The Lost Books of the Mage College (Dungeons & Dragons & Writers)

THE

BOOKS OF THE MAGE

The Lost Books of the Mage College © June 2022 by 826NYC and its student authors. All rights re served, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.

Thank you! An enormous thank you to the staff and volunteers at 826NYC. Thank you to Teaching Artist David Ewalt for running this program. A special thank you to Andrew Bauch, Nick Eliopulos, Nicholas Martinez, Chris Ahearn, and Corin Scher volunteering during the program, as well as editing and proofreading this publication. And finally, thank you to Rob Kimmel (robkimmel.com) for designing this beautiful book.

This program is supported by 826 National, the Amazon Literary Partnership, The Jane Friedman Anspach Family Foundation, Con Edison, The Find Your Light Foundation, The Hawkins Project, International Paper, The Rona Jaffe Foundation, The Kettering Family Foundation, The Pierre and Tana Matisse Foundation, The Minerva Foundation, The Pinkerton Foundation, The Resnick Family Founda tion, The Yelp Foundation, and Youth, Inc. This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council. Additional support comes from the National Endowment for the Arts. To find out more about how National Endowment for the Arts grants impact individuals and communities, visit www.arts.gov. 826NYC is grateful to the many individuals who support our work. To see our full list of supporters or make a donation, please visit https://826nyc.org/donate-us/.

right of

in whole or in part in any form.

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The writing in this book was produced during 826NYC’s Dungeons & Dragons & Writers program in the 2021-2022 school year. 826NYC programs are designed for students ages 6-18. www.826nyc.org

this book for when you are older.

TABLE of CONTENTS

Characters

PLAYER CHARACTERS

Airlene, the Half-Elf wizard played and written by Dominique Thijssen

Airlene has silky whitish hair going to her waist. Her hair is speckled with dark blue and gold speckles and streaks. She also has golden dangly star earrings, and slightly pointed ears. Her eyes are a piercing bluish-green color. She has a tight green button-down shirt and tight black knee length leggings. On top of the leggings is a sparkly transparent skirt open in the front. The skirt goes down to her knees. She has shiny black ankle boots. Over everything she has a long black billowing coat.

Anorak , the Half-Elf wizard played and written by Lukas Halene

Anorak has a long white beard, black hair, and blue eyes. He is tall and young. He has an athletic body under his long brown robes. He wears hiking boots. He has a lot of magic items, and usually has zombie servants. There are a lot of hidden pockets in his robes that only Anorak knows where they are, and he keeps his father’s wand in the same pocket where he keeps his special book, and keeps weap ons in another pocket. He is a necromancer, but he does not smell like zombies or anything undead or smelly!

Asteria Amostacia , the Wood Elf ranger played and written by Rebecca Cavallaro

She is pale and skinny. Asteria is unassuming, she certainly doesn’t look like a fighter or anyone to be scared of, but it has been long since that was true. Underneath her left eye she has a scar, it’s hard to see because of time, but it is not easy to forget. Asteria’s long hair always lay braided, her shining eyes are always looking for danger and deception. She stalks through the shadows unseen, moving to a rhythm only she can hear. No matter where she goes, she is accom-

panied by her most loyal companions, her bow and arrows. (And, of course, her dog.)

Bob, the Aasimar sorcerer played and written by Maxwell Finer-Regn

When he came into the room, the lights all of a sudden dimmed. He had two daggers on one of his hips, a giant club on the other. When he offered his money for a glass of moisture, you could see a little of his hair, and it was pitch black. His eyes were glowing, and when his glove slipped off, it was just blackness. Then he just rushed off.

Juno Axel, the Wood Elf cleric/monk trickster played and written by Kemal Cater

Juno Axel is pretty short, in human terms, of course. He’s on the short end of the Elven scale, at just over five feet. Juno is slender and lanky, with skin paper white. His hair, a stark contrast to his skin, is black, dark enough that it seems to absorb light. Juno’s hair is disheveled and long, hanging to his shoulders, almost framing his face. He rarely smiles, and Juno’s mouth is almost as pale as the rest of his face. The only color in his face is his deep blue eyes, His eyelashes are unnaturally long for a male, but not made-up long. Judo tends to wear flowing tan robes, the arms decorated with elven runes and barely covering his arms that look as though they could be twigs. His neck is covered in scales fading into skin, the red scales deco rated to look like tattoos. His shoes are common leather shoes. On the inside of his robes are a number of sheaths holding daggers, two decorated with glowing magical runes, He manages to look amused while always keeping a perfect poker face, and keeping his eyes very hard. A jagged scar rips through his face, from the 11 o’clock position to the 5 o’clock position, just barely going over his eyes, the scars only slightly darker than his skin, and hard to see.

Merlin , the Elven rogue played and written by Hannah Podraza Born in a cave in the mountains, I was a descendant of a wizard and an Elf. I got mostly the Elf genes, but some part of me felt like

something else is growing inside of me. This feeling messed with my head, and gave me the ambition to destroy everything positive that comes in my way. I had no intention of changing back any time soon. As this evil spirit grew inside me, it absorbed me, making me want to rule the kingdom. Over time, I set out a journey to cause malice in the kingdom. When suddenly I fell into a dug-out hole and hit my head. I didn’t know what had happened. When I woke up, I saw a creature standing over me. It was a dragon. I was scared for a mo ment, but then realized that it was friendly. It became my friend, and I couldn’t recall any previous memories and I forgot about my evil intentions. I went off with my new dragon friend on an adventure looking for new friends.

Mandu, the Dwarf rogue played and written by Logan Alzamora

Mandu has curly hair, and he is trained in any way of sorcery, and he has an amulet and a wand, as well as a crossbow with daggers and an evil shadow with its own dimension, and he has a bag with his gold pieces and anything else that is important. He also has a strap where he keeps his daggers. He also has a guitar that he plays every night, and it reminds him of his dead parents and his burntdown village.

Silverflame Dávir, the Eladrin rogue

played and written by Dashiell Finer-Regn

He walks past extruding an aura of purpose. He looks at you and you see a reddish-orange face. His hair is sort of spiky, like licks of flame. His eyes burn red, and seeing you, he pulls down the hood on his cloak, colored cold black. The scimitars sheathed on his black leather belt, next to a vial of greenish liquid, jump into his hands as he blocks an attack, turning a strike whose power he cannot match with his lanky Elf arms, deflecting it sideways. His sheaths his scimitars as he evasively backs off, and draws two small crossbows. He glances, adjusts, and shoots, walking off as if he predicted the fatality. His expression never changes. No emotions show on his youthful face, deceiving after several millennia. A scar across the left eye completes his face, along with a slash across his hand. His nose is small, and his eyes shift between every moving object in the room,

ever vigilant. He pins his cloak with a silver and ruby cloak pin that matches his weapon’s hilts. He steps onto a silvery metal disc, and flies into the midnight, finally smiling for just a second.

Snowy, the rogue fighter played and written by Fatima Natividad Rodriguez

I learned all my skills training with a friend’s dad. I worked all morning and into the evening. I also learned how to work in a team.

Steve, the Human rogue played and written by Vincent Huang

Steve was born in a village. His father was a blacksmith, and his mother was a leather worker. Then his so-called little sister Alex was born. Two years later their village was pillaged. Steve, and Alex watched hopelessly as villagers were brutally murdered by ravag ers. Steve’s prize possession is a netherite sword, forged from fine netherite found deep into the danger of the nether. This was not only Steve’s possession, but the whole village’s possession, mainly because they spent months and months in the danger of the nether just to craft it, sacrificing a few villagers along the way. Now it is his job to take care of it.

Unknown , the Elf fighter played and written by Isaac Natividad Rodriguez

I was a kid in a science lab and my dad said don’t touch anything. I went through a portal and it stronger, it turned me into an Elf and I went to a different world where I have to fight dragons. I began to be a fighter because I was training by myself by using a sword and a bow. I have adventures, but I keep trying to find a place to go back to Earth to see my family.

And our volunteers…

Alexander, the Human rogue, played by Andrew Bauch Milo, the Halfling bard, played by Nick Eliopulos B.R.A.D. (Bipedal Robotic Armored Defender), played by Nicholas Martinez

Dewey & Marv, played by Dungeon Master David M. Ewalt

THE FIRST ASSIGNMENT

A note from Dewey, Head Librarian, Simon’s Town Mage’s College: Due to a recent spike in the number of overdue, stolen, or otherwise missing books from the library’s collection, I have resorted to hiring a group of adventurers to recover our precious books. As a first test, I asked them to find a shipment of elementary magic textbooks that never arrived here at the college. If they can find them and complete the delivery, I will be confident in their abilities, and will task them with recovering more valuable manuscripts.

Naturally, as head librarian and recognized authority of the history of Simon’s Town, I have also asked the adventurers, as a condition of their employment, to record the details of their journeys so that I may record them in a published history. If you are holding this manuscript, they were successful in that regard.

STEVE: When we left the library, we decided that we should ask ev eryone in Simon’s Town if they knew anything about missing books. We found that the book shipment always goes missing, two or three hours north, where there’s a cavern where monsters can be. So we set off on the Northern Road, until we reached an unusual shape in the distance. Silverflame decided to sneak there and check it out, and when he came back he told us that there was a dead horse, and a bunch of broken crates on a wagon. Half of us decided to check the crates, while me and Merlin decided to search the perimeter of the area.

Although I found nothing, Merlin did find a bunch of tiny footprints that were inhuman, and Asteria found marks on the wagon that looked like something was stabbed into it. The people who searched the crates found a bunch of boxes that had with food in them, but the thing that was the most interesting was the empty crate that said, “Library Tower, Mage’s College.”

After that find, Asteria the ranger decided to follow the trail that led us all to a hole into the side of the hill. There was a small door there

that had a sign nailed to it saying, “Welcome, guests. We can’t wait to have you for dinner.”

JUNO: When we entered the caves, we went through a tunnel that was fairly straight. When we met a fork, we went right, springing a trap. So we backtracked and went left. The only room there was a trash room, which I immediately set on fire.

After Anorak froze the flames, we went back traversing the afore mentioned trap, and found some Kobold guards. We dispatched them quickly and moved on. We found their outpost, and took the healing potions there. After exploring more, we found a room full of Kobolds who were unfit for battle, such as the children, their moth ers, and the elderly. Silverflame communicated with an older Kobold, who told us the path towards the books.

I disguised myself into a Kobold, and when we found the room, I ran in screaming Kobold gibberish to confuse the guards. We apprehended them, and went back with the books.

MADAME MEYER’S MANSION

A note from Dewey: After the adventurers proved themselves. I decided to send them after the library’s most egregiously overdue title, held by one Madame Meyer, an eccentric woman who has continual ly refused to return it for more than three years past the deadline.

STEVE: After Dewey gave us this mission, we went to the shop to buy stuff. We got discounts because Silverflame scared the merchant. So we bought a wagon, and then traveled down the northern road, until we reached a large tree in the distance. Asteria immediately noticed something off with it, and as we went closer, we saw multiple tiny

red dots that definitely weren’t apples.

When we went closer to check it out, the dots it started fly out of the tree into a large flock, and charged towards us. As it got closer, we realized that they were tiny devils, each holding a tiny spear. All of us took turns killing them, but there seemed to be hundreds and hundreds of them, and most of our attacks were single hits, so we thought it would be impossible to win.

But just as we were running out of hope, Asteria forged a plan to take a large piece of cloth off the wagon, and try trapping a bunch of devils, so that the wizard could attack them with a thunderclap spell. It worked, and because of this, the rest of the devils got scared off.

When we approached Madame Meyer’s mansion, we saw from a dis tance that the house was guarded by small people with spears.

JUNO: Waiting outside Madame Meyer’s house, we discussed how to sneak in. Eventually we decided on casting an illusion to distract a guard.

ASTERIA: Anorak was supposed to make an illusion of an adventurer or someone who works for Dewey, but instead he made the illusion look like Dewey! When we asked him why, he said the reason was that he wanted to see Dewey with holes in him. I’m no magical person, but I don’t think that’s how illusions work… also, how rude! Of course, when we tried to tell Anorak to stop, he refused. Right around when the illusion was cast, we noticed the little guards were frog people! They would have been cute if not for the spears. Once the illusion of Dewey made it into a frog’s line of sight, the frog lowered the head of its spear. The illusion had some sort of conversation with the frog, which ended in Anorak laughing and the illusion running away.

While the illusion was chased around by the small frog (seriously, poor Dewey) Silverflame slipped away trying to get to the now un guarded door. Of course, so did the rest of the party because we all followed.

When everyone got in we started to look around. It was a grand lobby, or it used to be. Now it looked old and ruined. The staircase was old

and broken, it was dangerous. The paintings and their frames were rotting. We were probably being loud because a shrill, somewhat feminine voice came from the other room, saying something about guests, No one listened too hard because we all ran up the stairs trying to hide. Except of course, Anorak! (I can’t believe him sometimes.)

I was about to ask him what he was doing from upstairs, but the door burst open! A giant frog woman walked in. She greeted Anorak and they had one chaotic conversation. Madame Meyer is is probably a little crazy, because she seemed not to notice every time the party attempted to whisper-yell at Anorak. She thankfully thought Anorak was a good joker and not aan insane wizard. Eventually they went into the next room, but not before she mentioned the library in the back. So we made a plan. Me, Mandu and Alexander headed into the next room, while Juno and Silverflame went upstairs.

The room we walked into was in a similar state to the last one. Anorak sat on a broken couch in front of a table of rotting wood. Madam Meyer noticed us quite quickly. She was wearing a disgusting and worn dress covered in stains. She should consider a new seamstress.

She asked us to sit with Anorak and served “tea and snacks.” The tea was a nasty green, and there was a spider in my cup. The food was rotting. Meyer started talking about her parties, and eventually asked about us. I made up a weird story because I didn’t really trust her. What?! She gave me spider tea, do you expect me to trust spider tea? Which, by the way, was supposedly so bad, it was basically poison. Se riously, Alexander had some and immediately started turning green. Soon enough, Madam Meyer heard a noise and said she needed to tend to the baby. Almost right after she left the room, Silverflame and Juno ran in.

JUNO: Silverflame and I searched the upstairs area for the books, but found none. We then rejoined the others downstairs in a sort of dining room, but with spoiled food.

ASTERIA: While we waited for Madam Meyer to come back, the group awkwardly made small talk. We didn’t have too much time, though, before she walked back in. She didn’t seem to notice the new people. She was holding something swaddled, too big to be a baby,

and struggling to get out.

Juno moved around a bit, trying to get a look, before quietly sitting next to me looking quite worried. When Meyer wasn’t looking, Juno told me she had a wolf in there! I walked over and tried to calm it down. Meyer was too busy telling me I had a “calming presence” to notice Silverflame and a barely recovering Alexander sneaking through to where the baby was. I used “Speak to Animals,” and asked the wolf it was okay. Of course I got the answer I expected, which was, “She’s crazy! Save me!” Across the room Mandu was making weird gestures that confused me. Apparently he was using sign language. A few minutes later, Alexander and Silverflame ran back through the door with the book we were looking for.

Madame Meyer wasn’t exactly happy. She put the baby down and started screaming. Everybody made a mad dash for the door. Well, except for me and Anorak! My only reason was to save the poor wolf, but Anorak decided to attack Madame Meyer. Of course, he also had to set the house on fire through all this! I was still in the house and he set it on fire! I got out just out of pure luck.

JUNO: Asteria got the wolf to safety and befriended it, and we rode off on our cart. Anorak was forced to run behind the cart for a while until we let him back on, and then we all headed off to see Dewey.

THE TOWER OF MARV

SNOWY: We were walking back to the campus when suddenly I saw a piece of paper blowing through the air. When I walked into the library, all the books were on the floor, and paper too. Then a person came and told me that there was a break-in.

ASTERIA: We rushed to Dewey, concerned. When we made it in, we were informed that someone had broken in and stolen a book from the restricted section. What was worse was that was that it was an old teacher, Marv. He was fired for practicing forbidden magic. Apparently,

he stole Hurtoe’s Conundrum, a book of spell theory.

We set off to interview the guards. Marv wasn’t trying to disguise him self during the break-in. He was six feet tall, had grey hair, wore purple, and he was human.

What was confusing is that there is an anti-magic field in the library tower. So we decided to head out to where we thought Marv lives. We hopped in the cart, and had a fairly uneventful trip.

We arrived in an Elven village made of sticks and mud. Strangely, no one was there. In the distance there was a large stone tower, remark ably un-Elven. We heard some voices and investigated, and found a few kids playing a game. We approached to see five or six kids. They stopped when they saw us. I waved and tried to look nice. They seemed to be Wood Elves. A little one waved back, but an older one pushed their hand down.

MERLIN: The town was named Tea Leaf. When we got there, we saw no one there. There were only children playing, no adults, but there was also a big tower. We asked one of the children where their par ents were, and they said their parents were working in the tower

SNOWY: One of them got curious and asked, “What do you want to do with him?” So we said we just wanted to talk to him.

UNKNOWN: We asked the kids to tell us about Marv. The kids said, “My mommy and daddy said he’s a good person. Sometimes he can be a little angry, but he is good to us.”

So we went to the tower. There was a sign on the front door that said:

I understand you’ve been sent to collect a book. Unfortunately, I still need it. Leave now, and there won’t be trouble.

MERLIN: We tried to open the door but it wouldn’t budge. Then we went to the back and found a hidden door. I picked the lock and we got in. As we entered the tower, there was a right and left path. We chose the right. I inspected the room and saw footprints.

We followed them, and they led us to a room with a bunch of sup plies, and a magical door which we couldn’t open. So we left the room and went up the stairs.

UNKNOWN: At the top of the stairs we found a door, and a sign said you can’t go in unless you solve a riddle. It was hard, but I solved it. The answer was “a candle.” The door opened. Inside was dry, rotten food on a table. And there was a book there, but it wasn’t the book we were looking for. It was a guest book, and we found a page that al ready said all of our names. It was weird. But we ripped the pages out.

SILVERFLAME: The door swings open with a creak that hurts my sensitive Elf ears. The smell emanating from the banquet in the subsequent room is appalling. A meal that would have looked delicious last year is laid out on the table that is central to the room. I attempt to cross into the next room, but I am stopped by a wall of force. A spectral figure tells me to finish my meal before leaving. I down a vial of anti-venom in one gulp, and dig in. Needs salt. Also, way too much vinegar on that salad. I pass through the wall, unobstructed this time.

Down a corridor is a kitchen that looks abandoned, save for a pot that is boiling over. I open it, and a steam mephit jumps out. Ouch! Hot, hot! Juno storms in and smites the mephit. It dissipates.

Leaving the kitchen, we ascend a stairway. We find a locked door with an easy riddle. The answer is “book.”

Behind the door is a library. I wonder if any of the books are interest ing. I pull one off, and they all start flying off the shelf. They merge into a humanoid shape. It rises off the ground. I wonder if it’s friendly? It punches Anorak. Betting on not friendly.

I jump into it and hurl an orb of magical energy. Anorak creates a cone of flame. The room turns into a tornado of burning paper. I rip out one last page the and the Golem collapses.

The fire gradually dies off, and we proceed to the stairs, but are turned back. Literally. These steps magically turn you around. Let me try something. I walk up the steps backward, and it works.

We proceed into a workshop. In the middle is a person chained to

the ground. Wait, no, it’s just a suit of armor. Out of the suit’s joints spill droves of mechanical creatures. They’re kind of cute. One of them bites Asteria with an electrically charged set of teeth. We fight the creatures with spells and swords, finally prevailing. We enter the second to last floor. In the middle is a wall of fire. Nothing to do but cross. It burns. I make it to the other side, somehow un scathed. The phantom wounds still hurt. After a few seconds, people start trickling through the flames after me. First Juno, then Asteria, then everyone else. The flames crackle behind us. We cast long shadows in the firelight. Fire crackles across my skin. My eyes burn bright as we climb an ornate marble staircase, through a carved set of mahogany double doors.

This room was open to the stars. Their light reflected off the brass and crystal telescope that was the center of this observatory. Marv sits on a chair behind the telescope. My companion’s footsteps echo off of the extended dome that covers the room. It’s painfully loud to my sensitive ears. Could have woken every Drow between us and the Demonweb Pits.

Juno breaks the silence with a battle cry. He charges forward and smashes the telescope.

“Well, that’s unfriendly,” Marv says.

“So is theft,” I respond. “Give us the book,” Anorak interjects.

“That can be arranged. I just have one condition.”

“What is this condition?”

“One unspecified task in the future, carried out to the best of your ability.” But we must lie to Dewey about the deal. We discuss as a group. They decide to accept. Marv hands me the book.

I wonder if they’ll tell or not? Either way, Dewey won’t be happy.

THE ABANDONED MONASTERY

ANORAK: As I sat in the wagon going back to town, I thought about the book we got from Marv, and there was something about that book that I could not lay my finger on. I went to study the book, and then one or two hours later, we finally got back to Simon’s Town. So the second we got there we gave the book to Dewey, and we told him everything. I watched Dewey’s reaction.

MANDU: We all came back to the village planning, to tell Dewey a lie about how we met Marv. But some people told the truth, and some lied.

A note from Dewey: Until now, this team of freelancers had proven quite reliable. But their written reports from Marv’s tower were con tradictory; some reported that they fought him and forced him to hand over the stolen book; others claimed he gave it to them willingly, in exchange for a “favor.” Due to the inconsistency of their reports, I have decided to send my assistant, Milo, along with them on their next mission. He’s an honest lad and will report back to me on whether we should continue employing these adventurers.

MANDU: We met a halfling named Milo, and then we were interrupted by an origami crane heading towards us. And we knew that it meant another adventure. So we had to get ready.

Someone unfolded the crane, and it had magical lettering on it that said “I’ve been kidnapped and I need help. I’m trapped in an old monastery at the foot of the mountains, follow my crane and I’ll tell you more when you get here.”

Then we split into two teams, so we could find other clues to the monastery. Half of us asked around town, and half asked the ani mals in the forest to see if they knew anything. And we found out

that no one likes to go to the monastery, no matter what.

Mandu did not know what to do. So he trusted his companions with all of his faith, no matter what. He trusted his friends.

A report by Milo, Assistant Librarian: Our trip to the monastery was uneventful. This group seems capable and friendly, and chatted amongst themselves the entire length of the journey. When we arrived at our destination, I noted that the monastery appeared to be aban doned, as it was largely grown over with weeds and vines. But once we entered through the gates we found the grounds had been meticulously maintained. A large earth elemental tried to stop us from proceeding into the monastery building, but the team dispatched it with ease. Once inside, they searched the abandoned building and found a secret basement. There were several wily traps in those dark corridors, including a magically locked door that would not open until the adventurers solved a number puzzle carved into the tiles of the floor. We were exploring the corridor that followed when we heard a noise and spotted a tall woman with silky white hair.

AIRLENE:…Now, other people were coming out of the darkness. “How did you get here?” asked one of the people.

“A paper crane flew into my window,” I said, “And when I unfolded it, it said, ‘Help, someone has kidnapped us,’ so I folded it back together and followed it. And it led me here.”

They started whispering to each other. And then said, “We also found a note like that. Could we see yours?”

“Sure.”

I showed them the crane and unfolded it. Then a girl in the group said, “Well, shouldn’t we first share our names before working together? I am Asteria. This is Silverflame, Anorak, Milo, Juno and Mandu.”

“I’m Airlene.” I remembered what Lady Evergreen had told me — introduce myself with my “code” name. Once I joined them, we went further in the direction I was going, and the passage was split in three. We went to the left and into a room. It had four goblets and lots of rubble strewn around, and then suddenly the door crashed behind us. We were trapped.

I looked closer at the goblets and realized they all seemed to have symbols on each of them. Silverflame lit the first one on fire, and it burst up in flames. Asteria and I both got damaged, and my arms stung from the burns. Luckily Juno was an experienced healer and healed our cuts and burns. Then Silverflame lit the third goblet, and water swooshed out, diminishing the flames but almost drowning us in the process. We then decided to light the last one, because we had a theory. And sure enough, winds picked up, all the water disap peared, and the door swung open.

But instead of leading us back to where we came from, it led us to a new room. There was a curtain on the wall, and a water basin with out water, but instead there were herbs inside. Asteria checked the curtain out, and Juno and I checked the basin out. I checked around the bowl and the bowl itself. Juno was examining the herbs, then I brushed the herbs away and found a symbol at the bottom of the bowl. We lit up the symbol, and a smoky ghost flew out and started to attack.

We tried to fight it with daggers, fire, spells and things we had with us, but they weren’t working. Then Juno cast a spell that scared it away, hopefully long enough so that we could get out of this weird maze. Asteria told us that she found a dark hallway behind the cur tain. We then decided to go into the hallway. We didn’t exactly have another choice.

We traveled for what seemed like a long time. Finally, we came out of the long hallway to a cave that was open to the sky above. The ground was a garden. I made some hypotheses, and wondered if every day a magical cloud flew over the opening and rained down into it. We found a surface in the garden that was muddy and seemed to have been trampled on by something very large. There was nothing there, but next to it was a big stack of books. We flipped through the books and on one, magical letters appeared and a note scribbled itself, saying “You’ve found us!”

I gasped. This whole time, I thought the kidnapped ones were living beings. We decided to bring the talking book back to this guy called Dewey, a librarian. He might be able to help us gather more informa tion. I got to carry the magical book since I was a wizard… a sensible one, too.

THE TIME-TURNED FARMBOY

A note from Dewey: When the adventurers arrived back at the library, we discussed their findings. It was a most perplexing story. I was particularly worried about the fact that we still didn’t know who had stolen the book. So Silverflame decided to fly back to the cave and scout inside, in case the thief had returned to their lair. An hour later, Silverflame swooped in an open window (I must re member to close those!) and reported a most alarming discovery: A green dragon, curled up and sleeping on the floor of the cave. Was it possible a dragon would steal a book? They are known to be highly intelligent. Or was the dragon working for the actual thief? Was this connected to the wizard Marv? So much was unclear.

Fortunately, Milo’s report from the monastery re-assured me that this group of adventurers, while prone to disagreements, had their hearts in the right place, and could be trusted with future missions. That was a good thing, because the book they recovered from the monastery was a powerful magical tome that my records indicated had been checked out by a highly skilled wizard named Pallon. I could not imagine how it ended up in a pile of books in a cave, and I feared for his safety. So I sent the adventurers to go check on Pallon at his home up in the mountains.

AIRLENE: The next day we started on our mission to the mountain. We stumbled on a balsamic vinegar farm, and the lady there offered us five gold pieces each and a bed for the night, if we could figure out a way to get rid of some skeletons that were roaming around. She would give us a bonus if we could figure out why they kept on com ing, and if we could banish them forever.

First, our plan was to follow the skeletons but that ended up just unsuccessful. Then we spotted a huge oak tree in the field that was giving off a strange vibe. We shot a fire bolt at the tree, and it smoked. Then after about 10 minutes, there was a strange chime and everything went black.

We appeared right back at the lady. She acted like she never met us! Then we noticed that she really didn’t remember us. Did she get brain sweeped?

We went back to the field, but the skeletons were still there and the tree looked normal. So we developed a new plan, Some of us would follow the skeletons, and some would stay. We wanted to approach the tree, but because of the magic we felt around it, we decided not to. After another 10 minutes, we heard the chime sound again, and everything faded to black. We appeared in front of the lady again and she seemed to have again forgotten us. We had to come up with a new plan now. We asked the lady if her husband had tried to fight off the skeletons. She said, “Yes, he is resting now, because the skeletons keep reappearing. Say, could you try to get rid of the…”

“Where is he?”

“Who? My husband, He’s at the edge of the field over there.”

She pointed across the field. We walked over him and asked how he was fighting the skeletons. “With this shovel here,” he said.

Suddenly Juno grabbed the shovel, ran off to a skeleton, and bonked it on the head. A large dent formed in the skull, and it crumpled to dust. Juno continued in his rage and ran towards another. They all started running, but not towards something, more like away from a skeleton-murderer.

And then, sure enough, we heard the chime and everything faded to black. Once again, we ran to the field. Silverflame removed the magic from the old oak tree. We then headed towards it. There was a hole in the tree, and inside it was a human bone! It had some symbol carved into it. Juno took a good look at it, and discovered that he recognized the magic as Necromancy. Then the chime rang again. We asked the lady (who still had no memory of us) if she had a son. “Yes,” she said, while fiddling with her sleeve. “He studies a lot.” We exchanged looks. Asteria then ordered her pet wolf to rip off the lady’s sleeve, The wolf did, and we saw a symbol on the lady’s arm.

We finally built up enough with the lady that she spilled the beans. “It’s a protection spell. In the basement is my son. I’ll lead you to him. There is a large door, it’s a bit hard to find, but to get through, you have to say the family password, which is “Be Reasonable.”

We went down and found the door and went inside. We came into a

room with many squares on the floor. There were black, orange, blue, green, and red statues. When we went in a certain way, at specific points the statues would zap us and teleport us back to the edge of the room. We tried to get to the door at the other side, then I figured out that it was a huge interactive chess board, and each statue repre sented a chess piece. Then we heard a chime, and everything faded to black.

This time, we couldn’t earn much of the lady’s trust. She would lead us to the door but didn’t tell us the password Lucky for us though we already knew the password. We went in, entered a laboratory, and saw a boy, probably the lady’s son, working on something. There was some sort of invisible barrier between us so we couldn’t get to it, but Silverflame managed to get the barrier down with his magic.

When we confronted the boy, he was really surprised. “Oh! I didn’t know I had caused so much trouble,” he said. “I didn’t mean to have everyone stuck in a time loop. I just wanted to fix a mistake I made a while ago, I’m sorry.”

Then we heard the chime, and everything faded the black, but surprisingly, this time the lady remembered us. So instead of going downstairs again, we went upstairs to the boy’s room. We found a note on the floor that said:

Kendrick, remember what I taught you. Chronomancy is dangerous, but it’s the best way to fix your mistake. I’ll leave an enchanted fibula within the hollow of the oak tree. That should keep your parents busy and not investigate the basement laboratory. Burn this note, and everything else I have left behind, particularly the time spell after you’ve memorized it. Signed, Marv. P.S. the password to deactivate the Golem is your mother’s maiden name. Don’t forget!

We went back downstairs after the chime came and Silverflame hurt the boy Kendrick enough so he lost his concentration with the force field. We managed to tackle him and get the item that was setting the time loop, and turned it off.

The lady then gave us each five gold pieces, a barrel of balsamic vinegar, and one random item from the lost and found. I got a bag of magic beans, which can be very powerful. Then we continued our mission.

PALLON’S CAVE

MANDU: We had to climb up a mountain to get to the cave where Pallon lived. There was a stone door, and the only way to get in was by cutting yourself and giving up a lot of blood.

When we got inside, it was dark, but we had night vision. Inside was a living area. There was a cot with a dead body on it. We think that was Pallon. We started to look for a way out, but then the desk and tables and bookshelves came to life and attacked us. We set them on fire. Mandu tried to hide, and thought that setting things on fire was a bad idea, but then we froze the flames and put out the fire.

ANORAK: In the next room, the walls were made of stone but much smoother. There were five podiums in a circle. There were shelves surrounding the room with books on them that looked like they’d been hastily put on the shelves. I looked on the shelves and I found a book that was called Necromancy for Dummies.

I put it on one of the podiums, and the podium glowed red, and then a zombie walked into the room. It was the same body from the cot. “How did it survive the fire?” I yelled.

It started walking towards me, and I was like, “Oh, shoot.” But I didn’t say shoot. v shot a spell at it and it crumpled.

We tried placing different books on the podiums until Airlene put a book called Crab People on it, and a giant crab appeared. I said, “Ooh, let’s have roasted crab for dinner! It’s on the house!” Then I blasted it with Burning Hands.

We kept on blasting it with spells, and it snapped at people with its claws. We killed it with fire, and then Juno decided to steal my idea and took the roasted crab to sell to people back home. Curse you, Juno, if you are reading this!

We kept on placing books on the podiums. Sometimes they turned red, sometimes they turned gold. One time Juno put a book called The Tower of Babble on a podium, and it turned red and he started speaking gibberish. His nonsense sounded like “nang nang, nang-

nang nang nang.”

Another book, when we put it down, made a giant red slaad appear. We started fighting it. Silverflame jumped on it, and was clinging on to its back. He almost got hit by its claws, but they missed him. Then he punched straight into the slaad’s skull, pulled out a gem, and said “Stop!” The slaad stood at attention. He explained that the gem, when he was holding it, gave him full control of the slaad. It turned out he had gone on an adventure and encountered the slaads before. He told us it could plant eggs in you. “I don’t want eggs swimming through my blood, I’m not a trash can,” I said.

Milo had an idea. We took some of the books, and started placing them on the podiums in a shape of a star. And when we finished, the podiums sunk into the floor, making a staircase. It was pitch black down there. But most of us had dark vision, except for Milo. He was freaking out. “Help me. I don’t like the dark!” We all ignored him. When we got to the bottom, it looked like a library where the books were behind iron bars. But someone had torn apart the bars, not by magical means, but maybe with claws or tentacles, or whatever a monster would have. There were no exits out of the room. This must have been where the book collection was, before it was stolen.

Arlene took the talking book out, and we opened it. And it said, “Thank you, you brought me home!” So we put it on the shelf and left it there. Then we went back to report this to Dewey. Curse you, Juno the crab stealer!

THE CATHEDRAL’S CRYPTS

SILVERFLAME: Later we met Dewey and told him the news about Pallon. He paid us, and shared with us the news that someone tried to raid the cathedral and steal its holy books. We’re supposed to test its new defenses, and find weaknesses so they can be fixed. I assumed the disguise of a Firbolg monk and got right in. So they scored 3 out of 10 on the visitor examination.

AIRLENE: On a way to the monastery, we ran into a wizard named Marv, who had some kind of history with the other members of our group. Apparently, they were in his debt, which wasn’t good. He wanted to make them a steal a book for him from the cathedral. The others didn’t trust him, so neither did I.

He offered to get rid of that debt, and give us each 500 gold pieces, more than Dewey was going to give us. He also threatened that we couldn’t tell Dewey, and we could tell that he was serious, so we agreed. But Juno and Asteria noticed that Marv hadn’t said anything about not telling the monks,

We when we got to the cathedral, we told one of the monks. He went and got a Warforged guard named B.R.A.D, a man made of metal, to go with us and protect us… and not let us change our minds.

We went down a staircase to start our journey. We came into a very big room with stone walls with torches, and a dirt floor in the middle. There was a big pile of books and a glowing chalice on top, Juno started to climb the pile, but the moment he touched it, his skin began to wrinkle and age. So he jumped back down.

Anorak then used a Jump spell scroll, and jumped to grab the chalice, but when his fingers barely touched it, he disappeared.

Asteria then climbed the torches on the wall, up to the ceiling, and attached a rope there. She swung to the chalice and grabbed it… and also disappeared! This group I am with doesn’t have much sense. Then Mandu climbed up Asteria’s robe and touched the chalice and disappeared. Brad carefully tried climbing the pile, and nothing happened. So the rest climbed on his back and went up, except for me, They all touched the chalice and disappeared. B.R.A.D. made me promise to get help if he disappeared as well, then he touched the chalice and disappeared!

I thought about if I should get help or not, but I decided not to. So I swung up the rope and touched the chalice.

I instantly teleported into a room with two fountains, one on the left and one on the right. We went to the left, and Anorak jumped into it. We realized it was deeper than it seemed, and inside was a sea hag! Anorak first wanted to cast a lightning bolt, but apparently didn’t realize water plus lightning equals disaster. We talked him out of it.

MANDU: I jumped into the fountain, and fought the monster, and I won.

AIRLENE: After we defeated the sea hag, some of the others dived to the bottom and collected gold coins that were lying there.

After that, we went to the other fountain, and sure enough another sea hag was in there as well. But because of our experience, we quickly killed it. I dove down and collected some coins, and some one else found a slightly bigger coin that fit into a slit in the door. The door opened and let us into yet another room.

Inside, there was a marble statue. On the base of the statue, there were carved words that read “Do as I do.” When we did the same pose as the statue it moved, then we’d copy it again. We copied its moves for a while until it suddenly used a dagger to carve into its own palm and pull out a key. For a few seconds, we were shocked. Nobody wanted to carve into their own hand, but we figured it was our only chance, so Juno tried it. And surprisingly, he was able to cut a key out of his hand. We used it to unlock the door to the next room.

In the middle of the next room, there were four empty suits of armor, all enchanted and dancing with invisible partners around the room. Juno recognized the dance, and was able to dance around the room with one of the suits of armor, and reach the other side. After lots of practice, the rest of us were also able to dance through the room, and the door to the next room opened. We stepped inside.

A disaster. The bookshelves inside were all thrown down, there was a mess everywhere. Another guard like B.R.A.D was on the floor in pieces. We found a green scale in the mess, and strange blood on the guard’s sword. But the book we were supposed to be looking for was missing. We were shocked, and made our way back to tell the others.

THE THREE WIZARDS

A note from Dewey: It was becoming clear that these book thefts were connected, and orchestrated by someone very powerful. An analysis of the scale and the blood on the sword indicated it came from a green dragon –an extremely worrying development. If an evil dragon were involved in the theft of these books, the adventurers were in great danger, so I decided it would be wise to hire another hand to help the team in their subsequent missions: Bob, an Aasimar sorcerer, who had been loitering around the library. Frankly, he scared me, and I was glad to have him out of the building.

JUNO: We did some shopping and then headed off to Dewey to explain about what happened. He was super scared. While popping off ideas, we cross-referenced the topics of the stolen books. I brought up the idea that perhaps our mystery thief (Marv?) wants to summon the arcane god Azuth, capture him in a pocket dimension, and then do who knows what?

It turned out that a book on the exact subject had been checked out from the library recently. So we decided to check on the person who borrowed it, a student named Gorley.

When we got to Gorley’s home, no one answered the door. Silverflame flew through the window into the top floor of the tower. We heard nothing for a while, except for a few bangs and other noises. Finally, we knocked again, and Silverflame answered the door. So we went into the building, and of course immediately looted the place like any adventure group would. We found some food, but Silverflame had already gotten most the good stuff.

When we went to the basement, we found it was a bedroom, but there was a dead man on the floor, and the entire basement was filled with poison gas –pointing us further towards the idea that a green dragon was involved. After going upstairs to get some air, I held my breath and went back down to keep searching. In a small room off the bedroom, I found a heavy wooden box with a lid. I grabbed it and dragged it upstairs. It was only when we got it outside that I realized what it was. It was the toilet.

We never found the book that had been checked out from the library. The thief got it, whether it was a dragon, or Marv, or maybe both of them.

Next, we took the body to the village cleric, and paid to get the wizard resurrected. Once he was able to talk, he told us how he had been asleep, then woke up and realized he couldn’t breathe.

AIRLENE: We told him we think the thief was a green dragon. We also told him that Juno had accidentally stolen his toilet. He seemed very overwhelmed by that, so we decided to let him rest.

We made a plan that Silverflame would go to the cave where the dragon was nesting with my familiar, my turtle, and I’d look through the eyes of my turtle to see what was happening.

When Silverflame arrived at the cave, the dragon appeared to be sleeping. Silverflame sent his familiar to get closer, and all of a sudden, the dragon got up and blew a cloud of poison at the familiar, killing it. Apparently, the dragon was awake the whole time. Silver flame fled.

JUNO: After that we took Gorley back to Dewey, and Anorak and Asteria nearly trashed the library making dramatic entrances.

BOB: I told Dewey we’d thought the theft of the books meant that somebody is trying to use magic to trap a god, or they might be try ing to free a monster or something like that instead. They might even be trying to free Tiamat, since we aren’t sure who is behind all this, but it might be the green dragon.

JUNO: We told Dewey what we’d learned about the dragon, and that we think it’s seeming less and less likely that Marv and the dragon are working together. I actually think that Marv is doing the same work as we are, just from another angle, telling us to steal books to protect them. We decided to go to Marv’s place and talk to him, to find out his intentions.

SILVERFLAME: The horse’s hooves clumped down the road, but couldn’t drown out Anorak’s voice. He was distracting us with a story when an arrow flew out of the woods. Orcs!

“Raaaargh!” clanked B.R.A.D. “Ow!” said the Orc. Before he was a headless Orc. More arrows followed. I caught one that was shot at me, and hurled it back. Airlene through a bean from her magic bag, and it made a bunch of rocks combine into a statue of her. “Hey wimp, come get me!” said the statue. This is getting surreal. The orcs are easy, but the statue is weird.

BOB: We defeated the orcs, but the crazy statue just remained there and taunted us. I half buried it, and then most of the party went to see Marv, but some of us stayed around with me to chip at the statue for what felt like hours… just to find out it was purely made of stone with an enchantment on it that made it very impolite. Fortunately, it was also allergic to being buried in dirt.

JUNO: We saw Marv and talked to him. He agreed to help us, and gave us a dragon guard breastplate, a dragon slayer sword, and a mask that will block the dragon’s poison breath. We will soon confront the dragon.

BARONEX THE DRAGON

Final report from Dewey, Head Librarian, Simon’s Town Mage’s College: I have reviewed the written accounts of Airlene, Anorak, Asteria, Juno, Mandu, and Silverflame, the six adventurers who were present for the encounter with the great green dragon. In the interest of recording the event accurately for the historical record, I have compiled their tales and reconstructed them into the following narrative.

The adventurers travelled at midday, hoping to find the dragon asleep in its lair. As they approached the abandoned monastery, the forest around it drew quiet. Birds stopped singing, insects stopped calling. A low, acrid fog hung in the air. They were discuss ing their plan of attack as they drew close to the cave entrance, but were surprised to find their foe waiting for them, perched on the edge of the cavern: A huge green dragon, not yet fully grown, but still easily twenty feet tall, its massive wings folded at its sides.

The dragon watched the group as they approached, and then spoke in a rumbling voice. “So here are the tiny beings that have been snooping around. Why do you approach my lair?”

Juno spoke first. “Well sir,” he said, “we have been investigating the theft of several books, and at the scene of each crime there were rumors of draconic activity, and we were wondering if you had any thing to do with it?

The dragon snarled. “Rumors? I’m more than just rumors. I am Bar onex! I am doom!” He flapped his wings menacingly.

“So, what do you want with these books?” Juno asked. “You want to know what I will do?” The dragon chuckled, making a deep, terrifying noise. “You think I’m one of those villains who will tell you every detail of my evil plan?” “Yes,” said Juno.

“Well, you’re quite right. I have nothing to fear from you. I’m disap pointed you haven’t figured it out. I know that you followed me into Pallon’s cave. I know that you followed me into the crypts beneath the cathedral. But you have no idea of the power you came so close to finding! Those books will allow me to cast a spell that will make me all-powerful. They will make me a god!”

His head swiveled on its long, strong neck to gaze directly at Anorak. “You, wizard, what do you know of Azuth, the god of arcane magic?”

Before Anorak could open his mouth to answer, Juno spoke again. “I know the god of your mother.”

The dragon snapped back to Juno, baring its teeth. Puffs of thick green poison gas curled from his snout. “Azuth was once a mortal man, like you,” the dragon snarled, “a weak, worthless man…”

“Your mother’s a man.”

The dragon roared in anger and blasted a cloud of its poisonous breath directly into Juno’s face. The brave (and foolhardy) monk staggered backwards, choking on the noxious gas. He scratched at his throat as his skin began to blister and burn.

At this, the rest of the party surged into action. Silverflame dashed forward and leapt onto the dragon’s wing, climbed up its side, and grabbed hold of the scales at the base of the beast’s neck. He ducked behind its torso just as Anorak blasted a massive lightning bolt into the dragon’s side.

Asteria drew her bow and fired an arrow. It flew straight and true, into the dragon’s left eye. The beast roared in pain as she nocked another arrow, and let it fly –directly into the monster’s other eye. It screamed in anguish and rage.

Mandu, sensing an opportunity, charged at the blinded beast, and hacked at it with his daggers. The blades slipped between its scales and cut a long slashing wound.

Airlene stepped forward, holding her hands with thumbs touching and fingers spread, and a thin sheet of flame shot from her out stretched fingertips, scorching the dragon in the center of its chest. Juno, still choking, chose wisdom over more rash threats. He fell back and gulped down a healing potion.

The dragon was already wounded and blinded in both eyes. But it was more than willing to fight. It clawed at Silverflame, trying to grab him from his back, but the Eladrin rogue held tight. The drag on bellowed in rage, and then lurched forward, found Asteria, and clamped down on her with his massive jaws. The ranger screamed as the dragon’s teeth tore through her armor.

At this, Silverflame drew scimitars from his belt, one glowing red, one glowing purple, and slashed both into the dragon’s neck. Blood and gore spurted from the wound.

Then Anorak stepped forward, eerily calm, his hands holding open a spell book with covers made of skin and fittings of bone. He spoke in a voice that was not entirely his own, and black wave of necromantic energy blasted out and washed over the dragon. Its scales aged and decayed, and fell, rotting, to the ground.

“I should eat you for your insolence!” “Your mother…”

Asteria shot another arrow, piercing the dragon’s chest through its thick hide. Mandu drew his great sword, and hacked again at the dragon, tearing at its wounds. Airlene pointed at the dragon, and multicolored rays of light flashed from her hand into the beast’s damaged hide.

At this, the dragon knew it was in danger. It unfurled and beat its wings, attempting to escape into the sky. But Silverflame held fast to the beast, and with a mighty effort, drove a glowing scimitar deep into the back of its neck. The creature roared in pain, and Silverflame released his hold on the dragon –but not on the sword. He slid down the dragon’s side, dragging the scimitar with him, carving the beast’s neck from its body.

The dragon crashed to the ground, defeated. And thus our heroes saved the lost books, the people of Simon’s Town, and possibly the entire world.

THE END

This book retells one particular adventure by students in 826NYC’s Dungeons & Dragons & Writers program. Follow them on their perilous and exciting journey, including a visit to the Tower of Marv, a time-turned farmboy, and an encounter with Baronex The Dragon. The Lost Books of the Mage College will awaken your inner adventurer with original work written by Brooklyn’s most creative and curious young authors.