Chapter 2
By its very design, magic can be removed in some way. Charms are particularly susceptible to the mind naturally filling in gaps due to residual emotions. No matter the strength of the charm, emotions always leak through the magic barrier. However, one must focus and have the will to force those suppressed memories through the barrier. Mark's rage filled his entire body, but his focus was not on figuring out why, but on the men standing at the door.
"May we come in?" Jackson asked the healer.
"What for?" the healer asked, skeptical of the businessman at the door. People not injured rarely visited a healer.
"I have a powerful natural agent that will put all of you healers out of business." Jackson paused for dramatic effect. The healer shuffled his feet and a nervous sweat began on his forehead. "I want to give you this chance to become a small part of my business, so that your family won't become as worthless as his." The businessman pointed at Mark, who shamefully bowed his head.
A small memory bubbled to the surface of Mark's mind. The man was Jackson and the other was Zel. They ran a business, but were both mages. Zel specialized in charms and the Jackson in destruction. However, nothing further came to Mark, except for a rage that continuously burned ever stronger. Suddenly, Mark snapped back to reality when the healer said, "You may come in; my name is Adimar by the way."
He led them into a living room. In the middle stood an effigy to The One with a fresh offering placed at the base. Directly beside it was a well worn couch. A table stood in front of the couch made of pure ivory and a glass ashtray with a picture of The One placed in the middle. Across from the couch on the other side of the table the healer brought over a chair, which he promptly sat in. Mark and Caroline stood off to the side and watched.
"May we smoke?" Jackson asked. Adimar hesitated slightly, but then pushed the ashtray towards them. Zel struck a match off the ashtray and lit Jackson and his cigarette. After taking a long drag from it, Zel reached into his suit and placed a bottle of swamp muck on the table. Adimar snatched up the bottle and gazed inquisitively at the bottle.
Mark began to visible shake. His rage became so great that one could see it in his face. He stood rigid as wood, his muscles constricted from anger. Then, Adimar opened the bottle and the smell reawakened Mark's memory completely. Jackson and Zel were corrupted businessman, practically enslaving people then making them search for treasure or another form of get-rich-quick scheme. Mark flexed his left hand and then leaped at Jackson, hand curled up into a fist ready to strike.
Jackson snapped his fingers and a lightning bolt arched from his hand through the path of least resistance: Mark's metallic hand. Smoldering, he flew and hit the wall. A picture fell and the glass covering shattered all over the floor. Getting up slowly, Mark dusted himself off. Caroline attempted to rush toward him, but Zel's eyes flashed blue and both healers became imprisoned in a bubble of magic. "I do believe that we need a more private place to fight... one that doesn't disrespect our master." He placed a small bag of coins at the feet of The One and its two hands glowed with an otherworldly light. The businessman touched a hand and they began to glow with magic, too. Suddenly, the world began to melt and wash away to reveal a pure white plane. The floor blackened and the three fighters settled on it.
Mark rushed towards the businessman. Zel's body flashed blue and a pulse of energy slammed into Mark. He flew backwards and slowly came to a stop. His back aching and static shock erupting all over his body, Mark almost considered playing dead for a second. However, Zel cast some sort of spell that lifted Mark to his feet, forcing him back into the battle. Could I ever win this, or am I doomed to die today?, Mark thought in his head. Then, as a miraculous answer to his question, his left hand's tissues evaporated, replaced with the metal gleaming back at him. One finger glowed with a blue tint, another with red, and a one more with white.
Out of the corner of his eye, Mark saw Jackson glow with red and a man-sized fireball rolled towards Mark. Something inside him told him to hold up his iron hand and with no other options, he did so. The fireball came close to licking his flesh, but the hand began to pulsate with a red color and enveloped the fireball. The energy slowly shrank the spell until it vanished entirely. The businessmen shared glances then Zel flashed blue and a bubble formed around Mark. With the simple touch of his metal hand, the bubble vanished in the same way as the fireball had. A smile played across the face of Mark.
"Now answer this... what does a wizard do when he greatest weapons are rendered useless?" Mark laughed and Zel rushed toward him, a dagger held at the ready. Mark drew back his fist and rammed it straight through Zel's chest. He stumbled backwards and looked down at his shirt. The fabric was ripped and soaked in blood. He lifted it up and looked in horror at the hole in his chest. Intestines hung loosely out the sides and blood gushed freely from his chest cavity. With shock, he collapsed. Jackson came over to him and took out a bottle of muck.
Acting quickly, Mark kicked the bottle out of his hand. However, Jackson gripped him by the ankle and brought him to the floor. Then, the businessman took Zel's discarded dagger from the floor and raised it to strike. With his right hand, he hit Jackson in the crotch. The pain spread quickly through his body from the force of the impact and brought him to his knees. With the cumulative rage of the evening, Mark hit Jackson in the head with all his might. The force of the metallic hand shattered all the bones of in Jackson's skull. The back of his head burst open and his brain sloshed out and onto the ground.
Suddenly, with the creator dead, the magically created dimension vanished. Jackson and Zel, both being dead, remained in the dimension, lost forever. Caroline and Adimar were mysteriously absent from the house. Mark made his way to the entrance when suddenly, a gag got shoved in his mouth and his limbs were bound together. "You have us to thank for saving your life." A husky voice whispered in Mark's ear.