Technomancy

“Marie hurry or we will never get away!” The girls voice ripped asunder the silence of the sewers that had only been broken by the soft dripping of water and other unnameable liquids that fell from overhead, splattering the fleeing teens in foul smelling substances, soft squishing underfoot made both girls wince as they raced towards the far end of the System, as far from their home as they could. “The Witch hunters are right behind us, quick Marie, you're the only one who still has the plans” Marie's panting voice was the only answer as she raced after her friend, surprise racing through her when her nimble footed friend skidded to a halt and pitched backwards, but as her soft blue eyes fell upon the arrow jutting from the girls throat, and the look of wide eyed shock on her face Marie knew what had happened, and flung herself flat upon the slime coated floors as a hail of arrows passed overhead. A squadron of witch hunters clad in their black garb stood almost indistinguishable in the darkness of the sewers began to close in upon her and Marie pulled a small dagger from her dress holding it out towards the ten men that had begun to circle her, “Stand down witch, sheathe your dagger and submit to the judgment of God” She was not fooled, Marie knew what they wanted, the plans in her head... The Men closed in from all directions and a strange peace settled upon Marie's face, the dagger turning in her hands and she smiled at the leader of the Hunters, “Never shall ye get the plans within mine head hunter” She smiled at him and whispered a tender prayer to God as she plunged the dagger into her own heart, “Be well, may God keep you in his graces, may... God... judge you... with Kindness and Mercy” And with that she passed into the tender embrace of the Lord.

The Witch hunters howled as the girl fell and spat upon her corpse, desecrating it and showing their derision, one of the younger members lighting a torch, and pressing it to her dress, setting her alight right there within the Sewer, the smell of excrement was choking and the Hunters quickly evacuated to stand again in the sweeter smells of the city “The Pope will not be pleased” whispered one of the Hunters out of his companions earshot to the leader, and the man shook his head sadly, “Nay, he will likely strip us of our hides for this failure friend, but we learned one thing that may be of benefit, whilst we have no plans of the Machine, neither do the Witches, they can not assemble it without the plans, it will set them back and give us time to root them out” The second shook his head gently, “Tis only a matter of time brother, their Magic grows and you know this, you feel this” a soft sigh was his only reply, and both looked up to the stars far above them, a matter of time...

Saturday, June 19, 1999

The acrid stench of smoke was choking, nauseating but she had no choice, through the woods she trudged, black leather boots rapidly filling with mud as she sloshed through the thick clumps of reeds that lined this rivers bank, the thick, slow burble of the water calming her shaky nerves as she followed the smell of smoke, her violet eyes falling upon the crashed plane, a Cessna, a light aeroplane, both wings shorn from its fuselage as it had smashed through row after row of trees, its tail left in the wake of its devastation, rain fell upon the lithe figure of a young woman, clad in a dark black miniskirt, ruffled and pressed, or it had been but moments ago, a soft, white blouse that was beginning to border on translucent, and a black blazer with the monogram of her school a rising phoenix surrounded by a halo of golden flame “Hello! Is anyone there?” She cried out to the plane, dreading stepping forth as she let her violet eyes stray over the fallen craft, slowly she ascended the shorn wing that had come to rest close to the cockpit door by some fluke of luck and she slipped upon the wet wing, her hands, her booted feet scrabbling for purchase before beginning her slow ascent again, a clap of thunder overhead and her red hair lifted like a nimbus of flame as a bolt of lightning blazed a track through the sky above her, the static causing her hair to rise as she quickly scuttled, crablike up the wing of the Cessna, “Anyone there! There's lightning out here! Get out quick!” She called as she rose, but no answering cries returned to her ears and she rose still further, quickly pulling the as yet unopened emergency release and tumbling into the Cessna.

Dark, Deep, it washed about her like a tangible thing, the windows of the plane tinted on this side so the light coming in from the outside was reduced dramatically, on a dark night that made this rescue attempt even more dangerous, the young woman quickly pulled a damp keychain from her pocket, a small LED light attached to her keys illuminated the dark body of the plane, no people sat in the chairs, no luggage nor drinks, no cargo of any kind, she was puzzled by its emptiness but shook her head making her way further up the plane and into the Cabin itself, silent, empty, the seats were vacant, and she felt fingers of static dragging over her spine, curiosity, where was everyone? Had they all gotten out, but with their cargo too? She turned to leave, lifting her Cellphone to dial the emergency services, when something caught her eye, a small briefcase, simple, plain steel with two latches, no locks that she could see, and no name tag or anything, she lifted it, and her eyes danced as she felt the weight of something inside, something mysterious in her little corner of the universe? This was unexpected, an adventure, quickly she tucked it under her arm, and found a smaller case, similarly unmarked hidden beneath it, like the first she plucked it from behind the pilots chair, and carried it back towards the door she had entered.

Quickly she scampered down the propped up wing in the now howling rain, sliding over the angled metal towards the ground was a lot easier than getting up had been, even burdened she plopped her backside down upon the wing and skidded down, gasping in discomfort at the cold wind, steel and rain beneath her, but digging in her heels to control her descent, the strange boxes clutched within her numbing arms, the wind was chilling her, and the rain was pelting her, numbing her, but she was too excited, she could not let this go! She reached the bottom of the wing and again her boots squelched into the mud, digging her toes in she bolted with her awkward burdens towards the treeline, each step squishing underfoot and threatening to send her careening over the slippery earth and into the very trees she sought shelter beneath, but luck it seemed was with her, her steps whilst slipping and sliding never went out from beneath her and she found a modicum of shelter beneath the tree canopy, a sudden crack of thunder and she looked up in fear, words echoing within her mind, “Never stand under a tree in a storm”

Trouble, lightning flashed and thunder cracked across the sky, rending the darkness with a glare of light that left impressions upon her eyes, she cried out in panic as the bolt struck the ground but a few paces behind her, her hair standing up about her head once again as she scrambled, slipping, and sliding over the wet, muddy earth towards the road on the other side of the trees, scrambling in blind panic now, the cases hugged to her chest as she felt another flash of lightning blaze past her, striking within a meter of her right hand side, a plume of steam and mud erupting from the point of contact and showering her, splattering her uniform further with bits of earth and fragments of stone, she winced as a long sliver flew from the point of the strike, striking her cheek and leaving a line of fiery pain in its wake, she staggered, nearly falling, but the sight of her little scarlet VW Bug parked on the side of the road before her urged her on.

The well sealed road before her winked like a beacon as she scrambled from the treeline and made her way up the embankment's smooth side with great difficulty, struggling squirming, and using the cases to help her ascend, sinking the heavy cases into the muddy earth to act as anchors whilst praying that no mud or rain would get in, now that she had reached the car though she was loathe to put the cases on the ground to retrieve her keys, something within her told her if she didn't hold on to the cases, they would be out of her reach forever so she bundled both into her right arm, cradling them against her body as she fished in the pocket of her short skirt for her keys, quickly opening the door, and slipping inside, plopping the muddy, wet cases upon the chair beside her before closing the door, and breathing a sigh of relief. She smiled, leaning forth to place her forehead against the steering wheel breathing deeply as she let herself recover from her mad dash across the muddy ground, breathing deeply as she turned the key and felt the reassuring warmth blowing from the car's heater, she smiled and turned the engine over, feeling the vehicle rumble beneath her as she gently pressed down on the accelerator... Time to go home...

The Our lady of Sorrows Institute for girls.

A place of warmth and learning, a place of security, that nothing outside these walls could harm its students. The Dorms, dark and quiet as girls slumbered in their beds before their classes tomorrow, or most did at least, light shone gently under the crack of one of the doors the light of a young lady who had just returned home in the middle of a thunderstorm, she had changed out of her muddy, damp clothes, and changed quickly into a long Tee shirt that hung down to her knees, kneeling before a pair of muddy cases with a hammer and chisel, she had taken the time to look at them closely, no names, no engravings, and no locks visible, they had been of a polished steel but were now caked in mud, the edges were sealed with rubber, thankfully the rubber had helped keep out the rain and perhaps that was its very purpose, She cocked her head to the side as she compared both cases, one was roughly twenty inches in length, six across, and four deep, it was the largest of the two,, or rather the bulkiest, and it was upon this one that she started, lifting her fingers to the rubber seal she peeled it away before clicking the clasps that held it closed, smoother than she had imagined or hoped it opened, and her eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

Within the case lay a strange Bracer, she knew what it was thanks to her own studies into medieval history, a piece of armour worn on the forearm to prevent damage, but this one looked like a high tech version, five small slots along the side closest to her that gleamed with brass, or something that looked like brass inside, a small display on the top just before the opening for the hand, the hackles on her neck began to lift and she shuddered as she looked to the strange device, but she was not quite as cautious as she wished, she was impatient, wanting to see what this thing did if anything. Gently, deftly she lifted it from the foam packed inner of the Case, slipping her hand through the Bracers opening and sliding it up her arm until it came to rest as though it had been made to fit her exactly! Another shudder ran along her spine as she looked to the Bracer and she lifted the fingers of her left hand to touch the device, running along it gently searching, exploring for buttons, and buttons she found! Five of them laid just above the waiting slots, one just beneath the display, all set into the device itself, gently, and quickly she pressed the buttons, trying to turn the thing on but nothing worked, saddened she gently tugged at the Bracer to remove it from her arm... Trouble...

It was stuck fast upon her slender limb, unable to even budge it the girl again felt panic rising in her like she had fleeing the Cessna with the thunderstorm hot on her heels, she remembered the phone call to the police and their scoffing at her unlikely tale and then their awe at finding the plane she had reported nothing could have prepared her for the shock, and rush of emotions at being unable to remove this thing, finally her mind settled on numbness and silence, perhaps... the other case... She looked to the steely device upon her arm and furrowed her eyebrows as she waved her right hand, flexing her fingers, at least for the moment it wasn't hurting her, and it was just as easy to move as her normal arm, no excess weight slowing her movement, she looked to the second case as though thinking it must surely contain something just as strange and dangerous, but her curious fingers flicked the latch anyway, curiosity winning over caution.

Chips... and not the edible kind either, wafers of silicon and metal on one side, and a smooth, polished steely material covering the other, for a moment she looked at them, staring in incomprehension, not understanding their use, but something within her mind clicked and she reached in to pluck one of the chips from its foam lined cradle, it seemed to hold a soft ruby sheen when light caught it just right and again her eyebrows furrowed, but she slipped the chip towards the Bracer, clicking it easily into the first slot on the device and listening as the Bracer hummed! It was doing something, but she did not yet know what... She waved her metal clad forearm back and forth to try and detect any change but nothing... And she was exhausted... She ascended the bunk beds in the dorm she shared with two other girls, neither of whom were home yet it seemed, kicking her new cases beneath the beds, and slipping off her shirt as she slipped between the sheets... What was she to do?

“Fools! Imbeciles! How dare you return without it! Do you not understand? That thing is worth the lives of every one of you!”

“But sir, please there was no way we could retrieve it it was too heavily sealed”

A pair of flashing red eyes settled upon the second speaker and a third voice cleared its throat in the shrouded chamber

“Gentlemen, this conversation is no longer private”

A resounding slam shook the fabric of the Dreamplane and the young student rolled over with a soft groan of displeasure as dreams once more began to swirl about her in soft confusing eddies of subconcious thought before being washed away with a blaze of orange fire, within the dream the student stood in the heat of a great inferno but for some strange reason there was no fear in her heart or on her face, only soft confusion.

“Well well, they certainly do make them younger these days don't they?”

A voice echoed from the fire and a deeper ruby flame flickered in the heart of the Inferno, spreading great wings the Phoenix poked its beak from within the enshrouding flame, “So? What do you want to do now girly? What do you want with your life”

Her eyes shimmered with indecision and confusion, she had never put much thought into her future, taking it as it came with one day at a time but she sensed that this time she would have to answer quickly.

“I want to be strong, I want to be smart and I want to be able to protect those I care about”

She smiled softly as she felt a flicker of approval from the Phoenix before her in the heart of the fire and a small grin stretched its beak and glittered within its eyes with golden sparks of light, she bowed her head, paying respect to the great Bird before her and again she felt that flicker of approval.

“I am Aizen”

Three simple words, three short words that would shape her future, she didn't know what made her believe that this dream could shape her future but somehow she simply knew.

“I am Cara”

Dawn broke to find a young student in a most prestigious academy tangled within her sheets, the first rays broke through her window and bathed the dorm in a soft radiance, “GOOD MOOORNING!” A cheery voice sounded and a heavy thump landed square upon her stomach making her sit up in surprise, whacking her head upon the overhead bunk as she did only to hear a sharp giggle that drilled its way to her possible concussion, “Oh silly! Get up! It's nearly Assembly time and you are sleeeeping in!” Another high pitched giggle drilled deep into her skull and Cara grunted, “Uuugh, go 'way Sarah” The vibrant ball of energy perched upon her stomach was already clad in her school uniform and now proceeded to bounce happily upon her elders stomach, “Cooome on sleeeepy head!” She giggled again and dodged the sleepily thrown pillow with a stunning acrobatic ease, Sarah spilled to the floor and sprung onto her hands in a fluid motion, her skirt falling down to reveal the tight Gym shorts that would be part of her first period.

It hurt to move, her arm ached, her head ached not helped any by Sarah's early morning antics although she did have to admit having such a convenient alarm clock had kept her out of trouble for missing classes thus far, she rolled out of her bed rather less gracefully than Sarah who was still prancing about upon her hands and giggling like a half mad monkey, she smiled softly at that inner comparison, quickly pulling on a second set of uniform as she caught sight of the empty hamper where she had dropped her clothing the night before, it was fresh enough but she wished she had enough time for a shower, still if she was late for assembly again her tush was toast! She pulled on her boots and her eyes wandered to the strange bracer upon her wrist, a soft sigh shaking her body as she rose to pull her sheets into some semblance of order. “Oh Aizen, if only you were real” the image of the Phoenix in her mind burned bright and clear, even in these waking hours she remembered every flaming feather and smiled, it had been a majestic dream indeed.

“Oh stop it Sarah” She grinned at the younger girl and pushed at Sarahs ankles to send the girl into a handspring and land upon her feet again before sticking out her tongue, and crossing her eyes at Cara, “Awwwh You're no fun!” She giggled and sped off before Cara, the elder girl hot on her heels as they raced to the assembly hall...

A small flicker of an ember smoldering upon Cara's bed sheets wafted smoke unnoticed...

“Welcome to another Term at the Our Lady of Sorrows institute young ladies, many of you already know me, but for those that do not know me, my name is Sister Alice, I will be your headmistress and teacher for this term and will be teaching many subjects personally” Alice looked down upon the assembly, fresh faced young students glowing in anticipation, bored faces feigning attention, the usual mix it seemed to her eyes but this sister had a secret and as she looked down upon the faces gazing up at the lectern from which she spoke she judged them, not their minds nor their souls but their young bodies, so suitable for implantation.

“Cara” A voice echoed softly distracting her from the Sisters spiel and she looked about herself for the source of the voice somehow it seemed so familiar that it made her do a double take for a moment, “Aizen?” She murmured to herself and this time she noticed as a soft orange flicker dusted over her bracer, her eyes widened and she gasped, covering the sound as she doubled over seemingly in pain and gave a soft moan, she turned and raced for the doors to the Gym where the assembly was always held, if the others saw that glow of orange on the Bracer who knew what they would make of it! As she quickly barreled through the doors she nearly collected one of the senior students who worked to make sure no one slipped out unnoticed, she bounced upon the tips of her toes as she looked up to the elder student, “Sorry sorry bathroom!” A smattering of laughter broke out behind her and a blush rose upon her cheeks as the senior student opened the door and let Cara dash towards the harsh concrete of the toilet block...

“What in hell was that?” She whispered to herself as she turned a corner and judged herself out of sight of the assembly and still heading in the right direction, “Oh great, you made a contract with me last night and now you don't remember? Let me remind you, on your Bracer, first button underneath the orange light push it” Cara trembled again at that ever so familiar voice from her dreams but she lifted her bracer before her eyes, sure enough the orange glow was coming from a small light set above one of the small buttons on her bracer, gently she placed her finger upon the button and with a deep curiosity she pressed...

She could not have been prepared, not in a million years and not even if she had known it was coming, flames erupted from the Bracer and engulfed her hand painlessly before leaping forth to scar the ground in front of her to the point where the tar sealed path boiled and melted in the heat, but she felt none of it as though she were somehow protected and it did not take long for him to arrive. The great Phoenix stood upon the glassy tar seal before Cara preening his feathers with a look most smug upon his beak, “Oh come on” He spoke as he looked to her with a beady black eye, “You have to admit this is impressive isn't it?”

She recoiled in immediate panic and her lips parted as though to offer a scream of surprise, but the noise cut off before it could even begin, here as he had in her dream Aizen gave off a comforting warmth and not a blazing terror, she looked upon him with wide puzzled eyes and swallowed as she nodded her head in assent even managing to mutter out, “Very impressive” in a hoarse voice, “Alright then Cara it's explanation time, I'm Aizen, but that you already know I am your guardian, a unique Spirit and one that's conjured when you input the first chip in your Bracer, secondly I am only one of a great many spirits and demons and monsters that wander in our own world that exists parallel to yours, thirdly your Bracer is unique, it was made for the Pope's right and man and is unremovable unless they decided to take your whole arm, instead of using a battery or power source your Bracer draws on your own mystic energy to cast spells or summon spirits, with me so far?”

Her head was spinning as Aizen loaded this information on her, how did he know all this and in how much trouble was she? She looked upon him with puzzled and frightened eyes as she tried to absorb all he had told her, but he cleared his throat and beady black eyes locked upon Cara and drew her into their spell once again, “Got all that Cara? Well I hope so we have our first job, your dorms are on fire I can feel it from here, but something's wrong with the fire alarm and the third year students are sleeping in, do you want to go and save them?” Cara spun upon her heels as Aizen spoke and even before his question was voiced she was sprinting towards the faint signs of smoke. Panting and puffing she finally found the building that was her dorms, first years on the first floor, second years on second floor, third years on the third floor and so on, she gasped at the sight of fire engulfing the first floor and whipped her cell phone out of her pocket to dial the emergency number... “The number you have dialed cannot be connected at this time” She glanced quickly at the screen of her phone and found that there was no signal in this crisis! What was she to do? Aizen's wings stirred up floating ash as she looked upon the blaze in fear, any moment now it would reach the third floor and those sleeping there or cause enough damage to weaken the building and bring it down. Panic rose in her heart and she looked to Aizen, “Is there anything we can do?” Her voice was quiet and hoarse and she looked to him with a faint flicker of hope in her eyes, “Of all the Mages in the world I get one who's clueless” He grumped as he looked upon the human girl and then at the fire, “It's not too big, you can snuff it, draw it into my Chip I can take it” He grinned again, his beak curving as he looked to her, “Focus your mind and your powers will follow, look to the fire and imagine it flowing towards you, sinking into the metal of the bracer, as you focus, as you imagine press the button beneath my chip”

Was that instruction weird? This whole day had been weird but she had no choice, barely noticing as Aizen was consumed in fire and dissolved to leave her alone, standing there and facing that fire with only her wits and the Bracer, she could feel it moving within the fire a kind of vital energy that pulsed and throbbed with a need to consume a need to control and renew but Cara could not let that happen, she cried out towards the fire as though trying to get it's attention, “Consume me then! Burn me!” She flung her hair backwards as she lifted her chin to let her gaze lock upon the terrible flames and depressed Aizen's button, a pulse, a low thrumming noise and the fire rushed towards her with vicious speed “Just leave them alone!” Even if she gave her life, at least the others would be okay but she remembered Aizen's words and in her minds eye she saw the fire sinking into the bracer racing into the metal but not heating it instead being channeled through the unknown circuitry beneath and into Aizen's chip, her eyes opened and she did not even remember closing them gazing upon the screaming flames as they whirled and raced around her as though hungry to consume her. Warm, that was all, simply... warm and welcoming the fire raced around her, scarring the tar seal beneath her feet as the flames twisted around her body and tainted her uniform with the smell of smoke, she coughed as she smelt the smoke from the melting tar seal, as she smelled the smoke that quickly built up within her uniform, but she held on.

It was a good thing she held on as the flames dove towards her as though seeking to finally end the tormented waiting, oranges, reds and all hues between screamed towards her, narrowing into a funnel of brilliant flame before seeking her arm and the Bracer held there, it sank inwards and lines of fire lit the bracer from end to end, runes could be made out in the circuitry now as the fire raced through it and she gaped in wonder as the flame simply began to dissipate