Earth Magic

by Kenneth Price

  Ruan was about to run when suddenly he recognized the face. It was the dark-haired girl that he had seen in Gildas. It was the girl who claimed to be 'One Who Never Was,' whatever that meant. She still wore the same brown dress of a servant. Walking towards the pond's bank, the girl rose out of the water. Again, Ruan was struck by how familiar she looked. With bare feet, she stepped out of the water and onto the grassy bank of the pond. Surprised, Ruan saw that from her dark hair to her bare feet she was perfectly dry.

  "You..." Ruan managed to say. "How?... This is a dream."

  She lifted her eyes to him. "You called me."

  "I called you?" asked Ruan, forgetting his fear.

  Not waiting for an answer, Ruan went on, "You should not be here. It is dangerous." Ruan scratched his head, "And where are we? Is this a dream?"

  "A dream? No, and yes." The strange girl replied.

  "Where is this place?"

  "Don't you recognize it?" The soft-spoken girl answered the question with a question.

  "Yes, it is the Northern Dragon Mountains, but I how did I get here?"

  "Sometimes when the need is great, one can reach this place. However, it is no longer safe. It is dangerous for you to be here."

  "What do you mean?"

  "You have entered what is called the World of Dreams. Here everything is real and not real, but that does not matter. What is important is that you are here. And I do have a message for you."

  "What?" It is only a dream, he told himself. It has to be a dream.

  "Do not go to Mythra."

  He frowned. "How did you know about that?"

  "I cannot say, but you must not go there. At least not now."

  "Then where!?" he snapped angrily. "Where am I to go? I can't believe that I am arguing with a dream."

  "Here," she pointed at the pond. "Your Dream Walk has already shown you. Come to this place and things will become clear."

  "The mountains? I would need to bring an army. This is Trolls and Hobgoblins country!" he exclaimed in dismay before going on. "And there are other things too," he added, remembering the dog man.

  She cocked her head to one side and smiled, "Come." Not waiting for Ruan to respond, she started walking along the foot of the cliff face were the ancient stone bridge stood overhead.

  Ruan hesitated, then followed. He watched her, wondering why she looked so familiar. She lead him to a pair of stairs that had been cut into the cliff face, leading up to the bridge and ancient road.

  She pointed. "Go up."

  "Why?"

  "Because you need to."

  Ruan shrugged his shoulders and went up the stone stairs that curved and onto the rustic bridge. Briefly, he stopped and looked down at the pond and the strange girl that stood at its banks. Then with another shrug, he headed up the ancient road. From the bridge, the road wound its way towards the north, climbing ever higher into the mountains. At last, the road abruptly came to an end at the foot of a steep sloping cliff face. What a strange road. Why would anyone build a road that goes nowhere? Convinced that there must be some reason for the road, Ruan began searching the cliff wall. Just as he was about to give up, and not too far from the road, he discovered another stone staircase. Ingeniously cut into the cliff, the stairs were created in such a way that they were hidden and camouflaged into the stonewall of the cliff. If one was not standing at its base, one would never be able to see or even know of the stairs existence. With little choice, he began to climb. The stairs were steep and arduous. Warn by the weather, the stairs had not been used for a very long time. Twice he nearly slipped, but he went on. Breathing hard, Ruan finally reached the top where the stone stairs opened up onto a narrow landing. The rocky shelf was no more than 20 feet wide. In the center of the cliff, that still rose above him, was a large mouth of a dark cave. Entering, he was surprised to find that he was suddenly holding a torch. “A dream,” he muttered as an explanation. “Dreams rarely make any sense.” The cave was wide but not deep. Soon Ruan found that he had cut through the mountainside and was standing on the other side and on yet another landing. Ruan found himself standing high above a valley that was surrounded by a dense forest that stretched out as far as the eye could see. He gazed over a broad valley that stretched out for many miles. Running down the center of the green valley was a meandering stream that flowed out of the mountains. But that was not all he could see. He could hardly believe it. In the center of the valley was a city. “A city!?” Ruan rubbed his eyes, yet the city below did not vanish.

  People out here? What does this mean? The city was unlike any that Ruan had ever seen. Behind the city's white stone walls, houses and buildings were painted with bright, brilliant colors. And hundreds of shimmering flags snapped briskly in the wind. It was like looking down upon a rainbow. Wanting some answers, he turned and returned the way he had come. That strange girl needs to answer some questions, however when he, at last, reached the pond, he found that the girl was gone. Ruan began searching for her, but he could not find her.

  "Where are you!" he shouted. His voice echoed through trees.

  "Fool!" came an answer. The voice seemed to come from a great distance and yet was crystal clear. "You are not alone here. Be quiet."

  "Where are you?"

  "I cannot come to you like this again," the girl's voice seemed to echo in Ruan's head.

  "Remember when the High King calls, you must go. Goodbye, father."

  "What? ... Oh, my lord! I do know you! But that can't be!" Everything faded, and the fog returned.

  "No!" With a jerk, Ruan sat up in his bed. He was awake and once more in Keloran.

  "Are you all right?" It was Eilidh still lying beside him. "Did you have a bad dream?"

  "I saw her." He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. His eyes grew wide.

  "Saw who?"

  "Our daughter!"

  "Ruan, Maia is in bed across the hall." She looked at his arm. "Oh my! You are bleeding!"

  Ruan looked at his arm, then back to his wife. "It was real!"

  "What are you talking about?" she asked sounding concerned. "Did you dream of Maia? Try not to worry. It was only a dream. She is fine."

  Ruan shook his head. "No not Maia. I saw Rhea."

  Eilidh frowned. "Ruan, it was a dream. Rhea was a still-born. She was dead before she took her first breath. You know that."

  Ruan nodded, then whispered, "One who never was."

  --

  Elwin opened his eyes. He could see nothing. He closed them, then opened them again. It made no difference. He could not see a thing. I am blind. Shifting onto his side, he could feel a thin layer of rough straw that had been scattered across a cold stone floor.

  "Are you awake?" a voice asked.

  Elwin gave a startled reply. "Who's there? Aidan, is that you?"

  "Yes."

  "Where are we?"

  Aidan, feeling his way in the dark, crawled closer. "I think we are in the Temple's dungeon."

  Even with Aidan sitting right next to him, Elwin could not see him. "I cannot see, Aidan. I am blind."

  "No, you're not. It is just very dark. I can see a little." Elves could see better in the dark than humans. "We are in a cell of some type with a large iron gate."

  Elwin sat up and leaned against a stone wall. His head began to throb. Letting the side of his face lay against the cold stones, Elwin tried not to move. The last thing he remembered was the door to their room at the Silver Thorn suddenly bursting apart, slivers of the wood had flown everywhere, then black armored men poured into the room.

  "At least Pallas and Colin are safe," Elwin sighed.

  Aidan nodded. Then remembering Elwin could not see him, added, "I hope so."

  Aidan blinked. "There is a light coming from somewhere." He hesitated. "It's coming through an archway just beyond the gate. I think someone is coming."

  The light grew brighter. As the light grew, Elwin could start making out his surroundings. At first, he could only vaguely distinguish the outline of his and Aid
an's cell. Then he saw the archway and a narrow door. The door was standing halfway open, allowing the light to slip in.

  As the light grew brighter, Elwin started picking out more details. Between the cell and the archway was a large room. In the center of the room was a long narrow table. Seeing what was on the table, Elwin shivered. "This is a torture chamber."

  Aidan did not respond. The light grew brighter. They could now hear footsteps echoing down a hallway. Elwin's heart was pounding. The door swung the rest of the way open. A black robed priest of the Severed Head stepped through the door. At his side was a small, stocky creature in tight leather armor. In one hand, the yellow-skinned creature carried an oil lamp and in its other a spear. Its yellow eyes shifted nervously from side to side and shimmered in the flickering lamplight. A Hobgoblin! Elwin had never seen a Hobgoblin before, but he had read enough about them to know that this had to be one of those fierce creatures of the north. But how did a Hobgoblin get here from the Northern mountains?

  "Good, you are awake." The priest had a cold voice that made Elwin cringe. His long black robe flowed as he walked across the room. His hungry and dangerous eyes locked onto Elwin’s. The priest ran a hand over his shaved head. Then he looked down at the Hobgoblin. "Wait outside," he ordered.

  Without saying a word, the Hobgoblin bowed and quickly backed away, closing the door behind him. As the Hobgoblin disappeared with the lamp, a red glowing ball of light appeared above the priest's head. Making the room look more menacing than it had a moment ago, the red glowing ball bathed the room in a blood red light.

  Bathed in the magical light, the priest took on a monstrous appearance, like some demon from the dark bowels of the earth. Like a demon straight from Hell itself. With deliberate slowness, the priest turned towards the cell. An uncharacteristic smile touched the ends of his thin lips. "I hope you are not too uncomfortable." His voice was soft and gentle, yet it could not hide the coldness of his eyes.

  Trying not to shake, Elwin came to his feet. "What do you want from us?"

  "To help you, Prince Elwin." Keeping one hand inside the folds of his robe, he swung the other hand out across the room before him. "I feel that you are being mistreated. You are of royal blood after all, and one such as you deserves better than this. I would like to help you."

  Elwin put his hand to his head, wishing the throbbing would stop. It was making it hard to focus. "You seem to know me,” Elwin saw no point in denying who he was. "But who are you?"

  "I am Gillies, a simple priest of the Severed Head." the man said as if the title were beneath him. "However, I am in a position to help you. I am more than I may appear. I am a powerful man, Prince Elwin. Stronger than anyone knows."

  "Why would a Black Priest help us?" asked Aidan. He also had climbed to his feet and was standing next to Elwin. Gillies smiled and looked at Aidan as if seeing him for the first time. Hungrily, his eyes sparkled. "A fair question my young Elf."

  "I will be honest with you. I am an ambitious man.” Gillis went on. “And as I said, I am also a powerful man. However, with your assistance, I can become even more powerful. With your help, I shall soon be the High Priest of this temple and much, much more!"

  "How can we help you?" asked Elwin. He found it hard to believe that this small skinny man could be as powerful as he claimed, yet there was something about him that reminded Elwin of Faynn and not in a good way.

  "You have something I need." Gillies' smile broadened. "Help me and I shall help you. I can be very generous to my friends. I would like to be your friend, and right now you seem to be in the need of a friend.”

  "What could we have to offer you?" Elwin asked, shrugging his shoulders. "We are the prisoners behind these bars, and you are the jailer."

  "Be careful," whispered Aidan. "Do not trust this one."

  From beneath his robe, Gillies pulled out a sword. Elwin's eyes widened, and he caught his breath. It was the sword of Light and Dark. It was Elwin's sword handed down to him by his father. A strange urge rose in him to reach out and hold it. To touch it. "My sword!" he gasped.

  "It was. But now it is mine," said Gillies tapping the blade with his free hand.

  Trembling and feeling as if a part of him had been stolen, Elwin stared at the sheathed sword.

  With a mixture of awe and respect, the priest placed the blade down on the table. The man looked back up. "I want to know how it works." Glistening with a mad excitement, Gillies' eyes danced between Elwin and the sword. "Torcull wants this blade. I want to know why."

  With difficulty, Elwin forced himself to look away from the sword, but he too kept glancing back at it as if he needed to be reassured that it was still there.

  "I have examined it carefully," Gillies went on, "and it appears to be nothing but a simple sword. I have tried many incantations. The spells should have revealed its mysteries to me, and yet there is nothing. However, it must be very powerful, or Torcull would not want it. Somehow the sword is hiding its true nature from me. I must find its secrets. Then I will be its master."

  "I do not know what you mean," replied Elwin. "It is just a sword."

  Gillies held out his open hand. He spoke, but a single word of an ancient language, a ball of fire materialized in the palm of his outstretched hand. Tossing the fiery ball into the air then catching it again, the priest played with the ball of fire if it were but a child’s toy. With his ball of fire, Gillies appeared even more like a demon. "In truth, I am much more than a simple Priest of the Severed Head," he announced with a tone of arrogant authority. "And I can do things to you that would make your flesh crawl and make these tools on this table appear as toys." With a dramatic wave of his free hand, he gestured towards the table indicating the array of implements of torture. "Do not play games with me, my young Prince Elwin. I am warning you." His eyes narrowed. "I am willing to be generous with you, I will even call you friend, but if you do not help me, I will make you cry for mercy. Now speak!"

  “Speak of what?" Elwin's voice shook. "It is a sword forged of metal. It is an heirloom of my family. There is no more to tell."

  With a flick of his wrist, Gillies threw the ball of fire. It all happened too fast. Unable to move out of the way, Elwin braced for the impact. But it was Aidan who yelled out. Gillies had thrown the ball at Aidan and not Elwin. Stepping back, Aidan stared down at his chest.

  Without a trace, the ball had disappeared into him.

  "Are you okay?" asked Elwin.

  Aidan shrugged. "I don't feel anything." Then with a sudden cry of pain, his eyes rolled back into his head, and he fell to the floor.

  Elwin dropped down next to him. "Aidan!"

  Ignoring Aidan's screams, Gillies smiled at Elwin. "They say that your father was a proud man who did not scare easily either. They also say that he had a soft spot for his friends. A weakness I do not possess, but I think you do. In time, I could drag the truth out of you, but that would take longer than I wish to spend." He nodded at Aidan. "The fire inside your friend will slowly cook him from the inside out. A very painful death I assure you, but it should not last longer than a day or two, three at the most." Aidan screamed and twisted in Elwin's arms.

  "Stop it!" Elwin shouted.

  "This spell takes a considerable amount of practice," Ignoring Elwin's pleadings, Gillies went on. "And to think Mor said that I do not have the ability to be a High Priest? Look at that Elf, look at his pain. Could the High Priestess do this? I think not! But I will show them. When the power of the sword is mine, I will show them all!" He slammed a clenched fist into his now empty palm.

  Aidan thrashed out in pain. Elwin held onto to him tightly. "Stop it!" Elwin repeated, "You are killing him!"

  Gillies gave Elwin a confused smile. "Of course, I am. That is the whole idea. But yes, I can stop it if you want me too."

  "Yes! Stop it!"

  "Are you now willing to tell me what I wish to know?"

  "Yes," replied Elwin. He was trying to hold Aidan still. "Just stop it! Please!" The priest waved h
is hand, and Aidan's body abruptly ceased thrashing, and he lay still.

  "Are you okay?" asked Elwin.

  Aidan nodded weakly. "Don't tell him anything."

  "I can still take his life," warned Gillies. "But that will not be necessary if you cooperate." Gillies ran a finger along the sword's sheath; then he looked up from the table.

  Elwin came to his feet. What could he tell the Black Priest? Elwin did not know or understand the secrets of the sword. However, if he told Gillies that, then Aidan would die.

  Not sure what to say, Elwin stared silently at Gillies. "What are you waiting for?" snapped Gillies.

  "I do not understand the magic myself." At least that much was true. "It just kind of happens."

  Gillies mumbled something. Then he demanded, "What happens? And why did my spells fail to reveal the sword's uses?"

  "Your spells," Elwin was making things up as he went along, "failed because the sword protects itself against such magic."

  "Of course. I am not a fool. I want to know how it does it. And I want to know of its magic and how to use those powers!"

  "I am not sure, it just works, or it doesn't..." Elwin stopped short. From behind Gillies, another priest stepped under the arch. The priest lifted his head, and Elwin saw that this was not a priest, but a priestess. Despite her shaved head, this black robed figure was a woman.

  At first glance, one might say she was beautiful. However, one soon noticed her angry eyes. Unblinking, she stared at Gillies' back. There was an air of power and authority about her. Like Gillies, she somehow reminded Elwin of Faynn.

  "I thought I would find you here," said the priestess.

  Startled, Gillies spun around, taking a step backward, his eyes grew wide. The priestess went on. "When I discovered that the sword was missing, it was easy to guess who had stolen it. It was equally easy to figure out where you would take it. You were always predictable, Gillies."

  "High Priestess Mor,...," he stuttered, "I... I came merely to check in on our prisoners."