The Rise of Ren Crown (48 page)

Though, the thing about power was a little unsettling, and called to mind a larger fact that I usually tried to ignore. How did it happen that I had surrounded myself with, or put myself in the path of, the children of power players from all sides?

“Power speaks to power, darling, and draws it together for good or ill.”

“Stop reading my mind, Con.”

“And curtail my favorite pastime?” he said, unrepentant. “I think not. Your power is an all-consuming net that you drag around behind you, trapping each of us within it. Gathering us to you.”

Stricken by his words, I could say nothing.

One dark brow rose. “This is the power of the gods, darling. Only you would think it a deficit.” He leaned in. “With one little leech-leash to connect us...the responsibility can be out of your hands...”

I pushed at his chest and he smirked back at me as he allowed himself to be moved.

“I'm not giving up Neph,” I said, returning to the previous conversation.

“Any fool can see that, darling.” He looked at me through dark eyes. “You don't give up people, ever.”

~*~

Constantine nodded at Saf, far more pleasantly than he did at Trick.

Asafa was as magically gifted as Patrick, but he used his power in far different ways. Where Patrick was puckish, compelling, and, at times, mean, Asafa was strong and solid and trustworthy. They made a powerful combination.

Watching Constantine interact with the rest of the group was...interesting. Barbed, edged, but with enough respect to keep things from being militant. We were a pack of wild dogs. But as soon as the bite-snapping and butt-sniffing got sorted out, we got back to business.

Since the green flag had been waved on this mad plan, all forces had mobilized as only a bunch of crazy people who dealt with hundreds of their own mad plans could do.

Assignments and magic plans flew around the table, some of them shoring up what we'd brainstormed previously, and others offering new, better alternatives.

“Getting off campus and to the Third Layer is not a problem,” Constantine said, bored. “Hiding the disturbance from the Legion is. They will know immediately something has happened.”

Patrick's eyes glittered. “How are you getting off campus?”

“That's really not your concern, O'Leary,” Constantine said lazily. “You have your tasks, I have mine.”

When it came to how we would stay accounted for
on
campus is when things got tricky.

“They'll have the diversion magic fixed in fifteen minutes, tops. And after the diversion, they'll personally look for Crown,” Loudon said. “She'll be on the shortlist of people they check physically to ensure she's still here.”

“Bau will take care of Ren's
presence
on campus, and I will not be missed,” Constantine said, in an almost bored fashion.

Neph stiffened. “I'm going
with
Ren.”

“You can't,” Saf said, not unkindly. “Not if we are to hold the Excelsine fort and not hand ourselves over to the Department.”

I gave Neph's hand a squeeze, willing her to relax. I hadn't realized that her continuous calm in the face of dangerous plans might have come about because she thought she was coming too.

Safe. Protect everyone here. I'll return.

I carefully made sure not to make keeping everyone safe a direct order this time, though.

“The fewer people who go, the better,” Loudon said frankly. “We just don't have the systems in place to trick the Administration Magic on a mass scale. Not with the Department watching.”

Patrick nodded, eyes sharp. “And Leandred can slip out of anything. That's the perk of his father's position and status. You get caught, Crown, he'll go free. You won't. And none of the rest of us would either.”

Constantine was smiling his bored smile, but it wasn't reflected internally. Fury and bitterness waved through him, then were sharply contained.

“So how many hours does that give us?” Mike asked, bringing the conversation back.

“Ren has to spend twelve hours of a twenty-four period with Bailey, right?” Saf said. “So that gives us, twelve hours to work with, probably less due to timing constraints with the diversion.”

“I, uh, um, I am actually rooming with Constantine and Alexander?”

I didn't know why Bellacia had chosen to keep it secret—whether she would suffer somehow socially or whether she was using it for other, more diabolical ends—but it was absolutely one of the best kept secrets on campus, something that no one outside of the Alpha team and Administration knew.

Silence met that pronouncement. A moment later, munits exchanged hands.

“Wait, you bet on, what exactly?” I asked, floored.

“Just on whether rumors were true,” Trick said smoothly, obviously lying. “So, you'll be with Leandred on this little sojourn, that'll help. How many hours?”

“I don't know how the jacking between rooms works if we aren't in any of them, but I have to spend four hours at Bellacia's.”

“Let's continue with twelve then, to be safe. A nice sturdy number. Crown?”

I smiled tightly. “I'll get it done.”

“That's for getting back here too. Even if for some reason Bailey completely sat on her hands and wished you good luck, the system would alert Medical and the Administration. And we know the Department is monitoring those alerts.”

“You can't be discovered,” Dagfinn said.

“That would be an error, yes.” Constantine's tone was bored again.

“Leandred...” There was warning in Patrick's tone.

“O'Leary, do you think I will fail at my task?” Constantine's ribbon was in his hand again, pulling slowly through his fingers.

Patrick's eyes narrowed. “The problem is, I'm not exactly sure what your task is.”

Constantine smiled. It was cutting and sharp. “I will return Price and Crown safely and secretly back to campus. Price can be found aimlessly wandering the Midlands, cut off from getting back to the Magiaduct by the Department's spells. A number of students released from the battle field dome ran straight into the Midlands. Forces were dedicated just to rescuing them in the after-hours. The Legion cleared the Midlands. A nice hit for the Department in the media, especially if you spin it against her mother.”

Looks were exchanged.

“We'll want assurance.”

“Of course.” Constantine dripped boredom. He slid something over to Patrick. I tried to get a look at it, but it was illegible, hidden by an enchantment.

Patrick's expression changed abruptly, the distrust falling away and his normal edge of brilliant mania returning.

He clapped his hands together. “Everything seems to be in order.”

Patrick's pronouncement seemed to be the catalyst for everyone else accepting Constantine into our plans.

Everyone but the Alpha group, who still looked at Constantine with suspicion. But I was pretty sure that was due to other reasons.

Chapter Thirty-eight: Fighting in Two Places

It was a little like planning for a mission to the First Layer. In both places, we couldn't use magic like we could in the Second. But unlike the First Layer, the Third Layer
did
have magic. On the flipside, using magic in the First Layer didn't cause the layer to attack
back
.

So, treating the Third Layer like it was the First gave me somewhat of an advantage. I had lived for seventeen years without magic. Putting magic into containers and devices felt remarkably similar to using computers and tablets to affect the world around me.

We were gearing up hard for Saturday. There were a few loose items I had still had to deal with, though.

First, I sent a message to Isaiah asking to be released from Community Service for a few days. Just until my “celebrity” was no longer affecting the Justice System. I cited a list of reasons why this was a good idea, backed up with solid evidence. The Justice Magic would trigger, if I was listed on rotation and didn't show.

The message back was all Isaiah — “You're a valuable member. We'll see you back on the squad on Monday, Crown.”

I patted Justice Toad and set him on the chair's side table.

Second on my list, I visited Room Twenty-five, and took a moment to soak in the remnants of
home
and
Olivia.
I closed my eyes. The remnants were growing weaker, stale, like a room that hadn't been aired.

I grabbed a number of things from my secret stashes, including a few of my more powerful storage papers, and, with a silent vow, headed back to Dorm One.

Third, I sent a note to my parents. I rubbed my chest as I wrote about all the new things I was learning to do at school—protection wards, news spells, and healing magic.
Everything's great! See you soon!

My chest hurt as I sent it, and I had to field an abrupt call from Neph demanding to know if I was okay.

Number four on my agenda—I needed to figure out a way into the Battle Building.

That one, was strangely solved when I walked past Axer's workroom, and the door gave a click. I stared at it, then fished their room key from my pocket. I slowly pushed it toward the lock, and when nothing attacked me, I slotted the key into place.

The door opened, and the white room greeted me. I stared at it for a moment, then pulled the door slowly shut again. When the key exited the lock, the wards snapped back into place.

I tapped the key against my palm.
Interesting.

With the knowledge that I could access Axer's workroom, I fished out Draeger's cartridge from deep within my duffel bag. Tapping it against my thigh, I opened the door to his workroom again and stepped inside. Surrounded by white walls, I pulled the cartridge slowly along the walls of the room,
hoping.
A slot appeared.

Yes!

The Eighth and Ninth Circles were still closed to students, and I'd been itching to get into the Battle Building to practice Third Layer tactics.

When Draeger appeared with his shaved head, barrel chest, and knee-high athletic socks, I threw myself in his holographic direction.

“What's this, Cadet? Why is it so thin in here? And what the hog's tendons have you been doing?” He asked as he glowered, paging through my magic and stats as only a construct magically designed to read me could do.

“Giving those squirrels
hell,
” I said.

He gruffly allowed me to hug him, but the magic here wasn't as strong as in the Battle Building. My arms passed right through.

“Come on, Cadet,” he said gruffly, but not without affection. “Let's see what we can do to get you back in working shape.”

~*~

Two hours later, I was prone on the floor. Again. But anticipation was buzzing through me. I was almost
back.

“Not bad, but you keep ignoring the way magic can betray you, if you pin it as something constant.”

I scrambled upright and blinked at Axer, standing before me with his arms crossed.

“I'm in your workroom,” I blurted.

“I know,” he said, like I was being particularly slow.

I frowned. “Where are you?”

Maybe this was a construct?

“At the competition. Did you hit your head?” He frowned at said body part.

“What, no! Maybe. A little. How are you
here?
”

“You're in my room with the dragon I gave you.”

“Oh.” I fished it out of my armband. “Well, this saves me having to update you later. Great!” I said, completely flustered. I had been fighting with Draeger for hours, working out the last of my magic's kinks, and I was both sweaty
and
intruding.

He looked to the side and there was almost a twitch to his movements. He returned his attention to me. “What's wrong?”

“Nothing. Nothing. Why would you think anything was wrong?” I babbled, then drew myself together. “Fine. We are leaving in the morning.”

He narrowed his eyes, and a moment later he flinched, as if he'd taken a blow. “Tell me.”

I gave him the full rundown on what we'd been doing and what we were planning.

At the end, he just smiled.

I narrowed my eyes. “You wanted me to get all of the delinquents on campus working together to protect it instead of pranking it, right from the beginning of term, didn't you?”

He smiled and leaned back on his heels, hands in his pockets. “It was a possibility. You present so many of them, it is sometimes hard to choose.”

“I saw you, in the library talking to your friends at the beginning of winter term. You meant to use me then,” I said, narrowing my eyes further.

“Yes.” He smirked. “With a book clamped to your hand, and your eyes impossibly wide and unshuttered as you eavesdropped.”

Okay, that was a little embarrassing.

But I rallied. “You seemed too smug about Plan Fifty-two's formation for it to have been anything other than intentional.”

It wasn't a bad thing, but it did make me wonder, in an insidious voice that sounded horribly like Constantine, what else I'd been led to do.

Axer leaned forward, eyes oddly intent. “I didn't form the group. Only you could have formed it.”

“Oh, please. You could have half this campus following you, even if you declared a field trip through hell.” I might be fielding my own share of awed (and terrified) expressions from others these days, but he'd been dealing with them for
years
. He'd been a
hero
on campus since he'd stepped foot here.

He tilted his head. “I have carefully cultivated a role. And still, most of them would only be following to see if they could use it for their own gains.”

“You could be friendlier,” I pointed out.

He smiled. “That's a different family member's task.”

“Not your family sniper's?”

His eyes narrowed for a second before he laughed, gaze never leaving me. “No, not Nicholas's. Did you see the audience reaction to his performance so far at the games?”

“People are unnerved.”

Unnerved that someone could shoot magic so far and so precisely with so little setup time. Anyone semi-competent could do the intricate calculations involved in setting up a target somewhere, setting up shields around the target and each magic bolt to account for the small variables always in flux in a world where outside magic use was sometimes unpredictable.