What was this light?
“Ahhh. A visitor. There has not been a visitor in many years.”
The disembodied voice was that of a man. She glanced around but saw no one.
“Where are you?”
“Here. In this room. Trapped for all eternity,” he said.
She regarded the purple light with questions swirling through her mind. The man was the light in the cage?
“Who are you?”
He chuckled. “The one who lived in this cabin. But now nothing more than a phantom.” The light swirled as he spoke.
“Youare the wizard?” she asked.
“I am. And you?”
Hesitation shifted through her. She didn’t want to tell him who she was, so she asked another question.
“What is your name?”
A rumble of a laugh went through him. “The last time I gave up my name to someone, it was a mistake.”
“I cannot call youwizard, can I?” she asked, determined to learn his name.
“No more than I can call youmaiden.” There was a pause, then he said, “You seem harmless enough. My name is Govan.”
Govan was a name she had never heard, nor would soon forget. With her hand still on the knob, she watched the swirling light within the cage.
“How did you get like this?”
“’Tis a long story.” Another swirl and a dance.
She released the knob and stepped closer to peer at the ball of light trapped within the cage made of silver. Tiny squares kept the light from seeping out. Someone had trapped him here. But who and why?
“Tell me your name, maiden, and I shall tell you the story.”
Snow knew there was a power in names. She was reluctant to share hers with a dangerous dark wizard. She glanced around the room, searching for inspiration, but saw nothing she could take as her name. Then it occurred to her to take a name from nature.
“You may call me Ivy.”
There was a long pause as the light swished around in its cage, then he emitted a long, low chuckle.
“Ivy. Very well. I shall tell you the story of a vengeful girl who stole my magic and trapped me here.”
He told her the tale of being forced out of the forest by the elves with nothing but his wits and his spell book. Snow already knew this story from talking to Master Harwin. When he was expelled, he went north to a small village where he met a young peasant girl desperate to leave her poor, wretched life behind. She had aspirations and dreams of becoming something more than what she was and she wanted someone to help her get there.
“She wanted riches and power and love. All things I gave her. I helped her do away with the queen. I helped her marry the king. I helped her becomethe new queen. I watched as she was crowned and began her new life with all she ever wanted and dreamed. All because of me. I gave her those things.”
As the light spoke and spun, Snow pressed trembling cold fingers to her lips. “Who was this woman who became queen?”
“Her name was Seraphina.”
Snow sucked in a sharp breath.Seraphina. That was how she came to power. She killed her mother. Then her father. Then banished her from her own kingdom. All because she wanted to bethe queen, the most powerful in the Mystic Vale.
“All I wanted in return was to be part of her court. To have a place at her side. She is a jealous, hateful shrew. I was a fool to trust her. To allow myself to think I was her faithful advisor. I should have never allowed her to charm me. She stole my spell book and used my own magic against me, cursing me. She destroyed all but what you see here. The very essence of my magic. She trapped me in this cage. As long as I’m here, her magic thrives.”
