Negative Wizard

In early February 2020, the first negative number appeared in the world of NUM... -9314, the Negative Wizard. No one knew what his intents were or what plans he had in store.

This is his story.

Saga of the Negative Wizard
I lived in a dying word.

Perhaps that's what happens when you exist in a world run by power. We are born to battle, to fight our fellow negatives with everything we have. I should know, I was the best at it. Armies fell to my magic, the same magic that let's me change my number at will. I swept them aside with spells and summons, as easy as stomping bugs underfoot. It was a high that I couldn't forget, conquest without opposition, claiming the world under one banner. Soon the last few nations were simply a formality, and soon my empire had solidified, with me at the helm.

But what an unhappy reign it would be.

The centuries of conflict had scarred the land, and bitter tensions between old groups still lingered. Borders were often disputed, and my fractured and tired militias could hardly keep it together. The funny thing about worldwide peace is that wars just turn into civil conflicts. All the more difficult to maintain.

And then came the famine.

Farmers had discovered he soil that had once given life so easily was now dead. Lifeless. Plants refused to grow, what meager food that was stored was hoarded and hidden. The cause of the soil death? An unfortunate side effect of my magic. I suppose I had forgotten that there's an aftermath to every war, a morning after to each happy ending.

My victory had turned to tragedy.

But then my researchers had discovered a parallel world, one past zero. One rich with life, where peace was maintained, where green grass and fertile soil was plentiful, and oceans brimming with life were scoured by adventurers and merchants alike. Everything my people need.

And what a weak group of numbers they seemed to be too.

My negatives, hardened by war, would have easily overtaken you, beaten you, and taken your place. I would have had a happy reign, ruled both worlds with new knowledge, and made your world a better place for the survivors.

Of course, he portal would have to be opened in your world. I volunteered to set it up. After all, my magic had killed my world. Shouldn't it save it too?

My arrival only solidified my point. You threw insults. Prayers. Some odd allegiances which I could never understand. I was two steps ahead of you, but a select few, your scientists, they managed to stop me. That i-bomb, shifting the portal away from my world before any one of them could so much as slip through. If a negative did that his own soldiers would turn against him, but I guess that shows what your 'number god' has taught you.

And now I'm here. Imprisoned. Probably experimented on, executed, exploited, and then forgotten. Is this justice? Perhaps. But my people were dying.

No...I guess my people are dying.

The portal failed. They're...trapped. Everyone I knew. Everyone who trusted my return would save them...

...Did they deserve it?

(Backstory by 208 - Saga of the Negative Wizard Writing Contest)