The Young Magician

‘No,’ the man replied and dropped his sword onto the carpeted stairs. ‘It’s only money. I don’t know what these magicians have been up to, but it’s clear they are not on the winning side. I will gladly be out of here while you go and find whatever fate awaits you upstairs. I apologise for the inconvenience.’

With that, he stepped neatly past Samuel and strode down the hall. Samuel was certainly not bothered to chase him-Ruardin’s men would catch him downstairs-and he dropped to Eric’s side.

‘It really hurts!’ Eric said, clutching at his gushing wound. His entire front was bathed in blood and Samuel guessed from the rate of it, the injury was serious.

‘Don’t worry,’ Samuel told him. ‘I’ll help you,’ and quickly cast a spell to slow the bleeding.

‘Go!’ Eric howled out. ‘You need to go after Ash.’

But Samuel was hesitant. ‘You can’t stave off the bleeding by yourself, Eric. If I leave you, you will die.’

‘No!’ Eric hissed through clenched teeth. ‘I’ll be all right. You can’t risk wasting any power on me. If I can get myself to the others, they can save me. Don’t worry. I can manage.’

Something in Eric’s tone told Samuel he was hinting at something beyond the obvious. It took him a moment to realise what it could be. ‘You finished the Journey Spell?’

Eric gripped his arm with desperate strength. ‘I’m sorry, Samuel!’ he declared. ‘I didn’t want anyone to know. It was more trouble than it was worth.’

‘Just go, now while you still have the strength. I will stop the pain as much as I can.’ With that, Samuel did his best to lesson his friend’s discomfort.

‘That’s good,’ Eric said, opening his eyes and looking calm. ‘Now get back. You don’t want to be too close when this happens.’

Samuel did as he was told as a web of magic bloomed into being around his friend and immediately began weaving itself into an intricate design of utmost beauty and perfect symmetry. It was as if a crystal web of delicate cross-spans and concentric circles had forged itself in the air. Numerous opposite edges began knitting together, perfectly synchronised.

‘He’s doing it,’ Samuel heard himself whisper, just as the spell clicked into place and finished itself.

In that instant, Eric vanished. His magic snapped down to an infinite point at its centre and vanished along with him, following Eric to wherever he had gone. Unlike the last time, there was no terrible residue left behind. Eric had formed the spell perfectly and had simply journeyed away.

Barely believing what he had just witnessed, Samuel turned away and began up the stairs, past the two frozen mercenaries. He continued up stair after stair, climbing ever higher into the massive High Tower of Cintar.

Samuel could feel the magic of the Magicians’ Game still escalating below. He only hoped his friends were up to the task. With all the power he could feel in that room already, the losers would most likely not survive.

That was nothing, however, to what he could feel gathering above. Somewhere above him in the Argum Stone’s chamber, something was gathering magic in enormous volumes. Vast quantities of energy were being called into being-a massive pool of magic that already felt beyond all natural limits-and it was still growing by the moment.

Samuel hurried up the stairs past a few worried servants as they all fled down. Presumably, they had bolted themselves in their rooms, but now the tower had begun to sway, they had decided that fleeing was the better choice. Their concerned faces eyed the dust that shook loose from the ceilings and the walls as the tower shook and trembled. It did not bode well.

Panting and with burning legs, Samuel finally arrived before the door to the Argum Stone’s chamber. Magic was forming all around and gathering, bursting into existence and surging into the room. Gingerly, Samuel tested the door, but it was bolted firmly. Whatever was inside was incredibly dangerous and he was not even sure he wanted to go in.

‘You there!’ came a voice from along the hall.

It was the magician, Lullander. He began to approach down the corridor, but his steps slowed and stopped when he recognised Samuel. He turned and ran without a pause. There were only a few more floors above in the tower, so Samuel assumed the man was going to go huddle out of view and bide his time until all this was over.

Samuel promptly returned his attention to the door. There was little time left for subtleties. He summoned a fist of energy and blew the thing right in.

A blinding, white light greeted him inside and he had to subdue his sense of sight to almost nothing just to see into the room. Revealed within was an intense cloud of energy, convulsing and contorting above the Argum Stone, which itself was glowing white hot, cradled in a frame that held it upright. Magic came from everywhere, manifesting from the very air, and was being sucked into the churning cloud. It twisted and pulsed spasmodically, as if somehow trying to resist the forces that drew it together. There was a noise in Samuel’s head like titanic stones grinding together and he could hear his own blood surging in his ears. The experience was overpowering, almost too much to behold by his senses, yet he did not flee. Standing in the room was something- someone-who had a stronger grip on his attention, outweighing any thoughts of turning away. Standing there was a man that Samuel could not take his eyes off, for killing him had become the very reason for his existence. Ash.

Ash was standing across the room, arms-folded, next to another black-cloaked magician. It took Samuel a moment to realise that the second man was Master Dividian. He had the Staff of Elders in one hand, outstretched towards the enormous form of the Argum Stone. He was forging a Great Spell upon the ancient relic, pouring the tremendous power he had summoned with the Staff of Elders in upon it. His eyes were sealed shut and his body shook with sweaty exertion. Dividian’s lips were moving and Samuel could sense the vibrations of each word as they formed on his tongue in the Ancient Lick. Dividian continued on, heedless of Samuel’s entrance, but Ash had clearly noticed him and smiled.

‘You’re just in time, Samuel,’ Ash called out. ‘You’re about to witness something fantastic.’

Samuel stepped into the room and glared back at the man.

‘Doonan!’ Ash called out and a very small man came scuttling over from near one of the bookshelves. He was barely waist-high and Samuel had not even noticed him before, although he certainly remembered him. ‘The spell is almost ready. Go and tell Balten his prize will be ready soon.’

‘I’m supposed to stay here,’ the midget responded in a fierce and squeaky voice.

‘Do as you’re told, you vile little man!’ Ash retorted. ‘Balten will get what he wants, just go tell him to hurry up and come get it. You may have some trouble downstairs, but I trust you can get out of the palace somehow.’

The midget shrugged and began to leave the room. As he passed Samuel, he looked up with a secretive smile before scuttling out the door.

‘You have certainly proved yourself to be a thorn in my side, young Master Samuel,’ Ash then declared. ‘Time and time again I think I am rid of you and then, once again, you appear to meddle with my affairs.’

‘I’m just trying to return the favour,’ Samuel returned. ‘You ruined my life and I vowed I would not rest until I saw you dead.’

‘Well, this is the last time you shall bother me,’ Ash called, ‘for it is much too late for you to do much of anything. As you can see, the spell is almost complete and the power of the Argum Stone is about to be released. Nothing can stop it now.’

Samuel’s gaze flicked towards the great relic, which was starting to resonate with the power of the spell above it, shaking and rattling about in its magic-imbued wooden cradle.

Ash continued on. ‘The Circle have been watching you, Samuel, or so I am told. It seems you are quite the magician. If I had managed to kill you, they would probably have been quite annoyed with me for ruining their plans. Perhaps I should have let you join me. We could have done wonderful things together. Then again, you are quite useless to me now.’

‘You’re a thief and a murderer, Ash. No matter what you say, I will see you dead before this day ends.’

Ash laughed again. ‘You seem to have no comprehension of the situation. Can you not see what is about to happen?’

‘I only speak the truth. No mage can match me. I have destroyed all who have tried.’

‘So it’s true then!’ Dividian said, pausing momentarily from his spell work to open his eyes and look at Samuel. Almost straight away, he realised what he was doing and returned to the task at hand before his spells became unsettled.