***
The next day, Nicole had both her favorite and least favorite classes to attend. The favorite was Coolidge’s, of course, and the least favorite was taught by one Professor Whitman.
They’d spent the first month of Whitman’s class going over Renaissance-era Arete history. Nicole found it more interesting than most of the other students did. She’d been surprised to find that nearly all Aretes were already familiar with their history. Nicole’s parents were very anti-Arete, so she hadn’t known much about her heritage before coming to Katon University.
When Nicole stepped into Whitman’s class, she could tell immediately that the woman was in one of her foul moods. As usual, she started off with a quiz. Instead of the regular ten minutes to complete it, however, she only gave five.
“And the reason for the lack of time is in our classroom.”
Professor Whitman glared at the entire class, then zeroed in on Nicole. “Nicole Williams, Arete extraordinaire.” She said the words with such vitriol, she practically oozed venom.
Nicole held back an eye roll when everyone turned to stare. What had she done this time?
Ever since Nicole’s experience with the Tarians the past summer, Whitman had been extra cranky where she was concerned. It drove her nuts—it didn’t make sense. Austin and Lizzie were positive that Whitman was jealous, but Nicole didn’t think so. The woman was simply crazy.
The stares quickly returned to the front of the room when Whitman began her lecture, and Nicole was sure it was because everyone was interested in hearing why she had messed up Whitman’s day so thoroughly.
“In the eighteen hundreds, a group of anti-Aretes was started.”
“We learned about this last year,” a guy on the back row called out. “We want to know what Nicole did to tick you off.”
Whitman glared at him. “I . . . she . . . you don’t . . .” she sputtered, turning bright red. “She changed Arete history! She ruined reputations, gave clarity to things that didn’t need clarifying . . . she removed the mystery surrounding our heritage!”
Nicole almost laughed out loud. She’d nearly forgotten that Whitman considered herself an Arete even though she wasn’t a Fourth. The woman hadn’t talked like that in almost a year—not since she’d poisoned half her class with a stupid eBay purchase.
“Why is that a bad thing?” the same guy asked. “Isn’t it better to know for sure where Aretes come from?”
Whitman’s mouth opened and shut a few times. “You have no idea—completely clueless. Do you realize how many slides I’ve had to change? If it wasn’t for the university insisting on it . . . just . . . just ridiculous.”
This time, Nicole allowed herself a small laugh. She didn’t bother to raise her hand. “So, the reason you’re so angry with me has nothing to do with what I did for Aretes—not to mention pretty much everyone living on earth—and has everything to do with your lectures?”
Whitman’s jaw dropped. This was the first time Nicole had actually responded to her stupid attacks. “Easy enough for you to say, Nicole. Those slides took me hours—hours!—to create.”
“But even you agreed they needed updating. Didn’t you say you put them together back in the nineties?”
Whitman slammed the projector remote on her desk. “That’s enough. Leave the class if you can’t keep your mouth shut.”
Nicole sighed, putting up her hands in a gesture of peace. “I’ll stay—please, continue.” It wasn’t worth it to her. Besides, she still felt somewhat bad for the woman. Whitman so painfully wanted to be an Arete, it obviously hurt her a great deal not to have been born one. It reminded Nicole of her mother.
“No more interruptions, then.” Whitman sent one more glare around the room before grabbing the remote and resuming her lecture about Tarians.
Whitman had changed a great deal—not only was she more surly now, but she no longer allowed discussions in class. Before, she’d almost demanded that students speak up.
Nicole settled into her seat, wanting to learn as much as she could, even if it was from a woman who hated pretty much everything about her.
The discussion didn’t shed a lot of new light on a topic she had gotten pretty familiar with, though, and when the bell rang, she was ready to leave.
Her next class was Coolidge’s and she couldn’t wait to get there, as Coolidge had recently hired Austin as a TA.
’Course, Austin being a TA didn’t mean anything where Nicole was concerned—he was very good at his job and remained focused during the lessons. Nicole couldn’t help but feel a surge of pride, though, every time Coolidge called on Austin for help with an answer he didn’t know off the top of his head. Previously, Coolidge had always pulled up Google when he didn’t have all the information, but now he didn’t need to. Austin had really grown a great deal in his knowledge of magical items.
Nicole knew her boyfriend planned to take over his dad’s ranch someday, but would he be happy staying completely away from magical things? Probably not. She imagined he’d lead a life similar to that of his father and mother, who still took Arete jobs whenever they could.
Nicole took a seat, surprised to see Jacob at the front of the class with Austin and Coolidge. He gave her a small wave, which she returned. What was he doing here?
Coolidge started the discussion, and Nicole’s question was immediately answered.
“How many of you remember the magical keys I introduced to you in your first class with me?”
Most everyone raised their hands.
“Well, we’re going to get a bit of a history lesson on them, along with a demonstration of how they work.”
He turned the time over to Jacob, who told the story of a prince who’d fallen in love with a girl named Kilenya. She wasn’t royalty. The prince’s father was a barbaric, cruel king and had also set his sights on her. The Keys of Ayunli and Kilenya were created—and named—for the prince and his girl so they could escape from the clutches of the king. Nicole recognized the story, having just returned from the kingdom of Edana, where the girl and her prince were from.
“Do they actually work?” a guy on the front row asked after Jacob explained what the keys did.
Jacob got a little smile on his face. “Well, if your name is Jacob, the Key of Kilenya works perfectly fine.”
“Sweet!” a guy near Nicole called out. “Hand it over.”
Nicole and the other students chuckled.
“Okay, if your name is Jacob Clark and you’re not from earth and you have magical abilities not related to your hair color, the Key of Kilenya will work for you.”
“Wait,” the other Jacob said. “You’re not from earth?”
Jacob sent Coolidge an apologetic look. “Sorry for derailing the lecture.”
Coolidge waved for him to go ahead, and Jacob turned back to the class.
“No, I’m not. But I was raised on earth—a different dimension from yours.” He held up his hands when people started calling out questions. “It’s a long story and if Mr.—er, Professor Coolidge—wants to tell it to you someday, I’d be fine with that.” He pulled the Key of Kilenya from his pocket. “But we should get back to the demonstration.”
The next section of class was him opening links to other parts of the world using the door to the auditorium. The students got a kick out of it, and Nicole smiled at their enthusiasm. She especially enjoyed the surprise the others exhibited when they realized that the key didn’t have a magical pulse of any sort.
“It does to me, though,” Jacob said. “The first time I touched it, it kind of made me cry.” He smiled when some of the guys in the room hooted at that. “It was beautiful—all sorts of happy emotions. It was like the key recognized me and knew it belonged to me. It was cool.”
Nicole had to agree with that. She’d now experienced something similar twice. The first time was when she’d played an antique cello that belonged to an old man from Moses Lake, Washington. That cello had called to her, and the moment she touched it, she felt like sh
e’d gone home.
She was almost sad she no longer needed a focus—that cello—to Channel.
The second time was in Shonlin.
When class ended, she congratulated Jacob on holding everyone’s interest so well. He blushed. Nicole caught Austin staring at them. He glanced away when she made eye contact with him, then he strode from the room.
Realizing her boyfriend might think she was flirting, she quickly said bye to Jacob and rushed after Austin.
“Hey, I saw you looking at us.” She put her hand on his arm, and a sudden memory crossed her. She’d done that very thing in this hall once before. This time, however, the expression on Austin’s face wasn’t one of anger or frustration. He was hesitant, unsure.
“You know he’s still a boy to me, right?” she continued.
Austin raised an eyebrow. “He’s only two years younger than we are.”
“I know, but he feels younger than that. Maybe because of all we’ve been through.”
“He’s been through a lot too—he doesn’t exactly act his age.”
“He has a girlfriend—I heard him talking about her.”
Austin glanced at her, walking again. “Does he? That’s good.”
Nicole pulled Austin to a stop and put her arms around his neck. “And I’m in the best relationship I could ever ask for. I love you and I plan to stick around for as long as you’ll have me. And even longer than that, if I see a chance of winning you back.”
Austin lowered his head, placing a quick peck on her lips. “I’ll never not want you, Nicole.”
She held him tight. “And I’ll never tire of hearing that.”
After another kiss, they walked hand in hand to the cafeteria for lunch. Nicole jumped when a flash of light burst near her while she ate. She calmed when she realized it was Early, Jacob’s Minya, but glanced around, hoping no one had noticed. Luckily, they were in a brightly lit area, and everyone seemed intent on their meals.
“Jacob will be coming to get you and Austin later this evening.”
“Did they find information on the talismans, then?” Nicole asked.
Early shrugged, her dark curls bunching up near her ears. “Don’t know. You’ll find out, I’m sure.”
Then she disappeared with another flash.
The rest of the day passed quickly—Nicole had a test in English and symphony rehearsal. She always lost herself when she played the cello, and this time was no different. She longed for a better one, though—the instrument the university had supplied her with was cheap and junior-high or high-school quality. Even though she had plenty of money, she still hadn’t decided which cello to buy.
Austin met Nicole at her apartment, and Jacob walked through the door moments later, interrupting a kissing session. He apologized immediately.
“I have no way to knock when I’m back on Eklaron and make the link. I could link somewhere else so I’m not walking in on you, but I don’t know my way around here well enough to risk accidentally opening a door to someone else’s apartment. So I came here directly.”
“You’re fine,” Nicole said, then grabbed her things while Austin and Jacob stood near the front door.
Jacob took them back to the castle in Eklaron, where everyone was already waiting. Once they were all settled, Dmitri turned the time over to the Fat Lady and Aldo.
“There are five talismans total,” the Fat Lady said. “Four individual ones with their own special powers, and one created when the four are combined.” She turned on a projector. Nicole sent Austin a confused look—they had electricity and technology on Eklaron? She hadn’t been aware of that. And what were the chances that their discoveries would have led them to invent the exact same thing as her dimension of earth? Then it dawned on her—the projector had been brought from earth. That only left learning where the electricity came from. She was sure there was a simple explanation.
The Fat Lady used a laser pointer to show the different sections of the talisman that created the main one.
“All together, they make a sort of headdress, with the center being the eye.” She glanced at Dmitri. “We believe they were originally created for Shiengols, as their magic comes from their eyes . . .”
“But?” he prompted.
“But the book actually mentions Aretes.” She cleared her throat. “Apparently, Eklaron has known about Aretes for ages.”
Weird.
“So the talismans will work for Aretes too?” Queen Arien asked.
Aldo nodded, stepping up alongside the Fat Lady. His small frame looked tiny and weak next to her large one. “We believe they’ll will.”
“Fascinating,” Arien said.
Nicole had to agree. “What does Keitus plan to do with them? And what sort of powers do they give?”
“We’re not sure what he intends to do,” the Fat Lady said. “And to answer your second question, they grant godlike powers.”
Aldo nodded. “Or, should we say, Great-Ones-like powers.”
Nicole blinked. “Great Ones? You mean, like the Great Ones who gave Aretes their magic?”
Aldo nodded again. “Yes.”
“And if I’d known this before,” Coolidge said, “there’s no way I would have kept my talisman in my office on campus.” He glanced at his students. “Apparently, this is why the talismans are kept separated. Together, they’re too dangerous for any one person to manipulate.”
Yeah, no kidding.
“How do we stop Keitus?” Austin asked.
“Well, it depends on what his plans are,” Aldo said. “From what we can tell, there are a couple of paths he could follow. The biggest thing that prevents him from using the talismans now is that he’s not a magical being. The second thing is that he needs his physical body to handle them.”
“So it sounds like he’s been stopped already,” Nicole said. “He’s dead and he’s not magical.”
“It doesn’t matter if he’s dead—he’d be able to bring his body back to life if he could gain access to it.”
“Where is his body, then?” Austin asked.
The Fat Lady glanced heavenward. “In the worst place possible.”
“What do you mean?” Coolidge asked.
“He’s not exactly buried somewhere convenient,” Aldo said. “His body is on display on a planet run by a Shiengol named Renforth.”
Nicole leaned forward. “And Shiengols are the creatures whose magic centers around their eyes?”
Aldo nodded. “Yes. And it’s not going to be easy to get the body from Renforth. Shiengols aren’t exactly known for their pleasant mannerisms. In fact, they’re incredibly temperamental and cranky.”
“That is none of their business, old man,” a male voice said from the entrance to the throne room.
Aldo half smiled. “Speak of the devil,” he murmured.
Nicole and the others turned to see who had spoken. A bright beam of light flashed at them, and Nicole raised her hand to shield herself.
“Sit down, both of you.” A man strode into the room, long black and red robes billowing out behind him.
Aldo and the Fat Lady complied immediately.
The man stopped near the projector, and Nicole gasped. The beam of light originated from his eyes. This must be a Shiengol. He turned at the sound of her intake of breath and stared at her, blinding her. “You’re not surprised, are you, Nicole? And here I thought you were intelligent.”
Nicole’s mouth popped open. Wow. “Nice to meet you too.”
The Shiengol sneered at her. “I wasn’t introducing myself. I was making a statement.”
A sudden urge to slap that look off the guy’s face nearly overcame Nicole. She wasn’t about to be treated poorly. “Who are you, since you obviously know our names?”
“I’m Azuriah. And you would do well to remember your manners around me.”
Nicole bristled. This guy was rude! “If you continue treating me like a child, I’ll treat you like a jerk.”
Azuriah stepped closer to her. “Are you prepared to
defend yourself, Arete?”
Nicole pushed back her chair, ignoring Austin’s hand on her arm. “Yes, if it comes to that. And let me guess, this isn’t the first time you’ve treated others badly?”
Azuriah folded his arms and glared at her. She refused to look away and instead found her eyes adjusting to the brightness coming from his. She was surprised at how young he looked. “How old are you, anyway? You can’t be much more than thirty.”
“That’s none of your business.”
Dmitri got to his feet. “Enough, you two. Azuriah, stop goading her. Nicole, he’s old enough to be your grandfather. Please sit down.”
Nicole did so, feeling a moment of shame, which she pushed away. She had nothing to be ashamed about. Someone needed to hold their ground where this guy was concerned.
Azuriah glared at Dmitri, not relaxing his stance.
“I’m your king, Azuriah.”
“If you have to throw your position around, it doesn’t mean anything.”
A smile played at the corners of Dmitri’s mouth. “Really? Should we find out if that’s true?”
No one said anything for a moment, but finally, Azuriah whirled to the side of the room, his long dark hair whipping around his side.
Nicole breathed a sigh of relief. This guy was insane.
“Azuriah is here for a reason. He has to lead the convoy to Renforth’s world to barter for Keitus’s body.”
Jacob rubbed his face. “That’s going to be fun.”
“You’re not invited this time,” Azuriah said.
A hurt expression crossed Jacob’s face, but he quickly hid it. “I’m not his favorite person, so that’s probably a good idea.”
“Of course it is.” Azuriah glanced at Dmitri. “Shall I take over? I’m here for that reason alone, not to make small talk.”
Nicole wouldn’t have called what they were doing making small talk, but whatever.
Dmitri consented, returning to his seat, and Azuriah strode to stand near the head of the table.
“Those who will accompany me are Nicole, Austin, and Lizzie.”
Conceal, Mosaic Chronicles Book Six Page 8
