“Ah, yes, Declan. We hired Dr. Jensen, provided her with a fully equipped laboratory, and turned her loose to follow her own interests. She was fascinated by LV, V-squared, and the inherent, apparently hereditary powers of witches,” Chris said, shifting around in his seat to engage the visibly upset witch.
“Caeco? Your old girlfriend?” Stacia asked, tone deceptively mild.
“Her mother is one of the most gifted genetic researchers on the planet and yes, Caeco does assist her when her FBI schedule permits,” Tanya said.
“And she still has my blood? After she swore she would destroy it?” Declan asked, voice going cold.
“No. She has photographs of the microscope slides she made of your blood. They are quite detailed and show excellent cellular level detail, but she does not have any, I repeat, any of your physical blood,” Tanya said.
Declan stared at her, face rigid, then after a moment, he glanced at Chris, who nodded.
“She never told me she had photos,” he said, tone slightly less frosty than previously.
“She kept them from her research, being very careful not to label them as being yours,” Tanya said, watching him carefully. Everyone in the room was watching him carefully.
He looked at her, then Chris, glanced at Lydia, then turned to Stacia, who met his gaze with one of her own. They didn’t say anything but after a moment, he turned back. “Dr. Jensen always scared me a little. Stares at me like she wants to dissect me.”
“Oh, I think she might,” Lydia said. “Don’t let her get you alone in any dark labs. She’ll have you apart faster than Chris peels lobsters.”
Next to her, Nika just smiled and shook her head. “She’s fascinated with you as a test subject but I don’t think she would mean you any harm.”
“Hush your mouth, Sally Centriole. Keep the boy on his toes,” Lydia said.
“I just saw him get dragged up onto his toes. Not again,” Stacia said.
“Good thing Mack recovered enough to stab that demoness,” Tanya said.
“Lucky, you might say,” Declan said, smiling. “And Holly was pretty fierce too. I wondered how she might react, being infected by the demon wolf and all.”
“The thing about demons is that they hate each other. It’s almost universal. Her wolf loyalty told her to protect you, and any demon influence from the origin of her infection would likely put her at odds with Lilith. I felt the same antagonism from the taint I carry,” Chris said.
“So back to the Jensens—Caeco still working for the feds?” Stacia asked, arms crossed.
“For now. We’re hoping to get her to join her mom full time. She’s very thorough and detailed and it’s a change from what she’s doing. Plus, the FBI is a bad choice for her. They don’t appreciate her,” Tanya said.
“Where is her mom’s lab?” Stacia asked, tone casual… too casual.
“Washington, D.C.,” Chris said. “They both live down there.”
The wolf girl’s posture changed just a teeny bit, almost too small to notice unless you knew her and were looking closely. Most of the table’s occupants met both conditions.
After a second or two, Declan turned back to watch the action being projected in stunning clarity on the wall of the private room. The battle orb had shot the last barrage of spears out of the air and now floated down closer to the rhinos, administering a series of sharp electric shocks to the animals’ flanks. Unsurprisingly, the giant steeds immediately bolted into the jungle when shocked, completely ignoring the fate of their riders.
“Sonic weapon didn’t work?” the young witch asked.
“The armor on their heads blocks their auditory openings. Their riders control them through physical contact around their heads. I will now continue along the trail.”
“Watch yourself. The next escalation is likely to be a big step up,” Declan said.
“Yes, Father, although I will point out that only my avatar would be at risk.”
“But it’s your most advanced drone.”
“Others will come online within the next week. However, you are correct that this unit represents a significant investment of our new resources.”
On the wall, the green jungle slid by the sides of the big drone as it moved along the narrow forest trail.
“Declan, have you decided if you are leaving Arcane?” Gina asked.
Everyone turned to the young witch, who looked uncomfortable with the direct question.
“Not fully, but I’m leaning toward leaving,” he said.
“Both the mayor and the senator have withdrawn their requests. They say they were just concerned for their constituents and didn’t have all the facts,” Tanya said. “All three college presidents have contacted me and expressed their support for your continued attendance here in Burlington.”
“Yeah, but while they might have changed their minds, I’m kind of feeling like their original points were pretty valid. There have been too many attacks up here, all aimed at me or involving me.”
Tanya opened her mouth to say something but a small headshake from Nika stopped her.
Chris noticed the exchange but didn’t think Declan had. He was still watching the display beaming on the wall. “You have other reasons, Declan?” he asked.
The young witch looked his way and nodded, looking back at the wall. “I think it’s time to go back to Fairie, check in with the Middle Realm.”
“And maybe take the battle to Summer?” Lydia asked.
“Smart,” Senka said with a nod. That earned her a look from her granddaughter. “What? The wench has upped the ante. You either hit back or turn belly up like prey. The boy is not prey.”
“No, Grandmother, he’s not. But he also doesn’t need to conduct a full-on war either. After all, Omega is currently chastising the Summer Court,” Tanya said.
“Listen, I’m not looking to go all Rambo or anything, but if she’s going to bring it here, I’m going to bring it back. So while Omega chases her forces around the jungle, I plan on demonstrating that the Middle Realm is off-limits,” Declan said. “Remember there’s a second queen out there, and she’s watching for weakness. So we won’t show any. And there’s a possibility I can do some mental reconnaissance over Zinnia’s borders.”
“What would that accomplish?” Gina asked.
“He’s thinking he might be able to lure a few of her remaining elementals away. It would seriously weaken her while she fights Omega,” Stacia said.
“Speaking of fighting, I am being subtly channeled into a box canyon. One of the two sources of Arcane energy moved directly in front of me and then away as if fleeing. My outriding satellite drones have detected that the canyon closes off naturally half a mile from my current position.”
“So don’t enter the trap,” Lydia said.
“But then how is the Omega going to find out what this tricky bitch has up her sleeve?” Senka asked.
“You’re awfully aggressive tonight,” Chris noted.
“Recent events have lowered my tolerance for, how do you say it? Oh yes… bullshit,” Senka said.
Chris looked at his wife, Lydia, and Galina with eyebrows up. All three simply shook their heads.
“I agree with the Elder’s analysis. This unit is heavily armored with metals never before used by humans. It has powerful shields and equally powerful counterweapons. The risk is acceptable,” Omega said.
“Declan,” Senka said, smiling, “ I really like your computer.”
“He’s not mine. He belongs to himself,” Declan said.
“While that is a true statement, Father, I do belong to you in the same sense that family members belong to one another.”
“Okay, that’s true. Yes, Elder Senka. He’s a bit of a handful,” Declan said.
Just then, a bolt of white energy flashed out of the jungle ahead, impacting Omega’s forcefield in an overwhelming stab of eye searing light. Instantly, the battle orb returned fire with four equally strong beams of coherent energy, the result being a short but intense explosion within the vegetation that threw shredded plants everywhere.
“She has the ability to create energy weapons,” Nika noted. “I mean beyond charged, explosive crystals.”
“That’s basically just a much more refined version of my bracelet,” Declan said.
“Way more refined,” Lydia said.
“How do you know? You weren’t even here to see it,” Declan said.
“It almost goes without saying. Just going on what I know about you and what I can see about her,” the little vampire said with a straight face. Declan gave her a frown and then turned back to the action and thus missed the wink she gave Chris, Stacia, and Tanya.
“Listen, Bug’s Life, I’ll show you. I’ll pimp out my version. Massive crystal, something more volatile like a big-ass chunk of smoky quartz. Then I’ll tap into Robbie and power the shit out of that bitch,” Declan said, giving his vampire nemesis a sideglance. “Then you can ride it like a rocket right over to Fairie and compare how refined it is.”
“Easy there, big ticket,” Stacia said. “She’s just yanking your chain. She doesn’t know shit about your bracelet.”
Lydia was laughing silently, and as soon as he looked her way, she reached out a hand and flipped an imaginary lever in front of her. “And just like that, ladies and gentlemen, the switch is turned on.”
“Maybe. But I’m still rebuilding that thing. Time for some serious overpowered magser action.”
Lydia opened her mouth to reply but Nika reached out and covered it with her hand. “He’s not kidding. And the more you poke him, the bigger his plans for the weapon get. At this point, even he is uncertain about its stability. Let’s not blow up Arcane.”
“Father, I am entering the box canyon. My thermal sensors are picking up heat within the cliff at the back of the canyon. Weapons fire has ceased, with one party moving off into the jungle. The other arcane source has stopped all motion, right by the end of the canyon.”
“Show me,” Declan said, his tone something of a command. Instantly the display switched to reds, oranges, and yellow.
Senka’s head tilted to one side but she was watching the witch, not the display. Nika turned to look at her and the Elder nodded once without taking her eyes off Declan.
“That’s native rock. The heat is indicative of some type of thermal upwelling. They’re going to blow it up and bury you. Pull in your scouts and put full power on your shielding.”
The battle drone dropped to the ground like a stone, eight little silver balls zipping in and somehow disappearing into the bigger sphere. But nothing happened. Long seconds ticked by and everything was silent.
“Looks like a false call, wonder witch,” Lydia said.
“No, dear. Listen to the jungle,” Senka said.
“It’s… silent. Oh.”
“Yes dear.”
The display went white.