“Maybe he doesn’t need magic,” Richard said. “Maybe he needs something else.”
Memories flooded Richard’s mind. He saw the images of tens of thousands of injured and sick people being healed. They were of all races, ages, and genders. He sensed they were being healed with Power. Somehow he knew they’d been healed by him.
“I calculate you’re grasping for straws,” said Nickelo. “Why are you so determined to save Amir? He was trying to kill you. Your self-heal reserve is the only reserve you have access to. The Power in it cannot be used to heal others. The man is as good as dead. Your best course of action is to accept the inevitable and move on.”
Some stubbornness deep inside Richard, perhaps in his very DNA, refused to accept defeat. He sensed his three Power reserves. As his battle computer said, only his self-heal reserve was accessible. He concentrated on the blocked links to the other two reserves. His passive scan didn’t provide enough information to make out what was blocking the links, and he knew he didn’t have the Power to create an active scan.
In desperation, he screamed out in his mind. “Damn you, whoever you are. You took away my Power and my memories. I want them back. He’s my teammate. I won’t let him die.”
Ripping off his battle helmet, Richard tossed it into the bottom of the boat and shouted a final thought in his mind. “Either give me the Power I need to help Amir, or I swear I’ll jump in the water and sink to the bottom of the ocean. Even my self-heal won’t be able to keep me alive once my reserve runs out. I swear I’ll do it.”
Why he thought anyone could hear his demands, Richard wasn’t sure. He felt more stubborn than foolish. Rising to his feet, he tensed his muscles in preparation for jumping overboard. Something stirred within him. He sensed the link to the smallest of his three reserves change and the Power in the smallest reserve become accessible. At the same time, a part of his memory returned. Suddenly he knew how to heal others.
A realization came over Richard, giving him pause. “I’ve got to drown in order to heal him.”
“Yes, you do,” said Nickelo. “Additional information has become available in my databanks. You are an emp-healer. You will need to take on Amir’s injuries in order to heal him. Are you sure that’s what you want? His heart just stopped. I calculate you only have a few seconds before he is completely dead. Just FYI.”
The stubbornness inside Richard that had been willing to cast himself into the sea came flooding back to the surface. It refused to let a little thing like drowning stop him from doing what needed to be done. Tearing off his right glove, he grabbed Amir’s left hand. It was ice cold. For one brief millisecond, he looked at the man’s bluish face. He imagined how the face should look. He imagined how Amir’s body should be. He tried comparing it to the way it was now. He had trouble imagining the difference.
“I calculate this is not his real form,” said Nickelo. “I detect magic in him, a spell of some kind. Do you see it?”
Richard did. He followed the twist and turns of the magic. As he did, he got a better picture of the man’s true body structure and how it should be. Leaving the spell in place for fear of doing more harm than good by trying to remove it, he grabbed onto the difference between how Amir’s injured body was now and how a healthy version of it should be. He drew the difference into himself. As his lungs filled with water, he gasped and fell to the bottom of the dinghy. He tried to breathe but couldn’t. Red spots flashed before his eyes, then everything went black.
In the dark place that was now his home, memories flashed in Richard’s mind. Most were lost as soon as they came. A few remained. One was the memory of a yellow gem, along with a feeling of great need. Something told him if the gem was not found, all was lost. The same something gave him a feeling that Mia, Amir, and he needed to work together to find the gem in order to save all that was good. Another memory came that was a vision of a time-bubble and a spaceport that he’d helped destroy in the past. A third memory was of a tunnel system under the mountain the dwarves had once called home. The word Drepdenor flashed in his mind. A final memory was of a bird of metal, a drone. He remembered once helping two children launch the drone.
Awareness slowly came back to Richard. He stared up into two beautiful eyes with swirling silver specks. It was what could only be described as the face of an angel.
Am I dead? Richard wondered.
He noticed that the angel had pointed ears and long black hair. The angel smiled.
“So, you are awake at last,” said Mia. “I had begun to think we had lost you.”
The head of a big man appeared over the high priestess’s shoulder. The man’s hair was wet. The man was Amir.
“They told me that you saved my life. Why?”
Forcing himself to a sitting position, Richard looked around. He was back on the sloop with both ship’s crew and elves forming a circle around him. He looked up at Amir. “Why? You’re my teammate. You were in trouble. That’s what teammates do.”
“I was trying to kill you.”
“Yeah,” Richard said, rubbing his chin. “I’ll admit that made me hesitate a little bit before I jumped over the side to get you.” He frowned. “Which reminds me, did I hear Skylark say something about you being a giant? Aren’t you a little short for a giant?”
“I am a giant,” said Amir. “I am from the Ecarian clan.”
“But you’re too short to—”
“I did that,” said Mia. “Amir is under a special polymorph enchantment.”
“I told you there was something different about him,” said Nickelo in their shared space. “Maybe next time you will listen to me.”
With Mia’s help, Richard rose to his feet. “I don’t understand. Why the deception?” He narrowed his eyes at Amir. “Prove to me that you’re a giant. Drop the spell and show me.”
“No!” said Mia before Amir could reply. “The magic is a one-time affair. Amir can deactivate the spell and return to his true form any time he wants, but I would not be able to use it on him again.” She waved a hand to encompass the sloop and smiled. “Besides, do you really want a five-elf-high giant on this ship? His weight would sink us.”
“The high priestess is right,” said Tracer. “Amir and you almost went to the bottom of the ocean once today. Are you sure you want to try it again?”
“Her point is valid,” said Nickelo. “I see the logic of keeping Amir in his current form. He will definitely draw less attention if we have to pass through another city or town.”
“Fine,” Richard said, looking at Mia. “I’ll take your word for it. He’s a giant. My only question is why? Why is a giant with a group of elves?”
“Why?” said Mia. “Because we were given a task by the Oracle to save the land.”
Richard nodded. Things were finally starting to make sense. He thought of the memories he’d seen while healing Amir. “Don’t tell me. You need to find a yellow gem.”
Mia’s eyes grew large. “You know of the gem?” She glanced at Amir before looking back at Richard. “Do you by any chance know where one is or where must we go?”
“Actually, I do,” Richard said. “We need to go to the dwarves’ old home. We need to go to Old Drepdenor.”
Lord Derander moved beside Mia. His eyes narrowed. “How do you know this? Even we do not—”
“Because I just know. Trust me. It only makes sense. We were attacked by vampires last night. The Drepdenor I knew was infested with vampires. I think some of them were used to take the city.”
Lieutenant Yasland cleared his throat. When he had everyone’s attention, he said something in gibberish. Amir said something back. They exchanged a few words more. When the sloop’s captain stopped talking, Amir looked back at Richard.
“Yasland says he’s a sailor. He does not know where the dwarves’ old home is. He only knows it’s somewhere to the north.”
Richard nodded. “Then tell him to head north.” A memory of the drone he’d seen came back to his mind. “I know where Old Drepdenor is, or
at least I soon will. Tell Yasland I’ll let him know which way to go soon enough.”
The faces of those around him looked doubtful.
Only Mia’s gaze had an air of confidence. The silver in her eyes swirled faster. “We will do as you say, Rick. We will follow you to Old Drepdenor.”
Chapter 41 – Old Drepdenor
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Two and a half weeks after Telsa and the others left Point Departure, they arrived at the foothills surrounding Old Drepdenor. The massive mountain loomed overhead as if beckoning to the dwarves. There was no laughter and very little talking amongst the dwarves. Even Rembis was solemn.
Since the dirt path they were following was wider than most, the elves were in a column of twos with Telsa riding next to Rembis. She leaned across the space between the gnome and her and whispered, “Why’s everyone so quiet? I thought the dwarves would be more excited to see their old home.”
Wiping at his eyes, Rembis looked away from the mountain, turning his gaze on Telsa. “Old Drepdenor is their home no longer. We lost a lot of friends during the battle against the vampires. The mountain is now our friends’ tomb.” He shrugged his shoulders and did his best to smile. “I suppose I thought it would be easier to come back. It’s not.”
Easy or not, everyone knew what needed to be done. General Fenmar and his nephew led the way to the secret tunnel where Telsa remembered the X-shuttle saving them from the vampires. The last time she’d seen the tunnel, the entrance had been a broken hole in the side of the mountain with scattered rocks and bodies of vampires lying all around.
Telsa pointed at the spot where she remembered the tunnel entrance being. “Someone’s fixed the entrance.”
Rembis gave a quiet laugh. “What did you think? That Emerald was going to leave our mountain open for anyone who wanted to come inside? The dwarves repaired the damage before we left. They tried to leave their home in good repair out of respect for their dead.”
Major Nekash came riding down the line of ponies, giving orders. Dwarves were soon unloading equipment from the pack animals. Telsa and Rembis were also put to work as was everyone including Queen Emerald, High Priestess Shandria, and High Lord Carndador. Well before the sun began to set, the dwarves’ camp was complete with tents, cooking fires, and guard posts.
After Rembis and Telsa finished a hasty meal, a soldier brought them a request from Emerald to attend a meeting in her tent. Since a request from a queen was the same thing as an order, Telsa and the gnome mage wasted no time in gathering with Shandria, Carndador, Fenmar, Nekash, Chancee, and Emerald. They were all huddled around a small folding table with an illusion of three transparent spheres on top. One sphere was green, one orange, and one purple. Miniature hallways, rooms, and tunnels were visible within the spheres.
Telsa looked at Shandria. “How accurate is your illusion?”
“Very accurate,” said the high priestess. “I spent over two years mapping the three time-bubbles before the final seed part was found.”
Pointing at a large cavern in the green sphere, Shandria said, “That is where Rick and I fought our final battle against the demon-dragon Efrestra. The access point I used to enter and exit the green time-bubble is there. Access points also exist within the purple and orange time-bubbles.”
Chancee moved closer to the purple sphere. “That long section of tunnel that has the four switchbacks looks familiar. It’s been a while, but I think that circular room before the switchbacks is where I was attacked by the lich.” She reached her hand into the purple part of the illusion and pointed at a spot on the wall of the circular room. I’m pretty sure that’s where I entered the time-bubble from Drepdenor’s lower tunnels.”
Shandria stared at the circular wall, her brows furrowing. The point on the wall of the circular room turned white. “That makes sense. The room was empty when I was in it, but I sensed an access point there, and it was not the one I created.” She stared at the illusion for several heartbeats before looking up at the blonde woman. “Can you remember where you encountered the yellow light you told us about?”
The ranger stared at the illusion for several heartbeats before pointing. “I was pretty fevered at the time, but I think it was near the point in the purple sphere where it overlaps with the green and orange spheres. The T intersection at the top of the stairs looks familiar. From what I can remember, there was a solid wall at the intersection that suddenly seemed to fall away. There was a cavern on the other side with a pool of water. I remember the water because I was so thirsty. Before I could drink any, I noticed a yellow light near a boulder. Bands of colors stretched from the boulder to the yellow light. I think that’s when he, I mean the light, started talking to me. Then he healed me. The next thing I knew, I was back in Drepdenor’s lower tunnels where General Fenmar found me.”
The entire group had remained silent while Chancee told her story. They remained quiet for several seconds before Telsa’s battle computer broke the silence.
Speaking over the battle helmet’s external speaker, Raj said, “Tele-bots recorded Wizard Scout Shepard’s mission in the time-bubbles. I was given access to the data six nanoseconds ago. From the videos, it appears Rick and Shandria met in the green time-bubble near a T intersection at the top of stairs. The wall at the intersection fell away similar to the way the ranger described. When the wall fell away, it revealed a cavern with a pool of water.”
Telsa removed her battle helmet and sat it on the table next to the illusion. “Are you saying it was the same intersection?”
“Negative,” replied Raj. “The intersection was similar, but it was not the same. I calculate there is also a similar intersection in the orange time-bubble. I calculate all three intersections are near the point where the three time-bubbles intersect. You will notice the convergence of the three colored spheres in the high priestess’s illusion creates an area of overlap. Based upon current data, there is a ninety-two percent probability that overlap is the cavern with the pool of water both Shandria and Chancee saw.”
Queen Emerald studied the illusion before looking at the high priestess. “Can you still get to your access point in the green time-bubble? Maybe we should try for it instead of the one Chancee stumbled upon.”
Shandria shook her head. “I think we should try for the ranger’s point of entry. Master Raj is just guessing that—”
“Computers do not guess,” said Raj sounding indignant. “I based my calculations on the available facts.”
The high priestess smiled. “I stand corrected, Master Raj. Still, you indicated only a little over a ninety-percent chance my intersection and Chancee’s lead to the same hidden chamber. We know the ranger’s way leads to the yellow light. I believe that is the way we should go.” She glanced at Emerald. “Besides, Rick and I were attacked by the demon-dragon Efrestra at the intersection in the green time-bubble. The ways of the demons are strange to me. Who is to say he or one of his brothers will not be waiting for us there now?”
Queen Emerald glanced at the others in the tent. After getting only a shrug of the shoulders from General Fenmar, she said, “Very well. We will leave half of Major Nekash’s soldiers in camp to guard our rear. The rest of us will enter the tunnels first thing in the morning and make for the purple time-bubble. Does anyone have any objections?”
No one did.
“Very well, then,” said Emerald. “Go to your tents and get some rest. We’ve got a big day tomorrow.”
Chapter 42 – Choices and Decisions
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Two weeks after leaving the sloop and its crew, Amir found himself trekking through another forest devastated by the increasingly frequent earthquakes. He looked ahead at the line of elves making their way around fallen trees crisscrossing what remained of a barely visible wagon trail. The mountains had been growing increasingly larger as they made their way east. A tall pinnacle Richard said was Old Drepdenor appeared tantalizingly within reach.
Amir glanced over at Tracer who wa
s pulling rear guard with him. “There are only fifteen of us now. I’m not sure what we’re supposed to do when we get to this Old Drepdenor of Rick’s. If the dwarves’ ancient home is infested with vampires like he thinks, it would take an army to force our way in.”
Coming up to the trunk of a fallen tree, Tracer checked the other side to make sure a snake wasn’t sunning itself on the other side before stepping over. “There would be less of us if Ohadis and Regis had not sacrificed their lives to give the rest of us time to get out of the vampire’s trap.”
The memory of the trap they’d walked into four days ago flashed in Amir’s mind. To Richard’s credit, he’d tried to warn them that the area near the broken-down fort they’d stumbled upon was suspicious. Lord Derander had argued against blindly following the human’s advice to leave the area without checking out the fort. Mia had finally compromised by sending in a squad to recon. A company of mercenaries under cover of advanced illusion spells had attacked from one side while a dozen vampires materialized out of the fortress walls and attacked the recon team from behind. The monks Ohadis and Regis had held the vampires back long enough for the rest of the recon team to return to the main body, but it had cost the two monks their lives.
Amir glanced at the working end of his sledgehammer. In his mind, he could still see Ohadis’s blood dripping off it.
I couldn’t leave her as one of them, he reasoned. She begged me to kill her before she completely turned.
Amir remembered how Richard had joined him in trying to rescue the two monks before the elves were bitten. They’d been too late. The attackers hadn’t given them enough time to try healing the monks. While Richard had been forced to cut off Regis’s head, he’d had to mercifully kill Ohadis. As it was, Mia and the two mages had been hard-pressed to force a path through the mercenaries and get the rest of the party out of the trap.
Wizard Gigantic (Intergalactic Wizard Scout Chronicles Book 9) Page 37
