Shadow Play 5

by Vega Lizzie

  Eliza caught the reference but stared at Shannon’s hand, “That was the knife she used?”

  “Definitely,” Shannon nodded, “She’d already threatened me once, despite me telling her I wanted no part of a fight. I could barely stand up before it started.”

  Terra reached out to Shannon, “She’d just used an energy pulse to free herself, Shannon I mean, not the blonde chick. Payback’s gonna be one solid bitch.”

  “But Shannon’s here now,” Eliza said softly, “it could have gone the other way.” She glanced helplessly at Robin, “Maybe we do this part another day.”

  Terra missed in inference, “That and she said the exact same thing that Sil…” Terra took a short breath, “the shaman said to me. And only a day apart. It can’t be a coincidence. No quarter, no retreat.”

  “She told me not to search for her, that the result would be…a worst-case scenario.”

  “There’s a legend,” Eliza began, nervously tapping her little book, “I put some things…Shan, was there any possibility of the shape you saw not being an actual knife?”

  “Hell of a warning,” Robin broke in sarcastically, “doesn’t mean that I can’t look around a little. We can’t have some rogue element running around the city. It’s already messed up enough as it is. I had a case at the mortuary last week that beyond my talents for facial reconstruction. That was a difficult conversation with the family. There is a nut job loose in the city. Also, with a knife, er, scalpel, actually. I’m off track. Sorry.”

  Shannon looked at Terra, then Eliza. She smiled at Robin, “You know, if you want to talk about the hard stuff like that? I…we will always be happy to lend an ear.”

  “Or a shoulder,” Eliza added, “cuz sometimes things suck, and you don’t want to go it alone.”

  “I interrupted you,” Robin said, abruptly ending the moment, “You were going to say something?”

  “There is a story that dates back to ancient Egypt,” Eliza continued, her voice softer because of Robin’s disclosure, “of an obelisk that was built for Hatshepsut but was never finished because it cracked before completion.” Again, she looked down at Shannon’s artwork.

  “Oops,” Terra snickered, “Off with someone’s head.”

  “Not usually,” Eliza corrected her, “probably just both ears and a nose. There is no record of it until the Romans adopted the obelisk as a symbol but that’s getting too far ahead. There were two obelisks erected at Karnak. The translations of the glyphs are here. She began to read from her notes, “Seen on both sides of the river, their rays flood the two lands when the sun disk draws between them, as he rises in heaven’s lightland.” Eliza smiled at the end of her reading, “They were gilded with electrum. It’s an alloy from gold and silver. Imagine how bright they were. Cool huh?”

  Terra caught a glance from Shannon. “That’s just a legend though, right?”

  “Nope. It’s real. There are a tons of references to it in real world books. First female pharaoh, rockin’ the accessories.”

  “Lightland?” Shannon asked. Her voice had dropped to a whisper.

  “Yep,” Eliza chirped, her voice was growing wary, “that little slice of the sky just before sunrise or-”

  “Sunset,” Terra finished, “Oh shit, that’s no coincidence. We’ve both seen it.”

  Shannon nodded and turned back a page in her sketchbook, “Ollie has seen it too. It was a sunset in Montana with my parents.” She sighed, “Time to book another flight home.”

  “But not before we do a bit of training,” Terra said awkwardly, “And more research. There’s just so much to process. It’s exhausting.”

  Robin was quiet but after a moment she cleared her throat with an extended look at Eliza.

  “Really?” Eliza reacted awkwardly, “It’s already so much.”

  “I’m more than aware,” Robin sighed, “but you did such a good job, might as well. You’re the expert with this.”

  “There’s more, right?” Shannon asked, “I guess I’d rather make decisions with as much info as possible.” Terra moved to stand next to Shannon, “Let’s hear it.”

  “Shit,” Eliza sighed then sat up straight and cleared her throat formally, “this is me…being academic again. I hate this. Keep in mind that we don’t have concrete evidence,” her eyes went to the blood samples, “there was a long lost sect, part of the Egyptian stone carvers that were exiled for, um, excessive use of dark magic.”

  Robin jumped in, “They used spices in their incantations, and it was said that they could shift.”

  “The Sacra,” Eliza continued, “the Exiled. Very dangerous but haven’t been seen or heard from in decades.”

  “Until now,” Terra added.

  “Maybe. It’s the scent thing that is so rare, maybe it was just a fluke.”

  “Assume it’s not,” Shannon erupted sharply, “assume they’re here. I was in a weakened state, for sure but she was on me in seconds. No discussion or negotiating and it was over. She said she hadn’t planned on killing anyone that night.” She looked up at the women gathered around the island, “what if she had?”

  “She repeated his words,” Terra said, pointing to the ceiling, “but hear that twice in two days…that’s not a coincidence. El, you gotta go after everything you can find on her.”

  “No,” Shannon and Robin said together.

  In a rare moment of meekness, Robin instantly withdrew, but Shannon encouraged her to continue. “You first, why not?”

  “Too rare, almost thought of as extinct from a magic viewpoint. And we know almost nothing about them.

  “I can certainly fix that,” Eliza said with more than a hint of enthusiasm. Robin shook her head, “No one can hear of this. It would open a long dead rift in the hierarchy, something over which we have no control.”

  “We can’t just let it stand,” Terra objected sharply, “Shannon…the Ivory Witch, almost taken out without a response? Screw this hierarchy crap, I want justice to be served…but, I promised I, uh wouldn’t go looking for her.”

  Shannon took Terra’s arm, “It won’t stand but know your enemy, right? We don’t know a thing other than she was blindingly fast and got through my shielding without breaking a sweat. The same holds true for Darien. The static charges, his strength, was overpowering. I didn’t stand a chance. I was lucky…twice.”

  “Weakened shielding,” Terra said quietly, trying to help, “you weren’t at your best.”

  “We won’t get a warning, a chance to stretch out and warm up. I think this will be on us before we know it.” Shannon took a breath, “The Sacra…the exiled. Let’s hope she chooses to stay exiled until Montana is taken care of. Eliza, you and Robin start on static and electricity-based spells. Keep it quiet to not attract unwanted attention. Let’s bring the family up to speed with what we find.”

  “Speed,” Terra grinned, “that’ll be my assignment. Imagine a plasma burst coming at you at three times the speed?”

  Chapter 35

  Just after midnight, Shannon and Terra’s phones pinged simultaneously. Shannon glanced at her phone and grinned, “Okay, tonight that makes me happy. It’s kinda like getting tucked in long distance.” She snickered as Terra reached for her phone and read her message from Chloe.

  “Weird,” Terra frowned, “I mean we’re flying out there tomorrow and she says thank you. Oh well, maybe she’s looking forward to us. I guess I’d say thanks as we were leaving.”

  In the middle of sending a quick response, both phones pinged again. Her eyes on the screen, Terra read the text first. “Shan, did you send something to Chloe? She’s all fired up about something.” Turning to Shannon, Terra read the text, “I don’t know how you did this, but it was my most prized possession and now I have it back. It just appeared in front of me.”

  Terra looked at Shannon, “Uh-oh,” she said softly and biting her lip, “has a familiar ring to it. I’m gonna call her.”

  Shannon nodded, but stopped Terra before she dialed, “Let’s find out what and fro
m where. Since we’ll see her tomorrow, let’s not freak her out if it’s…” she hesitated, “ah, screw it. Call her.”

  Chloe answered instantly and Terra didn’t even have time to greet her.

  “Terra,” Chloe shrieked into her phone. She was crying and Shannon sat up in an instant, “Are you alright?”

  “I’m great. I’m so so happy,” she sobbed, “I don’t understand any of this but…but it’s perfect. How did you know? Is it real? Is it a spell?” Her tearful questions changed into laughter. After hearing Chloe blow her nose several times, Terra subtly began to gather information, “Sort of,” she stammered, “How long since you’ve seen it?” she shrugged at Shannon.

  “Glad you’re so happy, uh…um.” Shannon interrupted, “You should send us a picture, like…now.”

  “Right,” Terra added shaking her head, “and tell us all about it.”

  “Well, I can show it to you tomorrow of course. Wow. It seems like it’s been forever since I had this.”

  “Picture, Chloe. A picture would really be great.”

  By the time the text photo arrived on Shannon’s phone, Chloe was still laughing, “I only got to use it on rare occasions. He would let me address Christmas cards and stuff, things that were important.”

  Shannon held her phone up to Terra. On what looked to be Chloe’s kitchen table, there was an antique fountain pen. Terra clamped her hand to her mouth to keep from reacting out loud. Wide eyed as well, Shannon tried to cover, “It’s…wow, it’s a lot older than we thought.” She shrugged to Terra, who was still reeling from the photo, “must be worth a lot.”

  “Priceless to me,” Chloe sniffled, “I’m sure I don’t want to know how you two pulled this of cuz it’s creepy, but I am so grateful. I argued with my aunt to let me keep it.”

  “Hang on a sec, okay? I’m gonna forward this to Terra since I’m hogging the screen. Did he have it for a long time?”

  “His father gave it to him, and I think it goes way farther back than that.”

  “I’ll bet,” Terra spouted off suddenly, then shrunk back, “Sorry. I just sorta derailed myself. I’m glad we’re coming out to see you. Great timing. Ever had it appraised? and x-rayed,” she added under her breath, “You should get a special case or something to protect it. Terra glanced to their already packed bags, “We take off at eleven, so we’ll see you…soon.” Terra took a breath, “So it dropped right out the air at your place?”

  “Yeah,” Chloe chuckled, “Scared the heck out of me. Then, I thought of you two right away.”

  “Thanks, hun,” Shannon said warmly, “That’s how it seems to work. We’ll let you go now and see you tomorrow afternoon. We’ll stay for a few days this time.”

  “Ahh, I’m so excited,” she gushed, “I can’t wait. Thank you so much.”

  Terra found a moment of calm, clearing her throat, “You’re such a sweetheart. Get a goodnights’ sleep tonight and have a fun day at work tomorrow.”

  Shannon was quick to follow up, “Hey, Chloe, I know you’re all fired up about the pen, but I wouldn’t mention it to anyone at work, okay? Sometimes the magic intention can be taken the wrong way and you’ll have too many questions to answer. Is that okay with you?”

  “Sure…” they heard, “I’m just going to keep it with me for good luck. Seeya tomorrow.”

  Terra flopped back onto the mattress, “God, she sounds so happy. I hate to burst her bubble. It scared the heck out of her….oh, if she only knew.”

  “Maybe we won’t,” Shannon said softly, “maybe it’s for another reason. Yet another thing we don’t know.”

  Terra kicked the covers up, sticking her leg straight to the ceiling, “Sure. I wonder how Chloe feels about tattoos?”

  “Yes, the parallels to you just got real. A welcome distraction for us since I’m still thinking through my actions while we are there.”

  “You only told your folks we’d be there for the weekend. It will give us time to work. I’m gonna send Marcus and Eliza a copy of the pen photo.” Terra looked at the photo, a black ebony writing pen wrapped with a silver snake design, “The design is disturbing.””

  “I noticed. Do you think she likes snakes? Might be a thing in her very near future.” Despite the possibilities of something turning dark, Shannon grinned, “At least you’re there to help her with… dealing with…a big one.” She tried not to laugh, then snorted, dissolving into a fit of laughter. Terra waited patiently for her to settle, a sly look on her face.

  “Maybe we just find her a boyfriend,” she grinned, “because, as you well know, I’m hooked on yonics.”

  That morning, Shannon gave Olivia specific instructions for while they were gone.

  “I know Mom,” she grinned, “Keep in contact, Eliza is staying over and only party super loud until 3 AM. Got it.” She got the response she was expecting.

  “Very funny,” her mother sighed, “I get it. I broke my last set of rules so…”

  “I’m teasing, Mom. Eliza will be here when I get home. Liam and Issac are on school pick up duty and I might invite Karly over for a little while. If that’s okay? I set the first part up already. Make sure you call when you land. And say howdy to Chloe for us.” She waited a beat, “Have fun. Be careful.”

  Terra was laughing as she steered Shannon to the door, “Yes, she has raised the rules bar pretty high, we should be so lucky, right?”

  Chapter 36

  Almost shivering with excitement, Chloe perched nervously on the edge of her chair as Shannon and Terra sat down at her little dining table, “I can’t begin to tell you how much I appreciate this,” she gushed, “it’s icing on the best cake ever.”

  “Might be more than icing,” Terra cautioned as she took the fountain pen from Chloe’s trembling hands. “Let’s get a closer look.”

  After a quick moment, she smiled to Shannon and turned the pen to show her the top of the cap. Like Terra’s locket, a round channel was carved around the center of the pens ink reservoir. She glanced at the small ring pendant dangling at Chloe’s throat.

  “Sweetie, this pen is more than it seems and while we’re thrilled at how happy you are…” She paused as Shannon smiled and nodded in agreement “we’re not responsible for sending it.”

  “An ongoing mystery,” Shannon said, her voice seemed to sum up the gravity of the past year, “but a happy mystery for sure.” She pointed to the pendant ring, “your mother’s wedding ring?”

  Chloe gasped, “How would you know that? Nobody knows but me.”

  Terra couldn’t help it. “You’d think so, right? Let’s save you a few months of intrigue. Can I borrow your necklace or maybe take the ring off its chain?”

  Chloe instantly began to fumble with the chain’s tiny clasp, “This gets better?”

  Terra jumped up to assist, “Let me help. You get your hair off your neck.”

  In a moment, the ring was loose, and Terra inspected it carefully. She tipped her gaze to Shannon, “A precious little diamond, go figure.”

  Shannon leaned in, “Same jeweler?” she wondered, “that would be interesting.” She cleared her throat and looked to Chloe, “Can you take off the cap? We’re testing a theory.”

  As Chloe removed the elegantly fashioned top, two carved rings were revealed underneath. She handed it to Terra, “My dad always said that whatever was written with it needed to be short and to the be point. It would run out of ink super quick.”

  Terra and Shannon shared a look, “Makes sense, cuz…” She dropped the ring over the barrel of the pen and it quickly settled into one of the grooves.

  “Sorta wish Angela was here. I’m thinking a protective circle would be a good idea.”

  “We’ll be fine,” Shannon offered, “I’m thinking this is a positive thing.”

  Terra held the pen close and found a notch in the groove to accept the diamond. She turned the ring to line up but the second she pushed down on the ring, it slipped inside the pen with a loud snap. With a shriek, she dropped the rare talisman on the
table.

  Unaware of their previous experience with Terra’s locket, Chloe laughed, and Shannon was quick to stand up, ready to move. “Jeez, Terra, you scared me.”

  Chloe was quick to catch the shift in tone, “What?” she gasped trying to squelch her enthusiasm. Then the pen suddenly popped open, “Oooooh, look,” she gasped, reaching for the pen, “…pretty.”

  Shannon grabbed her arm with such force, Chloe yelped. “Sorry,” Shannon said without shifting her gaze from the pen, “Don’t touch, not quite yet.”

  A woven cloth had fallen from the barrel of the pen. As it had landed on the kitchen table, there was a tiny green colored glint as the fluorescent light on Chloe’s ceiling caught something shiny. Terra picked up a fork and began to unroll the cloth. It only took a second for Shannon to recognize the stone as it emerged from its cover. “Here we go, again.”

  Still excited by the discovery, Chloe just stared at the long blue green crystal. It was only an inch long, but it absolutely gleamed in the overhead light.

  “Is that a quartz crystal,” Terra asked, “or something else.” She took her finger and rolled it over. A shard of light shot toward the ceiling and she jerked her hand back, “okay, something else. Wow. Let’s see the cloth.”

  “Let Chloe unroll the cloth.” Shannon said as she shifted to stand next to her, “This connects to her but,” She pointed to the crystal, “Look how the shape is tapered. It’s been shaped by someone.”

  “A tiny obelisk,” Chloe whispered and suddenly Terra and Shannon were staring at her. “You see a lot of these?” Shannon asked carefully. Before Chloe could answer, Terra answered for her, “Her dad was a geologist.”

  “Yeah, but I’ve never seen one of these in such good condition, look.” Chloe picked up the tiny stone and stood it up on end. The tiny monolith stood firm on its flat base with a pyramidal top catching the ceiling light. Chloe carefully opened the cloth wrapping, “Ah, it’s just a piece of cloth with holes in it.”