“I’ll handle it,” I say to Vithar.

He looks angry again, but nods at me. “All right.”

“Hey, Rudolph,” I wave excitedly as I exit the house. His expression goes flat as soon as he sees me.

“Reginald,” comes his regular reply. I don't know why, but I like calling him by the wrong name. Maybe I do get why Brad did it to me.

“Where are your white mask friends?”

“They're grounded and couldn't come outside today.”

“Dang, I thought we could play some more.”

He rolls his eyes. “Yes, and I'm so glad the illegal assassination attempt failed, half-breed,” he says, his tone dripping with snark. Oddly though, there's a hint of sentiment in his aura that seems genuine. Shame is in there too–but, again, just a hint.

“Aww, I love you too buddy,” I retort. “But watch the snark, okay? That's my bit. What can I do for you?”

“I need to speak with ex-wizard Vithar.”

“Oooo, ex-wizard. Is that an honorific title?”

“Hardly.” He takes a breath. “I digress. As much as I definitely enjoy this back and forth, now is not the time. I really must speak with Vithar. It is a matter of grave importance and it is information that is for his eyes only …apparently.” I can feel no small amount of jealousy in his words.

I turn to see Vithar stepping out of the doorway with a stern look on his face. Not the rage-filled glare he had for the wizards that tried to kill us, but not his normal look either.

“Reggie,” he says with a glare toward the man.

“It is good to see you again. You look well.”

“I am, and we don't need to exchange pleasantries. What do you need from me?”

Reginald's expression softens. “It was made clear that you were no longer interested in returning, so that's not what this is. I have come to deliver a Dirge Crystal and items to be given to you.”

“What's a Dirge Crystal?” I ask, looking at Vithar.

His eyes are wide with surprise. The previous expression he wore has evaporated and his posture is more rigid. I raise an eyebrow, unsure of what this means. His prominent Adam's apple bounces with a large gulp. He licks his lips before he speaks.

“Dirge Crystal . . . W–Why? Why for me?”

“I don't know,” He responds, shaking his head slightly. “But you were the one she wanted it to be delivered to.” Reginald wipes under his right eye, but schools his expression to remain neutral. He's got some amazing control over the emotions displayed in his aura, but not complete control. There's sadness there, hurt and loss.

“She who?” Vithar asks, but it's more of a demand than a question.

“I am sorry to deliver this news, but Archwizard Olvira Duchesne is dead.” He says it with a flat look, but another tear falls from Reginald's right eye. He doesn't wipe this one away.

“What?!” The exclamation bursts from me. An Archwizard dying out of the blue just doesn't happen. “What the hell is going on?” I ask, incredulity creeping into my tone.

“Nothing you need to worry about, half-br–” He stops himself and takes a deep, shuddering breath. His emotions were beginning to flood into his carefully cultivated aura. “I apologize. That was unnecessary.”

“We're good,” I say.

He seems on the verge of an emotional meltdown and I'm not so petty as to get angry just because he's angry–that wouldn't solve anything. Vithar steps down from the porch and walks slowly up to the barrier of the wards. I follow behind him to see what Reginald brought. I can feel him eyeing me while I'm walking up, but I pretend not to notice.

“Why me?” Vithar asks again on our approach. It comes out as a half whisper and he clears his throat.

“I don't know her intentions,” the wizard says. I don't think Vithar was really asking him though. “But she was adamant about this request. It was just put in yesterday.”

We stop at the barrier and Vithar, who is head and shoulders taller than his old friend, looks down at the smaller man. “Well, let's have it,” he says.

Reginald's expression changes to a look of unease and he shifts his weight from foot to foot. “I thought we could conduct the trade within?” he asks, and I cock my head to the side in surprise.

“Within? Like, you want to come inside my house?”

He looks conspiratorially from side to side. “Yes, that would make it easiest to deliver the Crystal and other effects.”

Vithar’s gaze meets mine. We’re both suspicious. .

“Can't you just hand them to me here?” he asks.

Reginald sighs. “Yes, but it's a personal matter. I thought it would be better if we went inside, away from any potential prying eyes or ears?” His eyes shimmer with the words. I shake away a keening tone of magical energy that rings my ears. There is magic being used and I don’t think it’s by Reggie..

“But–” Vithar starts, but I interject–I don't think he's picking up on the other wizard's signals that I hope I’m reading correctly.

“I think it'll be fine,” I say.

He looks at me. “Really?” he asks. He looks at me like he's unsure if I've been body-snatched and replaced by an imposter. “Alright.” A warning is clear in his tone. “It's ultimately your call.”

“It's fine. You two will just have to perform an Oath.” I say, watching Reggie’s face. The Oath is a contract between beings of power that strips them of a portion of their magic or abilities. The wording is decided upon by those involved and usually makes either party unable to directly harm others. If they should try, their punishment would be a return of the attack tenfold. It's another of those things I like to call ‘big magic’ like the Threshold. I've had to use it once or twice in my life. How the wizard responds will tell me whether this is the desired route, or if this will out him as insincere.

Vithar grunts, and Reginald's breath catches in his throat.

“Yes, yes. Quickly, quickly,” he says, holding up his hands. “By my magic and by my honor, I, Reginald Jackson, swear to uphold neutrality and to bring no harm to the beings inside these wards until our transaction is complete and I leave this haven.” I draw my brows in at his full name.

Vithar returns the gesture. “I, Vithar Grimsby, agree to your terms and grant you entrance until our business is done. No harm will come to you here as long as you bear us no ill will.” The energy of their compact swirls around us briefly and locks around them in a vise-like grip, binding the two to their words by magic. Once the energies have settled, Reginald claws at his right shoulder then runs into the shelter of the wards. He bends at the waist and puts his hands on his knees, nearly crying. I have a lot of questions for him, but first, the most important ones.

“Your name is Reggie Jackson?” I ask.

“Reginald, yes,” he says, not looking up at me.

“Like, Mr. October?” This little man having a name in common with a baseball legend is… It's just too funny.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

“Who?”

“Nevermind.” I turn to Vithar. “And your name is Vithar Grimsby?” I ask.

“Yeah,” he says with a shrug.

“Wow, were your parents trying to will you into becoming a wizard?”

He looks sad for a moment, then turns his attention back to our guest. I take a deep breath, compartmentalizing all of this for later analysis.

“So many things . . . But now is not the time,” I say.

Reginald falls to his knees after effects of the wards take hold. “Thank you,” he whispers, breathing heavily. He glances back to where he entered.

Something unseen shatters against the barrier behind him, and the pieces dissolve before hitting the ground.

“What was that?” Vithar asks.

“I assume you didn't just come here to give him what you offered?” I ask.

“Correct,” Reggie says. “First, let me thank you, Mikael. While I do not like you, I do appreciate your efforts to assist in affairs that we should have intervened in ourselves. I was being genuine when I said I was glad that the assassination attempt had failed. My feelings toward you are as an individual now and not a product of your lineage,” he finishes.

What a nice way to say I hate you on a personal level and not because of 'what' you are. It needs some work still, but it's a start.

“Thank you?” I say with an upward inflection. He nods curtly.

“Secondly, your wards made it so that this lost its power.”

He pulls the collar of his robes aside, exposing a brand burnt into his skin just under his right collarbone.

“Oh, no,” Vithar says.

“Oh, yes,” Reggie replies, “I was being watched. Your wards destroyed their means of surveillance.”

I knew it. I assumed that's what was happening with his body language and odd glances. In my past experiences with him, his personality was dripping with arrogance and overconfidence. This time though, he was fidgety and looked unsure. Those few tells and his other odd behavior toward me were a dead giveaway.

“Spill it, Reggie,” I say.

“Yes,” he says, standing back up. “They were going to use me. They wanted me to get past the protections put on your home, then they were going to blow me up. The Oath robbed them of the power to activate this rune.” He wipes sweat from his forehead with the sleeve of his robe. “Archwizard Duchesne told me of the runes. The same runes shown on the three that were here before they exploded into an all-consuming fire. There has been an attempted coup in our branch of the guild. I don't know if it’s across all branches or not, but I can't imagine ours is an isolated event. A few of us who were more powerful were targeted first. As we slept, dissenters slipped into our chambers and awoke us by burning these brands onto our bodies. We were then told that if we did not act in accordance with their plans, we would be burned. Some of our more willful wizards were made an example of,” he says and shivers. “Their screams as they burned were…” He trails off, a faraway look in his eyes. I wait for him to work through it. He shakes his head and looks back to us. “My apologies,” he says.

“You're good, man,” I say. “Please, continue.”

“Yes, thank you.” His composed facade returns. “Knowing what I learned from the Archwizard, I complied and eventually volunteered for this task in hopes that I could be saved.”

“That's a lot,” I say after a beat and blow out a puff of air while staring into the middle distance.

“Indeed,” Reggie agrees.

“What about Olvira? What happened to her?” Vithar asks.

“I am unsure if they tried to brand her or just tried to kill her. Either way, it did not go well for them. Her chambers had been melted when I saw them. The devastation was truly awesome.”

“Awesome?! How can you–”

“Awesome meaning 'daunting', not 'excellent',” he interrupts me.

“Oh… right.”

“The fire in her room threatened to spread into the guildhouse proper until the suppression wards cast into the building finally were able to extinguish it.”

“Why were you given leave to deliver the Dirge Crystal?” Vithar asks. Reggie looks at me quickly, then at the ground before answering.

“With my past… prejudices, they thought I could be trusted. They thought my hatred was worth more to me than my life.”

“So you came running to my friend for help, even after the way you all have treated him and others like him.”

“As I said before, prejudice was involved. I have since attempted to unlearn the behavior. I can only apologize for the past and look to the future,” he finishes.

Vithar widens his eyes at me, and I shrug.

“He recognizes it and is making an effort to do better. That's really all I can ask for.”

“Hm, you're a better man than I. So what do you expect us to do?” he asks, turning back to Reggie.

“I seek asylum currently and wish to help in any way that I can until this is resolved.”

“You mean hide here while we do all the work,” Vithar says.

Reggie sighs and pulls his robes aside again to expose the brand.

“The moment I leave the wards and the Oath's power is taken, I am a dead man. I am only able to assist.”

“One sec,” I say, pulling Vithar aside. We walk back over to the porch and I talk quietly. “Are you okay, man?”

“I am… angry,” he says.

“I can tell. You're acting like a pissed off teenager. There's a bigger picture forming right now and he's giving us information that we wouldn't have. Do you think he really wanted to come here? Him?” I ask, gesturing at Reggie. “He looks scared, and I have only gotten pompous superiority from him before. If this wasn't going to affect everyone, I'd be right there with ya, dude. But right now, we've got to think of everyone we could save, then tell him off once he doesn't have a death sentence hanging over his head.”

Vithar grits his teeth in a look of frustration but calms down after a deep breath. “Fine, you're right or whatever.”

“Cool, let's go finish this and get a plan in motion,” I say, and he agrees.

We start to walk back, and my phone vibrates in my pocket. I pull it out and see that it's Anna's number again. A pit forms in my stomach, but I’m gonna take the call.

“Hey, I'll be right there. Just gotta answer this real quick.”

“Alright.”

I walk back toward the porch and tap the icon to answer. “I don't have time for you right now,” I say.

“Aww, Bait. You're gonna hurt my feelings,” Rhal responds on the other end. “And I thought we had an understanding.”

“Is this you?”

“Is what me?”

“Are you messing with the wizards here?”

“I have no idea what you're talkin' about. I only have eyes for you.”

“Then what are you calling for? I don't have the mental capacity to appreciate your games at the moment.”

“But this is the best part!” he says. “I'm ready to tell you when we're meeting.”

“Alright, when?” I say. Vithar and Reggie's conversation is becoming more animated and I need to get back to it.

One problem at a time I tell myself. It's beginning to become a mantra.

Turning my head to where Mom and Eph are standing, I see that he's watching the wizards, and mom is staring hard at me.

“We're gonna meet where it all went down one year ago tomorrow, you got me?” he asks. I know exactly what he means. He wants to meet at the building where I made him fight Bezhir and tried to get him killed. Apparently, tomorrow is the anniversary of that day. Clearly I'm not the only one with a flair for the dramatic.

“That building was torn down after it fell on us.”

That was an experience. The building really did fall on us–in pieces. It was already in heavy disrepair as it was, but minor energy explosions and a demon battle helped it fall the rest of the way. I was done for until my demon and I had a heart to heart.

“We don't need the venue. We'll dance in the daylight. You come and see me alone.”

“Scared of the ‘old man’?”

Rhal laughs a deep belly laugh that doesn’t inspire confidence that I hit a nerve. “Hell no I’m not scared of your retiree, I’m just not stupid.”

He definitely isn’t. His cunning isn’t to be underestimated. “Fair point. It’ll just be me, but I’ve got something to handle before that.”

“Just don’t wear yourself out too much. Make sure you're there before noon, or I'm gonna eat your little girlfriend,” he says, his tone darkening from jovial to sadistic anger.

I know Anna is still here, even if she hasn't come out, but I still get a momentary chill as an intrusive thought of him already having captured her somehow flashes in my mind.

“Enough,” I say. “I'll be there. You don't have to threaten the people in my life. But this, whatever it is, it ends with me.”

“Make whatever demands you want. It won't matter when you're dead.”

“I've already talked to Alastor. If anything happens to anyone else I care about after tomorrow, he'll make sure to finish you as a last favor to me,” I lie. The line is silent, and I think about the people here, wondering if they can feel my fear and anxiety in my aura. Everyone but mom is absorbed in their own thing. She is still staring at me, and she looks angry.

“Fine,” Rhal finally responds in a growl. Apparently he is afraid of someone.

“Good, see you tomorrow.”

“I can't wa–” I hang up, and Mom is immediately at my side as soon as I tap the icon.

“What are you doing?” she asks.

“I'm handling it.”

“You know I'm coming with you, right?”

“I knew you could hear me. And no, I don't know that. We need to figure some things out. There's a lot going on, and we need to make some plans on how to deal with it.”

She stares into my eyes, but I'm not staring directly into hers. I don't want her to read me. I put on a resolute face and step back over to the arguing wizards.

“The terms are acceptable, Reggie,” I say, interrupting. “You will stay here and run our base of operations. If you do anything to screw with us, the Oath will know, so I don't care.”

“I wouldn't dare,” he says, lifting his chin.

“Good, let's go inside and talk.”