"What do you need us to do?" asked Yoko.
"Who can hold their breath the longest?" asked Pi.
After a quick poll, Sasha raised her hand. "I used to hold my breath in grade school when I got bored. I can hold it for about two minutes. Do you need me to go in?"
"I know a spell," said Pi. "You'll be holding your breath for me, but out here. That'll give me a little bit longer to find my way in."
"Isn't there a guardian in the water?"
Pi's stomach tightened like a rope had been cinched. "Unfortunately, yes. I'm just going to have to hope that it still remembers me."
"And if it doesn't?" asked Yoko.
"Then I'm afraid you're not getting any gourmet cupcakes."
Nervous laughter passed through the group. This was what happened when you made real friends, she realized. She'd had it briefly with Ashley, but now she was just an echo in her head. Pi wished she could have this forever.
"I know this is a long shot, but anyone have a fish scale for a transference spell? I'm going to need help swimming through that quick enough. The place I need to get to is on the other side of Arcanium, and I don't know how far the tunnels go."
The girls patted their jackets and pockets.
"No? I guess I'll have to make do."
Sisi pulled out a tiny coin purse made of a soft gray fur. "Will baby seal work?"
"Yes, but—wait...I don't want to know," said Pi, taking the purse as Sisi gave a wild-eyed grin that would have been appropriate for a serial killer.
Using a pocketknife she borrowed from Sasha, Pi scraped fur from the coin purse, then she rubbed it on her hands in a warming motion while chanting the transference spell. When she was finished, she swallowed the fur dry, which choked her until she cleared it past the back of her throat.
After connecting her breath to Sasha's, Pi stripped down to her sports bra and panties and dove into the chilly water in search of the underwater tunnel. She knew there were multiple entrances around the moat, but had never bothered to learn where they were.
Pi kicked along the bottom, keeping her hand against the pockmarked concrete. She found the entrance after about a minute, and kicked up to the surface to reconnect with Sasha and apply magelight on her hands before continuing.
The glow revealed the murk in the water, motes of dirt and air pollution that had settled in the moat. She swam straight down into the tunnel, dodging around a plastic spork that swirled up from the deep. After a good fifty-foot swim straight down, it turned to a ninety-degree angle, heading towards the center of Arcanium.
Her hopes that it was a straight shot ended when she reached the T. She'd been in the water about a minute and was getting nervous. Left is right, and right is wrong, she sung in her head. She swam left, kicking off the wall for speed, kicking hard past rotted leaves and tiny fish that scurried away from her light. The passage split again, but she took the right this time, heading back towards the center.
When she reached a vast underwater chamber, Pi grew worried because Sasha's air was gone and she was relying on her own. With no time, Pi darted forward, swimming hard and at a slight upward angle, which used up her air faster.
Her chest burned as she swam, kicking and stroking, hoping to hear the waterfall cascading into the pool to give her an idea of where she was, but there was nothing but her frenzied heartbeat in her ears, drumming away like a rock concert.
When a massive dark shape slipped beneath her, Pi almost opened her mouth in surprise, letting out a bubble of precious air.
The Watcher had found her.
A tentacle thicker than her waist grabbed her by the chest and yanked her deeper into the water. The sudden pull released the remaining air in her lungs, turning her chest into a wildfire.
The Watcher dragged her deeper into the water, swiftly undoing her passage. Even if it released her, she knew she would drown before reaching air.
But it was not releasing her. She wished it would flex its muscles and crush her like a tin can, ending her misery, but it was determined to make her drown.
Pi tried to use Five Elements, but the thick water, her lack of air, and the giant tentacle around her chest kept her fingers from making the correct shapes.
Black dots started forming in her eyes. In moments, she knew she would open her mouth, and the water would rush in, silencing her forever.
Is this what it feels like to die?
Her heartbeat was thunderous, growing louder like an onrushing train. The last bubble of air slipped from her lips, the agony in her chest overcoming her will to fight. The water rushed past her lips, into her lungs.
The knifelike pain to her chest annihilated her thoughts. The world was almost black.
Then she was slammed onto the hard floor outside the pool. Water crashed around her, forming a patina of mist.
She still couldn't breathe. Water was in her lungs. The spots were forming a black curtain, slowly shutting her out from the world until the tentacle rose from the water and slammed her in the stomach. The water shot out of her lungs in a geyser, a brackish vomit that felt like she was having her lungs sandpapered.
The tentacle hit her a second time and more water gurgled from her lips, enough that she could cough and sputter the remainder as she crawled forward on her hands and knees.
Pi wanted to curl into a ball, but the tentacle pushed her towards the apartment, like a dog's master reminding it where home was.
"I'm going," she rasped, spitting out more water.
As she climbed to her feet, the tentacle slipped back into the pool.
Pi stumbled into the room to find Professor Longakers holding a bloody rag to Aurie's shoulder. Jade lay on the other side of the gurney where Semyon slept. Pi's ears were full of water, but she could feel the whine from the Engine in her chest.
"Miss Pythia," said the professor, going wide-eyed at her near nakedness. "What are you doing here? How did you get in?"
Pi banged on her chest, trying to get the water out. "A story for later. Has Aurie been shot?"
"Badly."
"Let me see her," said Pi, pushing the professor out of the way. She wasn't recovered enough for a proper healing spell, but she stopped the bleeding and placed an antibiotic enchantment on the wound.
While she was fixing Aurie, the professor told her what was happening, some of which she already knew.
"So Celesse is in Arcanium, and she's coming down here to make the transfer. Aurie and Jade are stuck inside Semyon's head, and the Temporal Engine is trending towards a dramatic end, which will be the opposite of pleasant."
He nodded. "Yes, you've got the rub of it. Even with the two of them in there, it's not dissipating the energy enough. And with the time dilation, they probably don't realize how much time is passing here. On previous visits, Aurie awoke within a minute. She's been out for an hour already."
"Can you get me in?" asked Pi.
He considered it. "I suppose so. We haven't tried the spell yet, but it should work."
"Teach me."
"First, you need clothes," said the professor. "In the bathroom, there are period clothes that Aurie normally wore."
Pi stumbled in, threw them on, and returned.
"The spell, the spell."
He taught it to her, and she leaned over to put her hand on Aurie's head, until the professor nodded at Semyon.
"Quickly," he said. "I don't know what Celesse is going to do when she arrives. She will likely make the transfer anyway. If you're in his head when that happens, then you're all dead."
"Then don't let her."
"I'll try," he said, though he didn't look confident. Without magic, the students of Arcanium were at the mercy of Celesse D'Agastine. They'd let the fox into the hen house.
The spell was nothing more than a pair of runes drawn onto the side of Semyon's head with a paint marker. As her fingertips brushed the glowing purple runes, the world flipped upside down.
Chapter Twenty-Five
The goaler pushed the clay bowl thr
ough the cage into Aurie's eager hands. The wagon rattled across the dirt road, splashing the lumpy gray, foul-smelling paste onto her wrist, and she eagerly sucked it off, ignoring the dried blood from where the chains had rubbed her raw.
"Do you have to watch me eat?" she asked the soldier sitting behind her cage with the musket stuck against her head.
"Stop talking," he said, bumping her in the shoulder with the muzzle.
Aurie spooned the gruel into her mouth, thankful that a cloud bank hid the punishing sun, and for her mother's darker skin tone, which protected her from being burnt. If it'd been Pi in the cage, with their dad's lighter Irish skin, she would have been as bright as a tomato by now. Of course, Aurie thought, Pi would have never allowed herself to be captured.
The British company was headed to Philadelphia, which they would reach in two more days. The wagon following her contained an almost comatose Jade. She was alive, but after getting knocked out with a rifle butt, she'd spent the rest of the time curled up in the bottom of the cage.
At least she hadn't used magic. Semyon had given the soldiers orders to shoot them if they even waggled their fingers. They were being taken to Philadelphia to be hanged as witches.
Aurie had no idea how he knew that they could do magic, but it was the first thing he'd said. It was entirely possible that his subconscious knew who she really was. At least they hadn't been attacked by any Riders.
Using her fingers, Aurie ate the gruel, which she noted rhymed with cruel. She hummed a song about the Cruel Gruel under her breath until the soldier tapped her on the back of the head with the musket.
Afterwards, she rubbed her fingers across the black iron bars, wishing for rust to scrape off with her fingernails. She knew a spell that would blast the lock open, but she needed flecks of rust. Her imprisonment had been foiled by well-oiled bars.
They reached a small town near dusk, when the fireflies flooded the fields, the crickets were in full symphony, and she could almost enjoy the world's beauty. The only two-story brick building in the town had been given over to Colonel Semyon Gray.
Their cages were carried into the garden in back. Two soldiers guarded each cage, while a lieutenant stood back and watched the soldiers for inattention.
Aurie bided her time with ideas on how she might escape. She was certain she could convince the lock that it was really open using mendancy, but she needed time and a distinct lack of muskets to accomplish that task. Truth magic might blast one soldier, but not the other, let alone the second pair around Jade's cage. Coordinating an escape with her was out of the question since they weren't allowed to talk and Jade was lying in the bottom of her cage in the fetal position.
The biggest issue was that time was passing outside of Semyon's mind. Aurie assumed that her gunshot wound had been healed to a certain extent. It still ached, but blood stopped leaking from her dirtball bandage. But that wasn't the real danger. For all she knew, Celesse was in the room, preparing to transfer the students, which would strand her and Jade in Semyon's mind as he died.
"At ease, gentlemen," said Colonel Semyon, who had strolled into the garden from the back of the house. He was wearing his red coat and white pants. His bushy mustache turned his mouth into a permanent frown. "Lieutenant Bristle. You and your men may take your tea."
"Sire, are you certain? You said these women were witches, and dangerous."
"Both true, Lieutenant. But trust that I can handle myself. They're looking as energetic as a flea-bitten dog, at any rate. I don't think they'll stir any trouble."
Aurie studied Semyon when he faced the cages, looking for signs that he knew who she was. If his subconscious mind realized she wasn't a figment of his dreamstate, he would try to get her out by any means possible.
She could hear Jade stirring in the other cage, clanging her feet against the bars and cursing under her breath.
Semyon smoothed his mustache down with his forefinger and thumb. He seemed to be considering what to say. She was surprised by the hardness of his gaze as it contrasted with his youthful demeanor, a stark difference to the older version with kind eyes she knew in her world. But this was a different time, even if it were part of his memories, and he was a different person.
"Where did you learn your foul arts?" he asked.
"Not at your stupid school," said Jade.
"Hush, you idiot," said Aurie, banging her hand against the cage, hoping that Jade would remember not to provoke him. Or maybe she remembered and didn't care, which was worse.
"Curious you mention a school, since I said nothing of the sort."
"She's addlebrained, speaks nonsense on a daily basis," said Aurie. "Why, just the other day she was mumbling about why ponies with wings don't visit her anymore."
"You have a serpent's tongue, trying to deceive me. But I will not be swayed," barked Semyon.
His attitude wounded Aurie, who looked upon him as a mentor. Dream or no dream, it was hard to hear that from him.
"I ask again, women of the arts. Where did you learn your foul abilities? Would you rather be burned at the stake or receive a quick snap of the neck? The choice is up to you. Cooperate and I will be merciful."
Aurie sunk against the back of the cage. She'd fight before allowing herself to be burned alive, but that would only bring the full force of Semyon's subconscious against them. Speaking to him was like tap dancing in a minefield. If she said the wrong thing, she'd trigger him, and get them both killed.
"We are not without our resources," said Aurie, hoping to remain cryptic enough, "but we are not witches."
"Then what are you? I've examined your pistol at great length. Fired it upon a small tree, only to find it is like a cannon. By what witchery did you make such a thing?" he said.
"We didn't make it," said Jade. "I bought it from a—"
"Jade!"
"Merchant," she finished.
He glared at her. "Why did you interrupt her thusly?"
"I didn't want her to tell you the source," said Aurie. "You're a soldier. You like weapons. We could provide more like that one if you promised not to kill us."
"The law is clear. Witches and warlocks must be purged."
Aurie pushed against the front of the cage. "What about you? Shouldn't you be purged too?"
"I don't know what you're talking about. I am her Majesty's greatest hunter of foulspawn," he said with such earnestness that it gave her pause.
In those years, had he not known that he was of the ability? It seemed hard to believe, but this version of him seemed to believe it. She was skilled in mendancy and knew a lie when she saw it, and he was being truthful. What about the others? Bannon had mentioned he was going to see friends. And Priyanka and Celesse had been waiting for Bannon. They had to be going to see the other two, Semyon and Malden. Or at least that's what she'd thought.
"What about your friends?" Aurie asked cautiously.
"I have no friends but the saber, the musket, and the queen's honor," said Semyon, lifting his chin and pulling back his shoulders.
As far as she could tell, also truthful. She needed more information.
"What about Malden Anterist?" she asked.
Colonel Semyon Gray flinched. "Why do you speak of the mayor?"
"Mayor?" asked Aurie, suddenly concerned.
"Mayor Anterist of the good city of Philadelphia," he said. "It is on his grounds that you shall swing by the neck until dead. There is word that he harbors your kind in his city, and I wish to make an example in plain view to flush the rats from the sewers, so to say."
Questions about Bannon, Celesse, and Priyanka were swallowed back. Nothing of this sort had been in the histories. If it were anyone else's dream, she might have questioned it, but since it was Semyon's, how could she not believe that he'd been a mage hunter?
This left her reeling, with no idea of the way forward. How had Invictus brought these diverse mages together? Semyon Gray, a hunter of mages. Priyanka Sai, a mentor to a young Celesse. Bannon Creed, a well-meaning traveler. Mald
en Anterist, the mayor of Philadelphia.
Aurie had always assumed that they'd come together in fellowship, to drag wizardry out of the dark ages and give young mages a chance to explore their craft rather than be hunted like dogs.
In her deep introspection, she'd forgotten about Colonel Semyon, who watched her with particular interest. Had she not been staring directly at him, she might not have seen the white sash across his chest suddenly yellow with age and curl at the edges. It was the Temporal Engine at work, and it marked the hastening of their demise.
"You have a question lurking on your devilish tongue," he said.
"I...I'm tired. Being kept in a cage is not pleasant."
"It is not meant to be," he said briskly, then stepped closer, the hard line of his mouth softening. "You would be better off confessing to your crimes. Burning at the stake is most unpleasant. At this point, there's nothing you can do. The queen's law is clear about witches. I would at least like to learn more about you before your time must come to an end."
There was conflict in his gaze. Aurie saw within him a desperate plea that he not be forced to burn her, and deep concern, as if part of him knew the truth about himself. Was this what informed him? Drove him towards books and knowledge to drown out ignorance and superstition? Of the major patrons, he was the most hands-on, teaching his students directly, while the others had outsourced that to their professors. Some embers of guilt must still smolder in his soul.
"Your answer?" he asked.
"There's nothing I can say."
Semyon moved to Jade's cage. "And you? Will you repent?"
Jade spit on him through the bars. The spit landed on his jaw, and he wiped it off unceremoniously. He marched out of the garden, and before Aurie could find mischief, the soldiers returned to their posts.
Later, when the moon had risen, Aurie asked one of the guards for the remains of his apple, which he was about to toss into the bushes. The mealy flesh of the apple had been devoured, leaving only a fat core and a worm-holed hunk on one side.
"Soldier, please. I'm starving. I'll take the rest of that."
The dusty-haired soldier looked at the apple, checked back with the lieutenant, who was nodding asleep, and shrugged as he tossed it through the bars.
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