by Alex Steele
My vision blurred, and for one moment, it looked like they were one person again, then pain shot through me.
The katana, forged by Master Hiko, began to vibrate. Blinding white magic wrapped around the black blade. For a moment, the darkness pushed back against the light as my magic surged out from the sword.
Inch by inch, it was forced back, white twisting into black until it all swirled together. I felt the first crack like a physical blow. When the katana had been forged, I’d been there. I’d poured magic into it and bound it to me. It was a focus, but it was also part of me.
Mayhem magic churned inside of me, angry and desperate to be free. Another crack nearly rent the blade in two and every muscle in my body tried to contract at the same time.
The swirling lights became all I could see. The sword all I could feel.
A scream rent the air. After a moment, I realized it was me screaming. I couldn’t control it any more than I could control the shaking of my limbs as I hovered over the ground.
With a final, thunderous crack, the katana shattered. And with it, every last ounce of my control.
Thirty
Fate was gone.
I fell to the ground, my skull smacking against the dusty marble floor. The mayhem magic lashed out in response, blasting everything I was touching into dust. The eruption of magic threw me back a few feet and I rolled to a stop, my head still spinning.
I wasn’t casting any spells, I simply couldn’t contain the storm inside of me. It had only gotten this bad once before. Master Hiko and Hiroji had stopped me then. I didn’t know who could stop me now. Swift, maybe, but not alone.
My eyes fell on the charred section of wall. The place my parents had fallen. All rational thought fled as a wave of anger rushed through me. All of this was the Lord High Chancellor’s fault. He’d killed my parents. He’d taken everything from me and he hadn’t felt a moment of remorse for it.
My hand moved on its own and a dark wave of destruction burst from my hand. The wards flared, sirens blaring their warning as the magic collided with the wall.
Red sparks burst from the wards as the magic that protected the house became visible. Gritting my teeth, I pushed more and more power into the mayhem magic. If it wanted to destroy something, then it could destroy this, once and for all. I never wanted to see it again.
Years of repressed pain and anger poured out of me and the wards began to falter. Little cracks spread out from the epicenter of the assault like a spider’s web. The dark magic reared back, then slammed into the wards again as if it were a battering ram.
Using this much magic made my head pound and my vision blur, but I didn’t care. It was too late to try to pull any of it back. What little control I had slipped away and the magic rushed upward as well, slamming into the ceiling and the wall behind me with an earth rattling impact. The house shook down to its very foundation. Maybe letting it go had been a bad idea.
My feet lifted from the floor once again as the magic wrapped around me. It poured from my hands, mouth, and feet. Just like when I faced the warlock, I felt as though I was being emptied.
A black storm swirled around me, obscuring my view of the rest of the room. I heard shouting that grew louder but couldn’t tell who it was. The magic was taking over all my senses and flooding me with anger that mixed with my own until I couldn’t tell where I stopped and the mayhem began.
Bright pink magic cut through the storm and I blinked, focusing on Swift as she stood in the midst of the storm, her magic wrapped around her as a shield.
“Yui, do something!” Swift shouted, trying to force her way closer to me. The magic tore at her trench coat. Little flecks of red trailed behind her like blood in the wind.
“I can’t!” Yui yelled, keeping her distance. She was a bright white spot at the edge of the room. For once she didn’t have any of my damn cookies. Not that it mattered considering I was about to die.
“Bootstrap, get back! What are you doing?” Swift said, alarm clear in her voice.
The hacker ran toward me, his fingers almost a blur as he drew runes. A series of shields protected him, each one replaced as soon as the previous shield failed. I’d never seen anything like it. His magic wasn’t particularly powerful, but he made up for it in sheer casting speed.
“Be ready to knock him out!” Bootstrap said, ignoring her warnings.
“What the hell––”
Runes lifted up around Bootstrap, concealing him from view. There were hundreds, all pulsing with bright, orange magic. They flowed around him like water. He must be creating three or four every second.
Two lines of runes surged up toward the ceiling, then zoomed toward me. They circled around the storm of mayhem magic and squeezed in tight. My magic recoiled from it.
“Almost there!” Bootstrap yelled from within his barrier of runes. Another line of runes joined the other two, wrapping around my magic from a different direction. Then another, and another.
Soon, the dark magic was completely concealed behind the spinning bands of runes. I wanted to scream or tell him to stop, but my body wouldn’t cooperate. My magic fought back, but it couldn’t quite touch the runes.
“Now!” Bootstrap shouted.
The bands tightened and it felt like he was trying to crush my magic, and me with it. The mayhem collapsed back into me in the same moment that I saw a mace flying toward my head. Distantly, I thought I heard someone laughing. That was strange...
With a crack, everything went dark.
Thirty-One
I blinked groggily. My head ached. My face ached. “Whaaa…”
“I’ve always wanted to hit you in the face like that, and I’ve got to say, it was exactly as satisfying as I thought it’d be,” Swift said, tilting her head at me curiously.
I blinked again and she came into focus. She was sitting in a high back leather chair next to my bed with a takeout container balanced in her lap. Her trench coat was draped over the arm. It had more holes than fabric now.
When I tried to move my arms to sit up, I found myself tied to the bed, and magic-dampening cuffs around my wrists. “What the hell?”
She raised both brows. “You just about destroyed a wing of your house. We had to take precautions.”
The memory of what Fate had done came rushing back. Groaning, I collapsed back into the pillows. “I can’t believe you hit me with your mace.”
She snorted. “Yeah, you can.”
“I feel so betrayed.”
“You’re one to talk,” she said, anger leaking into her voice.
I sighed. I deserved that. I’d deserved the hammer to the face as well. “I guess there are some things I haven’t mentioned yet.”
Noodles spilled from the container as she slammed it down on my nightstand. “Haven’t mentioned?”
As she towered over me, I was reminded of exactly how vulnerable I was right now. I wasn’t surprised to see the anger in her eyes, but I hadn’t expected the hurt. I should have.
Swallowing, I tried to decide how to approach this. “Fate visited me again after that fun little chat we all had. The night Danner and Lopez came to my Tokyo apartment.”
She crossed her arms and waited for me to continue.
“He wanted me to stop chasing after the Mage’s Guild and unbind whatever it is that Yui locked inside of me after that battle with the warlock, I think. He said I had a battle to prepare for.” I cleared my throat and waited, uncomfortable, for her to respond.
Her eye twitched as she continued staring at me.
“Lexi, look, I should have––“
“Don’t you dare make a fucking excuse for not telling me that immediately,” she snapped, her eyes crackling with magic. “We have been out here looking for clues and trying to scrape together any information we can on why these attacks have been happening, and you were just sitting on this. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I…” The truth was because I didn’t want to tell her Fate said she was going to die. Frustrated, I tri
ed to lift my hand, but was stopped by the cuffs. “I didn’t want to deal with it, I guess. I don’t trust Fate. It feels like he’s trying to mislead us to force us into doing something for him.”
This must have been how Master Hiko had felt. It wasn’t a good feeling. There wasn’t much I disliked more than being wrong, but having to admit it was definitely one thing that made the list.
“Maybe it’s something we actually need to do!” Swift shouted, throwing her hands in the air in exasperation. “Maybe it’s your destiny to save Moira you pig-brained, stubborn, short-sighted, asshole!”
I ground my teeth together and sighed. “Without my katana, I won’t be doing anything useful. I can cast magic without it near me because some of the mayhem magic was stored in it, but with it all unbound it wouldn’t even be safe to cast a sound muffling rune.”
“You’re going to have to learn to control it then,” Swift said crossing her arms.
“She’s right,” Yui said from my other side, startling us both. The kitsune prowled around to the end of the bed. “It pains me to say this, but we’re going to have to spend a little time together.”
“What do you mean?” Swift demanded.
“My guardian senses are tingling,” Yui said with a sigh. “Blackwell has to learn to control his magic, and the magic he stole from the warlock.”
Swift looked at me skeptically. “Didn’t you bind that in order to keep it from destroying him?”
Yui nodded. “And I would prefer to keep it that way, but Fate isn’t leaving us a choice.”
I narrowed my eyes at my guardian. “Is this what you meant when you said you hoped we didn’t get in trouble for the questions I asked during the game of janken?”
“Yep,” Yui said with a shrug.
“You could have warned me,” I said angrily, yanking at the cuffs.
She rolled her eyes. “Have you ever listened to one of my warnings? Or anyone’s? It would have just made you more determined.”
“I’ve tried to learn control before. It didn’t work. I need to forge another katana.”
“Fate will just break that too.” Yui crossed her arms and looked down at me like I was a child. “You have two options, learn to control your magic, or die.”
“What does he need to do?” Swift asked.
“To start, breathing exercises. He’s too impatient.”
Swift nodded. “He can do those while still tied up.”
“You are not leaving me like this,” I said, pushing up in alarm. “Take these cuffs off right now.”
“No, not until we’re sure you won’t immediately blow everything up.” Swift turned back to Yui. “Will you be able to sense if he’s still out of control?”
The kitsune wavered her hand. “Probably. Bootstrap should be nearby just in case.”
“What exactly did Bootstrap do to me, by the way?” I asked, my body still aching.
“No clue, but I’m glad he did or we’d all be dust,” Swift said, still irritated.
Yui laughed. “It was brilliant. Now, there are a few things I need to…gather. Blackwell, work on counting your breaths. I’ll be back.”
When the door swung shut behind Yui, we were left in awkward silence. Swift was still angry and was staring at the floor, arms crossed.
“Look, Lexi, I’m really sorry.”
She stood, grabbing her takeout. “Don’t apologize unless you mean it, Logan.”
With that, she swept out of the room, leaving me alone, still tied to the bed, stewing in my guilt.
Thirty-Two
I rubbed my wrists where the cuffs had begun to chafe and glared at the kitsune sitting across from me, drinking my tea, and eating my scones. The shards of my katana lay between us on the low table –– which actually wasn't mine. I had no idea where she'd gotten it.
She had apparently taken over the undamaged rooms in the wing I avoided. They'd just escaped being completely destroyed when I lost control.
"This is not repairable, and we shouldn't attempt it regardless," Yui said, prodding at the pieces with a frown.
"Is that magic I apparently gained from the warlock still bound?" I asked, rubbing at my chest. Everything felt unsettled inside of me. My magic burned under my skin like I had a fever.
"Yes. If that had come unbound when your katana was broken, we'd all be dead," Yui said with a snort.
"Luckily, I was smart when I created the binding and made it so that the only person that can undo the binding is you."
I raised my eyebrow. "Me?"
She nodded. "It will take perfect control and a very large amount of power to do so. You have half of that already, and the potential to gain the necessary control, I suppose."
Great. If I had a fault, it was that my control was iffy at best. Especially when it came to my magic. Sighing, I scratched the stubble on my jaw. "Where is Swift?"
Yui sat back on her heels and shrugged. "She said something about getting some work done and left Bootstrap with strict instructions to keep an eye on Yamashita to make sure she didn't leave."
That was the smart decision, but if I hadn't pissed her off, Swift would be here helping. I hadn't realized how much I'd come to depend on that until it was gone.
It didn't matter though. This was something I had to do alone.
"Alright, how do I start?" I asked, straightening my shoulders and putting thoughts of my partner aside.
"Did you do the breathing exercises?"
I nodded.
"First, sit cross-legged, then place your palms on the floor to ground yourself," Yui said, demonstrating the posture she wanted. She looked very zen.
"Do I really have to do that?" I asked, exasperated. I'd never bought into all the meditation stuff.
Her eyes snapped open and she glared at me. "Yes."
I sighed, but complied, crossing my legs and pressing my palms into the cold, stone floor. As soon as I shut my eyes, I became hyper-aware of my body. The bruises on my back from when I'd hit the floor. The dull throb of my head-ache. And the storm inside of me.
"I'm going to guide you through a meditation meant to bring your magic to the surface, then pull it back inside you," Yui said, speaking softly, as if she might startle me.
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" I asked through gritted teeth. "It already feels pretty damn close to the surface."
"Shush, and listen." She took a long deep breath, which I mirrored, trying to ease the tension in my chest.
"Picture your magic as a light within your mind. Right now, it is bright, almost blinding. With each breath, allow that light to compress until you could hold it in the palm of your hand."
I tried to picture it, but all I could see was darkness. I inhaled, held the breath for a beat, then exhaled, trying to relax the tension in my magic and my body as I did so. For a half second, I thought it might work, then a surge of my magic rushed through my body to the palms of my hands.
My muscles tensed and magic leaped from my palms, sending cracks out in every direction around me.
I quickly yanked my hands up and scrambled backward, breathing hard. Magic sparked around me. I squeezed my eyes shut and forced it all back inside of me, but I was only barely hanging onto control.
"Cuffs. Now," I gasped out.
Yui moved fast, grabbing the cuffs from the bed and slapping them on me like she'd done it a hundred times.
She stepped back, hands on hips, and sighed. "The things I do for duty."
I let my head fall back against the wall. Everything was getting more dangerous, and I was completely useless now. Unless I wanted to kill myself along with whoever attacked me.
“I think we might need to call in a professional,” Yui said, startling me out of my pity party.
“A professional?”
Yui nodded. “It’s really the only option at this point.”
I pushed up to my feet, already annoyed at having the cuffs on again. “Who?”
“You know who.”
Sighing, I dragged my hands dow
n my face. I was not ready to deal with this, but it seemed that life wasn’t going to wait for me to be ready.
“Maybe tomorrow.” As long as I had the cuffs on, I wouldn’t lose control. That would have to be good enough for today. “I’m going into the office to talk to Swift.”
Yui rolled her eyes, but didn’t try to stop me from leaving.
Thirty-Three
“What the hell are you doing here?” Swift hissed, dragging me into our office and slamming the door behind us.
I lifted my arms, showing her the cuffs. I’d taken the short chain that connected them off so I could hide them under the sleeves of my jacket. “Getting out of the house. I can’t just hide in there until I figure this out, it could take weeks.”
“You could lose control at any moment. This is irresponsible, even for you.”
"If I can lose control with these cuffs on, then we're screwed either way. It won't matter if I'm in London or here."
"I don't like this," she said, crossing her arms.
"Neither do I."
We stared at each other for a long moment before she gave up with a sigh and walked back to her desk. She tapped her tablet and the screen that took up one wall of our office came back to life, showing a mess of information.
A half dozen mugshots were shoved up in one corner. Articles littered the background. In the center was a man named Kevin Jacobs. Red lines led from him to four other mugshots, then from those people to innocuous looking men and women dressed in suits.
"What is all this?" I asked, walking closer.
"I don't know," she sighed. "A conspiracy? A drug ring?" She shook her head and sat down on the edge of her desk. "These people are all connected in odd ways, but there's nothing concrete."
I tapped one of the people near the edge and their information popped up.
Amanda Bines, NV (Prosaic)
After 6 years working for Waverly Corp, quit, no notice.