The Secret of Ashona (54 page)

The spirit bowed. “All in a day’s work.”

With renewed vigor, Rosco waved his hands around and began to reconstruct things as they were. Spartacus helped, and even Erec tried to pitch in with the little magic he could do.

“Why don’t you try using the mousetrap thing to fix this place? I mean, it also amplifies what you can do. . . .”

Rosco’s face lit up. “Great idea! It would take forever to get this place back to what it was this way. Let’s see how this thing works.” He pulled the lever back and held it up, concentrating. Then, he let go. . . .

All around them, boards started flying. Wood morphed so that the black charred bits dissolved and the old paint sprung back on again. Erec sat in wonderment as the floor underneath him reconstructed itself, and walls put themselves together again.

Rosco looked just as stunned. “I barely did anything.”

“Is this like the scepter?” Erec picked up the mousetrap device. “Do you feel rushes of power from using it?”

“Not at all. It does everything by itself, without me. I just gave it a tiny push.”

In a moment, Rosco’s apartment looked just as it always had. He tapped the mousetrap. “This thing is far more powerful than I imagined. Just think what you could do with something like this.”

“Yeah—like crack open Tartarus.”

“I don’t know about that, though. Yeah, everything was amplified like crazy. But Tartarus . . . that’s put together to keep the three Furies captive. Can you imagine how strong that place has to be?”

“That’s why we have this.” Erec held up the little brain thing.
“Imagine using these two things combined. This makes you thousands of times more powerful by itself. Then when you use the mousetrap, the whole thing will get amplified like crazy, and we can send that massive lump of destruction all the way to Tartarus. Think about it.”

Rosco was thinking about it. But then Spartacus had an idea. “What if I did it?”

That was something new. Spartacus, as a spirit, had far more power than any human, Baskania aside.

“Let’s see what you can do with this.” Erec handed the mousetrap machine to Spartacus.

Rosco saw it floating in the air in front of him. “Spartacus is going to try using it? As a spirit? Wow.
That’s
going to be something to see. Tell him that he’d better be careful. I barely sent a tiny flame out and the whole building went up in blazes—and he’s going to have far more power in him than either of us would.”

“Tell Rosco that I can hear him—he can talk to me directly. It makes me feel like I’m not in the room when he does that.” Spartacus was eyeing the brainlike pink thing. “I should try using them both together. You know, just to see what I can do.”

“Be really careful. If Rosco used Tarvos’s magic source when he sent a flame out, and he also used the mousetrap thing, it would have burned the whole city down.”

“Oh, no.” Rosco shook his head. “Tell Spartacus not to use both of them. Even without his spirit powers it would be far too much.”

Spartacus raised his arms over Rosco’s head like claws and gritted his teeth. “He’s doing it again. Just like I’m not here.” Before Erec knew it, Spartacus had Tarvos’s power source in one hand, and Baskania’s gift in the other. “Just one drop of rain. That’s all I’m going to make. And I’m going to send it all the way over the ocean out there, miles from the edge of Alypium. One drop.”

Erec followed behind him and looked out the window. “How are
we going to see one drop of water over the ocean all the way from here?”

Rosco followed Erec. But before he reached the window, water surrounded them everywhere. Currents above and below him whipped Erec around. Pieces of the apartment complex swept by, along with furniture and rugs. In moments, the walls washed away, and some of the water drained out onto the street. But not fully, because the floods outside were already so high that there was nowhere for the water to run.

Erec was outside now—he was pretty sure—but still part of the same giant flood. There were moments where his head surfaced enough to catch breaths, but luckily he had Instagills so it wasn’t an issue. He was more worried about crashing into the other things whipping around in the water. It filled the streets and the entire city of Alypium as far as he could see.

Spartacus had obviously missed his mark completely, causing the magic to work in Rosco’s apartment instead of over the ocean. He wondered if people had been hurt or had died from this disaster, and where Rosco was.

Then, in a flash, all the water vanished. Everything was bone dry. Erec was sitting on a patch of grass by a sidewalk, broken trees around him on the ground. A woman was coughing and gasping nearby—but at least she was alive. Buildings were collapsed, pieces of furniture strewn around.

Soon, Spartacus was at his side. “Did you
see
that? There was a
solid water wall
over the entire ocean! For a minute I thought the sea rose up and overflowed into the sky, but then I realized it was the other way around. Water filled the whole atmosphere!”

“Yeah? Well, what about what happened right here in Alypium? Like in Rosco’s apartment?”

“This was
nothing
. You should have seen what it was like out there where I sent the spell.”

Erec looked around, amazed. “Is everyone okay?”

“I flew around like crazy and rescued a few people who were in trouble. There were some problems. . . .” He looked guilty. “But I took care of most of it. Luckily nobody died—but a few people were close, though.”

“You probably should use that thing to put the city back together again, like Rosco did.”

Spartacus eyed the mousetrap suspiciously. “This is strong enough to let me do anything. . . . But rebuild a whole city?” He shrugged. “I’ll try.” He concentrated, holding the brain in one hand. Then he pulled the lever on the mousetrap back and let it snap down again. In a minute, building materials and furnishings flew all around them, restoring themselves into order. The ghost blinked, a shocked look on his face. “I barely even gave it an effort. . . . Look at this thing work!”

In minutes, the city looked as if nothing had ever happened to it. Spartacus grabbed Erec by the arms and took a leap—in seconds they were back at Rosco’s place.

Rosco was sitting on his couch, stunned. “Just one drop of water, huh?”

Erec nodded. “I can’t believe it either. If anything is going to destroy Tartarus, Spartacus could if he uses both of those things together.”

“With these two things a
mouse
could destroy Tartarus.” Spartacus laughed. “If I put all of my effort into it, that cave will crumble. It’s going to be simple.”

Erec gave Rosco a grin. “Spartacus thinks that crumbling Tartarus will be easy!”

“It won’t be that easy,” Rosco said. “Tell him that the Furies’ cave is strong enough that even they can’t blast it open. It’s magically reinforced. He’ll have to use every ounce of his strength, even
with
the mousetrap thing and Tarvos’s power source, to have a chance.”

Spartacus pointed at Rosco. “He’s doing it again. Talking like I’m not even in the room.” In a second, Rosco’s chair was whipped out from under him, sending him falling to the floor.

Rosco got up, stunned. “That made him upset? He has to know the facts. If Spartacus is not willing to try his hardest with this, let me do it instead.”

“I’ll do it right. Don’t worry.” Spartacus took the magical objects to the window and sat on the ledge. “I also have a much better sense where to aim this thing than Rosco would. Tartarus is
that
way from here.” He pointed out and down into the dirt. “I can tell its exact location. And if this mousetrap sends magic distances, right where you want it to go, I won’t just aim it that way. That would destroy everything in its path, and also not leave as much oomph when it gets to the right spot. I’m going to throw it there with this thing—I can tell how to make it work. . . .”

Spartacus played with the contraption for a minute and then held a hand up. “Tell Rosco to keep his mouth shut for a minute, so he doesn’t distract me.”

Erec held a finger to his lips, and Spartacus stretched the metal bar back like a bow and arrow. Erec had no idea it would even do that. Spartacus frowned intently, squeezing Tarvos’s magic source in the fist that held the metal. His whole face squeezed in concentration, and he released the bar. Noise resounded from it, sounding like a jet engine passing through the room.

“Done!” Spartacus said, cheerily. “I sent the whole massive blast to just the right spot. I gave it more power than a thousand humans could, all put together. There is no way that Tartarus is still standing.” He handed the items back to Erec, satisfied.

“Did he think it worked?” Rosco watched Erec put the things back in his pockets.

“He’s sure it did.” Erec felt relieved. Now he could free the souls and not worry about imprisoning the Furies again. If they got sent to Tartarus, then they would just fly right back out again. Everyone would be happy.

“Ready to go to Alsatia?” Spartacus tapped his toe on the floor.

“Now?” Erec thought a moment. He had everything he needed. “I can’t just leave Trevor with Baskania though.”

“I’ve checked on him. He’s hooked up to . . . well, let’s just say he’s okay. They ghostproofed him, I’ll tell you that, or he wouldn’t still be there. Baskania’s taking no chances.”

“If something happens to me in Alsatia, I won’t be able to save Trevor.”

“I’ll figure something out just as well as you could,” Rosco said. “He’s my number one priority. We have to give the Shadow Prince a little time to realize that Trevor knows nothing. As soon as he does, he’ll become less interested in the boy. That will be the time to get him out of there. Soon, I’m sure . . . But I’m still not happy with the idea of you risking angering the Furies.”

Erec could not help feeling excited, though. The time was right, and things had actually come together. He could do what he had been driven to do since he got his own soul back—free the other souls. And once he rescued Trevor—there had to be a way—then he could finally go home. He would be done.

He looked at his Amulet of Virtues. The seventh segment had not lit up yet—but he was sure that it would after he did this.

“One last thing you need.” Spartacus waved the spell book in front of him. “Learn that time-stopping spell.”

Erec grabbed the book. He wouldn’t get far freeing the souls if he didn’t know this one—it was a big part of his plan.

Time-Stopping Spell

Not for the fainthearted, once mastered, this spell can be used for many purposes—the best of which is to have fun! How many times
have you wanted to see what was written on the teacher’s answer key during a test . . . or your quarterly review that is hidden facedown on your boss’s desk during a meeting? With this time-stopping spell and a snap of your fingers, you can stroll over and take a peek at your leisure, and nobody will be the wiser. Bullied at school? Not for long, with this spell in your repertoire. As soon as someone starts to pick on you they will find themselves in front of the room with their pants down, or with a pie in their face.

Some may use this spell to gain wealth the easy way. It can make the life of a criminal one of ease and comfort. Others may choose to do good and help others with their new powers. The choice is yours. This spell will magnify your influence on your world.

There is a paradox to beware of, however! Be careful when you perform this little gem. If someone else in your universe performs this spell at the exact same time as you, time will stop for both of you. This will keep time stopped permanently, as nobody will be able to start it back up again. In this situation, it will be up to the Fates to fix things . . . if they desire to give humanity another shot after flubbing up completely. The best prevention for this is to not overuse the spell.

This simple magic may not be usable by most—it is necessary to have a solid connection with the Substance in order to perform it. But for those who are able to use this, it can come in quite handy. Very few situations are not fixable by the simple stoppage of time. Even minor problems, such as being fired from a job, can be made pleasurable. Just use this spell, stand your boss up, put a few thumbtacks on his chair, and sit him back down. When you start time again, you will feel far better.

Warning: Long-term stoppage of time is not recommended. If the user dies before starting time back up again, humanity will be on permanent hold.

Rosco tapped the words at the bottom of the page:

Warning: The Fates, as well as certain other supernatural creatures, are not susceptible to the stoppage of time, and will continue on with you during that fragment.

“This means the Furies, I’m sure. I don’t know what your plan is, but if you’re going to stop time so you can get away with something in front of the Furies, it’s not going to work.”

Erec thought about that for a moment. “That’s not it, exactly. We should be okay. I’m stopping time to trick the door of a storage facility—it’s alive and knows what’s going on.” Erec looked at the details of the spell.

In order for the spell to work, you must obtain a talisman of a living foe. Very small foes such as mosquitoes generally will not work. The stronger the foe, the easier to work the spell. The talisman must be grasped firmly in the left hand, while holding a pair of sharp scissors in the right. After reading the words of the spell, the talisman and scissors may be discarded.

This incantation does not need to be committed to memory. However, it is advised that you read and understand this page in its entirety. The spell may be said up to an hour in advance of time stoppage and may be performed silently. After it is recited, simply snap your fingers when you are ready for time to come to a halt for those around you. If you touch somebody while you snap, then they also will be immune to the time stoppage while everybody else appears frozen around you. Snap again when you are finished and time will immediately start back up—to the joy or dismay of those around you.

TIGGLEDY PIGGLEDY HIGGLEDY POE
I TOOKUND DE TALISMAN OFFEND A FOE
MIRANDA, MIRACTRA, MINSTANSILO BLAST
EUSTANCHIA MIRANCHIA TIME BALLIDO CAST