The Unknown Alchemist

Chapter 24 - The Lady Avery

It was bitterly cold the morning they travelled to Gallen. Winter smothered the mountains and valleys of Corinth, keeping people huddled indoors close to family. Some ships braved the storms but trading had mostly halted until better weather opened up the mountain passes and calmed the seas.

The only people on the move were primes with the ability to open a slipstream. It was a powerful magic often reserved for alpha primes and their relations. Avery had slipped three times already, but each trip had happened so quickly she did have time to think about it.

"So how does it know where to take you?" Avery inquired as she donned her winter coat in the front foyer.

"It doesn't really take you, so much as you decide where to go. The energy stream connects the whole world, simultaneously linking us all together. We open a door to that stream and then slip into the current. You exit the stream again at the desired location," Adelyn explained as she glanced in the hall mirror and adjusted her hair.

"So how do you know where to take you?" Avery removed her heavy winter coat and accepted a lighter jacket from Cora without question.

"It's easier if you've been there before or else you're really just guessing," Sari added, bringing her travel bag down the stairs. "Or so I've been told. I can't open a stream myself but it feels more comfortable if I know where I'm going."

The front door opened blowing in Niamh on a gust of cold winter air. She shut it behind her and brushed some light snow off her jacket. "Did I leave my sandals here? I can't find them in my apartment."

"I put them by the door," Cora pointed.

Niamh turned to the boot rack and added them to her bag.

"So you can't slip to a location you haven't been before?" Avery clarified, letting Cora wrap a scarf around her neck.

"You can, but it's much more difficult. You need to be able to sense what's on the other side of the stream before you exit. It's important to travel with someone who's experienced before attempting a blind exit on your own. Someone else can guide you if you haven't been there before." With a final glance in the mirror Adelyn reached for her own bag. "It takes more energy to move further or larger things. Whole armies could travel this way but it would take multiple primes to hold such a large stream open."

The door opened again and Roedin popped his head in. "All set then?"

"We are!" Hayden called from down the hall as he exited his office stuffing papers into a briefcase.

"But I don't know where we're going," Avery reminded them. "What if I get out of the stream into the middle of a volcano or the bottom of a lake?"

Having missed the beginning of the conversation Roedin blinked in confusion. Arctos pushed him in through the door from behind.

"Are we going already? I'm standing out on the street with no coat," Arctos whined.

"Aren't bears supposed to be furry and warm?" Niamh teased.

"Yeah and they have enough sense to sleep through the winter," Arctos added.

Avery grabbed her bag and followed the others outside. The house was protected from slipping directly inside to prevent intruders. The alpha pack crossed the snowy lawn, keeping their chins tucked into summer scarfs and hugging their arms to their chests to brace against the winter wind. They had dressed lightly for it would be warm in Gallen and didn't want to bother with heavy coats for the brief trip to the street. Once outside the wards Adelyn cast her hand out and a shimmering puddle appeared in the air before them like a door.