Read Online Story Thieves by James Riley - Free Book Online Page A

to shut them down. And all the magic-users that were arrested, I need to free them—”
    â€œIf this child knows of Dr. Verity’s plans, we might do well to find out how that is possible, before you run off again,” the old man said, flashing a patient smile at Kiel. “Something already worries me. Do you see what I see, through the portal?”
    Kiel squinted past Owen. “Someone doesn’t know how to hang up his clothes?”
    The Magister shook his head. “The world this boy comes from has no magic. None at all. We could be looking at another alternate reality, where magic was truly destroyed. It’s even possible that this boy knows of Dr. Verity’s plan because, in some manner, Dr. Verity exists there, as well.”
    Uh-oh. That didn’t bode well either . “No Dr. Verity!” Owen tried to shout. “No Dr. Verity! And magic wasn’t destroyed! It just never existed here!”
    None of that got said, of course. Just a lot more moaning.
    â€œHe says that magic never existed there,” Kiel translated, then paused. “You know, I’ve seen alternate worlds, desolate futures, and the nothingness beyond the end of the universe.But I’ve never seen anything like that room.” He shook his head. “It just screams boring. You have to feel bad for whoever grew up there.”
    â€œAh, appearances might deceive,” the Magister said. “Look closer. This boy and another, a girl, mentioned a book while they were here. Take a look at those books on his shelves.” The Magister gestured, and several books popped off Owen’s shelf and began flipping their pages. “There’s magic in their histories, Kiel. Magic everywhere. Schools for magic. Wardrobes leading to magic lands. Gods and monsters, impossible things. And yet, that magic no longer exists in their world. How would that have happened?”
    Kiel frowned. “Let him talk. Maybe he knows why. Maybe he even wants to help?” He turned to Owen. “You do want to help, don’t you? You saved my master here. I bet you want to learn magic and become amazing and do impossible things, yeah? Of course you do. Everyone does. That’s all science people are, just jealous of magic. Want me to teach you some right now?”
    Owen’s eyes widened, and he tried to nod vigorously. Tried and failed.
    â€œAnswers it shall be,” the Magister said. “If you wouldn’t mind, my boy, just a short trip back to my study?”
    â€œLet’s keep it as short as we can,” Kiel said. “I still have to find the Seventh Key.”
    Owen’s feet picked up off the floor and walked him into the shining doorway, then over to the wall in the now-familiar Magister’s tower. There, his uncontrollable hands reached down and fastened chains to his ankles, then to each wrist. The chains magically tightened, making sure he wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
    â€œJust for your own safety,” the Magister said, giving a friendly wink.
    This really, really wasn’t boding well.
    The Magister murmured something, and suddenly Owen was free to speak, to move, and to escape.
    Unfortunately, the chains kept him from doing two of those things, so he went with the third.
    â€œYou’re making a big mistake!” he shouted. “There’s no magic in my world. Those books are just made-up stories! You know, for entertainment! We love magic so much that we tell each other stories about it, like we wish we could do it! That’s it! Trust me, if any of us could, we’d be magicians in a minute!”
    The Magister watched Owen for a moment as Kiel made “see?” gestures with his hand, fidgeting from foot to foot, clearlyanxious to get on with his quest/book series. But the Magister ignored his apprentice. Instead, he whispered something else, and a weird sort of fog slid into Owen’s brain.
    â€œNow,” the magician said, his voice