Ruins In The End (We Three Mages, Book Two)

Chapter Five: Hope and Forgiveness

Jared, Nadia, and Mari just stood there, unable to react to what had unfolded around them. They could barely hear Calvin shouting at them to teleport out. It was as if the air around them had frozen.

"Calvin, more people are coming," Devin turned around and placed a hand on the handle of his sword, ready to act should anything unwanted occur.

"Guys, there are hundreds of people here because of the war that's wreaking havoc. How do you think they're going to react to the reason this entire thing started?!" Calvin hissed through his teeth. "We need to go now!"

"No, wait!" Summer pulled away from his father. "Please don't! It's just, it's not every day you found out your guests are literal heroes of legend."

"Heroes?" Nadia was the first to come back to reality.

"It was Jared that saved the Academy right? I can only assume that, well," Summer was unable to form his sentence.

"We can only assume that somewhere in the amidst of your group are the other two that were spotted," Rocco finished for his son.

"Guess there's no hiding it," Mari sighed. With a snap of her fingers, her robe enveloped her body, Nadia followed suit.

"We're the Mages of Legend, The Legend of We Three Magics," Nadia announced for all to hear.

"I think we have a lot to talk about," Rocco motioned for the Mages of Legend to follow him.

The room Rocco brought them all to was lavishly done. Purple and gold banners hung the ceiling and mural that depicted the city's history lined every inch of the room's white polished walls. Footsteps echoed as the Mages of Legend approached the long table in the center. Each side had twenty chairs. Rocco and Summer took seats in the middle of the table and the Mages sat opposite.

"How about you start at the beginning, hm?" Rocco asked. Everyone just gave brief glances to one another.

"It started roughly a year ago, I think a little bit more. It started on the day that Krillitrox attack the Academy's Central Library of the Magical Arts," Mari started their tale. She took point for most of it with Jared or Nadia speaking up to clarify why they did what they did. Calvin took a brief turn when it came to him joining them. It had taken them longer than expected, but they got through the hard story all the same. By the end of it, Summer's jaw had dropped and Rocco had a deep crease in his brow and a hard thought in his head.

"Summer, retrieve Icarus," Rocco ordered his son.

"R,Right!" Summer tripped over himself as he got up and ran out. Silence hung both in the air and in the Mages minds as they wanted for the Summer and Icarus. After about ten minutes, the large oaken double doors swung open and Summer walked in. Behind him was,

"Demintrean!" Jared shot out of his seat.

"By descent, yes," the young man pushed up on his rounded spectacles. "But not by citizenship."

"Icarus is a second generation here," Rocco explained. "He has no connections to what is happening aboveground." Jared slowly sat back down but didn't keep his eyes off the teen. He appeared to be the same age as Nadia and Jared, maybe a little older. His frame was slender and his skin was a pasty white. His blackened hair hung in loose curls around the top of his head.

"Icarus?" Nadia asked. "Like the book?"

"Like the fictitious hero," Icarus didn't bat an eye. "I read much of his adventures as a youth and decided that I wished to be called the same."

"Icarus Noble is our resident book worm and librarian," Rocco explained. "He knows everything about everything."

"I wish you wouldn't spread such things about myself," Icarus sighed as he sat down. "If I truly did have such knowledge do you truly believe I would still reside in this city?"