Davie the Mage (Generations of Eredwynn Book 2) Read online

  Davie the Mage

  DANIEL HARRIS

  Daniel Harris Copyright © 2014 Daniel Harris

  All rights reserved.

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  DEDICATION

  To my wife and kids who not only tolerate my insanity, encourage it!

  A special thank you to my editor who wasn’t insane until I started this project.

  To my photographer for his endless submissions and love of the setting sun. My thanks, J.R.Wolfe.

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  I’d like to thank my brothers for playing fantasy games with me when we were kids, my parents for letting me read absolutely everything and my wife for forgiving the light at all hours of the night.

  Disclaimer

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  “Davie”

  Chapter One

  Like my big brother before me, I wasn’t ready to be tied to a desk! Even if the desk was in a luxurious castle with maids and servants at my beck and call, it didn’t sound fun. When the time came for my brother James to be assigned to the Lordship of a castle, he took a trip to No Man’s Land and then across the ocean. Along the way he met a beautiful young lady and married her. He now has his castle, consorts, wife and children. I didn’t know if I wanted any of those things yet. I’d decided that Davie Stephenson, the son of David and Alba, was going on a trip of his own.

  The trip that I’d decided to take had taken a lot of research and many hours of listening to my father’s stories about the land that he came from. You see, I’d decided to try to travel to his realm and explore. I knew that it would be completely different from what I’d grown up with and that the people would be strangely different. I’d have to learn many things in order to even interact with them on any level. I believed that my magic would still work and that would be the first thing I checked when I got there. If it didn’t, it would make for a short trip. Growing up a magical child of the king and a princess, both Wizards of Eredwynn, would make me helpless without my magical abilities.

  Father had explained that the people from his realm feared anything that they didn’t understand and since magic didn’t exist there, I knew I’d have to hide it well. I’d been working with my brother Seth on my remote viewing skill and had learned to locate an object just by thinking about it. The fairy rings from my father’s stories could be found all over the place and I could find them with a simple picture in my mind. Seth had been quite curious about what my plans were and I’d hinted a bit. I would let father know that he could locate a ring, in case they had to come to the rescue.

  I packed my bag with clothes that the tailor helped with. She remembered my father’s clothes from when he’d first arrived in Valeview and patterned the ones she made me after them. She thought that I was just going through some nostalgic dress-up phase and I was happy to let her think that. I packed rations for several days, a dagger, because a knife would always come in handy and some money. I knew that gold coins wouldn’t be used to buy items in my father’s realm but that the people there would trade gold for something called dollars. Father had explained that two of our gold coins were an ounce of gold, and that was worth over a thousand dollars in his realm. I was taking two hundred gold coins and should have around a hundred thousand dollars’ worth. I hoped that would be enough for a short trip. I wasn’t going to take any platinum because I was under the impression that platinum wasn’t something that the general public had ready access to. I threw in a bedroll, since I knew that I’d be sleeping in the woods while I learned about the people of the kingdom of the United States. Dad said that it wasn’t called a kingdom but whatever the political climate of the place, I wasn’t interested. All packed up, I went to see my father.

  I located him in the kitchen, having breakfast in his favorite hiding place. He always loved hanging out with the servants and said that it helped him realize how much they did for us every day.

  “Good morning, Father. I thought I’d find you in here!”

  “Well, good morning, Davie! You’re up and around fairly early this morning. And since you’re carrying a pack, I can deduce that you’ve heard that Lord Tassin’s castle might be opening up soon. So are you planning on going to No Man’s Land like James did or do you have another destination in mind?”

  “Sometimes you frighten me with your ability to know what we’re thinking! Actually, I am planning on going to your old realm and seeing what it’s like.”

  “Son, you know that could be even more dangerous for you than going to play with dragons across the mountains! Have you thought this through and planned accordingly?”

  “I’ve listened to all your stories, Father, and I think I’ll be okay. I plan on staying invisible for a while, until I can learn how the people interact. I don’t even know how they buy and sell, but neither did you when you first came to Eredwynn. I’ll have to learn how to do all those things. I have clothes and a means to get money, so I hope to pass as a normal citizen. I have also decided if my magic won’t work, I’ll come right back. I know that going into a dangerous situation unprotected would be foolish.”

  Father sighed, “Have you told your mother?”

  “Tell the Princess Alba that her only son is going off on a trip to another realm? I think that would be as foolish as staying in your realm if my magic didn’t work! She’d have me chained in a dungeon somewhere and have my magic nullified. I doubt that’s possible, but it could almost be that bad. I plan on telling her that I’m going when I get back. It sounds like the safest course to me.”

  Father sighed again and shook his head. “But you’ll tell me, knowing that I’ll have to be honest with her, if she asks. You boys are going to make me bald, and then your sisters are going to notice boys and I’ll be driven insane. Oh the joys of parenthood, but I wouldn’t give one of you up for anything. It seems that you have thought through the basics of your plan. When are you leaving?”

  “I’ve already had breakfast and was just waiting to talk to you. I’ll admit I’m nervous but I feel that it’s something I need to do before settling into a castle. I’ve been sixteen for four months and it’s time to do this. I’ll be leaving now.”

  Father and I stood and hugged each other. He said, “If you weren’t nervous I would be more so. Nerves will keep you on your toes. Just remember that while you’re there, expect to be lied to. People aren’t exactly honest, I’m afraid.”

  “Thank you for understanding, Father. I love you, and give Mother my love when she beats my location out of you. I’ll see you soon.” I backed away, focused on the closest ‘fairy ring’ and ported.

  Standing in the early morning chill of fall, looking at the ‘fairy ring’ that was supposed to transport me out to the realm of my birth, caused fear. Fear of the unknown is the worst kind of fear there is! I’d rather face orcs than deal with the unknown! But there I was, breathing deeply and preparing for an adventure. Finally, I stepped up and spun in the circle. The birds that had been singing all around me were gone but that was the only difference that I could tell. I didn’t even know if the thing had worked but I had to assume that it had. I shielded and went invisible and the spells worked exactly as expected. If I had crossed over, that was a promising sign that I could actually visit my father’s realm safely.

  I was in a clearing exactly like the one I was in before I had turned the circle and knew that looking around was the only way to see where I was. I started
walking to the east and saw strange houses right away. There were dogs barking and a strange roaring sound in the background. I climbed a slight incline and walked between two houses. There was a black strip across the land between houses and I determined it had to be a road of some sort. A metal box on wheels roared down the road faster than a horse could run! It stopped at a crossroads in front of a sign that was conveniently marked ‘stop’. I could see children inside looking through the clear glass, or what I figured was glass. I didn’t know if I’d ever want to be in a noisy box on wheels but when I saw children inside, I assumed they must be safer than they looked. I was already seeing so many things that I’d only heard about, I was slightly overwhelmed.

  I walked along the side of the road, following it toward the larger buildings that must be the center of town. The boxes that dad had called ‘cars’ whizzed past me at an alarming speed. They must have been traveling at forty miles an hour!

  I found a large building with a picture of an apple on the front of it. People were walking in and out of doors that seemed to open on their own. I would have suspected magic if I hadn’t been assured that it didn’t exist here. I’d been told that most of what I’d see that looked like magic was just science and easily explained. I walked to the door, but since I was invisible it didn’t open for me. I waited for someone to walk in and followed quickly behind them. Being careful to avoid people who couldn’t avoid me, I made my way into the building. It was laid out in different rows with numbered signs hanging above them. Food was located on all the rows! Judging by the amount of food in this one building, this society must not have a problem with hungry people! As I wandered, I listened to the people talk. Some of the words I didn’t understand but judging by the inflection, they must have been obscenities. They were uttered in front of ladies and children and sometimes by ladies and children! This society did have a problem with respect, and I’d heard that from Father quite often.

  I located where the people paid for their purchases and positioned myself in an out of the way place where I could watch. I floated up eight feet above the lines and could see everything that was done from there. Most people paid for their purchases with a card of some sort that they would run through a machine. That didn’t sound like the money that I’d been told about. I finally got to watch as a parchment with numbers printed on it was passed to the clerk. She then counted back the same type parchment with lower numbers and a few coins. I watched dozens of transactions and finally thought I had things figured out. I was getting hungry, as it must be getting close to noon, so I exited the store behind a leaving patron.

  I went airborne because it seemed the safest way for me to travel and flew to a large park. I checked for people and dropped my invisibility. I pulled food out of my pack and since I had it opened, I grabbed four coins. Judging from the last store, a couple thousand dollars should last a while. Now I just had to locate a place that bought gold coins, or just gold. I sat quietly and ate, watching as parents brought children to play. Some of the kids played games that I was familiar with but there were others, carrying some object in their hand, I didn’t understand. They would run around hiding behind trees yelling ‘bang’ at each other and then one would fall on the ground as if he’d been killed. I couldn’t understand why parents would let their children act like they were killing each other! Where I came from we played games that showed love and devotion to family. I found the whole thing confusing.

  After eating, I found a place without people and went invisible again. I took to the air, looking for a place to sell my coins. I flew down a major road and soon saw a sign that advertised that they bought gold and something called electronics. I didn’t have any of those but I did have gold. Double checking that my shield was active, I landed between buildings and dropped invis. I walked out and cautiously walked to the merchants. The man behind the counter eyed me suspiciously when I walked in.

  “What can I do for ya today?” The man asked.

  “Good afternoon, sir. I noticed from your sign out front that you purchase gold. I have a few gold coins that I’d like to sell, if you’re interested.”

  “Well, let’s see ‘um.”

  I pulled the four coins from my pocket and laid them on the counter. The man picked them up and examined them. He rubbed them on something he had on his counter top and then got really interested in them.

  “You didn’t steal these, did ya?” He questioned.

  “Actually, they came from my father and he gave them to me. I’m a bit offended by the suggestion that I may be a thief.”

  “No offence intended, son, just doin’ my job. I have to ask because the law says I do. If you want to sell these, and the scale says they are a tad over two ounces, I’ll give ya fifteen hundred bucks.”

  I could tell by the glint in his eye and the change in his manner that the man was paying way under the value of the coins. I did some quick math and decided that seventy-five thousand would be enough if I didn’t get full value the rest of the time that I was here. “That will be fine, sir. I just didn’t like walking around with empty pockets.”

  I watched interestedly as the man wrote on a piece of parchment. He was using a pen but didn’t have ink anywhere. The pen seemed to make its own ink. He said, “Sign on this line and I’ll get your cash.”

  I picked up the pen and wrote my name on the line and watched him count out fifteen one hundred dollar bills. He collected the parchment and pen and slid me the money. I thanked him and he told me that if I came across anymore of the coins that he’d be quite happy to buy them from me. His new attitude confirmed that he’d made a good profit on our deal. I didn’t begrudge a merchant making money but I was a bit irritated that he did it through attempted deception. My first interaction with a person in this realm and he proved my father right. The people here were quite dishonest.

  I walked until I found a huge area with cars parked all over it. At the front was another store and since I now had money, I decided to purchase something for dinner. I walked in and found tons of stuff that I couldn’t identify. There were boxes with pictures of people and bottles with pictures of plants. I walked all over and finally found the food. I grabbed a few things that I thought would make a nice dinner and went to the front. I waited in line, watching, and learned that I had to put my items on a black belt to take them to the lady behind the counter. She took my items and ran them over a red light and then placed them in an odd crinkly bag. She told me the total and I pulled out my money and handed it to her. She looked at me like I’d lost my mind, took one bill and then counted back a handful of smaller bills, with some coins. I realized that the money that I had was much more than I’d thought! I shoved my money in my pocket and grabbed the bag. I left quickly before she gave me that look anymore!

  Walking back across the car parking area, I heard a blood-curdling scream! I looked in the direction that it came from and saw a man in his late teens or early twenties attempting to yank a backpack from a girl about my age! I looked around at the people nearby and realized that everyone had seen it happening and they were doing their best to pretend that they hadn’t. I started in the direction of the altercation when the man hit the girl in the face! Where I come from, men don’t hit women like that. I was stunned that I’d witnessed that and took off running to assist the girl. The man saw me coming and met me with what would have been a painful shot to the ribs. Unfortunately for him, my shield was active and I heard the bones in his hand crunch. I grabbed him with my free hand; hit him with a low power stun and levitation. I flipped him in the air and let him land solidly on the ground.

  The girl jumped up and said, “Do you have a car?” I shook my head and she said, “Run!”

  I didn’t know what we were running from because I wasn’t worried about the man on the ground. He’d be unconscious for a good five minutes and we could walk and be far from him. She led me a mile down a long sidewalk that abruptly ended. There were woods off to our left and she led me under the cover of the trees.
We were both winded and sat with our backs against a tree, breathing.

  After we caught our breath the girl said, “Thank you so much. Everything I own in the world is in this bag and that ass was trying to take it. Does my face look okay? He hit really hard! I’m Amber, by the way.”

  I bowed slightly, while sitting. “It’s nice to meet you, Amber, and I wish it could have been under better circumstances. Your face is beautiful… I mean, I think your face will be fine. If it hurts, I know a trick that might help.”

  She blushed, almost as much as I knew I had, at my slip. “Thank you. A girl likes to hear that a cute young man thinks she’s beautiful. My face does hurt, and if you think you can do something that doesn’t involve getting naked to make if feel better, I’d be happy.”

  I blushed. “I’d do anything to make you happy. Give me your hand.” She put her hand in mine and I rubbed her palm gently to distract. I sent healing coursing through her, repairing the damage to her face and it would take care of any other problems she might have. I hoped she didn’t have any pet scars because psi healing removed those, too.

  She inhaled sharply at the surprise of the pain leaving her so quickly. She smiled at me and my heart did flips. I’d been around girls all my life, since my mother was the head instructor at the wizard’s school, and they all dressed in very tight clothes as per my father’s selection two decades ago. None of them had ever had that effect on me. I’d been flirted with often and felt nothing, but now this girl smiling at me gave me butterflies!

  “That feels so much better! How did you do that? Are you using pressure points or something like that? And did you tell me your name?”

  “I’m sorry, My Lady. I’m Davie and I am using something like pressure points.”