Merlin never enjoyed getting hit on the head. This time, however, was quite fortuitous. Yes, he supposed that he—and the rest of those celebrating Ursula’s defeat—had been spared any injury when the Great Illuminary’s crumbling tower came crashing down. But shortly thereafter, a tiny piece of the tower had struck this Merlin glimmer directly on his wizened head, sending him into a vision of magical artifacts and a gloriously restored Illuminary. Martin and a very clever Basil glimmer were the first to locate one of these mystical items: an Amber Chromicon inside a secret room within the Hall of Lorcana. This gave everyone hope that, with a bit of diligent searching, anyone could uncover the rest of the hidden Chromicons.
Venturo, being quite sensible, sent Merlin to lead a group to cover more ground. One particular Scrooge McDuck glimmer, having shrewdly acquired a map from the first hidden room, was a natural choice for Merlin’s search party. Scrooge’s nephew Donald invited himself along, but even with the assistance of his massive magnifying glass, the glimmers spent far too much time studying the map to discover a hidden room of their own.
It took a passing Moana glimmer to pull the proverbial rug out from under them. She was searching the Hall of Lorcana herself, a blazing torch in hand and a keen look in her eye. She only needed a glance at the map to tell it wasn’t a guide through the Illuminary—rather, it was pointing them elsewhere. Toward…a sea? Moana scanned the room for clues and stopped in front of a bookshelf. Then, something odd happened—her torch’s flames bent sideways toward a thin line that ran between two bookshelves.
Merlin rushed to the wall and let his spindly fingers trace the line until he found a small recess. There was a soft “click,” and to the group’s astonishment, a door carefully camouflaged as a bookcase rotated open with a low groan. The moment Merlin peeked inside, several tiny spheres glowed to life.
By now, the entire group had joined him. Together they tiptoed into the room. On the other side of the chamber was a table, where lay a deep blue jewel set in a gold frame. Merlin could feel the knowledge radiating from it—the Sapphire Chromicon! Just then, Moana turned around with a puzzled look on her face. Merlin glanced at the doorway just in time to see a tall, slender silhouette dart away. Moana was across the room in the blink of an eye, but after a few tense moments she returned and shook her head slowly.
Well, then. This item deserved even more of Merlin’s attention if shadowy figures were lurking about. He cleared his mind and looked at the azure light wafting up from the Chromicon. By chance, he glanced at the map gripped tightly in Scrooge’s hand and noticed a strange symbol at its corner. Immediately, a swirling pattern of visionary light issued from his cap and unfurled before his view.
Merlin’s eyes widened. It became blindingly obvious that their presumed mission to repair the Illuminary was part of something larger. Much larger. But that was a matter for the future. Right now, it was enough to feel the excitement of finding a long-lost magical artifact. So he set off with his fellow glimmers to deliver the Sapphire Chromicon to Venturo back at the celebration grounds. Only this time, Merlin would keep at least one eye on the sky above.
