For the first time, Samuel noticed the tray of fruits and bread on the small bedside table. He looked around and wondered whose room this was.
‘How’s Eric?’
Tulan laughed, rubbing his dark, stubbled chin. ‘I heard your friend is already up and around, but he won’t be doing anything energetic for a week or two.’
Samuel sat up and took some bread, chewing on it with a sudden clawing hunger. There was something hard pressing against his leg and Samuel reached down and pulled out the offensive object. It was a silver ring. Tulan was staring out the window and so Samuel quickly pushed the thing under his pillow. Someone had changed his clothes and bathed him, but somehow he still managed to have the ring in his possession.
There was a soft knock at the door and then Grand Master Anthem popped his head in. On seeing Samuel, he smiled and stepped lightly inside, closing the door behind him and nodding in greeting to Tulan Goodwin.
‘Everything’s ready,’ the old man spoke and Tulan stood and picked up his travelling bag.
‘Then it’s time for me to leave, while I can,’ Tulan said with a slight smile. ‘I hope we can meet again, Samuel, sometime in the future once everything has settled down a bit.’
‘As do I,’ Samuel returned. ‘If I come to Garteny one day, I will hope to find you.’
Tulan went to leave, but looked back once more before carefully closing the door behind him. ‘Farewell.’
With Tulan gone, the Grand Master came nearer to Samuel and sat on the stool. ‘Well, my boy, I’m certainly glad to see you pulled through.’
‘So am I,’ Samuel replied, pushing more grapes into his mouth to appease his rapidly growing hunger.
‘And I hear you saved the day, no less, facing Ash and blasting him to smithereens. I can’t say how pleased I was to hear it.’
Samuel nodded again, swallowing. ‘It’s true. Master Dividian finally awoke the Argum Stone using the power of the Staff of Elders but, in the end, both were destroyed.’
‘So the thing was truly another ancient relic?’ Anthem asked with interest.
‘Oh, yes-perhaps even more powerful than the Staff of Elders.’
‘And it was also destroyed?’ Anthem asked, giving Samuel a suspicious glance.
Samuel paused, before remembering to swallow the corner of bread still in his mouth. ‘Yes. The two relics incinerated each other.’
Anthem nodded and rubbed his jaw thoughtfully. ‘It’s a shame, but there may be more ancient relics in the world still. With the prospect of this war ended, perhaps we can direct our efforts to finding them.’
‘Is that such a good thing?’ Samuel asked. ‘Such power seems to bring out the worst in people. Perhaps such things are better left unfound.’
‘That may be, my boy, but we can’t hide our heads in the sand because of the foolish and the greedy. Everything in life can be turned sour in the wrong hands. We just have to be vigilant and rely on our wits and the goodness of our friends. People usually get what they deserve in the end.’
Samuel shrugged and finally agreed. ‘I guess you’re right. Ash is dead, the Emperor and the Archmage are dead-even Dividian is dead.’
‘Dividian? What happened to him?’
‘Ash killed him in the end. He had outlived his usefulness, although I must say he was a fool not to have seen it coming. Tell me, how did Ash manage to capture you?’
‘Lord Hathen asked to meet with me and slipped something in my cup. The next thing I knew I was waking up in Dividian’s awful lair, bound and tied. They kept feeding me extract of Scour Spice to keep me weak and addle-headed. The Empress was there, too, although she looked in much better condition than me. They had her locked in an old cell opposite mine, but at least she was free to move around and not tied up on the floor like a roped pig. Scour Spice also has some nasty side effects, but I won’t go into detail.’
‘What of High Lord Rimus? Was he there, too?’
Anthem sighed. ‘He is dead. It seems he, too, had been put to use by Ash. I can’t say what deal they had done-perhaps Rimus had been part of Ash’s schemes in return for the Staff, who knows-but it was obvious they had some collusion together. Ash summoned Rimus to the dungeons and he obviously knew what was going on, but it was there that he met a terrible end. After some initial small talk that I could not hear, Ash and Rimus began to tussle. Dividian joined with Ash and together they overcame the poor man and subdued him into senselessness with the same wretched root. It was then that poor Rimus suffered a terrible fate. I would not have wished it upon him or anyone.
‘Dividian had prepared a great bath of some vial liquids and had been chanting over it all day. They dropped Rimus into it. He began to thrash and squirm at once, but Ash held him under with a broom handle. I called for the Empress to look away and I’m glad that she did, for it was not a pleasant sight at all. Rimus struggled, but not for long. When it was done, Dividian began stirring the fluids, and it became evident that Rimus had been dissolved altogether-such foul black arts as I have never seen. Dividian scooped out the bones one by one with his tongs and threw them into the corner. He began summoning more of his black magic and Ash took off his clothes. Stark naked, he stepped into the bath and lay down into the vile fluids, submerging himself completely. When he stepped out again, he was wearing Rimus’ skin like a cloak.’
Samuel shook his head. ‘That’s abominable!’
‘Yes,’ the old man agreed. ‘I can’t say how glad I am that Dividian met his end. Who knows what else he was capable of or what else he had already done?’
‘And what about you, Grand Master?’ Samuel asked. ‘What will you do now?’
‘I will go back to the school and do what I do best-teaching young fools like you to use their magic and be polite to their elders.’ Samuel laughed at this. ‘Well,’ said the old magician. ‘I still have a lot to do. The Empress will have every magician’s head in a basket if I don’t go and plead some reason to her. She’s still quite shaken by the ordeal and her ministers are already clamouring to have her ear. Rest well. I’m sure the others will come to see you soon.’
With that, the old Grand Master bade farewell and Samuel ate the rest of his platter quietly in bed. Afterwards, he reached back under the pillow, pulled out the ring and held it up, inspecting it in the daylight that streamed in through the window. It looked so small and insignificant, yet it was the key to so much power. Samuel closed his eyes a moment and could feel the ring almost shivering in his fingers, as if its magic was bursting to be released. How incredible, he thought, that such a small thing could hold so much power. He thought about slipping it onto his finger and feeling its energy inside him, but then he thought better. The relic had already proved too powerful and was dangerous.
Still, he had a great desire to put it on for, since waking, Samuel had come to a terrible realisation. It was the same terrible feeling as being in the Mage Cell, as if some great force was stopping him from tapping the ether. He had tried to call his magic several times, but it would not come. He was starting to feel, with dread, that somehow he had been damaged during his duel with Ash. Somehow, using the Argum Stone and opening himself to its vast power had destroyed some vital part of him that could summon magic. He hoped it was only temporary and his power would return as his body healed, for the very thought of not having any magic made him tremble with anxiety.
Each time he felt nervous, however, he squeezed the Argum Stone in his fist and he felt a little better, for he knew, should he desire it or should he really be in need, he could simply call on the vast power within the ring.
Samuel finally roused himself from the bed. After his small meal, he felt much better and decided he should go and find something more substantial to eat. There was a new set of fine black robes folded on the dresser, and so Samuel dressed himself and then combed his hair in front of the mirror.
Before leaving, Samuel’s heart began racing a little more. He was still trying to convince himself that his magic would return any moment, but he felt an unsettling fear inside. He just needed to feel the tiniest touch of magic to calm his nerves and then all would be well.
He turned away from the dresser and faced the opposite wall. He held the Argum Stone firmly in his fist and called to it gently. He could feel its magic beginning to seep out into his hand, so he directed a spell towards the centre of the room. A simple mage-light would do the trick nicely. Suddenly, there was a rush of power and a huge sphere exploded into being, filling the room with blinding light. Samuel yelled and released the ring to shield his eyes. It dropped to the floor and, at once, the enormous mage-light vanished, leaving the room devoid of magic once more. The ring bounced once with a soft
