Captive of the Shadows (The Fairy Code Book #1) by Kaitlyn Weiss

Chapter Eight

GOOD GOD, how am I supposed to operate this stuff? What's up with no instructions? True, the senior Hogman had explained the basics, and at least Haedyn seemed to grasp it all pretty fast. Now, for the third time, he was trying to show me what to do.

Those are the samples, and right there are the Shadows, and over there are Shadows as well, and that's the unfiltered magic and then here go the Shadows again. Sheesh! The Hogmani had replaced electricity with magic and Shadows. And so the genetic analyzer was now around four feet across and about as high as my waist.

It was all too much for me to process. My brain might as well have shrugged and said, "Do whatever you want. In any case, I have to think about it."

"Rory, assemble the tests," Haedyn said. "You don't possess any magic, but here it's what powers everything, like your electricity. So I'll operate this equipment. Meanwhile, you put your hands here."

He indicated a luminous handlebar, inside of which something viscous and dark gurgled.

"All you have to do is grasp it and imagine what should happen. The Shadows will capture your thoughts and let me know when I can start it up."

It wasn't easy to grasp the handlebar. I looked at it and kept my cool. Haedyn didn't rush me. I think he understood my misgivings and was giving me time to adjust.

Just then the kitten showed up. It looked like a wisp of smoke jumping onto the rail, arching its back and flashing bright green eyes. It paced back and forth, and stretched. I glanced at Haedyn, but he didn't seem to see the Shadow.

Meanwhile, the kitten was obviously trying to assure me that I had nothing to fear. He played with an invisible little ball, pounced at it a couple of times, and tried to bite his own misty tail.

So where'd you come from, you smoky little beastie, eh? I'll talk with you later, when we're alone. I threw a look at the kitten to let him know I'd have plenty of questions for him next time,. Then, finally, I laid my hands on the handlebar.

I was neither hit by a blast of magic, nor hurt in any way. In fact, nothing happened. But then I heard the instrument emit a faint buzzing sound, and the specimen dropped down into a network of transparent pipes surrounded by Shadows and containing those clear, liquefied golden flames. From there, it disappeared from view. Meanwhile, Haedyn was clutching a handlebar on the opposite side in which the Shadows were mixed with a golden light. He was frowning as he stared into space. I could see that his eyes were glowing a little with a golden light. Wowza!

This process went on for three minutes at the most. Then the kitten disappeared as suddenly as it had appeared, and Haedyn straightened up and exhaled. "That's it. It worked."

"Now we just have to wait," I muttered, wiping my brow with my hand. I'd broken out in a light sweat. I guess I was nervous.

"Does it usually take awhile?" Haedyn asked.

"I want to start by carrying out an analysis of the DNA structure, and then breaking it down into fragments for further analysis. So it should take around a day. At home, on Earth, I used computers for all the data, so I didn't have to track everything myself. But here..."

"You told the Shadows what you needed them to do," Haedyn cut in. "And I'm acting as the end-of-session signal. In other words, once the Shadows are done, they'll alert me by summoning me. Have something to eat, Rory. You look like you're played out, again."

"Really?" He was spot on. I wiped my hands on my vest and asked,

"Can we eat somewhere else for a change? Do you have a cafeteria or something like that? If I have to stay inside these four walls another minute, I'll go bonkers."