The horror of what I’d done clawed its way through my
gut until I rolled over and threw up in the grass.
I just killed someone.
I’m a Dracre after all
.
“Ayden!”
I sat up and turned, shocked beyond words, because
the werewolf was struggling to his paws. Slowly, he turned to me, and there was
murder in his eyes. There was no time for labels, no time for fear, and no time
for wizardry.
I held out my hand, imagined my staff flying to me,
and felt my magic reaching for it. No matter how many times I had failed to
make my staff come to me, I knew it would work this time. It would work because
I was dead if it didn’t.
The staff smacked into my hand hard enough to leave a
bruise. A deep blue beam of light pulsed from the crystal straight into me.
When it did, all my trepidation and reservations vanished, leaving me with
unfamiliar confidence.
“Stop him!” I demanded to the staff. Dark red magic
shot from my staff into the werewolf, instantly turning him to stone.
The black bird swooped down, grabbed my staff in his
talons, and took off with it before I could react. It was suddenly very quiet
and calm. I watched the bird disappear into the night sky with it.
“Why did you just let it go?” Asiago asked.
“Because if I attacked the bird, he would have died,
and he isn’t responsible. Veronica is controlling the bird.” I carefully
approached the stone werewolf and wiggled my dagger free.
“Are you in shock? You’re acting very calm about
this. At least, I think you are.”
“
A sorcerer doesn’t feel fear
,” my mother had
always said. “
Fear clouds the mind and hinders your magic
.”
I shook my head. “I’m not in shock. We will need to
come back and free the werewolf, though. I think he was under Veronica’s
control as well.”
“I thought she couldn’t control magical creatures.”
“Shapeshifters aren’t magical like unicorns and
griffons.” I slipped my dagger back into my boot, patted Kirin’s nose, and
reached into the saddlebag.
“How are you not more upset that your staff was
taken?”
“I think I just realized that I can’t win against
Veronica with wizardry.”
His jaw dropped. “You’re going to give up trying to
be a wizard, then?”
“No. I still have every intention of getting rid of
my sorcery for good. However, I was raised by one of the most famous
sorceresses in the world. I can fake it.”
“When did you get so confident?”
I didn’t answer, because it wasn’t real. I should
have been freaking out over my staff, but I was calm and confident in my plan.
I pulled my wand out of the saddlebag. “Show me the way to the staff,” I said
to it, before holding it up. I aimed it in a small circle until it was facing
north, when I felt my magic pulsing through it. Dim, pink light lit the tip and
narrowed into a beam pointing into the woods. “Now we can find Veronica.”
* * *
We got back on Kirin and Sam and followed the light.
The griffon and unicorn galloped so quickly that barely any time passed before
we found ourselves in front of a dark cabin. I should have felt fear or panic,
for this cabin was identical to my mother’s, yet I only felt serenity.
Is this sorcery
?
Maybe the crystal is
starting to affect me
. I climbed down from Kirin and pulled the crystal
from my pocket. Predictably, four of the bat-like creatures appeared. This
time, it was light enough to make out some of their features. Their wings were
those of a bat’s, but their bodies were something between a monkey, a cat, and
a bat. They swooped down at me to attack. “You really don’t want to do that,” I
said, pressing the tip of my wand against the crystal. The bat creatures froze.
“Now, go and get your master.”
Each of them vanished with a soft
pop
. “Do you
have any idea what you’re doing?” Asiago asked.
“I rarely do.”
“I’m surprised you made it this far,” a woman said.
We turned to see Veronica standing in the doorway of
the cabin. Her facial structure and bright blue eyes resembled her mother’s,
but that was where the similarities ended. Like all sorcerers, she had black
hair, which was pulled back out of her face and draped over her shoulders in
messy curls. She wore a beautiful blue, satin, fitted dress with a thin,
translucent, shimmery blue material over it, almost like a robe. Around her
slim waist was a silver belt that had a pentagram-shaped buckle.
Kirin stomped his hoof with agitation, but he didn’t
retreat or attack. Sam, on the other hand, flapped his wings angrily, smacking
Asiago hard in the face.
“I guess I shouldn’t have doubted a Dracre.” She
studied me just as I studied her. “But you aren’t a real Dracre, are you?
You’re merely a blond haired, blue eyed wizard.”
“Why is everyone so interested in telling me who I
am? I don’t care if you call me a wizard or a sorcerer. Right now, you have two
things I want.”
“Yet you only have one thing I want.”
“That’s not true. You had multiple chances to get the
crystal before we found you. You wanted me to come to you.”
Asiago gaped at me, but Veronica just grinned
cruelly. “I don’t know what your mother has been complaining about, cousin. You
are definitely her son.”
“What is it you want?”
“Come inside.”
“No.”
She sighed. “You are far too suspicious. Fine, we’ll
do this outside, like heathens. What did my mother tell you about my sister?”
“That she only had light magic and that you killed
her.”
“She didn’t tell you about Sonya’s power, then. You
obviously knew when you came here that I can control animals. Sonya also had a
unique power, which I wanted. Unfortunately, when I finally found her, it was
too late.” She sneered. “That little brat had banished her own magic.”
“So, she was powerless?”
“I wish that was all. She hadn’t destroyed her power,
because that would have killed her. Instead, she locked her power away in an
object like her mother did. Unfortunately she knew that I would be able to
torture the location out of her, so she locked her memories away in the object
as well. She had no idea who she was when I got to her. I killed her just
because she dared to defy me.”
“But you never found the object?”
“I tried every spell there is, searched the place for
days, and tortured every person in the house, but I never even found out what
the object was. That was why I kidnapped my mother; I figured Sonya had to give
her some kind of clue before I found her. The crystal was just a bonus. Give me
the crystal and I will return your staff to you. I will send you to Sonya’s
childhood home and you will find the object that contains her power and bring
it to me. Then I will release my mother to you.”
“I have no guarantee that you will keep your word.”
“No, you don’t. However, I promise that I will kill
her if you do not return with that object in fifteen days, when the moons are
both dead.”
The smaller moon was already half dark, but it
changed much slower than the larger moon. “I will do it, but if you harm her,
the extra power in that crystal won’t be able to save you.”
“You can’t harm me,” she scoffed.
“No, but my mother can, and I know what she wants
most.” I felt a twisted sense of satisfaction when she paled. Instead of
harping on it, I held up the crystal. “Give me my staff.”
She held out her hand and it appeared. “Give me the
crystal first.”
“I’m not an idiot.” I closed the distance between us.
With my right hand, I handed her the crystal, and with my left, I took my staff
back. Its familiar energy surged through me and the calmness broke. Suddenly, I
felt normal again.
And then, we were standing in front of Vactarus’s
mansion.
“Nice place,” Asiago said. I
figured he was serious, not sarcastic.
The mansion intentionally appeared rundown in order
to keep out wanderers. It was also invisible from a distance. I grabbed my wand
and staff. “Stay here, Kirin, and stay safe.” The path to the mansion was a
cracked stone walkway. We stopped on the porch and I turned to Asiago. “Now,
don’t freak out, because both Vactarus and Sonya are ghosts.”
He scoffed. “I’m a necromancer.”
When the door opened, I turned and squeaked. Before I
had a chance to ask who was hugging the stuffing out of me, she pulled away.
“Welcome!” she said cheerfully.
She was utterly gorgeous. Her skin was creamy and her
facial features were small and soft, but her blue eyes were just large enough
to be the dominant feature. Her lips were full, dark pink, and wet. Her hair
was a blend of reds and golds, curled in big waves around her face and
shoulders.
She wore a dark purple dress with a corset top and
slightly fluffed skirt that came to her knees. The skirt was littered with
diamonds and the corset was decorated with gold ribbons. Her shoes— if they
could be called that, were silver and didn’t cover her feet; they laced over
her foot and up her legs. They also had a rather sharp heel.
“Thanks?” I cleared my throat. “I mean, good evening.
I’m Ayden. Is Kisha here? Or maybe Vactarus?”
Her bright smiled brightened further. She was a
little taller than me, athletically slim, and more busty than most women. I
wished the large moon wasn’t so bright, since I was sure she could see my
blush.
“I’ve heard a lot about you, Ayden. I’m Mira. Please,
come in.”
She didn’t move out of the doorway, so I had to
squeeze by her. It was very uncomfortable for me, but she just smiled brightly
until I was through, and then she stepped out of the doorway. Obviously, Asiago
wasn’t going to get the same welcome.
He glared at her, which I assumed was because she
didn’t give him a hug. “Give it back,” he said.
Mira pursed her lips. “I don’t know what you mean.”
He raised a ceremonial dagger to her chin. I gaped at
them both, since I didn’t understand why he was threatening her and hadn’t seen
him grab the dagger. “Ayden is my friend.”
She sighed and pulled a small sack out of her
cleavage, which she tossed to me. I caught it awkwardly and gaped harder,
because it was my coin pouch. “How did you do that?”
“I’m good with my---”
“She’s a professional thief,” Asiago interrupted her,
pointing to her right arm.
She obligingly turned her arm so that I could see the
red flower tattoo on her wrist. “I was a member of the thieves’ guild, yes, but
I didn’t last long. I’m surprised you recognize it.”
“I’ve met thieves from that guild before.”
Mira continued grinning, completely unbothered. “If
you’ll follow me, I’ll take you to the dining room and get Vactarus.”
I knew the way to the dining room, but I was
interested in her career. “Are your family thieves?”
She frowned. “What does my family have to do with me
being a thief? I don’t even remember them. I was raised by a master mage in the
warriors’ guild. As soon as I was old enough to hold a weapon, I was sent out
on quests. The more people doubted me, the stronger I became.”
“Why did you leave?”
“I have a problem with rules. That’s why I got out of
the warriors’ guild, thieves’ guild, assassins’ guild, and traders’ guild. I
have many talents, but playing nice isn’t one of them.”
“Have you stolen anything here?” I asked.
Unexpectedly, she scowled. “Of course not. I don’t
steal from my family. Vactarus gave me a home; I wouldn’t steal from him.”
“Are you the housekeeper?”
“No; I’m just a moocher. I come and go, so I wasn’t
here when you visited last time. Besides, I’m sure you’ve already met the
housekeeper.”
“I haven’t.”
“Really? He’s very hard to miss. He’s shy, though, so
I can’t be terribly surprised. Anyway, Ayden, I was told you were a sorcerer
with blond hair and blue eyes.”
She obviously wanted my story. “Yes, that’s right,” I
said simply.
Her expression told me she wanted to push, but after
a moment, we arrived at the dining room and she seemed to drop it. “Stay here
and I will get Vactarus.” She vanished through one of the doors.
When I glanced at Asiago, he was giving me an odd
look. “What?”
“I was just wondering if Mira would be more
interested in a sorcerer or wizard. She’s pretty— you might want to hold off on
getting your sorcery removed.”
I rolled my eyes. “No woman who is interested in
sorcerers would be interested in me. Women who are interested in sorcerers
don’t care if their hearts get broken; they care about power and excitement.”
“Wow. My best friend has been dead for longer than
I’ve been alive and
you’re
being morbid.”
“Sorry.”
“I don’t mind. You’re a sorcerer, after all. It is
awkward for me, though, because I am a romantic at heart.”
I wanted to ask if he was serious, but that would
have been rude, so instead I asked, “You have a heart?”
“I do. I long to find the person I would be willing
to torture, kill, and die for.”
“That’s… nice?” It was then that I realized sorcerers
were nowhere near as creepy as necromancers. I turned away so he wouldn’t see
my expression. When the ground exploded upward right in front of me, I shrieked
and my magic shot through the staff. At that point, I realized that the ground
hadn’t been disturbed at all, but it was too late. Bright red energy struck
Vactarus, who had popped up out of the floor and scared me half to death. His
body instantly shrunk and transformed into a little black bat, and I just
sighed, because this very thing had happened once before.
“Not again!” the little bat shrieked.
“Sorry,” I said, pulling my wand out of my pocket.
“Did you just turn Vactarus into a bat?” Mira
inquired, right behind me.
Again, I jumped, since I hadn’t heard her come in.
Figures a thief would be very light-footed. “Yes.”
“He’s so cute!”
I agreed. He was a tiny bat with fluffy black fur,
and although he was translucent, I thought he was less creepy than Magnus’s
minion. I cleared my throat and pointed my wand at the ghost bat. “Change
back.” I meant it, but only because I was in a hurry, and the bat changed back
into a regular ghost.
Vactarus was about a head taller than me with long,
black hair, a trimmed goatee, and stone gray eyes. He wore a black robe with a
silver crow clasp at the nape. The source of his magician’s power was the hat
on his head. While some magicians used a wand, my mother had said it was just
used to divert attention from their hat as a means of protecting it. They were
masters of illusion and could make their hat invisible.
“Are you able to use your magician magic even though
you’re a ghost?” I asked, suddenly very curious. I had gotten the hat from
Magnus, expecting a battle, because Magnus had taken it very soon after
Vactarus’s death. The old wizard, however, hadn’t realized the magician was a
ghost and gave it to me to return to Vactarus with his apologies.
“Yes.” He glanced at Asiago for a moment. “So, where
is Merlin?”
Very soon after I first met Merlin, he led me to
Vactarus’s mansion. They were friends long before Vactarus died and Merlin
became a wolf. They were also enemies, which was why we didn’t immediately tell
Vactarus that the wolf was the same Merlin he knew. Eventually, we told him and
he warmed to the wolf, much to Merlin’s surprise. I was pretty sure Vactarus
missed arguing with Merlin.
Merlin also liked Vactarus more than he was willing
to admit; as soon as he learned he was on Caldaca, he thought of the magician.
It was an amazing coincidence that Vactarus lived in Akadema, for even though
Merlin couldn’t use magic, he could sense it. He recognized Vactarus’s magic
and knew the magician would be able to help me, so he followed it.
“He’s working on getting his curse removed and he
doesn’t want me around for my safety,” I said. Vactarus frowned with concern,
though he tried to hide it. “I’m actually here because Livia Dracre, my aunt,
was kidnapped.”
He gaped. “Who kidnapped her?”
“Veronica Dracre, her daughter.”
“That is very sad to hear. Livia gave me this mansion
when I chose to settle down on Caldaca.”
“I thought you were stranded here.”
He blushed, which was weird since he was a ghost.
“Well, I could have ended up on another world, but this was where I was born,
so I chose to be here when I lost my power of world travel.”
“But… if you were just a magician, how could you
travel to different worlds?”
“Being a magician on this world limits me on what
magic I can do, but magic itself is not limited.”
“I don’t understand.” It sounded familiar, like
Merlin had said something similar, but Merlin usually explained things in a
very long, drawn-out way and I had a tendency to let my mind wander.
“I had a magic tool,” he explained. “It was not
limitless, however, and it was eventually drained of power.”
“Okay, so you said Livia gave you this house. Did you
know her daughter, Sonya?”
“No. I met Livia shortly after her daughter was
killed and she offered me this house because she couldn’t stand to return to
it.”
“Because Sonya died here?”
“How did you know?”
Instead of answering, I asked, “Did you ever see a
drawing or painting of her?”
“No. Why?”
“Because I found one. Kisha is Sonya.”
“That’s not possible. Kisha had been here for years
before I arrived, and she didn’t even have a name.”
“According to Veronica, Sonya locked her mind away
before Veronica found her because she knew she was going to get killed. That
doesn’t explain why she remembers being here for years before you came,
though.”
“Memory is different for ghosts,” Asiago said. “They
remember what emotionally impacts people. She might be remembering herself as a
person, but thinking of herself as a ghost. Does she feel invisible? Like her
existence doesn’t matter?”
“Of course not,” Vactarus said.
“Yes, she does,” I corrected. I had spent days
talking with her after returning Vactarus’s hat to him and, although I wasn’t
an expert on her, I had learned a lot about her. She could talk all day, even
though she didn’t have memories of her life.
“Your family is a very tangled web,” Asiago
commented.
“So, you know who I am?” Sonya asked, appearing right
beside me.
Since I was used to her, I only shrieked a little.
“I’m certain you’re the daughter of Livia and Magnus.” Obviously, she heard
every word I said to Vactarus. When I had discovered the picture, I chose not
to tell her about it without speaking to Livia first because I didn’t want her
to learn about Veronica until she had a chance to meet her mother.
“And my sister was the one who killed me.”
Thinking back, I probably should have told her
before
her mother was kidnapped by her murderous sister. “We need to find whatever
object you locked your memories and power into in order to save your mother.”
“Is there anything in the house that you feel
attached to?” Asiago asked her.
She shook her head, but her eyes weren’t focused, as
if she was completely lost in thought. No doubt she was struggling with the
same problem I was; we had to give more power to the sorceress or Livia would
be killed. “One thing I don’t understand is what she wants with your magic. You
had only wizardry and she has only sorcery. She can’t use your magic even if
she could get her hands on it.”
She nodded. “If we find it, maybe we can use it to
get my memories back and give the magic over in exchange for Livia.”
“I’ll start looking for it. Asiago, do you think you
can use your necromancy to get a clue out of her mind?”
“I can try.”
* * *
I started to think I was going insane, because no
matter where I was, whether I was alone or not, I would hear someone
whispering. I tried to pass it off as the age of the manor, but no one else
could hear it, and it was happening before I even got to the mansion. It
sounded suspiciously like the chimera was trying to communicate with me, but
since I didn’t have the syrus, I didn’t know why. I kept it to myself.
Over the next three days, I scoured the house. I
found the doll the first day, but Asiago assured me it had no mystical
connection to Sonya. I tried to make my staff find Sonya’s object, but each
time, it pulsed with a deep red glow, telling me that it was sorcery. Although
I couldn’t see how, I trusted my staff to know. I really hoped Magnus would at
least forgive the sorcery I’d used up until this point. I couldn’t expect to
get away with using it frivolously. Mira and Vactarus also searched, but they
didn’t find anything, either. Skilled or not, Mira didn’t have any magic, and
Vactarus couldn’t manipulate reality, only the perception of it.
On the third day, I asked Vactarus to make all
magical objects glow. That wasn’t the best idea, because Vactarus had a huge
collection of magical objects from Caldaca and other worlds. Nevertheless, we
started the whole search over, specifically focusing on glowing objects.
Vactarus assured me that even concealed and disguised objects would glow. On
the other hand, things that were disguised glowed even if they were not magical
themselves.
One of the strangest objects I found was a small,
jewel-encrusted treasure chest. It glowed from Vactarus’s spell brighter than
anything, but I couldn’t open it no matter how hard I tried. When I pointed it
out to Vactarus, he assured me it had nothing to do with Sonya. He said it had
a blood lock on it and was impossible to open for anyone except the person who
sealed it. Something about it called to me.