Sullivan Marin was sitting in his personal quarters on the top floor. He was lounging back in his rolling chair, looking out the window to the mountain peaks in the distance. His feet rested on the low windowsill, with his hands folded in his lap.

  It was only midday. Usually during this time, he was out and about in the castle taking care of issues. Today, though, he felt like being alone. He struggled to process the events that had occurred lately.

  The biggest one came today when Eisen informed Marin that he was instrumental in helping develop the Hallicent Blossom. The very same rare flower Marin currently knew nothing about, and needed research on. This brought him immense grief.

  Marin felt like this Marin from the past wasn’t him. There was a Marin that studied at Arkana, became a wizard, worked with Pyreth and Arno on creating the Hallicent Blossom, fought the Decay with Sygol the Knight, and founded a kingdom. Along with all that, a slew of other things that hadn’t been revealed yet.

  The Marin sitting in his office, looking out the window, knew nothing of that one from before. He felt so distant from himself – so distant from the past life he lived. At this moment, he debated if he shouldn’t have ever woken up. The worst result of his failed potion was not being a zombie, or being thrust into a future world, it was that he forgot who he was, and everything he had accomplished.

  Marin flipped his hood back, and removed his black mask. He stared at it, and thought about all the people who knew him just from this face covering.

  It was just a sleek, plain black mask, made of a shaconium alloy. The eyes were light blue garian crystal. He remembered how Loid had it secretly commissioned for him, and gave it to him as a gift.

  This was Marin now. This black mask was Marin. That’s all that was left. Even after talking with Eisen to get his memory back, he found it quite unlikely anything he brewed up would work.

  There was a knock on his door.

  Marin quickly fitted the mask back over his face, and threw the dark blue hood on over his head.

  “Enter!” He yelled out as he turned around in his chair to face the door.

  The knob of the cherry wood door turned, and swung open. A maid was on the other end.

  “Oh, hi Carol. What’s going on?” Marin asked, fully expecting her to say someone needed him.

  “There’s a Grand Wizard from Arkana here to see you, sir,” she humbly said.

  “A WHAT?!”

  Marin burst out of his quarters and sped down the hallway. Carol obviously misunderstood. A wizard was here to see him. Not one of the Grands, surely not. He would get to the bottom of this.

  Halfway through the trip of getting to the main entrance, he ran into Loid, who was looking for him.

  “What do we know?” The King asked his right hand man as they continued to walk quickly.

  “He says his name is Monzane, the grand wizard of water,” Loid informed him. “I don’t believe him. He looks like a homeless drunk. I think he’s trying to get free handouts.”

  It was not any description Marin expected to hear.

  “Where is he?”

  “Waiting for you in the main office. He’s having a decent time talking with Helva,” Loid responded.

  They reached the front of the castle, and walked down the center hallway into the reception rooms and main office.

  When Marin entered, his gaze fell upon a sorry-looking old man who was shooting the breeze with his secretary.

  The robe this man wore looked more like a gray burlap sack. It was rough and tattered, and had several holes in the most worn areas. On his head was a woven straw hat. Beside his chair, resting on the ground was a small backpack. Leaning against the wall behind him was a bamboo walking staff.

  The man himself was old, but generous in size. He was slightly shorter than average height, but also wider than a normal man as well. He had a frazzled gray beard spreading out in all directions from his neck, wild and untamed. A layer of dirt covered his face and hands. It was obvious he did not clean himself often.

  Loid was right. This was no wizard, let alone a grand one. This was a beggar posing as some powerful authority. Marin wondered how anyone could buy it.

  “Can I help you, sir?” Marin asked the traveling stranger.

  At the question, the tattered man turned to look at Marin.

  “Hello, yes. I’m here to see King Marin! Are you him?” The man held his hand out.

  “That would be me.” Marin grasped his hand for a handshake.

  Okay, this was a powerful elemental, that was for sure. The handshake said it all. Wizard quality at the very least. While Marin still didn’t believe this was one from the prestigious Arkana city, he recognized he was at least dealing with a master of element.

  He suddenly acquired much more respect for who the man he first thought was a hobo.

  “That’s an Arkanian handshake for sure!” The old man said back with a jolly smile on his face. “You must really be Sullivan Marin! My name is Monzane.”

  Monzane easily read Marin’s grip right back.

  “...I am a grand wizard representing the water discipline of Arkana. I’ve traveled a long way to meet you,” Monzane added.

  Only Arkanians referred to elements as disciplines. You had to have lived there to know that, or at the very least, knew someone from Arkana. Monzane was slowly turning out to be exactly what he claimed.

  “Truly?” Marin finally inquired. “If that’s so, you certainly don’t look the part,” Marin commented, referring to the lowly clothing and gear Monzane donned.

  Monzane looked down at his robe, as if he was realizing it for the first time.

  “Ah! Yeah!” He let out a belly laugh. “I don’t adorn myself with all them fancy pants garments those guys wear. I did for the longest time, but one day I stopped caring.”

  Marin couldn’t believe this guy. Everyone in Arkana must hate him. Such a dirty, run-down plain man represented one of the highest seats in the most elegant city-nation on the continent. It certainly couldn’t spell great publicity. Marin wondered how he hadn’t been voted off his seat yet.

  “Well, what can I help you with today, Sir Grand?” Marin asked, using proper Arkanian formalities.

  “Don’t start that with me. I get enough of that every time I have to go back to that blasted city. Call me Monzane. And do you have something to drink? I could really use somethin’ to wet my whistle.”

  “We have water, milk, juice, tea…?” Loid started.

  “Bah, I was meaning something a bit more fiery if you catch my drift,” Monzane responded.

  Marin nodded, he understood. “Loid, bring our guest the finest whiskey the castle is storing.”

  Monzane pointed at Marin in approval. “Here’s a man who gets it!”

  Loid shook his head, then took off out of the room.

  “Well, seeing as you called my name in particular, you must be here for me. I am happy to share with you whatever I can,” Marin tried.

  “Oh, right. Yes. You seem to be the same Sullivan Marin who attended Arkana in the late 500’s. I was just coming to confirm…” Monzane started.

  Helva suddenly had a dire look on her face. Marin did too, but it was hidden under the mask.

  “...I think we ought to continue this conversation in my office,” Marin stated.

  “Sure. Where we goin’?”

  Marin told Helva to tell Loid when he got back that they were in his office. Helva nodded.

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  Monzane stood up, and grabbed his backpack and bamboo walking stick. They left the main office, and traveled a few doors down to a private room, where they couldn’t be eavesdropped upon.

  Inside the room, Marin closed and locked the door. Monzane found a new seat, as did Marin as they began a very long discussion.

  “What do you know about me?” Marin asked.

  Monzane began.

  “The news about you has spread over all of Grandom. Everyone now knows of Nocturne’s reemergence, and at the helm, King Sullivan Marin. Nobody thought a thing of it, really.

  But I recalled a Sullivan Marin in our old files. I don’t forget too much, you’ll find out. I went back to our student history, and found a Sullivan Marin who studied, left, then returned and completed the wizard course in 601, turn of the century,” he explained.

  “Now, at first, I was sure the names were a coincidence. Many share first names. There are still a few who share the first and last. But when I discovered that both you and the Marin of old were both adept ice elementals, that was cuttin’ it too close for me,” Monzane admitted.

  He continued on. “So when I met you today, I read your handshake. Not only is it of an ice elemental’s, but one who studied at Arkana as well. That has sealed the deal for me. You are that same Sullivan Marin!”

  Monzane began laughing. “How old you are! What’s you’re secret?! What have you been eating??”

  Marin was flabbergasted.

  “You not only could tell I was a strong elemental from the handshake, but you could also tell I was an ice one, and I studied at Arkana?” Marin questioned.

  “I’ve been reading handshakes for a long time, my man! I can discover just about everything there is to know about someone from them,” Monzane proudly stated.

  Marin realized that this was the power of a Grand. They were a step beyond a regular wizard like Marin, in every way.

  Well, Monzane had him figured out. Marin was now at the mercy of whatever he would do with his information. He just prayed the Grand Wizard was not malicious.

  There was knock on the door.

  “Let me see who that is,” Marin stated as he stood up to unlock it.

  It was Loid. He had returned with a large glass bottle of branded whiskey, along with a drinking glass that contained a few ice cubes.

  “Ah! Here we go! Thank you so much,” Monzane said in response to being handed all of it.

  Monzane set the drinking glass on the table. He then uncorked the whiskey. Instead of pouring it into the glass to sip from – as Marin and Loid expected one to do – he leaned back, and began drinking directly from the large bottle.

  Loid’s jaw dropped.

  Monzane didn’t sip, he gulped. He kept gulping.

  How was his throat not on fire?!

  After downing half the bottle, he leaned forward and slammed it on the table.

  He wiped his mouth and beard with the dirty burlap robe he wore, then picked up the drinking glass. He removed one ice cube with his fingers, then popped it into his mouth, where he began crunching on it.

  Loid had sat down, with his head in his hands. He was defeated.

  Marin wasn’t sure what to say.

  “...Oh! I have something for ya too. Figured you might appreciate this!” Monzane reached down to the side where his backpack was. He unbuckled it, flipped it open and reached in, moving stuff around, trying to find what he was looking for.

  During that moment, Loid was looking over at Marin in a cry of confusion.

  Marin just shook his head. Don’t say a word about it, Loid could understand.

  “Here we go!” Monzane brought himself back up to the desk with several folded papers in hand. “These are your files!”

  Marin became shocked. He leaned forward as Monzane began unfolding them. As he did, he slid the papers across the desk to Marin.

  Marin started to look them over. They were files detailing his attendance at the prestigious school. It had so much vital information about himself he swore he would never recover.

  He was born in 559 from parents Lawrence and Suzanna Marin. He first attended Arkana when he was sixteen years old in 575. He studied there for eleven years, reaching the wiseman rank in 586.

  Monzane slid him more paperwork.

  There was information on his address, place of living, occupations, current and past, descriptions, health concerns, so much stuff he never imagined he’d have.

  Marin was flipping through the papers, completely bewildered.

  Even Loid was intensely leaning in, skimming over all of it with him.

  It was so much. It was too much for him to handle all at once.

  He dropped all the paperwork, leaned forward, and grasped his head in disbelief.

  “I… I can’t believe all this…” Marin choked, trying not to cry, if that was even possible for him.

  Loid turned to look at Monzane.

  “Are you allowed to take all of this from Arkana?” Loid asked.

  “Nope. But who’s gonna notice or care? No one’s gonna miss this paperwork, its on a single student from thousands. The filing cabinets are still stuffed,” Monzane chuckled.

  “This is incredible,” Loid said. “But how did you know Marin was in great need of this information? How did you know he had lost his memory?”

  “Has he?!” Monzane spat out.

  Loid was silent for a moment. He began to realize the mistake he made.

  “...I brought all this paperwork to remove it from Arkana’s files. I don’t want anyone else doing the research I did. Someone else with bad intentions could come to apprehend Mr. Marin here and demand him to give up the reasons and methods on how he’s lived for so long!”

  Marin was absolutely stunned. Could someone THIS benevolent even exist? Marin just met Monzane an hour ago, and he had already done more for him than he could possibly imagine.

  “Monzane, I am entirely in your debt. If there is anything I can do for you, anything, let me know,” Marin stated, not even thinking that was good enough.

  Monzane gave out a hearty belly laugh.

  “Don’t prostrate yourself to me, King of Nocturne. What I did was simply an act of good faith. Though I must admit, I am interested in knowing how you’re still alive in 854. That would make you…”

  Monzane paused for a moment.

  “...Two hundred and ninety-five years old. You’ve certainly beaten the record of anyone I know,” he finished with.

  The number brought a shiver to both Marin and Loid. It was a cold reminder of how old Marin technically was now.

  After a pause, Marin decided Monzane was worthy of hearing the truth. He already knew Marin was impossibly old, and claimed to be secretive of the matter, so he didn’t believe the reasons why would sway him from his current stance.

  “I attempted to brew a potion of immortality,” Marin started.

  “Fruitful results, I see?” Monzane interjected.

  “Not exactly,” Marin responded.

  “The mask.”

  “Yes. After drinking it, I died. What year did I do that…? Probably around 620. Anyways, my body decomposed, but I woke back up in 854. Seeing that I appeared to look like an unlit torchen, I knew I would be wearing this mask and concealing my skin for the rest of my days.

  That is, unless I can be cured.”

  “The potion was a little late to work!” Monzane commented.

  Marin shook his head. “Yeah, something like that…”

  “Are you working on a cure?” He followed up with.

  “I have a doctor who is. I’m skeptical if he will succeed, but he is quite brilliant, especially in the alchemy and medical subjects.”

  “Well, I hope that works out for you. How were things like in the older days…? Oh, you told me you lost your memory. Never mind, then. I bet that paperwork there will come in handy for you helping to remember things.”

  Monzane grabbed the bottle of whiskey and started drinking from it again.

  Marin gathered all the Arkana files on him and piled them neatly.

  “Loid, would you take these and place them in my personal library on the top floor?”

  “Of course.” Loid grabbed them, then left the room.

  Marin then turned to Monzane again.

  “Would you like to stay for a while? I’d love to accommodate you for however long you’d like,” Marin offered.

  Monzane nodded. “Sure! I’ll stay a night.

  ...I want to ask though, do your citizens here get a decent amount of entertainment?”

  “What do you mean?” Marin asked.

  “I love to put on a show. With my water element, of course. Nothing gets people dazzled more than a giant water dragon!”

  “I mean, that would be incredible. We have a theater room. Are you sure you want to do that?”

  “Yes, I love doing it from time to time. I have an epic program to play out, and you have a decent sized kingdom who would enjoy it” Monzane admitted.

  Marin nodded. “I know everyone would come to watch. I’ll get the word out immediately.”

  Monzane held the whiskey bottle vertical to his mouth above him. He had drank every drop.

  “Well, if you want the show to be extra good, I’m gonna need some more of this stuff.”