Liam's life turned very interesting when he moved with his parents to a planet that had yet to become a full-fledged member of the empire. Having yet to even earn a name, there was no reason to suspect just how much his life would change.
The people of Planet 663-457 were happily lodged between the Iron Age and the Machine Age. The only, and by far biggest, difference between these people and the people of Earth was the fact that they were about four times the mass of the normal Earth human. This, however, didn’t stop twelve-year-old Liam from making fast friends with three local boys and they were soon inseparable.
There was one aspect about the planet and its people that Liam’s parents didn’t find out about until their son was irretrievably submerged in it - magic. Many people of Planet 663-457 had some modicum of magic but few were strong enough to be able to access it. Those that were strong enough were brought to the masters for testing and if they passed the test, the masters took on their training.
The magic was elemental magic in the strictest sense. A master could manipulate the four elements - earth, air, fire and water. Earth Magic is the manipulation matter such as rock, metal or wood, changing its shape or even its location. Air Magic is the control of air; moving it or taking it away is the most common uses. Fire Magic is the control of heat; heating food is the most common use but heating or cooling one’s environment or even one’s own body is also common. Water Magic is the control of water; again, use in food is the most common use but a master can cause it to rain if he desires. A master’s ability is dependent upon his understanding of the elements and upon his strength - if he can figure out how to do something, and if he’s strong enough to do it, he is generally successful.
As soon as Liam’s parents found out what had happened to their son, their response was to leave the planet. Leaving the planet, however, could not protect Liam; it was too late for that. In fact, he came to understand that his leaving put himself and others around him at extreme risk - he very much needed the training the Masters offered.
Leaving his parents to continue their journey and find a new assignment, Liam booked a flight back to Planet 663-457. He would rejoin his parents when he could control the Magic. Liam’s lessons began the morning after returning to the cave complex where the Masters lived, but he discovered that controlling the magic was far harder than he, or even his teachers, had anticipated.
His teachers likened his magic to a basilisk - how do you control a mindless eating juggernaut? The only thing they could come up with was controlling the food - in the case of magic, that meant controlling the source of energy. If the only source of energy the Magic could draw upon was Liam’s own body and nothing else, then the Magic would be finite - it wouldn’t allow him to die and once it bowed to his control, then he could control it.
A month later, Liam and his friends went back to town to see if there was a message from Liam’s parents. Expecting to find a replacement, Liam was surprised to find the house empty. They returned each month, but no replacement showed up until three months later.
After three more months of no news, Liam called the only person he could think of who might be inclined to help. He called the shop owner where he had purchased his sword hoping he would know someone willing to take on the job of finding his parents; they wouldn’t have gone this long without finding some way to get in touch with him - something was wrong.
After Liam was finished with the phone, Mr. Preston, the man who had replaced his parents, offered to try to find some information through his channels. While Mr. Preston was jumping through the necessary hoops to make an interplanetary phone call, soldiers came crashing into the house through every opening big enough for a body to get through. When bullets started flying, Liam had no choice but to respond with his own training. Armed with only a sword and his magic, it wasn’t long before Liam and Mr. Preston were the only people left standing.
Liam had been wounded several times, but he was running on adrenaline and sustained by his magic. He told Mr. Preston to call for a doctor and then he ran for the village healer; she was much closer. He was met by two of his three friends and their news was dire. Imperial troops had been asking around for him for most of the last month and as soon as the four of them had shown up, their families had come under house arrest. Two of Liam’s friends had managed to escape; the fourth of their number hadn’t been so lucky so they went to get him.
Thanks to his teachers and his magic, Liam was back on his feet within a week and a little over a week later, a messenger from town arrived with a message for Liam. Someone else was looking for him and he was avoiding the guards, so they thought Liam might be interested in meeting with him.
Pip was the man sent by the shop owner and he recommended that they follow in his parents’ footprints. Under disguise, they went back to the place where Liam had last seen his parents, and then acting as a rich man’s son with his personal servant, they booked the same flight Liam’s parents had taken. They hoped to meet the same end and they hoped Liam’s magic could keep them alive.
Allowing themselves to be trapped wasn’t the easiest thing they had done, but it worked, and thanks to Pip’s foresight, his being packed away and labeled as freight, to starve to death, forgotten and alone, in the hold, wasn’t fatal. Liam was packed away too, but he was tended closely; they wanted him alive.
When they finally unpacked him, he was before the baron, and his parents were already there. The baron had heard about his magic, and for some reason, he believed what he had heard. He was a greedy man and his first request was for more gold, after all, if you could make gold, you could be the richest man in the empire.
Liam, however, couldn’t ‘make’ gold, he could find the appropriate minerals in the ground and bring it out to be used, but he wasn’t willing to cooperate with someone who had made his mother cry. He found the closest source of gold and began to turn a portion of the floor into it. Liam extended the line of gold toward the baron until the man couldn't help but touch it, then he too was turned to gold. Liam then sought to get himself and his parents away from there.
Outside the palace grounds, they met the young man Pip had hired, his nephew, as backup. The nephew, Georgy, led them to a scruffy dockside inn where they rejoined Pip. It was there that Liam learned some astonishing things about his parents. The man he had just killed, the baron, was his mother’s father; he had just killed his grandfather.
Liam’s parents decided that, rather than run for the rest of their lives, they would go directly to the emperor and explain the situation. They hoped that if they could explain their side before the story got all blown out of shape, they would stand a better chance of a fair judgment.
The emperor wasn’t easy to see, but eventually, Liam’s mother got an audience, and ultimately, the emperor wanted to meet Liam and see an example of his magic. After hearing everything Liam had to say, the emperor sent his parents back to take over the barony, as was his mother’s inheritance. Liam was to remain with the emperor. He was not a greedy man, he never asked Liam to increase his fortunes, but he did want to keep a close eye on what he saw as a dangerous element.
After trial and failure, it was proven that Liam couldn’t just not do magic. Fortunately, it was determined that Liam was a very honorable and honest person, so the emperor took him on as a bodyguard. In that position, Liam was able to save the emperor’s life on more than one occasion. He was even able to save the lives of the emperor’s family, though the damage he took doing so forced his return to the planet where it all began - his basilisk no longer recognized any control.
Liam’s recovery wasn’t to go without a hitch. Though they had convinced his magic to heal his body, his basilisk still had a firm grip on his mind and he escaped into the wilderness before anyone knew. It wasn’t until mating season came around nearly a year later that he was driven back to the cave complex to find the only Earth female on the planet; it was her voice that had filled his life until now. He had to have her and he would do anything to get her. It was her voice, Patricia’s voice, that brought Liam back to himself, though his control of his basilisk was still in question.
Once Liam was whole again, his lessons took up where they had left off, though his team was different now. Only one of his old friends was unmarried and the emperor had consigned the captain of his guard to Liam’s mercy for his crimes. As soon as Liam was able to achieve a modicum of symmetry with his new team, his teachers allowed them to go into town to visit Patricia.
Visiting Patricia was frustrating for Liam; local custom prevented any but the most formal of interactions between them. Liam left after only three days, returning to his lessons wound tighter than before.
He married his Patricia at the next harvest festival and took her back to his emperor. Nine months later, she gave him a daughter, but paid for it with her life. Liam tried everything in his power to save her, but not even his magic was enough to grant her life once it was gone. Desperate, Liam turned to the only place he could think of - the only place that had been able to sort out all of his disasters. Spending the magic gladly, he teleported across the vast distance of space, back to his teachers, but somewhere along the way, he lost his Patricia.
Liam slept for the next six years as his stores of magic built up again. His daughter, named Victoria, was raised by his mother, who brought her to visit her sleeping father every year. It was his daughter’s voice, so like her mother’s, that finally woke him from his long sleep.
When he had recovered, Liam went home with his mother; as her only living heir, it would fall to him to run the barony one day, but his time there was not to be peaceful. Another attempt on the emperor’s life called him back to his side. Though the distance across space was much closer, it was still a dangerous drain on his magic.
The danger to the emperor didn’t end with the capture of the few men trying to break into his personal apartment, there were men among the imperial high guard who had changed sides and the captain was cut down in the first volley. Liam’s magic allowed him to survive all else that came at him, and he dealt out death and destruction to any who fired at him; many of them might have been friendly forces, but Liam didn’t have the time or inclination to sort them out. Very few men were left standing when the lead stopped flying.
Liam finally understood what the emperor had feared so long ago; he was too dangerous. Going to the tallest roof, Liam reached for the storm thundering overhead, and he reached with all of his might; he had murdered many innocent men and he should die for his crimes. His magic wasn’t about to allow him to commit suicide, not even from this much damage and so once again he was taken home. There he would stay.
The people of Planet 663-457 were happily lodged between the Iron Age and the Machine Age. The only, and by far biggest, difference between these people and the people of Earth was the fact that they were about four times the mass of the normal Earth human. This, however, didn’t stop twelve-year-old Liam from making fast friends with three local boys and they were soon inseparable.
There was one aspect about the planet and its people that Liam’s parents didn’t find out about until their son was irretrievably submerged in it - magic. Many people of Planet 663-457 had some modicum of magic but few were strong enough to be able to access it. Those that were strong enough were brought to the masters for testing and if they passed the test, the masters took on their training.
The magic was elemental magic in the strictest sense. A master could manipulate the four elements - earth, air, fire and water. Earth Magic is the manipulation matter such as rock, metal or wood, changing its shape or even its location. Air Magic is the control of air; moving it or taking it away is the most common uses. Fire Magic is the control of heat; heating food is the most common use but heating or cooling one’s environment or even one’s own body is also common. Water Magic is the control of water; again, use in food is the most common use but a master can cause it to rain if he desires. A master’s ability is dependent upon his understanding of the elements and upon his strength - if he can figure out how to do something, and if he’s strong enough to do it, he is generally successful.
As soon as Liam’s parents found out what had happened to their son, their response was to leave the planet. Leaving the planet, however, could not protect Liam; it was too late for that. In fact, he came to understand that his leaving put himself and others around him at extreme risk - he very much needed the training the Masters offered.
Leaving his parents to continue their journey and find a new assignment, Liam booked a flight back to Planet 663-457. He would rejoin his parents when he could control the Magic. Liam’s lessons began the morning after returning to the cave complex where the Masters lived, but he discovered that controlling the magic was far harder than he, or even his teachers, had anticipated.
His teachers likened his magic to a basilisk - how do you control a mindless eating juggernaut? The only thing they could come up with was controlling the food - in the case of magic, that meant controlling the source of energy. If the only source of energy the Magic could draw upon was Liam’s own body and nothing else, then the Magic would be finite - it wouldn’t allow him to die and once it bowed to his control, then he could control it.
A month later, Liam and his friends went back to town to see if there was a message from Liam’s parents. Expecting to find a replacement, Liam was surprised to find the house empty. They returned each month, but no replacement showed up until three months later.
After three more months of no news, Liam called the only person he could think of who might be inclined to help. He called the shop owner where he had purchased his sword hoping he would know someone willing to take on the job of finding his parents; they wouldn’t have gone this long without finding some way to get in touch with him - something was wrong.
After Liam was finished with the phone, Mr. Preston, the man who had replaced his parents, offered to try to find some information through his channels. While Mr. Preston was jumping through the necessary hoops to make an interplanetary phone call, soldiers came crashing into the house through every opening big enough for a body to get through. When bullets started flying, Liam had no choice but to respond with his own training. Armed with only a sword and his magic, it wasn’t long before Liam and Mr. Preston were the only people left standing.
Liam had been wounded several times, but he was running on adrenaline and sustained by his magic. He told Mr. Preston to call for a doctor and then he ran for the village healer; she was much closer. He was met by two of his three friends and their news was dire. Imperial troops had been asking around for him for most of the last month and as soon as the four of them had shown up, their families had come under house arrest. Two of Liam’s friends had managed to escape; the fourth of their number hadn’t been so lucky so they went to get him.
Thanks to his teachers and his magic, Liam was back on his feet within a week and a little over a week later, a messenger from town arrived with a message for Liam. Someone else was looking for him and he was avoiding the guards, so they thought Liam might be interested in meeting with him.
Pip was the man sent by the shop owner and he recommended that they follow in his parents’ footprints. Under disguise, they went back to the place where Liam had last seen his parents, and then acting as a rich man’s son with his personal servant, they booked the same flight Liam’s parents had taken. They hoped to meet the same end and they hoped Liam’s magic could keep them alive.
Allowing themselves to be trapped wasn’t the easiest thing they had done, but it worked, and thanks to Pip’s foresight, his being packed away and labeled as freight, to starve to death, forgotten and alone, in the hold, wasn’t fatal. Liam was packed away too, but he was tended closely; they wanted him alive.
When they finally unpacked him, he was before the baron, and his parents were already there. The baron had heard about his magic, and for some reason, he believed what he had heard. He was a greedy man and his first request was for more gold, after all, if you could make gold, you could be the richest man in the empire.
Liam, however, couldn’t ‘make’ gold, he could find the appropriate minerals in the ground and bring it out to be used, but he wasn’t willing to cooperate with someone who had made his mother cry. He found the closest source of gold and began to turn a portion of the floor into it. Liam extended the line of gold toward the baron until the man couldn't help but touch it, then he too was turned to gold. Liam then sought to get himself and his parents away from there.
Outside the palace grounds, they met the young man Pip had hired, his nephew, as backup. The nephew, Georgy, led them to a scruffy dockside inn where they rejoined Pip. It was there that Liam learned some astonishing things about his parents. The man he had just killed, the baron, was his mother’s father; he had just killed his grandfather.
Liam’s parents decided that, rather than run for the rest of their lives, they would go directly to the emperor and explain the situation. They hoped that if they could explain their side before the story got all blown out of shape, they would stand a better chance of a fair judgment.
The emperor wasn’t easy to see, but eventually, Liam’s mother got an audience, and ultimately, the emperor wanted to meet Liam and see an example of his magic. After hearing everything Liam had to say, the emperor sent his parents back to take over the barony, as was his mother’s inheritance. Liam was to remain with the emperor. He was not a greedy man, he never asked Liam to increase his fortunes, but he did want to keep a close eye on what he saw as a dangerous element.
After trial and failure, it was proven that Liam couldn’t just not do magic. Fortunately, it was determined that Liam was a very honorable and honest person, so the emperor took him on as a bodyguard. In that position, Liam was able to save the emperor’s life on more than one occasion. He was even able to save the lives of the emperor’s family, though the damage he took doing so forced his return to the planet where it all began - his basilisk no longer recognized any control.
Liam’s recovery wasn’t to go without a hitch. Though they had convinced his magic to heal his body, his basilisk still had a firm grip on his mind and he escaped into the wilderness before anyone knew. It wasn’t until mating season came around nearly a year later that he was driven back to the cave complex to find the only Earth female on the planet; it was her voice that had filled his life until now. He had to have her and he would do anything to get her. It was her voice, Patricia’s voice, that brought Liam back to himself, though his control of his basilisk was still in question.
Once Liam was whole again, his lessons took up where they had left off, though his team was different now. Only one of his old friends was unmarried and the emperor had consigned the captain of his guard to Liam’s mercy for his crimes. As soon as Liam was able to achieve a modicum of symmetry with his new team, his teachers allowed them to go into town to visit Patricia.
Visiting Patricia was frustrating for Liam; local custom prevented any but the most formal of interactions between them. Liam left after only three days, returning to his lessons wound tighter than before.
He married his Patricia at the next harvest festival and took her back to his emperor. Nine months later, she gave him a daughter, but paid for it with her life. Liam tried everything in his power to save her, but not even his magic was enough to grant her life once it was gone. Desperate, Liam turned to the only place he could think of - the only place that had been able to sort out all of his disasters. Spending the magic gladly, he teleported across the vast distance of space, back to his teachers, but somewhere along the way, he lost his Patricia.
Liam slept for the next six years as his stores of magic built up again. His daughter, named Victoria, was raised by his mother, who brought her to visit her sleeping father every year. It was his daughter’s voice, so like her mother’s, that finally woke him from his long sleep.
When he had recovered, Liam went home with his mother; as her only living heir, it would fall to him to run the barony one day, but his time there was not to be peaceful. Another attempt on the emperor’s life called him back to his side. Though the distance across space was much closer, it was still a dangerous drain on his magic.
The danger to the emperor didn’t end with the capture of the few men trying to break into his personal apartment, there were men among the imperial high guard who had changed sides and the captain was cut down in the first volley. Liam’s magic allowed him to survive all else that came at him, and he dealt out death and destruction to any who fired at him; many of them might have been friendly forces, but Liam didn’t have the time or inclination to sort them out. Very few men were left standing when the lead stopped flying.
Liam finally understood what the emperor had feared so long ago; he was too dangerous. Going to the tallest roof, Liam reached for the storm thundering overhead, and he reached with all of his might; he had murdered many innocent men and he should die for his crimes. His magic wasn’t about to allow him to commit suicide, not even from this much damage and so once again he was taken home. There he would stay.
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