The Sorcery Code by Dima Zales and Anna Zaires

Chapter 8: Gala

Gala watched the play of emotions on her creator’s expressive face. He was disappointed, she could see that, and it hurt, but she needed him to understand that she was a person with her own needs and desires. She wasn’t something to be used to better the lives of people she didn’t know and didn’t care about.

She could see his internal struggle, and then he seemed to come to a conclusion of some kind. “Gala,” he said quietly, looking at her, “I understand what you’re saying, but you don’t know what you’re asking. If anyone found out about you—about what you are—I don’t know what they would do. People fear what they don’t understand—and even I don’t fully understand what you are and what you’re capable of. I can’t let you go out there, not until we know more about you.”

As he spoke, Gala felt the beginnings of something she had never experienced before. It was a strange churning sensation that started low in her stomach and spread upward, making her chest feel unpleasantly tight. She could feel her blood rushing faster in her veins, heating up her face, and she wanted to scream, to lash out in some way. It was anger, she realized, real anger. She hated not being able to do exactly what she wanted.

“Blaise,” she managed to say through tightly clenched teeth, “I. Want. To Go. Out. There.” Her voice seemed to rise with every word.

He appeared taken aback by her temper. “Gala, it’s just too dangerous, can’t you understand that?”

“Too dangerous? Why?” she demanded furiously. “I look human, don’t I? How would anybody guess that I’m not?”

She could see him considering her point. “You’re right,” he said after a moment. “You do appear completely human. But if we go out there together, we’ll attract a lot of attention—mostly because of me, not you.”

“You? Why?” Gala could feel her anger cooling now that Blaise was no longer being so unreasonable.

“Because I quit the Sorcerer Council two years ago,” he explained, “and I’ve been an outcast ever since.”

“An outcast? Why?” Gala had just finished reading about the Sorcerer Council and the power wielded by those who had the aptitude for magic. Blaise seemed to be an unusually good sorcerer—he had to be, in order to create something like herself—and it didn’t make sense to her that he would be an outcast in a world that valued those kinds of skills so much.

“It’s a long story,” Blaise said, and she could hear the bitterness in his voice. “Suffice it to say, I don’t share the views of most on the Council—and neither did my brother.”

“Your brother?” She’d also read about siblings, and she was fascinated by the idea of Blaise having one.

He sighed. “Are you sure you want to hear about this?”

“Definitely.” Gala wanted to learn everything about Blaise. He interested her more than anything else she’d encountered thus far during her short existence.

“All right,” he said slowly, “do you remember what I told you about the Life Captures?”

Gala nodded. Of course she remembered; as far as she could tell, she had a perfect memory. Life Captures were the way she’d initially learned about Blaise’s world.

“Well, as I mentioned earlier, Life Captures were invented by a powerful sorcerer named Ganir a couple of years ago. When they first came out, everyone was very excited about them. A single Life Capture droplet could allow a person to get completely immersed in someone else’s life, allowing him to feel what they felt, learn what they learned. It was also the first magical object that didn’t require knowledge of the sorcery code. All one has to do to record his life is give the Life Capture Sphere a tiny drop of blood. Another drop of blood stops the recording, allowing the Life Capture droplet to form in a special place on top of the Sphere. And then those droplets can be used by anyone, without any special equipment. All one needs to do to experience the Life Capture is put the droplet in his or her mouth.”

Gala nodded again, listening attentively. She wanted to try these Life Captures again, to experience them for the first time in the Physical Realm.

“My brother, who was Ganir’s assistant at the time,” continued Blaise, “was one of the few sorcerers who knew a little bit about how Life Capture magic worked. He saw how it could be used as a learning tool, as a way to teach magic to those who would never be able to gain access to the Academy of Sorcery. He also thought it was a great way for the less fortunate to escape the reality of their everyday life. A regular person could experience what it might be like to be a sorcerer just as easily as the other way around.” He paused to take a breath. “My brother was clearly an idealist. He didn’t foresee the consequences of his actions—both for himself and for the people he wanted to help.”

“What happened?” Gala asked, her heart beating faster as she sensed that this story might not have a happy ending.

“Louie managed to create a large number of Life Capture Spheres in secret and smuggled them out of Turingrad, distributing them throughout all the territories. He thought it might aid the spread of knowledge, improving our society, but that’s not what ended up happening.” Blaise’s voice grew hard, emotionless. “As soon as the Council learned about Louie’s actions, they outlawed the possession and distribution of Life Captures for non-sorcerers, creating a black market and a criminal underclass that specializes in the sale of these objects—thus completely perverting their original purpose.”

“So what happened to Louie?”

“He was punished,” Blaise said, and she could sense the anger burning underneath. “He was tried and found guilty. For giving Life Capture to the commoners, he paid with his life.”

“They killed him?” Gala gasped, horrified at the idea that somebody could lose his life so easily. She was enjoying living so much that she couldn’t imagine ceasing to exist. How could people do this? How could they deny each other the amazing experience of living?

“Yes. They executed him. I left the Council shortly after his death. I could no longer stand to be a part of it.”

Gala swallowed, feeling a painful sensation in her chest. She ached, as though Blaise’s pain was her own. She must be experiencing empathy, she realized, identifying the unfamiliar feeling.

“Could I try more Life Captures, Blaise?” she asked cautiously, hoping she was not causing him additional pain by dwelling on this topic. “I would really like to experience them here, in the Physical Realm.”

To her surprise, his face brightened, like she had said something that made him happy. “That’s a great idea,” he said, giving her a warm smile. “It’s an excellent way for you to experience the world.”

“Yes,” Gala agreed. “I think so.”

She also intended to experience the world in person, but for the moment, the Life Captures would suffice.