Trials of Magic

by Thomas K. Carpenter

  "Succubus tears," he said. "A powerful aphrodisiac that when combined with a few other ingredients, gives the enchantments a fertile soil in which to take strong roots. I gave you a touch of it while you were out so I could ensure that you wouldn't cause me any more trouble. A small amount makes a person highly suggestible for a short time, eight hours max. For longer periods, I need you to be awake. You see, once I'm done layering in the spells, I will have you drink the rest of this vial. To be honest, I've never given anyone this much, but this amount should make the spells effectively permanent."

  He flicked his fingernail against the glass and gave her a snake's grin.

  "Succubus tears are quite expensive," he said. "In fact, I'm going to blow a small fortune when I give you the rest of this. You see, this has been a little side project of mine. Not only am I going to put an end to your little power play, but I'll be proving a theory. When I show you off to the patron, he'll realize my worth and give me the proper position to utilize my talents. You see, this combination of spells and potions allows me to imprint you with whatever suggestions I want. I can make you love me, or be allergic to water, or think that you can fly. Anything. Permanently. With this formula, just imagine what I can do. Imagine the senators, or heads of state, that I can control. Or even other patrons."

  He paused, lights of ambition flickering in his eyes. She saw him consider going it alone for a moment, before realizing it would be dangerous.

  "When I'm done with you, you'll think I'm a god. You'll worship the very ground I walk. Every thought will be consumed by how you want to please me. I may not even bother with you after that, for that would give you what you want. I could whip you and you will thank me for it. Who knows what I'll do? Maybe it'll be nice to have a pet mage around. You can be my assistant. Just imagine the outfits I can dress you up in. Just imagine what you'll want to do for me," he said, his eyes alight with the possibilities.

  Though it took every ounce of her will, and made her eyes water from the pain, she spoke through gritted teeth. "Fuck you."

  "Soon enough, you little bitch," he replied with equal venom.

  Alton pulled a leather-bound notebook from the inside pocket of the briefcase. He opened it up, holding it front of him like a choirboy about to break into song.

  The smell of faez filled the room as he began the first spell. While words flowed from his lips, his free hand danced like a conductor at a symphony.

  The first enchantment etched into her, silencing her. Like a drowning victim slowly sinking beneath the waves, she felt the spell smother her free will. Part of her wanted to give up and let go. She knew objectively that he was right. Once he was finished, she'd beg him to sleep with her, no matter how revolting it was now.

  But she'd always fought, would always fight, would never give up. She hoped that maybe, deep down inside, she could bury her free will so that in some weak moment, when time put cracks into the enchantment, even decades from now, the real Pi would surge forth and enact her revenge.

  The spell wove around her arms, her legs, binding her, keeping her from staying afloat. She fought and wriggled, doing everything she could to stay herself, but succubus tears had destroyed her defenses.

  She looked at Alton, trying to memorize the hate she felt for him, trying to bury it deep, when something large and black rose above his head.

  The cast-iron pan came crashing down on Alton's head, crumpling him to the floor. Between the unraveling spell and the sudden visual change, Pi was confused, until she saw Aurie standing there with the black pan in her fists.

  Aurie cast a few spells, releasing Pi from Alton's grip. When she no longer looked at him with longing, she knew that the worst was past.

  Then Pi threw her arms around her sister, squeezing her tight. "Thank you, Aurie."

  Aurie held her at arm's length. "You look like hell, sis. The right side of your face is black and blue. What happened?"

  "He punched me," said Pi, rubbing her jaw.

  "I was worried about killing him when I hit him with the pan. Now I think I didn't hit him hard enough," she said.

  Before Alton could wake, they moved him to the couch and put a few bindings on him. Then they took turns explaining what they had learned. The revelations only made the danger more acute.

  "How did you find me?" asked Pi.

  "The spell we used in the sewers so we didn't lose each other," said Aurie.

  For once, Pi didn't give her sister a hard time about being overly prepared.

  "What do we do with him? We can't leave him here, but we need to go after the Rod," said Aurie, then she saw the look on her sister's face. "No. We can't kill him."

  "I wasn't going to suggest that, as tempting as it might be," said Pi. "But I have an idea that might make him wish we had. We can't let him keep the knowledge in his head. It's as dangerous as the Rod."

  Aurie agreed, and together they prepared Alton for the same enchantments that he was going to cast on Pi. When he awoke, he startled, then tried to move his arms, finding them immobile.

  "Here's what we're going to do, asshole," started Pi, holding his notebook up so he could see it. "Since you took such excellent notes, we had no problem deciphering how to perform the permanency enchantment. So what we're going to do is this. First, we're going to put the suggestion in you that if you ever expose yourself to a woman, no matter if she honestly desires it or not, you will feel such exquisite pain in your nether regions that you'll wish you'd died. Second, you're going to quit Coterie and find an honest profession somewhere in the Midwest and never practice magic again. Third, you're going to forget the very enchantments that we're going to layer upon you, and finally, you're going to forget us forever, even if you see us again. It'll be like we didn't exist."

  Together, Pi and her sister cast the spells detailed in the notebook. Then they dumped the vial of succubus tears down his gullet and poured out the remaining potions into the sink. Alton was in a comatose state by the time they were finished.

  "It might take him a bit to snap out of it," said Aurie. "He can find his way back when he comes to. What are we going to do with his notes?"

  "Burn them," she said, and they did, using a rusty grill in the alleyway for the deed.

  "Shall we go back to the sewers?" asked Pi.

  "No," said Aurie. "If the portal was there, we would have found it. I think we're close, but looking in the wrong place. I think the singing stone was a beacon to help guide our parents, but not in the sewers."

  "Where then?" asked Pi.

  Aurie held the words between her teeth before speaking reluctantly. "The Undercity."

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  They used the lift that Hemistad kept in the back of Freeport Games. He wasn't around to ask—he was away at a gaming convention—and he'd never told them not to, so they didn't feel like they were disobeying him. They left him a note so he'd know not to bring the lift up without them.

  When they reached the bottom, Aurie cast a locating spell on the lift so they could find it again after they were finished. She hoped they would need it.

  They strode into the darkness, boots echoing against the stone. They wore backpacks full of supplies. Wisps followed them dutifully, shedding meager light into the vastness of the Undercity.

  From their time in the sewers, they were well acquainted with the beacon on their parents' singing stone. They used it to orient themselves, marching towards the area they hoped contained the portal.

  After an hour of steady movement, Aurie stopped for a drink.

  "It shouldn't be much further," she said, her voice falling to a whisper as she spoke. The darkness swallowed the words.

  To their left, a faint light appeared momentarily, like someone flicking a lighter then snuffing it out. It happened a second time while they were watching, but it'd moved further away.

  Pi whispered, "It looks like it's going the other direction."

  When a third flicker confirmed, Aurie felt the tension in her shoulders release a litt
le.

  A while later, they came to a series of wide tunnels, much like the kind that Hemistad had taken them through earlier in the year. Unlike the others, these were bone dry. A layer of dust covered the stone surface.

  "At least we know no one else has come this way," said Pi.

  "Unless there are other ways to reach the portal," said Aurie.

  Neither sister wanted to speak the obvious, so they moved into the tunnels. It was wide enough for the two of them to walk side by side without touching. The tunnels didn't always take them towards the beacon, so they had to double back at times.

  Pi kept looking over her shoulder so much that Aurie had to stop and ask, "Do you see something?"

  "Hearing," said Pi in a stage whisper. "I think, anyway. I can't decide if it's our footsteps echoing down the tunnels, or someone's following us."

  Aurie shouldered out of her backpack while saying in a loud voice that echoed in both directions, "Don't let your imagination get the best of you."

  "It's not my imagination," said Pi defensively, then seeing Aurie's face, nodded with understanding.

  While Aurie dug through her backpack, she said, "If this weren't so serious, I'd remind you of the time you nearly burned down that haunted house."

  "I'm sorry, but clowns are bullshit," said Pi.

  When she stopped, Aurie made a rotating finger gesture to keep Pi talking while she searched. The contents of her pack had shifted during the hike.

  "Haunted houses should come with a warning," said Pi, shrugging as she searched for words. "Like a rating or something. One clown means only clown-related materials on the premises. Four clowns means that Pennywise himself is going to drag you into the sewers."

  When the smooth stone bumped against her fingers, she yanked it out. It was a piece of amber. While Pi continued on about clowns and haunted houses, Aurie put a spell on the amber to make it glow if anyone else was near.

  She rotated in a circle, watching the chunk of amber closely. A faint golden hue formed on the far side, like it was turning to warm honey. But as quickly as it appeared, it disappeared, leaving the sisters to share bewildered glances. She tried it again, but the amber stayed inert.

  "Could be someone following us, or could be a large rat," said Aurie.

  "Could be a killer clown too," said Pi with a smirk.

  It wasn't long after that they found the portal. The tunnels led to a large room. A stone arch had been built in the center. The bricks had been set unevenly, the mortar thin in some areas, thick in others. A piece of rod had been formed to the shape of the opening. Runic switches covered nine-tenths of the rod, the final gap only a foot across.

  "They made this," said Pi in awe.

  "And we're going to finish it," said Aurie, pulling her sister to her side. They relished the sight of something their parents had made for a full minute before digging into their backpacks.

  Pi produced a handful of switches and approached the arch. The new switches were nearly identical. She snapped them into the gap, completing the circuit. A whiff of ozone entered the room.

  "Is this really going to get us into the Tomb of Kings?" asked Pi, with a fist planted on one hip. "It doesn't look that impressive."

  Aurie had a spiral notebook open in her hand, containing all the writings from her parents she'd collected. She addressed the arch, taking a deep breath before she launched into a series of quasi-Latin phrases.

  As faez hit the ring, the earth groaned beneath her feet, nearly interrupting the spell. Electricity crackled at the edges of the runic switches, bringing an eerie luminosity. Beneath the illusion of the brick arch, the truth was revealed—etched hieroglyphics pulsed on sandstone with a frightful intensity. A shimmering field formed before the opening.

  Pi's eyes were wide open. "Never mind what I said. That's really fucking impressive. Do you think that's the arch on the other side?"

  "That's what Mom's notes say. Which means no one has seen those hieroglyphics for thousands of years. Until now."

  "That's it? We can just walk into Egypt from here?" asked Pi.

  "Almost. I mean we can, but I want to ask you something first, Pi, and don't just give me an answer, really think about it," said Aurie.

  "If the question is, did I kiss anyone in Coterie, the answer is yes, and it was three boys and two girls," said Pi, then she made a face.

  Aurie laughed despite herself. She was too glad to see her sister to be mad.

  "I just want to make sure you know what you're getting into. I've read these books cover to cover, but you haven't. This is serious shit we're getting into. The pharaohs were gods of their time, wielding magic that we don't even really understand, even today. The Rod of Dominion is one of their most powerful artifacts. The kind of magic that protects it is stuff we might not even have defenses for. There's even a possibility that the curse was the reason for Mom and Dad's death. That it got them before they even stepped foot inside, that's how powerful it is."

  "I don't even know why you're asking, Aurie. You know what my answer is," said Pi.

  "I need to hear it from you," said Aurie, then held up her hand. "And not just a simple answer, I want to hear why. Or I'm not letting you come."

  "Older sisters are such a pain in the ass," said Pi with a wry smile. "I want to come for the same reasons that you do. I want to complete Mom and Dad's work. I want to help people."

  "What about the power? Isn't that why you joined Coterie? I need to understand your intentions," said Aurie.

  "I didn't join Coterie for power, I mean I did, but not really. I joined to protect the people I love. Which means you, you big dumb idiot," said Pi. "Even if I cared nothing about the Rod, I'd go, just to make sure you came back out. The fact that we can help those kids at the hospital is a bonus. Plus, sticking it to the Cabal."

  "Which technically, you're a part of," said Aurie.

  "Not after this," said Pi. "Once we get the Rod, I'll give up Coterie. It's not a big deal. I passed the Trials once, I can do it again."

  "What about the money?" asked Aurie.

  "We'll figure it out. Haven't we always? Though I guess I should have saved Alton's alchemy set. We could have sold it for a pretty penny," said Pi.

  "I'm sorry, Pi," said Aurie. "I know you worked hard this year."

  Pi gave her that grin she did when she was planning something. "I made some friends and learned some things. It's not all bad."

  "Alright," said Aurie. "You can go. Let's get this started. I'd hate for your patron to show up now."

  "It's not like you were really going to stop me," said Pi.

  Aurie gave her sister a wink, but Pi was already moving.

  "Race you there!" she said, then leapt.

  Aurie stepped through the portal a moment later. The temporal membrane tickled as she passed through, then a punch of vertigo hit her in the stomach, depositing her on the other side. She had only a moment to orient herself before Pi started screaming.

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Thousand-year-old dust puffed out from beneath Pi's boots the moment they impacted the stone. Her sister's hazy outline still moved through the temporal membrane like someone walking through a waterfall.

  The air tasted stale, almost as if she was chewing through it. She coughed into the crook of her arm, the noise echoing into the ancient space.

  Something skittered across the stone. Black. Shiny. The scarab leapt, its glistening wings fluttering momentarily before it landed on her leg.

  She cried out as it bit her, and before she could reach down to knock it off, the scarab burrowed through her jeans and into her leg.

  "Get it out! Get it out!" she screamed, horrified, clawing at the hole in her jeans.

  Aurie stumbled into the tomb beside her. The scarab was digging through Pi's flesh, right to the bone. The pain brought tears to her eyes, but through it, she stayed aware enough to spot a second scarab before it could reach her sister.

  Pi shot out a jet of flame to burn the scarab out of the air befo
re it landed on Aurie. She crushed the beetle beneath her boot to be sure, before falling onto the stone, ripping at her jeans.

  Aurie was frantic. "What is it? What's wrong? Did it get you?"

  "Watch for beetles," said Pi, through sobs. She got her fingers into the hole in her jeans and tore them open. A red divot marked the area where the scarab had gone in, but there was no other sign. "Oh my god, this hurts."

  "What's wrong? Tell me," said Aurie.

  Pi pointed at her throbbing leg. "A beetle went in there."

  The creature shifted against the bone, and Pi nearly passed out.

  "Get the knife," she said.

  Aurie pulled out a folding knife. The blade was barely two inches long.

  "Give it to me," said Pi, pressing the edge against the skin once she had it in her hands.

  "What are you doing? Are you sure?" asked Aurie.

  After a series of short breaths, Pi prepared to dig the knife into her flesh. Then the pressure, the feeling of the beetle inside her leg, dissolved as if it'd been made of ice and melted at once.

  The area around the red mark formed black lines, radiating outward, like the beetle had been made of ink and spilled into her skin.

  "Oh shit," said Pi. "That can't be good."

  Aurie cast a few spells over the leg. "No. Not good at all. That's a curse. A powerful one. I've never seen anything like it."

  After tentatively climbing back to her feet, Pi said, "At least the pain's gone, though I ripped my favorite jeans."

  The gallows humor wasn't appreciated by her sister. "Pi..."

  "Hey, I'm the one who's cursed," said Pi, taking small mincing steps to test the wound.

  "It almost got me too. That was quick thinking," said Aurie, poking at the dead scarab with the toe of her boot.

  "Good thing we didn't both come through at the same time," she said. "Did you figure out what this curse does?"

  Aurie's face did that thing where she looked like she'd just smelled a fart, which meant that she was lying.

  "The truth, Aurie. I'm not ten anymore," Pi told her sister.

  Aurie's lips scrunched up. "It's not good. I mean, you can already see that the black stuff is growing."