Alchemist (5 page)

“I’m not saying
you should but this guy clearly does not know anymore than what
he’s told you. He would have said by now.” He looked at the
whimpering wreck that lay sprawled across the flagstones. Connor
crouched down beside him. “Are you okay?” he asked, quietly.

Lyle rolled his
eyes.

The man whimpered
quietly, his hands concealing his badly wounded face.

“Do you know
anything else?” Connor asked softly. “I’m only asking you because
this will not stop until you tell us. And it’s clear to me that
you’ve had enough.”

The man continued
to whimper, letting out a meek cry and nothing more.

Lyle stood
alongside Terry, resplendent in his dark brown armour.

“I am sorry that
this is taking so long.” Lyle said quietly. “But it will not be
much longer before he breaks.”

Terry drew a
breath, hesitating. “Actually I agree with Connor, I don’t think he
knows anything else. I think we should just put him out of his
misery.”

Lyle looked at her
incredulously. “What makes you so sure?”

“Well, look at
him. If I had seen Alchemists before and knew how they behaved, I
would spill everything I knew in the slim hope that they might
spare my life.” She said glancing at the whimpering pitiful form
that lay before them in a ball.

“If you are so
certain, I will gladly end his suffering for you.” He looked back
to his niece, a fire raging in his blue eyes. “Or would you like
the honour as he tried to kill you.”

Terry shrugged.
“There was no way he was going to kill me.”

“He was sent
to
try
though, that’s all that
matters.”

“You do it.”

Lyle gave a slight
nod and quietly headed back towards his captive.

“Connor.” Terry
called, getting the Pyrovite’s attention.

He turned and
looked at her questioningly. But when he saw Lyle approaching, with
purpose in his stride, he knew what was coming. Without word or
argument, Connor turned away and retreated to where Terry stood. He
did not look back when Lyle did it but he still heard the slither
of metal on flesh and the man slumping to the floor.

Without word, he
gave his friend a long look as he walked passed. Terry
followed.

As they entered
one of the secret catacombs beneath the church Connor asked: “When
will you lot stop?”

“What?” Terry
asked, trailing by a short distance.

Connor frowned as
if it needed to be said. “The whole process of torturing people,
you lot seem to get some sick kick out of it.”

“
If there’s
something you want to say then just say it.” She replied coolly,
her voice echoing off the dark stone tunnel that closed in around
them.

“Okay then,
it’s wrong. Things like
that
,”
he exclaimed, turning around and pointing back down the tunnel.
Turning back around he carried on walking at a quick pace,
desperate to get out of the place. “It should not be going on in
this day and age.”

“We have
been through this before and you never seem to get it. Just because
it is not your people’s way does not mean that it is wrong. We’ve
been doing
that
sort of thing
for millions of years. It is how we are, it can’t be
helped.”

Connor wheeled
around to face her. He folded his arms. “You once said to me about
how much you hated torturing prisoners. Kind of a contradiction,
you saying that then, isn’t it?”

She stormed
passed him. “I
said
I had
mixed feeling about it, nothing more and that is probably because
of the blow to the head I got nine years ago, if that hadn’t of
happened I probably would never give it a second
thought.”

Connor hurried
after her. “You can’t always use that as an excuse!”

Terry stopped to
confront him. She shrugged in defeat. “What do you want Connor?
What do you want me to say? You knew what was going to happen
before we even came here, yet you said nothing and came
anyway.”

Connor glowered
but said nothing. He knew she had a point. “I’m sorry...I just...I
don’t think he should have been allowed to suffer for so long.” He
shook his head. “He didn’t know anything else.”

Terry nodded in
agreement. “I know. You’re right I shouldn’t have allowed it to go
on for that long.”

Connor looked
around the dark tunnel, the light of the torch bathing the one side
of his face in orange light, the shadow masking the other.

“He reminds me of
your dad a lot when Lyle is like that.” He admitted.

Terry turned away.
“Please don’t talk about my father.”

“Sorry...I didn’t
mean to upset you.” He apologised, hurrying after her. “You must
miss him.”

“I do.” She
sighed, her heart aching.

For a long time
they walked in silence, the sound of their footfalls the only noise
in the dark, lonely tunnel.

“It’s just a shame
you know.” Connor finally spoke up.

“What is?”

“That we’re still
no closer to finding out who is trying to kill you than when we
caught that guy.”

“I don’t think
they were trying to kill me. I think they were a warning. Who would
be stupid enough to send two humans to kill an Alchemist?” Terry
put to him. The narrowness of the tunnel forced them to walk single
file, Connor allowing her to go first.

“I don’t know.” He
replied when they emerged at the other end. “But it is more likely
to be someone from Santerria than from here.”

“I know...” Terry
said thoughtfully. “Maybe that’s who was trying to open those
portals. Maybe they managed to get through somewhere else.”

Connor did not
reply. The thought unsettled him greatly.

******

Terry stepped
through the front door, slamming it behind her. Dropping her keys
into the holder on the table by the door she took a step forward
then stopped. She looked down, the tip of her shoe resting in a
small puddle of water. Her eyes lifted, following the trail of
watery splodges that graced the wooden flooring before vanishing
into the living room.

Casually, she took
her jacket off and hung it on a peg. Then taking out her mobile
phone she headed upstairs, while pretending to check her messages.
At the top of the stairs she found a trail of water leading into
the bathroom.

Following it in
she found a bath half filled with water.

Quietly sitting
her mobile on the edge of the sink, she sighed. She walked toward
the bath and crouched down beside it. Terry stared at the half
filled tub for a long moment. When there was no sign of movement,
she plunged a metal gauntleted hand into it.

The still waters
exploded as a man reared up, seemingly from nowhere, screaming and
juddering from electrocution.

Terry killed the
electricity and grabbed the skinny, naked man by the throat and
squeezed. “Who are you?” she demanded.

“Wait! Wait!” he
choked, fumbling uselessly at her metal fingers. “I’m looking for
Faye! I was told you could help!”

Terry dropped him
back into the bath, sending water everywhere. “What do you
mean?”

“Faye came here! I
was sent to find her!”

She regarded
him suspiciously. “What do you mean,
here
? In this house?”

He stared at her
wide eyed. “No...no...not here.” He shook his head furiously. “But
she came to Earth.”

“That’s doesn’t
make any sense. She was here the last time I saw her.”

“Yes! Yes! But she
grew weary of the ocean and she found a portal home! And now she
has run off, back here!” He shouted quickly. Seeing how unimpressed
she was, he retreated as far back as the bath would allow and threw
his hands up. “Please don’t kill me!”

“Who
are
you
?”

“
Darius.”

“And who said that
I could help you and how to find me?” she asked, holding up her
armoured hand. Blue sparks danced over it.

“It was an
Alchemist! One of your people! Please! Please!”

“I don’t hear a
name...”

“I didn’t
ask...”

Terry threw her
hand towards the water.

Darius screamed; a
piercing sound that made Terry wince. “Please! Please! Don’t! She
has gone insane! She wants to flood the planet! Your friend said
that you were the only one strong enough to stop her!”

Terry clenched her
fist, killing the spark. “What do you mean?”

“That’s why she
went home. She said the oceans on this world where poisoned with
rubbish and sewage by the humans. She came back to get us to come
back to Earth with her, so we could wipe them all out.”

Terry snickered,
lowering her arm. “Do you know how stupid that sounds?”

“
You have to
believe me, please.” He pleaded.

She gave him a
long look, which made him winch. If he could have crawled up the
walls he would have done, she knew. “How do you know her?”

“
We were
mates for a time, then she abandoned me.”

She looked the
scrawny figure up and down. “To be honest I can see why.” Standing,
she folded her arms. “Why should I care that you want her
back.”

“It isn’t about
that. I told you, she wants to flood the world. She kept rambling
on about how mankind is destroying the oceans or something.”

She pointed a
finger at him. “You know, it’s bloody funny you show up now after
all these years when weird shit starts happen.”

He stared at her
blankly. “I don’t know what you mean.”

“Get out of the
bath and do as you’re told or else I’ll stab you in such a way that
you won’t come back.”

The shivering,
skinny man could do nothing but give a meek nod.

******

Darius stumbled as
Terry gave him a hard shove into the centre of the living room.

Lyle took a sip
from his glass of wine as he approached, his eyes checking the
scrawny, scraggly man who stood in his presence. “Is this the man
you told me about on the phone?” he inquired.

“Yeah, he claims
to know Faye. Apparently she’s back from the dead.”

Lyle raised an
eyebrow as he stared at the ranging youth who stood before him to
his niece. “How do you know that she was ever dead? Just because we
have not seen her in several years does not mean that she is
dead.”

“Remember she said
that she was going to diffuse herself completely into the ocean? I
know water elementals can control a lot of water but that much
diffusion would kill them.”

“I thought so too
but not after what I saw her do.” Darius mumbled.

Lyle cast a stern
gaze at the youth. “How do you know Faye?”

“We were
mates...”

“She left
you?”

“No, I left
her...” he shook her head, tears filling his eyes. “The things she
started saying were unreal. She started to lose all sense of
reason.”

“What did she say
to you?” Lyle asked.

The young man drew
a deep breath to steady his frayed nerves. “Lots of things. She
started saying that the humans did not deserve to live, that they
were destroying the oceans with trawlers, rubbish, everything. She
then started refusing returning to human form...”

“When did she last
take human form?” Lyle interjected.

“I don’t
know.”

“And why do you
want us to help you find her?”

“Because I’m
scared of what she would do to me if I went after her alone. I
heard she,” he looked at Terry, “was her friend. She would listen
to her.”

“
And why
should I believe any of this?” asked Lyle.

“Why? Why wouldn’t
you? I mean you no harm I’m not up to anything.” He rambled,
desperation evident in his quivering voice.

“He has a point
he’s not done anything wrong.” Terry agreed, looking at her
uncle.

Lyle studied the
curious man for a minute then asked, “What is your name?”

“Dar...Darius.” he
replied, with a weak smile.

To Catch a Water
Elemental

Water lapped
gently against the boat as it rocked gently on placid waters. Terry
and Connor sat at the one end, Darius at the other. The oars lay
abandoned. They had been sitting in the centre of the loch for well
over an hour.

“So...why exactly
can’t you get in?” Connor asked, repeating the same question he had
asked earlier. He scratched a finger against the edge of the boat,
picking at the grain.

Darius closed his
eyes for a long moment. He looked tired. “I already told you.”

“Yeah, but I
didn’t get it.” Connor said. The Pyrovite had been suspicious of
the young man since he had first met him the day before.

It was Terry who
answered. “He’s scared that if he goes into the water that she’ll
kill him because she’s meant to be really super strong now or
something now.” She made no attempt to hide the fact that she did
not believe him. Her words dripped contempt.

“Shh
.” He hissed, looking about warily. “She can
hear you.” He said, dropping his voice.

This drew a frown
from the sceptical Alchemist. “What makes you so sure that she is
even here? This is the fourth loch we’ve been out on. Why shouldn’t
this one be empty like the last ones?”

Darius leaned
closer, his eyes darting about all directions. “She’s definitely
here...I can feel her presence.”

But his
counterparts remained doubtful, despite his insistence.

Connor squinted at
him. “Wouldn’t she have turned up by now if she was here?”

“Why would she if
she’s trying to hide from me?”

“Why would she put
up with you if she knew you were following her? And why would she
hide if she was pissed off at the world? I thought she wanted to
drown everyone.” Terry rebuked.