Gods of Chaos (Red Magic)

by Jen McConnel

  “What had you found?”

  “She was reading a book about Egyptian mythology. When I came back to our seats, she was gone but the book was still there.”

  He released me, and I stepped away from him quickly, breathing hard and rubbing my throat.

  “How long has it been since you first met Loki?”

  I thought back. “I met him for the first time in a dream on Christmas Eve. But he didn’t try to bargain with me until I was in Scotland.”

  “And you didn’t like his offer, so you dragged my sister into your search for another way to capture Hecate?”

  When he put it that way, I sounded careless and cold. “She wanted to help me. When you disappeared … ” I paused, remembering the visitation from Persephone, when I had first begun to suspect what Hecate ultimately wanted.

  “Well?” Marcus stared at me intently, his face a mask.

  “Persephone came to us. She told Izzy we probably couldn’t save you. She was the one who told us that Hecate has been trying to set in motion an end to the world.”

  He sighed. “And my sister wanted to help you.” He looked at his hands for a moment, and when he met my eyes again, I was surprised to see tears streaming down his face. “Izzy always puts others before herself. She’s the best Witch I’ve ever met.”

  “Is that just because she’s Blue?”

  He shook his head. “No, I’ve met other Blue Witches. Izzy is special. I guess she was shaped by her patron even more than I was. You know what happened, right?”

  “I know your mother promised Izzy to Isis before she was born.” I spoke cautiously, not sure if speaking about his family would send Marcus into another rage.

  “Mom died giving birth to Izzy. I was six.” He swallowed, and I mentally recalculated his age. With a shock, I realized that he was only twenty; he seemed way too hardened and worldly to be so close to my own age.

  Marcus went on, ignoring my expression. “That’s when Cerridwen took me for training. Isis did the same thing.”

  I stared at him, open-mouthed. “But how? And where?”

  He shrugged. “I don’t know a lot of the details. But Isis took her when our mother died, and I didn’t see her again until I was fifteen.”

  My mind whirred furiously. “So Izzy spent the first nine years of her life in the care of a goddess?”

  He nodded. “She’s never told me exactly what happened, but I think she was raised in the Underworld.”

  “How would a human child live in the Underworld?”

  “From what I understand, the Duat, the Egyptian Underworld, is less like the Greek and more like the Celtic. It’s Underworld and Otherworld combined, so the living can pass there with more fluidity.”

  I processed what he was telling me. “There is no one on earth like your sister.”

  He nodded. “I’ve known that for years.”

  If Izzy had been raised by her patron, then she probably knew as much magic as Marcus did. And from what she’d told me, Blue magic might be able to balance the harm caused by uncontrolled Red magic. “Marcus, we have to find her before we try anything else. We need her,” I pleaded.

  “Where do you suggest we look?” His tone was icy, and I drew back, startled.

  “I don’t know, okay? But finding her is the key to everything.”

  Marcus stalked away from me, his shoulders tense. “Why should I trust you?”

  “We both want the same thing,” I coaxed, keeping my distance from him.

  He whirled around angrily. “No we don’t! I don’t know what you want, Darlena. One minute, you’re talking about binding Hecate, and the next you’re back on my sister. Which is it, Witch? What matters to you here?”

  “I don’t know!” I shouted, feeling helpless. “Stopping Hecate seemed important. I mean, I wouldn’t even be here if not for that! But I can’t bear the idea of—”

  “Nuclear meltdown,” Marcus cut me off with a mocking tone. “Because you’re not a Red Witch. You want to practice pink magic like a fluffy little Non and stay safe and sound at home.” He glared at me. “Well, Witch, that’s something you should have thought of before now.”

  He was standing so close to me that I could feel the heat of his breath, and even though my lips started tingling in anticipation, I drew my hand back and slapped him across the face. Gods, that hurt.

  Marcus grabbed my wrist as soon as I hit him and started to squeeze. “I’m going to ask you again. What do you want?”

  “I don’t want to destroy anything. I know that much.” I clenched my teeth, trying to pull my hand out of his grasp, but it was like it was set in concrete. My arm tingled, but I couldn’t move.

  Suddenly, Marcus dropped my arm, and I staggered back. “Too late for that, Red.” He gestured around the forest, and I stared in horror.

  Flames encircled us, licking up the dry, winter wood. The ground was pitted and cracked, as if an earthquake had happened, and the only thing I could think of was that it all looked like the scene from a bad apocalyptic movie. Black smoke rose into the air, mingling with the snow until it looked like volcanic ash.

  I choked back a sob. “What did you do?”

  Marcus shook his head. “I’m not the one who can’t control my magic.”

  I wanted to argue with him, but when I looked down at my hands, red sparks were still visible. I dropped to my knees, horrified by what I’d done.

  Marcus tried to help me clean up the mess, but there wasn’t much we could do. Eventually, we gave up and walked away from the smoldering forest. I was a wreck, but he didn’t try to comfort me, and I retreated into silence. After an hour, we reached the edge of the woods. I finally spoke.

  “I want to find Izzy.” My words were quiet, but I could tell Marcus heard me by the way his shoulders tensed and then relaxed. He didn’t answer, though, and after a few more moments of silence, I tried again.

  “If we want to find Izzy, I think we’ll need some help. From a large group,” I ventured.

  Marcus glared at me. “I don’t want their help.”

  “But they owe it to you. I think the Coven is our best bet.”

  He grimaced. “Why can’t we just figure this out on our own?”

  I laughed, gesturing at the woods that surrounded us. “Because we’re doing such a great job of that.”

  He refused to look at me. “I just don’t want them involved. They won’t act in her best interests.”

  “How do you know?”

  “Have they ever?”

  I took a deep breath. “Maybe they feel guilty about it. I think they’ll help us. Or, if not all of them,” I amended, “I’m pretty sure Dr. Farren can give us some information.”

  “I thought you said they wouldn’t help you before. Why should it be any different now?”

  “Because now,” I pointed at him, “there are two Reds to be dealt with.”

  He looked skeptical.

  “When it was just me asking for help, they didn’t want to do anything. They told me to leave it to them, and they basically ignored me.”

  A slow smile spread across his face. “But it’s impossible to ignore two Red Witches.”

  “Exactly.” I shuddered slightly, thinking of the smoking forest behind us.

  The words had barely left my lips before Marcus grabbed my hands. I only had time to register the wild energy pulsing up my arms before everything went black.

  When I opened my eyes, we were standing in his messy studio apartment back in Edinburgh. “Gods, why do you have to do that? Can you warn me next time?” My stomach was churning, and I lurched as the ground finished spinning.

  Marcus smirked. “I got us here, didn’t I?”

  “Why didn’t you do that sooner?” I grumbled.

  He didn’t answer, and I swayed unsteadily on my feet as Marcus pulled his phone out of his pocket. Swiftly, he dialed a number.

  “Dr. Farren? It’s Marcus Welty.”

  His eyebrows went up in surprise. “No, Izzy didn’t find me. Darlena did.”


  Gradually, the room was slowing down, and I staggered to the sink to get a glass of water. A thin layer of dust coated the faucet, and the water tasted stale. I tuned Marcus out, concentrating instead on getting my ragged breathing back under control. When I turned around, Marcus handed me the phone.

  “Here. Why don’t you call home? You’ve been out of touch for a few days, and they might be worried.”

  His kindness surprised me. I took the phone, but before I dialed I asked, “What about Dr. Farren?”

  “She’ll pick us up in a half hour. She’s calling the Coven now.”

  I nodded, and then began to dial my parents’ number.

  My mother answered on the first ring. “Darlena? What’s the matter?”

  I hadn’t realized how much I missed the sound of her voice until now. “Nothing, Mom. I’m okay.” I drew a deep breath to keep from crying.

  “I would hope so! Did you need something?”

  Did I need something? I wanted to laugh; I needed way more help than she could offer. “I didn’t want you to be worried.”

  She laughed. “Lena, you know I never worry about you when you’re with Justin.”

  Time slowed down as her words penetrated my foggy brain. “With—wait, what are you talking about?”

  Her voice tightened. “You’re not with him? Then who are you seeing tonight? When you left for a movie, I assumed it was with Justin.”

  This didn’t make any sense. I could only repeat her words in confusion. “A movie?”

  Mom’s voice rose sharply. “Darlena Agara, you’re not doing any drugs or anything like that, are you?”

  I stared at the phone, aghast. “Mom! Of course not.”

  “I should hope not!” Her voice softened. “Enjoy your movie, and make sure Justin has you home by midnight. Not a minute later, young lady!”

  Speechless, I hung up the phone. I swayed unsteadily for a moment, replaying our conversation, and then my legs gave out. Marcus quickly grabbed my arms and helped me to the futon in the corner. He sat close to me, not touching, his face concerned.

  “Is anything wrong at home?”

  Numbly, I shook my head. I leaned against him, seeking comfort, but he didn’t put his arm around me.

  “Then what is it?”

  I opened my mouth, then closed it. Finally, I said, “My mother thinks I just went to a movie with my boyfriend.”

  His brows furrowed. “She thinks we’re dating?”

  “No!” I snapped. “She thinks I’m home.” The truth of what I’d said sunk in, and I gasped. “How in the world?”

  Marcus sat back as if he’d been struck. “What’s going on?”

  I shook my head. “I don’t know. But I need to get home! This isn’t right.” I started to stand, but he pulled me back onto the sofa. My hand tingled, but he didn’t let go.

  “Not yet. We have to find Izzy and bind Hecate. You can’t leave now.” His voice was firm, but I heard the desperate note in his tone.

  I wanted to help Marcus, but my family came first. “There’s something really weird going on! I have to fix it.” My voice broke, and I struggled to maintain my composure.

  Marcus squeezed my hand gently. “Think about it, Darlena. For some reason, your mom thinks that you’re safe and sound. Maybe this is a blessing.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Now you can do what you need to do without worrying her. You don’t even need to tell her about our plan if you don’t want to.”

  It made sense, but I was still worried. “But why does she think I’m home? This is just weird.”

  He sat up suddenly. “When you went to the Greek Underworld before, how did you manage it? Weren’t your parents freaked out?”

  I shook my head, wondering why he brought that up. “No, because Persephone stayed behind and glamoured herself to look like me. They didn’t even know I was gone.”

  He smiled triumphantly. “She’s probably done it again. You said you spoke to her at the cairns the day I disappeared, right?”

  I nodded skeptically. “But why would she do something like that without telling me?”

  “We’ve been sort of unreachable lately,” he remarked dryly.

  I thought about what he’d said. It made a certain amount of sense, but I couldn’t shake the nagging feeling that something about his scenario didn’t fit. “I guess,” I agreed slowly, “but I still think we should mention this to Dr. Farren and the Coven. Maybe they know something.”

  “Agreed. But stop worrying. We’ve got more immediate concerns.”

  “Like what?”

  He leaned back against the cushion wearily. “Like facing my family again.”

  “How long has it been since you saw your grandparents?”

  His mouth tightened. “Years. I didn’t exactly grow up going to Grandma’s house on Sundays.”

  I nodded, feeling awful for him. What must it have been like to grow up the way he did? “But they’ll help us. The Coven owes it to you and Izzy.” I sounded more confident than I felt, and Marcus stared at me for a minute before answering.

  “I’m not so sure. But you’re right; I don’t know what else we should do.”

  A buzzer sounded and I jumped. Marcus chuckled and put his arm on my back soothingly. Without conscious thought, I leaned into his hand, feeling safe for a moment.

  “That’s the bell for the street. Dr. Farren is probably here.”

  I wished I’d had time to take a shower and get rid of the grunge from our nights in the forest, but it didn’t look like that was going to happen. I wobbled a bit as I stood up, and I reached out a hand to Marcus to steady myself. He clasped my hand and gave it a squeeze, and I squeezed back. I’d gotten used to the weird electric current between us, and I almost didn’t want to let go.

  “Are you ready?” His voice was soft.

  Shaking my head, I let go of his hand and walked toward the door. “No. But we’re out of ideas, remember?”

  He nodded. “Let’s hope this isn’t a mistake.”

  Dr. Farren didn’t say much on the drive, and I shifted uncomfortably in the front seat. From time to time, I caught her glancing at me out of the corner of her eye, but her eyes darted away as soon as they met mine. Marcus snored softly from the back. Somehow, he’d managed to fall asleep as soon as we were in the car; I wondered if he was playing possum so he didn’t have to talk to Dr. Farren. When we arrived at the farmhouse in the countryside, the driveway was filled with cars. Nervous, I glanced at Dr. Farren, but she remained expressionless.

  Frances opened the door before we had climbed the steps. She rushed forward, crushing Marcus in an embrace. He looked startled for a minute, but then he patted his grandmother on the back, staring down at her white head.

  “Mother!” a sharp voice barked from the house, and I looked up to see the bird-like librarian standing there, glaring at Marcus.

  “Mother?” I whispered to Marcus. “Does that mean what I think it means?”

  Marcus ignored me. “Nice to see you, too, Uncle Sam.” Gently, he gently pulled away from Frances.

  Samuel’s jaw tightened, but he turned on his heel without speaking. Frances stared up at Marcus for an instant longer, her eyes brimming with tears. Then she turned and followed her son into the house.

  I glared at Marcus. “You didn’t mention that part.”

  He shrugged. “Doesn’t really matter. Just because we’re blood doesn’t mean there’s any love lost between us.”

  “But still. It makes sense now, how bitchy he was to me before.”

  Marcus smiled, but it looked more like a snarl. “He’s always adored Izzy. Everyone does.”

  I nodded hopefully. If the entire Coven felt that way about Izzy, maybe they’d be willing to help us.

  The hair on the back of my neck stood up as we passed over the threshold, and my skin tingled with magic. We followed Frances and Dr. Farren into the room with the fireplace that I remembered from before, but this time the large space felt small. All
nine members of the Coven were gathered in the room. A woman with rich, black hair streaked white at the temples sat on the settee next to Julia. A young woman who looked like a youthful copy of the black-haired beauty stood behind her mother’s chair.

  There were also two men I hadn’t met before. One looked about my father’s age, and he was sitting peacefully on the floor, his legs tucked into full lotus position, his eyes closed as if he were oblivious to everything in the room. The second man stood by the window, his back to us as he looked out at the winter sky.

  Frederick cleared his throat. “I suppose I should make the introductions, but I’ll be brief about it. Marcus, Darlena, this is Julia, Jewel, Lorna, Matthew, and Roy. You know Dr. Farren, and I heard,” he said dryly, “that you’ve encountered Samuel and Frances already.”

  Marcus nodded, and I surveyed the Witches with interest, trying to remember their names.

  I cleared my throat. “Thank you for helping us.”

  Julia spoke up, her voice as sharp as her parrot’s. “We haven’t agreed to anything yet.”

  Dr. Farren glared at her. “But we haven’t turned them away. We agreed to hear them out.”

  “What I want to know,” Samuel began, “is what you bloody well think you’re doing waltzing in here after all this time.”

  I looked at Marcus, confused. “How long were we in the Black Forest?”

  He shrugged. “A couple days. Less than a week.”

  An agitated whisper snaked around the room. Samuel opened his mouth to speak, but Dr. Farren beat him to it. “What are you talking about? Darlena, you vanished over a year ago.”

  I stared at her, not understanding. “You took me back to Edinburgh before the New Year.”

  She shook her head impatiently. “That was the last New Year. You were gone for—”

  “They were gone for a year and a day.” Samuel spoke quietly, but his words caused an explosion from the others.

  Confused, I looked at Dr. Farren. “Why is the time frame so significant?”

  “It’s significant,” Frederick began, “because it means we know exactly where you were.”

  “I never would have thought any Witch would be foolish enough to enter Fairy.” Julia brushed her hands across her skirt, smoothing the fabric in agitation.