Halfway (Wizards and Faeries) Read online

  Chapter 6

  Temet

  Temet spent most of the journey in bed, sick. He had never been ill before; coughing was a strange sensation.

  He remembered little of the journey since he spent most of it shivering under blankets. And being carried. And being dizzy, and being carried some more, by strong arms. Calm voices, arguing voices, shouting voices, soothing voices. All blended together. He remembered blinking to the brightness of daylight, and trying to stand.

  He remembered being tucked in and given things to drink to help him sleep.

  He remembered crying about his fate.

  Let the Order control you or die.

  You, like all wizards, are too dangerous to be left uncontrolled.

  It was the law.

  All wizards.

  Must be controlled.

  By the law.

  Made by the Ten Ring.

  Who was the Ten Ring?

  The ten most powerful wizards who made the law for all other wizards.

  You’re a danger to humanity. You must protect humanity from itself.

  Let the Order control you, take you as its own.

  You’ll learn to love the Order. The Order is everything to you now.

  Temet looked foggily around. The room was paneled in wood, sheer green curtains moving gently in a soft breeze that streamed in through an open window. Fern fronds and other green plants stood on either side of an open door next to it.

  A woman dressed in gray silk sat next to him, her blue eyes staring intently at his. She was wearing the same black scarf with the silver moon-eye pin on it that Gringwell had worn.

  “Thank goodness the fever has broken! We were so worried about you, young man!”

  “What?”

  “You were sick, poor thing! So, so sick we thought we’d lose you. When the ship brought you to us, you were delirious.” She reached forward, pressing a cool cloth to his forehead.

  “Where am I?”

  “Eighth level, Tower Five. I am Ilsa Shedara.”

  Memories came spilling back. “Am I at the Wizardly Order?”

  “Yes you are, my dear. Gringwell brought you in to me this morning.”

  Temet frowned. “So this is my home now.”

  “Yes, indeed. The Order prepares you for life as a wizard. You’ll see. You’re different from other children, aren’t you? See, here everyone is different.” She smiled. “We’re all like you. Though I admit I’m not used to seeing children so young brought here. Children don’t usually manifest as young as you. Are you hungry?”

  Temet realized he was indeed hungry, so he nodded. Ilsa left the room, returning some moments later with bread, cheese, and a sliced tomato on a plate, as well as a glass of milk.

  When Temet had eaten, Ilsa gathered his empty cup and plate. She was so happy; her smiles reminded him of Nessy. “No more talking now, dear. You still need to rest if you want to get better.”

  Though Temet was tired, he ignored it. Across the room was the open door. Escape.

  Tossing back the covers, he got to his feet.

  “You’re getting up? You should be resting, my little one!” said Ilsa.

  “I—I just want to see what’s outside.” His feet felt unsteady under him.

  A worried look crossed her face. “Maybe that isn’t so wise. Are you afraid of heights?”

  “No. I like them,” said Temet. He tottered to the door, determined to start running the second he was outside.

  “Well, if it won’t scare you, I’ll let you go over there. Here, let me walk with you.” She got to her feet and came towards the door but he was faster. He got to the door first and stepped outside.

  Temet gasped.

  He was standing on a small balcony jutting from a tower that floated hundreds of feet above the ground with no apparent connection to the earth below. All around them, some close enough for him to jump to, floated similar houses and towers, all constructed of a bronze-like material. The buildings were anchored to each other by means of thick chains running from house to house. Small platforms that somewhat resembled his lifeboat bobbed among the houses and several larger buildings. Temet saw people on one of the platforms who were using the system of chains and gears they were connected to in order to travel from one building to another.

  And the angry moon-eye was everywhere.

  “This is the Wizardly Order,” Ilsa said simply.

  “We’re—we’re floating,” Temet gasped.

  “Actually, we’re quite stable up here,” said Ilsa. “It works wonderfully for us… this part of the Order was constructed in the air when wizards discovered that the atmosphere dampens our Talents. Whatever you could do on the ground you can do ten times as well up here.”

  Far below on the ground was a forest. In the distance Temet could see a large collection of buildings—more than he had seen in his life. He recognized it as something Nessy’s books had called a “city.” And bordering it on one side was the sea, studded with ships like the one he had journeyed in.

  “That’s Vel City,” said Ilsa. “Now, my dear Temet, you must sleep and get better.”

  After Temet recovered, Ilsa took him outside and they rode on one of the traveling platforms equipped with sails. Temet stared at the houses and towers suspended in the air all around them.

  “How do they stay in the air?” he asked Ilsa.

  “See the shiny bronze metal on all the walls? That’s what keeps them up. It was invented by one of the first wizards to ever join the Order.”

  Ilsa steered the platform with a wheel similar to the one he had seen on Aylward’s ship, gears groaning as they turned, propelling the platform forward.

  They passed close to a large hall. Temet heard voices and a variety of sounds coming from within.

  “What’s in there?” he asked Ilsa. He breathed deeply, feeling exhilarated to be so high up. His sadness at being away had begun to fade, to be replaced by excitement at this strange new place. He still wanted to escape, but knew he could not until he reached the ground.

  “That’s where some of the wizards’ studios are,” she said. As they passed close to the front of the hall, Temet could see a variety of papers nailed to a board next to the door. There were posters advertising things like “Time Travel: Can We Do It? Come to L. Ebenezer’s lecture!” or “How Young is Too Young? A Treatise on the Value of Infant Wizards, and if they are Even Possible.”

  Ilsa anchored the platform to one of the larger houses and stepped onto the house’s porch.

  “Here we are.” She pushed open the door and ushered Temet inside. “You’ll stay here. One of the wizards in charge of things around here will come see you soon. Sometimes, but not often, we can determine what Talents you young ones will have. Won’t that be exciting?” She started to leave.

  “Ilsa!” he cried, before she could turn away. “There’s something I have to ask you.”

  “Yes, Temet, dear?” She sat down on a nearby bed.

  “My mother and my sister. Can someone bring them here to visit me here?”

  Ilsa’s cheerful voice was barely a whisper. “We don’t know where they are. Gringwell said they found you floating alone at sea.”

  “They live in the house on the cliff.”

  “There are hundreds of cliffs and thousands of islands out at sea.” She shook her head. “I’m sorry, dear, but unless someone finds where they are or they come here themselves, there is no way to see them again.”

  Temet felt his eyes filling with tears. Never again? Never, never see his family again?

  “We do have explorers and the Order’s own fleet of ships. If they find your home, you will know.”

  He nodded.

  “Well, choose any bed you want, my dear. I’ll send for a wizard for you.” She left, shutting the door behind her, and Temet looked around at the room.

  Temet was in a wide room crowded with dozens of rows of bunk beds stacked almost to the ceiling. Some of the beds were occupied with sleeping forms covered with bla
nkets, but most were completely bare. Temet took a step forward.

  “Choose any one you want, like she said, except mine,” said a voice.

  Temet turned and saw a teenage boy sitting on one of the beds, cross-legged, books spread around him on the bed. He wore a silver monocle over one eye.

  “Welcome to the Orphan House,” said the boy. “I’m Aesath Rogenstar.”

  Temet smiled in return. “Sorry, I—I didn’t see you at first. I’m Temet.”

  Aesath laughed. “That’s all right. I’m good at that. Making myself unseen, that is. It’s one of my Talents, and I intend to explore it until I become a wizard myself. But please, do choose a bed, Temet. There are dozens of beds in this giant room, and barely ten of us.”

  Temet sat down on bed close to Aesath. “Ten?”

  “Ten orphans. All wizard children with no parents. The Order is our parent. Well, the Order is everyone’s parent, really.” He smiled. “It’s a good place to live, since they teach us much more than we’d learn anywhere else.”

  “Where do the wizard children with parents stay?”

  “The dormitories, if they can afford it. If not, here. Do you want to know something? It’s actually better here. Quieter, better for study and practice. Do you want to read the essay I’m writing? It’s on the Strategic Value of Being Unseen.”

  “What is an essay?” Temet asked. “And why are you writing it?”

  “An essay is something written about a subject. I’m writing it to prepare for the Wizarding University next year.” He looked at Temet. “Hey, how old are you, anyway, Temet? You look far younger than anyone I’ve ever seen here.”

  “I’m ten,” Temet said proudly.

  “Really? You only look about six.” He bit his lip, staring at Temet. “And you can do Magic? The average age of Magical Manifestation is fourteen.”

  “I can do Magic. I moved a ship closer to me when I was stranded at sea.”

  “Impressive. And you have really light hair, too…” he mused, as if talking to himself. “You know what? I’ve spent the day studying some really obscure books from the library, and I may have a theory about you. Let me see…” Aesath grabbed the third book from one of the piles on his bed and opened it, flipping through pages.

  Temet waited.

  “Ah, here it is! Temet, who were your parents? Did they look like you?”

  “My mother, Nessy, has the same hair color as I do. She was a faerie; she told me so. I don’t know who my father is.”

  “Aha! Temet, your father was human. You’re a half-faerie, half-human. The technical term is ‘Halfway.’ You are a Halfway.” Aesath thrust one finger at the page. “Look! That’s why you are here so young.”

  Temet bent over the page, reading.

  Halfway:

  A Halfway is the name given to one who is both faerie and human. Such beings are rare, as unions between faeries and humans seldom produce children.

  A Halfway may manifest Magic in one of three ways: as a human, as a faerie, or as both. A Halfway manifesting both is a very rare creature indeed. Very few were ever in recorded history, and all were very powerful. Their abilities in Magic and Talent appear to have few limits, although considerable study has never been done on the subject.

  “What’s the difference?” he asked Aesath. “How do I know if I’m not a full-blooded faerie?”

  “You don’t look like a faerie.” Aesath showed the page to Temet. Upon the page was a drawing labeled “faerie.” The face was angular and decidedly different from his own, more like Nessy’s, but with the same almost-white hair. “There aren’t faeries in the Order. They use magic differently. It’s something they’re born with, not something they learn like we humans do,” said Aesath looking at the page again. Shutting the book, he looked up. “Maybe I should do a paper on you, Temet.”

  Chapter 7

  Cemagna

  Temet was gone.

  I cried for him that night, refusing all efforts to be comforted. Aylward had taken my brother, and I would never forgive him! Never. Never. Never.

  In the morning, I awoke to Nessy’s face close beside mine.

  “Pack your things, Cemagna. We’re going after your brother.”

  “Where are we going?” I asked, quickly throwing spare clothes into a canvas sack.

  “To a hiding place in the rocks,” she said, grabbing my hand and hurrying out the back door, towards the mountains where we had gone yesterday to escape with Temet.

  I looked around. Rocks and rocky peaks surrounded us, some very steep, bathed in a sea of morning fog. “What’s there?”

  “Our escape. This way.”

  She led the way up a rocky path far into the mountains. We walked for hours at a hard pace, Nessy muttering to herself the whole time, her tilted features disturbed. I was jubilant. We were going to rescue Temet!

  The path took us along a narrow ridge, which Nessy walked much more easily than I did. We climbed rocks which tore both our dresses, but I didn’t care. I was too giddy with excitement over the upcoming adventure. We were going to save Temet from the Wizardly Order!

  I felt the air turn slightly cooler as we climbed higher, but held my head high as I struggled. Must be strong. Must be strong. Temet. Temet, we’re coming to you.

  Nessy stopped at the mouth of a cave. “It’s in here,” she panted.

  Before I followed her into the cave, I looked down. Our home lay far below, shrouded in a sea of fog. I caught my breath, excited to be so high up.

  “Cemagna, are you coming?”

  I darted after her.

  Inside the cave it was cool and dry. Nessy was pulling a large sheet of canvas off something I could barely see in the darkness of the cave.

  “Here, help me get it outside,” she said. “Put your hands here and push.”

  The place where she directed my hands was smooth and cool, like metal. I pushed hard, and with a metallic clicking, the contraption began to move.

  Nessy joined me in pushing, and we shoved the thing outside.

  I stepped back in surprise, staring at Nessy’s contraption.

  It was a wide metallic thing with sails and propellers. I could discern two seats within the metal framework. A network of pipes ran through the whole thing.

  “It’s an airship,” Nessy said. “It’s how I got here.”

  “How does it work?”

  “Well, first it needs fuel,” she said. She opened a water skin she had brought and began pouring its contents into a metal keg behind the seats. When she had emptied three water skins into the keg, she straightened.

  “Now, I’ll sit in the front, and you sit in the other seat, right behind me. It will be a tight squeeze, but there are ropes on the seats for us to tie our bags down.”

  Sitting down firmly in the front seat, Nessy immediately began to tie her bag tightly to part of the wire framework. I did the same thing.

  When I had finished tying my bag down, I heard a rapid clicking noise and realized she was cranking on foot pedals under her feet. I looked down and saw that there was a set of foot pedals by my feet as well.

  “Want me to pedal, too?” I asked.

  Nessy nodded. “We have to get the engine going!” she shouted to me over the clicking. “When steam comes out of that pipe there—“ she pointed—“We can stop pedaling.”

  I began pedaling, and soon enough, steam belched forth from the pipe. Nessy gave a satisfied yell and grabbed the steering wheel in front of her—remarkably like a ship’s helm in books—and pulled a brass lever.

  To my surprise, the craft moved slowly forward. Nessy gave another happy yell, and shoved the lever all the way.

  “Hold on!”

  The craft shot forward and up, flinging us into the air as if we had been shot from a slingshot.

  “Oh, forgot these!” she yelled, reaching back with one hand to pass me a pair of round, brass-rimmed goggles. I pulled them on and saw she had also donned a pair.

  I stared at the land—my home—far below us, s
omewhere among the spiky pinnacles of rock where we flew. Before us, the sea stretched like a steely blanket. I shivered. The air was cold, and I could feel a few raindrops on my face.

  “Like it?’ yelled Nessy.

  “Yes!” I gulped. “But it doesn’t seem safe!”

  “Airships never do!” she shouted back, and began to laugh.

  “No, Nessy! I mean the weather! What about the rain?” It was raining steadily now.

  Nessy kept laughing even louder over the rain. “I’ve hidden long enough!” she yelled, but not to me. “You can’t keep me forever, and I’ll not have my son just two breaths away from you any more!”

  The gray sea was far below us. I struggled to breathe through the rain in my face. “Nessy? Nessy, what are you talking about?”

  “You can’t win forever! I’m coming back for him! We both are!” Her hands on the wheel were pale white from gripping and from the cold.

  I could feel the airship straining against the wind. What if it wasn’t strong enough? What if all the years in the cave had weakened it, and it broke? I shuddered as the rain grew still harder. Thunder rumbled in the distance, but still too close to us.

  I couldn’t see the sea below, just a mass of gray.

  A harsh gust of wind hit us, and right before it tossed us around like a fallen leaf, I heard a metallic clang. Turning around, I saw one of the pipes had burst from its place and now hung at an awkward angle.

  “Nessy!” I screamed to her.

  She laughed wildly.

  “What is the matter with you?” I yelled. The rough ride was making me feel sick.

  I had one last resort. Drawing a deep breath, I focused the way I had that day when Temet had left, when I had gone into the water and felt myself controlling the water around me. This was bigger, though, so much bigger.

  I felt my palms sweat as I twisted the craft slowly around to point towards home.

  Nessy screamed in anger, trying to jerk the craft to its original direction. “It’s broken!” she howled.

  I clenched my teeth, guiding the craft towards home, exhilaration flooding through the fear I felt. I could do it! I could do what Temet could do!

  The airship faltered for a moment. I thrust my hands forward, as if I could control my Magic with them, sweat mingling with the rain on my skin. I squinted against the rain, every fiber of my body taut.