by Tj Dixon
Peter and the Heart of Alchemy Book 5 of The War of Contractia By T.J. Dixon (part of The Chronicles of Contractia)
Author’s Foreword
Please note that all people, places and events in this story are purely fictional. Any resemblance to any real person, place or event (or anything else) is purely co-incidence. This is the fifth book in The War of Contractia, which is the first series in The Chronicles of Contractia.
Prologue (Peter)
I knock on the head’s door and it swings open. Both the head and the judge from the last battle of the tournament are standing inside. Like the head the judge has pale skin, blue eyes and short blonde hair, however unlike the pale blue mage robes that the head wears the judge is wearing simple black mage robes. The judge also looks a lot older than the head. I am fairly sure the head is a lot older than she looks though, so the judge could very well be younger than her. It looks like they were talking, but now their attention is firmly on me.
“Ready?” The judge asks me.
“Yes.” I answer.
“So you’re taking this one with you?” The judge asks me, glancing at Rin.
“Yes, Rin is coming with me.” I nod.
“I’ll see you again the day after tomorrow.” The judge tells the head.
“Be sure to take care of our star pupil.” The head says.
“Of course. Now Peter and Rin, take my hand.” The judge says holding out her right fist. I place my right hand on top of hers. Then she ports us.
We are in a huge blue marble room with about twenty large queues of people. Either side of the queues are large black buildings each the size of a small house. The house on the left of each queue has a large number written in blue. They are ordered from one to twenty, but the twentieth house doesn’t have a queue so there must be nineteen queues.
“So this is the main port hub?” I ask, looking around.
“Yes. Is this your first time traveling to Portalis?” The judge asks.
“No, but I took a different route last time.”
“Well, this is the route we’ll be taking this time. We can use gate twenty. Normally only the elite military can use that one, but since you are considered high priority the queen has authorised it. The queue is shorter, but we still have to go through the same security checks as usual. Whatever you do, don’t offend or resist security. They are generally rather unforgiving.” The judge tells us and then leads the way to the small queue in front of the building with the big number twenty. A young woman wearing plain black trousers and shirt seems to be looking suspiciously at everyone. She notices us and leaves the queue to intercept us.
“Sally, who’s the boy?” She asks the judge with a glare.
“He won the royal tournament at the academy I was overseeing today. We have her majesty’s permission to use gate twenty.”
“Show me the pass then.” The young woman sighs. The judge, Sally, takes out a small purple slip of paper and shows it to the young woman. “It’s fine, but why did it have to be on my shift? You know I hate scanning male scum. That’s why I work on gate twenty, since only female mages normally use it.”
“It’s not like I knew you were on duty.” Sally says quite reasonably. “Anyway, I’m sure her majesty wouldn’t approve of calling a guest, who she personally invited to Portalis, scum.”
“Who cares?” The young woman shrugs. The judge frowns. I can’t say I appreciate being called scum either, but I don’t want to cause trouble. “Anyway, hurry up and join the queue.”
“Very well.” Sally says and so we do. It doesn’t take long before we reach the front of the queue. Sally and then Rin are both felt all over by the young woman. Then it is my turn. The young woman looks at me carefully from about five feet away.
“What are those enchantments on your arms?” She asks, sounding annoyed.
“They’re dwarven magic.” I tell her and her eyes go wide. Then she frowns and shakes her head.
“There’s no way that’s possible. Just tell me what they really are, or I’ll have to have an alchemist take a look at them.”
“Sorry, but I’ve already told you the truth. They’re dwarven.”
“I’m getting an alchemist, don’t leave here.” She says sounding angry now. A reversed magical shield goes up around me as if she expects me to ignore her instruction and then she walks off. I look at Rin apologetically. Rin looks annoyed, but it is clear who the target of her frustration is and it isn’t me. The woman ports back with an older looking woman in white mage robes.
“Lower the shield.” The older woman says and then the shield around me is dropped. “Hmmm… That is an interesting enchantment. I have no idea what it does, but it doesn’t appear to be of human origin. I can’t say for sure that it is dwarven, but it could be. If the boy is using gate twenty, presumably you have checked for permission?”
“Of course.”
“Then let him pass.”
“Very well. Get out of my sight, boy.” The young woman says and so I happily head on to where Rin and Sally are standing. Sally then leads us through a short corridor to a small door with magical energy flowing through it. She places her right hand on it and uses dimensional magic, though I don’t understand exactly what she does with it.
“Both of you go through first. Just place both hands on the door and it will take you to the destination.” Sally tells us. Rin does so first and then I place my hands on it. It feels just like a normal port.
We are both standing in a small wooden room with two beds. We could be back in the academy in a standard room, but my senses tell me we are in Portalis as expected. Then Sally has ported in.
“Spend the rest of the day however you wish. I’ll let you know when it’s time for breakfast. The ceremony is at midday tomorrow.” Sally tells us.
Chapter 1 (Multiple)
(Rin)
“Good luck.” I tell Peter with a smile.
“Thank you. It’s just a ceremony though, so it should be easy. After bringing you all the way here I just can’t believe you can’t even watch.”
“Don’t worry about it. Just try to enjoy it if you can. Now you’d better not keep the judge waiting any longer.”
“I know. Anyway, try to have a good day. I look forward to spending time together later.” Peter tells me and then ports away.
So what to do now? It’s obvious really. Shopping, or more precisely trying on clothes I can’t afford. To think I get to go to Kappa Kups a second time in my life. Even if I can’t afford anything there it is still a great privilege. I still remember the location so I port directly outside the shopping district and head straight for Kappa Kups.
“How may I help you?” The shop assistant asks me as I enter. She is wearing the same outfit that is being displayed in the window. She is beyond lucky to work here and actually wear these outfits every day. Her outfit is a really impressive white mage robe. It has a very intricate design with different shades of white forming patterns of the elements. I also detect a subtle enchantment, though I can’t tell what its purpose is.
“I’d like to try on some of your outfits. I’m curious though, what does that enchantment do?”
“Enchantment?” The shop assistant asks, confused.
“On those robes you’re wearing.”
“It helps you restore your mana and slightly enhances the speed at which you can cast magic. I’m impressed you noticed it.”
“I’m an alchemist’s daughter.” I shrug.
“There aren’t many noble alchemists. Whose daughter are you?” The shop assistant asks and I silently curse my stupidity. I don’t know any alchemist nobles so
I can’t even bluff an answer.
“You wouldn’t know my mother.” I sigh.
“In which case I will need to see your money before you try anything on.” The shop assistant tells me.
“I didn’t bring it with me. I was going to come back if I found anything I wanted.” I bluff.
“I’m sorry, but you’ll have to come back with the money before you can try anything on.”
“Oh fine.” I sigh and leave the shop. Damn it!
I walk on and look at the other shops, but most are of no interest to me. There is one shop that sells rare herbs, but the prices are outrageous. Even the sweet shop charges two gold per sweet. It sells brightly coloured bite sized enchanted sweets that are probably divine, but two gold…
I leave the shopping district before I can get even more annoyed. I’m meant to meet Peter back at the inn for lunch, but that gives me all morning to myself. I plan to go with Peter to the library later. He seemed interested in it and didn’t seem to have any interest in shopping.
“These shops are no good, but perhaps…” I mutter to myself and port to one of the big public squares. There are shops all around it and the prices are much more affordable. I pick a clothes shop first, but after taking a quick look around there is nothing of interest to me.
I then check out a herb store, but there are very few herbs I don’t have. The herbs I don’t have that they stock are of very limited use in alchemy so this shop is no good. I check out the Information Exchange next. Nothing important seems to have happened, but that is probably just as well. If anything important had happened it is unlikely it would be anything good, given how the war is going.
Finally I find a shop that is both affordable and of interest. A small sweet shop with affordable prices. I pay for a ‘taster set’ of ten different sweets. I stand there trying all ten of them. They are all nice but three are especially nice. I buy twenty of each of those sweets. It costs six and a half silver including the taster set I bought first.
I port back to our room and put them on my bedside table. I still can’t believe we were put in the same room, but it was only for the one night. If it had been any boy other than Peter I would have protested. Peter would never intentionally harm me though, so I was just shocked rather than concerned or angry.
I wish we had had the energy to go out somewhere together yesterday, but Peter was exhausted by the time we got here. I am looking forward to spending time together later though. I don’t dare call it a date, but whatever I call it we get to spend time alone having fun. The more I am looking forward to it the slower the morning is going to pass.
(Saya)
This seems to be a shopping area where only rich Contractians go. There are all sorts of shops but the prices are outrageous. So I just need to pick one of the shoppers as my target. I want the best target possible though so I wait until someone enters one of the most expensive shops. That means either the clothes shop or the book shop.
The first shopper to enter one of those two shops is a girl of perhaps fourteen or so. She has short blonde hair, piercing green eyes and sharp pointed features on her face, especially her nose. She is wearing the school uniform that all young mages in Contractia wear. It is a simple plain blue skirt and blue top, but the enchantment is fairly powerful and very distinct.
She enters a clothes shop and talks to the shop assistant, and then leaves looking really annoyed. The girl looks in a few other shops before muttering, “These shops are no good, but perhaps…” She ports away but I trace her port and follow it. I am of course careful not to follow too closely. I quietly invoke a permanent port trace on her. I breathe a sigh of relief when she doesn’t notice.
The girl briefly enters the Information Exchange and then does a little shopping here. I am concerned now that I may have picked a bad target. If she is shopping here perhaps those shops were too expensive for her after all. I am about to return to the shopping district to pick a new target when the girl ports away. On a whim I trace her port and almost gasp out loud. It seems I picked the right target after all.
The Royal Inn is only used by guests of the queen. Next time the girl leaves there I must complete the job. No, I have the trace, so it is better to wait until the perfect opportunity. I mustn’t let that opportunity pass untaken though. I will have that girl’s life.
I decide to walk there under the cover of invisibility, because anyone porting or even walking too close to that inn is going to arouse the suspicion of the guards. It isn’t far so it doesn’t take long. I suspect even with my presence hidden I would be detected if I tried to enter, so I wait outside the inn.
It isn’t long before the girl leaves the inn and she does so without porting. I follow her as she wanders seemingly aimlessly. I don’t know what her purpose is but for now I just stalk her and wait for the right moment. The girl finally enters an empty side street where nobody should see us. I prepare my attack, but just as I am about to strike she ports away.
I return to the inn, frustrated but determined. I wait a while until she emerges with a Contractian boy. Her slave? I follow them and they seem quite friendly, so perhaps he is family. Maybe a cousin? They don’t look similar enough to be brother and sister, unless they have different fathers. Her eyes are green and his are blue, but more importantly her features are much sharper than his. I whisper a quick incantation to hear what they are saying without getting too close.
“I never really got a chance to look around the city last time I was here, so it is good to walk around with you Rin.” The boy says sounding carefree.
“Did the queen not let you explore the city?” Rin asks, sounding equally carefree.
“I was free to do what I wanted, but I needed to remain focused on the mission.” The boy shrugs. He was on a mission for the queen? I knew the girl must be special to be staying at that inn, but it sounds like the boy is special too. Just who are these two?
“The queen had better not keep relying on you.” Rin sighs. “It’s not reasonable to expect a thirteen year old boy to…”
“I accepted the mission.” The boy interrupts.
“I know, but…”
“Anyway, it all worked out ok in the end.” The boy shrugs.
“It might not next time though.”
“Next time we’ll be fighting together.”
“Damned right we will be.” Rin tells him rather fiercely.
“What are those shops down there?” The boy asks, pointing down a small alley.
“The first one is an alchemist. I’m not sure about the others.”
“Let’s take a closer look.” The boy says and rushes down the alley at a fast walk. Rin runs after him with a smile on her face. There is nobody around and they are both clearly off guard. A perfect opportunity. I draw my twin daggers, put up a port block along the whole alley and then port through it directly behind Rin.
(Peter)
I notice a port block go up around us and a moment later I sense someone porting through it. I turn and sense someone’s aura directly behind Rin, but I also sense two smaller auras shaped like knives. They are lunging straight for Rin’s throat from either side.
I send two powerful blasts of wind, one at each of the knife shaped auras. They both get knocked back, but not as far as I had hoped. I send a strike of lightning down from the clear blue sky at the third aura. Whoever it belongs to seems to sense my attack and ports away. The port block is gone.
“Are you ok, Rin?” I ask and Rin nods a little stunned.
“Who was that?” Rin asks, sounding shocked.
“I have no idea. I only saw their aura, and the aura of their knives. I assume they were knives.”
“I thought only living things had auras. Do weapons have auras too?” Rin asks sounding confused.
“Only if they’re alive.” I frown.
“Let’s get out of here.” Rin says and I nod. I take Rin’s hand and she ports us. “That’s the Ancient Library over there. We should be safe inside, and we were going here any
way. Sorry you didn’t get to see much of the city on our way here.”
“Don’t be silly. I’m much more concerned that you’re alright. We can return to the inn if you want.”
“No way.” Rin says shaking her head firmly. Then she frowns at the huge stone building in front of us. “There were large queues to get in last time we were here. Why is nobody queuing here today? I hope it’s not closed.”
“Since we’re here we may as well see if we can get inside.”
“True. Let’s head for the middle door.” Rin tells me and leads the way towards the huge wooden double doors at the centre of this side of the Ancient Library. On either side there is another entrance just like this one, but the other entrances are closed and these doors are at least open. As we reach the doors I realise that they are at least five or six times my height.
“They’re big.”
“Yes, they are. I didn’t really pay much attention last time I was here because there were so many people.” Rin says looking up.
“Are you two coming in, or just admiring the architecture?” An annoyed sounding voice asks us from just the other side of the door. I look and not seeing anyone I use my wind senses. I can’t however sense anyone.
“We’re coming in.” Rin answers and leads the way. Concerned by the unseen voice I keep my senses as focused as possible and make sure I am ready to raise a shield if needed. As we pass through the door I feel a powerful magic pass through us. Then an old woman wearing brown mage robes appears in front of us. She must have been there the whole time, but now we can see her.
“It’s been a while since we had visitors. You two must be brave.” The woman frowns.
“Why?” Rin asks. “It was really busy the last time I came here.”
“Have you not read the news recently, or even been in an IE?” The woman asks Rin with a chuckle.
“No. There’s only one Information Exchange in the town I live in and I haven’t been in there for a while. I’ve just been too busy.” Rin answers.
