Origin (Scales 'n' Spells 1)

Lisette winced. “Knowledge is so quickly lost in a family. It only takes three generations.”

“That’s what Alric said. It certainly did in mine.” Cameron set the tray further aside, freeing up his hands and lap. It bought him a second to think. Lisette’s explanation made sense of things, sure, but he didn’t really feel it yet. Feel connected to what she was saying. Didn’t magic require at least some belief? Cassie, yes, he could see his sister working magic left, right, and center. Halmeoni would be right there with her. But him?

Frankly, if proving he was a mage depended on him working a spell, they were all screwed. He had no faith he could do it.

“Lisette, is there some way you can prove if I’m a mage or not? I know the dragons smell magic on me, but that doesn’t necessarily mean I can work magic, right?”

“Fortunately, I anticipated you’d ask this question. Baldewin and Alric both said that you’re struggling with this.” She pulled her vest around and dipped her hand into a pocket. “I have here a device we use to detect magic in people. We use it for children so that we can readily discover the ones who need to be taught. It’s incredibly easy to use and one hundred percent accurate.”

“A magic litmus test?”

“That’s a good way to think of it. You’re either one or the other, young man. Magic or not. There’s no in-between on this.” She pulled out a small, triangular-shaped stone wrapped in three different types of wire. It hung from her hand on a leather thong. It looked like a cross between a steampunk fashion accessory and something a hippie would wear, as the wire didn’t just cross but had curves and designs in it much like a schematic would. And it glowed softly, a light all of its own.

“So how do I use it?” Cameron stared at it intently. He’d seen this very thing before. It escaped his immediate memory of where, though. Recently. Here, in Germany. Was he at the festival…? No, that didn’t sound quite right.

“Just put it into your hand.”

He reached for it, and she dropped it into his open palm. It barely touched skin before it flared a bright green, as bright as any LED flashlight. Cameron almost dropped it in surprise. “Whoa!”

“Well now. I think that’s a pretty definitive answer.” Lisette had the gall to look smug and not at all surprised.

Cameron stared at the stone in his hand, and he had to swallow twice before he could find words. Wha…no, seriously? The person who didn’t believe magic was a real thing anymore, who would have sworn three days ago it was a thing of the past, was a mage? “Seriously?!”

Lisette threw her head back and laughed, the sound a little scratchy but warm. “Ah, I should have taken a picture of your face. Such a Kodak moment!”

“No, but…seriously?!” Cameron felt his view of himself turn in a dizzying spin off to an angle. It wasn’t that this was upsetting—far from it. Part of Cameron was absolutely delighted. And incredulous. Possibly a little shock mixed in there. All of those childhood dreams rushed back, and it set up something of a dissonance. Cameron’s mind kept flipping between elation and skepticism.

“Adjust, Cameron. You’re a mage. You’re quite obviously a mage.”

His mouth irreverently blurted, “Oh god, Halmeoni’s never going to let me live this down. She’s sworn for years Cassie and I are mages, and I kept telling her she was crazy, and she’s never going to let me forget this.”

“I certainly wouldn’t.” Lisette’s grin might have been a bit evil. “Now, give that back. I just so happened to bring a magic primer with me, a beginner’s textbook, if you will. Don’t you want to start learning?”

Now wasn’t that a ridiculous question. But then, she’d known full well he was a mage, probably at their first meeting, as brief as that was. Of course she’d come prepared. Cameron was torn between wanting to sleep on it all and give his brain a chance to process it, and learning magic. Currently, learning magic was winning.

Curiosity. It did him in every time.

But as he handed the triangle back to her, he looked at it again, and the memory came back in a rush. “Lisette. I want to learn, but…I’ve seen that before.”

Her hand closed over both the triangle and his fingers, keeping him locked in place. Her eyes sharpened on his face. “Where? When?”

“Recently, actually. The hotel I’m staying at, I was crossing through the lobby and a guy was wearing it around his neck. It glowed like that, too.”

“Can you describe him?”

“Eh…not really? It was in passing; the guy had bumped into me by accident, I barely looked at his face. I just remember the triangle because it was a cool design and it was glowing, and I couldn’t immediately figure out why. It wasn’t like those battery-operated necklaces.” Cameron frowned at the triangle, and she let go of his fingers, taking it fully back and putting it in her pocket once more. “You said the dragons are looking for mages constantly. Is anyone else?”