Confessions of the Magpie Wizard Book 3: Dissolution (Chapter 84, 85, 86)

Art of Kiyo by Rianne. 🦉rianne | COMMISSIONS OPEN (@RianneComms) / Twitter

Chapter 84

I took a moment to admire myself in the uniform shop’s mirror. The new uniform was a touch short in the sleeves, but otherwise perfect.

Too perfect, in fact. “You’re much too clean for a hostage.” I cut a few gashes on my sleeves and pant legs with my emergency knife, accidentally nicking myself on the left arm. It was tempting to heal myself, but I figured a little blood would only add to the authenticity.

I quickly checked in with Ratte, who reported he and a detachment of Brothers were on their way.

“Buy us some time, Brother Mockingbird. Sister Shrike sent some of her followers down as well.”

“Splendid. I’ll keep them occupied. Tell Shrike to keep the comms silent; you could expose me. Oh, and I won’t be wearing my uniform, so tell your men to not shoot at the handsome young man with the black hair. They’re on a bit of a hair trigger.”

“I will pass that along,” replied Brother Ratte in a resigned tone.

I poked my head out of the shop, seeing Yukiko and Kiyo from behind. They were moving slowly, Yukiko taking the lead and Kiyo covering her. The shorter girl had a Svalinn’s Mercy floating near her head. A sensible precaution, when there are enemies about.

I hesitated, wondering if I was walking into a trap. “Rubbish, Malthus. As far as they know, you’re still on their side.”

“Kiyo, is that you?”

She spun around, training Lucile at me. My stomach churned for a moment, worried that I had been found out somehow.

Her jubilant smile was almost worse. Our Father Below knew I didn’t deserve it. “Magpie!” She rushed over, nearly dropping Lucile in her excitement. “We thought… I thought you were…”

“I’m fine, Angel,” I replied. “Just a little worse for wear.”

Yukiko followed a moment after, keeping a more respectful distance. Still, I could tell the guarded young woman was relieved. “Mr. Marlowe! We were starting to think the worst.”

“You can’t be rid of me that easily,” I replied. Certainly not the way my luck was going.

“Yukiko was sure they’d caught you, but I believed in you! I mean, the Horde didn’t catch you, what chance did these losers have?” Kiyo pressed up against me, which was as close as she could get to an embrace without dropping her rifle in the process.

“As touching as this all is, we don’t have time,” said Yukiko. “Soren, did you see where that attacker went? He’s completely vanished.”

“Attacker?” I replied, trying to sound as dumb as I could manage.

Footsteps approached from behind. “You already found him,” said Rose. ‘That was Magpie in disguise.”

I cursed Rose’s timing. “Oh, you meant me.” I puffed myself up, trying to look prouder than I felt. “Yes, I stole one of their disguise fabricate, after we had a scuffle in my room. These Holy Brothers are sneaky; you can never trust your eyes with them.”

Yukiko rubbed her shoulder, her subtle relief turning to visible annoyance. “Wait, what? You threw that shield right at me!”

I sniffed haughtily. “Kiyo had just shot a bullet right next to your ear, and you grabbed me with your gravity affinity! You weren’t going to hear me surrender. I needed some distance.” It didn’t quite fit the timing of events, but fights can be fluid things. If I said it confidently enough, the lie would hold up long enough for Ratte’s men to arrive.

Kiyo’s free hand shot to her mouth, her fair skin flushing with embarrassment. “Oh God, I shot at you!”

“No blood, no foul, my dear. You just took out one of my shields. There’s plenty more where that came from.” I had to stop myself from wrapping an arm around her. “Well, I think we’re all caught up.”

Rose cut off Yukiko before she could speak, which was fine by me. She was the most likely to be objective, which is like kryptonite to a charlatan. “We need to get up to the library! That’s where they’re holding the Headmaster, right?”

“That’s what they said in the broadcast,” I said, subtly guiding them towards the working elevators. I doubted Ratte was having his men climb a few dozen floors of stairs, after all.

“Then what are we waiting for?” Kiyo nodded towards the elevators. “We need to ride up there and kick some butt!”

“We shouldn’t charge right in,” said Yukiko. “They’ll be expecting that. We should ride the elevators a few floors down from the library.”

Kiyo sighed. “Ugh. Stairs.”

Rose flashed her a grin. “You can pretend you hate it all you like, but we whipped you into shape.”

“Look, I can be good at things and still hate them.”

“Then you don’t need to complain about it,” replied Yukiko. “It isn’t becoming of a Nagoya wizard.”

“Neither is letting me fall down the…” Kiyo stopped herself from mentioning the first War Game for the thousandth time. “Sorry. You’re right, Yukiko.”

“I usually am,” she replied, with just the ghost of a smile on her face.

“You don’t need to worry about those stairs, Kiyo,” I said. It all seemed painfully normal. Walking through the shopping center, bickering over nothing, Kiyo glued to my side.

Rose’s ear perked up as we neared the functional set of elevators, just before we would leave the large shopping complex. “Did you hear that?”

“Hear what?” A touch of Mimic Sight confirmed three wizards were coming our way. I took a step back, acting as casually as I could.

“Footsteps,” said Yukiko, drawing a sword from her side. She usually favored a naginata to compensate for her height, but I supposed she wouldn’t want to haul the long weapon through the Tower. They hadn’t expected a fight; it was only Kiyo’s attachment to Lucile that had seen her bring it along. It was just one of her adorable little quirks.

“I’m going to save my magic,” said Yukiko, preparing for a defense I was about to spoil. “I’ll be the duelist for you two. Rose, you’re the caster. Kiyo, you’re the shooter.”

“I’m glad I’m on your side this time,” said Rose. “Yukiko, if things go badly… It’s, uh, it’s been okay knowing you, Yukiko.”

“Likewise,” she replied. “I’d go so far as to say good.”

“I’m sticking with okay,” said Kiyo.

“I have no idea what you three are talking about,” I said. “I don’t hear a thing.”

Kiyo dropped to her knees, bracing the rifle against her slender shoulder. “Then you need to get your hearing checked, Magpie.”

“Wait until you see the whites of their eyes,” said Rose, magical runes spinning around her hands.

I could have pointed out the irony in a British woman quoting an American Revolutionary, but there wasn’t the time. I could just make out the Holy Brothers’ hushed voices making their plans for the coming fracas. Without any way to signal them, I needed to neutralize Kiyo first. If she fired another Flashbang bullet down the hall, she could disable Ratte’s whole group in one go.

I pulled my punches, naturally. “Water Orb.” Like that time at the firing range, Kiyo was too focused to hear me cast the spell, which I aimed right at her exposed neck.

“What the heck?” She whipped around, her face contorted into an angry mask. “Now? Really? What’s wrong with you?”

“A slip of the finger, I assure you,” I said.

Rose and Yukiko both looked up from their casting to see what we were fighting over.

Which gave Brothers Frettchen, Ratte and Maus time to round the corner, followed by three of the normal soldiers.

Chapter 85

Looking back on things, we should have had Brother Ratte’s group. It was a tough position to take, on paper. We had them boxed into a narrow hallway, and in theory, we had four wizards to their three. We also had them by surprise, since they seemed startled to see us waiting for them. If Kiyo had been in position, the fight would have been over before it began. However, I’d bought them precious seconds, and they put it to good use.

“Sniper!” Brother Ratte followed up his warning by casting Slow Barrier, drawing a distorted wave through the air in front of his men. From experience, I knew that would stop any projectile dead in its tracks.

So did Brother Ratte’s men. The ordinary soldiers quickly deduced the edges of the shimmering barrier and used it for cover.

Brother Frettchen pointed his hands up, fingers dancing as he cast an elaborate spell. “Glitter Bomb!” A wobbling orb of energy flew towards us in an arc, reminding me of a blinding, green water balloon.

Brother Maus opened his pockets, spilling a pile of sand and dirt onto the carpet to give his affinity something to work with.

In mere moments, they had established a defensive position, had their mundane soldiers ready to lay down supporting fire as needed, had one of their wizards ready to start lobbing attacks with his native magic, and the third had already launched an attack, all in the course of a few seconds. As a former commander, I felt a twinge of jealousy. They had the advantage of not having to corral orcs, I told myself.

Rose and Yukiko were no slouches, though. Rose thrust out her hand, sending a concentrated gust of wind out to drive the Glitter Bomb off course. It flew into a decorative tree behind us, coating it in sticky flecks of energy.

Yukiko rushed towards them. Despite her promise to spare her magic, she adjusted the gravitational pull of one of the soldier’s helmets, smacking it into his partners hard enough to ring like a bell. The right flank cleared of gunmen, she dashed forward, her sword at the ready. Rose followed on the left

“Magpie I… never mind!” Kiyo turned, aiming right at the Slow Barrier. She had encountered that spell many times in our War Game, which told me she had an area of effect spell loaded up. The Slow Barrier could stop the bullet, but the impact would activate the magic stored in its fabricata.

“To Me,” I whispered. I had copied the handy little utility spell from Maggie before. Such a pity it was a Second-Year lesson. Lucile jumped in Kiyo’s hands, sending the bullet through the door of the creperie. The explosion cracked the windows of the storefront, but the light was too distant to do any harm.

Cursing like a sailor, Kiyo vanished with Lucile.

Brother Frettchen locked his eyes on Yukiko as she neared the Slow Barrier’s right side. The placid giant’s face stayed neutral as he stepped from behind his protective wall. He drew his own sword, silently challenging the Sato heiress. There was no way she would challenge a man twice her weight in melee combat, was there?

“Ya!” Yukiko Sato never lacked for confidence, I had to give her that. She baited Frettchen into an attack, using well-practiced mahoukenjutsu to anticipate and deflect the attacks. She wouldn’t be able to win like that, but I suspected she was feeling out the other wizard before spending her dwindling magic reserves.

The remaining mundane soldier drew his rifle on Rose, using the corner of the Slow Barrier for cover.

Rose was faster on the draw, since she didn’t have to aim. The energy blocked most of her gust, but when she was throwing around hurricane-force winds, it was enough to slam him against the wall with an audible thud.

Brother Maus held up his hand, compressing his payload into a dense, football shaped payload.

Brother Ratte put a hand on Maus’ shoulder. “Don’t waste time with your dirt. She’ll just blow it away.”

“Dang straight!” crowed Rose, stopping on the opposite size of the barrier. “Come on out! It’s time to reap the whirlwind!”

Brother Maus nodded once. “Want to give her the old Valhalla?”

Brother Ratte’s only reply was a grunt.

“Thor’s Hammer!” The runes around Brother Maus’ hands coalesced into a pulsating; golden structure nearly as tall as him. He struggled to hold onto the wildly shifting energy structure. His face was slick with perspiration, illuminated in the chaotic energies of the spell.

My heart stopped. “What? You lunatics, you’ll kill her!”

Rose had the sense to back up, but it was too late. With a snap of his fingers, Brother Ratte dismissed the Slow Barrier, while his compatriot swung the hammer with the form of an Olympic hammer toss.

“Svalinn’s Mercy!” The shield I threw up between Rose and Brother Maus turned out to be completely insufficient, shattering in an instant. I had expected as much; among the humans I had fought in England, that was a spell of last resort, since it had to be used at short range, and was liable to break containment and blow up in the caster’s face. And those monsters used it as their opening move!

Which was why I had shaped the Svalinn’s Mercy like a wedge. If I couldn’t stop the attack, I could redirect it. The spell dug deep furrows in the ground around the blonde girl, but she was mostly untouched.

Mostly. The shockwave still sent her sprawling. Rose rolled with the impact, but she was shaken. Her eyes were wide open, the whites visible, even from twenty feet off.

Brother Ratte took that as his cue to shoot. “Magic Bolt!” It seemed almost like a letdown to see such a basic spell at work after Brother Maus’ display.

Rose snapped out of it just in time. “Magic Bolt!” Her energy ball slammed straight into Ratte’s, the hardened domes buckling as they collided. They exploded as the magical energy found release. Brother Maus had taken the chance to erect a Svalinn’s Mercy, saving them from the brunt of the blast.

Rose didn’t have another wizard backing her up, and she was knocked prone again by the impact. This time, she wasn’t so quick to get back up.

A shriek to my right drew my attention back to Yukiko and Brother Frettchen. Frettchen’s Wizard Corps uniform was stained red with blood from a shallow wound Yukiko’s katana had inflicted on his arm. He had her in a firm grip, her tiny body pressed against his chest by arms nearly as wide around as her torso.

“Let me go!” Yukiko’s affinity glowed bright red, the carpeted floor groaning as Brother Frettchen’s substantial weight doubled and redoubled.

“That’s enough of that,” said Brother Frettchen, his soothing voice more disturbing than if he had been shouting.

Yukiko drove her head against his chin, earning nothing but an annoyed grunt from the Holy Brother. “I won’t let you go! Let’s see how tough you are when you weigh a ton!”

“That would take you with me,” he said cajolingly.

“So what?” she asked. “I’ll drop us all the way to the ground floor if I have to! I’ve seen how you treat prisoners, but I know you’ll save your own sorry butt first! Now I said let… me…”

I couldn’t help but flinch. The sound of breaking bone never gets any easier to hear. The glow around him faded away as tears of pain welled in Yukiko’s eyes.

“That was one rib, little one,” he said. “Don’t make me do that again. The next one could pierce a lung.”

She looked on at me pleadingly. “S-Soren, please…”

I jogged over. Yukiko almost looked hopeful. “She’s had enough, Brother Frettchen.”

“I’m not sure she has,” he replied. “I still feel a bit heavier than I should.”

Sure enough, a faint glow surrounded Brother Frettchen’s body. Each breath pained her, but she kept resisting. “Soren, Wh-why are you talking to them like-”

“Time’s up,” declared Brother Frettchen. The Holy Brother smelled of onions as his affinity went to work. The magic travelled down his arms and into his hand, pooling into his finger before it discharged a bolt of energy into Yukiko’s ribcage. It was like throwing a punch without throwing a punch.

The second rib was too much for the Sato girl, and she passed out. Thank goodness.

The awful moment over, I recovered, jabbing my finger into Brother Frettchen’s face. “Now, see here! My deal with Sister Shrike was that they were to be unharmed! You nearly crushed her to death!”

“I did tell her what would happen,” replied Brother Frettchen. His subtle grin told me the soft-spoken wizard had no regrets about the fight’s outcome. “I had to hit extra hard with my Force Burst, or it wouldn’t go through her armor.”

“And like I said, your deal was with Sister Shrike,” said Brother Ratte, the unconscious Rose slung over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. “My first priority was the lives of my men, and they weren’t showing any restraint.”

“They’re damn students!” I protested.

“They’re breathing,” said Brother Ratte. Yukiko wheezed in Brother Frettchen’s arms, a trail of red leaking from her mouth. “More or less.”

“Hey, Mockingbird, did you see where the other one went?” Brother Maus scanned the rows of shops nervously.

I shrugged, almost hoping she would start running and not stop. “She can be hard to track; her affinity is turning invisible.”

Maus chuckled to himself. “Oh, she’s that one? I’m ready for her.” With a wave of his hand, the football shaped clod of dirt and rock turned into so much dust, spreading it in a fine powder that made me sneeze.

I didn’t suffer alone. A familiar shape stood in the entrance of a small clothing store, coughing to clear the dust from her unseen mouth. She had Lucile trained right on us.

Brother Ratte cupped his hand around mouth. “Cadet Jones! Show yourself!”

“Fine! I’m just wasting magic anyway!” She came back into view, a bit dirty, but no worse for wear.

“Lower your weapon, or your friends will suffer more!”

“No way!” She shouted back. “Let Magpie and the others go, or I swear to God I’ll blow you all to hell! I’ve got a high explosive round loaded and ready to go!”

“Pretend to hold me hostage,” I whispered to Brother Maus.

“Come again?” the short wizard asked.

I gulped. “She… she’s taken with me. She’ll surrender if she thinks I’m in danger.”

He nodded, grabbing me by the wrist and jabbing the business end of a combat knife into my throat. “We’ve got your little Mockingbird, girl! Put the weapon away or we’ll ventilate him!”

“Magpie!” The horror in her voice pierced me to the core.

“You’d best do as he says,” I shouted back. “They say we’ll be okay as long as we cooperate!”

Lucile’s barrel shook. “N-nice try, you faker! You’re in a disguise like Haru. You’re one of them! My Soren would never give up like that!”

That unearned praise hurt nearly as much as Brother Maus’ overly tight grip. “Please, be reasonable. Don’t you want to see the gaming museum again? Or that hotel with the Pac Man bed?” That last comment earned me an odd look from the Holy Brothers.

“It is you.” She lowered the rifle, the betrayal in her eyes visible even at that distance.

“I’m afraid it’s the real me,” I replied.

“Yes, it’s him,” spat Brother Ratte. “Now that we have established the obvious, drop the gun.”

She complied, winking out of sight right after. Her echoing footsteps grew more distant as she darted away.

Brother Maus released my arm. “We need to round her up.”

“What can one little girl do?” Brother Frettchen had set the lightly moaning Yukiko down, and he was busy tying her arms behind her back.

“It’s not what she can do,” I said. “It’s what will happen to her if we bring down the Tower while she’s hiding.”

“Acceptable losses,” declared Brother Ratte, placing a hand on my shoulder. “Brother Mockingbird, retrieve her rifle, and help us get the other prisoners upst- ARGH!”

The only thing I’d won challenging orcs to arm wrestling were bruises and enough grip strength to get the Norwegian wizard’s attention. “You misunderstand me, Brother Ratte. I am going to go collect Kiyo Jones, and when I do, nothing is going to happen to her. Her safety is your safety. Am I clear?”

“Y-yes,” the hardened man said, shaken for the first time since I had met him.

“Good.” I released his wrist and went on my way, my Mimic Vision showing Kiyo’s magical signature rushing for the third level.

As I took the first flight of stairs, I could just make out Brother Frettchen’s voice. “Ooh, I like him.”

“You would,” muttered Ratte.

Chapter 86

I felt sorry for Kiyo just then. Her Death of Light affinity should have been perfect for a game of cat and mouse, but my refined Mimic made her slender outline as plain as day to me. She had ducked into a darkened electronics store, tucking herself away in a dark corner between the smartphone display and the wall.

“Kiyo?” She gave no response, but I didn’t need my magic to hear her frantic breathing from behind the counter. I took a few steps closer, making as much noise as I could. I didn’t want to startle her. “I know you’re there.”

“Yeah, I heard you coming a mile away,” she said. She peeked over the countertop, her eyes peering out from under her beret. “Why did you do it?”

“Do what, my-”

“Throw in with the goddamn Holy Brotherhood! I can’t believe you made me say it!” She dropped out of sight. “You doused me right at the start of the fight, and I know you threw my aim off!”

“You have me there,” I said, hunkering down on the opposite side of the counter. “I’m here to bring you back. They promise that you’ll be fine if you cooperate.”

“They’re monsters, Soren! Whatever they promised you, you aren’t going to get it!”

“Oh, I have my ways of making sure they live up to their deal. Nothing’s going to happen to you.”

“I’m not worried about me, you idiot! All the students, and the Headmaster! I just… I’m…” She slammed her fist into the tiled floor. “I don’t know what to say to you right now.”

“Take your time, my dear.”

“I don’t have the words, and you’re supposed to be there to figure out what I’m thinking.”

“Another line of the boyfriend/girlfriend contract?” I asked, chuckling weakly.

After a long silence, she spoke up again. “I didn’t think you were a traitor.”

It just went to show she never knew me. “I’m practical.”

“I thought you’d know better, being a cutie… being a demonkin, after what the Horde did to you. What, you wanted to hook up with the other evil army?”

“Once I get three punches, I get a free ice cream sundae,” I replied.

That set her off. Leaping over the counter, she landed in front of me. I flinched away at her fury. “This isn’t funny! None of this is funny! Soren, they’re awful people, and you’re helping them do heinous shit.”

“They said they’d spare you all if I helped,” I said. “They have the Headmaster, and they can topple the Tower any time they like. I didn’t have a choice.”

“Yes, you did. There’s always a choice!” She choked back a sob. “What about what we always said? You and me against the world! There were three of them and four of us!”

“They’ve got more wizards than you know about,” I replied. “We’re just students. We need to stand down.”

Kiyo’s slap didn’t sting much. Physically, at least. “What the heck is wrong with you? You feel like Soren, so why don’t you sound or act like him?”

“Maybe you don’t know me as well as you thought,” I said. “There’s nothing to be gained fighting a useless battle. Sometimes you have to know when to give in. It’s why I’m here today.”

“For what? If you’re going to just be a wimp, then what’s the point of living?”

Because there was a spot in the lake of fire waiting for me, and I wanted to delay that as long as I could. Our Father Below did not approve us rogue devils’ invasion of the Earth, and we had been told not to expect a hero’s welcome.

“There’s no point in fighting. The choice has already been made, Kiyo,” I said, rubbing my cheek. “They caught Rose and Yukiko.”

“And Mariko,” she said. “What, you’re going to just abandon her God-knows-where?”

I almost wished I had. “I’ll make sure she’s taken care of. Are you going to come quietly? I can make sure you’re comfortable.”

Her expression softened as she reached out, pressing my hand against my reddening face. “Soren, please. You’re the bravest guy I know. You jumped down a mountain for me. You saved my life when that Haru guy nearly stung us to death.”

“You’re missing the important part,” I said, my voice quavering more than I’d have liked. “It was always for you. I’m a damn coward, but you make me abandon my sense. Don’t throw all of my hard work away playing hero!”

“I don’t care,” she said. “I’d rather die than let them rule us, and that’s what they want! If you don’t have a better idea, we can figure something out together. They think you’re on their side, right? We can surprise them.”

Haru’s face flashed through my mind unbidden. “I’ve gone to an awful lot of trouble for you. Committed crimes that can never be forgiven. It’s too late for me here.”

She shook her head forcefully. “No way. It can’t be that bad. And if it is, so what? I’m not going to love you any less.”

“What if I’m a fugitive the rest of my life?”

“Then I’ll be Mrs. Fugitive. I always wanted to travel more. C’mon Magpie, it’s you and me against the world! We’ll make those Holy Brothers sorry they were ever born.” Kiyo held out her hand to me, her dark, soulful eyes looking at me expectantly.

I reached out for her, but stopped short. “You really mean that, don’t you? You’d throw your whole life away for me.”

“Of course,” she said.

She was sincere, I had to give her that. Stupidly brave, too. Still, I could never deny my little Angel. I clasped her hand, and she helped me to my feet. At least, as much as she could, with our difference in weight. “Let’s be off.”

She dug in her heels. “Wait, we need a plan first.”

“Oh, that’s easy,” I replied. “We act like you surrendered and play it by ear. Once we’re among them, they’re bound to let down their guard.”

“You make it sound so easy,” said Kiyo.

“Oh, it is. It worked on you, after all. Lechtar.”

Her body jerked as just the right charge of electricity passed through her body to knock her out. Twitching, she fell into my arms.

“You nearly convinced me,” I said, catching her as gently as I could, enjoying one last embrace. “It’s a shame I love you too much to let you end up with a wretch like me.”

********************

Thanks as always for reading! 

Previous Update: Confessions of the Magpie Wizard Book 3: Dissolution (Chapter 81, 82, 83) | D. B. Fassbinder on Patreon

Next Update: Confessions of the Magpie Wizard Book 3: Dissolution (Chapter 87, 88, 89) | D. B. Fassbinder on Patreon