Force (An Alex Warren Novel)

by Logue, Shawna

  When we got back to the room, Dermot helped me up into my bed simply saying, “Sleep well,” and pressing one long finger into the space between my eyebrows. I’m fairly certain I fell asleep immediately, because I don’t remember anything else.

  In the morning, I woke up to hushed chatter. I opened my eyes a very small amount, but was still able to see the scene clearly. Dermot was relaying the story of my recovered sight to Connor. Neither of them noticed I was awake.

  “She touched everything?” Connor asked.

  “Yeah, it was like she was seein’ somethin’ new wit’ everythin’ we passed.”

  “Fascinating.”

  I shifted slightly in my bed to try to have a better angle to see them, and the noise alerted them that I was awake. Connor was at my side instantly.

  He made sure I was awake, and smiled gently. “Alex, I’m so glad to hear your sight is back! I brought you your glasses.” He passed them to me, and I put them on out of habit.

  Immediately my vision blurred again, and I flung them off, subconsciously afraid that my sight was going again. Without the glasses though, my vision was fine. They clattered noisily on the hard floor; Connor’s eyes widened in shock at my action.

  “I… don’t need them,” I said, and I could hear a questioning tone in my voice. “Sorry,” I added.

  Connor looked confused, but he did not say anything. Looking at him more closely now I could see he wasn’t the model of perfection I had originally thought him to be. His face was worn, and his eyes looked tired, as though he had missed a few days worth of sleep. His eyes were a deeper, darker blue than I had originally thought, and as I looked into them I could tell he was searching for something in mine. He looked lost. I looked away, examining the rest of his features for the first time. There was a small but pronounced scar on his lower lip, which he seemed to bite at nervously as he watched me. His hair was out of place, messy and uncombed. He hadn’t shaved recently, and the stubble was starting to poke through his skin. All these imperfections only made him more attractive though, something my daydreaming mind was all too happy to indulge.

  “Earth to Alex.”

  I snapped out of my fantasy. Connor was looking at me with inquisitive eyes. I looked back, flushing with embarrassment, and at the same time grateful he couldn’t hear my thoughts.

  “Are you feeling up for moving about?”

  I nodded, glad for any reason to move about. He handed me some clothes which I recognized as my own, and asked “Are you well enough to get dressed on your own?” I saw his embarrassment at asking the question, and I was positive he was terrified of what that meant for him if I said no.

  “Yeah,” I mumbled. “I’ll be fine.” He nodded, and rose with Dermot. “We’ll wait outside. Take your time.”

  It took some effort to pull on my jeans. My ribs, though leaps better than they had been, didn’t agree with my bending over to put each leg in. Furthermore, I had to shuffle into my t-shirt because I couldn’t raise my arms over my head. I’m sure the whole ordeal would have been amusing to anyone watching; I was grateful I was alone.

  There was a small bathroom in one corner of the room, and I was relieved to see my toiletry bag sitting on one side of the tiny sink. I brushed my teeth furiously, trying to get off the fuzziness I could feel in my mouth. There was no mirror in the bathroom, so I brushed my tangled mess of hair up into a ponytail, not caring if I caught all the pieces. When I was satisfied with my somewhat presentable state, I went out of the room and found Connor and Dermot sitting near the fireplace, in a heated discussion which stopped abruptly the moment they saw me. Awkward.

  “All ready?” Connor asked, as though I hadn’t just walked in on their argument. Dermot was already at the elevator, pushing the “down” button.

  The elevator came quickly. It was bright inside, and I lowered my eyes reflexively. No one seemed to notice. Looking at the floor, I tried to figure out where the extra light was coming from. I looked up slowly, and suppressed a gasp.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Outside the elevator, Bob’s familiar skeleton hung in place as I remembered. Something was distinctly different, however. I could see the four or five force lines which acted as supporting wires for the massive frame burning brighter than before, as though they had been strengthened somehow. But there were also hundreds more that I hadn’t been able to see until now. The overall effect was intense, and as I looked out of the glass elevator I had to keep one hand to my eyes to block the glare. The force lines were a different colour than I remembered. Before, I had been certain that they were bright, neon blue. Now, they were brighter, and a colour that I couldn’t name. I want to say they were ultraviolet, but I’m not entirely sure that is accurate. They were exactly the colour I imagined electricity to look like: the colour of pure energy, part brilliant light, part shimmering metallic.

  Metallic. I remembered the taste of the force lines, savoring the memory. I realized I craved the taste again, and before I could act on that craving, Connor interrupted my thoughts.

  “What’s the matter?” he asked.

  I forced myself to look away from the lights. “There’s just…” I thought of how to proceed, then finished, “there’s just a lot to take in.”

  “You see something out there don’t you?” Clearly I was not as stealthy as I had thought. Luckily, the elevator reached its destination, the doors opening to the twelfth floor.

  Dermot got out, and I started to follow, but Connor held my arm. Dermot did not speak or turn around, and I sensed that he was still upset from their earlier conversation. Connor pushed the 14 button and the doors slid shut, but not before I noticed a distinct difference than the upbeat floor I remembered as the Innovations Division.

  The people where rushing around, preparing for something, and the desks were gone. I thought for a second I saw… no, that couldn’t have been… a faerie? I shook my head, trying to keep my head clear from anything that would make my life more complicated.

  We arrived on the fourteenth floor moments later, and Connor led me past Peri’s empty desk to Nic’s office. The door was shut, but this didn’t stop him. He opened the door without knocking, and the small group of people inside didn’t seem to notice our arrival.

  “Nic,” Connor spoke quietly. It was loud enough to get the response he needed. The conversation stopped, and Nic, whose back had been to us, turned around to see who had spoke. His eyes fell first on Connor, and then to me. He appeared to appraise my current state, and I felt a wave of self-consciousness go through me.

  After what felt like an eternity, a huge grin spread across his face. “Alexis!” He clapped his hands together. “I am so glad to see you up and about. How are you?” I felt his worry increase on the last question, and I wasn’t quite sure how to best answer.

  “I’m alright,” I said quietly. “Honestly, I feel a bit overwhelmed.” I hadn’t meant to say the last part aloud.

  Nic seemed to understand immediately, and he pulled one of the club chairs out to angle the room better. “Please, Alex. Have a seat. You’ve been through a lot, and you should rest.”

  I didn’t want to sit, and I hoped that the coddling wasn’t going to last. I knew he meant well though, so I agreed. Connor followed me, almost protectively, and I was aware of his presence as he maneuvered to stand stoically behind my chair. I glanced around at the motley assortment of people, recognizing Morgan immediately. Next to her was Hester, in a black dress so tight it was difficult to tell where the dress ended and her skin began, making her easily identifiable against the otherwise casually dressed people. Everyone in the room was staring at me, with the exception of one elderly gentleman, whom I didn’t recognize.

  The older man was looking longingly behind me, at Connor I presumed. His hair was beyond white, almost a glistening pearl colour, accented with a full, well-groomed beard mirroring his hair. Though he was seated, I could see he was a large man, but by no means overweight. It was easy to tell he was tall, even from the seated po
sition, and his body filled the entire chair. He was incredibly built, despite his clearly advanced age. His face was strong and wise, and he appeared to be communicating something with his eyes.

  I heard Connor speak behind me, as if answering the old man’s stare. “Paul’s downstairs. He hasn’t left his office in days.” The old man nodded, rising silently. He left without another word, moving with a speed and grace that I did not expect from his bulky frame. No one else seemed to find this unusual.

  After the old man left, several of the other people in the room made polite excuses to leave as well. Soon it was just Connor, Nic, Morgan, Hester and I. The atmosphere was tense, and the awkward silence that followed was excruciating. I could see the glances darting back and forth from each person, as though I was missing some crucial part of a silent conversation. I was finding it extremely frustrating.

  “Does anyone want to fill me in?” I asked accusingly, to no one in particular. The looks they shot me were those of children who knew they were in trouble. I felt Connor squeeze my shoulder reassuringly. Nic was the first to speak.

  “Alex, much has happened since New Year’s Eve. To some degree, the events were set in motion before then, but now,” he paused, letting out a deep sigh before continuing, “I’m afraid you have become a key player in a fight you don’t belong in.” He looked at me imploringly.

  A fight? “I… don’t understand.” I choked.

  Morgan spoke now, her voice rasping like that of a long-time smoker, “What do you understand?”

  I thought about this, unsure of what was real and what wasn’t. It took me a while to figure out the answer to her question, and no one interrupted my silence.

  “I think,” I began, hesitating at the absurdity of what I was about to say, “that I’ve stumbled into a fairy tale.”

  I heard Hester stifle a chuckle. “This ain’t no fairy tale, honey.”

  “Let her speak,” Connor hissed.

  I thought about how to continue. “What I mean is there are things going on which are impossible to comprehend. But somehow I find myself suspending reality and…” I searched for the word, “believing?”

  I waited for a response, but no one spoke. I forced myself to continue, “So, I guess Nic is hundreds of years old. And the Philosopher’s Stone is real.” Nic nodded at this, and I continued. “And, I get the part about the force lines, but I’m not sure why I can see them.” I paused, thinking again about how all that happened had been caused as a result of my actions with the force lines. “How many people were hurt from the blast besides me?”

  My question seemed to startle them. “What do you mean?” Morgan asked.

  “Casper. When he blew up? Or whatever it is he did. It all happened because of me. How many people did I hurt?” I could feel the tears stinging behind my eyes.

  Nic was very calm in his reply. “Only you.”

  This was not the answer I was expecting, but I didn’t feel the relief I should have. Instead I felt more alone than ever. I think a part of me was hoping I could apologize to someone, or at least I was hoping to have someone to talk to about what was going on. These people surrounding me all felt so authoritative. It was overwhelming. “Why-”

  Nic cut me off. “Alex, I’m not sure how to say this without giving you more information to process. I feel you are overwhelmed as it is. Perhaps we should wait until-”

  It was my turn to interrupt, and I felt the anger finally boiling over. “Tell me what the hell is happening to me!” I gritted my teeth hard as I hissed my demand, not caring that this was my boss and coworkers. I needed answers, and I was tired of being told only part of the story.

  “Alex,” Connor whispered into my ear, “are you sure you want to know this right now? You’ve been through a lot.” He squeezed my shoulder empathetically, but I shook it away.

  “Tell me,” I gritted.

  Nic took a deep breath. “Alex, the surge of energy from a star only affects mortal humans.” He looked at me for a reaction; I remained stoic, feeling the anger ready to burst out of me at any moment. Sensing I wasn’t about to speak, he added, “You were the only mortal human who was at the party.”

  If he had been expecting me to be shocked, I wasn’t. I took a moment to process that, and when I did, I found it odd that I wasn’t shocked at all. It seemed that my world was so completely turned upside down that none of this seemed real anymore anyway, so why not believe him?

  I stared at Nic. “Technically you’re mortal. You age, don’t you? You just drink that elixir and rewind the years.” My rational side chuckled at me internally at the fact that I was playing along with this charade.

  “Technically, I suppose I am,” he said thoughtfully. “But I have been touched by ancient magic, and I’m not in the same category as you.”

  I nodded, and looked to Hester. “And you?”

  Hester glanced to Nic, who nodded at her before she looked back to me. “Not human,” she replied. She looked over to Nic, who nodded approvingly. Her whole body shuddered, and almost instantly the space once filled by Hester was now occupied by a large panther. It stared at me, and I was not as afraid as common sense told me I should be. Instead I met its gaze, and somewhere deep in its almond eyes I could see Hester. She looked so regal, and immediately I grew a sense of respect for her that I hadn’t before. I nodded, to indicate I recognized her, and just as quickly as before, she was once again standing before me in her human form.

  “Breathe, Alex,” Nic said quietly. I sucked in air, not realizing I had been holding my breath.

  “My turn!” Morgan seemed excited at this prospect, and this frightened me a little. She pulled the other chair closer to me and sat down. She took my hands in hers and looked at me, and there was a softness to her I had never noticed before. “Alex, what do you see?”

  I wasn’t sure what she meant, so I looked back at her. She looked like someone who has had one too many face lifts. She was by no means ugly, but she was not beautiful. She looked aged, and her skin seemed rough.

  “Alex? Look at my eyes.”

  I had been avoiding her eyes, remembering the first time I had seen her at the company breakfast. I hadn’t wanted to stare at her glass eye. Now, at her command, I forced myself to look. One eye was beautiful: a rich gold colour, flecked with green. The other eye was glass, confirming my initial impression. The second I focused on it, I found myself unable to look away, lost in the swirling colour. I had at first thought it was a deep blue, but it quickly changed to a green, then gold. The colour was constantly morphing, swirling into an infinitely deep pool.

  She squeezed my hand, forcing my gaze away from her eye. “Alex, my real name is Morgaine. I can see things before they happen.”

  “The future?” I asked stupidly.

  “Not exactly. I see what will be, and what can be. The future is never definitive, but I can see the probable outcome.”

  I thought back about what I knew of Morgan, and remembered something Casper had said. “You forecast trends?”

  She chuckled at this. “In a matter of speaking. It’s not an exact science.”

  I thought some more. “Morgaine? As in Arthur’s Morgaine?”

  “The same one.”

  So none of my coworkers were normal. Except here at Mobius they were normal, and I was the freak. I was the pitiful mortal human. I was still missing one more thing though, and I turned to face Connor, raising one eyebrow at him.

  He got my expression and shrugged. “It’s a long story. I am human though, if that makes a difference.”

  Before I could ask for the story, Nic interrupted. “Alex, I hate to interrupt this, but we have little time, and I have to ask you some questions. I have reason to believe that Casper is trying to steal the Philosopher’s Stone, and I need to know if he mentioned anything to you that might be relevant.”

  I shook my head. “Why would Casper want to steal the stone?” I asked.

  Connor spoke from behind me. “Casper has been trying to get back into the sky
ever since he fell. He can’t stand his human form, and he resents the life he is trapped in as a result of Paul’s actions. We all had thought he had given up on the hopeless endeavor.”

  “Just before New Year’s Eve,” Nic continued, “we were alerted to massive drains to the force lines in town. Someone was sucking them dry.” He must have sensed my fright, because he quickly added, “We know it wasn’t you, Alex. You don’t have the capability to drain that amount of power.

  At the time, we weren’t sure why someone would need such a vast amount of energy. It wasn’t until you got hurt,” he paused, as though saying this pained him, “that I made the connection. Casper needs an immense amount of power to get back up into the sky.”

  “Why steal the stone then?” I asked.

  “The stone is one of the few vessels that can store energy from the force lines. I can only imagine if he is in fact draining the power from the city he cannot possibly have somewhere to store it, unless he gets the stone,” he paused. “Or you. He cannot absorb enough power in himself to do the trick. You saw what happened when tried to steal it from you. It didn’t work. He needs to keep the power stable until he can use it at the precise moment.”

  My eyes widened. “What about Paul?”

  “Paul does not have the ability to do what Casper wants, or else he would have done it ages ago. You cannot imagine the guilt he feels for what he has done to his brother. And to you, as well.”

  “To me?”

  “He feels responsible for what happened to you. He thinks he should have seen the signs sooner.”

  “If anyone should feel guilty, Nic, it’s me,” Connor added forcefully. “I saw the signs, and didn’t act soon enough.”

  “It’s no one’s fault but my own,” I interjected. “I need to see Paul, please.” It wasn’t a question. I was already walking out the door. No one stopped me. I reached the elevator before I realized that Connor was on my heels. “Did I miss something?” I asked, confused by his presence.