Story Thieves Part 24

Kiel watched the doctor bang his fists against the wall in frustration, then held out a hand. "It's over, Dr. Verity," he said. "End this. Call off your Science Soldiers. Bring them home. There's still time to stop the war."

Dr. Verity looked up as if noticing Kiel was there for the first time. "Oh, no, there isn't," he said. He pulled open his coat and took out a small cylindrical green device as he stepped out of the vault. "I might not have the Source of Magic, but I can still have Magisteria destroyed. That infinite army has to be good for something, right? And now, as an added bonus, I can kill you, too!"

"What is that thing?" Kiel asked, backing away a step.

"Just a portable nuclear light," Verity said, then twisted off the cap. "Kind of like the ones on the walls all over the palace, only this one's been rigged to blow us up in the next ten seconds." He grinned. "Yes, yes, I'll die too. But my mind is backed up on computer and will transfer to a new clone the moment this body sends a signal that it perished. What's your backup plan, Kiel Gnomenfoot?"

Kiel paused, then returned Dr. Verity's smile. "I don't know. I guess I've always kept my important things locked away in a vault."

And with that, he pushed Dr. Verity and the bomb into the Vault of Containment and slammed the door shut.

"NO-" Verity screamed before the closing door cut off all sound. Kiel quickly turned the first key in the lock, then stepped back and waited.

The Vault of Containment had held the Source of Magic all these years, completely cut off from any outside forces. Either it was strong enough to contain a nuclear explosion, and Kiel (not to mention the entire capital city of Quanterium) would live, or he'd have some complaints to make when he next ran into the First Magician.

Ten seconds pa.s.sed, and not even a sound escaped the vault.

For a moment Kiel wondered if Verity had been telling the truth about another clone. The doctor had survived for thousands of years, after all, and had no magic like the Magister's to keep him alive. Still, if a signal had to be sent out to have a new clone download the doctor's memories, and the vault contained all signals, maybe this really would be the end of Dr. Verity.

That thought sent Kiel falling back against the vault, almost trembling with exhaustion. It was over. Magisteria was safe, finally. No more Dr. Verity. No more Science Soldiers attacking- Whoops. Dr. Verity hadn't called them off, had he?

Kiel groaned, pus.h.i.+ng back to his feet. He had to stop the attacking robots, but how? He had no spell book, and Magisteria was an entire s.p.a.ce-travel trip away. If only there really had been a power source in the vault, maybe- He glanced at the books he'd taken out of the vault, then grabbed the top one. Why hide these if they weren't actually a Source of Magic? And if they were, somehow, then they had to contain some power, right? After all, books were the truest form of magic that existed, in a lot of ways. If he'd learned nothing else in the last day or so, it'd been that.

"Oh, come on," Owen said, rolling his eyes.

Kiel quickly paged through each book one by one, a disbelieving look gradually spreading over his face. The books did contain power, one that Kiel never would have dreamed existed. Could they be true? Had magic actually begun this way? And if it had, did that mean he could- Kiel carefully set the current book down and picked up the nearest Science Soldier robot head. As he read aloud from the page he'd left open, he focused the magic out from the book and into the robot, lighting both up with a different form of magic than he'd ever felt. The robot's eyes flickered, then slowly powered up, glowing a bright red.

Kiel grinned in spite of himself. "RETURN TO QUANTERIUM," he said, planting the order in this Science Soldier's head. "ALL SCIENCE SOLDIERS OF EVERY MAKE AND MODEL, THIS IS AN ORDER. RETURN TO QUANTERIUM, THEN POWER DOWN!"

This new form of magic filled the robot's head until it practically burst at the seams, then separated into a million rays of light, each firing off in a different direction. Since the Science Soldiers could communicate between one another, the magic just followed the same paths, delivering Kiel's magical command to Dr. Verity's infinite armies. Even the soldiers on the floor in front of him powered up briefly with the red magical energy, took in the command, then powered right back down again.

Kiel dropped the again-silent Science Soldier head, not believing what he'd just done. Using magic to manipulate science? Who would have believed it?

Apparently, the first magic-users had, the ones who'd begun as scientists themselves. There was more to read in these books, much more. These scientists had experimented with the very foundation of science, and discovered magic entirely by mistake. Even just that idea opened so many doors. And the books contained so much more!

But this wasn't the time to read them. There was something far more important for Kiel still to do. He quickly left the hidden vault behind, making his way out into the Presidential Palace. The fact that he found multiple Science Soldier robots lying depowered throughout the hallways seemed to confirm that his science-spell had worked.

As he reached the Audience Chamber, he slowed and carefully peeked out the doorway, but saw the same troop transport of soldiers that he'd come in with now lying on the floor of the chamber, unmoving. And there in front of the soldiers was Charm, floating on a stretcher.

He ran to her, completely unsure what to do. What could he do? He had no magic, no spell book. How could he fix her? Maybe the Source had ideas, but she didn't have time. He needed a doctor, medicine, something!

But what doctor would help a criminal like Charm, or even listen to Kiel's request in the first place? They were the most wanted felons in all of Quanterium.

There was just one thing to do.

Kiel pushed the stretcher out of the Audience Chamber and into the palace proper, stopping only when he found himself surrounded by shocked holograms of Quanterians.

"HELP!" he shouted. "This is Charm Mentum, the daughter of your former president. She needs medical attention now! She's no criminal. She's been a Quanterian spy since the day I met her, and actually just betrayed me, Kiel Gnomenfoot, to save your world. Please, call a doctor!" And with that, he dropped to his knees and held out his hands, waiting to be taken away by the Science Police as the holographic citizens of Quanterium gathered all around him.

CHAPTER 45.

Wait, what?" Owen said. "That can't be the ending! He gave himself up to get Charm a doctor?"

"They thought she was a criminal," Bethany said quietly, touching the page. "I guess he thought they wouldn't save her otherwise."

"There has to be more," Owen said, pulling the book out of her hand. "There has to be! What happened to Charm? Is she okay?" He seemed about as worried about Charm as Bethany felt about Kiel, honestly.

"There's an epilogue," Bethany said, turning the page while he held it. "Five years later." She paused. "But I don't think we should read it. I mean, after everything, it wouldn't be right to just finish the book that way, you know? That's no way to say good-bye."

"Not read it?" Owen said, his voice rising as he stared at her indignantly. "But I have to find out-" And then he noticed her hand in midair, waiting to take his.

He swallowed hard, gave her a thankful, relieved smile, then silently took her hand.

Together, they disappeared into the pages.

Five years later "As you know, the tyrant Dr. Verity caused an accident six years ago that killed my parents and sisters," Charm told the crowd before her. "That accident took my eye, arm, and leg. Science saved me, giving me robotic parts to take the place of flesh and bone. But it took magic to truly make me whole."

She pointed at her now-human eye and held up both nonrobotic arms. "This is what magic and science accomplished together. But it won't stop there. Together, Quanterian and Magisterian will become one and whole, like science and magic healed me. We shall move forward together as one planet once more, with one people of both science and magic!" Charm said. The a.s.sembled Magisterians and Quanterians below her broke into cheers. She grinned, and waved as she started to step offstage.

For just a moment someone in the crowd caught her eye. While most of the a.s.sembled people were cheering or clapping, one boy just stood silently, an almost sad smile on his face. She gave him a curious look, and he waved awkwardly, almost in embarra.s.sment.

Did she know him? There was something about him that seemed almost . . . familiar. Something she hadn't seen in a long time. Years, even.

And for some reason, seeing the boy now, she realized how much she missed that . . . something.

Before Charm could do more than raise her hand to wave back, the boy disappeared into the crowd. She stepped forward, ready to say something, then sighed and let it go, turning back to step offstage.

"I'll never get used to that," she told her a.s.sistant, a Magisterian boy just a couple of years younger than her. "I hate talking."

"To crowds?" her a.s.sistant asked.

"Or anyone else," she said.

"But you faced down Dr. Verity!" her a.s.sistant said. "Visited alternate dimensions! Fought off zombie magicians and deadly computer viruses!"

"None of those were scary," she told him. "I had . . . company."

She began to walk back toward the Presidential Audience Chamber, sighing at her list of upcoming meetings. It wasn't easy, bringing the entire population of Magisteria back to Quanterium where they belonged, then convincing two planets full of people that hated one another that they needed each other, that one side had grown complacent and unimaginative, while the other was nothing but imagination. Two sides of a whole, and neither complete without the other.

And yet it had happened, despite the hiccups. Still, there were always more meetings.

"Company?" her a.s.sistant said. "You mean Kiel Gnomenfoot?"

She stopped, then turned to face him. "I might," she said.

"What do you think ever happened to him? After you proved him innocent of crimes against Quanterium right before his execution?" her a.s.sistant asked.

She raised an eyebrow. "Why do you ask?"

"It's been five years, and no one's seen him since the trial," her a.s.sistant said. "If anyone would know where he is, I'd think it'd be you, right?"

She sighed. "The Ice Giants claim to have captured him and are holding him for a million frozen fires as ransom. I've also heard that he's King of the Infinite Nothingness, beyond the universe that exists. Some even say he took the books he found in the vault and used them to open a school to teach people about the true Source of Magic."

"But those books were just details of scientific lab experiments," her a.s.sistant said. "Right? About how scientists actually developed the first magic spells, which were really just quantum connections used on a larger, practical level? That's how he was able to use magic to communicate with every Science Soldier at once, because science at its core is magic, and magic is science?"

"So it stands to reason that a school teaching both magic and science might have some use for them," she said.

"But what do you think?" her a.s.sistant asked. "Where do you think he went?"

Charm sighed. "I like to think that somewhere, somewhen, Kiel Gnomenfoot is annoying someone else, with his stupid magic and his stupid arrogance, just like he did me all those years."

Or maybe saying good-bye in the middle of a crowd, the least Kiel Gnomenfoot thing he could ever do.

She smiled, then shook her head and straightened herself, ready to continue bringing together science and magic into one, whole world.

With that, Bethany and Owen slowly pulled themselves out of the book. Bethany closed the cover and looked at Owen. "Well?"

"She's okay," Owen said to himself with a goofy grin, then noticed Bethany smiling at him. "Uh, I mean, I'm glad it ended happily. You know, for, uh, everyone. Charm. And the rest. Like, everyone else. Kiel. You know." He stopped, realizing something. "So where is Kiel? Isn't it a little strange that after seven of these books we don't even get a concrete answer as to what happened to him? I mean, maybe Charm thought that I was him. . . ." He couldn't stop himself from grinning wider. "But that was me, not him. Shouldn't the real Kiel have turned up somewhere?"

"I guess," Bethany said, smiling with him. "Listen. Owen. I've been thinking about things."

Owen nodded, his grin fading. "Me too. You go first."

"Okay," she said, then paused, taking a deep breath. "I've been thinking. I might try looking for my father in some Sherlock Holmes books next, since I used up my magic spell on finding Jonathan Porterhouse. It's been a while since I tried anything from the early twentieth century, so maybe he ended up there somehow." She looked up at him almost shyly. "And I was also thinking, maybe, um, that it might be nice to, I don't know, have some company. Might be more, you know, fun that way."

Owen's eyes widened. "You want me to go with you?"

She shrugged. "Maybe. I don't know. If you want. I'm just saying."

He smiled, then shook his head sadly. "I really appreciate the offer, Bethany. You have no idea. But I . . . I think I'm done with all of this."

She raised an eyebrow. "You are? But why?"

"The idea of an adventure just seemed so exciting from this side of the book," he told her, looking at the ground. "But people get hurt. It's dangerous in there. And everything you do can put other people in danger too. I almost . . . Charm almost . . . It was too much. I think I'm ready for some regular, boring, quiet life right now. To just read books the normal way, you know?"

She nodded, then reached out and hugged him. He hugged her back, a little surprised, then got up to leave.

"You saved them," Bethany told him as he reached the door. "You know that, right? You saved both Kiel and the Magister. Jonathan Porterhouse told me that originally the Magister did get killed by Dr. Verity, and Kiel died in the end, giving up his heart. Charm never even thought about giving him a robot heart, since he never let on that sacrificing himself even bothered him. All that arrogance, you know."

Owen just looked at her. "It wasn't right, how I did it. Even if it ended well."

"I just wanted you to know that," she said, smiling slightly. "You and I changed the story, together, and saved Kiel's life. No matter what else, don't forget that."

He paused, then nodded, returning her smile. Then, turning to go, Owen said good-bye, leaving Bethany with her books. He was ready for a real, boring, completely safe life again.

CHAPTER 46.

Multiplying fractions is one thing," Mr. Barberry said. "But dividing fractions is where life just gets crazy!"

It'd been a week since Kiel Gnomenfoot and the Source of Magic had come out, and the library's two copies hadn't been in stock once. Owen's mother had surprised him with a copy she'd bought, and Owen had smiled and thanked her, keeping secret the fact that Jonathan Porterhouse had signed a copy to him a few days earlier. Owen had brought the signed copy to school, planning on showing everyone, but for some reason hadn't ever taken it out of his locker.

Just like he hadn't mentioned anything about n.o.body to Bethany. How did n.o.body know about her? Could he actually be her father? If he wasn't, and Owen told Bethany about him, what would that do to her? Was that just cruel? Maybe Owen could just keep an eye out for n.o.body in books, and see what he found. The last thing he wanted to do was get Bethany's hopes up, after everything that'd happened.

"It's really not that different from multiplying, honestly," Mr. Barberry said, turning to the board. "Just the opposite, in fact!"

On Owen's right, Mari sighed, dropping her head into her arms. Owen smiled slightly at this, remembering the feeling. Still, right now, boring just wasn't that bad.

On his left, something hit his arm. He looked down to find a folded note on the floor. He reached down slowly to pick it up as Mr. Barberry continued.

Okay, no Holmes. How about Narnia?

-B.

Owen grinned and threw a glance back at Bethany, who was pretending to pay attention to the lesson. It meant a lot that she asked, and really did want him to come. She'd changed so much since he'd caught her in the library, popping out of w.i.l.l.y Wonka. So had he, if he was being honest. But right now, there was no way he could go into another book. It was just too much. Not with how things had ended, with Charm almost dying, with him almost dying, with a robotic heart in his chest now. All just too much!

Still. NARNIA.

He tossed the note back.

I'm in.

-O.

You couldn't just say no to Narnia.

A few minutes later, something else tapped his arm.

We might have another friend coming too.

-B.

Huh? Another friend? Who was she talking about?

"Mr. Barberry?" said the princ.i.p.al, Mr. Wilc.o.x, from the door. Mr. Barberry looked up from the board. "Cla.s.s?" Mr. Wilc.o.x continued. "I want to introduce you to a new student. He's going to be joining your cla.s.s today. Everyone say h.e.l.lo to Kyle!"