Forbidden Alchemy (Elemental Book 7)

by Rain Oxford

  It was cold, like an ominous fog of dread. Unbalanced magic pulsed from the sigils like blood welling from an open wound, except the blood was infected. Every instinct in my body wanted to close myself off from it. Even my heart rate slowed, as if my organ could be overlooked by the unbalance if it was quiet enough.

  I visualized that energy flowing into me. I welcomed it. I drew it like it was magic I could use. When I started reciting the incantation, my intuition screamed at me to stop. I ignored it.

  The menacing energy responded and encircled me slowly, as if sizing me up, before slowly invading me. It burned. It was cold in all ways, but it burned. The pain nearly choked me as my heart sped faster than ever. The dark energy was pure fear and hate and pain and greed and despair. It was everything wrong and twisted, every negative aspect found in man.

  My own magic tried desperately and unsuccessfully to repel it. “Zirdo a olpirt nothoa oi ors. Ol trian prap, Ol fafen argedco a gevamna.” I meant to say the words in Latin, as they were written, but I wasn’t really in control anymore. I had given my control up to the unbalance. At that point, it was too late to stop.

  The universe was meant to be balanced. The force inside me was created to stop that balance. Although it was aimed at elementals, it wouldn’t stop until it destroyed everything in sight. My psychic magic, which had been unaffected before, stood no chance against the unbalance. It would use my magic against everyone. It would use me against my friends and turn my love to hate. Its purpose was to destroy everything good.

  This had been a mistake.

  I realize my heart had stopped, probably as soon as the unbalance had taken over. It didn’t need me alive to use me.

  Through it all, I felt a wall around me of balanced and pissed off elementals. It was working, even if I wouldn’t survive it. The unbalance could have torn my own magic apart in an instant, but it turned its violence outward. Fortunately, unlike my power, the elementals stood a chance when they fought together.

  The unbalance was trapped inside me, at least for the moment, but it worked relentlessly against the elementals. This aggressive energy burned my body from the inside out. My magic itself was starting to unravel, even without the unbalance focused on it.

  Reality started to fade. At this point, even if Remy did break the ward, Rocky couldn’t save me. I concentrated on keeping the unbalance inside me as hard as I could for as long as I could until everything went dark.

  * * *

  “You have a habit of getting into trouble for your loved ones, Devon.”

  I opened my eyes and winced from the bright light. After a few seconds, it faded. I was outside on the field, and everyone was frozen mid-spell, except for one stranger.

  She was about twelve with long, black hair flowing down her back and over her shoulders, and emerald-green eyes. She wore a knee-length white dress with silver lace and ribbons. She was also barefoot. Her soft features suggested she was fae.

  “People like that don’t live long.”

  I caught onto what she was saying. “Oh, fuck. Are you a grim reaper or something?”

  She smiled. “I like the first, but the latter is more accurate.”

  “Who are you?”

  “Most people call me Alice.”

  “Are you an undine?”

  “I’m just a traveler who sometimes sticks my nose where it doesn’t belong. I’m not supposed to interfere, but you helped my dad once, so I’m returning the favor.”

  “Who is your father?”

  Instead of answering, she touched my chest. “I can give you a little more time, but healing you entirely would make you a problem for me later. If you’re clever enough to get out of here and reconnect with your familiar, you will be healed by her. If not, then you will die.”

  “Problem for you later? How did you get in the school? Did they break the ward?” I looked up and saw that the ward high above us was splattered with color, as if it had been struck by colorful lightning and was frozen in the moment.

  “No; they will fail to break the curse. I go where I want. Now, hold still. I can reverse enough damage for you to survive a few more days, but if you take another dangerous hit, you’ll be dead for good. I’m also going to fix your magic, because otherwise, the next couple of weeks are going to be dreadfully boring.”

  I opened my mouth to ask for an explanation and ended up gasping in shock. I felt like she was burning me. The pain was similar to when Rocky tore my chest open the first time I called her.

  The dark energy flowed out of me and back into the sigils like black shadows. It was eerily similar to the shadows that demons used. I wanted to ask her about it, but my heart was beating again and sending pain throughout my body with every pulse.

  A moment later, the pain was gone. I was sweating and my heart was pounding, but I felt stronger. “Are you a demon?”

  “There are more worlds than the six that are connected by the tower, Devon.”

  “You know about the tower?”

  “Of course.”

  “Well, it’s five, now that the tower in Dothra has been destroyed.”

  She laughed. “You are a funny human. The tower is no longer on Dothra, but the door stands. Keigan Langril destroyed that tower because he knew another way to get back and forth. He wanted to be the only one who can. He’s not the one you have to worry about.”

  * * *

  I woke in my bed with Remington curled up against me. When I stroked her back softly, she squeezed her arms around me tighter. “Did it work?” I asked. There was still a dull ache in my chest, but it didn’t feel like I was about to drop dead.

  “No,” she said softly after a moment. “We nearly lost you, and I couldn’t break the ward. We were attacked by something… I don’t even know what. No one could concentrate except for you.”

  “But no one died?”

  “No one died.

  “You weren’t hurt?”

  She kissed my chest. “Nothing a healing potion couldn’t handle. Darwin doesn’t know why it failed. We underestimated the curse, I guess.”

  We had underestimated it, but we failed because we had been sabotaged.

  Chapter 9

  Once again, I was in the room, surrounded by shadows of kids I couldn’t talk to… except I wasn’t alone. A six-year-old girl was staring at me from across the room. “I’m not going to hurt you,” I said. I knew better than to reach for her. “Do you know what’s going on?”

  She nodded. “We’re trapped.”

  I recognized her voice. “Tazmyn?” She nodded. “I’m Devon. Remember me?” She nodded again. “I found your mother, but she’s in trouble. I need you to tell me why we’re here.”

  “I don’t know.”

  “You said your mother saved you when you were kidnapped before. Who kidnapped you the first time?”

  “My father took me. Mom found me and saved me.”

  “Could he have kidnapped you again?”

  “No. He died a couple of years ago.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Did your mom kill him?”

  “No. You wouldn’t believe me.”

  “There’s a lot I can believe. Please, tell me. The more I know, the better I can help you.”

  After a long moment, she finally said, “My father was a wizard… a bad one. He could make people do things they didn’t want to. He made Mom let him take me. He was killed by a good wizard.”

  I got a sinking feeling in my stomach. “Your father… he wasn’t John Cross, was he?”

  “How did you know?”

  I groaned. “He’s also my father. My name is Devon Sanders, and I’m the man who killed him.”

  * * *

  Saturday, November 26

  I woke to knocking on the door. I’m getting really tired of being awoken like this. Since Remy was already gone, I got up and answered the door. Henry was standing there. “I’m glad to see you on your feet again. Vincent is at the perimeter.”

  My i
ntuition didn’t warn me of a problem, so I got dressed and followed Henry to the ward. On the way, Henry didn’t ask what happened on my end during the botched attempt at the curse-breaking, nor did he tell me what happened on his end. I figured we would get together with Remy and Darwin and talk about it. Until then, he was content to let me adapt to the fact that we failed.

  Vincent looked worried, which was to be expected. “Did Dani send you?” I asked.

  He shook his head. “Ghost tried to find you several times and said he couldn’t reach you. I tried to find you through the shadow pass. Logan thinks that his daughter has been avoiding him. What is going on?”

  “Someone did this. We tried to bring it down. The elementals have gone nuts and someone is messing with us. You can’t get in with the shadow pass?”

  He studied the invisible ward. “I can’t get in because my magic can’t find a point inside. If I can get in, however, I should be able to get out with the shadow pass. Have you tried it?” he asked Henry.

  “I seem to be cut off from Langril.”

  “He’s on another world and you were able to use it. Don’t you have his heart on you?”

  “In a hidden jar. I assume that is what is keeping me safe.”

  “Aside from the shadow pass, you should be able to use his magic.”

  “I have no interest in using magic. I did try to use the shadow pass, but it didn’t open.”

  “Why were you trying to get in touch with me if you didn’t know we were trapped here?” I asked.

  “I looked into the woman, as you asked. She was hospitalized, but they can’t figure out what is wrong with her. Her daughter is missing. I have also spoken to the council and Logan. Emerson Pearcy was reported missing on Halloween. Her biological father is unknown, but she does have magic and her human mother reported her disappearance to the council.”

  “So on top of someone messing with us, someone is taking kids.”

  “Two children are missing for sure. Is that a serious matter in the investigator world?”

  “Any missing child is a serious matter.”

  “Does it necessarily mean there is a connection?”

  “No, but it’s possible, and connections help to solve cases.” That wasn’t much to go on, but it did give me an idea. I told him about my vision of Tazmyn and that she was John’s daughter. “Maybe John really was building an army, not just bragging. John told my mother that he had other children, and this was before the twins or Regan were born.”

  “If that’s the case, they should all be safe now that he is dead.”

  “Unless someone else is hunting down his children. Someone has already tried to recruit the twins.”

  “I cannot imagine someone being that foolish. Demons have enough trouble facing you alone. I seriously doubt a wizard would be able to handle a small army of John’s children.”

  “He wanted children with human women, so if a number of his children went missing, the mothers wouldn’t necessarily know to contact the council. Would you check into it?”

  “I am more concerned with getting all of you out… before Logan finds out.”

  “I pretty much expect him to go ballistic. If it gets us out, more power to him. Darwin is getting pretty desperate. When you talked to the council, did they seem weird at all?”

  “Reserved, but that is to be expected since I used to be a member of the old council.”

  “Can you also keep an eye on them? I don’t know how much spying you can do.”

  “I’m not an investigator,” Vincent said. “I will do my best but make no promises. I will return at sunset tomorrow to check in with you.”

  * * *

  Because we had missed classes earlier in the week and Remington didn’t want the students running around without supervision, she decided that classes would go on as if it was a weekday. “Until we break the curse, I don’t want the kids out of class any more than necessary. It’s not safe.” This was not a popular decision, but the teachers understood it was for the best.

  I ended up subbing for Kubota’s class. Under normal circumstances, it would have been fine, but this was a mixed class of wizards, shifters, and fae. The shifter students spend more time trying to stay in person form than listening to the lesson, while the fae and wizard students wouldn’t stop talking. I ended up just telling them to write a letter to someone about something, and be creative with it.

  Most of the fae and wizard students insisted that they could help, even though they couldn’t really control their magic. Some of them tried to argue with me, promising that it wasn’t dangerous, and then would do magic, which would blow up in their faces. I was tempted to control them, but I didn’t like what it would do to them. Mind control was the easy way to handle things, and they were kids. The last thing in the world I wanted to do was turn out like John.

  I also used the opportunity to skim the students’ minds for any clues to who was behind this. I had Mandy and Benny in class, but I still couldn’t get anything new from their minds. They behaved innocently, suggesting they had no idea that I suspected something. Neither of them knew what was going on. All I got when I pushed for school-specific information was fear and trust.

  Most students thought that we were overreacting or underreacting. Many believed they could control their magic; it was just panic that was causing problems. Unfortunately, they weren’t just dealing with the problems we knew about. They saw people that weren’t there, lost time, and heard voices. Whenever they tried to tell someone, it would turn out looking like they were crazy, like when the lake refilled.

  * * *

  During lunch, I walked with my class to the West to make sure nothing attacked. Most of the teachers did the same, so we all spotted the commotion at the same time.

  Students were gathered around the kitchen door. Assuming it was a fight, I gently pushed past them to see the source. It wasn’t a fight but a letter that was getting so much attention.

  Students, teachers, and staff,

  Devon Sanders met with a member of the old wizard council this morning. He gave the outsider private information about us, including that our magic is unstable. He implied that we are distracted and discussed the disappearance of five wizard children. Most chilling of all is that he admitted that there is an army of his own siblings. He actually referred to them as an army. He may act kind, but he can control our minds. We must stop him before it’s too late.

  Remington joined me the moment I finished reading it. “They’re all over the Center and North.”

  “Is this a prank?” Cy asked.

  “Of course it is,” Remington said.

  “Why would someone make that up?” Nigel asked.

  “It was obviously someone who dislikes Mr. Sanders,” Mr. Yuun said. “This is unacceptable behavior.”

  The students looked confused and worried. The teachers looked confused and suspicious. “I’ll find out who did this,” Remington said, pulling the letter off the door.

  “Are you sure that’s a good idea?” I asked.

  She scowled at me. “Anonymous accusations will not be tolerated here.” She pulled out a fountain pen, silver ink, and a red ribbon. “The name of the person who wrote this will appear on it.” She wrote something in another language on the back of the letter, folded it into an origami owl, and tied the ribbon around it. When she started to pull the ribbon, the owl tore out of her hand, shot across the room, and attacked a student.

  His classmates made a path so that we could see who it was attacking. “Leon?”

  The scrawny, black-haired throwback was one of the last people I’d expect to spread rumors. He’d always been mild-natured, quiet, and respectful. The owl pecked at Leon’s hair. “Make it stop!” he shouted.

  “Why did you do this?” Remington asked.

  “I didn’t do it!” He protected his head as best as he could without swatting at the owl. Other students were too shocked to help him. At the sound of fluttering paper, everyone ducked, but the hoard of paper ow
ls instantly narrowed in on Leon.

  “Get down,” I said. My magic shot out automatically and everyone dived to the floor. I focused on heat and magically lit one of the owls on fire. Normally, this would have been easy and simple. Instead, all the owls caught on fire. Remington knew what I was doing and reacted at the same time; she motioned with her hands and the air swirled, blowing the owls away so that they wouldn’t burn the students.

  Murphy grabbed Leon by the shoulders. “You need to come with us.”

  “I didn’t do it!” Leon cried.

  “We can discuss it in my office.” Students stepped aside to let them through.

  “Everyone will eat lunch quickly and get back to class on time,” Remington announced. “This was a foolish prank that will be dealt with severely.”

  Remington and I followed Murphy and Leon. Once we were in Murphy’s office, Leon sat on the couch and cried.

  “Please don’t expel me! I promise I didn’t do it! I was in class all day! I didn’t do it!”

  Sensing no deception from him, I sat on the couch next to him. “You know that I can read your mind.”

  He nodded. “I thought it was cool. I wouldn’t write that about you!”

  “I want you to think about everything you’ve done today.”

  “He could make up something,” Remington said.

  “I can tell. However, I want you to also think about anyone you’ve talked to this morning. If you’re innocent, we will know.”

  He nodded, sniffled, and closed his eyes. His mind was welcoming but full of panic and confusion, which made it hard to understand. He woke to find his roommates arguing. Rasko wanted to go home, whereas JC wanted to stay and fight whoever cursed the school.

  “They’re not going to find the person responsible,” Rasko said.

  “Yes, they will,” Leon insisted. He got dressed and they went to breakfast. Leon stayed with his roommates through breakfast and then walked with them and a dozen other students to the East. They were afraid to be alone. He struggled to remember who he sat by in class and in between classes, and who he talked to. He left his second class and headed to his third, which was the last class before lunch.