I just need a small rest – yes, that’s it – a small rest…
His vision blurred further and his thoughts became jumbled, as the trees around him seemed to spin about. Darkness followed quickly and engulfed his thoughts before his head hit the moss-covered ground.
***
The guttural sounds increased in the distance and a few moments later a snuffling sound came from the underbrush. Cautiously at first, a round bodied animal the size of a large dog emerged from the shadows. Covered in coarse brown fur, the creature loped along on two oversized back legs. Instead of eyes, it had two thin, twitching antennae sprouting from its forehead, and a leathery black nose with three slits and whiskers on each side. Although it had no eyes, it zeroed in on Keegan’s body by scent and loped forward, its two smaller hook-shaped front limbs poised to strike. Whiskers twitching with delight at such large prey, the animal moved in for the kill. As it approached, it began absorbing Keegan’s essence, feeding off the young man’s magical aura. Suddenly it stopped, sensing the presence of another creature nearby, although it could not sense what that creature was. Putting its nose to the air, the beast snuffled loudly trying to taste the scent of this new intruder. It caught just the slightest wisp of a scent and froze in confusion and fear. Before it could move however, a shining silver bolt shot from the darkness, hitting the creature directly between where the eyes should have been. The beast collapsed in a furry heap and expired, leaving its prey untouched.
***
Freed of the mind numbing influence of the beast, Keegan woke with a start. Struggling to stand, he nearly fell over the carcass of his would-be attacker. Startled by the size and appearance of the animal, he staggered forward, desperate to find safety. He did not know how long he ran through the woods; all he knew was the total exhaustion overtaking his body.
Finding a small grove of trees that provided shelter from the wind, he set about gathering dry wood for a fire. He had no idea what he was going to do for food, but at least he would be warm. He rummaged through his pouches looking for a match, a lighter or anything that would help him build a fire. He pulled out a small silver metal box with strange markings on it. Squinting in the dim light, he could just barely make out the inscription:
Warning: Fire beetles - extremely volatile. Keep away from open flames, dry wood, leaves or other combustible materials. To ignite, place beetle within six inches of the fuel source then poke beetle with sharp object. Retrieve beetle from ashes after extinguishing fire and return to storage container when cool.
You have to be kidding, thought Keegan.
He opened the little silver box and saw a pair of tongs attached to the lid. It certainly did not look very impressive; it was a dark russet color with two emerald green eye patches on its back. Taking the tongs from the bracket, he reached further into the box and gently grabbed a beetle. Placing it near the firewood, he poked the little insect with a sharp twig. Not partial to being poked, the beetle made a loud clicking sound as a warning. He poked again a bit harder and the clicking got both louder and faster but still no fire (the little insect was really irritated now). Alright you stupid little bug, he thought and gave it a good sharp jab when WHOOSH the little insect shot a bright blue fireball into the pile of wood. The blast of heat was enough to knock Keegan back a few feet. The beetle was still making clicking sounds and had turned to face him; he looked down at the sharp stick in his hand and quickly threw it to the side. Slowly the clicking subsided, and after a few moments the little insect flicked its back carapace open and shut a couple of times and then scuttled contentedly into the hot coals at the center of the fire.
Keegan had no idea where he was, much less how he was going to get to the Council. Exhausted after his long day he leaned back against a small tree and closed his eyes, hoping to erase the last twenty-four hours of his life.
###
Chapter 7 – Missing in Action
“Where’s my grandson!?” shouted Phineas, his normally calm features flushed with anger at Lord Cedric Thornback. The two were in Lord Thornback’s Council chambers discussing the failure of a long trusted courier dragon to deliver its quite precious cargo - one Keegan Whitestone.
“Phineas, my old friend, I have no idea what happened to the courier,” said Cedric in an oily voice. “As to your young applicant for the position of apprentice, it is my understanding that he is to undergo a pre-interview qualification of his skills.”
“You have no right to do this, Cedric,” replied Whitestone in an ominous tone. “You are bound by the by-laws of the Council and must follow its decrees.”
“The Council is nothing but a bunch of weak minded fools!” spat the dark mage, “Present company excepted of course,” he said placing his hand on his breast with a smile. “They do not have wits enough to conjure up a bowl full of toads much less choose the next Guardian. Besides, you know as well as I that the rules of the Council plainly state the applicant shall be tested to determine his qualifications for the position.”
“Tested by the Council Cedric, not by you,” said Whitestone dryly.
“Merely a matter of interpretation my friend.”
“My grandson is an innocent, Cedric! He knows nothing of the power that resides within himself! The boy barely knew his father and has been raised completely in the world of science.”
“Do you honestly expect me to believe that? How can he not sense the power that runs through his veins? He carries the blood of the Whitestone family, Phineas. As much as I dislike pointing this out, yours has always been one of the most powerful families!”
“His mother was a normal human without talent, Cedric. And in case you have forgotten, the boy’s father was stripped of his magic by Council when he was exiled,” said Phineas in a strained voice. The older wizard had watched in horror as his only son fell to the temptations of power and turned away from him. Richard’s robes had shifted quickly to black as he delved deeper into the mysteries of magic and tried to overthrow the Council and his own father. Only the combined power of the Council and Phineas’ use of the Blackstar amulet had stopped him.
“Oh yes, that must have been hard on you, my old friend. However, that does not change the fact that your family has had far too much power for too long. It is time another family was chosen to hold the Guardianship. The Council’s rules are vague, Phineas, you know that. I have as much right to test the boy as any other.”
The Guardian rose slowly, turning towards the door.
“If he is harmed Cedric, I will not be responsible for my actions. I will remember this old friend. That much I promise,” he said over his shoulder.
With a flourish of his robes, he strode out of Thornback’s office. He walked quickly down the hallway to the Transit Center, the main embarkation point for the Council’s domain, since direct summoning of gateways was usually forbidden within most areas of the castle without the express permission of the entire Council. Entering the great courtyard that marked the point of entry for most visitors to the Council’s domain, Phineas walked over to a small stone archway encrusted with vines. Pointing his staff at the opening, he muttered an incantation and a whirling blue-white vortex appeared in the archway. Gathering his robes about him, he ducked his head slightly and stepped through the portal into his home at Pahret T’pur. With a strange sucking sound, the vortex snapped shut, leaving nothing but a blank stone wall. Walking to his study, the Keeper leaned his staff against the wall and sank down into the chair by the fire with a sigh.
Acamar, who had been asleep on the warm hearth, looked up at him sleepily. “That certainly didn’t take very long.”
“Cedric has decided to test our young friend before allowing him access to the Council,” said the wizard. “He probably bribed the dragon and had him dropped in the Atlantic Ocean to see if he could swim!”
Acamar chuckled as he hopped off the hearth, morphing in mid-air into his human form. He stretched his arms high above his head and yawned deeply as he tried to get the kinks out of his
back.
“Well, I suppose the question now is what we do to help the young boy pass this so-called test without getting himself killed.”
This time it was Phineas’s turn to chuckle as he rested his chin on his steepled fingers. “I think it safe to say we should send him an assistant who could ah, help him study a bit for the test, don’t you think?” he said with a wink at his companion. He reached into his robes and pulled out a small amulet, which popped open when he pressed the stone in the middle. Taking out a small pinch of what looked like gold glitter he tossed it into the air. Instantly there was a whooshing sound and a spiraling vortex of bright blue flames appeared in mid-air. Leaning forward he waved his hand in front of the flames, whispering a soft incantation. The flames flickered brightly and began swirling even more violently in a clockwise vortex, the center of which became clear. Slowly the image of a face appeared in the center of the flames. As the image cleared the person seemed to be looking directly at the old wizard. The creature was smaller than a man, but larger than a dwarf. Its dark skin had an almost bark-like pattern to it, but most remarkable were the creature’s eyes. Almond shaped and glinting with cunning, the creature’s eyes glowed red like the embers of a fire.
“Phineas? How are you old man? I haven’t received a summons from you in fifty years if it’s been a day!”
“I am troubled, my friend,” sighed the wizard. “As you can probably guess I have a task for you, perhaps the most vital one I have ever called upon you to perform.”
“And my payment?” the creature asked, a look of distrust on its face.
“One thousand gold Crowns, but only if you are successful of course.”
“Of course. My, my it MUST be important for you to part with that much gold...what’s the job?”
“I need you to help ah, retrieve something for me,” said Phineas.
“What is it?” the creature asked
“Not what exactly, but who.”
“Don’t tell me you’ve lost another assistant? If it’s that damn black cat you had, he can stay lost.”
Acamar leaned down so his smiling face could be seen by the creature. “My love to you as well, you little miscreant,” he said acidly.
The creature was obviously not at all pleased that Acamar had avoided ending up as troll fodder. Ignoring the Guardian’s assistant, he looked at Phineas intently, his keen red eyes glinting in the flames of the portal.
“Who have you lost and what do you want me to do with them?”
“I haven’t lost anyone,” said Phineas in an irritated tone. “I have an apprentice who was misplaced by his courier. It is my belief that the dragon Brimstone was bribed by Council member Cedric Thornback to, shall we say, misplace the young man. Cedric of course maintains that he is merely testing the lad, to make sure his powers and abilities are sufficient for the job.”
“Old Seedy would say that.”
Phineas ignored the obvious insult to Lord Thornback and continued.
“So, what I require is for you to find him and bring him here before the Council. However, I must insist that you be discreet; technically I am forbidden from interfering.”
“That’s why you’re not sending your precious feline friend. I’m expendable, aren’t I?” asked the little creature indignantly.
“I’m not sending Acamar because he is my assistant and an obvious link to me. Cedric would have great difficulty convincing the Council that you were working for me, since Dark Elves rarely associate with humans, much less a Master of White Magic.”
“True enough. I’ll take the job, but I want two thousand,” said the creature with a cunning smile.
Ebonwood was home to the Dark Elves and remained tightly under their control despite the best efforts of the Council to exert influence over the territory.
“One thousand five hundred,” countered the mage. “Plus a bonus of five hundred if you bring me back a pouch full of dragonsbane from the forest.”
“Then we have an agreement,” smiled the elf, obviously quite pleased with his price. “I will track down the dragon and see what he did with his cargo.” With an offhand wave at the flames the image vanished and Phineas’ vortex dissipated.
“Do you really think you can trust him, Master?” asked Acamar after Phineas had leaned back in his chair by the fire.
Phineas smiled sadly at Acamar, and then gazed back into the flames dancing in the hearth.
“I don’t really have a choice now, do I? If I want the boy to live?”
###
Chapter 8 - Found
Keegan awoke with a start to find he had dozed off while sitting next to the fire he had just made. Night had now fallen and the forest around him was alive with strange noises. He noticed too that his stomach was rumbling with considerable hunger, given that he had skipped lunch for that walk in the park this afternoon. Rummaging through the pouches on his belt, he pulled out the various potions and powders; surely, he could use one of them to conjure up a turkey sandwich or something. He could just barely make out the thin, spidery writing on the small labels in the firelight. Words such as ‘disorient,’ ‘stealth’ and ‘petrify’ were written on the sachets of powder while ‘shrink,’ ‘grow’ and ‘dissolve’ were on the vials of liquid. Failing to find anything even remotely edible, he decided to try his ring. He pointed his signet ring at the ground near the fire, pictured a sumptuous feast before him and willed it to appear, for which he was rewarded with only a mild tingling sensation in his hand. It was then that he noticed the eyes. Two small, gleaming red eyes that were watching him out of the darkness. His blood froze as he was gripped by fear, not knowing if he should try to fight or flee. The eyes were staring unblinking, directly at him while they slowly edged closer. Scrambling backwards until he hit the tree behind him, he felt the sudden tingle of panic welling up within him.
“You’ve no need to be afraid, boy; I’m not going to eat you. Not yet, anyway.”
“Who…or what…are you?
As Keegan remained frozen with fear at the base of the tree, a small creature about four feet tall stepped into the firelight. It was dressed in a simple dark grey tunic with a small satchel slung across one shoulder and several pouches hanging from its belt. The creature had a dark complexion that was mottled grey; in fact, the skin looked very much like the bark on an old oak tree. A shock of pale grey hair poked out above pointed ears, which stuck out on both sides of the cloth cap it wore. However, the most remarkable feature of all was the creature’s eyes. They were a piercing red color that was so vibrant they seemed to glow. Keegan thought it must be a male, as it appeared very similar to a human, albeit a very slender one.
“I am a wood elf – also called a ‘dark elf’ among some of your race. Those humans I choose to associate with call me Kust, as I doubt you could pronounce my true name even if I were to reveal it to you.”
Moving with a fluid motion that barely made a sound Kust sat down cross-legged next to the embers of Keegan’s fire.
“And you would be?”
“K-K-Keegan,” came the stammered response.
“Well, young Master K-K-Keegan, that’s an odd name if I do say so myself.”
Easing himself back to a sitting position, Keegan joined Kust next to the campfire.
“No, you misunderstand. My name is Keegan; it’s just that you startled me when I saw your eyes.”
His answer appeared to amuse the elf greatly.
“Well Master Keegan, you are indeed lucky; few humans get to meet any of my kind and fewer still live to tell the tale. Fortunate you are that I was sent to find you – you very well could’ve been killed by now.”
“What? You mean you saw that beast back at the clearing where I blacked out?”
The elf smiled quietly at Keegan as he poked the embers of the fire with a stick, sending sparks high into the night sky.
“Yes; as a matter of fact I was the one who killed it before it could start feeding.”
“What was it? The last thing I remembe
r was feeling dizzy and confused, then the next thing I knew I woke up beside the body of that thing.”
“The creature that tried to kill you was called a reaper. They are solitary hunters who trap their prey by confusing their senses – that is why you passed out. It was closing in to drain your life energy when I killed it. It could have been much, much worse believe me. You could have stumbled upon a herd of mongers or worse yet a haggle; a herd of mongers and we’d both be dead.”
Keegan could not believe half of what he was hearing. He felt a hundred questions swimming through his mind but struggled to decide what to ask first. He was still at a loss for words when a loud gurgling sound emanated from his stomach, protesting the fact it had been nearly a day since he had eaten.
“Ah, where are my manners,” said Kust. “I should’ve known you weren’t provisioned for a trip through Ebonwood.”
Taking a small cloth from his pouch, he unrolled it until it was a three-foot square of material lying by the fire. He murmured a phrase under his breath that Keegan didn’t quite catch and snapped his fingers. With a sudden flash of bright light and a popping sound, a bottle of wine and basket filled with cheese and bread appeared, sitting neatly in the center of the cloth.
“You needn’t worry boy, I was sent to find you and find you I have,” the creature said. The little man uncorked the wine and poured himself a large goblet full, gesturing for Keegan to join him by the fire. Keegan tentatively accepted a goblet of his own from the elf and settled down across him.
“Who sent you?”
“Your Master or should I say soon-to-be Master, the Guardian of the Veil.”
Kust nibbled at a piece of bread while he spoke and began slicing pieces of cheese. “He got wind of what Old Seedy was up to and sent me out to give you a hand.”
“Old Seedy?”
The Guardian's Apprentice (Beyond the Veil) Page 5
