Master of Magic

by Bebe Lightsmith

  An odd sort of silence filled the air. Even though I didn’t know most of the knights, I knew they knew me, which meant they also knew how Ryker felt about me. Insulting me and accusing me was not the way to make friends with my knight, and Toby was about to learn that lesson.

  I felt an influx of power, which drew my gaze to Ryker.

  Ryker rushed forward and slammed his fist into Tobias Achilles’ face. Strong hands grabbed me and forced me back. The knights passed me from one to another until I was standing at the other side of the pool, near the house. Over the noises of the crowd cheering, I could hear the pops of bones breaking. Shuffling around the majority of the crowd, there was a thin spot where I could see Ryker and Toby rolling around in the grass, taking turns beating the hell out of each other.

  Then I felt it. It was a magic I had never felt before, yet it was familiar somehow, like an old memory that could not quite surface. The two sides of knights started to push and shove at each other. A brawl would break out at any moment. Glass smashed, and I turned my head to see Hector Gawain throw a patio table at the Perseus Legacy. That was the entire spark that was needed. Soon hundreds of knights were fighting each other. I lost sight of Ryker and Toby, but I could feel that strange magic in the air.

  Rushing forward, I dodged a flying fist and then ducked under two knights wrestling each other to the ground. Ryker and Toby were still facing off. Ryker’s eye was black and he was wiping blood from his mouth. Toby had several more bruises along his chest and face. Toby released a wet cough, spitting out blood.

  “Is that all you got, Pendragon?” He taunted.

  Ryker hurled forward, red glowing around his fist. Toby charged, his own burnt orange magic surrounding his hand. They were going to use magic? Did they want to tear up the entire city block?

  I raised my hand, wanting them to stop. That weird magic surrounded me.

  “Stop!” I yelled. A flying blue and white orb crashed into my hand, a ring sliding onto my finger. “Stop!” I yelled just as the ring touched my skin. A green wave of energy cascaded out from all around me.

  Then the world did, in fact, stop.

  Everyone stood motionless as I stared at the sudden stillness. People were still in fighting positions, arms were still cocked, faces were still enraged, but everyone was just still. A few were even suspended above the ground, as they jumped or kicked at their opponent. Even the water droplets from the splashing in the pool hung in the air. Toby and Ryker stood only about a foot from each other, their fists still loaded with magic, about to hit each other. I took a step forward. Even the grass was stiff with the stillness of it all. What did I do? I stared down at my hand, with the ring that suddenly appeared still on my right ring finger. It glowed green now as magic coursed through my body. It was the comfort of a warm hug with the excitement of exploring a new place. It felt right. And for the first time in a long time, I felt true, raw power.

  Where was Owen?

  I glanced around again, trying to find him in the chaos. I needed to find him.

  “Uh, go?” I said out loud, raising my hand. The scene started again, like pushing play on a paused television. It was like nothing had happened. Leaving Ryker to fight his battle, I doubled back to the pool to try to find Owen. I tried to pull the ring off of my finger, but it wouldn’t budge. It was stuck.

  “Move,” I said, waving my hand at a couple of knights who were pummeling each other. An unseen force literally pushed them out of my way as they went flying across the lawn. The green magic glowed on my finger as they followed my command.

  “Owen!” I called, hoping he would somehow hear me. My only option was to get my pocket mirror and see if I could see him through there. I made my way, carefully, to another side of the pool where a row of hooks was built into the outdoor shower house. Throwing on my cover-up, I reached into my pocket and found my mirror.

  “Find Owen,” I said to it. The mirror clouded over but showed nothing.

  “I need Owen,” I said. “Bring him to me,” I demanded. The ring glowed green, and suddenly Owen was standing right next to me. He stared at me with wide, startled eyes.

  “What was that?” He asked. Then he glanced around at the melee. “What the hell happened?” I raised my hand up to his face so he could see the ring. His eyes widened and crossed a little. He kept his features very still as if he was trying to hide his reaction.

  “Where did you get that?” He asked.

  “From the sky,” I said, pointing up.

  “And that started this?” Owen asked gesturing to the brawling happening around us.

  “Unfortunately not.” I sighed glancing around to see if I could see Ryker. Then I gave him a long look.

  “Got a little too close to Tobias, huh?” Owen grinned, nodding his head slowly. I sighed and nodded my head.

  “But Owen, more importantly!” I pointed to my finger.

  “Oh, right, deary, sorry.” Owen nodded, grabbing my hand and bringing the ring closer to his face.

  “So when it fell from the sky, it went right onto my finger, and right at that moment Ryker and Toby started fighting, so I yelled ‘stop!’ and then everything stopped,” I explained quickly. Owen furrowed his brow and looked over at me to ensure my seriousness.

  “What do you mean everything?” He asked, turning back to the ring.

  “I mean, like even the stars and the wind stopped moving, water hung in the air, the grass was even stiff,” I explained.

  Owen muttered something under his breath, but I couldn’t hear it over the yells and sounds of things breaking. I stepped closer.

  “What did you say?” I asked.

  “It’s nothing.” He shook his head.

  “Tell me what you said,” I said the phrase without even thinking of the power I now held. Owen stiffened, his body waved starting at his stomach and slowly going up to his chest, bending his neck, and then opening his mouth.

  “I said the Commander Ring.” Owen’s voice was a hoarse whisper as if the words were literally being forced out of him. I gasped, realizing what had happened.

  “Oh my God, Owen!” I covered my mouth in horror as the ring still glowed green in front of me. After a moment his body released and he took in a deep breath.

  “Ivy, dear, we must choose our words more carefully from now on.” He said in that ever-patient tone he always had with me.

  “You’re not mad?” I clarified.

  “You’re learning. I’ll never be mad about learning.” He said to me. At that moment, my chest swelled with affection for him.

  “Now, come on, we’ve got to get Ryker out of here before the authorities show,” Owen said, holding out his hand.

  I set my hand in his, and he led me through the crowd. Sometimes we’d dodge, sometimes he’d turn translucent, and other times I Commanded them to move. I didn’t know why Owen knew that knowledge, but I trusted that it was the truth. Later I would question him more. I would never admit this out loud, even to the guys, but I began to love my ring at that moment. The power it held was infinite.

  We found Ryker and Toby still fighting near the spot where I had left them. Ryker’s shirt was torn, and his face was bruised and bloodied. Toby didn’t look any better, but he was favoring his right leg, and his left arm hung loosely as if the shoulder had been dislocated.

  Was this what tomorrow would bring?

  “Command him to stop,” Owen told me.

  “But Toby,” I said.

  “Don’t worry about him.” Owen gave me a sure nod, so I complied.

  “Ryker, stop!” I shouted, holding up my hand. The ring glowed green, and Ryker froze in place. Toby stopped his attack, turning his head to look at me.

  “Oh, now, I understand.” He laughed. I had enough of him.

  “Shut up,” I said. His lips shut up tight, and he released a muffled scream. Owen rushed him, taking the opening to set his hands on either side of Toby’s temples.

  “You will forget this conversation ever happened. You will forget what
you saw. You and Ryker got in a little friendly boxing match, and that was that. The fight ended in a tie.” With that, Owen stepped back. Then with a wave of his hand, a huge box filled with gallon sized zip-locks of cookies appeared. “Make sure every person at this party eats one of these.” Owen then manifested a cookie in his hand. “Eat this.” He stuffed it in Toby’s mouth. The Achilles Legacy just stood there stunned, gazing at us with wide glazed over eyes.

  “Alright, Ivy dear, tell Ryker to follow us.” Owen grinned and then strutted off towards the side of the house.

  “Ryker, follow me,” I said.

  “What did you do to him?” I asked jogging to catch up with Owen. Ryker followed behind me.

  “You Command, I persuade.” Owen winked. I didn’t know what that meant. Jogging around the house, we opened the side gate and went to the car. As we stood out on the street, I released Ryker from all enchantments. He glared at me for a long moment, his eyes moving down to the still glowing ring on my finger.

  “Where did that come from?” He asked.

  “The sky,” I answered, honestly. He gave me a long look. With other people, he would have thought they were being sarcastic or lying to him. He knew I never lied to him, though.

  “Alright, then.” He said, giving me that weary look. He knew better than to question us by now. Instead, he pulled me in closer to him, setting his big hands on the small of my back.

  “I’m sorry I was such a dick.” He whispered to me. In the shadowed light, I could see the heat in his eyes, and I knew he meant it. My ring caught my eyes, still on my hand, which was resting on his chest directly in front of me.

  “I kind of understand,” I replied, tapping his chest with my ring finger. He shook his head, his mouth turning down into a frown. With the pad of his index finger, he lifted my chin, so I would look him in the eyes.

  “It’s just a tool. All the power comes from you.” He repeated back to me. I let out a little chuckle and stepped closer, pressing our hips together. As he wrapped his arms around me, his eyes focused on my lips.

  “Can I kiss you?” he asked. I forced back the chuckle, him asking for consent no longer seeming as funny.

  “You can always kiss me,” I answered, honestly. Slowly he leaned in, skimming his lips over mine, and then he pulled away. I released a long breath. He always left me wanting more.

  With a little smile, he opened the car door for me, and I got in.

  “That was a lovely evening. I enjoyed that.” Owen said as Ryker opened the driver’s door to get in.

  “Yeah, that was nice.” Ryker nodded, wiping the dried blood from his nose. He was shifting to look at his reflection in the rear-view mirror. I gaped at the both of them. I felt like an emotional wreck, and they were fine.

  Boys.

  “I’m starving,” Owen said. I couldn’t help it. I let out a little laugh.

  Ryker agreed, and on the way to the hotel, we stopped for some burgers. It was like nothing had happened between us, but I could see in the shadows of their eyes that they knew we needed to talk, just not right then.

  Chapter Five:

  Ryker:

  As soon as I arrived at the Coliseum the next morning, I was ushered into a holding room. This was probably the most epic knight-versus-knight fight in a millennium, so they might as well make a show out of it. My father came in and gave me some words of encouragement. Though our relationship has improved, I still felt resentment towards him. I wished things were different between us, but I also knew that I couldn’t change him. When he was around, he was a good father for the most part, but it was the being around part that was the trouble for him.

  “Since this is a purely physical battle, with no weapons, they are suggesting that you fight shirtless.” My father said to me. I wore a pair of athletic shorts and a t-shirt. I nodded, pulling my shirt over my head. It made sense. The material would only get in the way. To my surprise, my father started to unbutton his own shirt.

  “What are you doing?” I asked. He gave me a long look. I always wondered what my egg-donor mother looked like as I never thought I looked like Whitney Pendragon. He was a tall, burly man with ruddy cheeks, a harsh face, and piercing forest green eyes.

  “It’s time.” My father replied, laying his dress shirt on the back of a chair and then removing his sleeveless undershirt. On his back was a large tattoo of the Pendragon Crest, the golden dragon on a red shield. It had been passed down from father to son since Arthur. It was our tangible connection to him. Though no mystical powers were associated with it, it was known that it brought the wearer immeasurable luck. Whitney had never said whether or not that was true.

  “No, dad. It’s not the time for that.” I shook my head. He was basically giving me the Pendragon line and all the responsibility that came with it.

  “If you are going to be out there representing our family, then everyone should know who you represent.” He argued. I gave him a long look and realized that I didn’t recognize that look in his eyes.

  “Are you worried?” I asked in astonishment. My father took a step forward, resting his hands on my shoulders, leaning his head in so we were eye-to-eye.

  “I know you can defeat this Achilles pup, I’m not in the slightest bit concerned about your skill. But we are sending a message here son, and with your victory, that also puts you in danger. The tattoo will protect you like it had protected our ancestors.” He explained.

  My heart thumped in my chest as I realized what he was saying. When I won that day, I would be the Pendragon. He wouldn’t matter much anymore as far as his legacy goes because I outranked him. A weird emotion filled my chest.

  “Alright then, if that’s what you want.” I cleared my throat as it was thick with sentiment.

  My father gave me a sure nod and then pressed his hand on my back. I did the same, laying the palm of my hand over the dragon. He muttered an incantation in the ancient Celtic language. The skin on my back began to burn, not painfully so but it was uncomfortable. Since knights healed so rapidly, getting regular tattoos was impossible, as the ink would just disappear as the body healed. Knights could only wear tattoos put there by some sort of magic.

  After a moment, the burning stopped, and my father stepped away. Peering over my shoulder, I could see my back reflection in the vanity mirror. The tattoo-covered the entirety of my back with the widest part of the shield spanning my shoulders and the tip of the shield stopping right above my pant line. The dragon sat in the middle, blowing fire. It was odd because there was no proof that the tattoo had some sort of magical enchantment behind it – other than its existence of course – but I actually felt stronger, surer of myself.

  “Thanks, dad,” I said after a moment. He gave me a small smile and patted my shoulder.

  “I’m proud of you, son.” I noticed he had been trying to say that to me more and more. My chest grew heavy with emotion, and I turned around and hugged him. After a moment, he stepped away, exhaling a deep breath. He mumbled something about getting out there and then left.

  I stood there for a moment, admiring my new tattoo in the mirror. I was going to win this fight. The universe told me so. It wasn’t going to be easy. After fighting with Toby the night before, he had some excellent skills. He was also much larger than I was. That would give him an advantage in brute strength, but I was faster. Though we threw around our magic last night, we really didn’t go hard. Today, we would be expected to do so. I flexed my hands, wondering if I could do it without Excalibur. She had been by my side for so long, I wasn’t sure if I was anything without her.

  “Excuse me.” I heard a sharp female voice on the other side of the door. “Do you know who you’re talking to? Move!” There was a pause. “And since you are just so cocky, I Command you to pretend like you’re a chicken for the rest of the day.”

  The door opened. Ivy stepped in with her chin up in the air. The knight guard behind her was strutting around like a chicken with his elbows tucked close to his sides, and moving his neck back an
d forth. She closed the door and then set her eyes on me. We really hadn’t had much of a chance to talk the night before, and neither one of us were in the mood to do so. That night in dream world she never showed, which meant she stayed up all night. She paused, her eyes focusing on my back.

  “That’s pretty hot.” She said, giving me a small smile, her green eyes glimmering.

  “It was Arthur’s, past down through the generations,” I explained. She made a face showing how it impressed her and then stepped closer. I rarely saw her unsure, but at the moment, as she wrung her hands and bit her bottom lip, I could see her hesitance.

  “I came to apologize about yesterday.” She started. At that moment she looked so vulnerable. Her eyes were wide with innocence and sadness. Without hesitating, I wrapped my arms around her. She did the same, resting her arms on my shoulders and holding me tightly against her. “I’m really sorry.” She whispered, her voice weak.

  “It wasn’t your fault.” I tried to press on her again. Sure, I knew she flirted with guys to gain information, but that didn’t mean that she owed them anything.

  “I’m not just talking about that.” She replied in my ear. “I should have been more sympathetic when you lost Excalibur.” I squeezed her tighter to me. “I didn’t get it before, but now with my ring, I have so much power. I couldn’t imagine letting that go.” Hearing her say the words made me realize how weak I had been. I shouldn’t rely on a tool for my strength, and that was all she had been trying to get me to understand.

  “I’m sorry too,” I said against the skin of her neck. “I didn’t mean all those shitty things I said to you.” I really didn’t. She was the most powerful sorceress I had ever met. Power like that took time to manifest and control.

  “You were right.” Her voice broke, and she buried her face into the side of my neck. I released a deep breath, feeling like the biggest tool in the universe. I couldn’t believe that I had made her doubt herself like that.