“He likes you,” Aesha smiled. “He acted that same way when he met your father.”

Leo smiled and kindly wrapped his arms around the little boy on his lap. He’s always looked up to Fredrick as a role model, like any son should see his father. And having someone compare him to the man was a greater compliment than all else. The sorcerer’s friends became so infatuated that they almost forgot about their conversation.

“Wait, I still don’t understand something,” intruded Kazu, circling to their previous topic. “Aren’t psychics born with their powers like magic wielders?”

“Yeah, I wonder that also,” Celine wondered, then asked Aesha, “But if what Tom said is true, did you really hear a voice calling you?”

Her sister-in-law merely nodded her head before her expression changed. Leo saw the sadness on Aesha’s face, watching the woman quietly played with her hands. And apparently, young Barton noticed as well, climbing off the sorcerer’s lap. The boy disappeared under the table only to pop out on the other side to his mother.

“Mommy?” He called.

Aesha pulled from her depressing daze at the sound of her son’s voice. She smiled down at Barton, lifting the young boy into her lap. 

“Maybe it would be better if you three went to the library.” She suggested.

“The library?” Questioned Leo.

“It’s near a church over in Scholar’s road,” she explained. “Just go west once you enter the heart of town.”

******

Leo and his friends were outside and headed for Stone Cross. Tom went along as their guide, leading them to the library that Aesha recommended. They were about meeting halfway from the stable house to the town’s main entryway. But instead of riding on horses, as they did at their arrived, they were pursuing on foot.

“Hey Tom,” Kazu called and complained, “Would you mind explaining why we left our horses behind?”

“The town’s faced some problems in town lately,” explained Tom. “All about a thief stealing people’s belongings in plain sight.”

“Well, that explains why I left my money pouch behind,” Leo presumed grumpily.

Tom chuckled at the sorcerer’s tone of voice as they pressed on. Soon after, the group finally reached the town’s entrance, finding it across a stone bridge. But the magic wielders were more amazed by the road of tall buildings before them. Some appeared bigger than most, and yet others to exceed more in width than height. Leo and his friends stood petrified with admiration as they gazed upon the scenery.

“Wow!” astonished Celine. “This place is… unbelievable!”

“Really? I don’t notice anymore,” her brother jested. “Come on! Let’s hurry to the library.”

Tom raced on ahead at full speed, whereas the others hurried along. Crossing the bridge, they passed not only buildings, but several people walking the road. Many were recognizably from distant realms considered that’re thought to be unreachable. Leo even spotted a group of beast men standing just outside what he guessed was an herb shop. All the anticipation of exploring a new land filled the sorcerer with undeniable excitement.

“Look at all of these people!” Eagerly pointed out Kazu. “I even saw a couple of beast men outside one of the shops!”

“Yeah, I saw them too!” Leo acknowledged. “There has to be more like them if we keep on exploring.”

“Hey” Yelled Celine. “I think I see something up ahead!”

The group stopped at the heart of town, seeing what the witch was talking about. A large circle surrounding four statues of different people facing the main roads. Leo walked toward it for a closer look but was blocked by a stone rail at the edge. The others joined along and inspected each statue to learn who they were sculpted after. The first was a merchant, the second a soldier, third a young scholar, and last was a banker. It was odd for the trio to find such random choices displayed in the center of town.

“Who are these statues of?” Leo asked Tom.

“They represent the founders of Stone Cross,” he informed. “It was said they met here on this spot three-hundred years ago.”

Tom continued explaining more about the founders and who they were. Mainly, on how the roads their statues faced represented their strongest attributes. Then after he was finished, he headed for the road leading away from the scholar statue. He immediately turned back to the others who weren’t following him and yelled…

“The library is this way, let’s go!”

Once again, they hurried off through town, trying not to bump into anyone. Leo was first to catch up with Tom, until his eyes began to grow irritable for some reason. He figured it was some dirt from the ground, but pain began to grow at an exponential rate. That’s when the sorcerer ceased his running in attempt to ease his sore eyes. Kazu and Celine stopped as well when they caught up to see what the problem was.

“Leo, are you alright?” Asked Celine.

“My eyes…,” the sorcerer hissed.

That was all he said just before the pain began to diminish slightly. Leo tried opening his eyes a bit, hoping that it wouldn’t lead to more discomfort later on. Everything seemed normal, until the sorcerer spotted something that looked peculiar. A man in tattered clothing walked by him and his friends with a devilish grin on his face. He was swinging a necklace around his finger, but that was the least bit concerning for him. What petrified the sorcerer was that he could through the strange man like a piece of glass. And apparently, nobody else in the area seemed to notice him except Leo.

“W-What is this…?” He questioned himself.

“It is your gift, sorcerer.”

The sorcerer stumbled back when a voice he recognized became known. Fortunately, his cousin managed to catch him in time before he even met ground. But Leo’s heart was racing in his chest that he couldn’t bring himself to calm down.

“Leo, what the hell’s going on with you?!” Kazu questioned worriedly.

“I-I… I thought…,” stuttered Leo before saying, “I heard him again.”

“You mean Morphos?” Celine asked, earning a nod. “Well, what did he tell you?” 

To be continued...