A Squire's Wish: A GameLit novel (Hidden Wishes Book 2)

by Tao Wong

  “A skunk spirit!” I shouted in surprise, my eyes wide. “You trapped a skunk spirit?”

  “Yes, a creature of darkness.”

  Skunk Spirit (Level 180) (Weakened Significantly. Current Level 31)

  HP: 380/380

  “It’s a skunk!” I snapped. That explained the corruption in the mana, the way it stopped being “normal.” Trapped for decades, the buildup from its scent glands, whether it was intentional or not, would have corrupted the mana around it. Since it was a spirit, its “spray” was of course mana based.

  “And they are known to be monsters, even among the natives,” the abbess repeated, hand clutching her cross tightly.

  “Only in some cultures,” I snapped. With our foe turning out to be an angry animal spirit, I was a lot less inclined to hit first and ask questions later. Stepping forward, I glared at Alexa who moved to block my way until she relented.

  Having exited the room, the skunk spirit had shrunk its body slightly to better handle the small space it now occupied. It was now only the size of a large dog, the kind that fought off wolf packs before lolling in front of a fireplace, its shepherd owner seated beside it. The spirit’s time trapped away with limited access to new mana had damaged the creature. Its fur was ratty, tattered and spotty in places, while its head was slightly misshapen and bleeding from a bone-deep opening. I assumed the last was from its repeated attacks against the ward.

  “Brother Skunk,” I said slowly, stopping a good distance away and well behind the line of my Shield Wards. I wanted—I needed to give the spirit a chance, but that didn’t mean I was going to put my neck on the chopping block. “We mean you no harm.”

  The spirit did not speak at first, though hearing my voice made it stare directly at me. I gulped slightly, the spirit’s hostility bathing my battered senses before it began to amble forward.

  “Brother Skunk, I need to know your intentions before I let you go farther. Can you speak?” I said, trying again.

  “It’s useless. It’s a dumb spirit,” the abbess growled. “Kill it while it’s weak, before it hurts anyone!”

  “You will die first, cross wielder.” The spirit’s voice appeared in our minds with a hiss and raging fury. But as surprising as it was that it could speak to us directly, I noted there seemed a thread of weakness in its voice, one deeply hidden but there still.

  “You speak, Brother Skunk. That’s great,” I said, forcing a smile on my face.

  “You are no brother of mine, false shaman,” the skunk said, “but your actions have been mildly favorable. Leave now, and we will part without enmity.”

  “About that. You wouldn’t mind telling me what you intend, do you? Just that, I’m pretty sure my friend isn’t about to leave,” I said, glancing at where Alexa stood silently, spear leveled at the spirit.

  “I seek revenge. For being trapped. I shall tear their bones from their flesh and feast on their bodies to regain my strength.”

  “See. What did I tell you!” the abbess shrieked. From behind her back, she pulled a vial of holy water.

  “That’s, umm, a bit extreme.”

  “They trapped me for decades!”

  “Yeah, I get that. Their bad,” I said, grimacing. The spirit was right. It had been trapped. Of course, the Templars might have had a good reason for doing so, like the creature having killed and eaten others, but I had no context for its initial imprisonment. And while I was leaning toward a knockdown, drag-out fight, I was still leery of it. Weakened as it might be, it was a nature spirit, a powerful one at that. For all intents and purposes, I was an apprentice mage with low mana and dodgy defense. If I could talk it out, I would. “I’m sure there’s a middle ground. I mean, you don’t go around killing everyone who annoys you, right?”

  Truth be told, I was betting a lot on some half-remembered Native American stories. Not all tribes considered skunks evil, though a few did. They could also be considered protectors, guardians, and pacifist creatures. If the stories were to hold true to some extent, then the spirit before me was no more dangerous than any other wild animal.

  “You ask me to negotiate, to barter. When the perpetrators of my imprisonment stand beside you.” The skunk spirit twisted its head side to side, its tail swaying dangerously as it sat up high. Even from here, I could feel how the mana around me grew more and more corrupted as the mana from the room mixed with it. Casting spells in this environment was going to be incredibly difficult.

  “Yeah…” I said, hesitating visibly and looking at the abbess. “You should leave.”

  “I will not! This is my building.”

  “Just go. If it gets down to a fight, you can always beat on it when it comes up the stairs.” I locked gazes with the abbess. I could feel the pressure of her gaze, the resolute will behind it, but I had my stubbornness and right behind me. And a lot of adrenaline. Eventually, she broke her gaze and turned away, hurrying up the stairs but not before issuing one final warning to be careful.

  I turned toward Alexa who had been watching the quietly recuperating spirit. She just looked at me, and I knew better than to request her to leave.

  “That do?” I asked the spirit.

  “You still stand with the other.”

  “She wasn’t even born when you were put in there. Alexa has done nothing to you, nor has she even offended you. She’s just here for my protection,” I said.

  “And what makes you so special, false shaman?” the spirit asked, curiosity aroused. It padded forward, sniffing the air as it neared the ward line. I gritted my teeth, getting ready to throw it up if the creature charged. But as if it knew what the ward blocks were for, it stopped and paced next to the blocks, eyeing me first from one side, then to the next. “I smell another spirit on you. And on her. An old one. A foreign one.”

  “Lily,” I said slowly. “Look. You’re free. We can work out a… a compromise and restitution for your imprisonment if you promise not to kill any humans or other, well, civilized beings.” When the spirit began to bristle and aim its tail, I added hurriedly, saying, “Other than in self-defense.”

  “Do you think I am that cruel, human?”

  “No. Just have to be sure, you know?” I said slowly. There were certainly some things I just wasn’t supposed to tell the truth on. “So, can we deal?”

  “Perhaps. But I fear you have little to offer me.”

  I exhaled loudly when I realized we were getting somewhere. A “perhaps” meant it was thinking, and if it was thinking of it, we could talk. I grinned widely, opening my hands wide as I got ready to bargain. Right. What did skunks eat anyway?

  “I don’t believe it worked,” Alexa said, awe in her voice when the nuns came trotting down with another pile of nuts, berries, and eggs. All organic of course. In fact, the children had been assigned the task of washing all the produce with distilled water just in case.

  “Ixnay on the worksay!” I whispered to the initiate.

  “Pretty sure that’s not how pig Latin works,” Alexa replied softly, “but he’s eating, right?”

  “Yes, but he only promised not to cause harm for the next day,” I said and eyed the fur of the creature slowly unclumping and gaining a healthy glow.

  “Well, yes, but…” Alexa paused, then looked at me more seriously. “Do you think he’ll break his word?”

  “No, but Murphy is always listening.” To this, Alexa could only nod.

  In wary silence, we watched as the spirit gorged itself on produce, but eventually, the first delivery was complete. What used to be a bedraggled, scruffy spirit was replaced by a sleek animal, one whose fur had been combed and unmatted. The wound itself had stopped bleeding, having crusted over, and the patches in its fur had begun growing out. Still, it was clear the spirit had only recovered mildly and was not fully healed.

  “So, Spirit Skunk…” I said slowly, letting my voice trail off as it finished preening itself.

  “You have completed your side of the bargain. I shall not eat the cross bearers so long as they con
tinue to fulfill their side of the bargain. Once a week, they will provide gifts of this form,” the skunk said.

  “They can do that. Right?” I said the last word to the abbess who stiffly nodded, unhappiness on her face. I sighed, relaxing slightly when she did nod. As the agreement was completed, the various members of the orphanage started evacuating, opening a clear passage for the spirit to leave. While they did that and the skunk checked the bowls for anything that remained, I eyed the building and the cracks that now covered the walls. “That’s not good.”

  “No. I’ve probably failed the quest,” Alexa said, her face perfectly serene.

  “Wait… what?” I exclaimed in surprise. And then my brain finally caught up with me. Right. The goal was to keep the orphanage open. There was no way the building inspectors were going to miss the damage or allow the orphanage to last. I eyed the spirit evilly for a brief moment before discarding the idea of making it help with the repairs. Among other things, I wasn’t sure I’d trust a nature spirit to fix man-made buildings. The ensuing results were likely to be less than optimal. “Can the contractors help?”

  “Not in time,” Alexa said with a grimace. “The inspections were to happen this Monday. Even if they worked all weekend…”

  “It wouldn’t be enough,” I said with a huff. Right. Could I—

  “I shall leave now, false shaman” the skunk said, punching its words into my mind. I winced, repatching my mental defenses while offering the creature a nod in agreement. Right. Lead the spirit out. I gestured down the corridor and then walked ahead while Alexa squirrelled herself in a side corridor to act as rear guard. Or, you know, stab it in the back if it tried something.

  With all the staff members and kids out of the building—or out of sight at least—the three of us made our way toward the exit. There was an almost farcical moment when the spirit got stuck on the narrow stairways, squirming its body around the narrow walls and damaging them further with its rather long, sharp claws. By the time it exited the stairwell, the orphanage had another portion to fix.

  When it exited, the skunk splayed its claws slightly and tilted its head side to side as it sniffed the air and its tail rose behind it. I frowned and watched the damn spirit, wondering what had it riled up now.

  “You humans have destroyed the world even more. Even the stink of your people has grown,” it said with a snarl.

  “Eh…” I stared at the skunk spirit, struck by the absurdity of it calling anything odorous. Then again… “Our deal is still true, right?” I asked, my voice low and slow.

  “Yes.” The skunk snorted and took a few more steps forward. It stopped suddenly, its tail flaring again, and turned its head to face an empty spot in the garden. “I smell you!”

  There was no movement at first, but suddenly a light ripple occurred. Standing in the spot where the skunk was watching, three men clad in light chainmail carrying swords and shields appeared. Thankfully, they weren’t using guns. Among other things, while it was easy to enchant a gun, enchanting bullets were another matter, and since they weren’t fighting a physical creature using normal bullets, even those lined with something like silver would be of little use. Even rock salt, a popular weapon against ghosts, was of little use here.

  Spirits were only affected by two things reliably: magic and magically enchanted weapons. Even cold iron was a hit-or-miss subject depending on the spirit in question. Thus, it was no surprise to me the weapons and armor the Templars were wearing glowed with the light of enchantment in my eyes. What was a surprise was their presence.

  Knight Templar (Level 84)

  HP: 180/180

  “Betrayal!” the skunk snarled at me, its feet shifting to pull its body away. Alexa, in the meantime, moved from behind it toward my body, crouching low with her spear held up in guard position.

  “Wait! No. I didn’t have anything to do with this. And, you guys! Stand the hell down,” I said, noting how the Templars had moved closer when the skunk had shifted.

  The lead Templar spoke up, his eyes hard and dismissive. “Initiate Dubough. You have failed your assessment. Spectacularly. It remains to be seen if you will even continue to be allowed to wear the cross.”

  Alexa stiffened at his words, a slight tremble appearing in her hands.

  “Hey!” I said. “There’s no reason to speak with Alexa that way. We did the best we could, considering you morons refused to give us further information. This could have been avoided if you’d actually been more forthcoming.” When I realized what I’d said, where I said it, I turned toward the spirit and waved a hand weakly. “Though, it’s good that you’re free. Because you’re not going to hurt anyone. Right?”

  “I was wrong. You are too foolish to betray me. But if they attack, I will eat them.”

  I straightened slightly, trying to decide if I was more insulted or relieved by the spirit’s announcement. What it didn’t do was stop the Templars from continuing to close in.

  With a huff, I raised my hand and focused. A Force Shield was basically a projection of power to an area that stopped further motion. One thing I had realized was that Lily’s spell was slightly different from the more common shield spells used by modern mages. Most of those “froze” air directly, stilling the molecules and creating a wall to block attacks or, in other cases, used other physical elements to block attacks. The Force Shield Lily had provided me actually worked by stilling motion in the area of effect. From the outside, it looked the same, though it did offer me a few applications others might not have available.

  In this case, it mattered not one whit. The Force Shield I created was basically a wall, set to appear and extend a good nine feet in the air. The size of the wall was a bit problematic, requiring a significant amount of mana, but it did halt the Templars’ advances. With a bump.

  “Are you acting against us, mage?” The lead Templar’s hand clenched around his sword as he eyed the wall, a vein along his temple visibly throbbing and highlighting his pale-blond hair. The skunk spirit on the other hand was watching the entire thing, rather than fleeing.

  “Just keeping my word,” I said.

  “Initiate Dubough!” the blond Templar snarled.

  “Henry…” Alexa said hesitantly as she looked back at me. I saw her hand tremble as the point of her spear wavered between me and the skunk.

  “What are you going to do, Alexa? Stab me?” I asked, lips pursed. I didn’t put up a shield, didn’t step away. It wouldn’t help. I didn’t have enough mana to keep two shields going, not after all this. The best I could hope for was to stop the Templars from reaching the spirit briefly while it ran away. Which reminded me… “Hey, Skunky. Time to go. If you don’t, ain’t my fault.”

  “Skunky?” the spirit snarled, its tail flaring higher.

  I winced slightly, but I had little attention to spare for the spirit. Right now, I had a much more serious threat in front of me, one whose hesitation was visible on her face.

  “Initiate. Why are you hesitating? Knock out the mage and allow us to finish this vile creature.”

  “It’s not though,” Alexa whispered softly in defiance. “It’s not.” Her voice grew louder. “It just wants to live. We were the ones who trapped it first. Forced it—”

  “It is a pagan creature,” the Templar said, his voice growing strident. “One that is likely to cause harm if left unchecked.”

  “And so we trap it? Kill it?” Alexa asked, her eyes tight. “It might not believe in our Lord, but it is still a creature He made, and so long as it harms no one, should we not allow it the chance to come to the Lord on its own free will?”

  “It is not human,” the Templar said. “It was not made in His image.”

  “It still lives and thinks. It can still choose.” Alexa looked at the creature. “And who are we to judge him? Is that not reserved for our Lord? Especially for actions it has yet to take.”

  “Initiate… no. No longer an initiate,” the Templar said. “I hereby declare, with the power vested in me as the Knight
Templar superintendent of the third division, that Alexa Dumough, formerly an initiate of the Knights Templar, is from now on no longer a part of our order. Henceforth, any and all action taken by Alexa Dumough will have no association with the Knights Templar.”

  The words were like a blow to Alexa, each sentence causing her to jerk. When he finished, Alexa straightened and turned toward them, her spear aimed at the trio without hesitation or trembling. Though, as she turned away, I noted how red her eyes were and the light glint of tears on her cheeks.

  “Morons,” I mumbled. I’d add more, but before I could, the Templar gestured, and his buddies hammered the wall with their swords. The enchanted blades sent tangible feedback through my spell, making my knees buckle for a second before I forced them straight.

  “Child!” the Templar snarled, but I noted how he did not move to attempt to harm me. Obviously they had read Alexa’s reports. There was no way Lily would allow them to harm me. Well, unless she considered this a social challenge, at which point I might take a bit of damage, but they didn’t need to know that.

  “Oh, yeah. I’m the one with the monovision of how the world should work,” I snapped. Child indeed. These guys were like five-year-olds who were so definite in their view of the world, nothing—not even logic—could sway their mind.

  Another blow and the Force Shield began to crumble. Finally the skunk spirit decided it had had enough and turned tail, bounding toward the fence. This made the Templars speed up their attacks on my Shield Wall. After the second consecutive set of blows, I could no longer hold the wall and it shattered. As the skunk crouched near the fence, its lips peeled apart at the charging Templars and raised its tail. This time around, I had a feeling it wasn’t just threatening.

  “MOVE!” I shouted at Alexa, grabbing for her arm. I missed because the initiate—sorry, ex-initiate—had moved faster than me, having spun around, and reached for my own shoulder as she took off running for the door. I stumbled and followed along as fast as I could.