The Quest of the Prodigy (The Alchemist of Time Book 1) Page 25

  The robot appeared in less than a second. “Yes, Master Bas?”

  “Get the boy please and set the Time Shifters to the Academy of Alchemy! Best be one day after the attack. Aimon lost his best friend, too. He will need a day to recover.”

  Mimi nodded in agreement. She hadn’t thought about how Aimon was feeling. He would have to explain to her why he didn’t help them in the fight. She wondered if it would have made a difference. She shook her head, clearing the thought.

  No point living in the land of “If Only,” she mused to herself.

  With a golden flash, they were back at the Academy.

  Everything reminded Mimi of Richie. She wanted to go back to the Bas House. This place held no charm, filling her instead with dread and fear. She grabbed Albert’s hand, needing to know he was there, both for his safety and hers.

  Mimi looked around Aimon’s study, clutching her concealed Elemental Launcher. She spotted Aimon at the window, wearing a black uniform. It comforted Mimi to know he also grieved. She joined him at the window and looked out at the Zen garden, wishing it would give her peace. Coy fish swam around a picturesque pond, dotted orange, white and black. Everything is so oriental.

  She saw Aimon standing by the window. He was gazing out the window that had the Zen sand garden view. Instead of his white school uniform with orange belt, he wore a black uniform, which comforted her a little. Bas was right. Aimon was grieving as well. Knowing others would miss and remember Richie mattered to her.

  Mimi walked slowly up to Aimon and cleared her throat. She was still a bit angry at him for not aiding them in the attack, but to begin her journey as a Prodigy, she would need his help.

  She looked at the sand garden with Aimon, wondering what held the boy in such a trance. It was just raked white sand, three large boulders and a crowded coy fish pond and three rocks as large as boulders. Why is this place always oriental? “Aimon.”

  “Oh, hello.”

  “Told you I’d return,” she said, still looking at the garden.

  He nodded slowly, his eyes never leaving the coy pond. “Did you know,” he said with a sad chuckle, “that the coy pond was Richie’s idea? He said if I had my own Zen garden, it couldn’t be complete without a fish pond. We actually argued over it. And he wouldn’t let it go. Not for two weeks. Finally I got so sick of him suggesting it, that I gave in. And now I have a coy fish pond. And no best friend.”

  Mimi frowned. She had known Aimon the same amount of time as Richie, but Aimon was a stranger to her. How could she comfort a complete stranger?

  “Did you know,” she said slowly, trying to steady her shaky voice, “that you can’t just live for the good moments, without the bad moments to compare them to? It’s impossible to delete the sad moments, Aimon. All we can do is move on. As Richie would want us to.”

  Aimon looked at her, stunned. “Why are you being nice to me?” he asked. “I was nothing but awful to you in my attempts to find Bas the perfect Prodigy.”

  Mimi returned his small smile. “Because you and I have something in common.”

  Aimon shook his head, signaling he didn’t know what she meant.

  “You and I have both loved and lost Richie. That is a connection you can’t get with any other Prodigy.”

  Aimon nodded. “Very well Mimi. Well said. Richie was right about you. You are clever.”

  That alone made Mimi want to cry again. She refrained. “Thank you. Now there is something I need to tell you, Aimon. Richie’s last words to me were to make me promise not to avenge him by attacking those Ambassadors of Time. He said when I was finally safe, to make you train me as the Prodigy. He wanted me to remind you if you ever doubted me again, he would haunt you forever.”

  The last bit made Aimon smile. A true, genuine smile.

  “Yes, that does sound like Richie.” He chuckled. “Very well, Mimi Mockel. I will teach you to master Alchemy. It should have been Richie to teach you, because of how much you trusted him. But I hope over time you can trust me, too.”

  Mimi needed to ask the question weighing on her before she could consider trusting him. “I am concerned, Aimon, that you didn’t help us fight. Why?”

  Aimon looked away. “I was scared,” he admitted. “I was scared how much that fight would have escalated if I had gotten involved. I was scared for the safety of the school. I was scared for the safety of my friends and my father. I panicked. And I’m sorry I stood by and only watched.”

  “You are a coward,” Mimi hissed.

  He nodded in agreement. “I’m sorry. Because my father is the headmaster, the school is my true home. I care so much for this place, I was worried my involvement in the fight would ruin something. My Elemental Launcher could do so much damage; you have no idea how much. I was worried about not being able to control it with my emotions high, and causing harm to my beloved school. Can you understand that?”

  She thought back to the Library and her terror that the Ambassadors could burn it down. She had run that day, too. She nodded. “I can understand it, Aimon, but I can’t quite forgive it yet. I don’t want to be trained by a coward, but I will do it for Richie.”

  Aimon flinched at her words and bowed his head. “Thank you, Mimi. I will try to not let you down again. I was just about to eat now…would you lot care to join me? I have something to give you as well. But first, we should dine.”

  Mimi looked at the coy pond. Her grief gave little room for an appetite. But Richie would never have refused a meal. She felt obligated to attend on his behalf. “Lead the way, sensei,” she said.

  A silent group followed Aimon to the room where they had celebrated just days before. It had been cleaned up, and felt eerily empty.

  Aimon pulled Mimi aside. “Mimi, before we sit, there is something I wish to give you.”

  “Yes?”

  He placed a round black orb in her hands. “This is a hologram recording of Richie’s funeral. I... I wanted you to have a copy. I know you couldn’t be there in person. But you should have it. Just push the black button on the top to press play. You can watch it whenever you’re ready.”

  Mimi held eye contact with him, accepting this gift for the touching apology it was. “Thank you, Aimon. I will watch it. When I’m ready.”

  They joined the others as the same elderly lady as before pushed in a food trolley. Everyone ate in silence, stealing glances at the empty chair Richie had occupied. At the end of the meal Aimon stood, and everyone looked to him.

  “This was the first attack on the Academy in the school’s history,” Aimon said sadly. “It has many of the students scared. A few of the first and second years dropped out, worried about more attacks. I explained to my father what occurred. I’m in trouble for letting Bas return, but I’m more upset at losing Richie. We gave Richie a proper funeral. I couldn’t stand seeing his family so broken up. I think it will take time before the school fully recovers. I have no idea when I, or you, Mimi, will also be able to accept this. He was a dear student of the school. I say all of this, Mimi, because I want you to know what happened won’t be forgotten. Not by anyone at this school.”

  Mimi nodded. Though it was a nice sentiment, it didn’t give her any comfort.

  Bas looked serious. “I’m sorry again, Aimon, for my part of what happened. If I wasn’t tracked by them a week ago, they’d not have been able to find us.”

  “I don’t blame you, Bas,” said Aimon with a sigh. “It is just an unfortunate happening. But it did happen. It was just a cold reminder of why we practice the Truth of Words, to prepare for an attack from the Truth of Blood.”

  Mimi recalled from the video history lesson in Bas’s kitchen about the Truth of Blood, a present-day event in the year 3000. If they were as bloodthirsty as they sounded, she could understand why the Queen’s people were losing hope. She hoped Mr. Barkley was right in thinking that the Prodigy could be a symbol of hope.

  “It’ll be a challenge for sure to beat the Truth of Blood. Deatherage is so determined in his quest, he wa
sn’t distracted at all when he charged at us,” Mimi said in a worried voice.

  Bas nodded with regret. “Yes, I’m afraid it’s true. He’s relentless.”

  “Well then,” said Albert in attempts to lighten the mood, “at least we have a great teacher like Aimon, right?”

  Aimon gave a stern nod. “Yes, I will teach your sister, Albert. Her lessons can begin first thing in the morning. I will speak with my father about letting you attend the school.”

  Mimi dropped her chopsticks and stood, nostrils flaring. “No way!” she said and pushed in her chair, ready to leave. “I am not staying in this place! This is the place Richie died in! I’m sorry if it sounds selfish, but I am not training here. You may live with us, Aimon, and train me at Bas’s place. There is plenty of room. Besides, Bas and I have another arrangement as well, that we can achieve throughout my training.”

  “We do?” asked Bas, as if he had forgotten.

  Mimi rolled her eyes. “Yes! Returning those items!”

  “Oh, right,” he said with a sad sigh. “I was hoping you’d forgotten.”

  Aimon scowled at Mimi before softening his gaze. “Sit down please, Mimi.”

  Mimi let out a huff, but sat.

  “Your request is fair. I just assumed you’d want to train at the Academy. I will ask my father if I can join you. I do want to see Richie’s final request through. And I do feel guilty about not being able to help in your fight the other day. If my father allows me to leave, I will join you.”

  “And if he doesn’t allow it?” worried Mimi.

  Aimon gave her a smile. An actual, honest smile. It looked foreign on someone so serious. “Then I will still join you. I’d just rather have my father’s permission first.”

  It was asking a lot of him, but Mimi knew it was the only way she could do this. It was safer in the Bas House for everyone. “Thank you Aimon, truly. It is safer at Bas’s, as it’s impossible for the Ambassadors to find us in his home, so I’d feel better training knowing Albert is safe. And...I’m also being a bit selfish, as I can no longer stand being in the Academy. It’s too painful.”

  Aimon nodded. “I understand. I admit without Richie, this place has lost its charm for me as well. Although it’s the only home I’ve ever known, I am honored to be your mentor and find a new one.”

  Arriving back at the King’s castle in the Ambassador of Time office, Deatherage howled with rage. He swiped his arms across the desk, knocking over scrolls of parchment and maps. Pressing both palms down on the now-empty oak desk, he took deep breaths. He was starting to feel hopeless. Barkley and the girl shouldn’t be a match for two trained Ambassadors of Time. They were off their game. He had killed the red-haired boy in his quest, and it was all for nothing.

  He had warned them. They should have handed over the book. It was the girl’s fault; she had given him no choice. Any friend of Barkley was an enemy of theirs. The boy was no exception. He had expected the girl to be scared enough to hand over the Diary. That bubble contraption had saved her life.

  Deatherage watched from the corner of his eye as Bellator hung back, giving him space. He appreciated her not prying. He didn’t want to have to tell her that the King considered him an idiot. He didn’t want to tell her that he had spied, and knew the King was interested in Dark Alchemy. He didn’t want to tell her that he was harboring the King’s daughter in a private room, and the only one who knew of her arrival to the King’s Court. He didn’t want to admit he feared the King would lose patience and kill him soon. He had betrayed Bellator before. If he confessed all of this, she could easily betray him, and with good reason.

  “How do you think that golden bubble of hers works? This was the second time she used it, but she doesn’t always use it. Why doesn’t she always use it?” he asked Bellator, hoping she would believe that was where his mind had been.

  Bellator shook her head. “I don’t know. I was wondering the same thing.”

  “And how can Barkley evade us even with the Tracker? He must have tampered with it. But how?”

  Bellator looked away. She seemed just as ignorant as he was. Deatherage huffed and hurried from the room. If Bellator didn’t have any answers, she was useless to him for the time being, until she could locate Barkley again. Because, he thought with determination, we will find Barkley again. Barkley and the girl can’t run through time forever.

  “COME IN,” Odette called.

  Deatherage found her reclining on the bed against a pile of pillows, with Knox resting on the headboard behind her. Several moments passed before she looked up at him, dismay in her eyes. She looked back at the book.

  He chuckled at the childish ploy. “Are you ignoring me, dear?”

  “Well why shouldn’t I?” she challenged him. Her soft voice turned icy. “You ignored me all day. Didn’t even come for lunch.”

  Deatherage shut and locked the door behind him, then joined her on the bed. The mattress squeaked under their weight. He stroked her blonde hair and gazed at her with what he hoped was a loving expression.

  Odette pulled away from his doting hand. “You know, if I wanted to be trapped in my room all day with books, I would have stayed with Mother.”

  He frowned, her words like a slap across the face. They hurt because he knew they were true. It was a fair request, not to be ignored. He played along, matching her frown with his own. “Am I really that horrible?”

  A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. “Yes. You’re simply a monster.”

  “A monster for locking you inside all day?”

  She nodded, turning a page in her book. Deatherage tried a new approach.

  “Well how about after supper, you can meet my partner from work. Will that make up for it?” It was the only distraction he could think of that was remotely safe.

  She put the book down on her lap at last, and folded her hands over the gray cover, still not looking up. He knew he had to sweeten the pot if he wanted her attention.

  “And,” he proposed, already knowing he was going to regret the offer, “if we get a ping on a thief’s location, would you like to join us on capturing him?”

  Odette looked at him, her eyes lighting up. “You mean I can join you on your mission?”

  “If you promise to stay out of the way and be safe, then yes. You can join us in the Time Car, and travel through time with us. Would you like that?”

  She let out a squeak of excitement that startled Knox. The mechanical bird moved his bronze feathers back as Odette nearly knocked over her feathered friend to hug Deatherage.

  “Oh yes very much! Thank you, Danny!” she cried with delight and kissed him.

  Deatherage kissed her back. It was strange she called him Danny instead of Daniel. But as the key to his future happiness, she could call him whatever she pleased. It was risky bringing her along and Bellator would be pissed, but she was a princess. She would stay out of trouble, if he asked her to.

  DEATHERAGE WAS nervous as he snuck Odette down the Ambassador of Time Hall to the office. He was worried about Bellator’s reaction, but had to risk it to restore Odette’s affection. It was the only lifeline he had going for him at the moment. Opening the door to their office, he smiled sheepishly at Bellator.

  “What’s up?” she asked, as if she could sense something was off.

  “Um,” he said, trying to sound more confident than he felt, “I have someone I want you to meet.”

  The door was only open part way, so she couldn’t yet see Odette. He felt the need to build up suspense. His partner’s raised eyebrows showed her surprise at discovering Deatherage wanted her to meet anyone, let alone a friend. He had never had a visitor before. This was new for both of them.

  “All right then,” said Bellator and folded her arms. “Who is it?”

  He smiled nervously at Bellator and opened the heavy oak door to reveal Odette.

  Surprise didn’t cover her expression. Bellator gaped in shock. Royal figures were well known throughout both Courts.

  “Hell
o!” Odette said timidly, and gave Bellator a shy wave. Deatherage remembered one of her letters mentioning how few people she interacted with on a daily, let alone weekly, basis.

  “What?” asked Bellator, her eyes going from the princess to Knox and back again. “How? What is she doing here?”

  This was Deatherage’s chance. “It’s a long story, but we met, and we’re in love. She’s living with me here at the castle now. We haven’t told the King yet, and we’re waiting for the right moment. I am trusting your discretion, Bellator. But Odette needed another friend and to get out, so I invited her to join us in hunting Barkley.”

  “Come along?” asked Bellator with a raised eyebrow. “What do you mean, as in, join us?”

  Deatherage nodded and Bellator laughed loudly. The princess beat him to defending her.

  “Hey!” cried Odette and marched up to Bellator. “I thought it was a brilliant idea of Danny’s! I have never time traveled before, but always dreamed of doing so. Would you deny a princess her dream? Do you want me to tell my father you denied me?”

  Deatherage felt as impressed as Bellator looked.

  “All right then, Princess, but I warn you time travel isn’t always fun. Sometimes it gets messy.” Bellator looked pointedly at Deatherage.

  Deatherage rolled his eyes. She was out of line. He had done only what he had to do.

  “I can clean up after myself,” said the princess, and stood up straighter. “I won’t get in the way.”

  “No, you won’t,” agreed Bellator. “You’ll stay in the Time Car...and, oh! The ping!” she cried as an alarm filled the office.

  “What’s that noise?” Odette asked Deatherage.

  Deatherage smiled and took her hand. “It means it’s time to go. Are you sure you’re not scared? Sebastian Barkley is a terrible thief. He is dangerous. And he’ll hurt you if you get too close.”

  Out of the corner of his eye he could see Bellator trying not to laugh. He knew Barkley wasn’t dangerous for the princess, but if she was scared, he could convince her to stay in the Time Car.