Chapter One

Silvian stood across from Owen, the anger in his gaze burning almost as brightly as the flames roaring behind him. This wasn’t the boy Owen had gone through seven years of school with, he was different. His skin had gone as white as marble, his eyes were pitch black with black veins running all over his body. The Dark One had truly merged with him.

He was beyond saving.

Despite this Owen desperately wanted to believe things could still be different.

The wind whipped viciously around them, as if embodying the storm brewing between the two boys. Their gazes were locked intently. Silvian’s grip tightened on his wand.

“It doesn’t have to be this way,” Owen yelled over the wind.

“You’re wrong,” Silvian snarled back. “This is how it was always meant to end. You’re the chosen one and I’m the blackened. Only one of us can live. It’s the prophecy.”

“You can still reject the Dark One,” Owen shouted desperately. “There might still be a way. I don’t want to hurt you-”

“That’s your problem Owen Thorn!” Silvian hissed. “You never want to hurt anyone but sometimes that’s what it takes for the greater good. Imagine how many lives you could have saved if you hadn’t stuck to your pathetic ideology.”

Owen’s grip tightened on his own wand, his hands shaking slightly. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry I couldn’t help you Silvian. I’m sorry I couldn’t prevent him turning you into...this.”

“It’s too late for sorry Thorn,” Silvian snapped. “It’s too late for promises and good deeds. The Dark One and I are one now and we can’t go about saving the world until the chosen one is dead.” The corners of his mouth twisted into a sneer. “Ready to die Owen Thorn?”

Owen met Silvian’s gaze with an equal amount of fury now. “Better to die a hero than live a coward.”

“Brave words for a child.”

“Touché.”

And with that both boys pointed their wands at each other and-

“STOP! Stop the movie!” I yelled, grabbing for the remote from my older sister Bridget. She held the remote up over her head in protest. “But it’s almost over-”

“No! I don’t want to watch this part!” I managed to wrestle the remote away from her in just enough time to pause it on Owen Thorn’s beautiful determined expression, flooded by the light from the spell he was mid casting.

Bridget crossed her arms and scrunched up her face. “Why would you make me marathon all eight of the Owen Thorn movies if you’re not going to let us watch the last fifteen minutes of it?”

“I’m going to cry in front of you and it’s going to be super embarrassing! I don’t want to see Owen die!”

Bridget rolled her eyes. “You’re such a baby. That’s the whole point of the series! How many times have you watched these movies and read the books? It’s foreshadowed that the chosen one has to die all the way through.”

“But there were a ton of ways he might have been able to live! If he had been able to get his hands on the plane sifter from book three or used one of the charm potions from book five-”

“It’s just a kids series Chester! It’s not like he died in vain or anything. By dying he released enough energy to trap the Dark One in an alternate plane forever.”

“Yeah but still-”

“If he didn’t do it then the Dark One would have just gone into hiding until he was strong enough to merge with another brainwashed wizard.”

I rolled my eyes. “Ugh, why do you alway defend Silvian? He wasn’t brainwashed, he totally knew what he was getting into.”

Bridget crossed her arms, letting out a little huff “He did not. The Dark One tricked him into thinking he could bring his mother and friends back if he joined him.”

“Well I think he did it because he was jealous of Owen. Silvian was just selfish, he’s seriously the worst character in the series.”

“He is not, you’re just mad cause he killed your favorite character.”

“He’s an asshole! He thinks just because he’s an elf he’s better than everyone else!”

“He’s just misunderstood! He has a really tragic backstory!”

“You just like hot villains.”

Bridget stuck her tongue out at me. “Okay but is that so wrong? That blue black hair, those cheekbones, OOOOH and you can’t forget that one scene in the seventh movie when he’s showering and you see his six pack.”

I sighed heavily, adjusting my wire rimmed glasses. “You’re not edgy for liking a villain Bridget. Silvian merch probably makes up half of Hot Topic’s income because of his crazy fangirls.”

A mischievous smile spread over my sister’s face. “Sooo what if I just bought you a bunch of Silvian stuff for your birthday tomorrow? How would you like that?”

“I would burn it.”

Bridget giggled. “You would not. As much as you hate to admit it you would horde literally anything that came out of the Owen Thorn franchise.”

“I think you underestimate my hate for Silvian Greygate.”

My sister let out a little snort. “Oh yeah, as if you wouldn’t be all over a hottie like Silvian if he was real.”

“If Silvian Greygate was real I would punch him in the face.”