the square of the distance to his goal, and it was not intended for use over long distances; more than a hundred feet or so. Even if he succeeded, he might end up anywhere, from the bottom of the sea to the vast, airless expanse of outer space.
The chances of arriving at any inhabitable location were negligible, and the spell he had in mind would draw the last dregs of power left to him, until he had either arrived at the location he had in mind or had perished. In Grimm's estimation, the latter case was far more probable. He would need far more power than he had at his disposal: more energy even than he had unleashed in his Breakout. Perhaps.
Maybe this is just a powerful illusion, he thought. Perhaps I'm still in Starmor's loathsome turret.
Grimm muttered a few syllables and focused his mind on reality, as he had been taught to do in such situations. His heart pounded and his eyes bulged, but the vision before remained as strong. Preparing himself for a second assault on the supposed illusion, he heard a rustling, rhythmic sound like the beating of some huge bird's wings, and he looked up.
Circling high above, Grimm saw a vast, bat-winged shape, drawing ever closer in a lazy spiral. As it alighted on the stone pillar, ten feet away from him, he saw hugely muscled humanoid arms with long, vicious talons jutting from heavily-knuckled parodies of human hands. Grimm felt the cold, clammy touch of fear at the sight of the creature's burning red eyes and its cavernous, fang-filled maw. This demon must be nine feet in height, and its aura told of mighty magical power within. Grimm had read of such creatures, but the reality was far more fearsome than any written description.
'Hold, demon! I am a powerful mage!' he cried, but the demon leapt at him with talons extended and jaws agape. With dread drying his mouth, he managed to utter a fire spell. A scorching torrent of flame issued forth from his outstretched hands. White fire washed over the demon, knocking it back over the precipice, but to Grimm's dismay, the monster reappeared a few seconds later, quite unaffected by the potent spell.
The demon laughed, a horrid, grating sound, and a deep rumble issued from the thin lips. 'Human: strike at me as you will. Your powers are no threat to me. No single mage has ever bested me, although many have tried: by ice, by flame and by contest of wills. You are powerful for one so small, but no mortal magic-user has ever mustered enough force to overcome me.'
It's not real! Grimm told himself. This must be an illusion!
He engaged his Mage Sight and scanned the titanic creature for the signs of deception; to his horror, he saw none. This demon was no mere illusion.
'Perhaps you will acknowledge me now as real,' the fanged monster growled.
The young Questor nodded. He forced himself to stand straighter, looking the demon in the eye, although he had to crane his neck in order to do so. He spoke in the formal tones of Mage Speech; if he were to die, it would be as a Guild Mage.
'I am Grimm Afelnor, demon; a Mage Questor of Arnor House. I see now I have been foolish to attempt to overcome you; however, I am even stronger in defence than attack. If you try to kill me, you will see the true power of a Guild Mage. Until now, I have been toying with you.'
The demon's booming laughter hammered at the mage's eardrums, and Grimm had to fight to remain on his feet. 'Fine words from one so small and so drained of strength! I had intended to tear off your head and consume you, but I admire your spirit. I ate last only a month or so ago, and so I am not yet famished. Some stimulating conversation might well whet my appetite. While you continue to interest me, you may live. I am Shakkar, and I am well pleased that you have come to brighten my interminable imprisonment for a few heartbeats.'
'You have the knack of making a visitor feel instantly at home, Shakkar,' Grimm shot back, his heart pounding. 'I always appreciate such a pleasant welcoming speech.'
'You flung fire at me,' Shakkar rumbled, shrugging. 'Should I regard you as a friend?'
'You launched yourself at me without provocation, Shakkar,' Grimm protested. 'I was defending myself. Had you stopped for a moment to parlay, I should not have launched my assault. Your appearance startled me, but it was only your attack on me that moved me to cast magic at you. If you attack me again, you will see I am capable of producing more than just fireballs.'
The demon laughed again. 'I have the Sight, as do all demons,' he said, 'and I can tell your powers are all but extinguished. You will only bore me with further empty threats; I will then eat you. If you can offer stimulating repartee, I may allow you to live a little longer. Are a few more hours of life so unappealing to you?'
Grimm sighed, realising he could never browbeat this titan. His Sight showed him the wealth of power within Shakkar; Mage Speech and bluster would never serve to cow the demon.
'All right, Shakkar,' he sighed, spreading his hands in surrender. 'You're right, I can't beat you. So what happens now? We talk for a few hours, and then you eat me. That thought tends to cramp my conversation a mite. So, while I try to think of something interesting to say, why not tell me a little of yourself? I never heard of such an impressive example of Demonkind as you are. I can see you are full of magical energies, and I have never read of a demon with such power in any of the House grimoires.'
'Aye, human,' the demon said. 'I was indeed once a great user of magic, and I ventured into your world in hopes of conquest. I fought many a potent magic-user, and I defeated them all with ease.'
The demon's broad shoulders seemed to slump a little, as if he bemoaned the puny nature of humankind.
'I grew bored with the vainglory and useless pomp of mortals. I thought this moribund dimension unworthy of me, until I met Starmor and fought him. I expected an easy victory, as usual, but he prevailed, to my great horror. I expected him to destroy me, but he accepted me as his trusted lieutenant. I gave my word to serve him as best I could. He brought me here, to a small and poor town, and I helped Starmor to bring it to prosperity; after years of battles and confrontation, I found peace.
'For several years, Crar was a peaceful and wealthy town. Then, Starmor became bored with his easy conquest. He sought my aid in creating the monstrosity it now is. It amused him to see the people acting as he wished, acting out the roles he had written for them. I demurred at aiding him in this. I have few qualms about killing humans who attack me, or about eating them should I starve, but what Starmor wanted for the people of Crar was worse than death. When he began to turn the citizens into automata, I lost my self-control. I attacked him with all the magic and strength at my disposal, but all to no avail. Starmor banished me to this pillar, and I have been here for the last ten years.'
Grimm spoke with the eloquence that desperation sometimes brings. 'Shakkar, surely you can use your magic to find a way out of here? I know what to do, but I am too weak. I can see you have much more power than I do. Surely you can assay a spell of Relocation? It is one of my Guild's simplest and most reliable spells, the only disadvantage being the vastly increased stores of energy required when you do not know where you are. If you don't know the spell, I could probably teach it to you in a day or so. You have more than enough power to return both of us to Crar.'
Shakkar growled, and his tail whipped back and forth in an agitated manner. 'Once, I could have moved mountains with my magic and, as you have seen, I have ample power to do so, should I so choose,' the demon rumbled.
'However, that misbegotten, forsworn cur, Starmor, somehow contrived to deprive me of my capacity to form the simplest spell. All I have left me is the Sight; my magic has deserted me.
Shakkar snarled, 'No doubt you find this amusing, human! You have magic but insufficient power to do what is needed; I have power aplenty, but no magic.'
Grimm shook his head. 'I find no humour in our predicament, Shakkar. However, I do see a possible solution to the problem. We mages are trained to be able to tap into another's store of energy, if that person consents. If the person is weak-willed, their power can be drained forcibly by a strong magic-user, although I know well I could never take your power from you. Nor would I choose to do so if I could. I am certain that, if you would allow me to use your energies, I could return to Crar and summon you by name into a magic pentacle.'
Shakkar shook his head. 'Starmor would know at once you had returned. He would send you straight back here.'
'Would he so? I believe I might have the means to defeat him.'
Shakkar laughed so long and loud that golden tears flowed from his ruby eyes. 'This is a man who crushed me with ease, a mighty demon at the height of my powers, mortal. Do you believe you can face him alone and prevail? Forgive me if I find just a little amusement in this. I do not wish to mock you, but the concept seems ludicrous to me.'
