Magic: the Gathering
Chronicles, Volume 4
By Louis Kemner 2008
The imposing, dark buildings of Ravnica's skyscrapers loomed over Ashley as she swooped slowly and low on her Sky Hussar creature. The knight rider was steering, and accepted Ashley's command for going left, right, up, and so on. The crowds below spared little attention for the griffin and its pair of human riders, since Sky Hussars and Azorius First-Wings regularly patrolled the sky lanes, looking for troublemakers.
"Turn left at this intersection," Ashley told the knight rider, who nodded. Pulling on the reins, the griffin screeched and swooped past a building's edge and flew over the new street. Up ahead, several men stood on a balcony of a building, who wore blue and black robes. They talked among themselves, pointing at Ashley's mount. Ashley suddenly felt misgivings about going this way. There were few people on the street below, and the few who walked along looked shady and strange.
Suddenly, the mages formed bright blue magic spheres in their hands, and hurled them toward Ashley's Sky Hussar. "Look out!" Ashley cried, and the knight commanded the Hussar to roll to avoid the spheres, which hit the building opposite. A flight of arrows came out of nowhere, and the shafts peppered the griffin all along its front. Wounded, the animal fell to the ground, crashing in a heap and tossing Ashley and the knight onto the stone road.
"Ouch! Can't anyone respect innocent pedestrians?" Gerbie complained loudly as he crawled out of Ashley's pocket. He shook himself rather dog-like. "Honestly, back in my day, griffins were treated like birds of paradise! They'd get treats tossed up from vendors and their feathers groomed —"
"Gerbie, hush!" Ashley whispered urgently, stuffing the squirming gerbil back into her pocket. She got the feeling that she should be as quiet as possible. She returned the wounded Sky Hussar and the knight back into her card, and scrambled into an alley, away from the eyes of the mages and pedestrians. Her heart beat faster and harder as she heard several men coming closer, saying, "The Azorius bastard landed somewhere around here. Where's the griffin?"
Ashley realized that she was intruding on private territory, where other guilds were not allowed. This must be Dimir turf, since the mages had blue and black robes, and some of the sidewalk occupants carried secret scrolls or magical bits of people's minds, preserved in glass jars.
Ashley dashed down the alley, taking a bend just as the group of men reached the mouth of the cave. Ashley listened to them say, "Not here, move on," then jogged farther for some minutes. High above, a lone sphinx watched her progress. The animal was perched in a bell tower, with its wings folded and its long black hair waving in a light breeze. Its intelligent eyes tracked Ashley's position.
"So, uh, where we goin'?" Gerbie asked, poking his head out of his pocket.
"We've got to find a safe place, away from here," Ashley whispered back as she navigated around a spilled trash bag. "This must be the Dimir guild's area, and they wouldn't like a stranger looking at their secret places."
"Well, of course," Gerbie said matter-of-factly. "The Dimir guild values its secrecy and anonymity. Some idiots here believe that it doesn't even exist! Load of wurm crap if you ask me. The other nine guilds would make a big deal over the Dimir going out of business, plus the guildpact would be ruined. That would —"
He was interrupted by Ashley crying out and being struck by a glowing plasma web. She fell to the ground, stunned by the net's paralyzing magic. Gerbie squeaked and retreated back into Ashley's pocket. Four Dimir guild workers stepped out of the shadows, one of them having magic residue crackling between his fingers.
"Well, what do we have here?" one of the Dimir men said, nudging Ashley with the toe of his boot. "Some girl wandering through our turf!"
"The Sphinx found her while it was on watch," another said. "The Bell Tower Sphinx found her running through the alley. Maybe she's connected with that Azorius Hussar swooping in here. A spy, I bet."
Ashley tried to argue and tell them she was not a spy, but couldn't: the shock net disabled her mouth, too. She could do little more than swallow and blink. Gerbie, unaffected by the net, trembled in her pocket and kept quiet.
One of the men stooped down, lifted Ashley somewhat, and held a knife to her forehead. She gave a muffled cry in protest, but instead of cutting, the blade withdrew. Trailing from the blade was a glowing silvery substance, and Ashley felt her head growing light.
"That ought to do it," the man said, and then Ashley fell unconscious. He hefted her over his shoulder, and he and the other Dimir men walked away into the shadows.
Viktor and his two remaining companions had helped revitalize Vitu-Ghazi, and the city tree now had its untarnished beauty. The many dead bodies from the Izzet attack had been cremated, along with Alana, the one Devin had gotten in a rage about. As he had been helping repair Vitu-Ghazi with magic, Viktor had been going over Devin's actions. It made sense that Devin would be upset if the woman he liked wasn't treated as someone special. But to run away like that and disappear into Ravnica? It made no sense at all.
In fact, everything that has happened so far seemed a bit off. The Gruul situation seemed very random. The Gruul making a deal with the Simic to make a race of Phytohydra giants? That seemed unlikely. Gerbie may have had a point: it would be an abomination for the Simic to make such a thing for the depraved Gruul Clans. Right as the negotiations were underway, the Izzet had attacked Vitu-Ghazi and nearly destroyed it! Then Devin went all stupid and left. It almost seemed like the Gruul were intentionally keeping Viktor and the others away from Vitu-Ghazi, since their card creatures were powerful and able to turn the tides of battle. It seemed that an unseen force was at work.
"Hey, what's up?" Makoto asked, seeing Viktor stopping his stone reworking while he thought about the recent events. "Something on your mind?"
"It all doesn't seem right," Viktor said as he resumed work. "The Gruul thing, the Izzet attack, and Devin running away all seem weird to me. Like they all happened that way on purpose for some reason. It's like something is building up toward destroying the Selesnya guild."
"That couldn't be," Kelly said as she mended armor plates with moss growth. "The guilds are fighting each other, but don't really gang up on each other as far as that. The Simic, Gruul, and Izzet all combining for attacking us doesn't sound right to me."
"We'll just have to hope that it all comes together for the better," Makoto said bracingly, leaving to help patch a scorch mark some paces away.
Devin, backed by his Orzhov creatures and mages, advanced down the street toward the magic bridge that linked Vitu-Ghazi with the rest of Ravnica. His revenge was minutes away. He could blast these filthy Selesnya away and promote the Orzhov Syndicate. Around him were shadowy Orzhov guild mages, bat-like Blind Hunters, ghost warriors, pearl gargoyles, and other beasts. The helpless Vitu-Ghazi was drawing close, and the fate of the inhabitants was at hand.
Viktor, Makoto, and Kelly had been working diligently when cries came from near where the bridge was. Turning around, they saw that an army of Orzhov beasts and guild mages made its way into the city, slaying the Selesnya warriors around them. Blind Hunters leeched the life out of the elves, collapsing them. Orzhov guild mages stunned the warriors and saprolings who came close, nullifying their attack. And screeching pearl gargoyles, animated by magic, smashed the defenders' defenses.
Viktor and the others prepared for combat, but were surprised when the Orzhov forces stopped their assault and parted in the middle. The cautious Selesnya survivors waited to see what would happen. Stepping out from between two Orzhov guild mages, wearing a cloak of white, gold, and night black, was a grinning Devin.
"Devin!" Viktor cried, recognizing his friend. "What are you doing here? What are these people?" He held several creature cards at the ready.
"Who are these? My servants," Devin answered, gesturing toward the assembled creatures and mages. "They're just my instruments, though, for what I came here to do."
"And what is that?" Kelly demanded.
"To destroy the Selesnya," Devin declared. "These rotten nature freaks must die for what they did to me!"
"Are you talking about Alana? You're crazy!" Viktor reasoned. "How does that justify this?"
"Believe me, it does," Devin answered. "Alana was a hero among the Conclave, but was thrown away like some common soldier! That was the greatest disrespect possible! My dear was thrown into a fire pit to become compost, and I decided it was justified to get even. The Orzhov taught me that the individual can become anything they want, and benefit themselves. I exchanged loyalty to the Orzhov Syndicate, and in return, I get the power to avenge my lost one!" He laughed.
"Okay, this is just a little too much," Kelly said in a deadly quiet. She moved as hand slowly toward her deck, and then whipped out a card. "Skeletal Vampire!" she cried. The vampire burst out of the card with a rattling cry of the dead. Several bats flapped around it like guardians.
"Huh?" Devin said blankly as he saw the vampire soar toward him. Before he could react, the vampire ripped apart an Orzhov gargoyle and leeched its magical blood. The vampire gave a howl of delight and swooped toward Devin next.
"Mortify!" Devin shouted, holding out a hand. The hand glowed black and white, and then surged toward the Skeletal Vampire. The Vampire screeched as the energy warped it and ripped it apart, leaving only the bats behind.
"What?!" Kelly cried, seeing what had happened. "You've never done that before!"
"Of course, Kelly," Devin said, looking at her as the magic faded away on his hand. "I gained new power from the Orzhov guild. I've got my own creatures, and the new ones! Volcanic Dragon!"
The dragon burst from his card in a burst of sizzling lava, and it stretched its reddish wings in the air. It gave a reptilian screech, flapping its heavy wings in the air. It eyed Viktor, Kelly, and Makoto with hungry eyes.
"Don't fight us!" Viktor tried to reason. "You're being controlled by the Orzhov so they can take out a rival guild! Don't be their puppet and follow some stupid reason to get revenge!"
"Being a puppet?" Devin repeated. "Whatever, Viktor. I felt compelled by the deepest part of my heart to rise against you. A voice in me cried out for this to happen. I would be doing this anyway! The Orzhov are just helping me on my way. They can benefit, too. It's the 'guild of deals', after all. Now, Volcanic Dragon, attack!"
The said dragon surged forward, opening its jaws to spit fire. Makoto quickly cast Mothrider Samurai, and Viktor sent out his Fighting Drake. The three creatures clashed, struggling in the air. The Mothrider Samurai and Fighting Drake seemed to have the upper hand, but then Devin said, "Giant Growth!" and the dragon ballooned in size. It easily dispatched the two creatures and attacked Viktor next.
"Twiddle!" Viktor said, and the instant froze the dragon in its tracks. Its wings locked up, and it fell to the ground and turned gray. It did not move.
"Good move!" Makoto said, and he cast Battle Mad Ronin, followed by Drudge Skeletons by Kelly. The tow creatures assaulted the Orzhov forces, taking out a guild mage and a Mourning Thrull. Viktor added a Coral Eel, which tore apart another guild mage.
Unconcerned, Devin threw his hands up and announced, "Culling Sun!" at once, a fake Sun appeared above his head, and quickly eclipsed. Rays of dark purple surged forward, striking the Battle Mad Ronin, Coral Eel, and Drudge Skeletons, destroying all three. The Skeletons regenerated, once again lurching after Devin. Devin simply produced a staff and whacked the skeletons, shattering them to pieces.
"Come on, don't make this difficult!" Devin said, amused. "You all don't have to die. You're my friends. Run away and abandon the Selesnya like they threw Alana away. You'll be spared and not be burned for fertilizer!"
"Don't be stupid, man," Makoto retorted. "Snap out of it. The Orzhov want you to do this! They can do no good for anyone but themselves. It's how they work! They'll find some reason to stake your powers and make you a servant. Break away!"
"You're the one being stupid," Devin said back. "I'm much too powerful to be cast down like that. They'll never stop until they crush the other guilds and dominate all of Ravnica! And I'll help them all the way!"
Viktor listened to Devin's mad ranting. "Okay, time to get serious," he muttered to himself. He edged closer to Makoto and Kelly. "Listen, guys," he whispered urgently. "We've got to work together to get around his new spells and defenses. Distract him, and I'll throw down Thorn Elemental and take him out. Okay?" The others nodded.
"What are you whispering over there?" Devin called. "Come out and fight me if you're not gonna run! If you back up the Selesnya, I'll kill you!"
"Come and get us!" Kelly snapped, and cast Sengir Vampire. The ghastly man floated toward Devin, backed up by several samurai. "Angel of Despair!" Devin called. The bald angel smiled wickedly and pointed at the Sengir Vampire, which dissolved into black mist. The samurai caught up and engaged the Angel in combat, fighting evenly. While Devin was distracted with that, Viktor cast Thorn Elemental. The giant wood titan lumbered forward and swept a single massive hand at the reserve Orzhov forces. Hundreds of wooden needles rained like a rain shower from the Elemental's hand, skewering the Orzhov creatures through. They fell over, dead. The Elemental's massive hand swept them aside and slammed on the ground near Devin, who leaped aside to avoid it.
"Your stupid Thorn Elemental!" Devin cursed. Wood needles had pierced him, but his Orzhov undead magic kept harm to a minimum. He fired another spell.
"Pillory of the Sleepless!" Devin said quickly, and the golden wood pillory burst into being. It zoomed upward, opening up on its hinges like a pair of jaws. The surprised Thorn Elemental was helpless as the pillory snapped shut on its wrists, binding the arms together. Bound by the magic, the Thorn Elemental was forced to its huge knees, making the ground tremble. Viktor watched as the beast slumped forward, its head also trapped in the Pillory.
"You see that?" Devin said triumphantly, pointing at the captive Elemental. "Orzhov magic doesn't let its enemies attack and get away with it. Feel the drain, Viktor?"
Viktor wondered for a moment what Devin was referring to, and then felt his strength start to drain. The Elemental groaned as its magic strength was suppressed, and Viktor felt his own magic weakening. He remembered the effect of the Pillory of the Sleepless card: "Enchanted creature's controller loses 1 life during their upkeep," or something like that.
"It'll take more than that to beat me," Viktor gritted, feeling his legs getting wobbly. The Angel of Despair had been defeated, yet it had killed the other creatures, too.
"Why don't we finish this up?" Devin said, preparing another spell. "C'mon, unless you have better stuff coming up." The Orzhov creatures advanced in a wall, and Devin cast a swarm of Blind Hunters and Mourning Thrulls for an air assault. Makoto and Kelly cast creatures to fend off the attackers, and battle raged. However, Devin's powerful Orzhov magic gave him the advantage. Viktor's main creature, his Thorn Elemental, was useless as long as the Pillory of the Sleepless held it in place. If only Viktor could destroy it… yes! Viktor had the very card for this situation. He frantically searched his deck as Blind Hunters and pearl gargoyles fought closer and closer to him. Where was it, where… there! A simple card: Naturalize. Destroy target enchantment or artifact. Never had those words sounded so good!
"Naturalize!" Viktor cried, holding out the card. Vines and tree branches sprouted from the card and homed in on the pillory. They creeped all over it, straining and cracking it with nature's strength. The Pillory shattered into hundreds of shards of wood, freeing the Thorn Elemental. The massive wood beast rumbled and stood up, flexing its massive hands. With one word of command, the Elemental took several thudding steps toward a shocked Devin. With one swing, twenty or so Orzhov creatures were swiped away, leaving Devin vulnerable. With a shower of thorns, Devin was knocked away in a powerful strike, defeated.
With Devin unconscious, all of his summoned creatures vanished into mist, leaving a quiet and empty battlefield. A few of Kelly's and Makoto's creatures were left standing alone, confused but relieved. "Is it over?" Kelly asked in the silence. Viktor started toward Devin's still frame, but sudden green light blazed from him. Viktor raised his arms to shield his eyes from the sudden burst of color.
"What the hell?" Makoto exclaimed. He didn't have long to find that out. The light swirled in a twister, and a human shape materialized in the vortex. It took shape, arms coming out and all. When the light dimmed to a dull aura, Viktor saw a young woman smiling wickedly, floating in the air.
"Ahhhh, now, what have you done here?" she asked. Her voice was falsely sweet and gentle, with undertones of evil running like toxin below the surface. She had a somewhat pale face, with her eye color being a bright red. Her black hair swirled all about, as though she were underwater. She wore a robe-like top, with sleeve cloth close to her skin. Around her neck and head was a high collar, with symbols and lines running up and down. Her fingers were long and spidery, and she had pointed, claw-like fingernails that were a deep purple.
She sank slightly and grazed her talon-like nails along Devin's cheek. "Such a pity this is," she continued, ignoring Viktor and the others and looking at Devin with horribly false care. "He was so useful for getting what I wanted. Even the younger girl was out of my way. I'll just have to try again, hmmm?"
"Who
are you?" Viktor demanded, coming closer. "What are you doing to
Devin?"
"Well, so you're his friend?" the woman said,
looking and standing up. "It must hurt to see him like this, to
have fought him nearly to the death. Don't worry, he isn't dead.
I doubt anything around here could take him or you down."
"I said, what are you doing? What do you want?" Viktor snapped. Makoto and Kelly had come closer, a few steps behind Viktor. They only stared in wonder at the woman before them.
"What am I doing, young man?" the woman repeated. "People always demand to know what others are doing, even if they weren't invited to know. But I suppose there's no harm in saying so. I'll just say, I want him. I want you. I want… all of you." She spread her arms out, fanning her fingers. She gave a cold smile.
"What's that mean?" Kelly asked.
"Don't get carried away," the woman said. "If I told you everything, that would not be acceptable. I want all of your power. It must be mine, taken from you. I've waited long for this opportunity."
Hearing this, Viktor realized that perhaps this woman was helping arrange the split in the group. He voiced this hypothesis, and the woman chuckled.
"Aren't you clever?" she crooned. "You're quite right. Ever since you all came into this plane, I wanted you all separated. It would be much harder to go after a tight-knit group. Those Gruul beasts helped me get you all away from this city tree so a losing battle would take place. A woman Devin was infatuated with would die, driving him to abandon this guild and take his revenge. The younger girl would look for him. A nice party split, wouldn't you agree?"
"You foul —!" Viktor growled, starting to rush toward her. The woman raised one hand, with her fingers all loose except the pointer. That finger's tip glowed, and a great blue plasmid bubble erupted forth and captured Viktor. He was unable to move, only able to recognize the Stasis Cell enchantment.
"I like these Stasis Cells," the woman said. "The Simic created the cells to preserve their experiments. The Azorius put the cells to use on the guilty. But I like to use them on naughty children like you." She snapped her fingers on that hand, and she began to dissolve in dark green mist. "Don't think this will be the last time you see me, children. I will get what I want, whatever you may do to stop me. It may be easier to simply submit. Ohh, by the way, you may have your girl back if you want. You might find her in the Dimir guild's territories. Farewell."
With a flash, she was gone completely, and the Stasis Cell vanished. Viktor stood there in rage and shock at what he had heard and found out. He was right; everything had been arranged to have the friends turn on one another! This woman was evil; she seemed gentle, but her wicked purpose was obvious in what she said and did.
"Are you okay?" Kelly asked him.
"Yeah, it was just a holding cell," Viktor said, taking a step forward. "Come on. We've got to get Devin."
"I'm awake," Devin said, getting up. "Look, Viktor, I'm really sorry. I didn't know that woman was making me do all that. I wouldn't turn against you like that, man. She's evil."
"Let's just get Ashley back," Viktor said. "That woman said that she was captured by the Dimir, by going after you."
"Can't believe all this," Devin muttered to himself. After Viktor explained to the Selesnya what was going on, they allowed him and the others to go into Ravnica's streets to find Ashley. Viktor summoned his Fighting Drake, and it carried the four on its back.
The alleys between buildings yielded no clues to Ashley's location. Makoto summoned a Kabuto Moth, which flittered ahead to look for her. Within minutes, it had found Dimir territory, so Viktor steered the Fighting Drake down to the alley floor to look for her.
"This place's creepy," Kelly noted nervously, looking around. The walls of the buildings were dark, with clothes on clothing lines fluttering like ghosts. Bits of litter of various kinds lay about, including glass jars with bits of brain matter in them, seeped in magical liquid. The four of them found a blank stretch of wall that permeated magic power.
"What is this?" Devin asked, gliding a hand across the stone. "I can feel magic here, but it's just a wall."
"Let me see," Viktor said, and he tapped the wall with Naturalize. The vines and branches crept out, leeching the unnatural magic from the wall. The bricks ground against each other, then folded away to reveal an archway leading to darkness beyond.
"Well, there we are," Viktor commented, stepping in. The others followed. Inside, the walls were lined with torches hued bright blue, making the hallway shadowed that color. Many chambers were beyond, some of them prison cells with people chained to the wall. Their expressions were blank, with magical clamps on their skulls, leeching their minds away. Other rooms had bookshelves with eerie scrolls and jars of more brains. People were in those rooms, so Viktor and the others had to avoid being seen. After some tension-filled moments, a cell was found that had Ashley inside.
"Here she is!" Makoto said, seeing her inside. Naturalize helped break the lock, and they were in. Ashley lay on a wooden bed shelf on the wall, her arms to her sides. Her expression was also blank. When Viktor got close, he saw that Gerbie had Ashley's shirt collar in his teeth, and he was tugging on the cloth.
"What are you doing?" Viktor asked him. Gerbie gave a startled yelp and backed away from Ashley's collar. "Whoa, you scared me there, haven't you heard of knocking?" the gerbil said indignantly.
"What happened to her?" Viktor asked impatiently.
"Oh, that," Gerbie said. He looked at Devin, then back to Ashley. "She and I were cruising on the Sky Hussar when we took a wrong turn into Dimir alley. They shot us down and captured her with a shock net, then dragged her into here. Since she found out the location of one of their bases of operations, they drugged her so she lost all her memory. I've been trying to wake her, but I'm too weak. Wouldn't do any good, anyway. We'd have to find the antidote for the memory suppression drug. Not even a Viashino Fangtail lash could knock the memory back into her. Got any plans for this?"
Walking over, Kelly gently slapped her sister's face with her hand. "Come on, Ashley, wake up," she said. Ashley made a faint moan, then opened her eyes. She sat up, and saw her sister and friends.
"Who are you all?" she asked nervously. "What're you all doing in here?"
"Told you she'd forget," Gerbie said. "She can hardly remember her own name —"
Ashley saw Gerbie talking and gave a yelp. "That gerbil talked!" she said. "Get it away!"
"It's okay, we're getting you out of here," Kelly told her sister. "Your memory's been suppressed with a drug. We've got to find the antidote for that, then get out of here. Let's go."
"Well, okay," Ashley said. "What about the gerbil?"
"Get me in your pocket," Gerbie said, starting to claw his way up Ashley's jeans. She took hold of him and fit him into her pocket, where he said, "Time is gold, folks, let's get a-going!" With that, Viktor lead the group out of the cell, back into the hallway. There was still no one there, but Viktor had the feeling that the cell was loaded with escape detection enchantments. The group quickly made their way down the hallway until they found a room that contained multiple vials of different substances. A lone mage was at work inside.
"Okay, how are we going to do this?" Devin whispered.
"We may have to attack him and knock him out," Viktor whispered back. "The room's small, so if he turns his back and goes to another section, he is still close enough to hear us."
"I've got something," Kelly said, taking out a card. It was Cursed Ronin, a human samurai. "He's supposed to be a bit stealthy, so we'll try him."
"Hey, a samurai?" Makoto breathed, taking the card. "I could use another."
"It's black, and your deck is red and white," Kelly snapped, taking the card back. "Let me use it to get him quietly. Here goes." She summoned the Ronin, who silently landed on the floor in a bracing crouch. His face was hard to see, but his eyes glowed yellow and fixed on the mage in the room.
"Take him out quietly," Kelly whispered. Nodding, the Ronin drew his silver sword from its sheath, making no more sound than a whisper. He crept into the room, and slashed with the sword. His aim was good, but not good enough; the man was able to cry out before dying from the sword's deadly edge. A few seconds later, other voices could be heard from elsewhere, voicing confusion and asking what was going on.
Wasting no time, Viktor ran into the room, rapidly scanning the vials for a memory restoration. After tossing aside vials that were blocking the rear ones, he found one labeled Memory Suppression Remover. He pocketed the vial and rejoined his friends, and they all ran through the hall, with Dimir guild men chasing them. Once they were into the alley, Viktor cast Vine Trellis to block the opening until the bricks naturally closed. Viktor produced the vial and opened it, telling Ashley, "Here, drink this." She hesitated, then accepted the drink. Her eyes filled with sudden memory.
"Oh, that's weird, getting all my memories back," she said. "It feels like everything happened just now."
"That's good, we've got to run," Devin said, eyeing the Vine Trellis being beaten at. The bricks had reopened, letting the Dimir guild men hack their way through the Vine Trellis. Viktor unsummoned it, summoned Fighting Drake, and the quintet was soon far away from angry Dimir mages.
"So, now that we're free, what happens?" Ashley asked. "And what has happened since I left?"
Makoto filled her in on the Orzhov-Selesnya battle, and the strange woman's appearance and threats. Ashley concerned to hear the news, but was most of all anxious to return to her home. "We've got to get back," she emphasized. "It's dangerous being here. Something about our cards got us here anyway."
"I've been thinking about that," Viktor said, rifling through the decks. "I think these were used." He produced Thorn Elemental, Isperia the Inscrutable, Konda, Lord of Eiganjo, Ryusei, the Falling Star, and Kuro, Pit Lord and put them together. "I think it was these."
"They're all our best cards," Makoto noted, looking at the stack. Before he could say anything else, though, the cards began spinning together, just like the first time. They rotated at blurring speeds, then the small black orb materialized above the cards, with the green energy crackling. The sphere grew into the black tunnel, and the five of them were pulled in, Drake and all.
When Viktor hit solid ground, he felt grass under him. He looked around in the sudden dark. He saw Makoto's house, with lights shining inside. Some houses away, a dog barked, and crickets chirped in the grass. He was back into Makoto's neighborhood! The sky was mostly dark, with faint gold light at the horizon. It was clearly late evening.
"We're back!" Makoto cheered, standing up. "There's my house! Yes!" he dashed across the front lawn and rang the doorbell. The door opened, and Makoto's mom stood there, and shock crossed her face upon seeing her son.
"My Makoto!" she cried, embracing him. "You were gone so long! Where have you been? And your friends are here too."
"It's okay, mom," Makoto answered, breaking away. "I can explain what happened later, okay? My friends'll be going home about now."
"I'm just glad you're found," Mrs. Nakamura said. "Missing posters were put up for you and your friends. Everyone's been looking. Now I can tell them you're right here." With that, Viktor and the others said their goodbyes, and boarded the bus to go back to their homes. Viktor got off the bus, walked across his own lawn, and entered his own home.
"There you are! You've been missing!" Mrs. Dimitrov said when she saw Viktor coming in. "Missing posters were put up for you. What happened?"
"School trip, or something," Viktor said vaguely. "I can tell you about it later. Sorry to worry you."
"School trip? Why didn't you tell me? Or at least call?" Mrs. Dimitrov asked.
"I'll… well…," Viktor said. He could hardly say "Mom, I was teleported to a magical alternate universe by playing cards and fought monsters and came back".
"I'm sure you're tired. You can explain in the morning," Mrs. Dimitrov said. "By the way, there's surprising news."
"What is it?" Viktor asked, setting his backpack down. He had collected it from Makoto's house before leaving.
"Your grandfather called yesterday," Mrs. Dimitrov said. "He seems to be in better health! The nursing home doctors said that his condition improved rapidly, and they couldn't tell what was causing it. He is going to board the next flight from Sofia to here, and will visit us. Isn't that nice to hear?"
"Yeah, it is," Viktor said, an odd feeling creeping into his stomach. His grandfather, Georgi Dimitrov, had stayed behind in Bulgaria when Viktor and his parents had come to the United States. Viktor was going to study abroad when his parents had decided that life would be better in America. Georgi and his wife Anna had been in declining heath, and had moved into a nursing home in downtown Sofia.
And now, right after Viktor went on a crazy journey to Ravnica and came back, his grandpa gets better and is flying over! There was no way he knew about it; Viktor had just come back, and no one had seen the departure or return. Besides, Georgi was a retired store manager. He wasn't a detective or any other type to look into mysterious happenings. His mind buzzing, Viktor headed upstairs and tumbled into bed.