Rhapsody of the Shadows

Chapter one

“Ow… Why did you kick me” Demitri asked as he grabbed his knee.

“Pay attention we have a costumer,” Jamie hissed under her breath before addressing the costumer “Hello Welcome to Aristhrox ‘Antiques. How may I help you?”

“I’m looking for a book” The costumer said. He looked like he was around 28 or so, he dressed in black pants and a black leather jacket with a red shirt; he gave a feeling of mischief and recklessness.

“I’m sorry sir, we do have numerous books” Demitri said gesturing to the stacks of books piled in the back half of the shop. “You’re going to have to be a bit more specific”

“Will the title and author be good enough?”

“I suppose…” Demitri started but was cut off by Jamie’s hand being slapped over his mouth “That’s more then enough…” she added

“I’m looking for the secret gate of the creator, as scribed by the Rhapsody of the Shadows”

“You’re correct I do believe we have a copy, but it will take a few minutes to locate it”

“Well make it fast,” The costumer said as Demitri retreated to the back room to cast the locater spell

“Dee, would your hurry up,” Jamie called in to the back room

“What dose she thinks I am? Some kind of prodigy?” He grumbled to himself choosing to ignore the fact that his teachers were calling him the strongest mage in a century.

He whispered the incantation as he burned a slip of paper with the book’s title and author on it over the enchanted crystal point. When it was done he picked it up and walked out of the room saying “Ok It’s ready”

“About damn time,” The costumer mumbled

“What was that?” Demitri asked leading the way. After a short time of climbing over the books in the back they found it. “Here we are, The Secret gate of the creator by the Rhapsody of The Shadows, now just take that up to the front and Jamie will take care of you,”

“Glad he’s gone, now we can get back to work on the gate charm,” Demitri said

“You know it’s more of a complex ritual and realty distortion; to call it a charm is over-simplifying it,”

“Yeah, yeah, but lets get focused, what we need to do is figure out away to power it with out a group of at least 13 unusually powerful mages.”

“What about charged crystals? … No never mind were would we get that high a charge on the crystals, especially with the current restrictions of magical power sources?”

“No if we use fine cut emeralds it would work,”

“Dee, were would we get that many emeralds?”

“I don’t know, we could rob a mine,”

“I am not committing grand theft emerald”

“Well then I guess the only option is to break the ritual apart and remove the unnecessary components” There was a mischievous glint in his eye as he said this,

“Dee, I don’t like that look in your eye, what did you have in mind?”

“Well Jazz, since you asked, I say we go step by step and eliminate and rebalance as we go”

“Are you sure it’s safe to get rid of all thus stuff Dee?” Jamie asked, they were sitting at the small corner table in Demitri’s massive Kitchen

“Pretty Sure, Why?”

“Well for one thing, if you’re wrong the teleportation tunnel could collapse around us and kill us,”

“Jazz the chances of that happening are a hundred to one,” Demitri said placing a hand on her shoulder.

“Ok…Ok, lets see we got rid of the untraceable part, replaced the projected energy arch with a marked arch and the same with the universal exit,” Jamie said checking there notes.

“You forgot the replacing the realty bends produced by the projected energy gate with the tunneling effect of the marked entrance and exit and the extra power source,”

“Yeah about that…”

“ I know you want to put it back but honest we don’t need it, I crunched the power equation hundred times, we don’t need it if the gate is up on a surface instead of being projected, then the wall will give it stability, just like with tunneling spells,”

“I know that Dee, I took the same class as you, but you forget that tunneling spells do collapse with out enough power behind them. Were also not tunneling through rock were tunneling through space and time which takes more power,”

“I’m not; there will be enough power, that’s why the gate is marked with alchemical power signs,”

“I know, but I don’t think it will be enough, Dee,”

“Maybe if we were trying to keep the gate open for long periods of time, but we aren’t, we need the tunnel open for like five minutes tops,” Demitri said as the housekeeper entered and announced that “Jasmine Rose Heliothros’ “mother was on the Tela-crystal. Jamie left to see what her mother wanted; Demitri in the mean time packed up the notes and papers on the table and teleported them to the secret compartment in his desk.

“That was mumsie, she wants me to come home and meet a new boy. Apparently he’s the heir to Flystar, broom and Carpet Company, or something,”

“What, am I not good enough for your mother anymore?” Demitri joked

“No, not rich enough,” Jamie laughed,

“Well go on now, its best not to keep mumsie waiting,” and at that Jamie grabbed her bag and left.

Demitri got up thinking about cookies, he was hungry so he raided the pantry and got a plate of cookies and a glass of milk and proceeded up stairs to his room. His room was in realty a suite containing several rooms on the second floor. His suite boasted its own study and privet bathroom with a deep floor tub that submerged him up to the waist when standing. It also contained with in its confines a sitting room with a large crystal screen that was connected to the viewing crystal network. The bedroom encompassed a large sleigh bed and a wardrobe that was impossibly big on the inside.

Demitri walked in to his sitting room and took a set in his sofa and waved a hand to turn on the screen to the viewing crystal box. The News network was still on from the night before.

“…And in business news today, the board of directors of the Heliothros Apothecary’s and Potion Makers announced today an intended merger with the Flystar broom and carpet makers. In a press conference to announce the merger, the spokesperson for the company had this to say ’ We at Heliothros intend to keep the management and staff the same as they are at present, the only thing we intended to change is the name’ and in other news…”

“Well that explains why Jamie’s mother wanted her to come home” Demitri thought to himself as the waved his hand and change the station to one that played music and switched off the screen. He then got up and walked in to his study deciding he should start working on his history homework. About half way through the chapter his Tela-Crystal rang.

“Hello,” He answered

“Hey,” Jamie replied from the other end

“What’s going on, Jazz?”

“Not much, just doing the history homework,”

“Same here, did you find the answer to question 18?

“The one about which alchemist discover that if you mix honeysuckle and wolfs bane with a liquid metal on the full mood they produce fake gold?”

“Yeah that one,”

“Yeah it was Nicolai the gray”

“What is up with all the mages in the 1500’s having a color?”

“It’s because there was this huge movement to categorize magic by color to match it’s intend purpose. It was a disaster, the only too categories left are black and white, and those are only used by the under-educated, all magic is, is power. I mean...” but she was cut off by Demitri chiming in with

“You know I was being sarcastic, right?”

“Now I do,” she murmured torn between indignation and embarrassment.

“Know what? I have an idea, why don’t we meet up at that café by the college,”

“You mean the Bending Oak?”

“Yeah that’s the one,”

“Ok, give me about half an hour, I’ve got to change and get stuff together”

“Ok meet you there” Demitri said before hanging up and going to get his stuff together.