Endangered: The Strings of Fate Pt. 01

Endangered: The Strings of Fate Pt. 1

*****

© 2025 S. Round. All rights reserved. No part of this story may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the author. All sexually active characters in this work are eighteen (18) years of age or older.

*****

Prologue

Namat stepped out of his hut and smiled as he watched the sun shine through the nearby tree line. It would surely be very hot later in the day, but it felt nice right then as the air was still holding on to some of the coolness of the night. He looked around and watched everyone in the village busily starting their daily work, his mother among them. It was a beautiful morning, and not just because of the weather. Time had finally come for him to join in on the daily hunt, something he had long looked forward to.

All the young men in the village idolized the hunters. They were fierce and strong, and they brought great blessings to the village in the form of delicious meats. It was Namat's greatest ambition to be one of them, but the village leaders forbade participation for any boy until they came of age. Namat always thought that was stupid, but it didn't matter anymore. He had now been recognized as a man, and the hunters had agreed to teach him their ways.

Carrying his long spear, which he had shaped himself over the course of the last year, Namat walked across the village to meet his new companions at their normal gathering spot near the forest. There he found a couple dozen men waiting for him, each carrying their own impressive weapons. Kan, the leader of the hunters, stepped forward to meet Namat as he arrived.

The elders officially ran the village, but Kan was the real leader. When Kan had an idea or request, everyone always made sure to go along with it. Not out of fear, but out of respect. Everyone knew Kan was responsible for keeping the village safe alongside providing their supply of animal products, and he did a great job of it. Namat's greatest dream was to be just like Kan someday. That's why, when Kan put his big hand on Namat's shoulder affectionately, he had to fight hard to keep his face serious.

Kan explained what they would be doing for the day. A routine hunt, trying to track and kill any big game they could find traces of. He said Namat should stay in the back and watch for today, but he made sure to stress that it was still dangerous and to stay on guard the entire time. Namat said he understood and was rewarded with a grin and a pat on the back from the bigger man.

After that, the group made their final preparations before they headed out into the forest. But before they could disappear into the tree line, a loud voice was heard calling out from the center of the village. The group turned as one to see a woman there waving her hands with a big smile. It was Namat's mother. Uncaring about the eyes of the entire village on her, she loudly wished him good luck and told him to be safe. Namat covered his face in embarrassment as the men around him laughed at the scene and gently ribbed him for being a mama's boy.

The hunt got underway without any other delays. Namat was nervous as they trudged through the trees, but as the morning hours passed, he began to feel more comfortable. There weren't monsters behind every large tree or in the darkness of every shadow like the young boys in the village always claimed in their stories. It was mainly just birds and trees. Lots of trees.

Hot, green, and damp, the rainforest where Namat had spent his entire existence was full of life. He loved the tall trees and the beautiful display of flowers all around. He had heard that there were places without trees, where there was nothing but dirt as far as the eye could see. There was also talk about endless water that no man had ever found the bottom of. If he had been asked to explore such places, he doubted he would have been able to calm his nerves so quickly. But this was the rainforest, and the rainforest had always been home.

The sun was soon at its highest point in the sky, and they had not yet managed to find any game. Kan addressed the group and indicated that they would make their way to the nearby river to gather fish if they didn't find something soon. It was disappointing. Namat had hoped to bring back a rare prize to mark his first hunt, but there wasn't much he could do. This was about feeding his people, not his pride. When it came to filling bellies, fish was always welcome in the village.

The first surprise discovery of the day came on their journey to the river. They were walking along the path when a group of men emerged from the trees ahead. Kan quickly brought their party to a halt and signaled everyone to be alert. It was rare to find other tribes while hunting, but it wasn't unheard of. The problem was that not all the neighboring tribes were friendly. There were one or two villages in the area that had been downright hostile at times.

Namat wondered if they should just back up and avoid the new group, but it was too late for that as the others had already spotted them. He stared at the men from the back of the hunting party as they started slowly making their way closer. As their appearance got clearer, Namat noticed how strange these other men actually were. Their skin was a sickly gray, and their eyes looked almost completely white with only the barest hint of dark gray where their pupils should be.

As the strange, sickly men marched silently closer, Kan stepped forward with his spear and called out to them. He asked who they were, but they didn't respond. They didn't even falter in their stride as they continued to narrow the gap. By then, the entire party had noticed the horrible appearance of the other men and were greatly alarmed. They all stretched out their spears in unison, hoping to keep the men at bay.

To Namat's shock, the strangers pointed their spears at Kan in unison and began to run. It was an attack! Namat completely froze, but luckily, Kan and his lieutenants did not. They stepped forward and parried the incoming spears before striking out with their own. Although they were aggressive, the strangers were not skilled, at least not when compared to Kan and his best hunters. Kan and the others did their best to only lightly wound them before throwing them to the ground.

Kan stood over the fallen men and loudly demanded an explanation for the attack. But the sickly men never said a word. Instead, they silently stood back up and tried to attack again. This time, the hunters were not so merciful. They stabbed with their spears to hold off the strangers. One of the hunters even got carried away and completely ran through the heart of one of the assailants, almost certainly ending the man's life.

The hunters regathered themselves and surveyed the now bleeding strangers. Kan looked to try to talk to them again, but he took a step back in fright as he saw the skewered gray-skinned men stand up once again as if nothing had happened. Even the man who still had a spear piercing his heart stood up without a problem.

The party of experienced fighters were consumed by fear for the first time since setting out into the wilderness. Kan was the first to voice out what they were all thinking. Namat could hear the shaking in his voice as the brave warrior declared this to be the work of an evil god. Once said, a few of the hunters in the back turned and ran away at full speed. Namat could hardly blame them. He would have done the same thing if his body wasn't completely frozen.

Everyone in the village knew the stories of evil gods. They were said to imbue people with bizarre abilities that went against nature. People with those abilities almost always went crazy. It wasn't just one or two villages that had been wiped out in the past due to delving into that unholy power. If these men were products of such power, they needed to distance themselves quickly.

Kan seemed to be of the same mind. After overpowering the sickly men once more, the entire party was ordered to hastily retreat. Namat's legs finally unlocked, and he dashed back through the forest towards home with the other men. With fear as their fuel, they made much better time than their journey out, but it was still an hour before their cozy village came into view. What awaited them there, though, was anything but a warm welcome.

The village was in chaos. Gray-skinned men were busy tearing through huts and chasing down screaming women and children. Kan stood in disbelief for only a moment before resolve settled on his face. He ordered the group to protect the village, and they ran to meet the enemy. Namat ran behind them, but he did not seek out an opponent to fight. He instead swept his gaze in every direction looking for his mother.

Namat ran through the village, dodging fights breaking out on every side, weaving through screaming villagers. His legs instinctively carried him to his home, and luckily, that was just where he needed to be. As his hut came into view, he saw one of the gray men dragging his screaming mother outside by her hair.

What were the odds, today of all days, when his mother was home alone for the first time in years!? Rage filled him as he witnessed the person he loved the most in the world struggling for her life. Namat screamed and charged at the sickly gray man with his spear pushed forward. The gray man turned to face Namat just a moment before the spear struck. Carried by Namat's momentum, the spear thrust through the man's abdomen and lodged deeply into the walls of the hut behind him.

Breathing heavily, Namat let go of his spear and checked on his mother. She was greatly distressed, but Namat was relieved to find that she was not injured. He helped her stand up, and they both looked at her assailant. Despite being run through with a spear, he was trying to free himself from the wall as if he felt no pain, his dull white eyes remaining fixed on Namat and his mom.

Namat grabbed his shaking mother and led her away from their home. He then looked around and took stock of the situation around the village. Sounds of desperate fighting were all around. He had no idea how many of the evil men had invaded, but he was certain his people were outnumbered. Having witnessed that these men could not be killed, Namat had no hope that they could fight their way to victory. The only thing to do was run.

Namat was able to determine that the invaders were primarily coming from the south and east. At least, that was where they seemed to be appearing from and where they were dragging villagers to. He figured the safest place to go was the exact opposite of there. He led his mother by the hand and carefully ran through the village, avoiding the gaze of any nearby invaders that weren't already occupied. Luckily for Namat, but maybe not for others, the evil men were mostly all busy fighting hunters or dragging away helpless women. Namat and his mom were almost at the tree line before their good luck ran out. Just before they were away free, a sickly gray man charged at them from behind.

Having no weapon, Namat had no way to fend off the attack. He stood in front of his mother and closed his eyes, prepared to die. Before the opponent's spear reached him, a wide body flew in from the side and brutally skewered the gray man's chest. Namat opened his eyes and stared up at the strong back of his idol, Kan.

Kan looked back at Namat and his mom and smiled. He pointed towards the rainforest and told them to flee. Namat stood stunned for a moment, not knowing if it was right to abandon this man who had just saved his life. But then, something happened on the other side of the village that caught their attention. More evil gray men appeared from within the trees, and among them one stood out. He was larger than the rest, and on top of his head he wore a headdress of many feathers. This man gave off the impression of being a great warrior. As if things hadn't been difficult enough.

Kan's expression hardened at seeing the new threat appear. He once again told Namat to run before stabbing the recovering opponent before him. There was no smile on his face this time. Namat took his mother's hand and ran into the trees. Deeper and deeper they went, the chaotic sounds of their village's demise growing fainter behind them.

Namat did his best to hold back his tears as they ran, but he was unable to. That day was the first official day of his manhood. It was supposed to be marked by a great hunt, but it was instead marred by terrible tragedy.

Ch. 1

"Yessss," Nyla said, hissing through gritted teeth. "Fuck me harder, hon!"

Evan grabbed her hips and thrust forward with as much force as he could, drawing out a high-pitched squeal from Nyla's throat. He continued to assault her backside, and the curvy goblin nurse could only moan in response.

When Nyla had asked Evan over for a dinner date, they both knew things would get heated eventually. However, neither had expected they wouldn't even make it to the bedroom before Evan got his cock inside her. But sometimes when the mood strikes, you've just got to go with the flow.

After finishing their food, Nyla had taken their plates into the kitchen. Evan followed her to offer his help and found her already busy rinsing off the plates. He stopped in his tracks when he saw her big butt swaying under her dress as she scrubbed the dishes. It looked so juicy and sexy, he was transfixed, and he couldn't help the hardness growing beneath his pants. Nyla finally noticed him a few moments later. She laughed when she saw the big bulge in his pants pointing at her obscenely.

"Did you bring me something else to polish, hon?" she said, biting her lip teasingly.

Evan walked over to her and embraced her from behind, pressing his hardon firmly against her luscious backside.

"Your ass just looked so good. I couldn't help it."

"Is that right?"

Nyla pushed her ass back and began to grind against Evan. She swirled her hips in a hypnotic rhythm, and it felt amazing. Evan shivered and let out a long sigh as he held on tightly to her undulating body.

"If you want it," Nyla said, slightly out of breath, "just take it right here."

Nyla fixed her gaze on Evan over her shoulder, and he could see she was as turned on as he was. Evan quickly proceeded to step back and pull up her dress. Nyla obliged by stepping back and bending over with her hands on the counter while Evan freed his raging hardon. In no time, Evan had pushed inside, and their frenzied coupling had begun.

The kitchen was filled with moans and the wet slapping sounds of Evan jackhammering his cock deep into the hot older woman's needy pussy. The green skin of her big ass rippled repeatedly as Evan fucked her hard, just like she requested.

"Oh, hon!" Nyla said. "I'm g-gonna cum!"

Evan continued to rail into her even as he felt her body clinch and shake on his cock. He was merciless in his assault, continuing to pull more and more pleasure from her body until she couldn't stand it any longer. Literally. Nyla's legs buckled, and Evan was just able to grab her and prevent her from slamming her knees on the floor. He finally pulled out of her and helped her steady herself against the counter.

"Oh my god, hon," Nyla said with a laugh as she fanned her face with her hand.

Evan smirked with pride at how he had managed to bring this sexy woman to her knees with his fucking. He himself was a little out of breath, but he was now capable of lasting a good long while after several months of steady exercise at the gym. Nyla saw that he was still fully hard, and she put on a sultry smile of her own.

"Come on, big boy," she said, taking his hand. "Let's go to bed."

Evan was soon on top of Nyla in her bed making out. Their tongues danced with each other while Evan's hands busily massaged Nyla's tits. His throbbing cock was also rubbing through her soaked lower lips, teasing them both. Soon, the stimulation became too much for Nyla to bear any longer.

"Please, give it back to me, hon."

While kissing her neck and without removing his hands from her breasts, Evan pulled his hips back until he felt the tip of his cock catch on her opening. He pushed forward in one smooth stroke until he was fully seated within her warm pussy. They both moaned at the renewed connection.

Evan began to thrust with a steady rhythm, gradually picking up speed. Nyla wrapped her arms around his neck and held on as best she could. It felt so good, fucking her and seeing her big breasts bounce each time he bottomed out. It was all too stimulating, and Evan soon was on the precipice of his climax.

"Yes, yes, yes," Nyla moaned. "Just... use me, hon. I got mine. Now... get... yours!"

Evan snaked his hands underneath Nyla's body and grabbed big handfuls of her ass before starting to hammer into her as hard as he could.

"Cum in my pussy! Breed me, Evan!" Nyla shouted.

With a loud roar of his own, Evan began to shoot his sperm deep into Nyla's fertile womb. Blast after blast shot out, and his body shook with joy. When he was finally spent, he collapsed to the bed and pulled Nyla into a long sensual kiss. When the kiss ended, Nyla looked into Evan's eyes and let out a long, contented sigh.

"Hmm, I needed that," she said.

"Me too," Evan said.

"Oh, please," Nyla said, smiling. "I know you've got a different girl waiting for you every night. Don't deny it!"

"Well... not every night."

"Just don't go forgetting little old me. Us cougars need love too."

"Never," Evan said, kissing her forehead.

Nyla snuggled closer and wrapped her arms around Evan in a hug. Evan reciprocated by grabbing a handful of her ass. Nyla just giggled into his chest.

"Oh, I'm gonna miss this, hon," Nyla said. "Are you sure you can't just cancel and stay here for the summer? I'll cook for you every night."

"I wish I could, but I made a deal," Evan said. "I don't think it would be a good idea to piss off the council so soon after things finally settled down."

"You're probably right," she said. "When are you leaving?"

"Just shy of two weeks now," he said. "I'll be heading to my parents for a couple weeks before flying out to do research with Dr. Franklin. Gonna be a busy summer."

"Just be sure to come back in one piece. I'm not quite done with you yet," she said before playfully biting his arm.

After a little more cuddle time, Evan got up and used Nyla's shower. With one last kiss and ass grab, Evan finally left the sexy nurse's house. He was embarrassed to find Robin waiting for him on the sidewalk outside. He cleared his throat as he approached his stoic bodyguard.

"Did you wait out here the whole time?"

"Yes," Robin said like it was nothing.

"You really could have taken a break," Evan said. "It would've been fine."

"No. I need to stay close to you at all times."

It wasn't the first time Even tried to get Robin to loosen up, but she always refused to budge. She was serious about her job. And since her job was keeping him alive, perhaps he shouldn't try too hard to get her to slack off.

"Do you mind driving home? I'm beat."

"Of course."

Robin took the keys to Evan's car and they both got in. Evan wasn't lying. His body was totally drained. He felt proud that he was now able to go hard for so long during sex, but his shaking legs were telling him he had overdone it just now. He knew there wouldn't be any more strenuous activity for the night. Just lounging and watching shows.

"Thanks for keeping watch and taking care of me all the time," Evan said. "I hope you know I'm not trying to push you away when I ask if you want to go do something else for a while. I just feel guilty when you have to stand around outside when I'm, you know, having fun."

"I know," she said. "Don't worry. It's just the nature of my job."

"Does it ever bother you knowing what I'm doing?"

"What do you mean?"

"Like, do you ever think, 'oh my god, why do I have to guard this playboy while he has sex with everyone in town.' Something like that."

"No, I don't," she said. "You're just doing your job, like me."

"I guess."

Evan was relieved to know she didn't resent him for his promiscuity. In his mind, it would have been easy for a woman to do so, especially one that wasn't raised in the strange environment that was Tourmaline. It would have been awkward if she did, considering that, as she was his official bodyguard, they were going to have to spend nearly every minute of the summer together. Knowing that, Evan had been doing his best to learn more about her when he got the chance.

"Do you ever wish you hadn't come to Tourmaline?" Evan asked.

"Not really," Robin said with a shrug. "I like it here."

"What do you think you would have done if you didn't?"

"I had a degree in business, and I was just starting my job hunt when I was recruited. There's no telling what job I'd be in if they didn't find me."

"That's surprising," Evan said.

"What?"

"Just... a business degree," he said. "You're so good at this that I figured you always wanted to be in law enforcement, or the military, or something like that."

"I never really had a dream job," she said. "But when I came here, I found I was really good at augmentation. I think that's why I enjoy this job. It feels like it's what I'm best at."

"Makes sense," he said. "Did you have to part ways with any boyfriends back home when you moved?"

"No," she said. "I've had boyfriends, but I was single when I moved here."

"I see," he said. "So, you're all free to start a big family here, I guess."

"I don't think I want kids," Robin said.

"Oh, really?"

She nodded.

"Huh," he said. "That probably makes you a rarity in these parts. But I get it. They can be annoying and a huge hassle. Fuck them kids, am I right?"

"..."

"N-not literally, I just meant... like, you know..."

"..."

They drove in silence for a few moments while Evan covered his face with his hand, trying to hide anywhere he could. Unfortunately, he knew it would be a while until he forgot this one. As they were approaching the dorm, Evan cleared his throat and tried to dispel some of the awkward energy in the air.

"Well, if you ever change your mind, I'll probably have a couple dozen kids in a few years," he said. "I'll sell you one dirt cheap."

He was relieved to see she was smiling at his bad joke as they parked. He quickly wished her a good night and ran inside, eager to prevent himself from saying anything else embarrassing. He was soon plopped down in his chair in his room completely exhausted. He sighed as he thought about the busy schedule ahead of him for the summer.

So far, the break was off to a good start. He wished he could just laze around for a long while, but there was no time for that. He only had a short two weeks before he would be flying around the country, but even those days were sure to be filled with activity. He knew he still had many things, and people, to take care of before he would be allowed to leave town. He just hoped he'd have enough energy left to help Dr. Franklin when the time finally came.

Ch. 2

"What kind of magician do you want to be?"

Evan sat in the hidden library and stared at the mirror artifact in his hand. He had asked Hunter to begin teaching him how to craft spells, and what returned was this question. It seemed out of the blue, but there was probably some meaning to it. His mentor was not one for idle talk.

"I'm not sure," Evan sent back.

"I also did not know when my master asked me that question at the beginning of my training," Hunter said. "But it is important to determine your goals as you start to build your power in these early stages."

"The knowledge base and foundation of power needed to achieve your goals greatly differs between the eternal researcher pondering over the answer to a universal mystery versus a war magician looking to constantly turn the tides on the battlefield."

That made sense. Evan would hate to specialize in something only to find out decades later that it was useless, or that he got no enjoyment out of it. There was also the possibility of spending your life preparing for a fight that never came, effectively accomplishing nothing with all your hard work. But how could one ever really know if what they planned to do with their life would be fulfilling for their future self or not?

Evan had read a few books about the early levels of magicians. He didn't understand everything, but he was able to pick out a lot more than when he had first entered the hidden library, and he believed he understood why Hunter's question was important. It all had to do with the three I's, and specifically intention.

Evan already had experience with lackluster results when his intention didn't match up with his constitution. He remembered artifacts barely activating when he was using aggressive imaging techniques to activate his magic that didn't suit him. From what he had read, creating spells was much the same. Spells could be formed with mismatched attributes, but they would only ever reach their full potential when the magician's constitution, their goals, and the spell's effects all aligned harmoniously. Indeed, it was this synergy that Hunter went into next.

"To be an effective and great magician, you will need to join together your constitution, your intention, and the type of spells you use to truly create miracles. You are undecided on your intention, but it will surely crystallize for you in time. The spells you choose will also come later. But your constitution, this is set and unchanging, and we can work on that immediately."

A magician's constitution was something Evan had read a good deal about, but he hadn't worried about it much since it had no bearing on his training as an acolyte. But it was different now that he was truly stepping into the realm of a magician. Constitutions for a generator mage referred to the type of magic their body naturally specialized in. It could be elemental magic like fire or water, reality bending such as time or space, or it could even be something unique that no other magician has ever had.

For a magician to fall into any one category did not mean that that was the only type of magic they could produce. It simply meant that was what they were best at and what came the easiest. Again, it was all about efficiency.

"The first step is to determine what your constitution is," Hunter said.

"How do we do that?"

"With a ritual."

Evan's eyes opened wide as he read the messages coming through from Hunter describing the ritual. It looked like this was going to be a lot more complicated than he thought.

*****

After leaving the hidden library, Evan walked straight to the public library on campus. He had someone he needed to talk to, and he suspected he would find her there. Sure enough, his one-eyed friend, Sophia, was working the front desk as per usual. She smiled and waved when she saw him approaching.

"Hey, Evan," she said. "Need help finding a book?"

"I need help, but not with a book," he said. "I actually wanted to talk to you about making a potion?"

"Really? What kind of potion are you making?"

"Well, it's something for my training," he said, handing her the instructions he had written down from Hunter. "Think you can do it?"

Sophia furrowed her brow as she read over the extensive ingredient list.

"Whatever this is, it looks complicated," she said.

"So, it's no good?"

"Well... maybe," she said. "Let's go to the lab real quick. I need to check if we even have some of these ingredients in storage."

"Oh, I didn't mean to pull you away from work," Evan said.

"It's ok, I'm not working today. I just came here to relax."

"..."

Together they took a short stroll across campus to the chemistry lab. Due to frequently helping Ms. Reid when she was indisposed, Sophia had a key to the lab and the storeroom. The lab was familiar to Evan, but it was his first time in the storeroom. The shelves were filled with all sorts of interesting looking jars and bottles. Some looked like spices you might find in anyone's kitchen. Others were filled with hair and what looked like bones.

Evan inspected many interesting looking bottles while Sophia carried his list around and searched for the needed materials. He was having fun looking at a case that appeared to be filled with different types of blood when Sophia announced she was finished.

"We have about half of the items listed here," she said.

"Wow, only half? Hard to believe since there's so much in here."

"Some of these things are pretty rare," she said. "And we only really keep ingredients on hand for the standard potions we make in class or for the hospital."

"Is there anywhere else to get this stuff then?"

"A good deal of it should be available at the apothecary in town."

"Oh wow, I didn't know we had one of those," he said. "But it makes sense."

"It's where we get our stock from," she said. "But they have a lot of products that we never use, some of which I know is on your list."

"And what about the stuff they don't have?"

Sophia held her hands up and shrugged.

"Maybe I can find it on Amazon," Evan said with a sigh.

"I'm sorry."

"Nah, don't worry. You've been a big help. I'll figure this out somehow."

"There might be some families in town that have private stores of potion ingredients," she said. "Maybe you could try them?"

"Yeah, that's a good idea."

"If you manage to find them all, let me know, and we'll make it right away," she said. "But... it might be too much for me. Would it be alright to bring in Ms. Reid if I have to?"

Evan thought for a moment about whether that would be a problem or not. There wasn't really anything that secret about the potion. He had already revealed it was related to his training as a magician. If they asked where he got it, he could easily say he found it in an old book someone gave him. And it wasn't like the potion did anything that radical anyway.

"Yeah, should be fine," he said with a smile. "Whatever you think is best."

They parted ways after that, and Evan spent the rest of the night contemplating how to find the last ingredients he needed. Luckily, Sophia had been able to identify which ones most likely wouldn't be available at the apothecary, so he knew what he was looking for. But he didn't have a clue which families in town might be involved in potion making. Was he supposed to go door to door and hope to strike gold? In the end, Evan turned to Ms. Vaduva like he always did in a pinch.

When explaining the situation to Ms. Vaduva on the phone, he went ahead and told her that the potion was to determine his constitution as a magician. He also made sure to mention that he needed to get this done or else his growth would all but stop. She understood well enough and said she had a few contacts she could check in with that might have what he needed.

Before the call ended, she said he would have to come over for dinner to pick up the product when she got it. He tried to politely decline since he didn't want to put her out even further, but she would hear nothing of it. It seemed she had enjoyed feeding him at Christmas and was looking forward to fattening him up again. He accepted in the end, knowing that was just how moms were sometimes.

With the trusty headmistress on the case, Evan now only needed to focus on acquiring the other materials from the market. He had no idea how much it would cost, but he couldn't imagine it would be more than what he had saved from his stipend. Looking through the shelves in the storeroom on campus had been fun, so how much more exciting would the apothecary be? Evan spent the night happily anticipating the wonders that lay before him.

Ch. 3

Evan drove downtown the next morning looking for the apothecary. He found it easily enough and parked nearby. Robin came with him, but she opted to stay outside while he went in to shop. The store was neat and tidy looking, and it didn't really stand out from any of its neighbors. It was easy to see how he had missed it driving by previously.

A bell jingled as he entered through the front door, and a cacophony of pleasant smells hit him all at once. It was a mixture of incense, perfumes, and heavy spices in the air. He was sure it would be sticking to him all day, but since it wasn't a bad smell, he didn't think he would mind. He was just starting to look around when someone came in from the back having heard his arrival.

"Welcome... oh! Evan, what a surprise."

"Ms. Mayor, you work here?"

"When I have time between my duties to the city and the council," Bo Zhao said. "My family owns this place."

"Oh, cool!"

He hadn't expected to see a familiar face here. Evan had met Bo several times, but they had never had any extended conversations. Still, in the little interaction they had, she seemed like a good person.

"Is there something you're looking for, or did you just come to browse?" she said.

"Yeah, I need some stuff for a potion," Evan said, taking out his list. "Whatever you have that isn't crossed out would be great."

Bo took the list and squinted before putting on her glasses. While she read through the items he needed, Evan couldn't help but look at the furry pink ears on her head. It was cute how they twitched while she was concentrating.

"Well, I can get you most of this, but not all," she said. "Now, let's see..."

She grabbed an empty box and motioned for Evan to follow her. He watched as she went around the shop picking up bottles and bags full of this and that while explaining what they were. Some of the items needed to be stored in special conditions, but she said not to bother with it if he was going to use them within a week. It wasn't long before they were back at the counter with a full box of goodies.

"Not a bad haul," Bo said. "Mind if I ask what it's for?"

"I need to make a potion to help my training."

"Ooh, making something to grow stronger, are you?" she said with a grin. "I'm sure the council would love to hear that."

"..."

"Don't worry," she said laughing lightly. "They won't hear it from me."

"How are things going with the council?"

"Pretty good," she said. "We've had a couple meetings, and they're doing a decent job making me feel included. We'll see how that continues when another big issue comes up."

"If they give you any problems, let me know," Evan said. "I'll stop helping their research right away."

"Don't worry," she said. "I don't think they want any more trouble for a while at least."

Bo rang him up and Evan was pleased to see it was cheaper than expected. When he received the box of ingredients from her, he couldn't help but lean in and inhale deeply.

"Wow," he said. "Everything is so fragrant in here."

"You're lucky you got a bundle of the good smelling stuff," she said. "Some of the things in the back..."

She threw up her hands and raised her eyebrows in mock disgust.

Part of Evan wanted to ask what those ingredients might be, but when his imagination instantly brought up ideas of rotting corpses, he put it out of his mind.

"I hope you have someone good to brew this potion of yours," Bo said. "Wouldn't want you to get hurt in some fiery potion explosion."

"Does that happen?"

Bo just shrugged and smiled.

"Well... I think Ms. Reid might be doing it."

"That's good," she said, nodding. "She's a master."

"How about you?" Evan said. "Are you a potions master?"

"I'm not too bad, but I'm not a master," she said. "My grandmother was the master. When we settled in this town, she supplied almost all the potions for the community. They say her potions were coveted by mages around the world, even from a young age."

"That's badass."

"Mmhmm."

"So, is she the reason you have this shop?"

"Not really," Bo said. "Our family has always been in the magical herbs and spices business. We're great foragers you see."

She reached up and lightly shook one of her pink ears.

"You mean... pigs?"

"That's right," she said. "Our sense of smell is even greater than that of dogs. We excel at finding hidden treasures within the earth or the forest."

"Huh, I guess that is pretty convenient," Evan said.

"Mmhmm," Bo said. "In China, the pig is one of the honored animals included in the zodiac. They are seen as hardworking, intelligent creatures. We may not be suited to fighting, but our family is proud of what we are."

"It's definitely unique," he said. "Not something you see in movies like you do werewolves and vampires."

"Very true," she said, not losing her smile. "There are plenty of mages with odd or seemingly useless quirks like ours, but they were all put there to serve a very real need, even if they themselves have forgotten what that need was. Some even sacrificed their own normalcy to save their people from certain doom. I hope you won't make the mistake of thinking less of them because they aren't as cool as others."

"Yes, ma'am," he said. "I mean, I won't."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to preach," she said laughing again. "I'm just saying, we all have our stories, and not all are happy."

Evan nodded and was soon leaving the store with his box of potion materials. Robin helped him load it into the car before they made their trip back to campus. Once he was back in his room, Evan went through the box and checked off each of the items from his list. In the end, he found there were only a few left waiting to be found. Hopefully Ms. Vaduva would be able to find them. If she couldn't, he had no idea what he would do. He decided to call her to see if she had started her search yet.

"You're in luck," she said through the phone. "It looks like I'll be able to get the items you needed as early as tomorrow."

"Really? That's amazing! How?"

"Oh, I know which families like to hoard these types of things, and I simply called in a favor or two."

"Wow, really, you're the best."

"Now don't forget my fee," Ms. Vaduva said. "Dinner tonight here with us, right?"

"Yes, I'll be there for sure."

"Ok, good. See you then."

Evan showed up at the Vaduva residence at the appointed time. He knocked and waited for a moment before the door swung open to reveal his best friend, Alex.

"Hey, dude," she said with a grin. "About time."

"Oh, I'm sorry-"

"Alex, stop," Ms. Vaduva said from within the house. "Don't let her bother you. You're right on time."

Alex stuck out her tongue like a brat and the three of them were soon seated comfortably at the dining table with full plates. Ms. Vaduva had prepared a ham dinner complete with mashed potatoes and other accompanying vegetables. It was every bit as delicious as the Christmas dinner she had prepared for him last year.

"So, you're trying to get stronger, huh?" Alex said between bites.

"Yeah, I guess," Evan said. "At least trying to get to where I can use some spells."

"I'm training too," Alex said. "Mom's teaching me."

"That's cool," he said.

"If you wanted," Ms. Vaduva said to Evan, "we could include you in the lessons. Probably wouldn't hurt to know a trick or two about fighting mages."

"Yeah, probably," Evan said. "I'm pretty busy all summer already, though. But don't worry, I'm going to be making a big effort to avoid ever fighting for my life again."

"At the rate you two seem to keep attracting trouble, I'm not sure it will be up to you," Ms. Vaduva said.

She quirked an eyebrow and looked at the two young adults in turn as she took a long sip from her glass. Both Alex and Evan avoided her gaze as if they had no idea what she was talking about.

The rest of dinner flowed smoothly, and they all had a good time. Evan stuck around for a while to chat once they finished their food, but he returned to the dorm before it got too late. Before he left, Ms. Vaduva informed him that she would let him know as soon as she had everything he had asked for. Evan thanked her again for the thousandth time. Overall, the scavenger hunt for the materials he needed seemed to have concluded rather easily. It would soon be time for Evan to make his first potion. And after that, the ritual. With such excitement just ahead, it was hard for Evan to find any rest that night.

Ch. 4

Ms. Vaduva was true to her word, and she contacted him the next evening to let him know she had the goods. It was too late to make the potion that night, so he called Sophia and arranged for it to happen the next day. Evan picked up the materials from Ms. Vaduva's place early in the afternoon and went straight over to the chemistry lab. There, he found Sophia already waiting for him.

"I can't believe you found it all so fast," Sophia said. "Some of these things are really rare."

"That's the power of connections I guess," Evan said. "There's no way I would have gotten this all without the power of the president."

They both were looking over the ingredients neatly laid out on the counter. It was an impressive spread, even if you didn't know what it was for. The powders and vials of liquid were all sorts of mesmerizing colors, and they let out an intoxicating aroma into the air.

"Do we really have to do all this stuff?" Evan joked, looking over the complicated instructions Hunter had provided. "Can't we just throw it all in a pot and cook it like a stew?"

"It would be nice if it were so simple," Sophia said. "But most potion ingredients require precise preparation and cooking in order to bring out the desired effect. Skipping just one of the steps could even make the whole concoction fatal."

"Right. By the book it is then."

Evan had really just been kidding about cooking it like a stew, but Sophia's response was deadly serious. It gave him the impression that she had heard a horror story or two about people underestimating potions and getting hurt. She may have even seen something happen in one of her classes.

"I told Ms. Reid to meet us, but... she isn't always good about meeting up on time," Sophia said with a little shrug.

"Well, I'm not in that much of a rush," Evan said. "But are you sure we need her? Is this really that difficult?"

"I might be able to make it," she said. "But the chances of failure are high, and then we would waste these ingredients. It might be a while before you could get any more."

"Are you sure that Ms. Reid will do any better? She kinda gives off an unreliable feeling."

"I understand, but she is an actual potions master, the youngest one in centuries they say. She'll definitely get good results. As long as it isn't a bad day..."

There it was again. That reference to what kind of day Ms. Reid was having. Good day, bad day. Could someone really upend their daily schedule so drastically every time something went wrong early in the morning?

"You've mentioned that before, but it just sounds overly dramatic to me," he said. "What's the deal with these bad days she has?"

"I can answer that!" came a voice from the doorway, causing both of them to turn in unison.

There standing in the entrance to the lab was the short, red-haired chemistry professor herself.

"It's all about luck, Mr. Matthews! All about luck!"

Ms. Reid had her hands on her hips with her chin raised high in some kind of confident pose. However, to Evan, it just gave off all kinds of awkward energy. She seemed to want to illicit some grand response from him with her entrance, but he just didn't have it in him. But he was curious about what she said.

"Luck?"

"Ms. Reid is a leprechaun," Sophia said after realizing Evan hadn't pieced it together yet.

"Whoa, really!?"

Ms. Reid puffed up again with pride upon finally seeing Evan excited, and he genuinely was. Leprechauns were fun creatures from folklore that Evan had always thought were cool. He hadn't been aware that they were real, but he was used to that by now. Looking at her heavily Irish features and short stature, he supposed he should have put it together on his own. But he gave himself a break considering that outside of her height, Ms. Reid looked like a completely normal human.

"A leprechaun's life is ruled by the magic of luck," Ms. Reid said as she strolled into the lab, "and luck is a fickle thing. Some days, all my endeavors succeed, and I find money on the ground around every corner. Other days..."

Ms. Reid grimaced and shivered violently as if shaking off something extremely displeasing.

"Other days, I have to be careful about going down too many stairs for fear I'll slip and break my neck. It truly is a frustrating power to have."

"Sounds like it," Evan said.

"But don't worry," Ms. Reid said, patting Evan on the shoulder. "Today's luck has been decent. I don't think we have to worry about any spontaneous combustions."

"Was that in the cards!?"

Ignoring Evan's alarm, Ms. Reid got to work making the potion right away.

"Let's look at this recipe here... oh my," she said, her eyes darting quickly over Hunter's instructions. "This is new. Should be fun."

"Sophia, if you can get a few things started for me, this will go a lot faster."

Evan watched silently, standing out of the way as the two chemistry whizzes did their thing. Sophia may not have been a master, but Ms. Reid deemed her good enough to handle some of the more common ingredients. While Sophia prepared the materials and even mixed together a few things, Ms. Reid started to work with the rarer items.

Ms. Reid cut and measured the materials with a sharp knife and a steady hand. To Evan she looked like a skilled chef preparing a five-star meal. Occasionally she would use a rolling pin to flatten an ingredient and other times she used a dropper to apply a solution that Sophia had prepared. The results ranged from no visible changes to a change in color and even one item that shrunk down to a tenth of its original size in seconds. Evan had no idea what any of it meant, but it was fascinating to see.

The hours passed quickly, and the ingredients laid out on the table disappeared one after another until Ms. Reid was finally adding the last items.

"Ok, these last three need to be added at the same time, at this exact temperature," Ms. Reid said. "There might be a violent reaction, so try not to be too alarmed."

Evan braced himself as he watched Ms. Reid pour in the ingredients, but he still jumped when a loud pop echoed throughout the room. Along with the ear-ringing mini explosion, a mushroom cloud of blue smoke rose up from the mini cauldron where the potion boiled. All three peered into the pot when the smoke cleared to see the results. The bubbling liquid inside shined and shimmered in a display of ever-changing colors.

"Excellent!" Ms. Reid said. "Now the last touch is to ignite the top layer with a magical flame."

"Magical flame?"

"It's a fire lit and sustained by pure magic power."

"Oh... umm, I don't think I can make fire yet," Evan said.

"Never you worry! It's a fairly common requirement for potions. That's why the researchers at the base cooked this up for me. Behold! A mechanical lighter powered by stored magic power!"

Ms. Reid held the silver lighter up as high as she could reach like it was a treasure to be worshipped, but it just looked like a standard lighter to Evan. After an awkward beat of silence passed, Ms. Reid cleared her throat and engaged the lighter. A blue flame ignited, and she promptly brought it to the surface of the potion. The fire spread instantly, blue flames dancing wildly within the cauldron. After a few seconds, the flames died down and then disappeared altogether. Once again, they all peeked in at the potion. Evan watched as the dancing colors of before quieted down and began to disappear. Soon the potion thickened, and all color faded completely, leaving a gray goopy mass.

"Whoa, gross," Evan said. "Did it fail? Where did the colors go?"

"No," Ms. Reid said, stirring the potion carefully. "According to the instructions, this is the color and texture we were after. It was a success!"

Evan grimaced as he caught a whiff of the completed potion. It no longer smelled like flowers and perfume. It now smelled closer to a bog, which fit with its appearance. But if Ms. Reid said this was what the recipe called for, he was not going to challenge her.

"Whew," Ms. Reid said, wiping sweat from her brow. "That was intense! Thanks for your help, Sophie. You did great."

"Thank you, professor."

"So, what are you using this potion for again, Evan?"

"I'm supposed to use it in a ritual of some kind," he said. "It's necessary for me to advance in my training."

"Hmm, alright then," Ms. Reid said. "Just be sure not to drink any. This is surely deadly poisonous."

"Got it," Evan said, nodding. "Thank you so much for your help. Is there anything I can do for you in return? Do you have a fee or something?"

"Hmm," Ms. Reid said while tapping her lips with her finger in thought. "Normally, I do charge quite the fee for such a service. Buuuut for you, I think I can waive it."

"Thank you!"

"But! I do want something else!"

"Ok? What?"

"First, you have to enroll in all my chemistry courses going forward!"

That wasn't a big deal. Evan had already decided he was going to stick with chemistry, no matter how hard it was. He knew it would be vital to the future of his magician training.

"No problem," he said.

"And second..."

Ms. Reid paused for a moment, causing Evan to quirk an eyebrow. Her pale face grew red quickly as she considered something, but she shook her head quickly as if to deny the thought.

"You... you will owe me one favor," she said. "Yes! One favor of my choosing whenever I need it. Sound good?"

It wasn't exactly the type of payment he thought his professor would request for her services, but if that was what she wanted, it was fine with him. It meant he would get out of this exchange a lot cheaper than he ever expected, considering he didn't even pay for the rare ingredients Ms. Vaduva provided. After a moment, he extended his hand for a shake.

"Deal," he said.

Ms. Reid smiled wide and shook his hand vigorously. She seemed like a good person, so he didn't think the favor would be anything bad. It was possible that she would want his help with an experiment or something along those lines, but he had a feeling that wouldn't be the case. Judging by the excited gleam he caught in her eye, he had a hunch that she knew exactly what she would be asking of him. Something... that might be fun for both of them.

Ch. 5

There was no way Evan was storing that foul-smelling gray sludge of a potion in his room, so he took it straight to the hidden library after leaving the chemistry lab. Once he was settled inside, he contacted Hunter on the mirror artifact to let him know that the preparations were complete. Then Evan had nothing to do except wait for a response. There was no telling if Hunter would be available, so the ritual might have to be put off for a day or two.

Evan decided to just hang around in the hidden library for a while in case Hunter did get back to him soon. He didn't feel like reading, so he sat at the desk and scrolled through social media on his phone. After a while, the internet wasn't so exciting, and Evan found himself daydreaming about what type of constitution he might have.

Evan had not done too much research about what each type of constitution was capable of, but he still felt there were some that were better than others. Like fire-type magic or even lightning magic. Those were powerful, flashy, and cool. He'd feel like a proper magician if he could zap his enemies with a bolt of lightning any time he wanted.

There were other, not so violent, magic types that sounded interesting too. Something like darkness, for example. He imagined it would be easy for someone with that specialty to manipulate shadows to do all sorts of cool things. There was also the prospect of getting a unique type of magic constitution. You might not be able to determine its strengths and weaknesses as well as other, more well-known types, but it would feel good to truly be one of a kind in the world of magic.

An hour passed before Evan saw a response come through on the mirror. Honestly, Evan was surprised to see it. He knew that Hunter didn't live in the States, and it was most likely the middle of the night wherever he was. Did he have some sort of alarm feature on his mirror that alerted him when a message came through? Maybe Evan should look into getting that upgrade too.

"Excellent. We can begin the ritual whenever you are ready," Hunter said.

"Will it take long?"

"No. It is a very basic ritual, meant to be used by a young magician in the making. Some rituals can be complicated, but the main work for this one was the preparation of the potion."

"Ok. The potion is here and ready to go."

Hunter began to relay instructions on how Evan should set things up. First, Evan needed to bring the potion to a boil once more, and it needed to be over a magic flame. Luckily, the fireplace in the hidden library was the perfect heat source for that. There was even a convenient rod set over the fire that gave Evan the impression that this was exactly what this fireplace had been made for in the first place. He fashioned some hooks and managed to hang the cauldron over the flame. It soon began to bubble from the heat.

The next step for Evan was to procure two items needed to properly carry out the ritual. One was a common leaf plucked from any tree outside, and the other was a sharp knife. This time Evan had to leave the hidden library, but he ultimately had no trouble gathering everything together. When he returned, Hunter informed him that he was now ready to carry out the ritual.

"Begin by cycling your power and enriching your blood with your magic."

That was easy enough. With constant practice, Evan had gotten to the point that he could activate his magic in an instant. He took care to do it properly this time and took a minute to feel his magic coursing through his veins and reaching every part of his body.

"Concentrate magic power into your hand without augmenting its resistance. Once that is done, cut a line across your palm, and drip your blood directly into the potion."

Evan hesitated for a moment. He had worried something like this might be coming when he was told to get a sharp knife, and sure enough, he needed to cut himself. Evan had never done any sort of self-harm, but he had seen people cut their palms in plenty of movies, and they never acted like it was a big deal.

"Ow, fuck!"

He winced and stared at the thick red line now oozing blood on his palm. Those actors were full of shit, because that did not feel good at all. Evan turned his palm over and held it over the cauldron. Soon, several big drops of his blood fell and sizzled as they hit the potion. Ripples ran through the potion as it reacted strongly to the blood. After a few moments of small popping noises, the gray potion began to turn a brilliant emerald green.

"The potion should turn the same color as your magic. Once that has happened, remove the potion from the flame, and let it cool until it is no longer boiling."

Evan removed the cauldron as instructed and set it down on the stone floor to cool. While he waited for that to happen, he tried to clean his bleeding hand while grumbling about how unrealistic movies were. He had his share of injuries over that last year, but he had been full of adrenaline during those instances, so this somehow felt worse. He made a mental note to make a smaller cut next time.

When the potion had cooled enough, Evan returned to the mirror artifact and read Hunter's next instructions.

"When the potion is ready, set the leaf you gathered on top of it. Pay close attention to what happens to the leaf after it interacts with the potion. The reaction you observe will determine what type of magician you are."

Evan stared intently at the leaf after placing it in the potion, looking for any change. Would it flare up into a ball of fire? Or perhaps shine with a bright, pure light? Or maybe it would harden and turn to stone? His heart raced, and he nearly forgot to breathe, until finally he saw something happen. The leaf began to dance around on top of the potion. Then its light green coloring deepened into a darker, healthier looking shade. Finally, the leaf began to shoot out tendrils from its stem which in turn quickly grew new leaves of their own! Evan rushed over to the mirror artifact and reported it all.

"The leaf grew into a big bunch of leaves," he sent.

"Interesting. Try applying some of the potion to the cut on your palm. What happens?"

Evan reluctantly dipped a finger into the green goop and gently covered his cut with it. Oddly, it almost instantly soothed the stinging pain. He cautiously wiped away the sludge with a tissue and was amazed to find the cut had disappeared.

"The cut healed!" he sent.

"As I thought. Based on those results, you have an affinity for life magic."

Life magic? That wasn't one Evan had read about, so he wasn't sure what the benefits of such magic were. Hopefully, it wouldn't be too lame. He asked for some details and crossed his fingers for a good answer.

"Life magic is not unheard of, but it is rare among magicians. It is the antithesis of death magic. Instead of rotting and killing, it nourishes and grows. Life magic excels at growing plants, healing the sick and wounded, and giving new life to inanimate objects. It has many uses, but it is not particularly great at fighting."

A healer, huh? That didn't sound too bad. But it did blow that it wasn't great for combat. Still, if he could use his magic to survive long enough, he figured he had enough warrior friends that any fight would end up ok in the end.

"So, what do I do now?" Evan said.

"Now, you learn your first spell, the first spell that all magicians begin with - a siphoning spell."

"What's that?"

"Siphoning spells are how magicians accelerate the growth of their magic power. It is critical to continuously build your power from the beginning due to the overwhelming demand of power that is required at higher magician levels. If you fail to sufficiently grow your power base, you will never be able to progress to the later levels."

"Siphoning spells work by absorbing magic power from an outside source and turning it into your own. There are many different types of siphoning spells and each is designed to work best for a magician of a certain type. An example would be a fire-type magician using a siphoning spell to absorb magic power from a flame, or a water magician drawing energy from the ocean."

That sounded overpowered in Evan's mind. Did that mean there was no limit to how much you could grow? Surely there were some inefficiencies in the process that stopped one from completely draining the world completely.

"What do I have to do to learn a siphoning spell?" Evan said.

"The mechanism of the spell itself is simple by design, much like the ritual you just performed," Hunter said. "It works just like the magic vision you learned. Apply the intent to absorb magic to the body part in contact with the source, and it will activate. There is a little more to it, and also some tricks to improve the power, but it will not take long for you to learn those."

That was good. Evan was worried that it was going to involve some complicated ritual that would take him a year to learn. But something was bothering him. Fire for fire mages and water for water mages, but what did a life mage use as a source of magic power?

"Do I have to drain the life from people?"

"No. To drain life from others is to bring them to death. That is the realm of a death magician. For a life-type like you, it is something much more fun."

Fun? That wasn't a word his ever-serious mentor used lightly. Evan began to get a bad feeling.

"Life magic is generated within the act of creation itself," Hunter said. "The greatest act of creation a human can engage in is the making of a new human life."

Evan sighed and laughed as it dawned on him where his strength in the future would be coming from.

"Sex," Hunter said. "In order to grow into a strong magician, you'll need to have lots and lots of sex."

Ch. 6

Evan went back to his room after Hunter finished explaining the details of the siphoning spell. Apparently, the absorption of magic power came easily to magicians, which is why the function was easily coded into spells for those at a low level. Its ease of use also increased since it was a spell similar to magic vision that didn't require sending power outside of the body. He was happy that it wouldn't take long to master, but if he were being honest, he would have preferred a different method for growing his power.

It wasn't that Evan had anything against having lots of sex. Over the course of the last year, Evan had become much more comfortable with the act and enjoyed it immensely, especially with the amazingly attractive women he kept finding himself with. He was just eager to grow his power, and it felt like having sex was a slower method of absorbing power than something like taking it from the earth or from the sunlight. His method required a partner and couldn't be done nonstop for days at a time. Hunter did say that absorbing energy through sex gave greater bursts of power compared to the steady streams of power that other siphoning spells provided, so maybe it would work out better than Evan expected. To find out for sure, Evan just needed to test it.

Fortunately, Evan was not short on willing sex partners. But which one of his friends would it be best to test this on first? He had no doubts that any of them would be willing to help, so it really did just come down to who he felt like seeing. Of his past partners, Clara was the only one that was currently off the table, as she was pregnant and focusing on building her life with Matt. Evan was looking through the contacts on his phone when a message popped up on his screen.

"Hey, dude! Want to work out tonight?"

Evan smiled. It looked like he had a volunteer.

"Sure. Meet at the gym in half an hour?"

"Ok!"

Evan took a little time to get ready before he walked across campus to the fitness center. There he found his red-headed feline friend, Billie, already waiting for him.

"Ready to work up a sweat?"

"Yeah, feels like a good day to push myself a bit," Evan said. "Brandi here today?"

"Nah, she had something going on and worked out earlier than normal," she said. "Think you want to spar after?"

This was perfect. With Brandi out of the way, there was no reason for Billie to get embarrassed and avoid spending the night with him. And so far, they hadn't had a solo sparring session yet that didn't lead them to his bed or hers. It was clear Billie had gone into this workout session with similar goals to his own.

"Actually, I was hoping you could help me out with a different kind of training."

"...?"

Evan explained the new spell he wanted to try out while they worked through their weight training. When he revealed exactly how he would be absorbing magic power, a noticeable blush crept up Billie's face. She ended up happily agreeing to help him out and even started rushing through her routine to finish earlier. When they were done, they agreed to meet up in Evan's room after they both cleaned up. It wasn't long until they were both clean and sitting on Evan's bed.

"So, how does this work exactly?"

"Well," Evan said. "I just need to maintain the spell on my dick while we have sex... I think."

"And it will, like, suck energy out of me?"

"I guess? We might have to experiment a little to figure it out."

"Hmm, sounds fun," she said, smiling.

Billie leaned over and captured Evan's lips in a heated kiss. Their tongues caressed each other as their hands got busy tearing away their clothes. They were soon down to their underwear, and Evan stopped the make out session for a moment to appreciate the underwear Billie had chosen before coming over. Her matching lingerie was lacy and black, and it contrasted beautifully with her pale skin. The bra and panty combo looked so good that Evan stopped Billie from taking them off.

Evan stood and faced Billie, who was sitting on the edge of his bed. She looked up at him with a questioning gaze but understood what he wanted when he grabbed her under her knees and pulled her legs up. Billie leaned back on the bed and spread her legs wide so Evan could stand between them. Her furry tail swung excitedly over the edge of the bed in anticipation. Not wanting to spoil the view, Evan only pulled the panties to the side to gain access to Billie's glistening pussy. In a flash, he removed his own underwear and had the head of his hard dick poised to enter her. But before that, he needed to concentrate on his new spell.

Evan was able to cycle his power and concentrate it in his cock almost instantly, but it took a few seconds to instill the intention needed to make the spell work. Much like he did with magic vision, Evan thought about what he wanted his magic to do and why. When it was done, he could tell that something had taken hold within his magic, but he wouldn't be able to tell if it was really successful until he used it. So, with all the prep work completed, Evan pushed forward and sunk his hard cock deep into the wet opening of the tigress before him.

Billie moaned as he filled her. She then looked up at Evan with eyes full of lust, begging silently for more. Evan obliged as he began sawing in and out of her tight pussy with a steady motion. Sighs of contentment leaked out from both of them as they relished in the feeling of their union.

"Is it... working?" Billie said, her body bouncing slightly on the bed under Evan's assault.

It was hard to get past the amazing feeling of Billie's tight center squeezing him and pulling him in with every thrust, but Evan tried to concentrate on every sensation he was feeling to discern if there was anything different. Even though it was his whole reason for initiating this encounter in the first place, he was actually surprised when he noticed there was something new happening. He could feel a light stream of warm energy flowing through his penis and into his body.

"Yeah, it is," he said, still slowly pumping into her. "I can feel a trickle of energy coming into me. Feels funny, but not bad. How about you? Can you feel anything?"

"It just feels good," Billie said, biting her lip.

That was good to hear. Not just for the ego boost, but because he wasn't sure what kind of effect his spell would have on his partner. As long as it didn't harm her in some way or ruin the experience, he was happy.

Evan grabbed Billie's ankles and held her legs up high and wide before starting to hammer faster into her. Billie whimpered her approval as he hit her with hard thrusts, one after another. It felt amazing, and Evan could feel his orgasm beginning to build. Interestingly, he could feel the stream of power pouring into him strengthen. He wanted to see how much more it would increase when he reached climax, but he wasn't ready for that yet. He still had some experiments to try out, and he knew which one he wanted to try next.

As Evan pulled back and took a breather, Billie sat up on her elbows with a disappointed look.

"Why'd you stop?"

"It felt great," he said. "A little too great, if you know what I mean. And I want to try something else next."

"What's that?"

In response, Evan activated the artifact on his wrist and stretched a band of light around Billie's body, trapping her arms to her sides. She yelped as she was helplessly picked up by the magic light and turned over so she was on her knees. Evan joined her on the bed and positioned himself so Billie's subdued body was bent before him, her head just inches from his slick shaft.

"We need to test if it works with oral."

With a hand on the back of her head, Evan pushed his dick towards her mouth. Billie's face was flushed with excitement as she wordlessly opened her mouth and accepted Evan's cock. She looked up at him with her big eyes as he began to pump into her throat. She was bound and helpless, but he knew she was enjoying it thoroughly.

Evan had gained confidence in his ability to please women, but he still wasn't someone to treat a girl so roughly... unless that was what she wanted. And with Billie, the one thing he knew she liked the most was to be overpowered and restrained. He would release her if she asked for it, but he knew she never would.

Tears came to her eyes when he bottomed out with his balls hitting her chin, but she defiantly refused to give in. He pulled back with a satisfied sigh, and she took the opportunity to lavish his dick with her talented tongue. Evan watched her tail twitch happily as she made shivers run through his body, and he suddenly got a fun idea.

While maintaining the bonds, Evan sneakily stretched out a new strand from the magic light and snaked it around to Billie's exposed backside. He formed the solid magic into a smooth cylinder and gently began pushing against Billie's opening. Her eyes bulged in alarm, but Evan held her head firmly so she couldn't back off his cock.

"Next experiment - double penetration."

Billie quickly calmed down as she realized what was happening. Soon, she was moaning loudly as the green-magic dildo began to pump her pussy in time with Evan's thrusts into her mouth. Her moans increased Evan's pleasure as the vibrations added a new sensation to the mix. The sight alone of her being completely stuffed from both ends while helplessly bound was enough to drive Evan close to cumming, and with the way she was working his dick, he quickly found himself on the edge. He would have emptied himself into her throat if she hadn't begun to convulse under the assault of her own monstrous climax first.

"Ohhhh fuuuuuck!" Billie cried, her body shaking in pleasure.

Evan had freed her mouth when he saw her eyes roll back, but the dildo remained seated deep within her as she rode out the waves of pleasure. When they finally ceased, Billie's head and shoulders flopped down to the bed as she basked in the aftermath. The problem was, the sight of her folded over with her ass in the air was far too tempting for Evan to just leave her be.

The magic dildo dissipated, but the bonds securing Billie's upper body remained. Evan used the artifact to lift her up and turn her around, bringing out an excited giggle from the tigress. He plopped her back on the bed in the same position as before, only this time he was looking straight at her juicy ass.

Evan took the crooked panties by the hem and roughly pulled them down Billie's thighs. Lining himself up, he grabbed Billie's furry tail and roughly pushed his cock fully into her soaking wet hole. She had gotten hers, and it was time for Evan to have his. He began to fuck her hard and fast, drawing a constant stream of moans from the tied tigress with her face smashed into the bed.

Having been so close to the edge before, it didn't take long for Evan to finally reach the end. He buried his dick inside her warm embrace and came hard, pumping shot after shot of hot semen into her womb. After a few final thrusts inside her, Evan pulled out and caught his breath while releasing the hold his artifact had on her.

Before him was the messy rear end of his partner, poised high in the air and leaking his cum. It was incredibly sexy. She stayed in that position for a few moments even after being released, almost like she was stuck. When she finally did move, she simply flopped over to the side and fixed Evan with a tired, but satisfied look.

"I need a nap."

Ch. 7

Billie ended up falling asleep almost immediately after they were finished. Evan panicked mildly, thinking perhaps his siphoning spell had taken too much energy from her, but he calmed down when he saw the peaceful smile she had while she snoozed. He soon was tired from his own exertions that evening and settled in to sleep beside her. When they woke up the next morning, they discussed the results of their experiment.

Billie reported that she really didn't feel anything different during their fun, but she did feel extra exhausted when it was over. But a bit of extra tiredness seemed to be the only side effect for her, and she said she would have no problem doing it again. That was one hurdle cleared. It seemed Evan would be able to safely gather power with this method. Evan shared his findings next.

It turned out he could feel some power being absorbed through oral sex, but it wasn't as strong. That seemed to track with the nature of the spell having to do with life energy. There wasn't any way for Evan's dick to grow life in someone's mouth as far as he knew. He had also learned that the moment of ejaculation was the biggest power draw of them all. When he had exploded inside Billie, he felt a big wave of power flow into his body. Again, it most likely had to do with that being how new life was made. He suspected that big drain was the reason Billie suddenly felt so tired in the end too.

After they chatted for a while Billie left, and Evan got cleaned up for the day. When he felt good and refreshed, he decided to head to the hidden library to further check up on the effects of his new spell. He sat on the floor and meditated in his now familiar fashion. Like this, he was able to feel the depths of his power and take stock of how much was there. He was pleased to discover that he could tell his pool of power was larger, even if it was a small increase. Judging by the amount of new power gained, he could tell that it would take quite a few sex sessions for his overall power to grow significantly. Still, it would be much faster than meditating alone, which had much smaller daily gains.

Because there was no such thing as a magic power meter, there was no way to assign any numerical value to his magic that could be compared to others. Hunter had told him not to obsess over it anyway, saying that the goal wasn't necessarily to have the largest pool of power, but to increase the density of the magic he wielded. Evan didn't understand what that meant, but Hunter said it was something to worry about at later levels. He said for now, Evan only needed to consistently build his power as best he could. In fact, Hunter had said that was Evan's only assignment for the summer.

Evan had informed his mentor that he would be away for the summer and unable to communicate. He had made the decision not to bring the mirror artifact with him as he travelled for fear of losing it. Hunter understood and said it was no problem since Evan only needed to worry about perfecting the siphoning spell for now, and they would begin work on other, more complex spells once summer was over. Evan had no problem waiting a few months to learn more, but he did wonder if he would have a problem getting enough practice with the siphoning spell.

Tourmaline was filled with girls Evan could practice with, but he wasn't going to be in Tourmaline for the bulk of the summer, he would be at Dr. Franklin's lab. Evan wasn't sure he would so easily find partners there. For all he knew, Dr. Franklin's lab could be filled with only old men. If that were the case, Evan would be out of luck. This was one of the reasons Evan would have preferred to have a different siphoning spell he was compatible with. Life magic seemed like hard mode.

Evan sat at the desk as he pondered his predicament. As he was thinking, his eyes landed on the large book collecting dust in front of him. It was Dr. Monstrum's grimoire that had been sitting there since he first discovered the hidden library. Suddenly, he wondered what kind of magician Elias Monstrum had been. Evan had never heard about what kind of magic spells Monstrum used, so he had no references he might be able to draw conclusions from. But if he really wanted to know more about the man, didn't he have the perfect method right in front of him?

Monstrum's personal writings were put aside for two reasons initially. First, it was a grimoire, an artifact needing a magician's magic to be of any use, and Evan hadn't been able to activate it when he first found it. Secondly, Evan hadn't had much spare time to commit to such a big book between his studies and all the fighting for his life he was doing throughout his first year. But now, neither of those were an issue. Artifacts were easily activated now, and he would surely have some spare reading time during the summer. Maybe now was the opportunity to learn more about the man that had built this place.

Evan sat up and pulled the big tome closer. He opened it and ran his hands over the strange markings inside. Ms. Vaduva had said all grimoires looked like nonsense and could only be read with magic. It was fascinating. What secrets might this book hold? It was possible Evan might find some important clues to his own growth as a magician inside. For all he knew, Monstrum could have also been specialized in life magic. Wouldn't that be lucky?

"Well... let's give it a try."

Evan had no idea what to expect having never read a grimoire before. He only knew the words within would be revealed to him in some way when activated. He held his hand steady on the book and began to send his power into it as if it were an extension of his hand. Then he looked at the book and spoke.

"Tell me your story."

The book began to glow a deep orange color. After a moment, the orange magic from the book crept up Evan's arm and started to cover his entire body. It felt warm... and safe. Evan was surprised how easily he was able to sense the purpose of this magic as if it was his own spell. He could tell that there was no intention in this magic that could cause him any harm. It only meant to show Evan something. And when he closed his eyes, he gasped at what the grimoire had done.

A new world stretched out before Evan. He could see a meadow and trees all around. Butterflies danced through the air and brown rabbits ran along the ground. Evan had no idea where this place was, but he was sure it wasn't Tourmaline. He opened his eyes and found that he was still seated at the desk with his hand on the glowing book. When he closed them again, the image in his head was still there, but everything was frozen in place without moving an inch. It was as if someone had pressed pause on the world. Testing out that idea, he thought the word "continue" in his mind and watched the scene come to life once more.

"Wow, it's like a movie in my head."

It was certainly a convenient way to tell a story. Evan had thought activating the artifact might unscramble the nonsense text on the pages and he would have to read it like any other book. But now it seemed more likely that the gibberish writing was some sort of magic code that created visual images in the mind. If that was the case, this was really some advanced magic.

Evan played around with the controls for a while. He found that not only could he stop and start on command, but he could also rewind or fast forward if he wanted to. That would surely be a convenient feature if there was something in the story that he needed to study repeatedly. When he was satisfied that he had a handle on the controls, he finally pressed play in his mind and let the story unfold.

The image in his mind really was like watching a movie. He could only see what the book wanted to show, he couldn't freely walk around and see the world in three dimensions like he had when he had used the Eye of Kronos. So, there was nothing for him to do except sit back and watch. As the story began, the shot panned slowly around until Evan no longer was facing a lively field, but instead he saw he was on top of a hill looking down at a village. He was straining to see it better when a voice sounded loudly within his head, nearly scaring him to death.

"Welcome dear reader," it said. "My name is Elias Monstrum."

Ch. 8

"Hello?"

Evan called out to the voice, but there was no response. It seemed this wasn't some pseudo artificial intelligence that could hold a conversation, only a prerecorded message. That wasn't surprising. He had only felt like trying just in case. Evan restarted the book and listened to Elias introduce himself again.

"So, this was what the famous Dr. Monstrum sounded like, huh?"

It was a deep voice and a little scratchy, giving the impression the speaker was in his later years. He wondered if there was anyone alive in Tourmaline that had heard this voice in person before. He wasn't sure when Monstrum passed away, but this grimoire would surely be a treasure regardless. There was bound to be a Monstrum fanboy or two out there that would pay top dollar for it. Not that he would ever sell it.

"My name is Elias Monstrum," the voice said. "And unless I have been robbed, you are my successor."

He didn't have a key to the hidden library, but he was invited by that pesky white rabbit Monstrum had set up, so Evan was confident he was no thief. But Monstrum's successor? That was a title that felt like it came with a lot of responsibility.

"I knew you would come to my school one day, given enough time, so I left behind what I could to help pave your way," Monstrum said. "I am sorry I could not help you in person but let this be my first lesson to you - nobody can live forever, not even a great magician."

"But that's also the last lesson," Monstrum said, his voice losing its serious tone. "I did not leave behind this book to teach you how to use magic. The collection in the library should be good enough for that, if you have any talent."

"... the fuck?"

This old man had deliberately made things harder for Evan for no reason! Did he not realize that he was dooming Evan to live as a mediocre half-formed magician at best!? If Evan hadn't happened upon the mirror artifact and connected with Hunter, he may have been doomed to wallow around as an acolyte forever. Evan's opinion of the man dropped to the floor.

"The purpose of this book is to share with you the journey of my life and to help you understand some of the hard choices I was forced to make," Monstrum said. "I do this because I selfishly want you to know my story, but also... I know you will face challenges in your future greater than any magician in Earth's history, and I hope my story may help you when the time comes for you to make hard choices of your own."

"..."

"The village you see before you is where my story began," Monstrum said. "A small town in the Appalachians far away from any big cities. From birth until I was fifteen, this was my home."

Evan watched a small child come out of a nearby home and run to meet other children to play baseball. As the children played with their makeshift bat and ball, the scene continued to focus on that one child. It was obvious to Evan that this child was the star of the show - a young Elias Monstrum. He had a mess of straight black hair and stood a little taller than most of the other children. Like the others, he was also covered in a good amount of dirt. Soon the children faded away, and the scene again focused on that small house at the edge of town. This time, the child that came out the front door was much taller. Lanky and awkward, that young boy had become a teenager.

"Those early years were happy, but unremarkable," Monstrum said. "But a month after my fifteenth birthday, an unexpected visitor came to our humble town."

Evan saw a horse-drawn carriage come up the road and into the village. The carriage went into the heart of the town and finally stopped at the local grocery store. When the door to the carriage was flung open, out stepped a finely dressed man wearing a cape over a three-piece suit. He had a top hat sitting on his shoulder length wavy gray hair, and he began looking about the town while twiddling his long gray handlebar mustache. Taking in a big breath, the man made his way into the store.

The narrating voice of Monstrum remained quiet and let the scene play out uninterrupted. The sharply dressed man approached the counter and was happily greeted by the owner of the store.

"Greetings, stranger! What can I do you for?"

The store owner could hardly contain the look of excitement on his face. It was clear that it wasn't usual for outsiders to visit this place, especially one that looked to have more than his fair share of money.

"Yes, I was hoping you could point me in the right direction," the stranger said. "I happen to be looking for an apprentice, you see, and I thought, as I was passing through town already, I might look for one here."

"Apprentice? Here?"

"Is there a problem?"

"Well, no, but... this ain't exactly a town full of scholars, if you know what I mean," the grocer said, looking embarrassed. "What kind of business are you in, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Oh, a little of this and a little of that," the stranger said with a chuckle. "The apprentice I seek does not need any special qualifications. Just one small test. If they are healthy and strong, I can teach them what they need to know."

"I'd gladly make a hefty donation to the town for the trouble," the stranger added.

"I can't see how the mayor could say no to that," the grocer said. "He lives just a block over to the north. Big white house, can't miss it."

"Ah, good," the stranger said, fishing out a coin and putting it on the counter. "Good day to you."

The stranger tipped his cap and left. The scene disappeared with him and was soon replaced by the sight of a small classroom full of children. Evan watched as the teacher introduced the finely dressed stranger to the room of curious kids.

"This is Mr. Chester Morgan Price," the teacher said. "He is a wealthy businessman from out of town, just passing through, and he graciously offered to share something special with you all, so be on your best behavior."

The stranger, or Mr. Price as he was apparently named, then stepped forward and held up a plain sack full of something unknown.

"In here, I have a fine collection of gemstones mined from just on the other side of your mountains," Mr. Price said, drawing out some excited gasps from the children. "Now, these stones are special. You see they are lucky stones, and anyone that holds one will find great fortune."

The children oohed and aahed even as the teacher tried to keep them restrained. It was a losing battle for her.

"Now, I'm going to give each one of you a stone from this bag," Mr. Price said with a big grin. "And if anyone holds the stone in their hand and it glows, then each and every one of you will get to take your stone home to keep forever."

The class erupted into excited cheers and several children began to loudly discuss how amazing this all was. It took several minutes before they were seated calmly again. Once they were settled, Mr. Price began handing out stones to each boy and girl. The kids took their stones and compared with their neighbors. Some were red, some were blue, but they were all about the size of a large grape. Even those young children knew that these were precious and no mere rocks. When each child had a stone, Mr. Price returned to the front of the class.

"Ok, now everyone close your eyes, and on the count of three, hold your stone up as high as you can!"

The kids all closed their eyes, and a few even prayed under their breath to make their stone a winner.

"One... two... THREE!"

At Mr. Price's loud voice, all the children thrust up their hands and held their stones high. Evan watched as Mr. Price carefully swept the room with his eyes, clearly looking for something within the crowd. Then, his eyes stopped on a black-haired boy in the back row. He held up a clear stone, and unlike every other child, his stone was glowing.

"Amazing," Mr. Price whispered under his breath.

He then cleared his throat and broke out into a big smile.

"It looks like we have a winner!"

The children all opened their eyes and looked around wildly for the glowing stone, finally finding it in the back corner. They all erupted into cries of joy as they left their desks and went over to the young Elias to congratulate him. Evan watched as the teacher confusedly asked Mr. Price how that stone shone like that, but the man just shrugged it off as an illusion. The scene faded away again, and when the new picture came into view, Evan found himself seeing inside Elias's home. A meeting was taking place between Mr. Price and Elias's family, which the narrating voice of old Dr. Monstrum helpfully explained.

"That man from school met with my parents that night and requested to take me on as his apprentice," Monstrum said. "I would have to leave home for good and travel all over, but my parents recognized the opportunity for what it was. It was a chance for their son to escape that small town and make something more out of his life, something they had always dreamed of but could never achieve. With the promise to raise him well and provide for all expenses, that man managed to secure my place at his side. That was how I came to know my master, Chester Price."

Ch. 9

Evan tried to remember if he had ever heard the name Chester Price before, but nothing came to mind. To be Monstrum's master, he must be known to some extent, but it didn't seem like he was someone often talked about when discussing magicians of the past. In the very least, his name had never come up in Evan's short time in the magical world. He would bet a history buff like Sophia would probably know plenty about him though. The book now showed Evan the young Monstrum riding in Price's carriage.

"My master spent our first day together revealing the secret world of magic to me," Monstrum narrated. "My life had been simple and ordinary until he came along, so it was difficult for me to believe at first. However, when he showed me wondrous spells and performed minor miracles before my eyes, I was forced to acknowledge that he had a gift that could only be described as magic."

"An even bigger shock came when he said I was like him and could wield magic, with some training. If he had said that in front of my Christian mother, he would have never gotten me out of the door. Luckily for me, my master knew discretion."

For the first time, Evan felt he could relate to Monstrum. He knew what it was like for someone to show up out of the blue and announce that something you thought was fantasy was actually completely real. He had also been similarly stolen away from the life he knew because of his magic potential. The scene showed the carriage follow the road until it came upon another small town.

"It turned out my master had not been lying when he told the people in my town that he was in the area for business, and he was indeed on the lookout for an apprentice. He simply neglected to say what kind of apprentice. As our journey on the road began, I quickly discovered that the event that played out in my old schoolhouse was not unique."

Evan watched as Mr. Price and the young Monstrum stopped at the town and repeated the events Evan had seen previously. Mr. Price talked to a few townspeople, went to the local school, handed out gems, and tried to find individuals with magic potential. After the first town, the book began showing quick flashes of classroom after classroom. It was clear they carried out this process many times.

"The gems he carried were enchanted so that, on his command, they would glow if the person carrying them had the power of a generator mage. I was the first child to ever pass his test. But my master loved children, and after confirming the results he would always allow the children to keep the gems they were given. It was an extravagant gift, but the price of such things never crossed his mind."

"I asked him once why he continued to look for an apprentice after he had found me, and he told me it was his duty to keep looking, that generator mages throughout the centuries had always dedicated time to searching for others of their kind in order to pass on their teachings and to ensure the art of magic would never die. It was a habit instilled into him by his teacher, and one he hoped to engrave into my mind as well."

The next thing Evan saw was the magician duo standing in a large room that appeared to be the inside of a mansion somewhere. Mr. Price seemed to be lecturing while the young Monstrum meditated on the floor.

"My master began teaching me the way of magic as soon as we returned to his home. It came naturally to me, and I grew at a rapid pace. On occasion, my master would need to travel for research or to carry out some task given to him that needed a magic touch, and every time we would take the back roads and continue to test the children we encountered. As I became capable of wielding spells myself, my master began to let me carry out the experiment in his stead. However, we never encountered anyone that made the stones glow. That was until we came across a certain boy..."

The book now showed Evan a slightly older teen Monstrum with his master as they walked down a city street at night.

"My master had received a message from Washington requesting assistance regarding a magical incident occurring in Philadelphia. It was often the case that they would seek out my master to resolve such things. This particular case was about a string of burglaries where items ranging from food to cash registers full of money were seen floating out of buildings and out of sight completely on their own."

"The local police had managed to connect a local boy to the case based on eyewitnesses seeing him in the area at several different crime scenes. It was known where the boy made his home, but for some reason, any cop sent to the area reported back that they were too afraid to check out the building. Unable to handle the situation on their own, they reluctantly asked for help in solving this mystery."

Then the old Monstrum quieted down and allowed the scene to play out undisturbed.

"It should be around here," Mr. Price said.

Mr. Price held a lantern before him as he tried to read the addresses on the nearby buildings. The area was rundown and mostly abandoned, with many of the buildings being condemned and boarded up. They continued to walk until Monstrum stopped and pointed out one of the rundown buildings.

"This looks like the one, master," he said.

"Hmm, yes, I believe you are right," Mr. Price said.

Together they approached and appraised the building. There were no signs on the outside that it was being used for anything, and it looked as shabby as any other abandoned place on that street. However, this was the address that the boy was said to be staying at. It was apparent that he was homeless and squatting wherever he could. As Mr. Price and Monstrum began to walk up the steps to the front door, Monstrum suddenly stopped and took a step back.

"I... suddenly don't think I should be here," he said.

"Yes, I feel it too," Mr. Price said, rubbing his mustache with an excited gleam in his eye. "It looks like our young crook has placed a subtle spell on this place to frighten anyone that might come looking around. I understand now why the police couldn't apprehend him."

Mr. Price chuckled in amusement, but Monstrum was alarmed.

"He can use magic?? Should... should we be worried?"

"It's not to that level," Mr. Price said. "Based on the crudity of this magic, I would say our crook isn't even aware of how he is doing it at all."

"Is that possible?"

"It is," Mr. Price said. "Sometimes, as a generator ages, the magic building inside leaks out. This most often results in nothing happening, but there are cases of magic leakage where the innate properties of the magician's power lead to spells subconsciously forming around them."

"It really is fascinating to see in person," he continued. "He most likely had a great need for the items that were stolen, and his magic simply brought them to him. Likewise, his subconscious desire to not be bothered in his home created the feeling of dread that keeps all intruders away. Based on what we know, I would wager this young man has a constitution rooted in mind magic."

"Mind magic? So... he can move things with his brain and control people's thoughts?"

"Mmhmm," Mr. Price said while ascending the stairs once again. "Come now. Protect yourself like I taught you and you should be fine. He can't control it after all."

Monstrum nodded and followed his master into the building. They found nothing on the first floor, but after arriving at the second, they saw a light coming from a room at the end of the hall. They approached lightly and peered inside to find a teenage boy wrapped in blankets sitting next to a small lantern. When the boy saw them, he stood up quickly in alarm. His eyes darted around the room looking for a quick escape, but Mr. Price stopped him before he could bolt.

"Calm down," Mr. Price said. "We're not going to hurt you. We just want to talk."

Evan looked around the room and saw piles of new goods that didn't fit the surroundings. There were racks of new clothes, boxes of food and milk, and even the aforementioned cash register. There was no doubt that this boy had been the one to take all those items. However, it was easy to see he wasn't doing it out of greed. The building was not somewhere anyone would live by choice. Even in that very room the boy occupied there were several rats rooting around. The boy looked to be in his early teens and had dark brown skin. His clothes were covered in dirt, and he had no shoes on his feet. Evan would have bet that, if left unchecked, the next report would mention a pair of boots being mysteriously floated away.

"Are you the police?" the boy said.

"No," Mr. Price said. "But they did ask us to find you."

"What do you want then?"

The boy raised his voice and tried to look threatening, but it didn't work. Evan could tell that he was confused and scared. It was probably a result of growing up on the streets.

"What do I want?" Mr. Price said, before smiling. "How about... giving you a new home. What would you say to that?"

The boy's eyes opened wide as he looked at Mr. Price like he was crazy. It was probably the last thing he had expected to come out of the old man's mouth. And with that, the voice of old man Monstrum returned.

"That was how my master gained his second apprentice," the voice said. "And how I met my future best friend."

Ch. 10

The book continued to send the visual story into Evan's mind. It now showed him Mr. Price's mansion again, only this time, Monstrum was joined in his meditation by the boy they found in the abandoned building. The boy was now cleaned up and dressed in fine clothes just like Monstrum.

"My new friend's name was Lukas Morris. Lukas was born to a single mother who had little means to raise him. She had moved north looking for a home and work, but she found neither. She did her best to scrape together a living for her son, but when Lukas was ten years old, she fell sick and died, leaving him completely on his own."

"Lukas told us that he begged and stole what he needed to survive. Then, something amazing happened. It was during an especially hard period when he hadn't been able to find much food for weeks. He was staring through a baker's window at the many loaves of bread stacked upon the shelves, longing and wishing to have it all to himself, when he suddenly saw several loaves rise from their spot and fly out the door. Nobody seemed to notice but him, so he grabbed them quickly and ran. After that, he found that whenever he was in great need, similar things would happen."

"It was just as my master had said. Lukas was unaware of how it was happening. It was simply his desperation soaking into the magic that had begun to leak from his body. With his magic already so close to the surface, it did not take long for him to progress in his training under our master. In addition to magic training, he was also given regular school lessons, alongside myself. Together we grew stronger every day in mind, body, and spirit."

A sort of training montage followed as Evan watched the duo train and study in several different settings. They occasionally appeared in schools where they administered the magic stone test, but mostly their activities centered at Mr. Price's mansion.

"On top of instilling us with his knowledge, our master also shared with us his greatest ambition, which was finding the legendary guardian of the earth and the ancient spirit stones of good and evil."

Evan perked up as the grimoire highlighted paintings in Price's mansion showing the legendary items mentioned. One showed an imposing figure standing with the sun at his back. The figure was not quite human. It had the head of a stag, complete with large antlers, and the body appeared to be covered with fur. However, the figure stood upright like a man and had hands instead of hooves. Before the figure on the ground were humans of all different colors and dress kneeling in worship. It looked more like the painting of a deity than a guardian, but this was the first Evan was hearing of such a character, so he really had no idea what it was all about.

The other painting was a little more visually appealing to Evan's eye. It was split between dark and light colors almost like a yin-yang. At the center of their respective sides were two black and white balls. He assumed these were what Monstrum had referred to as stones. Surrounding the stones were things that looked like humans. Or maybe ghosts would be more accurate, as they appeared translucent and lacked fully human features. It was bizarre, and he again had no idea what to make of it.

"Most mages assumed these legends to be works of fiction only, but not our master. In fact, he believed in their existence so much that he devoted his entire life's work to their location. At first, we apprentices thought little of his pursuit. We did not come from magical backgrounds and had no knowledge of the many tales told about the guardian or the stones. That's not to say we didn't believe our master about them being real. But to two young magicians still learning the craft, our master's countless hours of reading ancient texts were tedious and boring. That all changed one day when our master announced a breakthrough in his work."

"Boys! Boys, come here!"

Evan watched the old magician excitedly search for his apprentices. They heard his call and promptly came to stand before him.

"I have wonderful news," Mr. Price said. "I've had a stroke of great fortune with the recent news I've received from overseas. It appears a temple has been located, and I believe all signs point toward it being a resting place for one of the stones!"

"Wow, that's great, master," Monstrum said politely, but not with much excitement.

"Isn't it? So, go pack your things quickly. We're leaving for Australia immediately!"

"Australia!?" Lukas said.

"That's quite a trip," Monstrum said. "Is the stone really going to be there, or will it just be more books?"

"The information I received was clear as to the ruin's nature," Mr. Price said. "And I trust the source. It fits with the previous stories about the stone being worshipped as a deity! I really think this could be the one!"

"My master had many disappointments over the years with leads not panning out, but he never failed to remain optimistic in his hunt. After a long journey to the land down under, we trekked far into the interior of the continent where few Europeans had dared to venture. It was only from tales passed on from Aborigines that my master was able to hear of this sacred site in the middle of nowhere. At the end of our journey, we found a cave at the base of a huge mesa. It stood out as the only manmade thing for hundreds of miles."

"Wow, that's crazy," Evan said.

He could see the opening into the rock face that Monstrum described as a cave. To him, he thought it would be better described as a tunnel, since it was clearly not a natural formation. The entrance had a smooth arch lined with perfectly cut stone. The inner walls were also finely decorated with stone and hand chiseled pictographs. Whoever made this place had worked hard and taken a lot of care. But who would bother making something like this in the middle of nowhere? As if to answer his unspoken question, young Monstrum spoke up.

"Who made this?"

"Ancient mages," Mr. Price said. "You can feel the residual magic within the stone. And this is far too sophisticated to be the make of any known civilization on this continent."

Mr. Price turned to his apprentices with a grim look.

"Boys, best be on high alert once inside," he said. "I imagine there will be traps."

Both the young men nodded solemnly and put up the defense that their master had taught them. Evan wasn't sure what they were doing, but he hoped Hunter would be able to teach him something similar soon. Having some defense against hostile spells sounded like a must-have for any magician.

Evan watched as the three magicians carefully explored the inside of the temple. They each carried lanterns to help light their way, and the inside of the temple was just as fascinating as the entrance had been. Evan was glad he could experience it without having to worry about whatever danger might be lurking about. As it turned out, there were a few traps, but they were mainly spells designed to turn people away, and Mr. Price deactivated them with a little work.

Occasionally there were rooms for the trio to explore, and they passed several walls filled with paintings that Mr. Price got very excited about. Evan also took an interest in these and paused the story for several long minutes to get a good look. The majority of them looked very similar to the painting he had seen back in Price's mansion - the one showing the weird stag man - except the main figure wasn't a stag in these pictures. In one picture it was a great bear fighting off an enemy army. In another it was a large serpent in the midst of a huge tide that looked like it was extinguishing a fire. There were several others with different depictions of large animals, and each one showed some great deed being done and people bowing in thanks or worship.

Evan believed these must be the great guardian Monstrum had mentioned. He hoped that maybe Price or the older version of Monstrum would explain what the paintings depicted, or at least what this guardian business was all about, but no such explanation came. Mr. Price studied in silence, and the narrator said nothing.

As the magicians began moving deeper into the ruins, Evan made a mental note to research the topic of the guardian and the stones when he finished viewing Monstrum's story. If they were really the subject of many tales passed down in the magic community, then surely there would be someone in town that could share a few with him.

Other than the artwork, the trio's journey was uneventful until they reached the center of the temple. There at the heart of the mesa was a large spherical room with an altar at the center.

"This is it," Mr. Price said. "This is where they worshipped the stone!"

He hurried to the altar as fast as he could while still taking care not to trip any traps. The two apprentices were quick to follow.

"Where's the stone? Is it here?" Lukas said.

"No, but look," Mr. Price said, rubbing his hand on the smooth indentation on the top of the altar. "It once sat here. The stone of darkness was right here, right where my hand touches! Amazing."

"That's it?" Lukas said. "After all that... nothing?"

Monstrum patted his friend on the shoulder as if to console him. Both looked tired and ready to be home.

"For shame, boys," Mr. Price said. "Don't you know? The fun isn't all in the treasure at the end. You have to enjoy the hunt!"

Both the boys looked at him like he was speaking a different language. Mr. Price ignored them and began to inspect the altar. It was finely decorated and looked very regal to Evan's eyes. But before Mr. Price could get too far in his investigation, a voice called out from the dark edges of the room where their lantern light failed to reach.

"They're looking for the stone..." said the voice.

"But it's been gone for sooo long," said another voice.

"Such a shame to die for nothing," a third deeper voice said.

Then, all around them, many voices laughed wildly. Some were high pitched and others deep and rumbling, but it was clear they were all mocking the trio for venturing so deeply into this forbidden realm.

Mr. Price held his lantern over his head before lowering his hand and letting the lantern float by itself in the air. The lantern light then increased in intensity, allowing the edges of the room to be illuminated. The three magicians turned their heads every which way and saw the dozens of creatures that had taunted them from the shadows. There were wolves and humans and other small animals. But there was also a giant snake coiled in the corner, and on the ceiling crawled a huge centipede that had three heads. They all looked menacing and powerful, and they all were completely black with red eyes.

"Dark spirits," Mr. Price said. "Probably born here over centuries from the residual negative energy put out by the stone. They must have preyed on some unfortunate English settlers, based on their language skills."

Monstrum and Lukas both looked serious as they stood with their backs together and surveyed the opponents now facing them. However, they didn't appear to be too nervous in Evan's eyes. He knew he would be shitting his pants in such a situation if he were there, considering how hard he had found the fight against just one dark spirit. Were they really capable of fighting so many at once?

"Looks like we will have to fight this out," Mr. Price said. "You boys hold them off while I prepare the finishing blow."

The boys nodded and put up their hands, ready to fight. The spirits, as if not liking that they were being so casually disregarded, all attacked at once with fierce cries. It was such an imposing sight, seeing all those hostile bodies rushing at once, that Evan flinched even though he was completely safe. But despite actually being there, the two young magicians facing the charge did not show any fear. They instead stepped forward to meet it head on.

Evan was in awe as the two boys began unfurling magic to dispose of the dark spirits. Lukas threw out crescent shaped blades of violet-colored magic that cut right through the nearest spirits, sending them falling to the ground in pieces. They tried to pull themselves together quickly, but Lukas conjured a flame on his palm and threw it onto them, setting them afire. They ran around wildly trying to put themselves out, all while they burned and slowly disintegrated into nothing.

Lukas dealt with many of the smaller spirits in such a way, but some of the larger ones were harder to handle. Blasts of dark magic power were blocked by a hasty shield, before he returned fire with his own aerial spells. A back and forth began as the dark spirit attempted to attack while evading Lukas's magic.

On the other side Monstrum was also dispatching spirits left and right. When the first small spirits arrived before him, he quickly brought forth a barrier of stone from the floor. Attacks bounced off the thick rock without leaving a scratch. A moment later, the rock wall separated into dozens of large rocks floating in the air. Then, illuminated in a deep orange light, the rocks elongated into sharp spears which then violently burst forward and skewered most of the charging spirits on his side of the room. The spirits fell to the floor with a cry as the orange power from the rock puncturing their bodies spread and began to burn them away.

The larger spirits were quicker than Evan would have imagined and were able to avoid the onslaught of rocks thrown by Monstrum. The bigger dark spirits were clearly not just larger in size, they were also stronger and more powerful. Monstrum began to bring forth large spikes from the earth beneath their feet, but they managed to jump away time and time again.

In this way, Lukas and Monstrum managed to completely neutralize the attack from the spirits. The dark spirits were unable to approach the magicians, but they hadn't given up just yet either. Evan thought the fight might end quickly, until he noticed that, despite the boys taking out quite a few spirits, the number of enemies was not lessening. That was when he noticed new spirits continually slithering their way out of cracks in the walls of the room. The constant stream manifesting within the temple made Evan wonder if they were truly limitless. No matter how great the two boys were with their magic, they couldn't fight forever. But fortunately, they weren't alone.

Mr. Price had not just been sitting idly by and making his students do all the work. He had stood in the center off the room with his eyes closed preparing a spell, completely trusting that his boys would keep him safe. All the fighting had made it seem like much time had passed, but it was only a minute that the boys had been fighting alone before Mr. Price opened his eyes and shot his hand into the air towards the lantern still floating there. A brilliant silver light began to shine brightly from within it.

"It is time for you wretched creatures to see the light!"

A loud roar reverberated throughout the room, and it came from the silver lantern which was now so bright that Evan could no longer look at it. The dark spirits in the room sensed something was wrong and tried to flee, but it was too late. Their bodies were pulled toward the light as if they were caught in an inescapable black hole. They resisted, but even the biggest of them could not hold on for long. Evan watched in awe as hundreds of screaming black shadows were sucked into the silver light. In a matter of only seconds, all the spirits were sucked away and permanently disappeared. The lantern light dimmed slowly back to a soft yellow and floated back down to Mr. Price's waiting hand.

"Now, where were we?" Mr. Price said, nonchalantly returning to the altar to carry on his research.

The two apprentices burst out into cheers, excitedly telling each other how awesome the whole experience had been. Mr. Price just chuckled at their retelling of the fight without bothering to weigh in.

"That was the first time either of us had been in a serious fight using our magic," Monstrum said. "It was an exhilarating experience, and it lit a flame within us both. We never again thought of our master's work as boring. I especially began to take a special interest in my master's hunt, and not just for the action. I had now seen proof that my master's obsession had some merit. The legends existed and held a great power. To discover even one could potentially change the world. From then on, my master's obsession slowly became my own."

Ch. 11

"When we returned home after the expedition to Australia, both Lukas and I became involved in our master's research efforts regarding the stones and the guardian. We had now seen proof in the temple that the legends were real, and more importantly, we had fun testing our magic skills. We eagerly looked for any signs of the next destination that might afford us another opportunity to let loose."

The vision showed Monstrum and Lukas reading documents and discussing reports with their master. It also showed them progressing in their magic training, now doing far more than just meditating. The two brewed and drank potions, crafted fantastic looking spells, and even dueled each other under Mr. Price's watchful eye. After that, the trio were again seen traveling.

"For several years, our lives fell into a pattern. Lukas and I would study and grow in our magic while helping our master look for clues, and whenever we found something promising, we would set out into the world on another adventure. Our travels took us many places around the globe, which was fascinating to see as a young man from the middle of nowhere. But it was during a long excursion through Europe, while we were in France, that the next big event of my life took place."

The scene changed and centered on Elias and Lukas leisurely walking down a busy city street. Both were now adults and looked to be in their twenties. Everything appeared perfectly ordinary until they came upon a local bakery. They were talking casually among themselves when they were interrupted by someone barging out of the bakery and colliding straight into Monstrum's side.

"Whoa, what's this?" Monstrum said.

The person in such a hurry was a young boy. He had run out of the bakery with an armful of fresh bread, but he had dropped it all on the ground when he fell. The boy hastily tried to gather it all up, but he wasn't quick enough.

"Hey, you!" someone yelled.

Even though what he heard was clearly in French, Evan was still able to understand it perfectly. He realized that Monstrum must have made the grimoire capable of translating all speech into a language the reader could understand. Quite the handy feature.

The man that had yelled came rushing out of the store and grabbed the boy before he could flee. He held the boy firmly in his hands and turned him around to face him.

"Think you can steal from me, do you?"

"I-I wasn't st-stealing nothing, sir," the boy said.

Evan could see the boy was shaking like a leaf. Having been caught red-handed, there was no telling what would happen to him now. However, Evan wasn't the only one to notice the boy's distress. Lukas quickly stepped forward and grabbed the man's wrist, forcing him to release his hold on the boy.

"Don't touch him," Lukas said.

His eyes were cold as he stared down the baker. Confused as to what was happening, the baker backed away, but only slightly. He wasn't going to let a thief get away so easily.

"Is this child yours? He must pay for the bread that he ruined!"

Lukas took another look at the child before narrowing his eyes at the baker.

"He's clearly starving," he said. "Just let him have it."

The child did look malnourished. He was also wearing tattered clothes and had dirt on his face. He reminded Evan a lot of how Lukas appeared when Mr. Price and Monstrum had found him those many years ago.

"We run a business, not a charity!" a woman said, appearing from inside the shop. "If you want him to have the bread, then you must pay!"

"That's right!" the baker said.

"Ok, sure. We can pay," Monstrum said while digging into his pocket.

"No," Lukas said, grabbing Monstrum's arm to stop him. "You're going to let this kid have all that bread... and more."

"Ha! And who do you think-"

"Yes, sir."

"Wha- Honey!? What are you doing!?"

The woman who must be the baker's wife was flabbergasted as she watched her husband expressionlessly agree with Lukas's outrageous claim. She was even more confused as she saw her husband begin to put all their freshly baked goods into a box as if he were really going to give them away. She began to try to talk sense into him, but nothing she said made him slow down at all. And when she tried to pry the basket away from him, he wouldn't budge an inch. Finally, she rounded on the men outside the shop, her face going bright red in anger.

"What did you do to him? This is... some kind of witchcraft!"

Monstrum looked at his friend with worry in his eyes, but he made no move to stop what was happening. Lukas looked resolute in what he was doing and showed no signs of changing course. Seeing the two men ignoring her, the woman ran past them into the street and started screaming.

"Officer! Officer! We are being robbed!"

While the wife screamed for help, the husband finished calmly collecting the baked goods and delivered the overly full basket to the hands of the starving young boy. The boy took it tentatively, not really believing what was happening.

"I... can I really have this?"

"Yes," Lukas said with a kind smile. "It's all yours. Take it."

The baker wordlessly nodded his agreement, and the boy accepted the basket, smiling for the first time since they met him.

"Thank you so much, sirs!" the boy said to the two magicians.

But before the boy could make off with his prize, the baker's wife returned, having successfully grabbed the attention of a police officer. Along with them came a small crowd of onlookers attracted by all the commotion.

"These three right here, officer!" she said pointing a bony finger at the two magicians and the boy. "They've done something strange to my husband, and they're taking all our bread!"

The officer stepped forward and surveyed the situation before facing Monstrum and Lukas.

"Do you two gentlemen have an explanation for this?"

Monstrum looked to Lukas, but he didn't seem to want to acknowledge the officer at all. It ended up being a bystander that spoke up first.

"I saw it all officer," the man said. "I was just there across the street, and I saw that boy try to run away with all that bread. The men started having an argument with the baker there about something, not sure what, but nobody ever paid for anything! I'm sure of it."

"Well?" said the officer.

"..."

"If you have nothing to say, then I'll have to ask you to come with me," the officer said, reaching for the boy.

Only then, with the officer about to arrest the starving child and the crowd of onlookers whispering all around, did Lukas move again.

"Enough!"

With his shout, a wave of violet energy passed through the area. The baking couple, the officer, and all the onlookers froze in place, mouths open as if they were stopped midsentence. The boy looked around with a bewildered look before Lukas knelt and looked him in the eyes.

"Go on," he said. "Take that and get out of here. Now!"

The boy nodded quickly and fled the scene with his overfull basket of baked goods. Once the child was out of sight, Lukas turned back around and faced the frozen people all around.

"Now, what to do with all of you," he said.

"Luke," Monstrum said. "This is too much. Just end it here."

"..."

Lukas took a few deep breaths to calm down before he nodded in agreement.

"Fine," he said. "You can all go. But you should all be ashamed of yourselves, trying to ruin that child's life over some food he needed to survive."

He waited a few moments longer before he raised his hand and released them all from his spell. As soon as he did, everyone began screaming and ran as far away as they could, including the officer. The baking couple ran into their store and slammed the door shut as fast as they could. Lukas snorted and resumed his walk down the street with Monstrum at his side. The scene faded away and was replaced with the two apprentices facing their master shortly after that incident.

"Our master had been visiting a friend all day, but news of what happened spread throughout the city quickly and reached his ears before nightfall."

"What were you thinking!?" Mr. Price said. "The whole city is buzzing about what you two did."

The two young men sat before their master with their heads bowed, clearly feeling guilty. If not feeling guilty for what they had done, they felt guilty for upsetting Mr. Price at least.

"Luke just wanted to help that poor child," Monstrum said. "We didn't mean for things to get so out of hand."

"He was starving," Lukas said. "I had to help."

"It might have been better if you had just walked away," Mr. Price said with a sigh.

"How can I do that when I have the power to help him!?" Lukas said, standing up. "We have this magic that can help so many people, so why can't we when the opportunity comes!?"

"..."

"I can't just look the other way like that," Lukas said after sitting back down with his arms crossed.

"You have a good heart," Mr. Price said softly. "But it's possible you fed that child for a night only to doom countless others to die."

"What do you mean?"

"The magic world decided to hide itself centuries ago," Mr. Price said, "and it wasn't because it was more convenient. It was to protect the lives of mages and normal humans alike."

"It wasn't necessary long ago, when civilizations were smaller and less organized," he continued. "But as time went on human armies grew frightening in strength and number, so much so that mages couldn't keep up. In a one-to-one fight, sure. But the humans feared magic and would come in droves to snuff it out wherever they found it."

"Families, villages, whole civilizations of magic users were extinguished by the fear of humans. This went on for decades, and the remaining magic folk had a choice to make. All-out war against humanity or fade away into the shadows until the humans got tired of hunting."

"They decided, wisely, to avoid war," Mr. Price said. "It may not seem like it to you now but keeping ourselves hidden and secret protects not just us, but local mages as well from being hunted down and killed for witchcraft."

"..."

Both Monstrum and Lukas looked upset, but they had no rebuttal to give.

"There will be people out for blood soon enough in this city now that the gossip is out about magic folk stealing from hardworking citizens, and I have no intention of slaughtering them all over this." Mr. Price said sighing again. "We're leaving tonight. Pack your things and be ready to leave within the hour."

The scene then showed the three magicians packing and vacating the inn along with Price's loyal servants that Evan had seen travelling with the group everywhere. Once gathered in the carriage, they struck out onto the road in the dead of night. They were all tired, but they soldiered on anyway because of Mr. Price's warning. The two apprentices sat in the carriage with their master while the servants guided the horses outside. The boys remained quiet throughout, looking thoroughly sorry.

"Our master was a kind man," the voice of Monstrum said. "So, it was rare for us apprentices to be so decisively chastised. Even if we both felt Lukas's actions had been the right choice, we felt bad for having let our master down. It was a low point of the trip, but had it not happened, we wouldn't have made our fateful meeting on the road that night."

Evan watched as the magician's carriage went down the road for a while before coming across another carriage that had broken down. A man was standing on the road with a lantern flagging them to stop, so they slowed to a halt as they approached.

"Sorry to bother you," the man said, "but our wheel has broken, and we have no way to carry on at this hour. Could you possibly offer us some assistance?"

Mr. Price squinted his eyes as he looked at the fellow on the road before a look of recognition spread over his face.

"Didn't I see you this afternoon?" he said. "Yes, I'm sure I did! You were at Beaufort's place. The Cerf family, correct?"

"Bless us!" the man said. "Is that Master Price? What fortune!"

Mr. Price chuckled as he climbed down out of the carriage.

"Yes indeed," he said. "I would have offered help to anyone, but since you already know who we are, we can have you fixed up with a bit of magic in no time."

Monstrum and Lukas also came out of the carriage. They had never met this man before, but they were able to pick up from the conversation that he knew they were mages. The man excitedly approached his carriage and spoke to someone inside.

"It's alright, dear," he said, opening the door. "Come on out and meet these nice gentlemen. They're magicians!"

Evan paid close attention as a woman slowly revealed herself from within. When she stood next to her father she threw back the hood that had covered her face, revealing two long brown ears standing proudly on top of her blonde head. She smiled shyly and greeted everyone. Evan laughed out loud when he looked at Monstrum and saw the poor guy staring dumbly with his mouth having fallen nearly to the ground.

"That was how I came to meet my wife," the old Monstrum said. "The love of my life and the most beautiful woman in the world."

Ch. 12

"So, this is her, huh?"

Evan had expected to see Monique Cerf appear sooner or later as she was the only significant figure of Monstrum's life that he had previously heard of. Her appearance was different from the statue near the clock tower in every way except the face. That pretty face looked just the same, and the bright blue eyes were as brilliant as advertised. Her hair was blonde and she was tall, not having to look up at any of the men present. The statue version of the woman was dressed up as a warrior, but here she was a simple traveler wearing a cloak. She was young and fit, but she did not look anything like a fighter, at least to Evan's eyes.

Introductions were made within the group, and it was easy to see that the young Monstrum was smitten. He could barely make eye contact with Monique, something she picked up on, causing her to show off a beautiful smile. Lukas also noticed and began making fun of him when the others weren't looking. The magicians quickly fixed up the broken wheel, and the man that had stopped them, who was Monique's father, invited them to follow him to their home. Mr. Price liked the idea, and they soon set off again down the road.

"We followed Monique to her home village, a place where deer mages had lived for centuries," Monstrum narrated. "The village itself was off the beaten path and few outsiders ever passed through. The village's location and the nature of its inhabitants were only known to those within the magical community."

"It was a beautiful home. Despite being ancient in origin, the homes would not have been out of place in Paris. The people there lived in comfort with all the modern furnishings of the time along with the luxuries that only magic could bring. They had no magician living among them, but so many had passed through over the years leaving gifts behind that it seemed no different from a magician's stronghold. Spells were abound to keep the village's secrets safe and to make the people's lives more comfortable."

The village really did look like a wonderful place to live. More than that though, Evan was amazed by the number of monster mages he saw living there, and all of them were deer people like Clara's family. The streets were lively with young fawns running around playfully, and mages with furry ears and tails proudly displayed. These numbers could only be found in a place like Tourmaline in Evan's time, but even then, it could only be achieved by combining all the races together. It was fascinating to think there were communities this large thriving all over the world not all that long ago.

"It was so nice there that Mr. Price decided to extend our stay for several months," Monstrum said. "That was what my master claimed anyway. I have long suspected that he saw I was lovestruck and stayed only to allow me more time with my Monique. For that, I will forever be grateful."

The scene began to show Monstrum and Monique in different situations around the village. They walked together down the streets, they had meals at the local pub, and they embraced each other while sitting in front of a cozy fireplace.

"My attraction to her was instant, but once I came to know her it became an unstoppable love," old Monstrum said. "She was beautiful, but she was also incredibly kind and compassionate. It wasn't just once or twice that she challenged some assumptions I had about the world and made me rethink my course in life. I could never read her mind, but she claimed she fell for me quickly as well. After only a couple months together, we both knew we wanted to be together forever."

"Sadly, my master's business demanded he leave eventually, and our stay in Monique's home had to end. She fought to leave with us, but ultimately she was convinced to remain at home to finish her own studies. With tears streaming down our faces, we said goodbye with promises to write as often as we could. A promise which we kept."

The book showed Monstrum back at Mr. Price's mansion excitedly receiving letters over and over. It also showed him penning his long responses to be mailed to his love. It looked like the distance between the two had done nothing to dampen their affection for one another. It was sweet.

"I remained busy in my studies and with my traveling to help my master, but all the while, Monique and I made our plans to be together. She had only to finish her schooling, and I had only to break away from my master and start out on my own. He, of course, would never have stopped me from doing so, but it was still a hard action for me to consider. The man was basically a father to me. He had given me so much, and I wanted greatly to help him achieve his life goals in return. I feared I would break his heart if I were to just up and leave so suddenly. However, what might have come of my plan to strike out on my own was never to be known. Two years after I first met Monique in France, my master, Chester Price, died in his sleep."

The love story took a somber turn as Evan saw Monstrum and Lukas attending a funeral for their master. Mr. Price's servants were there and a few close compatriots, but it was overall a small affair. A few words were said, the body lowered, and that was that.

"My master died at the age of 105," Monstrum said. "Magic kept him youthful well into his later years, but magic cannot delay the corrosion of time forever. He had no family other than Lukas and me, and his entire estate was left to us. We were suddenly untethered by our need to repay our benefactor, free to be whoever we wanted going forward. I had some idea of what I wanted to do, of course, but Lukas had not considered his future quite so heavily."

"What will you do now, Luke?" the young Monstrum said.

"I... I'm not sure," Lukas said. "I never thought this day would come so soon."

"I know what you mean."

They sat alone in their master's old study, their faces downcast. Silence enveloped the room for several long seconds before Monstrum spoke again.

"I'm going to Europe," he said. "I'm going to finally get Monique and start our life together."

"Yes, that's good," Lukas said, showing a small smile.

"You should come with me."

"And do what? I don't want to be a third wheel."

"You're my brother, Luke," Monstrum said. "You would never be just a third wheel."

"..."

"Once I get Monique, I'm going to continue our master's work. We'll travel together, living freely, all while trying to complete what our master left unfinished. I think... I think that would make him happy. For us to still be together and chasing his dream? Yes, I know it would."

Monstrum got up and walked over to stand before Lukas. Lukas just watched him with an unsure look on his face. It was easy to tell he felt lost at that moment. Monstrum then stuck out his hand.

"What do you say? Will you join me?"

"..."

Lukas sat in silence and thought for a few beats. It took long enough that Evan thought he might actually turn Monstrum down. But eventually, he took a big breath and stood up. He reached out and clasped his brother's hand firmly.

"Let's do it."

"That was the end of our lives as apprentices," the voice said, returning after a short break. "After that, a new chapter in our lives began. One full of adventure and wonder as we travelled and chased after our master's dream."

Evan opened his eyes and found himself seated in the hidden library, his hand still on the glowing book. It was getting late, and he felt like that was a good stopping point in the story. He raised his hand and cut off the connection with the grimoire. It once again took on the look of a normal book on the desk.

Evan stood up and stretched, and he was surprised at how tired his body felt. He had been watching Monstrum's story unfold for hours, and the magic drain from using the artifact must have been greater than he realized. He would need a good long rest before reading any further. But he was glad he had started the story. It was interesting and full of information about Monstrum and the magic world that he most likely couldn't find anywhere else.

Closing the book, he picked it up and decided to bring it back to his room. He didn't know when he would get the opportunity to read it again, but it was so interesting that he knew he didn't want to put it off until summer was over. As Evan walked back to his room, he had a lot of questions flowing through his head. Some about what was to come for Monstrum in his story, but also a lot about what he had just learned, especially the talk about a guardian and legendary stones. He was far too tired to do any sort of research that night, but he planned to ask someone about it the next day. With how prevalent it had been in Monstrum's early life, Evan had a strange feeling these legends would end up meaning more than just a fun story from the past.