Space was mesmerizing. Weightless, I held tightly on to my Dad’s golden helmet, even though I couldn’t move away physically. He gently pressed me to him with a glowing golden aura. Through the glass visor of the space suit, I could see the entirety of the moon’s surface beneath me. Even the dull pain behind my eyes couldn’t distract me from such beauty.

  “This, son, is ours.” Dad pointed at a tiny spire somewhere on the ground. The space elevator stuck out like a sore thumb, occasionally flaring with light as it shot out a spaceship. His voice became louder as he spoke with pride, “The city that your mother and I created.”

  I took another breath of the stuffy air and shook my head. “Can you turn around? I want to look at the planet!”

  My Father sighed. He flared his magic, and the light surrounding us shone brighter as we turned around. With a grunt we flew faster.

  “Woohoo!” Stars smeared faintly at the edges of my vision as the green planet became larger and larger. But just as quickly, Father stopped the momentum.

  “This is Wunt, not the planet, the city.” The thing he was pointing at was so big I could see it even from this distance. It covered the surface like some metal carpet with sharp spikes sticking out of it. The planet was terraformed to the point where it appeared alien even from space.

  I wanted to go there someday. “Can we visit?”

  “Not today. When you get older, we’ll travel to all the cities in the system!” Dad laughed, his raspy voice drowning out the silence of space.

  “But I want to go now.” I slapped the top of his helmet to no effect.

  “Don’t worry, son, we’ll-”

  A buzzing noise stopped him. Another voice rang into my ear. A gentle and warm voice with sharp specks of annoyance, “Dear, why have you left the exosphere? Come back! You’ll scare Magnus.”

  My heart clenched; it was too soon. I barely had time to see other planets orbiting the star. “Mom, please let me look at the space a little more. It’s fun here.”

  Dad chuckled. “That’s right! It’s not like a geist will attack us.”

  Irked, Mom commanded, “I’m not asking, Richter. This is dangerous enough already.”

  The opportunity to spend time with Dad was slipping away… They’ll leave me alone again. My throat went dry as I gathered all my willpower. Dad sighed loudly, turning to face the moon. “We’re coming.”

  I was going to be all alone. I didn’t even realize as my voice burst out, “Can we stay just a bit longer? Please!” The headache intensified and I shuddered.

  Dad stopped accelerating, turning his head cautiously at the surrounding void. “Maybe just a minute. I’m sure Lidia won’t get angry.”

  The heaviness disappeared as a spark of hope, brightened my sight.“Yay!” The stars looked so much more beautiful without the dome’s muddy lens. An asteroid belt floated nearby, the countless dots moving ever so slightly. It felt as though they were coming closer.

  “Shit...” Father muttered. “Close your eyes, son, there’s trouble.” The acceleration struck me suddenly, my grip slipped, but Dad’s aura held me gently.

  The rocks were approaching us too quickly. In just a moment, the little dot turned into a giant object. I closed my eyes as a bright flash of light blinded me. Warmth spread through my body. I looked over Dad’s shoulder. His hand, curled into a strange gesture, glowed as bright as the sun. He stopped the asteroid with just a twitch of his hand.

  “Damn null geists.”

  I wrapped my hands around Dad’s neck, letting out a whimper. It wasn’t just an asteroid, only something pretending to be one. The rocky surface was made out of thousands of hands and mouths constantly scratching and biting, and clawing. Like worms coming out of an apple, the hands and mouths extended towards us, but as if they were allergic to the golden light, the mouths couldn’t move an inch closer.

  Shivering from fear, I huddled closer to Dad. He raised his hand, calling out loudly, “I call upon the people of Glanzvoll, grant me your strength!” A massive sword appeared in his hand. It was a gigantic, ornate blade made out of pure light. Like thunder, the sword came down, and from it shot a pillar-sized lightning bolt.

  The bolt struck the monster, vaporizing it. Only a transparent gem was left behind. But the lightning wasn’t done, it flew further through space, leaving a trail of light in its wake, flying towards other monsters and vaporizing them too. Dozens of dark dots were snuffed out each, until no more remained. Goosebumps prickled my skin, as if everything I knew bent around the sight.

  Father threw away the sword of light and it dissolved into a shower of sparks. He looked at the gem and outstretched his hand. Like a bullet, it flew into his palm. Laughter broke the stifling fear as he spoke in an upbeat tone, “Magnus, you didn’t close your eyes.” Dad chuckled as if this was nothing to him.

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  “N-no…” The wriggling mouths and clawing hands flickered at the back of my head, sending shivers down my spine. I could’ve been dead, if not for Dad’s power…

  “It’s alright, son. The geists here are weak; you don’t need to fear anything when I’m with you.” We flew through the windless space. “When you grow up, you’ll have to fight them, just like your older brother does.” Dad let out a soft laugh.

  “I don’t want to fight!” Just thinking about fighting these things made bile rise up my throat. “B-but I want to do magic.” It was some kind of primal draw, the desire eclipsed even the constant headache.

  Dad slowed down and, after a moment, said, “Nobody wants to fight, son. But as nobles, it is our duty to defend against null geists.” So determined was his voice that I couldn’t find a word to respond with. “And it’s not magic.” He sighed.

  The closer we approached the barren surface of the moon, the more apparent the massive dome appeared. Like a jewel crowning the lifeless gray, it stood in defiance of the natural order.

  Beneath the transparent dome, a massive city appeared. It was a marvel of architecture, almost as amazing as my father’s power. Two spires pierced the dome – one was launching space-ships, the other was a library…

  “We’re almost home, Magnus! Wasn’t this cool?” Dad’s expectant voice interrupted my thinking.

  “It was cool; I hope you fly me again.” I couldn’t speak with any enthusiasm, soon I’ll be trapped in the mansion again with no one but her… I shook my head, trying to dispel these thoughts.

  Soon we reached the glassy dome, so close I could touch it with my bare hands.

  “One day, you’ll be able to fly yourself!”

  A part of the dome turned transparent, opening a circle to go inside. And as we passed through, gravity pressed on my body, making it hard to move. Dad flew through the city, the skyscrapers passed by so quickly I could barely focus on individual buildings. The bustling of the city made me want to go back to space.

  He slowed down as a forest of blue glowing mushrooms opened up beneath us, hiding a massive manor in the middle. “We’re here!” Dad levitated down, landing in the courtyard.

  Mother stood near the door, impatiently tapping her foot. She wore a majestic dress that glinted in the light as if it were made out of rubies. She shook her head; the tiny dots on her dark-purple hair shone with red light. I couldn’t help but feel disappointed, we were back too soon.

  Father stopped glowing, and the invisible force that held me to him disappeared. Gently, he put me down. “How did you like the light-show, dear?” He took off the golden helmet, revealing a confident smirk. His weathered face betrayed age, but the carefully groomed gray hair and beard made him look spry.

  A warm smile spread on her face, “Richter, these geists were for soldiers. I told you not to overindulge. And did you have to fly so fast? Magnus is pale!”

  The dizziness from returning to gravity almost made me fall. Almost. “I’m fine, Mom! My head doesn’t even hurt that much.” If I didn’t pay attention to it…

  “Magnus is stronger than you think!” Dad rolled his eyes.

  Mom sighed and took off a glove from her hand. She walked towards me, as I tried my best not to show any reaction. “Give me your hand, I’ll take the pain away.”

  The migraine was getting worse by the second. It hurt so much that I saw lights flicker in my eyes. “I’m fine. I’m three already! I don’t need healing.” If I stared into them, I could almost see familiar places. The pain wasn’t just an illness; it was-

  Mom grabbed my hand. With her finger, she drew shapes on my palm, etching some kind of symbol with light. The lights grew, becoming pictures, shapes, memories.

  I could see familiar faces, familiar places, so unlike anything that’s here. Berlin, the river Spree, and my dog Goze. And then they disappeared in an instant. A wave of comfort passed through my body, and the pain vanished. The visions vanished.

  Dad put a hand on my shoulder, “How are you doing, champ?”

  My head felt jumbled. “There are many things I’d rather be doing than this.” The words came out naturally, as if I couldn’t control my tongue.

  My parents exchanged an uncomfortable glance. Mom sighed and said, “Magnus, what’s going on with you?”

  “I need to learn more… I need to learn quicker.” I couldn’t stop myself from talking, as if something possessed me. “There are bad things coming.”

  Richter stared at me with care, as if he was trying to hide his inability to parent. “Son, what bad things?” I knew he would become an instrument of my success.

  Lidia’s face turned serious as she held my hand tighter. “Don’t spur him, you’ll worsen the episode.” She started drawing the magic symbols again, a way to become-

  The light shone brightly once again. Unnatural fear coursed through my body – an elusive thought occupied my mind, one which I forgot that instant.

  Mom shook me lightly. I felt so much better already. “Thanks, Mom! My head doesn’t hurt anymore.”

  She sighed, standing up. “Magnus, you need to tell us when your head hurts, okay?”

  “Yes, Mom! Can we play now?”

  She forced a smile, but it wavered, quickly. “Magnus…”

  Dad grabbed her hand. His brow furrowed. He hesitated before speaking, as if weighing every word, “You’ll have to stay with Vogelgesang. The Trade Coalition meeting is soon and we’re needed…” He placed a hand on my shoulder, voice soft and encouraging. “Don’t worry, you can play with Vogelgesang.”

  My stomach churned. “C-can you take the elf with you? I don’t want to be with her. It’s not like she even does anything…”

  Dad shook his head. “Someone has to watch over you, but don’t worry, son.” He raised an eyebrow. “I have a little gift for you.” He grabbed something from his belt – the transparent gem that the monster turned into. “Put your hand on it, it’ll be a surprise.”

  I hesitated for a second, but eventually my curiosity won out and I held my palm against the gem. It was warm.

  Dad smiled widely and spoke loudly, “Give us something good, Source!” And just like that, the gem crumbled, and the fragments started shining brightly. They wriggled beneath my palm like ants, and then the light dimmed.

  I removed my hand and stared at the thing. It was familiar.

  Dad’s eyes widened as he scratched his head. “Is this a data-pad?”

  I felt certainty; my heart raced with excitement. “It’s a phone.” I grabbed it, feeling the familiar glass texture. Then I pressed the on button.

  Somehow, the screen became darker. Mother grabbed the phone and threw it away.

  “No! Wait!”

  It flew so far that it hit a mushroom tree. Then darkness started spreading out further and further. The air wheezed and sang a black void expanded outwards consuming a tree and a few meters of dirt around it. My throat became dry… I could’ve died.

  Mom shouted angrily, “Richter! Why did you give him the drop before scouting it?!”

  “I thought it was just a data-pad, not a null bomb!”

  “It’s a null geist core! Of course, it’ll be something dangerous. I can’t believe you were so reckless.”

  The arguing continued until they were forced to leave for work. All I could do was mourn my phone, and the elf watching over me never cared. Dad never took me on another trip. Much time passed and my loneliness grew into desperation.