Winds of Magic Chapter 12

 

Chapter 12

I returned to the student council room. Illya was waiting for me.

“So what did you find out?” she said.

“Brilliance is actually kind of fun,” I said. “But yeah. They’re who we think they are. I think I also found Tally.”

“They just let you in?” said Illya.

“Their security didn’t seem as strong as we thought it would be,” I said. “I think they have a sponsor who is pulling off all of the major stunts.”

“Did you find any way we can leverage our assets to investigate this club?” asked Illya.

I shook my head. “At best they’re underlings working beneath an invisible figure to carry out his will. If we end up catching them then the master will simply hide the evidence and hire new underlings.”

“What do you suggest we do?” said Illya. “Rei has proposed that we perform a surprise inspection, but since the club has been scrubbed from our records it’s not under our jurisdiction anymore.”

“How about we go to the police?” I said.

“They wouldn’t believe us, and even if they did they wouldn’t do anything. It’s too conspiratorial. We need some solid proof.”

“I was there,” I said. “I saw the magic circle. Isn’t that proof enough?”

“We need something like a confession or an artifact that points directly to their schemes,” said Illya.

“I have a bit of rapport with them,” I said. “I declined their invitation to join their club, but if I acted as if I changed my mind I could infiltrate them.”

“No,” said Illya. “Infiltration should be left to the professionals. I think I need to contact my uncle to see what he thinks about all this.” Illya took out her phone and dialed a number. “Uncle? Yes, yes. I think we have some information about Forthier’s Club and their schemes. Flash drive? Yes, of course. Oh, yes, you can tell us when you get here. See you then. Bye.” She hung up. “My uncle will be here in an hour. Do you have time? There’s some mundane accounting that needs to be done.”

“I will need time to work as the captain of the curling auxiliary team,” I said.

“I understand,” said Illya. “Tetra has already done most of the heavy lifting for us. She really does know her stuff, which is what I’d expect of the daughter of a magnate.”

“Then why don’t you put her in charge?” I said.

“Tetra does not have the qualities of a leader like you do,” said Illya. “You’re special. I don’t know exactly why I think that way, but I do.”

I spent the rest of the time before Detective Laymon arrived doing calculations and accounting.

An hour after the phone call Detective Laymon arrived in the student council room. He sat down backwards in a chair and sighed.

“Look, Illya,” he said. “I appreciate you calling me to tell me new things, but there’s a process to this.”

“What did you find?” said Illya.

“There’s a shadowy figure behind several of the world’s biggest corporations that is backing clubs like Forthier’s Club all over America. Each one of the clubs has a goal to do a specific thing but, when put together, do more than the sum of their parts.”

“And?” said Illya.

“I’m no longer working on my own,” said Detective Laymon. “The MIB is on the case.”

“Magical Investigatory Board?” said Illya. “Really. So this is a greater conspiracy.”

“Exactly,” said Detective Laymon. “I’m now working with a ton more bureaucracy.” He took out the flash drive I had found at the bottom of the lake. “I’ve sent copies of this everywhere. The thing is, whoever designed this device’s encryption is either a genius or an advanced AI.”

“And we can rule out AI,” I said.

“We can’t, actually,” said Detective Laymon.

“What about the artifage?” I said.

Detective Laymon shook his head. “No. We believe that at least two fully functional AI escaped the artifage—” Detective Laymon’s face went pale.

“Uh, we weren’t supposed to hear that, were we?” said Illya.

Detective Laymon’s forehead beaded with sweat. “Do not tell anyone. Ever. This stays here between us.”

“I won’t put you in jeopardy,” said Illya. “In any case, is it plausible that this escaped AI designed the encryption on the flash drive?”

“I believe that to be true,” said Detective Laymon. “And I believe the creator of the flash drive is looking to create Eden.”

“Eden?” I asked.

“I’m sorry. Eden is the manifestation of magical energy that flows through the phlogiston. If it manifests itself here on Earth, than the availability of magic will greatly increase.”

“Why is that bad?” said Illya.

“It’s bad because it will fundamentally alter the fabric of our society,” said Detective Laymon.

“What does this have to do with Forthier’s Club and Almog?”

“We do not yet know,” said Detective Laymon. He flicked the flash drive. “If we crack this we may learn something new.”

“I know a friend who can help you crack that drive,” I said.

“Who is that?” said Detective Laymon.

“Regius Alnum,” I said. “I know him. I can hand over the drive to him and he can take a crack at it.”

Detective Laymon raised an eyebrow. “How is a kid like you so connected?” he asked.

“Don’t ask,” I said. “It’s just something that happened. Regius Alnum doesn’t like dealing with people he doesn’t know. I’ll have to take the drive back and hand it off to him when I next see him.”

“I trust you,” said Detective Laymon. He handed me the drive. “You were the one who found it first.”

I was, of course, going to analyze the drive myself, being the Regius Alnum who I was referring to. The only reason why I didn’t analyze it when I first had it was, frankly, to keep myself from bearing the brunt of a booby trap. The police and MIB had better facilities for dealing with that kind of stuff.

“Any more information?” said Detective Laymon.

“I managed to infiltrate Forthier’s Club,” I said. “Relatively easily. However, Illya suggested that I not be the one to do any undercover activity. I also found Tally and her sepulcheria.”

“Good,” said Detective Laymon. “That will help our investigation greatly. We do have several young officers who can pass as students and get into the club if you really can infiltrate them like you say you can. I’ll introduce you to an MIB undercover operative and you can work from there.”

Detective Laymon stood up. “I’ll be going now. I have other business to attend to. Please, don’t do anything stupid like attempt to infiltrate this club on your own.”

I stood up as well. “If I want to hand this over to Regius Alnum I’ll have to get going too.” I followed Detective Laymon out of the building.

We walked beside each other for a moment. “You’re not the most powerful spellcaster I’ve ever seen,” said Detective Laymon, “But there’s something strange about you. Like there’s a piece of you that has much more ability than anyone thinks.”

“Haha, you know me,” I said. “I do know a lot about structural magic and Siege Code.”

“Right, which is the whole reason why you’re here even with your practical exam scores. That’s not it. There’s an undefinable quality about you that, well, I’m having trouble defining.”

“Which is the definition of undefinable,” I said.

Detective Laymon sighed. “I’m going this way. Kid, if you ever want to talk, here’s my business card.” He handed me a card.

“Thanks,” I said.

We split up and I went to the library to use their public computer terminals. If the flash drive happened to have a hidden magical virus that the police and MIB hadn’t discovered, I’d like it to not destroy my very valuable computer setup back home.

I logged onto my student account and went to work setting up my environments. When I was ready I plugged the device in.

Nothing happened. The device didn’t even register. I unplugged it and plugged it back in.

There was a quick flicker of activity. I did some looking around for analysis tools online and downloaded the best one I could find. I then did some Siege Programming and coded an interface with the specific flash drive.

Then it registered. I knew that I was on to something that would take a lot of work and a lot of thought.

I cracked the first layer of security without much problem. Then I ran into the thing that the MIB hadn’t been able to decode. It was a double harmonic resonating data drive spiller. I looked up its exact function on a website dedicated to hacking and tried to use a code sword to break it.

I accidentally unleashed a hellish virus onto the school network.

“Oh, shit,” I said. I quickly worked damage control. The virus had grabbed hold of an admin account and was trying to unlock it. I needed to shut it down before it did any real damage. If I ended up frying the school’s network there was no telling the trouble I would be in.

I coded frantically for several minutes until I managed to contain the virus. I then looked at it, carefully, inside of an emulated sandbox.

The virus was genius. I had to give its creator that. This virus was, almost, sentient, and would be an iffy proposition considering the laws against AI.

I killed it with a programming sliver and then returned to the flash drive with a new respect for whoever had created its software. I went deeper into the device’s folders and found a lot of random data that didn’t make a lot of sense. There were folders all over the place with encrypted information and dead ends and things that probably mattered but were impossible to pin down.

I finally found a tool that was powerful enough to decrypt the first layer of encryption.

All it revealed was a single text file.

“Welcome to the dungeon,” it read. “This flash drive is protected by DUNGEON-IC software. In order to decode documents on this device, you must defeat the dungeons in order. Each dungeon has a number of puzzles and enemies for you to defeat. As you defeat these monsters, you will become more powerful and level up your character.”

What was this? A game that one played to unlock a flash drive? Why would someone install something like this if they actually wanted to hide the files?

It wasn’t anything I could figure out at the moment. Instead I opened an application underneath the text file that was called “startup.”

The world shimmered and then I was standing in an empty black space. A single signpost rose out of the place’s seeming center. Approaching the post, I held out my hand.

“Welcome, player,” said a voice above my head. “If you want to escape, you’re going to need to beat the first level. If you die here, your physical body will die as well.” The voice chuckled. “Have fun.”

A sword appeared in my grasp and a door materialized on the other side of the emptiness. I approached the door. Before entering I stopped. The door was made of solid oak wood and looked very sturdy. I reached towards the door handle and opened it.

A world of green stretched out before me. Rising above the trees was a gigantic volcano. Dinosaurs held their long necks to the sky. Something roared.

I knew exactly what I was getting in to. This, was a game of life and death.

Winds of Magic Chapter 11

 

Chapter 11

The next day dawned without fanfare. I prepared at 5 am and was at the auxiliary clubhouse by 5:45 am. Alice was already there.

“You’re here,” she said. “I was half expecting you to not come in early and use some excuse or another.”

Over the next fifteen minutes the rest of the club came in.

“Today we are going to prepare for auditions,” said Alice. “Gump, get everything set up. Traxton, go over the list of applicants. Robert, I need you on keel for the game this Saturday.”

The members of the corps scrambled. I approached Alice. “I want to watch the actual team auditions,” I said. “Will I have time?”

“You’re going to be the chief judge,” said Alice. “There is some overlap between our two audition schedules, but the chance is high you’ll get to watch your friends’ audition for the curling team. I know she’s the reason why you’re here in the first place.”

“I just started with this game,” I said. “How do you expect me to judge properly?”

Alice poked me with a pencil. “You know your stuff. That’s all that you need. You don’t need to know the intricacies of the game in order to see who can build a good pillar.”

“I suppose,” I said. “I’ll keep an eye out.”

At eight exactly the auditions started.

“Number one, Banard Tompson,” said a male student with long hair and a rock band tee shirt. He went to the extruder and created a passable, but unexemplary, pillar out of pure rock substrate.

“Seven on the execution, five on the composition, and a six on the code’s design,” I said, not loud enough for the student to hear.

“You grade harsh,” said Alice, though I could see her notes were about the same.

We went through about twenty other audition candidates. We had two spaces to fill, so we’d have to whittle them down quite a bit. When everyone had been through the wringer we tallied up the scores and chose two people to be the new members of the auxiliary core. Jim Baker, a third year; and Hellen Jenny, a second-year. Both were Firsts.

Jim walked into the room after being selected for the team. He looked at me and made a sour face. “Why is a Third the captain of the curling auxiliaries?”

“Hey,” Alice said. “He’s your captain. I won’t tolerate disrespect towards him.” She snapped her fingers. “I have half a mind to kick you out and replace you with one of your competitors.”

“Sorry,” said Jim, hanging his head, though he still looked as if he didn’t like the situation.

Hellen didn’t mention anything and didn’t seem to be perturbed by my status.

We got to work teaching the new students how to play, which I had just learned how to do a day ago. Even so my previous knowledge about magic fabrication gave me all the basics I needed to create a good pillar.

Then it was time for me to watch Rei’s audition. I excused myself from the room and took the elevator to the curling ring. When I stepped out they were in the middle of an audition.

A red-haired girl was casting fireballs at six pillars in the ring. She wasn’t doing too well, as far as I could tell. She only managed to destroy one pillar before running out of steam.

Two more people tried out before I got to see Rei perform. She held out her hand and cracked open three pillars instantly. They shattered, sending shards of material flying into the magic barrier surrounding the ring. Each impact reverberated with a blue tinge as the barrier stopped the shrapnel.

Rei cast an ice bludgeon and smashed the fourth pillar. Then she froze the fifth pillar so fast that it snapped. She sent a blast of air at the last pillar and ripped it from its foundation. After she finished, she bowed at the judges.

“Good, good,” said the middle judge. “Next.”

Rei left the ring and waved at me. I approached her and we met in the seats. She sat down and I sat down next to her.

“With a show like that,” I said, “They would be stupid not to take you.”

“Ahaha, I hope so,” said Rei. “I did my best.”

The auditions took about another hour and then were over. The audition judges conferred for fifteen minutes and then announced the results.

“Rei Ward,” was the first name they called.

Rei grinned. We high-fived. “I’m on the team!” she said.

“Now you have to work your way up,” I said.

Rei’s grin widened. “I can do that whenever. For now, let’s celebrate.”

“Practice starts immediately,” said the judges after announcing the other two names.

I stood up. “I’ll be watching your games,” I said, “But I have a lot of other things to attend to.”

I returned to the auxiliary clubhouse and talked to Alice. “I need to do some work for the student council,” I said. “Do you need me for anything?”

“Not at the moment,” said Alice. “We’re training the newbies but I can handle that.”

I smiled and turned around to leave the building.

“One thing, though,” said Alice. “I expect to sit down with you and have a serious conversation soon.”

“I won’t complain,” I said, turning back around for a moment. “Just set the time.” Then I left the building.

I walked across campus to the student council room. Illya and Roy were already there.

“Rei discovered something during her research,” said Illya, sitting behind her computer. “Forthier’s Club’s president is a third year Second named Vip Char. The strangest thing is that we can’t find an ounce of dirt on this guy. He’s a perfect honor student without a single mark on his record. He’s on track to graduate suma cum laude.” Illya pointed to me. “Your mission is to find him and figure out why Forthier’s Club exists. I can’t go because he’ll know we’re on to him. Neither can Rei or any other members. But it’s not publicly known yet that you’re on the council. He’ll be willing to talk to you.” Illya handed me a deck of cards from a popular trading card game, Brilliance. “Vip enjoys Brilliance. Use this as a way to break the ice with him.”

“I’ll do my research,” I said. I already knew how to play Brilliance but it had been a while so I needed to brush up on the game. I took the deck.

“Vip’s schedule carries him to the cafeteria at eleven. I think if you hurry you can make it.” Illya handed me a picture. “This is him. Be careful, we don’t know what he’s capable of or who he’s allied with.” 

Vip was a Korean student with bad acne scarring and glasses. He looked, by all accounts, like a totally normal nerd who was about as dangerous as a rabbit. I slid the photo into my pocket and left the student council room. Sitting down on a bench, I looked up everything I needed to know to be current on the Brilliance metagame. It took me about fifteen minutes with magically accelerated information processing.

I discovered an interesting tidbit. Vip ran a Brilliance TCG channel named VIPBrilliance. He had about ten thousand subscribers and uploaded weekly. I watched a few of his videos and then stood up.

I walked across campus to the cafeteria. Surveying the crowd, I moved carefully across the floor. Vip was sequestered away in a corner eating his lunch and doing something on his laptop.

I thought for a minute about how to approach him. I decided that being bold was the best way to advance.

I sat down across from Vip, slamming my Brilliance deck on the table. “I heard you play Brilliance,” I said.

Vip looked up from his computer. “Um, I’m eating,” he said.

“You’re Vip from VIPBrilliance, right?” I said.

Vip’s countenance immediately softened. “Yeah, I am,” he said. He scratched the back of his neck. “I’m not used to being recognized.”

“You’re criminally under-subbed,” I said. I flicked my Brilliance deck. “This is a mono-red aggro deck. Battlestar ruins, to be exact.”

“Ah, that one’s really good in the meta right now,” said Vip. “Are you running Clearwater Scion?”

“Of course,” I said.

Vip reached for my deck. “May I?” he said.

“You may,” I said, pushing the deck towards him.

Vip took the deck and disassembled it with a calculated energy. In two minutes he had every card laid out in front of him.

“Ah, good,” said Vip. “Looks like a pretty standard Battlestar Ruins build.” He shuffled the cards back into deck form.

“Want to play a game?” I said.

“Sure,” said Vip. He reached into his backpack and pulled out a deck box. “Since your deck is built for the current format I’ll play my current deck.” He shuffled the deck with an expert hand and handed it to me to cut.

I shuffled my deck and handed it to Vip. We both cut our decks.

The first game was, as I imagined, a total victory for Vip. During the second game I decided to start probing.

“Do you belong to any clubs?” I said.

Vip’s face twitched for a split second, and then he regained composure. “I destroy your Blink Moth,” he said, and then he rubbed his chin. “Well, I wouldn’t call it a club exactly,” he said.

He was silent while we played another couple of turns.

“Yeah, it’s just a place where I can hang out with friends,” Vip finally said.

“Do you think I could join?” I said.

Vip was silent again. “Maybe,” he said. “It depends on what you think about what we’re trying to do.”

“And that is?” I said.

Vip frowned. “Don’t tell this to anyone, but we’re trying to save the world.”

I raised my eyebrows and acted surprised. “What does that mean?” I said.

“It means that we’re on a super important mission,” said Vip. “The apocalypse is coming and we’re going to stop it.”

“How?” I said.

Vip narrowed his eyes. “Come with me,” he said. He stood up and tossed the rest of his meal away and returned the plates.

I followed him across campus until we came to an old section of the school that followed a different build style. Vip unlocked a hidden side door and ushered me in.

A long hall greeted me, empty and poorly lit. Vip walked past several doors and then stopped in front of one. He knocked.

“Pearl?” said someone behind the door.

“Boor,” said Vip.

The door unlocked. Vip pulled me in. There were three other people in the room, surrounding what appeared to be an ancient magic circle.

“Hey, who’s this?” said one of the students.

“He’s a friend,” said Vip.

“York,” I said. “Nice to meet you.”

I shook hands with the three students. It was then that I noticed a peculiar object on the counter, surrounded by clutter. I walked towards it. Just before touching it, Vip pushed me back.

“Don’t,” said Vip. “That’s our sacrifice.

My hunch was right. Tally was inside that device.

“Where did you get it?” I said.

“It was given to us by a sponsor,” said Vip. “Please don’t touch it. It’s necessary for what we’re about to do.”

“How much longer until you’re ready?” I said.

“Two weeks,” said Vip. “When the stars align. That’s when we’ll bring back the protector.”

I was silent. “Thanks,” I said, “But I’m already on the curling auxiliary team. I don’t think I can help you guys. I know I was the one who wanted to join but I’ve reconsidered.”

“It’s fine,” said Vip. “If you ever change your mind we’re here.”

I stepped out of the room and back into the hall.

Winds of Magic Chapter 10

 

Chapter 10

“Forthier’s Club is an organization that somehow managed to get onto the campus registry without going through the student council,” said Illya. “Most likely because it was commissioned by a big donor. They are a club who are dedicated towards researching ancient eldritch god-abominations. We were told that their research is purely look-see, not actual ceremonies. However, that does not seem to be the case.”

“So they have Tally?” I said.

“Tally?” said Illya.

“She’s Jade’s friend,” said Rei. “She was captured in a sepulcheria to be the maiden sacrifice to awaken a god named Almog.”

“Right,” said Illya. “That helps. But in any case, the moment we began an investigation into the club, they disappeared. All mention of them in our records was scrubbed.”

“A deletion?” said Rei. “Did they get everything?”

“All of it,” said Illya. “It’s as if they neve existed. I’m worried that this means their plans are advancing.”

“What do you suspect they plan to do?” I asked.

“I do not know,” said Illya. “But I have a hunch. I believe they may be trying to awaken the god you just mentioned. Almog.”

“Malcom and Galmor were trying the same thing,” said Rei.

“You remember their names?” said Illya.

“Of course,” said Rei. “They tried to kill us.”

“In any case,” said Illya, “We have to stop them. They should still be somewhere on campus. Rei, since you’re the sheriff, you need to coordinate a search for their hideout.”

“What if they’re not still on campus?” said Rei.

“Rockwell is built on a powerful ley line,” said Illya. “If they were to awaken an eldritch god then this would be the best place to do it.”

“Okay,” said Rei, standing up. “I’m going to go do some work.” She nodded at Jade. “Please, don’t hurry to finish.”

She smiled at me and then turned around, leaving the cafeteria.

Jade finished her meal and stood up as well. “I’m going to class,” she said.

It was just me and Illya. Illya tapped her fingers on the table with an annoyed look on her face. “You became captain of the curling auxiliary team,” she said. “How are you going to balance that with your work on the student council?”

“I have no problems with a heavy workload,” I said. “I’m used to doing a lot of things at once.”

“Well, I’ll believe your assessment of your own ability,” said Illya. “But I have to ask. How did you win a Kamigeki against a First-rated third year?”

“He was doing stims,” I said. “My cancellation spell just happened to resonate and cause brain knock.”

“No, I’m not asking about what happened to him,” said Illya. “I’m asking about the spell you used. What do you mean, cancellation spell? I’ve never seen a casting device capable of shooting one off so fast. Usually you’re required to cast an analysis spell first. That’s why no one ever uses them, especially not those who scored so low on the casting speed portion of the practical exam.”

I sighed. There was nothing I could do except explain my methods. “I developed a passive analysis enchantment attached to my casting device,” I said.

“You?” said Illya. “Developed a game-changing enchantment on your own?”

“I had a bit of help, but yes.”

“Do you know how much people will pay for something like that?” said Illya.

“I did sell it to Mephistus,” I said.

“The military contractor?” said Illya. “Hum. You’re more connected than I gave you credit for. I knew you had some cards up your sleeve, but this? Wow.”

I shrugged. “It’s just something I do. I’m a Siege programmer on the side.”

“And I knew that,” said Illya. “But what you’ve done is special.” She pursed her lips. “I should have known that something was off about your evaluation.”

“The practical exam takes measurements of output, casting speed, and durability. On all of those counts, I do not do well.”

“Then they should change it,” said Illya. “I sense something about you that can’t be described.”

I turned away. “Don’t. I have some things that need to be kept secret.”

Illya put her hand on my arm. “I’m not looking to pry.”

We were silent for a while. Then Illya spoke again. “In any case, we have to work out how to track Fortheir’s Club. Rei is on the beat but we have to back her up.” She stood up. “We’re going to do some snooping.”

I stood up as well, offering to take away Illya’s plate. She hadn’t eaten much and I ended up throwing away almost an entire meal.

“About this Tally,” said Illya, walking beside me as we left the cafeteria. “What do you know about her?”

“I don’t know anthing,” I said. “She’s Jade’s friend. I just agreed to help look for her.”

“We’ll look into her first,” said Illya. We took a turn towards the student council room.

Roy approached from a different direction. “Ah, the triumphant returns,” he said, joining us. “Congratulations on winning your first Kamigeki.”

“You heard?” I said.

“It’s all over social media,” said Roy. He turned to Illya. “What’s on the agenda?”

“We’re going to look into the kidnapping of someone who we believe to be a maiden sacrifice for the resurrection of Almog,” said Illya.

“Almog?” said Roy. “I don’t recognize the name.”

“I’ve researched him a bit,” said Illya, “And I know he’s a minor eldritch deity that caused an A-class magic disaster twenty years ago.”

“Ah, during the war?” said Roy.

“Exactly,” said Illya. She paused. “I think the library contains newspapers and articles from that time. We’ll have to look into those as well.”

We entered the student council building and settled in the office. Illya opened up her console and began doing general searches.

I sat down across from her and started my own research. Tally Sea was a high school junior who had gone missing two weeks ago. She was reported to have been involved with the cultist incident on the Pearlash estate, but had not been recovered. Police were holding out a reward for anyone who could lead to her recovery. What we knew would probably help the police.

“I think we should come with this to the proper authorities,” I said.

“I agree,” said Illya. She typed something into her console. “My uncle is a detective with the magic investigations bureau. I’ll arrange a meeting at the school police office.” She continued typing. “He wants to meet us in an hour,” she said.

“Then we’ll be there,” I said. I did a search on a website that indexed eldritch deities. It was more of a wiki, but at the very least it was a start. The article was a stub.  

“Almog. Minor blood god of diluvian ancestry. Power level is rank five. In 2054 caused a class A disaster in the Portman City area. Noted for being the first of its genus to be sealed with the Hybrid Protocol.”

I clicked the cross link for “hybrid protocol.”

“Hybrid Protocol. A method for the sealing of lesser deities and greater devils and demons that was introduced by Harriot Singh in 2047. Has been used hundreds of times. Harriot has been awarded the Christianson Prize for his work on the subject.”

The article continued on about the history and technicalities of the protocol. There was nothing on how to break a being from the seal.

“It’s obvious that Forthier’s Club has discovered a way to break the seal of a god trapped by Hybrid Protocol,” I said.

“Ah, you’re on the same track I am,” said Illya. “I believe the Hybrid Protocol has been broken once before.”

“I wasn’t able to find that,” I said.

“I have some clearance as the student council president,” said Illya. She sent me a link.

The news article was dated January 5^th, 2054.

“Almog awakened! Half the city has been iced!”

The article continued to detail the rampage of the god, as well as how he was finally captured by brave magic warriors. At the end, there was a tiny but consequential addition. “He may be safe for now under the Hybrid Protocol, but it has been broken before. We may just have to wait and see.”

There was nothing else. No sources. Nothing to indicate it was more than just vapid hot air spouted by a reporter.

“That’s it?” I said.

“Yep,” said Illya.

We spent the next hour on a fruitless search for information. When it was time, we stood up and left the student council room to head to the police building. Roy stayed behind to work on other student council business.

We entered the police building and were greeted by a familiar face. Detective Laymon.

“Hello, uncle,” said Illya.

“You again,” said Detective Laymon, a curt smile on his face.

“You’ve met?” said Illya.

“At the Pearlash estate. When we arrested those two cultists.”

“Ah, I see,” said Illya. “Well then, that saves the need for an introduction. We’ve found some evidence that you didn’t arrest all the people involved.”

“Do tell,” said Detective Laymon.

“We discovered a hidden club here on campus known as Forthier’s Club,” said Illya.

“And we think they may be trying to awaken Almog,” I said.

Detective Laymon took off his hat and wiped his forehead. “Good heavens,” he said. “I’ve had work for days regarding those Almog cultists.” He paused. “I’d appreciate any new information.”

“About Tally Sea,” I said. “What do you know?”

“We’ve had an offer for information to the tip line for a week now and haven’t gotten any closer to finding her or the sepulcheria,” said Detective Laymon. He sat down. “But that’s not the big development. The big development is that our interrogations of the multiple suspects has revealed that this is probably an organization. Probably what you just referred to as Forthier’s Club.”

“Can we work together?” said Illya. “This is a matter that also concerns the student council.”

“Of course,” said Detective Laymon. “At the very least, we can share information.” He paused. “However, if you do find out that they have an evil secret lair, please leave the storming of the castle to the professionals.” He looked at me with narrowed eyes. “Please.”

I sighed. “Yeah. It wasn’t my idea to get involved like that in the fist place.” I paused for a minute. “Hey,” I said. I took off my backpack and rummaged through it. The flash drive. It was still there. I showed it to Detective Laymon. “I found this under a lake. It had a resonating frequency that was very close to what I felt when I was near the cultists.”

Detective Laymon gingerly took hold of the flash drive. “Thanks,” he said, turning it over. “I’ll have my team analyze it.” He slid it into his pocket and turned to look at Illya. “Anything else I need to know?” he said.

Illya shook her head. “I already sent you all the information in a debrief email. I don’t want to waste any more of your time.”

“Then we’ll be in contact,” said Detective Laymon.

Illya nodded and then turned around. “Come with me,” she said.

Detective Laymon tipped his hat as we left the building.

Illya led me to hidden-away place on campus that was hemmed in by a building, a small garden of placid shrubbery where no one could see.

“I need to ask you something,” she said. “What is your relation to Jade?”

“Why do you ask?” I said.

“Because it’s through her that you got involved with all this cult nonsense,” said Illya. “I feel she holds you in a different regard than you hold her.”

“I’m not very good at telling people’s emotions,” I said. “If you want to know, ask Jade herself.”

Illya sighed, turning away. “I hired you for a reason. Now that reason is showing itself. Rockwell is corrupt, York. Things beyond this stupid Forthier’s Club are happening and I want to be the person to stop it, or at least unmask the horrors hidden within this academy.”

I stepped forward. “I’ll help,” I said. “I promise I’ll do what I can.”

“Thanks, York,” said Illya. She turned around and kissed me on the cheek, pulling away shyly. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Winds of Magic Chapter 9!

 

Chapter 9

Alice showed Rei and I to the auxiliary clubhouse. It was filled with devices from at least three generations of technology, from a near vintage Rolliup casting device to a state-of-the-art aether counter. The room had a cluttered feel, and was dominated by a full-size curling ring which took up more than half of the floor space. I was greeted by five auxiliary team members.

“This is Gump, Traxton, Seymore, Robert, and Kenny,” said Alice. “They’re the rest of the auxiliary team.”

One of the members, who I was pretty sure was Gump, approached me. “Glad you’re here,” he said. “I heard how you one-shotted Jerrod.”

“None of us liked him,” said another member, who I remembered to be Seymore. “He was a jerk.”

“Yeah, I picked that up,” I said.

“You’re going to be on the Curling team?” said Kenny, to Rei.

“Hopefully,” said Rei. “If I manage to do good on the auditions.”

“We’re also holding auditions for the auxiliary core,” said Kenny. “But I guess York here doesn’t need to go now.” He paused. “So. Can you show me what you know?”

Alice nodded, approaching me. “Yes. We want to know if you’re actually going to benefit the auxiliary corps.”

“I barely even know how to play,” I said. “I was expecting to learn on the job from my seniors.”

“Hah,” said Alice. She pushed a laptop computer from one side of a desk towards me. “Do some Siege code and create a pillar from scratch. Then we’ll see what you can do.”

“Let me look at your extruder first,” I said. I walked over to the material extruder that was used to create the pillars for the game. It was an older model, but high quality. I then took out my tablet and researched the specs and operating conditions, searching for quirks that I would have to deal with.

“Good,” said Alice. “At least you know how to work with machines.”

I walked to the laptop. The Siege Code IDE was already up and running. I began coding.

Since I had a healthy knowledge of materials science, I was able to create a poly-bonded material that would stand up to extreme temperatures very well. To be honest, it was a textbook magic extrusion, and I wanted to use it to see if the members recognized it. It was a little test on my part that wouldn’t put the secrecy of my job on the line. It took ten minutes to finish the code and then I sent it to the extruder.

The extruder produced a piece of yellowish metal at the rate of about a foot a minute. The blocks in curling, I had read, could be made out of any solid material and could be enchanted with nearly any spell. The one extruding at the moment had no enchantments, but I did not expect it to need them.

The pillar was about three meters tall when it finished extruding. Alice used gravity magic to bring it down to the ring. She placed the pillar in the ring’s center and motioned to Rei.

“While we’re at it, we may as well see your powers.”

Rei nodded, approaching the operation board that hung over the field’s north end. She typed a few commands into her casting device and threw a ball of negative-pressure air at the pillar. She could do this by cooling the air so quickly that it imploded in on itself using Charle’s Law, which stated that volume and temperature in a gas are proportional. The pillar dented but did not break.

“That was powerful,” said Alice, appearing a bit impressed. She turned to me. “What did you make this pillar out of?”

“Type five electro-symbiotic brass-steel alloy,” I said.

“Ah, right, I recognize that one. One of Philor’s ten solid-state magus templates.”

I was, to be honest, impressed. “So you know your stuff,” I said.

Alice tilted her head. “I’m the vice president of a collegiate level curling team,” she said. She sighed. “Well, it’s nice to finally have a captain who knows what they’re doing.”

“Jerrod didn’t?”

“He got his position through seniority and threats. He never really cared about the game.”

I frowned. “Well then. I hope I can make you a powerful auxiliary team.”

Rei looked over the metal pillar. “What did you call this?” she said. “Philor’s … um, Sugar Cube?”

“Sorry, solid state magus template,” said Alice. “It’s a magically-stable material that resonates with two different aetheric frequencies specifically relating to Earth magic.”

“Ah, like granitic magic.”

“Exactly,” said Alice. She looked impressed. “Have you studied granitic magic?”

“A little,” said Alice. “I study all kinds of magic, even though I can only perform temperature manipulation and ice plasty.”

“Plasty” in this context meant that she could control it at will, including calling it from the void.

Alice pursed her lips. “Okay. I’ll put in a good word for you at the auditions. But, trust me, you’ll get your chance to prove your mettle.”

Rei bowed. “Thank you.” She looked at me. “Well, I have a class to get to,” she said. “I assume you want to spend a bit more time working with these people.” She paused. “Jade also said that she wanted to meet us tonight for dinner. Be at the cafeteria by seven.”

“Will do,” I said. I turned back to Alice. “So, what have you been using for the curling templates so far?”

“Type five analytically enhanced coral with a mica substrate,” said Alice.

“Explain,” I said.

“We chose coral because, semantically, it stands between life-derived and rock-derived foundations and confuses the other player’s calculations. We developed the exact formula in-house. The mica is to prevent fracture-wedging.”

“Fracture-wedging?” I said. “I apologize. I do not know much about curling.”

“It’s okay. Fracture-wedging is a technique where the attacker creates a small fracture and enlarges it with magical wedges.”

“Sounds like a good tactic,” I said.

“Which is why we developed countermeasures,” said Alice. “But it hasn’t really been working like we thought it would.”

“I have a suggestion,” I said. “How about adding a bit of gold to it? That would stop the growth of magic tendrils and prevent them from getting a solid grip on the wedge.”

“How so?” asked Alice.

“Gold has a peculiar effect when it is touched by fracture magic. Because of its high ductile strength, normal casting devices can’t account for it in their programming. Thus the gold will bend but not break, which will throw off the enemy’s attack.”

“Hm,” said Alice. “We can try that. But where are we going to find enough gold for six pillars?”

“I have connections,” I said. “I could provide perhaps two or three ounces. That should be enough to cover six three meter tall and half meter diameter pillars.”

“You’re already showing your value,” said Alice. She motioned towards the five club members. “Get working! We need to program the extrusion machine to work with the new params!”

The five club members scrambled. Alice motioned towards the door. “Take a walk with me,” she said.

I nodded, following her outside, into the hall, and then out into the open air. We strolled through the fountain garden.

“You appear to have skills that wouldn’t normally be under the belt of a freshman, even one who got into Rockwell.”

“There’s not much I can say,” I said.

“I researched your battle with the cultists at the abandoned mansion this summer,” said Alice. “Before I knew you were going to beat Jerrod, of course. To be truthful, I’ve had my eye on you ever since I saw your exploit on the news.”

“So that’s why you didn’t argue when I became captain so suddenly?”

“That’s part of it,” said Alice. She walked ahead of me and twirled to face me. “I wanted to know if you really were Regius Alnum.”

I stopped. “What?” I said.

“You heard me,” said Alice. “Regius Alnum.”

“How—” I said.

“You may know me better as Mulberry,” said Alice. “Nice to finally meet you in person.”

“Wait, you’re a CEO?” I said.

“No, of course not,” said Alice. “My company isn’t nearly large enough to have a CEO.”

“But I do work for you?” I said.

“Yup,” said Alice. “And I have some information for you. There’s a group called Forthier’s Club on campus who I need someone to look into.”

“I’ve already heard of them,” I said. “They were embezzling money from the student council.”

“Ah, so I don’t have to explain,” said Alice.

“I still don’t know who they are or what the club is for. It’s listed as an arts club, but I doubt they have anything to do with art.”

“Indeed,” said Alice. “They’re connected to the cultists you beat. They’re partakers of that awakening nonsense.”

“Awakening?” I said.

“Oh, you made me make a tongue slip,” said Alice, still nonchalant. She winked. “You’ll have to suffice to know that I’m working on it and so are a number of people.”

“How do you find time to work with your, ah, company and still be the VP of the curling auxiliary corps?” I said.

“How can you go to school and be Regius Alnum?” said Alice.

“Good point,” I said.

“Well then,” said Alice. “You have a dinner appointment to get to.”

I nodded. “I’ll be back tomorrow. When do you guys start the auditions?”

“Tomorrow at eight am,” said Alice. “And we start working at six in the morning every day, plus optional afternoon sessions.” She curtsied and then turned away. I watched her go.

I went to the cafeteria where Alice and Jade were waiting for me.

“Sit,” said Rei.

I sat.

“Jade has a favor to ask of us,” said Rei. She looked at Jade. “Do you want me to explain for you?”

“Yes,” said Jade. She looked towards Rei.

“Do you remember Jade’s original motivation to find the two cultists?” said Rei.

“Right, her friend Tally?” I said.

“Exactly,” said Rei. “Jade has found out a possible location of the device Tally was imprisoned in. It’s an object called a sepulcheria.”

“So, why did they trap Tally?”

“The awakening of Almog requires the blood of a maiden,” said Rei.

“Ew,” I said. “That’s a horrible fate.”

“The ceremony was stopped,” said Rei, “But they couldn’t find the sepulcheria Tally was trapped in. Jade fears that they teleported the object to a safe location before they were apprehended.”

“Okay,” I said.

“I’ll cut to the chase. The club known as Forthier’s Club has possession of it,” said Rei.

“Them again,” I said. “Why them?”

“We believe they may be a front for occult activities,” said a voice, approaching us. It was Illya. “I do apologize for eavesdropping. I just happened to hear you mentioning Forthier’s Club and I wanted to share what I’ve recently learned.”

“Sit,” said Rei.

Illya sat and put her food down. “All right. It goes like this.”

Winds of Magic Chapter 8

Chapter 8

We arrived at Battle Tower. Rei approached the front desk.

“I’m looking to join the curling team,” she said.

“Auditions are being held next week,” said the person behind the desk, without looking up from her computer. “I can pre-register you for it if you would like. Today is the last day for sign ups.”

“Please,” said Rei. “List me as Rei Ward, with York Dune as my auxiliary.”

“We don’t allow players to choose their auxiliaries—”

Rei slammed her fist down on the table. “You’ll do it this time.” She looked at me, appearing surprised at her own ferocity. “Um, yeah. I just really think York here will benefit the team.”

“He’s a Third,” said the receptionist.

“So?” said Rei. “He’s part of the student council. Surely that counts for something?”

The receptionist sighed. “I’ll register Mr. Dune with the auxiliary audition happening adjacent to the team auditions,” she said. “That’s the best I can do.”

“I appreciate it,” said Rei. She turned to me. “Do you want to take a look at the curling ring?”

“That would be on the fiftieth floor,” said the receptionist. “No one is there at the moment but the door should be unlocked.”

“Thanks,” said Rei. She led me to the elevator, which we took up. We were there in under a minute. The doors opened onto an auditorium half the size of Peter’s Hall, which meant that it was still miles larger than any regular one. This one seemed to be suited for a boxing match. Where the ring should have been was an empty swimming-pool shaped box about the size of an Olympic pool. On each end were diving board-like protrusions that contained electronics. The whole place gave a “Yu-Gi-Oh” dual system vibe.

The six pillars for each side would be erected in front of the players. Right now the depression was empty.

Rei walked down to the ring and took a stroll around the deep pool.

“How does it feel?” I said.

“Good,” said Rei, calling up to me. “It’s amazing. I feel like the queen of the world down here.” She examined the ring for a while longer and then returned to the exit.

I nodded at her and we took the elevator back down to the ground floor.

When we were in the hallway on the first floor a First who was probably in his third or fourth year of school was standing in the hallway.

“You,” he said, pointing to Rei. “You’re that upstart who scored super high on the practical exam.”

“Upstart?” said Rei. “What’s with that choice of words. Are you a geezer who is aging out of his game?”

This appeared to enrage the student to the point where his cheeks went red. “No,” he said. “I don’t think that. Just know that I’m watching you. I know you think you’re better than the rest of us. Just wait. You’ll do horribly during the audition. Types like you who are more bark than bite always do.”

“You know nothing about her,” I said, stepping in between Rei and the student. “I won’t let you insult her.”

“Yeah?” said the student. “You. Me. A Kamigeki. Now.”

I sighed. “Are you sure?” I said.

The student gritted his teeth. “Now. If you don’t I’ll knock you over right now, teach you a lesson.”

I shrugged. “Okay. Let’s go schedule a Kamigeki. What’s going to be on the line?”

“If I win, you two won’t get a chance to join the curling team,” said the student.

“And if I win?” I said.

“You won’t.”

“If I do anyways?” I said.

“I’ll give you my position as head of the auxiliary core.” The student scoffed. “Not like a peon like you would know how to handle such a prestigious post.”

I walked past the student.

“Your name,” said the student. “So I can register our Kamigeki.”

“York Dune,” I said. “Yours?”

“Jerrod.”

“Last name?”

“Why the hell would I tell you?” said Jerrod.

I put my arm on Rei’s shoulder and ushered her away.

“Three o’clock this afternoon,” said Jerrod. “Be there. In the ring.”

It was currently one pm. I turned around and looked at Jerrod. “I’ll be there,” I said.

“You don’t have to,” said Rei, once we were out of earshot. “I know you’ll win, but I also know that you might hurt him beyond repair.”

I sighed. “It was his choice. If he were a competent magician, he would have realized I wasn’t who he thought I was.”

“Head of the auxiliary core,” said Rei, elbowing me. “Nice title for you.”

“I haven’t won yet,” I said. We were silent until we reached the courtyard. Rei sat down on a bench.

Tetra walked past. She stopped when she saw us.

“Hello,” she said. “How did the application to join the curling team go?”

“I’ve been challenged to a Kamigeki,” I said.

Tetra looked stone-faced. “Do they realize you’ll trounce them?”

“Huh?” said Rei. “You know York’s power level?”

“Yeah,” said Tetra. “During the raid on the cultists’ site, you were the one who held back enough power to rip the entire building to shreds. That’s why I worked so hard to end the battle fast.”

I chuckled. “Good of you to notice that,” I said.

“But your practical exam results don’t show any of that power,” said Tetra. “I’ve always wondered why.”

“Because York’s power can’t be measured by the standardized test,” said Rei. “It’s been that way for as long as we can remember. His power just evaporates whenever he needs to prove it exists.”

“I’ve heard of stories like that,” said Tetra. “But no worries. I believe you will win, York.” She flipped her curled hair. “In any case, I must get to my next class.”

I nodded and Tetra walked away. I turned to Rei.

“So,” I said. “About the audition. Do you know what’s going to happen?”

“Not exactly,” said Rei. “But I’m hopeful.”

We didn’t say anything for several minutes. Even though I knew that I had the ability to win the Kamigeki, I also knew that things could go wrong at any moment and I could lose, or even worse, be injured in the fight.

It was time for Rei to get to class. She would skip as soon as the Kamigeki started, but for now she had to maintain her grades as much as possible. I went to the campus gym and practiced with a punching bag for the rest of the time before the battle.

When it was time for the battle I entered Battle Tower and rode the elevator to the seventieth floor. This part of the building was in aether space and so did not exist inside the real world. Sort of like how video game houses always look smaller on the outside than the inside.

The Kamigeki stadium was smaller than I thought it would be. Seating for about a hundred people surrounded a ten meter by ten meter square. When I stepped onto the platform, a magical wall rose out of the edges and surrounded me. Before they got too high Jerrod jumped onto the platform.

He cracked his knuckles and began typing at his casting device. A klaxon blared and the game started.

I held out my casting device and, using the data I could see emitting from Jarrod’s device, created a cancellation wave that would nullify the attack. The specific wave that I used was a low-energy and low activation cost spell, which would accommodate my inability to produce relevant power at this speed. I could unleash the “cry” but that would, as Tetra had noticed before, do a lot more damage than necessary in this case.

Jerrod’s casting device fizzled. He looked surprised for a moment and then his eyes rolled back into his head.

“Um,” I said, as soon as he hit the floor.

The klaxon blared again.

“That wasn’t supposed to happen,” I said. Then I had the epiphany. “Hey,” I said, as the judges lowered the shield. “Test him for magical steroids.”

“Why would we do that?” said a judge, approaching me.

“Just do it,” I said.

The judge looked as if he were considering it, and then shook his head. “We need a warrant to test for illicit substances.”

“Just figure out a way to do it.”

The judge looked frazzled. “In all my days as a Kamigeki judge I’ve never seen a knockout this fast.”

“I’m telling you,” I said. “My interference spell tangled with his magical enhancements and caused brain knock.”

“We’ll take a look,” said the judge, turning away.

The surveying professor, whose job it was to record the results, approached me.

“Good lord,” he said, clearly surprised. “That was quick. I had expected the exact opposite.” He paused. “I guess you are now the captain of the auxiliary corps for the curling team.”

“It was happenstance that I won this fast,” I said. “And I still don’t know exactly what my new job will entail.”

“If you’re as good a student as I’ve heard,” said the professor, “Then you will have no problem leading the auxiliary core.”

Rei appeared from the entrance to the ring’s seating. “Did I miss it?” she said. She looked at me. “Wow. That was quick.”

I gave her the thumbs-up.

“York Dune has won this match,” said a judge, approaching me. He held up my hand. There were no people to cheer, but I felt the pride that came with my victory. It was Jerrod’s fault, after all, for doing illegal magical stimulants. Like I had explained to the judge, my interference spell interacted with the drug’s enchantments and caused an effect called “brain knock” where the affected person’s consciousness disappeared for a moment, blinking in and out of existence. The result was a clean knockout and days of headaches and pains once he woke up.

His fault. He probably expected to make mince meat of me with his enhanced magical abilities.

I walked up to where Rei was standing.

“Looks like you’re in charge now,” she said, her hands on her hips. “You can choose who you get to work for. Obviously it’s going to be me.”

“Of course,” I said, putting my hand on her shoulder. “And I’ll make you the top curling player in the nation, at least at the collegiate level.”

Rei grinned and then turned around. “Let’s blow this place.”

“You said it,” I said, and then we walked out of the room and took the elevator to the ground floor. When I arrived a girl who looked straight out of the Wizard of Oz—the old one—was leaning against the wall.

“You think just because you won the title of captain of the auxiliary team that you can just walk all over us?”

“I haven’t done anything with the title yet,” I said.

“To be honest, Jerrod wasn’t the best captain. He was too proud and he did stimulants. But how can you, a first year Third, be any better?”

I stopped and faced her. “For one,” I said, “I’m not going to topple the current power structure. You’re on the auxiliary team, I can see?”

“I’m the vice captain,” said the girl. “Alice. I hate to admit it, but the Kamigeki is law. You’re the captain now, at least until the next election cycle.”

“I hope I’ll present myself to you as an asset to the team,” I said, bowing.

“Hm,” said Alice. “You’re humbler than I took you for.”

Rei grinned. “He’s not at all like Jerrod,” she said. “I know that.”

Alice sighed. “Follow me. I’ll get you to meet the rest of the auxiliaries as well as the main players.”

I followed Alice, Rei behind me, and we walked to an annex of Battle Tower.

Winds of Magic Chapter 7

 

Chapter 7

School started in the fall like it always did. Rei and I commuted from our next-door houses and for the first couple of weeks performed all the perfunctory actions associated with the first weeks of college. One day a week after the first day I was approached by a very beautiful girl dressed in a modest long dress that was lined with lace. She had black hair down to her hips and bright blue eyes. She stopped me.

“York Dune,” she said, as if she already knew me.

“Hello,” I said.

She pointed to me aggressively. “I heard you scored highest on the written entrance exam. I won’t mince words. Join the student council.”

“This is a bit sudden,” I said.

“What other group will take you?” said the student council president. “You scored dead last in practicals. But I understand your value. You can be of great help to the student council.” She extended her hand. “The name’s Illya.”

“You already know my name,” I said, shaking her hand.

“Come with me,” said Illya.

“I promised I’d meet with a friend in half an hour,” I said.

“You’ll have time for that,” said Illya. Her badge indicated that she was a First. Of course she would be. She was the student council president, after all. “Come on.”

I followed her towards the student council government building, Flower Hall. As we walked, Illya spoke.

“I heard you and some friends foiled an attempt to awaken an A-class monster.”

“Yeah, I didn’t really do anything,” I said. “I was just there.”

“You were part of what happened. Don’t deny your involvement.”

I sighed. “Why do you want me, of all people, to join the student council?”

“Because I see a future in you,” said Illya. “I see that you will become someone special in the years to come. I want to be a part of that story.”

Could she possibly know about my work? I didn’t think so, but it might be trouble if she did.

I pushed the thought away and followed her into the student council building and then into their operational headquarters.

A bulky man with a badge that indicated he was a First stood up as soon as we entered. He had crop-cut hair and a thick chin that jutted out from under his mouth. His eyes were remarkably strong and his gaze was powerful.

“Why is a Third here?” he said.

Illya sat down at the head of a round meeting table. “This is York,” she said. “He’s going to be our treasurer.”

“Wait, you didn’t say anything about me joining you,” I said.

The bulky student waved at me. “Exactly!” he said. “It’s a break with tradition to let a Third onto the student council!”

Illya tapped her fingers on the table. “It’s my decision, whether or not either of you want to accept it.”

“I thought this was a college where student choice was respected,” I said.

“Do you want to argue about it?” said Illya.

The burly student waved at me. “He’s a Third!” he said. “What can he contribute?”

Illya frowned, her eyes glinting. “He scored ten points higher than anyone ever has on the entrance exam.”

The burly student seemed to consider this. “I don’t like it,” he said, “And neither will the student body.”

“Roy,” said Illya, “You have to understand. I’m looking to host a council that doesn’t look at superficial things like rank, but instead chooses its members based on merit and ability.” She looked at me. “Your childhood friend’s name is Rei, and she scored second on the practical exam, correct?”

“Um, yes,” I said.

“Bring her with you next time.”

“But,” I said, but was stopped mid-sentence.

“No. I get what I want when it comes to this. You’re going to be our treasurer and there’s nothing you can do about it, outside of a Kemigeki.”

Roy looked taken aback. “You’re suggesting a Third first year challenge you to a Kamigeki?”

“I don’t expect it to happen, but yes, that’s what we will call a worst-case scenario.”

“I won’t go that far,” I said. “Just give me a moment to think about it.”

“Good,” said Illya. “You can go. You said you have a meeting with your childhood friend?”

“Thanks,” I said. I turned away and left the building. I thought about the offer the entire walk to the cafeteria.

Rei was sitting and eating a plate of French fries. “Sit,” she said.

I sat down next to her.

“I’m going to join the curling team,” she said. “And I want you to be my auxiliary.”

“I don’t know if I can—”

“I know you can,” said Rei. “I know you better than you know yourself. You’re smart enough to win games.”

I sighed. “Okay. I’ll do it. For you. But if it gets too demanding I may have to bow out. I have a job, after all.”

“What, your blog?” said Rei. “What’s so great about it? Why don’t you give it up?”

“I’m sorry, I can’t.”

Rei looked apologetic. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I just got a bit worked up.”

“It’s fine,” I said. It really didn’t bother me. I was always deflecting her inquiries into my job. I still didn’t really know the reason for the secrecy but it was hardwired into my contracts so I couldn’t do anything about it.

“I’m not entirely sure what being an auxiliary would entail,” I said. I knew a lot about a lot of things, but magic sports really wasn’t my specialty.

“You’ll be formulating pillars and designing Siege Code for me to cast,” said Rei.

“Okay, I understand,” I said. “I’ll work with you.”

“I knew you would!” said Rei. She took my hand and held it. “We’re going to get onto the main team. Together.”

“Anyways, how are your classes going?” I said, without letting go of her hand.

“They’re going well,” said Rei. “It’s mostly been introductions and syllabuses.”

“Same here,” I said.

I let go of Rei’s hand and stood up to got some food from the food court, and then I headed back to where Rei was sitting. When I returned I found Tetra and Jade sitting at the table. Tetra was, as always, eating a gourmet meal. Jade had a simple sandwich.

“Hey!” said Tetra, upon my arrival. “I heard you got scouted by the student council.”

“How did you hear about that?” I said.

“I’ve been trying to get onto the council myself,” said Tetra. “I don’t know why they would let a Third onto the council, but if it had to be anyone I think you’re the best one to do it.” She covered her mouth as she chewed, and then swallowed. “In any case, I hope our friendship will allow you to put in a good word for me with the president.”

I nodded. “I will,” I said. I turned to Rei. “The president also requested you.”

Rei frowned. “But what if I don’t want to?” she said.

“Illya seems like the kind of person who will get what she wants no matter what other people think.”

Rei sighed. “Okay. But I have a condition.”

“I’m not the one you need to present that to,” I said.

Rei stood up, clearing her plate. “Let me put this away and I’ll come with you to the student council room.” She paused, turning to Tetra and Jade. They, as well, were almost finished with their meals.

“Tetra,” said Rei. “Come with me. Jade too if she wants.”

Tetra snapped her fingers and a butler appeared, taking away her plate, as well as Jade’s. She stood up and cleaned her hands off with an alcohol wipe. “Very well,” she said.

Jade nodded.

The four of us returned to the student council room. At the door, I heard people talking.

“What do you mean you won’t budge?” said a voice. “I refuse to let a Third be on this council.”

“I’m the president,” said Illya. “And you will do as I ask or I will be forced to bring you to a Kamigeki.”

“You know I can’t win that,” said the voice.

I chose that moment to push my way into the room. Illya and the student stopped.

The student who had been arguing was a First, about an inch shorter than me, wearing a blazer and modern suit. His eyes burned with intensity.

“This is Jack,” said Illya, pointing to the student. “He’s the student council secretary.” She paused. “I see you brought Rei,” she said. “As well as Ms. Pearlash.” She bowed.

Tetra curtsied back. “I am glad to be here,” she said.

Rei pointed to Tetra. “If you want me on the council, you’re going to have to take her too.”

“No problem,” said Illya. “There are plenty of jobs that need to be done.” She looked Tetra over with a discerning gaze. “You do look to be as capable as your bloodline would indicate. I think you’d do best helping York with the treasury business.”

“You’ve already decided his job?” said Jack, his eyes narrowed.

“Yes,” said Illya. “Anyone can do the job of treasurer. I simply want York around because I know he will be able to solve the problem.”

“Which problem?” asked Jack.

“The. Problem.” said Illya.

Jack sighed. “That one. I don’t even think it’s a problem if you’d ask me.”

“We need equality at this school,” said Illya. “And he’s the one who can make it happen.”

I sat down at the table. “I’d like to start my job,” I said.

“Well, I wasn’t expecting you to start until tomorrow,” said Illya.

I shook my head. “I’m going to need to look over your finances.”

Tetra sat down next to me. “Indeed. We’re going to audit you. You’re the ones who requested this.”

“Sure,” said Illya, sitting down at the head of the table. She held up her hands. “That’s why I scouted you.”

I spent the next hour going over paperwork regarding the school’s student-sponsored expenses. At Rockwell, the student council was given a budget that they distributed to clubs, events, and anything else a student council could do.

I began to notice small discrepancies in the figures after half an hour. I searched for their origin and finally traced them to a possible source of embezzlement. It was an account called “Forthier’s Club” that was draining small bits of money from at least fifty sources. It was very well hidden.

“Are you seeing this?” I said, presenting the documents to Tetra.

Tetra looked them over. “Indeed,” she said. “Your hunch is correct. I, too, have seen something going on with this Forthier’s Club.”

“What’s Forthier’s Club?” I asked Illya.

She looked up from her work. “Excuse me?” she said. “I do not recognize the name.” She looked at Jack.

Jack shook his head. So did Roy, who had entered the room a while ago.

“The documentation points to Forthier’s Club being a hybrid fraternity.” Tetra showed Illya some documents. “They’re the guarantor on a number of transactions that seem suspicious. There’s a serious discrepancy in the numbers, and this club seems to be the source.”

“Let me look over the documents,” said Illya. She took the papers and downloaded the electronic documents to her tablet. It took her ten minutes of silence to look them over. “Yes, I see it,” she said. “I don’t remember our club advisory board approving a club with this name.”

“So what do you think?” said Rei.

“I think you’re going to have to do your job,” said Illya, to Rei.

“Excuse me?” said Rei. “You haven’t told me what my job will be yet.”

“You’re going to be the campus sheriff,” said Illya. “Rockwell is a magic academy, and as such many magicians have powers that would become troublesome if misused. Our previous sheriff graduated last year and we’ve been looking for a replacement.”

“So you want me to police the campus?” said Rei. “I don’t know if I’m up to the task. I also plan on joining the curling team with York as my auxiliary.”

“Don’t worry,” said Illya. “The sheriff doesn’t actually spend that much time doing campus police work. That’s what the searchers are for.”

“We call the people who do the actual police work searchers,” said Roy.

Rei sighed. “Okay. I’ll do that. My first job is to look into Forthier’s Club.” She paused. “I’ll get to it as soon as possible. For now the deadline to apply for the curling team is today.” She turned to me. “York. Let’s go.”

I stood up. “If you will excuse me.”

We left the room to head to the Battle Tower.

Winds of Magic Chapter 6!

 

Chapter 6

The weeks passed without much fanfare. Then I got the letter. I had been accepted. I was now part of the Freshman class at Rockwell Magic Academy. My practical score had been dismal, but I had scored the highest of any of the test takers on the written exam.

But even so I was rated a “Third.” I did not know exactly what this meant, but I had no illusions about its connotation.

Rei, on the other hand, was listed as a “First.” She received a full scholarship, all expenses paid, and was the second-highest scorer on the practical exam. Her written exam results were nothing to scoff at either.

Rockwell was just within walking distance of our houses. The day of orientation arrived, and Rei woke me up early by knocking on my door.

I got dressed and went to the door. “Ready?” I said, once I opened it.

“Ready,” said Rei. We walked the fifteen minutes it took to get to the campus and arrived to see a great number of students who were gathered in the entrance square.

The academy was formed of silver and magic. Each building flowed through the air, hanging at strange, obtuse angles and sparkling with an electric brilliance. It resembled the “future land” models that one sees in pictures of what the fifties thought the future looked like. Not outdated, but a bit quaint in its sensibilities.

The biggest building was a fluted column that stood at least twenty stories tall, decorated with what appeared to be twinkling diamonds. That building rose out of the middle of the campus, surrounded by the other buildings, all of which complimented it.

There were over five hundred students arranged in the courtyard, with five sets of tables carrying nametags and attendance sheets.

Rei waved. She had spotted Tetra and Jade. Tetra waved back and approached us.

“Hum hum,” said Tetra, holding her hand luxuriously in front of her mouth. “I see you have both arrived.” She eyed me. “Mr. Miracle.”

That was Tetra’s nickname for me, as she considered my entrance into Rockwell to be a miracle. I couldn’t argue with the name as it appeared to be a term of endearment when coming from her. Her mind, as always, was a bit obtuse.

And so was Jade’s. She bowed, without saying anything. I saw the badge on her shirt.

“You’re a Second?” I said.

“And you’re a Third,” said Tetra, in place of Jade.

Tetra’s badge indicated that, like Rei, she was a First. Tetra, to her credit, did not boast about her placement rank. We looked at each other, and then Tetra chuckled. “Anyways, it’s time that we got signed in for orientation.” She paused. “I never did ask exactly what your major was.”

“Magical cyber engineering,” I said.

“Ooh, a tough one,” said Tetra. “I myself have joined the art conservatory.” She laughed. “And Jade is studying magic medicine.”

Jade nodded, though she did not speak.

I motioned towards Rei. “Rei is training to be a hyperspace engineer,” I said.

“Ah, hyperspace,” said Tetra. “Quite the strange subject.”

“Have you seen it before?” asked Rei.

“Once I saw it during a lab for my AP Spatial Manipulation class. It certainly gave me quite the surprise.”

“Yeah, hyperspace does that,” said Rei. “You get used to one kind and then they show you another and it boils your brain again.”

“Very few people can handle looking straight at hyperspace,” said a voice, approaching us.

It was a professor. She wore a mauve business suit and had on a name tag that identified her as “Dr. Simmons.” She couldn’t have been more than twenty-five years old. Quite a feat for a professor. She also held in her hand a poster with “Magical Engineering” written on it. She motioned towards the greeting tables. “I couldn’t help but hear that Rei Ward was in attendance.” She extended her hand. “Stacy Simmons. Dr. Stacy Simmons.”

Rei shook the professor’s hand. “Rei Ward,” she said, “Though I suppose my reputation precedes me.”

Dr. Simmons smiled. “Indeed. Your mastery of the hyperspace portion of the written exam was something to be seen.”

Rei laughed nervously. “Yeah, um, I spend a lot of time looking at it.”

“You don’t happen to be a natural, do you?” Dr Simmons paused. “Of course you are. No one who hasn’t delved deep into the hyperspace levels could answer like you did on the exam.”

A “natural” was someone who could see hyperspace without needing equipment. Rei was one of them. When she was a child, it really bothered her, but now that she had grown up she managed to keep control of it. Even so, some days the hyperspace took over her body and made her bedridden for a while. It hadn’t happened in some time but I was always standing by for an attack.

Not now though. Now we had to bathe in our success.

“Yes, I am a natural,” said Rei, a bit guarded. “Now, if you will excuse me.”

“Ah, one thing before you go,” said Dr. Simmons. “Say hello to Dr. Richardson when you can. He can help you in ways most professors can’t.”

We excused ourselves from Dr. Simmons and went to the sign in table. After waiting in line for a while we both received name tags that also displayed our chosen major. We were then told to gather around the Orientation Leaders who were holding the signs of our major.

I returned to Dr. Simmons, who appeared to be the only professor among the orientation leaders. I didn’t know what was going on there but I didn’t want to ask. About a hundred students gathered around her sign.

The groups split and began their tours of the campus. I got to see all the halls, each one unique in its twisting, graceful form. The windows reflected light as if encrusted with gems.

Hammard Hall was the location where most engineering students had their classes.

 We also saw the Battle Spire. That was the tall building at the center of the campus. It was, as its name implied, a tower for battling. Though it looked only twenty stories tall, it was actually over two hundred stories tall. City height limits kept the physical manifestation of the building short but, make no mistake, the place was huge.

“Battling is the foundation of Rockwell Academy,” said Dr. Simmons. “Believe it or not, our school is number two in our league when it comes to magic battles. Our team is called the Rockwell Angels.” She pumped her fist. “Go Angels!”

“Go angels!” echoed some of the more energetic students.

I, of course, couldn’t possibly compete in the magic “battle” system, given my poor practical results. But I wasn’t aiming to not be involved either. The field of “battling” was a great test bed for my inventions and programs. If I could worm my way into a position as a battle engineer, I could advance my projects at much quicker rates, and in the process help my school.

“There are three teams here at Rockwell,” said Dr. Simmons, standing on the steps of Battle Tower. “One. Curling. Two. Rockeye. Three. Bladestep.”

Curling was a magic sport where two magicians stood on opposite ends of a field containing twelve pillars. Each pillar was built beforehand with magic by the auxiliary team, and could be comprised of anything from bone to ice. The goal of the game was to destroy all your opponent’s pillars without letting yours get destroyed.

Rockeye was a game resembling magic paintball. Teams of three would run through terrain and fire off magic shots at enemies while hiding behind cover.

Bladestep was a game where one team created a trap-filled maze for the other team to traverse. The traversing team was equipped with magic shields. Scores were assigned based on how deep the team got into the maze before sustaining a “death,” where a player’s protective shielding was broken.

Dr. Simmons continued. “We also perform in the magic athlete’s festival each quarter. Training for that, as well, happens in Battle Tower.”

The magic athlete’s festival had ten sports, each one a test of skill for the player.

“And finally,” said Dr. Simmons, “We have Kamigeki, which translates to individual combat. Our school is one of the five in the nation that still upholds the values of Kamigeki. If you wish to challenge someone to a Kamige, you must put forth equal wagers and bring a judging panel of three teachers. A challenge made through Kamigeki is sacred. Do not take one on lightly. At worst, you may lose a limb or even die.”

A student raised her hand. “So you’re saying people can get seriously hurt like this?”

“Isn’t that what I just said?” said Dr. Simmons. “Without risk, the Kamige system doesn’t mean anything. Like I said, it’s sacred. Our school has been performing it for three hundred years.” She paused. “Now on to Peter’s Hall. We’ve been here long enough.”

I had been interested in Kamigeki since I had learned of Rockwell. This practice was a holdover from the days before magic casting devices made it so that more people could use magic. Before that, magicians were more marginalized in society. They used Kamigeki to solve disputes between themselves without the interference of a non-magic governing body. Now that there was an official magical regulations board, however, only select places still practiced it, all of them grandfathered in through the regulations against it.

We came to Peter’s Hall. It was a magnificent structure, even considering all the other crazy architecture on campus. Its flanged facets rotated through the rising cone of its silhouette. Multiple colors of window ran up along the angles and twisted magnanimously.

We entered through a grand crystal door. The inside was wide, huge, a hall like no other. The stage was small as seen from the entrance point. This auditorium looked like it could hold five thousand people.

“And this is the interior,” said Dr. Simmons, her voice echoing. “It was remodeled several years ago by the famous architect Joseph Siycamore.” She motioned. “If you’re successful here, you may get a chance to perform on that stage.” Dr. Simmons then took us out of the building and gave us a further tour of the campus. There was the Elephant Fountain and there was a piece of the Berlin Wall, as well as many modern art sculptures.

We finished our tour in the cafeteria, where the other groups were filing in as well.

I waved to Rei. She came over to me and tilted her head.

“I want to join the curling team,” she said, almost instantly. “I want you to be one of my auxiliaries.”

“A bit quick much?” said Tetra, approaching from the other direction. She snapped her fingers and five chefs in white kitchen garb came through the door pushing serving carts. The whole cafeteria turned to look.

Tetra motioned. “You can eat with me if you want.”

“Of course!” said Rei, before I could say anything. She lifted the cap off of one of the dishes. “Oh wow, lobster,” she said. “It’s been a while.”

“Take as you may,” said Tetra.

“Thanks,” I said, as I received a platter filled with sumptuous baked potatoes.

As the rest of the cafeteria watched, we sat down at a table near the edge and were waited on hand and foot by the chefs. Tetra spent the whole time talking about her major and the classes she was going to take and the artists she had studied and the actual works of theirs she had hanging in her house.

So we spent the rest of orientation.