“Am I hallucinating?” I asked, confused. “What’s happening?”
“It’s all a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma,” she said. “By the way, is the mage trying to kill you?”
“I don’t think so,” I said. “He’s trying to figure out what’s wrong with me.”
“Plenty, but this method looks particularly lethal,” she answered, “even for the “Chosen of Kali’. Tell me, Splinter”—I could feel her breath on my neck—“do you know the difference between Karma and Fate?”
It took a moment to gather my thoughts through the haze of pain.
“Karma is the result of what I do, my actions,” I said, wondering where she was going with this question. “Fate means that things are predestined, I don’t have a choice.”
“Good,” she said. “Remember that, you’re going to need it soon.”
A bone-jarring slap rocked my jaw, and removed all doubt of hallucination. I was back in my body, doing the torture tango. The pain from her violent caress was manageable compared to what I had just experienced prior to her visit. Nothing like a wake up slap from the personification of causality to put things in perspective.
I looked down and saw the last ring was filling with blue energy. I must have been out for rings five and six. The pain had reached such a level that my body was blazing, trying to heal me. The seventh, innermost ring filled and a column of blue energy blasted into my body, blinding me again.
That’s when I screamed.
ELEVEN
Pain has a way of bringing clarity.
Normally, we as humans dislike pain, but it’s a sensation like any other. Feeling cold, or hot, or pain was just the way our brains dealt with the sensory stimuli of being in the world.
The pain I experienced when the seventh circle filled with energy changed my mind of that theory. That indescribable moment of agony, although brief, imprinted itself into every cell of my body.
I sat next to the now dormant circle as the room slowly spun around me. The pain, like most pain, was beginning to fade. The memory of the agony lingered, but the visceral sensation had dulled. My body flushed hot, dealing with the damage, but something felt off.
I looked up into Calisto’s face as she bandaged my arms. Behind her stood a concerned-looking Monty. Next to him sat a worried Peaches. I knew he was worried from the tone of his rumble.
“You three need to leave this plane as soon as possible,” Calisto said, wrapping my arms. “This plane is becoming lethally dangerous for you.”
“Why are you wrapping my arms?” I asked. “My body usually—”
“It’s repairing itself, Simon, but the damage is extensive,” Monty said, stepping forward. “It’s recovering too slowly.”
“Too slowly?” I asked. “That seventh ring was beyond agony. I’m surprised I’m even here at all.”
“Very few survive the seventh ring of a phasic scan.”
“You do that to all the shifting mages?”
“Yes,” Monty answered. “The seventh ring is usually reserved for the higher levels.”
“Excuse me? What do you mean, reserved for higher levels? Higher levels of what?”
“The phasic scan runs according to the level of the mage in the circle,” Monty explained. “In your case, being a non-mage, I estimated a max level of three rings. I didn’t anticipate it even being able to go to the last ring, let alone it actually doing it.”
“Damn thing fried me crispy,”—I looked down at my burned arms—“judging from the insta-tan.”
“You should be dead,” Calisto added. “Seventh ring scans”—she glanced at Monty—“require the presence of at least one Archmage if not two. This was reckless and foolish.”
“How did you guess our nicknames?” I asked with a grin. “I’m foolish, he’s reckless.”
“I’m serious,” Calisto answered. “You’ve been here too long.”
“We get that often. Mostly after Monty blows up something. Usually a building or two.”
“Going to a seventh ring nearly blew apart the Keep,” she answered. “If your hellhound hadn’t rushed here, it would have been too late. We would have been sweeping up your remains.”
I glanced down at Peaches. I must’ve called him when the seventh ring hit, even though I had no recollection of calling for him.
“The test?” I asked. “Did it work?”
Monty glanced at Calisto.
“Tell him,” she said. “He should know.”
“I should know what?” I asked, looking at Monty. “Tell me.”
“The test worked…somewhat,” Monty said, hesitatingly. “The results were hard to decipher. Seeing as how all of the rings were activated.”
“Somewhat? What do you mean, somewhat? What was hard to decipher? Because the pain I went through was easy to understand.”
“You aren’t poisoned.”
“That’s good news,” I said, feeling the weight lift off my shoulders. Then I noticed their expressions. “That is good news…right?”
“It’s not that simple,” Monty said. “You aren’t poisoned, but you’re affecting reality around you.”
“I do have a tendency to make an impact, but I’m guessing from the look on your faces, that’s not what you mean.”
They both shook their heads slowly.
“I’ve never seen anything like it. At least, not on a human,” Calisto said. “Whatever is acting as the catalyst has enormous power. Even to the degree that it’s affecting you here, on this plane.”
“Never seen anything like what?”
“You’re affecting causality,” Calisto answered. “The only other person I’ve seen with that ability was Emiko, the first Jade Demon, and she’s dead.”
“That sounds encouraging,” I said. “What do you mean, affecting causality?”
“This could bring us, specifically you, unwanted attention,” Monty said. “The kind that would think nothing of erasing you.”
“Erasing me?” I asked. “What are you talking about?”
“There are beings tasked with keeping order,” Monty answered. “If you are upsetting the balance of causality, they will want to restore that balance.”
“Restore the balance?”
“Yes, that is their purpose. Fortunately, we have avoided their attention…until now.”
“You mean, eliminating me?” I asked. “They’re going to have a hard time pulling that one off.”
“It means erasing you and any trace of your existence,” Monty said. “You cease to exist, past, present, and future.”
“It means you need to leave this plane…now,” Calisto answered. “I’m sorry, but your presence here is affecting the integrity of the wards around the Keep. If the wards fail—”
“We understand,” Monty said. “Thank you for allowing us to use the Keep.”
“Glad one of us understands,” I said. “Thank you for feeding Peaches.”
“He’s a good hellhound,” Calisto said, glancing down at Peaches. “He probably saved your life today.”
/> “Not the first time.”
“I doubt it will be the last,” Calisto said. “Feel free to visit if you ever get your situation resolved. Give my regards to your uncle. Until then, kindly stay on your plane.”
It was one of the most polite ‘get out of my plane and don’t come back’ comments we’d gotten. Usually when we were asked to leave a place, explosions and angry words were part of the request, along with threats of extreme pain. This was a nice non-violent change.
Monty gestured and formed a portal.
“Thank you again,” Monty said. “I will pass on your words to my uncle. I’m sure he would be interested in your assistance at the Golden Circle.”
“Inform him that a visit is not needed. We are still dealing with the fallout from the last time he stayed here.”
Monty raised an eyebrow.
“I didn’t know he had been here,” Monty said. “Was this a recent visit?”
“Recent enough that most of the Unholy want him dead, except maybe the Dreadwolves,” Calisto answered, with nod. “They probably want to chew on him for a bit, first.”
“Sounds like my uncle,” Monty replied. “I’ll inform him a visit is not preferred.”
“Tell him I’ll reach out for the locations and get back to him.”
Monty nodded and looked at me.
“Thank you again,” I said. “If you ever need help, you know where to find us.”
“Thank you for the kind offer,” Calisto said, “but if I ever come to you for help, you can rest assured the situation will be beyond apocalyptic.”
“In that case,” I said, “hope to never see you?”
“Exactly,” Calisto answered. “Goodbye, Simon.”
I motioned to Peaches and we stepped through the portal.
The light from the afternoon sun crept across the floor when we arrived on the other side of the portal in front of Dex’s door. The runes on the door were still pulsing as I examined them.
“These runes are still blinking in and out.”
“I’m aware,” Monty said, moving to the conference room as I headed to the kitchen. “We need to determine how much time has passed.”
“We were at the Keep for a day,” I said. “At least according to the wacky time over there.”
“Simon?” Monty called out. “You need to come to the conference room.”
“I’m hungry,” I said, sounding like my hellhound. “Give me a minute.”
“I’m afraid this can’t wait. You need to see this…now.”
I headed to the conference room, wondering what could be so urgent.
“I didn’t scratch the conference table,” I called out. “Neither did Peaches.”
“This is not about some scratches,” Monty replied. “This has to do with your attracting attention.”
“I told you, I’m low-key,” I said. “I don’t do the attracting. You and my hellhound do all of the attracting.”
“Not this time,” he said. “You have a guest.”
“A guest?” I asked. “I don’t do guests. How did this guest even get past the security?”
“I’m sure she didn’t encounter any difficulty circumventing our defenses.”
“She?” I asked. “I thought Chi was MIA?”
“This is decidedly not your vampire.”
The only person who fit the description of unannounced visits was Michiko. Only Peaches seemed to deter her surprise visits.
“Well then,” I said as I approached. “How do you know our guest is here for me?”
“Call it intuition.”
“Fine, I’ll be right there,” I called back. “Did you install corridors of chaos without telling me?”
“Now, Simon.”
The urgency in his voice concerned me. Whoever was in the conference room had Monty on edge. I’ve seen him drink tea in the middle of pitched battles with some of the nastiest creatures on the planet. Monty didn’t get on edge unless the threat was serious.
If Monty was nervous, there was a good chance that who or whatever was waiting for me was a threat. I looked down at my hellhound padding silently next to me.
I rounded the corner and headed down the small hallway that led to the conference room. I swore that on some days, our offices felt larger than usual inside. It wouldn’t surprise me, considering Dex had a room in our space. It would be just like him to inscribe expansion runes all over the property.
I entered the conference room, and sitting at the far end was a woman.
“Hello, Simon,” she said. “We need to talk about your current level of impact.”
Monty stood by the doorway looking upset, which is saying plenty, considering he always looked upset. Something about this woman set him off. Starting with the fact that she bypassed all of our security and was sitting in our conference room, thumbing through a book. I couldn’t sense her energy signature, which raised all kinds of red flags. The air around her shimmered, giving that side of the conference table a subtle mirage effect.
Usually when someone or something came across as an empty void, we were facing power several orders of magnitude beyond what we could deal with. This presence, and its lack of signature, was up there with Hades-level capability.
“Are you sure she isn’t here for you?” I asked, glancing at Monty. “She definitely seems like one of those magey types. Do you see how she’s dressed?”
Monty shook his head.
“I’m certain. I don’t make a habit of seeking audiences with powerful beings,” Monty said. “That’s your department.”
“I’m not doing it on purpose, you know,” I said. “They look for me.”
“Of course they do,” Monty motioned to the woman with his head. “Don’t be rude.”
I turned to face the end of the conference table.
“You seem to know who I am,” I said, opening my jacket and making sure Grim Whisper was accessible. “Who are you?”
“I’m Fate.”
TWELVE
She slowly closed the book, gave me a small smile and focused on me.
Now I was really nervous.
Appearing in our conference room without setting off our security was bad, but I knew that smile. It was the kind of smile that said ‘I’m about to make your life a living hell, and enjoy myself while I do so’.
“Fate?” I said, cautiously. “I thought there were three of you?”
“There are,” the woman said. “Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos”—she held up a finger for each name—“we three are one. We are Fate.”
I looked around the conference room, even crouching down to look under the conference table.
“I’m not seeing anyone else,” I said, peeking over the edge of the table as Peaches settled into his spot underneath it. “Did you lose the other two?”
“Simon…” Monty said, shaking his head. “She is in a triune form.”
“Like I’m supposed to know that? How exactly am I supposed to know she’s walking around like a ‘buy one, get three special’?”
“It’s obvious, if you look.”
“I am looking,” I said, pointing two fingers to my eyes and then turning the fingers to Fate. “One person, not three. Are you sure she’s not some renegade mage on Golden Circle business?”
I examined Fate, and saw just the one figure sitting in the chair. Nothing about her told me she was a triune being. The Morrigan, on the other hand, definitely gave off the ‘I’m much more than I appear’ vibe.
Fate was dressed in typical mage attire. Black Armani power suit, white shirt with a silver pocket kerchief. A silver triquetra pin rested in her short black hair. She leaned forward and peered at me over silver-rimmed glasses.
She was obviously masking her energy signature, I had just never encountered someone who could do it so completely. I still leaned toward overpowered mage. The only thing that threw me, not that I was an expert on mages, was that she read like ‘more than human’, somehow, and yet was completely not there.
If I didn’t see her in front of me, she would be invisible to my senses. The one thing that stood out was her iridescent eyes. The afternoon light that entered the conference room made her eyes subtly rainbow-like when she moved her head.
“You’re looking, but not seeing,” Monty replied, but remained standing. “It is obvious if you knew how to look.”
“Not obvious at all,” I said. “Only seeing one person here. Are the other two invisible? Hiding maybe?”
“She is trisected, like the Morrigan,” Monty said. “One being, three parts.”
“The Morrigan I get,” I said with a shudder. “I still remember the bad catheter at your ass-kicking with TK.”
Dark Glass: A Montague and Strong Detective Agency Novel Page 7