Second String Savior

by Rick Gualtieri

  Lilly was smirking just beyond where Sensei crouched defensively. “You really think jailbait and two weak-ass spell slingers are going to scare me?”

  “Let it happen,” Gary said, leaning his head against mine. “Let me flow into you.”

  “Bates, you’re not thinking what I think you’re thinking, are you?” Sensei asked over her shoulder. I for one had no idea what she was talking about, but I really hoped it involved cracking zombie skulls.

  Oh crap! Hopefully the movies weren’t wrong about that, too.

  Gary trembled against me. “You can do this, Jess. You just need a little . . . spark.”

  Spark? Could he possibly mean through my hair? How was that even supposed to work? It’s not like I’d ever mind-melded before.

  No! That was a defeatist attitude. Rather than worry about what I couldn’t do, I needed to focus on what I knew. I started by focusing on the real, the tangible. There was a surprising amount of warmth radiating from Gary’s fingers. Maybe I could use that, use it to stoke whatever fires already burned inside of me.

  Time stood still—not like in some sappy romance metaphorical sense—no, everything literally froze around me, even the drool dripping from the zombies with mouths stopped midair. “What’s going on?”

  “We’re connected,” Gary replied, his voice echoing in my head even though his lips didn’t move. “Up here.” I felt a ghostly finger press against my forehead.

  “Do I need to understand any of this to kick zombie ass?”

  “Not really.”

  “Then let’s do this!”

  I needed to believe in him. They’d told me that all my shiny one powers boiled down to faith, but maybe it wasn’t all about me. Maybe there was something to be said about having faith in others, trusting them.

  We were surrounded by monsters, rot, decay, evil all around us. There was no way I was going to let these disgusting creatures touch us. There was no way I was going to let them hurt my friends.

  In a blink, time resumed its flow. Gary lifted my hand, his fingers entwined with mine, and held it out toward the creatures approaching us.

  “Get down!” Sensei had the good sense to dive for cover. Just in time, too, because Gary screamed out, “Mori in igni, immortuos!”

  If I thought my head felt hot, it was nothing compared to the howling wind of flames that blasted out of our intertwined hands. Red energy pulsed beneath my skin and through my veins—so much power I thought my skin would erupt.

  It didn’t, thank goodness. Too bad the same couldn’t be said for the mini horde of undead before us. Lilly caught the brunt of it and was blown instantly to pieces, barely having time to scream before she was no more.

  Pain lanced through my body, the energy that had been healing me now diverted toward offense, but no way in hell was I giving up as the power continued to surge forth from us.

  Sadly, the flames didn’t have nearly the same effect on the zombies as they had on Lilly. They seemed no more fazed by being set on fire than if we’d hit them with a gentle breeze. Even as the flesh melted from their bodies, they continued onward.

  A scorched hand reached for me while another grabbed hold of my ankle. The burning wind howled ever louder, buffeting some of the undead away, but no matter how hard Gary concentrated, it didn’t seem like it would be enough.

  Slowly the power pouring from us began to die down and the zombies started to advance again . . . little more than burning skeletons now, but I had a feeling that wasn’t a checkmark in our favor.

  I didn’t see any way out of this. Deep down I knew I was spent, Gary too. I could feel it. Sensei, well, somehow I doubted hand-to-hand combat was super effective against flaming zombie skeletons.

  Just when I was about to give up hope, though, and could feel the same resignation coming from Gary, the alleyway directly in front of us lit up. A ball of light appeared, growing painfully bright, until it abruptly winked out, revealing platinum hair, sensible shoes, and the stench of cigarettes.

  “This ends now,” Phil growled, raising her palms. Beams of pure green energy lanced out from her hands, hitting the zombies with explosive efficiency. Before I could barely comprehend what was happening, our enemies were reduced to piles of charred bone and ash.

  I turned toward Gary, meaning to smile at him, but all at once I felt sluggish, heavy.

  I wasn’t the only one. As I slumped to the ground, Gary crashed alongside me. His eyes faced me, but they were unfocused, his normally hazel irises now ghastly pale. Before my eyes, a streak of white formed in his otherwise dark hair, splitting it down the middle.

  I tried to call his name and found I couldn’t. The pain in my midsection, hell, all over, was increasing in pitch, blotting everything else out. My previous battle with the undead had been nothing compared to this. My body was setting a whole new record for suffering.

  Both Sensei and Phil leaned down over us, concern etched onto their faces but, oddly enough, I wasn’t worried about me so much as I was about who we’d left behind.

  “My family. . .” I choked out. They were still in the gym. “Vampires. . .” We had to help them. We had to. . .

  Nope, turns out what I needed to do was promptly pass out.

  Chapter Twenty: A New Face Joins the Philharmonic

  “What part of don’t engage the vampires wasn’t clear to you kids?”

  I probably deserved this diatribe, but not so much that I didn’t pull the covers over my eyes. “Just five more minutes, Phil.”

  As I sunk under the soft, fluffy blanket, I could feel my whole body sinking. No, not sinking, I was melting, dissolving away to reappear somewhere else. Smells . . . so many new smells—old wood, furniture polish, and mustiness.

  I blinked and found myself staring at a notebook filled with some half-decent doodles. Wait a minute, those weren’t my hands. And why would I be doodling with my right hand anyway? And why was I drawing a busty chick in a tiny dress?

  “Bates!”

  Hold on . . . was I still in Gary’s head? I glanced down at the notebook, noting drawings of dicks and a frog smoking a bong. Oh, and more boobage. These were definitely not my memories.

  “Bates, pay attention!”

  I saw flashes of a room full of paneling, of a skinny older guy in a robe, and some book full of pentagrams. It felt like I was at discount Hogwarts. Everything got swirly and hazy—flashes of scenes, random words, feelings of nausea and giddiness. Go figure, I’d been right—the human mind didn’t playback in nice, tidy scenes after all.

  “I want to be a wizard, not some seer stuck in a box.”

  I saw a face, a rather pleasant one with a neatly trimmed beard and glistening white teeth. “You can do anything you put your mind to, Mr. Bates. Raw talent isn’t everything,” the man said with a way too wide to be genuine grin.

  “Don’t end up like your father, Gary. . .”

  I curled into a tiny ball under the covers as the words segued into yelling along with more flashes of imagery.

  “He’s your son, Ashleigh! Too bad I can’t be certain he’s mine!”

  Oh, Gary, was this what you ran away from?

  “You’ll never be anything but a weak, worthless catalyst. No matter how hard you try, you’ll always be pathetic.”

  Tears rolled involuntarily down my cheeks.

  “Worthless.”

  “Weak.”

  “Pathetic.”

  I snapped my eyes open and sobbed into the blanket. I felt a hand pat my back and a raspy voice said, “You’re safe now, Jessie. You’re gonna be all right.”

  I opened my eyes to see that Phil was actually standing across the room while a shimmering phantom hand comforted me. Talk about shades of Doctor Manhattan.

  That snapped me out of my fugue, and I sat up, eyes puffy and my nose stuffed.

  Phil tossed me a box of tissues. “You experienced some of my nephew’s memories, didn’t you?”

  I nodded between sniffles. “How could anyone say those things about their
own kid?”

  “My brother is a wonderful prophet, but a terrible human being. To be fair, that she-demon he married could bring out the worst in anyone. They only stay together because of spite and being too cheap to risk a costly divorce settlement. It’s a match made in hell if ever there was one.”

  I tried to stand, but a dull ache filled my ribs and chest, forcing me back down and likewise causing me to remember what had put me in this position to begin with. “I’m so sorry, and I’m sorry for Gary, and I don’t know what happened. Everything just escalated so quickly, and . . . and . . . oh God, my family!”

  “One crisis at a time. Are you back in your right mind, or are you still connected to my nephew?”

  “I think I’m back. I feel like a creepy brain stalker and I hurt, too, all over. I think this is the part where you say this will teach me a valuable lesson or something.”

  “Cracked ribs tend to teach a better lesson than I ever could. To address crisis number two, your cousin won his bout and then spent the night talking to promoters from New York. From what I hear, he had a great time.”

  “That’s a relief. Wait, my dad—”

  “Found you safe in your bed this morning, right where you were supposed to be. Oh, and before you ask, apparently you had a nice evening with that football player. You’re going to study together Monday after practice.”

  I wasn’t sure how I felt about Julius sleeping in my bed, but that seemed like a minor concern for now. As for Tony, a couple of weeks ago I’d have died to hear that, but at the moment, nothing. It’s like I wasn’t even in control of my life anymore.

  I flopped back onto the pillow and lay there, staring at the ceiling until Phil finally asked, “Hey, you want some tea, another blanket maybe?”

  “Tea would be nice, thanks. Is Sensei mad at me, too?”

  “We’re both relieved that you’re okay. When you and Gary are back on your feet, then we’ll start on the lectures. Deal?”

  I nodded. “Deal. Where is Gary?”

  “Oh, he wasn’t feeling well. I think he’s in the can. Be right back.”

  I gave Phil a moment, then rolled to my feet. Man, walking hurt, but I still limped to the door. I needed to check on Gary, something deep in my gut egged me on.

  Phil had set me up in one of the guest rooms of the Worcester Coven home. The bathroom was only a few doors down, although it felt like miles. I raised a hand to knock, but then hesitated when I heard a soft voice from inside.

  “Jessie.”

  How did he know . . . duh! Maybe a part of us was still connected. That made sense. I opened my mouth to say something, but then heard him again.

  “Oh, Jessie,” he said, more a moan than greeting . . . and what was that sound, like someone slapping something.

  Oh God!

  I closed my eyes, willing my mind to not go there, but that only made it worse . . . a quick burst of images filled my mind’s eye—white tile, a shower curtain, my hand on my. . .

  No, no, no, no, no! I limped as quickly as I could for the kitchen. How did he even have the energy to—

  “Oh, you didn’t have to get up,” Phil said, returning with a cup of tea. “Aren’t you cold? Your sweatshirt should be hanging up on the back of the door.”

  I looked down at myself, coming to the realization that I’d almost walked in on Gary—gah I couldn’t even think the word—wearing only a sports bra and a pair of shorts. Talk about an accidental “Dear Penthouse” moment.

  Phil must have picked up on the weird vibe in the air. “Did I miss something?”

  No, but I wish I had. “I . . . need to go. I’m supposed to be at the gym.”

  “You already are. Julius is covering your shift. That’s how I got the update about your cousin. Are you sure you’re okay?”

  “I’m just sore and a bit discombobulated, you know?”

  “Here, go drink your tea and I’ll check if that cleansing spell is done with your jeans yet. Sorry, washing machines don’t really help with zombie funk.”

  I wondered if there was a spell that erased memories. Right about then it would be super useful.

  I sipped some of the bright red tea. She sure did like her fruit blends—tasty—though, I suppose it was all well and good that I had a doppelganger today. Even with enhanced hair repair, I doubted I’d be up for gym anytime soon. “Vampires suck,” I muttered, turning back toward the bed room.

  Behind me, a door clicked open. “Huh?”

  Oh crap! Despite my injured midsection, I hustled back to the room and yanked my sweatshirt on super-fast.

  When I stepped back out, Gary was standing there looking like the picture of perfect . . . release . . . health.

  “What was that, Jess?”

  I pointed to his forehead where a shock of white mixed with his dark hair. “You’ve gone all Rogue.”

  Keep it light, Jess. Don’t mention anything incriminating.

  “I feel like crap.”

  “I dunno, you seem kinda jacked up to me.”

  Oh yeah, real smooth.

  Gary froze.

  “I mean you look good, considering we almost died last night.”

  He let out a deep sigh. “Yeah, I guess there is that.” He walked down to the kitchen and I followed, avoiding eye contact once we were there. It was amazing how fascinating a cup of tea could be. “How about you? How are you feeling?”

  “Sore.” Now I was studying the ceiling. The exposed pipes were cool. “I did have some weird dreams, though.”

  He gave me a knowing look, which wasn’t nearly as comforting as it was probably meant to be. “Let me guess. You saw things that weren’t from your life?”

  I nodded. “Yeah. Like, I kinda heard your parents yelling at you.”

  “Sorry you had to hear that. My parents are dicks.”

  Did he have to use that word?

  “Truth is I didn’t expect it to be like that . . . with you.”

  “You’ve done this before?” I hoped he wasn’t reading my subtext. “I mean, the magic sharing thing?”

  “Yeah, of course. With other mages it’s sorta second nature, easy like flicking on a switch . . . but with you . . . we were kind of in each other’s heads. I mean, I haven’t had that happen since back when I first started practicing magic. It was . . . intense.”

  Again with the phrasing! “Well, if it helps, you were pretty awesome.”

  Clarify, Jess! Don’t send the wrong message.

  “I mean, we’d be zombie chow without you.”

  “Thanks.” He beamed at me and we returned to our silence, until he piped up with, “I guess now you know why I ran off to live with my aunt. Oh, and in case you’re wondering, I didn’t get much from you. A few flashes, mostly comic stuff.”

  “Am I that shallow?” I asked with a laugh.

  “Not at all! It’s just, I’ve studied mind magic so I can control it a bit, although not enough to keep me out of your head. That didn’t sound right. I just didn’t want to do anything wrong when I was inside you . . . your head!”

  We were just about reaching maximum discomfort when I heard a loud noise behind me and turned to see—holy crap—a seven-foot-tall ape saunter into the kitchen and hock a loogie into the sink.

  My brain froze, unable to process what I was seeing. Surely I’d suffered some brain trauma the night before.

  The creature turned toward me and smiled, revealing cracked crooked teeth. “Hairless Holy One needs rest.” She glanced at Gary and took a sniff of the air. “Do mating dance later, far-seer. No time for wizard seed.”

  That done, the Sasquatch opened a cabinet and proceeded to pull out a bag of cookies . . . almost as if to signify that my day was not even remotely done getting weirder.

  Chapter Twenty-One: How I learned to Stop Worrying and Date my Nemesis

  “So, the vampires are the ancient enemies of Bigfoot, who are really forest spirits, and mages are stuck in the middle?” Maybe I shouldn’t have broken out into hysterical laughter with one of t
he aforementioned giant apes lounging in the library with us. Said Sasquatch, whose name I learned was Yush, nodded eagerly.

  “Hairless Holy One understands Yush. Yush pleased.”

  “I’m glad you’re pleased, but I need a break.”

  Phil smiled but her face remained tight. Gary did his best imitation of a quarter and tried to sink into the cracks of the seat cushions while avoiding eye contact with me. Our party now had another plus one—Julius in his OG form, sipping tea and taking notes. Come to think of it, if he was back from the gym, where was Sensei? Shouldn’t she be here for the ridiculousness of a yeti debriefing?

  “Hairless Holy One has wisdom. Now is calm before storm. Must find strength to face T’lunta menace.”

  Last night I was attacked by vampires. Today a Sasquatch was my biggest cheerleader. What exactly was a tuh-lunt-ah, though?

  “While we all could use a little rest and recovery, we cannot ignore that Boston is now aware that we have some sort of weapon and we’re willing to kill to protect it. Our position is precarious at best,” Phil said. At least two patches peeked from under her sleeve and she kept staring at the pack of menthols on the counter.

  I winced. “A weapon who needed to be saved from four vampires.”

  “Must be able to crush more than four T’lunta. Hairless Holy One needs more trials. Yush can bring bear. Bear good way to get better at fighting.”

  I waved my hands at all of them. “No bears, please.”

  “Yes! Maybe Badger better for Hairless Holy One!” Yush said with a nod.

  I turned to Phil and made a time out motion. “Why are we talking about badgers eating my face off, and why is there even a Sasquatch here?”

  “Yush visit friends. Yush visit Hairless Holy One.”

  “The Magi sometimes work together with the forest guardians,” Phil said. “Yush here is a shaman and master of nature magic. We’ve consulted together for years, and she even helped advise me when I began my search for the Icon. I kept her a secret because not everyone is ready to handle being friends with her kind. She only made her presence known because we need her.”