"No wonder you were upset." Sheriff Hueller said when Camilla had finished recounting the past two days. "You've done a remarkable job so far, Camilla. Remarkable. You should be proud of yourself."

"Well, I-"

"You are only seventeen, little Bella. Just because your father is who he is and you have been surrounded by magical aristocracy your whole life doesn't mean you should hold yourself to those standards so young. You haven't even been to the Academy yet."

Camilla beamed.

"And as for you, Mr Caibo, I was brought up in a magical household. I've known this... world for my whole life, so I cannot speak to the experience of discovering it spontaneously, but I cannot imagine it is an easy burden to carry. You have also done remarkably well so far, but how are you holding up?"

"Um..." Jacob hesitated, debated telling the actual truth, then shrugged instead, "It's all a little bit much."

"I would hope so." Sheriff Hueller cleared his throat. "But this business of the Dream Tiger, that is troubling. It is a good thing both of you were there. My Rangers and I were completely tied up at that time."

"Completely?"

"Yes. Just like tonight."

"But-"

"But that is not supposed to happen. Yes, I know. There has been a massive surge in incidents requiring regulation since the weekend. They are popping up like weeds. My Deputies and I have been working practically nonstop. Just now we were in Lynn Valley Canyon Park dealing with a Consumer that had already crossed over into our world."

Jacob blinked. A monster had crossed over in Lynn Valley Canyon Park?! Christ, maybe it was a good thing he hadn't had the courage to actually go over their for a hike by himself. Were all parks like that? No, they couldn't be. People went all the time. Still, maybe his parents were right about thinking the wilderness was dangerous.

"It should not have required all of us, but we're all running low on magic and energy."

"Can't you ask other Sanctuaries for back up?"

"Calgary and Seattle are having a similar uptick in crossovers. The Portland and Boise Sanctuaries already operate with skeleton crews; they have no one to spare. If I want to request from outside the PNW Regional Sanctuaries I have to go through North American HQ in Chicago."

"What about Nomad Rangers?"

Sheriff Hueller nodded. "Same deal. I've already sent word to Chicago asking for spares or Nomads but they are too slow there; too bureaucratic. It could take days."

"What will you do?"

Hueller grimaced. "For now? Manage as best we can while trying to figure out why there has been a surge in Regulations. You remember Katie? I have delegated her to figuring that out, but it may take time. Something external has created this surge. It is far outside the normal range. It is worse here than in Seattle and Calgary, though both cities are above normal ranges as well. One more question: Did you see a symbol that looked like this anywhere on the rogue mage's body?" Sheriff Hueller reached in his desk and pulled out a slip of paper. Two circles with jagged lines going through them was printed on it.

"The Sons of Dynas?" Camilla asked.

Sheriff Hueller's face went stony. "Would you please inform me why you know who they are, Camilla?"

"Because secretly I go around sabotaging Rangers with a group of lunatics, obviously." Camilla rolled her eyes. "My father told me about them. Warned me of them."

Sheriff Hueller grumbled something about parenting.

"I didn't see it."

"Neither did I." Jacob said.

"Hmm..." Sheriff Hueller grunted. "I'll give what information you've given me on his physical appearance and magical abilities to Katie. See if she can turn anything up. I doubt our rogue mage is the sole reason behind the surge in Regulation incidents, but I am not one to believe in coincidences."

Silence.

"Well, Mr Caibo, you are urged to stay here in the Sanctuary until the rogue mage has been caught. However, it is very likely that over the course of the next few days there will be times when the Sanctuary is unmanned. You will have to tag along in those cases."

Gulp. "What."

Sheriff Hueller smiled. "It will be the safest thing for you, trust me. For now, we're stretched too thin to go searching for the rogue mage ourselves. The gameplan is to to protect you and manage the crossovers as best we can until the backup I've requested arrives, hopefully in the next two days. Once they do, we'll split into two teams, one to manage the crossovers, and one to hunt down the rogue mage."

A knock came at the door.

"Come in." Sheriff Hueller said.

The deputy in the biker outfit poked his head in the door. "VPD hasn't turned anything up. Raj is wondering if we have a description."

"I'll send it to them when we're done here." Sheriff Hueller said.

"Anything else you need from me?" Jimmy asked.

"Not right now. Get some rest. You're going to need it."

"I was thinking if it's okay with you I could take the new kid and give him some magical lessons. He needs to know how to defend himself."

Jacob blinked. Magical lessons?

Sheriff Hueller nodded slowly, "Good idea. But, Deputy Yang, I don't want you expending your magic unnecessarily, understand?"

"Yes, chief."

"Good."

Jimmy turned to Jacob and smiled. "I'll meet you out on the balcony when you're done here, alright?"

"Alright!" Jacob said. He could hardly keep a smile off his face.

Jimmy left and shut the door behind him.

Sheriff Hueller turned to Camilla. "In the meantime, Camilla, could I have you fill out a Regulation Report on the incident with the Dream Tiger?"

Camilla brightened. "Really?"

"Yes."

"Of course!"

Sheriff Hueller smiled. "Good." He checked the little device on his wrist. "Let's go over this rogue mage's description, then you two can get to your tasks."

——————

Jacob left the office and made his way down one of the hallways. He couldn't keep the excitement from his step. Once he learned some magic he wouldn't be totally useless like he'd been in the car or against the Dream Tiger.

He opened the balcony door and stepped out into the cool night air. Around him, tall office buildings rose into the dark sky. The noise of the city bubbled up to greet him. Car horns, revving engines, faint laughter. He pulled his jacket on tighter. The balcony stretched one entire side of the building. Down the other end he could see a silhouette leaning on the railing, overlooking the streets below. The orange glow of a joint burned and then faded near the silhouette's mouth, illuminating the lower half of his face briefly.

Jacob strolled down the balcony, trying to act casual, and leaned over the railing next to Deputy Yang. Yang was young, maybe in his mid twenties. His leather jacket was open, the wide collar splayed.

Jacob wasn't sure what to think. Seeing Deputy Yang smoking a joint had unsettled him. Sometimes he'd run into kids smoking or vaping at school but they were always the weird kids. Marijuana was still a drug, even if it was legalized. It supposedly messed up your brain and made you lazy. Would it be okay to learn from someone who smoked? But if Sheriff Hueller trusted this guy, then he couldn't be a bad guy. And he was a Deputy, for Chrissakes, he protected people from magic monsters.

Deputy Yang offered his joint to Jacob.

Jacob swallowed, then shook his head. His parents would kill him if he smoked marijuana.

Yang grunted. "More for me."

Jacob realized he'd just chickened out because of what his parents expected him to do. He stood there, frowning at the revelation. The realization cascaded into another, that it was his parents who told him how bad marijuana was. Maybe he should try some?

But the moment had passed. Deputy Yang had slipped the joint back in the corner of his mouth.

"Alright kid, I'm Deputy Ranger James Yang of the Regulation Order, British Columbia Branch, but you can call me Jimmy." He stuck out his hand.

Jacob shook it. "Um, I'm Jacob Caibo."

"Cool."

Jimmy leaned back over the railing and puffed the joint again and said nothing for a while.

Jacob gazed out over the city. The glass buildings across from them looked like offices, empty and dark for the night. Far below, cars flashed by, their taillights red streaks. People walked along the sidewalks, the faint murmur of conversation drifting up to the lofty heights. He watched a cluster of young guys traipse down the sidewalk, calling obnoxiously to each other. The streets practically thrummed with excitement. It was infectious. So this was what the city was like at night? He wasn't sure if he liked it or not. Maybe it would be different if he was actually down there with those people instead of up here watching.

"You from Vancouver?" Jimmy asked.

"Yeah."

"Whereabouts?"

"New West. I live there with my parents."

"Cool. I'm from Steveston, born and raised. You know where that is?"

Jacob nodded. "Yeah, like the South part of Richmond. Lot of fishing boats."

A warm smile lit up Jimmy's face. "Exactly! Ah, man, I miss it. Haven't been back in months."

"But it's so close."

"Deputy duties keep me busy. Normally, Hueller has me stationed in North Van, which I suppose is a blessing to be this close to home. Could have ended up anywhere in North America after the Academy, really." Jimmy fell silent again.

Jacob practically busted at the seams with questions, but he couldn't bring himself to ask any.

"Your parents aren't mages, I take it?" Jimmy said. It was more statement than question.

"No." Jacob said, feeling ashamed for some reason.

Jimmy shrugged. "Neither are mine."

"Really?"

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"Yep. I'm a first generation Ranger." Jimmy glanced at his joint then snubbed it out on the railing. "I know what you feel like, kid. Hueller's family has been in this thing for generations, same with the other deputies, and even Ms D'Angelo. They're sympathetic, but they don't really get it, do they? The confusion. That sense of feeling utterly lost. Even the panic. Asking yourself if you're going crazy. Hell, even starting to believe you've gone crazy. I know what you're going through right now. But you're handling it well. Better than I did, heh."

"Really?"

Jimmy grinned. "Really. My ability awakened when I was seventeen, like you. For a while I just got little weird sensations now and then, almost like premonitions, or tingles down my spine when someone was behind me. A couple buddies and me had a little breakdancing club after school. Nothing serious, just a way to blow off some steam. But the magic started manifesting while I was breakdancing. One day I tried a standing backflip. Never been able to do one before, but I geared up for it and felt this rush throughout my body. I did it, easily. Then I did a standing double backflip, which—don't know how much you know about body control and dynamics—is not an easy thing to do. I think I could have gone for a triple but my friends were weirded out so I stopped.

"I entered into a professional breakdancing competition at the Richmond Oval and came first place. At the time I was over the moon, but now I'm a little ashamed of it. I was doing things that literally weren't possible. Wasn't fair to the other guys there who'd put in the hours. Wasn't fair to the sport. Next thing I know Hueller and Katie are at my doorstep. Rest is history. Anyway, I'm rambling. My point is that there are people like you in this crazy magical world, even if it doesn't seem like it."

"Sheriff Hueller found you?"

"Of course. You use magic, it sends off a signal. Eventually, someone is gonna sense it. But, I got lucky. Didn't run into any Dream Tigers or have any rogue mages on my ass. Rough time for you to awaken, kid, if we weren't so pressed right now someone would probably have sensed you."

"Will you be able to catch the rogue mage?"

Jimmy nodded. "We'll get him. I know we will. But for now it's our job to protect you, which brings us to your training."

Jacob bolted upright.

Jimmy laughed. "Slow down there, bucko. First, tell me what you already know about magic."

Jacob recited that there was a magical world 'out of sync' with their own, how magical creatures could cross the barrier if they gained enough power, how there was an order that regulated these crossings, and how there were three types of magic.

"That's it?" Jimmy asked, eyebrows raised.

Jacob nodded vigourously.

"Sheesh. Ms D'Angelo didn't exactly fill you in on many details, but I guess you guys had bigger fish to fry, eh?" Jimmy turned and leaned back on the railing. "Two worlds out of sync is a good way to put it, but it's deeper than that. Both worlds are crazy intertwined. They couldn't exist without each other. They provide balance and opposition to each other. You familiar with the concept of yin and yang?"

"Sorta."

"It's like that. Both worlds contain some of the other, and are necessary balances to each other. They're a system. But, and man they really drill this down your throat at the Academy, the system of both worlds is constantly in a state of flux, of imbalance. That's why you get magical creatures crossing over between worlds. In a way the crossovers are an attempt by the overall system to balance itself. Like a release valve on a steam turbine. That's also why you get the barrier thinning and thickening constantly. The whole philosophy behind the Regulation Order is that humans being given magical ability are to Earth what the magical creatures crossing over is to the magical world. We are Earth's way of keeping the balance. Cool?"

Jacob nodded.

"Any questions?"

"Um... why do those creatures cross over? Do they just get up one day and decide to do so?"

Jimmy laughed. "Not exactly. The magical world, it's not just a place with a bunch of random creatures running around. It's as complex and layered as our own world is. You know about the three types of magical creatures already. Do you know anything about Earth's life cycle?"

Jacob nodded vigorously.

"Really? Okay, let's hear it?"

Jacob cleared his throat, suddenly self-conscious. "Um, so, basically, energy comes to Earth in the form of sunlight. It's absorbed by plants. Plants are then eaten by animals. Animals, when they die, are decomposed by fungi, which return nutrients and minerals into the soil, which then helps plants to grow. Plants are called producers, animals consumers, and fungi decomposers."

Jimmy's eyebrows raised. "Wow, you know your stuff."

"Thanks."

"So, the magical world works the same way."

"Really?" Jacob grinned. He couldn't believe so much had to do with ecology. It seemed almost too good to be true.

"Of course. It has to. All part of one system, remember? The important thing to keep in mind is that the energy for that entire cycle on Earth is from the sunlight, just in different forms. In the magical world, magic is the 'light' so to speak. Producers absorb magical energy from their surroundings. When they grow powerful enough, Consumers eat them, gaining their magical energy. When Consumers in turn grow too powerful, Decomposers come along and drain the magical energy from them, slowly breaking it down back it to ambient magic, which can then be used by Producers once again. Sometimes there's not enough Decomposers around to break down the Consumers, sometimes the Decomposers take too much, sometimes a Producer goes unnoticed by the Consumers. Etc. In all these cases, the creature's energy will keep building and building until it's too much for the fabric of that world and it breaks through into ours."

"Christ."

"I know, it's a lot."

"So, what was the Dream Tiger? A Consumer?"

Jimmy grinned. "Precisely. A rare one. Alright. Enough about all that. You think you're ready to learn some magic?"

Jacob nodded vigorously.

"Okay, so what I'm going to teach you today is a Consumption spell. You know what that is?"

"Not really."

"So, the three types of magic are named after the three types of magical creatures, or the creatures are named after the type of magic they can use, if you want to think about it that way. Like the chicken and the egg. Quick quiz: What type of magic was I using when I was breakdancing."

"Consumption?"

"Right!" Jimmy's face lit up.

"So you're a Consumption Mage?"

Jimmy laughed. "Not so fast. Humans are unique in that they can use all three types of magic. Each individual will have different strengths within those types, but every mage can use all three to varying power. But, yes, I'm a fairly strong Consumption user. The strongest amongst the deputies, in fact."

"What am I, then?" Jacob asked, eager.

"I don't know. You'd have to undergo a test, but we don't have the equipment here. When you go to the Academy, you'll be tested there. But now you know the basics, so let's get to training. I'm going to teach you the spell that lets you increase your body's strength and resilience."

"Resilience to what?"

"Everything." Jimmy grinned. "I know, it might not seem flashy or cool, but it's the most important spell you can learn as a Ranger."

"Really?"

"Of course. Every Ranger has their own specialty. Millicent is a strong Production mage that specializes in wards. Sheriff Hueller is a really strong Decomposition mage. He's good at portals and transformation spells. But almost all Rangers have to be able to cast a strength-resilience spell, otherwise they wouldn't be able to take hits or move quickly enough to fight. It's like armour. It's the one spell you have to know to be able to engage in magical fights. It's also my specialty, so I think I can teach you well. If you get a chance to see me fight, you'll see it's basically the only spell I use."

Jacob frowned. "But I thought you said humans can use all three types?"

"We can. I could throw a fireball in a fight, but I just wouldn't be very good at it. You ever play sports?"

"Not really."

"Hmm... Actually, you said you're into ecosystems and that stuff, right?"

"Yes."

"Okay, maybe this is a better analogy. Every predator has a couple prey that it hunts mostly, right? There's other prey that it could theoretically hunt, but it wouldn't be as good at it. So it specializes in hunting a few, and gets really good at hunting those, instead of mediocre at a bunch. Spells are hard to learn. Everyone has a natural strength and a natural affinity. For me my strength is Consumption and my affinity is the strength-resilience spell. I could spread out and learn other stuff, but I'm better off specializing and kind of building my 'strategy' around that. Just like a predator. Millicent, for example, will always be a better ward maker than me, so, while I could learn wards, it doesn't pay off as well. She will always beat me head to head with wards. Make sense?"

"Yeah."

"So, in a fight, you might only see me or the other Deputies use one or two spells, but that's because those are our strongest spells, and we've built our fighting strategy around them. Okay, enough yap. Let's train."

Jacob was suddenly nervous. Learning magic? Already? What if he wasn't ready? What if he messed something up and the magic blew up in his face and he lost an eye? How would he ever explain that to his parents? Did this mean he was going to have to fight?

Didn't you want to not be useless?

Yeah, but he'd seen how fast Arturo and that rogue mage had moved, how scary Sheriff Hueller and his deputies had been. What if he got in a fight and just clammed up like he had when Tommy Carr had punched him? He'd seen kids scrapping on the schoolyard, but he'd always avoided fights. He didn't want to get injured.

Jimmy's hand gripped Jacob's shoulder and squeezed gently. "Hey, Jacob. Relax. I'm right here. Nothing is going to go wrong, alright?"

"Alright." Jacob swallowed. He could do this. It was just like learning something new in school, right?

"Now, close your eyes and take a deep breath."

Jacob did so.

"The first step is engaging your magic. Can you flex your left bicep for me?"

Huh? Jacob did so.

"Good. Now do that same thing in your head, your mind."

Jacob frowned, then tried to. His frown deepened and his jaw clenched.

"Close." Jimmy said. "Try it again, but don't clench your jaw."

Jacob did.

Something in his mind clicked, contracted. Tingles rippled down his spine. Every single hair on his body from the nape of his neck, to his forearms, down to the tops of his feet, stood straight. He was aware of something there in his head. He'd felt this sensation before. Yesterday, and even before that.

"Good! Alright, there we go!" Jimmy cried. "You're a natural, kid!" He slapped Jacob on the back as if he were trying to make him cough up a bone. "Now, that was the easy part. Close your eyes and do it a couple more times just so you get the feel for it."

Jacob did. It took him a handful of tries.

"I'm going to give you a shortcut that helped me out when I started. My professor called it a crutch, and maybe it is, but we don't exactly have a lot of time here, you need to learn this stuff as quickly as possible. So, contract that magical muscle again. Good, that's it. Think of the colour green. No, don't question it! Just do it! Think of a dark evergreen. Now, take that magical muscle and visualize it moving through your body, through your torso, down your limbs, until it's everywhere. Keep that green in mind. Think of your body hardening into steel. Think of that magical muscle hardening into steel. Will it to happen."

A tingling rippled through Jacob's whole body.

"Open your eyes." Jimmy said. "Hold the spell. I'm going to punch you in the stomach, okay?"

"What!" The sensation wavered, but Jacob grasped at it like a life line.

"If you hold the spell you won't feel a thing. Trust me."

"I don't know..."

"Okay, let it go, then."

Jacob did. "Sorry."

"No no no. There's nothing to be sorry about." Jimmy said. "You just learned how to access your magic ten seconds ago. The Academy takes a week to get to spell casting."

"Really?"

"Really. Look, I wanted to teach you this for your own safety, but if you feel you're not ready, then that's okay. Just say the word, and we'll stop."

In his mind's eye the rogue mage sliced through one of the Arturos's forearm, and grabbed onto the Bentley on the bridge and brought it to a halt. He had to do this. It was for his own good. Imagine if he'd been able to move that quickly, or had been that strong when Carr had punched him. Or all those other times when he'd cringed away from contact, or done nothing when someone had made fun of him. If he'd had that power he never would have chickened out at the fence because Camilla had been looking at him.

"No. Let's do it." Jacob said, clenching his fists.

"Alright. This time, we'll do it a little different." Jimmy said. "Access your magic."

Jacob contracted that muscle. Tingles rippled across his body.

"Now, punch me in the stomach."

"What?"

"Just do it. As hard as you can. I'll know if you hold back."

Jacob hesitated. He balled his hand up into a fist and approached Jimmy. The deputy didn't move, just stood there, relaxed.

Pretend he's Tommy Carr.

Jacob swung his fist back and punched Jimmy's stomach as hard as he could. At the last second magic washed over his sensations. His fist his Jimmy's torso and bounced off. Jacob cried out and shook his hand. It was like hitting a brick wall.

"See?" Jimmy said. "I didn't feel anything. Now, you try it."

Jacob followed Jimmy through the steps again: contract, green, spread out, green, thinking about his body becoming steel. His brow furrowed with concentration, his eyes glazing over.

"Hold it." Jimmy said.

The deputy wound up his hand in a wild haymaker, then swung at Jacob's stomach. Jacob flinched. Jimmy's fist slammed into his stomach.

And ricocheted back.

Jacob looked down at his shirt, then at the reeling deputy.

"Whoa... Whoa!"

Jimmy's face had lit up with a big smile. He laughed and slung his arm around Jacob's shoulders. "Hell yeah, man! Hell yeah! You're a natural. That was awesome." He faked a couple punches at Jacob's stomach. "Boom boom boom! Like hitting a slab of concrete man. Woo!"

Jacob laughed, paused, then laughed again. He felt over the moon. He forgot the rogue mage, forgot the Dream Tiger, forgot the fact that his parents would kill him when he went back home. He'd just cast a magic spell, for Chrissakes.

"Great job, Jacob." Jimmy seemed almost more excited than him. "I'm proud of you."

Jacob blushed, then straightened. "Thanks." He wanted to scream and laugh but he held it in.

Proud of him? Jacob watched Jimmy lean back against the railing. The deputy was smiling, genuinely, and Jacob couldn't detect any mockery in his voice. Was this what it felt like to have an older sibling? To have an older brother? Maybe things weren't so bad after all. Maybe this was going to be a great summer, for once.

"That spell is essentially two separate spells rolled into one. You'll learn a little more about how that works if you go to the Academy. What you're doing is increasing the strength and resilience of your muscles and tendons and bones. So, it makes you stronger and more resilient, but because you're augmenting your tendons and muscles, it also makes you faster. What do you think the problem with that is?"

Jacob frowned. "I don't know."

Jimmy tapped the side of his head. "It doesn't speed up your perception. That's a totally different spell because it's a totally different part of the body. So, you can move quickly, but it will feel weird and unbalanced because your brain is still processing things at its normal pace. Every good Consumption mage has to be able to cast both the strength-resilience spell and the perception spells at the same time, otherwise they'll be limited in how well they can move."

Jacob rubbed his temples. That one spell had been hard enough.

"Don't worry about it right now. You got any questions?" Jimmy asked.

Jacob thought for a moment. He had about a hundred, but one thing had really confused him so far.

"Why does thinking of green help?"

"Ah, good question! There's a long, complicated answer to this that involves the electromagnetic spectrum and physics but basically sunlight and magic are intertwined. All magic gives off light on the visible spectrum. Depending on the type of magic, it will give off a different colour. Production is at the red end of the spectrum, Decomposition at the violet end. Consumption is in the middle, thus the green."

"Okay..."

"Look-"

The door to the balcony whipped open. Deputy Millicent poked her head out.

"Jimmy, another crossover is happening. We gotta go. Now. Hueller said to bring the kid."

"Shit." Jimmy said. He looked up at Jacob. "Well, kid, lesson's over."

"Wait, I'm actually coming with? To the magical world?"

"Yeah, we gotta keep you close, and no one's gonna be at the Sanctuary. Trial by fire, eh? Maybe you'll learn some stuff. C'mon, let's go."

Gulp.