Magyk

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of death, emotional abuse, and child abuse.

Like many fantasy stories, Magyk contains a number of potent magical objects, which Sage uses as motifs of The Influence of Power on Identity and Responsibility. The Akhu Amulet serves as a particularly important example due to its prominent role in the story’s structure and the conflict between the heroes and the antagonist. The amulet is “a small round stone of ultramarine lapis lazuli shot through with streaks of gold and carved with an enchanted dragon” (149), and it is both a “symbol and source of the power of the ExtraOrdinary Wizard” (31). When DomDaniel possesses the Akhu Amulet, he covets the power it grants him but neglects the ExtraOrdinary Wizard’s responsibilities to the Castle’s inhabitants. In contrast, Alther Mella’s interactions with the Akhu Amulet underscore how seriously he takes these obligations. He confronts his master and his fear of heights to claim the amulet and overthrow DomDaniel’s corrupt control of the Castle. Decades later, his final act is to bestow the amulet on Marcia so she can use its power to save herself and the infant Princess: “Alther was dying.