Chapter 2: Dream Ceremony

Chapter 2: Dream Ceremony

Leland’s face crooked into a deep smile, one that pulled his cheeks to their highest arc. Movement quickly pulled his gaze, and he found an ebony crow staring at him with huge amethyst eyes.

It tilted its head, inspecting the human while silently conveying its unhappiness.

The crow, as small as it was, held the presence of a god. It looked at Leland with the ego of the heavens, the arrogance of a Lord. It cawed once, booming its power across the darkened landscape from one horizon to the other. The spindly trees vibrated from the sudden earthquake, uprooting before being consumed by their dirt housings.

The forest fell apart, transforming into a barren wasteland of undeath and ruin. Groans echoed from the marshy floor as sickly green hands sprouted into life. At first the hands waved around like a crowd cheering for a performance but they eventually grew enough to pull their bodies from the soil.

Souls, hundreds, one for each tree, groaned and moaned, each transfixed on Leland. They tracked him, not that he was moving but rather because they were forced to. Their bodies didn’t sit idle, they twisted and contorted, like their ghostly muscles were cramping.

“Hmph.”

Leland turned back to the crow. It still sat on an isolated tree, but this tree had grown. Bone and antler spiraled around the open air, creating branches and life. Sparkling puffs of magic bloomed along the branches, each whispering their powerwords like budding flowers.

Reds, greens, deep blues, even a few marbled black and white spells, were within the tree. It was Leland’s tree, he knew, but not for another day... or maybe not. Was it this it? He couldn’t remember... had he gone to bed yet? He smiled again.

“The Legacy of the Lord of Curses,” the crow spoke in a harsh voice, like it was screaming and whispering at the same time. “You accept, don’t you?”

Ahh, there it was. Leland had fallen asleep, it was finally his birthday. Nineteen. He couldn’t believe it, he was finally of age to become someone new – something worthwhile. It was finally time to accept his Legacy, years he had waited for this moment. The Legacy of the--

Wait.

“Lord of Curses?” Leland asked, his mind reeling back into reality, or rather, to the Dream Ceremony. “Seriously?”

The crow tilted its head before cawing once. The landscape shifted back to the spiny forest, souls of the Damned disappearing back into the ground. Only the massive bone tree remained, along with the spells of the Curse Lord.

“What do you mean, ‘seriously?’” the crow asked, its voice fading from harsh to disbelief.

Leland frowned. “Well, I mean. Mom and Dad were legacies of the Magic Lord... I figured I would be the same... I had it all planned out... First I’d learn water magic, maybe a simple healing spell, then progress into lightning. The combination would be rather effect—”

“Stop,” the crow ordered. It sighed, bringing forth a large wind. The trees shook, even Leland stumbled a bit.

“Did I do something—”

“No, no.” The crow hopped to a different branch, turning its back away from the human. “It’s just the natural reaction every one of my Legacy has. It’s me, right?”

Before Leland could respond the crow continued. “‘Try to intimidate potential Legacies.’ I was urged to do. ‘Make them fear my power, so that they feel the touch of greed upon their minds.” The crow turned to the open air, cawing a muted curse before a drop of liquid fell from its amethyst eye.

Leland’s face scrunched. “A-are you crying?”

“No!” The force of the word stripped the land of all things, besides the tree with the spells on its branches, of course.

Leland suddenly found the situation uncomfortable. He struggled to stand still, his legs pushing him to console the saddened Lord. He walked over to the tree, putting his hand on the boney trunk.

“You don’t have to cry,” he said. “There has to be someone who will accept your Legacy, right?”

For a moment the crow glanced at him before turning back away. “No. They are all snatched up by the Magic Lord before I have a chance. It's rare I get the first petition for the magically inclined. Even rarer that they accept my offer.”

Leland paused. “W-why did you get first petition over me then?”

The crow huffed. “A relative on your mother’s side was a Legacy of mine some two thousand years ago. When the Gift of Magic appears in your bloodline, or any of my other patrons, I have rite of the first.”

The woman only smirked as the ground parted. Stems and roots poured from the hole, ushering in new life. Gray eyes appeared all around the forest, each staring at their newfound brother. They stood back, allowing the hole to produce all of its wonderment.

Eventually the roots and vines stopped and the Lord of Curses stepped forward. She idly reached into the center of the main mass, fishing around for her Legacy. With a striking pull, her hand returned holding a grimoire. Gently she passed it to Leland.

As soon as he touched the thick book, power and knowledge flowed through him where it eventually fell dormant. His mind closed up, locking his new power under the guise of experience. He smiled, looking over the tome.

It was a grimoire, that much was certain. But the runes and glyphs etched around the center cover were unknown to him. A ram skull, sewed with purple felt and golden thread, met his eyes, the hollow sockets staring with anticipation and potential. He felt power from within the book, no – from within his book.

It was his Legacy now, it was his to command. His parents had prepared him for this moment, giving him assignment after assignment about the subjects of the Dream Ceremony. If he remembered correctly, then all he had to do was—

The grimoire popped from reality, disappearing into a newly formed tattoo on the back of his palm. It took the form of a crow in midflight. Concentrating, Leland urged the book to reappear in his hands. It did, just how he imagined. He checked, the tattoo was gone as well. He smiled, turning to his Lord and sending the grimoire away once again. There would be time to play later.

“Thank you,” Leland said. “I can feel the power of your curses.”

The wrinkled old woman smiled. “You mean your curses. Not mine. They are as much yours as mine, I only show you a path forward.”

She raised her hand. “But you will learn in time. It is time for you to return, I only wish to leave you with some parting advice.”

Leland straightened his posture. “Thank you, I’ll gladly hear it.”

“Be careful of Witchhunters. They should only come after you if you abuse your power.”

“Wait what?” Leland started to panic. “What do you mean Witchhunters may come for me? I thought they only went after Witches?”

The Lord of Curses smiled solemnly. “And those who abuse dark spells. Simply don’t, and you will be fine.”

Leland scratched the back of his neck. “Uh, alright then... Thanks for the advice.”

Then the Lord of this Realm snapped her fingers, causing Leland’s eyes to whip open back in the real world.

The first thing he noticed was that the crow tattoo was very much real. The second was that the town’s emergency bells were chiming.

The Lord of Curses ruefully smiled to herself. She hated lying, especially the theatrics of it all. But still, it had to be done in this case. It wasn’t everyday she offered her Legacy, best to make sure he accept her power.

Her gaze fell to the open air. Suddenly a muted pop invaded her domain, summoning forth an older man. They stared at each other for a long moment before the Lord of Curses spoke.

“Your advice sucked! ‘Try to intimidate?’ I was losing him until I pulled out the waterworks.”

The Lord of Magic raised an eyebrow. “You cried to a mortal?”

“About how no one accepts my Legacy, yes,” she said, ignoring the embarrassing connotation. “Guilted him into accepting.”

“But he accepted nonetheless?”

The Curse Lord nodded.

A smile sprouted on the Lord of Magic’s face. “Can’t say I’m not disappointed. His parents are two of my favorites. But it's not every day you wish to indoctrinate a new Legacy. In fact I don’t even remember the last one.”

“She was about two thousand years or so ago.”

That cut the Magic Lord’s smile. “Ah, right... It really has been a long time.”