“Maybe we could go inside and you can tell me about it.” It was the only thing Conryu could think to say.
“Yes, of course, please.” He hobbled to one side to let them in. “The door to your left leads to the living room.”
Conryu moved between Maria and the old man just to be sure he didn’t accidentally touch her. With all that dark energy swirling around him even a graze would hurt her.
They stepped through the door and into hoarder central. It looked like every newspaper since the guy had been born littered the floor. Several humps that might have been chairs sat across from a longer hump that was probably a couch. The only uncovered piece of furniture was the tv. He had the news on.
Conryu, Maria, and her mother stood in an awkward little circle, none of them certain what to do next.
“Sit down, sit down.” Mr. Montgomery plopped down on the floor, adjusting the papers to make a little nest around himself. “When I saw you on the news last summer I knew it was fate, destiny.”
Destiny again, great. Conryu settled on the floor facing Mr. Montgomery. Maria and Mrs. Kane eyed the dirty papers. He understood their reluctance. Their suits probably cost a grand each.
Conryu took off his jacket and spread it over the floor. The ladies settled on it with grateful smiles.
“So tell me about this curse,” Conryu said.
“For ten generations my family has suffered from creeping madness. It sets in at forty, the age my many-times-removed great-grandfather stole a book from a witch’s library. It’s a hideous thing with a pebbly green cover and yellow pages made of human flesh. The words are written with the veins and blood. It has a pulse. You can see the blood moving through the vessels.”
Conryu shuddered. “Where is it?”
“In the library. I keep it locked up tight.”
“Is that the reason for all the wards?” Mrs. Kane asked.
He nodded. “If someone stole it the curse would afflict their family as well. I couldn’t compound my ancestor’s crime like that.”
“So what is it you want me to do?” Conryu asked.
“End the curse!”
“Yeah, but how exactly?”
“If I knew that I wouldn’t need you. All I know is the wizard I consulted said a male wizard was the only one that could break the curse. I thought it a sick joke at the time. Then I saw you and knew hope for the first time in my life. Please. You can name your price. All that I have is yours if you can free my family of this nightmare. My son will turn forty in three weeks. Please, help me.”
That was perhaps the most pitiful speech Conryu had ever heard. Unfortunately it didn’t bring him any closer to knowing how to help. “Can we examine the book? I might glean some clues from it.”
“I can’t go near it. It pains me to even be in the same room as the wretched thing. The library is down the hall, third door on your right. The book is locked in a glass case. The key’s been lost for a hundred years.”
They left Mr. Montgomery muttering to himself in the living room and followed his directions to the library. If the living room was pure chaos the library was the opposite. Bookcase after bookcase, each shelf filled with a single, precise row of leather-bound tomes, covered the walls. In the center of the room was a stand with a glass enclosure.
Conryu stopped in the doorway. “Are you guys sure this is something we should get mixed up in? I mean this is quite a bit more serious than stopping some raccoons.”
“It is,” Mrs. Kane said. “But unless you’re willing to leave Mr. Montgomery in the state we found him, I don’t know that we have any choice but to investigate and try to help.”
He looked to Maria. She just shook her head. “You don’t need me to tell you the right thing. Quit dawdling and get in there.”
He smiled. Trust Maria to cut to the heart of the matter. Conryu stepped through the doorway.
“You’ve come at last, Master.” A deep, booming voice filled the room.
Darkness gathered at the corners of Conryu’s vision. Maria had taken a step into the room, but he pushed her back before the darkness fully descended. That much dark energy might have killed her.
All around him it looked like someone had spilled a giant bottle of ink, save for the stand and a narrow path over to it.
“Who are you?” Conryu asked.
“I have forgotten. I know only my purpose.”
“What is your purpose?”
“To impart my knowledge to you.”
“To me? You don’t even know me.”
“My creator knew you. She made me to serve you.”
Conryu massaged the bridge of his nose. The mother of all headaches was building behind his eyes. “Maybe you’d better start at the beginning.”
Maria stumbled when Conryu pushed her and a moment later darkness descended on the library. She shuffled back, her chest aching from the proximity of so much dark energy. If she’d been in there when the barrier fully manifested it could have killed her. Conryu must have realized it and shoved her to safety. What had he stumbled into now?
“Mom?”
“I don’t know what to tell you, sweetheart. I can’t see or sense anything beyond that wall of darkness. When I agreed to take this job I envisioned a simple demonstration and an easy payday. I never imagined something like this happening.”
“What do we do? He might be in trouble.” Maria was on the verge of tears and hated herself for her weakness.
It seemed like whenever anything happened all she could do was wait and hope her best friend survived. Why was she so useless?
“I was mean to him on the train home.”
“Why?”
“I was jealous. Conryu helped Kelsie Kincade with her breaking and she seemed infatuated with him. She’s rich, pretty, and in most of his classes. I’ve been so busy studying I haven’t had much time to hang out with him.”
“You were afraid he’d drop you for Kelsie?”
She nodded and couldn’t look at her mother. It seemed such a stupid thing to be mad about now.
“What did he say?”
“Conryu says they’re just friends and they probably are. You know how he is. If someone needed help he’d do whatever he could. Kelsie definitely has a crush on him. I could tell just by the way she looked at him.”
“And you? How do you feel about Conryu?”
“I…” How did she feel? She loved Conryu, of course she did. Maria had always loved him, but was it like a sister or a girlfriend? The truth was it depended on the day. When he hugged Kelsie she felt like a girlfriend, an angry one at that. “I don’t know.”
“You need to make up your mind. It’s not fair to Conryu to make him wait forever. You have him to yourself for another ten days. You need to decide what you want before the competition makes the decision for you.”
The house shook and a deep laugh echoed through it.
The darkness beyond the door pulsed stronger, forcing Maria to move back. Conryu was in there, surrounded by that energy. Deep inside it was a part of him. Could she really be with someone when a part of their nature was poison to her?
The book laughed. That was something Conryu had never expected to encounter. A pulse of dark magic shattered the glass case and the book flew up and out, hovering in front of him. The green cover flowed like wet clay, forming a face, an ugly, scaly, in no way human face.
“You’re a demon.”
“I was, and I suppose my essential nature hasn’t changed. You wanted my story, Master. Here it is. I am a scholomantic, a training aid created to teach you all the secrets of dark magic. My creator was a witch with the gift, or curse, of prophecy.”
“Why do you call her a witch and not a wizard?”
“Witch, wizard, warlock, mage, sorcerer: all names for the same thing. What does it matter? Anyway, shortly after the end of the Elf War a vision came over her. She saw that a wizard would be born, the most powerful in history. And that the wizard would be male. She became obsessed with you, while at the sam
e time doubting her sanity.”
“Why?”
“How should I know? Have you ever met a seer that was totally sane?”
Conryu had never met a seer of any sort, but didn’t comment. “Go on.”
“She came to believe it was her destiny to teach you about dark magic since she knew you’d be strongest in that field. She also knew by the time you were born she’d be long dead. To satisfy her obsession she needed a way to preserve her knowledge.”
“You.”
“Yes, me. Before she summoned me and forced me into this rather unimpressive form, I was an Arcanalite, a demon that studied magic in all its forms. It’s an obsession we’re born with. I contain all of the knowledge I possessed before my transformation as well as that of the witch. There is very little you could ask me about dark magic that I couldn’t answer.”
Conryu nodded. “That’s cool. How about a little test? There’s something I’ve been curious about.”
“I can answer none of your magical questions, save those that will help you decide to accept me as your teacher, until you officially accept me as your scholomantic.”
“Would that be like a demon contract? And assuming I agree, will it free Mr. Montgomery from his curse?”
“The agreement is similar to a demon contract, but the connection is much deeper. And yes, it will free the pathetic mortal down the hall from his curse. In truth, the curse was only supposed to keep whoever took the book from throwing it away. Over time it transmuted into a hoarding and paranoia curse. Once you accept me it will have served its purpose and fade away.”
“One last question. Will accepting you mess up the contract I already have with Cerberus?” Conryu rolled up his sleeve to show the book the brands on his arm.
“Well, aren’t you popular? No, our agreement will have no effect on your arrangement with the demon dog. So do you accept?”
Conryu walked away and paced along the narrow path in the darkness. Should he accept? Dealing with a creature like this might be dangerous. He dearly wished for a quick call to Mrs. Umbra. He glanced back at the darkness sealing the door. He couldn’t even ask Mrs. Kane. He was on his own.
After a minute of pacing he walked back to the book. Whatever else, he couldn’t leave Mr. Montgomery and his family to suffer a curse that was intended to help him. He had to accept responsibility, even if it wasn’t really his fault.
“Very well. What do I have to do?”
The book flipped open to the first page. It said: “Property of,” followed by a blank line. “Just sign on the line.”
“I don’t have a pen.”
The page flicked out, stretched, and sliced Conryu’s finger open. “There you go. Just press it to the page.”
It was just like something out of a bad horror movie. Conryu pressed his bloody finger to the page. Blood flowed and formed into his signature. Something shifted inside him, like when he’d made the contract with Cerberus, only stronger.
When the feeling faded he asked, “What now?”
“Whatever you wish, Master.”
Conryu glanced back at the black wall separating him from the rest of the mansion. “How about you take down the wall?”
“Now that we have formed a contract I can no longer perform magic on my own. If you like I can teach you the spell to remove the barrier.”
“Good idea.”
The book’s pages riffled and stopped about halfway through. On the page was a sequence of Infernal runes above a specific hand position. Conryu studied the runes; luckily he recognized them all.
When he’d committed both the words and gesture to memory Conryu said, “I have it.”
The book snapped shut and said, “Show me.”
Conryu focused. “The dark winds of Hades blow away all obstructions, Shattering Wind!” The darkness vanished just like a giant gust of air had blown it away. The instant the doorway cleared Maria rushed in and hugged him.
“Are you okay? What is that?” She was staring at the ugly book floating behind him.
“It’s a scholomantic. Say, do you have a name? I can’t just call you ‘book.’”
“I believe I had a name once, but it was so long ago I can’t recall. If you wish me to have a name, Master, feel free to make one up.”
Mrs. Kane walked up to the book and studied it. The book studied her right back.
“You keep charming company, Master. Who’s this lovely young lady?”
“This is Shizuku Kane and the one crushing me to death is her daughter, Maria.” Maria took the hint and let him breathe. “How about Prime? You know, short for primer. That would be a good name for you.”
“I quite like that, Master.”
Prime was about to say something else when Mr. Montgomery stumbled into the library. “You did it! My mind is clear for the first time in years.” He spotted Prime floating beside Conryu and staggered back. “It’s alive!”
“It’s okay, Mr. Montgomery. Prime’s going to be coming with me so you won’t have to see him anymore. He’s been waiting for me for a long time. I’m sorry your family’s had such a hard time of it. The magic became twisted over the years.”
“Is it really over?” Tears were streaming down the old man’s face.
“It really is. If you’d like I’m sure Mrs. Kane can take care of your raccoon problem before we go.”
“Absolutely.” Mrs. Kane swept in and guided Mr. Montgomery out of the library, explaining how simple the process would be.
When they were out of sight Maria said, “Was it just chance that we stumbled onto the book in this of all places?”
“Not chance,” Prime said. “Destiny. The witch may have been crazy, but she was never wrong about a prophecy. She saw that we would meet, so it was bound to happen. Perhaps her power influenced things over the centuries so it would come to pass when you were just beginning your journey down the path of wizardry. Then again it might have been pure, dumb luck. Who knows. I’m just glad to be awake again after all this time.”
An hour later they were on their way home. Once the curse was lifted Mr. Montgomery found he no longer cared about the raccoons, but he did pay Mrs. Kane’s $10,000 fee along with a nice bonus. His eagerness to give Conryu anything he wanted ended half a second after the curse, but he did agree it would be best if Prime went with him when he left.
They stopped for lunch and Mrs. Kane called her husband. As soon as she finished telling him what happened they were headed back to the Department. She dropped him off at the front doors then she and Maria went home. For the second time that day Conryu headed up the elevator and down to Mr. Kane’s office. The secretary frowned at Prime, but motioned him through.
Inside Mr. Kane waved him into the left-hand chair beside Terra, who couldn’t take her eyes off Prime. “Why don’t you tell me about it?” Mr. Kane said.
When Conryu finished Mr. Kane had his head in his hands. “I’m sorry, but I wasn’t sure what else to do.”
Terra’s soft chuckle prompted Mr. Kane to look up long enough to glare at her.
“There’s nothing else you could have done,” Terra said. “Certainly leaving a family to suffer under a curse wouldn’t be in any way ethical. The problem is I’m not at all certain if the school will allow you to bring the book with you.”
“They have a library, do they not?” Prime asked. “Why would one more book cause the teachers distress?”
“Because the other books can’t fly or talk.” Mr. Kane looked up. “You’re closer to a magical item than a book and outside magical items aren’t allowed, at least not in the hands of a student.”
Terra had been staring at him and Prime this entire time. “Actually he isn’t a book or magical item. The scholomantic is most closely related to a familiar. Conryu and Prime have bonded their souls like a master and familiar would. I’d say they have a range of a hundred or so yards. If they were to separate by more than that both of them would experience considerable pain.”
“A familiar. Well those are allowed
, though usually not until second year. I think I can convince Emily to make an exception for Conryu.” Mr. Kane closed his eyes and sighed. “What’s one more at this point? Besides, we owe you one for opening the box.”
“So you’ll take care of it?” Conryu asked.
“I’ll do my best.” Mr. Kane offered a reassuring smile.
“Thanks, Mr. Kane. I should probably go introduce Mom to Prime.”
“If you can spare the time,” Terra said. “I’d appreciate it if your scholomantic would take a look at the black ooze. If it can identify the substance it would save me a lot of effort.”
Conryu glanced at the book floating beside his shoulder. “What do you say? Want to have a look?”
“If you wish it, Master, I’m happy to do so.”
“Excellent.” Terra jumped out of her chair and led them to her casting chamber.
The lab looked exactly the same as that morning. The little black blob bounced around inside the circle as though trying to find a way out. Terra briefly described the situation then asked, “What do you think?”
Prime flew closer to the circle. “It’s necroplasma. Some dark magic wizards use it as a medium to contain potent energy. It’s no wonder you couldn’t break wards enhanced with this. It’s nasty stuff and can only be summoned with a human sacrifice. That little blob could hold enough dark energy to kill several elephants or bind a modestly powerful demon. If the wards were designed properly they’d withstand almost any breaking.”
“Why’s it still bouncing around?” Conryu asked.
“I suspect it’s trying to return to the wizard that conjured it.” Prime’s cover flexed in a fair imitation of a shrug. “But that’s just a guess.”
“So if we release it the necroplasma will lead us to Mercia?” Terra looked giddy at the thought.
“It might,” Prime said. “Understand, I’m speculating. It’s just as likely that if you release it the blob will dissipate into nothing. I have no way to know for certain.”
“Fair enough. If worst comes to worst we’ll chance using the little booger as a bloodhound.”
“Isn’t there something you’d like me to teach you, Master?”
The Awakening: The Aegis of Merlin Book 2 Page 17