? But that big idiot just tried to kill you!” Pathy says in astonishment.
Shrugging my shoulders, I tell her, “Look at it as a peace offering of sorts.”
“Damn, I might take you up on that,” she says, nodding slowly.
“Though, keep him away from my Dresden books,” I tell her with a laugh. “Now that I know Magic is real, I might want to go back and reread them.”
“Oh wait, do you mean those Dresden Files books? Where this supposed wizard is a private eye?” Pathy says with a snort of laughter.
“Yeah?” I tell her hesitantly.
“Oh boy,” Pathy says, slapping the desk hard and laughing. “Those books aren’t all fake. They are loosely based on true events. Though the wizard is really a Magus, and he isn’t human.”
“T
hen what is he?” I ask her, confused.
“He’s a Changeling. Even he is miffed at how well those stories are doing. He just wanted to journal some cases. But then a friend read them and begged him to let him write them out as fiction.”
“But I thought you all hated humans?” I ask her, confused at why a Changeling would allow a human to write books about something like that.
“The writer isn’t human,” she says with a big grin.
“What! What is he?” I blurt out.
“Oh, that’s not my story to tell,” she says with another laugh. “That you won’t get out of me. Now, shall we sign a contract so you can go start your training?”
“Sure,” I tell her, and I look over the contract one more time to make sure I didn’t miss anything. Satisfied, I press my thumb to the round disk with the needles and then press it to all the locations that Pathy had pointed out. Once done, I look at my thumb and watch the tiny holes close back up. Even the blood disappears as if being sucked back into my body. Damn. I love Magic!
“Now, hold your stone and-” Pathy says, but I interrupt her as I look around in a panic.
“Wait! My bag!” I cry out, realizing that I don’t have it. I had it when I left the elevator, and I was sure I had it when we walked through the portal!
“Ah, don’t worry. Most likely, Marrisa, when she ported, you had your bag sent ahead to your training when you ported, since it needs to be looked over to make sure there is no contraband.”
“Oh,” I say, relieved. Again, fucking love Magic.
“So, hold your stone and ask it to bring you to the training area, and it will create a portal.”
“Wait, should I go downstairs first?” I ask her, remembering what Marrisa said about creating one on my floor and then going splat.
Pathy grins at me and says, “Test one passed. Yes. Go downstairs, and once you’re on the main floor, just open a portal. Once you get though to the other side, and don’t worry, no one can follow you on this one, you will meet your trainer.”
