Modern Magick

The Striding Spire: 13

So, the main building of the Redclover School was burning down before our eyes. Nice. Worst thing of all? They were not normal, orange-looking flames. They were bright purple, which meant a magickal fire, the kind that leaves nothing to chance.

Jenifry watched for a moment, her face very grim. 'There are measures in place to deal with a fire,' she said. 'But of course, they're all inside the building.'

'Are there likely to be any people in there?' I said, trying not to imagine what it might be like to be one of them just then.

Thankfully, Jenifry shook her head. 'Nothing goes on in here outside of school hours. Jacoby, our caretaker, evicts anyone still lingering by four o'clock, and closes up the building.'

I checked. It was well after half past four.

'Who do we know who might have an aptitude for purple fire?' said Jay, standing at a safe distance with his arms tightly folded.

'A certain purple dragon?' I hazarded.

'Jenifry,' said Jay. 'The records are all in there?'

She nodded. 'Cellar vaults.'

'Was Mabyn right? Does Archibald only answer to the Mayor?'

'He's meant to, and that's normally the case. He might make an exception if he likes you, but Doryty pretends to know nothing about that.'

'So it was probably Doryty who ordered the fire, but it might not have been?'

'Correct.'

Jay looked up into the sky. So did I, and Jenifry, and Mabyn. 'Archibald!' Jay shouted.

No answer came.

'Damn it,' he sighed.

Jenifry was pacing about, staring fretfully at the fire. 'I can make it rain out here for a while, but of what use is that when the fire is in there?'

'How far from that door are the cellar stairs?' I asked her. 'And is there likely to be a locked door in the way?'

'Not far. You'd go down a short corridor and into the rear hall, the stairs are on the left. Yes, there's a locked door, but I have the key. Not that it matters now.'

'It might. Where are these fire-defence measures you mentioned?'

'In every room. There's a bell to the right of every door.'

'Right then.' I shoved the pup — dozing by then — into Jay's arms and set off. Before anybody could stop me, I dived for the purple-flaming door.

This may seem foolhardy of me, but seriously, one of my top talents is shielding magick. All the more so when I happen to have the marvellously amplifying powers of a major Wand at my disposal, which handily, I did. With my Sunstone beauty in my hand, it was the work of a moment to summon an ethereal ward which enclosed me from head to foot, and it was virtually unbreakable.

It was not a perfect solution, though. Main problem: to be that effective, it is also air tight, and that means there is only so long I can stay inside without suffocating.

So I made it quick.

It was my first time wandering about in a blazing inferno, and despite the unusually attractive colour of the flames, I cannot say that I enjoyed it. The corridor Jenifry had described was a tunnel of fire and smoke, and I could see nothing but roaring, hungry flames. It took some nerve to walk through, watching the fire try desperately to claim me, and trusting to my ward to keep them off me. More heat leaked through than I had anticipated, and by the time I reached the rear hall I was shaking violently with fright and sweating profusely.