Irregular Magic

by T J Kelly

  I jumped to my feet. I could feel the darkness surround me like an aura and my anger turned cold.

  “Hey, what’s going on?” Peter asked. I hadn’t heard him when he walked back into the loft, and I spun around.

  “Oh, nothing. Everything is great. Here, take this,” I said. I made a gesture without thinking about it first. The vest flew up from the floor, slamming into Peter’s chest. One of the zippers caught against his arm and scratched him.

  The sight of his injury pushed me over the edge.

  “Lia-” Peter started to say, but I cut him off.

  “Don’t even try it! I saw the letter Aunt Peony sent you. You guys think I’m worthless.”

  “What? No! That isn’t what she meant.”

  “Oh, right. I forgot. I’m just a ticking time bomb ready to go off and screw everything up. I’m so glad you’re around to play babysitter to the inexperienced apprentice.” I didn’t care that it wasn’t Peony who had said that. Kamini’s comment still stung, and I wanted to hurt Peter as much as she had hurt me.

  “Lia, calm down,” he said firmly.

  Oh, sure. That was literally the last thing he should have said. “Screw you, Peter!” I shouted. I pushed the chair over and kicked it out of my way, storming towards the stairs. “I’m not a dog, don’t try to get me to heel. You’re not my boss or my king. You’re not even my friend so stop pretending. How dare you?” To my humiliation, scalding tears filled my eyes. “How dare you pretend to care about me? You’re a freaking babysitter. You didn’t need to act like you were my friend. I’m fine on my own. I don’t need you. I don’t need Chas. I don’t even need my parents. So go to hell!”

  I whirled around and took the stairs two at a time. When I reached the floor below, Harris and Seth stood frozen, staring at me in shock.

  Well, great. Now they would think I was a big baby, too. Seth would wonder what he saw in me and go after some prettier, older girl, just like Chas had with Clarissa. Or Peter with perfect Kamini.

  Screw the Andersson brothers, too. I didn’t need them. I was more powerful than they were put together.

  Gathering Air in my hand, I yanked my backpack to me from across the room. I made another gesture and stuffed the books I had been studying that morning inside before slipping the straps over my shoulders.

  Peter reached the ground floor and held his hand out as if to stop me. “Lia, wait a second,” he said. He sounded so calm. Like a psychiatrist talking to his patient while they were having a psychotic break.

  I wasn’t, though. I had come to a standstill inside. I was angry, but not about to lose control. Not like before, in the field of birds. I would never do something like that again, and Peter would have known that if he were a real friend. “Just back off, Peter. Stay away from me.”

  Kamini chose that moment to enter the room. She had on a cute little white apron edged in lace like some housewife from the 1950s. They had a lot of pictures of women like that pinned to the walls in the guy’s dorms at school.

  A sneer contorted my face. What a tramp.

  “Is everything okay out here?” she asked.

  “It’s fine, we’re just hashing things out,” Peter said. He was still calm, and all I wanted at that moment was for him to be as mad as I was.

  Then it hit me. He wasn’t upset because he didn’t care. I wasn’t his best friend - I was his job. I was such an idiot for not realizing that before. Peony had probably asked him to baby me since the day I got to the castle.

  Betrayal flooded through me like acid. I almost fell, the darkness came upon me so fast. Instead, I glared at Kamini and then at Peter. I totally ignored Seth and Harris. They were just visitors. My anger wasn’t for them.

  It was for Peter.

  An image formed in my mind. Peter, in pain. Peter, with sparks of fire attacking him like a swarm of locusts. Peter, sorry.

  My necklace was the only thing that saved him. And at that moment, I wasn’t sure if I was relieved or angry that it did.

  More darkness came, and then cold. My vision blurred, and I wondered if I was about to faint. I reached out and ripped some of Peter’s Light from inside him, despite knowing taking something that had always been freely given had to hurt.

  But now I knew he gave as if to a child, an out-of-control monster who needed a keeper. And I didn’t want that. I wanted to prove I could balance myself on my own. That I was strong enough to take what I wanted, from anyone.

  Even the one who lied to me.

  I pulled more of Peter’s Light so I wouldn’t fall. The darkness receded slightly as I walked away. Peter was on his knees, gasping. Seth and Harris were running towards him, not sure why he was on the ground, but trained to help their fallen comrade. Good. He could wallow in his weakness for a while and know I didn’t need him or anyone else to be my magical nanny.

  I strode to the front door and then paused. I turned back to face them.

  Kamini was staring at Peter in horror. Harris and Seth were on either side of him, grasping his arms, helping him to his feet, checking him over, searching the room, trying to identify the source of his sudden weakness and pain.

  Peter was looking at me. I saw him open his mouth, probably to try to stop me. But he said nothing. He was frozen. Maybe he finally realized that I knew he didn’t care about me after all. Maybe he was scared.

  Reaching up, I clasped my necklace. I tugged on the chain, breaking it, and threw it at him. I didn’t even need to use my magic for the star to hit him hard enough to cut him right below his eye.

  There was enough of his Light inside me to realize what I had just done was wrong, terribly wrong, but also enough darkness I felt satisfaction instead of sorrow.

  I twirled around and stormed out the door, slamming it behind me.

  With a parting thought, I imagined the doors and windows melting away, double-thick cinder blocks in their place. With a shield made of thorns. I infused the spell with the burden of the Dark inside me since I had so much. It would take them a long time to break out of there.

  Even so, I ran. Urgency filled me with the need to get away as fast as I could.

  I didn’t need a keeper. I didn’t need Peter to protect me from myself no matter what Peony said. The darkness cleared out all my self-doubt, and my mind steadied. I would save Armageddon by myself. In fact, I was the only one who could.

  My feet moved faster than humanly possible. I wasn’t even aware of how I did it, but I was near the highway before my thoughts settled enough to accept that I needed help to get across the state border and closer to the volcano simmering in Lassen Park. With barely a thought, I burned the trace attached to my magic, turning it into cinders and ash, which blew away on the wind. There was no way they could track me.

  A semi-truck stopped at the light before heading onto the highway. It was going my way.

  I stepped forward so the driver could see me, and I stuck out my thumb. He did a double-take and then looked me over. I could almost feel his interest as if he shouted it, the mundane attraction to magic working in my favor. I smiled up at him, eyes glittering.

  A sharp burst of air whined against my ears as his brakes settled and he undid his seatbelt. He slid across the seat until he was on the passenger side and opened the door, looking down.

  “Where you headed?” he asked.

  I studied him. He wasn’t as young as the rest of my team, probably in his mid-thirties, but the difference in our ages didn’t seem to bother him. I held his gaze for a moment, the same way I had with Seth.

  “I need to get to California,” I said. “Are you traveling west?”

  “Sure am. Come on up,” he said. He leaned over and held out his hand to help me climb on board.

  I took it.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  Armageddon’s Mistake

  I hated how the truck driver kept staring at me. Mundane humans felt a compulsion, an overwhelming attraction towards magicians. They couldn’t help it, so I didn’t blame him for that part. But I wis
hed he would keep an eye on the road. Sometimes it narrowed into a sharp turn, and I didn’t want him to drive into a ditch because my magic was such a distraction.

  “What’s a pretty girl like you doing traveling alone?” he asked. “Do you need me to call anybody for you?”

  “No, thank you. I just want to get to California. I’m short on cash so taking a bus was out of the question.”

  I wasn’t certain if that was a reasonable cover story or not. I was chagrined to realize that I had no idea how to interact in mundane society. All that training and schooling, and I still wasn’t prepared to act like a normal girl.

  Funny how that happened without me even noticing.

  “Well, lucky for you, that’s exactly where I’m going. It looks like it might rain,” he added. The semi-truck driver squinted as he stared out his window. “I can’t remember the last time it rained this time of year, but it’s pretty cloudy.”

  I sighed. I was more like my uncle than I realized. I was certain the storm clouds were there to match my mood. “Yeah, thanks. I really appreciate you helping me out.”

  He seemed like the type who needed positive affirmation, and sure enough, he stopped squinting at the sky and turned to look at me again, a smile on his face. It was hard, but I tried to be patient since it wasn’t his fault magicians were so compelling.

  “No problem. Hey, you want a drink or something? I got some water and soda at the last stop. I have a mini-fridge behind your seat if you need anything.”

  “I’m fine. Actually, I’m a little tired. Would it be terribly rude if I rested for a bit?” I asked sweetly. Since he was looking at me again, I tilted my head a tad and peered up at him with a side-glance. Chas told me I looked cute when I did that, and I wasn’t above using it to my advantage now that I knew it gave me one. It certainly helped things develop between Seth and me.

  Not like that’s what I wanted to happen with the truck driver. Ew. I just wanted to butter him up a bit.

  “Oh, you take a nap if you need to, honey. I’ll wake you up when we're ready to stop.”

  I maintained eye contact a moment longer. It was a straight stretch of road anyway, and I wasn’t scared we would crash or anything. Then I looked away and took a deep breath, holding it several seconds before letting it out. I stretched to further relax. I was still boiling with anger inside, but I needed to refresh myself and decided a meditative sleep would help me prepare for my upcoming confrontation. I didn’t have a moment to spare, and since I left so early, I would be confronting David Novato at night when he was at his peak strength.

  Of course, I would be my strongest then, too. So he was the one who needed to worry, not me.

  I took another deep breath and released it with a sigh. The truck driver was watching me out of the corner of his eye, but I let it slide. It had to be tough to be in close proximity to a magician. Especially since I didn't know how to dampen the effect I had on mundanes yet.

  “Oh, wow. I’m so rude,” I said. “We haven’t introduced ourselves. I’m Lia.”

  “Nice to meet you, Lia,” he said. He looked amused. Maybe my manners seemed antiquated to him. I wasn’t sure. “I’m Ray.”

  “Nice to meet you, too, Ray,” I said.

  He reached out his hand, and I shook it solemnly. Something about that made him chuckle, and he squeezed a little too hard. Some men didn’t know their own strength.

  I slid my hand onto the seat next to me and leaned backward. I scrunched down and laid my head back. I wasn’t convinced I could sleep like that, especially since my head kept sliding.

  “Aw, you look miserable. Why don’t you slip on back and use the bench seat? You’ll be more comfortable.”

  I twisted to look behind me and studied the space. There was a nice setup back there, with a recliner chair, small galley and a tiny fridge, and along the back was a plush bench seat that had a blanket and pillow on it, used as a bed. No wonder truck drivers slept in their cabs at night.

  “Oh, I’m not sure I should. That’s your personal space,” I said. There was something about it that made me feel uncomfortable, and I again wondered about the usual interactions between mundanes and magicians. I didn’t want to be rude, especially since he was nice enough to drive me to where I wanted to go.

  “What a sweetheart you are,” he purred. “You look exhausted, and that’s what it’s for. Go ahead, I washed the blanket this morning and everything.”

  It worried me I would offend him if I didn’t take him up on his hospitality. There were certain social norms and expectations in the magical world, and I could only assume they were similar for mundanes. My aunt always offered a room for guests to use when they came for a visit even if only for a few hours. There was always a bed and seating area and a bathroom. This was like a smaller, trucker version of her hospitality.

  “Well, if you really don’t mind, I think I will. Thank you again, Ray.” I slipped out of my seatbelt and carefully took a few steps. The truck swayed as it went around a curve and I had to grip Ray’s shoulder to keep myself upright, but he just chuckled and kept driving.

  I finally stumbled far enough to sink down onto the makeshift bed. It was soft and felt wonderful under my hand. I slipped off my sneakers and stretched out. The swaying of the truck made me nervous, so I shifted closer to the back of the vehicle and braced myself, my back jammed into the corner to stabilize my body against the movement. It was a little awkward, so I propped my arms behind my neck to ease the pressure on my head.

  Good enough.

  I sucked in a meditative breath and snuggled my backside into the cushions firmly, making sure I was secure. And I was. Being a truck driver didn’t seem like a half bad life.

  “Yeah, you get some rest. I’ll wake you when it’s time,” Ray said.

  That was the last thing I heard before the darkness of sleep overtook me.

  ◆◆◆

  “It's almost time,” David Novato said. A wave of sadness shuddered through me as the memory of the little boy he had been came to mind. The contrast to what he had looked like as a young child was stark. He was hollow now.

  That was my thought, not Armageddon’s, even though I could tell I was channeled inside my uncle’s mind again. “You don’t have to do this,” Armageddon said. His weariness drained some of my strength. He was so sad. “It’s not too late. You have done nothing yet that can't be redeemed.”

  Our enemy laughed. I felt my uncle despair. It was like he was grieving. He also felt guilty.

  I gave Armageddon a mental burst of love. I didn’t blame him for what had happened that long ago night, and I didn’t think he should blame himself, either.

  “Oh, sure, sure. I smashed your castle in and kidnapped you, and it’ll be all good if I walk away now? What do you take me for?” David sneered.

  “I don’t care about that. I understand what it must have been like. If only I knew you were there, I would have helped you.”

  I winced when David backhanded my uncle. His face throbbed with pain, and his lip was both numb and in agony, and I felt every bit as if it happened to me.

  “Too late, old man. You lost your chance to help me the day you killed my parents.”

  David Novato hit my uncle again, knocking his chair over backward, closer to the pit where the magma pulsed far below. I was terrified, but he wasn’t. He seemed to feel something that annoyed me.

  Acceptance.

  Some of my darkness was being used to connect the two of us. Another part of it was being siphoned off while my body meditated back in the semi-truck. But there was still enough Dark inside me to keep me angry, and I turned my anger at Peter towards a new target.

  Armageddon.

  He winced. Not from the pain, but in response to my rage. I was mad, truly furious, that he was willing to let this man brutalize him, maybe even finish the task he set for himself to kill my uncle, all in the name of revenge. And Armageddon waited patiently? At peace about it?

  No way. Not on my watch.

 
Not sure what else to do, I flooded my uncle’s mind with images of my aunt, sitting with his best friend Mort. Both worried and searching for him. Peony looked sad, but she also had a longing in her eyes that was always there when he was gone.

  It was about time Armageddon saw it. The rest of us had to pay the price for their frequent separations, and he should remember who he was fighting for. How dare he give in? How could he turn his back on his family, his friends? How dare he forget how much I needed him?

  More guilt flooded my uncle, but this time it was directed properly. He felt ashamed of himself for wallowing in his past and not fighting harder against David. There were times he probably could have gotten in a few blows, and he never did.

  Finally. My uncle could be such a fool.

  More of my anger dissipated when I felt Armageddon reach deep inside himself where his source of magic lived, and he reconnected. Wrapped it around himself. Let it crackle through every vein and synapse in his body.

  Wow. It was like trying to drink from a fire hose. Overwhelming. But it was his strength, his magic, and he reigned it into a focused burst.

  Even though David could negate magic, it worked. My uncle’s bonds snapped, and he flipped over backward, landing on his feet.

  He tried to throw a pure magic spell similar to a Smash-force, but it was like his magic hit a brick wall and splintered, fading away. By the second time he tried to use his magic externally and let it go, it was gone.

  Armageddon and I had the same thought at the same time. David Novato didn’t stop magic. He disrupted the link between the magician and the outside world. It felt almost the same as when I couldn’t tap into my magic, and I was walking around as a magical neuter.

  I hated that feeling.

  “Tricky,” David said. “But I’ll subdue you soon enough. You’re helpless without your magic.”

  He was disgusted. But also wrong. Armageddon could fight with his fists, too. He chose not to.