With the hearing no longer hanging over his head, Wil treasured having time to catch his breath and prepare. He’d gotten to postpone the consequences another few months down the road. All he had to do was replicate what he did months ago by accident and make it useful somehow.

Wil, Isom, Thomas, and Chinis had to book it to avoid the swarm of people and members of the press who wanted to bark questions at him. The flashes of cameras blinded him as they ran in the other direction, taking a side exit and slipping around the back to where Chinis’ car awaited them.

“I can’t believe this,” Chinis complained as he drove the clunky mechanical car away from the courthouse, and thankfully outside the anti-magic suppression field. “If I were to accuse a court deciding my fate of being a sham, pretty sure they’d lock me up and never let me see the light of day again. Must be nice, McKenzie.”

“It beats a kick to the teeth,” said Wil, laughing. He was in the backseat with Isom. Thomas, for some reason, didn’t feel comfortable sitting next to the wampus cat. “And don’t forget, my ass isn’t out of the fire yet. They just turned down the flames.”

“Details,” Thomas waved off. He sat twisted in the seat to face Wil as he spoke. “How do you feel about Ramenian food? I know this great place halfway back to the Manor.”

Wil shrugged. At this point, anything he ate would be the greatest meal he’d had in months, so why not? Soon he’d be home. Everything else was a bonus.

So an hour later found the four of them in the back of a dingy ramshackle building with terrible lighting, strange smells coming from the back, and a surly, heavyset matron who gave them the stink-eye the moment they walked in. Unsurprisingly, the food was incredible and served in massive portions. The Ramenians knew how to eat.

“So what’s next?” Chinis asked, twisting some noodles in his fork and slurping them down obnoxiously. They’d all made a game of who could be the noisiest eater. “Gonna go home and do research, then?”

“Oh no,” said Thomas. “It’s going to be way more involved than that. Figuring out the conditions of change and how to control it is just the beginning. After that, there are stress tests as well as finding practical applications for it. Three months isn’t nearly enough time for…” He smiled sheepishly at Wil. “Getting ahead of myself, aren’t I?”

“Yeah, I’d say so,” said Wil. “I still haven’t accepted you as part of my team.” He schlorped his own noodles, keeping eye contact before he broke. “I’ll be glad to have your expertise on my side again. But I need you to understand something before we begin.”

“Oh boy,” said Chinis. “Here it comes.”

“I’m in charge of this venture,” said Wil. “No no, don’t say anything yet. I know how eager you are and have been, but we’re going to do this my way. It means going at my pace, and going in my direction. I’ll gladly take your input, but to be clear: we’re not going to be developing things for the military. No matter how well they might pay.”

He doesn’t like that, Isom purred in his mind. He chewed on massive meatballs on the floor, casually listening in as he often did. He’ll betray you if it means getting his way.

Wil rolled his eyes. Isom’s increasingly bad habit of reading minds had come in handy, but his observations were heavily colored by his own animal mindset. Part of that was a cat’s natural sense of haughtiness, mischief, and staggering bias. He never liked Thomas, so nothing the man did was enough.

“That’s…Okay,” said Thomas, wincing but not complaining further. “No military applications. There’s still bound to be plenty of things to improve on and profit from. We’ll be advancing magical understanding to a whole new level. Good enough for me.”

Which was enough for Wil, at least for the moment. “I’ve got a team of people I trust who help me with all my projects back in Harper Valley. They’ll be invaluable to our efforts, and I miss them badly.”

“Fantastic!” said Thomas. “What’s their specialization? I know you work with earth magic and your raw power serves you well. I am of course a master of information and perspective, but do you have a metalworker or ritual person?”

“Uhh, not quite,” said Wil. “They’re not wizards. It’s my best friend Bram and my girlfriend Darlene. I wouldn’t be where I am without them.”

Thomas paused. “Huh. What do they bring to the team?”

Wil didn’t blink. “Darlene is an organizational mastermind who somehow manages to keep us on track, more or less. Bram’s one of the most methodical and curious people I’ve ever known. He’s got no magic of his own but he’s been reading through all of my books. I swear he understands some of the stuff better than I do!”

“Not difficult,” said Chinis, finishing off his bowl with gusto. He set the bowl down on the uneven, splintery table. “You’re not stupid but you could never learn things that didn’t come naturally to you.”

“That’s not true, I’ve improved a lot at runes and enchanting. With a really great vehicle to show for it.” Wil raised his wine glass to Thomas with a wink.

“That reminds me,” said Thomas, after he toasted Wil back. “Have you put any thought into what kind of budget you are looking for, what possible materials you’ll want?”

Wil pushed his bowl away, covering one of the table’s many holes. “I haven’t. Not yet, at least. That’s the stuff I’m much less excited for. So yes, Thomas, to answer the question you haven’t asked. I’m willing to let you take the lead on those things, so long as you teach me what you’re doing.”

“Partners?” Thomas prodded.

“Partners,” Wil confirmed. “You, me, Bram, and Darlene.”

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

“Right,” said the enchanter, obviously not pleased, but understanding it was the way it had to be. So long as Thomas could accept that, he’d be a fine addition.

The rest of dinner passed by in a blur. After, Chinis drove them all back to Marlowe Manor, where Wil and Thomas stayed up late into the night talking. It continued on almost as soon as they woke up, and the details came together.

It was another week and a half until Wil was allowed to leave. The time between was spent negotiating a budget, terms of correspondence, and the first initial batch of materials to be delivered to Wil’s home in Harper Valley. The other things to be shipped were a few knickknacks Wil had made in the workshop, his new wardrobe, and everything else he couldn’t fit on his Thunderhawk.

In what was possibly the best part of his homecoming, Wil had arranged for him and Isom to go through the portal to Manifee City along with his new vehicle. Rather than catch a ride on a flying ship or a train home, Wil was going to ride his Thunderhawk and rough it for a couple of days. After months trapped in the manor, he was beyond excited.

By the time the day came, he and Isom looked out one last time at the Marlowe Manor grounds. Wil closed his eyes and felt around for the ring of leylines surrounding the property. He hadn’t learned anything new about them in that time, but the manor’s location was important. It had to be. Trickles of power flowed into the center, barely detectable but constantly, like the waves at a beach creeping up the shore. Back and forth, push and pull.

Are we leaving or not? If not, I want to hunt one last time.

Wil started from his thoughts. He shook himself out of it. “Yeah, yeah, we’re leaving. You going to be okay on the back of this thing?” Behind the Thunderhawk was a small, short trailer that would float behind it. It had taken some of their precious time to make it work, but there was no way Isom could sprint the entire way home.

Isom jumped onto the platform and turned a circle before laying down. “Assuming you don’t do anything foolish or too fast, I should be fine. Our tests were…fine.”

Their first test with the trailer had launched Isom out only a couple of times before Wil adjusted the enchantments into something more stable and comfortable. The first time had startled the wampus cat. The next two had been a source of great fun. For Wil, at least.

“Then, shall we? Thomas and Chinis should already be waiting for us.” Wil climbed into the Thunderhawk’s seat and switched the keyrune on. There was no actual buzzing or vibration, but Wil’s senses were awash with the enchantments coming to life. With a twist of his wrists he spun in place, slowly dragging the trailer with it. And then he shot forward, hovering four feet off the ground as they headed to Cloverton.

At this point Wil knew the way through the woods and back into the city by heart. Navigating the city itself wasn’t much harder, given the military base could be seen towering off in the distance. Cars on the road honked at him as he turned up the power and flew the Thunderhawk just above traffic. The metal of the cars underneath helped stabilize the vehicle and go faster, safer than everyone else. Mostly.

With all the towers of metal and clouds of smoke belching forth from factories and businesses, Wil couldn’t say he’d miss the capital much. He had not gotten to explore it at all, and it didn’t strike him as a missed opportunity. Turning into the military base was a welcome relief, though it made his heart flutter. Another few minutes and he’d be a couple days' ride from home.

Security stopped him, not once, but at three different locations. More people swarmed the base than when he’d first arrived in the winter, and everyone was on edge. He found out as he and Isom met Chinis and Thomas in front of the portal itself. They weren’t alone. President Bullworth and Sylano stood there, chatting, while the president’s bodyguards’ cold gazes followed him as he approached.

Wil dismounted cautiously. He made it a couple of steps before the president attacked him, grabbing his hand and giving it a violent pump.

“Wilbur McKenzie, the man of the hour!” Bullworth chortled. “I told you that we’d pry that information out of you.”

Wil’s cheeks burned, and for an instant he wanted to say something rude and insulting before sense tacked that down. “Yes sir,” he said, “but on my terms.”

“On your terms indeed,” said Bullworth. “You get the credit and the money for your hard work. It’s the Calipan way, after all. I see you’ve got Ferrovani’s boy on your side. With his help, I’ve no doubt you’ll clear the terms and be exonerated on all charges. And if not…Well, surely there will be something to build on from what you find. I just wanted to wish you luck before you set off.”

One final, friendly threat. Wil forced a smile and said, “Thank you, sir. And Syl, how the hell are you doing? You still the president’s guest?”

Syl nodded enthusiastically. His time in Cloverton had him dressing in the local style, with an armless black suit on his chest and pants cut off before they made it to his hooves. His short horns had golden bands around them. It was the perfect combination of Calipan society mixed with fae chaos and Syl’s habit of missing the point.

“We’ve gotten a lot done these past few months,” said Syl brightly. “Another couple and I can report to my father. We’ve established some rules of mutual tourism. We’ll even be coming by Harper Valley in a few months to make a visit to Oakheart Spiral and show the president our hospitality. That’ll probably be the next day I see you! Think your mom would be willing to cook when we drop by?”

“Cooking for her favorite goat and the president himself?” Wil scoffed. “She’d be delighted. Gods, I can’t wait to go home and stuff myself.”

“Then go with my blessing, Wilbur,” said Bullworth, with a smile that seemed almost genuine. “Just do what you do and work for your community and everything will all be okay.” He laughed again and wandered off, his bodyguards in tow.

“Bye for now, Wil. Give me love to Arabella when you see her! Tell her I don’t miss her attitude or sneers.”

Wil laughed. “You got it. Bye Syl.”

And then it was just Chinis and Thomas. “I appreciate you taking me around Manifee City and being the world’s most lax guard,” Wil said to his old friend. “I don’t think I would’ve made it without your reassurances.”

Chinis gave him The Nod and said, “Anytime. But I expect to stay at your place if I ever have a reason to visit. But I guess with your important research, you’re going to give everyone a reason to visit, aren’t you?”

“That’s the plan!” Wil pulled Chinis into a hug and the two spent a minute seeing who could slap each other’s back harder. Wil crapped out after four sharp slaps. “Come see me if and when you do.”

When Wil turned to Thomas, he scoffed. “Look at me, last and least. Get a move on, McKenzie. I’ll be along in a week with all the supplies we need. I’ll keep you updated on any hassles, okay?”

“Appreciated,” Wil said, shaking Thomas’ hand. “And with that, it’s time to hope that the Thunderhawk doesn’t die halfway to home.”

“Impossible,” said Thomas with a shake of his head. “I helped work on it. The only way it stops working is if you wreck it. See you soon, McKenzie.”

Human sentimentality is gross, Isom complained from the back of the Thunderhawk. Can we hurry it up?

Wil laughed. We’ll see how much you hate sentimentality after a side of beef, huh? Let’s go. He mounted the Thunderhawk, and took one long look at the swirling portal. A nearby officer gave him the approval to go.

With a laugh, Wil drove through the portal, and onwards to home.