by C. E. Smith
The King seemed to have observed Julian’s worry and placed an arm around him. “I can trust you, right Julian Barros? I can trust you to look for the other two Ciphers? I’d hate for you to follow the example of Harris and so many men like him who have made it very difficult for the Ciphers to be found.”
Julian gulped. He wasn’t ready to die. After seeing a man so coldly murdered by the first King, he suspected impatience and cruelty were traits each King inherited. That corpse being carried away when he first arrived at the King’s Hall was proof.
“You can count on me, King Noctria. I won’t let you down.”
“Good man! I thought the Memory Transfer might inspire you.”
“Only one problem I discovered while seeing your memory. It makes sense to me now while there are but little records, if any records at all, regarding the Ciphers.”
The King’s smile widened. “And what’s that?” asked the King. “What new information presented itself to you inside my memory?”
“Well,” began Julian with a frown, “if they are made by Dark Alchemy, it won’t be easy to find. Alchemy by now is an ancient art. We need someone who has knowledge of Alchemy, someone who can lead us to an archive of Dark Alchemy. Perhaps we can find something on the Ciphers if we can find more about Dark Alchemy.”
The King shrugged. “This I knew. As I said, what you saw was my memory. But I did not think it an important detail. If the detail is important to you, that it was crafted by Dark Alchemy, than it seems you have a new mission, Barros. Alchemy doesn’t concern me, but the Ciphers, they are what I seek. Bring them to me. Now I will say goodnight, for it is my dinner time. I trust you won’t hesitate to learn more about Dark Alchemy and find someone who can tell you more about it. But be sure it is someone you can trust. Be sure it is someone skilled. And be sure not to mention to them the Ciphers.”
“Of course not, my King. Goodnight. And thank you.” Julian bowed.
“You’re welcome. I don’t show my memories to just anyone.”
“No,” Julian felt brave enough to correct, “thank you for giving me a second chance. Thank you for not killing me. Goodnight, my King.”
The King looked amused as Julian made his own way out of the secret room.
Mimi thought she was doing rather well. She always had a difficult time accepting change, and stepping into another universe would freak anyone out. She thought perhaps it had something to do with Albert; if anything, she was keeping calm to set an example for him. If he hadn’t been there in her bedroom when that attack happened, and Mimi had been completely alone with this stranger named Bas, she thought for sure she’d lose her cool.
Mimi and Albert followed Bas out of the cherry cabinet clad kitchen and the tour began. Bas explained the main area of the ship was the living area, and it had three floors. The first floor was the Maintenance Bay and kitchen. The second floor contained his room and a few guest rooms. The third floor supplied more technical areas for back up servers. Every room had a curve to it, making up the sphere in the middle of his ship.
The walls of the second floor were gorgeously detailed oil murals, painted with Renaissance-like expertise.
“You like them?” Bas asked with a proud smile. Mimi nodded. “Yeah, me too. Leo owed me a favor.”
“Leo?” she asked.
“Leonardo da Vinci. He owed me a favor, so he painted these. With his genius it hardly took him any time at all.”
Mimi wondered if that story were true and walked closer to observe the details of the remarkable painting. It depicted an old, tall pirate’s ship, with a skull and crossbones flag waving on top. A plank extended to one side, and her eyes widened as she recognized the man walking the plank. “It’s you!” she exclaimed, spotting the cranberry coat.
“Yes, it is me,” Bas agreed and made a face like he didn’t want to talk about it.
The next painted scene was Bas tied to a barrel floating on the ocean waves, with a heavy and dark storm cloud over the horizon.
The wide mural continued to a scene of Bas being rescued by a tall ship sporting the Union Jack. The last panel at the end of the hall depicted a glamorous dance party. The ball looked like a scene from Pride and Prejudice, one of Mimi’s favorite books. Aristocrats were dressed up in lavish gowns and suits. Bas’s bright coat stood out in the sea of black suits and pastel dresses. The dancers looked like flowers floating in a pond. Mimi noticed Bas had a dancing partner.
The woman was gorgeous. She had a fair shade of blonde hair, and as she smiled in the painting her teeth looked whiter than his. She was wearing a daisy-white dress with lace ruffles on the bottom, and looked graceful in elegant high heels. Mimi was surprised to find Bas dancing with someone who looked like a porcelain doll. It was like Barbie dating G.I. Joe instead of Ken. He seemed too much of a scatterbrained klutz to be dancing with someone as graceful as the woman in the painting. Despite their differences, they looked adorable together on the dance floor.
“Her name was Sara Rogers,” Bas explained, noticing Mimi admiring the painting. “She was the daughter of Woodes Rogers, Governor of the Bahamas and famous pirate hunter. Rogers saved me from drowning and invited me to the ball. Sara and I...sort of hit it off.”
“Looks like it,” Mimi said with a grin and she sighed happily, loving a good romance. “How did it end?” She had no shame in being the type of reader who read the last page first.
“Well, I’m a time traveler. I don’t belong in any one time. Besides, she was engaged. To a first-class jerk too. We just had one night of fun, and then I left before I could say goodbye. It’s...easier that way.”
He unbuckled a pocket of his red leather utility belt and pulled out a necklace. Her eyes widened as she recognized it as the same necklace that Sara had around her neck in the painting. The chain of the necklace was made out of sparkling diamonds. The center of the necklace had a handsome emerald hanging gracefully, like a frozen teardrop.
“When the dance was over, we went outside. She told me she was concerned by dancing with me so much. She feared her fiancé Kyle was jealous. I told her I wasn’t staying around, and she gave this to me. Wanted me to have something to remember her by. I was reluctant, but it was easy to accept it after a kiss. It was the only gift that was ever given to me instead of stolen,” he said with a nostalgic sigh.
Mimi was stuck on his last comment. “Only thing that wasn’t stolen? Why? What have you stole?” she demanded.
Bas folded his arms. It surprised her that he was unwilling to talk. Since she’d been here, he’d been unable to shut up.
“If you don’t tell me, I’ll just go through all your stuff until I find what you’ve stolen. I might not be an expert when it comes to boys, but I’ve read enough romantic comedy novels to know that it’s never a good idea to have a woman snooping through the belongings of men. And that’s just what I’ll do if you don’t show me what else you’ve stolen!” She heard Albert laugh behind her. Apparently he found her threats very amusing when it wasn’t he who she was threatening.
“I would listen to her,” warned Albert in a tone that said he was speaking from experience. “If there is one talent that my sister does have, it’s finding dirt on people.”
“Wow, thanks, Ali,” she teased back and punched her brother’s shoulder playfully.
Albert smirked at her before looking up at Bas. “Seriously, though, she’s, like, gotten me in trouble so many times before. Gotten me grounded for a month once.”
Bas made a face at that. “I used to hate being grounded. But she can’t ground me!”
“Oh, can’t I?” she said. “You kept shushing me during your call with your dad. I take it he won’t approve of Deatherage being after you, will he?” she asked. He shook his head in answer. “Then I’ll call Mr. Barkley back and tell him everything I know…unless you show me what else you’ve stolen.”
“But I didn’t steal the stuff...I found the stuff.”
“If you ‘found’ the stuff and it belongs to someone e
lse, without that someone else giving you express permission to take it, that’s called stealing. Stealing isn’t cool.”
Bas frowned. Once again his pout was looking very immature, and Mimi tapped her yellow snow boot on the floor impatiently. “I’m waiting!” she said.
Bas looked at Albert, who nodded that it was probably better he did what she said. Bas led them to the third floor without another word.
APPARENTLY WHEN Bas sulked, he gave people the silent treatment. The hallway of the third floor was covered in windows, making it look like the door Bas led them to would take them directly into the Time Zone.
Bas’s mood instantly lifted, like he’d wanted to show them this room all along.
“Mimi and Albert Mockel, welcome to the Lootery.” he said with flair, his voice unusually baritone as he extended his hand and pushed the door open effortlessly.
The ordinary white door opened with a creak, and the room was instantly lit by rows of candles in a dazzling display. The room was massive, and at once Mimi understood why he chose to call it the Lootery. The place was filled with piles and piles of unorganized loot. The stuff at first glance seemed ordinary, but when stacked together in mountains, it reminded her of a pirate’s treasure cave.
“Hey, cool hat!” Albert said, picking up a tall black hat.
“Oh yeah, that’s Abe Lincoln’s,” Bas said, matter-of-factly. His voice was back to its excited British lilt.
Mimi raised an eyebrow. “You took Abe Lincoln’s hat?” she questioned with skepticism.
“Yeah! Told Mr. President I was a journalist visiting from London and had a report from the confederates, and then I snatched the hat when he wasn’t looking and ran until I could use the Shifters without being seen. He had a couple of spares, I’m sure, so I didn’t feel bad about it. Hey, looks good on you!” he teased, grinning when Albert tried it on.
“You mean the Abe Lincoln wore this?” Albert asked with admiration.
“Absolutely. I only travel to see the best.”
Mimi looked at him skeptically. His lifestyle seemed one fabricated story after another, and she wondered who else he’d claim to have met from history.
She watched as his cranberry coattails spun as he headed to a golden throne at the far end of the room. His chestnut eyes held a shimmer of gold, and he looked happier than she’d ever seen him. She almost hated bursting his bubble, but now that she knew about this room, the Incredible Bas was no more than a time traveling thief in her eyes. He’d have to prove to her that he was more than a thief, because how could she trust a thief to help save the world from a terrible war?
“You know you have to take all this stuff back, right?”
“Of course I don’t,” Bas retorted, once again in a grumpy mood. His mood swings were becoming difficult to keep track of.
Albert was busy looking around, still wearing Abe’s hat. Mimi didn’t want Bas to become a bad influence on Albert and send the wrong message that thieving was okay. She hoped by taking everything back, Albert would understand it’s never cool to steal. And it was the right thing to do. Even if Albert wasn’t here, she’d still make the demand.
“Yes, you do. It’s the right thing to do.”
“Well, lucky for me, I don’t give a bother about the right thing! It’s bollocks you think you can order me around! It’s my ship, and I’m the captain, not the girl who found my Diary.” He started to hum a happy little jazz tune like he was trying to drown out her voice.
It was hard to tell if this guy was genuinely nuts or if he’d traveled so long alone that he had forgotten how to properly behave around people.
“Nope, it has to go back to whomever you took it from. We’ll start with the last thing you stole, what was that?” she asked and looked around.
Bas made a face and reluctantly slid off his throne. He picked up an ordinary looking horn. “Duke Ellington’s trumpet,” he said with a frown, not wanting to give it up. “That’s why I was going to the year 3000 before I was caught. I was going to have Aimon turn it into gold, ‘cuz brass is boring.” He glanced around at all of his possessions. “And why should I give all this stuff back? I like it.”
His uncooperative attitude made her talk down to him as if he was a child. Mimi had many years’ experience of being an older sister, and was used to dealing with stubborn children. “Because you need a Prodigy. If you don’t give back everything in this room, and I do mean everything, I will not be your Prodigy. I will not see your Alchemist, if there is such a thing as alchemy, and I will not be your warrior.”
He was genuinely shocked. “But then all of time could be unraveled!”
“Ah, your father said there’s an eighty percent chance that could happen.”
“So you’d risk the twenty percent chance that it won’t happen? I thought you were a goodie-goodie!”
“I am. Mostly. But I want this stuff returned. It’s wrong to steal, Bas, and if you don’t, Albert and I will go home and pretend this was all just a very bad, very weird dream. So will you risk the eighty percent chance of time being unraveled? Or will you listen to me and do the right thing?”
Bas hesitated. She could see the flash of worry in his eyes. She could see him mentally calculating the value of time itself versus the value of everything in this room. Finally, she saw defeat enter his eyes as he realized time was more important than gold.
“Yeah!” Albert agreed, a little late for the bus that was their conversation. “We’ll help you return all this stuff. I never liked history before, but maybe this will be more fun than Mr. Wilson’s lectures,” he said hopefully and grinned at her. “Mimi will let Bas help her be this Prodigy thing that doesn’t sound as cool as the techno band the Prodigy, and I’ll help you guys return everything. Oh wow, where’d you get this?” He grabbed a golden scepter.
“Oh, I found it—” Bas started, but Mimi’s fierce glare made him close his mouth again. “Um...it’s not important.” His eyes glazed over for a moment. “You sure there’s not another way for you to be the Prodigy without returning my stuff?” Bas asked at last.
“Nope. Either you take all this stuff back, or we go home. That’s the deal. That’s the only deal.” It didn’t surprise Mimi that he was trying to weasel out.
Finally, they shook on it. She was only happy she won.
Bas sighed and looked at his trumpet sadly. Mimi tilted her head. “How’d you get Duke Ellington’s trumpet anyway?”
“From Bubber Miley, Ellington’s trumpeter,” Bas said, delighted to tell the story.
Mimi waved her hand, stopping the story before it began. She was worried if he started telling another story, they could be here all night. She smiled at the trumpet, seeing the appeal. It was gorgeous. “Well, it’s settled, that’s what we’ll take back first.”
“You’re forgetting your end of the bargain. First we take it to the Alchemist to prove to you that alchemy is real, and then, after the Alchemist decides if you’re worthy of being a Sister of Alchemy, then we’ll take this back to Bubber Miley, though I’m not sure he’ll recognize it once it’s gold and not brass.”
“What do you mean, if I’m worthy of being a Sister of Alchemy? Is there a test?” She never had gone unprepared for a test before, and the idea of failing made her stomach jolt.
“I don’t know,” Bas admitted with a shrug. “I didn’t ask. But if you ask me, I’m not sure if you’re qualified. I am putting huge trust in my Diary that it knows what it’s doing. I know my dad has faith in the Diary...but you seem...well, I like you, but you don’t look like a warrior.”
The two of them watched as Albert finally set the hat of Abe Lincoln down on to the throne. Her brother looked tired and he yawned a yawn that could rival a cat’s.
“You’d be surprised about warriors,” Albert said in a sleepy tone. “Many of my fighters in my video games look like they’ll be weak, but they’re usually the faster ones. And if you play them right, they usually win. So as long as Mimi has a good coach, she’ll be a great warrior.�
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Mimi was surprised at his vote of confidence in her. “What happened to laughing at me for being talentless?”
“Anyone has potential,” Albert said. “Sometimes all it takes is a little coaching. If this Alchemist is as good as Bas says, you’ll be great too.”
Bas looked like he wanted to argue, but dropped the subject of Mimi’s worth as a warrior. She was glad Albert had stood up for her. It was rare when he did that.
“Well then, I guess all there’s left to do tonight is get a good night of sleep. We’ve got a lot of work tomorrow to prove to Aimon that you are worthy of being taught alchemy. Not sure how we’re going to pull that off,” Bas said and scratched the back of his spiky dark blond hair.
“I’m sure it’ll all work out,” said Mimi with a yawn of her own, though she wasn’t sure at all. “It always does. Though this is the craziest mess I’ve ever been in. And I’m still majorly scared about all this Prodigy stuff.”
Bas gave her a kind smile and nudged her arm. “Well cheer up, Mimi. It’s just a bad day. I’ve learned at least one thing from my time traveling years. And that’s the point of tomorrows. To make up for a bad yesterday. So don’t be so sad, ‘cuz that’s all today is for you. A bad yesterday.”
Mimi smiled. For someone so weird, he sometimes knew exactly what to say. She wrapped an arm around Albert and led him out of the treasure room.
Bas stood in the door frame to take one last look at his treasures that soon wouldn’t be his anymore. And by the glow of the candlelight, Mimi could have sworn she noticed a faint smile on his face as he closed the door behind them.
Knox, can you give me a ride to the REP?” Odette asked, knowing he knew the way. She asked out of a courtesy, and her pet cooed his affirmation.
“Then let’s fly, Knox!” the princess said softly, picking up the bag she had carefully packed. Knox’s impressive wingspan grew three times the size of his body, the perfect size for carrying Odette in flight.
Without fear, Odette let her heart guide her as Knox carried her out the window and took flight over the deep velvet clouds of the night sky.