Magi Legend

by Andrew Dobell

  Amanda pressed her lips together and looked away, trying but failing to hide the pain that Liz’s comment brought up.

  “Aah, sorry. Still no luck, then, I take it?”

  Amanda had looked everywhere for Alicia, even returning to the orphanage every week since Alicia’s disappearance. Her friend had just fallen off the face of the Earth, and despite all of Amanda and Shaun’s efforts to find her, they’d come up emptyhanded. Amanda had pretty much given up on trying to find her. If a new lead presented itself, she’d follow it up, but otherwise, she felt like she needed to focus on the here and now and not get too distracted by what amounted to a wild goose chase.

  “We’ve looked everywhere for her,” Amanda said. “I don’t know if we’ll ever find her.”

  “Never give up hope. She’ll turn up someday. Stranger things have happened.”

  “Yeah, I know,” Amanda sighed. “Thanks,”

  Liz stood up. “No problem. I’ll see you later. I really have to get on. Oh, by the way, Yoh’s here today if you wanted that chat?”

  “Thanks.” Amanda smiled as she watched Liz disappear into the building. She barely recognised the young girl she’d taken as her apprentice two years ago. These days, Liz had much more confidence in herself and way more independence as well. Feeling proud of her apprentice, Amanda got up from the bench, banishing thoughts of Alicia from her mind and looked up at the windows that surrounded the garden on all four sides.

  Windows to Yoh’s private quarters.

  She’d been meaning to see Yoh and try to rebuild some bridges with him for a while now. Things had been going so well when she’d first moved here. Images of the passionate one-night-stand she’d had with him still burnt strong in her mind. But everything had changed since Kimi Takahashi, the Black Lotus, had attacked and basically killed him, which led to Maya turning him into a Scion to save his life.

  Going from a Mundane human to Vampire would be traumatic enough, but going from Magus to Scion, and potentially losing your Magic… Well, Amanda knew that she would feel utterly lost and confused if that ever happened to her.

  Since that day, Yoh had seemed to withdraw into himself and they'd hardly talked in months. She’d meant to visit him, but he’d not really spent much time in New York, or at least, not in The Jade Palace or anywhere else she knew of. So, maybe now would be as good a time as any.

  She left the garden and made her way upstairs and into Yoh’s apartment. She soon found him in the library, sitting with Maya, who he’d grown increasingly close to since the attack.

  She walked into the dimly lit room, her heels clicking on the polished hardwood floor announcing her presence.

  “Hi, guys. Sorry, hope I didn’t interrupt anything.”

  “No, no, come in,” Maya replied and rose from the leather chair she’d been sitting in opposite Yoh. Maya always looked stunning to Amanda. They were the same height but Maya had lustrous, wavy, dark hair that framed her pale face and dark eyes and ruby lips. Today, she wore a long-sleeved black turtleneck dress and approached Amanda with her hands out, pulling her into a hug as they reached each other. “It’s lovely to see you. It’s been too long, I think,” she said, looking back at Yoh as she said that last sentence.

  Yoh had also stood to greet Amanda and walked over to her, offering his hand. “It has, it’s been way too long.”

  Amanda took his hand and pulled him in for a hug. “Do you have time to have a chat? I’d love to catch up,” she said as she pulled away and looked at them both.

  “Of course, he does,” Maya answered. “I’ll leave you two alone.” Maya smiled before walking away, showing the rear of the dress and its plunging backless cut.

  “Thank you,” Amanda said to the retreating Maya, who raised her hand in acknowledgement. She looked up at Yoh and smiled. “You okay?”

  Yoh gave a half-smile and sat in his chair. Amanda followed suit, the leather creaking as the two chairs took their weight.

  “I’m fine, thank you…” Yoh said, and paused.

  “Look, I know…”

  “I just wanted to…”

  They’d both spoken at the same time, and both of them stopped as quickly as they’d started.

  “You go,” Amanda said.

  “I know I’ve been distant, and I’m sorry, that must have been confusing after our… thing.”

  “The sex.”

  “Yes, that. I didn’t mean to become so distant. I just... I’m different now. What Maya did to me, saving me, but changing me… I’m not the same man I was. I mean, I’m technically dead now, and my Magic is… different. It took a long time for me to get my head around it. I’d been a Magi for years. My Magic was part of me, as I’m sure you’re learning yours is part of you. It helps define you, it shapes your life.”

  Amanda just listened, she could see his pain and how much the change had affected him, and she hated herself for it.

  “What I’m saying is, I just needed time to figure things out. I needed to re-evaluate my life, and Maya-san has helped me do that.”

  “I understand. But I feel so guilty. They asked me, you know, Maya and Liz. They asked me what to do. I didn’t know if I could use my Magic to bring ye back, I didn’t know if that would be considered Necromancy or not and get me branded as a Nomad. It wouldn’t have, as it turns out. I could have brought ye back, but instead, I gave Maya the go-ahead to change ye into a Scion. It’s just... I’m so sorry. I didn’t know. It was a crazy situation, and it should never have happened. Can ye forgive me?”

  Yoh sat forward and took her hands in his as tears fell down her cheeks. She felt guilty and sad, but also foolish, both for not knowing the law and also for crying here in front of him.

  “It’s okay. I was dead. You weren’t to know that you could use your Magic. All is well now. I’m here.”

  “I know, I just feel guilty and, God love ye, but I just can’t imagine what ye’ve had to go through. I’ve tried to put myself in your shoes, and the thought of it kills me. What ye’ve been through is horrific, and yet ye’ve come through it. I’m not sure I could be that strong.”

  “I think you underestimate yourself, Amanda-san. You’re stronger than you think you are.”

  Amanda smiled. “Thanks,” she said, blushing slightly as she relished the feel of his large hands holding hers. She still didn’t quite know what their relationship should be, going forward; she felt she needed some clarification. She needed to know what this was. “So, I hope ye don’t mind me asking, but, where do we stand? I mean, after that night we had.”

  “Friends. We’re friends, Amanda-san. I don’t want anything more.”

  Amanda let out a breath and relaxed. She’d not been sure where things were for a while, but knowing where Yoh stood on this whole thing felt like a huge relief.

  “Is that… okay?” Yoh asked.

  “That’s totally fine, so it is. Perfect, in fact. I feel like a weight has been lifted.”

  “Come here,” he said as he stood up. She went to him then, and they hugged. Everything felt right with the world, and she enjoyed the feeling of love and friendship she got from his powerful arms wrapped around her body. They pulled apart and sat back down, Amanda dropping into her chair and enjoying its cool embrace.

  “So, how about Raven?” Yoh asked. “I thought you and him were close.”

  “Yeah, so did I. I don’t suppose I ever mentioned to you that I caught him in bed, well, in his room with another woman. I mean, we were never a thing, we’ve never done anything, but we seemed close, and I felt like he’d returned some of the signals, but when he opened that door half-naked and I could hear someone giggling behind him… I don’t know. I felt a little led on by him. But maybe that was just me. It’s not like we’d done anything. Maybe I just read the signs wrong.”

  “Aww, that’s a shame. Sorry to hear it,” Yoh said.

  “Ah, it’s no bother. No offence, but I don’t seem to have much luck with men. I’m thinking I’ll just give up on them for a while. It’s n
ot like I don’t have enough other things happening anyway without a man to complicate matters.”

  “Sounds like a plan.”

  “Maybe… So, we’re good, then?” she asked.

  “Grand,” he said, mimicking her Irish accent.

  “Hah! Happy days,” she replied, smiling. Suddenly, she felt the presence of someone’s thoughts wanting to talk to her. Concentrating, she recognised Liz’s Magic, so she opened the link.

  ~Amanda, we have that coven from L.A. here, would you like to pop down and say hello?~ Liz asked her telepathically.

  ~Yeah, sure. I’ll be right down,~ she replied before closing the link. She looked at Yoh. “I’m needed downstairs, but I’ll be sure to see ye soon, okay?”

  “Of course, Amanda-san.”

  They rose from their seats, kissed cheeks, and parted ways, Amanda feeling a spring in her step after finally smoothing things over with Yoh. It had been a long time coming. In fact, she felt a little silly having put it off for so long. This should have been sorted a long time ago, but then, she knew that sometimes in life, these things never get sorted, so better late than never.

  She walked through the building and came to a ground floor meeting room. It was much smaller one than the one upstairs, but big enough for meeting most of the small covens that came here. Inside, Liz sat at a table with three other young-looking women, although, with Magi, looks could be deceptive and they could, in theory, be of any age.

  “Hi,” Amanda said as she entered the room.

  Liz stood, “Hey, so this is Melissa, Toni, and Tabitha. They’re from L.A, and they’re interested in possibly settling here.”

  Amanda greeted each of them, shaking their hands and saying hi. “So, what brings ye to New York?” she asked and watched as they all hesitated and glanced at one another. Amanda immediately had the feeling she’d put her foot in it, that she’d mentioned something raw and emotional for the three of them. She noticed that Toni had even started to well up, the first hints of tears glistening in her eyes.

  “I’m sorry, did I say something…” Amanda asked.

  “No, no, you didn’t do anything wrong, it’s just, the reason for us being here, it…” Melissa paused and took a breath, seeming unsure how to proceed.

  “Our coven was attacked by Nomads,” Tabitha said, picking up the thread. “We think… we’re pretty sure we’re the only survivors.”

  Toni sobbed while Melissa took a moment to herself, looking at the ceiling and dealing with her emotions. Tabitha pulled Toni in close to comfort her. Amanda noticed how comfortable they were with each other and guessed that Tabitha and Toni might be more than just friends.

  “You’re from the Coven of Angels, right? You must have had over ten members?”

  “Seventeen, actually, not counting our affiliate covens,” Tabitha answered.

  “Jaysus, and they were all killed?” Amanda asked.

  “We believe so.”

  “Any idea who the Nomads were?”

  “We don’t have any names, but for the past, maybe six or seven months, Arcadian covens in the Los Angeles area have been attacked again and again by what we think are the same three Nomads.”

  “Just three?”

  “We saw one of them. They’re powerful and they’re using Magic that I don’t recognise,” Tabitha explained.

  “You saw one? May I see?” Amanda asked.

  “Sure,” said Tabitha, who sent a mental image to Amanda. She felt the rush of Essentia and accepted the telepathic thought and could suddenly see the memory of the Nomad from the attack.

  Amanda let the memory fade after a moment and brought her focus back to the room. “Thank you. Firstly, I’m sorry for your loss, and for what it’s worth, you’re very welcome in New York.”

  “Thank you.”

  Amanda sent a request for a Mental Link to Liz, who immediately allowed Amanda’s thoughts to pass through her Aegis.

  ~What do you think?~ she sent to Liz.

  ~They’re genuine. Victoria’s been in touch and vouched for them in very strong terms. They’re young, but they’re loyal Arcadians,~ Liz sent back.

  “Have you got a place to stay?” Amanda asked the trio of girls.

  “No, we’ve only just arrived,” Tabitha said.

  “Then come stay with me. I can have some rooms made up for ye at my place. Can ye see to that, Liz?” Amanda asked. If Victoria was vouching for them, she felt sure she could trust them in her house for a few days.

  “Of course,” Liz said.

  “Are you sure? We don’t want to be any trouble,” Tabitha said.

  Melissa smiled. “Thank you. We appreciate it. We’d love to accept.”

  “Good, I’m happy to help. Any friend of Victoria’s is a friend of mine.” Amanda said.

  Toni, still staying close to Tabitha, nodded and mouthed the words, “Thank you,” through her tears.

  Amanda nodded back and smiled. “I’ll also have a think on the whole Nomad situation in L.A. Might be that we can do something. Leave it with me.”

  - The Vatican

  Mary signed the document, authorising the order which would now be carried out. She looked over the open file next to her and the photos that spilt out of it. She recognised that face.

  Amanda-Jane Page. Her actions and the actions of her coven had caused Mary’s plans to become the next Witch Finder General to be put on hold while she rebuilt her reputation with the Conclave of Grand Inquisitors. As the only woman in that group of twelve, she had to prove herself above and beyond what the others had to. But she’d come back even stronger than before.

  Amanda might have disappeared for two years, but as it turned out, that worked out quite well her. Now, she would start to take some well-earned revenge.

  She looked over the order to send a squad of Crusader Knights into New York and smiled as she handed it to her secretary. This would be phase one.

  Opening Salvo

  Brooklyn, New York.

  Jessie stood at the island in the kitchen, pulling out groceries from the box in front of her, ready to put them away in the cupboards behind her.

  When Alex had first suggested the coven should move down to the city, Hayden, Roxy, and herself were all a little unsure. They’d lived in Upstate New York, on the edge of Lucian’s territory for a long time. They’d always wanted to live in the city, but it had never been possible until now. But making that jump and moving down here had taken some confidence. She’d heard the reports that Lucian was dead, killed by an Arcadian and that the city would now be under the Council’s protection. She’d also listened to the rumours that the King of New York had been killed by a Magus she’d never heard of before. A young lady named Amanda. They’d discussed it for a week or so before they started to hear of other covens moving into the city, which quickly convinced them to make the trip.

  Looking back on that choice, now that they’d been here for a few days, she felt they’d made the right decision. They’d met Amanda on their arrival, along with Liz and a couple of others at The Jade Palace. She found them all very welcoming, and she wasn’t sure she could believe the rumours that Amanda had killed Lucian. She seemed too ordinary. She wasn’t sure what she’d expected, maybe some sort of hardass?

  Well, maybe she’d killed him, or maybe not. Who knew? There was no official word, after all.

  She loved their new house as well. It made for a very welcome change compared to the dump they’d lived in Upstate. A beautiful suburban house on a quiet road in Brooklyn was a significant change from the dusty, cramped old loft in the middle of some nowhere town.

  She watched her coven mates in the main living space towards the front of the house. They were laughing over something. Jessie had missed the joke, but she didn’t mind. She wanted to get this food put away.

  When the Aegis over the house fell away, it took her a moment to realise what had happened. It felt like a tension in the air that suddenly grew and then snapped away to nothing. She frowned at the sensation, not sure wh
at to make of it when a second later, the lights went out.

  “What’s going on?” Jessie called, while her friends made similar comments.

  The window smashed as something sailed through it and clattered to the floor, trailing smoke.

  “What the hell?” Hayden exclaimed.

  “Shit,” yelled Alex.

  Jessie looked at it from the kitchen door. It was a curious metal canister that sat in the middle of the living room smoking wildly. Her friends did the same, and a moment later, with a loud bang, it exploded, filling the room with smoke. Jessie dropped to the floor just as the front door got kicked in and slammed open. She could hear voices shouting and the sound of heavy boots running into the house.

  “Go, go, go!” they shouted.

  They came through the back door in the hallway next to the kitchen as well, their gear shifting on their bodies as they moved into the open-plan living room, their weapons at the ready.

  From where Jessie crouched behind the island, she realised that the intruders couldn’t see her. She was hidden. Her friends, however, were not.

  “Get down, get down now. On your knees, hands on your heads. Do it NOW!” the men shouted.

  Jessie gingerly moved to the edge of the island and readied herself to peek around the side into the room as the men shouted at her friends.

  Were these policemen? A SWAT team, maybe? What the hell were they doing here? She and her friends may be Magi, but they’d done nothing to warrant this.

  She could hear her friends, their voices shrill and wobbly. They were scared, and she couldn’t blame them. It wasn’t often that you had an assault rifle pointed at you.

  Jessie slowly peered around the island and looked into the room beyond. Through the thinning smoke she saw her three friends on their knees with their hands on their heads, looking terrified.

  She also laid eyes on a few of the men for the first time. Initially, she thought they might be a SWAT team. They were dressed in black tactical gear, carrying silenced machine guns, with balaclavas on their heads, and they worked as a unit. But a couple of things made her question her initial assumption. One of them had his back to her, and she could quite clearly see a large sword strapped to his back. She felt fairly certain that the police did not carry swords around with them.