Chapter 21 (part 1/2) - Forceful Persuasion

  As he left the forge and passed by the entrance counter, Phil gestured for him to come over and show how much progress he had made, but Vincent replied with a quick wave of his hand, signaling that it was not the time.

  With one hand in his pocket, using the statuette magically linked to Lily, he tapped it lightly to signal that they should meet in the abandoned bathroom. The dormitories were crowded, and while his room would have been a safe place, getting there meant crossing a maze of corridors where Edgar had many clients, many of them willing to do him a favor.

  He had to go somewhere familiar. His territory. His domain.

  They were following him, he knew it, and his pursuers were not even bothering to hide it. If something was going to happen, it would happen now. The moment Vincent left sight and entered a dark corridor or alcove, he would be ambushed. For an instant he considered taking an elevator instead of the stairs, but if they got in with him he would be alone with his attackers for a few seconds, an opportunity he could not afford. The stairs were the safest option, visible to everyone and exposed to the central cloister, Vincent thought, mistakenly.

  Maybe I could tire them out… if they get winded, I’ll have better chances of-

  But Vincent cut that stupid train of thought short. He did not have the body he once had, he could not outlast them, and he did not know whether they possessed some kind of physical enhancer. There was too much magic he did not understand… and much he was about to discover.

  When they saw him heading for the stairs, his pursuers quickened their pace. Climbing the spiral staircase would be his end. It would be very easy to make him “fall.”

  They wouldn’t even have to get close to me. Using a spell to make my feet slippery would be enough to kill me. Or cause a stumble… the hero already used something similar on me.

  The tower’s staircases followed no safety code of any kind. They wrapped around a massive column and had railings on only one side. On the other, a guard of metal tubes covered the drop, but the gaps were wide enough for a body to slip through. Being of organic construction, the steps were not perfectly uniform, and decades, perhaps centuries, of use had eroded the stone, making an accident seem perfectly plausible if it happened.

  I can’t use the stairs. I can’t use the elevators… which means I’m left with only one option.

  Looking toward the heart of the tower, Vincent saw dozens of scholars floating through the central cloister, working, moving books on large rafts through zero gravity. Until now he had never dared to try it, but he had seen resurrected and even husks leap several floors using that method.

  Summoning his courage, Vincent grabbed the stone railing and lifted one leg to climb up. His pursuers stopped, watching expectantly to see what he was about to do.

  Do they think I’m crazy? Isn’t it a property of the tower that its center is weightless? If I jump… will I fall into the void?

  Once atop the railing, Vincent extended a hand. The sensation was strange, and his sleeve lifted slightly. The antigravity field was real. He could jump.

  Come on, Vin, you can do this, he thought, psyching himself up.

  He crouched slightly and leaned forward. He grabbed his satchel and prepared to take a “dive” into space. Seeing his intentions, the resurrects who were chasing him also climbed onto the railing, watching the direction he would take.

  Without further hesitation, Vincent jumped toward the center of the cloister, aiming for the floor where the abandoned bathroom was.

  His attempt failed.

  The antigravity field seemed less effective the closer he was to the railing, causing Vincent to fall in an arc for several meters until he finally ended up floating in midair, with no clear direction.

  “Whoa, shit!”

  He cursed on reflex, but there was no time for that. He had to stabilize himself. He was upside down, with no fixed orientation. The resurrects were coming toward him and, with enough momentum, all they would need to do was shove him sideways to cause a fatal fall.

  Vincent grabbed onto a nearby floating lamp and steadied his body. He clung to it like a cat, trying to put the world back in order. The tower was on its side… or at least that was how he perceived it.

  Something about the antigravity spell cast at the center of the tower allowed one to instinctively establish a “floor.” If he focused, he could let go of that effect and allow his sense of balance to float freely.

  So it’s not just physical… it also lets me control the gravity affecting my inner ear, in a way.

  He tried to use that to guide his body, but it was not easy. Not for him, and not for his pursuers.

  The three resurrects jumped with much more momentum, aiming for a floating platform packed with books and scrolls. Apparently they also had trouble maneuvering in zero gravity, but they stabilized more quickly and were already heading toward Vincent.

  He needed to climb five floors, but he did not have the strength to do it in a single push. They would intercept him. And if he stopped halfway, he would be dead meat.

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  From the lamp, he leapt to a platform of books, then to another. The lamps were wrapped in a metal lattice, designed for exactly this kind of maneuver. Vincent spun around them like a spider and changed direction toward one of the floating elevators passing nearby.

  The resurrects were stunned by how skillfully Vincent moved in zero gravity, maneuvering with far more ease than they could.

  They did not know that Vincent had taken part in multiple space expeditions, both for pleasure and for business. Playing soccer in zero gravity was something only a billionaire could afford… enough to actually get good at it.

  Frustrated, one of the resurrected, the only one carrying a staff, pointed it at him and began to recite something. No light or sound came from the staff. They could not afford to do anything that might draw a custodian’s attention.

  Vincent hid behind a mass of floating books, trusting they would not dare damage them. Moments later, a blast of air skimmed past his hair. It would not kill him outright, it would only push him far enough to knock him out of the zero gravity field. But from that height, the fall could break several bones… especially if he landed headfirst.

  Multiple gusts passed close by as the other two tried to flank him, something Vincent managed to avoid by shifting between different levels. Scrolls and pages flew everywhere, concealing him just enough for him to slip toward one of the pulsing roots.

  Grabbing onto one of the suspended chains, Vincent maneuvered just enough to hide, knowing they would not dare fire directly toward the heart of the tower.

  And now, how do I get out of here?

  He was only a few meters away from a thick root, wide enough to carry an entire cow through its interior. Its pulse emitted energy so intense that it disturbed even his supposedly stable meridian flow. Touching it would mean death. But from his position, every other platform was too far away.

  “Guys! Over here!” shouted the resurrect with the staff.

  They were still some distance away, and at that pace they would not reach him in time. The other two made it to the staff wielder and grabbed onto it. Then the leader recited something quickly, and they began to move together.

  Pages fluttered all around them. It was a simple wind spell, but well controlled, and soon they would catch up to him.

  He had to do something. He had to jump.

  Positioning himself as best he could, adjusting his mental “floor” to better control the force, Vincent launched himself toward the railing, about thirty meters away. He knew he would not make it, but he trusted that one of the floating lamps that usually populated the center would cross his path.

  At first it was fast, but the momentum faded, and his speed dropped until he was almost at a standstill.

  The resurrects were already moving in his direction, but seeing him in such a precarious state made them change their plan. If they were going to intercept him, it had to be somewhere more secluded. There were too many eyes here… but none willing to intervene.

  The other two let go of their leader and helped him reposition. He did not want to send Vincent toward an edge now… he wanted to throw him against something specific.

  Seeing their stance and noticing the opposite direction, Vincent understood what they were trying to do. Another root. Smaller, but just as lethal, lay behind him. If they released a strong enough impulse, they would smash him straight into it.

  Weren’t they supposed to just scare me? They’re trying to kill me!

  He had to act fast. He had to think.

  He was floating with no point of support to push off from. Throwing the satchel might shift him just enough to dodge a shot, but nothing more.

  I must have something useful I can use here…

  He quickly checked the contents of the satchel. Aside from several cylinders, the burner, and some food, there was nothing he could throw… unless-

  The vapor pistol could push me. But using it here…

  It was not an option… but it was not the only liquid he had on him. In his satchel, next to the bread he had taken from the dining hall, there was a small glass bottle sealed with a cork.

  I know the system, I know the runes… if I use an ignition gem inside the bottle, I should be able to generate enough steam to propel myself.

  He did not have time to engrave any runes on the bottle or run complex calculations. His limited skill and near-disabled magical condition meant he had never even bothered learning proper spells, but the magic was there. Intent existed. And for the first time, he was going to use it like a mage.

  He uncorked the bottle and dropped a polished marble inside, charging it with intent beforehand to create some kind of “link”. Everything he was doing was purely intuitive. He did not know if it would work, since the gem was simply floating inside the bottle of water. No complex runes connected it to his hand.

  He looked at his pursuer, who already had him in their sights. There was no more time.

  He pressed the bottle against his stomach, his center of gravity, and the point where his meridians were most concentrated. He closed his eyes and visualized the gem inside the glass. He could see it. He could feel the energy within it.

  Maybe he would not be able to conjure anything much more complex… but boiling water was basic, something every spirit was familiar with. Projecting his intent into the bottle, the water began to boil. Not all of it, only the portion in direct contact with the gem. If he applied heat indiscriminately, he would burn his hands and the bottle would explode. He had to be smarter. He had to project what he wanted to do, to direct the steam. Only the steam, out of the bottle.

  A vortex formed inside, and like a rocket engine, the water became excited and rushed out through the nozzle.

  Pressure began to build, and a cloud of steam started to form around Vincent. A couple of holes opened in the cloud as gusts of wind from the staff cut through it. The steam cover had saved his skin… and now, with the pressure built up, it would send him flying.

  Carefully controlling the temperature so as not to burn his hands, the vapor began to push him slowly… then faster and faster.

  “I can’t see anything!” one of the resurrect shouted.

  Shooting at him was no longer an option. He was getting away.

  They grabbed onto the staff again and resumed the pursuit, but Vincent had already picked up speed and was close to the railing.

  Before hitting the ground, and using only the momentum gained to move, Vincent pulled the bottle away from his stomach and aimed it like a torpedo at them. No longer caring about the heat, charging it one last time with energy, he threw it.

  The bottle shot forward like a missile.

  It whistled through the air and slammed into one of the resurrect’s shoulder, exploding in a cloud of steam and boiling water that burst into their faces.

  “Bullseye!”

  Fueled by rage and pain, his pursuers surged forward at full speed riding the staff, but Vincent had already vanished into the maze of the tower’s corridors.

  He ran through debris toward the bath… but Lily was not there.

  In the middle of the chase he had not noticed that the statuette linking him to her had been vibrating. Vincent sent the signal again to meet at the bathroom. Lily replied with the taps corresponding to the bathroom, followed by one more after a pause, which meant “No”.

  Lily was not available… she would not be able to save him.

  On second thought, he had only given her a couple of calls, there was no urgency in his original message. If he insisted now, he was sure Lily would drop everything to come save him, but he did not want to involve her in this.

  It was not simply pride… it was a test for himself. To see whether he could survive in this world on his own. She would not always be with him, and he was certain she would not be able to do what he was planning to do to his pursuers.

  These men had tried to kill him. They were serious. If he wanted to scare them off, he had to push close to the limit. He had to hurt them…