Praxis Novellas, Mosaic Chronicles Book Two Read online

  “He’s here,” Lizzie whispered, not needing to ask if Nicole had searched. “Just act like you’re having all sorts of fun. Act like his decision wasn’t a big deal.”

  Nicole liked that idea—it helped protect her injured feelings. Besides, she shouldn’t have been so put off by his decision. It wasn’t as if he’d actually told her he’d chosen Savannah. He hadn’t said anything at all.

  No matter. This was her life and her first year in college, and she wasn’t going to let a guy ruin it for her.

  She was glad, however, that she’d brought the book. If things in Whitman’s class got boring, she’d have other stuff to do.

  Professor Whitman wasn’t there yet when the girls took their seats. Nicole pretended not to notice when Austin sat on the same row, several seats down. But ignoring him got difficult when none other than Judith Ann sat next to him.

  “What’s she doing here?” Nicole whispered to Lizzie. “I thought she’d dropped out for the semester. I mean, after everything she went through in Arches.”

  “She’s getting psychological help,” Lizzie said. “I heard her telling Austin that while you were in Ohio. Apparently, she’s decided that those monsters you guys saw were an invention of the government as a way to keep Aretes in check.”

  Nicole rolled her eyes. The government? Inventing monsters? She snuck a glance in Judith Ann’s direction. “Why’s she hanging all over Austin?” The girl’s hand was on Austin’s thigh, rubbing his leg. Her other arm was draped over the seat in front of her as she turned to face Austin—and Nicole—gazing at him with so much adoration, it made Nicole sick. Then Judith Ann caught Nicole’s eye and winked before putting her hand on Austin’s face and turning him to her.

  Nicole clenched her fists, trying not to show how upset she was by Judith Ann’s actions. Luckily, Professor Whitman entered the room soon after, giving Nicole a much-needed distraction.

  “Oh, great,” Lizzie moaned. “She’s in one of her moods.”

  Nicole nodded. She remembered from before how cranky Whitman could get.

  “Get ready for the quiz,” Whitman said, slamming her books on the table. “It’ll cover today’s reading material and Thursday’s.”

  Lizzie’s jaw dropped. “But that’s not fair,” she said, loudly enough for Whitman to hear. “We haven’t done the reading for Thursday.”

  “Is that my fault?” Whitman glared up at Lizzie. “In case I need to remind you, you’re not in high school anymore.” She stared at her students, practically daring anyone else to speak up. “Now, then. We’ve got a lot to cover today, as I’ll be out of town Thursday.”

  A boy on the front row raised his hand. “Won’t your substitute go over Thursday’s information?”

  “No, he won’t,” she snapped. She walked behind the desk, pulling out stacks of paper. “Get out your pencils.” Whitman raised her eyes, taking in the entire class. “And complaining won’t do you any good. I may not be dean of this department yet, but he happens to see things my way.”

  Lizzie mumbled under her breath as she pulled out a pencil. Nicole was glad she was only auditing and wasn’t required to take tests. But this didn’t bode well for next semester.

  While everyone else was taking the quiz, Nicole pulled out the journal, wanting to read the next entry. Judging by previous quizzes she’d taken in Whitman’s class, she had at least fifteen minutes.

  Nicole, in the coming months, a vessel from the Great Ones will be appearing somewhere near a city called Moses Lake. It brings with it a portal for the elixir to travel in, the same elixir that will destroy Rebecca’s embryonic manipulator. When the time is right, you must go to Moses Lake and wait for the portal to finish forming.

  Once the vessel is no longer needed, it will be called back through a lightning storm.

  Nicole looked up and, making sure no one was paying attention, mouthed her question, wondering if she could summon Rebecca. “Rebecca? Is this the meteor near Albert’s? Because it’s gone already. Was I supposed to be there before then?”

  No one answered and Nicole turned back to the book. She found herself unable to concentrate on anything else, though, as she thought about the meteor. It had appeared near Moses Lake. It had disappeared when lightning struck it. But if it really was the “vessel,” how would she know when the time was right? What if she’d missed the opportunity?

  “Turn in your quizzes,” Professor Whitman called out after only five minutes.

  When students grumbled and complained, she said, “Need I remind you once again that this isn’t high school? Have I gone too easy on you this semester? If you weren’t prepared to take the quiz, maybe this will make you more diligent in the future.”

  Lizzie glared at Whitman before turning to Nicole. “Ridiculous. I probably got an F.”

  Nicole nodded sympathetically. She remembered Whitman being cranky before, but nothing like this. Maybe she was feeling under the weather?

  Whitman sat behind the desk and folded her arms. “I know most of you are probably dying to know what I’ll be doing on Thursday.” She waited, possibly wanting someone to ask. No one did, and she scowled, but continued anyway. “I’ll be joining your—er, I’m going to become a more powerful Arete soon.”

  Nicole and Lizzie looked at each other. Whitman wasn’t an Arete—she was a regular human. But she was obsessed enough with Aretes to pretend she was one of them, even though all her students knew otherwise.

  Whitman touched her head. “I’ve discovered something that will help my pineal gland produce the way it’s supposed to.”

  Nicole met eyes with Lizzie again.

  “What’s she talking about?” Lizzie whispered.

  Nicole didn’t know. She’d never heard of anything that actually worked to make someone become more powerful, let alone become something they weren’t.

  A guy in the row behind them leaned forward and whispered, “She’s been out drinking, wouldn’t you say?” He sent a silly grin to Lizzie, his eyes practically dancing.

  Lizzie nodded, looking up at the guy. He obviously thought she was attractive, and Lizzie noticed. She twirled a curl around her finger and asked the guy his name.

  “Rob,” he said. “And you’re Lizzie.”

  Lizzie’s jaw dropped into a playful grin. “How did you know?”

  Nicole smiled to herself and turned back to the front of the room as Whitman began her lecture for the day. It looked like Lizzie had found a new crush.

  “Records of Aretes and humans living together have been found dating back thousands of years—practically since the beginning of time. Like the chicken and the egg, scholars debate which came first—the human without powers or the magical Arete. They insist one must have come before the other. And powerful studies indicate that it was the Arete, but we can’t possibly know, not having been there ourselves.”

  After an interesting start to her lecture, things dwindled off until it became obvious that Professor Whitman really didn’t want to be there. She ranged in mood from super excited to incredibly cranky, and several times embarrassed students for asking questions that she thought were stupid. Her superiority was annoying.

  Nicole had a hard time concentrating on anything, including the book. She found herself paying more attention to Austin and Judith Ann.

  Nicole’s only speck of satisfaction came from realizing that Austin was tired of Judith Ann pawing him. He gave her a stern look and whispered something that made her slink back and pout with her arms folded. Good.

  Halfway through class, Nicole remembered that she was there voluntarily and didn’t need to put up with Professor Whitman’s cranky mood or her own temptation to stare at Austin and Judith Ann. She packed up her things and left, smiling a goodbye to Lizzie on the way out.

  ***

  Nicole was disappointed, but unsurprised, when Austin canceled Wednesday’s study session. “It’s time to move on,” she whispered to herself while Toby and Pete practiced a duet of Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. Resolving to ge
t over Austin, she pulled out her cello and bow and started working.

  While she was able to practice her cello skills a great deal, her thoughts took her from the task at hand—silencing Toby’s singing—and made it difficult to accomplish anything. Coolidge was busy at his desk, and poor Toby and Pete tried to help, but nothing they did or said really sank in. She wasn’t even able to reduce their voices to a whisper.

  Finally, they called it quits and put their things away. Nicole promised she would be easier to work with next time, which seemed to satisfy the guys.

  On her way home, she got a text from Lizzie, saying they’d been invited by Nate, Austin’s roommate, to play Ultimate Frisbee that evening. Nicole turned down the invitation. There was no way she’d go, not when Austin and Savannah would be there. She had no desire to see them together, ever.

  ***

  That evening, instead of playing Ultimate Frisbee, Nicole asked Lizzie to help her practice. Lizzie agreed readily.

  “It’s about time I’m allowed to do something for you, after all the help you’ve given me.”

  Nicole nodded, grateful that Albert had said it was okay for her to play the Stradivarius in the presence of any Arete, not just Coolidge. Lizzie wasn’t very good at her powers, but she was an Arete.

  “What’s Coolidge having you work on?”

  “I’m supposed to be silencing things—objects, people.”

  “Is there anything you want to work on?”

  Nicole pointed at the TV. “Let’s use that for now. Would you turn it on while I get the cello out?”

  The girls got everything set up, then Nicole started playing, directing her powers to the TV. In her own living room, she found it easy to concentrate, and before long, the TV went absolutely quiet.

  “That’s so cool!” Lizzie said.

  Someone knocked at their door and Lizzie jumped up to get it. Nicole heard voices, and two women who lived in their building followed Lizzie down the hall and into the living room.

  “You remember Sandy and Denise, right?” Lizzie asked.

  “Of course. They live upstairs and helped us get rid of the possessed vines.”

  Denise stepped forward, tucking a strand of her bleached blond hair behind an ear. “We came to invite Lizzie to a party we’re having Saturday. We didn’t know you were back from Ohio.”

  Nicole nodded, giving Denise a hug. “I’ve been back for about a week now. It’s good to see you both.”

  “Well, you’re invited too,” Sandy said, barely making eye contact with Nicole. She turned and left the apartment, calling over her shoulder to Denise that she’d be upstairs.

  Nicole glanced at Denise. Last time she’d been around them, Sandy had made it obvious she couldn’t stand Aretes. Why was she inviting Nicole and Lizzie to her party?

  “Never mind her,” Denise said. “She’s slowly warming up to you guys.” She nudged Lizzie with her hip. “Especially with this one’s help.”

  Lizzie grinned at Denise, then motioned to Nicole. “We’re practicing Nicole’s ability right now. Wanna join us?”

  Denise’s eyes lit up. “Sure! What are you doing?”

  Nicole motioned to the cello in her hand. “My focus is the cello. It helps me Channel my Wind powers. I’m trying to figure out how to do it better.”

  “Cool. What can you do so far?”

  “I’ll show you.” Nicole started playing, and the TV stopped making sound again. At first, it was obvious that Denise didn’t notice, but when Nicole consciously allowed the sound to turn off and on again several times, the woman jumped up and grinned, clapping.

  “Wonderful!”

  “We’re about to have her try on a person,” Lizzie said. “It’s much harder than something dead.”

  “Dead?” Denise chuckled. “You mean an inanimate object? ’Cause I’m not far away from the grave, perhaps, but I’m definitely not dead. I’d love her to practice on me.” She motioned to Nicole. “Tell me what to do.”

  “Just make a solid noise. Like sing a note or say ‘hi’ for a long time or something.”

  Denise opened her mouth and shrilled a high note, and Nicole began playing. This took a lot more concentration. She directed her magic toward Denise, asking it to stop her, quiet her. She watched in her mind’s eye as the magic swirled around the woman and congregated at her neck.

  At first, nothing happened. Then Denise’s voice grew quieter by a fraction. It was barely noticeable, but the redness in Denise’s face made it obvious she felt the pressure against her windpipes.

  “Whoa,” she said, stopping. “That was . . . wow.” She tilted her head, her eyebrows knitted. “But I didn’t go completely quiet.”

  Nicole shook her head. “I haven’t been able to silence anyone yet. It’s much harder.”

  “Well, let’s get back to work.”

  Nicole grinned at how determined Denise was. And she didn’t lose that determination, even after they’d practiced for an hour with little progress.

  Finally, Nicole set down her bow and thanked Denise. “We’ll be at the party Saturday. I’m glad you invited us—it’ll be good to do something social.”

  Denise gave her and Lizzie hugs, then left, and Lizzie excused herself, wanting to shower. Nicole put Niko away, wishing she could practice for orchestra. She’d caught up with the rest of the students quickly and was ready for their concert mid-December, but not being able to practice as often as she wanted was difficult.

  ***

  Austin wasn’t in Professor Whitman’s class, and Nicole noticed with some satisfaction that Judith Ann seemed to be annoyed about it. Nicole almost felt bad for her, but couldn’t quite muster the emotion. Didn’t Judith Ann know that Austin was dating Savannah now?

  Whitman’s substitute bustled into the room, and Nicole was mildly surprised it was a woman, not the man Whitman had mentioned. She was trailing papers and pulses of magic behind her. She was a short and portly Arete, and even though she looked frazzled, she already had a grin on her face.

  “Students, my name is Toni, and I’ve looked forward to today all week. We’re going to be discussing Tarians. Has Professor Whitman covered their history at all?”

  Several students responded in the affirmative, and Toni smiled. “Good. Now, why would I be so excited about Tarians?”

  Lizzie raised her hand. “Because you’re a little twisted?”

  “Oh, I’m definitely twisted.” Toni laughed. “No, it’s because it’s the most interesting part of Arete history. As you know from Whitman’s lectures already, Aretes and humans coexisted nearly seamlessly for centuries. Because royal families gave birth to both Aretes and regular humans, they frequently shared responsibilities. Most feuds throughout the years have been family against family and country against country, but rarely Aretes against humans.”

  She strolled to the other side of the room, hands clasped in front of her. “It wasn’t until the early nineteen hundreds that a group of people rose up who felt that Aretes, even those in their own families, were not worthy to lead or even to live. They spread lies that Aretes had been controlling everything for centuries, and they believed that Aretes needed to be eradicated—destroyed completely.”

  Nicole raised her hand. “But how did they expect to do that when the fourth child of a family is always born an Arete?”

  Toni nodded. “Good question. They decided that if they made Arete births almost never happen, then the gene would eventually disappear.”

  “Is it possible to manipulate the genes like that?” a guy on the back row asked.

  Toni shrugged. “Who knows. I’m sure scientists will eventually figure it out.”

  She then began a lengthy discussion about the key figures in those early days. Nicole listened closely, but didn’t recognize any names. Either no one knew about Rebecca and Captain Christopher Price, or those two were lying to her about who they were.

  She enjoyed Toni’s teaching style. The woman was engaging and funny, answering openly and honestly. She was so
different from Whitman that Nicole wondered why Whitman had chosen her to substitute. Perhaps the university had a say in the decision.

  Nicole perked up when Toni started talking about Shoggoths and Agarchs.

  “Tarians believe that they were called of gods—Agarchs, specifically—to protect all humans from Aretes, and ultimately, to rid the world of our kind.”

  Toni laughed. “Those of us who don’t believe in the myths of Shoggoths and Agarchs recognize that they don’t exist, that Tarians have no authority over Aretes, and that their ideas are based in extreme fascism.”

  Nicole raised her hand. “Are there any Aretes who have joined them or have sympathized with their cause?”

  “Yes, there have been at least two that I can think of. The first was named John Williams, and the second was Ben Fifield. We don’t know much about those two—they weren’t very influential.”

  Nicole nodded, and Toni continued with her lecture. How did Rebecca and Christopher play into all this? She hadn’t found anything about either of them when she’d searched online. Perhaps she should ask Rebecca directly. Nicole frowned, wondering if the woman would answer honestly. Sure, Rebecca hadn’t given her a reason to distrust . . . but there also weren’t any good reasons to trust yet, either.

  End of bonus chapters.