The glamour shifted slightly, rippling in its camouflaging effect and for a few moments revealing what it had been cast to hide and protect. Within plain sight of all who glanced towards the flowing water of the river, just at the point where it met the sea, appeared an island. To the East of the island, exotic temples built of rose coloured stone shimmered in the sunlight. A citadel of a paler stone with three arched domes, one of which was adorned with a gold cupola, glistened in the misty light. As the glamour ebbed and flowed it revealed the west of the city, a modern metropolis of towering buildings forged of glass and steel that punctured the sky. Neon signs atop some of the skyscrapers flashed and bright lights speckled the streets between the buildings. Trees and unfamiliar foliage clumped to the North of the island. A rippling of the light between the trees hinting at some sort of waterway. Beyond the forest dark turrets jutted into the sky, so high that clouds obscured their jagged spires. To the South of the island large mountains surrounded by snow clad trees dominated the landscape. And just as quickly as the island had appeared in its wavering brilliance, it vanished from sight.
Nathan almost rolled from his bed, getting his arm tangled for a moment in the bed sheet as his mobile phone rang on his bedside table. The insistent and violent vibration of the ringing nearly making the phone tumble to the floor. Answering the phone, Nathan heard the soft voice of Eugene. He listened patiently as Eugene spoke. Reaching for his round rimmed vision glasses and the laptop that sat on the table under the window, Nathan logged on waiting for the start up menu. Typing in his password, he connected to YouTube as Eugene explained that the flicker in the glamour had been corrected.
Once on his YouTube account Nathan uploaded a google image he had photoshopped earlier, explaining the footage which had apparently already made world news, film of a mirage so lifelike it must be a portal to another place or time. He shook his head watching the news feed, reassuring words coming from his mouth to Eugene as he posted his YouTube video explaining the mirage of the island and other such "hoaxes". He then logged on to another YouTube account, disseminating a second possible explanation for the mirage, this time showing a building in Bangkok that seemed, with a little tweaking, to match the beautiful tower of the granite citadel in the eastern quarter of his home.
It would take a few days, but the seed of doubt had been "scientifically" planted with these videos. This coupled with the human fear of appearing gullible or stupid would do the rest.
He took his glasses off, placing them carefully on his bedside table and rubbed at his eyes, still reassuring Eugene that all was well and had been handled as he said goodbye, promising to visit soon. He looked at his watch and shaking his head, dragged himself to the bathroom to shower, he had a show tonight.
Eugene de Lalle, sighed a little as he stood up, he walked stiffly towards the crescent shaped window, the view from it revealing a meandering river leading to the sea. Comforting waves frothed, ebbing and flowing, nipping and retreating from the rock base upon which this part of the city had been built. He watched the roiling waves for a few moments longer and then went back to his desk, sitting comfortably and reaching for the tea he had brewed earlier. He lifted his tea, sipping it from the same china cup that his ancestors had used. Many things had been bought with them in the great exodus from one realm to the other. Treasures that they could not bear to part with, despite loved ones having to be left behind in those dark days of the cleansing.
Eugene shuddered a little despite the warmth from the window which was now filled by the orange tinged light of the setting sun, recalling all he had read of those dreadful times.
Magic was a part of the Arcanum bloodline. They used and embraced it as though it was a reflex, like breathing. The Arcanum harnessed their abilities for non selfish purposes on the whole, a way to assist those in the world not of their blood. This union, unnoticed for so long, came to an end when many of the feats they performed started to threaten those that ruled by fear. Initially they tried to fight the scourge of the Inquisitors. They tried to reason with the dark clad harbingers of doom who pointed accusatory fingers at anyone they deemed did not fit in or support the world as they knew it. The inquisitors basing their findings on rumours and suspicions, wringing and torturing confessions from many that did not even know what magic was. Many among the Arcanum tried hard to quell the fears of the ignorant and the afraid. Eugene had read of the scourge and the evils that the inquisitors had committed in order to retain the power they had over the populous, a power led by fear of the unknown, a power that the Arcanum had vowed to defeat. A manuscript had even been written by one of their numbers, who crudely made copies and passed them out to anyone willing to read the publication which attempted to explain the magic they performed as just simple parlour tricks, in a desperate attempt to diffuse the growing hysteria. It had all been to no avail however and the resultant torturous deaths of tens of thousands of people, most of them not even of Arcanum blood, had made staying an unacceptable option.
In an attempt to leave behind the cruelty and the death, the Arcanum had built hidden places, using the many talents and skills that they had. Although they could wield magic, aside from the very fringe of the Arcanum, they were not immortal and their magic was used mostly in a day to day way. There were those in the Arcanum who could of cause resurrect, but this was done very rarely and by a secret group within the family who dwelled on the outskirts of their kingdom, in the wild woodlands.
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From where he sat sipping his tea, as the sun started to dip towards the horizon, Eugene could see the massive turrets of the Austellus Arx, just visible peaking through the fine mist. The fortress had been the first building conjured when the bloodline of Arcanum had decided to hide in plain sight from all those that did not understand their subtle arts. It was within the walls of the Austellus Arx that the power source of the glamour resided, it was a simple room, with no windows or distractions and within its confines was a pendulum made of a conjured metal, bright and enduring, and at the centre of the structure hung a crystal, the clearest crystal ever hewn. At times, as with all such reliant devices something occurred which caused a glitch in the integrity of the glamour. Once it was noticed it was usually a quick fix, something obscured one of the smooth facets of the of the crystal in this case.
The glamour was rarely compromised but when it was Eugene knew that Nathan was the best real realm dweller to contact. Over the years some of the Arcanum had been sent back to the other realm, they were not allowed to do anything which would make their true abilities known but they were there to watch the world and to serve as liaisons between the two realms. Some of the Arcanum were curious about the world. Any Arcanum wishing to move between the realms had to have special abilities and be very well versed in the beliefs and ideals of their bloodline. Nathan had been in the real realm for about a year and already and had proved his worth, working to ensure the secrecy of their hidden kingdom and the well being of the real realm.
Nathan had belonged to the family of elemental manipulators in the Arcanum bloodline, dwelling in the metropolis with his other family in the Order of Ignis.
As the sun finally descended below the horizon, darkness filling the crescent window, Eugene, stood and headed to the staircase that led to his sleeping chamber, feeling happy that the glitch had caused no lasting repercussions this time.
Nathan picked up his keys, slid the strap of his leather satchel over his shoulder and headed out onto the streets of the city, a wave of people carrying him towards the subway entrance he used. He was playing at Mr Chang's Oriental Theatre tonight. He liked the atmosphere at the small theatre, with it's dark red and gold curtains and the curiosities that were housed just off stage, remnants of the days of Mr Chang's Travelling Show. Nathan liked to tap the glass on the pickled anomalies and watch as they swirled in the murky liquid, parts of them hitting against the glass revealing and teasing with small glimpses of the hideous contents of the large screw top jars. Mr Chang also housed in his dusty collection, stuffed animals of unknown origins, little trinkets he claimed to be magic. Often Nathan toyed with these items, cold stones, and shiny gems apparently from the royal Chinese court, all supposedly imbued with an ability to do magic. Mr Chang also ran a small shop at the back of the theatre which housed all manner of cobweb encrusted wares and unrecognisable elements needed apparently for ritualistic magic. Nathan sometimes ran his fingertip along the strange labels all written in Mr Chang's meticulous calligraphy, the brown ink fading here and there on the curling paper labels, but the names still readable and still as fantastical as the first time Nathan had laid eyes on them.
One of the other reasons Nathan loved to work at Mr Chang's Oriental Theatre greeted him as he walked in the door. She was Jasmine, Mr Chang's grand daughter and the only family member willing to spend time and humour Mr Chang's passion for the macabre and weird. Jasmine had been born in Los Angeles where her father, Mr Chang's son worked as a screen writer, but a year ago she had left the comfort of her West Hollywood home and forgone the LA lifestyle for the bustle of NY, and Nathan was so glad she had.
She smiled and helped Nathan with the leather bag he carried his props in, handing him a drink and beckoning for him to sit and join her, his show was in a few hours but he liked to come early and Jasmine had started to expect him to. He sipped the drink straight from the bottle as Jasmine giggled telling him about a strange performer the night before that had cried and left the stage. The club had always attracted a rowdy audience and hecklers in abundance, it was something that Nathan enjoyed.
Mr Chang, a shrivelled little man, not unlike some of his displays, shuffled into the room, nodding his head at Nathan who sat atop the counter and spoke directly to Jasmine.
"Everything set ?”
Jasmine nodded and Mr Chang continued shuffling out the room, Jasmine and Nathan smiled at each other and then laughed.
"He is a man of many words "
Jasmine laughed harder,
"Nathan, why do you perform here? You are so good you could perform anywhere."
Nathan took a thoughtful sip of his drink and then placed the bottle down on the bar, looking at Jasmine,
"I like it here, besides I wouldn't get to see you if I didn't "
Jasmine blushed beautifully, her delicate features brushed with a flush of pink
It was mostly true, as was Jasmine's suggestion he could perform anywhere. Of course he could, he wasn't performing tricks he was really doing magic. The Arcanum blood flowed strong in his blood, pure. He was a most gifted artisan of magic, but of course like his forefathers that dwelled in this realm after the Inquisition, he hid it behind tricks.
Jasmine watched as Nathan unpacked his props setting them as usual on the small wooden table covered in a red velvet cloth. There was nothing particularly special about the way Nathan haphazardly tipped his props out on the table from his leather satchel. She watched him a little closer and saw that in tipping his props out he had swung his bag. The edge of the bag had caught on one of the large glass candle holders and it began to topple from the shelf. Jasmine stood up in a futile attempt to rush forward and catch the falling object but was frozen in her tracks as she saw Nathan turn calmly, his hand extended. The glass candle holder, seemed to defy gravity as it stopped mid air and as Nathan lifted his hand it rose into the air, sliding back onto the shelf from which it had fallen. Not really knowing why, Jasmine looked away pretending she had not seen what had happened. Nathan looked around himself, and then satisfied that no one had seen what had transpired Jasmine watching as he placed his satchel down more carefully, pushing it with his foot into a corner.