The Magykal Papers (9 page)

N
OTABLE
E
XTRA
O
RDINARY
W
IZARDS THROUGHOUT
H
ISTORY

FIRST
: HOTEP-RA

Arrived thousands of years ago from the Far Countries. Hotep-Ra built the Wizard Tower and founded the entire system of
Magyk
in the Castle. There are many legends surrounding Hotep-Ra, but most are confidential and we will not attempt to delve into them.

TALLEST
: TERRENCE BROWN

Seven feet, five inches. Had all the doorframes raised in the ExtraOrdinary Wizard apartment. He suffered badly from vertigo, as many of the more talented ExtraOrdinary Wizards do.

SHORTEST
: LOUANNA MOON

Four feet tall and proud of it.

YOUNGEST-SERVING
: DAN FORREST

Dan Forrest was only sixteen years old when he became ExtraOrdinary Wizard. He was one of the early ExtraOrdinary Wizards, and in those times it was not so unusual for those in their teens to hold important positions, because people tended not to live so long.

Dan was a popular ExtraOrdinary Wizard and one of the more powerful, being descended from both Witch and Wizard stock. He added many new Spells—one of his longest-lasting was a popular
Unseen
(once used by Nicko Heap). Dan died at the young age of thirty-six.

LONGEST-SERVING
: MYRIAM D. DROMENDURRY

Myriam was ExtraOrdinary Wizard for so long that most people in the Castle at that time could remember no one else. She became ExtraOrdinary Wizard at the age of twenty-two and retired on her ninety-third birthday because, she said, she was becoming a little forgetful. Myriam had thirteen Apprentices who all loved her dearly, and one of them, Julius Pike, became the next ExtraOrdinary Wizard.

OLDEST-SERVING
: BRYNNA JACKSON

Brynna Jackson was a mediocre ExtraOrdinary Wizard and knew it, but she wanted something to be remembered for and this was all she could manage. She hung on to office for years longer than she should have. No one can force an ExtraOrdinary Wizard to retire, but they can drop heavy hints. For years the Wizard Tower resounded with the clanging of hints being dropped, but Brynna was deaf to them all—until the day after her ninety-third birthday.

FATTEST
: BIG BRIAN BOOM

Brian Boom ate seven meals a day because he thought seven was lucky. But it wasn’t lucky for Brian. He got wedged halfway up the narrow stairs to the Pyramid Library, and for three days no one noticed he was gone. After that, Brian
Stopped
the Wizard Tower stairs and walked instead. He lost a lot of weight but was not popular with the other Wizards, who also had to walk.

SHORTEST-SERVING
: TAM THISTLE

Tam Thistle was ExtraOrdinary Wizard for three hours twenty-three minutes and thirteen seconds. Unfortunately she got her new robes entangled in the spiral stairs and you don’t want to know the rest. No, really you don’t.

THINNEST
: TIMOTHY PAU?

No one really knows—it is hard to tell under all those robes. But Timothy Pau was apparently known as Thin Tim. And that, indeed, is all that is known of Timothy Pau.

LEAST TALENTED
: BERT THE BASHER

A case of mistaken identity. A few days before his induction as ExtraOrdinary Wizard, Hamilton How was mugged by a footpad known as Bert the Basher. Bert found the Letters of Induction in Hamilton’s pocket and, realizing that he looked a lot like Hamilton, decided to assume his identity and see—as he put it—“what he could get out of those Wizard dummies.”

Bert toughed it out for a few weeks until Hamilton How turned up. Then Bert fled, taking ten gold plates from the dining service and the duty Wizard’s best boots.

MOST TALENTED
: _______________________.

The pamphlet would not dare to venture a comment, as we know that this will be read by the current ExtraOrdinary Wizard (see below).

MOST RECENT
: MARCIA OVERSTRAND

Not bad, all things considered.

M
ARCIA
O
VERSTRAND
E
XTRAORDINARY
W
IZARD

M
ARCIA
O
VERSTRAND
grew up as the only daughter of an ancient Wizard family from the Far Countries. The family arrived at the Castle when Marcia was five years old after some embarrassing difficulty with her father’s job as a minor Wizard and adviser to an Eastern Snow Princess. The young Marcia received little encouragement to take the extra
Magyk
classes at school, as her parents wished to distance themselves from
Magyk
, but, being Marcia, she insisted and they—as usual—gave in.

Naturally Marcia excelled at school. She knew that she wanted to be ExtraOrdinary Wizard, but she kept quiet about it until one day as a teenager when she had a huge argument with her mother and told her that she was going to be ExtraOrdinary Wizard,
so there
.

After the argument, Marcia moved out of the family home—an attic in a tall house in Snake Slipway, two doors up from the Van Klampff house—and rented a small room in the Ramblings from where she enrolled as a Hopeful in the Open
Magyk
classes that were run at the Wizard Tower for those who hoped to become Apprentices.

Her chance came suddenly. Silas Heap gave up his Apprenticeship to Alther Mella, and Alther wanted to replace him immediately. Alther had given a few lectures to the Hopefuls and he had been impressed with Marcia. He invited her—along with three other Hopefuls—to spend a day at the top of the Tower. It was no contest: Marcia was by far the best for the job as his next Apprentice, and despite her rather brusque air, Alther found that he liked her very much. Marcia really
cared
—about
Magyk
and, more importantly, about people.

Marcia enjoyed her Apprenticeship with Alther. For seven years and a day she and Alther argued, laughed and learned together. Marcia had not long completed her Apprenticeship—and survived the dreaded
Draw
for the
Queste
—when she came with him to help him out at his Welcoming Ceremony for the newborn baby Princess.

That evening, a profoundly shocked Marcia found herself wearing the Akhu Amulet and the purple robes of the ExtraOrdinary Wizard. It was what she had always wanted—but never like that. The old Castle saying, “Beware of what you wish for, lest it come true,” has haunted her ever since.

Now Marcia has her own Apprentice, Septimus Heap. Septimus is remarkably young to be an Apprentice, but Marcia chose him after ten years of living without one—and Marcia knows best.

ALL THOSE WHO HAVE BOUGHT
Silas Heap’s
I-C-U in the Castle Scorebook
may wish to know how to spot Marcia Overstrand and gain the top 100 points.

D
ESCRIPTION
: Tall with dark, curly hair. Piercing green eyes.

S
HE WEARS
: Around neck (although usually hidden), lapis lazuli and gold Akhu Amulet. Purple double-silk cloak (lined with indigo-blue fur in the winter). Long purple silk tunic with small amount of gold embroidery. Gold and platinum ExtraOrdinary Wizard belt. Pointed purple python shoes.

N.B. If you see someone wearing all of the above but without the shoes, it is
not
Madam Marcia Overstrand.