Page 55 of The Elementalist
“The barrier felt like glass, kinda looked like green lasers in smoke. It was round, and came up from a circle drawn on the floor.”
“And it worked? Someone actually captured a succubus?”
“Yeah. Half-succubus, not a full one. What would they want her for?”
Rustling crackled over the line, as though he held the phone to his head with his shoulder while rummaging books or binders. “Gimme a sec.”
“Sure.”
I glanced across the room past the bedroom door at her clothes on the bed. Sneaking into a police station is probably one of the dumbest things a person can do. Doing it naked is next level. Though, sheisinvisible, can open any lock she touches, and/or can teleport short distances. So, yeah, Michael’s right… containing a succubus with physical means is pretty much futile.
“Hmm,” said Michael after a few minutes of paper shuffling. “Someone capable of creating the barrier you’re describing might be interested in her essence.”
“Her essence?”
“Yeah, like her soul energy or whatever. As you might expect, taking that from her would be fatal... to her, of course.” He rummaged some more while I waited. Truth was, I was stilldamn weak, but at least I could move now. Michael came back on the line five, ten minutes later. “Okay. Best I can figure, they’re looking to create a magical artifact with the ability to control minds. Succubus essence could also be used for an invisibility item—but then again any fey spirit can—or this one I’m reading about here sounds like a continuous radiant charm. Like, if they put it into a ring or bit of jewelry, whoever wore the item would be so charismatic everyone around them would think they’re the greatest thing since sliced bread. No matterwhatthey did, people would love them. Barring, of course, anyone immune or resistant to charm.”
Damn. That sounds bad. I can’t let that happen. “Is there any way to protect her?”
“Protect her? You know the succubus?”
“We’ve… met.”
Michael kept silent.
A half-minute passed. “Michael?”
“You did it, didn’t you?”
I sighed. “Any possible way I respond to that you’re going to take as an admission that something happened.”
“Something happened.”
“See?”
He whistled. “Max, you could help me out with some information. I don’t have a lot here on succubi. No need to reveal who she is, but any concrete facts you can share would be amazingly helpful.”
“I’ll ask. She’s kinda private. But I will say they’re definitely fey and not demons. Nor do they kill. They’re not inherently dangerous. Bear in mind, I’m talking about a half-succubus here. No idea what the purebloods are like. So… what’s the best way to make sure the bad guys don’t keep going after her?”
Michael murmured as if jotting down notes for a few seconds. “Best way? Either kill the person or persons trying totake her power, or kill her.”
I grumbled.
“I realize that’s not a wonderful answer, but itisthe best way to guarantee that the artifact is never created. I suppose you could attempt to talk the arcanist out of it, but I don’t imagine that would work too well. If they’ve already gone to the trouble of creating an entrapment field, they’re committed.”
“Arcanist?”
“Would it be easier for you to understand if I called them a wizard?”
“Easier to understand, yes. Believe? Not so much.”
“You throw lightning bolts from your hands, Max. I’ve seen it.”
I rubbed my face, groaning.
“An arcanist is similar but different. Youarenature. The power is both around you and inside you. Using it is as natural as breathing or walking. Arcanists manipulate forces comparable to yours, though it is completely external. For them, it takes years of focus and study, memorizing specific thought patterns, hand motions, runes, that sort of thing. Most of what they do needs to be channeled into the form of items or, like that circle, inscribed on the floor, walls, paper, and so on. They are also quite rare. A person needs to be born with the ability to invoke magic, but if they never pursue it, it will never develop. In the modern world where the collective consciousness of humanity largely regards things like magic as mythological, the vast majority of those who have the propensity to become arcanists never realize it.”
“Well, that’s too bad for them… but at least one guy around here figured it out. Maybe more than one. I really don’t know.”
