Helena summoned light into the bulb in her room then stepped aside so Camila could enter. The jiang-shi looked around the modified office. A couch with blankets, a desk with some beauty supplies and magical components and a series of broken magical circles scribbled like kids drawings on the floor and door. “No offense, but I liked your old place better.”
“I liked it better too. But someone put a hole in the wall,” Helena replied. She was feeling a lot better after the meal. Eating had been the right choice.
“Yeah sorry about that. And sorry for kicking you. Glad that you were able to block.” Camila laughed. “You hit me with some lightning thing and a spear, so call it even?”
Helena tapped her chin in mock contemplation. “I’ll consider it. My goddess approves of me being vindictive, but vengeance against people who were mind controlled usually only causes trouble.”
“Okaaay.” Camila cocked her head at Helena. “So, I’ve gotta ask. You’ve got a witch hat on, but you’re dressed like a classical statue. You say you’re a magician but you’re also a priestess. Where exactly are you from?”
Helena drew herself up proudly. “I am Helena Aoede, the Curse Gunner, witch of Seven Gated Thebes, the oldest and most storied city of the Hellenic Realms. I bear the blood of Hecate, goddess of witchcraft. I carry the blessings of the Gods of the Underworld, as well as the mystical power of my ancestors.”
“Oooh.” Camila awkwardly clapped her hands. “You’ve got the boasting bit down great. Do all magicians brag about themselves like that?”
Helena returned the smile. “That’s not bragging, that’s just normal banter. I’ll teach you how to brag some time.”
Camila chuckled. “But seriously, you’re from Classical Greece? Troy and the Odyssey and all that? You seem pretty modern.”
Helena flopped down on the couch. “Well that’s because I’m young for a witch. I’m in my forties, while most magicians are over one hundred. The only magicians my age are from other realms. Also my family’s a little different than most of the Hellenic magicians.
“My grandmother was born in the ‘real’ Thebes right after the first collapse. After Alexander razed the city she travelled the world. When the Hellenic Realms formed she worked to keep the family connected with other magic users. Took us to Walpurgisnacht every year, sent me to summer camp in the Realms of Illusion. I’ve learned a lot more magic and seen more realms than most witches.” She waved her arm at the room. “That helps me adapt to new realms, however weird them may be.”
Camila nodded appreciatively. “So where’d you learn Portuguese?”
Helena chuckled. “I actually don’t know Portuguese. Or anything about Brazil. That’s just a translation spell.”
“How can you make a spell to translate a language you don’t know?” Camila asked.
“It’s easy,” Helena said. “Language is inherently magical to start. The magic of communication. I just need to tweak it a little. It’s better to learn a language if you have time, but even for us immortals there’s never enough time.”
Camila pursed her lips at the phrase. “Us immortals, huh?” She hopped over to look down in Helena’s mirror peering back and forth at herself. Helena wondered how long it had been since the woman had last seen her reflection. And what had changed since then.
“So this is what I’ll look like forever?” Camila asked.
“Barring powerful magic, yes.” Helena opened her arms. “These are our forms. For better or worse.”
Camila looked up at her. “I thought witches got old and wrinkly.”
“Lesser magicians who master immortality tend to be very old when they succeed,” Helena replied. “Greater magicians like my family learn to stop our aging earlier.”
“So many questions. So much to learn.” Camila shook her head in confusion. “I’m surprised I can even move around, what with my knees and elbows refusing to bend.”
Helena did her best to smile comfortingly. “You’re doing better than most. Let me grab some tea and I’ll keep answering questions.”
Camila nodded. “Sure thing.” She hopped over to the couch then froze. “Like, but before you go….”
“Sure,” Helena knelt down and helped the woman to bend her knees so she could sit. “Do you want something?”
“Coffee, black,” Camila said.
The request made Helena grimace, but she nodded. “Sure.”
She walked down into the bustling central office and grabbed a sheet of paper from the stacks scattered about. She quickly scribbled down a message for Lyudmila, then stuffed it into her hat, sending it across space and time to her friend’s letterbox. Then she started her tea steeping.
With that out of the way she turned to face the coffee machine. “I thought I was so clever when I altered that immortality ritual,” she muttered to herself. Fortunately the brew was weaker than the flower. It would only burn through her wards if it splashed on her.
The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
Carefully she filled the cup about three fourths of the way, then retrieved her own tea. Looking at the stairs she decided to just levitate up. The smooth motion kept either of the drinks from spilling.
When she made it back to the room she found Camila staring at her arm, slowly working to bend the elbow so she could drink. She’d managed to get it about halfway, pushing inch by inch, but the strain was evident on her face. How was the woman able to blindly channel the magic that allowed her to live into movement? Had that force of will been what drew Long Zhou Di’s deadly attention?
No that couldn’t be it. The people who created undead slaves considered strong will a bad trait in their servants. The Brazilian girl had to have other talents. But that was something to figure out later.
Helena let herself fall to the floor and walked loudly into the room. As Camila looked up in surprise Helena held out the cup of coffee. “Want some help?”
Camila glared at her arms and tried to bend them a little more. “If I keep working at it I’ll get better at it.” she said. “Just like any other training.”
Helena handed her the cup. “It won’t work like that.” She sighed as she took a seat next to the confused woman. “Those joint issues are your limitation. Your weakness. You’ll find you can’t escape it. Bending your elbows and knees will require a great amount of magic. And magic is something you can only gather by eating other people’s chi. As time passes you’ll get better at using your magical power, but bending your arms…”
Camila’s face contorted as she tried to work through all that. “You’re saying that… Actually what the heck are you saying? I don’t get any of it.”
This was a familiar explanation, if a long one. Helena stretched before starting into it. “Reality is defined by limitations.” She held up a hand to cut off the inevitable interruption. “The elements that make up your body could be in other formations, but they aren’t. You could have been born in a different place or to different parents, but you weren’t. You could have made a million different choices over the course of your life that changed who you are, but you didn’t. You are limited to a single point in time and space, with a single personality. Someone with different parents, or a different personality wouldn’t be you. They’d be someone else. Someone similar perhaps, but not you.”
With a bit of her power Helena summoned a simple mystic circle in the air. “With magic limits are even more important. Magic is a raw imposition of will on reality. For humans natural laws automatically give them limits. For magical creatures… things get complicated.”
Camila finally finished bending her arm enough to sip from the cup. She stared into the coffee, perhaps searching for understanding in its dark depths. A group of cops walked by, chattering away about work gossip. Helena just waited. The truth was confusing even to practiced magicians. Helena had gotten in a four day argument over the details when she was a kid.
After a few minutes Camila drained her coffee and looked over at Helena. “So you’re saying I’m going to need help sitting down for the rest of forever.”
“Probably. It won’t be easy,” Helena replied. “I’m not willing to say anything’s set in stone.” She hesitated. “I hate to admit it, but I’m out of my depth here. The tiny bit of training in Taoist ritual I’ve had isn’t really a solid foundation for our current problems.”
Camila laughed. “So you don’t know everything. I was getting a little worried I’d be spending the rest of my life getting lectures.”
Helena put on a haughty mask. “I only proclaim ignorance when it makes me look more impressive.” Then she winked at the other woman.
“I’ll have to find something to brag about myself,” Camila said. Her elbow popped back into its rigid posture as she relaxed. “It’d be bad to let you have all the fun. Might give you a big head.”
“Already on my case,” Helena sighed. “And I’m going to have to introduce you to Aoi and Lyudmila tomorrow. What ill luck. I should check to make sure I didn’t curse myself.”
Camila raised an eyebrow. “Who are they?”
“Close friends of mine,” Helena said. “Also two of the best spiritualists I know, though Aoi is purely a mystic priestess, and Lyudmila is purely a mage. Lyudmila’s sister Kseniya might be there as well. With the four of us we’re sure to think of something. A lot of somethings.”
“I like options,” Camila replied happily.
The heavy tread of boots outside and a knock on the door caused them both to look up. Standing there was Kilduff, looking grim and tired. “So you made it out lass. And with one of the poor souls freed. I’d offer you congratulations but it seems things have only gotten worse.”
Camila looked between the two. “Like… who is this?”
“Ah sorry.” Kilduff took off his hat. “Begging your pardon, Miss. I’m Inspector Ryan Kilduff of the NYPD. I have the misfortune of keeping an eye on Helena here so that she doesn’t commit any crimes against the people while working for us. Crimes against God sadly are assumed. I’m also the poor fool in charge of the Liang case.” Helena was surprised. The man actually used her first name while insulting her. She wasn’t sure if that meant he was getting soft or not.
“Okaaay,” Camila blinked a few times. “Well I’m Camila Correia Barbosa. Nice to meet ya.”
Kilduff turned back to Helena. “I fear I have bad news, and very bad news.”
Helena rubbed her eyes. “Wonderful. I suppose I’ll need to know them all. Go ahead.”
“The bad news is the captain has ordered us to stay out of the underground, ‘because of possible spies in the department’,” Kilduff said in the most mocking tone Helena had ever heard the man use. “Nevermind the fact that spies won’t matter if we move fast. No, we get to wait and do nothing while Long Zhou Di and his brother catch up on family matters.”
Camila hissed in frustration. “What? The cartels have him in their pocket?”
Kilduff looked shocked. “I don’t know how it is in your realm lass, but things work differently around here.” He shook his head and lowered his voice. “Cops like him get in for the power. Not the money. The Captain’s third generation police. Got shipped here because he made a farce of the prisons, but his family wouldn’t kick him out.”
Helena stared open mouthed at the man. She didn’t know it was possible for him to be that blunt. Camila on the other hand just took it in stride, nodding as if it were the most common thing in the world.
“Anyway lass, here’s the very bad news.” Kilduff threw down a folded paper. “Messenger brought this. It’s from Ling Wei Hsu.”
Helena glanced at the paper like it might explode. It wasn’t impossible. A quick inspection however showed the only magic was on the seal. A simple spell showing that it was actually from Gold Rat Wizard Hsu and not another magician. Helena opened it and read the short and mildly insulting letter within.
“So lass. What’s the bill?” Kilduff said.
“He wants to meet again tomorrow. And he’s not even offering me tea.” Helena sniffed in disdain. “Well, want to come along, Camila? Maybe we’ll get lucky and we can find an excuse to kill him.”
Camila peered over her shoulder. “I dunno. Who is this guy I might be killing?”
“The Triad’s top magician. At least right now,” Helena said tossing the note into the trash and mentally lighting it on fire.
“Oh?” Camila thought for a minute and grinned viciously. “Sure thing. Just don’t ask me to eat his brains. I’m done with that.”