Royal Institute of Magic: Elizabeth's Legacy (23 page)

The green glow expanded and Ben
watched with a mixture of fascination and alarm as it enveloped them.
Soon it was circling the whole room, slowly at first and then faster,
with Sognar at the centre of the storm. The mist felt cold against
Ben’s skin. Streaks of green energy like forks of lightning
flashed within the mist and some struck Ben, though he felt nothing.
It became so intense Ben found it hard to keep his eyes open.

“Ben, look at you!”

Ben could just make out Charlie’s
astonished eyes through the swirling mist. He looked down and gasped.

A white glow was surrounding his
body as if he were radioactive. Every time the sparks hit the glow
they would sizzle. Before Ben could ask what was happening, there was
a loud bang and the green mist receded into Sognar’s open
mouth, sucked up like a vacuum cleaner. As soon as the mist went, so
did Ben’s glow.

Sognar looked up panting slightly
and gave Ben an accusing stare. “Why didn’t you say other
spells have already been cast on you?”

“I didn’t think it
mattered.”

“It might have,”
Sognar said. “Goblin magic isn’t too different to dark
elf magic, you know.”

Ben felt his pulse quicken. “What
do you mean?”

“Your spell protects you
from dark elf magic. It’s strong – really strong –
I thought it might reject my spell. Lucky for you we got away with
it.”

Ben spread his arms to examine
himself. He didn’t look or feel any different. For a moment he
thought they had been cheated.

Then Natalie faded away.

Ben stared at the spot she had
been in a moment earlier. He was still gaping when she faded back
with a smile on her face.

“It’s perfect,”
she said, giving Sognar a glittering smile.

“The spell will last an
hour, starting from now. Remember to recommend Sognar’s Spell
Services to your friends and family,” he said as they bid him
goodbye and left the tent.

“Dark elf magic,”
Charlie said as they started back down Goblin Avenue. “That
makes perfect sense! Your parents must have taken measures to protect
you knowing the dark elves were a threat.”

“Charlie’s right,”
Natalie said, looking only marginally less excited than Charlie. “It
explains why the dark elves never captured you after your parents
disappeared. They may have tried but given up when their magic
failed.”

Ben nodded. “But is that
because of the wood elves’ spell or due to Elizabeth’s
legacy thing?”

The question stumped them and
they eventually conceded that, without more information, it was
impossible to know.

“So, how do we disappear?”
Charlie asked.

“It’s simple, just
will yourself to disappear.”

Charlie looked at her dubiously.
He closed his eyes and scrunched his face in concentration. Just as
Ben was beginning to doubt Charlie’s method, he faded away. If
Ben squinted he could just about make out a Charlie-like outline. He
had blended with the background like a chameleon.

“That’s brilliant,”
Charlie said, fading back in.

“Great. Let’s hope
it’s enough,” Ben said. He gave a determined stare down
the street. “We’ve got an hour to get to the Dragonway,
find the right platform and make the train without the Institute
noticing. We should probably pick up the pace.”

Ben paid little attention to the smelly and filthy surroundings during
their journey back through Goblin Avenue to the Dragonway.

Armed with the shrouding spell,
he felt quietly confident they could avoid the Wardens and make the
train. Charlie, however, was not in such good shape. He kept rubbing
his forehead and was so pre-occupied he had already stepped in
several different types of poo without noticing.

In no time at all Natalie had
guided them along Goblin Avenue, through the hustle and bustle of
Taecia Square and within sight of the Dragonway station. Ben could
hear the distant roars of the dragons as they embarked on their
journeys.

“This is it,” Natalie
said as they stopped just short of the station’s entrance. She
took a deep breath. “Are we really doing this?”

“Of course we are,”
Ben said, rubbing his hands together, feeling a surge of adrenaline
fuelled by anticipation.

“What is the plan?”
Charlie asked. He was shuffling from foot to foot.

“Simple,” Ben said.
“We use the spell to shroud ourselves and make it to the train
without bumping into anyone.”

“Which train are we getting
on?”

“Platform twelve. There is
a direct train to Borgen that goes regularly,” Natalie replied.

Charlie took his handkerchief out
and dabbed his forehead. “If we are shrouded, how will we see
each other once we make it to the train?”

“At the end of the platform
is a set of chairs. Let’s meet there,” Natalie said.

Ben took his small pouch of
spells from his pocket. “What about these bad boys? How do we
use them?”

“In the same way you fired
the Spellshooter,” Natalie replied. “Once your hand is in
the pouch you will feel each spell and should be able to pick out the
one you want. Then it’s just a matter of throwing it at your
enemy with as much willpower and concentration as you can muster.”

“Sounds easy enough,”
Ben said, pocketing the pouch again.

Natalie raised a finger and gave
them a stern look that was mostly directed at Ben. “Do not use
them unless it is an absolute emergency.”

“Don’t worry,”
Ben said, giving her a lopsided smile. “So, are we ready?”

Charlie shook his head, looking
anxious. “Not really. How will we recognise Draven’s
Wardens?”

“Just try to avoid anyone
who has a Spellshooter,” Natalie said. “The station
guards may also be on the lookout for Ben so watch out for them too.”

“Wonderful,” Charlie
said.

Ben could see the nerves in
Charlie’s face. He clapped him round the shoulder. “Just
think of this as an obstacle course like in gym class at school.”

“I hate gym.”

“I forgot about that,”
Ben admitted. “Okay, think of it like a video game. The train
will take us to the next level.”

“If we get caught, can I
load the set-up screen and press restart?”

“You’re not going to
get caught,” Natalie said. She put a hand on Charlie’s
shoulder, which seemed to help more than Ben’s efforts.
“Remember, it’s Ben they are looking out for. Just walk
normally and don’t let anyone bump into you. You’ll be at
the platform before you know it.”

Ben grinned at them. “Are
we ready?”

Two nods. Both Natalie and
Charlie suddenly faded away.

Ben willed himself to be
invisible and felt his skin tingle. He watched his arm meld into the
background until he could only see it by wiggling his fingers in
front of his face. He gave a little sigh of relief; so Sognar had
been right, the spell hadn’t affected the shroud.

Ben headed towards the station
entrance. Almost immediately someone bumped into him and looked about
in surprise. Ben apologised by habit, which only caused further
confusion, and quickly moved on. The station was busy, with people
constantly coming and going and Ben had his work cut out dodging
people. He tucked in behind a suited ogre and followed in his wake.
To his left were the crossroads and the sign that had originally
directed them to the Institute up the hill. It was hard to believe
that was only yesterday.

The ogre he was following took a
left up the hill and Ben was suddenly without a buffer to deflect the
people ahead. He quickly found someone else and was soon walking
under the large sign that said “Taecia Dragonway”. He
went up the stairs that led to the gangway and risked a glance at the
station below. He counted twelve platforms, half of them occupied by
squat dragons pulling carriages. One began to depart, breathing a
mighty flame into the black tunnel so that for a second Ben could see
the track’s gradual descent as it headed underground.

He reached the top of the stairs
and hugged the barrier to avoid people while he got his bearings.
There were numbers at regular intervals hanging from the ceiling with
stairs leading down to the corresponding platforms. Unfortunately,
platform twelve was at the very end of the gangway.

There was a Warden holding a
Spellshooter at the top of each set of stairs. They stood at ease,
but Ben caught the keen looks they gave the passing passengers.

He cursed silently. It was time
to put the shroud spell to the test. The gangway was narrow, causing
congestion, which made avoiding people even harder.

He started walking. It felt like a dance game on the Nintendo Wii, dodging, side stepping and
occasionally backtracking, to make sure nobody bumped into him. Ben
risked a sidelong glance at the Warden as he approached the first
platform stairs. There was no reaction; the Warden’s gaze slid
right by him. Ben allowed himself a moment’s relief, before he
continued to slip and slide down the gangway, until he reached
platform twelve.

There was a dragon there already.
Ben felt his heart flutter – it could be leaving any minute. He
hurried down the stairs, risking a shoulder glance off a lady, and
onto the platform. The dragon was blowing steam out of his nose onto
the platform making visibility poor, which gave Ben an excuse to
barge past people without his usual caution.

Near the front of the platform,
adjacent to the first carriage, were three chairs currently occupied
by elderly gentlemen.

The finish line.

Ben resisted the urge to make a
final sprint. He walked cautiously to the chairs and stood directly
behind the middle one, careful not to disturb the gentlemen seated.

“Guys?” he whispered.
Nobody replied. He glanced left and right, but saw no shadowy
outlines of Charlie or Natalie.

Ben wasn’t surprised they
hadn’t arrived yet, as he’d made good time. He glanced up
at the platform board.

Platform 12 Departures

Borgen   15 Minutes   On time

Borgen   45 Minutes   On time

Fifteen minutes was perfect, even
Charlie should have no trouble making that. They had about forty
minutes left of the shroud spell, which meant if they had to get the
following train, they would do it without cover. With all the Wardens
around that would be risky. Such a scenario wasn’t worth
thinking about because they would make this train.

Plenty of time.

Ben amused himself by watching
the drivers seated in saddles on the dragon’s nape. They were
tucking into sandwiches and each had a hot drink balanced on his lap.
Ben marvelled at the way they were able to talk and joke, ignoring
the slow, rhythmic breathing of the dragon, seemingly unaware they
were sitting on a beast that could cook and eat them in a heartbeat.

Ben’s attention drifted
back to the platform board.

Twelve minutes.

He started watching the stairs
and the gangway, knowing it was a pointless exercise because Charlie
and Natalie were shrouded; he wouldn’t see them until they were
by his side.

Ten minutes.

Ben whispered their names again
just to make sure they weren’t nearby. It had taken him about
ten minutes to make the journey; they had now been fifteen minutes.
There was nothing to panic about, nevertheless, he started making
regular glances up at the platform board.

Eight minutes.

The men in the chairs stood up
and boarded the train.

Ben squeezed the back of the
chair. Why hadn’t they discussed a contingency plan in case one
of them didn’t make it? Ben had assumed everything would be
plain sailing.

Seven minutes.

Ben heard the soft sound of
footsteps and he turned his head so fast his neck cracked. He sighed
with relief when he saw a familiar curvy shadow standing by his side.

“Natalie, thank god. I was
starting to get concerned. Did you stop off for coffee or something?”

Without warning, Natalie released
the shroud spell and materialised before his eyes.

“What are you doing?”
Ben asked in an urgent voice. “There are Wardens all over the
place. There are still several minutes before the train leaves and
Charlie has not…”

His voice trailed away.

Natalie’s eyes were wet.
There was a tear running down her cheek.

“It’s over, Ben,”
she said, her voice a whisper. “I’m so sorry.”

Ben felt his mouth go dry. “What
are you talking about?”

“They caught us. They had a
Warden who could see through our shrouds.”

“I don’t understand.
I’m here. You’re here.”

“They let you go. Draven’s
orders. They caught Charlie and me. I was sent over here to retrieve
you.”

Ben didn’t want to believe
it. “Why would Draven let me go?”

Natalie wiped the mascara running
down her face. “He thinks you won’t leave without
Charlie.”

Ben closed his eyes as the pain
of acceptance hit him. Deep down he knew it had been too easy. He bit
his lip until it hurt. They should have come up with a different
plan. But what? There was no other way to board the train.

He looked up at the gangway, but
saw nothing unusual, just the usual hustle and bustle.

“They are on platform six,
not up there,” Natalie said.

Ben cursed loud and long. Several
people turned around in disgust and confusion when they only saw a
tearful Natalie.

Ben ran a hand through his hair
and glanced once more at the platform board.

Three minutes.

“What will they do with
Charlie if we get on the train?”

“I really don’t
know,” Natalie said. She took a deep breath and composed
herself. “I know this will sound completely awful, but the
sensible thing to do would be for us to jump on the train without
him.”

“You’re right,”
Ben said, staring across the platforms, searching for Charlie and his
captors. “The sensible thing would be to get on the train.”