I’VE BEEN TRYING TO FIX things for a very long time, Forsythe,” the Old One said, the force of its voice enough to keep Fort on the ground. “UNTOLD MILLENNIA HAVE PASSED, AND EVERYTHING HAS GONE ACCORDING TO MY PLAN. EVEN YOU HAVE PLAYED YOUR ROLE ADMIRABLY, NOW THAT WE’RE REACHING THE END.”
What? What did it mean, play a role? “I’d never help you!” Fort shouted, trying to sound braver than he felt and failing miserably.
An eerie laugh floated out of the empty hood. “YOU NEVER HAD A CHOICE. EVERYTHING HAS BEEN HANDLED, ALL THE DETAILS TAKEN CARE OF. I HAVE SEEN ITS SUCCESS, BRINGING BACK MY WAYWARD FAMILY ONCE AND FOR ALL.”
And suddenly Fort felt a lot more scared, only this time, not for himself. “Bringing your family back? But that would mean you’re—”
“HERE ON EARTH,” the Old One said, gesturing with his skeletal hand. “IN THE FUTURE ANYWAY. I AM THE TIMELESS ONE, FORSYTHE, THE ALL-SEEING MASTER OF TIME MAGIC. I HAVE OBSERVED UNIVERSES CREATED AND DESTROYED, WITNESSED THE DAWN OF LIFE, AND WATCHED IT DIE OUT ALONE. EVEN MEMBERS OF MY FAMILY DON’T KNOW WHAT I DO. IT’S BEEN MY CURSE, AND MY RESPONSIBILITY, FOR THEY ARE BUT WAYWARD CHILDREN IN MY CARE.”
Fort looked around, wondering if the Old One was telling the truth. Certainly it would have the power to take him to the future, but did the world really end up like this, dead and lifeless? It was almost too horrible to believe.
“OH, THIS REALLY IS YOUR WORLD,” the Old One said. “OR IS AS IT WILL BE, ONCE MY FAMILY RETURNS. BUT YOU SEE, THAT’S WHY I’VE BROUGHT YOU HERE TODAY. BECAUSE AS MUCH AS YOU’VE BEEN PERFORMING EXACTLY AS I WANTED UP UNTIL TODAY, NOW THAT WE’RE APPROACHING THE END, YOU’VE CHOSEN TO DEVIATE FROM THE PATH I SET FOR YOU. AND WE CAN’T HAVE THAT, CAN WE?”
“What are you talking about?” Fort shouted, slowly pushing to his feet. “I would never follow any plan of yours, especially if it brought the other Old Ones back!”
Again, the Timeless One laughed. “YOU NEVER HAD A CHOICE, CHILD. JUST LIKE YOU DON’T NOW. TO KEEP YOU FROM INTERFERING WITH MY DELICATE PLAN, I’VE DECIDED TO REMOVE YOU FROM THE GAME FOR A BIT. A YEAR OR TWO SHOULD TAKE CARE OF IT.”
Fort’s eyes widened. A year or two? “What game are you talking about?”
“THE ONLY ONE WORTH PLAYING,” the Old One said, and reached for Fort, its hands glowing with black light. “I TRULY AM SORRY ABOUT THIS. YOU AND YOUR FRIENDS WERE WORKING OUT SO WELL. BUT SOMETIMES ONE SMALL OVERSIGHT CAN THROW EVERYTHING OFF, AND I CANNOT ALLOW THAT TO HAPPEN. BUT DON’T WORRY. I’LL BRING YOU BACK IN TIME TO WITNESS MY FAMILY’S RETURN. YOU DESERVE TO SEE WHAT YOUR HANDIWORK HAS BROUGHT ABOUT, AFTER ALL.”
“No!” Fort shouted, but it was too late. Black light shot out from the creature’s hands, directly at him. Fort created a teleportation circle in front of him to block it, but the black light disintegrated the circle and continued straight toward Fort—
Only to stop just before it touched him, and then blow away with the arid wind.
Fort looked up in surprise. So did the Old One.
Standing off to the side was an old man, a human, wearing a brown robe that’d seen better days. His long, white beard was tucked into his belt, and he smiled as he gave Fort a nod. “Don’t worry, Forsythe,” he said, sounding almost amused. “I’ve got this.”
“YOU?” the Old One said, and floated back a few feet. “YOU’RE BREAKING THE RULES. YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO BE HERE!”
The old man grinned wider. “Oh, no? You’re the one who’s cheating, my boy. We agreed that there’s no changing the past, but here you are, trying to do just that. You’d think you’d have learned that by now, even at your young age.”
Fort just stared in confusion, not following at all. Who was this man, and how was he intimidating the Old One while smiling?
And even stranger, why was he calling this horror in an empty cloak “young”?
“I WILL BRING THE OTHERS BACK!” the Old One roared, its hands glowing with black light again. “YOU CAN’T STOP ME, OLD MAN!”
The bearded man rolled his eyes. “So dramatic. Don’t get all in a huff: You’ll still have your turn. But you’re not meant to face these children just yet. And I’m not going to let you cheat, not while I’m around to stop it.”
The Old One laughed. “YOU WON’T BE AROUND FOREVER. IF I SUCCEED, YOU WILL NEVER EXIST IN THE FIRST PLACE.”
“Probably true,” the man conceded, then shrugged. “Sounds like you better get moving, then?”
Without another word, the man snapped his finger, and the Old One disappeared in a burst of black light. Fort just watched in amazement as the man turned to him, now looking much more apologetic.
“What … what?” Fort said, struggling to wrap his mind around everything.
“Ah, sorry about all of this,” the man said, blushing. “I really should have nipped it in the bud before it got this far. You’re not due to fight that one until a little under a year from now.”
“A year from now?” Fort said, his eyes widening. “I have to fight that thing?”
“Well, you and the others,” the old man said. “Granted, you could try taking a different path, but I think you’ll find it’s hard to change your destiny once it’s in motion. And the destiny of you and your friends has been set for thousands of years.”
“Thousands of years?” Fort said, completely confused. “But how could that be? I’m only twelve!”
“Fair point!” the man said, and laughed loudly. “But we’ve known you were coming. We’ve known all of you humans were coming, and what that would mean.” He paused. “But I don’t know why I’m bothering telling you any of this, as I’ll be wiping this all from your timeline. You can’t remember any of it, not if you’re to choose the path you’re meant to.”
He raised his hands, and they glowed black just like the Old One’s had. “Wait!” Fort said. “I don’t know what’s happening!”
“Oh, you’ll get used to that as you get older,” the man said, and the light surrounded Fort. “But don’t worry! Next time we meet, I promise I’ll try to guide you as best I can.” He shrugged. “It won’t work, but I’m happy to try!”
“What path?” Fort shouted. “How will you—”
And then the lifeless planet disappeared, and Fort was back in the elevator, with Dr. Ambrose reaching out to pat his shoulder.
“Try not to be too scared,” she said. “I’m sure the colonel won’t send you three into danger.”
Fort flinched away in surprise at her touch, and she pulled her hand back immediately. “Whoa, I didn’t realize you were that nervous,” she said.
“I … didn’t know either,” Fort said. He had the strange sense that something bizarre had just happened, but he had no idea what. He’d been standing here in the elevator with Dr. Ambrose, talking about the dome, and she’d said the colonel wouldn’t send them into danger. And then …
And then nothing. The elevator was still moving, and Dr. Ambrose was looking at him oddly. So why did he feel so unsettled, then?
“I know none of this is easy, getting it all sprung on you out of nowhere,” Dr. Ambrose said as the elevator dinged, and the door opened. “But don’t worry about it. Colonel Charles just wants you here to be briefed. You’ll be completely safe the whole time.”
Fort nodded as she stepped out, clearly expecting him to follow. She had a point: They were in the middle of one of the only schools for magic anywhere in the world. Even the Old Ones couldn’t reach them here from their other dimension, not without Summoning magic.
With that, he took a long, calming breath. It was good to remember that if nothing else, the Old Ones weren’t coming back, and even if they did, Sierra and Damian were tracking down the books of magic. Granted, Fort didn’t trust Damian at all, but with Sierra to watch over him, he’d hopefully have the power to keep the Old Ones away.
And without their threat, how bad could things really be?