Magestorm: The Awakening (7 page)

15

Cassandra was tired of pussyfooting around. 
After having to leave
Dhane
wondering what was going on and feeling like an outcast as usual, she was in an awful mood. 
If the werewolves thought they were getting
one
over
on
her, she was going to show them what kind of witch she could be.  Sebastian would regret his guise.

She entered the werewolf territory and walked up to the apartment door.  Before she could knock, the door opened.  Inside, nobody was waiting in the lobby, though it was only a moment before Adam walked in
.

“I’m here to see Sebastian, assuming he can make time for me.”

“Yes ma
d
am.  I will inform him of such, and send your greeter.”

She looked at him curiously.  Why was he no longer her greeter?  She hoped he hadn’t gotten into trouble just because she
had
never
lain
with him.  It was a traditional thing among the werewolves, that they secure and continue their bond through sex.
  She just wasn’t interested in doing anything with him.

After several minutes, she was starting t
o get anxious.  Not another soul
had passed through since Adam left, and she was beginning to worry about what would happen next.  She mentally reviewed several spells she might need, just in case.
  All the while, she imagined what devious business Sebastian might be plotting.

Finally a woman stepped into the room and walked straight up to her.  She was short and thin, with short blond hair and pink lips.  She wore high heels and a short
blue
dress.  He
r
small but firm breasts showed a touch of cleavage, but not too much.  She bowed when she reached Cassandra.

“My name is Amber, and I’m here to greet you.”

Cassandra stood in stunned silence.  The woman took her hand gently and led her to the usual parlor room.
  In the room, Cassandra sat down as normal,
but
Amber prepared a glass of wine instead of a similar drink as Adam usually served.

“I hope this pleases you.”

Cassandra accepted the glass and began to drink, when suddenly
Amber moved the straps of her dress off her shoulders and it dropped to the floor.  She stood wearing nothing but a pair of lacy black panties.

The glass was quickly emptied and Cassandra stood up.

“I think there’s been a mistake…”

Amber took
Cassandra’s
hand and placed it on her breast.
  She held it there
and
felt her
nipple harden under her guest’s
hand.  She wondered if anything would happen, or if she would fail as Adam did.  She felt the hand tighten and pinch her tip between the fingers.

Cassandra moved clos
er until their bodies touched.  Their lips were an inch from each other as she put her other hand on Amber’s waist.  She wasn’t sure what she was going to do, but suddenly she was in the moment.  This wasn’t what her plan was supposed to be.
  She was supposed to be angry, here to put people in their place.

She moved her face down to the greeter’s neck and the faint smell of a honey perfume filled her nose.  She kissed gently on the woman’s neck and didn’t even seem to notice that her jeans were being undone.

They fell to the ground and the woman moved Cassandra’s head so they were face to face again.  She kissed her deeply, holding her close and heat exuded between them. 

“We should go someplace more private,” Amber said.

Cassandra couldn’t even answer.  She would follow the woman wherever she led though, that much she was sure.

“Don’t leave on my account.”

Sebastian walked into the room, a smug half-smile on his face.  Cassandra was suddenly awa
re
of her pants being around her ankles and Amber’s hand
had started
tugging on her panties.  She knocked the hand aw
ay and pulled back up her pants.  Of all times for Sebastian to not keep her waiting, it had to be now.

It took her a few moments to clear her mind and decide if she was going to storm out in embarrassment.  She
thought better of it, not wanting
to give him the satisfaction of thinking he had gotten the better of her.
  Instead she took her seat again.

She
flashed
an angry glance towards Amber, but it was obvious the woman was not really in on Sebastian’s little scheme. 
The woman was just doing her duty as a greeter.  Cassandra
wasn’t sure if that mattered
,
though.

“Leave us.”

Amber nodded and obeyed Cassandra’s order.  She grabbed her dress and disappeared.  Cassandra sat down and wished her glass was full of wine
again
or really anything with alcohol at this point.

“What did you think you were accomplishing with that?”

“I was just thinking that maybe Adam wasn’t the right greeter for you. 
You never complained about him, but you never let him inside you either.  I made a guess that this would please you more. 
I’ll make sure Amber is yours in the future.”

“Whatever. 
I don’t come here to lay with your people; I only come here for business. 
Do you know why I’m here
now
?”

Sebastian took a seat in a chair and kicked his feet up. 
He was still glowing in his victory, though he wondered if he should have let it go on further
before making his presence known
.

“You
’re
here to offer us more land to expand?  Or maybe you just missed my company.”

“I know what you’re doing, what you’re looking for
, and why you really wanted to expand
.”

He struggled to keep the smile on his face.  Wondering if she really knew, he crossed his arms and
cleared his throat.

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t play stupid with me.  You’re looking for the book.  You do realize you can’t escape here with it.  I’m offended you would try something like this
, as accommodating as I’ve been with the needs of the werewolves
.”

“Nobody wants to be a captive.  Besides, the book may be more powerful than even you know.  Regardless, I’m not lookin
g for a war with you or anyone
.  But we will not simply sit back and let you have control of our fates, keeping us locked in here like caged dogs.  At some point, we will break free of you.
  The book isn’t the only option for that, either.
”

Cassandra stood up and fought the urge to cast a spell of impotence on the arrogant prick.  He was power hungry, they all knew that.  He could play whatever games he wanted to skirt the fact, but she wasn’t falling for it.

“I’m leaving.  We’ve been most
kind in resolving
your requests in the past, trying to keep everyone happy give
n
the circumstance.  But if you think I will ever let you run free on this city, you’re sadly mistaken.”

He waved a hand of dismissal as he looked away.

“Come again.”

His words echoed after her as she stormed out of the room.  Just around the corner, she ran into Amber, who was dressed again and waiting to escort her back to the door.  Cassandra just looked at her, unable to say anything.

“I will see you out, mistress.”

She took Cassandra’s hand gently and the two walked silently to the door.  Still fuming, Cassandra wasn’t sure what was next.
  They just had to find that book before the wolves did.

“I hope I did not offend.  I only meant to offer you myself, if you so desired.”

Amber sounded as though she was worried they wouldn’t meet again.  Cassandra wasn’t sure they should.  She shouldn’t get romantically, or even sexually involved with the wolves considering everything. 
But still, that feeling when just the two of them were
alone
together…

“You did nothing wrong, dear.  Just keep your head down.  Things may get rough around here.”

“Thank you.  I do hope to see you again.”

Amber kissed Cassandra gently on the lips
.  When the witch didn’t resist at all, she
pulled
her closer
.  Before either knew it, they were in each other’s arms, the heat rising again.  Cassandra pulled away.  She needed to get out of here, now.

“I have to go.  I’ll see you again, I’m sure, Amber.”

“I will be here.”

16

Dhane
and Heather
walked into
the werewolf area and entered on
e of the buildings on the
new blocks.  He concentrated on
locating
anything magical nearby, but found nothing.

“I don’t know if I’ll even be able to find the thing.”

“You will
;
I’m sure of it.  A book of that power must give off
enough magic that
you can sense
it
.
  Just keep trying.
”

He shook his head and prepared to leave.  Heather grabbed his arm and waved for him to follow.  They found a stairwell down to a basement, and from there they found
an entrance to
the sewer tunnels that ran beneath the city.

“Down here we should be able to move
all about without being seen.”

“Good idea.”

They continued searching the tunnels, with no signs of any magic.  He was starting to give up hope, and Heather wasn’t far behind.  Then a noise got their attention.  They peered around the next corner and watched in silence.

Lila was face to face with a werewolf.  The creature was trying to intimidate her.  She seemed
more
amused
than scared
.

“You might as well put those fangs away, you won’t need them.”

“No?  I think I might like a bite of witch for dinner.”

“Once I cast a spell to lock your jaw shut, we’ll see how well they work for you.”

She spouted the words and he smiled.  She did it again, and he stepped towards her.  Next was a spell of burnin
g, but the werewolf wasn’t a
ffected
.

“What the fuck!”

“Not too easy after a spell of disenchanting has been cast upon you, huh?”

She looked in horror as he grabbed her and dr
ag
g
ed
her off
kicking and screaming
. 
Dhane
moved towards them, but Heather grabbed his arm and shook her head.

“You heard him; a spell was cast against her.  They
must
have a witch on their side.  We need to find that book first.”

“I can’t.  Who knows what they’ll do to her
, or if I’ll even be able to find her later
.  I have to…”

He stopped.  He su
ddenly picked up on something magical, something powerful.  It was the book.  He was sure of it. 

“You feel it, don’t you?”

He nodded.

“Let’s go then…”

“I’m going after Lila and the werewolf.  You find the book.  A hundred yards or so to the right, and up above.  Not sure how far up.  I’ll meet you there
in twenty minutes.  If I don’t show, get that book out of
this area
.”

She nodded and took note of where they were before looking for an exit. 
Dhane
watched her until she disappeared.  He took a deep breath and proceeded quickly down the tunnel after the werewolf.

It didn’t take him long to spot his target, who was entering
the
basement
of another building
with Lila. 
She was unconscious now, though he wasn’t sure if she had been knocked out or just fainted. 
A few quick words to himself and
Dhane
had the courage to follow.  He reached the door and peered in through the crack between the
m
.

Inside the basement, Lila was chained and left
alone
.
  Whatever the
spell was, it was still upon her.  She had just started to wake up when
Dhane
carefully opened the door.

“
Dhane
!
  What are you doing here?”

She whispered
frantically
,
and seemed
almost happy to see him.  Then it occurred that he might have been the one to cast the spell on her.  It showed on her face clearly.

“
I didn’t cast any spell on you,
I’m here to help.”

He knew what she was thinking.  At this point, he didn’t really care.  He would show his real inten
t
ions with his actions.
  He tried a spell on the chains, but it didn’t work.  Clearly whoever had cast the spell had targeted the area, not an individual.

He went back into the sewer and found a pipe he had passed earlier.  A few kicks knocked it free and he hurried back to Lila.  He jammed the pipe in near her chains and wrapped them around it.  Turning the pipe with all his strength, one of the links snapped and she was free.

As they hurried back through the tunnel,
Dhane
became curious.

“What brings you down here, anyway?”

“Cassandra sent us, looking for…um.....”

“Algernon’s spell book.”

“How did you…”

“It
doesn’t matter.  What does matter is
that we get that book out of here before the werewolves get it.”

“Okay, we should
goooo
…
”

Her word drifted off as she almost fell. 
Dhane
caught her as she clutched her head.

“Sorry, still feeling the effects of being hit by the werewolf.”

“Let’s get to the surface and hide you, then I’ll grab the book and we can all get out of here.”

She nodded and they found an exit to the surface.  With Lila safely hidden behind a dumpster in a dark and empty alleyway,
Dhane
started towards the building that housed his father’s possession.  He wasn’t leaving without that book.