by Dan Levinson
Aaron collapsed at the edge of the pond and stuck his face in. God, it felt so good! He drank greedily, drank until some water went down the wrong way and he fell back, coughing and sputtering.
It was then he saw the hem of a red robe suspended inches above the water.
Aaron scrambled back. The figure hovered above the pool, swathed in the same crimson folds as always, eyes unreadable, boring into Aaron from the depths of that cowl.
“You’re . . . not real,” Aaron stammered. “Go . . . go away!”
“I assure you,” the figure said, “that I am very real.”
“Leave me alone!”
“Such gratitude for the one who saved your life,” the figure replied.
“No,” Aaron said, “this is a hallucination!” He got to his feet and turned to flee, but found himself staring into those eyes again. The robed man was mere feet from him.
“Be calm,” the figure commanded.
Suddenly Aaron felt a crushing weight on his mind. He could not fight it, only . . . acquiesce. He toppled backward, staring up at the robed figure in awe.
“Who . . . are you?” he finally managed.
“I am Eliphas Caducus,” the figure said. “And I have been waiting for you a very, very long time.”
Acknowledgments
To my parents, for your eternal patience and unwavering faith, I give my utmost gratitude; without your support, I never could have come this far. To my brothers, David and Michael, for your extraordinary excitement and encouragement; my appreciation.
To Jolly Fish Press—Christopher Loke, Kirk Cunningham, Reece Hanzon, and the rest of the JFP editorial team—thank you for believing in this project, and for helping me guide it to completion. It’s been a pleasure and a privilege working with you.
To the JFP design team, thank you for your incredible work; it’s better than I could have ever dreamed.
To my mentors, Linda Roberts and Jake Krueger, thank you for helping me find myself as a writer, and for equipping me with the skills to write this story the way I’ve always wanted. I will make it out to Costa Rica (or wherever the writer’s retreat is being held) one of these days.
To Dave F., my friend and favorite reader, thank you for the enthusiasm, and inspiration; I look forward to continuing this journey with you forever in my corner. To my friend Dan H., thank you for always believing in this story’s world, and for fueling my determination to grow and improve as a writer.
To the many authors who’ve inspired me over the years, thank you. And to those who’ve passed on—Robert Jordan, David and Leigh Eddings, Brian Jacques—I regret that I’ll never share with you my work, nor a glass of good Scotch.
Last, but not least, to my readers: thank you for coming on this journey with me. I hope you’ll stick around for many years to come. It’s going to be an exciting ride.
Born and raised on Long Island, NY, Dan grew up immersing himself in fantastical worlds. While other kids dreamed of being astronauts and cowboys, all he ever wanted was to be a novelist. Now, he’s living his dream.