Wizards and Thieves - Chapter Eight
Chapter Eight: Niall Would like to disappear now.
True, Niall did not want to be the chosen one and wouldn’t mind a way to get out of it, but he was not about to go and kill anyone. Kind of why he didn’t want to be the chosen one in the first place; never mind that those chosen always failed. Going head first against Lord Petros scared him. Even trying to steal from him would have taken a lot of planning.
Niall shook his head as he backed away. “There is no way that I will ever follow what you say. I am not the chosen one that you want.”
The High Priest’s face twisted up. “Don't say I didn't warn you.” The High Priest raised his staff and Niall leaped forward as he made a grab for it.
Niall jostled the staff and light flared from it, enveloping all people in the room. The High Priest broke away from him while Niall tried to blink the spots out of his eyes. As he did so he could hear his voice speaking, “Peter, Elizabeth, Mozzie. What are you guys doing here?”
Wait, he was not speaking. It couldn't be his voice, though it sounded eerily close. His vision cleared, revealing his twin, Lord Petros, and Lady Elisabet. The whole thing struck him as odd.
“I should have known,” Peter said as his eyes lit upon Niall’s counterpart. He shook his head. “Of course you would end up here; that was why your anklet went out.”
“Yep, I’m free as a bird.” Niall’s counterpart (Neal?) twitched his leg. Niall blinked at the strange thing attached, now fully understanding why Peter had checked his anklet in the other world.
He turned to check on the man and found him inspecting the room. Niall completely understood when Peter flinched once he spotted Lord Petros. Glancing back at his own lookalike, Niall could understand why Peter was acting that way.
“I think that this one belongs to you. The other one might be yours, too,” Peter told Lord Petros.
Niall winced when he realized that he had forgotten about the Wizard. Not a good thing, especially when he had his staff back. He didn't look like he was preparing a spell, but one could never tell.
“Isn't that Adalia? What’s he doing here?” Niall shuddered as Neal spoke once more.
“Apparently this guy is a wizard,” Peter said, jerking his thumb at the man. “Niall stole his staff.”
“Nice.” Niall’s counterpart grinned at him. And just like that, Niall could tell that his counterpart was similar to himself. They both loved a bit of mischief.
“No, not nice,” Peter said. “We wouldn't be in this mess if he hadn't have done it. Stealing doesn’t pay.” Peter gave Neal a pointed look, which was promptly ignored.
“Didn’t we put him away in jail?” Neal asked, indicating the man.
“There’s no jail cell that can hold me.” Niall shuddered as the wizard finally spoke up. The man tilted his chin up defiantly before raising his staff. “You’ll never take me alive.”
White flooded out from the wizard’s staff, seeking out the object of his animosity. Niall had thought about why the wizard didn't just go and attack Lord Petros on his own before, but now that the wizard had Lord Petros in front of him, it didn't seem like he was about to let it go.
Luckily, Lord Petros spotted the attack and sent his own spell back. The spells flickered back and forth, too fast for the ordinary eye to see. Niall had seen a wizarding battle once or twice and didn’t dare to move. With all of that energy in the room, there was a chance that he would get hit by it and that would not be a good thing.
Barely any time had passed since the start of the fight before the wizard sent an explosion spell towards Lord Petros. The Necromancer blocked it right before it went off. Light flashed, blinding Niall once more.
While trying to get rid of the spots, Niall didn't feel any more magic flying around the place. The high priest had disappeared. Niall noticed a mangy old cat stalking out of the room, leaving the staff behind.
Niall edged forward, feeling in his pockets for an extra handkerchief. If he could just grab the staff and get out of there before they noticed him it would make all of this worth it. Lord Petros’s eyes lit upon him the moment he moved and Niall froze once more.
Peter stepped forward, drawing Lord Petros’s attention onto him. “What happened to Adalia?”
“It will take him a couple of months to figure out how to fix himself, but it will take even longer than that to get to the point where he is causing trouble once more,” Lord Petros replied. He waved his hand at the staff and it jerked upright. “I’ll take care to drain the magic out of this and then I will hide it where he won’t be able to get to it.”
“While they are discussing the boring stuff, why don't we talk?” Niall jumped as his counterpart spoke. He glanced over at the man, marveling over how it really did look like a mirror.
“What do you want to talk about?” Niall also kept his voice low in order to not draw attention to himself. He didn’t want the attention of Lord Petros again.
“He’s not as bad as you think,” Neal said.
Niall blinked. “What do you mean by that? Who?”
“Lord Petros, of course," Neal said. He looked thoughtful. “While I don't always agree with Peter, I’m a conman and he’s in law enforcement, I do trust him all of the time. He’s a good man and he can be good for us if we let him.”
“That’s Peter Burke,” Niall pointed out. He had seen how Peter had reacted to everything and had been reassured, but still, the stories he had heard about Lord Petros were not the same.
“Just like we’re similar, I am sure that Lord Petros is so close to Peter Burke,” Neal said. “Just, give him a chance. You’re the chosen one and my alternate, I am sure that you’ll be able to survive giving it a shot.”
Niall looked over at the other set of twins and winced. “I don't know.”
“Please, try,” a female voice urged him. He looked over to see two brunette women. The one in the loose dress stepped towards him. “We would love to get to know you after all of this.”
Niall tried to resist, but found himself caving. “I’ll try.” He could always escape if he didn’t like them.
Epilogue