G. Lippert - JAMES POTTER AND THE VAULT OF DESTINIES

"Boys," he said welcomingly. "What can I do for you?"

"Hi Chancellor," James said, entering the small room and looking around. "Er, this is your office?"

"One of them at least," Franklyn smiled. "This is the one that serves me for meeting with students and faculty. Why do you ask?"

James shrugged as he moved to stand behind one of the visitor's chairs. "No reason. I just expected something a bit… bigger."

"We thought we'd get to see your Daylight Savings Device again," Ralph added.

"Ah, yes, that," Franklyn answered, closing his book with a thump. "I keep that in my personal study. It is far too large and complex to leave in the faculty offices. After all, we are still victim to the occasional school prank, although such things are somewhat rarer nowadays, thanks to Madam Laosa."

"You mean Crone Laosa?" Zane asked, his eyes widening. "So she's really for real? Some of the Zombies were saying that she was just made up to scare us all out of exploring the basements."

"How may I help you boys?" Franklyn asked, smiling a little crookedly, obviously avoiding Zane's question.

"Er," James began, clutching the back of the chair in front of him, "we just have a quick question. It's about the history of the school. We thought you'd be the best person to ask."

Franklyn nodded approvingly. "Always a pleasure to see students taking an interest in the university. And I do suppose I am uniquely qualified to discuss its history since I have been alive throughout much of it. What's your question?"

James glanced back at Ralph and Zane, suddenly reluctant. "It's… er… about one of the professors."

"From a long time ago," Ralph added.

Franklyn's chair creaked as he leaned back in it. "We've had a rather impressive list of teachers throughout the years, continuing even to the present. Mr. Bunyan, the giant, is one of our most recent additions, and believe me, it was no small task to convince him to take the post. Prefers the wide open spaces, he does, along with his great blue ox, Babe."

"It's about Professor Magnussen," Zane blurted, stepping forward.

Franklyn's expression froze on his face. He paused, staring at all three boys.

"Do you remember him?" James prodded tentatively. "We looked him up in the library, but there was almost nothing. His full name was Ignatius Karloff Magnussen, and he was Head of Igor House like a hundred and fifty years ago or something."

Franklyn continued to study the boys, his eyes suddenly cautious. He leaned forward slowly again, producing another long creak from his chair.

Ralph said, "There are legends about this Magnussen bloke. They say that he opened up something called the Nexus—"

"Boys," Franklyn interrupted, "I am afraid that Professor Magnussen is a name from a period of time that this school would prefer to forget. It would behoove you not to inquire about him any further."

"Well," Zane replied slowly, glancing aside at his friends, "as much as I'd like to agree to that, I suspect that we're just about ten times more curious now."

Franklyn sighed hugely. "I suppose you learned of this in Professor Jackson's Technomancy class, yes?" He nodded to himself, not awaiting an answer. "The professor and I have had words on the subject. We have rather differing views regarding the merits of security versus disclosure. Perhaps I simply wish to make my job as Chancellor a bit easier. Surely the good professor would agree."

James risked pressing the matter a bit further. "What can you tell us, Chancellor? Is it true that Magnussen opened the Nexus Curtain and made his way into the World Between the Worlds?"

Franklyn stood up and straightened his waistcoat. He turned toward the window and leaned to peer out over the campus.

"He used to live in the most prominent faculty home of Alma Aleron, the one that originally belonged to John Roberts, one of the school's founders. He was a brilliant man, Magnussen, and yes, I knew him. He was, in fact, that most rare of men: he was a scientist, and he was a lover of stories. His calculating mind was equal to the best technomancers who've ever lived, but his love of the tale allowed him to think in creative, ingenious ways that none of his colleagues could ever dream. The characteristics that made him great, however, also led him to… obsessions. It was these, unfortunately, that drove him to commit acts that were both heinous and ultimately senseless."

Franklyn paused, apparently determining how much he should say. Finally, he went on, still peering out the window. "It was a time of great interest in magical exploration and experimentation. Schools such as Alma Aleron allowed a virtually unlimited amount of autonomy and resources to their teachers, all in the name of progress. Too late did we learn that sometimes progress means decay. Professor Ignatius Magnussen was allowed to conduct his experiments and pursue his goals, even though the costs were far higher than we knew at the time, and the dangers were… well, incalculable. By the time he was found out, it was too late to stop him. In the end, he fell victim to his own designs, and that, unfortunately, is the end of his story."

"What did he do, sir?" James persisted.

Franklyn was thoughtful. After a moment, he glanced back at the boys, his eyes narrowed. "Why, pray tell, are you three so interested in this?"

"Er…" James began, but Zane overrode him.

"We're just curious, sir. It's in our natures. You know how we young people are."

Franklyn studied Zane for a long moment. "Indeed I do. Curiosity is a good thing, my young friends. It is the fuel for the engine of invention. But like any fuel, it can be dangerous. It can burn you, if you are not careful with it."

James asked, "Is that what happened to Professor Magnussen?"

Franklyn's face remained calm as he shifted his gaze to James. After a long moment, he said, "Magnussen lived in the home that once belonged to one of this school's three founders, as I said. It is the home that now stands in ruins at the opposite end of the mall." He nodded toward the window. "Professor Magnussen is the reason that that building was reduced to rubble. His laboratory was there and it was the scene of terrible things. When these things became known, a riot erupted on the campus. Hundreds rushed to the mansion, intent on dragging Magnussen out and bringing him to justice. Of course, an arbiter had already been assigned to Magnussen—justice had already been set into motion—but because of Magnussen's status, he was granted the privilege of maintaining his post and his home during the investigation. This infuriated the population of the school, including, I regret to say, much of the faculty. During the fracas that followed, Magnussen escaped from the mansion. In the aftermath, the mansion was burned nearly to the ground. To this day, no one knows if the fire was an accident or deliberate. Some say that Magnussen himself set it, meaning to distract everyone from his escape. Either way, it not only destroyed the mansion, it wiped out all the evidence of what Magnussen had done. And, frankly, perhaps that was for the best."

Zane was impressed. "So what happened to him after that? Did he live out the rest of his days on some South American island somewhere?"

"Ignatius Magnussen was never seen or heard from again," Franklyn answered brusquely, seating himself once more at his desk. "The most likely explanation is that he escaped via the rift that he created into some reality that none of us can even imagine."

"So did su cceed in opening the Nexus Curtain!" Ralph exclaimed.

Franklyn pinned Ralph with a steely gaze. "He succeeded in opening something, Mr. Deedle. Unfortunately, we had virtually no time to question him before his escape and the fire ruined what clues we might have gained in his absence. Therefore, no one knows for sure what he did or where he might have gone. All we know is that his 'success' came at great cost and ruined many lives. I suggest you leave it at that."