"Who are you anyway?", he snapped. "I’ve been dragged in here like some criminal and now I’m supposed to pass tests! I don't think so!"
"Please." She pointed to the door. "You’re free to leave at any time. Of course, it'll only take you about ten steps before someone kills you. We’ll find someone to inherit your sigil."
He stared at her, both perplexed and angry. Every other word from her mouth made no sense. What the hell was a sigil? "Fine. I’ll stay."
"Excellent. My name is Joan of Arc and I am one of six councilors. This here," she said, pointing to the thirty-year-old man with black curly hair sitting next to her, "is Leonardo da Vinci."
She fell silent.
After considerable delay, her words began to unfold in Alex’s mind, seeping into his consciousness. "Did you just say Joan of Arc? Leonardo da Vinci?"
She brushed it off. "First things first: Let's see to you."
They’re all crazy. "Uh-huh."
The woman who claimed to be Joan of Arc rose. As though it had magically appeared, there was a wooden staff in her hand, decorated with ornaments. She stepped next to him. "This is an essence wand. No, don’t ask any questions. You’ll be told everything. A wizard carries a source, an essence within that endows them with magical power. This sigil is unique to everyone. If a wizard dies, the sigil seeks an heir to bear it. It merges with you and changes its form. Never, under any circumstances, must anyone see your sigil."
"Uh-huh." He nodded, but felt like the biggest idiot in history. However, in his mind’s eye, he actually saw a strangely intricate symbol surrounded by a colored mist.
"The sigil produces the magical essence with which we weave our spells. The aura protects the sigil," Joan explained. "When external circumstances force you to consume all the essence emitted by the sigil, it uses the aura. Once the aura is consumed… it consumes you. That’s how your predecessor died."
"Oh." Mate, you’re quick on your feet today.
"Over the next few days, your predecessor’s knowledge will slowly grow inside you. You have to enhance it by studying, otherwise it will be forgotten. To make magic, we draw symbols." She traced her finger through the air, leaving behind a trail of fire. "That’s what we call a magic trail. In many cases, you also have to speak a certain phrase to release the spell. Each trail has a different color. To cast spells in materials, we use this wand. Of course you can also draw symbols in the air with it." She lifted the wooden thing up. And then she ran it over his skin. A symbol appeared on his arm; it tickled.
Amber fog formed around Alex.
"That revealed your color." Inexplicably, Joan breathed sight of relief.
"Amber," Leonardo murmured. He wrote something on a yellowed parchment, which then disappeared. "Well, let’s have a look." He stood up. "I wonder what power you have?"
Joan stepped aside.
"Please draw this symbol," he said.
Leonardo drew an example. At first, Alex feared he could never create such a complex design. But before he really understood what was happening, his fingers took on a life of their own. The spell simply began to grow. Then he said, "Fiat lux." There were glowing fireballs everywhere in the air, changing their shape; a ship, a flower, a house.
They winked out.
"Not bad." Leonardo was impressed. "I’d say: upper third. Good place to start. A slight increase over Mark’s potential." Now he seemed relieved, too. "Wonderful."
"That means I’m … a wizard?"
Joan smacked him on the shoulder with a grin. "Absolutely. Congratulations, you will now risk your life to fight against evil forces and to protect the integrity of the mystic Wall."
"Huh?"
"You mean, ‘Pardon?’" she said. "Maybe we can improve your manners a little. We’d best include some etiquette in your curriculum."
He almost added another "huh," but thought better of it at the last moment. "For real? So this is Hog…?"
Leonardo rolled his eyes, snorting. "Don't say it."
Joan grinned. "Another one for me."
"I never should have taken the bet", Leonardo murmured. "I'll be bankrupt soon. Two, maybe three newbies and that’s it."
"You’re going to be having lessons in addition to field work," Joan explained. "Don’t take it lightly unless you want to lose this opportunity. A mistake out there and you’ll be dead. Worst-case scenario, you’ll put others on your team at risk, too. Got it?"
"Yes." He nodded.
They smiled at him, wished him lots of fun in this new world, and the next moment he was standing outside again.
"About time." A snub-nosed brunette with shoulder-length, silky hair leaned against the wall, her arms crossed.
"Finally something nice to look at." He gave her his most brilliant smile, suppressing his fear and confusion. He could do something with all of this. He was a wizard! He could help Alfie. And his mum.
"My name is Jennifer Danvers." She approached him. "Jen’s sufficient. I bet you’re already wondering how you can use your magic to chat up women."
Alex’s cheeks got scary hot. "I’d never! How would that work?"
Jen snorted. "Just follow me and try to remember everything. Ask as few questions as possible and spare yourself - It’s best if you don’t talk at all."
She had already started moving. Apparently she didn't like him. He frowned. Wasn’t she the one who was there when he regained consciousness? I compliment her – and that's what I get in return. Wow, what an arse.
"This is the Castillo Maravilla. It has served as a base for wizards fighting to protect the mystic Wall for generations. Of course, there are outposts all over the world and safe houses that can be used in an emergency."
They climbed the stairs. "Until one hundred and sixty years ago, non-wizards, we call them Nowiz, knew about us. Wizards and ordinary people lived side-by-side. But there were groups of dark wizards. They turned them into their playthings, put them under their spell and manipulated them. Of course, people noticed that. If you knew how many wars and catastrophes in human history were caused by black magic, you would be horrified."
"Funny, I remember history lessons a little differently."
They reached a circulating gallery. Jen leaned on the waist-high railing. The room below them teemed with busy looking wizards. "Wizards from both sides who had enough of the chaos joined forces. They created the mystic Wall, a magical structure that erased us from the memories of the Nowiz. Everyone now believes that magic is just something in books and movies and that it never existed."
"Convenient."
She nodded. A shadow fell over her face. "Unfortunately, it turned out that there was a traitor among them." She drew a symbol in the air and the area in front of the Castillo became visible. White crystals floated in the air. "The crystal net surrounds the Castillo and protects it from black magic intruders. To this day, nobody knows how the defector managed to turn off the protection. We call what he did the ‘Crystal Fire.’ The crystals burned and turned to dust. That’s when the war really began."