The air was stale but unusualy sweet after his ordeal. He pulled in heaping lungfuls in between fits of laughter. He was laughing because he has survived. David had been certain he was goimg to die, and the realization he had lived made him immensely happy. He could not help himself as he laid on his back, still driping wet. Slowly, his mind began to think clearly and a lot of questions began to surface. Yes, he was alive, but how had he escaped the water?
David pulled his aching body into a seated position and began to examine his surroundings. He was in a grand cave so large that the other side was barely visible. Nearby David was a swirling blue vortex of light, and on the other side was water, almost like a window into a different world. Somehow, he had passed through that barrier, which now held the Lake at bay. Why was there such a barrier so far beneath the ground? Where was he? His skin tingled as a sense of Deja Vu overcame him. He had no idea how, but he recognized this place. This is where he had been taken to withdraw money from Atlas.
Unlike his previous visit, his mind was absolutely clear as he examined his surroundings. He remembered some of the artifacts laying in the heaping piles of gold, the towering mountains of silver, and the endless waves of copper. Remembering the goblin Grublock's warning, David did not touch anything, just examined them from a safe distance. It was wonderous. He just let his feet take him where they wanted, following a single path through the maze of treasure. There was so much money here, David had to fight back the feelings of greed and power that lurked within his heart. There was far more than just money and a few ancient artwork. David stopped to examine a large pile of finely crafted rubies as big as his fist, stacked up in a near perfect pyramid. He inspected items like a large staff shaped like a large bolt of fire and wondered what it could do. Swords, shields, spears, and other ancient weapons sat in weapon racks in pristine conditions, somehow withstanding the tests of time deep in a cave underground. Many times he wondered why such things were here in the first place, but something in his mind pushed it away.
"Come." Someone whispered to him. David spun around, nearly leaping out of his skin. There was no one around. He had felt the breath touch the side of his face as it spoke. David could not tell whether it was male or female, since it was extremely soft and smooth, but still he was nervous.
"Who's there?" David called out, feeling stupid. How many times had he yelled at the television when he saw people do this in the movies?
"Come." it said again. Glittering in the corner of David's eye caught his attention. There was a trail of tiny pearls of light along the path before him, leading him to an unknown destination. "Do not be afraid." It said.
Hesitantly, David slowly took a step forward. Then another. He tried to combine the two motions, but something inside him was afraid, allowing him only to take a single step or two before pausing again. If anyone had seen him, it might have looked like a horrible attempt at The Robot. The path lead him through all the treasure without any dead ends or anything suspicious for several minutes. David no longer needed to follow the glittering light. He saw the destination, looming in the distance over the mountains of treasure. What he saw, even after nearly a year studying magic at Trinity Academy, made his jaw drop.
A city was the closest word David knew to describe it. The towering buildins were tall and thin, bridges laced in between them to support their thin structures. There was no way on Earth that was built by man. It was fantasical, something some only saw in futuristic science fiction movies. It reminded David of a movie he once saw when he was younger called Star Wars. It was not just the technology that was amazing, it was how well it was blended with nature that made it beautiful. Each tower had several dozen hanging gardens of different varieties, and each one had a greenhouse. Even though these were all overgrown now, David could almost see the vision of its beauty.
In the middle of the skyline was a massive tower, white and gleaming like a shard of glass. It was nearly identical to the one in the center of Trinity Academy, but several times larger, and flowing from somewhere below it was a giant helix of purple light, which swirled upward and disappeared in a bright light above the city. The power of it could be felt in the stone below his feet as a deep and constant vibration David had not noticed before.
The streets were narrow at the base of the towers. They had very thick and sturdy bases, but got thinner towards the top. All the ground traffic was on foot, and as such there was not a need to make room for vehicles. Judging from the balconies on many towers, David guessed that there had been some sort of transportation. Possibly broomstick, but they seemed too grand for something that simple. All he had were theories, both practical and wildly fantastic ones. Water nozzles dotted the archway of every entrance or door, and lined the underside of every overhang or bridge. The nozzles were spraying a fine and light mist, allowing the artificial light from above to stream through it and make light rainbows everywhere. Where this wonderous city had once been, it had been warm enough that mist was constantly sprayed from above to cool down its citizens and water all the plant life within the city at once.
All the plants were overgrown, but the structures and stone walkways remained vigilant, despite several centuries of moss and ivy which clung tightly to them. The parks were filled with meter tall grass and all the trees reached towards the heavens with wild abandon. His attention was drawn to the massive central tower to which the entire city seemed to have been built around. He had made it through the city and past the tall towers easily enough, given that he had taken his time to observe everything he could as he went, but now he could hear a sound similar to a massive waterfall that matched the strong vibrations in the ground. The base of the tower was close to a mile thick, but it disappeared into a pool of purple milky liquid that possessed the same glow as the the crystal tower. No bridges or pathways to traverse the gap in between them. The purple light that blew up the tower like a powerful wind was coming from the liquid that surrounded the tower.
Somone was walking across it surface towards him.
The figure was very faint, less than a ghost, almost ethereal enough to be smoke. It was a man, tall and regal, thick shoulders and long flowing hair that suggested an adventurous spirit, the kind that could not stay in one place as long as there was something new to see or learn. The realization that David recognized him came to him subtlely, but it was a powerful one. He had seen the same image many times this past year at his school, in his classrooms, in his textbooks, and all across the school. The sweeping cowl that graced his shoulders and the glowing symbol hanging from the chain around his neck made him recall the statue that stood in front of Atlas. Nothing, however, translated the sense of majesty and strength that seemed to seep from him.
"Hæletoþ, geonga. Keh onspreoa ðu heone?" The man spoke. His voice was very resonate and powerful, harmonizing with the surroundings with his smooth and deep tenor. His accent was partly scottish, but it held something different beyond words, his face was very kind and handsome, even to David's eyes, and it did not match the centuries of infamy that had been placed upon his shoulders.
"Gawain the Lost." David barely whispered. His kind smile twinged somewhat when David said the name into one of geniune sorrow and concern. It seems he realized the language barrier, but somehow adjusted to it quickly. Gawain repeated David's works with a thick accent to himself and David could almost see the man mentally working out the foreign language. The power given to him by the Runes was certainly more than enough to sort it out. the words he wanted.
"Where is this?" David wondered, looking back to the tower. It was more of a question to himself, but Gawain seemed to absorb the new words well. He picked up a long stick, floated over to a sandy part of the shore, and began drawing. When he finished, he pointed to his drawing, then to the tower, then to David's Aegis. The scabbard bore the Elden Crest insignia, and Gawain had made the connection.
"I am in Elden Crest, sir. Trinity Academy." David replied with a nod.
"Trinity..." Gawain repeated. "Elden Crest, dath ærn et Seranas Caladin?"
"Yes, sir." David affirmed, walking closer to the shore. The purple water was actually clear, but filled with billions of bright purple stars that floated within it. Curious, David reached out a hand to touch it, but a firm grip around his wrist stopped him short and gently pulled it back. Gawain was kneeling next to David and he pointed to the tower, then to the water.
"Mana." Gawain said carefully. "Et ist not good to... to..." He began to poke the ground with his finger as his eyes asked for help with the word.
"Touch. It is not good to touch it?" David asked, looking back to the water.
"Yes." Gawain laughed softly. "Touch. Not Good." To emphasize his point, he touched the ground, then slammed his fist into the same spot. David looked to the fist mark in the soil and worked it out as best he could while Gawain held and flexed his bicep.
"Power." David said. "It is too powerful. So, this is called Mana? What is it?" Gawain searched the towers as he thought how to best describe it. He held his arms out as far as they would go, and brought them together so they almost touched.
"Mana...power...magai..."Gawain stammered. "Power... Gaea..." He repeated Gaea and tapped the ground beneath him softly. He ran his fingers through the short grass and over the moss that clung to the stones, then tapped his heart.
"Life? Mana is the source of life?" Gawain once again made the big to small motion in response, indicating that David did not see the big picture, just a very over simplified version of it.
"Magai..what does that mean?" David asked him. Gawain softly pressed his large forefinger in David's chest, over his heart, then pointed at himself as well.
"Wizards...Magai are wizards. Magai...Mages...?" David fumbled.
"Mage." Gawain confirmed. "I mage. Touch Mana...touch Fulthark. Mage."
"But, Professor Merlin said that Mages are-"
"Not. Mage is wizard. Mage is..." Gawain tapped his head, trying once again to convey a word he did not know the word for. Knowledge. The word sparked an idea. Without replying, David reached behind, to the pouch at his back, and pulled out his Tome. It was completely dry, protected somehow, but Gawain's eyes lit up upon seeing it.
"Your time was only a few centuries ago. You obviously do not speak English, but I cannot recognize what language you are speaking. Will this help?" David asked.
"Yes." Gawain explained, reaching out slowly and touching the book. Both he and the Tome glowed brightly, steadily getting brighter and brighter until it made dark spots in the middle of David's vision. David felt something crawling into his mind. Knowledge. In order to learn from David, Gawain had to share something of his own. Images flooded into David's mind through his arms. It all fit in like a simplified puzzle. Gawain was sharing all of the knowledge he had about this city and its origins, his voice speaking inside his mind.
Over 11,000 years ago, there existed an island nation located in the middle of the Atlantic ocean. The people of this land possessed great wealth thanks to their advanced knowldege and technology. The island was a center for trade and commerce.
This was the island of Atlantis. Inhabited by the first wizards of the world.
Atlantis was called the most beautiful and majestic wonder in the ancient world. Towering cities, flying contraptions, and amazing sights, these were the envy of the world. Citizens who left this city were often worshipped as demigods by the uneducated masses, mistaking magic for divine power.
The known world was divided among four siblings with the eldest, Atlas, King of Atlantis, being charged to protect the city and surrounding areas. At the top of the central hill, a temple was built to honor of the source of all magic on Earth. It was here that the rulers of the world would come to discuss laws, pass judgments, and teach the ways of magic.
Atlanteans were immortal beings. The water in the center of the city gave them long life, and by living close to it, gained the power of Magic. Their children were born with the same gift for magic their parents had gained. This was how the first wizards were born.
For generations, the Atlanteans lived simple, virtuous lives. But slowly they began to change. One by one, the other nations were indoctrinated to believe their rulers to be gods. Greed and power began to corrupt them.
One such ruler was Zeus, the Godking of Greece, King Atlas' nephew. When he saw the growing talents of the citizens of Atlantis, and heard of the waters that flowed within the central temple, greed consumed him. He gathered as many of his fellow siblings as he could, rallied the nations, and went to war against Atlantis.
Atlantis, having lived in peace for several hundred years, did not have any armies to protect them. Only the citizens of Atlantis could protect their island home. Magic, which had once been used simply to power their technology and simplify their lives, was quickly adapted into a weapon of war.
King Atlas was very wise, and saw that even with their magic, they could not hold back the tide which crashed upon their shores. Fearing the results of losing the Temple to enemy hands, King Atlas ordered the citizens to evacuate the island immediately. Harnassing the power of the Temple itself, King Atlas sank the entire island deep below the sea, and buried it underground, where no mortal could hope to reach it.
The citizens of Atlantis spread throughout the world and began to live in hiding. Some formed cities and towns where, through the use of magic, could live freely without being discovered. Without the influence of Atlantis, their immortality faded away, and the Rulers who sought to reshape themselves as gods died. As time went on, the gift flowing through the veins of witches and wizards began to dwindle more and more with each generation.
David felt Gawain's hand pull away from his Tome and he blinked away the teary dryness of his eyes. He saw a lot of what he had learned in those boring History classes in a new light now. Ancient gods held a new meaning to him, but most of all, this city had grown immensely more wonderous within those few short moments. This was the origin of the Wizarding World, of every witch and wizard throughout the world. It was possible they could trace their lineage back to this single place.
"What about Muggle-borns?" David asked suddenly. Gawain peered at him curiously, appearing to choose his words carefully with the new language.
"It is all the influence of Mana." Gawain said simply, motioning to the swirling purple waters. "Mana flows into every living organism on this planet. Every blade of grass, every tree, even the people you see in your daily life. Each of them has the power of Mana in their blood. Each person has a different amount inside of them, and when the correct pair mate, the amount given to their child is enough to grace them with the ability to use the Gift. The Gifted simply have a higher concentration of Mana within them, increasing the chance that their child is also gifted."
"I guess that explains Squibs." David said to himself. "So, that stuff is Mana?"
"Yes. This is what they fought for, long ago."
"So, drinking this stuff makes you immortal then." David continued, looking at it differently.
"Yes, if you wanted to live here forever. If you left, the power would leave you body within a few years."
"But, what about you? Shouldn't you still be alive, if you drank the water?" David asked. Gawain's eyes grew distant and his sockets for a second grew deeply hollow, allowing David to see his skull through the transluscent skin. Gawain simply reached up to his tunic and carefully opened it enough to reveal a large stab wound in his chest. Someone had struck him from behind.
"I was betrayed." Gawain replied simply, buttoning his tunic back up. "Greed and lust for power can easily shatter even the strongest bonds of trust. People do not hold the same values as they once did long ago."
"Is that why its down here in the Vault?"
"No. They simply used what was left of Atlantis to store their wealth. No one dares mess with this city. If something happened to this Mana, there would be a great and global crisis, so instead, they protect it. People cannot be trusted to live here anymore. Eventually, one of them would give into his desires. Even in ancient times, only those who had learned the secrets of the Fulthark Runes were allowed to taste its waters."
"But, they used it as a language, right?"
"Symbols are still symbols." Gawain stated. "But, knowing what they truly mean is entirely different. It is like the difference between knowing the word love, and actually being deeply in love with someone. If you have never truly loved someone, it is just a word. Understand?"
"I think so. So, if I wrote down the Runes...?"
"Then, the person would simply see them as Runes. Even if they could read them, it still would not do them any good." Gawain explained. "But, it is still our duty to oversee the knowledge and safeguard them. Even their written forms, in the wrong hands, can be used poorly."
"I understand." David acknowledged the warning. David walked over and peered down into the purple light once again. His reflection was clear at first, but began to swirl and twist until it was showing him something entirely different. He was older, a man, his eyes looked tired, his hair was much longer, pulled back into a loose braid. His outfit was about the same, but there were several changes to it, and he wore several pieces of armor.
"What is it you see?" Gawain asked, staying back.
"I think its me in the future." David said. Future David was standing on a hill, overlooking a great battle of magic and beast. Details were fuzzy, but the image seem to convey what was happening with ease. David was winning, a weak smile filled his face. David and his future self gasped as three feet of shining metal protruded from his chest. David gripped his clothes near his chest as he watched his future self fall face-first into the dirt.
"Try not to dwell on what you saw." Gawain advised.
"But, I was murdered." David replied weakly. It is not everyday that you see how you die.
"Forget you ever saw it. The future can always change. What you saw was just one of many paths you can take. In trying to change it, you make the image you see a reality." Gawain said. The future blended away and David was shown a new image of Trinity Academy. It was on fire as armies of unfathomable monsters marched from below the island, from somewhere in the Ruins. He saw people he recognized, hardly any different than when he has last seen them. They were injured, many of them showing signs of a battle, and the bodies of student littered the grounds.
"The question you have to ask yourself is this." Gawain's voice trailed from behind. "Is what you are seeing going to come to pass? Is it the future? Is it the present? By going, do you create the chain of events that cause this, or do you change it? Nothing, when dealing with Time, is certain." David watched as Evangeline was impaled by a brutal spear and raised into the air.
"I have to try." David said, stepping away from the edge.
Gawain peered at him, and David knew that he was not trying to be harsh, but things needed to be said. "Like when you tried to save Oasis? Did you make any difference?" David winced internally as he thought about it carefully.
"Even if I can save the life on a single person, then it is always worth it." David replied, gazing towards the tower.
"And if that begins a chain reaction that claims thousands of innocent lives?"
"You said it yourself. Time is not certain. Even if trying to save someone brings about the worst possible events, I will save everyone that I can, and I will keep doing until there is no one else to save or I die." David stated, his hand rubbing his chest where he had seen the sword kill him.
"Good answer." Gawain said. A rush of elation and the feeling of falling filled David as something cold slammed into his back. Fireworks filled his minds, almost like all of his brain cells kicked on all at once. His blood was liquid fire and it filled him with a strange passion that he had only experienced in a dream. The world looked like he was looking at it through cheesecloth and he experienced a high greater than any he had ever felt, even when Freedy Goonan dared him to inhale NOS in his Dad's garage. When it started to slow down, his body felt like it weighed ten times as much and the pleasure was replaced with a sensation similar to being wrapped in razor wire.
"It is done." Gawain said. David turned around to see that Gawain's already vaporous form was starting to fall apart.
"What did you do?" David wondered. His blood felt like oatmeal.
"Everything that I was, is now in you." He stated simply with a smile. The smile was the last thing to evaporate as Gawain's presence in this world faded. There was no longer any sign that the man existed except for a pile of bones on the other side of the shoreline, a scorched hole in the side of its skull. Judging by the way he was positioned, the poor man never even saw it coming. David felt sad, however. A great man had been lost, leaving David with even more questions than the ones that had been answered.
Something was nagging at him. It felt like a gear inside his brain was spinning wildly, waiting for its pair to come match teeth in order to properly function. He held up the Tome in the palm of his hand, spine down, and let it fall open. All on its own, the book flipped through pages and abruptly stopped. The page was filled with symbols he did not understand, but they were moving about the page as if they did not remember where to go.
"Adeat." He said suddenly. The words snapped into place and glowed a bright scarlet like a laser into his eyes. It was in English to his eyes. An image flashed before his eyes. By the time he blinked it away, another one appeared. Each sentence appeared in his mind along with precise images and instructions. The entire page turned bright red and tore itself from the book. As the last bit of information left it, the page cracked and crumbled down like glass, appearing as stone when it hit the ground. David was speechless.
An idea formed in his head almost like an epiphany. There was no source, no thought process that lead up to its formation. It was like remembering something, almost like you learned it before, and never had to use it before now.
David moved quickly. He knelt down beside the stream of Mana, and drank a handful of it. It tasted like Lychee, but it tingled without being carbonated. He felt it go down his throat, and when it hit his stomach, it was like an explosion of energy. Gawain had tried to explain. Merlin had told him a small part of it. The textbooks he had read were all wrong. There was no real difference between Mages and Wizards. Wizards used magic, Mages used the Mana around them. Taboo and superstition clouded the facts. They were the same thing, but the difference between them was like knowing how to swim, and being a world class Olympic swimmer.
David stood up and raised his hands up to the fake sky above.
"Anforlætan on dath niwe ealdor kan egeslic binda-" He cried out to the crystal tower. He did not even realize that he was speaking in a different language, the same one he had heard Gawain use earlier. He was not even sure of what he was saying. The Mana now in his blood, the knowledge given to him by his Tome, and the gifts given to him by Gawain were all working together as David willed it. He wanted to go to Trinity Academy. He had seen horrible creatures attacking the closest thing he had to home, and killing his friends. Somehow, he was certain that if he did not help them, the horror he saw would come to pass. By staying here, he was condemning them to death.
An explosion of power poured from his body and into the circle of Mana, willing it to Life. It erupted into the sky in a tight helix and glowed as bright as sunlight. The Crystal Tower resonated, and glowed as well like it was breathing. The ground shook and the rotting towers began to collapse and crumble around him. Atlantis was dying. This was its last gift to give.
David walked on the surface of the Mana, which was almost at a rolling boil beneath his feet. As it passed him, his body took more in like a thirsty animal. He looked up, and it was like the eye of the storm. Everything around him was chaos, but above him, shining in serene light was absolute calm. Without fear he approached the Tower and touched it. It was cool like metal, but something about it warmed him deeply. The Moonwell was just a substitute for this energy. He did not know how, but they were similar enough for him to acknowledge the link between them. Wizards and Elves had a common ancestor somewhere along the line. When he applied pressure, his hand slipped beneath its surface as easily as if it were water. It accepted him as he entered it calmly.
For the rest of his life, David would never be able to properly describe his experience inside the Tower. It was something a person could only experience themselves. Words did it no justice. There was something incredibly intimate about it, like laying down with a lover for the first time, but when he tried to explain, it was the insane ramblings of a mad man. Colors, images, sensations, feelings, dreams, ideas, and power all at once in such a quick and harsh way that insanity was the only way to cope with it. There was no air. There was no need for air. Detached from time, David lived countless lifetimes in his mind, loosing himself for an eternity. He did not even realize that they were not real, that everything was happening somewhere deep in his mind. He had many wifes, many children, and he loved them all deeply. Everytime he would begin again, with no memories of his previous life, he would persue new careers, new sights. David experienced everything normal life had to offer, but he always wanted something more. He had forgotten all about magic, about his parents, his friends. But, even then, a part of him wished for magic to be real, for the wonderous and amazing things most people only believed about in fairy tales to be real as the food in his body.
When he landed on his face on cold tile, David was not sure what happened. Last he could remember, he was embracing his new son, Micheal, who had just been born. The pure beauty and magic of the new life of his son had sundered his fears about being a father and his wife beamed happily as she watched her husband greet their child. He raised himself from the tile slowly. He recognized the pattern. He looked around and saw that he was in a familiar room. Behind him was an exposed wall of the Crystal Tower, somewhere high up in the castle of Trinity Academy. The truth about everything he went through numbed him. Some place inside him snapped, and David cried. He was crying over things that had happened in his mind. People who did not exist, and things that did not really happen. He had truly loved, he was truly happy. The feelings he had for that young boy, his son, were so genuine that his heart felt like it was being gripped in a cruelly barbed vice. No matter how much he massaged the ache, it did not go away. The tears did not stop, the feelings would no go away. He felt like a man who had lost everything in exchange for a life he was not sure he was happy with anymore. Yes, he truly loved magic, and enjoyed his craft with every part of his soul, but he was truly adrift in the sea of emotions that had claimed him. David knew that he would never truly be the same person he once was. In his mind, he could still see the scrunched up face of the newborn which had claimed his heart.
Authors Note:
Hey guys. Sorry for the late posts, but David Crowley and the Lost Runes is beginning to wrap up, so I want to make sure that things end the way they should. Loose ends could always be picked up in a sequel, if I do one, but I feel like it wouldn't be the same experience unless most of the mysteries were answered. I struggled with this chapter a lot, and I did not have the chance to run this through any of my editor friends, as they are all of at school for a while. Please enjoy, and thanks a whole lot for reading.
~Jesse