“I actually agree with that,” Alix said.
“So, enough talk about death until we absolutely have to,” Ben said. “I’d rather talk about how we’re going to find a way to get around the cloaking magic.”
“In the white room I read that they discovered if you rapidly pulse the magic, they could detect the cloaking,” Alix said.
“So, how are we going to test it?” Shay asked.
“I think first we need to know if the Grynn cloaking magic is like our own,” Alix said.
“How are we going to do that?”
“I don’t have a clue,” Alix admitted.
They threw around some random ideas until Alix’s phone made a noise. She checked it.
“They’re here,” she told Ben and Shay. “I guess we need to go back inside.”
They put out the fire and headed back to the house. Alix wasn’t sure what to expect, but in honor of Sonya’s death, she was going to face it head on.
Chapter 17
Everyone was gone from the kitchen when they got back in the house. They shed their boots and jackets and went in search of Kris. They found him in the garage talking to some very stern looking people.
“Should we come back?” Alix asked.
“No Alix, it’s fine,” he told her. “But if you don’t mind, I’d like you to come over here and join me.”
“Oh, okay. I’ll be right back,” she told Ben and Shay.
She really didn’t want to go any closer to the van, but if Sonya could face the Grynn not knowing what would happen she could face what was in the van. She walked very slowly over to Kris.
“This is very brave of you Alix. I need you to know that you don’t have to do this,” he told her.
“Yes, I do, for Sonya.”
Kris nodded and opened the back of the van. One of the Warriors unzipped a large black bag far enough to see her face. It almost looked like she was sleeping, but the blood Alix could see told the truth of what happened. A fresh wave of tears found their way out of her eyes. Kris nodded again and the Warrior closed the bag and the back of the van.
“What happens how?” Alix asked through her tears.
“Her family will be notified.”
“Did you know her family?”
“No, but I do have their contact information.”
“I know it’s not my place, but I have a request when you speak with them. I don’t know if Nykara have funerals or what, but if they do, I’d like it to happen here. I can’t leave and I’d like to pay my respects to her family.”
“I’ll talk to them,” Kris said. “Thank you for doing this with me, Alix. I may be a tough and seasoned Warrior, but I needed a little help with this.”
“You’re welcome.” Alix walked away from the van and back to her friends.
“Are you okay?” Ben asked, as they left the garage.
“I don’t know,” she answered honestly. “I do know that I never want to have to do that again. So, my new priority is going to be finding a way to see through the cloaking magic.”
“Agreed,” Ben said. “I actually have an idea about that. But I have a question first. I know you can see other Nykara when you know they are cloaked, but can you sense them when you don’t know they’re there and not close to you?”
Alix thought about that for a minute. “You know, I’m not sure. I’m usually touching who I need to know about, and it’s usually been in the middle of an emergency so I wasn’t thinking about that.”
“I’d like to test it out,” Ben said. “Are you willing to try?”
“Yes. I’m ready to do anything that might help us.”
“Okay. You and Shay go to the kitchen and I’ll meet you there in a while.”
He gave her a hug and then went the opposite direction the girls did.
“Was it really awful seeing Sonya?” Shay asked, as they were walking.
“Yes. But not as bad as I thought it was going to be. Without the blood, it would have looked like she was sleeping.”
“I’m sorry you had to do that,” Shay told her.”
“I asked Kris to request the funeral be here so I can attend.”
“Do Nykara have funerals?”
“I don’t know, but I would assume that because we participate so heavily in the human world that death is similar.”
Once in the kitchen, Alix got a bottle of water and Shay was hunting for cookies. About ten minutes later, Ben was back with them.
“So,” he started, “Logan is somewhere in this house cloaked as hard as he can. Your job is to find him. Don’t use any magic other than what you naturally contain.”
“Great idea Ben,” Shay said.
“Okay,” Alix said, and left the kitchen.
She wandered all over the house and couldn’t sense him. She went into every room and nothing. They went back to the kitchen.
“Well, that was a learning experience,” Alix said. “Now what?”
“Now you try to find him using any magic you can,” Ben told her.
“Alright,” she said.
Alix thought back to Joyce’s journal. It had mentioned rapid bursts of energy, so she was going to try that. She went to the middle of the house on the main floor. She decided to try her searching energy in quick succession to see if that worked. She started sending out small, but fast waves of energy. She purposely didn’t think about Logan because she didn’t want to locate him specifically. Turning in a circle she continued to send out her energy. In her mind it was like a machine gun that fired energy instead of bullets.
She was facing the opposite direction from where she started when something got her attention. It was like a small ping on a radar screen. She focused on that and put more energy into whatever it was. She started walking toward what she hoped was Logan. Readjusting to avoid hitting walls and furniture she could feel it more strongly the closer she got.
They were now in the room where they first met Natalie and Rick, but there was no one in it. Alix scanned the room harder. She needed to “see” what she was looking for, so she thought about a Grynn’s blue aura but in hot pink instead. When she did, she saw hot pink feet sticking out from behind the curtains.
“I see you Logan,” she said, with a grin.
She walked over to the curtains and pulled them back. He dropped his cloak and she was right. Logan grinned at her.
“That was impressive,” he said.
“I agree,” Ben said. “Now we’re going to try it again. But this time, I’m not going to tell you how many people you have to find.”
“Alright, challenge accepted. Where do you want me to wait?”
“How about your room. I’ll text you when it’s time.”
“Sounds fair. You coming with me, Shay?”
“Of course, I am,” Shay said, linking her arm with Alix’s.
They left the office and went upstairs. Once in her bedroom, Alix turned on the TV, just to make sure she couldn’t hear anything outside her room.
“This is like an extreme game of hide and seek,” Shay said, plopping down on the couch.
“Yes, it is. But with a very serious reason. If I can make this work every time I try, then I should be able to teach everyone else how to do it.”
“Do you think you can try and explain it to me?” Shay asked. “Maybe that would help.”
“Sure. So, you know how a machine gun fires really fast right?” Shay nodded. “Well that’s how I thought about sending my magic out, like rapid fire. And remember when I used my magic to locate the missing hikers in the cave?” Shay nodded again. “Well, I combined the two. But instead of a specific target, I was trying to find something that wasn’t there. It sounds strange, but it seemed to work. Then when we were in the office, I couldn’t find Logan because I couldn’t see him. So, I thought about the blue aura that surrounds every Grynn. But I chose to make it hot pink. That’s how I was able to find Logan.”
Shay started giggling. “Hot pink. That’s funny.”
That made Alix s
mile. “For your information, Miss Giggles, I chose hot pink because it’s a color that will stand out almost everywhere.”
“Sure, you did,” Shay said, and started laughing harder.
Alix knew it wasn’t that funny, but Shay couldn’t seem to stop laughing. Eventually, Shay calmed down enough to talk.
“Are you alright?” Alix asked.
“You know, I’m not entirely sure,” Shay said. “I think Sonya’s death may be bothering me more than I thought.”
“I get that. I think what’s bothering me the most is that I feel guilty.”
“Did you kill her?” Shay asked. “Did you send her out there? Did you make the Grynn ambush their team? No. You didn’t do any of those things. You are not responsible for what the Grynn do.”
“But it’s only been three weeks since she woke up from her coma. She should still be recovering.”
“Would you be?”
“Huh?”
“If it were you, would you be laying in a bed at home or out there trying to destroy the people that put you in a coma?” Shay asked.
“I’d be out there,” Alix said quietly.
“Exactly. Sonya was doing what she needed to do. And as a Warrior, it was her job to find the Grynn. She died proudly, doing what she could to save the Nykara and humans.”
“Well, when you put it that way, I guess it makes it a little better. There you go being all smart again,” Alix said managing a smile for Shay.
“Just don’t go around telling anyone,” Shay whispered. “The silly blonde act works to my advantage a lot of the time.”
That cracked Alix up. “I love you Shay. I know I’ve said this before, but you have no idea how happy I am to have you as my best friend.”
“I know. But no matter how many times you say it, I’ll always want to hear it again,” Shay said, with a grin.
“On a totally different topic,” Alix said, “what did you think of Brayden yesterday?”
“He was smokin’ hot,” Shay said grinning. “Sara doesn’t stand a chance.”
“I just hope his Warrior skills are as good as his looks. If anything happens to Sara on his watch, he’s going to have to answer to me.”
“And me,” Shay said still smiling. “And probably everyone else here too. We need to call her later and see how her first day with Brayden went.”
Alix nodded. “What do you think is taking Ben so long?”
“Probably trying to find the best place to hide from you.”
“He’s going to lose,” Alix said smiling. “I’m ready to start.”
“I’m ready to watch you surprise everyone.”
A few minutes later, Ben texted that he was ready for her. The girls left the bedroom and Alix gathered some energy to her. Picturing the hot pink aura and feeling her searching magic she started sending rapid energy bursts out around her. Because she’d already done it once, she was able to do it much faster this time. She also picked up on the people stronger. There were three large objects and several smaller ones. She guessed the larger ones were people, but she had no idea what the other things might be.
Nothing was on the second floor, so they headed back down to the main floor. The closest person was in the den. She walked in and went straight to the recliner in the corner. There was a bright pink outline as clear as day behind it.
“Gotcha,” she said, poking whoever it was.
“Wow,” Ben said, revealing himself. “That was fast.”
“Yep, I think I’ve got this down.”
“I should have known it wouldn’t take you long. I still forget how fast you can pick up new magic.”
“Now, let’s go find the other two people and whatever else you’ve hidden from me.” Alix smiled at the look of surprise on Ben’s face. “Yep. I figured out your little plan.”
Ben just grinned and followed her out of the room.
The next stop was the large dining room where she found Natalie under the table. Then it was off to the closet under the stairs where Rick was cloaked and hiding.
“I’m impressed Alix,” Rick said. “That took you less than ten minutes.”
“And most of that was just walking to each place,” Alix grinned. “Now, it’s time to find the other things you’ve hidden from me.”
After another walk around the main floor she found a book, a small wooden statue, a glass vase, and a dime that had all been cloaked.
“This is very exciting,” Natalie told her.
“I agree,” Rick said.
“Not to be the one to bring everyone down,” Shay said. “But will this work on the Grynn magic? We know it works on yours but how much different is their magic from yours?”
“That’s a very good point Shay,” Ben told her. “How are we going to test it on Grynn cloaking?”
“We need to find some Grynn who are cloaked,” Alix said, like this was an everyday thing.
“I don’t think so,” Ben said.
“I was serious. Before we can even attempt to make this work on a large scale, we need to know if it’ll work at all. And that means testing it on real Grynn.”
“And how is that going to happen?” Shay asked.
“I have no idea, but we need to at least try,” Alix said.
“How about we consult with Ruth or Shelley?” Rick suggested.
“Fine,” Alix said. “But I’m sure she’ll agree with me.”
Alix took out her phone and dialed Ruth. She put it on speaker so everyone could hear.
“Alix,” Ruth said, when she answered.
“Hey Ruth. You’re on speaker with Natalie, Rick, Ben, and Shay. We need your help to settle something. First of all, last time we talked I didn’t tell you that Sonya and her team were killed in a Grynn ambush. From what we can tell, they were all cloaked and our team didn’t stand a chance. That’s why I called you about the contact lens factory. If we can find a way to get our magic in the lenses, then we can see the cloaked Grynn and their buildings. Less of our people will be in danger and we can maybe put a dent in their operations.”
“That’s a wonderful idea Alix,” Ruth said, sounding excited.
“I found a way to see things that are cloaked here. Both people and objects. But we don’t know if it will work on the Grynn magic. So, I need to test it before we can figure out how to get it into the lenses.”
“So, what you are asking is to be sent somewhere and track down a secret Grynn location?”
“Yes Ruth, that’s what I need to do. I know it might not be safe, but it’s really important. I wouldn’t put myself in danger for nothing.”
“I agree that it’s important. And I don’t have a better solution for you. Give me a few minutes to get back to you.” Ruth hung up without saying goodbye.
“Um …” Shay said, “Did we get an answer?”
“I’m not completely sure,” Alix said. “But at least she didn’t say no and is giving it some thought.”
“So, what do we do now?” Shay asked.
“I guess we wait for Ruth to call back,” Alix replied. She hated waiting.
Chapter 18
On the way to the den, Alix had a thought. “Do we know anyone who is really good with computers?”
“Yeah,” Ben said, “Logan.”
“I don’t mean video games. I mean, someone who can figure out programs and stuff like that. Hacker type computer skills.”
“Yeah, Logan,” Ben repeated.
“Really? Why didn’t I know this?” Alix asked.
“I don’t know. I guess it’s just something he and I have talked about. We’ve spent more time together than you two have,” Ben said.
“Did you know Shay?” Alix asked.
“I knew he liked computers, but that’s about it. You know me, the only technology I really get along with is my phone.”
Alix nodded because it was so true. Shay had trouble with her laptop all the time.
“Why were you wondering?” Ben asked.
“I was thinking that when we get into
the contact lens factory, we’re going to need someone good with computers. I don’t know what will be involved, but I’m assuming something high tech.”
“Probably,” Ben agreed. “I can’t even fathom how the Grynn were able to get magic into something like that.”
Shay started giggling. “Fathom huh.”
“Yes. I know words that mean other things,” Ben said, trying to be serious but failing and ended up laughing. “Whatever Shay. Let’s go talk to Logan.”
Ben sent him a text to find out where he was. He was in his room, so they headed there.
“What’s up?” Logan asked, when they walked in.
Alix told him about the contacts they removed from Sara, the contact lens factory and finding cloaked Grynn.
“Wow,” he said. “A lot of stuff can happen here in a short amount of time. What did you need from me?”
“I’m not really sure. I have no idea how any of this works, I just figured that computers would be involved.”
Logan smiled at her. “I think there’s a lot of unknowns in this situation.”
“True.
“I’m sure I’ll be able to help with whatever you’re going to need. Do you know the name of the factory?”
“Uh, yeah,” Ben said, “Hawkeye Contact Lenses in Beijing.”
“China?” Alix asked.
“Yep. Looks like we might get to go to China,” Ben said.
“Okay,” Logan said. “Give me a minute to check something.”
He went to his desk and opened his laptop. He started typing and things were popping up on the screen. A few minutes later there were several boxes on his screen that looked like security camera footage.
“What are we looking at?” Ben asked.
“These are some of the security cameras at Hawkeye Contact Lenses,” Logan said.
“Wow,” Shay said. “That was incredible. I think he’s the right man for the job. Well, if we actually knew what we were doing that is.”
“No kidding,” Alix said.
They watched the cameras for a while and every few minutes Logan would change what cameras they were looking at. Alix took a short video with her phone. She sent it to Ruth along with an explanation of what she was looking at and who’d done it. Not surprisingly she called a few minutes later.
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