(Blue Fire 05) Heartless [A]

by Scott Prussing

  She felt Rave’s hand tighten reassuringly around hers.

  “It’s okay,” he said. “It was just a bat, that’s all.”

  “Are you sure?” Leesa asked, her heart pounding inside her chest. “Did you see it?”

  “I can’t see a thing. But I heard it. It was definitely a bat. The poor thing was probably more scared of us than you were of it. There must be another entrance to this cavern somewhere, because I’ve never seen any signs of bats back in the section where my people stay.”

  Leesa barely heard Rave’s explanation. Instead, her brain was focused on him saying he couldn’t see a thing. How was he going to lead them out of here if he couldn’t see a thing? Why had he let her bring them so far underground? She tried to call forth her magic light again, but her brain refused to work. Her thoughts were racing in too many directions, none of them good.

  “Rave, I can’t access my magic!” she cried worriedly, her panic growing by the moment. “If you can’t see, how are we going to get out of here?”

  Rave’s voice was calm in the blackness. “Take it easy,” he said. “Everything will be fine.”

  Five tiny blue flames appeared in the darkness as he let his fire loose through his fingers. The flames steadily brightened until they burned like a handful of small candles. The light they cast wasn’t all that much, but it was more than enough to light the ground immediately in front of them. If necessary, they could easily use it to retrace their steps.

  Leesa felt like slapping herself upside the head. She couldn’t believe she had forgotten about Rave’s fire—she should have known he would never have let them get into danger. Even worse, she had allowed herself to panic, thus cutting herself off from her magic. It was a lesson she hoped she never had to repeat.

  She pressed herself against Rave’s side.

  “I’m sorry. I lost my head there for a minute. It was stupid of me.”

  “Don’t worry,” Rave said. “It’s much too pretty a head for me to ever lose.”

  Leesa sighed. Her heart was still beating rapidly, but it was no longer from fear or panic. Not for the first time, she wondered how she had ever gotten so lucky.

  “Let’s see if I can finish what I started.”

  She held her right hand out in front of her. Just to be on the safe side, she kept her grip on Rave’s hand with her left hand.

  “Illuminati verdus.”

  Her light immediately flared up above her palm, just as bright as it had been before she had lost control and allowed it to go out. She leaned over and gave Rave a quick kiss on the cheek.

  “You can put your fire out,” she said. “I’ll take it from here.”

  Rave kissed her forehead. “That’s my girl. Lead the way.”

  Leesa’s light never faltered as they followed the passage back up toward the surface. If it had not been for her momentary panic, she would have been quite proud of herself. She had easily maintained a very bright light for at least half an hour. Remembering Dominic’s admonishment to accentuate her successes and not to dwell on any failures, she tried to strip as much emotion as she could from her unfortunate lapse. It was an important lesson to remember, she reminded herself, nothing more. No harm had come from her miscue.

  When they reached the chamber where she had slept, Leesa extinguished her light. More than enough daylight filtered in through the cave’s opening for her to see easily. Still, she had a yearning to step out into the sunlight.

  “Can we go outside?” she asked Rave. “I want some fresh air—and some real daylight.”

  “Of course. There’s nothing around for miles, no one to see anything. We can stay outside as much as we want.”

  “Let’s go, then,” Leesa said, heading for the entrance and pulling Rave along behind her.

  As soon as she stepped outside, Leesa sucked in a long, deep breath. After so long underground, the air out here smelled and tasted wonderfully fresh, laced with the scent of pine from stands of evergreens that covered parts of the hillsides, which stretched in rolling waves as far as her eyes could see. The sky was a clean, bright blue—cleaner and brighter than she was used to in Connecticut. A dozen or so small white clouds, shaped into wispy, miniature tornados by powerful high altitude winds, dotted the azure sky.

  The air was slightly cool, but the sun felt wonderful on her face.

  “It’s so beautiful out here,” Leesa said. “And so quiet and peaceful, too.”

  Rave scooped her up in his arms. “You should see the view from the top.”

  He took off, racing up the hillside with long, smooth strides. Leesa barely had time to snuggle her cheek against his chest before he set her down. She wasn’t about to complain, though. The view from up here was even more spectacular than from down by the cave.

  They stood on a gray granite outcropping that capped the mountain peak. From here, a three hundred and sixty degree view of the surrounding hills spread out before them. Some were covered by thick pine forests, others by deciduous trees still mostly bare of leaves. A few of the peaks were more rock than trees, and their barren gray slopes stood out in stark contrast to their tree covered cousins. On the higher reaches of several of the peaks, Leesa spied white patches of leftover snow in places shaded from the sun. Down below, she saw several lakes nestled in the nearby valleys, their sun-dappled waters reflecting the perfect blue sky.

  Except for her two flights in planes, Leesa had never been up so high. She almost felt like she was standing on top of the world. The thought gave her an idea that made her grin. She wet her finger in her mouth and then held it out, testing for any wind. She felt very little, which she guessed was probably not the norm up here atop the exposed summit. But it suited her purposes perfectly.

  “What?” Rave asked, wondering why she was grinning and testing the wind.

  “I just learned a new spell a few days ago,” Leesa told him. “I haven’t really gotten it to work so far, but I think this might be the perfect place to try it again.”

  Rave glanced around, wondering what kind of spell this spot could be perfect for.

  “Go for it,” he said.

  Leesa closed her eyes and took a deep breath, picturing an image of what she wanted to happen. When she felt ready, she opened her eyes.

  “Levictius arrami,” she said confidently.

  For a moment, nothing happened, but Leesa kept her visualization firm in her mind. Slowly, she began to rise, floating upward until her feet were a full foot above the mountaintop. The strength of her renewed power and her ability to control it thrilled her.

  She looked down at Rave and smiled. “The view is even nicer from up here.”

  Rave’s eyes were wide with astonishment. “That’s absolutely amazing! I don’t know what I was expecting, but it was definitely not this. You can fly.”

  Leesa felt herself beginning to grow heavy, so rather than have the spell end and drop her into an ungraceful landing, she pictured herself floating back down to the ground, which was exactly what she did.

  “It’s not really flying,” she said when she was standing on terra firma once again. “It’s levitation—more like floating. Even if I get good enough to go higher, I won’t be able to move in any direction but up or down. Unless a strong wind is blowing, that is. My book says I need to be careful about that, or I could get blown somewhere I don’t want to go.”

  Rave grinned. “We certainly do not want that. Maybe I should attach a string to you, like a kite.”

  “Ha! Good idea. I would never mind being tethered to you, that’s for sure.”

  “So, have you got any other tricks up your sleeve to show me?”

  Leesa shook her head. “No, that was the only one you haven’t seen.” She hopped up into Rave’s arms. As usual, he caught her easily.

  “You can take me back down now,” she said. “I can practice the rest of my stuff on my own.” She kissed him quickly on the mouth, drawing her lips away almost before they touched him. “You need to get to work practicing that Rammugul thin
g.”

  26. AN UNWELCOME RETURN

  Late Monday afternoon, Cali lay stretched out on her bed, relaxing to Pink’s greatest hits CD. Pink was one of her favorite artists—Cali loved her rebellious, raucous lyrics and the way she wove swear words into her songs that you didn’t get to hear in the radio versions. Pink was shooting some guy down by telling him it was “just him and his hand” that night when a knock sounded at Cali’s door.

  Pushing herself up off the bed, Cali turned down the volume and crossed to the door. When she pulled it open, she was surprised to see BSI agents Smith, Jones and Rome standing there. Missi, a girl from the second floor, stood behind them. The three agents were dressed exactly the same as the last time they were here. Cali wondered if they each only owned one suit, or if they had a collection of identical ones.

  “Hello, Miss Farnsworth,” Smith said. “Remember us?”

  Act dumb, Cali reminded herself. “Yeah, sure. You’re the CSI agents, right?”

  She was pleased by the exasperation that flashed across Smith’s face.

  “BSI,” he said, emphasizing the B. “BSI. CSI is a television show.”

  “Oh, yeah. That’s right. Sorry.”

  “May we come in,” Jones asked.

  “Uh, I guess so.” Cali backed away from the door and sat down on the edge of her bed. “What’s going on?”

  The three agents followed her into the room and remained standing. Missi remained just outside the door. Cali was pretty sure Missi was waiting for the agents. Cali wondered what that was all about.

  “We’re checking to see if anything strange or unnatural has happened in your dorm since we were here last,” Jones said. “Have you noticed anything unusual?”

  “What kind of things do you mean?” Cali asked, wide-eyed. “Besides zombies, of course.”

  “Anything that could be considered magical,” Jones replied. “Strange noises or lights, things moving around or disappearing—anything like that.”

  Cali shook her head. “I sure haven’t seen any of that,” she said emphatically. “I’d definitely remember if I did. One brush with that supernatural stuff was more than enough for me, I’ll tell you.”

  “We’re also doing follow-up exams on everyone,” Smith said. “We want to make sure there aren’t any delayed infections anywhere. Zombies can be very infectious, you know.”

  “Really? All I know is what I’ve seen in the movies. Like if one bites you, you’re done for. I didn’t know you could catch anything just from being near them, though.”

  “You never know,” Jones said. “To be frank, there hasn’t been all that much research done on the things. Better to be safe than sorry, don’t you think?”

  Cali nodded vigorously, exaggerating her enthusiasm. “For sure. I don’t want to wake up dead one morning—walking dead, I mean.” She flashed an overly wide smile at her little joke.

  Rome moved forward. “None of us want that,” she said. Her voice sounded colder than Cali remembered.

  Rome reached out and placed her hands on either side of Cali’s head. A momentary look of intense concentration flashed across Rome’s face.

  A sharp pain shot through Cali’s head. For a moment, she felt as if someone had shoved a hot stick into her eye. She yelped and tried to pull away, but Rome held her tightly. The xenorian woman was surprisingly strong. The intense pain faded, leaving behind a dull ache.

  “Don’t move,” Rome said. “You’ll only make it worse.

  “What happened?” Cali asked. “It didn’t hurt at all last time. I don’t like this.”

  “I’m going deeper this time, to make certain I don’t miss anything. Just think of the pain as your little sacrifice for the cause.”

  What cause? Cali wondered. Not any cause she supported, that was for sure.

  Rome’s eyelids closed for about ten seconds. Cali felt another small surge of pain, but nothing close to the original jab. Finally, Rome opened her eyes and removed her hands from Cali’s head. The hurt lingered for a moment and then disappeared.

  “Nothing,” Rome said, glancing up at Smith and Jones. “No sign of any infection.”

  Cali knew that “infection” really meant magic, but she gave no sign that she understood.

  “Whew, I’m glad to hear that. Thanks so much for coming back to check on me. It sure hurt, but I guess it’s worth it to know I’m okay.”

  “No problem,” Rome replied. “Besides, a little pain now and then is good for the soul.”

  Spoken like someone who would have enjoyed being a torturer for the Inquisition, Cali thought, but kept the thought to herself.

  “Well, let’s go,” Smith said. “We’ve got lots of girls to talk to.”

  Cali looked up in surprise. She did not like this turn of events at all. She needed to learn everything she could about what the xenorians were up to.

  “You’re checking everyone on my floor? I thought you were just worried about me because I stabbed one of the zombies.”

  “We’re checking the whole dorm,” Smith said. He looked back to the open door. “Missi is introducing us to the kids we didn’t meet the last time we were here.”

  Missi smiled weakly in at Cali, obviously not realizing that Rome had been going to hurt Cali.

  Missi was a good choice for taking the xenorians around, Cali realized. She was probably the only girl in the dorm who knew at least a little bit about every resident. Cali made a mental note to check in with Missi when she was done guiding the BSI agents around. Maybe Missi would pick up some information that might be useful to Leesa.

  “Like I said,” Jones added, “better safe than sorry.”

  Cali tried to keep her expression neutral. When Smith had said earlier they were doing follow-up exams, she thought he just meant of the kids on her floor, where the zombies had been. But they were going to be checking everyone in the dorm. Thank goodness Leesa was away with Rave for a couple of days. Cali wondered what the agents would do about girls like Leesa who weren’t here now. Maybe that was something she could find out from Missi later.

  “Thanks again for coming back to check on me,” she said, smiling. “It’s nice to know I’m okay.”

  “No problem,” Smith said. “You still have my card, right? Call right away if you see anything unusual."

  “I will,” Cali said, nodding. “I’ve got your card right in my desk drawer.”

  The agents seemed pleased by her response. They smiled at one another and left the room, following Missi down the hallway. As soon as they were gone, Cali grabbed her cell. She needed to tell Leesa about this immediately, or text her if she didn’t pick up.

  Cali switched on her phone, but then thought better of it. No sense doing it from here inside the dorm, especially with the BSI people right down the hall. Instead, she grabbed her coat from the closet and slipped it on. Five more minutes would not matter. She would contact Leesa from the safety of the sidewalk, at least a block away from the dorm.

  Smith, Jones and Rome trailed Missi from room to room, always following the same routine. Smith and Jones would ask questions about whether anything unusual had been seen or heard, and Rome would touch the occupant under the guise of checking for infection to make sure they had no hidden magic.

  From time to time, they would come upon a room whose resident was not home. When that occurred, Missi would let them into the room with a master key provided by the dorm’s Resident Advisor. Rome would enter the room to make sure there was no residual magic. None was found anywhere—until she entered Leesa’s fourth floor room. Located at the end of the hallway, it was the very last room she needed to examine.

  Rome spent nearly five minutes inside, moving slowly back and forth, surveying the entire room. Smith and Jones quickly knew something was up, but said nothing.

  “Whose room is this?” Rome asked Missi when she finally emerged, pulling the door closed behind her.

  “Leesa Nyland’s,” Missi told her. “She’s really nice. I like her. She’s from California, which
is kinda cool.”

  “Do you by any chance know where she is right now?” Smith asked.

  Missi looked concerned. “Why? Is something wrong with her?”

  “No, no,” Rome replied quickly. “There’s just a slight irregularity. It’s probably nothing, but we should check her as soon as possible, just to be sure she’s okay. Do you know where we might find her?”

  Missi shook her head. “Sorry, no. I haven’t seen her all day. She’s usually here for dinner, but not always. Her mom lives in town and she has a boyfriend, so sometimes she’s with one of them, I guess.”

  The three agents exchanged looks.

  “Thank you, Missi,” Smith said. “That’s all we need from you. You’ve been a big help.”

  “Yes, you have,” Rome added. “We won’t keep you any longer.”

  “Glad to help.” Missi smiled and then turned toward the stairwell. She wasn’t quite sure what had just happened in Leesa’s room, but she knew who she was going to tell about it the first chance she got.

  “What did you find?” Jones asked Rome after Missi disappeared down the stairs.

  “Traces of magic, of course. Faint and not very recent, but definitely there.”

  “What kind?” Smith asked.

  Rome frowned. “That’s the tricky part. It’s very strange and confusing. The closest thing to it would be wizard magic, but I felt other elements mixed up in it as well—elements which do not really seem to belong together. I can’t describe it any better than that. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever sensed before.”

  “Does it feel powerful?” Jones asked.

  Rome shrugged. “I can’t really say. The magic used in the room certainly wasn’t very strong, but I felt hints of great power in it, if that makes any sense. I wish I could tell you more—but like I said, it’s very strange.”

  Smith and Jones looked at Rome in silence, waiting to see if she had anything more to add. It was rare to see her puzzled by anything magical, especially to this degree.