Business began to slow in the early evening, and soon there was no one left in the shop but Penny and Argent. The sunset’s powerful light burned in and created fantastic reflections on the glass light fixtures and display cases. In the lull, Penny decided to inspect the different things Argent was selling.
“Did you make all of this stuff?” Penny asked, looking at a selection of miniature Sophotri Stones and crystal wands.
“Most of it. Some of the cheaper stuff is easier to buy in bulk from elsewhere, and some of the things are imported.”
“What does this green powder do? And these necklaces?” Penny asked. Argent sighed in frustration and looked over at the sack of white-green powder she had asked about.
“That’s Sleep Sand, it helps with insomnia. Knocks you out cold.” He gestured to the sealed case of stone pendant necklaces, each displayed with a twin. “And those are Everstone pendants. They are extremely rare and valuable. If a single hunk of Everstone is cut into two or more pieces, the shards will never stop trying to find one another. Couples often buy these as marriage presents, because if one person is wearing one necklace, no matter how far away the other goes, they’ll be bound to meet again one day.”
“How romantic,” Penny stuttered, looking at the Everstones with awe, then looking back at Argent. “Do they really work?”
Argent flashed his usual crooked grin. “They do,” he assured her, and made his way back to the counter to resume counting his yuebells. Penny noticed he was still barefoot and suppressed a small giggle.
“The Atelier is really cool, I like it,” Penny chirped.
“It likes you, too,” he mumbled as he continued to scribble.
As the trio prepared for bed that night, Annette shrieked as she lifted her blanket and an enormous black spider skittered out across the floor. Moments later she was still standing on top of the table while Simon hunted down the tiny creature in order to destroy it, as if it were a vicious wolverine. Argent poked his head out to see what all the commotion was about, and laughed himself hoarse at Annette. When he informed her she should know his entire house was crawling with spiders, Annette went into a tearful rage, and fell asleep shivering and whimpering, jumping up and yelping every time she imagined she felt something.
Penny drank the ruby-red potion again that night. She had come to the conclusion that if she never slept, she could never dream and would therefore not put herself or others in danger. If Argent could survive well enough without sleep, then, Penny figured, so could she.
AFTER FOUR DAYS, Hector’s condition improved with every dose of the viscous green tonic. He was starting to look like the same Hector Penny remembered, but lacked his usual enthusiasm. The first time Argent spoke to Hector, it was apparent that the two were going to get along well. From the second they began to converse on the subject of magic, Penny’s ears were flooded by a stream of technical jargon and she soon found that she was unable to follow along.
In the evenings after work and before he retreated into his workshop, Argent often climbed up onto the same rooftop that Penny haunted from the hours of late night until dawn and smoked a long silver pipe filled with something that perfumed the air with a sage-like fragrance. Annette and Penny joined him one night after dinner while Simon sat inside with Hector. As the trio on the roof looked out at the stars and the smoggy, shimmering city, Argent and Annette began to talk about theater at last and got into a passionate debate about classic plays versus newer releases, certain theatrical characters they liked or could not stand, and of course who was the most talented actor in Iverton. Penny noticed that Argent avoided talking about Annette or her prolific career in every way possible, though Annette seemed intent on squeezing even the vaguest of opinions out of him.
That night, after the conversation wound down and Argent had scuttled into his workshop to resume work on his mysterious project, Penny helped Hector up to Argent’s room. As he lay down, Hector looked at Penny with an embarrassed half-smile on his lips.
“Penny, thank you―I mean, for taking care of me and everything. This is all rather humiliating, so I think I’d like to apologize for making you go through this,” he said, wincing somewhat and clutching his chest where the largest and deepest gash was still healing.
Penny looked at him with sympathy. “It’s no big deal. I used to take care of my mom a lot, she was sick all the time when I was young. She was always frail, from the day she was born…and it rains so much back home.” Penny felt her throat tighten a bit as she thought of the damp, leafy woods around her house. She kept talking to push the image from her mind. “Anyway, I should be the one to apologize. If it weren’t for me, none of this would’ve happened.”
A faint worry line appeared on Hector’s brow. “I’ve been meaning to ask, what happened exactly? Why did you try to jump off the side of the airship?”
Penny sighed again, beginning to feel even more muddled. “I―I was sleepwalking, I guess. It’s a good thing Annette was there,” she said, trying to sound convincing, but knowing she had botched it. However, it appeared that Hector was in a state of such distress he did not bother to delve deeper into the truth. He winced as he tried to find a comfortable position.
“Does it hurt?”
“Immensely,” he breathed.
Penny felt at a loss for words, knowing it would be hard for him to get any amount of peace or sleep in such condition. She thought of going to ask Argent for a sprinkle of the Sleep Sand he had mentioned a few days before when something occurred to her. A small bubble of eagerness swelled in her chest as she looked up at Hector.
“Here, give me your hand for a sec,” she said, making a grab for it, but Hector pulled away. The sudden movement was too much for him and he gave a strangled yelp, groping at his chest in pain.
Penny frowned and shook her head. “Gosh, you’re such a baby, come on―” Penny grasped his hand and he cried out again, this time in fright.
“Please! Penny, no! I don’t want to see my memories, please―I―”
Penny gripped his hand anyway, feeling it tremble as she summoned the white flash of light. Instead of calling forth one of Hector’s memories, she reversed the usual feeling, drawing instead on a memory from her own past…
Penny stared out at the still waters of the lake, one tiny hand clutching the front of her dress. The yellow world around them smelled of pine and wet earth. The lake was green and alive underneath the cold surface. Penny splashed through the water until her mother called her over. She ran, tripping over a root that protruded from the grass and falling forward onto her mother’s lap, laughing all the while. It was warm on the blanket and the air was hazy. Paulina Fairfax picked her daughter up with a reassuring smile.
“Tell me again, Mom. I wanna hear again,” Penny pleaded, closing her eyes as she pulled up blades of grass. She felt her mother’s heavy hand on her back and heard her subdued laugh along with twittering birds and an orchestra of crickets.
“You’ve heard it about a thousand times, aren’t you bored yet?” her mother wondered, running her fingers through Penny’s hair. Penny shook her head, smiling to herself.
“Well, it happened quite some time ago in a place that’s very, very far from here―halfway across the world as a matter of fact. Back then I was thin and beautiful—can you believe it?” Her mother laughed again, a comforting sound. Penny yawned, feeling the warmth and haziness envelop her. Her focus waned as sweet sleep swept over her eyes…
Penny withdrew from the memory with quiet control, her eyelashes fluttering as the real world materialized around her and a new feeling of serenity overtook her. Just as she had hoped, Hector had fallen into an untroubled sleep. She smiled to herself, proud to be gaining more control over her ability and marveling at the realistic quality of the vision. It was as if she had gone back to that carefree time when the world had been so small and simple.
Penny took care to place Hector’s hand softly at his side, then sat on the ground beside the bed and let her head droop forw
ard onto the mattress, her back resting on the wall. Her sleep-deprived body felt so heavy and stiff, and despite the awkward position she sat in, it was starting to seem comfortable. Before Penny could realize what was happening and fight it, she was asleep and free of worry.
Tadaaahh!”
Argent slid out of the way to reveal the newly-completed contraption on his workbench, looking quite pleased despite his weary eyes. Penny and Hector moved closer to inspect the item. A strange sort of fishbowl held in place by ornate silver arms had been placed on top of the metal plate.
“What does it do?” Hector inquired.
Argent sprung to life as if he had been waiting for that very question. “Well, it may not do anything, I haven’t been able to test it―mostly because it’s useless without you two.” Argent grabbed Penny by the shoulders and moved her closer to the machine. Placing Hector beside her, he took a moment to relish the image, and then clapped his hands together.
“Now, Hector, let me see if I understand this…you can take the magic that’s floating around Penny and use it to perform enchantments, correct?”
Hector nodded.
“And can you control what happens to the by-product?” Argent prompted Hector again. Penny had never seen Argent so animated.
Hector scratched at his head. “Well, I suppose I could. Usually after I’m done with a spell the used up magic just sort of diffuses…but I suppose I could try. What is it that you want me to do?”
In the last few days he had come to a complete recovery, and now seemed back to normal. He, Simon, and Penny were planning on visiting the castle that afternoon, but before they could make preparations to set out, Argent had wanted to unveil his project.
“All you need to do is waste magic,” Argent announced, grinning. When Hector still appeared confused Argent attempted to explain again. “Basically, just use up all the magic you can, then try and push the used magic into this general area. Can you do that?”
Hector concentrated for a moment, and then realization dawned. “I see what you’re trying to do! Brilliant!” he gasped, slamming his fist onto his palm. Argent nodded and gestured for Hector to proceed. Hector cleared his throat and closed his eyes.
Everything went still for a moment, and then the flashy glowing runes materialized around Hector’s hands and wrists. Argent gave a victorious whoop. Within the fishbowl a ball of white hot light was forming, growing so large it threatened to overtake the glass.
“Stop, stop!” Argent cried, clapping Hector on the shoulder. Hector’s hands dropped to his sides and he collapsed onto the bench beside a dizzy Penny. Not bothering to see how either of them was feeling, Argent scurried over to his machine and watched with rapt attention as the white light began to solidify into a hunk of trembling rock. Argent extricated the humming stone with the utmost care, holding the basketball-sized hunk in his palms as delicately as if it were a newborn child. His eyes were glassy and moist as he beheld it.
“You’ve―you’ve done it―I’m going to be the richest man―in all of Hulver. In the world,” Argent sputtered, his chest heaving. His already pale face was illuminated by the faint glow of the ivory-white rock, making him look almost spectral. He looked at Penny and Hector with huge eyes.
“This is refined, raw magic in its purest form. Nothing like this has ever been seen by a living soul in the history of our world. This is more magic than the king has!” Argent leapt to his feet, screaming the last two words with elation. “You do realize this could solve the magic shortage? This is what we’ve all been waiting for. We’re saved!”
Hector raised his eyebrows again. “Shouldn’t that magic be just as much mine and Penny’s as it is yours?” he reasoned.
Argent looked at Hector, wounded. “Y-yes, yes of course. But we can quibble about the details later! As long as you two are present we can make as much as we want!”
“How do you mean?” Penny inquired, curious how the process worked.
“Before I can explain how to use it, you’ve got to be able to think of magic in the correct sense. Imagine magic like―like water. Water can exist in the forms of ice, liquid, or vapor, but chemically, it’s still water. Magic’s the same way. Think of the magic from Elydria like ice―magic existing in solid form. This hunk of magic we made is what magic looks like, pure and distilled, but people like me have the ability to change it up a bit so others can use it. In essence we’re like sculptors,” Argent explained, looking at Penny to make sure that she was following.
“Now, imagine this ice gets superheated and it turns into vapor. This is basically what’s going on when people use magical objects or use it as fuel. Once the magic does its job, there’s a by-product. To people of Elydria this by-product is useless, so we disregard it when it just kind of floats away. This is where people from your world come in.
“The magic in its vapor form travels through the Dawn Mirror, the intangible realm that connects our three planets, and ends up coming into your world, Penny. Now, according to what Hector’s told me, that vapor magic floats around until it finds a dreamer. When you dream, or I’m guessing when you use that special little power of yours, the magic begins to condense and hangs around you like an aura. Think of your dreaming as turning that vapor into liquid. Now, that water will hang around you for a little while, but eventually it flows back into the Dawn Mirror again, then back into Hector’s world, Nelvirna.”
“So, this water form of magic flows into Nelvirna. That’s when people like Hector can use it to perform enchantments, or what have you. Essentially, when Hector performs a spell, the water form of that magic will freeze and turn back into ice as it travels through the Dawn Mirror. Finally, it shows up here in Elydria as this stuff―” Argent patted the huge hunk of raw magic on the table top. “It’s kind of a weird analogy, but does that make more sense?”
“Yeah, I think I get it,” Penny considered, “but I still don’t get how we can just take it directly from one another…”
“Simple. We’re just taking out the middleman, which in this case is the Dawn Mirror. All the Dawn Mirror does is move magic and souls along from world to world. When we do it this way, Hector just pulls the magic that’s in your aura before it goes into the Dawn Mirror, and when he’s done using it up, this machine gathers up the by-product. So instead of the magic being redistributed globally through the Dawn Mirror, we get it immediately right in this very spot.”
“But you’ll need at least one person from Earth and Nelvirna for it to do any good—and as you probably remember, I’m the last living person from Nelvirna,” Hector told Argent, who nodded.
“Which is why I need to make use of your talents while you’re still here,” Argent pondered aloud, stroking his chin.
Penny jumped up off the workbench and swatted all the sawdust from her backside. “We’ve got to get to the palace, remember? We can decide what to do with the magic after we get back.”
Argent gave directions, and they collected up their royal badges and the message from King Noah. Hector collected Simon from the main room of Argent’s house, where he was busy trying to chat up Annette. The actress jumped up and followed them to the door.
Hector turned and gave her a hard look. “Where do you think you’re going? I thought we agreed you were going to stay here.”
Annette frowned. “Hector, I can’t stay here alone with him!” she whined, throwing a reproachful look back at Argent. “He’s creepy…” she murmured.
Hector’s decision was firm. “Sorry, Miss Annette, but it will be much safer for you here.”
“We’ll be back before you know it, Annette,” Penny consoled her.
HULVER WAS ALIVE with activity and hordes of people crowding the streets. According to Argent, the Goblin Carnival was set to start the next day at dawn. Because of this the traffic in the city was staggering, making it hard to move and breathe. The three of them fought their way to the nearby Tunnels and took a stuffy Spider-Car to the center of the city. By the time they reached fresh air again
it was nearing midday, and the sky was blanketed by a thick cloud cover that seemed to make the environment of Hulver, with its teeming crowds and halo of smog, all the more oppressive.
The palace itself was no challenge to locate. Its crooked black towers, ramparts and bastions spiraled up toward the sky at a dizzying height. The palace was built from ebony stone in a style that reminded Penny of the Gothic castles of Britain, only leagues more unstable. Many of the towers and halls appeared to have been piled on top of each other at random or added on as an afterthought.
Although they had the castle in their sights, the entrance proved difficult to find. The streets and alleyways were so twisted and cluttered with store displays it was almost impossible to find their way, even with Argent’s directions. After squeezing through a narrow alleyway where pipes above their heads shot jets of steam out, the trio discovered a great balcony that led into the castle, set high above the ground at the end of a very long, wide street. It took a while before they realized in disappointment that it seemed to be a structure built only for members of the royal court to address the public.
At last Penny forced Simon and Hector to stop and ask for help. Several of the goblins pretended they were not being spoken to, but a kind young gobless with hair sweeping to her ankles showed them the way to the palace gates.
The entrance to the castle was tucked away from sight, and it was no surprise to Penny that they had missed it earlier. Two goblin soldiers stood sentinel to either side of the gate and gave the three of them dubious looks as they approached and showed their badges. One of the soldiers stepped into the castle and the group was asked to wait.
Minutes later they were led through the gate. The inside of the castle was just as unwelcoming as the outer architecture. Stairwells, twisty corridors, and large, obtuse doorways loomed out of every dusty corner. Candelabras caked with hundreds of years’ worth of wax and cobwebs hung from the walls and ceilings of every room. The guard guided them through chamber after chamber, each one more imbalanced and off-kilter than the last, until they reached a massive antechamber within the heart of the castle.
The Angel of Elydria (The Dawn Mirror Chronicles Book 1) Page 31
