The Young Magician

before rattling over onto the timber floorboards.

Samuel’s heart thudded in his chest. He was at once relieved and anxious, for the feeling of magic had calmed his nervousness, but now he was feeling alarmed at the very power of the thing. It was far too powerful for him to use for commonplace tasks. Using it felt like trying to shell an egg with a sledgehammer. He would be much happier when his own spells returned but, in the meantime, Samuel had little choice but to pick up the ring and he dropped it back into his pocket.

Another soft knock sounded on the door just then and Samuel called, ‘Enter!’

‘Well, well, well, Samuel,’ said a man as he stepped through the doorway and Samuel was surprised to see it was Soddan. The mysterious man was dressed in plain clothes, as usual, but he had a beaming smile on his face that was quite out of character.

‘What are you doing here?’ Samuel asked accusingly.

Soddan raised his hands defensively. ‘No need to get upset. I merely came to congratulate you and, with the stream of guests you’ve been having, I had to wait my turn.’ He closed the door carefully behind him and sat on one of the cushioned wicker chairs, avoiding the hard stool. ‘What a grand job you did, Samuel. I must say, I’m very impressed.’

‘Why is that?’ Samuel asked suspiciously. ‘After you sent me off to meet Ash, I thought you wanted me dead?’

‘Dead? Oh, goodness, no. I told you the truth. You needed to leave the city before Jarrod’s men found you and you also needed to develop your skills. It seems you accomplished both tasks quite well. It was pure coincidence that you and Ash had some sort of disliking for each other and I wasn’t going to interfere with that. Grown men should deal with their own differences, after all. And I thought it would be a good chance for you to hone your skills. I really thought a man like him would be no match for a magician of your calibre. Of course, he was in Tindal retrieving the Argum Stone for me at the time, so his death would have been inconvenient, but one of my other men could have returned it without too much of a fuss. He did prove to be much more cunning than he appeared, I must admit-working both the Circle and Lord Jarrod from the beginning, gaining spells from us and black magic from Jarrod and Dividian. He had promised to deliver the Argum Stone to us once he and Master Dividian had found out how to awaken it, but it looks as though he had been planning to keep the thing for himself all along. I blame myself. I really didn’t have time to keep a proper eye on him. I have to thank you for taking care of him for me. It turned out he nearly had the better of everyone.’

‘So he was working for you all the while?’

‘So to speak. You’d be surprised to learn exactly how many people do work for the Circle. Although, Ash was using us as much as we were using him. He was quite the conniving trickster, as you learned. I’m sure you must be quite glad he’s dead?’

Samuel nodded darkly. ‘That’s an understatement.’

‘Good. Then with that out of the way, it’s time we set to business. My leader is a man called Cang and he has just given me some disturbing news. It seems time is growing short and your assistance will be required sooner than we expected.’

‘Wait, wait, wait,’ Samuel insisted. ‘How can you just shrug off the loss of the Staff of Elders and the Argum Stone like that? They were the two most powerful artefacts in the world!’

‘The destruction of the Staff of Elders is of no real consequence to us. We would have liked to have added the Argum Stone to our collection, but its loss is not so important. The fact that it was so easily destroyed only proves that it was not one of the particular items we have been looking for. The world is a much bigger place than just the petty Empire of Turia and the lands of Amandia, Samuel. The Circle has all manner of ancient artefacts at its disposal. We have been scouring the earth for them since this Age first began, and now there is something even more important to consider. All such artefacts are merely a means to an end.’

‘So you’re telling me that you could have killed the Emperor at any time-that you could have stopped the Empire long ago and halted all this infernal trouble whenever you felt like it?’

‘Yes,’ Soddan replied, as if the answer should have been obvious in the first place.

Samuel was infuriated. ‘Then, why didn’t you?’

‘As I’ve already told you, these things are inconsequential. It’s better to let such matters play out in their own time. The Circle does not meddle with such things. You just don’t seem to believe me no matter how many times I tell you, Samuel. There are always wars and tyrants to deal with. If we stop one, another just pops up in its place, but the Circle of Eyes is the one thing that can save this world and all our precious souls.’ His brow furrowed and he leaned a little closer towards Samuel. ‘What would you say if I told you that everything we have come to believe is untrue-that everything we take for granted is just an illusion?’

Samuel had no idea what Soddan was talking about and it was written plainly on his face.

‘There is a war of good and evil taking place in the universe that has been waged over time and space immeasurable. Our world is nothing more than a larder and a breeding ground for that evil. Every thousand years, the demons return here to feast upon us and revitalise their numbers, fuelling their eternal war. They wait until a specific time, when our lands are full of life, and then they come though from their world and into ours, and they consume everything they can find.’

Samuel looked steadily at the seated man, trying to gauge him for seriousness. ‘What are you saying?’ Samuel asked him. ‘That this is going to happen here, in Amandia?’

‘Not just in Amandia, Samuel, but all over this world. The demons found a way to come here in the time of the Ancients and they have returned many times since then. They devour everything, leaving only just enough life so that our world can slowly recover, then they come again.’

Samuel shook his head. ‘That’s ridiculous.’

‘Is it? We have a collection of books you would be interested to read-things not found in your Great Library. Even Dividian believed us, for he had practised many dark rites and had begun to hear their whisperings in his ear, the foolish man. Listen to me, Samuel, and listen well. These things I tell you are true. We have little time and we need your help. Anthem and his Lions are too caught up with their own petty struggles to believe us but, when it’s too late, when the gates of hell open and the beasts surge forth, everyone will believe, and it will be too late. We have only one hope. Before the demons can enter our world, two great items of power must be brought together. The Staff of Elders we had already examined and the Argum Stone’s destruction has proved that it was also worthless. The power of the things we seek is so great that they can crack open the barriers between our realms and allow the demons to cross.’

‘So why would you want to find such things if they are so dangerous?’ Samuel asked.

‘To destroy them, of course,’ Soddan answered, ‘or at least to keep them out of the wrong hands.’

‘Then you’ve been retrieving all the relics so you can to try to find the correct ones?’

‘That’s right, but so far we have been unsuccessful. What’s more, we believe that in every Age before ours there has been some awareness of this fate, as we have now, and they also tried to find these two relics. So far, none has been successful. Every Age has ended tragically, to say the least. Our Age is nearly at an end, perhaps even within our lifetimes. To save all our lives and our very souls, we must find those two artefacts and stop them from ever being used. The demons leave them somewhere, perhaps at completely opposite ends of the world, easily in view where people can find them. When the time comes and people have become accomplished and learned to travel, they will inadvertently bring them together and thus signal humanity’s own demise. They must be powerful things, immediately recognisable as a pair, so that people would have the notion to put them together.’

‘But you haven’t a clue where or what they are,’ Samuel assumed.

Soddan nodded. ‘That’s right. All our efforts so far have been in vain, and the signs all point to the fact that our time is quickly running short. Somewhere, we are sure, they have already been found and whatever witless dotards have them will surely be coursing them together as we speak, like puppets fulfilling the demons’ plans. If we cannot find these two great icons of power and destroy them, or at least keep them safely apart, we are doomed. If we can achieve our goal, our world will be safe forever more. You can see how the politics and affairs of nations are inconsequential compared to this.

‘Can you not see why we need you, Samuel? Your skills are great, and will become ever greater with time, for you are still young. You even proved Master Celios to be correct, although I’m sure few others would guess it. Help us, Samuel, I am pleading with you.’

Samuel shook his head as he began pacing back and forth across the room. ‘I don’t know what to say,’ he