William's Journey

The Beginning

William had heard the stories of the great arcanum and those who wield it. They're known as "sorcerers", what a fucking waste. Where were they the night William's parents were killed, and his little brother taken? Hiding in their tower like always, useless fucking leeches. Nobody had seen them come down from their tower to protect them since the last invasion. They locked themselves in their rooms, neglecting their duties to protect the innocent people. William hated them for it, for everything. They let his parents die, they sat idly by while his brother was taken from him and they did nothing. These fucking sorcerers will get what they deserve soon enough, William thought. The idea of them falling to their knees in front of him gave him a feeling of delight, and he smiled for the first time in years. Those who knew William as a child remembered that he was always a nice boy, always ready to help another person in need. But now, that boy was gone. It had been three years since the incident, and it had been three years since anyone had seen William leave his home. Nobody dared to knock on his door, to check on him, to make sure he was even still alive. These people, none of them care about me. Well, to be fair, I don't care about them either. William was deep in thought when he heard a knocking at his door. A visitor? William thought to himself as he walked to the door. Well this is new, I've never seen that face before. He thought as he looked through the hole in the door. A strange man stood outside his home, smiling. He waved at William as though he could see him through the door. "William, won't you let me in? I brought you a birthday present." What? My birthday? William turned his head quickly to look at his calendar. How did he know? William looked through the hole in the door once more, trying to remember if he knew the man or not. "Who are you? How did you know it was my birthday today?" William asked. "Well, it's quite simple. I'm a sorcerer." The man replied with a curt smile. William ripped the door open. "A sorcerer you say? You have some goddamn nerve showing up at my house." The man just looked at him and threw his head back in a fit of laughter. After he finished, he looked at William with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. "I'm not one of those sorcerers boy. I'm Alastair. I'm sure you've heard the stories, yes?" Alastair? That can't be possible, he was exiled 5 years ago! William stared at him in disbelief. "There's no way you can be Alastair. He was exiled years ago!" The sorcerer smiled and waved his hand. Immediately William felt cold and his eyesight dimmed. He felt his soul being sucked out of his body. No way, is he really the Dark Sorcerer?! Alastair waved his hand once more, the chill went away and his vision returned. "Do I need to prove myself more? Believe me child, I can show you much more of what I can do." William backed away quickly. "No, I believe you!" Alastair gave a grin, "Well then, since it's your birthday I've decided to give you a gift." He held out his hand for William to see. As the now 15 year old boy leaned forward to see, Alastair opened his hand to reveal a small wand with a black obsidian orb. William stared in disbelief and utter shock. "Is that a wand?" "Yes boy, and I'm going to teach you to use it. You already possess magical powers, and don't try to hide it. I've seen them." William knew what he was talking about. His 12th birthday. He remembered when another boy tried stealing his cake, and he felt rage. The boy flew backwards as though he had bounced off a wall, but he had hit nothing. Nobody knew it then, but William did. He looked at his hands and thought, did I cause that? Alastair watched as the boy remembered, and he smiled when William looked up at him with wonder in his eyes. "How did you know about that?" "I was there, in the back. When that boy tried to steal your cake, I got to enjoy the show. The party was boring until then." Alastair placed his hands on William's shoulders. "Now, I'm not teaching you sorcery as a gift William. That's how you obtain the gift." The boy looked at him, confused. He sighed, "My gift to you is revenge. I know about your parents and your little brother. I'll teach you sorcery so that you may ascend the tower and destroy those who wronged you by avoiding their duties." William smiled. "Revenge is the best gift anyone has ever given me." He graciously accepted the wand from his new teacher, and began his studying. First, he read books and recited incantations. He knew some already, but they were for healing lives. These that Alastair had given him to study, were for taking them. Some were simple, they stopped the heart or even destroyed the mind. Then there were others that William was eager to try on those half-wits that call themselves sorcerers. The one William wanted to try the most was a difficult one. It had a long incantation, but when recited properly, would bind the enemy's soul into the caster's wand and absorbs their power. If he could manage to cast that spell on even one of the sorcerers, he would have no problem finishing the rest.