Of Ancient Passages: Chapter 12:  Wand or Not to Wand

“Where are you taking me?” Sol asks.

“Wait and see.” Comes Alunda’s reply.

“Why below? Down in the dark wet cellar.” She says in a bit of anxiety.

“A dokkilalfer who doesn’t like the underground. What is the world coming to?”

“Ha ha. Very funny Alunda.” D’ereen says rather snarky.

They continue to step down the stone staircase. The torch casts long shadows of them. “You know most people would be thankful to be here. You can count your stars for that. Velra has given me permission to be down here. I had thought that Azan destroyed this place.”

“Where are we?”

They arrive at a door. An eye is carved in the center. The eye is strong but lacking color. From all sides stars streak away. They flee to circular indentions. There is no handle to be found.

“We are here.” Alunda says.

“Here where?”

A hand is placed over the eye. A light starts to glow. “The eye in the stars. The stars in the eye.” Alunda hisses to it.

“Is the door going to fade away or something?” Asks Sol.

The older wizard taps him on the forehead. “Don’t be silly this isn’t a book.”

With a little push, the door slides aside. Tables hold stands with peculiar looking pieces of wood. Bottles bubble and pop. Assortments of handling devices hang on the walls. Odd little blue creatures float in cages, buzzing and causing vibrations.

“Come in come in.” They come inside. “You need a something Sol, if you still want to be a wizard?”

Was there a question in there? ”Of course I do.”

“Good. Every mage worth his salt has a wand or staff,” he beats his on the ground, “Or something that he can use. What is it that seeks you?”

“Don’t I choose it?”

“No, no, no. It chooses you. A good device is never taken only found. Now search and let it find you.”

“How will I know?”

“You will know. Now go look.”

He starts at the racks of wands. Then to the staffs.  Lightly drawing his finger over the crystal balls proves nothing. He goes about to every item in the dark basement. Not one of them does anything. Only the little blue creatures start to thrash in there cage. This startles Sol a little.

“Maybe one of those creatures is picking you.” D’ereen suggests.

All of them start to thrash and cry. They rock so violently that the cage topples over, and they go rolling on the floor. Something swishes over their heads. It dashes so quickly that they cannot see it. A sharp noise comes and it slams into Sol’s face. He tries to shake it off but it is stuck.

“Get it! Get it!” He yelps.

D’ereen slaps him across the face. It goes twirling upwards. Like a feather, it starts to slowly fall. Gently it rocks down and down. Sol flattens his hands and waits for it to land. Frailly it slips into his open palms.

“What the…” Comes D’ereen’s surprise.

“Huh? Wha?” Is the question Sol poses.

“That is not supposed to be down here. This is not a proper tool of a magic user.”

For in his hands is something that shouldn’t be. In his hands is a square little thing. Something that is average and plain. Something that cannot possibly work. But here it is just the same. He feels very silly right now.

This is a joke right? How can this be it? Of all the wands and staffs, this is what picks me?

“It’s just an Ace card. But now the deck that it belongs to is useless. It’s just an Ace card!”

“I guess someone was in here before and was having a game. Evidently they left this behind.” Says D’ereen.

“You slapped me!” He rubs it. “Ouch it really stings.”

“Sorry.”

“It’s useless keep—“Alunda is halted.

There is a sort of whisper. “What is that? Do you hear it? Maybe it is coming from….”

A sapphire light comes from the Ace. It twists around his fingers. Traveling up his arm. Receding back the card starts to glow. The blues fade into gold, sparkling and marvelous. When the light is gone, it feels heavy, full of uses.

“In all my years I have never seen this happen.”

“So…do I just pick another one?”

“No you silly boy. This is your tool. It belongs to you now. It has waited and chosen you. This has never happened to anything so easily obtained. I could find this card in any deck in any store in Valtier. Somehow, magic has sprung into it. Do not ask me how for I do not know. Use it! Try it! Any spell will do!”

He swipes it in the air and a small red cloud hovers for a moment and then vanishes. “Wow this is it isn’t it. Good thing I didn’t put it back. I thought mages only use staffs and wands.”

“Not always I guess. I congratulate you.” He yawns. “Forgive me I am very tired. I think I will have some tea and go to bed. Much has happened today and it is nearly dark.”

“Ooh I want tea. Sol you coming?”

“No I think I will do a little research.”

“Very well my apprentice.” He grins. “I trust you to take care in what you read. I leave you to it.”

Research he did, and study he did more. Pages were flipped until his brain hurt. Books were piled around him. His arms are folded as he sleeps, too tired to continue. D’ereen finds him sometime in the night.