The Book of Days: Reign of Darkness

XVIII: Wizards

  We all gathered in the living room, where Dad filled his pipe and said, "So, start from the beginning."

  "The very beginning?" Thalia asked.
He shook his head. "No. The first time you two met."

  "Well," she replied, "It was about four days ago. Wasn't it, Garret?"

  "Yeah. Something like that. I don't know how it happened. I just fell asleep, and there I was. She freaked out the first time she saw me, though. Thought I was the Emperor in disguise."

  She lightly shoved me, sulking. "Well, for all I knew, you could have been. But you weren't."

"So I told her where I was from," I continued, "and showed her that I'm an Elf."

  "Though apparently, so was I, the whole time." She absently touched the points of her ears, still getting used to them after having been magically disguised to look human. That had been one of the biggest shocks she had ever experienced.

  "And we only saw each other a few more times before.... the incident." Dad lit his pipe and took a long pull, releasing a great plume of pungent smoke a moment later. "And you never told me about this because..."

  "Well, I didn't want to seem crazy, did I? Who's ever heard of people contacting each other in dreams?"

  "Fair enough, I suppose," he conceded. "But what interests me most is how you managed to fight back against the Emperor and save Thalia. He's a very powerful Wizard, and very few could have stood against him and lived to tell the tale."

  "I don't know, Dad. That's just the thing. I... I just suddenly seemed to have this... power. I could never have matched him for physical strength, but I threw him off her with merely a thought. And somehow I held him off her and woke her up."

  "I see." He took another thoughtful pull, and this time made a few smoke rings. Each came out a different color, I noticed; one seemed to chase another, intersecting and breaking it apart. That was no Elf magic I'd ever seen.

  "It's time you knew something, Garret. I've waited to tell you until you were either grown or you discovered your power on your own; but it seems the time has come. You, also, are a Wizard. Just as I am."

  At first I thought he must be joking. "Come on. Dad, that isn't funny." He eyed me seriously. "I wasn't joking. Has it not occurred to you, Garret, to wonder how Thalia arrived here all the way from Survival so quickly?"

  It hadn't. I'd been so caught up in the elation of finally meeting her in person that I hadn't thought about it at all. "Okay, you've got me. How did she get here so fast?" Dad smiled. "I opened a Way from here directly to Survival. Well, within a few miles of it anyway. I'm a Wizard, Garret. And so are you. That is how you rescued her. Though I must say, if you hadn't had the element of surprise, you would not have won that little exchange. It would seem that you met her because you were meant to; that destiny, as it were, put you in the right place at the right time to protect her."

  "But wait. How is that I'm a wizard? I don't understand."

  "Well, as you know, our world was created by the greatest of all wizards, Nemhra the White. But his son and former heir, Nahruna the Black, sought to seize power for himself. He intermingled with the daughters of men, producing a half-blood line to preserve his influence in the world long after he was gone.

  "When Nemhra knew of this, he also bore a half-blood line through the first Elvish queen. You and I are descended from Nemhra himself, Garret, just as the Emperor is descended from Nahruna."

  "So Nahruna died, then." Dad shook his head. "No. He ought to have; but Nemhra, in the waning of his life and his power, fought Nahruna one last time and could not overpower him. So he did the only thing he could: he shut the dark wizard away in the Timeless Void, where he has been held prisoner ever since. He shall neither age nor die until he is released from the Void."

  I let it all sink in for a moment before asking, "So does this mean I could stop the Emperor?"

  "In time, yes. In fact, you must. If he is not stopped, he will eventually release his master from the Void, and then we shall all be in very great trouble. You will need to be trained."

  "But wait-- if you're a wizard, too, and you're no doubt a lot stronger than I am-- can't you fight the Emperor?"

  "Alas, no, Garret. My talents are limited, to tell the truth. I'm very good at certain things, granted, but... I am more Elf than Wizard, you might say. But you... you have the potential for power not seen since the time of Nemhra himself. And that is why you are chosen. It was prophesied, Garret. Either you will defeat the Emperor and his master, or no one will." He began to chant:

  "At the coming of the Black Hand,
  A shadow shall cover the world,
  But hope shall arise from Elvenland,
  The banner of Nemhra unfurled.

  "For out of myth and shadow,
  A savior shall arise
  To end the darkness once for all
  And seal his foe's demise."

  He fell silent, drawing on his pipe, and several minutes later, explained, "That is known as the Prophecy of the Heir of Nemhra, as given by Aren Mornfowl some twenty years ago."

  "Aren Mornfowl?" Thalia exclaimed. "That's Dylan's father!"

  "Ah, so you know him, then?"

  "Well... not really. I never actually met him. But Dylan and I were very close friends."

  "So now you know, Garret," he continued. "And we will begin your training soon." With that, he fell silent.

  I could hardly believe it. I was a Wizard? Thalia looked at me with new eyes. "Wow. Garret... this is amazing. To think..."

  "Yeah." Another thought struck me. "Dad, if the Emperor's been looking for Thalia all this time, then hasn't he also been trying to find me?" Dad just glanced at me, his eyes confirming what I'd said.

  "But... he hasn't found me yet. Or he would have come after me. But... what if he saw me? When he attacked Thalia. Dad, what if he saw me?"

  "That's where I come in, son. Since I've told you everything else, I might as well tell you about the headaches. They happen because I've been blocking him. It's a magical counter surveillance technique called Obscuring. It's one of those things I do really well. He didn't see you. At least, it prevents him from seeing you clearly.

  "But... he's been coming against me harder and harder lately. The other day, when you saw me having an episode... he was fighting me. I'm afraid he very nearly broke through. Sooner or later, I will not be able to resist him. All the more reason we must begin your training as soon as possible. I will keep you hidden as long as I can, Garret, but one day he will come for you."