The Rise of Isaac, Books 1-3, page 67
They emerged on the other side of the gate where narrow, cobbled streets led off into the city, climbing high up into the hills. The buildings were forged from honeyed, sandstone blocks that shimmered gold in the sunlight. They had wooden awnings and open air patios, shaded by decorative gazebos. The buildings were of varying sizes and designs giving a quaint feel to the place.
At a crossroads, a wooden signpost stood at an odd angle out the ground with several directions flagged upon it.
"Where are we going?" Oliver asked, turning back to the group.
Rogan glanced anxiously up and down the road. Ely touched his arm as he stepped forward. "Obviously we all want to look for Quinn but I think the first thing we should do is get a hotel."
Rogan went to protest but Ely held up a hand to silence him. "I'm sorry Rogan but we can't go traipsing around Brinatin in winter clothes. We need to drop our stuff at a hotel and purchase something suitable to wear. Then you can go hunting around the whole city if you like."
Rogan grunted in response.
"Now I know you don't want to hear it but May needs to go see Wallace Ganderfield as a matter of urgency," Ely continued, eyeing her.
May shook her head. "I want to look for Quinn. The bind will hold a while longer."
"May, I'm not going to argue about this. You told me yourself you've been in serious pain over the last few days," Ely said.
Oliver couldn't help but agree but didn't want to upset Rogan. He met his friend's eye and Rogan nodded subtly to him. "You're right. May needs to see my dad. That needs to be the priority." His face turned to annoyance. "I can't believe Quinn's done this."
"Rogan, it's fine. Go look for her. You don't need to come," May said, shaking her head so her blonde hair danced around her face.
"I'm your best chance of getting in, I'm not gonna leave you," he said, giving her an encouraging smile.
She frowned but didn't press the issue further.
"I can start looking," Larkin said with a shrug.
Everyone turned to him.
"I don't need to come with you. I'll start searching for Quinn and Hector while you go and see Rogan's dad," he said firmly.
"You'd do that?" Rogan asked, his brow furrowing suspiciously.
"Course," Larkin said, looking offended.
"This way then," Ely said, eyeing the signpost then walking straight ahead.
3
The Barlin View
They hurried behind Ely up narrow lanes that climbed steeply, twisting and winding. The first buildings they passed were restaurants and bars then the road levelled out into a long stretch of hotels. The buildings were tall, at least four storeys high, with wooden balconies protruding from the rooms.
They entered the first one and cool air washed over them. Oliver relished the breeze as it floated over his burning skin.
The reception contained a small courtyard with a fountain trickling on one side in a tiny but colourful bar. A girl with tanned skin and sun-kissed hair sat at a desk in a pale blue summer dress.
"Phew, you guys from Glacio?" she asked them in a soft accent, eyeing their clothes.
"How'd you guess?" Ely asked in a joking tone, holding his hand up to reveal the mage symbol: a palm encased inside three, fiery rings.
Rogan imitated him, stepping forward. "I'll get this Ely."
"Nonsense," Ely said, shaking his head.
Rogan moved past him and laid a hand down on the desk. "I want to."
"Well aren't you a piece," the receptionist said, eyeing him and fluttering her eyelashes. "What's your name, handsome?"
"Rogan Ganderfield," he said, giving her the smile he used for his celebrity appearances.
"Ganderfield?" she gasped, getting to her feet. "Why are you staying here? You should go to the best place in town."
"Here's just fine," he said with a crooked grin.
"Well, okay, Mr Ganderfield. How many rooms do you need?" she asked, eyeing the group behind him.
"Two twins, two singles," Rogan said. "Your best."
"Okay." She trailed her finger across a glass panel on the desk. "How many nights?"
"Um." Rogan hesitated and looked back at the others.
"Just book a couple then we can extend it if we need to," Oliver said with a shrug.
"Two nights?" she asked.
Rogan nodded.
The girl turned and knelt down, opening a wooden cupboard. She produced four keys attached to wooden blocks with numbers painted on them.
"Here you are," she said, passing him the keys. "Numbers three hundred and four and three hundred and six are the singles. Take the stairs up to the third floor, all your rooms are located there."
"Thank you," Rogan said. "Can I pay when we leave?"
"Yes. I'll bill you at the end. Enjoy your stay, Mr Ganderfield," she said, watching him lustfully as he walked away.
They took the stone steps up three flights of stairs and walked out into a corridor decorated with jugs of flowers on small, ornate tables beside each door.
Rogan passed the key to number three hundred and six to Ely who nodded gratefully and disappeared into his room.
"Who else wants their own room?" Rogan asked, dangling the key to three hundred and four on his finger.
Larkin snatched it. "Mine," he said, unlocked a room on the left and disappeared.
"Right," Rogan said stiffly then nodded at Oliver. "You and me?"
Oliver nodded.
Rogan passed the final key to May and Anna then walked down the corridor. Oliver headed after Rogan into their room. It was filled with two double beds dressed in soft white sheets. A large, glass door led to a balcony that overlooked the harbour. The sea stretched out ahead of them, glittering as it caught the sunlight.
Rogan dropped his and Quinn's packs onto the double bed closest to the door and whipped off his shirt, revealing his muscular chest.
"I'm gonna shower then head down into the city," he said, holding his grubby shirt out at arm's length. "And I think we better get new clothes stat."
Rogan slipped into the bathroom and closed the door. Oliver pulled off his own shirt and dropped it onto the bed. He opened the sliding door and walked out onto the balcony.
Warm air wafted around him as he leant his forearms on the railing, looking out to sea. The sound of the bustling city filled his ears combined with the crashing of waves and the cry of seabirds high up above.
May appeared on the balcony next to his, gasping and clutching her chest. She jumped when she spotted Oliver.
"Are you okay?" Oliver asked in alarm, stepping to the edge of the railing and gazing intently across the gap at his sister.
She sighed and shook her head. "I didn't wanna make a scene."
He frowned, his grip tightening on the railing. "We'll go see Rogan's father today. Can you hold on?"
She nodded, blinking away pained tears.
"You're gonna be alright, I promise."
***
After heading to town to buy clothes, Oliver showered and changed, relieved from the heat at last. Rogan and Larkin had been gone for an hour searching the city for Quinn. Oliver took his pack and exited, finding May and Ely talking together in the corridor.
May was wearing a white summer dress with flip flops and Ely was in linen trousers with sandals and a cream shirt. Oliver gave them a half smile as he approached, tucking his hands into his pockets.
Ely smiled. "Ready to go?"
Oliver nodded and turned as a door opened behind him. Anna appeared in a coral-coloured sundress with her pack hanging from one hand. His heart beat faster at the sight of her and he fought the urge to kiss her in front of his family.
"Should I come with you or stay to look for Quinn?" Anna asked hesitantly.
"I'd like you to come with me, if that's okay?" May asked hopefully.
Anna nodded and pulled May into a brief hug.
"Rogan's downstairs," May said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Let's go then, we'll have to find someone to take us out to Wallace's island," Ely said as they started walking towards the stairs.
"He owns an island?" Oliver asked in surprise.
"He's a Ganderfield," Ely said with a shrug.
They entered the lobby and found Rogan and Larkin standing there looking disheartened. They had both changed, wearing shorts and t-shirts.
"Any luck?" Anna asked as they met by the exit.
Rogan shook his head. "I don't get it. Where would they go?"
"I'll keep looking," Larkin said, leaning casually back against the doorframe.
"Are you sure?" Ely asked.
"Yeah, I'm not gonna be much help to you lot anyway," Larkin said.
"I just dunno why they didn't wait for us..." Rogan looked distracted, glancing out of the exit as if he might catch sight of Quinn at any second.
Oliver clapped him on the shoulder. "They're probably out searching for us somewhere. We might even bump into them down at the harbour."
Rogan broke a smile. "Yeah, you're right."
Ely adjusted the bag on his shoulders. "We should be back by tonight, Larkin, but if for any reason we have to stay longer we'll contact the hotel."
Larkin nodded and turned to May. "Good luck or whatever," he muttered stiffly then headed upstairs.
"Thanks," May said, sounding surprised.
The receptionist glanced at Ely, getting to her feet on high heels. "Can I help you, sir?" she asked politely.
"Yes. Forgive me but I've not been to Brinatin in an age. Can you tell me about the communications devices here?"
"Yes of course," she said brightly, fiddling with her ear.
Oliver stepped up next to Ely curiously.
Her eyes flashed to his and she batted her eyelashes at him. "Brinatin uses Flash Thought technology. This is a Flash Thought earpiece." She held up her index finger, revealing a silver earring-like object balancing on the tip.
"It clips onto your ear like this." She attached the device to the top of her ear like a cuff. "Now I'm connected," she announced, beaming.
"To what?" Oliver asked, sensing the rest of his friends closing in behind him.
She giggled. "Look." She pulled her hair to one side and leant closer to Oliver, placing a rectangular piece of glass in front of him on the desk.
Oliver frowned at the thin object then started as words appeared in the left hand corner. They looked hand-written in swirling, pink writing. It read:
Kimmi Lake
"That's just my style but you can write it however you like," she said. "That's my name by the way," she added, eyeing Oliver.
He nodded vaguely. "How does it work?"
"I just think how I want it and, well, there it is," Kimmi said, grinning. "It connects me to all kinds of stuff. I can receive and send messages on this Flash Screen." She gestured to the glass. "Call friends through the earpiece or image-call people through the screen. Loads of things. I can watch Flash Vision, take pictures, videos, anything you can think of really."
"Here, try," Kimmi said, leaning across the desk and pulling the cuff from her ear. She clipped it onto Oliver's, briefly grazing a manicured fingernail along his jaw. She watched him excitedly.
Anna stepped up beside him and looked down at the Flash Screen with interest, her soft curls falling over one shoulder.
Oliver expected to feel something but nothing happened. "It's not doing anything."
Kimmi laughed a little too enthusiastically. "Just look at the Flash Screen and focus your thoughts. It doesn't just splurge out everything or you'd write your inner most secrets on it for all the world to see." She looked at him like that was exactly what she would like to see written down before her.
Oliver gazed at the Flash Screen and focused, thinking his name loudly inside his mind. Nothing happened.
"Imagine the words on the screen. Just how you want to see them," she said.
Oliver thought of using a computer back on Earth and recalled how words appeared on a screen as he typed them.
His name appeared in helvetica font and he laughed.
"They're you go," Kimmi said, clapping her hands together. "Is that your...handwriting?" she asked, looking at it with a confused frown.
"Well, no. It's a computer font," he said, running a hand down the back of his neck.
"Wow that sounds so exotic. Where are you from?" Kimmi asked, leaning her elbows on the desk and cupping her face in her hands.
"Um, Earth," Oliver said, throwing a glance towards Anna.
Anna was looking down at the Flash Screen, clearly trying to hide her amusement. He placed a hand on her back as he leant over the screen.
"Oh, you're so funny," Kimmi said, reaching a hand forward to brush his fingers.
Oliver removed his hand from her reach and took the device from his ear, passing it back. "Do they all look like that?" he asked, eyeing the feminine earpiece.
"No silly, they come however you want. You can get skin-coloured ones if you don't want them to be seen," she said brightly.
"Where can I purchase one?" Ely asked.
"Umm, there's a Flash Thought shop about three streets away. I'll draw you a map." Kimmi looked at the Flash Screen and a map started to appear in pink then a red circle highlighted an area. Arrows emerged along the lines, marking the route.
She turned and whipped a piece of paper out of a drawer and put the Flash Screen on top of it. She blinked and a light momentarily glowed beneath the screen. The map appeared on the paper and she passed it to Ely.
"Can I contact you if I need to deliver a message to one of my companions?" Ely asked.
"Sure. Take this." She passed Ely a card. It had a symbol embossed on it beneath the name of the hotel: The Barlin View. "When you want to contact the hotel, put on your earpiece and picture this symbol. You'll connect to whoever's on the desk and they can pass your message on for you."
"Great. Thank you for your help Miss Lake," Ely said and turned to leave.
"No problem. Have a nice day."
Ely, Rogan and May headed out onto the street. Oliver and Anna walked after them at a slower pace. He gripped the back of her dress lightly to stop her from exiting then planted a kiss on her lips. His stomach swooped as she wrapped her arms around his neck and arched her spine. Oliver suspected she was making a show for Kimmi Lake and grinned against her mouth.
"I like your dress," he said, stepping away and opening the door for her.
She exited and grinned back at him. "Thanks," she said, reaching out a hand to him.
He slipped his fingers between hers and they rejoined the group outside.
"I'm gonna run to the Flash Thought shop, shall I meet you at the harbour?" Ely suggested.
"Sure, we'll wait by the pier where we came in this morning," Oliver said, tilting his head towards the sun and relishing the heat pouring down on him.
"Do you want company?" May offered.
"No, no I'll meet you down there in a bit," Ely said, heading off down the street.
They turned in the opposite direction, taking the narrow lanes back towards the beach. The cobbled roads dropped steeply down, shaded by the many wooden balconies protruding from the buildings. A light breeze fluttered through the streets, welcomingly cool against the blazing heat.
They emerged on the shore and perched on a bench that overlooked the harbour. Sand sloped away beneath them towards the water, lapping calmly below the piers.
May hissed through her teeth and grabbed her chest.
Rogan sat up straighter. "Are you okay?"
Oliver turned and placed a hand on her shoulder, eyeing her pained expression with anxiety.
"It's getting worse," she gasped then sighed as the pain visibly eased, dropping her hand.
"It won't be much longer," Oliver said, putting his arm around May.
She leant into him and they sat quietly, watching the sea sparkle in the sunshine and the people milling about the dock.
Ely arrived a while later. He stopped in front of them and adjusted the bag on his back.
"Did you get one?" May asked.
Ely nodded. "A woman in the shop set it up for me." He pointed to his ear where an almost invisible earpiece was clipped to the top. "Shall we go?"
They stood and Ely led them away from the ferry piers towards a harbour of fishing boats, yachts, and catamarans. All of them were designed to hover above the water, causing barely any sound as they pulled in and out of the harbour.
They passed through a security gate and Ely made a beeline toward a couple of men who were readying their fishing boat at the end of a short pier. Oliver and the others hurried after him, receiving curious looks from the fishermen on the surrounding boats.
Ely waved at the two men who were about to cast off. "Excuse me!"
They looked up and glanced at each other in confusion.
"Y'all right?" asked the older one who had long, grisly brown hair slicked back away from his weathered face.
"Yes, I was just wondering if I could tempt you into a little excursion?" Ely offered.
The younger one folded his muscular arms across his chest. He wore a filthy vest that looked as though it had once been white and his lank blonde hair hung about his shoulders, curling from the humidity. "What kinda excursion?"
"We need to get to a private island, the ferries don't go out there. I can pay you well," Ely said temptingly. "More than the fish you catch today will fetch."
"That so?" the older man asked with interest. "It'd have to be more than a hundred Fins to make it worth our while."
"I'll give you two hundred," Ely said without hesitation.
The two men started and shared a greedy look.
"Done," the older man said, reaching out a hand to Ely.
He took it. "I'm Ely."
"Dargon. This is my son Port. Where do you wanna go?" the older man asked, smiling a yellow-toothed grin.
4
The Returned
William flexed his hands and glanced at Alison beside him, gazing nervously around at the crowd. Her blonde hair was braided at the back of her neck, falling over the black dress he had bought for her.
"Enjoy the show," he muttered.
"What is this?" she whispered, looking around with wide eyes.
"Wait and see," he said, smiling at her as he turned towards the steps.
