Tag: short-story

The Mastermind

July 1st, 2026

My dearest diary,

today was a peculiar day. I saw Ken sitting in front of the church, typing furiously on his net-plate. That was very unusual of him, so I greeted the good guy and asked him what was up. He fumbled and couldn’t even form any proper sentence that I could understand, so I just invited him over to a cafe nearby. Ken told me about his brother and asked me if I really meant what I said about certain people needing to suffer for the sake of others.
To be blunt, I totally forgot about Andy when I was debating with Corlux. I know that what I said might be not really empathetic, but on that day, I was so brought up with the topic. I forgot if I already wrote to you that I had to prepare some documents regarding the Children of Thunder. Guess the articles I read had invaded my subconscious in a way I can’t be particularly proud of.
The thing is, Corlux is not aware of a certain group of people using magic with malicious intent. I was investigating cases about misuse of magic in Bormen, because no one really talks about them – because no one really talks about magic. Even though we are a relatively inclusive continent, some people with stronger magical affinities use their abilities to take advantage of the magical lack of others. Corlux, being sometimes busy in his own head, does not realize he is one of the outliers. Yes, magic is good, I even admit that. But no, not everyone will benefit from the freer use of it.
The Children of Thunder got partly isolated because their powers can be used against us – if they fall into the wrong hands. Each diagnosed one gets hidden and gets individual mentorship, partly in order to protect them from that certain group of people. I know the current conditions are not ideal and their loved ones really suffer from that kind of treatment, but I myself am struggling to find any better solution. On one hand, they have to be taught to contain their magic, on the other they have to be protected so that those people who want to take advantage of them don’t get full access to them. We already established a system to hide each one so well…
Anyway, I couldn’t say everything to Ken. It will distress him even more. But after we finished talking things out, I accompanied him home and then visited the bookstore next to it.
And guess who I bumped into: Corlux!
He insisted talking to me, even though I pretended not to see him (and I’m sure he knew). Then he dragged me to Jeremy’s home, and they talked about some plan they had to bring out Andy and two other people. Some loose connections that would benefit them all. Well, what can I do? What do you think did I do? Did I disclose the information I just wrote to you? I couldn’t.
But I didn’t have to. Jeremy is a sharp one. He knows I have my blunders, but he also knows there are things I am not allowed to talk about. This guy seems to know everything, but he’s actually just pretty observant. Before our bar meeting the other day, he caught me reading some articles on the criminal cases done by some magically powerful people. He just pretended he didn’t see anything.
Corlux of course didn’t understand our silent agreement. The two of them asked me if I were into the plan. I said that I can’t fully support nor hinder them. If they need an informant, they can deduce things from me (which Jeremy is good at anyway), I won’t stop them, and deep down, I wished we could just do more…
And of course I asked them if Ken already knew about the plan. They said Jeremy took care of it. Which is good, I guess. Ken seems to be more open to Jeremy than Corlux and me. But yes, Ken needs a lot of assurance. But he will help in any way he can.
So we sat down for a little while longer and thought about all the things we need to do. Jeremy is usually good in providing the concepts, but I have the insider knowledge and connections that is needed to execute them. Corlux? He has the gut and motivation to do all that needs to be done. Ken is usually the one who assembles the people needed to do it. He’s good at that, charming as he is – if he’s at his best state.
So, what do we need? Ah, I don’t dare to write it down to you yet. What if someone caught me? It’s enough that they know I’m involved in this matter, but no one should know what I did exactly. I will talk about something else, and maybe provide you with more details once everything is settled. And forgotten…

I need to be blunt, what Jeremy is planning does make sense, but we just need a way to… “sell it”. I know one or two people who could support us. I wished all the Children of Thunder could get a proper education for their powers. But well, I think it is then my main task to catch the mastermind of this peculiar group before we continue with our work. I am already working on it, but once the plan has been fulfilled, I will pour all my soul into this work. Jeremy might help me. If he thinks it is worth the risk.
I know, I’ve only read news articles and some dubious magazines, and some gossips here and there. But where there is smoke, there is fire. I even found some victims involved. This is a very delicate situation, and I am afraid to write everything down. I might have even written too much about it. Maybe I have to think of another way to write about it. With codes or so. Whatever.
But yes… Who is this mastermind? Why does no one talk about how present magic actually is in Bormen? It’s really sneaky, and I don’t like sneaky. I only like it when Jeremy is sneaky. Corlux is so clumsy it makes me nauseous.
I have to apologize to Ken for the things I said the other day. I didn’t mean it that way. Well, that happens if you think one thing, and want to say the other. Especially if you can’t disclose too much either. Maybe I should ask them to meet up again one day… Then we can have a proper conversation…

Aneon
The Plan

April 30th, 2026

It is a good evening. Jeremy finally managed to bring Corlux to imbue his music player with enhanced magic. Now, he does not have to worry again if someone cracked his discs. His machine can now interpolate the lost data as long as the disc is still in one piece. “Now Corlux, enjoy the gifts of heaven with me!” He handed his magician friend a bottle of beer. Corlux’ favorite kind.

But the former child prodigy waved off the offer. “Gift of heaven, bah! What you are listening to is just the same old things all over again! I thought you could do better!”

“Hey!” Jeremy was slightly offended with that blunt remark. That is not true, the pattern in the music is what is called genre. “But you are right… But in the end, is it not all about patterns?” Whatever, Corlux has to deal with this background tune now. He will not swap the disc just because Mr. Special does not like it.

“Patterns this, pattern that. You think, you write -“

“I observe!”

“You observe, you think, you write, and then you rot in this coffin and nothing changes in the world.”

Jeremy sighed. This again. Well, Corlux has always been like this, and he’s got a point. The good host put the magician’s staff aside and sat himself next to the sassy friend. “That’s why I often invite you over, so that you know where my manuscripts are when I die.”

Corlux laughed out loud. “This thing with death again! Why do you wait anyway? Why not publish it now? You’ve got some good stuff, no? At least I could use some of your ideas to poke on Aneon.”

“Well, if you publish my things after I die, and my works really turn out to be much-read, I will become that mysterious person no one ever knew about and everyone regretted overlooking. But if I publish now, I’m just a honky who seeks attention.” Jeremy stood up again to fetch his tea. Since Corlux turned down his beer, he poured him a cup too. “Anyways,” he continued as he put aside his kettle. “What is the plan now? We achieved the goal of confronting Aneon in front of Ken, and you saw how it turned out – not good.”

The magical genius leaned back on the couch. “We are just at the very start, my friend. We now need some of the involved, and actually send them off to a magic school.” Corlux stared at his cup, then decided to pick it up. “Mind you, I also do this for self-interest. I wished I could go to Iluskia and come back as a master, but I’ve come to realize that I am more needed here than there. If we can send off someone, they could teach me when they get back. But by that time, everything needs to be set up.”

“Hm- I know some.”

“Promising ones?”

Jeremy shrugged. “Surely, if they have the magical affinity, does it not mean they have the innate potential? But I know that there are other things one should take into consideration.” He glanced at Corlux “Like whether they will be able to stand you enough in the first place to teach you anything at all.”

“Hmp!”

“Agnes has put into her friend’s head the idea that she should consider traveling to Iluskia. My cousin’s fiance is already setting up himself to go by himself. It’s all smart and fancy with his water motors, but he forgot the fact that he needs to pass the Bormenian harbors in the first place. Which is not possible.”

Corlux sat up. “You rotten piece of meat! And no mention of Ken’s brother!”

Jeremy put down his cup and looked Corlux straight in the eyes. “Andy doesn’t like you. Besides, he’s too young. And he is Ken’s brother. It’s not someone you should use for your own benefit. Ken would not like it.”

“But Ken would like it if his brother could be… free”

The good host just sighed. “I don’t think the agreement with you would make him truly free. If you want to help the boy be free, then let him study to Iluskia – or Rorg, where he actually wishes to go – and don’t expect him to come back just to teach you magic. If you leave it up to him whether he comes back or not, and don’t expect him to do you a favour, then… maybe. But business with friends is always bad business, mind you.”

Corlux went silent. Jeremy has always got a point. It’s Ken and Jeremy he is dealing with. He will not be able to get around them, and if he wants to make an agreement, it has to be serious. And he knows that Jeremy from then on will not treat them as friends until the “business” is over. Which is not a problem, but it will hurt Ken. “But I feel bad if I were to send off someone else and let Andy rot in that hut. I know his brother is taking good care of him, and we also help as much as we can. You know what I mean.”

Jeremy sipped on his tea again, and refilled Corlux’ cup when he saw it empty. “Let’s make it like this. We send off Agnes’ friend and Andy. But I take charge of Andy and he is free of any agreement – he will return the favor by himself, in his own way anyway. You make the agreement with Agnes’ friend, but also make sure she makes it there – travel, housing, and so on. We could coordinate with my cousin’s fiance so that he can travel out with the group, but he will manage himself and get by without any help of us in the first place. We pack friendly duty, business, and charity in one go and everyone is happy.”

Corlux picked up his tea. “Sounds interesting. However,” now he holds the cup, gently, sprinkling some magic in it, “how about the money? We went from sending one person to three. Just to ease our conscience.”

“We put all the money we collected on Agnes’ friend. I will coordinate with Ken about Andy, and the last guy has all things settled anyway. He already send my cousing to Iluskia so she can set up their home and so on. That guy has all things planned except for how he wants to get out from here. So we are just doing him a big favor with something very small – let him travel with Agnes’ friend. And then he will also watch over her – naturally.”

This is typical of Jeremy. He already got things planned out even before Corlux entered the room, it seems. “Jeremy,” he then said as he watched colorful clouds pop out from his tea cup. “You know that you could be terrifying if you have other things in mind, don’t you?”

Being his truest self, Jeremy shrugged. “I know that people like me always walk the thin line between heaven and hell. I just hope that when I trip, I fall head-first into heaven.” The host stood up, fetching more tea.

The two discussed, argued, nagged each other for some more time before Jeremy called it a day. Now the plan is set, and all that is left is to do what has been already planned.

As last thing he did for the day, Jeremy pulled out his net-plate and replied to Ken’s message: “He will be fine. Don’t worry.”
Electrified

September 27th, 2025

Not again. Agnes forgot to not bring any metal when she was visiting me. The small ring got too hot in my presence, and now we are here, sitting quietly, feeling sad. It was her boyfriend’s gift. Not anything serious yet, but maybe hinting at it. And of course, I felt bad for not intentionally making it untouchable for the next few hours. The glowing ring almost burned off her finger, but we managed to take it off her and let the table suffer instead. Luckily, I had a stone plate and now it is sitting there. Red, with some bubbles of the other materials made to decorate it…

“I think it’s getting stronger…” She finally said after lamenting the most probably damaged piece of accessory. “I mean, your magic.”

I shrugged, it might be. We both live in the only continent of Ivengard where technology thrives like the other world. But inheriting electricity magic, it became impossible for me to enjoy all that. The electric field I am emitting disrupts all kinds of metal – and thus all kinds of electronic devices. And well, I think with basic physics you might know that at some point, the metal gets warmer… Maybe that is what Agnes was thinking: My magic got so strong to the point that it can almost melt metal.

“Why don’t you go to a magic school, then?” Agnes asked, half to herself – half to me, I guess.

I shrugged again. “I can’t look them up… I can’t go to town without causing any restlessness, I can’t go into the network. I could maybe try to use the crystal ball of my parents, but… My magic skills are not advanced enough…”

“Huh,” my petite friend answered. “Why didn’t you tell me earlier? I could look them up for you, and bring you my notes…” She looked across the room, as if she could find the words among the shadows. “I mean, if you learn some magic, maybe you could control that electricity… Could you not?” She tilted her head, as if the answers were already written in some angle on my face.

“But then I would need to learn electricity magic… I don’t know if anyone is ever familiar with that… Our kind is very rare, and because they all need to isolate… Well…” I shrugged. “But you’re right. Maybe I could just try. Learn some basics. And then maybe I could figure something out myself.”

My friend smiled, seemingly pleased with my response. “And I think you’re not the only one.” Now she seemed to look for her words in the window sill. She looked over quickly to the stone plate where we put the ring, and went to put it outside. Maybe she realized that it would never cool off if it stayed near me.

“My sister’s friend moved to Iluskia. I think her fiancé has this electricity magic too. She’s going ahead to handle the logistics. I think he needs to wrap some things up here before he is good to go.”

“Oh, he seems busy…”

Agnes nodded. “Yes. I think he made this kind of devices from wood. Little motors and such that move with water and other things. Because you know, he also struggles with metals.”

“But how will he travel? Wouldn’t it cause a commotion if he went abroad? I mean the trip… You wouldn’t be able to be fully free from metal, right?”

Now Agnes shrugged. “I think that is what he’s trying to figure out now. As far as I remember, he knows a little bit of magic, so maybe he can contain it to a certain extent…”

“Huh, interesting…” I thought about all the possibilities I could have if I wouldn’t be causing others so much trouble. I could maybe have my own electronic device, and be on the network with the others. Agnes’ stories always made me want to explore that digital world…

Though, maybe I could be like that guy who is moving to Iluskia. I have heard that the other islands are not that technology dependent as Bormen. Maybe… Maybe there, I wouldn’t need to isolate this much. And if I could learn a good amount of magic. Maybe… Agnes’ ring wouldn’t be glowing like now…

“Alright then, time for dinner? The ring needs to cool down anyway!”

I nodded, glad that there might be other possibilities for me than staying in this wooden hut.
Flowers

August 16th, 2025

No matter the season, she showed up every day at sharp 6 in the morning, a bundle of flowers in her hand. I never really talked to her, but she always greeted me whenever we cross paths. However, on that day, I decided to change the pattern.

“Where do you take those flowers?” I finally asked her.

She looked down, smiling hesitantly. “To my mother.”

“That’s very sweet of you. Does she live at the city center?”

She nodded. Though sadly, it was the only thing she wanted to disclose about herself. “How about you? What are you usually doing at this hour? I just realized I never asked…” Typical of her. If she did not want to talk about herself anymore, she turns the attention to the other person.

I smiled at her, glad that she showed the slightest hint of interest for me. “I am just going for a walk. I like it most when no one is around.”

“Hah, then I should get going,” she started to step away, chuckling, probably taking it as a perfect opportunity to break off the conversation. “Have fun on your walk, and see you tomorrow!”

This girl has always had her walls up. She would be warm on the surface, but the moment I started to ask something slightly personal, she deflected my questions. And although she never said anything when I disclosed something about me, she did seem to remember those little details – on my birthday, she gave me a little crystal because I told the group that I wanted to collect rocks. I only told her my birthday once, but she seemed to remember it. She did similar things to our other friends. Some people get unsettled by her private demeanor, and to be honest, sometimes I was not sure to which extend she likes – or tolerates – me. But I guess that is just how she is: Having thick walls up, but sometimes opening up a window. I sometimes wonder if she also acted that way in her other friend groups.

The next day, we met again. This time, she did not give me an opening. On the evening, we met at the group hangout. She told everyone how her day went – except the flowers. I tried to ask her about them again, but she deflected as usual.

Then came the next day. She seemed a little gloomier than usual. “Is everything alright?” I was concerned about her well-being because she did not seem to talk to anyone about her problems.

She smiled. I know that smile. There was something going on. “Yes, I just had difficulties sleeping like usual…” Of course she did not want to tell me what was going on. I did not continue my walk as usual but stood there until she was out of sight. I think I caught her rubbing her eyes. I heard from others that she had this bad habit of rubbing and scratching her eyes, it was maybe a small blessing that she was wearing glasses. But well, if you still rub your eyes with your glasses on…

I did not see her the day after.

And the day after.

And the next day.

I sent her a message, asking if everything was alright. Yes, she said, only caught a cold. She usually gets a fever on October, so she told me. “Do you need anything?” I asked her just to make sure.

“No, thank you. I have a friend who brings me some food. I hope I am well again by next week!”

She did appear again the next week. The fever must have been challenging for her, as I saw her still being weak and looking drowsy. “I can come with you, if you want?” I thought, if I could not be the person she confides in, or someone she did not trust yet, maybe I could just be there for her.

She stood still for a while. I did too. Then she nodded, and went ahead.

We did not take the bus, but walked all the way to the city center. Every time we passed a grave, she laid out some flowers in her hands, made the sign of the cross, and prayed for a little while. I did not share her religion, so I just stood there and watched. She did not bring the flowers to her mother.

We arrived at the church which she often talked about. She told me to wait, and came back with a key in her hand. She opened the front gates, then the ones of the church. With her finger on her mouth she told me to keep silent, else people would come and ask if they could enter the church. It would not be a problem if she had the time and social energy, but she told me that she currently lacked both. I chuckled but then nodded, and we sneaked in.

The church was still dark, she made the sign of the cross again with the holy water from the basin, and watched if I did the same. I hesitated, and she just shrugged. Then she turned some switch, and the Marian altar lit up. She looked my way, so I came to her. “This is my mother,” she told me, and put the last flowers in her hand in front the icon.

Tag: short-story

The Mastermind

The Plan

Electrified

Flowers