by John O'Riley
“Far too long if you ask me,” Alex said.
Chapter 6
Mark was in his office filling out the paperwork for the restoration he’d just completed when his cell phone rang. A cold dread washed over him when he saw it was his father calling. He’d been evading him for almost an entire week. Mark let out a sharp sigh of resignation before he answered the call.
“Hi, Dad,” he said.
“So you finally deign to speak with me,” Cyril snarled. “You will meet me in my study now or there will be dire consequences.”
The line went dead before Mark could respond. Mark saved the file on his computer before he crossed the room to stand in front of a massive, round antique mirror with large blue opals embedded in the silver trim. Mark waved his hand over one of the opals which was infused with potent magic and activated the enchantment. A bright golden luminescence flared into existence, obscuring the reflective glass. Mark stepped inside the mirror and into the swirling gold energy. He pictured his father’s study and an opening to the room appeared directly in front of Mark. Cyril was seated behind his large, polished oak desk pretending to work on his computer. His jaw was clenched and his brows furrowed with anger. As soon as Mark entered the room, Cyril pinned him with a look of reprisal. An exact replica of Mark’s mirror was suspended on the wall behind Mark glowing with a bright gold light that winked out of existence now that the spell was dormant again. The Freeman’s had over a dozen of these mirrors which were linked magically and allowed instant transportation between them.
Cyril’s study was opulent like all rooms in the mansion. The floor was comprised of gleaming marble, the walls contained built-in polished redwood bookshelves filled with an assortment of ancient spell books, and a large glass case was positioned beside Cyril’s desk containing a myriad of enchanted antique jewelry and weaponry. A gold scepter topped with a fist-sized ruby was propped against the desk within easy reach. Cyril was in his forties with black hair and hazel eyes and wore a sharp business suit that made Mark feel distinctly underdressed in his jeans, forest-green polo shirt, and white running shoes.
“I’m your clan leader. When I call or leave a message, I expect an immediate response,” Cyril said.
“I’m sorry.”
“When were you going to tell me you withdrew from college?” Cyril demanded.
“I was going to tell you soon.”
“I was extremely lenient when I allowed you to practice white magic but you’ve gone too far. It’s time for you to set that aside and return to mainstream magic like everyone else in the world. You must do so immediately.”
Mark’s expression was apologetic. “I’m sorry this upsets you but I’ve chosen to pursue my career in white magic. This is very important to me.”
“The Freeman legacy is of the utmost priority. You’ve neglected your duties for too long. It’s time for you to work for Freeman Enterprises,” Cyril said.
“My own business is doing very well.”
“I don’t care about your amateur hobbies. It’s time for you to embrace the family legacy.”
“Not everyone in the family works for you,” Mark pointed out.
“There are a few of us who have careers in the workplace but they don’t drop out of college to practice white magic. I have given you an order and you will comply,” Cyril said.
“I’m sorry but I’ve made my decision.”
Cyril’s face transformed with fury. “How dare you disobey your clan leader! If you want to play with your useless magic like a spoiled child, you can do it without the support of the family. I’m cutting you off from the Freeman legacy. Furthermore, I’m ordering the family to shun you until you decide to straight up.”
Cyril reached for his scepter and the ruby blazed with a bright red glow for several seconds. A brief wave of disorientation and a sense of loss took hold of Mark. He could no longer utilize any of the Freeman enchantments as they were all magically linked within a network that allowed the clan leader to give or deny permissions for individual use. For a brief moment, grief and despair threatened to overwhelm him as he knew that his entire family would shun him or risk being cut off as well. Mark forced his thoughts to something more positive like his first kiss with Josephine and his love for her. Joy and happiness flooded through him and he reached out with his mind to tap into the source energy that flowed around him. If the family turned their backs on him, he could start his own.
“I’m sorry it’s come to this, Dad,” Mark finally said.
“You won’t be able to use the enchanted mirror to go home so you’re stranded here in Seattle. You’ll have to buy a plane ticket to Florida but that should be a peace of cake with how well your fly-by-night business is doing.” A faint gloating smile curved Cyril’s lips even as his eyes reflected his ire.
Mark knew his only chance of changing the way his family viewed white magic was to demonstrate its power. He pointed the palm of his left hand toward the scepter his father gripped and directed a stream of source energy at it. The ruby flared with a bright red luminescence as Mark accessed the enchantment and willed it to include him for access again. Cyril’s eyes widened with astonishment for a brief instant before he recovered and attempted to block Mark’s magic. The ruby went dark as Mark finished his spell and turned to approach the mirror.
“It won’t work. I’ve revoked your access,” Cyril said.
Mark held his breath and hesitated as he wondered if his efforts would prove successful. He reached out with his right hand and issued a pulse of energy to activate the mirror. An instant later, the reflective surface shimmered with gold light. Mark stepped through the portal and was surrounded by gold energy. He pictured his office and the opening materialized in front of him just as it was designed to. Mark returned to his home and the spell deactivated behind him. His father was livid right now but no one had ever been able to change permissions for access to the Freeman enchantments other than the clan leader so maybe he’ll recognize the importance of white magic when he cooled off. Mark had discovered by accident a couple of weeks ago that he could alter enchantments made with mainstream magic even if they were the type of spells he couldn’t create with white magic. The Freeman family possessed a huge inventory of ancient and advanced enchantments that were linked with the clan leader’s scepter in addition to the teleportation mirrors. It was the most crucial element of their success and the secrecy enchantment prevented them from divulging any of this information to anyone outside the family.
A loud crashing sound came from the living room and Mark went to investigate. He immediately noticed there was a hole in his door at about shoulder height. He frowned with puzzlement and stepped closer. Mark flinched as a fist came smashing through the door, creating another hole a couple of feet beside it and revealed a thick, muscular arm. An instant later, the arm withdrew out of sight. Adrenaline coursed through Mark’s body as he retreated to the opposite end of the room. He activated his shield which formed a sphere of shimmering white light around him. Mark kept about half of his enchantments stored in his office and the other half in his bedroom. He didn’t have time to go for either one of them because the front door toppled over and crashed to the floor. A tall, burly man with a shaved head clad in black clothing stormed into the room. His eyes were black which indicated he was either a vampire, incubus, or a curse. The intruder rushed over to Mark and punched the white magic protection. The intruder’s arm flickered with a black swirling smoke for several seconds then solidified again.
Mark wanted nothing more than to escape but he needed to find out more about his attacker. He opened his psychic senses and performed a scan. The attacker punched the shield again with the same lack of success. He altered his strategy by pressing his hand firmly against the surface of the white energy field. Mark recognized the dark energy configuration of the assailant as a construo letalis curse and realized it was trying to tune into the harmonics of his protection so it could slip through it. Mark hoped the white magic would prevent this
from happening. He stared at his attacker as he struggled to come up with some plan of attack. He had three niveus imperium enchantments that he’d created with pure white magic but they were primarily used for cures. Unfortunately, Mark wouldn’t be able to grab them unless he dropped his shield and he wasn’t sure he’d have enough time to do that without getting himself killed.
The assailant bellowed with rage and smashed his fists against Mark’s shield over and over. Mark tensed up and renewed anxiety made all strategic thoughts evaporate from his mind. After a moment, the curse crossed the room and picked up one of the bookcases. The creature hurled it across the room and watched it break into pieces against the shield. Books and knickknacks that had previously occupied the case scattered across the Terrazzo floor amid the splintered wood. The white field of energy around Mark remained strong and steady. The curse ran over to Mark and smashed his fists repeatedly against the protection. After another long moment, the assailant stopped and left the house. Mark rushed over to the window and watched the assailant march down the driveway. The man exploded into a black cloud and an instant later transformed into a large black crow and soared into the air.
Mark dropped his shield and went to his room to retrieve the three large quartz clusters containing claro mentis enchantments which he kept in a large, blue satchel. It was obvious that since the curse had left the house, it must have a secondary target. Mark placed a call to Josephine.
“Hey, Mark. What’s up?” Josephine said.
“I was just attacked by a construo letalis curse,” Mark said.
“Are you all right?” she asked.
“I’m fine. It couldn’t get past my shield but I’m worried you might be its secondary target.”
“You’re right. I fought one of them off already. I think it’s the Valituras.”
“Why would they want to kill us?” Mark asked.
“They’re after me. I think I’ve caused them too much trouble. The only reason you’re in danger is because they know you’re my boyfriend.”
“You need to get somewhere safe. Your garden is enchanted with white magic. That should disintegrate any curse.”
“That’s how I got rid of the first one,” Josephine said. “I’m with Alex and Jake. We’re on the way back to the police station.”
“Maybe you should get back to your garden,” Mark suggested.
“It took a few minutes for the curse to be destroyed. It almost killed me in there,” Josephine said. “My best bet is to retrieve some of the niveus imperiums at the police station.”
“White magic is the only thing strong enough to work,” Mark protested.
“I’m not willing to hang out in the garden. I’ve got to go. Talk to you later.”
“Josephine, the police station isn’t safe.”
Mark realized she’d already ended the call. He shoved his phone back into his pants pocket and activated one of the three teleportation pendants he always wore. He materialized in the parking lot of the police station. He took stock of his surroundings and saw no sign of the construo letalis curse. Mark tapped into the light energy streaming around him and scanned the perimeter. After a few moments, he sensed the dark energy of the attacker closing in and Josephine approaching. Mark turned to gaze in that direction. A black crow dove at the police car about a block away as it sped towards the station. The bird exploded into black smoke as it struck against the hood of the car and transformed back to its previous form of the tall muscular man with the shaved head. He clung to the vehicle with one hand while smashing his fist into the windshield with his other. A myriad of cracks exploded across the surface of the glass. Without hesitation, the curse pulled back and slammed his fist again. The car swerved back and forth but the driver, Jake, managed to stay on the road. When the creature hit the windshield yet again, the glass shattered.
The attacker jerked hard on the steering wheel and the car swerved to the side and into the parking lot of a hardware store. The police vehicle plowed into a blue truck which forced it to an abrupt halt and tossed the attacker like a rag doll. The assailant hurtled into a nearby parked car with such force that it shattered the windshield and landed across the front seats. Cars came to a screeching halt as drivers gaped at the scene. Groups of passersby walking down the sidewalk gathered to watch the grisly sight of the injured attacker climbing out of the car with black liquid dripping from his cuts. The man strode towards the crashed police vehicle. His body flickered with black smoke for several seconds. When he solidified again, his cuts had vanished. Josephine was the only one conscious in the car. She weakly shoved at the door and stumbled to her feet.
Mark activated his teleportation enchantment with the intention of transporting beside Josephine so he could use his last spell to take them to safety. A wave of dizziness and disorientation assailed his senses as he materialized about a dozen feet behind the curse instead. Mark gathered his bearings and wondered what had gone wrong. This had never happened before. He realized his connection to the source energy was weak and tried to strengthen it. Josephine activated her shield but Mark knew this would offer little if any protection.
“I’m your primary target, remember?” he shouted at the creature’s back.
The man completely ignored Mark as he approached Josephine. Mark took out one of his quartz clusters containing a niveus imperium enchantment and activated it. A flow of white and gold light energy streamed from the crystal and cascaded into the man who came to a sudden halt. Mark hoped the spell would work. He took out his second crystal when he sensed the first one petering out. He activated the new enchantment so there would be no pause in between the spells. When the second crystal fizzled out, the man continued to glow as the light energy suffused his body. Josephine stared at the man with terror even as she leveled a wand at him which would most likely prove useless. The onlookers gawked at the display with expressions of horror on their faces. Mark approached Josephine who snapped out of her dazed state when she saw him.
“It isn’t safe here!” she exclaimed.
“That’s why I couldn’t leave you by yourself,” Mark said.
“I’ve got Jake and Alex here.” Josephine gestured at the ruined police car where the two detectives in question were still unconscious.
Mark stepped around the assailant who remained completely still and took up a position beside his girlfriend.
“Let’s get out of here.” Mark reached for her hand so he could transport them to her garden.
“No, I can’t leave them here. The curse might kill them.” Josephine took a step away and made sure he couldn’t touch her.
The attacker stopped glowing and blinked with surprise. He exploded in a sparkling, white mist then solidified again but his appearance had changed. He was now clad in white pants, white shoes, and a white shirt. Instead of a shaved head, he had short wavy brown hair and there was a friendship bracelet secured to each of his wrists.
“What on Earth?” Josephine peered at the curse with surprise.
The man leveled an apologetic look at her. “I’m terribly sorry for trying to kill you. You’re safe now.”
“Excuse me?!” Josephine regarded him with incredulous disbelief.
“There’s no trace of dark energy in him anymore,” Mark advised.
“What are you saying?” Josephine asked.
“The white magic from the niveus imperium transformed him into a construction of light energy. He won’t do us any more harm.”
“How do you know he won’t change back?” Josephine kept a wary eye on the burly man.
“I promise I won’t lay a hand on you,” the creature said. “My purpose has changed. I’m here to protect you. You can call me Protector.”
“I will do no such thing.” Josephine glared at him with suspicion and contempt.
“All right. You can call me Perry.” The man’s brows furrowed with contemplation. “Perry White.”
“I don’t think so. And get the hell away from me,” Josephine snapped.
&n
bsp; “He won’t hurt us,” Mark said.
“This man almost killed me and my grandson!” Josephine glared at Perry and unleashed a powerful wave of telekinesis from her wand.
The man flickered and a sparkling white mist swirled over him as the spell passed harmlessly through his body. An instant later, he solidified and his gaze swiveled over to Jake whose forehead was bruised and blood trickled from his lip. He also had scratches from the shattered windshield on his arms and neck. Perry rushed over to the driver’s side door and opened it. Josephine shouted with alarm and followed him. Perry rested his hand against Jake’s bloody forehead. A glimmering white light flowed from beneath his fingers and spilled across Jake’s body like a wave, healing his injuries. A moment later, Perry pulled his hand away and Jake’s eyes fluttered open. Jake jerked with startlement when he recognized Perry and struggled with his seatbelt.
“It’s all right,” Josephine said in a soothing tone. “Apparently Mark turned our attacker into a healer.”
“I’m a protector,” the man corrected her.
“Whatever.” Josephine threw him a dismissive look as she knelt down to take a closer look at her grandson. “Are you all right?”
“I feel great, actually.” Jake grinned at her with surprise. “This guy has got some serious magic.”
“You can call me Perry,” the man offered.
“Sure.” Jake offered his hand to the creature. “It’s good to meet you, Perry.”
Josephine cocked a brow of bemusement at her grandson as he shook hands with their former assailant. Alex stirred and groaned as he awakened. Everyone’s attention shifted to him as he opened his eyes and took stock of his surroundings. Josephine briefly explained what happened to the creature. Alex had a bloody nose and bruising on his forehead which Perry healed.
Perry turned to direct a concerned look at Josephine. “I’ll need to stick close to you to make sure you’re not attacked by any other curses.”
“I refuse to bring you with me while I work and you’re not setting foot in my house,” Josephine said.