Realm Keepers 01 - Realm Keepers

question, no, I cannot do this whenever I wish. It requires a crystal like the one I just destroyed, a crystal that can only form in the cave of a dragon when touched once a decade by the light of a blue moon, that sort of thing. They’re exceedingly rare, and I just used my last one. All because your Lady,” and here his gaze found me again, “was impatient and couldn’t wait twenty minutes to hear an explanation of what’s happened to you.”
    I gulped. Suddenly I felt like a little kid. “Um…sorry,” I said. “I guess, if it’s only twenty minutes—”
    “Oh, no!” Greystone exclaimed, interrupting me and waving his arms exaggeratedly. “Darkness above, let us kowtow to your whim, child! I would not dare dream of denying you your slightest wish. I am, after all,” he gave a disgusted snort, “bound to serve you.”
    “You have to do what we say?” Raven asked.
    Greystone looked at her sharply. “I have taken an oath to do that, yes,” he said. “An oath I have never broken in all my centuries. But it is quite…flexible.”
    “We’ve never seen you before,” Miles pointed out. He was still standing, his arms crossed upon his chest. “You haven’t been taking orders from us for centuries.”
    “You’re so very astute, good sir,” said Greystone, rolling his eyes.
    “We aren’t the first Rune Holders, are we?” Calvin asked eagerly. He was laying on the grass, his stomach to the ground and his head propped up in his hands, looking up at Greystone like he was our grandpa and was about to tell us the most awesome story ever.
    “Calvin, what’s a Rune Holder?” I asked. “Do you know what’s going on?”
    “I’m figuring it out as I go, cuz,” Calvin said, smiling over at me. “You may be class president, but I’m better equipped for this kind of stuff. Don’t let it get to you.”
    Greystone shook his head. “Unfortunately, I’m beginning to believe that’s the case. They have stories in your world, yes? Tales of magic?”
    “Uh-huh,” said Calvin eagerly.
    “And you read them?”
    “Oh, all the time,” Calvin gushed. “I mean, the best ever is definitely Lord of the Rings, but Sword of Truth is good, and I liked Game of Thrones, but my parents wouldn’t let me watch the show—”
    Greystone sighed and waved his hand. Calvin’s lips kept moving, but no sound came out. The old wizard looked at me. “He’s exhausting.”
    “He’s right, though,” I said. Calvin had realized that we couldn’t hear him any more and looked annoyed. He tried yelling, but still nothing. Then he grinned and started mouthing what I was pretty sure were bad words. “He’s gonna have a better handle on all this kind of thing than any of the rest of us.”
    Greystone seemed to think about that for a moment, then he fixed Calvin with his clear blue gaze. “If I give you back your voice, do you promise not to prattle on endlessly until what’s left of my hair falls out?”
    Calvin nodded, wide-eyed.
    “How reassuring,” said Greystone sarcastically.
    He snapped his fingers once again. Calvin said, “That was awesome! Hey Sarah, do you want to know what I said while—”
    “Not now, Calvin,” I said. “Time may be stopped, but I’d still rather do this quickly. Just pay attention. Please begin,” I told Greystone.
    I expected him to scoff at me again, but instead he looked at me curiously, bowed his head, and said, “As you wish, my Lady.”
    Everyone was clustered around now, even Blade and Raven looking interested despite themselves. Seeing it, Greystone smiled slightly, then settled himself on his invisible chair and began to speak.
    “Once upon a time—”
    “You’re kidding, right?” said Blade.
    “Blade!” I said. Blade rolled his eyes and settled down.
    Greystone dropped his cold stare at Blade and continued. “Once upon a time, there was magic in your world, just as there was in this one. Not everyone had it, but some of us did—among men, magic wielders like me were called wizards. All elves had magic, though some had more, and some had less.”
    “Are they Christmas-type elves, or Tolkien-type elves?” Calvin asked. “I mean, are they small, or tall as a human?”
    Greystone looked annoyed at the interruption. “They are usually taller. Why?”
    “Just curious,” Calvin said offhandedly. “That’s the cool kind of elf. I’d be really disappointed if—”
    “Shut up , man,” Miles said.
    “The world stayed this way for many, many centuries.