Chapter 24: The Search
The next day, Tina, Wong and Isaiah met up with the Ancient One in the room of the Orb of Agomotto. Wong and Tina wore their red combat clothes while Isaiah wore the black one his teacher gave him as a gift. The man had a sword clipped to his waist while Tina had a quarterstaff strapped to her back. Isaiah didn't have anything since they were all in his ring.
"Is everyone ready?" the Sorcerer Supreme asked.
"Yes, Master!" the trio replied.
"Very well. Remember, this is an investigation. If you see something abnormal, report it to the Order. If you see that the cause is not magical, report it to the authorities as an anonymous tip. However, do not hesitate if you feel the need for backup. Understood?"
"Yes!"
"Good, then you may leave to your mission."
Wong and Tina went to the portal leading to the London Sanctum.
"Bye, Teacher!" Isaiah said.
"Goodbye, Isaiah and be careful." his teacher replied and Isaiah stepped through the portal. He soon joined up his teammates at the entrance of the London Sanctum. At that moment, a man with brown skin and a black and white beard wearing a traditional sorcerer's garb greeted them.
"Hello there. You must be the one who was sent by the Ancient One to investigate the series of disappearances, am I right Wong?" the man asked.
Wong then spoke,
"Yes, that's us, Sol Rama. This is Master Minoru and this boy is Master Sharpe."
"Hello, Master Rama./ Hi mister Rama!"
"Hello, Master Minoru and Master Sharpe. I have heard that a young boy had joined us a few years ago. It seems that it was you."
"Yup!"
"Since Master Wong called you a master then it must mean that you have what it takes for this mission. And that includes Master Minoru. Very well. Here is the list of missing people." The man said as he summoned a pile of paper and handed it to Wong.
"In total, there are 23 people who have disappeared throughout England. The Ancient One speculated this may be mystical and it is your job to confirm it."
"Thank you, Master Rama. We will begin now." Wong said and Sol Rama nodded.
"Okay, You may call me if you need any help, but I won't be able to accompany you since I am the guardian of the London Sanctum," he said and disappeared into the building.
"Then let's begin," Wong said and conjured a table and placed the pile of paper on it.
He then separated the papers individually and placed them everywhere on the table.
"Just like the Ancient One said, all these people who disappeared are in the age range of 16 to 25 years old." Tina Minoru said as she looked at the papers.
"Here." Sol Rama's voice was heard.
The trio turned to the man who was approaching them with a big rolled-up paper.
"What's this?" Isaiah asked.
"This is a map of England. I figured it would help you in your mission." the man said as he set the map on the table and opened it.
"Thank you, Master Rama," Wong replied.
"Isaiah picked up a paper. It had a picture of a young girl in a school uniform.
[Missing!
Name: Anne Taylor.
Age: 17
Last seen: Regent Highschool
For any information, Call (020) XXXX-XXXX]
He took another paper. This time it was a young blond man
[Missing
Name: James Smith
Age: 20
Last seen: Chichester College
For any information (10234) XXXX-XXX]
"I think we should go to the places where the people were last seen," Wong said.
"Should we split up?" asked Tina.
"It would be wiser. Isaiah?" Wong asked.
Both adults looked at the boy who was studying intensely the pictures.
"Isaiah?" Wong asked again however it seems like the boy was too focused to hear.
"Isaiah?" Tina asked this time by lightly shaking the boy and startling him.
"Huh? Yeah?"
"What's wrong, Isaiah?" Wong asked.
"Did you notice something in this list?" the boy asked back.
"What do you mean?" asked Tina.
Isaiah grabbed the map of England and brought it closer to them. He then projected three pens and handed two to his teammates.
"What's this for, Isaiah?"
"Help me mark all the locations where the victims were last seen, please."
The two looked at each other before doing as Isaiah asked. After 10 minutes, all the locations were marked.
"I think I see what you're trying to say, Isaiah," Wong said after examining the map.
"You do?" asked Tina.
"Yes. All these marks seemed random at first." Wong began as he pointed at the different points of the map of England.
"However, if you look closely. It's like they seem to be expanding," he said.
"Are you saying that the locations are connected?"
"Not exactly connected, more like they are part of a bigger picture. Is that right, Isaiah?"
The boy nodded,
"Yeah, if you can see here. It's like they are coming from a source. If you look at the date of each victim's disappearances, you can see that the more the locations are further apart, the more recent they are." the boy said as he showed the pictures along with their locations.
"Maybe it's not a case of disappearance, but a serial case of kidnapping?" asked Tina.
"Thay's what I think too." replied the boy.
Wong nodded, "I also think that's the case."
"Should we report it?" asked Isaiah.
"The Ancient One asked us to find the source of this problem. It would be useless to report it now." Wong said as he shook his head.
"Then can we estimate the location of the source?" Tina asked.
"Well, if we go by Isaiah's theory, then the radius where the source would be located would be around here," Wong said as he circled a location in the south of England right above Ringwood. However, even with all the information, the circle radius was quite large.
"It's still quite a large area. I mean the radius of this circle in the world is around 25 km which would mean the area of search would be 1963.5 km square."
Tina looked impressed,
"That's some fast math. Impressive," she said.
"Thanks!" replied Isaiah.
"Even then, we have no choice but to look around. These people have been kidnapped for a reason and there is never a good reason for kidnapping. Especially in the mystical world." Wong said.
"Then what do we do? Split up as you suggested before?" asked Isaiah.
"Yes. And the sooner we start, the sooner we can find out."
"Wait. Are you sure we should leave Isaiah alone? I don't want a child alone in the streets." Tina asked concerned, but Wong shook his head.
"Isaiah is more than capable to defend himself. The proof is that he's already a master at his age."
"No problem. Nothing will happen to me miss Tina!" Isaiah added.
Tina looked at the boy before sighing,
"Alright."
They quickly assigned themselves their area of search and went out. Isaiah changed his clothes to better blend in with the crowd and went out. He also made full use of his innate ability to sense energies to detect anything supernatural. For the next two days, he walked on the streets of England but found nothing. It was the same thing with Wong and Tina.
It was now February 6th, 2007 and Wong, Tina and Isaiah were back in the London Sanctum.
"Have you found anything mister Wong? asked Tina.
The man shook his head,
" I didn't find anything yet. There are almost no traces left of the victims since they are the eldest cases. But I'm not done searching yet."
Tina sighed,
"It is the same thing for me. I also have not found anything yet. What about you Isaiah?"
The boy shook his head,
"Me either. I haven't found anything yet"
An atmosphere of silence settled in the room Isaiah felt a familiar amalgamation of energies along with a voice.
"How is the mission progressing everyone?"
They all looked at the source and saw the Ancient One walking up to them.
Wong bowed,
"I'm sorry Ancient One, but it has been fruitless so far," he answered.
The woman nodded,
"Well, I have come bearing bad news. We have found the realm that will cross paths with ours."
"Isn't that a good thing, Master?" asked Tina.
"I'm afraid not since this realm will cause a lot of trouble to our world if left unguarded."
"So which is it?" asked Isaiah.
Fiona's lips thinned as her expression became serious.
"Hell."
"What," let out Wong.
"Hell. As in the dimension where Mephisto is the leader?" asked Tina.
"That's right. Therefore, we must find the source of this problem as fast as possible. Since we don't have much time."
"How long do we have, Teacher?" asked Isaiah.
The woman looked at him,
"We only have two days before it arrives."
"Well, that's not a lot of time." the boy said.
"I know which is why I wanted to ask about your progress."
"Well, we believe that the cause of the disappearance is kidnapping and we narrowed down the search to this area of location. But we didn't find anything yet.," Wong said as he pointed at the circle on the map of England.
The woman looked at the map and nodded.
"I see. Tell me, what famous landmark is in this area?" she asked.
All three looked at the map and Tina answered after a moment of searching,
"Stonehenge, am I correct?"
"Yes, that's right? Can anyone tell me, why this place is special?"
The trio shook their head,
"It's because Stonehenge is a very special location that was built in a prehistoric time. It is also the centre of mystical power. However, that's not what's most important. The most important part is that this place is one of the weak points of this realm."
"I don't understand?" said Wong.
"Like you, all know, the tree Sanctums was established by the founder of the Order, Agomotto. They serve as a barrier against interdimensional threats. However, like many barriers, it is not without flaws. This is one example."
"But why is Stonehenge a weak point?" asked Isaiah.
"That's because the dimensional barrier there is really thin even with the protection of the three Sanctums. Now with the approaching realm, the dimensional fabric at Stonehenge will be strained."
"This is too big to be a coincidence. I don't know what the perpetrators want with the victims, but it has to do something with Hell. Mephistopheles has been known to manipulate and control his victims to do his bidding." said Wong.
"This is good or bad, depends on how we look at it, but we have no proof of the Hell Lord's involvement. And can't we do something about the weak point at Stonehenge?" asked Isaiah.
His teacher nodded,
"You're right. We have no proof. However, we must still be on guard. And we can do nothing about Stonehenge since tampering with it may result in it tearing it apart and exposing this world to the threats out of this realm like the Dark Dimension. Also, the fact that Hell approaches are already putting a strain on the dimensional fabric of our realm." explained the Ancient One.
"Then what should we do, Master?" asked Tina.
"I want you there to go to Stonehenge and observe the situation. Report to me anything suspicious."
"Yes, Master!"
Wong opened a portal and Tina walked in. Isaiah was about to go next when his teacher called,
"Isaiah, wait for a moment. You can join them in a minute."
The boy looking confused stepped back from the portal.
Wong looked at the boy then towards the Ancient One before nodding and stepping through the portal. He soon closed it leaving the woman and the child alone.
"What's wrong, Teacher?" the boy asked.
"I wanted to ask if you could do something about the dimensional fabric at Stonehenge."
The boy shook his head.
"I would if I knew what I was looking at. (Denial of Nothingness) may be extremely powerful, but a single mistake in my calculations or imagination could result in a disaster. To do something, I would need to understand the very concept of space and dimensions. And my Mystic Eyes are useless for now since we don't want to tamper with the fabric."
"Visions?"
"None. What about the Eye of Agomotto?"
"I'm afraid that I have been unable to see the future."
The boy had a sheepish smile,
"Ah. Huh. I'm sorry?"
The woman shook her head,
"Don't be. It's not your fault, Isaiah. I believe you must go now and join your teammates. Remember, you must simply observe for now. If it's too much, call for reinforcement. Is that clear?"
"Yes, Teacher!"
"I will monitor the situation and look at the other weak points of this realm. The barrier may stop other realms from colliding or invading ours. But there are ways to infiltrate it."
The boy nodded and his teacher opened a portal where Wong and Tina left and he stepped through.