Magic Born (6 page)

Rick held up his hands in defeat, shaking them as if to alert me to stop. “All right, all right, just hold on a sec. Let me go make a call so we can figure this out.”

I smiled and looked up from my phone. “That sounds like a good idea, Rick. And if I were you, I’d make sure that I didn’t accidentally call the police instead of Casper. Nothing like the image of a fan in handcuffs to really get the online mob frothing.”

Rick retreated into his hut and picked up the phone.

“Impressive,” Alex whispered to me. “His face paled rather quickly once you got going.”

“Just showing some of my good old human ingenuity.” Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Alex smile for a fraction of a second.

Rick quickly emerged from the hut, this time holding two guest badges. “I’m so sorry, Ms. Thomas. Please accept my apologies. Mr. Rothian is very eager to see you and asked that I go ahead and take you up to reception myself.” He handed Alex and me each a badge, then led us to a waiting golf cart.

T
he golf cart
hummed along around the corner of the main office building. Apparently, the parking lot entrance was not the front of the campus. Before us stood an enormous fountain with statues of giants, elves, and wizards, perfectly recreating the login screen of the game. My inner geek emerged, and all thoughts of the talisman and assassins fled. Without even thinking, I turned to Alex, holding out my phone to ask him to take a picture of me with it, and stopped at the sight of his yellow eyes staring at me in amusement. Even if he knew how to work a camera phone, I doubted he’d take kindly to my request. I put my phone away, but not before surreptitiously snapping my own blurry picture of the fountain.

Rick stopped the golf cart right outside the front doors. The parking lot on this side of the building was more crowded than the one we had initially seen. Sitting in the spot closest to the front was a bright yellow sports car. According to a press interview, Casper had bought it when the game surpassed five million subscribers.

When we got inside, a perky receptionist greeted us. “Mr. Rothian is expecting you. Please, follow me.” Her smile revealed the whitest teeth I had ever seen, and her ponytail swung with a cheery little clip as she twirled to her left, expecting us to follow her.

“Turns out you did good, Rick.” I nodded in the security guard’s direction as we walked off. No need for him to worry that I’d follow through with my threat. We followed the swaying ponytail to a nearby elevator. When the doors opened, Alex and I stepped inside while the receptionist swiped her ID then pressed the button for the fifth floor. “Someone will be there to greet you. Have a great day!” She waved and twirled back in the direction from which she’d come.

Once the doors closed, I realized the elevator was a replica of a lift from the elven capital city in the game, complete with soundtrack. Translucent, sparkly blue and green walls surrounded us, and the buttons for the floors resembled mother-of-pearl. I wished I was here under different circumstances. Casper had been right; I would enjoy the full treatment. Maybe we’d be able to get the medallion off and I could take a tour. Somehow, deep down, I knew that wouldn’t be the case. The elevator dinged and the doors opened, revealing a nearly identical bright-eyed, receptionist to the one who’d met us downstairs.

“Welcome! Mr. Rothian is expecting you. If you’d follow me right this way?” She gestured with her arm to the left as we exited the elevator and followed her. I’d never seen anyone so perky at their job, but I guess I’d be perky too if I got to work somewhere like this.

I had expected that the floor with Casper’s office would look like a regular, boring office building. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Just like the elevator and entryway below, the hallways here were exquisitely decorated with art from the game. The conference rooms we passed were a fascinating mixture of state-of-the-art technology and old-world fantasy. Frosted windows were etched with epic battle scenes from the game. I couldn’t resist reaching out to touch one, the smooth yet bumpy texture of the glass leaving me in even more awe.

The receptionist halted in front of the door to a corner office. She knocked, and without waiting for an answer, opened the door and gestured for us to enter. After we crossed the threshold, she closed the door behind us, leaving us alone with the red-headed man I recognized instantly as Casper Rothian, creator of the biggest game franchise in the world.

Casper stood and a smile lit his face as he walked around his desk with an outstretched hand. “Kat, so good to see you. I’m happy you were able to make it after all.” I shook his hand, and then he turned to Alex. “And who is this?”

“My name is Alex. I’m a friend.”

As soon as their hands touched, Casper’s eyes narrowed curiously. “A shifter? I’d guess you’re one of the cats.”

“You’re correct.” Alex didn’t elaborate. Something about him seemed on edge, as if he didn’t entirely trust Casper or the situation we found ourselves in.

Casper focused his brown eyes on me as he leaned back against his desk, crossing his ankles and folding his arms across his chest. I didn’t know if it was because he wanted to address me directly or if he felt uncomfortable beneath Alex’s scrutiny. “I take it since you brought along a shifter that this isn’t you simply wanting to redeem your prize.”

“You’re right, although now that I’ve seen the place, I really would like a tour sometime.” I couldn’t help a nervous, goofy smile forming on my face, but Casper didn’t match it. His face settled into a serious, determined expression.

“Why are you here? What’s happened?” He eyed the medallion around my neck and then resumed eye contact.

The abrupt change of tone put me off. “Someone tried to kill me, that’s what.”

Casper uncrossed his arms and ankles, stepping forward with a sense of urgency. “A sorcerer?”

“Something magical. I woke up to an orb floating in my bedroom. Pretty creepy. Alex seems to think that whoever killed my mother is coming after me now.”

Casper nodded. “We better get out of here. I have somewhere safe I can take you. That talisman of yours is giving off enough power to potentially be tracked depending on who’s trying to kill you.” Casper strode back behind his desk and picked up the phone. “I’m going to be leaving ahead of schedule with two guests. I’m making my way to the roof now. Meet us there.” He hung up and didn’t miss a beat, striding to the door and motioning for us to follow. “I have a helicopter on the roof. It’ll take us to a safe location, one with protective enchantments.”

I started to follow, but Alex caught my arm while keeping his eyes on Casper. “Wait, we don’t even know you.”

Alex had a point, even though I felt as if I did know Casper from the years spent following his career and watching his promotional videos and interviews. Really though, all I knew was the public persona. That man, while he had always appeared authentic, could be a PR creation.

Casper had already opened his office door, but stopped to look back at us. “No, you do not. However, it seems like the only thing you need to know is that I’m not trying to kill you.”

The man made a good argument. I glanced at Alex to see if he accepted this and found him looking at me. I shrugged. “I don’t really see a better option.” Alex nodded, and we followed Casper out of his office.

When we arrived on the roof, the helicopter blades were spinning to life, and we had to duck into the wind they produced. Casper led the way and ushered first me and then Alex into the cabin. The second the door latched behind us, the helicopter took flight. I don’t know what I had expected, perhaps the type of helicopter news stations used, but this one was clearly designed for the comfort of its wealthy owner. Cream-colored leather seats looked and felt every bit as luxurious as you’d expect for a multimillionaire, or was it billionaire? I didn’t quite know where Casper stood in the monetary hierarchy.

“It shouldn’t take long to get to our destination. We can speak more freely there, where I’m assured there are no eavesdropping ears. In the meantime, enjoy the scenery.” Casper gestured to the large window on my right. Indeed, the landscape passing below us was breathtaking, but hardly a suitable distraction from the more exciting topics at hand, especially after my years spent in Montana. I’d had my fill of snow, trees, and mountains.

“Why the helicopter? Why not just teleport us?” Alex’s question tore my attention from the window, and I looked over him to Casper. As cool as the helicopter was, teleporting sounded far more interesting.

“The use of any magic opens us up to the possibility of being tracked. Having taken great pains to keep the place I’m taking you to secret, I won’t run the risk of being tracked by teleporting.”

“You said you knew my mother.” Teleporting sounded interesting, but I wanted to know how Casper had known something I’d spent my life ignorant of.

“Not now. Wait until we land. I promise you, I’ll tell you as much as you want to know once I know we’re safe.”

We flew in silence for a few minutes more until I nodded off. Between all the short naps I’d gotten, I still hadn’t achieved a full eight hours of sleep. Last night I’d gone to bed, blissfully unaware of the full extent of the danger which threatened me. It seemed ludicrous that a full day hadn’t passed since then.

* * *

W
hen I woke
, Alex and Casper still sat in silence, seemingly uncomfortable. I doubted much time had passed.

Casper noticed my eyes had opened. “Just a few more minutes; we’re already descending.”

Outside my window, a giant stone structure materialized through the misty fog of clouds. “It looks like a fort.”

“That’s what it was back when this area of Canada was colonized. It had been abandoned for ages until I bought it. It has the advantage of being in the middle of nowhere yet a quick commute by helicopter when I need it. I call it the Armory.”

The pilot landed us so softly that I barely noticed. Casper pulled a small box from his pocket and opened it to reveal a ring that he put on his right ring finger. Before I could get a good look at it, the pilot opened the door for us to exit, and I realized for the first time that he must be magical too. Casper didn’t strike me as the type to trust humans when he made such a big deal about the secrecy of the Armory. My suspicions of the pilot were confirmed when he headed to a glowing circle in the ground and promptly disappeared.

I could hardly believe my eyes. Seeing a person disappear produced the same unsettling feeling as seeing a limb bent in the wrong direction. “What did he just do?”

“Teleported. You are about to do it too,” Casper said as he led us to a different circle. The idea of teleporting both scared and excited me. The analytical part of my brain screamed that this was madness. Teleporting was not something that could or should be done. What exactly would happen to my body? According to science fiction I’d read, I’d be disintegrated into lots of tiny bits and then re-materialized on the other end. That hardly sounded safe or sane. So far, my track record for successfully producing magic that I could control was zero. This seemed like an awfully big first step with a giant downside should it not work properly.

“I’m happy to use the stairs. It’s healthier.”

Even Alex eyed me in a manner that clearly conveyed exactly how full of shit he thought I was.

“There’s nothing to worry about.” Casper held out his hand invitingly. “Teleporting is perfectly safe, I assure you.”

“I’m sure it’s safe when you know what you’re doing.” Casper knew me as Meglana’s daughter. In his world, mages were probably teleporting from the time they could walk. I’m sure he meant well, but I doubted he knew the level of my ineptness.

“It’s also incredibly easy. As long as you’re in the ring with a mage who has been to your destination, you can use it to teleport. That’s how your friend here is going to be able to come along. If even a non-mage can use the teleportation ring, trust me, you can too.” According to Casper’s tone, saying that even a shifter could do it was tantamount to saying that the village idiot could figure it out. I noticed Alex’s jaw tighten at the insulting tone. Nice to see that bigotry was alive and well even in the magical world. I took Casper’s hand, but also held my other one out to Alex as a peace offering. Plus, I needed his support. Something about him saving my life made me inherently trust him.

“All right, when you get into the ring, there’s really nothing you need to do, but it does help if you close your eyes and keep your mind blank, especially the first time. If you hold on to where you’re at too tightly, you’ll just stay here and not teleport.”

“So the worst that can happen if I do it wrong is that I stay here? There’s no chance of half of me ending up somewhere else?”

Casper chuckled. “The magic that’s used here is incapable of causing you physical harm. You either stay here, or you’ll end up at our destination, completely whole. Those are the only two options.”

I nodded and stepped into the circle with him. As soon as my second foot hit the ground and my eyes closed, my whole body felt as if it were being sucked through a tube, compressed and pulled so tightly that my skin tingled. I wanted to open my eyes to see what was happening, but I feared they would pop out of my head. Safe my ass.

As suddenly as it began, the sensation ended, and I was standing just as I was before it started, only much warmer.

“Welcome to my home,” Casper said.

I opened my eyes to find myself in the most magnificent home I’d ever seen.