At All Costs

Chapter One

"Magnifico?"

A soft voice of a woman whispered as the door creaked open. The room started to fill with the lantern light that the woman was carrying in. Magnifico was asleep at his desk with his lantern light starting to dim as it started to go out. The woman slowly walks over but the sound of the floor makes Magnifico awake.

"Mom?," Magnifico yawned.

"Hey, sweetie, sorry I woke you,"

Magnifico began to stretch in his chair as his mother wrapped a blanket around him. The moonlight began to shine through the window onto Magnifico's desk. The papers that scattered across it were about the many sorceries of the world including books and ripped up maps. Magnifico was only seventeen at this time and nowhere near ready to leave home to adventure out to find these abilities, but he was fascinated with having the ability. But his mother, Lydia, was not too supportive of the art. She was afraid of the danger that could come from it, especially if the welder of such magic was her only son.

"What is this?" Lydia asked, picking up a book off the desk.

"Nothing!," grasping at the book before Lydia pulled it away.

"Magnifico, I told you how I feel about this art!"

Magnifico jumped to his feet in front of his mother to try and receive the book back but Lydia was not letting him have it back.

"This art is dangerous and destructive! I will not let you continue in your studies!"

"Mother! If I could master these arts, we could be free of these conditions! We would be out of poverty! Dad could come home!"

Magnifico's dad, Damion, was a guard on the kingdom's forces ever since Magnifico was born. The kingdom has been at war with neighboring kingdoms over higher forces for years. The last day Magnifico saw his dad was when he was ten. Ever since then Magnifico has been helping on their farm to help get money by selling their goods at the farmers market in the higher class section of the kingdom. But that doesn't always make ends meet.

Lydia furrowed her eyebrows as she looked down at the floor. She stood there contemplating what Magnifico said knowing that they are struggling to get by with Damion gone in the war.

"Please, Mom, let me do this," Magnifico begged, grabbing Lydia's shoulders.

"No," Lydia stated firmly, "I can't let you possibly hurt yourself over this magic that might not possibly be real!"

Lydia stormed out with the book in hand as she slammed the door behind her. Magnifico threw his hands to his head as he paced back and forth for a bit. He furrowed his eyebrows as he fell back onto his bed. He stared up at the ceiling as he listened to the mice running along the beams in the attic. He exhaled as he sat up on his bed, hunching over the side of it. There was a small painting of him and his parents on his nightstand next to his bed. Magnifico glanced at it and noticed his father. That is the only way he could see his father's face daily but the painting was done a few months before Damion left for war so who knows what he looks like now. Magnifico grabbed the picture and saw how happy they were before the war, everything was so perfect. Magnifico stood up, placing the painting on his bed, to walk over to his desk. There was a large metal framed chest next to it that was his father's. He brought it with them when they moved to the kingdom. Magnifico started to neatly stack the papers and maps that were on his desk together and placed them in the chest. Anything that had to do with sorcery he put in the chest.

"Time to put this on a pause," Magnifico thought.

Magnifico finished packing up his research as the light from his lantern began to go out. The only light that lit the room was the moonlight. There was a small crystal laying on the desk in the beam of the moonlight. That was a special keepsake to Magnifico because it was from Lydia as a birthday gift to Magnifico. The reflection of the crystal shone around the room, giving off more light. Magnifico noticed the crystal as he began to place the last book in the chest. Magnifico grabbed the crystal off the desk to examine the beauty of it. The blue silver color of the crystal shined brighter as he picked it up. Magnifico placed the crystal in his pocket and began to get ready for bed.