Crow: The Four
Book 1 of The Crow Chronicles
Copyright © 2021 Vishnu Pinnaka.
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever. For information, address the publisher.
ISBN: 978-1-63877-197-5
Library of Congress Control Number: 2021908006
Portions of this book are works of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblances to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Edited by Hannah McAuliffe.
Illustrations by Tatyana Tyurina.
Front cover by Dede Nugraha.
Printed by IngramSpark POD in the United States of America.
First Printing, 2021.
Vishnu Pinnaka
Sugar Land, TX.
Contents
Prologue
Chapter One Olivia
Chapter Two David
Chapter Three Vanessa
Chapter Four Eric
Chapter Five An Unexpected Visitor
Chapter Six A.S.H. Headquarters
Chapter Seven Hale’s Penthouse
Chapter Eight The Magic Factory
Chapter Nine The First Lesson
Chapter Ten A Preternatural Zoo
Chapter Eleven Simple Tasks
Chapter Twelve Wintergreen’s Ice Cream
Chapter Thirteen The Gem Museum
Chapter Fourteen The Meeting
Chapter Fifteen Magical Creation
Chapter Sixteen Soulstead
Chapter Seventeen Magical Recycling
Chapter Eighteen A Nefarious Meeting
Chapter Nineteen Magical Defense
Chapter Twenty Yulestice
Chapter Twenty-One Sneaking Into The Archives
Chapter Twenty-Two A Magical Test
Chapter Twenty-Three Worn Away Patience
Chapter Twenty-Four The Enchanted Dish
Chapter Twenty-Five The Black Crown
Chapter Twenty-Six A Victory For The Wrong Side
Chapter Twenty-Seven Training
Chapter Twenty-Eight A Special Birthday
Chapter Twenty-Nine The Dream Room
Chapter Thirty A Skirmish At Headquarters
Chapter Thirty-One The Contract
Author’s Note
About The Author
For all who desire to glance at Earth
through a stained glass window…
Prologue
A crow was flying in the night sky. A crow which appeared ordinary, so ordinary that if a birdwatcher gazed upon it, they would simply disregard it. It would be hard to blame them. In the grand scheme of things, one small crow might not seem very significant, at least not to the inhabitants of Earth, mortals. The crow, however, flew in the skies of a much different world. A magical world, Magia.
The crow flew over a massive city, a municipality named after the cawing creature itself, Crow City. Beneath it, was a city just as immense.
Underground, in a lengthy corridor, men in white suits were hastily pacing. The men had an urgent, crucial meeting to attend to which was why they couldn’t saunter. The first man’s most notable traits were his dark brown eyes and loftiness which made him tower over anyone of a normal stature. The second had gleaming red hair and a pale complexion that was shades away from making him look like an apparition. The third man was short and had a quite caramel complexion which made him look like a plump toffee. The last had shaggy blonde hair that looked like it hadn’t been styled in years and rich brown eyes which looked like chocolate truffles.
The men kept striding until they reached a set of doors. The first man swung his hands and the doors opened. This revealed an airy circular room. There was a man in a black tuxedo waiting for them.
“Aah, Agents Ross, Carter, Parker, and Willow. Thank you for coming so urgently, you know that the mission you are about to embark upon is of the utmost importance, even if it is a rather swift one,” he said to the men.
“We know what this means to our world, Mr. Hale,” replied Agent Ross.
“Remember, go to Earth using your mirorvators. You know their addresses. Proceed to their homes and tell the caretakers, it’s time. Then convey them all here. We will let them say their farewells. After that, we will explain everything to the four,” Mr. Hale said.
“What if the guardians are reluctant?” inquired Parker.
“Of course the guardians are going to be reluctant,” answered Hale. “When we presented the four to them, while they did agree to return them when the time came, we all knew how hard it would be for them to let go. I feel like I’m committing a crime when I do this, but it has to be done. We both know this.”
The agents nodded. They each then pulled their sleeves up a little to reveal a curious apparatus with a flexible white band and round, black screen made out of thin, resistant glass. If a mortal saw one, they would think of it as a smartwatch. Oh how wrong they would be. The implements were mirorvators, one of the most useful gadgets in Magia.
The agents all pinioned on the black screens and they illuminated. The mirorvators were now turned on. Suddenly, an array of holographic buttons appeared in the air. The agents had to swipe through rows of them before they found the one they were seeking. The button was minuscule and cobalt blue. On it was the word travel. They each positioned a finger on it and a small tab appeared along with letters for them to type with. All of the agents carefully entered the words: New York City, U.S.A, Earth. All of a sudden, out of the paraphernalia, purple rays of light appeared and encircled all of them. The rays spun around them and spun faster and faster until the men completely vanished.
The agents all materialized in a dark alley of New York City so the mortals wouldn’t witness anything that would make them question the universe itself. It had been a long time since magians had been to Earth and the mortals had forgotten all about them. Now wasn’t the time to be bothered.
“Remember, each of us will spread out and go to one of the four’s houses,” Willow spoke. “Then we bring them along with their guardians back here, and absolutely no magic is to be used. Remember we are on Earth. Harry, you will go to the Winstons,” he said to Ross. “Dexter, you will go to the Harrisons,” he said to Agent Parker. “Craig, you will pay a visit to the Quinns,” he said to Carter.
The other agents nodded and they all left the alley in their discreet ways, trying their best not to attract attention from mortals.
Chapter One
Olivia
Olivia Lee was looking for a snack in her kitchen and her stepparents were upstairs researching hemophilia. She didn’t find anything except for the nutritional bars which tasted revolting (broccoli and oats don’t go well together).
They always said, “None of that ‘processed food nonsense’ will be tolerated in this household, now eat your asparagus.”
It was a normal afternoon which followed a monotonous day like any other. It started with Olivia falling off of her bed when she heard her irritatingly loud alarm clock which her stepparents installed because “This will give you no excuse to not wake up early.”
Luckily, her stepparents also “Olivia-proofed” her entire bedroom by placing cushions all over her floor in case of an “accident”. Then, she went to school in her stepparents’ heavily cushioned car (they wouldn’t let her ride the bus because they said, “it doesn’t have enough seatbelts for one person.”). After that, her stepparents pick
ed her up from school an hour late because of the babies they both had to deliver (As she waited, Olivia was rereading all of the books in the library with another kid who had honey eyes and black hair). Once she was home, she could finally relax while looking at the walls covered with her stepparents’ certificates and memorabilia (there was nothing else to do since Olivia already finished her homework in school and her house didn’t have a television). Even though her life was exceptionally boring, she had somewhat gotten used to it. Nothing out of the ordinary ever happened to her.
Olivia was twelve and had what the doctors called a “very healthy complexion”. Her long, straight hair looked like it had never had a single tangle and it was as dark as the night. She also had pure emerald green eyes which glistened to anyone who saw her. The most unusual thing about her appearance was a purple, crow-shaped birthmark on her right hand which contradicted her other orderly attributes.
She lived with her adoptive parents, the Kims. By now you could guess that both of her stepparents were doctors.
Olivia’s stepmother, Mia Kim, was tall with long, black hair and slightly pale skin. She was very health conscious and made sure that Olivia kept track of what she ate (this meant that Olivia could eat no more than precisely twenty-five grams of sugar a day; that’s the amount a human being should consume a day).
Her stepfather, Bryan Kim, was short with mahogany hair and peach skin just like his stepdaughter. He made sure that Olivia didn’t get ill and would be worried even if she would just cough (or say it was hot outside).
The Kims were very overprotective towards Olivia which she was fine with her because, even though she was very perspicacious, she had one tremendous flaw: she was very afraid. She was never the daring type and didn’t like anything that was even a little bit frightening. It may seem ridiculous; after all, everyone is afraid. However, fear seemed to affect her differently than others. Olivia knew that it was normal to have some irrational fears or phobias. In fact, a plethora of her classmates in school had rather unusual fears. One girl was afraid of spiders, while a boy was afraid of the school librarian. Despite all of this, Olivia seemed to be more fearful than everyone else. She couldn’t explain why this was so. It was like if fear itself was a person, it tormented Olivia more than anyone else.
Along with that, Olivia was also very shy. In school, she was never talked to and didn’t have any friends. It was like she was invisible. Olivia loved the Kims, but there was a part of her that felt like she didn’t belong there. She thought today was also going to be normal and ordinary. However, that all changed when she heard a knock on her door.
Chapter Two
David
David Gonzales was in his living room finishing his homework all alone, but he was used to it. His stepparents were in their studies like always. His stepmother was working on an article for the newspaper about students’ school uniforms being “cheaply made” and his father was talking to his colleague on the phone. Once David’s stepfather was on the phone he wouldn’t stop talking for hours because he had “important business to attend to.” However, whenever David overheard one of these calls, all he heard was talk of golf. Nevertheless, both of his stepparents were truly busy, so it was normal for David to be alone.
He was twelve and had a slightly tan complexion which looked flawless. His chocolate brown hair was curly and lustrous. His eyes were hazel and anyone who saw him would say that they looked melancholy. The most unusual thing about his appearance was a purple, crow-shaped birthmark on his right hand which he quite liked even though he wasn’t the most supernatural of people.
David lived with his adoptive family, the Winstons. The Winstons were very well known for their enormous wealth.
His stepmother, Claire Winston, was tall with a fair complexion, long blonde hair, and gingerbread-colored eyes. She was a very charitable woman (she gave away so much money, people called her ‘Charity Winston’).
His stepfather, Alex Winston, was just as tall with black hair and a slightly pale complexion. He was very humorous, or at least that’s what he thought whenever he told a joke to house guests. Both stepparents were notably generous.
The Winstons were as busy as they were wealthy which was why they couldn’t spend much time with David. He was well-known at his school, but that didn’t matter to him at all. He knew the only reason people wanted to spend time with him was that his adoptive parents were rich. He was tired of kids rushing up to him when they saw him dropped off in a limousine, so he now took the bus. He was tired when kids would ask to sample his lunch at the cafeteria when they saw his chef-made food, so he learned to cook. But most of all, he was tired when his ‘friends’ would bully kids in front of him. A lot of the kids that wanted to be friends with him were jerks. One boy was always mean to bright students because they were smarter than him. One girl would always chew gum and stick it in other people’s hair. David tried his hardest to ignore them and would always reach out to kids who were bothered by them.
Whenever David came home, he was always lonely. All he wanted was to spend more time with his family. A part of him also felt different from everyone else. It was like he wasn’t even from Earth! He didn’t think anything special would happen to him that day, but that all changed when he heard a knock on his door.
Chapter Three
Vanessa
Vanessa Irvine was in her living room sitting on her antique chair finishing her homework while her stepparents were in the kitchen talking about furniture tears and curtain rips. Practically everything in Vanessa’s house was an antique, even her clothes. Copious people at her school made fun of her for this, but she didn’t care.
“Why would it matter if a bunch of selfish, spoiled brats think I’m ‘weird’? They’re just boring,” she always said.
Vanessa was twelve and had a light skin tone. She had wavy blonde hair that was as bright as sunshine, or it would be if she didn’t constantly dye it. She though that blonde was too “bland” for her liking. This week her hair was its normal color since her stepparents had enough of the colorant’s strong smell and the permanent stains it left on their furniture. Vanessa’s eyes were as blue as the ocean. Like the ocean, her eyes also looked vast and mysterious. Her favorite thing about her appearance, however, was also the most unusual. It was a birthmark. A purple crow-shaped birthmark on her right hand.
The reason that everything she owned was vintage was because her adoptive family, the Harrisons, ran their antique store and they thought that it was much cheaper to just use things from the shop.
Vanessa’s stepmother, Victoria Harrison, was lanky with honey blonde hair and a fair complexion. She had always kept track of how much she was spending (her definition of a shopping spree was going into the local grocery store for produce).
Her stepfather, Tim Harrison, was short with dark brown hair and a light complexion. He was very persuasive so people would buy his antiques (he made sure that a person didn’t leave his store empty-handed).
The Harrisons had a motto: “Why throw away toothbrushes, when you can use them as house décor?”
The Harrisons got very creative with how they reused items.
Vanessa wasn’t irritated that she didn’t get anything new. What did bother her, however, was when people assumed that she was one-dimensional and spoiled. Vanessa despised dolls. The first time she got a doll (which was also a haunting porcelain one from the antique store), she pulled out its hand and used it as a slingshot to shoot the doll’s head (which she also pulled out). Vanessa was very venturesome and wanted to leave New York. Her first word was adwentuwe (she couldn’t pronounce her v’s or r’s yet). It didn’t help her that her family would never go on vacations. Vanessa had never stepped foot outside of New York! She truly cared about her family, but she desperately wanted to escape her current life. Little did she know that her wish would come true when she heard a knock on her door.
Chapter Four
Eric
Eric Andrews was in the kitchen with his adoptive family, the Quinns, playing chess. The Quinns were real estate agents who were very busy but always spent time with Eric.
Eric was twelve and had a fair complexion. He had plain black hair which he liked to cut short. His eyes were honey-colored and looked welcoming. The most unusual thing about his appearance was the purple, crow-shaped birthmark on his right hand. Eric cherished his birthmark because it made him look like a character in a storybook.
Eric wasn’t very popular at school and didn’t have many friends but he didn’t care. Whenever he came home, his stepparents would happily greet him and he would tell them how his day went. He loved his stepfamily very much.
His stepmother, Sophia Quinn, was tall with wavy brown hair and a medium complexion. She was very helpful so people would find their perfect home (she earned the nickname ‘dream house giver’).
His stepfather, Jake Quinn, was short with bright red hair and a fair complexion. He was an admirable businessman who sold an abundance of houses (some people claimed that he sold half of the houses in New York).
“Checkmate,” Eric said and his parents clapped (the Quinns would always let Eric win at board games, or at least that’s the excuse they were going with).
Besides chess, there were other assorted activities that Eric excelled at. Among these, however, his favorite was perspicuously to read. Eric was an enormous bibliophile. There were numerous things which Eric liked to read about. Whenever he read about science fiction or fantasy, he imagined himself as one of the characters experiencing the magic itself. He also read his fair share of informational volumes about historical events. Whenever he read those, he imagined the contrast between his present life and the past. Despite all of this, Eric also loved travel books. He relished reading about faraway paradises and mysterious lands. While he did love reading about them, he was also saddened. Eric was saddened because he knew that he would never be able to see the places in person. His family never traveled because his stepparents were very busy and always had houses to sell.
Crow Page 1