Master Wizard

by James Eggebeen

  "I have to take someone with me who's strong enough."

  "And who might that be?" Chihon looked troubled.

  "The strongest wizard I know is right here. He transported the two of us back to Amedon when you were attacked."

  "Kedrik?"

  "He's been learning a lot, and since I sent him to work with Zhimosom, he's matured a little."

  "Do try to be careful." Chihon squeezed his hand.

  "I will." Lorit leaned in and kissed her on the forehead. She was burning with fever. He hated to leave her like this, but he feared the dragon's egg was too dangerous to leave in the hands of the temple.

  Lorit understood now what Zhimosom had done to protect Rotiaqua and why the old wizard wouldn't attack Sulrad. He felt the same way about Chihon. He would do anything to protect her. He kissed her again and whispered, "I won't let anything happen to you."

  The next morning, Lorit rousted Kedrik from his bed just as the sun made its appearance. "Come with me. We have work to do."

  Kedrik blinked up at him. "Work to do?"

  "Yes. You're familiar with the concept of work, I take it?" Lorit pulled the blankets from the boy.

  Kedrik rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. "What kind of work?"

  "Wizard work. Grab your pack. I have provisions in my study for you. We leave at once."

  Lorit turned to leave, but stopped in the doorway to make sure Kedrik was getting out of bed. "Don't forget your staff. You'll need it."

  Lorit heard Kedrik's footsteps behind him as he rushed to his study. He had Kedrik's provisions piled on the table, and his own pack was ready. Lorit shouldered his pack and grabbed his staff. He waited impatiently as Kedrik stuffed the provisions in his pack and rushed to stand next to Lorit on the Sorcerer's Stone.

  "We're going to Veldwaite to see Queen Ukina."

  Lorit reached out for Ukina. He felt her only weakly. "Feel her presence. That's where we're going." Lorit guided Kedrik's focus to Ukina. He soaked up the magic of the stone, grabbed onto Kedrik's magic and pulled them across the void.

  The study dissolved around them and was replaced by cold damp stone walls. A crude bench was formed into the wall beneath a small window with sturdy iron bars. A rumpled figure lay on the bench, chains running from the pile of richly colored robes to rings embedded in the wall.

  It was Queen Ukina. In the dungeon.

  Chapter 30

  Kedrik was sleeping peacefully when Lorit woke him and dragged him to his study. He'd been dreaming of a maiden when Lorit charged in and yanked the blankets away, urging him to hurry. He was still half-asleep as they materialized in the dungeon. The rough-cut stones were mortared together, and the cell was damp and cold. The place smelled of animal and human waste.

  On the bench, a figure stirred. She was dressed in colorful robes with hair like straw and a thin birdlike beak of a nose. She looked familiar. In a sudden rush of panic, Kedrik realized he was standing before his queen. He quickly dropped to the floor, bowed his head against the dirty stones, and mumbled, "Your Majesty."

  "What are you doing?" Lorit grabbed his shoulder and dragged him to his feet.

  Queen Ukina stirred and looked right at him. Kedrik's heart pounded so hard it was going to burst. He started to bow again, but Lorit caught him.

  "You have an apprentice?" the queen asked.

  Kedrik almost melted when he heard her voice. All he knew was that commoners were not allowed to look at royalty, much less talk to the queen herself. His knees went weak.

  Lorit laughed. "Yes, I do. He's a bit on the young side, but he was born and raised here, in Veldwaite. I think he can scout out the city a little better than I can."

  "Let me see you, son," the queen said.

  Kedrik raised his face, but kept his gaze firmly focused on the floor.

  The queen reached out and took his chin in her hand. Kedrik trembled at her touch. "Why so nervous?" she asked.

  Kedrik's heart raced and his voice quivered. "You're the queen!"

  "And I'm stuck in this dungeon, unless you can help me. Will you help me?" The queen's voice was smooth and commanding even as she asked him, a lowly commoner, for help.

  "Yes, Your Majesty." Kedrik chanced a glance at her face. Her hair was in disarray and her face was dirty, smudged with grime and dried blood. "Your Majesty. What have they done to you?"

  The queen sat back down. "Oh, nothing I won't recover from. I'll be fine now that you and Lorit are here."

  "Kedrik," Lorit said. "I want you to scout around the town. I'm going to stay here and find out what's been happening. You go seek out the gossip and find out what you can."

  Kedrik nodded.

  "Oh." Lorit put his arm around Kedrik. "I want you to go see your folks while you're here." Lorit fished in his pocket and came out with a pair of golds. He handed them to Kedrik. "For your folks."

  Kedrik tensed up. He didn't really want to face his family. "My folks?"

  "Your folks. They haven't seen you since the temple took you, have they?"

  Kedrik recalled the fear on his ma's face when they took him from his home. How his parents had argued with the priest until the priest offered up a gold. Then his pa stepped in and handed him over. He shuddered involuntarily at the pain the priest had caused him before Lorit and Chihon rescued him.

  "No. They haven't seen me since that night." Kedrik hung his head.

  "Go see them. Let them see you're all right," Lorit said. "Then go dig for the gossip. See what you can find out. I need to know what the temple is up to."

  Kedrik looked around the cell. "How will I get out of here?" The cell was made of stone and closed off with heavy iron bars.

  "You remember where you lived before the temple took you? Do you think your folks are still there?"

  Kedrik hadn't thought much about his folks lately. His time in Amedon had been busy. He missed his ma, but he'd grown used to being on his own. He was eager to see her, but not eager to see his pa. He wasn't going to admit that to Lorit. "I guess so. I don't see why they would have moved."

  "Well, you can travel there and back at will," Lorit said. "It's not far. You won't need a lot of magic."

  Kedrik nodded. He decided that if he was going to use magic, he wouldn't travel to his own home. He didn't want to appear there without some investigation beforehand.

  Kedrik focused on his friend Ash's home. The stone house with its heavy thatched roof had been painted, but the paint was chipped in places. He chose a room in the back that would be empty and pulled himself through the void to Ash's house.

  The room where Kedrik appeared was empty, but the house was not. The sound of banging pots came from the kitchen, along with the scent of freshly-cut onions, overlaid with the aroma of garlic roasted in oil. Kedrik quietly sneaked to the kitchen and peered around the corner. Ash was arguing with his mother, Dal, while they washed pots and pans.

  "I'm old enough to be off on my own."

  "No, you're not."

  "Why not? I'm fourteen summers old. That's old enough to be on my own."

  "Why do we have this argument every night?" Dal demanded. "Ever since your friend Kedrik died, you think you should be out on your own."

  "He didn't die, he ran away," Ash said. "His pa beat him and one day he had enough and ran away."

  "Says you," Dal said. "You don't know that."

  "I do. Kedrik told me."

  "Well, he just up and disappeared, what could he have told you? Maybe his pa finally had enough and put him in the ground. Ever think of that?"

  Kedrik stepped into the kitchen and cleared his throat. "The temple came for me in the middle of the night and took me away."

  Ash and Dal both turned to him. Ash looked as if he saw a ghost. He stared at Kedrik in shock, his expression slowly turning to surprise. Dal dropped the plate she was washing. It struck the floor and shattered with a resounding clatter.

  "Kedrik!" Ash rushed to Kedrik and hugged him, straining to lift him off the ground.

  "Ash. Please let m
e go. You'll break my ribs."

  Kedrik took a breath as Ash released him. He was glad to see his friend again. Unlike Yorn, Ash was someone who always looked out for Kedrik. He'd missed that.

  "What happened to you?" Ash demanded. "Where have you been?"

  "In Amedon," Kedrik explained. "A wizard rescued me from the temple and took me to the Wizards' Keep. I've been studying magic."

  Ash punched Kedrik in the arm. "A wizard? Go on with you."

  "Yes. A wizard."

  Dal looked at Kedrik in shock. "We thought you were dead."

  "I'm very much alive. Amedon is nice. The wizards are strict, but I'm learning a lot."

  Kedrik knelt down over the shattered plate. He waved his hands in the air and repeated the spell that he'd learned to restore something that had been burned. It should work just as well on the plate. Violet light shimmered and the pieces of the plate slowly reassembled themselves.

  Kedrik picked the restored plate up from the floor and handed it to Dal.

  Dal sucked in a breath and took the plate from him gingerly, as if afraid it was going to bite her. "We don't need any trouble here," Dal said.

  "I won't be any trouble." Kedrik grinned at her. Dal was like a mother to him. He'd grown up with Ash, and Dal treated him like another son, scolding and reprimanding him as often as she did her own.

  Kedrik hugged her, burying his head in her hair. "I've missed you, Ma."

  Dal hugged him back. "I've missed you too, son." Kedrik felt warm and accepted when she held him. He hadn't realized how much he'd missed her.

  "How are the girls in Amedon?" Ash asked.

  "Girls?" Kedrik humphed. "There are no girls in Amedon."

  "What? No girls?"

  "No girls. Well, only two."

  "Two?" Ash looked shocked.

  "Two sorceresses in the keep. There are girls in town, but they discourage us from spending time there until we're fully trained."

  "Who discourages you? You don't have parents to boss you around anymore." Ash glanced quickly at Dal.

  "Not parents, but the wizards are just as strict."

  "What if you sneak out and break the rules?"

  Kedrik didn't want to admit how he'd gotten in trouble in town. He was too embarrassed.

  "They collar you so you can't use your magic." Kedrik shuddered at the thought. His friend Yorn had spent more time in a collar than without it. Kedrik couldn't see himself without his power. He'd come to think of himself as a wizard and wouldn't know how to behave without magic.

  "And that's so bad?"

  "Yes. Once you learn to do magic, it becomes a part of you. How do you think I got here?"

  "I assumed you walked."

  "No. I used magic to come here from the castle." Kedrik sat at the table and rested his feet on the empty chair beside him. Dal dropped the towel next to the washbasin and sat down across from him.

  "The castle?" Ash asked.

  "Lorit and I came here to see the queen."

  "The queen!" Dal said. "What are you doing with the queen? You know better than that."

  "She needs our help," Kedrik explained.

  "Now I've heard everything."

  "I'll tell you all about it later. Lorit told me I have to go see my folks. How are they?" Kedrik leaned forward. He genuinely wanted to hear about his folks. That was why he'd come to see Ash. Ash would know how they were.

  "Pretty much the same...Your pa's taken to drinking a lot since you left. He's a little more angry than usual. Otherwise, nothing much has changed."

  Kedrik grabbed Ash's arm. "Come on. Let's go see my folks."

  "You don't want me there," Ash protested.

  "Yes, I do. I always want you with me."

  Ash pulled back.

  "What's wrong?"

  "Your pa."

  "What about my pa?"

  Ash sat down, folded his hands on the table, and glanced over at Dal. "Ma may put a nice face on it. He's drunk all the time and he's mean. Just plain mean. More than he ever was before you left."

  "He won't hurt you," Kedrik said.

  "I don't know. Your ma seems to be falling down and bumping into things a lot more often lately."

  "What?"

  "I think he's beating her."

  "If he's hurting her, then I really want you there." Kedrik grabbed Ash's arm and dragged him out of the house.

  Kedrik hadn't seen his home since the priest came and knocked on the door that night. The house looked much the same as always. The plaster was chipped in the same old places, and a few new ones, and the thatch was spotty along one edge from the wind damage the past winter. Clothes hung on the line that stretched between his parents' house and the one next door.

  Kedrik approached the door and stopped. This wasn't his home any longer. He didn't feel right just opening the door and walking in. He paused with his hand extended.

  "Go on," Ash said.

  Kedrik fought back his fear and knocked on the door. It would be less startling for his folks than simply walking in unannounced after all these moons. The door was flimsy and rattled under his rapping.

  "Ya. Hold yer horses. I'm comin," a voice came from inside the house. It was Kedrik's father. Why couldn't it have been his mother?

  The door swung open and Kedrik's father stood there. Tren brushed a strand of greasy blond hair from his face as he peered out of the darkened interior of the house. Stubble darkened his prominent chin and vomit stained his shirt. Tren stood there, looking at Kedrik without saying a word, as if he didn't recognize him.

  "Pa. It's me, Kedrik."

  Tren squinted at Kedrik. "What you doing here, boy?"

  "I came to see Ma." Kedrik was both afraid and heartened at the same time. His time in Amedon had been such a contrast to his life with Tren.

  "Your ma's sleeping."

  "That's fine. I'll just look in on her."

  "You're not a part of this family anymore. You're not welcome here." Tren started to close the door, but Kedrik jammed his foot in front of it to hold it open.

  "I'm going to see Ma."

  Tren stood his ground. He looked past Kedrik to Ash. "What you doing here?" he demanded.

  "I'm just visiting with Kedrik," Ash said.

  "This is family. Best you be gone."

  "I'll come see you later," Kedrik told Ash. "I need to see my ma, and you don't need the trouble."

  "I'll wait for you at home," Ash said and turned to leave.

  Kedrik pushed the door open and shouldered past his pa. He stomped to the bedroom where his mother, Persh, lay on the bed. She looked no better than Tren. Her hair was dirty and her clothes stank. She lay with her face to the wall.

  "Ma?" Kedrik put his hand on her and probed her with his magic as they'd taught him. Bright purple light flared from her face and side. Stripes of dark purple ran across her back, and her legs looked as if someone had repeatedly struck her with a rod.

  "Ma! What happened?"

  Persh rolled over, moaning with pain. She looked up at him through blackened eyes. "Kedrik? Is that really you?"

  "Yes, Ma. It's really me."

  Persh reached out to touch his cheek. Her hands were rough and red, and her arm had a large purple bruise that looked to be several days old. Her touch was rough against his skin.

  "It's really you," she muttered.

  Kedrik reached out with his magic and called up a healing spell. He healed the bruise on her arm and probed her whole body for additional signs of injury. A bright glow in Persh's stomach flared red, signifying a serious injury. Kedrik focused his power there, summoning the healing spells Kimt had taught him. Slowly, the red glow diminished, turning to a deep purple as the healing power flowed from Kedrik into his mother. Kedrik was soon exhausted and had to stop, even though his mother was not completely healed, but at least she would live.

  "What did you do?" Persh asked.

  "I healed you."

  "Healed me? You are a priest after all, then?"

  "Not a priest, no. I'm a
wizard." Kedrik sat on the bed. "Ma. What happened?"

  "The priests said you ran away from them. They came for their gold, but your pa had already spent it. They didn't care. They took me to the temple and told me I was going to have to work it off."

  "Did they beat you?" Kedrik asked.

  "No...your pa."

  Kedrik stood. He was thankful for his training as a wizard. He knew of several things he could try out on Tren.

  "Ma. I'm a wizard now. I can protect you..."

  "Kedrik. No. It's my fault. You know how I am." She put her hand on his arm. "I'm always forgetting my duties. Your father can't help himself when I make him angry. I shamed him when you ran away. It's my fault. Mine. I should have visited you in the temple so that you'd have stayed..."

  "Ma. That's not true. You did nothing wrong. I didn't run away. I was saved. The wizards came and rescued me. The priests were going to murder me for my magic."

  "What are you yapping about in there?" came Tren's voice from the kitchen.

  "Nothing, dear," Persh called back.

  "I'm hungry. Don't be all day yackin'."

  "Yes, dear." Persh struggled to stand. She grasped Kedrik's arm and pulled herself up.

  "Ma. Don't," Kedrik said.

  "Never you mind."

  "Ma. What's going on with the temple?"

  "They have me washing and cleaning. They say I have to work off my pay one copper at a time. I earn one copper every day. It won't take but six moons to pay back that gold."

  "Ma. You can't let them do this to you. I'll help you. I brought golds."

  "You best go now. Come back after dinner. Your pa will be at the inn. We can have a little privacy then."

  "You comin'?" Tren yelled from the kitchen.

  "Yes, dear." Persh squeezed Kedrik's arm and give him a kiss on the cheek. "Come back after sundown. We can visit then."

  Kedrik left his mother and spent the afternoon catching up with Ash. He missed his friend, but the moons away had taken the edge off their friendship. Ash had continued his life without Kedrik, and they no longer had the closeness Kedrik remembered.

  "What are you going to do now?" Ash asked as they strolled along the street. Kedrik wanted to visit the market and buy the sticky buns he remembered so well. No one made sticky buns like Ethatta. The woman was as round as a melon, with ruddy red cheeks, but her sticky buns were the talk of the market.