Warning, most definitely spoilers if you don't know the relationship between Jack Frost and Nightlight!
"You're late."
We finally noticed a man in his forties, who had been standing not too far in front of us, clearly waiting for us to stop gawking. His dressed in a very formal grey suit, with a waist coat, vest, top hat and pocket watch. The symbol of an hourglass was printed along the edges of his pale grey cloak, which seemed to shimmer in the mid afternoon sun along with his red hair. Despite the reprimand, his blue eyes shone with amusement.
"I always forget how bizarre this must look to people from the outside world." he commented, his voice did have a hint of Slavic to his accent, and strangely some Welsh as well, making him sound a little odd.
"Bizarre is one word that can be used." Samson said. "Intriguing is another."
The Descendant of Ombric smiled. "Speaking of intrigued, how did you find our overhead defences? Not many come that way."
"Very good maze." Samson noted. "Even when keeping to one side we still ended up going in a circle."
"That is the point!" the unknown Descendant grinned. "Only someone determined to get here, or had been invited, could get through that maze. You were lucky you had that letter, otherwise you'd still be up there."
"Very lucky." Taboo added, who I noted seemed a little unsteady, she really didn't like heights, and that fall must have shaken her.
"Oh! Where are my manners? I am Chrono Merlin Raib. Yes, my parents had an, interesting sense of humour." he pre-emptively voided the obvious joke.
"If you have a friend called Arthur..." I started.
"No, although Morgana is another common one." he mused with an odd smile. "Anyway, you must be Head Davies." he turned to Samson. "And you must be Head...?"
"Tramarco. Samson Tramarco."
A pleasure to meet you Head Davies, Head Tramarco. Now, we have business. Follow me."
He turned on his heel and walked into the town, his cloak waving in the light breeze. The three of us followed him, and I noticed that a few people were staring. Not at Taboo, but at us, the strange Descendants, and I couldn't quite figure out their expressions. A bitter part of me wondered if they held the same opinion about the Descendants of Jack Frost that most Descendants did.
I shoved my hands into my hoodie pocket and followed the grey suited man in front of us.
"I would not worry." Samson seemed to know what I was thinking, which annoyed and concerned me. "Santoff Claussen rarely has the same views as the rest of the world."
I nodded to acknowledge that I had heard him, but said nothing. Taboo, bumped her head against me to silently reassure me, staying at the size of a large dog to not freak anyone out too much. I stroked her ruff in response.
We reached a house that looked like it had been grown from a tree, but still had the same dimensions as a normal house. Merlin stopped in front of the door, which looked like a large knot in the wood. He pressed his hand against the darkest part of the knot, which was in the same position as a normal doorknob, and gripped something invisible, pulling the door open.
He turned to look at us. "Excuse the mess." he said before entering, leaving the door open for us.
Samson decided to lead the way, his wheelchair passing through the door with ease. Taboo and I stepped in behind him, seeing an interior completely made of wood, all looking like it had grown naturally. There was a wooden staircase off to the right, above us was a lightshade shaped like an upside tree, with a bulb that looked like it was made with incredibly thin wood. Oh, and the whole place was crowded with teetering piles of books. It made me wonder how this whole place hadn't been set on fire.
The idea made me feel dizzy and sick, so I shook my head slightly to clear the thought.
Samson managed to carefully manoeuvre his way through the piles of books, although I swear I saw one pile move out of the way as he passed. We went into what I think was Merlin's lounge, there were still piles of books everywhere, even covering the couch and table. Off to the side was a table with a mini telescope pointing out of the window, and the only other book free space was a green armchair next to the fireplace, which thankfully wasn't lit.
"Apologies, it's a little difficult to find enough space for them all." said Merlin, and with a wave of his had some of the books on the couch floated off and onto another pile. "Take a seat Head Davies."
I sat down on the new space, with Taboo jumping into my lap like a house cat and changing to the size of one. Samson moved in front of the telescope table to sit between us.
"So, I imagine you're curious about why I've asked you here." Merlin said, his chin resting on steepled fingers.
"You could say that." I responded, feeling a bit like a James Bond villain as I had one hand on Taboo's head.
"Okay, what do you know of magical energy?"
"It flows through meridians that exist in our body in a system similar to the both lymphatic and nervous systems. Lymphatic in that it doesn't have a pump, nervous in that it can reach parts of the body in the same or a similar manner." I rattled off almost by memory. Meridians actually fascinate me, but I didn't get much of a chance to read anything detailed on it.
"Did you also know that the colour of that energy depends on the magic they use? For example, my energy is a grey colour, Head Tramarco's would be gold and a bit gritty, depending on how recently he's meditated."
He turned his blue eyes on me, and instead of the light amusement that had been there before, I got the feeling of x-rayed, which I didn't like. "You... What colour do you think yours would be?"
"Blue." I answered, drawing on the logic he had already presented, although only two examples wasn't much to go off of.
"That is the logical answer." he said, nodded. "However, I have a hypothesis, which is why I called you here."
He reached for a small, black box next to his chair that I hadn't noticed before. It was plain, wooden and rectangular, making its contents difficult to decipher, especially in a place like this.
"Usually when we are injured, magical energy also leaks slightly, as meridians can be damaged just like any other vessel." said Merlin. "However, the energy is invisible, unless the injury is caused by certain metals."
I could guess where he was going now before he even opened the box, and when he did it was confirmed. Shudders went down my spine and there was a twisting feeling in my gut. I wanted nothing to do with the metal in that box.
Taboo growled as I unconsciously drew my feet up closer to the couch and leaned forward slightly, putting my weight on my toes and being ready to make a run for it. Surprisingly Samson's reaction wasn't quite as dramatic, leaning away but making no effort to otherwise get away from it.
Merlin looked at me curiously. "Interesting, a much more pronounced reaction. I'm not fond of this stuff either, but I've never seen anyone react so dramatically." as he said this he pulled out a small knife made of lead from the Earth's Core from the box. Even though it was small I could see that it was trying to suck in the light in the room.
With it out of the box I felt my whole body tense. I did not want to be in the room with it, preferably I wanted to be on a different tectonic plate.
"I need to see your magical energy to test this theory, and this is only way it can be done. I will use a healing spell so you won't experience the negative effects, if you let me."
Taboo was off my lap now and growing in size, growling threateningly at Merlin.
"You put that thing away right now."
"Chrono Raib, is this appropriate?" Samson tried to intervene, his body tense.
"It is the only known method, and I'd rather use this than an un-tested method." Merlin reasoned. "Head Davies, I will only do this with your permission."
I felt my hand grip the couch arm so hard I could feel the stuffing trying to burst out, my eyes not leaving that knife. On one hand, having that, thing, anywhere near me made my stomach churn and fingers twitch erratically, on the other, I was curious. He hadn't divulged his exact hypothesis, but I had a feeling he was saving it for a grand reveal. He might reveal it if I refused, but he was more likely to tell all if I played along.
I took a few deep, calming breaths, and rolled up the sleeve on my left arm.
"Just do it and get it over with."
Merlin smiled and grateful smile. "Thank you."
He came over from the chair on the other side of the room, avoided Taboo as he went, who still glared and growled at him. I kept my breathing steady, remaining as relaxed possible as the knife approached.
In a quick movement, with no verbal warning, but plenty of physical (he didn't seem like someone who fought) he opened a small cut horizontally along the bone on my arm.
Thanks to the physical warning I barely even flinched from the initial cut. However, the burning sensation that came almost immediately after made me grit my teeth to stop myself from crying out. That hurt like nothing I'd ever experienced before. I also felt an odd hot flush during the less than a second the metal pierced the skin, but it disappeared just as quickly as it manifested, leaving me feeling oddly tired.
There was a concerning black tinge to my skin around the cut, however, my attention was quickly stolen from this as the knife was pulled away from my arm. Hanging from its tip was an oddly liquid string of... something. As I didn't immediately recognise it, I assumed this was magical energy. It flowed in a strange mix of liquid and gas, while still being firmly attached to the knife tip and inside my arm.
The next thing that got me was the colour, because it wasn't blue.
Well, it was, but it wasn't. The colour was an odd mix of silver and blue, not combined into silvery blue, the two colours were very distinct. They swirled around each other in an ever changing pattern, neither of them dominating the other.
It didn't make sense, white and blue, white-ish blue, or a pale blue would have made sense, ice and snow after all, those are the usual associated colours. Not, silver.
"Curious." Merlin tilted the knife, and when the energy caught the light it seemed to sparkle like frost. "One second."
He reached behind him with his free hand and seemed to summon something. Once he pulled it forward I saw that it was a small ball that emitted a soft white light. He held it over the energy, letting the light shine on it. The reaction was different this time, now it seemed to almost glow softly.
Samson was also curious, pushing himself out of his chair with his arms in an attempt to see what was going on.
"What the...?" I asked, although my voice came out quieter than I expected. My head felt light and I noticed that my body was having odd hot flushes that was making me a little bit dizzy.
Merlin noticed that something was off and in a sharp movement he pulled the knife back, snapping the connection to the magical energy, which settled back into my body. He then waved a hand and muttered something, and I felt the heat fade as the cut healed and the blackness faded. Within seconds I was feeling a lot better.
He retreated back to his chair and put the knife back in the box. Everyone relaxed as soon as it was away, and Taboo went back into my lap, but still eyed Merlin warily.
"So, what was that about?" I asked, and Merlin smiled mysteriously.
"It confirmed my theory."
"And that theory is...?"
Merlin kept smiling, and it was getting annoying. "Do you know the history of Nightlight?"
"Yes." I said shortly, just wanting him to get on with it, but he motioned for me to explain.
I sighed a little irritably and complied. "He was the Man in the Moon's bodyguard when he was a baby, and had been the bodyguard/nanny to all the previous Tsar Lunaoffs. When the last Tsar and Tsarina were being pursued by Pitch Nightlight made a last stand and the two plummeted to Earth with Nightlight essentially trapping Pitch. They would both be freed years later and caused a series of events which allowed the Guardians to form. He hasn't been seen since and he's also the only known immortal to not have Descendants."
"Correct." Merlin said. "And what if I was to tell you that I, and some other Descendants of Ombric, knew what happened to him?"
Samson straightened in his chair and I tilted my head.
"Then I would be very intrigued."
"As you may, or may not know, some of us have the power to look into the past. I personally do not have it, but I know some who do. One of them decided to follow Nightlight, out of curiosity. His disappearance came about because he fell into a pond. A pond you're probably familiar with."
"...No..." Taboo had the same thought I had. That was an almost ridiculous coincidence.
"Are you saying what I think you're saying?"
"Depends." the look of amusement was back. "Nightlight has no known Descendants, however, you can't deny that he and Jack Frost have some similarities."
"...It's a, double heritage?" I asked, not sure what else to call it.
"Essentially." Merlin confirmed. "Making the Descendants of Jack Frost unique, and possibly with an untapped power."
I frowned. "Surely you can't confirm that with only one person in your sample?" I asked, drawing from my high school science lessons.
"It is un-scientific to do so." he agreed. "However, there is little variance between individual Descendants of the same lineage, I have little reason to assume that the Descendants of Jack Frost are any different in that regard."
"But, if there's two immortals, that's two sets of powers, the strength of which might vary between individuals. One set of powers might overpower the other."
"If that were the case, then why have the Descendants of Nightlight not been identified?" Merlin countered. "Descendants match the modern iteration of their ancestor, the Descendants of Toothiana are just one example of this."
Samson seemed to be struggling to follow with the vague English, but either he caught up then or decided it was time to interject.
"You are saying that Nightlight and Jack Frost...?"
"Are one and the same? More or less. Jackson Overland and Nightlight fell into the same lake within a short period of time. The specifics no one knows, but there's no denying it now."
Merlin turned back to me as Samson's eyes widened and he slumped back to process the information. "Can you repeat this for me, just as a quick experiment. Nightlight, bright light. Sweet dreams I bestow. Sleep tight, all night. Forever I will glow."
I recognised the rhyme as Nightlight's oath, and said the words.
Out of the corner of my eye I could see a soft, pulsing light, but it was only when I looked down did I realise that it was coming from me.
"And now you've turned into a glowstick."
I snorted with laughter at that, and the light seems to increase in intensity for a few seconds before dying back down, the pulses matching my breathing pattern.
"Fascinating." Merlin breathed. "I'd love to study this further..."
"Unfortunately I have a paid job, a boyfriend, and Head commitments. I'm not the best guinea pig." I said, but I did agree, this was intriguing, I had to explore this further, but perhaps not now.
The first concern suddenly appeared. "How do I stop glowing? I can only get away with this for so long."
"How do you stop using ice?" Merlin asked.
"That's different, I'm used to that. This feels, completely different. It's... softer, harder to quantify." It was difficult to explain, this new power almost felt a foreign entity in comparison to my ice, yet it wasn't unwelcome and I did get a strange sense of déjà vu with it.
Not sure what else to do to get it stop, I tried the old breathing exercises that Jack taught me, when he used to teach me.
"That appears to be working." Samson commented, and once I was done I wasn't glowing.
"Well, this has been, illuminating." Merlin grinned at his pun while I groaned, although Samson chuckled. "I believe that is all. I shall you a quicker way out instead of you trying to navigate our maze again."
Merlin got out of his seat and I followed, with Taboo scrambling up to sit on my shoulder for now. Samson and I followed him out of his house and back towards the forest.
Once we reached the start of the trees Merlin stopped.
"I shouldn't go with you. There is a path just there." he pointed to a gap in the grass. "Follow it and you'll exit the forest very quickly. Although I wouldn't worry too much about straying, it is easier to exit the forest than it is to enter."
"Thank you Chrono Raib." said Samson. "It has been a pleasure."
"The pleasure's all mine Head Tramarco. Oh, and Head Davies."
I looked over as Taboo jumped off my shoulder. "Yes?"
"That letter will no longer be valid once you leave the forest surrounding Santoff Claussen, so you will not be able to return easily, just as a warning. Second, I imagine you will attempt to experiment with your new found power, I would appreciate it if you could keep me updated, I am just as curious as you are."
"Sure. I'll have to send it the usual way." I said, shrugging.
"That's fine. One more piece of information. Nightlight had green eyes."
Taboo was the one who was confused. "Why's that important?"
"I guess I can't ignore anyone with green or hazel eyes." I noted, feeling some guilt twist in my stomach. In terms of genes green and brown are equally dominant, so both alleles were present they tended to mix, getting hazel, and since brown eyes was also a common physical trait for the Descendants of Jack Frost, it made sense that hazel might become a trait to look for.
"Excellent point. I wish you luck." the spark in Merlin's eyes was back, maybe he was just someone who found a lot of things amusing.
Taboo growled in an irritated manner as Samson and bid our farewells and went into the forest.
No need to be so grumpy.
"I have every reason to be grumpy. He slashed you with a knife."
I said it was okay.
"Still not happy about it." she turned around and growled back at the town.
"Easy." I place a hand on her ruff. "We found something interesting out. Surely that balances?"
Taboo growled and for a few minutes said nothing else as we walked.
"...This new power had better be worth it."
With Merlin, I had a hard time thinking of a title for him, so I went with a made up one. Chrono, which is derived from chronological and the Titan of Time, Kronos/Cronos.
Apparently a lot of the King Arthur stories are based in Wales, hence the Welsh name and accent. Raib is pronounced
R-eye-b and I believe if Welsh for spell. Finally, Merlin is a species of raptor (believe it or not) which can be found in Siberia and a lot of Northern Europe, so the name has a double meaning.