The Firstborn (Part Two)

Seventeen years later

From a cliff overlooking the forest, I watched the sun rise. Raising my hand, I twisted the magic flux. A large crystal phoenix materialized on the cliff, its body capturing the morning light. I looked at the statue, stifling a sigh as I waved my hand. The magic dispersed, leaving the familiar smell of bread in its wake.

“Crystal again?” Asked the only voice I had ever heard besides mine. I looked at my master. Due to being exposed to the magic flux, his body had been disfigured. With a short stature and abnormally long arms and fingers, large gold eyes, and wide ears, he had commonly been referred to as an imp in the past.

“Yes. It is still the default substance for my manipulations.” Concentrating as I flicked my fingers, a silver flask appeared before me. Catching my creation, I lifted it to my lips. Magic flowed onto my tongue, each drop a different flavor. As I drank, my master spoke.

“It is time.” I stopped drinking and studied his appearance. His golden hair was fading to blonde, while his face showed signs of his centuries.

“How long do you have left?” I asked, snapping my fingers. A small, cushioned chair appeared; which my master sat on.

“Not much longer. Three hundred and eighty-seven is quite a long life.” He stared out at the sunrise. “Most likely another day or two. Then you will take my place.”

I looked out at the sun, the magic in my blood allowing me to stare into the fiery orb.

“Am I ready?” I asked quietly.

A shrill laugh, followed by a sigh. “You know enough. My master taught me for twenty-three years.”

I closed my eyes, remembering the lessons of my life.

The first; the effects of drinking magic. It was what separated my master and I from normal people. Having drank magic all but three days of my life, I was able to sense and reconfigure magic. It also had an affect on on my body. I would live longer then a human. My appearance was not disfigured in the same way as my master, but it was changed by the magic. My skin was crystal, altering its coloration based upon the light. My eyes were copper, while my hair shone silver. Despite my crystal skin, I could still bleed.

The second lesson; my inheritance. After my master's death, I would inherit his duty. Go into the world, and aid those in need for a price. For all magic had to have a price. We had paid ours; disfigurement and a reliance upon the magic we drank.

“How should I begin?” I asked, looking at my master. He snapped his fingers and a scroll materialized. He opened it: revealing a map of the surrounding area.

“There is a kingdom to the south of these woods. That would be a good area to begin.” He handed me the map. I took it and placed in a pouch on my belt.

“When should I leave?”

“Soon. But before you leave, there is a final lesson that I must teach.” My master stood. Facing me, his gold eyes revealed an ancient life. "There will come a time when you must choose your successor. Before that time comes, you must make a decision."

He snapped his fingers. Two images etched in fire appeared before me in the air. One was of a couple with a child. This image changed, following the growth of the child; spanning lifetimes, the child and father lived while the the wife parished.

The other image was of my master, taking a child from a woman with straw colored hair.

"You may choose to take a wife while you are within a human lifespan. If you choose this, you and your child will have to watch as she grows old and dies; eventually fading to nothing but a wistful memory of days gone by. Or you can choose as I did: to gamble your name for a child. "

I turned away from the image of my mother to stare at my master. For one who has drank magic all their life, to reveal your name to another was to place your life in their hands. Bound to their whim, incapable of using magic unless commanded by the keeper of your name. It was a dangerous deal, but equal in value. A life for a life.

"So either I raise a child of my own, and watch as we both lose a woman we love; or I risk my name to claim a child who will have no memory of their parents, and thus not need to suffer the agony of watching a parent die."

He nodded. "If you choose to make the bargain, you must be careful in raising the child. As you have been raised without knowledge of your biological family, so must the child." Then my master took a purple pouch from his belt. "Until the time comes when that child must venture into the world." He flicked his hand and the pouch appeared before me. "These were the tokens I received from your mother before claiming her firstborn. They now belong to you."

I opened the pouch and tossed the contents into the air. Floating within the magic flux I had called fourth, I studied the two items. They were plain pieces of jewellery, such as a peasant would own. The first piece was a crude clay ring, which had a lumpy bit bulging out of the center. The next piece was a necklace: fashioned out of a leather thong wrapped around gray stone speckled with white.

"So she was a peasant?" I asked after returning the jewelery to the pouch.

"The miller's daughter. She had to spin straw into gold; an impossibility for one without magic. For three nights I spun for her: first claiming the necklace, then the ring. On that third night I received the promise that after she was wed, I would receive her firstborn child. A year later, you were born." My master shook his head. "As I had expected, she was reluctant to relinquish you into my care. I gave her three nights to guess my name. She failed."

I nodded. I knew the rest, for it was my life.

Raised in this hidden wood, surrounded by powerful magic. Taught how to manipulate others to my advantage, and how to lose a lesser bargain in order to win that which was of most importance.

My entire life had been in preparation to take my master's place.

"What should I call myself?" I asked. There would be instances when I would need a name to go by.

"Something easy to remember, that is not similar to your true name." He smiled, "I have gone by many names, but Spinner Gold was the one that I favored."

I nodded, stretching my arms. I bowed my head. "I will remember you."

My master met my gaze, his gold eyes softening. "That is all I can ask."