by Victor Kloss
Ben, Charlie and Natalie stood outside the station, barely fifty yards from the fence.
“That is just spectacular,” Charlie said. “It looks like Disneyland times a hundred.”
“Well put,” Ben said. “The question is, how do we get in?”
The only break in the fence was an open gate, which led on to the road that went to the castles. But the gate was guarded. Ben noticed two things about the people allowed through: they all wore a small shiny badge that glowed a certain colour, perhaps indicating the castle they were heading to, and very few of them were human. The majority were elves, but there were also lots of gnomes, goblins and even dwarves, as well as a few buzzing pixies and sprites.
“I never thought we'd stick out by being human,” Charlie said.
“We'll be fine,” Natalie said. “We just need SpellWorks security badges.”
“Where can we get them? I doubt they’re handing them out for free.”
“Follow me,” Natalie said. She checked her watch. “Seven minutes. We need to hurry.”
She led them along the busy road that ran parallel to the fence. Ben was so busy looking around that he had several near collisions. It wasn't the people themselves who caught his eye, but rather what they were riding. Many of the elves rode something that resembled a Segway except it had no wheels and simply floated along. Others rode different types of animals that Ben guessed were related to the big cat family. Still more flew overhead on eagles, though Ben noticed none of them seemed able to cross the threshold of the fence even when flying above it.
Natalie set a quick pace and eventually, in the distance, they could make out a settlement.
“There are four towns, one for each castle,” Natalie said. “Most SpellWorks employees live here.”
“Is that where we're going?” Ben asked.
“No.” She turned towards the fence and sighed with relief. “Oh good, he turned up. He's not that reliable and I feared he might not come.”
On the other side of the gate, just ahead of them, was a young elf. He didn't look much older than Ben, though you could never tell with elves. With long, flowing brown hair and fine eyebrows, Ben supposed he might have been considered good-looking for their kind. But his looks were ruined slightly by the anxious expression and his frequent furtive looks around.
“Rolan,” Natalie said, waving and giving him a glamorous smile. “You made it!”
It was instantly obvious to Ben that Rolan was smitten by Natalie. He softened the moment he saw her. Ben and Charlie received unfriendly glances, before he forgot all about them.
“I said I would,” Rolan said, in a voice that Ben thought sounded a little feminine.
“Do you have them?”
Rolan beckoned Natalie forwards and they met at the fence. Ben saw Rolan hand Natalie something.
“I have to get them back today,” he said.
“You will,” Natalie assured him.
“If you get caught…”
Natalie touched Rolan's hand. “Don't worry, it won't get back to you.”
Rolan seemed mollified, if not by Natalie's words, then by her touch.
“Have you thought about my offer?” he asked.
Natalie stepped back. “I'll let you know tonight.” She gave him a wave. “Thanks again!”
Once they turned and headed back down the road towards the gate, Natalie shivered. “God, he's creepy.”
“I thought so too,” Charlie said, sounding pleased. “What was his offer?”
“It's not even worth repeating. I'm just trying to find a way to let him down gently. He doesn't take rejection lightly.”
Natalie handed them each a badge and they fastened them to their shirts. They shone a dull green.
“Access to the earth castle?”
“The castle is called Gaia. And yes, it should give us access.”
Ben smiled. “Rolan must be a competent little thief. I thought you said these were hard to come by.”
Natalie seemed to be struggling with something. Finally she said, “He didn't steal them.”
“How did he get them, then?”
“He made them. He's very good at forging things. He works in the security badges production department, and knows how they work inside and out.”
Charlie slowed, his eyes narrowing. “If they are forgeries, have they been tested?”
“Not yet,” Natalie said. “But Rolan is exceptionally gifted. We'll be fine.”
Ben studied Natalie. “You weren't going to tell us, were you?”
“I didn't want to worry you,” Natalie said, her eyes lingering a little too long on Charlie.
Charlie's face went red. He mumbled something unintelligible.
“I'm sure they'll be fine,” Ben said quickly, hoping Charlie hadn't taken offence. “Let's go try them out.”
To Ben's relief, both Natalie and Charlie turned their attention to the gate and the guards blocking them. There was a steady flow of people coming in and out. Ben counted four guards, but they weren't stopping people; perhaps the pin's badge was security enough. Ben saw the badges light up when they passed through.
“Will ours do that?” Charlie asked, looking down at his badge anxiously.
“They should do,” Natalie said. “Rolan was supposed to replicate their functionality.”
Ben smiled. “Well, he knows you'll never speak to him again if he messed up, so I'm sure they're fine. Just walk confidently through, and don't stare at the guards.”
But as they approached the gate, Ben found that was easier said than done. They had to slow to a crawl, as there were people ahead of them, including a couple of dwarves riding what looked like warthogs. The mounted dwarves caught the guards' attention, which suited Ben just fine. As he passed through the gate, the pin suddenly warmed against his chest and, to his great relief, glowed green.
“That wasn't so bad,” Ben said, giving them both a grin. The wide road eased the traffic congestion and Ben set a good pace towards the castles.
Charlie wiped his brow with a handkerchief. “I'm fairly sure I'm going to have heart problems when I'm older. So, what next?”
“We head to Gaia and begin our search for Mr. Lornor Taren.”
“How do we know which castle he's in?”
“If he's a beastmaster, he should be in Gaia. Earth is the primary magic used to tame and train beasts,” Natalie said.
“Except the book said he had been relieved of his beastmaster position,” Charlie said.
“Minor details,” Ben said, with a wave. “When we get into the castle, we'll find a way to track him down.”
Ben's confidence wavered slightly as they neared the castle. The sheer size and splendour of it was both intimidating and awe-inspiring. The faint green turrets and towers were so tall they seemed to touch the sky.
“The doors are open. That's a good sign,” Natalie said.
In actual fact, there were no doors, just a large archway for people to come and go. On top of the arch the words “SpellWorks Inc.: Gaia” were elegantly engraved.
“Maybe they don't need a door,” Charlie said. “Maybe they have magic security instead.”
“Ever the optimist,” Ben commented.
But Charlie had a point, and Ben fiddled with his badge as they climbed the stairs towards the arched entrance.
“When we get inside,” Ben said, now talking softly and quickly, “it's important that we don't look like a bunch of tourists. We will have only moments to decide where to go and what to do. Who wants to lead?”
“You,” Natalie and Charlie said in unison.
“Okay, but if either of you sees something, feel free to take over. Natalie, you know this world better than us and, Charlie, you can read and observe like a wizard.”
Ben couldn't help flinching as he stepped through the archway, half expecting some magical barrier to stop them in their tracks. But they walked through unopposed and entered a huge circular atrium.
“That was easy,” Charlie said, lookin
g around uncomfortably. “Am I being paranoid or does anyone else think that sneaking into one of the most magical places in the Unseen Kingdoms should be a little harder?”
“Don't be such a pessimist,” Natalie whispered. “We have the security badges, remember?”
Ben couldn't help feeling Charlie had a point, but he had no time to worry about that now. He quickly took in the scene. Everything was a pristine white or made of crystal glass, reminding Ben of some futuristic space age. There were three staircases: one ahead, one left, and one right. In front of the central staircase was a signpost with a sign for each staircase. The left said “Research & Development”, the middle one said “Production Labs” and the one on the right said “Enchantments & Artefacts”.
Without breaking stride, Ben steered to the left staircase and started climbing.
“Good choice,” Natalie said.
“What is it with stairs?” Charlie huffed. “I would have thought a place like this would have magical escalators or something.”
The stairs ran deep into the left section of the castle and they emerged into a small room that was clearly located in one of the many towers, with its curved walls. There were two doors, in front and behind them. Neither were marked and both looked identical.
“Which door?” Charlie asked.
In answer, Ben led them through the front one.
Ben had told Charlie and Natalie the importance of acting like they belonged, but the moment they stepped through the door, Ben found it difficult following his own rule. The left wall was made entirely of glass, allowing unrestricted viewing into a huge open plan room that looked like a combination of a science lab and a library. There were large, chest-high tables, surrounded by stools, which were populated by elves in protective lab coats. Many were studying books, supplied from the huge shelves that were placed in the centre of the room; others were channelling magic into little pellets by touching them. They would then take the magic-infused pellet, holding it delicately in both hands, and walk it over to another section of the room that reminded Ben of the spellshooter target practice rooms at the Institute; the only difference was the grass, shrubbery and even small trees planted at the end of the room. The pellet was handed to an elf dressed in full body armour, who would then launch the spell at the planted nature at the end of the room, to wildly unpredictable results.
“Let's keep going,” Natalie said, giving Ben a little nudge.
They continued to the end of the hallway, up a small staircase, and into another corridor, where exactly the same set-up was repeated, except that instead of testing the spells against nature, there were all sorts of animals, chained by magical means, contained in the huge room. Ben saw everything from squirrels to something that looked like a baby wyvern.
“We should be getting closer, if he still works here,” Ben said.
“I don't want to put a dampener on things,” Charlie said, “but how are we going to recognise Lornor Taren? I never saw a picture of him.”
Natalie smiled. “I thought you would never ask.” She delved into her pockets and pulled out two sheets, handing one to Ben and the other to Charlie. “I found this last night. It's a few years old, but it’s better than nothing.”
On the sheet was an illustration of the oldest elf Ben had ever seen. He had fine silver hair, absurdly long ears and a great big chin. There were faint bags beneath his eyes, and Ben thought he looked a little worse for wear.
“Perfect,” Ben said. “He certainly stands out. Now we just need to stumble into him somehow.”
But the castle was a maze of stairs, hallways and rooms, and they soon found themselves wandering around without having a clue where they were. To make matters worse, they had passed several elves who had given them curious looks, though so far nobody had stopped to question them.
“This is no good,” Ben said, stopping at yet another t-junction. “We could go on doing this forever and not find him.”
“What do you suggest?” Natalie asked.
“We need to ask someone.”
“Is that a good idea?” Charlie asked nervously. “We don't want to attract attention to ourselves. What if Lornor no longer even works here? The question will sound ridiculous.”
“Then we'll know we're wasting our time and leave as quickly as possible,” Ben said.
“I agree that we need to change something,” Natalie said. “But be careful, Ben. Do you want me to ask someone? It might not look so strange, as at least I am part-elf.”
“No, I'll do it,” Ben said. “It's just a matter of finding the right person.”
Ben had no intention of going to one of the glass rooms and asking someone; there were far too many people watching. He needed to catch the right person alone and that opportunity came after a further ten minutes wandering the hallways. A young elf girl, wearing a small satchel, walked hurriedly towards them. She had a sweet, innocent face and fit Ben's criteria perfectly.
“Excuse me,” Ben said, stepping into her path. The elf girl seemed surprised to see them, clearly intent on her destination.
“Oh, hello,” she said, in a soft voice. “I'm sorry to be rude, but I'm in a bit of a rush.”
“No problem,” Ben said, throwing out his most charming smile. “I was just wondering, could you tell me where we might find Mr. Lornor Taren? I have an important message to give him.” Ben indicated the illustration in his hand, which he had folded up.
Though he kept a calm face, Ben's heart was going a mile a minute. There was a good chance his question was ridiculous. What if Lornor Taren no longer worked here? The elf could have passed away for all they knew – he certainly looked old enough. So it was with great relief when the elf girl relaxed and pointed a finger the way she had come.
“Of course,” she said. “You're not far away. Just head up the stairs, take the second door on the right, head down the corridor until you reach the turret, then take the fourth door on the left, and Mr. Taren is the second last door down that hallway.”
Ben thanked her and she went on her way, now running to make up for lost time.
“There you go!” Ben said. “Simple. I knew he worked around here; animal magic is Lornor's area. One of you got those instructions, right?”
“I did,” Charlie said.
“Good. Let's go pay a visit to our friend Lornor Taren.”
— Chapter Twenty-One —
Questions and Answers
“Wait!” Charlie said, tugging on Ben's arm.
Ben had been about to knock on Lornor Taren's door.
“Why?”
“What's the plan?”
“We go in, find out what this guy knows about forrecks, then leave. Pretty straightforward.”
Charlie put both his hands to his head in frustration. “You think he's just going to tell us that? We're complete strangers. We can't just barge in there without some sort of story or explanation.”
“Charlie is right,” Natalie said. “Much as I enjoy your spontaneous plans, we should think this through.”
“I have several plans,” Ben said. “But I want to see what sort of person we are dealing with before I decide exactly which one to use.”
“Well, we should have some sort of back story at least,” Charlie said.
“Fine. What do you suggest?”
Charlie seemed taken aback. “Me? Well, I'm not sure.”
“Maybe we're messengers, requesting information for our seniors,” Natalie suggested. “Or we could be researchers, asking for information.”
“Let's do the researchers ploy,” Ben said. He had no intention of using any such back story, and was starting to get impatient.
Ben knocked firmly on the door. There was a moment's silence, then a surprisingly deep voice spoke.
“Come in.”
Ben turned the handle. The door opened and they entered a luxurious office that was in serious need of a clean. There were shelves everywhere, filled with books in a manner that suggested someone enjoyed taking them out but was
n't particularly bothered how they went back in. At the back of the room was a grand desk, filled with more books, and on top of those books, a black cat slept. Ben did a double take; with magic permeating every inch of this place, the last thing he expected was an ordinary pet cat. Behind the desk, on a leather chair every bit as grand as the desk, was Mr. Lornor Taren.
Ben had hoped to shape his plan around a kindly, doting old elf, but the reality was quite the opposite. Lornor stared at them with bulbous brown eyes that looked too big for his head. His skin was creased with age and drooped at the cheeks and chin, and he had thinning silver hair. His right hand stroked the cat slowly, which was about the only affectionate thing Ben could detect in this elf. Lornor gave them each a long, calculating stare.
“Institute apprentices,” Lornor said, with undisguised disdain. “Ones or Twos, by the looks of you.”
Lornor's thinly disguised hostility almost threw Ben. “Charlie and I, Ben Greenwood, are Ones. Natalie is a Two. How did you know?”
Lornor gave a sniff. “I can always smell Institute members. They give off this unhealthy odour of arrogance and righteousness.”
Ben kept a straight face, but underneath he felt a growing alarm. The strength of emotion that Lornor spoke of the Institute with was frightening and had Ben struggling to work out how to open the conversation without enticing more animosity. Lornor saved him from having to.
“You may be wondering why I arranged this meeting,” Lornor said. His right hand never stopped stroking the cat, and the left one scratched his chin with long, skeletal fingers.
“Arranged?” Ben said, for the first time unable to mask his surprise.
Lornor gave a cold smile. “Do you really think you could wander into SpellWorks? Maybe in the Institute you allow such security lapses, but not here.”
Ben resisted the urge to finger his security badge, but Lornor must have spotted Charlie or Natalie doing it.
“Those fake security badges gave you away the moment you passed through the gates,” Lornor said, giving another hint of a smile. “It also, incidentally, cost your friend his job.”
Ben could just see the stunned faces of Charlie and Natalie from his peripheral vision, but he refused to give Lornor the satisfaction of having all three of them looking like rabbits caught in the headlights.