Reawakening

by CM Raymond

  “Not bad for an old timer,” a man said as he took the empty stool next to Karl.

  “Well, we rearick only get better with age. I’m old enough that I’m almost perfect.”

  The man laughed. “Buy you another?” He nodded at Karl’s ale.

  “Why not? I’m stuck in this damn place for a while, might as well do it shitfaced,” Karl said.

  The man sipped on his own glass and looked out across the bar pensively. He couldn’t have been older than forty, but the lines on his face and the calluses on his hands showed decades of experience. The hair around his temples was cut short, indicating that he was likely in some sort of service to Arcadia and starting to gray. A few fading scars on his face showed he’d seen a few fights of his own.

  He took a large swig of beer, then turned toward Karl.

  “You know, I’m currently in need of a man with your talents,” the stranger finally said. “Interested?”

  Karl took his time answering, trying to read the man to his side. “Not sure. I don’t usually work for lowlanders. They can be a little unruly.”

  The guy laughed again. “You ain’t wrong, friend. But after what I saw you just pull down, I’m guessing you can handle a little unruly. And since you’re in the neighborhood anyways…”

  “What are you hiring for?” Karl asked. While he didn’t love the idea of spending more time than necessary in the city, he wouldn’t pass up a good gig.

  “I head up security at the factory on the other side of town. Been there for seven years, but lately, we’ve been hiring new men hand over fist, and the place is starting to need guards of a somewhat higher caliber.”

  Karl raised his bushy eyebrows. “What the hell do you need guards on the factory floor for, anyway?”

  “Oh, you know… they’re hiring just about anybody off the streets. Some of the riffraff get violent sometimes. First honest work some of these bastards ever had. Let’s just say they don’t like to be told what to do. Usually, the guards don’t have to do much of anything. But when things get heated, my men aren’t experienced enough to take care of things, uh, quickly.” He jerked a thumb towards the street. “Like you did with those two guys. Thought maybe if you’re going to be in town for a few days you might want to make some coin.”

  Karl snorted. “Now you’re talking my love language. I might be interested, just need to see how long my party’s in town for.”

  The man extended his hand out towards Karl. “The name’s Stratton. Stop at the factory in the morning, after you sleep those off,” he said nodding at the empty pints in front of Karl. “Give you a few days, and I’ll pay a bit more than you make on your shipping runs with the mystics and other rearick from the Heights. Maybe have you do some training with my men or something.”

  The rearick grabbed the man’s hand and gave it a firm squeeze. “I’m Karl. And all right then, we’ll see ya tomorrow”

  A job at a factory, Karl thought to himself as he finished his drink, what could be easier than that?

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  Placing her hand under the shower head, Hannah was shocked to feel that the water was scalding hot. She laughed as she watched the fog come up off the cold floor. Personal hygiene never included a shower, let alone one with hot water. And she was suddenly both delighted and confused by the noble life.

  She would have to ask Ezekiel how exactly indoor plumbing worked. It was as if there was a cauldron boiling the water outside, and a peasant boy pumping a mechanism to get the water to come into the house. But she knew that that probably wasn’t the case at all.

  Most likely, it was some sort of magitech, which was the root of the best things in the noble world. That’s the way it was in Arcadia. Kids like her went hungry on the street, stealing food and conning tourists just to get by, while the rich kids had unlimited luxury.

  After what felt like an hour in the shower, Hannah got out, feeling like a new woman—which was precisely what she aimed to become. She applied some of the fancy creams on her face, but the colors looked all wrong. She decided to come back to the makeup and put on a beautiful day dress that she unpacked from their luggage. She stood before the mirror, feeling a little exposed in the drafty outfit. Pants were more her style. But even she had to admit that she looked good in the dress.

  Sal lounged lazily on the bed, bored by her fashion show. He had shed is dog illusion hours ago, but he still wasn’t happy about being confined in the house—big, though it was.

  “Sorry, Sal, but we’ve all got to make sacrifices here. Just be lucky that I don’t make you wear a dress!”

  He cocked his head to the side as if considering that prospect.

  Hannah turned back to her makeover and focused on the last piece. She concentrated, letting the meditative words bubble up inside of her. Her eyes flashed red, and her dark, straight hair, starting at the scalp and working its way downward, slowly transformed before her eyes. She spun her head from side to side, and strawberry blond curls bounced along with the movement.

  Although an illusion, she couldn’t help but laugh at how silly she looked. She was a little glad Ezekiel had told her not to go to the boulevard. They’d laugh her right out of town.

  The illusion was far from perfect. Her eyes still glowed red. It was a feature unique to her and Ezekiel among the users of magic, and she still didn’t quite understand it. Because most magic users spent their lives working with one type of magic, they limited their own connection to the etheric realm, the dimension where they drew all of their power. Hannah and Ezekiel had a purer, stronger connection, and the red in their eyes reflected that.

  It was the same red Hannah had seen on the mural in the mystic’s temple. Hadley told her it was a painting of the Queen Bitch herself. Hannah was honored that her eyes would glow the same as their god-queen of old—if she truly existed

  Then Hannah thought of the remnant. Their eyes also glowed with the same violent red.

  Power has two sides, she reminded herself. It was important not to lose control.

  Hannah focused a little harder and the red faded into a serene blue. Hannah had always had dark eyes, she figured a little touch of color wouldn’t hurt.

  Ezekiel sat at the dining room table, reading The Arcadian. He looked up over the parchment and nodded as Hannah descended the steps. She sat across from him, wondering what was going to happen next. The smell of bacon, bread, and eggs floated out of the kitchen.

  “You making your magic cook for you now?” Hannah asked.

  Ezekiel put down the paper, folded it in half, and placed it on a chair. “Not really. I’ve hired some new help.”

  As if on cue, noise came from the kitchen area and Eleanor, Parker’s mom walked into the dining room carrying two plates stacked full of breakfast food. Hannah had known the woman almost all of her life, but she had never seen her like this before. In place of the dirty rags that most women in the Boulevard wear, she was dressed in a black and white, neatly pressed uniform. Even though it was the uniform of a servant, Eleanor looked nearly majestic in it.

  Hannah jumped to her feet, nearly knocking the chair out from behind her. Her relationship with Eleanor had always been a little shaky. She suspected that Parker’s mom always knew of their means of making a buck, and like most mothers on the Boulevard, she didn’t approve.

  Hannah wondered if Eleanor blamed her, which was unfair since it was usually Parker’s idea.

  Despite their past, the sight of seeing a familiar face caused a massive grin to explode out. She reached forward and wrapped her arms around the woman nearly knocking over the plates of food. She squeezed as if the woman were her own mother.

  Hannah looked up into her face grinning madly. “How is he?”

  Eleanor tried to keep her composure, but her eyes got glassy. She broke free from Hannah’s grip, put the plates down on the table, and then returned to the girl for a proper hug. After a moment, she looked into Hannah’s eyes. “Hannah, I barely recognized you.” She turned Hannah a little left
, then a little right. “You look so nice. It’s so good to see you again.” She dropped her hands. “I hear I have you to thank for this new job. And Parker… Parker’s good.”

  Hannah ignored the slight about how she couldn’t be recognized since she looked good. Parker’s mom always slipped in backhanded insults like that, though Hannah suspected they were unintentional. All she cared about at the moment was Parker, and she could feel the tension in Eleanor’s words. “I’m happy to help Eleanor. Thanks for not judging me for being an Unlawful, or whatever it is they’re saying about me down in the Boulevard. Is Parker here?”

  Hannah looked behind the woman as if Parker was about to burst out of the kitchen as well with that goofy grin on his face.

  Eleanor blinked and a single tear broke free from her eye and rolled down her cheekbone. “Oh, they’re saying much worse than that about you. But I don’t listen to nasty rumors. And no, my son is not here. But he’s finally working—something legitimate this time. Parker got a job at the factory, and they send his pay to me and give him free room and board.”

  Hannah nodded as her throat got tight. She wasn’t sure what to say to the woman, but she knew deep down that any work for the government couldn’t be good work—Parker would have only accepted it if he was desperate. She dropped into her seat and started to eat her eggs and meat.

  Eleanor placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. “He cares about you very much, you know?”

  Hannah just nodded and turned back toward her meal.

  “Thank you, Eleanor,” Ezekiel said. “Your cooking smells and looks amazing. Please let me know if there’s anything you need as you get adjusted here.”

  The woman smiled, then left the room.

  Once Eleanor was gone, Ezekiel spoke through a mouth full of eggs and bacon. “We start today. You know the plan right?”

  “How can I forget? You’ve only said it a bazillion times.”

  Ezekiel grinned. “Okay, smartass, so for the bazillion and one, you walk me through it.”

  “It’s easy,” Hannah said, “I become a student at the Academy. While I’m there, I try and make contact with any of the nobles’ children that aren’t pure evil. Shouldn’t take me long, since there aren’t any. Nothing good has ever come out of the noble district—and nothing ever will.”

  “That’s where you’re wrong,” Ezekiel said. “You need to have faith, Hannah. Not everything is as it appears. There are those even among the wealth with a deep love for Arcadia—not this Arcadia, but the true one. The Arcadia that was meant to be. Just because they are nobles, it doesn’t mean they don’t have hearts.”

  “If they had hearts, they wouldn’t sit on their fat asses and watch us starve to death.”

  Ezekiel’s eyes narrowed. “You may have a point. But then again, maybe there are some among those nobles who are bit more patient than a nineteen-year-old girl with a fresh mouth. Trust me, Hannah. There are those among the rich in Arcadia who still love the place. Many eyes have been covered and deception runs deep. Your job won’t be easy, but it is important. You need to be patient and wait, look, and listen. Find those people inside who would join us in our mission. Right now, we are still very weak. But strength comes with numbers, and the more numbers that we can have that are on the inside, the better. The other students in that place, their parents are among the most influential people in Arcadia. They might have some information, and they might serve as some of the best allies we could ever find. But you’re going to have to keep a low profile at first. Play the part, make sure you don’t make enemies. And be open to any new alliances that might serve us well.” He paused a moment. “I did mention don’t make enemies, right?”

  Hannah wanted to call bullshit, to tell him that all those kids had silver spoons shoved way up their asses. He had been away from Arcadia for forty years, and it was the only home she’d ever known. And while the kids from the Boulevard and the noble kids never hung out much, she saw them enough to know that none of those stuck up assholes were worth anything at all to their cause.

  But she knew it would only make Ezekiel mad, and he was a real bore to be with when he was upset. So, she kept her mouth shut about it.

  “Okay, also, while I’m in the lair of all snobbery, I’ll be keeping my eyes open for any information about this machine that the Chancellor is building. We’ll meet up every few days, and I’ll pass along any information I might find. But what are you gonna be doing this whole time?”

  Ezekiel raised an eyebrow. “If I can pull off another deception, yours might not be the only eyes on the inside. I—” but a knock at the door interrupted him.

  Hannah immediately tensed up, but Ezekiel only smiled.

  “Relax. I believe our new help has arrived.”

  Ezekiel left the room and returned with a young girl at his side. She was a dainty thing with a pretty smile, but her eyes were sad.

  “Hannah, I’d like you to meet Maddie. She’s aware of your... condition, and she’s going to help us out.”

  “Condition?” Hannah asked. “What condition?”

  Maddie giggled, her eyes picking up a little warmth. “Well for starters, that weird mismatch of color on your face makes you look like a clown or something.”

  Hannah touched her cheek. She had forgotten about the makeup. She smiled and laughed along with the girl.

  “Alright doctor,” Hannah said with a laugh. “Fix my face! Make me beautiful, so I can dazzle the world.”

  ****

  “Stand up straight, dammit,” Ezekiel said, keeping his eyes forward.

  Maddie had coached Hannah on proper posture, but as they made their way through the noble district toward the Academy, her shoulders had fallen into their usual slump. For Hannah, turning a lizard into a dragon was simple business compared to training to look like a girl from the upper class. “I am,” she whispered out of the side of her mouth.

  “You’re about as upright as the slumlords in the Boulevard. Push your shoulders back.”

  Hannah giggled. “It looks like I’m just trying to show off my goods.”

  “Dammit, Hannah,” the old man sighed. “You need to take this seriously.”

  “Relax Zeke. I’ve got this.” But deep down, she wasn’t sure if she did. They were literally walking into the lion’s den.

  Ezekiel had given her strict instructions about the examination. But when it came down to it, neither of them really knew what would happen during the interview. It was obvious that she would answer some simple questions and most likely be asked to show any magical talent that she had. But Hannah had already received more training than almost any of the incoming students, so it was necessary to balance a desire to prove herself and the fiction regarding who she was.

  Ezekiel’s biggest fear was that Hannah would get hot headed and try to show off, or worse—get passionate enough to explode. He knew it was going take a great sense of control to be able to make it through, and mouthing off to him was no way for her to be ready for the biggest test of her lifetime.

  They walked up the steps leading to the double doors that would usher her into a new stage of her life. Pulling up her long dress to make her steps easier, she nearly tripped over the noblewoman shoes that felt like two boards clamped onto her feet. All she wanted to do was strip off the dress and the shoes and run barefoot through the streets with Parker.

  Parker.

  She thought of him as they walked through the doors and into the Academy. She could tell by Eleanor’s face that even the mother of her best friend knew that he was not in a good place. The fact that Hannah was trying to learn more about the machine while Parker was getting paid to build it... something wasn’t right. Hannah’s gut told her that Parker was in danger.

  But she had to trust that her friend knew what he was doing.