Reborn- Evoker

by Luka Petrov

  I climbed to my feet and concentrated on the lamia and on beating her. I went into the meditative state and utilized the teachings that Mistress Lathurna taught me.

  Edward silent and multicast Spark and Gravity Snare.

  Spell: Spark

  School: Evocation

  Skill Level: 3rd-Level

  Effect: A spell that causes lightning to course across the ground aimed at a target, rendering lightning damage.

  Spell: Gravity Snare

  School: Evocation

  Skill Level: 6th-Level

  Effect: The weight of the spell pins down and crushes the opponent, anchoring them to the ground. Target takes bludgeoning damage, which can be halved on a successful check.

  The Lamia didn’t even waiver with both of those spells hitting her dead on. “That should have done the trick!” I shouted, disappointed in the outcome of my silent and dual cast, which I nailed perfectly.

  Walter, Cecily, Yves, Commander Sugarbird and Alexia came from behind me. “Found you two!” Cecily shouted.

  “Just in the nick of time!” I shouted back, still discouraged by the results of my perfectly performed spells.

  The lamia cast Slumber Deep on Edward

  Spell: Slumber Deep

  School: Enchantment

  Skill Level: 3rd-Level

  Effect: Target falls into a deep and magical slumber, which disables them to render a final blow.

  I quickly fell asleep, lying on the floor. I could not move, but I was conscious of my surroundings and what was happening. I knew it would only be a matter of time before the lamia would end my life for good, and I would have failed at my mission of defeating the evil Demon Lord and saving this universe.

  Just as the lamia was going to stab me with her dagger, her arm moving right over my body, Commander Sugarbird and Alexia made a forward move toward the lamia, charging at her.

  Alexia shot her with her light crossbow in the neck and Commander Sugarbird drew his long sword, decapitating the beast.

  Alexia and Commander Sugarbird both roll successful melee attacks, making their hits critical and defeating the lamia.

  Cecily and Yves rushed to my aid, helping me to my feet. When the lamia died, the spell was lifted, and I no longer felt compelled to be in a deep slumber. “Man, I wish I had done better,” I said, lowering my eyes to the ground and upset that I did not kill the beast myself, but instead had to be saved.

  “Alexia and Commander Sugarbird, thank you for coming to my rescue,” I said as I hugged both of them. “You two had done better than I had hoped for. I wish I was carrying my weight on this team and performed better.”

  Hamon interrupted, “Ed! Stop this right now! You have vastly improved since the last time I had seen you. You will continue to improve.”

  Chapter Eleven

  “Come on everyone,” shouted Alexia. “We are almost there.” We continued moving at our rapid pace, and I was elated to soon be free from the putrid smell of the sewer system. The water had risen to be almost to my knees, which resembled the height of the water we dealt with when we first came into the sewer system. “Keep up, everyone,” commanded Alexia. Somehow, the injured were able to keep up. Perhaps the notion that they would be out of this sewer system soon motivated them to keep pace with us.

  Yves, Cecily, and Walter trudged along. I stayed close to Hamon, helping him maintain a rapid pace. The last thing I wanted was to have another altercation down here in the sewer. Getting out of here was the only thing that kept me putting one foot in front of the other.

  We sloshed through the sewer a few more meters. I nearly felt as though I could barely go on. My legs, tired from wading in the water, the smell burning my nostrils. Just as I was not certain I could keep going, Alexia announced, “We made it!”

  “Oh good,” I bent over, huffing and puffing.

  Walter patted my shoulder. “Good thing Mistress Lathurna had you activate Mage Light a million times over and over again to build up your stamina and your magic pool,” stated Walter.

  “Mistress Lathurna?” Hamon asked. “I haven’t heard from her in several years. She’s at Draererth?”

  I muttered, “She is.” Tired from all of the attacks, the wading in the sewer, and the not knowing what was around the next corner completely drained me. “She teaches my Elemental Elements class. She’s a very good instructor. She’s part of the reason we are here today. When she caught me preparing for the journey, and I told her it was to rescue you, she didn’t tell Wavernjack until we were long gone.”

  “Kyna was always reasonable like that,” admitted Hamon. “I will be looking forward to catching up with her when I am back at Draererth.” A smile came across Hamon’s face.

  “I believe if we emerge through this sewer grate, it is far enough from the cloister that we shouldn’t be caught anymore from those assassins,” explained Alexia to me while I stood by her. “I’m going to need someone to lift me,” she added.

  Commander Sugarbird came over and picked her up by putting his arms around her legs. “Are you high enough now?” he asked.

  “Yes, this will do,” she answered. Alexia softly lifted the metal grate to examine the street and to make sure it was safe for us to come out of. In less than a second, she set the grate down.

  “What is it?” I asked, panicked that we would not be about to get out of the sewer system. I watched as Alexia jumped down from where Commander Sugarbird held her on his shoulder. She appeared to be pale white, as though she had seen a ghost.

  “There are troops in the street. They’re everywhere. Oh goodness, we are under siege. Arne has been taken over. It is all over for us. Why cruel world?” Alexia cried uncontrollably.

  As Alexia sobbed and appeared as though she had lost all hope, Hamon came over to her and placed his hand on her back while she held her face in her hands. “Dear, did you see the emblem on these troops’ uniforms?” Hamon asked.

  “No,” replied Alexia in between sobs. She regained decorum, wiping her tears from her cheeks. “I can go look though,” she answered. Turning to Commander Sugarbird she asked, “Would you mind lifting me back up again?”

  Commander Sugarbird nodded and picked her up once again. Alexia climbed onto his shoulder while she moved the grate again. “They were wearing an emblem that is green and purple,” Alexia answered to Hamon.

  “Well, that is good news,” he answered, breathing a sigh of relief. I knew what he was referring to after I heard the green and purple, and instantly, my anxiety subsided. “Those troops are under Balfomeir’s command. It’s the Gilmore army.” Hamon turned to me and asked, “How is Balfomeir by the way? I must say, he is one badass Eldritch Knight that you never would expect could unleash a can of whoop-ass.”

  Cecily interjected, “We are not fans.”

  “No? Why not?” Hamon asked.

  “Let’s just say, things between Balfomeir and myself are a little complicated,” I admitted. “And let’s leave it at that.”

  “Very well,” answered Hamon. “Well, if things get hairy, I’ll intervene,” he assured. “Let’s get the hell out of this pungent smelling sewer!”

  Commander Sugarbird lifted Alexia back up, and she removed the grate. One by one, Commander Sugarbird lifted the injured up to Alexia who pulled them through the hole. The commander then lifted Yves, Cecily, and Walter through the hole, each one who made it on the other side helped the next. Finally, Commander Sugarbird lifted Hamon through the hole, with Yves, Cecily, and Walter above to assist with carefully getting his injured body through. “You’re next,” said the commander.

  “Right. While I’m up there, grab a hold of my legs, and the others will pull me through and get you out of here as well,” I explained. The commander lifted me up to Alexia, Cecily, Walter, and Yves who each grabbed a hold of me. “Pull!” I shouted as I felt the weight of Commander Sugarbird on the lower half of my body.

  As I maneuvered my waist through the hole and sat on the street with Commander Sugarbird still attached
to my legs, he worked himself up, emerging his head, then his shoulders. Finally, he was able to climb himself out. “Great job, everyone,” commending Walter.

  Alexia returned the grate over the sewer hole as the rest of us took in our surroundings.

  “Who goes there?” a sergeant of one of the troops shouted at us, leading his squadron over to seize us. “There is a set curfew for all of the villagers. No one is allowed out passed dark.” The troops surrounded us with swords drawn. “I hope you are not intruders. That would make for a not so good situation for you.”

  “Calm down, calm down,” admonished Hamon. “I am a professor from Draererth, my name is Hamon Reid, and these are my students. They came to rescue me and meanwhile, we had evacuated the cloister to get our injured to safety,” explained Hamon.

  “Well, that is good news. So we will not be killing you tonight. Where are you headed?” asked the sergeant of the squadron.

  “Don’t relax so fast there,” corrected Hamon. “Down there in the sewer, it is run with assassins. I’m sure you are familiar with the Brotherhood of the Dark Hand?”

  “I am,” answered the sergeant.

  “So don’t loosen up so fast. The Brotherhood of the Dark Hand are now fighting on Lord Abraxas’ elite squad, the Order of the Blood Thirsty,” explained Hamon.

  “No!” replied the sergeant. “Not the Order of the Blood Thirsty. Those guys have no conscience. They will kill your child while you watch and spare you, so you’d have to live with the consequence, just for looking in the wrong direction.”

  “Correct, they are one heinous bunch,” affirmed Hamon.

  The sergeant continued, “Seems like the Brotherhood of the Dark Hand is hurting for money, or else they would not sell themselves to another establishment.”

  “Your guess is as good as mine,” answered Hamon. “In any case, the Blood Thirsty, who were once the Dark Hand have infiltrated Arne. Edward had an incident with them at the cloister. Then we encountered two different sets in the sewer. My guess is that they are everywhere.”

  “Good to know, good to know,” muttered the sergeant as he went into deep thought regarding the news.

  “In any case, we have some injured people with us, and we would like to get them help. Also, I’m sure the cloister could use some reinforcements as they will be escorting the injured that we could not move from there,” interjected Commander Sugarbird into the deep meditative state the sergeant of the Gilmore squadron was in.

  One of the squadron members whispered into the sergeant’s ear. The commander nodded. He then turned to us and said, “It appears we are looking for a Hamon Reed. We are supposed to bring Hamon to Balfomeir once we found him,” explained the sergeant of the Gilmore squadron. “We will help you as long as you come peacefully with us.”

  “Looks like we don’t have a choice now, do we?” Hamon shot back. “We will follow you.”

  “Very well, you will follow us,” advised the sergeant of the Gilmore squadron. The squadron moved into formation, encapsulating us as we stood between the two lines of men.

  “Forward march!” shouted the sergeant. The men in unison marched forward, and we had no other choice but to move with them, wedged in between the line of soldiers.

  We marched out of the town of Arne, away from the harbor and the sea. “I hope our injured can make it,” I whispered to Yves. “I wonder how much farther.”

  “I have no idea, but the patients seem to be doing just fine,” she replied.

  “That is a relief,” I added.

  The armed escort brought us to a small encampment right near the city wall, which was heavily guarded. As we neared the encampment, smoke billowed from their campfires. Modest at first sight, but troops lined in company rank on the outskirts of the encampment. Mercenaries in a circle, stood just inside of them. In the middle, stood the officers, they were in the very center.

  As we came into the encampment, it was apparent that the men were housed in the tents, perched in between trees. The Gilmore flag flown above the tents, signifying that Arne had in fact the support of Gilmore.

  Looking at the town of Arne from this vantage point painted a different picture of the severity of the situation. The elevated land that the encampment sat on allowed us to see within the city walls. The Gilmore army marched the streets of Arne, escorting all of the villagers back into their homes. Off on the horizon, the dark ships of the Demon Lord loomed, threatening any ship who dared cross the entryway of the harbor.

  It was what I could not see that frightened me even more. The assassins who roamed the city, hiding in the darkness, sneaking into the cloister and stealthily searching for Hamon. That was the real threat.

  “Halt!” the sergeant shouted as we entered the encampment. The soldiers on either side of us came to a sudden stop and stood at attention, their chests puffed out.

  The sergeant walked over to us and said to Hamon, “We will take your injured now. We have an infirmary that we can tend to them there.” The injured and maimed patients who made it all this way with us followed another soldier who led them over to the infirmary.

  “The rest of ya need to follow me,” ordered the sergeant. We followed him with several men from his squadron to a tent that was in the center of the soldiers. The sergeant pulled the curtain that provided privacy to the meeting that was going on.

  “Sorry to interrupt,” said the sergeant to the men who were strategizing over a table draped with a parchment paper map.

  “Sergeant Broadhurst, I told you to not interrupt. Your orders are to monitor our presence within the walls of Arne. I was very clear where you should be. Ever since you were skipped over for a promotion, you have been the nagging thorn in my side. Now be gone with you!” the man in the tent shouted.

  “But sir—“ Sergeant Broadhurst negated.

  “What! What is it?” shouted the voice from the tent.

  “I have what you requested.”

  “Oh?”

  “I have brought to you Hamon. That’s the one you said to bring immediately to you, correct.”

  “That is correct, bring him in!” the man in the tent shouted. Just then two soldiers came behind us and strong-armed us into the tent. As I entered the tent, there I saw the hunched back of the Eldritch Knight with his crooked nostrils who struggled as he breathed. Balfomeir, I did not miss him at all. As he noticed Hamon enter the tent, he stood straight up, well as straight as a hunchback could.

  “Hamon!” Balfomeir exclaimed, appearing to be shocked at the sight of the injured Archmage. Hamon charged at Balfomeir and they met for a strong embrace. “Brother, I had heard you were dead. Thankfully the rumors were not true,” said Balfomeir as his arms encompassed Hamon’s bandaged body.

  “That’s right my friend,” replied Hamon. “Never believe the hype.” As I watched this, I had no idea Hamon and Balfomeir were so close. It was odd, and I did not know how I felt about the whole thing.

  “Hamon, come with me, I have some matters to discuss with you,” said Balfomeir to Hamon after they let go of their awkwardly long embrace. I watched the two move over to the other side of the tent as they engaged in a quiet conversation that was unable to hear.

  The six of us stood along with the two soldiers, trying to figure out what to do while we are waiting. Walter interrupted the silence, “Man, I wish I had packed more lobsters,” he said.

  “You would like to eat lobster right now?” I challenged, wondering where he got his ideas from.

  “Uh, yeah! I am convinced that lobster is the saving grace of this world, and after tonight, I can really use some,” Walter shot back.

  “Fair enough,” I replied. He did have a point; I actually would not mind sitting by the campfire and eating some lobster right now.

  As I was contemplating the fine existence of lobster that Walter so wisely pointed out, my thoughts were disingenuously interrupted. “Edward?” Alexia asked.

  “Oh, Alexia? What is it?”

  “I’m going to head back to the guil
d headquarters now,” she started. “I’d appreciate if you would pay me for the work I completed.”

  “Oh right,” I responded. I dug around in my pockets for the five silver. I found the cold, metallic coins with my fingertips and fished them out and handed them to her. “Here you go,” I said. “Thanks for all of your work.”

  She looked at the five silver coins in her palm and said, “What? No tip?” Astonishment came across her face.

  “Sorry. We agreed on five silver and you got five silver,” I answered.

  “Well, I’ve never!” she said in a huff, turning and whipping me with her hair as she did a cartwheel and three back handsprings as soon as she left the tent. I could barely make out the outline of her body as she moved in the darkness.

  “Sorry things had to end that way,” I said too Yves. “She really was a big help. I wish I could have given her a tip, but those five silver coins were all that I had.”

  Sugarbird came over to me right after Alexia left. “Hey Ed. I’ve got to get going. I better make sure everything is copesthetic back at the cloister,” he said to me.

  “Commander Sugarbird, it has been a pleasure and honor to work with you,” I said as I shook his hand.

  “Likewise,” he answered back. “Even if you weren’t my reinforcements, I thoroughly enjoyed serving next to you. You are truly an incredible mage. Keep it up!” That’s what I liked to hear, I always felt good when I was able to impress the non-magic folk.

  Yves came over to Commander Sugarbird, “Thanks for all of your help,” she said. The two embraced, and Walter and Cecily waved goodbye as the commander headed back to the cloister and to command his charges.