by Jamie Davis
“She’s not kidding, Hal,” Anders said. “She was beside herself about it for weeks afterward, especially when we couldn’t locate your body for a proper burial.”
Kay released him and held Hal at arm’s length staring up at him with glistening eyes.
“I made them gather all the bodies we could find, no matter who they were. We created a barrow on the site to mark the place of your death.”
Anders stepped forward, the big knight extending a calloused hand to clasp wrists with Hal in the way of warrior comrades in Fantasma.
“The speeches were epic, and I had my bard pen a new ballad to your supreme sacrifice. I can’t wait to have him recite it for you.”
Hal’s shoulders slumped a little. It wasn’t his fault Tildi decided to open the portal back to his world at that moment.
“There was a funeral?”
As Anders released Hal’s wrist, Korran stepped forward and repeated the gesture with Hal, himself.
“From everything I’ve heard it was spectacular.”
Hal groaned. While he occasionally dreamed of what people would say about him in the event of his death, this wasn’t how he expected to learn about it.
Duke Korran took one look at Hal’s sickened expression and let out a burst of loud guffaws that Hal thought were most un-Duke-like.
Anders and Kay joined in then and the infectious noise spread until Hal couldn’t avoid laughing along with them at his own expense. At least Kay was no longer tearing up.
As he got ahold of himself once again, Duke Korran, wiped a tear from his eye and waggled a finger in Hal’s direction.
“I must say, I needed that, Hal. It’s been a long time since we’ve had reason to laugh about much of anything.”
Anders nodded. “Things have been dire since you left, Hal. Though we pushed the Emperor’s army back that day a few months back and took the city of Hyroth, the tide has started to turn against us and we are hard-pressed to hold back the Emperor’s reinforcements streaming westward to try and retake Hyroth from us.”
“That is why we’re here, with Duke Korran,” Kay said. “We are preparing to take a new force of recruits from Tandon and the other free cities back east to bolster our defenses.”
“Things are really that grim?” Hal asked. It wasn’t idle curiosity about the war effort. He needed to know. He would have to penetrate those battle lines if he hoped to rescue his family.
“Perhaps not,” Korran said, still smiling. “Now that you’re here, it must be time for another epic quest for the mythical Opponent himself. I have to say, Hal, I never bought into all of that legend myself. But after hearing all you did in Hyroth, and then during the battle in the hills afterward, and now coming back from the dead like this, I suppose I have to give it some credence. Now that you’re back to lead the troops in battle, I feel like there is nothing we can’t do.”
Hal coughed and looked away. The pause was not missed by his companions.
Kay was the first to speak.
“You have returned to do what you do so well, right? You’re going to tell us you have a clever plan and I’m not going to believe you and then you’ll make it so we all see how you save the day.”
It was Hal’s turn to shake his head. His lips pressed together into a grim line as he tried to come up with words that would let them down easy while conveying the urgency of his family’s kidnapping.
“What is it, Hal?” Kay asked. “It’s not like you to be at a loss for words.”
“It’s Mona and Cari…” Hal’s voice broke before he could finish.
“That’s your wife and baby, right?” Kay asked.
Hal nodded, unable to bring himself to speak as he thought of what they must be going through as captives under the Emperor’s power.
“Did something happen to them back in your homeland?” Anders asked. “I swear, Hal, upon my honor, as soon as this war is completed, I will accompany you myself and return with you to avenge them.”
Hal struggled and finally said. “They’re not there. They are here, in Fantasma. He has them.”
“He? You mean the Emperor took them?” Korran asked. “But how? You said yourself you come from a faraway land that requires great magic to transport you here.”
“They should have been safe. I don’t know what he did, but somehow he found out where I was from and sent people to take them right from my home. They were gone by the time I returned. All I have is this.”
Hal fished the folded parchment note from the Emperor from his pocket and held it out. Kay reached for it and read it before passing to Anders and the Duke in turn.
“That is why I cannot help you with your cause. I must do everything I can to travel to the Imperial capital, get inside the Crystal City, and rescue them. If not, then I have no choice but to turn myself in.”
“He’ll kill you, Hal,” Kay said. “You know that. He will do to you what he did to my father and mother. Then he will either enslave your wife and daughter as he did my siblings and me or kill them while you watch before your own execution.”
“Don’t you think I know that? What choice do I have?”
“You have to meet power with power of your own, Hal Dix.”
A new voice sounded from behind them by the fireplace. All four spun in place, shock distracting them from the seriousness of their discussion.
The wizened and hunched form of Tildi the Elder stood by the fireplace, her back to them. She used the metal shod base of her staff to prod the coals beneath the burning logs. She continued poking the fire without turning around.
“He wants your power for himself, Hal. If you turn yourself over to him without the proper training, he and his pet mages will leech the strength of the Opponent from your very soul leaving you a husk of your former self.”
“How long have you been standing there?” Korran asked.
Tildi looked up, the tiniest of smirks at the corners of her mouth.
“Long enough to know I should have stuck around for the funeral feast after the explosion instead of leaving after I sent Hal home.”
“What do you mean by the Emperor taking my power for himself? What power do I have that he could want? He’s the freaking Emperor for God’s sake.”
“Hal, you know you have something special that happens when you come here to Fantasma. It is why I created the game in your world to begin with. I discovered that using magic from Fantasma, coupled with the science of your world; I could create a way for you to directly tap into magic in a way that enabled you to become whatever you needed to be in the moment. You did that twice, first becoming a master thief, then transforming yourself into a blade master and great war leader. The Emperor has discovered what you can do, at least in part. He seeks that power for himself and he will find a way to do just that. After that, none of us will be able to defeat him.”
“So? All I have to do is stay away from him while I rescue my family. I can do that. I’ve got a few more tricks up my sleeve. I’ll do whatever it takes.”
“You don’t understand, Hal. It’s not just you that’s at risk here,” Tildi continued. “You’re not the only one anymore.”
Hal struggled to piece together what the mage was saying to him. It was all a lot to figure out and it was clear he was missing something key.
Kay got to it first.
“Your wife and daughter, Hal. They came through the portal the same way you did. That means they have the power, too, doesn’t it, Tildi?”
Hal groaned aloud. “It’s already too late, isn’t it? He already has them.”
“No, Hal,” Tildi said. “I would have detected that kind of power transfer and I have not sensed anything like it. It is likely the Emperor and his mages are unaware of the particular mechanics of how the magic-game interface works. But it will not take them long to realize that Mona and Cari are empowered in much the same way you are, especially if the two of them start exhibiting special abilities of some sort before they learn to control them.”
Hal let
his shoulders slump in defeat.
“What do I do, Tildi? You’re telling me I can’t rescue them. Then, in the same breath, you say the Emperor already has everything he needs to accomplish what he wants with my wife and daughter. He doesn’t need me at all.”
Tildi nodded. Leaning her staff against the wall beside the fireplace mantle, she took out her pipe and, with a fingertip, channeled a tiny jet of flame into the bowl while she puffed at the stem. She paused to blow a few smoke rings before continuing.
“That is why you have to train and learn to block his ability to siphon the magic from you and your family. Only you possess the ability from both worlds, Hal. You could harness both the magic and the game at once and defeat the Emperor and his mages before they figure out how to counter you.”
“I don’t know anything about magic or game programming. That’s what you’re talking about, isn’t it? If I can somehow use both magic and get inside the code of the Fantasma game at the same time, I could find a way to defeat them while keeping them from hurting Mona and Cari.”
Tildi’s eyes twinkled. She didn’t say anything. She just kept puffing at her pipe.
Korran cleared his throat, “I don’t suppose it matters that there hasn’t been a new arch mage born in over a hundred years and the old academy has long been disbanded.”
“He’s right, Tildi,” Anders said. “There are only four free arch mages left in the world. All the others are dead or work for the Emperor. How’s Hal supposed to train if there’s no academy to teach him anymore.”
“Not only that,” Kay added. “I thought it took decades to train a wizard with any level of power?”
Hal discovered his knees quivered beneath him and a pit of quicksand swirled deep in his gut, churning his fear to higher levels. He wasn’t afraid for himself. He was scared for Mona and Cari. His friends all made it sound impossible for him to accomplish what Tildi suggested.
“What if I fail? You’ve all come up with good reasons this can’t work.”
“And yet, you’ve managed the impossible before, haven’t you?” Tildi asked.
“Not like this. We don’t have decades to do this. My wife and daughter are being held in whatever horrible dungeon the Emperor has devised for them. I can’t let them rot in there for decades.”
“You have something no other mage in training has had, Hal. Certainly, I didn’t have it all those long years ago.”
“What’s that?”
“You can access the game. That is what I discovered and because of that, you should be able to shave years off the time it takes to train in magic. Most of that time is spent in the early stages where a young wizard struggles to merely connect with the world’s magic. You can bypass all of that simply adopting a new class.”
“Pardon me,” Duke Korran interrupted. “What is all this talk about a game and adopting a new class? How does Hal’s ability to play a game impact his strength in learning magic?”
Hal thought about how weird it must seem to the others to hear all this talk about science and games alongside magic and their world. It made him chuckle to himself. If they only knew. He turned back to Tildi.
“You can explain it to them if you want another time. If that is all I need to do to bypass those years of training, then I will do that. I have to do whatever it takes to free my family before Emperor Kang figures out what he’s got in his grubby little hands.”
Hal stared off into space and concentrated for a moment on his stats menu. When his character stats were up in his field of vision, he cleared his throat and spoke in a loud, clear voice.
“I wish to change my class to mage.”
A message and a prompt replaced his stats screen.
Class changed to Mage. All experience as a rogue and warrior erased until Arch Mage status is reached.
Say “yes” to confirm this selection.
“Yes.”
Hal’s stats screen popped back in place this time with all the fighter and thief abilities grayed out. A flashing message appeared at the bottom.
Choose your magical element. (Ice, Fire, Earth, Wind)
“Hey, Tildi. I’m supposed to choose my magical element. I have to pick between Ice, Fire, Earth, and Wind. What should I select?”
“Well, that is interesting,” the mage said. Her eyes shifted up to the ceiling and she stared for long seconds before she said anything more. She kept her eyes upward as if an invisible answer was displayed somewhere on the ornate carved wooden panels that stretched across the hall.
“I should have thought about this. Usually, the school of magic a wizard is attuned to is discovered while they learn to tap into the power centers within themselves. In this case, you must choose for yourself.”
“Too bad he can’t choose all of the above,” Anders quipped. “That would come in handy.”
Tildi snapped her fingers.
“That is a wonderful, and terrifying, suggestion.” She leveled her gaze at Hal. “Do it.”
“Wait. What?” The hair on Hal’s neck stood on end. “You just said it was a terrifying suggestion. That doesn’t sound good.”
“Good and bad are two sides of the same coin in this instance. It’s how you spend it that decides the outcome. Usually, a mage only has enough power within to control a single source of magical energy. Once attuned to that source, trying to tap into one of the others can cause the mage to burn out their abilities completely, or worse.”
“That definitely doesn’t sound like what I want to do.”
Tildi raised a finger and pointed it at Hal.
“But, you’re not from here. The same rules don’t apply. At least, I don’t think they do. You have the game and that gives you something no one else has. It empowers you through the science of the code and not from the magic of our world alone. It might be what sets you apart from the rest of us. That could be the root of the prophecy’s power.”
“So, you want me to do it simply because you have a hunch? I can’t take that kind of chance. My wife and daughter’s lives depend on it.”
“All the more reason you can’t afford not to take the chance, my boy,” Tildi scolded. “You said yourself it’s the most urgent thing in the world to you. What other time would you take a chance like this?”
Korran, Kay, and Anders stood still. Their eyes shifted to each other, perhaps seeking answers there. Eventually, all eyes rested on him.
The silence closed around him like a lead blanket, smothering him while it threatened to crush his resolve. Hal swallowed hard and cleared his throat once more.
“I select all.”
Confirm your decision to select specialization in all magical elements. Arch Mage status reached with mastery of all elements.
“Confirmed.”
Tildi took her pipe from her mouth and pointed the stem at Hal.
“That went better than I expected.”
Hal opened his mouth to protest but stopped as the old mage held up her hand.
“I couldn’t know what would happen, Hal. No one has ever tried what you just did before. Besides, it is done, and you survived.”
“What’s next, then? I need to do this fast before the Emperor discovers what he can do with Mona and Cari.”
“I think Ice is as good a place as any. You need to travel north to work with a friend of mine.”
Korran grinned.
“You’re thinking of Ragnar? I have heard he is, uh, difficult shall we say.”
“He has his moments, as do we all. He is the best alive at manipulating ice magic. He will also be able to help Hal here adjust to what he needs to learn about casting and protecting himself as a mage. I’ll open a portal once we get Hal some proper gear.”
“I should go as well,” Kay volunteered. “Hal can’t keep himself out of trouble on a good day. Stumbling around amidst the barbarian tribes, he will need someone to watch his back.”
“Then I shall accompany you both too,” Anders added.
“No,” Tildi said. “I can only open a
portal wide enough for two.”
“I cannot let Kareena accompany Hal alone. They both have need of my sword and shield.”
“I can handle myself, Anders,” Kay said. “Besides, one of us has to lead the new forces west, as well as tell Otto, Junica, Rune, and the others Hal has returned. I have been Hal’s companion the longest. It should be I who accompanies him.”
She laid a hand on Anders' arm. “Don’t worry, my love; I’ll be careful.”
Anders grumbled under his breath. His teeth ground together and his hands formed fists at his side. The knuckles of both hands blanched white as the knight clenched them.
Hal thought Anders was going to refuse but the big knight surprised Hal as he relaxed his grip and flexed his fingers before reaching out and stroking an errant strand of Kay’s blonde hair away from her face.
“Kareena, I know you must do what you think is right. I will do as you wish because I would not risk losing you to my own pig-headedness. Hal, you will look after her?”
“As if she were my own flesh and blood, Anders.”
Tildi grabbed her staff where it stood by the fireplace and tapped the steel-shod butt on the wooden floor.
“Good, that is settled, then. Your Grace, with your leave, I will take our young mage here so he might be equipped for his journey and trials to come.”
Korran nodded.
With that, Hal began what would become his most challenging task in Fantasma yet.
He would become a mage.
4
The green-cloaked image stared back at him from the mirror. From the black tailored breeches tucked into the tops of the polished black boots to the billowy white linen shirt, the laces at the v-neck collar left open and dangling, Hal saw the image of a dainty nobleman staring back at him. Only the comforting weight of his twin daggers on each hip gave him any sense of being ready to start on this quest to learn magic.
Hooking a finger inside the hammered gold broach holding the moss-green cloak firmly around his neck, Hal tried to shift the heavy cloak forward to take more of the weight on his shoulders. It sort of worked.