Broken Mage

by D. W.

  As the day wore on the hope of reaching the underground river began to dwindle. Beginning to tire but not wanting to give up if he was getting close, Thad stopped for a brief moment. It didn’t take long to use his staff to search for the river which showed up as a massive blue glow to his magical sight. It was still a few miles away and while above ground that could be made in under an hour even at a slow pace, underground it could take three times as long depending on the terrain he would be forced to cross.

  With the uncertainly of reaching the river soon, Thad decided to stop for the night. Using his three magical walls he set up a quick room. Safe behind his metal walls Thad used his staff to search the paths up and down the river. He had tried before back in his cavern but because of the distance it had been extremely hard and time consuming for every inch he had checked. Now that he was close he could easily search about four miles in either direction with only a minor drain. One way ended after a few miles but the other seemed to stretch on for far longer than he could survey even as close as he was.

  Thad had hoped that when he reached the river he would be able to quickly trace its roots to an exit but that seemed less likely. Now all he could do was either turn back or follow the only direction left to him and hope it led him to an exit. The second the idea of turning back shot through his mind it was quickly followed by a barrage of dissenting images from his staff.

  Looking down at his staff Thad silently longed for the days when it was just a simple tool for his use. The staff obviously not enjoying the current thoughts sent a jab of pain into his head. What Thad figured was its equivalent to a slap.

  Thad couldn’t help himself and laughed lightly at the object held in his hand. “Who am I kidding? If I haven’t gone insane yet, I sure would have if I was left alone with only my own thoughts. While you’re a pain in the ass sometimes at least you’re something to talk to.”

  The staff answered back with a warm feeling. Even though Thad had gotten used to talking to his staff, lately it had gotten a little more intense. At first it had only been able to send him pictures when he opened his mind and started the communication, now it could do so at will. It had even moved beyond that lately transferring feelings and emotions as well.

  With little else to do, and not wanting to turn in just yet Thad pulled the last letter he had received from the princess. He had read the letter many times, each time hoping to find the reason to why she had gone silent.

  Thad it is good to hear you are doing well. I hope you will find your way home to us soon. Things have been a little hectic around the palace since you have been gone. Mother has got all but two of the nobles in line with the new laws. Lady Demit, and Lady Spencer are proving to be the most difficult.

  That aside, the black cloaked man has continued to return and mother’s spies informed her that a large number of his friends are staying at one of the local inns. He still refuses to tell us what he wants with the information. He just demands that mother release all knowledge she has of you and your current whereabouts.

  Mother has played it cool so far. Telling the man little tidbits of information. She swears that last she had heard you had fallen in the battle of Southpass and were now in the hands of the Ablaians. He has taken the information in stride and as far as I can tell has never been happy or depressed about it, but he continues to return with more questions.

  Tomorrow is my thirteenth birthday so I must get ready for the coming party. It will not be the same without you. I hope you are able to make it back to us soon.

  Your friend Maria.

  Thad folded the note back up and placed it carefully in his pack. Had something happened at the party? Even if he knew in what direction the palace was, and he could search that far all he would be able to see would be the magical array surrounding the area. It was like looking at a painting through a broken bottle. You got the general idea of what was going on but nothing detailed.

  It was frustrating to think one of his friends might be in danger and he was helpless to save them. In his case it was a fact of life. Right now stuck who knows how far below the surface of the earth he could barely help himself.

  That night as he slept Thad’s dreams were filled with the princess. Who was chained to a wall much the same way he had been in his stay in the palace dungeons. She was crying for him to save her, but as hard as he ran he only drifted farther away. Then the dream changed and it was Monique who was trapped in a dirty ally. The dream shifted again and he found himself staring at Eloen who sat on the ground of a sloping hill pounding her fist on a freshly dug grave weeping openly.

  The visions of the three women who he had cared for in such pain forced him to wake in a cold sweat. After a few minutes he was able to stop his shaking body. Reassuring himself that it was only a dream then laid back down and fell into a far from peaceful sleep.

  CHAPTER IV

  Thad reached the underground river shortly after he began his third day in the lightless tunnels. The river wasn’t overly large at only five feet across and between five and six feet deep. The one thing that did catch his attention was the glowing masses that darted around under the dark water.

  Using his magic Thad lit up a large area of the water to find glowing fish swimming around in its depths. They were of all different sizes and shapes. Most of them looked ugly with bulbous faces and no eyes that Thad could see. How the fish looked meant little to him, his main concern was if they were edible and if the water was drinkable. If not he was going to be in for a very uncomfortable next few days.

  His first task would be catching one of the fish. It seemed an easy enough task. Using one of his rings Thad sent a stunning blast into the water catching two of the fish in its blast. The water was moving much faster than he had anticipated and the fish were quickly swept out of sight.

  On the next try instead of paralyzing the fish he simply used his own stores of magic to grab ahold of one and yank it from the moving water. Once the fish was on dry land he quickly stunned it so that it couldn’t flip itself back into the water.

  The fish looked much like a salmon though its head was much larger than the rest of its body and its scales glowed like a candle. Focusing on the fish he studied it intently with his magic until he was sure that eating it posed no threat to him. The only thing he dreaded was the first taste. It might be edible but that didn’t insure it would taste good. He still remembered the first time he had eaten one of the cave lizards. While filling, the taste made him think of what his boots must taste like soaked in sweat after a long days walk.

  The water would be drinkable after a small amount of cleaning. It wasn’t dangerous without it but the water did hold a small amount of metal dissolved within it. With a semi-clean supply of water and plenty of fresh meat his day was looking up. He had skipped breaking his fast so he figured now was good a time as any to try out his new meat.

  It didn’t take long to set up two of his walls for protection. He thought about setting up all three but it didn’t seem necessary unless the water was hiding some dangerous beast. The more he thought about it the more likely it seemed but it wasn’t as if he was going to sleep.

  Thad didn’t have any wood to cook with but he had learned that he could easily cook the meat using heat without fire. All he had to do was arrange a few stones as if he were building a fire. He placed the meat on the stones and then concentrated on them heating up. Within moments the stones would start glowing a bright red. Thad was sure it would also work well for smoking but it was one thing he had been unable to figure out how to make an enchantment to do for him. And while the magic involved was not great, having to sit there and concentrate for hours on end while the meat dried didn’t seem like a good use of his time. Not to mention the energy used would offset the benefit.

  After his meal was cooked Thad knocked the still glowing stones into the water. He had learned what a hot stone could do to an exposed foot and was in no hurry to experience it again. The fish smelled appetizing and thankfully it’s glowin
g ended when it had been descaled. Thad had eaten a lot of unappetizing things in his life but he didn’t think he could eat something that glowed in the dark.

  He anxiously took his first bite chewing it slowly. It was a very juicy and tender, its flavor was odd but not in a bad way. As he ate Thad thought back to his time at the palace and how the cook often had sent out a rich butter sauce with the fish.

  As he ate Thad watched the fish swimming and remembered how the mages of the past had made a moss that filtered smell as well as a small organism that ate waste, breaking it down into the best fertilizer found in the northern kingdoms. Had they studied other living things that could produce the same effect and isolated the beings particular skill? If that was true Thad might be able to learn how to make something glow without the constant draw of magic if he studied the unique fish.

  He had plenty of time while he walked and thanks to all of his enchantments his magic was mostly freed up. There would be a slight chance that it would distract him from noticing an impending danger. After giving it a lot of though he decided it would be more prudent to stop a little earlier and study the fish before he laid down to sleep rather than risking getting himself injured by inattentiveness.

  With his meal finished Thad took down his magical walls and started his walk following the river. Most of the time the tunnel allowed him plenty of room but every so often the path would disappear. The first time this happened it took Thad awhile to figure out how to continue on. He could see where the tunnel widened more but at the fast pace the water was traveling there was no telling how far it would sweep him downriver if he tried to swim. Not to mention it would be impossible to tell if all his magical items would survive the trip.

  He had finally tried a series of different maneuvers to cross the water. After a few attempts he had found a successful tactic. All he had to do was cast the same spell on his left foot that was on his right stump. The added height did make him a little off-balance when he stepped but it allowed him to walk on the water with little trouble. Though the water wasn’t hard it still registered as a solid object below him and the spell responded in the same way pushing him up.

  As long as he didn’t stand still for more than a few seconds he could move across the water’s surface without trouble. He wasn’t sure why the water just didn’t part sending him to the bottom of the river but who was he to argue with what worked.

  The first day of travel went well all things considered. And when he found a place where the tunnel widened giving him plenty of room for his magical walls Thad decided to stop for the night. He started off with only two walls that stretched almost to the edges of the water. He knew before he lay down to sleep he would have to completely close off the small room, but this allowed him a measure of protection while still allowing him access to the water and glowing fish.

  After eating two of the fish Thad pulled a third one up to study. The creature was fascinating. He didn’t know why he didn’t notice while he was flaying the creatures but their scales were translucent and some type of liquid coated them on the inside. Once exposed to air the liquid glowed for a short time on his fingers but began to dim quickly. The only problem he ran into was that the fish died too quickly once outside of the water for an in-depth study of the animal.

  His mind still deep in thought Thad placed the last wall up closing himself off from the world around him. Laying back on the ground he tried to think of different ways he might be able to reproduce the fish’s effect in other animals or plants. Remembering the queen’s gardens and the glowing lilies he made a mental note to study them when he returned. It was possible that they were natural but even if they were he might still be able to learn something from their study.

  The next few days passed by quickly in a routine manner. With a supply of fresh water and food as well as the almost artistic glowing dance from the water the trip had so far been enjoyable. He was surprised he hadn’t encountered any other creatures in the dark. With such a large body of water he was sure that he would have to fight his way through many creatures that had already claimed dominion over the area. The fact he had been left to his own devices had been slightly depressing.

  Everything seemed to be going well until Thad found himself staring into a clean rock face with no perceivable way to continue on. The water seemed to simply disappear into the rock. Using his mage sight he could see that it flowed into a massive underground cavern through a gap at the bottom of the river.

  It was impossible to tell what exactly was on the other side. He knew it was filled with water with some room for air but it was hard to tell just using his magical sense. It still wasn’t too soon to turn back but at this point he didn’t really want to. He knew his staff was right if he didn’t force himself to continue on he might just find himself an old man puttering around in these caves waiting for death to claim him.

  Following the river wasn’t a problem. All he had to do was jump in and swim to the bottom and let it carry him. The problem was keeping his belongings dry and safe with him. He didn’t want to lose the princess’s letters or any of his magical items. The answer seemed simple enough. All he had to do was form a shield around him that would hold out the water. The second problem was much harder. What would he do if the space further on didn’t have enough air for him to breathe? After surviving thus far he didn’t want it to end by drowning due to his own stupidity.

  At first he had tried linking the shield to the ground above but after less than four hundred feet or so the magical drain became too much. After two days of endlessly trying to figure out a solution to his problem he was beginning to get agitated.

  Gazing down at the fish swimming around he started wondering how they were able to breath underwater. Focusing on one of the larger creatures he followed it with his magical sense trying to see if he could figure out how it functioned. He could see that the gills pulled air from the very water as it passed through them.

  The process seemed simple enough; all he had to do was get his shield to mimic the effect. It didn’t take long to get the basic feel for the spell down, now all he had to do was test it, and the only way to do that was to get in the water. If he did that he knew there was no coming back up. He wanted to just jump in and see what happened but his better judgment won the battle. While he could hold the spell for a good time, sooner or later he would need to take a break. He had brought gems and a small supply of metal with him. If he made some enchanted rings with the new shield spell it would give him a chance to rest even if he found himself in a place without air.

  It took what he believed to be two days to get everything ready. He had made five rings though he hadn’t tested them. They each had two gems since he had been unable to make the new spell work as an individual enchantment. It was hard to tell how long they would last but there had only been minor changes in the shield composition to force it to keep out everything. He still believed it should last a good two to three hours before it began to wane.

  Looking down into the dark water Thad took one final breath to steady his nerves and stepped over the edge. He didn’t fall straight down as he expected, as he forgot about the enchantment on his right foot that had him bobbing in and out of the water like a piece of driftwood.

  Laughing at his own ineptitude Thad turned off the enchantment to his foot and let the water pull him down. It was an odd feeling being pulled under the water without any ever touching him. He had made his shield so it stayed close to his body to keep from wasting excess energy so the water was simply inches away yet he remained dry.

  He was pulled along in the darkness for a long time. His new spell seemed to be working as expected as he hadn’t had any trouble breathing so far. The only trouble he ran into was when he could feel the weakening of his first ring. He hadn’t anticipated changing out his rings while he was still floating in the water. No matter how fast he was there would still be a brief moment where the water would be able to reach him. That didn’t seem bad on its own but if he was comple
tely submerged when the second ring was activated the water would be trapped inside with him.

  Thad didn’t have a long time to find a way around his current predicament so he did the first thing that came to mind. He cast a shield around his entire body around the one already encompassing it. Turning off one shield ring he quickly activated the next then let his own magical shield go. It had worked perfectly and he was still dry with a new ring powering his protection. He still had three rings left and didn’t want to use them unless he had to, in the event he was forced to sleep while still underwater.

  When his second ring was about halfway through its magical reserve the underground river began to slow down. And within moments he found himself able to stand once again. Using one of his rings to illuminate the area Thad found himself in a wide cavern where the water had pooled into a large underground lake. He couldn’t see the walls of the cavern but that meant very little with his limited vision.

  Thad continued on walking on top of the water. The main problem he faced was that without a point of reference it was hard to tell what direction he was heading. For all he knew he was walking in circles. When he finally found a small section of rock that jutted from the water big enough for him to lay on he decided it was a good time to stop and rest.

  As far as he was concerned the day had been a success. He was no closer to an exit as far as he knew but his new spells had worked perfectly. So far he had to fight for every little piece of magic he had learned but lately it had come much more naturally to him. As long as he could figure out the principles the spell worked on it was easy to recreate it.

  As much as he enjoyed using his magic he wished he had a fresh supply of wood to make a raft. While he was resting he picked up a small stone and tried to change it enough so that it would float but no matter what he tried the rock refused to stay above the water. He didn’t really expect the spell to work but it was something to occupy his time while his meal cooked.