Ethan Wright and the Alchemist's Order, (Book 2)

by Kimbro West

  The scaly Orobrous nodded its head in agreement.

  “Sit in the chair and present your hand to the creature … please,” she ordered.

  Odin sat down in a huff. Eager to get the procedure over with, he gave up his palm. He eyeballed his one-time nemesis and nodded. “I know you kept that sword stuck in the floor, creature — you didn’t fool me for a second!” The Oroborus quickly sank in its teeth. The chair vibrated and shook, as if it phased in and out of time. The two Odins could be seen briefly as independent figures, and then slowly they merged into one body. Odin screamed. The Oroborus released its hold on the old caretaker, who fell to the floor. Grabbing his head in confusion, he rolled around over shards of glass while babbling nonsense.

  “They’re coming!” he screamed, veins popping out of his withered old face. “No! The dark — the Northwind … SOMEONE HELP ME! Get me out of this sickness! It was me that threw the ground, I jumped and hid … getting this sword out of the floor — WHY?” he yelled. “YOU — I can’t….”

  Abbey grabbed Auren and pulled him in close. “You need to get him to Nurse Helga, can you do that?”

  Auren sighed in misery. After carrying two packs and Ethan around for the last couple of hours, he was now being tasked with carrying the old caretaker back through the chaos. “Well, yeah … but is he gonna be okay?” asked Auren, concerned not only about Odin, but about Ethan as well.

  “Odin will be fine — only time will help him sort out his thoughts … but he’ll be fine. When you get to Helga tell her I need to counteract an unknown poison — tell her to send someone right away with those kinds of ingredients. This place is an absolute mess and it will take me a bit to organize anything of use,” she stated. When Auren didn’t move she got rather impatient. “Well … MOVE IT!”

  Auren nodded and helped Odin off the floor. “Come on, Odin … let’s go.”

  Odin, still mumbling nonsense, grabbed Auren’s shoulder and helped himself to the doorway. Before he exited, the old caretaker turned to Ethan, who was still unconscious. “I’m sorry, Ethan … so sorry….”

  They took their leave and Abbey started to look around for ingredients to make a concoction that could act as a poison remedy. She found some unlabeled vials of unknown liquid. She started lining them up on the table, looking for some way to bring order to chaos. She analyzed one vial after another until she got fed up.

  “Ah, to Hel with all this,” she muttered. She checked on Ethan and then briskly rolled up her sleeves. She walked to the Oroborus and looked the creature in the face.

  “I’m ready,” she stated.

  The Oroborus nodded. Abbey sat in the chair and focused for a moment. She began to meditate and effortlessly entered a state of calm. Dimon’s tail slithered around, rapidly changing colors as his nose stayed fixed to Abbey. The flickering of color slowed, as a balance of personality was attained between alchemist and Oroborus. Simultaneously, Abbey felt she had successfully achieved clarity and the creature’s tail presented a design of well-organized beauty. She nodded her head and held out her palm. The Oroborus sank its teeth in deep. A blinding flash of light radiated through the hut.

  The newly bound alchemist stood from the magic chair. She looked around the hut, identified all of the ingredients and organized them in a flash. She selected three ingredients and mixed them together in an empty vial. She studied the resulting concoction, shook it and then shook her head. She tried another combination — these results did not satisfy her either.

  She went back over to Ethan. She unwrapped his hand and saw the wound was getting worse. His alchemy symbol was being overtaken by putrid, infected flesh. All the veins surrounding the wound showed a black, festering rot. Ethan wheezed as his lips turned a pale blue.

  “We won’t have time for this then — have to do it now,” she said out loud. She picked up Ethan and dragged him to the magic chair. She gave Ethan’s palm to the Oroborus. “You want to win the Game? Then fix him,” she ordered sternly.

  The Oroborus opened its eyelids and looked at the wound. Dimon put his nose over the wound and sniffed. Its tongue came out and tasted Ethan’s infected flesh. It reared back a few inches and then ferociously lunged in with its teeth. The mouth of the scaly creature closed over the wound as it began to suckle. The black veins started to change, started to fade. The creature left its mouth over the wound for several moments, drawing out the infection. When it finally surrendered the young alchemist’s hand, it looked almost entirely healed. The Oroborus closed its eyes and slithered back into its silk bag.

  Ethan slurped the drool back in his mouth as he jumped awake. He wiped his chin on his shirt and rubbed his eyes. He looked around the room and instantly got a face full of Abbey.

  “You alright then?” asked Abbey insistently. She felt his forehead and patted his cheeks.

  “Um … yeah — what happened?” asked Ethan, groggy.

  “What’s the last thing you remember, Ethan?”

  He thought of the girl at the window and how she disappeared into darkness when Ethan put his hand on the glass. He thought it best not to mention the dream. “Um … Auren complaining about carrying me?”

  “Oh, I think you’ll be fine,” she said, ignoring his question. “Now then, I just need to clean this place — don’t want to give the wrong impression. I’m probably the first woman alchemist to ever bind with one of these creatures — would be a shame if the hut was a mess when company comes.”

  “Did you bind with Dimon already?” asked Ethan.

  “I most certainly did,” she said while picking up the clutter in the hut. A small vial slipped from her grasp and broke on the floor. “Oh, piss!” she yelled, wiping up the liquid and glass. “It went very successfully, too — afraid I may have a bit of a temper and maybe even a potty mouth now. Dammit — I’ll have to keep an eye on it,” she muttered. “I feel my other self got some more of the pleasant aspects — pretty sure that’s for the best though.”

  “Um, Abbey—”

  But the alchemist quickly corrected Ethan. “In Wegnel MacArthur tradition, I will have you call me Valisa. Be honored, as you will be the first one to call me that.”

  “Um … okay … Valisa — did you ask the Oroborus … a question?” inquired Ethan.

  “Whatever do you mean?” asked Valisa.

  “Well — Wegnel … er, MacArthur rather, told me that when you bind with an Oroborus, you get to ask it one question — about anything.” Ethan thought for a moment. “He asked it, ‘why are we here’ and Dimon answered, ‘because the conditions were right.’ You even mentioned it earlier — you know, that you get to ask a mysterious question when you bind with an Oroborus.” Ethan was starting to get agitated. “It’s true, isn’t it?”

  Valisa thought for a moment while she placed some vials on a nearby shelf. “Yes … I suppose it is.” She knew what was coming, but let Ethan ask at his leisure.

  “I know this might seem silly, but … was the question about me or my brother? You see, Xivon said he was dead … I just wondered if—”

  “I’m sorry, Ethan; I really am. My question was not related to you or your brother. It may have been selfish, but I decided to ask a question of personal interest — one which I am not ready to reveal,” she answered politely.

  Ethan shrugged and nodded.

  Suddenly the door burst open and Nurse Helga and Auren rushed into the room. Auren scratched his head as he stared at a very normal-looking Ethan Wright sitting upright in the magic chair.

  “Is this the boy who’s dying from poison?” complained Helga, placing her pack on the ground at her feet as she gasped for breath.

  “No, I’m fine now — I mean, not sure what happened though….”

  “You were late, so I had to improvise,” replied Valisa, smirking.

  Helga felt Ethan’s forehead and then his face. She pulled his eyelids up and checked his eyes. She looked on the back of his neck and then felt his palms. “Your hand — Auren, didn’t you say he was shot through th
e hand with some type of Aegis torture device?”

  Auren leaned over and looked at Ethan’s hand. Shockingly, only a small mark appeared, as if it were an old scar. “But it was right here … what did you do, I mean … how did you fix it?”

  Nurse Helga, Auren and Ethan were now looking to Valisa for answers. She shrugged her shoulders. “I had Dimon fix him. I figured, Hel, he would be quite willing to help, seeing as how Ethan is the frogging Orobori.”

  Ethan looked down at his hand. “Dimon … did this?”

  “You bet your boots he did.”

  “Well, I see I’m not needed after all. Ethan, always a pleasure,” said Nurse Helga as she picked up her pack and headed for the door. As she turned, her alchemy cape whipped behind her, and she walked out into the market district.

  “Ethan, we gotta go too … looks like General Xivon was here. He destroyed a big chunk of the city and ended up getting that Mortuus bracelet thing. And not only that, but Marcus came back here telling everyone we made that stone statue come alive and attack him.”

  “He did what? That little—” mumbled Ethan to himself.

  “Needless to say, the Castellan is furious.”

  Ethan got to his feet and grabbed his pack and bow. He nodded to Valisa and prepared to leave.

  Valisa, taking a short break from tidying up, walked them to the door of the hut. “You boys had better be careful now, the bloody Guard will be looking for you,” she warned.

  Ethan smiled as he opened the door. “Yeah, but with all the chaos going on, I think we can get by unnoticed.”

  They said their goodbyes to Valisa and headed out through the market district. Ethan was surprised at how crowded it was. It seemed the attack had everyone in Tirguard stocking up on supplies. Several of the food vendors had sold out, while others seemed to be on short supply. Ethan shoved his way through the horde and pulled some coins from his pocket. A vendor with a small cart had just started restocking loaves of bread. Ethan slapped his coins on the cart.

  “I’ll take two loaves, please.”

  The vendor looked down at the coins and back up to Ethan. “Look around, boy, I’ll sell you one for that price.”

  Ethan reluctantly nodded and took a round loaf of bread and shoved it in his pack.

  “That’s way too much,” complained Auren.

  “No choice, we’re in a hurry,” grumbled Ethan. He then took off his alchemy jacket and shoved that in his pack as well. “They won’t spot us as easily without our jackets.”

  Auren nodded as he continued to grumble about the price of the bread. He shrugged his shoulders and followed suit, shoving his alchemy jacket in his pack. He pushed a path through the crowd. “Always in a hurry,” he mumbled to himself.

  “We gotta get to the airship,” said Ethan as they walked at a brisk pace toward the city.

  “What for?” asked Auren.

  “Odin was going to help us find out about Loka Tattur — but he is obviously in no condition to make the trip. Edison is in hiding, and Keavy … well—”

  “He’s at the Summer Sword with Stanley and Availia — maybe he’s talked to Edison?” suggested Auren.

  “Are they still doing the Summer Sword with the attack and all?” asked Ethan incredulously.

  “Yeah — they take these sword competitions pretty serious.”

  “Well, all we have to do is avoid Marcus and Heinrich, of course, and we should make it out of here,” replied Ethan.

  They turned the corner and headed through the open gate and down the street. They could still see some parts of the city smoking. Guards were running frantically here and there and did not notice the two alchemists without their alchemy jackets on. They turned another corner and spotted the Stadion. Ethan suddenly stopped in his tracks — Auren ran into him, but then realized who Ethan had spotted.

  “It’s Heinrich,” whispered Ethan.

  “What’s he doing?”

  “Dunno.”

  Heinrich had just ordered a banner of guards to inspect an exterior wall. He paced back and forth with his arms clasped behind his back. He looked devilishly pleased with the surrounding chaos. His lip curled as he ordered guards around to address the local drama.

  “How long do you think he’ll stand around out there?” asked Auren.

  “Could be all night … let’s go another way.”

  The two turned around and ran right into none other than the Castellan. Once again, he was livid. “You think you can sneak around in MY CITY?!”

  “Um, no … we, were just—”

  “YOU WERE JUST WHAT?” he shrieked.

  The Castellan had attracted everyone’s attention to Ethan and Auren’s presence. Several guards rushed over and surrounded them, including Heinrich. With sword tips coming from every direction, Ethan and Auren did not have a move to make.

  “Aren’t you the famous OROBORI?! YOU HAVE ONE JOB, DON’T YOU? SAVE US ALL FROM XIVON! You can’t even do that — you let him walk right in here! There are no words … no amount of frustration that I…,” he sputtered, enraged. “STAY IN THIS CITY … do not push me again!”

  “But, my Lord … the statue they sent after one of my students — doesn’t that require investigation?” begged Heinrich.

  “I couldn’t care less about the stupid pranks that students play on one another — if it makes you feel better … cool them off for a while and see if they know where Edison is.” The Castellan pushed Ethan and Auren out of the way and, since he was in the mood for yelling, started cussing at random officials as he pointed and threatened.

  Heinrich smiled, grabbed the boys and dragged them away from the Stadion, toward the prison. “It’s about time,” he snarled. “You boys will answer for your insolence this time.”

  Chapter 13

  The Rivalry

  The tall spire that dominated the city and contained the office of Heinrich Cornelious Agrippa got closer and closer. The Guard Captain, with a firm grip on the boys, kicked open the door to the dueling hall. Ethan figured they must be cutting through the building, as Heinrich seemed very pleased to get them to the prison as soon as he could. He wondered what kind of questions he and Auren would be forced to answer — and if only Edison had not confessed to a murder he did not commit, he would be there right now to prevent their prison stay.

  As the Captain’s heels clicked across the floor and echoed through the hall, Ethan reminisced about his last interaction with Heinrich in this very building. He looked at Heinrich’s waist and saw his sword, the same sword that had burned his hand in this very hall. He looked ahead, trying to see the scorch marks in the floor, but his eyes were drawn farther ahead. Heinrich stopped in his tracks. A dark figure stood in the center of the hall, between them and the door on the opposite side.

  “Not this time, Heinrich … and if I have my way, not any time,” said a confident voice.

  “Why, Edison Rupert, would that by any chance be you?” sneered Heinrich. He pushed Ethan and Auren to the side and took a few steps forward.

  From the shadows, the figure stepped forward to reveal that it was, in fact, the history professor. He wore his alchemy jacket open and showed a sword attached to his waist. He was all business as he walked to one side of the circle that marked the dueling area in the center of the hall.

  “You know these boys didn’t send that statue after Marcus. He probably provoked the sad lady at the old Saint’s Cemetery,” said Edison.

  “Did he now?” asked Heinrich rhetorically.

  Ethan quickly spoke up. “Yeah … he did, Marcus attacked her—”

  “Marcus did as he was trained to do, you two brats!” yelled Heinrich without breaking eye contact with Edison. “But it’s no matter … now — the Castellan will be pleased to know that I was able to capture the so-called murderer of Wegnel MacArthur…,” Heinrich stepped up to the opposing side of the dueling circle, “so why, then … why did you confess to something you obviously don’t have the stomach for?”

  “Call it personal prerogati
ve,” answered Edison.

  Heinrich sneered. “Well, then — of course, you’re under arrest. Not that this is any type of surprise, but I am looking forward to … winning … this time. This little rivalry had to come to an end at some point, better sooner than later I suppose.”

  Edison nodded as he stood in front of his opponent.

  “I assume you’re not going to come quietly,” stated Heinrich with his lip curled.

  “You assume correct, but just to make it interesting — how about one last duel?” offered Edison.

  “No harm is supposed to come to you … but I cannot … deny … myself your offer. Terms?” prompted Heinrich.

  “If I win, you let us all go — if I lose, I’ll go along quietly and you let the boys go.”

  “Hardly a good deal for me,” remarked Heinrich snidely as he placed his hand on his sword hilt. “I’ll play for all or nothing — you lose, I get you all — Ethan and Auren will sign a confession to attacking my student.”

  “Agreed,” replied Edison.

  “But we didn’t—” Auren was immediately cut off by Edison as he raised his hand for them to be silent.

  “Rules?”

  “I believe it’s your turn to pick, Edison.”

  “Alchemy,” replied Edison.

  “Agreed,” replied Heinrich. “To the surrender,” he added.

  Edison nodded his head. “Agreed.”

  Ethan and Auren looked at one another.

  “I didn’t know Heinrich was an alchemist,” whispered Auren in disbelief.

  “Me neither,” replied Ethan.

  The boys were waved to the side by their history professor. “Under no circumstances are you allowed to interfere … understand?” commanded Edison as he drew his sword.

  Auren and Ethan nodded and stepped back to give the duelists room.

  Heinrich pulled a clasp hidden in the bottom of his chestplate and fastened it to the front. His armor molded to his upper body — no light reflected off the previously shiny surface. A high collar, made of similar material as Edison’s alchemy jacket, shot out from the neckline and instantly hardened. Heinrich drew his sword, leaving Ethan’s sword still sheathed.