In the city of Kyrkarta, magic (known as maz) is a part of everyday life. However, maz has been monopolized by Maz Management Corporation after the world was ravaged by a magical plague. The protagonist Diz and her friends have made a living off of illegally siphoning maz from MMC's pipes. But after they discover a new strain of maz called 'maz-15' while on a job, they must unravel a vast conspiracy involving MMC and the origin of the spellplague. This book by
MK England was published in 2020.
This book contains examples of:
- Badass Bookworm: Professor Aric Silva is an elderly, mild-mannered scientist. Despite this, his magic is powerful enough to fend off several MMC guards.
- Bait-and-Switch Character Intro: Aric Silva is introduced holding a magic fireball, seemingly about to attack the protagonists. Instead, he uses the magic to make a sparkling flower for his bow tie, and cheerfully greets them.
- Chekhov's Hobby: Early in the book, it's established that Diz uses her hacking skills to dig up dirt on authorities in Kyrkarta when she's bored. This information is later used to blackmail the MMC board of directors into giving up the codes for the maz-15 drill.
- Dug Too Deep: MMC accidentally unleashed the spellplague when they drilled too deep while mining maz.
- Emotionally Tongue-Tied: Diz is unable to say out loud that she wants her friends to live in Kyrkarta instead of moving away or admit that she's in love with Remi.
- Faking the Dead: Aric Silva fakes his death and lives off the grid to escape MMC after discovering maz-15.
- Fantastic Drug: It's briefly mentioned that some people use illegal "stim" spells as drugs.
- Fighter, Mage, Thief: Jaesin is the group's fighter, being the strongest and most willing to engage in physical combat. Ania and Remi are the mages, relying on maz to fight opponents. Diz is the thief, being the group's hacker, and her role in fights is mostly distracting the enemy so the others can attack.
- He Knows Too Much: Someone tries to kill the protagonists after they inadvertently discover the existence of maz-15. The scientists who know that MMC and maz-15 caused the spellplague are killed by MMC, with the exception of Aric Silva.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Diz can often be abrasive and rude, but a lot of it comes from feeling like her friends are abandoning her with their plans to leave Kyrkarta.
- Magitek: Maz can be wielded using technological implants. People who use these are called 'techwitches'.
- MegaCorp: Maz Management Corporation. Not only does it monopolize the maz supply, it also controls the media and police.
- Mystical Plague: The spellplague that ravaged the world was caused when an earthquake released a deadly strain of maz. The new strain was maz-15, accidentally discovered by MMC.
- One Last Job: The heist that results in the main characters' discovery of maz-15 was supposed to be their last job ever.
- Peace & Love Incorporated: MMC has a very good reputation for being the company that ended the spellplague and establishing orphanages to raise kids orphaned by the plague. They also caused the spellplague, albeit unintentionally, and are willing to kill to keep their secret.
- Playful Hacker: Diz is a skilled hacker who enjoys using her talent to steal maz and digging up dirt on authorities.
- Squishy Wizard: Remi is a very gifted spellweaver. However, they are immunocompromised due to surviving the spellplague, and Remi isn't as physically capable as other members of the team.
- Sufficiently Analyzed Magic: The study of maz is considered just another science. There are universities dedicated to maz research, and even a periodic table of maz.
- Team Dad: Ania and Jaesin both act as this, scolding Diz when she argues with Remi. Diz even nicknames them "mom and dad" in her narration.
- Tempting Fate: When going to visit Aric Silva, the main characters learn he lives only two miles away from Jattapore. It seems easy, and Diz says in narration "I'm pretty sure we can handle a two-minute walk". It turns out the way there is filled with booby traps, making it incredibly difficult to travel through.
- Uriah Gambit: After discovering maz-15, the main characters are sent on a job to steal more. But the pipe they're siphoning from is rigged to explode, nearly killing them on the job. Diz concludes from this that MMC set them up to get killed.
