by Otto Schafer
“Wizard, sage – whatever,” Lenny said.
“Yes,” Mr. B said. “Garrett is the descendant of Turek, who was, I guess you could say, the most powerful human wizard to ever walk the planet.”
Everyone stared at Garrett in awe, as if they expected him to perform an illusion or something. This wasn’t right. It wasn’t real – it couldn’t be. Even if it was it couldn’t be him. If he were this… this great wizard guy’s descendent he wouldn’t feel so… so afraid. Would he? He was just a kid. Just a kid from a little town. It had to be a mistake.
“So, since you just admitted you’re a Keeper of the Light, you want to tell us why you killed Lincoln?” Pete asked. “He was our sixteenth president and he freed the slaves, you dick!”
Mouths hung agape. Garrett turned to Pete who shrugged, seemingly surprised himself at what had come out of his mouth.
“No, Peter. That’s not what happened,” Mr. B said solemnly. “Lincoln knew something Apep didn’t. He knew the location of the temple. Apep got to him somehow, probably disguised as a friend. He must have fooled him into believing the Keepers were an affiliate of the Masons. Lincoln planned to give that journal to Apep, but then for some reason didn’t. The next thing you know Lincoln was assassinated.”
Pete pondered this a moment. “So, what you’re saying is that Lincoln was actually unknowingly writing the journal for Apep, but when the plan failed Apep just had him killed?”
“Yes,” he said. “That’s precisely what I’m saying. We think Lincoln discovered Apep was trying to fool him into showing him the location of the temple, but Lincoln figured it out and planned to tell the world instead. You must remember Apep hadn’t discovered where the stones were, and he couldn’t risk the world finding out about the temple before he was ready, so he cut his losses and had Lincoln killed.”
Pete nodded slowly.
“Why does Apep need to get into the temple?” Breanne asked.
“Yeah, tell them what’s in there, Mr. B,” Pete said knowingly.
Mr. B nodded. “I told you there were seven old ones and that Turek and his sages put them down one at a time, casting them into a deep sleep and imprisoning them beneath the ground.”
“Our temple is a prison for one of the old ones,” Pete said.
“And that’s what Lincoln saw in that temple – what he was going to tell the world about – one of these old ones?” David asked, his tone more of an announcement than a question.
“But you are a Keeper of the Light,” Janis said accusingly. “You just said so yourself.”
Garrett turned back to face Mr. B, crossed his arms, and waited for the explanation.
Mr. B looked at them and nodded. “I am a Keeper of the Light just as all of you are Keepers of the Light.”
They looked at each other in confusion.
Then Mr. B turned to Garrett. “But not you,” he pointed. “Not you.”
“Then what… what am I?” Garrett asked, terrified to hear the answer.
“You are the Light.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Garrett demanded.
“I founded the Keepers after the death of Hugues, though now we can call him by his true name, Turek. The Keepers were tasked with protecting the Light—”
“What you’re saying makes no sense,” Garrett interrupted. “Why in the world would my stepdad adopt me and give me my supposedly true name? Wouldn’t that allow this Apep guy to find me? It doesn’t make sense!”
“It does, Garrett. You see, we decided back when Keeper Phillip adopted you that there would be no more hiding who you are. We believe in Turek’s prophecy – therefore, we know not to fear you having his name. As cliché as this sounds, you are the chosen one and despite all of our past efforts Apep has the God Stones. The prophecy is unfolding just as Turek said it would. So, you see, we decided what will be will be, because we believe prophecy is prophecy.”
No. No way. He didn’t want to believe it. My family… is in on this? He had to know. He had to know for sure. He had to hear it. “We? You’re saying my parents are in on this? My… my mother?”
“Yes,” Mr. B said. “All the late-night training, Garrett. The bug-outs, the primitive survival training, geography, astrology – it was all to prepare you.”
“Wait. That’s why you asked me about chores, Garrett?” Pete asked.
“This can’t be happening,” Garrett said.
“It is happening,” Mr. B said. “Your whole life has been about this moment and the moments to come.”
Garrett’s knees felt weak, and suddenly he felt sick. “And what in the hell are you even talking about? We can’t fight some magic guy. I can’t even fight some bully from school!” he shouted.
Lenny’s head drew back as his eyes widened.
“Listen to me,” Mr. B said. “You and Lenny have been training for this your whole childhood. The whole reason I am here is to protect you, teach you, train you, prepare you. And not only me but other Keepers too. So many Garrett. So many are committed to this cause. You are the Light we protect. You are the one who will lead the new world against Apep.”
The old master pointed towards the group, gazing at each one of them in turn. “You have chosen your six sages to begin the journey, Apep has the stones, and you are ready!”
“And you are crazy!” Garrett responded, flailing his arms wildly. “No one is going to follow me to fight some magic guy trying to burn down the earth. The only thing this will do is get a bunch of kids killed! Now you’re telling me my whole life has been a lie? Even my parents are in on it? I’m just supposed to buy in, huh? And all these guys are just supposed to… to what? Just go along with it and…”
As Garrett ranted, the craziest thing he could have expected to happen, happened. One by one, each of the six stood. Lenny was the first to stand and approach his friend. He took up position next to Garrett and placed a hand on his shoulder.
“…and I’ll tell you something else too. If you think—” Garrett stopped. His eyes knitted together as he looked at Lenny’s hand, then slowly raised his gaze to his friend’s eyes.
“I would follow you into fire, bro – any day of the week,” Lenny said, giving his shoulder a reassuring squeeze.
Garrett stared blankly at him, dumbfounded. Then he turned back to Mr. B. “If you think—” But then he stopped again. Breanne had stood, too, taking up position on his other side.
She took his hand in hers. “I have been in the fire with you, Garrett, and you have already shielded me from flames. I know this is where I am supposed to be, and I’ll follow you into the fire again and again if that’s what it takes to make this right and save my dad.”
Paul stood next, walked over to Garrett, and gave him a sharp nod. “I am here to protect my sister and find a way to help our pops. Sounds to me like you’re the key to this, kid.” He turned and faced Mr. B, taking a place next to his sister.
Pete stood next.
Garrett swallowed. “No, come on. This can’t…” His voice was weak, barely a whisper.
“I’ve followed you since I was a little kid,” Pete said. “Besides, you need me or you’ll just get yourself into a mess.” He smiled and took up position by Lenny.
Tears threatened to spill down Garrett’s face as he fought to blink them back.
Janis stood and approached. She smiled shyly. “Listen, Garrett, you trusted me and you trusted Pete to bring me in. I don’t much like fire, but I trust you – I’m totally in.”
“You’ve all gone mad!” he choked out.
Finally, David stood. He stepped over to Garrett and looked up at him, pursing his lips as he rubbed thoughtfully at his scruffy face. “I haven’t said much through this… well, whatever this was. Mostly I’ve just been trying to figure out if what I was seeing and hearing was real. We’ve been friends a long time, and I have always looked to you as a leader, but Garrett, I can tell you want to run away right now. I don’t blame you because it sounds like shit’s about to get very real very fast.
I’ll follow you, man, even into fire or whatever, and I’ll do it because I believe you will lead us out the other side. Also, this is just plain cool as shit! But for this to work you need to believe in yourself, man, and well, to do that you need to believe, well, in all of it. Mostly, though, you need to believe in us.”
Garrett just stood there for a long moment, unable to speak – afraid his emotions would betray him if he dared try. When he finally could muster some words, he looked at them and said, “And you guys believe this?”
They all nodded in unison.
Garrett shook his head. “You’re all crazy, you know that?” He turned to Mr. B and rubbed both palms down his face, drawing in a deep breath. “Okay, Mr. B. What happens now?”
Epilogue: Jack
Wednesday, April 6th, 6:22 p.m.
Day One
Petersburg, Illinois
If Garrett thinks he’s gonna get away with weaseling out of our fight, he’s wrong… dead wrong. Ain’t no way he’s gonna get away with giving me a fake book either, Jack thought, rounding the corner of the arcade. He had looked like a damned idiot when he tried to sell that thing at the Petersburg Antique Mall. They even threatened to call the police.
He paused. Down the street he noticed Pete frantically pounding on the door to the karate place. David and that new girl were with him. What was her name? He watched as the fat karate guy opened the door. Then he noticed those two blacks crossing the street, the ones who had been looking for Garrett earlier.
The way he figured it, they had to come out sometime and when they did, he would be waiting. He made his way to the empty parking lot across the street where the blacks had parked their car. He sat down on the hood of the rental and watched. As the minutes passed, the sun sank low in the sky. Jack leaned forward as a shadowed figure approached from down the street. A dark duster flapped behind him. The figure’s face was completely cloaked with a hood.
Most of the stores were closed by now, and only one car was parked on the street. Mr. Douglas came out of Double D’s Dollar Store just as the figure was passing. He turned his back to the figure, slid a key into the deadbolt, and locked the door.
The dark figure stopped.
Mr. Douglas turned around and looked at the cloaked man. He froze. Even from across the street, Jack could see his eyes go wide in terror.
The figure stepped towards him and pointed.
What the fuck? It looked like smoke or… something… something thick and grey was coming from the figure’s hand. The smoke wrapped around Mr. Douglas’s head, and he started clawing at his face. Jack leapt to his feet but he stayed put. A second later Mr. Douglas fell forward and landed face-first on the sidewalk. He didn’t move.
The cloaked figure continued to move down the street, stopping at the karate place. What the hell is going on? The figure tried the door handle, tried again, and when that didn’t work, a blue glow began to radiate from in front of him. Jack stepped forward cautiously.
The figure had his back to Jack and whatever was causing the weird glow was hidden. The door began to push in. No, not push exactly, but stretch? Jack rubbed his eyes, not believing what he was seeing. The door flexed further and further, beyond possibility. The light became brighter and brighter until he could no longer see the door at all.
Jack eased forward to the edge of the street.
The door exploded inward with an echoing boom that cracked across the evening sky, taking the doorframe and a chunk of the wall in with it! Jack ducked down, pulling his arms up. The cloaked man stepped through the opening and vanished inside. Lowering his arms, Jack looked to the right and then to the left. Mr. Douglas still lay sprawled on the sidewalk. A dark pool was forming under him.
Jack swallowed hard and walked to the edge of the street, hesitant to cross. Peering beyond the street and through the hole where the door once stood, he could still see the strange light, but it was different somehow. Jack stepped off the sidewalk and into the street. Suddenly, his head began to ache. He took another step and the ache became a pain. He stopped. The pain was unbearable. He threw his hands over his ears and worked his jaw back and forth until, without warning, he puked right there in the street. Staggering backward, Jack tripped over the curb and landed hard on his ass. He opened his eyes, realizing he had passed out. The pain slowly subsided as the nausea passed. What was that? Jack thought, gasping for air. What the hell was that?
Jack looked back through the jagged opening and blinked twice. Flames, strange and wrong, poured out of the opening.
Acknowledgments
First and foremost, I want to thank my wife for her patience and honesty. I want to thank her for asking questions and for helping me find the answers to mine. Mostly I want to thank her for allowing me to read her the same chapter over, and over, and over. And every time you truly listened. Thank you, my love.
I want to thank my editing team. Specifically, Kristen Tate at the Blue Garret. She made the editing process fun, and I learned so much that I can carry forward. This is my first novel, and I would not be exaggerating to say stepping into this world felt like stepping into a bottomless abyss. Kristen was more than an editor – she was a guide, patiently answering all my questions, not just about editing, but about the process of publishing in its entirety. Thank you for the thousand answered questions, Kristen.
Lastly, a special thanks to my friends who read the early drafts, for the conversations on long Saturday trail runs and over lunch at work. Thank you for getting excited with me.
Otto Schafer, October 2019
For my wife, and the hours you sat patiently listening as I read aloud. And for the time I spent away, lost in the story. Mostly though, for always believing in me. Thank you, Boo.
1
Destroy the Instructions
Wednesday, April 6 – God Stones Day 1
Petersburg, Illinois
Garrett Turek had walked into Mr. B’s taekwondo dojo in uptown Petersburg the same way he had walked in a thousand times before, with his best friend in the whole world, Lenny Wade. But this hadn’t been like any other time, and today hadn’t been like any other day in Garrett’s life.
A couple hours ago he was convinced he and Lenny were there to test for their second-degree black belts. Since then, Garrett had had the crap kicked out of him by Mr. B – who he now knew could levitate, was over nine hundred years old, and was the leader of a secret society called the Keepers of the Light, which was created during the time of the Knights Templar.
Worst of all? Garrett learned he was the Light the Keepers existed to protect – the descendant of Turek, the firstborn male in a long bloodline and prophesized to battle an ancient wizard from another planet. According to Mr. B, his parents were Keepers of the Light too. Which if true, meant his whole life had been a lie. He wondered who else was in on it? Eugene, the nice accountant in the Victorian where they found the journal? Coach Dagrun? The way he was acting he must be a Keeper too. God only knew who else. Mr. Douglas, the dollar store owner? His boss out at New Salem? Jesus, for all he knew everyone in town might be part of this strange… prophecy?
Part of him, a big part, wanted to run away, to flee from the dojo and run home to his mom, to call bullshit on this whole ridiculous story, but there was too much he couldn’t ignore. Mr. B floating several feet off the ground right in front of them, for one thing. Then there was what he himself had done. During Mr. B’s test, Garrett found his focus and had somehow slowed stones falling through the air.
But the biggest reason for staying and listening to it all – the girl.
Breanne… Bre, the most gorgeous girl he had ever seen, and one who he’d thought, before the last couple hours, existed only in his dreams. Turned out she was real, and she said she needed his help to stop Apep or her father might die. He knew all this was just too crazy and he tried to tell the others as much, but then all his friends stood and pledged themselves to follow him. Lenny, Bre, David, Pete, Janis, and even Bre’s older brother, Paul. One by one the
y pledged to be his sages and to join him in this insanity.
Outside, the low rumble of thunder pulled Garrett from his thoughts and he suddenly felt everyone staring at him expectantly. He turned to Mr. B and rubbed both palms down his face, drawing in a deep breath. “Okay, Mr. B. What happens now?”
Mr. B considered the seven new sages and allowed slip the briefest of smiles. “With the selections you have made, Garrett, the prophecy has been sealed. The future of the world rests with each of you.”
Garrett wanted to ask the large man what the hell was so funny because they were probably all going to die, but Mr. B beat him to it.
“Do you know why I smile?”
No one spoke.
“I smile because I know the convincing is over. I smile now because you believe. Now there is hope.” His smile waned. “Yet an urgency pulls at my patience, and it is telling me time is fleeting with the evening light. A great darkness is coming, and there is no more time for celebration… not even in the evanescent duration of a smile.”
The air in the room went still as they held their breath, the gravity of Mr. B’s words pressing in on all of them.
Garrett held Mr. B’s gaze. He was committed to the cause, however insane. Yet the question hung in the air between them, electrified with the sheer excitement of whatever craziness he had just signed on for. What happens now?
“Mr. B?” Garrett asked, breaking the silence.
Mr. B’s smile fell away, replaced with a tight line. “Yes, yes, of course.” He drew in a breath. “Your test earlier was about focus. Focus is key in harnessing the energy of the God Stones. You will need to be able to tap into it at will.”
Breanne shifted her weight to her other foot, bringing her close enough to Garrett that he felt the warmth of her arm against his.
“I thought you said casting spells required using the language of these old gods?” Breanne said.