Core of Stone

Core of Stone

Original Cover

## Blurb

**UNACCEPTABLE LOSSES**

Alastair Stone knew it would take a big sacrifice to end the Evil’s hold over our world. He was ready to make that sacrifice—but he expected it to be his life.

Never in his worst nightmares did he think it would be his magic.

Despairing and grief-stricken at the loss of the abilities that defined his existence, he’s on the fast track to self-destruction when a dear friend convinces him to take a desperate last chance. He heads to Las Vegas to find the only man who might be able to help him, but instead finds some old allies in dire need of his own help with a deadly—and very magical—threat.

Stone’s answer to nearly every problem has always been magic—but that’s off the table now. All he’s got are his wits and his courage to keep himself and his friends alive. Can he put aside his pride and bitterness long enough to prove there’s more to him than magic?

## Plot

Alastair Stone is about to commit suicide when he receives a phone call from Aubrey, asking how he is. Several days ago, he’d burned out his magic completely, by using Harrison’s unique extradimensional power to banish a vastly powerful spirit that was about to unleash untold Evil on the world. But Aubrey’s call reminds him that he has loose ends to tie up before he can end things. Simultaneously despairing over his loss, and reprimanding himself for selfishness – he’s no worse off than any other human – he goes to Madame Huan.

## Quotes and One-liners

Stone and Verity: “Verity, if you weren’t gay I’d marry you.” “I’m bi, remember?” “Yes, but your brother would kill me.”

He asks her to examine him without telling her why, she tells him that he’s acquired a third color in his aura, a slim band of silver that wasn’t there before. He finally admits he’s lost his magic, giving her the entire Burning Man story, and that he’d hoped she could tell him it would regenerate. She then conducts a more thorough ritual, but is unable to find a trace of his magic. Knowing him well, in addition to comforting him, she also extracts a promise from him, on his honor, that he won’t make any irrevocable decisions – such as suicide – for at least six months. She hopes by then he’ll have either regained his magic, or learned to value his life without it.

Resigned, Stone reconnects with Jason and Verity, realizing that one of his loose ends to resolve is to find Verity a new teacher. He successfully hides his problem, though Verity easily intuits that there *is* one that he won’t discuss.

Hoping Harrison can help him, Stone flies to Las Vegas. Nakamura tells him that Harrison hasn’t been heard from since he’d ‘died’ in the Evil portal, and is glad, but mystified to know he’s still alive. He has no idea how to contact Harrison, though he shares his suspicion the man goes ‘elsewhere’, as in not on Earth.

Despondent, Stone hits the streets and just keeps walking, eventually finding himself in a part of town he knew he shouldn’t be in. He ends up in a somewhat seedy neighborhood bar and proceeds to get pissed. In a nasty mood, he more or less picks a fight with three college toughs. The bartender and patrons save him a beating and call him a tab. Belligerent, he refuses to wait and sets out into the streets.

Set on by two Evil thugs about to torture and kill him, Stone is saved by a group of Forgotten. He’s too blind drunk to remember how they got him to safety, but wakes up in the Vegas underground with Malcolm and Luke, two Forgotten he’d met on his last trip there, when he’d asked for their help and they’d refused. This time, they need help with some kind of monster that is killing of their members and others in the underground. Stone tells them he can’t help; he’s lost his magic. Disappointed, Malcolm and a couple others escort Stone to a surface entrance.

On the way, Stone reasons that they claim there is no trace of the monster, nor its victims, which is impossible. He concludes it has to be an illusion and, magic or no, he can outwit a sewer-dwelling mage. They return to Luke at his insistence, where he explains. Stone admits he can’t be 100% sure, so he asks for a gun to go hunt the mage himself. Luke resolves to come with him, since he’d only be lost in the tunnels alone. Two others are tasked with following, in case.

As they walk and chat, Luke figures out Stone is suicidal, and gets angry – he has so much and wants to just throw it away. Stone squashes the conversation, just before they reach an intersection and Luke is attacked from the darkness. Stone sees through the illusion of the attacking monster, and hears someone yelling to ‘get’ them. Luke is in full panic, since the ‘monster’ is biting down on his shoulder. Stone tries to remind him it’s not real, but then Luke is gone, only his clothes left – ashed by a black mage. Stone flees in the dark, eventually eluding his pursuers by hiding under a pile of trash. He eventually decides it’s safe to continue on, but in the pitch black, plummets into a void and is knocked unconscious.

When he comes to, he finds his right arm is probably broken, and his left ankle won’t support him. Still working in the dark, he manages a sling for his arm, and at least a wrapping for his ankle, and sets out again. He might be suicidal, but not like *this*. He finds he’s in a sunken area, unknown feet below the tunnel. The ladder is gone, broken, and the only door is locked and he has no strength to try to pry it open. He sits down to try and rest his body and think.

He wakes from a nightmare to discover Verity has somehow found him. He only manages to stay conscious briefly while she levitates him out of the pit. He awakens back at the Forgotten camp, mostly healed. He explains to the Forgotten how Luke was killed, and tells them he is going to rid them of the black mage.

Verity confronts him because he hadn’t told her about losing his magic. She also asks what he was doing, blind drunk where the Evil could get him. She makes connections, and realizes he’s suicidal. They argue, have a bit of a heart-to-heart, and (mostly) satisfied that she’s made clear how much Stone means to her and to Jason, she asks next steps.

After returning to the hotel to shower and eat, Stone and Verity head back to the Forgotten enclave. Verity asks if he can trap the illusion like he did the Evil in San Francisco (The Forgotten). Stone begins to say it wouldn’t work, then realizes he might not have magic, but Verity does – she can power any device he builds. They shop for supplies and food for the Forgotten, and meet them back at the tunnels with a plan.

After running calculations all night, Stone takes Verity back to the hotel to clean up while he contacts Mme Huan to find out if there is a magical supply shop in the area. She says there is, but recommends they don’t visit it – it’s in a bad part of town and supplies primarily the darker mages’ needs. They go anyway, despite the cabbie not wanting to go to the area. Waldo, the sleazy proprietor attempts to cheat them, as well as make indecent proposals to Verity. Stone bluffs the man, leaning hard on his magical reputation, and they leave with what they need at a reasonable price, and unharmed.

Back at the Forgotten enclave, the find that the monster has attacked their encampment, killing and injuring several. The Forgotten are in a panic and about to pack up and run. Stone talks them around, assuring them that, whatever happens, they won’t have to worry about the monster, or the back mage projecting it, any more. He tucks himself away to build his construct while Verity heals the injured, then goes to rest. Hours later, Stone’s construct is finished and he’s about to wake Verity, when he realizes he hasn’t thought about his loss of magic in some time, not even checked his magical sight, if fact. He does so, not expecting much, and weeps to find he once again can see his aura.

In the tunnels, Verity and the Forgotten hide themselves in an area behind where Stone has set up his construct, while Alastair goes to where he met the monster before, with Luke. The monster appears and he runs through it to hear two kids yelling, the mage and a buddy. Stone runs, to lead them to the construct, but an unseen assailant slashes him with a knife and he’s tackled. Stone is armed, but never has a chance to draw the pistol. Blitz and now two friends – Randy and another who seems addled – take his gun and his coat. Stone plays the terrified coward, and offers to take them to the other Forgotten, as well as more who are hidden, if they’ll let him live.

Stone, the teens and the monster head toward the ambush point, Stone with a gun in his back. When the monster disappears, the mage - Blitz – becomes enraged, demanding whoever is hiding to come out, while his friend, Randy, holds a gun to Stone’s head. Verity manages to knock the gun up with magic, but an all-out battles ensues as the Forgotten move in.

Blitz provides shields and invisibility for himself and his friends. As chaos reigns, with many Forgotten shot or stabbed, Blitz uses his invisibility to ash more of them for power to keep his spells going. Verity pinpoints them by their auras and directs fire to them. In panic, Blitz ashes the addled boy, while Verity warns Stone something is wrong with the mage. Blitz lobs a hunk of concrete at Verity, stunning her, and grabs her and puts the gun to her head. Telling everyone to stop.

Enraged, Stone flings power at Blitz and knocks the gun away, not caring it might burn him out again. Blitz grabs Randy and ashes him, laughing maniacally, then goes after Stone, ready to ash him, too.

Before Blitz can reach Alastair, he suddenly begins screaming for help – and glowing. He’s taken on too much power. He collapses, alive but completely out. Later, after Verity heals the wounded, she interrogates Stone about his magic being back. He explains it was only beginning to come back, and weak. Verity is overcome when she realizes Stone risked burning his magic out again to save her.

When they check on Blitz, they find he’s burned out both his magic and his mind. Malcolm says they’ll likely take him in, despite all he’s done. They can’t let him go in his state; it’d be kinder to kill him outright. On the flight back to San Francisco, Stone considers how much worse off Blitz and others like him – gifted, untrained, wild – were, while he’d been bemoaning his own loss of magic. In any case, he and Verity both decide not to tell Jason about this particular adventure.