Excerpt:

Cora looked up when the bell over the door tinkled. She was usually the only customer in the bookstore this time of day. Her attention returned to the rack of Do-It-Yourself manuals when she saw it was only Mrs. Feebler, the grouchy ol’ clerk’s wife, bringing him his lunch.
She heard their low mumblings but she really didn't pay any attention to them as she continued to peruse the books on the shelves. She hadn’t been through this section in a couple of weeks so she hoped there might be something new to catch her attention. They hardly ever got anything new in stock, but it was the only bookstore in town. The library had even less of a selection unless you read encyclopedias, mushy romance novels or wanted to research your genealogy if you were unlucky enough to have family from this area.
Cora pulled a How-To on deck building off the shelf and thumbed through it.
“A deck would be nice,” she thought and if she decided to sell the house, it might add a little value even if it was only on the aesthetic level.
“Meh.” She wrinkled her nose in disgust. Who had time to build a deck? She slid the book back into it’s hole but it wouldn’t go all the way in place. She pulled it out again and slid her hand into the open space and found another book had slid down behind it. She pulled it out and was surprised to see a book she’d never seen before. She pushed the deck book into place absently as she read the title of the new book.
“Your Manual of Pracktical Magick,” Cora read out loud. “Hmm.”
The book was soft, leather bound and looked old. The cover was well worn but intact and the title was gilded gold script and crackling from age. She flipped through some of the yellowed pages and saw that it was actually handwritten, like someone’s personal journal.
“This must cost a pretty penny,” she mused as she flipped the book over to look for the price sticker and was again surprised. “Ten bucks? Why not?”
She carried the book to the counter and laid it down. Mr. And Mrs. Feebler both looked up at her in undisguised distaste. Mr. Feebler stood, his girth barely fitting between the desk they were sitting at and the checkout. His gaze dropped to her hands and his nose wrinkled until he looked like a bald mole. Cora also looked at her hands and saw that she still had a lot of motor oil crusted around her uneven fingernails and cuticles. Well, she’d at least taken off her coveralls before she’d left the shop, hadn't she?
“Can I help you?” he asked in his nasally voice.
Cora pushed the book forward a few inches with her thumb. “I want to buy this.”
The mole looked down and his beady little eyes widened. He carefully picked up the book and leafed through it.
“I’ve never seen this book before.”
“Neither have I, that’s why I want to buy it.”
He turned the book over and his eyes bugged out even further. “I don't think this is priced correctly. I’ll have to check it.”
“Whatever,” she responded.
He looked over his shoulder at his wife who was now stuffing large bites of strawberry cheesecake into her mouth. He typed something into the computer then hmmed. He typed a few more times then sighed.
“No matter how I type the title into the system, it is not coming up in inventory. I’ll have to check with Mr. Librowski.”
“It’s tagged at ten dollars, I would think that is the price and I’d like to buy it,” Cora said as she drummed her fingers on the edge of the counter.
“Well, it’s not in the system and I need to verify with the owner that it is priced correctly, which I doubt.” He sniffed deeply.
“Isn’t that Mr. Librowski’s handwriting on the price tag?” Cora was losing patience now. Mr. Feebler always gave her some sort of grief when he was working, but usually it was some snide remark about her being a mechanic.
“So it would seem,” he sniffed again. “But how do I know you didn’t switch the tags with another book?”
Cora blinked, so dumbfounded that no words would come out of her mouth for a whole thirty seconds. “Really? Are you serious?”
Mr. Feebler cleared his throat uncomfortably. “Well, wouldn't you agree that this price doesn't seem quite right?”
Cora put one hand on her hip, leaned forward on the counter and just stared at his pasty white face. “So because the book appears to be more valuable than its priced, I must’ve switched the tags? I come in here just about every single weekday and sometimes on Saturday, I spend a lot of money in here, probably Mr. Librowski’s best customer in the whole damned town, and you’re going to basically accuse me of stealing from him?”
“I didn’t mean, I’m just saying that - ” The rat face was really stuttering now. It was fun to watch.
“Just check with Mr. Librowski about the book, I’ll check back tomorrow on my lunch hour.”
Cora glanced briefly at Mrs. Feebler whose cheeks were filled with cheesecake as she gawked at her like she had two heads. Cora nodded to her then walked out of the store on a tinkling of bells.

Cora stepped into the cottage and yelled “Honey, I’m home!” No response. There was never a response. The place always seemed too quiet to Cora since her father died a year before. She really should just sell the place. It had been a no brainer on the garage. She didn't want the responsibility of running the place her father had owned all of her life. She had planned on working there only until she decided what she wanted to do with her life, but she just couldn’t seem to let go of the house and move on.
She threw her backpack on the table along with the Chinese carry out she’d picked up and headed straight to the shower. She worked late again and just wanted to curl up on the couch and veg in front of the TV since she didn't have a new book to read, thanks to that pruney Mr. Feebler.
“What is up with him anyway,” she wondered as she turned on the full hot in the shower. She undressed and stepped into the pulsating water. He was always mean to her and she doesn’t remember ever having done anything to him or his wife to deserve it, even as a kid. Of course, a lot of folks thought she shouldn't have been working in her father’s garage from the age of fourteen and that had caused some issues at the time. But most of them had gotten past it...Most of them.
She took the nail brush to her fingers with a vengeance and got most of the gunk off of them. She washed her short black hair then turned off the shower and stepped out.
She could’ve gone to college. She had a full ride scholarship to the state university. But her mother had gotten sick then. She couldn't leave her father alone to deal with the garage and her mother. It was three years before the cancer finally won and then Cora just couldn’t leave her father alone. Now five years later she was alone and she didn't know what to do.

Cora padded out of her bedroom in her flannel pajama pants and tank top. She grabbed her backpack off of the table and headed to the washing machine in the kitchen. She unzipped the pack and pulled her two pair of coveralls out to wash them, they were both pretty rank. She shoved them into the mini machine, added some soap and softner and started the load.
She double checked her bag as she began to zip it and gasped. Reaching in, she pulled out a leather bound book with crackled gold lettering.
“How in the hell?” She dropped her backpack to the floor and grasped the book in both hands. “Your Manual to Pracktical Magick” was scripted on the cover.
“I did not steal this book! It was on the counter - No, in Mr. Feebler’s grubby little hands when I left the bookstore.”
She walked blindly into the living room and fell wordlessly onto the couch, still staring at the book in her hands. She should call the bookstore and explain that she had the book...Though she didn't know how. She glanced up at the clock. It was after eight so they were closed already. Mr. Feebler would accuse her of stealing it anyway. She’d wait until the morning when Mr. Librowski was in to return the book and tell him what? “Hi, Mr. Librowski. I wanted to buy this book yesterday but that worm, Mr. Feebler, wouldn't sell it to me but somehow it mysteriously ended up in my backpack anyway?”
Some how, that just didn’t seem like it would fly very well. Maybe she could just sneak it back onto the shelf where she found it. That would probably be best. Then she could just walk out of there with no one the wiser or just sneak it into the shop and pretend like she has just found it for the first time and buy it like she wanted to do in the first place.
She turned the book over but the price sticker was gone. Mr. Feebler must’ve removed it, the weasel.
Well, she had wanted to read it and she had it in her possession at this moment. She may as well take advantage of that fact. It’d be more interesting than watching television, she thought.
She set the book on the couch and went to grab her cold Chinese food off the dining table. She grabbed a diet soda from the fridge then circled back to curl up on the couch. After setting the food and drink on the coffee table, she picked up the book again and opened it to the first page. There was an inscription on the first page. The handwriting was so narrow and splotched with age it was difficult though not impossible to decipher. It read:
“If you have this book in your possession by an unexpected and seemingly improbable means, then you are probably the Chosen one. Please read this manual in its entirety then read the last page aloud only when you understand and can successfully perform the magick described herein and agree to the terms set forth.”
What a strange inscription. Sounds like some contract legalese, Cora mused. She thumbed to the last page out of curiosity and read it aloud.
“By reading the following passage, I am agreeing that I have read this manual in its entirety and understand the responsibilities I am agreeing to fulfill. The purpose fully being explained within the pages of this manual and I am agreeing, without duress, to take my place as The Chosen One and fulfill my destiny.”
Cora chuckled. “Whoever wrote this was a major crackpot, that is what he was.”
Cora blinked as the page blurred and her skin began to tingle. She looked up and the living room walls began to warp out of shape. Everything became distorted and dim, melting around her like a Dali painting. She groaned as pain twisted her stomach and everything went black. Her whole body was being squeezed and felt like she was being sucked through a vacuum hose. Had she fainted? Was she having a stroke? A heart attack?
And just as quickly, the pain was gone and her vision began to clear. In front of her stood an old wrinkly man with long white hair and a beard. His billowy purple robes had white stars embroidered on them and he wore a pointy matching cap on his head.
“You’re late,” he said.
Cora looked up at him from where she was sitting on the floor. Then she turned, vomited and passed out.

Cora woke to someone flicking water on her face. When she opened her eyes she saw the old dude with the funny clothes still standing over her. He was the one flicking water on her.
“Who are you?”
He stepped back and looked her over.
“Not exactly what I was expecting and I expected you yesterday. The spell must have been off.”
He turned his back on her and walked over to an ornately carved wooden desk that was over flowing with books, scrolls and loose papers. While he was distracted looking for something in the piles on the desk, Cora looked for a way out of where ever she was.
The room was huge, larger than her whole house. The walls were stone and the ceilings must’ve been twenty five feet high at least. Bookshelves lined the walls and the floor. She’d never seen so many books in one place, not even when she hit the bookstores in the city on the few trips she’d made with her father.
She spied a large wooden door at the far end of the room. It was one of those kind you see in the movies with a castle. It was pointy at top and had a stone frame with a keystone at its peak. She could probably out run the old guy but since she didn't know where it led, she thought it might be best to see what was what first.
She looked back at the old man and he was reading something.
“Who are you?” She asked again.
He held up a finger and continued to read.
“Yes, it must have been off just by some hours. Nevermind, it’s not that important.”
He set down the book and looked at her.
“Now what were you saying? Oh, yes. I’m Marlin, of course. Did you expect anyone else?”
She squeezed the book that was still in her hands tightly in her fingers. It felt real enough. Could this be some weird dream or had she been kidnapped?
“I wasn’t expecting anyone, actually. I was just about ready to eat my sweet and sour pork then there you were.”
Maybe it was food poisoning and she was having delirious hallucinations.
He looked at the book in her hands.
“You read the last page of the Manual, did you not? So, here you are. It may not have been exactly what you were expecting from the exercises you completed in the Manual,” he said as he paced back and forth. “But the transport spell is further advanced than what you have performed so far. All you needed was to learn how to channel the magic and the spell did the rest.”
“Transport spell. Channeling magic. Yeah.” Cora rose cautiously to her feet and looked over her shoulder toward the door. This had to be a dream, why would a complete looney kidnap her, of all people?
She was still in her pajamas and bare feet. She could run though. She think she really needed to run. “OK, Marlin is it? It was great meeting you and all. But I think I’m just going to go now, if it’s all the same to you.”
She turned on the balls of her feet and sprinted down the aisle between the rows and rows of books. The leather bound book clutched in her grip. She heard him mumbling behind her but he didn’t seem to be in pursuit. She realized why when she reached the door. It was locked. She looked around for another escape route, but couldn't see anything over the huge shelves.
She started walking quickly around the perimeter of the room when she heard him call out.
“You did read the Manual didn't you?”
Cora didn't respond as she made her way along the outer aisle. This seemed awfully realistic and how often do you really think you’re deaming when you're in a dream?
“By your lack of response, I am guessing you did not read the manual?” He called out again. “That is not possible. There is no way she could have performed that spell without having completed at least some of the exercises.”
She heard him move now so she stopped. The sounds of his movement seemed to be closer then further away, uniformly. She guessed he was pacing again so she turned the corner around the last row of books and found another door. This one was unlocked, but when she opened it, the sunlight shining through the unshuttered window showed it to be an used bedroom.
She ran to the window and looked out. There was open land then woods for as far as she could see. In the yard, about thirty feet down, there were a few goats and chickens. Too far for her to jump without breaking her neck though so she turned back toward the door and stopped. The old man stood in the doorway.
“You really did not read the Manual?”
Cora licked her lips and figured maybe not lying would be a good idea.
“I read the first page and the last page. That is the last thing I remember before ending up here...where ever here is.”
“This is disastrous! This should be impossible!” He bellowed as he turned out of the door way. Cora followed after him since, other than his loud ranting, he didn't seem to be an immediate threat.
They ended up back at the desk where they’d started and he began rummaging through the contents again.
“What’s impossible?” Cora asked tentatively. “Where am I and who are you?”
“The more important thing is who are you?” He looked up at her now with his blue eyes narrowing. “Are you in league with The Evil Thing?”
“The what?” Cora asked in disbelief.
“Let me see that book.” He took a step toward her. She clutched the Manual to her chest and took a step back.
“The book, young lady, now. I am not in the mood to be trifled with.”
“And I’m not in the mood to be pushed around by some cranky old man in funky clothes!” Cora responded through gritted teeth though her heart was pounding in fear. She felt like she had when she was a kid and was cornered by Drew, the school bully. He liked to call her a boy in girl’s clothing and knock her down. He continued to do that until she finally knocked him on his butt and embarassed him in front of his friends. He didn't bother her after that.
The guy who called himself Marlin sighed. “I only want to verify that the book is the Manual I wrote some time ago to find The Chosen One.”
“Yeah, there was some mention of The Chosen One thing. What does that mean?”
“You ask too many questions and are not providing any answers, young lady. If you had read the Manual like you were supposed to, you would already know the answers to your questions.” He took a deep breath then. “Please, may I see the book. I will give it back to you. I promise,” he added when she looked at him skeptically.
She reluctantly handed him the book because she didn’t see that she had any other choice at the moment. He opened to the first page, then to the last and thumbed through the rest of pages.
“Yes, I was afraid of that.” He handed the book back to her.
“What?” Cora asked, taking the book back from him and looking at it like it was an alien artifact.
“It is the Manual, but I do not know how this could have happened. You should not be here yet.”
“OK, I’m so confused. Can we start over?”
“I have no doubt you are confused since you didn’t read the Manual.” He looked at her pointedly then sighed. He motioned for her to sit down in the chair next to his desk. He sat down behind his desk and cleared a spot on it’s surface.
Cora sat and slid the manual next to her on the thickly cushioned leather chair. She felt a little self-conscious about her pajamas and barefeet, but nothing to do about that right this moment.
She looked at him and he looked at her for a moment, neither of them saying anything as they sized each other up.
“OK, I’ll start then,” Cora said. “My name is Coraline Jones. I’m an automechanic in a small little town in Kansas. I found this book in a used bookstore, but the clerk wouldn’t sell it to me...long story. Anyway, later when I got home from work, I found this same book in my backpack. I didn't steal it or anything, I’m not like that.” She shifted uncomfortably under his scrutiny but continued telling her story.
“I sat down on my couch to eat my dinner and read the first page of the book...”
“Which said to read the contents in it’s entirety before reading the last page, did it not?” The man seemed unduly ruffled about this point.
“Well, yeah, it said something like that I guess,” she mumbled. “But, come on! When something says to not read the last page then by human nature the first thing someone is going to do is go to the last page out of curiosity.”
She defended her position, whatever her position was because she wasn't quite sure yet what was going on, with a touch of indignation.
“And in reading the last page, did it not state that you were agreeing to the terms set forth in the book and taking on the responsibilities of The Chosen One?”
She squirmed a bit more.
“Yeah, something like that,” she agreed again. “But I didn't know what that was and still don’t. I don’t know where I am or how I got here. Did you kidnap me?”
The old man actually laughed at that this. “No, Coraline. I did not kidnap you. You rather kidnapped yourself in a way. I am afraid this is a rather bad situation for both of us though and I’m not sure how it could have happened.”
He stood up and began to pace. It didn’t seem that he could sit still for very long periods of time.
“I am going to preface what I am about to say with if you had read the manual as you were supposed to, you would understand what I am going to tell you much better.”
He took a pipe out of some folded recess of his robe and lit it, puffing as he contemplated his words.
“As I told you before, my name is Marlin and I am a wizard.”
Cora snorted softly. “Oh, like King Arthur’s Merlin.”
He stopped short. “One and the same actually. They bastardized my name in later renditions of the events. But I am he.”
Cora was about to say something but he cut her off.
“That is for a bit later. Let us not jump ahead of ourselves.” He began to pace and puff on his pipe some more.
“This place is known as Earth, just as where you are from is known as Earth. Once upon a time, they were one and the same planet.”
Cora listened and smiled politely. She was pretty sure she read some where that you shouldn’t interrupt crazy people when they were telling tall tales.
“In the sixth century, there was a cataclysm brought on by a being known as The Evil Thing...”
“The Evil Thing? Really? That’s original.”
He seem flustered at the interruption. “Yes, well I did not give it the name. It is the name the people called it.” He cleared his throat before he continued.
“I need to correct myself. The cataclysm was brought on by both The Evil Thing and the group of wizards that were trying to stop it. The amount of magic that was expended all at one time was paramount to what you would know of as a catastrophic nuclear detonation.”
He sat back down at his desk and tapped the ashes from his pipe into a bowl. “This explosion, if you will, caused the world to be torn in two theoretically, though not exactly physically. They exist in the same space, on different planes of reality.”
“Ummm, ok. So magic caused the Earth to split in two. Got it.” Cora really just wanted to go home or wake up or whatever she needed to do to get back to normalcy.
“Without having gone through the Manual, I can understand how this is difficult for you to understand...”
“I’m not sure how reading the book would’ve made me believe this anymore than I currently don't.” She crossed her arms over her chest, feeling a slight bit of anxiety creeping in.
“Right. Then please humor me for just a moment. Open the manual to the tenth page or so.”
Cora resisted a moment but then rolled her eyes and picked up the book and flipped to the tenth page. “OK.”
“What does it say?”
“Basic levitation spell,” she read.
“That will work.” Marlin picked up an apple from a basket sitting behind him and set it on the cleared spot on his desk. “Look at this apple then read the words on the page.”
Cora looked at him, one eyebrow raised.
“Just humor me a moment longer.”
She sighed and looked at the apple then read the words on the page which made no sense to her.
The apple flew straight up into the air and smashed into the ceiling high above. Cora jumped, startled. Even Marlin seemed a little surprised.
“Well, that was unexpected,” he said as he watched smashed apple drip from the ceiling onto the desk. Then he looked at Cora. “Maybe that explains how it happened.”
Cora’s eyes were still wide looking from the ceiling to the desk. “How what happened?”
“How you could perform the transport spell without having read the Manual. An untrained wizard, even one showing much potential, should have only been able to lift that apple a few centimeters from the desk at most.”
She looked at him in disbelief. “Untrained wizard?”
She wasn't sure what just happened but maybe she should hear the rest of his story just in case. She swallowed hard. “OK, the Earth split, then what?”