Apocalypse: Fairy System by Macronomicon (fox in socks read aloud txt) 📕

Jeb rushed back to the comms unit.

“Eddie, these guys are probably out of our league, and that’s good. You haven’t actually committed a crime, so put the Book of Honor back and find a book about zoning or something. If anyone asks, tell them you’re there to do research for your owner. Keep your head down, mouth shut, and maybe kneel if you see any bird-looking people. Matter of fact, just get on your knees now. Don’t take any chances.”

“Got it,” Eddie said.

Jeb waited.

***Eddie Davis***

Shit, shit, shit, Eddie thought as he flipped to the back of the book and flipped through the last three pages of duels, using his Myst to duplicate the names onto the empty paper he’d gotten from the front desk.

Eddie’s magic was the best magic possible for a scientist: Refining, the Ability to isolate substances from each other. The vast majority of materials science was isolating compounds from other compounds. It was slow and tedious, and sometimes required guesswork and supplies he couldn’t possibly acquire, and it would have made his little workshop nearly incapable of functioning.

Now whenever he needed to isolate lithium, he just grabbed a battery and separated it out magically. Same went for the components of a phone or anything else he might need. Good stuff. Eddie was looking forward to when he had enough control to separate out plutonium in quantity and he could make robots that could keep going for fifty years.

In this particular case, Eddie separated a bit of the less-permeable wood grains out of the paper, stamping out the list of names invisibly before hastily folding the paper and shoving it in his vest pocket.

Eddie shoved the Book of Honor back in its home and sprinted down the hall, grabbing a book of law much farther down the line, something that looked innocuous.

Water Rights and Responsibilities for Landowners.

Eddie shuddered, but knelt down and started speed-reading the dry book, cramming like he was twenty-four again, Legolas hovering outside the window.

Eddie glanced over and interfaced with the robot. It was hard to describe, as half of his thoughts turned to cold numbers. He’d been staring at screens half his life, but thinking in code was a new experience. It was a bit like lucid dreaming.

Eddie instructed the drone to back off and hide. It silently pulled away from the window and settled down behind some shrubs. The sky was too exposed at the moment, with the building nearly surrounded by watchful eyes.

A moment later, Eddie heard the sound of steel on stone as armored boots filled the halls.

Eddie backed into an out-of-the-way spot and put his forehead on the marble floor.

Refreshingly cold in this heat, actually.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted half a dozen melas with deep orange skin who filled the hall. They were wearing full plate armor, only identifiable through their stature and the horns they sported above their helmets.

They paid little attention to him, beyond a silent glance. One of the men even stood beside Eddie, less than a foot away, resting his palms on the hilt of a long blade attached to his waist.

A strange pressure seemed to collect down the hall, pressing down on Eddie’s body, squishing him even further into the floor.

A moment later, Eddie heard two voices slowly growing in volume.

“The blockade will be every street in a one-mile radius around the Kordos mansion, along with the main thoroughfare. Sentinels will remove anyone or anything outside their homes after two in the afternoon inside that area. By the time of His arrival, the streets will have been clean for hours.”

“I appreciate your attention to detail,” another voice said as the figures came around the corner leading toward the office deeper in the library. “I hope that you can convince your men to share it.”

From the corner of his eye, Eddie spotted a hunched-over Big Bird traipsing smoothly alongside a keegan wringing his hands.

“What you say and what they do are seldom the same—” The bird’s head snapped to look at Eddie. “Oh, look, a human.”

“I’ll have him removed immediately, Your Grace.”

Eddie felt a drop of sweat bead up on the back of his neck.

“No, no, it’s not doing anything wrong. The kowtowing is new, but not unwelcome.”

“Excuse me, human,” the bird-creature said, stopping in front of Eddie. “Why do you bow so deeply for me? Did your owner not teach you proper etiquette?”

“He did not,” Eddie said, raising his head. “But he also told me not to take any chances, so I improvised.”

The bird-creature’s head wobbled strangely, the creature’s face devoid of expression. Finally it threw its head up and honked a laugh.

“Delightful. Keep up the good work.” The creature reached out with taloned claws and tapped Eddie’s shoulder.

“Where were we?” the bird-creature asked as they continued down the hall, ignoring Eddie entirely.

“You should leave now.” One of the melas bodyguards spoke, once the pair were out of earshot.

“I think I will do that,” Eddie said, his limbs weak from the adrenaline leaving his system. He picked up the book and slipped it back into its home before walking quickly back the way he’d come.

Eddie’s panic spiked again when one of the bodyguards stepped out in front of him, blocking his path.

“What’ve you got under there?” the melas asked, peeling open Eddie’s jacket and plucking out the crumpled paper that had been peeking out.

“I bought some paper on the way in to take notes,” Eddie stammered.

“I don’t see any notes.” The guard looked at him suspiciously.

Eddie glanced over his shoulder the direction the two officials had gone and shrugged helplessly. “Next time, I suppose?”

“Fair enough.” The bodyguard handed the paper back, then stepped aside, and Eddie walked out, his