by John Corwin
"Oh, Harry was a regular here in the infirmary." Her eyes narrowed. "And that's not including his victims."
"Victims?" Bella turned a shocked look to Shelton.
"I'm all grown up now," Shelton said with a groan. "Don't we have more important things to discuss?"
Hutchins waved a hand and turned to a filing cabinet. "Of course. I'm not sure there's enough time in one life to discuss everything you've done anyway." She pulled open a drawer on the cabinet. It extended further and further, every inch packed tight with manila folders. She continued to pull the drawer open until it stretched nearly across the room. It seemed the otherwise ordinary-looking filing cabinet should topple over from the weight at any moment, though it never did. Once I finally found a home again, as opposed to living in Shelton's secret hideouts, I decided I could definitely use a sock drawer with an enchantment like that.
Hutchins finally stopped pulling, fingers flicking through the folders. "Ah, here it is." She withdrew a green folder. "I remembered it being color coded because it was so odd." She licked a finger and flipped through the pages until she reached the picture of a boy about middle-school age. His closed eyes were sunken, and he looked as if he hadn't slept for days.
I sucked in a breath. "Holy crap. It looks like the same thing. Did they figure out what was wrong with him?"
She glanced over the pages. Shook her head. "No. They found him in the Burrows after he'd gone missing for two days. His case is why they barred access to those tunnels."
"They used to be dungeons, right?" I asked, remembering what Lina had told me.
Hutchins nodded. "Even though they never found the cause, the administration determined some form of dark magic used for torturing prisoners might still linger there, and decided it was safer to close the place off rather than risk any further harm to students."
I picked up the picture of the boy. Behind it lay the portrait of how he had been before the incident, young, smiling, his rosy cheeks slightly plump. My eyes flicked to Lina. She looked like someone who hadn't slept for two days. The kid in the picture looked like he hadn't slept or eaten for a week. Was this what lay in store for Lina? I was just about to ask the fate of the boy in the picture when I saw the next page. The boy's name was Toby Peterson. Someone else, perhaps a doctor or more likely an uncaring bureaucrat had stamped a big red word across the page beneath Toby's name.
DECEASED.
Chapter 31
After badgering Healer Hutchins with more medical questions, she made it clear Lina might recover. Toby had lain for two days in the Burrows before receiving medical care while Lina had received almost immediate attention. The healer also made something else clear—she didn't know how to treat the condition. And then she kicked us out.
"The girl needs her rest, and I need all my concentration," she said before shutting the door behind us with a sense of finality.
I took a few steps down the hall before dropping onto a bench. I felt at a complete loss for what to do next. "Nightliss is dying, Lina and those kids might be dying, Daelissa is hell-bent on finding the Cyrinthian Rune and reopening the Alabaster Arch, my sister wants to convert me to the dark side and—and..." I gave Shelton and Bella a hopeless look. "I'm so confused. What do I do? Who do I help first?"
"Why, there's no question," Bella said, her eyes full of concern. "We should find out what happened to Lina."
"We can't do anything for Nightliss," Shelton said. "Unless your mom decides to play hero again."
"The Conroys are holding her in an astral prison," I told him.
Shelton gave me a surprised look. "When did you find that out?"
"Ivy told us," Bella said.
"That little bi—brat," Shelton said with some difficulty. "We've got to take her out of the equation."
"Do you suggest killing a little girl?" Bella asked, raising an eyebrow.
"That's exactly what I'm suggesting," Shelton replied, sarcasm heavy in his voice. "Because killing kids is how I roll."
Ivy had nothing to do with Mom's imprisonment, but would she know how or be willing to help me free her? Would I have a better shot at convincing her to save Nightliss? No chance in hell. She thinks Darklings are evil. If I couldn't count on Mom or Ivy, I had to concentrate on finding the angel inside of me. Then I could cure Nightliss and hopefully myself.
Bella looked around the empty hall. "Perhaps we shouldn't discuss such things here."
I was about to comment on how empty the place was and how unlikely it was anyone would overhear us, then remembered Billy and his gang, not to mention Bigglesworth. "What's to keep our stalkers from listening to us at our new digs?" I asked.
"We ward the ever-lovin' crap out of it," Shelton said.
Once home, Bella and Shelton chose a large, empty room off the east hallway of the first floor, and plastered protective wards against eavesdropping and intrusion around it. According to Bella, it was a lot easier than warding the entire house.
I was ready to stumble to bed before they finished, but they made me watch in the hopes I might actually learn something. Instead, my mind ran circles around the many issues plaguing my wonderful life.
"I doubt it," Shelton said, his words penetrating the asteroid field of frowny faces circling my brain.
I snapped out of my reverie and became aware of him and Bella staring at me, arms crossed. "Did I miss something?" I asked.
"Only everything we told you about laying wards," Bella replied. She sighed. "I certainly hope you pay better attention in class."
"I can't help it." I jumped out of my chair and threw my hands up. "I feel like everything is on my shoulders, and I don't have a clue what to do."
"I believe I have one part of the solution," Bella said.
"And that is?"
"Obviously, we kidnap your sister," the dhampyr said without missing a beat. "At best, she can heal Nightliss. At worst, we could use her in trade for your mother."
"No," I said, surprised by how quickly the objection sprang to my lips.
They raised eyebrows at me.
"I've been talking to her. Getting to know her," I explained. "Maybe I can get through to her and convince her to help us."
"Why would she help us when she thinks we're the bad guys?" Shelton said.
Bella's eyes softened. "I know she's your sister, Justin, but she's confused. Bad people have fed the girl lies all her life. How do you think you can turn her around in a matter of days?"
I didn't have an easy answer. Hell, I didn't even have a hard answer. If I pushed her too hard, she might bolt. I remembered her reaction to the mention of our father. She'd told me Nightliss wasn't even a person. Just a Darkling. How could I hope to overcome those prejudices in a short time? If Meghan's best estimate held true, I had maybe six days to do something for Nightliss. How can I win Ivy over or unlock my angel side in so short a time?
Bella interrupted my thoughts. "Justin, do you remember the drain ward we encountered in the tunnels beneath El Dorado?"
An icy chill ran up my back at the memory. "You mean right after someone bragged we didn't need flashlights because we had Arcanes with their little glow-balls? And someone walked over the ward and it drained everyone of magic? And everything went pitch black? And the shadow people almost ate our souls? That time?"
"Yes."
"Of course, I remember. Just thinking about it makes me wonder how I didn't crap my pants."
Bella gave a grim smile. "Is there a chance you can convince your sister to meet you somewhere private?"
"I have no idea." I narrowed my eyes. "Why?"
"I intend to use a drain ward on your sister."
The obvious smacked me in the face like a large trout. If she had no magic, she was harmless, unless she had demonic strength like me. I hadn't seen any evidence she did. "What does it net us if we do capture her? The minute she has enough magic to help Nightliss, she'll probably kill us all."
Bella nodded. "The best course would be trading her for your mother."
I hated the thought of betraying Ivy. It would ruin any chance of ever reconciling with her, of that I had no doubt. But it might be our only course.
Shelton wrinkled his forehead. "A drain ward powerful enough to take on a normal Arcane is one thing, Bella, but this kid ain't ordinary."
"I'm aware of that, Harry."
He leaned forward on his elbow. "No, I don't think you are. A drain ward of that magnitude would need to be anchored to a ley line. You can't just siphon off that much power without a place for it to go. For that, you'd need to carve the rune in the right place. We're talking about the work of at least two days unless you know of some trick I don't."
I turned to Bella. Her face remained resolute. Unconcerned. "Is that true?" I asked.
She nodded. "Don't you feel the power beneath this place, Harry?"
His forehead wrinkled. "Yeah."
"I suggest we carve the drain ward into the floor here. If Justin brings Ivy here—"
I held up my hands. "Wait a minute. There's no way she'll agree to come here. I know for a fact she won't leave campus with me."
"The drain ward needs to be isolated, Justin," Bella said. "Once the rune is carved and enchanted, it will remain active until triggered."
I leaned my face into my hands, my mind warring between trying to convert Ivy, or betraying her. Was it even betrayal given what she'd done to me, luring me into Maximus's clutches with the fake kidnapping? What if our current brother-sister talks were part of another way to trick me into their arms? If I continued to talk to her, to get to know her, maybe she would trust me just enough to come here, especially if I told her it was haunted, or had elephants.
Looking at the two Arcanes, I sighed. "Let me see what I can do."
"No pressure," Shelton said with a somber look. "Bella, think we can do this within a couple of days?"
She held her chin in a hand for a moment. "I believe so."
Shelton shook his head. "What I don't get is why Ivy would be scared of meeting you alone." Shelton said. "The girl could probably whip your tail with one hand tied behind her back."
I rolled my eyes. "Gee, thanks for highlighting my insecurities."
"Just sayin', man."
In class the next morning, everyone was abuzz with excitement about the upcoming Grand Melee. Sometime during the weekend, nerds from the Science Academy had snuck into the university's stadium and stolen the team mascot—a fire-breathing toy poodle named Inferno whose other notable trait was the ability to say the word "squirrel". I wouldn't have believed it for a moment except when I Moogled it on my phone, I did indeed find videos of Inferno racing across the university campus shouting, "Squirrel" and shooting fire from its mouth at hapless rodents.
In retaliation, a group of Arcanes had tried to kidnap the academy's shiny chrome robot mascot, Cylo, and failed, instead opting to cast a rust spell on it. Since Cylo's armor was rust-proof, gloating techies had posted a video on Overnet—the Overworld version of the internet—explaining how science had beaten magic.
"Better luck next time!" said a group of dweebs who made the members of the chess club at my old high school look like pro athletes.
The camera zoomed out as one of the nerds said, "What do you think of that, Cylo?"
The robot, a flashing red light zipping back and forth where its eyes should have been said, "By your command," in a robotic synth and waved stiffly.
I felt like I'd died and gone to heaven. These were definitely my kind of people.
Despite my distracted mind, I managed to pass a pop quiz in Ms. Crab's Elementary Magic class. Of course, memorization and regurgitation had never been a problem for me. Actually doing magic—well, that was another issue.
After failing miserably to listen to Gaia in Elementary Mediation, I went to my favorite class, Arcane History. Zagg offered me a grin when I came in.
"I haven't heard anything back yet," I told him, returning an apologetic frown.
He shrugged. "I'll be patient. I've waited this long."
I hoped Michael found something useful soon.
As usual, the students fidgeted eagerly in their seats, waiting for Zagg to begin. I'd generally disliked history, it being about the past and all that boring stuff, but I probably could have listened to Zagg talk about it all day.
He sat on his stool and asked the class a few questions about what we'd learned so far. Every lesson remained crystal clear in my mind, no doubt thanks to the man's mastery at telling stories.
"And then Ezzek turned Doombringer into a statue," said a boy in answer to a question about one of the Arcane's battles.
"What happened to Thaumitus when he and the Order of Arcane Supremacy tried to wrestle control of the council from Ezzek, Justin?"
"Ezzek turned him inside out with a vacuum spell and annihilated his buddies." If I'd learned anything about the founding father of the Arcane Council, it was that he didn't mess around when it came to achieving his life goals. Ezzek had been a ruthless old coot. Nothing stood in his way.
"And so the Arcane University was built," Zagg said, rising from his stool and retrieving what looked like a black marble from his desk. He took the shiny sphere and spun it. Although the sphere should have spun for a second before promptly rolling off the table and onto the floor, I knew from experience this particular marble was what the Templars referred to as an all-seeing eye, or ASE for short.
The ASE spun faster and faster, weaving a web of light, the tapestry growing in size and detail until an image of the Queens Gate valley came into focus. A man in flowing white robes and a tall peaked hat pointed at the mountains in the valley with his intricately carved staff. He spoke, but there was no sound. The strong set of his jaw, and the fierce light in his eyes told me this was a man seething with passion. His eyes were such a light blue as to be almost white, and his hair shone nearly as white as his robes.
I had to wonder if maybe Ezzek Moore was the guy all the wizards in books and movies were based on.
Zagg stepped in front of the holographic image as Ezzek led a large group of robed people toward the base of the mountain where the university now stood. "Unfortunately, most of the ASE recordings of Ezzek Moore were damaged in the same battle that claimed his life. His most trusted advisor, and best friend, Alexander Tiberius, managed to salvage the ASEs before they were physically destroyed. Decades later, specialists were able to recover the video, though the audio in most of them was destroyed."
"Wait a minute," I said, "didn't the university founding happen after the fall of the Roman Empire? How old were these people?"
The historian smiled. "Their actual ages were unknown, but historians estimate Tiberius to have been at least three-hundred when the university was founded. As for Moore?" He shrugged. "We have only wild guesses and no exact birth date. The first record of him occurred exactly four-hundred years before the founding of the university."
"I didn't realize Arcanes were immortal."
"Oh, we're not." Zagg pursed his lips. "Arcanes do have much longer lifespans than noms, but Moore's longevity was abnormal. Many thought he possessed a spell granting him immortality. Others believed his mysterious lover, the woman known only as Lissa, had somehow granted him this long life."
I felt my jaw tighten at the mention of Lissa, who, according to MacLean, was none other than Daelissa. Either Zagg didn't know the truth behind Lissa, or he'd chosen not to talk about it, because he usually skimmed over Ezzek's love life. Then again, he probably didn't want to go into those sorts of details for an elementary grade history class.
We continued to watch the video, Zagg skipping ahead to show the construction of the original castle. At one point, Ezzek conjured a giant eagle, and apparently attached the ASE to one of the bird's claws, sending it soaring above the build site. I saw rows of tents where the builders lived, and wooden houses where most of the Arcanes stayed at the time. A building off a winding trail past the torn earth of the construction site caught my eye.
"What's that?" I asked, point
ing to the structure.
"That was Ezzek's estate," Zagg replied, pausing the image, and zooming in on the house by putting his fingers on the location and moving them apart. He made a grabbing motion at the image and twisted it, orienting the view from the front of the house.
I felt my mouth drop open. Ezzek's pad was no house. It was a friggin mansion. And it wasn't just any old mansion.
It was the old fraternity house I was living in.
Chapter 32
After class, I corralled Zagg in his classroom, even though my stomach grumbled and complained since it was lunchtime. "What can you tell me about Moore's house?" I asked him.
The historian leaned against his desk, a hand under one chin. "Well, it was built before the university as a place for the Council to live during the campus construction. After completion of the campus, many in the council took teaching positions and quarters inside the castle. The Council of Seven renamed itself to the Arcane Council, and voted Alexander Tiberius as the first Chancellor."
It certainly explained why the place was so huge compared to the other houses on Greek Row. "And it eventually became a fraternity house?" I asked.
"Yep." He adjusted the holographic image floating above his desk to better show the mansion. "In fact, Tiberius founded the first so-called fraternity. Of course, he hadn't intended for the members to turn into a bunch of alcoholic party animals. His original intent, though, was something of a mystery."
Zagg looked at the open door. Walked over and closed it. When he returned, he took out his wand and made a little spinning motion with it. I felt a slight increase in air pressure as an anti-eavesdropping ward dropped into place.
I felt my forehead wrinkle. "Geez, what's with the secrecy?"
"I want to tell you something. But you have to promise not to repeat it to anyone else."
"Pinky swear?" I asked.
He snorted. "You've followed through on your word to me about the other matter. This is for your protection as well as mine."
