The Magic Thieves

Excerpt From: The Magic Thieves

Everything changed on the day true magic came to Earth.

At first, most humans were shocked to discover that inter-dimensional gateways were real rather than the stuff of science fiction and fantasy. A few courageous scientists were sent to explore the phenomenon, accompanied by military protectors. When the first people emerged from the swirling colours of the gateway, everyone was relieved that the ‘aliens’ looked so human. They identified themselves as diplomats from the planet of Tah‘Nut and conveyed a message of peace and an offer of help with humanity’s problems.

After a week of adjusting to a new world order, the human consensus was gratitude. Magic may not have been what most had expected from a different dimension, but there was hope that it might help avert many of the global threats that were about to overwhelm humanity’s ability to deal with them. Everyone thought the gateway’s appearance and the Tah’Nutian offer of help was a serendipitous miracle.

Elryk Muyd‘omir knew better.

The Tah’Nutian government had no intention of selflessly helping the humans save their planet. The price of total subjugation to their will hadn’t been mentioned yet, but it would become obvious soon enough. The cruelty of the current government was the only reason Elryk had left his home planet. He’d refused to work with the illegally ruling Xoh‘kas family. As a consequence, they’d declared him an enemy of the law, making him a wanted man.

His only choice had been to find a suitable planet outside the magical realm, one that was unknown to the Xoh’kas or anyone else on Tah’Nut. He wanted to make it as difficult as possible for them to find him, so he looked for a planet with no magic at all. When he’d found Earth, he’d used the gateway to briefly connect the two planets. Three years ago almost to the day he’d finally escaped, closing the gateway down from Earth’s end as soon as he’d made it through.

Earth had become his home, and even though he’d had to do without his magic, he’d been mostly happy here. He’d never had many friends on Tah’Nut, so he didn’t miss them. He’d made a few new friends on Earth, and wasn’t looking forward to leaving them behind.

Unfortunately, he hadn’t succeeded in hiding his whereabouts well enough, nor in closing down the gateway permanently. He knew that its appearance wasn‘t a lucky coincidence, miraculous or otherwise. It was the result of a concerted effort to track him down.

Now that the Tah‘Nutian Law Forces had located his refuge, he needed to make a decision—accept his punishment or fight.

Elryk stood on the white sands of his favourite beach and stared out over the stillness of the blue-green ocean waves. The sun was high in the sky, creating an almost oppressive heat. There wasn’t even a breath of wind in the physical world. The magical realm was another matter. Now that the gateway gave him access again, he could feel its energies expanding outward. As soon as they touched him, the Law Forces would be able to pinpoint his location. Hiding wasn’t an option much longer.

“You‘re going to leave, aren‘t you?” Parker Stokes was his best friend, sharing his beach house with him and keeping Elryk company when not working as a physicist.

“I‘m sorry.” Elryk saw no other way. Even though the gateway had opened on the other side of the planet, the energy would eventually envelop this entire planet, just like it surrounded Tah’Nut. “When the gateway energies reach me, there’ll be no escape. The Law Forces will come for me, and if they find out that you helped me hide, your punishment will be as severe as mine. I can’t risk that.”

“You‘ve always said this might happen.” Parker smiled, showing the dimples so at odds with his serious demeanour. “I wish there was something I could do to help. For the first time in my life, I wish I was a wizard, not a scientist.”

“I’m glad you’re a scientist.” Elryk smiled. “We may not have science on Tah’Nut because we never needed it to help us. Magic was always a much easier solution. But having seen what science can do if used correctly, I can’t help but think that it may come in handy at some point.”

“You’ll know where to find me when that happens.” Parker patted Elryk’s arm. “I may not be able to help you fight them in a magical battle, but I’d love to support you in some other way. My fingers are itching with the need to do something useful. To help you stop them.”