First Apprentice

Prologue Part 2

Mitchel tapped a painted bud on the tin figurine's left shoulder. "What's this?"

"Human form," she said dutifully.

His claw swiveled to the right shoulder. "And this?"

"Half-state. She's a Dracon like me. See the pretty flames?"

Pretty flames that killed millions. He forced a smile and nodded. He pointed to a bud over the figurine's heart. "And this is?"

"Wraith, but Uncle Manfred calls it a spirit form."

His eyes danced as he met Manfred's gaze over her shoulder. "He's old fashioned like that. It comes with being extremely old."

"Older than you, Grandpa?"

"Over three-thousand-years older."

She frowned. "How come his hair isn't white like yours?"

"Because I chose to age."

"Why didn't he?"

"Because I can't," Manfred replied. "Now who has three forms: half-state, human, and clan?" She rocked on her heels, shifting her weight as she mulled over the answer. "We went over this yesterday. You can do it."

"Lords," she paused, "and ladies. You can't call ladies lords, right?"

"Right. Now, tell Grandpa about that star between her eyes."

"Dae like me!" she shouted. "Four forms: half-state, human, clan, and ghosties."

"Wraiths," Mitchel corrected. "If you ever see someone with four markers like this, what do you do?"

"Run."

"Good girl." He kissed her forehead, reached inside his pocket, and pulled out two figurines painted royal purple and robin's egg blue. "This is me," he said, passing her the royal purple soldier. "This is Manfred." He walked across the room and placed the Manfred soldier inside the circle marked Shedu. Then he went back to Alannah, grabbed her shoulders, and steered her into the center of the room.

"What world are we on?" he asked.

She screwed up her face and glanced between the different books, each bearing a card labeled with the world's name and either the clan's symbol or the Border Guard's shield. "Shedi?"

He shook his head and pointed to the nearest book. "Check the symbol."

Head tilted, she studied the card again. "A shield like on your necklace."

"Amulet," he corrected. "Yes, now who am I?"

"Grandpa."

He sighed. Although a bright child, Alannah was still a child. Teaching her was always different than teaching his apprentices. "What are you supposed to tell anyone who asks about your clan?"

"To talk to Mitchel-dae of the Shedu, Fifth of the Seven," she repeated the line he had her memorize several years ago.

"I'm that Mitchel."

Twirling her toe on the floor, she looked between the symbol and Mitchel, pursued her lips, then nodded to herself. "Border Guard. You're Border Guard. This is Headquarters."

"Manfred's on Shedi. How do I get to him?"

"We walk."

He pointed to the rope. "See that rope? That's the boundary between worlds. I can't walk to Manfred. If I walk," he strolled around the rope boundary, "I will eventually end up right where I started, but I won't get to another world."