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The look on Caleb Widogast’s face when he entered their small shared home on the outskirts of Nicodranas told Essek everything he needed to know.
The weary wizard had entered covered in dirt and dust via the front door rather than the attic which housed their teleportation circle. That alone signaled he was drained of magic and the confrontation he had planned against Ludinus Da’leth had not gone well. It was the look in his eyes that scared Essek far more than anything that might have happened during the Apogee Solstice.
Caleb looked at him with a weariness that he had not seen before, but nevertheless knew would one day appear. It was the weariness of a being with a much shorter lifespan truly feeling the disparity in their ages, and in the number of years stretching before them. Caleb hid it well, his eyes softening as he crossed the distance between them and pulled Essek in for a chaste kiss. Essek returned it and cast prestidigitation to remove the worst of the muck from Caleb’s clothes before pulling the Zemnian man in for a hug. All the while though, his mind spun with the realization that he was almost out of time.
Essek was familiar with what often happened when two beings of vastly different lifespans realized the disparity was more than they could take. It was not common, but nor was it unheard of in The Kryn Dynasty. After all, the Luxon could grant you a new life but it could not promise a certain form. Many souls married in an early life found themselves growing apart once one of them was a long lived race while the other would only survive a few decades. If that hadn’t been enough proof, his brother Verin was all the confirmation he needed. Verin fell in love easily, unlike Essek. More importantly, Verin’s charm had others falling in love with him in return. Verin often brought his paramours to meet Essek in place of their mother, after the Umavi scared off the first few. He had met orcs, bug bears, goblins, drows, and on one memorable occasion an eisfurra. They broke up for various reasons in the end but far too many of the short lived ones bore that same look in their eyes before stating they weren’t sure they could bear being with someone who would stay the same while they withered and died.
Essek had thought of ways to combat this in his free time. After all he had spells like tether essence that could bind creatures together for short periods, surely given the nature of dunamancy he could find something more permanent. It was only ever a thought experiment, purely academic in nature given the limited practical applications compare to the components and energy it would undoubtedly take. Then he met Caleb Widogast, a man who burned so brightly and cared so deeply despite all the pain it had caused him. When Essek fell in love with Caleb Widogast he couldn’t help but think more seriously about finding a way to remove the natural barriers of time that separated them.
Essek pushed thoughts of his project from his mind for the rest of the night, eager to enjoy his partner’s company. It had been some time since he had initially left with Beauregard in pursuit of Ludius Da’leth. He had gotten caught up in a number of adventures during that time and while Essek longed to be by his side and protect him, they had agreed it wasn’t worth the risk of revealing himself until they knew more. Once the solstice had occurred it made it all but impossible to try and join Caleb when he had no reliable way of communicating with him.
The two wizards spent the night curled against each other. First spent nearly an hour in the bath where Essek washed his lover and traced any new scars while Caleb told the stories behind them. Then they curled together in front of the fire Essek on Caleb’s lap as they shared the stew Essek had spent the day making. Finally, they joined together in bed, savoring each moment.
Once Caleb’s eyes finally slipped closed Essek’s thoughts returned to his research. It was nearly there. Nearly wasn’t enough to present to Caleb. He wanted it to be perfect before he broached the subject because he feared Caleb would say no if he didn’t have a completed spell. After all there were many unsavory ways a wizard could extend their life indefinitely at the cost of others. That’s not something Caleb would ever abide by and it wasn’t Essek’s goal. He also worried that even if he managed to complete the spell Caleb would still say no. He wanted to see his parents again and this would keep him from doing that for a few hundred more years. He’d likely outlive most of the Nein aside from perhaps Caduceus as well. He’d probably have to leave his post at the academy once it became noticeable he wasn’t aging as a human should. All of these thoughts weighed on him and kept him from a restful trance.
They continued as normal for the next few weeks, or as normal as things could be while they were each burdened with thoughts that their time was running short. It all came to a head one night when Caleb’s tripped and twisted his ankle on the cobblestones as he came home from work. Essek corralled him into a chair by the fire so he could check the damage and apply bandages as needed.
“Thank you for caring for this old man, liebling.” Caleb started a wistful look in his eyes.
The tone of his voice made Essek pause in his work and look up at his lover. What he saw told him instantly that his time had run out. He took a deep breath and tried to quell the panic rising inside. “And here I thought I was the old man in the relationship.” He finally ground out, hoping his fear wasn’t evident.
“I think I am feeling the weight of my age these days. I worry, I am not as young as I once was. Soon I’ll be a decrepit old man.” Caleb answered.
Essek could tell the self-flagellating words were chosen carefully in an attempt to appeal to Essek’s vanity. “And I will love you all the same.” He replied trying to decide if it was time yet to broach other options.
Caleb made the decision for him by interrupting his thoughts. “Oh schatz, I would not have you waste your best years caring for an old man. It wouldn’t be fair to you. Besides, I would have you remember me at my best, as a fleeting star in the great constellation of your life.”
Essek felt a rage well inside him. It was too late for that, all of his possibilities had been bound to Caleb from the moment they shared magic. Caleb would never be fleeting. “I appreciate that but I am a selfish man. I know what I want in my life and what I want is you, Caleb Widogast. You are my guiding star and I will not give you up for mere vanity, even if you lose your teeth and hair I would love you all the same.”
Caleb frowned, his brow furrowing. It seemed as if somehow he had not expected Essek to push back. Once again, his own self worth paling in comparison to the value his loved ones placed on him. “Essek, I…” he seemed to tread more carefully now. “We are already so entwined and I will be gone before long. I don’t want you to further entangle yourself with me when I’m only going to be forced to leave you in the end.”
“Then don’t.” Essek interrupted, his voice soft and low.
“Was?” Caleb answered in Zemnian.
“Don’t leave me.” Essek answered his eyes shining with determination.
“Essek, I’m human, I’m going to die, you know this.” Caleb seemed confused by Essek’s insistence, not daring to think of the sort of dark magic not dying would entail.
“You don’t have to. At least… you don’t have to die without me. We could bind ourselves together. I’ve been working on a spell based on tether essence…” Essek answered with a confidence he didn’t feel. He understood magic, he knew what it was missing and was confident they could complete it together. He just didn’t know if Caleb would be willing.
“I won’t have you shorten your lifespan for me, Essek, I won’t have you die in another couple of decades just so we can be together.” Caleb interrupted, not understanding the full breadth of the spell.
Essek bit his lip for a moment trying understand before scowling in recognition. “I don’t intend to die in mere decades. What I’m talking about is different. It’s not just an extended tether essence. It doesn’t just bind two together so that any ailment that befalls one befalls both. What I am creating takes the potential time of two beings, their natural lifespans and binds them into one, the weave of magic braiding them together. The intention is in two creatures with different lifespans where one thread ends the other takes the burden so that they remain together. I’m not even halfway through my second century yet, even accounting for your shortened timeline our combined potentials would continue for a few hundred more years.”
Caleb seemed stunned. He sat quietly for a few moments before getting up and pacing back and forth across the room, his brilliant mind racing taking in the potential consequences of such a spell. He finally stopped and turned back to Essek. “I need to think about this… I… I am going to have more questions.”
Essek stood up and sighed, his heart rate coming down as they tabled the conversation for now. “Of course, I didn’t mean to spring this on you suddenly. I just, didn’t want you to do anything rash without knowing all of your options.” He picked up the bandages and made the gestures to send them back to his wrist pocket. “How about we get dinner for now?”Caleb nodded, and Essek led him into their small kitchen.
They didn’t speak of it again for almost two weeks. It was somewhat surprising that it took that long for Caleb to bring up given he was usually eager to learn anything and everything Essek was willing to share about his research. Essek couldn’t blame him though given the sensitive nature of the subject. In fact, he used it to his advantage, organizing notes and citing sources in a way he hadn’t since he published his thesis arguing that The Luxon Beacons should be available for scholarly research. He could only hope his audience received his work better than the dynasty did.
Essek was settling into his trance, sitting up in bed with Caleb lying across his lap when he heard the other wizard speak. “What does it cost?”
Essek thought carefully about how to answer, intuiting that Caleb wasn’t merely referring to spell components. “Nothing consequential. Perhaps a century where I’d be old, lonely, and set in my ways. If anything you’d be saving me from becoming like many of the ancient wizards we’ve met.” He ran his fingers through Caleb’s hair as the other man’s brows furrowed. “I wouldn’t offer something I wasn’t willing to give, my starlight. You have changed me for the better but I am still a selfish man at my core. I want to be a person worthy of you, and I can’t be that person if you aren’t here to guide me.” Caleb blushed beneath him. His skin beginning to match his hair.
“You would find other ways, maybe even other loves, and The Nein would always help you.” Caleb countered.
Essek smiled, but it was bitter. “Most of the Nein will outlive you by a few decades at most. Beyond that, I don’t want other ways, and certainly not other loves. They wouldn’t hold a candle to you.” He took a deep breath, steeling his nerves before continuing. “I will abide by whatever you choose and I will respect whatever your wishes are but please don’t make a decision based on what you think is good for me or what I would want. Do what will make you happy, even if that means leaving me behind.” Essek could feel tears welling in his eyes but held them back so Caleb wouldn’t notice how raw he felt.
They sat in silence for a lot time before Caleb finally answered. “How close is it to complete? I wouldn’t want you stuck with an old man who can’t even walk without injuring himself if I were to agree.”
Essek chuckled, wiping away the tears before they could fall. “Well, I have most of the work down. I think I am just missing a few pieces. I know how to bind the potentials together, I just don’t know how to make the weave recognize them as a single timeline, I think it might be best to transmute them into a single thread but I haven’t had time to consult an expert. You wouldn’t happen to know anyone who could help, would you?” Essek teased.
“Ah, I’m sure there is someone who specializes in transmutation around here, maybe it’s best if I take a look to ensure the accuracy of your methods.” Caleb offered with a wink.
“I would love that. After all you are a well respected professor, surely you know someone with a bright mind of transmutation.” Essek teased back before letting silence fall once more. “I’ll have the notes in the morning.” He said as his eyes grew heavy once more. “Thank you for considering this.”
Essek received his notes back two days later with revisions on how best to merge something intangible in the weave. It seemed promising enough but the look on Caleb’s eyes said it wasn’t quite that simple. “There are two possible runes that can be used to do this and I’m not certain which will work or if it needs to be a combination of the two.” He explained. “There’s very little roadmap for combining transmutation with dunamancy in this way and that map is one we made. I want to be certain this won’t backfire on you if I make a mistake.”
Essek nodded. He understood all too well Caleb’s concerns. Fortunately he had never planned on starting by testing the spell on themselves. “I took the liberty of ask Caduceus for some plants at various stages of development with varied life cycles. I believe they will make fine subjects for testing your runes.”
The plants thrived as their spell components diminished and soon Essek found himself expanding their garden with all nature of unique flowers. He had tulips that would bloom for six months at a time, snowdrops that bloomed at the start of fall, sunflowers in the winter, and more than a few hybrids created during early mishaps where they combined the plants themselves instead of their potential timelines.
Nearly a year after their initial research Essek and Caleb were both confident in the spell. All that remained was to actually use it. Caleb hadn’t mentioned a date and Essek didn’t dare ask out of fear the wizard would back out.
Instead life continued as normal between studying, Caleb’s teaching, and cataloging notes of their adventures the two wizards kept busy while finding small moments they could steal away together. Tonight was one such moment. Caleb had left work early and transported them out to a remote field with little more than a picnic basket and a blanket. They shared a meal of fresh meats, cheeses, breads, and jams Caleb had purchased on his way home.
After the meal Caleb had encouraged Essek to lay on the blanket and though he was initially reluctant he had to admit it gave him a better view of the stars. They remained like that for nearly an hour hands entwined. Neither speaking until suddenly Essek saw a streak pass through the sky. He let out a small gasp of shock as another appeared. Then he saw one more. Soon the sky was filled with streaks of light as a meteor shower made its way across the sky.
“How did you know?” Essek asked finally. He often checked the astrological calendar for events like this and there had been no mention of an upcoming meteor shower.
“Jester messaged me at lunch to tell me they saw a meteor shower from where they are at sea and I thought it was worth seeing if it was visible from here.” Caleb explained. “I figured the worst case is we’d miss it and we’d just spend time together stargazing instead.”
“It was beautiful.” Essek breathed out, a small smile on his face. “I’m glad we got to see it together.” He heard Caleb shift to his side to face Essek, so the drow turned to do the same.
“I want more of this. I want as much time as possible. I don’t know if I’m worthy of the happiness I feel when I’m with you and I know sometimes you feel the same but we found each other and that has to mean something.” Tears started to well up in Caleb’s eyes as he spoke. “I want to remain by your side, always. I was hoping perhaps, you’d be willing to humor my traditional nature and marry me?”
Essek’s eyes widened. He hadn’t expected that. Any formal marriage between them wouldn’t be recognized by any sort of authority. Still, when he remembered Beau and Yasha’s wedding he thought back to how he wished he could have that sort of public declaration of his love for Caleb. “Of course. If we intend to bind our lives together it only makes sense to celebrate it.” Essek answered as Caleb took his hand and slid a ring on his finger. It was subtle compared to the one he had seen in the upper echelons of the Kryn Dynasty and yet it was more beautiful than any he had seen, with threads of sparkling sliver with shades of pearlescent white peaking through an inlaid center.
“I thought, perhaps we could perform the spell, our spell the night of the wedding. I initially thought during the wedding but given the extended cast time I fear our friends would get bored and draw dicks on our faces.” Caleb chuckled.
Essek was still enchanted by the ring and it took him a moment or two longer to process what Caleb had said. “Yes, of course. Besides, I think perhaps binding ourselves in such a manner may be a bit more intimate than I care to share publicly.”
Caleb pulled Essek into a kiss and soon the two were entangled in a well known dance. Their bodies became one with the knowledge that their time on this world would soon be one as well.