Mirren Academy of Spells

Chapter 24: The Testers

Chapter 24: The Testers

Hindi ako matahimik dahil sa nalaman ko. A forbidden spell...by the assembly? The statement sounded bizarre to my own ears, pero hindi magsisinungaling si Lira, ang babaeng binisita ko sa sentinel building. Ngayong alam ko na ang hinahanap ko, kailangan kong malaman ang totoo.

I went back to the assembly after an entire week of not attending the internship. People stared at me blatantly, wondering where the hell I'd been. Other interns would have been kicked out if they did the same thing, but there was protection and security that came with the name Valencourt.

I sat on my desk for the first time in days. Kinuha ko agad ang mga research papers na naiwan ko. I skimmed through the documents to gather clues, but they were all about the healing properties of time spell. Was there something I missed?

From the corners of my eyes, I ended up watching the people in the tower. Everyone was busy, which was normal. Ang research division lang ang may facility to make spells in the entire assembly building. Parte ba ng project ang mga taong nakapaligid sa 'kin?

My eyes darted to the corridor at the far side of the tower. Except for the observation room, ito ang natatanging lugar sa tower na hindi ko pwedeng puntahan. Sometimes, the other employees disappeared in those rooms for an entire day.

I needed to know what was inside those rooms.

I made up an excuse for the head of the division to allow me to work overtime. All I needed to say was I would like to make up for my absences. He didn't think of it as a big deal. While the other staff packed their things, I remained on my desk, waiting for them to go.

But it wasn't only me who thought of working overtime. It was pretty common in the research division for people to work beyond their call of duty. There were at least four people in the tower with me, working until almost midnight. I acted like I was working my ass off with my research and when finally, they decided to end the day, they asked me kung sasabay ako sa kanila.

"I'll head to my father's office after this," I told them. It was enough reason for them to leave me alone in the tower. I waited for silence to settle before I made my way through the narrow corridor. From my pocket, I fished out one of father's old ID cards sitting in his study at the Valencourt mansion. I knew it would come in handy.

I placed the ID on the scanner, and it released the bolted locks on the door. If there was one place in the assembly that could practice forbidden spells, it would be behind these doors.

I pushed open the heavy metal door with my body. Nothing. In front of me was a black void of nothingness, like the room itself made me suddenly blind. I reached out my hand inside the room. Cold...with no signs of life.

Was this the right room? I opened several more doors but they appeared the same. A void. I didn't have much time to debate whether or not I was in the right place. I would know once I went inside. What was I even scared of?

I took a deep breath, like I was about to plunge in deep waters, and pushed myself inside.

I thought I had fallen. There was no floor, no concrete structure inside the room.

When I opened my eyes, the first thing I did was grip the floor I was sitting on. Solid, good. I roamed my eyes inside the room while I stood up. Now in front of me was the real room.

The room was as huge as the research tower itself with a strange thing inside. A platform. It was smack dab in the middle of the floor with a cylinder barrier surrounding it. My eyes followed where the cylinder ended and I stumbled on my feet.

Near the ceiling, above the surface of the platform, was a single floating person. Lifeless.

I took a step back, hands clasped tightly against my mouth. I couldn't move, my hands were cold yet sweating. I took several careful steps toward a brass signage near the platform.

Tester 3. Paddock 6.

My mouth was dry and my mind was roaring blank pagbalik ko sa dormitory noong gabing 'yon. Ni hindi ko namalayan kung paano ako nakalabas ng research tower. In my mind was a single image. The floating body...tulad ng sinabi ni Lira tungkol sa asawa niya. Lifeless. Soulless.

I barely had any sleep for the rest of the night. Pagdating ng umaga, lumabas agad ako sa kwarto para puntahan si Claudia sa kwarto niya. After an entire minute of knocking, Claudia opened the door mid-yawn, ready to smack me in the face for waking her up so early in the morning.

"What?" she mumbled, eyes still half-sleep. "This better be important, Olivia..."

I already predicted Claudia's mood. Her sleep was her top priority. When I came back from Hailing Cove a few days ago, she was taking a nap, having no idea I had arrived.

"This. Is. Important," I hissed, emphasizing every word.

She yawned once more before nodding. "Give me a minute."

I waited outside. A few minutes later, she came out of the room with a more presentable appearance in a black robe and her hair in a ponytail, far from her earlier bedhead and pajamas.

I pulled her arms down the staircase, the empty lobby, and the garden outside with grass glistening under the first rays of the sun, wet with dew from the previous night.

"Dito talaga?" nakataas ang kilay na tanong ni Claudia.

"Someone might hear us inside."

She sighed. "Okay, spill the beans."

"Claudia...I think the assembly is working on a forbidden spell. I saw everything last night in the research tower...there were testers and lifeless people..."

Claudia clasped both of my shoulders with her hands. "Calm down, Olivia."

I closed my eyes for a second and inhaled deeply. She was right, I was too troubled and anxious since last night that my words were sounding incoherent.

"I just don't understand why...why would they recreate the same mistake?" I noticed Claudia's face...the indifference, the lack of surprise. "You knew about it?"

"Alam ito ng ilang tao sa alleyway."

"Since when? Is that why...the assembly tried to burn them alive?"

"We don't know their exact reason. Maybe they're just fed up dealing with the place," she said to me. "But the spell they're working on...was the same spell that sent Santi's parents to their death."

***

Mirren Academy of Spells