“I hadn’t really gotten that far—I’m still thinking about it myself and was hoping you guys might have some ideas.”
“An explosion,” Jari declared, an evil grin twisting his face.
“It’s always explosions with you,” Aamir grumbled.
“Explosions aren’t easy to ignore,” Jari retorted.
“That’s true,” Alex said, thinking. “But what could we blow up?”
“It will have to be something he will notice, no matter how far away from the keep he is,” Natalie mused. “If he’s beyond the walls, it needs to be something that will trigger him to return… An alarm or something?”
A lightbulb went off in Alex’s head. “Vincent, do you know what those golden cylinders are, the ones that seem to be stuck on lots of the walls in the keep?”
Vincent smiled. “I do indeed. Good eye, young man. After so long within these walls, I often forget certain sights and sounds that a newcomer would think strange. They are components in a network, running throughout the prison, ensuring Caius’s bidding is done. I believe they are modules that guarantee the smooth operation of the barrier magic that keeps us all at heel... Oft times, I have thought of destroying them myself, but the repercussions have rarely seemed worth the effort. You, on the other hand, have more than adequate motivation for such a thing, and I, for one, shall wait in anticipation of the sight and shall do whatever you require of me, to assist in the act. Any action which aggravates the dear warden is music to my old ears.”
“Wait, so we can actually bring down the barrier magic?” Alex asked, dumbfounded.
“That enough of a spectacle for you?” Vincent smirked.
“Damn right it is!” Jari answered for him.
“How do we do it?” Ellabell pressed, a look of tentative hope in her blue eyes.
Vincent stretched out his arms, his bony fingers clicking. “It won’t be a simple endeavor, and it will require the utmost precision and concentration, but it can be achieved if you are willing to put in the focus, especially with there being so many of you. If we all shoulder a portion of the responsibility, we can have Caius running to us before you know it.” He paused. “However, it is not all plain sailing, and I would not advise we remove the barrier in its entirety, given the nature of so many of the miscreants within these walls. But I do believe the same effect can be achieved if we remove a mere portion of the barrier magic. Its failure should trigger enough of an alarm to force Caius’s hand, and urge him from his lair.”
“And that can be done?” Natalie asked.
Vincent nodded, his large head bobbing on his fragile neck. “The golden cylinders, to my knowledge, work much in the way of a circuit. If we break a section of the circuit, we break a section of the barrier. In addition, the mechanisms within each cylinder are representative of a circuit, so we will be required to investigate more closely the inner workings of a cylinder before we can proceed.”
“How so?” Aamir asked.
“Well, we must discover whether the cylinders’ circuits need to be halted at the exact same time, in order to break the larger body of circuitry. There are many safeguards such as this in place all over the keep, and if this turns out to be the case, everyone will need to halt the cylinders precisely at the given time, to break that portion of the barrier. If it is not required, the task will be far simpler,” he explained.
Alex had a feeling it would be the former. Nothing was ever simple in the magical world. And yet, there was something practical in the explanation that excited Alex; it gave him the same feeling that clockwork gave him—that coding had once given him in the real world—and he was more than ready to examine the mechanisms within the golden cylinders.
“This is gonna be awesome,” Jari said with a fist pump.
“I hate to be the party-pooper, but how are we supposed to capture Caius once he’s actually here?” Ellabell asked.
Alex swallowed. “Well… If we can get him to come to the connecting hallways where the broken barrier modules will be, and if we bring some bottles of the Stillwater essence…we could use them against him, the way I did with Alypia.” He shuddered slightly at the memory. “Combined with the element of surprise, that should give us fairly good odds, especially if we can block the exits—right?”
“It should…” Vincent replied.
“Will this take a long time?” Professor Lintz spoke up for the first time from his spot at the table, where he was still tinkering away with his mechanical beetles.
As if taking the signal from Lintz, Demeter chimed in. “I don’t believe it will, though of course it will depend on the nature of the circuitry.”
Vincent nodded. “Even if the circuitry turns out to be more complex than expected, the whole endeavor should take a few days, once we get everything in order.”
“Jammers will need to be fitted, which I’m sure Lintz can handle, as long as the rest of us shoulder the bulk of the work,” Demeter said.
Lintz nodded. “If you’re telling me we can have Caius here in a matter of days, with the potential of having the Kingstone essence in hand, then I’m all for it. I will make the best darned jammers you have ever seen, though I will need to get a report from the cylinders, so I know which kind to make. Demeter, would you go with Vincent to investigate and then report back? I just want to get these finished, so there aren’t bits falling off them.” He sighed wearily.
“Yes, shall we head down now?” Demeter asked. “After all, there is no time like the future.”
“I’ll come with you,” Alex said. “I want to see what I can do with these cylinders.”
“We’ll meet up with Agatha too—she’ll be thrilled to know what devilish affairs I’m getting us into,” Vincent remarked, chuckling softly.
Alex nodded. “Okay. Anyone else want to come look at the cylinders?”
The others shook their heads.
“Ellabell and I will go on Alypia duty and help to keep those portals at bay,” said Natalie, and Ellabell nodded her confirmation.
“And Jari and I are going to go on beetle duty, to get them fixed up and fit for use,” Aamir added.
“I’ll fill you in when I get back,” Alex said.
Ellabell grasped his hand. “Make sure you don’t go anywhere you’re not supposed to by yourself,” she warned. “We don’t want you hurtling out of any more windows.”
“No more falling out of windows.”
“Good.” She smirked.
Demeter was already heading out of the room, and Alex hurriedly followed him, with Vincent bringing up the rear. As they made their way through the prison, toward Agatha and the first golden cylinder, Alex finally felt as if they were getting somewhere.
Caius, we’re coming for you, he thought, unable to stop the smile as it spread across his face.
Chapter 9
Although Demeter and Vincent didn’t say much as they wandered down the corridors, Alex could hardly contain his optimism. If their new plan worked, they might just manage to stay one step ahead of the game, evading Alypia before she had the chance to break through to the keep. It seemed as if she was doubling her efforts to reconnect the portal from Stillwater, but, as worried as that made him, Alex refused to feel disheartened. Where there were options, there was hope.
Turning the corner from one of the inner vestibules, complete with its enticing golden cylinder, they reached the hallway where Agatha and Vincent’s cells were, though the necromancer continued past the two half-open doors, moving away from his own room and heading toward another door a little way up. He knocked lightly, awaiting the response from within.
“Come in!” cried Agatha.
Alex wasn’t sure what this room was, but it sure didn’t look like a cell. Beyond the door was a small common room of sorts, though Agatha was the only inhabitant. She had said her farewells to Alex and the others after his near-death experience out of the window, blaming a sudden onset of fatigue, though she seemed rejuvenated now as she greeted Alex, Demeter and Vincent.
/> A fire burned fiercely in a grate on the far side, with dusty armchairs arranged in front of it. Alex thought it might be something of a fire hazard, but he didn’t mention it as he followed Vincent and Demeter inside, choosing to stand while the others sat before the roaring flames. On the back wall, Alex caught a glimpse of gold fixed into the masonry, half-covered by a carved wooden sculpture of a goddess. The sight took him by surprise, making him realize that this must once have been an old guard room or something, not intended for the use of prisoners. It was actually a barrier module, similar to the ones that graced the walls in the various courtyards and vestibules within the prison. Alex wandered toward it, wanting to get a better look.
“Welcome, welcome, to our little prison oasis—tea, my cherubs?” Agatha asked, offering a cup.
“No, thanks.” Alex shook his head, not turning in her direction. He felt too hot for tea.
“As you please. What brings you back into my loving arms?” Agatha asked, as she sipped from her own cup.
“Just a notifying errand, Agatha,” Vincent explained. “There’s a plan afoot to fiddle with the pesky barrier modules and bring dear old Caius into something of an ambush. I thought you’d want to be kept informed of such exciting goings-on.”
Alex reached the far wall, moving the carved sculpture aside. The gold glinted as he lifted a hand toward it, wanting to feel the cylinder’s smooth, ornate surface. Even at this distance, he could hear the thrum of something mechanical within, and knew he would have to pry the outer shell off somehow to get to what was inside.
Agatha inclined her head in a subtle nod. “I imagine the warden is currently out and about, darting among the shadows at the edge of the forest, no doubt inspired by the darkness. What new, vile methods shall he find with which to torment us next, I wonder? Anything to keep us like soldiers, all in a line, never setting a foot wrong,” she murmured.
“So this is a magic barrier module, here?” Alex wanted to double check, scrutinizing the screws that held the top cover in place, wondering how he was going to lift it off.
Vincent eyed the contraption with calm curiosity. “Goodness, in all these years, I had forgotten that thing was even in here. It has become such a part of the furniture,” he mused. “Yes, it is, though it’s a little bigger than the others, wouldn’t you say? How about we take a look at it?”
“I think it needs a screwdriver or something,” Alex said, tapping the metal. A spark stung the end of his fingertip, as he had experienced with the first module he had happened upon. He took it as a good sign.
“Agatha, would you be of any use to our new friend? I know you love a good lock-pick,” Vincent asked, glancing at her.
She shook her head. “Cripes, no! Don’t you remember the last time I gave it a try? Sent me flying halfway across the room!”
“Ah, yes, I knew there was something I forgot to mention about it,” the necromancer said, tapping the side of his head. “You don’t seem to be having much trouble, mind you,” he remarked to Alex, drawing a curious expression from Agatha.
“Thanks for the warning,” said Alex, with a note of sarcasm. If he hadn’t already had a brief encounter with one of these things, he might have approached it more carefully, had he known it could knock him back. Vincent was right, though—so far it hadn’t seemed to affect him much, save for a little electric shock. He frowned, trying to ignore the strange look Agatha was giving him. He wondered if the shock meant there was some sort of shield protecting the module. It made sense, given that it was placed within a prison full of criminals, and yet he couldn’t sense any magic coming from the shell itself.
Perhaps it’s something underneath?
“Well, we certainly have enough detritus lying around our beloved sitting room. I’m almost certain there will be something of use among the bric-a-brac,” the pale man assured Alex as he rose to seek it out.
Sure enough, in the depths of a dusty chest of drawers, Vincent found a screwdriver and brandished it aloft with a whoop of triumph, before bringing it over to where Alex stood. Alex took the tool gratefully, and set to work on the eight screws that held the larger module’s cover in place. He made swift work of it, the shell easily coming away to reveal a complex mechanism of gleaming clockwork within. It was truly a work of art, and Alex gasped as he leaned closer, wanting to inspect every cog, every bolt, every delicately placed bit of solder. Sure enough, the whole inner structure glittered with the threat of a protective shield, moving liquidly across the surface. Alex paused, wondering how to get around it.
Carefully, not wanting to set off something terrible, he fed delicate strands of his anti-magic through the glittering shield and let it flow through the mechanisms. As it took hold, he realized he could manipulate sections of the clockwork, making certain pieces stop, and other pieces work backward. However, controlling the entire mechanism was near impossible with the shield in place, making Alex realize they would have to come up with a way of breaking down the shields first, before they could even begin to think about manipulating the clockwork. Looking at the mechanism itself, he could also see that feeding Lintz’s jammers into the system wouldn’t work; it would help, but they were going to have to overload the mechanisms too, if they wanted to destroy the modules. Simply stopping them wouldn’t be enough.
Jari will be pleased, Alex thought. He’ll get his explosions.
However, they still had the protective shield to contend with. Alex could get around it using thin slivers of anti-magic, but that wouldn’t be nearly enough power to overload the system. Just as he was about to lose hope, becoming frustrated with the device, his eye was caught by the sight of something at the very top of the cylinder. Running along the top and bottom edges were two thin golden lines. It was a sight he recognized.
Reaching tentatively toward it, careful to avoid the glimmering shield, Alex paused. He wasn’t sure if it was the focus on barrier magic or the blazing fire or the thick walls, trapping the heat in, but the room had grown very hot all of a sudden, making him feel strange. His back was drenched in a cold sweat. Careful not to lose his footing, Alex moved toward the window that stood beside the golden module, to try to get at some of the fog-filtered air drifting feebly in, but he knew he wasn’t going to make it. He was going to faint, and it was going to happen any moment.
Awkwardly, he stumbled, reaching out for the nearest thing, which happened to be the top of the golden cylinder. His hands clamped around the edge of it, the sharp metal sides digging into his palms, as his knees buckled beneath him. Managing to keep upright, he leaned forward into the wall, resting his head against it until the woozy feeling went away. He stood there, swaying slightly, his head throbbing, the cold stone soothing against the bare skin of his forehead. It took him a while to notice the flakes of snow that flurried around him, but by then it was too late, and he felt the prickle of a different heat on his skin—the heat of intense eyes on him.
As his own eyes cleared from their hazy, semi-conscious fog, he became aware of a figure lunging in his direction. He moved out of the way just in time to see Agatha hurl herself at the spot where he had been, with a savage, enraged grimace of hatred on her formerly kind face.
“SPELLBREAKER SCUM!” she screamed, her face contorted in a mask of pure loathing. She rounded on him with lightning speed, clearly intent on doing him real harm.
It shocked Alex to witness the split-second change in Agatha, who had seemed so sweet and nice mere moments before. He ducked as she twisted magic toward him, powerful magic. The next onslaught he managed to bat away, though he could feel the strength of her magic as he made contact with it, swiping it from the air, all the while continuing to duck and dive away from her vicious attacks.
“HOW DARE YOU! HOW DARE YOU!” Agatha roared.
It seemed to him as if she were everywhere at once, and he wasn’t sure how long he could fend her off, in his current state. Adrenaline had come to his aid again, but it was close to running out.
Suddenly, a spell hit him sq
uare in the chest, precisely against the point that had been giving him so much trouble, where the raw edge of his essence still pulsed painfully. The agony was instantaneous, and his body doubled over in an attempt to quash the searing burn of it. She had found his weak spot.
Alex lifted his head to see Demeter stepping quietly up behind Agatha, placing his palms on either side of her head as his lips moved silently, his fingers weaving golden magic into her skull. Agatha froze, and her eyes went blank. Alex watched as Demeter carefully picked her up, carrying her to the largest armchair, where he laid her down.
Fear gripped Alex again as he saw Vincent coming toward him, but the eerie man’s face didn’t denote any hint of a threat. Rather, there was an expression of sympathy upon his strange, pale face.
“Come with me, dear boy,” the necromancer urged, taking Alex gently by the arm as he led him past the still figure draped across the armchair, and out into the hallway. He took him to the vestibule at the top of the corridor, and leaned him against the wall by the open window, encouraging him to catch his breath. “Breathe, breathe. Good, heavy, deep breaths.”
“What just happened?” Alex gasped, doing as Vincent said, drawing in breath after breath as evenly as he could. It was becoming increasingly evident that he could not escape the curse of people wanting to kill him. If it wasn’t Alypia, it was someone else. And yet, he had never expected such a reaction from one as seemingly sweet and kind as Agatha.
“I apologize for the actions of my friend,” Vincent said. “You must understand, it is not easy for those who have lived as long as we have lived—the ghosts grow louder as our years recede into the ether, and Agatha is particularly haunted.”
“I don’t understand.” Alex leaned back, shaking his head.
“Ah, I would not expect you to,” Vincent said, his face pulling into a taut, uncomfortable smile. “You are untouched by the hatred that once brewed between our two races.”
Alex wasn’t sure that was entirely true, having experienced a multitude of hateful tales, but he said nothing to the contrary, allowing Vincent to continue.