"So, MagiCorp finally showed up."
The vision within Jonathan Marlot's orb was partially obscured by the smoke billowing from his pipe.
"Yes," Soraya leaned closer into the fiery blue, red and green soul floating above the palm of her hands. "Did you fuse with Norma?"
Cackles filled the space between them. "Oh, I most certainly did."
Soraya's eyelid twitched.
"Norma Whispers is an alias with fake PhD credentials. This woman's real name is Josephine Macklin, a bounty hunter bent on kidnapping the Shadelkin twins. She would have too if we hadn't acted when we did."
Soraya exhaled, her insides queasy. "Is she... still alive...?"
"Of course. Josephine's trapped within me, making all sorts of plea bargains and empty promises in the hopes that I'll let her go," Jon took off his glove to show Soraya the Earth Magic tattoo on his skin. "This woman has murdered countless Etherians in all sorts of horrific ways. Don't feel bad for her, she's not sorry at all."
"So, you're going to pretend to be Norma during my therapy sessions, right?"
"Yup."
"And, we're meeting up at The Dancing Dragon on Astros at fifteen o'clock, right?"
"Correct."
"Alright, I'll see you then," Soraya whispered into the orb. "Have a good night, sir."
"You too, kid."
* * *
The Dancing Dragon was a two-story beach house with the perfect ocean view on Matumi's shore. A quarter mile of white sand stretched out before it, acting as a buffer between the shop and the Valtic Ocean. A wooden sign hung from the building, depicting a dragon made of smoke rising from a tea cup.
"This looks quaint," Soraya commented as she and her friends approached the building.
Rhys gently squeezed her fingers with his own. "It does," he agreed, glancing over his shoulder.
One of Magicorp's men had been following the group around Matumi, hovering just a few feet away at all times. He was a tall, muscular man with dark brown eyes, hair and tanned skin. He wore russet colored pants, black shoes, and a white collared shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows.
Soraya held the front door of the tea shop open for her friends, making sure all of them safely entered before going inside herself. She refused to make eye contact with the spy, but knowing he was watching them from the sidewalk they had just crossed over unsettled her.
Ever since MagiCorp's employees had arrived at Darkwood Academy, their talent scouts had roamed freely about the campus in addition to creating a schedule for culling through students, starting in alphabetical order.
Every day, during breaks, they would interview one student at a time, going over their test scores, asking them if they knew anything about the purified patch of land, and if they had seen the wanted kid on the poster. Jacquelle Demarko would be the first in their group to be interrogated, and she was scheduled for the following week on Ignis.
The room inside the Dancing Dragon was large and spacious, with booths lining both sides of the walls. In the furthest corner away from the front of the store sat Norma Whispers, sipping on tea while reading a newspaper through Marlot's red sunglasses.
The five friends approached the woman's table, being careful to appear as casual as possible in how they carried themselves.
"Is that you, Jon?" Soraya asked once she stood by the woman.
"Yes," Marlot extended Norma's arm, gesturing for the kids to sit. "How I look is a poor reflection of who I really am."
That's Jon alright.
"As your therapist, I respectfully ask that you call me Norma," Jon tilted his head down to look over the rims of his sunglasses as the talent scout stalker entered the tea shop and settled into a seat just two tables over. "I'm glad that you're finally warming up to me, Ms. Thenayu."
"Yes, and I'm sorry we got off on the wrong foot," Soraya played along, understanding she had to be careful with everything she said. "Thanks for meeting with me, Ms. Whispers, I really do appreciate your help."
"Of course," Jon enunciated loud enough for the talent scout to hear. "But before we can continue our conversation, I must ask a certain someone to leave, as I'm bound by my oath of upholding client confidentiality."
He shot a glare at the MagiCorp employee and rose from his seat. "Sir, did Ms. Thenayu invite you to be a part of this therapy session?"
The man, startled, nearly dropped the drink menu he was hiding behind.
"Did she?" Marlot, now the same height as Norma Whispers, towered over the sitting man.
"N-no."
"Then why are you eavesdropping?"
"Ma'am, there must be some misunderstanding," the talent scout laughed with a hint of nervousness in his voice. "I'm chaperoning these students."
"That's funny, I thought I was the one doing that."
Jon whipped out signed permission slips from Darkwood Academy and shoved them in the man's face. "I have proof for what I'm saying, where are your documents?"
"Oh..."
"If you don't possess signed paperwork from the school for chaperoning, and you're following these children around without their consent, then what are your real intentions?"
Soraya could hardly believe what she was seeing and suppressed her giggles. Ujuu bit his lower lip to keep from laughing, Moiya's emerald gems widened in surprise, Jacquelle looked smug with her arms folded over her chest, and Rhys kept his hands folded on his lap while observing through expressionless, crimson eyes.
The man's skin flushed a beet red. He suddenly hopped up from his seat. "I work for MagiCorp," he spat. "One of the largest companies in all of Etheria! You don't get to disrespect me like this!"
"Ms. Thenayu, does this man intimidate you in any way?" Jon asked in Norma's sickeningly sweet voice.
"Yes, he does."
"There you have it," Jon smirked when the man's mouth gaped open in shock. "I'm a therapist, I protect my clients, now leave."
The talent scout looked as if he were about to say something, but closed his mouth and stormed off instead, slamming the door of the tea shop behind him with a loud bang.
"Can we sit upstairs?" Jon asked one of the startled waitresses. "It would be greatly appreciated if we could enjoy our beverages in a more private setting."
* * *
"This is much better."
The six of them sat around a table on the roof, the salty ocean breeze ruffling their clothes and the jade green tablecloth, the roaring waves crashing against the sandy shore filled the air.
"Thanks for doing that," Ujuu said, his tarragon soda resting between his palms. "He's been following us around all day."
"No problem," Marlot replied, his fingers tracing the lip of his teacup. "MagiCorp will have to deal with Norma Whispers until the end of the school year."
"Are you actually planning on finding Tishva and Yosef with Soraya once school is out?" Rhys inquired as he leaned forward in his seat and took a sip of his cloudberry tea.
Marlot's teeth poked through his painted red lips. "I know you don't trust me, so does anything I say or promise even matter?"
"Just answer the question!" Jacquelle snapped, slamming her fist down on the table.
Jon seemed amused by the blond's outburst. "Yes, that is my plan. Are you going to add me as Soraya's uncle to her paperwork so that can happen without suspicions being aroused?"
"I don't know yet," huffed Jacquelle, her eyes narrowing. "It's too early to know if you're actually our friend or not."
"Fair enough."
"Can we come with you?" Rhys asked, his eyes studying Marlot.
"If your parents give you permission, I don't see why not."
"Wait, what?" Moiya gaped, her eyebrows raised. "Really?"
"Starlene Inos is implementing a new law on Mazula sixth, the day she becomes President," Marlot sprawled the newspaper out over the table and pointed at an article. "All criminals who have committed severe, atrocious crimes against other Etherians are to be fixed, like animals, so they can't breed."
"Whoa!" Ujuu gasped. "That's bold!"
"It's to help decrease the amount of kidnappings happening in our country, but it'll obviously deter some individuals from committing other horrid crimes..." Marlot spun his empty tea cup on the table, watching it twirl until it toppled over and stopped.
"I'm not interested in being seen as a kidnapper, so if your parents give you all written permission to travel with Soraya and I, then you can join us. Just be warned that I expect you all to pull your weight aboard my ship and train for combat."
"Your ship?" Ujuu asked, his eyes sparkling with excitement.
"Aye, my sky ship," Jon grinned. "Well, technically not mine, but one of the souls I have within me owns it."
Everyone's faces fell at being reminded of Jon's demonic powers.
"It was a ship used for carting and selling kidnapped children, and now it's not. You're welcome."
After a few moments of silence, Jacquelle spoke up.
"Aren't you afraid of being caught for all the awful things you've done?" the blond asked, her finger pointing at Jon's chest.
"No. I don't commit crimes in my real form."
Jacquelle blinked, her hand faltering in the air.
Marlot's eyes flitted over to Soraya. "She's seen what I actually look like, and we could easily be mistaken for an uncle and niece. I doubt we're actually blood related, but who knows."
Jon's smile widened across Norma's face. "My offer stands. If your parents allow you to travel with me, then I'll take you. If not, then you can't join us."
"Alright, that's fair," Rhys agreed, his hand resting on his chin. "My parents would be more easily swayed if we could convince them that you and Soraya are related, but what would the purpose of our traveling be? We can't say we're looking for missing adults, there's no way that would go over well."
"Good question," Soraya frowned, her fingers drumming across the table's smooth surface.
"We could say we're forming a band."
Everyone spun around to look at Moiya.
"Well, we all play instruments and know several songs together, so why can't we say we're performing at different restaurants for extra cash this summer?"
Ujuu flashed the Calgreneze girl a grin. "That's a great cover up story!"
Soraya beamed at Moiya's cleverness, but noticed Rhys' face hardening.
"Bro, you should probably stay behind," the older Shadelkin twin said, his head resting on folded hands.
"Mom and Dad would be suspicious of you joining a band. Plus, Zaruna's here. It wouldn't be fair to her if we dragged her into danger, especially when she just fled from her own country in search of safety."
Ujuu's eyebrows furrowed together as he stared at his brother in shock. "I get what you're saying, but I'm not abandoning you, we're kin!"
"Exactly," Rhys sighed, his expression softening. "All the more reason you should stay here in Matumi. Someone has to protect our parents, Zaruna, and her family if things go sour."
The younger twin pondered his brother's words while toying with his tarragon soda. The bright green, fizzy drink sloshed inside the glass bottle as his wavering hand rocked it back and forth.
"Certe estka?" Ujuu asked, his candy apple eyes boring into his brother's gaze.
"Jai. Certe est."
Rhys extended his arm and pat his brother's back. "Bonubu."
Are you certain? Yes, I'm certain. It's all good. Soraya translated in her head. She kept her thoughts of being sad about Ujuu staying behind to herself, but was proud of herself for understanding their conversation.
"You kids should all train, regardless of who comes along and who stays."
Jon pulled out paperwork from a bag he had slung over his shoulder and placed it on the table. "I'm writing down Matumi Beach for where you kids all meet up while outside of school, but we need a secret location for you all to learn how to fight and defend yourselves," he clicked his pen open. "Any suggestions?"
Soraya and Rhys shared a silent glance and nodded in agreement.
"A Thousand Steps Beach."
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