At first the forest seemed normal, though the trees were older and bigger then any trees he had ever seen. Once they were a few hundred paces inside the edge of the forest, it began to get darker. The tops of the trees intertwined and blocked out the light. Anwar conjured a ball of light ahead of them, illuminating an area about a hundred feet around them. He was happy that, at least for now, his magic was still working.
Navaeh followed behind Anwar. She had a connection with nature and, through it, she could feel the life of the forest like nothing she had ever experienced. Forests were always vibrant and alive, but she had never felt one like this. She could sense all of the animals around them, though they were avoiding Anwar’s light. She could feel Messah, flying through the woods. Navaeh connected with her for a moment, looking through her eyes. Seeing the way a hawk does in the dark was disorienting, though, so she released the connection.
Rundo had never truly been in a forest. Something about it was nice. He could feel the life here. The more time he spent with Navaeh the more he appreciated nature. He had spent most of his life in towns and cities. The closest he had ever truly been to nature before meeting her was sleeping on the ground on the side of a road. This was something different, though. There was a purity here.
Grundel’s experience was much different. He had grown up in the dark and was used to enclosed spaces. He also had stronger hearing and could hear the animals scurrying around them. There were animals all around them and above them and he didn’t know which, if any, were a threat. This whole thing was disturbing and uncomfortable. He wasn’t afraid, but he was alert. The forest was no place for a dwarf. Now he understood why dwarves hated nature. His father had told him he had come to enjoy the sky; well, you couldn’t even see the sky here. This wasn’t the same “nature” his father had learned to appreciate.
They had walked for maybe half an hour when Navaeh gasped.
“What? What is it? Do you feel something?” Anwar asked.
Grundel and Rundo had their weapons in hand and were scanning the area.
“No, I just lost my connection with Messah. She was flying just ahead of the light. That must be where the fairy forest truly begins.”
Sure enough, as they continued, the light stopped pushing forward in front of them. When they got to the area where the light stopped, they stopped, too. They all checked their horses. Anwar took the reins of the horse Mariah was strapped to and wrapped them around one hand. He didn’t like that his magic wasn’t going to work here. He reached up and pulled his staff off of the litter. He might not have his magic, but at least he could fight with that if he needed to. He looked around at everyone else. They were all staring at him. He turned and stepped forward, past where his magic had ended.
When he did, everything changed. There was a glowing to the trees. It was just enough to see by, coming from the blossoms of the flowers in the trees. He had never seen anything like it. His anxiety calmed a little. At least he could see.
Messah descended and landed on Navaeh’s shoulder. She still couldn’t connect with her, but it was a comfort knowing she was there. She looked around mesmerized. The trees... she had never seen anything like them. All of her worries fell away. This was the most amazing place she had ever seen. Life radiated here. She could feel the life of the forest as if she were a part of it. Her connection with the land was amplified here. She couldn’t imagine anything more wonderful.
Rundo was amazed as well. He felt calmness here. This was a new kind of beautiful. This was peace. He felt hope. Somehow he was sure that Mariah was going to be fine now. That everything would work out.
Grundel looked around in amazement. He still wasn’t comfortable but he had to admit this place was special. It still wasn’t a place for a dwarf, but there was something magical about it.
Suddenly a woman appeared in front of them. She couldn’t have been more than a foot tall, and she was glowing. She had wings.
“She’s beautiful,” Rundo heard himself say.
“Is that a fairy?” Grundel asked.
Before anyone could respond, the fairy turned and started slowly flying away from them. She turned around after a few seconds, as if to make sure they were following.
Grundel looked around. Rundo and Navaeh were mesmerized. He wasn’t sure if Anwar was mesmerized or just determined. Grundel knew this is what they came for, but he was still suspicious. Everyone they had talked to had warned them against this. He had to keep his guard up.
They followed the fairy for a long time before they finally stopped. They all stood there, staring at the fairy. Then all of a sudden dozens of little women started glowing all around them. They flew down from the trees, all of them no more than a foot tall.
Rundo was enchanted. He had never seen anything so beautiful. It was like every one of them was perfect. Every time he looked at one he fell in love. He realized that he had never truly known happiness until this moment. He never wanted to leave.
Navaeh was exuberant. She was in the fairy forest. She was with the fairies! She had never imagined that she would know such beauty. She had actually dreamt of this, but even her dream had paled in comparison to the reality of it.
Anwar was amazed. They were beautiful. He couldn’t deny that, but he wasn’t as enthralled as Navaeh and Rundo were. He looked at Grundel. He seemed to be impressed, but he was suspicious as well. That was good. Someone needed to be.
Then the one of the fairies flew forward and lighted on a branch in front of them. When she spoke it was like music. It was the most beautiful sound any of them had ever heard. Well, any but Grundel. Her voice sounded beautiful, but something about her just seemed wrong to him. This wasn’t his world. He just didn’t belong here.
“I am Ingannatore. What has brought you so far into the forest?”
Anwar looked at his friends. Rundo and Navaeh were hypnotized by her. Grundel still seemed to be himself.
“We apologize for trespassing,” Anwar said. “We wouldn’t have come if we had any other choice. It’s my wife. Her soul was ripped from her body. We were told the only way to reunite her soul with her body was to have a fairy guide it back from the waiting. I am here to beg for your help. If there is anything I can do to repay you, I will do it.”
“It is a risk to the fairy who does this. Before we do this for you, one of you must give us a life.”
Anwar stepped forward. “You can take my life. Please, just save hers.”
The fairy smiled. “You misunderstand me. We fairies cannot mate. We are all female. If I am to risk one of my fairies to the waiting, one of you must give her a child first.”
Before anyone could respond Rundo stepped forward. “I’ll do it!”
The fairy looked at him and smiled.
Navaeh had been completely hypnotized by the beauty of the fairy, and by her voice. Something about her request had broken that, though. It didn’t make sense; she just couldn’t figure out why.
One of the fairies flew up to Rundo and began to grow. In seconds she was a full-grown woman. She stood naked in front of him.
Rundo was mesmerized. He stood staring at the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Her skin still glowed and she had wings, but she was a woman. He looked down at her perfect feet standing there on green grass. His eyes traveled up her perfectly smooth legs. He could see the crease where her legs met. That was for him. His eyes continued up. She had a perfectly flat stomach; even her navel was sensual and inviting. He was already hard when his eyes came up to her breasts, her beautiful perky breasts. They were the size of small melons with hard, inviting nipples. Rundo was licking his lips. He looked up into her eyes. Her lips were coming to his. They were going to do this here in front of everyone, and it was going to be beautiful...
“Stop!”
Everyone turned to Navaeh. “Those aren’t fairies.”
Rundo was angry. “Of course they’re fairies. Don’t you see them? What else could they be? They are going to save Mariah. We are going to make a fairy.”<
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“These are pixies. They cannot travel into the waiting. They are part human. They are enchantresses. They are the offspring of fairies and mortals. Do not listen to them!”
A dozen pixies grew to full size, grabbed hold of Navaeh, and began flapping their wings. Just as they lifted off the ground, Grundel released one of his axes, which cut the wings off two of the pixies. They screamed in pain as they fell the few feet back to the ground. The others dropped Mariah and flew away.
Anwar saw Grundel’s enchanted axe go flying back to him. Anwar might not be able to access his magic here, but it seemed like magical items were still working. He tried to channel magic through his staff, firing a ball of energy at the pixie who was trying to lure Rundo away. It wasn’t a killing blast—just enough to stun her. His staff was an Al item, which, like other mage-created Al items, grew in power with its creator. That meant that even though he couldn’t draw on his magic he could draw on the magic of his staff, which was equal to his own. He sent a ring of energy out away from him, stunning pixies for a dozen feet in all directions.
“I am Anwar Alamira. I have come to see the fairies. I do not want to hurt you, but if you do not let us go you will all die.”
The fairy who had initially spoken with them came back into view. “Go, Anwar. We will not try to take you or your friends. Please, just leave us in peace.”
“How do we get to the fairies? Don’t lie to me. If you do, you risk the life of my wife and for that I will hunt every one of you down.”
A new voice sounded a reply. “You do not need to make threats. The pixies will not bother you again. Follow me. I will take you to the mother of fairies. She is expecting you.”
The words were music. They hadn’t even come out as words, but as music; yet somehow Anwar had understood them. When he turned in the direction of its source, he saw it—a beautiful golden ball of light. Inside that light was the figure of what he thought was a small woman, but he could not be sure. The light was too bright and beautiful. Anwar knew instantly that this was a true fairy.
Chapter Fourteen
Cannen and the Black Dragons
Cannen walked along next to the Black Dragon. The man was big, but not as big as he was. He was a trained fighter, though. He knew he didn’t have a chance straight up; his only hope was to surprise him. So when they turned onto a main street, Cannen took off running. He knew he wasn’t going to get away; he just needed the warrior to be focused on catching him. He made it maybe a dozen paces before he felt the man grab his arm. He immediately turned and drove his magically hardened knife into the man's chest. There was a slight resistance and then the blade buried to the hilt.
People were clearing out of the way. It was still early and the street wasn’t too busy, but the people who were there moved away quickly. He might be a blacksmith, and that was an occupation that people held in high regard, but no one wanted to interfere with a Black Dragon. When they saw that the man in the black clothing was dead or dying they scattered. Being involved in the killing of one of the Dragons was a promise of death.
Cannen ran down the street and turned back the way they had come. He didn’t stop as he ran past the blacksmith shop that he had just purchased. He would probably never set foot in there again. He turned at the next street and ran as fast as he could back to his brother’s house. If he could just make it back there he would be safe. He would have been safer if he had never set foot in the house, but now that he had, it was his only hope.
The Black Dragon guild had been after Anwar for years now, ever since he had killed one of their mages in Kampar. Anwar had warded his house against intruders. Anyone who tried to enter the house with ill intent would be killed by the magic. Anwar had explained that common thieves and miscreants would just be shocked, but people who came into the house with the intent to harm anyone inside would be hit with a fatal blast of electricity. Anwar had quickly explained everything to him when he left him here, but all he had really got out of it was that he was safe inside the house.
He turned the last corner and was running straight for the front door when a man stepped in front of it. Of course they had left someone here. He rushed forward like he was going to try to tackle the man. The Dragon stood waiting for him with a small club in his hand. He wasn’t going to kill him. They wanted him alive. At the last second Cannen changed direction. He dove through the window to the side of the door and came crashing down in the front room. The Dragon had tried to jump through the window after him, but a bolt of lightning had shot from the window, killing him instantly. His legs were still hanging out the window. Cannen went over and pushed the rest of his body out.
Cannen didn’t know what to do. He went through the house. There was enough food to last a couple of days. What would he do after that? He didn’t know how he would get word to Anwar. That was his only hope. It seemed like every time he looked out the window there was another Black Dragon out there.
Vingaza was furious. The body of the Dragon who had come to tell him that the brother of Anwar Alamira had escaped was lying on the ground in front of him. He shouldn’t have lost control of his emotions like that. He should have known the man would get away. He was Anwar’s brother, after all. The Black Dragon guild had been after Anwar for years. How had they never known that he had a brother? They had been careless. Anwar had changed his name to Alamira when he was elevated to the rank of master in the wizards’ guild in Kampar. Now the brother had escaped. But if he was anything like Anwar, there was one thing he could count on.
Vingaza walked out of his office. There were two young Dragons waiting outside. “One of you get in there, and get that body out of my office before it starts to stink.”
He went and got his personal assassins. They were brothers. “Malvagio, Cattivo. The blacksmith’s shop, the old one that the guard used to use. Go get the old man and anyone who works there. Bring them to the Alamira house.”
The two assassins never said a word. They just turned and walked out of the guild house. It was disturbing how silently they moved. Vingaza was suspicious of everyone. The Black Dragons were, after all, called the children of chaos. It was not uncommon for them to murder each other. He had learned a long time ago to always have a shield up. He had even learned to maintain it in his sleep. There were three men in the world that made him feel like that shield wasn’t enough. Two of them worked for him. The other was Anwar Alamira.
The next time Cannen looked out the window he saw a Black Dragon wizard. He wasn’t really sure what the difference between a mage and a wizard was. Anwar had explained it to him once. Something about a wizard being a general practitioner of magic, like a blacksmith who was able to work on everything. A mage was a wizard who had also risen to master at a certain form of magic, like a blacksmith who rose to swordsmith. He remembered that Anwar had become skilled as a mage in two things. He new one was enchanting. He wasn’t sure what the other was. He thought it was battle magic or traveling; he couldn’t remember. Either way it didn’t help him determine if the Black Dragon outside the house was a wizard or a mage. Everyone who wasn’t part of the magical community used the two words interchangeably anyway. It didn’t really matter. He had no way of fighting a wizard or a mage, and he couldn’t get away without help. He had to hope that somehow word would get to his brother before he starved to death in here. The wizard wasn’t going to wait for that, though. What he saw next proved that.
Vingaza had seen Anwar’s brother looking out the window. He had stood there waiting for Malvagio and Cattivo to arrive. When they did he was not disappointed. They had brought with them the old man and a teenage boy from the smith. He nodded at the old man, and Malvagio held a knife to the man’s neck. “Cannen Callimorsi. Come out now!”
Malvagio didn’t even wait for him to finish speaking. At Vingaza’s first word he ran his blade across the old man’s throat. Then came a gurgling sound as the man tried to breathe blood with his last seconds.
“Come out now or the boy dies with the
old man.” Vingaza had learned that if you were going to use this card and you had two people captive, it worked a lot faster if you killed one right away. Sure enough, the man came right out of the house with his hands up.
Cannen watched as they killed the old man. They hadn’t even given him a chance to come out first. He didn’t even hear what the wizard said next; he was already on his way to the door. He took one step out and stopped. He had to try to get the boy away. “I’m out. Now let the boy go.” He took another step away from the door. “Your men can shoot me down if I try to run back in the house. Let the boy go and I will come with you willingly.”
Vingaza looked at Anwar’s brother. He did resemble him. They both had that big, square forehead that overshadowed their eyes. Then he looked to Cattivo, who was holding the crying teenage boy. He kept trying to fall to the old man’s side but Cattivo held him upright. He nodded to Cattivo, and Cattivo buried his blade in the boy’s back. The blade went deep and punctured the boy’s heart. Vingaza had to admit they were efficient. It was part of what unnerved him.
Cannen watched as they killed the boy, too. He had gotten them killed. He should have remembered. He never should have stayed in this house. His carelessness had gotten them killed. They had been so careful in Kampar. Only a very few people knew about the connection between him and Anwar. His first day in Ambar, and he had blown it. Now these two people had died for it. He tried to run back in the house but some kind of black ghostly tendrils wrapped around him. The tendrils led back to the wizard.
Vingaza carried Cannen in the air next to him as he walked down the streets of Ambar. To his credit, Anwar’s brother was brave. He did not beg or make ridiculous statements about the lives of the innocent. He held his composure. The streets cleared before them. People ran inside their houses. Windows closed and doors were bolted. People moved out of the way for a Black Dragon. They ran in fear from a Black Dragon wizard.
When the procession reached the city’s open square they stopped. This was always the most crowded area of Ambar. Foreign peddlers, dancers, singers, everyone came here to swindle others out of their money. The square was silent as a dozen Black Dragons ascended one of the stages. Vingaza followed. All eyes were on them now. “People of Ambar, you all know of the mage known as Anwar Alamira. Now know this. Anwar Alamira, in his arrogance, has chosen to challenge Delvidge, the great God of Chaos. This man you see before you is called Cannen. He is the brother of Anwar Alamira. Let this be a lesson to you all and the first punishment of many for Anwar’s defiance.”
Rising of a Mage: Book 03 - A Mage Risen Page 7