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Creatures, Creations and Critters

Magus Shift - The Magician - Tarot  Series 

  www.extasybooks.com

 Isabel Marlin Junior had been born to a hedge witch and a magus who had given up his family for his true love. She had become part of a tight circle of friends who called themselves the Half-Blood Club. The club and the extraordinary women that it sheltered were about to become exposed to the magical world for the first time in their lives.  They needed to hide in plain sight. 

Isobel hatched a plan to seduce her boss, a highly placed magus in his own right. Unfortunately he was waiting for her and rendered her powerless. She was taken into his custody and brought before the High Council of Realm. All the magic at her disposal won't help her fight the shift in power that is about to occur.

The Magician - Magus Shift - Excerpt  

Prologue

The small house on the corner of the street rang with laughter. Inside the warm confines an elf, a mage, a werewolf and a dragon were all having margaritas and chocolate fondue. It was a feminine coalition that would stop at nothing to protect one another from the grip of the mages and dragon councils respectively.

It was the bi-weekly meeting of the Half-Blood Club, and all members were in attendance; Hookey (the half elf), Hex (offspring of a magus and a hedge witch), Jinx (the half werewolf) and George (a full-blooded female dragon hiding from the council). The names went back to their meeting as children, when they didn’t want any nosey mages to catch on to whom and what they were.

 * * * *

With a deep sigh of inevitability, Hookey stood and faced her friends. “I have a rather alarming announcement to make.”

The women around the table stopped for a moment and all eyes focused on the speaker.

“In two days, I will have to face the High Council and submit to testing to assess my power level. After the tests, I will be put to the Question as to the existence of others like me.” She took a deep breath and flipped her hair over her shoulder with a frustrated motion. “I’m afraid that we’re going to be ‘outed’, ladies.”

George eyed her friend dubiously. “Why now? Why, after all these years, are you being tested?”

“Apparently my Grandmother has pulled some strings to get me before the council. If I pass the testing, and we all know I will, I get to attend the Winter Ball.” Hookey grinned with pure mischief in her eyes. “I have nothing to wear.”

“Are you going to remove the glamour?” George reached for the pitcher of margaritas.

“I don’t think I have a choice. The council will be able to see the spell when I undergo the tests,” Hookey shrugged apologetically. “Sorry everybody. I never intended for it to happen this way. If my Grandmother weren’t sleeping with the councilor from the fey contingent they would never have considered letting me be tested.”

“Well, it’s not like we didn’t know this day would come,” Hex sighed with her usual practicality. “I guess we just have to make our own moves as fast as we can.”

Jinx looked hesitant. “Umm…I haven’t exactly chosen my target yet.”

Hookey was exasperated, “Why not? It’s not like you didn’t have the opportunity.”

“Yeah, at least you have a wide open field of candidates. Not like some of us.” George was disgruntled.      

“Hey George, lighten up. We all know that you’ve made your choice.” Hex started blushing.

“And we all know that you’ve made up your own mind on the matter, Hex. How long have you been working for him now?” George’s voice was sly.

“I am not working for him. I am merely sub-contracting my services to his company. For the last six months.” She made every effort to sound prim, but she still blushed to her roots as she thought about her target male.

“Ok ladies, what I’m getting out of this is that there is no time to waste. George, make your move. I’ll be standing by if you need help.”

“Help? What kind of help could I need? I’m just going to fuck him, not let him do my taxes.” George was grinning like a fool as she contemplated jumping the male of her choice. Dragons were occasionally difficult to deal with, but they had frenzied sex drives. She had been fighting her own raging hormones for so long that she was almost snarling at the thought of a good lay.

“Never the less, if you do need anything, I’ll be there.” Hex got a far away look in her eyes for a moment then focused back on the women in front of her.

“Jinx, you hide.”

“Hide where?”

“Your father’s mother still owns some property out of town, doesn’t she? Go there.” Hex seemed to be in fine form. Jinx looked surprised, but a pleased expression crossed her face as the logistics worked out in her mind.

“That’s a great idea. No one would think to look for me there, the clan doesn’t know about it and mom would never tell.” Relief was evident in her voice. “I’ll head out tomorrow.”

“Hookey, you, I’m afraid, are on your own. Your grandmother has someone in mind for you, but I just hope for your sake it is not the council rep she slept with.” Hex stopped to sip her drink.

“Ewww, could you imagine? Sharing a guy with your grandmother?” Jinx was horrified.

“Hey guys, do you remember the time that my mom and I had a date with the same guy?” George giggled. “He thought we were sisters, and for some reason it seemed to turn him on.”

“Until you changed form and stranded him outside the reservoir with a memory wipe.” Jinx snorted. “Not very sporting of you. He never had a chance.”

The room collapsed into giggles and anecdotes as the beverages began to disappear. The tension of the tasks looming before them forgotten for a few hours as they just enjoyed being with friends who understood what it was like to be a being of magic.

“Ok Hex, how did you know?” George was genuinely curious as she held the cell phone to her ear and swung her free leg off the edge of the bed.

“I saw it. I didn’t know exactly when, but I did see you in trouble.” Silence fell. “What do you need?”

“I need you to get me the heck out of here.”

“Can’t you fly out?”

“I can’t transform with this stupid shackle on my leg. He chained me to the bed Hex!” George was furious.

“He chained you?” She kept her voice flat, trying not to laugh.

“Yep. There is just enough play to let me get to the bathroom and back, but my clothes are nowhere to be found. I need help here.”

“Where is he right now?”

“He flew off at dawn, about five minutes after he locked me in place. He said he would be back for lunch.”

“Is there a large mirror nearby?”

“Oh, Of course! Why didn’t I think of that? Yeah, there’s one right across from the bed.”

“Touch it and hold on until I come through, ok?”

“You bet. I’m on it now.” George reached out to flatten her palm against the cool slick surface of the mirror.

Seconds later it began to ripple and shimmer. A hand appeared in the silver pool, then a foot, and seconds later Hex stepped through.

“Wow, looks like you had a lot of fun last night.”

She surveyed the room. Sconces were askew on the walls, pillows had been disemboweled and the sheets were escaping the confines of the bed. The ambiance of the room was also heavily colored by the scent of sex that hung in the air.

Perched on the edge of the bed was her friend Graylin Treel, known to the half-blood club as George, and also splendidly nude. Black waves of hair partially concealed the love bites and bruises that decorated her golden skin. Her black eyes were tired but shining.

“Yeah, it was tons of fun. I just want this damn shackle off so that I can get the hell out of here and contemplate trying it again.” Her left leg lifted slightly and waved in the air to cause a gentle jingling noise.

“Uh, why did he shackle you?” Hex knelt down and began to chant in a low tone. Energy built up and surrounded the cuff.

“Something about making sure that I was here when he got back.” George watched carefully and sighed. “Dragon tradition apparently. At least in his family.” She shook her head. “Mom never mentioned this. Mind you, when she and Mathias mated, they were in mid-air and she took off before he recovered.”

No matter how closely she watched, she would never be able to pull off the spell with as much dexterity as Hex. It did seem a shame that with all of that talent, she would never be acknowledged as one of the greatest powers of the modern age unless she joined the aegis of the high council.

With a shimmering pop, the cuff released.

“C’mon. I think I hear something.” Hex looked uneasy as she began to feel the presence of power approaching rapidly.

“Me too. Let’s go.” George jumped off of the bed and stood next to the mirror.

Hex raised her palm to the mirror and began to chant softly once again. The mirror turned into a pool of silver and she reached out to grab George’s hand as she began to enter the pool.

“Shit, let’s go!” George shoved Hex into the mirror as Rikard came into the bedroom at a full run.

His bellow of rage followed the women through the mirror as they tumbled out the other side. Hex waved her hand frantically at the frame in her living room and it became a mirror once again.

“That was too close.” Hex slumped onto her couch and flipped an afghan at George.

George tucked the blanket around her naked form and scooted onto the other end of the couch.

“I am so sorry. I never meant for you to get involved.”

“Was that Rikard?”

“Yep.”

       “As in, Dragon Council Rikard?”

“Yep.”

“As in, not going to stop until he finds you now that he knows you exist, Rikard?” Hex had her eyes closed, her head leaning back onto the couch.

“Yep.”

“As in, able to call upon the entire High Council for a tracking spell to pinpoint your location at anytime, Rikard?”

“Yep.”

“Well, you sure can pick ’em.” She sat up and eyed her friend. “How long do you think it will take for him to find you?”  

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