by Matt Ryan
With the rows of lights, I got a good look at the entire room. At the base of each column was an alchemist circle. The closest one to me was a life stone. A pattern that had saved Mark’s life.
“It’s amazing,” Jackie said. “How could you hate your dad for taking you to a place like this?”
“As a kid, when you’re forced to go somewhere you don’t want to go, you sort of build up an attitude, no matter how marvelous it really is,” Jin said.
“So, you were some punk ass kid who got too much, and you didn’t appreciate what was put before you. I get it. My mom was a crack whore, so I sort of amaze easily, I guess.”
“Sorry,” Jin said. “But seeing this now, at my age, I am truly thankful my dad took me here.”
“I hate to change the topic, but where is this stone we need?” Mark asked.
“Not easily impressed, are you?” Jin observed.
“I’d rather get this over with. This place doesn’t feel right to me.”
“I have to agree with Mark,” I said. “What’s the story behind this place? No sane person would come down here and build something like this.”
“The story goes, Native American alchemists made this place as a temple for their alchemy. They spent generations carving this place out. Most people think it was in pursuit of the philosopher’s stone. Let me show you the next room, and you’ll see what I mean.”
I heard a noise from one of the other doorways, like sand grinding on stone. “What was that?”
“Oh yeah, I forgot to mention my father told me ghosts lived here.”
“What?”
“Yeah, and he was serious.”
“Oh hell no,” Jackie said. “I’ve seen some crazy shit in my life, but I’m not about to be visited by the dead.”
“I don’t believe it.” Mark put his hands on his hips and looked in the corners. “Probably the place settling, or maybe even a rat or some critter running around down here.”
“Come on. You’re going to want to see this.” Jin walked into the next room.
The space was much smaller than the main room, but I knew right away why Jin thought I’d be interested in it. It looked just like the room behind the Porta Alchemica door.
“Is this what it looked like?” he asked.
“Yes, just like it.” I felt the columns and ran my hand along the ramp that led to the center pedestal; the place where I’d put my hand to receive the brutal assault of all the soul stones. I rubbed my bandages.
“This is crazy. Did they ever make the stone?” Mark asked.
“I don’t know, but it might explain this place. It would take an obsession to make this and nothing fuels an alchemist’s obsession like the pursuit of the philosopher’s stone.” Jin turned to me. “What was it like, to create something like that?”
“It felt like I was going to die. If it weren’t for Mark and my mother, I would have never made it.”
“I hope I’m not prying, but why did you let your mother take the stone? As far as we could research, that has never happened before.”
I frowned and walked over to the pedestal. A perfect replica. Well, almost. The only difference was this had three ramps. The Porta Alchemica had four.
I pondered Jin’s question. It was something I’d thought about since awakening. “The stone showed me the power it had, and the power it wanted. It made me crave that power, which scared me. I knew if I took it, it would forever dictate my path. I want to do that for myself.”
“I get that, believe me I do, but the stone in the right hands, can do wonders for the world. Some of the greatest times in human history have bearers behind it.”
“What happened to these bearers?” Mark asked.
“They’ve all been killed or committed suicide, at least as far as our research can tell. There are not many documents left from the olden days.”
“This room creeps me out,” I said. “Can we get this stone and go?”
Jin took a deep breath.
“What is it?” Mark asked. “I can see on your face you’re keeping something from us.”
“There’s someone here.”
“What?” I asked. “Who?” I knew I’d seen someone when the door opened.
“There is a reason I know this place. My fourth great-grandfather lives here.”
“Living, not so much. It’s more like a curse,” a man said and I spun to see an old Chinese man in the doorway. His long, silvery beard and hair must have been what I saw at the entrance.
“Good to see you, Grandpa,” Jin said and walked over to him to give him a hug.
“Good to see you. I see you brought some . . . visitors.”
“Yes, these are good people.”
“Are they now? So rare, from what I can hear from the door. Sounds like there is trouble in the waters.”
“He is protector of the canyon stone,” Jin addressed the group. “He used dark stones to make him nearly immortal. He has also gained a few powers along the way.”
“This one has made a philosopher’s stone,” Grandpa said.
Mark looked like he was going to burst at the seams. “Jin, why the hell didn’t you tell us there was a guardian of the stone?”
“I had to be sure we would make it in here first. If I told you, and your mom found out, she’d come and turn my grandpa into a soul stone.”
“And a powerful one I’d be,” Grandpa said, staring at me. “Being the stone creator, you are very powerful. There was a time when I could see the quintessence floating off people, but so many years without interaction . . . well, let’s just say I am not what I used to be.” He laughed.
“Don’t look at her like that,” Mark warned, stepping between us.
“Like what?” Grandpa asked.
“Like you want to consume her.”
“I’m sure a frail old man like me wouldn’t stand a chance against a group of young alchemists such as yourself.”
“Grandpa, stop being creepy,” Jin said. “We’re here to get the canyon stone, so she can make a breaker stone.”
“Plan to use it on me, do you?”
“No, there is a bearer of the stone out there, stealing souls and getting more powerful by the day.”
Grandpa nods. “Ah yes, I’ve felt her in the winds. She’s fed her stone much, over the years. She must be very powerful by now.”
“We need the stone,” Jin said. “Which shouldn’t be a problem, as this situation was the very reason the canyon stone was created.”
“This stone?” Grandpa pulled a small pouch from his pocket. “This stone was created in here, where we stand, a long, long time ago. We mined in search of the ingredient. It took three generations of my family to find enough of it, but we did. I knew it was here . . . even as everyone declared me crazy.”
“They called you crazy because you used a dark stone to imprison yourself here. You did that just so you could create the canyon stone. And don’t you think this,” he pointed at me, “is the purpose of all that work? She alone can stop the evil power taking over the world.”
“You think that’s the only reason I used those stones on myself? For immortality? I can hear and see the world from my mind, even located within this cavern.”
“Sir,” Jackie jumped in. “You give us that stone, and we will stop the woman out there who is causing a shit-storm with people’s lives. And when it is all over, you will be known as the most powerful alchemist on the planet once again.”
“I would, would I? A lot of good it would do me if I die. Which is exactly what will happen when you take this stone.”
Silence fell over the group, until Jin spoke up. “You said you have enough ingredients to make another.”
“The canyon stone is a relic stone. There can only be one. I can’t create another until it is used.”
“We’ll use it, then come back and make you one,” I offered.
“You think you could actually create one?” he asked.
“Grandpa, she made the philosopher’s stone, I th
ink she can manage it.”
The old man rubbed his chin. “Fine, I will agree to it, if you make me one stone. A trade of sorts.”
“Oh, come on,” Jin said.
We needed this stone to move on. There weren’t any other options. “No, I can make him a stone. If that is what it takes.”
The old man seemed pleased, then led us to another room—an alchemist lab he had created for himself. It was sparse and dusty, but it held a few mixing bowls and containers. Mostly ancient-looking clay jars and small, wooden boxes stood on the wooden shelves. Shelves that looked to be on the ragged edge of collapse.
He flipped a switch on the column, and the stones embedded in the walls lit up the room.
The old man went around, collecting containers, setting them on the table next to the mixing bowl and spoon.
“You sure about this?” Mark turned to me. “Every time you make a stone for one of these assholes, it backfires on us. This man is Blane-level crazy.”
“I can hear you,” Grandpa said.
“Good. Then you know why I’m concerned. I would ask what the stone does, but what does that matter? You’ll just lie.”
Jackie raised her hand. “I say we just take the stone.”
“Wait, guys. We aren’t like that,” Jin said.
“Go ahead and try to take the canyon stone from me.” Grandpa gripped the stone in his hand. “You will be dealing with more than you can bargain for, I guarantee.”
Jackie and Mark brought stones to their hands.
“Everyone, stop it.” I put my arms out. “I’ll make the freaking stone. I don’t care.”
“Good. Now put those stones away and start mixing.” Jin went over to the ingredients and looked at the bowl. “This is a curse breaker stone, isn’t it?”
“Damned right it is. Make that stone, and I can leave this place.”
I didn’t care what the stone was at this point, but I felt better knowing it was a stone that would get this old man out of this place, not kill people. Of course, the old man might go and kill people; if he was half as crazy as Blane, he might be a problem. At least the world could manage a person like that. He wasn’t my mother—above the laws and rules that govern us.
Mark continued to protest, but I just wanted it all to be over. I’d grown weary of this journey with each passing minute. The tension between me and my mom was unbearable. The look on her face haunted me. There was love there, and I was doing everything in my power to stop her. The stone I wanted to make could kill her, or it could set her free. It would all depend on my mother’s willingness to trust me, and how much the stone controlled her.
I pulled in the anger from the situations around me. My mother was most of it, and the fact that she most likely had my father killed didn’t escape me. The video of him dying still felt fresh in my mind, and then I topped it with the anger of missing four years of my life. A rage entered me and I mixed the ingredients together. They smelled like vinegar and dirt, but in less than ten seconds, I felt the standard clunk of the stone against my spoon.
Mark reached in and grabbed the stone with his gloved hand, before Grandpa could get his hands on it. This move hadn’t deterred Grandpa in the least. He stood to the side, with the biggest smile on his face, showing all his dirty teeth.
“We’ll give you this stone for the canyon stone,” Mark said, and the old man nodded.
“We’ll roll them across the table at the same time.”
“Okay, I’ll play.” Grandpa took out the canyon stone, and to my surprise, it was a blue stone with white streaks and a few brown specs. I wondered what mineral they were mining for to produce such a stone.
“On three. One, two, three.” Mark hesitated, waiting to see the canyon stone leave the old man’s hand before committing to rolling his.
In a flash, the old man threw something out of his other hand. Stones. They fanned out and I tried to dodge the one coming at me, but it struck me in the neck. My whole body went stiff and I fell to the floor; thankfully, landing on my shoulder and not my face. Mark went down next to me, then Jackie as well.
“What are you doing?” Jin yelled.
I heard a struggle and tried to see what was happening, but then I saw him fall to the floor near Jackie.
“What kind of grandson would try to stop me?” the old man asked. “You bring these people into our palace and demand my canyon stone? You do not act like a Zhao.”
Grandpa retrieved the stone from Mark’s grasp, giving me a once over as he did. “You’re a powerful one, aren’t you? I think I’ll save you for last.” He laughed.
I screamed inside my head for not listening to Mark. I would never make stones for another person for as long as I lived.
The old man grabbed me under the arms, dragged me the length of the room, and into another room. There were chairs in this room; chairs carved from the stone itself. He patted down my whole body and removed the various stone pouches I had on me.
“Very impressive stones, my dear.” He pulled me up into one of the chairs and strapped my arms and legs down, then went to get Mark, Jackie, and finally, Jin.
I struggled to get the word out, but I felt my mouth loosening up. “Why?”
“Oh, isn’t it obvious? I need you to awaken my canyon stone. If I can get it powerful enough, I can break out of this prison I put myself in.”
“How?” I struggled to say between my teeth.
“What a daft question. I’m turning you into soul stones, of course. I know you’re going to be a real heavy stone. I can’t believe my good fortune; Jin brought such exceptional alchemists to my palace. Oh, and don’t worry, I won’t hurt him.”
He moved around, dragging Jackie and Mark into chairs, then strapping them in. While searching Mark, he found the Lotus and scarab stones. He spent some time looking at them, as if he couldn’t believe his own eyes.
“This group got these stones?” he said to himself. “These couldn’t have been easy to get. Now I feel kind of bad their journey will end here, after all they’ve done.”
“She’ll kill you,” I said.
“Who, your mother? I don’t think so. With this Lotus stone, she’ll never be able to find me, and I can live my life in the real world. I can interact with people, be part of society. You don’t know what it’s like to be trapped in here, like a zoo animal.”
He went to a cupboard and pulled out a case, then used a stone to open it. Inside, I spotted the makings of the two stones that would capture the soul of a person and put it into a stone. I’d seen it take place a couple of times, and the last thing in the world I wanted was for it to happen to one of my friends.
“Please,” I begged.
“Stop it. There is nothing you can say or do to stop me. You made the one stone I couldn’t, and now I have no use for you or your friends.
Mark sat nearest me, strapped in his stone chair. I struggled until I was able to move my head enough to face him.
The crazy old man moved closer to Mark, then walked past him and stood in front of Jackie, holding the stones out over her. Once those two stones touched her skin, it would be the inevitable destruction of Jackie. She was strong, so she might be able to delay it, but in the end, just as when it’d happen to Axiom, she would succumb. We all would.
I couldn’t bear to watch it, but I also couldn’t turn my head away. I owed it to her to be with her in her last minutes. She’d spent the four years searching for me. It was about then, I felt a tingling in my fingers and was able to tap them on the stone armrest. Feeling in the rest of my body was coming back as well. I wondered if Mark or Jackie were experiencing the same sensations.
“You’re first. The one with the big mouth.” Grandpa smiled. “I haven’t souled someone in a long time. You’re going to be used for a very important cause. I promise to do good with your gift.”
Jackie spit in his face. “Screw you.”
He laughed and went to the table to grab a cloth. “Oh, I can’t wait to see you shine.”
Jin, laying on the floor, moved his hand to his pocket and pulled out a red stone with white lines running through it. A death stone.
“Hey,” I called out, sounding a bit clearer than before. “Why don’t you kill me first, and get it over with. I’m strong enough for you by myself, trust me.”
“Oh, I’ll be getting to you soon enough,” he said as he wiped his face.
“Kill me first,” Jackie said. “I’m nearly as strong as her.”
“Such friendship. Each of you wanting to die for the other.”
He moved the stones near Jackie’s balled fist, ready to drop them, when Jin reached out and grabbed his ankle. The old man fell forward and I saw the red stone getting pushed into his bare skin.
He screamed and grabbed at his ankle, dropping both stones on the ground. “What did you do?”
“I can’t let you kill them,” Jin stuttered with great effort.
The grandpa glared at the stone in the last moments before it fully absorbed into his skin. “You might have killed me, but I’m cursing you. You back-stabbing traitor. You’re no Zhao. Your dad should have listened to me and—”
He didn’t finish the sentence, and would never utter another ever again. A flash of light came flew through the old man’s body and traveled up through Jin’s arm and into his chest.
“You okay?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” Jin said.
“Get us loose,” Mark said.
“My body isn’t working yet.” Jin grabbed at his chest and groaned. “He did something to me.”
“Jin?” I asked and pulled at my constraints. “What’s wrong?”
“I don’t know.” He rolled onto his stomach and got to his knees with great effort. He turned to face us with a terror in his eyes. “He put it in me! The curse, I can feel it. I can hear the world out there now. So much noise.” He covered his ears.
“Jin, focus,” Mark said as if he had a mouth full of food. “Get us out of these chairs.”
Jin got to his feet and stumbled forward, only to fall to the floor again. He crawled toward Jackie and picked up the two soul-taker stones in his gloved hands. “You would make me much stronger. I can feel it in you.”