My Journey with the Demon King

22 - Magic

Bright light surrounded us. It glowed a strange silver-purple, shooting out of the volcano like an eruption. Zane screamed as the light filled his entire body, buffeting him up from the bottom.

I screamed as my mind was split in half. One flew off into the light; the other was pulled from Zane and thrown back into the present. The half of me that had returned to four thousands years from now was much weaker. The majority of my consciousness stayed with the half that was thrown into the light.

I was flying down, through the light, into the very depths of the volcano. When I approached the bottom, where the light was originating from, I came to a stop just before I reached it.

A deep, weary voice filled my mind, so powerful, so overwhelming that it made me feel as if I would be crushed beneath its presence. I had originally decided to choose the boy...but here you are, falling from the sky, directly into the palm of my hand, girl. Desire you the power so greatly? It matters not. My time has been served long past its original extent. I have earned my eternal rest and rightful place with the souls I left behind eons ago...Come, closer, child!

The orb of light that represented my being was dragged down, a few inches closer to the bottom of the pit. Directly beneath me was a bizarre pool of silver-pyrple glowing liquid, in the basin of the volcano. I couldn't focus on anything else before the voice grabbed my attention once again. It sounded like a very, very, very old man.

Ah, yes. You will do, child, you will do. The Heavens have sent you, so who am I to deny their signs? Come, there is much to teach you, before your complete assimilation. Let us begin the process.

At his words, the light grew brighter, surrounding me completely. I screamed once more as my very soul, my entire being, everything that was the thing that called itself Ashna Sangini was filled to the brim with power.

Ah, yes, child. I'm sorry, but becoming one with the magic of the world isn't something that is a pleasant experience. But, it appears you are to be the successor I have been waiting eons for. Now the magic can be released once more into the world and the death of magic can be adverted. It was quite the close call. Perhaps only another century or two before all magic perished.

I couldn't speak. The pain that was going through me as my being was torn to shreds, pieced back together, and then torn apart once again, was too great.

Hmm...Let us go higher, child. Perhaps we should check on the boy.

From very far away, it felt, I watched everything happen. My orb of light was lifted up, out of the volcano. We kept going over the land, until we reached the beach, a good distance away from where the volcano rest. The body of the man I distantly recognized as Zane König was collapsed ten feet away from the shore. Through the light that had been absorbed into his body, I could sense that he was still alive, just currently unconscious.

Yes, quite the sad fool. Trying to kill himself because he could not sense just how close he was to the very thing he hungered for. But it was you, not he, who made it to the bottom. It was you who the Heavens sent to become Magic. Oh, girl, I've waited quite the long time for this day. Hmm...I wonder, does my name ring out even to this time? Girl, know you of the one who was known as Merlin? Of course, I am much older than any of the legends believe, but that is of little consequence.

I was stopped from answering. The man, Zane, was waking. And with him awake, I felt my being was slowly draining away. He rose to his feet slowly, looking around in amazement and confusion.

"I'm...I'm alive. Holy shit, what happened?" He turned his head in different directions, trying to understand. His hands patted his body, making sure he was completely whole and not just dreaming. "Ashna?" he called out uncertainly. After a few seconds, when no response came, he let out a long sigh. "So, she's left once again."