The man before Ehrir looked at least five years younger than him. His golden-blond hair, combined with his warm grey eyes, angular chin and high cheekbones made him look more charming and attractive than most men. He was wearing a set or rich clothes, but there was no shirt beneath his unbuttoned blue coat and Ehrir could clearly see the well-defined muscles on his chest and abdomen.

Was this the famed Ostrias “the Ashen Gaze”? And if so, what was all the blabbering of Sevrian about this man being much older than him? As far as Ehrir knew the only sorcerers that could remain young and healthy beyond their natural limit were the Changelings… But this man wasn’t one of them, was he?

He had no time to think more about that right now. He quickly stepped forward and bowed his head.

“It’s nice to meet you, master.”

“I know, right? I can be pretty charming…” Ostrias grinned. “Don’t mind that, I can sound like a self-loving asshole from time to time. Nice to meet you too, Ehrir. You can sit wherever you want. You too, Sevrian.”

The old man and his disciple quickly found their way to two of the elegant chairs in the room.

“Now that we’re all nice and comfortable, I’d like to hear what you want to speak with me about. I can guess that you didn’t sweep by just out of respect towards me, Sevrian. I would also be pissed if you did. I was having a lot of fun with that woman you just saw leaving… A few greetings and kind words can’t be compared to such pleasure.”

Ehrir would smile if these words came out of somebody else’s mouth, but he didn’t dare to do it in front of the powerful Ashen Gaze.

“Master, I indeed have something I want to discuss with you.” Sevrian’s tone was respectful and humble. “That thing is also really the reason I took my new disciple with me. Ehrir, would you please take off your gloves?”

Cold chill went up the Undone One’s spine, but he obeyed the old man’s command. Soon his hands were bare and the Brand could be clearly seen. It certainly got Ostrias’ attention and his eyes lit up.

“Quite interesting, Sevrian, quite interesting… If I may ask, Ehrir, from how long are you an Undone One?”

“Eight years or so…” answered Ehrir. He was still counting the days, but he didn’t want to tell the exact amount. He knew it, though. Eight years, one month and four days.

Ostrias’ expression darkened slightly.

“I see...” he said after a while. “Sevrian, what do you think? Answer me honestly. Do you think that the Changeling is still in these parts of the Outer Fantasy?”

Ehrir’s heart skipped a beat when he heard the term Changeling. And just a moment afterwards a familiar hatred rose in him, but he managed to stay quiet.

The old man, on the other hand, looked nervous when he began speaking.

“I believe he left long ago, master. If there aren’t any other Undone appearing besides Ehrir, and more recently awakened ones at that, that is only further proof of it.”

“You’re right. There aren’t none besides our friend over here. And still… I believe we should stay here a little longer. You know what I’m talking about? And don’t get me wrong. I don’t mean the women or the alcohol, although both are good reasons to spend my remaining years here.”

Sevrian swallowed.

“Do you mean… You want to perform the Clairvoyance?” There was both fear and amazement in the old man’s tone.

“I have the full intent to.” Ostrias smiled brightly. “I’ll need the assistance of your new disciple, of course. Well, Ehrir, do you want to participate in a little ritual? It’s nothing too amazing, honestly, but at least you’ll get a glimpse of what really powerful magic is. It isn’t flashy or colorful – it’s labeled as Control, actually. But believe me… The experience will be interesting!”

Ehrir felt confusion. Control, as far as he knew, was the most complex and strange discipline in magic. What could this master sorcerer want to do with him? And – most importantly – with Control involved in it?

“I’d participate with joy, master… But I’d like to know what exactly this Clairvoyance is, if it’s not too much to ask.”

Ostrias smiled.

“Be at ease. I’ll answer you. The Clairvoyance is a process in which a magician is able to look into someone’s mind and bring his memories and past experiences to the surface. Both the sorcerer and the one whose brain he’s gazing into can see these past memories, even if they are not clearly remembered – or not remembered at all – by the person in question. It is often used for extraction of information.”

The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

“But what would you want to see in me with this ritual?” the confusion on Ehrir’s face grew. “During my whole life as an Undone One I haven’t seen or done anything remarkable. As for the memories from my previous life… they are stolen by the Changelings, aren’t they?”

“Indeed they are, Ehrir. But… Are you familiar with the process of creating an Undone One?” the smile wasn’t leaving Ostrias’ face.

“No, master.”

“I thought so. Let me explain it simply: people such as you remain only after a powerful Changeling extends his life. The weaker ones use far fewer people for their rituals and they easily take their life and memories. But the strong ones need much more people. And to efficiently use all of them they let huge amounts of their soul energy flow through them when performing the necessary rituals. However, most don’t have such a high degree of mastery over the energy so it is unrestricted. And for the ceremony a link between the Changeling’s mind and these of his targets is necessary. The result is simple – when the ritual is finished an Undone One emerges as an aftereffect. He is born because the Changeling can’t be precise when it comes to the act’s details and sometimes he or she uses very little amounts of energy on someone, which leads to him not dying. But besides the gift of life, part of the creator’s memories are left engraved in the Undone One’s mind thanks to the previously mentioned connection… Can you guess what this means?”

It took a few second for Ehrir to connect the dots. But he still realized it quickly.

“You’re saying that… The memories of my… creator are still inside of me?”

Ostrias smiled at his answer.

“You are quick to acknowledge things. I like that. Yes, I believe that there are visions in your brain left there by a sorcerer eight years ago. You definitely can’t recall them, but they exist. I’m sure of it. And I can bring them to the surface… Do you want to take part in the Clairvoyance, Ehrir? It won’t hurt you in any way. I promise.”

“I will attend this ritual of yours, master.” Instinctively said the Undone One. But then a question surged up within him. “Why are my creator’s memories so important?”

Ostrias’ expression grew a bit darker, but the grin didn’t leave his face.

“Well, I’ll be straightforward. I believe that the mage who is responsible for you is a well-known Changeling that left the domains of master wizards about a dozen years ago. He is an important figure in the politics of the south and I’ve come to search for him on behalf of one of my close allies. I don’t have a single clue what the said ally will do upon finding him. However, I should fight and kill the Changeling if he doesn’t come with me willingly. The thing is… Sorcerers as powerful as this one are rare in the north parts of the world, even more so if they are Changelings. Exactly that leads me to believe that the man I’m looking for is the same one that made you an Undone One.”

Ehrir felt cold shiver down his spine. His hands started trembling firmly, but he managed to suppress it.

“It… seems logical”, he finally said with quivering voice. “But I don’t want to meet this man. I don’t even want to stain my mind with his memories. If I ever see him… I’ll try to kill him for sure.” There was anger and hatred in his voice. The disdain that grew inside of him for eight years finally showed its ugly face. But it was just a fraction of all the negative emotions Ehrir hid inside of himself. He quickly calmed. “I’ll help you, master.”

“Good. You can go rest now. Sevrian will probably report about your voyage in depth and that’s something that can be called interesting rarely. The servant girl that led you here should still be waiting by the door. She’ll show you the way to your chambers.”

Ehrir nodded respectfully and thanked Ostrias for his kindness. Then he got up from the chair and started walking towards the door.

The words of the Ashen Gaze stopped him in the middle of his way.

“Excuse me for the rudeness, Ehrir, but… I can see it in your eyes. There is something you want to ask me. You can go on and do it right now.”

The Undone One swallowed. Well, when it had come to this… He really was curious about one thing, after all.

“It may seem as an inappropriate question, master, but… How old are you?”

Silence reigned over the room for a second. And it felt like a pretty time for Ehrir. Then Ostrias started laughing loudly. He went on for nearly a minute before calming down.

“Finally!” he exploded in laughter again. “Somebody finally asks me this question! You know, it’s quite annoying for my subordinates – your master, Sevrian, too – to just go around telling people that I’m older and stronger than them. And then somebody comes to visit me and they look at me thinking that I’m no more than twenty-five or thirty, perhaps. And they are full of confusion, but say nothing because of my reputation of cruel and important man. Can you believe it?”

Ehrir smiled at the pure cheerfulness in Ostrias’ words and quietly waited for him to continue speaking.

“If I have to be honest, however…” the man’s expression turned to seriousness. “Let me see… If I’m not mistaken, this year I’ll be four hundred and sixty-eight years old.”

Ehrir almost fainted, but kept standing on his feet. Barely.

“Master… Are you joking with me? I… I believed only the Changelings could extend their lives to such… such an extent…”

His words just invoked another grin from Ostrias.

“Oh, don’t worry, I’m not one of them. I’m just of Emhaelic descent. Through the countless generations the unnatural longevity of the ancient’s civilization nobles is still carried on. I can live much longer than normal humans, mainly because my oldest ancestors, those who came even before the Emhaels, were non-human. And besides… I’m from the Inner Fantasy. Everyone there is more long-lived than usual.”

“The… Inner Fantasy?”

Shock was written all over Ehrir’s face. The Inner Fantasy was just a myth – a land of legends somewhere to the far south where mages reigned over all people and the laws of nature didn’t work as intended. Could it be real?

“Oh… I see this is some new knowledge for you. Please go and rest a bit. It can be helpful in such situations. A servant will come to inform you when our little ritual will take place”, said Ostrias. His tone was calming and caring.

Ehrir couldn’t do anything besides follow the advice of the Ashen Gaze. He really had the need to rest. And to comprehend the new information given to him.

The Clairvoyance was to be held early in the morning of the next day.