I will clear these from the way.
Certan started at one part of the room and methodically broke every shelf and bottle as he worked around the perimeter.
The exit will be hidden here somewhere. I need to withstand the lure and pain of the alcohol to get out.
Certan kept himself focused on the task, not letting himself notice the alcohol being scattered everywhere. After a time though, he started to tire.
Why am I tired so fast?
The monk stopped and stepped back to observe the room. The shelf before him was reforming before his eyes. He looked back, and every shelf had completely restored itself.
How many times have I already cleared these same bottles?
An answer lay on the ground. The bottles were slowly disappearing, but the alcohol was not. The more he broke bottles, the more the floor was soaked through with alcohol. Much of it was pooling as well.
I’ll eventually drown myself.
Certan laughed. He had never imagined drowning himself this way.
I can’t destroy the alcohol, and I can’t drink it. How do I get out?
Noticing his elevated heart rate and breathing, he walked to the nearby chair and sat. He calmed himself and closed his eyes. Once he felt composed, he opened his eyes and saw an open bottle and a chunky glass full of a brown liquid. He resisted the urge to swat it away, and carefully carried the drink to the bar and set it down. After returning to the table, Certan sat down on the table instead, cross-legged.
No more creation of alcohol here now that I’m covering the space.
He closed his eyes and kept his mind clear, as much as possible until sleep came.
Certan opened his eyes, for a moment forgetting where he was. But the vast amounts of alcohol quickly reminded him. He felt incredibly thirsty and started to reach for a bottle instinctively.
Is the room smaller than before?
Certan noticed several bottles of what had to be flammable liquids floating in front of him. He knocked them away, the bottles crashing and contributing to a pool of liquid. Something looked strange about it. Certan quickly rose and climbed off the table, walking over to inspect the puddle.
It looks quite deep, surprisingly so. He plunged a hand in and couldn’t feel the floor. Leaning in further and further, he finally reached something. But he wasn’t sure what it was.
I could dive in.
He instantly rejected the idea. But then, he couldn’t shake it.
This is a trial of Will. Perhaps I need to immerse myself in that which I cannot control.
Certan took a deep breath. This test was never meant to be easy. He released the breath and drew in one even bigger. Then he dove headfirst into the strange puddle. After the initial shock, it felt like swimming. It only took a few strong strokes to get down to where the strange surface was. He couldn’t see properly but did manage to feel around. It was definitely some sort of doorway. He searched frantically for some sort of handle or latch. But there was nothing. Certan clawed at the door, looking for a way to open it. But it didn’t budge. His breath was running out, so he turned and leapt back out of the puddle.
He stood on the edge, drawing in deep breaths and ignoring the potent alcohol running down his face and clothes. He absolutely stank of alcohol.
This isn’t working. I immersed myself and it wasn’t enough.
Certan looked around the room. He was missing something. He sank down and closed his eyes, meditating once more. The answer would come to him in time, he was sure of that.
Certan awoke quickly, feeling disoriented. He had fallen asleep without realising. The room was exactly as he remembered it. Only there was a wood chip floating slowly over the strange puddle of alcohol. It triggered a memory.
I demonstrated Will to Alrion and Lara this way. The fundamentals of Will.
Certan remembered the lesson. How Lara had been so good at effortlessly hovering the chip of wood. Certan did the same here, this time making the wood float a long way above the puddle.
I’ve been foolish. I have not seen what was right in front of me.
Certan stood and looked around once more. He picked a section of wall and reimagined the room with the door in that location. But not just imagined, he remade it the way he wished. Certan closed his eyes and opened them again. The door had moved. But it still had no way of opening. He walked forward with confidence and placed his hand on the door. It opened inwards, bathing him in a white light. With a smile, Certan stepped through the door.
He found himself back in the same chamber. The elders looked at him and nodded.
“You have passed the trial. You have proven yourself as a master of Will.”
“Thank you for the opportunity.”
“Do you know what you must do?”
“I do.” Certan gave them all a deep bow.
“Do you know where to go?”
“No, but I can find out.”
“No need. Head to Valrytir.” The elder gave Certan a wry smile.
“I will. When we meet next, the world will be free from the Blight.”
“Good, that is the right time for you to return.” The elder closed his eyes and Certan knew he was dismissed. He turned and left.
Thank you again. Your faith in me has been unwavering, and I will not let you down. Alrion, I am coming. We will finish the journey we started.
24
Planning the Assault
Alrion looked at the landscape before him. The ground slowly descended into a deep valley. The grass thinning and becoming dirt. And within looked like a rounded stone fortress. Unlike anything he had ever seen.
“You’re sure this is the place?” Alrion said. Fermur nodded.
“It makes sense. This will be Rindale’s tomb.” Branthor clenched his right fist.
“It looks really old. I don’t think he built this, it would have been here before,” Lara said.
“Agreed. This will be a very difficult place to attack. It will be heavily fortified.” Alyx folded her arms and shook her head while she took it in.
“Sentries will spot us coming from a mile away. Have you guys got a spell for that?”
“Invisibility I can do. It’s hard to maintain for the whole group, however. Much easier to do on myself,” Branthor muttered.
“He can scout then if we trust him.” Lara looked to Alrion. He shook his head.
“It’s not a matter of trust. We all need to be there. Rindale can’t get away again.” Alrion turned to Fermur. “Is there something you can tell us, to give us an edge?”
“Hmm,” Fermur muttered. He still seemed to have trouble speaking.
“We will protect you. Nobody will transform you again.”
“There… is a path.” Fermur strained, the words sounding quite difficult to utter.
“And that will get us inside?” Lara said.
“Avoid most traps.” Fermur looked relieved that the words came out.
“Sounds like a good idea to me. Any objections?” Lara looked around the ground. Nobody said anything.
“Then…” Lara started to say but was cut off by Branthor.
“Are you completely stupid? He did this to us last time. That didn’t end well, did it?”
“It’s different. He’s cured now, and Rindale isn’t expecting us,” Alrion said.
“Not expecting us? Are you that naive? Fermur hasn’t checked in and actually isn’t infected anymore. Isn’t it obvious where we will be going next?” Branthor looked quite agitated.
“We’re not going to let him get away again.” Alrion turned to Fermur. “Can you draw us a map of some kind?”
“Yes.” Fermur nodded as well. Lara searched through her jacket for some paper. Branthor formed a table and chairs out of the ground. Tufts of grass littered the table top.
“Be my guest.” Branthor pulled up a chair for Fermur. The reformed man looked at Branthor warily but did sit down. Lara handed him a sheet of paper and a rough pencil. Fermur started sketching.
“This
is a much better idea. We can plan how we attack the fortress.” Alyx was looking over Fermur’s shoulder.
“Fine. But you need to let me verify some of the details. I don’t want to blindly trust what he says.” Branthor glared at Alrion.
“That’s prudent. And you have the invisibility spell too. But you must promise that you won’t enter the fortress without us there.”
“You trust my word?”
“You can swear an oath.”
“On what?”
“Rindale’s life.” Branthor burst out laughing.
“You better not let me down.”
“He has nowhere else to retreat to. It ends here.” Alrion looked at the group and they all nodded.
“I think he’s almost finished,” Alyx said. Moments later, Fermur leaned back and pushed the paper across the table. Alrion picked it up and Lara looked over his shoulder.
“The scale looks consistent. This must be the path he was referring to.” Lara pointed to a winding path that joined about halfway through the building.
“What are these crosses?” Alrion asked.
“Traps,” Fermur said.
“Oh, I see. Yes, the path does seem to enter the building past the main traps. Is this meant to be Rindale’s chamber?” Lara pointed out a spot on the map. Fermur nodded.
“His chamber is in the middle of all the traps.”
“Can you enter through the front?” Alrion said. Fermur nodded again.
“Sounds to me like we should just take the most efficient entrance if we have to encounter traps anyway,” Branthor said. Alrion wasn’t sure. There had to be some reason that Fermur mentioned the other path.
“How did you visit Rindale if he was surrounded by traps?” Alrion said. Fermur scrunched up his face a little as he thought.
“Disable. Some.”
“There! See, if we go this way, we might be able to disable enough traps to get through safely.” Alrion glanced at Branthor.
“Fine. I’ll go and investigate. If Fermur’s access point and information checks out, we can move forward with that plan.” Branthor closed his eyes and concentrated for a few moments. Alrion studied him intently, wondering what he was doing. He noticed the surge of Spark, but it didn’t feel like a huge amount. Suddenly, Branthor was gone.
“That’s how a real wizard operates,” Branthor said. He was still invisible.
“Very impressive, see you soon,” Alrion said. He heard Branthor’s feet crunching on the ground as he walked away.
“We can hear you!” Lara shouted after him. But she looked shaken. Alrion drew in close.
“Are you alright?” Lara turned quickly and smiled at him.
“Yes, I just found that invisibility a bit shocking is all. Would be quite useful in my line of work, provided you don’t tramp around like a bear.”
“I can imagine so. I’ll figure out a way to make you invisible if you’d like?”
“As long as you can turn me back.” Lara winked.
“Maybe I should practice on something else first.” Alrion chuckled and received another smile from Lara. Alyx was just staring off into the distance.
“Are you concerned about him?” Alrion said.
“He is like me, only worse. His rage is so barely contained, something will give way soon.”
“How did you contain it?” Lara said.
“I channelled my anger into my training, my deadliness. All in preparation for my revenge. Lucky for me, I was occupied enough by my growth and development. And the fighting was a good outlet.”
“But for him it’s different?” Alrion said.
“Yes, he’s already a master wizard. Has been for a while. And the Blight… it changes you. Amplifies the worst. You would understand.” Alyx glanced at Alrion and he gave her a slight nod.
“One way or another, his rage will consume him. Hopefully, we meet Rindale before that happens.”
“Or else?” Lara whispered.
“He’ll destroy himself and everything else. Him first.” Alyx pointed to Fermur. The man gulped and cowered.
“It won’t get to that. We’ll deal with this now. Then everyone can move on.”
“You can’t save everyone.” Alyx shook her head and looked out in the distance once more. Alrion let the conversation die. Lara pulled him aside.
“You do realise that Branthor will eliminate Rindale. By the most destructive means necessary.”
“I do.”
“Are you fine with that?”
“No. I’ll try to get a better outcome.”
“If Rindale doesn’t perish, Branthor will go crazy. You even made a deal with him.”
“I know, let’s just see how things go.” Alrion’s voice faltered slightly. Lara gave him a disapproving look.
“Sometimes you need to make the hard choice. Rindale has already had his chance. Your grandfather cured him, remember?”
“So we think. Look, I know I should be harder about this. But I know what it’s like to have this transformation. I’ve seen what it does to people, what it did to Branthor. Rindale is a real person, just like us. Look at Fermur, he’s a broken shell. That’s what we need to protect, that’s the reason I’m doing this.” Alrion sighed.
“I don’t disagree, but I’m warning you. This is going to get ugly.”
“It always was. Branthor is too far gone. We just need to do our best with the situation we have before us.”
“Of course. As always, I’ve got your back.” Lara smiled and winked, then her face changed completely. A serious look came over her.
“Hey, there’s something I need to mention. I’ve been thinking about it for a while.”
“Oh alright. What is it?” Alrion didn’t have a good feeling. To see Lara’s face change so suddenly, it couldn’t be good.
“Don’t leave me out,” Branthor said. Alrion spun and he couldn’t see the wizard.
“Oh, you’re back. How long have you been here?” he said.
“Not long. Just enough to hear mention of how crazy I am.” Branthor didn’t sound annoyed. He appeared suddenly right next to them.
“Good, then we’re all going into this with open eyes. What did you learn?”
“The information checks out. The path is as described and allows easy access into the compound. I didn’t venture further because I didn’t want to set off any traps.” Branthor sounded annoyed at that.
“Thank you for following the plan. Do you spot many guards?” Lara said.
“None. It was suspiciously quiet.”
“He’s inviting us in, you think?” Alrion commented.
“He must be. We should be prepared for anything.”
“We are. Alyx, come closer so we can discuss the finer details.” Lara waved Alyx over. She strode over and left Fermur sitting against a nearby tree.
Hours passed, and twilight was falling. The plan had been discussed and agreed, and Alrion was itching to go.
“Now is the time.” Lara started to walk down the path and the rest followed. Alyx escorted Fermur, and Branthor and Alrion stayed close to Lara. As expected, they found no sentries or guards on their descent. The fortress itself was eerily quiet, and dark. Alrion distributed tiny lights for each person to see better as darkness fell. They walked in silence, their boots crunching along the dusty and sometimes stone littered path. Frequent stops were required to ensure Fermur was well, he seemed to have minimal energy and had barely eaten or drunk anything since he was cured.
The fortress loomed above them. As they approached, it looked like it had been carved out of a mountain. Years and painstaking labour would have been used to sculpt it to its present shape, and the enduring years smoothing it out even more.
They took a fork in the path, and they wound through the territory and around the edge of the fortress. Alrion spotted their destination, a side gate. It was an obvious fixture in an otherwise bland and featureless wall.
“Something is not right with that,” Alrion said. He couldn’t quite make out all the d
etails, but he could tell.
“It’s open! That’s the problem.” Lara stopped and turned to Branthor. “Did you leave it open?”
“I’m crazy, not dumb. I closed it properly and quietly,” Branthor replied.
“Then either someone is really careless, or it’s an even more obvious invitation.” Lara looked annoyed. Alyx stood still, her arms folded. Lara turned to Fermur.
“Is this normal? Is this gate normally locked?”
“Always.”
“Great. Just great.” Lara stared at the gate again.
“Should we just proceed? If they’re expecting us, it’s better to convince them we are still coming. Rindale may flee again if he gets nervous.” Alrion didn’t like the idea of walking into a trap, but he liked the idea of Rindale getting away again even less.
“It’s quite foolish, playing to Rindale’s tune. He has everything stacked in his favour.” Branthor was looking elsewhere on the fortress, no doubt assessing another way in.
“That’s ideal. He will get complacent and make a mistake. We can capitalise on that.” Alrion took a step forward. Lara grabbed his arm.
“Are you sure about this?” She looked nervously over at Branthor.
“Let’s spring the traps. Branthor, you’re about to have some fun.” Alrion looked at the master wizard. He laughed and rubbed his hands.
“Good, I was beginning to think we were going to talk all day.”
I just hope I can keep everyone safe. Ugly doesn’t even begin to cover this.
25
Split Focus
Falric regarded Celes warmly.
“You two take care, and good luck on your search.”
“You take care as well. You sure you won’t miss this book?” Celes felt the outline of the book through her bag.
“No, not at all. I think I’ve practically memorised it. Besides, I’m sure Vincent will appreciate having something from his father.”
“I will.”
“There, see. Glad you found it.” Falric looked away, his mind preoccupied with something.
Soul of Light (The Hidden Wizard Book 4) Page 17
