Chapter 2
Egypt
★★★★★
I followed after Linda, a tad bit nervous. I tentatively poked the portal and it shimmered slightly, giving my finger a refreshing feeling, sort of like that healing spell from earlier. In one quick step I was through the portal.
The rapid change in temperature threw me in a daze for a bit, but I got my bearing relatively fast. The land of pyramids was exactly how I pictured it, if I ever did. You know deserty and all that stuff, not much to describe.
The portal opened in the middle of nowhere, nothing but rolling dunes and dry sand spread out as far as my eyes could see. Not that they could see much, what with the sky being as dark as it is.
" we are about half a mile from Wadi El Rayan. It's a natural reserve." Grey stated.
"Uh, not that I don't like the idea but, did we really come to Egypt for that. And even if we wanted to go to this reserve that could have waited till daylight right ?."
" Good heavens lad, calm yourself. We are not here for the reserve yes. You know why were here in a mo… ha there she is.
The familiar sound of an helicopter buzzed in the distance, preceding the helicopter itself as it cresdted the ridge heading towards us. Whoever decided this was the best place to meet needs a very sound kick in the ass. As the helicopter approached us, it kicked up a serious amount of dust, more like a mini sand storm, assailing my unprotected eyes and ears.
The aircraft lighted down a few feet from us, and a silhouette stepped out, sleek feminine features highlighted by its taillights. She strolled towards us, and as she got closer her features sharpened. A young lady, probably in her early twenties, immaculate tanned skin glowing under the moonlight.
She had jet black hair with the ends dyed midnight blue reaching a few inches below her shoulder. Not quite sure about the length though, shoulder was wrapped with a shawl so...
She's definitely Mexican, she exudes that irresistible , badass Latina energy.
" Meet my great granddaughter, Mia Delgado". Grey spoke up when she got close enough.
"yeah right, like you even have a wife". Linda replied with a snicker.
" Sup kids I'm Mia, Mia Delgado." The lady said, folding arms across the chest.
" I'm Jason Walker, nice to meet you Mia." I said reaching for a shake.
" And I'm Linda walkers". Linda said doing the same. " I like your hair by the way, it suits you perfectly".
" Why thank you, I like yours too. Now lets get going, it's not save out here."
The aircraft hovered in front of a waterfall, and with a low humming sound the water parted like a curtain. We coasted in and came upon a sprawling complex that looked to be a factory, albeit a huge one with a lot of chimneys jutting from the rooftops.
The greenery surrounding the area was astonishing, rich and lush. If I went hiking, and I come across this sort of greenery, I'll definitely be camping for days.
The expanse was surrounded by huge rocks, like mini mountains where joined together end to end to form an imperfect circle around the land.
Did I mention I can't see the sky?. Yeah you got that right, this is one hell of a cave( I don't know what to call it, so I'm just going with cave ), we lighted down a little distance from what appears to be the entrance and we all got out. I gotta admit, I'm a bit disappointed, some part of me expected the door to be something grandiose and extravagant, it wasn't, just a normal door from what I can see.
" Welcome to the bat cave." Mia said dramatically
" The bat cave, really?, this is the bat cave." Linda said.
" Nah, just kidding gal. I just call it the nest." Mia deadpanned.
" well now I think the bat cave is a better option". Linda replied.
" he thinks the hidden crucible is a fitting name". She said gesturing at Grey.
And of course he didn't reply, just his signature creepy giggle. Mia held the door handle and turned it. It slid into a recess with a beep.
The door looked like what you would expect to see in a building of this size, until it opened. Mechanisms rumbled to life and the door slid open with a hiss, it was thick, like " fortress thick", I'm sure it'll take a nuke to open this. Then Linda, God bless her little heart finally asked the question we've been waiting for.
" What is this place.?"
"Huh, the nest?" Mia replied, like that explains everything.
" I know it's the nest but what do you do here, like what's it for."
" oh that, you should have said that. It's my base. I built it myself. With a little help from the old man of course."
"Ahem, a little you say?."
"well, maybe more than a little. He's the reason this place is up and running."
"The numbers of people needed to run this??. My god. You must be filthy rich." Linda guffawed.
"Yes I'm quite… wealthy, but this… doesn't use any staffing at all. It's self sustaining. Magic." Mia replied with a grin.
" This, is M.A.N.A, short for magical affinity and neural assessor.
"Wait, there's tech for that.? That can measure magical stuffs? I asked.
" There wasn't, till I created this. Tech is tied to my magic, so this sort of stuff is possible for me. I'm a tier 5 you know?." She replied, pushing some buttons on M.A.N.A, and soon enough the machine whirred to life.
It's a standard looking machine, for a magical assessor that is. Most definitely not what you're imagining. It's about the size of a phone boot, albeit a glass one, or at least it looks like glass. I don't even know what was what anymore, it had complex runic etchings running all over the surface as far as I can I see.
Thick vines and other green ropey stuffs where run neatly into the floor and the thin ones where funneled into a pipe and up in the ceiling. Yeah yeah, that's probably what you were imagining who cares?. Anyways. The booth was connected, surprisingly by actual wires to a little waist high panel, the controller I presume which Mia was currently operating.
" What's a tier 6?"
" You don't know about the tier system?" Mia retorted.
"Nope, not at all. Linda??.
"No idea." Linda replied still taking in the machine's beauty.
" Then what the hell did that old man tell you about magic?" hands on her hip.
Uncle Grey as at this point, had walked off to God knows where.
" Has he shown you anything at all, about magic."
"Well, yeah a couple things actually. He showed us hells eye and he opened a portal to… well, Egypt." I replied
" He did that healing stuff too." Linda added.
"Argh, that man is insufferable. Dumbing tier 2 magic and portal magic on newbies. In one night." Mia exclaimed.
"Alright, we can do the questions later. For now let's test your mana capacity."
"Uhm, I can't do magic actually, so…" I stated.
" Right now ? No. We'll be correcting that soon enough. You do have magic, gramps here wouldn't have brought you here if you didn't ." She replied typing away on the console.
Now let's get you tested get into the machine. Mia said.
I did as she asked and I stepped into the machine, the interior of the machine was immaculately designed, with smooth dimensions, flawless surface. The inside looked like a plain glass box. If you don't count the runic etchings of course, those were expertly done by the way. Not that I know the difference.
" ok Clara initiate M.A.N.A diagnosis, full range scan. Prioritize capacity and affinity. Let's see what you've got." Mia said.
" Diagnosis protocols initiated, calibrating ambient flux, scanning for core activity… scan completed." A very monolithic voice replied.
" You can come out now boy, Clara what's your verdict?" Mia asked.
" There are a few abnormalities, subjects tier, 2 . Mana capacity: 2.5/10. Active core, not found. Affinity, undetected. Fortitude…"
" Fortitude?, Clara what's his fortitude".
" Rechecking fortitude… fortitude 4.6".
"Then why the pause ?"
" My apologies but his fortitude is relatively low for someone his tier."
" Hmm, true. Thanks for the scan. Jason you can step out now."
There was silence for a bit after I did.
" So… you have an intelligent computer. What's the deal with my tier, is it too low. Am I faulty?."
" Maybe, maybe not we'll see. Step in girl. Clara?.
"On it. Diagnosis protocols initiated, calibrating ambient flux, scanning for core activity… scan completed. Tier 4 subject, mana capacity 0.9, active core reading 8.2, affinity white, fortitude 4.9."
"Thanks gal".
"You're most welcome."
" You both better get some rest, we'll discuss your results over dinner."
" Won't I get lost in this place. It's… huge." Mia said.
" you won't. Here, this is a mini map of this place. Your room is on the second floor two doors from the living area, Jason's right beside yours. It's en-suite."
" Sweet, what's for dinner."
" I don't know, maybe pizza? Just… you'll know when time comes."
And with that she left us to our own devices.
The room was just as she said. With a very comfy looking king sized bed, a dressing mirror, and most importantly a computer set. And it's connected. Well, I don't see why I can't stay here for the summer. As I flipped onto the bed, my mind immediately went into overdrive. I haven't really had the chance to digest everything.
I mean, it's not everyday you get told magic is real. If magic is real, does that mean all those stories are real, all those creatures, dragons, fairies and elves! I definitely hope elves. Is Jesus real will I get to meet him. Maybe dwarves are magical, and lydes do they exist.
An electric bell sound drew me out of my spiral. Which surprisingly I've been going down for a couple hours.
"Come on down kids dinner's here" Mia buzzed through the intercom.
I'm loving this place already.
" What is Jason's tier." Grey asked as he made to sit.
Dinner was not surprisingly, pizza and some little sandwich stuff with meat fillings. The taste was… exquisite, the meat assailing my tongue with flavors. It had a slightly spicy tinge to it, but was still perfect to my non-spice tolerant tongue.
" He's a tier 2. Linda is tier 4." Mia replied mid chew.
" That… is unexpected. Tier 2, an human with no magical ancestry. Tier four is… impressive, but not unheard of."
" Uhm, what's your tier uncle Grey".
" He's a tier 1, first rank tier one." Mia replied
" Wow. Then it shouldn't be surprising then."
" What shouldn't be, boy." Grey asked.
" well, my uncle is a tier 1, it makes sense I would be an high tier too. Maybe it's a firstborn male thing. What are this things called anyways." I said cutting another slice of pizza.
" it's called hawawshi. It's a Egyptian delicacy. Like it?" Mia asked with a smile.
"Love it"
" Jason, cupcake. It's high time you know this. I'm not your father's brother."
Linda and I shared a quick look.
" We know that, why would we think you are. You're mum's brother."
" Yeah, elder brother to be precise." Linda added.
"I'm not your mum's brother either."
" What, that's not possible. Mum said you're our uncle and dad always called you friend. So we figured…"
" I'm your father's friend. I met him a few months before he got married to your mum. A year before you were born that is. I met him at a fair, I can't recall where but, he intrigued me. He has… a very interesting personality for an human. We met after I completed the hidden crucible with my granddaughter here."
" Uhm how old are you, Mia if you were born before then." Linda questioned.
" Haha, how old do I look."
" Well to me, you look twenty at most." I replied.
" Why thank you, I'm due forty two in two months."
" Okay now I'm confused, uncle Grey keeps calling you granddaughter, I could have sworn you're twenty, and you said you're not mother's brother."
" I thought you guys were going to answer our questions? So far you've only brought more."
"It's just as I said lad, Mia is indeed my granddaughter, great granddaughter to be precise."
" That doesn't answer anything." Linda yelled, throwing up her hands.
" Sorry. I didn't mean to… you know."
" Hehe, we know girl, I'll give you the answers you want. The old man sucks at that sort of thing." Mya interjected
"Alright, it all boils down to this. He is a Zhakarei."
"A what now".
" Zhakarei, dragon kin. Don't interrupt me lady." Mia snapped.
" Sorry!". Linda squeaked.
"They're cousins to dragons. Four legged, winged, with the head of a lion, and of course. Horns. Unlike dragons though they're a secretive bunch."
"Long story short, he's immortal."
"Immortal like undying or…"
" He doesn't age, he can be killed though. He met my great grandmother when he first arrived on human lands they fell in love had my grandma and the story goes on."
"And all his children know what he is??" Linda asked.
" Hmm, no. Only second borns. Although I don't know why, and I'm not sure if I wanna know."
"Well it makes sense now. At least a bit. So… what's wrong with me being tier two.?
" Well, to answer that you need to understand the tier system. There's some more hawawshi here if you want."
" Thank you." Mia replied reaching for the jolly sandwich.
" So, as I was saying. The tier system consists of 6 ranks or placements, whichever you prefer. 6 been the lowest, and one the highest." She paused allowing me to digest that a bit.
" Tier six beings are called, blessed or touched. They are humans that have the spark of magic in them. They excel in what they specialize in. Here we have fortune tellers, clerks, doctors, soldiers, and of course, scholars and geniuses. Like me. I can enhance my mental strength and capacity with magic. It seems boring doesn't it.?
" I mean in front of immortality…?" Linda said with a shrug.
" Yeah it does. Except he's not human and I am. I engineered my cells, telomerase activation, epigenetic modulation, you name it. I even enhance my cellular rejuvenation with the help of senolytic agents. You name it, I did it. And thankfully it worked. I increased my life span to 200 years. Provided I continue my routine I'll look like this till I die." Mia said with a smug smile on her face.
" I built the first equipment capable of reading magical wavelengths, after numerous field test and a few fails. M.A.N.A can precisely calculate a beings aptitude, fortitude, capacity and a host others. I built this place myself. The plans and all where done by me. And I'm just forty. And I can even cast rudimentary spells. Still think, it's unimpressive??
"… well, with all that."
" Whatever, in tier 5 we have monks and the awakened. Proud fuckers if you ask me. They can use magic way better than 6. But they all have aspects. Fire users can only use fire, body enhancers, blood and a host other you'll have to learn yourselves. Tier four we have, mages, sorcerers, espers and telepaths. Mia you're what we call. A witch."
" A witch? Pointy hat, broom riding witch?." Mia whispered wide eyed.
" No silly. Witches are high-level awakened. Without aspects. They practice sorcery, and can channel from all aspects of magic with the help of spells, except divinity of course. And they tend to live longer than humans, like way longer. Although I haven't figured out why." She looked a bit downcast at that.
" Phew, well that doesn't sound so bad."
" It isn't. In tier 3 we have exceptional sorcerers, espers and creatures like trolls, minotaur, gargoyle, wyrens and some others. They are classified based on strength alone. Tier two we have were beings, highly talented mages, with magical rich bloodlines. Only five of them world wide by the way. A few sorcerers, necromancers too. It's not a very populated tier, so Jason we don't have any idea how you fit into this tier."
" Well maybe the machine is faulty?
" Huh huh boy. My girl's in tip too condition, Clara would have pointed it out if it wasn't." She scolded shaking her head.
" We'll settle that latter though. Four tiers one, we have dragons, Zhakarei and demi gods. After that there's the god tier. Oh I almost forgot in tier one there are divine Born or god cubs. But those don't exist anymore. Vampires, shifters and most were beings aren't on the tier since they get stronger as they age. Jeez my throat's raw."
" Sorry, Uhm what are shifters. I mean what's the difference between a shifter and a were being." I asked.
"Well, shifters are creature to humans, weres are humans to creatures. Get it?"
"I think so. Zhakarei are shifters then, and werewolves are.. weres."
"Smart kid, alright. I'm off to bed."
" What, wait I still have questions" Mia exclaimed.
" Your computer is loaded with info you can ever need. Just search Google. It's custom made. Good night."
There was a electronic sound, sort of like Siri's answering tone.
Captain I have news you might want to see.
" Well bring it up."
An holographic screen appeared right in front of us to the left if the dining table. About an 100 inch in width.
An enormous black leopard was found crossing the highway in the city about 10km north of here if you take the ranger it'll be a 10 minutes drive.
"Why do you assume I'll be interested in this Clara."
The creature is 4o inches at shoulder height 140 tail to snout length, which is enormous compared to males of the specie and expresses complex emotions . Most importantly, there is a runic crest on its right shoulder. I have reason to believe this a were being.
" I do not know why a werecat will come to public in this form." Grey said breaking his dutiful silence.
" Huh, isn't that a panther though."
Mia and Linda just looked at me like I was crazy. Even uncle Grey.
" Clara keep tabs on the leopard, we'll go check it out tomorrow. I need my sleep." And with that Mia left and Grey followed right after with Mia hot on his tail.
Back in my room I sat with the computer and searched. What's the difference between a black panther and a black leopard?
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