Simon threw several small rocks on to the weed pile. No matter how many of the damned things they dug up, the stones always seemed to return to plague them. Maybe the stupid things grew back just like the weeds.
“No master, but I understand.”
Kronk smacked his hands together and took a critical look at the row of plants.
“These look fine, master. I will dispose of the garbage.”
The wizard stood up and leaned back. His spine cracked loudly in several spots and he sighed in relief.
The little guy smiled up at him.
“The day is warm, master. Perhaps a swim to wash off the dirt?”
“Brilliant idea, my friend. I'll go and get my swimming things.”
Simon turned away, walked several steps and turned back.
“What should I do?” he asked simply.
Kronk looked at him and Simon was warmed by the deep affection he saw in the earthen's eyes.
“Be ready, master. For anything.”
He looked Simon up and down and put his small hands on his hips.
“And please, in the name of all the ancient wizards, master; wear a robe tonight.”
Simon laughed in surprise as he realized what he was wearing; a threadbare pair of sweat pants and a gray tank top, both of which were, as usual, miles too big for him. He'd put them on without thinking. His bare feet were quite dirty.
“I'll do that. Thanks, Kronk.”
The little guy waved and began shifting the pile of refuse.
Back in the tower, Simon grabbed his bathing things, stripped down to his loincloth and went out again. He made his way down to the lake and, after testing the water and finding it cool but not cold, waded in with a bar of soap.
He spent a long time after washing up just floating in the middle of the small lake and blindly staring up at the deep blue sky. He was trying to think through various scenarios of what might happen during the ceremony and come up with ways to counter them, but the variables were too confusing. He had no way of knowing what Esmiralla was up to, if she was up to anything at all. And if she was, what exactly could he do to stop her when she was quite literally inside his head? Blow his own brains out?
“Yeah, there's the solution, Simon,” he murmured as the water lapped against his body. “You're an idiot.”
“Well, I wouldn't say that, but don't let me stop you from doing so.”
Simon rolled his eyes to the right and saw Aeris hovering just above the surface of the lake, a few feet away.
“Good morning,” he said as he flipped around and began treading water. “Where have you been?”
“Oh, here and there,” Aeris replied vaguely. “Went down to check on our ursine neighbors. It has been a while. When this is over with, you really should head down there and try to set up a dialog. They could be useful allies.”
The wizard swam slowly back to shore, grabbed his towel and began drying off. Aeris followed along.
“You think so?” Simon asked dubiously. “I'm not so sure. I mean, a humanoid bear is still a bear, which means one good swipe of a paw and I'm dead.”
“I know that, my dear wizard. Naturally I would make first contact, feel them out, see if they are hostile or not. We can go from there.”
“Let's talk about it after tonight, okay? It's the full moon, you know.”
“I'm an air elemental. Of course I know.”
Simon finished drying off, put on clean underwear and his shoes and began walking up the gentle slope toward the tower. Chief and the other horses cantered by him and the big stallion whinnied as he passed. The wizard smiled and waved.
“Anyway, I asked Kronk this, so now I'm asking you; what should I do?”
Aeris hurried to catch up and floated along beside Simon's right shoulder.
“Do? If the dragon turns out to be treacherous, you mean?”
The wizard nodded.
“Hmm. Well now, that's a hard one to answer. We don't know if she really is planning something deceitful, do we? And if she is, what is it? The silver dragons, as I told you once, were incredibly powerful in their day. On par with the most powerful of the evil dragons. And even though Esmiralla isn't a primal, she must be considered very close to one in sheer strength. I would say that if she is going to do something during or after this ritual of hers, you may have to wait until it is done to respond.”
Simon stopped abruptly and looked at the elemental.
“Seriously? That's your advice; wait and see?”
“If you have a better plan, I'm all ears,” Aeris replied with a shrug.
The wizard began walking again, thinking hard.
It wasn't the fault of either elemental; they knew as much about the situation as he did, which was nothing. All three of them could be completely wrong about Esmiralla and her intentions. She was a dragon, after all, and he was sure that dragons didn't think like other beings, natural or supernatural. Aeris was right. He would simply have to wait and see what happened under the full moon.
“You're right, I guess. I'll have to try to be prepared and play it by ear,” he said as he entered the tower. “But as a plan, I hate it.”
“I don't blame you.”
While Aeris stayed downstairs and stoked the fire, Simon went up to his bedroom to get dressed. He was thinking about the ominous night ahead and didn't really pay attention to what he was doing until he found himself staring at his reflection in his closet mirror.
“What the hell?” he said in surprise.
He was wearing a baggy pair of black pants and a short-sleeved button-down shirt. He had put them on automatically.
“Exactly who are you?” he asked himself in the full-length mirror. “And what have you done with Simon O'Toole?”
He undressed again angrily and flung the clothes back into his bureau. Then he deliberately chose a dark blue robe from his closet, slipped it off of its hanger and over his head.
The garment felt very strange and rough against his skin and for a moment he was consumed by revulsion, like he'd just stroked a snake. And then the sensation was gone as quickly as it came and the robe felt familiar and comfortable again.
Damn, that was creepy, he thought as he slipped on his indoor shoes and headed for the stairs.
On the main floor, Simon was happy to find that Aeris had made him coffee for a change, dipping into his limited supply. Kronk had joined him and both were talking quietly. The earthen was adjusting the logs in the fireplace while Aeris watched.
“Thanks Aeris,” the wizard said as he took the steaming cup from the counter and sat down in his comfy chair in front of the fire.
“You're welcome. I'm pleased to see you properly dressed for a change.”
“As am I, master,” Kronk said approvingly as he finished moving the logs around and dusted off his hands.
The two elementals moved to stand in front of the fire. They looked up at Simon and he smiled back at them.
“Me too. It was weird though. I actually put on the wrong clothes at first, without thinking, then took them off again and put on the robe. And for just a moment, it felt damned strange.”
He sipped the coffee and savored the flavor as the elementals exchanged a look.
“That could be quite telling,” Aeris said to Kronk.
“I agree. Just like we were saying this morning, isn't it? She may be trying to minimize his power by making him wear those mundane clothes.”
“Possibly. At least this time he didn't go along with it though; that's a good sign.”
“Uh, guys? I'm right here,” Simon said and tapped on the floor with his heel.
Aeris looked up at him and cocked his head to one side.
“We're well aware of that, my dear wizard. Do you always have to be the center of every conversation?”
The wizard felt his ears getting red at the remark.
“Well no, of course not. But I hate people talking about me as if I'm not in the same room with them when I am.”
Kronk gave him
a contrite look while Aeris seemed to consider the remark. He nodded once.
“Fair enough. What we were saying was basically what you and I spoke about earlier. Constricting a spell-caster, clothing-wise, limits their flow of power. It doesn't stop it, of course, but it does alter it somewhat. It is possible that the silver dragon is subtly trying to make you less able to counter whatever it is she is planning. If she's planning anything, that is.”
“May I ask a question, master?”
Simon looked at the earthen.
“Kronk, you know you don't have to ask permission to ask a question. Anything you want to know, ask away. Always.”
The little guy smiled his appreciation.
“Then, master, I would like to know something; when did you last use your magic?”
“My magic? You mean, cast a spell?”
Kronk nodded.
“Hmm, good question. Let me think.”
Simon snuggled into his chair and sipped his coffee, trying to remember.
He hadn't used his power to light any candles recently. Instead he would light one off of the fire and use it to light the others.
The wizard frowned to himself.
That's a weird thing to do, isn't it, he thought. What else has been happening that I haven't noticed?
“When did you last speak to any other humans?” Aeris asked, cutting into his confused thoughts.
“You mean, like in Nottinghill Castle?”
“Them or your friend Daniel in the elven realm, or anyone else for that matter.”
“Um.”
Simon thought about it some more. His mind seemed to be fighting him, fogging his memories and making it hard to focus.
“Okay, this is some weird crap that's going on right now,” he blurted out.
“What is the problem, master?” Kronk asked anxiously.
“I can't seem to remember. It's like everything is blurry, mashed together. I can't figure out exactly how long it's been since I cast a spell. Is that strange or what?”
“Simon!” Aeris snapped urgently.
The wizard stared at him in surprise. The air elemental rarely used his name.
“Stand up, right now, and cast a spell,” he continued.
“What? Why?”
“Must you question everything I ask? Just do it and I'll explain why later.”
Grudgingly Simon pushed himself to his feet and walked to the middle of the room.
“What do you want me to cast?”
“Doesn't matter. Anything. Try...your shield spell.”
The wizard looked at him, trying to figure out what Aeris was up to. The elemental looked back at him intently.
Simon sighed and rolled his eyes.
“Fine. Whatever.”
He looked around and noticed his staff leaning against the wall next to the front door.
Might as well do this right, he thought and walked over to grab it.
“Hey Mortis de Draconis. Long time no see.”
He frowned and wiped off the staff with his sleeve. It was covered with a thin layer of dust.
“Guys? How long since I used old Mortis here?” he asked the elementals.
Both of them had moved to stand on the kitchen table and were watching him closely.
“Weeks, master.”
“Weeks?” Simon stared at Kronk. “Are you sure?”
“I am sure, master. It has been a long time.”
Simon stroked the staff.
“What the hell have I been doing? Esmiralla, are you there?” he asked sharply.
Nothing. No answer.
“Typical. The one time I want to talk to her, she's gone. Fine then, let's do this.”
He raised the staff and watched as his arm began to shake, as if the length of light metal suddenly weighed a hundred pounds.
“What the hell?” he muttered. “Screw it, I'm not stopping now.”
He slammed the end of Mortis against the floor and the sound echoed through the entire tower.
“Shield!”
A translucent globe appeared around the wizard extending six feet in all directions. A smell of ozone hung thick in the air and the shield crackled with static electricity. At the same time, the air seemed to become brighter and the room sharpened, objects coming into focus.
“What?”
Simon looked around open-mouthed. Why, even the colors were more vibrant and rich.
“What is wrong, master?”
“I don't know. Nothing, now.”
The wizard looked over at the elementals.
“It's like everything was gray and drab and is now suddenly full of light and color.”
He took a deep breath.
“Even the air smells cleaner and sweeter. Aeris, what the hell just happened?”
The air elemental looked quite pleased with himself.
“It is what I suspected, my dear wizard. For some reason, the silver dragon has stifled your powers and muddled the paths of magic that permeate your body. That in turn made it less likely that you would want to cast any spells and that reinforced the control she has exerted over you. Casting that spell has cleaned up your pathways, so to speak, and allowed your power to flow as it should.”
“You knew this would happen?” Simon asked him, still amazed at how clear-headed he suddenly felt.
“I only hoped,” Aeris told him. “It was a long shot, but happily it seems to have had the desired effect.”
Simon stretched and breathed deeply. He felt...amazing.
“Well, good job,” he told the elemental. “If I was paying you, you would have just earned a raise.”
Aeris looked at Kronk, who shrugged, and then back at Simon.
“I don't know what that means, but you're welcome, I guess. Glad to have the real wizard back.”
He frowned then.
“But what happens when Esmiralla returns and finds that the old wizard has returned? Won't she know that you suspect something?”
“Will she?”
Simon canceled his shield and it shimmered, fizzled and faded away. He put his staff back in its place and gave it an affectionate pat before walking back to the kitchen counter.
“Esmiralla has already told me that she can't read my mind,” he continued as he hung the kettle over the fire again.
“If that's true and I play the part of the befuddled wizard, she won't know.”
He glanced down at himself.
“But I refuse to go back to the jeans and t-shirt look. The robe stays. If she doesn't like it, tough.”
Kronk began shaking his head and Simon paused as he was rinsing out his cup.
“What?”
“Master, that is a very bad idea. If the silver dragon is plotting something, you must not tip her off. You should continue to dress as you have been and play your part.”
The wizard leaned back against the counter and rubbed his eyes, feeling desperately tired of his situation.
“Yeah, I guess you're right,” he said reluctantly. “How negatively will it affect my powers?”
“It shouldn't be too severe,” Aeris told him thoughtfully. “The fact that you are aware of what is happening now is what's important. Plus, just casting that one spell re-energized your magical pathways. It should be fine.”
“Let's hope so.”
A sensation, just an itch in the back of his mind, made Simon shiver and he quickly looked at the elementals with wide eyes.
“She's coming back!” he hissed and raced toward the stairs.
He leaped up the steps and into his bedroom, yanking off his robe as he went. He tossed the garment into his cupboard, grabbed a random pair of pants and a shirt and frantically put them on.
He was walking back out of the room, breathing slowly to quiet his heart rate, when the silver dragon's presence returned full force.
'Good morning, wizard. How are you feeling this day?'
“Fine, thanks. Raring to go,” Simon replied as he walked down the stairs. “Big day, after all.”
> 'It certainly is. The biggest. Before this coming night passes, we shall be free of each other.'
She paused and the wizard walked across the main floor to the kitchen counter. Not surprisingly, Aeris and Kronk had disappeared. Simon didn't blame them.
'I assume you are pleased that you will finally be rid of me?'
Simon saw that the kettle was steaming on the counter and made his tea.
“I think we both will be. After all, you must feel trapped inside of my mind, don't you?”
'Yes and no,' Esmiralla replied. 'I can project my thoughts out of your body and travel the world, so I am not totally restricted to what I can see and hear in this state.'
Aha. So that's what she does, Simon thought. Interesting.
“Good to know.”
He made his tea and settled into his chair in front of the fire.
“Are you going to tell me what this whole ritual entails? I should know, shouldn't I?”
'It is simplicity itself,' the dragon said loftily. 'Just do what you are told when I tell you and we will get through it. However, if you deviate in the slightest, the ceremony will fail and the items your elementals retrieved will be wasted.'
“And we'll have to start the whole thing all over again,” Simon said with a frustrated sigh. “I get it.”
'Good. Play your part, I shall play mine and we will be two separate beings again by this time tomorrow.'
Her presence faded again and Simon sipped his tea and stared at the flickering flames.
“And not a moment too soon,” he whispered.
Chapter 7
The day passed at a snail's pace from Simon's perspective. Esmiralla's presence hovered in the back of his mind and he was hyper-sensitive to it and everything that he was doing.
He had changed his clothes and now wore baggy old jeans and a misshapen gray sweater; both felt strange against his skin but he knew that he had to continue to play his part.
Kronk and Aeris came and went as usual, but there wasn't a lot of conversation between any of them. The wizard could tell by the not-so-subtle looks the elementals gave him in passing that they were as nervous as he was. They were afraid of letting the silver dragon know that they suspected her of trickery. It made Simon a bit paranoid and he spent most of the day just aimlessly moving from one room to the next, trying to stay calm.
Tales from the New Earth: Volume Two Page 48