A Prison of Worlds (The Chained Worlds Chronicles Book 1) (42 page)

“I
suppose... it would be worth it,” he nervously shuffled on intangible feet as
the reanimating body bubbled next to him.

As
the skull closed over and eyes and bits of skin concealed the faint form of Mat
started to waver.  “I think I feel it!”

“Don’t
resist, flow with it,” I suggested.  I was guessing, it’s not like I ever
resurrected anyone before.

“Aargh!”
The physical body cried out as the spirit’s outline waivers and flickered out. 
The screaming continued until lids formed over the staring, bulging eyes and
the last bit of skin stretched over the exposed layer of fat and muscle.  The
body went limp and the circle stopped sucking in power.

“You
alive in there,” I asked the still body, gently nudging it with my foot.

“I
have never been in more pain in my entire existence,” slurred the naked form,
his eyes fluttering open.

“Life
is pain,” I said unsympathetically as I handed him the extra clothes I had
brought.  “Welcome to life 2.0.”

“I
feel a little numb and out of sync,” he said as he awkwardly struggled to his
feet.  I checked his aura, it was definitely not normal.  Brighter, more
energetic, yet not completely inside his body.  Like a child that couldn’t
color inside the lines.

“Yeah,
you’re not back to normal, but I see it getting a little better as we talk,” I
offered.  “It will take some time for your spirit to align with your body.  Let’s
head back to the house, the others will be happy to see you.”

“Who?”

“Mei
and Jeremy,” I paused. “And Stella will whenever she gets back from walkabout. 
So where were you when you weren’t here?”

“Seems
like all over,” Mat began as we slowly started to walk back to the house.  “There
were all these intersecting lines and I went from one location to another along
them.  They were the only places I wasn’t cold.  I spent most of my time in some
woods...”

“Minerva
Park in all likelihood, it has the most ley lines and the largest node,” I
interrupted him.

“...and
some large underground chamber.  It reminded me of that place the Baron
retreated to.”

I
stopped in my tracks and stared ahead.  An underground chamber.  If I had ten
years to prepare why would I settle for any but the best node in the city? 
Nodes are not impeded by the ground, many ley lines and nodes are at least
partially underground.  With enough time and preparation, why not build an
underground lair directly below the area we would be watching?  The Baron had
already shown us how effective they were.

“I
know where he is,” I shouted in triumph and took off at a run, noting in
passing Mat was lumbering behind me, still clumsy in his body.  Within a minute
I had charged into the house chanting, “I know where he is!”

“You
know where Jin is?” Jeremy asked, the first to decipher my ramblings.  He and
Mei met me in the entranceway.

“If
you had ten years to plan your final triumph, why would you settle for second
best?” I asked Jeremy with a smile.

“But
we went to the park! Heck, it’s watched more closely than a cat burglar in Fort
Knox.”

“True,
but if you had ten years why not built under the park,” I victoriously pointed
out, as Beth squeezed past her brother.

“Tunnels?”
Jeremy said thoughtfully.  “Why not, they did it before.  It also explains the
lack of attempts to distract us with demons.  They already succeeded in
distracting us.  Why risk more when we obviously didn’t have a clue?  They were
below us all the time...”

“Eek,”
screamed a frightened Beth.  “There’s a body out on the lawn!”

“Oh,
that’s just Mat,” I reassured the girl with some pride, as I turned around to
look at the resurrected police officer.

“Okay,
I give up. Why is Mat’s corpse on the lawn?” asked a baffled Mei as she looked
past me.  Staring out the door, I noted that sure enough Mat’s body was
sprawled out on the front lawn.  “Wasn’t he eaten?”

“Er,
give me a second.  It will come to me,” I said as I put my hands to the side of
my head and rubbed my temples.

“Is
it a zombie apocalypse?” asked Beth while inching backward.  Jeremy looked at
my way in disdain.

“I
told you not to let her watch ‘Night of the Living Dead XXI’,” he groused.

“It’s
just a harmless comedy.  Come on its hilarious,” I defended myself absently.  “Everyone
knows real zombies eat hearts... and livers for some reason.  Oh, I know what
happened!”

Running
out to Mat’s body I poked his skin with a hastily formed tiny talon to get a
drop of blood and then ran downstairs, creating a gouge in the ceiling where I
leaped down a little too enthusiastically.  I ran over to the ward and under
the undead sigil I put the drop of blood and etched the exclusion symbol.  I
repeated this under the spirit protection sigil.

I
heard another squeal of terror as I rushed back up.  When I reached the hallway
I was gratified to see Mat staggering towards the front door.  Mei had taken a
defensive stance and Jeremy was simply shaking his head.

“You
made a zombie clone of Mat?” a disturbed Jeremy asked.

“I
am not a zombie,” came the defensive statement from the newly risen officer.

“Well,
you sort of are,” I said apologetically.  Turning to the others, I continued, “I
found Mat’s spirit wandering outside and created a body for him.”

“You
what?” cried an outraged Mei.

“I
know, it’s pretty neat,” I replied.  “When his spirit joined his new body I
thought for sure it was a true resurrection.  Considering that he was stopped
by my wards I think it’s safer to say he is possessing his own body.”

“I,
what?” stuttered Mat.

“You’re
still a spirit,” I acknowledged reluctantly.  It wasn’t nearly as cool as being
responsible for bringing him back to life.  “The good news is that you can
probably travel outside your body with a little practice and you’re almost
impossible to kill.  I can just make another body.”

“What?”
he said again.  It was really feeling like Mat was back.

“If
you don’t like it, I can figure out the other circle in a few weeks and do a
true resurrection,” I offered him.  “Assuming we are all alive.  We still have
to beard a wizard, demon and minions in his lair.”

“You
are a crazy... man,” Mei spluttered before she stalked to the living room
projector and brought up the park.  “You explain this to Conrad.”

The
rest of us slowly migrated to the holo terminal. Jeremy spawned another
terminal, working on another screen to bring up city records of sewers.  Beth
was staying as far away from Mat as possible and looked like she expected him
to start moaning about brains any moment.

“Got
it,” Jeremy said, after a few minutes and sewers were overlaid on the park
map.  There were none directly under the node.

“Given
ten years they likely branched off the sewers,” he pointed to the display.  “Probably
around here.  We likely need to call in Conrad’s group.  They have sensors that
can see underground, as long as it’s not on the node or ley line and we’ll need
all the force we can muster to counter everything they have likely gathered.” 
Then he turned to us with a brilliant smile, “For the first time since this
started I think we aren’t years behind the curve.”

“So,
do I need to eat?” Mat said from where he was still standing, looking a bit
lost in the hallway.

“You’re
not a zombie in the classical sense,” I said as I made a list of priorities on
a third screen.  “Your body is living and breathing.  It needs everything a
normal person needs.”

“What
about that liver and hearts?” Beth called out from the far side the room. 

“I
was just kidding.  Zombies like what Baron Samedi created were magically
animated and enhanced corpses.  Not even really undead,” I clarified while
tapping the interface.  “Mat is a spirit directing a mindless clone.  Beth
could you start the paperwork for accidental declaration of death?  Mat is
going to need his life back.”

“I
don’t know how to do that,” Beth said hesitantly.

“Go
to the coroner’s site, Beth.  There should be a link to start the process.  It
will need Mat’s biometrics as proof, but the terminal should be able to provide
them, despite it being an antique.”  Jeremy paused for a moment, “Wait a
minute, you shouldn’t be involved in this.  Shouldn’t you be doing your
homework?”

“I
like helping, besides I did my homework for this month already.  School is
boring,” Beth whined.  She whined a lot less when Jeremy wasn’t around.  I
hated to say it, but I think he is a bad influence on his sister.

“Told
you the writer should be put on probation for helping to perpetuate the idea
that young women are stupid and helpless,” I said to Jeremy.  “Beth, if you get
Mat digitally resurrected by noon, I’ll show you how to develop psychometry and
a few of the procog exercises.”

“Since
when can you even do that?” Jeremy asked.  “And when did I say you could twist
her little mind again?”

“I
always had a little bit of precog.  I admit I suck at psychometry, but it’s the
first step to psychically interfacing with machines.  I think she’d have fun
with it.  She already had her potential awakened, it’s just some harmless
exercises.  As long as she stops to rest.”

“Jeremy,”
Beth called out in distress.  “I’m not a little girl.”  This earned me a glare
from her brother.

The
doorbell rang.  A minute later it rang again.  Mat seeing that we were all busy
shrugged and meandered to the door.  A moment later I heard, “What in Urd’s
name?  Weren’t you eaten?”

“Shall
I smite him my lady?” a deeper voice replied from outside.

I
smiled to myself.  The gang was all here.

I
may have been a little optimistic.  Once we had explained zombie Mat and
updated the new comers it got a little hectic.  There may even have been
yelling and shouting involved.  It didn’t help that there were seven people
crowded in a living room with almost every wall covered in a holo display.  We
finally got things calmed down enough to start out.

“Okay,
Beth, Mat, and Jeremy can stay here and continue to research an underground
entrance,” I summarized as I started out the door.  “The rest of us will meet
Conrad in the park.”

“I
have updated Conrad.  Despite his curses, I think he happy we may see the end
of this,” Mei affirmed.

“I’m
still not convinced I should stay back,” Jeremy said doubtfully.

“Unless
you’ve got a pocket nuke hidden away, I’m not sure what you can really do,” I
replied.  “You know you have always saved the day with information.  This is
just more of the same.  Mat is more likely to get shot by Conrad until we
figure out a good way to tell him about his return.”

“What
about me,” Beth chirped.

“I
think there’s a height limit on saving the world,” I smiled at her.  “Seriously,
Jeremy is your guardian and regardless how stupid the laws are, what he says
goes.”  This got me a dirty look from everyone but Stella and Faramond.  “Next
time maybe your psionic abilities will be the tipping point.  Keep on
practicing.  Okay then, I’ll call a cab!”

“Cab? 
Why not use that tricycle thing we used last time?” interjected Stella hurriedly.

I
stared at her incredulously.  “You want me to drive the rickshaw to the end of
the world.”

“It’s
only the end of the world if we fail,” Mei said tiredly.  She had an idea of
where this going.

“Thanks
for the clarification.”

“It
seems the safest way to get there,” Stella said with a hint of panic in her
eyes. “If we all crash as the car goes spinning out of control and sends us
flying upside down, we’ll have to walk to the park anyway and have to fight
while covered in green goop.”

I
paused a moment.  That was oddly specific.  “Right.  How would we even fit in
it?  The back may fit three normal sized people, but Faramond would barely fit
just by himself.  You would both have to sit on his lap.”

“What
if he pedaled and we sat in the back,” added an impatient Mei.  “You’re tall
but lanky.  It would be tight but at least we would actually get moving!”

“But...
but its my bike,” I protested weakly.  “He’s too big, he’ll break the pedals
off.”

“Are
you sure milady?” Faramond asked uneasily.  He must have seen the rickshaw out
front.  He’d look like an adult riding a bike made for a toddler.

“You
said it was specially reinforced,” Stella added.

“Well,
yeah but even I can’t use my full strength and Faramond must be three times as
strong.  One moment of carelessness and we’re stranded while the apocalypse
goes on without us.”

“I
have full confidence in my guardian,” Stella stated with dignity.

Five
minutes later we were piled in the rickshaw.  I had a cranky woman squeezed on
either side of me and every little shift in position of the vehicle cause our elbows
to dig into each other’s ribs.  Every sway had us all leaning in one direction
or another as we struggled not to end up on one another’s laps.

 Faramond
did indeed look like an adult riding a child’s bike.  I would have laughed, but
I had my hands full simply staying in one place without getting slapped.  From
back here, the scenery sucked.  The fairy knight was so large I couldn’t see
anything in front of us.  I could see the buildings go past and caught glimpses
of the occasional pedestrian leaping out the way with a scream of fright.

Our
knight on the bike made decent time.  Like me, he was limited in his speed but
he wasn’t any slower and he didn’t break the bike either.  Mei was fiddling
worriedly with her terminal.  About a half hour into the trip she cursed under
her breath.  “Damn!”

“I
don’t like the sound of that,” I winced.  “What happened?”

“Conrad
mobilized his forces.  The military was on standby.  They took positions around
the node,” she started before pausing.

“That
sounds good...”

“Then
Jin’s forces blow an opening to the topside and out swarmed super-powered
shifters and all the apprentices that we couldn’t find in the last few days.  I
am getting live feeds from Conrad.”

I
looked at my own terminal.  We were five minutes away.  I saw a flash in the
sky and blinked away the after image of a fiery line coming down from the sky.  A
moment later I heard a rumble and felt the earth tremble faintly.

“Crap! 
The military jumped the gun and did an orbital energy strike.  Most of the
feeds went down.  Let me switch them...” Mei continued fiddling with her
terminal.  Stella looked guilty.

“Don’t
worry Stella, they were mostly people we didn’t know,” I reassured her, getting
a glare from her and Mei.

“Got
it!  There’s a big hole in the ground.  Looks like the minions were
vaporized... along with half of the task force.  Conrad’s alive, he was blown
clear.  Shit. He’s missing body parts according to his biometric feed.  He’s
out of it for the duration.”  Damn, I knew that mobile tank he wore wouldn’t
help.  Then again maybe that’s why he was still alive.

I
froze in place.  The others, pressed up against me, felt me stiffen.  “I have
bad news.  Jin has started his ritual.  He must have a barrier like the other
one.  Probably better.”

“I
am switching cameras again.  There is a man kneeling in the middle of several
circles waving his arms.  I can’t see any details through the dust,” Mei
reported tensely.

“We’re
almost there,” I said as we passed the warehouse district.  I could see the still
collapsed warehouse on the far side of the park, however this time we headed
straight in.  The grounds were deserted and abandoned police vehicles and buoys
littered the entire area.  “Any ideas on how to get them not to vaporize us
while we try to fix this?  It likely won’t pierce the shield, but I’m sure
it’ll go right through us.”

“I’m
working on it.  I have some of Conrad’s codes,” she stated uncertainly.  “With
Jeremy’s help, I might be able to fake a statement that we are investigating
the aftermath.  As long as they don’t see his status they might believe it. 
Mat might be able to help too if he remembers any of the report templates.”

“Do
it,” I told her as we came upon the battle scene.  I could feel the ley line
energies peaking.  We still might be too late.  Bodies littered the area, many
not wearing uniforms.  Many were missing body parts but slowly getting up. 
Shifters were tough, but missing body parts would make them useless for combat
until they grew back.  Some of the less injured officers were staggering about
seeing to the wounded and placing restraints on the fallen minions that had
been far enough away from the satellite weapon to not be disintegrated.

Coming
to the edge of the crater we saw the collapsed remains of a subterranean
cavern.  Most of it was caved in and rubble but in the center sat a tall Asian
man with the classic evil mastermind mustache.  He seemed to sense us watching
him.  He stopped his hand waving and chanting to turn to us.

“Welcome
Mei Ling... and companions,” He said while smiling.  That was a bad sign.  It
likely meant that the destruction of his lair didn’t matter.  “I thought you’d
never get her and the end game would come and go without seeing you at all. 
That would have been disappointing.”

“You...
want to see me here,” Mei’s eyes opened in shock. 

“Well,
I was hoping you would be smart enough to decipher the clues.  A bit surprised
too.  In the last ten years, you haven’t impressed me with your detective
abilities.  Still I feel a bond between us.  Like a pet.”

“You
wanted me here,” Mei repeated in disbelief.  “You wanted me to catch up for ten
years.”

“Your
slow but still adorable, kitten,” Jin said with a grin.

“I
may be no detective, however I know one thing,” Mei said with certainty.  “You
are not Jin.  Leave off your disguise, who are you really?”

The
magician stood there frozen in surprise.  “You really outdid yourself.  I
suppose there’s no point in hiding it now.  Fine.”  At this, his body began to
grow in stature to a towering twenty-five feet.  Fur grew on his face and he
took on a feline like cast.  Very much like what I would expect Mei looked like
in her hybrid form.  Except twenty feet taller.

“Oh,
a rakshasa. That was a possibility, but Mei had convinced me you may be dragon,”
I spoke up for the first time.  I had been enjoying the drama and somewhat
amazed that the evil villain monolog was a real thing.  I had thought they were
a myth.  “You’re powerful, maybe even a demon lord.  That makes things more
difficult.”

“Ah,
the wandering dragon,” he said, this earned some shocked looks from Mei. 
Apparently she was expecting a dinosaur shifter or something silly like that as
my secret.  “It figures that my little Mei needed a helping hand to get through
the puzzles.  It’s not like your kind to hang around humans so long.  No
worries though, I have dealt with others of your species that weren’t mere
hatchlings.”

“So
let me see if I have this right,” I said ignoring the little insults and
threats.  “Ten years ago you killed Jin, took over his identity, took over his
obsession for Mei and decided to go on a tour to set off the biggest multiple
portal ritual I have ever heard of.”

“I
had arranged for Jin to find enough of my true name to summon me hundreds of
years ago.  He summoned me for some small things, such as spooking that
pathetic gaggle of vampires and introduced me to the lovely Ms. Ling through
his scrying.  He was captivated by her, yet too much of a coward to act on it.”

I
had been examining the area while we were talking.  There were several horribly
burned corpses near us that must have been the unlamented apprentices we had
been hunting.  The circles were much as I had been expecting.  Portal circles were
linked to at least twelve others and were slowly increasing in energy towards a
climax that couldn’t be good for the world.  It all lead to the same absurd
plan that the council had to use our world as an energy sink. The one thing out
of place was that a demon lord was monologuing over his plan rather than some young
dragon.

“Enough
of your obsession with our sweet tempered tiger woman.  We know of your plan to
use our world as a way to reduce the ambient magic from that other world.  The
thing is, we both know that plan wouldn’t work.  A rakshasa lord wouldn’t waste
his time on something absurd like that.  By all accounts, your entire race are
brilliant master planners.  Surely you aren’t the exception?” I prodded.

“Well,
you’re smarter than the magician’s council was,” he gave a grin filled with
long sharp teeth.  “It’s not completely their fault, I had to work hard to enchant
them enough to go along with it.  Because, of course, you’re right.  It’s all nonsense.”

“So
you flood this world with magic, disasters and mayhem follows,” I added.  “Seems
pretty pointless.” 

“You
think too small,” dismissed the demon lord.  “I haven’t been working on this
for ten years. I have been working on this for a hundred years.  I have set up
this ritual on ten other worlds.  This is the end game.  This is when I chain
all of them together and lock out all the other planes.”

I
stood there in surprise.  The sheer audacity.  Not to mention the technical difficulties. 
“That’s bold.  Of course, that implies that you don’t have your own domain and
that you don’t wish to share it with a higher rank demon lord,” I paused in
thought.  “You’re an exile.  You lost your power base and you’re making a land
grab that ends all land grabs.  Ten dimensions.  There’s a lot of entities you’re
going to make very angry.”

“Bah,
the gods will be locked out, only my minions will be here.  Ten dimensions is
something even my fellow lords can’t claim.”

“It’s
all very clever but in the end it’s just a typical invasion.  I’m rather
disappointed,” I confided to my companions who had been listening with growing
horror.  “One last thing, there is no head of the magicians guild is there,
just you?”

“Good
guess,” acknowledged the demon with a shrug.  “You can call me Vatapi.  I
suppose you can watch from outside the barrier as your world is engulfed in rampant
magic.  You can even live until I come back through the permanent portals to
rule my tenth world. I’ll kill you then, and take my little tigress.”

“You
seem pretty confident behind your barrier,” I pointed out idly as I sidled over
to the corpse of the nearest apprentice.

“It
is impenetrable by anything you or your world can bring to bear,” he returned
confidentially.

“Yes,
but you didn’t make this barrier by yourself,” I noted as I formed talons and split
the breastbone of the corpse from neck to stomach, exposing his dead, but still
bloody heart.