The Sword and the Sorcerer

by John Phythyon

  Calibot found Zod, Alistair, and Liliana waiting for them at the tower door. He sighed inwardly. He’d been dreading this. He knew Zod would try to force his way into the tower with them, and he had no idea how he was going to keep him out. No mysterious knowledge had magically appeared in his brain on this subject. Damn his father for taking care of some details and completely forgetting about others.

  “Ready?” Zod said as they approached.

  “Lord Zod,” Devon said, putting a delicate tone in his voice. “I think it would be best, under the circumstances, if Calibot were to handle this himself.”

  Calibot watched his uncle’s demeanor turn black. He didn’t like being told what to do at any time, and he certainly must have felt insulted by someone telling him to stay out of his deceased brother’s home.

  “And just what ‘circumstances’ are these?” Zod demanded.

  “Calibot knows how to enter the tower and retrieve the Eye of the Dragon,” Devon replied. “But he believes it best for there to be as few people involved as possible.”

  “Does he now?” Zod growled. “And I suppose you’ll be accompanying him.”

  “Only if he wishes it,” Devon said, using his smooth courtier’s tone. “Otherwise, I leave him to the task of going through his father’s things himself.”

  Zod’s eyes flicked back and forth between the two of them. Calibot kept his expression impassive. Devon smiled. Zod grew angrier.

  “I’m going too,” Liliana said.

  Calibot managed to keep his face blank, but he was as shocked as everyone else looked when she spoke. She stared at Calibot imperiously, daring him to defy her.

  “I am not waiting out here while that fool goes in,” Zod said, jerking his thumb in Liliana’s direction.

  “Liliana,” Devon said, “I think it would be best if Calibot handled this alone.”

  “No,” she said. “Gothemus gave me explicit instructions.”

  “What?” Zod said. “When?”

  “When we scattered the ashes,” she said. “He appeared in the flames and told me he left something for me in the tower. He said Calibot would be able to get us in, and I should go with him.”

  Calibot almost choked when he heard that. So now it seemed there were four different visions. Gothemus had given a different message to Liliana, Zod, and him and given nothing to Devon. He presumed Alistair had seen the same thing as Devon – Gothemus wouldn’t have had anything to say to them.

  “And what is it he left you?” Zod said.

  “He told me not to tell anyone,” she answered.

  Zod turned purple with rage. Calibot could guess why. Not only had Liliana defied him, Gothemus hadn’t left a special message for his brother. He had to be jealous, confused, and angry.

  “Now, look,” he said, “he was my brother. I knew him best. I loved him more than any of you. I am not going to be kept out here while you pillage your favorite things from his treasure trove. Unless you have evidence Gothemus made one of you his sole heir and executor, I’m going into that tower with you. You want to keep me out, you’ll have to stop me.”

  He gripped his sword and adopted a threatening stance. Alistair followed suit, looking like he was prepared to cast a spell. Calibot sighed. What was he supposed to do?

  “Lord Zod,” Devon said, “let’s not be hasty. No one is trying to steal from your brother.”

  “Leave off it, Devon,” Calibot said. “My uncle is unlikely to be persuaded our errand is unmotivated by greed. If he will not comply with his brother’s wishes, there’s nothing to be done about it.”

  Zod gaped at him. He might have been spoiling for a fight, but he hadn’t expected to be accused of ignoring Gothemus’s last commands.

  “Listen, you little brat,” he said, “I knew his ‘wishes’ a lot better than you ever will. Don’t insult me by suggesting you’re the only one who knows what he wanted.”

  “I suggested no such thing, Uncle,” Calibot said. “I submit that no one knows exactly what my father wanted. He hasn’t made his full plan clear yet. If you insist on accompanying me into the tower despite my telling you that’s not what he wanted, then by all means come along. I’ll have you in my party.”

  For a few seconds everyone stared at each other. Calibot waited to see if Zod would press his complaint or let it go. Zod ground his teeth and shot his eyes around the group. Then he took his hands off his sword.

  “Let’s go then,” he said.

  Calibot nodded. Then he set his shoulders and ascended the steps to the door. Wordlessly, his companions followed. They gathered on the step below, seeming to want to give him room to do whatever it was he was supposed to.

  He wished he knew what it was. As usual, his father only gave him a clue; he didn’t offer any instructions.

  Wyrmblade was the key to the tower. Presumably that meant “key” in the traditional sense of a tool to open a lock. Calibot stared at the door. It was the same as it had always been. It was unremarkable wood, with an iron latch and a peephole. There was a keyhole, but it didn’t look like it had been altered to accommodate a sword.

  He gripped Wyrmblade and felt its energy pulse up his arm. As usual, it comforted him. He gripped it tighter and tried to will it to tell him what to do.

  “Well?” Zod said.

  “I’ll let you know as soon as I do,” Calibot said, not bothering to take the testiness out of his voice.

  “I thought you knew how to get in,” Zod said.

  “Only a little,” Calibot said. “Father told me the sword was the key to the tower, but he didn’t say how to use it.”

  Zod started to protest but Devon cut him off.

  “Since Liliana first came to us with Wyrmblade,” he said, “we have been solving puzzles Gothemus laid before us. When we solve one, it leads us to the next step in this quest. Most recently, we were to scatter the ashes. That gave Calibot the knowledge to use the sword. But now, it seems, he has to figure out how to use it to get in.”

  “Damn Gothemus, anyway,” Zod muttered.

  Calibot agreed. His father’s insistence on challenging everyone mentally – especially Calibot – was maddening. If he wanted something done, why couldn’t he just explain it?

  “Perhaps you can chop the door down with it,” Alistair suggested. “It’s an enchanted blade; it may have the power to sunder Gothemus’s wards.”

  Calibot knew that idea was wrong as soon as he heard it. He couldn’t have said how, except maybe that Wyrmblade told him so. It hadn’t spoken to him, though; he just knew.

  “That doesn’t fit,” Liliana said.

  “Why not,” Devon asked.

  “It is not Gothemus’s nature,” she answered. “He was not a warrior. Even with a warrior’s tool, he wouldn’t divine a brutish solution like that. He was Gothemus Draco, foremost wizard in the Known World. His approach would be magical.”

  Alistair scoffed. Devon shot him a glare.

  “I know you are a more accomplished sorcerer, Alistair,” he said. “But Liliana knew Gothemus Draco far better than you. I think we should give her theory some credence. And some respect.”

  “If you say so,” Alistair said, disdain gushing from his tone.

  Calibot tried to ignore them and focus. Magic. Yes, Liliana was almost certainly right. Father would have wanted a magical solution to the puzzle. He gripped the sword and stared at the door. No answers came.

  “Maybe you should wave it at the door like it’s some sort of a wand,” Zod said.

  His tone was bitter and sarcastic. Calibot wanted to belt him. With an effort, he forced himself to relax. Getting into a fight with Zod wouldn’t solve anything.

  “Wait a minute,” Devon said. “Lord Zod, I think you’re onto something.”

  “I am?”

  “He is?” Liliana echoed.

  “Yes,” Devon said. “We know Gothemus imbued the sword with a host of new powers, and we know many of them are directly tied to what we need to do. Calibot, we used the sword’s fire to cr
emate your father’s body in a matter of seconds. The flames are magical in more ways than just appearing out of nowhere. If they could consume Gothemus’s body, they might also work on the door.”

  Calibot’s heart leaped. He knew Devon was right in the same way he knew Alistair had been wrong. And he was proud of his love for coming up with the correct solution.

  He withdrew Wyrmblade from its scabbard and faced the door. The blade caught fire instantly. Before he could change his mind, he reached out and touched the tip of the sword to the wood.

  It ignited immediately. In less than a second the whole door was ablaze. The fire turned purple, then green. It parted like a curtain right down the center, moving to the left and right as though someone were drawing it aside. At last, only the edges burned. A portal lay before them. Calibot looked back at his companions.

  “It’s time,” he said.

  He couldn’t see much beyond the aperture, but he moved through it anyway. He walked onto a bare stone floor. Little else was visible. Behind him, the frame of the doorway still blazed. Devon and Liliana came through immediately. Zod and Alistair followed.

  As soon as everyone was inside, the fire drew closed, curtain-like, until it covered the entire entry. For a moment, the door flamed before them, just as it had done outside. Then, as suddenly as it caught fire, it and Wyrmblade both went out, encasing them in total darkness.

  Chapter 27: Attack Zod Now

  Vicia stared at Gothemus Draco’s tower and twiddled the wand the Council had sent her. She worried at its light weight. It didn’t feel right in her hand, and it didn’t appear as though it could contain enough magic to suit her needs in the coming battle.

  And there was definitely going to be a battle. As she’d predicted, Zod the Fearless was here. Somehow, he’d gotten word of his brother’s death. She wasn’t surprised. Gothemus’s son knew. He’d acquired Wyrmblade from his father. A pathetic poet from Dalasport was wielding one of the mightiest weapons ever known. Gothemus had provided for it all.

  So it was no surprise Zod was here. Gothemus probably sent a posthumous message to him too. The memory of how Gothemus had leered at her before he died flashed through her brain again. He’d tried to cast a spell. She’d thought at the time it had failed, but she was convinced now it had not. Just before he succumbed to her poison, Gothemus Draco got word to his brother and his son what had happened.

  His smile haunted her. Gothemus was playing a game with the Council of Elders, with her. Even in death, he was manipulating their actions.

  Fortunately, Zod had only a token force with him. It was hard to say how many there were at this distance, but Vicia was betting they had at least a two-to-one advantage. As she’d suggested, Hedron had brought an entire legion with him. It didn’t look like Zod had more than four or five hundred soldiers.

  Hedron had ordered their troops to make camp. He wanted to assess the situation before ordering an attack. Vicia agreed with gathering intelligence. They didn’t know what they were looking at, but it was also obvious they had a size advantage and the support of two magicians. She wanted to be more aggressive. She suggested they send Zod an order to surrender or risk being crushed. Hedron had refused. He wanted to study the conditions.

  Vicia hated waiting. Once she had something in mind, she wanted to move on it. This whole scheme to get rid of Gothemus had been a long wait. Every phase forced her to wait for some development. She thought she was going to go crazy if something didn’t happen soon.

  “Vicia,” a tiny voice croaked behind her.

  She turned to see Elmanax leaning on a makeshift cane fashioned from a stick. He looked horrible. His hair was bedraggled, his beard was singed, and he looked both unwell and insane.

  “By the gods,” she said. “What the hell happened to you?”

  “Never mind that,” he answered. “You’ve got to attack Zod’s forces now.”

  Vicia’s eyes narrowed. Elmanax may have been her co-conspirator, but she hadn’t seen him since she left Eldenberg, and she didn’t like him suddenly showing up out of the blue and telling her what to do. His advice had gotten her into the mess she was in now, and she was alarmed by his appearance. He looked like he’d lost a battle with Gothemus Draco himself.

  “Why?” she said.

  “They’ve gone into the tower,” he rasped. “The soldiers have no specific orders. You can catch them unready.”

  “What? Who’s gone into the tower?”

  “Calibot and his friends,” Elmanax replied. “And Zod and his magician advisor, Alistair.”

  “But how did they get in?” she protested. “I thought you said the tower was sealed and even you couldn’t penetrate the magic. Did one of them have a key?”

  Elmanax laughed. He sounded like he was choking on phlegm.

  “Zod has a key,” he said. “But it did him no more good than my magic. Gothemus sealed it against everyone but Calibot. Gothemus enchanted the tower to permit only Wyrmblade to open its gate. Calibot took them in a few minutes ago.”

  “To get the Eye?”

  “Yes,” Elmanax said. “Calibot was going to leave it there, since no one could get it, but then he had a vision that told him how to use the sword to gain entry. The five of them went in after it.

  “That’s why you’ve got to attack now, Vicia. Once they emerge with the Eye of the Dragon, they’ll have an advantage. Alistair or Gothemus’s fool apprentice can try to master it. If they succeed, they’ll be able to bring the power of the Wild Lands to bear against you.”

  “Impossible!” she said. “It took Gothemus Draco months to master the Eye of the Dragon, and Zod’s advisor isn’t nearly as good a magician. And Liliana Gray? The prospect is laughable.”

  “Perhaps,” Elmanax said. “But they’ve made it into Gothemus’s tower. Who knows what sort of magic they’ll find inside they can wield against you and your army. Or perhaps they’ll simply fortify themselves in a building you cannot penetrate and attack you from safety.

  “And then there’s the small matter of the Council presidency. Wouldn’t securing the Eye of the Dragon practically assure it?”

  Vicia scowled. Elmanax must be weak if he wasn’t even trying to disguise his manipulation. They both knew that bringing in the Eye to gain control of the Council was her ultimate aim. And Vicia was becoming convinced Elmanax had no intention of letting her or anyone else have it. So why did he want Zod’s army out of the way?

  “I still don’t see how attacking now helps me,” she said.

  “Because,” he said, leering at her, “if you decimate Zod’s army, you’ll have hundreds of soldiers against only five people. Of those five, one is a failed sorcerer’s apprentice and another is a poet pretending to be a warrior. Zod is the most dangerous of them, and he’s growing old. You’ll be able to overwhelm them and take both the Eye of the Dragon and Wyrmblade.

  “Plus, a lot of strange things can happen in a battle. There are always casualties. It’s even possible a certain Elder of the Council would perish, leaving you alone to return to Eldenberg in triumph.”

  Vicia’s eyes grew wide at that suggestion. Murder Lord Hedron during the fight? Of course! Once his focus was on dispatching Zod’s army, he wouldn’t be paying attention to Vicia. She could easily misaim a spell.

  She still didn’t trust him, though. If he could suggest to Vicia that she stab Hedron in the back, Elmanax was capable of doing the same to her. Moreover, the gnome’s injuries suggested his plans were unraveling. Nothing had gone right since she’d poisoned Gothemus. Elmanax had clearly overreached, and whatever had happened to him was more evidence that he didn’t really know what he was doing.

  He looked weak. Someone had hurt him badly. In fact, if he knew Calibot had taken four other people into the tower, then it stood to reason the sneaky, little bastard had both seen it happen and felt incapable of slipping in with them. Elmanax had decided he couldn’t get the Eye of the Dragon out of the tower; he needed Calibot to do it for him.

  Something e
lse occurred to her. Zod’s army could not be taken without casualties. Elmanax himself had said so. She might have a two-to-one advantage or better, but she would lose soldiers in the attack. Elmanax wanted Zod’s support destroyed, so he would be too weak to defend the Eye. But Eldenberg would be weakened too, especially if Lord Hedron were murdered during the fight. Just as wiping out Zod’s army would put him at Vicia’s mercy, killing Lord Hedron and reducing the size of her army might make her too weak to stop Elmanax from betraying her.

  Elmanax might be badly hurt, but he was still clever. Vicia wasn’t stupid, though. She saw through him, and he was too arrogant to know that. She had a few surprises left in her too.

  “All right,” she said. “I’ll persuade Lord Hedron to attack them. But you’d better be ready, Elmanax. Calibot sundered my staff with Wyrmblade several days ago. He’s more powerful than you think. Get too close to him, and he just might fell a great, immortal fairy . . . like you.”

  “Ha!” Elmanax’s laugh was completely contemptuous. “You shouldn’t worry about me, Lord Vicia. As you note, I’m immortal, and no self-absorbed poet is going to slay me, whether he has a magical sword or not.”

  “If you say so, Elmanax, but your appearance isn’t exactly convincing. You’d better be ready to do battle with us. Lord Hedron and I can handle Zod’s army, but when Calibot and his friends come out of there, we’re going to need as much magic as we can get. Betray me, and I’ll make sure Zod and Calibot know who really masterminded the murder of Gothemus Draco. Looking at you, I don’t think you’ll be able to stand up to them alone.”

  Elmanax glared at her for moment. He seemed to be sizing her up. She gave him an unpleasant smile.

  “Don’t threaten me, Vicia,” he said. “You don’t know who you’re dealing with.”

  “I’m not threatening, Elmanax. I’m promising. We’re in this together. We’ve been in it together since Gothemus drank that poison. If I’m destroyed, I’ll take you with me.”

  She turned from him and made her way to Hedron’s tent. He would need persuading. She thought she knew how to do it. Most of Elmanax’s arguments were pretty sound. She just needed to rephrase them in a way that would motivate Hedron. It would be tricky, though. He didn’t trust her, and he wanted her out of his way. She would need to make him think attacking was his idea.