Determined to take control of their fates, Arjen and Arien escape Derolina Castle at the age of sixteen after their cruel mother dies. They adopt new names and find a home in the city of Aramore, while the Emperor of Yuriana searches for his missing...
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"No!" Alec reached into the void to grab the twins but pulled his hand back as the pit began to close. He stared in shock at the solid ground in front of him.
"Too bad you showed up," said the mage. "I was having fun. I wanted it to last a little longer." Alec's strings of light shot up from the ground at the mage's feet, but as they entwined around him, he faded and vanished. His laughter echoed. "Made you look!"
Sensing someone behind him, Alec turned, but found no one.
"I'm surprised at how slow you are. It's disappointing."
Alec searched everywhere. Just when he thought he saw the mage, the man would disappear, his taunting laughter grating in Alec's ears. "Niwe!"
(( He keeps moving around, so I can't get a bead on him. But I think he's using a false image. )) Highly skilled mages could generate false images of themselves right after another, sometimes simultaneously. It could be used from a safe distance, but it required a lot of mana, so the tactic was draining.
But the caster also had to see his target for the spell to work properly. In other words, the man was watching Alec.
"Niwe, do you see the real one?" he asked.
(( Um... Yes, but you might want to duck. ))
A flash of yellow light streaked overhead and Alec dropped to the ground. A gust of air followed. There was a sharp grunt and a curse, and something moved in the dark narrow alley between two buildings. The mage staggered, turned quickly, and ran away.
"Niwe, follow him!"
(( Don't need to tell me twice. )) A dark shape split off from Alec's shadow and raced into the alley.
As Alec got to his knees, he heard a disgruntled huff. "If he had been a little fatter, I would've gotten him." The shopkeeper, Marcus, stood in the back doorway of the shop, his arms crossed. His fierce gaze moved to Alec. "I had thought someone like you would've been enough to help them." Something long dangled in his hand as he went to the spot where the twins had disappeared.
"You almost hit me!" said Alec.
"That was a risk I was willing to take."
And where had he been this whole time? Alec felt the top of his head to make sure he hadn't lost any hair. "He's taken them somewhere."
"I know." Marcus stood over the place where the portal had appeared and set a flat black object on the ground. Its circular reflective surface showed it was some kind of mirror. He then brought forth the dangling object. A blue gem speckled with gold hung from the end of the cord.
Alec stared at it. Was that gem what he thought it was?
Marcus lowered the cord until the gem touched the surface of the mirror. The ground pulsed. There was a long pause, and he said, "I knew there would be trouble. Normally I listen to my gut instincts, but I let those two speak to you anyway. They seemed happy to." Marcus' cold eyes met Alec's. "I should've kept them away from you."
