He was surrounded by the most powerful wizards he could find. Jae, Life; Devin, Death; Ezra, Balance; Mathew, Ice; Cassie, Fire. He himself was Storm. There was only one school missing, Myth.
"Samuel?" Jae says, causing him to look up at her.
They sat in a semicircle, consisting of 7 black iron thrones. He sat at the end, the strongest of the six, followed by Devin, Ezra, Mathew, Cassie, and finally Jae. The throne next to her was empty, as it had been for the past few months since the war counsel had first been meeting.
"Yes, Jae?" He replies.
"What are your thoughts?" She says to him.
"We should recruit an illusionist sooner rather than later." Mathew says, fingering the hilt of his sword.
"Having one would prove useful if we want to regain lost ground." Cassie nods. Samuel taps a finger on his arm rest, gaze distant. This normally came up at their meetings. Of course, they weren't fairing too well at the moment.
"As far as I know they are all around the same skill level," Samuel replies, as he normally does, "And about half are on the front lines. Magic teaching has slowed significantly over the past few weeks due to the war effort. Unless one of you finally has someone to recommend?"
"I figured one of us could scout around in town," Jae says, "We've not tried that before."
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Devin inquires, "We're in the middle of a war. We don't have the time to---"
"It's a good idea," Samuel interrupts, giving Devin a sideways glance, "I can do it."
"I was thinking Jae or Cassie in this regard," Ezra says, "You're the strongest wizard here, Sam! We need you to keep the pirates from taking more territory."
"I have trust that you all can hold the fort without me for a time," Samuel chuckles quietly, "Besides, I was the one that found all of you in the first place. I have the eye for power, don't I?" There was a round of nods.
"Don't be too long, then." Devin sighs.
Samuel smirks and stands from his throne. "I won't."
"Isaac!"
Isaac turns, hand half raised in the air. He sees his friend, River, running towards him. He was a Myth wizard, much like Isaac was. The only difference was that River was normally on the front lines. This week, though, he was in town for a while, waiting to be dispatched again.
"What is it River?" Isaac sighs, his hand dropping, "I was just about to practice again."
"Samuel's in town!" River exclaims, catching his breath, "He's looking for a Myth general."
Isaac folds his arms. "You're not seriously suggesting I should introduce myself to him."
"You've got the talent." River replies.
"I'm just above average. Working illusions takes more time to learn than Fire or Life magic, you know. And time is something we don't have."
"But---"
Isaac takes a quick step forward and places his hand on his friend's forehead. He didn't want to do this, but he knew River wouldn't be convinced otherwise.
"I will not go." He states clearly, voice buzzing. There's a flash from his hand, and, after a still moment, he backs away from River.
River blinks once, then lowers his head. "Sorry, Isaac."
Isaac sighs, changing the topic: "You need better mental wards, River. I keep telling you this."
"Wait... You didn't seriously---"
Isaac knew that River was now aware of what he just did to him.
"If it gets you off my back about this. I'm not becoming a general. Now I want to practice. Go back to whatever inn you're staying at or something." Isaac sighs, gesturing to River dismissively to leave. River lingers a moment longer in silence.
"Go." Isaac commands. River, finally, with a glassy gaze, turns and slowly walks back the way he had come.
As he watches his friend trudge off, he could now turn his attention to the presence of a powerful mind he sensed was watching him.
River hadn't come alone.
Samuel smiles to himself from the shadows as he watches the altercation end. That wizard - Isaac - claimed he was 'above average'. He was the perfect Myth wizard, even if he was still weaker than Jae anyways.
Isaac disappears into a shimmering bubble that rose around him. And Illusion Dome. They would be alone. Maybe he could convince him to join his war counsel.
He walks through the exterior of the Illusion Dome and glances around. He was no longer standing on the cobblestone street. Instead, he was staring out at a large grassy plane, the sun frozen high in the air above him. The atmosphere was unnaturally still. There was no warmth, no cold, no breeze, no sound. Nothing moved. Isaac was also gone, though Samuel knew he was somewhere within. After all, he had made the Illusion Dome in the first place.
But this Dome was something on another level. All the Domes he had been in were there to boost the magic skills of the wizards within it, like small arenas where wizards reigned superior, and even then they had limits on how strong the boost was. This Dome had completely changed the environment around him. And, somewhere within him, he could feel his magic swirling, strengthening.
Electricity sparks from his body to the ground, making sure there was no one else close to him or trying to sneak up on him. All he felt was the ground, which, even then, felt both strange and familiar under his feet as he slowly strides around the field.
"Why are you here?" He is suddenly asked.
Samuel jumps in surprise. The voice sounded like it had been asked right in his ear. But there was no one even close to him!
"Is this Isaac?" He calls.
"You don't need to yell." Isaac sighs, stepping into view. Samuel's eyes widen. The wizard just... materialized in front of his eyes, fading into view as he walked.
The Myth wizard stops a few feet away from Samuel, slipping his hands into his pockets and giving the Storm wizard a hard stare.
"Didn't you hear me?" Isaac asks, "I'm not joining you."
"How unfortunate," Samuel sighs, looking around, "This skill of yours would be useful to have on the field." It sounded like this wizard didn't care much about the war.
Isaac narrows his eyes. "I'm not saying I don't care about the war. I am just declining your offer."
Samuel turns back to Isaac. "How did you---?"
"I would expect you would have a better mental barrier than everyone else with all the power you possess," Isaac huffs with a sly smirk, like he knew something Samuel didn't, "But you of all people need the most work on it."
"You..." Samuel growls, the air around him electrifying. Isaac scowls and flicks a hand in his direction. Samuel's eyes widen as his flow of magic is halted by some sort of artificial barrier within him. The electricity around him cuts off.
"I don't want to fight." Isaac tells him.
Samuel stumbles back in surprise, a hand over his chest as his magic swirls in a rage. "What did you do to me?"
"It's my Dome. Don't you think I have some control over who and what are in it?"
"It's a very different Dome than what I'm used to."
"I know," Isaac smirks with a slight chuckle, "That's why this is just a demonstration." Samuel furrows his brow. This wizard was confusing.
"Ah, everyone calls me confusing." Isaac laughs. He gives Samuel a small bow. "Isaac the Mind Seer, at your service. In truth, I'm honored to be in your presence."
"Mind Seer..." Samuel hums, "Is that your ability?"
"It's an ability, yes. As far as I know I'm the only one that has it. Of course, I can't read everyone's all the time, depending on what their mental barrier is like."
"And your Dome?"
"Daily practice for an hour or two. Someone needs to research Myth magic more in these trying times, no? Especially since education is starting to take a slide." Isaac raises a curious eyebrow in Samuel's direction, as if waiting for confirmation. That was probably something else he got from Samuel's thoughts.
Isaac begins pacing around Samuel. "That's not all. I can know your war plans, personal connection with the other generals, your own magical skill and ability, your childhood, your past meetings." He stops walking with a grin. "You need a better mental barrier."
"I thought you said you didn't want to join." Samuel hums with a small smile.
Isaac shrugs with a grin. "No one knows what my intentions are. In this case, I'm just playing hard to get. I knew you weren't going to give up on me after seeing this." He waves a hand at their surroundings, his Illusion Dome.
"And your friend?"
"He can be annoying." Isaac folds his arms. "He brought you to me, didn't he?" Samuel nods quietly, though he figured that Isaac already knew that fact anyways.
Finally, Samuel holds out his hand. The Myth wizard approaches and takes it. The two shake.
"Welcome to the Great War."
I might post this on my own account, as it's a short backstory to a few other characters I might want to use in a future story/book/whatever.
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