nancy werlock's diary s01 - episodes 9 Read Free Page B

thin the Veil is,” says Nanna. “But then again, if she has been feeding off of lesser spirits that would explain why things have been quiet. With an alpha predator in the area, the prey would stay away.”
    “ Are we sure the Archmage wasn’t detecting residual energies from when the Esteemed contacted you during the Inquest into my…Ascension?” asks Vivika.
    “I asked the same question. He said the residue from an Esteemed only lasts for a few hours. And I did do a full sweep of my computer afterwards and reinstalled the anti-virus software.”
    “And it was never on my phone, and we found residue there as well.”
    “You ladies are sure you haven’t felt anything unusual?” asks Eric, who immediately makes an apologetic face for chiming in.
    “ Sweetie, we’re Warlocks,” says Mom. “ I had a luncheon yesterday with an archdemon who wants me to accept a position as Overseer. Define unusual.”
    “Was it Rudarvathrion?” asks Nanna. “I hope you told that fool no.”
    “I told him I needed to help my daughter with her problems before making a decision.”
    “You didn’t tell him no?”
    “Mother, not in front of Nancy. We’ll discuss it later.”
    “You know he ate his last Overseer, don’t you?”
    “Charming,” says Vivika. “Young man, the truth is I have been completely focused on protecting my son from my murderer. And Nancy’s family has…been otherwise busy as well.”
    “Has there been any word about the Lord Advocate?” asks Mom. I shake my head. “I don’t believe in coincidences, Nancy. That man disappearing has to be related somehow to all of this. The timing is too close .”
    “ Do you have a theory, Madame Warlock?” asks Vivika.
    “ Mother, explain to them what you found out about Medium Corella Dark.”
    “ Well, when Nancy asked about previous cases of Lord Advocates standing trial, I got to thinking about it a little more. Then I remembered that Vivika’s whole problem with Brynwolf started with something called Soul Jar. Forbidden psionic magic.”
    “ Vivika never explained what Soul Jar does, and nobody has volunteered to clue me in.”
    “ You know that most of the organ transplant technology used by the mundanes today started with the necrobiologists,” says Vivika. “ But imagine if you could go even further to save a life. Beyond just transplanting healthy organs into a weak body? What if you could transplant a soul from a dying body into a healthy one.”
    “I’m not going to like this at all.”
    “No, you’re not. Brynwolf was dabbling in this. Psions aren’t like other witches. Our abilities manifests through our own bodies. Our bodies are conduits for our power. Without our bodies, we have difficulty…remaining active. I’ve told you before how difficult it is for me to keep you shielded because of my current state.”
    “What would drive him to even attempt that kind of magic? Was Brynwolf sick?”
    “No, but he was a Lord Advocate. You don’t get to that level of power without thinking ahead.”
    “That ritual isn’t actually a psionic ritual, however,” says Nanna. “ It was created by Medium Corella Dark, Lord Advocate to the Fifth, just before I became Magus of the School of Demonology. Though whether she actually created the ritual or just perfected it isn’t clear. But guess whose work she used as the basis for her research?”
    “Chana Magus.”
    “ Exactly. Dark fled when the Council condemned her research. She was hunted down by Justicars and destroyed. One of those Justicars was Tomen Porter, Joshua Brynwolf’s great-uncle by marriage.”
    “Sweet Arachne’s web! This is a tangled mess!” I exclaim. “Somehow Byrnwolf learned about the ritual from his great-uncle.”
    “ His uncle suffered from Alzheimer’s before he died,” says Vivika. “ His mind would have been an open book to a psion like Joshua. And the timing matches . His uncle wouldn’t have known the ritual, but he would have known of its existence. And