by Matt Ryan
“Quinn?” I said.
Mark and I both jumped to our feet and moved away from Kang.
“Ah, the creator of the stone.” Quinn sneered, keeping an eye on me as he moved closer to Kang. “So good to see you again, Allie. I’ve missed our little tête-à-têtes.”
Kang handed him the small wooden box.
“Thank you, Kang. I didn’t think she’d make it for you.”
“I told her it would break her mother’s stone.”
“You lied to me?” I said.
“No, I didn’t. It will break your mom’s stone, but we didn’t have anyone to make it,” Kang said.
“Dad, are you serious?” Jin said backing away from him. “You made a deal with Quinn?”
“Know your place, son. This isn’t about dark and light alchemists anymore; it’s us versus Cathy. We have to join forces with people we wouldn’t normally work with in order to accomplish our mutual end goal.”
“Ouch,” Quinn said. “My feelings are kind of hurt, Kang.”
“This man is a monster,” Jin shouted.
“He and I, together, can stop her. Do you really think Allie was going to stop her? Did you see how spineless she is when it comes to her mother?” Kang asked. “I don’t want to hear one more word about it. This is the only way.”
“We could have used the Minitrepid, and her and Mark. They would have helped,” Jin said. “This is senseless.”
“She would side with her mother in the end. Now get out of here, before I use a discipline stone on you.”
Jin sneered at his dad, then gave me an apologetic look before stomping out of the room.
I was having none of it. The person I hated most in this world was sharing a space with me. The stone I’d just made was handed over to him and once again, I had been manipulated. I wanted to cry, but more than anything else, I wanted to hurt the people in this room.
“Use the portal stone,” Mark whispered to me.
“No,” I said and stepped forward. “Quinn, you son of a bitch, I’m going to kill you.”
“This stone,” Quinn raised the little box. “Is a step toward me getting what your mother has, except unlike her, I will be the rightful owner of it.”
“That’s crazy. There can’t be two philosopher’s stones,” I said.
“There is more than one way to skin an alchemist,” Quinn said with a big stupid smile.
“I trust we have an agreement then, Quinn?” Kang said.
“Of course, and as long as you hold up your end, I will mine,” Quinn pulled his glove off and extended his hand to Kang.
Kang didn’t shake mine, and hesitated in shaking Quinn’s, but then reached out and took Quinn’s hand in his. Kang began to shake and struggled to stand. He lowered to one knee and froth came out of his mouth. He groaned, while Quinn laughed, keeping a hand on Kang.
“Kang, you don’t need to kneel to me, you already did that. Or are you on your knees for something more because I keep telling you, I don’t swing that way. I like mine more like our little special over there.” Quinn winked at me.
“Just stop it, Quinn,” I yelled.
“I’m just getting started,” Quinn said and I saw the stone dissolving into Kang’s hand.
Kang ignited into flames on the floor as he collapsed. The flames enveloped his body and the smell hit me.
“We need to go,” Mark said.
The old man, Zhuang, stood at the door, leaning into his cane. He looked on, horrified at Kang’s burning body. “What have you done? Mia and Zia, do something.”
“Ha. You think they work for you, old man? Please, something as special as them would only belong to me. I take care of my people, unlike Kang here. I give alchemists a chance to live in this new world of Cathy’s. They all know who will be the true ruler when everything is settled.”
“You will rule nothing. Your quintessence is polluted,” Zhuang looked above Quinn and waved his hands. “You’ve changed it to make yourself more powerful, but it will betray you.”
The old man disappeared.
“Stupid,” Quinn said. “I suppose you’re fleeing as well, Allie?”
“I’m going to kill you,” I said.
“You know, you’ve said that to me before, right? How’d that go last time? I seem to remember you in my personal dungeon. That was a fun time, wasn’t it?”
“I know you’re lying about that. I never spent a moment with you.”
“Better keep saying that with your boyfriend standing right there.”
I grabbed a few ingredients off a shelf next to me and picked a bowl and spoon.
“Are you serious?” Quinn asked. “You’re going to mix a stone, right now, right here to use against me?” Quinn threw a stone at me.
It flew by and struck the wall next to me. A white cloud exploded out from it and wrapped around me. Mark grabbed a hold of me and reached into my pocket. I tried to stop him, but he took the portal stone and shoved it in my hand. It melted between our hands and the sensation of falling overtook me.
Chapter Four
We landed right back in my room.
I ran toward the door, but Mark grabbed me. “He’s gone.”
“We don’t know that,” I said.
“I do. That was a smoke screen for his escape. Although, I’m not sure why he didn’t try to kill us.”
“Because he’s a psycho.” I was so mad I wanted to rip this whole stupid house down around me.
Jackie and Bridget came running into my room. Jackie clutched her chest.
“You guys nearly gave me a heart attack. When the freaking building blew up, we thought you were in it.”
“The building blew up?”
“Yeah, it’s still on fire,” Bridget said.
“Quinn was in there. He killed Kang,” I said.
“Shut your mouth,” Jackie said. “Quinn was in there?”
“That slimy bastard just doesn’t know when to quit,” Bridget said. “I hope the building went down with him.”
“We have to leave this place,” I said.
“Whoa, don’t forget about the whole protection zone for you,” Jackie said
“This place isn’t safe for us,” I said.
“I agree,” Mark said. “Quinn got what he wanted and left, I doubt he’ll be back anytime soon.”
“Mark, this place is compromised. How long do you think it’s going to take one of those people out there to report this to Cathy? She’ll know soon enough that I’m back. You said there were other zones, where are they?”
“The few we created are like you said, compromised. The only ones I know left are Quinn’s house and this place.”
“Then let’s create one.”
“We need twins for that. Hey, what happened to those Chinese twins?” Bridget said.
“Quinn took them,” I said.
“Just tell me how to make it and I will create the stone.”
“You don’t get it, it’s not about making it, it’s about holding it. And if the twins are gone, then that means the barrier is gone.” Jackie went white and pulled out a stone from her sack.
“Where are we going to go?” Bridget asked.
“I don’t know, our safe houses have been burned for the most part,” Jackie said.
“What about Paul’s house?” Bridget asked.
“Did you really forget? You’re the one who gave that house up to Cathy,” Jackie said.
“Me? You know I had to do that that time. If it wasn’t for me, the entire world would probably be dead.”
“Oh, you’re so helpful to Queen Cathy, aren’t you? You would only tell her our hideouts occasionally. You’d even give us a couple hours warning, like a nice soldier. You worked for her for longer than needed,” Jackie said.
“Screw you, Jackie,” Bridget said. “You have no idea what I’ve done over the last four years.”
“Sure I do, you’ve been riding the coattails of Queen Lord of the Philosopher’s Stone, while the rest of us have been searching for Alli
e and Mark.”
“Are you the stupidest person alive? I should smack you right now for talking like that. The things that I’ve done to keep you safe and keep the rest of the Mini’s . . . I don’t want to talk about it,” Bridget said, tears building in her eyes.
I needed to step between my two friends. There was a new history between them I wasn’t aware of. “Listen, where can we go?” I asked. “There has to be a protected area from Cathy so she can’t see me. There’ve got to be more places in the world and this than just this one.”
A couple of knocks sounded at the door and I turned my attention to see Jin in the doorway. Jackie hurled a stone at him, but Jin moved to the side and it flew at the wall behind him, landing on the floor and rolling down the steps.
“There is a place,” Jin said.
“Oh, I’m sure there is. I’m sure you want to take Allie away from all of this, and to a nice, safe place for her, right? Just like your dad,” Jackie said.
“Did my father make it?” Jin asked.
“Sorry, Jin,” I said. “Your dad didn’t make it. Quinn got to him.”
Jin winced and looked down the hall as he grasped the stone in his hand. Then he faced us again and said, “Like I said, there’s a place I know of in Lanai, if we can get there. I know the people there. Not only will they give us refuge, it’s the next place we need to go to make the next stone.”
“What do you mean. The next stone? Do you think I’m actually going to make another stone for somebody else again?” I said.
“I assure you, I knew nothing about what my dad was doing. I would’ve never advised him to work with Quinn.”
“Lanai?” Jackie said. “The Hawaiian alchemist area? No, they’ll kill us on site. But I’m sure you already know that, and it’s probably why you want to take us there.”
Jin stuffed his stone in his pocket and walked into the room, showing his empty palms. “I want to stop this. Just as I’m sure you do. A man just killed my father. And your mom has done much worse. I am one of the few people left on this planet who knows how to make a breaker stone.”
“So, I suppose you have a way to get there? You know the landing spot?” Bridget asked.
“I do,” Jin slowly took out a purple stone from a sack and displayed it. “You give me the control and I can get you guys there. Once there, I know the people. They will let us in and help us. They don’t believe in these wars, but they should help us.”
“How convenient to have a portal stone like that. Only four of us can go,” Jackie said.
“I’ll stay here,” Bridget said. “The Mini’s will go to one of the old abandoned safe spots we have. I’m sure Cathy won’t remember those. I doubt she’s checking them all the time.”
“She’s got eyes and ears everywhere. Be careful,” Jackie said.
I wasn’t quite sure what she meant by that. They did seem to think my mom was all-knowing, all-seeing, and pure evil though.
“I don’t mean to rush it here,” Jin said. “The protective zone could be fading soon. Any second now, perhaps. So, time is of the essence. We need to leave now.” He took us a few steps closer to us, holding up the purple stone.
I didn’t trust him, but I didn’t know what choice I had. If this protective barrier went down, leaving me exposed, my mom would be there in seconds to snatch me away.
“Fine,” I said. “But if this is a double cross, you’ll have to answer to me, Mark and Jackie.”
“I assure you, I have every intention of taking you to the end of this. I didn’t believe it at first, but I tried to make that stone in secret and failed. You made it with a casual ease. I know you’re something special. We just need to collect all these parts to create the breaker stone, and then we can stop your mom, and hopefully, Quinn.” Jin took a few more steps and stood between me, Mark, and Jackie.
“Hey, Bridget,” Jackie said. “Sorry about what I said. You take care of the Minitrepid, okay? If this clown tries anything on the rendezvous, head to house twenty,” Jackie said.
“House twenty. Got it,” Bridget said and took a few steps back from us.
We all got close and put our hands together, forming a loose circle.
“You ready?” Jin asked.
We all nodded. He dropped the stone and it landed on our hands. The world below my feet swept away and the milky swirling portal world came to life.
I found myself standing on a grass ledge, looking down a cliff at the ocean waves crashing below. The cool breeze of misty, watery air blew against my face.
“We’re here,” Jin said.
Chapter Five
Mark took my hand and pulled me back from the ledge. The height took my breath away. I was glad to have them with me.
Jackie spun around to face Jin, with two stones at the ready. Jin backed away from her with raised hands. “Were you trying to kill us? Have us fall off this cliff?”
“No. Just look.” He pointed to the valley beyond.
Great mountains to either side of the valley were lush with jungle landscape, spreading down to a speck of a village below. I could see the dancing lights of a couple of fires and more tendrils of smoke rising from the village. The smoke smell melted with the ocean breeze and jungle scents.
“They don’t like visitors,” Jin said. “Hopefully, they remember me. It’s been a while. You guys should stay here. I’ll come grab you after I tell them who we are.”
“And if they don’t remember you?” Jackie said. “No. This smells like bullshit to me. You’re just going to march over there, gather up your troops, and come back over here to capture us all. And don’t think I don’t know where you brought us. How could you make us stand right here?” Jackie pointed to the cliff’s edge.
“What are you talking about?” I asked.
“This place is legendary,” Jackie said. The noon sun shone harshly over her face, showcasing the lines formed by stress and time. “Back in the great war a few hundred years ago, dark alchemists came to this exact spot to wage a war against these people. Or at least, what was left of them—most had gone off to fight in the war. Anyway, they swooped in and used what I suspect was a compulsion stone; much like what Quinn uses. At some point, they found a way to make the stone go airborne. A gas cloud covered this valley, and the results were truly horrific. They all marched, one by one, and leapt to their deaths on those very rocks.”
I crept to the edge and looked down. Less than fifty feet below were jagged rocks that would occasionally get splashed by the ocean waves. Knowing the story, and seeing the location where those poor people lost their lives, gave me the heebie-jeebies. Pulling back to a safe distance, I shook my head and addressed Jin. “You are not going to the village alone. We’ll be going there together. If we stand at a distance and appear to be nonthreatening, they will eventually see us and come.”
“We already see you,” a man announced before stepping out from behind a nearby boulder. He had dark skin and tattoos all over his body. He was wearing only a pair of jean shorts, and no shoes. Black curly hair ran loosely over his shoulders.
Jin faced the man. “I am Jin Zhao, son of Kang Zhao. I came here many years ago to this very spot with my father.” He bowed his head. “We seek temporary refuge. If you’ll have us.”
The Hawaiian man rubbed his chin, then he pointed at Jin, a smile creeping over his face. “I remember you. You were here a long time ago. A little boy with his father.”
“I’m Allie, and this is Mark,” I introduced ourselves. “And over there is Jackie.” I gestured behind me. “Jackie, put your stones away.”
The Hawaiian man laughed and slapped his leg. “I’m glad to see you, Jin. As I was about to kill you all.”
I couldn’t tell if he was kidding or not, but I did see the two satchels of stones at his waist. But he wasn’t wearing gloves. After studying his face, I decided he wasn’t joking. Maybe it was a good thing Jin was here after all.
“My name is Manunnun,” he introduced himself. “But you can call me Manny.” A
big smile lit up his broad face. “It’s going to be nighttime soon, just getting ready for dinner. You hungry?”
“I think I haven’t eaten in years,” I said.
Mark gave me a small chuckle. I hadn’t felt like joking around in a long time. Manny lifted my spirits. He had a good-natured aura about him, making me feel as if everything was going to be okay.
The journey to the village didn’t take long. We crossed over a few small creeks, using strategically placed rocks as stepping stones, and eventually worked our way through the valley until we came upon the first houses. It wasn’t quite what I’d expected.
These were stucco houses with composite shingle roofs and regular ol’ windows. They had green moss growing all over the stucco, and it looked like a gold straw on some of the roofs that made the homes almost disappear among the foliage. A few people ambled around, while others gathered around the bonfires. A few would poke their heads out the doors and windows as we walked down the middle of the village.
Manny waved and smiled to everyone as we passed by, but nobody said anything in return. Some of that goodwill I’d felt for Manny wore off quickly, as scowls were thrown our way from the village members.
“We have an empty house you can use for the evening. But you have to give up those stones,” Manny directed.
“I’m not giving up my stones.” Jackie’s chin went up in defiance.
“Jackie, give him the stones,” I said. We didn’t have much choice.
Manny almost seemed to be enjoying our exchange.
Jackie, with a few huffs and grumbles, pulled off all three of her stone satchels and dropped them into Manny’s expecting hands. He took the small bags and opened them up, before tightening each one and stuffing them in his pocket.
“Warrior stones. Very difficult, very dangerous. What’s a nice young lady like you doing with such stones?” He appeared to know he was poking a bear. God help him.
“I don’t know if you guys are totally out of it, but there’s a goddamned war going on out there. Stones like those have saved my life, again and again,” Jackie said.