A/N: As always;
Enjoy.
Disclaimer
CHAPTER THIRTY SIX: FAMILY MATTERS
Early the next morning Orion sat in Bale's office once more. But this time his superior was flanked by his secretary and Eric Matterson.
"This is becoming something of a habit, Mr. Black." Bale stated. "One day and already you're having problems?"
"This isn't your average problem." Orion replied.
Next to him Becca sat in her chair staring intently at the floor as though it were currently the most interesting thing in her life.
"Is there some problem with our Becca?"
"In a manner of speaking." Orion answered. "But the problem isn't of her making. Last night at the estate we had an unexpected visitor."
"And this 'unexpected visitor', I take it, was the problem?"
"This unexpected visitor was Richard."
Whatever expectation Orion had from his statement, he couldn't have gotten less of one. All three 'Power's' simply continued to stare at him as thought they were waiting for whatever else he was going to add,
"And that's it?" Bale finally asked. "That is what you asked me to call us all here for this morning? Because this irritating child came to your house last night and....did what? Frightened Becca?"
"He attacked my wife!" Orion stated, nearly coming out of his chair.
Bale's eyebrows rose. "He attacked Katlin? That was a rather brave move for him. Foolish, but brave. And so now what? You want us to come clean up whatever small pieces Katlin left?"
"Far from it." Orion replied. "He caught her off guard. If Bo hadn't alerted me to the attack, he might have killed her before he was done. Just as he was planning to kill Becca."
"Kill?" Connie spoke up suddenly, concern etching her voice. "He was going to kill Becca?"
The girl looked up and quickly nodded at the statuesque woman standing next to Bale's chair. "The last time I was with him, Richard said he was going to drain my power. My magic. He said he needed it to attack the elder."
Connie frowned at the comment. "Elder? What elder?"
Becca shook her head. "He never said his name. Only that he needed more power....more magic than he had to attack the elder. To steal his power from him also."
"Well, he's never going to get that far." Bale replied steepling his fingers in front of him. "Very well, Mr. Black. Since this Richard is causing problems, I suppose he will have to be dealt with. The three of us will confer on what we know about him, and, of course, see if Becca can add anything to what we already know, giving us a larger picture of what we may be up against, and then, once we have all the facts...........,
"Oh honestly, Orin." Connie stated with a smug smile. "You make things so complicated. He's an irritating child. He need only be dealt with as such." And with that she disappeared.
"Connie!" Bale yelled at now vacant space. "Connie! Come back here! Now!"
Eric stood next to him, watching for Connie's reappearance. "She has always been far to impetuous." He stated. "I'll go have a talk with her."
Bale nodded as Eric disapparated in a brief flash of dark light.
"And now what?" Orion asked, seated now in the office with just Becca and his superior.
"Eric will go talk to Connie." Bale replied, pulling a file out of his drawer and laying it on his desk. "After that, likely they will go together to seek out this Richard. And that should be the end of the matter."
"That's it?" Orion asked. "The two of them against him?"
Bale looked up at his agent. "Mr. Black, I have not lived as long as I have in this realm by being careless. Nor by leaving untidy matters laying around to cause me problems. None of us have."
"And I faced this 'irritating child', as your lot calls him. And I am here to tell you, Orin, I have never felt power like this before."
"Connie and Eric are not fools, Mr. Black. And I have ever confidence that they can deal with this matter without my help. But should they need it, I am only a call away for them. Now, if there was nothing else, I believe my next appointment is waiting for me."
Orion got up, indicating for Becca to follow him. Which she did in the same way a puppy would follow it's owner. A trait that was seriously getting on Orion's nerves. The girl never walked next to you, or just slightly behind. She was always practically plastered to the side of whoever she was with, or practically cowering behind them, just waiting for whatever unpleasantness the world was going to throw at her next. All in all, Orion was having a very hard time reconciling the girl who was presently creeping along behind him with the young woman he had faced in the magical corridor just a few weeks before. Becca may have been Heudros magical support system, but he equally appeared to have been her ego. And without him, Orion was having a great deal of difficulty seeing her as much less than a frightened mouse, just waiting for the cat to come along.
Well, no time like the present to try and correct behavior.
"Becca," Orion said, gesturing next to him, "come walk next to me, not behind me."
The girl looked up at him. "Why?"
"Because you're not my dog." He replied. "You're a person in your own right now. But you follow people around like your their valet or something. All that's missing is you bowing a scraping and asking if you can do anything for them. You have to act more like......like you're just like anyone else. Not like you've been someone's servant for the past 15 years."
The girl considered the statement, then slowly brought herself alongside Orion as they walked. But Orion couldn't help but notice she still practically crept along the corridor.
Oh well. One step at a time. Position today, posture tomorrow.
Apparating to where Becca's castle once stood, Connie stood staring at the pile of rubble for several moments.
"My, my, but someone did have a temper tantrum." She tsked at the stones. "No wonder Orin is so interested in you, little one."
Shaking her head slightly, Connie finally brushed several of her long, brown strands back from her face, taking in the area around her again.
"Now," she asked softly, looking around at the fallen stones, "where are you, little boy. Why don't you come out so we can have a nice chat?"
Around her a soft breeze blew through the tree tops, gently rustling the leaves overhead. But nothing else seemed to move. Something that caused Connie's brow to furrow.
Where were the birds? Or the animals? She couldn't hear so much as a cricket in the forest. Surely something wasn't right.
"And now who might you be?" A voice suddenly asked from behind her.
Connie turned around with her ever present grace to find herself facing a young man of about twenty-five by his appearance.
"Here all I usually ever catch in this net is Becca, who for whatever reason can't seem to stay away from this pile of rubble, or that irritating Mr. Black. But now here it appears I have a new fish swimming in the waters. And such a pretty one."
Connie stared at the young man for several moments. The boy was arrogant. But he also had his share of power. She would have to be careful.
"You, I take it," she purred at him, "are Richard?"
The other 'Power' ticked a finger in front of him. "Oh no. I asked first."
"My name is Connie." She replied in a casual tone. "I am Orin Bale's sister."
"Orin Bale's sister!?" The boy echoed, the excitement in his tone peaking instantly. "Well, this is an unexpected pleasure! Here I expected to never meet anyone out here of any more significance than Mr. Black. And yet here I have the sister of Orin Bale." The boy's eyebrows quickly came together. "Who in the name of magic is Orin Bale?"
Connie casually lifted one eyebrow. "Head of the Unspeakables maybe?"
Richard considered the information. "That irritating little group of men Mr. Black belongs to? You mean to say they actually have a leader?"
Connie gave the boy a deeply disapproving look.
"Well, if he's their leader, I can't say he's anyone I'd have taken much notice of."
"You'd do well to guard that tongue, boy." Connie advised him. "Less the wrong people hear you wagging your insults about with it about."
"And who might those wrong people be?" The boy asked. "Yourself and this 'Orin Bale'? Anyone else?"
Connie mimicked the boy's ticking finger. "Oh no. I've answered your question. Perhaps now you answer mine?"
The boy gave her an exaggerated, low bow. "Indeed, my dear lady, I am Richard. The poor, misunderstood youth of whom I am sure my dear, misguided sister has been telling some very unsavory tales."
Connie stared hard back at the boy. "Sister? Becca is no sister to you, boy."
"Ah, but as that we were called by the same wizard, that makes us family of sorts."
"Becca seems to feel very differently about the matter. For she has indeed had very little good to say about her 'brother'. Now why would she be doing that?"
A nervous smile played across Richard's lips. But he quickly hid it. "Becca and I had a.....disagreement before she left. She was very angry with me."
"People trying to kill you will do that." Connie stated sharply.
Richard gave the statuesque woman another nervous smile. "Is that what she said? Now, you see................"
But Connie quickly pointed a finger at the boy before her. "No. You see, Richard. Becca has a new family now. One that genuinely cares for her. And one that I assure you, will protect her. Come near her again, and you will suffer for it, I promise you that."
The boy had fallen to studying the woman before him. "Oh, I don't think you need worry about that anymore." He practically purred at her.
"Really?" Connie asked. Skepticism lacing the word. "That is a rather sudden turn around. Might I ask what caused it?"
The boy seemed to give the request serious consideration. "No. You may not." He replied finally and, with a sharp turn, began walking away from her.
Connie's brows came down in a deep, straight line as she gave the boy's retreating back a sneer. "Why you arrogant little......."
A single step forward, and the world went black.
Several hours later Orin sat in his office as a bolt of black light erupted in front of his desk. Although the strike looked for all the world to be enough to have taken out most of his office area, not so much as a paper sitting on the front edge was disturbed by the sudden violent explosion.
"Did you find her?" Orin asked the figure standing in the aftermath of the strike.
"No." Came the solemn answer.
Orin sighed as he leaned over his desk, a pen held tightly in his fingers as he looked up at his brother. "I'm worried about her this time, Eric. Black said this child has power. A great deal of it. Connie may have bitten off a great deal more than she can chew this time."
The other 'Power' stared down at his brother, concern etched in his face even as he tried to mask it. "We'll find her, Orin." He stated evenly. "We'll find her."
Connie shook her head as she tried to clear it. Whatever the other 'Power' had hit her with, it had been a great deal more than a simple stunning spell.
"Not pleasant, is it?" Came an all too familiar voice.
Connie lifted her head, finding herself staring at the insolent boy crouched outside the glowing green bars, a smile etched across his face that made her itch to reach through the bars and physically remove it.
"Oh, you are a prize," The boy practically sang out his triumph. "I couldn't have asked for anything better than to have had someone like you come to the castle, apparating so close to one of my wards that you were practically inside of it already, but too close to feel it. But you obviously were starting to notice something. The lack of sound maybe? I was hoping to be able to just stay in hiding and watch you walk into it the rest of the way. But you were getting suspicious and so I had to distract you somehow. All I had to do was get you to take one, small step......and here we are."
Connie looked about herself again. The green glowing bars seemed to form a solid cage around her.
"A small word of warning." Richard stated, watching her take in her surroundings. "I wouldn't touch those bars. They pack a nasty surprise."
Connie stared hard at the green glowing pillar in front of her. Carefully she balanced herself on one hand and reached out the other to the bar.
Instantly a sharp shock raced up her arm, causing her to pull back quickly.
Richard quickly pulled back to his feet. "Why is it everyone must do that!?" He stated sharply. "Becca didn't believe me either." He told her in the same sharp tone. "And she got the same punishment for not listening to me."
"So Becca was telling the truth." Connie said in a low, pained voice. "You locked her in a cell and tried to take her magic from her."
"Is that what she told you!?" Richard asked incredulously. "Is that what she told you I was going to do to her!?" The boy gave a sudden, small giggle. "Yes, that's pretty much right. But you needn't worry about her, because you see, I don't need her anymore."
Connie looked up at him.
"Because now I have you."
Connie shook her head again. Why couldn't she shake off this spell? Magic rarely effected her like this. She controlled it better than that.
"A little magical working of my own device." Richard answered her unspoken question. "You have to admit, for something to effect us, it has to pack a little more than the average punch, no?"
Connie gathered up her strength. "I'll give you more than the average punch." She stated venomously. Launching herself at the glowing bars, she seized hold of them, intent on ripping her way through them in order to get at her intended victim. But as soon as she touched the bars, a shock of power grabbed her in a painful grip.
A scream of pain echoed through the chamber. Pushing back, Connie managed to free herself from the bars, landing in an undignified heap on the dirt floor near the back of the cell.
A roaring laugh served to further add to her feelings of indignation.
"You find something funny, boy?" She ask in a acid tone.
The laughter died down to a slight giggle. "Yes. You." Came the snorted answer. "You honestly believed you could have gotten past those bars? Great magic, but you are arrogant bastards."
"Oh, there is a bastard among us, all right." Connie answered. "But I would hold judgment yet as to who claims that title."
"Such loving sentiments, dear sister."
Connie sneered through the bars at the other 'Power'. "Keep your filthy claims of kinship from including me." She replied.
"Oh, but we are family, dear sister." Richard stated. "For you state that Becca is your sister now also. And since she was my sister first, that makes us all family now. And I can't tell you how eager I am to meet my 'brother'."
"I wouldn't be so eager for that meeting, boy. For he likely won't show you any more familial mercy than I will while I am listening to your screams as I rip your body apart."
The 'Power' smirked at her through the bars. "I'm glad to hear it." He replied, pointing a finger at her through the bars of the cell.
Connie collapsed back to the floor with a scream of agony as the pain tore through her body.
"Because nor shall I." Richard stated.
Connie gathered her reserves about her and forced herself to her feet as the pain subsided. But no sooner had she regained her footing than another strike hit her, slamming her into the bars behind her. A searing pain raced through her body, giving her no time to recover before the next hit forced her to the ground.
"And that's just a very small taste of the fun we shall have." A voice spoke through the haze of pain to her. "Before I drain your magic from you and leave you with literally.....nothing."
With the last of her strength, Connie pulled her body up and threw herself at the bars and, ignoring the pain coursing through every inch of her body, she pressed her face to the bars and sneered at the creature on the other side.
"You'll die......begging me to kill you." She promised him. "Orin will give you to me as a toy to play with when I complain of boredom."
Connie had the small satisfaction of watching the other take a step back from the bars. But he quickly mask his apprehension behind the usual haughty look. Raising his hand, a streak of light shot out and caught her in the stomach, sending her hurling back to the furthest wall again in a crumpled heap.
"Continue to attack these bars and you'll save me the trouble of killing you." He told her. "Because they'll do the work for me."
And with that final warning he turned and left the chamber.
Laying on the floor, Connie slowly let her body collapse to the cold dirt, tears finally streaming down her face as she rested her head against her arm.
"Oh, brothers," she whispered in an urgent plea, "do not leave me here. Do not leave me at the mercy of this pitiless child. Help me. Oh please, help me."
Q&A
Silverfox
Pst, a bit of my review somehow inserted itself into the Orin's last sentence.
And sorry for not reviewing last time. I didn't get my ChapterAlert ... *glares at site*
I love Bo proving that he's a better teacher than Orin. How did Richard find Becca, though? Bo didn't deliberately lure him in for inspection, did he?
I know, Dear. And I have no explanation for it. Nor can I explain or have I found a solution for why 1) if I simply copy a chapter over from my disk all the punctuation disappears, or 2) when I copy the chapter off the disk and then paste it into the word document program on Document Manager it pastes it in duplicate, with the first copy being in bold type.
I will fix that incident with Orin's last sentence one day, though.
Every now and then Bo likes to remind people that he's not as dumb as they may think. Problem is, half the time they don't get the message.
Oh, how I love that last question! And because I love it so much, I'm going to give you outright straight answers on it.
How did Richard find Becca? Just the way you speculated, Dear. Bo 'lured him in'. He had exactly what Richard wanted. Becca. So he simply let down the shields around her so Richard would be able to find her.
Now, 'why' would Bo have done that? Especially when it put several people at risk? Well, because Bo is, for all his magical power, still basically a three year old. And he didn't see all the potential for the problem clearly enough. And curiosity is a dangerous thing sometimes. Bo did, in fact, lure Richard in. Simply because he wanted to 'get a feel for him'. Bo's Channeler indicated this new 'Power' was a danger. He heard the others talk about him, say he was dangerous, and a threat to Becca. So Bo, being a good home security system, decided the best offense was a good defense, and let Richard into the house so he could get a feel for him. Should Richard try to come back to the house, he might find things a bit more.....difficult than the last time.
All reviews are as of 1/17/2010.
And remember;
Living wage: twice what you make.
:: All characters of the Harry Potter series (hereafter known as 'legal property') are the sole ownership of J.K. Rowling (hereafter known as 'owner of said legal property'). No infringement on any copyright of owner of said legal property of the legal property is knowingly intended. Published by author (hereafter known as 'other') for entertainment purposes only. No monetary or personal gain was knowingly made by other with the publication of this story, which was based on ideas and characters created by owner of said legal property as they pertain to legal property. No plagiarism of legal property or of any ideas of the owner of said legal property was knowingly intended by other. This statement is fully transferable and is legally held binding for all chapters of the story Family Ties as they are presented under different chapter headings and titles for individual chapters.A/N: As always;
Enjoy.
Disclaimer
: All characters of the Harry Potter series (hereafter known as 'legal property') are the sole ownership of J.K. Rowling (hereafter known as 'owner of said legal property'). No infringement on any copyright of owner of said legal property of the legal property is knowingly intended. Published by author (hereafter known as 'other') for entertainment purposes only. No monetary or personal gain was knowingly made by other with the publication of this story, which was based on ideas and characters created by owner of said legal property as they pertain to legal property. No plagiarism of legal property or of any ideas of the owner of said legal property was knowingly intended by other. This statement is fully transferable and is legally held binding for all chapters of the story Family Ties as they are presented under different chapter headings and titles for individual chapters.CHAPTER THIRTY SIX: FAMILY MATTERS
Early the next morning Orion sat in Bale's office once more. But this time his superior was flanked by his secretary and Eric Matterson.
"This is becoming something of a habit, Mr. Black." Bale stated. "One day and already you're having problems?"
"This isn't your average problem." Orion replied.
Next to him Becca sat in her chair staring intently at the floor as though it were currently the most interesting thing in her life.
"Is there some problem with our Becca?"
"In a manner of speaking." Orion answered. "But the problem isn't of her making. Last night at the estate we had an unexpected visitor."
"And this 'unexpected visitor', I take it, was the problem?"
"This unexpected visitor was Richard."
Whatever expectation Orion had from his statement, he couldn't have gotten less of one. All three 'Power's' simply continued to stare at him as thought they were waiting for whatever else he was going to add,
"And that's it?" Bale finally asked. "That is what you asked me to call us all here for this morning? Because this irritating child came to your house last night and....did what? Frightened Becca?"
"He attacked my wife!" Orion stated, nearly coming out of his chair.
Bale's eyebrows rose. "He attacked Katlin? That was a rather brave move for him. Foolish, but brave. And so now what? You want us to come clean up whatever small pieces Katlin left?"
"Far from it." Orion replied. "He caught her off guard. If Bo hadn't alerted me to the attack, he might have killed her before he was done. Just as he was planning to kill Becca."
"Kill?" Connie spoke up suddenly, concern etching her voice. "He was going to kill Becca?"
The girl looked up and quickly nodded at the statuesque woman standing next to Bale's chair. "The last time I was with him, Richard said he was going to drain my power. My magic. He said he needed it to attack the elder."
Connie frowned at the comment. "Elder? What elder?"
Becca shook her head. "He never said his name. Only that he needed more power....more magic than he had to attack the elder. To steal his power from him also."
"Well, he's never going to get that far." Bale replied steepling his fingers in front of him. "Very well, Mr. Black. Since this Richard is causing problems, I suppose he will have to be dealt with. The three of us will confer on what we know about him, and, of course, see if Becca can add anything to what we already know, giving us a larger picture of what we may be up against, and then, once we have all the facts...........,
"Oh honestly, Orin." Connie stated with a smug smile. "You make things so complicated. He's an irritating child. He need only be dealt with as such." And with that she disappeared.
"Connie!" Bale yelled at now vacant space. "Connie! Come back here! Now!"
Eric stood next to him, watching for Connie's reappearance. "She has always been far to impetuous." He stated. "I'll go have a talk with her."
Bale nodded as Eric disapparated in a brief flash of dark light.
"And now what?" Orion asked, seated now in the office with just Becca and his superior.
"Eric will go talk to Connie." Bale replied, pulling a file out of his drawer and laying it on his desk. "After that, likely they will go together to seek out this Richard. And that should be the end of the matter."
"That's it?" Orion asked. "The two of them against him?"
Bale looked up at his agent. "Mr. Black, I have not lived as long as I have in this realm by being careless. Nor by leaving untidy matters laying around to cause me problems. None of us have."
"And I faced this 'irritating child', as your lot calls him. And I am here to tell you, Orin, I have never felt power like this before."
"Connie and Eric are not fools, Mr. Black. And I have ever confidence that they can deal with this matter without my help. But should they need it, I am only a call away for them. Now, if there was nothing else, I believe my next appointment is waiting for me."
Orion got up, indicating for Becca to follow him. Which she did in the same way a puppy would follow it's owner. A trait that was seriously getting on Orion's nerves. The girl never walked next to you, or just slightly behind. She was always practically plastered to the side of whoever she was with, or practically cowering behind them, just waiting for whatever unpleasantness the world was going to throw at her next. All in all, Orion was having a very hard time reconciling the girl who was presently creeping along behind him with the young woman he had faced in the magical corridor just a few weeks before. Becca may have been Heudros magical support system, but he equally appeared to have been her ego. And without him, Orion was having a great deal of difficulty seeing her as much less than a frightened mouse, just waiting for the cat to come along.
Well, no time like the present to try and correct behavior.
"Becca," Orion said, gesturing next to him, "come walk next to me, not behind me."
The girl looked up at him. "Why?"
"Because you're not my dog." He replied. "You're a person in your own right now. But you follow people around like your their valet or something. All that's missing is you bowing a scraping and asking if you can do anything for them. You have to act more like......like you're just like anyone else. Not like you've been someone's servant for the past 15 years."
The girl considered the statement, then slowly brought herself alongside Orion as they walked. But Orion couldn't help but notice she still practically crept along the corridor.
Oh well. One step at a time. Position today, posture tomorrow.
Apparating to where Becca's castle once stood, Connie stood staring at the pile of rubble for several moments.
"My, my, but someone did have a temper tantrum." She tsked at the stones. "No wonder Orin is so interested in you, little one."
Shaking her head slightly, Connie finally brushed several of her long, brown strands back from her face, taking in the area around her again.
"Now," she asked softly, looking around at the fallen stones, "where are you, little boy. Why don't you come out so we can have a nice chat?"
Around her a soft breeze blew through the tree tops, gently rustling the leaves overhead. But nothing else seemed to move. Something that caused Connie's brow to furrow.
Where were the birds? Or the animals? She couldn't hear so much as a cricket in the forest. Surely something wasn't right.
"And now who might you be?" A voice suddenly asked from behind her.
Connie turned around with her ever present grace to find herself facing a young man of about twenty-five by his appearance.
"Here all I usually ever catch in this net is Becca, who for whatever reason can't seem to stay away from this pile of rubble, or that irritating Mr. Black. But now here it appears I have a new fish swimming in the waters. And such a pretty one."
Connie stared at the young man for several moments. The boy was arrogant. But he also had his share of power. She would have to be careful.
"You, I take it," she purred at him, "are Richard?"
The other 'Power' ticked a finger in front of him. "Oh no. I asked first."
"My name is Connie." She replied in a casual tone. "I am Orin Bale's sister."
"Orin Bale's sister!?" The boy echoed, the excitement in his tone peaking instantly. "Well, this is an unexpected pleasure! Here I expected to never meet anyone out here of any more significance than Mr. Black. And yet here I have the sister of Orin Bale." The boy's eyebrows quickly came together. "Who in the name of magic is Orin Bale?"
Connie casually lifted one eyebrow. "Head of the Unspeakables maybe?"
Richard considered the information. "That irritating little group of men Mr. Black belongs to? You mean to say they actually have a leader?"
Connie gave the boy a deeply disapproving look.
"Well, if he's their leader, I can't say he's anyone I'd have taken much notice of."
"You'd do well to guard that tongue, boy." Connie advised him. "Less the wrong people hear you wagging your insults about with it about."
"And who might those wrong people be?" The boy asked. "Yourself and this 'Orin Bale'? Anyone else?"
Connie mimicked the boy's ticking finger. "Oh no. I've answered your question. Perhaps now you answer mine?"
The boy gave her an exaggerated, low bow. "Indeed, my dear lady, I am Richard. The poor, misunderstood youth of whom I am sure my dear, misguided sister has been telling some very unsavory tales."
Connie stared hard back at the boy. "Sister? Becca is no sister to you, boy."
"Ah, but as that we were called by the same wizard, that makes us family of sorts."
"Becca seems to feel very differently about the matter. For she has indeed had very little good to say about her 'brother'. Now why would she be doing that?"
A nervous smile played across Richard's lips. But he quickly hid it. "Becca and I had a.....disagreement before she left. She was very angry with me."
"People trying to kill you will do that." Connie stated sharply.
Richard gave the statuesque woman another nervous smile. "Is that what she said? Now, you see................"
But Connie quickly pointed a finger at the boy before her. "No. You see, Richard. Becca has a new family now. One that genuinely cares for her. And one that I assure you, will protect her. Come near her again, and you will suffer for it, I promise you that."
The boy had fallen to studying the woman before him. "Oh, I don't think you need worry about that anymore." He practically purred at her.
"Really?" Connie asked. Skepticism lacing the word. "That is a rather sudden turn around. Might I ask what caused it?"
The boy seemed to give the request serious consideration. "No. You may not." He replied finally and, with a sharp turn, began walking away from her.
Connie's brows came down in a deep, straight line as she gave the boy's retreating back a sneer. "Why you arrogant little......."
A single step forward, and the world went black.
Several hours later Orin sat in his office as a bolt of black light erupted in front of his desk. Although the strike looked for all the world to be enough to have taken out most of his office area, not so much as a paper sitting on the front edge was disturbed by the sudden violent explosion.
"Did you find her?" Orin asked the figure standing in the aftermath of the strike.
"No." Came the solemn answer.
Orin sighed as he leaned over his desk, a pen held tightly in his fingers as he looked up at his brother. "I'm worried about her this time, Eric. Black said this child has power. A great deal of it. Connie may have bitten off a great deal more than she can chew this time."
The other 'Power' stared down at his brother, concern etched in his face even as he tried to mask it. "We'll find her, Orin." He stated evenly. "We'll find her."
Connie shook her head as she tried to clear it. Whatever the other 'Power' had hit her with, it had been a great deal more than a simple stunning spell.
"Not pleasant, is it?" Came an all too familiar voice.
Connie lifted her head, finding herself staring at the insolent boy crouched outside the glowing green bars, a smile etched across his face that made her itch to reach through the bars and physically remove it.
"Oh, you are a prize," The boy practically sang out his triumph. "I couldn't have asked for anything better than to have had someone like you come to the castle, apparating so close to one of my wards that you were practically inside of it already, but too close to feel it. But you obviously were starting to notice something. The lack of sound maybe? I was hoping to be able to just stay in hiding and watch you walk into it the rest of the way. But you were getting suspicious and so I had to distract you somehow. All I had to do was get you to take one, small step......and here we are."
Connie looked about herself again. The green glowing bars seemed to form a solid cage around her.
"A small word of warning." Richard stated, watching her take in her surroundings. "I wouldn't touch those bars. They pack a nasty surprise."
Connie stared hard at the green glowing pillar in front of her. Carefully she balanced herself on one hand and reached out the other to the bar.
Instantly a sharp shock raced up her arm, causing her to pull back quickly.
Richard quickly pulled back to his feet. "Why is it everyone must do that!?" He stated sharply. "Becca didn't believe me either." He told her in the same sharp tone. "And she got the same punishment for not listening to me."
"So Becca was telling the truth." Connie said in a low, pained voice. "You locked her in a cell and tried to take her magic from her."
"Is that what she told you!?" Richard asked incredulously. "Is that what she told you I was going to do to her!?" The boy gave a sudden, small giggle. "Yes, that's pretty much right. But you needn't worry about her, because you see, I don't need her anymore."
Connie looked up at him.
"Because now I have you."
Connie shook her head again. Why couldn't she shake off this spell? Magic rarely effected her like this. She controlled it better than that.
"A little magical working of my own device." Richard answered her unspoken question. "You have to admit, for something to effect us, it has to pack a little more than the average punch, no?"
Connie gathered up her strength. "I'll give you more than the average punch." She stated venomously. Launching herself at the glowing bars, she seized hold of them, intent on ripping her way through them in order to get at her intended victim. But as soon as she touched the bars, a shock of power grabbed her in a painful grip.
A scream of pain echoed through the chamber. Pushing back, Connie managed to free herself from the bars, landing in an undignified heap on the dirt floor near the back of the cell.
A roaring laugh served to further add to her feelings of indignation.
"You find something funny, boy?" She ask in a acid tone.
The laughter died down to a slight giggle. "Yes. You." Came the snorted answer. "You honestly believed you could have gotten past those bars? Great magic, but you are arrogant bastards."
"Oh, there is a bastard among us, all right." Connie answered. "But I would hold judgment yet as to who claims that title."
"Such loving sentiments, dear sister."
Connie sneered through the bars at the other 'Power'. "Keep your filthy claims of kinship from including me." She replied.
"Oh, but we are family, dear sister." Richard stated. "For you state that Becca is your sister now also. And since she was my sister first, that makes us all family now. And I can't tell you how eager I am to meet my 'brother'."
"I wouldn't be so eager for that meeting, boy. For he likely won't show you any more familial mercy than I will while I am listening to your screams as I rip your body apart."
The 'Power' smirked at her through the bars. "I'm glad to hear it." He replied, pointing a finger at her through the bars of the cell.
Connie collapsed back to the floor with a scream of agony as the pain tore through her body.
"Because nor shall I." Richard stated.
Connie gathered her reserves about her and forced herself to her feet as the pain subsided. But no sooner had she regained her footing than another strike hit her, slamming her into the bars behind her. A searing pain raced through her body, giving her no time to recover before the next hit forced her to the ground.
"And that's just a very small taste of the fun we shall have." A voice spoke through the haze of pain to her. "Before I drain your magic from you and leave you with literally.....nothing."
With the last of her strength, Connie pulled her body up and threw herself at the bars and, ignoring the pain coursing through every inch of her body, she pressed her face to the bars and sneered at the creature on the other side.
"You'll die......begging me to kill you." She promised him. "Orin will give you to me as a toy to play with when I complain of boredom."
Connie had the small satisfaction of watching the other take a step back from the bars. But he quickly mask his apprehension behind the usual haughty look. Raising his hand, a streak of light shot out and caught her in the stomach, sending her hurling back to the furthest wall again in a crumpled heap.
"Continue to attack these bars and you'll save me the trouble of killing you." He told her. "Because they'll do the work for me."
And with that final warning he turned and left the chamber.
Laying on the floor, Connie slowly let her body collapse to the cold dirt, tears finally streaming down her face as she rested her head against her arm.
"Oh, brothers," she whispered in an urgent plea, "do not leave me here. Do not leave me at the mercy of this pitiless child. Help me. Oh please, help me."
Q&A
Silverfox
Pst, a bit of my review somehow inserted itself into the Orin's last sentence.
And sorry for not reviewing last time. I didn't get my ChapterAlert ... *glares at site*
I love Bo proving that he's a better teacher than Orin. How did Richard find Becca, though? Bo didn't deliberately lure him in for inspection, did he?
I know, Dear. And I have no explanation for it. Nor can I explain or have I found a solution for why 1) if I simply copy a chapter over from my disk all the punctuation disappears, or 2) when I copy the chapter off the disk and then paste it into the word document program on Document Manager it pastes it in duplicate, with the first copy being in bold type.
I will fix that incident with Orin's last sentence one day, though.
Every now and then Bo likes to remind people that he's not as dumb as they may think. Problem is, half the time they don't get the message.
Oh, how I love that last question! And because I love it so much, I'm going to give you outright straight answers on it.
How did Richard find Becca? Just the way you speculated, Dear. Bo 'lured him in'. He had exactly what Richard wanted. Becca. So he simply let down the shields around her so Richard would be able to find her.
Now, 'why' would Bo have done that? Especially when it put several people at risk? Well, because Bo is, for all his magical power, still basically a three year old. And he didn't see all the potential for the problem clearly enough. And curiosity is a dangerous thing sometimes. Bo did, in fact, lure Richard in. Simply because he wanted to 'get a feel for him'. Bo's Channeler indicated this new 'Power' was a danger. He heard the others talk about him, say he was dangerous, and a threat to Becca. So Bo, being a good home security system, decided the best offense was a good defense, and let Richard into the house so he could get a feel for him. Should Richard try to come back to the house, he might find things a bit more.....difficult than the last time.
All reviews are as of 1/17/2010.
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