A few hours after the attack on the mall, Taylor returned to the abandoned building which served as a front for the Rock of Eternity.

"Hello?" She called out, entering the vast cavern…or was it a throne room? Taylor did her best to ignore the seven creepy statues, wandering further into the room.

To her relief, today the throne wasn't empty, with the Wizard sitting upon it and his eyes closed.

"Mister Wizard?" She queried hesitantly. He was completely and incredibly still, and a part of Taylor couldn't help but wonder if he was asleep…or worse.

He didn't respond, so Taylor drifted closer slowly, waiting for him to move. When she was just about to reach out and place a hand on his shoulder, his eyes snapped open.

"Hello, Taylor. It is good to see you."

Taylor squeaked, nearly tripping backwards before she caught herself. The Wizard's eyes were glowing a bright gold, and it was like staring into the sun itself, but as she watched, they slowly faded back to a warm brown.

"It's good to see you too," She said when she realized he was waiting for a response.

"What brings you here?" The Wizard asked, his white robes rustling as he rose from his throne. "Ah, no, I remember now. Tawny told me that you needed a place to train your magic, yes?"

The question of what he was doing died on her lips as Taylor perked up a little at the mention of the magic lessons. "Yeah! He said you'd be willing to let us train here. Is Tawny around right now?"

"Indeed he is," The Wizard said, walking towards the door behind his throne. "Come, he's just setting up the finishing touches on your new training chamber I believe."

Taylor hurried after him, a little surprised at how quickly such an old man could walk. "Oh, also, I had another thing to ask you, if that's okay?"

The Wizard smiled as he pushed the door open and they entered a corridor, with warm wooden floors and walls, and doors in both directions as far as the eye could see. "Certainly, Taylor. Never be afraid to ask questions. What is it?"

"Well, I fought someone today who I think had magic powers?"

If she had expected the Wizard to be surprised, Taylor was disappointed. The Wizard only stroked his beard in thought. "Oh? I had expected you to meet other mages eventually, but this is sooner than I expected. Do tell."

Taylor quickly outlined the events of the fight as they walked, as well as what Silver Banshee had been capable of.

"Silver Banshee, eh?" The Wizard chuckled slightly. "A somewhat unimaginative name, but certainly accurate."

"So she really was a banshee?" Taylor asked as the Wizard stopped at a seemingly ordinary-looking door.

"I believe so," He answered, placing a hand on the handle. "It sounds as if she was an inexperienced one, but the description of her abilities seems to fit. In particular, her ability to harm you. The Courage of Achilles would not be so easy to bypass without a strong magical component behind it."

Before Taylor could ask anything further, the Wizard threw the door open. But instead of any sort of training room, what appeared was an endless black void.

Endless, until a vast, blazing red orb appeared. Almost like a star.

…No, not a star, Taylor realized with a chill going down her spine as the orb fixed on them.

An eye.

A soul-rending howl erupted from the void, and black tendrils of shadow erupted from the door, pulling the Wizard in.

Taylor froze in shock, for a moment her mind unable to comprehend what had just happened.

But then her instincts returned to her and she prepared to dive into the void to try to save the old man.

Before she could move, a burning white-gold light erupted in the void, and the soul-rending howl became more of a soul-rending screech of pain, and the Wizard stepped out of the void as if nothing had happened. He snapped his fingers, and the door shut itself.

"I-,what-," Taylor spluttered as the Wizard smoothed his rumpled robes.

"My apologies, Taylor," The Wizard winced slightly. "I'm afraid I'm getting forgetful in my old age. I forgot this was a prison dimension and not the training room."

"What was that?"

"Merely an Elder Demon I sealed away a few thousand years ago. I only meant to keep it imprisoned until I found a means to kill it but I had forgotten all about it." The Wizard said with a sigh. "You need not worry about it, I'll dispose of it later."

Taylor groped around for a response to that but was unable to find anything as the Wizard resumed walking down the corridor as if nothing had happened.

"Come now, we'll find the training room momentarily." He called backwards, and Taylor realized she'd been standing still, staring after him slack jawed.

She jogged after him to catch up, trying to find the words to ask about the Elder Demon thing, but when nothing came, she instead settled on a different question. "Y-You were saying something about the Courage of Achilles?"

"Ah, yes," The Wizard said as he opened another door, but only a crack this time as a blast of icy wind flew out before he shut it again. "The Courage of Achilles grants you your invulnerability against harm, as I'm sure you've gathered by the name. Being rooted in magic, however, magic is more effective as breaking past it. Not completely, else you would be in far worse condition, but somewhat more. Though this Silver Banshee must have been very powerful if she could get past your blessings at all."

"Ordinary Banshees couldn't do that?"

"Not at all," The Wizard assured her. "The Courage of Achilles is a divine blessing. It does not make you completely immune to harm, but an ordinary banshee would not be able to pierce the power of a god. No, I suspect this Silver Banshee is likely the result of a bloodline blessed - or perhaps cursed - by a god. The Morrigan, perhaps."

Taylor wasn't exactly an expert on gods related to banshees, but even she had heard that name. "The Morrigan is real?"

The Wizard smiled slightly. "My dear, in this world, you will find that very few myths are not real. Often misinterpreted, forgotten or distorted, but rarely false. Well, apart from conspiracy theories on the internet."

Taylor was struck by the distinctly bizarre image of the old Wizard in his robes, sitting on his throne with a laptop hovering in front of him, browsing the PHO forums.

She suppressed a nervous giggle at the image, as the Wizard peered into another door. "Ah, here we are."

He opened the door fully, and this time, he stepped in. After a moment's hesitation, Taylor followed him in.

What she found inside was a football stadium.

Taylor gawked around at what she saw. They were standing in the middle of a large, grassy field, marked with goalposts at both ends. Around the field rose a vast stadium, gleaming silver in the sunlight. A breeze flowed through the air, making Taylor's cape flow.

She spun around, and the door was still there. Just…in the middle of the grassy field, a door frame with a door attached. There was nothing behind the doorframe, but inside the door, Taylor could still see the long corridor.

Taylor circled the door several times, trying to make heads or tails of it before a quiet cough interrupted her.

She blushed as she realize the Wizard was still there, smiling at her indulgently.

"I just…" She gestured awkwardly to the door.

"Do not worry," The Wizard assured her. "I fear I have become too used to magic over the aeons. I sometimes forget the awe and wonder it can bring, especially to those new to it. I am glad you are fascinated by it."

"How does this work?" Taylor blurted. "Is it a pocket dimension or a gateway or-"

"This is indeed a pocket dimension, Taylor, one which I wove myself."

"You made it look like a football stadium?"

The Wizard laughed warmly. "Ah, no. The pocket dimension is…what would people call it these days? Programmable. I did not make it look like this, but Tawny has changed it. He thought this makes for a more suitable environment for your training."

As if summoned by the sound of his name, a large tiger loped up to them, appearing as if from nowhere before he stood on two legs and his usual clothes appeared.

"Ah, Taylor," Tawny said, adjusting his hat. "Good to see you. I hadn't intended to call you here until tomorrow, but this is as good a time as any."

"Hi, Tawny," Taylor said, still looking around in awe. "This is amazing!"

"Thank you," Tawny said, tipping his hat. "I try my best."

"Don't I deserve a little credit as well?" The Wizard cut in. "I am the one who created this place, after all."

"Oh, of course, sorry sir-" Taylor began to apologize before she saw the glint of amusement in the old man's eyes. She huffed slightly.

"I apologize, Taylor," The Wizard said, chuckling. "Now, are there any other questions you wanted to me ask before your lessons begin?"

"Oh, yeah!" Taylor remembered now. "Um, I wanted to ask you about the Speed of Mercury?"

"Go on."

Taylor described the trance she had entered during the fight, how it had helped her evacuate everyone but then just slipped out of grasp. "I just…couldn't bring it back, no matter what I did," Taylor admitted, frustration leaking into her tone.

"Ah, that is nothing to be concerned about," The Wizard said kindly. "You are still very new to your powers and as time goes on, you will gain a deeper understanding and control of them. Applying the Speed of Mercury to your mind and perception is a little tricky, I'll grant, but I'm sure you'll figure it out soon enough."

"But why do I have to apply it?" Taylor frowned. "I can always move fast, why can't I think fast? It would make things a lot easier if it was always on."

"That is for your own good," The Wizard said firmly "I know it was very useful during the fight, Taylor, but imagine living like that constantly. Imagine a world where everyone who speaks to you seems to take an eternity to speak a single sentence. Where the world is forever in slow motion, crawling along at a snail's pace, unable to keep up with you. It would be torturous. It would drive one mad very quickly."

Taylor swallowed as she imagined it, suddenly scared by the prospect. "I…yeah. I see what you mean." But a part of her couldn't help but think that it would be worth it if it meant she got to help more people.

Another thought came to her. "I also wanted to ask about the Wisdom of Solomon. I…don't get how it works. I thought it was supposed to make me wiser and I do get these flashes of insight on stuff, like how my powers work, but not much more than that."

"The Wisdom of Solomon does not change who you are, Taylor. That would be a cruel and unjust thing to do, not to mention very dangerous. Instead, think of the Wisdom as…a guide. It will offer you insight when you need it, it will come to you as a voice telling you the right path forward. But it will not be a choice for you. You are the Champion, and the Wisdom of Solomon is a tool in your arsenal." The Wizard explained sombrely.

"But wouldn't it be better if the Wisdom was more…active? If I was smarter? I could do more, be a better hero." Taylor pointed out.

The Wizard placed a hand on her shoulder. "My dear, I chose you to be the Champion because of you. Because of who Taylor Hebert is and the potential of whom you could become. If the Wisdom of Solomon was all it took to make a worthy Champion, I could have picked anyone off the street. But I chose you. Because you have the heart of a hero, and that, no divine blessing can grant."

Taylor warmed inside at the words. The last person who had ever told her anything like this, with such calm and unwavering confidence in her had been her mom.

And ever since Annette Hebert had died, no one had spoken to her with such warm certainty about what she was capable on.

But despite that, a small part of her wondered if what the Wizard had said was really true.