(Ivan)

Later that afternoon, Lisa, Ivan, and William finally got a chance to catch up on the events of the last few weeks. As usual, William did most of the talking and his aunt was the perfect audience. She marveled at his ability to maintain multiple spells at the same time. She was shocked that he had used Shatter Touch in such an unconventional way. She told him that she had never heard of it being used to dig tunnels. She chided William for opening the apothecary flask with his teeth.

“Yeah, but that’s the best sleep that I’ve gotten in the past month.” William grinned.

“For Cea’Nia sake, you’re missing the point child.” Lisa sighed. “A partial shift of your paw would have given you the necessary grip to uncork the flask without taking a risk. You’re tend to be impulsive and you need to be mindful of that. You were quite fortunate that Rose was there.”

“But Rose is just as impulsive as I am.” William crossed his arms.

“Oh, Rose only gives the appearance of being impulsive.” Lisa raised an eyebrow. “But, if you examine her actions closely, you’ll find that she uses good problem solving and sound judgment.”

William hung his head. “Yes, Aunt Lisa. I’ll try not to rush things next time.”

Lisa put an arm around William’s shoulder and beckoned Ivan. “Let me hug you both. I’m so relieved that my boys are safe. I’ve been thinking about you since I left Scar. This has been the longest we’ve ever been apart. I worry about you getting into trouble when I’m not around.” She glanced at William.

“You can always count on me to get into trouble, even when you’re around,” William retorted with a grin.

“And you can always count on me to keep him out of trouble as best as I can,” Ivan added. “Though that’s akin to the Greenhorns winning the Burn the Banner championship.”

Lisa chuckled. “Rose told me that you healed her leg and her shoulder. It sounds like your healing magic is improving. She showed me her leg and I didn’t even see a scar.”

“I get a lot of practice. After dinner, I’m usually working with the healers. I’ve made a lot of new friends there. I love being around them. There is always something going on there. I get to hear the best stories and see the craziest things. Last week, I healed a guy that had been shot by an arrow. The wooden shaft had completely pierced his left butt cheek and gone straight into his right butt cheek.” William giggled.

Lisa shook her head. “Uh, that’s quite a story.”

“I know, right!”

Lisa turned to Ivan. “Your plan for capturing Pike was ingenious. Greg told me that you’ve got a talent for strategy, but I already knew that. You keep your mind as sharp as a Giant Steel blade. After all, you’ve got a book in your hand as often as you have a blade.”

“Well, others made the plan work. William and Rose were the key.” Ivan paused and looked at his brother. “I wonder if you’ll be chosen as one of the participants in the upcoming Spirit Competition. Some of your abilities are bound to create an uproar.”

“I keep hearing about the Spirit Competition,” William blurted. “I know it’s coming up soon and I’ve got tons of questions.”

“Ask away,” his aunt replied.

“So, the competition is taking place far away from here, on Eel Island, but how do we get there? I’ve heard people talk about magical portals. Where are they and how do they work? What about the Shadow Lands? Won’t they attack us on the island?”

“Good questions,” Lisa replied. “Now that I think about it, we haven’t talked much about the Spirit Competition. Your brother is right though, you might be chosen to represent the Nature Kingdom. Hmm, let’s see. Where should I start?” She paused.

“As your already know, the Spirit Competition celebrates the awakening of life at the beginning of spring and the bounty of the earth at the start of fall. It’s held every decade at the start of spring and autumn. It’s hosted on neutral grounds by the monks of Eel Island. It’s an ancient tradition that promotes peace and cooperation between the realms.”

“You can scratch off both of those for the Shadow Lands this year,” William said flippantly.

His aunt continued as though she had not been interrupted, “During the competition, all regional squabbles and wars are suspended. Anyone that breaks the custom is stripped from any titles and awards earned during the current Spirit Competition. Additionally, they’re banned from attending and participating in the next contest.”

“Eel Island can also impose a trade embargo,” Ivan chimed in.

“That’s right.” His aunt nodded. “There are serious consequences for breaking the rules and no one has done so in recent history.”

“Hmm.” William looked unconvinced.

“So, the chosen will compete in three different categories. We have Might, Magic, and Mind. The Might category has two separate events, melee and range.”

“William, you’ll love the champion selection process.” Ivan jumped in. “Every kingdom has a unique method for picking their champions. For the Nature Kingdom, the Queen of Sprites herself makes the final selection. She chooses two people for each event.”

“Did you say the Queen of Sprites?” William’s jaw dropped.

“Yes,” Lisa replied. “The involvement of Queen Chloe in the champion selection is a mystery. Her name appears in various preserved historical documents about the Spirit Competition. Her choices, though controversial at times, have been propitious for us. During the reign of Alaras, the Evergreen Realm even petitioned the monks of Eel Island to forbid her from participating in the selection. Fortunately for us, the petition was rejected.”

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“I’ve never even seen a Sprite.” William’s eyes lit up. “I’ve heard that they’re quite mischievous. I hope that I can befriend one of them.”

“William…” Lisa gave him a stern look. “Sprites are wild and unpredictable. Considering that you can use Light magic, please don’t try to summon one of them.”

“Oh, yeah.” William chuckled nervously. “Rose already warned me about that.” He frowned, looked down, and rocked back on his heels. “You see, she caught me reading Sprite Summoning for Simpletons by Mad Foolheart.”

Ivan and Lisa looked alarmed.

“Relax!” William affected his most innocent expression. “I’m not going to attempt that anytime soon. Besides, I haven’t even finished reading the book.”

After being admonished by his aunt yet again, the topic returned to the Spirit Competition.

“Let me see.” Lisa opened her bag and rummaged around. “Hmm, I know it’s in here somewhere.”

William looked at his aunt’s enchanted bag longingly. “I’ve been saving my coins. I wonder if I’ve got enough for my own enchanted bag.”

“I doubt it,” replied Ivan. “Those things are pricey.”

Aunt Lisa finally found what she was looking for. She drew a metal tube out, unfastened the lid, and pulled out a parchment. She unrolled it and placed it on the table. It was a map. The name Cea’Nia was written in the lower right-hand corner, next to an image of a golden compass. This was the most detailed map Ivan had ever seen. In addition to the three main continents, there was a fourth, which was named the Frozen Wastes.

“This is Eel Island where the competition takes place.” She pointed to the center of the map.

“Hey, Aunt Lisa,” Ivan interrupted. “What about that area.” He pointed to the corner of the map. “I’ve never heard of a fourth continent.”

“This is my own personal map.” She smiled. “I don’t know of anyone else who has seen the Frozen Wastes and lived.”

“Really!” William leaned in.

“I’ve spotted it only once and from a distance.” She had a faraway look in her eyes. “It was the middle of summer, and I was exploring the north. I’d been flying for hours above the Ocean of Tears. The temperature dropped the further north I went. My feathers were frosting, and I was struggling to keep aloft. I knew I needed to head back. But being young and stubborn, I decided to continue a little further.”

“Ha! Making bad decisions runs in the family,” William blurted. “See, it’s not just me.”

Ivan pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head.

“Well, where was I,” their aunt continued. “Right! So, I adjusted my eye shift when I saw a sliver of white land on the horizon. It was a frozen mountain range. Part of my assignment was to locate a ship that had gone missing in the north. The coastline of the Frozen Wastes was dotted with thousands of frozen ships. I couldn’t believe my eyes. Some of the ships were newer and others were ancient. I saw vessels that were completely foreign and weird looking. I wanted to get closer, but I could feel the blood in my veins congealing. The winds shifted against me. It felt like I was being driven away. A vortex of snow rose from the coastline and hurtled toward me. So, I had to flee.”

“Wow…” William sat back. “That place sounds scary.”

His aunt nodded.

“Who named it?” asked Ivan. “I haven’t seen it on other maps.”

“The archivists decided to call it the Frozen Wastes. Once my findings have been verified, that place will show up on official maps. To be honest, we aren’t even certain if it’s a continent or an island. From the distance, the coastline was extensive, so we decided to designate it as a continent.”

“So, as you got closer, the wind shifted against you?” Ivan inquired.

“That’s right.”

“Hmm, and then a snow vortex was directed at you. That sounds like a magical attack.”

“Yeah, it certainly felt like one.”

“Let me think.” Ivan concentrated. “Shadow casters have weather manipulating abilities, like Cover of Fog. Do you think that someone used a relic against you or a different school of magic?”

“It’s possible. For now, even our scholars have not been able to unravel the mystery of the Frozen Wastes.”

There was a long pause in the discussion. Both Ivan and Lisa were thinking until William interrupted them. “Can we get back to the Spirit Competition?”

“Ohhhh, sure we can,” his aunt replied. “Where was I? Ah, each kingdom will present their champions at the start of the competition. The chosen will face off in a series of elimination rounds. If you lose a single round, you’re out.”

“Wicked!” William exclaimed. “How old was the youngest competitor?”

“Let me think. Maybe a bit older than you, but not by much.”

“Sable Fire was fourteen years old when she attended the 326th Spirit Competition,” Ivan recited from memory. “She was eliminated in the first round, though ten years later she won the Magic Tournament.”

“Pfft, if a girl was allowed to participate at fourteen, I can win it all.” William rubbed his hands together and smiled.

“It would be imprudent for you to dismiss your opponents based on gender,” Ivan commented. “Especially when you consider that the majority of the Magic Tournament champions have been women.”

“Bah, I’m not scared of girls,” William crowed.

“You may not be, but everyone needs to be afraid of overconfidence and easy dismissal,” Ivan lectured.

“That’s right, it’s about the three C’s,” Lisa chimed in. “Capability, competence, and cleverness.”

“I always thought it was about the three L’s. Looks, luck… and some other third thing that I can’t remember right now.”

“Ohhh, William.” His aunt shook her head.

“So, what can you tell me about those portals that people keep talking about?”

“They’re gateways,” said Lisa. “Also known as the Portals of the Ancients. They’re relics from times long past that are typically dormant. Only during the start of spring and autumn do they allow instant travel to Eel Island. Imagine that the doorway across the room was connected via magic with another doorway located, oh, I don’t know, back home. You could step through that door and in the next breath be in our old kitchen. That’s the general principle of how portals work.”

If I could portal back to the farm, I’d pick up my favorite books,” Ivan thought.

“Each continent has seven portals,” Lisa continued. “The laws of nature are disrupted around the portals. Floating globes of water that bounce around like balls when they collide surround the portals. The gateway itself is incredible. It looks like lightning bolts against a backdrop of stars.”

“Scraps, I can’t wait to see that.” William’s expression darkened. “Can the Shadow Lands use the Nature Kingdom portals to attack us?”

“No, they can’t,” Lisa said. “You don’t need to worry about that. Our portals have a guardian. The guardian controls the portal. Even our own people get denied at times.”

“How do you get denied?” asked William. “If the gateway is open, you can just run through.”

“Not really,” replied Lisa. “When someone that’s not allowed to enter steps into the portal, nothing happens.”

“The guardian of the Nature Kingdom’s portals has never allowed a foreigner to travel through them,” Ivan added.

“Once we reach Eel Island you’ll see seven mountains with seven portals,” Lisa continued. “Three of those are used by each of the known kingdoms. One of them is believed to be used by the Sprites. The other three entrances are a mystery. Many believe that they’re dormant. Our portals look like massive stone archways, covered in hieroglyphs and enchanted crystals.”

“Ooooh, I can’t wait to see them.” William grinned.

“You won’t have to wait long. The Spirit Competition is just a few weeks away.”

“Aunt Lisa, you told me a lot about the Spirit Competition, but you forgot to tell me the most important part.” William’s whole face lit up. “What does a champion get for winning?”

“You get to represent your kingdom,” Ivan replied. “Isn’t that enough?”

“Bah, I want shinies.”

“Well, the winners get an enchanted bag, five stones of gold, and a unique trophy.”

“Now you’re talking!” William rubbed his palms together.

If William gets picked, there is going to be trouble, Ivan mused.