บท 4: Impossible
Nathan stood on the flat roof of the building and peered off its edge. "This seems pretty dangerous. Can't we take one of those lifts? Or maybe just walk? Can't go wrong with walking, really — it's a time-tested classic."
Oh, come on, Nathan," Wink said, tightening the zip harness around his chest. "Don't you want to hurry back so we can draw glyphs? It's safe, I swear — probably even safer than the tower lift."
"The tower lift was a huge box of metal. It at least provided the illusion that running off the cable wouldn't have turned me into red goop." Nathan gestured to the zip. "This thing, on the other hand, consists of a rusty handlebar and a harness with a missing strap. Oh, wait, look at that — two missing straps."
Graham looked to be enjoying the exchange judging by his grin. He gave Wink's harness a quick check, then slapped him on the top of his shiny head.
"You're good to go, Wink. Show our friend how it's done."
Wink nodded, then hopped off the building and swooped down the zip line. The pulley rubbed against the cable, whistling shrilly as he sped through the Ring and disappeared out of sight.
"How'd you get around in your world, Nathan?" Graham asked.
"Cars, mostly. Buses, trucks, planes. Big metal things that moved when you pressed buttons or pulled levers."
"Weird. Zips sound better."
The zip handlebar came speeding back a minute later and slammed into its housing. Graham gestured to the harness, and Nathan wrapped it around himself with shaky hands.
"Good to go," Graham said, tightening the last strap. "Remember to grab the bar when you get to the end. Ready?"
"Well, no, I — "
Nathan sped away with a shove from Graham. The whistling pulley was the only thing that hid his cries as he flew through the Ring, going between buildings and floating above the crowded streets, jetting by billboards and by glowing signs, everything a blur to his wet and frantic eyes. The trip lasted for only a minute — a very scarring minute. When he landed atop another roof, he made an awkward landing and grabbed onto the bar of the zip's housing to keep himself from flying backwards.
"See?" Wink helped him pull the straps of his harness loose. "Told you it was safe. Nobody ever falls off these things. Well, except for that time my friend Chup tried to do a spin on it. He got pretty lucky, though — fell through the roof of a hop shop and only broke his neck."
Nathan stepped away from the zip, and Wink sent the hellish device shooting back to Graham by hitting a glyph on its mount.
"I think that was worse than being chased by husks," Nathan said. "Please tell me we're almost at your place."
"Not too far. Got a few more zips to take before we get to the Grand Davide."
"Is that a hotel or something? It sounds like a hotel."
"It's a massive apartment complex in the Sweeps. Super awesome but really expensive. It was only after Gray and I formed our own team that we could afford to live there." Wink gave him one of his trademark smiles, rich with the cheer and innocence of youth. "You should come live with us. We could play warbles and draw glyphs all day."
"Well, I don't know about living with you guys, but I'd be grateful if you let me crash at your place for a while until I find a way back home. I don't exactly have anywhere else to go."
Wink's smile fell at his words. "Back home?"
"Yeah," Nathan said, avoiding Wink's sad eyes. "I don't know if I'm cut out for this place. It seems a little dangerous."
"Oh, is that it? You'll figure out your powers soon, I'm sure. No need to worry."
"Powers?" Nathan's interest was piqued. "What, like some cool magical abilities or something?"
Wink nodded. "The legend says that Nathan will have powers unlike anyone else, that magic itself would bend before you. Don't know what that means, but I bet it'll be super cool. Maybe you'll be able to shoot fire from your eyes or knock over buildings with a single punch. Or maybe — "
"I already told you, Wink — I'm not that Nathan."
Graham arrived on the zip before Wink could respond. He had foregone the harness and was able to make an enviably smooth landing, touching down like he'd floated in on wings. He walked up to them with a very cocky smile, no doubt aware that his entrance had been impressive.
"Alright, Nathan, you're up first this time."
The trio zipped around the city, roof to roof, high above the business of the Ring. They passed over shady clubs and bars, classy restaurants and high-class shops, casinos with flashy signs and paved walkways — all the great trappings of urban life, all worn and broken and collapsed in the traditional Underground fashion.
Graham had Nathan zip last onto the roof of the Grand Davide as an exercise in securing his own harness. His landing on the tall building was rougher than sandpaper, resulting in a skinned knee and a bruised ego.
"My legs hate me," he said, hobbling to the entrance into the apartment complex. "I don't think I've put this much stress on them since I was on the track team in high school."
Wink urged him forward with a tug on his hand. "Come on, Nathan, not much further. Once we get inside, we can draw glyphs."
They went through a door and down a great, hellish staircase. When they made it just a few floors below the top, they found their apartment at the furthest end of a dingy hallway. The room's designation was written on a sign above its door: 33D.
Graham pulled a key from his rucksack and unlocked it. "Welcome to the palace, Nathan. Since you are an honored guest here, Emperor Wink will fetch you a fresh beverage."
Nathan walked in and gave the place a hard appraisal. For an apartment in a ruined, underground city, it wasn't all that bad. It had a kitchen, a bathroom, two bedrooms, and a living room. The living room was the largest room in the whole apartment and by far the messiest. A stained and tattered couch rested in its center, facing a wall of dirty windows that offered a good view of the Ring. Beside it was a wide table full of dismembered board games — game pieces, dice, spinners, cards, boards, coins, tickets, and puzzle pieces filled every inch of its wooden body. Warbles was most certainly buried within the mess.
Wink ran out the kitchen and handed a can to Nathan. "It's duck tea. Try it."
Nathan took the can and peeled the lid off. A powerful smell hit him, redolent of baked goods — donuts in particular, fresh out of the oven and thickly glazed. The liquid inside was a light brown and was just a tad more viscous than one might expect tea to be.
He took a swig. Then another. And after the last, he downed the rest of the can.
"I knew he'd like it," Wink said, chipper as ever.
"Who wouldn't?" Graham asked, sitting himself on the couch. "That stuff is run through thirty different flavor glyphs, and all of them are sweet. It's basically like drinking a donut."
"Do you guys have any water?" Nathan asked. He only just now realized how thirsty he was.
Wink led him to the kitchen sink and flicked a tiny, one-circle glyph with his finger. Water poured from the faucet, clear as a cloudless sky and fresher than any water that Nathan had ever tasted. He gulped it down like a horse at a stream, big swallows of it that cooled him off.
"Oh, God, that's good." His words came out like one long and desperate breath. "Can you teach me how to make that glyph?"
Wink nodded a few times. "Yes, definitely. That's a water glyph — a subcategory of elemental glyphs. Glyphmakers love categorizing things, by the way, so get used to that." He gestured for Nathan to follow him, then ran past the living room into one of the bedrooms.
Nathan tiptoed after him. Graham was lying on the couch in the living room, dead asleep, feet propped up on the leather arm. His snores sounded like a rumbling engine. It seemed very rude to risk interrupting such a deep and well-earned sleep.
"Didn't he just say something, like, five seconds ago?" Nathan whispered, walking into what he assumed was Wink's bedroom. It was cramped and stuffed to the brim with thick books and sketches of complicated glyphs.
Wink threw a bunch of dirty clothes onto his bed, clearing up a spot on the floor. "Yeah, he falls asleep pretty quickly. Can't wake him up without a punch in the gut, either. Sit down in front of me; we'll draw the glyphs on this board."
Nathan sat down in front of him, attentive and more than a little excited. Learning magic wasn't an opportunity afforded to the average earthling, after all. This was something to treasure.
"This — " Wink held up a piece of faintly glowing chalk with two fingers — "is first-order chalk. Only good for glyphs of the first order like the water glyph you saw. Try to draw a second-order glyph with it, and the magic won't even reach the second circle; it'll fizz and eat up all your script in the first one. Just isn't powerful enough."
Nathan nodded. "First-order chalk for first-order glyphs — got it."
Wink drew a perfect circle on the wooden board in his lap. "This is the glyph's keystone — the innermost circle. Since this is a first-order glyph, it's also the only circle. This is where you draw your keyscript. Keyscript tells the glyph when to activate — or trip, as glyphmakers say. Now, watch closely."
He drew some sharp and simple symbols within the keystone, using just a few flicks of his tiny, expert hand. "This is Hydera. It's a script used primarily for — "
The chalk fell from Wink's hand as he made a gesture, falling onto the floor next to Nathan's foot.
When Nathan grabbed the chalk, a jolt of energy rushed through him, shot through every nerve in his body. It was similar to the rush he felt when he tripped the tellies, but it was far less intense. His skin glowed for a moment, just long enough for the eye to see and the brain to doubt.
"No way," Wink whispered, awe evident in his voice.
Nathan stared at the chalk, curious as to the effect it had on him. The thing had lost its dull glow and was crumbling to dust in his hand.
"I'm assuming that wasn't normal," he said.
Wink's eyes were still fixed on the crumbling chalk. "Do you have any icons welded to your spirit?"
"Well, no, not that I'm aware of."
"Then it definitely wasn't normal. In fact, it shouldn't have even been possible."
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