Betrayal

He led them into a massive foyer under a crystal chandelier roughly the same diameter as the knockers on the doors. As he left the pair, Emory began scanning the room. It was the pinnacle of opulence with a sealed marble floor and gilded trim inlayed on the edges and corners. Yet the style was a sharp, minimalist design that allowed very few décor pieces. Emory turned back towards the door and noticed two nearly floor to ceiling windows, one on each side of the double door, but hadn't seen them from the outside. Piquing her curious nature, she moved closer to them to conduct a more thorough examination. She determined it was a specialty one-way pane that allowed inside viewers a look out while projecting an image on the other side to hide the viewers from intrusive looks.

"Fancy, isn't it?" Tethys remarked as she saw Emory inspecting the glass, "I was amazed by the luxury of this place when I first came here as well."

Emory corrected her, "This is luxury, but it's also a high-tech defense too. From the outside, I thought it was weird that there were no windows, but now, I can only imagine there are windows made of this one-way mirror material in roughly the areas that would normally have windows. I wouldn't be surprised if this Viktor already knew we were here from walking up."

"You're probably right," Tethys considered, "I've only been in here a couple times, but every room I've been in has windows similar to these."

"It is quadruple pane laminated and tempered glass with an augmented reality projected over the outer layer," a smooth tenor voice answered confidently. From the back of the room, a man in a dark pin-striped suit walked forward. He had a form fitting suit, revealing his athletic physique, and stood just over six feet tall. His salt-and-pepper hair was combed back while his face was rather distinguished with a sharp jawline and a black pencil mustache that curled on the ends. The man gracefully approached the girls with a quick pace and extended a hand toward Emory when she was in range. He spoke crisply, "I don't believe we've had the pleasure of meeting. My name is Viktor Quinn; what is your name?"

"Emory Reiss," Emory replied as she shook his hand, "You have quite the home here."

"Thank you, Miss Reiss. Can I get either of you something to drink?" he suavely asked.

"No, thank you," the girls said as they quickly rejected his offer.

Viktor shrugged, "Perhaps a tour then? Miss Harding has already seen my humble abode, but I'm sure she wouldn't mind seeing it again."

"Actually, we'd like to proceed to the favor you asked for," Tethys redirected, "You said you would reveal your request when I arrived."

"Straight to business then? Very well, please follow me to the back courtyard," Viktor sighed as he turned toward to the back where he had entered the room. Emory and Tethys followed Viktor as he moved through a door into an extravagant hallway. Like the spine of an animal, this hallway connected all the rooms together and seemed to be the only way to reach the other rooms. The hallway was twenty feet wide and looked to be several hundred feet long. Paintings lined the walls, but after looking at a couple, Emory was confused since she had seen ones very similar to these in a digital museum. Though Viktor had initially walked ahead down the corridor, he paused when he saw Emory staring at the art.

He chuckled, "You look like you saw a ghost. To answer the question running around in that head of yours, yes, these are originals saved from Earth. I am a fan of Van Gogh's post-impressionism. Though this set cost more than my residence, I was more than willing to pay any cost to save these priceless works." Emory's eyes widened as she heard Viktor's comments. The reason she had stopped in the first place was the museum she had seen them in was supposed to be a "Lost and Destroyed" museum, a common attraction due to the sheer amount of destruction humanity had inflicted on itself in the middle 21st century. Viktor led the group a third of the way down the hall until he stopped before a large arch doorway.

He opened the door to reveal an incredible backyard. It was a bit lower than the front of the property and extended at least a quarter mile away from the manor. An andesite deck ran alongside most of the mansion and had a curved staircase at each end that led down to the courtyard. Hedges outlined the patio, and a large diorite water feature with jade accents stood in the center. Beyond the stone courtyard was a large hedge maze; from this height, Emory could see several sculptures and busts littered throughout the labyrinth. Viktor grinned as he saw Emory take in the majestic sight and then led them down onto the patio.

When they reached the fountainhead, Emory could no longer hold in her questions. She asked, "Mister Quinn, I apologize for my rudeness, but how do you afford all this? And what could you possibly want from Tethys that you couldn't buy yourself?"

"Tethys didn't tell you?" Viktor clicked his tongue, "We're not here to talk to Tethys; we're here for you." Panic rushed over Emory while her eyes started glowing bright blue instantly after hearing these words.

"Who is we?" Emory questioned as her hair began slightly floating, indicating that she had begun to channel her magik. Viktor snapped his fingers, and four hooded figures came out from the same door they had come out. Emory took a few steps away from Viktor and Tethys and quickly surveyed the area for an escape route. The quickest route would take her through the mansion but also through all the people in front of her; on the other hand, it was at least a couple hundred feet each way just to reach the end of the mansion if she wanted to run around.

"Before you start getting ideas, we mean you no harm," Viktor began with his hands slightly raised, "Emory, have you ever heard of the Commission?"

Emory, still on high alert, slowly shook her head, "What is the Commission?"

"We're a group of like-minded people who believe in the betterment of humanity," Viktor continued, "Through our various connections, we're on the cutting edge of biological development. When magik became known to the general public, we sought to harness it to further our research."

"Okay. That still doesn't explain what you want with me," Emory huffed with her hands still at the ready.

Viktor smiled, "You have a very unique sphere, one that could push our limits even further. We would like to invite you to join us; with our resources at your disposal, just imagine the prosperity available to you."

"If you wanted me to join, you should have used a more direct method," Emory snapped, "I'll pass at this junction, and I would like to leave now."

"That's a shame. Maybe we will revisit this at another time. But as a fellow scientific mind, perhaps you would indulge us with a small demonstration. As you know, Tethys here has a unique sphere as well, one that we have done several tests on. We would like to see how your sphere fares against hers. You would, of course, be well compensated," Viktor offered. Tethys was already tying up her long blonde hair into a tight bun.

Emory paused for a moment and thought through her options. She could decline the offer, but she didn't really believe they would just let her go. On the other hand, she was fairly confident she could defeat Tethys in combat. Though she had only seen Tethys while practicing, Emory mused that she was more powerful than Tethys and that her sphere was superior as well, even if Tethys was hiding a strong fighting IQ. At this point, Tethys had taken off her jacket to reveal a track shirt underneath and was putting on a pair of combat gloves. Emory was glad that she always kept her gauntlets in her bag and decided to pull them out. Then she called out to Viktor, "After I win, you'll let me leave, right?"

"Of course, of course," Viktor smirked, "We're not holding you against your will or anything." Emory put on her gauntlets as Tethys approached, causing a feeling of power to shoot up her arms. The two moved to an open area of the patio just beyond the fountain while Viktor leaped back onto the balcony with the four hooded figures. Either he had enchanted gear that looked like normal clothing, or he had magik as well, Emory reasoned given the ledge was twenty-five feet high.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you," Tethys said to Emory to get her attention, "But I've been holding back in our little practice sessions." Her tone had changed to a much more confident one, catching Emory's ear.

Emory turned to face Tethys, "How long have you been keeping up this charade? Do Sam and the others know?"

"They don't know anything about this," Tethys confessed, "Although I suppose you'll tell them when you return. It doesn't matter anyway; we're not the enemy."

"Then why lie about it to me? Why did you make up a fake story to get me here if you all are doing legitimate research?" Emory hissed. Without intending to, the girls had begun to circle each other. As they did, Emory began to study Tethys's movements and noticed the two were slowly moving closer together. Suddenly, Emory stopped, leaving about five feet away between Tethys and her, and began to channel a thick layer of Arcane magik over her forearms.

Tethys stopped and smiled, "I've been looking forward to this. It's been a while since I could go all out." She readied her fists, switching to a sort of boxing stance. Emory took a deep breath and spread out her limbs, bending her hands slightly at the wrists. Developing her Arcane sphere had done wonders for her eyesight which allowed her to see the magik flowing through Tethys. But what surprised her when she was looking over her opponent was a small black ball near the base of her skull.

When looking at a person, Emory could see different spheres inside a person and could determine what division the sphere was based on the color. Primal spheres were green, Dark spheres were crimson, Light spheres were yellow, and Spirit spheres were purple. Although Arcane was considered a Spirit sphere, Emory saw the magik inside herself as white. Beyond that, she could also determine how much magik a person had in their control by how saturated a person was with that particular color. For that reason, she didn't turn on this vision unless she was in combat as it would distort her normal perception. The reason the black sphere puzzled her was it didn't follow either of the rules she had seen magik follow up to this point. Unlike the Creation sphere's yellow hue, it didn't radiate through Tethys's entire body, and black wasn't a color of a division she knew of.

Nevertheless, Emory charged in with a spear hand strike towards Tethys's chest. The attack was quick since Emory had also wrapped her feet in magik as well, but Tethys just stood there with a smirk on her face. When Emory's hand was just within range, Tethys grabbed her wrist and pulled it forward, gripping it under her arm. Then Tethys released a pulse of magik out from her body at point-blank range of Emory which projected her back into the air and several feet back. Luckily, Emory had just been testing some theories and prepared for this outcome. The first thing she noticed was a shimmering spherical shield now surrounding Tethys a foot and a half away from her body, yet the important part was a missing chunk of the shield, roughly the same size as Emory's jab had been. It appeared Emory's magik cut through the sphere upon exit, the most important action Emory had been testing. She smiled as she stood up because she could feel something inside herself change. Magik covered her entire body, even the spot she had difficulties covering before, and she charged forward to attack. When she was a couple feet away, she launched herself into the air and brought down a knife hand on the shield, cutting through it like butter. The chop landed clean on Tethys shoulder and brought her to the ground where Emory quickly followed with a scooping kick and sent Tethys back into the fountain hard.

She wiped blood away from the edges of her lips and pointed to Emory, "That's the only hit you'll make." This time Tethys charged and tried to get in close for another grapple. Emory just smirked and allowed Tethys to bind her up in a full Nelson. But when Tethys attempted to project her shield like last time, a shattering sound rang out as it hit Emory. Tethys was stunned for a moment as this had never happened before, and Emory took advantage of her pause to fling Tethys's body over Emory's head and down into the ground with a great slam. As soon as she slammed into the ground, Emory performed a straight kick to Tethys's back, propelling her across the ground on her shoulders and face.

"Tethys, the outcome of this match is already decided," Emory coldly stated, "You may have advanced fighting skills and a powerful new way of using your sphere, yet neither of those will cover the gap between our magik power. Just give up." Tethys got up, dusted herself off, and wiped the blood away from her face. Cuts and scrapes now covered her arms while large tears showed skin underneath her clothes, but her countenance looked undeterred. She met eyes with Viktor who shrugged and nodded his head.

Tethys grinned with blood in her mouth, "You think you're so tough? Well, let's see how you handle this." She extended her hand and shot out a black ball of energy that sped toward Emory who had seen the magik flowing inside moments earlier. There were only moments to react, so Emory quickly blasted an equal sized ball from her hand. When the two collided in midair, they stopped and pulsated against each other, creating ripples in the air surrounding them. Then unexpectedly, cracks started to run up each of the balls starting from the impact location; Emory covered her body in an extra thick layer of magik and crossed her arms in front of her body as she had a guess what was about to happen. The balls exploded, releasing a massive shockwave out from their initial position and knocking back everything within a twenty-foot radius. Dust blanketed the immediate area as Viktor and the other cloaked figures leaned over the terrace to survey the outcome.

As the cloud of dust settled, debris was among the first items they could see. Parts of the brick patio were strewn about the area, and branches from the hedges lay haphazardly throughout the courtyard. More dust cleared, revealing Emory leaned up against the fountain, but when they looked at her, it was almost like looking through a prism. When the dust faded a little more, they could see a sphere covering her, yet unlike Tethys's, this sphere sparkled like a gem. Exactly forty feet straight in front of Emory was another sphere though this one only shone like a piece of tempered glass. A first glance would assume both the girls had managed to block the concussion blast; Viktor looked closer, though, and saw a clear winner.

Emory was crouched against the fountain and still had her forearms crossed in front of her face and torso. The magik shell had some chips in the front but looked stable. Most importantly, Emory had started to stand up from her crouched position. The same could not be said for Tethys, who was kneeling and had her arms in a cross over her face. Her face looked swollen, one of her eyes was shut, and her bun had fallen apart, leaving her platinum blonde locks dangling just above the ground. Scraps of fabric covered her upper chest and shoulders while the arms and midriff had disintegrated and been covered in pressure scrapes. Directly between them, a line had been cut only a couple inches wide but several feet deep, indicating how powerful the collision of the two magik balls had been.

"I'm not done yet," Tethys croaked, "I've got more in me."

But Emory ignored her and turned to Viktor and the mysterious four, "If you were hoping for this to be a fight to the death, your hopes were in vain. You can clearly see I am the winner. Come get this girl some medical attention!" The shields had both dropped, and Emory walked over to Tethys, still shaking on the ground in shock. Moments later, Viktor appeared next to Tethys, lifted her into his arms, and bowed his head to Emory.

"Thank you for helping us with these experiments. My associates will make sure you are compensated for your assistance," Viktor said with an odd tone. Emory thought it sounded closer to happiness than concern for Tethys. But it happened as he said it would; he disappeared, and his associates walked over to Emory.

"Thank you for your participation, Miss Reiss," a young woman recognized from under one of the hoods, "Would you prefer monetary or inventory compensation?"

Emory, still on edge about the whole ordeal, spoke quickly, "Credits will be fine. Can I leave now?"

"Of course," a different male voice replied, "But first, we should take you inside and have you seen by the medical staff." They took a step forward, but Emory took a step back in response. Now she was weighing her options again. The fight with Tethys, though a quick one, had drained her of her stamina, and she wasn't confident in her ability to overpower four assailants in her current condition. Yet that same lack of stamina gave her doubts about outrunning this confrontation too. While deciding, the group had taken several steps deeper into the courtyard and were now within ten feet of the hedge maze.

Out of nowhere, a tiger the size of a polar bear leaped over the hedge and landed in between Emory and the four hooded figures. It roared and swatted at the mysterious group. "A tiger got loose again!" the woman yelled, "Get back!" They retreated toward the manor, and Emory edged closer to the hedge maze entrance. The way these people had acted when they saw the creature was one of familiarity which meant she couldn't trust it, or at least, that was what she had to convince everyone that might be watching. So, she disappeared just inside the maze.

Now out of view, Emory collapsed onto her knees and wheezed heavily. She wondered what that black magik was and why it reacted so much differently than any other sphere she had come across. Even during the fight, the Arcane sphere had easily overpowered the Creation sphere, easier than she expected. Which caused Emory to turn her watch and tap on the screen. A pained smile grew across her face when she saw the number six brightly displayed. With her gauntlets on, it would take a level four from another sphere to overpower her. However, the black sphere seemed to match that level of power, so Emory guessed it was for one of two reasons. First, it could be a level four sphere, though this was highly unlikely that Tethys had been hiding this much magik, especially since her Creation sphere and Push level were both two. Second, it could be a special magik that existed apart from the Arcane sphere and its derivatives, though this would be quite the discovery. She didn't have long to think about it though since, at that moment, the tiger had jumped back over the hedge and stared at Emory.

"Thank you for following me," Emory sighed, "It's kind of embarrassing, but could I please ride on your back until we get to safety? I'm exhausted."

The tiger laughed, "Sure, I missed everything from when you went into the manor until I showed up, so you can fill me in." Emory climbed onto the back of the nearly six-foot-tall tiger and recounted the tale. Once they were back on the outskirts of the wealthy housing development, Emory got off the cat's back and watched it transform back into none other than Sam.

"I can't believe that Tethys was all wrapped up this," Sam started as the pair began the long walk back to school, "I wonder if she was always a part of this organization or if she's joined since she came to school here."

Emory asked, "So you never noticed any odd coming or goings of Tethys at your old school?"

"Honestly, I didn't spend a lot of time with everyone outside of school," Sam confessed, "It's a smaller base, so there's only a few homeroom classes. We just happened to have the same one as well as a few other core classes. I'm sorry; I wish I knew more."

"Hmm, that's concerning. Now that I've explained the fight to you, tell me how you got me out of that situation. What was the deal with that tiger?" Emory joked.

"Well, it started back at the school where I transformed into a rat," Sam began.