Wizards

CHAPTER 18: Trial in Osiris

Rei Griffin woke up with a throbbing pain in her head. She looked around — there were lots of empty beds, curtains were dancing with the wind, and the sunlight that slid through the windows illuminates the room. The medicine cabinets and the cross above the doorway five beds away from Rei gave her the idea that she was in the Med Bay.

     Rei turned to the snore beside her. It was a man, sleeping face down on his arms. She need not see his face to tell who the man was for he was wearing the same robes he wore in Familiar Ball.

     She tapped the man, "Professor Reeve —" she called.

     "Just Eliot is fine. There's no one around," said Eliot, muffled under his arms.

     Eliot raised his face. . . . There was a trace of tiredness along with the stares that he spared to Rei.

     "What happened to the Ball? Is everyone okay? Where are Brooke and Neil?"

     "You know what? I prefer it when you're asleep."

     "What happened, Eliot?" she grunted.

     "Half of the students were sent to their homes — the other half stayed to help rebuild."

     "Was anyone hurt?"

     "Many," Eliot answered, "If you hadn't stopped the fight . . . many more could have died in that battle."

     "What do you mean 'If I hadn't stopped the fight'?"

     "You stopped everyone's movement . . . literally."

     Rei's eyes widen as she listened to Eliot. And it was when, although vaguely, she remembered moments of the night of the Familiar Ball. The last thing she remembered was when Neil cast a spell . . . then there was nothing else after that.

     She found it hard to believe that she did something that incredible as to stop everyone's movement while knowing nothing of it. But as Eliot explained it further — the red hair, the uncontrollable surging of power inside of her, the ability to control somebody's movement . . . all of which were signs of magic that was rendered forbidden by the Circle a long time ago.

     "I tried to Zap to you, but I couldn't do it. . . . I haven't mastered it yet. And I also couldn't move because of your wretched magic. Thankfully — Delfin arrived just in time before a falling chandelier reaches you and your friends. . . . But the O-Ens were there with him too and they saw you and your illegal magic. Everyone saw it. . . . You are a blood witch, Rei. You are a Blooded,"

Thousands of miles away, inside an official charcoal black flying car of the O-Ens (or the Osiris Enforcers if you're feeling a bit formal), Delfin sat rather uncomfortably behind the two large officers in the front seat.

     They take pride in their title so much, the O-Ens. They like the respect they get, having the ultimate position as the protectors of the Osiris and the personal security of the councilors. They would have been scarier if the car did not smell like coconut, Delfin thought.

     Delfin sighed. . . .

     It was troublesome enough to attend meetings inside the school where basically he was in charge; it was much more troublesome to meet the councilors miles away from Nesting Peak. If only he could use his magic doors to access Osiris, he would have been there already two and a half hours ago. But teleportation spells and magic items have been blocked going in and out of the Osiris.

     At the front seat, Delfin heard the O-En beside the driver spoke, "Osiris Control. This is O-En nine eight zero together with the package requesting permission to land. . . . Roger that, Osiris Control. O-En nine eight zero out." Then he spoke to the driver, "We're clear to land."