“I did all the hard work! All the research that went into the creation of these items, it was all me!” He kicked the corpse yet again. Apparently, he had anger issues.
Because of his position at the library, Pembroke had access to the rarest books, research, and documents on Oriceran. He had spent years researching a way to leave the godsforsaken planet. With the help of the now-dead elf wizard, he had been able to create magical items that would aid him in his quest to leave Oriceran for Earth.
Looking over the items that he created and that the Light Elf had spelled for him, he was overcome by the fact that he was finally ready to achieve his goal—to head for Earth, the planet where magic was unknown in most circles and illegal in all others. It would be his haven. The gnome hated books, and he hated the library. He hated Light Elves. He hated magic. Most of all, he hated Oriceran.
Pembroke picked up the first item, an amulet the shape of a disk. It looked like a planet with continents and water. On one side there was a map of the Earth's western hemisphere, and on the other was Oriceran's western hemisphere. The shape of the amulet was symbolic of its magic, that of opening a portal between Oriceran and Earth. Objects like this were relatively common on the black market, but he had made this one specifically for this moment. The fact that he created it made the item more personal.
The next item was a medallion. This one was a silver disk with the image of a human on it. The medallion was charmed so that when he wore it, non-magical beings would see a human. Magical beings were immune to its spell, but that wouldn't be a problem once he made it to Earth. He just couldn't have humans see that he was a gnome. It was his understanding that gnomes didn't exist on Earth, so he couldn't be seen for what he was.
The last item was Pembroke’s pride and joy. During his research on magical items and spells, he had found an obscure document that had mentioned a spell that could remove magic from items, and presumably magical beings. He’d had the elf wizard imbue a crystal with the spell, and Pembroke had used the crystal to engineer the final product. He called it a “Magic Extractor.”
The Extractor was a stick of wood about two feet long, and at the very tip was the spelled crystal with copper wire wrapped around it. The wire continued, wrapped around the length of the stick until it stopped at a terminal above the handle. Also attached to the terminal was more copper wire in a coil. There was a leather strap that kept it coiled and connected to the stick. A battery on the handle connected a trigger switch to the crystal.
The user would point the crystal at a magical item. Pulling the trigger charged the crystal, which would then draw the magical energy from that item. The energy would travel through the copper wire into the ground, where it would disperse. Genius, he thought.
He was aware that he was using magic to get away from everyone else’s magic, but he didn’t care. Self-gratification was all that mattered, everyone else be damned. And now, looking at the items he had created and thinking of all the research he had done on the topic of Earth, he was finally ready to leave. Oriceran could go to any of the hells it chose!
It was illegal to portal to Earth, so he had to be careful. Casting a portal would draw the attention of the authorities, so he journeyed as far away from population centers as he could get. He went to the northernmost part of the Dark Forest. He hadn’t done all this work just to be caught making the portal.
He placed his medallion around his neck so non-magicals on Earth would believe he was human. In his right hand, he held the amulet that would create the portal. He began chanting in an ancient language, and the artifact in his hand glowed yellow. Holding it in front of him, he watched as it formed an oval of golden light large enough for him to step through. On the other side of the portal, he saw a green, grassy field, trees nearby, and mountains in the background. There was a clear blue sky overhead. The sight was very beautiful.
He took a deep breath and let out a great sigh. It’s now or never, he thought. With a great leap, he left the world of Oriceran, hopefully forever, and he entered the world of Earth. What he didn’t notice was there were two frightened child ogres who watched him leave. Just before the portal closed, it sucked them through to Earth too.
Chapter One
Stephanie and Trig ran as fast as they could, which was very fast since both were exceptional athletes and runners. Stephanie often joked that Trig had the stamina of a racehorse.
They were chasing a rat-like creature about the size of a small dog known as a Willen. It was dressed all in black like a little ninja.
Stephanie wanted to laugh at the sight. As members of the Order of the Silver Griffins, Stephanie and Trig had certain spells that allowed them to see other magical creatures whether they were charmed or not. That was why they were able to see the Willen and others couldn’t.
The Willen had used magic to commit a theft. Using magic on Earth was a crime in and of itself, and using magic to commit a criminal act was even more serious. As members of the Order of the Silver Griffins, it was Stephanie’s and Trig’s job to bring the offender to justice, which was why they were now chasing the Willen through the streets of Saint Albans, Vermont.
The chase brought them to an alley where a tall fence partitioned it from the yard of a warehouse. The Willen made it to the fence and found a hole big enough for it to go through but small enough that the witches chasing it couldn’t fit. It crawled to the other side.
Stephanie told her partner Trig, “I’ll continue following it. See if you can find a way around.” With that, she took a running start and climbed the fence to the other side. The Willen had gained ground, so she picked up her pace.
They were outside a warehouse where there were many cargo containers. The Willen whipped around them with ease, but Stephanie felt like she was in a pinball game and she was the ball. At one point she lost sight of it, but then she heard little footsteps on top of a container. She jumped onto the container nearest her and sure enough, a couple of containers over was the Willen.
Stephanie pulled her wand out of a specially installed pocket in her pants and aimed it at the rat-like creature, but before she could cast her spell, she saw sparks bounce off the little ninja. The Willen toppled to the ground with a loud, “OUCH!”
Several warehouse workers heard the Willen’s exclamation as it fell and they all turned to look, but thankfully, they didn’t see anything.
She looked over to see Trig blowing on the tip of his wand like he was a gunslinger in an old Western.
Stephanie laughed at the sight. “Nice shot, pardner.”
He quipped, “Yehaw.”
They quickly put restraints on the Willen.
Trig pulled it up onto its feet. “Let’s go to the station and process you, little guy.”
Chapter Two
Everyone cheered when they arrived at the station. Those Order members who were present all high-fived Stephanie and Trig.
Henry, a weaselly-looking wizard, shouted, “Three arrests in one week! You are like the dynamic duo or something.”
Trig grinned at that. “Thanks, Hank. Just doing our job.”
Smiddy, another member of the Silver Griffins, added, “Who’d have thought there was so much going on up here in the middle of nowhere? I mean really, Northern Vermont? There’s nothing here.”
“There’s a lot of quartz around here, Smiddy.” Stephanie reminded him. “You know how magical beings like quartz. Besides, because there are so few humans here, it’s easier for magical Oricerans to hide. That’s why we have a branch up here.”
Smiddy capitulated. “Yeah, I suppose you’re right. Still, three in one week? You two are my new heroes.”
Stephanie shook her head but smirked. “We’re hardly heroes, but I won’t argue.”
Stephanie told Trig, “Now for the fun part—all the reports.”
“Ugh, I know. The downside to our job,” Trig replied. “Hey, when we’re done with all this, you want to go to dinner to celebrate our successful week?”
“Soun
ds good,” Stephanie answered. “Seafood at Jeff’s?”
“Seafood at Jeff’s,” Trig agreed.
Stephanie and Trig had always had a really good working relationship. They had been partners in the Order of the Silver Griffins for a couple of decades. During that time, they had become the very best of friends. Their co-workers had bets as to whether they would become more than just friends, but after the first decade of the two staying friends, the betting pool dwindled and those who had bet on them not becoming a couple won. Only two people won that bet—Stephanie and Trig.
If Stephanie were honest, she would admit that she wouldn’t mind being more than friends with Trig. He was very good looking. He had muscles to die for, and a broad chest that she loved. Every now and then brown curls from his hair would fall into his face, and she had to fight the urge to move them out of the way of his striking green eyes.
She believed that Trig had similar feelings for her, but both were afraid to pursue a relationship for fear that it would ruin their friendship.
They were both witches by birth and had been sent to Earth from Oriceran a couple of decades earlier to help keep magic hidden from humans. Each was sent to the Vermont office shortly after graduating training and they hit it off, so they became partners.
She looked at her partner and thought back on the days when they’d first met. She loved her job and being partnered with Trig made it that much better.
He looked up and smiled at her. Damn, she thought as she realized she was staring at him. What the hell is wrong with me?
Her captain's shout broke through her thoughts. “Steph! Trig! My office!”
She mouthed to Trig, “What did we do now?” Trig just shrugged.
As they entered his office, Captain Bartholomew Rothseth asked them to close the door. They took the two chairs across the desk from where he was sitting.
The imposing wizard just looked at them for a few seconds. The captain often stared to unnerve subordinates. He reminded himself that he didn't want to scare them, so he spoke, “I have another case for you.”
Trig said, “But sir, we are just coming off one.”
He told them, “I know, and I'm sorry, but we have reports that a portal opened not far from here. It's in the mountains to the east. The portal has since closed, but a farmer from a nearby dairy farm said he saw two odd creatures on his property. They scared his cattle, so he called the police to check them out. Our contact with the state police asked me if we could look into this for them.”
The captain continued, “The farmer tried to take a picture, but whatever they were, they were gone by the time he got his phone out.”
Trig asked, “Do you have the coordinates of where we believe the portal was?”
“Yes. I'll have the information uploaded to your tablets, as well as any other pertinent information we have at this time.”
“Thank you, sir,” Trig responded. “How about our contact? We'll need to use police credentials to speak with the farmer. Will he cover for us?”
“Yes, he'll have your back,” Captain Rothseth answered.
“OK, then. Once we have the information uploaded, we can head out,” Stephanie said after the captain dismissed her and Trig.
As they left their boss’s office, Stephanie turned to Trig. “Raincheck on Jeff's?”
Trig nodded. “You bet.”
Chapter Three
They pulled up to an old farmhouse in Cabot, Vermont. The front porch was sagging, and there was chipped paint on every inch of the exterior. A rickety door opened and an old man in torn coveralls, mud boots, and a once-white tank top stepped out onto the porch. It creaked with each step he took.
“You the cops? I was told t'expect ya,” the old man said.
Trig stepped up. “Yes, sir. And you are Mr. Benoit?”
The farmer nodded. “Yep.”
Trig and Stephanie pulled out wallets displaying Vermont State Police badges and IDs. They carried these for just this reason.
“What d'ya need from me?” the farmer asked.
“Well, sir,” Stephanie replied, “if you would show us where you saw the odd creatures you reported, we will hopefully find out who or what they are and deal with them as needed.”
“Hmph!” the old man exclaimed. He looked carefully at both of them and nodded. “All right, come with me, then.”
The farmer brought them by an old barn with about twenty cows filling all the stalls. The ground was muddy, but not so bad that they needed boots.
Stephanie accidentally tripped on a rock. Feeling foolish, her face turned red. Both men thought it was hilarious.
The farmer laughed as he said, “I like you two. Come on, then. We're almost there.”
The farmer's property was huge. They followed him to a stand of trees at the end of one of his cow pastures.
He told Stephanie and Trig, “The cows were fussing out here. I came to see what was going on and I saw two...I don't know what they was. They was short. About this tall.” He held his hand about the height of his solar plexus. “They had greenish-brown skin and messy hair. They looked like funny-looking kids.”
He shook his head at that. “They were big, but they still looked like kids. They didn't look right.”
Stephanie told Farmer Benoit, “OK, sir. We'll take a look around and see what we can find.”
Trig asked, “Does anything seem out of sorts to you?”
He shook his head. “No. Nothing unusual. Just the creatures and my upset cows.”
They came to the trees where Farmer Benoit said he had seen the strange beings. “They was right over there.” He pointed to a spot in the woods.
Trig thanked Mr. Benoit. “Unless you want to stay, we will take it from here. It's your property, and we don't want to overstep our welcome.”
Mr. Benoit said, “It's no problem. If you don't need me, I'll be heading back. Thank you for coming out so quickly.”
He began walking away, then stopped. As an afterthought, he turned and asked, “If you find anything out, can you please let me know one way or the other? You have my number?”
“Yes, sir,” said Stephanie. “We'll call you once we know something either way.”
“Thank you,” he said and left.
Once he was out of range, Trig and Stephanie turned to each other.
“What are you thinking?” asked Trig.
“From the files we received and from what Mr. Benoit said, it sounds like ogres, but they are too short, from the descriptions we have been given.”
Trig looked thoughtful. “Hmm. Children, maybe?”
Stephanie nodded. “That's a good working hypothesis. Let's see if there is anything around here.”
As Trig was looking for clues or evidence, he said, “You know, if they are alone, they could still be nearby. They might not have wandered.”
Stephanie agreed. “There haven't been any more sightings. If there were, the captain would have called.”
Trig looked at his phone. “He may have. No signal.”
Stephanie smiled at him. “Both a benefit, and a hindrance of working up here. Benefit if you don't want the captain to get hold of you. Hindrance if you need the captain to get hold of you.”
Trig laughed at her. “You want your cake, and you want to eat it too.”
Stephanie gave a big smile. “Yep! You know it.”
She looked around the area. “The plants and trees around here have a lot of damage.” She made a sweeping motion with her hand. “Whoever it was didn't seem to make any effort to remain hidden.”
Trig knelt, checking an area that appeared extremely disturbed. “There was a lot of movement around here. There are a lot of boot prints, and they are wide compared to their length, similar to an ogre's. We probably are looking at young ogres.”
He looked closer at the footprints. “Look here, Steph. There's another type of print here. It looks different than these other two sets.” He looked up at her. “There are three sets of prints.”
Steph
anie looked at the prints with Trig. “Mr. Benoit said that he only saw the two ogre kids. I wonder where the other individual went?”
They both stood, and Trig looked down the path left by what they believed to be ogre children. “It looks like these two tracks go off in a different direction than this other set. We should probably find the kids first.”
Stephanie added, “If that is what they are.”
Trig shrugged and smiled. “Working hypothesis.”
Chapter Four
They followed a trail of torn tree limbs, smashed plants, and crushed underbrush until they came to a nearby farm, where a man was aiming a shotgun at two individuals cowering on the ground. Sure enough, they were ogre children.
Stephanie ran forward, yelling, “STOP! Don’t shoot!” while Trig quickly aimed his wand at the person holding the gun. Magic flew from its tip and struck the human in his center mass. The human, a short, stocky man, dropped to the ground, unconscious.
Stephanie looked at the kids. “It’s OK. I’m a witch.” She pointed at Trig. “He’s a wizard. We're both with the Order of the Silver Griffins. Let’s get away from here so the farmer won’t see you.”
Trig said, “We need to hurry. He’s only sleeping and will wake soon. Take the children to the car, and I’ll remove this man’s memory of any of this.”
Stephanie nodded and walked with both ogres back to their vehicle, which was still at the entrance to Farmer Benoit's driveway.
Trig watched them leave, then put his hands on the sides of the farmer’s head and spoke ancient words. When he was satisfied that he had removed any memory of the ogre children, he woke the farmer up.
Trig helped the man to his feet. “Sir, are you OK? You were out cold.”
The farmer stood up on wobbly legs. “I… I don’t know. What happened? I was coming outside.” He paused as he looked around confused. “The dogs were barking. I came out to see what was happening and, I don’t remember.” He looked at Trig. “Who are you?”
Tales from the Oriceran Universe: Fans Write For The Fans: Volume 1 (Oriceran Fans Write For the Fans) Page 14