Curse of Magic

by Michael Brightburn

  “Don’t fall asleep up there.”

  “Mmmm.”

  A little while later, she was snoring.

  45

  I couldn’t believe my eyes.

  We’d reached not the top of the mountain, but a passageway over it that looked to have been carved by the gods. The mountain rose high above us on either side, sheer rock walls higher than the Ancient Wall itself.

  This wasn’t what was so surprising.

  Below us in the distance and down a steep trail of several thousand paces in length, was a sprawling city.

  A city I wasn’t familiar with.

  Beyond it there was a giant body of water, though not the sea, with rivers and tributaries snaking off into the distance.

  Surrounding the city were forests and farmlands, roads leading in all directions.

  Sunlight glinted off its many buildings, and I saw the tiny forms of people going about their day inside its walls.

  Somewhere near the center was a statue that had to be even taller than the Ancient Wall.

  Even from this distance, I could tell it was of the goddess above all others, the goddess of victory. Erisi.

  Such a large tribute to the dead gods must be ancient, and I wondered how I had never heard of it.

  Never heard of this place.

  It was hidden by a mountain, yes, but it wasn’t that far from Serekthal and the rest of Elaria, and for it to go unnoticed was… strange.

  The magic residue left by the spell the Breaker carried continued down from here and toward the city.

  And in the distance, though I couldn’t be certain, I thought I saw her.

  Saw the Breaker, almost to the gates of this mysterious city.

  I set Trin down, and sighed with relief as I stood. My arms and legs burned from carrying her all this way.

  I wiped sweat from my forehead before even more could drip into my burning eyes than already had, then looked at Vi, who was holding an unconscious Sienna. She seemed much less exhausted from carrying her than I was from carrying Trin and Alva. “Is that the Breaker?” I pointed.

  She grunted. “Maybe.”

  “Maybe? What happened to your magnificent vision?”

  “I’m a lycanthrope, not a bird of prey.”

  “Well, in any case, I don’t think we should bring two unconscious women into the city.”

  “Why not? And it’s three.” She gestured at Alva on my shoulder.

  “No, she’s asleep. There’s a difference.” I smiled at her.

  She bared her teeth back at me.

  “You’re pretty when you smile. You should do it more.”

  She growled.

  “Set Sienna down. She’s got to be better by now. Let’s see if we can wake her up finally.”

  It took a lot of doing, but we were finally able to rouse her to wakefulness.

  “Hi,” she said groggily. She seemed to have trouble keeping her eyes open.

  “How do you feel?” I asked.

  “Peculiar.” She stretched and yawned, running her hands through the hard dirt under her, grasping handfuls of it. She sighed, seeming comforted by the feel of it. “What happened?”

  “That dead city,” I replied. “It drained you. Or something.”

  She nodded slowly.

  Then her hands and legs turned into roots, which penetrated the ground. “I need to recharge.”

  “Go ahead. But do it as quickly as you can. There’s something wrong with Trin. The dead drained her. I healed, but I think that’s because of my magic. She hasn’t. Think you can look at her?”

  Her eyes were closed, but she nodded. “Just give me a little bit.”

  So we waited.

  And as we did, Alva woke up. Her breasts, stomach, hips, and butt had shrunk somewhat, but were still enlarged from the fish blood she’d drank, and I had trouble tearing my eyes away from them.

  A fact which she noticed, and seemed to enjoy. She smiled at me, then crawled into my lap, snuggling against my crotch.

  I let her, enjoying the contact.

  Enjoying the feeling of engorgement that she encouraged in me.

  She let out a little moan when she felt me growing under her, and pressed herself down into me.

  Vi growled, but wasn’t looking at us. I couldn’t tell if she was annoyed, or jealous.

  By the time Sienna was ready, the trail that the Breaker had left had caught up and passed us, though I could still see it.

  The dryad knelt next to Trin and placed her hands on her, that golden glowing light appearing under them.

  Then she yanked them away and winced. “This is bad.”

  “Can you help her?”

  She shook her head. “I can try.”

  She placed her hands against the enchanter’s body again and grimaced as the golden light reappeared.

  Slowly, Trin’s pale skin darkened from a deathly shade, to one more fitting of life.

  Her skin went from translucent to opaque, her bones once again hidden beneath her flesh.

  Sienna gasped and fell backward, catching herself and staying like that, breathing heavily. “Wow.” Her hands turned into roots which dug into the soil again. “She was bad. I need to get some more power before I can heal her fully.”

  I looked nervously at the trail of magic, now about two hundred paces down the mountain from us. “Can you recharge while you’re walking?”

  “I can, but it will be slower.”

  “That’s fine. If we don’t go now we might lose the trail.”

  I picked up Trin and stood, my legs protesting.

  This was more exercise than I’d gotten in quite a long time.

  Possibly ever.

  Sienna offered to let Alva sit on her shoulder-throne again, but Alva declined, instead opting to sit on my free one.

  Reluctantly I let her, and we trudged down the mountain, catching up with the trail of magic.

  46

  The figure that I had thought might have been the Breaker had long disappeared into the city.

  What I had thought from the distance to be gates, really weren’t, but a large open plaza which led into the city, the buildings surrounding the plaza flowing seamlessly in as they grew larger and more numerous.

  People moved about, though not many, and all of them elf or human.

  And above them all, farther into the city, towered the statue of Erisi.

  It was unnerving seeing a remnant of the gods, a reminder of the time before.

  While some liked them, they’d always made me uneasy. The power they’d supposedly wielded was far too much for any one being, even a god.

  I saw no guards nearby, but nor did I see any lowborn. Everyone was dressed and attended to well.

  Everything here seemed like that.

  There were no street vendors anywhere, only shops.

  The mouthwatering scent of bread baking in a bakery somewhere nearby wafted to us, and I was reminded that all I’d eaten recently was a bitter carp.

  I set Trin down while we were still outside. I didn’t want to walk in carrying her, especially with people around. “Ready to try again?” I asked Sienna.

  She was gazing in wonder at the city before us.

  “Sienna?”

  “Yes, sorry. This place is so big.”

  “I know.”

  Sienna got to work, this time healing Trin completely, all the bits of translucent flesh turning solid again, her color returning to normal.

  Trin’s breathing had been slow and shallow, but it increased now, and after a few moments her eyes fluttered open.

  She looked between us and sat up. “Am I alive?”

  I let out a sigh of relief and grinned at her. “You are now.” I was glad she was alive, and my burning legs were glad to no longer be saddled with the extra weight.

  She looked around, her brows knitted. “This isn’t the place with the dead, is it?”

  “We’re a long way away from there,” I said. “A long way.” I rubbed my aching thighs.

&nb
sp; She started to push herself up, but couldn’t.

  I helped her to her feet.

  She gave me something between a smile and a grimace.

  I got the impression Trin had survived a long time on her own without anyone’s help, so this was different for her. But she needed me, and I needed her, and while we weren’t as close as Sienna or Alva and I, we were something approaching friends.

  She seemed okay, though not as strong as she had been, not as alert. But she was able to stand on her own.

  I was just glad we managed to get away from all those dead with our lives.

  I got her caught up to speed on what had happened.

  “She’s strong,” Trin commented when I was finished telling her what the Breaker had done.

  “That she is,” I agreed.

  She studied the city. “Do you think this is her destination?”

  “I don’t know. Don’t suppose you happened to piece together anything else about the people you’re after while you were out, did you?”

  “Nothing,” she said regretfully. “All I can remember was cold. It was so cold.” A shiver went through her.

  I rubbed her upper arm. “You’re safe now. You’re okay. Thanks to Sienna here.”

  Trin looked at the dryad. “Thank you.”

  Sienna smiled. “Of course. You needed help.”

  “Do you know where we are?” Trin asked me. “I don’t recognize this place.” She gazed at the statue of Erisi looming in the distance.

  I shook my head. “Not a clue. It doesn’t look like any city I’ve ever heard of. I haven’t seen a sign with a name anywhere, either. And asking might draw unwanted attention.”

  “I can enthrall someone to find out,” Trin suggested.

  “That’d be even more risky. Come, let’s see where this trail leads. It might go through the city and out the other side.”

  We entered into the plaza, people glancing our way, though none seeming alarmed at the presence of my wilds.

  As we followed the trail of magic into the city, my eyes kept being drawn to the statue, contributing to a growing sense of unease. But I couldn’t stop looking at it.

  The more I looked, the more apparent its massive size became.

  The plaza gave way to a broad street which gradually narrowed as buildings crowded in.

  Shops, houses, a Town Hall.

  We passed a blacksmith working with a hunk of thasdium which glowed blue with heat that he was forming into some elaborate shape. It looked vaguely familiar.

  He looked up and smiled at us. “Good morn.”

  I nodded at him. “Morn.”

  He cast an appreciative glance at Sienna—who currently looked very much like an elf—then went back to work.

  We entered into another open plaza. The giant Erisi statue was based here, and it towered above us and all the buildings around it. Next to it was a large coliseum that seemed insignificant next to that ancient monument.

  “That’s big,” Alva said, looking up at the statue.

  “That it is,” I agreed.

  A loud horn suddenly sounded out over the city.

  “The bloody gods is that?” Vi growled.

  The horn fell silent, but it was quickly filled with a cheer that came from all around us, as though everyone in the city cried out in joy at once.

  A few people excitedly ran out of buildings toward the coliseum.

  “Must be the games starting,” I observed.

  “Bit early in the day for that,” Vi said suspiciously.

  “Games?” Alva asked.

  “Yes. You know, combat between men and men, men and monsters. Monsters and monsters.”

  “Will there be blood? I really like blood. We should go and see.”

  “Calm down,” I told her. “We’re not going to see anything.”

  “Maybe she’s right,” Vi said, watching more and more people scurrying like rats happily out of buildings, all making their way toward the arena to secure their seats.

  I gawked at her in stunned silence.

  So long that she finally looked at me in confusion. “Why do you look at me like that? I’m friend, not food. Remember?”

  I shook my head. “Did you two just agree on something?”

  The vampire and lycanthrope exchanged a look.

  “Of course not,” Vi said.

  “Right,” Alva agreed. “Or… no. Yes.” She frowned. “Wait.”

  I chuckled. “The trail goes this way. Come on.”

  The trail wound through the city, down alleys and across intersections, though not into any buildings.

  Not, that was, until we reached a castle.

  Not one used as home to the king of this place, but rather the type that had been converted into many different indoor shops and stalls.

  Or not fully indoors, I saw when we entered. High above us was not a roof, but spans of metal with fabric strung across them to shade the area while still letting in light.

  There were still no cart vendors here, but there were more permanent-looking stalls. Stretches of red fabric were intermittently strung from one side of the walkway to the other, providing even more shade.

  The crowd here was thick, with people excitedly moving about. I caught dashes of conversation about the games in the area, which from what I could gather would begin soon.

  A few moments later I came to halt as people bustled around us, looking at where the trail led.

  “What’s wrong?” Vi asked.

  The trail climbed three stone steps and entered into a ramshackle wooden building with a faded sign hung above it engraved with a circular shield, sword crossed in front of it.

  A warden station.

  Odd.

  It looked out of place among the other more well-maintained storefronts and stalls.

  “It goes there,” I said, nodding at the building.

  “The wardens?” Trin asked in surprise. “Are you sure?”

  “Yes.”

  “But why would she go there?”

  I looked at her. “These people you’re after. Could they be—”

  “Wardens? No. How could they?”

  “Everyone’s corruptible,” Vi put in.

  Trin shook her head, but said nothing to counter this.

  “You four wait out here.” I picked Alva from my shoulder and set her down.

  “Don’t leave us,” she said.

  “I’ll be right back.”

  “Famous last words,” Vi growled. “I should go with you.”

  “No. You stay here. All of you.” I looked around at the crowd. No one was paying us any particular attention.

  Trin and Sienna didn’t stand out, though Vi and Alva did.

  But in a crowd was better than waiting in the shadows where members of this mysterious group could snatch them without being seen.

  Besides, none of them were helpless—they could all fend for themselves.

  Still, leaving them here was simply the lesser of two bad options.

  Because if these wardens really were corrupt, and I got arrested, they’d at least still have a chance if they stayed among the crowd.

  I walked up the steps, then stopped with my hand on the door, steeled myself, and pushed it open.

  47

  The first thing I saw was that the trail continued on through the small room and past a door that was presently closed.

  A man was reclining in a chair, feet kicked up onto his desk, napping.

  I looked at the door, then the man again.

  The door didn’t particularly scream “public access”, but I didn’t want to wake him.

  Pulling from myself, I phased, and headed toward the door.

  He didn’t wake, and I passed through it without opening it and without incident.

  I was now in a larger room, two jail cells at the rearmost part.

  The room was dim, with only two windows providing light, and no lamps or candles currently lit.

  There was no one here.

  Another desk sa
t off to the side, piled high with papers and writs, many of which looked old and long-forgotten.

  But what was truly odd was that the trail of magic simply vanished.

  I glanced behind me, thinking it had perhaps turned tight against the wall, or perhaps that the Breaker had backtracked.

  But no, it continued to where I was standing, then ended.

  Not faded out either, but simply ended.

  The magic residue was still bright.

  That wasn’t possible.

  Not unless…

  Well, not unless someone had teleported the spell, and possibly the Breaker, out of here.

  But who would risk teleporting unless life and limb were on the line?

  It was too dangerous. Even teleporting a spell scroll was risky.

  But it was the only explanation I could come up with.

  I explored the room more, just to make sure I wasn’t missing anything, but found no clues to suggest an alternative scenario.

  Feeling uneasy, I walked back through the closed door.

  Just as the warden was waking up.

  He stared at me in surprise.

  “Don’t mind me,” I said, and continued toward the exit.

  But he did mind me.

  Very much.

  It took a moment for him to gather his wits, but not long enough for me to escape. He cast a binding at me, disabling my magic and turning me solid.

  Damn wardens. They were no Breakers, but their ability to dampen magic meant trouble for any mage—especially one as unpracticed as I was.

  I lunged for the door leading outside, just missing the handle as he crashed into me.

  The door rattled in its frame, but stayed firmly shut.

  He spun me to the ground and a moment later his blade was at my neck, his knee in my back. “What are you doing here!”

  “Just curious,” I said.

  He barked a laugh. It wasn’t a pleasant one.

  I started to move, and he pressed the blade harder into my neck. “I wouldn’t.”

  I stopped moving.

  Keeping the blade at my neck, he used his other hand and pulled my sword from my belt. “I’m going to get up. Then we’re gonna head back to that room you were just snooping around in. Got it?”

  “Sure.”

  “Try anything and I’ll run you through.” The pressure on my back abated as he stood. “Up.”