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Rain droplets pelted incessantly against Felix’s psychic shield as he sat on a roof ledge, watching over the busiest district in Sirius City like some kind of deranged vigilante. He would be smoking a cigar if he got any broodier, but there was only worry in his eyes. He could not let anything happen to Marcia.
Not after his promise.
The teen clenched his fists as the memory of that fateful day washed over his mind again.
He had just turned thirteen, and his parents brought the whole family to a theme park to celebrate his birthday. Felix remembered being delirious with joy on their way home. So happy that his telekinetic senses failed to warn him of the incoming vehicle hurtling towards them from their carriage’s blind spot.
The enchanted hunk of metal barrelled straight into their vehicle, and Felix only had time to create a force field around his sister and himself. His parents died instantly on impact, and so did the sole occupant of the other carriage. Their vehicles exploded shortly after, leaving no corpses for even the Necromancers to investigate the cause of the accident.
The driver was a lone Magi living on the fringes of society with no ties to anyone or anything, which made his death a lot less troublesome to handle. Felix and Marcia, on the other hand, had to be sent to a foster home in a rush.
Heaps of administrative procedures threatened to overwhelm the grieving children as the authorities tried to push them back to their normal lives as quickly as possible. But they remained strong, tackling each problem one at a time together.
Things settled down soon enough, and the siblings were allowed to reclaim their lonely home when Felix reached the legal age of seventeen. They visited their parents’ graves for the last time when they left their foster home, and the elder brother made a promise to look over and protect his sister from then on.
A promise that was now on the verge of breaking.
“Felix? Is that you?” a familiar voice shook him out of his thoughts.
“Orpheus?” Felix replied without looking back. After all, there was no way he could not recognise his best friend’s voice. “How did you know I would be here?”
“I’ve been searching for you the whole day! Good thing I bumped into Gaius, and he told me everything,” Orpheus exclaimed, leaving the wand in his chest pocket to continue repelling the rain as he sat down beside Felix. “Why didn’t you invite me to help?”
“This isn’t a game, Orpheus,” Felix said behind gritted teeth. “Stay out of this.”
“Hey!” Orpheus shoved him roughly. “What’s your deal, man? Why are you trusting others instead of your good friend? Am I that weak to you?”
“No, I am!” Felix felt water trickling down his cheek. He put down his shield so that the rainwater could hide it.
“I… I can’t lose my best friend, too. You’ve seen firsthand how organised these jerks are, Orpheus. They aren’t just thugs; they’re part of some criminal organisation out to get me for Gods know why. And now that they’ve seen my power, they’ll be prepared the next time.”
“Please, Orpheus.” His body trembled with emotion. “I don’t want to be the reason for your death too…”
Felix felt the rain stop and looked up, noticing the dome over his head as Orpheus moved closer to him.
“You won’t.” Orpheus smiled warmly at the sobbing boy. “As long as I’m with you, I know I’ll be safe. We’re in this together, Felix. I won’t abandon my best friend, especially not at a time when he needs help the most.”
“You fool… You sweet, sentimental fool…” Felix hugged him tightly. “I’m so scared, man. I’m so scared I’ll lose everyone…”
He felt Orpheus’s hands wrap around his shoulders as his voice soothed him gently.
“You won’t, Felix. We’ll make sure of it.”
~ ~ ~
Marcia curled herself on the mattress, feeling her head tap against the concrete wall. The room she was in was completely dark, and it felt like time did not exist anymore. She spent most of the time in a delirious sleep, never knowing when it was night or day. Meal times were the only indication that she was still alive, and had not long died and become a disembodied ghost.
Footsteps clicked outside her room as her fingers closed around the cold porcelain bowl. It did not feel too long ago when she just had her last meal, though. Was it time for her next one already?
Marcia closed her eyes in confusion. Time was really becoming a more and more abstract concept by the second. The familiar sound of magic dispelling drifted to her ears again as she prepared herself to receive her next meal.
Blinding sunlight flooded the room as the whole door opened instead of just its hatch this time. She raised a palm to shield the agonising light that she had craved to see so much. A figure blocked the sun’s rays and entered the cell, pulling Marcia up to her feet. She followed the person out of the room, still partially blinded by the sudden change in brightness.
The young girl walked into a cold, metallic room. It resembled a laboratory, though it was devoid of any technomagick equipment. Instead, a single book lay open atop an altar, surrounded by candles lit with silver flames. Its pages were stained a reddish brown, distinctly reminiscent of dried blood.
Marcia shuddered. This was clearly a place for some kind of ancient magic ritual. A ritual that called on the purified nature of Arcani. A ritual that could only have originated from a time before technomagick existed, when scientific technology had not yet completely merged with magic.
“Come here, little girl. No need to be afraid.”
Marcia stood rooted to her position, refusing to obey the coaxing voice of the man who lied to her about giving her a rest. Cold metal wrapped around her wrists from behind without warning, and a wave of weakness hit her.
She fell to her knees as a beeping sound emitted from behind her. The woman behind her tutted her lips and removed the device, showing it to the man in front of them. The little girl got back up shakily.
“Move.” The woman stared down at Marcia with stone-cold eyes.
Jagged black quartz grew out from her skin threateningly, coating her arm in a dangerous-looking spiked armour. The girl squeaked in fear and walked towards the man obediently.
“Looks like we have to resort to plan B,” Titus said to his sister. “This little girl does not have enough Arcani to stabilise the spellcraft.”
“What choice do we have?” Lucia replied with irritation in her voice. “You should’ve personally faced that psychic instead of relying on our weaker comrades. I already warned you he was powerful, didn’t I?”
“Alright, my bad.” Titus chuckled, waving his hand dismissively. “But don’t worry, I have a plan. Felix Pagonis should be worried sick now, looking for his little sister. Any movement we make from now on will definitely attract his attention, and I intend to exploit that.”
“What do you mean?” Lucia asked.
“I’ve already instructed our comrades to make a ruckus during the wand trafficking trade taking place at Madison Town Square. Felix will definitely show up, and all they need to do is drop the false portal.” A sinister grin showed up on Titus’s face. “I’ll take care of the rest.”
“What do we do with this girl in the meantime?”
“Psychic types are rare; make sure she doesn’t leave this place,” Titus said. “I do not relish hurting more of our kind than necessary, but we might still need her in case that boy refuses to listen to reason.”
He bent down and patted the shivering girl’s head. “We’ll take good care of you, alright?”
“Leave my brother alone!” Marcia yelled at him, surprising herself with how much energy she still managed to muster. “Why are you doing this to our family? What did we ever do to you?”
“I’m afraid I can’t, little one.” Titus smiled. “Sacrifices must be made to reclaim the glory of our kind. You won’t understand it.”
Marcia’s heart sank as she was ushered back out of the room, knowing she would have to endure the crushing darkness of that cell again.
A whispered prayer left her lips.
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