Chapter Two: When the Gem Refuses
The fire at the center of the council chamber hissed low, as though it too were waiting.
Ten men sat in a perfect ring beneath the curved stone ceiling, their robes heavy with ancient stitching, their gazes heavier still. They had not spoken since the news arrived.
Caedric was gone.
“He’s dead,” Magister Rhunald Dorsean finally said, his voice like cracked stone.
“And the seat of leadership now sits empty. We must name his successor.”
“The successor is already here,” said Magister Lennox Aldair, his fingers clasped tightly.
“We are the highest-ranking wizards in the world. The circle must be preserved.”
But another scoffed.
“If one of us was meant to succeed him,” Magister Orrin Vale said coolly,
“Caedric would have made that clear before he died.”
Several eyes turned toward him.
“And if it were to be one of us,” Orrin continued,
“he would not have relinquished his gem.”
Murmurs filled the chamber like smoke. The wizard’s gem was sacred—an extension of one's magical essence. For Caedric to release his before death... it defied tradition.
“Perhaps he panicked,” Rhunald offered.
“The man was old. Frail.”
“No.” It was Hollan Verrick who spoke now, his voice firmer than before.
“You forget—Caedric’s gem was not like ours. It chose. It acted. He gave it the command to find someone worthy.”
“Then why didn’t it choose from us?” Orrin’s eyes narrowed.
“We were standing closest. The gem left the island. It fled us.”
A silence followed.
Then Lennox’s voice came, low, reluctant.
“If the next isn’t one of us... then who is he?”
---
Asterwell Medical – Ward 9B
Aurelian’s eyelids fluttered open. White walls. The sterile scent of antiseptic. The steady beep of machines.
And beside him, a girl.
She sat forward the moment his eyes focused.
“You’re incredible.”
He blinked, unsure he heard right.
“You saved me,” she said, almost breathlessly.
“Back there... I didn’t see the car. You did. And you jumped in front of it like some kind of madman.”
He tried to sit up.
“Don’t move too fast,” she added quickly.
Then, smiling,
“I’m Celine. Celine Astor. I go to Eastrow Academy. You know, the school with the obnoxious blue uniforms?”
Aurelian chuckled weakly.
“Veldenmoor. No obnoxious colors... just obnoxious students.”
Her laugh was genuine.
“You’re funny, for someone who technically died for two seconds.”
---
Across the city, under the golden awning of La Rue Noir, Elira Vane sat alone.
Her arms were folded, and her eyes burned holes into the cold drink on the table.
“Unbelievable,” she hissed.
“One hour. He asked me out, and now he ghosts me?”
“Still waiting?” came a voice.
She turned to see Callen Merrow, sharp-jawed and effortlessly smug, taking a seat across from her without asking.
“I had a feeling Thorne wouldn’t show. He’s not exactly the reliable type.”
Elira rolled her eyes.
“Maybe something happened.”
Callen smirked.
“Or maybe he realized you’re not worth the trouble.”
That hit harder than it should have.
She opened her mouth—but no defense came out.
---
Back on the island, Magister Orrin Vale stood alone in his study, surrounded by ancient scrolls and glowing instruments.
He lit a small candle with his finger and whispered into the flickering flame:
“When the ring awakens—show me.”
The signet pulsed briefly.
The spell was cast.
Orrin didn’t trust Rhunald. Or Lennox. And if the gem had truly refused them all... then something far stranger was unfolding.
---
Aurelian swung his legs over the side of the bed.
Celine tried to stop him.
“You need to rest.”
He shook his head.
“I have somewhere I need to be.”
Just then, the door opened.
A tall doctor entered with a clipboard, followed by a nurse.
“Mr. Thorne,” the doctor said slowly.
“You shouldn’t be standing. Not after what you survived.”
The nurse added,
“That car was clocked at over 200 kilometers per hour. No broken bones. No major bleeding. Most people wouldn’t have legs. You... don’t even have a bruise.”
“That’s impossible,” Aurelian whispered.
But then—he heard it.
Voices. Familiar. Distant.
“Tell them we’re on our way. Just don’t let him be alone,” came his mother’s voice.
But she wasn’t in the room.
She wasn’t even on the floor.
Two minutes later, his parents arrived, panicked and tearful, having just parked.
They hadn’t called ahead. But Aurelian had heard them.
And it didn’t stop there.
Down the hallway, faint but clear:
“Cardiac arrest. 22. No ID. Collapsed outside the metro.”
Exactly two minutes later, a nurse burst in:
“Doctor—we have a code blue in Room 7. Cardiac arrest.”
Aurelian stared at her, heart pounding.
Something was happening to him.
---
That night, his parents drove him home in silence.
His mother clutched his hand.
“You’re our only child. You’re all we have. We thought we lost you.”
Aurelian didn’t answer.
His ears were too busy listening.
---
The next morning, the sun hadn’t yet broken through the clouds when Aurelian arrived at Veldenmoor.
He walked through the main quad, eyes following him with whispers and stares.
“Yo!” Jasper caught up to him, holding out his phone.
“You’re trending, mate.”
He scrolled through hashtags:
#BoyHitByCar200k
#StillPrettySomehow
#VeldenmoorGenie
#AlienSpottedInGrimsreach
One post read:
“Aurelian Thorne: Human or myth?”
Another:
“How do you get hit at 200km/h and wake up flirting with a girl? I stub my toe and need three weeks off.”
Aurelian managed a laugh.
Then—
“Aurelian Thorne.”
He turned.
---
To be continued...
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