Humans Don't Make Good Familiars

"My bed?" I asked aloud. The room was exactly as I left it, a bit messy. "Mum!" I called out, leaving the room hurriedly. "MUM!" No one answered. Searching the house room by room, it was empty. Pulling out my phone, I clicked it on… or tried to. It was dead. Plugging it in, I started debating what to do next. (Should I wait for it to charge and call Mum? Should I just go to the hospital? How much time does she have?) One thought after the next hit me, piling on the worry, dread, sadness, and anger. I was spiraling down a dark hole, making me nauseated with nerves, when finally my phone pinged. It turned on with one percent battery, and I immediately called Mum.

It rang… and rang… and rang. Then I got the voicemail. "Dang it!" I said, and redialed. It rang again, but only for a moment before it was picked up.

"Hello?" A voice answered, but it wasn't Mum's.

"Hello? Who is this?" I asked.

"This is Meredith. I'm a nurse at the Chrissie NHS Foundation. Is this Jake Vandal?"

"Yes, I'm trying to reach my Mum, Susan Vandal. Is she… okay?" There was a moment of silence, which caused my breathing to stop in fear of her next words.

"She is asleep right now. But, you should get here, quickly." She gave me the address. I thanked her, and hung up the phone. I'd gotten used to not having it, and left it there before running outside.

"Chariot!" I said, and tried to cast the summoning spell. It was hard. Really hard. It felt like pulling taffy through the eye of a needle. But in the end, it worked. After filling up some daljars with mana, I hopped on. It flew… really fast. Much faster than I'd expected. Faster than it ever had before. It caught me off guard really. Normally I would have questioned why, wondered about the effects of mana in this world, maybe even tested other things, but in that moment I was just grateful for the extra speed.

The journey wasn't long, and I flew high enough that most people wouldn't be able to see me without looking up. And if they did, I'd probably look like a drone or a weather balloon. Though I did get a very confused look from one passing helicopter and some pigeons. Finally, I landed on the helipad of the treatment center, unsummoned Chariot, and went inside.

One stop at an information desk was enough to get her room number. A nurse led me to her room, and there I found her, laying in a hospital bed, as skinny as a stick, connected to IVs and monitors, lying deathly still. If it weren't for the beeping of the machines, I would have thought she was dead. Her hair was gone, and her cheeks were sunken.

"She may not make it though the night. You should say goodbye now. She probably won't wake up." The nurse whispered, placing a gentle hand on my shoulder. She left, and I sat by Mum's bedside. My cheeks were hot with tears as I held her frail hand in mine.

"I'm sorry." I whispered, feeling like I could choke on the air alone. "I should have been here. Should have never left… if I'd been stronger… a better son. I'm so sorry." I don't know how long I stayed by her side, but eventually there was a knock on the door. By then, my eyes burnt, but I'd long since run out of tears. "Come in." I said. A man in a grey and tan suit opened the door. He was heavyset, and balding.

"Hello, are you Jake Vandal?" He asked.

"Yes." I said.

"My name is Caleb Golton. I'm a representative from the Manchester Police Department. But don't worry, I'm not an officer." I took a breath, sighed, and remembered what happened with Detective Lin so long ago. How she'd put out a warrant for my arrest, stalked me, and attacked me. "I asked the staff to inform me if you ever showed up here. Can we speak in the hallway?"

"Sure." I said, unworried. If he did try to arrest me… well, an excuse to hit something wouldn't have gone unappreciated at the moment. Almost to my surprise, there was no one waiting in the hallway.

"Regarding your arrest warrant," he began, "it's been dropped. Along with all its associated charges."

"What?" I asked.

"An investigation was launched due to multiple reports were filed by your lawyer, Mr. Robert Watterson. It revealed several inconsistencies in Detective Lin's reports. Further investigation revealed falsified evidence. She has been placed under arrest and is awaiting trial. You may be called as a witness, but that is a discussion for a later time."

"She falsified evidence? What do you mean?" I asked.

"I'm not at liberty to say precisely, but she did tamper with evidence in order to secure a warrant and extend her investigation." He said. "With all that being said, our office is issuing an official apology."

"Well… thank you for letting me know." With that, he said goodbye, and offered condolences for Mum… and I went back into her room.

"Jake?" She asked, seeing me; apparently awake now.

"MUM!" I ran over and gave her a hug, careful not to hurt her.

"Is this a dream?" She asked, weakly. Her voice was almost as small as she looked. Barely louder than a whisper.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

"No. I'm here. I'm back."

"I don't understand."

"Mum, we need to get you to Atmosia." I said, pulling back and holding her hand. "I can use magic to heal you there."

"But… what about that…" she took a breath, as if each word were a struggle, "dragon?"

"He won't be an issue. Just please trust me." I pleaded.

There was a moment of silence as she closed her eyes. When she opened them again, she said, "Okay."

"Suma, bring me back. The dragon didn't bother me, I'm fine, but I need to come back right now." There was no response, just silence. However, even across worlds, I could feel her turmoil. She was nervous, confused, and angry. And I couldn't blame her for any of it. I felt that pull on my soul again, just like she had earlier. And then I felt her relief. A moment later, we began to vanish. Mum's eyes were closed. She must have been so tired. I hurt me to think of how much pain she must have endured while I wasn't by her side. Guilt hit me in waves each time I looked at her. It wasn't just us that disappeared, the IVs and a couple of the machines she was attached to went with us. However, the ones that needed to be plugged in turned off.

We floated through the Aether void, that blackness that went on forever. I felt him nearby; he never said a word, but I knew he could sense me too. When finally we reappeared in Atmosia. Suma was to my side, along with the Queen, several Royal Mages, Court Mages, Drakes, and more familiars than I'd seen since the battle on the Island of Sangu. We were in an open field, far away from the base. Actually… we were in the training grounds used for explosive magic training. I looked around and saw even more Neame in the distance.

"Farnír?" The Queen asked.

"Yes. It's me. Now, I need to heal my Mum. Will someone bring her some food. She's about to get really hungry." I said, and began casting the spell that regrew my arm, and double casting one to kill her cancerous cells.

The spell took effect quickly. First, her heartbeat increased, then her skin-color returned, and she opened her eyes, clearly full of energy she didn't have just moments ago. Her sunken cheeks even gained a bit of volume somehow. While the spell was working, I found the saline bag attached to her and squeezed it so that her body would have the nutrients it needed to work as it was repaired. During this, she didn't yell or scream once. Probably because of how many pain-meds were in her system, because I know from personal experience that this spell hurts!

She sat up, completely fine. A bit groggy from the meds maybe, but otherwise okay. "Jake?" I hugged her, and felt all the tension leave my body at once. If it weren't for just being summoned, I would have collapsed from exhaustion. Nineteen hours at least had passed since I last slept, but now I felt refreshed and rejuvenated.

"My apologies for interrupting a loving moment between family, however…" The Queen said, sounding very strict, "Farnír, Lady Suma has informed me of what happened." I felt of pang of Suma's guilt hit me suddenly though our connection. "While I appreciate your devotion to family, you risked our whole world in doing so. If you were not the pivotal figure in our operation to defeat the Chaos Dragon, I would have you tried on charges of… well, I actually doubt there are any laws that cover the severity of this act, but you will be punished nonetheless."

"I understand your Majesty."

"Lady… Susan, was it? Was Sir Farnír's spell successful? Are you well again?" The Queen asked, much more gently than when she spoke to me.

"I am." Mum said. "Your Majesty?" She whispered to me, confused.

"She is the Queen of this country." I said, and Mum gasped. She immediately rose to her feet and bowed respectfully to Queen Ompera.

"My apologies, Queen…"

"Ompera." I whispered.

"Ompera. I am well, Thank you for your concern." She hit me in the thigh lightly to get my attention. "Jake, bow." She whispered.

"All is well. Be at ease. But Farnír, I must forbid you from returning your mother to her world for the time being, until the issue with the dragon is delt with. We cannot take such a risk a second… third time."

"Actually, Queen Ompera, I have news to report of the dragon's state." I said.

"I suppose it is not good news?" She asked.

"No, it isn't." I said, and she sighed. "The last remnants of Zachariah's soul are nearly gone from the dragon. He will be arriving much sooner than we expected."

The Queen's feathers, well, all the feathers of every Neame in the room, puffed up. The glitter dimmed to near nonexistent. "How much time have we lost?"

"He could return any day now. At this point, I would say… less than a week. Five at most."

"How do you know this?" One of the Queen's guards asked.

"I saw him in the void. He was nearly fully returned to his true form, and had almost entirely eaten away at Zachariah's soul. The moment his control usurps what is left of Zachariah's will that is trapping him there…"

"I see. Then we must double our efforts." The Queen said, and turned to her attendants. "Send word to all our allies of this, and tell them to send reinforcements immediately. They must arrive within three days." Both of her attendants spread their wings, bowed, and flew away. Then she turned to me. "Farnír, you must double our forces training. They must be ready to fight at any moment. Make it your first priority. That includes the mana resistance training."

"If Suma summons me at least once a day, I can go a week without sleep." I said.

"Are you certain?"

"I've done it before. The side effects don't even begin until week two." Mum side-eyed me with a disapproving glare, but stayed silent. The Queen nodded.

"Well then, everyone, you have your objective. Make it happen." The Queen announced, and we were dismissed.

"Jake, why were they calling you Far…ner?" Mum asked as we walked out of the room. She held onto my arm for support. "I thought your name here was centennial or something?"

"It's… a really long story." I looked at Suma, who'd kept her distance. She was upset, but clearly wanted to talk. I summoned Chariot, and sat her down. "Mum, wait here for a second. I need to talk to Suma." She agreed, and I gave her some fruit, knowing she must have been starving before I went to Suma, kneeling down by her.

"Farnír… I am-"

"I'm sorry." I said, faster than she could. There was a moment of quiet.

"I told the Queen…"

"You had to." I acknowledged. "I'm sorry if my spell hurt you."

"… You had to." She said. With everything that happened between her and Luna, I knew she understood. But that didn't make me feel better about it. "How is your arm?"

"My arm?" I wondered, looking at both of them. My right arm was fine. My left one however was covered in spiraling burns like overlapping rings. "What the?"

"You did not feel it?" She asked.

"Well I do now!" I said, grasping my suddenly burning arm. "I forgot about this part!" One healing spell later I was physically fine, but somewhat sleepy. These were the effects of the Familiar's Curse, a security measure built into the summoning spell Suma bonded us together with years ago. I remembered it had saved her against Deyja before when he was in my body, and I'd experienced it myself as Zachariah a few times before. The only reason I hadn't felt it sooner was probably because I was too busy thinking about Mum.

"Better?" Suma asked.

"Yeah… wanna say hi to Mum?"

"I do."