The Awakening of a warlock

Marcus had been on sea with his father's motor boat all the day. His parents had been in their vacation with his sisters since the weekend and so he had made a small trip out of the Bay of Metropolis and northwards along the coastline. He had spend the day in a small fisher town and forgot a bit about the time and so the sun was already setting when he had departed from the small harbor of the town.

In addition to that did a storm come up when he just reached the entrance to the bay and left him in a really bad situation. On one side the increasing storm and on the other side the cliffs along the northern entrance to the bay.

Waves played with the boat and he had troubles to keep it on course. And to make matters even more worse, water sloshed into the boat. It was clear to him that he had to land somewhere really soon as he wouldn't make the distance to the harbor of Metropolis.

His worried look went to the GPS map of the area, which made it clear to him, that there was no good place to land and wait for the storm to pass by. He even realized that the storm had drifted him away from the coastline.

Another wave hit the boat and let it sink deeper into the water. Marcus swore while he grabbed the steering wheel even harder and tried to see something through the rain. In this moment he spotted some flashing light. It seemed green-blue to him and he wondered if it was another ship. But on the radar screen nothing was visible.

"I have to get some help," he thought while he stirred his boat towards the light. Maybe the navigation was damaged or it was just a buoy but maybe he could rope his ship there and then get some water out of it.

While he approached the light he wondered what damage could happened to the systems that no object showed up on the maps. The light apparently had to be fixed to some raised object, nothing which would go below the radar. Suddenly he spotted dark contours which separate from the dark night. Some moments later the storm abated and the boat entered a small harbor. The air was filled with thin mist, which gave the moss covered walls a mysterious flair. The green-blue light belonged to a small tower at the entrance to the harbor.

Marcus roped his boat to the landing pier and inspected the damages to it. After some minutes it was clear that beside the water in the boat no further damage had happened. He started the small bilge pump and then climbed off the boat on the pier. Curiosity where he was had caught him and when he looked back to the harbor entrance he realized that the storm was still at full strength out there.

"What is happening here?" he asked himself while he moved along the pier. A path lead further into the fog and he wondered if he was on an island. "It's like a generic horror movie," he thought and followed a path which lead away from the small harbor. At the moment he hadn't a chance to get away from where he was and he didn't assumed to meet a crazy killer in the fog.

The path lead up some stairs and he passed some buildings which seemed abandoned but in a general good state. Then he reached something what looked like a old mansion. Carefully he pushed open the door and stepped inside.

Inside the building he got the same abandoned but well-preserved impression of the building. Curious he moved around, hoping to find a clue where he was. Furniture had been covered in white sheets and dust had settled everywhere.

After some minutes, he stepped inside a big room which looked like it had served as a living room. A big map which hung on one of the walls caught his attention. It apparently was a map of the Bay of Metropolis and it clearly showed a island in the bay. From the map, which also seemed quite old, the island was near the entrance to the bay, maybe twenty to thirty minutes away from the sports harbor of Metropolis.

His look went out of a huge window front towards the sea, where the storm didn't seemed to amble at all. In the far distance he thought to see some of the lights of the city center, which shined over.

"I can't remember any island in the bay," he thought, "what is happening here." He looked around and spotted some items on a table, which strangely hadn't covered with sheets. He moved over and saw a small box, a letter and a big, old book. It seemed like someone has arranged it there to be found.

He grabbed the letter and started to read:

- Dear reader, if you read this, the magic I put around the island had allowed you in, has found you worthy of my heritage in the South. I left you my trustworthy servant who will lead you for the beginning of your journey. Now, put on the ring and live your dream. But be carefully, their are other powers around, playing their game.

The master -

Marcus read the letter a second time and then looked to the two items on the table. He opened the book which was written in some language he never had seen before. But he felt something strange when he touched the book and its pages. Finally he picked up the small wooden box and opened it. A silver ring with blue crystals set in the metal was in it. He examined the ring for some moments, feeling the same strange ,but at the same time pleasant, power.

Finally, after some more moments, he took the ring from the box and put the ring on his finger. Instantly he felt the power rush through his body, felt how it entered every of his cells, resonating with them. He slowly raised his hand and felt the aura forming around it.

"Wow," he stated as the room around him started to change. Within minutes he sat in a modern furnished room. Only the old map still hung on the wall. His look went to the opened book and he saw that the letters now made a sense to him. "What happened?" he asked himself loudly while examining the ring which apparently fitted itself around his finger.

"The magic of this place selected you as its new master," a deep voice suddenly said and Marcus jerked up. He spotted a old man who just had entered the room. He seemed in his late fifties and looked like the prototype of a butler. "I'm Charles. Nice to meet you."

He moved over to Marcus and shook the confused young man's hand. Marcus wasn't sure what he should say and so he repeated: "What happened?"

"It seems like the island had adapted to its new masters," the butler replied and walked around. "I must say, I like the new style. And I can understand this is all confusing to you at the moment."

"More than that. Did you live on the island? I didn't saw any other boat in the small harbor?"

"I live here, in a house on the other side of the garden. And there are other ways to get on this island." He pointed to the map and both men moved over. "The old master hided the island from the minds of the people. But of course you can change that if you want. It will be as if the island never had disappeared. Therefore you also don't have to worry about your family. They will think you live here for a while after you inherited some big companies."

"Wait, how do you mean that? Inherited some big companies?"

"As I said, the master made arrangements for his successor in the South when he moved back to the North. But everything is well managed and you now own a well filled bank account." He pointed on some markings on the map. "But to come back to what I wanted to show you. Those marks are the gateways. Magical portals connected with each other. You can travel in seconds between different places in the local area.

Marcus nodded. He felt a bit slayed by the events. But Charles seemed to be quite nice. And the letter stated he would help him with those new powers, of which he still not had a clue what they were capable of. "Those powers, what can I do with them?" he finally asked.

"Influence mind and body of persons, change the reality to some grade." Charles pointed to the book and meant: "It is all explained in there. Although it is a bit dry to read. I assume it wouldn't hurt if you try it out yourself. I will show you the portal."
Both men walked through the mansion and reached a room which featured a round platform in the middle. Charles signaled to Marcus that he should step on the platform which had some sort of control panel.

"Just select the place you want to go and then touch the big crystal with your hand. All landing platforms are secured and you can come back from there all the time."

"How do I use my powers?" Marcus asked while he selected a target.

"For the beginning just concentrate on the subject. I'm sure you will quickly learn it. Play a bit around. No worries, the reality will adapt to your actions."

"You don't want to accompany me?" Marcus felt a bit insecure about the instructions
.
"No, I think it will be the best you try it out for yourself. I enjoy a nice evening on the couch watching some TV."

Marcus nodded. The banal way how Charles talked about all this was a bit strange to him. But the older man probably had seen a lot of things before. Then his eyes moved to the console and he pressed his hand against the activation button.