God of Magic

by Logan Jacobs

  “Aw, you hurt his feelings,” Aerin said as she bent and scooped the puca into her arms.

  Merlin tried his best to look pitiful, but Lavinia just rolled her eyes.

  “The only emotion that thing feels is spite,” the archer insisted. Then she slid the last of her arrows into her quiver and put her hands on her hips as she addressed Merlin. “And it better know by now not to mess with my stuff.”

  The puca growled half-heartedly and butted his head against Aerin’s chin.

  “It looks like there’s another cavern not too far down,” I said. “We should at least check it out before we set up camp for the night.”

  I had to admit, I wasn’t thrilled by the idea of sleeping alongside all of these spider corpses, so I hoped the next cavern would be a more suitable option. Still, even if it wasn’t, we could get an idea of what lay ahead for the next day.

  “That sounds like a good idea,” Maruk said, and Aerin and Lavinia nodded as well.

  Without further ado, we picked our way over the dead spiders and the web-husk remains of their former victims toward the tunnel. We moved carefully and quietly as we approached the second cavern, but for once we had some good luck. The space was relatively small compared to the spiders’ lair, but it was dry, and best of all, there was nothing waiting there to kill us, so we unanimously decided to set up our camp there for the evening.

  After we’d eaten and reviewed our plan for the next stage of our journey, I rolled out my bedroll and collapsed with a sigh. Aerin had been right that the more I used my magic, the easier it would become, but I was still feeling fatigue, and I was looking forward to a rest. Merlin sniffed around the cavern for a few minutes before he came and curled up at my side, and I stroked his fur as I closed my eyes.

  If all went according to plan, tomorrow, we would reach the chamber with the chest, recover the bounty, and save our guild.

  Chapter 16

  When I awoke, I was surprised to find that Aerin was already up. She sat by our little fire and fed Merlin berries out of her hand, but she looked over to me when I turned in my bedroll.

  “What time is it?” I asked, but then I realized that Aerin probably wouldn’t know any better than I did. I figured it couldn’t be too late in the morning, though, because Lavinia was still asleep.

  “You all have been sleeping about three hours,” Aerin answered as she offered the puca another berry.

  “How do you figure that?” I asked. “Wait-- do you mean you haven’t slept at all?” She had to have been just as tired as the rest of us.

  Aerin twisted a strand of red hair between her fingers. “Uh, well, caves kind of creep me out,” she admitted. “Tons of stone surrounding us on all sides, it just sort of feels like being swallowed by the earth or buried alive or something. And the things that live down here are...” She trailed off with a shudder. “Well, you saw those spiders.” Then she flashed a quick smile. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to fall asleep on the job or anything.”

  I got up and moved to sit beside her, and Merlin took the opportunity to snatch the pouch with the berries that Aerin had been feeding him and scurry into the shadows.

  “That wasn’t why I was worried,” I told her. “Are you okay being down here? You never said anything about it before.”

  The beautiful elf woman shrugged. “We have to do it for our guild,” she replied as she chewed on her lower lip. “I can’t say I’m having fun right now, but it’ll all be worth it when we rake in the profits from this bounty.”

  I got the sense that she was putting on a brave face and was actually more uncomfortable than she let on, especially given that she hadn’t slept since we’d come down here, so I reached out and put my arm around her shoulders.

  “You don’t worry,” I told her. “I won’t let anything bad happen to you down here.”

  At first, she tensed up and seemed surprised, but a moment later she relaxed, slid a little closer to me, and smiled as she leaned her head into my shoulder.

  “Thanks, Gabriel,” she whispered.

  “So, what are some of your favorite places to be?” I asked to get her mind off being in a cave.

  She considered the question for a moment before she answered. “I like the black market in Ovrista. You can get really great things there if you know where to look and how to haggle with the vendors. And I like the temple dedicated to Evarun in my hometown. All the old temples to the elven gods in Ovrista were converted, but there are a few smaller shrines still around. I like to visit those, too. They remind me of home.”

  “I’d like to see them sometime,” I said, and Aerin looked up at me with a pleased smile.

  “Really?” she asked. “Most people aren’t really interested.”

  “Yeah, really.” I reached up and ran my fingers through her hair. “I’m interested in the things you’re interested in, Aerin. I like you.”

  The elf woman’s smile broadened. “I like you, too,” she said quietly, and her hazel eyes flicked down to my mouth.

  I leaned in to close the distance between us and pressed my lips against hers as I moved my hand to the back of her neck.

  Aerin reached for my other hand and twined her fingers in mine as we kissed. Her lips were soft and still tasted slightly of the berries she’d been eating, and her hand was warm and steady in mine. When we broke apart, a pink blush had risen into her cheeks, and she stared at our hands as I brushed my thumb over her knuckles.

  “I guess I’ll have a reason to like caves now,” she said with a shy little laugh.

  I stood and pulled her up with me and led her by the hand back to my bedroll. “You need to get some sleep,” I said. “Lay down with me and close your eyes at least. I’ll keep you safe.”

  Aerin cast a glance over her shoulder at Maruk and Lavinia’s sleeping forms. “You’re not worried what they’ll think?” she asked.

  “No,” I answered truthfully. “Why, are you?”

  Aerin smiled and shook her head. “No,” she answered as she sank down onto the thin mattress with me. I put my arm around her waist and pressed another kiss to the back of her neck as she settled in.

  “Better?” I whispered.

  I could hear the smile in her voice when she answered. “Much better.”

  “Try to get some rest,” I told her, and after a few minutes, her breathing became steady and even, and I knew she’d fallen asleep. For a while, I tried to go back to sleep as well, but by then my mind was reeling with the memory of my kiss with Aerin and the endless possibilities of what still lay in store for us in the Shadow Delves. We’d done well against the spiders, and though I would prefer it if we didn’t face any more monsters down here, I felt confident that we could handle whatever came our way.

  When it came down to it, we were a good team that worked well together. This bounty would earn us more prestige and profit than the Foxes had ever gotten from a single bounty before, and it could be our chance to really start making a name for ourselves. We had the determination and the skills we needed, and we’d overcome every setback in our way. Whether Theira was still watching over us or not, I had faith in our abilities.

  Ren and the rest of the Stewards wouldn’t know what hit them.

  I didn’t remember falling asleep again, but I woke up to Merlin sitting on my chest and prodding my face with his nose. I shoved him away, but he just jumped up on top of me again with an annoyed chatter, so I sighed and sat up.

  “What is it? Are you hungry?” I asked. I wasn’t sure how long I’d slept this time, but Lavinia and Maruk were both still asleep, so I figured it couldn’t have been very long.

  Beside me, Aerin stirred and sat up as well. “What’s going on?” she asked, and her voice had a distinct nervous edge.

  “It’s just Merlin,” I answered quietly. “He’s upset about something.”

  The puca snorted as if in confirmation and turned in a circle. He was as taught as a wire and kept flicking his tail in an agitated sort of way, so I got the sense that whatever was
bothering him was more important than breakfast. I looked around the cavern as I slowly stood, but our fire had burned low, and I couldn’t see anything that seemed amiss among the wavering shadows on the walls. Still, I trusted the puca’s keen senses over my own, and when Merlin darted forward and looked back at me over his shoulder, I was inclined to follow.

  Aerin got up as well and drew her cloak tighter around her shoulders. “I wonder what’s gotten into him,” she whispered. “Do you think maybe he found more of those spiders or something?”

  “I don’t know,” I answered. That wouldn’t surprise me, but Merlin clearly wanted us to follow him, and I didn’t think he would intentionally lead us into danger. “I’ll see what he wants, it could just be that he found something shiny. You should go back to sleep.”

  “I’m going with you,” the healer insisted with a shake of her head, and then cast a glance over her shoulder. “Should we wake them? I don’t want them to worry if we’re gone and if it is spiders…”

  “I don’t think Lavinia would appreciate us waking her up to follow Merlin around,” I said. I was about to add that I would just find out what was agitating the puca and come right back when Lavinia sat up.

  “You’re right,” she began, “I don’t appreciate it, just like I don’t appreciate you two carrying on conversations at all hours. I can hear you, you know, you’re only five feet away.”

  “Sorry,” I said quickly. “We didn’t mean to wake you.”

  “I’m up now,” Lavinia grumbled as she got to her feet. “That little monster is upset about something?”

  Merlin growled and swished his tail.

  “I was just going to go check it out,” I told her. “He woke me up, and he’s being pretty insistent. It might be nothing though. I can scout ahead, we don’t all need to go.”

  Merlin let out an aggrieved trill and Lavinia arched an eyebrow.

  “Probably,” she agreed, “but we shouldn’t get separated down here, and since most of us are already awake. We might as well get going for the day. If we’re lucky, Ren will want to sleep in. Let’s go find out what that thing wants.”

  “Rise and shine, Maruk, we’ve got a bounty to collect,” she said loudly as she nudged Maruk with the toe of her boot.

  “Is the sun even up yet?” the orc groaned.

  “How should I know?” Lavinia answered. “We’re underground. Come on and get up, that flea-infested pet you love so much wants to show us something.”

  Maruk muttered something I couldn’t make out, but then he sat up and rubbed his face. “I’m up, I’m up.”

  We packed up our camp and lit a fresh torch before we stamped out the remains of our fire and prepared to follow the puca, who was growing more and more impatient by the minute. In the interest of ensuring that Merlin’s quest wouldn’t take us too far off our original course, I checked the map, but as it turned out, the next few miles were through a single tunnel anyway, and the path didn’t branch again until after it passed through another small cavern ahead.

  “Alright,” I said when we were all finally ready to go, “what did you want to show us, Merlin?”

  The puca chattered indignantly before he took off down the tunnel ahead, and with a glance back at the others, I followed after him. As we went, we passed adjacent tunnels that hadn’t been marked out on our map, but it was clear why they’d been neglected. One had caved in, though unlike Ren’s trick, this appeared to be a natural cave-in, and another had been boarded up. Most of the wood was rotting away, but someone had come by and reinforced the blockade with thick strips of metal etched with runes, and they had scratched into the stone of the tunnel wall the same word in several languages and alphabets: danger. Thankfully, Merlin didn’t seem particularly interested in any of those, and he passed them by as he led us onward.

  I gauged that we had gone about two miles when I caught sight of the cavern that had been marked out on our map ahead. Wary of more giant spiders or something equally unpleasant, I slowed down, but Merlin didn’t hesitate to run into the shadows of the cavern before us.

  I glanced back at the others with a questioning look before I followed the puca into the cavern, and as the torchlight spread over the scene, I realized what Merlin had led us to. It was another campsite, almost identical to our own with the travelers’ gear piled up around the ashes of an old fire. Except this campsite was filled with corpses.

  Merlin had already begun to loot the camp. He had collected a small pile of his own of belt buckles, jewelry, a comb shaped like a bird, and a handful of buttons, and he ran in circles around it while he chattered excitedly, but I was more interested in what was left of the camp and its former inhabitants.

  Slowly, we ventured into the camp to get a better look around, and upon closer inspection, I realized that what I had taken to be skin initially were just scraps of time-worn clothing and blankets, and all that was left of the travelers here were their skeletons. Only one was complete, but in the center of the camp, scattered around the fire, were what I judged to be the bones of several other skeletons, though they seemed to have been discarded haphazardly.

  “Goodness, what could have befallen these people?” Maruk said quietly as he stepped gingerly over one of the skeletons.

  “It’s hard to say, they’ve been down here for such a long time,” Aerin said. “There’s nothing left to go on.”

  “I don’t know about that,” Lavinia said with a frown as she picked up what appeared to be a femur that lay half in the ashes of the ancient fire pit. “Gabriel, can you bring that light over?”

  I joined her, and as soon as the torchlight illuminated the bones around the fire, I knew what Lavinia had meant. Every one of them was scored across with what were, unmistakably, bite marks.

  Lavinia held the bone out as Maruk and Aerin approached as well so that they could get a better look.

  “Do you think whatever attacked them is still around?” Aerin asked nervously as she twisted to look around the cavern. “Some of these monsters can live for centuries.”

  A coil of apprehension had formed in my gut as I took another look around as well. “I don’t think they were attacked by a monster,” I said. “Look, this skeleton with clothes looks like whoever it was died sleeping. If something came into their camp, it would have gone after all of them.” I chewed on the inside of my cheek. “I think they killed each other.”

  A cold silence settled over our group then, and only Merlin was unaffected as he fought to pull a scrap of paper from the pocket of one of the few complete skeletons. The scroll had been tied into a roll with a ribbon, and it seemed that it was the ribbon that the puca was really after. He slid it free and brought it over to his pile of loot, and I stepped over to the skeleton to see what was on the note that Merlin had found.

  I unfurled the note and read it over quickly, and as I did, my stomach sank as my earlier suspicions were confirmed. It read like the final page of a diary, complete with the writer’s estimate of the date.

  “These people were travelers,” I explained with a glance at the other bones that lie around the camp. “They had a bigger party when they first came down here, but only eight of them made it this far. They got lost in the tunnels for months and started to starve to death. Eventually, the last few survivors resorted to cannibalism. This one here, he said his name was Avery, he was the last one left.”

  “Probably humans,” Lavinia said as she nudged one of the bones with the toe of her boot. “I think your puca already found anything they had left that was worth taking.”

  “Right,” I said. “Let’s get going.”

  I dropped the note and turned back to the others, and that was when I noticed the bones at Lavinia’s feet move. Before I even had the chance to write that off as something benign or a trick of the light, the bone twitched again, and the rest of the scattered bones that surrounded the fire began to shiver and glow faintly with the light of magic.

  “Guys--” I started, but my warning became obsolete as the bones arou
nd the fire suddenly jolted forward and began to connect together to reform the skeleton that had once been.

  “Shit!” Lavinia hissed, and she kicked out at the skeleton leg as it formed before her. The bones fell apart at the hit, but then the skeletal leg began to rebuild itself immediately.

  “They’re revenants,” Aerin yelped as she staggered out of the way of an arm that had begun to rebuild itself. “We have to burn the bones.”

  The skeleton behind me had begun to stir as well but unlike the others, this one didn’t have to waste time putting itself back together. The bony hand reached out to grasp at my ankle, and I kicked it away sharply.

  “Aerin, can you start a fire?” I called back, and the elf woman nodded when I handed her the torch.

  I backed up toward Maruk and Lavinia as the revenants reassembled around us and disembodied arms, legs, and torsos came together into seven fully formed, walking skeletons. We bought ourselves some time while Aerin tried to reignite the old fire by kicking or tossing aside the bones. Merlin helped as well by grabbing hold of some bones and carrying them off though I suspected it was something of a game to him to chase them around.

  I focused on a few and used my magic to interrupt their assembly, but then they began to reassemble a few moments later, so I knew I wasn’t actually permanently cutting off the magic that animated them.

  I remembered the corpses we had fought in the wilds. I hadn’t been able to affect them directly since they were controlled by Allowen, so these revenants must be a similar case. Though there was no mage involved here, the source of the magic was separate from the skeletons themselves. It occurred to me that we might not need the fire if I could find whatever it was that was reanimating the revenants, but as I scanned the camp, nothing stood out.

  At first, the skeletons seemed disoriented, and they didn’t target us so much as stumble into us. However, as soon as the one that had the note, Avery, got up slowly with the dry clack of old bones knocking together, the rest of the revenants’ skulls swung around to face him and moved forward with awkward, lurching steps to stand at his side.