Hungry Earth (Elemental Book 2)

by Oxford, Rain

  “Hopefully, you all remember the Law of Contagion, which Alpha Flagstone taught you last year. It states that objects or beings in physical or psychic contact with each other continue to interact after separation. This is the key to all tracking spells that I will show you today.”

  There was a white plastic table set up in the front of the room that everyone gathered around. Remy had five boxes set aside for later. In front of her was a white ceramic plate about a foot in diameter. She also had a glass cup, a small bottle of silver liquid, and a gold coin.

  “The spell I’m teaching you today works with most liquids, but this is perfect.” She poured out the bottle of liquid into her hand. It looked exactly like mercury, which was dangerous, especially if inhaled.

  “Is that mercury?” Krissy asked.

  “No, mercury balls more than that. It’s gallium,” Darwin said.

  “Correct; this is gallium. Unlike mercury, this is supposedly safe to handle.” There was a gray residue left on her palm as the liquid poured back into the bottle, while some of it clung to her skin. She manipulated it easily with her fingers until it balled up. “It’s not a pure metal like mercury, and it isn’t liquid at room temperature. Instead, this can melt in your hands. The gray residue it leaves on your hands can be washed off with soap and water. Also, you don’t want to put it anywhere near aluminum because it will bond and weaken the structure of the aluminum.

  “Each pair is getting one vial of gallium and one plate to use. Both members of the winning team will be given their own new set. This works well with metal and wood objects, but not so much with cloth or foam. I can teach you another spell for those later. Right now, we have a single gold coin from a box of treasure. Obviously, one coin is worth a lot, but who wouldn’t want an entire box full? So we’re going to find the box.

  “First, you have to be able to imagine what the box looks like or where the coin came from. If you know exactly what you’re looking for, that’s even better. Picture it in your head, not the coin itself.

  “Next, pour your gallium into a glass or ceramic cup. Then you drop your object into the cup.” She did so. “Give it a few minutes in the gallium and focus extremely hard on what you’re trying to locate.

  “Lastly, pour your gallium and object onto the plate. The gallium will form a reflective surface and act as a crystal ball; you will see where the item you are trying to locate is. Sometimes, it’s a little difficult to understand, because it will be tailored to whoever cast the magic.”

  When she poured the cup’s contents out onto the plate, the gallium immediately evened out. After a few seconds, the reflective surface fogged over with what looked like mist, which quickly formed an image of a familiar office with a chest propped open on the couch.

  Remy scoffed. “I told Rosin to hide it, not put it in my office.”

  A few minutes later, Darwin and I were given a box and told to find the object before the others. We took the kit across the hall to an empty classroom where we could work without distractions. In the box, we found a white ceramic plate, a plastic bottle of gallium, a glass cup, and a pearl necklace. The gallium was solid, so I breathed hot air into the bottle, then closed it up and put it in my jacket pocket.

  “What kind of treasure chest has pearls in it?” Darwin asked.

  “An old one? Actually, I don’t think we’re after another chest. Maybe we should be looking for a jewelry box.” It took a while, but we got the gallium completely liquid. It was more like tinfoil in solid form. We put it in the cup with the pearls and focused. When I poured the cup out, everything went exactly as it had for Remy.

  Instead of Remy’s office, we saw another teacher’s office, along with the teacher sitting at her desk. On top of her desk was a small wooden jewelry box.

  “That’s Professor Agnes. She one of the shifter professors who keeps telling me my throwback genes are in my head and that she’s going to flunk me every semester unless I shift. She’s a cow.”

  “She shifts into a cow?”

  “No, she’s always a cow.”

  “Someone is going to slap you one of these days.” Darwin showed me to the professor’s office, but not without stopping at every window, painting, and bathroom along the way, as well as to check the map and continue taking the same wrong turns. “Darwin, everyone else is going to be in front of us and we’ll have to clean the libraries.”

  “I’m sorry,” he lied. He just didn’t want to see his teacher. “She’s this way.”

  We arrived at a door a moment later. Before Darwin could try the knob, I knocked. There was a frustrated sigh and then a “Come in.” Darwin opened the door, hesitantly and with exaggerated horror. Although the office was structurally similar to Remy’s, the wall to wall clutter was not. Between the stuffed animals on the couch, the frilly statues placed randomly along the room, and the white lace curtains, I could see why Darwin didn’t get on with the woman.

  “Another one?” she barked.

  “We weren’t the first ones here?”

  “No,” she sneered. “Another pair took my cherry tree.” Darwin and I glanced at each other. “What are you here for?”

  “Shit!” Krissy yelled, entering the room behind us with her partner, Luis.

  Luis rushed forward and grabbed the vitamin bottle off the professor’s desk. “We’re gonna win! I’m not cleaning any damn libraries.” He and Krissy left.

  “So… everyone has something different?” Darwin asked.

  “No, I don’t think so. Krissy and Luis must have gotten a vitamin pill, and whoever got the cherry tree must have gotten a cherry. We got a necklace. What do all those things have in common?” Darwin turned to the teacher. “Yep. I think it’s a who and not a what that we’re looking for. If we’re wrong, we can’t make it back to class before the others anyway.”

  “We’re here for Professor Agnes? I would rather clean the libraries than kidnap a professor,” he said, not even trying to be discreet. Professor Agnes scowled.

  “You don’t have to kidnap me, Mason. You just had to figure it out first. Both of you can head to your next class and I will let Ms. Hunt know you two are the winners.”

  * * *

  All week, I walked by the door to the underground level, only to find there was one of the professors guarding it. When I found Alpha Flagstone standing guard, I asked him if there was any news or at least a guess on when the vampires could move back underground.

  “They may not be able to until the council leaves.”

  “Why? What does the council have to do with the creature down there?”

  “We’re working it out. Go to class.”

  The council was perfectly fine with the vampires staying with the students, but it looked like they were getting anxious. I was heading to see Professor Langril for my elemental training when Kale intercepted me in the courtyard. “Have you found the witness yet?”

  “No.”

  “I thought you were a good investigator,” he sneered.

  “It’s difficult to work on cases when I have homework. That’s why I stopped taking clients during my semester. If you want me to find your witness, you have to work around my schedule.”

  “We are paying you by the day.”

  “You’re paying me by the hour, and only for the hours I work on the case. When I find something out, I will update you.” I passed him without another word and he didn’t attempt to stop me.

  Darwin was pretty distracted as well trying to make the school function better, but I made a mental note to remind him when I returned to the room. Having school clubs wasn’t all that great when we had a killer on the loose.

  Professor Langril was waiting for me when I arrived at the forest. “How is your little statue doing?” he asked.

  I had actually forgotten about it. During my studying of textbooks and Vincent’s grimoire, the little statue just became an eerie ornament on my desk. “It’s still in one piece.”

  “Did you name it?”

  That was anothe
r thing I had forgotten to do. “I haven’t thought of anything appropriate yet.”

  “At least maybe that means you’re taking it seriously.” He turned and walked into the woods, so I followed. “I trust your classes are going well?”

  I wanted to say that it would help if people told the truth and stopped trying to use everyone else in their schemes, but if that impossibility were to happen, I would be out a job. “My classes are going well. My potions professor is a weirdo, though,” I said instead.

  Langril laughed. “What do you want me teach you in earth magic?” he asked after a few minutes.

  “I don’t know. Maybe I can move rocks or something. I still don’t understand what earth magic is. I know you say it is strength and nurturing and all that, but that isn’t magic.”

  “What is it then?”

  “That’s regular human characteristics. Or people characteristics, I should say.”

  “Did it occur to you that they are the same thing? Magic is not just a way of life. For us, magic is our life. We are made up of the elements, as is the world around us. Wizards are those who can control these elements in themselves and their reality with the ultimate goal of controlling the fifth element. Fae are similar, but we can discuss them another time.”

  “But what about my mind controlling power?”

  “That is where you are unique. Wizards must learn the ability through painstaking practice, a deep understanding of the essence of magic, and usually a personal sacrifice, whereas it is a natural part of you.”

  A freakish part of me.

  “Unlike other paranormals, we have a plethora of options, which can be a disadvantage to a wizard who is unable to think on their feet. For example, a swordsman walks into town and is accosted by a gang. He is allowed a sword or gun. Which would he use?”

  “If he’s trained with a sword and not a gun, he would probably use a sword. He might die, but he would still probably use a sword.”

  “Right. Most fae types have one particular, powerful, defensive strategy. Shifters use their animal’s defenses. For wizards, it can be difficult, which is why Quintessence, influenced by the original Golden Dawn, enforces the element training. If a master wizard is attacked by, say, a creature made of earth and water, what would he use to destroy it?”

  “Probably air and fire.”

  “Exactly right. Every normal wizard who has been trained at Quintessence would do just that. But what would you use?”

  I thought about it for a moment. “I would probably try to control its mind, if it had a consciousness, or its maker’s mind if it doesn’t. I try to control the elements, but when I’m actually in danger, my psychic powers keep creeping in and I end up with exploding water or something.”

  “With each element you master, you will learn to control more of yourself and your psychic power. This is why you are in the earth element now; you believe to control your magic means never to use it.”

  “I don’t want to never use it; I just don’t want to accidentally control people. Or worse; turn out like John.”

  He nodded. “I have decided your lesson for tonight is to get out of the forest.” With that, he stepped out of the clearing and vanished.

  “Great.” I started for the castle, only to hesitate and stop before I could make it more than a few feet. The sense of danger brushed against the back of my mind like a cold breath down my spine, but it wasn’t normal. I wasn’t under attack and I didn’t feel like someone was watching me.

  A small tug on my boot startled me. I jumped forward and turned, but there was nothing there, only tree roots sticking out of the ground. My jeans must have caught on something, I thought.

  As if it was ever that simple.

  There was no moonlight, so I could barely make out a path let alone watch for obstructions. Despite that, I walked faster this time, paranoid that something in the dark was moving. I knew from my previous semester that it was very likely.

  Something wrapped around my legs, all the way up to my thighs, and tugged. I fell fast and the frozen ground made for a painful landing. A small rock stabbed sharply at my left elbow. My hands dug into the icy dirt as I was pulled backwards. I twisted until I was on my back and able to see what had a grip on me.

  Jesus Christ!

  It was a damn tree! Bare branches wrapped around my legs like snakes. They weren’t terribly fast moving, but they were strong. Although the trees themselves weren’t uprooting to attack like in the movies, they were very old and large enough that the branches could easily reach me.

  Once again, I regretted not carrying a knife on me as the bark of the branches scraped the skin from my palms. I tried to pull them off, but they kept creeping further up my legs and around my waist.

  I opened my mind to search the forest for the professor’s mind and found only animals and smaller creatures. A small wolf pack, about as far away as the castle, took notice, but I wouldn’t call them. I didn’t want to endanger the animals.

  My foot hit a sharp rock, which I picked up and used to hack at the vine-like branches. I didn’t care when the rock stabbed at my skin easier than it cut through the branches because it did make some progress. One of the two branches snapped and I was able to kick until I was freed. I ran towards the castle, only for the trees to create a wall in front of me. My power was the ability to control minds, and here I faced a creature that had no mind.

  The strangest thought came to me, not a plan, but the image of the little mud statue sitting on my desk. I thought of Vincent’s book and basically opened my mind to it like I would a person or animal. Images of sentences, incantations, formulas, and symbols flashed across my mind.

  A branch wrapped around my chest, picked me up, and then slammed me onto the ground. I tried to cut the binds with the rock still in my hand, but the branches lifted me and then slammed me down again.

  I’m getting beat up by a tree.

  Somewhere in the middle of my struggles to get loose, I thought I sensed Astrid nearby. When I opened my mind to my surroundings, there was no person, vampire or otherwise, in the forest with me.”

  Suddenly, the tree let me go. I sat up and encountered the strangest creature I had ever seen. In the past six months, it was not uncommon to see people change into exotic animals, vampires who were actually good people, cats that a person can see and hear through, and tiny winged women. This was not anything as charming as that; this was a husky, humanoid creature about a foot tall with a gnarly gray beard and russet-colored clothes.

  The creature held up his hands to the trees as if warding off a beast. Fortunately, the trees obeyed the smaller creature and retreated into their natural positions. Only then did he turn to me. The deep scowl and permanent frown lines in his forehead didn’t bode well for me.

  “Thank you,” I said. “I’m Devon.”

  “We know who you are, Devon Sanders,” he sneered. His voice was small, like him, but not high.

  My sense of danger settled, so I figured this being before me wasn’t about to attack me. “How do you know me?” I certainly didn’t know him.

  “We are the elementals of the earth.”

  Gnomes, I thought, but didn’t say. He waited expectantly and I didn’t know if he wanted me to be impressed or reverent, so I responded with my best “go on” stare. I would be polite because I knew he was the essence of nature, but I wouldn’t kowtow to him.

  “You are a threat to the balance of nature, Devon Sanders.”

  I didn’t understand, but that couldn’t have been a good thing. “Why did you just save me, then?”

  “Because you are also the only one who can stop Leara Kingling.”

  “Who?”

  “Leara Kingling will unleash death on this world. You will stop him, and we will help you do it.” With that, he sunk into the earth.

  The trees didn’t try to stop me this time. Walking on autopilot back to the castle, I rolled the name around in my head. I had never heard it before. “Leara” sounded like a woman’s name, but
the gnome had said “him.”

  Darwin was waiting for me outside the doors to the dorms once again, and he looked miserable. “What happened this time? Did Jackson come back?”

  “I know who the witness is.”

  “I take it it’s not good news?”

  “It was Amelia.”

  “Shit. What did she see?”

  He shook his head. “I haven’t confronted her on it. We’ll have to go and ask her. She’s in her room right now.”

  “How do you know it’s her?”

  “Cassie said she saw Amelia running from that direction. Because Amelia was panicking, Cassie asked her if she was alright. She said she was coming from the infirmary, but Mack was in the infirmary all night, except for when he went to the bathroom. He saw her go into a vampire’s room. I’m not sure she saw anything, but we need to talk to her.”

  I nodded. “Where is Henry?”

  “I was going to tell him, but there were some girls trying to convince him to date them. I tell ya, it’s the ones they can’t have that they want.” I followed him to the third floor, where he showed me to the third room on the right.

  “You know everyone, don’t you?”

  “No, not well. I try to find enough about everyone so that I’m never caught unaware.”

  I knocked on the door and after a few seconds, it opened. Amelia wore an old-fashioned, white nightgown. Even though she looked very different from Astrid, the nightgown alone was enough to bring up the memory I tried so hard to block out. Astrid’s nightgown soaked with the blood of my parents.

  She frowned at us, but turned to her roommates, one who was a wolf shifter and one who was a witch that I had in two of my classes. “Will you two give us some privacy?” she asked. The girls nodded, stood from their desks, and walked past us. “You know about Cooper?” She went over to her chair and sat down.

  “We’re not accusing you of anything, we just want to know what you saw,” I said.