The Sphere (The Magi Series #2) (52 page)

“WHAT?!?” Elijah shouted, then immediately regretted it because
his chest burned with pain.

“Why?” Hannah asked.

“They didn’t say officially, but I’ve heard that their
story, whenever it comes out…
if
it comes out…is that he was
irresponsible with security and too much has happened under his watch.”

“That’s absurd!” Elijah said.

“Maybe so,” Roddick said.

“Is this because he helped us escape?” Elijah asked.

“I didn’t know he helped you escape,” Roddick replied,
looking shocked.

“Olivia told him to help us,” Elijah said in a quieter
voice.  He felt awful.  “We pressured him into it.”

“Hannah,” Master Roddick said, looking to change the
subject.  “I’m sorry to ask you to do this, but I promised I’d tell my wife and
girls to come down to see Elijah if he was okay with it.  Would you mind
telling them?”

“Sure,” Hannah said.

“Do you know where we live?” Roddick asked.

“I believe so.  You live right behind the bakery, right?”

“That’s the place,” said Roddick.  “Thank you.”

Hannah left the room, and as soon as she did, Roddick turned
to Elijah.  “Is that the girl?”

“Yes, that is a girl,” Elijah said dryly, still upset over
the news about Mr. Button.  He knew Roddick was trying to change the mood, but
it didn’t help the lingering guilt.

“She’s pretty!”

“Yes she is.  Did you ask her to leave just so you could ask
me about her?”

“Partly,” Roddick replied.  “But I also come with news from
Olivia.”  He leaned in close, looking very serious, his eyes sharp with focus. 
He spoke in a whisper, barely audible.  “You’re right to question the council,
but this isn’t the place, and I’m concerned with you being so involved in such
important matters.  You saw what happened to Bernard.”

“Are you suggesting that I’m working for the Maliphists?”
Elijah whispered back.

“Not at all,” said Roddick.  “I just mean that people close
to power get hurt.  I don’t want to see you get hurt, Elijah.  And let’s face
it, you’ve been close to power.  And I’d say that you have become quite
powerful yourself.”

Elijah couldn’t agree with Roddick right then.  He didn’t
feel powerful at all, and he had the bruises to prove it.  He had
underestimated an opponent, just as Olivia taught him not to, and he paid the
price.

“Now I know you’re working with Olivia on something
important,” Roddick continued.  “I’m not going to pretend I don’t have an idea
what you’re doing, but I’m concerned.”

“What are you concerned about?” Elijah asked.

“Are you ready for the responsibility?” Roddick said.  “I’m
working for Olivia too, but she’s not telling me half of what you are told.  I
am so proud of you and I can’t think of anyone more worthy of being so
important, but I just want to make sure you’re ready.”

Elijah huffed in frustration.  “Can I tell you something
that you promise not to tell anyone about?” he said, no longer whispering.

“As long as you’re not telling me something you’re not
supposed to,” Roddick said.

“I feel like everyone thinks that I’m this big important
person.  I have no idea why.  I know Olivia’s giving me lots of responsibility,
but I don’t understand it.  I’m a complete nobody!  I guess I have a knack for
element control and I’m advanced at mental training, but so what?  I can’t even
overpower someone man to man.  I’m barely in my second year of training.  And
I’ve seen some of you take two or three people on at a time!  I’m totally
confused about it all.  None of my friends understand it either—I almost lost
them this year because of it.  Somehow I continue to be given these
responsibilities, but why?  Plus, I’m not even sure I understand what my
responsibilities are!”

Roddick sighed and tousled his shaggy hair.  “Elijah, if
there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that Olivia Rose has a reason for
everything.  I understand your frustration.  If I was in your place, I would
probably be frustrated too.  But she knows what she’s doing.”

“I hope so,” Elijah said, “because I sure don’t.”

“I guess I just want to make sure that you’re in the right
frame of mind,” Roddick said.  “Whether you like it or not, you have been given
a lot of power here with the knowledge you possess.  Just make sure you keep an
even head because your choices will determine your legacy.”

“Tell me about it,” Elijah said.

Roddick looked curiously at Elijah.  “Something to add?”

“I don’t know.  I guess it still has to do with this
responsibility stuff,” Elijah said.  “I have to say, I had no idea what I was
promising last year when I swore an oath to the Magi.”

“What do you mean?” Roddick asked.

“It’s just that they asked me to pursue good and find the
good in everything, which sounds great and all.  But sometimes, I’m not sure
what good and evil actually are.”

“Example?” Roddick asked, looking curious.

“When I was on my quest, I was supposed to do something that
will hopefully save innocent people from being destroyed.  But in order to do
that, innocent people ended up dying.  Some lost their homes and their
families.  And now Mr. Button.  I did what I thought was good, and something
bad happens.”

Master Roddick let out a long, slow breath.  “You’re not
alone in your confusion.  I think everyone struggles with it.  It’s easy for
some to say that bad things will sometimes happen in order for good things to
happen, but that’s just a bunch of words that help us feel less guilty.” 
Roddick stared off into the distance.  “I have my own theory.  Would you like
to hear it?”

“Sure,” Elijah said.

“It’s not much, but my belief is that there is good in this
world, and there is evil in this world…and then there’s us.  I don’t think that
we create the good in this world.  That’s made by some other awesome power that
hasn’t enlightened me yet—the same power that connects us all to what we call
the Soul, and I believe this power is constantly trying to create good.  But I
do
believe that we have the ability to block the good from happening, which is
evil.  And we do that by doing things for ourselves.  Being selfish.  I look at
it this way.  If we can eliminate our own selfish desires, we are eliminating
as much evil as we can.  And that’s all we can do.  Sometimes a choice between
good and evil will be obvious.  Other times, we make the best choice we can,
and then ask for forgiveness from those who may have been hurt by our
choices.”  Roddick looked at Elijah in the eyes.  “It’s not perfect, but I
think it’s pretty darn good for me.”

“Actually, I think it’s pretty darn good for me too,” Elijah
said.

Elijah thought more about it after all the Roddicks left the
infirmary that evening.  He still didn’t feel better about everything that
happened, but he thought there was some wisdom to eliminating evil by
eliminating his own selfish desires.  He did try to do the right thing.  He
hated that bad things happened to others, but that wasn’t his fault.  Elijah
knew what he needed to do.  As soon as he was let out of the infirmary, he
would find Mr. Button and ask for forgiveness.  It probably wouldn’t make any
difference to Button.  His job would still be lost, and there was a good chance
Mr. Button would be angry, but it was the right thing to do.  It was the only
thing he
could
do.

Elijah followed through on his promise to himself.  He even told
the rest of his friends what he planned to do.  It surprised him when they all
decided to apologize with him.  Mr. Button hadn’t yet told any of the other
students about leaving at the end of the term, so Elijah and his friends found
him in his quarters working on last minute paperwork to close out the year.

“May I help you?” he asked when Elijah knocked.

They walked in with their heads hung and formed a half
circle around his desk.  Button looked at them curiously.

“We know you’ve been asked to resign,” Elijah said.  “We
haven’t said anything to anyone.  And we won’t.  But we’ve come to say that
we’re very sorry for putting you in this situation.”

Elijah wasn’t sure he said anything that would help, but Mr.
Button slowly took off his glasses and lowered his head, rubbing the bald spot
on top.  When he looked up, he had tears in his eyes.  “I’ve worked here for
twenty years,” he said, his voice quivering only slightly.  “Some years go by
and I ask myself if I’ve done anything worthwhile.  If I were to ask myself
today if this year was worthwhile, I would answer ‘yes’ without even thinking
about it.  You kiddos had nothing to do with my resignation.  That may be the
story the council is using, but I know better.  I’m just a piece being moved
aside to make way for some sort of plan.  Don’t you think for a second that you’ve
done anything but what’s best for the Magi.  You have nothing to be sorry
about.  But I thank you just the same.”  He stood up and held out his hands. 
“I’ll be rooting for you all from somewhere else now, eh?”

Hannah was the first to give him a hug, followed by Isaac
and Becca.  Paul and Adam shook his hand politely.  Elijah gave him a hug at
last and said, “It will be weird around here without you.”

“I sure hope you’re right,” he joked.  “Now get along you
all.  I know you’ve got some studying to do.”  Mr. Button winked at them and
then returned to his paperwork.

The news about Toby and Thomas hadn’t spread as quickly as
Elijah expected.  Their absence was noticed by some, but the story took a while
to filter into the barracks.  When it did, however, it was all anyone could
talk about.  When he eventually left the infirmary, Thomas was much more
popular that he was obviously used to.  Girls would say hello to him and boys
would slap him on the back or give him a head nod.  Elijah and his friends
tried to do what they could to thank him.  Elijah followed his friends’ lead by
writing him a note that he left in the infirmary.  Hannah made him a cake with
“Thank You” written in frosting on top.  They even saw him eating a slice in
the dining area, which made Hannah consider making him another one until Becca
made her promise not to go too crazy.  So she baked cupcakes instead and had it
delivered to his room.  Thomas looked quite uncomfortable with all the
attention and still rarely spoke a word. 

Elijah and his friends, however, received very little
attention, which made sense since no one but his friends, the soldiers, and
Master Lopez knew about their help.  The real news was about Toby and Thomas,
plus Bernard’s exile.

Once May came around, the barracks became quite predictable
again, and the excitement settled.  Elijah found himself once again immersed in
his training routine.  He continued to visit the Roddicks on Sundays to help
out any way he could.  Mrs. Roddick was looking more and more pregnant each
time he visited.  She became snippy with Elijah and especially with Master
Roddick when things didn’t go just right.

With only a few weeks left of term, Elijah got a letter in his
box from Olivia telling him to invite his friends over to the Rose’s house the
next available Sunday for a celebration.  The note didn’t say what the celebration
was for.  Now that he had had enough time to think about their quest, Elijah began
to appreciate how amazing it was that they were able to do what they did.  Six
teenagers, only two years into Magi training, were able to travel across the
world and find a hidden artifact belonging to a dangerous weapon hidden for
centuries.  It was quite incredible now that he thought about it.  And a
celebration felt right.

The following Sunday, when they arrived at Olivia’s house,
Elijah was surprised to see not only Olivia and Phinneas, but each of the
parents of his friends, including Glen and Miranda Roddick and their two
girls.  Olivia had set out an enormous feast of chicken and pork and beef, all
roasted by open flame.  The sun was bright and shone down on them, and Elijah
couldn’t help being reminded of a summer backyard barbeque.

Once everyone was present and feeling quite jovial, Olivia
stood up and quieted everyone down.

“Thank you all for coming on such a short notice,” she
said.  “I realize that for many of you, especially guardians, this little
celebration doesn’t come without questions and concerns.  After talking with
each of you, I hope you realize that what your children have done was nothing
short of miraculous.  I know that it’s quite unorthodox to anoint anyone as
Servants of the Magi this young, but with my authority, I would like to do that
for your children at this time.”

Elijah was quite confused, especially as he glanced at the
faces around him.  Most of the parents looked somewhere between shocked and
delighted.  All of his friends, however, were thrilled.  They looked at each
other with an “Are you serious?” type of look.  Elijah leaned into Hannah and
asked what being a Servant of the Magi meant.

“It’s one of the highest honors given to a Magi for
sacrificing themselves for the good of their community,” Hannah replied.  “It
can only be given by a member of the council, and they hardly ever give it
out.  I’ve never heard of them doing this for anybody not a Philosopher
before.”

“I have to say,” Olivia continued, “that as I’ve privately told
each of you already, our mission is quite secret.  Therefore the honor I give
to you all will be between us until our mission is complete.  But you all
deserve the recognition from your families who have sworn to maintain its
secrecy and help our mission any way they can.”  Olivia walked over to Elijah
first.  “Elijah Hawk, I dub you a Servant of the Magi.  May your service be
recognized.”  Elijah jumped when everyone applauded, including his friends. 
The Roddicks even stood up and vigorously clapped their hands. Master Roddick
whistled.  “Hannah Maybury,” Olivia continued after shaking Elijah’s hand.  “I
dub you a Servant of the Magi.  May your service be recognized.”  Again
everyone applauded.  Mr. Maybury had tears in his eyes.  Mrs. Maybury smiled at
her daughter looking quite proud.  Olivia continued down the line.  “Adam
Flemming, Becca Uribe, Isaac Rogers, Paul Hetfield.”  Each of them received
their own recognition.  Becca’s parents looked much less pleased that the
others, but they stood politely when her name was recognized.