Chapter One: The Mage


    I am a Mage.


    How do I know this?


    Because I blew up my family.


    Yes, I Awakened while I was talking with them. I refused to provide any context to the Guard, but they didn’t need any further questions. I was sent straight to Magefell.


    So now here I am, on board a boat heading to the fabled city of wonders, slightly against my will, wondering where my life is heading. If I’m being honest with myself—something I’ve found is more difficult than most think—, this is a welcome change of pace. I wasn’t exactly happy before all this, so at least this might improve my life. God knows I need it.


    I am, of course, sad about the whole ‘blowing up my family’ thing. I was in shock for more than a week, and was in mourning and tears for long after that. Even now, I still often have dreams or vivid hallucinations about it. Jade helped me out. If she hadn’t been there, I would probably never have come back from the void I’d put myself in.


    But I don’t want to dwell on that now. Right now, I need to dwell on the feeling I have in my stomach climbing up my throat. I tried closing my eyes, but that just made it worse. I feel something coming up my mouth, and I lean over the rail just in time for the puke to erupt from my body. The undulating ocean quickly accepts the vomit, and I look away, in time to see the woman whose footsteps sounded behind me.


    “Seasick? Many people get that way their first time on a boat, I’ve heard. It’ll go away in a few days.” The woman speaking is Jade. She’s part of the Guard, and we’ve been friends for years. I’m glad she decided to come with me to Magefall, although she won’t be able to stay, not being a mage and all. She’s also trying not to laugh, which irritates me to no end.


    I grunt. I don’t want to open my mouth, for fear of vomiting on the deck. Pure pain and sickness on my face, I look at her. I’m pretty sure my face is green.


    Jade smiles. “Cheer up, Zade. We’ll get there soon.”


    I finally respond. “You said all of that a few days ago, but I’m still sick. This is your first time too. How come you’re not seasick, Jay?” I poke her.


    She laughs. “I’m just stronger. By the way, Captain says we’ll be able to see the city soon, and we’ll get there by nightfall.” She turns solemn. “Then it’s goodbye. I can’t believe we’ll be separated by an ocean.” She tears up.


    I look at her, and grab her shoulder. “Hey, this isn’t permanent; I’ll be back. I thought you were stronger than me. You’ll get through it. Just be there when I return, or else I’ll be pissed.”


    She chuckles. “Thanks. I’ll miss you.”


    “Me too. Now please excuse me as I give the ocean everything I’ve ever eaten in life.”


    I throw up again into the water, but I can hear Jade laughing a bit as she leaves. She really is the reason I’m not still completely frozen in sadness after I Awakened. Since then, it’s been two months, and she helped me through it all. I owe a lot to her, and she’ll be the only thing I’ll miss. Jade is one of the most selfless people I’ve ever met, and I love her for it.


    I think back on this trip: I’ve been on this boat for ten days now, and I’m glad this horrible voyage is finally ending. Since I stepped on this abomination people call a ship, I’ve been sick. And I''ve hated every moment of it.


    I begin to think of what’s ahead for me: Magefell, the legendary city where wizards abound. I’ve heard stories about it, everyone has, but I’ve never been. Everyone says it looks beautiful, but that’s not why I’m going there, of course. At Magefell is Zenyth, the Mage fortress, where the Parliament lives, where the Mage academy is, where everything important for a Mage is. If one needs help from a Mage, they travel to Zenyth, and there they find help. One can also try the wandering wizards, or the ones part of the Companies, but in general, Zenyth is one’s best bet. I’ve always heard about how great it is, and part of me is excited to go there.


    The other part is apprehensive. My life is about to change in a major way, and I don’t think I’m ready. Hell, I’m not even eighteen yet. I can take care of myself fine, but moving to a different continent knowing nobody or how it is to live as a mage is scary.


    Jade tells me the apprehension is good. That way I’ll be prepared. I disagree but I trust her intentions in trying to reassure me. Who else would I trust? That’s not to say I didn’t have any other friends back in Erenfeld, but Jade was just the closest. And—


    I barf again, yellow fluid spilling everywhere. I barely even ate this last week, but it all just comes up anyway. As I recover, I look at the bow of the ship, and I spot the tiny speck in the distance. Magefell. I breathe a sigh of relief, and quickly regret it as I feel something coming up my throat again.


    — — —


    Four hours later, we’re much closer to Magefell. I can almost see the details of the city, and, so far, it doesn’t look that special. My stomach finally calmed down. I haven’t vomited in almost half an hour, and it feels amazing. I think my stomach knows the trip is ending. Somehow, the arduous ten days are almost over.


    Jade is sitting next to me. I’m still standing, but she found a barrel.


    “Beautiful, isn’t it? The city.” Jade sounds awed.


    I grunt. “I don’t see the beauty. Just looks like a big city to me.”


    She looks at me sideways. “Are you seeing what I’m seeing? The spires, the arches, the gates. It all looks so–”


    “Boring? Drab? Dull? Those are the words that come to mind.” I shake my head. “Honestly, I don''t see the beauty in architecture, Jay. Never did, never will, end of story. It looks gray and lifeless. Like a dead sheep.” I nod wisely at my perfect use of metaphor, but Jade just shakes her head.


    “You might see it that way, but I see it as a unified living body. It might look gray when you look at this house, or that inn, or the hospital down the road, but together, there is beauty.”


    “That sounds like a horrible life lesson in disguise.”


    “No, I’m serious.” Then she realizes I’m joking. She takes a potato out of her pocket and throws it at me. It hits me square in the chest.


    “Ow! What was that for? Also, why do you keep a potato in your pocket?”


    “For moments like this. You’re not funny, you know that?”


    I shrug. “I know, I just–”


    “Like to be annoying. You’ve said. Several times.” Jade sounds amused.


    “It works every time. I always get a reaction out of you.”


    She shakes her head. “Why do I always let myself get baited like that?”


    “Maybe you’re just not smart enough to…Ow!” I didn’t even realize she’d picked up the potato until it hit me again, this time on the nose. “You know, I could have you arrested for assaulting me. As one of the Guard, you could lose your job for something like this.”


    “You do that, and I’ll tell the mages every story I have of you. I’m sure they would love to hear them; you''d never live it down.”


    I sigh. “I should’ve never told you any of that should I?”


    She smiles wickedly. “Of course not. But now you did, and there’s no turning back. Oh, sweet blackmail, how I love you.”


    She’s very pleased with herself, and now I’m disappointed with myself. I don’t even try to retort. I’m scared of the potato. We stay silent for a few minutes, each of us reflecting on something. Jade’s probably thinking about the city, but I can’t stop thinking about that potato. So I do what needs to be done. I reach over and grab it.


    “Hey! Give that back! I need it so I can hit you with it for stealing it from me!” She says indignantly.


    “I’ll chuck it into the ocean. You’ll never see it again,” I threaten. I don’t know what she likes so much about this potato anyway, so I’ll relish the throw.”


    “The captain will throw you overboard for something like that.”


    “We’re already here, I could probably swim the rest of the way.”


    “You don’t even know how to swim.”


    “I’m a quick learner, The threat of death will teach me.”


    Jade rolls her eyes. “Give it, Zade.”


    “Why do you want this potato so much?”


    I feel rough hands grab me and the potato is ripped from my hands. A burly man walks over and hands the cursed vegetable to Jade. Kellion, one of the crewmates aboard the ship. I haven’t talked much to him, and I don’t intend to. As a devoted crewman, he’s overprotective of the food around here, as I figured out the first day. I still feel the bruise a little on my hand.


    “Thanks, Kell.” Jade is holding in a laugh. Meanwhile, I’m just annoyed.


    “Come on, Kell. What was that for? What did I do to deserve it?”


    The big man narrows his eyes. “You shouldn’t waste the food here. If we weren’t so close to Magefell, I would have you thrown off.”


    “Hey, calm down, man. All I did was take a potato. No big deal.”


    He gets up close to me and speaks roughly. “Stay away from the food. Got it?”


    I can smell his breath now, and it’s enough for me to try to push him away, which doesn’t work, as he’s too strong. I only end up pushing myself and falling. Standing up, I dust myself off and salvage my dignity:


    “You better stay away, or I’ll knock you down!”


    Kellion laughs uproariously and stomps off.


    Here’s the thing: I’m good with a sword. I was probably the best in Erenfeld for my age, except for maybe Jade. And I’m average with a bow. While rare, I had to hunt every once in a while to feed my family. I hate hand-to-hand combat, though. I always have, mostly because I’m really bad at it. Never really learned how to throw a punch. And I have muscles, but pushing someone…not really my style. If I had my sword, I could’ve taught Kellion not to mess with me. I always learned to rely on daggers and swords. I brought mine, but they’re in the crew cabin. I wasn’t allowed to bring it up.


    I glare at Jade. “You should have backed me up.”


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    She cocks her head. “Why? You were in the wrong.”


    I scowl and stomp off. The encounter with′Kellion soured my usually happy mood. As I’m taking the stairs to the cabin though, I fail to notice how wet the stairs are from Gods know what, and so I slip, my head hitting the stairs.


    Then nothing.


    — — —


    I’m at home. I remember this place. I’ve always loved it. The smell of the house, like ginger and pine, always made me smile. It has three rooms, which is spacious enough for a house in Erenfeld. I’m in my room right now. It’s pretty bare. I never cared much for decoration. I’ve got my bed, a simple wooden one which I’ll probably outgrow soon. There’s also a small shelf where I keep my clothes. And my sword. I pick it up and walk out.


    My parents. They’re here. My ma, Julia, hair tied in a bun, dress muddied. My da, Val, is wearing a simple, yet dirty shirt and trousers. They look stern.


    Suddenly I remember what’s about to happen. My eyes widen and my mouth opens to warn them. I need to leave. I need to–


    “We need to talk,” my da tells me. “You’ve been ignoring it for too long. We won’t let you delay it any longer.”


    “No, I need to leave. I’m going to save your lives. I’m going to the woods. Don’t follow me.” My eyes are wide with panic. I try to move to the door, but my da grabs me.


    “Son, stop.”


    “No, you don’t understand. I’m about to–”


    Then it happens.


    I close my eyes, but I still see it. My body erupting with light. The table and chairs around the house thrown back and shattered. My sword flying through the air. The horse outside seeing it and running away.


    And my parents. My parents.


    My parents.


    My…


    My eyes well up with tears as I see it. My mother is impaled with my sword through the heart, and she is thrown in the air, landing on the ground. She doesn’t get up, blood pooling around her.


    My father, though, what happened to him? His head explodes. It just pops. My body is soaked in his fluids, and I scream as his body falls to the ground.


    My ma’s face looks horrified. My dad, he doesn’t have one anymore.


    It looks like a slaughter. My parents are dead. I can’t believe it. I won’t believe it.


    IT ISN’T HAPPENING. I WON’T LET IT:


    NO!


    Everything shifts. I’m in Magefell, though I don’t know how I recognize it. And it’s in ruins. What happened here? I’m on a small hill, at the foot of it, and for no explicable reason, I feel the need to climb it.


    It’s not hard, but as I climb, I notice things. A broken hilt. Is that blood? There also seems to be an arm, though it looks mangled enough to be a leg. Bile works its way up my throat but I force it down. What the hell is going on?


    I clear the top of the hill, and that’s when I see it, my jaw dropping.


    It’s a battle. A real, gory battle. Not the battles the storybooks tell of. It has a vicious, gritty realism that is hard to visualize until experienced.


    The two sides both appear to be mages. There are spells flying in the air, The earth itself erupting, throwing mages and what appear to be horned creatures in the air. Mages bursting into flames. And there are soldiers there too. Cutting off the hands of mages to weaken them. Heads thrown off the creatures. Blood is everywhere. Magefell is unrecognizable from its former glory.


    It looks like the end of the world. It just may be.


    For a moment, I watch the devastation in horror. Then the world stops.


    I look around. No one is moving. It’s like someone stopped time. I walk down the incline slowly, walking towards the scene of the battle. The more I move closer, the more I want to faint. The smell of the blood makes me feel light-headed.


    Now I can tell what the creatures are. They are a gruesome mix between wolves and humans, except they have horns. One of them is in the middle of separating a man’s head from his shoulders, snarling. The teeth are razor sharp. It’s also tall, over seven feet tall. I can’t imagine facing one in battle.


    I keep walking, and I spot someone familiar. Is that…Jay? She looks savage. She’s fighting two wolf-creatures at the same time, a sword in one hand, fighting off one, as a dagger she’s throwing is taking down another. How did she get so violent? Also, why does she look older? I come up next to her, and tentatively touch her face. Nope. Still frozen. Her face looks equal parts scared and determined. Her sword is bloodied.


    I can’t stay looking at her forever, so I turn, and my heart catches in my throat. That’s me,wearing a black robe! I’m fighting alongside a woman I’ve never seen before, but she’s beautiful. My eyes are narrow, as me and the unfamiliar woman are locked in battle with three mages. One of them has sent fire in our direction, and I’m blocking it intensely while she stabs him in the gut. The two other enemy mages seem to be… concentrating, though I’m not sure what for.


    Whatever is happening here, I can’t stand it. From looking around, it looks like whatever side I’m on might be losing. There are more mages wearing black robes on the ground than anything else. And there are almost no wolf-creatures down.


    I’m almost at the end of the battlefield now, and I must have walked a mile. Now I can see the backside of the opposing army, and what looks like their captain. It’s a man, I think. He’s wearing a dark mask, with glowing red eyes, seated on a throne, and casually thrusting his hand towards where a column of earth erupted. He seems to have more power than anyone. I guess that’s why he’s captain. I shudder.


    It’s time to leave. I have to. But how?


    The world unfreezes. Suddenly, everyone’s fighting again. I can hear the screams, the groans, the tears. I feel nauseated, then hear a roar behind me.


    Dammit.


    I start to run, but I can hear it behind me. I think it’s a wolf-creature. I push myself forward but he’s faster. I turn around, and suddenly it’s in front of me. It growls, and lunges with its sword.


    Pain. pure pain in my gut. It slices, and my insides erupt out my stomach along with a ton of blood. I’ve never seen so much blood come out of someone. It feels impossible.


    The creature already turned away, and is fighting someone else.


    I start to fade. I know I’m dying, but I stop caring.


    The last thing I see before I die is the sky turning red.


    The world is ending.


    — — —


    I wake up, groggy. Then everything hits. My parents. The battle. The blood. Me. and Jade.


    Speaking of Jade, she’s sitting beside me, looking concerned. I sit up, dizzy, and she gently pushes me down.


    “Hey, you ok?” She asks.


    “Yeah, I’m fine. What happened?”


    “You hit your head on the stairs and have been out for two hours. We’re docking in an hour.”


    “Hmm. Jade, it happened again.”


    “What, the dream.”


    Tears are in my eyes now. I nod.


    She pulls me to her chest. “It’s ok. I know it’s hard. You wanna talk about it?”


    I shake my head.


    “No. But I want to talk about something else.”


    “Shoot.”


    “You know how normally my dreams end with the—”


    “Yeah I know. Go ahead.”


    “This time it didn’t end with that. My dream changed halfway. I was in the middle of some battle. I was in Magefell, and it was in ruins. You were there, and I was too, but a different, older me.”


    “I was there? Why?”


    “I don’t know. You were fighting with these wolves, but they were really tall. Like I said, I was fighting too, but with this other woman.”


    “Who?”


    I shrug. “I don’t know. I’ve never seen her before. But she was using a sword like you. And I was using… magic, I think? Anyways, we were both older, and way better at fighting. You had a sword, and a…dagger. I had a sword, but it was in its hilt. We were losing the battle, Jay. but I don''t know what it all means.”


    “Were we all fighting those wolves?”


    I think about it. “I don’t think so. There were these mages too, who were fighting against us. And this man, with a mask, who led them. He was powerful. Really powerful.”


    Jay looked at me silently, so I keep speaking.


    “It’s just a dream, right?”


    “I think so. None of that can happen right?”


    “I hope so. God, I hope so.”


    She stands.


    “If you need anything, say it, alright?”


    “I will.”


    She nods, and leaves.


    I lie back, in a daze. I feel a headache coming. I should get up. Ugh.


    I force myself up, slowly. I walk to the door of the crew cabin, and push it open. I expect to get hit with a blinding light. But that doesn’t happen. The sunlight is mostly gone. It’s basically nighttime.


    As I walk up the stairs, making sure I don’t slip this time, I start to feel the wind on my face and in my hair. I used to keep my hair slightly long, but my da didn’t really like it, so I keep it short most of the time now. Still I could feel the wind.


    Nothing beats a beautiful night. The ambience of the sun setting, the dark colors slowly appearing, the feel of the air and the wind. It’s one of the simple pleasures in life, going out after sunset. I love it a lot. I always have. When I was younger, I used to go out at night, when my ma and da weren’t looking, and I would just sit outside just taking it all in. Good times. And now I’m excited to see the city, because it definitely looks better bathed in the moon, and I can’t wait to explore it at night now.


    Jade notices me coming up.


    “Hey, you shouldn’t be up.”


    “I’ll live, Jay. It’s boring down there.”


    She scowls. “Fine.” She walks over to me and puts my arm over her shoulders. Then she helps me walk up. I don’t need her help, but I don’t complain.


    “You have to see the city. It looks breathtaking.”


    “I hope it looks better at night.”


    Then we reach the top of the stairs, and I take my hand off of Jade’s shoulders. Immediately, I start to fall. She reacts quickly, and grabs my torso.


    “You need help?”


    “I’m fine. Just give me a minute.” I stay kneeling for a minute until I realize how impatient Jade is. She really wants to show me the view of the city.


    So I stand up. She leads me over to the bow of the ship, and I can see the city now.


    Suddenly, I’m breathless.


    Beautiful does not describe it. For once, I am speechless.Magefell is glowing. Literally glowing. It must be the magic, because I’ve never seen anything like this. The entire city seems to have a blue-green ring that surrounds each and every individual part of it. There is a tower in the middle, shaped like a blade, stretching higher than anything I''ve ever seen. It’s also on top of a hill, so that the rest of the city sort of hangs off of it.


    Whoever designed this city to be on a small hill was a genius, because from the outside, you can see the entire thing. Or at least one side of it. And even at night, the city clearly has life. There is a certain buzz to the city that is incomparable. Every building is distinct and unique. I see one that might be an inn. It is made of wood, but it has a dark tint to it. It spans at least three stories, and it looks majestic from the outside. There''s also a carving on the side of the inn, portraying a burning ember in the midst of an ocean.


    As I stare at it, Magefell gradually grows more inviting. This type of beauty cannot be described. I could stare at the city forever and not get bored. Each district, each road, each building offers something new. Then I see the palaces.


    The tower was grand enough. The palaces make the tower inferior. There are two palaces in magefell, one on the eastern side, and one on the western. They mirror each other in every way, and it’s incredible and vivid. The eastern one is more white, while the western one is black. I’ve heard they represent light and darkness, and ogling them, I can see why. The white one looks pure, with gleaming walls that even at night shine bright. Meanwhile, the western tower looks like a void, ready to suck you in if you’re not careful. Both are stunning.


    I hear Jade talking next to me, but I don’t listen. I’m enthralled. She pokes me, and I look around as if coming out of a trance. She smiles at me, and gives me a hug.


    “It’s beautiful.”


    For once, I agree.