by Derek Landy
Lily perched. Sebastian sat. “Um,” he said, “I suppose I hereby call this special meeting of the Darquesse Society to order. Forby, please update us on how the search is going.”
Forby smiled. “The search is not going,” he said. “The search is over. I found her.”
Cheers broke out. Everyone jumped to their feet, started hugging each other. Only Sebastian kept his eyes on Forby.
“Tell us,” he said.
“I managed to zero in on her signature,” Forby said, “just like I’d hoped. I won’t bore you with the details – I know how you all love my details – but essentially what I did was build a scanner based on the device we’d recovered from the Leibniz Universe, a device that kept open a portal between dimensions. A few days ago, I got a spike in readings that I told you about, which was my first indication that I’d found the dimension we’d been looking for. I repeated the scans eight times, just to be absolutely sure.”
“And you are?” Demure asked. “You’re absolutely sure that she’s there?”
“I am.”
“And, if you’re reading her energy signature, that means she’s alive, right?”
“No,” Forby said. “Her energy signature is merely her presence. I’ve got no way to check for life signs.”
“Any … other signatures?” Sebastian asked.
Forby hesitated. “Yes,” he said at last. “Many.”
“And could these energy signatures belong to Faceless Ones?”
“There’s a high probability, yes.”
The house went silent, until Lily clapped her hands.
“But that doesn’t mean they’re alive, now does it?” she said. “It might be an entire reality full of the corpses of Faceless Ones, with Darquesse sitting on top.”
“Absolutely,” said Sebastian. “So now that we know where she is – how do we get to her?”
“We can use the portal device, can’t we?” Tarry asked.
“That’s where we’ve hit a snag,” Forby said. “I thought I could use the device to open a portal without requiring a Shunter. Unfortunately, that has proven to be beyond my capabilities.”
“It’s not the end of the world,” said Lily, shrugging. “I’m sure we can club together to pay a Shunter to open the portal, can’t we? Then your little doohickey will keep it open while we search.”
“We can’t pay a Shunter the same as the High Sanctuary does,” said Forby. “And they’re all on exclusive contracts, anyway. I doubt we’ll find one willing to do some illicit freelance work.”
“I might know of one,” said Ulysses.
They all looked at him.
“You know one of the Shunters working for the Supreme Mage?” Sebastian asked.
“No,” Ulysses answered, “not one of those. But I do know another. I kind of reached out to him when Forby picked up the first trace.”
Demure narrowed her eyes. “How much is he charging?”
“Nothing, actually.”
“He’ll open the portal for free?”
Ulysses nodded. “That’s what he said. All we have to do is sneak him in past the walls.”
“Why doesn’t he shunt in?” Bennet asked. “He can’t be much good if he can’t even shunt into the city.”
“Actually,” Forby said, “nobody can shunt in. The High Sanctuary has set up blockers all over Roarhaven to stop Mevolent’s forces from doing just that should they decide to invade.”
“I’d like to see them try once we’ve got Darquesse back,” Tarry said, folding his arms. “She’d wipe them out with a wave of her hand.”
There were a few laughs, a few nodding heads.
Sebastian kept his eyes on Forby. “Will the Shunter be able to open the portal with the blockers in place?”
Forby allowed himself a small smile. “He will. I helped build the blockers, so I know a way to block them. I’m pretty sure nobody will even notice there’s a gap.”
“So if we sneak this Shunter guy in,” Sebastian said, “he’ll open the portal right here and the device will keep it open. Then what do we do?”
Forby let out a long, long breath. “Then one of us, maybe two, goes through.”
“Into another dimension?” Demure asked, suddenly unsure.
“Yes,” said Forby. “Probably not me, though. I mean, I would, but someone has to stay here and make sure the device doesn’t break down.”
“What would we need?” Bennet asked. “Like, spacesuits or something?”
“I don’t know yet,” Forby answered. “It’s entirely possible, I suppose. The environment could be toxic. It could be hazardous. And it could be overrun with Faceless Ones. So … yes, it might be unfriendly.”
“And how do we find Darquesse? We’d be stepping into a whole other universe. She might be on a completely different planet.”
“She won’t be,” said Forby. “In fact, from my calculations, she should be within one hundred kilometres of where the portal opens. If you’re lucky, you could emerge and be right beside her. There’s no way of judging. Sorry.”
Lily looked around. “So Darquesse is within one hundred kilometres of where we’re standing right now?”
“Yes,” Forby said. “One hundred kilometres and, you know, a few hundred million dimensions that way.” He pointed left.
Everyone oohed softly. Everyone except Sebastian.
“That’s assuming there’ll even be a planet on the other side of that portal,” he said. “We might step through into empty space.”
Forby gave a little cough. “It’s possible,” he said. “But, if there is a surface for you to walk on, you’ll be carrying a portable scanner that should lead you right to her. You’d need to take food, supplies …”
“This suit takes care of all that for me. I’ll have to go. Alone.”
“No,” said Bennet. “We can’t let you do that. It’s too dangerous.”
Sebastian didn’t answer for a bit. Then he nodded. “Yeah, you’re right.”
“Although,” Forby said, “your suit does make you the perfect candidate.”
Sebastian made a face beneath his mask. “Does it, though? Couldn’t we rustle up a spacesuit for, I don’t know, Tarry?”
“I can’t go,” said Tarry. “I have a job. They’d never let me take the time off.”
“Have you asked?”
“You’re really the only one of us who could go through,” Forby said.
“We don’t know that,” Sebastian responded. “That version of earth might have a breathable atmosphere and abundant food and water. It might be amazing.”
Lily stepped over to him, put a hand on his shoulder, and said, “You’re the Plague Doctor. You’re our leader, and you have our respect. But you are going.”
Sebastian sighed. “Yeah, I know.”
“I’ll go with you,” said Bennet.
“Thanks, dude, but no. I’m the only one dressed like an idiot, so I’ll have to do this alone.” He turned to Ulysses. “Looks like it’s a plan. When will your Shunter be available?”
“He’s ready now,” said Ulysses. “It’ll take him a day or two to get here, though.”
“I’ll need that time to build a portable scanner,” Forby said.
“And I think I can get my hands on a sub-machine gun,” said Demure.
Sebastian frowned. “How can you get a sub-machine gun, and why would I need one?”
“I have a shady past,” Demure said, “and that world might have monsters you’ll need to shoot.”
“Oh,” said Sebastian. “Oh, yeah. Good point.”
“Who is your Shunter friend anyway?” Lily asked.
Ulysses hesitated. Everyone looked at him.
“He’s not a friend,” said Ulysses. “I’ve never actually spoken to him. He’s more … a friend of a colleague of an acquaintance of someone I used to know.”
“Ulysses,” said Sebastian. “Who is he?”
“Nadir,” said Ulysses. “It’s Silas Nadir.”
Omen was exhausted.
<
br /> He’d been up all night, forging those documents, and he still wasn’t finished. He had one more night of work ahead of him – maybe two. It was bad enough when he was doing that stuff to get a passing grade – but it was so much harder when there were people actually depending on him not to mess it up.
Pressure. Omen wasn’t good with pressure.
He also wasn’t good with sneaking around and breaking the rules and helping known fugitives. The school day hadn’t even started and already he was a paranoid wreck, imagining that everyone was staring at him and whispering about him. Every corner he turned, he expected Cleavers to be waiting on the other side, or worse still – Skulduggery and Valkyrie. But that was nonsense. No one had seen him. No one knew what he was up to. Nobody at all.
“Hello, Omen,” said Skulduggery, and Omen screamed.
Everyone else in the corridor stared. Skulduggery tilted his head.
“You seem … jumpy,” he said.
Oh, God. Oh, God.
“I’m fine,” Omen responded.
What was the point of lying? Skulduggery knew. Obviously, he knew. Why else would he be here? It would be better for Omen if he confessed now, immediately. Just got it all out there.
“Wauuggh,” said Omen.
“I’m sorry?”
Oh, God. He’d forgotten how to speak. His limbs were suddenly so incredibly heavy and his tongue was an alien creature in his mouth over which he had no control.
“Would you like to have a chat, Omen?” Skulduggery asked.
He couldn’t cry. He wouldn’t. Everyone was watching. If he started blubbering, that would be the only thing anyone would ever say about him. When Omen Darkly was arrested, he cried like a stupid little baby. No. Omen would not be remembered like that. He would maintain his dignity. He would be cool at all times.
“You’re taking an awfully long time to answer my question,” Skulduggery said.
“Sorry!” Omen blurted.
“That’s OK.”
“I’m so sorry!”
“It’s fine, really. Valkyrie asked me to stop by and I think she said ‘chat’, so here I am. My apologies for arriving before your classes have even begun, but my days tend to fill up fast, so I’d really like to get this out of the way as soon as possible.”
Omen frowned. “You … you want to chat?”
“Yes.”
“Um, about what?”
“You can pick the topic,” Skulduggery said, starting to walk. Omen hurried to keep up. “Or we don’t have to chat about anything in particular. That’s what’s so nice about chatting. It’s not as formal as a talk, and you can flit from subject to subject as you wish.”
“Oh,” said Omen, the panic receding. “Cool. Uh, I could … I could talk to you about school, about how my lessons are going?”
“No,” said Skulduggery, “that’s boring. I don’t want to do that.”
“Right. Sorry.”
“Valkyrie seems to think you might be feeling left out of things. Are you feeling left out of things? Because you should be. It’s safer for you that way, and also safer for us, as we don’t have to worry about where you are and if you’re dying or something dreadful like that. To put it mildly, I’m really not sure why I’m here, but the fact remains that here I am, and so, if there’s anything you want to get off your chest, then …” He waved his hand.
“Thank you,” said Omen.
“You’re quite welcome. While I wouldn’t go so far as to say that you’re like a son to me, Omen, or a nephew, or even the nephew of a close family friend, I do, nevertheless, view you as a young person who has entered into my orbit and who I now must deal with.”
“That’s very sweet of you.”
“I am surprisingly sweet. People often say that.”
A First Year boy ran up. “My great-great-grandfather fought beside you in the war,” he announced breathlessly. “He still talks about it. You probably wouldn’t remember him. It was so long ago and you fought beside so many people.”
“But I also have a marvellous memory,” said Skulduggery. “What’s his name?”
“Bernan Howbeit.”
“Howbeit,” Skulduggery murmured. “Yes, I do remember him. He fought at the Siege of Lions, didn’t he?”
“Yes, sir,” the boy said, beaming.
“He was dreadful,” Skulduggery said.
“Oh,” said the boy.
“How is he? Is he doing well?”
“He’s … he’s doing fine, sir.”
“Excellent,” Skulduggery said, and marched on.
“What’s it like,” Omen said, keeping up, “to have everyone staring at you wherever you go?”
“It can be trying, especially if it interferes with an investigation. There are times when it’s intrusive and unwelcome, and there are times when all I want is to be left alone. But you must keep in mind that it doesn’t happen outside Roarhaven or the magical communities. In the mortal world, I get to wear a disguise.”
“You could wear a disguise here, too.”
“I could,” Skulduggery said, “but then how would people recognise me?”
They reached the stairs as the bell rang, and by the time they reached the bottom the corridors were emptying.
“What class do you have now?” Skulduggery asked.
“Maths,” Omen said, “with Mr Peccant. He doesn’t like it when I’m late.”
“I’ll talk to him – it’ll be fine. Which way’s the cafeteria?”
Omen pointed and followed as Skulduggery strode on. The Dining Hall was empty apart from the catering staff behind the counter, clearing up the last of breakfast. Omen took a seat while Skulduggery went to ask for something. He came over a moment later with a carton of juice, which he put in front of Omen, and then sat.
Omen frowned at the carton. “Thank you.”
“I find that people like to drink when they chat,” Skulduggery said. “It gives them something to do while they listen and formulate responses. It’s blackberry. Do you like blackberry?”
“That’s fine,” said Omen. “It’s just … This is something you’d give to a kid, isn’t it?”
Skulduggery nodded.
Omen tried a smile. “Only … I’m not a kid. I mean, you wouldn’t have given a carton of juice to Valkyrie when she was fifteen, would you?”
“Dear me, no,” Skulduggery said.
“So you kind of, you see me as a kid, then.”
“Yes.”
“Right.”
“Does that upset you?”
“No,” Omen said. “Well, a little, yes. Like, you don’t view me as an adult.”
“Because you’re not an adult.”
“But you viewed Valkyrie as an adult.”
Skulduggery nodded.
“So you viewed Valkyrie as an adult when she was fifteen, but you don’t view me as an adult when I’m fifteen.”
“Exactly,” said Skulduggery.
“Why not?”
“Valkyrie had, to borrow a phrase, the weight of the world on her shoulders when she was fifteen years old. She had been offered a glimpse into her own future that was little more than a nightmare. She had to grow up a lot faster than normal, and I certainly didn’t help matters, the way I acted.” A moment passed. “If you don’t want the juice, I can take it back.”
“No,” Omen said quickly, “I’ll drink it.” He popped it open and took a sip. Refreshing. “Would you change any of it?” he asked. “With Valkyrie? If you could?”
Skulduggery put both elbows on the table and interlaced his gloved fingers. “From a practical point of view? No. She was integral to saving the world on multiple occasions. But do I wish I could change some things, looking back? Yes. I don’t regret introducing her to our world – her entire existence opened up from that point onwards. But if somehow I could simultaneously have allowed her to grow up in her own way, at her own pace, to experience the things that she needed to experience? I would have.
“Those experiences are importan
t. You’re young, Omen. You think adulthood will never get here. You want all this strife, all this uncertainty, to be over, yes?”
Omen nodded.
“It’s never over. It’s just replaced by different sorts of strife and different sorts of uncertainty. And don’t believe anyone who tells you that their childhood days were the best years of their life. I’d hate to have to go through mine again, and I much prefer being an adult. Even one without any flesh.”
“But if everyone’s so uncertain all the time,” Omen said, “how do they know what to do with their lives? Like, right now everyone in my class is filling out these Senior Years Agenda forms, where you’re basically deciding what discipline you want to focus on.”
Skulduggery tilted his head. “That’s a part of your curriculum? They’ve made that into something you can be tested on?”
“Pretty much.”
Skulduggery took off his hat and put it on the table beside him. “The people here at the Academy are trying to figure out the optimal way to teach the next generation of sorcerers. They want you to be the best and the brightest. Something like this, a school on this scale, with these resources, has never been attempted before. Because of this, they’re going to make mistakes.”
“You think the SYAs are a mistake?”
“Choosing your discipline is a personal matter,” Skulduggery said. “You have practically all of them at your fingertips right now, but at a fraction of their potential. By the time your Surge hits, you’ll either have figured it out, or you won’t. If you’re not specialising in one thing in particular, you’ll be an Elemental. I, personally, chose this discipline and, I have to say, it’s not so bad.”
“You can fly,” said Omen, grinning.
“I can fly, indeed. And I’ve passed on that knowledge so now other Elementals are flying, too. What I’m telling you is that it sorts itself out. You don’t need to fill out a form to decide what you want to be. You just need to listen to yourself.”
“Flying wouldn’t be so bad, maybe.”
“It does grant you a fresh perspective on things.”
“I just don’t know what I’m going to do,” said Omen. “I don’t want to disappoint my parents even more than I already have.”
“Quite a couple, your parents.”
“Do you know them?”