Chapter 36: Servant

Tom and Nena both looked at her right hand.

“Bus! What the fuck just happened?” Tom asked with controlled anger.

“I’m sorry, Master Tom, but the disc wanted to go to her, and it believes that she wanted to accept it, and what it and we could offer her.”

“Bus, release her immediately, I don’t need a bloody servant,” Tom replied angrily.

“Hey! You can’t fire me when I’ve done nothing wrong. It is against the Employment Act,” Nena retorted.

Tom looked at her in shock. “So, you are willing to be my bonded servant with all that it entails?”

Nena sat back down and rubbed the back of her hand. It had felt weird when the disc attached itself to her. It also seemed to have claimed the bracelet, but she wasn’t sure how or why she knew this. It was all a bit confusing.

She felt a sort of smugness, come from the magical device. It was also content to be with her. No, it was downright happy to be with her. “Can this thing communicate with me?”

Startled, Tom replied, “Well, not really. The magical items that have entities in them seem to be able to send us emotions. If they are happy or scared or worried, we can feel their response.”

“I have an AI linked to my magical vambrace, and I call him, Tron. He seems to be able to communicate with the entity that also came with the brace. I can mentally talk to Tron and he to me. Although I do have a habit of talking to Tron aloud.”

“Bus is a different entity that had been linked to me via the disc I have on my Go-Card and the orb he resides in. The orb is embedded in the dashboard of this bus, and Bus has control of the vehicle.”

“Because this bus has communication devices, Bus, has been able to manipulate them so we can talk aloud to each other. I feel weird having him in my head when I’m already hosting another entity, so this suits us better.”

“What does an entity do?” Nena asked as she absently stroked the back of her hand as if soothing or petting the magical item that now resided with her.

“Mostly, they are assigned to keep us company, help protect us, keep us on the path to a good life and not let us become, ‘Evil Magicians’,” Tom replied with a menacing pose of his hands to look like a scary monster.

Tom had calmed down a little and was amazed that Nena seemed to be taking this sudden turn of events in her stride. He was still very confused as to why she would accept being a bonded servant. He realised that her life wasn’t a bed of rose petals at present, but he would have helped her out until she got back on her feet.

“Tom, I realise this seems a bit odd, but can we try this arrangement for a bit? I have nothing better to do at the moment, nowhere to go, and no one to miss me. I’m burnt out, hurt and not sure what I want to do with my life. I also have to admit that I’m fascinated by the whole idea of doing magic.”

“Well, that is one thing we do have to have some ground rules about. When we are here on Earth, we don’t do magic in public unless you can be truly subtle about its use, and you have to have a darn good reason to use it. Endangering us by using magic, is something I will punish you for doing,” Tom said with a no-nonsense, master’s voice.

“I have been contemplating looking up some standard magic tricks to see where I can use subterfuge in some situations to cover using real magic. But if you do that, it should only be to protect us, and you need to be very bloody careful, okay?”

“Yes, Master Tom,” Nena said with a grin.

Tom shook his head and wondered what the heck he had just gotten himself into.

“So, what do you need to do today?” Tom asked Nena while they washed the breakfast dishes.

“Well, I’d like to get the rest of my things from the flat I shared with Neil, but he changed the locks. I have no idea how to get the money he stole from me back. I still had over twenty grand in the main account and a hundred grand in my personal saving account.”

“On Monday, I will need to go open a new bank account, so I can get the last of my pay put in it when they do finally pay me and hopefully the bank can link me back to my other account. I’m sure my old employer is going to dick me around, so I really do need my other money.”

Tom nodded, “I think we can accomplish all three wishes today. I was planning to go to a Real Estate Office and put my flat on the market, but my friend Rachelle wants to lease it from me. It might still pay me to get the agency to administer the agreement like I did the last time I rented the flat out.”

“Also, I do need to sort out some form of accommodation near the university on the Gold Coast since I’m, no, we, are going to be moving there in a week or so. I don’t think both of us living on the bus will be comfortable for very long and I will need a better place to study and relax.”

“I also need to do some food shopping for the week, and I’ll need to do some for you too if you are going to be living in the bus for the short term. Please don’t leave the bus or enter it without checking with Bus first. He should be able to hear your requests mentally now that you wear his disc.”

“Couldn’t you come up with a better name for him other than, Bus?” Nena asked as she dried the dishes and stacked them on the counter.

“Sorry, but Monte, just called him, Bus, and I adopted the habit. Bus, would you prefer a more civilised name?” Tom asked into the air.

“Master Tom, I’m a travel orb embedded in a city bus, so what else are you supposed to call me?” Bus replied quite reasonably.

Tom quirked an eyebrow at Nena. She sighed and said with exasperation, “Men!”

Tom chuckled, “Well, you only have yourself to blame as you signed up to join this circus that I call my life.”