Dan lifts his hand up to the rim of his hood, and pulls it back to reveal his wiry grey hair. He crosses his hands and stretches his arms downward, creating a loud cracking of his knuckles. He looks at me. "Why don't you give me your helmet first?" He brings his hand forward towards me, palm turned upward.

My shoulders tense slightly. Am I sure I can trust him with this? What if this is some sort of trick for him to take it away from me?

It's just the helmet, though. As long as I'm wearing some of the armor, he won't be able to take away the whole set.

I lift my fingers up to my head, holding them still for a moment, hesitant, then I grasp the base of the leather around the neck, and slowly pull it off. I feel the inside of the helmet squeeze against my head, followed by a soothing coolness, as the sweat trapped beneath it becomes re-exposed to the open air.

I place the helmet gently into Dan's palm. It gives way to it in a moment in response to the weight, and for a moment I feel as if he is about to drop it, but then Dan lifts it and turns around. He walks up to the pedestal, holding the helmet above the tome. I walk to the right side of the pedestal, to get a better sense of what he's doing.

Dan's eyes shift from side to side, slowly reading the words in the tome. The floating white letters settle near the opening of the tome, arranging themselves into orderly rows. Dan's eyes shift progressively faster and faster, until it seems he is reading faster than humanly possible, then a bright white glow emanates from his eyes, obscuring his pupils and illuminating his pale skin, as his body seems to acquire a rigid posture not unlike death. I feel a nauseating chill. Then, the letters above the book lift upward. Dan takes a deep breath. As he speaks, his voice seems amplified by newfound confidence, clarified by an aura of authority.

"Imbue, Shrink, Darkness, Earth..."

I am not sure what he means, but the enthusiasm with which he says it makes me envious. There is an unexplainable power in his words which makes me wish I could always emanate words with such great power whenever I speak. Surely, if I could utilize such power within my own words, crafted into coherent sentences, they would be so persuasive as to command others to my whim! I could achieve true greatness, become a revered and adored leader in the eyes of so many others, and obtain pure and never-ending happiness!

Then, the whiteness of Dan's eyes fades, and with it, the memory of the words and their power. The faint memory of the words turns from pleasure into disgust, their potential unreachable. The glowing white letters ascend into the helmet, causing it to shine for a moment, then fade. A flowing purple sheen rises from its surface.

Dan's rigid posture relaxes. His head tilts downward as his hand hovers over the purple sheen. "Knockback." His eyebrows clump together for a moment. "That's very unusual." He pulls his hand back and turns to face me, handing me the helmet. My hands are soaked in the tingliness of its magic. I lift it above my head and pull it on. The feeling of the helmet exudes a strange numbness on my skin, like the tingling feeling I felt when I first crafted it, except much stronger, and without dissipating. The numbness accumulates, making me feel weak, clouding my senses and my ability to concentrate in a dreamy fog.

I faintly notice Dan's hand pushing against my shoulder. "You're leaning, buddy!" He says. "Are you alright? The magic seems to be taking quite a toll on you."

I clench my fists, lean away from Dan, and focus on standing erect. The enchantment must continue. "Don't worry, I'm fine." My voice sounded much weaker than I wanted it to. I try harder to speak again. "I'm FINE."

Dan sighs and shakes his head. "Alright, then. Hand me another piece. But don't ask too much of yourself."

I reach behind my back and undo the leather straps underneath my chestplate that hold it in place. The knot is tight from wearing it for so many days, and my mind struggles to comprehend the feeling of my fingers as they pass over the small bumps. I tug in several places until I finally feel the knot give way. I pull the straps apart and pull the chestplate forward and through my arms. I feel tremendous relief as the air cools the sweat trapped under my shirt. I hand the chestplate to Dan.

Dan hovers it over the pedestal, and the process of enchantment begins again. His eyes glean faster and faster over the tome, and, like a bolt of electricity, the illumination of his eyes causes the frame of his body to suddenly stiffen. He utters a strange phrase which enamors me with its power, then the letters rise into the chestplate, and then it is over.

Dan looks at me in the eye with caution. He hands it to me slowly.

I grasp the numbing surface of the chestplate. I put one arm through and feel a strange soreness pulse up my muscle. Then I put the other arm through and tie the leather straps behind my back. The air feels heavy in my lungs, and despite my deep breaths, I feel like I'm suffocating. My stomach feels sore and restless, making me want to barf. The weakness I felt before becomes amplified; my eyes feel sore from trying to focus on my surroundings.

I try to ignore the suffering I feel from the magic leeching my strength away. I have to power through this. I step out of my boots, and pull my leg armor down. I hand the leg armor to Dan. His brows tilt in concern, but he lifts it above the pedestal anyway. His eyes glow, his body stiffens, his unreachable words ignite my greed, and the letters ascend into the leather and bone. He turns toward me, but hesitates.

"Are you SURE you want to go through with this?" Dan asks. "We can stop at any time and finish enchanting later. I'm really worried about what the magic is doing to you. You don't look good at all."

"No, we have to finish the enchantment now!"

I try to regain my composure. "Don't worry, I can handle this. I've already muscled through half of my armor. Let's finish what we started."

I grab the armored pants out of his hands and pull my feet into them. The numbness in my legs causes them to feel heavier than normal. I feel dizzy. The air around me jiggles, distorted with fuzziness. The ground seems to tilt beneath me like a sailboat. I feel my consciousness starting to slip, but I resist it, focusing on my surroundings. I hand the boots to Dan.

He grins briefly. "I'm surprised you're still awake." He holds the boots over the pedestal. "Don't make me regret this." He begins reading the pages.

His eyes glow, stiffening his frame. Except this time, he doesn't say anything. He just stares into the tome.

I feel a cold chill coarse up my back, into my shoulder, and through my arm. I see a bright light precipitating from my fingertips. Several letters swim out from the cold light, hovering towards Dan, then dropping into the tome of enchantment, as the pages of the tome flip loudly and rapidly from side to side.

Dan turns to face me, emotionless, his eyes still illuminated with deathly white light. "Fristad..."

The personal direction of that one word surprises me. I feel drawn to its power once more, now amplified with meaning that enchants me with happiness, pulling into my mind a desire to absorb every word which will follow with the trust of a loyal friend.

"You cannot escape me. Our fates our permanently intertwined. When I promised you greatness, I meant it. Enchanting the armor was the first step. Now, it is time for you to first taste what we've worked so hard for. Your future will fulfill the very wish for power you desire. You will achieve greatness. All creatures, alive and undead, will bow to your influence. Your power shall grant you unending happiness. However, for all this to happen, you must trust me. You must be willing to overcome difficult trials along your path to greatness, and I shall be your guide. Disregard the doubts you place on your sanity, for they will weaken your resolve."

Was that the Book speaking? Did it just take control of Dan? How is that possible? I know it's trying to influence me... but somehow I can't argue against the validity of its claims. If the Book can make me feel this way, against the moral fiber I remember once resonated so much with my being, than who's the say the Book can't influence other people as well? The book is my friend... it's only natural that it would want to share its power with me. Why must it feel so wrong?

Back to Dan. How is it possible that the Book took control of Dan, yet Dan was able to weaken the influence of the Book earlier? Were they engaged in some sort of invisible, metaphysical battle? But then, why didn't Dan show any sign of distress? Is it possible that the Book's consciousness is really Dan?

"No, you idiot!" The eyes-glowing body of Dan says. "Isn't it obvious that Dan's a surrogate? Pass Go three times, then try again." Dan's head turns forward again. "... and don't mention this conversation to Dan!"

The glowing white light in Dan's eyes fades, freeing his muscles to relax. The letters ascend into the boots, illuminating them in a purple sheen.

The final piece of enchanted armor is complete.

Dan turns to face me. "If it makes you feel any better, all this enchanting is quite a toll on me, too." He smiles sympathetically. "You look absolutely exhausted. Please be careful, and do get some rest." He hands the boots to me.

"...with the armor taken OFF," he adds.

I slide the boots on. They make my feet feel sore, but the physical toll they put on me brings me only slightly closer to unconsciousness.

"Thank you, Dan."

"You're welcome," he replies. "Although, it is also a risk you are welcome to take."

I turn around and walk up the stairs.

"Don't underestimate magic," Dan says as I walk away. "... or you may become as crazy as I am!"

I chuckle as I walk past the table with the ink stand and the closed book. What a character Dan is! I'm surprised Dan enchanted the armor, considering how worried he was about me when I first talked to him about the Book with Jonas. He didn't even seem to care! What is up with that?

I walk up another stairway into the library, through the bookshelves and down a third narrow staircase. I take a left, walk down the hallway, and open the first door on my left. I see Jonas sleeping, the covers of the bed another layer of cloth carefully concealing him, as the eerie yellow light speckles the bedroom.

I struggle to breathe, catching my breath from the short walk that felt like a two-mile sprint. Dan's probably right. It's best for me to take off my armor, so that I can recover my strength. I can put it back on in the morning.

But, by tomorrow morning, someone could steal it while I'm asleep. And then, I would never be able to go outside again. How could I possibly risk that? It's safer for me to just keep my armor on. Besides, it provides me incredible protection. It's an invaluable resource. Who knows when I might need it?

I decide to keep the armor on, in spite of the terrible weakness it makes me feel. I walk to the right side of the bed, climb underneath the pillows, and close my eyes.

For some reason, despite my weakness, my mind won't rest long enough to let me sleep. The numbing magic of the armor seems to buzz in my ears, filling my thoughts with restless activity, filling my consciousness with grey noise and irrational worry.

A cool sensation grows in my feet, until my toes feel freezing cold. The chill then creeps up my legs, shoots up my spine, and flows up my neck, before propagating throughout my body, stronger than ever.

My eyes are forced open in shock, and I see an incredibly bright light.