Chapter 15 #2
Tremblay’s expression became pinched, and he shot the Grand Master a sour look, but he kept his mouth shut.
Next to him, Cavendish looked mortified, and Zach got the distinct impression he was hoping the floor would open up and swallow him whole so he could avoid the secondhand embarrassment of his mentor.
The dynamic between them intrigued Zach, and he really wanted to understand what the fuck was happening, but more importantly, he wanted to know if this group could help him and Kensington traverse the realms to Hell so they could get Drew back.
“You said you had an update for me,” Zach said to Kensington.
“Yes, though I need to warn you from the start that no decision has been made thus far.” Kensington gave Zach a sympathetic smile. “It was more to keep you up to date with what’s happening and give everyone the opportunity to speak to you directly so you can answer any questions.”
“I see.” It was about what Zach had expected, but he couldn’t pretend to be disappointed. He wanted to act, not just sit around a room talking about what they should do.
“Since I became Drew’s mentor, I have kept the Collective at large informed of his progress, since not only is it rare for someone so powerful to be unknown to us, but also for it to be unknown to them they have the ability. There has been much interest in his journey.”
“Indeed,” Zeng agreed. “It’s exciting to discover someone brimming with an abundance of talent.” She tilted her head towards Cavendish. “Besides our Alistair here, there have been so few of late.”
Cavendish blushed and ducked his head at the compliment, but didn’t say anything.
“Mr. Phillips is a descendant of Magdalene Fitzpatrick,” Van de Laar said, her wrinkled face lighting up with a smile. “I’ve been dying to meet the boy.”
“Yet he’s untrained,” Tremblay interjected. “Is no one else concerned about this? It certainly sounds like he’s regularly causing trouble because of it. Maybe his powers should be constrained until he’s learned more control?”
Fury welled in Zach at the thought of shackling Drew’s magic, but before he could speak up, Kensington did. “That would be akin to trying to stopper a volcano,” he said. “Better he learns to master the entirety of his power than risk it building up and releasing with explosive force.”
“And really, Tremblay,” Van de Laar chided. “He’s under the tutelage of the Grand Master himself. Kensington knows what he’s doing, and it’s not for us to question his methods.”
“The boy is currently gallivanting around Hell unsupervised!” Tremblay argued. “No one knows what trouble he’s causing. We could end up with a diplomatic nightmare on our hands and a horde of demons invading!”
“That’s a tad dramatic, don’t you think?” Bhati mused. “From what I’ve heard about the young man, he’s not irresponsible, just unlucky. I highly doubt he’s running around Hell with nefarious intent.”
“What do they say about good intentions?” Tremblay asked snidely. “Oh yes, the road to Hell is paved with them! Whether or not he means to, the boy could be doing irreparable damage!”
“He’s not a boy!” Zach snapped. “Drew is a fully grown adult. You don’t know the first thing about him, so I would ask that you stop catastrophizing. It’s not helping anyone.”
“Hear, hear!” Zeng murmured.
“If you’re so concerned about the ramifications of his being in Hell, I wouldn’t have thought you’d be so opposed to my request,” Kensington said in a deceptively mild tone.
“I’m sorry,” Bhati interjected. “But I missed the previous discussion. Kensington, you explained on the phone that Mr. Phillips has transported himself to Hell, but what was your suggestion for a solution?”
“And are we actually going to talk about the fact that he actually did that?” Cavendish spoke for the first time. His voice was quiet and shy but held a note of awe in it. “No one has ever been able to do that.”
“I’m not sure if he’d have been able to until recently,” Kensington said casually. “The boost in power from his familiar certainly would have helped.”
There was an uproar around the table at this announcement, and Zach noticed Kensington looking smug. There was no doubt in Zach’s mind that Kensington had deliberately dropped that into the conversation to provoke this exact reaction.
“Bartholemew!” Zeng shook a finger at him. “You never mentioned he had a familiar!”
“Holy shit,” Bhati exclaimed. “Holy fucking shit!”
As much as Zach enjoyed seeing powerful and experienced magical leaders losing their minds over his boyfriend, it still wasn’t moving them forward with a plan. “The plan was to combine our powers so we could open a portal for Kensington and myself to return to Hell to retrieve Drew,” he told Bhati.
The sorcerer tugged at his chin while he considered this. “I’m not certain how much power would be required, but it would definitely be worthwhile trying,” he agreed. “How would you return, though?”
“The same way we did previously,” Zach explained. “We travelled to the Borderlands and Drew created a portal for us to come home.”
“Impressive,” Bhati said.
“Indeed,” Van de Laar agreed.
Tremblay was sitting with a sneer on his face, but he couldn’t dispute their praise.
“So, what have been the arguments against such an attempt?” Bhati asked.
“Marcus believes it to be a waste of power,” Zeng said.
Tremblay snorted. “That was only the least of my concerns. My biggest fear is that we will anger Lucifer by trespassing into his realm and we will face the consequences of that. If the boy got himself there, then he can get himself back. We shouldn’t take the risk of sending even more people there. ”
“Alistair, you’re the head of the Alberta chapter,” Zeng said to Cavendish. “What are your thoughts?”
The young man went bright red and refused to meet anyone’s gaze.
He fidgeted as he thought, and then shrugged.
“Considering the Prince of Hell has yet to arrive with an army to demand retribution for Drew’s initial visit, I doubt he’s even noticed.
” Tremblay was glaring at him, but Cavendish resolutely refused to look at him as he continued.
“I don’t believe there’s an overt risk if we send the Grand Master and Zachariel there. ”
“I agree,” Van de Laar said. She raised a hand, her colourful bracelets clacking together. “I think the risk of an untrained yet powerful magic user being alone in Hell is much greater.”
“My thoughts exactly,” Zeng said. “I shudder to think what might happen if he fell into the hands of certain demons.”
“It’s not worth the risk!” Tremblay declared, slapping a hand on the table.
“As Kensington pointed out before, this discussion was for the heads of our chapters,” Bhati said, not unkindly. “I don’t know if you get a say, Tremblay.”
Tremblay looked ready to explode. His face was bright red, and a vein was throbbing in his temple. “Cavendish! You say you value my opinion, and I am your trusted advisor. So why are you ignoring my advice now?”
Cavendish squirmed in his seat. “I’m sorry, Marcus. I just don’t agree with you on this.”
“You are young and inexperienced,” Tremblay barked at him. “Do you really believe you know better than me in these matters?”
The young wizard seemed to deflate into himself. He shrugged but didn’t reply.
“Given Alastair agrees with the rest of us,” Kensington said archly. “I would say that he does know better than you. Your opinion on this is irrelevant, Tremblay.” He looked at the others. “Is anyone in opposition to the proposal?”
Zeng and Van de Laar shook their heads, and Bhati said, “I’m all for it.”
Kensington looked at Cavendish. “Alastair?” he asked gently. “I need you to confirm your stance.”
Cavendish glanced quickly at Tremblay and then away before he nodded. “We should do it,” he said quietly.
Zach slumped in relief. They were finally getting somewhere.
“That settles it, then,” Kensington announced. “Let’s take a break to eat, then we’ll meet back here to discuss exactly how we’ll do this.” He reached over and clasped Zach’s shoulder. “We’re going to get him back,” he promised.
Zach swallowed past the lump that suddenly formed in his throat, and he nodded in acknowledgement.