Enter Uncle Othin
—-

“Hey old man. How are ya?” Minus answered at his Uncle’s hello.

“Holy shit, Minus? I didn’t think you’d made it out. Where the hell have you been?” Othin was very surprised to hear from his nephew after such a long time.

“Made it out? What do you mean, Uncle?”

“Well, I haven’t heard from you in almost three years. I thought the Mist had taken you.” Othin replied. He spoke slowly, but with a lot of enthusiasm. He came across as the wise grandfather figure, even though he was only 48. Well, he had been 48, three years ago. Minus had not aged a day, but his uncle had not been so lucky.

“Whoa, hang on Uncle O. The Mist is taking people?”

“I’m not sure. People have disappeared. People who could see the Mist. I haven’t been able to really figure out what is happening to them, despite two years of research.” Othin’s voice was soothing and reassuring, despite the context of the conversation.

“Shit, this goes further than I had thought,” Minus replied. He related the events that lead to his disappearance to Othin.

Othin listened, but answered only with “Yes” or “Right.” He was observing and he was thinking.

“Minus, have you contacted Doctor Mancini? This is really his forte. He understands traps and consequences. The bouncer, umm.. Harry? You knew him, yes? Is it possible to contact him, and see where the silver line reaches?”

Minus had not thought of this. Othin was always good for excellent, although odd, advice.

“I also think it may be time to hang from the world tree again. You are certain he said ‘Runes to Swords’ and then ‘Swords to Rope?’ This would indicate the Magician and the Hanged Man, and…. hmm.. the Princess of Swords? I’ll do some research. Be in touch.” And with that Othin hung up the phone.

Minus was more than a little confused. He pulled some small white pills from a box near the desk. Swallowed them with a glass of wine, and laid back down on the sofa bed. He curled up next to Jane, and entered oblivion.

—-

Jack
I Listen.

The Cost of Magic
Section #11
Enter Uncle Othin

Love Was Made
—-

The phone rang, interrupting Minus’ talk about alacrity. He looked at his cell.

“It’s Doctor Mancini, I’ve got to take this.”

He answered the phone and walked into the office part of his basement bunker. Jane could not make out anything he said really. Choice words here and there, but nothing that could make sense.

Minus returned after twenty minutes or so.

“The good doctor has found some very useful information. But he believes that we should stay here for now, and try to get in touch with my uncle, Othin, before we really move. He thinks that Harry didn’t know he was drugging us in a bad way. Seems like Harry was nothing more than a patsy. All of this information he gleaned from studying our Akashic records. He’s forbidden to speak of our pasts or futures, but he encourages learning. He thinks I should learn from you as much as I can, and that I get you fully into the Synchronicity Stream. It looks like we have a lot to work on while we are holed up in here. He said he would be in touch, and would continue his research. He wants me to call him after I have touched base with Othin.”

“Well, I think we have a lot to teach each other, but why don’t we lie down and watch some TV for a bit. This has been very stressful.”

They laid down. Minus kissed Jane. They made love for the first time that night. It was everything that either could ask for. It solidified their deep-seated love for each other.

Minus awoke the next morning, his head completely clear. A solid direction for the first time, in a long time, made him a little giddy. It was not something that you often saw in Minus. He was ready for the day, and all of the bullshit that would come with it.

Jane was sound asleep. He dressed a little, some pajama pants and a t-shirt. He then went into the slightly cordoned off office. He picked up his cell phone and called his uncle.

Othin answered with a start. He was surprised to hear from Minus. It had been three years, after all.

—-

Jack
I Listen.

The Cost of Magic
Section #10
Love Was Made

In Which the Good Doctor Learns
—-

And with that, they both opened their eyes on Minus’ converted basement. They agreed that a nap was necessary to replenish their energies before further work. They laid down on the sofa bed. Jane curled up next to Minus.

“When do you think we can get some real time together?” she asked.

“Probably later tonight, my love. We’ll need the stress relief.” he smiled at her.

And with that they drifted off into sleep. They both dreamed of each other during that brief nap. Sweet and innocent dreams, unmarred by the things of the past or present. Dreams only of a very happy future.

***

On the opposite side of the world, Doctor Mancini was in deep meditation. He was exploring the Akashic Library for his friend, Minus. Minus was, for a reason unknown to Mancini, barred from entering the Library by any means.

He had stumbled upon a few interesting points, and had studied the couples’ three years in that bar very carefully. He could see the pattern and how they had become stuck. But he was uncertain as to whether this bouncer named Harry actually had anything to do with it. Harry was most likely just a pawn or a patsy. Mancini realized that he should inform Minus of this as soon as he could, because Minus would surely go to Harry first, when it came time for him to leave the home. He had also gleaned some interesting details about Miss De la Moore. She was much more than she seemed. Her past lives indicated that she had been in Minus’ life many times before. And they were not all good times. He could not relay this bit to Minus. When he entered the realm of mysticism he had taken a vow to never tell anyone about their past or future lives. But there was even more to Jane. Judging by all of the things he had viewed, Jane should be a powerful magician. Yet she was not. She was able to only perform a few mediocre glamors and enchantments. She seemed to learn quickly. He had seen her enter the Synchronicty Stream to find Minus. They seemed to be undergoing a bit of master/teacher at the moment.

Mancini wondered if this would awaken latent power in either of them. Minus had lost almost all of his magical powers a few years ago, during a world changing catastrophe that very few even knew had occurred. It was a terrible nightmare and a glorious dream to those that could remember.

He shuttered at the memory. It had been terrible. He lost his life in that war, only to be shot back into a bruised and beaten body at the end. Having actually witnessed what the afterlife could really be, he had devoted his life to the fight to save it.

The war still raged, but it was on a much smaller scale now. He did his part, serving as a general in his dream worlds. Mancini’s mind never actually slept anymore. His body rested, but his spirit continued.

If either Minus or Jane were to awaken latent powers, it could flip the sides in that dream war very quickly. Mancini was not certain this was a good idea. He read another page and saw that Minus was giving Jane a little history on alacrity. He jerked back into his body and made the phone call, interrupting the lecture.

—-

Jack
I Listen.

The Cost of Magic
Section #9
In Which the Good Doctor Learns

The night turned into day, then night again. The two new lovers had drowned the world out. They left all the pain behind. They existed for no other reason than to make each other happy. Atom bombs would shake the world, and they would not leave each other. Strange things would walk the earth, and recreate it. But the lovers would not know. Time passed like wine from a glass, but not a day’s age could be seen.

At that corner booth, nothing changed. But even the bar changed around them. It grew in size, and deflated, and grew again.

After years of talking and drinking, Minus excused himself. He stepped out the back door, shivered in the winter chill, and lit a cigarette. He leaned against the cold brick wall, and tried his best not to think. Across the street an illuminated clock tower, on the top of a bank, told him that it had been three years since he had entered the bar.

This didn’t really surprise Minus. He knew how odd time could be. Outside his 28 years, he had lived forever. But he wondered to himself how many times had Harry approached them and made the same offer? Night after night, for 3 years? Or just that first night?

Minus walked back inside and sat down next to Jane.

He did not tell Jane about the bank’s clock tower. He simply pulled the brown bag out from under the table, and pulled out his homemade wine. Within a minute, Harry was at the table, asking about memory again.

“Maybe last night, but not tonight. Not ever,” Jane answered in much the same way that Minus remembered.

Harry looked to Minus, “Sir, would you consider tonight an occasion to forget?” The same line. His head was working now. Minus saw the ploy.

“I think it is time for me to remember, Harry. Time to remember everything.”

“As you wish, Sir. Swords to Rope,” Harry dropped only the bag labeled ‘Forget Me Nots’ and walked off.

Minus picked up the bag and emptied it’s contents onto the table. He knew what he would see before we opened it. He remembered all of it. The drinks, and the bags, and the conversations.

Out of the brown paper bag, fell three smaller plastic bags, and a small golden box. The golden box contained a razor, a tube, and 4 red pills. The plastic bags each contained white powder. One labeled ‘K,’ another labeled ‘M,’ and the third was labeled ‘A.’

Jane looked confused. Minus poured them each a glass from his bottle of homemade wine. He dumped out the contents of the golden box, and pushed two of the red pills towards Jane.

“Hold onto these until I tell you to take them.”

“What’s going on, Minus? I feel so confused. My head is spinning…” Jane trailed off, and took a sip of the wine.

“It’s alright, Jane. Someone tricked us. Trapped us. I’m not certain, but I think it was just me that they wanted. This is not the first time something like this has happened to me. My memory is becoming more clear by the second. Please, just do what I ask you to,” said Minus, with a ruffling of his eye brows.

“Okay.. I think..” Jane was dazed. Her heart pounded. Her head throbbed.

Minus was busy emptying the white powders into the golden box. He dumped all 3 bags into the small box, and mixed the powders together. He used the razor to separate the powder in to two equal lines. He finished his glass of wine and poured another, as well as topping Jane’s glass. He took the tube to his nose, and inhaled one of the two lines. He pushed the box towards Jane, and handed her the tube.

She did the same, bringing her line of powder into the nasal cavity. Soon she was wide awake, but everything seemed very dream like. She wasn’t confused any longer. She was starting to remember things. Things she had not thought about in three years. She was a little startled, but she realized that in that time, she had found love. Someone who would never steer her in the wrong direction intentionally.

The last of the homemade wine was poured into their glasses, and at the last sip, Minus told Jane to swallow the red pills.

“Be ready to run. Just in case. I don’t think we will have to. But be ready,” Minus looked at Jane with a fire in his eyes.

He started counting backwards from sixty. When he counted off one, then zero, he pulled out a pack of cigarettes and lit one. He stood.

“Follow my lead,” he told Jane. She really didn’t see that she had much of a choice. She stood up beside him.

They began to walk towards the back door, to which Minus had the key. The bar was completely empty. It looked very different from the time they had entered. Minus reached out his hand and grabbed the knob on the back door. He slung it open, and as he did, they were hit with a torrential rain. He took off his winter overcoat and put it over Jane’s head.

“Run to that truck! That blue one. Really rusty. Hurry!” He had to scream for Jane to hear him over the rain’s noise.

She made a sprint to the truck. When she was standing beside the passenger door, she turned to look at Minus. He was pushing hard against the wind and rain to force the door closed. When he finally got it closed, all of the way, he leaned all of his weight into his shoulder and fumbled with the key in his hands. She saw that he was able to lock the door.

Minus was surprised to find that when he took the key out of the door it had remained closed, and apparently locked. He shoved the key into his pocket and ran for the truck. By the time he got there, the rain had stopped completely, and a mist was coming from the ground.

They got into the truck together and watched the fog rise.

“Remind me to melt this key later,” Minus said under heavy breaths. He still had the cigarette in his mouth, but it was out and completely soaked. He rolled the window down slightly and threw it out.

“What the Hell was that all about?” Jane was almost hysterical. She was fairly certain she should be, but it was hard. She felt very in control for the first time in a very, very long time.

“Time. Time and punishment. Rewards for sacrifices. Runes to Swords. Swords to Rope.”

————-

At the close of part 4, we see the end of a story arc. Strange things have happened. Will you join me again to find out why? If you felt a little confused, it might be a good idea to start with #1.

Jack
I Listen.

The Cost of Magic
Section #4
The Passage of Time

———

Runes to Swords

After the awkward moments that followed the pile up, Minus ordered replacement drinks, four margaritas, and two more pitchers. Jane didn’t tell him the margaritas had been empty before the accident.

They turned up their beer, and took stock of each other. Minus saw the silky, white aura. Jane saw a man that would change her life, and every aspect of it. She didn’t know why.

After Minus finished his pool game, collecting a large wad of cash from the other player. He put his cue up, and joined Jane in the small corner booth. They talked for hours. They told stories. They talked about life. They talked about dreams.

“I walked on water, once,” said Minus as he left the table, in search of the restrooms. “There were pictures, I think…”

Jane was more than a little puzzled as she watched him walk away. They had talked about a lot of things that had been hard to swallow, but were none the less true. But water-walking? She shrugged the statement off to the alcohol.

Minus returned with a bottle in a brown bag. “They closed up about an hour ago, but the staff knows me. This is homemade wine,” he held up the bagged bottle. “And this, is the key to the door. We’re to lock up when we’re done.”

One of the bouncers, who was actually a bit smaller than Minus, walked up to the table. He held out two small brown bags. One was labeled “Forget-Me-Nots,” the other, “Forget-Me-Dos.”

“Sir, would you consider tonight an occasion to forget?” He was looking at Minus.

“No, Harry, but there are many occasions I would love to forget,” Minus sounded more clear, like the drink had no hold on him. Just for a moment.

“Madame, would you consider tonight an occasion to forget?” He looked to Jane.

Jane felt her head clear suddenly. It was more than a little scary. “No, not tonight. Last night, yes. I hope I never forget tonight.”

The bouncer dropped both bags on the table.

“Forget me, then. And forget not this night. Runes to Swords.”

————

Enjoy.

Jack
I Listen.

The Cost of Magic
Section #3
Runes to Swords