by Jeff Inlo
Storms moved and developed in so many ways. Over time, they grew into tempests, tornadoes, and hurricanes, but they could also diminish into nothing more than a passing shower. They cut across both the land and the sea, moved in all directions, sometimes at the same instant.
Focusing upon rains that could turn into downpours and just as quickly fade into a light mist, Scheff shaped an ambition to utilize the same aspects into energy that would flow through an entity of any substance. A perfect circle formed around the two fingers of his right hand as he touched the leaves of a wilted plant. The magic rolled off his hand and swirled about the yellow and brown edged leaves.
Almost immediately, the discoloration disappeared, replaced by a vibrant green. The healing effect was beyond doubt, but the elf needed to confirm the stability of the process. He wanted to ensure that the magic did nothing more than relieve the malady as opposed to change the essence of the plant.
Scheff used his magical abilities to look deeper into the stems and leaves. Beyond returning to full health, the plant was not altered in any other way. Scheff had succeeded in restoring vitality without disturbing the balance of nature. It was a small step toward gaining a greater perspective for the natural progression of life, but one the elf felt was extremely important.
Despite his success, a voice from behind him mocked the elf's achievement.
"Healing plants?" Macheve asked. "What's next? Walking canes for worms?"
Scheff jumped slightly and twisted about to face the distraction. He scanned the forest but saw only one intruder. The elf disregarded the insult, offered no explanation or defense for the purpose of his spell, but rather immediately focused on the serp's presence.
"And what is a serp doing in Dark Spruce Forest? Hoping to recruit a few goblin minions?"
"I am well beyond the need for minions," Macheve responded, "but I am here for recruitment purposes."
"Beyond myself and the trees, this area is clear. Are you hoping to place an oak under your powers of persuasion?"
"No, I am here for you."
The threat was beyond preposterous. Scheff did not fear the influence of any serp. He did not even have to cast a defensive spell. The powerful magic that surged within him would serve as a natural and impenetrable shield.
"Leave now, serp, before you get hurt," the elf warned.
"I am well aware of your powers, Scheff Rutlan. You cast in a perfect circle of violet magic, you have a strong will, and your reserves of energy are vast."
"Then you know that even a most extraordinary serp could never break through my defenses."
"That is true, but I am also aware that you once accepted the core slice of a powerful sorcerer. You embedded the magic of another into your own essence—by your own choice—and that will lead to your downfall."
Scheff found the accusation painful, and he was not pleased the serp threw his mistakes out with such irreverence, but he would not hide from his past errors.
"A mistake I do not deny, but one I will not make again. Was that your plan? Did you think you could entice me somehow to join you?" Scheff shook his head as an answer to his own question and as a sign of disgust with his own past. "If you think you can seduce me with promises of new powers and abilities, you are quite wrong. I will not walk that path again."
"What you think is a path before you is nothing compared to the consequences of your previous decisions. Your choice has already been made. You will walk where you are directed."
"Directed? You make it sound as if you can force me. You just admitted you lack the strength to influence me."
"Indeed I do, but I am not here to place you under my control."
Scheff assumed he understood the threat, but found it both inadequate and pathetic. The elf believed Macheve must have been referring to a coordinated effort between herself and other serps.
Such a council had recently caused more than just turmoil in Dark Spruce. They had incited anger and resentment between the races, had hoped to cause a war and almost succeeded. Their influence had been a testament to their combined talents and their twisted desires. Still, Scheff knew that he could fight off even the collective influence of several serps.
"I have heard of a serp council," the elf stated. "Several serps managed to join their talents by the same method in which Ansas placed his ebony magic within me. I was told the council had been defeated, but it appears another has managed to take its place. If that is the case..."
"No," Macheve corrected, "not a council of serps. I am connected to only one other, but his power is nearly unlimited. Where even a council of serps would have difficulty manipulating one such as you, the one I serve can do so with ease."
Scheff believed the serp was only bluffing. His own magic served as a powerful barrier. If there were several serps before him joined in magic, he might have felt the slight biting edge of concern. Macheve, however, was alone, and Scheff remained confident that any connection to other forces could be overcome by his own superior talents.
"Then try it, and let us be done with this game."
Macheve smiled maliciously. Had it been up to her, she would have done exactly as Scheff requested. She would have unleashed the full power at her disposal and taken over the elf's mind with absolute authority. She would make him crawl across the forest floor with his elf nose in the dirt.
It was not, however, Macheve's decision to make. She was more than joined to the demon master through magic. Her individual resolve had been pressed aside and replaced by the twisted ambitions of Reiculf.
The demon tyrant placed not only his magic within the serp, but also his consciousness. He had given a miniscule portion of his evil core to the serp and took part of Macheve's magical essence to complete the unbreakable bond. Because the energy was shared in such a manner, the magic of both beings had become intertwined in a way that could transcend dimensional barriers. In essence, the serp became more than just a pawn of the daokiln; Macheve was an extension of Reiculf's corrupt thoughts.
With Reiculf's twisted and hateful spirit participating in the confrontation with the elf, the demon decided to play with his prey, though he did so through the serp's body.
"I have a better idea," Macheve responded with a wicked grin. "Why don't we have a test of spells?"
Scheff saw the contest as pointless. He had nothing to prove.
"I have no time for such trivial games."
"Do you believe my magic is trivial?" Macheve taunted.
"Serps are notorious for weak spells," Scheff declared. "Even if you have developed some skill, I doubt you would be anything more than a minor challenge. What do I have to gain from such inconsequential exploits?"
"Gain? You seek to make a wager?"
"No, I seek nothing from you. I issue this last warning. These woods are the domain of the elves. There are no goblins here for you, nor river rogues or shags. Leave before I decide to bring you before the elf captain. He will not be so lenient to a serp who trespasses in Dark Spruce."
The serp did not respond with words. Macheve simply stepped over to the plant Scheff had healed and touched it with her finger. It withered and died instantly.
The suddenness of death surprised the elf, but only briefly. The plant was small and the serp could have focused all her magical power to create such an effect.
"Is that supposed..." the elf began, but the serp interrupted him before he could finish.
Once more Macheve responded with deeds over words. Remaining quiet, she moved to a sapling, much larger than the initial plant, but nowhere near the height or bulk of a mature tree. She grasped the thin stem that had hoped to one day become a thick and sturdy trunk. It would never have the chance. The entire sapling withered into a dark brown and lifeless mass in but the wink of an eye.
Scheff's surprise grew. Killing plants was not a great magical deed, but the extreme suddenness of death revealed a deeper power, one that should have been beyond the magic of a serp. Life—even that of a small plant or sapling—should
have resisted, should have been able to at least fight against the ultimate transformation. To the elf's eyes, there was no struggle at all.
He wondered if it was all some kind of an illusion. He reached out and pulled the spindly stalk from the hand of the serp. He allowed pure violet magic to wash over the dead stem, energy that would clear any remnants of an illusion, but to no avail. He even focused the spell of healing he had just perfected on the remains of the sapling, but that, too, failed. The serp's magic was stronger than he anticipated.
"You should have known better than to waste your magic," Macheve finally replied. "Your particular casting was meant to heal, not reverse death. That was the whole purpose of your spell, was it not... to create healing energy that would not transform the recipient? Altering the state of an object from death back to life is in direct contrast to the intent of the casting you devised."
Unlike the spells which withered the plants, Macheve's revelations failed to surprise the elf. Scheff was well aware of the serp's ability to read the subtle intricacies of even hidden thoughts.
"Reaching into my mind for the mechanics of my magic?" Scheff accused.
"Still pretending you are dealing with an ordinary serp?" Macheve responded. "You obviously need a larger display."
Macheve raised her arms out to her sides and pointed her hands in opposite directions. Three rings of energy swirled around her midsection, but they lacked any particular color. They were near transparent, but they could not be dismissed. They would have been invisible had their borders not twisted the edges of space into a blurred state of existence. While they were perfect in both roundness and conformity, they seemed to betray a warped control over the energy itself.
Before the serp even released her spell, the significance of the three rings and their lack of color shocked the elf. Elflore described only one creature capable of casting with such skill and power.
Reiculf!
The name burst into Scheff's mind, affording answers to the mysteries he witnessed. While an ordinary serp could not hope to overwhelm life with magic, the daokiln held the power to annihilate all living things.
Sensing the elf's fear, Macheve laughed and expressed her own satisfaction.
"So I am a poor challenge for you. Isn't that what you professed?"
"How is this possible?" Scheff muttered in near disbelief.
"You should know. You helped achieve this end... and you will help me again."
Rather than explain further, Macheve unleashed her spell. The entire area of woods surrounding the elf died instantly. There was no struggle, no slow progression, just the immediate destruction of life. Bushes and small plants collapsed to the ground. Ivy that had once worked vigorously to wrap around tree trunks and climb toward the sun fell to the forest floor in masses of limp yellow strands. Every leaf withered up into small brown clusters and then crumbled into dust. Several branches fell to the ground in a cascade of brittle destruction, and even sturdy tree trunks succumbed to rot and decay.
"Do you still believe your magic is more powerful than mine?" Macheve cackled, but it was not the serp who acted. It was Reiculf who had ripped life from the forest and found such pleasure in the display.
Scheff froze, partially in fear, but mostly in uncertainty. He faced the ultimate evil, a malice that was not supposed to exist beyond the boundaries of Demonspawn. It was as if the very bowels of the dark realm had been unlocked and poured onto the ground before him.
"Still hoping to understand it all?" Macheve asked. "The answer is within you, just as it was once within me."
"This is not a part of me!" Scheff disputed.
"But it is. You willingly accepted Ansas' magic. You opened a conduit to your core. Even though the sorcerer's magic no longer resides within you, the channel still exists. That is your past, a choice you can not deny. Reiculf can reach through such a conduit, mix his essence with yours. You will become a part of him and he will become a part of you... but control will be his."
"No! We are not in Demonspawn. His power is limited to that dimension."
"Come now. You just saw what I did. Do you think I could do that on my own... a lowly serp? I have walked upon the desolate grounds of Demonspawn. I have met... and joined with the daokiln. Now, he can reach other realms through me, thus I came for you."
Scheff saw the ecstatic expectation in Macheve's eyes. He knew the serp was preparing to take over his mind. She could not do so with her own influence, but she had access to the greatest of all evils. If a passage to his core did exist, he was more than just vulnerable, he was in grave danger. Grasping at one last hope, the elf professed his own belief regarding the daokiln.
"I do not accept his presence!"
Macheve cackled again.
"You do not have to. To a degree, the rules have changed. He does not have to wait for you to come to him. He can take you on his own."
"Not if I refuse him!"
"Normally, that might be true, but you continue to forget your past. You accepted the sorcerer's magic. It was you that made that decision, not Reiculf. No one forced it upon you, and now you have to face the consequences. You can't deny what you've done."
"I make no attempt to deny it, but I have grown, and I will not make the same mistake again."
"Irrelevant."
As if to prove the declaration, Reiculf unleashed his dreadful magic. He reached out through Macheve, used her manipulative talents and expanded them to an unimaginable level. With his own energy reaching out like a thousand tentacles, Reiculf took hold of the pathway that still existed to the center of Scheff's essence.
The daokiln sliced off a portion of the elf's core and replaced it with his own diseased magic. Pulling Scheff's essence through Macheve, Reiculf consumed it back in Demonspawn, thus mingling the elf's energy with his own... both in his body and Scheff's. The connection was complete. The elf spell caster was in the grip of the demon master.
Chapter 5
Neltus knew the infern would be waiting for him, but he pretended to be surprised. He entered his private room at the tavern with casual ease, but came to a complete halt at the sight of his unannounced guest. The crimson casting wizard appeared momentarily startled. He gave his visitor a perplexed look as he stood apparently unprepared for the half-demon's presence, but nothing could have been further from the truth.
"Torch boy? Is that you?"
Gnafil never appreciated the nickname the obnoxious spell caster gave him. He didn't wish to respond and give the wizard the satisfaction, but his desires no longer mattered. He was on a mission for Reiculf, and so the half-demon swallowed his pride.
"You know it is," Gnafil replied. "Though Ansas' magic is no longer inside us, the echoes of the bond remain. There is no way to completely purge the link that was once between us. I can sense you, as I know you can sense me."
"That may be, torch boy, but you shouldn't just sneak into my room like this. I didn't expect you, and I could have mistaken you for a common thief. That wouldn't have gone well for you."
"I can protect myself," the infern hissed.
"Come on, Gnaffy," Neltus replied with a playful and slightly malicious grin. "You know you could never beat me. Nothing to be ashamed of, it's nothing personal. Just the natural alignment of the elements. Fire versus rock and dirt; I always win. You can't burn through what I can cast, but I can always snuff you out."
The infern would have enjoyed putting that claim to the test, especially with his amber magic mixed with the sheer intensity of Reiculf's malice. With the energy at his disposal, the infern could have burned through granite like it was dry kindling, but he was forced to focus on the daokiln's wishes and not his own.
"That is no longer the case, but I am not here to challenge you."
"Oh, and why are you here?" Neltus asked, pretending to be curious.
The human wizard, however, already knew the answer, and it chilled his soul. Still, he did his best to appear as confident as ever. If he was to survive, he needed to time his
escape perfectly. It took a great deal of preparation for the spells he was about to cast, but misdirection was as important as timing.
He walked further into his room, pretending that Gnafil's visit was unimportant to him... even mundane. He casually removed his coat, which further unveiled his rather unkempt appearance. His shirt was wrinkled and slightly stained with various spots of gravy and ale. He threw his coat on a chair in the corner and emptied the contents of one of his pockets on a desktop. He appeared completely unfazed by the infern's appearance, even as a sizeable chunk of fear gnawed at his insides.
The wizard would have preferred to run, but he knew he would be caught. Gnafil was right; they were still connected by shadows of the past. Neltus wouldn't be able to hide his trail from the infern unless he covered his tracks, and that had to be done with precise skill.
As the wizard moved about the room, Gnafil watched carefully for clues of Neltus' intentions. He sensed something different about the spell caster, but the infern could never appreciate the outrageous antics of the wizard. The obnoxious human was always something of an oddity to the half-demon. Without wishing to waste anymore time, Gnafil announced the purpose of his visit.
"Your skills are required by Reiculf."
Neltus froze, his hands remained near the assorted items he had removed from his pocket. He continued to stare at the numerous coins spread across the desktop. He allowed the fear that was already within him to bubble to the surface, but just for a moment. He believed it was necessary to complete the charade.
Hoping to make a quick and severe turn of emotions, he quickly bit down on his anxiety and let out a laugh. His sizeable belly shook enough to disturb the desk and send two coins rolling off the edge. He looked back at the infern as he ran his fingers through his unkempt hair.
"You had me going there for a moment," the spell caster admitted through a wide smile. "Reiculf? Good one. Even scarier than Enin. I guess you figured you had to come up with something big, but come on... the demon master? Really? Don't you think that's a bit much?"
