
to useful purpose, but Timothy had discovered that the ghosts of mages were trapped in the fire, unable
to go on to their final reward, and he thought it criminally tragic. Now Cassandra knelt by his side, hungry
fire lantern in her hand, and shared in his sorrow over the death of the man who had been their teacher
and protector. Not far away stood Ivar, last surviving warrior of the Asura tribe. He had suffered injuries
in the battle with Alhazred, but he stood with his hands together as though saying a prayer over Leander's
remains, and he muttered a kind of incantation under his breath, a chant to some higher power.
Cassandra placed the lantern on the floor beside him. "I'm so sorry," she said, bowing her head. "I
knew him only a short time, but long enough to know he was a great man. Arcanum has lost a treasure
today."
"He will be missed," Ivar said, his voice raspy and weak. "More than ever, the Parliament of Mages
needs leaders like Leander Maddox."
Timothy heard their words of solace, but could not find his own voice. His mind was filled with
memories of the man, of the kindness in his eyes, of the quiet strength that he had and that he inspired in
others. Timothy recalled the first time he had seen Leander as he came through the magical doorway
from Terra and into the world where the boy had been hidden away at birth due to his affliction. Even
then, at that first look, he had known that the burly, bearded mage with the wild mane of red hair was a
friend. Leander had been manipulated by evil, but in his heart, he had always remained loyal to the
memory of Timothy's father, Argus Cade, who had been Leander's own teacher.
With a long, mournful breath, Timothy finally summoned the words in his heart. He held Leander's
cold, stiff fingers in his own. "He always felt responsible, somehow, for the way the mages treated me.
He blamed himself for their fear, their ignorance. I was born on Terra, but I think he wished that he had
left me where he'd found me—to spare me from all that I've been exposed to since stepping through that
doorway into this world."
Timothy studied Leander's pale face. If not for the spatters of blood that dappled the man's cheek, it
would have appeared that the great mage was merely sleeping.
Cassandra put a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"He couldn't have been more wrong," Timothy said. "Sure, there are times when I wish I could run
back to Patience and hide, but then I think about all I'd be giving up. My island home seems so ...
insignificant after seeing what exists beyond it."
He felt a wave of emotion threaten to reduce him to tears, but held it temporarily at bay "You
opened my eyes to wonders that existed beyond the doorway, Leander, and for that I will always love
and miss you terribly."
Leaning forward, he placed a kiss on the man's brow and climbed to his feet, still fighting to not be
overpowered by grief. He felt Cassandra and Ivar's concerned eyes on him, but only nodded to confirm
that he would be all right.
Across the vast chamber, a tapestry adorned with the crest of the Order of Alhazred hung on the
wall. Timothy went over and tore it down from the place where it had likely hung for centuries. As he
crossed the room with the tapestry, he made a promise to himself that he would not suppress his grief
forever, that he would give himself time to truly mourn the passing of his friend, but for the moment there
were things to be dealt with that had to take priority over his anguish.
"Tim?" Cassandra asked. "Are you all right?"