The Sapphirus Bloodline

Time passed. The snow melted weeks ago and spring was just around the corner. A small group of herbalists led by a middle-aged Felinefolk guy named Idok traveled to our land and were welcomed by the community. As they finished their herb gathering, they asked the rangers for a guide to show them the way to Gutlinger, a large town to the east. Gutlinger was about 10 days away, quite close to the edge of the forest, so it was very easy for outlanders to get lost on their way. Hiring a ranger guide for the trip was the sensible choice.

From where our village stood, there were dozens more villages all around the place in a wide area, but as you went west or south, you went deeper into the forest, the land of the Elves. By that point, the forest became dense, almost like a jungle, and it was hard, if not impossible, to travel; thus, no one really ventured that way. Elf encounters were very rare, but not unheard of, especially for people living in the villages more to the west than ours. Elves were very much like us in some ways: peaceful, vegetarian, nature-loving worshippers of the Elven God. Yet, unlike us, they avoided strangers, often hiding to avoid anyone venturing into their lands. People often wondered what lay beyond, deeper into the bush. Did Elves have villages like ours? Or some large ancient towns, perhaps? No one knew.

On the other side, East and North, lay the Lords, Human Lords and Beastfolk Lords alike, segregated by race, ruling over their respective domains. Gutlinger was a dominantly Beastfolk city, so human presence, even from neighboring Human cities like Noosewatch and Grimback, would often be frowned upon. Yet if Beastfolk and Humans in the Lords' domains had something in common, aside from hating each other, it was their ability to give terrible, gruesome names to their own cities.

The trip was uneventful, and we reached Gutlinger safely. I dropped the traveling herbalists off at one of the city inns and received my fee from Idok. After that, I was free to do anything I wanted. Normally, on trips like these, I would stay in the city for a couple of days at most, just enough time to get some rest and buy some supplies for the way back. But instead, I found myself curious to try something else.

I went to a place they called a library, a building with many books, somewhere within the inner citadel of the Lord of Gutlinger. The large open space was full of books that belonged to the Lord, so you couldn’t buy them. You could come and borrow them if you were someone official. Otherwise, you’d have to settle for reading them on the spot. I thought that maybe, perhaps, I would find some answers there.

“What do you want?” The rusty voice of a very bored woman came from behind a large desk.

“I am one of the forest rangers; I’m looking for some books about… history.”

The woman, a Caninefolk like myself, with a large forehead, tilted her head in bemusement.

“Why on earth would a forest ranger want to read a book? Do you want to become a cleric or something? Is the pay not good enough for someone who spends all day aimlessly walking around in the woods?”

I felt a vein was about to blow up in my temple, but I restrained myself. Since the library belonged to the Lord of this city, being able to come here and read was meant to be seen as a privilege and a gift that a benevolent Beastfolk lord was willing to go above and beyond by providing his subjects, as well as outlanders and travelers, with access to all sorts of knowledge. I sighed and looked the woman in the eye.

“We all seek knowledge in this world, I guess. But anyway, walking around the forest like we do, we rangers find many interesting things. Like, for example, nettle, peppermint, horsetail, and many other ingredients we can use to make some lovely shampoos. Have you seen this one before?” I asked, holding out a large vial of a colorful, dense liquid. “A group of expert herbalists I escorted gave this to me as a gift. I’ve tried it, and it works wonders.”

The woman hesitantly gave the bottle a sniff and poured a bit of the shampoo on her finger. She seemed surprised but satisfied. My lucky day, I guess.

“Yes, indeed, this shampoo does smell lovely," she added coldly, taking the entire vial and putting it under her desk. “Rangers are so undeservingly lucky to have such amazing plants everywhere around. Anyway, the history section is this way and to the right. Don’t stay too long. It’s getting late and I’d rather go home early today to try this on. The amount of dust from these books does my beautiful hair no justice.”

I rolled my eyes in disbelief, but I decided to mind my own business and proceed with my search. I didn’t know what I was looking for exactly, but I needed to find something about the topic that bothered me.

I skimmed through the pages for almost an hour, but I couldn’t find anything on wizards or magic. It was like it didn’t exist at all in this world. I was shocked. It always bothered me how the people in my village treated mages like some sort of legendary warriors of old, but here, in the city, it’s like they never even existed in the first place. How can that be?

Most books were about Lords and Ladies who raised armies and fought for “liberation” against other Lords and Ladies. Wars and battles and clashes, all described in great detail, as they praised both the Lords and their soldiers for their courage and bravery, thanking them for their honorable sacrifices.

It wasn’t long before I stumbled upon a bizarre historical event that was mentioned in three chronicles. They all described a recent war they refer to as “a war greater than all wars” in which all major Lords participated: the Baron of Gutlinger, the Lady of Noosewatch, and the Warlord of Grimback, along with many others. It was quite recent, as I could remember all of them were still alive by the time I was a teenager. But one day, they joined forces to fight a great foe and have never returned. The chronicles are incoherent on the topic: some say the Beastfolk turned against the Humans, but the Humans found out, and they eventually massacred each other. Others say that they ventured too far and were caught by a sudden snowstorm, unable to return home. Despite these contradictions, all historians agree on one thing: not a single soul that went to that war was ever seen again. The young heirs of Gutlinger, Noosewatch, and Grimback, along with the other cities, simply ascended in their parents' place, and life moved on.

I stood there in shock. Was that the war “he” mentioned? The one in which he claimed he took the lives of one million people? I felt my head spinning and had to lie down in a chair.

“Geez,” the bored lady at the entrance exclaimed. “I thought rangers had better physical condition, but you just stood there on your feet for a few hours, yet you look like you traveled 3 years' worth on foot.”

My head nodded to the woman like it was true, and she smiled in some weird satisfaction. I effortlessly ignored her anyway. My mind was absent, fully immersed in the new things I was discovering. I had been aware, from the rumors that came to our village at the time, that leadership changed across major Lord cities. I never knew the reason why. Perhaps not even the people in these very cities knew the full story. Am I… am I the only one who knows the truth? If “he” was the only survivor, if he won the war, then…

I rose from my chair and continued shuffling through random books. I abandoned the history section and moved on to other areas. There was nothing of interest. It was late, and I could see the old hag glancing over her shoulder, wondering if I was going to leave anytime soon. Fortunately for me, some clerics arrived at that moment, looking for some books themselves. That gave me some extra time.

And then I looked to my right and read an unexpected title.

“The Tale of Archmage Luminum Scriptor de Sapphirus”

Excuse me?! What is this book doing here? I looked around in disbelief, and then I realized it was the “Children’s Fairy Tales” section.

That actually made sense. Perhaps in this city, magic and mages are seen as a fairy tale, pure fiction, rather than legends rooted in forgotten history. Maybe the people here, just like Grandma, use them to scare the heck out of innocent little rascals.

Even so, I decided to read the book anyway.

The tale was easy to read and used simple words, unlike the complex history volumes from before. It talked of a certain Archmage Luminum who lived long ago in a land that has been long forgotten. A place where magic was the norm, where everyone, normal people and mages alike, lived together. The tower of Sapphirus was seen as the center of the world, and it belonged to his family for generations. He fought Titans, Dragons, and the Undead, and many other fantastical beings. He worked very hard as he pushed the boundaries of magic to a new level, researching new, powerful forms of magic and training an ever-growing number of people to become mages. He shared magic with the world, allowing everyone to learn and practice magic in a controlled environment. He is portrayed as a selfless figure who wanted the best for everyone, not just for himself.

Luminum expanded the Magic Collegium of Sapphirus, which originally only accepted people from mage bloodlines, to now accept all sorts of people: Elves, Humans, and Beastfolk alike. He even offered paid scholarships to the most talented ones who came from poor families. It was an unprecedented thing that took the world by storm. How could magic, once such an esoteric weapon of the elite, become the norm and something every man could learn?

The book goes on to say in various places that Archmage Luminum was the strongest mage to ever exist. It even describes some of his favorite spells: lightning strike, teleportation, telekinesis, weather control, and protective shield. The book describes them as a branch of magic that studies light-based spells. Other branches of magic exist but are considered less useful and less powerful.

By the time I reached the end, I realized how short this book was, barely the size of a pamphlet, half of its thickness coming from the cover alone. The tone, being as simple as it was, made me wonder whether this wasn’t actually meant to be a children's fairy tale after all. In the last few pages, the author mentioned that the Archmage’s son went on a worldwide pilgrimage to spread the knowledge of magic to the various nations, leading to a new era of magic all around the world. The end.

I closed the book, closed my eyes as well, and went deep in thought. Although Grandma never recounted names or historical events, she did mention an era when mages came out of nowhere, though she described them as unanimously evil. I guess that makes sense. Give magic and power to people, and they will use it to their own benefit, even if that means causing trouble for others. It makes sense why no one loves mages, and they are rather seen as monsters and boogeymen. Perhaps Archmage Luminum’s choice to give away the secrets of magic to everyone caused more harm than good.

As I slowly opened my eyes, I glanced once again at the title.

“The Tale of Archmage Luminum Scriptor de Sapphirus”

Below the title, in the place where they put the author’s name, lay a blue set of glowing letters. I could swear those were not there before! The letters… they formed a familiar name, one that had crossed my ears not so long ago, last winter.

“Lady Esmeralda de Sapphirus”

To my horror, I could see the letters moving around the cover of the book, then jumping over my fingers, forming like a bracelet around my wrist. I forced myself to avoid letting out a cry. I covered the sapphire-blue bracelet under my sleeve and hid the book in my backpack. The next moment I left the place in a hurry, praying that no one had seen what just happened.