by M. S. Dobing
‘See you soon,’ he managed.
‘You’d better.’ Sylph replied.
As the elevator vanished into places unknown, Seb turned and regarded his new location. It was an open plan office of some kind, with large, glass-walled rooms containing varying assortments of tables and chairs. In some he could see business people sat in meetings, sometimes together, sometimes engaging with persons on one of the giant screens on the wall. He cast a casual sense out. Many were Aware, but only subtly so. None of them were Latent, or even magi, as far as he could detect. Aside from him, Barach and the mage that accompanied them there were no other magi around.
That thought was shattered a moment later. A wide door opened up ahead. Seb’s sense bounced back with such force he nearly stumbled.
A tall man, almost as large as Cian, stepped out of the office. Lightly tanned, with unnaturally white teeth and hair gelled so slick it could’ve been glued on, the man looked like he’d come straight from reading the news. He would’ve been almost comical if it wasn’t for the near tangible Weave-aura he projected. The man stopped in his tracks when he saw Seb and his escort approaching.
‘My lord, I present to you -’
‘Seb, young Seb,’ the man said. His face broke into a smile that was laced with insincerity. ‘Welcome to Domus. We’ve been looking for you for quite a while.’
‘Likewise. I thought I would’ve found you earlier, too.’
A young man, barely Seb’s age, appeared out of a side office. Nervous eyes skittered between the man and Seb.
‘Yes, Christopher?’ the man said, his gaze not shifting. Seb was reminded of a predator eyeing its prey.
‘Apologies, sir,’ Christopher stammered, ‘Your nine o’clock is here.’
‘Send them away. Clear my morning calendar.’
‘But, sir, it’s -’
‘Clear it, Christopher.’
‘Yessir.’
Christopher vanished, the door closing silently in his wake.
‘Now, let us step inside and talk away from prying eyes.’
The man reopened his office door and beckoned them inside. Seb followed, almost tripping up as he saw what was inside.
It was as far removed from an office as could be. With its leather sofas, bar and balcony overlooking the city, it resembled more a playboy bachelor pad than a hive of industry. A fake fire burned in the hearth, in front of which lay a husky dog, dead to the world. The man waved Seb towards the sofas whilst he vanished behind the bar.
‘Drink, Seb?’
‘Coke, please, if you have it.’
‘Coke?’ the man said, speaking the word as if Seb had asked for a glass of worms. He shook his head and poured a dark spirit into a tumbler. From somewhere underneath the bar he opened a fridge and poured Seb’s. He didn’t offer Barach anything. Eventually the man came round and sat in the wide recliner nearest the fire. He sat there for a moment, manicured fingers pressed on either side of the glass.
‘Shall I remain, sir?’ Barach said, following a few moments of silence.
‘No, Barach, you may leave. I will catch up with you later.’
Barach half-bowed before abruptly pivoting and marching out of the room.
‘He’s a good man, but stoic, set in his ways.’
‘He didn’t seem best pleased to see me,’ Seb said.
‘Yes, well, hopefully we can change that. Now young Seb, I suppose I’d better start by introducing myself.’
‘Seeing as you already know who I am, it might just help.’
The man smiled, took a sip, and then placed the glass on the fireplace. ‘My name is Sedaris, Archmage Sedaris. I lead what is known in our particular circles as the First Family. This,’ he waved a casual hand around, ‘is Domus, our headquarters, for lack of a better word.’
Seb took a drink himself, sinking half the glass in one go, not realizing how thirsty he’d become. He settled back into the chair.
‘The First Family?’
‘One of the nine magi families of this realm. Ours is the largest, arguably the most successful of all of them. I, as Archmage, am ultimately responsible for the continuing prosperity of the First.’
‘The First? As in the first magi of this realm?’
Sedaris smiled. ‘My, how much have they been hiding from you back in that Magistry of yours?’
‘Funny, you’re not the first person to say that to me.’
Sedaris drained the rest of his glass. ‘I can imagine. But you are correct, Seb. We, as the First, can trace our ancestry directly back to Woden, he who led the first magi onto this shard. Other Families followed, completing the remaining families from the Second through to the Ninth.’
‘I see. And an Archmage? I’ve not heard that term before.’
‘An Archmage, Seb, is the leader of a given Family. Although the Families differ in their specialism - some do business,’ he waved back towards the offices, ‘some do other things. But ultimately the Archmage is their leader, their CEO, their commander-in-chief. Whatever the Family does, all ultimately answer to that individual. Understood?
‘So far.’
Sedaris rose and went to the bar. He poured himself another drink. He waved the Coke bottle but Seb declined. By the time Sedaris had returned his glass was half-empty again.
‘Anyway, let us forget about Families and Archmages for now. That story is not going to change and can wait.’ Sedaris lowered his glass and leant over. An intensity filled his eyes. ‘Now, tell me about you, Seb. Tell me about everything that’s happened to you in recent months.’
‘How much do you know already?’
Sedaris waved a hand. ‘Pretend I know nothing. Start at the beginning.’
Seb shuffled into a more comfortable position. This was going to be a long one.
‘Okay,’ he said. ‘Don’t say I didn’t warn you.’
Sedaris dipped his head. ‘The floor is yours.’
Where should he begin? His arrival at the Magistry? The battle in the Nexus? There was no real clean point to start at besides right at the very beginning, right at the moment he’d heard Sarah running up that hill, Clementine in pursuit.
And so he began his tale. He told Sedaris of his random wanderings that drew him from place to place. The reasons then were unknown, but he later learned that it was because he was a fledgling mage known as a Latent. He told of the initial encounter with Sarah and her death at the hands of Clementine, and of the message she passed on to him, the message that turned out to be a trap all along, a master plan concocted by the renegade mage, Marek. He glossed over his training at the Magistry; no doubt this was nothing new to Sedaris. When he came to the point of his astral journey and his encounter with the mysterious tower he again faltered like he had with Caleb, as if he was betraying some inner secret in relaying this information. He skipped over it, moving straight on to the mission in the Nexus and their attempts to speak to Woden, the First mage. He finished with Silas’ betrayal and the assault on Skelwith. Cumulating with Cian’s sacrifice that allowed them to destroy the Spoke Stone and release the sentinels, destroying Marek and his forces.
When it was all over, Seb sat back, exhausted from retelling the story. He’d gone over it many times in his head, but had never spoken it out in full since, well, ever. As he reflected upon it, a cloud formed in his mind. The whole thing, the whole damned thing had been orchestrated by Marek from the beginning. He had known the magi too well, knew the Magister too well. He acted upon her pride and her need to prove herself to the Families. Their elitism had cost them. Now she lay dead, as did so many others.
And what was it all worth?
‘So it was you who destroyed the Spoke Stone?’ Sedaris said.
‘It was the only option. Destroy it, release the sentinels, or allow Marek to take over the Magistry with his sheol army.’
Sedaris rose and rested an arm on the mantelpiece. His eyes stared into the flame.
‘Was it?’
‘What?’ Seb replied.
; Sedaris turned, the veneer of friendliness dropping slightly. His jaw was set, his eyes slightly narrowed.
‘The only option. Why not allow Marek to take over?’
Was he hearing this correctly? Seb was aware he had suddenly sat forwards, a tenseness having crept into his arms. ‘Sorry? How was that an option?’
‘Let me put it this way, Seb. You let Marek win his battle. The Brotherhood is wiped out. The useless fraternity of magi that formed the Magistry are destroyed. Would that be such a great loss? Removing those remnants of an archaic age that have no relevance in today’s world?’
He was standing without even realizing it. His clenched fists dug into his sides. King mage or whatever he was, no one would dismiss the sacrifice of Cian, Caleb and company in that way.
‘Loss? People died. Good people. All in the name of protecting this realm from the sheol. How can you dismiss it so easily?’
Sedaris held up his hands, the serious look vanishing in an instant. ‘You misunderstand me, Seb. I do not relish the death of any mage. However, in order to go forwards our organization must adapt to the new world. The old ideals and oaths do not work in this era. Marek’s deception and the Magistry’s destruction are symptoms of these changes. And besides,’ Sedaris continued, stopping Seb before he could speak, ‘the world has changed significantly for our kind, even in the last few months.’
‘What do you mean?’
Sedaris sat back down.
‘There has been a variety of what’s best described as - occurrences - that have taken place.’
‘Occurrences?’
‘Random corruptions in the Weave. Glitches in reality. It started small at first. One man at a bar in Manchester swore blind that the bottle he was holding simply vanished out of his hands. He found it several feet away down the bar.’
‘Sounds like typical drunk behaviour to me.’
‘Then there was the occasion when an articulated lorry vanished in full view of several witnesses. It reappeared a few hundred yards down the road. But only the back end. It looked like something had sliced it in half. The front end, including the driver, was never found.’
‘What? That’s just crazy!’
‘These are but examples of the many strange things that have happened to reality in recent months. The Families have been working overtime to find the causes, eliminating those they can.’
‘But how? What can be causing all this?’
Then it hit him.
‘The Spoke Stone. The Consensus.’ He slumped back into the chair. ‘I did this, didn’t I?’
‘I wasn’t sure, until now,’ Sedaris said. ‘But, alas, now I’ve heard the full tale, it can be the only explanation. The breaking of the Spoke Stone, one of the pillars of this reality, has caused a breakdown in the Consensus. This has led to the fractures in reality that we’re seeing.’
Seb sat forwards, his head resting in his hands. He scrunched his eyes shut, let out a slow, shaking breath, and sat back up.
‘I don’t know what to say.’
‘I can imagine this is a lot to take in.’ Sedaris rose again, obviously not a fan of the sitting still. ‘Still, all is not lost.’
Seb looked up. ‘Why?’
Sedaris smiled, those unnaturally white teeth on display. ‘Why, is it not obvious? With the Consensus in the state it is it gives us much more capability in terms of dealing with this new threat. The humans cannot handle it. Their minds would simply fold if they knew the truth. If anything, it gives us an opportunity we never had before.
‘I don’t follow.’
‘Think about it. For many centuries our kind has been bound by the Consensus, limited in using our abilities. And for what? To maintain a safeguard put in place for a war that happened years before, in an entirely different realm? Even the sheol are not the threat they once were.’
‘Really? Tell that to Skelwith.’
Sedaris’ face hardened. ‘Skelwith was the result of one Magister’s incompetence. If they had chosen to speak to us rather than deal with it themselves then this would never have happened. But lessons have been learned, Seb. Now is the time for us to take back control. We are the Aware, are we not? Does it sound right that control over reality should rest with the unconscious minds of the Unaware?’
Something uncomfortable had squirmed into Seb’s gut. He opened his mouth to disagree, but when he saw the look of sheer intensity that gazed back he changed his mind. This wasn’t an argument he was going to win.
‘I don’t know, maybe not,’ he muttered.
‘Of course not. They know not of the power they possess. It’s the ultimate irony do you not think? We know how to handle this power, yet they are the ones who have it, in vast amounts, yet do not grasp its magnificence.’
‘So what does this mean for these glitches you mention?’
Sedaris sat back down. He rang his hands constantly, his dark eyes glinting with intensity.
‘These glitches, we’ve found, are being caused by the Aware.’
‘What? What does that mean?’
‘I know, I know,’ Sedaris said, his eyes widening, a near-manic grin breaking out. ‘We thought so, too. I mean, how often do the Aware occur in a given generation? Once, twice in a million?’
‘One in a million,’ Seb quoted from memory.
‘Quite, quite. This is new. Before, the Aware, barring some exceptions,’ he nodded at Seb, ‘We could track them. We knew when they would emerge, and we could take them and deal with them.’
‘Purge them. Rip their minds.’
‘But not anymore,’ Sedaris continued, ignoring Seb, ‘they are occurring much more frequently. But they can’t control it; with the Consensus weakened they are able to do simple things, purely on instinct. For some it terrifies, they seek medical help, but of course the authorities cannot do anything. For others it’s much more severe.’
‘They go mad.’ Seb knew this already. It could’ve easily been him having his mind ripped by one of the Magistry’s magi.
‘Exactly. So what do we do? How do you think we deal with this, Seb?’
He wasn’t sure if this was an actual question or rhetorical, but the way Sedaris was looking at him seemed to demand a response.
‘I don’t know, treat them, try and see what’s causing this?’
Sedaris’ eyes fluttered and he let out a loud snort, as if Seb had made some kind of joke.
‘No, no. You’re an idealist Seb, I like that. But no, we simply do not have the time for that. Do you know what kind of damage these people can do to reality if they’re left unchecked?’
‘Perhaps it’s not a bad thing. Perhaps it’s time we just let the Aware emerge naturally, not controlling it.’
Sedaris cocked his head to one side as if Seb had just spoken a foreign language.
‘You really believe that?’
‘Not necessarily. Just wondering.’
‘Well don’t wonder. Not anymore. The Magistry’s time is over, the Brotherhood are gone. It now falls back to us to deal with this. That is why I created the coteries.’
‘Coteries?’ Seb plucked the memory out, one from months before, when Marek was just about to launch his attack on Skelwith. Cian had told Seb to fight with Cade and not the other magi as he hadn’t trained in a coterie.
‘Yes, groups of magi, bonded together. As one unit our powers are greater, much abler to deal with this threat. With our greater resources we are able to put people on the street, not magi, but our own trained Aware, helping us find these newly awoken and dealing with them before they can hurt themselves or others.’
‘So, you rip their minds.’
‘No, Seb. We are not barbarians. We cleanse them, removing the corruption of the Weave before it can do irreparable damage to reality.’
Seb frowned. ‘What else is there? You said this was an opportunity for us.’
Sedaris smiled, mistaking Seb’s question as a sign of ambition. ‘Indeed it is, Seb. Very much indeed. With these restraints removed, we are no
longer held back. As you can see from the building around you, we are not unsuccessful in what we do. With our abilities we excel at business. We can influence people, predict certain events before they happen. Imagine what rewards this can yield in a world like this?
‘But now we don’t need to stop there. We shouldn’t stop there. Before us, the Unaware were like sheep, layering this reality with their science, hardening it to such a degree that our kind was being starved of the very lifeblood that sustained us. Not now though. We can insert ourselves into their power structures, bringing our influence and abilities to bear on a much wider scale. We can save them from the oblivion of the mundane, and instead direct them to the truth about reality, about the Weave.’
Sedaris was in full flow now. He leant forwards, an almost imperceptible nod moving his head up and down. He believed all this, that much was obvious. His words were convincing, and Seb couldn’t help but feel a certain logic in his words. The Unaware were vulnerable. They were susceptible. With the Consensus breaking like it was, did they not need the magi to help them, to steer them back to the truth? So what if magi were suddenly inserted into the governments of this world.
It’s not like they were doing a good job without the magi, was it?
A knock at the door shook both men from their thoughts. Seb felt a tug on the Weave as Sedaris glanced past him. The Archmage rolled his eyes and smiled.
‘Forgive me, Seb, but we are out of time. I have an urgent meeting that cannot be moved.’ Sedaris looked past him, towards the door. ‘Come in, Alain.
The door opened and one of the guards from outside stepped in.
‘Sorry for the interruption, Archmage-’
‘It is fine, Alain, thank you for reminding me of the time. Seb was just leaving.’ Sedaris turned back. ‘Alain here will show you to somewhere more comfortable. I can imagine it’s been a trying time, both for you and your comrades. You can rest easy here, have comfort in that.’
This conversation was over. Sedaris was already making his way out of the room. Seb had more questions, but for now, they could wait. He was eager to get back to Cade and Sylph to check that they were okay. Then a thought occurred.