by John O'Riley
“I’m starting to really hate white magic,” Maggie grumbled. “If my brother was a mainstream wizard like everyone else, he’d be safe right now.”
“On the other hand, white magic has saved our lives on more than one occasion,” Helen pointed out.
Chapter 20
Charlotte knocked on the closed door of her sister’s bedroom and waited for a response. Arthur had returned several hours ago with two of his enforcers and was in an awful mood. Charlotte knew that he’d stolen the case from Josephine and it irked her that she and Yvonne suffered for it. So far, she didn’t have any symptoms but Yvonne was in constant pain. Charlotte frowned with concern and knocked on the door again.
“Yvonne, it’s me. Please answer,” Charlotte said.
Dread and indecision lashed at her as her sister failed to respond. She opened her mind to the subtle energies around her and focused on the room behind the closed door. The enchantment that encircled her and filtered her abilities prevented her from getting an easy read. Her head began to throb with exertion as she finally sensed her sister’s presence and tried to gauge her condition. She sensed Arthur and Clarence striding towards her.
Charlotte spun to face them with an accusatory glare. “This is all your fault. Alice could have cured us by now.”
Arthur was struck speechless for several seconds as a mix of outrage, surprise, and annoyance flitted across his face.
“Alice is an old has-been,” he said.
“She’s not that old and she was helping us before you swooped in for the kill,” Charlotte snapped.
“I’m trying to help you and you’re not making it very easy.” Arthur scowled at her. “And Alice is over eighty years old. She’s been retired for decades.”
“I’d rather be with Josephine and Alice than with YOU.”
“It doesn’t matter what you want. I know what’s best for you,” Arthur said. He reached past her to knock loudly on the door. “Yvonne, I need you to respond immediately or I’m going to enter your room.”
Charlotte remained in her current position blocking anyone from moving into the room.
She pinned a challenging gaze on Arthur. “You haven’t done anything to help us.”
“Step aside, you little brat,” he bit out.
Charlotte narrowed her eyes at him and planted her hands on her hips. “No.”
Arthur gestured with his hand and she was shoved by a telekinetic wave that pressed her against the wall. Clarence blinked with surprise and disapproval registered in his green eyes for just a split second before he followed Arthur into the bedroom. Yvonne was lying on the floor beside her bed staring up at the ceiling. Arthur pulled out a green mini wand containing a filtering enchantment to suppress Yvonne’s power.
“You should have used our family’s enchantments that they gave you instead of sending them to a lab to be studied,” Charlotte criticized him.
Arthur ignored her as he aimed the wand. Before he could cast the spell, Yvonne’s body began jerking spasmodically. Terror squeezed tight against Charlotte’s chest as she watched her sister’s condition deteriorate. A hazy green mist-like energy flowed from the wand and enveloped Yvonne’s body. It used to stop the seizures but Charlotte could see it wasn’t working this time.
“Clarence, I require your assistance.” Arthur glanced at him then returned his attention back to his target and pulled out another green wand.
Clarence pulled out two but before he could even aim them, he and Arthur were shoved across the room by a microburst of wind. Several lightning discharges sparked from Yvonne’s hands and struck the ceiling and light fixture. The fixture shattered and rained sharp fragments of glass over her and Charlotte who was still on her feet. Clarence and Arthur reached for their fallen wands as Yvonne’s body continued to twitch and spark lightning. Another microburst of wind tore through the room, shoving everyone away from her. Clarence and Arthur exchanged anxious looks before pointing their green wands and unleashing the filtering enchantments. The green, mist-like energy streamed from them but curved away from Yvonne as though she was shielded. The other three enforcers took up positions near the doorway with their wands extended. They shot telekinetic waves that deflected from Yvonne and smashed into the group. The three enforcers hurtled through the air and hit the wall in the hallway, sliding to the floor in a daze.
Charlotte swallowed as terror consumed her mind and she didn’t see how any of them could possibly live through this ordeal. Her sister’s skin radiated a silvery glow as power channeled through her as though connected to a vortex. Incredible amounts of energy built up in Yvonne’s body like a reactor about to explode. Charlotte held her breath as she waited for the end to come. The moment stretched to an eternity and she realized that the power was ebbing. Charlotte tuned her psychic receptors to scan her sister but because of her filtering enchantment she couldn’t get much detail except that she was definitely tapped into something powerful but the connection was dissolving. Yvonne’s skin no longer glowed and the energy dissipated swiftly. In another moment, there was no sign that anything extraordinary occurred except for the trashed room which was a disaster area. Yvonne’s body was pallid and her eyes were closed as she’d lost consciousness. Charlotte rushed over and knelt beside her.
She checked Yvonne’s pulse which was alarmingly slow. Her breathing was shallow and she feared her sister’s body would just shut down. Charlotte gripped her sister’s hand and wished she knew how to fix this mess. The crunch of glass alerted her to the fact that Clarence and Arthur were advancing towards her.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Charlotte bit out as her gaze remained glued to her sister.
“We need to stabilize her condition before she has another episode. You’ll need to move away from her,” Arthur said gruffly.
Charlotte hesitated as she didn’t want to leave Yvonne’s side. “All right.”
She stood up with reluctance and shuffled away from her sister. She watched in silence as Arthur and Clarence trained their wands on Yvonne’s unconscious body and cast the filtering suppression spell on her. Not that it seemed to do any good. Her condition continued to deteriorate. Charlotte knew that Arthur would stubbornly cling to the false belief that he could cure the two of them but it was obvious he lacked the ability. He had a lot of skill and potent magic but lacked the ability to remedy their situation.
Chapter 21
Mark took another sip of his sabia as he mulled over his situation. He was almost finished with his drink and there was only one bite left of his lunch bread resting on the plate. He wished he had some magic to spare for a few brief scans. He was surprised that he still possessed all of his enchantments that he’d carried with him when Hermina was obviously keeping some kind of secret from him. Mark wondered if he was just being paranoid or if his intuition had really kicked in for a few seconds. Perry had tried teaching him to utilize this valuable gift but unfortunately he hadn’t become adept with this particular skill.
Hermina fixed an amiable smile at him. “If you’re feeling up to it, I’d like to take you on a brief tour of the city and perhaps we can take a look at the portal at the Interplanetary Transit Center where you came from. When you’ve recovered enough to start working, I’d like you to work with my team there. They’re trying to open a portal to Earth so we can get you back home.”
“You’re too kind.” Mark was grateful but also cautious about this. “I’m surprised you’re devoting so much effort to helping me.”
“You don’t understand how much of a legend Earth is.” Hermina’s expression was excited with awestruck wonder. “Everyone for generations has dreamed of someday meeting our distant cousins from our home world. We all originated from there and it’s all a big mystery what happened during and right after the World Wars. Don’t be surprised when you’re out in public to find yourself the center of attention. You’ve been in the news since your arrival here.”
“So all of the colony worlds are all in contact with each other? Can
you visit between worlds?” Mark asked.
Hermina’s lips formed a wistful smile. “Not all but many of our worlds are in an alliance called the Kalos Confederacy. The other planetary governments are in clusters and separate from each other. The Kalos Confederacy is the largest and most stable. Some of the governments are corrupt and power hungry but the main reason we’re not all united is because of the vast distance between some of us which makes planetary travel more challenging.”
“Does it take more energy when there’s more distance between the worlds?”
“Yes, but if there is an active portal between both worlds, the energy needed to travel is much less. Not just by half like you’d imagine. It actually reduces the energy cost by more than ten times.”
“How is that possible?” Mark regarded her with astonishment.
“I’m not a scientist so I don’t understand the technicalities but the manner in which the travel occurs is different if there is a connection between two or more portals. I guess you can use the analogy of when groups magically link. Their powers don’t just double but increase exponentially for every member in their network. Do you have very many networks on Earth?”
Mark hesitated because he didn’t want to divulge too many secrets about the strengths and weaknesses of his planet’s defenses.
“There aren’t very many,” he admitted. “It’s considered very advanced magic and not too many people are skilled with linking.”
“That’s a shame. Most people are part of a group on this world. If you weren’t a White Knight, you’d have a lot of offers to join networks here,” Hermina said.
“When I came through the portal, why wasn’t there a connection made that can be used again?” Mark inquired.
Hermina’s brows furrowed with contemplation. “That is an excellent question. We’ve wondered the same thing. Can you tell me how you happened to be here?”
Mark knew the question would be asked and had been considering what he’d say. He decided just to tell her the whole story. He explained about APU 81 and how he’d been sucked through. Hermina’s blue eyes registered surprise but there was something else.
“You know about APU 81, don’t you?” Mark asked.
“We have more of a complete history than you do, apparently,” Hermina said. “APU 81 was part of a group that wanted to rule over humans. The artificial intelligences were created by accident as our technology became more sophisticated. You should know that not all of them turned against their creators. In fact, most of them were willing to live with humans as a part of mainstream society.”
“You’re one of them,” Mark hypothesized.
“You are correct. This body is a clone that was made from someone who passed away many years ago.”
Mark was astonished she’d admit to this. “Is there still a war going on then?”
“Oh, no!” Hermina made a dismissive gesture. “The ones who wanted to take over were defeated during the World Wars. They are long gone.”
“That’s good to know.” Mark was relieved to hear this news but wasn’t willing to believe it at face value. He planned on researching this information in a discreet manner later on. “Why don’t you have complete records dating back to the Great Wizard War if your technology wasn’t destroyed like Earth’s and the artificial life-forms like yourself have photographic memories?”
“Many of the weapons created energy disruption fields that resulted in purging of computer memory. All of the artificial life-forms were exposed to these attacks at some point no matter how well-protected they were. I don’t think I lost any data until I was hit by more than half a dozen of those blasts. It was a terrifying time to live in but thankfully I barely remember it at all except for just bits and pieces. It was so long ago.” Hermina’s gaze turned distant and reflective. “Our civilization has evolved and we’re now a much more stable and peaceful society.”
“So there are no more wars?” Mark asked.
“There are sometimes skirmishes among the smaller alliances but we stay out of it.” Hermina rose to her feet with fluid grace. “It looks like we’re ready to head out. I’m looking forward to showing you the sights.”
The two of them strode down a long corridor to a spacious elevator where two guards were waiting. They both wore brass wands with a pointed quartz crystal on each end. Their uniforms were of the same design as Mark’s except they were black and the rune-like symbols were different.
“These two gentlemen will escort us through the city,” Hermina explained.
“I didn’t realize you needed guards,” Mark commented.
They stepped into the elevator and the doors slid shut.
“I’m the president so a security detail is always required.” Hermina cast a curious gaze at him. “Is your world so safe that your elected officials venture out alone?”
“No, they don’t.” Mark offered a sardonic grin. The elevator started gliding downward on its own without Hermina pressing any buttons. “How do you control this elevator? You didn’t use the controls.”
“I don’t have to. I interface with the computer through brainwaves.” Hermina cocked her head at a slight angle. “Do all of your computers operate through push buttons?”
“Yes, they do,” Mark confirmed.
“How primitive.” Hermina looked horrified at the prospect. “So that means your original Earth infrastructure was destroyed during the World Wars. Is the Interplanetary Transit Center you mentioned in Venice the only advanced structure you have? How do Earth people live?”
“That’s the only Ancient facility we have,” Mark confirmed. “But we’re not primitive. We don’t live in huts. Our technology just evolved differently.”
“Do you use wizard glass in your construction?”
“No, we use other manufactured material.” Mark paused to gather his thoughts then described how buildings were made.
Hermina’s eyes widened slightly in surprise. “It doesn’t sound very sturdy. I would guess that such flimsy architecture would fail within a couple of hundred years except with a lot of maintenance.”
“How long do you people live? Three hundred years?” Mark teased.
“That is the average life span of a human.” Hermina noticed the stunned expression on his face. “What is it on your world?”
“About 80 years.”
“That’s unbelievable. Why do your people die off so quickly?”
“It’s just a normal life span.” Mark wondered why the people enjoyed such long life on Adamas.
Hermina’s gaze was distant for a moment then focused on Mark again. “I imagine it must be the extra vortexes we created on this world. They do have a restorative effect. The omnipotens are immortal, of course.”
Mark leveled a questioning gaze at her. “What are omnipotens?”
The elevator doors slid silently open. Hermina paused in the doorway.
“That’s what we call the people who have the ability to connect directly to a vortex without the aid of an enchantment,” she explained. “What do you call them on Earth?”
“Category six wizards or a six.”
“Interesting.”
“We only recently discovered that if they connect with a vortex almost every day they revert back to a younger age and become immortal.”
Hermina arched a brow. “How recent was this discovery?”
“Within the last six months.”
“Earth must have been truly devastated to have lost so much.” Hermina’s expression was sad but thoughtful. “Is APU 81 the only artificial life-form who survived?”
“Yes, it is the only one.”
“It’s interesting that it didn’t adopt a gender and identity of its own but kept it’s numerical name. It doesn’t sound like it evolved much after it became self-aware.”
“It was consumed by its need to enslave humanity and for revenge,” Mark said.
“How disturbing. And the authorities are unable to apprehend it? It’s still running loose?” Hermina asked.
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“Unfortunately.”
Hermina halted and regarded him with puzzlement. “Surely the Earth authorities can track down a known criminal? How long have they known about APU 81?”
“It’s been less than a year and the law enforcement isn’t used to tracking someone that can jump from one body to another at will.”
“I see.” Hermina’s gorgeous blue eyes registered surprise as she spun to face forward and continue their trek down the impossibly long corridor.
“How big is this place anyway?” Mark asked.
Her lips formed an amused smile. “You’ll see.”
When they finally reached a large door that slid up to reveal the outdoors, the fragrant aroma of evergreen and pine teased Mark’s nostrils. Even though this place was in the middle of a large city, there was lots of space between the large pyramid-shaped buildings. Mark and his three escorts left the building and ventured onto the concrete path. Mark waited until they’d walked for a moment or two before he stopped and turned to look at Hermina’s residence which was immense. It was much larger than the other city buildings and made of gold-colored wizard glass. A shimmering light shone from within its translucent depths.
“This is my next door neighbor you couldn’t see from out the dining gallery window.” Hermina pointed to the side.
Mark turned and gaped at the massive pyramid that was a replica of Hermina’s residence except it was double the size.
“And who lives there?” Mark asked.
“The King of Adamas, Ludovic Rupetra. We do a lot of work together,” Hermina said.
“I thought your government was a democracy – not a monarchy.”
“It’s a democracy but there is always a king or queen. Their legislative power is similar to a president. It’s almost like a second president except for a few minor things. The biggest difference is that I’m the one in charge of the military and I have the power to veto new legislation that is passed by Parliament,” Hermina explained.