The Summoner's Mark (First Draft) (Book One)

A Rift between Worlds

The wounds that were inflicted upon Sin still ached any time that the young male made a sudden movement and considering that they had started to scab over the last week since he had first received them; an itch had started to spread though since he was unable to reach that far around, Sin had to force his mind to ignore the discomfort that the feeling was causing him. One good thing that had come out of this was that Sten had excused him from battle class which meant that he could focus on his magical studies which is how he was able to end up in the building that was set aside for Dark Mages to study within.

Even though Sin wasn't sure on the reason that Sten had given him the time out of his class; he wasn't going to allow this time to pass by without learning something that will help him down the path that he had chosen for himself.

During the last week, Sin had spent every waking moment trying to master the spell that would allow him to open a portal into the world of the Fae. From the extra time that Sin had been able to spend in class with Sylris, his instructor had taken a more earnest role in his education and helped him push through the process of the spell he was trying to cast each time that Sin had gotten stuck.

With a piece of chalk that he had gotten from his instructor; Sin finished the last bits of the design that he was placing upon one of the walls that were within his class. Sin had been working on this design for the past four days and the reason that it had taken so long for him to complete was how intricate that it was and even a slight spillage of the chalk within the design could cause the spell to implode.

Stepping back from the wall as he carefully pulled the piece of chalk away from the drawing; Sin gazed at his creation which allowed him to see the whole of the image that he had been working on. Upon the wall was one of the most perfectly drawn circles that Sin had ever see and while this was a feat for him; what laid within was something much more brilliantly placed than just the circle. Sin had drawn three large squares that were turned in a way that when you looked upon them; they would resemble a star and within this star was another circle that once again had another star drawn within that.

Though Sin would need to be upon the design that he had just finished to cast the spell that he wished for; he wanted to ensure that his work had no flaws that would hamper his magic and now that he saw it, he was sure that this wouldn't be the cause of the spell failing if it did so. Stepping forward once more, Sin placed his hand in the middle the design though he placed his hand rather carefully so he wouldn't smudge his work. The moment that he touched the drawing; Sin started to chant the words that Sylris had taught him.

Considering that the language that Mages spoke when they were casting their spells was one that was mostly incomprehensive; the only word that came out of Sin's mouth that would have been recognized by the normal citizens of Everia, was when Sin spoke about the Faelands. With each word that he spoke, Sin was gathering his mana in the exact way that Sylris had taught him and as he gathered this energy, he was pushing it into the design that he had crafted. As his voice fluttered around the area; the same black tendrils of energy that had spiraled out of Sin during the first Academy test once again seeped out of his body.

After circling Sin a few times, the tendrils eventually found their way into the design that Sin had placed upon the wall and the moment that they vanished from sight; the design that Sin had been working on to allow himself to travel to the Faelands came to life.

Every inch of the design that was once white was now coated in a midnight black; the same shade of coloring that made up Sin's mana. Within the center which once contained an intricate design was now replaced by a shimmering purple that looked as if it held images of the world that Sin was trying to enter.

"An excellent job Sin!" the voice of Sylris called out as he made his way out from the shadows to stand next his student. "You may go through the portal; I will stand here and continue to feed it mana to ensure that it doesn't close on you." Sylris explained as he motioned for Sin to push his way through the shimmering rift that had opened before them.

Sin didn't need much of a push before he found his legs moving and from this movement; he found himself going into the glowing circle that stood before him.

*

Considering that Sylris wouldn't give him a real description of the world that he was trying to reach; Sin had come up with many ideas of the world he was going to though as he stepped out of the portal, he was met with a world that was extremely like the one that he had come from with the only real difference being the fact that there were no buildings within sight.

As he looked out at the scenery that made up the Faelands; Sin wasn't sure if the normalcy that he had walked into, took away from the experience or helped make it more vivid for him. Even though Sin had the urge to explore the entirety of this new world that he found himself in; considering that he wasn't sure how long the portal would stay open and even with knowing the Sylris was going to continue to feed mana into it, Sin didn't want to risk being trapped in this world which he was sure would devour him.

With these thoughts spiraling around him just like his mana had previously done; Sin started forward once more in search of the creature that he would choose to become his Familiar. As his feet crushed the grass that stood under him; Sin took a glance at the sky which allowed him to see creatures that had no place within his own world soaring through the vivid blue that stood above him.

Sighting the creatures allowed Sin to conjure images within his mind with the possibility of having these Fae as his Familiar and though he would like to have these possibilities come true; considering that he had no way of reaching them, Sin had to force the images away so he could focus on gaining a Fae that he could reach.

Due to how Sin was throwing his gaze around the area that he had entered; he had spotted a forest not that far away from where he stood. Feeling that this would be the best area that he could search since wild creatures tended to enjoy the security that the trees provided from predators.

Now that Sin had a place that he could search for the Fae that would become his Familiar; he once more started forward though from the excitement that was boiling within his body, Sin found himself almost sprinting towards the trees.