Mage of Shadows (42 page)

Carmen killed Emily, not Ruark, but Carmen.

My Carmen. He said she had been my tether to Archanos. My Carmen. She had only been my friend, and then my girlfriend, only because Vik or Danae, or whoever, told her to be.

She killed her best friend on orders, and then pretended to care about me, to love me… just so I would tell her everything about my life. Just so I would overlook the darker aspects of the coven and remained tied to it. Their ace in the hole, their burgeoning Aether.

It didn't explain our mutual trust that we… no even that had been a fallacy all along. Hadn't Carmen warned me even before the last semester ended?

"There's an inherent flaw in the Magus Touch… it shows you who you trust, and who trusts you back… but it doesn't tell you if you should trust them."

She had said it right to my face. Outright told me that she was untrustworthy. How pathetic was I to not listen simply because for the first time in so long I felt safe with someone? I felt needed, trusted… loved.

My fury rushed back to me now, but this time it wasn't directed at Kraven, but at a new source.

Carmen, and whoever pulled her puppet strings. Vik, Danae, Lincoln.

Fire whispered to me again and filled my limbs with new power, power I still couldn't completely understand or control.

I began to run, fatigue well forgotten in that last mile home.

I would have my reckoning.

The old house seemed to greet my gradual approach with stubborn reticence. The gate seemed to require a harder push than usual; my key seemed to catch in the door. The entrance hall floor creaked, but instead of sounding like a welcome, it was sullen. The house I had called home reflected my anger back at me. It felt like a friend reversed, an enemy to me as much as the rest of APA was right now.

I stormed through the house and found it suspiciously empty. No Carmen, no Vik, no Nishi, no anyone.

Frustrated and alone in the abandoned living room, I sent a radiating pulse of anger outwards, the magical equivalent of rapping on someone's head to check if they were there.

To my surprise, the house wasn't empty. I got a response, more like a taunt, from downstairs. I followed it without pause or thought, my wrath encompassing every fiber of my being. It resonated like a wordless song. The beat was provided by my heart, the pitch whistled by my throbbing migraine, and the voice was my very soul, crying out its betrayal.

How could they do this to me? How could they sit and smile, laugh with me every night, then betray me in the day? How could Ruark lie right to my face, trying to protect me from a truth that I deserved to know?

How could Nishi and Jimmy keep it from me?

How could she? Pretend to smile, pretend to laugh, pretend to care…

No answers were forthcoming, and when I entered the too-large basement, the training field that I had spent so many early mornings on, I didn't find anyone but Larry there.

He stood in the middle of the green turf, as if he had been waiting for me. What really pissed me off was the amused smirk that the student president had on his face.

"Hello Stratus, good to see you, as always." Chen said, mockingly friendly. The murderous look on my face wasn't going anywhere, and Chen sighed and shrugged, "Oh dear. So, I'm guessing that Nishi isn't the only one who learned something today? Oh well. We were getting along so splendidly too…"

"Go to hell, Larry."

He had the audacity to laugh as I walked towards him. He was laughing when I grabbed him by the collar and shook him, "Where are they?!" I snarled, "Where's Vik, Carmen, Ruark… where are they!?"

His laughter died down and Larry bodily shoved me a few feet back with a snarl, "Don't touch me, freshman. Don't forget who you're speaking to, I'm still your senior."

"You're going to be paste if you don't answer me!" I retorted, gathering power around me.

Larry responded by doing the same, laughter completely gone from his eyes, "Don't test me, Stratus. You won't like the results." We both glowed dangerously, and Larry continued to speak, tone conversational again, "If you must know, Nishi was being quite a bitch just a few minutes ago. Vik didn't like her tone or her attitude, so he took her to teach her a lesson. One final lesson."

"What about…?" I started, then stared past Larry for moment. I had been so focused on him that I hadn't noticed the figure lying on the grass some twenty feet away or so, unconscious or worse.

It was Jimmy.

Larry followed my eyes, "That's right." He hissed, "Your boy tried to stop him, so Vik started his lesson with him."

"Is he…?"

"No, no." Larry shook his finger, "We don't just kill everyone, despite what you may believe. Swann will have his chance, though he'll be disciplined. It's just Nishi that needs to go, too bad really. I suppose Yasmina will be disappointed but she'll have to get over losing her pupil. Ruark did, after all, and he's a sentimental bastard."

Jimmy was alive, I felt relief at that. But his tone irked me, Larry just treated it all like a game. He could have easily been discussing the weather for all he seemed to care.

"Where?" I asked.

He rolled his shoulders, "Where else? Her brother took a fall off Residential Towers, now its Nishi's turn. Tallest building on campus, best place for someone to have an… unfortunate accident."

I went for the door. In a second, he had Dashed twice, angling himself to suddenly block my path. Larry shook his finger again, "No, you stay here. Can't have you interfering. That's why I had to remain behind, unfortunately. I got to watch last time, there's nothing quite like it."

"Get out of my way." I warned him. My head throbbed and reminded me that I wasn't at full strength already. Rage could only carry my body so far. If I was to have a chance at stopping Vik, I needed to get past Larry without a fight.

Larry laughed the warning off, clearly unafraid.

"Please," He sneered, "I would break you, kid."

I didn't respond, mostly because I caught a glimpse of someone entering the training area. Larry noticed my gaze and looked behind him.

"Leslie." Larry smiled winningly, "Good to see you, buddy. Come to help me sedate your wayward pupil?"

Les slowly walked over and stood by Larry to block my way to the stairs. Larry clapped his onetime student, now my teacher, on the back, "Good to have you, to be honest. Can't be too sure with these crazy Aether types."

The betrayal was evident on my face, "You too, Les?"

"I'm sorry, Nick." Les apologized quietly. His hands rose and he drew strength to them and Glowed bright. There was absolutely no way that I'd ever be able to beat both of them, even if I was fresh. This was well and truly checkmate. I would never save Nishi. My shoulders sagged in the light of my inevitable defeat, I had failed.

"I'm sorry… that I didn't do something sooner."

His hands were alight with power as they moved, almost too quickly for my eyes to follow, and he grabbed a surprised Larry and threw him both magically and physically into the nearest wall. I felt his will impose directly on his former master who immediately screamed treachery and began to struggle against him.

I watched the unlikely turn of events, stunned.

"Go." Les grunted, "Go, Nick. I stayed quiet when they killed Alok. I stayed quiet when they made Carmen kill Emily- but this is one step too far, even for me. They don't even have Lincoln's approval this time- Danae and Vik have gone crazy with power. They enjoy killing their problems far too much. Stop them, I'll hold him here."

"You have no chance!" Larry howled at him, "You traitor! You owe everything you are to me! You could never beat me before, today will be no different. TRAITOR!"

Larry managed to get a hand up, then Les forced it back down again, "GO!" Les shouted at me again, "I won't be able to do it for long. Save Nishtha!"

I went. I ran out of the basement, out of the house, even when I heard the rumbling crash that slammed against my mind. Will against will, colliding ferociously beneath me. I felt it as surely as the physical sound of something colliding just moments later. Incomprehensive shouting followed and I knew Les's fight had begun in earnest. A fight that I wasn't sure he could win, possibly even survive.

But my teacher had given me an order, one that I would follow. Not just for him, but for Swann, my friend, who couldn't do it himself.

I was going to save Nishi.

111

It was dark now.

The sky rumbled ominously overhead and trickling rain began to pour down. I saw other students running as well- but they were running for shelter. I was running to save my friend. The wind howled, but it always seemed to be at my back, pushing and urging me onwards.

I ran and I ran. I was a fast runner, stamina had become my best friend after months of rigorous training… but I was tired. So tired. Kraven had taken a lot out of me, as had rushing to the frat house, then confronting Larry… now this. There was only so much that one person could take, but I couldn't stop. I refused to stop.

I wouldn't stop.

Lightning arced wildly, splitting the sky in two. Thunder rumbled ominously on its tail. The rain forever fell. When the wind finally buffeted into my eyes instead of at my back, I swore a curse in frustration. Cloak or no Cloak. It was dark, and I honestly didn't care anymore.

There was no one around when I crouched down, just outside the middle of campus. I pointed determinedly in the direction of RT and Jumped. I sailed high into the air, over a couple of the swaying trees scattered through campus, landed, then shot up again. This time I sailed past the UGL, my arc sending me higher than the building itself. Again and again, I launched without even bothering to look around to see who might be watching. I couldn't stop.

I had tunnel vision, all I could see was Nishi falling, and me too far to save her. I wouldn't allow it. I wouldn't allow another friend to die. What use was my training, my ability, my power, if I couldn't even save one friend?

Why did I come here, if not to learn how to fight for what I cared about?

My headache worsened from the leaps and landings I took as the air whistled around me, a somber tune, born of nature's shouts, nature's tears, and my own fears. All mixed and coagulated to form something that was very real to my disoriented mind. It focused me against the pain, the torment, and it gave me purpose.

I reached RT, and I scaled it in a single, gravity defying leap.

They were waiting for me.

Lightning streaked by again, illuminating their surprised features with startling quality. Nishi was unconscious, in Vik's grasp, near the edge. Carmen and Danae stood a little further back, and I saw that Danae had two things clutched in her hands, one was a piece of paper, the other was a gun. I was mildly sure, even in the dark that it was her favorite piece. I remembered her threatening to shoot me at least two times with it. Maybe today she would finally get the opportunity.

For a moment, it was silent but for the rain that fell.

Vik chuckled lightly, as if it was all a big joke, "We couldn't decide." He admitted to me, nodding to Danae's gun, "Suicide by shooting, or by jumping? I for one, wanted to be original, but I was outvoted. Wasn't I, Danae, Car-Car?"

Danae smirked, "It should be a poetic death." She purred, "The sister goes the way of the brother. Both traitors, but we owe them at least that. They'll be remembered forever by everyone. The suicide siblings."

Carmen said nothing, and didn't look at me, staring only at the cemented roof that was slick with rain.

My anger dissipated. I couldn't help it. When I looked at her… all I could feel was sorrow.

"How could you?" I asked softly, "Carmen… why?" I felt so tired, so very tired. I was sick of all of it. They pretended for months to be my friends, my companions, but it had all been a lie. I was a tool, a weapon to be trained and pointed at the enemy. Vik and Danae just laughed at the the agony in my voice.

"I had no choice." Carmen whispered, "I'm sorry. I never… I didn't want to hurt you."

"You're sorry?" I said hoarsely, "No choice? Carmen…"

Danae giggled, "Oh Stratus. Don't be so hard on the poor girl. She just wants to live, to be loyal. She has to do what I say. Did you know, that I offered her a choice with Emily? Kill her, or die for her. Carmen chose to survive. She chose to live. How could you fault her for that? After that, reporting on you wasn't even that hard. Carmen betrayed her best friend to live… screwing you over wasn't that difficult, right Car-Car?"

Carmen said nothing, a single tear may have run down her cheek… but it could have just been rain. The girl I had come to love had her fists clenched and was trembling slightly, but didn't deny any of it. It was all true. Kraven who I had hated, told me the truth. Carmen who I loved, had lied to me.

Vik was whistling, walking closer to the edge, Nishi still unconscious and flung over his shoulder. I staggered determinedly in front of him, and made him stop to pause and consider me.

"Out of the way." My supposed leader said quietly, and he wasn't smiling now.

"No." I replied, "I won't let you."

The older student tilted his head at me like he couldn't believe what he was hearing, "You won't let me?" Vik said in disbelief, "Wake up Stratus! Did you forget what you promised me, just down below from where we stand now? Be my brother! Loyalty! Fighting for the same cause! Does any of it ring a bell?"

"I didn't sign up for this."

Vik laughed maniacally, then screamed, "None of us signed up for it, but this is what we've had to do! Being a mage means living by a different set of rules, playing a different game. This is our world, Stratus! Darwin's axiom has never applied better. Survival of the fittest? That's us! The Normals should be beholden to us, not the other way around! It's time for things to change, and if I have to kill a few people to be on the forefront of that change, the path to real power, then so be it!"

His last words rang out into the night, reverberating wildly into the air, but I wasn't flustered. I shook my head slowly and said, "If you kill her, you'll have to kill me too."