Wizard Hall Chronicles Box Set

by Sheryl Steines

  He sounded as though he was sad about the loss of the market and the loss of the magic in this place.

  “It sounds like you’ll miss the market,” Jack commented. He understood on one level, the desire to monitor the market and the difficulty it would be to do that now. But this seemed weird.

  “In a way, yeah. Ask Annie and Cham or any of the other wizard guards. There was something about being in the market. It was all about control.” Graham twisted his cursed athame in his fingers and stabbed the weakened portal. It sparked to life with a shot of lightning that flew from the portal, hitting a dead branch behind them. A fire took hold of the evergreen. Jack jumped.

  Graham waved a palm, putting out the fire before it could spread in the forest for real.

  “Does it always do that?” Jack asked.

  “Nope. It’s all wrong,” Graham responded. The two of them watched the portal grow and stretch, not quite to its normal size, but large enough for two men to enter. “Ready?” Graham asked.

  Eight months ago, Jack had been dragged into the world of magic quite by accident when the nonmagical Princess Amelie was killed with a hex. The journey had led him through a world he previously had no idea existed. He’d been to Wizard Hall; he’d watched them tamper with evidence for the cause of saving magic. Jack never imagined what he would see when he stepped through the portal.

  The amazingly large space stood before him, and though one foot was still in Busse Woods, this market wasn’t there.

  Jack followed Graham through the portal, which closed unceremoniously, leaving them inside the remains of the market, a desolate, fire-ravaged empty space.

  “It looks like a bomb already exploded,” Jack said.

  “Yeah. You should have seen it before. It would’ve blown your mind.” Graham smirked and led Jack through the aisle covered in a thick layer of ash.

  Jack could see by the piles of debris and the burnt canvases that were once tents just how many merchants there must have been in the market. The piles dotted the land.

  There must have been thousands!

  The market stank. Jack held his arm across his face. Smoke hung above the market, undulating and rolling, bumping against the remaining protection spell.

  “Who are these people?” Jack asked as Graham perused a pile of junk stored in a cart. There were bottles filled with liquids of all colors, strange body parts, and books. It was a veritable treasure trove of odd junk.

  “Members of the Wizard Guard from the United States, Argentina, Europe, and Asia. We have other departments here from Wizard Hall. There are a lot of dead shapeshifters, and the bodies need to be tagged and returned to their families if we can get them out. The group over there…” Graham pointed to several wizards and witches tending to what Jack thought was an exceptionally large lizard.

  A dragon?

  “That group is the Zoological Society. They care for, investigate, and observe magical creatures, depending on circumstances. There are several magical creatures left here. They’ll clean up the carcasses and transport those still living. Many of them are here illegally, anyway. It’s a big mess.”

  A group of witches collected books, torn pages from other books, magical items in glass containers, and boxes of stuff in general.

  “Most of my group is over there. The fires didn’t affect that area and there’s a lot of dangerous magical items. We’re almost done collecting what we can,” Graham said.

  “What exactly was sold here?” Jack inquired.

  “Anything. Potions, crystals, herbs, illegal and legal artifacts, wands, magical animals. It sold everything you could want.” Graham’s eyes swept the vast expanse of the burning market. “It will be hard to track anything for the time being.” His eyes stopped on a group of wizards around one of the few booths that was still standing, even though it had been caught in the fire. Burn marks dotted the roof, and smoke still rolled off the canvas.

  Jack matched Graham’s strides, treading along a crowded walkway that was filled with elves and trolls assisting with the cleanup, with wizards and witches pulling carts out of the market, carrying intact items that needed to be removed and stored or possibly destroyed. They sidestepped the dead carcass of a dog. It vibrated and shimmered as it slowly returned to its original human form.

  Jack jumped and brushed into a wizard. “Sorry.” The wizard grunted and continued along the walkway toward the Patagonia portal.

  “You okay?”

  “It’s just that…” Jack pointed to the dead body at his feet. He’d seen hundreds of them in his career, but none that sprung from the body of a dog. The enormity of the situation overwhelmed him.

  “It’s hard to watch that.” Graham waved a hand over, asking a member of Zoology to join them.

  “Hey, Graham. What’s up?” he asked and glanced at Jack. “I’m Dave Smith.” He held out a hand.

  “Jack Ramsey,” he replied and shook.

  “Oh. You’re the FBI agent. I’m friends with Annie and Cham. They told me about you.” Returning to Graham, he said, “How can I help?”

  “He just turned.” Graham pointed to the body below him.

  “Yeah. It’s been like that all day. We’re getting them as fast as we can. Sorry you had to see this. The destruction is… awful.” Dave called for backup, knelt beside the victim, and checked for identification in the pockets. He found a wallet and pulled it out, checking for any form of ID. “From Germany.” He waved a colleague over and began preparing the body for transport.

  “Have you talked to Annie and Cham?” Jack asked as Dave and his coworker began placing the body in a black plastic bag.

  Dave looked up at the nonmagical. “Yeah, they’re good. I talked to Annie’s sister. Cham took in a lot of smoke but he’s recovering well. Annie’s good. I’ll let them know you were here and asked.”

  “Thanks. Send my best wishes.” Jack hung around for a minute longer, watching Dave return his attention to the victim. When Graham tugged his sleeve and pointed to the tent, they headed out, leaving Dave Smith to his work.

  “Graham. Glad you’re here. We need specifics,” a man said from behind them.

  “Hi, Allen,” Graham said with a wary smile. “There’s not much to it. We have three hours to clean what we can, find whatever victims there are, remove artifacts. Victims and survivors go to the hospital; artifacts, potions, and books to Wizard Hall. The wizard guards have the ring and the spell. When they’re ready, we’ll vaporize the market and lower the protection spell.”

  “Memory modification?” Sky asked.

  “We’re waiting for permission from the Wizard Council, but yes, that would be the next step. We have to make everyone forget this… anomaly. Last thing: whoever gets tagged by the Wizard Guard for burning down the market, follow them and then head back to Patagonia,” Graham ordered.

  “Will do,” Allen responded and pulled his team together.

  After saying goodbye, Jack and Graham headed farther inside the once-bustling market. “Over there.” Graham pointed to a brick wall. The two men walked over to a nondescript door on the wall.

  “Stand to the side and wear this.” Graham summoned a mask and waited for Jack to stand to the right of the door a few feet away.

  The door, hot to the touch, was opened with a swift wave of his palm. As the lock popped, Graham stepped beside Jack and summoned the door open. The pressure of the smoke blew outwards.

  “What’s down there?” Jack asked as he took a breath and coughed.

  “This should be the dungeon.”

  Of course there’s a dungeon.

  When the smoke stopped rolling in large puffs, Graham summoned a flashlight and stepped in front of the open door. Still filled with smoke, the staircase was dark. “Okay. Follow close.”

  They entered into the smoky staircase, gingerly heading down the rickety wooden stairs. The stairs wobbled, affected by the heat.

  “What happens if this crashes in on us?” Jack worried; the stairs swayed as he took another step
downwards.

  “Grab hold of my arm.”

  After descending the bowels of the earth, they entered a rock-lined room. Graham’s flashlight illuminated the shackles still attached to the walls, a dead carcass hanging from one, another body on the floor.

  Graham rushed to the adult male body and knelt beside him, turning the face toward him, feeling for a pulse. “Gladden Worchester, the wizard that created this mess,” he said.

  Graham searched Gladden’s neck for vampire track marks. Just because he hadn’t seen any didn’t mean the man hadn’t been turned. He summoned a bottle of holy water. Jack grimaced, remembering his own experience with vampires and the holy water. He knew what Graham would be doing. After Graham poured a few drops on the dead man, Jack held his breath and waited for the vampire to spring to life. But Gladden Worchester was dead. Just plain dead, not vampire dead.

  “Milo told me about him.” Jack said. “Do you mind?” he asked as he searched the body’s arms and hands. Gladden’s shirt was burnt at the chest, so Jack pulled open the buttons and saw a large scorch mark across his chest. “Looks like John Doe’s,” Jack remarked.

  “That’s odd,” Graham said as he pulled out his crystal, running it across the mark. After examining the readings, he said, “Not wizard magic. He was probably killed by the djinn. Let’s get him out of here.”

  Graham unfurled a body bag and placed Gladden Worchester inside. Graham zipped him inside and texted a number, typing a short note.

  “It didn’t work out so well for him then?” Jack said.

  “Not so much.”

  Chapter 34

  Forced to rest until the last possible moment, Annie sat on her hospital cot, with the spell to turn the shapeshifters human lying on her lap. Mrs. Cuttlebrink and Emerson Donaldson sat near her in uncomfortable folding chairs, working on the spell translation. They had been at it for several hours. An exhausted Annie put her head against the head rest and closed her eyes.

  “I can’t see anything, Annie dear. I think the spell is good to go,” the librarian advised.

  Annie’s eyes fluttered open. “Emerson, do you see anything?”

  Emerson was still reviewing the text, ascertaining whether or not there were any hidden consequences to the words as they were written. She read with glassy, glazed-over eyes. She looked up, her gaze matching Annie’s.

  “Nope. Based on what the spell commands, there’s nothing in here that on the surface is bad. I think we’ll be good to go.”

  “Great. Now all we have to do is contain all of the animals.”

  Annie lay back and pulled the covers up to her chin. The air chilled her battered, tired body. She closed her eyes again to block out the makeshift hospital.

  One hundred feet from where she convalesced, animals barked and scratched, corralled into smaller sections as they waited to be returned to their original human forms. The guards in Busse Woods had already sent hundreds through the Patagonia portal.

  With the destruction of the market, it was more difficult to contain the magical exposure. And now the stress of performing this spell overwhelmed Annie.

  The drapes surrounding Annie’s bed fluttered open, and the din outside the tent grew louder as the team filed into her small recovery space.

  “Annie, how are you feeling?” Milo asked. He wasn’t his normal gruff self; too tired and stressed to keep up appearances.

  “I’m good.”

  But he isn’t.

  He paced at the end of her bed. His eyes, circled with purple puffiness, darted across the confined space and spied the ring on the bedside table. “And the ring is okay?” he asked.

  “Yeah.”

  Milo summoned the thick metal ring and placed it on his finger. “All this for an ugly ring.” He handed her back the ring. “Are you ready?”

  “Yeah. My expert spell makers are confident we’re ready,” Annie assured him.

  “Where are we on the Fraternitatem?” Milo turned and addressed Lial.

  “Good news. I figured out the Cave of Ages and its location. When you’re ready, Annie, we’re good to go. Did the archaeologist have anything else on them?” Lial asked Gibbs.

  “Nothing. She’s a bit bat shit crazy. Not sure she would even know,” Gibbs replied.

  “And the master? Have we found him?” Milo enquired of Spencer.

  “Nothing yet. When the shapeshifters are safe, I’m going to speak with Bitherby and find out how the djinn was summoned in the first place. I can’t imagine a genie won’t respond to a summoning,” Spencer replied.

  “Then let’s get this done,” Milo said.

  Annie, stronger than she had thought she was, pushed herself up and slid into the wheelchair beside her bed. Her brain, a little foggy from the smoke, took a moment in the seat as all eyes waited for her to make a move.

  “I’m good,” she said and sat back as she was wheeled to the animal corral across from the makeshift camp.

  The smell of dung, wet fur, and the slimy scent of rough scales, bombarded Annie as she entered the tent. Even though there were humans underneath the fur and scales, they still in most cases acted and smelled very much the animal they currently were, and they were hard to keep in one spot, preferring to slither or slink across the paddock.

  The team positioned themselves around the corral, a large circle enclosed with makeshift metal walls containing air holes. A large fan whirled above them, sucking out as much stale air as it could. The stench was still crushing.

  Each wizard guard possessed identical crystals, including Annie’s, all which had been cut from the larger rock that rested in the center of the paddock.

  Ryan, ignoring all orders to stay home placed a hand on Annie’s shoulder. “Almost done,” he whispered and squeezed lightly for support.

  The Ring of Solomon sat on her finger and twirled when she moved her hand. Annie closed her fist and held it out while waiting for the ready signal. As everyone found their position, they raised their hand in the air. When the entire team was in position, Annie pointed the ring at the center of the corral and chanted.

  “Mighty Wiccan spirits hear my cry.

  Turn them back to the other side.

  Make them whole once again,

  Bring them back to the original form.”

  The ring vibrated on her finger and sent its magic to the crystal that glowed a bright, white light. It shimmered in the dimly lit tent; a white light flew from the stone and sped around the perimeter of the corral, searching for the matching crystals.

  Each crystal accepted the magic and smoldered in the same beautiful white light; the magic jumped from the crystals in all of the team members’ hands and joined together at the center of the corral where a crystal had been laid. White, shimmering light blanketed the animals in magical light.

  Growing up in magic and raised by a wizard guard, Annie had seen a lot. And yet, some spells still left her in awe, this being one of them. The transformation was immediate. As the creatures were covered in the spell, the animals shimmered and vibrated, and their features changed. Fur retracted, hair grew, snouts flattened and became human noses, ears sprouted on the side of heads, legs grew, and arms waved. Some bodies shrank, and others grew taller.

  A mist shimmered, swirled, and undulated above them; the magic attached to each shapeshifter, their bodies reverting to their original form.

  As they returned to their human bodies, it was as if they all woke from a long nap. Confusion appeared across their faces. Some spoke in hushed tones, and others backed away, confused as to why they were trapped with hundreds of others.

  “People. People!” Milo shouted as he stood on a chair. A confused din of voices looked awkwardly at the man above them. Slowly, they hushed until silence filled the paddock.

  “I don’t know how much you know about what happened to you in the last three weeks, but we will help you sort it out. You’ve been trapped in your shapeshifter body, unable to escape the black market.”

  Angry and scared voices reacted
with shouts and screams. One man fainted. Medical staff rushed in to examine him as he lay in a pile of straw. After the staff had removed the sick man to a medical tent, Milo began again.

  “People. I know this is confusing, but we have several wizard guard units from across the world. They are outside. Find your country of origin, and they will lead you to the hospital and help you get home. If you have questions, please ask the guards.” Milo finished his speech and watched as they were slowly led out of the paddock and into the chilly air.

  Chapter 35

  “So are we all set?” Milo asked Graham. The department managers strolled along the remnants of the market. Though they said they were verifying the location of every crystal needed to vaporize the market, they were really just strolling and reminiscing before it was completely gone.

  “We’re using our own spell and not the one from the Fraternitatem. Just to be safe.” Graham knelt down and repositioned one of the crystals, laying it on the former path.

  “Benaiah and the archaeologist got what they wanted.” Milo surveyed the former black market. Completely empty now, it looked like an isolated desert.

  “Too late to worry about it now.” Graham stood and followed Milo’s gaze throughout the wasteland. “Are you staying?”

  Milo smiled. “Yeah. I should be happy, but I have a sense of dread I can’t quite explain. I’m staying.”

  With all the rocks in position the rest of the wizards headed out through the Patagonia portal, the final portal in Busse Woods along with the rest of the two hundred portals that once graced the world but had just been destroyed.

  “Ready to go,” Graham said to the team. Allen and Sky from the VAU, Spencer, Gibbs and Emerson from the Wizard Guard. Each crossed the threshold of the portal for the last time.

  The entrance was weak and dying; it lacked the requisite lightning and swirling whirlpool of air. Instead, all it managed was a light whistle of air that grazed Milo’s hand as he stepped through. Five wizards stood in the cold desert of Patagonia while Gibbs stood with one foot inside the market and one foot in the nonmagical desert. With his palms facing the large crystal at the center of the former market, he silently chanted the spell.