by F. P. Spirit
“What do you have in mind?” Aksel asked.
“I think it’s time to shed a little light on the subject.”
The south door slowly closed, making a slight creaking sound as it swung shut. Without the moonlight, the room turned pitch black. As the rest of the party stood still in the inky darkness, Glo reached into one of the bags at his waist and rummaged through it.
When he pulled out his hand, he held a mossy material with a slight phosphorescent glow to it. He reached out with it, touched the end of his staff, and spoke one soft word, “Lux.” The end of his staff began to glow like a torch, shedding bright light in a wide radius around the little crew. Beyond that, the light dimmed a bit, but it was enough to illuminate the entire room around them. Everyone shaded their eyes, adjusting to the change in brightness. When they could see again, they began looking around.
They stood in a wide circular room. Besides the large door to the south, there was a second door on the west side of the room. It hung open, and a stairwell appeared beyond it, leading both upwards and downwards. There were no other openings of any kind in the cold stone walls of the tower. The rest of the room was barren, except for some rotted wood against the north side.
Seth’s expression was one of distaste. “Nice homey place.”
Glo’s mind was elsewhere. He had been hoping for another doorway, one that led toward the keep. Maybe it was on one of the other floors?
Aksel listed out their options. “Well, we have three ways to go: into the courtyard, up to the top of the tower, or down below the tower.”
Seth appeared thoughtful. “There might be a way into the keep down below.”
Aksel seemed uncertain. “Maybe, or it might just be a dead end.”
“Top of the tower,” Glo repeated. “When we were approaching the ruins, I thought I saw a faint greenish light at the top.”
“I saw it as well,” Brundon said.
Glo nodded to the tracker and continued his train of thought. “If it ends up that we have to cross the courtyard, we should probably check the top of the tower first. If there is someone or something up there, and we are seen, then they may alert whoever is in the keep.”
Aksel shared his concern. “That may be a good idea.” He turned to Brundon. “Can you keep an eye on the courtyard?”
Brundon nodded. He strode over to the door and opened it a crack.
Aksel turned toward Seth. “How about going upstairs and scouting out the top of the tower?”
Seth shrugged. “I will, but I still think we should check the basement first.” When Aksel did not reply, Seth put away the knife he had been absently fingering and headed over to the other doorway. He stopped and looked beyond it, first to the left then to the right. He glanced back over his shoulder, winked, and then disappeared through the doorway.
Aksel asked Titan and Lloyd to keep an eye out for Seth’s return, then turned to Glo. “Once Seth is done with the top of the tower, he can check out the basement.”
Glo raised an eyebrow. “I don’t think he was very happy with your decision.”
Aksel sighed. “Maybe I should have sent him to the basement first—but when you mentioned that green glow, it made me nervous.”
“You and me both,” Glo agreed. With any luck, Seth wouldn’t find anything too out of the ordinary atop the tower. He was still hoping for another passage into the keep, but if the top of the tower was vacant, at least they would have half a chance of crossing the courtyard without alerting that wizard.
Aksel started pacing, talking as he moved to and fro. “Well, if we are going to get anywhere mapping out this place, then we are going to have to do something about the rest of these undead.”
“Not to mention the bugbears.”
Aksel continued to pace, deep in thought. When he finally spoke, he did not sound very certain. “If we can continue to take them on in small groups, then maybe we can get rid of most of them before this wizard, Telvar, finds out we are here.”
“And when he does?”
“Hopefully that won’t happen for a while.”
Glo remained skeptical. This Telvar could pose a real threat to them. An experienced dark mage could defeat all of them combined. They could all end up dead, or worse—part of this necromancer’s undead army. Glo sighed. There’s no help for it. They were in the ruins now and turning back would defeat everything they had strived for.
“I hope it is as you say, my friend.”
Aksel’s expression was solemn. “So do I. So do I.”
Seth reappeared, descending from the upper stairwell. He had been so quiet and the stairwell so dark that both Lloyd and Titan missed him until he was almost right in front of them. As the halfling pushed past them into the circular room, Lloyd announced, “Seth’s back.”
Everyone gathered around to hear what he had found atop the tower, except for Brundon, who remained guard at the courtyard door.
Aksel turned to face his halfling friend. “What took you so long?”
Seth gave him his best innocent look. “Oh, nothing. I just took a little detour on the way up. It turns out there’s a second floor to this tower and someone was nice enough to leave this lying around up there.”
As he spoke, he unslung his backpack, opened the top and dumped out the contents onto the floor of the tower room. A distinct clinking sound could be heard as a pile of small circular discs fell to the ground, lying in a haphazard pile. The discs glowed with a golden color in the light of Glo’s staff.
Brundon glanced over from the doorway. “Gold…”
Seth nodded. “About two hundred fifty coins, by my count.”
Aksel glanced up from the pile of coins and stared at Seth with suspicion. “Just lying around, huh?”
“Well, I might have moved around a floor tile or two.”
Aksel sighed.
“Oh, I almost forgot.” Seth reached into his pocket and pulled out a pouch, holding it out to his gnomish friend. “This is for you.”
Aksel checked out the bag, then reached out and took it. He slowly loosened the drawstrings, turned it over, and emptied the contents into his hand. Out dropped a silver-colored ring decorated with a sparkling blue gemstone. Aksel appeared amused by the gift, the corners of his mouth turned up slightly.
“Seth, you are incorrigible.”
“I try my best.”
Aksel turned to Glo and held the ring out to him. “Can you tell what this is?”
“I can try.” Glo took the ring from his outstretched hand. He examined it for markings or inscriptions, only to find nothing, but Glo had other resources available to him. There was a specific spell for identifying the properties of an unknown object. It was one of the first spells Amrod taught him because it required deep concentration.
First, one had to precisely prepare a concoction which augmented the spell. It was a mixture of simple table wine, but needed to be stirred with an owl’s feather. Glo thought that was some sort of joke at first, but as it turned out, it was not. The amount of wine had to be exactly five ounces, not a drop more or less. The owl’s feather had to be fresh for potency. A preserved feather would also work, but the potion would lose its potency faster. The liquid needed to be stirred slowly, in a clockwise direction exactly fifty times. Once done, the concoction could be stored in a vial and used for up to fifty days. Anything beyond that, and it would be useless.
Glo opened another pouch on his belt and rummaged through it. He pulled out a small vial—it was the last batch he had made before leaving home. It dawned on him that was almost forty days ago. He removed the stopper and drank the contents. He then held the ring out once more and spoke a single word, “Eandem.”
A faint glow appeared around the object but quickly faded. Glo closed his eyes and concentrated on the ring. Faint images played through his mind until one
came sharply into focus. An owl flew by, a single feather dropping from its tail as it continued to wing away. The feather gently floated to the ground and lay at his feet.
Glo’s eyes snapped open, a wry smile coming to his lips. He grasped the ring with his right hand and held it out to his gnomish friend. “It is a ring of a feather falling.”
Aksel appeared delighted with the find. He took the ring and put it on the biggest finger of his right hand. It looked a little loose, but it stayed on nonetheless as he tugged at it.
Seth’s voice was thick with envy. “Don’t say I never gave you anything.”
A thin smile crossed Glo’s lips. A ring of feather falling would allow Aksel to jump from any height and float harmlessly down to the ground, like a feather. Had Seth known beforehand what the ring was, he probably would not have given it up so easily.
“So what are we doing with all the gold?” Brundon whispered from the doorway.
Seth knelt down and grabbed his backpack. “I’ll just hold onto these until we have time to divvy them up.” As he scooped up the gold coins, he noticed everyone staring down at him. “What? After all, you did name me treasurer!”
Aksel, Glo and Lloyd exchanged glances. A wry smile graced Aksel’s lips. “We did do that, didn’t we?”
“Yes, we did.” Glo smiled in turn.
“The gods help us,” Lloyd added with mock concern.
Seth stopped his gathering and glanced up at the three of them. “Very funny. Just for that, I’m splitting this between me, Brundon and Titan.”
Brundon and Titan exchanged glances. “Sounds good to us,” they said in unison.
There were mild chuckles all around.
Aksel cleared his throat. “Well then, back to business.” He glanced down at Seth. “So did you scout out the top floor?”
Seth got up off his knees. “Yep,” he said, re-shouldering his pack.
“And?”
“There are five skeletons up there—four of them scattered around the parapets and armed with bows. We’re lucky they didn’t see us cross the mountaintop earlier.”
Glo’s eyes narrowed. “What about the fifth one?”
Seth’s expression turned serious. “Ah, yes. That one. That could be a bit of a problem.”
Glo’s brow furrowed. “How so?”
“The fifth one carries a staff and is standing over a large cauldron in the center of the tower. Oh, and did I mention that it radiates a green glow a few yards in all directions?”
Glo raised an eyebrow. That sounded like a skeletal mage. He glanced at Aksel—he also had an eyebrow raised.
Lloyd wore a curious expression. “So, what kind of skeleton is that?”
Glo couldn’t blame him for not knowing—this was not your everyday monster. In fact, Titan and Brundon appeared equally mystified. Glo only knew about it from a volume in his father’s library aptly titled The Book of Undead Monsters. “Basically, it’s an undead wizard. The green glow around it is known as a death aura. It is a sphere of negative energy that will harm any living creature that steps inside it. Worse than that, it heals all undead enveloped within it.”
Brundon did not sound thrilled with the prospect of facing this monster. “So let me get this straight. Just getting close to this thing can hurt you?”
“Yes.”
“Not to mention that it constantly heals itself,” Seth reminded them.
Aksel turned to Glo, his voice grave. “It would probably be best if you handled this thing.”
Glo felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. He knew Aksel was right; letting anyone else get close to that creature was probably too dangerous. Still, it didn’t make him any less nervous.
Aksel must have read his thoughts. “What? After all, magic is your forte.”
“Wonderful. My first wizard’s duel, and it’s with an undead skeleton.”
“Could be worse.” Seth pointed out. “At least it’s not with this Telvar guy.”
Glo fixed Seth with an acid stare. He immediately regretted it. “Sorry, Seth, you were right.”
Seth put a hand to his ear. “Come again?”
Glo sighed. “I said you were right. Don’t push your luck.”
Seth responded with a half twisted smile.
The next question now was, what would he do? While he was lost in thought, the others continued planning their strategy. Aksel led the discussion.
“Okay, Brundon, wait down here and keep watch on the courtyard. The rest of us will quietly go upstairs to the top of the tower…”
Titan interrupted him. “Um, Aksel, quiet and full plate armor don’t mix very well.”
Aksel paused and glanced at the warrior, quickly realizing his error. “Right. Let me amend that. Brundon, you and Titan watch the door while the rest of us go upstairs.”
He was met with replies of “not a problem,” and “will do.”
Aksel continued on. “Our best bet is stealth until we can get close enough to launch an attack. Once in position, we should distract this skeletal mage. That way Glo can get in the first strike.”
Glo nodded his approval. He would take any advantage he could get against his undead opponent. The discussion continued until they hashed out a plan they thought would work. The foursome then bade Brundon and Titan farewell and began their climb up the tower stairs.
The stairwell wound up the side of the tower within the narrow space between the inner and outer walls. It was mostly dark, but light did stream in from the occasional window in the outer wall. Glo extinguished his staff to avoid alerting anyone to their presence in the tower, so the group climbed the stairs in relative darkness. Seth led the way, followed by Lloyd, Glo, and finally Aksel. They went slowly, trying to remain as silent as possible. Still, it only took them a few minutes to reach the top of the tower.
As they approached the top of the stairwell, moonlight streamed in through the open doorway, illuminating the small landing there. The foursome climbed onto the landing and spread out on either side of the open door. The night was silent, except for a slight rattling noise through the open doorway. Glo peeked around the corner of the door and saw the top of the tower bathed in moonlight. It was just as Seth had described it.
Four skeletons stood around the parapets at regular intervals, their backs to the door. In the center stood a tall skeleton covered in tattered robes, carrying a gnarled wooden staff. It stood next to a large cauldron, a sickly pale green globe of light surrounding it. It was an uncanny sight, the five skeletons standing in the darkness, the silvery light of the moon reflecting off their white bones. Luckily for the companions, their timing could not have been better. The skeletal mage stood in front of the cauldron, its back toward the door.
Seth motioned to Lloyd, and the two of them stole out onto the top of the tower. The halfling crept across the tower top toward the nearest archer on the left. At the same time, Lloyd tiptoed his way up behind the skeleton on the right. After what seemed like an eternity, Lloyd stood within striking distance of his archer. He stopped, hammers poised in either hand, and glanced back over his shoulder toward the doorway.
Glo and Aksel waited at the door until Seth and Lloyd were in position. At that point, Aksel nodded. Three things happened at once: Lloyd spun around and charged, Seth leapt into the air, and Glo began his spell.
Lloyd crashed into his opponent, hammers swinging with bone crunching effect. With two powerful blows, he smashed the creature apart.
Seth used his forward momentum to kick the archer directly in front of him with both legs. The force of the blow knocked the skeleton over the parapet. It went clattering over the side and disappeared from view.
At the first sounds of commotion, the three other skeletons whirled around. The skeletal caster pivoted toward Lloyd. It raised its staff, boney arms appearing as the
sleeves of its cloak fell away. Before it could do anything more, Glo let loose his spell. A single word sent a purple missile flying from his fingertips, careening its way toward the skeletal mage. With a loud thud it impacted the skeleton’s side.
The caster was caught by surprise. It reeled from the shock, nearly falling backwards into the cauldron behind it. As it tried to right itself, Glo sent a second missile hurtling towards it. The creature, still off-balance, managed to raise its staff and send a stream of green liquid spewing back at the elf wizard. It collided with the projectile in midair, causing it to disappear in a puff of smoke.
Glo and Aksel saw the greenish spray at the same moment and threw themselves back behind either side of the doorway. A moment later, it hit the tower walls, causing the stone to hiss and smoke. As the liquid clung to the stone it started to melt. That was a stream of acid!
His heart pounding in his chest, Glo stood flattened against the wall of the stairwell. If that had hit either of them, they would be burnt and writhing on the ground in pain.
Aksel’s face flushed, his voice high-pitched with excitement. “That was too close!”
“Agreed.”
This skeletal mage was far too dangerous to enter into a head-to-head battle with him. Either he or his friends were likely to get hurt if he didn’t end this quickly. He needed a spell that would do the job in one shot. The elven wizard could only think of one.
The moment the acid stream stopped, Glo jumped out from behind the wall. Just as he thought, the skeletal caster was preparing another spell. This time it was aimed at Lloyd.
Glo did not hesitate. He lifted his hand, pointing a finger at the tall skeleton, and spoke the words, “Ardens Manus.” In response, a cone of searing flame shot forth from the young wizard’s hand and flew toward the skeletal mage.
The stream of fire engulfed the creature, setting its tattered robes aflame. Unfortunately, the cone of fire also caught the side of the large cauldron beside the creature. There was a sudden spark and then a loud boom! An explosion rocked the top of the tower. A ball of flame erupted from the cauldron and expanded outward a few yards in all directions.
