Embers

Chapter Seven

Prentice came to the library as it neared morning and Franklin was not in sight. He hadn’t shown up to classes. It was odd for him to start now since he never missed a class. He had a difficult day yesterday, but evil never rests, and he shouldn't let it affect him too much.

“Master Franklin, where are you?”

The library was a mess. He didn’t know Franklin was the messy type, but indeed there must be an explanation for it. Perhaps it was looking for something that led to a mess this big.

“Master Franklin, you had class and your father requested you be there promptly,” He spoke as loud and clear as he could.

It seems Prentice had the inclination to head to the library, where Franklin seems to live most of his time when he is away from training. No matter the endless talks about socializing with people in the kingdom or just his family, it backfires, so Prentice refrained from talking to him about it. Though he had been calling and looking around to see his crouched self in a corner, no such luck happened. If anything, it seemed someone ransacked the library and left quickly. Turning a corner, Prentice held on to his wits at what he was witnessing.

Prentice hadn’t realized that the sight he would see would trigger his poor soul into a blood-curdling panic frenzy. He saw Franklin strung up in the air; the place was a mess and littered books were all over the floor, covering so much that there was no floor to see.

“Oh no! Franklin, what have you done?” Prentice cried out urgently, trying to shake him awake.

Nothing fazed him, but seeing his eyes, it tore Prentice to end his student’s life right there and face the consequence, or try to save him as much as possible. Hovering away from where he was, he called out his name carefully. Taking as much caution as he could, and ready to strike at any movement that seemed too suspicious, Prentice called out again.

“Franklin,” he called out. There was silence.

He saw Franklin’s blank face, with wide white eyes, but what made him scared not for himself but for Franklin, his eyes were swirling black among the white. It was never good to find darkness among the white. It was a stain and usually caused trouble. He had seen only one occurrence before. It was during the time of him becoming a young mage. Another high-rank witch found a book, and it used her for its purpose instead of the other way round. It did not end well, and it brought destruction to an entire kingdom of mages and witches’ folks. Although Prentice hadn’t read of anything like this happening in the future, nor had he had any premonitions, he was sure what was happening to Franklin wasn’t going to be digestible either.

“What have you gotten yourself into, Franklin? What made you do this?” He paced back and forth in front of the hovering boy and pondered upon his options and Franklin’s.

“What is going on in your mind?" While circling and muttering to himself, Prentice was determined to do something he hadn't done for a long time and it set his mind in stone.

Sighing, he tapped into Franklin’s mind, and saw complete darkness. It was normal for a mind to be a blank canvas. The consciousness would paint on the blank canvas to make it come to life, but only in it awaken state. Franklin wasn’t awake, or if he was, he was no longer in control of what he does, and that was dangerous. It seems this is phase one of his mind, but as he closed the second step, his jerk movement pushed him down to his knees. Whatever force was playing with his innocent mind was a powerful force and likely hungry for power, more likely light energy. He must get Franklin out, and quickly, since it has only been playing with him so far. It was an unexplainable feeling, but he knew the time span was closing in.

“Franklin,” Prentice shouted frantically now. The urgency in his voice was palpable. Hopefully, he could hear it.

“Franklin, where are you?” and within a second, the blackness as a snake emerged from the ground and stood tall like a demon or an infected stalk.

It hissed dangerously, but it couldn’t hurt Prentice. Trying to grasp it to inspect it quickly, it moved away, and with a long call for Franklin, the foul fiend slipped from his hands and melted within the surrounding darkness. With a deadly vibration of consciousness, Prentice launched himself from Franklin’s mind, quickly as he could, not before feeling a sharp pain at the back of his neck. It felt as though it was drawing his life from behind him, and it weakened Prentice to his knees.

Prentice tried catching his breath, only to find Franklin’s lifeless body falling from the air. Launching himself from the ground, he caught him just in time. They both tumbled to the ground. In a snap, Prentice sighed, and his fingers began working the shelves with books, while Franklin lay unconscious on the floor.

“Franklin, you need to wake up,” muttered Prentice, kneeling to him and patting his face.

Prentice racked his brain to find what he needed to help Franklin wake up, but all he could think about was something dark that lured all around them. He could smell the foul stench of black magic and the demise and malice it held. If it got Franklin, then it might be too late to save him. Why was he not waking up?

Caught up in his mind, he hadn’t realized something fixed the library to its former glory, all packed away and every book in its correct place.

“Prentice, what are you doing here?” Croaked a voice and then a cough soon followed after.

“You have a lot of explaining to do, boy. I expect nothing but the truth.”

“What do you mean? What have I done?”

“I don’t know. I came in here because you were not in class this morning. Nor training. I came in and saw you above the shelves. Franklin, your eyes were swirling with darkness.” He said, joggling the boy’s shoulder to knock some sense into him.

“I know I was tired of hearing everyone talk about what an abomination I am to this kingdom, and I also had a fight. Mother told me something, and I think I broke her heart. She tried, but I know what would happen. They won’t accept me.”

“Your plight have not gone unnoticed. I told you that you need to focus on your work, not sabotaging it. Do you remember what happened after?”

“Someone pushed the shelves over on me, nearly killing me. Wait, why are the shelves all packed?” Franklin asked, getting up to touch the now upright shelf.

“I had to pack them. You were unconscious. What happened after that?” Prentice squared his shoulders and folding his hands in front of him, he stood taller than he was.

“I don’t remember,” muttered Franklin, almost begrudgingly.

“Try harder!” Boomed Prentice demandingly.

“Why? I said I don’t remember,” Franklin shouted, equally angry.

“You did something, or worse, something found you.” Believe it or not, Prentice always thought something like this would have happened when Franklin was younger, not when he was near past his teen years.

“What does that mean? If something found me, how am I in trouble?” This time Franklin must have taken Prentice’s silence as a reprimand, so now he came off blatantly argumentative.

“The thing is, for black magic to work, it needs to be accepted, and your eyes were swirling with blackness. You must have done something. We will find out soon enough. Either it tricked you, or you are their beacon.”

With the astounding revelation, Prentice left and walked the way he came. In search for answers, Prentice decided it was best to leave his student be and allow him to ponder on what he did. If anything, what was haunting Franklin, it would show sooner than desired.