Suzie chuckled as she took a drink. "Raven this is only one quarter of four. And we've only explored about half of this quarter."
I guess both Raven and I looked surprised.
Suzie grinned bigger, "Well it is a large place."
We sat there for a few moments and let that settle in.
"Well, let's go to Omar." Suzie stood up and headed down to a skiff dock. "To the Pelican's Nest please." She told the pilot of the skiff.
His face snapped up and the surprise was evident on his leathery face. "Ye be sure of that miss? Not many go there uninvited."
Suzie grinned, "I am sure sir. We are expected." She handed the pilot a double fee. "Let's get on our way."
We all grabbed a seat and enjoyed the ride. After a good ten minutes the pilot pulled us up to a dock that was under a bridge. "This be the fastest way to get to the entrance. Up and to the left. That is where ye be going." With that he headed away quickly.
We walked up the steps and before us was a massive building. It looked like a warehouse had been placed on a massive barge. "That is actually not where we are going." Suzie smiled and pointed to a small grey building to the other side of the canal. The building was simple and only had a single door. "That is the Pelican's Nest, the number one weapon shop in Trajina's Rest." After crossing the bridge she rapped on the door in an odd cadence.
We stood there a few moments before a voice called out, "Identify yourself or die." I could feel magic well up around us.
My mind kicked into defensive mode and I tapped into the magic forming and drained it out into one of the gems in my bag. I could feel the sudden failing on the other mage's part, like hearing a gasp.
"OTT!" Suzie yelled at me and shoved me to the side suddenly as I heard an odd sound, much like a bow being released. I fell on the ground and sat there stunned.
"It is Suzie! Omar STAND DOWN!" She yelled at the top of her lungs.
"What?!?" The voice called out. "Why would Suzie drain my shield?" A small window in the door opened and a dark eye looked out. It saw Suzie standing there mad and breathless, Raven stock still in shock, and me on the ground. A chuckle came out from the behind the door. "Ah, not Suzie draining my shield." The window shut and locks could be heard unlocking and magic being released could be felt. The door swung open revealing a short man swathed in robes.
"Welcome Suzie. Did I miss?" He carried a small weapon at his side. It looked much like a bow but was turned sideways and had a grip in the middle of the bow. He walked past us and pulled something out from the boards behind me. A small dart rested in his hand. "Ah. Good. Hate to kill someone who is simply foolish and not evil." He looked down at me and I could feel that he was evaluating me. "Oh... not foolish, simply young and inexperienced." He put out a hand and pulled me to my feet. "Next time someone's guard spell is activated remember to disarm it is considered attacking not defending. Just put up a shield if you are worried." He motioned to all of us. "In we get. I got your message earlier. I even pulled out a few things you might like Suzie." He looked closely at Raven. "And for you young knife juggler I believe I have a few things you might find interesting."
We entered into his shop and he locked the door behind us. "Sorry for all that. I cannot just allow anyone enter my shop. Too many interesting things in here." We turned a corner and suddenly we were in a display room unlike any other we had seen today. Weapons of all sorts were arranged around the room. I recognized many from my time with MaPaine. Some were new to me or seemed to be specialized. I would also sense small spells all around the room.
Omar was watching me. "Most of the spells are in the weapons, however I would suggest you leave all of them alone as some were put there to discourage buyers from bad behavior."
I looked at him and nodded. "I will just not use any magic."
He grinned darkly, "That's probably wise." He picked up a large gem and looked at me through it. Suddenly he went ashen. He set the gem down and addressed me. "Boy... Who is your master? Answer me truthfully or die where you stand!"
I could feel magic swirling around me and Omar. I looked at the girls. Raven had turned defensive, a blade in her hands ready to attack. Suzie was shocked, her mouth had fallen open.
"OMAR! Stop this!!" Suzie stepped towards Omar, to get between us. Suddenly the magic grabbed Suzie and pinned her in place.
"Girl. I am fond of you and your father but you will not interfere." Omar growled out. "Now boy. Answer me now or die." I could feel the magic closing in.
I looked through the shields I had raised automatically in reaction to Omar's actions. I growled back at him, "Stain. Stain is my master." Suddenly I realized that there was a spell inside of my shields. I lashed out and pulled the magic from the air. My anger lent me strength and I pulled all of Omar's magic from the air. Suzie fell forward and Omar suddenly turned white and passed out.
Raven walked over to him and looked down, "Well that was interesting." She then proceeded to use some of the knives on display to pin Omar to the floor. When she was happy that he could not move she motioned to me. "Care to wake him up?"
I grinned and focused. A small ball of water formed above Omar's face and dropped. The shock brought Omar around. He panicked for a moment when he realized he could not move. Then comprehension flooded into his face as he looked around. He stopped struggling and started laughing. The three of us exchanged looks and then looked down at Omar.
"Omar. Have you gone mad?" Suzie seemed to be close to tears. "Why attack us like that?"
Omar struggled to gain some control. "I had to be sure of your friend." He motioned with his head towards me. "This is not the first time a mage with all four magic’s has appeared in my shop. I barely made it out alive last time." Omar looked up at me. "Thank you for the truth. Stain is an old friend."
Our hesitation was obvious. Omar nodded towards the gem he held just moments before. "With your magic you should be able to tell something about that gem. It should prove that I speak the truth."
I walked over to the gem and picked it up. Magic swirled within the heart of the gem. I opened my mage sight. The unique blend of magic in its heart held Stain's touch. All four magic’s were there and tied together in such a way that it was obvious that Stain had not only made this gem for Omar but that he had worked quite hard to do so. Setting the gem down I looked at Omar.
He looked up at me, "I give you my word as a King's Man. I mean you no harm. I will provide a full accounting of myself."
I took a deep breath, I used to think that King's men were rare. "Raven, let him up."
Raven looked like she was going to argue but took a deep breath and started yanking knives out of the floor. Omar sat up and nodded to Raven. "Thanks for the accuracy of your placement. Feel free to take any weapons you might use personally. I would love for them to be used by such a natural talent." Omar stood up and motioned past the displays. "This is going to take a few moments. Shall we retire to my private area? I can provide snacks and refreshments."
We hesitantly followed Omar through a curtain. I hope answers were quick and I had not made a mistake in trusting him.
***
"Anyone want something to drink?" Omar asked as he poured himself an rose colored liquid.
We all declined.
Omar sat down and motioned to us. "Feel free to sit. I shall explain." He took a moment and then started.
"It was about five weeks ago. I received notice that a mage was coming to pick up some things for an adventure. Now mind you this notice came through regular channels but later I found that those channels had become tarnished if you will. Someone had figured out how to break through my secure methods." You could tell he was upset about this. "A good man ended up dying because of this."
He took a deep breath. "Well this mage appeared at my door at the time appointed. He was bundled up completely like a nomad and Wanderer who did not want his identity known. All I could see was his eyes, one was a piercing blue and the other was a ghostly white." He shivered at this
. "I almost turned him away just then. I wish I had. I looked through the mage eye to see if was a mage and sure enough he was. He had an affinity for all four magic’s." His eyes cut over to me, "You know how rare that is Ott. Again I hesitated. For the rest of my life I will regret my next action. I disabled all my locks and defenses to allow him to enter." Omar took a sip of his drink. "At first he perused my selection, obviously looking for something specific." Omar reached under his seat and pulled out a box. "He never found it, I had it in a mage's safe." Opening the box he pulled out a pouch. He opened it. It was filled with rings that were all interlocked. "This is a mage's puzzle. It holds all the knowledge of the mage who created it. If another mage can solve the puzzle all the knowledge will transfer to that mage. It can be done more than once and give multiple mages that knowledge. Stain entrusted it to me years ago and told me to hold onto it till he found his true apprentice." With this he handed me the bundle of rings. "Give it a try Ott. I will continue my tale."
The rings were all sorts of colors and encrusted with gems. I rolled them around in my hands and realized that they were all connected somehow. This reminded me of the wooden puzzles dad would make me as a kid, just more complex.
Omar continued. "When he realized that I would not give the puzzle up he started asking me questions about a new mage. One with all four magic’s." Omar looked pointedly at me. "I now believe that he was asking about you Ott. I have not heard of any other mage such as he was pursuing. The mage continued to ask questions and as I failed to answer them he slowly grew more angry. Eventually he reached a point where he was repeating himself. I told him if he was not going to buy anything he must leave. That is when his companions appeared. I mean out of thin air." Omar waved at the air. "One second it was simply the mage and I in my display room and the next a group of brutes who did not make a noise."
Raven and I looked at each other. "The men from Haver's Town?" Raven whispered.
Omar looked at the two of us. "I guess you have run into these men before? Massive, silent brutes?"
I nodded, "We were chased through Haver's Town by a group of men like that."
Omar nodded. "So this mage found you at some point. Well these brutes grabbed me. For the next day the mage and the brutes did everything but kill me trying to get me to answer his questions. At the end of that day he left me for dead. In fact I would have died if not for one ironic thing." He pulled out a medallion. "A friend of mine once gifted me with this. She told me it would keep me from dying, it would not heal my body but simply keep it from dying. I laid there for two days before help arrived." He leaned back. "I have certain arrangements and one of them just happened to be a trusted person who helps clean my displays. They found me alive but unresponsive. A healer mage took a whole week to repair all the damage done to my body." He exposed his right forearm. "All but this. This was done with one of my own weapons. This knife causes damage that cannot be completely healed with magic." His arm was covered with scar tissue that looked like a detailed engraving that had been done by a riverman in a piece of wood. "I was told that my whole body looked like this, but that the mage must have used a regular blade for the rest."
All three of us paled at the thought of Omar's body carved in such an extreme manner. The only reason he lived was the medallion. No other way he could have lived.
Omar covered his arm. "That is why I reacted the way I did. You are of the same size as the other mage and share the same abilities with magic. I apologize but I could never suffer through such a time as that again." He shivered.
I leaned back for a moment. "Omar, I would never hold that against you. You reacted in a way that makes complete sense to me."
Raven and Suzie nodded. "I am so sorry Omar." Suzie's voice cracked.
Omar grinned sadly. "The only good thing about this is that the mage did not get what he wanted and I can pass on the warning to you Ott." His grin grew wider. "I say that is good."
A faint clink rang through the room and the other three looked at me. "What?" I did not do that.
All three grinned and Omar pointed at me. "You have just solved the puzzle Ott."
I looked down and sure enough all the rings had finally formed a solid tube with gems in an intricate pattern on the outside. My hands must have been playing with the puzzle while listening to Omar.
Omar grinned wider. "I have never been able to solve the puzzle Ott. It means that this knowledge is meant for you." He pointed to the puzzle. "By the shape I would say you are supposed to look through the tube."
Well, I guess so. I held up the tube and looked through it. Instead of seeing the room out of the other end of the tube I saw a man standing inside a stone walled room. He looked up and smiled.
"Welcome Ott. Congratulations on solving my mage's puzzle. Now you shall know my lifetime worth of knowledge. Remember this is simply knowledge. It is not experience, wisdom, or common sense." His grin grew sardonic. "Those you have to gain on your own. However, here you go my younger mage. May it help you in your course." His hands rose and the image lit up like the heart of a forge. Heat radiated out of the tube and engulfed me. I felt as if my mind and body were on fire. Then a cold wave rushed over like the fire had. Suddenly a gale wrapped around me. Finally a feeling like sand pouring over my skin.
"OTT!" Raven and Suzie's voices cut through my mind.
I pulled the tube away from my eye and looked around. The room looked just like it had a moment ago. Both girls stood just in front of me.
"What happened?" I sat there, my head feeling as if it was the size of Tag.
Omar answered, "You lifted the tube to your eye and froze as magic poured out of the tube and into your body. I saw all four magic’s involved so I am guessing it was another mage like Stain and yourself." He put his hand out. "Could I have the puzzle back now?"
I looked down and realized the tube was once more a mass of rings. I handed it to Omar.
Raven leaned closer, "How do you feel?" I could see honest concern in her face.
I smiled, "I am okay, thanks." I shook my head. "I think it will take a while to absorb all the information but basically I just gained everything the mage who taught Stain's master learned throughout his lifetime."
We all sat there for a moment and let that sink in.
"What good does that do?" Suzie asked. "He has been dead a long time."
"Over two thousand years in fact." I smiled. Some of the information was settling. Everyone gaped at that.
"Well that is a while ago." Suzie was aggravated. "What good does that do?"
I smiled and closed my eyes. I could see all the knowledge slowly forming and incorporating into my mind. Suddenly one spell jumped up. I stood up and walked over to Omar. "You would be surprised how handy this might be."
"Omar, would you let me see your arm again?" I asked him. He lifted his sleeve to expose the scars. I gently placed my hand on this wrist and could tell he still suffered. "It is not healed completely is it?"
Omar looked away. "The mage did the best he could. But some of the damage was too severe. I do not have full use in my hand anymore." He obviously was upset about this fact.
I focused on a spell from the ancient mage's memory. I looked at Omar's arm and poured magic into the spell holding it just inside my hand until all four magic’s mixed perfectly for the spell. "Brace yourself Omar. This is going to be interesting." Omar suddenly looked scared. I released all that pent up magic into Omar. The magic wrapped around his arm and burrowed deep into the tissue and bone. Omar screamed and yanked away. He fell to the ground and laid there for a few minutes panting. The magic continued to worm it's way through the structure of Omar's arm.
Omar held up his arm and we could see the changes being wrought there. The flesh was flowing much like clay on a potter's wheel. It bulged and swelled. The magic seemed to swell to the surface and suddenly exploded outwards. Omar screamed and covered his eyes.
When we all looked Omar's arm was scar free. He moved his hand and you could tell that
there was no hesitation from the injury.
"Oh my goodness!" Suzie was breathless. "I have never seen magic like that!" She looked at me in awe.
Raven nodded. "That was impressive and I could not even seen the magic. Just the arm healing. I have seen magical healing and that was totally different."
I smiled and nodded. "I did not heal him." This was met with disbelief. I held up both hands. "The spell actually destroyed the arm and reformed it to its original form." Suddenly silence.
Omar kneeled at my feet. "Thank you Ott. You have proven yourself to be a great man who will one day be a mage that many tell stories about." He stood and hugged me with tears in his eyes. "Thank you my friend."
I was just glad I could help Omar after he had to suffer like he had just because another mage wanted something. Suddenly I felt light-headed. "I think I need to sit." I barely made it to a chair before falling over. "That took more effort than I expected."
Raven chuckled, "Well. At least we know you are still yourself. You have overreached again." She smiled to take the sting from her comment.
I chuckled, "He did say it was just knowledge not wisdom, experience, or common sense."
Suzie snorted, "Might have done you more good to have gotten some of that instead." She rolled her eyes and sat back down.
I laughed and agreed. "Omar, what now?"
Omar sat down and thought. "Your master needs to know what has occurred. You three came here for some things, let's get these things done and then back to your masters." He stood up and headed towards his display area.
"Raven I have a few knives that I think you might find useful." He pulled out a box and handed it to Raven. "Also feel free to pick out anything else you might find useful." He turned to Suzie. "I know how you feel about weapons. I have got something specifically for you." He reached deep into a box and pulled out a pouch. "You should enjoy this one." He handed her the pouch.
Suzie opened the pouch and gasped. It was filled with pearls. I could tell they were completely filled with water magic. "That should help in times of stress." Omar smiled. Suzie hugged his neck and thanked him.
The Wandering Apprentice Page 28
