I grinned, “That is a mystery, isn’t it? I’d be pleased to educate you, after the patent for the other aspect of this project has entered pending status. Assuming it works as I predict, and I come down to order more. How much for the prototype?”

  She said, “Two million for the first one. Most of that is for Harmony’s cycles, and to take the fabrication machines offline to set up the new specifications and production. Once we have a reliable setup that can just be initiated, it will be two thousand a piece.”

  “Alright, let’s do it. How much in advance.”

  She said, “Half in escrow will do, payable upon completion.”

  I set that up on the phone, and Georgina smiled, “Thank you for your business, we’ll be in touch in a few days when it’s ready.”

  I thanked her and we got going.

  Lianne said, “You’re being all mysterious.”

  “Is it turning you on?”

  Lianne giggled, “A little, it’s also making me curious.”

  “Magic. Witchcraft can stabilize the quantum processor, power it, and take care of the user interface.”

  Lianne gaped, “That sounds complicated.”

  I nodded, “Think a tiny but extremely complicated ward structure with built in memory, intention, and mental commands, as well as power generation. I’m still working it all out, but I should be done before we get the processor.”

  Lianne asked, “Magic can create electricity?”

  I smiled, “Magic can create a thunderstorm, so yes. The cost in magic is far less than the output there, if you consider a single lightning strike is over a gigawatt of energy. All we need is three point three volts at a tenth of an amp.”

  Lianne bit her lip, “So you plan to sell it to witches?”

  I grinned, “Did you know the suppression cuff enchantments can be powered by a human? There’d be no point of course, since a normal pair of cuffs would do just fine there. All life has magic in it, absorbs it, humans just can’t access or control theirs, but the enchantments on the cuffs can steal it out of their bodies to activate.”

  Lianne sighed, “You’re going to sell it to everyone.”

  “Yep.”

  Lianne asked, “Why so small?”

  “Implant. The ward spell will form extremely small illusions inside the eye, think augmented reality glasses, without the glasses. It can create an illusion of a screen and keyboard for typing, or it can read thoughts and carry out tasks that way. Make phone calls, surf the net, watch television, radio, or have your own personal A.I. assistant read you a book.”

  Lianne asked, “Wait, personal A.I.?”

  I nodded, “Like Harmony told Georgina, she’d love to be on a quantum computer. That tiny computer will outperform the fastest supercomputers on Earth. Plus, it’ll need to be really smart, or at least smart enough not to do things because of random thoughts without true intent behind them. It’ll replace pretty much everything from cell phones to computers and even gaming platforms. But probably not television since that’s a group activity some of the time, but it’s still an option.

  “Also imagine asking your A.I. to take notes if you’re a college student, so you can just focus on the presentation and not multitask, which will increase initial retention. It’ll always be on too, since it’s in the body and being constantly fed magic, slower than the regeneration rate of the user. A lot slower.

  “Eventually it will even impact crime and punishment, when your A.I. can automatically start recording video and audio of everything you see and hear if a violent confrontation seems likely.”

  Lianne sighed, “That will change the world.”

  “Yep. So not bad, for a washed-up king.”

  She giggled, “You’re not that.”

  I winked, “Ready for the second thing that will change the world?”

  She said, “You’re not planning to rule the world, are you.”

  I did my best impression of a mad scientist laugh.

  She snorted.

  I grinned, “No, just making it a better place than I found it. Also likely updating my billionaire status to trillionaire while I’m at it.”

  She asked, “Time for lunch first?”

  “Good idea. It’ll be tight, but we have a half an hour before we’re late.”

  Chapter Six

  I took a moment to look for anyone hunting me, then I smiled when I didn’t find anyone. I figured someone would’ve been plotting against me by now, so that was good news. It seemed like a good idea to just take a moment every day to take care of things like that. Who is hunting me, who is planning to betray me, who is planning to steal from me, and those same three questions for the council and of course Lianne. It took me maybe five minutes to just filter through those three questions nine times while wanting to know the answer.

  At the moment we were out back at a Chicago mansion that served as the coven house for the Irish coven which Ciara headed. I needed a coven to manufacture an idea, I’d be busy enough with handling the computer idea on my own, and this one was kind of even bigger. I thought to start with an offer to this coven as a kind of backhanded apology to Mark and Amber, since Ciara was Brenna’s daughter, and the twins Meara and Kelsey, were also dear to Mark’s heart and the love and darkness crew.

  It wasn’t something I really owed them, I knew I wasn’t responsible for Nate’s actions, but they were also a strong coven and were already in sales to humanity, for potions and such, so they already had a large distribution network and a lot of contacts in other cities with similar covens. So it made sense from a business angle to choose them as partners as well.

  It would be far easier for them to manage and push out the idea to other covens, when demand far exceeded supply.

  At first, I thought they were just cooling our heels, some backhanded insult because of who and what I was, but for once I’d been jumping to conclusions. When I wanted to know it was simply that Ciara was getting old. She looked to be in her sixties, but she was over ninety now, and it took her a bit to get going, even if her magic and mind were still sharp and she was still matriarch.

  The twins were sixty-five and still looked fantastic and appeared in their late forties, were also there, and guiding her out. That I hadn’t expected because I hadn’t looked to see they were in residence.

  The three of them joined me at the outdoor table, and I took a sip of my iced tea that their servant had supplied us with.

  Ciara’s blue eyes were bright and sharp as she looked me over, then she said, “What can my coven do for you, sir.”

  I smiled, “Do any of you have smart phones?”

  They all nodded.

  “Take them out,” I suggested, “and see if you notice anything strange.”

  They tilted their heads and pulled out their phones. They all stared at the screen for a moment, and Kelsey was the first one to notice, “It’s charging.” The other two looked surprised, then said, “Mine too.”

  I nodded, reached into my vest pocket, and pulled out a steel ball bearing the size of a marble, and put it on the table.

  Meara narrowed her eyes, “That magic is horrifically complex.”

  I said, “It is. A single touch, even from a human, will actively charge any small electronics within five feet, and a single charge would last about three days, but all you have to do is touch it and let it drain a tiny bit of magic and it’s instantly recharged. It works on the same concept as the power suppression cuffs that way, but what it does is detect and charge small electronics.

  “Now, imagine one the size of a baseball, that will run your house for a week and stop drawing on the main power, essentially eliminating your electric bill. Magic is an extremely efficient creator of electricity. This is the portable version, just carry it in your pocket and you’re tablet, laptop, or phone won’t ever run down again. That’s really just the tip of the iceberg, with a little thought I’m sure you can imagine a thousand uses.

  “For instance, the greatest barrier to electric cars has always been charge time and the limited distance. Imagine one of these embedded in the steering wheel, and instead of hundreds of batteries there’s just a handful of high-capacity super capacitors it feeds. A car that never needs gas, and you’d only have to stop it after twelve thousand miles, and only because you need to rotate the tires.”

  Kelsey giggled.

  I shrugged, “Airplanes, helicopters. I’m talking about trillions of dollars in potential and completely wiping out fossil fuels, because there’s finally a viable option to do so. An option that won’t kill millions.”

  I took out two more marbles, “Witchcraft has long discovered the principles of quantum entanglement, so imagine this one on a satellite, and the other one at a charging station in NASA. Used to power the satellite and for station keeping, all they have to do is touch it once a week. The remote option would also be a good option for people that are way from their homes for more than a week often. World travelers. Just dig this out of the luggage once a week and toss it back in, and they don’t have to worry about paying electric or coming home to a dark and musty house.”

  Kelsey frowned, “You’re transferring electricity?”

  I shook my head, “No, transferring the magic, the remote sucks it out of the user and then sends it on to the base, and the base uses it to make electricity.”

  Kelsey bit her lip, “Of course, stupid question.”

  I said, “So, you have a coven that makes things with a large distribution network and contacts all over the world that will listen to you a lot faster than me. I was thinking a partnership of sorts, I teach and supply the spells, my cut of the profits would be thirty percent. We’d also solve the energy crisis together.”

  Ciara said, “It’s a very interesting offer, but the reverse side is a lot of very angry men will be coming for us and be blocking us with lawsuit after lawsuit. Headache after headache, not to mention bully tactics up to and including death threats and attempts.”

  I nodded, “True. It’s not just about the money, it’s about changing the world. After all, there’d be very few sales once everyone had them. They don’t break easily, and the enchantments don’t fade as long as you charge them. Still, you’d have to want to help end pollution.”

  We’d make billions if not trillions, but not a year like the current energy set up. Once the well ran dry that would be it.

  Ciara said, “And put millions out of work. The energy companies, gas trucks, gas stations, coal miners, oil pipelines, oil drillers, tanker ships, and many more.”

  I sighed, “That’s true, progress and changing the world does have consequences. What are you suggesting, you haven’t said no yet?”

  Ciara said, “Just that we move slowly and responsibly. We start out with the personal carry one, that charges electronic devices. That one won’t have as large an impact save for the battery industry. Then down the line we tackle cars and trucks. The next wave aircraft. The last step would be homes and businesses. Expand in decades so the oil companies go down slowly with a whimper, instead of a bang. All those people and layoffs will happen in stages, and it’ll let them find new jobs without the market being completely flooded all at once.”

  I nodded, “I should’ve thought of that, honestly. I can agree to that.”

  I’d have to rethink the computer implant too. Oh, not all of it, but perhaps make calls through a cell phone, access the internet through a home cable modem. It wouldn’t be hard to add a quantum data connection through the ward that would work from any distance. Quantum instant communication links good for hi speed data transmission, otherwise known in magic as a sympathetic connection or spell. Most commonly known of in voodoo dolls or locate spells.

  It would still fully replace a laptop or desktop computer, because it was a computer. To not do that would be insane, but it wouldn’t put internet providers and cell phone companies out of business. Maybe I was counting chickens before the eggs were laid, but I was fairly sure everyone would want one.

  She smiled, “Then you have a deal, at twenty percent.”

  I chuckled, “Twenty-five. These,” I held up the ball, “Are simple to manufacture with magic, so you’re only outside overhead will be raw material purchase. Otherwise it’s all internal salary and effort spent.”

  She said, “Packaging, shipping, printing out manuals, and other outside expenses will come up, they always do. I imagine we can charge a thousand for each of them since they’ll last a lifetime and are so useful, so the profit margin will be high.”

  I said, “Twenty-five percent, and I’ll hire the ridiculously overpriced lawyers we’ll need when they all start suing us.”

  She smiled, “Done, since you’ll be paying my granddaughters. I’ll have some paperwork drawn up.”

  Sneaky old lady, good thing I wasn’t really fussed about the money, I just needed to stay busy and make my mark on the world, for a king without a real job of ruling. My ambition demanded no less, and I was already so rich it was a crime.

  The three of them got up and moved inside. I took a sip of my iced tea.

  “So, what do you think? Now you know my two ideas.”

  She said, “But that patent hasn’t been approved yet.”

  I nodded, “They could try to run with it, but I doubt they’d start a war with me. Also… well, why not. It took Zeus forty years to develop these complex spells, it’s not something they’re going to figure out in a week, or even a year. Nor can they file a patent, not without a working prototype. By the time we’re setup and ready to get started, the patent should be pending or rejected. Either way, I’m going forward.”

  She said, “Why? I mean there was no electricity back then.”

  I grinned, “You’d think, wouldn’t you? Mount Olympus. Real city. Ran on witchcraft and technology. Granted much cruder technology than the humans have now, but it did the job. Some of the minor gods were tasked with keeping the city’s lights on, so to speak.”

  She peered at me, “I can never figure out when you’re teasing me.”

  I laughed, “Not teasing. I’m trusting you not to reveal this to anyone, because I don’t want to hide it from you.”

  She held up a hand, “I could be captured, and mind read, if it’s that important don’t tell me how you know any of that.”

  I growled at the idea of losing her, and she giggled.

  She leaned in and kissed my cheek, “I’ll do my best to avoid it, but I am your bodyguard and life is unpredictable. So, I don’t need to know that to advise you, just your plans. Wanting to know out of curiosity isn’t a good enough reason to take the risk. I also think you made the right choice on a slower rollout. Spread the growth pains out, and it’s far bigger than I’d imagined. The personal one could jump start a car, couldn’t it?”

  I nodded, “Yes, a starter would count as small electronics, and it has the juice for a brief fifty-amp output.”

  She smirked, “You realize your first idea will kill the second one? At least the portable version, when portable electronics are about to be obsolete, and the computer already has a magical power supply.”

  I chuckled, “Yes, I changed my mind on that already. The implant will replace computers and be an alternate for radio and television. But it’ll make calls through the owner’s cell phone, and it’ll connect to the internet through their home cable modem through sympathetic magic.”

  She nodded, “Good. Then I have no more advice at this time, except that I really advise you to take me to bed next.”

  I grinned, “That’s some very tempting advice, Lianne.”

  She smiled alluringly, “I hoped it would be.”

  “Anything in particular?”

  Her eyes smoldered, “Just being amazing, I’m so turned on I can’t see straight. Your confidence, intensity, and level of empathized ambition is killing me. I’m proud to be here, guarding you and advising you, and I’m so wet for you right now. I’m being clingy and crazy, aren’t I?”

  I laughed, “Never stop, baby.”

  She giggled, then said, “I don’t think I can, Liam. I owe Sara huge, you are… everything I ever wanted and everything I needed but didn’t know I did.”

  My lip twitched, “If we were at home?”

  She giggled, “I’d be kind of rapey again, I think. I totally want to jump you right now, hence the killing me softly part, it’s driving me batty.”

  I snickered, “Can’t do that to the willing, Lianne. I don’t think it’ll be too long before they’re back. If they have lawyers in the family, they probably have a standard contract ready. They’ll just have to put in the names and the percentage along with the product information and deal for the spells, then print it out.”

  “Won’t we need a witness to make it official?”

  “Meara’s a registered notary, so it won’t be an issue.”

  She said, “I do have one idea, do you think it would work with security keys and banking. I mean, the A.I. could figure out if you’re really wanting to spend money, and interface with a tap to pay system, even balance your checkbook and store all your credit cars. Virtual state I.D. too, like your license. Also, work as the key to your car, instead of carrying around a FOB, and you could unlock, lock, or pop the trunk with a thought. Ooh, front door, garage door opener, all of that stuff automated so you don’t have to carry a wallet, keys, or… anything really.”

  “You are wonderful. I don’t see why not, it would take a little more work and setup, but the A.I. could do most of the software on her own. Hmm, brilliant. So, what didn’t you know you needed?”

  I had a good idea what she did know she wanted, a strong man of loyalty and who took the lead in things, all the things we talked about in the coffee shop. But I was curious to hear what she’d been surprised and pleased by.

  She blushed, “The cuddling, attention, and your hands are always on me, holding me, or holding my hand. I mean, guys have cuddled with me before of course, but it was always with sex in mind. With you… it’s different, not about that really. I can tell you just want me close, crave my presence, and perhaps ironically that makes me really hot.”