should be arriving shortly.”
“A meal?” exclaimed Seth, his impatience adding an edge to his voice. “Let’s go home.”
“But,” Kevik said, somewhat taken aback, “I thought you might be hungry.”
“We are,” replied Soth. He glanced to his brother and gestured that they should stay and eat.
“Oh, very well,” grumbled Seth.
As they took their seats, Soth asked, “How is it going?”
Kevik perked up and patted the pack which held his spell book. “Very well,” he stated. “I jotted down several spells which may come in handy when we set out for the final…” he paused a moment then leaned forward and said in a whisper, “you know what.”
“Excellent,” Soth said. He glanced to his brother and nodded. Seth just glared back at him, he didn’t want to remain there.
Though at times coming here wore on those accompanying Kevik, there was no denying the benefit from such visits. On his second visit, Kevik discovered a spell that would afford him some protection against magical traps that he might inadvertently activate when identifying items. It took him most of the next day to master it, but after that he set about identifying all the remaining items that had yet to be identified.
Most of them had what Bart called ‘junk abilities’. Such things as making you smell better, a love charm, and other worthless attributes. But as he had stated awhile back, what was worthless to one is priceless to another. With that in mind, Kevik inquired at the Tower about liquidating those items and was told of a place in Gilbeth that specialized in such things.
The sale of the four ‘junk items’ gave them one thousand, three hundred and fifty eight gold pieces, a veritable fortune. Only three items were kept other than those whose abilities had already been discovered. One was the wand which Kevik believed casts a spray of cold.
Another was the gray powder. It took Kevik some time to figure out what it did for every time he tried to cast his identification spell on it, the spell wouldn’t do anything. Finally, he realized that the gray powder was in some way absorbing the magic of the spell. If the box in which the powder was kept remained closed, its affects would remain inactive. The box held the ability to contain the powder’s affect. But with the lid open and the gray powder exposed, it absorbed any and all active magic in its vicinity.
The last of the three items that held what he and the others considered beneficial magic was a brass ring with a band of silver that spiraled around the entirety of the band. From the vision Kevik had when he identified it, he felt it had something to do with fighters. The part of the vision where ‘swords would strike the bearer yet do little damage’ seemed to suggest it would keep harm from the wearer to a certain degree. Chad was given that one to wear.
He also figured out the two spells in the small book they had found in Algoth. One was a powerful warding spell which was beyond his current abilities to cast. It would prevent the more rudiment magical spells from affecting the caster. The other spell in the book was a locater spell that would enable the caster to ‘know’ the location of a familiar object or person. As with the first spell, it too was beyond his abilities.
Perhaps the most vexing of all the items in his possession was the scroll in the ivory scroll case they had discovered during their last trek to Catha. He had at one time thought to seek the help of more advanced magic users at the Tower concerning it. But then came the memory of the magic user who had accompanied Durik during his raid on the estate. Was he friend or foe? And more importantly, who was he? He was sure it had been a man but hadn’t been able to get a good look at him. The thought that nagged at him was what if he were to ask Durik’s magic user for help? The consequences of such an action could prove disastrous. So instead, he had broken the seal binding the scroll case closed and opened it.
Within he had found a rolled piece of parchment. He had used extreme caution when removing it from the scroll case as he feared it may not have survived well over time. But his fears had been for nothing, the parchment was like new. The magic of the scroll case had preserved it over the years.
Hardly daring to breathe, he had carefully unrolled the parchment. Written upon the parchment were five symbols. Though he didn’t recognize them, they were definitely magical in nature. And from the intricate way in which they were drawn, had to be quite powerful. He had searched the library on the first floor of the Tower for any reference of the five symbols on his initial visit, but hadn’t been able to locate them. Most likely, any reference to them would be in libraries a Practitioner wouldn’t have access to. He had put the parchment back in the scroll case and stashed it in the chest along with the other magical items their group weren’t currently using.
The meal when it came was of bread, cheese, and a stew made primarily out of vegetables. The Seekers also brought a steaming pot of tea and three cups. Seth looked at the meal and inwardly groaned. Just what you’d expect magic users to eat, he thought. Once he had his portion, he ate it reluctantly and found it to be not so bad, though what he really wanted was a big shank of meat.
Soth grinned at his brother’s discomfiture during the meal. Kevik went on about this spell and that which he had discovered today. His excitement, while not exactly contagious, kept the twins entertained until they had finished the meal.
“I’ve found one that erects a barrier against fire,” he said.
“What good would that do?” asked Seth.
“If I ever come against a magic user who casts a spell involving fire,” he replied, “I’ll be ready. Such spells could very well prove invaluable when I return to test for Wielder.”
“How exciting,” Soth said.
Kevik’s eyes fairly danced. “Yes, isn’t it,” he said with enthusiasm.
“I don’t suppose you found anything that’s going to keep us warm on the way home?” Seth asked.
Taking a bite of bread, Kevik shook his head. “No,” he replied with his mouth full. “Yesterday I came across a spell that would aid against magical attacks involving cold. But from what I’ve read so far, it’s much more difficult to keep the natural world at bay than in countering magic’s affect.”
“Why is that?” Soth inquired.
Kevik was about to reply then stopped. He took another bite as he thought about it. “I’m not sure to tell you the truth,” he finally admitted. “I’ll have to look into that during another visit.” The rest of the meal passed in silence as Kevik thought about the question posed by Soth. He did have a couple thoughts on the matter, but nothing definite.
When they finished their meal, they left the table and made to leave the Hall. Seekers immediately converged on their table and proceeded to clean off the dirty tableware. The temperature began to drop as they entered the hallway leading to the exit. Snow covered the end of the hallway nearest the door from where it had been blown in when members came and went.
Seth was the first to the door. He took hold of the handle and had barely begun to pull on it when the door was blasted open by the wind. Ice cold air filled with wind blown snow hit him like a hammer. First Seth passed through to the outside, then his brother.
Once Kevik was through to the outside, it took both of the twins to get the door closed. When it finally closed shut, Seth wondered how a single magic user could have managed to close the door when it had required both him and his brother working against the force of the wind to do it. Maybe Seekers would come to assist them was all he could come up with.
Outside, dusk was definitely on its way. “We’ll never make it back before dark,” Seth said to Kevik.
Kevik nodded then light flared from the end of his staff as he cast his spell. “Stay close,” he said. Wrapping his cloak tightly around him, he leaned into the wind and began forging his way through the snow. Behind him, Seth and Soth bent low as they too tried to minimize the wind’s sting. The storm was beginning to worsen. The chill of the wind seemed to go right through their clothes and sapped the warmth from their bodies.
At one point, Kevik’s foot slipped and he lost his balance. A blast of wind struck him and threw him backwards into Seth. “Careful,” Seth said as he caught him before he could fall onto the snow covered ground.
“Thank you,” Kevik said as he righted himself.
By the time they had left the outskirts of Gilbeth behind, all three were chilled to the bone. Seth’s teeth were chattering so badly, that he was surprised the other two hadn’t heard him yet. They followed the road as best they could in the growing gloom. The only light they now had was that of Kevik’s staff.
Where are you?
The question that suddenly entered his mind almost made him lose his balance. Glancing to the ring on the hand that gripped the staff, he concentrated on Bart. On the road outside of town, he mentally replied. The ring on
