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

by Kimbro West

  “Whit ur ye wee ones daein’ haur? Did ye gie th’ ne alchemist? Hae ye spoken tae Edison yit?” barraged Keavy. “Weel … oot wi’ it alreddy!”

  “Yeah — we got the new alchemist,” replied Ethan.

  “You should’ve seen him!” interrupted Auren ecstatically, pushing his way in front of Ethan. “Edison fought Heinrich! It was amazing! He vanished … and reappeared, and vanished again — never thought an old man could move like that!”

  The news caught Stanley’s ear as he pushed through a group of students and into the conversation. “What’s this about Edison getting into a fight?”

  Auren snatched the dulled sword from Stanley and started swinging. “He was like this!” he exclaimed as he lunged the sword toward Stanley’s middle. “And like this!”

  Stanley easily avoided the blows, caught the competition sword and yanked it out of Auren’s hand. “So what happened to him — is he okay?”

  “Yeah, he seemed alright,” replied Ethan, placing his hand on his reclaimed fire sword. Stanley eyed up the sword and nodded.

  “Sae he won th’ barnie ‘en, eh?”

  Auren gave Keavy a strange look. “He what?”

  “He beat Heinrich in a duel?” asked Stanley sharply. “What for?”

  Ethan shrugged. “Auren and I had a bit of trouble with Marcus. He ticked off a giant stone lady at the cemetery, and she went after him. He evidently thought it was Auren and I that sent the statue after him. To make a long story short, Edison got us out of trouble by dueling Heinrich and giving himself up.”

  “If Edison would’ve won, he would’ve been free to go as well,” grumbled Auren.

  “And if he would have lost we’d all be in prison,” added Ethan.

  “Well — good you made it then,” said Stanley.

  “I thought the competition would be cancelled with the attack and all,” said Auren.

  “Yeah, I did too. Turns out the Castellan wanted everyone to stay inside the Stadion ‘til the danger had cleared, so to keep everyone calm, Magnus decided to keep the tournament going. Good thing, too — Availia won.”

  Red and several officials carrying trophies pushed their way through the crowd. The short, chubby announcer congratulated Availia and started making a grandiose speech. Availia seemed taken aback but coolly stood with the runners-up of the Summer Sword.

  Ethan refocused his attention on Keavy. “Anyhow — we need to go … now,” stated Ethan. “Keavy, you need to see if you can get Edison out of prison while we go to Losalfar to find out about Loka Tattur. Can you go talk to the Castellan or something — maybe try and persuade him that Edison didn’t kill anyone?”

  Keavy nodded.

  Stanley also nodded, dropped his pack and pushed his way through the mob surrounding the celebration. He whispered into Availia’s ear, which was just enough to disrupt Red’s grandiose speech.

  “And just what are you up to this time?” grumbled Red. “I need to have focus to bring you the attention you deserve,” he added.

  Availia looked at him sternly. “It’ll have to wait,” she announced. She walked off, pulling Stanley along with her.

  “Wait a minute — what should I do with your trophy then?” whined Red, holding a massive gold trophy depicting a young boy holding a sword.

  Availia looked at the trophy with the boy on it, then back at Red. “Keep it,” she answered, chuckling.

  She marched up to Ethan and Auren. “Stanley gave me the update — we leavin’ then?” she asked as she put on her alchemy jacket.

  Ethan nodded and the four left the Stadion together. Keavy rushed to pick up the armor, mumbling to himself about accepting the alchemy professor position at the academy.

  ***

  Ethan threw the final lever and the airship soared into the sky. He and Stanley had worked on the vessel tirelessly over the last several months. Stanley had applied a decorative metal skin to the bottom of the ship, which helped protect them from any encounters with the Aegis below. Ethan had designed a new bowsprit that made the ship more aerodynamic. It connected the bow directly to the balloon in a swept-back position, allowing for higher speeds. A silver plaque was affixed to the back of the ship with the word ‘GERTRUDE’ engraved into it. The two young alchemists were fairly proud of their work as they quickly rose over the great stone city.

  “I noticed you brought your bow with,” probed Stanley as the ship slowly floated upward.

  Ethan nodded as he threw a lever on the control panel of the airship.

  “Even though you got your fire sword back?”

  “Can’t always control it — Edison thinks I should practice the bow. He thinks I’d regret it, if I didn’t.”

  “Well, you did save him and Auren with it.” Stanley threw a switch and a blaze erupted in the fire chamber.

  “YOU KNOW…,” shouted Ethan over the WHOOSH of the airship’s chamber, “if there’s anything I don’t regret while being in Tirguard — it’s being up here!”

  Stanley nodded as he adjusted additional levers and the ship leveled out. “I felt the same way when I first started flying, long ago.”

  “Not sure why Red doesn’t want to fly anymore,” added Ethan.

  “I think he’s been ready to hand the reigns over for a while now. Besides, I think he feels there’s ‘less danger’ in the Stadion,” answered Stanley with a smile.

  “I still feel like I want to barf!” exclaimed Auren with a grin.

  The airship quieted down after they reached altitude. Ethan made a few adjustments that aimed the airship in the general direction of Losalfar and then took a seat to enjoy the view. Auren’s face regained color shortly after they leveled out. Feeling better, he began to pester Availia about her win at the Summer Sword. He attempted to pry every last detail from her. Availia obliged Auren for a short time, but soon grew impatient with him and punched him in the shoulder.

  “Ow! What was that for?” grumbled Auren, rubbing the sore spot on his upper arm.

  “Shut up about spin moves! They’re practically useless ninety-nine percent of the time!” griped Availia. “Men are so … stupid sometimes!”

  “Okay, okay, I was just curious is all,” conceded Auren.

  While Auren and Availia bickered, Ethan pulled out his map of Tirguard. Before he could unfold it, he felt a sharp sting in the palm of his alchemy hand. He spread his palm open, looking at the remnant of the wound in the middle of his alchemy symbol where the torture arrow had pierced. He rubbed his palm, squeezed his hand in a fist a few times and unfolded the map.

  “Hey, what’s that?” interrupted Availia, leaning over to get a peek at the map Ethan was holding.

  “It’s nothing!” exclaimed Auren. “Just let him do his thing,” he added as he tried to block her view of the map with his hand.

  “No … it’s okay, Auren. I don’t want to keep it secret from them — not anymore … not from my friends.” Ethan held out the map and Availia reluctantly took it. She studied it for a moment and looked back up to Ethan.

  “It’s a map,” she stated, “of Tirguard, of course — but why’s it a secret?”

  “It was Isaac’s, I guess — my father left it to him. And … well, somehow I ended up with it. I think it may have something to do with Isaac’s whereabouts. That is … if he’s still—”

  “Hey, look!” exclaimed Auren as he snatched the map from Availia’s grasp. He pointed to the center of the compass in the lower left corner. “Just before you got shot with that torture arrow, I thought you said this was an ‘O’?”

  Ethan leaned down to re-examine the compass on the map. There was indeed a letter ‘V’ centered in the Oroborus symbol, in place of the letter ‘O’. “Is that … the letter ‘V’? I mean, it was an ‘O’, I’m sure of it — and before that it was an ‘M’ … or maybe a ‘W’ — not entirely sure,” replied Ethan, puzzled.

  Stanley pulled a few levers and turned a control knob. He looked over his shoulder and shouted over the whoosh of the airship. “It’s obvious, i
sn’t it?”

  “Um … no … it really isn’t,” replied Ethan loudly, perking up.

  Stanley walked over and pointed at the letter ‘V’. “Yeah … that’s it. You see, even the Oroborus is circling around the letter.”

  Ethan, Auren and Availia stared at him blankly.

  “What’s the name of the new alchemist you guys went to pick up?”

  “Abbey … Abbey Valisa — but she insisted on being called Valisa — that’s it! Her name is Abbey Valisa!” gasped Ethan.

  “Oh! That’s even more impressive — look,” said Stanley while taking the map. He rotated it so the letter ‘V’ now looked like the letter ‘A’. “The top and bottom of the legend both say ‘N’, which I can only assume is for north. Abbey Valisa — ‘A’ and ‘V’ — before it was Odin, and before that … it was Wegnel MacArthur.”

  He handed the map back to Ethan, who rotated it to check for himself. Suddenly the black and faded brown lines, letters and markings on the map started to glow. A flash of white light erupted from the map, briefly illuminating the underbelly of the balloon.

  “Whoa — what the heck was that?!” exclaimed Auren. “What did you do?”

  “I’m not exactly sure,” answered Ethan, puzzled. Examining the map again, he removed his thumb to reveal the letter ‘A’. The entire map had also changed. It showed Whitehaven and Strahlung, with several other surrounding cities. “It’s … home.”

  He put his thumb over the symbol and rotated the map again. FLASH! It was the letter ‘V’ once more, and the map depicted Tirguard. And again, FLASH, back to Whitehaven.

  “Didn’t know maps could do that — that must be an incredibly rare map, Ethan,” said Stanley. “Did you say your father made that?”

  “No — there was a note attached to it. It said, ‘I finally found it’ — was meant for Isaac.”

  Auren held out his hand. “Can I take a look?”

  Ethan nodded.

  Auren put his thumb on the letter ‘A’ and spun the map. FLASH, it changed back to Tirguard. He stuck his nose against the map to take a closer look, while Availia peered over his shoulder.

  “That’s not all,” said Ethan.

  FLASH! Another spin of the map and Auren was now looking at Whitehaven again. FLASH — again, and another FLASH!

  “KNOCK … IT … OFF!” exclaimed Availia, punching Auren in the shoulder again and rescuing the map from Auren’s immaturity.

  The bickering was ignored by Stanley. “What do you mean? What’s not all?”

  Ethan shrugged. “Well, I think the map is indestructible. I’ve tried to damage it, but it seems it’s impervious to ripping, fire … even stabbing,” he concluded, looking over at Auren.

  “Yeah — that map saved my life already. Xivon would have ran me through if I didn’t have that map tucked inside my alchemy jacket,” confirmed Auren. “If only I could get this jacket to react better, I probly wouldn’t have needed the map — but just the same, good thing to have around,” he added, pointing to the map.

  “It’s what I’ve been using to hold the sword,” admitted Ethan, putting his hand near the pommel, “so it doesn’t burn, like when I fought Heinrich in the dueling hall.”

  “So that’s how you did it,” exclaimed Availia. “When you fought the Stonewolf … you used the map, didn’t you — and you had that green goop, too.”

  Ethan nodded. “This map has a lot of secrets behind it. This map is the key … but the key to what exactly — I just don’t know. I thought it was going to help me find Isaac, but after Xivon—”

  The wind started to pick up and the corner of the map started to flutter in the breeze. Availia quickly handed it back to Ethan and he shoved it in his pocket. “Don’t believe Xivon — you need to follow your instinct, Ethan … and your heart,” she said kindly.

  “Yeah —Xivon would do anything he could to get to you,” stated Stanley.

  Auren put his hand on Ethan’s shoulder. “We’ll help you find Isaac, you can count on us.”

  Just then Wegnel’s cat came waddling out from under the bench, where she had been curled up near the fire chamber. Her tummy wobbled back and forth as she trotted across the front deck of the ship. She jumped up onto Ethan’s lap but avoided eye contact with the Orobori, downplaying her demand for attention.

  “Ivy?! I thought for sure you would stay with Valisa!” exclaimed Ethan as he patted the cat’s head. She lay down in his lap, snorted and began cleaning her paws.

  “I guess she’s in as well, Ethan,” said Stanley, chuckling.

  Availia and Stanley both nodded in agreement. Ethan sniffed, and then smiled. “Thanks everyone — you’re great friends … all of you.”

  Chapter 15

  Prufsian Blue

  The airship landed on the platform, but no Losalfarians were present to greet them. The small staircase was unlatched and swung down. Ethan anchored the vessel with the rusty old sword that Red had presented to Auren last year as a weapon. Red, himself, had used it as an emergency airship anchor — now it was repurposed as their primary anchor, at Auren’s expense.

  Ethan brandished the vintage blade in Auren’s face. “Remember this?” he jested.

  “Yeah, yeah — it was funny the first seven times,” grumbled Auren as he trotted down the staircase and onto the Losalfarian platform. Ethan continued to chuckle as Auren grimaced.

  Ivy lay on the end of the bench seat with her paw hanging off the edge. She drooled, and with a snort rolled off the edge of the bench, hitting the deck of the airship with a THUMP.

  Ethan scratched his head, noticing this did not disturb her slumber. “I guess you can guard the ship then,” he mumbled sarcastically.

  “That’s some legendary alchemy cat,” quipped Auren with a snort.

  The weather had turned cloudy, and the overall appearance of Losalfar seemed dismal as well. In fact, there was not a soul to be seen throughout the city. The platforms in the trees were empty, with no sign of blue glowing in sight. The four walked to the wide staircase that led to the city and briskly strode down its countless steps.

  “That’s odd — you’d think someone would notice the giant airship docked at the wall,” said Stanley, examining their surroundings.

  “Yeah, it’s too quiet here,” Availia commented.

  Just then a figure could be seen walking hurriedly toward them, coming across the bridge on their right. It was Ventu. His youthful, confident face was welcoming toward the young alchemists. With his fierce blue mark, Ethan had always thought Ventu looked like a younger version of Loka. Auren liked the Mitan because he usually brought them Losalfarian food when they met, but not this time.

  Slightly winded, Ventu smiled and greeted his visitors. “So glad you can be here,” he said, as he cordially extended his hand to the Orobori.

  Ethan accepted with an answering smile.

  “How is that sword working out for you, Auren? Any issues?” asked Ventu, shaking hands with Auren, Stanley and Availia.

  Auren’s face lit up. “It’s wicked! Best sword I ever had … only sword I ever had — except for that rusty boat anchor back on the ship.”

  Ethan, Stanley and Availia chuckled as Ventu looked on blankly, confused at the group’s jesting.

  The Orobori sobered. “Nice to see you, Ventu — I wish we were here under better circumstances, but … we’re here about Loka. Odin suspects something may have happened to him.”

  “We’re not entirely sure if something happened,” answered Ventu, “he just seems to be missing.”

  “What do you mean, missing?” asked Stanley, intrigued.

  “Well, it’s unlike him to just leave without notifying someone. He would most certainly tell his daughter — she has no idea where he has gone. His domicile was a bit worrisome as well — very disorganized,” explained Ventu.

  “Wait … he has children?” inquired Auren.

  “Of course,” replied Ventu. “It’s in our biology to have a child every five hundred years.”

 
The side conversation was abruptly interrupted. “So his domicile was ransacked? Did it look as if it was forced entry? Was anything left behind?” barraged Stanley.

  “We don’t have locks on our doors here, and most of us don’t have doors. I would be happy to take you there, if you care to see it.”

  “Yes, please,” replied Stanley politely.

  As they walked, Ethan took in the beautiful sights of Losalfar. The giant structures nestled in the trees, the decorative railings, and the monolithic sculptures delighted the senses. He thought of the time involved in creating such an intricate, extraordinary city. He wished his brother could be there with him to share the view.

  As they continued down the path, they crossed several small ponds by way of wooden footbridges. Just before they reached a domicile with an open archway in the front, they passed over one last small pond. As Ethan crossed, he noticed blue-flowered lily pads floating gently on the water. It was calming; it was relaxing. Ethan intuitively knew this was Loka’s front yard. It was a small dwelling, and in Ethan’s opinion it was not disorganized at all. Everything was neatly put in its place. Books were in their bookcase, a single sword was hanging on the wall and personal belongings were removed from view. There was a simple chair and desk near the center of the room.

  Auren peered in with his mouth agape. “This place is … a mess?” he asked, confused.

  “You see on his desk here? He left out a book, a few pieces of parchment and this quill,” said Ventu, picking up a blank parchment.

  “Um, not to sound … you know … off, but I don’t see any mess in here. What, exactly, are we looking at?” asked Ethan.

  Stanley started poking at the items on the desk. He examined the book that had been left open and thumbed through its pages.

  “He would never leave these things out. To Loka, and to most Losalfarians, this is quite a mess,” replied Ventu plainly.

  “If this is a mess, you wouldn’t like my room at all,” quipped Auren, as he eyed up Loka’s sword on the wall. He poked the blade with his finger and immediately recoiled when Availia shot him a dirty look.