One is Come (Five in Circle) (10 page)

She looked at it, at him, and tears started rolling down her face again. She looked at the stick and then her father. “I don't want it! I didn't ask for this! I just want to be left alone!” she screamed as she threw it at him, hitting him square in the chest.

The stick hit Abrennin and threw him off the bed, across the room, and up against the closet door. His eyes wide as he was hit, his hands came up reflexively in a gesture. At the same time, he blurted, “Danarra loman dion!” The sound of the last word mingled with the noise of him crashing into the closet.

A small blue ball leaped from Abrennin's hands, growing quickly to envelope a very surprised Haylwen. Abrennin looked from where the stick was lying on the carpet to the blue bubble around Haylwen with amazement. “Interesting,” he said.

Haylwen's mouth moved, but Abrennin could hear nothing.

Abrennin looked at her for a moment, and then, making sure Haylwen was watching, stepped forward, putting his hands on the bubble. He leaned on it, appearing to defy gravity. He looked at his wide-eyed daughter. “Very interesting,” he said.

Haylwen looked to be shouting, and threw a nearby stuffed bear at her father. Just before reaching him, it hit the bubble and slid down its surface. Her jaw dropped as she watched it slowly make its way to the floor.

“Sgor,” Abrennin said. The bubble vanished, leaving Haylwen blinking.

Haylwen stared at him and he smiled. He bent down, gingerly picked up the stick and handed it to Haylwen. She took it slowly.

“Like I said, you might want this,” he said.

“What was that? How did you do that?” she said. He could see her looking from the wish wand to him, her energy swirling dangerously.

“It was a bubble of protection,” he said quickly.

“A what?”

He finally had her full attention, the energy diminishing, but he couldn’t believe how he was doing it. He tapped his lower lip, then said, slowly, as if testing the words, “It was an inverse energy bubble. A combination of Earth and Fire. They can be of three variants: one-way in, one- way out, or repel both. That one, as you could see, was both.” He couldn’t help it, a giant grin spread across his face. He then shook his head and the serious look reentered his eyes. “We'll talk more, sweetheart, I promise. I want to call your mother and get your brother home right now, ok? Just relax.” He smiled, and gently teasing, said, “Recuperate from your illness for a while.”

He gave her forehead a quick kiss and ran into the study for his phone. He punched numbers with shaky fingers, deathly afraid, and with a renewed sense of hope.

Chapter 15

Not You

Abrennin called his wife. Talking to her, he had to invoke his strongest commanding voice to avoid giving out details. She could tell something very important was happening, and after an initial promise to tell her everything once she got home, she agreed. He sat back and tried to put some pieces together. Nothing was making complete sense. There were too many variables. Who was helping Haylwen? Who was Stephan working for? How much did they know? Why was this happening now? He had a few guesses, but none fit together. Maybe Crystyn knew something...

He got up to check on Haylwen. He knocked softly on Haylwen's door, and when there was no response, he peeked in. She appeared asleep. Poor kid, getting caught up in this. But if she could defend herself... which brought him back to the thought he was trying to avoid. He shut the door softly and leaned on the wall next to it.
I had taught! How was it possible?
He felt a momentary twinge of doubt before his rationalizations started. They had forced him to Swear! When the Oath was still intact—he couldn't say anything, couldn't even breathe when he had tried.

He went into the kitchen to make some tea. As he waited, he reasoned it out. He hadn't really tried to teach since Swearing, maybe the teaching part never took? Not likely. Maybe there was something about the wish wand? It only amplified magical energies, not likely. Something about the Ring of Fire or the Necklace of Vision? Neither had anything to do with Swearing. He realized he was avoiding the obvious line of thought. There must be something about Haylwen.

The front door opened, and he jumped, spilling some of his tea. He cleaned it up, waiting. Probably Crystyn and Cadarn, but with what has been going on, he centered, readying the energies for anything.

He heard the front door slam and his son's music, much louder than what would have been acceptable on another day. Today, he was glad for the noise. He monitored the music’s movement through the small apartment and its abrupt quieting. Good, Cadarn was in his room with the door closed. His wife came into the kitchen, her aura shimmering in reds, blues, and yellows. They both stood there, soundless for a moment. Abrennin gave her a look which interrupted her before she started to talk. He felt for Cadarn and Haylwen, making sure they were stable. He drew the energy he had gathered into a burgeoning white sphere in his hands. He flung his arms out wide as he breathed the command, and released the energy in an explosion. Crystyn gave a little gasp as the spreading energy wave flowed through her. The front door rattled for just a second.

“You tell me what is going on right now!” she whispered, fixing him with her eyes, and he didn't need to read her energy to know she was scared.

He nodded and led her to the study. He sat, and motioned for her to sit, but she just glared at him. He shrugged and told Haylwen's story. Crystyn abruptly sat down after a couple of sentences. Abrennin watched closely as he mentioned the Ring of Fire, and Crystyn's eyebrows shot up.

“Where did she get a Ring of Fire?” she interrupted.

Abrennin sighed. He knew her mother had worn a Ring of Fire and he was half-hoping Crystyn was the one who gave it to Haylwen, or at least knew who did, but her reaction was genuine. He didn't answer, and instead continued the story. When he related how Haylwen kept a hold of her backpack and the Wish Wand in it, she again gaped.

“A legendary Wish Wand? That’s impossible. From the same person?” she said.

He raised one eyebrow, and told her about the Necklace of Vision. She looked at him, eyes narrowing.

“You never mentioned it... you thought I gave it to her?” She sat back in shock.

He shook his head. “At the time, I thought it odd, but I believed her story about finding it. It was odd, but possible. Now, with the ring and wand, I can only imagine they are all from the same person.” He looked at her. “I feel like I am missing something. Do you have any idea who it could be?”

She looked at him fiercely. “No, and if I did, I would have told you immediately!”

He rubbed the back of his neck ruefully. “Yeah, I deserve that.” With that hint, he said, “Oh, and I taught Haylwen.”

Crystyn looked confused. “Huh? Taught her what?”

He told her about the incident with the energy bubble. She nodded slightly at the Wish Wand’s power, but didn't blink at the fact he might have been injured. She gaped when he told her about the inverse energy bubble and stood up when he related how he tested it for Haylwen. When he reached the point of actually telling Haylwen about Fire and Earth, she interrupted.

“You... you can't! You Swore!” she said.

“Maybe the Oath is wearing off?” he tried.

“How is that possible?” she said.

He started to say something, shook his head, then took a deep breath. “I have no idea.”

She sat heavily. “We'll have to move, again. Shortest stay ever.”

He shrugged. “The Necklace was before we moved the last time. Either we did a terrible job of staying under the radar, which is very unlikely, or they have a way to follow us.”

Crystyn slowly shook her head. “No, it can't be.”

“The evidence points to Haylwen,” he said.

Crystyn shook her head again. “There is no way she...”

“Unless she didn't know she was doing it.”

Crystyn stared at him. “But we have had her suppressed, well, somewhat, since before we moved.”

“I know,” he said, “but she got the necklace before we moved, and I am sure she didn't have the wand in her things when we moved. Either you or I would have felt it. Hayl didn't even know what it was, maybe didn't even know she had it. It was formed into a ceramics tool, and she had her first ceramics class here.” They left unsaid what that meant.

Crystyn glared at Abrennin and clenched the arms of the chair. “You've done something. I don't care what it takes, but you stop it! Do whatever it takes, but you make it stop! You gave your word you wouldn't do anything anymore!” She was shaking, tears rolling down her face.

Abrennin got up to go kneel in front of his wife. “The day you told me we were pregnant, I gave my word, of my own free will. I promise, I have done nothing to tarnish that.” He smiled bitterly. “I observe the Flows of energy, offer my expert opinions to the Conclave, who are all experts themselves, and they pay me more than I could possibly make as a no-mu. And with that leash of money, they drag us all over the map and keep an eye on me.” His eyes searched her face. “Don't get me wrong, I am grateful, but you know I would never tell the Conclave anything about our children. The work isn't bad, but we needed the money and I only did it for you and the kids.” He choked up a bit, but made it through the next sentences, at a whisper. “Since I Swore, I have completely broken off all contact with anyone who was with the Guidants or any Rogues. If someone even tried to contact me, I would tell you.” He looked sincerely into his wife's eyes, and took her hands between his own. “I can only guess that this is someone, well, arranging things for their own grab for power.” He waited and saw her make the connections. “Maybe someone is trying to influence you.”

Crystyn searched his face, and then took one of her hands back to wipe her tears. She nodded and leaned back. “But why give such powerful magical items to Haylwen? I mean, a Wish Wand! It makes no sense.” She paused for a moment, then looked at him. “Wait. Where are the items?” She searched his face. “You let her keep them! Are you insane? Would we let Cadarn keep a helicopter?” She got up to leave.

“Wait.” Abrennin’s command voice didn’t always work with his wife, but it at least let her know he was serious. “She can't get into too much trouble; she doesn't know how to get the helicopter off the ground. In fact, you know that women can't use the male magic of a Wish Wand at all. Besides, if it blends with her, it will be invisible and with enough time, even harmless. Maybe we need to have her keep them.”

Abrennin got up and stood, facing his wife. He still held her one hand in his, and looked over her shoulder at the study door. “Maybe they are just trying to impress us with how much power they have, that they can just throw away such items. Maybe they are showing us how easy it is to get to Haylwen.” He shook his head. “Those don't really feel right, though.” He looked at his wife, and slumped a little. “I hate to say it, but there is another possibility, something that would make it vital that we not interfere.”

Crystyn turned to face him fully.

Quickly, before his mind could avoid it, Abrennin said what he feared the most. A part of his mind saw how it all made sense from that perspective. “Maybe this isn't about us at all,” he said softly, pointing at the books scattered around the room. “I don't remember where, but I do remember a dragon prophecy. One dragon will lead them all out of hiding, back into the world, toppling kings. If Haylwen is holding those items for a dragon, we dare not interfere with prophecy and risk destroying the world!”

Chapter 16

Partners

The room was large, with rough-hewn stone walls. There was one narrow stairway, also of the same gray stone, which crawled up one wall to the only door. The lack of windows made for a dank and musty smell. The door that led out of the room was metal, and from the look of it, very old. In the center of the room was a table, and Stephan Johansen was lying on his back, hands and feet tied to each of the four corners. He wore only a pair of black boxer shorts. Despite the chill, he was sweating. His eyes darted to his right, where a long bench stood. He could just see a thin metal rod, about a finger breadth thick and as long as his arm.

The door opened with a high-pitched creak as the hinges protested their use. Stephan tried to see, but he could not look that far to the left. The door creaked again, and closed with a dull thud. Stephan's breathing quickened, and he unconsciously flexed his hands. Once again, he tried to access the energies despite knowing the table made it impossible.

He could hear footsteps make their way unhurriedly down the stairs and again contorted to see who it was. He could finally see that it was a tall, thin man who approached. Cawnal Adar. His counterpart, the king’s left Hand. He should have felt better that it was his long-time partner, one Hand to the other.

He did not. He knew better.

“Oh, please, please, let me go, I'll do anything, I know I screwed up but I can still make it right! I swear! For old time’s sake! I was just following orders! How could I know she could break free? I'll not underestimate her again!” He stopped, panting.

Cawnal went over and picked up the rod by the one end that showed a reddish-gold metal. The other end was black. He held it up to where Stephan could see it and, without a word, the black end started shedding black ash, glowing of hot metal.

“I’m not much of a magic user, so I have to use these crude and messy methods. Fortunately, this doesn’t take much,” he said, talking to himself.

“But you make up for it! You are loyal to king and cause, just like myself!” Stephan assured. “We are a team, old buddy, no need for all of this.”

Cawnal looked at Stephan and shook his head. He continued in a conversational tone, “I’m sorry, old buddy, but the king really stressed you learn from your mistake.”

“My connections with the school system are very valuable for keeping track of them!” Stephan cried.

Cawnal nodded. “Yes, those will be useful. As he says, every obstacle is an opportunity. Even your failure will work toward his plan succeeding.”

Stephan wasn’t much relieved at the confirmation he was not going to be killed.

“He said he needs to have your face and hands untouched.” Cawnal made a grimace as his voice went harsh, metal scraped along stone. “So many nerves in the face, such a pity.” He touched the glowing end of the rod with a finger, hissing in pain through his smile. “So many lessons in pain, you should thank me.”

“I do, I do! You know I do! But would thank you more if we didn’t have to do it this way. And we have so much to do, is this really necessary?”

Cawnal looked at him, thinking. “He gave me specific instructions for what we are to do after this.” He paused, and lowered the rod. “I am going to go after the boy directly. And you...”

Stephan had a moment of hope. Maybe this time he had gotten through; Cawnal finally appreciated their relationship! They could agree on a story…

Cawnal's pause was short. “No, I will just save your instructions for after. They are very specific, and I doubt you will remember much if I tell you now.” He raised the rod, which was glowing white. Stephan could feel the h
eat from it on his bare chest.

Stephan's breath caught in his throat. For only a moment, however, for he was soon screaming.