Magic was pain. For Chy, a human, there was no other choice. He had a gift. But if he wanted to learn the craft he had to visit the Heartfire Temple regularly, sit on a throne and have the spells burnt into him. But what was the point in having the gift and doing nothing with it? So he went.
For Elodie, magic was duty. A Guardian in the Heartfire Temple she lived to bring the worshippers to the thrones and help them grow in their gifts.
And for Fylarne the Head Guardian at the Temple, magic was both a curse and equally the only hope he had of saving his family. The sprites had his family and they were using them as hostages to get him to give them the one thing they had always wanted - the Heartfire Temple.
But for all three as they struggled with their problems, magic would prove to be one thing more - the only thing keeping them from complete ruin.
