A Prison of Worlds (The Chained Worlds Chronicles Book 1) (12 page)

Conrad
paused a moment, apparently mentally connecting my name with me.  “I am not
sure I thanked you properly last night.  You're help was invaluable.  The
Professor supplied a good description of what we could expect, but your
practical experience was a deciding factor that doubtless saved several
officers' lives.”  I am not sure, but I think he may have unconsciously posed
during that statement.

“You’re
welcome,” she gracefully nodded.  “I firmly believe that those of us with the
skills and abilities to make a difference should put forth every effort to help
those around them.”  She was staring me straight in the eyes when she said this
so I am almost positive she was directing this at me.  What did she want?  For
me to put a pair of tights and roam the city?  The fairies of the city would
have to get out and push.  She continued, “In fact the reason I am in the city
may impact you more than just a little.”

“I've
already been filled in about this part, would you like some coffee or tea?” I
asked as I made my way to kitchen.  “Oh by the way, make yourself at home.” I
gestured at the chairs and couches in the living room.

“Hmm,
sure, black, no sugar,” Conrad said as he settled himself in one of the chairs.

“I'll
have some of that tea you made last night.” I smiled at Mei's request.  It may
have just been a mundane mix of teas but my breed has a talent for cooking and
alchemy.

“Sure,
be right back.” I gave a lazy wave as I went into the kitchen.  The low mutter
of their voices made a pleasant backdrop to my preparations.  I frowned at a
slight scuff Jeremy had left on the counter and got sidetracked buffing it out
of the surface.  That unsightly blood stain had to go as well.  Oh well, I
would have to get Jeremy to earn his retainer and call it in for service.  Did
I mention that my vid phone had blown up again?  They could fix that too.

Midway
through my preparations, I heard a gruff exclamation that sort of sounded like “Demons.” 
I guess I knew what part Mei was in the story.  A few minutes later there was a
lull in the conversation and I came out with a tray.  I had added a few
croissants and a bit of bacon.  It wasn't really traditional but with predator
type shifters you really can't go wrong with meat.

“So
this wizard sent a horde of apprentices to fill the city with demonic pests,”
the officer was quietly snarling.

“Actually,
we're pretty sure that's just a side effect,” I interjected, as I slide the
tray on the coffee table.  “He is likely going for one of the big demons and he
is having his flunkies test out areas for good locations.”

“Alright,
what can we do about this?” he questioned flatly.  I nodded towards Mei.  She
looked a little startled at my last statement.  I hadn't specifically mentioned
it before, but after thinking it over last night it was pretty obvious.

“With
your help we can organize the packs,” she started earnestly.  “Get the
sensitive ones to identify the areas in the city where the magic is pooling and
stake them out.”

The
ill look on Conrad's face told me what he thought of that plan.  “Getting the
various packs in this city to act together is like herding cats,” he nodded in
Mei's direction.  “No offense.”

“I
know,” she said in soft sympathy.  I thought she was overplaying the empathy
thing, but it seemed to be working.  “But you’re the arbitrator, no one else
can get the packs working together.”

“Hmmm,
the jaguars and the panthers will be relatively easy,” he said reluctantly.  “I
will be trying to get them to join the force once the department is approved. 
But the wolves... they are difficult to keep in line, let alone work with us.”

“So
you can't do it?” Mei said in disappointed tone.

“No. 
I can do it.  I will just have to smack some pack leaders down on their ass. 
It's well within my rights, as this is a clear and present danger to our
territories.”

I
listened raptly; I doubted many had gotten this kind of insight on the shifter
hierarchy, especially the interaction of various races.  Where I grew up, they
stayed as far away from humans and other were-breeds as possible.  Apparently,
my attention was a little too obvious, and Conrad's eyes snapped to me.  I
tried to look as innocent as possible as I met his stare.

“I
would appreciate it if you forgot what we discussing.  It really isn't meant
for outsider's ears.”

“Didn't
hear a word,” I shrugged.  I was curious, but I really didn't feel the need to
share my knowledge with the world.  “Anyway, if we can get those areas covered
then we have a way to get the vampire's territory covered.”

“You
have vampire contacts?” Conrad was once more staring at me.  I was rapidly
becoming used to this.

“Yeah. 
You could say they volunteered.”  You can say a lot of things.  “Remember how I
mentioned that they were very territorial?  Well they don't like random
entities running through their home.”  I still didn’t know what they were doing
in the Blight.  As far as I knew, that was no one’s territory.

“I
can imagine,” Mei said, smiling sweetly.  It was hard to imagine her as the
vicious shifter that dominated a thug into spilling his guts just yesterday.

“Anyway,
why did you come over?” I asked the officer.  Not that it wasn't convenient not
to have to chase him down, but there were obviously other things on his mind
when he first came here.

He
looked startled to be reminded of his original purpose.  “Oh, right.  I got
sidetracked by the demons.”

“Yeah,
evil wizards and demonic invasions can do that,” I agreed with some sympathy. 
I can get sidetracked by the little things too.

“As
you know the magic user that was raising the zombies has blockaded himself
behind some sort of shield.  I came to see if you would mind coming to examine
it.”

“Sure,
I would love to,” I said with interest, I hadn't seen a major magically working
since I had gotten here.  It would be fun.

“It
seems I have my work cut out for me with the packs, would you mind if I had
another officer escort you there?”

I
shrugged, it didn't matter to me.

Jeremy
had left for the day, to make the preparations I had asked for.  Mei and Conrad
went off to kick some pack leader butt and I sat at home for about an hour
before an officer came to get me.  It turned out that to be a familiar face.

“Officer
Cromwell,” I greeted him at the door with a smile.  “Long time, no see.”  He
didn't look well.  One arm was in a sling, perhaps broken and half the surface
of his face was covered in half healed yellow bruises.  The local technology
was good enough to make mending of broken bones an outpatient service, but he
still really looked beat up.  He must not have had time to get his injuries looked
at yet.  “You look terrible.”

He
gave me a weak grin.  I guess surviving a horde of zombies makes you happy to
merely be alive.  “I would have been dead if it wasn't for you.  Those things
on the floor went up like bombs.  I would have been in them instead of outside
them if it weren't for your warning.  Call me Mat.”

I
nodded in acknowledgement, pleased that he was still alive.  He seemed like a
decent chap, perhaps a bit on the nervous side, but that would keep him alive. 
“Glad that worked out, Mat.  Conrad mentioned that it didn't end perfectly
though.  Call me Derek.” I offered in return.

“No,
that bastard enclosed the entire area in a big dome.  Didn't even see him in
there, but the shifters swear they smelled and heard a living person in there
before it went up.”

We
exchanged some small talk as the police cruiser flew through the town.  No
missiles popped out at us, and I actually was able to ignore my gnawing envy
enough to enjoy the scenery.  Mat had obviously requisitioned another vehicle
since the holes and rips I had made in the cushions and door were not present.

Within
a few minutes we landed.  The first thing I noticed was that four police
floaters were parked on the ground, and nearby a sewer cover was covered in
holographic barriers and had an access ladder coming from it.  I paused at the
sight.

“Yeah,”
Mat sighed, his voice mirroring the dismay I felt.  “This is the closest surface
access we can get.  Fortunately, this area of the sewers is relatively dry.”

Covering
my nose, I approached the opening.  The smell coming out of it was bad but I
suppose it could have been worse.  I was extremely grateful I lacked the
extreme senses that most bestial shape changers had.  “I'm surprised the
shifters didn't pass out.”

“Some
did get a bit sick, but it's really not that bad deeper in.  I don't know where
it's coming from but there's fresh air in there where the shield is.” Mat
sounded chipper about that.  I frowned; I had a bad feeling about that.

“Well,
let's get down there and see what's going on,” I muttered, trying to recapture
my earlier cheer.  I failed.

It
really wasn't so bad.  I repeated that to myself like a mantra.  Still, the
ground was only slightly spongy from material that had long ago decayed, so
much that it was almost soil rather than fresher biological material.  It had
enough left of its origins to stink up the tunnel, despite my attempts at
positive thinking.  Detachable light globes dotted the sides of the tunnel, put
there, I suppose, by the human police that couldn't see in the dark.

Mat
and I walked in complete silence.  I assumed he didn't want to open his mouth
and let more fumes in than he had to.  I was examining the walls for scratches
and trying to see if the ground, churned by dozens of footsteps, would reveal
anything I didn't already know.  It didn't.

It
was only a few hundred feet to the area the police had barricaded.  I could see
the damage on the columns and walls where supernatural creatures had been
pitted against others.  Pockmarks where guns had gone off and small bits of
unidentifiable giblets of flesh I didn't want to think too much about also
decorated the landscape.  In short, the area where the tunnel opened out into
the vast underground room resembled a warzone.

Four
officers were standing at the entrance.  It looked like some semi-mobile
barrier, borrowed from the army, had been set up to give the police cover if
anything were to happen.  My attention was grabbed by the shimmering blue wall
of mystic energy that almost completely filled the chamber.  The surface was
only barely translucent so it was difficult to tell, but it seemed to be
vaguely dome-shaped from floor to ceiling, and I may have been able to see
objects on the inside.

Ignoring
the muffled whispers of warning from the police, I walked up and put my hand on
the shield and opened my senses.  I could tell we were on a pretty decent node,
and this construct was sucking in most of that energy.  I could also sense the
dimensional barriers had been recently breached.  Probably sometime in the
night.  The air was not as fresh as Mat said it would be, which had some
unfortunate implications.  There was also a constricting sense to this place,
as if an oppressive pressure pushed on me from all sides.

“You
want the good news, bad news, or the really bad news?” I flashed Mat a smile as
I said this.  He didn't smile back; I think he remembered my last batch of bad
news.

“Give
me the good news, unless there's something I have to know now,” he said
nervously.

“Well,”
I tapped on the shield, causing a small spray of sparks to shoot out.  “This
shield will probably go down in about two days.  You could bring it down faster
if you brought in some heavy weapons from the army, but you'd likely have the
ceiling fall on you first unless you used their more focused weapons.  Maybe if
they had a big ass laser cannon you could get through the sewers.  I can feel
the ebb in the energy and it’s not being replenished as fast as it’s consumed.”

“What's
the bad?” Mat asked grimly.

“I
think Mr. Zombie man left,” Mat opened his mouth to argue, but I just
continued.  “There has been a dimensional breach here within the last day.  If
you felt fresh air last night it must have been open then, because it sure as
hell stinks now.”  Mat's mouth snapped shut and a sour look covered his face.  “I
can't be sure what’s in there through the field.  One of the circles he has up
blankets the area, so no one whose name is not inscribed in the circle can use
magic.  He must have thought that there were local mages that may be coming
after him.”

“You
can shut down magic with a circle?” Mat's eyes widened.

“Almost
any kind of magic can do that, but it’s a pretty damn big spell and it's only
of limited effectiveness.”

“Seems
like that would make you the king of the hill,” Mat muttered.

“Well,
it's pretty much limited to defending areas,” I waved a hand trying to
explain.  “When you lock down the magic you are laying claim to the free magic
in the area.  A mage that comes in from outside has to fight to move the magic
inside his body and environmental magic is off limits.  It's pretty much
stationary though.  You can't freeze that much energy and move it.”