After my meeting with the king, I was tired but pleased with the way things were working out. I felt that I would never forget my Hunter Clan roots, and I was fascinated to find out what had happened to the clans, but for now I was content to be Prince Cassian.

Auron and I got back on Auron’s magic carpet, and we flew smoothly and swiftly through corridors and up stairways until we reached a wide, airy corridor with thick carpets and big windows which looked out over the land. This corridor was much more comfortable than the rest of the castle. It even had big stone pots with flowering plants at regular intervals, and instead of torches in sconces there were glass lamps which could be lit when darkness fell.

“This corridor contains the royal bedchambers. The King has a room here, up at the end of the corridor, but I think that most of the time he sleeps in a smaller, humbler chamber off the throne room, to be a bit closer to his advisors if he’s needed urgently. Prince Cassian’s chambers are here too, though, and I believe they have been maintained as they were for the whole time Cassian has been… away.

The carpet stopped in front of a pair of double doors. Auron jumped off the carpet and gave me a slightly mocking bow as he gestured at the doors. “Your chambers are ready to be occupied again, your Royal Highness,” he said.

I clambered off the carpet, noticing that I felt a little stronger than I had earlier. I was tired, but at least I wasn’t at risk of my knees giving way.

Auron tapped the carpet to roll it up and then slipped it into his magic pocket, where it vanished without a trace.

“That reminds me,” I said, looking at his pocket. “I’ll have my crown back now, I think.”

“Of course,” Auron said. He reached into the pocket up to his elbow, rummaging around as if there were all kinds of things in there. After a moment, he came up with my ruby and silver diadem, which he polished with a corner of his robe before handing it to me.

I slipped the crown onto my head. It felt good there, like I was made for it. After all, I guess I was.

“Lead on, then,” I said. I smiled at Auron, and with a flourish he stepped to the double doors and pulled them open.

I was taken aback at first at the lavish spectacle presented by my royal chambers. I had an entire suite of private rooms, including a bedchamber, a sitting room, a well-stocked library, and a private heated bathhouse. Each room had big windows commanding a view from a different angle over the valley.

The floors were covered in thick carpets and the stone walls were covered with rich hangings. There was a fireplace in every room - even the bathhouse. The library had comfortable chairs by the window and by the fire, and stacks and stacks of books.

I could hardly believe that all this belonged to me, but Auron had assured me that the whole suite and everything in it was indeed mine.

There was only one moment where I saw a problem. As I stood in front of the bookshelves in the library, marvelling at the rows of leather-bound volumes and packed scroll-racks, it suddenly struck me that I did not know how to read the Outlander script.

During my days in the Hunter Clan, literature was not a big part of my life. We had a written script, and I learned to read it, but most of the Clan wisdom was passed down my word of mouth, in long, rhyming poems memorized by bards and passed down through the generations.

What characters would these Outlanders use, three hundred years later? Would I have to learn to read again from scratch?

“What’s the matter?” Auron asked, sensing my disquiet. When I explained to him my fear, he frowned.

“Damn, I’d never thought of that,” he grumbled. “Well, let’s have a quick look. If we need to teach you again, then I shall handle that. It’s difficult, though. Cassian was a great reader. It was like walking to him. If that’s gone, it might be the hardest thing to explain to the castle community.”

He grabbed a book at random off the shelf, flicked it open, and handed it to me. I stared at the squiggles on the page. They meant nothing to me. I blinked, and then, to my surprise and delight, they resolved themselves. I could read them!

Experimentally, I began at the top of the page, reading out loud. “So it was that the changes brought about in the reign of King Tobin II in the second century of the Outland colony at Greatlakes brought great wealth and great dominion to the Outland realm, and yet the populations of Margreaves who lived by the shores of the lake were unhappy, and cursed the King and all his works. And when the King visited the Greatlakes colony his guards were forced to keep him under close watch at all times, for fear of Margreavean assassins…”

“Hah! Marvellous!” cried Auron, snapping the book shut and returning it to its place on the shelf. “So not all of Prince Cassian’s abilities have been lost over the years! As I said, reading was like walking to him. It was instinctive. Perhaps there are other abilities of his which have not been lost, eh?”

I looked around the chamber. “Like what?”

Auron dashed over to one corner and grabbed a lute from its stand. He shoved it eagerly into my hands. “Try playing a few notes on this!”

I waited for a few moments, hoping that the same clarity I’d experienced when looking at the book would happen here. It did not. I didn’t even know how to hold this instrument. When I experimentally plucked a couple of the strings, the noise was discordant and unpleasant, and Auron covered his ears and grabbed the lute back from me, putting it back on its stand. “Obviously that ability has not carried over. You can practice that while I’m not here.”

I chuckled at his discomfort. At least I wouldn’t have to learn to read again. I looked up at the stacked shelves of books and scrolls, pleased to think of everything that I could learn from reading in this library.

Some servants must have been informed that I would be returning to my chambers, or perhaps some quick-thinking member of the domestic staff had just worked it out for themselves. Whoever was responsible for it, a fire had been lit and banked up in the library, and another in the bedroom. From the choice of rooms, I suspected these two had been Prince Cassian’s favourite rooms to spend time in during his previous life. The staff had obviously remembered his choices.

I made a mental note to find out who was responsible for this and thank them when I found out. With a groan of satisfaction, I sank down into one of the chairs by the fire and stretched out my feet in front of the blaze.

There was a bottle of wine and two glasses sitting on a side table near us. Auron deftly opened this with his pocket knife, then poured some into each glass. He handed a glass to me, then took the other one for himself and sat in the chair opposite me.

I glanced up at the window. Outside, evening was falling over the valley. I sipped my wine. “It will be night soon. I’ll sleep well tonight.”

“That is good,” Auron said, “for tomorrow you will begin physical training, and you should expect it to be intensive. In this castle, your rank will not get you any special treatment in the training grounds.”

I bristled at the suggestion I might expect special treatment. “That’s as it should be. When it comes to fighting, a man’s ability is the only thing that should bring him respect. Anyway, I’m looking forward to getting back to my training. When I was a Hunter, I was in peak physical condition. Not to speak badly of your prince, Auron, but he’s a weakling. I’ll need to put some work in to get him into shape.”

Auron glared at me and I held up my hand, laughing. “I’m only teasing you, Auron.”

The Magus shook his head, looking serious. “Eventually you’ll have to stop speaking of Cassian in that way. You’ll need to see yourself and the prince as being one and the same. The success of this venture relies on you being able to truly inhabit the body and the role of the prince. The changes in your character can be explained away by telling people that you were in a coma for years, but in yourself, you’re going to need to truly be the prince. And that means not speaking about him as if he were someone you don’t think much of. You must be him yourself, truly.”

“It’ll come,” I said. “I meant those words I said to the king. I want his people to be my people, too. I have a chance to make a difference in the world here, Auron, like I never did in my previous life.”

“I was glad for how you conducted yourself in front of the king,” Auron said, sitting back in his chair and drinking his wine. “You didn’t embarrass me.”

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“Sorry,” I said, “I’ll try harder next time.” I grinned at the Magus, who chuckled in return.

“It was because of you,” said Auron, “because your spirit bonded to the prince, that the king restored me to my previous position.”

“He did that?” I asked.

“When we spoke together, yes. I was glad. I had been exiled, cast out for suggesting the use of Necromancy when Cassian first died. Now I’ve found a better solution to the problem, and the King is pleased with me.”

“I was wondering what you were speaking about. I figured maybe you were making plans for if I failed. You know, ‘take him out if he proves useless.’” I drew my finger across my throat in a cutting gesture.

“Never,” Auron said, shaking his head, his tone somber. “The King will stick by you. He will never betray you like that. You may not yet believe that you are his son, but he is willing to believe it. He has a father’s love for his child, despite knowing that your spirit is that of a man of the Hunter Clans. When he looks upon you, he sees only Cassian.”

“Strange,” I said.

“You obviously didn’t father children in your past life,” Auron said.

I shrugged. “I was more interested in hunting.” The wine was strong, and it was going to my head. I held up one hand to stifle a yawn.

Auron sat forward in his chair. “Here is something that might help you understand the King’s feelings toward you. There is a tale of a mother who lost her daughter when the child was only seven years old. In a nearby village, another mother lost her seven year old daughter two weeks later. That same day, the first mother supposedly found her daughter.”

“The first mother stole the second mother’s daughter?”

Auron nodded. “That’s right. She dressed the stolen child in her lost daughter’s clothing, taught her the mannerisms of her lost daughter, and did everything to nullify the differences. Soon, even the child came to think she was this woman’s daughter. She forgot all about her true mother.”

“Was that story meant to console me? Because it’s really depressing.”

“It merely highlights a point. If you learn our ways, how to conduct yourself as a prince, then you will indeed truly become the prince.”

“I’m not seven years old,” I pointed out. “A young child’s life is simpler. It won’t be so easy for me to forget my past.”

“And you should not forget it. After all, your hunter’s magic may prove incredibly useful. I’m not saying you need to forget who you were - indeed, I don’t want you to do that, not at all. But you must learn to inhabit this new life fully as well, because no one except you, I, and the King should know who you have been. It’s dangerous knowledge.”

I nodded slowly, thinking about this.

“There’s one thing I don’t quite understand,” I said, changing the subject. “The prince’s Royal Magic, how does that work? Am I meant to be able to use it, the way I was able to read the Outlander script without learning? I can understand being able to read - that’s a physical thing, but isn’t his Royal Magic connected to his soul, which is gone?”

Auron sat back in his chair. I thought he looked pleased with himself as he answered. “Ah, yes,” he said, “I wondered when these discrepancies between our two schools of magic would arise. It’s like this: the magic of a member of the Hunter Clans is tied to the soul, whereas the Royal Magic is tied to the body, like Cassian’s ability to read.”

“The Magic is tied to the body?” I said. “How can that be?”

“Think about the differences. In the Hunter Clans, everybody had some level of aptitude for the magic, right? It could be taught?”

“That’s right,” I said nodding, wondering what he was getting at.

“Well, that’s because the Hunter Clan magic is connected to the soul of the Clan, and to the place, the ancient power of the trees and the landscape. So I think, anyway - I don’t know for sure, of course. But the Royal Magic is passed down through the Royal bloodline, so, bound to the body rather than the soul. No one else has the Royal Magic outside the bloodline of the Kings. There are other magics, and other mages, but the magics of the royal bloodline are unique to the royal line.”

Auron smiled, obviously warming to his subject. “It’s that combination of bloodline magic and soul magic that makes you a very special person. And that is, of course, why I chose a soul of the Hunter Clans for this task. Apart from the fact that Hunter Clan men were generally known to be loyal, honest, and hardworking, they were the only people we know of who had true soulbound magic. Most other magics are either weak forms of soul magic that can be taught to anybody with the aptitude and patience to learn, or they are bloodline magics. By combining your Hunter soul with Cassian’s body, we have created a new magical hybrid.”

Auron was looking pleased with himself, as the implications of this combination of unique powers began to sink in to me. “You should,” he continued, “if you practice and study hard, be able to wield both forms of magic. You may even be able to combine the two, creating an entirely new form of magic. That’s part of the reason why I believe you are the one who will enact the prophecy and save the outlands. Someone with your innate talents, with your dual magics, could indeed become the most powerful Archmage who ever existed.”

I couldn’t help my smile from broadening until it started to hurt my cheeks. This was huge. I was prepared to commit to helping the outlands, making them my people, and all the rest, but I hadn’t expected that would involve becoming the most powerful magic user the world had ever known.

“That sounds good to me, Auron,” I said, draining my glass and pouring a little more. “Living in luxury and becoming incredibly powerful at magic? Who would turn that down?”

Auron frowned at my levity. “Don’t allow your head to become too big, though,” he cautioned. “You must take it seriously. You’ll find that the path to becoming Archmage is not easy, and power like that - not to mention Kingship - is more than just living large and enjoying power. It comes with enormous responsibility too. There may be some difficult decisions in your future.”

“I understand, Auron, don’t worry. I’ll take it seriously. I’m willing to put in the work.”

“Good. I know I often scold you for speaking ill of the prince, but there is one thing I will say to you now, so long as it does not go any further.”

“What is it?”

Auron looked troubled, as if he was trying to find the right words. “In his life, Prince Cassian was… not like you are. I alluded to it earlier. The prince could be vain, and somewhat indolent. Too fond of the good wine and comfortable living that went with his position, and a little too quick to cast his authority in people’s faces, or to hide behind it. You may find that it takes a bit of time for certain people to warm to you, and to fully believe that you are, well, a truly changed man.”

“I understand. Thanks for the heads up. I guess a ten year coma will be enough to explain quite a lot of personality change.”

“It will need to be,” said Auron. “As he was, Cassian would not have been able to fulfil the prophecy and save the people. As he is now, I think we have a better chance.”

Auron drained his glass, stood, and stretched. “It’s been a long day for us both. I ought to go now and let you get some rest now.”

“Ok. I’ll see you in the morning?”

“Yes. Oh, by the way,” he said, turning back to me with his hand on the door, “there’s one other thing,”

“Well? What is it?”

“Just this,” he said, “the soul merge might not be permanent.”

“What?!” I said, my mouth dropping open. “You’re telling me that my soul could just up and leave this body without a moment’s notice?”

Auron shrugged. “It’s the first time I’ve successfully cast the spell. And the ancients weren’t exactly detailed when it came to forbidden spells like this. I just thought I should warn you.”

“Exactly how many times did you try this? And how did you learn to do it?”

“I tried the spell several hundred times. Don’t forget I was working on this for the best part of a decade,” he said. “I started to lose count. I learned the magic from some ancient tomes I found in the library at… well, that’s another story. If you don’t mind, I think I’ll keep that to myself just at present.”

“Very well. That’s a lot of attempts to get the spell right. I suppose if I do separate from this body, you could just call me back?”

“That depends entirely on where you end up. I’ll give it some thought and we can discuss this again later.”

I nodded. “I have a question about the soul merging though. If the King is the Archmagus, surely he wouldn’t have needed you? Could he not perform the magic himself?”

“I’m not sure I follow.”

“As the most powerful mage in the Kingdom of the Outlands, surely King Boris should have known how to do what you did, to merge a new soul with the prince’s body.”

Auron walked back into the room a little way. “There are two parts to this. For a start, the procedure is very ancient, and no mage, no matter how powerful, can enact magic he doesn’t know how to do. But even if the King did know the procedure, I don’t think he would have been able to do it.”

“But he’s the Archmagus? How couldn’t he?” I protested.

Auron shook his head. “This is one of the most closely-guarded secrets of the state. King Boris is not, in fact, the Archmagus. In fact, he has almost no magical power himself. Before Prince Cassian fell into his coma and eventually died, the king had begun the process of transferral. He was to transfer his power to his son, Cassian. By starting the process, he gave up his power. Now, it exists in a kind of limbo. Once you are strong enough, we will be able to retrieve it and restore it to you, as should be.”

He sighed. “The way it’s supposed to work, is that the King transfers the power of Archmagus to the Crown Prince when he becomes king-in-waiting at age eighteen. Then the Crown Prince serves as Archmagus for the rest of the King’s reign, meaning that when the Crown Prince in turn becomes King, he has learned how to manage the power of the Archmagus. For a decade, the crown has managed to prevent the populace from learning that there is no Archmagus either occupying or serving the throne.”

“That must have been quite a big thing to manage. And why would it be a problem if the people found out?”

“General morale,” Auron said. “And nobody likes a break with tradition. But it would be far worse if our enemies learn we don’t have an Archmagus. As soon as word reached their ears, our walls would be assaulted within the month. And without the mighty power of an Archmagus, we wouldn’t stand a chance.”

“Our enemies?” I said, stifling another yawn.

Auron smiled and held up his hands. “Not tonight. There’s going to be plenty of time for you to learn all you need to know about the politics of the Kingdom. First you need to build up your strength again, and that begins with sleep.”

“Very well,” I said, smiling. Auron was right. I was about ready to fall asleep in my chair. I had learned a great deal this day, and the rest could wait.

Auron nodded slowly. “Goodnight then, Prince Cassian.”