Thaumatology 12: Vengeance Read Online Free PDF Page A

become unstable due to the higher density of salt water…’
    Ceri gave him a frown. ‘You’ve practical experience of this?’
    ‘Our own attempts to bring power into regions with lower energy levels have proven unsuccessful,’ he admitted.
    ‘Hmm…’ She came to a decision after a second’s thought: hearts and minds were going to be important. ‘My own calculations suggest that it’s possible without excessive loss. I suspect I have a different mechanism for containing the stream which may prove useful. We’ll arrange to have some of your magical theorists visit the castle and I can go over the equations with them.’
    ‘I…’ He stopped speaking, apparently at a loss, and then dropped to one knee. ‘Lady, I would be hard-pressed to adequately express my thanks were you able to help us in this way.’
    Ceri gave him a smile which she hoped was just a little bit evil and reached up to pat him on the cheek. ‘Don’t worry, Ignash, I’m sure I’ll think of a way.’
    As he walked back down the stairs, Ceri waved Faran over to her. ‘I haven’t just done something stupid, have I?’
    Faran grinned. ‘Ignash isn’t interested in anything above the level the sunlight gets to and no one really bothers much with his domain either. As he said, he lives in deep salt water which tends to dampen the magic field. He has a rather impoverished fiefdom which you are offering to make more habitable. Succeed and he’ll be one of your most loyal subjects.’
    Ceri returned to her seat with a sigh of relief. ‘Hope I didn’t get my maths wrong then. Wheel the next one in.’
    ~~~
    Ophelia met them for lunch, or mid-morning snack, or whatever you wanted to call it. Demons had a habit of snacking when they could get the food, since they tended to be active for such a long time between night periods. Ceri had decided it was a valid habit since a three-meal regime would likely result in starvation and it broke up the meetings more.
    ‘I’ve been thinking,’ the raven-haired fae said as she sat in one of the enormously oversized chairs with some bread and cheese in one hand and a goblet of wine in the other.
    ‘Good,’ Ceri replied. ‘It is what I pay you for.’
    ‘You don’t actually pay me.’
    ‘Huh, yeah, forgot about that…’ Ceri held a hand out to Lily who handed over a small pouch, and that was tossed across into Ophelia’s lap. ‘Gold works here and in Otherworld, right?’
    ‘Uh… yeah. Which brings me to what I was thinking about. I’m the ambassador to Otherworld, so I figure I should actually be here and there at least some of the time, and I can’t keep living at High Towers. I mean, it’s kind of nice there and Gwyn and Mei have been great, but…’
    ‘You need a place of your own,’ Ceri finished for her.
    ‘Yeah. So I was wondering whether I could live here?’
    ‘Uh… I can’t see a problem, there’s plenty of space. I can set the portal up so that you can open it when needed. Do you really want to spend that much time here?’
    ‘Well, I’m going to see if I can schmooze some apartments in the Summer Palace and spend some time there, and I may crash in your lounge after my more mundane job, but… Look, you’ve given me a big job here. If I’m going to do it, I’m going to do it right.’
    ‘You never struck me as the type,’ Lily said.
    ‘When I take a job, I like to see it done. Sure I like to play, I’m an Unseelie Sidhe, but I have a sense of responsibility.’
    ‘Okay,’ Ceri said, ‘if that’s what you want I’ll set it up.’ She grinned. ‘Saves on rent too, right?’
    ‘Well, yeah, there’s that, but it’s all about the responsibility. Really.’
    ‘Uh-huh.’
    Battersea, London, Earth.
    Michael paused to sniff the night air, his muzzle rising inquisitively. The river was close by with its scents of water and diesel oil. There was a slight scent of aroused werewolf on the breeze this close to the full moon. The primary scent here, right beside the