Kingdoms

10

{River}

I attach my com to my computer and we all listen. All we can hear is a indistinct, overlapping yelling.
"Maybe you should turn that off." Rose says. There's a loud smack followed by a stunned silence. Bolt starts flying towards the door.
"Bolt!"
"I'll be back." She says
"We better not hear anything about you on the news!" Eli calls after her.
"I'm a princess who suddenly can't walk, I'm gonna be on the news." She disappears.
"Turn off the com." Ari says. I do.
"So Scott-"
"He's over there." Ursa says. Ari turns around.
"So Scott can you still use your powers?" Ari asks
"Uh, kinda." Grey says
"What's kinda?" Daisy asks
"Yes but at a weakened state." Stella says
"Seriously, nobody else can do art magic?" Greta asks, "His words, not mine." Rose tries again.
"Shit." Groans.
"Rose your eye..."
"What?" She looks up at us. Her eye that matches her charm is half purple.
"That's not good." Auni says, "My office. The rest of you, figure out what's going on with Scott." She walks out pulling Rose behind her.
"Scott can you still interact with things?"
"Wrong direction." Ursa says, "He's over there."
"My question still stands." Ari says
"He says he could last night but it's harder to now." Grey says
"He's shadowing." Alex says
"What does that mean?" Grey asks
"It means, though I hate to admit it, the rebellious Phantoms are really smart." Alex says.
"So now he's saying a lot of things." Parker say, "That's a lot of words in his accent."
"What's shadowing?" Callum asks
"It's the process of someone becoming a shadow spirit." Ari says, "Which is why people with shadow powers can still see him... and Phantoms."
"So how do we reverse this process?" Shelby asks. We all look at Ursa, Greta, and Chase.
"Uh, I've seen multiple people be shadowed..." Ursa says, she logs onto the computer.
"Welcome-"
"Shut up." She opens some files and puts them up on the screen, "You can see them, this is in Phantom perspective." We watch a time lapse of someone trapped in a small room.
"And what are we getting from this besides an earful from Scott?" Luna asks. They all look in the same direction, "Stop before we stop talking for you." They all look back at the screen. 
"He started shadowing last night, yeah?" Ursa asks
"Yeah." Lauren says
"Shadowing takes six days, he was hit in three spots so I'll give him two." Ursa says, she looks next to Chase, "Oh shut up."
"Uh-"
"I'm sorry you're worried you might die to." She says flatly, "Stop distracting us so we can figure out how to save your ass."
"Forty-eight hours, it's been eleven." A timer appears on screen.
"Thirty-seven hours." Stella says
"Ursa, do you have blood tests or something from people who are shadowing?" Eli asks
"Nope." She says, "This file is all we have."
"The shadowing is made with modified Phantom magic." Greta says, "Can I use the computer?" Ursa steps aside and Greta does something then pulls another page up.
"It should be here somewhere." She says, "Computer, open file 3248."
"That file does not exist." The computer says.
"That's Dad's file." Chase says
"Damn it, where is it?" She says.
"Open the his archives." Ursa says
"I don't have the code." Greta says
"I do." Ursa says says. Chase and Greta look at her.
"What? You two didn't read Dad's mind from time to time?"
"No, he had blocks that even Siri couldn't get through." Greta says
"Shields weaken when someone is asleep or... busy doing... stuff? I don't know how to-"
"Sixty-"
"Eli." We all say in unison.
"Thank you for telling us." Ari says sarcastically.

{Greta}

"The shadowing is powered by your powers."
"The only way to stop it is by getting rid of the source."
"You're just one person, imagine how many lives you've ruined. Good lives."
"Shut up." I say
"I wasn't even talking." Scott says
"Not you." I say
"Who?"
"Everyone! Just everyone shut up for a second." I say
"The only way to stop shadowing is to get rid of you."
"No, there's another way." I say
"We're all ears."
"Time is ticking."
"I mean, it might not be that big of a deal, it's only another innocent person that has the same fate as hundreds of others."
"Yeah, no big deal." They all start talking over each other.
"Ok, I am so close to medicating you all away." I say quietly. They stop.
"Uh Greta-" Ursa stops him.
"It looks and sounds crazy but something that not even Eli can think of always comes out of this." She says
"I don't really think that's a good way to look at schi-"
"Shut up." I say
"It's like Rose's arm, there was a source and to fix it, they got rid of it."
"Don't bring Rose into this." I say
"I-"
"Shut up." I repeat
"What if we just get rid of our powers instead of Greta?"
"Ok, first of all, they're not your powers." I say, "And getting rid of them has the same effect, I'd just die powerless."
"Um-"
"Ok, I've said this multiple times." I say, "Shut up."
"You're Phantom powers are the source, you can't live without your Guardian powers."
"That won't work, take the Phantom magic you take the Guardian magic with you." I say
"Not if you put all your magic in charms and you surround yourself in magic energy."
"But we'd need a lot of energy for that."
"Stop saying "we," all you guys do is keep me up at night."
"The energy thing is true, it'd be much easier to just get rid of you."
"Say that again and all of you are going away." I say
"Uh, I think you should-"
"Do you have any better options?"
"I-"
"Not you." I say
"Nope."
"It's die or get rid of your Phantom powers."
"That's also risky."
"What's the chance it works?"
"Lower than the chance it works if you were to just-"
"Nobody asked you."
"I can figure that out."
"Liar, if I can't you can't."
"I'm sorry, do you control me?"
"Ursa, what's the chance I live if I get rid of my Phantom magic?" I ask
"Uh, slim?" She guesses, "Eli?"
"Uh..." He mumbles something, "At best, seventy-five... maybe sixty percent?"
"Either way it gets the job done." I say
"Can you elaborate for those of us who don't fall under the genius category?" Jesse asks
"But you do-"
"That's the not the point." She says, "I don't go into someone's head when they're talking to themselves, it's a big mess and I don't want a part of that."
"My Phantom powers are the source of the Shadowings." I say, "When it was being created I had the strongest magic in the Phantom population so they used my powers."
"I'm still confused." Jay says
"My powers run the shadowing." I say, "Get rid of them and you stop it."
"Oooh, ok."
"One problem." Ari says, "You-"
"I can live without my Phantom powers." I say, "We just have to prevent my Guardian powers from going with them."
"Put all your magic in charms and you surround yourself in magic energy."
"But takes up a while and we don't have that kind of energy." I say
"You can survive with a just drop of Guardian magic but you'll be unconscious. You have more Guardian magic than Phantom magic so you add another drop every time the previous one gets sucked out."
"We'd need Bolt for that, she has the quickest reflexes." I say, "One mistake and it's over."
"It still gets the job done."
"I'm completely fine with those two options, I can get rid of you guys." I say
"The meds don't work like that. They help you control us, not make us disappear."
"Then what's the point?"
"They help with hallucinations and paranoia." Siri says. We all look at her.
"Congrats, you're not the only genius who can't control the shit in their head." She says, "Also, option two in your best option, Skye also has quick reflexes and I can freeze time."