by Jake Kerr
“I accept your apology.” I said the words, and they just seemed right. It was a first healing step toward him moving beyond his past, and my accepting his return to my life.
Mister Ali hadn’t said anything, so I looked over at him. He had his head in his hands, and I wondered if he was upset, but I caught the faintest of sobs and then he looked up at me, tears streaming down his face, and said in a whisper, “Thank you, Tommy. Thank you.” He cleared his throat and wiped his face. He took a deep breath and said, “What kind of help do you need?” His voice was strong and resonant and reminded me of the Mister Ali who escorted me along the Nar Marratum.
I outlined my recent experience with the staff and then, for the first time, told him the story of my family’s criminal legacy as my great grandfather had relayed it to me. I didn’t spare his feelings, as he had clearly believed the false history of my family being the inheritors of the staff. He didn’t interrupt me or seem surprised as I explained that my family had stolen the staff from his ancestors during the crusades. On some level, I don’t think he was surprised.
“I’m not sure how much of that is relevant, but as I said the real problem is that the Staff no longer allows me to control it as I have in the past.”
Mister Ali nodded as he stared into the distance. I could tell he was thinking, so I kept quiet while I waited for him to gather his thoughts. Eventually he spoke. “Your great grandfather was always dismissive of me and Declan, but he was also wise. I didn’t understand how great his power was until you just explained it to me, but his connection to the staff was clearly deep and strong.”
“So you believe his history?” Mister Ali nodded. “But it conflicts with yours. You always felt that my family were the stewards of the staff.”
“Hand me the staff, Tommy.”
I hesitated. Not because I didn’t trust Mister Ali anymore, but because I feared it might hurt him, as it did my great grandfather. Still, Mister Ali had an idea, and this might help me, so I handed him the staff. It didn’t shock him or hurt him. He lifted it up and looked at it. He held it firmly in his hand and squinted as he focused his attention on it. He handed it back to me.
“It is as dead to me as it always has been, and I think that is by design. I told you that the staff is its own master. I didn’t have as deep a knowledge of this as your great grandfather and you, but I knew it, of course. There are many legends surrounding the staff. It would take me hours to go over them all with you, but I think I understand what has happened—the Persian people realized the nature of the staff and intended to contain it, perhaps even destroy it. The staff somehow understood this and fled into the irresponsible arms of the crusaders. Their own greed served the needs of the staff.”
“And the staff is once again trying to control its own destiny?” That made sense to me.
“Perhaps, Tommy. Your great grandfather said my legends may provide you with guidance. Here are some relevant legends that may or may not be based on truth: The staff is one of three magical artifacts crafted by the legendary and mighty magician Jamshid, along with a cup and a coat.” He leaned forward. “Jamshid used these artifacts to rule Persia. They were the keys to his power. Now I believe this to be only partially true. Jamshid was the greatest magician in history. This is a fact. I also believe he created the staff. But the Cup’s powers are fanciful. The myth is that you could use it to see anywhere on Earth or even the future. Impossible. And the Coat? The Coat presumably made one invincible against any attack, physical or magical. Such a thing would not still be hidden after all these years.”
“But how does that help me with the staff and its powers?”
Mister Ali leaned back and took a deep breath. “I’m not sure, but think about the legend. Jamshid created the staff. A mighty magician channels great power into an artifact—does that sound familiar?” I didn’t reply, and Mister Ali shook his head. “Surely you can think of things that are not magical and yet do magical things?”
I shook my head.
“Think of the trains, Tommy!” Mister Ali shook a finger at me, and I had to smile. He was acting once again like my teacher. “The staff must have a magical creature trapped inside it! A very powerful magical creature. Jamshid enslaved an ancient power, and now that ancient power is perhaps trying to regain control over its prison.”
As soon as I heard the words I knew they must be true. Non-magical people harnessing magic via an inanimate object. It was exactly like the trains!
The legacy of the staff wasn’t only tarnished by how my family stole it from Persia, it was tarnished as a prison for a magical creature. The thought sickened me. I had spent months freeing magical creatures, and my own power was dependent on what I sought to end!
I closed my eyes and tried to talk with whatever it was. I focused on the staff and the way it was connected to me. Could I follow that connection to the source? I tried but felt nothing. It was not unlike when I met the Marids in the trains. I knew they were there but I couldn’t see them, and while I would talk to them and use my voice to free them I could never sense them listening to me or responding until they broke free.
“Should I free the creature?” I asked.
Mister Ali shook his head. “We don’t know enough. You don’t know enough. Focus on the staff and see what you can learn. Besides, you don’t even know if you have the power to free it.”
I nodded. I couldn’t free a train Marid unless I was the engineer. Maybe to free the creature in the staff I needed to do or be something special. “I don’t want to use the staff any more knowing that it is the power of an enslaved creature that I may be using.”
“That is not only kind but also probably wise. If the creature has started to gain control of its prison, you can’t be sure of what it can do with you as the conduit of its power.”
“My plan was to travel to Germany and free the Ifrit and other creatures in their iron works. I still want to do that, but without the staff I fear I won’t have that power.”
“Germany? That is the home of illusion. There are many accomplished illusionists there. You will need someone with the Sight.” Mister Ali slapped his hand on his thigh. “I will accompany you!”
“You are too old!” I replied. I wasn’t sure what I’d face, and I knew Mister Ali was at least as old as my grandfather.
To my surprise Mister Ali smiled. “You do not know my power and history do you, Tommy?” I shook my head. “Did you ever wonder why Cain hates me so?”
“Because you helped me.”
“No. He hated me well before that. He hates me because his illusions are useless against me. I have the Sight, Tommy. I can see through all illusions. They are useless against me.”
I thought of the lenses that the quartermaster gave me. They were broken and useless now, but I had experienced how they allowed me to see through illusion. If Mister Ali was like that all the time, his was a powerful talent indeed.
“And Germany has illusionists?”
“Many, and there are more than a few that are almost as powerful as Cain.”
That struck me as an exaggeration, but even if it was only partially true it was clear I’d need someone like Mister Ali to help. Mister Ali looked me in the eye and held my gaze. “Tommy. Let me do this as a penance for betraying you and your grandfather. I can help. Trust me.”
I smiled. “It will be like old times.”
“Yes, Tommy, yes it will.” Mister Ali smiled widely. “But we will need arms. Without the staff and its magic you have no ability to defeat the Germans.”
“Oh, I have magic.”
Mister Ali raised an eyebrow. “You have some other magical artifact?”
“No. Even better—I have a Naomi.” Of course I didn’t know if she would help, but I didn’t think she would turn me down. All I needed to do was find her.
7
THE CASTLE THAT WAS A CABIN
I was getting tired of going back to Cain with my tail between my legs, but I was learning the lesson that humility can
be a valuable tool in getting what you want. It was a hard lesson but an important one. So I trudged back to Cain's office to ask him about Naomi.
Cain told us right away. We sat in his office, and he looked like we had handed him a stack of presents. “She’s in Scotland. Please. Go retrieve her immediately. I’ve been trying to get her to assist in the war effort for months.” Cain leaned back in his chair. “I may actually learn to like you, Black. You recruit a powerful sorceress to the cause. You finally remove Ali from annoying me with his questions, and you, yourself, are going into the heart of Germany to wreak havoc. Next you’ll be telling me that you’ve decided to give me the staff.”
“I will never like or respect you, Cain.” I stood up. “And you will never get the staff.” Mister Ali stood up next to me but didn’t say anything.
Shrugging, Cain added, “I can live with that.” With a glance, Cain turned his desk into a replica of a rocky coastline. “See the house?” I nodded. There was a small cottage near an inlet not far from the sea. “It’s along the coast north of Aberdeen. Naomi is there.”
“Are you sure?”
Cain laughed. “Quite. She comes out, threatens my men, and then returns inside.”
That sounds like her, I thought. “You’re watching her?”
“Of course I’m watching her. She’s a powerful magician. If she’s not going to help England, I need to make sure she doesn’t help anyone else.” I smiled at Cain’s admission that Naomi was a powerful magician. When she first visited the Citadel they had tried to teach her domestic magic.
“A magician worth watching from the likes of Cain is a powerful magician indeed,” Mister Ali said to me, talking as if Cain wasn’t even in the room. I knew he loathed Cain perhaps more than I did.
“Just aim her at the Germans, and I’ll be happy.” Cain smiled widely. “I’ll get you transportation to Aberdeen and also have all three of you escorted to France.”
I was grateful, even though Cain was clearly only helping us because it helped him. Still, transportation was a critical need for me with the country at war. “Thank you, Cain,” I finally blurted out.
“Just don’t die,” he replied.
Naomi’s cabin wasn’t just north of Aberdeen, it was far north of Aberdeen. In fact, I doubted there was a living creature within a few miles of her seaside cottage. The car couldn't make it closer than a mile or so to the coast, and by then we didn't have access to horses or a wagon.
We trudged through grass, mud, and rocky land with the brightest part of the scenery being the gray clouds in a darker grey sky. I glanced at Mister Ali, who while strong and spry was still old.
"Should we rest?" I asked. He shook his head but didn't say anything. We continued on, sharing a grim determination.
Naomi's cottage was just across the mouth of the river Ythan, and by the time I saw her home I was cold, wet, and miserable. Still, the idea of seeing her for the first time in almost two full years brightened my mood.
Mister Ali stopped as we approached. I glanced over, and he looked stunned. “I had not heard of this magic castle,” he said in a whisper.
I turned to look at her cabin. “I guess Naomi could consider that her castle, but, really, there’s barely enough room for a kitchen in there, let alone a study or other space.”
“You can’t see through the illusion, Tommy.”
“Illusion?” I looked back at Mister Ali, but he was still staring at the cottage.
“Yes. It is a very old, very mighty castle. Its walls start there—” He pointed at the shoreline, where I saw nothing but a rocky beach. “—And continue over to there, where they climb the hill.” He swung his arm and pointed to what I saw as nothing more than sparse rocks, dirt, and grass leading inland. He turned and looked at me. “Where do you see the door?” I pointed to the wooden door of the cottage. “Yes. That’s the entry to the castle. It is wood reinforced with iron.”
“Wait, you can’t see the cottage?” I knew Mister Ali could see through illusions, but wouldn’t he also see the illusions, themselves?
“Alas, no, Tommy. It is perhaps a weakness of my strength. I have a very rare talent. Illusions have no effect on me, which is good, but as I am not aware of them I can’t warn others.”
“So we must act like a team. I tell you what I see, and you tell me if it is real?”
Mister Ali smiled widely, and it was as if we were back to where we were two years earlier. “Yes. That is exactly how your grandfather and I worked together for many years. We were a very close team. I saved his life countless times.”
“I wish I had known that. Perhaps would have made me think of what was happening in a different light.”
“Perhaps, Tommy, but he saved me countless more. You don’t keep score when you’re friends.”
I thought of his comment and my own feelings. I badly wanted things to go back the way they were, and I felt I was doing a good job. But I still had some lingering mistrust, a small piece of resentment that he simply didn’t trust my grandfather to do the right thing or, at least, to give him a chance. You don’t keep score when you’re friends. Maybe that’s what I needed to do. Just accept the bad with the good. Not keep score. Just see Mister Ali as a friend.
“What do you see, Tommy?”
“A small cabin, almost a shack, there is a soft light glowing from inside, it looks like it may be from a fireplace or lantern. Mister Ali nodded. “Who do you think created the illusions?”
“I think Naomi has the help of a master level illusionist. This is a new illusion, very powerful. I can at least sense that. She is not alone. If Cain is right that she is training, she has someone training her or working with her.” Mister Ali turned and looked at me. I looked down at his face, which was a mixture of curiosity and concern. “Can we trust her, Tommy? This may end up being more than we bargained for.”
“I trust her with my life,” I answered emphatically.
Mister Ali nodded. “Then let us go say hello.”
As we approached the door, I remembered our parting. She had said something about the challenge I faced, and I said she had a similar one studying her magic. It was meant as a compliment, but she frowned and then we had an awkward goodbye. I had tried to contact her a few times, but she no longer lived at the address she had given me.
I had thought of her often, but it is embarrassing to admit that most of my thoughts were not of her magical talent but of her eyes, her sharp features, her golden hair, and her thoroughly enchanting and maddening character. But in light of Mister Ali’s comment about power and trust I realized that I had dismissed something incredibly important. Naomi wasn’t just a cute girl, she was a talented magician, perhaps a great magician. I was embarrassed at my shallowness. No wonder she didn’t want to see me.
We stood in front of the door, and I looked at Mister Ali. He shrugged, so I knocked on it with my knuckles. It sounded like a normal door, and my raps sounded just like I was knocking on a piece of wood. “What does it sound like, Tommy?”
“Like I’m knocking on a wooden door.”
He nodded. “Impressive. There aren’t many illusionists in the world that could create this level of illusion. Perhaps Cain was involved.”
I shook my head. “There is no way Naomi would accept Cain’s help. You heard what he said.” I knocked again, and the door opened a crack. A young man peered out. He had jet black hair and the stubble of a face in need of a shave. He looked a few years older than me and seemed quite handsome. He looked me up and down.
“Go away,” he said, starting to close the door. His voice had an Eastern European accent. I tapped on it with the cane, stopping him immediately. He glanced at the staff and peered at me. “Archmage, this is unexpected.” I tried to place his accent. Poland? Russia? I wasn’t sure.
“I’m here to see my friend, Naomi.”
“She doesn’t accept visitors,” he replied flatly.
“Don’t be rude, young man. This is a friend of Naomi’s,” Mister Ali interjected, h
is voice booming.
The man’s eyes went wide as he noticed Mister Ali behind me. “The Eye of the Archmage!” His voice was tinged with awe.” Clearly, this person was familiar with how Mister Ali and my grandfather had worked together. “What are you doing here?”
“I serve the Archmage, as I have my entire life.” Mister Ali took a step forward. “Now let us in.”
His eyes darting from me to Mister Ali, the young man replied, “I must ask her. Please wait.” He closed the door.
“At least he was polite to you.” I turned to Mister Ali. “Do you know him?”
Mister Ali looked grim. “No, but he’s the illusionist that is maintaining the castle.”
“How do you know that?”
Shrugging, Mister Ali replied, “Illusionists are always casting. It's easy to notice if you know what to look for."
"You mean to maintain their illusions?" Mister Ali nodded. "Even when they are asleep?"
"Yes. They train their body to make tiny movements without thinking. It takes years of training."
"He didn't look very old," I replied.
"Talent is a factor, as well."
I turned back to the door and tapped my foot, out of both impatience and nervousness. “I don’t understand, Mister Ali. Why is he here with Naomi? I may not have seen her for a couple of years, but I know her well enough that she would never ask for help.” I glanced at Mister Ali. "She is too proud."
Nodding, he replied, “I know not, Tommy. I imagine we’ll find out soon enough.”
I squinted all around as we waited. I looked for walls. I looked for high towers. I looked for anything that would remotely indicate that this was a castle. I couldn’t see anything other than a small, shabby cottage. It made me grateful once again that Mister Ali was with me. I had known for a long time that my weakness was with illusions, but this was ridiculous. An entire castle that I couldn’t see?
