That We Might Prevail
copyright 2011 Faeriemage
I learn that magic isn't just a card game.

I didn't need an alarm clock. My room faced east and the first rays of that warm yellow light seeped over the sill past my bare windows. There was the promise of sunny days and long lazy nights. It wasn't quite the summer holiday, but I could taste it in that sunlight.

There was a feeling that resided in my gut; anticipation of what was to come wrapped up in memories of summer days that I'd experienced in my past. It was a feeling of hope, with just a little bit of trepidation. I would have to survive the last few days of school before I would be able to truly revel in the experience.

That day was so much like so many others, and yet, there was something off. Something different. I couldn't put my finger on it then, but I knew that today would be different. I hoped so at least.

I made sure to put on a black long sleeved shirt underneath my yellow school t-shirt. I always thought it made me look a little like a bumble bee, but I had no other choice. I was limited in my wardrobe choices.

Blue jeans that were torn at the left knee, an accident that I wrote off as fashion sense, finished off my ensemble. The fact that these were my only clothes did not even enter into my mind.

The twin angels of anonymity and obliviousness were my only protection from ridicule and bullying. They worked for almost everyone at my school.

I walked alone along the same route at some point between seven oh five and seven ten. Most days I simply hoped that I would be there about the same time that classmates were on their way to school. Certain female classmates that were my entire world at the time, but whose names I have since forgotten.

I will never forget, though, that one had Irish red hair, and the other was a brunette. I didn't see them on my way to the school that morning. They were sitting on the steps chatting when I arrived at school.

I waved as I passed by, and they began to giggle a little. I like to believe it's because they thought I was cute. They were looking at me while they were giggling. There could have been any number of other reasons, but I checked my hair and teeth when I got into school, and my clothing was washed, dried, and pressed nightly.

Well, it could be the fact that my mother insisted on pressing my jeans. No one else I knew ever had ironed jeans.

The smell of mildew pervaded the entryway of the school. It had been there for the two and a half years since I'd started going to high school, and I assume it is still there today.

The building affectionately called Herbert Hoover High School was not a young building. One of the pictures in the football trophy case has a picture of my father, I think. I never personally knew him. I only know that he played football in high school. He also left a pregnant girl behind when he went off to Yale with his entitled girlfriend.

I have mixed feelings about the trophy case.

Like every morning I glanced over at the trophy case as I passed. "Morning, Dad."

As usual, the picture didn't respond. I told myself it was because my father never knew me, and was simply wondering who this strange kid was.

School was a chore to get through, and lunch was one of my only respites this semester. I was on my way to lunch when it happened.

The windows to my left shattered inward as a figure dressed in tight fitting clothing leapt through it. He rolled to a stop and then turned to face the way he'd just come. A second individual wearing the same type of clothing followed closely on his heels.

I ducked behind a door and listened to the screams of the other students.

The first man smiled at the person who'd followed him. There was no warmth in that smile. "So, you're not as old as you seem, eh Rolly."

"Just come back peacfully with me, Neema."

Rolly warily approached, trying to circle around behind Neema, but to what end I couldn't tell. Neema lunged suddenly toward the nearest door and casually ripped it off its hinges.

Before I could even react to this, Rolly put his arms in front of his face to protect it. The door shattered around him and he staggered back a bit.

Rolly began to smile himself and then they really got into it. Their speed was such that I could barely follow their movements, let alone the punches and kicks they were throwing. At one point, the first somehow caught the leg of the second and slammed him into the ground with enough force to crack it.

There was also the sound of shattering bone, but I didn't yet recognize it.

Rolly curled in on himself, and Neema made to leap away again.

His foot sank into the concrete floor, and became trapped there. A man walked up to the wall where the window had been and simply walked through it. The wall dissolved in front of him and then reformed behind him. He made a single glance at the empty window and the glass on the floor began to flow back into place.

He shook his head in disgust at the man lying there on the floor and nudged him with his foot. Rolly began to scream for a couple of seconds, and then relaxed. Rolly stood quickly, and moved beside the new comer.

"Neema, you shouldn't try to escape from the High Lords." said the newest attacker.

"I deserve to make my own choices, High Lord Terrell."

"You have no rights, Neema, except those that we give you."

"There is a document in this country, you may have heard of it, it's called the Declaration of Independence."

"A doggerel wasted on parchment by men for the edification of other men. If you haven't noticed, we are above such mundane matters."

"We are still men, Terrell."

"Watch your tongue, Neema," Rolly said, stepping forward with his fist raised.

"I always knew you for a dog, Rolly, but I never figured you for a scoundrel. Would you really hit a man who can't defend himself?"

"You never knew what it meant to be Enhanced, Neema. You never had to kill to keep the districts safe."

"You mean keep the high lords in power, Rolly"

"Neema," Terrell began, "someone must be in power. If it were not us, then it would be someone else. We've raised you from nothing. Doesn't that mean anything to you?"

"I was a person before you twisted me into an Enhanced. I don't need you to survive."

"How unfortunate."

Neema began to scream as his body began to crumble away into a sort of grey dust. I noticed a ball of energy leave his body before it was too far gone, and the corpse collapsed to the ground. It continued to crumble until all that was left was a pile of the dust and a hole in the floor.

Terrell gestured toward the hole and it sealed itself.

"Rolly, would you please call in a team of Lethe and resolve this. I'd really hate to have another sanction by the Guardians in as many months."

"Yes, High Lord Terrell."

Terrell walked back out the same way he came in: through the wall.

A group of hooded men and women wandered through the school, and where they passed the screaming fell silent. I felt one of them. . .looking into me. I don't know how else to describe it. I felt the command to forget, but I shrugged it off.

I wanted to remember this.

I followed them through the building. They gathered at the entrance to the school, and then walked out. Behind them, the school resumed its normal frenetic pace.

Kids rushed to lunch, hoping to get something to eat before the period was completely gone. I looked around in disbelief. Had they all just. . .forgotten?

I remembered the impression I'd had to forget all I had seen, and realized I was the only one who hadn't followed that command. Whether they'd simply wanted to forget, or were unable to stop it, I was alone in a crowd. That was normal for me.

The rest of the day went in a blur. I know I went to class, because no one called my mom about it, but I don't remember a single thing that was taught that afternoon. All I could think about was the vista that had opened up before my eyes. I could see so many new possibilities. Magic existed in this world.

I had to know more.

The library remained open for an hour or so after the last bell rang. The periodicals and reference materials were all out of date, but they did have some computers with internet access, and since I didn't have a computer at home, it was my only option.

The smell of books pervaded the quiet space. Not many other students chose to make use of the library, even during school hours. It was one of my sanctuaries and the librarian always had a ready smile for me.

I remember her as being old, but I doubt she was much older than twenty-five.

Strange the things that your mind remembers. Stranger the things it forgets.

I know I spent the next four hours in the library. I hid in the staff washroom when the librarian told me it was time to lock up soon. She assumed that I left. The washroom was clean and had a slight floral scent to it.

I turned the computer back on and used one of my teacher's passwords to log in. He thought he was being sneaky putting the password to his school account on the bottom of his tape dispenser.

I'm not the only student who used his account without his knowledge.

I don't remember anything that I researched that day. None of it was true, and so I made room for the knowledge I received later. It did excite me, however. It gave me a sense of purpose. I wanted to join with this group.

When I was done, I shut off the computer and slipped out into the hallway. The lights were off, except for the emergency lighting, which meant that even the janitors had gone home for the day.

The hallway where this had all started was on my way out of the school and I stopped here for a moment. There was no mark on the floor where the man's, Neema's, foot had been. The window was whole.

I looked out through the window. This close to summer vacation the sun would be up for hours yet, but I could still make out the ball of energy that I'd seen leave the body of Neema just before he died. It was hovering there as if waiting for something. I ran a little way down the hall and pushed open the fire door. An alarm sounded, but I didn't really care.

The ball was still floating there until I began to approach it, and then it floated a little further.

"You might be able to succeed where I failed," I heard a voice say.

"Who's there!"

"I understand this burden is heavy, but you have the strength to bear it. I can see that in you."

I stopped dead in my tracks. Could it possibly. . ? The voice sounded like. . .

"I am Neema, or more specifically that which was Neema and has not yet crossed over."

"You're a ghost," I said a bit skeptically, "like that's plausible."

"Boy, you saw someone walk through walls, watched as your entire school forgot a few minutes of their lives, and witnessed a duel between two. . .ninja."

"You don't look anything like a ninja," realizing what I'd said I modified it a bit, "well I mean didn't."

"Just because neither of us were in black, and our faces weren't covered, doesn't mean we aren't ninja. Didn't you ever watch Japanese anime? They actually get some things right. . .once in a while."

"Why me?"

"Because you're one of the strongest Minds I've ever met. You didn't have to even think about ignoring the suggestion that you forget the fight."

The word had a capital letter the way he said it. I didn't know what a Mind was, but even the possibility that he was right, that I was something special, sent a thrill through me.

"Does that mean I could become a High Lord someday? The way he walked through that wall. . ."

"Don't covet the gifts of the Body when yours are the gifts of the Mind. Come, we have a long way to go tonight. You'll have to proceed on foot, so it will take you about three days to get where we're going."

"Where are we going?"

"To present you before the High Lords, of course."

With that, the ball of energy, Neema, began to move away.

"Wait up!"

Neema paused for a moment or two while I got closer, and then began to move away again. We walked until it got dark, and then walked some more. The city ignored us as we continued through it to the edge.

The entirety of my life I had spent in the confines of this city. It wasn't even that big, really, but it had been my home. I spared a thought for my parents, but the draw of adventure pulled me forward. I didn't want to go home yet.

I had nothing else to do so I began to talk to him, "So, what's it like being a ghost."

"You named me a ghost. I never said I was."

"But, you said. . ."

"That I was what was left of Neema that hadn't passed over. I'm something like an echo. If there is life after this one, then Neema has passed into that life."

"What do I call you, then?"

"Neema."

"Ok, so now you're just being confusing."

"I'm not trying to be. I think we are missing a point of reference."

"How much of you is what Neema was?"

"All of me, but a better question would be how much of what Neema was am I."

"You're confusing," I said with a little laugh.

"I don't try to be. I am a free floating residual image of the thoughts of Neema."

"Wait, what?"

"A ghost would be a person's soul. I had no power over the soul, and so I can't be a ghost. I did have power over the mind. I released a copy of myself just before I died. Apparently it killed me."

"I thought that disintegrating killed you."

"The High Lord Terrell didn't want to let me go so easily. It would likely have taken me minutes to die. He didn't really have the time to make it take hours, but if he did. . ."

"Why did he kill you?"

"Because I escaped. Enhanced are not allowed to leave."

"If you knew it would happen, why did you leave."

"Some things are more important than life, child."

"I'm not a child."

"Oh really," Neema said with some amusement, "how old are you?"

"Fifteen," I replied.

"Still so young. Pick up the pace, child."

"Can you just call me Sebastian."

"Is it your name?"

"No, but I always wanted to be called Sebastian."

Neema snorted, "It's your life, for the moment, Sebastian. I can call you that."

"How can you snort if you have no lungs?"

"I'm speaking directly to your mind, Sebastian. I can do anything I can imagine myself doing."

I took some time to think about that one. We followed a highway through the countryside. During the day it probably would have been pretty, but there wasn't enough light now to tell. Like most cities, the light pollution washed out all but the brightest stars, and it was difficult to pick out the constellations that I was only vaguely familiar with.

"This way, Sebastian. It's time to sleep."

I followed Neema through the darkness and over a slight rise. We were hidden from the road, although I could still hear the occasional car passing by. I thought that sleep would be a long time in coming, but it found me soon enough.

The sunlight filtering through the sparse leaves woke me, and I stretched. The ground had not been the most comfortable of beds, but at least I'd slept.

"Time to go, Sebastian."

"Ok, when's breakfast."

"The sooner we get to our destination, the sooner you can eat."

"Three days without food?"

"We made relatively good time yesterday. If we keep that pace, we might even get there today."

"How far is it?"

"Only another fifty miles."

"Fifty? Miles?"

"Sure. Not all that far really."

"How far have we come already?"

"About twenty miles. I really thought you'd have trouble walking for more than ten miles before you were ready to collapse. Then twenty miles a day for the next few days. You've impressed me already, Sebastian."

Fifty miles.

My legs were sore, and my feet were beginning to blister from last night's hike. And now I had another two and a half times the distance to travel.

"I can't do this."

"Sure you can. Your mind has more power than you give it credit for."

I sighed in resignation and moved down to the shoulder of the road.

"That's the spirit."

"Not a word out of you, Neema. I can't handle it right now."

"What?"

"I am tired, I am sore, I would prefer to be in a car or at home. The only reason I'm still heading forward is because it would almost be worse to head back."

"You do realize that's illogical, right?"

"Shut up. Don't examine my motivations."

I got the distinct impression that Neema was smiling at me.

I think my legs fell off about the time I hit thirty miles from home. I only say that because I stopped being able to feel them. All that existed for me was keeping my feet moving, one after the other. Last night had been easier for me, for some reason. I was fresher, or more motivated, or something.

Possibly it was simply the fact that I didn't have any idea how far I needed to travel. Fifty miles seemed so big to me. Neema tried to engage me in speech, but I wasn't in the mood. I think I must have entered a sort of fugue state after that. My mind sort of wandered as I simply kept following Neema. A couple of times he directed us toward a gas station where I got a couple of long drinks of water from the tap and then we were moving again.

I hurt all over by the time that he called a halt. I was discouraged and ready to turn around and head back the way I'd come.

"I think we should call a break, Sebastian."

"I want to finish this, Neema."

"You've been slowing down for the last hour, and are barely crawling now. We can finish the last fifteen miles tomorrow."

I looked at him in shock. After the talk he'd given me that morning, I thought we would be so much closer. I'd only been about to do about thirty five miles and I'd been walking since sun up. The sun had an hour or so to go before it passed beyond the horizon, and I hoped to maybe get another ten miles before I stopped.

"Sebastian, you need to rest."

I looked at him and then followed him off the road. I sat down intending to just rest for a moment. I closed my eyes. Yes, it would be good to sit here for a couple of minutes.

When I opened my eyes again the sun was just coming up over the far horizon.

My legs still ached, but I had a little more energy. Which was a bit amazing considering my stomach was grumbling.

My revitalized feeling left me fairly quickly as I again began to walk toward my unknown destination. I entered another city around noon, or I should say I realized I was in another city. Many cities extend for miles beyond their official borders. Urban to Suburban and finally rural in a gradual blend.

I hoped that this meant that I would be reaching my destination soon. The pain in my feet and legs made concentration on more than simply moving forward a chore, but I paid enough attention to my surroundings to realize that people seemed to be watching me a little.

I supposed that a bedraggled boy stumbling along and talking to himself was something to watch.

Neema kept up a running commentary that I responded to whenever it seemed appropriate. We continued on like this for another hour or so when a beige minivan pulled over in front of us.

An older woman in a conservative dress and sweater climbed out of the driver's seat, "Can I help you get somewhere?"

"No thank you. I think I'm almost to where I'm going."

"Aren't you sure?"

"Never been there before. Neema is guiding me."

"Who's Neema?"

I realized my mistake as soon as she asked me the question. "Friend. I call him periodically on my cell phone."

"I can give you a ride there."

"It's probably not a good idea, Sebastian. Arriving on foot is usually the best method."

"No thanks, Ma'am. I'm good for now. Thanks, though."

I walked past her and continued toward my destination. She followed me for a couple of blocks and then went on her way. I hoped it wasn't to get the cops. Or a social worker.

I just needed to get to my destination.

I began to notice some strange behavior from the people going about their lives. Everyone seemed to get about halfway down the street I was walking along before making a U-turn and heading back the way they'd come.

It seemed to be the most normal activity for them. They all just turned around. Continuing forward I came to a stone wall parted in the center of the street by a pair of metal studded wooden doors. I guess they would actually be called gates due to their size.

"Welcome to the lair of the beast, Sebastian. From here on out things become interesting. Unfortunately, I'll need to leave you on your own for a while so your answers are more. . .authentic."

I took a deep breath and knocked on the gate. A small window opened in a door and someone looked out.

"It would seem we have some fresh meat for the grist." His laughter was anything but pleasant.

The small door opened and a large man gestured to me, "Well, come in, Meat. It's what you're here for after all."

I stepped through the doorway wondering what the future might hold.