by Maria Dean
"Astrid, I don't like anyone but Nya and my brother."
"Which one?" Matilde stared at Astrid blankly. "Never mind," Astrid muttered to herself. "Xander's heart is in the right place. His dad died when he was a kid."
Sneering, Matilde said, "God, don't tell me it's one of those 'Daddy was killed by a dragon and now I've sworn revenge' kind of deals."
"He was shot by a police officer," Astrid corrected Matilde.
"Oh." Matilde stilled. She gave the monster expert a once over, watching him as he meticulously set the lock into place. Quietly, Matilde added, "Nya's brother was killed by a police officer last year."
"Everyone has something in common. Even pain can be a way to connect with others."
X's chair screeched, skidding back across the tiles. A yelp of pain followed the squeal. Both women turned to find X rubbing his head. "I finished," he said. "And got a little too excited in the process."
Astrid returned to his worktable and marveled at the work. The seal fit perfectly. Lorenzo outdid himself with the jade lock. As Astrid inspected it, she noted how he'd incorporated the Star of David into the piece. She ran a finger over the iron seal, leaving a trail of glimmering energy in her wake. Astrid recoiled as the lines began to glow. "I didn't mean to do that," she said quickly.
X and Matilde gathered on either side. "Nice work," Matilde snorted. "You made it magical."
The star within the iron plate glowed a bright gold, the light bouncing off the stark grey surface. The golden shimmer leaked out of the plate through the crack in the side, filling up the finer details of the lock with a gold sheen. "Wow," Astrid breathed.
"I think that means it's ready," X said.
Picking it up, Astrid wrapped it in her scarf. "There's only one thing left to do," she said, dread overcoming her. "It's time to place this on the gate."
"Should I call Gio so he can come be your guard lizard?" Matilde taunted her.
Astrid shook her head. "No, I need to do this alone. But there is something else you can do for me. I can't exactly Uber back to my old apartment building with this thing in my arms," she shot back. "Ready for a road trip?"
"I don't have a choice," Matilde muttered.
Before they left, X tapped Astrid's shoulder. "After this, we should probably talk," he said. "I still need time to process this whole dragon thing."
"How does coffee sound? I found a hole in the wall place in Near North with a good selection."
X smiled. "That could work."
Astrid left the library, her heart lighter than when she'd entered. Her journey until that point had been dark, filled with unpleasant twists and turns that broke her heart. She couldn't promise the rest of her day would go according to plan, but for the first time in a while Astrid felt as if she had a solid chance. Not at beating the alchemists, necessarily, but at feeling whole again. Her friends supported her, her aunt was behind her, and for the first time in years it felt as if she had a family again.
They were what would get her through the rest of this ordeal. Every one of them was a motivation. The promise of keeping Sally and the Lionheart employees safe. The notion people like Hilda Juarez and the Cooper family would be free of alchemic terror. The mere fact Giovanni was waiting for her when she got back. He and his family, Astrid's friends, would get her through this.
And all it would take was destroying the family she once had, years ago.
***
Matilde dropped Astrid off in front of her old apartment building, giving her a snide, "Good luck, loser," before driving off. Astrid's old key still worked, much to her surprise. Her landlord wasn't the most put together person in the world. Much of her apartment was still damaged, just as she'd left it. There was a notice on the door stating the landlord planned on getting it cleaned a month ago. Astrid wondered if he'd even tried, or if the fire damage made him give up the minute he walked in.
Everything was there, albeit destroyed. Her favorite blanket was singed around the edges. The couch took the brunt of the damage, burned so badly the cover continued to smoke when she brushed against it. Shards of glass covered the ground in front of her windows, damaging her favorite bookshelf. Some of the damage was manual, like the knocked over DVD case and the shattered plates in the kitchen. What the explosion hadn't touched, an angry alchemist had.
Strangely, Astrid's bedroom was unscathed. She sighed in relief, pausing to paw through her drawers. Her clothes were still in good condition considering she'd been wearing hand-me-downs from Nova and her work blazer for the past week and a half. Astrid grabbed a cozy flannel and layered it over her jacket. Where she was going, the extra layer would come in handy.
The alchemic shimmer was still there. This was the second to last step, the penultimate obstacle in Astrid's way before she could get to the locked realm. Her father had to have warned the alchemists she was coming. There was no telling how many of them would wait for her on the other side.
Bracing herself for the cold, Astrid crossed through the shimmer. A blizzard smacked her in the face and she stumbled back, losing her footing so quickly she fell back into her bedroom. "Fuck," Astrid muttered. The alchemists chose climatic warfare to set her back. Prepared she could deal with that. Possibly.
Astrid lowered her stance and barreled through the portal once more. Propelling herself forward, she catapulted through the snowstorm. In her attempt to get through the storm, she missed the obstacles on the ground like rocks. One large rock, in particular, which she tripped on. Astrid tumbled to the ground, landing on her back. The seal wrapped up in her arms, safe from the elements landed on her stomach.
Snow filled the inside of Astrid's shirt, sticking to her skin and freezing her on impact. She spit out clumps of snow she'd inhaled during her fall. Everything was cold, from her unprotected hands to her heart.
Come on, Astrid. You live in Minnesota. This is nothing.
It was nothing. She staggered back up and pressed on, keeping her face down and away from the blizzard. If she remembered correctly, the shimmer spat her out just outside the main square. It was only a few blocks from the statue. In graduate school, Astrid had walked a longer distance in much worse conditions. This was a cakewalk.
The streets of the alchemic realm were lifeless, as usual. The first time she'd wandered down them, Astrid felt uneasy and alone. Now she just wondered how many people occupied that realm. Houses lined the streets, some of which were lit from the inside. But no one walked around outside of them.
Then, Astrid remembered the tunnels connected the lab to the shimmer. There were similar tunnels in downtown Minneapolis, allowing pedestrians to wander about without experiencing the harsh weather.
"Goddamnit," Astrid said to herself. "They're shit at everything besides urban planning."
The square came up faster than she expected. Astrid chalked it up to her fiery determination and her adapted Midwestern nature. Spotting the statue, Astrid started to scurry across the open space.
A light in one of the nearby businesses went out. "Who's out there?" A man opened up the front door, braving the weather. "Hello?"
Astrid froze. She couldn't say anything, could she? Exposing herself would alert the rest of the alchemists to her presence. But saying nothing would make her look suspicious.
Then, a smaller figure appeared next to the man. "Daddy, what's going on?"
And now you've gone and ruined it. Of course, there had to be a child involved. Astrid hurried forward, not wanting to linger on the child for too long. What she was about to do wouldn't affect the kid. It couldn't.
"Don't start thinking they're good just because they have kids."
Astrid jumped. "Jesus Christ, mom, what the hell are you doing?"
Calypso exited a shimmer in the square. "Wondering why you didn't take an easier route. That shimmer comes straight from outside your library. The one with the Dougherty kid. Sweet boy, that one. Not that I deserve to have a say in your romantic partner, but why didn't you choose him?"
"Not the t
ime," Astrid continued toward the statue. "Are you here to help me lock them in?" Astrid had no reason to let her mother touch the lock. They shared the same ability to lock and unlock the Seal of Solomon. That was a lot of power she couldn't give away to someone she couldn't trust. Besides, the Russo cousins were counting on her and her alone. Calypso would have to prove herself to them later.
"You will need backup," Calypso said, following behind Astrid. "I noticed none of your friends are here. Wouldn't it be safe if you had the dragons behind you?"
Astrid shook her head. "Last time the alchemists came near my friends, Dad beat them within an inch of their lives. I can't put anyone else at risk."
Stopping at the statue, Calypso said, "What happens if you get hurt and don't have help?"
"I came here to lock them inside," Astrid said. "Whatever it takes."
The shimmer was invisible in the snowstorm. Its energy reached out to Astrid, calling her to come closer to the portal. "If I don't make it, I want you to tell Nova I loved her."
"And your friends, the Russos?"
"Don't go anywhere near them." To her friends, Calypso would always be a killer. They were hurt enough Astrid allied herself with Zion and X. The last thing any of them needed was to hear the news from a woman who had abandoned her daughter for a life dedicated to murdering people like them.
Astrid followed the shimmer's call, stepping behind the statue and into the locked realm. The golden gate had been flung wide open, the jade dragon lock in pieces on the ground. Astrid gasped, looking on at the destruction before her. The realm smelled like fire and sulfur, just what Astrid imagined Hell would smell like. High-pitched screeches and hearty roars rattled throughout the realm. One was punctuated by a crack of thunder, right before the realm light up with lightning.
"It's already begun," Calypso murmured behind her. "Quick, before they figure out we're here."
They each took a side of the gate. Calypso shoved one side, digging her heels into the ground when the gate didn't budge an inch. She gritted her teeth and turned around, pushing against it with her back. "I can't get it to move," she shouted to Astrid.
Astrid kicked the gate in frustration. "There has to be some way to move it," she said. "A trick of some sort to get it going, or..."
"Astrid, watch out!" Her mother launched forward and tackled Astrid to the ground. A bolt of blue lighting grazed Calypso's back. It struck where Astrid's chest would've been, had she been standing there any longer. "Are you okay?"
"Worry less about me and more about the lock," Astrid coughed. The seal was still tucked inside the scarf, hidden underneath Astrid's flannel. The sharper edges dug into her stomach as she tried to move. "Fuck," she muttered. "I think it stabbed me."
Calypso hurried off her daughter and held her hand to Astrid to help her stand. "That's the least of our problems." Her gaze fixed ahead of them. "Aaron."
Astrid's father approached them from the other side of the gate, a slight limp to his walk. His face coated in a red liquid, glittering silver now and then when the light hit him.
I didn't realize people actually bathed in the blood of their enemies. Astrid swallowed her nerves. "Dad," she greeted him.
"Sweetheart," he nodded back. "Calypso. Didn't realize you two had found each other."
Behind him, another dragon cried out in pain. The giant white beast trampled towards Aaron, silver-red blood pouring out of its neck. A pang of recognition struck Astrid in the heart. This dragon looked almost like one she'd seen in a dream, ages ago. A near copy of Matilde's dragon form. The dragon lashed out at Aaron, one last valiant effort at taking the alchemist down. He responded with a burst of furious lightning, striking the dragon in its neck.
It crashed to the ground. The poor beast stared up at Astrid, silently begging her to put it to rest. Astrid remembered what X said about the alchemists keeping dragons alive to make them feel as much pain as possible. If she could've helped, she would've.
"Don't worry about them, kiddo," Aaron drew her attention back to him. "They'll be taken care of soon. There are so many of them out here. The fields stretch for miles, with nothing but dragons as far as the eye can see. It's beautiful."
"That's fucked up, dad." Astrid shifted her weight to the side. "How do you sleep at night?"
"Comfortably, knowing I'm doing what I can to keep my daughter safe," he responded. "It's more than your mother can say she's done. How old was Astrid when you left, Calypso? Thirteen?"
"You mean when you threatened your daughter's life?" Calypso responded. "You planned to exploit your child for your own gain, Aaron. I had to keep her safe."
To their left, an alchemist screamed for help. Distracted, Aaron turned to see who'd fallen. Calypso took the moment to attack, knocking him down to the ground and pinning him against the earth. "Now!" She shouted to Astrid. "I can't hold him for long!"
"Won't you get stuck inside?" Astrid asked.
Calypso shook it off, kneeing Aaron in the stomach so he'd stay down. "It doesn't matter. I'd rather stay in here and keep your father trapped. It's the only way."
Astrid looked down at the seal. "You just walked back into my life," she said. "Now I'm supposed to lock you out for good?"
Aaron clawed Calypso's face, trying to rip her off him. "Don't do it, sweetheart. You're not thinking things through. Put the lock on and we're all stuck here until you let us back out. Who knows how many of us will be dead by then. I could be dead by then. Do you really want to sentence your father to his death?"
For a moment, Astrid watched her parents struggle beyond the gate. "You were never really my father," she said. "Calling now and then doesn't make up for neglecting me when I was a kid."
Desperately, Aaron pleaded, "we can start making it up soon! When I'm out of here..."
"Can it?" Calypso shoved his face into the dirt. "Do it now, Astrid. Don't worry about me. I've escaped worse places before, and I can do it again."
This would be easier if I could figure out how to do it. The book lacked a how-to guide on how to lock a realm. Repeating the phrase "apply to the realm" didn't help when Astrid wasn't sure what 'apply' meant.
She held the lock up to the gate. The Seal of Solomon started to glow once more. The golden energy poured through the lines in the carving until the whole lock was emitting light. Spotting part of the gate with broken hunks of jade still attached to the bars, Astrid rammed the seal into the bars. Nothing happened for the first few seconds.
"All that work," Aaron taunted her, "and you can't even make the seal correct."
Astrid pushed harder, allowing the pointed edges of the lock to break her skin. Blood dripped down the length of the gate, staining the perfect sheen. "I'm not giving up until it's locked," she shouted at her dad. "And you can't fucking stop me."
He punched Calypso in the nose, forcing her off him. "I didn't want to have to do this," he said, "but you've left me no choice." Aaron charged a blast of energy between his hands and let it loose, striking Astrid in the heart.
Electricity coursed through her body, lighting every nerve on fire. Astrid gritted her teeth through the pain and pressed on. As sparks flew from her skin, a golden shimmer overtook the lock. The Seal of Solomon turned white, before sticking to the gate. The golden entrance slammed shut, both sides swinging together with a loud clang. Astrid fell to the ground, her vision fuzzy. Her body went numb, and she could no longer feel the magic that once filled her heart. She was drained, hurt, and the only person who could get her out of the realm was locked on the other side.
"Astrid?" Both of her parents called her name, begging for her to be okay. How strange they still seemed to care, after being the driving forces behind the alchemic chaos. Astrid left her thoughts of them behind, letting the earth swallow her whole.
***
Somewhere on the south side of Saint Paul, a third grader was walking home with his mother. They'd had a half day, and the young student was eager to get home to see the rest of his family. He and his father had just retur
ned from a trip out west and he hadn't had much time to see his aunt or cousins.
Suddenly, his mother stopped. "What's wrong, momma?" He asked, pulling at her hand.
She pointed to an alleyway where a young woman lay unconscious on the ground. "I need you to call your older cousin," she dictated. "Giovanni will know what do." Beatrice Russo looked on at Astrid Pfeiffer's comatose form. "You're nothing but trouble," she said to her friend. "But at least this means it's over now."
That was all she could hope.
CODA
Astrid Pfeiffer was wondering if she should at "Magical defense attorney" to her title. The client sitting in front of her was a shifty wizard in the middle of a legal battle with an ogre. Astrid still couldn't process that one. He had heard from a 'Witch friend' Astrid was the best attorney outside of Russo and Yuma. A sneaking suspicion in the back of her head told her Nova was said witch, but she couldn't be sure. Her aunt was making rounds in the Twin Cities witch circuit, and it was entirely possible her friends were now telling Astrid's tale.
It had never occurred to Astrid stopping the alchemists would make her a household name. The cabal caused pain for more than just the Twin Cities dragon community. What they were now calling the Sealing was the biggest event in modern magical history. With VidaCo terminated and a massive chunk of the alchemists locked away, magical beings of all kinds began to crawl out of the woodwork. Many came straight to X, whose role in the alchemic ordeal was being blown out of proportion. They called him The Mythologist, and many looked past his history with the monster hunters to get help.
In turn, X sent them to either Nova or Calypso Gray, depending on the kind of help they needed. Nova started a rehabilitation program under Zion's supervision, giving magical creatures a chance to assimilate into a human society. As for Calypso, the now retired monster hunter made a home for herself in Rondo, where she helped manage social relations between slayers, hunters, and dragons. The church was not ready to give up their belief system, but upon learning the Russo family helped stop the alchemists, the slayers reconsidered some of their laws.