Silver Clouds Dirty Sky A Montague and Strong Detective Novel (Montague & Strong Case Files Book 4)

by Orlando A. Sanchez

  “Impossible,” Monty said and shook his head again. “Ziller postulates a summoning to being equivalent to an entanglement between summoner and summoned. It’s self-contained.”

  “I spoke to Ziller, and I can unravel the entanglement just enough to intercept the summoned.” Thomas’s fingers raced across the laptop again. Another set of runes raced across the screen too fast for me to decipher the symbols.

  “The theory is sound,” Monty said, after a few seconds of looking at the screen. “You intercept and then what? Now you have a demon on your hands—an angry demon capable of killing mages.”

  “He finds out who did the summoning,” I said, following the logic. “If he traps the demon, he can offer it release in exchange for the name of the summoner.”

  Thomas nodded and pointed at me. “Exactly.”

  “Yes, because demons are always so truthful and forthcoming,” Monty snapped. “Don’t be naïve, Thomas. This plan has countless ways it can go wrong, with you ending up like Nigel—”

  Thomas looked away. “That was unfortunate.”

  “Wait.” Monty stared hard at Thomas. “You’ve tried this already—with Nigel.”

  “He didn’t listen—said he knew more about demons than anyone alive,” Thomas said. “Called me a novice and then tried to use my method without the failsafes.”

  “What happened?” I asked. “How did it go wrong?”

  “We were at Llandin.” He looked at the screen. “I told him it was unsafe. We needed a ley-circle, like this one”—he pointed to the large circle in the floor—“to contain the demon. He laughed at me. Called me a rank amateur, drew his own circle, and skimmed the ley-line.”

  “Bloody arrogant fool,” Monty muttered under his breath. “What did he do?”

  “He intercepted the summoning, but then it went wrong,” Thomas continued. “He hadn’t skimmed enough power from the line and had used the wrong circle.”

  “The intercept worked?” Monty asked, curious. “You managed to capture the demon?”

  “Capture? No,” Thomas shook his head. “Nigel diverted the demon to his circle. It was a circle of immobilization, only he hadn’t skimmed enough power from the line.”

  “Nigel was dead—he just didn’t know it.” Monty looked over at the large circle. “How did you escape?”

  “I tried to cast a rift port to shunt the demon back to the original summoner, but it was too late.” Thomas looked off into the distance. “It moved so fast. One second Nigel was trying to cast, the next—his head was gone.”

  “I thought they found his body in his flat?” I asked, remembering Bart’s words.

  “His flat? No, I was there,” Thomas answered. “We were in Llandin.”

  “That demon sounds much stronger than what we faced earlier.” I glanced over at Monty, who was still looking at the large circle. “As in, the kind that won’t be stopped by your runes.”

  “By several orders of magnitude,” Thomas replied, nodding. “Which means the summoner is quite strong as well.”

  Monty turned and faced Thomas. “You still haven’t mentioned how you escaped.”

  “The same way I plucked you in mid-flight over the Thames,” Thomas answered, and gestured. White runes floated in the air in front of Monty.

  “You got them to work?” Monty’s voice held barely contained surprise. “How?”

  “Trial and error, mostly, and several meetings with Ziller on energy transformation and porting without circles.”

  “I thought he said it was impossible.” Monty answered, looking at the white runes and tracing their designs. “He argued porting without a circle was an exercise in futility at best, and certain death at worst.”

  “I was very convincing once I crafted the correct runes,” Thomas said with a smile. “He banned me from visits after the third unannounced trip, and told me to shove my riftrunes up my—well, he wasn’t pleased. Anyway, I call them riftrunes.”

  “Does this mean we can send Chi home?” I asked. “Preventing a Dark Council civil war would be a good thing.”

  “I haven’t tried it over such a great distance, but it should work.” Thomas looked at Monty. “It’s still very risky, and I would need a power source to harness.”

  “But the ley-line circle isn’t working.” I said. “How are you going to get power?”

  “With your recent power shift.” Thomas looked at the scowling Monty. “Do you think you could cast a corsolis?”

  NINE

  “YOU DON’T KNOW what you’re asking.” Monty stepped back and away from Thomas. “A corsolis isn’t an ordinary orb of flame.”

  “A sun’s heart—you can cast it, can’t you?” Thomas asked with a measure of certainty. “You’ve shifted several levels.”

  “Last time, he did the cannoli mini-sun, and nearly disintegrated the entire sub-level of a building,” I looked around the lair. “Don’t think the Thomas ‘bat-lair’ can handle what one of those things can do.”

  Thomas rubbed his chin in thought, looking like a shorter, rounder version of Monty. “He can use the circle.”

  “I thought you said it didn’t work?” I countered.

  “It won’t—at first, but I can reroute the energy of the spell and funnel it into the circle.” Thomas got excited at the idea of turning the lair into an inferno. “I haven’t shifted like Tristan, but I can do that.”

  “This sounds like a bad idea,” I said, glancing at Monty. “I don’t even think he was aware of what he was doing. It was a scary-Monty moment—I mean, more than usual.”

  Thomas nodded at me with a serious look.

  “If we get the circle working, I can use a riftrune to send you all back.”

  “And then we don’t have to deal with demons in London?” I looked at Monty, who was still scowling. “I really like that idea.”

  “The spell is unstable, Thomas.” Monty shook his head. “I don’t even know how I cast it.”

  “My runes will make it stable and safe. You’ve seen that I can create a stable bridge. I just need the added power of the corsolis. The circle will create the stability.”

  “I’ve always been wary of your experiments,” Monty said. “Especially after the goat incident.”

  “Goat incident?” I asked, suddenly curious. “What happened?”

  “He started this ‘riftrune’ practice during his time at the Sanctuary.” Monty gave Thomas a look, and continued. “He started riftruning goats. Many of them didn’t survive the initial process. Those that did, didn’t survive long after. Something about having their internal organs missing shortened their life spans.”

  I stared at Thomas. “And you want to try that on us?”

  “How do you think I brought you here?”

  “Blind luck,” Monty said. “And proximity to a ley-line. Snatching us here from the Thames is different from creating an accurate bridge across an ocean and time. What if you send us back and it’s the middle of the day? You’ve just scorched the head of the Dark Council.”

  “She won’t appreciate being barbecued, trust me.” I shook my head. “She’ll come here and maybe rip your arms off, then beat you silly with them.”

  “That was early on.” Thomas tapped some keys on one of the laptops and pointed. “The calculations are sound, see for yourself. Goats don’t possess magic and have a fundamentally different runic signature from humans.”

  Monty stepped closer to the large screen. One quadrant was showing runic formulae and then extrapolating them into a diagram of a tunnel.

  “This looks like only one person can travel at a time.”

  “I’m being cautious to avoid signature crossover.”

  “We can ask your vampire if she is willing to take the chance,” Monty said, looking at me. “I would prefer to avoid a Council civil war as well, but this is a risky way to travel. Even if the theory is sound.”

  “If you think Montgomery Scott over here can do it, I say we give it a shot—it’s not like he’s trying to change the laws of phys
ics.”

  “Well, actually—wait, who’s Montgomery Scott?” Thomas asked and Monty shook his head with a sigh.

  “Don’t engage him.” Monty tapped some of the keys. “Do you have a diagram compendium on the database?”

  “I do, but why would you…Wait, you really don’t remember how you cast the corsolis?” Thomas asked. “You were serious?”

  Monty nodded. “There were—extenuating circumstances.” He kept tapping. “I was dealing with a Negomancer and the effects of my power shift. Things were a little hazy.”

  Another screen came up, and I saw a group of diagrams appear in another quadrant of the large screen. Monty stopped and analyzed the diagrams.

  “Can you get it from the diagrams?” I asked, remembering the inferno he caused the last time he cast this spell. “And not let it get out of control?”

  “I should be able to get the basic tracing,” Monty said, tracing the diagram with his eyes on the screen. “Without an advanced runemaster here, it’s going to be trial and error until I can figure out the right amount of energy needed.”

  “There’s a safe room off to the side where I conduct the more volatile experiments.” Thomas pointed to a large door. “You can get your calibrations correct without setting us all on fire.”

  “I like the ‘not setting us on fire’ part.”

  “Besides, I have some things to discuss with Simon,” Thomas said, grabbing me by the arm.

  “Thomas.” Monty gave him a look. “He’s not a mage. Do not experiment on him.”

  Thomas stared back. “He’s not a mage, and yet, here he is, fighting alongside them.”

  “He possesses other skills,” Monty answered. “I don’t know if he can cast like a mage.”

  “At the very least, he should know the incantation.” Thomas set his jaw, crossing his arms. “Especially if we’re dealing with demons.”

  “He was able to hold the essences of magic-users, which means the ability is there,” Monty said, rubbing his chin. “The incantation and nothing else?”

  “Hold the essences of magic-users?” Thomas asked. “Do I want to know?”

  “Not really.” I looked at Monty, who nodded. “I’m not a mage, and don’t really want to be one, but if you think this incantation can help against demons, I like the idea of not being barbecued.”

  “Only the incantation.” Monty stepped away from the computers. “I don’t need him destroying half the city because of something you taught him.”

  Thomas and I both stared back, mouths agape. “Do you know he used to be called ‘Tristan the Terror’ back at the Sanctuary?” Thomas asked after a few seconds.

  “Because he was always so cheerful?”

  “No.” Thomas shook his head. “Any time he stepped into a building, one of the Elders would be close by, just in case his temper got away from him and he felt like demolishing something.”

  “Monty, demolish a building? Never.” I feigned offense, and looked at the quadrant that showed the collapsing Tate. “He would never consider unleashing that much magic.”

  “Hilarious.” Monty started walking toward the safe-room door. “I’m going to learn this corsolis and maybe unleash it on the both of you.”

  TEN

  “THE INCANTATION OF Light is a basic spell that allows you to create an orb of light from ambient magic.” Thomas stepped into the large ley-circle, waving me close to him. “Over here, please.”

  “Is there a reason we’re in the middle of the circle?”

  “Even though it’s blocked from the ley-line, it still holds a large amount of residual energy.” Thomas pointed down to the circle. “It’s perfect for learning the incantation. Think of the circle as magical training wheels.”

  “How dangerous is this?” I asked, wary. Mages had a different definition of what was dangerous. “Am I going to learn this incantation and create an orb of light that blows my fingers off?”

  He tapped his finger on his chin for a few seconds, and scrunched up his face in thought. “That would be an interesting application, but I don’t think it’s practical,” he said. “How would you cast again?”

  “Again? I’m thinking I don’t want to do it this time.”

  “Nonsense.” He waved my words away as he narrowed his eyes at me. “This is a basic spell, and you need some kind of defense besides a siphoning blade, a gun that fires magical rounds and a mark that can stop time. I do, however, like the shield bracelet.”

  I stood there in shock for a few seconds. “How did you know that?”

  “I told you, I’m observant,” he said and gestured. White runes floated in the air and fell into the circle beneath us. The circle gave off a subtle blue glow, which faded after a few seconds. “Now, the incantation. Watch me.”

  He moved his hand in a series of movements that reminded me of watching the third-base coach telling me to steal home before the next pitch. It wasn’t as elaborate as some of the gestures I’d seen Monty do, but it still looked impossible for my fingers.

  “You want me to do that?” I asked, incredulous. “With one hand, without breaking fingers?”

  “I know it looks complicated, but I’m showing you the one-handed version in case you find yourself needing to fire your gun or use your knife,” he said with a smile. “Now, watch. It’s a pattern broken into three parts. Do it with me.”

  He walked me through it until he felt confident I had the pattern and could do it with my eyes closed. After some time, my hand started cramping up.

  “Why am I not seeing the orb of magnificence?” I asked, doing the pattern repeatedly. “What am I missing?”

  “There is a long phrase that goes with this gesture—hence the title incantation.” He stopped my gesturing with a hand. “I found a shortcut.”

  “I’m sensing a huge ‘but’ there.”

  He nodded. “Instead of using the ambient energy around you, the shortcut uses life energy.”

  “Like Ebonsoul?”

  “No.” He shook his head. “Your blade siphons life energy and gives it to you. This version of the incantation uses your energy to create light.”

  “So basically I’m creating a magical flashlight with my energy?” I asked, disappointed. “This is great if I’m stuck in a dark cave. I don’t see the use outside of magical illumination.”

  “At first, that’s all it will be, since you haven’t practiced harnessing your energy like a mage.” He began to gesture. “But once you become familiar with it, it will be more than a magical flashlight.”

  He finished the gesture and muttered something under his breath. An orb formed in his hand, and slammed into and through the far wall cleanly, leaving a perfect circle in its wake.

  I walked over to the hole in the wall. “This is the same spell?” I asked, pointing at the smooth hole in the wall. It was close to four inches in diameter.

  He nodded. “Once you learn it and can control the energy output, the spell is quite powerful. You just need to remember—it’s using your life energy.”

  “This—this is a magic-missile!” I said, barely keeping my excitement in check.

  “No, it’s an incantation of light—well, technically it’s a missile created of magic, but it’s not called a magic-missile.”

  “Does it miss?” I asked. “Can I split it into several orbs at once?”

  “Of course it can miss, it’s not a homing magic-miss—incantation of light,” he said, flustered by my excitement. “Several orbs? You haven’t formed one orb yet.”

  “What am I missing?” I asked, eager to launch my first missile. “What else do I need?”

  “Once the gesture is complete, you need the trigger.” He gestured and quietly uttered: igniscoruscanti. Another orb formed and followed the path of the first one. “Remember, it uses your life energy. Overdo it and it can prove fatal.”

  “Got it, don’t overuse the magic-missile.”

  I gestured and whispered the trigger. A small orb, the size of a grape on its way to becoming a raisin,
formed in my hand, rolled off my palm, and bounced on the floor a few times. It sputtered and disappeared a few seconds later.

  Thomas followed my orb with his eyes and then looked up at me. “It does take some practice.” He shook his head slightly. “At least you still have your blade, your gun and your mark.”

  I was about to answer, when Monty approached.

  “I have the basics,” Monty said. “I can summon a rudimentary corsolis that will serve as a power source, but nothing more.”

  “That’s all we need.” Thomas moved to the computers and began tapping on the keyboard. “I’ll begin setting the coordinates for the circle.”

  “He learned the incantation?” Monty asked, looking at the hole in the wall across the room. “Is that his handiwork?”

  “Not exactly,” Thomas said. “I showed him the shortcut, but he isn’t aware of his life force.”

  “Was that wise?” Monty walked over to the hole and examined it. “That shortcut could prove fatal if misused.”

  “He grasped the gestures, but judging from the orb he created, the execution will take some work.” Thomas looked at me with a tight smile. “I think he’s safe for a few decades, at least.”

  “I’ll go get Chi,” I said quickly.

  ELEVEN

  CHI STOOD IN the center of the circle.

  “Check the numbers and runes again,” Monty said.

  It wasn’t a suggestion. Thomas tapped on the keyboard and pulled up the diagram of the riftrunes. I recognized the symbols, even though I couldn’t make out their meaning.

  “They’re accurate, Tristan.” More tapping followed by more symbols. “Once you cast, I’ll be able to divert the energy of the corsolis into the circle.”

  I stepped over to the edge of the circle.

  “Are you sure you want to do this?” I asked Chi. “Maybe we can locate Dex and he can send you.”

  She walked over to me but stayed inside the circle. “I must.” She placed a hand on my cheek. “Without the sword to act as a deterrent, I need to be present.”

  “Why don’t you just retire from the Council?” I asked. “It’s not like they appreciate you being there. I didn’t see the Council on Ellis Island when you were about to become a sun-dried vampire.”