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deaths. It was told he killed his followers to fuel his
Excellyon that stored Mage energy. He was known for his sick
pleasures, and though the stories were exaggerated with every
tongue, they had to stem from some truths.
    He did not look so dangerous standing there
peacefully, but Nolen knew better. He looked as though he stepped
out of a painting, dressed in the old fashioned clothing with its
garish colors. Even the panes of his face looked touched with a
painter’s flattering hand, for Ryker had no wrinkles.
    Around the Mage’s neck hung a diamond-shaped
silver medallion set with four large sapphires. Nolen knew in an
instant the object was the legendary Excellyon. Of the five that
had been made, this was the only one reported to still exist. The
only thing that kept Ryker in his hibernated state was the
Excellyon fueling a pattern lost to the Ages. The pattern kept
Ryker protected from death after all these countless years.
    Rumors in codices said the room was a mirage;
it was not what it appeared and had patterns built into the stones
to befuddle the captive. It looked safe to Nolen, though he thought
it seemed a little larger than a room should be. Tomes and books
said many things about Ryker, but he searched for what they
omitted. Nolen had spent countless hours in Madison Library of
Jaden studying the Excellyon. Rumor said Head Mage Casimir had an
Excellyon, whispers said one was hidden somewhere in Castle Jaden,
but everyone suspected the rest were lost to history. The
well-educated of Jaden knew that the Arch Mages hibernated many
times, skipping across generations; however, the codices omitted
the way to stop the hibernation.
    Ryker was protected by the Excellyon and
could not be killed or woken while wearing it. Mages throughout the
years sought to wake and kill him, but the mere idea of such a feat
was so chilling that few people had tried. Some tried drowning him,
but the water evaporated; others tried fire but it wove around him
and vanished with a glow. When an Air Mage tried to draw the oxygen
from the room, the room broke free a stone to draw air in
elsewhere. Nolen saw the gaping black space in the wall where a
triangular stone should have been.
    There was precious little information on
attempts to wake Ryker, and Nolen suspected the information he
sought resided in the Head Mage’s private library if it existed at
all. One man tried to superheat the metal chain to break it.
Another Mage tried to slip it over his head to find the chain too
short. Someone padded the metal so it would not make physical
contact with Ryker. Another tried to unclasp the chain, but she was
shocked with such energy it removed her senses and left her unable
to perform any task.
    But Nolen had the Medallion of Unwind, and he
would not be so foolish to come this far without a plan. If his
reasoning was accurate, the medallion would bend back the
Excellyon’s protection and allow him to unclasp the chain. That, or
it would shock him and leave him dying on the floor.
    He stepped forward until he was nearly
pressed up against the man, hoping the medallion was working. He
reached a hand out, knowing he had one last chance to change his
mind. He laced his hands around the chain and ran it through his
fingers feeling for the clasp. Pieces of lace flaked from Ryker’s
clothes. The clasp secured, Nolen slid a thumbnail into the catch
and snapped it loose with a pinched look.
    Whatever wards protected the Excellyon bended
around the Medallion of Unwind, and it unsnapped silently, leaving
Nolen unharmed. He exhaled with a tight, choked sound bordering on
a relieved laugh.
    At first there was only silence, and Nolen
strained in the dim light to hear any sign of life. ‘Was there a
chance Ryker had died years ago and the Excellyon kept him
standing?’ Just when Nolen began to fear the worst, Ryker took
in a breath.
    “My lord, you have awoken,” Nolen said softly
as to not startle the man.
    Ryker’s eyes popped open and met