He looked at Clara and cleared his throat.
“After that, well, that is where I have to ask you for a favor.”
“Anything, of course,” she said without hesitation. “You three are risking your lives for the greater good. If I can help, or my people, just ask.”
“Don't be too hasty, lady cleric,” Aeris said with a wry smile.
Simon looked at him and then back at Clara.
“He's right,” the wizard said. “The favor is a big one. You see, once her fangs are drawn, so to speak, I'd like to bring the wizard back here for judgment. I'm afraid that after seeing what I've seen of her, the people she's butchered, that I'm not very neutral. If I have my way, although I am firmly against killing another person, I might allow my emotions to dictate my actions and obliterate her.”
Clara was watching him silently and just nodded once as Simon paused.
“But if I bring her back here, assuming that we can actually capture her, you and your people can decide her fate.”
The cleric sat down on the nearest bench and stared at her hands. She was obviously weighing her options and Simon and the elementals waited for her decision.
“And what if, after hearing of her deeds, my people decide that her fate should be death?” she asked finally. “I may be their leader, but this is a democracy, or as close as we can come to one. I would not be able to overturn such a decision. Could you live with that?”
Simon just shrugged.
“Could you?” he asked her in return.
“As much as it would pain me to allow such a thing? Yes, I could. It's a harsh world that we find ourselves in, Simon. If hundreds can be saved by the death of one, then my moral objections cannot stand against that. Be certain that yours cannot either.”
“Thank you for your honesty, Clara,” the wizard said. “If this works out, then I guess I'll decide afterward whether to lay this burden at your feet or not.”
He adjusted his staff more comfortably and looked at Kronk and Aeris.
“Are we ready?” he asked them.
“Yes, master,” Kronk said, his face expressionless.
“More than ready, Simon,” Aeris assured him.
“Right then.”
Clara got up, walked over and grasped Simon's hands. She smiled at him and at the elementals.
“I wish you all the best in this task, my friends. For what it's worth, may the blessing of the gods of Light go with you. And remember, we here in Nottinghill stand ready to help you, should you need it.”
“Thank you,” Simon said simply. “I think this sort of thing is what I was Changed for. But whether that's true or not, we'll do our best.”
The cleric stepped back and watched as Simon chanted the incantation for the Gate spell. He smiled at her one last time.
“Invectis!” he said firmly and with a flash of light and a loud crack, the three of them disappeared.
When Simon and the elementals appeared at their destination, they materialized in the middle of a small clearing surrounded by tall pine and birch trees. The wizard was standing in knee-deep grass and waited quietly as he listened for any suspicious sounds. He searched the trees with his eyes but tried not to make any sudden movements.
After a few moments of holding his breath, Simon relaxed a bit and turned in place, examining the forest in greater detail.
A smell of pine sap and rich earth flooded his nostrils and he enjoyed the scents while he tried to get his bearings.
“Any idea which way we're supposed to be going?” he asked Kronk and Aeris quietly.
“I'll check,” the air elemental replied and shot straight up until he was almost out of sight above the treetops.
“Are you okay?” Simon asked Kronk while they waited for Aeris to figure out where they were.
“I'm fine, master. How are you doing? You have undertaken a dangerous task.”
The wizard glanced upward but the almost invisible figure of Aeris was still floating up there, turning in a slow circle.
“Well, between you and me,” he said, almost whispering, “I'm nervous. But we have to try and save those innocent farmers, don't we?”
Kronk hopped up on a rock that jutted out of the deep grass and nodded vigorously.
“Of course we do, master. It is the right thing to do.” He smiled his little rocky smile at Simon. “And being nervous is natural. It keeps the senses tuned to a higher level and sharpens reaction speed. You will be fine.”
Aeris was descending again and Simon gave Kronk a wink.
“Don't tell him,” he said, nodding up at the air elemental.
“My lips are sealed, master,” the little earthen assured him. “Or they would be, if I had lips.”
Simon stifled a surprised guffaw. It was rare for Kronk to make a joke and this one had caught him off-guard.
“What's so funny?” Aeris demanded to know as he reached shoulder height. “This is a very serious situation, you know.”
He looked at Simon and Kronk sternly.
“We know, Aeris. We know. So, which way do we go?”
Aeris gave him a suspicious look, perhaps wondering if they'd been laughing at him, and then spun in place and pointed.
“That way. I'd say your coordinates were pretty close to perfect. The wizard and her pack shouldn't be more than a mile off.”
“Okay. Are you sure you want to take point? Remember what happened the last time you crossed paths with that woman.”
“She caught me off-guard!” Aeris protested indignantly. “Don't worry, I'll keep my distance.”
“Go ahead then. Kronk and I will follow you.”
“Come along slowly and as quietly as you can,” the air elemental told them. “I'll come back to you once I have spotted our target. And whatever you do, my dear wizard, don't let them see you! Surprise is our one advantage.”
Simon nodded and Kronk gave Aeris a wave.
The air elemental turned and floated upward again and was soon out of sight.
“Let's go,” Simon said tersely.
The wizard began walking through the forest, following the same path that Aeris had taken. The undergrowth wasn't too thick this early in the year, but small berry bushes and saplings grabbed at his robe as he tried to slip between them.
His sleeves were snagged on tree bark and several times he tripped on extruding roots. Finally he heard Kronk speak quietly from behind him in apparent exasperation.
“Master, if you want to be captured, perhaps you should wave a flag and blow a horn as you go?”
Simon stopped abruptly and spun around.
“What?”
Kronk's tone had been so snarky that for a moment he'd sounded a lot like Aeris. When the wizard looked, he saw that the earthen was glaring at him.
“You are going to give yourself away, master!” the little guy whispered. “Please watch where you are going. You are trying to rush and instead are slowing yourself down.”
Kronk's anger told Simon how worried the elemental was for him and he realized that his friend was right. He'd begun almost running through the brush without even realizing it, eager to save the farmers from the pack of monsters ahead.
The wizard paused and caught his breath, trying to slow down his heartbeat. He nodded his thanks to Kronk as he wiped a shaking hand across his face and then on his robe. He adjusted the staff across his back and seated it more comfortably.
“Sorry, bud. I'm worried that we'll arrive too late.”
Kronk's expression softened.
“I know, master. I am as well. But we either get there in time or we do not. If you are discovered prematurely, it may guarantee that those people are killed.”
“You're right. Okay, let's try this again.”
Simon took another breath, looked around and then back at Kronk.
“Which way?”
Fortunately the little guy couldn't roll his burning red eyes and he simply pointed to Simon's right.
“Got it.”
They set off a
gain, but this time Simon moved slower, and carefully slipped around bushes and avoided the trees.
As he snuck forward, the wizard began listening closely. After about a hundred yards, he heard a mutter of sound trickling through the trees ahead.
It sounded like the errant noises you would hear during a visit to a zoo. Yelps, barking and a blood-curdling howl broke the silence of the woods and Simon felt a lump of ice form in his stomach.
My God, he thought, it sounds like a meeting of wild animals.
Finally, the trees began to thin out and he crouched down as he moved forward, creeping from tree to tree and keeping the undergrowth between himself and whatever lay ahead.
“Psst. Master!” Kronk whispered.
Simon turned and saw the little guy pointing above them. The wizard looked up and saw Aeris descending quickly and quietly from the treetops.
“We've arrived in time,” he told them as he reached the ground and hovered near Kronk. “It looks like the wizard's reinforcements haven't gotten here yet. This part of the forest is clear of those creatures so far, but we have to move fast.”
“Well, that's a relief.” Simon listened to the howls and roars in the distance. “It sounds like they're fighting. What's going on?”
Aeris looked over his shoulder.
“No, that's just what that group of monsters sounds like when they get together,” he said with disgust. He glanced at Simon and Kronk. “Follow me. We have to get to the edge of the trees so that I can show you where the wizard is.”
Simon nodded and clenched his hands, trying to stop them from shaking.
“Lead on,” he said and he began to creep along behind Aeris as the air elemental glided forward. Kronk followed behind them.
At the forest's edge, the three of them hunkered down behind the trunk of an old maple tree. Aeris faded until he was almost invisible and moved around the tree until he was looking at the open field beyond.
“Come and look, Simon,” he whispered. “Stay low and move slowly.”
The wizard crept forward on his hands and knees, hitching up his robe to free up his legs somewhat. He adjusted his staff to make sure it didn't get caught on the tree.
Simon stared, appalled, as the open field came into view. Kronk, on his right, rumbled with disgust.
About fifty yards ahead, gathered in a group that hopped and slithered and growled, he saw the mutant Changlings. He had seen them with the Magic Mirror spell, but seeing them close up and personal was a different experience entirely.
There were perhaps twenty creatures in sight. Some stood on two legs, some on four and one looked like a giant snake, with a humanoid face and vestigial arms. Some were covered with scales, others with long hair. Some even wore a few sad pieces of ragged clothing. They were fanged and clawed and altogether horrible to see.
And the stench of them made Simon gag. It was a mixture of wet fur, sweat and excrement that threatened to make him vomit.
He tore his eyes away from the pack and looked at Aeris.
“Where's the leader?” he murmured.
Aeris was on the ground next to the wizard's head and his distaste was just as evident as Simon's.
“Look there,” he said, pointing. “To the left, just beyond the mutants.”
Simon squinted and then saw someone standing on a tree stump almost screened by the hopping, churning group of monsters. He hadn't seen her at first because she was wearing stained brown robes that blended in with the trees on the far side of the field.
The wizard was wearing his own usual dark gray which was also hard to see in the shadows of the forest.
Just lucky, I guess, he thought vaguely as he watched the enemy wizard intently.
She was simply standing on the large stump, head bowed inside her hood. Her long hair hung down almost to her waist and hid her face. The streaks of white, so much like his own, caught Simon's eye.
She's been using a lot of magic lately, he thought with trepidation. This could go sideways so easily.
He looked at the elementals.
“Is there any reason to wait, or are we ready?”
The two little figures exchanged looks.
“We're ready, Simon,” Aeris said for them both.
“Okay. Kronk, how long until you're set?”
The earthen stared across the clearing at the dark wizard.
“Five minutes to get in place and bring in the others, master. Then I will move.” He looked at Aeris. “Does that give you enough time?”
“It should,” the air elemental replied. He turned to the wizard. “Simon, once I draw them away, or as many as I can, and Kronk makes his move, you must strike. Do not hesitate. There is no telling how long the earthen can hold her.”
“I'll be ready,” Simon said grimly, his voice shaking a bit. “Can you get back to me in time? I'll be Gating as soon as I get to her.”
“Don't worry about me. If I can't reach you in time, I know where the rendezvous is. I'll be there either way.”
Simon slipped Bene-Dunn-Gal off of his back and laid it on the ground beside him. He pushed himself up until he was kneeling in the shadow of the tree. The sky had clouded over and the air had become slightly chilly.
“Okay, Kronk. Aeris will wait three minutes and then begin his diversion. Be careful. We don't know the extent of this woman's powers.”
Kronk sighed.
“Yes master, I know. We've been all through this.”
“Okay then. Go! And good luck.”
Kronk gave him a tight smile and then sank into the earth.
Simon began counting under his breath.
One-one thousand. Two-one thousand. Three-one thousand.
He kept his eyes on the wizard and her unruly pack as he waited but she never moved and the monsters continued to snap and growl at each other, their calls and hoots a continuous muted roar. He had almost gotten used to the stench that wafted over him, or else he was just too focused to care about it anymore.
He reached the three minute mark and looked at Aeris.
“Now!” he whispered. “Good luck!”
Aeris nodded and gave him a small salute. He hesitated and moved to within inches of Simon's face.
“Remember, my dear wizard, that these are not true Changlings. They have been twisted into monsters by the dark gods. If any die, it will be a mercy killing, like putting down a rabid dog.”
Simon swallowed noisily. He nodded his understanding and Aeris returned it. Then he disappeared with a quiet pop and the wizard snuck back behind the tree and stood up, Bene-Dunn-Gal firmly in hand.
The plan was for Aeris to make as much noise as possible to create a diversion and draw off the pack, or most of it. Simon would then wait for Kronk to make his move and then it would be his turn.
He gripped the staff with sweaty palms and stared at its length, looking at the tiny writing that rose from its bottom tip about a foot. He had imbued the metal with dozens of spells, so many that he'd collapsed into exhausted sleep every night for almost two weeks. But hopefully it will have been worth it, because he certainly didn't have the time to start memorizing spells now.
Simon peeked out to watch the pack and, at that moment, a tremendous crack of thunder rolled across the field, making the air vibrate. Several leaves drifted down from the trees and the wizard was almost deafened by the sound.
“Wow. Good one, Aeris,” he muttered in admiration.
The monsters that had been fighting and cavorting in the middle of the clearing leaped apart as if they had actually been struck by lightning. Bestial heads swung this way and that, looking for the source of the apparent attack.
“I'm over here, you pathetic mongrels!” came a shout from the far side of the field. Simon was taken aback. He hadn't realized that Aeris could actually yell that loudly.
Must be an air elemental thing, he thought. You're a tricky one, my friend.
As one, like mindless beasts, the pack flung themselves toward the mocking voice. They bayed and howled and sl
avered as they raced across the field and into the forest on the other side.
The wizard was suddenly standing alone on the tree stump, her head still tilted forward, unmoving.
Simon looked at the distant figure suspiciously. What was she doing? Hadn't she seen her minions leave? She was on her own without any guards.
Something's not right, the wizard thought with a stab of panic. We'll have to wait. I'll summon Kronk back and...
The ground around the stump exploded and Simon gaped at the sight of a half-dozen earth elementals, including Kronk, leaping straight up from underground. They swarmed over the figure of the immobile wizard, knocking her off of the stump into a crumpled heap on the ground.
Without any hesitation, Simon jumped out from behind the tree and raced across the field, looking frantically around to see if any of the wizard's minions were in sight. But the area was still clear and the howling of the chasing pack was barely audible.
He slid to a stop next to the elementals and looked down at the body, still shrouded and hidden by its robe and hood.
“Did you guys knock her out?” Simon asked as he stared at the still figure, panting loudly.
Kronk had been peering underneath the hood of the body and now looked up at the wizard with wide eyes.
“No master. This person was already dead.”
“Dead? What...”
The little guy pushed back the hood and Simon found himself looking into the face, not of the wizard, who's appearance he knew well, but that of a young man.
As the elemental finished removing the hood, the long white-streaked hair slipped off and fell to one side. Underneath was a mass of blood-stained blond hair. The young man's eyes were half-open, staring dully at nothing.
“We've been tricked, master,” Kronk said angrily. “The wizard was never here.”
Tales from the New Earth: Volume One Page 65
