He’d read on the Dark Web in one of the Initiated forums that if a Magi wasn't careful with their mind reads, it was excruciating. He also knew they could read your mind unnoticed if they wanted, but clearly, Angel didn’t care about finesse. There was information that she wanted and being careful wasn’t high on her agenda.
Suddenly, the intense pressure withdrew, leaving behind an intensely painful headache.
“You little shit, what have you done?” Angel asked.
Through the pain and fog of the migraine, Matt looked up at Angel, a smile starting to play over his face as he realised that his plan had worked.
“Think of it as a little insurance,” he said with a grin.
“You fucker. So, where is it?”
“Where’s what? The machine to get them back, or the memories that I’ve removed from my head?” he asked, feeling a little smug.
“Both,” Angel answered.
Matt cocked his head to one side and raised his eyebrows. Knowing he had the upper hand, he felt no reason to cooperate with her. In fact, making her life as difficult as possible would be a bonus.
“Very well,” she said as another violent mind read took hold of his head. His whole body locked up, becoming ridged as he gripped the chair again.
It didn’t last as long this time, and within moments, Angel had withdrawn her Magic.
“Right, you little shit. You’d better hope your guardian angel took the device from your home,” she said as she sat on a nearby chair. Crossing her arms and legs, and finally her eyes, he got the curious feeling of unreality again as she used her Magic.
Matt glanced around the room. He wasn’t tied down or restrained in any way, and he hadn’t heard the door being locked, either. He wondered if he might be able to make a break for it.
“If you do, I will break both of your legs,” Angel said.
Matt’s eyes snapped back to Angel, but she hadn’t moved apart from to speak. Seeing what her Magic was capable of, he had little doubt that she could do it with just a thought, so he relaxed back into his chair and crossed his own arms.
He did his best to keep his mind clear and not to think about anything he didn’t need to. The less information that he passed on to Angel the better.
Minutes passed until Cherub suddenly appeared in the room with a snap.
Angel opened her eyes and looked at the girl, who shook her head.
“Very well, you may go,” Angel said and looked back to Matt. “Well played, there aren’t many mortals that could do what you have,” she said as she stood and walked towards him. “Of course, it doesn’t mean I won’t hurt you,” she said and punched him hard across the face.
- The Vatican, Rome.
Assunta walked into Mary’s office and approached her desk. She stopped a short distance from it and waited. After a moment, Mary looked up.
“Greetings, Assunta. Thank you for coming at this late hour. I have made my final choice.” Mary picked up a sheet of paper and passed it to her.
Assunta looked down the list of men and women and had no objections to Mary’s choices.
“Very good, Inquisitor,” Assunta said.
“Prep them, we leave tomorrow,” Mary said. “Thank you, Assunta.”
Italian Hunt
New York
Amanda placed the crazy-looking headset on the table in Shaun’s Ops room. It looked like something out of Blade Runner with wires attached to a skull cap which strapped to your head. The wires ran to a black box with buttons and readouts, which was powered down for the moment.
“That’s it?” Shaun asked.
“That’s what you directed me to. Any idea what it is?”
“According to Edge, it’s a Magical device that removes and stores memories until you want them back. In this case, the memory of who the traitor is in Angel’s coven.”
“Leverage,” Amanda muttered to herself. “I have to give it to him; he’s been very clever about this.”
“I do believe he would be dead now if it hadn’t been for this,” Shaun said, looking at the device.
“He’s bought us some time, so, do you know where he is?
“Everything I have is conjecture based on what I know of Angel’s operation. It’s well known that she and her coven-run Nephilim Industries have a building in Milan as their base. The Arcadians have known this for a long time, but there are a lot of civilians in that building twenty-four hours a day and they’re used as a human shield in case of attack, as well as working for the company. It is believed that Angel and her coven also live in that building, but probably have holdings elsewhere as well. I would say it’s very likely that Edge is in that building somewhere, probably in the top few floors where the coven primarily resides. Are you going over there?”
“You know I am,” Amanda answered.
“Is that wise?” Shaun asked.
“What else can I do? I need to find him and bring him home. He pointed us to the memory device for a reason, so we need to keep it safe while we try to save him.”
“You think you can do it?”
“Of course…”
“Okay, good luck, then,” he said.
“Thank you,” she said and concentrated. Sending her senses about a quarter of the way around the globe, she quickly found a suitable rooftop close to Nephilim Industries. Working her Magic again, she Ported to Milan, appearing on a rooftop. A short distance away, still lit up by the lights inside, Angel’s building and Sepulchre towered over the city.
With her Aetheric Sight, she could see that various Aegises protected the building, with most of the Essentia concentrated around the top few floors. This matched the reports she’d read about the building over the years.
Amanda sent her senses as close as she could, scying the building and using her Magic to zoom in. She scanned the rooftop, spotting multiple security cameras, motion sensors, and laser tripwires scattered all over it, as well as an Aegis.
Amanda frowned. Tearing down that well-established Aegis would take time and she’d get her noticed. Neither of which would help rescue Matt. No, she needed to get in there as quickly as she could, which meant she needed to take a risk.
Feeling as sure as she could be about what she was about to do, she released most of her Magic, ridding herself from any Magical effect that she’d used. No more Aegis, no more stored Essentia, nothing. All her Magical effects were gone, meaning that as far as the Aegis was concerned she was a Riven. This was a well-known trick for getting through an Aegis, but it was also a risk that left you defenceless and vulnerable, even if it was just for a few moments.
Working her remaining Magic, Amanda Ported herself into the air above the building, just outside of the Aegis. She appeared about forty feet up above the roof where she promptly dispelled the rest of her Magic and dropped through the Aegis to the roof.
She landed with a bang and crouched on the bare concrete rooftop. Confirming she was inside the Aegis, she glanced around and then worked her Magic. Light suddenly bent around her, making her invisible.
The rooftop appeared quiet with only a helicopter on the helipad, a few air conditioning units, and the doorway that led down into the building itself. and the rooftop of void of life and no guards came charging out of the nearby door. It appeared that she’d made it through unnoticed.
Rising from her crouch, she walked carefully and steadily over the roof towards a doorway. As she moved, she rebuilt her Aegis and stockpiled Essentia. She wanted to be ready for anything.
Approaching the door, Amanda peered at the door with her Aetheric Sight. She could see the internal structure of it, the locking mechanism and the alarms that were attached. Opening it would be tricky and would probably alert the occupants.
Instead, Amanda Ported to the other side, finding herself at the top of a flight of stairs leading down into the building itself.
Moving slowly, she descended the stairs to the top floor of the tower and then looked along the service corridor. Empty. Remaining invisible, Amanda st
arted up the hallway, moving quietly.
Ahead, she heard voices coming from a room on the right. As she passed it, she spotted several people wearing security uniforms and talking amongst themselves. A nearby workstation had several monitors, each sporting feeds from a dozen security cameras. The man sat at the desk was not looking at them though, but instead was engaged in the conversation and laughter of the group. Stopping by the doorway, she cast her senses into the room to get a better look at the security camera feeds. She saw corridors and people going about their business, but nothing to suggest where Edge might be.
Cancelling her Magical senses, she made it to the door at the end of the corridor. Looking through the small glass window into the clean, modern hallway beyond she saw nothing unusual. Amanda worked her Magic and Ported to the other side of the door, doing her best to keep the disruptions of Essentia to a minimum. The hallway went in either direction and had doors and other passageways leading off of it. Amanda picked a direction at random and started to walk.
She needed to know where in the building Edge might be, so she either needed a lucky break, or she needed to find someone who would know where they were.
Still invisible, Amanda walked quietly and discretely through the building, looking through doorways, along corridors, and trying to find anything that might help her.
There wasn’t much activity up here and most of the corridors were basically empty. Of the few people she did see walking around, maybe half of them were security guards carrying guns and wearing armour. The rest were fairly typical office workers, judging by their appearance. It occurred to her that many of these were likely Initiated and might work directly for the coven. It would certainly make sense.
She scanned the surface thoughts of those she could, as discreetly as she could, but never found anything that related to the kidnapping of the man she knew only as Edge.
When the Essentia strike hit her in the back, knocking her to the floor, it came as a complete surprise. She managed to roll with the hit and came to her feet, looking back. She dropped her invisibility effect at the same time, seeing as how it seemed to be useless against this new foe.
Cherub stood several meters away, staring at her.
“You again,” Amanda muttered to herself.
“I could say the same thing,” Cherub answered.
Rising to her feet, Amanda strode towards Cherub, noticing the Nomad boosting her Aegis and preparing for a fight.
Armed security guards suddenly ran into the main corridor between Amanda and Cherub. Pointing their weapons at Amanda they shouted at her to freeze and get down.
Grunting in annoyance, Amanda ran at them as they opened fire. The bullets slammed into her Aegis, bouncing off it harmlessly as she closed the gap. Upon reaching the first guard, she grabbed his rifle, spinning it out of his grip before hitting him across the face with it.
Chaos erupted as the other five guards either continued to fire at her or tried to engage her in hand-to-hand.
She swung the rifle again and caught another guard across the face, dropping him to the floor while another guard saw the opening in her defences and fired, unloading his clip into her. A few of his bullets ricocheted off of her Aegis and hit the second man she’d attacked, dropping him.
Angered by the senseless death, she spin-kicked the guard who’d fired, burying her foot in his jaw, breaking it, and dislodging a few of his teeth in the process.
As she landed, the man next to her held his rifle high and inverted it. He jabbed the stock of the gun into her face, hitting her in the cheek, but the blow was cushioned by her Aegis.
Amanda jabbed him in the stomach a couple of times before his friend behind her kicked her in the back of the knee, dropping her down.
On her knees, the man behind her stuck the end of his rifle into her back.
“Stay there and don’t move or I will fire,” he yelled.
To her right, the other security guard did the same with his gun while the guard before her tried to catch his breath from her attack.
She didn’t have time for this. Concentrating, she pulled on the local Essentia again, only to have a second Magical effect from nearby sweep in and dissipate her Kinetic pulse.
Cherub must still be watching, Amanda guessed. Good, because she could use Cherub to find Matt.
Amanda spun on her knees, getting one foot on the ground while going for a gut punch on the man behind her. Her strike connected and she knocked his gun sideways towards the other unharmed guard.
With the fifth and final guard trying to dodge the flying rifle, Amanda came up in front of the man she’d just hit in the stomach and kneed him in the head, before spin-kicking the man behind her.
Both men hit the floor and stayed there as she turned to face the final guard. Recovering from being hit by a flying weapon, he raised his own.
Amanda knocked the gun barrel away with a sweep of her arm before bringing her other fist in to punch him hard in the face. He dropped to his ass with a bloody nose and looked up in time to see Amanda’s foot come up as she kicked him in the head, knocking him out.
Nearby, Magic flared around Cherub.
“Oh no, you don’t,” Amanda muttered and pulled the Essentia that fuelled Cherub’s effect away from her, foiling her attempt to Port from the scene.
“Shit,” the little girl cursed.
“You’re not going anywhere,” Amanda threatened.
She stalked down the corridor towards the young Nomad, who looked back at Amanda with eyes of a much older person. The appearance of this Magus might be childlike, but Amanda suspected she was much older than she looked.
“I don’t need to,” the girl replied, defiant.
Gritting her teeth, Amanda had a fair idea what Cherub probably meant, but had no intention of allowing this young-looking Nomad to distract her from her goal and allow Angel time to escape.
With a pull on the local Magical energy, Amanda hit Cherub with a powerful Kinetic hit, sweeping her sideways and into the wall. Cherub’s Aegis flashed and sparked as she stumbled, before she raised her hand and hit back with Magic of her own.
The Essentia smashed into Amanda’s Aegis, making her pause in her advance for a moment, allowing Cherub to get to her feet.
Amanda hit her again with her Magic, driving her into the floor with further sparks from her Aegis and then again, throwing her in the other direction and into another wall.
Cherub yelped and grunted as she stood back up, apparently not ready to give up yet. “You can’t win, Arcadian.”
“You just keep believing that,” Amanda mocked.
Gunfire sounded behind Amanda, the bullets hitting her Aegis and bouncing away. It was another security team.
Angry that they’d dare fire on her, she called on her Magic in a split second reaction and created a powerful gravity well in the middle of the new threat, causing the people in the group and the corridor around them to smash together, before she released it and they hit the floor.
Meanwhile, Cherub conjured an Essentia-infused knife into her hand.
Amanda readied herself as Cherub launched at her with a scream. But she never reached her target as Amanda hit her with a telekinetic hit and sent her flying backwards and slamming her into the far wall again. Amanda held Cherub two feet off the ground as she sent in Essentia strike after Essentia strike to break down the Nomad’s shield.
To her right, Amanda heard footsteps. More guards advancing on her position. In a rage, she sent a wave of Kinetic energy at them. The whole team was knocked back, hitting each other and the walls as they flew twenty feet back down the corridor.
Screaming in frustration, Cherub did her best to retaliate, throwing Essentia strikes of her own at Amanda. They crashed over Amanda’s Aegis, but never managed to breakthrough.
Seconds later, Cherub’s Aegis cracked and fell. Amanda’s Magic grabbed Cherub’s neck and squeezed.
“Where is he!” she shouted at the Nomad.
But Cherub, although strug
gling under the painful grip, remained tight-lipped.
“Where is he, dammit!” Amanda roared.
Cherub spat at her. It landed on her cheek and made Amanda flinch. Wiping the saliva away, and feeling even less charitable than before, Amanda summoned her Magic once again. She delved into the Nomad’s mind and went hunting for the knowledge she needed. A simple search soon found the details, including a good idea of where the room was in the building, meaning she could Port there.
Releasing the Nomad’s vile mind, Amanda knocked Cherub’s head against the wall, knocking her out cold. Amanda dropped the Nomad to the floor and pulled on her Magic and Ported to the room. She’d experienced Cherub’s memory of Angel standing next to a chair where Edge had been sitting. Now, the chair lay on its side in the middle of the floor, the room quiet and empty, with no sign of Edge or Angel anywhere.
“Feck it,” Amanda cursed and slammed her fists onto a table. She’d been careless and alerted Angel to her presence, allowing them to escape.
Angel would still want the information that Amanda had in her possession though, so she would have to come to her at some point. Amanda took a moment and did her best to calm herself down. She needed to be rational and do this properly.
Summoning her Magic she Ported back out to where she’d just fought Cherub. Sure enough, the young girl still lay on the floor where she’d left her. She took a deep breath and had a sudden moment of reflection.
Looking down at the child and knowing she’d beaten her up and had nearly killed her, was a sobering thought. She knew this Nomad was actually a lot older than she looked, but at that moment, she only saw a child. A little girl. And she found herself questioning what she was doing attacking her. She supposed this was exactly what Cherub wanted in having this appearance, and even with the express knowledge that Cherub was decades older than she looked, it still affected her.
Magi Legend Page 88