"Burning Bright" - читать интересную книгу автора (Dowd Tom)

4

There was a royal blue and black Mitsubishi Nightsky waiting for him and Hanna Uljaken when they came out front. Behind the limousine was a second car, this one a rather mundane-looking ToyotaCorp Traveller. Leaning against it was a big, bulky ork in a dark suit and long coat. Kyle couldn't see past the limo's tinted windows, but he was sure at least one other person was inside. As he and Hanna Uljaken approached, the ork stepped forward.

"Mr. Facile," she said. "I take it you're to be our escort?"

The ork nodded and turned toward Kyle. "Mr. Teller?" he said. "I'm Lieutenant William Facile."

"Knight Errant, I take it," said Kyle.

"Yes, sir. Mr. Truman drought it would be a good idea if we tagged along."

Kyle preferred to conduct his business without their presence, but Truman was paying him enough, just, to ignore the inconvenience. He decided to play it frosty. "Yes, a good idea. Have you and your partner worked with magic before?"

To a limited extent, sir. We've worked in operations with magical assets attached."

"But you've never directly interfaced with a practitioner?"

"No, sir," said Facile. "But I wouldn't expect it to be a problem."

"Nor I." Kyle turned to Hanna Uljaken. "Let's get going," he said.

Mitchell Truman lived in a high-rise condominium on the lake, almost directly east of Truman Tower. On the short ride over, Kyle watched the sun struggling to penetrate me clouds. It looked like Chicago's famous weather was as changeable as ever.

Both cars of the little convoy drove directly into the underground garage, where Hanna Uljaken's palm print got me four of them access to the private elevator and men to me Mitch Truman's fortiem-floor apartment.

Kyle was mildly surprised to see mat the place was furnished in modern oriental, sparse and efficient. There were six rooms: master and guest bedrooms, living room, dining room, kitchen, and a spare room that the Truman boy had turned into an exercise room. The view of the lake was stunning, the window canted slightly north to show the shoreline. Again, Kyle could see the greenery and brick of Elemental Hall off a short distance along the lake.

"How long has Mitchell lived here?" Kyle asked Uljaken.

"Just over a year. The condo was a gift from his father on Mitch's sixteenth birthday."

"Rather young for his own crash, don't you think?"

Uljaken tilted her head and smiled cooly. "I suspect Mr. Truman would be a better judge of that than I."

"But he was surprised Mitch ran off."

"I'm not privy to Mr. Truman's emotions, Mr. Teller. You'd have to ask him."

Kyle sighed. He was standing in the slightly raised dining area looking out over the lake, but turned back to face her. "I'm not asking you what Mr. Truman did think or feel, I'm asking what you think was going through his mind."

"I don't believe I'm qualified to make those kinds of judgments, Mr. Teller."

"Of course you are-you're his personal assistant," Kyle insisted, trying to catch her eyes. "You're expected to make such judgments all the time. And if Daniel Truman wasn't totally pleased with your ability to read him he'd probably have found someone else long ago."

She seemed to be formulating a reply, but Kyle didn't give her an opening. "Mr. Truman also told you to assist me in any way you can. Answering my questions with your best professional opinion is one of the best ways to do that"

Uljaken nodded, and he could feel the shift in her resolve. "You're right, of course." She glanced over at the two Knight Errant guards. "If you'll excuse us?"

Facile looked uncomfortable, and the second man, shorter and even darker-skinned, glanced at him for instructions.

"Nothing's going to happen for a few hours, Lieutenant," Kyle told him. "It will take me that long to prepare my magics. You can wait in the hall."

Facile's eyes narrowed, but he gestured to the other officer to follow him out the door. As the two security men were leaving the room, Kyle quickly shifted to astral perception to view their auras. Both had strong auras that almost sparked in some spots and darkened to virtually nothing in others. As the door closed behind them, he slowly scanned the room. It was dull, the only strong sources of mana being himself, Hanna Uljaken and her earring, and some leafy tropical plants. His senses returned to normal.

"You did that in the lobby of the Tower too," she said. "Are you looking at things magically?"

Smart girl, Kyle thought. More so because he hadn't caught her noticing what he'd been doing.

"Yes, I am," he said. "Magicians have the ability to perceive the energy wavelength that magical and living items emanate. You can learn a lot from that."

She nodded. "And the two guards?"

"Both human and unAwakened. No sign of magical talents, though it's always conceivable a magician could mask his aura. In the case of these two, I seriously doubt it. AU that cyberware would keep them from being able to use magic."

"Could you tell what kind?"

Kyle shook his head. "Not really, except for certain guesses based on the location and appearance of deformities in the aura. I'd say Facile and his man are fairly standard muscle-boys: enhanced reflexes and maybe some neuromuscular augmentation and combat cyberware."

"You come pretty close on Facile," Uljaken said appreciatively. "I've seen his file. He's got a Richmond series-twelve neuromuscular accelerator, a Fuchi MPX-R headware comp and data-access package, Mitsuhama-Zeis ocular light-amplification systems, and a recent upgrade to level two for his Ares smartlink combat system."

"Quite a package," Kyle said, "for a lieutenant."

"My sentiments exactly," she agreed. "Facile is part of the team that's been attached to Truman ever since Knight Errant bought out Winter Security's contract with Truman Technologies about three months ago."

"That's unusual."

"Very. It seems Knight Errant has decided to magnify its profile here in Chicago. The city's law enforcement contract with Eagle Security comes up for renewal in eighteen months…"

"And KE would love to pick up that juicy contract, so they're jacking up their local presence and commitment."

"Precisely," she said.

"Interesting. And Mr. Truman was agreeable to having KE buy out Winter's contract with Truman Technologies? Couldn't he have just voided the contract?"

"Our contract with Winter was nontransferable. But I think Mr. Truman was flattered."

Kyle paused a moment before changing the subject. Now that Hanna Uljaken seemed more willing to talk about her employer, he was leery of any big questions that might make her clam up again. But he had no choice. "How would you characterize Mr. Truman's relationship with his son?" he asked. "Good, bad, indifferent…"

Hanna Uljaken blinked and glanced away before answering. "I'd say that things have been pretty dismal lately."

"Mitchell bucked under the authority and demands of his father?" It was a reaction Kyle understood all too well.

"Yes, but it goes deeper than that," she said quietly. "Mitchell is bisexual, and it's been a strain on his relationship with his father ever since Mr. Truman found out"

"How long has that been?"

'Two years. The truth came out after an unfortunate incident in London."

"Then why is Truman so opposed to his son's involvement with this Linda Hayward?"

"She's supposedly older than I am."

Kyle grinned. "Damned if you don't and damned if you do."

She grinned back. "Looks that way, doesn't it?"

Kyle took off his suit jacket and tossed in on the sofa. "Well, now that we're here, we'd better get this started."

Hanna Uljaken showed some surprise at the sight of the Ceska light pistol tucked into the holster under his left shoulder. He grinned again and shrugged as he unslung the holster and tossed it next to the jacket "So you have no reason to believe or suspect that Mitch Truman has done anything other than run off with this woman?"

"No, I don't."

"And there've been no ransom demands or mysterious contacts with the Truman family that you know of since Mitchell was last seen?"

"No."

"Then my first step is to try and locate him. Did Mr. Truman tell you anything about the techniques I'll be using or how I tracked down his niece?"

"No, but I did read the Omni and Popular Mysticism articles on the subject."

Kyle laughed. "Well, don't be surprised if reality is a tad more boring than what the press makes out."

"But you were with the FBI section described in the Omni article, weren't you?"

"If you know enough to ask the question, you already know the answer."

Uljaken smiled slightly. "KE's background check was fairly exhaustive."

Kyle looked at her thoughtfully for a moment. "Have you ever seen ritual magic performed up close, Ms. Uljaken?"

She shook her head. "No, I haven't."

"Then I'd like you to assume, unless I tell you otherwise, that everything that happens is intended and expected."

"All right."

Kyle turned and looked up slightly, shifting the focus of his thoughts. "Come to me," he said softly to the air…

In that instant a swirl of gold light appeared next to Kyle, and Hanna Uljaken jumped visibly. The light quickly coalesced into the figure of an Amerindian man of just past middle age. He wore black denim pants and a wide tan leather belt with a bold silver and turquoise buckle. Over his clean white cotton shirt was a tattered blue denim jacket with the sleeves torn off. Two silver bracelets hung from his right wrist, and a wide band of brown leather circled the left. His hair, its glossy black touched with silver, was bound into a single, unbraided pony tail that hung down from under the wide brim of his black hat. Tied around the hat was a band of cloth woven in red, white, and black. The man's appearance was striking, even handsome, but his eyes were translucent and tinged with gold. Somewhat incongruously, he was also wearing black canvas sneakers.

Kyle turned toward her. "Hanna Uljaken, this is Seeks-the-Moon. Moon, this is Ms. Hanna Uljaken."

"I know," the spirit said, bowing gracefully, "and I am charmed."

"Seeks-the-Moon is my sociare spiritus-my ally spirit"

The spirit looked askance. "I see your Latin is still quite lacking."

Kyle ignored him. "He will be assisting me in the ritual."

Uljaken nodded, but had maneuvered herself slightly away from Seeks-the-Moon. "Will you need me to do anything?" she asked.

"No, but I'd like you present to verify any information that develops."

She pointed to a chair in the far corner. "Can I sit over there?”

Kyle nodded, then turned to his ally spirit, who was standing with arms crossed over his chest.

"Interesting earring," the spirit said quietly in Sioux, and Kyle could see Hanna Uljaken react though she kept on walking. He scowled at the spirit. "Yes, but it's not a concern," he told Seeks-the-Moon in English.

The spirit shrugged slightly in deference. "As you wish."

Just past the spirit Kyle could see that Uljakgn had settled into her chair and was studying them intently.

"How are the boys?" Kyle asked Moon.

"Complaining as usual."

That's good. It's when they start saying nice things about me that I'll be worried." He paused and looked over the room. "This will be a simple direct-progression ritual. I need to locate and tag a missing boy, Mitchell Truman."

"Should be simple enough," Moon said matter-of-factly.

Til be using a Kellehoff circle as the basis."

The spirit shrugged. "You say that as though my opinion on the matter would carry any weight"

Kyle chuckled. "I just thought you'd like to know."

"Very thoughtful."

Kyle reached for his jacket and pointed at the small, round black lacquer table in the center of the room. "Would you move that and the rug under it for me? That's where I want to build the circle."

The spirit rolled his eyes skyward for a moment, then complied. "Moving furniture is, of course, the eternal aspiration of all ethereal beings."

"Good. I knew you wouldn't mind," Kyle said as he pulled two flat leather cases out of his jacket's special pockets.

Hanna Uljaken laughed. "Are they all like this?" she asked.

Kyle smiled, and the spirit looked up from where he was guiding the table across the floor with the motion of his finger.

"No," Seeks-the-Moon said. "Some of us actually have complete, fulfilling existences, complete with rewards and respect."

"No, they're not all this way," Kyle interjected, ignoring Moon's sarcasm. "In creating Seeks-the-Moon I used the Rigetti formula. The only problem is that Rigetti was a Jungian, a fact I didn't attach quite enough importance to at the time."

"I don't understand."

"Seeks-the-Moon is, in a sense, or in essence, a reflection of my 'shadow', the repressed and often nefarious aspect of my personality."

The spirit winked. "Indeed."

"So it's part of his nature to be at odds with my conscious desires, which generally makes him a pain in the butt." But Kyle smiled almost benevolently as he watched his ally rolling up the small rug.

Uljaken thought about that for a bit "And yet, if he is a direct, or even symbolic connection to your subconscious, the fact that Seeks-the-Moon is expressive could be extremely useful."

Both the spirit and the mage stared at her. "Yes," Kyle said.

"Except that he usually finds the embarrassing and doesn't let me out much in public," the spirit said as he resumed his work of clearing away the rug.

"We can talk more about it later if you're interested," Kyle said.

"I am."

"Good. I can also tell you something of what I am doing here, though I can't afford to go into much detail because it would distract me."

Kyle unzipped the two leather cases. Both were slightly larger than his hand and each contained a number of small, flat gold objects, some thin gold thread wrapped around a piece of copper, a small sheaf of parchment paper, and a pen.

"A magical spell," Kyle told her, "is cast by harmonizing, adapting, shaping, and constructing patterns of magical energy-mana-according to a specific formula."

Seeks-the-Moon squatted down and blew away the faint border of dust that lay around the empty space where the rug had been.

"Each formula is finite in its potential, though segments in the formula are left open for elaboration," Kyle explained as he carefully removed the gold items from the cases. "If I were to create a spell with 'X' potential, its formula would have 'X' complexity. If I were to increase the spell's potential to, say, twice 'X', the formula could very easily, and very quickly, reach a complexity of four or eight times 'X’."

Hanna Uljaken nodded understanding. "Potential and complexity are geometrically related."

"That's right." Kyle gathered up the gold objects and walked into the center of the room. "But you must remember that I'm talking generally and abstractly.

"The complexity of the formula is what ultimately determines the difficulty of casting the spell, that and how much raw energy must be channeled in the casting. So, instead of trying to cast a spell with a four-times potential but a sixteen-times complexity, and probably failing and getting hurt in the process, we cast the normal-potential spell but use a ritual to amplify and expand those parts of the formula left open for elaboration. The basting takes significantly longer, but the complexity is minimized, the potential increased significantly, and the danger limited."

"Makes sense," Uljaken said.

"That," said Seeks-the-Moon, "is the grossest oversimplification you are every likely to hear, short of 'I snap my fingers and it goes poof.’"

"Well, it will do just fine," she told him.

"Really?" Seeks-the-Moon turned toward Kyle and raised an eyebrow archly.

Kyle ignored him. "I'm going to use a simple detection spell to find Mitchell. Normally the spell's range is so limited that if he wasn't, say, on this floor of his building, the spell wouldn't find him. But the ritual will let me cast the spell over a wider area.

"But I must cast the spell in a metaphysically 'balanced' environment, which these items are going to let me create. I'm going to do this silently, if you don't mind. Building the circle takes time and concentration."

"I, however, would be more man pleased to keep you amused," Seeks-the-Moon told Uljaken, smiling broadly.

She started to reply, but Kyle spoke first. "You must both be silent for this. I'd suggest you go off to another room to chat, but I'd like you to stay close to Seeks-the-Moon for the attunement.

'Truthfully," Kyle added, "I don't trust him."

"That's an interesting bit of self-observation, Mr. Teller," Uljaken said, and the spirit laughed loudly. "I'll have to keep it in mind."

Kyle shrugged and smiled sheepishly. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a space to initialize." And with that he knelt and began placing the gold items upright at the edges of a circle he was slowly building around himself.