As it turned out Damian really had found Avalon's former gate to Earth. It had the same strange stone structure as the other Gates I had seen in the border cities. Unlike all the other gates I had seen this one had no glowing energy to the sigils carved around it. Sigils I now knew to actually be highly complex runecraft. Although they looked nothing like the overly simplistic runes I had used to date. My weeks of study had definitely paid off though as I found that I could understand part of the runes around the stone gate.

"So think you can get this thing running again?" Damian asked pacing and glancing back in the direction of the gate to Faerie.

"Give me a minute. It looks like this thing was designed to keep the path between the plane and Earth open by force. But the sigil at the bottom here looks like a later addition. If I had to guess I'd say it's probably what they used to sever the tether when they cut this plane off." Was my reply as I ran my hands over the runes carved into the stone gate. Pulling a knife from my pocket I added, "If I'm correct then breaking this rune would allow the magic to flow freely through the structure again and reopen the gate. But since we only want it to open temporarily the best move would be to alter the sigil slightly so that it reverses the effect for a set duration before repeating the initial effect."

I made the alterations to the final rune before stepping back and inspecting the structure as a whole again. Satisfied that my change could work I turned to the others and said "Ok, now all we need is to start the gate."

"How do we do that?" Cassidy asked

"It's like jumpstarting a car battery." I supplied

"Then just funnel in some of your magic." Damian replied

"Yeah, about that. Sticking with the metaphor, using my magic would be like trying to jumpstart a car battery with a laptop battery. It has power, but not nearly enough to have any actual effect."

"So we're back to square one?" Damian asked slightly annoyed.

"Not necessarily." I replied as I drew a temporary rune on the stone gate, "Cassidy doesn't have any magic of her own, but her tattoos are designed to draw in and channel the surrounding magic in the air. So if I use a rune designed to interfere with the process of the spell and then place it on her, we might be able to temporarily alter the spell so that while it still draws in the surrounding magic using blood as a catalyst instead of using that to power the spell it instead immediately transfers the energy to the corresponding rune I just drew onto the gate."

"Nope! No way am I letting you mess with my tattoos!" Cassidy said in protest. But neither Damian nor I were listening. We had instead locked eyes with one another and nodded in agreement. Damian wrapped his arms around Cassidy holding her in place just long enough for me to draw the rune on her forehead with a skin marker.

Stepping back I was given a death glare by Cassidy who said "You're going to pay for this. And it's going to happen when you least expect it. So prepare yourself."

"Sorry, but it was the best I could think of." I replied apologetically

She huffed at my apology but turned towards the gate as the tattoos on her skin appeared with her use of them. The rune on her forehead began to glow in time with the one on the gate. A minute later the rest of the gate began to glow until they became blindingly bright before fading back to a dull glow. The stone structure now had the familiar amber glow that marked an active gate between one of the Dvaram and Earth.

"Well let's see where this thing leads. The gate will only stay open for two minutes." I said before stepping through the gate.

I emerged from the gate to find myself in front of the remains of a structure on top of an unfamiliar hill. A moment later I was joined by Damian and a still-irate Cassidy who was busy wiping the rune from her forehead.

"Where are we?" Cassidy asked surveying our surroundings.

"Glastonbury Tor, a historical site in Somerset England." Damian said looking up from his phone where I assumed he had pulled up our location using the maps app.

"This is England huh? It's nice." Was my contribution to the conversation

Cassidy clearly was not as taken by our new surroundings as I was, "Nice or not, how are we going to get back home to the states?"

"Maybe ask that guy." I said pointing to a man standing by the rear door of a conspicuous black limo parked by the side of the road some distance down the hill. The man was dressed rather nicely in a suit despite the warmth of the season.

"That's something you don't see every day." Damian pointed out, "I wonder what he's waiting for."

I didn't respond as we began walking down towards the road and the odd car. But My gut told me that this wasn't a coincidence. It wouldn't be hard for a skilled practitioner with a focus on divination to determine when and where we would return to Earth, and to have someone waiting for just such a reason. I chose to hold my tongue on the off chance that I was wrong. But all the same I was preparing for a fight on the off chance that my gut was correct.

When we had finally arrived at the road, my gut feeling only grew stronger. This close I had an easier time seeing the man's features. His hair was a light brown and looked like he spent an hour every morning styling it. His skin was fairly pale for the time of year and suggested that he did not normally make a habit of spending this much time outside. Seeing us approaching down the hill he smiled and said in a distinct British accent "You are Mr. Grey?"

"Uh. I am." I said hesitantly

The man then bowed rather deeply and replied, "It is an honor to meet you. I am Bartholomew Williams. I represent the descendants of the Twilight Tower in greeting the new master of the Tower."

Now I was positively floored. "Uhm, if you don't mind me asking, how exactly did you know we'd be here? And why are you calling me the Tower Master?"

"We were informed some weeks ago that the Tower would be claimed by a new master. And that we should be prepared for his arrival in Glastonbury. As such myself and a handful of other descendants have been taking turns waiting by the Tor for your eventual arrival."

"Ok and who exactly told you all of this?"

"He gave his name as Jax and alongside news of your ascension to Tower Master, he brought alongside a letter from the former Tower Master explaining that he was entrusted by her with facilitating said ascension."

Of course it was Jax. I found myself not for the first time wondering just what that guy's deal was. I knew Jax never lied, but he was also more than skilled enough a manipulator to have no need for lies. That coupled with his shifty nature and evident long life meant that anything having to do with him left me extremely nervous. But, while I knew fully well that I would never actually understand Jax's plans, I was beginning to see at least part of the whole picture. Jax had likely made an agreement with the former Tower Master to help her descendant revive the Tower in return for some favor. Then he got me to agree to do him a favor in return for the information he had probably agreed with Morgan La Fey to give to her descendant. It would be just like the asshole to trick someone into owing him for something he'd already agreed to do on behalf of another person.

I sighed. It didn't take a genius to understand where things were heading. I was apparently the heir to the Twilight Tower and was expected to revive the Tower. "Ok so you found me, now what?" I asked the well-dressed Bartholomew.

"If you would be willing to take a drive with me I would be grateful." Was his reply as he gestured to the limo.

I glanced back at Damian and Cassidy who had both wisely stayed silent and was rewarded with a shrug from Damian. Turning back to Bartholomew I said "Sure thing Barty."

"Bartholomew." He corrected me before opening the back door of the limo and gesturing that we should enter. Once we were inside the limo he knocked on the divider to signal that the driver should start moving.

"Wait. So you guys have just been waiting with this car every day in the event that we might show up?" I asked clearly trying to wrap my head around the limo's presence still

"Yes, well it seemed only proper that we greet the Tower Master in style." He replied

"And where exactly are we going?"

"Myself and a few other descendants have been staying at a house jointly owned in Glastonbury."

"Yeah. About that, how many descendants are there?"

"Well, When the connection between the Tower and Earth was severed, the surviving members of the Tower went into hiding. While most simply joined other Towers or otherwise left their past behind, A select few kept in touch in preparation for the day that the Tower would eventually be revived. As of right now we have seven practitioners."

"And all seven of you are currently in Glastonbury?"

"No. Aside from myself there are two more practitioners present who wish to meet you."

I digested the information as we continued the ride in silence. When we arrived at the house we were led to the main room where an older gentlemen with greying hair and a young woman with dark skin were waiting patiently.

The older man introduced himself as Reginald Gladstone and the dark skinned girl as Jennifer Monroe. Reginald had a Scottish brogue while when Jennifer gave a greeting it was with what sounded like an Australian accent.

Once we were properly seated in the room I resumed my questions, "So what exactly are you guys expecting. Because the only reason I sought out the remains of the Tower was to discover more about runecraft. I have zero interest in being part of an organization on the level of one of the Magic Towers."

"Rest assured. While it's true that, as things stand we lack the members to operate in the same manner as the other Towers. We will do our utmost to assist you in rebuilding the Twilight Tower. You are the only descendant of the previous Tower Master who is not already affiliated with another Tower. All we ask of you is that you continue doing as you already are in reviving the lost art of runecraft."

Mulling it over, I decided that It couldn't hurt to be on good terms with these guys. And it seemed like they genuinely did want to help me. So deciding to try and build a good relationship with them I said "Once I get home to Eden City I'm planning on trying to tether Avalon to a point there. If you'd like, once that's done I'd be more than willing to briefly reopen the gate on the hill back there so you guys could visit the Tower."

I could see that my words had excited them, and Bartholomew was quick to ask, "Would it be too forward to request that we be allowed the right to live in the Tower?"

"The thing is ancient and run down, I don't think it's in any shape to be lived in." I replied

But he waved my words away with a hand as he said "That's no issue, It may take some time and effort but I have no doubt we can fix up the building enough to move into it."

"I mean yeah, if that's what you want then I have no problem with it."

"Excellent. Then on to the next topic. You mentioned wishing to head to Eden City correct? If you'd like we are more than willing to provide you with transport. Our company owns a plane which is currently parked at Bristol Airport. We could easily have you back in Eden City by this time tomorrow."

"That would be great!" I said brightening some before I remembered something important, "Oh but none of us exactly have passports with us or anything."

At that all of them began laughing as if I had just told a particularly funny joke. Then Bartholomew said, "That's no issue. Did you forget we have magic? There are plenty of spells that can be used to get around a minor thing like that."

'Oh. Well then in that case, we are extremely grateful for your generous offer."

"Think nothing of it. We are more than happy to be of assistance to the new Tower Master."

"Uh one problem." Jennifer interjected looking up from her phone, "You must have really pissed some people off. According to this, The Eden City Police Department has issued a warrant for the arrest of one James Grey who is wanted for the murders of Ulysses Grey and Lucas McCoy."

"Lucas is dead?" I asked shocked and she nodded in confirmation, "Fuck."

"We'll have to find another way home then" Damian said but Lucas shook his head.

"Nonsense, I can have the plane fueled up and waiting by the time we reach the airport." The handsome man replied.

It was clear that he wasn't going to take no for an answer, so we gave in. An hour later we were walking across the tarmac to the plane. The thing was large and looked nicer than I expected.

I leaned over to Bartholomew and asked, "What company did you say you guys worked for?"

"Our company is called Twilight Industries. We are active in a number of fields but primarily shipping and business consulting." He responded, "Our company employs dozens of people around the world although the majority are mundane."

The interior of the plane proved as nice as thee exterior. Our flight back to Eden City was a comfortable one. I spent the first part oof the flight studying the books on runecraft with a brief nap in the middle. It was a few hours into our journey when I noticed that Bartholomew, Reginald, and Jennifer all seemed to be staring at me in curiosity. Finally I looked up and said "Yes?"

"Apologies, but are those what I think they are?" Reginald asked

"I got them from the tower if that's what you're asking. They're the notes on runecraft that were left behind." Was my reply, "Did you want to see them?"

"May I?" He eagerly reached for one of the books and began reading through it, "I've dreamt of this day since I was a boy. The moment when the Tower's signature magic would be rediscovered in it's entirety. Can you understand what it says here? I have read every text on runecraft found to date, but I confess that I am having a hard time understanding what it means here when it says to invert the third mark of the rune to increase the duration of this particular spell."

"I've only had a few weeks to really study this stuff. But from what I've learned, every mark present in the rune has a distinct effect depending on orientation, position in the overall rune, size, and a number of other factors. Furthermore, multiple runes can be strung together into a more complex sigil which changes based on the same principles both in each individual rune and the combined sigil as a whole. Did you guys want to borrow some of the books? I've already finished studying a few of them."

"It's a kind offer but we can't." He said with a grateful smile

"Why not?" I was confused

Bartholomew was the one to answer as he said, "Traditionally, the Tower Master is the only one allowed to freely learn runecraft, it is from him that other members of the Tower are taught a lesser version. We are not from the Pendragon family line and thus cannot take the position of Tower Master so long as a suitable member of the family line is still alive."

My next words died on my lips suddenly as I thought of a pressing question, "Wait did you say Pendragon? I thought the former Tower Master was named La Fey. And isn't Pendragon supposed to be the last name of King Arthur?"

Bartholomew seemed to be amused by my question as he said, "She was called Morgan La Fey, or Morgan of the Fae, because of her close relations with the Fae Courts. But she was born Morgan Pendragon, Half-sister of Arthur Pendragon. And yes you are thinking of the correct Arthur."

I nodded thoughtfully, but internally all I could think of was how every time I learned something new about my family and our history, it only made things stranger. Trying not to dwell on what must have been the fourth bombshell I'd had dropped on me in the last month, I glanced around the plane to check on my companions. Damian was already asleep, while Cassidy was busy once again reading through the basic grimoire she'd managed to pick up in a room of the Tower we had assumed to be a classroom.

I couldn't stop the guilt welling up in me as I looked at them. Even if I had needed the help, I shouldn't have dragged Damian and Cassidy into this. Damian had always been a loyal friend, but now he could very well be arrested for trying to help me. And as for Cassidy, I still barely knew her. She certainly didn't owe me anything and she was in enough danger as it was being a Magician. She didn't need the additional trouble I had roped her into. I confess, that I had a personal grudge against Magicians. But after meeting Cassidy, I had begun to rethink my stance on them.

The thought of Magicians caused my mind to once again flash back to the image of a fourteen-year-old boy lying dead inside a ritual circle, his caramel skin marred by countless scars painstakingly carved into it over some time. His blood slowly pooling around his lifeless form. But unlike last time, I could not dispel the memory so easily. Instead it only seemed to grow in intensity and vibrancy. The boy's name was Diego, and for a time he was my brother. It was two years after Jax had taken me in, and we had only recently returned from my first trip through the magical realm when he brought home two more young boys. The older one was the same age as me and was Antonio, while his five-year-old brother was named Diego. Jax explained that they were orphans like me, who he had found when Antonio got caught stealing from one of the city's smaller gangs. Neither child had any potential as a practitioner, but we were raised and taught together all the same. As the years went on I began to see Diego as a dear younger brother. But the relationship between Antonio and I was something different. It wasn't romantic, my interest in that subject lied solely in the opposite sex, but all the same terms such as friend or family didn't carry the right amount of weight. It was more that Antonio and I were whole only when together. We were counterparts, opposites who only achieved balance in the other's presence. I had once heard a pair of conjoined twins say something similar in answer to why they had never sought to separate themselves. Simply put, Antonio was someone whom I felt I could not live without. He and Diego had become my reason for living. We brought light and joy to each other's otherwise dark lives.

Jax has always been a firm believer in the importance of repaying debt of any nature. And so as we grew older, he began putting Antonio and I to work on his behalf. We felt unstoppable, as if as long as the two of us were together we could do anything. But reality, as it so often does, taught us an important lesson on hubris in the most painful way possible. We had become too cocky after the many successful jobs we did for Jax. There was a local thug in the neighborhood, so minor that I don't even remember his name anymore. He was terrorizing those living in the area and so we, being the young idealists we were, decided to teach him a lesson. But what we hadn't counted on was him having connections to a much bigger threat. The retaliation was swift, and Antonio died protecting me. Distraught at the death of his brother, Diego disappeared in the middle of the night.

Years later I was doing yet another job for Jax, this time driving out a group of magicians who had snuck into the city and begun preying upon the mundane population. It was while I was raiding their hideout that I found Diego. He was standing in the middle of a ritual circle preparing to sacrifice some local kid they had kidnapped. When he saw me, he began hurling insults at me. Blaming me for his brother's death. Claiming that I had used Antonio, had poisoned his mind and manipulated him into joining me in intimidating that small time thug. Diego told me that he had found the group of magicians and joined them in hopes of gaining the magic to kill me over his brother's death. I tired to plead with him, to explain that I'd never asked Antonio to join me, that I had mourned our brother for years. But he didn't listen, instead he attacked me. I defended myself as I tried to get him to calm down, to listen. And when it became clear that He couldn't win, Diego stepped back into the circle and slit his own throat to activate the ritual. Perhaps it was one final cosmic joke that the ritual failed to activate. I don't know how long I sat there cradling his body and crying in anguish over the loss of both he and Antonio. But when I could no longer cry I left. Not just that hideout, but the city entirely. I left without a word to anyone, but not before I had hunted down the magicians who managed to escape. Not before I had slit every one of their throats for twisting that once kind and vibrant boy into the avatar of hatred he had become. I left both Eden City and magic far behind. In time I took up magic once again out of necessity, but it took seven years before I was willing to return to the city I had once called home.

I was stirred from my memories as I felt the plane touch down. Soon we would be back in Eden City, and I would be able to finally put an end to thing. I couldn't wait.