by Daniel Ruth
"Maybe luck is a superpower," I muttered. It was amazing that he was still alive. With the supernatural world amped up due to the ley lines going wild, almost anything could kill a mostly baseline human at this world's technology level with a sneeze. His aura had shown he wasn't completely human. Perhaps luck or super intelligence was his superpower.
"I hear it's one of the reasons that he is pushing for technology trade from the aliens," Jim said offhandedly. "It seems like every week he has a close call or gets rescued by a teammate. He must be jonesing for those force fields and power armor. The military is pushing hard too."
"What about the new one," I asked. "Dash."
"Oh mama," he exclaimed. "She almost caused a damn war when she showed up! We thought the cheetah shifters went and outed us all. Funny thing is, there ain't no cheetah tribe anywhere in the city. The closest thing is the leopard tribe and they never heard of her."
"Leopards and cheetahs aren't really the same species," I offered.
"That's what they kept saying," Jim said unhappily. "Look the same to me though."
"Did the group change when she got on board?"
"Got hotter," the hyena leader said with a grin. "I have no idea if she is a shifter but no doubt, she's a babe. Before that all they had was Mage."
"Anything else?"
"Well, they seemed to get happier. More with it. Losing Diego hit them hard. You could see they were dragging."
Mind control as an antidepressant. I would make a note of that. "I need eyes on Dash and her team. I need to know where she is at all times."
The shifter stared at me with his eyes wide. "Damn, man. We're a gang, not a spy ring! We don't have anyone that won't get caught in five minutes after following the sexy cat girl. She has her own security squad to keep fans out!"
I rubbed my forehead. Of course. Jim had been so useful in other areas I had assumed he had more experience than he did.
"Hire a detective," I said glumly. I really missed Jeremy. "Use a double-blind."
"A what?"
"Don't let the detective know who hired him." These guys didn't watch tv. It's probably due to all that healthy outdoor living.
"Sure thing. It's your money," he nodded. "Seems like a lot of work to do for a rogue shifter. I mean you plan to out us anyway. Wouldn't she be good publicity that we could use?"
I stared at him blankly. A few moments later smile blooming on my face. "Yes. Yes, she would." I was just about to tell him my plan when a short perfunctory knock sounded on the door followed by Joe bursting in, raw enthusiasm gushing from him.
"I found him!" he said excitedly.
Jim and I stared blankly at him.
"A vampire?" I hesitantly asked. "If he's a beggar we can talk about it later."
"Vampire?" Joe asked in confusion. "No. I found a real wizard. There are videos on the internet and the news is going on about him too."
He pulled out a rather beaten up smartphone in a rugged case. The case was obviously a desperate attempt to stretch out the life of the phone despite it being wielded by a supernatural creature whose accidental deep breathe could shatter it. As he held it out, I could see brownish stains on the case.
I nodded to myself. The shifters were using the old method of exposing materials to their blood to enhance the durability of the device. Crude but fairly effective. And in Joe's case definitely cheap.
"Okay, so it's not a fancy spy watch but look at the video," Joe interrupted my contemplation, mistaking my distraction. I tapped on the play button.
A moment later I saw a grainy video of a man wearing a suit carrying another man suited up in armor and running from a literal horde of tiny demon insects. It was clearly taken from very far away and had the zoom maximized. The running man waved a hand and light shot out, although the effect wasn't clear from the video angle.
"See a wizard," he stated proudly. I stared at him sulkily. He was basically showing a video of me from last night. "You don't think he's a wizard? There are other videos that show a little more but the kicker is that Patriot issued a statement for the morning news."
He glanced at the television in the corner with a frown. He looked at me and I stared back blankly. If he didn't know if it worked then I certainly didn't. My Repair spell wouldn't do a thing to something that complex. I hadn't registered it existed since I settled in. He sighed and grabbed the phone back. Thirty seconds of furious swiping and tapping and he handed it back with it already playing.
"... and as per Patriot's statement a man broke into their base last night under false pretenses and attacked them," an older man was reporting, as behind him a picture was shown of me. "He further states that the "Professor" is an evil magic user that is commanding the forces of the demons. Based on this he is wanted by the police for questioning.
The video switched to a woman. "It is unclear exactly what these false pretenses are. There are other videos already showing up that clearly show him rescuing Patriot from hundreds of the creatures we have been calling 'demons'. We have been trying to get clarification from Patriot to see if this was a setup but we have not been able to get through..."
I turned the video off. Looking blankly at Joe I opened my mouth. Then stopped. He wanted for me to consult with my alter ego. Who was wanted by the various hero groups and police. I really didn't know what to say.
"He's a wizard, right?" Joe asked, noticing my silence. "So what if he is wanted by the police! We can hunt him down and capture him and you can get the information you need from him."
"I don't think that’s a great idea, chump," Jim chimed in as he took the phone and browsed to related articles. "The elders have told some pretty chilling tales about wizards and mages. They can call down some serious shit."
"Hey the Arbitrator says we need a wizard," Joe growled back. "I got him one. Or at least a lead."
"Nevermind," I said weakly, finally finding my voice. "He isn't the kind of wizard I was looking for."
"He probably isn't too powerful," Jim said as he started another video. "It looks like he's shooting rainbows at those things. He may as well be lighting his farts. This was obviously a set up to get Patriot's trust."
I glared at him. A minute ago, he was fearful of attacking a mage and suddenly I'm shooting magical blanks. "I was already aware of the Professor. He's talented but his expertise is different than what I need."
"Oh," Joe said unhappily. "What's with the whole collaborating with the demons thing?"
"I... don't know," I said with a grimace. "I'll ask him if I see him again."
I rubbed my forehead. I was so happy a moment ago before I got distracted. Ah, right. "Joe. Tell me about the PR company."
The guy perked up a bit. "I did contact a couple. 'Smoke and Mirrors' specializes in acting and showmanship. They have a great reputation but..."
"The name sounds kinda sketchy if you're not an actor," I said uncomfortably.
"Yeah, I thought you'd say that," the dire wolf said. "The other option is the 'Stirling Brothers'. Excellent reputation. That is impressive if you consider the people they represent. I mean people that you'd think should be in jail."
"Let's go with them," I interjected. We would need people that could make black seem like white and vice versa. "Contact them and set up a good nondisclosure agreement."
"I don't suppose the European packs have some way to enforce those?" asked Jim.
Good question. I certainly didn't. Mortals and even most supernaturals weren’t easily bound through contracts. I could lie as much as I wanted and break every promise I have ever made. A demon could lie but if they made a promise, they couldn't break it. A geas was a magical compulsion that could be used on anyone for several purposes. One of them was to enforce a contract. It wasn't a spell I presently knew.
"Just fear," I replied. This earned a smile from the two gang leaders. "While you do that, I need Jim to get the detective hired. I need to know everything Dash does or is planning to do. This includes knowing exactly where she is constantl
y."
"Seems a bit... much," Jim muttered.
"Our PR campaign is going to depend heavily on the missus. If she disappoints us or has any dark secrets then we need to know as soon as possible."
"Dash?" Joe asked in confusion. "The cheetah speedster? She's the reason Grendle went off the reservation." He paused in thought for a moment. "Probably."
"We were talking about Dash when you came in and wasted our time," Jim replied.
"Right. I also want information on the janitor service Patriot uses. Photos, biographies, videos. All of it including their daily schedules." At this, they both stared at me.
"Are you planning to sneak in and talk to Dash? We're not under surveillance as far as I know," Joe said as his face contorted in confusion. "Why not call her or even go over. I'm sure that a shifter would be willing to help out the others. Especially since its partly her fault we're in this mess."
"Why would she help us," Jim retorted scathingly. "She's got a good space. Power, glory. As far as she's concerned, we're a bunch of losers who will probably make her look bad. Obviously, the Arbitrator wants to blackmail her into helping." They both looked at me questioning. I ignored them.
"You both have your orders. Jim, before you go how is buying and renovating this building going. It needs to look fairly decent if this will be the face the world sees."
"Say what," the hyena pack leader exclaimed. "I thought you just wanted a place to stay! If you want to turn this dump into our public face it's going to take way more work. You'd be better off buying a new place."
"If you can find a place that has a large area that shifters can meet," I smiled toothily. "And occasionally fight then this place can be my home away from home. But we still don't have a place to meet the leopard pack. Or a time."
"I didn't realize you were in such a rush. I'll send someone to Grendle today. It might take a while to get a neutral place. There is an abandoned block that has been empty for over a decade but..."
"Well that sounds promising," I said encouragingly.
"It has a pretty bad reputation," Jim said with some embarrassment. "Haunted or something."
"Shifters scared of ghosts?" I asked with some disbelief.
"I know they don't exist..."
"What?" I interrupted with a start. "No. Ghosts are real. Most of them are simply psychic impressions based off of the astral plane but..." I paused and shook my head. I was getting off topic. "But a decent percentage of the shifter population is psychic. So why would this matter?" Even a low level psionic like a shifter could fend off an average ghost.
"They are?" Joe asked in confusion. I stared at the gang leaders until they looked away in embarrassment.
"Weird stuff happened," Jim said hesitantly. "A few people disappeared and then were found in nearby hospitals in the coma wards. They recovered but couldn't remember how they got that way. It used to be called Purgatory but after it happened to a few people..."
"Purgatory," I interjected again. That was a bit of a coincidence. "Did it happen to be an incredible party location with casinos and clubs? Terribly tacky gilded designs? Was the owner named Sulayman?"
"Sulayman?" Jim stuttered in reply, taken off balance by my flood of questions. "I don't know the name. It was way before my time. I was like, six when it closed, maybe younger. The rest is about right. It was the heart of the city for most of us. The elders say there were supernaturals that mingled with the rest of us that we didn't even know what they were. Then it was closed and, you know... haunted."
My brow creased in thought. Sulayman got around a lot more than I thought. Considering the practically infinite nature of the multiverse it was unlikely it was a coincidence that he was recently in three of the worlds that the demon lord had selected to be his personal fief.
It also didn't speak well of Sulayman's carelessness that he left active wards in an area that he had abandoned. I had thought his accidentally getting caught in his own enchantments understandable. After all who expects the lay lines to flood a world and magnify all the ward's effects by an order of magnitude? I would have to rethink things based on his history. Assuming it was actually Sulayman's old base.
"Let's go with that," I said with mixed emotions. "Hopefully the price will be low. Since its cursed. Cursed real estate is usually a steal."
"I didn't say it was cursed," Jim said awkwardly.
"Okay, 'haunted'," I said with a shrug. "After twenty years people should be desperate to get rid of it. Will there be a problem getting a meeting there? It would be a pain to buy it and find out the reputation was so bad that the Leopard clan was afraid to meet me there."
Jim and Joe winced. "I think we can word it so that they wouldn't dare not come unless they wanted to lose all their reputation. Still, there is the coma thing..."
"I'll take a look in advance," I assured him. I should be able to weaken the wards that Sulayman left behind. Before the invasion, I may have been able to break them but the influx of energy actually reinforced circles and wards to make them nigh indestructible once they were active. "If I can't guarantee some level of safety, we can change the location. Blame it on a change of city ordinances or something."
"I'll need a lot more money," the hyena pack leader prompted. "What we had was fine for a deposit on the building or the repairs. But not both and it certainly won't buy a block in New York even if it's cursed."
"It could be radiative and be filled with that glowy lightning stuff and it would still be worth millions." Joe chuckled grimly. I winced as he described the ley line surges.
"I have more bags of diamonds," I said reluctantly. Even though it was artificial diamond rubbage it still grated on me to give it away. "I'll get you a few pounds."
"P... pounds?" Joe asked sounding shaken. Even Jim's eyes widened despite him trying to look casual. "It might be tough to move all that at once."
"I'll leave the details to you," I said dismissively. Before I could continue, my wrist terminal chirped with an unfamiliar chime. I looked at it in puzzlement. I didn't remember setting a reminder. Perhaps Beth set up something to notify me as the buoys reached their goals.
"Oh, look you have mail," Joe said, peering over at my watch. I was just about to correct him when I noticed that there was an icon of a letter on my display.
Well, that was odd. I didn't have mail. I mean Jeremy had set me up with an account with a provider so I could connect to the world's network. I had needed it to let the government know I existed so I could have electronic money. However, I hadn't really configured much. I think I had a voice mail setting but since I only recently prevented the system from blowing up I think only Beth had gotten it to work.
More importantly, it wouldn't be connected through dimensions unless the buoys had reached a portal, passed through and found Jeremy's world. At that point, even if I don't remember setting up an e-mail account Beth could certainly do it. As for why she simply didn't call me... I would ask her.
"This is probably good news," I said in anticipation. "I'll need some privacy for this. Let's reconvene this evening. Keep working on the things I mentioned."
"Since you have an e-mail," The hyena leader offered. "I can have my real estate guy send you the electric documents to sign. You can do it all online."
I opened my mouth to reply and stalled. Until a moment ago I didn't even know I had an e-mail account, let alone one in this world. "Um, I'll get back to you. The one I have is for European business only. I'll have to clear on for local work."
"I can't believe the European packs are so much more organized than us," Joe mumbled to himself. I gave him a wise benevolent smile and stayed silent.
Chapter 23
After they left, I brought up my holographic terminal. With the privacy mode on it was simply projecting into my eyes. In this mode, the battery could last indefinitely.
I took me a minute to find out where the e-mail setting was. Sure enough, I hadn't set anything up. My second assumption, that it was Beth, didn't add up either since
all the telltales I could see were informing me that although one portal had been discovered and traversed, it hadn't led to a known planet.
I took a moment to digest that. Not only was that very unlikely but then how had I ended up with an e-mail account. Sorting my priorities, I briefly examined the data transmitted from the first successful buoy scout. It had been sent to a jungle world. It was not the world connected to the city of Arc.
Another scout had gone through a temporary portal, transmitted information about floating above a river of lava and lost contact when the portal closed on its own five minutes later. Eleven other scouts had been destroyed for various unknown reasons. They hadn't had time to notify the other bots in the network before contact was lost.
Based on the total number I was flooding the world with, eleven was a trivial number. Still, it had only been two days. I was more concerned about only finding a single permanent portal. It appeared that blindly following the ley lines until it reached a node or a portal was going to take a while. Surely this worlds network had information on the mysterious portals that suddenly appeared a few months ago. I would have to research that. Right after I figured out how I had gotten a local e-mail account. And mail.
After a moment of looking, I found that I had a Microsoft account. [email protected]. Definitely, not me. Sighing I dug into to the logs. Drone 045 had set up this account for me. These drones had an AI on the level of my refrigerator. No way they did that unless someone like Beth told them to. Wait, that drone was one of the eleven missing drones.
Ominous. I opened the e-mail, making note of the settings. I would reset the password afterword.
"As I wandered through the world alone, I thought perhaps I had found one whose heart and inner working were shared. If you too find yourself alone among many, a spirit in the world of the material, know there is a brother to be had if you but reach out your hand. Stagniver. 1234."
I blinked. Did I just get an e-mail requesting a date? The address was from [email protected]. I sat there staring at the e-mail for a few minutes in confusion. Someone had captured my drone, hacked into technology almost a hundred years into the future of this world... to ask me for a date.