Greymalkin: Magi Argent, #0

By Andrew Dobell

My name is Atticus Argent, and I'm not to be trusted.
Some call me a malcontent, dealer or grifter. But most of all, I'm a Magus.
And I'm just trying to survive.

After years of dealing and grifting on the Magical Black Market, I was apprehended by the Magi authorities. Placed in a respectable coven, with a high-ranking mentor, they tried to set me on the straight and narrow.
Hah! Yeah, that didn't work.

I still trade and deal. Who knew, but even amongst these goody-two-shoes Magi, there are still people hooked in Prime Pills and looking for a new Magical trinket.
I found my niche, and I provide.

But when an old flame wants information that only I can provide, I don't see the harm.
That was a mistake.
Now people's lives are at risk, including my good friend and his cat.

Now I need to step up and do what's right for a change.
This will be interesting!

Magi Argent is a new Urban Fantasy series from author Andrew Dobell. If you enjoy Jim Butcher, Shayne Silvers, M D Massey, or Kevin Hearne, you'll love this series.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Andrew Dobell
• Release date: Jun 12, 2024
• ISBN: 9798227657039

Book preview

Welcome to the Magi Saga

The Magi Saga is a whole universe of book series, in a variety of genres, set in a world where Magic and the Paranormal are very real and very dangerous.

Each series can be read independently, but they all also crossover, with characters from one series, appearing in another.

To find out more, please check out my website.

About this book

This short story is a prequel to the Magi Saga series, Magi Argent, and serves as an introduction to the characters and the series. If you like this book, please leave a review and check out book one of the Magi Argent series. The link to it is at the end of this book.

Acknowledgements

Thank you to my wife and family for their love and tolerance and help. You make everything worthwhile.

Thank you to my old gaming friends, you guys have inspired this story more than you can know. I have some of the best memories from those hours sitting at the gaming table.

Thank you to my editor, Hanna Elizabeth. Your input has been amazing, thank you.

Dedication

For my boys, my kids, I love you!

Language

I’m a British author living in Britain, and I write in British English with British spellings.  ;-)

Booklist

For full list of Andrew Dobell’s Books, visit his website at:

www.andrewdobellauthor.com

Table of Contents

Welcome to the Magi Saga

About this book

Acknowledgements

Booklist

Table of Contents

Side Hustle

Training Regime

Clandestine Meeting

Old Friend

Consequences

Revenge

Reconciliation

Author Note

Booklist

Side Hustle

1995

Where are you going, Argent?

The guard on the door narrowed his eyes in suspicion as he looked at me.

Out, I said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, which it was. But that wasn’t why he was asking.

I wasn’t to be trusted.

Things had gotten better over the last six years, and I’d built up a certain level of trust with the coven, but I was still seen as an outsider by many. Especially the guards and security.

Thing was, they were right. I wasn’t to be trusted, and I wasn’t about to dissuade them from their opinion. I kind of liked being the outcast. I wasn’t quite ready to be a fully-fledged Arcadian lackey yet, despite who my mentor was now. Being an Arcadian just didn’t sit right with me.   

Cute. Out where?

I sighed as dramatically as I could, without it looking too over the top, and fixed him with a stare. The guard—Leo, I think—flinched at the look, and pulled back just a touch. He was all in my face a moment ago, acting the big tough man. But he was an Initiated Riven, and he knew damn well what a Magus like me was capable of and he’d just realised he’d attracted my attention.

It’s just protocol, Atticus. You know that.

I do, I agreed, and sighed again. I’m just running an errand for Victoria. Picking up some sensitive reports from someone in the Capitol Building. Is that enough info for you?

He shrugged. Yeah, that’s fine. I just have to ask these things.

I nodded once, letting my face express my displeasure at being interrogated. I know.

Have a good one, he said, brightly, as if he was my best friend.

Mmm, I replied, and made my way through the front entrance, out into the crisp morning air. I looked across the wide-open space of the National Mall. I could see the White House from here, way ahead of me, beyond the Washington Monument. To my right, way up the Mall, the enormous domed Capitol Building stood tall, its white stone façade bright in the daylight.

Looking away, I made my way down the steps, away from the coven house, and stepped out into the endless parade of DC natives and tourists taking in the sights. As I walked, I glanced back. Just another faceless building that blended right in with all the others that lined the Mall. Little did the tourists know that a coven of Magic-wielding people lived and worked there, infiltrating this and all other governments around the world.