Free A Life Less Ordinary by Christopher Nuttall Page B

appeared, for he didn’t seem to have any trouble carrying the statue and placing it on the table. It was yet another girl, her features hidden behind another glamour-spell. Polly cooed over it, congratulating him on his latest masterwork. I had to remind myself that she had no idea that magic existed, let alone that it had been used to make the statues. Her flattery would have been disquieting otherwise.
    “There was a couple in asking about you and your work,” Polly said, once she had finished admiring the statue. “They were offering to pay you to produce...”
    “I am not interested,” Mr Pygmalion said. His voice was soft and whispery, as if he was older than he seemed or was using a charm to disguise his voice. “I care only for my art.”
    Polly practically swooned. “Of course, of course,” she said. “I told them that you would contact them if you were interested and...”
    Master Revels stood up and strode into the room, holding his cane ahead out him. “I’m afraid that we cannot wait for your call,” he said. His voice echoed in the room, firm and resolute. “This has gone quite far enough.”
    Mr Pygmalion swung around. “The Thirteen have finally decided to take a stand?”
    “They have ordered me to stop you,” Master Revels said, holding up his cane as if it were a sword. “You can come with me peacefully or I will bring you by force.”
    Polly, of course, had no idea what was going on. I was almost as ignorant myself, even though I hated to admit it. Who were the Thirteen and why had they ordered Master Revels to do anything – come to think of it, why was Mr Pygmalion concerned about them? Who were they to order my master to do anything?
    “This is an outrage,” Polly said, finally. Both magicians ignored her. “You can get out of here right now or I will call the police.”
    “I am the police,” Master Revels said, calmly. He pushed some Compulsion into his tone. “ Polly; walk over to the seat by the window, sit down and remain silent. You will stay there until given further orders .”
    I shuddered. Compulsion was an unpleasant trick and part of my training had consisted of teaching me how to resist it, not an easy task at the best of times. Polly had no defences at all and so she walked, robotically, over to the seat and sat down. I saw the horror in her eyes as her body refused to obey her and shuddered again. At least she might be out of the way when the fighting began, if the fighting began.
    “How many girls have you taken from their parents?” Master Revels demanded, calmly. “How many lives have you ruined for the sake of your art?”
    Mr Pygmalion glared at him. “Who cares about a mundane girl or two when their lives are nothing?” he demanded, angrily. “You will allow me to leave this building and walk free.”
    “The Thirteen want you,” Master Revels countered. I couldn’t help, but notice the terrified expression on Mr Pygmalion’s face. The Thirteen, whoever they were, had to be something dangerous and daunting even to a powerful magician. “If you don’t come peacefully, I will have to use force.”
    The two men stared at one another. “You wouldn’t risk a battle here,” Mr Pygmalion sneered, finally. “You couldn’t...”
    Master Revels snapped his cane hard down and threw a spell. Mr Pygmalion deflected it with his own wand – which he had somehow hidden up his sleeve – and counterattacked with his own spell. The two combatants went at it, their powers clashing in a dozen different ways, leaving me standing on the sidelines watching helplessly. Polly was far worse off, I realised suddenly; she couldn’t even move. I swore as a burst of magic struck one of the lights and brought it down right on top of the statues, shattering and sending glass flying everywhere. The two fighters hadn’t realised, but they were damaging the room and what would happen to the girls if their statues shattered? It could kill them outright!
    I scrambled forward,