The massive table shuddered to life, sounding like gears turning. For a second, I could see the magical realm with the gears and levers shifting before my eyes refocused on our reality.
Señor Secor watched until the map zoomed out of view then he looked over at us. We'd never been given the same method for tracking. He made us stand on the table once before he helped us find a hippopotamus just so he could hear Geo scream.
'Today, you will do the honors.' He looked over at me with a slight grin on his face, a creepier look than usual. 'I've been tweaking it. Sure it will work, boy.' He answered a question that hadn't been asked. 'Just give it a try.'
I nodded wanting to get the whole thing over with. 'What do I do?' I asked him and he looked down.
'Just imagine the person and the map should take you to him.' I started doing that when he kept talking. 'You'll need to place your palm on it.' I looked back at him and he smiled wider. 'I couldn't work around that part, boy. Do you want to find the thing that needs finding, or not?' He asked and a part of my mind imagined hearing an undertone to his voice. A slight change that almost made me rethink this whole idea.
I shook the overthinking off and placed my palm onto the desk and closed my eyes in concentration.
'Nothing's happening.' Geo whispered into my ear. I opened my eyes to find him leaning over the table.
'Well, guess that means you'll have to keep your eyes open and imagine seeing the guy.' Señor Secor said instead of simply allowing Row to take over.
'I did as I was told and imagined Arthur as he had been last night before being taken. I imagined him as he had been last week, sleeping on a shelf in the library, his magic half turned off leaving him looking like a stack of books from the waist down and his face and regular uniform to the top. I pictured him as he had been when I'd been elected as hall monitor, outcasted by everyone, the night he'd requested to be removed from our dorm room.
Yes, I was trying to find a guy that had turned me away when I had been a freak to everyone. He wasn't my friend but he needed to be found before those killers could do anything.
The low lights that had previously been on the table forming the map reappeared and the energy moved along with it. My dark energy flowed as though it were in a video, the map moving. We covered a few streets before my darkness stopped outside a large building.
It stopped.
'Guess you boys just found your thingy-magiggy. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got some more tweaking and twiddling to do before the day's over.' Señor Secor held the door open for us to enter our examinations room. It was empty as we stepped in. 'Good luck in your end of day exam boys. Make me proud.' He slammed the door shut, making it vanish.
'So..is anyone else creeped out? Or is it just me?' Row asked and Geo nodded wildly.
'That man…' He stopped. 'We found Arthur.' Geo smiled more excited about this than he was to talk about the creepy teacher.
'Yeah. But where?' I asked as we sat at the desks that held our names. I could hear footsteps and voices approaching from outside. Before anyone could enter, I saw the eyes appear on the walls, notifying us that the dean was near. 'Did you guys also notice that the building we just saw is located where the supermarket's car park is?' I asked Geo and Row as soon as the eyes disappeared.
'But… there isn't a building in the car park.' Geo said and I nodded.
'Exactly.' I responded as the paper appeared on our desks along with stationary items.
The classroom filled up before we started our exams. Once done, our papers vanished off the table along with the pens and rulers and what not.
We waited for everyone else to file out and go one their way before we headed back to our dorm. Our plans were cut short though as the Melanie girl with the voice box changer stood there waiting for us.