Greatest Legacy of the Magus Universe

The cave was small, tucked away near the beach at the very edge of the peninsula.

The mouth of the cave opened directly toward the sea. From where Adam and Genevieve sat, they could see the waves crashing against the sand, their white foam flowing faintly beneath the night sky.

The waves blanketed two trails of footsteps. When the waves receded, the trails vanished as if they had never been there before.

The rhythmic sound of the ocean filled the cave. Crash. Silence. Crash. And then silence again. Another wave rolled in, breaking against the shore with a deep, soothing roar.

Above them, a huge opening stretched through the ceiling of the cave. Through it, Adam could see the vast night sky of Myrrandor. Countless stars shimmered overhead, scattered across the black of space like countless jewels.

The cool breeze drifted through the opening, carrying with it the salty scent of the Sea of Storms. There was something magical about this place. Genevieve had said she used to sneak out of the fortress and come here as a child.

Adam simply sat there in silence. He looked at the sea. Then at the sky. Then at Genevieve, who sat beside him, leaning against his frame. Eyes puffy, nose red, as tears trickled across her cheeks.

The endless ocean before them. The stars above. The gentle sound of the waves. And the warmth of someone sitting beside him. And the dread that they would soon be separated.

”I’m going to miss you,” Genevieve said in between silent sobs.

Adam wrapped his arm around her, pulling her closer. He silently sat there, giving her warmth and support. He stayed silent throughout. Words weren’t needed.

Almost a minute later, she looked up at Adam with her cerulean eyes, her lip trembling.

”Well?” She said softly. ”Say something.”

Adam thought for a moment, glancing at the waves that ebbed and flowed.

”Two pigeons part beneath the fading sky;

”Yet neither forgets the place they call home.

”Though distant winds may carry them apart;

”One day they shall return to where they loved.”

He finally turned to her, gently wiping her tears away with his thumb. Her cheeks were so soft and poreless, and his hand calloused and hard.

”I love you, you know.” Adam smiled warmly. And even though his heart ached, he had to be strong for Genevieve.

”And I love you.” Genevieve smiled fondly, looking him in the eye. ”More than anything.”

Adam’s heart fluttered no matter how many times she said those words. And this time she meant them more than ever before. It was beautiful how their love for one another grew with every passing day.

He gently plucked a long strand of his raven hair. It hovered in the air as Adam wove hand seals and enchanted it. The strand coiled around itself several times, criss-crossing, and reinforcing itself with magic before forming a ring.

”Something to remember me by,” he said as he gently held out the ring.

Though Adam liked to hoard riches, he wasn’t a materialistic person by nature. He didn’t care much for shiny gems or flashy rings, so he made something that felt much more personal.

Of course, Genevieve knew that. She knew Adam well.

So when she saw the ring, she couldn’t help but show a dazzling smile. She silently held out her left hand so Adam could put the ring on.

He was about to slip it onto her index finger, but Genevieve smoothly shifted her hand, causing the ring to slip onto her ring finger instead.

Adam was momentarily startled.

But Genevieve looked at him triumphantly as she showed off the ring.

”Fits perfectly, don’t you think?” she said, her underlying intentions all too clear to Adam.

”Yes... Yes, it does,” he said after the surprise faded and he felt an inexplicable warmth in his heart.

”Then it only makes sense for you to have one too.” Genevieve plucked a strand of hair. ”Teach me this spell.”

And Adam did.

A few minutes later, an auburn band was wrapped around his ring finger. As though it was always meant to be there.

As he admired the ring on his hand with a surreal feeling blooming inside of him, Genevieve’s hand clasped his. Their fingers interlocked. Her hand fit perfectly in his.

They looked into each other’s eyes. No more words needed to be said.

Adam pulled her closer and kissed her. It wasn’t the delicate and gentle kisses of the past. This was hunger and lust and sadness. This was love, pure and raw and beautiful.

They lay on a bed of sand, under a roof of stars.

That night they were one.

And when morning came, it was time to go their separate ways.

Genevieve returned to the Citadel and prepared her belongings. She also bid farewell to everyone there.

Adam sat alone in that cave, cloaked in sadness and thinking about last night and the last seven years that passed by in the blink of an eye.

He heard a distant sonic boom. A vessel tore through the clouds and quickly approached the beach. The ship was not as big as he had expected. It was shaped like a bird in flight. It was a private passenger vessel.

The vessel landed on the sand in the distance. The gates opened and the ramp flowed down. A retinue of armored knights—all more powerful than Adam—along with maids and stewards emerged. The knights stood flanking the ramp, while the maids, dressed in pristine white robes, patiently waited at the front. They were here for their princess.

Adam felt so small in front of them. In front of the shadow cast by the Great Noble House of Fortuna. In front of the great wall that was the First Sons. In front of the monolith that was the God Emperor.

”What’re you thinking?” Genevieve arrived from behind, clasping his hand gently. Her other hand held a brown leather trunk—the entire thing was a storage artifact.

”That I’m going to miss you dearly,” Adam said, turning to her.

Genevieve teared up again. But she controlled her emotions, so she didn’t bawl before her House’s servants.

A steward quickly approached them, bowing deferentially and greeting her. He took the trunk from Genevieve and went ahead.

”You have the feather,” Genevieve said as she glanced at her new ring with a tender smile. ”We’ll remain in correspondence.”

They walked hand in hand toward the vessel. The knights and maids didn’t even so much as stare at them. More like they found it disrespectful to stare directly at Genevieve unless she was speaking to them, of course.

”How long do you think you’ll be away?” Adam asked.

”It’s hard to say with Aunt Tina,” Genevieve said, watching the vessel with distant eyes.

She turned to Adam and replied truthfully, ”Could be a few months. Could be a few years.”

”Well,” Adam said with a smile. ”You know where to find me.”

They kissed their goodbyes, and Adam reluctantly watched Genevieve climb the ramp.

Somehow, he felt sadder than when Valerian left. And he felt bitter for it. He had known Genevieve for less than a decade. But his brother, on the other hand, had been with him for almost his entire life.

Did that make him a bad brother?

Or just a hopeless fool madly in love?

Genevieve cast a look filled with love and longing toward Adam as the ramp slowly retracted and the gates to the vessel closed. In the end, she could not stop the tears from falling. She whispered, ”I love you,” again and again and again...

The gates finally closed. The vessel hovered a few meters above the beach before flying across the ocean and disappearing above the sea of clouds, its destination Providentia.

Adam stood alone on the sands, a smile on his face and unshed tears in his eyes. The waves ebbed and flowed. The cool breeze whispered in his ears. And his heart felt just a little more hollow than it did last night.

Suddenly, there was a tear in the void, followed by the hiss of a predator.

A serpent shot out from the portal and coiled around Adam’s neck, hissing in his ears, voice dark and malevolent. All this before he could even react.

”The Council of Vipers has summoned you, Constantine.”

Seven years, he felt like he was in heaven.

And now his hell began.