Chapter 1: Prologue
The classroom in Doras Dagda's mage school smelled of old wood and dry-erase marker. The runic glow of magic pulsed from the walls while rows of desks gleamed under glowing orbs that drifted above, casting soft light. Scattered around the room, dynamic books lay about in the disarray only an active class could exhibit. Intro to System Class Archetypes, The Magical Periodic Table of Elements, Elemental Interactions, Beginner's Alchemy: Healing. Their covers flickered with animated runes, half-open from rushed note-taking. Chalk dust and the faint crackle of runic wards filled the air, clinging to scratched desks and worn floorboards.
Saul slouched in the back, fifteen, boots propped on his desk, chains on his belt clinking as he tossed a pencil between his fingers. His mates, Jamie, Rory, and Finn, sprawled nearby, hitting each other with paper wads, and muttering dares. Saul didn't care about mage history. Not like his dad, Toby, a warrior mage who wanted him to carry the family name with pride. He craved excitement with his friends, not more lectures.
"Even though she's the Founder's wife, I've heard all these stories before," he thought, eyeing Lillia. "My dad never shuts up about them."
Lillia stood at the front, her hair dark with only a few grays, face smooth, eyes deep with wisdom from years of battles and study. She never spoke, her true voice had never existed. But, her thoughts echoed clearly in every student's mind, a telepathic voice that cut through chatter.
"Today's lesson is the Warlock's victory over Clan Lamont. As most of you already know, my husband, Robert, is one of the only surviving descendants of Albion's most powerful clan," her voice rang in their heads, calm but firm. Her hands wove light magic, ready to spin holograms, but she paused, as her gaze swept the class.
Her eyes settled on Saul's restless slouch. "Is there a problem, Saul? You look disengaged," she said telepathically, her voice sharp in everyone's mind, public and piercing. Saul shrugged dismissively, keeping his eyes on his pencil and not on Lillia's eyes. However he spun it faster with agitation.
She's callin' me out in front of everyone, he thought, cheeks warmed but he played it cool. Jamie smirked, Rory nudged Finn, both stifled laughs.
"Please share your thoughts, Saul," Lillia's musical mental voice pressed, gentle but insistent. Saul sighed, dropped his boots to the floor, leaned forward with a sour look.
"I'm stuck in this classroom when there's sanctums to battle in, sports to play, life to live," he said, voice low but bitter. "I wanna learn by doin', by experiencin' stuff, not readin' books or watchin' your memories."
Lillia's movements grew still, her gaze fixed on him, eyes searching. She turned to the class, her expression spoke volumes though her lips stayed still.
"Is this how you all feel?" her voice asked, clear in every mind, as she scanned each face. Many nodded slowly, heads dipped, eyes flicked to desks. Rory shrugged, Finn shifted uncomfortably. A few overachiever girls, Mairi and Elspeth, smiled brightly, eager to impress the Founder's wife.
They don't get it, Mairi thought, her grin wide. Robert and Lillia's marriage is so romantic, teamin' up to fight myths together. Elspeth nodded, thinking the same thing. She also cared more about their love story than history's depressing past.
Lillia's briefly waved her hands at her hologram dismissing it into fading fragments of light. "Very well," her voice penetrated, soft and decisive. "We'll learn by seeing. Tomorrow, we visit the Museum of Magical History. You'll face the Warlock's artifacts, feel their weight." She dismissed the class with a nod, her eyes lingered on Saul, heavy with concern. He's restless, just like his father, she thought to herself.
Saul grabbed his bag, avoided his mates' stares. Museum sounds way better than this old room, he thought.
The next morning, Saul dragged his feet to the school courtyard, boots scuffed from kicking stones on the way. Jamie, Rory, and Finn lounged by a rune-carved bench, tossing a glowing orb between them like a ball, their laughs loud in the crisp air. Mairi and Elspeth stood nearby, giggling over a dynamic book's flashing love spell page, while other classmates milled about, bags slung over shoulders. Lillia waited at the courtyard's edge, her cloak dark against the gray stone path, eyes scanned the group.
"Stay together, follow me," her telepathic voice echoed in their minds, clear over the chatter. "The museum is close, but don't wander."
Saul rolled his eyes. Like we're toddlers, he thought, but fell in step with his mates anyway.
The walk was short, through Doras Dagda's educational district, where schools, elemental colleges, and research labs clustered close together. Stone buildings lined the streets, their walls etched with runes that glowed faintly in the morning mist. A fire magic college themed with orange lights and flames, older students practiced in its courtyard, hurling great blasts of flames against shimmering shields designed to repel it. Next door, an air research lab hummed with great whirling tornados, and students that could float through the air on clouds wrapped about their feet.
Saul nudged Jamie, pointed at a water specialization school's fountain, its streams danced in loops and gravity defying whorls around a perfectly sculpted nude mermaid. "There's ya girlfriend," Saul murmured, grinning. Jamie snorted. "I know she wants me," he said, shoving him back lightly. Finn laughed out loud at Jamie but commented, "Yep, just look, she's totally wet for him."
Lillia's gaze flicked to them, anger flashing in her eyes. Power radiated in full force against the boys. They could feel it too, her life aura flared aggressively, hostile intention of a magnitude that made them all weak in the knees. She summoned their life energies -out- of them.
Their skin grew pale and her mental voice pushed against their very soul, "I will -not- tolerate such language under my care. Is. That. UNDERSTOOD?"
Everyone knew she was a powerful healer, and a full master of Life and Light magic. However, the boys were in absolute shock over her command of it. It was as if she had locked their souls and feet in place, both to the ground. They were too stunned to speak.
"Answer me," Lillia withdrew her aura fractionally and commanded them, her eyes still flared with a vivid aqua light. They each nodded in submission, murmuring apologies. Their eyes were wide in shock and stared at the street cobblestones. Abruptly the aura lifted and she began walking again. The boys were quiet the rest of the way to the museum.
The Museum of Magical History loomed ahead, its stone facade carved with Clan Lamont hawks and ancient sigils, steps worn from years of visitors. Inside, the air carried the scent of polished wood and old parchment, lit by floating orbs that cast shadows on glass cases. Memory crystals lined the main hall, in varied shining colors... blue, green, purple, gold, every shade the human eye could discern. Each individual crystal glowed softly with color-coded pasts, like living archives trapped in stone.
They held moments out of time. Battles, betrayals, triumphs... usually donated from people present at historic events. All thanks to history mages, their magic is so strong and unusual, that it could overwrite one's own thoughts and give the gift of experiencing what happened in real time.
A larger crystal was placed at the end of the main display arena. A powerful guard kept a diligent watch nearby, stoically observing visitors. This man wasn't an employee of the museum, but a Warmage. He stood like a statue, bedecked in magically-enhanced power armor. If a youth had any notion of fighting for his country, it was always wearing one of those babies. The ultimate in scientific design and enhancements. Saul admired the powerful equipment, thinking on his obsession with them.
"Imperial Engineer Langston Perry was said to have helped the Founder create those suits." He said aloud to Finn. "The first Technomancer." Finn widened his eyes slightly at Saul's words, clearly impressed.
Saul gazed at the truly iconic head-to-toe suit of pure intimidation. He wanted one. Badly.
People that passed by always bowed their head to Warmage in profound respect. Saul wanted that kind of respect too. He was tired of being treated like a kid. And even more tired of being known as Toby's son.
Nearby in a special display area, was a crystal with a deep red fire, illuminating the guard and the walls with malevolent shadows. It was carved with jagged warding runes that marked it as the Warlock's memory. When Saul turned his eyes to it, his stomach knotted, the light seemed to pull at him, heavy with... wrongness.
"That thing's givin' me the creeps," he told Jamie, and shifted his weight uneasily.
Jamie whispered to him, "Yeah. Feels like it's looking back at us..." As they stared, entranced, both boys jumped as Lillia's voice cut through her classes mind.
"These crystals hold truths. Touch them lightly, if you dare," her eyes then fixed on the Warlock's crystal. "But stay away from that one. You aren't old enough to experience the horrors inside... Obey the signs. 'Children are not permitted to view the Warlock's memories.'"
Lillia glimpsed at all of her students then nodded subtly to them, giving them permission to explore. "Best behavior everyone." She mentally reminded them. "Especially you, boys."
The kids split off together in small groups, quietly but excitedly examining the memory crystals all around them. There were dozens they could experience, as if they were there. As Jamie, Finn, and Saul slowly gravitated to the impressive guard and the Warlock's display, the guard held up one hand. In a voice magically endowed with command, he boomed at them, "Do not attempt to view this crystal. Stay with the others."
This gave Finn, an idea...
Meanwhile, Lillia wandered over to a well used crystal. One that nearly every resident in Doras Dagda has viewed, sometimes multiple times. It was the story of Robert. Her husband's memories, that he willingly donated. He also provided commentary recordings to supplement the viewer's experiences.
An older crystal, she brushed her fingers along the display. It contained dozens of small crystals. Each ordered chronologically as his life progressed. This large display of many crystals was titled, "The Rise of Doras Dagda." She hadn't seen her husband in many years...
With a lonely heart, she glanced at her class. They were behaving, and that guard would absolutely protect them if something happened. So, as her right as a Duchess of Doras Dagda, she gently laid her fingers on the crystal, "Day 1 of Robert's rise to power."
Her eyes glazed over and turned white, as she sank into Robert's first memories, and heard his voice, once more…
"The Scottish Highlands sprawled around me, jagged and brutal, offering zero comforts." the commentary began in a voice she missed very much.