The first thing Connell became aware of was drops of water upon his skin. Cold, they fell one by one, raising goosebumps on his arms. He kept his eyes closed, but he couldn’t remember why. He didn’t want to remember; he knew that.

Suddenly, his head began to throb, and he put both hands up to his temples, mouth open in a silent cry.

He squeezed his eyelids shut even more tightly than before, now too engrossed by the pain to consider learning where he was.

Because where was he?

Vaguely, he wondered if anyone else was nearby, maybe someone who could help him.

Finally, realizing he had no choice, he opened his eyes. He was sorry he did, for he found himself not somewhere safe, but somewhere decidedly unsafe. He released his temples, too frightened to do anything other than grip the stone beneath his body. He was lying on the edge of the highest precipice he’d ever seen.

What had happened? He was having trouble remembering. He wasn’t home, definitely not back in Eagleview Kingdom.

Then, the truth came flooding in.

There had been a duel, a fight with another sorcerer, a man tall and fine. He’d been dressed in flowing white robes, a decorated staff in one hand, a searing ball of flame in the other.

Gradually, Connell put his hands beneath his shoulders and pushed himself up. When he looked over the edge of where he lay, vertigo struck, and he found himself lying flat on the rock again. The rain was coming down harder now, and he could feel the water seeping in through his thin tunic. He shivered.

The sorcerer, that man, had nearly killed him. Connell had tried to protect the great sea creatures in the deep reaches of the mountains, jellyfish as big as houses swimming within a sacred pool of Light, but he had failed. They were dead now, all of them, their Light stolen away by an enemy unlike any he had ever imagined.

An enemy.

Suddenly, he remembered more of the battle, and when he reached inside the robe that covered his shoulders, he realized that the small stick of wood he’d used as a wand was broken. He drew it out and stared down at it. Normally, he might be able to use a tool like this despite its state, but when he focused his attention on it and made his intention clear, he found no power came from it. Not even a whisper of light.

He dropped the ruined wand and pushed up to sitting, this time determined not to look over the edge. Instead, he focused his attention on his hands, focused on the very basic task of lighting them with fire. But no matter how intently he concentrated, they would not light.

He panicked, his chest growing tight, breath growing fast.

He tried again and again but eventually came to the realization that it was gone. His power was gone.

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How was that even possible? He’d been born with abilities, making his brothers jealous and prompting fights over his power time and again. And now it was gone?

He remembered the man, a servant of someone much greater, for Connell had never known anyone so full of malice. They’d fought in that deep cavern, the place where he’d made a new home for himself, a protector of the Keepers who swam in those waters. At first, the man had feigned that he was a friend, someone to be trusted, even liked.

But it had all been a lie, nothing more than bait to get Connell to come out of the water.

Connell’s magic was not something small; he’d learned a lot in his years of training with Zahn, not to mention his natural abilities. As a general rule, he was not one to be trifled with.

But today, today of all days, the general rules did not apply. He remembered how the man had entered the cavern, how he had convinced Connell to get out of the water. But once he did, his reward for facing the tall, perfect-looking wizard was to be knocked back into the stone at the far end of the cave. He’d hit his head, then become confused.

“You foolish boy,” the man had said. “You’ve been hiding this from us this whole time. Father will be so pleased to learn of my discovery.” Then, he’d bent down at the side of the pool, cupped his hands, and taken a long drink. Finally, when he stood up again, he seemed impossibly tall. He’d lifted his staff into the air and aimed it at Connell.

Connell hadn’t stood a chance. Again and again, the sorcerer’s spells hit him square in the chest and then in the head. He had dragged Connell out of the cavern then, and his power was so intense that he was able to toss Connell into the air, watching as he hovered in the space between peaks.

Connell couldn’t remember much more than being dizzy, then being powerless to stop the monster of the man who’d entered his place of protection.

It wasn’t even a proper duel. He’d simply had no chance to fight and wasn’t even sure what he might’ve done if he had.

Now, tossed onto the precipice like garbage, he found himself alone. He wiped tears away angrily as he looked down at a small path leading away from the top of the mountain. For a moment, he considered simply throwing himself off the edge, for his life without magic would be nothing.

Instead, cowardice overtook him, and he found himself unable to end his life. Once on his feet, he turned away from the view of the cavern he’d once protected. There was nothing left inside, he knew. Nothing for him.

Still, as he began the long walk down the mountain, he searched for a way to reach the cavern once more, to know for sure.

The hike took him several hours, and while he was able to do it physically, he grew more and more tired with each step he took.

When he finally made it to the top of the other mountain, he paused at the entrance to the cavern. Was the man still here? He moved off to one side and peered in, too frightened to find out the truth. But after several minutes had passed, he finally found the bravery to step inside.

He didn’t know where the man had gone, but he did know that his own magic had dried up like a puddle on a hot summer day. And as he walked inside the cavern, the tomb, he realized the truth.

All of the magic was gone, not just his. The light from the pool, the light that had lit the entire place, had gone out. He dropped to his knees, thrust his hands into the water, and drank, hoping that he was wrong, that the Keepers were still swimming within it. But he didn’t feel a change, didn’t experience the feeling of Light running through his body.

It was gone, all of it.

And so was he.

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