by Sarah Noffke
“Well, of course,” he answered. “I’ve done my job. I’ve advised you, and you’ll get on that flight and hopefully recover the pages to Baba Yaga’s grimoire before meeting her.”
“And then what?” Sophia asked.
“Then I assume you’ll have to fight her,” he said.
“Do you know how we’re to use her broomstick to kill her?” Liv asked.
He shook his head, swiping his hand through the air. A gray tarp appeared and covered the shoeshine chairs. On it was a sign that read, “Gone Fishing. Be Back Never.”
Sophia couldn’t help but giggle.
“I’m sorry, I can’t offer you any more help,” he said, smiling at them. “I truly have enjoyed the opportunity to meet you. If I had known it was today, I might have chilled that bottle of champagne I’ve been keeping for the occasion.”
“So, you were willing to keep working, waiting for us to randomly show up one day?” Liv asked.
He shook his head. “None of this is random. You were fated to find me. The prophecy stated I must tell you to board that flight and start to collect the pages from the grimoire.” Athens pointed at the plane that was headed to Dublin, Ireland.
“And yes,” he continued. “I was willing to work here another twenty years if necessary. I don’t think you want to know what will happen if Baba Yaga gets her spell book back.”
“Something so horrible that your mother ensured you were here,” Sophia guessed.
He nodded. “I wish you two the very best and hope that you are successful. I dare say, the fate of the world rests upon it.”
Sophia gulped. Liv laughed. “I really wouldn’t be motivated unless the stakes were that high.”
Athens laughed with her. “Well, I better be off.”
“Final boarding call for flight 2126 to Dublin,” the ticketing agent said over the loudspeaker. “All passengers board at this time.”
The line was gone. They had to go now.
Sophia smiled at the old man, although she realized he couldn’t see it. “Thank you for your help and your service to this mission. It appears that we’d better be off as well.”
Athens and Denmark waved as they headed back the way the sisters had come. “Take care,” he said and then turned and disappeared into the crowd of travelers.
Chapter Seventy-Seven
“You’ve got tickets for us?” Sophia whispered to her sister as they approached the agent beside the walkway to the plane.
Liv held out her hand and two paper tickets appeared. “Yes, but it looks like I can’t magick seat assignments, so we’ll have to hope we can find two together.”
“I’ve never been on a plane before,” Sophia related, feeling nervous.
Liv laughed at her, spying her fear. “Oh my. You ride on the back of a dragon, but you’re afraid to get on a plane.”
“Well, to be fair,” Sophia said. “Planes were created by mortals and stay up in the air based on science.”
“And dragons are powered by magic, which is about the most unreliable thing on this planet.”
Sophia narrowed her eyes at her sister. “Although that’s true, nothing in my life is more reliable than Lunis.”
“Really?” she questioned, a playful smirk on her face. “Where is Lewis?”
“I’m not sure,” Sophia answered sheepishly. “I can’t communicate with him right now.”
Liv nodded, looking victorious. “Good thing you have me, Soph. I’m here for you.”
“Tickets please,” the agent said, taking them from Liv.
Her brow scrunched up when she read the two tickets. “Well, that’s curious. How come you don’t have seat assignments yet?”
Liv shrugged. “Last minute travel plans. They said you’d assign them here.”
The woman began typing on her computer and studying the screen. “Well, lucky for you two jet setters, we have exactly two seats. Unfortunately, though, they are not together.”
“Can we switch with someone?” Sophia asked, her nervousness over flying building in her chest. She really didn’t want to take her first flight by herself without Liv there to make jokes and take her mind off things.
The agent gave her an uncertain look. “You can always try. If it makes you feel any better, your rows are together, and you’re right in front of Ms. Biv Leaufont,” she said, handing Sophia a new ticket she’d just printed.
“Looky there, Ms. Bophia Seaufont, I can knee you in the back all the way to Ireland,” Liv teased.
“Can’t wait,” Sophia said, going down the walkway to the plane, her nerves drumming in her head. “So, you’ve flown before?”
Liv nodded. “Just once. It was before I was fully trained as a Warrior. The House of Fourteen wouldn’t allow me to use my portal magic until I was proficient with the skill. That’s what they said, but really, I think it was because Adler Sinclair, the old so and so, was trying to make my life hell, and there was no better way to do that than fly commercially with a bunch of grumpy mortals. Anyway, you’ll enjoy it.”
“Really?” Sophia asked. “Doesn’t sound like it.”
“Sure, it will be fun. We’re short, so we have plenty of room to stretch out,” Liv advised. “Be sure to tell the tall people next to you that as you kick your legs back and forth. They love to hear how comfortable we are on planes. Then ask them to get your luggage down from the overhead bins because you’re too short.”
“You’re such a charmer.” Sophia patted her sword. “I don’t really have any luggage since I’m not storing this.”
“Well, maybe the scorched broomstick then,” Liv said, indicating the object on Sophia’s back.
“Yeah, I’m not letting that out of my sight.”
Liv nodded. “We’ve got window seats, which is nice for watching the view—”
“Again, I fly on a dragon,” Sophia interrupted.
“Right, I’m sure the views atop Sean are breathtaking. Be sure and tell the person seated beside you that,” Liv said with a laugh. “All through the flight, be like, when I’m riding my dragon, the experience is so much better because of blank and whatever.”
“His name is Lunis,” Sophia corrected. “It sounds like I’ll be making some friends on this flight.”
Liv nodded. “Me too, because I have a bladder the size of a hamster’s so I’ll probably make the person next to me get up a bazillion times so I can pee. They always love that.” She then laughed loudly. “Oh! There’s something you don’t have on Geoff. You don’t get drink service on your dragon, do you?”
“No,” Sophia answered. “But he can shoot fire.”
Liv shrugged, not impressed. “That seems like a safety hazard. I bet that makes insuring him tough.”
Sophia wanted to laugh, but as the hum of the airplane grew louder, she had trouble breathing. She knew it was silly to be nervous about getting on an airplane when she rode in a saddle on Lunis, but for a magician who had rarely experienced many things about the mortal world, the fear of the unknown was overwhelming.
The flight attendant was giving them an impatient glare when they approached the door. “We don’t want to run behind, ladies, so please find your way to your seats and fasten your seat belts.”
Liv elbowed her sister. “Do you wear a seatbelt when on Alfred?”
Sophia shook her head, her throat feeling constricted.
“Oh, well, then maybe planes are a bit more dangerous,” Liv said, giving her a wink. “Bet you also don’t have a floatation device or oxygen masks on Walter.”
Sophia’s eyes widened. “Why do we need a floatation device or oxygen masks?”
“I’ll explain that during the safety presentation,” the flight attendant said tersely. “Please hurry to your seats.”
Liv gave her sister a commiserate expression. “Sorry, doesn’t look like we have time to switch seats.”
“I would think not,” the flight attendant scolded. “Everyone is all settled, and we’re waiting on you.”
The sisters rounded the
corner into the plane and realized that everyone had heard what the irritated flight attendant had said. They were all giving them seething glares.
Liv glanced over her shoulder at Sophia with a wicked grin. “Well, look, we’re already making friends, now aren’t we?”
Chapter Seventy-Eight
Spending a majority of her time on the Expanse at the Gullington or in the huge Castle did little to prepare Sophia for the cramped space of the 747. It actually intensified her anxiety and made her feel short of breath.
Sophia and Liv were little, and yet, sliding through the narrow aisle of the plane was challenging even for the two of them. That might have been because they both had large swords strapped to their hips, but she couldn’t imagine being a regular-sized person—unlike them, who were “fun-sized” as Liv often joked.
The annoyed expressions the passengers gave them as they passed were like a communicable disease that spread through the plane as people regarded them.
“Hey,” Sophia said with a smile as she moved through the plane.
“Oh, good,” Liv stated dryly. “Our seats are at the back of the plane.
“Hurry up already,” a girl with fake blonde hair and lips that were obviously not hers complained.
Liv ground to pretty much a snail’s pace, nearly making Sophia run into the back of her. “Hurry, you say. Like this?” She spoke like a sloth would and moved in slow motion.
“Ugh,” the girl said, tossing her locks off her shoulder. “I’m going to miss my tour of Blarney Castle.”
“Oh, that’s a great way for you to test out your new lips,” Liv joked, earning a contemptuous glare from the woman. “There are our seats.” Liv pointed to two seats a few rows back.
“Excuse me,” Liv said, smiling at a woman with slicked-back red hair and a tight smile. “You and I get to be cozy for the next several hours. It’s going to be fun, I assure you.”
The woman stood and removed plugs from her ears, making way for Liv to get to her seat. “I plan on napping.”
Liv nodded. “Yes, in between my potty breaks, I think that’s a great idea.”
Sophia gave the round man with crooked teeth an apologetic expression as she pointed to her seat. “That’s where I’m sitting.”
“Okay, I’ll get up,” the guy said in a thick German accent.
She slid into her seat, wishing Liv was next to her. Looking through the small oval window was like studying a scene from Mars. There were large hoses and strange vehicles on the tarmac beside the plane. Things in the wall of the plane made strange noises, and the humming made her feel she needed to pop her ears.
“Welcome to flight 2126 to Dublin, Ireland,” the flight attendant said over the intercom. “I’m Cecily, the senior flight attendant, and I look forward to taking care of you today. If you’ll please direct your attention to the front for a short safety presentation, and then we’ll be on our way.”
The guy beside Sophia yawned, not seeming the least bit interested as Cecily demonstrated how to fasten the seat belts. Sophia immediately went to work locking herself in and pulling the belt snug across her lap. Her sword wasn’t that comfortable at her side, but she’d made it work. She was able to stash Baba Yaga’s broomstick under the seat in front of her.
“Yeah, we’re going to go and fight this old lady who employs mean chipmunks,” Sophia heard Liv say behind her. “What do you do for a living?”
Sophia leaned forward, having trouble hearing what Cecily was saying. Something about the seat being used as a floatation device. She jerked her head down, trying to figure out how to unattach it.
“I’m a dam historian,” the woman replied.
“Well, okay. You don’t have to be so adamant about it. When you put it that way, I’m a damn Warrior,” Liv said with a laugh.
The woman shook her head. “No, like dams for water. I study them from an historical perspective.”
“Oh,” Liv said with understanding. “I liked it better when I thought you were trying to bring an exclamation to announcing your profession. Like everyone should add damn before saying what they do. ‘I’m a damn teacher.’ ‘I’m a damn accountant.’ ‘I’m a damn waitress.’ I mean, think how much more seriously someone would be taken then.”
The woman didn’t seem to be following Liv’s reasoning based on the expression on her face. Sophia knew her sister often got that reaction from people, and it only endeared her more to her sister.
“Anyway, so how does one get to be obsessed with dams?” Liv asked, making it nearly impossible to follow Cecily’s safety presentation. However, if anyone could make Sophia feel at ease as the engines to the plane roared and the recycled air filled the cabin, it was Liv.
“I have just always thought they were fascinating,” the woman replied.
“Beavers do, too,” Liv remarked.
With a polite smile, the woman stuck the soft plugs into her ears.
“Well, that didn’t take long.” Liv laughed. “How you doing up there, sis? We haven’t even lifted off the ground and my seatmate is already ignoring me. It’s a knack I have. Do you want me to teach you?” she asked, poking Sophia on the shoulder.
“Shush,” Sophia scolded, trying to hear what Cecily was saying as the woman held up an oxygen mask and demonstrated how to put it on and tighten it.
“Don’t worry,” Liv said, tapping her on the shoulder. “In case of an emergency, we can portal to safety.”
Sophia glanced over her shoulder and spied her sister through the crack between the seats. Liv leaned forward and gave the guy next to Sophia a smirk. Unlike the redhead beside her, he actually seemed a bit amused by Liv. “You can go through the portal too, but I’m not saving puffy lips up there. She can kiss my Blarney Stone!”
Sophia didn’t think she’d have the concentration to make a portal if the plane crashed. She hoped her sister would be calmer in that situation, and something told her Liv would be. There was little that flustered Liv because at her core, she hardly gave a damn. It was so impressive that it was like an art form.
“Are you going on vacation?” the guy asked.
Sophia shook her head. “No, for work.”
He nodded. “What do you do?”
“I’m a dragonrider,” she answered.
That earned her a look of surprise.
“Oh, that’s interesting.” The guy didn’t seem to believe Sophia.
She returned her attention to the flight attendant.
“What about you, sir?” Liv asked, entering the conversation.
“I’m just laying over to my final destination in Frankfurt,” he answered.
“I met a really nice ogre there recently,” Liv supplied.
Sophia turned back. “Frank was from Frankfurt?”
“Hard to believe, huh?” Liv said with a laugh before looking at the guy. “What’s your name?”
“Olaf,” he answered.
Another laugh spilled out of Liv’s mouth.
“Yes, like the snowman,” he said, smiling.
“Can we switch seats?” Liv asked her. “Olaf seems more fun than the dam historian. She’s damn boring.”
Sophia shook her head. She’d missed nearly all of the safety presentation. If there was a test, then she was going to fail. Sophia never liked to fail anything—especially things that could keep her alive in the case of an emergency.
Cecily held up a card and turned it over. “For more information, please consult the safety brochure in your seat back pocket.”
Sophia dove forward, frantically digging into her seatback pocket. She found something called Sky Mall, a paper bag, someone’s leftover gum in a wrapper, and then something she hadn’t expected.
A gasp fell from her mouth.
Chapter Seventy-Nine
Sophia’s hands were shaking as she pulled out the strange bit of parchment from the seatback in front of her. As she realized what she was holding, she was vibrating with excitement.
Although Sophia had never been on a plane, she kne
w the thick, faded piece of paper didn’t belong in the seatback pocket. She also suspected it hadn’t been left by the last passenger, like the gum.
Turning the page over, she tried to decipher the tight handwriting. Her experience as a magician told her something immediately. This was no brochure on safety protocols. Without a doubt, what Sophia was holding was from a spell book… a really, really old one.
Without asking for permission, Sophia dug into Olaf’s seatback pocket. He gave her a curious look, probably more interested in why she was leaning over his lap and touching his knees.
After emptying the contents, she discovered there was only “regular” stuff inside.
Holding up the piece of paper, Sophia turned to face her sister. “Hey, check your seatback pocket. I found something.”
Liv tilted her head and after eyeing the brownish piece of parchment, she began digging into her own. Sophia could feel her fingers pressing into her back and waited to find out if she found something.
Victoriously, Liv held up her own piece of aged paper. “I’ve got one too!”
“Check the other pocket,” Sophia stated, pointing to the dam historian’s side.
Liv did as she was told but a moment later, frowned. “Just boring stuff. But this is progress.” She ran her eyes over the handwritten page and then looked up at Sophia. “This has to be…”
“Two of the pages from Baba Yaga’s grimoire,” Sophia expanded, nodding. “Yeah, but what are they doing there?”
Liv smiled. “It’s like Athens said. We were fated to find him. These seats were fated for us to sit in. For whatever reason, they’ve been dispersed in places where we will be, almost like we’re supposed to get to them before her. Just like we found Athens. This whole thing has been set up.”
“But by who?” Sophia asked. She tried to read the complex spell on her page. It was no doubt a dark curse.
Liv shrugged. “Mama Jamba. Papa Creola. One of the many who orchestrate our adventures.”
“How do we find the other pages from the spell book?” Sophia tucked the page from the book into her cloak.