by John Conroe
“Sloppy? What do you call the goddamned graffiti you tagged my damn systems with?” he sputtered.
“I call it a linked array, double-grounded spherical containment ward. The far away wards, the ones I would put on the tiles and such, I call sympathetic coordinated relation wards. The first is much stronger than the second, but the second ain’t shabby,” I said.
He looked at me for a second while Tanya just smiled in amusement. “You just made that up,” he said.
“I made it up a long time ago. Just words to describe effects. I had no one else to talk to about it. Aunt Ash doesn’t do tech stuff.”
“So the painting you did here is superior?” he asked.
“Think of the difference between a bank vault and an office safe. Both tough and secure, but to vastly different degrees,” I said. “This graffiti as you call it, is hand applied by the witch in question and each group of protective runes is linked to the building itself and the electrical grid, then all of the ward groups end up linked to each other. The ones on the elevators, the reception desk, this floor, and, as I do them, all the other floors. That’s the linked array part. Individual pieces each strong, but stronger when linked,” I said.
“And it will keep Anvil at bay?” Chet asked.
“It should keep it out, based on how it reacted to the wards on my phone and my skin. But it will also keep the building from ever catching fire, would probably survive an earthquake, and flying objects will miss it.”
“Whoa there cowboy. Flying objects? Like planes?” he asked.
“Yeah, like planes or missiles. At least once I’ve got most of the building done. But the sympathetic related wards should also keep Anvil out of the remote centers and will protect against fire, but the building is on its own. How many do you have, by the way?” I asked.
“London, Hong Kong, Japan, Beijing, Hamburg, Dublin, and Prague. Those are the main ones,” Tanya said, smiling when she saw my expression.
“Your arrival was absolutely fortuitous Declan. And it seems overwhelming, but let’s just chunk it down. Take it bit by bit. Keep working here, then let’s move to the medical research floors on four and five. After that, we could tackle the call center and the business center. Chet, please order the plans and blueprints for Declan, along with photos of the rooms themselves. Once we get those, maybe you could pick which tiles or pieces you want?” she asked me.
“That would work. We’ll make a map of each room, have the techs at each location number and pull each part, and then ship it. When it goes back, I’ll include instructions on the order of reinstallation,” I said.
“Actually, we’ll have you on a conference call with each center to oversee the installations remotely,” Tanya corrected.
“Unless Anvil interferes with the communications. I can’t do anything for satellites it attacks,” I said.
“Satellites? Damn, I forgot about our comm sats,” Chet said.
From the frown on her face, so had Tanya. She focused on me with unnerving blue eyes. Despite myself, I felt nervous under so direct a gaze.
“Declan, please think about those satellites. Is there anything at all?” she asked.
“I can’t see how to get any runes or wards up there. I mean, you can only send programming signals, right? So its not like I can make a rune in computer code…” I trailed off, thinking.
“What? What is it?” she asked.
“He’s got that eureka moment expression,” Chet said. “I think he’s realizing that runes could easily convert to binary.”
“Converting to binary isn’t the issue. They’re just letters. You could run around and paint all these runes on the floors, ceilings, walls, and computers and it would be just archaic-looking graffiti. It takes a witch to imbue them with power or magic. I’m just trying to think if digital flows could be magicked.”
“So that would help protect our satellites?” Tanya asked.
“In theory, and I could do the same with all the computer systems, even the remote ones. Possibly get them protected from Anvil tonight. Need to get some programs written, then convert them to runes, the runes to binary and somehow add magic.”
Is like lightning, ya? Sorrow suddenly asked.
“Ya,” I said out loud. Chet and Tanya looked at me, then each other, then me again.
“Sorry, talking with Sorrow. He had a suggestion,” I said, thinking about how I used magic to direct electricity in general and lightning in particular.
“He?” Chet asked. “Who is Sorrow?”
“Sorrow is a semi-sentient magical book, a grimoire, that lives inside Declan,” Tanya explained.
“It has a distinctly male voice… with a German accent,” I said.
“Semi-sentient?” Chet asked.
Semi? Sorrow scoffed.
“Hold on, I’m trying to think this through. Sorrow reminded me that I use magic to direct electricity, sometimes over distance, like when I’m working with lightning,” I said.
“Lightning?” Chet asked.
“There may be parallels, yes?” Tanya asked, eyes alight with speculation.
“Yeah, I think there are. I’ve got to try some experiments first. Then I’ll have to write the programs and figure the runes into binary,” I said.
“Wrong. I don’t know half of what you’re muttering about with talking books and lightning, but I’ll grab some of my interns and we’ll write both the programs and, if you give us the rune alphabet, convert them to binary. Then you can do the actual programming and do your Sabrina bit,” Chet said.
“Sabrina?” I asked.
“Never mind, you two. Let’s get this going,” Tanya said. Chet turned and headed into the comp center and toward the programming rooms, where apparently he kept his staff of kid wonders.
“What do you need?” Tanya asked.
“Well, I want to try it on a smaller computer first. So I just need a notebook or a standalone desktop. Actually, I could use my own.”
“No. Your own computer may already be half-magicked. Let’s use mine,” she said, grabbing my hand and leading me toward the elevators.
“Oh good, first full day on the job and I get to screw up the boss’s computer,” I said.
She turned and flashed me a knee-melting grin. “Don’t worry. It’s replaceable. One of a kind, but replaceable… mostly.”
That actually would have made me more nervous, but her smile distracted me. Honestly, how did Chris get any work done with all these beautiful women around? Most of who were in love with him.
Chapter 9- Chris
When we got back to the Tower, we found them in Tanya’s office on the top floor. Chet was leaning over Declan’s shoulder, both looking at a notebook computer at Tanya’s desk.
Three of Chet’s interns were working at the coffee table in the sitting area. The cute Australian brunette, a clean-cut, intelligent looking guy, and an Asian girl were working on something that involved several computers, a tablet, a mass of notebook paper, and various empty Red Bull containers. Tanya was leaning against one window frame, talking on her cell phone. She gave me a wave as Darion and I entered.
The interns all looked up, but Chet and Declan ignored us, deep into whatever they were conferring on.
“Looks like our law offices during a big case,” Darion remarked.
Both Chet and Declan looked up at the sound of Darion’s voice.
I started introductions with Chet and Declan. Chet took over with the interns I didn’t know.
“This is Grace, who comes to us highly recommended from the University of Melbourne. Simon, starting his first year of grad work at MIT, and last but not least, Daiyu, from Peking University,” Chet said, then pointed our way. “This is Chris Gordon and our corporate legal counsel, Darion Cornell.”
“I already met Grace last night during more exciting circumstances,” I said, nodding at her. “Simon and Daiyu, welcome to Demidova Corp,” I said, shaking their hands, then stepped over to see what mischief Chet and Declan were up to.
“Whatcha doing?” I asked.
“Your boy here seems to think he can use his special talents right in programming code. If he’s right, we might be able to save the satellites and remotely protect the foreign offices,” Chet said.
“How’s that work?” I asked, wondering why Declan had never thought of it before.
“I work with programs all the time, but I’ve always just worked in whatever language they were written in. For this, I need to work with the runes. I use Anglo-Saxon runes. So we’re converting a really stout security program to runes, then turning the runes into binary, then sending it to the sats,” Declan explained. “Grace and Daiyu are writing a program to automatically rewrite existing programs into runic text. Simon,” he said, snickering slightly, “ is building one to convert to binary.”
“How do you add your mojo?” I asked Declan as Darion finished shaking the students’ hands and moved over our way.
“That’s what we’re working on now. He’s attempting to get the boss’s computer to turn off her desk lamp at certain times, by itself,” Chet said.
“Big deal. I can turn my house lights off from here with my phone,” Darion said, tone more curious than challenging.
“That’s because your house is wired to the Internet of Things. It has controllers that are hooked into your wi-fi system. That lamp over there is just a lamp. No plug-in controllers or anything,” Declan said, typing as he spoke. He finished with a tap on the enter key and then looked at his phone, which had a clock app up.
“Should go in four, three, two, one….” The light snapped off. “Okay, it’ll come back on in ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one.” Click. The light came on.
“Wait, was that the switch actually turning?” Darion asked. Chet was silent, staring at the light, face thoughtful. Declan had a slight grin, like he was satisfied that it worked but that it didn’t count as a big deal. The three interns looked surprised, although Simon’s frown looked suspicious.
Chet turned slowly to Declan, then turned to me. He looked like someone had hit him in the face with a shovel. “Do you have any idea what this means?”
“It means we can toss that NSA program out of our communications birds,” I said, nodding.
“No, that’s small potatoes,” he replied. I could feel a frown form on my face. Small potatoes? This Anvil thing had been messing with us for weeks now and it was small potatoes?
“He just wrote a program that reached out into the physical world and actually effected change without wi-fi, Bluetooth, servos, or any physical connection whatsoever!”
“Oh. I see,” I said.
“You don’t. I doubt any of you do. She will,” he said, nodding at Tanya, who was just hanging up her phone.
“I do. You’re talking about the special project right?” Tanya asked. No doubt she’d heard our conversation from across the room.
“Exactly! When can I have him?” Chet asked.
“Whoa there, hoss,” I said. “First we’re gonna get our systems protected. Then we get a schedule for him. Then we talk about your project.”
Chet looked frustrated, but Tanya spoke up. “No special project till we’re secure from Anvil. And Chris is right… I want to get Declan into a training program.”
Declan groaned slightly, even as he turned the computer to show Chet whatever he’d been doing. Chet studied it for a second, then nodded.
“What training program? We want training, too,” Simon protested.
“No you don’t. You absolutely do not want this kind of training,” Declan said, starting to type again.
“It’s not management or business training, guys. It has more to do with our other line of work,” I said. “If you get my meaning.”
Daiyu’s eyes got big as she put it together first. She looked from me to Declan, who was concentrating on the laptop as if he could just ignore the concept of Tanya training. Grace was next, a light of understanding dawning on her face. Simon just frowned.
“Ya know? The demons and such?” Grace prompted him.
“What? Him? Fight demons? That’s crazy. He’s not even in a top-tier school,” Simon said.
Declan didn’t even look up as he retorted. “Hey, it must be true… Simon says,” he said, almost with a straight face. He must have been saving that one all night. These two had already agreed to dislike each other, but one of them had no idea what he was messing with.
Tanya moved past me, her movement fluttering the papers on the little table as she stopped in front of the three interns. It would have been to their eyes as if she’d just appeared.
“Do you know a great deal about demons, Darkkin, and werewolves, Simon?” she asked the shocked young computer expert.
He wisely shook his head no.
“How about witches and psychics? Do you have deep insight into their world?”
“Nnnoo,” he managed to stutter.
“So perhaps you should withhold judgement about that which you know nothing, hmm?” she asked. Really, it wasn’t at all menacing, but her intensity and the speed of her arrival had made her point more impactful. “Declan, maybe a small demonstration is in order.”
He looked reluctant, which surprised me. A chance to put his rival in his place with authority. Then I saw him glance sideways at Grace before flicking his eyes back to Tanya. Ahh.
“What did you have in mind?” he asked. Tanya frowned, then looked at me as she picked up on our link. He was afraid of making the girl afraid.
“How about making one of your small avatars,” she suggested, pointing to the cluster of potted plants in the corner by the window.
He looked at the plants, not really appearing to see them, seemingly focused internally. Then he sighed, just a little, and held up one hand.
A clump of dirt flew across the room, slapping into his palm. He held it up to eye level and studied it for a moment. The dirt shook itself, then assembled into a small man shape. Declan turned it this way and that, looking at it critically, then set it on the tabletop next to his computer. The little dirt fellow marched to the edge and without hesitation jumped straight to the carpet below.
“No messes, please,” Tanya said.
“As if,” he said with a reproachful look in her direction. He looked back at his dirt avatar, which was now marching across the room, headed for the interns, who were frozen like deer in a jacker’s spotlight.
Tanya kept a straight face till he looked away and then she shot me a grin. She knew damn well no speck of dirt would dare fall off his creation, but she was testing his comfort level with her.
The dirt guy got to the interns and headed for Simon’s foot, but Simon yanked it away. Soil man turned and headed for Daiyu’s foot, which stayed frozen along with the rest of her. The little guy climbed her leg like a veteran lineman tackling a telephone pole. In seconds, he was on her knee, giving her a jaunty salute before jumping to the coffee table. There, he grabbed a pencil, which looked like the mother of all spears in his little hands, and turned it eraser down. Putting it on the stack of papers, he pushed first one, then another off the stack, stopping on the third. That one, he pushed in Grace’s direction before backing off and pointing from her to Declan with the pencil.
“Can you bring me that? I’m ready to start coding this stuff,” he said.
She looked from him to the dirt guy to Tanya and finally me. I smiled and nodded. I suppose it would have been harder to swallow before the Washington Battle, but in today’s world, well, now they worked for vampires.
“So, there you have it. Your first introduction to the world of witchcraft. You should be honored. Your demonstrator is world-renowned for his abilities,” I said.
After a moment, Grace picked up the paper and hesitantly turned toward Declan, who was watching her reaction. Her body language firmed up and she took it to him,
setting it down where he could easily see it.
“Thanks. I’m going to start writing this. Chet, you want to check my work?” Declan asked. “I have to manually input it myself for this to work. Which is going to take some time.”
Chet shook himself and moved around behind Declan as did Grace, both looking over his shoulder as he typed.
Simon was staring at the dirt man, fascinated in the same way people are fascinated by venomous snakes. Suddenly, the frozen figure turned and cocked its featureless head at him, making him jump.
I glanced at Declan, met his eyes over the edge of the laptop and almost laughed out loud at his evil grin.
