When Magic Was Discovered

Chapter Twelve

It was only a few hours that Graham was out. It wasn't long before he was getting up from the floor. He looked out to the Sanctum. It was still as busy as it was before. Spellbinders were hanging out and talking with one another.

"I don't think we can stay here," Graham said to the others, still weak.

Ella scoffed, "Don't you need your rest? We just went through a lot there."

"It probably wouldn't be smart for us to head out already," Franklin agreed.

Graham did agree with them too. He felt awful. His magic seemed to barely be working. "Now that the White Magic Spellbinders are on the move, probably looking for us. Are they able to get into the Sanctum?"

Autumn shrugged. Franklin looked to his sister. Ella shook her head, "The others had said that there's some sort of tie to being 'gray.' The fanatics can't use the same sort of magic we can."

That was a relief. Graham figured that might have been the case, but he wanted to hear it out loud. He didn't want to bring a war to the gray Spellbinders. He wanted to avoid war at all costs, but they needed numbers to show that they weren't a threat for the Dispersion to attempt to wipe out. At least, a majority were hopefully not a threat.

"Well, I feel it is our job to continue. The Spellbinders here are too comfortable hiding away. Sure we'd be safe, but what about all the innocent people?" Graham asked his friends.

Autumn nodded and added, "I do remember reading about before The Settling, that the Dispersion could suspect anyone of having magic, and do whatever they could to stop them. This included innocent people. People would probably be tortured into believing they could end the suffering if they just said they were a Spellbinder."

All four of them remained silent. Only the chattering of distant Spellbinders was heard. Graham couldn't imagine the Dispersion being like that again. He had to show his father that anyone could be a Spellbinder and it wasn't a bad thing.

"Well we can head to the south if want to get a move on the Black Magic folk," Ella said, breaking the silence. Franklin agreed with her.

Autumn turned to Graham. "They could march on the lands any day now. It would probably be in our best interest to go as soon as possible."

The farmer boy nodded. He could sense which tunnel would take them the closest to where they needed to go. "Alright, let's do this then," he said. He hopped out of the cart they were in and moved over to another tunnel. The other three followed.

"This the one?" Ella asked.

Graham nodded. "I can feel that this is where we need to go."

"Alright, we should be prepared for whatever these other fanatics might have in store," Franklin mentioned, already getting into the cart.

They were all ready to go. Graham hoped they would be ready for whatever the Black Magic Spellbinders were like.

The traveling went without any issues. Graham and his friends found themselves in a hot desert when they arrived. The cart they appeared in was hidden away in a towering plateau. Graham wondered how far they had to bring a cart from to put it on the path of magic. He couldn't imagine subways being used in deep desert.

The four traveled quickly. They wanted to avoid the sun as much as possible. Similar to the White Magic camps, the Black Magic ones weren't too far away from the transport. The camps were all surrounded by fences and sheets of metal. It looked similar to Trade City. In front of a large gate, there was a single person, sitting in a chair.

"More Spellbinders!" the woman shouted.

Graham nodded and said, "Yes, we're hear to speak with the leader."

"Well you're in luck, boy. That's me!" she laughed.

Graham exchanged glances with the others. Franklin then spoke up, "Why would a leader be sitting at the entrance? Shouldn't you be in a huge hut or cabin or something?"

The woman shook her head. "I never believed in a hierarchy like that. I might be the leader, but I'm still just another one of the many here."

Her attitude was a surprise to Graham. He pictured the Black Magic Spellbinders living like junkyard kings and queens. The scrap metal and fences sort of fit how Graham pictured them, but the clothing they wore wasn't any different than the civilians in Trade City.

"So what brings four really young Spellbinders out here? You hear to join us?" she asked.

All four shook their heads. Graham replied, "We're actually here to warn you and your people. The Dispersion are preparing for a massive sweep through the country. They want to rid of Spellbenders once and for all."

The woman's expression became more serious. "I appreciate the warning, but I think you can see that we are defended with not only physical materials, but we have our magic too. Our people have fought tooth and nail to be free from any control, whether it be the old world government, or this new one they call Dispersion."

"We don't want any innocent people to die," Autumn spoke up.

The woman blinked her eyes slowly as she looked at Autumn. Her gaze told Graham that she could crush any one of them in a second.

"Innocents huh?" she sat back and let out a sigh. "We have adapted to the modern Settling ways, you know. We trade, we act like nothing is wrong when we go to cities. We blend in and perform the part so people don't get hurt. I don't think these people would hesitate to turn any of us in if they suspected the slightest magical property."

Graham knew that some people had it in them to hate Spellbinders no matter what. But that was a minority of people. His father might have been one of the ones to hate them, but he also knew they could change his mind.

"I just wanted to warn you and your people. I plan on marching upon the Dispersion and telling them there is no reason to kill us when we can live in peace. You yourself just said you still keep the peace, even though the rumors of your people is only about chaos and destruction."

The woman laughed. "We still can go back to those ways any time, boy. But," she trailed off. "You're a pretty brave one for wanting to stand up to Dispersion. How sure are you that you can convince them to stop this march?"

"My father is General Moon. He has no idea that I'm a Spellbinder. I plan to show him that even his own son is a Spellbinder and there is no reason to hate all of them. There will always be some that cause trouble, but they don't speak for the masses. We are Spellbinders that shouldn't be hiding away any longer, or fighting for territory."

The Black Magic leader paused for a second. "Wow, kid, you have it all planned out. I'll give you a shot. My people will follow you to the Dispersion and join you in your journey to make a stand. If it saves innocents, we'll be there."

Graham smiled. He noticed the others seemed happy too. "You really will?" Graham asked.

"Of course. Call me Fran, by the way. That's what the others here call me too."

"Thanks, Fran," Graham replied, "I guess we'll meet you there then? It'll take you time to gather everyone you want to bring."

"Oh yes!" Fran announced. "I'll be bringing everyone! That'll definitely take some time."

"Yeah, that might," Ella chuckled.

The four watched Fran as she jumped up and climbed the fence into the village of camps. "I'll see you there! The Dispersion won't know what to do with all of us!"

Graham was excited that he would have backup. He wanted there to be more than just a handful of them saying they aren't the same. With the Black Magic Spellbinders on their side, he hoped it would show the Dispersion that they were serious about stopping the raid.

"So, is it time to get this over with?" Ella asked.

Graham nodded. "The sooner, the better. We can't risk any more lives."