Summoned
Chapter One: Reminiscences
Bartimaeus
I, Bartimaeus of Uruk, Sakhr al-Jinni, N'gorso the mighty builder, Rekhyt of Alexandria, Necho of Egypt, and, a slightly more recent addition to my many names, Homo de Credo of Britain, am content and annoyed at the same time right now. It's all his fault. But, I'll admit, I am very proud of my many titles in various languages, but the last one is the one that I am most proud of. It was given to me by my master, who I just referred to as him, Nathaniel, and it means One of Trust in Latin.
Now, two years ago, if you'd told me that I'd be here right now, telling you the story of how my master and I formed an eternal bond, my essence would have turned to custard1 from laughter. If you know me or Nathaniel, or both, you must be having a very, very difficult time trying to imagine this as possible. This is most likely because you are picturing John Mandrake, Nathaniel's former magician's name.
It all started about 10 years ago, when Nathaniel was just 12. He summoned me to retrieve the Amulet of Samarkaand from a powerful magician, and I did so. He ordered me to hide it in his master's study downstairs, and I did. We ended up escaping together after destroying an extremely powerful spirit, Ramuthra.
Next, about 2 or 3 years later, he summoned me again to help him stop the Resistance, a team of magician-hating commoners with resilience to magic, and a clay Golem that had been set loose in London.
Finally, he called upon me to follow certain government members around and I helped him stop Nouda and Faquarl, the latter being an old enemy of mine that I wasn't reluctant to kill in any way. But in the process, Kitty Jones, a commoner that had provided both help and hindering in the past, showed that she trusted me completely and followed me into the Other Place, the world where spirits could find rest and peace. Nathaniel sacrificed himself for the good of the entire public, me, and, probably most important to him, Kitty.
Or so the story is around London. I, being Bartimaeus of Uruk and Sakhr al-Jinni, N'gorso the mighty builder, Rekhyt of Egypt, Necho of Alexandria, know differently.
1. Really, you should pay better attention. I'm positive that I've told you this before. Oh, well. The essence collapses completely while on the mortal plane. In the Other Place, our essences are not bound to any particular shape unless we wish them to be.
