Chapter 13 #2
Jackson lounges on the couch, legs crossed and arms stretched over the top.
His father pours himself some brown liquor into a short crystal glass.
He offers one to Jackson who reminds him that he was driving home shortly.
“Right, right, sorry. Not like this stuff affects you much but good to be safe, smart lad.” Joseph goes to grab ice from the bucket next to the drinks station and sighs deeply.
“Fucking hell, I swear this was just full. Hang on, I’ll ask Wendy to grab some as we talk. ”
Jackson holds up his hand and beckons his father to come closer.
“If I may, father, let me help with that. Allow me to show you what I’ve been working on.
” Joseph shoots up an eyebrow but shrugs as he settles himself next to his son.
Jackson turns his focus to the glass of whiskey in his father’s hand and curls his fingers inward.
Draw the heat out, let the magic flow slowly and let it do its thing. Hakeem’s lessons echo through his mind.
“Barid”
Small tendrils of shadow seep from his hand, wrapping around the glass.
Joseph’s eyes widen, lines forming on the dark skin of his forehead.
The glass in his hand chills, frost coating the sides.
It doesn’t burn in his hand but as he took a sip from the glass he found the liquid perfectly chilled.
He had spent years watching his son struggle with powers, resentment growing towards his own magic.
Now he watched pride fill Jackson’s eyes, the same forest green as his own.
“Well,” Joseph takes another sip from his glass, “that’s certainly convenient.
” He chuckles as he pats Jackson’s shoulder.
He hadn’t seen his son happy to use his magic in decades.
Jackson and Joseph talk for a little while longer before Jackson excuses himself.
They discuss how Jackson’s classes were going and about his lessons with Hakeem.
Three weeks with his new roommates and he could feel the bond growing between him and the boys.
Hakeem is kind, patient and talented. Eddie is a warm, comforting presence, grounding almost. He’s from the same world as Jackson, he understands the annoyances of keeping up appearances for high society.
Joseph sees the way his son’s face softens and lightens when he speaks of the two men.
He’s glad Jackson had found good people, even if it was just to fulfill the terms of a will.
They hug good-bye as Joseph returns to his work and Jackson leaves for home.
* * *
As Jackson gathers his things and the box from his office his phone buzzes in his pocket. He takes the phone out and notices a message in the apartment group chat.
Eddie: “Jackson, will you be home soon? I have something I need your help with.”
Jackson: “I’m on my way back now actually. Is everything ok?”
Hakeem: “Everything is fine, Eddie brought some friends over to ask a question about the binding magic we’ve been practicing.”
J: “What does that require me for? Hakeem is the expert on spell composition.”
E: “My friends Bernie and Ozzy we’re joking about how they could have broken out of your chains cause they had shifter strength on their side.
I said pure strength had nothing to do with it since I could bench as much of them even without shifting.
Then we got into it about whether magic blessings of shifter magic affected muscles to the point of breaking out of magic.
Then we came to the house to hang out and play some video games and Hakeem was there and we asked him the same thing and Hakeem said the only way to confirm for sure was to repeat the conditions of the previous chain incident and try to break free of them. And that needs your mana.”
H: “It’s for science.”
J: “I don’t know what to say. Isn’t that dangerous and don’t we need to go to the store?”
E: “We were gonna just chill at home till we had to go but this is a matter of pride and science.”
H: “Nothing dangerous about it actually. Your control has been improving and the spell itself is innately harmless. The spell binds but doesn’t tighten when pressure is applied. That spell is more complex.”
J: “Do you get anything in proving your friends wrong?”
E: “Ozzy and Bernie said if they can’t break out of your chains they’ll buy lunch before we head out to the store.”
This is ridiculous. Jackson doesn’t want to bother using his magic more than he needed to. It’s not a meant to be used for foolish bets and entertainment.
On the other hand, the thought didn’t annoy him, it actually sounded kind of fun? Jackson smirks, huffing a breath through his nose.
J: “Fuck it, sure. I take no responsibility if this goes wrong and say we get burgers if we win.”
H: “Ooh, burgers sound good actually!”
E: “The terms have been agreed upon. Thank you, see you soon!”
* * *
Jackson arrives at the apartment shortly afterwards, box in hand.
He finds Hakeem cheering on Eddie from behind him on the couch as he button mashes a controller.
A large hairy man in a tank top with a full beard and dark skin has the other controller, tongue sticking out slightly in concentration.
A muscular man with hairy arms wearing a matching tank top, twin scars across his chest peaking through the top, has his hands on the large man’s shoulders, cheering him on.
Jackson peeks at the screen and sees they are playing an arena fighter game.
“Hi, Jackson, Eddie and Bernie are in the last round of their match. It’s tied so far and this is the tie breaker.” He points to the muscular man next to him, the one cheering on Bernie. “This is Ozzy, Bernie’s mate. Get him Eddie!”
“Slice him apart, honey bear!” Ozzy shouts out towards the screen. “Hey man, Oswald Rivers, how you doing?” He waves at Jackson from his spot behind his mate, Jackson offers a wave back.
Jackson puts his stuff and the box down on the kitchen island, he hears Eddie cry out in what he assumes in defeat.
He turns back around to see Bernie jump up in victory, pulling Oswald into his arms for a kiss.
Hakeem pats Eddie on the back gently and chuckles.
“Good game, big guy, you almost had him.”
“He just got lucky.” Eddie grumbles.
Bernie sticks his tongue out at Eddie’s remark, Eddie flips him off in return. Bernie just laughs and waves over to Jackson. “Bernard Woods, hi!”
* * *
Eddie lines up next to his friend in front of the terrace doors. Jackson faces them from a few feet away, stretching out his arms. “You guys sure about this?”
Oswald nods his head with a chuckle, “At first we were just joking but now we’re genuinely curious, and a little competitive.”
Jackson turns to Hakeem who has his grimoire open to the proper page. “Hakeem, do I need to cast this three times or can I do a mass target casting?”
Hakeem scans the page, glasses sliding down his nose slightly. “If you make the somatic component using a wider birth and channel an appropriate amount of mana, three targets should be possible with one casting.”
Oswald and Bernard exchange a confused look. “Hand Gestures,” says Eddie and Jackson in unison. Hakeem snorts as he tries to cover a laugh at the embarrassed look his roommates give each other.
Eddie and Jackson chuckle, a bright sound that fills the apartment, as a slight blush fills their cheeks, hands rubbing the back of their necks. Oswald and Bernard exchange a knowing look that goes unnoticed by the three roommates.
Jackson aims his focus towards the three men before him. His eyes glow slightly as he draws the incomplete infinity loop, using the full range of motion of his arm.
“Salasil”
Tendrils of shadow flow from under Jackson’s feet, snaking towards the muscular men. The shadows climb their bodies and form black chains, radiating a slight green glow. The shadows wrap tightly around them, the sound of rattling chains fill the air. They are bound just as Eddie was bound before .
Hakeem’s eyes narrow as he takes a closer look at the spell’s execution. “Solid form, it seems stable. The spell seems to have affected its intended targets with no deviation.”
Hakeem turns to Jackson, a wide smile reaching his eyes. They shine in the light, a warm feeling fills Jackson’s chest. Eddie smiles at Jackson fondly from his position bound in front of the terrace doors. “Knew you could do it, Jackson.”
The warm feeling in his chest intensifies. Jackson turns back to the bound men, the scene something from a risque romance novel. Hakeem might read something like that. Hell, he might own something like it.
“Okay, try to break free. Hakeem says it shouldn’t tighten as you try to escape so injury shouldn’t be an issue, hopefully. But please don’t pull a muscle or something straining yourself.”
Hakeem watches closely, standing next to Jackson. He has a notepad propped onto the back of his grimoire and a pen at the ready. “Alright, gentlemen. On your marks, get set, go!”
Bernard, Oswald and Eddie grunt and groan as they flex, push outwards and try to break free of the chains.
The sounds emanating from the three large men fill the air of the apartment.
Jackson notices Hakeem hiding his face behind his grimoire and notepad, his cheeks turning a rosy shade of red.
Jackson chuckles to himself as he imagines the thoughts filling Hakeem’s mind.
Hakeem looks so innocent hiding from the scene in front of them, those romance novels he reads could never compare to the real thing after all.
Magic fills the air as Bernard and Oswald begin to change.
“Hey, no fair shifting!” Eddie admonishes his friends as hair begins to cover their bodies, bones creaking and rearranging.
Hakeem hurriedly takes notes, he didn’t often see shifters change in front of him, taking the chance to learn what he could from the occurrence.