Beyond?

by Andur

  Arriving at the central corridor, which leads to second staircase down to the warehouse, I am greeted by a storm of magic. Rolling to the side, I enter the first office to the left. By now the typical blue bubble of my clan is enclosing me tightly and a bolt of energy is redirected around me as I get to my feet.

  Thrusting my hand at the enemy mage inside the office, the working table in front of him is blasted to pieces and covers him in splinters. I rush forward and place my staff softly on his chest while he is screaming in pain, covering his eyes with his hands.

  A surge of power runs through my staff and he is thrown backwards, crushing through the window and out of the building. As if on command, the many magical lights in the room start to flicker and then I am plunged into darkness.

  Looks like Ivy's remotes finally did their job and shut down the lights. I activate my mana sight and find her fighting a few offices further down the corridor. There are many people stumbling around like blind men; seems like not all of our opponents are fighters.

  A grin appears on my face and I walk back onto the corridor, infusing my mana into the pool of blood which gathered under the corpse in front of the staircase. A little good old blood magic is nice too. I force my will into the moving liquid and it surges forward in search of an enemy.

  Then I point my staff at the ground and cast gravity magic. The floor caves in and I jump through it. Down in the warehouse are just a few people and I am somehow dissatisfied with the lack of resistance.

  Was the security detail, which we blew up in front of the building, the only fighting force? Were the rest of the enemies all non combatants?

  The warehouse is completely empty. Just the portal and the magical circle which is sustaining it are in the middle of the hall. The few remaining enemies are gathered in front of the portal.

  And they are running away! Hate wells up inside me as I notice one of my enemies leaving through the portal, then another jumps through. I scream and thrust my staff at them.

  One man keeps standing while the others are thrown away from the portal like puppets. He turns and grins at me, then he jumps through.

  I run towards the portal and look through it.

  It's day on the other site, so it's surely not leading anywhere close to Nict. I see a grassy plain and many tents and soldiers. An army? Though it's impossible to determine how big this army is. I would need a different point of view.

  The person who jumped through the portal and withstood my spell turns around and chuckles. Then he corrects his black suit and spreads his hands. “Feel free to take a look at the Master's army. Unfortunately we are still occupied somewhere else, but it won't take long until we are done here. And then we'll come and finally crush Nict.”

  He bows slightly. “I give you this much to honour your achievement in halting our efforts in your country. Take your remaining time to say goodbye to the world as you know it.”

  This... insect... is speaking down to me? “Kukukuku... hahaha... HAHAHAHA...” I reach with a trembling hand into my pocket and pull out the metallic sphere which I created with Stella. There can be no better purpose for this little toy.

  I press one rune on the sphere and all the runes around the metal ball start glowing. Then I throw it through the portal and ram my staff into the magical circle under my feet. The floor cracks and the portal collapses. Too bad that the last expression of the black suited man was just incomprehension.

  It doesn't feel right. His end was too nice. A scratching sound draws my attention and I find out that one of the other person's regained his consciousness and is crawling away from me. I follow him with a grin appearing on my face.

  He screams. “Stay away from me! Mon... Monster! Nobody has glowing eyes like that!”

  I grab his leg and pull him back to the magical circle. “You know... I always wanted to know how these strange portals work. Their principle is a little different from the ones which I use. Maybe I can fix the circle if I use your soul.”

  He claws at the ground, but I am stronger than him and since I am gathering magical power from all around us, the power is already coursing through my entire being. I never gathered so much before, it feels like I can do anything.

  Reaching the centre of the circle I pin him to the ground by ramming my staff right through his chest. Then I step chuckling out of the circle. “You know. Actually I haven't much hope that it will work, now that I look at the circle. But isn't the proof of the pudding in the eating?”

  I start the cast, but soon I have to admit that I did too well in destroying the circle. After a while the lights return and I get the feeling that someone is standing behind me. I turn around fast.

  *Slap*

  My mother... slapped me? How did she get here? Ah, the fight was noisy enough to alert the entire city. I touch my burning cheek. “I guess I deserved that...”

  But then she hugs me and speaks with a quivering voice. “You shouldn't have run off like that. Do you even know what I felt when you didn't send me a single message.” I feel her hands clawing into my back. “And do you know what Stella felt when she woke up and you weren't there?” The gathered mana around me strangely slips my control and turns into hers. “And do you have any idea what your sister, father and grandmother felt?”

  I try to wriggle myself out of her bone breaking hug. “I am sorry! I was just angry!” What should I do? I can't attack my mother. And how did she steal my mana?

  “Kukukuku... don't look at me like that. Did you really think that I taught you everything about our ability? But first you'll apologize to Stella for not being there for her when she woke up!”

  I gasp for air, but my mother's hug wrings everything out of me. Slowly the scene turns dark...

  46. ~Returned.~

  “Those who see all magic own the world. They are the ones who are to be obeyed. No one shall refuse their wishes. The Empire exists to serve them. No one dares to defy them.

  But one refused their rule. One challenged the order. One banished them.”

  -The forbidden Chronicle.

  Free City States of Nict, Capital

  Azir

  I regain my consciousness and find myself being dragged away from the warehouse. Ghost and Ivy are following me like two well behaved pets. “What happened?”

  “Nothing. I was just a little overwhelmed by my feelings and used too much strength.” My mother pulls me to my feet and points at Ivy. “Would you care to explain who that is?” Valda points at Ivy. “She came up to me and called me Master!”

  My eyes wander to Ivy. “Err... that's a bit difficult. Ivy, why are you calling my mother Master?”

  Ivy bows. “Of course. I've spent much attention on the relationship between the Creator and others. When this woman came to our house and broke the Creator's seal with her finger, she immediately acted like someone with the power to command. When she entered my master's laboratory, she even tried to step onto me like I am a fly. And the Creator always acted very respectful towards her when she visited. Hence she has to be the Master.” She looks up again, smiling.

  Valda squints her eyes and takes a closer look at Ivy. “I don't remember stepping on you.”

  “Maybe you remember me like this?” She pulls her robe apart and reveals her marvellous twin mountains, with the artificial spider embedded between them like a decorative gemstone.

  Valda jumps forward and smacks Ivy, pulling her robe together in order to cover her up. “What the hell do you think you are doing?” Her eyes wander towards me.

  “I didn't do it! She did that on her own by taking over a dead body!” I try to justify myself.

  “We'll talk about this situation later. Right now we have to leave. The army will arrive soon. Helen wasn't sure how long she can delay them.” Valda takes Ivy's hand and leads her away from the warehouse.

  I whistle a command for Ghost and all four of us leave the vicinity.

  Free City States of Nict, Capital

  Stella

  The door opens and He
len enters my living room together with Lucas. Sola is sitting beside me on the couch and Valeria is reading a book while sitting on a chair close by. Both of them kept me company from the time when I woke up. I don't feel like having them around me, but I couldn't manage to get rid of them. They said that they are staying to keep me from doing something stupid.

  Then another person enters the room and I jump up to fly into his arms. “Azir!” Burying my face in his chest, I don't let go of him.

  He closes his arms around me. “I am sorry, but they hurt you and I... when I read her memories, I simply had to stop them.”

  His words make my heart cringe. “Did you get all of them?”

  “Most.” He leads me back to the sofa and sits down with me.

  At that moment I realize that Valda and Yoran entered the room too. And then another person walks inside. A beauty with blonde hair and strangely pale skin. It's not at the point of being abnormal, but nevertheless draws attention. She is holding a plate with different foods from the cooling box in our kitchen. She takes just one bite from everything while looking thoughtfully at the ceiling.

  I point at the woman. “Who is that?”

  Azir's expression cramps up. “I would call her an... assistant?”

  The woman's eyes leave the ceiling and fix on me, then she drops the plate and runs in front of me, kneeling down and touching the carpet with her forehead. “The almighty Supplier! I've looked forward to our meeting. May I beg you to employ me as a servant?”

  I watch the woman on the ground with a baffled expression. “Supp... Serv...” I don't need someone who could get between me and Azir in my own house! “What makes you think that I need a servant? And why are you calling me Supplier?”

  The woman doesn't look up. “I studied the relationships between organic beings and found out that the Creator might be mighty, but is still living off the grace of the Supplier. The Supplier owns the house and supports us with the necessary materials. If you want to survive in this world, you need to fulfil a proper purpose. Therefore I seek employment.”

  My face cramps up. “I don't even know who you are!”

  “The Mas...” Valda kicks the woman on the ground. “Clan head Valda instructed me to reveal my true self only to you, so would it be okay if we went to the kitchen for a moment?”

  Even so, I don't think that I'll be fine with this...

  Free City States of Nict, Capital

  Azir

  When Stella left with Ivy I felt the attention of everyone turning towards me. Then I was interrogated by Lucas and Helen. Lucas even pointed a magical light at me like in a bad movie. My mother already did her part beforehand, but it wasn't an interrogation I had to endure from her. She did the worst thing a mother can do and talked a guilty conscience into me.

  About how I left Stella alone and didn't even bother to send a message. I admit that I could've handled the situation better, but when I found an enemy agent within the bureau of magic I feared that they had people in even higher places. If my family started to act strange, they might have become the targets of attacks.

  I'll make it a priority to create more of the communication cards and then I'll supply everyone with them.

  To my relief it seems like Helen and Lucas used their power to persuade the witnesses of the event that I didn't use soul magic. I just used a very powerful form of mind magic, which looked like soul magic.

  In order to prove my innocence I'll have to submit to a group of mind magicians. They'll scan me in order to determine if I have any souls other than my own in my body. I told them that it's no problem at all since I don't have any. Seriously, why should I?

  Forcing another soul under your will to strengthen your own does nothing more than to increase your mana pool. It might be true that a regular magician gains a power boost from that, but I am a Zait. My clan's ability gives me access to more than enough mana.

  I have no need to burden myself with the depressing memories of others. Using souls to strengthen yourself is like copying the memories of other's into your own consciousness. There is no way to tell how long you can take something like that. You might simply go mad at some point.

  The black magician who summoned me to this world used that technique too. To be honest, I was baffled at how many people were inside him. It was a little wonder that he wasn't insane. Well, maybe he was. It's not like I knew him long enough to tell.

  Upon revealing that this test isn't a problem, Helen and Lucas let out a sigh of relief. It seems like they already feared the worst.

  Stella returns with Ivy from the kitchen. Her expression looks a little conflicted. “Mom, could you instruct one of the branch families to add a servant's quarters to our house? Ivy is our maid from now on.”

  Helen raises an eyebrow. “Sure, though I would like to know who this person is? I don't have anything against you having servants, but you obviously didn't know her a few moments ago?”

  Stella returns to my side and pulls me from the sofa. “I need to confirm the situation with my dear fiance first. Ivy is a trustworthy person, please believe me for now. I am tired and want to be alone with Azir.”

  They agree with stiff expressions. I decide to lead them out through the front door. As for Ivy, she retreated into my laboratory since it's practically her home.

  The only one who refused to leave immediately is Lucas. He stares down at me in silence until the others are gone. After a while he decides to talk. “I was wrong about you. When you went all out and punished the ones who hurt Stella, I wasn't sure what to think. But after a while I decided that only someone whose feelings are true would do something like that.”

  I attempt to answer. “It's nice of-”

  Suddenly the huge brute hugs me with a tear running down his cheek. “Take a good look after my daughter. She needs you right now!” Then he lets go and wipes the tear from his cheek. “And just a little warning at the end! If you ever run off again without leaving my daughter a message of what you are doing, I'll fold you over backwards and toss you into a river that's flowing out to the sea.” He turns and follows the others.

  I just stand there, frozen. After a minute I finally manage to move again. What the hell just happened? Returning back to the third floor, I find Stella in the kitchen. She is trying to fumble something edible together. With trembling hands...

  So I take the plate from her and hug the one whom I should have taken care of instead running off for personal revenge. “I am sorry.”

  She nods. “I am sorry for falling apart like this. You probably felt much worse... especially since you had to learn about it like that...”

  Suddenly I feel much worse than before. I knew about it all along, but I can't tell her that right now. “Don't worry about it.”

  47. ~Memories and Oaths.~

  “The brothers fought and those beneath them were consumed by war. Their swords clashed and stone shattered. Their magic controlled the elements and burned the weak.

  In the end only One remained, the one who betrayed his kin. He disappeared and in his wake he left only chaos, war and death.”

  -The forbidden Chronicle.

  Free City States of Nict, Capital

  Lucas

  I am in Helen's office, watching her sort through a stack of documents in one of the shelves. She said that she had to find something important. Azir's story made both of us more than anxious. Then there is Stella's loss, which made me almost go on a killing spree myself.

  For my cute darling daughter to suffer such a fate, I failed as a father and as a leader. And for such an organization to exist without my knowledge...

  But Azir's report made it all the more believable and even explained some of the strange actions of this underground network. I take the evidence, which my investigators found, from the table in front of me. It's a pouch, filled with gold. We found many such pouches in the personal belongings of the people who were killed by Azir.

  His method of dealing with this situation was barbaric, but I have
to admit the effectiveness. Being able to drain someone's memories gives you a huge advantage in an affair like this. The problem with this evidence lies in what it implies.

  I push my hand into the gold and let the nuggets fall through between my fingers. All of them are of a different size and form, like someone picked a pile of earth and transmuted it into gold. Some are big, others just grains of sand.

  Azir isn't the type to notice such worldly things and if he did, he didn't mention it. This gold wasn't dug up from the earth. Someone transmuted it with magic. So either the enemy has a Gejene working for him, or the enemy has a similar ability.

  The corrupt elements within the bureau of magic were all bribed with this gold. It is entirely possible that they thought that they were working for us instead of a foreign power. Azir mentioned that none of them were sure for whom they worked.

  Another point is the perfect secrecy of this network and how it worked. The entire thing was created in anticipation of being interrogated with mind magic. No one knew what was going on. Even the people who received the messages and the bribes didn't know exactly what they were doing.

  The foreign operatives never left their warehouse. They just made contact with some small gangsters and used them as message carriers. Take the bag and the message, don't open them, bring them to a person of power with connections to the underworld, then go your way. That's it, no information flowing back, no one knowing the whole picture.

  If their chain of command hadn't failed in some vital aspects, even Azir with his godlike mind-reading abilities had been without a chance. It had taken the accidental encounter of the assassin with the baker and a very curious message carrier, who went against the rules of the network to find out more about his employers.

  Azir had to hack his way through dozens of enemy agents in order to find these leads. In fact, most of the agents he killed until he arrived at the enemy base were citizens of Nict, who simply took doubtful jobs to earn a little extra money.