call ’em pack rats, but I call ’em smart little squirrels, keepin’ all their belongin’s close.”
He continued digging through the piles, choosing certain items, tossing others back. Dani struggled to keep from flinging the trash aside and sprinting for freedom. Finally, with a last dump of junk, Stewart patted her butt and nodded to the exit. “Righto. Let’s go see if ol’ Benny’s finished.”
Only her relief at stumbling out into relatively fresher air kept him from getting a bloody nose. She fumed as they rejoined Ben, who’d drawn a wavering circle in the earth, surrounded by arcane glyphs, one of which Dani thought looked suspiciously like a trash can, and another the three-arrowed recycling symbol.
Stewart hummed as he checked over the drawing, then nodded and pointed at the middle. “Drop it all there, lass. Then you’s two gimme a few minutes to prepare the ritual. We’ll get those answers for ya, sure as snot dribbles.”
Dani tossed the trash into the circle, perhaps with more enthusiasm than necessary. She drew a clean towel from a pocket and attacked the smears on her sleeves and gloves. Stewart bent over and muttered to himself as he arranged items at points along the circumference. Dani and Ben stood aside, watching until she whispered to him.
“I don’t understand. Isn’t he Scum? I mean, he works with garbage. That can’t be Pure magic.”
Ben frowned. “He’s a friend. Just ’cause the higher-ups wanna paint the fight between Purity and Corruption in black and white doesn’t mean a few shades of gray ain’t gonna slip in.”
“Do the suits know you two are buddies?”
“Oh, I’m sure someone’s got a file on him back at HQ,” Ben said. “But he ain’t no threat. He just likes spendin’ his time here with his collection. The Board cares more about Scum crazies like Sydney who get out in the world and preach the sweet song of obliviation.”
“Oblivion.”
“Whatever.”
Stewart rose. “Righto. Here’s we go. All set for a good ’n proper divination.”
Dani studied the pile of debris Stewart had arranged. It looked like a hairball hacked up by a giant robot cat. Seeing her dubious look, he nudged the heap with a toe.
“Old newspapers are key. Teemin’ with information and oracular potential. People’s fingerprints, all their worries, fears, right here in ink. Magic older ’n the Rosetta stone.” Stewart looked between them. “I’s sure as not gonna ask for your blood,” he said to Ben. “And it’d be a crime to flaw the lady’s lovely skin, righto?”
Ben frowned. “Didn’t think of that. Mebbe—”
“Never bother,” said Stewart. He stepped around the circle, spitting at intervals. Dani cringed to see blood flecking his spittle. Then he moved into the circle and put his palms flat toward the ground. Dani gasped as static teased her hair and sparked over her lips.
Ben glanced at her. “Feel it too? That’s good. Just don’t let it yank your chain much, a’ight?”
She frowned, then realized she felt what he meant. The core of her that unleashed those awful spells had awakened with Stewart’s enacting of his own spell. The chaotic power rose within her, like a cobra flaring its hood.
Ben must’ve sensed it as well, for he leaned in to murmur. “Hold steady. This ain’t gonna take long.”
A sudden blue aura infused Stewart, as if he’d been hit by a spotlight. At the same time, the tension on Dani’s energies lessened and her power slumbered once more. She realized her teeth were grinding, and forced herself to relax.
The mage’s eyes opened, and Dani was alarmed to see his eyes glowing bright blue, pupils washed out. As he took up a monologue, flashes of light sparked between his crooked teeth.
“Lessee here. Dual cores. Manifestations. Pure and Corrupt? Nutters, I’s say. Waste of time. Mine, specific’ly.”
Dani whispered to Ben. “This is divination?”
“This is you yappin’ and distractin’ me,” Stewart barked, making her jump. “Shut it!”
They stood listening to Stewart’s grumbling as the minutes stretched from five, to ten, to twenty. Dani shifted from one foot to the other, trying to keep herself awake by seeing how many items she could identify buried in the surrounding mounds. Ben kept his eyes locked on the trash mage, face serious, eyes troubled.
Just as Dani counted her fifth Barbie doll—headless—Stewart stiffened.
“Bloody balls, you’s right, Benny. All’s over … got sightin’s of a hydra with a mix of Pure and Corrupt heads. It died attackin’ itself. T’was a window-watcher who summoned a glasskin and got mauled by a blackshard instead. There be somethin’ new makin’ itself known.”
“Got that