Magecraft

by Antoine Henderson

  Copyright © 2018 Antoine Henderson. All rights reserved.

  No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law.

  For permissions contact: ah@ahauthor.com

  Dedicated to you, the reader and to all aspiring writers in the world…

  Contents

  Previously on A Royal Game...

  Previously on Bishop & Rook...

  Magik

  Opportunity

  Rathbone Estate

  Jumportal

  Link

  The Avatar War

  Translantern

  The Bell Tower

  Flame Ceremony

  The 12th Link

  Mutual Hatred

  Nemesis

  The Violet Witch

  Search Warrant

  Doubt

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  Author Note

  Previously on A Royal Game...

  A Magik: The Avatar Wars Prequel Book

  The story begins with Edgar Killshaw, the loyal butler to Andrades Archibald IV, the head of a prominent royal magical family. He informs Andrades of their search for a man named Tybalt—who has information Andrades seeks. Andrades is also informed of Magnus Rathbone, a frenemy of sorts, coming to pay him a visit as well as his nephew Avrice.

  Annabeth Archibald is Andrades' younger sister and Avrice's mother, who was exiled from the family after she married Avrice's father—Thomas Hart—a non-warlock human outside the royal aristocracy. Avrice has come to his uncle for one reason, to do whatever it takes for him and his mother to be welcomed back into the family. The test? Avrice had to best Andrades in a duel, but fails to do so, but wouldn’t give up. Andrades summons an Avatar by the name of Izuul Razpragga to perform a ritual on Avrice. If Avrice survives the ritual and aids Andrades in his goals, he and his mother will be welcome back into the family.

  While Izuul performs the ritual, Avrice meets with another one of his Avatars, Salamandra Noir—a witch. Under Andrades' orders, she had been following Magnus Rathbone for weeks, gathering information and came to update Andrades before his arrival. When Magnus arrives, Andrades doesn't open confront him, but wonders why Lyberia Lafayette and the other members of the Royal Court have avoided him. Magnus says he can't discuss the issue and gives Andrades and invite to Lyberia’s Gala that evening.

  Andrades accepts, but not before the surprise arrival of Agent Mauthe of the M.A.N.A. She's come to discuss the murders of Morgan and Lucia Montcroix from a decade prior. Andrades learns Agent Mauthe has been speaking with other prominent heads of royal families and he is the last. He knew of her investigation based on Salamandra's information but kept his cool to avoid casting suspicion on himself. After a brief back-and-forth, Agent Mauthe leaves and informs Andrades she will see him again that evening at Lady Lafayette's gala.

  On his journey to Lady Lafayette's gala, Andrades is ambushed by a group of professional assassins that he makes quick work of. He orders his bodyguard to dispose of the bodies and arrives at the gala late, where he meets with various Royal Court members. Agent Mauthe makes a surprise announcement to the entirety of royal aristocracy about her investigation and wants their help in finding the murderer.

  After spending time at the gala, Andrades loses the tail placed on him by Agent Mauthe and convenes in secret with the Royal Court. It’s revealed that it was Andrades who warned of a prophecy citing the Montcroix’s would overthrow the Royal Court and it was with their help he murdered them. He summons Salamandra, who prophesizes the one who can help them foil Agent Mauthe’s investigation: a man by the name of Wiley MacKenna. Lady Lafayette and others are familiar with him and take Andrades to meet with him immediately.

  Andrades surrenders his Salamandra's orb and a conduit wand to Wiley's security before they meet with him. After a brief discussion, Victor and Lady Lafayette reveal they've betrayed Andrades and they were the ones aiding Agent Mauthe in her investigation. Andrades reveals he knew they were behind it and it's not surprising they would frame him for it, even though they were all involved. Avrice, having survived the ritual, arrives via portal after Salamandra kills Wiley's guards. Andrades orders Avrice to kill Lady Lafayette and Victor in order for his final test. Avrice passes.

  Andrades forces Wiley to sign a magical contract making Wiley his slave. Before they leave, Avrice and Andrades kill the remaining members of the Royal Court, but one managed to get away because he wasn’t there: Magnus Rathbone. The next day, Andrades is confronted by Agent Mauthe, who informs him of the deaths of various members of the Royal Court. She tells him assassins killed them and burned their houses down. Andrades says the same thing almost happened to him, but luckily he survived. He adds he can show her the bodies if she wishes.

  Agent Mauthe believes Andrades is not only responsible for the Montcroix murders, but also the murders of Lady Lafayette, Victor and the other members of the Royal Court. She vows to bring Andrades to justice and threatens him, before Director of Utility of the M.A.N.A, Director Edmund Falco arrives and admonishes Agent Mauthe before dismissing her. Director Falco warns Andrades he cannot interfere again or the other Directors will become suspicious. Andrades says he won’t have to as they know where the boy is and it’s only a matter of time before they get the key and get into Mage Society...

  ...On to Bishop & Rook...

  Previously on Bishop & Rook...

  A Magik: The Avatar Wars Prequel Book

  Bishop convinces Rook to join him while he purchases a vintage video game from someone he met online, only it turns out to be more trouble than what it’s worth. After hours of waiting, Bishop got what he wanted while Rook wasted a day in the process. While the two were distracted as they argued on their way home, the video game was snatched out of Bishop’s hand by a thief, much to Rook’s delight.

  Rook and Bishop chased the thief through the dark alleys and streets of Brooklyn until finally catching him using magic to help them. However, the thief led them to his employers and into harm’s way. Bishop demanded the thief return his video game when two large men wearing suits exited a door and accosted them for making so much noise.

  The two men recognized the thief. His name was Willard Zane and he owed the men’s boss a lot of money. Bishop, not caring about the history the thief and the men only wanted his game back and pressed Willard to return it. The two men, Mitch and Ronnie, threatened Bishop before attacking him. A move they instantly regretted as Bishop broke Mitch’s—the larger of the two—arm in a brief skirmish. Mitch pulled a gun on the two and called for his boss, Ian Graves.

  Ian arrives and is not too pleased with the situation. He recognizes Bishop and Rook as the Magic Duo—the name of their retrieval service when they’re not working as cooks in Rook’s uncle’s café. He gives Bishop, Rook, and the thief a solution to solve all their problems. They can die or they can work for him on a single job. The job? Locating a man named Daniel Ortega, who murdered Ian’s little brother and is now protected by a rival criminal organization and they had to do the job within twenty-four hours or Willard Zane’s wife and daughter would be killed first. Wanting to live, they accepted the job.

  They locate Daniel Ortega at the Knightingale Hotel and escaped the men protecting him. They soon learn that Daniel was not being protected by criminals, but the police. It’s confirmed when the police find them in the warehouse they chose to hide out in, led by Detective Moss. He corners Rook and Daniel Ortega as they tried to flee the warehouse, but Bishop uses his illusion magic to help them escape.

  Seeking refuge, the three take Daniel to the only safe place they can think of, Willard Zane’s home. There, they find Willard�
�s wife and daughter are missing. They call Ian who tells them to bring Daniel to the shipyard to trade for Willard’s family. Daniel tells the group the real reason why Ian wants Daniel—he didn’t kill Ian’s little brother. He witnessed Ian’s boss murdering a group of his enemies and his wife died in the process. He was being protected by the police to testify against Ian’s boss in the upcoming court case. Bishop and Rook disagree on how to proceed. Rook thinks they should go to the police for help, while Bishop thinks they should honor their agreement so that Willard’s wife and child are not killed.

  Rook leaves to get the police while Bishop, Ian, and Daniel go meet with Ian. Once there, Bishop uses his illusion magic to trick Ian into believing he’s handed Daniel Ortega over in exchange for Willard’s family. It turns out; Daniel stayed at Willard’s home and was never there. Bishop and Willard protect his family until Rook arrives with help from Detective Moss and the police when they surround Ian and his men and a firefight ensues.

  Realizing it was a trap, Ian and his bodyguards escape aboard an abandoned tanker. Rook, Bishop and Detective Moss entered the tanker. Bishop is engaged by Ian’s bodyguards’, who turn out to be werewolves and chases him out of the tanker. He leads them right into a trap—locking them inside an empty steel shipping container before entering the tanker once to help aid Rook and Detective Moss find Ian.

  Rook and Detective Moss find Ian, who knows Rook by his real name and was told he wasn’t to harm him in any way by a contact in the Spell Network—an underground criminal enterprise. Willard arrives before he and Detective Moss corner Ian, but are incapacitated by Ian’s ability to use magic. Ian gets the upper hand on Rook before he is stopped by a woman in tattered black robes. She warns Ian that his job was not to harm Rook and Ian tries to kill her but fails. He instead ends up being turned into a puddle of boiled human soup.

  Bishop arrives to stop the woman from taking Rook. He recognizes her as an Avatar and warns Rook of her deadly intent. Another Avatar appears tells the woman in black to cease her pursuit. The two Avatars escape the tanker, leaving Rook and Bishop to wonder why they knew so much about them. Willard is reunited with his family and Daniel Ortega is placed back under the protection of Detective Moss. Bishop and Rook were left wondering who the Avatar’s were and how they and Ian knew so much about Rook...

  ...Welcome to Magecraft...

  1

  Magik

  Rook exhaled and opened his gray eyes. They settled on his uncle Niles sitting in a chair across from him. His hand hovered in front of Rook’s chest, moving in a circular motion. It radiated a glowing white aura that encompassed the pain Rook felt emanating from his heart, gradually reducing it with each passing second.

  Niles wore dark blue jeans and a black turtleneck sweater that covered his dark skin. Black and gray dreadlocks fell behind his back, tied together with a white band. Square sunglasses covered his eyes and a white cane rested on his lap.

  Rook sighed. “Is this still necessary?” Rook asked. He rubbed his blue jeans impatiently. It was roughly an hour since he sat down. “I don’t know why I have to sit here for so long.”

  “Yes, it is,” Niles replied with a stern, yet understanding voice. “Stop whining, it’s for your benefit. If you didn’t hang around that vagabond Bishop all the time, you wouldn’t be dealing with this nearly as much,” he cautioned. “Your parents never wanted you to use magic, so they never taught you. It was only when I caught you using magic in the basement when you were nine that I had no choice but to teach you, remember? This is the only way to keep the pain from returning. It’ll be over in a few minutes, just deal with it.”

  A grin stretched his lips. “Levitating boxes and stacking them like Lego’s,” said Rook. “I remember those days.”

  Born a fullblood warlock—having a mother that was a witch and a father that was a warlock—Rook had the ability to use magic since birth. But because he was never taught to use it at an early age, his magic became unstable and using it to lift even a simple cup from a countertop without shattering it became impossible for him at one point.

  Rook’s situation was uncommon, but unique. If he didn’t use magic, it became unstable and had disastrous effects on objects and people around him. If he used magic, a piercing pain crippled him to the point of passing out, but Niles found a remedy. He created a spell that temporarily circumvented the pain Rook felt. He never told Rook what the spell was, but as long as Rook didn’t use magic too often, the pain wouldn’t return and his magic would be stable.

  Rook preferring to be doing anything else, rather than sitting and endure his uncle’s spell, but over time he came to accept it was necessary. It made him think he was cursed with a magical sickness. Not because of the pain it caused, but it reminded him of how weak he was. Although Bishop argued otherwise, often stating that Rook was stronger than he was.

  “Finished?” Rook asked, anxious and ready to go.

  “Hold your horses, I’m almost done,” Niles responded. “Instead of complaining, you should thank me. The pain you’re feeling now is nothing compared to the pain Bishop will cause you. It was only a few weeks ago you told me he got you dragged into some business with a crime lord and nearly killed by werewolves. And trust me, that's not something you want, Marques.”

  “It’s Rook, uncle! How many times do I have to tell you? I hate it when you call me Marques,” he argued.

  “Your mother named you after our grandfather and that is what I will call you,” said Niles sternly. “Not some stupid nickname, given to you by that street-urchin. When is he moving out, anyway? He still hasn’t paid his rent this month!”

  “You know we can’t just get rid of him Uncle, he’s my friend. Besides, he’s helping me find Isabella and as far as the rent goes, I’ll remind him when he comes back.”

  “Make sure you do—” Niles raised an eyebrow above the frame of his sunglasses. “You’re not still looking for her, are you? I thought we decided it was best to let that go, Marques?”

  “I decided nothing; you decided that for me, Uncle… I’m surprised you’ve given up,” Rook snapped.

  “No… it’s just… it’s been over ten years, Rook. She could be anywhere or she—”

  Rook snapped a glare at his Uncle. “What? Say it!”

  Niles sighed. “I just don’t want you wasting your life looking for her. You don’t want to wake up one day and realize your life passed you by and you’ve achieved nothing and end up disappointed in yourself for not finding her. You don’t want to live a life of regret.”

  “Finding my sister is more important than everything… I won’t just give up because it looks hopeless,” Rook argued. “That’s a lesson you taught me.”

  Niles’ attention fixated on Rook for several moments before speaking. “I know I did… you’re my nephew and I want what’s best for you, is all.”

  “What’s best for me right now is your support.”

  “And you have it,” Niles replied.

  Rook watched his uncle force a smile, he’d seen him do it enough to know the distinction, but he didn’t want to discuss it further.

  “Can I ask you a question?”

  “Have at it,” said Rook.

  “How is that idiot going to help you find your sister when he can’t even keep track of his bedroom key? I’ve made him nine copies already!”

  Bishop and Rook stayed with Niles in a four bedroom apartment above of the Blue Moon café in Brooklyn, New York. His uncle owned and operated the establishment since he retired and it was also where Bishop and Rook worked as cooks to pay for their room and board. It was their home and Bishop had the tendency to misplace the key to his bedroom every couple of weeks.

  Rook chuckled for a few seconds before collecting himself. “Bishop is a… interesting individual, I know. I also know he’s not the most pleasant person to be around for you, but he’s my friend and is doing whatever he can to help me. He’s shown me things I would never have had the chance to see be
fore.”

  Niles raised an eyebrow. “Like the barrel of a gun? You should have listened—I tried to warn you about him.”

  “It was only one time, and it hasn’t happened since. Besides, I think we can take care of ourselves,” Rook argued. “Uncle Niles, I’ve lived with you since I was nine, and you’ve never so much as taken me outside of Brooklyn.”

  “For your own protection, I can assure you,” Niles explained. “There’s nothing out there but trouble, no matter where you go. It was best you stayed home. It’s not safe for warlocks and witches and I wanted to keep you from having to deal with any trouble, Marques.”

  “You’re right, there’s trouble everywhere, but I wouldn’t learn anything if I experienced nothing myself, Uncle,” Rook argued. “I’m nineteen now, and I shouldn’t have to ask to go anywhere. I should be able to go wherever I want when I want.”

  “And you can, Marques, as long as it’s around here. Trust me, you’ll understand one day. I’m only trying to do what’s best for you.”

  Niles’ hand stopped glowing before he leaned back in his chair and exhaled. “There, all done.”

  He sat quietly for a moment before forcing another smile.

  Rook put his long-sleeved white shirt on, before waving a hand through his short black hair.

  “Look, I know you want what’s best for me, but there will come a time when I will have to figure things out for myself.”

  Niles sighed before scratching his chin. “Until that day comes, promise me you’ll stay out of trouble?”

  Rook turned to his Uncle while he rested his hands on his cane. “I promise.”

  The bell to the door jingled as it opened. Bishop walked through, looking around before settling on Rook. The café was small compared to the larger corporate-run coffee chains around the neighborhood.

  Four booths sat in its center, surrounded by small tables and chairs. To the left was a wooden counter and behind it a set of swinging double doors leading into the kitchen. In the far back was a door that led to the basement next to a set of stairs leading to the apartment above.