Awakening - The Last Science #1

Chapter 18 - Breaking the Rules - II

  "I... have no idea what you're talking about," Will said, looking embarrassed.

  "No shit. Do your homework next time."

  He looked indignant. "We've been a little busy."

  "Well, luckily I'm here to take your mess off your hands. Tell me where the Scrap is, and a couple other things, and you don't have to worry about it anymore."

  Without warning, Will stood up. The electricity bouncing between Rika's fingers seemed to speed up and grow in intensity. Alden's hand grasped the couple of rubies in his pocket that Hailey had lent him.

  They'd only had time to go over the basics of how to use gemstones as an energy source, but he felt like he'd learned enough to figure out the rest in a pinch.

  He wasn't looking at them. His eyes were fixed on the window and the thick dark trees just outside, and they were wide as dinner plates.

  "What?" Rika asked cautiously.

  "Rachel's in trouble." Will pulled out his phone and began tapping commands furiously.

  "What are you talking about?" Alden was just as confused; there'd been no phone call or message or anything as far as he could tell, but Will seemed deadly serious.

  "She sent a signal—just trust me," Will said distractedly.

  Rika's phone buzzed. She pulled it out and checked the message.

  "Why'd you just text me?"

  "I set up a list, a long time ago. People to call in an emergency. You're still on it." Will kept mashing at his phone, ignoring them. Rika looked taken aback. "She's somewhere in the woods, but I'm having trouble getting an exact spot. Something weird's going on out there. Too much magic."

  Rika frowned. "Is she okay?"

  "I have no idea, what do you think I'm trying to find out?" Will cried. He was agitated, pacing around the room while still tapping away at his phone. "Her cell phone isn't pinging back either, no GPS. This could be really bad."

  Hailey cut in. "We can help."

  He looked up. "Who are you, exactly?"

  "Doesn't matter," Rika added quickly. "She's just crazy good at what she does. Also she can fly."

  "She can what?"

  "Just give me your number, I'll find her." Hailey handed her bag to Alden, putting her flight cap back on.

  "In exchange, though, you give us the info," Rika said, and the room got quiet. Hailey looked dumbstruck. Her tone was cold as ice.

  "Dammit, this isn't the time," Will said.

  "So tell me where it is."

  "Fuck you, Rika," he growled. He closed his eyes and began muttering something, while his hand clasped an purple amethyst between two fingers. After a few moments, it began to glow. His eyes opened wide and the crystal burned out. Black webbed across its surface in an instant, before it shattered into dust and fell to the ground. "It's moving, fast. North, past the train station and into the woods only a couple dozen meters. I can't get more precise than that."

  "Thanks." She nodded to Hailey, who quickly exchanged phone numbers with Will. A moment later, she was pulling open the sliding door to the balcony and launching herself off the railing. Will scrambled to the edge in a panic, but a burst of wind buffeted him back as Hailey shot into the sky. Alden noted she had a much easier time gaining altitude now that she wasn't carrying anyone. Rika interrupted their gawking with a snide voice. "Now, while our resident bird-person does her thing, I've got another one for you. Since you're so willing to trade secrets these days."

  "What now?" Will asked, exasperated.

  "Find my father."

  "How am I supposed to do that? I can only find magic."

  Rika shook her head. "You've got other connections and tools, and I'm sure if you put your mind to it you could devise a new spell for people. You can find Rachel, can't you?"

  "That's different. That's more because of our bond, not my spells."

  She paused. "Hold up. You can find your girlfriend because you two are that much in love?"

  "...Yes."

  Alden actually rather liked the idea, but he knew exactly how Rika would react. Sure enough, she burst into cackling laughter. "Holy shit, that's something else," she choked out. "Okay, say I believe that's actually a thing, you're saying that you couldn't use that because you're not in love with my dad, right?"

  "Right."

  "All right, fair enough." Rika was barely suppressing her laughter as she continued. "So you're back to the old fashioned way, unless you do come up with some new magic. I'll be in touch."

  Will shot them a final dark look before returning to his computer and furiously typing away. Rika hadn't raised the threat again, but the blackmail was obvious even to Alden. He followed Rika out of the apartment feeling a bit subdued.

  "Was that totally necessary?"

  Rika twisted around with an incredulous look. "Of course it was. Don't forget, if he can figure out how to track anyone, he might be able to track down your long-lost family too."

  "But you were holding Rachel's life as a threat," Alden protested.

  "So?"

  The cold, indifferent tone struck him as false. He felt like Rika was trying too hard to seem like she didn't care. "So isn't that a bit overboard?"

  She sighed. "Look, Alden. Rachel's gonna be fine, she always is. They're just panicking because they haven't had to deal with shit this big before. I'm not gonna feel bad for taking advantage of the situation a bit. Them distracted gives us the perfect opportunity." Rika brushed hair out of her face. "You and me are gonna get what we came for, right?"

  Alden still felt uneasy, but he nodded.