Nocturnal Academy 9: Mirror Mirror

By Ethan Somerville

Nocturnal Academy principal Madam Nocturna has tasked Quincy Darkchilde, the new Professor of Magick, and Marco Cazadora the half-elf Jesuit, to figure out how the mysterious Mirror of Albiroth really works.

Meanwhile, Millicent Jorgenson sees something disturbing in the school library. Unfortunately she can’t bring herself to report it to Madam Nocturna. More strange events follow, breaking up the relationship between Toby and Carla and setting them against each other.

The Mirror has been exhibiting some strange behaviour lately, and Marco concludes that someone has been tampering with it. He believes that someone - or something - might even have come through it into the Nocturnal Academy.

But who - or what – can possibly be creeping around the school, without anyone noticing? It is Milly who finally figures out the awful truth – just before she is abducted in the middle of the new Oval Jungle.

Can Professor Darkchilde and Marco get the Mirror working in time to rescue Milly?

And more importantly, can Toby and Carla overcome their differences enough to help?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Storm Publishing
• Release date: Sep 3, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301366460

Ethan Somerville

Ethan Somerville is a prolific Australian author with over 20 books published, and many more to come. These novels cover many different genres, including romance, historical, children's and young adult fiction. However Ethan's favourite genres have always been science fiction and fantasy. Ethan has also collaborated with other Australian authors and artists, including Max Kenny, Emma Daniels, Anthony Newton, Colin Forest, Tanya Nicholls and Carter Rydyr.

Book preview

Nocturnal Academy #9

Mirror Mirror

By

Ethan Somerville

SMASHWORDS EDITION

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PUBLISHED BY:

Storm Publishing on Smashwords

Nocturnal Academy 9

Copyright © 2012/2016 by Ethan Somerville

www.stormpublishing.net

Smashwords Edition License Notes

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Chapter 1

Vampire Professor Quincy Darkchilde stood in front of the Mirror of Albiroth with a tablet in one hand, a frown distorting his normally smooth, pale brow. He may have acquired several doctorates in the Magick arts from the Nocturnal University and mastered most spells from the exclusive Seventh Circle but he still couldn’t figure out how to operate this blasted thing. He had fired all the high-level knowledge spells he knew at it, but not one had provided him with any useful information.

All the carved monsters around the outside of the mirror glared and snarled and snapped, forcing the Master of Magick to keep his distance. He had nearly lost his nose and several fingers to those vicious little creatures. Within the glass the things surrounded strange images continued to appear, revealing the seemingly endless parade of alternate worlds that existed beyond.

Darkchilde had already seen parallel universes containing great Viking ships propelled by oars and steam, dark hospitals full of insane victims being used for experimentation, epic castles perched precariously on windswept cliffs and a completely green, ordered place of electric cars and glittering solar panels. The range seemed endless. Each time a new realm appeared the brass dials Professor Abbacus had installed would register a surge in manathaums, so at least there was a measureable increase in Magick. These dials were connected to a nearby stand-alone computer that recorded all the information. Darkchilde had already saved everything on his tablet and gone through it several times searching for something – anything – he could use to control the mirror.

But there was no pattern to the changes, and although Darkchilde had seen some worlds appear more than others, new ones continued to crop up all the time.

As instructed by Madam Nocturna he had tried to deactivate the mirror many times. He had blasted it with every deactivation spell in his repertoire. None of them worked. The big two-pronged switch at the wall only controlled the electrical devices Abbacus had attached. Darkchilde was still marvelling at how that professor had managed to get his machines to work on the artefact.

But even Abbacus had not been able to completely control the mirror. It deactivated itself whenever it felt like it. Now the glass began to fog over once more, either heralding the arrival of a new realm or a shut-down. This time everything within went dark. The carved monsters surrounding the outside went silent and dead. The needles on the dials all dropped to zero.

Professor Darkchilde sighed and connected his tablet to the computer so he could download the rest of the data. He had no idea when the mirror would return to life so he decided to retire and try to make some sense out of this latest collection of information.

And besides, he needed a rest. His stomach was churning uneasily. It had been doing that a lot lately … ever since the confrontation at the Lonely House last term. Professor Darkchilde couldn’t understand it. He was a vampire – vampires rarely got sick. And they certainly didn’t get tummy-aches! But these days it seemed after every big meal he ate his stomach gurgled like a witch’s cauldron. So far he had managed to keep everything down but he knew that one day he would lose control.

He wondered if he was suffering from some sort of supernatural illness. It was possible, but he wasn’t about to see Matron Stein about it. He couldn’t stand that big-mouthed earth elemental nurse.

Professor Darkchilde felt a twinge of pain between his eyebrows and rubbed his forehead. Great – now a headache to go withy my bellyache, he thought darkly as he turned in a swirl of his long black robes, and marched from Professor Abbacus’ old laboratory.

He wondered if he was just stressed. He didn’t like it here in this provincial academy full of laid-back, hippy teachers and foul-mouthed, disrespectful children. Oh, some of them showed great promise, especially that quiet mysterious girl Alice Dibble, and a lot of interesting things did happen in and around Appleton, but he still would have preferred to be back at the North American Academy. At least there the teachers were still allowed to cane misbehaving students. That principal had been in residence for almost five hundred years and hailed from staunch puritan stock.

Behind Professor Darkchilde Abbacus’ old lab fell into an eerie silence. The overhead lights remained on, casting a gloomy glow over all the empty benches, tables and shelves. For about half an hour the Mirror of Albiroth stayed still and silent. Then with a soft creak of enchanted wood returning to life, all the carved beasts started to move again. They blinked and their eyes illuminated. Some flexed their claws in anticipation. Others stretched their long, sinuous bodies. The dark glass swirled with smoke. The dials began to register and the computer emerged from power-saver mode to record this new activation.

Then one of the dials registered a spike and with a hum the other devices bolted to the outside of the mirror came to life – the little machines that resembled old-fashioned rayguns. With a flash of sparks they spat out a series of lightning bolts that formed a protective net across the mirror. Figures loomed up behind the barrier. Then one stepped forward and raised its arms as though casting a spell…

Millicent Jorgenson arrived back from school holidays a couple of hours early and ended up wandering around the Nocturnal Academy by herself, looking for something to do. Not that she minded being back at school. It was a lot better than being at home with her parents.

They might have been full of joy to have her back after her harrowing experience on the Magick Earth, but it hadn’t taken long for their excitement to wear off. When they realised their only child was still the same somewhat dull individual she had always been, they started to slip back into their old habits. Now, two years after the incident, Milly’s holidays once more consisted of tutors, intensive catch-up lessons and endless quizzes. They tried their hardest not to let their disappointment with her show, but she could tell it was there.

Milly may not have been an academic genius, but she certainly wasn’t stupid. She was passing all her classes and doing quite well at both Vampire Studies and Professor Darkchilde’s Demon Banishing class. In fact she was doing better than Nancy, Amala and Delilah. Fluffy, Princess and Pukezilla still had not managed to kill an actual imp.

Milly’s newfound found confidence had led her to join Alice in the Tooth and Claw class. Now, in wolf form, she could run around on her hind legs and perform some of the basic combat manoeuvres. Professors Longenfang, McDingley, Mr Price and Miss Denholm were all quite impressed with her progress.

Not that my parents are interested in any of that, Milly thought darkly as she made her way into the library. They don’t want me to be a fighter, but it seems that’s what I’m best at. The thought cheered Milly considerably. For so long drifting along without a thought of what she wanted to be in life, the blonde vampire girl now had a real goal.

I will be the best vampire fighter I can be, she thought. While I’m here with some time on my hands, I might as well look for a book on fighting methods.

The library was open but practically deserted. The tall shelves crammed with books loomed over Milly as she walked through the dark, quiet aisles. A shiver raced down her spine. She didn’t like this library so empty and quiet. Perhaps she ought to find somewhere else to go.

No! Milly told herself firmly. If you’re going to be a fighter, then you have to be brave and face your fears! If you can survive a Magick Earth dungeon and almost being burned at the stake, you can certainly survive a creepy deserted library!

Milly continued to hunt through the shelves for the book she wanted. She had been here often enough to know where all the sections were, and eventually found what she was looking for in a relatively well-thumbed area. Since she wasn’t up to one of those massive, dusty old tomes from years gone by, she selected a relatively simple book called Basic Vampire Combat.

She found a comfy armchair and sat down, curling her feet under her. The book began by describing all the powers a vampire had at his or her disposal. Milly had already mastered mistform, the wolf, bat and some mental disciplines. She had been able to do telepathy and coercion for a while, but could now read an unshielded person’s surface thoughts.

As she was skimming through the chapters she noticed a heading labelled Vampire Talons.

How come Madam Nocturna never taught us about these? Milly wondered as she started the chapter. Perhaps because she doesn’t want us scratching each-other’s eyes out! She giggled to herself and continued reading.

According to the book vampire talons were not currently in vogue. Apparently modern vampires were trying to distance themselves from the old medieval impression of them as demons. But talons were incredibly useful in unarmed combat, and a few simple moves involving these personal weapons could blind, incapacitate and even kill. They could also be used as tools and to climb various different kinds of surfaces. Since vampires were a lot stronger than humans, these claws could dig into wood and plaster and even mortar.

Well – that’s something I’m definitely going to try, Milly thought. She put the book down and concentrated on popping a set of Wolverine claws out of her fingertips.

At first nothing happened. But then she felt a tingling on the pads of her fingers. Come on, come on, she thought. She hooked her hands into claws. Then her skin split with a flare of pain, and long talons like bird claws sprang from the ends, merging with her own nails. They were even longer and nastier looking than the claws Professor Abbacus wore. And they were black!

Owwww! she complained. But the pain didn’t last for long – her enhanced vampire regeneration system kicked in and a minute later the talons felt perfectly normal. Cool! she marvelled, and practised a few swipes. She ran a couple across her palm and three deep cuts immediately opened up. They were wickedly sharp. She hissed in pain again, but then they healed. She tried to pick up the book, but the talons punched right through the thin cardboard cover. Ooops! She dropped the volume on the floor. I’d better retract these before I wreck something else! She concentrated on pulling the claws back, and for a brief second nothing happened. She felt a flare of panic that she would be stuck with the murderous talons, but then they slid back in.

She heaved a sigh of relief and picked up the book, quickly shoving it back into the shelf. At least it was still readable. Some books borrowed by weres were returned half torn to shreds.

It was then Milly noticed the voices.

There was someone in the library with her! But who? She decided to check who else had just returned from holidays. She got up and headed towards the sound of the muffled tones. But as she drew closer she recognised the deep, familiar voice of Toby Thompson. Milly stopped in between the shelves. He’s probably with Carla, she thought. I doubt they came in here to be disturbed. She was about to turn and head off when she realised the other soft, sultry tone did not belong to Carla Hightower.

The red-haired weretiger had a loud, high-pitched voice and a lot of trouble speaking softly. And she certainly didn’t posses such an interesting British accent.

It sounded almost like … Professor Vixen!

What on Earth was Toby doing in here with the Science Mistress?

Milly crept forward so she could spy on them without them noticing. At first she thought about becoming a bat, since there were so many in the library already. But she wanted to be as quiet and unobtrusive as possible. So she concentrated, becoming lighter and lighter. Then she felt the wonderful sensation of her solid form dropping away. She drifted up the side of the bookshelf, heading towards the ceiling. It was relatively still in the old library so she had good control over her insubstantial form, and was able to curl herself into a gap between the tops of the books and underside of the shelf above. In this form she wasn’t completely invisible, but unless someone was actively looking for her, they wouldn’t be able to see her.

Suddenly she was glad of her mistform. It effectively hid her gasp of horror.

Oh this isn’t good, she thought, her ethereal heart racing frantically. This isn’t good at all!

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Chapter 2

Alright class, today we’re starting a new topic. Science Professor Vulpina Vixen declared as she strode confidently into Lab 3 and opened her lap top on the front bench. I think you’re all going to find this very interesting.

Professor Abbacus’ old laboratory still looked very much like it had when he’d been in charge; battle-scarred lab-benches, strange machines cluttering the shelves, jars of neatly-labelled chemicals, cables trailing across the ceiling, weird dials and gauges everywhere. But it was now a lot cleaner and brighter than before, and some new biological specimens occupied the shelves. Abbacus may have dabbled in the occasional genetic experiment but he preferred physics and engineering. Professor Vixen, however, loved biology.

Her jars contained weird, freakish creatures preserved in formaldehyde. Some had too many legs, others too many heads. Their bulbous eyes seemed to glare at the room’s occupants. Others still bared their fangs long after death.

They were the foetuses of demonically possessed creatures.

Slowly the buzz of conversation in lab 3 died as students started to pay attention to Professor Vixen. Toby Thompson, seated up the back with Carla Hightower, looked especially interested. But not because of what Professor Vixen had said. No, he was more interested in her.

Today the beautiful Science Mistress was wearing a very short, shiny electric blue dress that contrasted with the brilliant red curls that always fell in an enormous mass over her shoulders. As usual she wore her ears pointed and sticking out of the top of her head – for better hearing all the gossip in her class. And a fluffy fox tail swished around behind her long, long legs. During hot nights she wagged it to create a draft. She wore spiked heels ten centimetres high, making her look even taller and impressive, and a long white lab coat did little to hide the power and grace with which she moved as she pulled down the screen.

When she was sure she had the class’ complete and undivided attention, she continued; Our new topic is the human reproductive system. Two images appeared on the screen, one of the male system and the other depicting the female.

She may have been facing the advanced science class, but these were still fourteen and fifteen year-olds. Her pictures were greeted with a lot of childish giggling and snorting. Some students from more conservative households blushed bright red, including Harley Erdman. Although the machine-spirit boy really had no reason to be so embarrassed. Living inside the computer he had access to all the information the Nocturnal Academy had amassed over the years, including lesson plans from years gone by.

Still – old habits died hard. Harley’s uptight folks had never discussed this sort of stuff with him, and had he not been quite so clever or telepathically connected with a mainframe, he would have still believed in storks and cabbage-patches.

Seated beside him, Alice Dibble simply stared and thought ‘how prophetic’. She had just returned from two weeks of Easter holidays. Only this time her family had not travelled up to the Myall Lakes like they usually did. Marlene had been too ill, forcing Harry to cancel the trip – much to Alice’s and Nick’s disappointment.

However when the children finally learned the reason for Marlene’s bad health, their chagrin quickly changed to amazement. Alice had started to become quite concerned about her mother, who was having trouble keeping food down and always seemed to be tired and lethargic. And Nick had been annoyed that his father seemed to be spending all his time looking after Marlene.

But then Marlene told her and Nick that she wasn’t sick at all – she was pregnant.

She would be having a baby in late August or early September. Both