Chapter 4 – Rule #4: Always Remember to Get to the Root of a Problem Before Addressing Higher Management

Mikki DuBois

 Mikki held up her arm, letting the magical light from her bracelet spark off into a floating orb. She could feel the slight pull from her body's own energy source connecting with the underlying magic of the park and arguably the universe at large. The ball lit exactly as it was supposed to, floating there harmlessly before her and helping to illuminate the stone corridor that stretched out before her.

 Mikki took a deep breath, letting it out slowly as she stared down. Something pulsed within her, hitting her just behind the ears and thrumming in her blood. That constant swirl of magic that just came from the park, that flowed through most of the long-term family members that stayed here (particularly if they were attuned) seemed to ebb and flow stronger than ever. She knew why. Mikki stepped ever closer to the real heart of the park, one of the central cores of magic that held the whole place together and kept everything more or less under control.

 It peeked behind the curtain a little, but that was essentially how this worked. The magic spells laid upon the park helped hide it from outside eyes, particularly malevolent ones that would see the Secret Lands less as a sanctuary and more like a buffet. Technically they allowed anyone who fulfilled the rather general "unusual and/or magical" guideline to become a full fledged family member if they applied themselves, but there were limits. It was entirely possible that a predator of some kind had gotten into the park, was leeching off the magic.

 Such things had happened before, even in Mikki's memory. She'd only been a preteen, so about a little over five or six years or so, when the last batch hit. Some worms from a subterranean kingdom had burrowed forth and latched onto some of the magical leylines and pulse points established beneath the park proper. Mikki had even been allowed to grab what amounted to magical bug repellent to help render the leeches senseless so they could be properly relocated and transitioned to a more welcome environment.

 She had some of that slung onto her belt now, along with a few other bits of gear tossed into a smallish backpack she'd slung around her back. She'd informed several people where she was headed, including several fairies and at least three heads of the smaller families within the park proper. No, she didn't tell Walther, because the last thing she wanted was to alert her father.

 Plus, well, it was entirely possible that Walther was responsible, something that Mikki really hoped to disprove. Hence why she was down in the tunnels beneath the park, by herself, though heavily loaded out with magical equipment. She could feel the magic seeping from the various charms and jewelry seeping into her, enhancing her natural magics, feeding off it. By now she'd mostly grown used to that sort of feeling, lived it, breathed it and all that.

 Her mind swam as she kept going forward, the light bobbing. Technically she could have activated the overhead lights to make it easier to see, but they relied some on magic. That was part of why she hadn't dragged anyone else along: she didn't need any interference. The bobbing orb would be her canary in a coal mine, letting her know precisely when and/or if the magic started undulating or whatever it was doing that had the creatures moving and the witches nervous.

 Not that she didn't have a million other things to worry about. The new hires (Family Members) were near the top of her worry list, and she hadn't really met with them again. Then there were the constant running issues with the park: maintenance, shows, concessions, all amplified by, well, this. Plus there was the Raelena problem.

 Mikki frowned, pausing to look at her light, noticing its constant flicker. The Raelena problem indeed. The singer… bugged Mikki. Not just the cavalier attitude or the obvious bent on self-destruction, which were problems enough. But there was just something… else there. Raelena had this magnetism, this charisma that drew people in, Mikki included. And, well, there was no denying that there was something incredibly appealing about the singer. The flirting didn't help, though, well, Mikki had never really thought about herself in that way. Meaning a homosexual way, though she debated whether the strangeness came from that or just Raelena's pull or her own frustrations manifesting via jealousy or---

 --wait, was her light flickering?

 Mikki paused, squinting to look at the light. It bobbed, but it was supposed to do that. But she thought for a moment that she saw it… shimmering? Yes! There, she watched as the colors changed from the light purple her light usually was to a different shade of pink to almost shifting through rainbows. "Well, that could be magical flux… or it could be based on emotions," admitted Mikki, letting out a deep breath.

 Only one thing for it: she had to keep going forward. Mikki focused her mind on the task at hand. She needed to figure out if this was some sort of usual anomaly or some glitch in the system… or if they really were supposed to switch coordinator and pivot. Just thinking about it made Mikki tear up, and she wiped her eyes, keeping focused. Just thinking about magic. The flux of the natural flows. The park reacting to the family and to the new family members and the incoming guests and all their wonder and energy and joy. 

 Slight flickering, but nothing major. Then, just as Mikki started to look away, rethink things, her orb jerked. It moved from hovering just ahead, right under where her hand would be if she held it up straight, to darting ahead into the tunnel. Mikki paused, watching the light seem to stretch, as if it had been grabbed in a computer imaging program and stretched. Particles floated, drifted, Mikki seeing them spinning through the air, threatening to completely disintegrate into nothing.

 She hurried, not ran, but hurried down the tunnels, following her stretched light. The tunnels narrowed, then suddenly sprang open, darting and twisting and leaking magic. Mikki knew she was relatively close to one of the anchor points, a juncture of pure magic that used the park's natural ley lines to guide the energies throughout. The light jolted straight to them, but that could be nearly anything. Mikki followed, moved quicker and quicker, not seeing any outside force.

 No, no, no, there had to be an outside force! Had to be something disturbing the natural flow of magic and causing everything. A leech or a magical parasite.

 Mikki burst into the rounded chamber, her light almost shattering as she did. She could feel the natural energies swirling. As always, she expected some kind of ball, a floating orb or a crystal of pure energy. But magic didn't manifest in such an easy to handle way. It pulsed and moved, flowing like some kind of hidden energy, carried along radio waves. You felt magic more than saw it, and Mikki could feel the magics pulsing and whirling. It caught her breath, made every one of her bracelets, rings, and accessories pulse at once. Natural magic from within surged forward, threatening to explode outward in just a burst of raw energy. 

 Uncoordinated energy. Because the energies just didn't have that natural flow. They didn't seem to have their centralized core. Definitely an issue, but not something that guaranteed that the issue was a lack of strength or connection or conviction or some combination of those from the Coordinator… from Mikki's father. She reached a hand up, feeling the energies swirling and pulsing.

 And they moved around her. Through her. She could actually see her hairs rising and the glow of inner magic, that slightly violet slightly blue coloring that she'd grown to know intimately well, flare up around her fingers. The magic lingered about as if tentatively seeking her out, as if crying out for someone, anyone, to… well, coordinate it.

 "Oh no," breathed Mikki ,again feeling her eyes tearing up, again feeling her heart contract as the world around her swirled in place. Just as she felt herself starting to lose that fight, the magic pulsed. Mikki gasped, feeling it surge, feeling the pulse surging through her. For several moments, she felt everything in the park, every breath of magic…

 …a flash, and she saw an elf growing a flower for a crying child…

 ...a flash, and she saw a first aid worker teaching one of the new hires about the healing magics…

 …now a dragon pushing from its egg…

 ...an eager middle aged man putting on flying wings for the first time…

 …a teenager detaching their shadow…

 …a dwarf fine tuning an artifact…

 ...a gremlin…

 ...some water…

 …her father…

 …

 Gasping, Mikki jerked, throwing her arms.

 "Is something the matter, Mikki?" the question came out less concerned than curious. Blinking, Mikki turned, looking around the room. Several intelligent beings of various races, sapients all, were seated or hovering or what have you in various bits of furniture more or less designed for precisely that. Mikki only needed a moment to recognize most of them: heads of families and subcoordinators of various sections of the park.

 This was a management meeting.

 "We were just discussing distributing the new family members throughout the sections?" prompted Melinda, one of the sub coordinators that often served almost in a personal assistant position to Mikki herself. The concerned young woman gave Mikki a look that spoke to questioning her intelligence or at least her presence within this particular conversation.

 Mikki blinked a few more times trying to center herself. The last thing she remembered was the flashing lights the pulsing magic, and everything indicating that the pulsing magic in the undercurrents of the park itself required some new coordination. There had been a flash of images connecting her to every bit of magic that still existed within the park itself. She had felt it pulsing within her very essence, she knew this. It is the same time she had memories of starting this very meeting. The longer she stood here the more she remembers calling everything in order and proceeding as if she would any other meeting.

 "Mikki is something the matter?" Asked Menelaus, another of the sub coordinators. He leaned forward and gave her another Stern, almost fatherly look. Several of the others were now looking at her in various degrees of strangeness.

 "The last thing I remember..." Mikki began, rubbing at her face. She could still feel the magic pulsing in her, exciting her nerves and making her doubt whether or not she even just done what she knew she just did. She felt it sparking and swore that her eyes had to have glowed for a moment with the barely contained magic. But hadn't she just started this meeting? And it was an important meeting, one that was helping them to determine what to do with all the new hires. One more spinning plate that she was barely keeping balanced.

 "I was examining the magic at the heart of the park," Mikki continued looking around at the gathered people. Several heads already started bobbing in the affirmative. "To determine whether or not the recent fluctuations of magic are caused by something more natural or…" Mikki chewed her lip for a few moments not sure if she wanted to admit aloud what she'd been dreading the entire time, what she was now pretty sure was the actual reality. But if she didn't say it that would only make things worse. The park ran on honesty, well honesty amongst the family members. "Or whether it has to do with the coordination lacking."

 "You've been here for the past half hour or so," cut in Fel'lyra, the sub-coordinator nominally "in charge" of the elves. "In fact, you called us together."

 MIkki remembered that. Remembered pulling everyone together… for some reason, some important reason. Something to do with the new hires?

 "Ye were sayin' we need tae talk aboot the green branches on oor ken's tree," agreed Bulguli.

 "What's this about coordination? It sounds like you were having a magical experience…" queried a concerned Melinda, frowning.

 "I'm saying that there might have been something throwing off magic, like, when we had leeches…" explained Mikki, waving her hands, trying to work it out even as her mind roared.

 "Ew, leeches," replied Fel, crinkling their nose as they spoke. "Those were simply dreadful to deal with last time."

 "Does this mean we're not talking about the families?" asked Menelaus, the poor older man looking a little lost.

 "Not---well, we should, and we will, but there's also this pressing concern…" said Mikki. She reached into her pocket, fishing for her phone. This version of her, or, well, the version that hadn't been magically duped or whatever was technically going on, should still have her planner on her. Easy enough to pull that out, which she did now, and look down to see the agenda that, of course, she'd written out. "I did mark that we have some maintenance concerns, and, well," she shifted, "now I believe that may be a result of the deteriorating coordination…"

 "We have been wondering about that," admitted Melinda. "Walther has been acting a little… Strained lately."

 "Oh aye," agreed Bulguli, the dwarf over mother looking almost self-satisfied. "We've been seein' wee bits here an' there tha' seem tae indicate tha' Walther's offa 'is nut. Been some time since we seen a coordination go this off. Usually tha' coordinator figures tha' shit out."

 "Bulguli!" protested Melinda.

 "Show a little decorum!" barked Menelaus. Several of the other sub coordinators also made various noises of protest.

 Mikki raised a hand herself, focusing magical energies to create a brief banging noise, something that was a cross between a gavel banging and a small firework. That silenced everyone, their attention focused upon Mikki while she stood there.

 "I distinctly remember starting this meeting because I wanted to make sure we welcomed the newcomers into the family properly, and to see how they were acclimating," she further explained, nodding her head decisively, "but I also know I was just touching one of the cores of magic that spread throughout the part as a whole, and that it showed me that we have problems with the coordination, as I just explained," nods around. "So it sounds like…" Mikki took a breath, "like my father---"

 "Needs to begin proceedings for bequeathing the power," finished a familiar voice. Every head present, Mikki's included, swiveled as one toward a door leading out of the room. There, standing straight backed and tall, was Walther DuBois himself, a grave expression on his face. "I'd suspected that I was losing coordination for some time now, so it should hardly be a surprise. Don't get me wrong," he stepped forward, smiling ruefully, "I don't want to step down as much as my predecessor didn't, but it'll be better if we don't fight it."

 Silence responded.

 "But… but you're not that old," protested Mikki. "Magic pulses through everyone, usually makes us all younger than we actually are. Some of the witches are hundreds of years old, we can't really be saying that you're—"

 Walther held up a hand. "I'm older than I look," which had a few of the sub-coordinators chuckling. "Plus, it works a little differently for this position," he finally took a seat in a chair that Mikki couldn't recall being empty from either of her memory points. "Sometimes it's just a result of magical surges within the park, or it's something outside influencing how things react in here," he shrugged. "Or the magic in the park decided someone would be better."

 Mikki felt some water welling up in her eyes, threatening to spill out. She had to take a few sucking breaths while she listened to the various coordinators, both sub and overarching, hash out a few different ideas and offer their condolences. She knew what she had to do; she had to push through the bubbling emotions welling up inside.

 As she was making this decision, Mikki felt her phone buzzing in her hand. She stared down, seeing a note from Daisychain, the fairy she'd asked to keep tabs on Rae (though she'd actually asked a few different people; fairies were usually the best in keeping a running tab, when they could focus. And considering the target, focus shouldn't be a problem even for the notoriously flighty fairies). The text said that Mikki really needed to clue in onto Rae's latest set, that there were some issues.

 Mikki quickly fired off a response directed toward Apollo, technically in charge of entertainment, who she'd asked to keep tabs on Rae's set list. She reminded him to remind Rae to make sure that her music was acceptable to the general public.

 Situation settled, Mikki ignored the several other alerts on her phone from all over the part to deal with the situation in front of her. They were still offering Walther his congratulations, as if this were his retirement reception. The very thought kicked Mikki in the heart, but she knew that someone had to pull this together, and Mutter hadn't come to this particular meeting, so…

 "Right," she said, cutting through the various discussions, "what's the best way to smooth over the transition?" everyone went silent. "Is there a particular procedure? An artifact to be found or some ceremony to go through?" She paused for a moment, trying to recall what she'd read. "Wasn't Fat---Walther selected from outside the park?"

 Walther nodded. "That's the tradition. The park selects someone who's been magically attuned to the natural flows of the magic, and they become the new coordinator as a result of that selection."

 "Usually it's a…" said Menelaus, before pausing.

 "It's a bleedin' new family member is wha' it is," said Bulguli, smirking and grunting. "Always wants tha' fresh blood, thae park does."

 Everyone fell silent again.

 "So… so one of the new arrivals is going to be the new… Coordinator?" asked Mikki. "Just to clarify? That's the plan. A new hire. Who we just sort of… selected with the help of the magics of the park." Mikki's fingers were nearly trembling as she thought through the couple dozen of new recruits they'd just gathered. Sure, there were some that showed promise, like that Kennedy guy. But then there were those that were accidents waiting to happen.

 "We do train them," protested Fel, though without much vigor.

 "Tha' park itself does most o' the choosin'," offered Bulgoli, "an' they have tae connect wit tha inner flows o' th' park's magic tae really coordinate."

 "Right," said Mikki, nodding, "so we need to watch and see which—" her phone buzzed again, so she quickly shut it off completely, "which of the various new hires have the best connection to the magic? That should be easy enough."

 "Shame that we didn't know in advance," said Melinda, sighing.

 "We handle the situation as is," said Mikki, again bobbing her head. "We'll make a short list of the potential new coordinators, watch them closely and try and determine who has the best connection to the magical---" a fairy literally flew in, nearly bombing Mikki. She sighed, closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and waited while the fairy started chittering. "If it's about Rae, it can wait. Just tell her to stop cursing and I'll deal with her later."

 "Wait a moment," said Melinda. "Rae as in Raelena St. John?"

 Mikki nodded. "She's been a bit of a…"

 "Pain in the arse," finished Bulgoli, causing a few to chuckle.

 "Charming though," offered Melinda.

 "She's also new enough to be a potential coordinator," said Walther, smiling as he did. Everyone turned to look at him, most with expressions of disbelief. "Might have been part of the reason the park insisted that we connect with that show and bring her in."

 "So… so we add Raelena St. John to the list with the rest of the new hires… as a Candidate…" said Mikki, swallowing hard. She pulled out her phone and turned it on, watching it buzz.

 Her life just grew infinitely more complicated.