‘Gesar, by your name I summon you!’
Threads of grey mist drifted through the room. I couldn’t give a damn who else might be able to hear me shouting.
‘Gesar, my mentor, I call on you – will you answer?’
Far away in the distance an invisible shadow sighed.
‘I hear you, Anton.’
‘Answer me!’
‘What question do you want the answer to?’
‘Zabulon – did he lie to me?’
‘No.’
‘Gesar, stop!’
‘It’s too late, Anton. Everything’s going the way it’s supposed to go. Trust me.’
‘Gesar, stop!’
‘You have no right to make any demands.’
‘No right! If we are part of the Light, if we do Good, then I have every right!’
The boss didn’t answer straight away. I even thought he’d decided not to say anything else to me.
‘All right. I’ll be waiting for you in an hour at the Para Bar.’
‘Where?’
‘The Parachutists’ Bar. Near Turgenevskaya metro station, behind the old central post office.’
Then there was silence.
I took a step backwards, out of the Twilight. It was an odd sort of place to meet. Was that where Gesar had had his showdown with the Day Watch? No, that was supposed to have been in some restaurant.
Okay, what did it matter – the Para Bar, Rosie O’Grady’s, even the Chance Club? It wasn’t important. Parachutists, yuppies, gays, who cared?
But there was one other thing I had to find out before I met Gesar.
I took out my phone and dialled Svetlana’s number. She answered immediately.
‘Hi,’ I said simply. ‘Are you at the dacha?’
‘No.’ She seemed startled by my brisk, businesslike tone. ‘I’m on my way into town.’
‘Who with?’
She paused.
‘With Ignat.’
‘Good,’ I said, quite sincerely. ‘Listen, do you know anything about chalk?’
‘About what?’
This time the puzzlement was obvious.
‘About the magical properties of chalk. Have they taught you anything about its uses in magic?’
‘No, Anton. Are you sure you’re all right?’
‘I’m better than that.’
‘Has something happened?’
‘Nothing special.’
‘Do you want me …’ She hesitated. ‘Do you want me to ask Olya?’
‘Is she there with you as well?’
‘Yes, the three of us are coming back into town together.’
‘I don’t think so. Thanks.’
‘Anton …’
‘What?’
I walked over to the desk and opened the drawer with all my magical junk. I looked at the dull crystals, at the clumsily carved wand from the time when I still wanted to be a combat magician. I pushed the drawer back.
‘Forgive me.’
‘There’s nothing I need to forgive you for, Sveta.’
‘Can I come round to your place?’
‘How far away are you?’
‘Halfway there.’
I shook my head and answered:
‘Not now, I’ve got an important meeting. I’ll call you back later.’
I ended the call and smiled. Very often the truth can be malicious and false. For instance, when you only tell half the truth. Like telling someone you can’t talk to them without explaining why.
Permit me to do Good through Evil. I don’t have any other way right now.
Just to be sure, I walked round the apartment, looking into the bedroom, the bathroom and the kitchen. As far as I was able to tell, Zabulon really hadn’t left any ‘presents’ behind him.
I went back into the study, switched on my laptop and inserted the disk with the general magic database. Typed in the password. Typed in the word ‘chalk’.
I hadn’t been expecting anything special to come up. What I wanted to know could easily require such a high security clearance that it had never been included in any data bases.
There were three entries for ‘chalk’.
The first was a reference to a chalk quarry where a first-grade Light Magician and a first-grade Dark Magician fought a duel in the fifteenth century. Both of them died of simple exhaustion of their powers – they didn’t have enough strength left to emerge from the Twilight at the end of the duel. During the following five hundred years almost three thousand people had died at the site.
The second entry referred to the use of chalk for drawing magical symbols and protective circles. There was a lot more information here, and I read through it all quickly. There was nothing of interest. Using chalk has no particular advantages over charcoal, pencil, blood or oil paint. Except maybe that it is easier to erase.
The third reference came in the section ‘Myths and Unconfirmed Data’. Of course, this section was full of rubbish like the use of silver and garlic in fighting vampires, or descriptions of non-existent ceremonies and rituals.
But I’d come across times before when genuine information had been completely forgotten and hidden away among the myths.
Chalk was mentioned in the article ‘The Books of Fate’.
I read halfway through it and realised I’d hit the bull’s eye. The information was just lying there in full view, accessible to any novice magician – it might even be available in sources that were open to ordinary humans.
The Books of Fate. Chalk.
It fitted.
I closed the file and switched off the laptop. Then I sat there for a while, chewing things over. Then I looked at the clock.
It was almost time for me to set out for our rendezvous.
I took a shower and changed my clothes. I took three amulets with me: Zabulon’s medallion, my Night Watch badge and a combat disc Ilya had given to me – an ancient round piece of bronze a bit bigger than a five-rouble coin. I’d never used the disc before. Ilya had told me the amulet only had one charge left – maybe two at the most.
I took my pistol out of its hiding place and checked the clip. Explosive silver bullets. Good against werewolves, of doubtful use against vampires, entirely effective against Dark Magicians.
As if I were going off to war, not for a talk with my boss.
My phone rang in my pocket when I was already at the door.
‘Anton?’
‘Sveta?’
‘Olga wants to talk to you, I’ll give her the phone.’
‘Okay,’ I agreed, unlocking the door.
‘Anton, I love you very much. Please don’t do anything stupid,’ Svetlana said quickly.
I couldn’t think of anything to say. Olga took the phone.
‘Anton. I want you to know that everything’s already been decided. And it’s all going to happen very soon.’
‘Tonight,’ I said.
‘How do you know that?’
‘I can just feel it. That was why the Watch was sent out of town, wasn’t it? And why Svetlana was put into the right mood.’
‘What do you know?’
‘The Book of Destiny. Chalk. I understand everything now.’
‘That’s bad,’ Olga said curtly. ‘Anton, you have to—’
‘I don’t have to do anything for anyone. Except for the Light inside me.’
I ended the call and switched off the phone. I’d had enough. Gesar could easily contact me without any technical devices. Olga would only carry on trying to change my mind. And Svetlana wouldn’t understand what I was doing and why in any case.
I decided to see things through just as I was, all on my own.
‘Sit down, Anton,’ said Gesar.