When he returned to consciousness he was falling. 

Bright blue light swirled around him, his robe flapping in the wind. An aura of multicoloured light extended around him, flickering rapidly. As he noticed this, a well-worn book flew out of his grip. He hadn't noticed he had it. 

The book was important, he realised with a jolt. It had things in it that he needed and he had to get it back. He reached for it, but it was too late. A flash of white light and it burned up, leaving no sign it had ever existed. 

More importantly, he'd caught sight of his arms. They were jointed in too many places, bending in ways no arm should have done. He wasn't as certain about this, but he could've sworn they used to be shorter. 

Abruptly, the blue light faded and he landed on solid ground with a thump. It was not as painful as he expected. Was there magic at work? He was in a forest, and there were no forests near...wherever he was before this. Where was he?

[i]Who[/i] was he? He remembered people being respectful to him, bowing and calling him "Magus". Perhaps that was his name—

A metallic clanking interrupted his thoughts. His vision had been blurry since he'd fallen out the blue vortex, but he could make out several armoured men, as well as others who looked more monstrous. 

[i]Not like I'm in a position to judge.[/i]

Magus tried to stand, and found that his legs had been transformed similarly to his arms. After some effort he managed to get to his feet. 

At the same moment, a cry of alarm rang out. One of the men had spotted him and raised his bow. Panic surged through him—

and the aura of light surrounding him flared a brilliant white and exploded.