The Necromancer Trilogy - Black Magic

Prologue

Matt concentrated on the glass bowl, tunnelling his vision until he couldn’t see the watching examiners or his expectant competitors. It was just the bowl, focused, there in front of his eyes.

 The bowl shattered and a round of reluctant applause broke out. Matt didn’t allow himself a smile yet. He kept his eyes on the shards, willing them to respond to him, forcing them to remember.

 The applause was a little more sincere as the shards flew together and became a bowl again. Matt relaxed, an exhausted smile spreading across his face.

“Well done, Matt,” Storm patted his shoulder. “You’ve done it for sure!”

Matt grinned at his best friend.  “I have, have I?”

Storm nodded. “Course you have. I’ve been watching them tick their little boxes. You’re a winner.”

“Invisible?” Matt mouthed and Storm winked.

 The examiners frequently labelled Storm as “disappointing”. They found the boy’s careless, anything-goes attitude an irritation and his prescribed skills were less than the required standards.

“You have so much potential,” their trainer often lamented. “If only you’d apply yourself!”

Only Matt knew that Storm was amongst the strongest of the lot. He simply chose not to perform for the examiners. Invisibility – so rare, so difficult – was Storm’s favourite ability.

 Matt, on the other hand, was popular with those in charge. He was quiet and obedient, doing what he was told and giving them the results they were looking for. While he had neither Storm’s power or charm, Matt was reliable and the examiners liked that.

“Well done, my boy,” his trainer boomed, steering Matt of the stage so that a small girl in a blue dress could take his place. “You’re doing fabulously.”

Matt nodded mutely.

“However,” the man murmured. “You’ve seemed a little off-colour lately. In fact, for a very long time. What is upsetting you?”

“Nothing, sir,” Matt turned away.

“Nothing,” the man mimicked. “Sure.  I’ll believe that when I see it.”

Matt sighed and carefully moved out of the way. He didn’t want a conversation about that now.

“We’ll get her back,” Storm promised him. “Whenever we can, we’ll get her back.”

Matt looked at his friend quietly. “How do you intend to do that?”

Storm gave him a look of confident ease. “We’ll find a way.”

Matt sighed. “We haven’t yet. What if…what if…?”

“Don’t even think it,” Storm ordered. “You’ll only depress yourself.”

So Matt watched the little eight-year-old in the blue dress try and manipulate the objects placed in front of her while examiners watched with beady eyes.

“When’s your turn?” he asked.

Storm smiled. “Soon. After Becky.”

“Are you going to show them what you can do?”

“What are you, crazy? I don’t want to be singled out from these people!”

Matt didn’t think it worthwhile telling the boy that he was already singled out. In a room full of his clones, Storm would be singled out. He was reckless and unafraid and one look at his face showed you that he would stop at nothing.

“The examiners hate you,” he murmured.

Storm laughed softly. “Yeah. And I hate the examiners. So, no worries there.”

Matt joined in the applause as the little girl walked off the platform, and tried not to worry. But he couldn’t deny the fact that every time he blinked, he thought about the missing Eleanor Train.