“Do you recall anything about magic?” Riona asked.

I shook my head. “A little, but nothing concrete.”

“That’s okay,” Silvia said with a smile, “I was thinking we should start with the basics anyway.” She walked to a shelf containing many odd artifacts, scrolls, ancient texts, and runic carvings. While searching for something, she kept speaking. "Mana is the source of all magic, it's also the essence of every living creature, plant or animal, and it flows throughout all of Aeros."

"Sounds just like the books I read on earth." I joked.

"That's probably because a number of those stories were true or at least based on truth." Queen Riona replied.

Looking at her skeptically, I scoffed, "There's no way."

"Isn't there though?” Silvia chimed. “You think we're the first magical beings to hide on earth?"

I thought about it for a second. She made a good point, and it would explain the similarities between unrelated books. It also made me wonder if authors like Riz, who wrote my favorite web serial "Tales of Alexander" were actually magical beings themselves. Riz Tales was definitely a pen name, maybe he was really just Alex telling his own story.

There was only one problem with the theory.

"Supposing what you say is true, then wouldn't there be records of all those legends here? maybe not written in story form, but surely the history was recorded?"

Silvia shook her head. "You misunderstood. The stories might be true, but not one of them occurred on Aeros. There are many different magical worlds out there.” Plucking what looked like a simple glass orb from one of the shelves, she said. “Here it is. Sam, come here.”

When I approached her, she extended the orb towards me. Nothing happened, but when I touched it, I felt a spark, like static shock. 

“What is this thing?” I asked.

Queen Riona answered almost before I finished speaking, as if she’d been expecting the question. “It’s a safety precaution, one I hope we won’t need, but…”

Silvia placed the orb in my palm, leaving hers on top of it. After a deep breath, she said, “Okay, Sam. Close your eyes.”

I looked to my mother, who nodded, then back at Silvia before closing my eyes.

“Now try to feel the space around you.”

I did as instructed. Several moments passed before Silvia asked, “Do you feel anything?”

“Besides air, no, nothing; what’s it supposed to feel like?”

“You’ll know when you feel it. Let’s try something a little different. Take some deep breaths, and as you do, try looking inward. You already have a mana core so let’s focus on feeling that.”

I nodded and followed the instructions. I wasn’t exactly sure what I was supposed to be focusing on, or looking for, but I tried just following the air as I inhaled.

It proved an effective tactic because I quickly noticed a pulsing in my chest. With each breath I drew in, there was a warm wave that followed. It was hardly noticeable at first, but by the fourth repetition I was sure of it. Between my lungs, there was something breathing along with me. Not in the same sense—it wasn’t taking in air—but with each breath, mana was being drawn into a sphere.

Once I was aware of the core, a new sense presented itself to me. “I can feel it!” I said, “it’s almost like being in a pool of warm water.”

“Yes, that’s it, Silv.” The Queen cheered.

Silvia added, “Good, good, now that you can feel it, you should be able to draw it in directly. Your core has been inactive for years. We’re in uncharted territory here, so just be careful and go slow. We don’t want to overwhelm you.”

I nodded as I eagerly began trying to bring in mana. It really was everywhere like Silvia said. The closest thing I could relate it to was an atom. Only this atom was a part of everything and completely undetectable to those without a mana core.

I guessed that the core must be like an organ, one necessary not only to process mana, but also to perceive it. 

I wasn’t sure if my understanding was correct, but drawing from my knowledge of science, it was the best explanation I could come up with.

As I began pulling, the new particles responded easily to my will. I felt a rush of vigor as they filtered into my core, slowly at first, but like a ravenous beast, starved for too long, I couldn’t restrain myself. Mana flooded in until it was crowded around my core, packed so tightly that it couldn’t move.

My core felt full and yet still hungry, ready to devour more, but unable to take it in. Mana pressed harder around my core, crushing with a tightening grip that threatened to break it. I needed to let go, but I couldn’t.

It was almost like what happened in my dream, only this time it didn’t hurt as much and I wasn’t trying to hold on.

A face appeared in my mind, the face of my uncle. He looked more life-like this time as his thin lips stretched into a wicked grin and his silver eyes narrowed with wrath. As suddenly as the image appeared, it was gone, as if it’d never been there to begin with. 

My eyes popped open.

With a breath of panic I groped at my chest, feeling for something—an unknown something. I was panting and barely able to stand. My legs trembled and my body ached as I collapsed.

Silvia and Riona both rushed to support me, gently helping me to the floor.

“What happened? Why didn’t the stabilizer work?” Riona demanded. 

Silvia shook her head, panic and confusion swirling together on her face, “I don’t have a clue. Everything was fine and then—”

“I saw him. Uncle Vale, I saw him.”

Riona’s eyes opened wide, shock evident in every inch of her expression. She gasped and clapped a hand to her mouth.

My vision blurred as tears streamed down my cheeks and I fought against the overwhelming urge to fall unconscious.